Baby's first Christmas

This year we traveled to Boston to celebrate Christmas with George's family. Nicholas returned from South Africa for a few weeks as well.

Given the unpredictable weather (snow, ice, sleet, or rain), our travel went rather smoothly (thank goodness!).

Judging by the amount of gifts Henry received, his name must have been on Santa's "nice" list. Though the adventure of unwrapping gifts was lost on him, once a gift was opened, he was happy to check it out. He received several new books, some blocks, and toy cars. Very exciting stuff for a 10 month old!

Baby's first Christmas was a lot of fun. Our first Christmas as parents was equally memorable. I was slightly surprised by my feelings as a new parent. I can see how assisting Santa can be a major source of stress during the holidays (shopping, wrapping, etc). However, I now better understand what it means to say "it is better to give than receive" - seeing Henry's reaction to a gift was delightful.

George and I decided not to exchange gifts this year (a new baby, new house, new job, and new furniture seemed like more than enough of a "gift" this year), and instead focused on spending time with each other and family. We were able to relax together, which helped us feel like a "normal" couple again (the demanding intern year is now half over!).

More piano lessons

Henry had a chance to catch a piano lesson during our visit to Stoneham. We were amazed by how gentle he was on the keys. Enjoy the video. It cracks me up how he sits at the piano like a big boy.

Happy Holidays!

A very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

SLEEP!

We had a Christmas present come early.

Actually, maybe more like a stocking stuffer -- some extra sleep. Lately, Henry has been sleeping mostly through the night (like until 3:30 am and back to bed for several hours) or all the way through the night. It has been wonderful. In addition, he's giving us one solid nap during the day. It's the icing on the cake knowing that once he's down, it will be a couple of hours before he's back "up and at 'em."

We keep our fingers crossed that things continue to improve in the sleep department. Enough is enough!

Here he is passed out -- with hat hair and everything from a car ride induced nap! We so rarely see him like this, we took a picture to remind us that it's possible.

Monkey See Monkey Do

Uh oh. Look what we taught Henry.

Here's a glimpse of our backyard. So much snow. So beautiful.

As a kid I would have been torn between wanting to tromp through the deep snow and the urge to resist messing up the smooth snowbanks.

Decking the Halls

We're enjoying a snowy Sunday afternoon here in Madison. As I write this it has suddenly begun snowing once again. It feels cozy, almost as if we're living inside a snow globe. George and I are chuckling to ourselves because the weather report read something like this: "50% chance of snow, 1-2 inches of accumulation." So, flip a coin, you might end up with a couple of inches.

The decorations are going up, and hopefully they'll stay up. Henry is very interested in the Christmas tree. Like a moth to a flame, he is constantly headed directly for the lights. The breakable ornaments are hung at the top, but that doesn't mean they won't break if he pulls the whole thing over. Day 1: so far, so good. No toppled trees.

I finished decorating the wreath that my mom made for my front door. I only had to add the little ornaments. Thanks mom! Looks good!
The Christmas spirit is slowly but surely spreading throughout our house. In the coming weeks we're looking forward to drinking mugs of hot chocolate (it is COLD here!), eating Christmas cookies, and singing Christmas carols. Oh yes, there is a radio station here that has already been playing Christmas songs all day long.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

I'm not one to rush right into Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. Mother Nature, however, certainly rushed right in to set the stage for the next holiday with a nice layer of fluffy white stuff. We're walking in a Winter Wonderland in Madison. By the looks of it, we'll be walking in it until Easter. I think it's here to stay!

Henry's favorite pastimes lately include:
-pushing around his toy train
-pushing around an upside-down laundry basket
-pushing around his music table

Next milestone: walking.
How soon? very soon. Me thinks.

Thanksgivings

Henry's first Thanksgiving was also the first Thanksgiving in our new house. Quickly, the quiet, light and airy house we thought seemed roomie to us became a cozy, echoing, bustling hostel. All of my sisters, mom, dad, dogs (Tator & Kendall), and even grandma filled the house to capacity as each spare bed, couch, futon, and even some floor space (sorry Sanford kids!) overflowed with relatives. And their belongings, pets included.

