tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53732051247440958132024-03-14T03:56:10.547-04:00Adventures in ParenthoodStories from a couple of 20 somethings experiencing their new lives as parents. <p>
Warning: I might over share. </p>Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.comBlogger200125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-42388976916758492452014-07-01T21:42:00.000-04:002014-07-01T21:42:05.812-04:00Zavier at Nine Months!Still zooming around. He can crawl pretty fast now and really knows when
he shouldn't be headed somewhere bc he speeds up! He pulls himself up
on everything and has even taken a couple steps on several occasions. He
pushes the lion and shopping cart around with confidence so we're sure
walking is just around the corner. We can wait though! He loves opening
cabinets and drawers he should be opening and gives the biggest smile
when I say "Zavier! You aren't allowed in there!" I talk to him the same
way I talk to Scarlett, even though he cannot understand the way she
can. I just don't want her to feel like I only talk to her like that and
that I'm fair between the two of them. Back to Zavier, he definitely
knows his name and he's very aware of sounds, especially when he's
nursing bc he gets quite distracted.<br />
<br />
He eats well. He still nurses about every three hours day (and night)
and eats three meals a day. He loves smoothies or anything with a straw.
He enjoys the mesh net when we have the proper fruit to put in it. I
can tell he's going to have a hollow leg though bc he would probably eat
more than I give him. We're working on finger foods and he does well
with puffs and yogurt bites. The other day we had small bites of
meatball as well as avocado so he can practice chewing. It definitely
will take more practice but he's doing well so far! He's also working on
picking up the foods either with his whole hand or his pinchers. He
mostly does whole hand at this point.<br />
<br />
He takes two-three naps a day. One around 9am and one around 1pm.
Sometimes random naps happen at 11am after Stroller Strides and that
throws off the afternoon. If we're home for both naps they've started
getting longer. Afternoon naps are definitely longer than in the past.
Usually an hour, sometimes more. He puts himself to sleep at night
around 7pm with some gentle rocking and then a lay down. Barely any
fussing unless he's a bit overtired. He still wakes up multiple times a
night for comfort. I am currently okay with this though I often struggle
with the thought that he should be sleeping thru the night and how I
can help him do that. It's not that much of an inconvenience that I
can't handle it and I know he will grow out of it and eventually sleep
thru on his own so I don't mind being his comfort right now. Teething
pain definitely impacts his sleep. Even when we give him a bit of
Tylenol, he still wakes frequently. Bc he doesn't take a paci, I am one
of his main comforts (his thumb is the other but he doesn't suck all
that hard on it) so I'm not interested in removing myself as the comfort
at this time.<br />
<br />
Now he seems to be getting this whole walking thing. He's taken multiple
steps on a number of occasions which is very exciting. Practice makes
perfect!<br />
<br />
I have to note in here that Scarlett is working on her potty training
and she is doing very well! After a tough start bc of a public toilet
being a little too loud, she seems interested in going on the potty.
Mostly at home and public places, not at other peoples houses quite yet
but it's early. We will be headed to the beach soon (June 21) so we will
see how that goes. Hopefully traveling with the potty will make things
easier. She will hopefully get used to seeing it and then go
whenever/wherever. She did not respond well to the reward tactic, so
what i do is after we finish the mission, I make sure she looks at me
and then I praise her. I can tell she feels proud in those moments and
that I'm really making her feel good. (Obv by I, I mean we, as in me and
Alex but it's easier to type I).<br />
<br />
Back to Zavier. Since his 9 month appt he's amped up the verbal skills.
Lots more talking is going on and it's very cute. His first official
word is Dada and he's also said dad-dy. so that's exciting! He has
become quite fond of Alex and it's so adorable watching his excitement
when Alex gets home from work or really just walks up to him.<br />
<br />
Just said Mama too.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-8706291347389669672014-07-01T21:40:00.004-04:002014-07-01T21:40:55.418-04:00Zavier at Eight Months!He crawls around like a pro. He pulls up on everything within reach as
well which is neat but can also be dangerous. He requires lots more
supervision then before and what I mean is I can't stand in the kitchen
while he pulls up on the window seat area without getting nervous and
staying nearby.<br />
<br />
He has been teething hard this month and this has affected his sleeping.
