His Crib
Moments like these are ones I hope to never forget.
Moments that actually happened months ago…but they are important enough for me to weblog about here.
Moments that seem like forever ago…and one day will probably feel like just yesterday.
Will is a horrible night time sleeper. He likes to go to bed late and wake up early.
But naps? Totally a different story. He’s a napper. like if napping were blogging, he’d be Dooce…with a side of Pioneer Woman…and a dash of YHL. Yup, he’s that good.
And when he wakes up, 9 outta 10 times, he is like this:
Happy…exhuberific….bubblyastic.
Oh and did I mention that he likes me? Yeah…can’t get enough of whoever goes to get him. Jeremy & I have actually fought over who gets Will after the nap because it is guaranteed hugs and kisses.
And the other 10 percent of the time, he is just chillaxin’ in his crib.
Talking or laying down playing with his paci or just putting his feet up.
I must admit, it almost makes up for the nightly 1 am screamfests.
He really likes to stand on things…like the bumper or the toys or whatever. He also likes to toss everything that is in the crib out.
Sorry for the crazy colors in these photos. The walls are horrible for photography. They turned my baby into a strawbaby.
Note the imposter pacifier. That worked for all of ten seconds before he realized it’s not his real paci and he threw it down the open air conditioning vent. Yup…there’s probably a slew of toys down there ruining something.
Oh and sometimes…on a very rare occasion…
sometimes he looks so content with being in his crib that I do something crazy.
Yeah…I get in there too. Jeremy doesn’t approve…he thinks that I’ll break the bed. I don’t quite know how to take that.
But Will loves it.
On a separate note, there are no boobs in this photo…but two different areas that look ‘chestie’…the legs could definitely pass for Dolly Parton.
Speaking of boobs, Will’s lovie has these little tucked corners we call ‘nips’. I don’t know how that started exactly…but Will finds great comfort in taking the little nips and putting them up to his eyes and forehead and nose. Here’s a rare photo of him doing just that. He’s such a weird0. And no, I never put my nips up to his eyes, forehead or nose…so get that out of your mind pervert 
Did I mention that Will likes me in there with him?
Because he does. He laughs and cuddles and shows me everything. Kinda like he’s giving me a tour of his crib.
We have a grand time…
I think he feels very in charge in there…like it’s his place and I’m a guest.
Oh and he stands on me.
And lays on me. He hardly ever does that out of the crib…so of course, I love it.
Check out those walls…crazy. Almost as crazy as taking a picture inside the crib…without the baby.
When Will gets out of the crib, he likes to play with the fan.
Again…my kid is odd.
Not because he likes to play with the fan…but because he only likes to press the center circle.
He has no interest in touching anything else on the fan except for this little plastic center that does absolutely nothing.
Weirdo. And yes, I know how to pack a finger on ice if it gets chopped off…so don’t worry your pretty little head.
So that’s it. Just some fun little mom-ents that are totally Will.
There are more – like the five minute hug in the bathtub the first time we turned on the bubbles, and the rocking back and forth at night when he first gripped my neck and the morning Jeremy brought him into bed and Will spontaneously kissed me like ten times. Such sweetness. Like memory nectar.
It’s those moments that definitely make the lack of sleep a little more manageable, don’t they? My answer is absolutely. I wouldn’t remember those extra minutes in bed anyway
How sweet! I would love to get in the crib with my son, but I’m pretty sure I really would break it. My little boy is always so sweet when he wakes up from naps, as opposed to waking up in the morning, when he’s very DEMANDING. My husband and I have also argued over who gets him from his nap.
Amen! This def helped me snap out of my overwhelmed with 2 babies funk. My favorite picture is the one with his foot rested on the crib, beautiful!
LOVE the part where you explain his “lovie” – his comfort! Did you buy him the “lovie” for that purpose? or did he just pick a random blanket and decided that it was HIS?
Katie – awesome memories! Thanks for sharing. These are the moments that make up our life and I try to remember that each day. Also – loved when my babies (now 7 and 4) wrapped their arms around my neck for the first time and hugged back – absolute mommy heaven!
I love following your blog because your little boy is so cute! I have a 13 month old son. He does the same thing with his monkey! The monkey is stuffed, but it has this flat little tail, and he loves to hold just the tail up to his mouth and his nose, exactly as your son does. I love it – I think it is the cutest thing!
And yes, I know how to pack a finger on ice if it gets chopped off.
HA!! I love it. You crack me up.
You’re such a good Mama, Katie Bower. <3
My son has the monkey version of Will’s lovie. We call the nips “nubbins”. We laugh every time we say it. He’s sucks and chews on them like crazy. They’re always crust because of it. haha.
I love that you get in the crib. I think I’ll try that. It’s too fun that he gives you a tour!
