The Universe

Emily and I have had a running joke for a long time that the Universe will take care of us. Need some new underwear? Got them! An extension for that big project at work? Done! A job? ... Well not quite. Maybe the Universe is speaking to us, and it just does not want me to work.

It has been an interesting year to say the least, but our joke has turned into more of a mantra for us. Every time we need something it will show up. Even if we don't know we need it, or just started to think about needing something we will find a cheap solution.

For example when Eli was starting to want to both stand and play the Universe sent us a play table. Well  ok, it was a Hanukkah gift from my Aunt Jane. When we needed some new books to read to Eli some Dr. Seuss books showed up at Aldi's. When our family outgrew our family bed we found a way to redesign our room. I could go on and on about the fates and our friends and family that have knowingly or unknowingly helped us this year.

I have been thinking a lot about all of this. I know its all kinda over done and end of the year reflective, but it happens. I feel very blessed. I feel very lucky. I also had one thought that I wanted to pass on to everyone. Don't believe in New Years Resolutions. Instead just be a better person. Do things that make you and others feel good. Try to relax and let the Universe take care of your needs. Everything happens for a reason. Here's to a great 2011!

Month 10

Quick update. The baby is 10 months old.

Video Friday: Moving!

Ok, who cares that its Friday and not Tuesday or that I have not posted in weeks. Here is a new video for you all. Life has just become a lot more difficult for everyone one in this house except for Eli.


On the move! from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Month 9

Just a quick photo update. Who is this big boy?

A Day in Eli's Life

This will be a two part post. Part One: A Day in Eli's Life


A Day in Eli's Life from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

**************************************************

In other news- We are going to see my parents for thanksgiving in STL this week. I could not help but to think that this may be the first year that I have not used the words "going home". My home is in Chicago with my beautiful wife and baby. My Mom always told me that their home would always be my home. I understand now.

Video Tuesday: Long Distance Grandparenting

Living so far from our parents can be hard. You have to be creative to have the Grandparent lend a hand. In this case I needed to clean up lunch so Grandma Judy got some face time with Eli.


Long Distance Grandparenting from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Month 8

My boy. My big boy. You take up all my time. I love you more everyday. We have found our rhythm. I now look forward to having you all to myself. Your mama is a better writer than me, so you may want to read her month update: http://chicagoemoly.blogspot.com/2010/10/crazy-8.html

Crazy 8

This last month has been a busy one, as evidenced by my lack of posting.  My mom visited, we went to DC for Molly's wedding, we had our big annual conference at work, and this weekend we are in St. Louis to celebrate Eli's great grandfather's 90th birthday.  I was generally swamped with work and spent many nights in weird positions attempting to get Eli back to sleep and work on work at the same time.  

My 8-month-old baby is a big mama's boy.  He's been weary of anybody who is not mom or dad.  It makes us feel loved but makes it very difficult to share him.

He expresses joy with his entire body.  He opens his mouth for big, big smiles, flaps his arms and legs, and squeals.  When he sees me, he often starts panting.  It's possible he hangs out with puppies too much.  We kiss him lots and he's started returning the favor.  At least I think he's trying to return the favor.  He puts his open wet mouth on our faces and holds it there for a moment or two.

Speaking of his mouth, he is up to 4 teeth--his bottom middle two and the two next to the top middles ones.  We're pretty sure he's working on about 4 more.

We've more fully committed to this whole solid food eating business.  We kept forgetting for a while.  Does that make us bad parents?  His favorite is plums.  On the train ride back from St. Louis on Sunday we  let him try a wee piece of his first cheese--Tillamook cheddar.  He approached it with much wonder, as one would expect.  He also had his first meat this weekend, chicken with apple compote.  We make most of his food but opted to purchase the liquid meat.  

He has become increasingly mobile.  He crawls backwards, can rotate himself 360 degrees, roll, and generally lunge and slither in the direction he wants to go.  If he could figure out that he needs to put his knees down, he'd be crawling.  Instead he sort of puts his feet and head on the ground, butt in the air and tries to will himself forward.  He's finally over standing and become a much bigger fan of sitting than he used to be.  Mostly he likes to sit and lean forward and lunge his head forward for face plants.  

It's so exciting seeing the person that he is becoming.

Video Tuesday: Get Leroy!

One of my trick to stop Eli from crying is to put him in the baby carrier. This always works, but sometimes he needs just a bit more. Luckily so does Leroy! So I run after Leroy (His favorite game) and Eli laughs. Sometime I play this game just because I need my Eli pick-me-up. So here it is for the world to enjoy.


LEROY! from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Video Tuesday: Jump!

Grandma Judy came for a visit and brought Eli a very fun present. She also cleaned the stove, microwave, two bathrooms, and the hallway floors! We love her very much!


Eli Jump Up from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Video Tuesday: Like a G6

What is with kids and their music? I have stared to feel old and out of touch with new music as of late. The other day I was in the car and this song came on by a band I don't know, the Far East Movement. I thought the song kinda odd, but I did kinda like it. I did not know what a G6 was and that was all they talked about. "Like a G6". Turns out a G6 is a Gulfstream jet.

It came on the radio twice when I was in the car. The song has been in my head since. Well I had do the only think I could think of. Sit Eli down and play him the video. I recorded it for your enjoyment. Eli was shocked and appalled.
 


Like a G6 from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Boobs

My boobs took over my life about 7 months ago and have not relented.  I often wish life were more compatible with my need to feed a baby.  Every 2 to 3 hours (sometimes every 20 minutes) I stop what I am doing to work on that baby feeding thing.  That means I don't do anything (except maybe feed a baby) for longer than 3 hours anymore.  It’s all rather odd, really—though completely natural as well.  This is the part of motherhood I did not fully expect/understand/appreciate beforehand.  I also feel like it’s my most important job though and one of my biggest accomplishments.  It’s not a burden.  It’s not easy.  It is pretty magical.

Video Tuesday: Peas

So I know its not "Tuesday" but its not my fault. Vimeo took 12 hours to put up my video! You get what you pay for it life and its free! So here you go. Video Tuesday Wednesday!


peas from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Seven months, oh my

My seven-month-old baby boy.  He breaks my heart.  

We've now been experimenting with the solids for a month.  We've had mixed results.  Once he's into a food, he's really into it--but it usually takes a few introductions.  At this point he's had sweet potatoes, rice cereal, bananas, peas, and pears--and in that order.  Despite my deep seeded aversion, he totally likes peas.  We've had to take a few breaks from the solids because of another first.  This month he got sick for the first time.  I have no use for sickness in babies, no use at all.  He's had three vomiting spells and they were each the saddest thing you could ever seen.  Some crappy advice from our former doctor to not nurse him for 12 hours and feed him Pedialyte instead sealed the deal for me in making her our "former" doctor.  We followed that crappy advice (well at least for 6 hours) the first time, and great unhappiness was had by all.  The event did reinforce to me that I should always follow my instincts--they are there for a reason.  We have a new doctor who wears Garfield ties and is a delight.  

And it turns out separation anxiety is not just something puppies get.  Two mornings this week he has broken down in tears when I left him.  This of course caused me to do the same shortly thereafter.  I have, however, figured out how to squeeze in a few extra baby minutes into the day.  It turns out there is a stop for the higher speed/fewer stop Metra trains one mile from our house.  The train ride is only 13 minutes and Eli (and his daddy and puppies) can walk the mile from our house--so my non-Eli-having commute time has been cut from 45 minutes to about 20.  

He's also started to look a bit like me, finally.  More specifically, I think he's started to look like my dad.  It's been funny to look at him and recognize a bit of myself in him.  I think his Aunt Robin was right when she assured me shortly after he was born that babies usually look like their fathers at first so that their fathers will know they are theirs and won't kill them. 

He has come to tolerate sitting quite a bit more and can mostly do it on his own and would totally be allowed to do so on his own if we had a helmet for him.  He can stand with the smallest amount of assistance.  No progress to speak of on the crawling front.  Mostly he gets part of the way there and melts down.  He has discovered that rolling can be a very effective means of both transport and entertainment.  

People often ask me if he is sleeping through the night.  The short answer is pretty much.  The long answer involves my explaining that we co-sleep so any awakenings are  not very long or disruptive.  The long answer usually also involves my having to defend co-sleeping--but that's a whole other post ;-).  Nighttimes for us though are A-OK.

We are finally maybe easing out of swaddling him for naps. We're experimenting with letting him have an arm or two. 

Eli is madly in love with his puppies.  Jack remains his semi-tolerant keeper who enjoys the occasional petting Eli loves to dole out.  He is not as much a fan of the ear pulling.  Eli thinks Leroy is hilarious. Kenny has taken to putting Eli in the Bjorn and chasing Leroy around the house.  This results in great baby giggles.  Baby will also giggle if a dog or person barks at him.  He giggled today when a one-eyed dog came and snatched his sock off of his foot at the dog park.

And finally, this has been the great month of songs.  Singing to him has proven to be an often effective means of curing a crying jag.  It depends on his mood.  Sometimes he needs "Hush Little Baby," and sometimes he needs "Old MacDonald."

Our friends Ben and Julie just had a baby this week, and our friends Patrick and Amy will be doing the same in a couple of months.  I am so excited for them because I know how really awesome it is to have one of these.  

Month 7

How did he get so big?! So I lied early this week about the writing of the long post. Maybe this weekend. For now you can get the official month photo. I will leave you with this thought from Emily, "This is the month the Shubkagel has come in".

Video Tuesday: Eli in C minor

Hi All! So I said the Video Tuesday huh? Maybe I should have said Video Fortnight! Sorry I missed a few. Two weeks ago the baby was sick. Last week everything got away from me. I will do a big post with the 7th month photo. Look for that latter this week. Enjoy!

Eli in C minor from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Redefining okay

As is the case with many monkeys of his age, Eli likes to put anything and everything into his mouth.  As the weeks go by, we find ourselves adopting a more and more lax attitude about what is and is not okay for him to suck on.  Kenny dropped Eli off with me at work over lunch today so that he could run a not-baby-friendly errand.  I was just telling him how Eli grabbed several things off my desk and put them directly into his mouth.   Some coworkers brought over toys for him to play with, and they of course had the same fate.  We feel a bit conflicted--we should probably not let him do that, right?  We should protect him from germs and whatnot?  His contact with germs just seems so inevitable.  Kenny and I both agreed that we do have some standards.  We're not letting him near feces or meat juices.  Ah, parenting.

These are the people in your neighborhood

I can't go for walks without being teased by the whole neighborhood.  It started a few weeks ago.  I was walking Eli, Leroy and Jack.  We came upon a group of teenage boys with their pants belted around their knees.  I heard one of them say to the other, "Look, the wife's got the baby."  He said to me, "It's about time you gave your husband a day off."  Yesterday, I obliged Kenny's request for a family walk.  I wore Eli in the Bjorn and Kenny had the two dogs.  We were walking down the street when I heard a guy shouting at us from his second floor balcony.  "I've never seen you with the baby."  In all fairness, I always do Sunday mornings, but it continued today. Kenny decided to go for an 80-mile bike ride without training today (yep).  A man with a Green Bay shirt and a stroller and a homeless woman both commented on their unfamiliarity with me in the dog/baby walking context. The homeless woman went so far as to stop me a second time and say, "I know why you're walking them!  He's watching football."

Kenny got to try out my wrap last week (pictured above). The Bjorn was closed for repairs after a vomiting episode.  He walks the crew first thing in the morning while I shower, once around noon, and again before I get home from work.  If the neighborhood were a bar, he would be a regular.  A very conspicuous regular, surrounded in adorable.

