Letters For Lucas

Wonders, Mishaps, Blunders and Joy.. commentary on my life as a mom in the form of letters to my son

Missing My Daddy

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My dad would have been 63 on Thursday, January 28 so naturally he has been on my mind a lot this week. I loved both of my parents, but I adored my dad and was always a “Daddy’s Girl”.

The birthdays and anniversaries the hardest, but I press on and I am grateful for the memories.

My sister did a nice job honoring our father’s life on her blog, LA ‘n’ LA this week.

This is one of my favorite pictures of me and my dad. It was taken in Tunisia in April, 2005.

Michael Stephen Adams
January 28, 1947 – October 15, 2007


Rest In Peace.

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Yes We Can!

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“I’m asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about change to Washington…I’m asking you to believe in yours.” – Barack Obama

I followed Obama’s campaign diligently while I was pregnant with you and found out he had won the presidency while at a Madonna concert at Petco Park.

I am a sucker for celebrating milestones and today is a big one. One year ago today, President Barack Obama became the nation’s 44th president.

In the 365 days since, the president’s approval ratings have dropped from their high water mark at 69% to 50%, according to a Gallup poll.

To be fair, Obama inherited an enormous mess; an eight year old war, a failing economy, and a nightmare health care system.

Despite the challenges Obama faced at his inauguration and compromises he’s made on issues, I think things could have been worse if the other candidate had been elected.

Love him or hate him, Democrat or Republican, I think you’ll agree that these are amazing First Year photos taken by photographer Pete Souza, the current chief White House photographer.

The best is yet to be.

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Who Cares If Your Baby Is On Track?

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A mommy can drive herself crazy getting caught up in the developmental milestones a baby is suppose to reach and when they are suppose to reach them. I am guilty and I am so mad at myself.

After yesterday’s post on Lucas’ seventh month accomplishments, I made the mistake of digging around on the Internet (Baby Center, What To Expect, WebMD, Parents Magazine, etc.) and found several lists of these so-called benchmarks. I’m a sucker for lists, but as I consulted each one, not only were they different from the last, but they included items that Lucas hasn’t mastered yet, or in some cases even attempted. And that’s when the guilt and head spinning set in… am I doing something wrong, is there something wrong with my baby, will he ever scoot, get up on all fours, crawl, eat solid foods, etc. etc. I must be a terrible parent if he’s not doing what the “lists” say he should, right? What exactly is the difference between gross motor skills and fine motor skills anyway?!?

Whoa! Time for a deep, deep breath….

Luckily, I’m smart enough to know that each baby is unique and that these charts are only meant to serve as a guideline, not an end all be all of child rearing or infant development. The most important thing to me is that you are happy and I have no doubt about that! The rest, the milestones so to speak, will all come in due time.

The best is yet to be.

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Seven Months

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Today you are seven months old and I know I say it every month, but I can’t believe how fast the months are flying by…. I continue to be amazed by you, all that you are learning; and watching you grow.

Your seventh month was an exciting one, as we celebrated your very first Christmas holiday and you reached all of these wonderful milestones, too:

  • Your piercing screaming has been replaced with “ba-ba”, “da-da”, “ma-ma” sounds, thank goodness. I love hearing you talk to yourself early in morning when you wake up.
  • You are mastering the art of the major meltdown whenever I am out of sight. I think it’s separation anxiety and is completely normal, but it definitely tugs at the heartstrings and frays the nerves.
  • You are sort of enjoying cereal once a day, but I’d love to get you eating more solids, more often. So far, we have tried sweet potatoes, stewed carrots, butternut squash and apples and you wanted no part of any of of them. Well, you like gnawing on the apples, but they are very slippery for your little fingers. The bottle seems to be your food of choice and just way too easy for you. We need to work on that. I’m open to suggestions….
  • After being away for a week over the holiday and in the same guest room with us, you are finally back to sleeping through the night!
  • You suffered through your first cold and ear infection. 🙁
  • You love to sit up in your strollers and the more we can keep you off your head, the better!
  • You are thriving in your physical therapy sessions for a mild case of torticollis.
  • You are learning to get around by rolling and scooting…backwards. No crawling yet, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.
  • You can sit up unassisted, but it makes me a little nervous, as you have had a couple of bonks to the head. Practice makes perfect.
  • Your top two teeth are on their way and one is visible.
  • Your eyes are still blue. 🙂

The best is yet to be.

