Life of Wilder: Week Twenty-Two

Our hearts are going out this week to all our fellow Southerners affected by the horrible storms and tornadoes over the past few days. Paul and I are so thankful that our families and friends remained safe and we wish a speedy recovery to the towns and neighborhoods that were damaged. To donate to the relief efforts through Salvation Army click HERE and write "April 2011 Tornado Outbreak" in the Designation field. Wilder's showing his support in his camo this week :) Hang in there, y'all!

We had a fun, relaxing Easter last weekend. I decided last minute that I needed to make a traditional Easter lunch for us since our Christmas meal was less than stellar. I bought a delicious spiral-cut ham and made green bean casserole, deviled eggs, and rolls. Even though I bought the smallest ham I could find it still ended up being over 8 pounds so, needless to say, we ate ham for pretty much every meal until Wednesday. At that point, I had ham coming out my ears and I couldn't even think about eating another bite of it. We still had about a third of it left though so I pulled the rest off the bone, divided it into single portions, and froze it. Who knows if it will be any good when we finally feel like eating ham again but I just couldn't bring myself to throw it away... it was sooo delicious! 

After lunch I dressed Wilder in his cute little Easter outfit and we took some quintessential Easter pictures. Even though it was overcast and chilly, we had a great day just hanging out together after Paul had been gone all week. I love my little family :)

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On Monday Wilder and I went over to my dog park friend Ashley's house to watch the Lifetime movie about Prince William and Kate's courtship. I honestly cared nothing about watching this but I really wanted to get the babies together because they only ever see each other from their carriers at the park and Wilder doesn't have any other friends his age yet. It was actually really fun because we just ended up making fun of how awkward the movie was the whole time and Wilder and her little girl, Lorelai, loved looking at each other and playing with their feet. As you'll hear more about later in the post, Wilder is all about grabbing things this week so he kept trying to hold Lorelai's hand -- it was too cute :)

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I hate to say this after the awful weather the South has been having but it's been so pretty here this week. This has really been the first week that it's felt warm enough to get Wilder out in the yard and we have both enjoyed being outside so much. He loves lying on a blanket in the grass watching the dogs run around and I've been having fun fixing up the yard. I've weeded the front flower bed over and over since we moved in but it seems like the weeds grow back ten-fold every time. Finally this week I decided to take charge once and for all. I weeded, sprayed with Roundup, mulched, and finally put down some Preen to hopefully prevent more weeds from coming up. I also bought some geraniums to hang on the front porch (hopefully I can keep them alive) and got Paul to mow the yard. It looks about 50 times better than before and, although it's a big commitment for someone for whom yard work has never even touched the priority list, I'm determined to keep it looking nice so we can keep enjoying it. And don't worry (Grana) I always have Wilder in the shade unless he's completely slathered with sunscreen :) Oh, and I also ordered him an outdoor swing to hang in one of the trees. I can't wait for it to get here... He's going to LOVE it!

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We've also been going to the dog park a lot this week with Ashley. It's much more fun to have someone to walk with so we've been staying like 3x longer than usual. I'm so glad to have another mom to hang out with. We both want to see "Water for Elephants" and decided to take the babies Thursday morning to the matinee. 

Lorelai had already been to several movies but it was Wilder's first. I was going to feed him right when we got there but we walked in during a preview for a movie whose premise apparently was some sort of explosion competition (I thought they tailored movie previews to the type of movie showing? Why they thought moms and old ladies at a matinee of "Water for Elephants" would be interested in "Explosion Movie 2" is beyond me.). Anyway, it was SO loud and Wilder totally freaked out. Obviously, just-woke-up-from-nap + hungry + ridiculously-loud-explosions-50-feet-away = screaming baby who won't eat because, let's face it, what's the point of eating when the world is in the process of being demolished? There was no calming him down while that dumb preview was on so I took him out in the hall and nursed him. By the time we got back in the theater the movie had started and he was perfectly fine the whole rest of the time. He sat in my lap so nicely playing with his links, sucking/chewing on his paci, and he even slept for like 45 minutes. I was so proud of him. 

Now we know we can take him to a movie if we want. We just have to choose the movie wisely -- "Oh Paul, I think we better go to a chick flick so he doesn't get scared" ;) -- and wait for the previews to end before we go in. Sidenote: I've watched two movies this week with Wilder, which is two more a week than I'd like him to watch. When he's awake I much prefer to be doing something productive/interactive with him. I think a movie every now and then is OK but he doesn't gain anything from them so in the future I'm going to suggest to Ashley that we go to Balboa Park or the zoo or something instead when she wants to get together. Anyway, not that y'all care, I just wanted to get that out there to remind myself. 

