Friday Night at the Lawson's

After Bo went to bed Jarrod and I decided to put together his new exersaucer. Clearly being a new mom I thought it would be quick...pull out of box, throw on toys, and you're done. WRONG! So after our family room was covered in a million little pieces we decided to open a bottle of wine, turn on some music, and get to it! I laughed as I thought about how we'll have many Christmas Eves like this as "Santa" puts all of his toys together. I was in charge of installing the batteries into everything that required them. After putting batteries in about the 4th toy that plays music I looked at Jarrod and said...this thing is going to drive us nut. His response...Yeah, the "12 batteries required" part should have been a clue!! Apparently I didn't look at the fine print. Regardless, when I look at this I see FREEDOM!!!

Bo is a very cautious baby. For a child that has my personality in every possible way he is complete opposite in this matter. Apparently I would jump into anything and everything and take off, no questions asked. Bo has to warm up a bit and check everything out. You have to gradually introduce new things to him. So with this said putting him down in the middle of this thing may not have been the best way to do it. Once he gets used to it I know he'll love it.

Sweet Daddy working hard!

Mom...everything on here is playing music!!! HELP!!

My First Meal!

So Friday night was a big night in our house...Bo had rice cereal for the first time. He did better than I was expecting. We fed him in his bouncy seat since we don't have a high chair yet. He didn't know what to make of it, but he didn't go straight to spitting it out. It was more of just letting it sit in him mouth and move his tongue around. After a few times he was opening his mouth for the spoon so he obviously liked it!

Nap Time

Yesterday while Bo was napping I was in the guest bedroom, right next to Bo's room and I could hear him squealing, cooing, laughing, talking so I got up and went in to see what in the world was going on. I can see this is already going to be a battle! He's really into his feet now...never wants to let them go. He also gets so excited when he accidentally hits the aquarium and it turns on for him. Here is Bo "taking a nap"! Also, we held off on the cereal premiere because daddy wanted to be home for it, so we'll be doing it this weekend! Pictures to come!

I love this expression! It screams "Uh oh I've been caught"

Food Here We Come...

So we got the okay to start solids from Bo's pediatrician. I had called the other day because his eating was just getting ridiculous. He was eating 8 oz every 2.5-3 hrs! That's a lot!! They wanted to check his weight to make sure he wasn't overeating. Everything looked good so she gave the go ahead for cereals and baby food. We're going to start tonight on cereal so I'll be sure to post some pictures in the next few days! We go back for shots next week.

His 4 month stats are...

Weight: 15 lbs 10oz (75 percentile)

Height: 25.5 inches (75 percentile)

Head Circumference: 41.4 cm (30 percentile) he has a tiny head :)

PT #3

This morning we went back for our 3rd visit to physical therapy. This visit went much better than the last. I had to laugh though, at any point Cindy thought he was about to start crying she immediately went to something else! ANYTHING to keep him from screaming! Actually he did really well. He loves to play with Cindy. He had so much fun watching himself in the mirror! She said she could tell an improvement...last time he really kept his arms close to his body and his fists closed (of course he was screaming the entire time too), but today he was reaching out with an open hand to grab toys, was sitting up (with support) really well, good posture, she thought he was doing great. Towards the end he started to get fussy, but he was a good 45 minutes into it and was getting tired. Jarrod and I have noticed that he isn't turning his head to the right as much as he used to. The flat spot is still there, but it doesn't appear to be getting any worse. We are really hoping it will start to round out soon since he's spending more time off of his back. Cindy let me take a few pictures to share. We go back in 2 weeks.

Oh, there's Ernie, my favorite PT toy!!

Who is that cute baby in there?

Even Ernie couldn't make it better...I need a bottle and a nap!

Time with Daddy

Since Jarrod has been traveling a lot he wanted to spend time "catching up" with Bo. Here are a few pictures from daddy time! My two peas in a pod!

Reading his favorite bedtime story!

