Yes, folks, we've hit another milestone today, only this one isn't Baby Girl's. It's mine. This marks my 400th post on this blog. Wow. I can't believe how far I have come since the inception of this blog. I would never have imagined that I'd be here--mommy to a 10-month old, pumping between 1 (weekends) and 4 (weekdays) times a days, feeling sort of disconnected from my husband (who used to be, hands down, my very best friend...still is), hating work and wanting to be a stay at home mommy, hovering just under 220 pounds (ugh), enjoying every second I get to stay in my house, and trying to redefine my role in life.
Thank you to all of you, my readers. You've helped me get here and I hope you'll stick around through baby #2 and baby #3 (if we're blessed with either or both) and through watching me grow into this role of being a mother, wife, and friend. I appreciate you all, whether you've left comments or just read along with me. I know there are a lot of you out there who read and never comment, so thanks to you, too.
Maybe we'll do something special for post #500 (although I'm not promising anything since my whole "ask me anything giveaway" idea completely failed...I still know who my winner is and just need to take the time to get something together for her). I hope you'll be around to find out either way!
Friday, June 4, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Thrifty Thursday - Buy BEFORE You Need It
(Nope, no nifty little icon today, folks. You're lucky to be getting a Thrifty Thursday post at all, as I've been home all day with a baby who apparently has an ear infection and has been battling the same cold for the better part of a week. She's been in bed since 6:25, though, so I've got a bit of time on my hands now)
My tip for the day is to buy non-perishable or freezable items BEFORE you need them. This may sound odd, but think about when you last ran out of shampoo. You had to run to the store (or at least pick it up next time you were there) and buy it, no matter whether it was on sale or there was a good coupon out for it at that time.
This is especially true if you're brand-loyal. Keep an eye out at all stores for a good sale on your favorite brands and keep tabs on the newspaper and printable coupons for coupons for your brand.
I, for one, am only partially brand-loyal. I use my specific brand of deodorant, have a few acceptable brands of shampoo and conditioner, but can use any type of toothpaste. I have a big stockpile of all of these toiletries on hand, waiting for me to run out of the bottle I'm using.
For instance, today I was in CVS and saw that Colgate Total with Whitening was originally priced $2.79, but was $2 off, and I had a $0.75 off coupon. A tube of toothpaste for $0.04? That's a 98.6% savings off the shelf price!
This also holds true at the grocery and sort of feeds off the discussion from last week. If you use black beans on a regular basis and find them for a great price one week, buy 5 cans! Why buy them every week and take the chance of it being regular price when you get get them all cheap?
All this stockpiling, so to speak, does require a bit of storage space, but you could just devote one cabinet or one shelf in a linen closet to some extras, as long as you don't go hogwild (I, for one, have gone hogwild, but that's okay--we've adjusted accordingly).
Have suggestions for next week's post? Have any questions for me? Have any great "buy it before you need it" stories? Just want to say "hi"? Post a comment!!!
My tip for the day is to buy non-perishable or freezable items BEFORE you need them. This may sound odd, but think about when you last ran out of shampoo. You had to run to the store (or at least pick it up next time you were there) and buy it, no matter whether it was on sale or there was a good coupon out for it at that time.
This is especially true if you're brand-loyal. Keep an eye out at all stores for a good sale on your favorite brands and keep tabs on the newspaper and printable coupons for coupons for your brand.
I, for one, am only partially brand-loyal. I use my specific brand of deodorant, have a few acceptable brands of shampoo and conditioner, but can use any type of toothpaste. I have a big stockpile of all of these toiletries on hand, waiting for me to run out of the bottle I'm using.
For instance, today I was in CVS and saw that Colgate Total with Whitening was originally priced $2.79, but was $2 off, and I had a $0.75 off coupon. A tube of toothpaste for $0.04? That's a 98.6% savings off the shelf price!
This also holds true at the grocery and sort of feeds off the discussion from last week. If you use black beans on a regular basis and find them for a great price one week, buy 5 cans! Why buy them every week and take the chance of it being regular price when you get get them all cheap?
All this stockpiling, so to speak, does require a bit of storage space, but you could just devote one cabinet or one shelf in a linen closet to some extras, as long as you don't go hogwild (I, for one, have gone hogwild, but that's okay--we've adjusted accordingly).
Have suggestions for next week's post? Have any questions for me? Have any great "buy it before you need it" stories? Just want to say "hi"? Post a comment!!!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Movin' on Up
We've upgraded our living situation this weekend.
We're now in a gated community:
with a private pool:
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Ten Months Old
Oh Baby Girl, I can't really believe you're ten months old. I realize I say that every single month, but it's true! Ten months ago, you were this little teeny baby who couldn't even hold her head up, and now you're this independent little girl!
In the last month, you've started clapping! It actually just happened in the last couple of days. You'll clap when we do and also when you do something that makes you happy (turning on a toy, some music, etc.). Your daddy noticed that you're clapping by bringing your left hand to your right--is it possible you'll be left-handed? Mommy and Daddy will have to enlist the help of your aunt and uncle to show you how to write and cut with your left hand, if so!
You also have started to shake your head "no". We don't think it's actually that you're saying no, though--it happens more often when you're dancing to some music or just generally being silly. You've also started shaking your head when Mommy and Daddy do, too. For now, it's adorable, but I'm not sure if it will be so cute when we're trying to scold you. Oh, let's face it, it'll still be cute...but might be frustrating!
You love music and books so much. You're a lot like Mommy and Daddy (music for both, books for Mommy) in that respect. You love to dance to music by bouncing while standing. You're a busy, busy girl, but if we give you a few books, you'll actually stay in one place for a few minutes, turning the pages and sometimes giving the babies in the book kisses (big, wet, tongue kisses).
Speaking of kisses, you're great at giving kisses. Yes, they might be a bit wet and you might tend to stick your tongue in Mommy and Daddy's mouths, but it's obvious that you're trying to kiss us. You also love when Daddy tries to have you blow kisses to Mommy before he takes you to bed. You always giggle as he puts your hand to your mouth.
This month you've also really found your balance and stand upright without holding onto anything much of the time. One time you even stood up from a crawling position without pulling up on anything!
You are so close to walking...you'll hold onto our fingers and walk, but aren't brave enough to try it while not holding on! I know we'll get there soon enough. Soon you'll realize that you could do it if you wanted to and once that happens, look out! You'll be running soon after you start walking (once you figure out it's quicker to walk than to crawl!).
This past week you discovered the stairs. Within two days, you figured out how to scale the steps like a pro and can now get up three of them before we can get to you! We've been trying to teach you how to come back down safely, but you aren't really interested in that part.
You also got your first tooth this month! Your bottom left tooth showed up with no fanfare and Mommy and Daddy thought that meant they would all be pretty easy. Unfortunately, you seem to be getting a few more (at least the bottom right and possibly the 2nd bottom left and maybe your top two) and your sleep has begun to suffer for it. You chew on your fingers (and everything else) really hard, trying to work those teeth through your gums.
The only thing about you this month (and most others!) that hasn't been so pleasant is your sleep (or lack thereof). We had gotten into a great groove with bedtime and were able to put you down awake most nights and you'd suck your thumb and fall asleep. Now, though, you need to be completely asleep before we can lay you down and even then sometimes you'll pop your little head up--sometimes crying and sometimes grinning ear to ear. Mommy and Daddy can deal with the waking once (or twice) a night, but this bedtime stuff is pretty painful. We all can tell you're obviously tired, so just let yourself sleep, please!
I had to mention the sleeping, but feel I need to also tell you what an absolute joy you are. I could watch you play for hours. Unless Mommy or Daddy has something you want (the laptop, a remote, a cell phone), you are really pretty independent and can entertain yourself with your toys as well as some of the things around the house (the bookcase, the armoire--really anything you can pull up on). You're quick with a smile and giggle pretty easily. You're friendly with strangers and now even sometimes smile at them in the stores instead of just staring. You are fascinated by other kids and just a pleasure to be around all the time. I love to watch you grow and change, even though I do want to hold onto my baby for awhile longer. I'm not ready for you to be a one year old!
In the last month, you've started clapping! It actually just happened in the last couple of days. You'll clap when we do and also when you do something that makes you happy (turning on a toy, some music, etc.). Your daddy noticed that you're clapping by bringing your left hand to your right--is it possible you'll be left-handed? Mommy and Daddy will have to enlist the help of your aunt and uncle to show you how to write and cut with your left hand, if so!
You also have started to shake your head "no". We don't think it's actually that you're saying no, though--it happens more often when you're dancing to some music or just generally being silly. You've also started shaking your head when Mommy and Daddy do, too. For now, it's adorable, but I'm not sure if it will be so cute when we're trying to scold you. Oh, let's face it, it'll still be cute...but might be frustrating!
You love music and books so much. You're a lot like Mommy and Daddy (music for both, books for Mommy) in that respect. You love to dance to music by bouncing while standing. You're a busy, busy girl, but if we give you a few books, you'll actually stay in one place for a few minutes, turning the pages and sometimes giving the babies in the book kisses (big, wet, tongue kisses).
Speaking of kisses, you're great at giving kisses. Yes, they might be a bit wet and you might tend to stick your tongue in Mommy and Daddy's mouths, but it's obvious that you're trying to kiss us. You also love when Daddy tries to have you blow kisses to Mommy before he takes you to bed. You always giggle as he puts your hand to your mouth.
This month you've also really found your balance and stand upright without holding onto anything much of the time. One time you even stood up from a crawling position without pulling up on anything!
You are so close to walking...you'll hold onto our fingers and walk, but aren't brave enough to try it while not holding on! I know we'll get there soon enough. Soon you'll realize that you could do it if you wanted to and once that happens, look out! You'll be running soon after you start walking (once you figure out it's quicker to walk than to crawl!).
This past week you discovered the stairs. Within two days, you figured out how to scale the steps like a pro and can now get up three of them before we can get to you! We've been trying to teach you how to come back down safely, but you aren't really interested in that part.
You also got your first tooth this month! Your bottom left tooth showed up with no fanfare and Mommy and Daddy thought that meant they would all be pretty easy. Unfortunately, you seem to be getting a few more (at least the bottom right and possibly the 2nd bottom left and maybe your top two) and your sleep has begun to suffer for it. You chew on your fingers (and everything else) really hard, trying to work those teeth through your gums.
The only thing about you this month (and most others!) that hasn't been so pleasant is your sleep (or lack thereof). We had gotten into a great groove with bedtime and were able to put you down awake most nights and you'd suck your thumb and fall asleep. Now, though, you need to be completely asleep before we can lay you down and even then sometimes you'll pop your little head up--sometimes crying and sometimes grinning ear to ear. Mommy and Daddy can deal with the waking once (or twice) a night, but this bedtime stuff is pretty painful. We all can tell you're obviously tired, so just let yourself sleep, please!
I had to mention the sleeping, but feel I need to also tell you what an absolute joy you are. I could watch you play for hours. Unless Mommy or Daddy has something you want (the laptop, a remote, a cell phone), you are really pretty independent and can entertain yourself with your toys as well as some of the things around the house (the bookcase, the armoire--really anything you can pull up on). You're quick with a smile and giggle pretty easily. You're friendly with strangers and now even sometimes smile at them in the stores instead of just staring. You are fascinated by other kids and just a pleasure to be around all the time. I love to watch you grow and change, even though I do want to hold onto my baby for awhile longer. I'm not ready for you to be a one year old!
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Thrifty Thursday
I'd like to start doing a weekly post to tell you about thrifty ideas that I have. I've been called a "coupon queen" by a lot of people, but there are thrifty (but not crazy) things you can do other than using coupons (although I'll probably give some couponing tips, too). You know I'm a busy lady and my top priority is Baby Girl, so I'm not going to tell you things that will take a ton of your time, either.The first topic I'd like to cover is cooking things to go into the freezer. I've tried to get into freezer cooking, but haven't done a lot of it. But this past weekend, I did some a bit and I think it's going to help a lot in the future. I went to the grocery store on Sunday morning and found big packs of boneless, skinless chicken breasts for $1.99/lb. (they've actually been on sale for $1.79/lb at Kroger recently, but I didn't go there this week and in the interest of saving time, $1.99/lb is a great price--I always aim for around $2/lb for chicken when I'm stocking up). I went home and found that some of the meat I'd purchased the previous week (we ended up eating out more than planned because of Baby Girl's weird sleeping) was a manager's special (meaning it was close to expiring) and needed to be cooked up before the night we were planning on using it.
We were grilling out that evening (the grilled hawaiian pizza--it was delicious!), so I had The Hubby also cook up some other meat. I had: 1 package of garlic brats (purchased for just over $2), 2 tubes of ground sirloin (low fat cut of beef--purchased for just over $2/lb--I bought 10 tubes and put them straight in the freezer (we'd thawed two tubes for planned use last week)!), and the chicken. One meal we're having this week calls for already-cooked chicken and another is for uncooked chicken. I pulled out the amount we needed for the meal using uncooked chicken and had The Hubby grill the rest of the chicken and the brats up while the grill was heated for the pizzas.
We also cooked up all two pounds of the ground sirloin and made it into taco meat (we plan to have one meal of tacos this week). We put one pound into a Tupperware container, then put the other pound into a freezer bag and put it in the freezer for future use. If more was thawed, I would have cooked more and frozen that as well.
We then put a couple of the grilled chicken breasts into a baggie to go into the refrigerator, then I sliced up the rest and put it into a freezer bag and put it into the freezer.
We used the brats last night for dinner.
This is really helpful in both saving money and time on the weeknights. We did all this preparation in less than a hour and that also included cleaning up toys, cleaning the kitchen and preparing the pizzas for grilling and now we have over a pound of chicken in the freezer, a pound of taco meat, and also had meat for three meals this week cooked, so all we have to do is reheat it. You can buy your meat when it's very cheap, cook it up, and freeze it if you don't think you'll get to use it right away just by cooking when you're already cooking other things.
There's also a part two to freezer cooking--making entire meals (specifically casseroles) and freezing them for use later. If you're already making a meal, why not make a double (or triple!) batch and freeze some for use later. I haven't done a lot of this, but hope to in the future. One of my friends suggests Shepherd's Pie as a great candidate for this sort of preparation. We also made some freezer meals before Baby Girl came along and were able to reheat quickly once she was here.
So that's my first installation to Thrifty Thursday. What other topics would you like me to cover? Do you do any freezer cooking? If so, what is your favorite recipe to make for freezing?
Monday, May 24, 2010
Here we go...
Baby Girl is probably less than 2 weeks from walking. This weekend she REALLY got into cruising (she'd already done it some, but I think really saw the value in it this weekend). Then yesterday she was down on the floor and stood up without pulling up on anything. Eek! There were also a few times when she was holding onto something (her Exersaucer, the stairwell bannister) and she'd lean toward something and think about stepping toward it. The Hubby and I thought she'd just take off, but both times she'd drop down and crawl. I am SO not ready for this!!!
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Meal Plan 5/23 - 5/29
Sunday: Grilled Hawaiian Pizza
Monday: Brats & red potatoes
Tuesday: Buffalo Chicken Lasagna
Wednesday: Pork Chops & Rice
Thursday: Salsa Chicken
Friday: Tacos
Saturday: Pasta & Meatballs
(of course, not knowing what Baby Girl's nap schedule will be, we might interchange some of these, but these are the planned meals)
Monday: Brats & red potatoes
Tuesday: Buffalo Chicken Lasagna
Wednesday: Pork Chops & Rice
Thursday: Salsa Chicken
Friday: Tacos
Saturday: Pasta & Meatballs
(of course, not knowing what Baby Girl's nap schedule will be, we might interchange some of these, but these are the planned meals)
Saturday, May 22, 2010
They're in there...