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So, Wilder's new thing this week is reaching for and grabbing things. Last time we went to Gymboree some of the other babies were reaching out for the bubbles that were blowing around the room and I mentioned to Paul afterwards that Wilder never reached for things. Well, apparently I spoke too soon because now he reaches for everything. I have to be careful when I'm carrying him around the house because if I walk to close to something he'll reach out and grab it and if I let him he pulls himself toward it and tries to put his mouth on it, haha. I'm talking the screen door, door frames, bookshelves, the refrigerator, mirrors. If I'm sitting with him and the dogs walk by he reaches out for them every time. This morning I had him in my lap on the floor and Rider was lying in front of us. He reached for her so I let him lean toward her and he grabbed her with both hands and then proceeded to put his mouth on her back. He got the worst look on his face when that resulted in a face full of fur :) Also, this week at the dog park whenever our dogs run by he reaches out his arms for them, even though they're yards away from us. I think it's amazing that he recognizes which ones are Rider and Posey and ignores the others. It really is so cute and I'm loving this new development. I can't wait for him to reach out his arms for us when he wants to be picked up. 

 He was reaching for the table so I let him sit there and 

hold onto it. He thought that was pretty fun :)

He discovered his shadow and of course had to try to grab it :)

My mom asked me why Posey hadn't been in many pictures lately and I think the new grabbing thing is the reason. She prefers to not have her ears/skin/tail pulled so she's started lying farther away from him when we're playing. Rider obviously doesn't care how much abuse she has to take, she just wants to be the first one there when he spits up... gross, I know.

Multitasking -- chewing on a toy while 

pulling Rider's fur and kicking her

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We are so excited for Aunt Lauren who graduates from Mississippi State today! Congrats, Lauren! You've worked so hard and now it's on to vet school... We are so proud of you and know you will make a wonderful and compassionate veterinarian one day!

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Here are a couple more cute pictures from this week...

There he goes reaching again... He was 

sooo not interested in pictures this week

 Helping Daddy work on a project... 

until he started banging on the keyboard

Sitting up playing with his Mozart Magic Cube

Alright guys, hope everyone has a good weekend!

Life of Wilder: Week Twenty-One

Happy Easter!

Well, call me stupid but the consensus from last week's question is that Wilder is in fact not five months old until next Tuesday, the 26th. Oh well. I don't know all the technicalities of this baby stuff. But at least I've got that figured out now... it only took me (almost) five months :) 

Having Paul gone this week has been pretty hard but not as hard as I thought it would be. I mean, for the most part I'm with Wilder by myself all day even when Paul's in town so not much has changed. I just miss being able to wind down with him at night and the occasional morning play time that he takes over so I can nap. The first half of the week did suck though because I was still sick from last week. It started out as an awful sore throat and then turned into horrible congestion. My nose was literally running off my face. I don't know if it was a cold or just allergies, but luckily Wilder didn't catch it. That would have been the worst: being sick and taking care of a sick baby too. 

Anyway, let me back up to last weekend before Paul left. Friday I got an email from a children's boutique that I love in South Park saying they were having an Easter egg hunt on Saturday and the Easter Bunny was going to be there. Sidenote: I'm totally grossed out by mall Santas and Easter Bunnies -- germs from all the other little kids they've been holding plus you never know who's under that costume -- so even though I really wanted Wilder's picture with Santa over Christmas there was no way I was handing my four-week-old over to a germ-ridden possible ex-con at the mall. But I was determined to get one with the Easter Bunny and, since I knew this store's bunny was going to be one of the girls that works there and I'm about 99% sure she doesn't have a record, that's what we did on Saturday. I texted my dog park friend and told her about it because she lives in South Park and I thought she might want to get her daughter's picture too so she met us there and we ended up going to lunch with her afterwards.

On Sunday Paul went with us to Gymboree and we had such a great time. He actually really liked it and Wilder loved having him there. He does the puppet thing way better than me so that was helpful. :) Even though I love going to Gymboree just for something different to do and I know Wilder loves seeing all the other babies there, we may have to be done with it after this month. Wilder still will not take a nap afterwards! He sleeps for 20 minutes on the car ride home and I guess he thinks that's enough but after all that singing and clapping Mama needs a nap too. It would be OK if the class was late in the afternoon and I could put him to bed a couple hours after but it's in the middle of the day so I have to entertain him for like 6 hours after it's over. It's super exhausting so I'm going to have to decide if the fun is worth the marathon afternoon that results from it. 

Paul left on Monday for New York and I was still sick so Wilder and I really didn't do anything Monday or Tuesday. On Wednesday I was feeling a little better so we met Amber and Henry in Newport Beach to hang out and stroll around for the afternoon. It was a gorgeous day. We walked around the cute little bay area and then took the ferry to Balboa Island and ate lunch. 

Balboa Island was super cute and had some 
beautiful houses and landscaping...

I took this one to show Paul. 

Definitely not your typical beach house.

Some of them may have gone a little overboard on the 
Easter decorations though. Yeah just a little creepy...

Wilder and I always have a great time 
hanging out with Amber and Henry.

Oh, and Wilder got to swing so of course he was a happy camper :)

I guess he was teething a little because all day he was 

chewing on his dinosaur Wubbanub. On the way home he 

was so pooped that he fell asleep with its foot in his mouth :)

Even though we got home pretty close to his bedtime, since he had been in the stroller for most of the day, I let him stay up a little while to play before bed. I don't know whether he was delirious from exhaustion or maybe he really missed the dogs while he was gone, but I got the cutest video of him laughing his head off at them. They weren't even doing anything that funny, mainly just lying on the floor behind me, but he was totally cracking up at them. I absolutely love this video. This is what I call pure joy.

Like I said last week, and obviously from that video, Wilder is totally loving Rider and Posey. I think the love is contagious because they have been extra sweet to him lately -- letting him pull their fur, grab their faces, and cuddling up to him whenever they get the chance. I mean, how sweet are these pictures? :)

Since Paul's been gone I've been letting the dogs sleep with me this week. Sleeping in the bed is Posey's heaven so this is what I've been waking up to every morning. This dog is so ridiculous...

Last week I mentioned that Wilder is usually super laid back but that he can get a little attitude sometimes. Case in point: He is totally obsessed with rolling. He will not lay on his back for more than half a second without trying to roll onto his stomach. But, for what it's worth and for obvious reasons, I have a rule that there is no rolling on the counter when I'm trying to get him ready for bath time. Of course, he doesn't understand "no" yet so I end up having to hold him down with one hand while undressing him with the other. 

He gets SO mad! Can you say AT-TI-TUDE?

And then I'll give up and roll him over onto his belly myself and, in an instant, he's perfectly happy watching the water running. I kid you not, these pictures were taken 5 seconds apart... Crazy baby.

Here are a few more cute pictures from this week...

Trying to sit up in the tub like a big boy

Apparently Rider thinks Wilder's play mat 

is her own personal canopy bed haha

All I know right now is this bunch is looking forward to a certain daddy coming home tomorrow! :) Maybe I'll do a Mid-Week Minute about his NY trip. Anyway, y'all have a fabulous weekend and a Happy Easter!

Life of Wilder: Week Twenty

I can't believe Wilder is 20 weeks old today! Since I always just talk about what we've done during the week, let me give you some facts about my sweetheart of an almost 5-month-old boy. He weighs 16 lbs. and is turning into a regular old roly-poly baby. His chubby little arms and legs are like sausage links and he's been wearing 6-month clothing for a while now. He's slowly getting more hair and it's blonde as can be. His eyes are lightening up but they are still blue blue blue. He's still eating every 3 hours during the day but he's sleeping 12 hours at night so I don't complain. He takes 2 or 3 1-hour naps during the day. We're going to wait until next month to start rice cereal/solids. He's a laid-back little dude but can definitely get an attitude sometimes and knows how to get our attention (see pterodactyl scream). He's not a squealer when he's happy, he's a chuckler. He adores Paul of course, but he has also become exceedingly fond of the dogs. Every time they come into the room he gets a huge grin on his face, like his friends have come to play. 

He always wants to be on his belly. Anytime I put him down on his back he immediately rolls over and will stay like that for as long as I'll let him. He's started to figure out how to spin himself around on his stomach if there's something behind him that he would rather look at. He's also found his feet but has yet to put them in his mouth. He looooves bath time and sits there happily kicking and splashing while I bathe him. He gets a bath every night as part of his bedtime routine and it really helps him get into sleep-mode. I read to him a couple of times a day but he is so not interested yet. Sometimes he even starts going "ahhhahhhahhh" over me when I'm reading to him, haha, and I've even tried singing books to him but it doesn't help. He'd rather eat the book. The English major in me is in serious distress over this but I know he'll come around if I keep at it. We don't let him watch TV for various reasons, except an occasional sporting event. He loves to be outside. He is the absolute joy of our lives and we feel so blessed to be his parents. 

Now, let's see, what have we done this week? The weekend was bittersweet because it was Paul's last before starting back to school. We spent a lot of time at home just hanging out (and watching the Master's). Wilder and I went to Gymboree on Sunday. 

