Chaos with a shovel

August loves school. Today when I arrived to pick him up he said, "August stay at school." Yesterday when I picked him up he went a little crazy playing with a shovel while I waited to help him get dressed to go home.

Evidence:

The preschool streaker

When I arrived at dagis to pick up August this afternoon, one of the teachers was getting a small group of kids ready to go outside to play. August was one of them. When he saw me, he decided it would be a great idea to take all of his clothes off. So, right there, as all the other kids were getting their winter clothes on, August was getting down to his skivvies.

Thinking we'd had enough fun and knowing that his diaper was full and ready to be changed, I took it off. And off went August!

He found a pathway through open doors and ran circles around the preschool rooms completely naked. Another mom there picking up her daughter tried very hard not to laugh. She laughed.

It took me about fifteen minutes, and promises of Ah Mah-cooked brownies waiting at home, to corral him into some clothing.

He's crazy, but I love it.

Because you come here for them...

...not to listen to me ramble on about myself - some pictures from yesterday.

When I arrived at dagis yesterday Augie was still asleep. We've switched our schedule and pick him up early on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and yesterday it had taken him a long time to fall asleep. It was so precious to see him lying there.

The white rectangle beside him is a laminated photo collage of Augie with his family (parents, grandparents, cousins). His caregiver said that he lies there staring at it as he falls asleep. Isn't that sweet?

How Leif normally looks in a stroller:

Fridays at dagis

On Fridays at dagis they paint the children's faces, if the children want. Augie didn't for the longest time, but recently he's been coming home looking like a cat or Pippi Longstocking. It's so stinkin' cute.

To get a snack in the afternoon, the kids have to be sitting down, and then they pass around a bowl of fruit. Today they were eating oranges.

Leif is such a good sport. He puts up with massive kiss-attacks from Augie, a finger in his eyeball several times per day, and the occasional hair-pulling and face-stepping, and he meets it all with smiles and body wiggles. In the meantime, he's also learning how to roll both ways and suck both thumbs at the same time.

Asleep!

The big news today is that Augie slept on a mat at dagis! He's been sleeping in his stroller this whole time, but today when James went to pick him up, he saw that they had posted this picture on Augie's cubby. Hooray!

In other news, Leif had another check-up today; we should really just call them weigh-ins, because that's what they do- weigh him. He's up to 4.700 kilograms, or 10 pounds, 6 ounces. That's a gain of 320 grams in the last week (and remember, we're aiming for 150 grams per week). We go back next week for another weigh-in. 

Getting in the groove

All's well over here. We're settling into a comfortable groove and everyone is getting used to each other. Two nights ago we had a really rough night, with Augie wetting through his diaper around 4am and then coming into our bed and crying until I nursed him (I don't nurse him overnight anymore), which woke up Dai-Dai, and then Augie wouldn't go back to sleep...the next day was tough. But last night was much better, with Dai-Dai nursing only a couple times overnight, and Augie woke around 4 o'clock again but I took him back to his room and we slept together until 6:30 (6:30! - that feels like such a luxury these days), then enjoyed a leisurely morning together of breakfast and books while Baba slept with Dai-Dai. Preschool preparation and drop-off were much more difficult today than they have been in quite a while, though - we think it's because Augie spent so much time alone with me this morning, which he doesn't get a lot of lately, and that made it harder for him to go away in the morning.

We gave Dai-Dai (official name coming soon!) his first washing today - they don't wash at the hospital, and we've been waiting for his cord stump to fall off. Here are some pictures of him all squeaky clean at one week old (+ one day).

It's getting better

Today was much better than last week for Augie at dagis. He cried when James dropped him off, and did spend part of his day in the stroller, but he also got out and played - and he even fell asleep in the nap room, rather than in the stroller. That's a huge step!

One of the nannies, Åsa, sent this picture to us this afternoon. He woke up when she moved, so he only had a 40-minute nap (he's been sleeping for three hours when he naps in bed at home), but we're so pleased that he went right into the nap room with all the other kids and sat down. We're also so pleased that they're taking such good care of him. Though it looks like we need to get him his own pillow.

When I picked him up this afternoon he was sitting in his stroller, but he was happy and looking around (rather than his shell-shocked expression last week) and he gave me a great big smile, rather than tears. As we walked home, he chatted away and pointed at things and was his usual silly self. What a relief for all of us.

The only thing that isn't getting better is bathtime. He used to love his post-prandial bath! Some evenings James couldn't get him out. But since he started at dagis he refuses to go in the water; we've resorted to taking him into the shower with us, where he screams and screams - but we need to get him clean somehow, at least every few days. We can't figure out why he suddenly hates the bath (and shower), and we don't know what to do to fix it.

