Return to normalcy

As you can imagine, the excitement over our news appearances last week has died down considerably. In fact, the spotlight has moved on completely and we have been forced back into our day jobs like ordinary people. Imagine! Luckily, my day job is hanging out with Ashton so things aren't so bad :) Especially when he naps like he is supposed to, i.e. today! Nap 1: 9:00 am to 11:20 am, Nap 2: 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm. Woo! Although, he really did owe me because he was up all night last night, it seems he forgot he was supposed to go until 5 am without a peep. He forgot BIG time. Anyway, while we have a big week coming up with an extraordinary amount of stuff going on, the past several days have been mostly chill. The mini is in the shop so we have been homebound and it has been ok for the most part. Ashton and I read stories and play and generally stay in our pajamas way too long. I am trying to help him learn how to sit up on his own. Today on his playmat he rolled from his back to his front and then back again, a few times in a row. Quick, someone call Channel 7 News!! Get them back here ASAP!

So I really don't have much for my readers today except I finally began to work on our wedding album tonight. As a reminder, we got married on 9/26/09 but so much has happened and it has been such an overwhelming task that our album was never completed. I have to admit, it has been pretty fun to go back through our amazing pictures. For starters, how unbelievably handsome is my husband?

He's at work right now and doesn't know I'm posting this but when he does read it: I love you babe. Thank you for everything you do for our family and for always always staying positive, being patient, and for your encouragement on tough days. I wouldn't (and couldn't) be me without you.

Here are a couple more of my favorites from the day:

Don't you want to be at this party right now?

I also admit I watched our wedding slideshow again tonight for the zillionth time. It never gets old and I feel so lucky all over again every time I look at our pictures. We have wonderful friends and family and now an adorable, healthy baby. Life is good :) xoxo

Big day around here!

This morning started out as Ashton's 5 month birthday. It ended as his 15 minutes of fame! Based on my previous posts and the state trooper arrest scandal, it has just been a parade of reporters and the doorbell has not stopped ringing all day. This must be what it feels like to be famous. Our downstairs neighbors had multiple messages on their machine wanting to get in touch with me (they have a listed landline), every time Jason answered the door the question was: "Where's Kristen?" Everyone wants to know what I saw and they especially want my video footage of the arrest. Believe it or not, I have had a hard time deciding what to do. Yesterday morning I gave my one interview (with Ashton of course!) and gave Channel 7 my video. Jason was very noble today and fielded four other channels that came to our doorstep, graciously taking interviews on my behalf (this is a lie: he couldn't wait to get on camera too, he's quite the ham if you didn't already know ;) ). So Ashton and I premiered at noon on Channel 7, and Jason showed up on every other channel at 5 and 6...Jason was so funny, he said to me, "Between the three of us, we are public enemy number 1!" We're releasing our videos, giving interviews and basically blowing this up! 

But here's a question. I had a way better video than Jason and I did not give it to anyone other than Channel 7. Including Jason. Every reporter that showed up today wanted my video and I left it to Jason to say "No, Kristen is not available and no, I don't have her video". [Look at me, I'm so famous I refuse interviews! haha. It was mainly because I looked like crap and didn't want to be on camera. But also I was tired of talking about it.] Anyway, I found myself not wanting to give out my video to every reporter. I felt I had already released it to Channel 7 and I didn't want to be a news whore, just giving it up to anyone who came a-knockin. So I hope Byron Barnett at 7 News appreciates that he has the exclusive!! He probably doesn't of course because while this is a huge brush of fame for 346 Trapelo Rd, in the grand scheme of things this is one small news story on one small day for him. In any event, any news station in Boston talking about the state trooper's arrest and extortion case will have some photo, video, or interview because of (and including) me, Jason and/or Ashton. It's a family affair.

And now there's only one thing left to do. We need to get Ashton an agent, and ASAP. He was so cute in his first TV appearance that we're bound to be flooded with calls :)  5 months suits him quite well, he's always camera-ready and his little blond buzz cut is to die for. Plus, he's so eloquent: could there be any questions left when your interview subject makes these kinds of noises??

We're famous!

http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/local/12006329733049/mass-state-trooper-charged-with-extortion/

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Sleep Progress and...an arrest!!

