March 2021 thoughts

March 2: We have a block where I let him touch the plants. He knows it now and I see his little hand come out. We talk during that but otherwise LO seems to go into a low energy state during walks and I enjoy that.

March 4: These links can attach an old toy in a new location and they are $5.

March 7: Skipped a few workouts this week, but did some cleaning in preparation for LO's bday and took a few bags & boxes to a Buy Nothing lawn event. Feels good to let go of a few items.

Mar 10: I focus on "developmentally appropriate" as a sorting criteria for toys. I gift stuff LO has aged out of, and/or doesn't play with, to my nephew who is 7 months younger than LO. So yeah we've gotten rid of 0-3 m, all "tummy time" stuff, and some electronics that was epic at 4 mo but is just like yawn now.

Definitely so exhausted I couldn't think of a bedtime story last night. Luckily counting to 1000 outloud also works. Felt inside LOs mouth and we are getting molars, yipee! We went 1, 2, 3, 4, and now 6 before 5 unless I just didn't feel the uppers. Oh yeah.

Mar 13: LO's birthday tomorrow. Can't sleep. Wondering: did I do enough for his zoom party? Which spiraled into: Am I good enough? Am I a good mom? Am I doing enough to promote good habits? Good health? Brain stimulation? Could I have done more? Will I look back on LO's 1st year and be proud of surviving or will I be disappointed in myself for "just surviving?" Like the anniversary of LOs birth is literally just another day in quarantine so there's no need for my mind to be racing.

Mar 15: Zoom birthday party for LO yesterday was fine. It was like any other major life event: graduation, wedding, big anniversary, etc. It went by in kind of a blur. Glad I recorded it. I look forward now to summer, when the semester is over, and we can have a simpler routine. 

If I were to do it again, I would have made a list of some key photos and moments I want to document. I feel like the day went by too fast. I wish I would have taken a photo of me, LO and DH. I wish I had a photo of LO and my mom, who is here IRL. I have been keeping up with LO's baby book so I don't know which pics from the day will end up filling those pages. We had "my 1st bday" boingy decorations and a mylar balloon that we filled with air instead of helium. We had some necklaces and birthday glasses. I hung a sheet as a backdrop on a clothing rack and that was good because it got covered with cake and it was easy to wash. The glasses were not used.

Why are the pockets on my BABY's 2T jeans deeper than the pockets on my SIZE 14 adult woman jeans?

Milestone Monday: We don’t clap or point or walk yet, but we do a SUPER CUTE little booty bounce while cruising when music comes on. My little dancing baby is everything.

Did not make yet but went so far as to (mentally) gather supplies and find a recipe for DIY facial mist. If you're like me, you have some of this stuff leftover from padsicles and pregnancy: aloe vera, witch hazel, rosehip oil, sweet almond oil, peppermint tea, lavender essential oil.

Mar 17: I have been wearing LO in a ring sling lately. I have one that is 78 inches made of a linen-bamboo blend and it is a single layer of fabric. Wild Bird makes a 90 inch version that might be better since I am a plus-size momma. The double-layer ones are supposed to be better for heavier kiddos. Both say they can be used up to 35 lbs. It's good for breastfeeding and naps while I work at the computer. One time, my baby slid off my knee onto the floor because I wasn't holding him. He was okay but after that I started using the sling to prevent that from happening again and it works great. It's not so great for standing, but it's wonderful for sitting because the majority of baby's weight is supported by my leg and not my back.

"I’m going to buy myself a silk ring sling. Baby is heavy and silk is strong and can go in water too. I love my ring sling and we use it all the time—cooking, walking, snuggle time, laundry. If you use it, I think it’s worth it. These kids are getting big and double linen is supposed to be strong. In fact, you’re being more economical than I am. If we weren’t such water loving people, I would go double linen. I talk myself out of a lot of purchases but something that will hold my child as she grows and that I use all the time is not one of them. If your purchase is the same, plus it might fit you better, I can’t talk you out of it."

"Don’t you know you’re in a group of enablers 🙈 jk. I think if you use it and have the resources there’s not much of a reason not to. Especially if you can resell it once you are finished with it (or give to a friend, or donate, or so many other things!). I say do it hehe"

Mar 19: LO was interested in flour tortilla. He took bites. Let them soften in his mouth. Didn't choke. I am so excited!

Mar 22: Baby has been whiny since his 12m shots last Tuesday. I appreciate hearing from others that this seems to be common. Is tantrumy a word? He is getting kind of specific with what he wants but doesn't point, sign or speak it. So that leaves us playing process of elimination with all the stuff in his line of sight. 

He is difficult to feed these days. Our new trick is to give him something to hold in each hand. But that only works for a short time. He loves throwing toys. Underhand, overhand, backhand, forehand flick and chest pass. He is practicing all of them and getting some decent distance.

I did take a few pages from the BLW playbook. I figured if he won't let us feed him, maybe he wants to feed himself. LO enjoyed flour tortillas, boiled carrots and scrambled egg. Most of it went to the dog, who is probably putting on weight faster than ever in her life, poor thing.

I let LO lick the spoon of my raspberry and macadamia nut mousse last night and he seemed to enjoy that. Maybe LO will be eating whatever we're eating sooner than I planned. Oh wait, that would require me to have planned.

Mar 27: Got my 2nd COVID shot yesterday afternoon so planned on a chill weekend of a Harry Potter movie marathon. Had a "perfect day" with LO's naps. Up at 5:30am, asleep at 6am, up at 8:30am, asleep at 11:30am, up at 1pm, asleep at 4:30pm, up at 6pm, asleep at 9pm. 

But alas with all that good daytime sleep, LO was up at 4:30am today! I asked DH to please handle LO so I could sleep a bit more and he did. After a bit of playtime, LO went back to sleep and is still asleep, so I am enjoying my breakfast immensely.

Agenda: RPDR S13, ep12 and then HP y 5, 6, 7a and 7b. And rest and eat soup.

Mar 30: This pandemic is crazy. I ended up taking my baby to work with me yesterday. I teach in-person labs at a University. LO was in the stroller for about 1.5 hours and I wore him in a Lillebaby carrier the other 1.5 hours. LO was really good and seemed to enjoy watching the 6 students carry our their experiments.

DH, who usually watches LO was suffering from side effects of the 2nd dose of the Pfizer vaccine. He kept failing asleep and I knew I could not leave him alone with LO. We would have asked MIL to babysit but she was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, after getting her 2nd Moderna vaccine.

MIL is planning an epic Easter get-together for this weekend, in case it's out last holiday together. DH and I quietly celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary yesterday. All I did to mark the occasion was to post one of our engagement photos on Facebook.

It feels cruel that we are now fully vaccinated and MIL might not survive the year due to cancer. Even though we don't see eye to eye, I wanted LO to know his grandparents. With opposing political views, the strain of the election kept us apart from Thanksgiving until now. They took their guy's defeat pretty hard.

I am wishing we had normal times. No COVID stress. If there was no pandemic, I might have had a babysitter's phone number on speed dial. There are a few other things going on like construction on our building and the cryogen delivery drivers are on strike and our building had a scheduled power  outage... DH is under so much pressure I can't fathom how he is coping.

Mar 31: I got jab #1 on 3/5. LO got his 12m shots 3/16. I got jab #2 on 3/26. This month has been challenging but we're getting through it. LO has been so fussy but others have shared that it's common so other than that, we're fine. EBF + vitamins + solids + purees + water.