First full week of work

I managed to go through a first full week of work (which is only from Tuesday to Thursday). I do enjoy working and having my own time and career, but I do miss having Ethan by my side all day long. But I did miss facing tax returns and tax regulations. When I came home after the first day back, I thought "oh boy, I hadn't used my brain much for the past three months!" It's a nice change of pace to think hard again :-)

Ethan did well at Grandma's, as far as I know. It is getting better every day, and he started to take naps for her. I hope it'll keep getting better for them as they establish a routine together. He continues to go to bed around 8:30 and sleeps until we wake him up around 7:15. It is great that he sleeps well at night, but it also means that I only get to see him for a little over 3 hours on the days I work :-( So I appreciate my days off much more now. Today (Friday), he has been doing great so far; took one 1.5 hour nap in the morning and is now on a nap that's going to be at least 1.5 hour, possibly 2. Today he has been napping in his crib, which is also a development for him. He used to hate taking naps anywhere but in my arms. I enjoy my free time at home, but at the same time it's a little bitter sweet to see him becoming independent.

We set up a jumperoo for him the other day. I think he likes being in it. He still is a little short for this, so we put two pizza boxes underneath. (He grew a lot this week and now he only needs one pizza box.) I'm sure he'll really love it in a few weeks, once he can touch the floor and his legs get a little more strength.

Chris, Jeff's cousin, is coming to Goshen tonight. He'll be attending Goshen College starting this fall. We are very excited to have more family around here :-)

Anniversary Trip

We had a great time in Chicago on our anniversary trip. First of all, I can't believe that it's already been 5 years since we got married. I have been in the states for 10 years now, so half of that I've been married. Wow.

We went up to Chicago on Friday, checked in at the hotel on Michigan Avenue by the river, walked to the Millennium Park, picked up Giordano's pizza for supper and ate in the hotel room. Ethan had a little hard time falling asleep, but did ok for the most part.

On Saturday, we walked along the river in the morning, then went up on the Willis Tower (former Sears Tower) and enjoyed the glass floor and looked down the 103 floors below. It was cool! Ethan was asleep on the way up, but cried a little bit coming down in the elevator. My ears were hurting too, so I'm sure he was confused why his ears were hurting!

Then we went out to IKEA, then Mitsuwa, Japanese supermarket, which is our usual stops when we come to Chicago. I was a little nervous taking Ethan, but he did amazing. Seems like he was exhausted after the trip, and he took good naps both on Sunday and today!

A week until I go back to work

So I only have a week left until I go back to work. I think now I'm more excited than sad. This week has been a little rough for me, which may be why I'm more excited to go back to work. Ethan was crying a lot more a few days ago, and yesterday and today he's been on a growth spurt (which may be why he was crying more? I don't know...) He was eating every 3.5 to 4 hours before, but now it's back to every 2.5 -3 hours between feedings. However he continues to sleep until we wake him up every morning (which means 10-11 hours of sleep for him), so I still can't complain.

Yesterday we went to Jen and Lamont's house for a cook out. We hadn't seen Jen for a while, and Lamont forever, so it was a lot of fun. Unfortunately I forgot my camera, so we don't have any pictures (unless Allison sees this and send me some pics). Ethan did well until 8 or so, which is his usual bed time. It's good that he goes to bed early, but it sure makes outing a little difficult!

He started smiling a lot more often, and every time he gives us a smile, he drools like a fountain! We have to keep a bib on him now. But his huge smiles make everything easier and it's so rewarding!

Tomorrow is our 5th anniversary :-) I'm excited for our little trip! I hope his growth spurt wouldn't make it too difficult, but we are prepared to be flexible.

Counting down to the end of the maternity leave...

I have only one full week left of maternity leave. I go back to work on August 20 for a day, then back three days a week starting the following week. I am excited to have some adult interaction again, but also sad that I have to leave Ethan. He smiles more and more every week, and it's been fun to play with him. I'm thinking that going back to work part time would be a good balance of my career and my family. I hope I'll find it that way once it actually starts.

Next Friday is Jeff and my fifth anniversary. Three of us are going to Chicago to celebrate! We'll see how Ethan'll do in a big city. We'd like to go up on the old Sears Tower (I can never remember what it's called now) and stroll around the Millenium park, but I don't know how much walking Ethan can take, and the weather has to co-operate, too. We'll see. We are also passing on eating at my favorite restaurant, Maggiano's, as it's not so kids friendly :-( I'm sure IKEA's food court would be just fine...

Ethan continues to be a great sleepe at night, but hates his naps! He sleeps 10-12 hours at night, which is great, but he doesn't fall asleep during the day even though he is so tired and needs nap so bad! My mom says I wasn't much of a napper either, but I hope he'll learn to take a few naps soon. It's not fun to deal with a crancky baby!