To make a long story short, as Julia coined on her 3rd Thanksgiving, "food party" is all the description needed for this holiday as we enjoyed some wonderful homecooked, from scratch, meals. We enjoyed the pizzas, THE Thanksgiving meal (Mmm, Mmm stuffing. Mmm, Mmm pecan and pumpkin pie) to the send off spaghetti supper on the last night of the weekend. I think, and hope, that few bellies were left unsatisfied after an extended weekend of cooking. Oh, and we are quite thankful our house now has a dishwasher!

Here is a picture of Henry moments before the Thanksgiving meal was served. Yup. Out like a light (sort of wish I had been as I was a zombie...he christened the holiday gathering with a night of screaming and crying).
To see more photos of the Thanksgiving 08 memories, click on the link:
MORE PICTURES!

A short list of thankfulness from Thanksgiving 2008:

*for the delicious and nutritious food
*the ability to travel for a family get together (even with odd coming and going schedules)
*for the overall good health of family members
*new houses or condos (especially to host the celebration)
*children and their endless energy
*dogs, neurotic or not, and the playful pats we share with them

Leaves

In Madison, they have a great system for picking up leaves around town. All you have to do is form piles at the edge of the street (not in the street, so as not to contaminate the lakes or clog sewers). This saves a person from bagging and dragging barrels of leaves around. As an aside, let's recall that I grew up on a farm, where leaf raking was simply not done. Unless, of course, it was for the pure pleasure of forming a big pile for jumping. That's what ditches are for, right, to collect the leaves where the wind blows? So I really can't complain about this aspect of home ownership.

George, however, has experienced first hand the hassle of yard clean up in the fall. So the video includes Henry supervising my raking, and the photos are the equipment used by the city for pick up. Henry was fascinated watching both my manual labor, and their high-tech methods.

One Man Band

Here's a video of Henry with his most recent favorite toy. It is funny to see him jammin' to the tunes he produces on this thing! At least he has his father's sense of rhythm, if he lacks a love of dance.

Happy 9 Months!

Henry visited Dr. Smith today to celebrate his 9 month birthday. We would have gone without shots, except that he received the flu vaccine. Bummer.

Per usual, the comments were all about how he is growing and developing normally. We're so happy to report that Henry is a very healthy boy.

Height: 29.75 inches (91%)
Weight: 22 lbs 7 oz. (79%)
Head circumference: 46.5 cm (83%)

Here is Henry with his most recent stretch tactics.

Keep your eye on the birdie!

This is a picture of the first dusting of snow - note the neighbor's roof is white. Its not the best picture of Henry, but let's keep in mind I was holding Henry and the camera and preventing the two from meeting in the middle!

We had a bit of a bird watching session today. Unfortunately, it began with the untimely meeting of a little birdie with our big window. I went over to see what the noise was when I realized there were a few tiny feathers stuck to the window. Sad. I know. Looking past the tiny little fluffy headstones, I saw there was a group of little birdies in the trees. They were flitting back and forth among the wispy branches. Henry actually saw them, too. Usually, he has no idea what I'm pointing at, and why I'm so excited. Yes, I'm another crazy mother waving my arms at squirrels, rabbits, and other urban wildlife in the hope that Henry will take note of his surroundings. They stayed close to the window (my guess is they were confused about the demise of their leader) so Henry followed their moves as they were contained in a small area of branches. I wish I was more of a birder. I think most likely they were either dark-eyed juncos or black-crowned chickadees. Chickadees are probably the most common, right?

I only mention this because I then took Henry for a walk and didn't realize I was continuing a birding expedition.

We saw:
- a pair of cardinals (Mr. & Mrs.)
- an owl (not even going to guess a species on this one)
- a red headed woodpecker
- a herd of Canada geese (yes, easy to spot, but they are still birds, so I get to count them)

Just more reasons I like Madison...a walk in the park complete with wildlife.

