He did it!

Just an update on my post from yesterday- today Garrison put himself to sleep twice and all without crying!!!! YAY!!!! It wasnt anything I did, obviously, it was totally God.  I know that sounds cliche and very Sunday school- but it is so true.  He was only off by one minute when I checked after he went to sleep- I did a dance I was so excited!

Yes I am all about schedules, lists, and anything else that makes life more organized, even though I am somewhat "scatter brained".  For example, on our refrigerator you will find a list of Garrison's "Big Boy Rules", so anyone who every keeps Gar knows what we are working towards with him, a weekly schedule of cleaning for me, a calendar (complete with what Garrison will eat each day) and a copy of Garrison's schedule. Prob a little overboard, I know- but I LOVE IT!

I hate the thought of germs, being off schedule, and buying anything without a coupon. Seriously Type A I know. 

I am that mom you see at the grocery store, putting her child in the cart- only with a protective cover, and then wiping off the handle with a wipee.

Having a baby has only made it worse. Now that Gar is here I am even more nuts about scheduling things and being in control :(  The whole being in control thing is not one of my best qualities, but I'm working on it.  

**P.S. The picture is of Garrison right after he went to sleep. What a big boy!**

**P.S.S. Yes I know that my son is sleeping on a blanket and a mattress pad, with his legs sticking out of the end of the bed. Right before I put him down for a nap he was playing in his bed while I was putting up some clothes and he had the spit up of a lifetime.  The only way to describe it- amazing.  So I had to completely strip his bed and clean the wall.  I told Ryan that it would of been easier to just sale the house. He however did not agree.**

Sleepless in Mobile

Today has just been wild. I slowly feel like I am losing my mind. It has been a day that spit up has been free flowing and the whining seems to never end! I started my morning off at 5:15 with a cup of coffee, then a coke to wash it all down!

I dont know what has gotten into Garrison or me lately! He is back to his whole fighting sleep thing. If you have experienced Gar fighting sleep you know it can make you want to pull your hair out. He cries for about an hour and a half all for just 30 minutes, if that much, of sleep! Yesterday he took two naps- one of which lasted 10 minutes the other, oh about 30.
I really do not know what else to do for the child. We have been praying for wisdom as to what would help our sweet Garrison have restful naps and night time sleep.
We have consistently put him down sleepy and let him cry it out since he has been born. We have endured all the "looks" we get from people when they are over and listened to "oh he just needs a bottle" millions of times! I have tried rocking him. We have kept him on a schedule, set up a bedtime routine, we have pretty much done everything there is and for some time we saw a light at the end of the tunnel- but now the fighting is back in full force!
I read all these articles that are supposed to be helpful but I do not know what kids they are writing them for! Also it really doesnt help that my degree is in Early Childhood Development. After having a child of my own and teaching for two years I have come to realize that my entire education is based on a "text book child" that truly does not exist!
Sorry for all of the complaining in this post- I just had to VENT!
In all other areas of life Garrison is a wonderful child. He is a joy to be around. He is content to go shopping, ride in his car seat (as long as he can see out the window:) and he loves to talk to people as they pass by! He longs to be independent! If you help him walk he pulls his hands back to try to walk on his own! Too cute! I am just stumped on this nap thing- and it is getting real old! I feel bad for him, I know the reason that he is so whinny is because he isnt getting his naps out, but I dont know what to do to get him to take them! AAAGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!

A peek into our crazy night life :)

K - I know this video is super long and please ignore my grossly nasal voice (doesn't everyone hate how they sound on camera?) Anyways, the "peek a boo" game started about 15 minutes before we thought about turning the camera on and lasted well into Garrison's bedtime routine (oops).  I can't help but crack up when I watch it, believe me, you will hear me cracking up on the video, again please ignore..

