I love these boys
Wow, another whole month has passed. Can't believe it. I am bad at updating lately! Well, the first week of June was a stressful frenzy. Frank was gone, I had to work, and get the house ready and cleaned for Meghan, take the dogs for walks, get groceries, pay bills and take Cooper with me to work all week! It was nutso. I barely remembered to eat and dropped pounds quickly eating PBJs for dinner. I don't know how single moms do it, I honestly don't. Superwomen.
Anyhow, Meghan arrived no problem and has been great! I flew out on Friday from Munich with Cooper, leaving her with Maple and Maya for 2 weeks. Hated leaving her alone in Germany as soon as she arrived!
Flying home alone was pretty darn horrible, but, I guess it could have been worse! Cooper was pretty good for 9 hours of the first flight, but after only 3 barely 30 min naps, he was an overstimulated frenzied mess! He sobbed the whole 20 mins we landed and I couldn't do anything to help calm him and started crying myself. Then, the Atlanta Terminal was not any easier. I had a 3 hour layover and had to trek from Terminal A to F carrying a heavy backpack full of baby essentials and a boppy, a baby on my front (who weighs about 18-20 pounds), and a baby carrier with one free hand and passports in the other. No help from a soul, but at least I got to go through the security gate ahead of everyone. Cooper watched everything the whole time, red sleepy eyed and in a daze. When I tried to lay him down he freaked, so I walked around, trying to get him to sleep for 2 hours, and he kept crying so hard when he would get startled from the stupid loud annoucements being made in that airport.
I hate that airport so much now. It is so loud and crazy and I couldn't find a single quiet spot without 50 TVs blaring news, carts zooming through beeping at people, and constant airline annoucements on the intercom blaring out. I cried. A nice man helped me carry everything onto the plane this time and I warned everyone around me that my baby had not slept for 14 hours and to expect screaming on the flight and that I was so so sorry. He screamed for about 10 mins as we taxied out to the runway, but as I convulsed in my seat to mimic a jiggling walk, he fell asleep!! Thank God. He woke up 30 mins into the flight as a coke can was opened, but fortunately went back to sleep for the rest of the flight. When I finally got home to Ft. Thomas, I melted in a heap in the shower in my mom's arms while my sister Tiffy walked and soothed Cooper to sleep for me (he was crying louder than ever at that point). I thought I was going to pass out from no food, overstressing, and no sleep. My family picked me up though and put me back together, helping me the whole weekend with Cooper and getting us back on track.
Saturday was my cousin Maggie's wedding. Outside, on the family farm, and it was perfect. I got to see tons of family and take a break from Cooper, but that too made me very vulnerable as I knew he was crying for the babysitter, and once again I lost it, crying at the reception. Ugh. I swear, I have become a total emotional wreck these days.
It was a perfect weekend. I had all my sisters and was back at home with my parents, a very rare occasion. We laughed, we chatted, we ate ice cream, and no fights or quarrels the whole time (also a rare occasion) :) I only wish it could have lasted for months. I never wanted to leave that weekend and wanted every hour to extend. We had a family meeting to discuss serious issues, and Missy confronted dad about his smoking (a bit of intervention), and it worked!! Dad has quit smoking after almost 50 years of the terrible habit! I am praying that he keeps it up, and need to come up with some things that will keep him busy since it filled up so much of his time.
After visiting Ft. Thomas, down to Lexington I went with Cooper and got to spend lots of quality time with the Byrons, Frank, and Missy and her baby Cole! Cole and Cooper are only 3 days apart and it was incredibly fun to have them together. I wish so much that we lived close to each other to help each other out, walk together and do all that mommy stuff with each other like we did that week. I even was able to go climbing in the Red River Gorge while Missy and Jacob helped us out with Cooper. I have barely climbed in the last 8 months, but somehow was able to climb 3 awesome long 5.11s without hanging a single time (although I know the climbs very well), and I thought I had no endurance or strength! That made my day, and week for that matter. I still have it! We got to see so many friends, it really made me miss home and want to move back. So much support.
After Lexington, Frank and I flew to Atlanta with Cooper on a late flight (7:30pm). His bedtime. I nursed him to sleep and he was perfect the whole short flight thankfully. The Byrons were at the airport to pick us up, and already had our rooms arranged to be connected, and they toted along a baby swing, a bouncy seat, and a gazillion other things for us. Don't know how we could have done it without them. We stayed at the Marriot Marquis Hotel downtown and it was really nice, 44 floors with 3 resturants, a warm pool and comfy beds. My training was very useful and interesting, but jam packed, and at every break I raced upstairs to feed or calm Cooper. Each night Frank and I would get Cooper to sleep and then Frank and Brenda would babysit for us so we were able to eat dinner out together alone! It was so nice. Cooper, Frank and I all slept together in huge King Bed which was also nice.
Now, Cooper news! He is so alert now, and reaches to grab everything, and it all goes in his mouth. He smiles at everyone who smiles at him and shows no stranger anxiety yet... Which is normal. He can roll over both ways now and lifts up so high when he is on his belly. So cute.
We visited the Atlanta Aquarium (largest in the world)
The flight home could not have been more perfect amazingly enough. Cooper slept for 2 hours in the begining, woke for 2 hours of huge smiles at all the ladies on the plane who walked by and gaggled over him, and then slept another 6 hours (with 2 wakings where I nursed him right on back to sleep) on the boppy on my lap. I on the otherhand did not sleep a wink, but was just so happy he was good! We both have been very off on sleep (waking from 1-3am), but seem to be getting more normal now.
Meghan is taking care of Cooper now during the day, and is such a HUGE help. And I love having her company each night while Frank is in Boston. It has been raining ever since I came home, and cold (40s and 50s). YUCK! What happened to summer? When will we have sun again! I am so sick of this weather, as is Meghan, and the dogs who have been jipped on walks by me and I feel terrible about it. Can't wait for Frank to come home Sunday and return back to some sort of a normal life again around here. Hoping we can get Cooper back on to an eating/napping routine as well. We'll just see how it goes.
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