Hibernating

I feel like Henry and I have been hibernating. Its suddenly turned cold here in Wisconsin, and there is a light coating of snow on the roofs and streets this morning. Twinkling in the sunlight - oh Mr. Sun, its been so long! - it is quite lovely outdoors in our new neighborhood.

I'm in full soup mode now that the chilly weather is here to stay.
Here's the list for the season thus far:
*Chili (though I cheated with a box mix for a starter)
*Potato vegetable (with German dumplings...my mother's family recipe)
*Cheesy Broccoli Potato (made with bleu cheese - Henry loved it!)
*Winter soup (Mmmm, my favorite. Made with leeks and a home grown zucchini)
*Tortellini soup (Erica Smith's recipe - it makes an annual appearance)

Overall, we're doing well as we continue to settle into our new house. I wrote in an earlier post that it was strange, yet pleasant to be unpacking permanently. That's not entirely true 100% of the time.

Let's see, for eight years I've been picking up and moving at least every two years, if not more frequently. Yes. That's eight years, and seven states...from Iowa to Minnesota, then Wisconsin (ok, just for summer camp, but still...), California, Massachusetts, Missouri, Michigan, and now Wisconsin. Again. During that time it was imperative that I save cardboard boxes. I'm having a hard time saying goodbye to the boxes. There, I said it. I suppose that if my life was somewhat transient for so long, naturally, I'd feel a little uneasy about shifting gears and staying in one place for a while. After all, it is still early in the adjustment period, so I'm trying to be patient with myself. Rather, I should say George is trying to be patient with me while I drag my feet to get everything pulled out from every box and placed where it belongs (if only I knew where that place was!).

On another note of permanence, the furniture arrived today. Oh happy day! So we now have a new couch and a table and chairs to seat everyone who is coming for Thanksgiving. This is very exciting, and also helps make me feel like I never want to move again. It is heavy stuff.

Wickedly Cute

Halloween photos to share - Henry and I enjoyed our visit to Stoneham, and we wish Meme continued success in her recovery from knee surgery. Oh, and I almost forgot, my favorite part is that the little tag on his jammies says "wickedly cute" -- get it?

An explanation for those a little slow to make an amusing connection: Bostonians occasionally use the word "wicked" to mean "very." As in, "Dude, that's wicked awesome" or "its wicked hot outside."

Hidden Talents

Henry had his first introduction to a piano at Meme's house. Both George and I play the piano, so most likely lessons are in Henry's future. He was quite pleased with himself as he pressed the keys to make the sounds. Thankfully, he was very gentle during this lesson. Though I'm sure that will wear off as he becomes more comfortable with the instrument!

On the other hand, perhaps piano playing will not be his true talent -- here he shows us a trick with a cucumber stick. Silly boy.

8 Months, already!

Time to catch up on a few pictures of Henry. Here's a picture I took on the day he turned 8 months old. As you can see, he is always very busy exploring his surroundings. He pulls himself up against anything that might hold still for two seconds - long enough for him to get his feet under him!

This picture of Henry in the mirror makes me laugh. First of all, this mirror is just the right height for him. Second, I love watching him learn about ordinary things. Long ago he's been interested in his reflection, smiling at himself and touching the glass. This time, I added his hat halfway through his experience, which was enough of a disguise to throw him off for a minute. The kiss, however, was a complete surprise to me, and I think to him. Not the soft skin he was expecting! This fall season flew by as we were busy with the move, but we took a few moments to enjoy the beautiful color on the trees. Our new house has great windows for viewing, and the colors inside our home also reflect nature's seasons. Unfortunately, the leave are now gone, but I'm sure it won't be long before the brown has a beautiful coat of white!

