I don't get it

Yesterday I ate pretty much anything I wanted. Dairy, chocolate, and caffeine. And last night was the first night in a LONG time which didn't end with hours of a screaming baby. Jason even calmly sat on Al's lap and watched TV for a while! He didn't want to be put down, but he wasn't screaming, and that is TOTALLY manageable!

Granted I didn't have the dairy (ice cream) until about 10:00pm and he did have a little fussier night (but not horrible) and is pretty fussy this morning.

Like I said, I don't get it.

No fair!

They've had lots of snow flurries today in New Jersey! I'm jealous!

Back to normal

We're back, and thrown right back into the swing of things.

Last night I was back to pacing the house with a screaming baby (minus the time Al took to pace the house with a screaming baby). Back to my bed which I apparently currently share with an infant. Back to preschool for Tyler.

And right back to the pediatrician. Ugh. Last night Jason spit up blood, again. So I brought him in. They immediately tested him for RSV, again. Negative. Checked him to see if his lungs were clear. Good to go. So, the verdict is he's just a fussy baby with a nagging cough and congestion and perhaps in need of an increase in his reflux meds. They still dont' think my dietary intake has anything to do with his symptoms, but did say it's possible (although not at all likely). I'm gonna give it a few more days to see if I can pinpoint anything, and if not I'm eliminating practically everything from my diet. I can't at least TRY to see if I can help him, know what I mean? Geez, I went through every formula in the book to see if I could help Tyler and his symptoms, all the while kicking myself that I didn't continue with breastfeeding. This time I DO breastfeed and constantly second-guess myself if my intake is hurting him or whether he'd be better off with a formula for sensitive tummies. Apparently I can't win...mother anxiety and guilt takes over every time. Oh, and they guilted me about the fact that he's in bed with me. She said to try to get him out of the bed, but as noted "it's easier said than done". I NEVER thought I'd be co-sleeping, but for now the need to sleep is winning out. I'll see what I can do. I originally worried about him being IN my bed (with the risk of SIDS and all) but now I worry about him being OUT of my bed being that he often seems like he's in distress when either coughing or spitting. Like I said, I can't win. LOL.

The good news is he's obviously eating fine. 11lbs 2oz. That's practically 2oz a day (I was told they shoot for a .5 to 1oz gain per day). Apparently I'm destined to have chubby babies. That's okay, his little double chin is cute!

New Jersey, day six

Our final day in New Jersey. So sad. Unfortunately I spent most of that readying myself for our plane ride home, which I was pretty stressed about. My grandparents did come over for a short time to say goodbye. Tyler was pretty sad.

Jason wore shoes today for the first time. I know that's pretty exciting, huh?

And on our way to the airport (while Jason slept the whole way...wahoo!) we passed $1.79 gas (no, Melodie, I didn't see your blog post until AFTER I had taken this picture).

We arrived at the Atlantic City airport, which I have to tell you, is the most kick-butt airport there is. First off, there is like 1 terminal. And you can park and easily walk right into the building. The estimated wait time to check-in (as per their website) is a whopping 2-3 minutes, which I'd say is very accurate. They arranged to give us an extra seat again on the plane AND they even let my mom accompany me to the gate. Tyler was very sad to say goodbye. Many tears were to be had, until I turned over our boarding pass to him and then he perked up with the excitement of beign in charge of such a monumental task as handing over the tickets to the flight attendent. He's too cool for his own good!

The boys were very good on the plane. Jason fussed/cried before take-off for a few minutes, but then nursed to sleep for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile Tyler read the flight manual (again), ate a snack, and then fell asleep for a good portion of the flight. Jason woke up, pooped, had his diaper changed, fussed/cried a little more, ate a little more, stared at the plane interior, nursed a little more, and then slept again. So, in total Jason probably slept 30-45 minutes and Tyler slept 90 minutes. Not bad! I was prepared for the worst.

I have to share what my sister-in-law told me, regarding my flying with 2 small children. Her friend said that I am "the bravest person I've never met". Insane? Brave? Same difference. I love it!

New Jersey, day five

Today, not long after we woke up, we got a wonderful phone call. There were flurries outside! Yes, that's right, snow flurries! Now I know you New Jersey residents would HATE that I'd wish snow upon you, but darn it, Tyler has never seen it (well, not that he can remember). So my dad picked him up and brought him outside to see it. Then we quickly went in to get dressed, came back out, and it had stopped. Tyler waited for more, but it never happened. Oh well, at least we saw SOMETHING.

For lunch we made plans to meet my cousin Kristen at Chick-fil-a. She brought along her daughter Annika, son Brayden, and new baby Ada (10..or is it 11?...days younger than Jason). Her mom and my mom joined us, as well as our grandparents! It was the first time they had all 5 of their great-grandchildren together!



Towards the end of our meal my cousin noticed that a man in the restaurant looked familiar. She finally got up the nerve to go ask, and it was in fact Brian Dawkins from the Philadephia Eagles. I later found this picture of him in the background of a photo I had taken of my aunt. His little twin girls were adorable!

New Jersey, day four

Today was another beautiful, but chilly, day.

My friend Andrea, whom I've been friends with since junior high, took the long drive out to my parents house to visit us for a little while. It was wonderful to see her! My mom kept the baby (since she was the one who had gotten him to fall asleep finally, in her arms...she has the touch) while we took the rest of the boys to the lake to play. We didn't last long cause it was cold on the water! Tyler did have fun though with her handsome little men, Liam and Jackson.



Tonight my mom made a wonderful big dinner and my grandparents came over to celebrate my brother Chris' birthday (belated). Here he is, holding Jason for the first time.

Jim and his fiance Kristin came over as well.

New Jersey, day three (part two)

Sunday afternoon we packed up my grandparents minivan which we had borrowed and head over to my sister-in-law Dottie's house. My mother-in-law had brought over dinner so we enjoyed a very yummy meal. Pop-pop John got to meet Jason for the first time. Meanwhile Carli and Tyler destroyed Carli's bedroom by playing with every toy she owned. We also got a special treat by seeing and getting to feed the deer that hang out behind her place. Apparently deer eat apples and cashews. Who knew?