A Year With Elliott Casper, in pictures

Birth story 

One month - Pictures

Two months - Pictures

Three months - Pictures

Four months - Pictures

Five months - Pictures

Six months - Pictures

Seven months - Pictures

Eight months - Pictures

Nine months - Pictures

Ten months - Pictures

Eleven months - Pictures

Twelve months - Pictures

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!


How Elliott has grown:
 

It's all so unbelievable to this mama. Has it really been an entire year?

Almost-one

I haven't been here.

The last week or so, I've not been that busy. At least, when you look at my calendar, it doesn't look particularly packed full. Every spare minute, though. I've been watching my baby.

I've been keeping an eye on him. I've been doing my best to treasure the moments. He's getting so big, so fast. This "toddling around" thing, along with his upcoming first birthday (in a week!) has made me realize he's only going to be little for a very short amount of time. I'm basking in cuddles, knowing they won't last forever. When he's all grown-up, I tell myself, I won't regret holding him too much.

So big- walking, trying hard to talk, eating grown-up food

yet so little- still nursing, napping and sleeping with his butt in the air. 

I just don't want to forget.

This little guy, where did he go?

On Pumping

I've started and erased this post a whole bunch of times. I don't know why- it's not like it's an exciting or emotional topic. I think it's that there's so much I want to say. How to get it out in a logical manner is escaping me. Here I go to try again.

Since before Elliott was born, I knew I was going to pump. I knew I'd be going back to work, and I knew I wanted him to have breastmilk exclusively. It was healthiest for him, healthiest for me, and the least expensive option. But, while on maternity leave, I kept putting off getting the pump out and giving it a try. Hooking up an intimidating piece of machinery to my sensitive parts (especially in the early days of breastfeeding) was not something I was at all eager to do. As the weeks ticked by, though, I knew I needed to take the plunge- it's recommended to introduce a bottle between 4 and 6 weeks to avoid nipple confusion or preference. On the other hand, it's also said that a new mom's body is figuring out how much milk to make in the first 6 weeks, and that early pumping can cause oversupply. On the day Elliott turned 6 weeks, I braved the scary machine, and Josh fed him his first bottle. Turns out, none of what I was worrying about was as big a deal as I was making it out to be! And thus began my pumping journey.

Fast forward 10 months. Before I returned to work, I spent the mornings pumping one side while he ate on the other. This milk went into the freezer for an emergency stash. I returned to work at 10 weeks postpartum and found a limited amount information online about how to do this "pumping and working full-time" thing (which is why I'm writing this post- more information needs to be out there!) I muddled through, and I'm thankful it worked out. I started out pumping into bottles, pouring into bags; then pumping straight into bags; now I pump into bottles and leave it there- I was tired of continuously buying bags. My freezer stash grew slowly, and was needed very, very rarely- it is just a buffer in case Josh runs out of milk at home, or we need extra to take to a babysitter or the church nursery. I started out pumping three times a day. I'd pump four times a day for a few days if it seemed like my supply needed a boost. Now I'm down to twice a day, and Elliott's eating lots more solids for lunch. I expect I'll stop entirely at the end of the year, when he's one. The flexibility of my work schedule and my employer has made pumping as easy and painless as possible. I know I am lucky.

I've had stay-at-home mom friends marvel at my pumping regimen, amazed I could keep it up so long, lamenting how much they hate the very-occasional pumping they have to do. I surely don't feel like a hero, though- I've just done what it takes to feed my baby. It's not my favorite, but not awful, either. It just is. The heroes, in my eyes, are the moms who pump around the clock for their babies who are unable to nurse, or the moms attempting induced lactation and adoptive nursing. They are rock stars.

What I learned:

• Kellymom is a great resource. The information I found there got me started on the right foot about everything from how to pump to how to store milk.
• Instructing the bottle-feeder is one of the most important keys to success. If I'm pumping the right amount, but the baby's caregiver is feeding too much, I'll never be able to keep up. Josh was great about following Elliott's cues, letting him be done when he was full, and not over-feeding.
• "Wait for the second let-down". I don't remember where I heard this tidbit of advice, but it was so necessary for me, when I get impatient and wanting to be anywhere but sitting in a room by myself hooked up to a machine.
• Storage bags can get expensive. Not formula-expensive, still pricey and annoying to buy. Using bottles to wash and store milk definitely worked well for us, was more spill-proof, and created much less waste.
• Different people have different experiences. I was lucky, and pumping worked out for me. Some don't respond to the pump as easily. Some need supply-boosting herbs, foods, or medicines to keep up a milk supply while away from their baby. I'm beyond thrilled that pumping and working full-time was possible for me.
• It is worth it. The hours spent in a little room listening to the whirr-whirr of the pump isn't fun, but the knowledge that Elliott's getting the best nutrition for him and we're able to keep up the nursing relationship when we are together makes the time and effort so, so valuable.

