How do they get so big?

How did she go from this

to this?

My kid is a fish

Today Melanie had her second swim lesson. I always expected her to really enjoy the time in the pool because she loves bath time and she loved being in the pool when we were in Hawaii. But last, week, during her first lesson she was uber fusssy. The lessons are parent-and-me style with 5 child/parent pairs and the instructor. .I think last week, it was a combination of us rushing to get there thus her not getting a complete feeding and there being way too much stimulation. She did okay, but was not the chipper little girl we expected. Today on the other hand, she had the parents watching in the waiting area laughing. She was up to her typical tongue out, shreeking and smiling self. Today we worked on "big arms", kick kick kicking, floating on our backs and safe getting in and out of the pool. Melanie loved it all. She loved it so much, she kept trying to put her face under water. So I did what any mom would do...dunked her! No sweat. She came up with those big beautiful eyes wide open and looking around. Piece of cake.

8 Months!!!

Oh my goodness Melanie...you are the sweetest, cutest thing in the whole world. Your daddy and I love you to pieces. I am not sure where the last 8 months have gone. It is absolutely amazing how you have grown from a teeny tiny (6lb, 6ou) baby, to the big girl you are now. You are everything I ever wanted and more. I love you soooooo much! We have not been to the doctor for about a month and will not be until your 9 month check up so I am not sure on your exact stats... but I do know that you broke the 20 pound mark in early February so I am guessing you are about 21 now.

Some things about you/Melanie at 8 months:

• You are saying mamamama & dadadadad
• You are days away from crawling. Right now you rock back and forth on your hands and knees and are so frsutrated that you are not moving forward
• You are scooting all over the place backwards
• You can sit up on your own
• You are loving your solid food. To date you have had; rice and oatmeal cereal, carrots, peas, green beans, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, broccoli, cauliflower, apples, pears, peaches, bananas, spinach, chicken and you love to gnaw on bread.
• Your pincher grasp is great! You love eating your puffs and can pick them up off the highchair and put them right in your mouth
• You LOVE your dog, Tillee. You just light up when she walks in the room and she sure does make you giggle.
• You still love bath time (as you have from day one)
• You are THE BEST sleeper. You sleep from 8PM - 7:30 AM and then nap from 10-12:30 and again from 4-4:45 ish
• You have pretty much outgrown your 9 month clothes although a few items still fit
• You can pull yourself to a stand from a squat position and really enjoy standing whether it be holding on to the ottoman, or practice walking around the house (by holding mom or dad's fingers)

Here are 2 demonstrating your "crawling"

And one of my recent favorites

First Photo Challenge - Simple Beauty

I have never entered an online contest and I am new to this whole blogging thing but I stumbled on http://thepapermama.blogspot.com/ and her Simple Beauty contest. I immediately thought of one of the newer pics I took of M the other day at the park. She LOVES the swing and I think I caught a great moment.

Sympathy vs. Empathy

There is a difference between sympathy and empathy. Sympathy is when you feel for someone because you can imagine that what they are going through is rough. Empathy however, is when you KNOW how they are feeling because you have been there too. When I was going through my miscarriages, I did not get a lot of empathy from my friends as no one had  been through it before. Everyone was so sad and sorry for what I was going through but no one really understood. No one could say they had been there and help me through the process.I am grateful that my friends did not have to live through that hell but it is a lonely place to be.  Luckily for R and I, after three losses, we were blessed with the most amazing little girl.

I was very vocal about my experiences. I was not ashamed and everyone knows I am not bashful. I did not wear a t-shirt exclaiming I had miscarriages, but I made sure to bring it up if the time was...right. Robbie jumped on the bandwagon as well and now most, if not all of our friends and family know. This has made me an unofficial expert on the topic and now, people who are going through similar experiences are reaching out to me for support. As sad as I am to know people going through fertility issues, I am honored be able to provide them with guidance. Unfortunately, two of our very dear friends are experiencing their own challenges right now. One has had her pregnancy confirmed and everything looks great with the baby however she was given some potentially scary news. My other friend just received confirmation that she will be losing her baby. Although she is only seven weeks along, this is her second pregnancy and second loss. I can empathize at how discouraging that is.  I can only pray for them that their time will come for a happy and healthy pregnancy. I am confident that without experiencing the losses I had, I would not have this sweet baby girl.

