Goodbye 2009.

So many PERKS to celebrate today.

Today is the last day of 2009.

Today is also the last day of this decade.

But most importantly...today is Henry's 4 month birthday.

Here's a sneak peak of our little monkey:

He's growing up so fast.

I have a feeling 2010 is going to be one hell of a year.

Christmas PERKS.

How could Santa say "no" to this face?



As we were viewing the proofs at the potrait studio a couple weeks ago and this shot popped up, I believe Daddy Perks said...

"Oh my god, our son has man boobs."

Man boobs or not-BabyPerks is the best. Christmas. present. ever.

Hope you and your families are having a wonderful holiday week and enjoying all the perks that come with this time of year.

What a difference a year makes...

One year ago today I found out you were growing in my belly.

The day I found out I was going to be your Mom, you were merely the size of a pin-head.

Now you weigh more than 14 lbs.

The day I found out I was going to be your Mom, we rushed to the bookstore to buy pregnancy books.

Today we were at Barnes & Noble buying you Dr. Seuss books for you for Christmas.

The day I found out I was going to be your Mom, I loved you.

Today I love you to the moon, and back, a million times over.

3 Magnificent Months.

Is my sweet baby boy really 3 months old?

Where. does. the. time. go?

I'm actually sitting here watching him roll over like crazy as we speak.  Which essentially means my life as a non-baby-proofed dweller is over.  I can officially no longer drop Baby Perks wherever and leave him without worry.  In fact, just yesterday I put him on the floor right in the middle of our great room and when I came around the corner from the kitchen to check on him, he had rolled across the room and I nearly stepped on him.  Whoops.

Here are a few shots of his 3 month photoshoot...PS-Daddy Perks and I are dying for Santa to bring us a digital SLR camera for Christmas...so please excuse the poor quality of the photos.  No-my son does not have red hair.

Have we reached "Chunky Monkey" status yet?

He's just SUCH a happy baby.  And he still LOVES his hands and chews on them often.

Just posing for another picture thinking to himself..."Do these numbered onesies really go all the way up to 12 months?"

This monkey isn't seeming quite so big these days huh?

We probably won't be able to put him on the ottoman much longer...he's just TOO big :(

How much do I love these boys?

You could never tell they're related huh?  (Insert sarcasm here.)

So of course he was all smiles when Daddy was holding him, and then when it was time to take pictures with Mommy...

He puked all over himself and me.  Just typical.

Dear Henry-Baby-Buggy-Boy,

You are changing every single day now.  You'll  go to bed one night, and literally look completely different when you wake up the next morning.  You're filling out in the face (as seen in pictures) and really looking less and less like a baby-and more and more like a boy these days.  This month you started sleeping on your belly.  It was a rough couple nights when you first started rolling over consistently because you'd roll over to your belly and your arms would be pinned under you and you weren't happy about it.  One night you woke up every 2 hours because of this and every time we'd put you back on your back-you'd immediately roll right back over.  It was comical, pathetic, and exhausting all at the same time-a bit like parenting at times .  But once you figured out how to roll back over onto your back-all was well in the world.  You've also now realized that rolling over and over can get you from point A to point B and it's become your first official mode of transportation.

When you wake up in the morning you always do a big stretch and both your little arms go above your head.  When I'm getting you dressed for the day you're always in the best mood.  Sometimes you laugh so hard you'll wake up Daddy in the other room.  He's decided it's infinitely more enjoyable to wake up to your sweet laugh as opposed to the alarm clock.

You still LOVE music.  Mostly this comes in the form of me singing to you.  I make up most of the songs I sing to you, but you don't seem to mind.

You still cross your legs when you sit.  You also wiggle all the time.  You never stop moving unless you're about to fall asleep.

I also went back to work part-time last month.  I work at school every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, and all day on Wednesday.  I'm so thankful that I'm still able to be with you most of the time, but I appreciate my time at school because I think it helps me have balance so I can be the best mom and wife possible to you and Daddy.  While Daddy and I are at work, you are in the wonderful hands of friends and family.  We feel incredibly blessed to leave you with people we know and trust whole-heartedly.  I'm still nursing you and the only bottles you take are pumped milk for the meals you eat while I'm at work.  I'm so thankful breastfeeding has gone so well-you haven't been sick once since you've been born.  Not even a runny nose.  I hope this is the case for a long, long time.

At 3 months old, you aren't yet conscious of just how much joy you bring to those around you.  Your vibrant personality and constant smiles warm the heart of so many and even though you don't know it yet-we can't wait til you are old enough to understand just how happy you've made so many.  When we take you to spend time with our friends and family, we love watching how you interact with those who are dear to our hearts.  I took you to a baby shower the other day and you just laughed and flirted with all the women the whole time.  One woman even asked me how my 3 month-old could already seem coy at such a young age.  I told her, you take after your father.  Daddy had his first kiss in Kindergarten.  I'm hoping you wait a little bit longer than that to start breaking hearts.

Love,

Mommy.

A few things they DON'T tell you...

Ok...time to get brutally honest.

You may be thinking this post will only benefit you if you're actually pregnant.  BUT I'm  here to tell you-if you've got a bun in the oven, you're a woman who may someday decide to procreate, OR-even if you're a man with the intention of impregnating your wife someday...read on at your own risk.

