The Grover Chair

Ok, let me start by offering a piece of advice.....order any and all furniture you need for the baby no later than 20 weeks into your pregnancy. I learned this the tough way, and we are STILL waiting for our swivel/glider/rocker and ottoman to come in.

So, 11 weeks and 1 day ago, I placed the order for the "Best Chair" that we picked out to use with Connor. It was a generous gift from Brian's parents and sister. We (okay, I) chose a nice light aqua color that will coordinate with our living room. Connor's nursery is small, so I thought it made more sense to invest that sort of money in piece that will be enjoyed by the whole family for years to come. Anyway, I knew that it probably wouldn't make it in before Connor was born, but the store told me 8 weeks...max. So, The week after C was born, I started calling to check on it. I was told that it was coming out of production on September 22 and would be shipped to the store warehouse, and then delivered to us. Well, this was after the 8 week point that they told me. The lady then informed me that they consider 8 weeks like 2 calendar months. Don't they realize they work with pregnant people all the time that definitely calculate anything to do with baby in WEEKS...not months. Anyway, for the past 2.5 weeks I've been calling just about every other day to get a status report on if they'd received the chair and when I could expect to get it. I don't always harass people like this, but the chair is WAY late and my back and stomach muscles could really use some relief. Connor has gained so much weight that air rocking is now tough!

Ok, getting to the point. This week I was told that the chair was arriving Monday evening and that it would be delivered to me on Thursday. Even this was a little disappointing because the owner of the store, Jim, originally told me I would get it the day after it arrived to them. But I digress. No one ever called me on Wednesday to set up a time for delivery. I thought this was a little fishy. Well, at 8:30 am yesterday I got a call from Jim. Our chair was not on the truck. He just found out when he got to work that day. It is backordered. How in the world is a made-to-order chair backordered?! And if something happened, why didn't anyone contact the store or ME over the last 11 weeks?! Apparently the company was out of our fabric....what the heck? I seriously couldn't believe it when he told me. I just said, "You've got to be kidding me." I'm sure when he got the note on his desk that said which chair was missing (of about 50 or so) he probably freaked out a little bit and then dreaded calling me....."it had to be the chair of the woman that has been calling every 2 days for a month...." Well, before I could get upset or react in any other desperate way, he said he was bringing me a chair. It wasn't our chair, but a "loaner" since he obviously knew how much we want/need it and have been waiting. He also said that our real chair would be here in 2 weeks....I'll believe it when I see it.

So, he brought us a "nice blue chair". It is nice, but it currently looks pretty funny in our living room. I've named it the "Grover" chair because it is blue and fuzzy. And Grover is on about half of Connor's diapers, so I thought it was appropriate. Toonces LOVES the chair and has tried to take it over as her own. I am still very very anxious to get ours (especially because we are getting an ottoman too), but I'm thankful to have a loaner, even though this is the first time the company has ever "loaned" furniture before.

Oh, and when he got here with the chair, he changed from his 2 week tune, to "the end of the month". I'll be sure to post a picture when it finally does get here. :)

This is our swatch: "wedgewood".

For the picture at the top: That pillow will match OUR chair, but is sure does clash with the Grover chair! I don't know if you can tell how fuzzy it is in this picture...think muppet. I'm sure it would be really cute in the right room....just not in ours. :)

First (Real) Photo Shoot

6 WEEKS OLD

I had a very tough time deciding which one I liked better between this one and the top one. Mrs. Jones made the blanket that he is nestled in to and my mom got him his "Connor" gown (look closely it is monogrammed in white).

We did NOT get this one, but his face cracks me up. It is like he is thinking "do I look like a feathers guy??? Where's the football?!"

I brightened the two pictures above up a little. They were dark at the studio. I did order some of the one directly above because it was a little brighter than the other, but I love his face in the first.

"Diaper shot" but we cropped the diaper out so you can't see it in the real one.

What a handsome little guy! We got this one in sepia.

A little grunter even when he was getting his picture taken!

One of my favorites.

We got the most of this one. I wish you could see his mouth, but I LOVE his pinky and his expression. I am so proud of how well he did!

Overall I am VERY pleased and would highly recommend Portrait Innovations. I got a TON of pictures (lots of really big ones) for an extremely reasonable amount of money. There were no sitting fees or charges to have them zoom in, etc. and I got the pictures in 10 minutes! Brian was coming back into town when we had these taken, but next time I will make sure I'm not there alone to have to make the difficult decision of narrowing all the pictures down!