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2010

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2010?! Boy, does that sound weird. I love a new year and I am really looking forward to starting a whole new decade.

I do have a short list of some of my new year’s resolutions. I rarely enter into a new year without them and they are different each year. What can I say, I’m a realist; if I can’t or don’t do it, I remove it from the list! I am usually successful though. 🙂 This year, I vow to:

  • Start reading again, at least one hour a day. Oh, how I miss it!
  • Work out with a trainer twice a week and walk on my own four to five days a week on the quest to get my biscuit back in shape. I am off to a great start on this one; having already walked nine miles in 2010 so far.
  • Start working on baby #2 (scary thought!).
  • Walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, preferably with you in the BOB.
  • Use a cloth bag every. single. time. I go to the grocery store. Incidentally, this was my gift to all of my girlfriends this Christmas.
  • Organize our photos into album, boxes, frames, zip lock bags–something, anything just as long as they aren’t in piles.
  • Learn to live without so many magazines in my life. So far, I have already let five of my 10 subscriptions go. Yay for me! I should be reading books anyway.
  • Spend more time in the kitchen cooking (AKA learn to cook). I have collected yummy sounding recipes for years and it is time to try them out.

I am also really looking forward to my sister moving to Los Angeles (today!), selling our parents house (fingers crossed), our trip to Australia and New Caledonia in April and continuing to watch you grow and flourish.

I wish you and yours a wonderful new year filled with much love, laughter, prosperity and vibrant health.

The best is most certainly yet to be.

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So Much To Say

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“I find sometimes it’s easy to be myself sometimes I find it’s better to be somebody else.” – So Much To Say, Dave Matthews

This is my 100th post! I never thought I’d get here…100 posts!? Wow! I guess I had more to say than I thought.

I love blogging and I am so thankful for the outlet and I appreciate whoever is reading this, especially my sister! I love that she has commented on just about every single post I have made. Thanks, Leah!

If you do read this and haven’t become a “follower” yet, please do and as always, I love feedback, so comment and comment often on anything that strikes a cord with you, makes you laugh, or rubs you the wrong way. I’m also open to advice. I know that there are a lot of first time and seasoned mommies out that I could learn from.

My husband likes to point out that my blog has/is undergoing an evolution and that not all of my posts are “Letters For Lucas” and some are just rants or fun stuff (ie. quotes, book, movie, product reviews, etc.). I acknowledge the shift and he acknowledges that this is my space. 🙂

The best is yet to be and I still have so much to say.

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Half A Year

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Once you outgrew your newborn diapers, I placed one of them on the memo board in your room as a gentle reminder that you once fit into it. Every time I look at that diaper, I am reminded of how quickly you are growing and changing. You are in size 3 diapers now! It’s crazy, where did the last six months go?

Today, we have made it through half a year and like you, I have SO much to learn! I think we are doing are okay though. Here are some of your milestones since turning five months old:

  • You can bounce yourself in your bouncy seat and sometimes it is the only thing that can calm you.
  • You LOVE the Johnny Jumper; I just wish we had a door frame in our home for one, but I guess that’s what Grandma & Grandpa’s house is for. 🙂
  • You get upset when something is taken away from you.
  • You are starting to love the “if I drop it, mom will pick it up” game.
  • You can roll over and back.
  • You can move an object from one hand to the other.
  • You can “hold” a conversation, in fact your communication skills in general have vastly improved and you can now squeal, scream (not my favorite), make bubbling sounds, and operatic octave changes. I can’t wait to hear “mama” and “dada“.
  • You are learning to love cereal and I’m learning to love feeding you with a spoon.
  • You are an international man of mystery having received your first passport stamp and celebrated your first Thanksgiving in Italy!
  • You can now use the Maclaren stroller (despite the recent recall) because you can sit up…with support.
  • You can not be trusted in any of the numerous apparatuses that we have for you without being securely strapped in because you have become a wiggle worm.
  • You have outgrown your first car seat but sadly are still rear-facing in your new one, a very fancy, plush Recaro.
  • You are almost exclusively in 6-9 month clothes now.
  • Your eyes are still blue.

The best is yet to be.

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24 Hour Date Night

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We have a free night stay at the Hard Rock hotel in downtown San Diego, so do you know what that means?! 24 hour date night!! Tonight will mark the first night that your dad and I have both been away from you all night long together and has horrible as it may sound, I don’t have a worry in sight. You are going to be in the capable, loving and caring hands of your grandparents. Let’s hear it for ’em!

Even though I sleep next to the man every night and I just got to go to Italy with him for a week, I miss your dad. We need to reconnect and have some fun and no offense, but have our time together have nothing to do with you, although I am certain that your name will come up a time or 30 over the next 24 hours.

Nobody told me that my relationship with my husband would change once we had a baby. It stands to reason, I mean, after all our marriage now has a third component to it! I just wasn’t expecting it nor was I all together prepared for it. I feel like we are at the point in our new parenthood where we are coming up for air (i.e. you are on somewhat of a schedule, we are getting more sleep and my hormones are starting to return to their previous state), so now is a good time to have this mini get-away.

I love how your dad and I work together as a team to care for you, but we need this! We need this one night away together. So, here’s hoping you have a fabulous time with Grandma and Grandpa (I know you will) and here’s hoping we have a fabulous night without you. 😉 Again, no offense.

The best is yet to be and don’t worry, we will return.

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Mad Dash

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I haven’t worked since September 2008 by choice and baby, so I have spent a lot of week days out in the public at grocery stores, shopping centers, post offices, restaurants, and the like and it never fails to amaze me how busy these retail and service spots are; no matter what day or time of the day I venture out.

Yesterday, I took you to a nearby shopping mall to have your picture taken with Santa and because I have been sick and we have been cooped up all week, I thought that it would be a nice outing for us. I also thought since it was 11:00 on a Wednesday that the mall would be relatively sparse of crowds. Boy, was I wrong! Although there was only one other mommy and tot in line to meet jolly old St. Nick, the parking lot was a disaster and every store we went into was packed. I know it’s the holiday season and everyone seems to already be in that mad dash to check items off their gift lists, not to mention, there are a lot of incredible sales going on, but it is like this All. The. Time! Here I thought we were in a recession.

By the way, you were very mellow meeting Santa. I love how you have you arm draped across him like you are making yourself at home. 🙂 Everyone says that in next year’s photo, you won’t be so docile.

I also got a Baby’s First Christmas ornament for our tree and crossed a couple of names off our gift list.

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Arrivederci

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We may be glutton for punishment, but we are taking you to Europe for Thanksgiving. This time tomorrow we will be in Florence, Italy, where we will be spending the week and I am so excited for your first trip across the Atlantic.

You have already been on five airplanes visiting your grandparents in the Bay Area and while we are talking about a flight 12 times the length and inevitable jet lag, you have been an excellent traveler so far. For this trip, we have reserved the bulk head seats giving us a little extra room and a hanging bassinet, so my fingers and toes are crossed that you will sleep most of the way.

Although you will never remember this trip, we will take lots of photos and tell you all about it as soon as you are old enough and maybe even bring you back someday!

While we are away, I am going to try to blog as often as I can, but this week is about being on vacation with my family. I wish all of my blog readers a very happy, safe Thanksgiving and a fun and family-filled long weekend. Ciao!

The best is yet to be.

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