I have yet to sleep train him bc of this. When he teethes, his nose
runs which makes him congested which affects his sleep. He wakes up
more, itches at his nose and has a hard time getting back to sleep.<br />
<br />
Other than activity and sleep, he eats solids twice a day but hasn't
graduated to anything thicker than a good purée and we're working on
puffs. He does enjoy the mesh net tho and I can't wait for some nice
ripe cantaloupe to have for him to suck on!<br />
<br />
He knows what he wants. When he wants out of his chair or when he drops
something that he still wanted he lets us know! He wants the iPad when
Scarlett has it and really likes being near her.<br />
<br />
He smiles a ton. He's very loving. A little sweetheart in so many ways. He cries very little which is really nice too!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-12489355860838284392014-07-01T21:39:00.002-04:002014-07-01T21:40:04.114-04:00Zavier at Seven Months!Weight: 21 lbs<br />
<br />
Zavier has started crawling backwards at the beginning of this month. He is fully crawling now at the end. He also started some separation anxiety.<br />
<br />
4/9/14 - Zavier's first hair cut! We trimmed his bangs while he was in the highchair. It wasn't easy and he looked so much older directly afterward.<br />
<br />
His sleeping is still pretty terrible. I'm not really sure what to do
about it at this point. He goes to sleep just fine, he just likes to
wake up a lot and play me like a dang fiddle. I know he doesn't need to
eat at night but I feed him bc it comforts him. He's been sick on and
off and when he's not sick he seems to be teething. He naps for about 30
mins three times a day. Sometimes he surprises me and sleeps for an
hour or longer. This is rare.<br />
<br />
Despite the sleep issues, he's such a fun little guy! It's easy to make
him smile and laugh and he has a tickle spot on his ribs. He crawls
around so confidently now and when he wants something, he goes and gets
it. He wants to pull up on everything which requires lots of
supervision. It's all exciting, just moving really fast! He likes to
drink water from Scarlett's cups, which means he does a good job sucking
from a straw.<br />
<br />
Scarlett has started to interact with him a lot more with kisses and
playing. She will help me with him at times by repeating things I say
like "keep your eyes open, Zavier" and she gives him kisses. She doesn't
enjoy his mobility as much tho bc now he tries to take toys she's
playing with. I do think it's helping her learn to share though and also
teaches her she can't just take a toy from someone.<br />
<br />
It's hard to believe he just turned 8 months. It's hard not to think
about Scarlett when she was 8 months. I do my best not to compare them
but it's nice to reminisce about her milestones. Pretty soon he will be
walking and then talking and time will continue to fly so I will
continue to live in and enjoy the moment!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-21352996638211056902014-07-01T21:37:00.001-04:002014-07-01T21:37:17.406-04:00Zavier at Six Months!<i>Eats</i><br />
Zaviers first food was oatmeal followed by sweet potatoes and prunes. He
was definitely ready to start eating bc he opens his mouth so well each
time! I say "ahhh" and he opens! He still nurses every three hours or so.<br />
<br />
<i>Sleeps</i><br />
He hasn't slept well really since before he had croup. Teething seems to give him a runny nose which messes with his breathing and all goes to heck after that. Also, hi my name is Michelle and i am Zavier's human pacifier. So there's that too. I'm not tired despite how often I am awake at night so I'm not messing with it anytime soon. He goes back to sleep pretty easily after nursing (in the cases where he can breathe while nursing of course, darn runny nose!)<br />
<br />
<i>Activities</i><br />
This month Zavier has mastered sitting up unassisted. I still put the
boppy behind him in case he leans back but he does a very good job
sitting.<br />
<br />
Basically this is a fail on my part as I didn't realize I didn't write a lot for 6 months. He's an awesome little man though! Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-278749461288291642014-07-01T21:32:00.002-04:002014-07-01T21:32:54.682-04:00Zavier at Five Months!Another month with stats! I'm surprising myself! (also, five months is in January 2014)<br />
<br />
Weighs 20 lbs<br />
Length 27 3/4"<br />
<br />
<i>Eats</i><br />
He still eats a lot. Every three hours on average. Sometimes more than
three sometimes less. I feed him whenever he wants so I don't really
keep close track. Only close enough track that when the dr asks I can
say the average. He's become very distracted though so our sessions can
last anywhere from 5 mins to 30 mins. He's packing on the pounds that's
for sure. Good thing he's long too or else he'd be a real chubb-a-lubb.
