Our Big Weekend Out.

Elliott is just over 5 weeks old now, and he and I have hardly left the house this first 5 weeks.  I feel like I have spent my entire maternity leave in my pajamas.  So, this weekend we decided to venture out and get some fresh air.

This is a scary thing for the nursing mother.  My pumped milk is like liquid gold, I try to preserve it for emergency use only, so I'll have enough when I go back to work.  (It's hard to pump extra when you are nursing every two and a half hours.)  So, when baby gets hungry or fussy in public, pulling a bottle out of the diaper bag to soothe him is just not an option, and I'm not too keen on nursing in public yet.  This means we have to time our outings just right; nursing right before we walk out the door so we'll have a two hour time block before we need to be at a place where we can nurse again.

However, Elliott surprised me on our first big weekend out, keeping his fussiness to a minimum, and my stress level down.  We managed to time everything just right, and had a nice time catching up with friends and family.

Bundled up for our outing. 

Saturday we went to lunch with 7 of my fellow "Aqua Moms" and their new babies.  (While I was pregnant I took a water aerobics class at Baptist Hospital, Aqua Moms.)  It was quite a sight. We had a table for 16, with 8 women and 8 baby carriers holding babies from 3 weeks to 3 months old.  Everyone in the restaurant had to get a peek at all the little ones.

It was so nice to see these girls and meet the babies from the bellies in class.  The conversation with these fellow Mommies was much needed.  We swapped stories and shared tips on everything from nursing to where to get the best deals on cute baby clothes.

After our lunch, we loaded up and headed to a baby shower for a friend from church.  Melanie is expecting her first son, Bennett, in April.  Elliott enjoyed being passed around the room, while I enjoyed some down time catching up with my church friends, some of whom I had not seen since before Christmas.

On Sunday morning, we loaded up the car again and headed to Arkadelphia so Elliott could meet his great grandparents on the Grant side.  While we were there, Gary's Aunt and Uncle (Elliott's great Aunt and Uncle), who also live in Arkadelphia, stopped by to visit too.  We had a good lunch and about a three hour visit, and we got some priceless pictures that I'm sure Elliott will cherish some day.

After our visit with "Meemaw and Pawpaw" we stopped by our Alma Mater, to visit my brother before heading home.  This was Elliott's first time on Ouachita's campus, but we hope it will be the first of many.

With the Tiger at OBU.

I felt like my old self again, getting dressed and getting out.  Elliott was such a good sport, that I now feel more confident going out with him.  Things are slowly getting back to normal... our new normal that is. Elliott had such a big weekend, he slept though the night for the first time last night, 10:30pm to 6am.  I guess that means we should do this more often!