Washington Highlight #1 : Flying

A quick note... Crystal, Dylan, and I have been on vacation in Washington for the past few weeks, so we are a little behind on the blogging. We have had a great time up here in the Northwest and decided we would like to share some specific events with you. So as not to overwhelm the reader, we will document our vacation in individual highlight blogs. Enjoy!


Flying

Until our vacation we had never taken Dylan on an extended trip of any kind, not even in the car, so the plane ride out here was an anxious time for all involved. He was sleeping soundly in his car seat/stroller contraption until we got to security and they forced us to take him out. Of course he woke up and wasn't happy about it in the least. We managed to get all of our million carry-on items through security and he calmed down shortly after that. He was starting to fall asleep again before it was time to board the plane. Unfortunately, when we got to the end of the tunnel, just before getting on the plane, he started crying like you wouldn't believe. Tears were pouring out of his eyes and he was kicking his legs like a dog trying to stay afloat in water. I don't think he quite understands fear yet, so it couldn't have been that he was afraid to go on the plane (that will come in a few years I imagine). It might have been because it was so loud with the engines running, but usually he handles noise without issues. Regardless of the reason, we had to take our screaming little boy onto a plane full of people. Oh what fun!

We encountered three types of people on the way to finding our seat. Type 1 people were the ones who cringed with fear every time our little man let out a scream. Their faces looked like someone was jabbing toothpicks under their toenails. Obviously they didn't broadcast a receptive attitude towards us sitting by them. After we had chosen our seat, one of these Type 1 people actually got out of his window seat and demanded he be allowed to change seats, despite the fact that he was holding up other passengers boarding the plane. I felt sorry for the Type 1 people because it is sad to be so afraid of a little baby, especially one as cute as Dylan.

Type 2 people were the ones that showed indifference to the screaming. They just subtly cranked up the volume on their iPods or raised their voices as they were chattering on their cellphones. I don't think they would have been pleased had we sat near them, but at least they wouldn't have made a big ado about it.

Type 3 people were the ones we liked the best. They were mostly the older ladies on the plane that had compassion for our situation and tried to make us feel better about it. They would stroke Dylan's arms as we walked by and say nice things like "Oh, here, here little baby" or "Everything will be alright" or "Bless his little heart". It was comforting to have these people on board and made it a little less painful. This is how people should react to babies. After all, they don't know any better and crying is how they respond to most situations in life.


I am pleased to say that the worst part of the whole plane ride was actually just boarding the plane. Once we reached our seats and got situated, Crystal started feeding Dylan. While the plane was taxiing Dylan finished eating and then gave both of us a HUGE smile that just melted our hearts and took the anxiety away. I turned to Crystal and said "Too bad everyone can't hear him smile." After that he sucked on his paci and was sleeping before we lifted off. He woke up as we were descending into Portland and then ate some more. Everyone around us commented on how great he was and we just smiled and nodded our heads. We think he is pretty great also!

Dylan snoozing on the plane

Happy 1/4 Birthday!

Our sweet little boy is 3 months old today! He is still growing like a weed and changing almost daily. Last week he weighed 14.6 pounds. It has become more and more of an arm workout for me each week running errands and carrying Dylan around town in his infant carrier. With how quickly he is changing and how undeniably handsome he is, Scott and I take a LOT of pictures. Scott made this incredible slide show to share how we've caught Dylan in the act over the past couple months. The music Scott selected for the video is perfect. "When I See You Smile" is mine and Dylan's theme song at the moment. The first month I was a bit delirious from the sleep deprivation, but now we usually sleep 7-8 hours at night and smile together as much as possible everyday!

Here is a list of some of Dylan's Favorite Things so you can watch for them in the video....

• Dylan's new favorite thing is to suck on his hands. Often he tries to put both hands in his mouth at the same time. It is quite entertaining to watch him focus on opening his little mouth as wide as possible to squeeze in all of those tasty fingers.
• His Paci
• Bath time
• Watching his train mobile
• Singing "If You're Happy and You Know it" (The biggest smile comes when Scott and I stomp his feet)
• Cuddling (Cousin Ashley is an especially good cuddle partner!)
• Standing on his feet and walking with Dad
  

Enjoy the Slide show!

ASCII Greetings

.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._
                  ____                 _  _____ 
|__| _  _  _      |_ _     _-|-|_   _ |_    |   | 
|  |(_||_)|_)(_|  | (_)(_)|  | | | (_)|     |(_)|(_|
       |  |  ,_|                         (__|    ,_|

.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._.:*~*:._

This is a picture of Mr. Dylan smiling to wish you all a Happy 4th of July! He is wearing a special holiday shirt that was given to him by his Great Aunt Sue Young, whom he was able to meet a few weeks ago. He was also wearing some really cool shoes that his Nani gave him, but I couldn't get those in the picture. Remember to check back on the 10th for Dylan's 3-Month video. It should be a good one.