Watching SportsCenter with Dad...this drives me nuts, I usually only allow him to watch 15 minutes or so of Barney or Baby Einstein! Daddy always breaks the rules!

Watching Barney later in the day.

1st Memorial Day

This was Bo's first Memorial Day weekend. It was pretty uneventful which is exactly what we wanted. Bo had his first trip to the swimming pool. We have a fabulous neighborhood pool, which of course being a holiday weekend meant LOTS of people. We went pretty late in the afternoon thinking there wouldn't be so many people, but we were wrong. After being coated in sunscreen, a swim diaper, swimsuit, swim shirt, and hat he was all ready! It's a lot of work to take a baby to the pool. He did okay, he wasn't really sure what to think of everything. There is a covered baby "wading" pool so we started out there, letting him sit in our laps, but he didn't exactly love it. Of course he had also gotten struck by the wonderful spray of an older boy's water gun or should I say water cannon? Those things have gotten much bigger since I was a kid! We were eventually able to take him to the big pool which I think he liked better. He just stared at the people and the water trying to figure it out and as long as we were holding him he was just fine.

And My Favorite...

Bo & Daddy

So lately we've been noticing how much Bo looks like Jarrod. I found one of Jarrod's baby pictures and scanned it. Here is Bo at 4 months and Jarrod at 3 months. I had to share this because it's so wild!! Personally I don't think this is fair considering I did all the work!!!

4 Months Old

Yesterday Bo turned 4 months old! I don't have 4 month stats yet because his checkup isn't until June 5th. Our pediatrician is about to go on maternity leave so we wanted to make sure we saw her one last time before she left, that's why his appointment is later.

He's growing so fast...already starting to wear some 6-9 months clothes. He's so curious, wants to check everything out. Some of his new things include...

• Laughing
• Definitely knows who mommy is (my favorite)
• Trying to sit up/escape when he's in his car seat, bouncy seat, or bathtub
• Wants to crawl so bad...he is pulling his legs up under himself when he's on his tummy and trying to scoot (mommy crawled at 4 months so we're curious to see when he gets moving)
• Sleeps from 8:00pm to 7:00am (we're trying to get it 7p-7a)
• Eats ALL day...he's eating 8-10 oz every 3 hours during the day (hoping we can start food soon)
• Squeals and "talks" all the time
• Has found his lungs and they work VERY well!!!!!!!
• Knows exactly what his bottle is for...Do not take it away or he screams.

He's definitely developing his personality. Not a mild mannered child at all, but could Jarrod and I really produce a mild mannered child?? Knows what he wants and does NOT give up until he gets it! Growing fast as can be and is full of love!

Trying to escape the bouncy seat

...and the car seat

Promises to Bo

Every night our routine is bath, book, bottle, a little rocking, and bed. There are many nights while I'm rocking him to sleep that I think about what a blank canvas his life is right now. At this point his concerns are being fed and a clean diaper that's it! I also think about what kind of parent I want to be. What I want to teach him. So here are a few things I promise to teach him for his journey of life...

With God all things are possible. He's the only one who will never betray you.

Friends will come in and out of your life, but your family will always be there. They are everything!

Healthy living...you WILL eat fruit and vegetables.

I will not allow you to spend the day in front of the tv or computer.

Playing outside is so much fun go build forts, ride your bike, play in the dirt, use your imagination...you have the rest of your life to be indoors on a computer.

Respect for others and yourself.

Money isn't everything.

Education is a must.

Anything worth having is not always easy.

Hard work and determination will pay off!

Some things in life will never make sense, don't spend all your energy trying.

"Because I said so"... I'm your mother and with that comes the permission to use that phrase whenever I like with no explanation.

Two key words...Please and Thank You

How to be a good looser and better yet how to be a good winner...

Honesty, Humility, Honor

Your dad and I are here for you no matter what. You can always come to us. No matter how bad you may think something is, it's never that bad.