He likes watching us eat so I'm sure if I introduced some cereal to him
he would go for it but I really want to wait until 5 or 5.5 months.
We'll see what happens.<br />
<br />
<i>Sleeps</i><br />
This month was really wonky bc he had a stuffy nose a lot. So that
interrupted his sleep a lot. Then he had croup which definitely made
sleep difficult for a couple of nights. But we're over that now and one
night he slept for a nice 6 hour stretch! So that was lovely. His
average is 3 hour stretches at night and 20-40 min naps during the day.
He takes a nap about every three hours. His average is three for
everything it seems.<br />
<br />
<i>Activity</i><br />
He loves his bouncer and has mastered rolling and all that. He's now
into grabbing his legs and feet while laying down. He's so intentional
with his grabs in general. He appears to know what he wants and he grabs
for it. He really loves holding hands with us too. So he's really
handsy. We have been practicing sitting alone and he does okay with the
boppy behind him. He definitely wants to lean forward a lot so hopefully
he gets the concept of keeping his hands out in front of himself. He
also inch worms across the floor. I feel like between now and actual
crawling so much is happening with him!<br />
<br />
This month he's replaced the pacifier with his thumb. This is fine with
us now after some initial worry about it. After our research we
determined its fine for him to do and that most kids wean themselves
from it by age 2. This has actually been helpful with self-soothing,
especially at night.<br />
<br />
Let's talk about croup. First, Scarlett was not sick at all as a baby.
She's only recently had a cold with an accompanying cough. It was only a
matter of time after all the sickness in November and December and I'm
just glad she didn't have the stomach bug that was circulating. Zavier
got a stuffy nose when Scarlett had one and we thought that was that.
But Alex had the flu and some other people we know had the flu around
the holidays. Zavier started on Friday with some super long naps. He
usually falls asleep in the car but these naps extended for hours which
wasn't like him at all. The same thing occurred Saturday, long naps.
Sunday morning he had a fever and was coughing a little but we just
thought it was draining mucus, as that's how Scarlett's cold was ending.
So we treated his fever all day/night which didn't subside at all. He
slept terribly that night. He was up about every hour or so and his
cough was getting worse. By the morning it was definitely sounding like a
bark and his breathing in between coughs didn't sound the best. So when
the dr opened I called immediately and they had an appt for him an hour
later. He got an oral steroid and more Tylenol. She said it would get
worse before it got better. I never really thought the steroid helped.
But it only got better from then on so that was a relief. We did a lot
of steams in the bathroom at Scarlett's nap time and when she went to
bed at night. In between that we sat in front of the humidifier. Day two
he was still lethargic but his fever had broken. By day three he was
feeling better, smiling more and wanting to bounce and play. He still
had a cough for the next several days and definitely mucus that needed
draining but just to be over the fever and coughing was a huge relief. I
honestly don't know how parents with sick children deal with it all the
time. It's so sad.<br />
<br />
Speaking of sickness though, I got a nose frida thing bc the bulb
syringe is basically terrible at doing anything at all. And while he
hates the nose frida and the saline drops in general, they both have
been working really well through all of this.<br />
<br />
We're so lucky to have such a happy little guy. He's such a pleasure to have around.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-65864728555163075172014-07-01T21:31:00.000-04:002014-07-01T21:31:20.013-04:00Zavier at Four Months!Look who has stats this month!!<br />
<br />
Weight- 18 lbs 7 oz<br />
Length- 27.5"<br />
<br />
<i>Eats</i><br />
He still eats every three-ish hours. He's a hungry little boy! And I'm
sure this contributes to his weight above. But luckily he's
proportionate and so he's not too chubby looking quite yet. He's a
pretty distracted nurser other than in the middle of the night, luckily.<br />
<br />
<i>Sleeps</i><br />
His napping is pretty sub-par. I tried crib training him a bit but he
wouldn't sleep for long which meant his nights were worse. So I went
back to holding him for 15-20 mins and then putting him down. Really it
all depends on Scarlett. If she's in the mood to make trouble during his
nap, and I have to get up and chase her around or remove her from
certain areas it affects Zavier's nap. But I'm back to trying to crib
train from the beginning and I'm hoping he gets used to it! :) He naps 4
times a day and goes to bed around 8pm waking about every three hours
until he awakens around 7. He takes some of his best naps in his car
seat when I go places like target or lunch with my mom. Something about
Mimi always puts him to sleep and he stays asleep!<br />
<br />
<i>Activity</i><br />
He has gotten a lot more active this month whether it's kicking his legs
and scootching on the activity mat. He also rolled from his back to his
belly! Now at the beginning of his fifth month, he's rolling all
around. So now I can't leave him on the couch and have to strategically
place him on the floor.<br />
<br />
He's very easy to make smile and he started laughing this month. It can brighten any bad spot in a day and I just love it!<br />
<br />
<i>Other</i><br />
I am the only one who can put him to bed at night. He allows Alex to do
naps but he will cry his tiny head off at night. Sometimes he takes 10
minutes to go to sleep and sometimes it's an hour. I remember this phase
with Scarlett and cannot wait until we're past it and falling asleep
easier!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-55225620013409564952014-07-01T21:30:00.000-04:002014-07-01T21:30:06.573-04:00Zavier at Three Months!Zavier at 3 Months<br />
<br />
I don't know his stats!!! Look at his baby book ;)<br />
<br />
<i>Eats</i><br />
He eats a lot. He can't last more than 3 hours during the day unless
he's sleeping, which only happens if he's been riding in the car and
gets nice and deep. I need to stay hydrated like nothing else to keep up
with his appetite. One day of not drinking enough water and the
following day feels empty. He's a growing boy! Can't wait for the sweet
spot from 4-7 months when I can hopefully drop the rest of this baby
weight and then some!<br />
<br />
<i>Sleeps</i><br />
He still wakes about twice a night. Rarely it's three times but just as
before he only spend about 10 minutes awake/eating/diaper change before
going back to sleep. It's a smidge harder to get him back to sleep after
the 4/4:30am feeding but he does go back to sleep. That's the time he
joins us in bed so that I'm there to soothe him to sleep while half
sleeping myself. I hope he stays immobile for a while so we can continue
this safely or he can do better at sleeping from 4-7am.. Those are the
only options. He does tend to fight his sleep a bit at times, mostly at
night and he's very position specific. It's trying at times but I have
to say I handle it better this time around than with Scarlett. I used to
get pretty frustrated but now i just remind myself that, hello! he's a
baby! this is what babies do.<br />
<br />
<i>Activities</i><br />
He still talks and smiles lots. He started batting at and grabbing toys
recently. He loves his hands and sucks on them lots. He loves laying on
the activity mat kicking and punching around. His neck strength gets
better each day, especially pulling him up by his arms, so that's good.
We don't do too much tummy time but when we do he does a good job. He's
been rolling over during tummy time since like 8 weeks from belly to his
back. I think it's bc he would lean one way and the weight of his head
would roll him over. I guess it counts if it's happened more than five
times tho. Right? Right!<br />
<br />
This little boy loves the bath. He kicks and splashes himself out of the
little seat part so I have to hold him down most of the time to keep
him safe. He could spend so much time splashing around and I'm sure he
will have so much fun next summer with swimming and water table play! In
the meantime, he'll continue loving his bath!<br />
<br />
He loves watching Scarlett run around the room playing. She asked to
hold him this month and has held his hands several times. She likes to
lay on the activity mat with him and have him kick her. It's very
heartwarming to watch them interact!<br />
<br />
I thank goodness that Zavier is a nice laid back and relaxed baby. Sure
he needs to be held for his naps but that won't last forever so I'm
cherishing it while it does. He waits patiently for me when I need him
to and he rarely cries. We love him so much!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-88577732496081132022014-07-01T21:28:00.001-04:002014-07-01T21:28:25.467-04:00Zavier at Two Months!Stats<br />
Weight: 15 lbs even<br />
Length: 24.5"<br />
<br />
<i>Eats</i><br />
As you can see by his weight, he's not lacking in the food department.
He eats every 3 hours (ish) during the day and most nights he's up 2-3
times. He's kind of a distracted eater during the day so nursing
sessions last a while sometimes or start and then delay and then finish a
half hour later. But like I said, he's not lacking. His weight is in
the 97th percentile for 2 months. Big boy!<br />
<br />
<i>Sleeps</i><br />
This is a bit tricky. He's not on any sort of schedule. I was laying him
down for naps as he would allow but in the last week he has basically
refused to nap for more than 20 minutes unless he's being held. I
usually don't have time to hold him for such a long period while also
being still so he doesnt completely wake during sleep cycles but
sometimes (like right now, as I write this post on my phone and Scarlett
watches Sofia the First) he can take a nice snooze on my chest. Night
time is better. He goes down every night around 8pm. I have definitely
started and stick to the habit of not rocking or nursing him to sleep. I
swaddle him and lay him in his crib if I feel like laying in bed while
he inevitably unswaddles himself once or twice. He eventually settles
and falls asleep. This process also sometimes happens on the couch
cushion. He stays asleep sometimes until 11pm and sometimes 1am. That's
the usual. He has slept a tad longer once or twice. He then does a 3-4
hour stretch and then another 2-3 hour stretch waking around 7:30-8 am
each morning. He nurses, gets a diaper change and then goes back to
sleep. I change his diaper in bed. Why I never did that with Scarlett I
will never know. It's so much easier than getting up and walking all
around. We do all of this by night light. He goes back to sleep the
first time in the crib again and the second time he stays with me. It's
nice having a king size bed for this reason. I cant complain about these
sleep habits. He's consistent and that's all I can ask for at this
point.<br />
<br />
<i>Activities</i><br />
He talks and smiles a lot. He's a happy boy so when he's awake and not
hungry or sleepy he's smiling or laying quietly. He kicks and moves his
arms during his active times. We're working on tummy time and neck
control and he's getting better and better. I wouldn't call him super
good at holding his neck though, he still needs a lot of support. But
we'll get there in time. He loves to follow us around the room with his
eyes and follows my voice. He enjoys watching Scarlett when we're
sitting close to her (and she stays close by). He also enjoys being
outside and taking walks although he doesn't like the wind so much. He
hasn't quite figured out how to breathe in it yet.<br />
<br />
He's a good little boy and were enjoying watching him get more alert and
develop new skills. He's very patient when it comes to waiting for me
or Alex to complete a Scarlett task if needed. He doesn't fuss too hard
when he's hungry (I'm pretty on target with his hunger cues though so he
doesn't have to wait long normally anyway) or when he's sleepy. This
parenting thing the second time around sure is easier. :)<br />
<br />
<i>A note on Scarlett</i><br />
Scarlett is doing awesome now with Zavier. She has fully transitioned to
having a sibling. She's not too into him yet but I'm sure once he can
move and make more noise (and she gets older) she will enjoy him more.
There are times where she's concerned about him and I know she thinks
about him bc she's mentioned his name after a nap before. So that's
cute. She especially likes when he wears fun things on his shirt that
she can point at. She's learning and growing every day. She repeats
words on command and loves watching sofia the first (a limited amount).
