O'Reilly, the Fighter!

Every night starting around 8:00 there is a fighting match in Inman, SC starring O'Reilly, the leprechaun fighter! He comes out in his silky green robe with his arms waving in the air dancing to an Irish jig. His blazing red hair sparkles in the spotlight as his dad yells at the competitor "Do you wanna get whupped tonight?" (That's a PG version of the trash dump story!). He has a mean uppercut that can take you by surprise and he practices his aim daily with his playmat toys. The only problem is the competitor is always me, his mom!
 You see my son is not a literal fighter, like the one handsome Mark Wahlberg portrays in the movie The Fighter, but instead we have a SLEEP fighter. When he starts getting tired he gets fussy. You're alright if you're walking him around or feeding him, but once that stops he's at it again. I'll lay him down and leave him (for no longer than 10 mins) and he'll start up ready for Round 2. I've finally figured out that he wears himself out and will eventually fall asleep around 10:30. Gone are the days of 9:30 bedtimes....So last night while the battle is drawing to a close I realized life had taught me another lesson...

Life Lesson #2: Enjoy the simple things in life (like those few extra minutes of sleep!)

O'Reilly warming up for his fighting match



Paranoid Parenting

I never figured I’d be a paranoid parent, but that’s what I have become. Truthfully, I figured my type A personality could be nothing BUT a paranoid parent…but I digress. Baby Owen has still been sleeping in a bassinet in our bedroom until last night. It has brought me comfort to know that he’s right beside me and if I need to feed him in the middle of the night I can just sit up, feed him, and put him back to bed or if I need to make sure he’s still breathing I just pop my head up and I can see his little chest moving up and down. Yet, I realized that I wasn’t just being paranoid, I was being a little selfish. Here’s my little 15 pound baby squished in a bassinet where his feet touch the bottom and his arms can stretch out in his touchdown sleepy pose he loves. Then and there I decided it’s time to train him to sleep in his big boy crib. I just knew that it was going to be a horrible, cry all night kind of deal so I waited until my Spring Break to attempt it. Last night was the big night and I laid him down about 10:30 and I checked on him 500 times before I went to bed, and much to my surprise, each time I checked he was sleeping comfortably…all stretched out! I had to go in a wake him up at 8:00 this morning to eat…not even one little peep out of him all night. This morning as I’m looking at my little sleepy head boy I realized life had taught me another lesson and here’s what I learned…

Life Lesson #1: Even babies deserve a little freedom and independence…even if it means just stretching out their arms in a big boy crib

Baby Owen in his touchdown sleepy pose

Sibling Rivalry

So my younger sister has started a blog and it makes me a little happy to read all her posts. Since she's moved to NC it is a great way to feel connected to her little family. I decided to create my own blog in hopes that others can feel connected to our little family too :) Not to mention, that I can not be outdone by my sister!