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Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Almost Over.

The last 11 weeks have flown by...I can't believe I had Cade at the beginning of February, and it's late April now. I was able to arrange for 13 weeks off work to stay home with him, so I'll be returning to work 2 weeks from today.
It's a little bittersweet actually.
I feel guilty admitting it, but I'm looking forward to 3 days a week in the "real world." Being a nurse in a hospital allows me to work 3 days a week, and I self-schedule so I pick my shifts. I guess that's why I'm not too sad about returning. I'm definitely not sad about making money again! The hardest part will be when it's time for holidays, since I'm required to work so many between Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Year's. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. I've got my eyes open for something with "office" hours as well.
It helps that I know Cade will be in good hands through the summer. Between my mom and Cody's mom, we won't have to arrange for childcare until probably the end of August. I'd like for Cade to stay out of an actual "daycare" until he's at least moving around good on his own. Plus most daycare centers now don't offer part-time rates and since I work some weekend shifts, there are some weeks where I only need childcare one day. I've got names of a couple of people who watch kids in their home, so I'll begin my search with them. Hopefully we find someone that's a good fit!
In other news :) 
Cade seems to be more consistent with his sleep, now sleeping mostly 6-7 hour stretches.
Thank goodness.
He also seems to be less fussy in the evenings, so hopefully he's outgrowing that phase.
We'll be spending the next two weeks soaking up our time together and getting outside as much as possible since it makes him so happy (truly his father's child).
We're also looking forward to 3 month pictures next week with the fabulous Nicole Gagliano. Hopefully the weather (and Cade) will play nice for us!

Have a good rest of the week!

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Trick Baby

Trick baby is what Cody sometimes calls Cade.
When he was a tiny newborn (and wasn't wearing my arms out carrying him around) he was so small we laid him horizontally in his pack and play to sleep.  He wasn't long enough (18 inches) to be anywhere near reaching one side or the other. Sometime around 2-3 weeks old, Cade started to rotate in his sleep. The first time he did it, I woke Cody up to show him. He grumbled something I couldn't understand and when I asked him what he said, he replied "Trick baby" and fell back asleep. Cade would shimmy somehow and wind up a complete 180 degrees from how we laid him down. He also moved so much that he would roll completely on his side. Sometimes his face was close to the mattress. At that point we started swaddling with his arms out to stop himself from rolling over. But he would still "shimmy" around until he was sideways.
When we moved Cade into his crib, he had more room to move. He outgrew the swaddle blankets I had so I decided to try Sleep Sacks until I could buy new ones. It's too difficult to keep him swaddled in a regular blanket because he moves too much. He's bust out of that in a heartbeat. He was still rotating around in his crib, so he starts laying longways and ends up moving sideways. So...if you're looking down into his crib, his head is at 9:00 when we lay him down and through the night he winds up with his head at 12:00. Make sense?
There isn't really a problem here, except he's still sleeping mostly 3-5 hours at a time. That one night of solid sleep was another trick he pulled on us.
Last night we laid him down at 9, and he went right to sleep. I heard him whining (not crying) on the monitor at 1:15. I normally wait to see if he'll go back to sleep, but last night I decided to try something different. I went into the nursery and of course he had moved to his 12:00 position, and the top of his head was touching the side of the crib. I (very gently) turned him back to the "starting position" and guess what? He went right back to sleep. And continued to sleep. Until 4:00.
So my epiphany (because every good thought is an epiphany at 1:30 am) is that maybe he isn't waking up because he's hungry all the time. Maybe he wakes up because his head gets up against that rail. It's never pressing hard on his head, but I'm sure it either bothers him because he can no longer move around or because the mesh crib liner is kind of scratchy on him.
Now my question is...how do I keep him from moving around so much? There are baby sleep positioners out there that you can buy, but I don't know much about them. He's too big to try a Nap Nanny now I think, and would outgrow it soon anyway (and yes I know the issues with Nap Nanny's, but they were because idiot people were using them incorrectly, like putting the Nap Nanny in bed with them). And I found this thing on Amazon which I think would freak him the hell out because he wouldn't be able to move at all. It's literally an overpriced crib sheet with a harness on it.
Any suggestions?
If Mom would just let me sleep on her all the time....

Friday, April 12, 2013

Blog Mom

Everyone who loves reading blogs...raise your hand!
You best have your hand raised since you're on my page.
Kidding.
Hopefully you enjoy reading this and aren't secretly making fun of me as I attempt to navigate my way through life and motherhood. If you are...you suck. I'm trying!
=)

I subscribe to several blogs, and I like to read them in the 3.5 minutes of spare time I have daily. They're a nice break from housework/baby rocking/cooking/sleeping. No, I LOVE sleeping.
So how many times have you read a blog post on someone's blog and thought,
 "Now she has her shit together."
Almost every time? Me too.
So that's what this post is about.
Blog Mom vs. Real Mom.
You could use some humor today, right?

Blog Mom: is gorgeous...always. She must wake up with a full face of make-up on and perfect beachy waves (either that or she has a hair/make-up person). She then goes to her closet and pulls out super stylish outfits to wear every day. She has someone on hand to take pictures of her in said outfit, edits the picture, and then writes a blog post about where she got her clothes and make-up. She also includes a video tutorial (fully edited) of how she curls her hair every morning. Who knows where her 5 children are while this is going on.

Real Mom: sometimes just changes out of the pajamas she slept in into a clean pair of pajamas. Yoga pants are a staple, because black pants look way nicer than jammies even though they're made of the same material. Right? If Real Mom actually has somewhere to go, she may bust out some jeans (fancy!) but will most likely wear work out clothes. Why? Because they're kind of like pajamas, but socially acceptable for public wear. And if she isn't wearing make-up, people will assume she just left the gym instead of wondering if she just rolled out of bed.

Blog Mom: has perfect children. They started sleeping 12 hours a night before their first checkup. They are always happy and smiling, wearing their brand new, expensive Baby Gap/ Ralph Lauren/ J. Crew baby clothes. Their hair is always fixed, and they never have food on their face. If they do, it's cute. Not rubbed in their hair and under their fingernails. They play sweetly, take naps on cue, don't cry, and certainly never emit body fluids.

Real Mom: has perfect children (or "child" because the multiple "children" gives Real Mom a panic attack). Real Mom's child still doesn't sleep through the night. He wears Baby Gap clothes but she promises they were bought on clearance (since he may only wear the outfits twice before he outgrows them). Her child loses his shit in public sometimes...like in the middle of Target. Screaming so loud the associate asks her if she needs help. (And why does Target not have a bathroom in the back of the store? So you have to rush to the front of the store with your screaming child just to change his diaper?) Real Mom's kid doesn't like naps, and fights sleep until he's exhausted. Real Mom gets peed on at least once a week.



Blog Mom: cooks breakfast for the family every morning. This breakfast may include fresh-cut fruit (organic) in the shape of hearts, pancakes in the shape of giraffes, homemade syrup from the maple trees in her back yard, and hand-squeezed orange juice. She will then take pictures of her family eating breakfast picnic-style on the back patio in the sunshine, edit the pictures, and write a blog post complete with recipes for the above listed menu items.

Real Mom: Breakfast at Real Mom's house usually consists of coffee (multiple cups), a piece of fruit, and a spoonful of peanut butter, because she can eat it all one-handed. She may or may not be eating leftovers at 2 in the afternoon (lunchtime) while her baby finally takes a nap. And dinner? Whatever her husband cooks when he gets home. Or frozen pizza.

Blog Mom: is super fit. She has an awesome daily workout routine that keeps her bikini-ready year-round. She probably has a six-pack. Don't worry, there are links to all her daily work-outs posted on her blog. In her pictures she will still have perfect hair and make-up, and she'll be wearing super cute workout clothes.

Real Mom: ain't got time for all that. She might get some crunches in during the baby's nap time once the house is clean and the laundry is put away. Sometimes she just takes a nap too.

Blog Mom: seems to have a limitless clothing budget. Her husband must be making bank. 

Real Mom: isn't getting paid to be off work on maternity leave, and will have to go back to work. Because you know what's expensive? Diapers. And what's more expensive than diapers? Formula.

Blog Mom: has unlimited patience, but then again her children are angels. She probably never says bad words. 

Real Mom: looks forward to taking a bath every night so she can have 30 minutes of alone time. She also says "shit!" too much.

When I was pregnant and started blogging, I started following other blogs.
I would read them and think "This is what my life will be like!"
I just knew my baby would sleep through the night, I'd know exactly what I was doing, and maternity leave would be like a 3 month vacation from work. And in the meantime I would master the art of parenthood.
Let's be real.
My life is awesome. My child is awesome. My husband is awesome.
But my house isn't always clean. Sometimes we don't eat dinner until 8 pm. Sometimes my baby just screams uncontrollably in public for no reason (not often, but it happens).
And for a little while I thought, "Why do I not have my act together like those moms?"
In comments on their posts, people (other moms) often say "Your life is perfect!" or "I just want to be you!"
How sad :(
Not for Blog Mom.
But for other moms, who think that Blog Mom's life is flawless.
It's not, she just chooses not to write about the flaws!