Dylan has faired well since his traumatic shot experience a few weeks ago, although he was grumpy that entire weekend. We are all excited to travel to Washington in about 12 days for Uncle Michael's and Aunt Mandy's wedding. They recently bought a new house and their Realtor nominated them for the TLC show "My First Home". They were selected to be on the show and they will be filming while we are there before the wedding. Crystal and I are hoping we can sneak Dylan into a few of the shots so he can get some TV exposure. We'll let you know when the show airs, just in case he makes the cut. With that cute face, I don't see why he wouldn't.

2-Month Checkup

Dylan had his 2-month checkup yesterday, which unfortunately means he had to get a handful of vaccination shots. In all he had to get three different shots in his legs and also had to take one of the vaccines orally. He was doing great until the nurse took the first shot out of his leg and gave him the other two. It was very emotional for Crystal and I to have our little boy screaming and crying while looking up at us and not being able to help him. We felt like he was saying "Why are you letting this happen to me?" It was a tough time for all involved.

The picture is from last night, a few hours after the shots. You can see his cute band-aids on his little legs. After this picture we gave him a warm bath and massaged his legs to help work the medicine around. He seems to be doing fine today and has probably already forgotten the nightmare of the nurse sticking him with the sharp needles.

The actual checkup went very well. The doctor said Dylan was doing great with his motor skills and deemed him to be a very healthy little boy. Dylan weighed 13 lb 3.5 oz (up 5 lb 10.5 oz from birth), which puts him in the 50-75 percentile range for little ones his age. He also measured 24.5 inches in height (up 4 in from birth), which puts him in the 75-90 percentile range for his age. So far it is looking like he might have his uncle Michael's height and we are pretty sure he has his uncle's big feet as well. He is already stretching his 6-month socks. It will be a sad day for Daddy when he has to crane his neck to look his little boy in the eye.

Daddy & Dylan

In honor of Father's Day I wanted to post some of my favorite pictures of Dylan and his Daddy.

Love at First Sight

Snuggle Bugs

Play Time

This looks more fun for Dylan than Daddy. It will be easier when Dylan is a little bigger.

My Handsome Guys

Happy Father's Day Scott! We Love you.

Dylan's 2!

HAPPY 2 MONTHS DYLAN!!

Well our little man is growing up so quickly. Today is already his 2 month birthday! As you can see in the picture, he has been smiling at us a lot lately and we are loving it. The smile comes and goes quickly, so Crystal had to be fast to get this picture.

Crystal weighed herself at her last checkup 2 weeks ago, then weighed herself again while holding Dylan and it was determined that he weighed almost 11 pounds. That is about a 50% increase from his birth weight. Way to go D! We won't get the official weight until his checkup on the 20th though. He has started to sleep longer and longer at night, so we are not as tired these past few weeks. Crystal passed her checkup and has started to play soccer again. All good stuff.

I thought about doing another musical slide show, but I decided to save it for the 3-month event instead. Shortly after that we will be taking Dylan on his first vacation to see his Uncle Michael and Aunt Mandy get married in Washington on July 26th. We're counting the days (46 to go!) and are excited for them both.

The Many Faces of Dylan

We took Dylan to get pictures taken for my Mother's Day gift and they turned out great! We bought a CD so that we could share the pictures. Here are a few of my favorites and Scott put a few many more in the slide show on the right sidebar:

Dylan's Pre-Smile

He is now smiling all the time, especially after his morning feeding. It is no coincidence that this is also my favorite part of the day. There is nothing better than a happy baby.

Content in Mama's hands

Doesn't this look like an Anne Gedes pose? This closeup captures just how handsome our little boy is. I love that he is already getting little baby rolls. What a heart breaker.

So Serious

In this picture, I imagine Dylan leveling with Scott and I, saying, "Ok enough with all the flashing lights already, I have some serious napping to do."

Playtime

This shot captures Dylan's expressive side. He has started to talk to us about what is going on with high pitched noises and sighs. You'd be amazed by how long we can carry on a conversation.

Baby Pool Results!

I am very sorry for the tardiness of these results. I wanted to come up with a suitable calculation that would properly weight all of the questions and reward people for getting close to the right answer. Crystal and I certified the formula and then calculated the final results. Here are the Top 10 finishers, of which the top 3 will be getting surprise prizes in the mail when I get around to it. The maximum score possible was 750 and the average was 462. The complete results (with 44 entries!) are posted on the bottom of the right side bar, below the Dylan age counter. I posted the formula we used in a comment to this posting if you are interested in that geek stuff.

