Baptized

Last Sunday, we had Simon baptized. Much of it was the same as Harmon’s baptism, with the exception of a) Simon was awake (and very smiley) and b) he crapped his baptism outfit. We had a private ceremony with the same wonderful priest – Father Bob – who baptized me and my sisters. We all went to Mass at noon and then thought we would have some time before the ceremony, which was scheduled for 2 p.m. But, Father Bob was ready to rock and roll so we had to feed Simon quickly and forego the diaper change. Under normal circumstances, this would have been fine but I think he got a touch of the stomach bug that has brought Annie’s Children’s Center to its knees. SO, just as Father Bob began the ceremony, Simon began filling his diaper. And, every time there was a pause in the ceremony, there was a fart to go with it. Luckily, everything went really fast and we were able to get him cleaned and changed in no time.

Kevin’s parents were in town, along with his brother, Steve, sister-in-law, Kim, and nieces, Kourtney and Katelyn. My sister, Stacey, and her fiancé, Marc, also were in from Chicago and they joined my parents and sister, Erin. And, speaking of our families, because of so many issues related to fair representation from both sides, we decided that Simon would have the same godparents – Steve and Stacey – as Harmon did. It’s worked out well for Harmon so we thought it would be fine for Simon too!

After all the serious stuff, we headed to Buddy’s Pizza for an awesome lunch and yummy cake (thanks, Mom and Dad)! While this party was for Simon, he basically slept through all of it. Harmon, on the other hand, was a total ham and he had a great time with everyone.

Later that night, we opened all of Simon’s gifts and he amassed quite a stash! Even though I’m working on the OFFICIAL thank you notes, I would like to thank everyone not just for the gifts but, more importantly, for taking the time to be there for Simon for his first sacrament!

A shout-out to my oldest

During my maternity leave with Harmon, Kevin would come home at the end of each day and I would pepper him with questions about his meetings, phone calls, conversations with co-workers, etc. Basically, I was STARVING for conversation and any kind of link to the outside world. Thinking about it now, that was probably the most difficult part of my time off – being alone all day with a baby that really couldn’t interact with me. Frankly, it was lonely.

I was expecting that again during my time off with Simon but it didn’t happen because of Harmon! While certain times were indeed challenging, Harmon made all the difference in the world. He kept me company, he was my partner and helper in caring for Simon, he would give me a much-needed hug or kiss at totally random times, he kept me stimulated and on my toes and, most of all, he made me laugh so much every single day. He is such a great kid (and a great big brother) and so funny and so smart (sometimes a little TOO smart). I know I could not have done it without him.

I had a great 12 weeks with both of my boys and this made it so hard to return to work. When I look back on my leave THIS TIME, I’ll have the best memories of taking care of and being with my precious boys. It’s a shame it only lasted three months – Moms and Dads should definitely get MORE time!

Harmon @ 39 months

I totally suck at monthly updates for the boys. I hope I get better since this blog is my official record of events for Harmon and Simon. I’m not the scrapbooking type – I write … and take way too many pictures.

ANYWAY, Harmon at 3 ¼ is a pretty good time. He can be a sassy cat indeed but sometimes I think that’s our own fault. I mean, he loves the “Pigeon” books (not to mention Naked Mole Rat too) and the pigeon and the mole rat are some sassy little creatures. At this point, his two downfalls are a) that he doesn’t listen all the time and 2) he can be a bit sassy. For his crimes, he spends some time on the stool in his bedroom. This location has replaced the corner of the dining room as the designated time-out spot. He’s become Mr. Independent, wanting to do everything on his own, and one of his biggest thrills in life is getting to help make his PBJ (he is OBSESSED with PBJ)!

He’s doing great at school! He loves telling us about lunch and about running (and running and running) on the playground AND all about Show and Tell Thursdays. He loves his classmates and, as we witnessed last week while picking up Simon, his classmates’ parents. The kid was having full conversations with various classmate Dads as we were TRYING to leave. This chatty side of him is showing up more and more lately too. He’ll talk your ear off if you’re not careful – ask the women at Baby Gap in Briarwood Mall (or ANYONE at Ann Arbor Kroger stores)!

Since Simon’s arrival, Harmon has been way more emotional and affectionate, which is mostly good but sometimes bad. He gives a lot more hugs and kisses and he sure does tell us he loves us an awful lot. But, when something goes wrong, there is extra emotion involved there too. It usually passes quickly but sometimes it’s like, DUDE! He has this new cry (that’s mostly fake) and it is truly awful! Kevin says it rivals the most annoying sound in the world from Dumb and Dumber!