Connor was absolutely amazing. I was VERY nervous that he would either be sleepy, fussy, hungry, not like the photographer....or SOMETHING, but he was a dream. He even slept in my arms while I looked through all the proofs (for an hour)!

Connor and I are so happy to have dad back home now so we can celebrate 6 great weeks!

Getting SO Big!

It has been a week since I posted anything. For those of you that check this on a regular basis looking for new stuff...sorry about that. I was going to wait until tomorrow for a new post because Connor is getting his 6 weeks pictures taken, but I've got a little time right now so I thought I'd take full advantage.

Here are a few pictures from the past week. There really isn't a whole lot to report other than the fact that Connor is NOT on a schedule and does not allow me to put him on one. He is consistently inconsistent when it comes to eating and sleeping. He did sleep for 5 hours straight 2 nights ago, but last night he was back to his 3 hour routine. People also think I'm kidding when I tell them how much the kid eats....I'm not kidding. He is quite capable of eating 6+ oz. at a time...that is a TON for a 6 week old. I'm hoping that now that he has caught up in the weight category that he'll slow down a little bit. I guess the advantage of his huge appetite is that my baby weight has pretty much flown off. I'm not quite back to my pre-pregnancy weight yet, but I have less than 10 lbs to go and almost all of my normal clothes fit! YAY!

Connor has been smiling a lot more, but he definitely smiles at Brian more than me. Dad=Fun. Mom=Food. I am happy to report that I'm the only one that has heard him laugh. He did it in his sleep, but I know it was a laugh because when I looked at him there was a little smile on his face. I have a great video of him smiling at Brian, but Brian told me not to put it on here. Although I very rarely directly disobey a request, I might just have to...it is just too cute and both sets of our parents have seen it and love it. I think that trumps Brian's request. Besides, it is easy to see what a great daddy Brian is and how much Connor adores him. (Oh, and I know he is a little chunk, but this video makes him look even fuller because Brian's holding him up by his arms, thus pushing up on those cheeks!)

Our street had their annual clam bake last weekend. I tried to support the Dawgs as much as I could (black and red shirts and a UGA burp cloth...Brian even put out our UGA flag out. Too bad the Bulldogs didn't show up until the second half versus Alabama....oh well.) The clam bake was a great time with an abundance of babies. There were 3 babies under the age of 10 weeks. I'm happy to say that Connor behaved very well and I think the fresh air and sling keeping him nice and close helped him sleep though most of the event. Here Brian is pictured with Ray and his 9 week daughter, Amelia.

Connor in his baby "straight jacket".

For those of you with little ones on the way, I really like the Halo Sleepsak Swaddle. It zips up the front and the swaddle has an easy option for arms in or out. Although Connor really likes to flail his arms around, the last few days the swaddle has kept him asleep for a little longer.

He was beat and found a comfy place on Dad's chest.

Cousin Erin finally got to meet the little man.

Look for his 6 week pictures to be posted soon.....as well as a few others that are still on the camera!

Our Little Chunk

Almost 5 Weeks

outfit courtesy of his "Aunt" Meg

This morning, Connor had his 1 month checkup. We were very anxious to find out how much he weighed since his last weight check was at 1 week and he weighed 6 lbs. 7 oz. The kid eats all the time...and a lot of ounces, so we knew he was putting on some major poundage. However, I must say I didn't think he had put on over 4 lbs in 4 weeks! The little chunk is now weighing in at 10 lbs. 9 oz! He did really well at the doctor and even entertained himself for a bit while we were waiting (quite a while) on his pediatrician to come in after he'd been weighed, measured and all that good stuff. Oh yeah, he's gained a quarter of an inch in length too.

I took this little video while we were waiting on the doctor. It is a little boring, but he was talking to me and just being an overall good kid.

Also, we are spending some time in Avon Lake while Brian is out of town (it is really nice to hand him off when I get exhausted!) and he finally got to meet Courtney Griffiths. Hopefully he'll get to meet Jeremy and Joey soon too.

Fun-filled Weekend

4 Weeks, 1 Day Old

What a great weekend. It started out on Friday night when a bunch of my college girl friends all got together and called me so I got to talk to each one of them! It would have been more fun if I'd gotten to be there in person, but a phone call is the next best thing!

