20 Things That Change

Found this on a parenting website and loved it…thought I would share for any momma’s who still read my rarely updated blog :)

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Everyone warns you that having a baby will change your life. Sure, you'll have less money (and sleep), and a lot more responsibility. But when the centre of your universe shifts to your baby, there's much to celebrate too.

You discover an inner strength you never realized you had.

You accept that the last 15 pregnancy pounds you can't seem to shift are absolutely worth it.

You don't need a clock any more - your baby now sets your daily schedule.

You respect and love your own parents in a new way.

Any pain your baby suffers feels much worse than your own.

You don't mind going to bed at 9pm on a Friday night.

Your heart breaks much more easily.

You discover how much there is to say about one little baby tooth.

You look at your baby in the mirror instead of yourself.

You're no longer disgusted by babies' bodily functions - in fact, you're fascinated by them (hooray, a poo!).

The sacrifices you thought you'd made to have a baby no longer seem that big a deal.

You respect your body ... finally.

You realize that a baby's blankie has magical powers!

You give parents with a screaming baby an "I-know-the-feeling" look, instead of a "Can't-they-shut-him-up?" one.

You make time for one more baby hug and kiss, even if it means you'll be late.

You realize that it's possible to love a complete stranger.

You learn that taking a shower is a luxury, never mind a trip to the hair salon.

You finally get to speak to the shy neighbour in your street, because you've got a baby in your arms.

You find that things that once seemed important are now meaningless.

Every day is a surprise.

365 Project: Week 2 January

• 1/8: Happy :)
• 1/9: Pretty rings
• 1/10: Swinging!
• 1/11: We are in serious trouble if something ever happens to this spoon

• 1/12: Cuddly kitties
• 1/13: Serious face

• 1/14: Close Up

Losing It…again!

I’m about 5 pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight, however, my weight shifted around so much that clothes just don’t fit right.  I’d like to get into better shape before I do a shopping spree.  This time I will start with small goals for each week that will translate into a healthier living style.  Here’s the weeks and goals I came up with:

Week 1 – starting 1/7:

• Drink 32oz of water each day.  (Right now I’m lucky if I drink one glass of water – I drink milk, coffee, seltzer, and tea during the day but hardly any plain water).
• Do not eat anything after 9pm.
• Start using LoseIt.com again to track calories and exercise.

Week 2 – starting 1/14:

• Start 30 Day Shred video and do at least 3 days a week. (I bought this months ago and did it for 4 days straight before I stopped.  It’s a killer 20 minute workout that I should do while Toby is happy in his jumper.  Technically I should do 30 days straight for max results but I will aim for 3 days a week now.)
• Keep up with drinking 320z of water each day, tracking on LoseIt.com,  and not eating anything after 9pm.

Week 3 – starting 1/21:

• Increase water intake to 40oz each day.
• Eat 2 servings of fruit each day. 
• Keep up with doing Shred video 3x per week, tracking on LoseIt.com, and not eating anything after 9pm.

Week 4 – starting 1/28:

• Eat 1 serving of veggies each day.
• Keep up with drinking 400z of water each day, doing Shred video 3x per week, eating 2 servings of fruit each day, tracking on LoseIt.com, and not eating anything after 9pm.

This takes me to the end of the month so I will re-evaluate in early February to see what new goals I can add in or if I wasn’t being realistic with something.  Hopefully this will keep me on track :)

Source: addicted2success.com via Emily on Pinterest

 

 

New Year Wishes

Starting a new tradition of creating New Year’s cards…figured it’s nice to receive a little something after the holidays are over! 

Happy New Year from our family to yours!

Thankful Thursday

I’ve seen some Facebook friends post things they are thankful for each day during November, as this time can be considered a month of thanks.  I really liked the idea and while I don’t think I can keep up with doing it every day on the blog, I think I’ll try to at least post on Thursdays and maybe continue it even when November is over.

This past week, I am thankful for…

• our house being warm and safe and for having power throughout Hurricane Sandy and the other snowstorm yesterday.  I can’t imagine what those people in the states hit worst are going through right now. 
• dark chocolate almond milk.  I don’t think I’d be able to swallow my vitamins without a big glass of it at night.
• coffee…lots and lots of coffee
• yoga pants.  The weather this past week has made me so unmotivated to get dressed in jeans.
• my camera.  We have taken some really cute photos of Toby lately.
• my sister being a great and helpful aunt (especially when I’m running late)
• and, as always, for these two guys in my life:

One Year Ago

October 11th has been a special day for the past four years, as it’s the anniversary of Hubby asking me to marry him.  Sure, most people don’t celebrate this kind of anniversary, but I still remember the date and usually remind him of it, too ;) .  But now October 11th has even more meaning as it also marks the day that I found out I was pregnant with Toby.