Barack the Vote

That's my favorite slogan so far...
My fingers are crossed for Tuesday's election!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Henry is celebrating his first Halloween with Meme in Stoneham. We have a beautiful autumn New England day for the occasion. Though he might not participate in many Halloween activities (no candy for baby), he does have a little pair of jammies to wear with pumpkins, ghosts, and "Boo!" on them if he makes it past his bedtime to greet a few trick-or-treaters.

For those who may be going through withdrawal because I haven't posted lately, we've had a few obstacles to internet access and blog time.

In summary, here's the October news from the Wisconsin Leydon family:

• We've officially moved! We now live in our new house. It is a strange, yet pleasant feeling to unpack boxes with a permanent attitude. No more apartments. No more temporary or make shift spaces. And more importantly, no more RENT! Whew, what relief to know that the apartment is cleaned and the keys turned over. What a job. A big thank you, once again, to my mom and sister, Jessica, for all their help. We'll have to be creative to find a way to express our gratitude for all they've done (I'm thinking Jessica will cash in an I.O.U. for painting assistance in her new condo soon!).

• Henry and I are keeping Meme company as she recovers from total knee replacement surgery. We are happy to report that Claire is having a speedy recovery from this operation. Everyday she feels better - less pain (or at least fewer pain killing drugs with tolerable pain), more mobility (in the knee and in general) and more strength. She is being a very good patient and following instructions from the visiting nurse and physical therapist. We are all so glad that things are going well for her!

• Henry has been a very active boy. He continues to explore his world by crawling around, pulling himself up on EVERYTHING and tasting this or that. He is ready for the Wisconsin winter now that we've purchased a winter coat, snowpants, hat, mittens, fleece jammies, and his first pair of shoes! Just before we left for Boston we saw our first taste of winter with a few flurries. A note about Madison: last year they had record breaking snowfall with 109 inches through the winter. Apparently, the Farmer's Almanac called for 110. So that was a fairly accurate prediction, right? This year's prediction? 120 inches.
  

Peek-A-Boo

I see you, too! Henry loves playing peek-a-boo. Oh, and I guess he learned how to pull himself up in his crib (despite the lack of bars to hold onto), as this is what I walked in to find when I heard him wake up from nap today.

I should be packing, but I'm taking a blogging break, because George has had a long day at clinic, conference, training, hospital, wherever his residency demands his presence...and I'm tired and lonely.

My life is in such chaos right now. George and I have started to move boxes and other things over to the new house. That means that our belongings are split between two living locations, and when juggling life with Henry, that requires more organization that what I have energy for at the moment. So he's gone without a bath for two nights in a row, he's worn the same jammies, and has eaten applesauce for just about every meal! At least I know that he won't remember this neglect when he's older. I feel like I've devoted so much attention to house stuff lately, and not playing, singing, reading, or cuddling. Despite wanting to just devote hours on end to packing, or cleaning, or painting, babies continue to need nap time, meals, diaper changes, etc. Therefore, it seems like most projects are started, interrupted, and completed in only small increments of time, which I've found to be quite frustrating.

I am so thankful that my mom and sister are coming this weekend to help -- even if they only just occupy Henry so that I can do what I would like at the house it will be "mission accomplished!"

As I close, I want to draw your attention to those big teeth making their way into Henry's mouth. Teeth can really change a person's smile, huh? In fact, I've become quite accustomed to his gummy grin. Well not any longer!

Working hard

A few more photos - on our breaks as we clean and continue the home projects. Henry's new swing, which he absolutely LOVES, in fact, he cried when we pried his hands off the ropes so we could move on to something else. There will be more days of tree swinging, I'm sure of it.

The second picture is Henry begging for food. He's downing the bread from my sandwich like a little birdie with his mouth open, waiting for momma to drop in little goodies. Gone are the days of mine and yours. Only yours. What's mine is yours. As in, my lunch is your lunch. Even after 7 months, I still feel like a "new mom" sometimes as each new stage leads to new lessons in parenting. Can I still use that excuse when he's a teenager?!

I Heart Rug Doctor

Oh happy day. I'm in love with yet another doctor. The Rug Doctor.