Last night as my husband and I went to have one last check on Sarah before we went to bed. My husband said “I could just crawl in there with her.” So sweet. I love your special time. He’s such a cutie.
Love the pictures and all the different angles. I can just see you Will’s future girlfriends looking at these and saying what a cute baby he was/is!
form2form.wordpress.com
I think Will and I have the same crocheted baby blanket- the pink, blue, and white one. I had to do a double-take (double-scroll?), and it brought back very happy memories for me.
I love the picture of Will and his lovie because of his hand on your leg. I don’t have kiddos yet, but I think it’s sweet when they do that!
That blanket is actually a homemade gift from my grandma when I was little – she has since passed away and I cherish that thing so much. I wonder if yours and mine are a similar pattern and the same type of yarn! Small world!
xo – kb
Katie Bower, I LOVED this post! You sure know how to make a mama that’s going back to work in 3 weeks tear up. But, I also laughed out loud, so I forgive you for tugging the ‘ol heartstrings.
So glad you shared your post. I’m also glad to hear I’m not the only one waking up to screeching babies at 1 am. I have two year old twin girls and one of them wakes up between 1 am and 3 am screaming for me at the top of her lungs. Does anybody know why that is?
It’s very annoying, luckily she doesn’t wake up her sister.
Thanks again for sharing your lovely story.
My oldest started random screaming in the middle of the night around 1 1/2 years old. I was told that children start having vivid dreams and possibly even nightmares at that stage. When she got older and could better express herself, we also found out that she suffered from growing pains in her legs at night. Don’t know if this helps, but it could be a possibility. As with everything else, it’s a stage and “this too shall pass”.
Hi Katie,
Such a great post. We have the opposite, as in, we have a great night sleeper, but a horrible napper. It is really nice to get those precious hours of uninterrupted sleep at night, but during the day the only way to get our daughter to nap is by putting her in the baby carrier or breastfeeding. At 13 months this is starting to get problematic. I don’t think we’ll be breastfeeding too much longer, and she’s getting a little heavy for me to tote around in the baby carrier for too long. Plus, once she’s asleep you can’t move her, so you can’t get anything accomplished while she’s napping. I guess this just goes to show that all parents encounter some issues with their kid sleeping. We’ve tried climbing in the crib with her. All of my friends thought this was really strange, but we’re not that big of people, so it’s not hard to fit in there, and we have the crib from Ikea that sits almost directly on the floor, so if it does break, we’re not going to fall too far. I’m glad to know that we’re not the only weirdos out there that get in the crib. Thanks for the adorable pictures of Will. It’s so fun when they wake up happy.
You know you are soooo right……its the little things now that someday will seem like the BIG things!!! I like how you said that you’ll never remember the extra minutes you could’ve slept in but you’ll always remember the sweet memories such as waking up to comfort your child!!!! Love it!!!
Those pictures are precious!! I love that you climb right in with him!
FAVORITE POST ALERT! FAVORITE POST WARNING!
THIS WAS MY FAVORITE POST IN RECENT MEMORY!
Love these sweet memories…
Yesterday was my birthday – we have a brand-new baby, 10-days-old yesterday, and we were up and dressed to do newborn photos in the morning. I cam downstairs, sat on the couch, and my 2-year-old son came up to me, rubbed my face with his palm, and said “Mama pretty”. It was such a sweet moment, the perfect birthday gift.
adorable….my daughter used to have “Pinky” the rabbit as her lovey, and she used to rub the rabbits ears on her nose/eyes right before she fell asleep-its not weird, LOL, it’s a smart way ( and an independent way I might add) to calm oneself before sleep-kinda like kiddy meditation
and yes cutting in on nap time will make night time easier-just depends when you want your quiet block o time…
Katie this is beautiful. And makes my ovaries throb just a little.
I never really comment, but this post, I have to say … IT IS THE BEST! (sorry for the caps) but it’s simply beautiful! You capture moments like no other. Your bond with your little guy is beautiful! Great photos!
Loved this post. So sweet and candid. He really did look proud to be showing you his space and sharing it with you.
I have never seen an adult get in a crib before, but I love it! Tell your boyfriend that crib is plenty strong enough to hold you! I think it is awesome that you get in there with him. We climb into their play tents, and blanket forts, but I have never considered getting inside the crib. Good for you!
Katie, I love love love this post! Those pictures are seriously amazing. It feels just like a laundry detergent commercial or a cotton commercial or something (does that sound weird?) So amazing to have those moments documented forever. You are one very talented and lucky lady.
What a beautiful tribute to Will. Those pictures and that meditation at the end were just wonderful.
