Official Start of the Ferber Method

The night is far from over and I don't want to jinx it, but we did the Ferber method tonight, and Max fell asleep after only 30 minutes! We'll see how the rest of the night goes, but so far so good!

New Tradition: Bumbo Helmet

From now on, all visitors to our house have to have a photo with the Bumbo Helmet. Remember this before you come visit. That is all.

     
 
     
 

This Moment

This bumbo makes for a terrific helmet.

We get a little bored when the baby is asleep.







FYI. Thinking about getting a couple for when I ride El Tour de Tucson.

Sleep Training

Max is not a good sleeper. He does not go to sleep on his own and must be rocked, held, or nursed to sleep. And he seems to be getting worse at night, waking up 4-6 times, and some times refusing to go back in the crib.

Last night, we let Max "cry it out" for the first time (this wasn't a planned event, it was just 2 in the morning, and I didn't have the energy to rock him any longer). For the first little bit, I had no problem with letting him cry. Like I said, I was beat, and I knew there was nothing more I could do for him. However, once he'd been crying for 20 minutes, it took all of my willpower not to go pick him up. It was amazingly hard not to. And I would have, if Jeff wasn't there. After an hour Max eventually cried himself to sleep. He ended up sleeping from 3 until 8 even, which is late for him. It felt good, funny enough, knowing that he would eventually stop crying. Even if it took an hour, he stopped.

We really plan on training Max to be a better sleeper now. I know I have created bad habits for him, and it's definitely time to break them. We plan to continue letting him cry it out, using the Ferber method. We wanted to start tonight, but Jeff's at kickball, and I'm just not sure if I'm strong enough to withstand the crying when I'm alone. We'll aim for tomorrow and see what happens!

This Moment (a day late)

6 Months

Stephanie snapped this shot of Max yesterday, and as I was browsing through my pictures later that night, I nearly fell out of my chair when I came to it. He looks so big! He doesn't even look like my Max. He looks like a big boy, ready to take on the world (with one hell of an attitude I might add). It almost makes me sad to look at it. Almost. It mostly makes me so happy and proud of my big boy. My 6-month-old boy, I might add.

And while he no longer fits in one arm or naps for hours on end, he does smile at his Daddy, cuddle with his Mama, play with the TV remote, sit and grab at his toys, roll over, play contently, eat rice cereal, belly laugh, and cry whenever we leave the room. And while the last one can be taxing, it's nice to know he loves us and just wants us around him. 'Cause I want him around me too, even though he is a big 6-month-old baby.

Happy Grandparents Day!

Happy Grandparents Day to the four best grandparents in the world! Max is so lucky to have you in his life!

Even if you are all nuts.

What time is it? ... GAME TIME!

This Moment

Why are we giving him attention?

This guy's church has only 50 members. Had the media not tripped all over themselves to give this fraud publicity for the sake of a sensational story, few outside of those 50 wingnuts would have ever known about "Burn a Koran Day". Now it's an international incident which is likely to provoke more militant aggression towards our country and it's troops.

When are we going to demand more from our journalists?

Lazy Weekend

What a boring long weekend. We pretty much just hung around the house.

Well, except for Saturday when Max and I hung out with Michelle all afternoon, and then Jeff, Max and I went out to Little Anthony's.

Oh, and can't forget the BBQ at my cousin LeAna's new home on Sunday.

And then there was kickball practice (which Jeff biked to) that night and dinner at Sir Vezas with Stephanie and Conrad.

But Monday we didn't even get dressed, just stayed in our pajamas all day.

Hmm, no, that's not right either...

I remember now, we spent the day in my parents' pool for their Labor Day get-together.

But other than that, we were lazy bums.

My in-laws are the best

Woke up to find some people working on my front yard. Liked the landscapers so much that we're going over later for margaritas and swimming.

This Moment

Max's first baseball game

My Sister Finds a Job

Nurse Megan (that's my sister, ya'll, and the one on the right) has taken a job at Washington Hospital Center in the Emergency Department, in Washington, DC. I cannot think of a cooler place for her and Kyle to live. I am so envious of them and the experiences they'll have. I don't ever see myself leaving Tucson, I just don't think it's in the cards for me (much to Jeff's chagrin). But I know this is the chance of a lifetime for Megan. It makes me horribly sad, but I won't dwell on that. I'm so excited for her and what this means for her future. I'm so proud of her for getting the job. I'm also excited to visit her, as it means we'll be visiting Jeff's family more too. So it's a twofer. And we love DC, and it'll be great to take Max there. Overall, I think it's a great move for Megan and Kyle. Of course we're sad to see them go, but what an adventure they'll have!

Irrelevant Information.

I write a lot of blog posts in my head, usually while driving or at night right before I fall asleep. I meticulously think about the wording, the opening, the conclusion, and the pictures I'll include. I make revisions. I write the whole thing in my head- beginning to end, and could repeat it without a single change. But by the time I am by a computer, I have lost the post. Or I just have a million other things to do and that post is no longer relevant by the time I write it out. Or maybe I just thought better of it.

Most often the posts that don't make it to the blog are political, religious, or too personal. Sometimes I want to start an anonymous blog, so I can bitch about people I know, or about work, or somewhere just to be brutally honest. But that's all so negative. I enjoy sharing the fun parts of our lives: the fun trips, the baby pictures, the anniversaries and birthdays. I like that Jeff throws in the serious political and social issues.

The posts that never see the light of day, they help me work through issues. It's probably for the best they don't get published. I think I would regret a lot of them. But it helps me to think clearly about the issue at hand. I enjoy blogging. Even if most of my posts don't ever reach the blog.

Side note:

Can somebody please get this kid a napkin?