What I'd do differently:

• Buy a new pump. I got one off craigslist (exactly what everyone says not to do), and, while I believe it was safe and sanitary, I see the benefit to the features and technology in a newer model. Next baby, I'm definitely getting a new one.
• Get right-sized flanges. I have no idea if the ones I have are the right size for me, and, from what I've read, it's worth having it checked out.
• Donate milk. This time around, my supply was such that I had just the right amount for Elliott. God made our bodies wonderful and perfect in that way. Next time, I'd love to regularly pump an extra supply for the Indiana Mother's Milk Bank.
• Find support. I'm the only mom I know apart, from online friends, that has pumped and worked full-time for baby's first year. Finding others for support is worth it. The one LLL meeting I attended, I got really, really good tips.

 I can't believe I'm only just now talking about pumping, at the end of my journey. I want resources to be more available. Did you try to pump and work? What worked or didn't work for you? Do you have any questions about it?

Eleven Months

Super-Slacker Mom here. Elliott's been eleven months old for almost a week, and I haven't commemorated the occasion with a blog post. Well, here it is!

We're only holding his hands so he
doesn't run out of the picture

As usual, this was a big month. About three weeks ago, I finally declared Elliott "Walking" as opposed to just taking steps. He's off! He loves his new-found freedom to get places while carrying toys (or, lately, while waving a spatula around. Can't do that while you're crawling!)

This kid, sometime this month, turned into a toddler. I mean, I don't think it's just the walking thing. He's copying us more and playing games. He likes tickling Daddy as much as Daddy likes tickling him! When he's in a shirt, pants and shoes, I forget he's just a little baby, and I expect him to come over and have a conversation with me about the merits of sippy cup design. (He doesn't, but if he did, he'd wax poetical about the superiority of the straw cups to the ones you have to tip.)

Our lazy Thanksgiving morning

He celebrated other Firsts this month- his first Halloween and his first Thanksgiving. Halloween was somewhat anticlimactic, since I didn't let him eat any candy. It was an excuse to go visit family- which always makes for a good evening.

Thanksgiving was celebrated twice: once early at our house with my side of the family, and once in Lebanon with Josh's side. He was a good eater at both parties, and demonstrated his love for green beans and corn. Thanksgiving morning was a dream, for me. I turned on the Macy's parade, watching closely for my alma mater's marching band to make an appearance. Elliott danced to the almost-constant music and played in the living room. I let him play with his beloved spatula while I fixed a couple dishes for that afternoon. Something about the slowness of the morning, the quiet, the fun- I did my best to treasure it, since I get so few slow mornings.

One month until this little guy has made a full trip around the sun. One month until I have been wearing the badge "Mom" for an entire year. Wow.

Giving Peas a Chance

This is an unnecessarily long video from a couple weeks ago of Elliott eating his vegetables- peas, in this case. Also, talking about vegetables, flailing his vegetables and giving his vegetables to the dog. He's practicing healthy eating here and fine motor skills- double WIN! I was getting over  a cold, so my voice sounds funny.

I never realized how much our house relies on natural light until I started trying to take videos in the evenings when I'm home. They're all so dark.

On raising a geek: The Force vs. The Federation

This year for Halloween, Elliot is borrowing a Yoda costume from a friend. Here, you see him using The Force to stand and walk from the ottoman to the coffee table. 

Here, he's using The Force to levitate a box of Cheerios. I didn't get a picture of the box, sorry- they spilled everywhere.

Something I need to clear up, though- even though he's in a Star Wars costume, we're a Star Trek family. We'll raise Trekkies, without a doubt. We don't even own the Star Wars movies. When he does see them, I'm sure this costume will make more sense to him. For some, introducing your kid to Star Wars is a big deal. For us, the politics of the relationship between the Federation, Klingon, Cardassian, Romulan and Vulcan cultures will probably take a more prominent role in our household.

He already loves the Next Generation theme song!

He makes a cute Yoda, but pulls off a pretty cute Star Fleet recruit, too! Unfortunately, the Star Fleet uniform fit him in March, rather than for Halloween.

Ten Months

Yesterday, Elliott turned the big 1-0 (months). Double digits!

I missed posting since I was home sick with a sore throat and probable fever. Everyone else in the household (well, except for Casey) seemed to not be feeling well either. That didn't stop Elliott! After a late-afternoon nap, he took off. He was everywhere- mostly cruising all the way around the coffee table as fast as possible. Then he started a new experiment- could he get to pieces of furniture he couldn't quite reach while still standing? Oh, he tried. He took steps- just two or three- without holding on to anything. Sometimes he'd make it. Sometimes he wouldn't, and fall on his knees or hands. Even when he fell, he'd giggle, and we'd cheer. He's an adventurous soul.

When Elliott learned to crawl, it was like a switch turned on- there was no gradual gain of mobility- he went from not crawling one day, to full on hands-and-knees crawling the next. While getting his coordination, there were some bumps- mostly on his forehead, caused by our wood floors. With walking, I'm a little worried about bigger bumps, since he'll be falling about 5 times as far (6 inches vs 2.5 feet). I also wonder if he'll "take off" like he did with crawling, or if this will be a more gradual milestone. I also wonder what needs to be childproofed that I haven't thought of yet.

His Tooth Count is holding steady at 6. I thought he was teething for a week or so, but there's nothing to show for it. He's sleeping better at night. He had his first hair trim this month, so now his bangs are no longer in his eyes, and his hair is no longer halfway down his ears. He's eating lots, and taking less from a bottle. I think he'd like it if we let him subsist on Cheerios.

Last weekend, I boxed up the 12-month clothes. The 12-month shirts still fit, but are too short. We've discovered that 18-month overalls don't even fit. Also, where does anyone find the room to store all this baby clothing? He's on his sixth size, and an entire wardrobe is needed in each size... it's getting ridiculous. I need to find a baby boy to lend out these clothes to, and free up room in my closets!

Yesterday, Casey was locked in his crate because I had just gotten in the house and hadn't let him out yet. I sat down to check email, and look, and the dog is now wandering around. Curious. "Unlocking the dog's crate" isn't a developmental milestone I expected Elliott to reach so early, but apparently he had different plans. In other news, Elliott really likes playing in the dog crate, just like every other kid that has come to our house. In and out, open and shut. All day long.

It's been a big month, but I suppose they all have been, and will all continue to be. Watching him grow and learn is so much fun!

Autumn, so far.

Monday evening, on the way home from work, the weather was perfect. Once dinner was over, I couldn't stand to be inside anymore. Elliott and I went outside for an impromptu photo shoot. Josh worked more on the siding project while I tried to get Elliott to look at the camera and not eat leaves and grass. He wasn't particularly happy with me, but I got a few good shots, with one of his new jackets (50% off Goodwill sale!).

The last smile was just because Josh was looking at him from the other side of the fence. Daddy can get a smile out of this kid without fail. Melts my heart.

He got tired of sitting in the grass, but I wasn't ready to be done being outside in the beautiful weather. I picked him up and we walked around for a little bit, then landed on the A-frame swing in the back of our lot, for him to have a snack.

The snack turned into a nap.

This moment-swinging with a sleeping baby, with the sun low in the sky, surrounded by trees and yard and not another house in sight- was very close to perfect. I savored the quiet, the sunshine, the baby, unsure if I'd get another fall evening like this. Soon, it will be cold (this is why I don't love fall, like so many others- it's Foreboding Winter) and we'll be inside. Next fall, he won't be a baby anymore.

The time goes so much faster than I ever imagined it could.

Nine Months In, Nine Months Out

Nine months in. Nine months out.

It took about nine months (271 days, give or take a couple) for our baby to go from a couple cells hidden inside of me to a wiggly eight pound kid.

Nine months later, and he's almost fourteen pounds heavier, almost eight inches longer, and way, way more wiggly.

This has been a big month. He's got six teeth total now. He cruises everywhere he can reach- fast. He doesn't balance very long while not holding on to anything, but I don't think it's too far off. He eats all sorts of things, and gets very, very insistent when we don't include him in mealtimes. He figured out how to clap, and does so when excited with a big open-mouthed smile that is heart-meltingly cute. He waves at people somewhat inconsistently. His hair's getting long enough around his ears that we're considering cutting it already. He's happy pretty much all of the time.