This is him when we got home:

Augie loves to play in the elevator. He gets a cheeky look on his face when he goes inside and closes the door on me, so that I'm standing outside watching him. Today he managed to close both doors (they both have to be closed for the elevator to run), and apparently someone had called the elevator, because as soon as he closed the inner door the elevator started going up! So I turned and ran up and up to the fifth floor - can you imagine that, me at 8.5 months pregnant, running up three flights of stairs? All the while I could hear Augie, happy, saying "bye bye" every time he passed a floor. When I got him out at the top he was all smiles. Cheeky chap.

Queequeg update

Today's ultrasound confirmed what we suspected: the baby's head has dropped. Way down there. The woman who performed the ultrasound even seemed surprised at how far down Queequeg is. The dip is my uterine measurement is now officially explained. They say that with second pregnancies, the baby doesn't usually drop until labor has begun. Guess I've got a couple-week head start on labor, huh?

And we also confirmed what I already suspected: this baby is big (at least by American standards), too (Augie was 8 lbs 1 oz when we arrived one week early). The estimate is that Queequeg currently weighs just over seven pounds - so if s/he keeps cooking for another 2.5 - 3 weeks, until my due date, s/he'll be coming close to nine pounds! So, please, let's get this thing out of there sooner. I'm hoping for about another week, and in all honesty I feel like I can't handle much longer than that. The baby sitting so low makes everything uncomfortable, especially walking and bending over. Thank goodness I rarely have to bend over with a toddler around. =)

Our goal for this weekend is to get to the point where we feel fully ready for the baby to arrive - apartment in order (James put up the bassinet yesterday!), all the newborn clothes and textiles washed and folded (halfway there), new dresser and lights purchased, maps and guide sheets for all our helpers printed, etc. Though of course we already have all that we really need for a new baby - loving parents, fully functioning breasts, enough clothes and diapers to keep everyone clean and dry for at least a few days.

Oh - and we got more good news today - Augie did much better at dagis than he has all week! Åsa, the "nanny" at dagis who seems to care of him the most, said that today he was "back on track", even though he cried after James dropped him off. He played, he flirted, he ate, and he napped! When I went to pick him up, he was up and playing with the other kids (rather than sitting catatonic in his stroller, as he was yesterday). I'm sure that after being home with us over the weekend Monday will be difficult again, but we're hoping next week is much better.

An Augie self-portrait:

The view from up here

This is what things look like from my point of view:

Yikes! It looks like I'm going to blow!

For my birthday yesterday, James arranged for me to have a pedicure - my first ever - and a massage. We were going to spend the day together, visiting the photography museum and getting lunch, but Augie developed diarrhea the night before and we couldn't take him to dagis. So James took care of Augie while I was pampered.

That morning the three of us enjoyed a latte (well, 2.5 of us did) and chocolate croissants (well, 2 of us) from the chocolate shop across the street. Then James took Augie to the park while I went home.

We took Augie to school again today, as his diarrhea cleared up, and he had another horrible day of it. He started crying before they reached the school, and he spent the entire day in his stroller. When I arrived to get him in the afternoon, he has sitting in the stroller, looking shell-shocked. He cheered up on the way home, but it was terrible to see him looking so...numb and abandoned. We've spoken to some friends who say it's taken their kids anywhere from three weeks to three months to get adjusted; let's hope to be on the shorter end of that range.

Adjusting - road bumps

I may have mentioned before that Augie's first week of preschool (dagis) went very well; this second week is a different story. He has cried both days when James dropped him off. On Monday, they said he cried all morning and was so exhausted they had to put him to sleep before lunch (they saved some for him); he cried again today when James dropped him off, and they said that he was upset all day and spent most of the day in his stroller, uninterested in playing or eating. Both nights have been very rough - when James and I set to getting dinner on the table he gets incredibly clingy, demands to be carried, and refuses to eat much. We can't get him in the bath. As I write this he's screaming in his bedroom as James tries to put him to sleep (I did my bit, which wasn't enough). He only napped for about 35-45 minutes both days, so he's incredibly tired in the evening (hence the difficult dinnertime), but tonight he just can't seem to calm down.

We knew this transition would be difficult but were lulled into false comfort when last week went so well. Of course this is good for him - getting some independence (and separation from Mama) before the baby comes - but it's so hard to watch him go through this.