Nutella

I forgot about Nutella on my favorite things post. But now that I think of it, it deserves a post all on its own. I discovered it last year and am not sure why it took so long to find out about it. I have heard about the many recipes of ooey gooey yummy things you can make with it... but I am happy when it is just me, a spoon and my Nutella.

Favorite Things

In the past, this blog was like my journal. A place where I would keep track of things, record my thoughts and ideas and just rant. The initial goal was never to have it read by anyone other than me. But in the last several months, I have been so entertained by reading other mommy blogs, that I thought I would venture out to the blogosphere and share. I have been making mental notes of blog trends that I think are neat and "Favorite Things" is one of them. I know it is typically done at the end of the month but this is my blog, and I will break whatever "rules" I want. So here is my first stab at it.

My Favorite Things

1. Burt's Bees Cuticle Cream

I do not get manicures anymore. Between bath time and dishes they are just always a mess. It is a lost cause. Pedicures however... are a must. Anyway, I cannot stand to have dry icky cuticles though, so I give myself a mimi-manicure every time I am in the car. I have a tin of this yummy stuff in the car and rub it on every day. Keeps my nails looking healthy and hydrated.

2. Beco Gemini Carrier


I need to do a post one of these days about baby wearing. I have tried the Ergo, Baby Bjorn and finally, the Beco! It is fantastic. No more aching back and shoulders. This carrier distributes all the weight onto your hips. What a relief. You can wear your baby facing in, out, on your back or on your hip! Quite versatile if you ask me.


3. Redken Shampoo & Conditioner



For the last...well as long as I can remember, I have been using cheap shampoo and conditioner. I would get whatever I found on sale at Target etc. I never really saw any issues with it and my hair always looked fine. Then, about a month ago, I had my first, post baby hair cut and color (yes, I have to get rid of my greys). I usually hate when the stylist pushes product on me but this time she caught me in a vulnerable moment. She told me that this Redken shampoo/conditioner would help my color last longer and make my (ridiculously thick) hair nice and soft. So I took the bait and spent the money on the stuff. I have to say, I love what it does for my hair. It is soft and smells great!

4. Beaba Baby Food Maker

I knew from the start that I wanted to make M's baby food. I had friends that did it and said it was super easy and I was confident that it was the healthiest way to go. Thanks to a very generous friend, I received a Beaba at my baby shower. I was so excited when it came time for solid foods. I got to pull this bad boy out of the closet. It was SOOOO east to use. chop up the veggies. Add water and steam. When the steaming is done, puree. That's it! M loves her yummy food. So far we have made: peas, sweet potatoes, green beans, butternut squash, carrots, and broccoli.

5. Dansko Clogs


I loooooove my Danskos. I have a couple of pair but these reddish ones are my favorite. Now I know they are kind of old fashioned but they are just so darn practical. I am guessing if Stacey or Clinton saw me wearing them on the streets, I would get harassed but I am guessing they have never tried on a pair. They are great for when I am on my feet all day or when I am wearing jeans and do not want to put on tennis shoes but am not willing to "dress up." If you do not have a pair... get some!

Hearing M cry...

NEVER GETS ANY EASIER

I have been working on getting our afternoon nap to be more routine. M always gets a PM nap, but it was never at the same time because typically, we are on the go. Even though I feel like I am creating more opportunity to be stuck in the house...trapped by naps, I really think it is better for her to get good sleep in the afternoon. So after a couple of weeks of monitoring her tired cues, I decided that 4:15 ish made the most sense. This give me about 3 hours of free time to get things done out of the house between naps. (Almost) every day this week, when I have put her down for this 4:!5 nap, she screams and cries. I am soooo not used to that. I leave the room and just stare at the clock trying to decide what time I will go back in there if the crying does not stop. Today, 16 minutes went by. But then, SILENCE! At night when we put M down to bed, there is rarely any crying. If there is, it lasts no more than 5 minutes so 16 minutes feels like an eternity.

I am assuming that once we get this nap to be more consistent, like bed time, there will be less crying.

RIGHT?

Wordless Wednesday

Swing Swing Swing!

Thank goodness its Friday

So it turns out, Melanie has an ear infection. Poor sweet girl. After 3 days of an on again, off again fever and yucky congestion, I finally decided to call the doctor (again). The had us come in for an appointment that afternoon. Melanie and I went alone as Robbie was stuck at work. We saw a different doctor (at a different office). When we got there, M's cheeks were uber-rosy in fact I had multiple people ask me if she had a fever etc. She was no feeling well. Her temp was 101.3 and her heart rate was a little high (although nothing to be worried about). Oh and she weighed 19 lbs and 12 ounces!!!

