I am officially a mommy blogger....

Many times I post comments on blogs where I dont really "know" the author. New blogs or ones where I am usually just a lurker. I am always concerned about what post they will see when they follow my link back to my blog. "There's only one chance to make a first impression" as the saying goes. Will they read it and decide I'm an idiot and never come back? Are they infertiles who will be turned off by all the pictures of seamonkey? Ultimately I know that I have no control over that sort of thing. And mostly I don't really care what other people think - but I would be less than honest if I said that I didn't want a new person to click here and think I was not your typical mommy blog-fabulously funny- must add her to my bloglines right now kind of blogger.

So it's with much trepidation that I present you with my very first mommy blog poop story.

Last week, I was giving Seamonkey his nightly bath. I was thinking about how I haven't been taking much video lately, so I get the camera to take a little footage of him in the tub. Tub time is a particularly fun time for seamonkey, he's very animated and talkative so it's great video fodder. So I'm taping him...la la la....and he's swirling around the tub and slips a little so that he is kind of laying down in his tub (we put his tub inside our regular tub) and he gets all quiet and glassy eyed. I assume you see where this is going. I will spare you the actual video, but here's the audio:

Me: What are you doing?
Me: You better not be pooping.
Me: Are you pooping?

Me: UGH YOU POOPED IN THE TUB! GROSSSSS!!! BEEEETTEEEEEE!!!!!

At this point I put the camera down on the counter, still filming, and forgot about it. So you then hear me and BT debating how best to remove offending fecal matter and next steps. You can clearly hear wet wriggling baby making unhappy noises. Ultimately, BT decides to get the cat litter box scooper. He cleans and disenfects the tub while I hold the baby, unwilling to let his poop water ensconced body touch anything else until he can be rewashed. His skin was a little pinker than usual by the time he was in his pyjamas.

Fast forward to last night. Boy in tub. Boy laying back in tub and splashing really really hard - snow angel style. Screaming, laughing, waving arms, water everywhere. He got himself very worked up. Really worked up. Again. No floaters, just brown water. LOL Sorry I know that's TMI but you need to really get the visual.

Beeeeeeteeeeeeeeeeeee
What?
Guess What?
He didn't
He did.
WHAT. THE. HELL.

I was laughing so hard I almost lost my own bodily functions. Which was making seamonkey laugh hysterically which just made me laugh harder. BT was not so amused.


I am so playing that video at his wedding.

Monthly update - 9 months old

Dear Seamonkey:

June, your 9th month was a very emotional one for me. The only way I can really describe it, is by saying this is the month that I felt like you loved me back. Of course, we've loved you from the start, and you were always happy and smiley under our care. But this month, it's like you love us because you want to, not because you have to. This month was the first time you shied into my shoulder when a stranger approached. It was the first time you cried when I left the room. And honestly, those moments made me tear up too. You are growing into a real live little person right before our eyes, and it an amazing thing to think we figured out how to make that all happen without any major incident.

The most important event this month was of course your baptism. You were baptized in St. Christopher's church, and you were a good boy. Well, except for the loud babbling and craning your neck to look back and your grandparents. We had a great party for you afterwards. You did not cry once the entire day. You let everyone hold you, and you even "danced" on the dance floor - I sat you down in the middle and you started bouncing up and down and clapping your hands. A good time was had by all.

Also this month we went to the annual picnic for our adoption agency, and we got to see all the new babies who have come home. It was really a treat to talk with all the families that did what we did, and to hold the beautiful Colombian children. You hammed it up as usual, clapping and waving on cue to everyone's delight. You discovered your first playground there, and you LOVE the swings.Since then we have taken you to other parks to swing. You also like to hang on the monkey bars. You are so strong that you will actually hang there holding your own weight. We stay close by though, because that cracks you up and makes you let go.

You wave bye bye really well now, although you usually do it with two hands, and kind of out to your sides so you look like a bird. You will do it on cue when someone says "bye bye". You have just started to say bye bye yourself, more like a "bah" but we can see you know the word and are trying to say it. You say mama ("mamamama") and dada ("adah") too, but not exactly discrimately yet. Your babble has changed into your own little language, complete with multi-sylllable words and intonations as if you are really having a conversation. We talk back to you that way and apparently whatever we are saying, we are hilarious. You seem to be the most talkative in the bathtub.