Teeth! Last night in the car on the way home, I reached my hand back to her carseat, stuck my finger in her mouth, and found something sizeable and sharp. I *still* can't see it, but there's at least one in there. She won't let me in there enough to see what I'm feeling, so I peek a little and feel a little. But they are there.
Unrelatedly (or is it related???), we've had a couple of good nights of sleep once she gets there. Bedtime has still been fairly rough (I've nursed her to sleep most nights this week), but the overnight has been really pretty good. Last night, for instance, she passed out around 6:45 (tried nursing her at 6:20 and she refused--I think she was too awake and knew she'd fall asleep) and DH took her upstairs. She woke up a little less than an hour later and I went up and rocked her back to sleep. From there, she slept until 4:30! 4-freaking-thirty, folks! Even if we count that as a full waking (which I don't typically count), she slept for almost NINE HOURS straight! Even better, she went back to sleep after eating at 4:30 and slept until almost 7. She woke up happy. Beautiful morning. Ahhhh...
Unrelatedly (or is it related???), we've had a couple of good nights of sleep once she gets there. Bedtime has still been fairly rough (I've nursed her to sleep most nights this week), but the overnight has been really pretty good. Last night, for instance, she passed out around 6:45 (tried nursing her at 6:20 and she refused--I think she was too awake and knew she'd fall asleep) and DH took her upstairs. She woke up a little less than an hour later and I went up and rocked her back to sleep. From there, she slept until 4:30! 4-freaking-thirty, folks! Even if we count that as a full waking (which I don't typically count), she slept for almost NINE HOURS straight! Even better, she went back to sleep after eating at 4:30 and slept until almost 7. She woke up happy. Beautiful morning. Ahhhh...
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Don't call 911
I'm going to be setting a fire here at my house. If you see the flames, don't call 911--I promise I'll keep it all (mostly) under control.
We had a rough night last night. In my blog post, I said she'd calmed down. Well, she did...until she was put in her crib again. I know she was horribly overtired. It was awful. We ended up just bringing her downstairs to see what she would do. She crawled around like it was two o'clock in the afternoon. She was happy and playing around. Which is why no one other than us sees when she's tired--she doesn't get cranky until you try to get her to sleep.
We let her play. And play. Eventually, I picked her up and read to her while I rocked gently. She sort of rolled toward me and sucked her thumb. I knew she was ready, but she didn't seem to think so. I rocked a bit more. When she realized my motives, she wasn't happy. But I held her like I did when she was little and we rocked. I snuggled her close to me, on her right side, so she could suck her left thumb. I held her close to my chest, patted her perfect little bum, and whispered "shh" to her when she'd start to fuss. She finally succumbed to the soothing and fell asleep at 9. I let her sleep there with me for about 45 minutes before The Hubby took her upstairs. This time she didn't wake until 3:30 a.m.
After this experience, I had to figure out why it was happening. I needed answers. Like any person who loves learning like I do, I read. I read anything I could find on the subject of baby sleep. I turned to the book that my sister-in-law and several friends swear by. I read a section geared specifically toward babies 5 months to one year. I even found a paragraph that described all the symptoms Baby Girl was exhibiting, to the letter. I was so excited--maybe he knew the answer to our problem!
As I read, though, it became apparent that the author wrote this book as literature for families with only one working parent. I had noticed it before--the mentions of "the working parent"--but didn't think much of it. But then I read that paragraph and knew that he was only interested in dealing with families with one parent working. Families where a baby can be put to bed at 5 p.m. And if you're not one of those families, you're officially being selfish.
Sure, there's about 3 pages toward the back that is specifically for dual-working parents. It says that if you can't be flexible enough to get your child to bed when s/he needs it, you're being selfish. It insinuates that all families where both parents work are doing too much on the weekends and aren't allowing their children to get the sleep they need. It equates us to withholding food from our child, without knowing our situation. Without knowing that we both HAVE to work and that our schedules cannot be adjusted and that we cannot physically get this child home from the sitter's before 5:30, but that we still put her to bed pretty much immediately after getting home, even though neither of us spends time with her during the week. Without knowing that we don't really go anywhere on the weekends, either, to allow her to sleep in her crib as needed. He suggests that we should be having the sitter feed the child if we cannot get home early enough to do everything we need to before bed. We could do that, but we still couldn't meet his 5 p.m. uber-early bedtime that he says my baby needs because she's so overtired. And therefore, we're bad parents.
Well doctor, we got the kid home at 4 today. We had dinner at 5:15, she was nursed starting at 5:45 (where she immediately passed out), and she was in bed by 6:05. Yes, it was obvious to us, too, that she needed it. But today was an anomaly. The Hubby got out of work early to take care of some other things and was able torescue pick up Baby Girl from the sitter's, where she was hanging out in her bed with toys and a bottle, but was expected to be sleeping. And the sitter wonders why she isn't napping there anymore. If I had toys and food in my bed, I wouldn't be sleeping, either. But we're going to work on that. Or find a new sitter.
You know what, though? I'm tired of reading that book, of having it suggested that we're doing something wrong by working. That maybe we shouldn't have had this child if we both have to work and have to live further from work than we'd like. So I'm going to set it ablaze. I've taken the batteries out of the smoke alarms and bought the marshmallows. I'm going to make some s'mores on this fire...but I'm sure I won't get to eat them because as soon as they're assembled, she'll wake up.
We had a rough night last night. In my blog post, I said she'd calmed down. Well, she did...until she was put in her crib again. I know she was horribly overtired. It was awful. We ended up just bringing her downstairs to see what she would do. She crawled around like it was two o'clock in the afternoon. She was happy and playing around. Which is why no one other than us sees when she's tired--she doesn't get cranky until you try to get her to sleep.
We let her play. And play. Eventually, I picked her up and read to her while I rocked gently. She sort of rolled toward me and sucked her thumb. I knew she was ready, but she didn't seem to think so. I rocked a bit more. When she realized my motives, she wasn't happy. But I held her like I did when she was little and we rocked. I snuggled her close to me, on her right side, so she could suck her left thumb. I held her close to my chest, patted her perfect little bum, and whispered "shh" to her when she'd start to fuss. She finally succumbed to the soothing and fell asleep at 9. I let her sleep there with me for about 45 minutes before The Hubby took her upstairs. This time she didn't wake until 3:30 a.m.
After this experience, I had to figure out why it was happening. I needed answers. Like any person who loves learning like I do, I read. I read anything I could find on the subject of baby sleep. I turned to the book that my sister-in-law and several friends swear by. I read a section geared specifically toward babies 5 months to one year. I even found a paragraph that described all the symptoms Baby Girl was exhibiting, to the letter. I was so excited--maybe he knew the answer to our problem!
As I read, though, it became apparent that the author wrote this book as literature for families with only one working parent. I had noticed it before--the mentions of "the working parent"--but didn't think much of it. But then I read that paragraph and knew that he was only interested in dealing with families with one parent working. Families where a baby can be put to bed at 5 p.m. And if you're not one of those families, you're officially being selfish.
Sure, there's about 3 pages toward the back that is specifically for dual-working parents. It says that if you can't be flexible enough to get your child to bed when s/he needs it, you're being selfish. It insinuates that all families where both parents work are doing too much on the weekends and aren't allowing their children to get the sleep they need. It equates us to withholding food from our child, without knowing our situation. Without knowing that we both HAVE to work and that our schedules cannot be adjusted and that we cannot physically get this child home from the sitter's before 5:30, but that we still put her to bed pretty much immediately after getting home, even though neither of us spends time with her during the week. Without knowing that we don't really go anywhere on the weekends, either, to allow her to sleep in her crib as needed. He suggests that we should be having the sitter feed the child if we cannot get home early enough to do everything we need to before bed. We could do that, but we still couldn't meet his 5 p.m. uber-early bedtime that he says my baby needs because she's so overtired. And therefore, we're bad parents.
Well doctor, we got the kid home at 4 today. We had dinner at 5:15, she was nursed starting at 5:45 (where she immediately passed out), and she was in bed by 6:05. Yes, it was obvious to us, too, that she needed it. But today was an anomaly. The Hubby got out of work early to take care of some other things and was able to
You know what, though? I'm tired of reading that book, of having it suggested that we're doing something wrong by working. That maybe we shouldn't have had this child if we both have to work and have to live further from work than we'd like. So I'm going to set it ablaze. I've taken the batteries out of the smoke alarms and bought the marshmallows. I'm going to make some s'mores on this fire...but I'm sure I won't get to eat them because as soon as they're assembled, she'll wake up.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Hate this.
Here I sit in my recliner. I was hoping to go to book club tonight, but I guess it's not going to happen now.
Baby girl was rubbing her eyes from the second we picked her up. She just hasn't been napping well at the sitter's, which is leading to a shaky evening, at best. We got take-out for dinner and got her home, fed her, and I sat down and nursed her. She was closing her eyes while eating, so we figured she'd be sleepy right away. After I was done nursing her, The Hubby scooped her up like normal, took her upstairs like normal, read her her story like normal, rocked her like normal...and then she fought it. She wasn't interested in going to sleep early...or, really, at all. He fought with her for about 15 minutes, twice laying her down only to have her wake back up and scream. He eventually retreated downstairs.
We let her cry for five. long. minutes. Longest five minutes of my life. He soothed her, laid her back down. She woke back up. He came back downstairs and we sat and listened to her scream. After awhile, he got back up to get her. I told him I would go, but he just said he'd do it (not necessarily in the nicest way, though...). She's up there screaming at him. I know in my heart that she'd calm down better for me. She's been really attached recently, you see. I've been able to soothe her much more easily. I want to go up and help him, to get her to calm down, but know I need to let him handle it. Or do I? Does he resent the fact that he's the one up there? Will he feel undermined if I come up? Or will he want the break? I don't know what to do.
While I've been writing, though, she's calmed down. I suspect he's tempted to spend the night in the rocking chair with her. I know I would be.
What happened to my baby who, while she didn't sleep through the night, would at least go down without a fight in the evenings? The last 4 nights have been horrible--her crying, me crying, lots of hair pulling, her pushing away from both of us, her chewing on her hand... Like I've said before, I hope to hell this is teeth. I've been hoping for teeth to be the answer for over 6 months now. I'm so damned tired of this--this battle.
Baby girl was rubbing her eyes from the second we picked her up. She just hasn't been napping well at the sitter's, which is leading to a shaky evening, at best. We got take-out for dinner and got her home, fed her, and I sat down and nursed her. She was closing her eyes while eating, so we figured she'd be sleepy right away. After I was done nursing her, The Hubby scooped her up like normal, took her upstairs like normal, read her her story like normal, rocked her like normal...and then she fought it. She wasn't interested in going to sleep early...or, really, at all. He fought with her for about 15 minutes, twice laying her down only to have her wake back up and scream. He eventually retreated downstairs.
We let her cry for five. long. minutes. Longest five minutes of my life. He soothed her, laid her back down. She woke back up. He came back downstairs and we sat and listened to her scream. After awhile, he got back up to get her. I told him I would go, but he just said he'd do it (not necessarily in the nicest way, though...). She's up there screaming at him. I know in my heart that she'd calm down better for me. She's been really attached recently, you see. I've been able to soothe her much more easily. I want to go up and help him, to get her to calm down, but know I need to let him handle it. Or do I? Does he resent the fact that he's the one up there? Will he feel undermined if I come up? Or will he want the break? I don't know what to do.
While I've been writing, though, she's calmed down. I suspect he's tempted to spend the night in the rocking chair with her. I know I would be.
What happened to my baby who, while she didn't sleep through the night, would at least go down without a fight in the evenings? The last 4 nights have been horrible--her crying, me crying, lots of hair pulling, her pushing away from both of us, her chewing on her hand... Like I've said before, I hope to hell this is teeth. I've been hoping for teeth to be the answer for over 6 months now. I'm so damned tired of this--this battle.
Monday, May 17, 2010
My Mother's Day
Because last weekend was taken over by birthday celebrations for The Hubby, we postponed Mother's Day and celebrated yesterday (Sunday, May 16th). I didn't have any expectations for the day, really, just wanted to have a nice day with my favorite girl and her Daddy.
I was awakened, as usual, by a crying baby just before 6:00 a.m. I got up and fed my sweet girl and when we were done, her daddy took her downstairs and let me sleep. I actually didn't think I'd be able to fall back asleep after being awake for a half hour, but I did and I slept until they came and woke me up just before 9:00. They brought me breakfast in bed (McDonald's! A hash brown, orange juice, and an Egg McMuffin (with the folded, scrambled egg instead of the one with the yolk and white separated--just the way I like it!)). While eating breakfast, I found out that The Hubby had gotten a call from work while I was sleeping and he took Baby Girl to work with him. He wore her while helping his student workers install some theatre lighting. That was the best present--not being woken up to take care of the baby while he went to work.
We fought with Baby Girl to take a nap (as would become the theme of the day), then she was down for a little while. During that time, I was given my gift--a Knifty Knitter kit and a storage bag for my knitting needles. Even though I already know how to knit, it was a neat gift. I ended up knitting an entire winter hat yesterday just in during downtime.
After naptime, Baby Girl ate (pasta--yum!), then we went to the grocery together, all three of us. It was a fairly quick trip, but nice to have some company this time. We got back home and it was time for another nap...and another fight. After trying to get her to nap for almost an hour, we just brought her back downstairs and let her play. After awhile, it was time for her to nurse anyway, where she promptly fell asleep. I was able to transfer her to my shoulder, where she slept for 45 minutes. Best. Feeling. Ever. She got back up, we played for awhile, had dinner, then it was bedtime. Bedtime was even rough, but she eventually got to sleep.
The Hubby and I just hung out together and watched TV for the rest of the night.
It was a really nice, relaxing day--just what I needed. Made it that much harder to come back to work today, though. I miss my girl, but hope like hell that she's napping for the sitter (which she hasn't been doing recently).
Happy (belated) Mother's Day to all you mommies out there, whether mommies of furbabies, little babies, big babies, or mommies-in-waiting. Love you all and please know that what you do for your babies is appreciated, even if you never hear it enough.
I was awakened, as usual, by a crying baby just before 6:00 a.m. I got up and fed my sweet girl and when we were done, her daddy took her downstairs and let me sleep. I actually didn't think I'd be able to fall back asleep after being awake for a half hour, but I did and I slept until they came and woke me up just before 9:00. They brought me breakfast in bed (McDonald's! A hash brown, orange juice, and an Egg McMuffin (with the folded, scrambled egg instead of the one with the yolk and white separated--just the way I like it!)). While eating breakfast, I found out that The Hubby had gotten a call from work while I was sleeping and he took Baby Girl to work with him. He wore her while helping his student workers install some theatre lighting. That was the best present--not being woken up to take care of the baby while he went to work.
We fought with Baby Girl to take a nap (as would become the theme of the day), then she was down for a little while. During that time, I was given my gift--a Knifty Knitter kit and a storage bag for my knitting needles. Even though I already know how to knit, it was a neat gift. I ended up knitting an entire winter hat yesterday just in during downtime.
After naptime, Baby Girl ate (pasta--yum!), then we went to the grocery together, all three of us. It was a fairly quick trip, but nice to have some company this time. We got back home and it was time for another nap...and another fight. After trying to get her to nap for almost an hour, we just brought her back downstairs and let her play. After awhile, it was time for her to nurse anyway, where she promptly fell asleep. I was able to transfer her to my shoulder, where she slept for 45 minutes. Best. Feeling. Ever. She got back up, we played for awhile, had dinner, then it was bedtime. Bedtime was even rough, but she eventually got to sleep.
The Hubby and I just hung out together and watched TV for the rest of the night.
It was a really nice, relaxing day--just what I needed. Made it that much harder to come back to work today, though. I miss my girl, but hope like hell that she's napping for the sitter (which she hasn't been doing recently).
Happy (belated) Mother's Day to all you mommies out there, whether mommies of furbabies, little babies, big babies, or mommies-in-waiting. Love you all and please know that what you do for your babies is appreciated, even if you never hear it enough.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Pumping Update
After my little freak-out the other day, I started taking steps to try to be sure my supply doesn't diminish too much and am happy to report that it seems to be working (for today, at least). I've been making sure to pump every night before bed, drinking at least 3 mugs of Mother's Milk tea each day, and drinking at least 64 oz of water a day (usually much more).
Back when I was losing weight, it wasn't abnormal for me to drink 100 oz of water. Now, though, I have to make a conscious effort to get in the 64 oz. But I'm doing it and today I was back up to pumping almost 12 ounces. Who knows if this will be an every day occurrence, but at least I got that for one more day. We're still hanging in there!
Back when I was losing weight, it wasn't abnormal for me to drink 100 oz of water. Now, though, I have to make a conscious effort to get in the 64 oz. But I'm doing it and today I was back up to pumping almost 12 ounces. Who knows if this will be an every day occurrence, but at least I got that for one more day. We're still hanging in there!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Newest. Cutest. Thing. Ever.
This past weekend my parents came up to hang out to celebrate The Hubby's birthday and then to babysit Baby Girl while we went out to dinner. Up until now, my dad has sort of kept his distance from Baby Girl--I think he was afraid he'd break her and wasn't sure what to do with her. Now that she's mobile and much less fragile, though, he's all over playing with her. After we had cake, I looked over and Baby Girl was on my dad's lap with a bowl of Cheer.ios (my parents seem to think she's always hungry...now I know why I've always had weight problems!). I walked over and my dad said, "She just fed me a Cheer.io". I didn't really know what he meant until he showed me. He said, "Can I have one?" and she picked it up with her amazingly skillfull little fingers and placed it into his open mouth. The Hubby and I have gotten her to repeat it on us, too. So cute!!
Nearing the end?
I might be a bit melodramatic, but I fear that breastfeeding is coming to an end for us. For the first 6 months or so back to work, I was getting 12-16 ounces a day, depending on if she ate overnight, etc. I'm now down to 9-10 ounces and haven't experienced any real fullness in awhile. No, it's not horrible and I'm fully able to keep up with her daytime needs by pumping before bed, but I just feel like it's going to be my body that falters before Baby Girl gives it up, which makes me so sad. We both love our nursing time together and I know she's going to miss it when it's time. Lots of people have been asking when I'd be done with nursing and I couldn't come up with a timeline--I wanted to keep nursing as long as Baby Girl would have it, but it seems like it's going to be my body that ends it.
Yes, I'm probably getting ahead of myself--she was fine over the weekend and didn't need bottles or anything, so it's not getting that drastic yet. I'm just getting anxious, realizing that this phase of our journey is slowly coming to an end. I'm fighting with all my might to hold on, though. I'm pumping at least 3 times a day at work and once before bed at home. I'm drinking my Mother's Milk tea, drinking lots of water, and eating as much oatmeal as I feel I can. I just fear I'm fighting a losing battle--not that that's going to stop me.
Yes, I'm probably getting ahead of myself--she was fine over the weekend and didn't need bottles or anything, so it's not getting that drastic yet. I'm just getting anxious, realizing that this phase of our journey is slowly coming to an end. I'm fighting with all my might to hold on, though. I'm pumping at least 3 times a day at work and once before bed at home. I'm drinking my Mother's Milk tea, drinking lots of water, and eating as much oatmeal as I feel I can. I just fear I'm fighting a losing battle--not that that's going to stop me.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Ouch...
We've been nursing for over nine months now (yay us!), but baby girl has started to hurt me again. I haven't felt pain like this since that first month. I think it's a combination of two things: 1) side-lying nursing (we have a hard time getting a properly placed latched, but it's SO convenient for middle-of-the-night feedings, which we're doing twice a night now) and 2) her getting distracted but forgetting she's still attached. Ouch. She'll go to look at something and clamp down with her gums or lips and pull away. I'm actually in a lot of pain, even just when moving around or something. Hopefully sitting up to nurse each time and holding her closer and paying more attention to her latch will help. For now, though, I will be popping some extra Advil!
Perspective
I know the last time you heard from me (besides my meal planning post), I wasn't doing so well. I really appreciate the comments that you left and your good thoughts.
Things are better, but not really because of anything I've done. I just got home that night and really realized how hard DH is trying. It's not like he's being lazy--he just has so much on his plate with work and some home things. He does care about baby girl's sleeping, eating, etc. And I did make a comment to him about how I feel like I have to do and thinking about it all and he just said, "yep". He sounded upset about it, but since then I feel like he's making a real effort to help me keep track of things and making some of the decisions.
Oh, and to respond to Liz's questions...no, he doesn't get paid any extra for all the weekend and evening work. He actually has to tell people when he's purposefully taking Saturday and/or Sunday off (like he did this past weekend). He's salary and gets paid the same amount whether he works 40 hours or 100. And it's just the expectation that he'll be available whenever anyone needs anything unless he tells them otherwise. He's the go-to guy around there. It's frustrating for both of us, but he doesn't feel like he can do anything about it right now. He is trying to train other people so they can answer calls and do things on their own, so hopefully it will get better soon...
So we're trying. And it's gotten better for now. Hopefully we can keep communicating. I know I tend to shut down when I get frustrated and just take it all on myself. I feel like if I have to make the effort to tell him what I need, I may as well just do it myself. But I'm working on that.
Things are better, but not really because of anything I've done. I just got home that night and really realized how hard DH is trying. It's not like he's being lazy--he just has so much on his plate with work and some home things. He does care about baby girl's sleeping, eating, etc. And I did make a comment to him about how I feel like I have to do and thinking about it all and he just said, "yep". He sounded upset about it, but since then I feel like he's making a real effort to help me keep track of things and making some of the decisions.
Oh, and to respond to Liz's questions...no, he doesn't get paid any extra for all the weekend and evening work. He actually has to tell people when he's purposefully taking Saturday and/or Sunday off (like he did this past weekend). He's salary and gets paid the same amount whether he works 40 hours or 100. And it's just the expectation that he'll be available whenever anyone needs anything unless he tells them otherwise. He's the go-to guy around there. It's frustrating for both of us, but he doesn't feel like he can do anything about it right now. He is trying to train other people so they can answer calls and do things on their own, so hopefully it will get better soon...
So we're trying. And it's gotten better for now. Hopefully we can keep communicating. I know I tend to shut down when I get frustrated and just take it all on myself. I feel like if I have to make the effort to tell him what I need, I may as well just do it myself. But I'm working on that.
Meal Plan 5/9-5/15
Sunday: Pasta & Meatballs
Monday: Chicken Kebabs
Tuesday: BBQ Chicken Braid (made from leftover 20 to 40 Clove Garlic Chicken)
Wednesday: Breakfast (pancakes, scrambled eggs, and turkey bacon)
Thursday: Turkey Burgers & Grilled veggies
Friday: Tacos
Saturday: Grilled Chicken & Veggies
Of course, all of this is dependent upon The Hubby going and getting propane tonight...
Monday: Chicken Kebabs
Tuesday: BBQ Chicken Braid (made from leftover 20 to 40 Clove Garlic Chicken)
Wednesday: Breakfast (pancakes, scrambled eggs, and turkey bacon)
Thursday: Turkey Burgers & Grilled veggies
Friday: Tacos
Saturday: Grilled Chicken & Veggies
Of course, all of this is dependent upon The Hubby going and getting propane tonight...
Monday, May 3, 2010
Boo Boo
(originally scheduled for 5/1--not sure why it didn't post then)
I won a fantastic photography shoot giveaway through Two Peas in a Pod Designs for a shoot with Britt Lakin. I knew Britt already through a message board, but had never met her in person. We had a fantastic time--she's so fun! It was such a great experience to be able to get some photos of all three of us, too.
While there, however, we had a bit of a mishap. Baby girl was up on a step and Daddy had stepped back to allow for the shot. Baby girl didn't realize how big the step was and fell off of it onto her face. It wasn't anyone's fault at all, but was still pretty scary for all of us! She was fairly fussy for the rest of the shoot, but once we headed home, she perked right up and never really seemed to notice her boo boo after that. But this is what we looked at for the next 5 days or so:
Sort of pathetic looking, isn't it???
I won a fantastic photography shoot giveaway through Two Peas in a Pod Designs for a shoot with Britt Lakin. I knew Britt already through a message board, but had never met her in person. We had a fantastic time--she's so fun! It was such a great experience to be able to get some photos of all three of us, too.
While there, however, we had a bit of a mishap. Baby girl was up on a step and Daddy had stepped back to allow for the shot. Baby girl didn't realize how big the step was and fell off of it onto her face. It wasn't anyone's fault at all, but was still pretty scary for all of us! She was fairly fussy for the rest of the shoot, but once we headed home, she perked right up and never really seemed to notice her boo boo after that. But this is what we looked at for the next 5 days or so:
Tired.
I'm tired. I'm tired of Baby Girl's sleep getting worse. I'm tired of feeling like I'm the only one taking care of her. I'm tired of only talking to my husband long enough each day to fight with him. I'm tired of fighting with him. I'm tired of him having to run into work when we're supposed to be spending time together. I'm tired of pretending that that's okay. I'm tired of not being able to see an end to this situation.
I'm tired of trying to be proactive with Baby Girl's sleep. I'm tired of feeling like I'm the only one who really cares about how she sleeps. I'm tired of being the only one impacted when she doesn't sleep. I'm tired of being afraid to admit that she's slept the last 3 hours of the last 2 nights in our bed. I'm tired of feeling like the only good sleep we get is when she's in our bed. I'm tired.
I'm tired of not having enough time to do what I want. I'm tired of not having enough energy to do what I need.
I'm tired of coming to work. I'm tired of coming to work to find that I have no personal relationships anymore. I'm tired of then turning to the people in my computer for 8 hours a day because I have no one else to talk to. I'm tired of not being able to focus on my work.
I'm tired of worrying. I'm tired of thinking. I'm tired of trying to hold my household together with virtually no help. I'm tired of feeling guilty when I do take a break. I'm tired of looking at all the dirt and mess around the house. But I'm too tired to do anything about it. I'm tired of, when The Husband finally does give me a break, having a child who has become so accustomed to having mommy come crawling over and pulling up on mommy's laptop. I'm tired of having to be the mean one. I'm tired of having to be the one who decides what we're having for dinner, then cooking it while Daddy gets to play. I'm tired of not really want to play, either, though.
More than anything, I'm tired of feeling like a failure at everything. I'm tired of feeling stretched so thin that I can't give my all to any one thing in my life.
So. Damn. Tired.
I'm tired of trying to be proactive with Baby Girl's sleep. I'm tired of feeling like I'm the only one who really cares about how she sleeps. I'm tired of being the only one impacted when she doesn't sleep. I'm tired of being afraid to admit that she's slept the last 3 hours of the last 2 nights in our bed. I'm tired of feeling like the only good sleep we get is when she's in our bed. I'm tired.
I'm tired of not having enough time to do what I want. I'm tired of not having enough energy to do what I need.
I'm tired of coming to work. I'm tired of coming to work to find that I have no personal relationships anymore. I'm tired of then turning to the people in my computer for 8 hours a day because I have no one else to talk to. I'm tired of not being able to focus on my work.
I'm tired of worrying. I'm tired of thinking. I'm tired of trying to hold my household together with virtually no help. I'm tired of feeling guilty when I do take a break. I'm tired of looking at all the dirt and mess around the house. But I'm too tired to do anything about it. I'm tired of, when The Husband finally does give me a break, having a child who has become so accustomed to having mommy come crawling over and pulling up on mommy's laptop. I'm tired of having to be the mean one. I'm tired of having to be the one who decides what we're having for dinner, then cooking it while Daddy gets to play. I'm tired of not really want to play, either, though.
More than anything, I'm tired of feeling like a failure at everything. I'm tired of feeling stretched so thin that I can't give my all to any one thing in my life.
So. Damn. Tired.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Meal Plan 5/2-5/8
Sunday: BBQ Chicken Pasta and HG's Sassy and Steamy Artichoke (I loved both of these! DH wasn't so sure about the artichoke. We only made the buttery dipping sauce.)
Monday: Easy Weeknight Chicken Teriyaki
Tuesday: 40 clove garlic chicken
Wednesday: Quesadillas
Thursday: Either frozen pizza & breadsticks or we'll go out with my parents for DH's birthday
Friday: Grilled chicken & veggies
Saturday: Out for DH's birthday celebration
Monday: Easy Weeknight Chicken Teriyaki
Tuesday: 40 clove garlic chicken
Wednesday: Quesadillas
Thursday: Either frozen pizza & breadsticks or we'll go out with my parents for DH's birthday
Friday: Grilled chicken & veggies
Saturday: Out for DH's birthday celebration
Saturday, May 1, 2010
One step closer
This past week baby girl had started trying to stand on her own for a couple of seconds. Today, though, she has stood by herself for at least 15 seconds a time a few times. She starts laughing and eventually tumbles into my lap. Cutest.thing.ever.
I am SO not ready for this...the doctor said once she started this, walking isn't that far away. Eek!
I am SO not ready for this...the doctor said once she started this, walking isn't that far away. Eek!
Friday, April 30, 2010
Nine month doctor appointment
Weight: 17 lbs 11 oz (about 30th percentile, which was a drop and bothered me, but with how active she is, the doctor wasn't worried whatsoever)
Height: 27 1/4 in (over 40th percentile, which was a jump up from last time)
Head circumference: 75th percentile (doctor says she has a big brain ;) )
He was really impressed and surprised by how much she's moving. He said he doesn't see that much moving or pulling up with so much ease very often in kids her age, so that made us feel really good! He did say that since she's starting to stand without holding onto anything she'll be walking soon. Eek!
Only thing that might have been wrong was that he heard a heart murmur (insert panicky mom here). He says it's really common at this age, as sometimes the heart doesn't grow quite fast enough to keep up with the blood flow and that it should resolve itself within a few visits. He says if it doesn't, we'll go see a cardiologist, who will tell us everything is fine. He says not to worry...not easy to do!!!
We then asked questions about feeding. Our next step will be to give her peas, pasta, and then, if we want, chunks of meat since we've already been giving her mashed potatoes and Cheer.ios and chunks of green beans. He said we can give her bites of casseroles and things, too. She'll love that! He said to wait on yogurt until 11 months and other milk products after a year. He also confirmed that she doesn't need water and won't become dehydrated because there is plenty of water in breastmilk. Will need to make sure to tell my mom and the sitter.
The last part of the appointment was a finger stick to pull blood to test iron levels and lead levels. She was quite the champ--whined a teeny bit, but no crying at all and just seemed a teeny bored by the whole ordeal.
Height: 27 1/4 in (over 40th percentile, which was a jump up from last time)
Head circumference: 75th percentile (doctor says she has a big brain ;) )
He was really impressed and surprised by how much she's moving. He said he doesn't see that much moving or pulling up with so much ease very often in kids her age, so that made us feel really good! He did say that since she's starting to stand without holding onto anything she'll be walking soon. Eek!
Only thing that might have been wrong was that he heard a heart murmur (insert panicky mom here). He says it's really common at this age, as sometimes the heart doesn't grow quite fast enough to keep up with the blood flow and that it should resolve itself within a few visits. He says if it doesn't, we'll go see a cardiologist, who will tell us everything is fine. He says not to worry...not easy to do!!!
We then asked questions about feeding. Our next step will be to give her peas, pasta, and then, if we want, chunks of meat since we've already been giving her mashed potatoes and Cheer.ios and chunks of green beans. He said we can give her bites of casseroles and things, too. She'll love that! He said to wait on yogurt until 11 months and other milk products after a year. He also confirmed that she doesn't need water and won't become dehydrated because there is plenty of water in breastmilk. Will need to make sure to tell my mom and the sitter.
The last part of the appointment was a finger stick to pull blood to test iron levels and lead levels. She was quite the champ--whined a teeny bit, but no crying at all and just seemed a teeny bored by the whole ordeal.
What happens when you stock up on diapers...
...but buy too much of one size and are, therefore, tempted to put your baby in a size long after they should move out of them...
(yes, she's playing with a hanger. No, her clothes don't match--those are the clothes the sitter sent her home in after she had a blowout (which you can see why, from the diaper!))
(yes, she's playing with a hanger. No, her clothes don't match--those are the clothes the sitter sent her home in after she had a blowout (which you can see why, from the diaper!))
Connected
I feel absolutely no need to be connected to the world 24/7. I love my computers and am connecting myself to people during work and even in many hours in the evenings. But I just don't feel the need to essentially have a computer on me at all times of the day. I like to disconnect every once in awhile.
I know some people who have their devices and are able to put them down, but there are far too many people these days who rely on their electronics. I'm not a texter--I don't see the need. No, I'm not a fan of talking on the phone, but if I need to ask someone something, I just call them or email them. The husband and I will text maybe 10 times a month, mostly b/c he's in meetings a lot and if I need to get ahold of him to tell him I'm leaving work or something, that's when we'll do it. We don't have full conversations that way, though.
I guess it really just annoys me because of the people who think they're multi-tasking by texting/emailing/surfing while in meetings or while they're supposed to be having conversations with you. It's obvious they aren't paying attention to where they physically are and that's just rude. If I'm giving up my time to be with you, you should give your attention to me in return. Plus we can get this meeting out of the way more quickly if you just pay attention.
I'm seeing this need to be connected running rampant around work. Almost everyone has some sort of fancy device to connect to the outside world. Has it come in handy before? Absolutely. My coworker just took pictures of some notes I took on the dry erase board and emailed the picture to me. But is it typically more a hindrance than anything? YES. If this meeting is that unimportant to you, then why are you here? Couldn't I just tell you what we talked about when we're done? I'll have to do that anyway.
(and now you can all go back to surfing your on iPhone or Blackberry...I know some of you probably even read this post on one! I hope you're not offended...I just think we're losing the value of in-person interaction.)
I know some people who have their devices and are able to put them down, but there are far too many people these days who rely on their electronics. I'm not a texter--I don't see the need. No, I'm not a fan of talking on the phone, but if I need to ask someone something, I just call them or email them. The husband and I will text maybe 10 times a month, mostly b/c he's in meetings a lot and if I need to get ahold of him to tell him I'm leaving work or something, that's when we'll do it. We don't have full conversations that way, though.
I guess it really just annoys me because of the people who think they're multi-tasking by texting/emailing/surfing while in meetings or while they're supposed to be having conversations with you. It's obvious they aren't paying attention to where they physically are and that's just rude. If I'm giving up my time to be with you, you should give your attention to me in return. Plus we can get this meeting out of the way more quickly if you just pay attention.
I'm seeing this need to be connected running rampant around work. Almost everyone has some sort of fancy device to connect to the outside world. Has it come in handy before? Absolutely. My coworker just took pictures of some notes I took on the dry erase board and emailed the picture to me. But is it typically more a hindrance than anything? YES. If this meeting is that unimportant to you, then why are you here? Couldn't I just tell you what we talked about when we're done? I'll have to do that anyway.
(and now you can all go back to surfing your on iPhone or Blackberry...I know some of you probably even read this post on one! I hope you're not offended...I just think we're losing the value of in-person interaction.)
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Nine Months Old
Nine months...how did we get here? You've been here with us for longer than you were in my belly (from the time of conception, that is--I counted the days!). Some days I feel like it was just yesterday that I was feeling you squirm around in my belly and then that day, nine months ago, that we finally met you. But then other days I can't remember my life before you.
At nine months old, you're just recently wearing size 3 diapers. You're starting to wear 6-9 month size clothes (we usually have to cuff the pants and sometimes even the sleeves), but are still able to wear most of the 3-6 month stuff. Tomorrow we'll find out how you've been growing (and you have been!).
You still love to nurse--it's the only thing that can soothe you when you're extra grumpy. We only get a few nursing sessions a day while I'm at work (morning, evening, then whatever happens overnight), but we both savor every moment (except when you're pinching my bo.ob--that still hurts pretty bad). I love to look into those big brown eyes while you gaze back at me. I still can't believe my body has provided for you for this long.
You're quite the eater overall. You have cereal made with pear juice in the morning and fruits and veggies for lunch and dinner. So far you've had: carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, green beans (both whole and pureed), peas, zucchini, avocado, bananas, applesauce, pears, and peaches. You've got quite the set of pinchers on you and have mastered picking up food like green bean pieces and Cheer.ios. You now know the color of bowl we keep the Cheer.ios in and get excited whenever we get them out. You get mad when we tell you the Cheer.ios are "all done".
You're the busiest little girl I've ever seen. You're into everything and crawling and pulling up everywhere. You can pull up on a flat wall, which is a really funny thing to watch! You love to explore and are so curious about everything around you. You're also pretty easily distractable--you could be headed toward one toy, but if another is in the way, you might stop to play with it instead (or you might just try to crawl right over it, no matter what it is!). You prefer to be upright at all times.
You love your daddy fiercely, but I think you're still a mommy's girl. Over the last month we've spent a lot of time together because of Daddy's work schedule and I think that's attached you even more. Sometimes it's frustrating (like when I just want to go to the bathroom!), but most of the time I love to turn around and see you crawling like a mad-woman to get to me. You can move really quickly!
Soon you're going to be walking and I'm not sure I'm ready. You're starting to let go of things and stand on your own for a few seconds at a time--thank goodness you've become quite the graceful faller!
Your favorite thing to do at home is to pull up on the windowsill (we have one that's no more than a foot off the floor) and watch the goings-on outside. You love to watch other little kids, cars, motorcycles, and even just the trees blowing in the wind. I'm excited for the weather to turn warm (as much as I truly hate warm weather) so we can spend even more time outside, where you seem to thrive.
Your sleeping continues to be a struggle for us. Some days we'll think we've got it under control, then you'll shake things up. Last week, for instance, we were at a point where you'd sleep 7 p.m. to 3 a.m., get up and eat, then go back to sleep until 6:30 a.m. This week, however, you've been up all sorts of odd hours and then getting up for the day at 5 a.m., which is WAY too early for all of us! Mommy still thinks there are teeth coming, but who really knows. If I keep saying it, it eventually has to be true!
You have the biggest smile that just melts my heart. You're sometimes shy about showing it to new people you meet, but when we get you alone, you don't stop smiling!
You also now wave! It's the cutest thing (well, to this mommy, anyway). You won't do it on command, but I suppose we should get used to that, shouldn't we? :)
You giggle and babble nearly constantly now and my favorite time is when we're in the car and you sit in the back and tell me all about your day. We've heard so many consonants from you: B, D, F, H, L, M, N, P, T, V. I was so happy to hear "mama" finally. Of course your words aren't directed at anyone in particular, but it's still a beautiful sound to hear.
You had your first real boo-boo this month and it scared your mommy and daddy a lot. I finally have a picture uploaded and will do another blog post on it either today or tomorrow. You, of course, were fine within a few minutes--it amazes me how resilient you are. Usually a hug from mommy or daddy and you're off again!
I love you, baby. I hope you'll never ever doubt that. Even through the sleepless nights and grabby hands (you love to get ahold of Mommy's hair and tug HARD), I can't imagine my life without you in it. Thank you for being such a happy blessing in my life, Sugarbear.
Love always,
Mommy
At nine months old, you're just recently wearing size 3 diapers. You're starting to wear 6-9 month size clothes (we usually have to cuff the pants and sometimes even the sleeves), but are still able to wear most of the 3-6 month stuff. Tomorrow we'll find out how you've been growing (and you have been!).
You still love to nurse--it's the only thing that can soothe you when you're extra grumpy. We only get a few nursing sessions a day while I'm at work (morning, evening, then whatever happens overnight), but we both savor every moment (except when you're pinching my bo.ob--that still hurts pretty bad). I love to look into those big brown eyes while you gaze back at me. I still can't believe my body has provided for you for this long.
You're quite the eater overall. You have cereal made with pear juice in the morning and fruits and veggies for lunch and dinner. So far you've had: carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, green beans (both whole and pureed), peas, zucchini, avocado, bananas, applesauce, pears, and peaches. You've got quite the set of pinchers on you and have mastered picking up food like green bean pieces and Cheer.ios. You now know the color of bowl we keep the Cheer.ios in and get excited whenever we get them out. You get mad when we tell you the Cheer.ios are "all done".
You're the busiest little girl I've ever seen. You're into everything and crawling and pulling up everywhere. You can pull up on a flat wall, which is a really funny thing to watch! You love to explore and are so curious about everything around you. You're also pretty easily distractable--you could be headed toward one toy, but if another is in the way, you might stop to play with it instead (or you might just try to crawl right over it, no matter what it is!). You prefer to be upright at all times.
You love your daddy fiercely, but I think you're still a mommy's girl. Over the last month we've spent a lot of time together because of Daddy's work schedule and I think that's attached you even more. Sometimes it's frustrating (like when I just want to go to the bathroom!), but most of the time I love to turn around and see you crawling like a mad-woman to get to me. You can move really quickly!
Soon you're going to be walking and I'm not sure I'm ready. You're starting to let go of things and stand on your own for a few seconds at a time--thank goodness you've become quite the graceful faller!
Your favorite thing to do at home is to pull up on the windowsill (we have one that's no more than a foot off the floor) and watch the goings-on outside. You love to watch other little kids, cars, motorcycles, and even just the trees blowing in the wind. I'm excited for the weather to turn warm (as much as I truly hate warm weather) so we can spend even more time outside, where you seem to thrive.
Your sleeping continues to be a struggle for us. Some days we'll think we've got it under control, then you'll shake things up. Last week, for instance, we were at a point where you'd sleep 7 p.m. to 3 a.m., get up and eat, then go back to sleep until 6:30 a.m. This week, however, you've been up all sorts of odd hours and then getting up for the day at 5 a.m., which is WAY too early for all of us! Mommy still thinks there are teeth coming, but who really knows. If I keep saying it, it eventually has to be true!
You have the biggest smile that just melts my heart. You're sometimes shy about showing it to new people you meet, but when we get you alone, you don't stop smiling!
You also now wave! It's the cutest thing (well, to this mommy, anyway). You won't do it on command, but I suppose we should get used to that, shouldn't we? :)
You giggle and babble nearly constantly now and my favorite time is when we're in the car and you sit in the back and tell me all about your day. We've heard so many consonants from you: B, D, F, H, L, M, N, P, T, V. I was so happy to hear "mama" finally. Of course your words aren't directed at anyone in particular, but it's still a beautiful sound to hear.
You had your first real boo-boo this month and it scared your mommy and daddy a lot. I finally have a picture uploaded and will do another blog post on it either today or tomorrow. You, of course, were fine within a few minutes--it amazes me how resilient you are. Usually a hug from mommy or daddy and you're off again!
I love you, baby. I hope you'll never ever doubt that. Even through the sleepless nights and grabby hands (you love to get ahold of Mommy's hair and tug HARD), I can't imagine my life without you in it. Thank you for being such a happy blessing in my life, Sugarbear.
Love always,
Mommy
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
NIAW
This week (April 25-May2) is National Infertility Awareness Week. While I know I haven't been touched personally by my own infertility (although I had a gut feeling that we would...we did get a diagnosis of semi-fertile), this is a subject that touches my heart deeply. I've shared in the joys and sadness of so many people who have suffered from infertility.
I have many feelings about the topic, but don't think I can do them justice and also don't want to make any of my friends who are currently suffering feel like I think I know what you're going through or have gone through. I don't and I never will. But just know that my heart aches for all of you to be able to reach your goals of becoming parents.
This post is in honor of all those warriors out there and to make you all more aware of the topic. I read a few blogs of women who are currently suffering and I'm sure they can speak much better than I can on infertility. Please visit them and educate yourself--try to get a feel for what they might be going through. And, if you're the praying type, say a prayer for them. I do every single day.
A Little Pregnant
Happy Hopefuls
The Adventures of Taderbaby
...Expect Miracles...
Maybe If You Just Relax....
...as well as a few more
I have many feelings about the topic, but don't think I can do them justice and also don't want to make any of my friends who are currently suffering feel like I think I know what you're going through or have gone through. I don't and I never will. But just know that my heart aches for all of you to be able to reach your goals of becoming parents.
This post is in honor of all those warriors out there and to make you all more aware of the topic. I read a few blogs of women who are currently suffering and I'm sure they can speak much better than I can on infertility. Please visit them and educate yourself--try to get a feel for what they might be going through. And, if you're the praying type, say a prayer for them. I do every single day.
A Little Pregnant
Happy Hopefuls
The Adventures of Taderbaby
...Expect Miracles...
Maybe If You Just Relax....
...as well as a few more
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
How timely!
A blog that I coworker pointed me toward is discussing teething this week. The post from today is a really interesting read: http://www.secretsofbabybehavior.com/2010/04/truth-about-teething-part-i-is-it.html
I was just asking another mommy friend about her experiences with teething and she noticed that her son's teething wasn't actually associated with drooling. She thought her kid was weird, but according to this site, the "typical" symptoms aren't regularly actually associated with teething.
Maybe I'm not such a nutcase to think that baby girl might be (finally) getting some teeth. She did seem to be in some pain (which I can imagine would be the case) and has been chewing on some things, but no excessive drool or the other symptoms that some people note.
I was just asking another mommy friend about her experiences with teething and she noticed that her son's teething wasn't actually associated with drooling. She thought her kid was weird, but according to this site, the "typical" symptoms aren't regularly actually associated with teething.
Maybe I'm not such a nutcase to think that baby girl might be (finally) getting some teeth. She did seem to be in some pain (which I can imagine would be the case) and has been chewing on some things, but no excessive drool or the other symptoms that some people note.
Meal Plan 4/25-5/1
Sunday: Chinese take-out, as my mom was at the house until about 7:30 and we still hadn't eaten
Monday: Lasagna Soup that didn't end up anything like a soup. It was more the consistency of a Johnny Marzetti type of dish...but it was still delicious! We made it with ground turkey that I found on manager's special and we had it with salad and cheese-stuffed biscuits (took refrigerated biscuits, separated in two, put pizza cheese blend in the center, made a ball, put some Italian Seasoning on top, then baked until done).
Tuesday: Jessica Simpson Chicken & Dumplings from some frozen rotisserie chicken from last week
Wednesday: Grilled chicken with sweet potatoes
Thursday: More pork tacos (leftovers from last week were frozen)
Friday: Frozen pizza and breadsticks (had a freebie coupon for the new Digiorno product--there's nothing on the DiGiorno website about this product, so the link takes you to a $3 coupon Facebook)
Saturday: Black Beans and Rice
Monday: Lasagna Soup that didn't end up anything like a soup. It was more the consistency of a Johnny Marzetti type of dish...but it was still delicious! We made it with ground turkey that I found on manager's special and we had it with salad and cheese-stuffed biscuits (took refrigerated biscuits, separated in two, put pizza cheese blend in the center, made a ball, put some Italian Seasoning on top, then baked until done).
Tuesday: Jessica Simpson Chicken & Dumplings from some frozen rotisserie chicken from last week
Wednesday: Grilled chicken with sweet potatoes
Thursday: More pork tacos (leftovers from last week were frozen)
Friday: Frozen pizza and breadsticks (had a freebie coupon for the new Digiorno product--there's nothing on the DiGiorno website about this product, so the link takes you to a $3 coupon Facebook)
Saturday: Black Beans and Rice
Monday, April 26, 2010
Random Musings
I have three posts that I'm planning to write up, just need to upload the pictures (and, for the third, trying to make sure I don't alienate any of my readers). Stay tuned! For now, here are some random things that I'm thinking about:
- Do other people plan their blog posts and Facebook status updates while they're away from their computers? I'll think, "Gee, that would make a great FB status" or "Ooh, I need to blog about this". Problem is, I don't write down what I'm thinking, so it never makes it to the computer.
- Working on a big project for the hubby's 30th birthday. Gathering letters from friends, family, and coworkers to put into a scrapbook for him. It's really interesting to see what I'm getting from different people. One person sent in a photo that I love :) Sent out a final reminder today so I can work on it this weekend.
- Also along the birthday front--I'm going to give him small notes/gifts each day until the big day. Today I began the countdown--10 days left until his birthday! I left a note on his car since we park in the same garage.
- Had a really rough night of sleep last night. Baby girl was awake at 11, 12, 12:30, 1, and 1:30. I nursed her at 1:30 and she ate well, but when she popped off, she passed out. I laid there for a minute, just holding her--it felt so good!--then I got up and stood there watching her. She'd rolled over onto her belly and looked so peaceful. If I could have been sure she wouldn't roll onto the floor, I would have considered leaving her there to sleep with her daddy (I was perched on the edge of the bed, so I couldn't have slept that way for the rest of the night). I picked her up and went and laid her in her bed, where she slept the rest of the night.
- The rough night of sleep was caused by a visit from my mom, where baby girl was kept awake for too long after she was sleepy. *sigh* The issues with my mom deserve a whole separate blog post, though...
- We're finally caught up on laundry! I think it's the first time in years and we both feel great about it! Now we just have to make sure we stay caught up.
- Trying to figure out how to store restaurant coupons so we don't forget we have them. I have some on the fridge, but am getting too many to do that with. My other coupons are in manila envelopes, so I could do that, but I'm afraid I'd forget to use them, then. As it is, they lay on the dining room table in a pile with our magazines. Ugh--I hate the clutter!!!
- Baby girl shook her head no to me today for the first time. She was eating her barley cereal and she must have been done because just looked at me and shook her head. I offered 2 more times (who knew if that's really what she was doing???) and she still didn't want anymore.
- She has also started letting go when she's pulled up on something. She can balance for a few seconds, then will fall down. Luckily, most of the time she falls gracefully!
- The husband's working hours have gotten pretty ridiculous. We were having our first full weekend without him working since the beginning of 2010...and then something went wrong and he had to go in on Sunday for about 2 hours. Not a huge deal, but still disappointing. I know he was really bummed about it, too. I, though, had a pretty bad breakdown about it all one night this past week. We've talked and I hope things will be better and I won't feel like the pressure of the world is on my shoulders.
- We're back on the healthy eating kick. The husband is feeling pretty tubby and I can't stand to look at myself in the mirror, so it's time. I bought a bit more fruits and veggies yesterday at the grocery. It's really helpful that he's on board, too. He was the one who suggested getting more salad stuff, so I did. If we can't find time to work out, at least we can start trying better with the eating.
- Made yummy banana bread yesterday. I just love to bake--I wish I had a bit more time for it! I miss baking and crafting and reading, but just put my daughter and my time with the hubby first. I should try to find a craft to do, though, in the evenings while the husband and I are watching TV. Should I get back into knitting, scrapbooking, cross-stitching, sewing, or work to make my photography skills better? Hmmm...decisions....
- Today is National Pretzel Day! How fitting....it's one of my favorite foods!!! I could eat soft pretzels any day, if you remember my post here.... I'll be eating little pretzel balls, maybe some other hard pretzels, and just to celebrate I'll probably have a soft pretzel tonight :)
- Do other people plan their blog posts and Facebook status updates while they're away from their computers? I'll think, "Gee, that would make a great FB status" or "Ooh, I need to blog about this". Problem is, I don't write down what I'm thinking, so it never makes it to the computer.
- Working on a big project for the hubby's 30th birthday. Gathering letters from friends, family, and coworkers to put into a scrapbook for him. It's really interesting to see what I'm getting from different people. One person sent in a photo that I love :) Sent out a final reminder today so I can work on it this weekend.
- Also along the birthday front--I'm going to give him small notes/gifts each day until the big day. Today I began the countdown--10 days left until his birthday! I left a note on his car since we park in the same garage.
- Had a really rough night of sleep last night. Baby girl was awake at 11, 12, 12:30, 1, and 1:30. I nursed her at 1:30 and she ate well, but when she popped off, she passed out. I laid there for a minute, just holding her--it felt so good!--then I got up and stood there watching her. She'd rolled over onto her belly and looked so peaceful. If I could have been sure she wouldn't roll onto the floor, I would have considered leaving her there to sleep with her daddy (I was perched on the edge of the bed, so I couldn't have slept that way for the rest of the night). I picked her up and went and laid her in her bed, where she slept the rest of the night.
- The rough night of sleep was caused by a visit from my mom, where baby girl was kept awake for too long after she was sleepy. *sigh* The issues with my mom deserve a whole separate blog post, though...
- We're finally caught up on laundry! I think it's the first time in years and we both feel great about it! Now we just have to make sure we stay caught up.
- Trying to figure out how to store restaurant coupons so we don't forget we have them. I have some on the fridge, but am getting too many to do that with. My other coupons are in manila envelopes, so I could do that, but I'm afraid I'd forget to use them, then. As it is, they lay on the dining room table in a pile with our magazines. Ugh--I hate the clutter!!!
- Baby girl shook her head no to me today for the first time. She was eating her barley cereal and she must have been done because just looked at me and shook her head. I offered 2 more times (who knew if that's really what she was doing???) and she still didn't want anymore.
- She has also started letting go when she's pulled up on something. She can balance for a few seconds, then will fall down. Luckily, most of the time she falls gracefully!
- The husband's working hours have gotten pretty ridiculous. We were having our first full weekend without him working since the beginning of 2010...and then something went wrong and he had to go in on Sunday for about 2 hours. Not a huge deal, but still disappointing. I know he was really bummed about it, too. I, though, had a pretty bad breakdown about it all one night this past week. We've talked and I hope things will be better and I won't feel like the pressure of the world is on my shoulders.
- We're back on the healthy eating kick. The husband is feeling pretty tubby and I can't stand to look at myself in the mirror, so it's time. I bought a bit more fruits and veggies yesterday at the grocery. It's really helpful that he's on board, too. He was the one who suggested getting more salad stuff, so I did. If we can't find time to work out, at least we can start trying better with the eating.
- Made yummy banana bread yesterday. I just love to bake--I wish I had a bit more time for it! I miss baking and crafting and reading, but just put my daughter and my time with the hubby first. I should try to find a craft to do, though, in the evenings while the husband and I are watching TV. Should I get back into knitting, scrapbooking, cross-stitching, sewing, or work to make my photography skills better? Hmmm...decisions....
- Today is National Pretzel Day! How fitting....it's one of my favorite foods!!! I could eat soft pretzels any day, if you remember my post here.... I'll be eating little pretzel balls, maybe some other hard pretzels, and just to celebrate I'll probably have a soft pretzel tonight :)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Daddy is just a word
No, this isn't going to be as philosophical as the title might suggest...
I was just thinking this morning. In all the languages I know (and taking information from here), "father" starts with P (padre, papa) or B (baba). So who decided that Daddy would also mean Father in English? I think it was the men. When babies start talking, what is the first consonant sound they make? "Da". Seems like a conspiracy to me. They use the P and B sounds, too, but the very first one is usually the D. I think dads just wanted to believe that the first word their baby says is "Daddy".
Just my thinking, though....
I was just thinking this morning. In all the languages I know (and taking information from here), "father" starts with P (padre, papa) or B (baba). So who decided that Daddy would also mean Father in English? I think it was the men. When babies start talking, what is the first consonant sound they make? "Da". Seems like a conspiracy to me. They use the P and B sounds, too, but the very first one is usually the D. I think dads just wanted to believe that the first word their baby says is "Daddy".
Just my thinking, though....
Monday, April 19, 2010
Meal Plan 4/18-4/24
Sunday: Shepherd's Pie (finally)
Monday: BBQ Chicken Salad (bought a rotisserie chicken for use twice this week)
Tuesday: Black Bean Pizza
Wednesday: Pulled Pork Tacos
Thursday: Leftover Pulled Pork Tacos
Friday: Slow Cooker Black Beans and Rice
Saturday: Some new chicken dish that uses cooked chicken (thus the need for the rotisserie chicken)--I'll update this later. It's written down at home somewhere.
I'd like to try these at some point this week (only a half batch, though): Tie Dyed Sugar Cookie Bars I also don't know if I'll make the icing as fancy or if I'll just ice them with white icing. We'll see how motivated I am. :)
Monday: BBQ Chicken Salad (bought a rotisserie chicken for use twice this week)
Tuesday: Black Bean Pizza
Wednesday: Pulled Pork Tacos
Thursday: Leftover Pulled Pork Tacos
Friday: Slow Cooker Black Beans and Rice
Saturday: Some new chicken dish that uses cooked chicken (thus the need for the rotisserie chicken)--I'll update this later. It's written down at home somewhere.
I'd like to try these at some point this week (only a half batch, though): Tie Dyed Sugar Cookie Bars I also don't know if I'll make the icing as fancy or if I'll just ice them with white icing. We'll see how motivated I am. :)
Last Night
Last night was exceptionally bad. Bad bad bad.
Baby girl went to bed fairly easily at 6:50 (normal bedtime) or so. She was awake at 9:45, screaming like she was in pain. Well, she sort of was...she had pulled a blanket off the edge of her crib and gotten tangled in it. Scary for all of us. DH got her back to sleep, though, and pushed all the blankets to the end of her crib. She woke around 10:15 and he went back up and got her to sleep, removing everything from her crib, just in case. She was then awake at midnight. DH went to her and she wouldn't go to sleep for him, so he came and got me. She passed out on my shoulder before I could even sit in the rocking chair. So I swayed with her to get her to sleep, then got her into her crib. Back to bed. I laid there awake for about 25 minutes when she woke up again...same routine, except she felt a little chilly, so I covered her with a crocheted blanket (less likely to suffocate...I hope).
She then woke up at 3 (I think?) and the husband went and got her. He brought her to me and I fed her while laying down and must have fallen asleep. I jerked awake about 15 or 20 minutes later and she was limp. I was so scared. It felt like a minute passed, but I'm sure it was less than a second. She moved and looked up at me and giggled. Just sleeping...*sigh* But, of course now she isn't sleeping. Now she wants to play. I tried to get her to lay down, but she was crawling all over our bed. DH got her and took her back to her crib. She wasn't interested in sleeping, but wasn't upset, either, so he laid her down awake and left the room. I knew that blanket was in there and with her being awake, was afraid she was squirming all around the bed, getting tangled. She had gotten quiet, so around 4 I got up and checked on her--sleeping like an angel, not really even close to the blanket.
I ended up laying in bed watching some cake-decorating show for awhile and finally passed out. She didn't make another peep until morning.
Last week was good--she was waking one time per night, eating, going right back to bed. She even did it Saturday night (she typically sleeps pretty poorly Saturday and Sunday nights b/c she doesn't nap well, but she napped for us this weekend!). I had a feeling we were over the hump with the sleep issues. We were completely happy with that one easy waking a night. But last night....ugh. That was bad.
What a looooong night. I still don't know if I can go through this again with another baby someday.
Baby girl went to bed fairly easily at 6:50 (normal bedtime) or so. She was awake at 9:45, screaming like she was in pain. Well, she sort of was...she had pulled a blanket off the edge of her crib and gotten tangled in it. Scary for all of us. DH got her back to sleep, though, and pushed all the blankets to the end of her crib. She woke around 10:15 and he went back up and got her to sleep, removing everything from her crib, just in case. She was then awake at midnight. DH went to her and she wouldn't go to sleep for him, so he came and got me. She passed out on my shoulder before I could even sit in the rocking chair. So I swayed with her to get her to sleep, then got her into her crib. Back to bed. I laid there awake for about 25 minutes when she woke up again...same routine, except she felt a little chilly, so I covered her with a crocheted blanket (less likely to suffocate...I hope).
She then woke up at 3 (I think?) and the husband went and got her. He brought her to me and I fed her while laying down and must have fallen asleep. I jerked awake about 15 or 20 minutes later and she was limp. I was so scared. It felt like a minute passed, but I'm sure it was less than a second. She moved and looked up at me and giggled. Just sleeping...*sigh* But, of course now she isn't sleeping. Now she wants to play. I tried to get her to lay down, but she was crawling all over our bed. DH got her and took her back to her crib. She wasn't interested in sleeping, but wasn't upset, either, so he laid her down awake and left the room. I knew that blanket was in there and with her being awake, was afraid she was squirming all around the bed, getting tangled. She had gotten quiet, so around 4 I got up and checked on her--sleeping like an angel, not really even close to the blanket.
I ended up laying in bed watching some cake-decorating show for awhile and finally passed out. She didn't make another peep until morning.
Last week was good--she was waking one time per night, eating, going right back to bed. She even did it Saturday night (she typically sleeps pretty poorly Saturday and Sunday nights b/c she doesn't nap well, but she napped for us this weekend!). I had a feeling we were over the hump with the sleep issues. We were completely happy with that one easy waking a night. But last night....ugh. That was bad.
What a looooong night. I still don't know if I can go through this again with another baby someday.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
If she slept, why don't I feel rested?
I am officially jinxing myself here, but at this point, I don't think I care. Last night baby girl went down really easily, woke up for a few minutes around 10:30 p.m. (as we were getting in bed), then didn't wake until 6 a.m.
So why am I yawning and ready to fall asleep?? Oh wait, because I had to stay up later than I wanted last night. I would have loved to go to sleep around 9 p.m. Why didn't I go to bed? Well, here's what my night looked like:
4:30 Leave work and drive to the sitter's
5:10 Pick up baby girl
5:11-5:30 Sing silly songs, talk baby talk, all in the interest of keeping baby girl happy
5:30 Get home with baby girl
5:31 Get baby girl out of her car seat and sit her on the floor and she starts to play
5:35 Go into kitchen to discover that an ingredient of dinner is missing
5:36 Go back to living room to figure out what I can make with the ingredients I have
5:45 Still searching for dinner plans, watching baby girl pull up repeatedly on the faux marble window sill, knowing she needs a bath, but wanting to get dinner started and figure out what I can make
5:50 Find something to make for dinner, but don't want to leave baby girl pulling up in the living room (she'll just head back to the living room if I bring her into the kitchen), so I sit and watch her and wait for daddy to come home (who was supposed to be home at 5:30)
5:55 Think about giving baby girl a bath, but figure daddy will be home ANY MINUTE, so I'll wait for him to get home and give her a bath while I fix dinner
6:10 Daddy walks in the door
6:10:01 I go into the kitchen to try to whip something up, knowing baby girl should be nursing by about 6:30
6:11 I find the missing ingredient buried in the fridge. Back to Plan A.
6:12 Rushing around, working on dinner, daddy gets to play with baby girl. He thinks this is helpful.
6:15 Pull out baby girl's dinner. Daddy keeps playing. I keep cooking and cleaning.
6:30 I go pick up baby girl and plop her in her highchair to feed her her green beans. Daddy says, "Oh, I can do that". I tell him I've got it at this point.
6:35 Baby has been fed. I realize dinner is done and ask for help getting it out of the oven.
6:36 Dinner is out of the oven, I nurse baby girl
7:00 Daddy takes baby upstairs while I put together pictures to send to grandma
7:10 Daddy comes back downstairs and we eat dinner together while watching The Biggest Loser. On the laptop. Because the DVR failed.
8:00 Daddy falls asleep on couch
8:30 I get out my pump parts, get pissy that Daddy can sleep while I have to extract food for the baby. Pump while watching the rest of the Biggest Loser and other TV.
9:20 Turn off the pump. Go to look for the pieces to finish up the taxes. Daddy still sleeping. Doesn't even realize tomorrow is Tax Day. Hasn't done anything to help with taxes.
9:25 Find the document I need. Sit down and review all taxes information
10:15 Finish up taxes. E-file.
10:16 Put away breastmilk that has been in cooler on the counter all evening.
10:17 Put away all dinner dishes.
10:18 Pack up pump to take back to work
10:19 Pick up baby toys that I just stubbed my toe on.
10:20 Set alarm and go upstairs, get ready for bed, and fall into bed. Daddy joins me shortly thereafter.
I guess I'm just really frustrated that all Daddy has to do in the evenings is come home late, play with the baby, do what I ask of him if I ask, and sleep. I, on the other hand, take care of dinner (deciding on meal, shopping for ingredients, prepping, cooking, cleaning up), make sure the child is fed (nursing, making food, buying food, pumping, prepping for pumping) and bathed (including remembering to do it, even though I've mentioned it before), make sure our household is put together (all financial tasks, filing taxes, trying to figure out an organizational system)...and it goes on and on. I'mtired fucking exhausted. I can't do it anymore.
(This is all the beginning of a bigger conversation that I want to have...all about the expectations we have, both imposed by society and ourselves, and what motherhood looks like to different people. I've been reading a book and want to share some of it here. For now, though, I have to be done writing or I mightgo crazy hurt someone cuss out my husband cry.)
So why am I yawning and ready to fall asleep?? Oh wait, because I had to stay up later than I wanted last night. I would have loved to go to sleep around 9 p.m. Why didn't I go to bed? Well, here's what my night looked like:
4:30 Leave work and drive to the sitter's
5:10 Pick up baby girl
5:11-5:30 Sing silly songs, talk baby talk, all in the interest of keeping baby girl happy
5:30 Get home with baby girl
5:31 Get baby girl out of her car seat and sit her on the floor and she starts to play
5:35 Go into kitchen to discover that an ingredient of dinner is missing
5:36 Go back to living room to figure out what I can make with the ingredients I have
5:45 Still searching for dinner plans, watching baby girl pull up repeatedly on the faux marble window sill, knowing she needs a bath, but wanting to get dinner started and figure out what I can make
5:50 Find something to make for dinner, but don't want to leave baby girl pulling up in the living room (she'll just head back to the living room if I bring her into the kitchen), so I sit and watch her and wait for daddy to come home (who was supposed to be home at 5:30)
5:55 Think about giving baby girl a bath, but figure daddy will be home ANY MINUTE, so I'll wait for him to get home and give her a bath while I fix dinner
6:10 Daddy walks in the door
6:10:01 I go into the kitchen to try to whip something up, knowing baby girl should be nursing by about 6:30
6:11 I find the missing ingredient buried in the fridge. Back to Plan A.
6:12 Rushing around, working on dinner, daddy gets to play with baby girl. He thinks this is helpful.
6:15 Pull out baby girl's dinner. Daddy keeps playing. I keep cooking and cleaning.
6:30 I go pick up baby girl and plop her in her highchair to feed her her green beans. Daddy says, "Oh, I can do that". I tell him I've got it at this point.
6:35 Baby has been fed. I realize dinner is done and ask for help getting it out of the oven.
6:36 Dinner is out of the oven, I nurse baby girl
7:00 Daddy takes baby upstairs while I put together pictures to send to grandma
7:10 Daddy comes back downstairs and we eat dinner together while watching The Biggest Loser. On the laptop. Because the DVR failed.
8:00 Daddy falls asleep on couch
8:30 I get out my pump parts, get pissy that Daddy can sleep while I have to extract food for the baby. Pump while watching the rest of the Biggest Loser and other TV.
9:20 Turn off the pump. Go to look for the pieces to finish up the taxes. Daddy still sleeping. Doesn't even realize tomorrow is Tax Day. Hasn't done anything to help with taxes.
9:25 Find the document I need. Sit down and review all taxes information
10:15 Finish up taxes. E-file.
10:16 Put away breastmilk that has been in cooler on the counter all evening.
10:17 Put away all dinner dishes.
10:18 Pack up pump to take back to work
10:19 Pick up baby toys that I just stubbed my toe on.
10:20 Set alarm and go upstairs, get ready for bed, and fall into bed. Daddy joins me shortly thereafter.
I guess I'm just really frustrated that all Daddy has to do in the evenings is come home late, play with the baby, do what I ask of him if I ask, and sleep. I, on the other hand, take care of dinner (deciding on meal, shopping for ingredients, prepping, cooking, cleaning up), make sure the child is fed (nursing, making food, buying food, pumping, prepping for pumping) and bathed (including remembering to do it, even though I've mentioned it before), make sure our household is put together (all financial tasks, filing taxes, trying to figure out an organizational system)...and it goes on and on. I'm
(This is all the beginning of a bigger conversation that I want to have...all about the expectations we have, both imposed by society and ourselves, and what motherhood looks like to different people. I've been reading a book and want to share some of it here. For now, though, I have to be done writing or I might
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
I...
I feel like I've lost sight of who I am, outside of being a mommy. In an effort to focus on that, I've made the following list.
I...
...am a wife
...am a musician
...am a diehard Buckeye fan
...believe wholeheartedly in balance and fairness
...am too hard on myself
...wear my heart on my sleeve
...have a *touch* of road rage
...swear like a sailor
...am a friend
...like to read
...am a crazy deal-seeker
...love to dance
...am a volunteer
...love to sing
...have crazy allergies
...could sleep 15 hours a night
...love fun socks
...hate the sound of people chewing
...have a weakness for all things sweet-tasting
...love to play board games
...love the smell of the rain
...hate the sound of thunder and the sight of lightning
...act like a kid sometimes
...love to snuggle
...have always tended to act older than I am
...was considered a genius in my previous life
...love math
...love brain teasers
...hate the idea of doggie kisses
...am a cat person
...dislike chocolate ice cream
...am a curvy girl
...could eat food from the grill every night
...love to look at the stars
...was one test away from being a Mensa member
...am a television addict
...love all reality shows
...am a crafter
...have ADD when it comes to crafting
...am an engineer
...am a slob at heart
...have a brain that never stops going and usually focuses on at least 3 things at once
...have an unhealthy relationship with food
...am a clotheshorse
...am a fan of pretty much all sports
...prefer college football to professional
...am anxious
...want to be liked more than anything else
...can be passive, aggressive, or passive-aggressive
...am a Christian (but am really ashamed to admit that this didn't come to my mind earlier...need to work on that)
...am a planner
...hate politics
...have always been and will always be a mommy.
I...
...am a wife
...am a musician
...am a diehard Buckeye fan
...believe wholeheartedly in balance and fairness
...am too hard on myself
...wear my heart on my sleeve
...have a *touch* of road rage
...swear like a sailor
...am a friend
...like to read
...am a crazy deal-seeker
...love to dance
...am a volunteer
...love to sing
...have crazy allergies
...could sleep 15 hours a night
...love fun socks
...hate the sound of people chewing
...have a weakness for all things sweet-tasting
...love to play board games
...love the smell of the rain
...hate the sound of thunder and the sight of lightning
...act like a kid sometimes
...love to snuggle
...have always tended to act older than I am
...was considered a genius in my previous life
...love math
...love brain teasers
...hate the idea of doggie kisses
...am a cat person
...dislike chocolate ice cream
...am a curvy girl
...could eat food from the grill every night
...love to look at the stars
...was one test away from being a Mensa member
...am a television addict
...love all reality shows
...am a crafter
...have ADD when it comes to crafting
...am an engineer
...am a slob at heart
...have a brain that never stops going and usually focuses on at least 3 things at once
...have an unhealthy relationship with food
...am a clotheshorse
...am a fan of pretty much all sports
...prefer college football to professional
...am anxious
...want to be liked more than anything else
...can be passive, aggressive, or passive-aggressive
...am a Christian (but am really ashamed to admit that this didn't come to my mind earlier...need to work on that)
...am a planner
...hate politics
...have always been and will always be a mommy.
Mommy/Daddy Relationship: Talk to me
I have a lot of feelings and things to say on this topic, but I'm curious, first, to see what you think.
How has your relationship with your husband changed since having kids?
How has it stayed the same?
What do you do to stay connected?
I'm not even talking about the physical relationship today (that's a whole 'nother blog post), but, rather, the emotional connection. My husband is (was?) my best friend, but lately it doesn't feel like we talk at all. I don't know if it's the kid or his work or a combination.
But I want to hear from YOU.
How has your relationship with your husband changed since having kids?
How has it stayed the same?
What do you do to stay connected?
I'm not even talking about the physical relationship today (that's a whole 'nother blog post), but, rather, the emotional connection. My husband is (was?) my best friend, but lately it doesn't feel like we talk at all. I don't know if it's the kid or his work or a combination.
But I want to hear from YOU.
Monday, April 12, 2010
An Update
Thank you all so much for the comments on my Friday post!
My update is that there really isn't much of an update to speak of. Baby girl seems to be feeling better. Didn't have to wipe her nose yesterday except after the trauma she experienced (see the next post for details on that...), but then this morning she had more snot again. Everyone at the hospital (not related to the trauma--we went and met our new baby nieces!) thinks she's working on teeth based on her chewing on her hands, but I'm losing hope. No tooth.
For those of you whose children get The Snot when they're teething, do you notice it more or less at certain times of day? We can't correlate it to when she lays down or the time of day, even. Some times she's totally dry and then others we have a consistent river of clear snot running down her face. That doesn't seem cold-like, but I wondered if anyone else had ever seen anything like that with teething snot.
Mommy and Daddy has, thus far, avoided The Snot. I had to fight it like crazy, drinking OJ like it was my job, scrubbing my hands until they were raw...but so far, no snot in either one of us.
And as for taking care of baby all day on Saturday? My parents came up to visit and gave me a bit of a reprieve. She's quite the mommy's girl, so whenever I was in the room, she was all over me, but I was able to sneak out to CVS for a little while, which was really nice.
My update is that there really isn't much of an update to speak of. Baby girl seems to be feeling better. Didn't have to wipe her nose yesterday except after the trauma she experienced (see the next post for details on that...), but then this morning she had more snot again. Everyone at the hospital (not related to the trauma--we went and met our new baby nieces!) thinks she's working on teeth based on her chewing on her hands, but I'm losing hope. No tooth.
For those of you whose children get The Snot when they're teething, do you notice it more or less at certain times of day? We can't correlate it to when she lays down or the time of day, even. Some times she's totally dry and then others we have a consistent river of clear snot running down her face. That doesn't seem cold-like, but I wondered if anyone else had ever seen anything like that with teething snot.
Mommy and Daddy has, thus far, avoided The Snot. I had to fight it like crazy, drinking OJ like it was my job, scrubbing my hands until they were raw...but so far, no snot in either one of us.
And as for taking care of baby all day on Saturday? My parents came up to visit and gave me a bit of a reprieve. She's quite the mommy's girl, so whenever I was in the room, she was all over me, but I was able to sneak out to CVS for a little while, which was really nice.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Poor baby and poor me
Baby girl isn't feeling well. Last week the brother & sister at the sitter's were out spending the week with their grandparents. The little boy came back with a cold. Shortly after they returned, baby girl starts to get snotty. For the first day or so, it seemed like her other two colds--thin, runny snot, but still acting like a happy little lady. The first full day with the cold, though, she came home from the sitter's with her chest soaked with drool. I just figured it was because she had to breathe out of her mouth since her nose was stuffy.
After another two days, though, I'm not so sure that's the case. This drool is like nothing I've ever seen from my baby. It's constant, pools on the floor as she's on her hands and knees, soaks everything she touches. She also has been getting extra fussy randomly. She also woke up at 3:40 this morning and wouldn't go back to sleep. As long as we didn't try to get her to sleep, she was happy to climb on mommy and daddy and drool all over our bed.
This has got to be teeth. Seriously. 8 1/2 months old with no teeth, all of a sudden drooling like never before, chewing on things (a bit more than normal--she's always chewed a ton)...
I say poor me because, for one, I'm exhausted right now. More tired than I've been in a long time. I think my body is trying to fight off her cold and it's pretty difficult to do when you've been awake since before 4 a.m.
For another, my ILs are going to spend the night with us, at least tonight, and possibly tomorrow night. This wouldn't be an issue if our house were in any way presentable. With all the hours the hubby has been working, I've just been doing the bare minimum, just enough to be sure the kid doesn't ingest anything and we have enough dishes to cook on (when we cook). So that means that as soon as we eat dinner (yes, it's 7:45 p.m. and we haven't eaten dinner) we'll need to at least make the basement useable so they can get to their bed.
Speaking of all the hours the hubby as been working....this is the real "poor me" reason....he's working all day tomorrow. Like 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. all day long. And because I still think baby girl has some sort of cold, I don't want to take her out and expose others (most importantly, not our nieces that should be born sometime tonight (edited to add: our nieces that were JUST born!)) to her possible sickness. So I'm stuck in the house with a possibly sick, possibly teething baby all by myself.
After another two days, though, I'm not so sure that's the case. This drool is like nothing I've ever seen from my baby. It's constant, pools on the floor as she's on her hands and knees, soaks everything she touches. She also has been getting extra fussy randomly. She also woke up at 3:40 this morning and wouldn't go back to sleep. As long as we didn't try to get her to sleep, she was happy to climb on mommy and daddy and drool all over our bed.
This has got to be teeth. Seriously. 8 1/2 months old with no teeth, all of a sudden drooling like never before, chewing on things (a bit more than normal--she's always chewed a ton)...
I say poor me because, for one, I'm exhausted right now. More tired than I've been in a long time. I think my body is trying to fight off her cold and it's pretty difficult to do when you've been awake since before 4 a.m.
For another, my ILs are going to spend the night with us, at least tonight, and possibly tomorrow night. This wouldn't be an issue if our house were in any way presentable. With all the hours the hubby has been working, I've just been doing the bare minimum, just enough to be sure the kid doesn't ingest anything and we have enough dishes to cook on (when we cook). So that means that as soon as we eat dinner (yes, it's 7:45 p.m. and we haven't eaten dinner) we'll need to at least make the basement useable so they can get to their bed.
Speaking of all the hours the hubby as been working....this is the real "poor me" reason....he's working all day tomorrow. Like 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. all day long. And because I still think baby girl has some sort of cold, I don't want to take her out and expose others (most importantly, not our nieces that should be born sometime tonight (edited to add: our nieces that were JUST born!)) to her possible sickness. So I'm stuck in the house with a possibly sick, possibly teething baby all by myself.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Dinner Fail-ish
Tonight (as has been true for many nights recently) DH is working late. I successfully made a stop at Walgreen's with baby girl to pick up some pictures, got her dinner, gave her a bath, nursed her, and got her to bed without much of a fuss. I came downstairs, got frustrated with how messy the house is, and sat down and played online for awhile. I realized I was hungry, went poking around online, looking for ideas for a single serving dinner, and found some pancake recipes. No way was I making them from scratch, but I remembered that we had baking mix out there, so I made my way to the kitchen and whipped up some banana pancakes (my favorite).