Yes, you will do things that make us mad, but we'll get over it...we're your parents and we love you.

We will not just hand things to you, you'll have to work for them.

When you get in trouble and are punished, we really will have your best interest at heart and one day when you're older you'll understand.

Open and honest communication.

Life is hard and full of disappointments, but the lessons you learn from it are what develop your character.

Only God can judge.

Love and lots of it!

Last but not least...Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect, it just means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections.

I love you angel, your mom

After nap time!

I love you this much!

Great Gift

I love unique gifts! I love to get them and to give them. Last week we received the neatest gift for Bo from our friends Kevin and Mary. It's a book called My Very Own Name. Each book is completely personalized to spell the child's name throughout the story. Check it out at http://www.iseeme.com/, you can even take a tour of the book. I just love it! This is definitely something that I'll be giving as gifts! Thank you Kevin and Mary Beth!

Second Fiddle

Well, in less than a month, 27 days to be exact, Baby Bo will be making his debut in the great state of MS!! I am so excited and can't wait to introduce him to everyone. However, there are 2 people way more excited than myself...my parents! My family used to be excited about me coming home, they couldn't wait to spend time with me. Until recently, until Bo was born, until I became the Invisible Woman!!! Every day I talk to my mom and all I hear is how excited she is for "Bo's visit". I'm like hey--I'm coming on this trip too you know? Now, in the past when I would come home for a visit they would hate it when I'd go do things with friends, go shopping, go to dinner, etc...they wanted me all to themselves. This time I've already been told..."You can go do whatever you want, see your friends, go shopping, go spend the day at the pool, whatever you want to do, we'll take care of Bo the entire time". While I'm thrilled to be getting a much needed break, oh how I wish they lived closer, I must admit selfishly I'm like...what about me? Remember me, your first born, your only daughter, the one who gave birth to this little guy?? Any recognition for me? Then I realize...it's not about me anymore. It's so funny to see your parents grow into the role of grandparents. I knew they would love him, but nothing like this!!! Every day they just want to listen to him eat, coo, squeal, and lots of times cry. They love it! It's such a wonderful feeling to know that they love your child as much as you do. So it's okay if I have to take the back seat from now on, he's definitely worth it! Look at him, can you blame them??

Bo and George

And I don't mean Curious George, I'm talking about George W. Now... I realize that not everyone is going to be a Bush fan, and this isn't a political post so don't get your feathers all ruffled if you don't care for him.

This is about a really cool letter we received in the mail today. One of my good friends, Scot Cochran, is with the United States Secret Service. I got to know Scot about 6 years ago during my hotel career. I was in meetings and conventions and we went through a span where we had many dignitaries come to our property for my events such as...Former President Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush, Condoleezza Rice, and White House Chief of Staff, Andrew Card. Needless to say I got to know the Secret Service very well. Scot was working with the MS Secret Service and was later moved to the United States Secret Service and is now with the Presidential Protective Division. Along with protecting the President he also is one of his drivers. Last April Jarrod and I went to DC and Scot took us on a tour of the President's limos and other cars, it was a really cool experience. In today's mail we received a wonderful keepsake for Bo. I scanned this tonight so I could post it. I realize it's hard to see, but you get the idea. It is a real signature, not a "mass production". What a cool thing for Bo to have. Thank you Scot!!

Below...Scot and I last April with the Presidential Limos

Scary night in TX

I guess spring is the time for rain in TX. We've had more rain the past few weeks than we've had the entire time we've lived here. Last night got particularly bad. As Jarrod and I were watching the end of Americn Idol a weather warning came across tv...right as they were announcing the results all I cared about was hurry up and get off my tv! Next thing I know they are showing a map of the storm pathway with a possible tornado which was headed right in our direction. Normally I wouldn't have been bothered by it, but the next thing I see is "11 minutes until it passes over Avery Ranch", uummm...that's our neighborhood! So I look at Jarrod like what do we do? We turned up the tv, I went and got Bo up (after a very long night of getting him down), I put him in the bjorn carrier, got Maddie, and we headed to our guest bathroom in the middle of the house. Where does Jarrod go...to stand by the windows to see if he can see anything!!!!!! Next thing I know our lights start flickering so I think we both got a little more concerned, Jarrod got Bo's mattress and bought it into the bathroom. We knew when the storm had reached us it was so loud, we listened to the tv and once we knew it had passed we were relieved.