Your hair is riotiously curly, so much so that I actually put hair gel in it to keep it somewhat contained. You have TWO teeth now, and among other things, you use them to bite your crib rails. You would think we keep a pet beaver in there. It has become apparent that you now have a favorite blanket; the blue and white chenille one:You sleep so much better with it...you grab it in your hands just right and then shove your thumb in your mouth. Once you "assume the position" we know it won't be long until you are zonked out. We wonder if we will have to tear this blanket away from you in the dead of night when you are 9 to avoid any mental scarring, but for now, it's a comfort to you and that's a good thing. We got smart and bought two extra, leaving one in your crib and one in the car. You kind of suck on them so they get pretty nasty quickly, and one of them is usually in the wash at all times.

When you are awake, you are moving. You are never still. Even when you are drinking your bottle, you are kicking your feet or patting our arms. You are pulling yourself up like crazy now, and can cruise very well on the furniture. To our dismay, you are also an expert at climbing stairs, so needless to say we bought a gate this month. You don't like roadblocks, and will dive headfirst into or over things to get where you want to go. You've just begun standing for a few seconds without holding on...you discovered that when you wanted to clap your hands while standing up. Everything still requires applause:

You are still a happy, loving, easy going little boy. We have spent many weekends at BBQ's with family and friends, and you've enjoyed it all with us. You still have a love affair with cupcakes:

It's now become a habit for everyone to give you one wherever we go. I suppose it won't kill you, athough no one really gives us a choice...I don't hold you much when we are around family. Everyone snaps you up and you seem to be okay with it. You love your grandparents and your aunt and uncle very much, which absolutely delights them.

It has been so much fun spending our favorite time of year with you. We love you more each day.

Monthly update - 8 months old

Dear Seamonkey:


These have been some incredibly busy months! So busy that I haven’t had a moment to sit down and write your last two monthly updates.

May was your eighth month, and we celebrated a lot things. First was our 10th Wedding Anniversary. We were so happy to celebrate this milestone with you. I originally wanted to do something big and fancy, but I found that it was just wonderful to go to a local restaurant with you and your grandparents and just be together. It was the first time you were in a restaurant highchair and you did pretty well. You got antsy only after a good 25 minutes.


We also celebrated my first Mother’s Day. Once again I was happy to keep things simple and spend the day with you and your father. It was a beautiful day, and we spent it shopping and hanging out with both sets of grandparents. You were in a good mood all day and we had alot of fun with you. It was a little surreal for me to finally have a child on Mother's Day, and I don't think it ever really sunk all the way in.

We took you on your second official plane ride to Florida to visit family and have a mini vacation. You did well on the plane, although you liked to flirt with all the women you see. Those eyelashes are irresistible, and I fear for the safety of your future female classmates. We schlepped you from hotel to hotel, constantly in and out of cars and strollers and you rolled with the punches like a champ. You even slept well, considering we put you in all kinds of make shift beds. We did manage to put you in a hotel crib when we could:During this vacation we brought you to see Aunt M in her new house. Upon arrival, we set you on the floor and you immediately started to crawl for the first time. We couldn’t believe it. We aren’t sure what prompted you to do it, but from that point on we couldn’t turn our backs on your for a second. You were thrilled with this new found skill too, and decided that every inch of your world must be explored post haste. What we thought was going to be a relaxing beach vacation turned out to be quite the opposite, but it was exciting to see you interacting with your surroundings more.
Although we deferred your swimming lessons until the fall (because you were getting too traumatized) you LOVED the pool in Florida. We took you to three different pools and you couldn’t get enough of them. You splashed and splashed like crazy, only stopping when you got water in your mouth. Everyone couldn’t believe how much fun you were having.
Speaking of fun, you also learned to clap on this trip. We had been trying to teach you for some weeks, and then all of a sudden you did it! Now you do it all the time. You will be crawling and then you will suddenly stop and look at us and clap, expecting us to say “YAY!” every time. Yes, my prince, everything you do requires applause.
On the not so fun side, you got your first tooth this month. You were pretty cranky, so we knew something was up. Although you didn’t drool at all, you did pull at your ears a bit and gnaw on everything you could get your hands on (not to mention the voluminous nasty diapers). You look even more adorable with your one little snaggle tooth on the bottom.

Your sleeping habits have changed alot. You no longer sleep on your back in your "victory pose", but rather on your stomach or side...and you are very restless all night. You have been known to wake up in the middle of the night, sit up and start babbling, then flump back down with no warning, usually with your butt up in the air.You are still doing well foodwise...there really isn't anything you don't like the taste of. We've tried to move you to stage 3 foods, but you don't really care for the half mush half solid consistency. We can give you all mush, or all solid, but the combo makes you gag. We have started to give you little pieces of table food like chicken or cheese and you like them just fine. We're not pushing it though, you make quite the mess and feeding takes forever that way. Bread is the miracle worker though...give you a hunk of hard bread(or baby cookie) and you will stay quiet for as long as there is a piece solid enough to hold.

And sometimes when I'm not looking, your grandparents slip you something better:
We love you Monkey, more than words can say.

Monthly Update - 7 Months old

Dearest Seamonkey:

Another whole month has gone by. I know I say this in every letter, but the time sure does go fast. Recently I heard the phrase "The days are long but the years are short". So true! You are such a solid little boy already, and we can't even remember you as the little peanut we first grew to love. We watch the videos from Colombia over and over and you look so small and different than you do now.

I wouldn't say that there have been dramatic changes in you this month. More like a general improvement in everything. You've got that pincer grasp thing down, and you concentrate very intently when there is a small speck of something you want to grab on your high chair. Your brows furrow in deep concentration. You seem to eat more hungrily now, and it is less of a chore to get you to eat. Sometimes I can't seem to shovel it in fast enough for you. You also roll over both ways now, and it's your preferred method of transportation. You can get yourself into crawling position from a sitting position, but once you're there, you're not quite sure what to do. You'll rock back and forth a bit, making us think you're about to start moving forward, but alas, you're not quite ready yet it seems. We're trying to keep you on the floor as much as possible to encourage you.

Your amazing personality continues to shine. Anytime you see someone you know, you smile a big cheesy grin. If it's someone you really like, like Daddy or Grandpa, you jump up and down and laugh. You have really been cracking up alot lately. One of us will say something that suddenly strikes you as hilarious, and you'll giggle so hard you can't catch your breath. That of course, makes us laugh, and you start laughing at us laughing. It never fails to make tears of laughter stream down my face.

With strangers you start out a bit wary...looking from the person to us and back again, as if to say "I don't know Mom, this guy looks kind of shifty to me..." But after a few minutes you are smiling. You LOVE other kids. Especially your cousins. You'll spontaneously grab them for your version of a kiss...it's the cutest thing.

This is your second cousin N, who is the closest in age to you...she's just a few months older. We love to see you together, and we hope you develop as strong a friendship as her mother and I do.

This month included your first Easter. The Easter Bunny brought you a ton of gifts via your grandparents, aunts and uncles. You even opened it yourself:We started the day by going to Aunt M's house and having dinner with Daddy's family. You were intrigued by the little dogs and didn't even cry. Afterwards we went to your Great Aunt's house to see my side. I hardly saw you the entire evening, because you were passed around from person to person. You didn't mind one bit. At one point I think I saw you holding a chocolate twizzler in your hand. I knew any attempts to tell my family what you were allowed to eat would be met by yelling and shooing, so I didn't bother. I figured one day wouldn't kill you. By the end of the night, I was handed back an overstimulated, sweaty, sticky, but extremely happy baby. After a good hose down, you slept like a rock.

Almost every day your father and I comment about how blessed we are. We wonder if everyone loves their child this intensely, and if a baby can get bruises from being kissed so much. Your grandma (my mom) went through her old pictures to show us how you look just like me when I was a baby:
What do you think? Same eyes and nose...but maybe all brown eyed brown haired babies look the same. Anyway, we know you were chosen especially for us, no matter what. We love you very much.