I should stop here and clarify. I'm a pretty good cook. I do all the cooking in our household except grilling (just b/c DH likes to do it) and breakfast. So I haven't made pancakes in a loooong time.
I sliced the bananas and poured the batter over top like I typically did. I tried to make two separate pancakes that then turned into one. So I went with it and poured batter over the rest of the pan. I tried to flip the pancake and,....it became one big lumpy mess. I tried to flatten it enough that it would cook through. Then when I went to flip it back over, I just cut it in half. What a mess.
I then made a second large pancake and, while it was a bit better than the first, it was still a total mess. See the results:
You see? A mess. I actually didn't end up needing the syrup or the spray butter, though; the bananas were enough. I wish I were eating peanut butter--that always goes well with the banana pancakes.
As you can see from the picture below, they still tasted fantastic!!!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Meal Plan 4/4-4/10
Sunday: boneless chicken wings and mac & cheese
Monday: Manwich (made with ground turkey and served on those thin buns) with cheesy veggies, tater tots, and a whole wheat roll
Tuesday: turkey burgers (again served on the thin buns--I got a deal at the Pepperidge Farm Outlet even though I already had some) and sweet potato fries
Wednesday: shepherd's pie
Thursday: something chicken-y
Friday: not sure (hubby is working late, plus we're expecting the arrival of ILs because we'll be aunt & uncle two times over this weekend)
Saturday: no clue--hubby is working all day and we'll be hosting the ILs because of the birth of our nieces
Nothing too out-of-the-ordinary this week. We needed to eat out of the cupboards (I rearranged them this weekend, so I became very aware of what was in there!), so these were the simple things I came up with. Made a quick run the grocery last night to pick up some produce (trying new veggies--got an artichoke and an eggplant!) & dairy and walked out of there spending $40. Ugh. You know why? Sale Easter candy. It wasn't even *that* cheap, but all of a sudden, those Hershey Kisses, Cadbury Mini Eggs and Starburst Jelly Beans sounded SO good!
Monday: Manwich (made with ground turkey and served on those thin buns) with cheesy veggies, tater tots, and a whole wheat roll
Tuesday: turkey burgers (again served on the thin buns--I got a deal at the Pepperidge Farm Outlet even though I already had some) and sweet potato fries
Wednesday: shepherd's pie
Thursday: something chicken-y
Friday: not sure (hubby is working late, plus we're expecting the arrival of ILs because we'll be aunt & uncle two times over this weekend)
Saturday: no clue--hubby is working all day and we'll be hosting the ILs because of the birth of our nieces
Nothing too out-of-the-ordinary this week. We needed to eat out of the cupboards (I rearranged them this weekend, so I became very aware of what was in there!), so these were the simple things I came up with. Made a quick run the grocery last night to pick up some produce (trying new veggies--got an artichoke and an eggplant!) & dairy and walked out of there spending $40. Ugh. You know why? Sale Easter candy. It wasn't even *that* cheap, but all of a sudden, those Hershey Kisses, Cadbury Mini Eggs and Starburst Jelly Beans sounded SO good!
Pincher Grasp
Over the last few weeks, baby girl has been practicing her pincher grasp. I must say that she's getting really good at it! She can now proficiently get lint, dirt, small pieces of paper, and chunks of dinner from-who-knows-how-long-ago into her mouth. Oh, and she's also now eating (under our close supervision) Cheerios and chunks of green beans, all without any teeth. She's actually getting really good at picking up things with those two little fingers and getting them into her mouth.
You know how she got so good? Practice, baby. And guess what she's been practicing on? Oh yeah. My boob. While she nurses, she lays there and pinches my boob-skin over and over again. I have all these little red marks all over me from where she gets me with those teeny little pinchers. Why don't I stop it? Well, I did. But then I got tired of trying and, well, I looked into the big brown eyes of a baby who wasn't maliciously trying to hurt mommy (right, baby?) and thought, why not let her practice. She's never going to get better any other way. At least that's what I tell myself. It makes the pain a little better.
You know how she got so good? Practice, baby. And guess what she's been practicing on? Oh yeah. My boob. While she nurses, she lays there and pinches my boob-skin over and over again. I have all these little red marks all over me from where she gets me with those teeny little pinchers. Why don't I stop it? Well, I did. But then I got tired of trying and, well, I looked into the big brown eyes of a baby who wasn't maliciously trying to hurt mommy (right, baby?) and thought, why not let her practice. She's never going to get better any other way. At least that's what I tell myself. It makes the pain a little better.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Hopping On
Well, I'm back on the wagon again. I saw some pics of me with baby girl from this weekend and I wasn't happy, to say the least. I'm still nervous about cutting calories, especially since my milk supply has been lagging a bit recently (having to pump every night before bed to keep up now, whereas before I would pump maybe 2-3 nights a week and all of that would go into the freezer). But I need to get healthy, even if it doesn't necessarily mean weight loss right now.
When I lost weight before, I actually didn't exercise. My body, for some reason, doesn't like to let the weight come off with exercise. I was eating well, doing the Couch to 5K program, and couldn't lose any weight. I would try eating more and eating less and saw zero results. The minute I stopped exercising regularly, the weight came off. It might be finding the balance between eating enough for the exercise I do, but I didn't have the patience to do it since just eating right was working for me.
This time, though, I want to be in shape and my weight can do whatever it wants. I'm going to start tracking my food, which does seem to help me be more conscious of what I put into my mouth and eating more fruits and veggies. But I'm still going to allow myself some ice cream and cupcakes and things like that and I'm not going to be super strict on myself. But I've made a committment to start exercising in the evenings. Baby girl is in bed by 7:30 each night, there's no reason I can't do something after she's asleep. The husband and I have gotten three workout games for the Wii (plus the Wii Fit "game"): Just Dance, The Biggest Loser, and something else (edited to add: I just remembered that it was the Jenny McCarthy one). See how much they've been used? I can't even remember what the third is! I figured, though, that those would be great starting spots for working out, especially since at least one of us has to stay home with the kid, so we can't go jogging together.
I'm going to start tracking my food on SparkPeople. If you're a member, let me know and I'd love to share my food intake with you. I need some people to keep me accountable! I'll also be posting here each week how many times I worked out that week. I'm hoping to feel better about myself and feel healthier. If my clothes fit better, that's just a bonus ;)
When I lost weight before, I actually didn't exercise. My body, for some reason, doesn't like to let the weight come off with exercise. I was eating well, doing the Couch to 5K program, and couldn't lose any weight. I would try eating more and eating less and saw zero results. The minute I stopped exercising regularly, the weight came off. It might be finding the balance between eating enough for the exercise I do, but I didn't have the patience to do it since just eating right was working for me.
This time, though, I want to be in shape and my weight can do whatever it wants. I'm going to start tracking my food, which does seem to help me be more conscious of what I put into my mouth and eating more fruits and veggies. But I'm still going to allow myself some ice cream and cupcakes and things like that and I'm not going to be super strict on myself. But I've made a committment to start exercising in the evenings. Baby girl is in bed by 7:30 each night, there's no reason I can't do something after she's asleep. The husband and I have gotten three workout games for the Wii (plus the Wii Fit "game"): Just Dance, The Biggest Loser, and something else (edited to add: I just remembered that it was the Jenny McCarthy one). See how much they've been used? I can't even remember what the third is! I figured, though, that those would be great starting spots for working out, especially since at least one of us has to stay home with the kid, so we can't go jogging together.
I'm going to start tracking my food on SparkPeople. If you're a member, let me know and I'd love to share my food intake with you. I need some people to keep me accountable! I'll also be posting here each week how many times I worked out that week. I'm hoping to feel better about myself and feel healthier. If my clothes fit better, that's just a bonus ;)
Friday, April 2, 2010
Lessons in Pumping
Lesson I learned today. When you're pumping 3-4 times a day, don't wear a dress unless you want to sit at your desk with your bum and undies hanging out or it has a big enough neckhole where you won't stretch it out (this one doesn't).
*sigh*
*sigh*
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Dwindling Readers
I've noticed on my Google Reader that the number of readers that I have is dwindling, so I'm trying to figure out what I can do to keep you all coming back. Are you tired of hearing about my baby girl? Tired of hearing about her sleeping issues? Want me to talk about more funny stuff? More serious stuff? More thought-provoking?
Yes, this blog is for me to record things that baby girl is doing, especially since I generally suck at keeping up her baby book. But I also want readers and, even moreso, I want happy readers.
So tell me, what can I do to keep you? Hell, I'm sure I can follow through on that giveaway and finish answering those questions...I suppose I should do that. I know who won already--I already did the random number generator.
But what keeps you coming back, if you do? Is it just because you know and love me? Or is there something else?
Yes, this blog is for me to record things that baby girl is doing, especially since I generally suck at keeping up her baby book. But I also want readers and, even moreso, I want happy readers.
So tell me, what can I do to keep you? Hell, I'm sure I can follow through on that giveaway and finish answering those questions...I suppose I should do that. I know who won already--I already did the random number generator.
But what keeps you coming back, if you do? Is it just because you know and love me? Or is there something else?
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Was that a Da Da?
Like I said in a previous post, I was started to get concerned that baby girl hadn't started babbling consonants yet. She's been "talking" in vowel sounds for awhile, especially when she had something in her mouth. Last Wednesday (3/24), she started making a few consonant sounds and since then hasn't looked back.
It's a beautiful sound, hearing her talking to her toys or to one of us. I love to listen to it all the time. Like I posted on Facebook, though, I've spent 8 months waiting for her to start babbling like this...but I'll be waiting 18 years for her to stop!
It's a beautiful sound, hearing her talking to her toys or to one of us. I love to listen to it all the time. Like I posted on Facebook, though, I've spent 8 months waiting for her to start babbling like this...but I'll be waiting 18 years for her to stop!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
My daughter, the sock eater
Apparently baby girl has acquired a reputation at the sitter's house for her love of socks. I've mentioned it before, but here's a good example of her feelings for socks.
I was driving her to my parents' house on Sunday (an hour drive) and about 45 minutes into the drive, I hear her grunting back there. She'd been playing so well for most of the trip that I figured she'd hit her breaking point and was trying to get out of the carseat. I turned around to see what was going on and lo and behold, she had part of her sock still on her foot and the other up in her mouth!!!
No one at the sitter's seems to be safe. Our sitter doesn't even wear socks anymore because no one else does. I can't remember the last time I picked baby girl up and she was still wearing her socks. But now it's not just HER socks, but the socks of the other kids. There's a four-month-old who apparently never comes home with his socks, either, and his parents always know why. Baby girl has stolen them and put them in her mouth. They're then so soggy that the sitter doesn't want to put them back on the owner's feet.
At least it's starting to get warmer and we won't have to worry about socks for awhile...
I was driving her to my parents' house on Sunday (an hour drive) and about 45 minutes into the drive, I hear her grunting back there. She'd been playing so well for most of the trip that I figured she'd hit her breaking point and was trying to get out of the carseat. I turned around to see what was going on and lo and behold, she had part of her sock still on her foot and the other up in her mouth!!!
No one at the sitter's seems to be safe. Our sitter doesn't even wear socks anymore because no one else does. I can't remember the last time I picked baby girl up and she was still wearing her socks. But now it's not just HER socks, but the socks of the other kids. There's a four-month-old who apparently never comes home with his socks, either, and his parents always know why. Baby girl has stolen them and put them in her mouth. They're then so soggy that the sitter doesn't want to put them back on the owner's feet.
At least it's starting to get warmer and we won't have to worry about socks for awhile...
Fears
This week I discovered that baby girl has begun to develop some fears.
On Wednesday she and I went to a friend's house. These friends have two sweet kitties. Baby girl had been around these kitties as well as my in-laws' small dog before with no problems. However, on Wednesday when one of the kitties entered the room, baby girl was interested. She watched her walk across the floor and back out of the room. Then the kitty came back and baby girl seemed to want to crawl after her as kitty left the room again. When the kitty came back again, baby girl crawled into my lap and started crying. She was so scared! Kitty left and came back in the room again later and baby girl started freaking again...so the kitty got locked up :( I felt bad for everyone involved and really hope this is just a phase!!!!
Then Saturday I decided to vacuum (shocker, I know) because my friend (the same one with the kitty) and her baby boy were coming over for a playdate. I figured the rug should be clean so the kiddos could play and not pick something gross up. I got out the vacuum and baby girl stared at it for a second after I turned it on, then started crying. I turned it off and picked her up. I tried running it a few other times with different situations (her in my arms, her across the room) and it resulted in the same crying. I also tried to let her explore the vacuum while it was off, but she still got scared when I turned it on again. We'll try again eventually, I suppose.
I've actually noticed that she's been startled a lot more by loud noises than she ever has been. The blender, the vacuum, the garbage disposal, and the garage door all startled her (although she only actually cried from the vacuum). Of course, I started reading online to try to figure out how to get her over her fears...and found information about kids with sensory disorders and autism having problems with loud noises. *sigh* Paranoid mommy moment!!!! This also makes me realize how much better she sleeps with a heavy blanket on her--something they do for kids with sensory processing disorders. Hoping that these fears are just something normal and will pass eventually and are not indicative of something bigger.
On Wednesday she and I went to a friend's house. These friends have two sweet kitties. Baby girl had been around these kitties as well as my in-laws' small dog before with no problems. However, on Wednesday when one of the kitties entered the room, baby girl was interested. She watched her walk across the floor and back out of the room. Then the kitty came back and baby girl seemed to want to crawl after her as kitty left the room again. When the kitty came back again, baby girl crawled into my lap and started crying. She was so scared! Kitty left and came back in the room again later and baby girl started freaking again...so the kitty got locked up :( I felt bad for everyone involved and really hope this is just a phase!!!!
Then Saturday I decided to vacuum (shocker, I know) because my friend (the same one with the kitty) and her baby boy were coming over for a playdate. I figured the rug should be clean so the kiddos could play and not pick something gross up. I got out the vacuum and baby girl stared at it for a second after I turned it on, then started crying. I turned it off and picked her up. I tried running it a few other times with different situations (her in my arms, her across the room) and it resulted in the same crying. I also tried to let her explore the vacuum while it was off, but she still got scared when I turned it on again. We'll try again eventually, I suppose.
I've actually noticed that she's been startled a lot more by loud noises than she ever has been. The blender, the vacuum, the garbage disposal, and the garage door all startled her (although she only actually cried from the vacuum). Of course, I started reading online to try to figure out how to get her over her fears...and found information about kids with sensory disorders and autism having problems with loud noises. *sigh* Paranoid mommy moment!!!! This also makes me realize how much better she sleeps with a heavy blanket on her--something they do for kids with sensory processing disorders. Hoping that these fears are just something normal and will pass eventually and are not indicative of something bigger.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Meal Plan 3/28-4/3
No real plan for this week (gasp!), as the husband will be working a lot of hours, so I'll be on my own for dinners. I bought some hot dogs and some sloppy joe stuff and that will keep me fed for the week. He's got peanut butter and jelly and we've got soup and some frozen stuff. We'll be alright and hopefully next week we can get back to normal.
8 Months Old
Wow. I'll say what I say every month...I cannot believe she's eight months old. I thought time would slow down when she hit 6 months, but it hasn't, sadly. While I'm looking forward to a lot of things as she gets older, I know she's only going to be my little baby for such a short time and am trying to cherish these moments.
I'll try to get a weight on her soon. I'm guessing she's a little shy of 18 pounds. I think she was about 17 pounds around 7 months and she seems to be gaining about a pound a month.
Baby girl is just now starting to wear 6-9 month size clothes. She is still wearing most of her 3-6 month stuff, but since there are some 6-9 month clothes that are definitely for winter, I want her to get some use out of them, especially now that spring is officially here (although you wouldn't know it with the snow we had last Thursday night!).
