Now here this...

So, G4 is now eating rice cereal and baby oatmeal. We're using a spoon because if we can avoid him ever using a bottle that'd be great...one less thing to wean him off of, ya know? He's doing pretty well with the spoon. He's getting pretty chunky too! It's cute.

So, I cut all of my hair off. I guess my hormones started regulating or something because my hair started just straight falling out. So, I cut it. I was always wearing my hair up anyway and it just sucked. Plus, long hair is hard. I never knew what to do with it, ya know? I got it cut yesterday and I LOVE it!! Here's a before and after:

Most of y'all have known me as a short hair girl anyway so I just took it back to my youth and cut that stuff off. I feel like short hair fits my personality better anyway. Plus, I just feel more stylish when my hair is short...it's definitely a personal thing though. If I could have long, beautiful Hillary Duff hair I'd be keeping it long but since I caint...

So, from time to time I'll torture myself by trying to fit back into my old pants (ha) - really it's just my gauge to see if I've lost any weight because we don't own a scale nor do I want to own a scale...and guess what!? I got my old jeans on and buttoned!!!!! OH EM GEE!!! Of course I looked like I was heading out to the Honky Tonk in my tighter than tight low rise jeans with muffin-top securely in place but I got them on and buttoned damnit and that's progress! I don't know that I'll ever be my old size again because my hips have definitely changed shape (and that's okay with me, I dig looking a little va-va-voom) but it felt good to get my old AE's on anyway.

In other randomness...have you tried the new crackers called Flipside Crackers? They're part pretzel, part cracker and they're awesome. If you haven't tried them you definitely should.

And that's all I gots...

Here's a pic of the car on July 4th:

DSC01904

HAHAHAHAHA! Cheers!

The newest video of G4!

It's a long fall from that high horse I was parading around on before we had a baby. Remember when I was all "Holy crap, people bring so much crap for their kids when they go out. What's that all about?" Yeah...lemmee just tell you - we're going to the beach tomorrow and I have packed everything we own. A diaper bag that won't snap because it's slam full of diapers, 5 different outfits (including 2 hats and 3 bathing suits), 2 rattles, 2 things of wipes, a playmat complete with playmat attachements, 3 ice packs to put on him if he gets too hot while I'm nursing him, a large sheet to lay on, a book, the camera, and the video camera. To be sure I'll post a pic! I just thought y'all would get a chuckle knowing that I'm over here being the most neurotic prepared mom in Japan.

Dude - it is soooo hot here. I mean, really. It's so hot that it makes me want to punch someone in the face. Honestly, it's only 86 degrees but the humidity is other-worldly. I have been walking in the mornings with a friend and by the time we get back in (at around 9am) I am soaked in sweat. Ugh.

Not sure if we're gonna do much of anything for the 4th. It's so hot and it makes me worry about the baby, his comfort and his little hiney...talk about diaper rash central. Shew. G has Thursday and Friday off which is pretty sweet.

We're taking a vay-cay to Tokyo in August. I'm stoked. We're going with our friend who just had a baby so that's cool. The guys are going to climb Mt. Fuji one of the days. Me and the other mom aren't gonna go - we want to but it's too long of a day for the little ones. It should be fun though. I can't wait to see all of the buildings and the FASHION!

Anyhoo, here's a few pics of my little peanut...Happy Independence Day, y'all!

Here's a video of my little man rolling over!

A recent cover story in Time magazine was "The Truth about Vaccines" - it was an article about the controversy over vaccinating young children and possible autism stemming from said vaccinations. This subject has been in the news a lot lately. Jenny McCarthy has brought the subject to the forefront with her experience with her son and his battle with autism. It seems like everywhere I turn there is something to do with autism - whether it's in the news, someone's personal experience, Autism Awareness campaigns, etc. - it's everywhere. The statistics state that 1 in 150 children are autistic. 1 in 150!

I can't think of anything worse than something bad happening to my child. Taking G4 to get shots and having to hold him down and watch him cry as someone pokes him with needles breaks my heart into a million pieces but the thought that the vaccinations that I'm letting him get (with all of the best intentions) might adversely effect him makes my stomach turn. While there is no "hard scientific proof" that links vaccines to autism I can't help but wonder. And I can't help but weigh the options. If I choose to stop all vaccinations I am potentially putting G4 at risk for many different diseases as well as causing major road blocks when it comes to registering him for school (as all school age children are required to be vaccinated - with the exception of those with specific religious reasons against vaccinations). But on the other hand, if I choose to continue getting him vaccinated I worry about the potential risks associated with that as well.

I have spoken to G4's pediatrician about the risks of vaccinating and she kinda laughed when I brought up vaccinations and autism...not because she thought it was funny but because she hears that same concern and answers the same question several times a day. Her response was that there is no scientific proof linking vaccines to autism (the major vaccine in question is the MMR vaccine). She said that the risks on not vaccinating G4 far out-weigh the "risk" of vaccinating him. She said that studies have been done since the original theory linking vaccines to autism and that there are just as many unvaccinated children with autism as there are vaccinated children with autism. She also said that since the theory linking the two was first published the medical professionals who at first supported the theory have since retracted their support stating that there was not sufficient evidence supporting the link (this statement is also supported in the Time article).

But still I worry. I guess that's my job. I'm a mother, so I worry.

Have y'all gone through with all of the vaccinations? Did you / do you share the same concerns?

I can't see myself not getting G4 vaccinated. It just worries me. Maybe I'll skip the MMR vaccine when he's 2 and wait until closer to school age to give him that vaccine...maybe that will ease my concerns. Who knows.

Please let me know your thoughts.  

We had G4's four month appointment yesterday - he did really well (even with the shots)! Here are his stats:

Weight: 15.8 lbs (75th percentile)

Height: 25.2 in (50th percentile)

Head Circumference: 50th percentile

G4 rolled over from his back onto his belly!!! I'm soooo proud!

He did it once on the bed this morning with a little teeny bit of help from mommy. He had himself completely over but he couldn't get his shoulder rolled under so he'd be sitting on his elbows so I pushed in on the mattress so his weight would shift and he'd get the feel of what he should be doing and then he got it. And then he did it on his own this morning on his playmat on the living room floor!!! Of course, I had turned away for literally 10 seconds only to look back to find him on his tummy watching TV. The stinker! As a rule we don't allow TV and if he does watch TV it's only for like a handful of minutes at a time - usually when I'm refilling my drink or pottying or something. But I gotta tell you, that kid LOVES the TV. If it's on he's trying to watch it...so I used it as bait to get him to roll over. I'd put him on his back facing away from the TV so if he wanted to see it he's have to roll over and ta-dah! it worked!! I felt bad that Big G wasn't home to see it but what can ya do? I was home and still didn't see it so I guess it's fair! :0)

G4 is getting so big. I can't believe that he'll be 4 months old on the 10th! Say what? Say who? I have a 4 month old son!?! Wacky. He goes for his 4 mo check-up on the 12th. Crazy crazy!

So, I couldn't live with the sheets thumbtacked up in my baby's windows so I've taken them down and I'm going to return them today. I hated them. A.) they were f-in sheets and B.) they were dark blue and when we had them up it looked like we painted his wall black. Ew.

This is what I discovered (at 4:45am when G4 just decided to get up and blow my whole "it's too light" theory right out of the water) - G4's room is the most cheery room in the house...and that's partly due to the fact that the sun rises on that side of the house. I love the glow that the room has in the morning - that glow let's my baby know that it's time to rise and shine with a smile...and he does...and that makes me smile...so why fix it if it ain't broken, right? I ended up closing the blinds in the opposite direction that I had been and that seems to cut down on the light a little.

In other news...during my sister's visit we took an ass load of pics. I have them uploaded to my snapfish account so if you want to see them you can message me and I'll send you a link. But in the meantime, here's some video(s) of my little man. Did you know that he's this close to rolling over from his back to his tummy??!! Crazy! Here's the videos: