Cute Stuff

Our little goofball.....doesn't he just look so innocent?

Eli is getting cuter and cuter by the minute- is that possible? Dylan and I are constantly laughing at his goofy shenigans so I thought I would record some of the funnier things on our blog.

-- He has started sniffing his food. At first I thought he was just missing his mouth and aiming too high, but then today at lunch I saw his little nostrils flare in and out and I swear he was sniffing a kix! Probably not much smell but when I laughed he smiled back like he knew he was funny!

-- And I think he is figuring out that he can make people laugh and smile. He's been doing this goofy head bob/shake while he eats and if you laugh or do it back he keeps on going! I love his look when he sees you watching him and grins at you- it's priceless!

-- He is obsessed with a lamp in our living room. This is kind of a weird one- but anytime you walk by it he lunges at it and tries to grab it. He likes to scrape his fingernails on the shade/chew on the shade/ stare directly into the light. Luckily he remains immobile and can't seek it out on his own or I'm sure we'd have to put it somewhere besides the living room!

-- He also has a deep love of ceiling fans. As soon as you get him up from naps or for the morning he leans back to stare at his fan in his room and it always makes him smile. Moving or not matters little, the knowledge that it does spin is enough to make his day :)

-- He is emphatically done with his cup after a drink! He usually wings it on the ground and then quickly looks over the edge to see where it is. Today he did this and as I was saying something like "No Eli, we don't throw our cups" he looked up at me and smiled this mischievous little smile. We may have a trouble maker on our hands here but we are loving it and laughing every minute!

Stop the SCREAMING!

So, needless to say you may have guessed from the title that E and I had a rough night last night... There are a couple things that played into this, I think. Although to be honest I usually have no idea what is going on in Eli's head and am frequently asking him to "use his words". But I digress. What I think was going on last night was raging hunger and the excessive use of the new scream he is developing just for his parents' pleasure. Let's explore the hunger...
I recently started to notice a definite decline in my milk supply. Not only did E seem less satisfied and crankier when I was trying to feed him but the other day I caught a glimpse of my naked chest before I got in the shower and I'm pretty sure I'm down to an 'A' cup. And it's not a cute, perky 'A' cup (don't worry, I won't post pictures). So, while visiting my parents in Galesburg we tried a number of different things. First I tried pushing fluids and eating oatmeal to up the milk supply. This was marginally successful. But feedings with E continued to be a trial for both of us, him angry and crying when the milk just wasn't there and me frustrated (and sometimes tearful) that I couldn't just feed him like I used to be able to. So I came to a place where I felt ready to let go of breastfeeding (becoming tearful again just thinking about it) and decided we would probably both be happier in the long run if he got a bottle of formula a couple times a day. Here's the kicker- the kid was now refusing both the bottle and formula! I realize I'm bigger then he is and should be able to overcome his refusals but you try and force a bottle into clenched lips attached to a twisting head. It isn't easy! So since we got home we've been doing regular vitamin D milk (pediatric gods strike me down) and I also try (with my meager supply) to breastfeed him at bedtime and in the morning. Which brings us to the next problem- I work once a week at night and I usually take my boobs with me. I've been stressing all week looking forward to Friday when my husband and I both work and my poor poor sister, who did nothing to deserve this, will spend the night with my screaming child. So to prepare for this I've been trying to just let E drink out of his cup before bed. At 2am this morning I decided that this wasn't working. Or maybe E was 'using his words' ie screaming uncontrollably and that's what tipped me off. So I broke down and made him a bottle spiked with juice. Did I mention this kid is a juice junkie? Finally, FINALLY he drank about 3-4oz and laid back down. So I do have hope for you, Cammie, on Friday night that you won't be calling me at 3am and asking how I feel about putting E in the garage for the night! So this brings us to the screaming...
There is just nothing I can say to even describe the anger Eli puts behind these screams. I really contemplated getting my camera out last night and taping the unearthly sounds coming from my baby but in the end was too tired/distraught. I'm hoping it is just a phase and he realizes that A) his throat gets really sore when he does it and B) mommy doesn't respond to it well. If not, I'll definitely work on getting it taped so you can all suffer along with me in a small way.
When I finally got back to bed last night- and thank god Will and Grace was on for me to watch during the whole hungry screaming debacle- Dylan asked me what was going on with E. I told him I thought the baby was probably crazy. I also decided that while everyone tells me, my mom included, that 'if a baby is hungry enough he will eat what is offered', I think it should be changed to 'if a baby is hungry enough he will scream for hours until you offer him what he wants to eat'. What do you guys think?

Little Vampire

You may think that this post pertains to what Eli was for halloween. However, it really doesn't (he was a skunk). I say little vampire because my son has decided, for unknown reasons, to not teeth like a normal child but to get both of his canine teeth in prior to the two front teeth, thus looking like a little vampire. Once they really come in I'll work on getting some pictures, they are just little nubs at this point. But I have been despairing about how funny he is going to look! On the positive side, all of his friends are his age and non-verbal so they won't be able to make fun of him :)