Ashton went to sleep at 6:15 pm, woke up at 1:30 am, cried for 23 minutes (I did not go in) and put himself back to sleep until 5:05 am! YAAAAY!!! Granted, I fed him at 5, then he was up for the day at 6:45 am but it made for his first nap at 8:45 am so we adjusted. I think 6:45 was a bit early for him too because he slept from 8:45 am - 11:15 am afterwards. I'll take it. Wondering what tonight will hold.

However, WAY more interesting news. Literally, news. Last Saturday, New Year's Eve day, at approximately 3:30 pm, there was a huge FBI sting that happened right outside our house. Unmarked cars, guns drawn, the works. Jason was in the shower getting ready to go to work, I scared the crap out of him because I ran into the bathroom yelling about the FBI swarming outside of our house haha. Also, poor Ashton- I had been feeding him on the couch when I heard the yelling start so he never really got to finish. I'll save the whole story for when I actually have the footage, but Ashton and I were interviewed by Channel 7 this morning about the incident (they knocked on our door- thanks Katie :P ) and were supposed to be on the news at 6 pm but some stupid hockey game got pushed back and messed everything up. Anyway, it's a huge deal that everyone is talking about because it was a state trooper that they arrested - I know all the details because I witnessed it, and Channel 7 has my personal video they plan to air, except I don't know the WHY. Something juicy I imagine. They had the guy face down practically in our driveway with no less than 8 cars and 20 people surrounding him, talking on their radios, etc. Hopefully my next blog post I can link to my news interview. Of course I could have looked much better had I known I was going to be on the air oh well. The best part was that I was holding Ashton the whole time so he is making his television debut at the tender age of 5 months. For now, this is the only thing that has shown up in the news (and it is not Channel 7)- stay tuned!

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/30119180/detail.html

Happy New Year

It was a quiet one around here! Jason had to work and Tate and Ashton fell asleep pretty early - Katie came over for dinner but after that, it was just me. Not too different from last year as I was alone then too, but had just found out I was pregnant so at least this year I got to have a glass of wine. Oh, did I say that my night last night was quiet? I meant at least until Ashton woke up for the first time. Three nights ago I had posted that I was officially sleep training him and he was just going to have to cry it out. I was not going into his room until 5 am if I knew he was otherwise okay but just looking for comfort and attention. Well Night #1 he cried from 11:15 pm to 1 am and then I gave in :( Night #2 he slept from 7 pm-4 am and I was so proud of him that I happily responded to the monitor even though it was an hour before my deadline. And then last night, #3. He woke up at midnight on the dot, WAILING, and cried until 1:30 am. Then he woke up again at 3:30 am and cried til 4:45 am. At that point he fell asleep til almost 7 am which I was happy with but those two crying spells were pretty tough to take. Luckily my new iPhone 4s kept me company, we played scrabble and watched funny YouTube videos while Ashton's cries went on and on. It was pretty miserable :( I watched him from my bed and did not give up or give in. Tonight is #4 (really #2, I feel like last night was the first successful training night), he went to sleep at 6:15 pm and I have no idea what I will get tonight. I tried to tell Ashton that his new year's resolution was to sleep more, we'll see if he heard me.

3rd floor Christmas tree disposal

This is how you do it. Jason told me that my one job was to warn anyone walking down the sidewalk but I sort of forgot because I was too busy capturing this amazing footage.

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Two amazing things

Last night, for the first time in 5 months, I cooked dinner. I mean, REALLY cooked: made a list, went to the store, bought my ingredients, prepped my mise en place, etc etc. Jason was not due home until 6 so I put Ashton in the bjorn (facing out now of course so he could see) and he watched me chop my peppers, mince my garlic, etc. I was so excited about my dinner that I had already planned to title my blog post something like: "Behold! Chicken Cacciatore!" with a glamour shot of my beautiful meal but in all my excitement I actually, uh, forgot to take a picture of it. Regardless, it came out great. All of the real cooking took place after Ashton went to bed and after Jason came home but I still did it all by myself (mmmm, 95% of it by myself, I have to give Ashton sous chef credit where sous chef credit is due! :) You may recall his previous experience helping Jason with breakfast several posts ago. Also Jason did cook the pasta now that I think about it, so, 90% by myself).
Anyway! I have made a few things here and there but nothing so complete as last night. I felt really good and Jason took my picture to mark the occasion:

See what my apron says? IRON CHEF, that's right. 