If cleanliness is next to godliness, I've moved up the ladder a little closer to heaven.

Our previous homeowners weren't big fans of cleaning. In the sale agreement, they were to leave the master bedroom bed and family room sectional couch. Sounded good to us as we are in need of couches, and wouldn't want to turn down an extra bed. (bed story in brief: floating headboard attached to wall with 2X4's...oh, and storage drawers underneath the bed are handy, unless they don't open because they're angled into the corner of the room as is...another project, another story, another day).

I've referred to my dad's advice of "nothing in life is free" in previous posts and reflect on its meaning once again. For fear of visitors not wanting to use said furniture, I'll skimp on the details and just let you imagine the possibilities with the fact that these people were dual pet owners (a cat and a dog) who didn't like to clean. We found a Merry Maids business card during our cleaning process, which I find ironic, but also indicates that most likely only surface cleaning was done throughout their 6 years of home ownership. While recently I've been contemplating what it means to be tidy, organized, cluttered, or clean, any of the combination of these are obviously not mutually exclusive.

With the help of my dear friend, the rug doctor (and upholstery attachment), we have ousted the kitty smell in the basement and created a space where Henry can play and I can feel confident that his environment is a safe and cleanly one. Although the couch doesn't "look like new" - it does look like a completely different one than that which was left behind! The Berber carpet is three shades lighter, and the stains I was uncertain would come out are almost gone entirely. (On the rug doctor website they claim some carpets, such as Berber, can hide up to a pound of dirt per square foot. No kidding!?!) I'm so impressed and pleased by the results. You'll all have to come see for yourself. The proof is in the pudding!

Wailing and gnashing of teeth

Henry is discovering his mouth full of teeth. With both uppers and lowers, he was grinding away this morning. I cringe with the creaking of bone on bone.

He has also determined that this week we are going to be super early birds. He thinks 5:00 am is a good time to scream at the top of his lungs. Unsure what to do with him, George and I have been trying to let him work it out. Changing his diaper or giving him Tylenol seems to encourage morning wake up, rather than sleepiness. He refuses to settle into cuddles and instead wants to play. And the "let's give it 10 minutes and see if he stops" finds us watching the numbers on the clock countdown the half hour...45 minutes...hour. Ok. We give up. We'll start the day.

Put on the coffee. Yesterday I had a second cup in the morning. Oh and 3 cans of diet Pepsi to make it through the day. Those who know me know I generally don't drink pop. At all.

Autumn Adventures

Over the weekend, Henry and I traveled to Michigan with my mom and two sisters (all riding snugly in her new Buick) to visit my other sister, Jennifer, and her family for what is becoming an annual Capper tradition. Apple orchard day! Of course, this particular apple orchard is more like a fall carnival, complete with petting zoo, inflatable bouncing houses, old farm machinery playground, wagon rides, corn mazes, donuts, and much more fall farm fun. Its actually quite nostalgic for us, given our rural childhood, and even more so for my mom, considering the "Model B" tractor that Andrew was playing on was one mom drove as a youngster on her family farm.

We had lovely weather (still feeling a bit on the warm side for fall) and the leaves were gorgeous as the reds, yellows, and oranges gleamed brilliantly in the October sun against the dark greens leftover from summer days.

Henry had his first taste of a fresh picked apple. He mouthed a juicy golden delicious intently for part of our trip around the orchard. His top two middle teeth are barreling through his poor gums. Its amazing how quickly they've come in. Like chia pets, you can actually see the progress each day. Anyway, when his apple escaped into the dirt he was quite upset. Temper. Temper. Replacement apple sought quickly.

His time with the cousins was more interactive during this trip. Julia loved holding Henry, telling him stories, and showing him many things - up close and personal. Andrew spent most of the weekend showing him his toys and repeating "mine," as any territorial 2 1/2 year old should.