Attack of the Zwieback Toast

I always swore Garrison would never snack on this stuff! But his lovely reaction to teething has made me desperate to find any type of relief for him and me!  I took these pics of him eating the toast for the first time about two weeks ago. It was HILARIOUS! I just put it on his tray and hoped that he didn't notice it- but he picked it up and started chewing on it like he had been doing it for years! So i guess thats a good thing ;)

PS We have since gotten a new high chair- I am not really a fan of Winnie the Pooh- but we received it as a gift and it served its purpose. I really tried to be economical and just deal with it, but i finally caved in to my shopping habits and bought a new cute one.

Some of us are just too cute to take seriously...

Boys Day Out

Ryan and Garrison went to the country to visit Ryan's dad today for a late fathers day celebration.  After watching some of our home videos I find myself missing my two men!  As much as I sometimes long for a break from being mommy (stay at home moms will understand) when I get the break all I can do is miss garrison :(

    Anyways, so I thought I would post some pics of Garrison from his birth and when he was oh so tiny.  Garrison was born on October 30, 2007 at 3:51.  He weighed 6# 13 ounces and was 20 in long.  Can you even believe it?!?!? He is now seven and a half months old and about 20 pounds. It hurts to think of him growing so fast.  

   Garrisons birth was one of the scariest but at the same time, one of the best days of my life.  The sound of monitors going off and nurses running in will constantly play back in my mind.  I wasn't scared of the actual labor, I was so excited to finally be able to see and hold my baby.  To make a long story short, Garrisons heart beat was really low and dropped drastically several times.  After a pretty long labor and a lot of ups and downs- our doctor decided that a c-section needed to be done for the safety of Garrison.  Ryan and I immediately starting praying that this decision would not effect Garrison and that his tiny heart would beat perfectly when he arrived.  While this was def not our first choice it is something that had to be done. 

About 30 minutes later our son Garrison Trice Little was born.  

    He was perfect in every single way.  I will never forget seeing him held up for the first time and waiting for that cry!  And then seeing ryan- it was the craziest feeling ever.  After our peditrician checked his heart they told us that everything looked great.  

     Being a mother is so much more than I ever imagined.  It is so overwhelming to know that what type of man Garrison grows up to be is determined by how me and ryan raise him.    He is growing up so fast- too fast.  I used to make fun of people who were like this.  You know the people who would always say when you were pregnant "They grow up so fast". Now I am one of those people!

    I find myself trying to bottle up and tuck away every smile, laugh, and sound of his sweet little voice.  I rejoice over things Garrison does that before becoming a parent meant nothing to me:  an hour with no spit up, eating finger foods and not choking, being able to pull up, starting to wave "bye bye".   I know it will all pass too quickly and it already has.

     Enjoy the pics of Gar bear.

Our Awesome Red Door

This is a picture of us with our new red door! I know you cant really see the door and all its glory - but believe me it is awesome!

Fathers Day

     As me and Ryan were getting ready for our "Fathers Day Celebration" at our house I couldnt help but think about how different our life is from last years fathers day.  Fathers day lunch has been a tradition in our home, well just for two years!  This time last year I was pregnant with Garrison and we were just getting out of the hospital with the stomach virus!  YUCK!

     But not having to get up from the table to vomit was not the only difference in this fathers day compared to the last :) This fathers day I was able to sit back and watch my husband with our first child.  What an amazingly heart warming picture!

     Garrison is so lucky to have Ryan as a Dad.  Ryan is so good with him. Before Garrison was here Ryan had not changed a diaper his entire life- he could prob do it in his sleep now- and I think in the early days he probably did:)  

     I love hearing Ryan talking to Garrison about what it means to be a man and how that doesn't always mean playing football (I know in his mind though he is thinking "gosh I hope he plays football")!  I love watching Ryan pray over Garrison and his salvation.  I know that Garrison knows that his Daddy absolutely loves him.

I guess I just wanted to take a minute to tell my Ryan "thank you".  You are the best! Thank you for always getting up with me and Garrison in the middle of the night to help, thank you for wiping spit up off of everything in our house, thank you for always finding something funny about screaming cries, and so much more! There is no way I could do it without you!

Hopefully we will have a computer soon!

We are going to look at computers TONIGHT! YAY! so hopefully everyone will get to read about our daily lives soon :)