So my chicken cacciatore is amazing thing #1. Amazing thing #2 is that I got the iPhone 4S today, wow! Is it cool. I am used to getting Jason's hand-me-down phones so this is a big deal. I love it. 

Good news is now over. Tonight is night #2 of our cry-it-out strategy with Ashton. He has been waking too many times at night and I just simply can't go on like this. He needs to learn how to put himself back to sleep. Although it takes about 10 minutes total for me to hear a peep on the monitor, go in, pick him up, let him essentially comfort nurse back to sleep and then put him back in his crib, it has to stop because I'm exhausted. Getting up 4 times a night is beyond draining- when you're pregnant people joke about the sleep deprivation but it is real and it truly affects my wellbeing. Now that Ashton is 5 months, I am fairly certain he is not waking because he is hungry, it's time. I'm dreading tonight - last night he woke up at 1 am and cried for an hour, and then again at 5 am - at that time I went in to feed him as I felt 11 hours was enough time to go without eating. But that was good, usually he is up twice before the 5 am one so I'm praying I don't have to sit through two bouts of wailing tonight. As awful as it is to hear him cry, it is more awful to imagine him not sleeping through the night for months to come, so I have to remember that this is for the best/tough love/etc. So tonight when I put him down and shut the door at 6:30 pm, I resolved not to go back in until 5 am as long as he was crying but otherwise okay.  I never thought hearing my baby cry would be so gutwrenching. Last night when he cried, I cried. All I wanted to do was scoop him up and rock him and tell him everything was okay. My plan for his first wakeup is to focus my energy on my new iPhone and learning Siri...

Okay I'm stalling. I have to sign off, put on my pajamas and go to bed. Wish me luck.

Baby's First Christmas

Merry Christmas!! We just got back from visiting Jason's family in Long Island for the holiday, we had so much fun! We didn't get down there until late Friday night because Jason had to work but of course there was plenty of pizza and wine there waiting for us. I think the best part of the couple days that we were visiting was that no one had anywhere else to be- we all just hung out, relaxed and enjoyed Christmas music, the tree, and plenty of yummy food and drinks! I'm bummed I don't have a picture of Ashton in his church outfit from Christmas Eve, he was in an argyle sweater, corduroys and bucks, SO cute. It was the first time he had really worn shoes and he got lots of compliments :) Anyway, after church, dinner and Ashton's bedtime we had QUITE the dance party...we have about 200 pictures and several videos, none of which are in any kind of focus but this one can give you an idea:

We were playing the music so loud I can't believe Ashton didn't wake up. He was clearly resting up for Santa because come Christmas morning he had a LOT of opening to do. Here he is, ready for action!

First one of the day...this was a new Santa outfit from Grandma, you'll see the hat in the next picture and later he did a full wardrobe change.

One of his favorite gifts was from Aunt Lizzie and Uncle Stone, the wiggle worm!

You can't see it but he was actually smiling behind the worm in this one :)

Playing with his new toy with Aunt Lizzie and Uncle Stone, and excited that they are expecting his first cousin on 5/5/12 ... Ashton will have lots of clothes to share! ;)

Uncle Chris got him a cool new sled:

And it didn't stop there. Grandma and Grandpa got him a new truck, lots of books, clothes... and plenty of kisses of course.

Reading a new book

In case you are wondering what Tate was doing, he was busy in the other room shredding all the wrapping paper he could find. He looks guilty in this picture don't you think? Like, who - me? What?

A few more in his new outfit and baby Uggs...

And one last group shot before Christmas dinner :)

Just want to say thanks to Grandma and Grandpa B for a wonderful Christmas holiday and for everything you do for us while we are visiting. We love you so much.

p.s. this is mainly for all the grandparents as I'm sure I am going to be asked about ordering prints :) The complete photo album (with way more pictures) is on snapfish.

Merry Christmas!

My my, we certainly look fancy today!

I thought about putting this up on Facebook but wondered if everyone was tired of me posting pictures of Ashton ha ha. At least on the blog it is expected!!


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Somewhat boring medical updates and a few new pics!

