Evan's Song

Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm not the one who normally volunteers to belt out a tune. But when Evan was little, I started singing to him and he seems to actually enjoy it and find it relaxing. I do some of the old stand-bys: 'If your happy and you know it', 'Row, row, row your boat' and 'The wheels on the bus'. WOTB has saved us on a car ride or two (stuck in horrible stand still traffic in Chicago). However my favorite and I think Evan's too, is my original ditty, sung to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. I keep adding lyrics as he grows and changes, learns new skills or I want to encourage new skills...notice the emphasis on sleep right now.

Evan, Evan is from heaven
Mommy loves him, Yes she does
He is growing everyday
He is learning how to play

(Refrain)
Evan, Evan is from heaven
Mommy loves him, Yes she does

He is using his mind
He is learning to be kind

Refrain

He is learning how to sleep
Closing his eyes and not making a peep

Refrain

He is wonderful to me
He is busy as a bee

Refrain

(Right before nap or bedtime)
Now it's time to lie in bed, close your eyes
Rest your head (Repeat many times!)

Look how lack of sleep has allowed my creative juices to flow! :-) lol

October has been grand

We started out the month with our good friends' wedding in Nappanee, IN. It was the first time that we left Evan overnight and we did it for TWO nights in a row! I'm glad I was so busy getting ready for the weekend, that I didn't really have time to think about being away from him for so long. We were lucky that Nana, Grandpa and Aunt Jen were willing to come to Chicago to take care of Evan for us. We were able to catch up with a good group of ND friends for a weekend of food, fun and riveting conversations. And some lovely nuptials! It is hard to believe that it's been 5 years since we graduated.  Getting together, we get right back to our passionate and spirited discussions and it seems like we just left Mendoza. Eric and I really enjoyed the time away and a whole night of sleep! Evan did really well and I don't think he missed us much at all.

Kacy and Chris, the happy couple

Selfie, at the end of the night, because we forgot to take one earlier

So ya know that sleep I mentioned, well we have been struggling a bit over here. More precisely, Evan and I, Eric curiously doesn't seem to hear things at night, but I hear this isn't too unusual of new Dads. Evan is still waking at night for a feeding and then usually one other time. I know he is working hard to put himself back to sleep, but he is just not quite there. I never knew I would be able to function for 6 months without sleeping more than 4 hours at a stretch, but...surprise...I can. We are putting a plan in place to diminish the night wakings, but it is very challenging to know the best way to go about it. What I have realized is that we have to make a decision based on what will work best for us. And so we are.

We found ourselves heading back to South Bend later in Oct, for the coveted ND vs. USC football game. We joined Mom and Dad on campus around noon. Although it was a chilly day, we were lucky that the rain mostly held off and we got to see a victory over USC at home. It had been awhile...2001. It was a looong day, but our sitter didn't mind. Evan and Uncle Steve had some great QT, but I'm not sure  Uncle Steve will volunteer for a whole day so quickly again.

Me, Mom and Dad

Warming up!

Where is our son??

Onward to victory, Love Thee Notre Dame!

What happened to September?

And picking back up...

We had great fun while our friend Steve was in town and we do hope he comes back to visit! When Evan's nap schedule doesn't rule the days as much, I'm sure we'll be able to make it to some fun Chicago sites.

Up next was Abuelita's (Eric's Mom) visit. She came in for the weekend and we were so pleased to have her stay with us. She hadn't seen Evan since his baptism in May and she couldn't believe how much he had changed and grown. We celebrated Evan's 8 month birthday while she was here, with a fun time at the playground.

Abuelita, Evan and Eric on his 8 month birthday.

Abuelita feeding Evan

Yum, Yum

Ha, ha, look at me!

Evan riding the #8 motorcycle...see what we did there...8 months!

Evan is growing and changing so much! I keep telling myself I need to keep track of all of these milestones better, but it's hard to keep up. He is eating solid foods now on a regular basis (lunch and dinner). He pulls himself up onto his feet, on everything that he can find. He's definitely crawling everywhere. He babbles and 'talks' a lot more and we have many conversations throughout the day. He even likes to flip the pages of books, if I let the page pop up a bit first.

We have been having some fun play dates with other Moms and children we have met. Date is the right term for them, as Evan is the only little boy. That's okay for now though, I think he likes trying to show off all he has learned and he loves their hair. We have been so lucky that the weather continues to hold and we can still go spread out in the parks, which are a nice walk from our house.

Evan and Maylynn

Maylynn wondering why Evan is talking to her Mommy!

Evan exploring grass with Julia

The last weekend of September held a rare occasion where Eric and I, and Uncle Steve, were out and about on the same evening. We called on a lovely lady, who has babysat for Evan once before, to put him to bed and tend to him that night. We went out!....to a Big Shoulders Fund fundraiser. Big Shoulders Fund is an organization that provides support for Catholic schools in the neediest areas of the city. In total these schools support 24,000 students in K-12. To learn more: www.bigshouldersfund.org. This was the first event we attended and it was a really great time. Good food, drinks, silent mobile auction and a good DJ. Needless to say, we got our dance on and met some great people.

Steve, looking dapper

Outdoor festivities

Ready for the music

And last but not least, ND Football, ended Sept. with a 3-2 record. It is still how we spend a lot of our Saturdays, just on delay, around Evan's sleeping, as we are trying to keep his TV time to a minimum. He has watched 30 mins of a few games though, before his dinner time. We are also working on pushups and Go Irish!