I remember feeling anxious after I saw the positive sign pop up on the pregnancy test right away (I’m pretty sure I was thinking “holy crap”) and then once it sunk in a little, I was beyond excited.  I knew my life would change forever in June 2012 but I really had no idea how it would change for the better. 

Toby could smile just once a day and it would make up for a sleepless night.  Luckily he gives tons of smiles every day and we’ve had few sleepless nights since he’s been born.  Watching him grow and reach new milestones is amazing and I’m thankful every day that I get to see him develop so quickly.  At the end of the day I’m exhausted, but it’s a good tired…I feel much more accomplished staying home with him than I ever did at work.  And I’m always grateful that I can raise my baby with an amazing partner…we make a good team, Hubby. 

Simply put, life is good.  :)  And time is going by way too fast!

Flashback to October 11th, last year.

Maine 2012 – First Family Vacation

Things have been quiet around here since we just got back from our first family vacation!  We rented a house in York Beach, Maine last summer for a week in late August and wanted to continue the tradition for this summer.  We had decent weather (there were a couple rainy and cloudy days that I think were remnants of Hurricane Isaac), but at least it wasn’t overly hot since our rental house didn’t have air conditioners.  We spent a lot more time at the house this summer since Toby was with us, but we were able to get out each day and do something new.  Both sets of grandparents were able to come up so we had extra sets of hands to help out, which was nice :)  Let’s just say I quickly realized that vacationing with a kid is not really a “vacation” anymore. 

Getting ready for this trip was exhausting – just trying to remember all the stuff Toby would need was crazy!  I basically went through what we do the entire day, starting with his morning routine, and made a list of things we needed to bring.  I’ll do a separate post with my lists I updated from last summer.  My organization paid off, though, since we didn’t forget anything and we adjusted pretty well in the rental house.  I was also really anxious about wondering how I would feed Toby the whole week.  I think people forget that even if I’m bottle feeding him, I still have to pump to keep my supply up (or to keep me from getting too engorged).  That means I had to make sure we came back to the house after 4 hours or so, or I would bring my pump with us and plan to pump in the car.  I managed to keep up my supply, but it will be much easier next summer when he’s drinking regular milk all the time! 

Toby did really well the whole week – he was so good during the day and was fussy only a couple evenings.   He played a lot and also really started interacting with us more this past week.  He was “talking” (cooing) and smiling all the time.  If you continue talking to him, he loves making noises back at you.  He also hit some milestones this past week, which was exciting.  He started grabbing his toys on his activity mat and infant seat and is oh so close to rolling over.  He pulls his legs up all the way to his chest and moves to one side, but just can’t roll over completely yet.  He also started sticking his tongue out ALL the time and is always trying to lick his onesie or shirt.  He sucks on his fist a lot, too, but he was doing that before we got to Maine. 

I was worried he wouldn’t sleep well in the pack n’ play, but he adjusted quickly.  The first couple nights he woke up a couple hours earlier than he normally does at 1AM to eat, and he got up again 4 hours later at 5ish instead of normally getting up around 7ish.  The third and fourth nights he managed to stay asleep until 2:30ish, so that wasn’t so bad.  And then one night he slept from 8:45PM – 4:15AM, which I think is the longest stretch he’s ever done.  Hubby and I woke up at 3:30AM that night wondering if he was okay because we hadn’t heard him cry yet!  He did really well with naps in the pack n’ play, too – he averaged about 45 minutes each time we put him down.  The only thing that worried me was that he moved like crazy in it, even with the swaddle done tightly.  I would lay him the long way on the mattress and sometimes when I came back to get him when he woke up, he turned himself 90 degrees so he was laying the short way.  And one time he managed to scoot all the way to side of the crib, smooshing his face against it, so I went in to move him and that woke him up completely from his nap.  Even though the side of the pack n’ play is mesh, I still felt like I needed to move him.  All in all, it went much better than I anticipated!

Enough talk, here’s some pictures to recap our week:

We walked down to the beach a couple times and then did an actual beach day towards the end of the week.  We visited the Nubble Lighthouse (I want to do a family picture there each year now), went to the zoo in York for the first time, took a road trip up to Freeport to shop at L.L. Bean and other stores, and of course had to hit up the Kittery Outlets to purchase some fall and winter clothes for Toby.  We also had lots of ice cream from Brown’s and the Scoop Deck in Wells.  Time to start counting calories for real again if I want to fit into my jeans before it gets cool out!

Toby: 2 Months!