Megan, Jenn & Lara

Saturday morning we made our first family venture up to Avon Lake, where Brian grew up. The primary reason was for me to attend a bridal shower for Lara Toscani (soon to be Lara Weems) that was co-hosted by Megan (Weems) Bondi and her mom. I was so excited to see all these girls and especially glad that one of my Georgia girls was finally going to get to meet Connor! Brian came to the shower with Connor for a few minutes and then whisked him away so we could enjoy our high tea. The shower was absolutely wonderful and Lara even had to pass some Aaron Athletic Trivia before she could marry into the Weems clan. She did an amazing job, only missing 2 (maybe 3 depending on who you ask) questions and got the rest correct! Great job! Of course she had to wear Aaron's #45 Villanova football jersey during the game as well. As I mentioned, the shower was a high tea and we were treated to absolutely wonderful desserts and at least 4 different kinds of amazing teas. I am not a huge tea drinker, but these might have converted me! Anyway, fun times....and this is the longest I've been away from Connor since he's been alive. I think we both did great. I had a wonderful time and Brian and Grandpa Nealon were wonderful babysitters. :)
We headed back to the Nealon's after the shower just in time to relieve Brian and Pat and so they could head to Berea to watch the Baldwin Wallace football game with Jill, Chris and Ed. Scott is now punting for the Yellow Jackets thanks to being "discovered" by one of the coaches when he was just messing around kicking a nerf football last spring! He did really well and the jackets won!

Leslie and I stayed with the tiny one and visited Great Grandma Kronz so she could meet Connor as well as Great Aunt Kathy, Great Uncle John and cousin Becky Nealon. I must say that I am SO PROUD of Connor for being such an angel all day! The only little hiccup that he had was peeing on Kathy (though his outfit), but it gave us an excuse to change his clothes....check out those awesome plaid pants! (thanks Bleve, Jacqueline & Thompson) Connor was very captivated by John. I think it was a combination of him looking similar to Brian as well as his mustache...aka "cookie duster". I took a little video of him smiling at John, but I apologize for how dark it is. The other camera is much better at videos in low light.

John, Kathy & Becky

Erin was out of town on a fun birthday trip...we'll catch her next time!

We got back to the house with about an hour to spare before we got to watch the Dawgs beat Arizona State! I'm glad the game wasn't too too close because we left during the 4th quarter to head back home (about 50 minutes). Connor slept in the car the whole way there and home and was just an absolute trooper the entire day!

Sunday was a good day for cleaning. Yes, we cleaned up the chipmunk crap, Brian did lots of vacuuming and caught up on laundry and Connor's room is clean again. Brian also took Connor all morning and let me sleep....until NOON! (yay) Connor has gotten a lot better in the past few days about being awake, alert, and in one place without getting upset. He still likes to walk, but I think he is starting to be able to soothe himself a little better. I took this little video on Sunday evening after he'd alrealdy been on the mat for a few minutes. He still isn't old enough to really enjoy it, but it was fun to watch him get a little baby workout regardless. Oh, and we think he cooed for the first time on Saturday morning. It has only happened a few times, but it was so cool!

Oh yeah, I took this picture on Friday afternoon while we were walking around in the yard....this is how he sucks his thumb!

Midnight Guestroom Surprise...

Ok, so it really happened at 11:30, and oh my goodness I wish I had this on video....

When Connor and I headed for the guest room to go to sleep for the night (hopefully a good night) I noticed Toonces was laying on the floor near the bed. How sweet. That is not a usual place for her, but I was happy to have her with us.

Hold on...backup. Mitsy and Toonces have been going outside all while we've lived in Ohio but then we got a little flea infestation and it turns out our cats are immune to Frontline Plus. So, they've been quarantined in the house for well over a month now. Well, their Advantage came in yesterday and it seems to work...no more fleas on the kitties, so today was their first day outside again. Ok, back to the story...

After about 1/2 hour of trying to get Connor to fall asleep, I glanced up and almost freaked out when I saw a CHIPMUNK on the far right side of the curtain rod!!! Toonces left when Connor started crying earlier, but here was a cute little chipmunk all perched up there just hanging out like he belonged there! I immediately went to our room and told Brian I needed him in the guest room....there was a chipmunk. He thought it must be dead...but no, it was very much ALIVE! He told me to close the door while he found something to trap it with. Connor and I went downstairs to retrieve the camera. By the time I got back upstairs, the door to the guest room was closed, with Brian inside. I heard a pretty big thump and then Brian asked for a pair of sandals. (keep in mind, he was very much asleep when I woke him up with my strange request) I asked to come in (so I could document this with pictures and video) and he said no. I think the chipmunk was near the door at that point. It apparently leapt from the top of the curtains to the floor, ran under the bed to the opposite corner of the room and then back to the original corner before Brian was able to trap it in a large, plastic tub (he emptied one that was in Connor's room that I had been using to separate various clothing sizes). So, I missed it. We all came downstairs, chipmunk in tote, and Brian released the creature back into the outdoors.

We had no clue how in the world it could have gotten inside?! We went upstairs to check and see if the screen to the window had fallen out (they don't like to stay in), but it was secure and had no holes in it.Then I asked Brian if he noticed if Toonces brought anything in when he let her in during my nap this afternoon. He originally said no, and then remembered that she did come in really fast. So, although we can't be sure, we are assuming she escorted a chipmunk in as well. How sweet that she brought it upstairs for me and Connor...she knew where we would be. Thinking back now, I asked Brian several times if he was sure that she was inside because I didn't see Toonces all evening. I'm assuming now it was because she was guarding her catch. Bless her heart for not killing the little creature. To our knowledge, this is her very first chipmunk (priors only include moles and birds....she gets in trouble for Finches). Brian used to tell her that she wasn't fast enough to catch a chipmunk. Well, I guess she showed him!

It didn't take long for me to think this whole ordeal was hilarious. As soon as I started laughing about it (while Brian carried the chipmunk in the container downstairs), he started laughing too. I just wish I had it on video. However, B is thankful that it is not on video and says it would have been like Chevy Chase and the squirrel in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. All the more reason to get it on video....we could have won $100,000! Oh well.

Time for me to sleep.

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Does anyone know what chipmunk crap looks like? I think our upstairs bathroom might have been some sort of holding room for the creature....there are weird seed-looking things all over the floor. They are hard, but no clue what else it could be?? I'll have to check the guest room really good for excrement tomorrow...gross.

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9.22.08
Well, it is definitely confirmed that Toonces brought in the chipmunk. This morning she was at it again and brought a very alive chipmunk to me at our back door. She never did kill it, but let it go, just to chase it again. She finally returned without it in her mouth, so I'm guessing the chipmunk finally escaped...sheesh...presents. :) I've added a video of this morning below. Mitsy was inside, checking out the "gift" from behind the screen. I think it is funny that the chipmunk sort of played dead...don't let it fool you!

Baby Bump Progression — The End

I thought it would be fun to do one last picture from "bump" to baby! Don't worry, this is the LAST one of the series. :) (I took the picture on Wednesday, so it was really just one day late. Connor's 4 week birthday is actually today.)

Connor has been getting so many packages in the mail recently...it is like Christmas for him! Yesterday he got a package from Mike, Faith and Grant Dunn with several goodies. Mike works for John Deere, so there was also something for him to grow into! I thought a few of you might get a kick out of his first John Deere shirt.
I just thought this one was cute. 3 1/2 weeks old.

FYI, Connor is currently inconsolable....I feel like a horrible mom, but he isn't hungry, doesn't need to burp, has a clean diaper and just won't settle down! AAAHHHH Off to grab him.

A Handful of Pictures and 1 Video

No verbage....just pictures. Enjoy.

Well, just a little...."newborn" clothes just about fit him now, but he has outgrown most of his "preemie" stuff....I don't think most preemies start out at 21 inches long!

Hanging out on the changing pad. (Video below...he likes to just kick and stretch.)

I'm lucky I didn't get spit up all down my back for this picture. (That happened yesterday!)

Our sweet little boy.

Wide awake after a short nap. It is easy to tell he's packing on the pounds...(or ounces???) in this picture!

Ok, not the most fantastic picture, but he looks SO excited! It was really just the beginning of a big yawn (haven't caught a full one on camera yet). His hands just crack me up.

We know he won't be this tiny forever.

Connor in his carseat, that snaps into the swing (awesome), and a just bathed Toonces close by to watch. Toonces likes to test out all of Connor's toys and gear to make sure it is suitable for her new little friend....

This is not an overly exciting video, but for those that don't get to see him very often, he is growing like a weed and check out his great leg movement....I see no problems with those hips!