Simon @ three months

In the last few days, Kevin and I have often referenced that we want to freeze Simon right now, at three months. He is so fun! He just smiles and makes so many great noises! And, he seems to dig us AND his awesome big brother. He is doing well and we love every single minute with him. It seems like Harmon was just this age so we’re trying to take in every moment. Here are 10 cool things Simon is doing these days:

1. He gives HUGE smiles right before he spits up a ton.
2. After he sneezes – and these sneezes usually come in multiples – he makes the cutest cooing sound.
3. He has this great hungry cry – it's almost like a single yell - and it's hilarious.
4. He kicks like crazy. His legs are ALWAYS going (now I know what was going on inside).
5. When he cries, his tongue covers the entire opening of his mouth. All you can ever see is the bottom of his tongue.
6. When he’s mad and you try to give him his pacifier (we call it a binky), he rolls his head back and forth to dodge you.
7. He’s not the least bit interested in holding his bottle.
8. He loves it when you hold his left hand as he falls asleep. Whether you’re holding him or lying beside him, it really seems to soothe him.
9. He loves having conversations! I’ll lay him on my pillow and we’ll baby talk and coo back and forth. I did this with Harmon and now I’m doing it with Simon and I love it.
10. He loves his swing and especially loves to hang out on our Michigan bean bag.

Although it didn’t make the list – mostly because it’s truly deserving of its own special mention – Simon is sleeping through the night! The first time was Friday, Feb. 6. We put him to bed just before midnight and he work up between 6-7 a.m. Since that night, he’s been getting better and better. The last few nights, we’ve put him down around 11:15 p.m. and he’s slept until 7:15 a.m. or so. So, finally, we’re getting more than a few hours of sleep at a time!

And, before I go, here are two little things I forgot to note about Simon at two months (and I want to make sure I document them): 1) When he would wake up from a nap (we let him nap on his belly – bad parents, I know), he would be STARVING and he would start pecking at the bed – kind of like a chicken! It was so cute to see the back of his little bald head just bobbing! 2) For the first couple of months of his life, he would nap on the chaise area of our big, leather, sectional couch. It was HIS spot, complete with a Mickey blanket on loan from big brother.

Who's who?

OK, which one is Simon and which one is Harmon (no cheating)?




The point of the exercise is to stress HOW MUCH THEY LOOK ALIKE!

Back to the grind

I’m headed back to work tomorrow. It will be hard but the good news is that at least the boys will be with my Mom during the day. The bad news, though, is tomorrow is my longest work day of the week – I work 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. I’ll have to make it up to both boys on Friday because, thankfully, I still have Fridays off. Upon returning to work, I’ll have a slightly different schedule. I’m not in love with it but there's not much I can do about it. Kevin and I used to split Mondays – he would work 7 a.m. to noon and I would work 12:30 – 5:30 p.m. Now, we’ll split Tuesdays instead and we’ll work 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Mondays. I mentioned Wednesdays and Fridays above and the remaining day – Thursday – we’ll work 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. I’m still at 32 hours so there’s not a huge change for me. The big change will be for Harmon as we’ll be switching his school days to Mondays (instead of Tuesdays) and Thursdays. Simon will go to school those days too but he doesn’t know any better! I’m sure we’ll all get used to the grind in due time. I just think it will take a little longer for ME to adjust this time around.

Benefits of returning to work

Here I sit on the eve of my return to work and I'm trying to psyche myself up about the benefits of doing so. Here is what I’ve come up with so far:

1. I will be able to shower daily.
2. I will be able to take a piss without an audience (especially an audience that includes an inquisitive three-year-old).
3. I can take more than five minutes to eat lunch.
4. And speaking of food – Cinnamon Melt Wednesdays!
5. I can bypass dual screaming fits.
6. I’ll no longer be solely responsible for overnight feedings (although, in Simon’s defense, he is sleeping 6-7 hours most nights now).
7. I’ll have uninterrupted computer access for more than five SECONDS.
8. I won’t have to wipe someone’s ass for at least eight hours.

Despite this brief list, the cons of returning to work FAR outweigh the pros but, alas, it is what it is!

Naps in the cave

One of the fun things the boys and I did during my maternity leave was take huge naps in our comfy, dark basement. It’s not like we could go outside, with it being one of the coldest and snowiest winters on record, so we grabbed some good books and headed to the cave. We usually retreated after Harmon’s lunch (and Simon’s bottle), read and then Harmon would pass out at one end of our big leather sectional and Simon and I would settle in at the other end. Sometimes, I would actually get to sleep but, most of the time, I just kept Simon company so he wouldn’t wake up his big brother. On a few occasions, both boys slept until after Kevin came home from work and that made it so much easier to get dinner going. Overall, those naps in the cave were some good times all around.

