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!!!!!