So a week and a half ago we were on a lovely family
vacation. My parents recently bought a cabin at the dead end of a gravel road,
on a lake, in the middle of nowhere, north woods Wisconsin. One of my favorite
places on this earth. It was so nice to just spend time with family for a whole
week with the only worries in our lives being: who’s going to catch the biggest
fish, and should we go get ice cream today? Vacation at it’s very best. (Oh and
my talented husband caught the biggest fish! 10+ lb northern pike FTW!)
There was just one little reality check that I had to get
over starting day one.
That is. Vacationing with a baby is not the same as
vacationing without a baby. Repeat, NOT THE SAME. Those 6:30 AM wake up calls..
Still there! Scheduling every event around naps and nursing sessions. Yep! That
thing I mentioned earlier about not being able to sit for more than 5 seconds..
multiply that by 10 because the cabin is tiny and deep water is dangerous. There
was also that 8 hour car ride. Oh and sleeping in a portable crib in mommy and
daddy’s room. I now remember why I made sure my newborn slept in his own room
early on! Every roll, every sigh, every moan.. my mommy ears heard! Props to
the moms who can sleep with their babies right next to them. I don’t know how
you do it!
So let’s just say day one was a little rough. One hour of
screaming for his afternoon nap later and I was in tears. Thank you grandpa for
staying in the cabin with Luca while I tried to ignore the wails and moans
coming from the baby monitor as I laid on a floaty in the middle of the lake. Thankfully
it only took the one day for Luca to get used to the portable crib and the rest
of vacation he napped like an angel baby.
It was all a good lesson learned for me. Yes, the tears
were flowin’ day one, but I learned that even on vacation I need to lay aside
my wants for my child. I WANTED this child and he is a gift from God! Once that
set in, vacation was a blast! Watching Luca go on the boat, splash in the lake,
and eat all my ice cream was a ball. My husband, mom, and dad also gave me a
few much needed breaks every once in a while so I could tan on a floaty or go
fishing. Thank you all!
So, while we were there my Luca turned 10 months old! We
hit the double digits people! It’s crazy to think that in less than 2 months I
will have a one year old. Where has the time gone? Sometimes I look at his
newborn pictures and I’m sad that my baby is no longer a baby, but mostly I’m
excited.
Excited to see what the future has in store for him. Every day I’m
getting a better glimpse of his personality and I love it! He’s such a loving
baby, but he’s also funny, playful, and ENERGETIC… Seriously, his switch gets
turned to “on” at 6:30 am and it’s non-stop moving until bed time! Sure, we get
a couple naps in here and there, but they are usually forced and greeted with
some crying before he gives in to that ever so lovely 45 minutes of my day when
I get to shower and make my bed. It’s tough a lot of days… make that most days.
I’ve had to learn that it’s ok if I can’t see the floor of my family room
because it’s covered in a million toys and pillows. Or, it’s ok if it takes me
an entire day to do 2 loads of laundry. To be honest some days I’m not okay
with it and the minute John comes home I beg him to take Luca outside so I can
mad dash clean for 10 minutes. I’m a total surface cleaner these days. I don’t
dare look under my couch EVER… hello dust bunnies and probably the 100 pacifiers
we’ve lost recently… (Seriously though. Pacifiers = the new bobby pins. I buy
20 and within a day we have one left. I
don’t know where they go, but my goodness I swear those things have legs.)
This month, Luca learned to give kisses. Sweetest thing
ever! He also learned how to completely stand up on his own without holding
onto anything and halfway through the month he took his first step! … Why am I
cursed!?! I thought firstborns were supposed to be all cautious and do
everything late because they don’t have an example older sibling to look up to?
Well in the Genau household, that is not a thing! Luca has done everything
early. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a proud mommy, but when I see other 9/10 month
olds happy to sit for minutes on end and play with one toy or be content to
have their mom hold them through an entire church service, I’m like.. What is
wrong with my kid!?! I know, nothing is wrong. He’s just absolutely 100% a boy
and God’s perfect little masterpiece. So trust me when I say, I’m joking. But
if God blesses us with more children in the future, I really really hope at
least one of them is content to stay a baby for a little while longer.
Luca’s favorites this month include, being outside,
reading, climbing stairs, dancing, when daddy throws him in the air, puffs
(duh!), and we have discovered pouches. His favorite and my favorite! He can
feed himself and mommy can actually sit down and enjoy a meal at the same time.
Win, win! He also really discovered his
love of ice cream this month… I mean we were in Wisconsin! If he spots anyone
with an ice cream cone in hand he will crawl up to them and whine until they
share. It’s like we have another dog… Luca’s dislikes this month were pretty
typical for a 9 month old.. Stranger danger pretty much sums that up. New
people are not ok and nurseries are not fun. We did learn how to survive the
nursery at the ice rink this month though! I can teach for an hour and leave
him in the nursery if he is in his own stroller, in front of the TV, with about
½ a can of puffs on his tray. It’s amazing. No tears whatsoever!
Overall it was a very fun month! And now that were almost
halfway through 10 months old (oops) it’s only getting better! As much as I
jokingly complain about not being able to do anything anymore, I wouldn’t trade
this stage of life for the world. However, I’m still looking forward to the day
when I can go down to the basement to switch the laundry without it being a
marathon sprint up and down the stairs only to be greeted by Luca’s hand shoved
in his mouth while sitting next to Elsie’s food bowl. That will be nice…
Being a stud...
Best family picture out of 5...