Back together

Before I got pregnant with Simon, I could not get enough of Starbucks. Most of the time, my drink of choice was a Mocha Frappuccino Light but, when it was cold outside, I would mix in a peppermint hot chocolate every once in a while. Anyway, from the moment I found out I was pregnant and all throughout my pregnancy, the mere thought of ANY drink from Starbucks would turn my stomach. So, from April through the day I had Simon, Starbucks and I were officially “on a break!” I managed a small frappuccino just hours before my water broke (maybe that’s what caused it) and my taste returned. And, ever since that day, Starbucks and I have been pretty hot and heavy. Kevin is a little annoyed that he didn’t have to go to Starbucks for almost eight months and now he’s there all the time!

Tuesdays/Thursdays

Unlike my maternity leave with Harmon, when he got 12 weeks of my undivided attention, Simon only gets two days each week to himself – Tuesdays and Thursdays. While I’ve been off, we’ve kept Harmon in school and it’s worked out great. He loves his school and loves his friends AND I get to have special time with baby Simon. On these days, we spend a lot of time just napping and hanging out. And, while I’ll miss my Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with BOTH of my boys, I’m really going to miss my Tuesdays and Thursdays with Simon. Unfortunately, I return to work this Wednesday so my last day alone with Simon will be this Tuesday. I think I will try to some special with him that day. God, I’m going to miss my little guy so much!

Bronchiolitis eats it!

Bronchiolitis struck the Bergquists again and, this time, it went after the youngest member of the family. While Harmon and I are used to it and know how to deal with it, it’s a different story when it happens to a two-month old!

As is typically the case, Harmon brought home some germs from school and then I got it. We both battled it for a few days and then we started hearing some coughing from Simon. On Saturday night (Jan. 31), we were at my parents’ house and noticed that Simon’s coughing was getting worse. After calling the doctor on-call, she recommended we head to the walk-in clinic so we hightailed it from Waterford to Ann Arbor. Suspecting croup (the wrong suspicion), the doctor at the clinic gave him a steroid shot in hopes that he would improve. He improved a bit overnight but regressed in the morning and Kevin spent the first half of Super Bowl Sunday in the E.R. (we've learned to NEVER mess around with that infant breathing)! After running some tests and giving him an Albuterol treatment (just like his big brother), he was diagnosed with bronchiolitis. He started improving Sunday night but the E.R. docs suggested we follow up with his regular doctor on Monday, which we did. He continued to improve over the next few days and now is back to normal.

Overall, he was down for about a week – a hard week. While it was just a cough, it still was hard to see him suffering and not be able to do much about it. I know Harmon and I will have another battle with bronchiolitis before the long days of summer arrive but I hope Simon is spared from another tussle!

Nate and Newt

At an early age, Harmon earned the nickname “Nate.” Harmon quickly became “Harmonator,” like the Terminator. “Harmonator” was shortened to “Nator” and “Nator” became “Nate.” We still call him Nate a lot and even Nate Dogg (like the rapper) sometimes. When Simon was born, we wondered what nicknames we would come up with for him. While we often call him “Baby Abs” – short for baby Abner (his middle name) – the nickname we use most is “Newt.” You see, when Simon gets really mad, he gets all red and Kevin thinks he looks just like a newt. While he’s much cuter than a newt, I can see the resemblance!

The photo above is from a sticker Simon got at a recent doctor’s appointment. While he’s too young to appreciate stickers, I HAD to get one to take home to Kevin (and eventually scan for the blog). I think it illustrates the whole newt thing perfectly!

Simon @ two months

During Simon’s two-month appointment (which was Jan. 26), he weighed in at 11 pounds and 12 ounces (two pounds and one ounce lighter than his brother at the same time) and measured 23 ¼ inches long (one inch shorter than his brother at the same time. He’s eating like a horse – 4-5 ounces at each feeding – so we were surprised he didn’t weigh more! After the weighing and measuring, which was the easy part, Simon was the unhappy recipient of four immunizations. Be turned bright red and cried a bit but otherwise was fine. We also discussed with the doctor a bit of a head tilt that he has. It’s called Congenital Muscular Torticollis. While the cause of this in many infants is strain on the neck during birth, that’s not the case with Simon because he was a c-section baby. So, we don’t really know WHY. We DO know that most infants grow out of this but, just to be safe, the doctor suggested some exercises and we do those with him daily. We’ve seen some improvement as he gets more control of his neck and head and the doctor will check on him again in a few weeks.