She still loves being outside and I take her out as much as I can handle
with both of them. She's pushing boundaries for sure but she's also
still teething a lot so I think a lot of times it's for attention but
for reasons non-boundary/sibling related. She's a treat though and her
laugh and smile brighter our days!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-77736491106440719342014-07-01T21:27:00.000-04:002014-07-01T21:27:03.561-04:00Zavier at One MonthI kept up on Scarlett's monthly progress and I plan to do the same for Zavier. It serves as a great historical reference, especially for his baby book that I generally don't fill out on time. Plus it gives me a purpose for documenting a day in time with photographs.<br />
<br />
I did buy some stickers on Etsy for these pictures but unfortunately, they haven't arrived yet. So his one month sticker won't be included unless I photoshop it on later.<br />
<br />
Onto the stats and details!<br />
<br />
Weight- 11 lb 5 oz .. (this was approx on the 15th)<br />
<br />
<i>Good Eats</i><br />
Zavier has always been a good eater. He definitely caught on to breastfeeding fast and the only thing that can be challenging is that he is a snacker. This also lends itself to the fact that we're going 'pacifier free' this time around.. therefore I am his pacifier a lot of the time, well okay, all the time when he needs to be soothed. It truly is nursing on demand and he definitely demands it frequently. The upside to this is creating a very good milk supply (fingers crossed) as well as the weight-loss benefits of breastfeeding (again, fingers crossed).<br />
<br />
<i>Decent Sleeps</i><br />
From day one he's known the difference between day and night it seems. We haven't had any middle of the night dance parties or play time of any kind. I truly appreciate this. With Scarlett still getting up for the day at 6 am, I get to keep our feedings at night short and to the point. We've even mastered the side-lying nursing position which is awesome. Scarlett couldn't handle that until she had more neck control.<br />
<br />
He starts out each night in his crib by himself and I usually get him back into it a couple more times throughout the night, mostly the first 3 feedings get him back in his crib. Then he gets more noisy and it's always unknown whether it's just noise or if it's due to a burp bubble or a bum bubble (aka gas). It's just easier at that point to pull him into bed to sleep beside me. He does well and not once have I been nervous about him sleeping with me.<br />
<br />
We swaddle him with his arms out currently. He's never really enjoyed his arms the whole way in and down so we started with elbows in and down and now we just do arms out. It seems to work for now. At night he usually just wears a onesie and then is swaddled by the muslin wrap. As the weather gets colder at night I've started putting socks on him as well. He gets too hot if he's wearing more than that.<br />
<br />
He also naps pretty well. He takes a couple shorter ones during the day and one longer one. Sometimes the longer one bumps into bed time, other times it doesn't. It's pretty all over the place but that's to be expected. He sometimes can match a nap up with his sister so that I can get housework done or nap myself. He's a bit noisy during naps as well so this wakes him up during the short naps.<br />
<br />
<i>Play Time</i><br />
We've done some tummy time and he seems to be doing well with his head so far. As well as can be expected anyway. He enjoys laying on the play mat, looking at the lights while the music plays. He also enjoys laying beside his sister while she giggles because his hands graze her face sometimes. He definitely follows Alex and myself if we're moving slowly in the room, Scarlett is a bit too speedy to follow at this point but he does look at her when she's up close.<br />
<br />
He smiled for the first time last Thursday the 12th. A real, fully awake purposeful smile. Alex has gotten a smile since then, I myself have not quite yet but I'm sure I will soon.<br />
<br />
<i>Transitions</i><br />
Scarlett started acting more like herself at the end of last week. She's started playing more independently again which is helpful and she's whining a little bit less. She still whines but I think it's because she knows it will get her some attention. It's easy to tell when it's more of a fake whine as opposed to a purposeful whine. I'm teaching her to tell me when she's hungry/thirsty so that she doesn't get fussy when she's hungry bc she doesn't know how to communicate it.<br />
<br />
I've been out a couple of times alone. Mostly to my parents which is good practice to learn how to get two kids into a building. We went to Target once. We got the special cart with the seats for the bigger kids and those things are interesting to maneuver around the store, whew! But they're handy for obvious reasons. I know taking two kids out in public will take practice so i'm trying not to sweat it. I'm trying to figure out if purchasing an Ergo Carrier would be worth it. I have an infantino one that I can use when Zavier has better head control but I've heard such good things about the Ergo. I've tried the Moby Wrap too but again, until he has better head control I won't truly be hands free. Any thoughts on this are appreciated!!<br />
