We survived!

Well, we survived!! I started back to work last Monday & Tuesday. Surprisingly, Monday & Tuesday morning weren't as bad as I expected. Don't get me wrong, it was still incredibly hard, but not what I anticipated. The mornings were a little bit rushed and when I was ready to go out the door Connor was sleeping, so that helped a lot. Sunday afternoon was actually the hardest day of all. I had all afternoon to think about being away from him while I was getting everything ready for Monday & Tuesday; I moped a lot! :) I'm working approximately 20 hours a week, so that means two 10 hour days. However, I was on call Tuesday and the day ended up being 12+ hours. WELCOME BACK! ha ha ha! The grandmothers said Connor did great (however, I bet they wouldn't tell me otherwise). Ryan and I can tell the change has affected him. On Wednesday he cried for 2 hours straight and I had no idea what to do for him. He was fed, his diaper was clean, he wouldn't go to sleep, etc etc etc. We've also been having trouble getting him to bed at night. Usually we can put him down with little to no struggle. This week he wouldn't go to sleep without one of us rocking him for 30 min or more! I know it will take him a while to get use to this change; I hope he's back to normal soon! The end of the week went much better than Wednesday did!

Last weekend, Connor got a visit from Uncle Mike (Ryan's old college roommate) and his girlfriend, Diana!

Connor meeting Uncle Mike!

Connor and I had a great afternoon with Liz & Ravi on Thursday. We went over to their house for a nice walk. Liz is surrounded by hills, so it was somewhat of a grueling walk while pushing the stroller. But, it was a good workout for me! Afterwards, I took Ravi's pictures!! He's such a cutie and his pictures turned out great. Below are a few from our "photoshoot":

Friday night, Ryan and I had a date night with Liz and Jatin! It was wonderful to have some time with Ryan as well as with Liz & Jatin. We use to hang out with them ALL the time before the kiddos but haven't had much time because we are all so busy! As everyone knows, we are busy with Connor, work, and soon Ryan's school (he officially got accepted back to PSU for the MBA program -- classes start in Jan! Connor and I are so proud!). Liz and Jatin are busy with Ravi (he's almost exactly one year older than Connor), renovating their house, both working full-time jobs, plus Liz is going back to school to be a Dietician! There is little time to spare between our two families, not to mention trying to coordinate any extra time we may find! We planned this date night about a month ago! My mom and dad drove down to babysit the boys, and we had dinner at the Batdorf in Annville! We had a blast!

Saturday morning, Ryan & Connor were able to spend some time together while I went to my photography class. Below are a few pictures I took for my first week's assignment. I wasn't that happy with the way they turned out. I was limited on time this week, so I did them last minute before I had to e-mail them to my instructor. I'm hoping in the upcoming weeks I'll have more time to produce more "creative" pictures. But, Connor still looks as cute as can be!!:)

Today, Connor and I went to daddy's second flag football game (they are 0-0-2). We are spending the rest of the day getting ready for the week! We're hoping it goes a little better than last; I'm sure each week will get a little easier!

Connor wearing his "Little Hershey Squirt" onsie from Aimee (Ryan's teammate)!

What new things is Connor doing??? 1. Laughing out loud!! He doesn't do it often, but we've gotten a few unexpected laughs from him! 2. Motor skills!! He is grabbing everything -- bottle, our hands, our faces, my hair/earrings, toys, etc.!!

Below are pictures of Connor in his new toy. He's still a little bit too small for it, but he likes to look at all the colors and shapes.

As always...more to come!

Approaching 3 months!

I cannot believe that Connor will be 12 weeks old on Sunday. That means one thing...my 12 week maternity leave is coming to a very abrupt end! I cannot believe how fast the past 3 months have gone by!! So much has happened and Connor has changed (and changed us) so much!

I start back on Monday, and luckily it is only 2 days a week! I feel very fortunate that I am able to go back part-time, but it is still going to be very hard to leave him! We are very blessed and have two grandmothers that are willing to drive 120 miles each week (60 each way) to watch him one day each. Each of them will get special bonding him with him that is irreplaceable. Having them watch him will make leaving for work each day a little bit easier than if we had to drop him off with strangers. It'll be interesting to see how Connor reacts to my absence. I've been told by multiple people that he may have a bit of separation anxiety (as I'm sure I will too)! I hope it doesn't affect him too much. We've been apart for about 6 hours at the most, but my work days will be pushing it to 11 hours with driving to and from work.

Connor's new "thing" he has been doing over the past week or so is talking. He has definitely found his voice! Some days I think I have a little owl in the house! All I hear is "Oooo, Ooooo, Ooooo"! It is so cute! I'm sure it will just continue to get louder and louder! He is developing quite an little personality. He is a "studier" and often has a very serious look! I'm always wondering what he is thinking!!

Connor and I ventured out today to the Mother & Baby class that we used to go to when he was 3-4 weeks old. It is pretty much just an open forum for new mothers to go to with questions/concerns. Most of the discussion is about nursing. Anyhow, they have a scale there for you to weigh your babies. Connor weighed in this morning at 12 pounds 10 ounces. I can't believe he has gained over 5 lbs since his lowest weight at 4 days old (7 pounds 2 ounces)!!

Last week Connor and I went for a walk at a local walking path and decided it would be fun to throw down a blanket and take some pictures! I was so happy with how they turned out that I decided to get them printed. I was told about a website that you can upload your pictures to and have them printed on professional looking paper for a pretty cheap price! I got a few wallets printed to see if I like them. They should be coming in the mail any day now! Ryan convinced me to take a photography class that is being held in Harrisburg over the next 6 weeks. I'm pretty excited about it because it is something I've always wanted to do. I am hoping that it will teach me how to use our complex digital camera that we got before Connor was born. The camera takes great pictures, and now we have a place where we can get nice prints of our pictures, so hopefully I can start taking my own pictures of Connor instead of taking him to a professional every couple of months!

Ryan and I decided that we wanted to go strictly to cloth diapers and wipes. The financial savings is just too great not to do it. So, the cloth diapers came in the mail today! Sounds silly, but I'm excited to get them washed and all ready to go! I'm sure we'll still use disposables when we are traveling and out & about. But, for the most part, we'll just be using cloth. Connor looks so cute in them! They are like a little pillow for his tush!

Connor is still sleeping like a champ!! A normal night goes like this: around 8:30-9 Connor lets us know that it is time to go to bed (it is VERY apparent), I nurse him, and then we change his diaper and get him all swaddled up and down to bed around 9-9:30. He usually starts to stir around 4:30-5:30, so we give him the pacifier and turn on some white noise and he'll go back to sleep until 6:30-7! He has us very spoiled! By 7am, he is ravenous and very eager to eat!! We usually cuddle in bed for a little bit afterwards before starting our day! His day time feedings usually don't make it more than 2 1/2 hours apart, but I'll take that if it means that he sleeps all night!

The rest of this week I am going go try to spend as much quality time as I can with Connor. We are getting company tomorrow and Thursday. Tomorrow Ryan's parents and his cousins are coming to visit in the evening. On Thursday, my aunt Nancy is coming for the afternoon. This Saturday Ryan is going to the PSU game and I have my photography class in the AM, so my brother & niece are watching Connor for a few hours. The rest of the day we'll probably just relax. Sunday is a very exciting day!! Flag football season starts!! I was able to play last year until we found out I was pregnant, and then I stopped because people were getting stitches!! haha We didn't think it was a good idea for me to chance getting hurt!! It was a blast though (I scored 2 TDs AND threw a TD pass)!! I am not playing this year; Connor and I will cheer daddy and the rest of the team from the sidelines, but I am still very excited to watch! Go Hershey Squirts!! (Interesting team name, I know!! haha).

Many babies on the way over the next 6 months or so: my cousin, Jen, is expecting Miss Phoebe any day now; one of my best friends, Jenna, is expecting baby Moyer next month; our friends Chase & Jenny have Miss Emma on the way and she's due in January; Ryan's cousin, Chelsea, is expecting a baby boy in early 2011; and I have a bunch of other high school friends that are expecting as well! Babies are in the air!!

So, when do we want baby #2?? Should we have them back to back or wait?? That's the question of the day lately! I know it is kind of crazy that we are even thinking about that already, but if it were solely up to me and finances didn't play a role, I'd have another one as soon as I got another 12 weeks off at work!! Neither Ryan nor I had siblings close to our age, so we think it would be nice for Connor have to have brother or sister that wasn't too much younger than him. BUT, if there is anything we've learned about the whole 'baby makin' process (haha) it is that you cannot plan it! Connor was long awaited; he is a Clomid baby (google it). So, when the time is right, I guess we'll have #2! What are your thoughts?? Feel free to comment below!

On a little bit of a side note: Ryan did excellent on his GMAT exam scoring in the 80th percentile! Now we just have to wait to hear from PSU to see if he got in! If he does, he'll start classes in Jan!

I'll leave you with a few pictures from the past couple of weeks!

"I love you, Daddy!"

"Let's Go PSU!"

Life's good!

Very inquisitive!!

Love this grin!

All dressed up to go visit friends! Looking very dapper!

Chillin' in the pool!

Water Baby

Connor and I were in Lewistown from last Friday to Wednesday of this week. It was a nice visit, however it was hard being away from Daddy for a few of those days! Ryan got to spend some good, quality time studying for his GMATs that he takes tomorrow. We got to see a lot of people on our visit to Lewistown!


On Saturday, we went to a wedding reception for Ryan's childhood friend and neighbor, Brennan. Brennan and Samantha got married in Virginia and came to PA to celebrate with friends and family here. It was wonderful to see them and their little girl, McKenzie, who is a year older than Connor. We haven't seen them since we got married about 2 and 1/2 years ago! It did not take long for things to go back to old times. The boys spent a lot of the afternoon/evening reminiscing and acting like their old selves. It's crazy to think that a lot of us are either married/on our way to being married/having babies/etc.! I've said this once or 1,000 times, but times flies!

Sunday was my very good friend Jenna's baby shower!! She is due in mid/late October! It was wonderful to see her glowing! She had a beautiful shower and was surrounded by lots of friends and family!! She got sooooo many cute things! I cannot wait to meet baby Moyer (gender is a surprise) and for Connor to meet the baby too! Jenna and I have been friends since 6th grade and I am so glad that we are having babies at the same time! I hope that they grow up to be best buddies too!

The rest of our visit we went to see Connor's grandparents at work and did some fall shopping for him. Somehow we missed that season when shopping for him before he was born! But, thanks to his grandmothers, Connor is all set for fall now!! On Tuesday, Connor spent the afternoon at Ryan's parents house. This isn't the first afternoon I've spent away from him, but it was harder than the last! I think it was harder because I know work is approaching and I'll have to leave him more often. I am very lucky that I get to go back part time, but it is going to be so hard! I wish I could spend the rest of my leave not thinking about my first day back, but it's been in the back of my mind for a few days now.

Connor took his first dip in the pool with Meme when we were home! He loved it...he was kicking his little arms and legs!! I can't wait to get him back in the pool this weekend (if it's warm enough)!!

Wednesday we took Connor for his 2 month check up and immunizations. He weighed 12 lbs 0.8oz!! It's amazing how much he has grown since he was at his lowest weight at 4 days old (7lbs 2oz). He has also grown in length quite a bit! He's about 23 inches long! He got 3 shots while we were there as well as an oral vaccination. It was absolutely horrible! He cried quite a bit when he got the shots and then at about 6pm I think his legs were really sore (swollen and red) and he just cried and cried. We gave him generic Tylenol, and that seemed to help. I was prepared to be up with him all night, but when we finally did get him to bed at 11:30, he slept all night! Speaking of his sleep schedule...he has slept through the night the past 6 nights! YAH! When I was pregnant I would always tell my friend, Liz, that I didn't think I'd ever feel normal again. I was very tired all the time. She always told me to wait and see that I would feel like superwoman once we all became adjusted. Well, she was right -- I feel like superwoman!! :)

Thursday was a lazy day around the house doing laundry, chores, etc. But, we did get a visit from Connor's great aunt Nancy! See below!! It's a little blurry because he wouldn't let her stop rocking!

This week we started working on getting Connor ready for the transition of me going back to work. He hasn't been a fan of the bottle lately, but we're trying to give him one bottle a day so he can learn to like it more and try to get used to it. Once I'm back at work, he doesn't have a choice, unfortunately.

What's next?? Well, we are heading to Lewistown, yet again, for the holiday weekend. Lots of swimming, food, family, etc. I am sure Connor won't get put down for more than a diaper change and to sleep at night! Ryan's 26th birthday is on Saturday (man, he's getting old!!!) and PSU's first football game of the year is also that afternoon, so Ryan is happy about that. I'm sure there will be some serious Connor/Daddy time during the game! I already have Connor's PSU outfit packed to go home! Pictures to come..I'm sure.

Just a little update: Jen is still pregnant with Miss Phoebe (YAH)! And, Chrissy's dad is still recovering from surgery but getting better every day!