June 8-14th, 2011
With the "excitement" with an unexpected surgery and night in the hospital behind us, I was looking forward to getting back on my feet and getting back to normal. Being in that much pain really put things in perspective - I was so glad to get back to routine and be pain-free. Here are a few shots from routine evenings in the Gutierrez household.
Hugo has LOVED his tubby time ever since he was a little baby. I remember his first sponge bath and fearing the moment when I would have to dump water over my new son's head....and imagine my relief realizing that he enjoyed it. Tubby time is such a fun time with Hugo...if he's tired and cranky, it mellows him down; if he's happy, he gets silly and plays hard. Now that he's getting much bigger and able to sit up in the tub, he really likes getting to splash around. His favorite part, however is - the spray hose. He loves getting sprayed with it...over his head, even in his mouth as he tries to "eat" the water.
During the Normal Park garage sale, we found a great highchair for Hugo that was not only super clean and simple but that had a color scheme that went with our dining room. Hugo has been doing really good eating in his highchair, but sometimes gets a little distracted and unhappy by being perched up high away from anything fun. The solution, a $5 spinny toy from Wal-Mart...it suction cups right onto his tray so he can't throw it over the edge. It kept him occupied and happy for the whole meal time!
So Hugo has been co-sleeping with us since he was about 2 months old and taking naps in his swing. That means that he hasn't been using his crib or nursery at all really. While I'm happy that he's sleeping well for naptime and bedtime alike, I was a little bummed to have this adorable-labor-of-love nursery that was going unused. However, finally this week, we started having success with naps in the crib. And, while he's never been a fan of the nuki, he has taken to sucking his thumb for comfort....I guess its easier to find than a nuki that falls out! Check out my adorable little guy in his adorable little nursery.
June 18th, 2011
So, just as I was saying that I was hoping Hugo would get more use out of his nursery, it finally happened. On Friday night, we were having a quiet night at home and around 8:00, Hugo was getting kind of tired and was ready for a nap. Since we have been trying to get him to nap in his crib more, I laid him down and then Jaime and I settled into watch a movie. We fully expected Hugo to wake up around midnight, as usual, and then we were going to move him to our bed and head to bed ourselves. Well......he didn't wake up. Not at midnight, not at 1 am, 2 am....finally around 2:30, we decided it was bedtime for us and were facing the prospect of going to bed baby-less. We were both a little sad about it - feeling a little lonely from not having him with us. However, we were also kind of excited that he was sleeping so well, for so long, in his crib! While the thought of waking him to move him into our bed actually came out of Jaime's mouth, I resorted to my #1 rule ---- never wake a sleeping baby. So we went to bed on our own and got the best night sleep we had since before Hugo was born---all that room, being able to cuddle with each other, not having to worry about rolling over on the baby! Then, around 8 AM the next morning, Hugo woke up, babbling and happy ---- and it was evident he had the best night sleep yet as well. We pulled him into bed with us for a little morning cuddle time.
Can I say for probably the 100th time.....I LOVE Hugo's cheeks! It's what makes him Hugo.
To celebrate Jaime's first Father's Day, we got together at Rolling Mills Waterpark with our friends to celebrate-----me and Jaime, Shannon, Tim, Connor, Joe, Toni, Liam, Charlie, Lisa, Alexis, Evan, Jerri, Lindsey, Carly. We started off with a big BBQ and then all headed over for waterpark fun. Here's to Jaime and Joe, two new dads and Charlie, a new dad to-be! What a motley crew!
June 21-24th, 2011
The Society for Epidemiological Research (SER) conference was held in Montreal, Canada and while I was very excited to attend, I was also very nervous as it was going to be my first multi-night trip away from Hugo. 3 whole nights! As it turned out, I was fine - although it was very hard, especially because I was technically "international" and so couldn't call or text Jaime and Hugo whenever I felt like it without paying an arm and a leg. The trip was great, though....the conference was very useful and had some really good sessions directly related to the stuff I am working on. Montreal was an interesting city - very European, and I had a great time with travel companions, Vivian and her friend Heather.
Height - 27.13 inches (78th percentile)
Weight - 18.34 pounds (69th percentile)
June 25th, 2011 ---- HUGO'S 6 MONTH BIRTHDAY!
Luckily, while I was gone, my mom and dad offered to come down for a visit to help Jaime with Hugo. They also brought the boys with them so that there could be some more cousin-bonding time. It was also perfect timing to have them here because I wanted to throw Hugo a 1/2 birthday party. Given that he's a Christmas baby and will always have to share his birthday with the other festivities, I wanted to have something to celebrate just him. So we had a summer BBQ at our house and had a great turn-out, good food, water balloons and LOTS of kids! As my mom said, our parties aren't like they used to be! Gatlin and Cash spent a lot of their time practicing their BMX skills up and down our sidewalk.
After everyone left and we got the place cleaned up, we settled in for the main event of the evening --- Hugo's first taste of "real" food. At his 6-month check-up, we got the green light from Dr. Baker to start Hugo on pureed solids, so we stockpiled Gerber food and had Hugo's initiation into the culinary world on his 6-month birthday. Since it was still such a beautiful night, we set his high chair up on the deck, got him all bucked in, bibbed, and ready to go. Jaime and my mom were standing by with cameras and video ready to capture the momentus first occassion...pureed carrots. He took his first bite...and it was totally uneventful. Didn't make a face, didn't gag, didn't spit it out....he actually liked it. And he opened his mouth up for more. And more. And more. He polished off the entire container of carrots, no problem. Looks like we've got a good eater!
June 26th, 2011
My parents and the boys had to get on the road pretty early on Sunday, and since it was such a beautiful day we took a trip to the Detroit Zoo with Shannon, Tim and Connor. We packed a picnic lunch and headed out for a great day of sunshine!
Jaime and Tim pressing their hands against the ice cave --- who can hold it there longest?
June 27th, 2011
Play time after dinner. 
June 28th, 2011
Low-key night.....dinner at Chili's with Shannon, Tim and Connor. Hugo practicing his football grip while waiting to head out.
June 29th, 2011
Each year, Ann Arbor hosts the Ann Arbor Summer Festival - 3 weeks worth of concerts, special events and evening celebrations known as "Top of the Park". While our favorite part of Top of the Park used to be the nightly outdoor movie showings, life with baby makes it a little tough to stay out that late anymore. Instead, this year, we headed down for the music event part of Top of the Park with Shannon, Tim and Connor and enjoyed picnic dinner and a lazy evening outside. I'm convinced that Hugo loves summer as much as his mommy ---- doesn't he look so content and happy, lounging outside on a blanket, enjoying the summer evening warmth?
More live music! Tim's band, the Motor City Outlaws, were playing a gig at Chelsea Summer Festival so we headed out to support them and listen to some great music. We had a great sandwich dinner with Shannon and Connor and then parked ourselves for a great show.
