Henry loves his baby legs.

Thanks, Lizbeth!

Yes, as a matter of fact, I did dig through all of Henry's clothes to figure out what matches his new baby legs. Turns out, there was quite an abundance of matching apparel. Super cute!!!!
Too bad he is Henry and not Polly....these baby legs had me dreaming visions of skirts, dresses, and pink polkadotted baby leggings. Yes, I am just a tad bit ashamed of wishing my boy was a girl. That's why this print is so tiny. Shhhhh....

Granddaddy

We had a very nice visit from my dad Thursday night/Friday morning. It had been a month since he had last seen Henry and he appropriately oohed and aahed over his first grandchild.

Daddy: By, the way....I've decided to start referring to you as "Granddaddy." I think it's the perfect match to Mama's "Grandmother." And yes, this is a unilateral decision.

Who turns 5 months tomorrow?

Click to make me bigger.

Hallelujah to my child finally taking naps again and sleeping at night!!!

I'm Gonna Get You

A new game:

Taylor walks up saying "I'm gonna get you" in a funny voice.

Henry eats it up -- kicking his legs, lauging, and squealing.

Cloth Diapers 101: General Care

Caring for your cloth diapers:

1. Always turn your load size to the largest possible setting, regardless of how small your cloth diaper load may seem.
2. Rinse Cycle One: COLD, without detergent.
3. Wash Cycle: I use the whites setting on HOT, since it has the longest wash cycle on my machine. Use only half of your normal amount of Free and Clear detergent.

4. Rinse Cycle Two: COLD, without detergent.

5. Dry on the lowest heat setting.

*Do not use fabric softener, bleach, stain removers, or diaper rash creams like Desitin. These products compromise the absorbency of the cotton.

*If a stain occurs, try drying the diapers outside. Sunshine has a bleaching effect on white cotton. I have read that rubbing half a lemon on the stain is another natural stain remover.

It is important to frequently wash your cloth diapers. The ammonia in the urine will eventually break down the cotton, compromising its absorbency.

Let me know if you intersted in this topic. I always have more to say!

Cloth Diaper Q&A

My friend, Laurin, asked the following questions.

Why did you choose the pre-fold type? At first, I really really wanted the BumGenius3.0 diapers. These are "all-in-ones" that also are adjustable (aka "one-size) that are designed to fit babies newborn to 30 pounds. However, they are very expensive ($17/each) and I was worried about bulkiness on small babies. So, I chose prefolds because they are the most traditional type and also the most economical.

Do they leak very often? Rarely. Once Henry started sleeping longer stretches during the night, we had some issues leaking up high on his back. Now, we just bundle him up with two prefolds at night and have not had a nighttime leak since! However, there is a bit of a learning curve. It took the first week to learn to shove all bits of the prefold into the cover. Otherwise, you will have a leak where the cloth is exposed.

How expensive was it to get started? I started with a newborn prefold starter kit from http://www.nickisdiapers.com/. My thinking was that I would try the different covers (all newborn sized) and decide which cover I like the best for when I need to order bigger sizes. I am still using the same prefolds but I am anticipating buying a bigger size prefold when we upgrade to size large covers. As previously posted, my favorite covers are Prowraps Classics. These are the cheapest covers available and extremely durable. I like that they have a shiny plasticy inside so you can wipe out teetee with a wipe rather than washing the cover after every use. They have velcro tabs and look so cute when they peek out from under a onesie.
**Newborn starter kit with 6 covers and 24 prefolds -- $110
**6 size small covers-$40
**6 size medium covers-$40
**TOTAL: $190
Don't forget that this is a onetime investment. And, cloth diapers have great resale value on Ebay.

Cloth Diapers 101: Anatomy of a Cloth Diaper

This is what's known in the cloth diapering world as a Chinese Prefold Diaper. There are basically 4 different types of cloth diapers (prefolds, all in ones, pockets, fitteds) but this is the kind that I use on my baby. Most moms use prefolds as burp cloths but trust me, you don't want to use those Gerber prefolds from Wal-Mart on your baby's bottom. My Chinese Prefolds are made from extremely high quality 100% cotton. Gerber's diapers definitely are not. They are only good for wiping up spit up. Trust me. When you get your package of prefolds in the mail, they are very very rough to the touch. Initially, you wash them about 5 times to get them to a satisfactory softness for your baby's bottom but they continue to get softer and softer with each wash. You know what? I do believe that my new camera might be so good that you can actually see the softness.

