We've MOOved to Wisconsin!

Greetings from Madison!

We've completed our move to Wisconsin, "America's Dairyland," and we are still trying to get settled into our new place. (I'm finishing up this post after our trip downtown to the farmer's market - so much good stuff up there and a beautiful day here in Madison! We feel at home already!)

Our goal is not to unpack entirely, since we'll be looking for a house soon, but the boxes still need to be stashed somewhere in the closets! So far, George has done an excellent job utilizing our closet space in order to make the apartment livable.

I'll provide a few brief updates, as we are pilfering an internet signal from a neighbor and don't always have a reliable connection, I can't spend too much time on the blog.

Henry:
1. He laughed this week for the first time and we were so excited to hear it! We are continually trying to get a repeat performance.

2. He's having a little trouble adjusting to sleeping in his own room, which is no surprise given the amount of disruption to routine we've had in the last couple of weeks with traveling and moving. We are making progress, however, as 2 out of the last 3 nights he slept from 8pm to 1am, then 2 am to 6:30am. One of the nights we experienced our first Midwest storm, complete with lightning and thunder, so that was a little rough. He's still in the co-sleeper we had next to the bed, only now it is functioning as a stand alone unit.

3. He LOVES the "johnny jump-up" that we are borrowing from Aunt Jennifer. He is learning to entertain himself by bouncing up and down. I'll get a picture posted soon.

George:
He's enjoying his vacation time!

Charlotte:
She's enjoying having George on vacation!

We are both attempting to make all the address changes required to get all our affairs in order and keep life organized.

Compy:
My computer's hard drive is on the fritz, hence the lack of blog posts and pictures submitted. A new one is on the way!

Garden:
That's right! There is a small plot of dirt out our back door and patio area where we've planted a few tomato plants, some flowers and a little basil. We got them in before the storm, so they received a good watering this week! Now for the sun...

Yay Daddy!

Here's a pic from George's graduation. I heard one phrase at commencement that pretty much summed it up. As one of the graduates crossed the stage, everyone clapped and when it became silent again a tiny voice yelled out "yay, Daddy!" -- needless to say, it wasn't Henry, as he was sound asleep (thank goodness!) but was so sweet.

Congrats, George!!

Henry's Baptism

A few preliminary photos from Henry's Baptism. We had a wonderful weekend - filled with sunshine, though a little breezy!

Happy Henry

We finally managed to catch some of Henry's best smiles. Papa worked really hard to coax them out, and not have Henry so distracted by the camera! Enjoy!

Baptism Prep Class

In preparation for this big event in Henry's life, George and I completed the baptism class with the religious education director from the church down the street. Thank goodness the church has become understanding of special circumstances like long distance family situations and moving from state to state!

The classes at this church are "by appointment" only, so it was very personalized. Like our own "Engaged Encounter" weekend, we were surprised by how enjoyable the experience was, even for a mandatory Catholic class. Maybe we're just a little nerdy, but I think we both had fun tossing around ideas and understanding of theology. In fact, our Catholic education was tested a little bit, sort of like a Catholic quiz show. George certainly won big points for the day for coming up with "firmament" as an explanation of "why is there rain?" when discussing appearances of water in scripture (think Genesis and beginning of time). I lost a few points with an answer of Yahweh instead of Ruah for a word origin about the spirit and breath. Oh well, the point was really more about an increased understanding of what we were celebrating with Henry rather than a competition.

We discussed the more "old school" train of thought about baptism -- scouring out the black spot on the soul from original sin or preventing the fate of an eternity in limbo as a sort of "spiritual life insurance policy."

Rather, we discussed how exciting it was to be using wind and water as a symbol for new life. Wind representing the Spirit to bless the water, water to enter into new life with the church. Recently, we've noticed that our friends' babies are enjoying an all out dip in the water, instead of the typical sprinkle on the head. We learned that the meaning behind the word "baptism" is more like immersion or "to plunge." However, given the limitations of the font, Henry will be given the old Catholic quota of a rinsed head, just like his parents. :)

At the very end I have to say I was moved to think about Henry in this way: the last part of the sacrament involves some anointing with oil (chrism) and the phrase "anointed as Christ was, priest, prophet, and king." (keep in mind I'm paraphrasing) As the religious education director began to explain that a priest was someone who would bring people closer to God, a prophet was someone who spoke the word of God, and a king was royalty - someone who did the ruling and was not ruled (as in, we are to live in this world, but not be of this world) I looked at my little baby, asleep in the swing, and realized that is truly what I imagine for him. Its a huge undertaking. No one did it better than Jesus, but that is our commissioning. Just as our parents commissioned us.

