Flashback Friday

Don't Mess with Alabama!

This picture was taken over the holidays, outside of Peachtree City in 2007 (I think, it may have been 2006!?!?)

Gators back at #1

Yikes! Saturday night's game was a nail biter! I missed the Arkansas game, due to having to work... thankfully! I'm sure it was just as stressful to watch too. I think I actually was put in a bad mood while watching us barely scrape by against Mississippi State. I must be turning into my dad! Ha ha! And, the fight on the field before the half ended? That is not us! We are classy.

Anyhow, we are now back at #1 in both the AP and BCS polls. We are lucky. Remember this call during the game? It wasn't the first bad call to go our way either.

C'mon Gators! Get up and GO!!!

On another note...

We had a pretty good weekend! I worked again on Saturday. Afterwards, we stopped by a neighbor's house for a football party. We were there for only a few minutes though. It was outdoors and close to Bobby's bedtime. On Sunday, we visited a new church. We definitely need to put Bobby in the nursery though. He is not one to sit still long, and Bob and I had to take turns holding him in the hallway. Afterwards, I went to my friend Amy's house to get schooled on coupons and saving money. I'll talk more about that later this week.

Have a great week!

Flashback Friday

Bob and his mom, in Hawaii. Bob was born in Hawaii. I'm not sure of the age though. Joye, Duke, any help?

Sleep Training 101

Remember this post from last week?

Well, after my research online, consulting my mommy friends, and finally, contacting our pediatrician; we started sleep training Bobby. Basically, the purpose of sleep training your baby, is to allow them to learn to fall asleep on their own. We wanted to do this for two reasons: 1) Bobby was waking up in the wee hours of the morning (4 am/5am), and not falling back asleep on his own. 2) More days than not, I would find myself rocking him for 20 or so minutes for each nap, only to have him wake up 20 minutes later. The first issue was something that we had been dealing with for over a month. The second issue reared its ugly head last week. But, there were certainly times where I would rock him for 45 minutes! I love to rock him, and still do. But, doing that for each nap can be very time consuming. Hence, the need for him to learn how to fall asleep on his own.

Now, I'm sure there are mommies that read my blog, who will not agree with the method we used. However, it is what we were comfortable with, and after discussing it with our doctor, it was perfectly safe to do so. We decided that we would let Bobby cry it out (CIO). My pediatrician said that the entire process normally takes 5 days or less. She gave us some advice, and we got started on Saturday.

warning: The rest of this post may be very boring to some of you. If you've gone through this, or are now, it may be interesting. It's more for my own personal records (especially if we decide to do the same thing with any future children.)

Here's what went down:

Saturday - Day 1

Nap #1 - cried/fussed for 6 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #2 - cried/fussed for 13 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #3 - we were at a cookout by this time, fell asleep in car going to and from.

Bedtime - fussed for less than 10 minutes, and fell asleep.

Sunday - Day 2

Nap #1 - cried/fussed for 10-15 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #2 - same as above.

Nap #3 - cried/fussed for 20 minutes, and fell asleep.

Bedtime - cried/fussed for 35 minutes, and fell asleep.

Monday - Day 3

Nap #1 - cried for 5 minutes, quiet for 10, fussed for 5 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #2 - fell asleep in car seat, slept for 2 hours.

Nap #3 - the worst instance yet; cried for 5o minutes. He never napped.

Bedtime - 0 minutes of crying.

Tuesday - Day 4

Nap #1 - cried/fussed for 8 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #2 - cried/fussed for 6 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #3 - fell asleep in car seat, slept for 1 hour.

Nap #4 - cried/fussed for 17 minutes, and fell asleep.

Bedtime - 0 minutes of crying.

Wednesday - Day 5

Nap #1 - fussed for 3-4 minutes, and fell asleep.

Nap #2 - cried/fussed for 12 minutes, and fell asleep. (would have probably been less, but I had to go readjust his position; his arm was stuck in the crib slat.)

Nap #3 - fell asleep in car seat for about 30 minutes.

Bedtime - 9 minutes of crying.

So, there ya have it! I also have to say that he is still improving. For his first nap of the day, he has now started talking himself to sleep, which is so cute. He has done this the past two days. As for the third nap... he still fusses, but today's nap was only for a few minutes (less than 10.) I can't wait to drop that 3rd nap, because he really does fight it. I'm not sure how much longer he'll continue with it. As for him waking up in the wee early morning hours; well, that has pretty much been resolved too! Over the past week, he would sporadically wake up once or twice in the night, and fuss for a minute or so, before falling back asleep. The only times we've really had any issues is when he gets stuck in an awkward position in his crib. He moves around quite a bit! I bought this yesterday at Babies R Us, and it works great! No more loose limbs between the slats.