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Cade's Schedule

So...last night my kid slept through the night!
As in 9:30 pm to 6:40 am.
Can you tell I'm excited?!
Of course I woke up at 1, and he was asleep. I woke up at 4 (the longest he's ever gone) and he was still asleep. At that point I slapped Cody awake to share my joy =)
Thank goodness for video monitors...so I didn't have to go in the nursery to make sure he was breathing.
Although Cody did have to go in at 6 and roll him over because his face was next to the side of the crib.
Hooray again for mesh crib liners!
At 6:40 I heard grunting from the monitor so I went in to check on him. There he was, my sweet boy, just laying in the crib wide-eyed and waiting on a bottle.


My hope is that sometime in the next 4 weeks Cade decides he loves sleep as much as I do and continues sleeping through the night. Occasionally he decides to be nice and sleep 6 hours straight, but for the most part he still likes the 4 hour stretches. He's predictable though, we always get up at 1 and 5-ish, and with changing and a bottle I can be back in bed in about 30-40 minutes. He doesn't take much rocking, and I usually lay him down partially awake and let him put himself to sleep.

A few people have asked about Cade's daily schedule. He normally wakes around 7 and is ready for a diaper change and bottle. After he's eaten, most mornings he will nap for another hour (which is when I try to get myself together!) before waking around 9. A lot of times he wants to eat again at that time. He runs on a 3 hour rotation during the day. What I mean by that is he eats every 3 hours. After eating and changing, we play for a little while, either in the nursery or on his playmat. Playing is hard because he's still so young. It's basically me trying to keep him occupied between feeding and napping. I try to do that for about an hour, and then he's usually ready for a nap. Sometimes he skips naps, or only naps 30 minutes. Usually at least once a day he sleeps for 2-2.5 hours. I don't let him sleep more than 3 hours at a time, but he rarely sleeps that long anyway. I give Cade a bath in the afternoons, because it seems to wake him up if we do it close to bedtime. He's generally fussiest in the evening, between 5 and 7. He takes another nap around 7:30, and we start getting ready for bed around 8:30. He takes another bottle then, gets in him 'jams, and we either swaddle or put him in his sleep sack. One of us usually holds him until he's drowsy but we lay him down before he's totally asleep. He usually puts himself to sleep in his crib and rarely cries where we have to pick him back up. Like I said, at that point he normally wakes once or twice in the night.
We keep things very boring at night. As it gets close to bedtime we try to keep the house a little quieter, hoping to "signal" bedtime. When Cade wakes at night, Cody changes his diaper while I get a bottle ready. I leave the lights off in his nursery (except the nightlight) and his sound machine on while I feed him. He usually stays drowsy through his bottle, which makes it easier for him to go back to sleep. We don't really talk during this night time routine, so we won't stimulate him too much and wake him up.

Phew!
It sounds like a lot, but there really isn't a whole lot of structure. I initially tried to get Cade on a schedule, but he kind of just fell into his own so we work with it. He's still a good baby, really only crying when he's hungry or wet. Although lately he pitches a pretty good fit in the evenings. This is typical of babies to be fussy late in the day. Think of how you feel after a long day at work! He gets overstimulated and it's like he doesn't know how to stop crying even when the stimulation is removed. I mentioned before that I'm reading The Happiest Baby on the Block, and it has made such a difference in how we calm Cade. I swear last night you could have heard him crying at the end of our street, and when I initiated "The 5 S's" the book recommends, he stopped crying in less than 2 minutes. It works every time. Cody looked at me like I was silly when I started reading it, so I'm sure I looked smug last night when he stared at Cade in amazement and said "How did that work?"
So again, I highly recommend the book if you are expecting (first time mom or not). It just has good overall advice. Understanding why babies cry in the first place is the key to calming them, and this book does an excellent job!

Here's to more good nights ahead!

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Cade {2 Months}





Cade is officially 2 months old!
I laugh every week taking his weekly picture. He's not very patient laying on the floor. I have to wait until he's fed, changed, and really happy. Then I get everything ready, lay him on the floor, and snap pictures as quick as possible until he gets pissed. I usually have a few good ones to choose from, but his poses are all over the place.

What's new with us?
Besides outgrowing clothes at a rapid pace (length-wise), he has also found his voice. He coos when he's happy, and every now and then I swear he laughs. He's smiling much more now, and I'm a little proud to say he reserves most of them for me. I say it's because he's with me all day and obviously loves me the most (kidding!), but it's really because I still act a fool just to make him smile. 
I have no shame.

