The Stink-a-potamus Goes to the Lake

Hello

This past weekend marked our very first car ride up to the lake. In ideal conditions it is a 3 hour and 15 minute drive from our front door to Matt's parent's lake house. Whoever thought that leaving during Clark's cluster-feeding bonanza was a good idea should be dragged out back and disposed of properly. Clark likes to eat large frequent meals between the hours of 5 and 9, we call this tanking up before the big sleep AKA bedtime--not the other big sleep. We left our house at 5pm, we had our bad idea jeans on that day!

Yes, you are seeing things correctly, we also brought both dogs and they rode in the backseat with the baby. We thought they would all entertain each other. We made frequent stops so Clark could eat and take a potty break. During one especially eventful diaper change Clark got a Full Box of Baby Wipes Side of the Road Bath. He had let go of a weeks worth of butter popcorn goodness, it filled his diaper and his armpits. The boy has good coverage. He really lived up to his nick name of The Stink-a-potamus that day! After the nightly cluster-feeding bonanza it is usually bedtime. The Stink-a-potamus was confused that he was still in his car seat, he proceeded to lose his mind and couldn't gain control of his emotions. I kept trying to find his Reset Button, but I couldn't, so the last 30 minutes of the car trip was me, 2 dogs and the Clarkster in the backseat.

On a side note, we bought a small SUV specifically for the purpose of traveling with a baby and the dogs. The dogs were supposed to ride in the waaay back and the kid in the backseat, you can all see how well that worked out. Needless to say, the lake was a sweet refuge after that car trip!

Frazier absolutely loves going to the lake. He jumps of the dock, swims after balls, floats on the raft and can be found wading through shallow waters without any intentions.

Clark christened his first lake visit the only way we Williams know how....with style. We know how to bring the party, butt we often forget our suits.



The guy is half fish I tell you! Not a worried look on his face or a moment that he questioned his decision. He probably figured all the inner tubes around his waist and arms would keep him afloat.



It feels good to have our first big trip under our belt. The car ride home was uneventful, everyone was worn out from the fresh air, funshine and water. The entire clan was passed out the second we hit the highway (me included). We couldn't handle all that lake. 

Colie

Week 7

Hello

Clark is 7 weeks old and already has a girlfriend. He is not shy about his feelings for her and has been smitten since he was about 2 weeks old. When ever he catches a glimpse of her he flashes his gummy little grin and it is impossible to break his eyes away from her. Clark's Dream Boat is tan, exotic, whisper quiet and runs often. I can see the allure.


Ain't she a 'beaut?


This weekend was the first weekend since there was ice covering the ground that we didn't go to Lowes or have a project to tackle. Saturday we sat around looking at eachother all day--but how cute is this face to look at?

By Sunday we were tired of each other's faces so we piled into the car, got a dozen donuts and stopped by Sherwin Williams 40% off sale. We ate 6 of the donuts in the parking lot and with a sugar induced buzz decided that it was a good day to paint the guest bedroom. The 40% off color of choice was Coran Blue. Of course Matt chose the specific hue, it is his special talent. The newly remodeled Williams' Bed and Breakfast is open for visitors-- so book now. However, don't expect any donuts because we polished off the remaining 6 for dinner.

This week I also realized that there are a million Clark photos (of course!)

There are also a quarter of a million Matt and Clark photos (to be expected).

But there are no photos of me and Clark. Zero. None. Not one since the day of his birth. I didn't want him to grow up and think that I left the country while he was an infant so I put the camera on auto mode, placed it on the highest surface we had--the breakfast bar-- and took Clark and my first photo together. Ignore the mess, the slightly open pantry door and what looks like a lazy eye. Focus on how Clark really feels about having his picture taken with me. Lesson learned, I belong behind the camera capturing life's moments.



Have a good week,

Colie

Too Many Firsts in One Day

Hi

Today was full of firsts for Clark.