Hey Katie…. I know that you are trying to conceive your second child. I just wanted you to know that there is a Couple to Couple league near you that can help you do this naturally, by teaching you and your husband Natural Family Planning, (watching the signs of ovulation and fertility in your body). They also teach people how to postpone pregnancy using the same things, and therefore avoid things like nasty chemical birth control or barrier methods. The whole league is comprised of volunteers who teach the method because they believe in it so much. Please look into it…. And let me know if you have any questions… my husband and I are certified teachers
praying you conceive soon!
So, ok, i’ve been reading you for like ever, so I think i need to tell you this, as, you know, your bloggie friend (cause you dont know me, but i know you too well): please, please, please, do something about that house, do something like painting will’s room or, i dont know, paint the dining room, or buy something thrifted and give it a new life, or something, but please, please, please, give us some DIYing. We need it. And we know you need it too, cause we know you, and we know that you will feel awesome after giving that crazy nursery a makeover. Please, please, please, will ya?
You are such a great photographer! It’s so amazing how you capture a moment anyone would overlook and make it look so beautiful. I love the feet on the crib!
Remember in Chattanooga that cute little baby girl at the beach with Will that made your uterus ache? Well gee thanks Katie because all these fab fotos of your boy are doing the same thing. And I’m in a bad head space when it comes to babies right now. I want another one! But my husband and I are never on the same page and our agreement is that we both have to say yes at the same exact time for any large decisions in our lives. One day I’m a yes, one day he’s a no and then we flip flop. Ay yai yai! Okay here are my favorite: Him standing on you like “I’m king of her mountains!”, the high five, his little feet up on the slats, and of course the 1st shot. Oh babies!
My best, Lynn
SO cute! i’m glad to know i’m not the only wierdo who got in the crib with her kid.
my daughter gave me the funniest look when i crawled in there with her for the first time last week. then she liked it. then my husband gave me a funny look.
i totally LOL’ed at: “And yes, I know how to pack a finger on ice if it gets chopped off…so don’t worry your pretty little head.”
thanks for sharing cute kid moments!
The raw meat wall looks GREAT in black and white!!
haha…comment of the day award goes to you Heather!
xo – kb
The best part about this post is that you have inspired grown women to climb into cribs. And frankly, that’s just awesome.
I think this is my most favorite Will post ever.
I remember thinking when my children were babies in their crib how comfortable and content they looked, so much that I would have loved to crawl in there with them. I never thought I actually could! Now if I had that time over again, I would do it, at least once! I’d hate to start a habit of it! LOL!
I LOVED to touch the middle of the fan too when I was a child!! hehe. Don’t worry I grew up to be pretty fabulous
This is so totally how my little guy is…happy waking up, loving the fan in his room! And he just love the wind blowing on him and finds the littlest screw-hole to push his finger into. So sweet!
I’ve re-read this post three times. Gosh, that makes me sound like a crazy stalker. I have a six month old that I could swear I just gave birth to two days ago, and I want to remember every second. The scrunchy “rarr!” face he makes as he latches on to eat, the sparkling smiles after a nap, the quiet snuggles.. It is all so absolutely perfect and the lightspeed at which these days fly is heartbreaking sometimes. I have to say, I was also momentarily depressed that I don’t have your awesome photography skills to document everything in his life. This post inspires me to write more and drag out a few manuals for my Canon so when I look back, I can easily remember it all.
Our babies are cut from the same cloth. Virginia takes awesome daytime naps and then screams bloody murder at 1, 2, 3, 4am…different time every night…awesome! Thanks for sharing so much about your life with us strangers.
My little guy is around Will’s age, and I actually tried to climb in to his crib the other day for the first time! He loves to pretend to sleep (he puts his head on a pillow, covers up with a blanket and says “Night night Mama” before jumping up again) so I thought he’d think it was hilarious and pretend we were going to sleep. Instead he FREAKED OUT and was crying and backing into the corner!! Yeah, not what mommy had intended- ooops!
Yikes. Sorry it didn’t quite work out. I think it’s adorable that he pretend-sleeps though!
xo – kb
I have a creepy confession. Last night – I dreamed about your new light fixture. In my dream I had one and it hung over a set of stairs (that I dont have) and you had to duck to walk by it. weird.
Thanks for the dreaming inspiration
Adorable post! I love the pics of you in his crib with him. You both look so happy! Treasure those always!
Love these photos! I am expecting (27 weeks today!) a boy in November and am busily working to create a beautiful nursery room for him. I’m wondering if you could please tell me where you purchased Will’s crib bumper.
Thanks in advance,
Jackie
His bumper is really old – I got it on clearance at Target for $8. It might still be available online but I’m not sure..
xo – kb
When the wedding madness is over, you should read this blog from the beginning. This family has such a touching story and incredible faith. For some reason, this post made me think of Will. (Is he paci-obsessed?) http://themcclenahans.blogspot.com/2011/09/goodbye-pacis.html