Ana is right, we didn't know what we were in for. In fact, we still don't know and we have managed to make it through 7 weeks of babycare and parenthood without too much going wrong or harry. I'd say that J and I have done pretty darn well considering the fact that neither of us had changed a diaper alone before our first night with our boy. While I knew that babies spit up, poop a lot, tinkle in your lap, howl from time-to-time, and sleep all day long and eat all night (all of which our Rowan does very well minus the spit up which is non-existent in our house), I wasn't prepared for how much I would love this little boy. And so yes, Ana is right--but it isn't the "bad" things that we couldn't have prepared ourselves for. Instead, it is the unbelievable love and joy that has me turned upside down and living in what I have heard referred to as a "fog". I had no idea that my parents loved me this much or in *this* way. I wish I had words to describe what parenthood feels like, but I don't. Maybe someday when I have my witts back and I am able to reflect a little longer than 5 minutes at a time I will be more eloquent and find the right things to say...or maybe not. Maybe *this* is supposed to be left undescribed so that others can experience the miracle of loving their child on their own and in their own way.

Although I can't describe how I feel, I can describe the things we have experienced so far. I know that I have lost a lot of what has happened already because memory works in funny ways and I am saddened to think that I will forget even more as time goes on. So, as an attempt to capture what I can before it slips away here is what our lives have been like since September 6th, 2008.

Let's see. How can we organize this... I know:

Hanging About the House:
Like most new parents we spend an enormous amount of time at home. I am pretty sure my lovely kid-unfriendly couch is going to have a large indent in it by the end of my 12 months off because I seem to sit a lot. I have found it quite difficult to do much of anything except stare at Rowan and pretend I know how to play with him. We sing, we tickle but mostly we just look at each other in wonder. John is much better at playing and I think that is why his boy smiled at him first. It happened in the bath in the early weeks and now happens more regularly. In fact, the smiles started to be a daily thing on Monday, October 27th. We have an amazing assortment of photos of the little guy from the time he was carried through the front doors. Here are a few of my favourites:
Rowan at 5 days old.

Visits:
When Rowan was 7 days old we took him to 2 birthday parties where he met his Great gramma- Sitou, many of his great aunts and uncles and second/third cousins. He managed quite well and so did we for that matter. He peed on his grampa's lap while at Sitou's birthday party which was comical but also embarrassing for his poor mom! His dad was quite proud though.

Rowan also took a trip to meet his Great Gramma on my side of the family as well. We have been back to see great-gramma on other occasions as well but I have to admit, taking the little man into the old age home gives me the hibby-jibbies. The thought of all of the germs in that place makes me feel, well--sick. I am not a paranoid freak about cleanliness and sanitization but after an elderly woman in a wheel chair stuck her hands in Rowan's mouth during our last visit I contemplated having him swallow a spoonful of rubbing alcohol. Okay--that's not true, but I worried about his health for a few days afterward. Why is it that a pregnant woman and a baby are public domain? Why do people think that they can put their hands all over you or your baby? It's the strangest phenomenon and I don't think I will ever truly understand it. I certainly don't have the urge to walk up to a complete stranger and poke my fingers in their tummy or in their baby's face! Sheesh...

We have had many visitors to the house since his arrival as well. My family has been back for Thanksgiving which we hosted, Rowan has met his Uncles Joey, Gihad, San, Chris and Dom and Aunts Suzanne, Sue, Caroline, Michelle and Lou. I expected the women to love Rowan but it was how the men reacted to Rowan that I will cherish most. I haven't had the opportunity to see any of John's friends with a little baby before and it was a real treat. He is loved, there is no doubt about that. I think one of the greatest pleasures we will have will be to watch Rowan grow up with all of the little ones either here, on their way or in the dreams of their wonderful parents to be.

Jen Petric, Gerry and Shirley, Geeta and Beatrice our neighbours, Saryu and Shelly, Aunt Mountaha and Uncle Michel, Aunt Nejat and Perla, Dora and Ezzio have also met our little boy. It is unanomous- he is a big hit (but then again, was there ever any doubt he would be?).


Great Gramma Richardson

Trips:
From the very beginning John and I have planned to travel a lot with Rowan. We wanted to get him used to being in the car seat and sitting still for prolonged periods of time because we anticipate that our lives will be filled with wonderful adventures outside of Ottawa. And so, we have packed him up and had him in Toronto twice in October. We went to Emily's second birthday where he visited the Toronto Zoo. He slept through the entire experience but his mother thoroughly enjoyed the hippopotomous and elephants. His dad loved the insects and reptile exhibits. I have to admit, I liked them too.