The usual medical updates first. We had a followup dermatologist appointment at Children's Hospital on Tuesday. The timing was actually perfect because Ashton was having a minor eczema flareup and I wanted to make sure to get some prescription refills on his creams. In general he is doing great, except he clearly has a hard time being around our dog Tate. If I feed him on the couch (which is where Tate naps and sits to look out the window) Ashton's eyes get really red, watery, and itchy- he rubs and rubs them. Same thing when we are playing on his playmat - the playmat goes on the living room rug which clearly Tate walks on, rolls on, etc. So there has been an obvious connection and while I am mostly successful at keeping Tate out of the nursery, our condo is simply too small to keep Tate out of everywhere else; we only have one main living space and it makes no sense to put baby gates up everywhere and keep Tate confined to the kitchen. Not fair to Tate. On the other hand, it has been really difficult to watch Ashton suffer. I spoke with the dermatologist about this and she suggested finding someplace for Tate to go for a couple weeks to see how quickly and how fast Ashton's allergies cleared up, just to make sure it truly was a dog allergy (which he has tested positive for). This morning I was supposed to drive to VT and back as my dad had offered to watch Tate until New Year's. A) At 7 am this morning, I simply could not conceive of driving 3 hours each way and B) I got out Tate's little Christmas present last night - I wanted to wrap it and make sure to give it to my dad for Tate to open on Christmas and I just about lost it! I was like there is no way I can leave Tate up in VT, he's part of our family! Admittedly he's been in the (figurative) back seat since Ashton was born but I still make sure he gets a walk and park time every day that the weather cooperates. And after Ashton goes to bed every night he's right there with me on the couch to snuggle. It's like he knows that he has to be patient during the day and he has to survive on a few less ear scratches and belly rubs because I have my hands full with the baby. Awww Tate. So the good news is, Tate isn't going anywhere. The bad news is, I have to get some kind of air filter and figure out another way to keep Ashton comfortable. The other bad news is that I have just completely wasted your time by making you read that whole paragraph. Talk about an anticlimactic story. Sorry about that.
After we got home from Childrens I made myself a sandwich on the Joseph's wraps that I like to eat from time to time. I was reading the back of the bag ("Contains flax and omega 3's for a healthy heart!") and then skimmed down to the ingredients and stopped mid-chew: sesame flour. No wonder Ashton had been having an eczema flareup- I had eaten three of these in the past two days! Poor baby. I spit it out immediately and threw the rest out. How did I miss that? Sigh.
OH, and then lastly, when I begged the dermatologist to give me a prescription for something for his cradle cap, that it had become totally unmanageable and I've tried everything short of napalm, she goes, "Well, you could try to put the cream you have been using on his body on his scalp and see if it works." She said it like it was a throwaway, no big deal comment, and in ONE NIGHT it worked!! Like MELTED the cradle cap scales away,  you couldn't even tell it was ever there! I was totally amazed and completely annoyed at the same time- couldn't she have maybe suggested this six weeks ago?! Or couldn't my pediatrician have mentioned it? Or the allergist? I mean for pete's sake I've only been asking about this for, oh, almost Ashton's entire life. Who would have thought that the cream I have had this whole time would be the answer.
Let's see what else. Morning naps are going great, afternoon naps, not so much. I've been putting him to bed earlier, by 6:15 pm, because he's cranky. We have Auntie Katie's big holiday party on Saturday night so we'll see what happens when he misses bedtime, I'm a little nervous.

Okay cute picture time, Jason took this one this morning:

Jason wanted to try and capture how tiny Ashton was compared to the tree:

Ha ha gotta love his pink bumbo seat :)

And then some from him trying solids the other day (which by the way, we are holding off on. He hated it and there really is no reason to start this early so I'm going to give it another couple weeks).

Watching dad mix:

and looking a bit nervous...

Btw, if you click on this picture and open it up full size, you can see part of the yellowish cradle cap I've been talking about. It really got bad and it was less about how it looked and more about his discomfort, he rubbed his head back and forth all the time and now is almost completely bald in some spots from trying to itch it :( Also, his lymph nodes behind his ears/on the nape of his neck have been swollen so hopefully with the cradle cap gone and eczema under control they will shrink. 

Lastly, a bit off topic but saw this today and for other moms I think you'll get a laugh:

http://thefeministbreeder.com/massive-recall-of-2011-version-of-babies/

Not sure about the website name itself. Ignore that and just read the article, it's funny :)

I picked out an ice cream at the grocery the other day that has no egg in it. Right now I am going to go sit on the couch and eat it. Can't wait and can't think of anything else I'd rather do. Talk to you soon!