April 2010

Link to pictures here.
Link to videos here.

Grandma and Grandpa U Visit!
At the beginning of April, Grandma and Grandpa U returned to Missoula for a short week. They came to visit Mikey and to pick up some items they left stored in our basement while they road-tripped to California and back. It was great fun to have them here. Since they had little else to do, they spent almost all of their time with Mikey. Grandma spent a lot of time playing with puppets (Tweet and Neigh-neigh). Grandpa showed Mikey around outdoors and taught him about pine needles. A favorite thing we all did together was walk in the Rattlesnake on a sunny afternoon.

Mikey's Development
Mental/Emotional
We think Mikey had his first nightmare, though we can hardly imagine what it would be...perhaps something very abstract? We think he had a nightmare because one evening we put him to bed after the usual nighttime ritual and heard him awake, distressed, about an hour later. We woke up wailing and crying big crocodile tears. He wasn't gassy or dirty or hungry. Perhaps utterly lonely? We took turns holding him and walking around the house. A few times, he would be settled but then a look would come over his face, his eyes would flicker and then he would cry and bury his face in his Mama's or his Papa's shoulder. After a while, he returned to sleep and woke up happy.

Mikey seems to desire more and more new stimulation. Case in point: per usual, I put Mikey in the Moby to walk home from work. I pushed the stroller in front of us (it holds my bookbag and other essentials if Mikey isn't riding in it). Not three blocks from the University Mikey began to whine. He was whining so insistently that I decided to stop, take him out of the Moby and check his "vitals." He wasn't dirty, his zipper wasn't rubbing him funny, he had just eaten so he couldn't be hungry (could he?), the Moby didn't seem to be bunched anywhere uncomfortable on his under side. I tried putting him in the stroller but he didn't want that either. So, tired, I sat down under a tree in someone's front yard. Mikey immediately settled down and began playing with the grass and watching as people walked down the street in front of us.

Realizing that he was just challenging the situation (I had read in "Great Expectations" that this attitude would be starting this month) I put him back in the Moby and started walking. I simply refused to sit in someone's front yard. Mikey would have to wait five blocks until we could be at Bonner Park. We got to Bonner Park and found a big shady tree to enjoy. Mikey sat in my lap and watched people play basketball, volleyball, and walk around the park. Apparently, he wanted to enjoy the sunshine. Then he had a giant poo. Ill-prepared, because I was expecting to be home 20 minutes after leaving work, I had to call Mike to deliver an emergency change of diaper to the park. Within minutes, Papa arrived on his bicycle with a smile on his face. I think he was chuckling to himself about how opinionated Mikey is and how silly a predicament I had gotten myself into.

So, it seems as though Mikey recognizes our routine and occasionally thinks there are better things to do than walk the same old walks. He is perfectly happy to drive somewhere and walk around once we get there...I just can't walk out the front door and head toward work (or vice versa).

Luckily, we have a ton of toys and music and movies to entertain Mikey. I introduced him to "Happy Apple," which is one of Mike's toys that Grandma S has saved for 34 years. It was fun to lower the apple to Mikey and he reached up to grab it but it is giant so he needed two hands, which he was fine with. What surprised him was the lovely jingle sound that came from it when he turned it! The expression on his face was priceless and had I expected such a reaction I would have video-taped the whole thing. Mikey loves music...especially when we sing along to it. He listens to Steve Miller, Cake, Leo Kotke, The Format, Plain White Ts, Sheryl Crow, Phish (not the really dissonant stuff), James Brown, and countless other artists and we haven't even scratched the surface of our collection. We have realized that we need to search for baby-friendly music. For instance, Cherry Poppin' Daddys is out - no matter how wiggly Mikey gets for that swing music. Lastly, we continue to enjoy watching Netflix and TV. Mikey watches Iron Chef every Sunday if he's up late enough for it. Otherwise, he has seen lots of "How I Met Your Mother" and he's watched "Fantasia 2000" a few times, which he LOVES...and who can blame him.

Physical
We think Mikey was in the midst of a massive growth spurt at the beginning of the month. First of all, I was completely overwhelmed by the amount of nursing he required. Second of all, he started "begging" for food at the table, reaching with his arms and entire body toward our plates. So, we gave in and fed him a banana. He ate from my finger and crinkled his nose at the first bite but then he continued leaning forward for more. When he was finished he pursed his lips and turned away. Slowly but surely we added rice cereal and avocado to his diet. Then one evening Mikey over-stuffed himself. He nursed every 30 minutes and at some point ate a bunch of cereal. A few hours later, he woke up spitting so forcefully that I have to call it vomit. His little tummy was heaving, food and milk was spewing out of his little mouth, and he was so upset! No fever, and his tummy settled down after 30 minutes so we didn't rush to the emergency room. Since then, he has had no interest in food. I sit him down in his high chair and when I try to feed him he just gives me a big closed-lip smile (how goofy I must look doing "airplane" and "mmm"). He's too smart to open his mouth. So we're on a food hiatus for now. Luckily, I rest assured he gets plenty of nutrition from mama-milk.

When he first came home Mikey liked to sleep bundled in a swaddling blanket. That lasted about a week. Then he liked to sleep on his back with his arms stretched out to the side or up over his head. Now he prefers to sleep on his side. This is wonderful because side-sleeping is one of those "tricks" to get babies to fall asleep...you just hold them on their side and "shh" them. Sometimes when he calls me into his nursery in the middle of the night he doesn't want nursing, his eyes aren't open and all I need to do is roll him from his back to his side and replace the kicked-off blanket and he settled back into sleep.

One Monday morning Lisa called and invited me and Mikey to join her and Lucy swimming at Currents, which is a large indoor water park. We happily accepted the invitation and strollered to the park around 10AM with them. We arrived and noticed that there were mostly empty chairs in the room so we checked in and changed into our swimwear. I was in a bathing suit and Mikey wore a disposable swim diaper. We walked into the large, echoing pool room and set our towels down. Following Lisa and Lucy's lead, we waded into the shallow end and then sunk into the waist-deep water. Mikey was tummy-to-tummy with me and looking back and forth with his hands on my chest. We took it slow. Slowly but surely I began lowering him into the water by bouncing with him gently. Then I positioned him on his back (just like in the bathtub at home) and he seemed to relax and feel more comfortable. Then, a kick. Mikey started kicking while I held him floating on his back. I cheered him on - quietly at first - "go, Mikey go!" As he became more comfortable he started kicking harder. Right and left and right and left and go! He was splashing water like crazy! Then I lowered his legs into the water and let him kick entirely underwater. Then back "out" again for splashing. This time, he started flapping his arms, too! The more vigorous he "swam" the more enthusiastic my cheering, "go, Mikey go!" After a while on his back I turned him to face me again but dragged him around on his tummy while he kicked. Then we went backward - Mikey facing me but on his back. I had a big face full of water but I was laughing and all smiles. It was TOO MUCH FUN! Of course, Mikey was also getting a big face full of water but he didn't seem to mind. He would just blink and keep on flapping his arms and kicking his legs. Once, while on his tummy, Mikey looked down too far and put his face in the water! Immediately, he lifted it back out, blinking. I was really amazed at the entire experience...certainly one of the most fun days with Mikey so far. After we tired everyone out, Lisa and I nursed the babies while sitting on a picnic table in the park. Then we walked to Cafe Dolce for lunch where I had the House-Roasted Beef sandwich served with horseradish mayo, Gorgonzola butter, and arugula on a baguette and a side salad. Yummy! I could really get used to days like this!

Mikey measured in as a string bean at his 6-month doctor's appointment. He measured 27 inches long (75%) and only 14.5lbs (5%). Here's my question: how do you fatten up a baby who has been "running" since he was one month old? (The first video we caught him running in was when he was 2 months old but he had been doing it long before we got a camera on him.)

This month we bought and installed a "Johnny Jump Up" and to our surprise Mikey didn't take to it right away. He protested being put in and whined a lot while he was in it but we were persistent and shouted "yay Mikey" whenever he fluttered his feet on the ground. After a while he took to it and started walking back and forth in the doorway by putting one foot in front of the other.


Julie
This month, in addition to playing with Mikey and being amazed by him every day, I have done some other things for myself. The course I'm teaching (Engineering Mechanics - Statics) continues to progress. The baby hand-off continues to work well and now that Mikey is eating cereal, we don't worry about him starving or getting to cranky while he's with Papa. Mikey continues to be very well-received around the department and during my office hours. One student, Josh, consistently visits office hours and we joke that he will forever associated Statics with dirty diapers.

I continue to work on my family yearbook, Schneider Luck 2009, that I will publish using Blurb. It will be the third yearbook and I still enjoy the process and product on my labor. I have reached October 2009 and am amzed at the transformation of our family. In October, Mike took "belly shots" of me in the Rattlesnake Wilderness to show off my pregnant baby bump. Also in October, Mikey arrived! The pictures and stories are still so powerful and vivid in my memory that I tear up while working sometimes.

I have submitted an idea to a company called Davison. After reviewing the idea, Davison drafted a plan to pitch my idea to a company for licensing. Mike and I are taking a chance on the idea. Cross your fingers for our success! Of course, I will let you know if you should look for my product on shelves in stores but for now I have to keep it under wraps.

One of the best things about breast-feeding is how much reading I get to do. I mean, aside from the bonding and the super-weight-loss. In addition to child development books (Magic Years; Between Parent and Child; Great Expectations; Touchpoints; Nursing Mother's Companion) that frequented my lap in the first few months, I have added fiction to my nursing-chair-side library. This month I polished off "God of Animals" by Aryn Kyle, "Honored Guest" by Joy Williams, and began "The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz.

Mike
Mike continues to be an amazing husband and father. I love watching him play with Mikey.

He also earned a Merit award from the University for outstanding work! I am so proud of him for being recognized for excellent teaching and research. I believe he really deserves it, too!

This month Mike was invited to work in Germany during this summer. Sticking with the plan to stay in Missoula, he declined the invitation. However, it got us talking about how ambivalent we are about staying. Of course we are excited to see Missoula in the summer and explore our "new" hometown. But we are also deeply sad that we won't be spending our summer days with our Colorado friends. Specifically, Mike continues to collaborate with the guys at NIST. One week he spent some non-trivial amount of time talking on the phone with Hans and Justin. That Friday Mike came home and confessed that he really misses Hans and Justin.

Congratulations to Wendy...
...for a successful defense of her prospectus!