Mom's First Night Out!

It was Rachel's last day at Makepeace yesterday. She is making the big move to her house in NY!! We had a great time, just up the street at Soho. Dave was my chauffer.
*Usually* Andrew goes to bed at 9 without a hitch, not last night!~ After I put him down, he awoke and began cooing at his mobile....then hollering...I picked him up..put him back down (still awake) Dave arrived at that point and I passed Andy off to Dad. We got halfway there when the phone rang! Crying! Spit-up! Daddy eventually got him to settle down and asleep and I was free to have a fun night out.

With Rachel and Dave, starting the night off right with some Patron.

Makepeace buddies, Steve, Bob and Rach.

I'm going to miss you, Rachel!!
I look forward to visiting you with Andrew in Glens Falls!

Baby Yoga, Beach & Boston

Ah, yes~ Life is a beach!Andrew fell asleep during the second half of the class at Itsy Bitsy Yoga.
I guess it relaxed him!

Teacher Mikki demonstrates on baby doll "Helen".

We went to the beach in South Boston!

It was suprisingly nice:
free parking, clean bath house/bathrooms,
stroller-friendly boardwalk and plenty of space.

Tasting the salt air.

I am sad to say "goodbye" to summer
but looking forward to next year when the beach will be more fun!
On the way home I decided to hop off the highway downtown. We got lucky, found a parking meter in a great spot! I grabbed a sub at my favorite old haunt, Al's, and ate by the waterfront. I used to do that all the time when I worked downtown. Memories!

Oh yes, "The Sub"! I got a large! Fresh baked roll, mozzarella, prosciutto, basil, tomatoes and balsamic. What's funny is that the people who worked there still remembered me (over 2 years later). We also ran into an old commuting buddy, Carol, by the waterfront, and a couple old coworkers from Safety Insurance, Diane and Kara. We were already in the car at that point & couldn't find another spot to park- we'll have to do a trip downtown some other time to visit the old coworkers at SIC.

I can touch my toes!

Besides eating almost constantly,
this is what Andrew was working on today!

Common Ground Country Fair

A parade of tractors kept the incoming fair goers from waiting or walking too far.

His first tractor ride!

There were lots of sights and interesting vendors! Andrew got a nice linen blankie.
Grandpa picked up the annual supply of garlic to plant.
He pushed Andrew around the whole time!
We went early on Friday. By noon the crowds had arrived, the food lines were long, it was hot- so we headed out and stopped for lobster salad lunch in Waterville.
There were lots of "earth mother" types- and naturally, in the kids' section, we found a nursing tent, complete with comfy chairs and pillows and even a sheepskin-lined changing table!

We had dinner that night at Wendy & Matt's. Vivy loves Andy's car seat! She was rocking in it while watching an Elmo video.

Andy was fussy so Viv played with his feet and even rocked him. She wasn't sure what to do!

Thumb Sucking Attempts

He is getting better at it... In fact, has not had and/or refused the binky the past few days!
Are we onto something here??
It has woken us up more than once....the kissing/sucking sounds he makes as he sucks on his fist- until, eventually, his thumb makes it into his mouth.

Itsy Bitsy Yoga®

Andrew and Mommy started our first class today at Exhale Spa, downtown!
It was a wonder we got up, bathed, fed and out the door (and even made it on time!) considering Andrew woke up *3 times* to be fed overnight....and has been requiring feedings since the fun started at 2 a.m., every *2* hours! He has reverted to being a newborn again! AH! Watch out, looks like a growth spurt is happening...
I meant well and took my camera but being sleep deprived, forgot to take pictures.
Here's a picture of the current situation:

Taking a snooze after a nice feeding, while I type away here.
His favorite spot is over my left shoulder and will fuss if I try to move him.
"Are you talkin' 'bout me?"

The class is one hour, every week, for 6 sessions. Since there are only 3 babies, the instructor Mikki can give us lots of individual attention. Andy is the youngest, followed by a 4 month old, Ella, and 5 month old, Noah.
Andy, of course, wanted to be fed while we were there, then the other 2 babies decided that was a good idea, too. The instructor commented on how great Andrew's attention span was since he activily participated for 20 minutes before having "other plans".