What happened to the snuggly little newborn who loved cuddling on our chests, and was perfectly content with just snoozing all the time???  He’s grown into a wide-eyed, curious little guy who is constantly wanting to move and squirm ALL the time.  Month two has flown by so fast – the biggest changes have been seeing Toby become more aware of his surroundings.  He recognizes both of our voices and if he hears someone new, he will search the room with his eyes trying to find the person attached to the voice.  He loves being outside, feeling the breeze and warm summer air.  He prefers for music or some kind of noise to always be on.  The louder a room is, the easier it is for him to fall asleep – and to stay asleep for longer.  He is definitely growing now.  I keep looking at his fingers and his nails and am amazed at how bigger they seem.  He’s also filling out clothes at a much faster pace.  He’s still longer than wider, but I can tell he’s getting chunky.  He keeps getting lint and other stuff stuck in his rolls, which has made baths a necessity :)

I have to admit, I miss the little new baby cuddles and just how tiny he was!  He will still fall asleep in my arms, but it’s just not the same as it was when we first took him home.  I never thought I would say I’d miss the first few weeks since they were tough, but I do!  However, I’m really excited for month 3, though, since he’s so much more into playing and interacting with us now.

Weight: His doctor is on vacation until next week, so his 2 month appt isn’t until the 28th.  Maybe he’ll be close to 10 pounds by then?

Height: Still long and lean – some of his 0-3 clothes are pulling already at the bottom of his diaper bulge and getting short.

Medical Issues: Baby acne is finally going away!  Still dealing with some eczema but it doesn’t seem to itch or bother him.  Not an issue, but I accidently made him bleed when cutting one of his nails tonight…oh I feel so awful right now :(

Sleep: Pretty good!  He usually falls asleep on his own if we put him in the crib drowsy and not completely asleep.  Same routine of being in the crib by 9:30 at the latest, sleeping until 2 or 3, eating, then back to sleep until 6:30 or 7.    Now I’m trying to feed him again quickly and put him back in the crib to see if he’ll sleep for another hour or so before we actually start getting ready for the day.  Some days it works, some days it doesn’t :)  Naps are going well, too – he’s finally starting to sleep longer than just 3o minutes at a time, though he still isn’t on a set schedule yet.  He will fall asleep anywhere – the crib, pack n’ play, swing or car.

Clothes/Diapers Sizes: 0-3 stuff finally all fit.  Still 1 for diapers.

Diet: Pretty proud that we’ve made it two months with breastfeeding!  We’ve had some frustrating moments but we’ve gotten through it.  Sessions last about 20-30 minutes and he’s even getting good at latching on himself without help.  When eating from a bottle, he takes close to 4 ounces (I usually put 3.75 in).

Baby Gear Love: Nothing really new – he still loves his activity mat, the swing, the Ergo, and now he’s getting more comfortable with his high chair (it reclines back for an infant) so we’ve been able to eat dinner together at the table. 

Milestones/Firsts: Daddy taught him how to “stand” and now he wants to do it ALLLL the time.  He loves holding his legs as straight as possible and putting all his weight on them.  Even while laying down, which has made diaper changes and putting him into footed pj’s very difficult.  He also grabbed onto the leg of one of his toys by himself but I’ve only seem him do that once. 

Likes: Baths.  Being outside.  Loud noise and listening to people talking.  Punching and swatting toys.  Looking up at the mobiles in his crib and pack n’ play.

Dislikes: Tummy time.  Sigh – we were trying to work up past 5 minutes each day but as soon as I put him on his belly, he fusses immediately.  Also not a fan of being in the car seat for an extended period of time.  I have a feeling we will be using the Jeep stroller instead of the seat caddy much more in the next few months.

Postpartum – Mommy: Last ten pounds are coming off very, very slowly.  I’ve heard that you burn more fat calories in the 3rd-6th months of breastfeeding…wondering if that’s actually true and maybe I’ll finally drop the pounds then?  I did try on a pair of my jeans that I was wearing right before I got pregnant when I was at my lowest weight ever, and I can zip them up but I’d have a serious muffin top and my thighs were sucked in.  Thank God I saved a few “fat” pairs :) 

Love these half smiles.  Makes my heart happy :)

New Career

I’m definitely still in the process of adjusting to being home full-time, and I think I’ve had to come to terms with it being a “career change”.  I never wanted to think of being a stay-at-home mom as a job, but since Toby’s been born, I’ve realized it really is like being employed since it’s a lot of work.  A ton of work.  I don’t know how working moms do it – I have a hard enough time fitting everything into a day and I don’t go out of the house for 8-10 hours and have a commute to deal with.  The biggest adjustment I’ve had to make is that being a parent is a 24/7 job.  You don’t get a “break” unless you work something out with your significant other or get a baby-sitter, and even then, you have to think “did I leave enough bottles?, “will he be easy to put down for a nap?”, etc.  It’s no joke when people tell you being a parent is the hardest job you’ll ever have.  But I’ve learned very quickly it is the most worthwhile.  Toby and I are still working on a schedule, but each day gets a little easier.

