Milestone - Austin is 6 months old!

What an amazing time to be experiencing right now as Austin turns six months old today.  I feel like so much has happened in the last couple weeks (besides the last 6 months!), I am in awe of how much Austin is changing and coming into his own as a vibrant individual in this big, big world.  

As mentioned before, Austin has moved from an all day wear to just night/nap time wear for his brace.  Within that week, he was finally rolling over on his back with and without the brace and scooting all over the floor.  All of sudden, we are moving the coffee table downstairs and researching the safety proofing of the living room to get ready for this little guy to begin exploring beyond a 4x4 range of space.  Exciting and frightening at the same time because as parents we have to get used to keeping a closer eye on him and the freedom of going out of the room for even a second has been lost.  

We had a slow start to introducing solids but we are on our way and have figured out that we LOVE bananas and carrots thus far!  I do lots of singing and airplane moves and even show him that "mommy likes it too" to get him excited about eating this new way.  I admit I was weary of moving on from our routine, but this process is turning out to be fun for the both of us.  We will be feeding Austin homemade baby food, so we are pureeing fools and freezing the colorful one ounce cubes each week.  I've done sweet potatoes, baked peaches, carrots, and bananas thus far.  

Sweet Potatoes!

Father's Day was a big day for the "A" man as well.  The night before was a tough one for Austin and I.  I had been working on getting him back to sleep for about an hour and a half and gave up about 6am.  The next thing I know, he grabbed my finger and took a big chop and "OW!" that hurt!  Austin's first tooth broke through!  Yep, a little clear nib, that is sharp as ever, is peaking through!  I was so excited, we went upstairs and woke Daddy up to show him!

Happy six month birthday little man.  We love you very much and are enjoying every moment with you.  You are certainly the pride and joy of our lives.  Fun times ahead!

Train Ride - Blue Ridge Scenic Railway

On Saturday, we drove up to Blue Ridge, GA, which is about an hour and half north of us to take an hour long train ride to the GA/TN border of McCaysville, GA and Copperhill, TN.  The group that does it is Blue Ridge Scenic Railway and it was overall a pretty fun experience.  We met a couple there that live in the same area we do and one of the fun parts was that the husband had never rode on a train before and his wife kept the day excursion secret until they arrived in Blue Ridge and he saw the train.  He was delighted!  We rode in an open car - no windows, so we could catch the breeze but they do have closed cars that are fully air-conditioned.  The concessions were reasonably priced, which was a first I had experienced and the staff was super friendly.  

I have seen more scenic routes through north Georgia than the one this went along, by far, but you do ride along I believe the Ocoee River, where there were many folks tubing and canoeing, which looked relaxing.  When we stopped, we ate lunch in the border towns and although it was really just a small town, as I understand it there is a lot of activities that would be good for an overnight stay such as rafting, mining, and hiking.  The rivers are Class 4 and 5 rapids, which is a blast to do and I believe they held some of the Olympics games there in 1996.  

Anyways, here are some pictures, Austin had a blast...so much to look at, people watching, etc.  He is such a great little dude to take on trips like these!

I did find a great little orchard that I want to go to when he gets older.  It is called the Mercier Orchards and it looks like they allow you to pick your own apples, strawberries, blueberries, cherries, etc during certain times of the year.  What a way for Austin to learn where his food comes from!  He can pick his own!  Can't wait!

Club Foot Update

Well, this is an update because we have been going through the process of correction for many months but I hadn't yet posted about Austin's condition so I will quickly bring this to the present.

We discovered Austin had a possible clubfoot at a 28 week ultrasound.  We were pretty sure his left foot was affected but we could not get a good shot of his right foot so we were unclear if it was bilateral.  When he was born, it was clear that something was awry as both feet turned in significantly but the left one was definitely tighter.

Just minutes old!

When we went to the pediatric orthopedist at about 10 days old, he was not convinced that the left foot was not just turned through positional means so he instructed us to stretch his foot to a normal position at every diaper change for the next six weeks.  I can't promise you that we were very diligent in doing this during this period as we ended up discovering we had a little lad that also had milk intolerance and was also going through quite a bit during that period as well.

At his checkup, the doctor determined that although very mild, he did in fact have a true club foot on his left and we were beginning the corrective casting right away.  This is where a cast holds his foot in a certain position for a period of several weeks with weekly changings of the cast that eventually over-corrected his left foot to where it was pointing down as normal and beyond his shin by 70 degrees, using the Ponsetti method nonsurgical technique.  Each cast change he got better at adjusting and after 4 weeks he was ready to move to the brace.

Cast went up to his mid thigh

He started doing reverse crunches within a month and has very strong abs!

He was to wear the brace for 3 months for 23/7, with an hour to bath and do what I called "free foot time" that I spread out through the day to give him a break.  The brace ended up becoming an extension of him and although it has inhibited his ability roll over at this point, he is progressing on all other fronts normally, even sitting up pretty much unassisted a month early!

Holding onto his brace - very smart!

As of today, we have reached the 3 month mark and Austin can now wear his brace for night time only and his days will be free to work on the roll over, build his sit up skills without the weight of the brace and enjoy some breathing room in this Georgia heat!  We will put the brace back on as part of his night time routine and perhaps nap time and will be relishing in perhaps some new developments since he will have all of his facilities to get moving on his next phase of crawling and eventually walking!

Yeah!

Ode to the Working Mom

I am suddenly overwhelmed by the preparation, required routine (I do not do well with keeping them, but do well in them) and research needed to do the best by my son.  I mean some parents relish in the solid food stage but I have been dreading it so much that Austin is five months and we have only been toying with it!  I mean, we had a routine that worked and now I have to add in solids to the mix, which is in addition to his every 2.5 hour feeding of formula.  For heavens sake. 

Anyways, it got me thinking about all those moms that are working AND doing a great job with their kiddo(s).  I mean, I work but I am clocking in a month what these ladies are doing in a week and I am doing it from home.  How do they manage the nightly awakenings (Austin is still at 2/night and waking up between 6-7am) and make sure their children are getting the bonding time, the reading time, the play time, the discovery of new things, managing the new stages, cooking for the family, cleaning the house, researching the how-to's of parenthood, and fit in some "me" time?  I am amazed.  

During Austin's and my recent visit to my folks, naturally, we talked about what it was like to raise my brother and I and all the things that my mother had to manage, not only working, but for a few months at a time by herself!  My father was deployed on submarines quite a bit when we were younger so my mother often did everything by without the help of a spouse.  A new appreciation for her, I tell you!

I remember in my twenties thinking about whether I was the type to handle "being home" full time and not off working on building my career while a nanny or daycare provider cared for my son during the day.  I was a "climb the ladder" type and often the youngest to get there, always trying to out do myself each step of the way.  How does this extreme A-type personality go from the hustle and grind to staying at home? It was a hard thing for me to imagine for a good while.  It felt like it was an either/or choice because I knew I would not be able to do both very well.

Glad that I have the best of both worlds at this point.  Working a few hours a week breaks things up and gives me some personal, non Austin, satisfaction as well as keeps me in tuned with the "outside" world.  Plus I am doing it at home and my son is now my full-time gig and working with him is amazingly satisfying as well.  I am no super-woman, I have found, and although I am glad about our decision to have me stay home as I would not have it any other way, I am humbled by the fact that there are women that do both and manage it pretty well. 

So, hail to the working mom. You are my heroes!

You call this solid?