Luckily for us, the longest he ever cried throughout this entire process was 5o minutes. Our pediatrician assured us that he would not remember doing it, nor would he hold a grudge ;-). But, in all seriousness, it was tough. I feel for the parents that have had to let their babies go even longer than that. I just kept reassuring myself that he was ok. He had a full belly, had a clean diaper, and was safe.

I hope you don't judge us too harshly for doing this method. But, trust me... it was so worth it! As our doctor says, "The end result of this will be an infant who sleeps well, which will lead to a toddler who does, which will lead to a child who does."

Edited to add: If you are interested in this method, do your research. I also recommend consulting your pediatrician. We did check on Bobby after 20 minutes of crying, and we also had our video monitor on too.

Our Nightly Prayer

I prayed this out loud, tonight with Bobby:

(First, let me set the scene. Bobby never had his 3rd nap today. I'll talk more about that later this week. Anyhow, he was really fussy, and I started his bedtime routine about 40 minutes earlier than usual. He was screaming bloody murder after his bath, while I was dressing him on his changing table. Although my nerves were not frayed, the screaming was a bit unbearable).

Dear Heavenly Father,

Please protect Daddy as he is traveling home from his trip tonight. Please keep his car surrounded by your angels. We pray that Daddy learned a lot on his trip. We pray that Bobby falls asleep easily tonight (he did). And, we pray that Mommy stays sane. We pray that Mommy enjoys her glass of wine later.

In Your Name,

Amen.

I tend to talk a lot in third person when I'm with Bobby. Hey, he has to learn that "Mommy" and me are one in the same :-) Anyhow, I thought it was pretty funny...

Concert in the Park & Our Weekend

We had a great weekend! Fall is here! The temperatures dropped low on Saturday during the day. I had to work, so I was ok with that. After work, we headed to my co-workers' (they're married) house for a cookout. The food and company were great. As for the Gators almost losing... ugh!!! We thought for sure it was going to be a repeat of Ole Miss last year. Luckily, they pulled a win out. And, yes, they were LUCKY! Hopefully that was a wake-up call!

We had a productive and fun-filled Sunday too. We cleaned, went to the grocery store, pumpkin patch, and finally, our neighborhood park for a concert at dusk.

And now... what you've all been waiting for...

JUST KIDDING!

This picture was taken tonight at our neighborhood's Concert in the Park. It was held from 5:00 - 6:30 pm. We were there for about 45 minutes. We had a great time, and visited with lots of neighbors. I love the fact that our 'hood is always holding these family-friendly events. Our next one is a Hometown Fair, next Sunday.

Anyways, back to the picture. Bob had Bobby in the Baby Bjorn. I was dying laughing, because his little feet were showing beneath Bob's jacket. It was just too cute!

The Spares performing... they had an acoustic, blues type sound.

Bob, Bobby and I all bundled up! It was getting cold. Brrr....

Bobby, the One-Armed Bandit!

Pumpkin Patch

Bob and I took Bobby to the Pumpkin Patch today! We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. It was sunny, and cool - felt just like Fall.

We were there long enough for some photo ops, and of course, to pick out our 2nd pumpkin of the season. Our first one rotted already! Anyhow, it was obviously more for our benefit, (ok, ok... my benefit) but this is something I have wanted to do with our child(ren) for a long time! I love making traditions. Besides, it's not like Bobby will Trick or Treat in his costume. I'm glad we didn't wait much longer to go though, as his costume was almost too small! Whew!

Look at this little Monkey!

Daddy and Munchkin... monkeying around!

Not quite ready to sit up alone yet...

Family picture with our pumpkin.

Too cute! Wouldn't you agree?

Sleep Woes

"What ma! Who me? Naps? Sheesh... who needs those?"

"Ok, Ok... I guess I do need 'em. I am only 5 months old. Gawsh!"

"As long as I get to keep wearing cool PJ's, I'm in!"