New house firsts

We had our first meal in the new house this week: take out pizza! We think Henry likes the new space. Right now, there is a lot of room to crawl around. When he's not crawling around, there are many more doorway options to choose from to hang his jumper. Thankfully, it still keeps him fairly occupied while we work.

Henry also had a guest over to look at his new space. This is Mia, Dave and Stacia's little girl (she turned 1 last weekend!). Stacia made a quick afternoon trip to Madison for a visit - it was good to see the two of them - hopefully next time the dads will be around, too.

I think in the first photo they are playing the "I'm not looking at you" game with each other.
For this photo, Mia scooted over to be closer to Henry. What a cute pair of kids!

Mini Me

Henry has been hanging out with us as we are cleaning and getting ready to paint in the new house. He now fits the flannel shirt and khaki pants that Meme bought for him when she visited Detroit shortly after his birth! Like father, like son in this photo!

Parenting the mobile child

Enter the next phase of parenting: mobility. I feel like I'm not keeping a step ahead of Henry these days. He has gained speed and agility with crawling. I put him in the living room, went to the kitchen, as usual, to make coffee. Upon my return, I found my child standing next to the computer chair! Ah, lesson learned. The next phase of Henry's life, his gaining freedom through the ability to go after what he wants, is going to keep me on my toes. I had no idea pulling himself up on furniture would be so close behind. I have a feeling walking is also in the not so distant future!

The only good side effect to all this activity is that he's been sleeping at night. Last feeding around 10-11pm and I don't hear from him until 5-6 am. I almost don't want to say it out loud for fear I'll break the spell. I feel human again!

We close on the house today. We are all very excited, and will be looking forward to baby-proofing as we move into the new house. I'm sure the spare bedroom would also function nicely as a padded room so Henry can learn to get around without the dangers of hardwood floors, woodwork, and other everyday building materials. ha ha ha.

A few recent pics, just to keep everyone interested. I'm usually behind the camera lens, but George took a nice photo of me and Henry. You can see those two little razor sharp teeth poking up through his gums. The other is a treat for all the BC alumni out there. We just finished a week of rather warm weather and this was the only T-shirt in his current size to let him hang out in. Don't worry, we're back on track for fall weather now and will be sporting only long pants, socks, and long sleeve shirts for a while, I think.

3 months until Christmas - but what was everyone doing 9 months ago???

I must say the last 7 weeks have been quite eventful. Lots of laboring women, but it really culminated in the last few days. All 11 labor rooms were filled with patients who were in labor or who had just delivered. All 4 triage rooms (our mini pregnant-patient ER setup) were filled with people in labor. Women were even laboring in the waiting room! Obviously we've been quite busy, but makes you wonder how people were celebrating Christmas and New Year's last year!

Mommy's little helper

Henry is so close to being able to crawl. While up on all fours he's been lifting his hands up and down the past couple of days. There's the constant back and forth motion he's been doing for weeks. I like to refer to it as "revving his engine" in preparation for "full steam ahead." But today, I think he finally got his legs to do a little work to string together a few "steps." I'll attempt to post a few videos, or links to videos on picasa. It was very funny seeing him get so excited! (either about the fact that he was moving forward, or me cheering along beside him) He would collapse and fall back into his "swimmer" motions on the floor.

With Henry's increased mobility, his territory has expanded a little. Here he is helping me with some laundry. Rather, investigating the handy dandy laundry basket, while I fold all the clothes.

More MN friends

During our trip to Minnesota, Henry and I also met up with Colin & Clare. They were our casamates during our JVC year - another Casa Jane romance going strong. In fact, they recently bought a house and were moving in the weekend we were there! So I got the very first parade of homes tour. It is a very cute little ol' farmhouse in the city that will become a cozy home for Colin and Clare for years to come.

We went "uptown" to grab some breakfast at The Egg & I -- and also got a spontaneous little tour of the downtown area, including the new bridge, to replace the one that collapsed a year ago. Henry was a very good boy through our meal and I could tell that he was quite taken with Colin & Clare as they played with him.