Monthly update - Six Months Old

Wow. This is all going really fast. Sometimes I think you are growing right before my eyes. At your last doctor's appointment you weighed 17lbs 10 oz and you grew another inch. You are one solid little boy. I can't imagine how I'm going to hold you when you're two. Sometimes I carry you upside down on my hip and chant "sack of potatoes, sack of potatoes". So far that makes you laugh.

You laugh alot more now. Big hearty giggles that crack us up. Sometimes you laugh when we do certain things, like when I sit you facing me on my lap, hold your hands and flip you slowly backwards. Sometimes you just burst out with a big guffaw for no reason at all. But I swear, there is no better sound I have ever heard in my life.

Conversely, you have started to make the worse sound I have ever heard. It's this whingy whiney groany "eeehhhhhh" sound. So. annoying. We can't figure out why you do it. You seem to be frustrated or uncomfortable or something but we can't figure out why. Please stop. If you continue to do this until and through your toddler years, I will surely go mad. For some reason, the highchair really sets you off. You immediately get fussy when you are put there. Feeding you, particularly in the evenings is really getting to be a chore. If you are really tired, you do the all out, red face, can't hardly catch your breath cry. The second I take you out, you stop. *sigh*. That is so not cool. I only get a few hours with you each night so let's make them good ones, okay? You and I, we're working it out. Slowly. You've begun stage 2 foods, but mostly just the fruits and veggies. You get a few spoons of the meat a day, but we're taking that very slowly. That stuff smells like regurgitated cat food, not sure how you can stand it.

Every day you get better control of your hands. It is amazing to watch you start to really use your fingers. We now have to move most things out of your reach when you are sitting on our laps at the table. You like to grab things and bang them really hard. The louder the noise the better. Grandma thought it was funny until you actually smashed a melanine bowl into many pieces. No more bowls for you. You can grasp a sippy cup really well, and you get the concept that you can drink from it, but we're still working on the concept of tilting the cup upward so you can get to the water.

Another great thing you have started to do, is to put your hands in my hair and pull my face into yours. You put your big wide open mouth on my face. I guess that's your version of a baby kiss? It kinda hurts most of the time because you've got a mean grip, but oh how I love it when you want to be close to me!

Your babbling is different now. Instead of just ooooo and aaaaaa sounds you are actually trying out your tongue and jaw. We now get lots of babababas and yayayayas. When you make those kinds of sounds I get glimpses of what your voice will sound like when you do talk. You also love to do raspberries, although you've been doing that for a while now. Not so cute when you do it with a mouthful of peas. Your face is maturing too...your hair is growing and you're losing some of that "baby look". We are so torn between wanting to see grow and progress and wanting you to stay little just a little longer. These months are flying by.

You sit up very well on your own now and only tip over once in a while. You like to sit up in the bathtub now, you can get maximum splash factor that way. We've just introduced small toys to you in the tub and you are loving it!


You seem to like tummy time alot better now, although mostly what you do is alternate between pushing yourself up on your arms and laying down and sucking your thumb. Those push ups apparently take alot out of you. We try to put toys in front of you to encourage you to start crawling, but mostly you just get so excited your legs move you backwards. You've got rolling over completely down now. In fact, you can roll from back to front AND front to back. We put you on a quilt on the floor and in no time you've rolled yourself right off of it.

You get up at about 7-7:30 each morning, which is good because I can say goodbye to you right before I leave for work. You do pretty well with your naps. You sleep about an hour in the morning and a good two to three hours in the afternoon. We find that if we put you in the middle of our king size bed for your afternoon nap, and put some classical music on the radio, you sleep pretty long. You still sleep with your hands up...we call it your Victory pose (another good day for seamonkey!)You take another catnap around 6, and go to bed around 9:30. The absolute best part of my day is having you fall asleep in my arms. I try to really concentrate on that moment, holding you tightly and breathing in your wonderful baby scent. I can't believe you are mine. We love you more every day.

