Yo! Baby!

Yesterday Ruby and I went to the grocery store to pick up a couple of things. One of the things I put in the cart was a pack of the "Yo-Baby" yogurt and it was sitting in the seat next to Ruby. This guy who looked like he might have been a pal of Snoop Dog says, "Yo! Baby! Check it out! Yo! Baby! That's hilarious!" and cracks up. This is why I freakin love people. It made my day.

The Next Sheila E.

Where's my stick?

Santa Claus!

It's Ruby's first visit to Santa. She did great -- no tears at all. Just a little bewildered at who this whiskered gentleman was. It was a lot of fun, more so than I expected. We chatted with a really nice couple in front of us who had an adorable baby girl about Ruby's age and a sweet little 3 year old boy. The line was fairly short and the Santa was really good. He knew what he was doing and..well look at him -- he is SO Santa! If you want a copy of the picture, email me :-)

Ruby & Her Mighty Steed

The Hank & Ruby Show

We had a fun little playdate over at Hank's house last week. Hank and Ruby had some good times playing with the drum and blocks. Ryder was there too and I think he's going to be ready to get in on the action soon. There were also a couple of new new babies there -- hard to believe that these two were ever that small!

Sleeping. It's always about sleep.

It's been kind of a crazy week getting ready for the holidays and anticipating visits from my mom, stepmom and brother. I've been baking and making lists and planning and trying to keep the house on some level of clean. Turns out, it's impossible to get the top and the bottom of the house clean at the same time. If the basement is tidy, the top is a mess and vice versa. I've not yet mastered the art of Total House Clean w/ Baby. Anyway, let's talk about Ruby, shall we? I've managed, TWO NIGHTS IN A ROW, to get her to lie down without the nightly screamfest. In the world of babies, that there is what's called a "routine" because it's happened twice. Sure, it'll change shortly but, when changing is the only thing your child does consistently, you cling to whatever even remotely resembles that elusive "routine." At any rate, I've managed to lie her down and calm her enough that instead of immediately getting in a tizzy, she lies quietly until she goes to sleep. I don't know how but I know it won't last so I am just enjoying it.

We are working on getting a more consistent routine going now that Dustin can start putting her to bed before I get home on the nights I work. I think this will be a big help as well. Right now, the routine consists of getting her into her jammies, changing her diaper, reading a story, having a bottle (soon to be a sippy cup) and I sing the Ruby Song while we brush our teeth and it's into the bed. It's about 20 minutes tops. There's been much talk amongst my mommy friends about the "nighttime routine" and how to do it and what to do etc. Evidently, much of the literature recommends an hour long routine. Of course my first reaction was one of shame and fear -- Am I screwing my kid up because I don't spend one hour a night getting her 'prepared' to go to bed? What if she needs that extra 40 minutes and that's why she'll be a blight on society? What's wrong with me that I can't put her to bed right??? Auuugghhhh!

And then, after I stopped my 2 minute mental freakout I calmed down and started think about it rationally. Did Laura and Mary's ma do an hour long routine? Probably not since after plowing, churning, darning and stoking there wasn't enough time for that. That hour the experts are talking about probably includes just doing more calm activities (i.e. no tickle fights right before bed) leading up to bedtime too. A few of my friends have admitted that they also have about a 15-20 minute routine and it seems to work just fine for them. At any rate, I began feeling like we have it down pretty good and I imagine it's all going to change again and again before there's ever anything even resembling predictable so I should just relax. I can't imagine that I am the only one who freaked a little at finding out that my bedtime routine was not up to snuff. But this is parenting -- you take little tidbits of advice here and there, reject others and inject your own ideas to make up a program that works for you. It's a lot like storytime actually.

Priorities

So last night I stayed up until midnight making stockings for Ruby, Dustin and Jack. They aren't the fanciest stockings ever but I had to have a homemade stocking for Ruby...and while I was at it I thought why not make one for her dad and Jack? Don't ask why. I was feeling crafty and when I get the bug, I have to go with it. Who cares that the laundry isn't done, there are dishes in the sink and there's baking to be done? Not me! They turned out pretty cute, I think. (Jack's isn't pictured since he doesn't have his yet).