We're getting ready to transition her into size 3 diapers. She could keep wearing size 2 for a bit longer, but they're starting to get pretty tight. She's still wearing a size 3 diaper overnight to help contain her overnight pee.
She's crawling EVERYWHERE. She's into everything!!! She can crawl really quickly and it is still incredibly cute to watch.
She loves to pull up on everything including, as of Friday, her crib. Imagine our surprise when we went to get her after a nap and she was standing there looking at us! Her favorite thing to pull up on, though, is her mommy. Whenever I'm on the floor with her she's crawling over to me and trying to climb up Mount Mommy.
Her favorite "toys" are plastic bags, computer cords, paper (coupons, newspaper, mail), and socks. She loves socks, unless they're on her feet!
Her favorite actual toys are her activity table and all stuffed animals, especially her sock monkey. She hasn't established a real connection to any one toy, though, which is okay with us!
Baby girl loves to grab faces. We try to allow her to explore, but she ends up being pretty rough. Both her daddy and I have quite a few scratches all over our faces. She'll grab at eyes, eyebrows, noses, and lips. She also loves to grab ahold of mommy's hair. Usually, though, she has ulterior motives when she grabs hair--she's trying to pull in for a kiss. One could probably argue that she's not actually giving a kiss, but we like to believe she is! She opens her mouth wide and drools on and licks our faces. It's the sweetest thing! Last week she even chased down her mostly immobile friend (my friend's son who is 3 weeks younger) and grabbed his head and gave him kisses. One of these days we'll be using that as blackmail!!!
Sleeping still isn't wonderful, but it's been a lot better this past week (except over the weekend). She's only been up once a night, eats, then goes back to sleep. Daddy is able to work his magic and put her down awake and she falls sleep on her own. We still rock and sing to her until she's sleeping, but she can sometimes lay down awake and soothe herself to sleep. It all depends on the quality of her naps.
To date, baby girl has eaten: green beans, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, buttercup squash, applesauce, pears, peaches, banana (although not much), and avocado (bad news--she hated it!). She would LOVE to eat mommy and daddy's food. When we're eating something while holding her, she'll try to shove her nose into our mouths to smell what we're eating. Tonight she did it with a peanut butter cup with Daddy. One morning it was even with my toast!
Speaking of eating...we're still waiting on that tooth. She's been chewing on everything in sight for about 5 months now and still has no teeth. I'm not sure how excited I am about the experience of teething, but it would be nice to be able to give her tastes of our table food.
I'll try to get a weight on her soon. I'm guessing she's a little shy of 18 pounds. I think she was about 17 pounds around 7 months and she seems to be gaining about a pound a month.
Baby girl is just now starting to wear 6-9 month size clothes. She is still wearing most of her 3-6 month stuff, but since there are some 6-9 month clothes that are definitely for winter, I want her to get some use out of them, especially now that spring is officially here (although you wouldn't know it with the snow we had last Thursday night!).
We're getting ready to transition her into size 3 diapers. She could keep wearing size 2 for a bit longer, but they're starting to get pretty tight. She's still wearing a size 3 diaper overnight to help contain her overnight pee.
She's crawling EVERYWHERE. She's into everything!!! She can crawl really quickly and it is still incredibly cute to watch.
She loves to pull up on everything including, as of Friday, her crib. Imagine our surprise when we went to get her after a nap and she was standing there looking at us! Her favorite thing to pull up on, though, is her mommy. Whenever I'm on the floor with her she's crawling over to me and trying to climb up Mount Mommy.
Her favorite "toys" are plastic bags, computer cords, paper (coupons, newspaper, mail), and socks. She loves socks, unless they're on her feet!
Her favorite actual toys are her activity table and all stuffed animals, especially her sock monkey. She hasn't established a real connection to any one toy, though, which is okay with us!
Baby girl loves to grab faces. We try to allow her to explore, but she ends up being pretty rough. Both her daddy and I have quite a few scratches all over our faces. She'll grab at eyes, eyebrows, noses, and lips. She also loves to grab ahold of mommy's hair. Usually, though, she has ulterior motives when she grabs hair--she's trying to pull in for a kiss. One could probably argue that she's not actually giving a kiss, but we like to believe she is! She opens her mouth wide and drools on and licks our faces. It's the sweetest thing! Last week she even chased down her mostly immobile friend (my friend's son who is 3 weeks younger) and grabbed his head and gave him kisses. One of these days we'll be using that as blackmail!!!
Sleeping still isn't wonderful, but it's been a lot better this past week (except over the weekend). She's only been up once a night, eats, then goes back to sleep. Daddy is able to work his magic and put her down awake and she falls sleep on her own. We still rock and sing to her until she's sleeping, but she can sometimes lay down awake and soothe herself to sleep. It all depends on the quality of her naps.
To date, baby girl has eaten: green beans, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, buttercup squash, applesauce, pears, peaches, banana (although not much), and avocado (bad news--she hated it!). She would LOVE to eat mommy and daddy's food. When we're eating something while holding her, she'll try to shove her nose into our mouths to smell what we're eating. Tonight she did it with a peanut butter cup with Daddy. One morning it was even with my toast!
Speaking of eating...we're still waiting on that tooth. She's been chewing on everything in sight for about 5 months now and still has no teeth. I'm not sure how excited I am about the experience of teething, but it would be nice to be able to give her tastes of our table food.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Learning
After our visit with my friend last Wednesday, I realized that we all are paranoid about our children and what they're doing. While I'm concerned about baby girl's size (she's sort of small, which is a direct reflection upon my body's ability to feed her), my friend is concerned about her little boy's size because he's a bit bigger. I am conscious of the fact that, until last Wednesday, baby girl wasn't babbling consonants (our doctor asked about them at her 6 month appointment, which led me to believe it should have been happening by then), she's cognizant that her little boy isn't crawling yet (and I'm sure it makes it worse that baby girl is all over the place now--but she was really early at crawling and he's 3 weeks younger, too).
We're all always thinking about where our children *should* be developmentally and where they actually are and worrying about whether it's good enough. It sucks, but it's the truth. And it's good to know I'm not the only neurotic one :)
We're all always thinking about where our children *should* be developmentally and where they actually are and worrying about whether it's good enough. It sucks, but it's the truth. And it's good to know I'm not the only neurotic one :)
The Zoo
Friday, March 19th, baby girl had her first trip to the zoo! The husband and I decided to make the investment into the annual membership so we could go whenever we wanted and so we wouldn't feel pressured to see the whole thing each trip, especially knowing baby girl needs to be at home to get good naps in.
I took the day off and my mom came up to join us. We headed out around 10 a.m. It was a little chilly still, so we put her in a jacket and her sun hat. We plopped her into the stroller and started walking. We made our way through many of the different areas of the zoo--the elephants, leopards, flamingos, penguins. We also went into the aquarium, which was the best decision of the day because you could get pretty close to the animals, which meant baby girl could actually see them. She loved them! It was hard to get close to the glass with all the other kids there, but we managed pretty well.
I was a little disappointed that she didn't seem to notice any of the other animals. Her favorite thing to watch was the other kids :) But she had a good time and I know as she gets older she'll become more aware of the animals. We'll keep going back! Hopefully Daddy can go with us next time. My mom wanted us to take her on the carousel, but I wanted to wait until her daddy was with us.
I took the day off and my mom came up to join us. We headed out around 10 a.m. It was a little chilly still, so we put her in a jacket and her sun hat. We plopped her into the stroller and started walking. We made our way through many of the different areas of the zoo--the elephants, leopards, flamingos, penguins. We also went into the aquarium, which was the best decision of the day because you could get pretty close to the animals, which meant baby girl could actually see them. She loved them! It was hard to get close to the glass with all the other kids there, but we managed pretty well.
I was a little disappointed that she didn't seem to notice any of the other animals. Her favorite thing to watch was the other kids :) But she had a good time and I know as she gets older she'll become more aware of the animals. We'll keep going back! Hopefully Daddy can go with us next time. My mom wanted us to take her on the carousel, but I wanted to wait until her daddy was with us.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Another Sleep Update
I'm sure by now you're all thinking, "geez, woman, do you really think we care about how horrible a sleeper your kid is????", but oh well. Just skip this post if you're not interested ;) My blog, my topic. So there.
Baby girl's sleeping has, in general, gotten quite a bit better. Except a couple of nights, which seemed to be anomalies, we've been up one time, she's eaten, then she's gone right back to bed. Friday night was rough because we'd been to the zoo (more on that in a later post) and her only afternoon nap was in the carseat, then my mom stuck around too late and she stayed up too late.
Last night she woke up at 10:00 and was inconsolable. She'll typically calm pretty quickly when we pick her up, but even in her daddy's arms, she was crying pretty hard. Since she kept sticking her thumb in her mouth and, instead of sucking, chewing, we thought, "aha! Maybe it finally is time for teeth!" and gave her some Tylenol to take the edge off. She slept better after that, whether it was a product of the Tylenol or not. She went down fairly easily once it kicked in and slept until 2:30, woke up and ate, then started stirring around 6:40 this morning, just in time for me to nurse her, get dressed, and head out the door.
So we might have gotten over this hump. I'm sure once teeth really *do* start to come in we'll have to go through crappy sleep again. I'm sure once she starts to walk, we'll have another regression. I'm sure there will be many sleep regressions to come, but for now we're just celebrating being in this happy place of only getting up once a night.
And yes, she's still sleeping under that huge quilt. And yes, I still panic about it...but she sleeps and that's what matters, especially since she really is safe. The kid is really mobile and when I'm not feeling super emotional I know in my heart that she's fine. But at nighttime, I do still worry a bit.
Baby girl's sleeping has, in general, gotten quite a bit better. Except a couple of nights, which seemed to be anomalies, we've been up one time, she's eaten, then she's gone right back to bed. Friday night was rough because we'd been to the zoo (more on that in a later post) and her only afternoon nap was in the carseat, then my mom stuck around too late and she stayed up too late.
Last night she woke up at 10:00 and was inconsolable. She'll typically calm pretty quickly when we pick her up, but even in her daddy's arms, she was crying pretty hard. Since she kept sticking her thumb in her mouth and, instead of sucking, chewing, we thought, "aha! Maybe it finally is time for teeth!" and gave her some Tylenol to take the edge off. She slept better after that, whether it was a product of the Tylenol or not. She went down fairly easily once it kicked in and slept until 2:30, woke up and ate, then started stirring around 6:40 this morning, just in time for me to nurse her, get dressed, and head out the door.
So we might have gotten over this hump. I'm sure once teeth really *do* start to come in we'll have to go through crappy sleep again. I'm sure once she starts to walk, we'll have another regression. I'm sure there will be many sleep regressions to come, but for now we're just celebrating being in this happy place of only getting up once a night.
And yes, she's still sleeping under that huge quilt. And yes, I still panic about it...but she sleeps and that's what matters, especially since she really is safe. The kid is really mobile and when I'm not feeling super emotional I know in my heart that she's fine. But at nighttime, I do still worry a bit.
Meal Plan 3/21-3/27
(the hubby is working a TON this week and won't really have any idea what the week will look like until today after work, so I've got a lot of pretty quick meals planned and they'll be fairly interchangeable between days)
Sunday: Easy Cheesy Mexican Skillet (I LOVE this blog for easy meal ideas)
Monday: Leftover Chicken Tomato Gumbo (mentioned here)
Tuesday: Hot dogs and Annie's Mac & Cheese (purchased for $0.49/box at Kroger both last week and this week after a $4 discount for buying 8 participating items)
Wednesday: Chicken Fried Rice
Thursday: Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
Friday: DH's grandma's taco salad recipe
Saturday: Chicken Quesadillas
(the Chicken Fried Rice and Quesadillas will be made easier by pre-cooking a whole chicken (you can do it in the crockpot--I do it in my microwave cooker from Tupperware) and using that chicken in those dishes)
Sunday: Easy Cheesy Mexican Skillet (I LOVE this blog for easy meal ideas)
Monday: Leftover Chicken Tomato Gumbo (mentioned here)
Tuesday: Hot dogs and Annie's Mac & Cheese (purchased for $0.49/box at Kroger both last week and this week after a $4 discount for buying 8 participating items)
Wednesday: Chicken Fried Rice
Thursday: Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
Friday: DH's grandma's taco salad recipe
Saturday: Chicken Quesadillas
(the Chicken Fried Rice and Quesadillas will be made easier by pre-cooking a whole chicken (you can do it in the crockpot--I do it in my microwave cooker from Tupperware) and using that chicken in those dishes)
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Jinx?
I probably shouldn't be posting this, but I feel the need to. A few days ago, I posted that I was able to get baby girl to sleep by putting our queen-sized quilt over her and turning down her white noise machine. I wasn't sure if she was just so exhausted that she fell asleep or if one of those things did the trick.
Well, it's sort of appearing that one of those things might have done the trick. This was Monday night. Well, Tuesday and Wednesday nights we've put her under a quilt, turned her wave machine on low, and she's slept. She's slept really well. She's only getting up once a night. She eats, then she goes back to sleep. Before this, she would wake up and need some soothing to get back to sleep, but now, no soothing necessary. Last night she even seemed pretty restless and we thought she'd be up early, but she slept until 2, when she got up, ate, and slept until 6:20 when DH went in and got her (she was starting to stir...she might have gone back to sleep, but she needed to get up for the day).
A fluke? Still might be. But we're feeling pretty good after two pretty good nights of sleep.
All of this started, though, with a 5 hour nap on Tuesday. FIVE HOURS. She then slept well that night. Yesterday she took normal naps, went down late (wasn't even remotely sleepy until about 7:45), and still slept well. So we're hoping it wasn't b/c of the nap.
She woke up a bit snottier than she had been and coughing a bit more. Hoping it's just a residual cough from her cold that hit its peak on Sunday. Hoping it's not something more. Hoping it's not what's getting her to sleep!!!
Of course I'm a nervous wreck with her under this huge quilt up around her head (no matter where it starts, she wiggles down until it's really close to her mouth), so we check on her before we go to bed (and then if I wake up throughout the night), but I think we'll get over that, especially if it means sleep!
I'll keep you posted. Of course I will...because you know I'll be posting when she sleeps like crap tonight, don't you?
Well, it's sort of appearing that one of those things might have done the trick. This was Monday night. Well, Tuesday and Wednesday nights we've put her under a quilt, turned her wave machine on low, and she's slept. She's slept really well. She's only getting up once a night. She eats, then she goes back to sleep. Before this, she would wake up and need some soothing to get back to sleep, but now, no soothing necessary. Last night she even seemed pretty restless and we thought she'd be up early, but she slept until 2, when she got up, ate, and slept until 6:20 when DH went in and got her (she was starting to stir...she might have gone back to sleep, but she needed to get up for the day).
A fluke? Still might be. But we're feeling pretty good after two pretty good nights of sleep.
All of this started, though, with a 5 hour nap on Tuesday. FIVE HOURS. She then slept well that night. Yesterday she took normal naps, went down late (wasn't even remotely sleepy until about 7:45), and still slept well. So we're hoping it wasn't b/c of the nap.
She woke up a bit snottier than she had been and coughing a bit more. Hoping it's just a residual cough from her cold that hit its peak on Sunday. Hoping it's not something more. Hoping it's not what's getting her to sleep!!!
Of course I'm a nervous wreck with her under this huge quilt up around her head (no matter where it starts, she wiggles down until it's really close to her mouth), so we check on her before we go to bed (and then if I wake up throughout the night), but I think we'll get over that, especially if it means sleep!
I'll keep you posted. Of course I will...because you know I'll be posting when she sleeps like crap tonight, don't you?
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