I've now officially been a Mommy for a little over 3 months...and while 99% of that time has been what I like to refer to as " cake and cookies"-there have been a few realities that my fellow mommies failed to mention in their efforts to prepare me for the exciting life journey of Motherhood.

I knew there'd be sleepless nights.  (Thank god-not too many for me.)

I knew there'd be moments where I'd be spit up as I was walking out the door.

I even knew that I would probably take on a whole new appreciation for bodily functions-becoming an absolute cheerleader for my son's regular bowel movements and frequent burping.

I DID NOT however know that the following...

Around 3 months after you have a baby-you may start losing LOTS of hair.

I'm not trying to be dramatic- (and thank goodness I've got some hair to spare) but for the last week and a half, every time I run my fingers through my hair a disturbing chunk of hair comes out in my hand.  I thought I was going crazy until another teacher at school told me this is completely normal and pretty typical around this time after giving birth.  My hair stylist also added that I can look forward to my hairline completely changing about the time Henry turns one year old.  AWESOME.  I was hoping in addition to the stretch marks and an unusually elastic stomach-that I'd still be seeing the physical side effects of giving birth a year. after. the. fact.

All you breast-feeders out there...

You may grow accustomed to leaving the house in a top that fits you perfectly, only to find that a few hours later, the buttons are close to popping off due to the fact that it's time to feed your child.  The idea that my boobs (sorry Dad, Father-In-Law, brothers, guy friends, and or any other readers uncomfortable with me referencing this body part-you should know that these days they are feeding device and nothing more) can range 3 different sizes all in the same day is still strange no matter how many times I witness it happen.  I experienced this the other day and found it necessary to visit a dressing room in a retail store, NOT to try on clothes, but to allow Henry to aid in my quest to help my shirt fit once again.  (And we moms think our kids are dependent on us...pshaw.)

Ok-maybe I'll stick with two mommy-isms today.  Wouldn't want to unload too many shockers on you all at once.  Hopefully, you realize I share these things with my readers, only so that they've got a few less suprises thrown at them as they venture down the road of becoming a mom, being married to a mom, or just educating oneself on the perks of life with a little one.

Happy Monday Perks Followers.

Sleeping PERKS.

If I could recreate the famous scene from The Sound of Music where Julie Andrews is running through the rolling green meadows singing...

"THE HILLS ARE ALIVE...WITH THE SOUND OF[Baby Perks  sleeping through the night] MUSIC"...I would.

Why you ask?

Because Henry slept for 10. HOURS. STRAIGHT. LAST. NIGHT.

And when I woke up this morning and realized that my little monkey man was STILL asleep...I quickly switched on our video monitor to see him sweetly sucking his little thumb, dreaming of the good life.   Not once did I have to sleepily stumble into his nursery last night to feed him, or check on him during the wee hours.  And I'm telling you what-when a new Mommy gets 8+ hours of seamless snooze time-she feels like she could run a marathon.

Here's to many many more uninterrupted nights of sleep.

Happy Thursday Y'all.

Santa Perks.

Sitting on Santa's lap is just not. what. it. used. to. be.

Remember the days when you would pay a couple bucks, walk up to Santa, sit down, tell him what was on your Christmas list, have your picture taken with a polaroid camera, and then watch the photographer furiously shake the photo before quickly shoving it into a cheesy Christmas photo sleeve?  Ha.  Not anymore.  Oh no.  We've not entered the digital age folks.  And Santa and his little photographer elves are milking sucker parents for all they're worth.

Let me set the scene for you...

Giddy first-time parents eagerly head to the mall to enjoy watching their sweet little Henry sit on Santa's lap for the very first time.  We are warmly greeted by the following sign...

"Remember-sitting on Santa's lap is always free.  But if you intend to take pictures with your own camera, you MUST buy one of our photo packages.  See our sales assistant for details."

No big deal right?  How expensive can the cheapest photo package really be?  Ha.  Don't kid yourselves.  We came to find out that we'd be investing AT LEAST $19.99 plus tax just to put Hank's sweet little bootie on Santa's lap so we could take pictures.  And you're probably thinking...ok, $19.99 isn't so bad.  Well-it wouldn't be...except for that price, all you walk away with (aside from wonderful memories) is 4 wallet-sized pictures.  Let me repeat that...4 wallets for $19.99.

So for a split second, Daddy Perks and I looked at each other and thought...do we really need to spend over $20 for Henry to sit on Santa's lap when he clearly won't remember this experience since he's a mere 3 months old?

And what do you think we decided?  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...

Judging by the serious look on Henry's face...it appears his list for Santa this year is quite long :)

I was quite impressed with Santa's authenticity.  Real beard and belly.

Henry was rockin' his brown leather loafers for this expensive momentous occasion.

Anyone notice the cheesy 1970's backdrop in these photos?  I laughed because when I look back at my own pictures on Santa's lap for the 80's, I always think the background makes them look so dated.  I can't help but think that Henry will have the same feeling when he looks back on these pictures years from now.

And in case you're wondering...we didn't even go with the cheapest package.  Because of course, once your sweet precious baby's face pops up on the computer screen and they start showing you the potential pictures you can order-you realize you'd pay ridiculous amounts of money just to remember these special moments.

So for $32 we walked away with 1 5x7, 4 wallets, and a USB with 3 images on it.

However...the memories we have of watching our sweet baby boy sit on Santa's lap for the first time...now those, were priceless.