Oma Strikes Again

Leave My Dylan Alone!

I am so happy it's Friday! I'm especially looking forward to this weekend because I'll have three days on Dylan watch to ensure his eczema takes a chill pill. I know there isn't much I can do about his little red rashy cheek but being with him puts my mind at ease despite the fact he's in good hands all day when he's with my mom. Yesterday I put a mitten on his right hand to keep him from scratching his face and I was surprised the mitten didn't bother him. But this morning when I went to check on him he had wiggled out of the mitten  and wiggled to the edge of his mattress. He laughed at me as I picked up his hand to put it back on. I keep hoping that when I wake up in the morning his face will be healed but it hasn't yet. I truly feel for all those parents whose children have allergies, skin or any health problems because worrying about your baby is a pain in the arse. GO AWAY ECZEMA! LEAVE MY DYLAN ALONE!

In other news, I found a pair of sneakers for Dylan that also happen to be available in my size. Is it weird to have matching shoes with my son? ....what has become of me?!

Oma's Daily Special

Sent with: "I'm on a boat! Faster Oma, Faster!"

Early Birds Are Just Asking for Trouble

When I get out of bed at 5am, I try to push through being tired and wake my mind up as best as I can. I don't have time to be fussy or spend an extra five minutes to think rationally, I simply do what must be done as quickly as possible. Today I learned that not preparing for the next day the night before has consequences.

As I was driving to work I glanced at my outfit. I suddenly realized that nothing I was wearing matched. It was as if I grabbed every piece of random clothing I had and put it together for the sake of putting something on. I wouldn't normally pair pink shoes with a black skirt, green shirt and tan cardigan if I were picking something out mid-afternoon, but when you're so freaking tired, you feel accomplished by just getting dressed and bonus points if you're matching.Well no bonus points for me today, but if there is any silver lining to looking like a slobby-bobby, it is that by rushing out of the house I can also rush myself out of work early enough to spend time with Dylan boy. Because when you have this face to think about all day, there's no time for anything else. (But no joke, I will be picking out my outfits the night before.)

Courtesy of Oma

I received this picture via text from Oma with "Off to the races!!"

It's Tough Being Sensitive

When Dylan was a few weeks old he suffered severe acne. For approximately two weeks he resembled a teenager and I was elated when his skin cleared up and returned to its normal baby soft state. Unfortunately, over the past week Dylan's face has again become red and irritated. Only this time it didn't appear to be acne. Acting as concerned parents, we called his doctor and emailed a picture of his fatty cheek which upon review turned out to be a classic case of eczema. NOOOO!!!! 

Though eczema isn't the end of the world, it isn't ideal either. Dylan is extremely sensitive and nearly any type of lotion/moisturizer/soap I use on him has a bad reaction, so I cant say I'm surprised by this diagnosis. But thank god for Penaten cream! Penaten cream is a German product that acts as a miracle worker. You burnt yourself? Penaten cream. You have a rash? Penaten cream. OMG A SUNBURN? Penaten cream! You're hungry? Penaten cream. (Just kidding). It's thick, it's white, it smears, but if you wear it to bed you're going to look better when you wake up. And though there's no cure for eczema- I'm just happy Dylan isn't bothered by his skin's condition. He is the toughest sensitive baby, ever.

Silly Faces To Pass The Time

My Big Underachieving Baby

Memorial day weekend was a success. With the extra day off we were able to accomplish everything we wanted to- like walking 11 miles, visiting family and spending precious time with our ever growing little big boy. Mommy even drank some beer! 

Over the weekend I noticed Dylan becoming extremely vocal. Yesterday during our RSM Lake walk Dylan was talking to himself for an hour as I pushed him in the stroller. And on Sunday he had a lengthy conversation with Grandma as we were gathering our stuff to leave. I am loving his little baby babble and I'm becoming a great translator. I'm fairly certain he's saying "i love you mom, you're the best" each time he talks.

