7 months!

Elliot is 7 months old now! I know I say this every month, but I can't believe how much he's grown in just a month - he continues to amaze me. He now has 4 teeth - the top two and bottom two and I can see more just under his gums. He's eating pureed solid foods every day and has tried bananas, avocado, sweet potatoes and rice cereal so far. He also loves his sippy cup and knows how to use it all by himself. He sits really well on his own now and loves playing by himself. He moves all over the floor by rolling from side to side, but has recently started pushing up to his hands and knees! From a belly position he pushes up to his hands and then tucks his knees under and starts rocking back and forth, which I was told is a precursor to crawling! He'll be moving before we know it - yikes! His hair is still a light brown (and much longer on top than the sides). I think his eyes are starting to change from blue to a more hazel or green color (like his mom!). Possibly the biggest milestone we've recently crossed is that E is now sleeping 11-12 hours at night!!!! Yay! I hadn't slept 8 hours straight in over 6 months! He's such a good baby - we know he's amazing, but everyone always tells us how lucky we are to have such a good baby. I love seeing his personality come through more and more every day and can't wait to see the little boy he will become...

March Madness/Sadness

Dr. M here. This is my first (and hopefully not the last) blog entry. If you do not care about sports, please scroll down and see the adorable pic of E and I below.

As you know, the Moens are huge college basketball fans and March is a great time for college basketball. So we filled out E's first bracket and had a lot of fun. Of course being a graduate of KU and having lived in Lawrence for seven years we always root for the Jayhawks and the Big 12 conference. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned for Kansas. We were all devastated by the early upset that the best basketball team in America suffered. Especially little E, he was completely distraught as you can see below.

It got me thinking about what a bitter-sweet time of year this can be when your favorite team is a perennial power. First, the NCAA basketball tournament is the single greatest sporting event ever. This loss does not change my opinion about that. However, it is a shame to me that one loss can make an extraordinary season a disappointment. A team that swept its rivals (one being a very, very good team), dominated the best conference during the regular season, and won its conference tournament should not be considered failure. This is the problem of being the favorite, favorites are bound to be upset and when it happens everyone else loves it. This is what makes the tournament so great. Everyone loves the underdog. KU's opponent played a brilliant game and that is going to go down as one of the biggest wins in that schools history. Nobody can ever take that away from them and I give them all of the credit in the world.

For teams that expect to win a national championship it is that much more agonizing to their fans when they fall. This is why I think Kansas fans are some of the best basketball fans. Everyone loves it when their team fails. Everyone throws it in their face when they lose. But the fans keep ticking. It is easy to love the tournament when your team is mediocre. When your so-so team does make the tournament your season is automatically a success and if they make a run, well that's icing on the cake. When they don't make the tourney the fans don't have a vested interest, so they can just sit back and enjoy the show. So why even bother supporting KU. Because when they do put it together, it is that much sweeter. This loss made me realize how special 2008 really was. I was finishing my Ph.D. that year and when the whole city of Lawrence came together to celebrate KU's national championship, it was incredible.

So we will continue to root for our Jayhawks through the lows and highs. Because no matter the how low the low is, the high will always be better.

E and I watching basketball

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

We made corned beef and cabbage with Irish soda bread and had some dear friends over to share it with! Per Grandma W's request we made sure E wore green all day, so no one would pinch him, of course. In fact, we all wore green :) It was a lovely day. Just a year ago on St. Patrick's day was the first time I felt little E move in my tummy and by this time next year he'll be 18 months old...my how time flies when you're having fun!

"See, I wore green like Grandma W said and didn't get pinched."

"Grandma K says my Great-grandma K was Irish."

"Like my new monster hat?"

spring is coming...

Spring is coming, I can smell it. The birds are chirping, the grass is greener, flowers are sprouting and Dr. M's allergies are starting to act up. It will be here before we know it. Last week we took advantage of some very beautiful weather and Dr. M's spring break and all 5 of us (dogs too) went to Forest Park, walked and relaxed in the sun on art hill. It was awesome to feel the warmth of the sun again. We're all looking forward to summer, the longer days and warmer weather. E is also riding in the stroller like a "big boy," no more car seat :)

Teeth

Say hello to my little teeth. That's right, Eli has 3 teeth! A week ago he didn't have any and now he has three! The bottom two started coming in around his 6 month birthday and the top one followed shortly after. It was a rough week with our little boy in so much pain, but we made it through and now he's happy and smiling again (perhaps showing off his new teeth). They have just popped through his gums, but will be so cute when they have fully come in. The doc said that he can put his new teeth to use by eating finger foods (cheerios, peas, etc.) around his 7 month b-day. Until then, lets just hope he doesn't bite mom, while nursing!

Swimming!

Today was Elliot's first time in a swimming pool! He loves his bath, so we figured he would love the pool too. Well, we were right! The water was nice and warm in the indoor pool and he thought it was giant bath. He splashed, kicked and laughed the whole time. He's a little fish! We're looking forward to summer and more fun in the water!

4 generations

80 years and 4 generations. Great-grandma ("GG"), Grandma Wedman, Mom and little Elliot, finally together for our first photo.

Dr. M and E out to lunch for his 1/2 birthday :)

6 month checkup

Today was E's 6 month check-up and immunizations. Looks like he's still looong and skinny. Doc said he looks like a happy, healthy baby boy and was particularly impressed with his ability to sit independently (which made his mom proud!). Our next visit is at 9 months!

The stats:

Weight: 15 lbs 14 oz (20%)

Height: 26 3/4 in (60%)

Head circ: 16 5/8 in (11%)

6 MONTHS!

It's been 185 days since little Elliot was born. That's about 1,665 diaper changes and breast-fed meals (and I'm proud to add that we're still cloth diapering and loving it). 5 months and three weeks ago, I remember wondering how we would ever make it to this point. It seemed so far away and everything was so challenging at that time. I set a personal goal of breast feeding for 6 months and thought I would be back to work by 4 months. Well, nursing is going great and I haven't even attempted to look for a job.

Little E is now sitting on his own (though a little wobbly), rolling from side to side, onto his belly and back again. He babbles constantly (a talker, like his mom?), loves putting his toes in his mouth, and smiles and laughs at us all the time. Just yesterday we noticed that he's getting his very first tooth (his front, bottom, left and top one on the same side)! He's a little fussy, but baby tylenol seems to be working well. He's still not really eating solid foods, though we offer him sweet potatoes or rice cereal each night (some times he eats the whole bowl and other times he just has a bite or two). He loves spending time in his jumperoo and rolling around on the floor or working on sitting.

As parents (especially first-time parents) we're constantly questioning our ability to raise a child though people, books, doctors and websites tell us he's right on track. Is he developing normally? Above normal? Am I making the right choices for him? Are we creating an environment that's stimulating enough? Will he meet next months developmental "milestones?" Are we good parents? The worst thing any parent can to do is compare their own child to someone else's (but it's hard not to). So, we've decided to raise little E with "no regrets" and not look back and say "I wish we had..." or "we should have..." We're doing the very best that we can and, honestly, we're raising a pretty incredible little boy! He's such a happy little guy and SO loved! His personality seems to come through more and more every day. We can't wait to see what kind of person he will become (though Dr. M thinks he will be a starting point guard for KU, of course!). Parenthood is an amazing experience, one you can only understand first-hand...

Happy 1/2 Birthday, baby boy!!!!!

Genetic Testing

Not sure this is blog-worthy, but it's something significant in our lives right now. When E was born he had the routine heel prick/blood work done at the hospital. A couple weeks after we got home, we got a call saying that one of the tests was "irregular" and that we needed to come in to have a more extensive test done. So, off to Children's we went...E just a few weeks old. This time it was way more than a simple heel prick. They had to draw a tube of blood from his little arm. He screamed and I cried too. A few days later E's dr called and said that the enzymes his body produces to digest a sugar called galactose (found in lactose), were low. The problem? This is a genetic disorder that can cause a serious, but rare, illness called galactosemia. E didn't display any symptoms of having galactosemia, but the numbers in his blood test indicated that he's a "carrier" for the genetic mutation. So, the doc wanted to do further genetic testing to see if he was the type of "carrier" that would effect his dietary needs. Galactose is found in dairy (breast milk) and if his body isn't digesting the milk properly, it could be building up in his system. The geneticists at Children's suggested that we have the blood sent to the Mayo Clinic to have more extensive genetic tests run.....

Sooo, this has all been going on since E was a couple weeks old, but, I'm happy to say that we finally got to the bottom of it. I spoke with E's doc early this week and he said that E is a carrier for the rare genetic condition, galactosemia. The good news is that it won't effect his life, or diet in any way until he decides to have children of his own....he'll need to make sure his partner is not a carrier as well, which would increase their chances of having a child with galactosemia. The doc also recommended that Dr. M and I be tested to make sure that both of us are not carriers as well (for future children).

Anyway, I'm glad we got to the bottom of all of this. But can't help but question the fact that we had genetic testing done on our little boy (and possibly on Dr. M and I). I keep hearing so much about it on the news lately....both good and bad. If we're able to prevent the birth of a very sick child in the future, it was worth it.

Valentines Day

E's first Valentines actually started Thursday with a mom/baby gift exchange with our mommy/baby friends. Grandma K arrived at our house Friday evening and spent Saturday afternoon getting some quality time with E while Dr. M and I spent the afternoon together at the City Museum (acting like kids)! Today is a snowy, cold, relaxing Sunday afternoon. Watching movies, the olympics, snuggling and making dinner together....spending the day with all of my boys...the perfect valentines day.

My Valentines!

Super Bowl

Eli's first Super Bowl. Okay, so neither one of us are big NFL fans, but everyone loves a good party and with Aunt Sarah in New Orleans, we had to root for the Saints (who dat?!). Plus, the commercials are my favorite part and generally worth watching (this year the KIA commercial with the toys driving the car was hilarious - the sock monkey tattoo, ha!). Deciding what to bring, however, took some time. With me not eating dairy (or meat) our options were limited. So, we decided to go with something I wouldn't eat, but Dr. M would love....jalapenos, filled with cream cheese, wrapped in bacon and baked (gotta love Pioneer Woman). Needless to say, they were a hit with all the guys!

Sweet Potatoes

My first attempt at making baby food.....sweet potatoes. I steamed, peeled, pureed and froze a single sweet potato (which made 12 servings!). Eli hasn't been a fan of his rice cereal, so we decided to change it up and try sweet potatoes instead. Well, he didn't like them either. The truth is, I just don't think he's ready for solid food yet. So, we're going to wait a couple more weeks, until after his 6 month b-day to really give foods a try.

New Hat

Like my new hat? Mom made it for me! She found the pattern on this blog. Dad thinks I look like a Hershey's Kiss, but mom thinks its pretty cute! I like it. It keeps my head warm in this bitter cold weather.

Handmade

A quilt, knitted booties, stuffed mouse, knitted bear ear hat, giraffe rattle, fabric block, curtains, pillows, screen-printed "jayhawk" onsies, sweatshirts and sweat pants and newest creation, applique onsies, pants and even a handmade fleece "pi" shirt.....ALL created by Grandma K for her little E over the past 6 months! She loves creating them and we love seeing what she's come up with. Who knows what will be next? We can't wait! Thank you Grandma K!

Videos!

So, we got a new video camera and have been taking lots of great videos. Here are a few of our faves:

Bath Time!


Babbling


Cereal


Dogs

Cereal

We were given the green light to try "solid" foods by E's pediatrician. So, we decided to start Sunday night. This was his first taste of anything other than breast milk (we even mixed the cereal with warm breast milk). Well, he hated it. Hated every bite. He wrinkled his nose, turned his head and spit it back out. He even started to fuss. We didn't taste it, but it smelled gross...I don't blame him. We'll keep trying it though - I've heard that it takes a baby about 5 feedings to actually like a new food. So, we'll see.... Needless to say, we took lots of pictures and yes, even video of the event. Here are a couple pics of his funny faces (which were the best part of the whole thing) :)

4 month check up

Yesterday was E's 4 month check-up and doctors visit. He was weighed, measured, inspected and poked. He received one shot and one oral vaccination (they were out of another shot that we'll receive in a couple weeks). This was our first appointment with the new pediatrician, who we really liked. We've heard many great things about this practice and feel like E is in good hands. The doc confirmed that E has eczema (like his dad). It doesn't seem to itch or bother him, but is red and looks irritated, so we're constantly slathering on lotions and this cold, dry weather isn't helping. Doc also suggested that mom eliminate dairy from her diet for 10 days to see if the eczema gets better (no dairy could be hard for mom). He still has cradle cap, which also itches, but is getting better and the doc recommended that we use cortisone cream on it. Developmentally he's right on track for his age, weighs 14 lbs 10 oz (36%) and is 25.5 inches long (64%). So, he's long and lean! We were also given the green light to start "solid" foods (rice cereal first, then pureed veggies) but aren't sure when we'll begin. Don't worry, we'll take lots of pictures and maybe even post a video of the first taste. Overall he's doing great and we're blessed to have a happy, healthy, beautiful baby boy!

New

So we thought we were going to have a thumb sucker. E was constantly putting his fingers and hands in his mouth (sometimes his whole fist). He sucked on them constantly, but never the same fingers. As you can imagine, all of this chewing was also causing a serious drool problem and his little fingers were becoming red and chapped. So, I decided to see if he would take a pacifier instead and guess what? It worked! I can't believe it! He's rejected the paci since day one, but now seems to love it. He's so calm and content with it in his mouth, it's amazing. I know it can be a bad habit to break, but think it's worth the challenge to see him so happy (I may regret this down the road). He's also discovered his toes. He loves to grab his feet, toes and socks when he's being changed, which can make things tricky. It's super cute to watch. I remember seeing him for the first time in an ultra sound and he reached up and grabbed his toes. It was so sweet. He continues to grow and change every day.