Monthly Update - Five months old

Dear Seamonkey:

Holy cow how time flies! We can't believe how quickly you are growing from a baby into a little boy. Thankfully you still have your good natured personality. You still start every day with a smile. I took this picture of you this morning, after I heard you talking to yourself in your crib:

It seems that at first you babble on to yourself for your own entertainment, then it gets louder and louder, signaling to us that you've had enough and are ready to get up. Bath time continues to be hilarious, and I'm secretly hoping that maybe there's a swimming scholarship in there somewhere for you. You are on solid foods now, and there really isn't anything you won't eat. You even like peas! You do seem partial to sweet potatoes and pears though. We found a new treat you love - mangoes! We put it in the little net thingie for you to hold and you mash that sucker flat in no time! Of course afterwards you need a hose down.You are getting very fussy with your bottle, and seem to want it less and less now. We know you've had enough when you start babbling and playing with your tongue and getting milk everywhere. So, we decided to see how you would like a cup:
You love it! Now you pull at the glass anytime we are drinking something. Of course, you do get quite soaked but you thoroughly enjoy it. We are working on your sippy cup skills so that you can hold it and drink yourself. You do better each time...you get better control of your hands every day. Getting control of your legs is a different story. You kick your legs around all the time. If we put a motor on you, you'd be off like a flash. We try tummy time with you, but you're not a big fan. We keep trying anyway! You are almost ready to turn over:
You get most of the way over, but then decide it's too much trouble and roll back. Any day now you'll make that last little push!

You are fascinated with our cats. You squeal with delight anytime either one comes into sight. Lucy pretty much ignores you, but Willow is just as fascinated with you as you are of her. She sits right next to you and lets you touch her. When you are playing, she comes right over to see what all the fuss is about. Of course, we're very watchful when they are near, although we are very confident that they will not hurt you.

The family continues to adore you. You visit your dad's parents every Monday and they love you to death. Although Grandpa G is a complete baby hog. He likes to hold you in his rocking chair and doesn't like to give him up to anyone else. You are very relaxed with him and sometimes fall asleep on his lap. Uncle M is chomping at the bit to buy you tons of sports equipment. For now he's bought you your first Mets hat:

My mom is a typical grandma to you. She sneaks you treats when she thinks I'm not looking. She gave you a lollipop for Valentine's Day which you loved. You held it yourself in front of your mouth and kept sticking out your tonuge and lapping at it like a dog. We only let you have a few licks - we know grandma is crazy. You have a fascination with my dad. Grandpa N can get you to smile when no one else can. He's like your own personal clown. You get so excited when he's around you start jumping up and down. Speaking of jumping up and down, you love your jumperoo! You can be in that thing for hours and sometimes you exhaust yourself so much you fall asleep standing in it! It is hilarious to watch you jump and shriek and squeal. You seem to really like music. For some reason, anytime SpongeBob comes on, you stop dead in your tracks and stare at the tv, loving the theme song. Sometimes, if you are crying, we can get you to stop by singing "oooooohhhhh, who lives in a pineapple under the sea..." We also put children's music on for you and you listen very intently. You are partial to the Little Bunny Foo Foo song, especially when I do the hand movements for you.

You are definitely getting more fussy as your personality develops. Sometimes you'll start crying for what seems like no reason, and it is difficult to calm you down. It only lasts a short while, so we're not sure if you're starting to teethe, or are just releasing some pent up energy or what. It's okay though, we know it's part of growing up.

I have gone back to work and you are doing well being home with daddy. Dad can't wait for the weather to get warm so he can start taking walks with you and doing manly things. I can't wait to get home each day so I can squeeze you. When I first get home, you stare at me for a good long while as if to say "Hey, I know you...where've you been all day?" But thankfully you remember me pretty quickly, you let me feed you, play with you and put you to bed. Weekends are spent running around town, mostly to Target to buy you more diapers and more formula. You don't mind being in the stroller, but you are very quiet the whole time. Taking it all in I suppose. Oh but you definitely don't like putting your coat and hat on or off. That's always fun.

We can't believe that you will soon be six months old. We can't wait to see what you learn to do next. You continue to be the joy of our lives..we love you very much.

Monthly Update - Four Months Old

Dear Little Monkey:

We have had you home for a little over 2 weeks now. It's hard to believe that you turned 4 months old on New Year's Day. Well, actually I guess it's not, since every time we get you out of your crib in the morning you look like you've gained another pound and grown another inch. You've changed so much in just a short amount of time.

