Fear Does Not Exist In This Dojo

When your parents are movie fans, you're bound to get a few movie-themed onesies. This one is certainly one of the most awesome. A Karate Kid-themed Cobra Kai onesie. I'm sure Jack will grow up and love that movie.

Today Jack is...21 weeks old.

The little guy is getting old right before our eyes. He can now sometimes stay awake for 2 hours at a time which means more walks and more outings. If I hustle, I can get a nice little stroller walk in every morning.

He's gotten more interested in putting everything in his mouth. Toys, rings, his fingers, my fingers, his feet, his shirt. Anything and everything goes in his mouth.

He also has become very interested in the food I'm eating. I've noticed him copying my chewing movement when I'm eating which is really cute. And the other day I was holding a bottle of water and him in one arm and he bent over and put his mouth around the bottle. This kid will be more than ready for solids at 6 months. Loves food just like his mama!

We got some new baby gear off of craigslist - a jumperoo. He might be a tad small for it because his feet barely touch the ground, but he seems to like it so far. And he looks pretty darn cute in it.

We also had our weekly baby group meetup at the local park. Babies on blankets everywhere.

It's kind of funny because Jack is seriously shy at these things. The other babies are smiling and rolling around and babbling and pawing at each other and he is very tentative. He usually likes to sit in my lap rather than lie on the blanket. And, this week, when we first got there, he just cried when a baby got too close or a mom tried to play with him. I don't know if this is a phase or if he just has a shy personality. I guess that wouldn't shock me since I was such a shy kid. But I'm hoping that as I expose him to other kids, he'll get less tentative.

And now, more pics from this week!

Where there's a will, there's a way. The fingers freed themselves.

Not sure what I caught him doing but he sure looks shocked.

Five for Friday: Chick Flicks

Trying out something new that I hope to do every Friday. Because don't people need a break from pictures of the little guy? (I promise they won't all be about movies.)

My Top 5 Chick Flicks:

5. Dirty Dancing
4. Sixteen Candles
3. While You Were Sleeping
2. Pretty Woman
1. When Harry Met Sally

What are yours?

A sure-fire remedy for a down day

Well, the easy two word answer would be "that guy". That kid in the picture above. But there's more to it.

Last week Jack was having a rough week which made me in turn have a rough week. Zero sleep, lots of his fussiness, being around some super easy babies, and my phone dying, then replacing it, then having me drop it and shatter its screen. Not a banner week. Right about the time I shattered the glass screen, I was grumpy and decidedly not as enthused by all the strangers telling me how cute my kid was. Yeah, he's cute, but he's not a walk in the park. Okay, I'll admit it, I was in a bad mood. For a few days. (Shocking, I know.)

One afternoon I loaded the little guy into the car and headed to the store where they could fix my phone screen. I wasn't too excited to be pouring another couple hundred dollars into this phone. But off I went and Jack and I had to kill 25 minutes while they fixed it. Strapped in the Bjorn, we headed to the nearest shelter from the 92 degree heat which happened to be a Children's Place store. I walked in and saw a display of baby glasses on sale for $2.99. That's about what I was willing to spend on something I assumed would be mostly a novelty item. I grabbed the coolest pair (evidence above) and got in line. There was only one other woman in line, at the cashier, and she seemed to be returning about 50 items and purchasing another 10. Now, I've never worked retail but I imagine it can be hell dealing with certain customers. Namely, women like this woman. She was pretty short and rude with the cashier who clearly didn't deserve it. The transaction took a long time but I didn't have anywhere to go so I didn't care. The customer cared though because she took her bag at the end and walked off in a huff. The poor cashier woman looked utterly dejected. I cautiously approached the counter with a smile and said "I'm only getting these sunglasses, it'll be easy." At that moment, Jack turned on the charm and unleashed the biggest smile at her. Her entire face and lit up and said "That's just what I needed" and proceeded to ooh and ahh all over him. She told me that he made her feel much better and at that moment I felt guilty about having been grumpy about his fussiness all week. Sure, he can be difficult but that smile makes it all worth it.

As I paid, she insisted on taking the tags off and putting the sunglasses on Jack because "she just had to see how cute he was going to look." Well, she wasn't disappointed.

The smell of a baby

Everyone talks about how sweet and lovely a baby smells. And, in some ways, it's totally true. There is a "baby" smell and there is a baby breath smell which I find particularly adorable. I'll miss that smell in a year when it's gone.