First Number One: Sleep
Clark has started sleeping through the night this week, he goes to bed at 9-10pm and will sleep until morning's light. I set my alarm for 3am to make sure he is still breathing and offer him a bite to eat (which he denies and goes back to sleep). We are very lucky. **He is gaining weight and eats well during the day**




Getting ready for bed time


Firsts Number Two and Three: Solo Trip and Crying in Public
Clark and I took our very first solo trip to the grocery store today. I told myself  that he has traveled out and about a lot in the last 6 weeks without any issues so it was safe to take him to the store. Alone. I was slightly nervous that he would cry or get hungry, but I tanked him up and thought the car ride would but him to sleep. He did not sleep and this was the first time he cried in a public place. Yikes. I talked him down eventually and a nice grandma-like lady entertained him in the checkout line while I was on grocery duty. Hope her hands were clean.

90% of the time he is really this happy

First Number Four: The Blowout
He cried all the way home. I put him in the house and carried all the groceries inside, I put away all the freezer/fridge items and then took him out of his carseat still screaming and crying. I went to change him...and that's when I saw it--First number four-- Yellow mustard colored poop all over his outfit. All over my outfit. All over the floor. All over the carseat, the table, the kitchen and the BANISTER. Yes, I said the banister. Well, that explains why First Number Three happened today (poopy pants = crying in public). Miraculously enough, there was hardly any in his diaper. Riddle me that! The saga continues... I striped him down and we headed outside to hose down the carseat. There was yellow mustard poop pooled in the bottom of the carseat that was leaking out as I carried it. Yuck.  Unknown to me, the hose was set on the fire hose setting and when I sprayed the seat--you guessed it-- poop flew up and out and all over me from head to toe. Double yuck. Thank goodness he is breastfed and his poop smells like buttered popcorn (weird) so now our house smells like a movie theater.

He thought the whole thing was funny once he got his pants changed

 First Number Five: I hurt my baby
I was such a flustered mess, I smelled like a Karasotes Theater and I was hurrying to get things clean because I was going to meet friends for lunch. In my haste I hit my sweet baby's noggin on the door when I walked through. Parent of the year right here.

I don't know if I can take any more firsts today.
Colie

Visitors and Veggies

Hi

Clark's Aunt Lindsay took a break from Ultimate Frisbee and playing Hacky Sack in Boulder, CO this week. She hadn't met Clark yet and we hadn't seen her since Christmas so it was a long over due and fun visit.



Matt's mom and sister were here for a few days, it was nice to see them and to have two sets of extra hands to help entertain, clean and hold him. Any other day this is who I am stuck with when I need a break...

Along with the great patio overhaul, Matt and I decided that this summer was a perfect time to attempt a veggie garden. We went the basic route with tomatoes, spinach, carrots and cucumbers. We filled the bed with organic soil, dug trenches, spread seeds and watered frequently. The next time we turned around, BAM, veggie salad in our backyard.

Our spinach was yellowing, not growing well and looking like it was knocking on veggie heaven's door so I Googled how to care for spinach. Did you know that Popeye's miracle food is a colder weather vegetable and grows best in temps no greater than the low 70's? Us either. So these 10 days that we have had temperatures in the 90's with a heat index in the 100's have been detrimental to the spinach crop. Lesson learned. I wanted to see how our carrots were shaping up so I gingerly plucked this tiny sapling.

Looks like they still have a wee bit more growing to do, but Clark was impressed--Good thing he has nothing to compare it to.

HAPPY WEEKEND!

Colie

Patio Upgrades and Rat Tails

Hi

Once again, we are on the subject of the infamous patio. However, this is a happy post about the completion. Not just a phase of the patio completion, but completion completion! We had our flower beds filled with 200-300 dollars worth of flowering bushes that all claimed to be FULL SUN, which meant 6+ hours of direct sun exposure a day. Check. We were going to be giving them much more than 6 hours a day, our backyard offers no reprieve from sunshine. Unfortunately, all the lovely flowering bushes couldn't handle the abundance of sunshine we had to offer. So, they shriveled up and died. It was a sad day at the Williams household.

