Dear Life,
Last night I was reading through old blog posts about my sweet Emberly at 6-months to compare what was going on in her little world to what Piper is doing these days. I'm not sure why, but it is so interesting to me to remember what was important in our world and how different yet similar my sweet girls are.
Anywho - as I was reading, I was just chuckling to myself at what a spazzy-mama I was with Emberly. I was reading about how I was just starting to let Emberly cry it out at nap time and attempting to convince her to nap in her own crib all through the day. And it just made me think... was Emberly really that terrible of a napper? Or was I that spazzy of a parent? I'm totally going with choice number two. I held Em through naps just because the sweet sleeping baby thing was awesome. She didn't have to learn to sleep on her own until I hit a place of desperation that I couldn't do that anymore. And then once that happened, I freaked out that she would make even a bit of a cry when I tried to lay her down. Piper hasn't had that luxury. She's slept in her crib by herself from day one, naps and all. And it is awesome to not need to transition now. And when she fusses at night, unless she is really wailing, I let her fuss. And she goes back to sleep on her own. I think if Em made even a tiny little squeak at night I fed her. Without fail. Until she was probably 8 or 9 months old. What was I thinking??? I was totally missing out on awesome sleep. And not teaching her how to self-soothe and get back to sleep on her own.
I don't feel the need to analyze every night of sleep anymore. Piper has rough nights and needs me some times more than others. But so does Emberly. And I won't ever know what it is that makes them need that more sometimes than others. Teeth? Bad dream? Tummy ache? Stuffy nose? Too much stimulation? Held too much? Held too little? Who KNOWS!
And right now? I'm listening to Piper, who just woke up, babble away in her room, happy as can be. I think I would have instantly stopped what I was doing and dashed in there when E woke up.
Oh I'm funny. And oh-so-glad I only have to be a first time mom once.
Saturday, January 4, 2014
We made it...
Dear Life,
I think the illness is done. Praise. The. Lord.
Now we can concentrate on more important things. Like playing with toys... learning the ABCs... rolling over... sharing... all that jazz.
Em has been super into building toys lately... like legos, blocks, a tool set, play-doh, etc. She also loves all things crafty like coloring and painting. Every other sentence out of her mouth is "wanna sit by me?" and she bounces back and forth between wanting to do everything "all. my. self." and wanting me to do it all for her. The things she can do successfully by herself she wants me to do, and the things that she still can't do very well she wants to do "all. my. self." Sigh. Patience mama, patience.
She has also been going through a phase of not wanting to leave the house. At all. She says "just want to stay hoooooooome!" She has been crying when we leave her at River City Kids (Sunday school) or clinging to my leg when we go places she thinks she might be staying alone. It is super abnormal for her... my miss social. I have no idea where it started or why... but I'm hoping it won't last. It is painful for me. Thankfully other than church and Exhale, there aren't many times that I would need to leave her anywhere. The love of being a stay-at-home mama.
Piper has been rolling around quite a bit. She wants to see all the action (aka whatever Emberly is doing), so she cranes her head all over and often rolls over accidentally. She laughs and smiles and has turned into such a chill little sweetheart. She is cuddly and sweet and I just truly can't remember what life was like before two. She babbles constantly and I hear lots of "da-da-da" and "ba-ba-ba" and other consonants. And she sleeps like a champ. Oh does she sleep like a champ. 3 naps a day and one big long sleep through the night. Go little P!
Life is never dull. I am often tired, but it's the kind of tired where you crawl into bed and fall asleep smiling about the little interactions of the day. Well... not always. But lots of the time. Sometimes I fall asleep out of pure exhaustion. And let's be honest, there are days that I just want to take a 3 week tropical vacation. By myself. But overall, I feel like I can see through the haze and know that this won't last. And every single minute is so important.
Like this moment, where, tired as I am, I needed to document a moment of our lives so that I could remember later.
I think the illness is done. Praise. The. Lord.
Now we can concentrate on more important things. Like playing with toys... learning the ABCs... rolling over... sharing... all that jazz.
Em has been super into building toys lately... like legos, blocks, a tool set, play-doh, etc. She also loves all things crafty like coloring and painting. Every other sentence out of her mouth is "wanna sit by me?" and she bounces back and forth between wanting to do everything "all. my. self." and wanting me to do it all for her. The things she can do successfully by herself she wants me to do, and the things that she still can't do very well she wants to do "all. my. self." Sigh. Patience mama, patience.