Pride

Many of our friends do races.  Our friend, Lisa, recently did a triathlon.  This triggered Kenny to make the sort of comment that he often makes in these circumstances.  "Oh yeah, I could definitely do that tomorrow if I wanted to."  I'm pretty sure he in fact made this comment to her.  I laugh at him when he says things like this because of all things, running?  Running is not his strong suit.  The last time he went for a run was eight years ago when he went accepted an invitation to go on a run with my roommate at the time so he could get permission to date me.*  I think his comments belittle/underestimate the work people do to get ready for these races.  So.  When he made this comment in regards to Lisa's triathlon I called his bluff.  Incredulous that I had no faith in his abilities, he agreed to run 10K** to prove me wrong.  Saturday night he created his running play list.  He put a scrap of paper with his name and my phone number in his shoe (should he keel over with a heart attack halfway through somebody might be able to call me and let me know where to pick up the body).  After considerable stretching and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, he took off Sunday morning.  He returned 65 minutes later looking surprisingly alive.  For the rest of the morning he made passive agressive comments to Eli about how you should never let anybody tell you you can't do something.  

Around noon he took the dogs on a two-block walk that lasted about 40 minutes.  We were meeting another friend Lisa at the zoo later.  The train is about a mile from the zoo.  There was much limping and there were many, many breaks.  He trailed us by about 20 feet for much of the walk.

I guess the lesson we all learned from this is that yes, it is possible to run a 10K with no training.  Yes, Kenny in particular can run a 10K with no training. But no, it is not a good idea to run a 10K with no training.

*Why did he have to ask permission you ask.  It's a long story.  

** Was this a 10K as in an organized event wherein people compete or run for charity or such?  No.  This was the 10K Kenny.

The next 8 years.

Eight years ago this evening I was on a first date with the love of my life.  Over the last eight years, we have (in no particular order)

1. Graduated from college.
2. Moved to Washington, DC.
3. Survived my going to grad school.
4. Had our first and second and maybe even third real jobs.
5. Traveled to Las Vegas, Chicago, NYC, Philly, Costa Rica, Spain, Williamsburg, Breckenridge, and Portland.
6. Gotten married.
7. Taken planes, trains, buses, and automobiles to Kansas City and St. Louis one million times.
8. Adopted Jack.
9. Moved to Chicago.
10. Adopted Leroy.
11. Bought a loft and a condo.
12. Evicted a tenant.
13. Had a baby!
14. Lost two of my grandparents.
15. Seen Megan and Andrew, Carri and Derek, Sutton and John, Amy and Patrick, and Lindsey and TJ get married.
16. Hosted six seders.
17. Consumed approximately 500 bottles of wine.

To celebrate the occasion, we went out for Chinese and are now sipping on a bottle of pinot we brought back from Oregon and contemplating the next eight years.  Do you know that we will have a second grader eight years from now?  I've decided we should make a list of things we want to do in the next eight years, and so that we won't lose that list--we're putting it here on the interweb.  Maybe it will make us more accountable too.  During the next eight years, let's

1. Take (swing) dance lessons.
2. Travel to the south of France.
3. Take Eli to a water park.
4. Have another baby.
5. Start canning.
6. Make cheese.
7. Remodel two bathrooms.
8. At least one of us get their dream job.
9. Take Eli to the Magic House and Grant's Farm in St. Louis.
10. Take Eli to Kaleidoscope in KC.
11. Go on a weekend getaway leaving munchkin(s) with a grandparent.
12. Make friends with people who own a boat.
13. Sell a loft and a condo.

Anything critical you think we're forgetting here?  The list is open for suggestions.

Year Eight

Today marks the first day of year nine for Emily and I. Eight Years ago I was lucky enough for Emily to say yes to a date. I made her dinner. I almost lost her the next day after I broke in let my self in with the hidden key to her apartment to leave her flowers and a Snickers bar. I can't believe eight years could go by so fast.

Year eight has been the biggest of our lives. We no longer consider each other the most important person in each others life. I still cook for you. We have never been happier or more tired.