Rowan met his Uncle Chris and Emily for the first time. It was love at first sight for Emily. Apparently Rowan is one of her best friends already. Again, should we have expected anything less? Absolutely not. I suspect that, while they may live in different cities, our little munchkins will grow up knowing each other very well. Emily had a wonderful birthday and we were very happy to be part of it this year. Her mother is one talented cake-maker and I know John, Rowan and I are looking forward to eating many many more of them in the years to come.

Two weeks after our first trip we were back at Ana and Chris' for a conference. John had his first half day alone with Rowan and I had my first half day without him. I was supposed to be gone the entire day but by noon my breasts were about ready to explode and I missed his little face too much to stay away. We got to stay in Ana's bedroom (which I soaked with milk because of my day-away) because Chris was away. This meant that we got the pleasure of being nearby when Emily got up in the morning. She watched us as we changed Rowan's diaper and was facinated by the bare little bum. She pointed and said "Do you see?" to her mom several times. She didn't have the words to express what she was observing but even at 2, she was able to discern the difference in her bum compared to Rowan's. We found out this week while Ana was visiting us that Emily has decided that Rowan has a "noodle" on his bum. You have got to love little minds!

From Toronto we headed West to Cambridge to spend a few days with Margo, Brent and Addison. "Ronin" had his diaper changed many times by his cousin Gracy who insisted that I couldn't forget the cream. I am happy to announce that Addie finally likes me. I think that I made her nervous or something when I was pregnant because I couldn't get down to her level and play like everyone else could. She loves her Aunt Jenny now and her Aunt Jenny loves her to bits. My favourite part of our visit was watching Gracy run after the cats yelling "I'm gonna get-chou". She rubbed her hands and crunched down as she said this and honestly, I thought I would burst out in tears it was so sweet. I still get teary thinking about it. She is going to grow up too quickly. Distance is cruel because it has this uncanny ability to cause kids to change too drastically from one visit to the next.

We got to introduce Rowan to Aunt Nicole, Uncle Darren and Carys too. I think they have been the most excited about Rowan so far. Or, outwardly excited that is. They couldn't stop saying how cute he was. Nicole had him out of the car seat and was playing with him instantly. It was so much fun to see. Carys didn't quite know what to make of the whole situation but played well while we visted. She has grown so much since our last visit too. It won't be long before she is talking. At the time of the visit though her main focus was food. She was obsessed with eating what ever the grown ups were having. She got so frustrated when we were enjoying delicious cakes and didn't include her. Baby-Mum-Mums did the trick. It is incredible to think that Rowan will be her size in just a few months. Nicole and I talk about how the difference between them will not even be noticeable in a couple of years and yet, they are miles apart now developmentally.

Meagan also came to see Rowan while we were at Margo's. She brought him the cutest Robeez with monsters on the toes. We had dinner together which was a stressful event because I chose a very busy place and they put us in a booth which is impossible for breastfeeding. Poor Rowan almost had his back broken when I tried to stuff him under the table to get him to latch. Needless to say, that didn't last long. I ended up sitting in the isle where everyone was lining up for food with my breast feeding apron on and a screaming child at my boob. Ah...gotta love public feedings. It was worth it though because seeing Meagan was a ton of fun.

So...Rowan is already well travelled and, luckily for us, he travels quite well. He doesn't fuss in the car, tolerates new surroundings, can sleep through being put in his car seat at 5am to get on the road, eats well from the bottle, sleeps long distances and adjusts nicely to being home again. After our second trip to TO though we decided to stick around home a little more--apparently Rowan's parents are bigger homebodies than they realized!

Here are a few photos our first adventures. I wish we had taken more of everyone...


At the Toronto Zoo.

Milestones:
The milestones at 7 weeks of age are hard to recognize but so far Rowan has:

• regained his birth weight in under 2 weeks
• smiles regularly when we play with him
• kicks both of his legs
• can hold his head up with ease
• will hold his head up into a sitting position when we pull him up
• has slept over 5.5 hours in one stretch which means he technically sleeps through the night.
  
• giggles and wiggles a lot
• focuses on our faces and will follow us when we move
• has gone through approximately 500 diapers
• sleeps all alone in his crib (much to his daddy's dismay)
• takes naps in the afternoon
• drinks well from the bottle and breast
• likes tummy-time and his mobile
• loves his bath