Random Thursday vol. 2

Hi everyone!

Before I start in on Random Thursday, I have a Jude update.

Two months!! 

Tom and I are posing him next to his Cubby Bear -- a Christmas gift from Grandma Neerhof -- for each of these milestones.  This photo is my favorite so far.

Just to compare...

I see him every day, so it's hard to notice all of his changes until I look at photos like this.  I love how he's all curled up in the first one  :)  

Jude has been sleeping in a little cradle next to our bed ever since he was born.  A Fisher Price rock-n-sleep.

We LOVE this thing.  If you're expecting babies, you should get one.  He sleeps soundly on his back and it mimics being held...so it's nice and snuggly.

But, all things must come to an end.  We decided to try out the CRIB for the first time last night.

He's had a few short naps in his crib, but we hadn't attempted a whole night yet.

He fell asleep on schedule.  We got him into a sleep sack and laid him down, baby monitor on.  We watched him on the little video screen and he didn't move...he was sleeping!  IN HIS CRIB!  OMG!

Tom and I high-fived and thought we were pretty awesome.

I think Jude's "sleep" lasted about half an hour.  Then came the binky war.

Jude has loved his binky ever since day 2.  I know some people think they're controversial and shouldn't be used. 

Those people are wrong.  Binkies are sanity-savers.

Anyway, Jude likes to sleep on his back with his head to the side, and when he turns, the bink falls out.  So this became our pattern: turn head, bink out, Jude fuss.  Over and over.  I went in about 5 times to put it back in his mouth.  By this time, Tom and I were in bed and were trying to sleep as well.  

Finally...we had quiet and our little man was OUT.  

My phone went off at 12:30 so I could get up to pump (oh the joy) and he was still sleeping...YES!  It wasn't until 2:00 that I heard him beginning to stir.  So, 10:30-2:00 was our first stretch in the crib.  Not bad, right?

After feeding, he fell asleep in my arms, then went back to bed at 3:00.  I was BEYOND tired.  We had another brief binky war for about 10 minutes and I said enough...back to the cradle.  So I put him in the cradle and no luck.  He just wasn't content.  I should have tried harder.  I should have rocked him more.  I should have burped him again.  I should have BLAH BLAH BLAH, whatever!  I feel like I could say "I should have" all night long!  What really happened was this: I put him where I like him best...snuggled up in bed with me.

WHOA WHOA WHOA WHOA you co-slept?!  Oh, the horrors!

No, it's actually okay for a few hours.  I spoke to a nurse at the hospital when Jude was born and she told me that nursing mommies sleep lighter and respond more quickly to their babies' noises, so it's not a huge deal when they're tiny like this.  That nurse was right.  Whenever I have him in bed next to me I never reach REM.  And that's fine, because I know that he does.  And he needs it more than I do.

Haha, that story ended up being much longer than I thought it would be!  I have decided I'm NOT going to let myself be pushed into switching him over too fast.  We still have time before he is too big for his sweet little cradle...and he is only this small for such a short time.  I'm going to treasure all the nights he's next to us as much as I can!

Let's move on.  It's time for...

Random Thursday!!

1.  My favorite fruit depends on the season.  Fall is all about apples.  Winter, I love oranges...I craved them when I was pregnant.  Spring, it's that berry mix that Hy Vee has on their salad bar -- rasp, blue, black, strawberry and kiwi.  Yum.  Summer is all about fresh pineapple, because I like to pretend I'm somewhere tropical.

2.  Have you ever watched The Dead Poets Society?  How about Mona Lisa Smile?  I adore both movies and I feel like they are versions of each other.  One male, one female.  DPS is far more dramatic and sad, though.

3.  Tom's favorite Dr. Seuss book is "The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins."

4.  Every time I go to Hobby Lobby, I look at the lamps for about 10 minutes and think about buying one.  I never do, though.  I just really love lamps.

5.  I have never eaten catfish.

6.  If Tom and I could choose anyone in the world to be our next door neighbors, it would be Mitch and Cam from "Modern Family."

7.  Guitars:  Taylor > Martin.  I can tell you why sometime in Tunage Tuesday.  Marty (in the band) would argue with me, but I stand by my choice.

8.  The most fun I've ever had watching a Broadway show was when I saw Spamalot.  I saw it while chaperoning the MCHS Concert Choir on one of their trips to NYC.  I got to sit next to my college choir director, Dr. Torkelson.  He has this laugh that is immediately contagious and it made everything funny in the show, about 2000x funnier.

9.  This week, in my Instructional Technology class, I learned what "boolean search" means.  Yup.  Never knew until this week.

10.  LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE BOY!

HEY, TOMMY!

Love, Betsy