The doctor came in and did his thing. When he looked into her ears, she said, "Mom, I am not sure I like what I see." I was trying to process what he said when he told me I needed to hold M down as he was going to clean her ears out. M did great, fussing and squirming a bit but nothing near as bad as I thought it was going to be. After he cleaned them out, he looked again and told me that she had an ear infection. The cold she had, caused it. The good news was, that antibiotics would clear it up right away. So off we went to the pharmacy to fill our script.

That was was Wednesday. Today (Friday) M is doing much better. Still lots of snot but not nearly as much and no sign of a fever. I am so relieved. I just do not like seeing my little munchkin sick.

Poor baby...

My poor baby girl is sick. This is the first real "sick" she has ever been. When we were in Hawaii in early December, she had the sniffles and I thought she was sick. But now I know she was not. SHE IS SICK NOW! It started Saturday with a cough. Out of no where, this wet, mucousy cough appeared. At first, we thought it was a result of all the drooling she has been doing lately. Dr. K told us before that sometimes, excess drool can pool up in the throat and make babies cough. But when the coughing turned into congestion and then a fever, we knew it was more than teething. She has been such a trooper. Still smiling and laughing but in between eat happy session, there are snot bubbles, dripping eyes, and that horrible cough. Today after her morning nap, she woke up without a fever and for a while, I thought she was on the mend. But when she was not that interested in her oatmeal and carrots, I knew something was wrong. (The girl loves to eat). So I I took her temp again and it was back up to 100.6. Not crazy-high but high enough to know she was not feeling well.

We spent the afternoon, nursing and playing and wiping snot. I used the snot-sucker a couple of times and she was soooo mad at me. It really defeated the purpose because after I used it, she began to bawl and thus creating more snot. At about 3 PM, my babydoll was so sad. He temp was back up, despite another dose of acetaminophen so I decided to call the doctor. I spoke to someone who took down all the info and said she would page the advice nurse or the doctor on call. About an hour or so later, the RN called. She told me what we already knew and that was we were doing the right thing. If her temp was up again tomorrow, to call them back. She recommended saline spray for M's nose to try to flush everything out and some warm water on a spoon to lubricate her throat since milk is sticky.

M is a trooper. Throughout all of this she has continued to sleep well. She cough in her sleep a ton but some how does not wake herself up...or she just falls right back to sleep immediately.

Throughout all the tears etc. today, I was able to catch a cute photo (on my phone) of M riding her new "pony." I found this new toy as Ross yesterday for $4.99. She really likes it.

Over the hump

I have been feeling kind of icky these last few days. Not sick icky, more like down in the dumps icky. Typically for me, that stems from weight. I gained just about 33 pounds when I was pregnant. I was so proud of myself for not gaining more. I never had one of those crazy pregnancy related cravings that sent my husband to a drive though at 2 AM. (Robbie wants me to point out that he would not have gone for me anyway... nice guy). I ate when I was hungry and although that was more often than normal, I gained less than the max of 35 my OB recommended. I also went to a weekly prenatal yoga class and Robbie, Tillee (the dog) and I walked about 3 miles almost every night.

My recovery after having M was pretty easy. I was out walking again very quickly and in no time, I was back doing my 3 mile neighborhood loop, with M strapped to my chest at least once a day. The weight just fell off. By the time M was 3 months old, I had lost all of the baby weight and but the time she was 4.5 months, I had lost an additional 10 which put me back to my wedding weight! I can give lots of the credit to breastfeeding as it burns somewhere between 500-750 calories/day.

But now, M is almost 7 months and I have plateaued. I should be proud that I have not gained a bunch of it back. Instead however, I am frustrated with myself that I am not taking full advantage of this opportunity. The weather got yucky (cold and rainy) and I took a break from walking. In addition, I seem to be hungry all the time. I know that I am supposed to be eating more because of the nursing but I feel like I need to eat all day long! The two combined are creating the issue. So yesterday, I got my tush back out to the pavement and walked. Today, I did the same. I feel good but know that I need to keep it up in order to see some progress. I figure if I can walk daily and just adjust my eating a tiny bit, I should be able to see some progress.

I will keep you updated.

Garbage in, garbage out

A week or so ago we started Melanie on carrots. Since we do the solids in the afternoon, evidence of what Melanie has eaten does not appear until the next day. So the morning after the first carrot feeding, Robbie sends me an email at work titled, Garbage in, garbage out. He proceeds to tell me that that is an old engineering phrase and that the same applies to carrots... or poop! Lets just say that baby poop certainly changes when solid food is introduced.

Bed Time

Melanie has been sleeping through the night since she was about 10 ish weeks old. At around 4 months old, she regressed for a little bit, waking up once/night but that did not last long. We are truly blessed to have such a great sleeper. I hear from so many moms in my mom's groups that their babies do not sleep, or if they do, they are in a swing, or in bed with them. Not my sweet little angel. She sleeps in her nursery, in her crib and had been doing so since she was 6 weeks. Initially, she slept in her bassinet in our bedroom. SHe was newborn, waking up every couple of hours, so it made it much easier to get her to nurse when she was right here with us. But I was going nuts (literally) worrying about her waking up to Robbie's snoring, Tillee's (the dog) shaking and jumping off and on the bed. (Yes she sleeps with us... don't go there. ) So at 6 weeks old, Robbie initiated moving Melanie to her room. I think it was one of the biggest factors in her successful sleeping regime.

Now, over 5 months later, she sleeps from 8 PM to 7:30/8 AM!!

Here is Melanie's current sleep schedule/routine:

-Wake up at 7:30 AM
I have to wake her up in the morning in order to nurse her before I go to work. Otherwise, she would likely sleep until 8 AM (as she does on the weekends)

- Nap 10 am - 12:30

- Nap somewhere between 3:30-5 for about 45 minutes

- 7:30 PM Bath time, book time

- 8 PM out for the night

Robbie handles the morning naps and he gives her a bottle. She will either fall asleep or get really, really drowsy while eating. He will then put her in the crib and walk out of the room. In the evenings, I nurse her and she almost always falls asleep at the breast. I then gently get up and put her in the crib. She typically does not wake up. But for the last two nights, she has talked and laughed while nursing in the evening. She even unlatches and stops eating which is very strange for her. I was worried that this was a sign that she was not tired or too stimulated to fall asleep. I decided to just get up, and put her in the crib... wide awake. And like magic, she went right to sleep. I am so proud of my baby girl!

Melanie's Stats

July 29, 2010 - 2 weeks old

Head circumference: 35.5 centimeters - 38%tile
Height: 20.75 inches - 68%tile
Weight: 6 lbs 8.5 ounces - 5.7%tile


September 15, 2010 - 2 months old

Head circumference: 39 centimeters - 58%tile
Height: 22.75 inches - 67%tile
Weight: 11 lbs 8 ounces - 69.8%tile


January 18, 2011 - 6 months old

Head circumference: 44.2 centimeters - 90%tile
Height: 27.25 inches - 92%tile
Weight: 18 lbs 9 ounces - 90%tile

Crazy huh?

Thank goodness for mommy friends

Making new friends is hard. Particularly when I am not in school, or at a new job. I am 32 (yes, I admitted it) and cannot even remember the last time I actively tried to make new friends. But now I am in a new stage of my life where priorities have shifted.Conversations are no longer about cute shoes and yummy restaurants, but instead about poopy diapers and sleep routines. I am not trying to say that I do not appreciate my old friends. I love them! But is was important to me to make some new ones too. It was difficult for me to make the decision to attend mommy groups/meetings. I am SOOOO glad I did though. I have met the most wonderful woman and the most adorable friends for Melanie.

Today, I met up with 2 of them for a walk and coffee. It was so nice to talk freely about all of the things that occupy my mind these days and have people who genuinely and empathize. My mommy was the queen of making friends. She would be very proud of me.

Ouch! No biting

Melanie has 2 teeth. They are super cute and she is the first of her "friends" to have them. BUT, she has decided to use them on me...while nursing. OUCH! I am sure one of the reasons why many mommies stop nursing around 6 months is because that is when babies start to get teeth. Well I am determined to get through this. I have read many articles on strategies to nip the biting in the bud and tried a few. They seemed to work for a few day but the biting is back! The biting seems to come at the end of our nursing sessions so perhaps it is when the flow has lessened. She is biting to tell me she is ready to switch sides? That she is still hungry? All that I know for sure is that it hurts. But I will not quit.

6 Months... in pictures

The hard part about catching up on 6 months of blogging is that there is just too much to say. So instead, here are some of my favorite pictures that we have take of our munchkin over the last 6 months...