We're Back & So Is The Cap

We took Vincent down to L.A. over the weekend to visit the family, and to meet his Grandpa (A-Gong) for the first time. It was our first plane ride with the babe. I'd say, overall, the trip was great. We had a delay with our flight to Long Beach. There was an older gentleman on the plane that needed medical assistance. We had taxied away from the gate, and I began to nurse Vincent soon after. Then, I looked out the window and noticed we were back at the gate. The paramedics arrived to assist the man & take him to the hospital. But, before they could take him, he needed to get his luggage, which contained his medication, from the plane. The description of the bag: black. We sat at the gate for about an hour. It allowed us to change a poopy diaper and walk Vincent up and down the aisle, but tired baby did not fall asleep. He became more tired & cranky. Thankfully, that's when we were able to taxi out again. Once we were leaving the gate, I nursed him, but he fell asleep before the plane took off, and did not wake up until we were safely on the ground in Long Beach. Long Beach airport, by-the-way, is awesome! On our way back, we were able to block off a seat in our row for Vincent, so we took his car seat on the plane. He sat there sucking his pacifier for take off, fell sleep soon after, and slept until we made it to baggage claim in SeaTac.
The stay at my parents was nice and relaxing. Tons of new faces for Vincent to see. The first night was rough, with new surroundings and the sounds of loud Taiwanese voices. I went out to Target with my sister to get a swing, and called home to ask David for his opinion. His response was that things weren't going well & I needed to just pick one and come home. After a night of rest, our little guy was happy as can be.
Oh, and yes, the cradle cap is back...along with scratches on his forehead, since Vincent's nails are so sharp, no matter how much we cut them. He has this tendency to rub his head with the back of his hands. It's such a sad sight.

Here I am with my cousin's baby, Anabelle, who is just 10 days older than Vincent. Her mother is holding Vincent.

4 Months Old!

Yesterday, was Vincent's 4 month birthday! It turned out to be a really nice day for all of us. We strollered down to Volunteer Park Cafe (www.alwaysfreshgoodness.com), where we met another family with mixed race children. Theirs are 1/4 Japanese, and so cute.
This morning, we took Vincent to his 4 month check up, and his second round of vaccinations. He weighed in at 14 pounds, 12 ounces, and 25 1/4 inches tall! The shots weren't too bad, and he was calmed quickly with me holding him. As I type this, he's sleeping, but the last round of shots didn't really hurt him until after his nap, so we'll see how he does this time when he wakes up.

His doctor says he looks great, but he did comment that there's a little cradle cap. Darn, he noticed it! It really has gotten so much better. It's hard to tell, but here's a looksie from a couple of weeks ago, after his last treatment.

New Toys!

This week, I've noticed Vincent take interest in watching me drink water from a Nalgene bottle. I decided to put the bottle up to his lips, and he sort of looked like he was trying to drink from the bottle, though he didn't. I then just tried giving him the whole thing, with the lid screwed on, and he seemed to be imitating me drinking. I honestly doubt that he knew what he was doing, and I'm sure the bottle was just a neat new discovery & toy for him. Nonetheless, I felt impressed!

And, thanks to David's wonderful co-workers, we were able to get some new toys for Vincent from target.com with the e-gift card they got us. Eli the Elephant is one of them, as seen from the previous posting, and the Tiny Love play gym is another. He loves them both. We also got him this other musical lights thing for when he's on his tummy or back, and I'm not sure what he thinks of it yet. He seems intrigued, but it's a little intense. I don't have a picture of it (YET!).

"Ppllllttttttttt!"

So the puckering seems to have been a prelude to a new sound little man is making with his tongue & lips. You all know the sound, it's just hard to describe in words.

In other news, Vincent and I have taken to riding the bus together. Today, while waiting for the #8 in Madison Valley, this nice, though kinda creepy man asked what his name is. He then proceeded to say "hi" repeatedly to Vincent, though he was sound asleep, while smoking his cigarette. Ah, the joys of public transit. All-in-all, it's been a positive experience, and I don't have to battle with putting Vincent in a car seat and driving just to run a small errand.

Pucker Up!

Vincent's been working on this thing with his lips lately. He's been smackin' & puckering them. At first we thought he was hungry and would feed him. He very well may have been those times. But, then we would notice him doing it even after being fed. It was obvious he was no longer hungry, too. He's been doing this for a few days now. It's quite cute. He has also started reaching in front of him & grabbing toys. He now enjoys being in his bouncer and tries very hard to grab the dangling toys. He works so hard at it, and they are just far enough for him to touch & maybe hold on to parts of it, but they're attached so he can't bring them close to him & put it in his mouth. I think that confuses & frustrates him, but he seems content. I have mixed feelings over all this because I think it's great for him developmentally, but I also feel so bad for him. It's like a cruel game or something. Nonetheless, it's a place I can set him down in for a few minutes to give myself & him a break from one another. Yeah, I totally think he needs breaks from me from time to time. I can be a real hand full.

