What 2020 Has Looked Like So Far For Us Three

Well, hellooooo! 🙂

Last I wrote, we had just touched down in Massachusetts and began a new chapter living back near our roots. Our “stuff” hadn’t arrived yet, our cars were being shipped over and our main focus was getting our now 7.5-month-old adjusted to his new life (and time zone) here. Honestly, that’s definitely still our main focus, but I think he has probably adjusted more quickly than even Sam and I have. Today’s post is going to be a little all over the place because I want to give all the updates – from Henry to us to living on the east coast again.

HENRY

The little guy has really gotten into a good routine here (minus the naps… he’s definitely a cat-napper who refuses to sleep more than 30-45 minutes most days). One day he napped for close to 2 hours, though, and we actually were confused. 🙂 I guess he just doesn’t want to miss any excitement in the daytime. We aim for 2-3 naps a day, and usually an earlier bedtime if he doesn’t get in that last one of the day.

He’s eating about 2-3 solid meals a day (jars of veggies and fruits, and a little baby-led weaning… but he isn’t quite to the point where he can pick things up and feed himself), in addition to his 4 bottles. Instead of feeding him every 2-3 hours, we now give bigger bottles around 7, 11, 3, and 6:30. It’s been working pretty well, though he doesn’t always finish the 8 ounce bottles, so we refrigerate what’s left for the next feeding.

In case you’re wondering, I’ve stopped exclusively pumping and have moved to feeding Henry formula. It was a really hard thing for me to do but now I feel really good about it because you know why, mom guild SUCKS. We all have to feed our babies and this works for our family. He honestly doesn’t seem to miss the breastmilk lol… so it’s been a much harder transition for me than him. I use Baby’s Only Organic and Organic Lebenswert Formulas. Not gonna lie… formula is REAL expensive but I want to give him quality formula so it is what it is. He’ll switch over to cow’s milk when he’s one, so we don’t have that far to go.

Introducing solids has been fun (and wow, messy). It’s a whole “thing” – between getting him in the chair, prepping for the mess, feeding, and clean-up. His favorites so far have been banana, avocado, green beans, sweet potato and rice cereal. We tried chicken the other day… and he’s not sure how he feels about it, haha. I definitely want to try more baby-led weaning because some friends have told me how awesome it’s been for them and it teaches baby to be an independent feeder from early on. Have you ever tried baby-led weaning?

Henry’s sleep has been great lately but to be honest, it does change every couple weeks or so. Some weeks I’m like YES, he slept 10 hours! And, others, it’s back to him teething like wow and getting up every couple hours or so for comfort/bottle. It’s taught Sam and I to just go with the flow and be patient.

What has worked for us super well is his bedtime routine. He at least knows it’s time for bed when we wash him up/bathe, give a full bottle, put on cream and his pajamas, read a book, turn on the white noise and place him in his crib. 95% of the time he falls asleep within just a few minutes without making a peep. Then it’s “our” time with dinner, TV, talking and bed. I know… some wild parents over here! 😉 By 9/10pm, I’m toast…

Let’s see… what other updates on Big H? He has one tooth on the bottom and one next to it just poking through. He has lots more hair now and eyebrows, lol. We joke that it just all came in one day. It’s a light/medium brown color. He’s sitting up (with some assistance here and there) and is super into pulling/grabbing things… like my hair and necklaces. He for sure knows his name (which is SO cool to me). He giggles a lot… and I can’t get enough. He is super hard to change now because he is so wiggly and twisty. He independently plays a lot which is awesome. And my favorite… he lights UP when I come home and say hiiiiii. Best. Feeling. EVER.

ME

My new job has been really great. I am about a month in now and I feel like I’ve gotten into a good routine.

Here’s what I love:
– my boss and team (super nice, easygoing, and empowering).
– the location (in the heart of Worcester where there’s tons of places to walk, eat, and get coffee).
– the parking (covered garage… you know for those crappy snowy days).
– the hours (I’m an early-riser and a new mom so I start around 8 and end at 4, and that’s been working really well for us).
– the human aspect (working in healthcare, I feel like what I write and market really is something more meaningful than what I was used to. These are real-life stories that I get to share.
– the workflow/pace/variety (I get to travel to all our locations which is a great way to meet people and move around outside of my cubicle).
– the challenge (this is definitely the highest role I’ve ever had and with that comes a lot of responsibilities, so I’m getting used to making more decisions and leading the way as a manager. It’ll definitely be good for me professionally).

OUR PLACE

We really are enjoying where we’re living. We’re about 25 minutes from both sets of parents which works out perfect for visiting, babysitting, and date nights!( Sam and I got to go on our first date in 4 months—yep, 4 months…— and it was so awesome to know Henry was with my parents. They truly had a ball and so did we (candlepin bowling and dinner)! We also love that our apartment is so spacious with its open floor plan and 2bed/bath. It’s on the first floor which is ideal with a baby (and all their things) and there’s plenty of FREE parking for us and company. I really don’t miss paying for a parking space in LA and trying to climb stairs with a bulky car seat. Ah…

Our big plan is to buy a home sooner than later. Living here in our apartment right now is saving us money and it’s really plenty of space for us. Ideally, though, we’d love a home with two floors and backyard that we can really make our own, so that’s the next goal.

One thing we did have to really get used to was the cold/weather/cloudy days. Guys, I miss the sun. I do. There, I said it. Leaving LA for a cold and dark winter here has been a ROUGH transition for us, honestly. Sam and I talk about that sometimes and then we have to STOP because we don’t want to be downers. There are SO many reasons why we wanted to move back here so we gotta see the glass half full and not obsess about the differences in weather. Summer… is…. close…. RIGHT?! Lol!

In full transparency, our big plan was to move back in the summer when it would be warmer here, but things just didn’t pan out that way with the job search. I found a great opportunity and it uprooted us FAST. Which brings me to Sam…

SAM

Sam is the best because he’s been KILLIN’ the stay-at-home dad life!

Our move had us both quitting our jobs in LA right around Christmas — the only difference was, I had something lined up here. (We knew it would happen one way or another, and that’s just how it unfolded.)

Sam’s company unfortunately wasn’t able to transfer him on the east coast, so he’s been bustin’ ass trying to find a great position here within the beer sales world – all while watching Henry full-time while I work. It hasn’t been easy but I think those two have really bonded.

I think it’s special that, although I know Sam would prefer to have a full-time job in place and have that routine going, he has this precious time with H and we’re able to make ends meet right now. I know he’ll find something soon (know of any leads?) because he’s been on lots of great interviews and has a solid network of connections.

*Side note: Sam has said it himself and it couldn’t be more true – staying at home with a baby is NO joke. It seems like it’d be so simple with bottles, naps, changes… over and over again.. but it’s exhausting and all-consuming (though also the best thing ever 😂), so I think this time he’s had at home with H has been really eye-opening for him in many ways.

Being first-time parents together… we’re learning so much about babies, life, and each other. We’ve leaned on each other in new ways. We eat cold dinners sometimes, because we end up eating it at 8. We take turns showering and getting ready, while one of us takes over with Henry. We do copious amounts of laundry that just piles up the day after it’s done. We just make it work together, however it gets done. I really wouldn’t want to do any of this with anyone else. He’s the best partner.

Let’s see… what else can I catch you guys up on?

We’ve really just been trying to get into a routine here. Once Sam gets a job, we’ll be adjusting to an even stricter routine with Henry because he’ll be having to go to my Mom’s house or to daycare (or a combo… TBD) every day.

We’ve also seen our families a lot which has been awesome. Tons of get togethers and meals with them! Friends, too. All that’s been wonderful because it’s a top reason why we came back.

Oh, yoga! 🧘🏻‍♀️ That’s the other thing I wanted to give an update on. I auditioned at a local studio and they offered me a regular Friday 5:30am class on the spot, which I did NOT expect to happen at all.

I was really excited to entertain the idea but after talking it over with Sam, I decided to start off subbing instead so I can really focus on work/family right now. I do want to add in teaching as I get more into a good groove here. I think maybe it’s just too soon right now to commit to a regular class….. and, at 5:30am….. that’s quite early, even for this morning gal. 🤣

My workouts have been pretty few and far between so far. I miss exercise so much! I really gotta work on fitting it in. I have, however, started taking advantage of the gym at work doing lunches where I’m free. The workouts are mostly cross-fit like, so that’s been a good push for me. I try to go a couple times a week. 🙂

Well… that’s about it, friends. Thanks for reading and learning more about our little family.

Hope all is well on your end.

How has 2020 been for you so far?

Xoxo,
Ari