Baby Pool Top 10
1. Jon Capron 674 (amazing!)
2t. Sara Vanderhei 610
2t. Paula Lomax 610
4. Jeanette Flattley 590
5. Megan Krebs 585
6. Laura/Pete Robertson 580
7. Melanie Connors 560
8. Sherry Spencer 550
9. Crystal Connors 545
10. Katie O'Neill 540

I would also like to point out that Crystal was the only one who guessed the correct date and will also be receiving a special prize. For those of you thinking that she held out until the 10th just so she could win the pool, think again. I can verify first-hand that she did everything in her power to deliver him on the 9th. :)

Thank you to all who participated. We really enjoyed it.

Mother's Day

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Here is a picture we took today to celebrate Crystal's first Mother's Day and Dylan's baby dedication at church. As you can see it is a beautiful day in Albuquerque and (thanks to Papa) we have some very nice roses in our yard.

Dylan and I would like to dedicate this blog posting to our mothers:

Crystal(Mama), Teddi Rivera(Grandma), Paula Lomax(Nani), Sherry Spencer(Nana), Marlene Lomax(Gigi/Gram), Marian Connors(Grandma Great), and Betty Adams(Gaba Great).

We love you gals!

(Remember to look at Dylan's 1 month birthday video in the posting below and vote in our poll)

The Daring, Dapper, Darling Dylan

Today is Dylan's 1 month birthday. We are celebrating this occasion by posting another video in honor of our little man. It has been a wonderful month, despite the loss of sleep. In the last few weeks Dylan has become more alert and has actually started to enjoy his bath time. He is eating very well and growing like you wouldn't believe. It has been 2 weeks since his last checkup, but I think he is pushing the double digits in the weight category.

He is still sleeping most of the time, but lately he has enjoyed his awake time by lying on his play jungle mat. He stares at himself in the little mirror and he likes it when we stick our hands on his feet, which allows him to wiggle like a worm and actually go somewhere. He is making more funny expressions everyday and looking us in the eyes when we are talking to him. It has been great! We are excited for when he will start smiling at us on purpose, rather than just smiling when he has the gasoline. We love our little guy very much and are excited and blessed to have the opportunity to hang out with him everyday. Enjoy the video...

Week 1: A Changed World

Our little blessing Dylan has been with us 1 week today. Just as everyone said it would, our life has changed! However, for me it has changed in a way that is more wonderful than I can describe or could have ever imagined. Scott made this awesome slide show for me to share some of the moments we've captured on camera so you can catch a small glimpse of how our world has changed...

The Best Birthday Gift Ever

Family Photo Leaving the Hospital

Me and My Little Boy on My Birthday

Today I got to celebrate my birthday with my son. I couldn't have asked for a better time or a more special little man. We love him very, very much.

Our Little Dylan!

Dylan Scott Connors was born on Thursday, April 10th at 4:08 AM. He weighs 7 lb 9 oz and is 20.5 in long. He came out with a nice head of blond hair and the most startling blue eyes I have ever seen. He looks a lot like his mama when she was born. We are now all at home and loving the new addition to our family. More details and photos to come, as well as the official baby pool results.

Snoopee's Favorite Spot

Here is a picture of Snoopee that Crystal took this afternoon. It is in Dylan's room and the sun is shining in through the window. Snoop loves to lay on the floor in Dylan's room and soak up the rays. It is a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Albuquerque. Crystal, Snoopee, and I have gone on a few long walks these last couple of days in an attempt to promote the labor process. So far there have been a few random contractions, but nothing long-lasting. So we wait and sit in Dylan's room together every now and again.

36 Weeks & Growing

Today I am 36 weeks 4 days pregnant and posing in my new favorite room! Hope you all enjoyed the nursery video. This last month is definitely going to be the most physically taxing and draining, but it just means that I'm that much closer to holding my little boy. I have been counting down the days until I am done working. Just 6 days to go. Once I make it through this weekend, rest is in sight (well, at least until Dylan arrives)! Today I was pampered with a wonderful spa treatment including a fun new haircut, a scalp massage and a deluxe mani-pedi that Scott gave me for Valentine's Day. I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful and supportive husband! Speaking of blessed, I had a wonderful baby shower a few weeks ago. We received lots of super generous gifts and many adorable outfits. As you can partially see in the nursery video, the closet full of clothes is a good indicator that Dylan will be well dressed. Thank you so much to everyone! We now have the essentials we need, plus some, so whenever Dylan decides to come we will be ready. Here are a couple of pictures from the shower:

The fun cake made by Linda

Honored guests that flew in from WA & AZ
(from left- Nana, Me, my Mom, and Gram)

My Dad also flew in from Washington for the shower weekend and deserves the MVP (most valuable Pops) award for his contributions to the nursery and to Scott's sanity. They were able to go skiing and golfing while still building all of the furniture and putting the finishing touches on the nursery. Thanks Dad!


Also remember to enter the baby pool by leaving a comment on the post below and if you haven't seen the nursery video yet, it is just two posts below.

Baby Pool Time! It's Fantastic!

I have been meaning to do a baby pool blog before the little guy arrives and realized that I was quickly running out of time. The countdown says just over 24 days, which really means it could be anytime now. So... it is now time for the baby pool! Below you will find a list of questions. You enter the pool by leaving a comment with numbers 1 through 5 and your guesses listed next to the corresponding number. If there is more than one of you associated with an account (like M & M), you should each enter the pool by giving different guesses and specifying who guessed what. The person with the most correct answers will win and receive a special prize in the mail shortly (well maybe a few weeks) after the birth of little Dylan. Don't forget to look below and watch the nursery video I posted last night. Okay... guess away!

1. What day will Dylan be born on?
2. How much will Dylan weigh (pounds and ounces)?
3. How tall will Dylan be (inches)?
4. Will Dylan have hair? If so, what color?
5. Will Dylan be born in the AM or PM?

Nursery Video

After fighting with my computer for a day while trying to make the long-awaited nursery video, the time has finally come. The video is ready and available below with just the touch of a play button. As a disclaimer, this is the first time I have used the camcorder and the first video I have made on the computer so it is a bit of a mess... but I love it. I forgot to tape the ceiling fan we installed and this really cool train rug that is on the floor, but you get the idea. If you want to see the full thing you will just have to come visit us after the little guy arrives. Oh yeah... make sure your computer speakers are on because there is some musical accompaniment. Without further ado...

D is for Dylan!

After much thought and deliberation, Crystal and I pared the choices down to our favorite five names. Then we separately ranked them and looked at the results. Dylan was on the top of both of our lists and that sealed the deal. In honor of his father (that's me!), we have decided his middle name will be Scott. So our son is now Dylan Scott Connors and we are very excited about that. We have had a few weeks of calling Dylan by his name in Crystal's tummy and I think he likes it almost as much as we do. Either that or it is just the hiccups. Who really knows.

Look for a couple of new postings this week. I am sorry to say that I have officially ended my nursery chronicles after a riveting 2 episodes due to the strike shortened season and will just present a summary video of the now !!COMPLETED!! nursery in my next posting (the photo above is actually from the nursery as a bit of a teaser). You definitely won't want to miss it. Also, Crystal should have an updated belly pic posting (almost 36 weeks now) and some news from the baby shower earlier this month. So don't give up on us yet.

Bye for now...

32 Weeks

The Connors household has been through a whirlwind of changes over the past few weeks. Scott is making progress on the nursery and it is nearly ready to move furniture in. I am so excited! I will let him give you the details in his nursery stories since he is such a wonderful storyteller. Last weekend my Dad's parents, Gram & Gramps, came to visit and shared some helpful decorating pointers and helped us get closer to finishing the nursery project extraordinaire. This week we also had the carpets cleaned and an electrician installed wiring for overhead lighting in our office and a ceiling fan in the nursery. We managed to pack all this in with prenatal/gym exercise classes on Tuesday & Wednesday nights and childbirth education classes on Thursday nights. Whew!!!

Tuesday of this past week we received good news at our ultrasound. We had the ultrasound because our midwife was a little concerned about the growth of the baby due to measurements being small for my due date. However, we learned our baby boy is growing well and weighs about 3 lbs. 12 oz. and is positioned well for delivery, with his head down. He was hiding, facing my back, so we were not able to get any pictures of his face to share. I have check-ups every 2 weeks now until 36 weeks, at which point we will meet with the midwife every week until the end. This final stretch of pregnancy is difficult but is also very exciting. One of my favorite parts is watching my belly shimmy anytime he kicks or rolls around.

Next Saturday is our baby shower. This is super exciting news for me because my parents will be in town, along with both of my grandmas! Scott and I had fun registering at Babies R' Us and Target but it honestly took me awhile to get over the intimidated and overwhelmed feeling I got when we first walked into the stores. Babies R' Us in particular carries a vast array of baby things and contraptions that will soon be a part of our lives, with everything from bouncers to butt paste.

Back by popular demand... here are a couple of recent belly shots, one from 5 weeks ago and one from tonight. Scott and I can't believe I was ever measuring small. What do you think? People keep asking me if I ate a watermelon or basketball and Scott says I look like a kangaroo with a little Joey in my pouch because my stomach is all baby right now.

27 Weeks

32 Weeks

Creating a Nursery Episode II: Cool Hue Blue for You By You Know Who

Hello Mr. or Mrs. or Ms. Blog Reader. Welcome back to the Nursery Episodes! Sorry for the delay. Due to the writer's strike I felt I should postpone this episode a week in order to have enough episodes left to make it through the prime viewing season. Crystal and I have been watching the new Terminator show and now I think we should have named our blog "Preganator: The Baby Connors Chronicles". What do you think?

Anyway, back to the task at hand. I was inspired to come up with the title of this episode by the Dr. Suess' book, Fox In Socks, which I recently read to a niece and nephew. It's a great book if you are not the one reading it aloud. His tongue twisters are a bit more eloquent, but you get the point. Without further ado...


Episode II: Cool Hue Blue for You By You Know Who

01.26.2008 1230 Albuquerque, NM
In The Nursery

Scott is back in the nursery after a hard week of work at the factory. He is staring down the challenge and it is staring right back at him. He managed to pull off a miracle last week with his Red Scare work. He called it the Red Scare because while he was painting it, he was scared that Crystal would absolutely despise the dark red color (red has that effect on people) and he would have to scrap his whole plan and start over. Fortunately Crystal loved it and had been raving about it all week. Now the pressure was greater than a tea pot of boiling water and all Scott wanted to do was let out some steam to relieve it. His stomach was doing flips and his heart was racing... it was GO time!!!

Scott started painting at a furious pace. Paint was literally flying out of the bucket and on to the walls. In under an hour he was already sending Crystal to Lowe's to get some more paint (Cool Hue, a blue hue, for those of you who want to kn 'e' w) because one can just couldn't handle the domination. He owned the room, he owned the paint roller, and he owned this project. It was actually coming together. Scott was thinking he might finish two coats of paint in time for his niece's (Maggie) birthday bash at 1700 that night.

01.26.2008 1630 Albuquerque, NM
STILL In The Nursery

Okay, Scott was wrong about his record pace. He is still in the nursery trying to apply the finishing touches to his first coat of paint for the day. His early pace cost him dearly as he hit the 2-hour mark and he certainly did NOT own the closet. Scott realized that small closets are places best left unpainted. His muscles ached, his back was in full spasm mode, and he was on the brink of defeat. The worst part was that he would have to face the challenge again tomorrow. His output for the day: 1 coat of paint in 4 non-stop hours. It's a good thing Scott doesn't make a living as a painter.

01.27.2008 1430 Albuquerque, NM
Back In The Nursery the Next Day

Scott is in survival mode now. He's been left battered and bruised by yesterday's revolt by the nursery walls. He is just hoping to get this thing done in time to sleep tonight. He starts off at a steady pace, putting the finishing touches on all of the dreadful corner and edge spots. Scott despises corner and edge spots because he is a perfectionist and can never get the paint to look perfect in these spots. He dutifully pushes on, yearning for the time he can use the big roller and get it done. He loves the big roller. So big, so fast, such a perfect painting tool.

01.27.2008 1900 Albuquerque, NM
STILL In The Nursery

Scott has been steadily painting for the last 4.5 hours, yearning for dinner and rest. He is again in the dreaded closet and finishing up his time with the big roller. He applies the last stroke and calmly places the roller in the paint tray and walks out of the room a victorious man. He has stared defeat in the ojos and swatted it away like a pesky fly. He brings Crystal in to reveal his masterpiece and she is ecstatic, saying "I love it! It looks sooo good!". She immediately starts taking tape off of the walls (it is her favorite part of painting) and gets happier with each rip and pull. Scott responsibly reminds her she isn't supposed to be in the room with freshly painted paint fumes, but she presses on a few more minutes until the tape is gone. The smile on her beautiful face eases Scott's aches and pains and allows him to let out that high-pressure steam he has built up all weekend. He looks at the room and can't wait until next week to tackle the accent molding. He is driven by the joy that it will bring to his lovely wife and her glowing face.

Here is an up-to-date picture for your viewing enjoyment. It may look a lot like the pictures from the Red Scare episode, but rest assured, Scott actually painted blue on those walls. You can see white between the blue and red sections where the tape used to be. It is important to note that it isn't the same color as the turquoise blue shown in the Microsoft Paint design picture. It is much nicer (and lighter) and matches our nursery set perfectly.



The End!