See...I can smile!

But most of the time I'm still serious.

He's officially sleeping in his crib now...hooray! I waited probably longer than I should have to put him in it. I kept saying I would when he started sleeping longer during the night. But when he didn't change his pattern, I thought maybe we were doing it backwards. He's doing well in the crib, waking up once during the night and then 6-ish in the morning to eat. I think we're all sleeping better now.
Cade starts in the middle and shimmies his way to the back rail.
He's the very reason they created mesh crib bumpers!
Cade is still hungry all the time, averaging a 4-ounce bottle every 3 hours. He pretty much thinks if he is awake, he should be eating. Another trait inherited from his dad. Let's hope he gets his metabolism too.
Cade now weighs 11 pounds 6 ounces and is 22.5 inches long.
We got shots today :( which made us both sad. He did pretty well but has been alternating between fussing and sleeping since his appointment.


Favorite things this month:

Graco Swing: It took Cade a month to warm up to it, I think because he was so small and didn't fit well in the seat until he got bigger. He likes to nap in the swing during the day. It plays music and white noise, so I can turn it on and still move around the house without startling him. He actually sleeps better when it's not rocking, so once he falls asleep I turn the swing off and let him chill.

Bright Starts Safari Play Mat: Or any play mat! The play mat is what got Cade to start smiling in the first place. He loves all the colors. It has a little cat (I think?) that hangs in the middle and flashes lights and plays music. He goes into a daze and stares at it forever. He also kicks his legs like he's dancing and coos when the music plays. Super cute.

Tommee Tippee Bottles: Another thing I feel like Cade had to "grow" in to. He drank out of the Medela bottles that came with my pump for the first couple of weeks, but we swapped over to these because that's what we planned on using and I wasn't wasting them. The nipple has a wide base so he had to adjust his latch, but he does well with them now. They also have nifty formula cups you can buy that sit inside the bottles, so all you have to do is pop them open and pour. They're perfect for packing and it saves lots of space in the diaper bag.

The First Years Sounds for Silence Premium Sound Machine: Love this! This sound machine plays music, white noise, and also has an MP3 auxillary cord so you can hook in your iPod and play Coldplay whatever your heart desires. It also gives off a nice little glow, so the nursery isn't totally dark if you aren't using a night-light.

The Happiest Baby on the Block: I ordered this book when I was pregnant because I heard good things about it. Cade is still a good baby but likes to be fussy (and sometimes flat=out wail) in the evenings. I busted out this book the other day for some advice. It's actually written for colic babies, but has excellent tips for soothing crying babies. It also has good insight to why babies cry, which in turn helps you understand how to fix the problem.

Summer Infant Video Monitor: Besides being fun just watching your kid move around the crib, this is awesome for giving you piece of mind. Cade is a noisy baby and sometimes whines and grunts in his sleep. It's nice to be able to see if he's awake without dragging myself out of bed. I can also see where he is in his crib and if I need to move him. 

We are still loving our bouncer seat, swaddle blankets, car seat, and pack and play from month #1!

I am currently considering an all-terrain stroller and a diaper backpack, both for summer. Our stroller is handy for shopping and travel, but the tires aren't made for much outdoor use. This Jeep stroller is at the top of my list right now for all its features, and our carseat actually fits it. I want a diaper backpack for trips to the ballpark/zoo/rodeo etc. Most of them have insulated bottle sections and will be much easier to pack around than my bag, which is like a large purse.

I came across this article on Pinterest this week for First time mommas. It's hilariously true =)

Monday, April 1, 2013

Easter



Dress: J.Crew, Cardigan: Gap

We celebrated Easter this past weekend with the family. Cade went to church for the first time, and slept through the entire service like an angel =) We had lunch with family and let him get passed around all afternoon. I showed him all his Easter loot, but he didn't seem too impressed. Oh well. There's always next year.
After all the festivities he was worn out Sunday night. I didn't get a picture of him in his Easter basket.
Yet.



The best part of the weekend was Cade getting to meet Uncle Caleb for the first time! He lives in Louisiana and finally made it home. He is responsible for the "My parents found me in a Kingcake" onesie, as well as the light green one that has a crawfish on it :)
I even took a page out of Jessica Garvin's book and made the husband a sweet Easter basket. She always has cute holiday ideas.
And major props to my husband this week for coming home and telling me he scheduled me a facial and a massage. I'm guessing that was a result of the small meltdown I had Tuesday night. Lack of sleep will do that to you. But after a morning of pampering, a venti iced coffee, and a little retail therapy, I felt much better!