A new favorite game is to open the tupperware tops drawer and empty it, then proceed to spread the tops all over the kitchen and living room floor. Fun.


My baby's now been on the Outside longer than he was on the Inside (as of last Friday. Yes, I did the math.) He's becoming his own person, wanting to crawl away and explore on his own. He always comes back, though, and climbs up my leg to make sure I'm still there- and that I can't move even if I wanted to.

I'm not going anywhere, Baby. Don't you worry.

Photo catch-up

Elliott's cruising everywhere- as long as we keep the furniture close enough together.

At the aforementioned consignment sale, I also got him more leggings. I'm a fan. Josh is skeptical. What do you think about leggings for boys? (The filter on this particular picture make them look pink, I realized after the fact. They're red, promise.)

The house siding project continues. While Josh & his brother worked on the siding, my nephews played our Wii. Elliott wanted to play along, and definitely got some important Mario tips he's filed away for later.

The following really grainy pictures demonstrate how all-the-time happy he is. The big, open-mouthed smile is a regular occurrence. Also, he claps now. That's pretty cute.

I cannot explain how fun this kid is. So. Fun.

Unconventional farm

So, we were at Goodwill, and found this Fisher Price barn for $3. Because locally-produced, farm-fresh food is something we want to expose Elliott to, we bought it. Actually, we got it because it's a toy he would hopefully be able to play with for a long time, that wouldn't require batteries. (It CAN take batteries, but is perfectly functional as a toy without them)

Elliott is perfectly happy and this point to open and close all the doors on the barn and play with the limited number of moving parts. But, at some point, I think he'll want actual farm animals or people to play with in the barn. Goodwill, while having two of these barns, had no Little People figures. My plan was to keep an eye out for the farm figures on Craigslist and Goodwill, and if none are to be found, order them from Mattel for $13 for the set.

Fast forward a few weeks, we were perusing the Indy Kids Consignment sale, and I had Little People on my shopping list. I knew it was a long shot, but I scoured the toy table- and there they were! Four farm figurines for a dollar! Hooray!

And then, in line to check out, I take a closer look. Cow. Horse. Sheep. Lion? Hmm.

One of these is not like the others.

I have a feeling Elliott won't mind.

We'll just call the lion the most awesome barn cat ever.

My Pre-toddler

I haven't been here.

I mean here, on the blog.

It's just, my baby- my little 8-month-old- seems to be morphing into a toddler before my eyes, and I wasn't ready for this.

I mean, he's not toddling yet, but he did start cruising on furniture last week. I guess I had it in my head that babies learn to walk right when they turn one, so I was expecting to have a cruising baby at Christmas, not Labor Day.

He's got six teeth now. And lots of hair.

Sunday, in the nursery at church, the teacher reported that she gave him Cheerios, and he ate so many "I finally took them away because I was afraid he'd get a tummyache." He is all about eating, and can drink water from a straw.

Along with pulling up on everything, he plays peek-a-boo on the furniture. He'll peek over the edge of the couch or pack & play, catch my attention, lower himself down out of sight, pop up with a big grin so he can see me, I'll say "There's Elliott!" or "Boo!", and he'll repeat the game.

And then there's the communication thing. He's started waving. And, when he sees his rubber duckie, he exclaims, "A duh!" and "Quah quah quah".  When he sees Daddy, it's "Dadadada". He repeats "Moooo" and "Uh oh", too. Sometimes I think he says "Hi!" but I'm not sure. He's started pointing at things.

We went to a concert this weekend, and Elliott started dancing- bouncing and waving his arms with this huge smile on his face, the whole time the music was playing (and he was awake). It was the cutest thing ever. There are witnesses.

My child is no prodigy. I've heard of other babies reaching these milestones earlier. It's just all happening so fast. I feel like, if I blink, if I take my eyes off him for a second, I'll miss something really important or fun. I want to enjoy my baby before he runs off to the next stage. So, blogging and picture-taking has slowed, replaced with being present every moment I can.

Evidence of cruising (I really should get a video...):


(Just keeping it real. Yes, our living room is most often toy-strewn; yes, the coffee table is cleared because he's thrown all the coasters on the floor; and, yes, the swing he's probably too big for is still set up. He's not wearing pants because I like his new diaper. This is our life.)