Bobby has been all over the place lately with his sleep patterns. Once he was consistently sleeping through the night, it was heaven to us. He would often sleep in some mornings as late as 8:30 am. But, alas... those days are gone (for now). We still start Bobby's bedtime routine around 7:00 pm each night. We are pretty consistent with that. However, for the past few weeks, he has been waking up earlier than usual. He now awakes in the wee early morning hours (4, 5 am). Our solution? We have been bringing him into our bed. He'll usually sleep at least another 2 hours. I know that's a bad habit to have. But, I really don't mind. Bob is usually up and gone to the gym, so I have plenty of room in our king-sized bed with the munchkin. Plus, he is basically sleeping through the night in his own crib. I have scoured the internet for reasons why he is waking up so early. I have found that it could be due to several factors: 1) Teething (even if he does not cut a tooth for 2 or 3 months, the symptoms can start to appear) 2) His brain is working in overdrive because of his developmental milestones, and 3) A combination of the above... which basically means babies from 4 months on will be inconsistent with their sleep. From what I have gathered, this can occur anytime between 4 - 9 months. But, this does not happen with all babies. And, some may be inconsistent in their sleep schedules for months (which seems to be us); or, for just a few days.

Now, naps. Those are another story. For well over a month now, Bobby has been taking catnaps. At first, it was very annoying, and I found myself getting flustered. Once I realized that he may be just a catnapping baby, I resigned myself to the idea of him taking only 30 minute naps. I thought if he slept any longer, it was a treat! Ha! Well, last week, he started napping normal again. He would sleep 1 - 3 hours for at least his first nap. I was so happy that this catnapping phase was done. I guess I had jumped the gun, because now we are back to catnaps. Again, after consulting friends and the internet, I have found that it is truly a phase, and he will outgrow this. Some friends have said their baby started napping better at 6 months. Others have said a year! Either way, I guess I will just have to live with it. As of today, his first nap was only 15 minutes. Yes, that's right... 15 minutes. I tried rocking him back to sleep, and even letting him cry some, and nothing worked. His second nap has now been an hour and 15 minutes. I am hoping that he is making up for lost time.

So, I want to hear from you. Did your baby have these same sleep problems? If so, when did they resolve themselves? Or, did you change something to fix the problem yourself? Or, are you a lucky mom, with a good sleeper all around? If so... I am jealous! ;-)

Our 2 Year Anniversary

We sealed our love with a kiss on October 13, 2007...

We honeymooned in Virgin Gorda...

We had fun...

We moved to Alabama in June 2008...

We broke ground on our house in July 2008...

We found out we were pregnant on October 1, 2008...

We celebrated our first anniversary in Asheville, NC with our honeymoon buddies, the Van Blaricom's...

We played in the snow in March 2009...

My belly grew, and so did our hearts...

And, our union was made complete on April 30, 2009.

Daddeee,

You have been and will always be my rock through our life! No matter where we live, what we do... you and I will be a team. I love you more than words can describe. Thank you for giving me the life I have dreamt about since I was a little girl.

I love you baby!

Mercedes Half Marathon

I started my official training today for the Mercedes Half Marathon, which takes place February 14, 2010. What a great way to start Valentine's Day, right?

If you remember from this post, Bob ran the half last year. He is training now for the full, along with a 1/2 Iron Man, sometime next year. He better get this out of his system now, because once we have baby #2, I'll really need him home! Ha! (And, no, we're not pregnant... not even thinking along those lines yet.)

Anyhow, I've been running and doing some cross-training for quite awhile now, but have been sidelined a couple of times due to my pesky IT band knee problem, and being sick.

Today's workout consisted of me doing some lower body strength-training and ab work. I wasn't able to do anything outdoors, due to the rain we've had all day. I am basically regressing with my running, due to my knee issues. This week, I'm hoping to get in two 35-40 minute runs, and then an easy 3 miler this weekend.

I'll keep ya updated on my progress. As for Bob, he's started blogging about his own training too. Maybe one day soon, he'll let me share the link to his blog.

Blog Break

Well, we had a little blog break this past week. It has not been all roses in the Ross household. Poor Bobby has had cold symptoms off and on since our trip to Gulf Shores. I started feeling badly on Monday, and then had a slight fever Thursday and Friday. I am still under the weather today, but feel like I am on the backside of this cold. I hope this is the only time our family gets sick this season. It is so hard being a mom, when you are not feeling well. Thankfully Bob was able to come home from work early on Friday to take over baby duties.

We were supposed to have a fun-filled weekend too! Bummer.

So, mom's out there, I have yet another question. Are you vaccinating your kids/babies with the swine flu vaccine?

Flashback Friday

My sister (on the right) and I... (trying to strike a pose).

Not sure of the year, nor place! Ha!

Mom, any help?

One Year Ago Today...

We found out we were going to be parents!

Click here for our pregnancy story...