After you get marred I think you have a tendency to overlook your dating anniversary. I don't think I ever will. I was already head-over-heals for Emily when she finally say yes to a date. Eight years ago we became us. Little did we know that was the first day of the rest of out lives. Worth celebrating, no?

Video Tuesday: Throwback!

Hi All! Video Tuesday again! I know it is starting to feel like all I do is post video of Eli, but it hard to find the time to do much else.

This week we will be looking back in time to when Eli was just a week or so old and comparing it to the present. Enjoy!

Throwback: Bedtime! from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Bed Time! from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Time for Solids!

We started Eli on solid food this week. We decided to go with sweet potato over rice cereal. Why? I don't know. Maybe because sweet potatoes sounded like more fun.

For someone that has only had substance that his mother provides solid food is a big deal. So we did what any self-respecting parents would do, over documented it. I don't fully expect anyone to watch all four videos. Well, I do expect the Grandma's to, but the rest of you are free to browse.






First Food: Try One from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.




First Food: Try Two from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.




First Food: Try Three. from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.




First Food: The Clean Up. from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

1/2 Year Old!

My baby boy turned 6 months this week! 

He still thinks sitting is dumb and is not quite crawling.  If allowed to, he would stand all day.

He got TWO teeth, which is two more than he needs in my opinion.  His overall mood has improved greatly since they finally cut through though.  We’re done with that now, right?

He had his first taste of “solids” (otherwise known as fairly liquid food that just happens to not be breastmilk) yesterday.  He was initially curious though suspicious of our motives.  We debuted with sweet potatoes.  Some made it into his mouth.  Some made it all over his face and hands and diaper and chair.  We believe a small amount made it into his tummy.  Curiosity quickly transitioned to sorrow, anger, and all-out crying. We’ve tried several more times and I believe he and Kenny finally had a positive experience this afternoon. 

He’s become a bit more attached to Kenny and I and a bit wearier of outsiders.  He’s generally happy to grin at people across the room while in our arms, but hand him over and he often makes them feel like they smell bad or something.  We did test him in that area quite a bit though this month.  He’s seen all of his grandparents and even made it to the West coast. 

I, on the other hand, am beginning to feel increasingly like I am losing my mind.  My memory is virtually non-existent.  I don’t know if it’s the weird sleep or the constant changing focus of my attention.  At work, I basically get up every two hours to pump.  At home, I drop whatever I’m doing when he cries.  Maybe pregnancy was just preparing me for this phase.  The other day I stopped a coworker and asked her where she had gotten her shoes because they are exactly what I need for my friend Molly’s wedding.  Apparently I had stopped her on a previous occasion and we had discussed my borrowing them.   I had no memory of this.  Oh well.  Who needs clarity anyway?  Especially when you have a little monkey like this.

Video Tuesday: Rise of a Hungry Boy!

A big reason that I started Video Tuesday is that I wanted to shoot more video of the small things that I am going to wish I had taped years from now. Eli is most content when eating. He is a Kodner after all.

Times to eats! from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

No more. from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

SIX MONTHS!

How did this happen? One-half of a year old!

I have gone back and added Labels to all the month photos. I know welcome to bloging. So now everyone can go back as see all the month photos on one page!

Let's all move to Oregon

We spent most of last weekend in Portland, Oregon for our friend Lindsey's wedding and wedding-related activities. I was last there 10 years ago and it's even more beautiful and wonderful than I remembered it. Our friend Wayne's parents were kind enough to allow us to invade their home. They even got some of Wayne's things down from the attic for Eli to play with. This is his first ride in a highchair, and perhaps the longest length of time he's put up with sitting (generally prefers to stand).

On the second day we were there, Lindsey and TJ planned a wine tour complete with bus for a group of about 40 of us. Oregon pinot noirs are among my favorite wines. Splitting and skipping many of the tastings was a bit rough, but the outing was awesome nonetheless. Views like this were around every corner:

We learned that Eli has an embarrassingly accurate knowledge of what to do with glasses of alcohol. Regretfully, I do not have the picture wherein he attempted to fit his whole head in the glass.

Later that week, we visited a few microbreweries (breweries and wineries are just like museums, only tastier). I guess Eli is just in that grab everything and put it in your mouth stage.

After partying all week, some of us found it hard to stay awake for the wedding. There was a live band playing a few feet from him, but he remained fairly dead to the world throughout. He even allowed himself to be passed from lap to lap so mama and daddy could get a few dances in. This is Eli in one of his brief moments of wakefulness during the reception. I believe he awoke to express surprise or disgust with the band's song choice.

As we were leaving, the bride even let him chew on her French-manicured finger tip. That's love.

While waiting for our flight in the Portland airport, Kenny finally did it. He ate a Baconator.

So, let's do it. Let's all move to Portland. Part of the reason we moved to Chicago was to be closer to family so we can't just pick up and move to Portland--but we can if you all come with us!

Introducing Video Tuesday!

In an effort to post more I am starting a new blog series called, Video Tuesday! Hope you enjoy.

Moving: An Update. from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Deciduous Tooth

Eli is working on sprouting his central incisors. More speculatively his mandibular centrals. The one on the right has erupted. The one on the left is working its way out and should join us soon. Apparently he developed the teeth in his embryonic stage of development. Thank you Wikipedia.

Teething is not fun. For him or us.

Rainy Day

A new cry

My industrious little baby has found a new reason to cry this week. He's taken to crying because he can't crawl. Patience is not currently his strong suit.

He's been happily playing in his crib. Three times now I've left him in there wiggling on his back and playing with his feet and come back two minutes later to find him on the other side of the crib, sort of up on all fours and pissed because he can't go forward. He looks up at me and then drops his head and cries some more. I really don't know what to do in this situation. I know he knows how to flip himself back onto his back, and he's not going to learn how to crawl if I pick him up with these cries. He just gets so sad and frustrated. I've taken to cheering him on, but I don't think he understands the encouragement.

Standing Around

Hi Everyone. Sorry I have not been posting a lot as of late. I have been kinda busy with the kid. To make up for it I give you a video.


Standing Around from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Also If you are not on the Daily Eli, you should be. You could have gotten this photo in your email today. Hope all have a good weekend.

Ah, traveling with an infant

I wrote half this post two weeks ago, thought I'd go ahead and finish it.

I was not at all concerned about traveling with an infant when I made my reservation. I always under-pack. Whereas most people are afraid they are going to forget something they need, I am usually afraid of carrying something I might not need. I’m usually also afraid of getting to the airport too early. If I can walk up to the gate as they are boarding my section, I consider the venture a success. Things were a bit different this time.

I did manage to pack pretty lightly. I had a baby, a bjorn, a diaper bag, and a rolling carry-on bag. The de-bjorning and re-bjorning to get through security was a bit tricky. Everybody’s advice before the trip was to nurse through take-off and landing and to bring a change of clothes for myself. Many people told me to bring a change of shirt for myself because apparently blow-outs are very common . My baby doesn’t poop though, so that was not a problem.

The journey to DC was fairly uneventful. Security was predictably difficult but people were uber understanding and several let me cut and lifted and pushed my bags without even asking. We had a 30 minute delay once we got on the plane, but Eli thought that would just be an awesome time to take a nap. He thought most of the flight was an awesome time to take a nap in fact. My cheapness led me to choose a flight into one of the less convenient airports. We took a bus to a train to get into the city and went straight to happy hour to meet up with friends. Though Eli has been to bars before, this was his first happy hour experience and he didn't totally catch on to the "happy" part.

I volunteered Megan and I to get the wine for Molly's party. A task that I thought would take about 2 hours. Between stopping to feed us, feed the babies, and a series of other seemingly minor tasks the outing lasted more like 4 or 5 hours. Oops! Oh, and Eli was pretty much just pissed off throughout because I was just not managing to get him his naps and eatings at the right times. I was used to the delays that a baby causes. Much like we were surprised to find out that having two dogs is actually twice the work of having one dog, I was surprised to find that two babies meant twice the delays of one baby. Who knew? The image of Megan and I trekking around DC with babies strapped to our chests, umbrellas, and heavy shopping bags will stay with me for quite some time though.

The shower and bachelorette party were a huge success. We hosted the shower in our hotel room. Everybody fit, the babies obliged, games were played, many bottles of wine were consumed, and it was hard to get people out of the room and onto the bar for the next segment of the night. Two friends were kind enough to babysit because nothing makes a bachelorette party more lame than when two of the hostesses bring their babies to the bars.

Some really awesome friends managed to borrow a car seat so that they could drive Eli and I to the airport on Sunday. Eli slept most of the way there. Things were looking good. And then. I got to the airport check-in counter. The nice man there was unable to find my ticket with my ID. He asked for my itinerary thingy, and it was then that he pointed out my ticket back to Chicago was for the day before. Straight out of an anxiety dream. I just stood there in disbelief. What? No. What? There, written clear as day on my itinerary it said Saturday. Massive fail. He said there were only two more flights to Chicago that night and they both said they were oversold. He got me on standby and told me that if I did not get on one of those tonight he would see me in the morning as he would be the one working then too. I told him I sincerely hoped I would not see him tomorrow. He took pity on me and waived the fee because Southwest is nice. In a state of shock I sort of ran through security too frazzled to figure out if I had a lot or little time to get to the gate. Eli started screaming as if on cue and the airport lady let us go ahead to the front of the line. I called Kenny on the verge of tears and told him we might not make it home that night. I got to the gate and realized we had almost two hours until our first chance at a flight. Eli stepped up and decided to be in an excellent mood while we waited. He ate, he slept, he made adorable sounds. Predictably, we did not make it onto the first flight. I called Molly and started figuring out how I'd get to her house and get to the airport the next morning. When they began boarding for the second flight I got cautiously optimistic when he described the flight as "full" and not "completely full" as he had the previous flight. I changed Eli's diaper and packed us up for the 3rd or 4th time that evening. We headed to the ticket counter and Eli growled and grunted (but in a happy way) as we waited for the guy to figure out if we could get on. He handed me a boarding pass, and I nearly jumped over the counter to kiss him. I couldn't stop smiling as I boarded, and was not at all unhappy to get one of the few remaining seats which was of course a middle seat. Eli rested his feet on the nice man to our left for the majority of the flight. He only screamed during the descent--probably because his little ears hurt.

After we landed a lady in the row behind asked if she could help by holding the baby while I gathered our things. I gladly handed Eli over to the stranger because I am an awesome mom like that. She did assure me she didn't have a cold or anything. It's just really hard to safely pack up a diaper bag and put on a Bjorn while holding a baby.

Kenny picked us up at the airport. He made me drive home because he missed his little man and wanted to sit in the back seat with him.

5 months and he refuses to stop growing

My baby boy turned 5 months on Friday. He is a very dramatic baby. He's over-joyed one moment and the world is ending seconds later. Over the past few weeks his coos have become these hilarious grunty noises and squeals. I'm pretty sure the grunts are his attempts to communicate with the puppies. There's a 50/50 chance he thinks he's one of them rather than one of us. Yesterday he picked up a new noise--it's like a coo but he does it with his lips pursed and closed. Video of that to come.

He's totally over laying down and sitting. He rolls and twists when you lay him down and arches his back and demands to stand if you try to get him to sit. He will occasionally get up on all fours and then get really frustrated and cry when he fails to move forward.

I wouldn't update you on his pooping habits except that it only happens once every 8 days. We were quite worried about it at first, but WebMD assures us it's okay. It does make diaper laundry easier.

He and Kenny still greet me when I get off the train each day. Once he figures out I am there he cries for me--probably for my boobs really, but they are attached to me. Counts.

He is very busy taking in his world. He will cry if he's not facing outward in the Bjorn. He has no use for the nursing cover and has taken to moving it out of his way lately. He can be entertained for quite some time watching the puppies. He has become very skilled at playing in his Baby Einstein exercauser thingy. He always hits the cow button 3 times to get to Old MacDonald (you have to skip past it saying cow and vaca).

He's grown increasingly squeezable. I can't believe another month has already gone by.

Month 5

Five months old! How did this happen? When did he get so big? His zest for life is infectious. His glass is never half empty or full. His will to move is kicking in to high gear. He is going to be trouble. I would expect no less from my offspring.

Milo, meet Eli

Megan and her Milo and Eli and I headed to DC last weekend for Molly's bachelorette party.

Technically this wasn't Milo and Eli's first meeting. They met way back when they were only 6 and 10ish weeks. Now that they are mature 3 and 4 month olds, they had a lot more to chat about.

Eli's Trip to Uptown's Underworld

I lost my earring this weekend. I have my tragus pierced and until recently I never even took it out. I wanted to find a replacement quick so that the hole would not get smaller. Conveniently our neighborhood has two options to buy a replacment, a head shop and a tattoo parlor. Eli and I went to both.

We went to the Head Shop first, but they did not have a good selection of earrings. Next we went to the tattoo parlor. I found what I was looking for but I did have to laugh at myself for bringing Eli to these very "strange" places.

As it turns out Eli LOVES tattooed men. He lit up like a light anytime the workers at the Tattoo Factory spoke to him. He had a grand old time watching me look at the earrings. In the end the piercer gave me four earrings for the price of one! He was so very nice and I would recommend him to anyone in Chicago that needs a piercer.  He also told me he was the only one in the whole state the is licensed to pierce infants over the age of two months (without a gun). Eli was a big hit. The piercer gave Eli a teddy bear. 

How are the dogs?

They are just fine. Thanks for asking!

Eli knows his name!

Eli knows his name from Kenton Kodner on Vimeo.

Obsession

I spend the majority of my days working on feeding Eli. If I'm home, he spends about 50% of the time attached to my boob. I pump once before work, 4 times at work, and one time after work. I'm told some women are able to just pump twice a day. Lies I say. Lies.

Getting milk into this baby has become the central preoccupation of my life. He's gone on eating rampages a few times and annihilated the back up freezer stockpile I made before going back to work. We're now living on the edge with basically only the previous day's milk to rely on.

This is my Playtex pump. I've grown skeptical of its effectiveness. I came home early from work last week when I suspected it had totally crapped out and didn't think I was going to be able to pump enough for the next day.

This is what I affectionately refer to as my lactation room. There is one functioning outlet in this room, and it is on the opposite side of the room from the chair. The Playtex pump worked with an extension cord I brought in so that I could sit in that chair. The hospital-grade relic from the 80s I rented does not so I'm back to sitting on the floor with my back to the door.

The rental pump came in this awesome gym bag.

I've also taken to buying any herbal supplement people tell me will help my supply. When I was in the store renting the pump the sales lady sold me magic beans. Apparently Malunggay is all the rage and is totally helping all women. It also costs one million dollars, but of course it does because it works and is totally worth one million dollars. In front of the bottles, behold a sampling of the pills I take in one day. This is not including the Fenugreek pictured on the right. It made me and Eli reek of maple syrup and also messed up our tummies so I'm not taking that one anymore.

I'm not a competitive person, but I can be a very determined person. I don't train for races like a lot of my friends do--but I am going to do everything I can to make sure this baby's bottle continues to have the good stuff in it.

Parenthood

What is parenthood like you ask? It all about thinking on your feet. You have to work out problems fast or keep guessing when you have no idea what to do next. Yesterday I had a problem that I feel perfectly exemplifies my life right now.

Dad! I need water. WATER! I will throw a fit in about 10 seconds and wake up the sleeping baby!

Leroy! Come here boy! (Give dog MY glass of water) Problem Solved.

So after I fixed that problem I realized I had a different problem. I was dehydrated and had nothing to drink and I was stuck with a sleeping baby on my lap. 

Like I said. This is my life. I give everything I have to all my boys. Unconditional love. Parenthood.