We’ve started to play more the past couple weeks so instead of him napping all the time, I’ve encouraged him to stay up more during the day.  We do a lot of this:

And this:

And we’re practicing a lot more smiles, too:

 

If you asked me a month ago if I was happy being home, my answer would not have been that positive.  The first six weeks with a newborn are rough, but you eventually get through them.  Then the little person you gave birth to actually starts to interact with you more, making those sleepless nights and days of refusing to take naps more bearable.  Now I’m grateful every day I get to stay home with this little guy instead of being holed up in an office.  Sure, I miss the adult interaction and the extra money but seeing these smiles and hearing the little coos more than makes up for it :)

First Day Home

Toby,

Today was the first day that Daddy went back to work!  Mommy was a little nervous being by herself but you did awesome!  We’re not sure if you are just spoiling us early, but you are a pretty easy baby.

Today we started with a couple early AM feedings at 2:45 and 6:00 and luckily you let Mommy sleep for 2 hours in between.  After you were done around 6:45, Mommy rocked you back to sleep so she could have a quick bowl of cereal.   Daddy gave you a pacifier when he left for work because you were a little fussy but then you fell back asleep for good so we slept again until 9:00.  You have no problem sleeping in your crib now as long as we swaddle your arms good.   Mommy woke up first and watched you sleep on the video monitor until you started moving around.

After the morning feeding, we changed you into a cute blue and white striped onesie and then hung out in Mommy and Daddy’s room for a bit and watched some TV.  Mommy was debating about putting you down in your crib real quick to take a shower, but decided to try out the rocker chair instead.  You haven’t been a fan of the chair the previous two times we tried it but this time you did great!  Mommy was able to take a normal shower (didn’t have to rush!) while you hung out in the chair in the bathroom, and you didn’t start fussing until after she brushed her teeth.

You started getting hungry again around 11:30 so we nursed and then you fell asleep right afterwards in your crib.  Mommy should have napped, but she decided to clean out the rest of her hospital bag that she never unpacked and organize some things in her room.  You slept until 2:30 and then wanted to eat again so Mommy made herself a quick lunch to eat while you were nursing…Mommy is going to start pumping this week because these constant feedings are tiring for everyone!

Later in the afternoon, we took out your activity mat to do a little tummy time and you didn’t fuss for at least a few minutes.  You already have pretty good strength lifting your head!  Maggie watched us but kept a safe distance as she’s still unsure about you.  After tummy time, Mommy propped you up in the Boppy on the floor so she could test out the new lens for the camera that Grandpa bought.  Mommy could take a million pictures of you, you are just too cute :)

You started fussing and Mommy realized you had a HUGE dirty diaper.  You haven’t been going on a regular basis (though you have plenty of wet diapers), so this one may have been an explosion if you were wearing a newborn diaper.  Luckily it wasn’t too bad.  We switched you into 1’s yesterday because of the red marks around your thighs – we thought the newborns were getting too tight already!  Mommy’s curious to see what you weigh tomorrow at your appointment.

We went downstairs and hung out in the living room for a bit and then you started to fall asleep on Mommy’s chest so she watched TV for awhile.  You woke back up around 5:00 to eat again while Mommy watched a crazy dramatic Lifetime movie.  Daddy got home right before 6:00 and took you right away once you were done eating – he missed you :)  Overall we had a great day; you only fussed a couple times and Mommy was able to calm you down almost right away.  You love rocking in the nursery glider - it helps you fall asleep very fast. 

Hopefully later this week the weather is nicer out so we can go out for a few walks, but I think we kept ourselves busy today considering we were stuck inside!

Love, Mommy

Maternity Photos

Here’s more of our maternity photos that were  taken a few weeks ago in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.  I was 34 1/2 weeks and was pretty happy I decided to wait until this late on in my third trimester to get them taken.  My bump was definitely big enough :)  While I can totally see my weight gain in my arms and face, I’m still loving the majority of them – I think I like them even better than our engagement photos!  I know some people think maternity photos are unnecessary, but I think it’s totally worth having some done – even if it’s just a friend who takes a few.  I mean if you think about it, you’re only preggo for a very short time in your life (unless you’re the Duggar mom) – might as well document it!

All photos are courtesy of Clare Norton Photography.  Clare is amazing if you are in the Portland, Maine area – highly recommend her and can’t say enough good things about working with her from our engagement and wedding photos and now these.  I wish she was close enough so we could do newborn ones, too.   These are some of my favorites…she took 80 of them!

My outfit details…blue maxi dress is from Target (non-maternity, purchased online in my regular size).  Other outfit is a maternity top from Target (bought in-store), shrug from Old Navy and maternity jeans from Kohl’s.