A Change Would Do You Good

When I think about change, that Sheryl Crow song always comes to mind. Hence the title. In this case, George and I are really excited to make a change. The Detroit area has been a good place for learning in our respective health care fields (the population sort of lends itself to interesting patient scenarios, given the economic situation for many people). My patient on my very last day of work was a prime example. Without much time for details, I'll just say she was a VERY sick lady who waited way too long to come to the hospital (using the ER for primary care). With Henry in the picture, however, we've imagined a community focused a little more on people, outdoor activity, etc. and not cars or highways.

As usual, when George and I make a change, we tend to go all out. Remember 2005 when I moved to Missouri, started nursing school, and got married within 3 months time? Well this year we've had a baby, will move to Wisconsin, and George will start residency within a period of six months. Whew. I think we like a challenge.

The blog postings may become a little sparse in the next few weeks. May 17th is George's graduation from Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (KCOM) in Missouri and on May 18th we will baptize Henry in Washington, Iowa at the parish where I was baptized, grew up, and eventually returned to marry George. The week that we get back from Iowa, we'll be packing the moving truck and driving to Madison!

Very exciting times in the Leydon household! And we're very much looking forward to celebrating with our extended family the completion of medical school and welcoming Henry into the Catholic church!

Boy Time

George and Henry have had lots of boy bonding time while I've been at work. Our good natured little boy has been giving us lots of smiles lately, especially for Papa.

First Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

Today was my first Mother's Day and it was wonderful. George did such a good job treating me. First off, he let me sleep in. George took Henry at 6:30 when he woke up and I didn't hear a thing until 8:15. Then he made me a very nice breakfast of waffles topped with strawberries and whipped cream, a side of scrambled eggs, and a nice cup of coffee. Henry was kind enough to take a nice nap this morning so we could eat in peace. I even got to watch my new favorite show, CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood before going to church.

Toward the end of mass today the priest wished everyone a happy Mother's Day and stated how he wished they could provide a gift for all mothers or those who acted motherly. However, they were going to give two gifts today. They started by asking for the mothers with the most experience to stand, for instance, those who had the most children. They began with five and kept going (six children, stand if you have seven, etc.) until only one woman was standing, a mother of ten children. Then he asked for the newest moms to stand. Those with children less than 2 yrs old, 1 year, less than 6 months, etc. Guess what. I won! Henry was the youngest baby there today (or the youngest baby to stay that late at mass!) So I came home with a little book called the "Mother's Manual" written by A. Francis Coomes S.J. and a rosary.

The rest of the day was spent at home doing some chores around the apartment - I can't believe we need to be ready to go to Iowa and Missouri this week and then move the following week! As you can see, all the excitement got to Henry and he just couldn't resist a quick nap with Momma. What a sweetie.

Daddy's buddy

So, what has munchkin man been up to in the past week. Well, he's been doing a heck of a lot more talking! (We'll get a video up soon - those that have skyped with us have been able to see Mr. Chatty!). His hand motions have changed from really random flailing arm movements to a BIT more purposeful - trying to grab a purple plush octopus toy. It's hard to describe, but it's really cool to see. We're starting to appreciate more of a personality in this little guy.

Also, I never could have imagined how neat it is to watch him fall asleep and sleep. While he's falling asleep, he fights it so hard, makes his ridiculously gaping yawns, and his eyes get heavy. It's really cute. Then, when he's sleeping, he sounds like he's trying to eat, and then he occasionally grins. Kinda spooky, but also cute!


He's changing so fast. People keep telling me to enjoy it, because soon he'll be a teenager.

