and just like that...

maternity leave is over.

The people, they were not lying when they said to enjoy every moment because time flies.  They were so right.

Tomorrow Zach and I are taking David to daycare for the first time. We both thought it would be a good idea to start him a few days before I go back to work. Just because I think I need a little transition time myself. We went last week to finalize all our paperwork and check out the infant room one last time (which would make the third time.. heh.) and met one of the teachers and one other little baby. Neither Zach nor myself ever went to daycare so this is completely foreign territory, but we both also agree that it's for the best. He needs to socialize and I really think he's going to learn a lot there.

I go back to work on Monday, so I'm going to have three days to myself before then. I have something planned for each day to keep myself busy. One day I'll bake cookies for my cousins wedding and deep clean the house (with the music up LOUD!) then another day I'm going to go shopping. I saved all my gift cards from Christmas just for this day.  Let's hope I can find some good stuff. Then Friday I'm getting my hair done and I'm thinking maybe it's time for a change. We'll see how brave I am. Zach will be home that day too so we are going to go out for a long lunch and then maybe pick up the kiddo early.

I'm only going to work three days a week for the first two weeks to ease back into things (and so I can get in just a liiiiitle more David time). I still don't exactly know what I'll be doing when I get back, but I suppose I will worry about that when I get there. I've heard I have an office though, so that's a good start. I'm going to miss the daylights out of David, mostly because I'm fairly sure he's entered the "ridiculously cute" stage and is doing all sorts of fun new things. He's so sweet and so amazing. However, I'm also really looking forward to some grown up time and getting dressed up and doing my hair and makeup every day. Also, I love my dogs beyond words but I'm kind of ready to not have them IN MY FACE every second of the day. Seriously. 

David will be a little over five months when I go back to work full time. I'm grateful beyond words for the opportunity to have stayed home with him this long and bond with him like I have. I very much look forward to what life as a "working mom" will be like but man alive, it's going to be hard to leave that face every day.  It's hard not to think that he's going to forget me, especially when he'll only be awake for an hour or so after I get him home each night. I just hope he doesn't think I've abandoned him and knows how much I still love him so, so much.

I don't wanna.

Ted's Third Birthday

You would think three years would mellow a dog. Especially, a Great Dane. But, no. It has not. He's still just as crazy, playful and "IN YO FACE" as he was the day we brought him home.  He's really enjoyed maternity leave in that he's been able to sleep on the bed nearly every day. I don't usually let him on my pillows, but today I'll make an exception. 

Happy Birthday, Teddery Dude!

Road Trippin'

We weren't planning on taking David up to Sioux Falls until May at the earliest, but with this crazy warm weather and perfect looking forecast we decided to hit the road!

Have you ever packed for a 4 month old to take a two-night trip? Good googliemooglie! I lost count of how many bags of stuff we had. I'm not sure what we are going to do if we ever add another kiddo. Or need to take a stroller! It was tight back there in the ol' Escape!

David did so well in the car. We kept reminding ourselves that this will likely be the easiest 6 hour trip we make since he's still rather sleepy, not mobile and easily amused. He slept the entire first half of the trip each way (3 hours) and lucky for us they just built a new shopping center in Council Bluffs so we had plenty of non truck stop or McDonalds options to change and feed David at. We settled on Panera and had a nice little lunch and let David eat and stretch his legs for a while. I'm not going to lie though, not having McDonalds french fries on the way to Sioux Falls made me feel a little shaky. They are a staple! Anyhoo.  The second half of each trip was a bit more woeful for the little guy. He wanted out of his seat so bad!! So I hopped in back and kept him amused and helped lull him back to sleep. It was probably the most fun trip to SF we've ever had :)

When we were there it was baby-pa-looza! Apparently everyone decided to have babies at the same time so we got to meet Davids brand new cousin Jude (1 month) "queen bee" Raina (6 months) and the "old guy" Elias (1.5 years). We had such a great time getting everyone together for numerous photo shoots! David also got to meet his Great-Grandparents and he loved it. He did SO well considering it was insanely hot and he was ready for a nap. A little tropper, we have.

Saturday night Zach and I got to go on a real-live date while Grandma watched the babe. We decided to go to Minerva's in Downtown Sioux Falls. Never disappoints! I had the Cajun Chicken Linguine and Zach and the Hunter's Ribeye. It was all so good! We both also got the famous salad bar which that night featured "Bacon Cheddar Soup", I mean, come on.  David was a wee bit fussy when we got home but otherwise he slept like a super dude the whole trip! I was so shocked!

I'm not quite sure when we'll be headed back up north but I'm sure it will be sooner than later! I think David's gonna like our Sioux Falls trips! I know we do :)

Here's a little slideshow Zach put together of all the pictures. Enjoy!

Miss Missy is Four!

She might be the strangest little dog in the world, but she is nothing if not loyal. Constantly at my side, always concerned, beyond loving. I think she might have a harder time with me going back to work than anybody.  She is just a wonderful little dog. Even if her white fur constantly gets all over that couch..

Happy 4th birthday to my Miss Moo!!

Four Months - The Numbers

Today was David's four month doctor appointment. He's happy, healthy and growing like a little weed!

Weight: 15 lbs 10 oz (64%)
Height: 26.5 in (93%)
Head: 43 cm (69%)

He's a little string-bean! That would explain why he's almost outgrowing some of his 6 month clothes! They are all baggy on him, but he's just so long!  He'll be outgrowing his car seat before we know it!

He handled the shots like a champ!  He was so happy, smiley and chatty during the whole appointment (being quite a ham actually!) but when they stuck him he screamed until they were done, then just looked at us, sucked his binky and that was that. He happily chatted to himself the whole ride home and is content as can be in his swing right now. I'm sure he'll be a little achy later on but I think he's going to be just fine. What a brave little dude!

David is Four Months Old

Month four was a big one! He is really starting to show some personality and it is so much fun. He definitely knows who his mom and dad are and boy does he love us (whew!). If one of us enters a room he is all over it and can easily track us as we walk around. Generally we are greeted with a huge smile and it is fantastic. He still saves his very best smiles for Dad though. He is definitely a Daddy's boy. He just adores Zach and it is so awesome to see. He is starting to find his voice and will "talk" to you a little bit, but just like his Mommy if you are talking he won't say a thing. You have to be patient and wait for him to say something. It's almost like he's whispering things. I have a feeling he might be a little bit on the quiet side. We'll see though. We are still waiting for a full on laugh too. I think we've got a few little tiny giggles, but nothing definitive. I cannot wait for that!

Our living room has officially been taken over by David things. It used to just be the swing and the playmat. Now we have the swing, playmat, bumbo chair, toy basket and the play seat thing. I'm getting ready to add a bookcase with fabric bins to hopefully help contain the chaos. So far, he doesn't really care for the bumbo seat. He slouches really bad to the side and doesn't seem to like sitting int it for longer than about 5 minutes. At that time he will arch himself backwards and try to stand because this kid definitely prefers to stand. He could care less about learning how to sit, he's all about the standing. His legs are SO strong too. He can launch himself right off your lap if you aren't careful. He's still getting used to the play seat thing. He definitely likes to stand in it, but hasn't quite got the hang of playing with all the toys. Sometimes I wish we would have got one with more "bells and whistles" because ours is pretty simple and doesn't have a lot of toys, but we figure he'll grow out of it soon enough, why spend more? He's starting to get a bit restless and isn't interested in doing the same thing for very long, so we are constantly moving around and switching it up. It will be good when he can sit and play with his toys. I think he's totally over the whole laying down thing.

His favorite toys are a couple different balls that he can easily grab and chew on, his Sophie the Giraffe, his teething beads and links. I'll just make a chain of about 4-5 links and he's a happy guy! He doesn't much care for any toys that make too much noise yet. I think they startle him.  Although is favorite book is one that when you turn the pages it talks and plays music, he loves that!

I mentioned in his three month post that the slept through the night for the first time. Yeah, he's only done that 3 times, total. He still wakes up once a night, sometimes more for a few pats and the binkie. Last week we had to bid adieu to the swaddle. I just happened to be watching the monitor when I saw him roll right over onto his stomach, face smashed in the mattress. So, that was that. The first night without the swaddle was pure hell. I think we were up with him more times than we were the night we got home from the hospital. The second night was better. We also discovered that he sleeps realllllllly well on his stomach. So yeah. He does that. I'm not a big fan, but there's not a lot we can do if he can get over by himself anyway. The weird thing is that he he'll only roll over in his crib. He has never rolled over during floor time and still pretty much detests tummy time. I just don't get it.

While he's only waking up one time at night now, he is taking foreverrrrrr to fall back asleep. Usually I'm up with him for at least an hour. He's just smiling and talking to himself and then gets frustrated when he realizes that it's still sleepy time. I haven't decided when we'll let him full on "cry it out" but we do let him fuss a little. He's going down easier, but we still have a long ways to go. I've also heard rumors about this thing called "four month wakeful" where babies stop sleeping well and start getting up again multiple times a night. I'm hoping we miss this lovely milestone because it seems to last weeks. We'll see though. I'm not holding my breath.

During month four he also got a visit from Grandpa Swalley and went to visit his Great Grandparents on my side! We are gearing up for our first trip to Sioux Falls here soon and I've already started writing a list of all the things we need to take. I think we'll need to rent a Uhaul! Kidding. Kinda. It's a lot of stuff!  I just hope he does alright in the car and then actually sleeps when we are up there. We shall see!! We are very excited to meet his new cousin, Jude. He was just born a few weeks ago. It will be so awesome having a cousin his age to play with when we go visit. He already has a cousin who's about a year older and is also a boy. So once they get older, watch out!!

Anyway, his 4 month doctor appointment is on Monday so I will return with all his stats! Hopefully he handles the shots ok.

And here's a little video. I was rocking him for a nap and he started doing this to his hair. I love it because I did the very same thing and it drove my parents nuts. :)