Being a Parent is Hard

This photo is of our dear sweet miss when she was done with posing and looking cute. It's how we know it's time to stop whatever it is we are doing. Her little fists clench and she holds them at her side and punches the air. If she could, she'd stamp her foot and toss her hair. Now, she's also got another little trick up her sleeve that's less than pleasant. The past four nights, instead of sweetly going to sleep when we lie her in her crib, as she usually does, she yells. Not just a cry or even a mad cry but a cry with yelling. That's the only way I can explain it. It's like she has been wronged in the worst way possible and she is letting us know. And she let's us know for at least 40 minutes before she finally falls asleep. Which is why for two days she's sounded a little like a mini Bea Arthur. Luckily, it is getting shorter and shorter with last night only at 15 minutes. This is good because the mommy-me haaaaaaaaaaaaates the crying and just wants to hold her and comfort her but if I do go in there, she screams louder. So I don't. Because the practical-me doesn't want her to make this latest trick a regular thing and from what I've read, this is where it starts. I can see why those Nanny 911 people have such problems - it probably all starts in these first few months. I don't want to be the mom who makes her husband drive her kids around for 2 hours in the minivan every night to get them to sleep. So, I grit my teeth and fight against my instinct to comfort and hope for the best. See? Being a parent is hard.

Shorty Shout Out

Sending good thoughts out to Savory Snax and Shorty since Shorty's having surgery today! Many hugs and slobbery kisses!!

Funny Ruby Faces

Baby Tip #247

When giving your cats some catnip, don't let your baby proceed to crawl through the catnip thereby getting catnip on her pj's. It can get ugly.

The Duke and Duchess of Drool

Here's a picture from Ruby and Blix's playdate a few weeks back. Golly they were cute!

Catching up!

Well, the computer is somewhat fixed though it's still having problems but I have lots to report so here goes.

Ruby's first thanksgiving was a lot of fun for all of us. We headed back East to visit Papa and Grandma for several days. We took the red-eye out and Ruby was a sleepy princess for the whole trip and we didn't have any problems...other than I was exhausted by the time we got there but the good thing about family and babies is no one has any problem playing with the baby while you catch some zzzz's :-)

Ruby with Grandma

Ruby had a wonderful time visiting with Grandma and Papa. They outfitted her with her name on her door, a deluxe high chair, pack-n-play and jumper and Papa took her for a long walk in the stroller they got, for which Grandma bundled her up so that no little frosties could get her. She also got her first lick of a beater with whipped cream on it thanks to her grandma and she sat next to an 11 lb lobster. She also got to meet her Uncle Aaron & Auntie Carol as well as her other Great-Grandma Marion. In addition, Ruby's Great-Grandma Bette and Great-Aunt Kathy came to visit for an afternoon as well. Lucky lucky girl! We felt pampered and loved while out there and had such a lovely time enjoying the holiday together.

Our trip back was a little more difficult. Ruby was awake and WIGGLY plus, we had delays on our first leg which caused us to miss our connection so we had to come to Seattle via Vegas and got home about 7 hours later than planned. Ugh.

Interesting note about stupid security at the airport. I had Ruby in the Moby carrier and was ready to go through the metal detector gate. The lady stopped me from going through. Ruby was wearing those socks that look like sneakers and she wanted me to take off her shoes. Seriously??? When she realized that they were just socks, she let me through but...seriously? So what's going on with Ruby since my last post, you ask? Well, a whole lot!

• She crawls like a mad-woman. Nothing is safe from here that is less than 2 feet off the floor. She's getting fast and furious and loves being able to cruise around the house finding stale cheerios and catfood.
• She's getting her 2nd tooth - hooray!
• She has started pointing at things she wants.
• She loves standing up while holding onto things. She's a little like Dumbo and the magic feather though. If she's holding onto your fingers she's happy as a clam. If you put her hands on a table or chair and let go she starts to cry and sits down as soon as she can figure that out.
• She loves to ride her rocking horse.
• Her babbling sounds more and more like words.
• She clearly understands certain words, most notably the word "no."
• Some nights she sleeps, some nights she doesn't. Go figure. Just like her mom.
• She got a fat lip when she slipped while crawling and landed on her face. Poor thing!

Well, this is the news for now. More forthcoming!