It's on like Donkey Kong

I'm declaring war on a poor body image. For far too long, I've picked apart my appearance with the precision of the two plastic surgeons from Nip/Tuck. My talented cousin Erica took this photo at Jack's baptism, and in my mind I zone in on these huge bags under my eyes (I've always had them - it's not just a "tired new parent thing"), the acne scars from first trimester on my cheek, and some crazy rolls on my neck. This is how my mind processes the photo:

Then I took a look at the whole picture, and noticed what a little cutie Jack is.

Then I looked at his eyes. The adorable little apple of my eye has the same bags under his. Why is it that I can love everything about him, but dislike the same thing on me?

I'm over thinking like that, and am done doing it. My body grew and produced a delightful little cherub and birthed him without using medication. The LEAST I could do is give my body a break and celebrate it rather than constantly put it down.

Stinky Tinky

To use one of Aunt Kim's favorite sayings, Jack is a "Stinky Tinky"; I swear my little almost 3 month old is literally full of "piss and vinegar".

I want to make his diaper pail smell better, so I did a hunt on the Internet for a chemical-free and cheap way to make it smell less "icky". I found a great recipe from some blog.

-Boil water
-Pour water in bowl, add essential oil scent of your choosing
-Add baking soda until it makes a thick paste/putty
-Put in muffin papers in muffin tins, and let harden for 24 hrs
-Pop "puck" out of tin and hide in stinky places!

I probably added about 1 cup of baking soda to 1 cup of water and it make 3 "pucks".

Jack update, and celebrations!

First, happy 35th Anniversary to my parents! Thank you for teaching me the tools to be a good spouse. Through your example, I've learned what true commitment looks like.

And happy Father's Day to my dad and Happy 1st Father's day to Troy! Jack made Troy a photo book, and cooked him a yummy breakfast.

Jack update! Jack has got to be pushing about 15 lbs now, and is getting to be a very big boy! I had to bust out his 3-6 month clothes today and I will soon be mourning the loss of my favorite 0-3 onesie that I always seem to put him in. He's currently in love with this Baby Einstein toy that his godmommy Anne gave him. He gets super excited when he sees it, and gets this concentrated look on his face. We call it his "computer" because he looks like a little hacker when he's working away on it.

He is sadly almost "over" his playmat which has provide him hours of individual play time, and has give me hours of time to myself as well! RIP Infantino lion activity mat.

Troy and I have been obsessed with "business babies" ever since we saw a funny SNL joke about them. Here is a photo and text that I sent Troy earlier today:

"Listen up assholes! Last quarter's numbers were way down, and sales have gone in the shitter. I am a business baby damn it, and I demand results"!

A day in the life of Sir Jack Barry

Jack's day in photos. After his 7-8 am wake up time, Jack likes to:

Read a book
Make himself in to a birthday card for his dad (relax, it's eyeliner):
Fight being put down for a nap, but still manages to look super cute:

FINALLY take a nap:

Cry when he wakes up cause he always get a bit scared after a nap:

Take a moment to plot the demise of the world (a'la Mr. Burns from the Simpsons):

And finally, play so hard he passes out:

You have just witnessed a day-in-the life of a 2 month old. It's a pretty damn good life! He occasionally eats in-between such exciting activities as well.

We have a sleeper!

Jack has been sleeping pretty well for the last 3-4 weeks now. His first stretch of the night is usually around 5 hrs, and then he does 2-4 hrs, and another 2-4. WELL, starting about 5 nights ago, he's moved the first stretch up to 6-8 hrs! The first time he slept past 7 hrs, we were scared that something was wrong with him.

For the new moms out there, here are a few things we've done differently that has made such a huge difference:

• pushing naps during the day. After approx 60-90 minutes of being awake, I try and get Jack to rest, either on me, in his bassinet, or just some quiet time in his swing (which I can usually get to turn in to a nap!). This has been the BIGGEST difference in him being a better sleeper. Rather than make him sleep on strict schedule during the day, I've just been following his cues (rubbing eyes, getting cranky, bored with his toys, etc) and it's worked out well
• trying to set up some sort of a bedtime routine. Every few days he gets a bath (and plays so hard during his baths that he usually passes out really soon afterwards). The routine is, play before bed, 20 min diaper change/play time (Troy and Jack can turn a simple diaper change in to an all out playtime and sing-a-long), boob and a book (Troy reads our nightly bible chapter while Jack is having his dessert), and then J gets put in the bassinet.

Here are a few more photos of the little man!

Ok, a few photos to get Jack's Auntie Erica off my back

So, I've been a slacker about posting updates, but I swear I have good excuses!
1) two of Jack's godmommies flew up from California with their kiddos for 6 days and we were too busy partying with the munchkins
2) Jack got Baptised
3) Jack has been just way too damn cute lately, and I would rather be smooching his belly than posting.

Jack had some of his two month shots on Friday. He handled them like a champ - only crying and giving the nurse a "what the fuck" look for about 4 minutes. A lot of babies are fussy and crying for a few days afterwards, but Jack was an angel and even snuggled with his Grammy Q for an hour afterwards!

In bragging news, Jack has gained FIVE pounds since he was born (now 13.4 lbs) and 4.5 inches (now 24 inches)! He is in the 90th percentile for head, weight, and height. I think if they tracked hand span, he would be off the charts. Everyone mentions how large his hands are when they first see him, but until I saw this photo, I didn't really realize what they were talking about...

Yeah, that's my 8 week old son with the hands of a toddler. He learned to suck his thumb about 4 days ago, and other than the occasional gagging, he seems to be enjoying it!

Jack got baptised on May 31st, and I think we broke a church record for most godparents - SIX! Pastor Allen referred to everyone as "Jack's entourage" during the ceremony. I think the most special part of his baptism for me was when Pastor Allen wiped the water off of Jack's head with a hanky that belonged to my grandpa who passed away 7 days before Jack was born.

Here is Jack with all his godparents:

Here is Jack in his party suit. He was crying when he realized that he's ruined that suit for all other babies because none of them will match up to his cuteness:

Here is a photo that will go in our CPS file...Jack's godmommy Anne gave him a pirate tat. Look at his big fat frog belly!:

And for the final photo that the child welfare department will use to put Troy and I away for good, here is a sweet "do" that Troy gave Jack tonight during his bath: