Noah will be 4 months old this week! I can’t believe how fast time is flying. I feel like Gary and I are getting the hang of this parenting thing…most days anyway. As I sit feeding Noah during the day I have been thinking about all the funny, and not so funny, things I have noticed/learned over the past 4 months…these are my thoughts and observations…
1. The shower is my little 3 foot by 3 foot steamy and quiet slice of heaven!
2. My weekly grocery store excursion ( when I leave Noah with Gary) is so relaxing! Who knew one could have pure bliss in the frozen food section being able to actually stop and read the labels and NOT mind waiting in long lines to check out since it gives me time to read the latest smut magazine!
3. Gary and I have become fantastic shift eaters! I have learned to down a meal in under 5 seconds flat.
4. I never knew before Noah’s arrival that I would sing and hum so much! For some reason Noah loves my singing/humming…I literally do it ALL day! Sometimes I can hum at the same time as reading a magazine! I sing some interesting medley’s…today’s was America the Beautiful, Puff the Magic Dragon, Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children, Frosty the Snowman, the Ohio State Fight Song, and last but not least….Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.
5. I had read in various books that after the baby your hair falls out….I would have never imagined the VOLUME of hair that is falling out of my head after every shower. Luckily I have lots of hair…so I think my fear of going bald is not going to come true.
6. I also read various books that stated that the baby weight would "fall" or "melt" off if you breastfeed. I am here to say….not true. The baby weight is neither falling or melting, in fact it is sort of just sitting and jiggling. Not a good combo.
7. Speaking of breastfeeding….I never would have thought I would have a "num num" shirt that I wear all the time at home. It is easy access for Noah’s many many many feedings during the day and is just fully stained with breastmilk. Quite a look.
8. There are days that I forget the last time I showered. Before Noah’s arrival I would hear mom’s say this and think it was ridiculous. Now I understand.
9. When in the shower I actually consider taking the time to condition my hair a luxury. I honestly open the shower door and listen for crying…if no crying the conditioner goes on! It us sooo exciting to have an extra 10 minutes in the shower!
10. Gary and I have our 11th anniversary this weekend! We are quite excited. The reality of an anniversary with a new little man in the house is that even though we would like to do dinner AND a movie…I don’t think I can pump enough milk for both…so we must choose one or the other! Thank goodness we have grandparents to babysit for an hour! WOOHOO!
11. Who knew baby spit up would be my new clothing accessory.
12. Our house now has so much baby stuff around that we have to step carefully as to not stop on rattles, books, pacifiers, jumping exersaucers, swings, and blankets. Not to mention the 2 big dogs!!
13. I would have never thought 4 months ago that I would come to LOVE breastfeeding! It is one of my favorite times with Noah. It amazes me that I alone have kept him alive and healthy for 4 months!! Go mommy’s num nums!
14. I see those celebrity mom’s on TV that seem to have it all together…nice clothes, skinny bodies, hair done and styled, make up on, and high heels….and look in the mirror at myself in my sweat pants, baby belly, milk stained shirt, and wet hair from the shower the night before…..and it honestly makes me sort of sad. I don’t know how you can take care of a little one AND yourself. I choose the little one over me for now.
15. I have the best husband around. He is such a fantastic daddy and is so wonderful with Noah. It warms my heart to see them reading at night, watching football together and just snuggling. I am so lucky to have them both.
16. I knew I would love Noah when he arrived….but had not idea I would love him so much it actually aches.
17. One of my favorite new things is when Noah is breastfeeding and reaches his hand up to my face and strokes my face. So precious.
18. Noah’s laugh is the sweetest sound in the world.
19. When you are shopping for a carseat for your little one…nobody tells you that it doesn’t matter how comfortable it appears they will HATE the carseat!!
20. Having a baby is harder than I would have ever imagined…..but it is so wonderful and worth every minute!!!!
We just got home a bit ago from Noah’s first Halloween experience! We had a fun time dressing up with him…as you will see from the pictures! We visited all our friends in the neighborhood and showed off Noah’s costume. One of our neighbors had an awesome haunted garage and we visited and took some pics for you to see. It was really impressive and the hit of the neighborhood, in fact as we were leaving the local NBC news showed up! We then came home and gave Noah a snack and got the doggies dressed up and headed back out for another walk around the neighborhood. It wasn’t too long though until Noah’s superman powers began to fade and we needed to head home! 
It was a very fun night!! Be sure to look at the pictures….Gary made a very nice clown! Mommy was dressed as a sort of punk rock peace lover! 
Yesterday was Noah’s 4 month check up and shots…I hate those shots more than he does I think! All day I was dreading taking him for his appt! He actually did better this time than he did the last time and only cried for a short period. His stats were…Height: 24.75" Weight: 15.5 and he is currently in the 50th percentile for his weight and height. The doctor said he was "spot on perfect". He is hitting his milestones as he should and she referred to him as a little "butterball". Good job mommy num num’s! He did very well at the doc’s office…he really loves our pedicatrician and makes smiley faces at her while she is checking him out. The funniest thing that happened was that she was checking his heart with the stethescope and he grabbed on and wouldn’t let go! She had to pry his little fingers off! Last night we gave him Tylenol to help with his sore little legs (4 shots were given, 2 in each leg) and he was sleeping and eating well but seemed very upset later in the evening. So, we headed to bed and he drifted off to sleep while eating. Sweet boy.
A BIG CONGRATS to our friends the Hicks who had a new baby on our anniversary!!! Welcome to the world little Lane Hicks! Congrats Sharon and Patterson!!!
HAPPY 4 MONTH BIRTHDAY TO NOAH!!! 
Today we all visited Freeman Farm’s for their Fall Festival! It was a beautiful fall day here in Ohio with perfect temps and a nice fall wind. The leaves were so pretty and full of color and were falling all around us as we drove to the farm on the tree lined streets. The farm was only about 10 mins from our house so that was very nice considering Noah hates his carseat! We went into the farm market first and the smell of pumpkin and coffee greeted us! We went out to the pumpkin patch and watched the bigger kids crawling around on the pile of pumpkins…and of course we couldn’t be left out so we oh so carefully perched Noah on the pile too. We had to stop for a little snack for Noah and then headed out on Noah’s first hay ride! A big tractor pulled two carts full of kids and parents through the farm. It was a fun bumpy ride for all of us! Next we visited the petting zoo ( 
zoo might be an overstatement…there were two sheep and a cow) and Noah seemed somewhat excited about the sheep but didn’t touch (which is good since mommies hand santizer was in the car!). Mommy and daddy enjoyed some yummy kettle corn (it was fantastic!!!) and Noah got another little snack from the mommy concession stand. We went back into the market to look for Christmas presents but I could hear Noah from the other end of the store letting us know he was ready to go! It was a fun time!
We just got back from a walk with the doggies and Noah is ready for his late night snack and sleepy time. 
Rice's World 