{ and then there were 5... }

No. I'm not pregnant.

But we do have a proud new member of the house.

His name is Hank.  And he's a helmet.

Isn't he handsome?

Hank is loved and hated around this house.  Bryan has straight up hated Hank for days.  I've put on my big girl boots and decided that I have to like it.  I have to endure it.  I have to fight for it, because Ellis needs it.  And E may hate it, but I have to push through or it will never work.

Our delivery appointment went well...not.  Ellis screamed 99% of the time.  But we survived.  We came out stronger on the other side.  :)

I've learned a few things about helmets in these few days.

1. They hurt.  Not Ellis, but me.  Headbutts, nuzzles, and baby wearing have become a whole new level of dangerous.



2. They are ugly.  Uglier than I imagined.  Sure, I still think Mister is cute no matter what, but the helmet is no fashion accessory.  Stark white looks a little asylum-ish.  I need to start the decorating, stat.

3. They make my kid's head ridiculously sweaty.  Like dripping.  Gross.

{note - not sweat, just an average amount of Ellis drool}

4.  They are tight.  These suckers are hard to get on and off.  And they smoosh his face.

5. They really aren't that bad.  Sure, the first few days were an adjustment, but I'm having less and less selfish "but-the-helmet-is-ugly-and-I-can't-kiss-his-head" moments.  He's starting to not freak out when we take it on and off.  It's just for a short while and I think I can live with it.

Ellis is a champ.  It's crazy when a 5 month old can teach you more things about life than yourself.    He smiles through the smooshed cheeks and doesn't care if the helmet makes him less trendy.  He trusts us and adapts. Oh how I long for that kind of trust.

So Hank will live another day.  And Ellis will continue to forget about him, Bryan will hate him, and I will pretend to like him.

That's how we roll.