Monday we had another play date with my friend from work, Brandie, and her son Junior (yes, Junior). We went to the park at Liberty Station and Wilder got to swing again, which he, of course, loved. I may have gone a little overboard with the sun-protection... sunscreen, socks, sweater, ugly fisherman's hat... but I would just die if he got sunburned so fashion be damned! 

 (Just realized he's upside-down flipping me off in this pic...

probably for making him wear this awful hat)

Junior wanted to hold him :)

Tuesday we went to the dog park. The sun protection that day was a little more stylish, haha...

I found these adorable Kicky Pants hats on Diapers.com. They are so soft, adorable, and breathable and since I can't put sunscreen on his head they're great for protecting his little noggin. I ordered a couple on Sunday and they got here Monday night. Now that's what I call service! Especially compared to my teething-themed order from Amazon, which I will discuss complain about below. Anyway, we saw our dog park friend that day and apparently we don't have quite as much in common as I thought. Last week when she invited me to go to the Mommy Movie Mornings movie this Thursday I went home and told Paul I hoped they were showing "Arthur." I think Russell Brand is pretty hilarious (hello, have you seen him in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" or "Get Him to the Greek"?) and I think that movie looks pretty funny. But when we saw her Tuesday she said disappointedly, "Oh, and the movie they're showing Thursday is 'Arthur' with that stupid Russell Brand so I don't think I want to go." Mehhh :( Oh well, I'm not a great friends-maker so I can't be picky plus "that stupid Russell Brand" isn't a deal-breaker for me as far as mom friends go so even if we don't have that in common I'm good. I just think it's funny that I was like "Oh I hope it's 'Arthur'!" and she was like "Eww, it's 'Arthur'" haha. 

Oh yeah, so I ordered a few teething items from Amazon on March 31st. Guess when they got here? April 12th! Seriously?? I love Amazon and have never had a problem with ordering from them but it should not take almost two weeks to get something in the mail. I will say this, when I emailed them asking about the package and complaining about how long it was taking they did refund my shipping cost, but that didn't really make up for having to wait that long for something I needed right away. Aaaanyway, as far as the products go, from our 3 days' use of them so far, I can highly recommend the Razbaby RaZberry Teether. It's easy to hold and since it's shaped like a pacifier Wilder knows where to put it and how to get it there. The little nubs on the berry part seem to feel good on his gums too.

The teething pain has subsided a little this week so we've only used the teething tablets once but they worked within five minutes when I was sure Wilder wasn't going to take a nap because of the pain. Lifesaver! The ones we got are called Homeostasis Labs Teething Relief tablets. So yeah, good products, just maybe get them from somewhere other than Amazon if you're in a hurry. 

We've been doing a lot of walking this week. Wednesday we strolled around North Park for an hour and a half. Thursday Wilder sat outside with me while I push-mowed the yard (so proud of myself, haha) and then we went to the dog park and walked with our dog-park friend for an hour and a half. The weather has been sunny and in the high 60's and it has felt so great to get outside and get some good exercise. 

We've had some very productive play times indoors too though. Even though Wilder much prefers to be on his stomach, I've been working with him on sitting up and he has now officially sat on his own several times!

At first I put the Boppy pillow around him just in case he fell backwards but he decided he liked laying across it better...

Now this happens every time I sit him up. He'll sit there for a few seconds and then he sort of throws himself to the side so he can roll onto his stomach. I would think the sitting position would give him a better perspective from which to look at his surroundings but apparently the stomach position is better for playing with/chewing on toys and that's pretty high on the priority list right now. Oh well, at least I know he can sit up if he wants to. 

Whenever the dogs bark I always try to smile at Wilder or make him laugh so he won't be afraid of them barking, which happens a lot since Rider believes her sole purpose on earth is to loudly ward off anything making any type of noise outside our house. The other day we were playing on the floor in his room and both dogs suddenly barked and Wilder automatically laughed at them. Since I love to hear him laugh I then proceeded to bark myself and he thought it was so hilarious. I tried to get a good picture but he tends to laugh with his whole body so they turned out pretty blurry. I think they're cute anyway...

Alright guys, I guess that's all for this week. Oh, and Paul got into a new honors' studio the school's trying out this quarter (go Paul!) and the teacher told them Monday that he wanted to take them to New York City to tour some buildings and, oh yeah, that trip would take place next week. Wow, thanks for the heads-up there, guy. Sooo, yay fun for Paul, not fun for Emily, especially since I woke up this morning with my throat killing me. Ugh, perfect timing :( I haven't been sick in the two years we've lived out here so hopefully I'm feeling better by next week. All that to say that there may or may not be a Mid-week Minute next week depending on my level of exhaustion. Y'all have a great weekend!