She has also been going through a phase of not wanting to leave the house. At all. She says "just want to stay hoooooooome!" She has been crying when we leave her at River City Kids (Sunday school) or clinging to my leg when we go places she thinks she might be staying alone. It is super abnormal for her... my miss social. I have no idea where it started or why... but I'm hoping it won't last. It is painful for me. Thankfully other than church and Exhale, there aren't many times that I would need to leave her anywhere. The love of being a stay-at-home mama.
Piper has been rolling around quite a bit. She wants to see all the action (aka whatever Emberly is doing), so she cranes her head all over and often rolls over accidentally. She laughs and smiles and has turned into such a chill little sweetheart. She is cuddly and sweet and I just truly can't remember what life was like before two. She babbles constantly and I hear lots of "da-da-da" and "ba-ba-ba" and other consonants. And she sleeps like a champ. Oh does she sleep like a champ. 3 naps a day and one big long sleep through the night. Go little P!
Life is never dull. I am often tired, but it's the kind of tired where you crawl into bed and fall asleep smiling about the little interactions of the day. Well... not always. But lots of the time. Sometimes I fall asleep out of pure exhaustion. And let's be honest, there are days that I just want to take a 3 week tropical vacation. By myself. But overall, I feel like I can see through the haze and know that this won't last. And every single minute is so important.
Like this moment, where, tired as I am, I needed to document a moment of our lives so that I could remember later.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Sickness
Dear Life,
The time between Thanksgiving and New Years was marked with a ridiculous amount of sickness in our family. All four of us got the stomach flu early in the morning the Sunday after Thanksgiving before our family had all even left. and it lasted. and lasted. and lasted for the girls. And finally, after several trips to the doctor, many episodes of puking, and over a month of diarrhea for Piper, it ended. Three days ago.
And now, just moments ago, as I was crawling into bed and Jordan was walking out the door to work, Emberly started puking again. Literally hours after our family left again. And I'm maybe panicking a little, and praying this is not starting all over again. Cuz I'm just not sure I can do it again.
Now I'm rocking an upset bambino, hoping she isn't sick too. And praying that this is some kind of fluke. Praying that sleep will still come tonight. And praying any hint of sickness will leave us alone.
Sigh.
The time between Thanksgiving and New Years was marked with a ridiculous amount of sickness in our family. All four of us got the stomach flu early in the morning the Sunday after Thanksgiving before our family had all even left. and it lasted. and lasted. and lasted for the girls. And finally, after several trips to the doctor, many episodes of puking, and over a month of diarrhea for Piper, it ended. Three days ago.
And now, just moments ago, as I was crawling into bed and Jordan was walking out the door to work, Emberly started puking again. Literally hours after our family left again. And I'm maybe panicking a little, and praying this is not starting all over again. Cuz I'm just not sure I can do it again.
Now I'm rocking an upset bambino, hoping she isn't sick too. And praying that this is some kind of fluke. Praying that sleep will still come tonight. And praying any hint of sickness will leave us alone.
Sigh.
Friday, November 29, 2013
Raspberries
I'm sitting in Piper's rocking chair in the dark, listening to her blow raspberries and lull herself to sleep, making the sweetest little noises. And all I can think about is how truly thankful I am for little baby noises and toes and pigtails and giggles and teasing and rolling over and jumping up and down and all of the joy I have from two very sweet, thriving, growing, affectionate, passionate, vocal, cuddly girls.
4 Months
I'm struck again by how fast it goes. How even faster time has seemed to pass with Piper than it did when Emberly was small. Maybe because there are two and each day feels like a blur at the end. Or maybe because it's a little easier this time simply because I have a better idea of what to expect.
Whatever it is, I'd like to capture it in a little box. The sweet baby smell, fresh out of the bath, the little fingers floating up in the air to grab a dangling toy, the first time she rolled over (today!), the giggles and smiles, learning to blow raspberries and make new sweet baby coos, sitting in the bumbo and putting everything in her mouth.
She is my Piper and a new heart has grown for her. I'm deeply in love with this sweet babe and it makes me think all the more of our Father's love lavished on us.
This picture is old now... I had every intention of capturing 4 months in words with a picture too, and the words just never quite came.
Sweet Baby P is 14 lbs and 14 oz, 14.5 inches as of Monday. She is squarely in the 50th percentile for both height and weight. She fits perfectly in 3 month clothing, and may soon be moving up. She sleeps 10 or so hours through the night without waking most of the time, but occasionally nurses once in the early morning. She is precious and smiley and so much more content than her early newborn days. I am entirely smitten.
Whatever it is, I'd like to capture it in a little box. The sweet baby smell, fresh out of the bath, the little fingers floating up in the air to grab a dangling toy, the first time she rolled over (today!), the giggles and smiles, learning to blow raspberries and make new sweet baby coos, sitting in the bumbo and putting everything in her mouth.
