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Frankie is enjoying the summer by racing around in the grass as fast as she can until she poops out and flops down in a cool, shaded spot, digging up rocks in the flower beds, scattering all of the outside toys around the yard for me to hunt down or mow over, and napping in the sunshine. She's all dog, still has her puppy mojo, and requires baths much more frequently than her delicate older brother, but we sure do love her.
Lucas' first round of vaccines at his 2-month well baby exam were traumatic for us both. Every mom dreads the necessary evil of poking their tender little baby. He was all smiles, cooing at me as he lay on the exam table until that first poke. Then, there was much sadness. We spent the 15-minute waiting period after his shots nursing, which seemed to make things right again. He was quite the trooper the rest of the day - a little fussy and sleepy, but otherwise his usual sweet self.
May 31, 2011
Daniel William, 1980
Lucas Daniel, 2011
Before he was even here, Lucas had a very well stocked closet. We received so many adorable outfits from all of our friends and family! In fact, Dan and I only bought one item of clothing for him ourselves - little footie ASU pajamas! We received so much clothes at the shower that buying anything else seemed like overkill. (Plus, we have a couple of grandmas who love picking up outfits for their tiny baby!) There were a few basic onesies that I purchased, but all of the cute stuff came as gifts. I can't take any of the credit for how well dressed my son is.
After the shower - and to think this isn't even all of it! All the onesies and sleepers are stocked in his drawers and he got another wave of clothes after he was born!
Because Lucas is growing so fast, he only gets to wear some of my favorite little outfits a couple of times before he's on to the next size. I figured I'd savor my favorite pieces from each size by collecting photos of them all as he grows. The rule is it has to be an outfit. If I included all of the adorable onesies and footed pajamas he has, I'd basically be photographing his entire wardrobe! I didn't get any specific "outfit shots" from his newborn clothes, but here is the best of the 0-3 month sizes.
His Easter outfit complete with bunny hat and shoes, and his Dino-Mite hoodie and sweatpants with matching Trumpette socks
Lucas' "power suit" that he wore when he joined me at the office for a meeting, and another hooded sweatsuit with matching Trumpette socks
A sporty look with his hooded fleece sweatshirt (note the ears) and shorts with his first little pair of sneakers, and a preppy ensemble that Lucas wore to accompany us to dinner at the country club
His sweet little pair of seersucker overalls with baseball details, and another stylish overall set in plaid with a tiny baby polo underneath
A comfy grey hooded sweatshirt with lime lining and striped pants, and an adorable pair of purple plaid shorts complete with matching blue polo (the dinosaur is also wearing purple plaid shorts)
Though I hate that he's growing so fast, I must admit that I can't WAIT to get him into his six month sizes! So many cute outfits to choose from!
In the listing of top five reasons why I wanted a baby, numbers one through three are schmoopy excuses to love on another tiny human being who is all mine. Naturally.
Number four is Disneyland.
Number five is stationary.
Naturally.
I adore paper products of all kinds (notecards! post-its! day planners! thank you cards! spiral-bound notebooks!), but I'm especially fond of mass-mailings for holidays or other big events.
To me, cards, stationary, and hand-written letters or notes are so much more special than email. Sure, email and the ever popular e-vite is more convenient and certainly more environmentally friendly, but I think some occasions just call for something more special. There's nothing quite like sifting through the piles of junk mail, bills, and credit card applications to find a card from someone you care about. It just feels more personal. I come from one of the last generations of kids who wrote letters to friends over the summer and who wrote to pen pals with an actual pen, so maybe I'm just nostalgic. Whatever my reasoning, I am a whore for stationary.
I send professionally printed change of address cards. I mail out several hundred dollars worth of cards every Christmas. I've been known to send cards for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, and St. Patrick's Day. I believe in the power of a well written thank you card. I still enjoy writing letters from time to time...
And now with the baby, I have all kinds of new occasions to announce on linen cardstock!
Here is Lucas' birth announcement
And his baptism invitation
I recently switched vendors and am now using Tiny Prints for all my stationary needs. Not only do they have some of the best designs I've seen (is it a bad sign that I've used or looked at enough printing companies to have an opinion on that?), but they allow you to import your address book and have all the envelopes printed for you and mailed directly. Of course, there's an added cost, but for a new mom with not as much time to address a quarter of a million envelopes, it is completely worth it.
If you are on the mailing list, but haven't yet gotten your baptism announcement, sorry to ruin the surprise! There's a photo on the back, too, so at least I didn't spoil all the fun!
I was so thrilled to dress Lucas up in a sweet little set of cream velour pajamas with hand mitts and a hoodie. He was finally big enough to fit into the snuggle suit, but with our balmy summer temps in the 60's and 70's, we hadn't had a day cold enough to warrant such a heavy gettup. Luckily, last Thursday turned out to be a perfectly dreary day and it was finally time for me to put the marshmallow suit on little guy. Naturally, he looked entirely adorable, so after a lengthy photo session, we headed out to share the wealth of cuteness with the rest of the world. It wasn't until we arrived at the hospital to visit Dan that we realized Lucas had been riding in the dark.
My sweet boy.
Just in case there is ever any doubt as to who your heart belongs to, your closet is full of garments that either profess your love of me or label you as my exclusive property.
There are a million reasons why I am proud of my husband and honored to make the journey through life with him by my side. Here are a couple of them.
Sweet boy. I am so very thankful that we both made it through the challenging transition from the bottle to nursing when you came home from the NICU. It is as much a gift to me as it is to you.
I love being able to sustain you with my body. I love the intimate moments we share while you eat. I love how you look up at me before your eyes roll to the back of your head in full-bellied satisfaction. I love the way you pat me with your sweet little dimpled hand. I love stroking your head and face, tickling your fuzzy little ears, and gently massaging your back and legs. I love your content little sighs and how you grunt and snort when you first start. I love how you smile up at me with milk all over your face. I love watching you by the soft glow of a night light during the early morning nursing sessions. I know I should go back to sleep after you've finished and nodded off, but I always wind up sitting with you, watching you sleep.
I dreamt about breast feeding you from the time you were just a little seedling growing in my belly.
I love everything about nursing you, but mostly, I love that its a special time for just me and you. It is one of my most cherished experiences as your mama. I will always be thankful for the gift of nursing you, my darling child.
