Mommy's Monster

If you are friends with me on Facebook you may have seen my comment about child abuse the other day... that being my child abusing me!  Lately, with the discovery that he has hands and that they can do things, Drew has begun pinching the backs of my arms, pulling my hair, and even slapping and scratching my face.   I said on Facebook that it's a good thing that Drew is so cute and cuddly because otherwise I might report him for domestic abuse!

On top of that Drew has been a little "off" the last day or two.  He's been popping off in the middle of feedings and often not "finishing."  I was getting a little frustrated yesterday trying to figure out what was going on. Actually, a little frustrated doesn't quite tell the whole story.  I was reduced to sobbing tears... because my child was smiling at me instead of eating!

That's when you know it's time for a break!

And for a little humor too.  I had just bought this onesie and it seemed like the perfect fit for a day like yesterday:

Oh wait, you gotta check out his butt too:

 This alone made me feel 10 times better!

But I also figured it was time to start examining things a little.  My first solution is to change up our routine a bit.  My worry was that Drew wasn't finishing his "meal" so he'd end up being hungry shortly after eating.  It turns out he was fine. In fact, he slept a whole 2 1/2 hours after my break down over him not eating enough, so I'm thinking he a) needs more sleep and b) is getting more efficient at the whole boob-sucking thing and perhaps is just finishing more quickly. So we're playing with our routine, and while I know things might be a little difficult in the interim, I'm trusting that he'll let me know when he needs to eat and how much.

My second solution was to take a "mental health" day.  I had to laugh at myself for getting so frustrated at such little things (because my child smiled at me when he should have been eating!?).  That's how I always know I need to take a step back and breathe a little. I've been known to start crying over something like a hair tickling my arm when I've let stupid little things build up for too long.  So Jason took over last night and this morning and Mommy got a little break.  I went shopping for a bit (and of course bought things for Drew!). Then after Drew went to bed my best friend Stacey and I enjoyed a fire in the backyard and roasted some marshmallows while enjoying a Captain and Coke (or two!).  Drew got a bottle from Daddy this morning and Mommy got to sleep in while the boys went to Costco.  Ahhhh.... I feel so much better!

That's a pretty impressive roasted marshmallow tower!

Of course, regardless of how frustrated I get, Drew is still my cutie...

and my sweetie...

And my mental health day came at a perfect time to refresh before an upcoming crazy week.  Jason and I made a last minute decision (well, as last minute as you can make with a baby) to go to Virginia for a few days.  Jason has to do some work with his mom, so I figured I'd tag along with Drew so Jason's mom can see him again and so that Jason's brother and sister can finally meet him.  We will be driving... which will be an interesting experience with a baby (Jason is of the "pee in a cup if you must but we're not stopping" variety).  We will be gone from Sunday until Tuesday, then on Friday we fly (yikes!) up to Canada for the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday.  While I am excited about both trips I already know things will be off schedule and hectic with a baby in tow so I'm glad I got a little break beforehand!

All that being said you may not hear from me much this week... again!  Sorry!