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Thursday, October 11, 2012

Mr. Riley

My little boy is sure a character. Every day is so much fun these days. Well, at least parts of the day are fun. We still have some hard times. But then he will do something sweet, or cute, or funny, and I will smile and think, "how did I get so lucky?" The above photo was taken after nap time. I don't think he was quite ready to get up. But he was squeaking and fussing, so daddy got him up. We both laughed out loud when we saw his hair. It was worse...if you can believe that...right after sitting up in his crib. I didn't have my phone on me though, so it was a few minutes later when I got this shot. I have about 5 others prior to this one, but his eyes are closed. SO I had to get this shot without the flash. He was so very annoyed with me. And after this I broke the news that mommy was going bye-bye. Haha...mommy is so mean! :) (Don't worry, he quickly got over it. Saying "bye-bye" and walking me to the front door.)




The above video (if it decides to show up) was taken after he found a pacifier on the table. You see, the first 8 months of his life were very hard on me. He did not know how to sleep. I was sleep deprived and desperate to find something to sooth him, aside from me. I was exhausted and desperate for some relief. I bought EVERY type of pacifier out there. I searched desperately for some sort of different shape that might appease him. But to no avail. I think he took it a total of 2 times and kept it in his mouth for like 5 minutes at a time. Seriously folks. It was a rough time. But here he is making fun of his mama. ;) He doesn't even know how to suck on a binky and keep it in his mouth. (though I must admit, I tried this particular one too, and it is pretty difficult to suck on.)

The past week or so he has really started to talk up a storm. It is an adventure every day with him, you never know what might come out of his mouth. Right know he is big into "Thank you." He hands me something, and when I take it from him, "ank coo." The waitress refills my water, he says "ank coo." It just about melts my heart. Next step is working on "you're welcome."

The other day a new mommy commented that she couldn't wait for her baby to do something that Riley was doing. And I totally remember feeling this way when Riley was months old. There were times when I looked forward to the next milestone. And while this reaction is completely normal. And sometimes we say these things without really meaning anything by them. But I think there is something in loving the moment your child is in now. There is something so beautiful about your baby today, right now. Even if they are screaming and squirming and fighting sleep. I had so many struggles during the first months of Riley's life (and I definitely have some struggles today) but I look back on those moments with such reverence and a desire to be able to go back in time and snuggle with the Riley of 2011. I guess what I'm saying is each milestone is special in its own way, try to live in the now without looking too far forward. Because you will never get that time back.

Friday, October 5, 2012

Change to come

Something I haven't really announced yet will be happening soon: My dear husband got a new job at Boeing. He will start a week from today. It is really, really exciting news for us. As he will finally have benefits, and hope for promotions within the company. 

It is something we have been dreaming about for quite some time now. He attempted applying a couple years ago, but to no avail. 

Now we are ready for a new kind of adventure. We have settled into a routine, and it will be shaken up a bit. 

The main issue is that he will be working evening shift, at least to start. Monday through Friday from 2:00-10:30pm. He has also offered to keep working Saturdays at his current job. But I'm not sure how long he will keep that up. 

He is looking forward to sleeping in. And I'm looking forward to doing water aerobics again. (I plan on going in the mornings twice a week, he and Riley can sleep in while I go work out!) And I should be able to go grocery shopping alone! (Oh the simple things in life...) :) 

We are looking forward to actual vacation and sick leave from work. (Currently he has to ask for time off, and may or may not get it.) 

And benefits! Don't forget about them! Currently my insurance has a huge deductible (because I opted for the plan with a HSA) so I'm hoping I could use his insurance as my secondary plan and cut down some of my out of pocket cost. (Though I must admit I'm not sure how this would work, if the secondary insurance would only go into effect after I've reached my deductible or not...) 

While there are many positive things about this change, there are a lot of challenges that we will face. And they are a little distracting for me right now. 

I'm not looking forward to evenings alone. Specifically bedtime. On nights when I'm not working, I will likely stay up and wait for Jamaal to come home, because we usually do not go to bed now until close to midnight. But I look forward to the time when Jamaal gets home, because I have a little help with Riley. Perhaps it is just because I've been with Riley all day long, and I'm just ready for some assistance. So maybe it will help to have daddy home in the morning before nap time  But being a negative Nelly, I've been focusing on the opposite. 

Currently, on Mondays and Tuesdays when I work, Jamaal is in charge of dropping Riley off at my father-in-law's or my parent's house depending on the day. And if I work for 12 hours, Jamaal will also retrieve Riley from whichever house he is at. Now, I will be in charge of picking up Riley, even after working for 12 hours. And let me just say, I'm really not looking forward to this! After working for 12+ hours, I really just want to come home and get in my jam-jams. 

Meal times will also be a little different from here on out. It will be strange just cooking for Riley and I. And I keep bugging Jamaal about what sort of things he will want to bring for lunches, and he is annoyed with me for even thinking about it. (I'm a planner, he is not). But I want to know if I should make dinners for lunch so he can bring them with him to work. Or if I should make dinner and save it for him for the next day. Or if he just wants me to get some lunch meat, chip bags, and carrots for a brown bag style meal. Leaving Riley and I on our own for meals. 

And the last, and greatest challenge, is putting off trying for a second pregnancy. We are not in agreement on this one, but I will not force my husband to father another child, if he is not ready to do so. I understand his hesitancy: there is so much unknown about our future. Our finances will likely be tight, as he will most definitely be taking a pay cut for this job (with opportunities for raises along the way). I hope that this hesitancy will dissipate after a month (or two) of work. 

Because nine months in itself is a long time to wait...