As for the baby - as of tomorrow I will be full term! 37 weeks is considered "early term", I think, which means that the baby is fully cooked but could still use some time in the womb. As uncomfortable as I am (and I'm quite uncomfortable), we'd like #2 to stay inside another couple weeks. I met with my midwife yesterday, and everything's fine though my uterus is measuring a bit small. She thinks it's because the baby seems to have dropped already (which would explain the discomfort, especially while walking/standing) and she isn't concerned, but standard protocol is to send me in for an ultrasound, which has been scheduled for Friday.

When Augie first gets home from dagis he's usually in a great mood and ready to play. For example:

Here's hoping the week gets easier, not harder for him (and us).21

My morning boy

You'll probably see a lot of breakfast pictures on here - we get the best light, and it's the stillest Augie is all day. It also means his face is covered in food and he's often chewing.

Augie's at dagis (that's the word for preschool/daycare here) right now - completing his first-ever full week of preschool! It's gone better than we'd imagined so far. James was with him at school all day Monday, I was with him all day Tuesday, and since Wednesday he's been there without us. He hasn't cried at all when James has dropped him off! And he hasn't cried when I've come to pick him up, either! He seems to feel very at home there, and he comes home in the afternoon full of energy and words (so far we aren't picking up any Swedish vocabulary, but I'm sure it's coming).

When I was with him on Tuesday, just after snack time a boy - probably a few months younger than Augie - was standing alone and crying, crying, crying. Augie stood watching him, looking concerned. Then Augie got his cup of milk and offered it to the boy; when the boy didn't want it, Augie found a pacifier on a bench and tried giving that to him to cheer him up. The boy didn't want that, either, so Augie ran off and found another boy and stuck the pacifier in his mouth (that boy continued to suck on it for some minutes!). It was touching to see him caring for another baby, trying to help him feel better.

On the home front, we are mostly unpacked! I won't say that we're organized or that everything is in its place, but most of the boxes are empty and now we're opening up the last few and desperately trying to decide where to put everything. It's so nice to have our dishes and our silverware and our glassware and our cooking pots! Our big struggle now is to find somewhere to put all of our clothes; we're probably going to have to make another IKEA run to buy some sort of wardrobe, as we were out of drawer space with just the few bags we brought on the plane with us, and we have six or seven big boxes of clothes to put away.

Even though I know that I'm eight months pregnant and my body is under much strain baking this little baby, I've been surprised by how quickly I fatigue while unpacking. I can only get through two-three boxes before I have to sit down (or better, lay down and nap). And because of the amount of work and energy I'm putting into unpacking, the whole yoga-and-Swedish-lessons everyday thing is going to have to wait until next week to become a reality.

And I haven't even packed a hospital bag for the birth, or figured out the route to the hospital!

One last pic before I go:

Getting settled at school

Today was Augie's second full day at school. James accompanied him again, and I stole these photos from James's phone. I'll go with him tomorrow, and then on Wednesday he will have his first day alone. I don't doubt that the first few days will be tough for him, and I'm anxious about how napping will go (James has been putting him in the stroller at naptime and going for a walk these first two days). I know that within days (or weeks) he'll be fine and will get into the rhythm of it, but I do worry about this transitional time. And as soon as he gets used to it, kaboom! - the biggest life-changer ever for him. I'm trying to remember to savor the one-on-one time that we have together now, before I'm consumed with the needs of a new baby.

That said, even though it's only been two days, it's been fantastic to have some alone time! I didn't do anything exciting today - lots of housework (our shipment from the US arrives in two days and we still don't have enough space!), phone calls, etc., and another IKEA run to check out wardrobes. I also did a Swedish lesson with the Rosetta Stone online subscription that we bought and practiced yoga for about twenty minutes - two things I've vowed to do every day that Augie is in school before the baby arrives. It was so nice to have the physical and mental space to think about the things I wanted to think about and do the things I wanted to do (Augie is particularly proprietary about how I spend my attention). And of course it was fantastic to see him when he came home, his beautiful bouncing face running to me (and away, and back, and away, and back). A little separation makes the togetherness so much sweeter.

Baba's back and it's time to snarfle

What a big day for us: Augie's first day at his new school (he'll be attending full-time for the first time ever), and James is back! Augie and I went to school in the morning and James met us there (just hours after his flight back from the US). It was a much-needed break for me, and some much-needed Baba time for Augie.

When they came home in the afternoon, we went into the bedroom for a big family snarfle. James would throw him around, snarfle him, kiss him, and tickle him, and when he'd stop, Augie would sit up and ask for more. He was so excited.

By the way, the bump on his head is gone and he's doing just fine today.

Snarfle session: