8 months and Thumbsucking

This week Lincoln passed his 8 month mark. And apparently he likes to suck his thumb. He has been doing it a lot the past few days and we have caught several pictures to prove it. Sean was a thumbsucker, so he thinks it's super adorable. I think it's really cute as well, but my realistic side is thinking about my fears of having to break such habits . . . but I decided I'm just not going to worry about it. We'll see how long this little phase lasts, I guess.

A couple days ago.

This was just this morning. He was playing with his toys and then got bored I guess . . . so he layed down and went to sleep.

Last night going to bed.

Yesterday morning in the carseat while we were getting some breakfast.

In other news, Lincoln has been learning a lot these past few weeks. He can almost crawl. He can get around on the floor by scotting himself on his belly and using his hands and knees, but he's not actually crawling. I'm pretty sure he's loving his new-found freedom, and it will only get better once he picks up speed.

He still loves baby food and he still loves to nurse. He's never been a pro-sleeper and has actually gotten worse since his teeth started coming in. He was sleeping 6 to 10 hours straight every night for a while, but not anymore. :(

Lincoln loves his toys. He will sit and play with them on the floor for like 30 minutes while I get chores done. I keep a basket next to my bed of all his baby supplies like lotion, vitamin droppers, vaseline, the bulb syringe etc... and there is also toys and books and stuff in it. He loves to get over to it and dump everything out. I'll just lay at the edge of the bed and watch him take each thing out, look at it, shake it around, drop it, and then go for the next thing. It's so funny.

He can also pull himself up on things. These pics are of him holding onto our bed. He has pulled himself up on the bed and he can pull himself up in the crib or also on our pant legs. He is really just too much fun. And obviously I have taken a billion pictures of him, but I can't help it! He's just so darn cute and constantly entertaining us! We love him!

Diablo III

Yesterday was a day Sean had been looking forward to for quite a while. One of his favorite video games was releasing a sequel: Diablo III. Diablo II came out about 10 years ago. Four years ago Sean found out that Blizzard Entertainment would begin working on the third, and finally yesterday it was released!

Sean loves video games! But he is also very picky. More often than not he tries a new game once and decides he doesn't like it and takes it back to Game Stop (luckily they have good return policies). After watching him play and after analyzing his gaming preferences I've determined that Sean is mostly into games with good stories, good graphics, fun multiplayer play, and challenging strategem. Playstation fulfills a lot of these requirements, but Sean definitely favors the three games made by Blizzard that are made for PC. Yeah, they only make three games. And these three games are POLISHED, let me tell you. Artistly, they are extremely impressive. Sean also loves them because they are diverse in their play style. In the past Sean has played World of Warcraft with his brother and little sister (she's an undercover gaming nerd). haha. Lately, he has been playing with some of the guys that work at Texas Roadhouse who also happen to be into gaming. The owner at Texas Roadhouse is actually into these same games as well (kinda random), so they've been playing together with a couple of other guys.

I think Sean's love of video games will be the thing that keeps him young. haha. I don't know if all other men are like this...by that I mean, I don't know if all other men have some hobby they love that is kind of boyish, but it seems like a lot of them do. Kinda funny, really. I've been working on developing my hobbies lately . . . but usually I just wanna sit down and look at facebook or watch Netflix. I need to find something that I also can get into with other friends etc... I'll figure it out, but until then I guess I can just live through Sean. :)

Sean and Lincoln before Sean was heading to Game Stop for the midnight release. Is it just me, or can you see a major resemblance in this picture?

Toofers

Well. IT. HAS. HAPPENED. One of my greatest fears has come to light: Lincoln's bottom two teeth have broken through his gums. Why is this my fear? Two reasons. One: I'm terrified of being bitten while nursing. I heard about this lady whose baby bit her and cut through the flesh of the nipple. It got infected and obviously is was extremely painful. She couldn't nurse and it was terrible. ha. I laugh because of course something like this would freak me out, even though I highly doubt it will happen. Luckily being bitten isn't as much of a concern until his top teeth come in, which won't be for a little while (hopefully). Reason two: After spending a year working at a pediatric dental office I have developed a fear of baby teeth. I can't tell you how many molars I have seen that literally have holes in them, or brown spots all over the tooth. I have also seen countless x-rays that reveal significant decay on front baby teeth. Cavities in young teeth are a nightmare! Fixing them is no cake walk. Usually it requires general anesthesia because no child under the age of 5 will sit still long enough for a dentist to fix a tooth, or multiple teeth. Not to mention is also costs a fortune to pay for dental work on teeth that will eventually fall out...only not for a few years. All things considered...I hope Lincoln likes brushing! Bubble gum flavored tooth paste might become my best friend! :)

But anyways...I will say that his teeth coming in has also been very exciting! Now that it is actually happening I've calmed down about it a bit. He hasn't had terrible teething symptoms, but was definitely showing the signs this whole week, proven by his drooly face in the photos above.

The photos below are just of him having a good time in his 'Wonderbug' and with the kiddie Texas Roadhouse sunglasses Sean brought home. Cuties! :)

Reality...and Motherhood

Have you ever been in the middle of your day and all of a sudden thought, "Woah, how did I get here?" Lately, I've been thinking this fairly often. The fact that I'm married, have a baby, and am a stay-at-home mom still catches me off guard.
When I was pregnant with Lincoln, everytime we saw Sean's dad he would always say, "Your life is about to change..." and then he would go on a little about becoming a parent. When Lincoln was first born he would say "Can you believe how your life has changed?" Now, after the initial shock of caring for a tiny infant I'm starting to understand more of what he meant. My life has drastically changed! And it's never going back. Once you have a child you can never think the way you thought about your life before. For example, sometimes I have random thoughts about random things I would like to study or a random job that I think would be fun to have. And then I remember that doing things like that in the future would never be done the way they were in the past. Another example: last Saturday was my grandpa's 80th birthday party. Lincoln and I drove to Richfield (2 hours away) with my dad and brother to celebrate. We were gone pretty much the whole day. Throughout the day I kept noticing how my tasks operated differently than anyone else there because I was the only one who had a baby. All of my cousins that attended are future parents (some sooner than others), and all of my aunts are quite a ways past the baby stage (and possibly into the grandma phase). I didn't even see one other person with a baby at the event... and needless to say, it became even more obvious how my day basically ran around Lincoln. He needed to nurse, he needed baby food, he needed a nap, he needed a diaper change...REPEAT. I can't just leave him to fend for himself! He's got needs! That I fulfill! Go figure.
With this said it's just funny how I sometimes feel like I'm in a temporary phase of life--like summer betweeen school semesters. And then I slap myself back into reality and remind myself it's not really gonna change. I will be doing this for quite a while. And it will only get crazier and more complicated as soon as Lincoln gets a younger sibling, and as soon as Sean climbs farther up the Texas Roadhouse ladder. But is it weird that I daydream of those even crazier days?
Not surprisingly, the first few weeks that I was done with my job and staying at home were completely amazing. Some of that joy was attribited to my new, less stressful life, but those days were also some of the best days of my life in terms of just feeling like I was making an important difference to someone's life. I love it. Every time I think about being a mom and taking care of Lincoln I just smile. Motherhood is the most fulfilling thing I have ever done. And I've tried to find purpose in a lot of things, let me tell you. Nothing has worked out as well. The whole process of being pregnant, giving birth, and taking care of such a tiny and delicate life is magical and beautiful. Don't get me wrong, it's also brought me closer to insanity than ever before, mainly because of unnatural sleep levels and excess doses of physical discomfort. It's also taken away a few freedoms that I won't get back for a while, but I would never go back. Being a mom is wonderful! It just is! There is just a feeling about it that is unlike anything else. It's a special type of love that makes you more selfless than you ever have been. And I am very grateful to be able to enjoy it as thoroughly as I have. I would recommend it to anyone... :)