5 out of the 6 plants featured here are dead

Needless to say, the patio was not feeling as calm and tranquil as we intended with bush carcases everywhere. So, we dug them up and returned them to Lowes for new plants (even exchange too, thaaaanks Lowes). But how were we going to keep the new shipment alive with 12 hours of full on sunshine a day? I--me, all by myself-- came up with the idea of SHADE STRUCTURES (say it like Oprah would). With my brains and Matt's brawn we erected these beauties....

The East side of the patio gets a sunshine break in the morning and the West side gets a break in the evening--based on where the shadows fall. Go ahead and say it: Genius!

Remember me saying how hard our ground is to dig though and how it took almost a month to dig down 7 inches for the patio? Here is evidence of the cement like quality of the ground we are working with.



Back to Lowes for a new shovel

Now, on to Clark Watch 2011

At his 1 month check up Clark has tanked up to a whopping 10.7 pounds. That is a 4 pound increase from birth. I think it is a combination of all the protein I eat and the creatine we mix into his breast milk. Either that or his rat tail is bulking him out.

Awesome

Clark has also started to sleep all night in his crib, which allows us to get a much better night's sleep because we don't hear him squawking all night long. Everyone is much happier and well rested--when I say everyone I really mean me. He wakes up once to eat and then it is right back to dreamland (most nights), I love my happy baby who cherishes his night time sleep as much as I do. There are the occasional nights he thinks it is time to have a dance party at 3am, but those are few and far between.

He absolutely loves Krum's ears and go nutz when they touch his face. Krum is starting to come around and isn't trying to shove him off our laps anymore. We had a few issues in the beginning.



Hope everyone has a good week!

Colie

1 Month

HI

Holy Crap, he is ONE stinkin' month old today. I cannot believe how fast it has gone and all I do is feed him, change his diapers and sit on the sofa watching HGTV all day long. Well, that's a lie, I watch Ellen in the morning.

We had our first monthly photo session today. Trivia question: How many chins does Clark Williams currently have?

If you answered 3, you are correct. He is also in possession of 4 arm roles and 3 leg roles on each extremity. Tomorrow is our 1 month Dr. appointment, so I am curious how much weight he has packed on.

Don't worry, the photo session was supervised by a highly trained professional.

Here is the sweetly goofy smile that he gives me every time he looks my direction. I love it--except at 3am when he needs to go back to sleep. 

Slightly blinded by the flash...oops

Hope everyone has a great rest of their week!

Colie

**Side note to Emily W: We are using the onsie stickers you got for Clark in his baby book**

Welcome

Hi Everyone

It has taken me four weeks, but we are back on the blogging waggon. The Little Monster finally arrived and has turned our lives upside down! Clark was born on 6/6/2011 and clocked in at 6 pounds 12oz, 21 inches long and he was calm as could be.

He remains very calm, cool and collected. He is the most even tempered baby I have ever seen. Thank goodness he takes after Matt in the personality departments, because I was an emotional basket case. Babies should come with a warning that says: Caution: Upon Returning Home with Your Bundle of Joy, You Will Inevitably Panic about the Endless List of Possible Ways You Can Ruin this Small Person's Life.

It has been a challenge to figure out how to be a brand spankin' new mom while still trying to be a wife and an individual. This is what I have figured out so far: I'm just a mom for right now and my role as a wife and as a person will redefine themselves later. Matt fell right into his role as Dad and can bathe, change a diaper and dress a newborn like a veteran. However, I still have one up on him when it comes to deciphering Clark's endless stream of grunts and squawks. The boy very rarely cries, but he produces some very demanding grunts that are accompanied by furrowed brows and dirty stares.

One personality trait that he has gained from me has been the deep need for a schedule. He eats, plays and naps at the same time every day, he is highly predictable and very happy when the schedule is abided by.

I want to say a quick and sincere Thank You to everyone who has been to visit us, has sent texts/emails or phone calls to check in on us and who has given us very thoughtful gifts. There is no way I could have gotten through the first four weeks without the support of my mom, Matt's mom and all our friends. Thanks for visiting even though I was a walking zombie and lacked conversation skills.

More to come later...
Colie