Here the prefold is folded, laying in the cover and ready to cover my boy's bottom. The brand of covers (aka wraps) that I use is Prowraps Classics. Actually, they are the cheapest covers I could find on the internet and they do such a great job that I don't even try the other options that are out there. I prefer a plain white cover but every color and pattern under the rainbow are available through the internet.

I keep my diapers and covers organized on my changing table in this handy little basket. Typically, this basket is stuffed to the brim with diapers but I was washing a load of diapers as I took this picture.

***This picture wouldn't upload. It it had, you would see a small table with Henry's noise maker and a Wal-Mart bag sitting on top. You would also notice the trash can, changing table, and dirty clothes basket.***

Notice the Wal-Mart type bag on the table. That's where I place dirty diapers. I began placing the dirty diapers in Wal-Mart bags for the simple reason that I have a million of them at home but soon, I realized that the size of the Wal-Mart bag is ideal. The bag begins bulging and getting too full when exactly (give or take a few) half of the diapers are soiled. So, a full dirty diaper bag is my cue to begin a load of diapers.

Have a cloth diaper question? Contact me. I probably know the answer.

Keep your blogging ears open for my next cloth diapers post about cloth diaper general care.

grrrr....

Never too late

I intended on posting my Christmas card for the past month. It became one of those things that I would think about laying in bed, taking a shower, and cooking supper but never while I was actually on the computer. So...............

Happy Birthday, Taylor!

On the occasion of Taylor's 29th birthday, I developed a list of 29 reasons about what makes my husband such a special person. Here we go.....


1.Taylor loves to read and learn new things more than anyone else I know.
2. He finds pleasure in extremely hard work. Just this morning, he called and said he was a having a great morning digging a ditch at a friend's house. And he meant it.
3. Even though I was rather rude in my insistence on sleeping a little later yesterday morning, he brought me a cup of coffee in bed and had breakfast ready when I woke up. How sweet is that?
4. He has beautiful long eyelashes
5. Last night, I thought his groans were directed at his unhappiness about not being able to sleep through Henry's coughing and crying bouts. But, no. He was groaning "in empathy for our sick baby." Too sweet.
6.He looks so cute driving his little red scooter around town.
7.His students would stop us while walking on campus to tell me what a great teacher he is.
8.He is passionate about so many topics -- astrology, Norse mythology, Mayan culture, linguistics, German, carpentry, growing peppers, Hinduism, etc.
9.I laughed at him when he was a freshman at Ole Miss for saying that he was going to learn German. He now has two degrees in the language and is completely fluent. Amazing.
10.The same year, I also laughed when he bought an electric guitar and said he was going to teach himself how to play. Now he is the best guitarist I know!
11.He always felt guilty if our dogs didn't go on a walk every single day. He really is a nicer person than I am.
12. He keeps all of our plants alive and thriving.
13. How many people do you know that can give a legitimate tarot card reading?
14.As our friend, Nikki, told me..."he really is a jack of all trades." In fact, he gave me my last two haircuts.
15.He is wonderful little brother to his two big brothers.
16.He calls his grandfather every week, always makes sure we go by his house for a visit, and reminds his brothers and cousin to give Big Daddy a call when they have the time.
17.One summer we ended up in a tiny French town where no one spoke English. Taylor ordered us lunch in French. And they understood him.
18. His Dutch got so good while living in Holland one summer, he was mistaken for a Dane. I do believe that was one of his proudest moments.
19.He really is carpenter and has all the tools to show it. Need carpentry work? Let me know.
20.His ancestors have a castle in Switzerland and he has visited it!
21.He falls more in love with our baby every single day!
22.Our cat has the best cat house in the world because Taylor was so worried about him being cold at night.
23. Our Greek friend, Maria, said that Taylor knows more about Greek mythology than most people in Greece.
24.He is still eating cayenne peppers that he grew in our garden this summer.
25.He is a good son. And his parents know it!
26.As mentioned in a previous post, he is a great skier. I am talking about the kind of skiing where you have to hike to the top of the peak because they didn't build any lift lines that high up.
27.He has a very particular way of holding a sandwich between his fingers. Oddly enough, it's the same way my sister holds a sandwich.
28.He knows all of my family's inside jokes and my parents love him like a son.
29. He is TAYLOR and I love him!