Regrettably, I don't have a photo of our brunch, but I know that it will be a memory cherished for a very long time. Busy "greasy spoon diner type joints" + 6 month old Henry = hard to forget!

Hope and Hearts Run

I've been meaning to catch up on a few things on the blog, so bear with me as I recap a few important events from September.

On the first weekend in September, Henry and I made the trek up to the Twin Cities and were able to see some friends. In particular, we spent some time with the Palzer family. I had the pleasure of living with Ann shortly after I graduated from college, and while I was living and working in St. Paul, they kindly assumed the role of a surrogate family. Although it was wonderful to play with her two year old son, Kiefer, and catch up with everyone, it was a difficult weekend at times. We were also there to participate in an event to support the Missing Grace foundation in celebration of Elias James' life, which ended prematurely during Ann's sixth month of pregnancy. I'm amazed by the strength and courage that Ann and her husband, Aaron, have exhibited during the healing process to grieve the loss of their second son. Elias remains in our thoughts and prayers.

(Henry caught a quick nap before the 5K)

I wanted to share a few pictures from the 5K -- we were fortunate to have a beautiful morning for the walk/run. Here's Ann with Lake Harriet in the background and a view of downtown Minneapolis.

"6 Month" Stats

Henry is officially 7 months old today! We had his 6 month doctor's appointment on Thursday. (His 9 month appointment will be right on time!) He remains a very healthy kid. Here are his latest stats:

• Weight: 20 lbs 14oz (86%)
  
• Length: 29 inches (96%)
  
• Head: 45 cm (78%)
  

We are still happy about his growth curve, though he seems to be plateauing just slightly (can you believe that?!?). He endured the shots as usual, mad as can be when they're sticking him, but he quickly calms down with some momma cuddle time.

The only other thing that I noticed during the doctor's exam was that it appears he has one of his canine teeth cutting next -- guess what that means Henry will be for Halloween!?! The cutest little vampire ever!

He has been terrible as far as sleeping lately. That means with George gone most of the time (only 1 week left on this nasty OB rotation!) I'm struggling for energy most days. My only hope is that we have 10 days until we close on the house, then perhaps we'll start a better sleep training plan. Either that, or I'll just sleep when I'm dead and "keep on keepin' on" as one tired momma.

Resident Retreat

Last weekend there was a retreat for the family medicine residents. It provided a nice, laid back atmosphere for the residents to get to know each other because although they are in the same program, they often don't run into each other at the hospital or clinic settings. The same is true for significant others, we had a chance to get to know one another and either commiserate or support each other through this intern year.

Here are a few pics from the retreat. The first one is Ella, a little girl who is turning five this month, holding Henry. Ella absolutely adores Henry, and I'm surprised at the patience Henry exhibits because although Ella is oh-so-careful, she sometimes treats him like a rag doll. Ella and her family are becoming fast friends of ours, as her dad is one of George's colleagues, which means we're all in this together!

The other picture is from our walk around the retreat center. I hope you can get an appreciation of the beautiful Wisconsin landscape in the background! The list of interesting things we saw on this short walk is as follows: one set of deer tracks, walnuts, a stick bug (quite amazed we saw this one!), a large ant hill, and two big grasshoppers. And most of these were spotted by Ella -- thank goodness for 5 year old eyes, they are so much more observant than adult ones.

C is for cookie

With the arrival of his new tooth, I've expanded Henry's diet to include "biter biscuits" - which are little hard cookies. He loves them. It keeps him occupied for quite a while, he can feed himself, and he's learning how much he can "bite off" and chew!

Here he is after a cookie, and some carrots as a chaser.

New Tooth

This week Henry finally cut his first tooth. I feel like he's been working on it forever. So now its almost as if he has a new toy. One that's sharp and very useful -- especially if he's given a graham cracker to keep him occupied.

I also wanted to share this picture of him in carhart overalls. George gets a big kick out of these. They are cute, but watch out for those big buckles!

