Weaning Week

It happened, but I wasn't planning on it. Will is only drinking cow's milk now. The day after his birthday, we had his 12 month well visit at the pediatrician. I was explaining to her that he still ate very little table food, still woke frequently at night and he nursed to sleep. She recommend I let him cry it out for bedtime instead of nursing to sleep, and that is something I didn't think I could do.  But I needed to do something.

So later that day, I went and bought a carton of whole milk, put it in sippy cup and held my breath. I was shocked that he chugged it down without hesitation. With that, I sort of knew that weaning was near. That night, I decided to switch up his routine and nurse him before his bath. He was so exhausted(and probably pretty ticked) after his bath, that I was able to rock him to sleep pretty quickly. A first for me! I don't think I had ever been successful in getting him to sleep at night w/o nursing.

So after I realized that it could be done, I thought that maybe it was time to just try to stop nursing and see what happened. So cold turkey, the day after he turned one. Not something I ever imagined doing, I thought it would be more gradual, but now being on day four, everything seems to be just fine. Really it seems like Will doesn't even notice.  So it's been a little of don't offer/don't refuse too because he really hasn't seemed like he wanted to.

He still wakes at night, but not nearly as much because he's more apt to go right back to sleep on his own. I haven't figured out how to get him to nap easily yet though. Thursday he slept in the stroller, Friday he fell asleep in the car, Saturday, Billy got him down with some gospel music and rocking, and Sunday I did the same.  One step at a time, I guess.  I'm still a little shocked that he isn't no longer nursing to sleep!

This is a new era.  One with more freedom.  Maybe one of these days we'll actually try a babysitter.  Ha!

Here's the big boy at his dr. visit last week:

One Year

Some quick year old stats:

Weight: 27lbs for the 4^th month

Height: We’ll find out on Wednesday

Clothes: 24month/2T

Shoes: Size 5

Diaper: Size 4

Officially a walker!

 One year ago, Billy was trying to coerce me to put my Steelers jersey on to go to the hospital.  It seems like so long ago, more than a year.  But wow, how much has changed in a year and how much I have learned!  You can read, listen and watch all kinds of things, but I’m not sure anything really prepares you for being a mom.  The shock of the sleep deprivation, the constant feedings, and so many diapers!  What a blur that first month was!

 

I really don’t think I knew anything about babies before having Will.  Even after he came, there was(and is!) a huge learning curve.  I remember forgetting to wash his belly button, trying to feed him a bottle, and the pacifier, learning to swaddle, cloth diaper, diaper rashes, the list goes on.  For such a tiny being, there are a lot of moving parts!

As I look back on the year, I have such a feeling of gratitude.  I’m thankful for Will’s fun personality, his health, his demeanor, and the very close bond we have.  I’m grateful that I have been able to nurse without any issues, and we made it to a year…and according to Will, there is no end in sight.   Ha!

I couldn’t have imagined how much I am enjoying this time and this season of my life.  I never pictured being a stay-home-mom or thought I would ever have the opportunity.  Will has brought so much joy to our life this year.  SO MUCH.  Sure, there are days that are trying, and difficult, but they are few, and the good days outshine them.

He has changed so much and I as I was pushing him in the swing yesterday, I was amazed at how much he has grown in a year.  Born at 8lbs, 7oz, he is now at 27 pounds and looks like such a little boy.  We have more fun with him each month, as he learns to interact more.  I don’t think we could have imagined a better fit for our family of three.

As I look back on the pictures, some of them make me laugh so hard.  The chunky baby finally has a neck!  Happy one year, little buddy!

One Year Old Tomorrow!

Just a few quick things for my own record...

As we round the corner to one year,Will is sick for the first time.  I started to notice it last Wednesday and here we are five days later, and it's still around.  We went to the Dr. on Friday, and she diagnosed it as Croup.  He has a nasty cough, and I'm sure the mucus is dripping down into his stomach, making him feel terrible.  I feel so bad for him, but there isn't much I can do to make him feel better.  Giving the medicine to him involved basically putting him in a headlock, which is no fun either.

One FUN thing is that Billy's youngest sister and her husband surprised him for his birthday on Friday.  He thought we had intruders, so he brought his gun to the front door.  The weather this weekend was awful, and of course, with Will being sick, we couldn't do much, but it was awesome having them here!

Will is walking so much more now.  I would say more than crawling now.  He just makes me laugh so much.  He put his arms out, hunches his shoulders and sort of stomps around like Frankenstein.

We started receiving presents for Will's birthday in the mail and we love checking the mail!  Sometimes there is a bit of confusion if it's addressed to "William", it being Billy and Will's name.  Billy is convinced Will is stealing his birthday checks. ;)

Poor, sick, baby!

51 Weeks

Here we are - one week from ONE!  This weekend, Will was baptized and we officially joined our church.  My parents came up for the event, and Grandma was the official photographer.  My dad gives her a hard time about all the pictures, but aren't we all happy to have them when all is said and done?  I say yes!  But Will was such a good boy for the ceremony, for the pastor, and even managed to make it through lunch without a melt-down.  He was feeling the spirit, surely.  ;)

 You know what the good thing about having your parents visit?  Not sweating about cleaning as much as when the in-laws visit!  Believe me, they know how messy I can be, so as long as they're not finding piles of laundry hidden in the closets, it's an improvement.

Will is making progress with walking, although he still prefers to crawl.  This week he started to stand without pulling up on anything.  So, sort of getting in the downward dog position, and then pulling his torso up on his own.  Seeing him walk is just hilarious to me, and he always looks like he is so proud of himself!  I love it!

Last week was a busy one with MOPS and Moms Club, but I love those days!  Will gets to interact with other kids his age, I get a break, and I always leave feeling so energized.  Not in a motivated-I'm going to clean the whole house now kind of way, but more of a feeling that, yes, other people are going through the same things I am - whew!  And of course the bonus is that Will is always exhausted by the end!

Here's to one more week of my baby!

50 Weeks

Hello, October!  The month of celebrations.  Up this week, is Patton!  General Pattycakes, that is.  He's going to be four!  Then on Sunday, we have Will's baptism, followed by Billy's birthday, which he shares with his dad and his sister's anniversary, Will's birthday, which he shares with his great-uncle, and my mom's birthday.  There are actually a few other extended family birthdays thrown in there too.  October is a little tough to keep up with!

This week, I gave Will hummus, which was pretty funny.  The first day, he tried to stick his face in it, and was a little frustrated.  The next day, he figured out how to use his hands to get it into his mouth and there was no turning back!  I had just never plopped a paste like that on his tray, so he was a little confused at first. He has been eating a little more lately and most days this week, he went 4 hours between nursing which is a vast improvement from TWO!  And he figured out the sippy cup!  Big things here at the Hudgins house!

He took a few more unassisted steps this week, which was fun to watch.  He looks a little drunk...all wobbly and overstepping.  He will walk between Billy and I and has only ventured to Patton outside of that.  We work on it a few times a day and I know he'll figure it out soon.  I know it's going to be so weird seeing my baby walking!

We started Kindermusik this week. For the first half our or so, Will was just taking it all in.  After he got his hands on a maraca, he loosened up a bit.  We're in a 1-2 year old class, so he is the youngest and the only non-walker.  I really enjoyed the class, and I think it will be good for me to learn different things to do with him.  The teacher uses a lot of sign language and does a great job with tailoring the class to the age group.  Two thumbs up, so far!

Truth