Here is a blurb I pulled off the exhale.com website:
Itsy Bitsy Yoga® is a fun and gentle developmentally- centered program for young children and their parents. The program was developed by Helen Garabedian, Certified Yoga Teacher, Infant Development Movement Educator and author of Itsy Bitsy Yoga®: Poses to Help Your Baby Sleep Longer, Digest Better and Grow Stronger (Fireside/Simon & Schuster).
Enjoy many Itsy Bitsy Yoga® poses, rhymes, and activities that provide developmentally nutritious interaction between parent and child. This nurturing program gives parents and caregivers the tools and support they need to bond with, and comfort their little ones as they grow into their bodies and explore their surroundings.

Wake up, it's bath time!

Sleepy Baby

Poor baby Andy- the smile photo from yesterday was just before the fussiness and discomfort set in. We gave him doses of infant aceteminophen a couple of times which helped. He's just been pretty much wiped out, sleeping a lot (in fact, on my shoulder now as I type with my right hand).With Dad this morning.

2-Month Checkup

Andrew had his first series of immunizations today! Dr. James was swift and did them while I stepped out to the bathroom. Andrew had a quick holler but soon was fine. No big deal, actually! In fact, he cried in the car the whole way *to* the doctor's office and was fine for the car ride home.
His stats:
14.25 lbs
24 1/2" long
He has established himself on the big-boy curve, in the 95th percentile for weight and height and 75th percentile for head circumference.

Dr. James affixes a bandaid and some pressure on the injection site.

Mmmmm a special drink to top it off.
You can see how he's losing his long baby hair in this picture.
The new growth is about 1/4" and the same color, maybe a little lighter.

All smiles back at home!

Baby Jack is born!

Jack William Kelley

10:07 a.m.

8lbs 14oz

19 3/4" long

Don't they look great??!
I had to swoop by w/baby Andy~ and deliver a "Brest Friend" feeding pillow!
It was such a great help to us- I couldn't help but get one for her too. Funny, I told some random pregnant Mom at Babies R Us how great it was while buying it... "Oh, I've used pillows for my last two just fine." Ummmm, ok, heh-heh-m-heh.... But seriously, I (we) would have suffered without it.
Anyhow, Sara reported that Jack was one of three red-heads that day!

Soon after I arrived, Sara's Mom did:I am glad I could capture these photos for her!
An admitting nurse came in so our visit was interrupted (ok, usual hospital b.s. I encountered also)... but Andy started fussing for a meal anyhow so I fed him in the solarium and we took off to beat the rainy-day traffic home. A nurse held Andy for me while I went to the bathroom and when I came back, they were all gathered around- amazed at how big he was- in just 2 months!

Every day is new excitement- he has become quite the conversationalist in coo and oohs and ahhhs and such. Last night, he set an all-time sleep recond of 10 hours 15 minutes and as a bonus, I slept 9 hours straight. Can't recall the last time that happened!
Speaking of bed, tomorrow is a big day, his 2-month appointment and first-ever immunizations! YIKES!!!

Visit to Sara Kelley's

Nancy, Bob & Sam and Andy & I visited Sara and Scott at their new house in Pembroke, on Sara's due date yesterday! Baby Jack is as happy to stay in the womb and also a big guy, estimated over 9 pounds!

Sara was good at getting smiles out of Andy!

The Hennessey family. Sam is also a big boy, he just turned 2 on July 1st!

Andy tried out Jack's bouncy chair- and for the first time, played with the dangly toys! After coming home, he started to enjoy the toys on his bouncy chair, too! (Lights and music activate when a toy is kicked.)

This is fun!

All happy.

Sara, Nan and I went for a walk with Andy and the dog Ben, around the old cranberry bog in her backyard. There was evidence of all sorts of critters back there, and tons of frogs!
I, of course, found some cranberries to eat.
Not quite at their prime yet- 1/2 red now.

The Kelley house from across the bog. They have 5 bathrooms!
My favorite part of her house is the back porch, overlooking the bog.

Ben found his old tennis ball and wanted to play!