Emskyrooney

My children are making developmental leaps and bounds this week.  At 5 months Eliza has finally decided to roll from her tummy to her back (as long as her arms don't get in the way) and is getting pretty good at sitting up mostly unsupported (she can sit with the boppy pillow around her or between my legs for quite a while and keep her balance). LP made a momentous return to the " big slides " at the playground and coordinated his feet enough to finally pedal his tricycle. There was one other development though that I thought I'd share. I know that most 4 year olds are starting to write letters and draw stick figures and houses and things like that.  LP has very little interest in coloring or writing however.  We're still not sure if he's a righty or a lefty and so when coloring he switches the crayon back and forth in his hands and doesn't hold the crayon with the proper grip.  As a result he's still mainly just scribbling for the few minutes th...

I haven't mentioned PAIL  much lately but am still very much a part of this great community.  For those of you not familiar with it, PAIL is a resource/community/support group for people who are Pregnant and/or Parenting through Adoption, Infertility and/or Loss.  One of the things about going through infertility is that it isn't suddenly all behind you even after you become a parent.  I still have secondary infertility even after having another baby.  It's something that changed who I am, how I view life, and how I interact with other people.  Knowing that there's a group of other people out there who understand all of this from a first person point of view has been very helpful to me throughout this journey. And so PAIL is celebrating it's six month anniversary!  They've asked us (if we'd like) to submit a Vlog answering a few questions.  All of the Vlogs will be linked on the PAIL site on Saturday, December 8.   I don't normall...

Apparently I'm blogging on an every two week schedule.  Need to get better about that.  I blame Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for my lack of updates here- everybody already knows what I'm up to! That said, I can't neglect my little munchkin on her 8 week old birthday.  It's a complete cliche, but it feels as though Eliza has been part of our family forever.  She fits right in like a piece in the jigsaw puzzle of life and we're all feeling a bit more complete. Waking up from a nap in her carseat with her stylish polka dot boots on... I know I always said that LP was such an easy baby.  And he really was.  But Eliza is giving him a run for his money in the easy baby competition.  (And yes, I'm knocking on wood, crossing my fingers, and holding my breath while I type this).  I've been reading back through my blog entries from when LP was around the 2 month mark and there was quite a bit about the difficulties of breast feeding and trying to get...

The last time the summer Olympics were on, I was, coincidentally, pregnant with LP.  And while I remember lying in bed next to Paul watching the swimming competitions, talking about how maybe our kid would be in the Olympics one day, I was mostly focused on one thing:  MUSCLES.  Specifically, the six-packs (and eight-packs) on some of those swimmers.  I even blogged about my obsession.   And yes, I can't lie, I've certainly enjoyed the view this time as well...  I mean, really, I'm not dead, and there were abs all over the place... But this time around, I've been watching the summer Olympics through new eyes.  This time around, with another baby kicking me from the inside, and LP on the outside watching with us, I'm watching as a parent.  And the parts I love the most?  When they show mom and dad, brother and sister, friends and relatives in the stands cheering on their kids.  I love seeing the different ways that the parents watch- som...

  Growing up with two brothers I always knew there were some major differences between the way men do things and the way women do things.  You know, the whole “ Men are From Mars, Women are from Venus ” thing (which I’m pretty sure my mother had a copy of on her nightstand for several years in an attempt to try to make sense of it all).   Pre-kids, this male vs. female thing didn’t make too much difference in day to day life.  I was the “multi-tasker”: jumping from one thing to the next, making dinner while simultaneously checking my email, listening to music, feeding the dogs, and tidying up.  Paul was the “fixer” and the “get it done” guy.  One project at a time, if there was a problem, yo, he’d solve it (to paraphrase my fave rapper, Vanilla Ice ).  We each took care of ourselves for the most part- of course there were tasks that were shared but Paul has always ironed his own clothing...

Paul and I talk a lot about how different childhood is from when we were kids.  How we (gasp!) had bumpers in our cribs as babies, sat in the front seat of the minivan, were left sitting in the car when our moms had to run a quick errand, were allowed to run through the woods behind our house, ride our bikes around town, or hang out at the mall with our friends.  And we survived. Our parents always jump in with the fact that when they were kids there were no car seats, or even seat belts, and about how they'd leave their house in the morning and not come home until it got dark out and that was okay, and even encouraged.  Today most people wouldn't allow their children to do these things out of fear that their child could be abducted or hurt.  Today I read an interesting article on babble.com : Parenting Without Fear. Our kids are safer than ever. So why are we still afraid? By "Free Range Kids" author Lenore Skenazy for Babble.com. In the article Skenazy writes about ...

I love to read.  It's something I inherited from my mother and from her mother before her.... I read fiction, non-fiction, biography, cookbooks, anything I can get my hands on.  As a child I used to stay up late at night reading under the covers with a flashlight or crouching in the hallway next to the nightlight....  There are books in almost every room of the house- non-fiction in the living room, fiction in the office, childrens books in the nursery, craft and sewing books in my sewing room.  To me, books are part of what makes a house a home..... When I'm reading I often come across passages that speak to me, and I like to copy them down.  Usually I scribble them on bits of paper or in random notebooks only to lose track of them.... Last week however I copied down a passage from The Red Tent by Anita Diamant which I thought was fitting to share on Mother's Day today.  The main character is talking about the birth of her child: "There should be a song for women to ...

I've been researching strollers today, once again.  We currently use our car seat and plop it onto a universal stroller base and we're good to go.  It's easy to fold, a cinch to attach the car seat to, and so light that I can throw it in the trunk of the car with no problem.  But LP wants to sit up and look around more and more and in a couple of months he's going to be too heavy for me to lift the whole car seat in and out of the car.  And so I've been searching for the Holy Grail of strollers... Part of me loves that there's something out there to suit every need: Want a stroller with 2 cup holders for Mom and Dad's lattes and a fake steering wheel for Junior?  We've got it!  Want a stroller that you can fold with one hand so that you can keep chatting on your cell with the other?  No problem!  A stroller that can hold the car seat, a diaper bag, AND all your groceries?  Here you go! But seriously, it's completely overwhelming.  I'm sure life w...

When I found out I was pregnant with LP I knew that there would be a lot of emotions and feelings to go alone with pregnancy and parenthood.  I expected to be excited, happy, terrified, scared, crazy, joyful, tearful, awed, amazed, and exhausted.  The one feeling I really didn't expect was guilt.  I know I've touched on this already but I'd like to talk about it again (and I'm pretty sure that in this journey of parenthood this will not be the last time I bring up this topic!) It's been 4 weeks since I last wrote about guilt.  Little Paul was 9 weeks old and I felt guilty about leaving him alone in his bouncy seat while I conditioned my hair, guilty about putting him in his swing so that I could actually eat breakfast in peace, and guilty about not wanting to be with him every single second of the day.  Now LP is 13 weeks old and I've gotten over all of that.  I need to condition my hair, I deserve to eat breakfast, and he doesn't need me to hover over hi...

I promise a real post soon (by "real" I mean "one written by me")...  On one of the blogs I read I just came across a wonderful piece about being a Mom... Those of you who are mothers (particularly to older children) will nod your heads in agreement I'm sure... As for me I'm going to file it away to pull out in ten years when I need to be reminded that I am "building great cathedrals." “Excellence is the result of caring more than others think is wise, risking more than others think is safe, dreaming more than others think is practical, and expecting more than others think is possible” I’M INVISIBLE It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I’m on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I’m thinking, ‘Can’t you see I’m on the phone?’ Obviously not; no one can see if I’m on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corne...

Here's a scrapbook page I did recently: Credits: Background: Annie Manning of Paint the Moon Designs; Clipping Mask: Lauren Reid, Hot Momma 2B Kit; Brown Paper: Vera Lim Journaling reads (You can also click on it to see it larger): "For 37 weeks I carried you inside of me.  I spent countless hours preparing for your arrival, decorating the nursery, researching carseats, reading books, trying to learn as much as I could about parenting.  Your father and I took classes at the hospital so that we'd know what to expect when it was time to finally meet you in the delivery room.  We talked about who you would look like and wondered who you would be.  We thought we were ready.  And then, all of a sudden, you were here.  In our world, in our home, and in our hearts.  We found out that we really didn't know anything.  We didn't know about the indescribable love one feels for their child; constant, all-consuming, unconditional love.  Maybe we don't know everything about ...