Maybe, Maybe Not

"Ok, Mama. You've been talking to me all day long about how we are going to try rice cereal before my bath time. We talked about how this cereal is suppose to help me sleep more at nighttime. I know you are tired so I am going to give this cereal a try for you because I love you and Daddy so much."

"It smells familiar but...."

"I like the way the spoon feels but..."

"I love you and Daddy but I do NOT like this cereal."

> "Well, maybe the problem was my cute new highchair. This cereal isn't so bad in my bathtub."

Family Time

The day after Christmas all 14 Dearmans flew out to Breckenridge, Colorado for a week of skiing. I recently learned that this tradition of the Christmas ski vacation began when my mother-in-law, Carla, was a teenager. Actually, the tradition began as "let's get in the car and drive until we find snow and then spend our Christmas week there" which eventually evolved into an annual trip skiing out west. Taylor loves reminiscing about Christmas trips and bragging about what an incredibly good skier he is for just skiing a week at Christmastime each year. He proved that yes, he is an expert double black diamond skier and yes, I am content with feeling extremely challenged looking down the face of a wide groomed blue run.

Ted and Carla: Thanks for such a great trip. Many memories were made. I can't wait to go back in a few years when Henry is old enough to give skiing a try!

Here I am looking pretty rough after a morning of skiing. Taking care of your small child and maximizing your skiing time can be a difficult thing to balance. This particular morning, I was dressed and ready to ski by myself at 8:30. Can you imagine my thoughts when a guy on the ski lift asked me what grade I was in!?!?! I pulled off my goggles and hat (so he could see all my gray hair) and replied that I have a husband and a baby back in our condo!
Back to the picture -- we were eating lunch at Eric's Downstairs. 27 beers on draft.
num yummy...good Colorado microbrewery beer.....num yummy. My hair was crazy straight (not dirty, as it might look to some) with the total lack of humidity in Colorado.

This is my attempt at a rather artistic framing of the Breckenridge ski resort.

Baby Henry all bundled up on a stroll through town. I hate that I didn't get a good picture of his super cute red wagon snow suit, but I know that he was definitely warm and cozy under entirely too many layers of clothing.

This hat tricks you into thinking that Taylor has dreadlocks hidden under his cap. But, no....this hand-knitted by Russian peasants hat was a gift from my parents. Too bad that the big sweater robe was too bulky to fit into a suitcase or he would have been modeling his total Russian outfit on the ski slopes.

My father-in-law and I are having a serious (or so it looks) discourse on the best sunblock to use while skiing.

The Story of Juhu

Juhu was a very special little dog. However, his story doesn't begin with my picking him up from the animal shelter. His story begins in February 2006 when we got our first dog, Lola. Lola was a sweet tri-colored chihuahua dachshund mix. She came to us as a grown dog (all 11 pounds of her) from a coworker of my mother. This coworker had several small dogs and Lola just wouldn't be sweet to the other small dogs. Would I be interested in this dog? Of course! I immediately fell in love with Lola -- she had beautiful markings, she wasn't too big but she wasn't too little, and most of all, she needed me.

Lola was a good dog but she was quirky. She had an odd limp that switched from leg to leg. She was very meek and mild and anxious around new people.

We lived in Clinton when we acquired Lola. Our street was very quiet with very little traffic. We would walk Lola, without a leash, to the campus of Mississippi College for her to chase squirrels and run around in big open spaces. We continued this trend of letting Lola walk without a leash after we moved to Starkville. After all, she was our little shadow. Always walking next to our feet, never leaving our side....until the day she ran for a squirrel across the street. Lola was hit by a utility truck and Taylor buried her in our backyard. I mourned for that little dog like she was my child.

However, I learned my lesson. Dogs are not people. Dogs chase squirrels. Dogs don't know to look both ways before they cross the street. Dogs must be protected by their owner. Yes, yes, yes, I learned these lessons the hard way and still feel guilty about not protecting that little dog from manmade dangers.