While at Grandma's house Dylan was held by his Tia Cheri, who was also holding her eight month old baby girl (my niece Lily) and they were practically the same size. Lily makes Dylan look like an underachiever. He simply cannot do half the things Lily can, such as sit up on his own or turn over. Lily moves smoothly and confidently, Dylan falls over while trying his best. I realize he's half her age but if he isn't ready to hold his own weight, he has no business being as big as a baby twice his age.Just sayin'!!!

Extra Extra!

My son goes through more wardrobe changes than Britney Spears

Friday ALL DAY

Friday is my favorite day because I have the weekend to look forward to. This means I can come home after work and stay up super late without having to worry about waking up at 5am to get to work by 7am. Instead, if Dylan is annoying and starts yapping in the wee hours, I can leisurely sit around and entertain him while I sip on coffee in pajamas because HEY! It's Saturday. I forgive Dylan for waking up early on weekends since he sleeps in 10 hour blocks. Sometimes I forget how good I have it. A co-worker of mine was telling me his 1 year old daughter wakes up three times a night. Her sleeping habits don't bother him because he heard babies waking up in the night is a sign of healthy brain development. This made me feel lucky and thankful for my Tasmanian devil's sleeping schedule and I thought if my baby was waking up three times a night, I'd probably tell myself it was healthy brain development too. Quite frankly, that sucks. 

Oma's Doll, My Baby

Dylan had too much fun yesterday during daddy daycare. So much fun that Dylan didn't have any interest in me when I came home from work and was all smiles for dad. He was cooing, singing, screeching and hollering at daddy while he glazed over me and my affections. It was quite rude and I am quite jealous. Today, Dylan's at Oma's house and she is a whole different kind of fun for him. 

Throughout the day I will receive pictures of Dylan in different poses with various odd props. Oma, (my mom), is a very funny person. When I was a kid she would take pictures of our weiner dog puppies sandwiched in hotdog buns. When Dylan was born, she insisted we dress him in a different costume for every holiday and make a calendar. For the month of May she requested a mustache, tequilla bottle and sombrero in celebration of Cinco De Mayo. Though I think it's ridiculously cheesy, I got to admit- I love these silly pictures and I love that when he's older he will be blaming Oma, not me.

Hi! (From Dylan)

Team Daddy Daycare

Dylan is one lucky baby. Everyone loves him! He gets kisses, hugs and even gifts. Today he is staying home with daddy and I suspect the two of them are going to party all day and have tons of fun without me. I am excited about #teamdaddy daycare because Dylan and Dad are going to pick me up from work! On a normal day I have to drive to Oma's house with full-fledged eager beaver syndrome wherein I suffer extreme excitement as I get closer to Dylan's location. But today I get to walk out of the office and see my baby boy's little face instantly! I am really digging this parent thing. I'm pretty sure this is the first time Dad's going to be alone with Dylan for an entire day. Aside from the house being littered in burpy cloths, bottles and diapers, I'm sure dad's got this. GO TEAM DADDY, GO!

Dirty Little Rascal

Dylan sleeps a solid 9-10 hours each night. I credit his fantastic sleep pattern to our nightly routine: bath, massage, bottle, swaddle, sleep. But last night Dylan had his own idea of how we should do things. Mid-feeding, Dylan took a massive, nuclear poop. I didn't want to disrupt sleep mode so I left the light off when I took him to his room to change him; I now consider this mistake number one. As I finished cleaning him off and was about to put him in a fresh diaper, he decided to tinkle all over himself. I didn't know the severity of the situation because there was no light, so I called for backup and the husband switched it on. That's when I saw Dylan smiling away with a "look what I did" face, proud of the fact he was completely covered in his own urine. He thinks he's so funny. I wiped him down, changed his outfit and tried to get him back into dream land as he finished the bottle. Well, he ended up going to bed later than usual and because of it, I didn't get to see him this morning before I left for work. I'll miss your dirty little butt all day Dylan! Love, mommy

Laundry Fun with Dizbaby

If you're not burying Dylan in the laundry, you're not doing it right!

Why Is Dylan Happy?

Is Dylan happy because he has fun toys that make loud sounds when he kicks them? Or is Dylan aware that I no longer work Monday's and he has an extra day of fun with Mom? Maybe Dylan is happy because he has two ridiculous parents who are constantly making fools of themselves for the sake of his entertainment. Whatever the cause, he is a giggling machine and it makes ME happy. 

Dylan and I have a lot to do today. We have to clean the house, exercise, fold laundry, do the dishes, boil bottles and go to the grocery store. But according to the boss our only priority is PLAY TIME! I'm not one to question El Jefe so let's go dylan, go! 

You're the best boss ever! xoxo - Mommy

Sunday Step Up

We decided to step up our game this weekend so we walked another 4.5 miles today. It was the longest walk we've done so far and the dogs were really feeling it. Liebe almost killed a few ducks and Suge stopped a few times mid-walk refusing to get up. Dylan had the easiest time of all of us, he slept for an hour while being pushed in the stroller. He has it too good. When we got home I tried to kiss his cute little face but he was uninterested in my affections. Meanest baby ever.

Sunday Funday

Zepeda family fun includes chicken fingers for breakfast with grandpa, sister, niece and nephew. Unfortunately the niece is so small she didn't come out in the pictures.

Meanest Baby In The World

Babies can be so annoying. Thanks to little chubs, the days of sleeping in on a Saturday morning are OVER. They are so over that I don't remember what sleeping in feels like, I only recall that it was amazing. The upside to waking up between five and seven in the morning is I get a head start on the day and can add in bonus activities. For instance, we now have a Saturday tradition of family walks around Rancho Santa Margarita's lake after breakfast. My favorite part of the walk is when we pass Starbucks and reward ourselves with a treat. (Like our dogs on the walk, I am highly motivated by treats.) Today we decided to step up our walking game because 90 year olds with limping, senior canines were running circles around us. Four miles later I'm zonked and ready to take a nap like Dylan is but noooo. Dylan wakes up at the precise moment that I am nodding off. I'm pretty sure he is the meanest baby in the world. You know he actually makes me push him in a stroller the entire way as if he's some sort of little prince? You're three months old, step it up baby! xox, your mean mommy

My Little Big Boy

In my last post I talked about Dylan not being able to turn over on his back yet, so to be fair, today I'm going to talk about some thing Dylan did do. 

Dylan slept for nine hours last night and woke up super hungry (of course he was, this kid has been drinking 5-7 ounces in a single sitting since he was 2 weeks old...he's ALWAYS "super" hungry). After I changed his diaper and sat him down to feed him he waved his arms in excitement upon spotting his best friend (the bottle) and reached out his hands to hold it, something he has been doing for a few weeks. His hands mostly get in the way when I'm trying to feed him, as he isn't able to actually hold the bottle and he usually ends up knocking it right out of his mouth. But this morning something must've clicked in his little big boy brain because WALLAH! He figured out how to hold the bottle. Color me impressed, I shouted at Zepeda (husband) to "hurry up and take the picture!" because at any point Dylan could have dropped it. BUT HE DIDN'T! Dylan held his bottle for a couple of golden minutes. WHAT A LITTLE BIG BOY.  love you honey! -your proud mommy

Tummy Time: Turn Over Already!

As Dylan neared the three month old mark I knew the day I would return to work was fast approaching, yet there was so much I still wanted to do with Dylan before I was a full-time employee. High on my list of to-do's was witnessing him turn-over by himself for the first time. Of course when your son thinks tummy time is an opportunity to play dead, the chances are slim to none.  I've been back at work for three weeks and though he's gotten a lot better at picking his head up, he hasn't turned over on his own. So each day when I'm home from picking Dylan up from Oma's house, I put him down on his ever protruding belly in hopes of reaching that milestone. 

Yesterday's tummy time resulted in a lot of farting, kicking and complaining and I thought, hmph, he must be lazy like his mommy or stubborn like his daddy. But as he struggled away I had a realization: I don’t need to force the issue. Dylan will flip when he is good and ready. As long as he’s healthy and making progress, what difference does it make if I am the first one to see him flip? Yet still with that being said, TURN OVER ALREADY! Love, Mommy