Quick, Write While He's Napping!

Hi Everyone,

Today's Patriot's Day so I have the day off. Coopie's taking a little nap so I have a few minutes to write. We've both been sick for the past few days. I somehow forget that Coopie is a HUMAN and that I can get a cold from him if he gets close. Of course he's feeding off my boob so you can't get much closer than that, so it's inevitable that we will share colds, just like we share smiles. Ok, that's cheesy. But true!

We think Coopie might be teething. Although I read in a book that parents say their kid is teething and use it as an excuse when he has diarrhea, drools too much, or tugs on his ear. So are we being paranoid or just insensitive? Nothing we can do about it anyway. We checked his gums and it looks like there's a white ridge there. He chews on his left hand a lot. Parents out there, any thoughts? I can't imagine what he'll look like with teeth. The day will arrive sometime!

Tonight we're planning to take a huge step: we're going to try feeding him rice (or oatmeal) cereal! Our hope is to fill his skinny little belly with heavy, filling cereal so he sleeps longer! I can't wait to see how he reacts. Will he allow us to shove spoonfuls into his tiny little mouth? Or will he resist, as he's resisted most new adventures (I'm not bitter)? We're planning to video tape this monumental occasion to show to him years down the road. Hey Coops, this was your first bite of food! Imagine if he became a chef. Then the video would be very important to him. You never know! If he did become a chef, I hope he goes on Top Chef. That would be so cool! Of course it would be in the future so there might not be any Top Chef on TV anymore. It would probably be Top Space Ship or Top Microchip Brain instead.

I got the Ferber book this week (thanks, Mom!) and I've begun to read it. Fascinating! If you'd asked me to read it a year ago I would have had no interest. But now, if it will get me a sleeping baby I will do anything. I would pay money to sleep more than five hours in a row, I tell you. For those of you who don't know about Ferber, Google him. So my plan is to keep working on a regular sleep schedule with him (i.e. get him ready for bed at 7:45pm, into bed by 8:30pm) in the next two weeks. Also, I'm going to try putting him into his crib at 8:30pm whether he's sleeping or awake. Now, he falls asleep on Matt after dinner and then we quietly transfer him to the crib. I've been reading in the book that this is the OPPOSITE of what you should do. Now that he's four months old, he needs to learn to fall asleep on his own and we're not helping him do that. So in two weeks, we will try the actual Ferber method. On a weekend, of course, because I am expecting it to be heinous. But like I said, I will do anything to improve this situation. It's better for him, and it's better for us. Probably better for the kitties, too. And the house. And the woooorld! I will report back on our progress.

Other than that, the usual cuteness persists, with smiles and laughs and experimenting with his mouth. So adorable, that it makes the sleepless nights worth it. He's doing great at daycare. The other day I saw him reach out and touch another kid for the first time! No restraining order necessary, just a nice little pat. I think the daycare is helping him socialize, and he smiles at the ladies that care for him which warms my heart. I'm enjoying being back at work. I've taken to a second cup of coffee in the afternoon (usually I'm a one cup a day gal) in order to plow through the day. I spend time in the car commuting, but to look on the bright side, I love my Sirius satellite radio (thanks, Brain) so if it weren't for Howard Stern or Fresh Air, well, I'd be in a worse mood. The drive is really pretty, through Belmont, MA (where Mitt Romney is from) - lots of big gorgeous houses and now it's spring so everything's blooming. I guess that's the advantage of going back to work in the spring! Puts me in a better mood.

Ok, he hear him chattering (Ezra? Google?) so I'm off like a prom dress!