He looks like he's ready to help Papa with projects around the house, doesn't he? Won't be long, I suppose...

With the cooler weather, I think fall is just around the corner and there will be plenty more days to sport some overalls in the very near future!

Glorious Golden Weekend

A weekend is generally defined as a Saturday and Sunday being free from work commitments. In residency, however, this definition changes a little bit. In our first weeks of orientation, we were handed a packet with the schedule explaining what weekend definitions were:

Lead: (essentially no weekend), working Saturday through the night and rounding Sunday morning
Silver: working Friday night (being "on call"), Saturday recovering (or "post call"), off on Sunday
Platinum: Saturday off, go in to work on Sunday through the night
Gold: Thursday night call, Friday "post call", off Saturday, off Sunday

This, of course only applies to rotations where there is "call" coverage. George is currently on OB, which consists of 12 hour shifts at a time, and a mixture of nights and days. So while there is no "call" (a 30 hour shift at the hospital) it is still a grueling schedule. Thankfully, he received what we are calling a "glorious golden weekend"-- all three days of a holiday weekend off. It was certainly needed as he finished up a stretch of 12 days in a row and was in desperate need of some sleep! We had absolutely nothing planned and enjoyed just being lazy around the house, playing with Henry.


Here is a photo of George and Henry by a "Madison Cow" - these are around town in various locations painted or dressed in different themes. This one is sporting a few fall leaves. We had a scorcher of a weekend (hot & muggy!) but I think fall and cooler weather is just around the corner. This cow was at a local farmer's market. We decided to try one of the smaller farmer's markets, instead of the main one around the capitol on Saturday morning. We found the same great deals on local produce. This is the Northside Neighborhood farmer's market, which will also be quite close to our new house.

Not Laboring on Labor Dabor

Ironic that this Labor Day weekend offers me a break from labor and delivery at St. Mary's!

After living in a new place for awhile, I sort of forget what the last place was like. Madison is much tamer than Detroit (duh!), but one of the things that was toughest about Michigan was the incredible aggressiveness of the drivers. Granted, I can drive with the best of 'em, but holy moly, Detroit was an altogether different animal.

I felt like driving there made me into Mr. Wheeler. I remember this cartoon from days of yesteryear, hanging out with the Parr's and watching cartoons before school.

The part in the cartoon about the parking reminds me of trying to fit Grandpa's old boat of a car into a parking spot in Allston. I can't say I miss having to park like that, but I do miss the '85 Caprice.

Hope your weekend is restful.

Silly stories about Henry

I'm hoping to relay this story in a way that will tickle your fancy as much as it tickled mine, and my sister's for that matter. Recently Caroline spent some time with us in Madison and we ventured over the to free Henry Vilas Zoo here in Madison once again. On our visit we stopped at Henry's favorite exhibit: the goats. The warning sign was noted...Aunt Caroline was feeding the goats, using the proper technique as shown above. Henry LOVED being so close and was laughing out loud as the goat ate from Caroline's hand.

Here's where the adventure takes a quick and funny turn. After accidentally spilling some food into Henry's stroller tray, the goat feeding becomes "self serve."


Taking full advantage of the goat being preoccupied with easy access to food, Henry braves a good pat on the head!! Caroline and I are laughing, trying to take pictures, and ensure that Henry's fingers aren't in harms way. A comedy of errors also led to Caroline inadvertently hitting a goat in the face as she was trying to explain to me, using gestures, that one was pawing at the ground. Thankfully, no one was harmed in this mishap, and we weren't thrown out of the free zoo on account of misconduct!

The other silly story involving Henry this week was his way of charming the UPS Store employees. I took an item in to be wrapped and shipped and when the woman helping me began sealing the package with her tape dispenser, Henry started laughing. I mean, full out, laughing like he was being physically tickled, cute baby laughing. The woman pulled off a few more strips of tape and soon everyone in the store was also laughing because of his reaction. Ah, yes. Its the little things that amuse...all he wants for Christmas is a roll of tape.