We went for a walk today - we made a special stop by a place where some new condos are going up. And boy let me tell you what. We saw a bulldozer, a backhoe, and an excavator. He seemed to like the excavator best...it was pretty cool :)

A sigh of relief

Whew. It is such a wonderful feeling to put the baby to bed and have time for myself. George is running errands (car oil change and BLS certification) and I'm scratching the blog itch while watching the Red Sox play the Tigers on a lovely evening in Detroit. Couldn't ask for a better night!

I'll give a quick recap of the week and a half, and you can further appreciate my sigh of relief. George finished his rotations on April 25th and the next morning got up very early to get a good start on a road trip to Madison in search of housing. Though we want to buy a place in Madison, we decided that with Henry in the picture, long distance house hunting was going to be a little bit too much pressure. Good thing, too, because George's final rotation in April was Infectious Disease and was very time intensive - typically 12 hour days! Ironically, as the name suggests, it also meant colds and sickness for us. We were both very drained of energy with the nagging cough from post nasal drip and caring for Henry.

George was successful in his search, however, and managed to find a place that will suit our needs as we begin our life of residency in Wisconsin. It is a two bedroom, 1 1/2 bathroom townhouse that is located between the hospital and clinic where he will be a resident. It also has a washer/dryer in unit (a bonus as we continue our cloth diapering plan) and is near the lakes, a park, and grocery shopping. In addition, they are allowing us to have a 7 month lease. So, the place is ours until the end of 2008, unless we use our landlord as a Realtor to find a house in the area, in which case they will let us out of our lease early with no penalties. If we don't use them, we'll still only have a short lease.

The weekend George was gone I got a taste for single parenting. Yuck. It was difficult to not have a break from Henry, and was worse because I wasn't feeling well. In addition, I felt pressure to pump breast milk in preparation for returning to work at the end of the week and wasn't having much luck. As soon as George returned, I had no trouble. It was a true testament to the connection between mind and body!

Another small stress was resolved when Henry finally passed his hearing screen (third time's a charm!). Although I knew he could hear, since he tracks my voice from across the room, as a parent I think there is always a tiny fear in the back of your mind that something might be wrong with your child. Either that, or I'm just a big worrywart. Probably the latter.

Back in the Saddle Again

I returned to work over the weekend. It was actually nice to be back and see some of my work friends and be able to share pictures and stories of Henry with them. I shortened my leave by two weeks so I could head back to work and give my two weeks notice. This way I wouldn't have to worry about time off for George's graduation and getting my hours in before we leave for Wisconsin. So it feels good to know that my time is limited in the MICU and just enjoy a few days of adult time before returning to full time work as a mommy.

Thankfully, George has had good "Mr. Mom" time with Henry, who decided to cut him some slack and drink from a bottle and take naps. At least for the first two days he did this...the third day in a row I think Henry was missing his momma because he fussed all afternoon and was pretty cuddly when I got home. Twelve hour shifts are such a long time to be away from baby! George did bring him to the hospital over my lunch hour so I could feed him and see him.

After a few months off, I was wondering how I might feel about work as a nurse. For sure, after my experience in the hospital and having my own nurses care for me, I'm fairly certain that ICU nurses truly earn their money. We work hard and have a lot to do during our shift. Not that other nursing fields are any less busy, but as the name suggests, the intensive care unit is certainly intense! I admit, I felt a little rusty after not thinking like a nurse for several weeks, but I have some really supportive co-workers who were happy to assist me when I needed it.

It's only Thursday Mr. Mom

Well, today is the day Charlotte started back to work. Subsequently, it's also the (first of 3 in a row) day that I get to watch over my son for the whole day! I must say, I know it's tough doing the day to day things, but it's amazing how much harder it is to do when you're on your own. You might be saying "duh, George" right now, but it's only today that I've had the opportunity to do experience this firsthand!

Also, since Henry hasn't been a regular bottle feeder, it's been weird having him eat from the bottle today. He's getting used to it, though.

Well, it's interesting trying to type this with him on my lap - so I'll be brief.

Charlotte does an amazing job with him, and spending one day on my own has given me a new perspective for what she deals with every day.

We can't wait for mom to come home!!!