She is my Piper and a new heart has grown for her. I'm deeply in love with this sweet babe and it makes me think all the more of our Father's love lavished on us.
This picture is old now... I had every intention of capturing 4 months in words with a picture too, and the words just never quite came.
Sweet Baby P is 14 lbs and 14 oz, 14.5 inches as of Monday. She is squarely in the 50th percentile for both height and weight. She fits perfectly in 3 month clothing, and may soon be moving up. She sleeps 10 or so hours through the night without waking most of the time, but occasionally nurses once in the early morning. She is precious and smiley and so much more content than her early newborn days. I am entirely smitten.
Friday, November 22, 2013
Fun Stuff
E had a sleepover with G&G Johnson last night. First one ever. She did awesome, had a blast, and came home and took a 3 hour nap. :)
Jordan and I got to go out to dinner, do some Christmas shopping, and even make a post-bedtime run to Walmart. Aren't we exciting? Piper even let us sleep until 9am. Shazam!
And guess what else. E had potty success on the potty chair twice. I hope we are on to something bigger and better than spending dinero on diapers for Miss E!
And guess what else. Piper has discovered how to scream. Just for fun. Cuz there is no other noise in our house ever.
Oh, and I found spit up in the hood of my sweatshirt today.
And J and I bought matching footie PJs for the whole fam last night just because we could. Here is a preview...
Our lives are awesome.
Jordan and I got to go out to dinner, do some Christmas shopping, and even make a post-bedtime run to Walmart. Aren't we exciting? Piper even let us sleep until 9am. Shazam!
And guess what else. E had potty success on the potty chair twice. I hope we are on to something bigger and better than spending dinero on diapers for Miss E!
And guess what else. Piper has discovered how to scream. Just for fun. Cuz there is no other noise in our house ever.
Oh, and I found spit up in the hood of my sweatshirt today.
And J and I bought matching footie PJs for the whole fam last night just because we could. Here is a preview...
Our lives are awesome.
Monday, November 18, 2013
Moms of kids with allergies...
Dear Moms of kids with allergies...
OK, I'll be honest... every time someone told me that their child had a sensitivity to certain foods the mom ate while breastfeeding, I secretly thought they were maybe slightly over analytical and had invented this in their brain.
And then Piper was born. And every time I eat dairy she literally suffers for days. I drank a half a glass of milk the other day because I was convinced that this was all in my head... and Piper was a fountain of spit up for over a day. And then not thinking about the fact that ice cream is in fact dairy, ate a rather large bowl, and Piper spit up for over two days. So... I'm not just kind of sure. I'm really sure.
So I can cut out dairy, sure. No problem. {Actually... I want ice cream and milk and cheese and yogurt in a way that I've never wanted them before in my life...}
But that's not the problem. The problem is that I don't know where to go from here. When E was about 4 months old we started giving her some baby food and rice cereal. And instead of pumping I used formula for the maybe 2 times a month that I left Piper with someone else.
But from what Google tells me, babies with food sensitivities while breastfeeding are more likely to develop allergies to those foods and others. So does this mean that I should wait to introduce any baby food? And what about formula? Does this mean that if I give her a cow milk based formula she is more likely to be dairy intolerant for the rest of her life? I am confused. Please, if you have experience in this area... help a mama out. :)
The end.
OK, I'll be honest... every time someone told me that their child had a sensitivity to certain foods the mom ate while breastfeeding, I secretly thought they were maybe slightly over analytical and had invented this in their brain.
And then Piper was born. And every time I eat dairy she literally suffers for days. I drank a half a glass of milk the other day because I was convinced that this was all in my head... and Piper was a fountain of spit up for over a day. And then not thinking about the fact that ice cream is in fact dairy, ate a rather large bowl, and Piper spit up for over two days. So... I'm not just kind of sure. I'm really sure.
So I can cut out dairy, sure. No problem. {Actually... I want ice cream and milk and cheese and yogurt in a way that I've never wanted them before in my life...}
But that's not the problem. The problem is that I don't know where to go from here. When E was about 4 months old we started giving her some baby food and rice cereal. And instead of pumping I used formula for the maybe 2 times a month that I left Piper with someone else.
But from what Google tells me, babies with food sensitivities while breastfeeding are more likely to develop allergies to those foods and others. So does this mean that I should wait to introduce any baby food? And what about formula? Does this mean that if I give her a cow milk based formula she is more likely to be dairy intolerant for the rest of her life? I am confused. Please, if you have experience in this area... help a mama out. :)
The end.
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