But there are a few other smells. You know, the ones that don't make moms nostalgic and that can clear an entire room. First, there's the wet dog smell. I don't know what it is, but when my little guy gets out of the bath, he sometimes smells like a wet dog. Which is not a good thing if you're like me and aren't particularly fond of that smell. I'm hoping this is normal and that he is not, in fact, part canine.

But the real smell that can stop me in my tracks is his dirty diaper. Now, I know he's only ingesting breast milk right now so it's going to get worse. I know that. But this smell...I'm not saying it's the most foul thing ever. Not at all. No, it's something else. Imagine my surprise when one day he let loose with some audible noises (does that ever stop being funny?) and what did I smell? Buttered popcorn. That's right. To me, it smells like buttered popcorn. I've been having this thought for months now but I didn't tell John because I thought he would think I was crazy. I mean, what's wrong with me? Clearly my nose is out of whack because I have heard lots of baby poop jokes and none of them revolve around buttered popcorn. But, lo and behold, I was completely validated when I came across this blog post on another mom's blog. Someone else thinks the same thing! Yay! I'm not insane! Nor is my child abnormal! And he doesn't have movie popcorn poop because his mom lives and breathes movies!

Top 10 essentials for a 4 month old

Four months ago I wrote a post about the baby gear that we had found invaluable for the first two weeks. Well, I thought I'd update you with what we use most now and what Jack loves.

10. Video Monitor - We had originally registered for an inexpensive audio monitor and that was fine for the first few months. But now that Jack is in his own room and we're letting him cry a little and settle himself, I couldn't handle not seeing him. So I pooled all my Babies R' Us gift cards and splurged on this video monitor from Summer Infant. I think it is literally the most expensive one on the market but it got the best reviews. I figure you pay for quality and man, is this thing awesome. The video picture is ridiculously good and the monitor has a touch screen like an iPhone. You can pan and zoom the camera with a touch of a button from across the house. Amazing. And now I can spy on my kid.

9. Baby Bjorn - When the little guy is tired and in more of a cuddly mood, I wear him in the Ergo around the house. But when we venture out to shops and we're in crowds, he loves facing out in the Baby Bjorn and studying everything around him. We have the Comfort Bjorn which is supposed to be better for mom's back but I'm not sure it's true. If it is, I'm glad I don't have the regular one.

8. The big boy stroller aka the forward facing stroller - We've got a Chicco Cortina stroller which I really like. It's not fancy but it's sturdy and does the job. And now, like the Bjorn, he can face out and I don't have to carry him pressed up against my chest now that it's 95 degrees in the hot LA Valley.

7. Rockabye Baby CD's - We only have two albums (Lullaby versions of U2 and Queen songs) but I know they have hundreds and people love them all. (I hear the Kanye West one is great). Jack is particularly found of "Under Pressure" and we play it every single night before his bath.

6. Camp Songs - Sorry, there's no link because they are all in my brain. But I sing camp songs to him at least 20 times a day. It calms him down in the car, it can kill time before bedtime, and it can help put him to sleep at nap time. Amazing. I hope if you are going to have a baby soon that you were a camp counselor in your youth.

5. Bouncer Seat #2 - At two weeks I blogged about an inexpensive Fisher Price seat that we had gotten. It was great. Still is great. But it's nice to have TWO seats because I am constantly in search of a place to set the little guy down for a second while I do something. So we inherited this super sweet Ocean Wonders Aquarium bouncer seat and Jack loves it. The bar over the seat has water that makes bubbles and play a song. We have it in our master bathroom and I can set him in there and he'll let me take a shower and get ready for the day. Truly a lifesaver.

4. SwaddleMe wraps - This is a repeat from the earlier list but we still swaddle him and therefore use these 3 or 4 times a day. I am forever grateful for them because, if I leave the little guy unswaddled, he'll swat at his face, rub his eyes, and wake up in minutes.

3. Car seat toy bar - My son's car seat woes are well documented here and while he's slowly growing out of that phase (the one where he screams bloody murder every time we go anywhere), this toy bar helps a lot. He is fascinated by the frog and has learned how to push the eyes to make the song play. Endless minutes of fun.