I have to say before Bo, I would have been standing at the window with Jarrod. I remember growing up my dad always made us get in my parent's closet. My brother and I used to get so frustrated with this, we'd much rather have been enjoying the thunderstorm from our beds or looking out the window. Dad would get so mad at us. But I have to say...now that I have a child I get it, I have a whole new understanding and appreciation! Anything to protect my little man!

PT Round 2

So we went back to "play" with Ms. Cindy at physical therapy. Daddy got to go with us since he was home for the day and was feeling better. Now...you would think I would have learned by now to schedule things like this when I know Bo is going to be awake and has a full belly. Nope...I decided to choose nap time and meal time! I had tried to get him down for a nap before we went and he just wasn't having it. So as soon as we got there I warned Cindy we could have a nightmare on our hands. I got the "mommy check" again as I handed him off, even Jarrod noticed and pointed out that Bo made sure he knew where I was, I just had to point that out again! Once comfortable with things he did good...for about 15 mintues after that it was all down hill as I had predicted. The good thing is she is a Pediatric PT so she is used to the crying. Now the screaming he was doing I'm not so sure about. This child can hit octaves I never knew existed! In between it all she did point out that he was doing really good with his strength, head control, grabbing, etc. The only thing she had a hard time with was getting him to relax his arms. He keeps them so stiff ALL the time and it's only worse when he's screaming. She did agree that he is a very "intense" child! haha!! I just had to laugh. She said she sees that a lot with babies who have reflux and that it could be the cause. Of course I just smiled and nodded my head thinking, yea I'm sure that's what it is...I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that this is my child!! Jarrod knew to keep his comments to himself!
We tried feeding him a little to tide him over but he HATES it if you take the bottle away once he's started eating so of course we just made it worse. Finally Cindy decided Bo had, had enough fun so she handed him back to me and I immediatly plugged the mouth with a bottle! SILENCE!!!!! Of course we had to leave because our session was over and she had another appointment coming in. I wish you all could have seen us. I ask Jarrod to hold the bottle, still in Bo's mouth and work with me on getting him into the car seat. So I'm picking him up and buckling him in the car seat and at the same time Jarrod is feeding him his bottle, we didn't miss a beat!! All in all he's doing good, she didn't introduce any new exercises other than working with his arms. We go back in a few weeks, and I scheduled the appointment at 9:00am right after his first morning nap and between meals!

Happy Mother's Day

Well my first Mother's Day didn't turn out exactly how I had hoped, but it did remind me of what a mother is for. Jarrod got home late Friday night from a week out of town and he decided to bring the flu home with him. As soon as I saw him walk through the door all I could think was...this is not good. Saturday morning we were planning to meet John and Cheryl and walk for the March for Babies. I had decided if Jarrod wasn't up for it then Bo and I would just go. Saturday morning came, I took one look at Jarrod and knew there was no way I could leave. I have never seen him so sick the entire time I've known him. So instead of the walk Bo and I headed to the grocery store to get the "staples" for someone who is sick...gatorade, sprite, crackers, cough medicine, theraflu, HUGE can of lysol spray (for mom) and ingredients to make him chicken soup. After begging him to go to the Urgent Care down from our house he finally gave in and went. What is it with men and doctors? Anyway, an hour and a half and $100 worth of prescriptions later he comes home saying he has the flu, sinus infection, and ear infection!! Is that even possible?? Of course he had kindly taken and contaminated MY car when he went to the doctor so first thing mama does when he gets back in bed...out to the car with the can of Lysol, I know my neighbor thinks I'm nuts!!!! I have sprayed everything he could have possibly touched or even thought about touching...keys, doorknobs, bathroom sink, refrigerator door, trash can, remote controls, alarm panel, light switches...I'm a woman on a mission! While the thought of being forced to stay in bed and sleep all day sounds extremely appealing, the flu isn't exactly how I want to get my wish. Jarrod has been quarantined to our bedroom, I'm sleeping in the guest bedroom, and he's not allowed to even look in Bo's direction. So...my first mother's day wasn't full of breakfast in bed, flowers, candy, or jewlery, but it did remind me of why and what I signed up for when I decided to become a wife and a mother. I may not always remember the gifts my mother gave me growing up, but I do remember her always being there when I was sick and needed someone to make me feel better. Those are the things that only mothers can do.


With it being just Bo and I, we did do a lot of tummy time, since we are going back to the physical therapist tomorrow afternoon. Maddie decided to jump in on the fun and I had to get some pics!

Hey-can I play too?

A few doggy kisses never hurt anyone!

Tummy time is a lot of work...let's just snuggle!

The votes are in...

Saw this online and it looked fun! Baby Bo looks more like daddy by 3%! Of course mom is going to challenge the results!

Physical Therapy

Well yesterday was our first trip for physical therapy. We were going to be evaluated to see why he tends to always turn his head to the right, which is causing a flat spot on his right side. He did great. He loved "playing" with the physical therapist. The highlight for me was when I first handed him off and he turned to look for mommy and make sure I was there. It was so sweet! That's the first time he's done that. Since he's been at the age to really know mommy and daddy he really hasn't been passed off to anyone else, so I must say my heart melted a little. It was so much fun to watch him play with someone other than me or Jarrod. He loved this Ernie toy that played music and lights up, every time he'd start to fuss she'd pull it out and instantly he was in a trance...I MUST get one of those!

Basically she feels like we can work with him to strengthen his middle core and that should help him become stronger, possibly helping him to turn his head both directions. She said he has a great range of motion and that developmentally he's exactly where he should be as far as grabbing things, putting them in his mouth, grabbing for his knees and feet, etc... So I'm not exactly sure how this is going to help the head situation. Jarrod and I talked it over last night and we decided to give it a month or so and see how he's doing then reevaluate. The one thing that I made clear was that if he were to need a corrective head band I don't want to wait until he's 7 or 8 months. The sooner we do it, the less time he'd have to wear it.

So...for right now it's lots of exercises at home and we go back next Monday to "play" some more! Stay tuned for more updates!

My first party!

This weekend Bo got to attend his very first birthday party. Our friends John and Cheryl's little girl Cameron turned 3. Right now he's on a crazy nap schedule so it was questionable on how he would do, but he did better than I expected. We were smart and took the baby bjorn and took turns carrying him around. I had to laugh though, we weren't the only ones with a baby in a carrier and at one point I looked outside and saw 3 dads (Jarrod included) standing outside, with a beer in hand and their little one strapped on, what a sight! Bo even left with his very own goodie bag complete with his first sippy cup and a teething ring!

It was such a fun day and we hated to leave. Cheryl and John invited us to stay after the party to cook out, but we decided to be responsible parents and get our little man home to keep him on his bedtime routine. How different things become when you have a little one. Although it was no fun to leave at 6:00pm, if we hadn't we would have had a nightmare on our hands. Before there's no way I would have left...adults, cocktails, and a bouncy castle...way too much fun!!!!

All ready for the party!

The Birthday Girl herself...Princess Cameron

With Mom, Dad, and Baby Givanna

Pooped after a long day of partying

Bo & Givanna (Cameron's baby sister)...two peas in a pod

For those of you who think my baby is always happy!!!