Easter Treatment

Sunday was Vincent's first Easter! He got to get dressed up as a bunny. We were given the outfit second hand, and I have to admit I was quite pleased that it fit him so perfectly! And, I don't feel bad that he only got to wear it once, since it is used. Yeah, the other little boys that came over to our house for Easter brunch got to wear "big kid" clothes, but they didn't have bunny ears & a cotton tail. Brunch turned out nicely. It was the first time David and I have entertained at the house since Vincent was born. We had about 15 adults & 5 kids, 4 of which are under 1 year of age. It was fun to have them all together, though we're not sure if they really cared that much themselves. Liam was barely awake, Katerina didn't seem too interested in the boys, and Evan & Vincent weren't sure what to think of the golden egg. Meanwhile, Oliver, who's 2, just wanted to blow bubbles & hunt for eggs.

Later that day, after everyone had left, we decided it was time for Vincent to have another cradle cap remedy treatment. Last week, Vincent was visited by his grandma & auntie from So Cal. While here, his aunt noticed that the cap was coming back. So, on went the olive oil & lavender mixture. We left it on for a few hours, brushed most of the flakes off his head, and gave him a bath. This treatment turned out well. I think it's because the return of the cap wasn't that bad. Ooh, and some of the hair he lost a few weeks back have been growing back.

"Momniac"

Just 2 weeks old
3 months old

Ever since I became a mom, I sometimes feel like I'm a total maniac. What about a "Momniac," or recently, I heard "Momzilla." I just made up the first one.

Last week, I took Vincent into his children's clinic because I thought he may have been spitting up too much. Wait, let me back myself up by saying that I did call the helpline nurse first, and she suggested I take him in. The nurse who saw him didn't think that he had anything wrong with him, except some mild reflux. Not enough to put him on medication. Okay, that was a relief, even though I did feel a bit crazy for taking him in.

Yesterday, I had to take Vincent in again. And, yes, I called the helpline first. This time, there was something wrong. He has some sort of infection in his finger. The corner of one of his nails had this tiny little pale greenish circle & the tip of that finger up to the first knuckle was red & puffy. The doctor prescribed him with an antibiotic to take 3 times a day, for 5 days. I'm glad that I took him in, but I'm starting to wonder if I'm going to be calling the helpline every week for something I'm freaking out about. I thought I was past the freak out stage. Apparently not.

On to non-maniac things...Sunday night was moms' night out! Yay! David organized the night for Zoe, Jill & I to go out without the babies, while he and their husbands watched our boys. It was great! We had dinner at Brasa in Belltown, & enjoyed their 25 for $25 menu with a glass of wine each. Zoe & I both fed our boys before leaving & I had left David with a bottle of pumped breastmilk, just in case. Some of you may know that I'm not a fan of pumping, because it makes me a maniac, & Vincent isn't a fan of the bottle. But, that night, he was hungry, and I wasn't available, so he took the bottle from David. Dinner was very delicious. I have to say, Brasa has a pretty good 25 for $25 menu. David and I went there in November when they were running the promotion & really enjoyed it then as well. I had an octopus salad to start, while Zoe & Jill had falafel. For the main course, Zoe & I had black pepper paperdelle with mushrooms & Jill had a steak. We all had mini churros (they called them donuts) for dessert. Yum! My wine was a Soave, and that was okay. I'll have to remember that I wasn't too thrilled with it for next time.

Now, back to Vincent. Yesterday, we were expecting Julie to come over to spend some time with us in the morning. She is a friend, who will eventually watch Vincent for us on occassion, so that David and I may have a night out without baby in tow. Unfortunately, Julie wasn't feeling well, and it was good of her to stay home rather than get us sick. We hadn't planned on going to the Next Months class, but since it was early enough, I decided to take Vincent. Next Months is the follow up to the First Weeks class that we've been going to since he was 2 1/2 weeks old. It's a drop in class for parents. I opted to do that rather than join a PEPS group. I love it, and I think he enjoys it, too. Starting yesterday especially, I feel like he's gotten very interested in being there. He looked at the other parents & babies, and is was so distracted he could hardly eat. Twice I put him down on a blanket on the floor on his tummy with a few other babies & he really lifted his head high to watch them.

Last night, we met up with another family at All Purpose Pizza in Leschi for dinner. Their little boy is a week younger than Vincent. It was tasty.

Today, we are taking it easy. I was planning on going to the class today instead of yesterday, but we'll do something in the afternoon instead. It's sunny right now & Vincent is sleeping away in the Moby.