About 6 months later, Maggie came into our lives. Another throw away dog that needed a home. She wasn't the perfect dog for me....too big, too much young dog energy, sheds too much. But, she needed a home and we have gave her all the love in the world.

After a year of just Maggie, I visited the animal shelter in search of a fully grown small dog. There was a Chihuahua growling viciously at every person who walked by and there was a little black dog who looked like a dachshund with Jack Russell ears. Juhu. It took a few days to realize why I immediately loved this dog when I saw him at the vet. I truly believe that he was an incarnate of Lola -- as Taylor would say he was 'Lola improved.' Juhu looked almost identical to Lola but he was robust, he never met a stranger, and he was never meek or mild.

Maggie and Juhu loved each other immediately. They were best friends -- chasing each other, biting face over the right to get the favored dog bed of the moment, taking turns eating. He was an escape artist -- one day he escaped 7 times in a matter of hours. Every time, employing a different escape route. We learned that he might find a new way to exit our backyard but he always came home when he got hungry.

Why am I referring to my sweet little dog in the past tense? Juhu was put to sleep on December 27, 2008. While we were skiing in Breckinridge, a friend was coming by daily to feed and check on Juhu and Maggie. That morning we got a phone call saying that she found Juhu laying on the top step outside unable to walk. She thought his legs were broken. After a visit to the emergency clinic at the vet school, we received word that Juhu was paralyzed from the waist down, with no ability to control urination, but thankfully, no pain sensation. The vet explained over the phone that he could press on and give Juhu more diagnostic testing and possibly perform surgery to further diagnose him. We asked if he would ever be the same dog. The answer was no. I passed the phone to Taylor. He explained that we had a 4 month old baby and were not in a position to care for a paralyzed dog. The difficult decision to euthanize our sweet little dog was made over the phone.

It was a sad day but unlike with Lola's death, I feel no guilt. Now we are just waiting for the next incarnation of Lola to come into our lives.

Christmas in Dixie

My little family opened presents the night before we left for Taylor's parents' house. Initially, the plan was to take the presents to Jackson to open on Christmas morning but space is pretty limited in the Kia when it is packed for almost 2 weeks away from our house. So, we had "Baby's First Christmas" in Starkville with just the 3 of us. Henry's reaction to his presents was very unenthusiastic but Taylor and I had fun unwrapping all the presents.

Thank you everyone for all our gifts!!!!

Taylor modeling his new sweater. Notice the shorts -- it was 75 degrees that night.

Henry "holding" a silver cup from Taylor's babyhood. Carla had the cup engraved with Henry's name and birthday. Very sweet keepsake.


I gave this marble mortar and pestle to Taylor. Not quite sure why I felt like he needed a mortar and pestle, but I've been looking for one to give him for some time now.

Modeling my new puffy vest from Lizbeth. On my feet are cute slippers from my mother, but they didn't make the photo.

Taylor had to finish this book before we left town and Henry had to be held. So an easy compromise was met and I packed for our trip in peace.

***More pictures coming soon. I LOVE my new Nikon D40!!!

Henry's thoughts....

"Shhh, I'm sleeping with my Meme...."

"Ooh, Pops! Did you know that's my favorite toy?"

"I'm cute. Everybody look at me!"

Getting Better All The Time

I am constantly reminded how well-planned and much anticipated events rarely work out as expected. David gets sick and misses his first day of work ever. Henry's stuffy nose progresses into an up-all-night coughing and wheezing bonanza. The Meigs Family Christmas is cancelled. Taylor and I leave Foley in the middle of night in order to make the first appointment available at the pediatric clinic in Starkville. Henry is diagnosed with bronchialitis --fever, congestion, wheezing, and coughing. Hooray for clear ears!! It was so sad, sad, sad seeing our little boy struggling through his coughing and breathing.

A week later, we just walked in the door from his 4month well baby check up and shots. He is still wheezing a bit but the doctor was not nearly as concerned as she was last week. His shots went well and he only screamed fussed for a few minutes. As a mama, I prefer to hear only positive things about my child, so I was quite pleased when his doctor said that except for the never ending wheeze, he is perfect! He now weighs 14lbs.10 oz. (50th%), he is 24in. long (25%) and his head circumference is 42.5in. (75%)

This is how our little chicken has been sleeping since his nose has been too stuffy to breathe laying flat. He has really taken to the whole carseat-in-the-crib scheme and is peacefully sleeping in this same getup as I type. No, I do not strap him in to take naps. This nap started post-shots at the doctor's office and went straight to the crib.

On the occasion of our 3rd anniversary...

3 years....a beautiful baby boy.....1 small dog.....1 big dog.....a grumpy cat.....a much loved house filled with family heirlooms....a little red scooter.....trips around the world....fried eggs and grits for breakfast.....family that loves us.....a bright future.

My Favorite Everything

My mother gave this sweet Feltman Brothers bubble to Henry on the occasion of his baptism. I was planning on him wearing it at Easter and a photo shoot on campus amongst the daffodils.

Who knew that it would fit perfectly in the middle of December??

Really.

Who would know??

Who could take such a beautiful picture of my son?

My friend, Hope.

Who else could it be?

questions...

Taylor's immediate reaction to these beautiful pictures of our son?

"Did those lights get hot and burn him?"

What do you think?

Typical Morning

This is what my family looks like in the morning. Although they did not make it into this picture there are always two dogs and a cat lurking about and watiting for food scraps or a bit of attention. Taylor and I can sit at our dining room table for hours on end -- enjoying each other's company, playing with Henry, emailing, internetting, and listening to NPR. I like to think that we are practicing for retirement!

A Published Perspectivist

My father-in-law wrote this article about the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. He originally sent the piece to the Madison Herald but he ended up on the front page of the Perspective section in Sunday's Clarion Ledger!

To Meeme and Pots -- Last time you saw me, I.....

...was furry from my head to my toes. Not now.

...stared blankly into space and sometimes the ceiling fan would catch my eyes. Not now.



...fell asleep immediately in your arms. Not now.



...couldn't hold my own head up or stand on my legs. Not now.



...pooped every single time I ate. Not now.



...was still wearing newborn size clothes. Not now.



I can't wait for you to see how I have grown! Love, HMD

Ho Ho Ho

Oh Tannenbaum, Oh Tannenbaum

As a little girl (and still today to a lesser degree) I was plagued by allergy and sinus issues. After several very sick Christmases, my parents realized I was allergic to the Christmas tree. Therefore, fake trees. Problem solved.


Fast forward to Taylor's and my first holiday season as a grown-up (?) couple. He insisted on a real tree. I insisted I would get sick. He "surprised" me with a real tree a few days later. Where did that tree reside? The front porch. I had already decided since we were getting married exactly 1 week before Christmas and we lived in the crappiest apartment you could ever imagine that we would be having a Christmas ottoman for our presents that year. Cute idea, right?


Fast forward to our first Christmas in our much beloved house. I was on a massive search for an aluminum Christmas tree. You see, that's the kind of tree my dad grew up with in this very house and I like that. My search for an aluminum Christmas tree ended when I saw how unChristmas tree like they are. Imagine an aluminum pole with sticks pointing out in opposite directions and tinsel hanging from those sticks. Apparently cute enough to be the rage in the 50's but definitely not cute enough in 2006. So the search transformed into a search for a silver Christmas tree. Not to sound like my mother, but....I was way ahead of everyone with the very fake-looking fake Christmas tree. It was very difficult to find a silver Christmas tree in 2006. Is it a difficult find now? No. I am apparently quite progressive.




After an entirely too long discourse of my Christmas tree, you are now allowed to ooh and ahh over our tree.






Did I know that my fabulous tree would be this skinny? No.
Do I with that it were fatter? Yes.
Do I still love my tree? Yes.

Family

Our little family felt very lucky to be able to spent 5 nights in Foley with my parents. Most of the time was spent admiring my pretty baby...leading me to assume that we must have spent way too much time admiring the dogs before this baby came about. It seemed silly to cook all the Thanksgiving food we wanted for just 4 people, so we ate at The Gift Horse in downtown Foley. Absolutely delicious food -- including fried rolls, ridiculous, huh???

Oops, looks like I forgot about the flash again...

My mother finally allowed me to take a picture of her with Henry. I think it's pretty cute!!!

Henry finally met Taylor's oldest brother and his family. Ashlyn was very enthusiatic about this new 'baby cousin.' It seems that Henry is also interested in his own little "I'm strapped into this carseat and can't really turn around to look" way.