The biggest difference (besides how much bigger you are) is that you seem to have much better control of your hands. When we first met you, you could barely hold something in your hand. Now you can reach for things, grab them, and (of course) stick them in your mouth. You seem to have a fondness for the hair at the back of mommy's neck too, OUCH. We are trying to find you some good toys for you to hold - many are too big and heavy for you now. Right now you play with some plastic chain links and a little bunny blanket toy that you suck on so much it gets soaked! You have a Sesame Street Excersaucer thing, but you only last about 15 minutes in there before you want to come out.

You are a constant source of entertainment, and crack us up on a daily basis. You make the funniest faces, especially when you are trying to concentrate on something. You are still your smiley self and still very talkative. When you are alone you like to amuse yourself by having a conversation with no one. We have a feeling that once you start with real words we won't be able to get you to stop. You do a great job of pulling your self up to a sitting position while holding our hands. You can even pull yourself up to a standing position and seem to like that best. I think this might mean you will be walking sooner than later! We have been placing you on your stomach more often so that you can get stronger and learn to roll over. You do alot of grunting and moving around, but you don't really get anywhere yet. After a few minutes you'll put your head down and suck your thumb to rest a bit, and then pop up again for another round of activity.

You LOVE the bathtub. You kick your legs and arms around so much that the tub gets filled with bubbles. You don't even mind when you splash yourself in the face, which is very often. You don't like getting dressed too much though...especially putting your shirt on. No matter how quick or gentle we are, you just don't like having to put your arms through the holes. Double crankiness if we have to take your thumb out of your mouth to do it.

You nap an average of twice a day...once in the morning and again in the early afternoon. You like to sit in the bouncy chair or bumbo seat and hang out with us while we watch tv or clean. We were thinking of changing your name to Linus because you really love your blankets when you are hanging out in your chair. You don't seem to be attached to any particular one, but you like to have them on you. You try to suck your thumb and hold the edge of the blanket with the remaining fingers. Sometimes you get frustrated when you can't get it positioned exactly how you like it. Your other hand holds the blanket close to your face just like Linus does. We know this will probably cause us grief later on when you can't live without a blanket, but it makes you happy and you look so darn cute, so what can we do?

We've taken you out a few times in the stroller, and you like it just as much as you did in Colombia, although you seemed to be a little taken aback by the cold. You don't mind a bit when we put a blanket over your face to block the wind. You do well in stores, you seem fascinated by all the interesting things to look at. The other day in the bookstore, you were talking so loud that Daddy heard you all the way from the other end. You were cracking us up!

Yesterday we took you for your first pediatrician appointment at Dr. Jetter's office. You were very smiley and active. You loved being half naked on the examining table...your arms and legs were going a mile a minute and you were laughing alot. You had a good check up and only cried for a little bit when you got two immunizations in your little chubby legs. At this visit you weighed 14 pounds 12 ounces and you were 24 and half inches long. She also gave us the green light to start you on solid foods!

We've started giving you rice cereal twice a day and it is quite the funny sight to see. At first you cried, angry that we decided to put some pasty gruel in your mouth. We learned to give you the bottle first to fill you up some. In the beginning you pushed most of it right back out onto your chin and chest, but now you are slowly getting used to the spoon. Now you look like a little baby bird...opening up your little mouth really wide for the next bite. You make quite a mess too. Especially when you decide to put your hand in your mouth in the middle of the feeding. Cereal everywhere.

You still sleep very well. We only feed you four times a day and skip your two night feedings because you sleep through them. We put you down at about 9 at night and you get up anywhere between 7:30 and 8:30 am. You move around quite a bit during the night, sometimes when we go to get you, you are facing the opposite direction of where you started. And most times you've kicked your blanket off too. But almost every morning when we say "Good Morning" to you, you smile really big, which certainly starts our day off right!

We are very much enjoying our time with you these last few weeks. It is very hard to put you down because we love to hug and kiss you all day long. Good thing you don't seem to mind. We can't wait to see what new changes await us in the coming weeks.

We love you very much.