2. Baby Bath Tub - I know some people can get away with just setting their baby in the tub or the sink, but we tried that with Jack and he won't have any of it. So I love that we have this Fisher Price tub that we use every night. The hammock part was great when he was a newborn and now he's grown into the second stage. And when he can sit up on his own we can take out the bumper and he can splash around the whole thing. Fantastic.

1. The ball - Oh the exercise ball. That damn ball. At two weeks it was such a miracle. No crying! And at 4 months I guess it's a mixed blessing. Yes, it still works and that's how we get him to fall asleep. The downside is that it's the ONLY thing that works. It's pretty much the only way he can fall asleep...on the ball. Man, did I create a bad habit. We are slowly working on weaning him off it but it'll be an uphill battle. Nonetheless, it's certainly something we couldn't live without so it gets the number one spot.

Sunny and 90 Degrees

When it's as hot as it has been in the Valley, there's only one thing to do...get in the pool. We got Jack a little baby float which he seems to like. He's a tad small/young for it so we still have to hold him in it but it was adorable.

We were also lucky enough to have the Lynn family visit and Jack and Violet got some awesome baby water time.

Today Jack is...20 weeks old.

This week was filled with lots of ups and downs with the little guy. I mean, the ups are obvious...take a look at that face up there. He continues to get cuter by the day. Yesterday we met with our little baby group that meets weekly at the park. The little guy was very well behaved this week and smiled at the other babies. It was super cute. He can't roll around on the picnic blanket yet like some of the other kids, but I don't mind...it's easier to keep track of him. And last night we went to a little community thing our town was having. "Town" as if we don't live in LA. But, to be specific, it was Burbank's 100 year anniversary and the city threw, as they advertised it, "the party of the century".

Couldn't stop staring at the live band in the background

I discovered it's hard to take pictures of my son when I'm wearing him on my chest. But I tried. He seriously loved the live bands and was enthralled by all the people. It was cute. And he hung in there even though it was 90 degrees and his bedtime!

Of course, the "downs" of the week really only include one thing - Sleep. Truthfully, I know everyone is tired of hearing about Jack's sleep. I don't blame you. But I like to blog about it now and then so I have a record of what was happening at his different ages. I had read about 4 month regression but the little guy is doing that to the nth degree. He wakes up every 45 minutes to an hour and it takes almost 45 minutes to calm him down and get him back to sleep. For those of you doing the math, that adds up to very little sleep for baby, mom, and dad. It's bad enough that we're not getting enough sleep, but I'm really worried about Jack because he actually needs sleep. To, you know, make his brain grow and stuff. My brain is already as big as it's going to get. In fact, it's starting to shrink I think so I have been able to survive on 3 hours a night or so. But he needs sleep. So not sure what we're going to do...

But back to the cuteness factor. He started making this face this week and it's adorable. I think he's just discovering his tongue and jaw and lips and it makes me laugh every time he does it. Which is often.

Okay, and now, more pics from this week!

Wake Forest onesie courtesy of Aunt Julie

Only in LA...

...or "How We Bought a Piano".

Yes, we are now the proud owners of a used piano. John had been scouring craigslist for literally a year looking for the piano he wanted. I can't play at all (okay, I play "Heart and Soul") and John isn't a professional pianist so we just needed something that played and that would look okay in our living room. And was the right price of course. The "right price" being cheap.

He finally found one the other day and contacted the seller who called him and told him to come by. John said she sounded like "an old lady" on the phone. He then drove up to her house, got buzzed in the gate, and met this woman at the door. John refrained from saying "hey, I know you from Roseanne" and calmly just inspected her piano and heard how her kids were grown up and didn't need it anymore. $200 later the piano was ours and our little guy is already making his mark on it.

Commenting Challenge

As is well-documented on this blog, I spend a lot of time holding my little guy as he naps and breastfeeds. I'd say that throughout the day I pass about 5 hours cemented on my couch or glider. Geez, adding it up seems pretty insane but, yes, about 5 hours. The only thing that saves me is surfing the internet on my iPhone. Throughout the past year, while navigating this whole pregnancy/motherhood thing, I've stumbled upon a lot of "mom blogs" that I read almost every day. I find it comforting to hear about similar experiences and to see babies that were born about the same time as Jack. Of course, these moms have no idea I'm so entertained by their writing because I never comment. Not sure if I'm too shy or have nothing to say... Nonetheless, I really should let them know that I appreciate their blogs and thank them for letting me spy on their lives.

Taking all that into account, I saw a commenting challenge on one of the blogs I read and decided to sign up. It just means that I actually have to leave comments on all the blogs I read this week. And maybe some of my secret readers will leave comments here. Of course, I know a lot of you enjoy the blog without commenting so, don't worry, you don't have to say anything.

For those new readers, welcome to my little blog. I'm a new mom and a Hollywood film industry career gal (currently on hiatus) trying to navigate this whole parenthood thing. I started this blog during my pregnancy where I detailed all the ups and downs each week (linked above). My son is ridiculously cute but, as a trade-off, is sometimes difficult, stubborn, and definitely tricky. Probably gets that from his sarcastic and stubborn parents....who love him very much.

90 Minutes

There's an episode of "Battlestar Galactica" called "33" (nerd alert!) that I am reminded of every day. In it the heroes have to jump away from the bad guys who always appear after 33 minutes. My evil cylons are Jack's fussy meltdowns and my time limit is 90 minutes. 90 minutes of awake time between naps. Naps where I hold him the whole time. 90 minutes. That's all he can do and that's all I can get.

90 minutes to go from this...

...to this.

At first glance, 90 minutes may seem reasonable, but let's break it down. The first 30 minutes after his nap are spent unswaddling and breastfeeding and changing his diaper. The last 15 minutes before he goes down for his nap are filled with fussiness and rubbing of the eyes. So that leaves 45 minutes in between. And that's not 45 minutes where he'll play on his activity mat or sit in his swing. Because the little guy likes to be held. So 45 minutes. Well, I can usually grab something to eat. Or go to the bathroom. We can make short trips to the grocery store or Starbucks or if I'm feeling adventurous, Target. But in LA, driving anywhere can easily take 30 minutes each way. Or, like my trip the other day to my old office, the drive took one hour and the minute we got there he melted down as everyone went to greet him. So, 90 minutes, it's not much. Doesn't leave a lot of room to do things or go places.

I have been frustrated with this, only because I see so many other babies his age who don't have this same problem. They can play at our playgroup in the park for hours with no fussing. Or they can fall asleep for a nap anywhere and without help. But that's just not our little guy. And I think I realize that we don't have one of those babies. And that gradually that 90 minutes will become 100 then 2 hours then more. And then I'll miss all those naps.

A Holiday Weekend in Photos

Our little family of three had a jam-packed holiday weekend. On Saturday morning we made the trek down to Dana Point to see my friend Colleen at her mom's house. Jack did okay on the 2 hour drive, definitely some crying but nothing that we couldn't handle. We got to Colleen's where they were having a party at their beautifully re-done house. Unfortunately my camera died while we were there so I didn't get a pic of me and Colleen. But I did get a photo of John and Jack (though John wasn't aware he was supposed to smile).

I spent a good deal of the party upstairs on a quiet balcony while the little guy slept. He can't stay awake very long and the drive tired him out.

Unfortunately when we left Dana Point and continued the drive to San Diego, we hit traffic and it took almost two hours. Jack had a major meltdown and was inconsolable. Poor little guy. It really made John and I so sad. But we made it and he crashed hard in his pack n' play right away.

The next day we went over to my brother's house to see his family and meet his newest addition, baby Hank. First Jack got to try out Johnny's sand box which I think he really liked, despite the look on his face. He was studying the experience pretty intently.

Then he tried out Johnny's swing which was less of a hit.

In fact, it ended in some tears.

Jack isn't quite the daredevil free spirit that his cousin is. But Johnny greeted him with a big hug while his brother Hank looked on.

Baseball twins!!

Our visit to John's was cut short because Jack decided he needed a nap...like now. So we went home and he took a two hour nap. Then there was a little jacuzzi time at my parents house.

The kid seems to really like the pool. After that we went to my a barbecue at my friend Leigh's house where there were so many babies and kids. Of course I forgot my camera so there are no pics. After a few hours we returned home with an exhausted son. Since we didn't bring our little bathtub that he goes in every night, Jack got treated to his first shower, courtesy of his daddy.

He was somewhat confused by the experience and I think missed his bath.

The next morning we headed back to LA at 6am to avoid traffic and make the drive as short as possible for Jack. It worked and he didn't cry too much. Especially since John and I sang camp songs almost continuously for two hours. All in all, a successful and fun weekend!