Friday night we started the dreaded task of getting LP to sleep through the night in his crib in his own room instead of sleeping in the bassinet next to our bed.  My hubby has been saying we should do this for a few weeks now but I just wasn't quite ready- he seems so little still... But after the pediatrician insisted that he was ready, even if I wasn't, we decided to give it a try. Seriously?? You want me to pose with the big blue bear?? Here are the doctor's rules: 1. Put him to bed around 9 after doing his usual bedtime routine. 2. Put him to bed in his crib without a mobile, pacifier, etc. 3. If he cries let him cry it out for 15 minutes.  Then pick him up and soothe him, put him back down, repeat as necessary. 4. If he's hungry in the middle of the night don't feed him unless he cries for half an hour. Little Paul, practicing his Larry Holmes boxing moves... So here's how it went: Friday night I convinced Paul that LP wasn't ready for the crib yet and...

Little Paul is almost 9 weeks old.  And at risk of sounding cliche, those 9 weeks have been both the hardest and the most wonderful weeks of my life...  Things are settling down now.  We've developed a bit of a schedule.  The spitting up has slowed down (knock on wood) and Little Paul is interacting with us more and more every day.  He hasn't given us a full-blown grin yet but I've caught a bit of a smile from time to time and can't wait until it's directed at me and not at whatever thoughts might be going on in his little head (I have a feeling his thoughts are centered around the following:  boob!  bottle!  boob!) There are some things I've learned that I'd like to share.  Those of you who are already parents will probably nod your heads and think something like, "oh yes, I remember that....".. And those of you who are soon-to-be parents or who want to be parents will probably think "I'll file that thought away for a later date when I...

The other night during one of our "all you can eat buffet" nursing sessions Little Paul and I were watching the Fine Living Channel, pretending that we were vacationing in Maui and not sitting on a couch in frigid Massachusetts.  During a commercial break they showed a segment (sponsored by somebody or other, I think it was a laundry detergent) about how to make life easier for your husband if you go on a girls' weekend and leave him with the kids.  The tips were things like the following: Cook meals ahead of time and leave them in the fridge with explicit directions.  Show him how to turn on and use the oven. Lay out outfits for each child.  Label them for the various days/activities. Write up a list with all important phone numbers on it such as doctors, grandparents, friends, etc. Write down the daily schedule so that your husband knows when the kids should have a bath, brush their teeth, etc. Make sure to thank him profusely for babysitting when you get home from your...

Bostonians (and people from Massachusetts in general) are not known for their good manners... In fact there's are many good reasons why locals are known as "mass-holes" (please excuse my naughty language!).  In my eight years as a resident of Massachusetts I've found that people just aren't outwardly friendly.  Most people are polite in one-on-one situations, cashiers will usually say hello and maybe small-talk a bit, but in general people don't say smile or hello to each other on the street, hold doors, or pay any attention at all to any one but themselves.  When I got pregnant I was warned that complete strangers would ask me when I was due and touch my stomach but no one has done this to me yet- it's just not a Massachusetts thing. The T (which is our subway system for any reader not familiar with Boston) has recently started a new "Mind Your Manners" campaign.  They've posted signs on the trains that say things like "Be sweet, offe...

I read a lot of blogs.  And by a lot, I mean several hundred.  Mostly they are craft, sewing and food related but lately I've been reading some that are more baby and child related (the so-called "Mommy Blogs"- which I guess is what mine is going to turn into eventually...) One of the blogs I've enjoy reading is MetroDad .  He blogs about his experiences finding out his wife was pregnant, supporting her through the pregnancy, and now raising his daughter.  I find it interesting to get a guy's perspective (other than Paul's) on some of this... Yesterday MetroDad posted an entry titled "Use Your Words: How We're Raising a Nation of Pussies."   And I have to say that I whole-heartedly agree with most of what he says... Now I certainly am not an advocate of violence, however I also don't want my child to stand on a playground and let some other kid push him around.  If he's asked the other child to stop and the other kid won't, then b...