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It's crazy that he's already a month old. Time sure does fly even faster with two. I'm very happy that I get to hold Zavier more throughout the day than I anticipated. I guess I figured I would be super busy or that Scarlett would be more demanding but I hold him lots! We love you little buddy!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-57223500862188839822014-07-01T21:26:00.000-04:002014-07-01T21:26:25.089-04:00Haven't done this in a while..Well lookie who it is!?<br />
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I haven't done this in a while because I literally do not have time to sit a computer. Evenings are spent relaxing with my darling husband and vegging out on the couch/es together watching TV while playing with our phones, or just one of those things or both at the same time.<br />
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I'm coming back for a moment to post a lot about Zavier.<br />
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As Scarlett was growing from 0-12 months, I documented a lot of what she was doing and a lot of it is right here on this blog. I actually frequent it to see what she was doing at 6 months while Zavier was around the same age. I wanted to have a place in the cloud where this information is available to me (and them??) in the future.<br />
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So though I couldn't document on a blog, I have been writing 'notes' on my phone each month. Sure there aren't any pictures with a sticker (we started that and it ended quickly bc i'm laazzy!) and we may not have many weights, though his baby book will, I have lots of paragraphs about what he was doing each month and how he has grown.<br />
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He's grown fast. Too fast. Way. Too. Fast.<br />
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I want to put the hashtag #slowdowntime but i'm not sure if hashtags work in blogs.<br />
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Regardless, hello again, even if for just a short time while I post up to 9 months of information about my littlest babe.Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-65461459049906924032013-09-16T21:22:00.001-04:002013-09-16T21:22:08.216-04:00Zavier's Birth StoryI like to try to get this out in written form soon after birth so that I'm not forgetting any details. Here goes..<br />
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The date was August 15, 2013. It was a Thursday. My mom came the night before to spend the night since we'd be waking up early to head into the hospital. As you may or may not know, I never went into labor on my own and my OB would not induce due to my previous c-section, so we were headed in for a scheduled c-section Thursday morning. Our surgery was scheduled for 8:40am so we had to be there at 6:40am. We got all of our hospital things together that morning and arrived on time to the hospital.<br />
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We waited in the pre-op waiting room to for me to be called back for the first part of the pre-op process. This process included putting on my hospital gowns, having my belly prepped and getting my iv and fluids. They put me on two monitors, one for the baby and one for contractions (just in case? i wasn't having any so it didn't matter). I didn't enjoy those monitors, they were constricting. I had done well with the IV when I had Scarlett so I didn't anticipate any funny business (as prior to getting pregnant I was not the best with needles.. cue nausea) however they were already talking about my crooked veins and 'which hand would be better' and 'oh it's too far up by the wrist but let's try it anyway'. I started getting hot.. light-headed.. I asked for a sip of water and they said no.. I asked to sit up for just a second and they said no.. and apparently this is when I passed out. I was trying to relax and close my eyes and focus on breathing but it all happened pretty fast and I was conscious again. They asked me to open my eyes and it's as if I didn't miss a beat, in my own mind anyway.. apparently I full on passed out which made my little monitors dip for a second and baby's heart rate to drop (which meant I had to stay on the monitor even longer!). I felt instantly better after the IV was finally in but they decided in the middle of the fiasco to go for my other hand, which then felt like I had a needle poking into my wrist bone for a good long time, though obviously there is no needle in an IV after they get it into your vein. Aaannyway, that's when they allowed Alex to come back and we sat and waited to talk to the necessary doctor's before heading off to the OR.<br />
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Dr. Rapp, my OB came to see us. Then the anesthesiologist, even though he didn't do anything during surgery other than witness it. His assistant person, Doug was the one who did all the work. Alex scrubbed up and they made me drink a nice little anti-acid drink which was super sour but they told me to drink it fast so I listened. The same OR nurses that took me to the OR with Scarlett came and got us and we headed back. The walk to the OR is usually pretty surreal.. it felt like the last time for the most part but I was trying really hard to remember everything because with Scarlett I have some cloudy spots.<br />
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Alex waited outside the OR while I went in and was prepped. I sat on the table and got the spinal block, I remember feeling less with Scarlett, this time I could still feel things touching me at times but they didn't hurt. Last time I got nauseous when I laid down, this time I got sick. Bye bye sour juice stuff. I soon felt better though and Alex came in as they were getting ready to start. All Alex and I could do was look at each other because this time we knew what was coming! And we were excited after all the anticipation of not going into labor, waiting for days, etc.<br />
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Dr. Rapp said I would feel some pressure and to get the camera ready and then Zavier joined us in in the oxygen breathing world. He was so cute and had SO much hair! They took him to the back left (my laying down left) and Alex was taking pictures as I watched. They were putting me back together when Alex brought him over so I could 'hold' him and Doug the anesthesiologist guy took some really nice pictures for us. Soon we were both headed to recovery where we spent the next two hours waiting for my blood pressure to stabilize. I'm almost 100% positive it wasn't working right because my cuff was leaking. That was found later on that night. If only I had suggested they change the cuff I could've been out of there sooner. But Zavier and Alex were with me the whole time and I got some crucial skin to skin bonding and nursing time in. Zavier was a champ!<br />
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It didn't feel like we were there for two hours so after time passed we headed to our couplet care room. We were pleasantly surprised as the size of the room was definitely larger than when we were with Scarlett, not by much but enough to notice. I was transferred to my bed and they set me up. I was still on my IV until the next day so no food needed! I got to hold and nurse Zavier more and then they came to give him a bath. Alex took some video of this and pictures and then he decided that was a good time to head back to our house to get Scarlett. She absolutely refused to get into my mom's car, so Alex took our car back so she could ride in her normal car seat. After Zavier's bath, his temp was low (for obvious reasons) so the aid asked to take him to the nursery to go under the warmer since Alex wasn't there and I couldn't get out of bed. They couldn't technically leave him alone with me, which was a bit disappointing. I even requested skin to skin since that would've brought his temp up even faster but again, they couldn't leave him with me alone. So they took him to the nursery, and surprisingly I was okay with this. I don't think I would've been if he were my first baby but separation wasn't so foreign this time around. When Alex got back though I had him immediately go to the nursery to get him!<br />
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Scarlett met her brother, she wasn't very interested in him at all and was more interested in the balloon that my mom had gotten for Zavier in the shape of a whale.<br />
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They monitored me the rest of the day and evening. Much better than being monitored through the night! I got out of bed that evening two different times to get everything going. I'm not going to lie, it was tough. I didn't remember it being so difficult but luckily this time around I was smart enough to deny the painkillers (other than ibuprofen) so I didn't get sick!<br />
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Overall, I didn't remember a lot from the first time around. I didn't remember how hard it was or how annoying it was to get out of bed and move around. It was nice to know what to expect for sure but I have no interest in doing it again.<br />
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It's been three and a half weeks now and recovery went well. I was off the meds by the end of the second week and felt back to 100% a couple days after that. I was happy with that timeline and very thankful that Alex had a week off and my mom could help me for a week.<br />
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Scarlett has been transitioning with us through this, she has good and trying moments and has regressed a little bit when it comes to her independent play but she loves her little brother so that's all we can ask for.<br />
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We're excited to get more sleep in the future, though we know it's a little bit far off. Soon I will have a one-month update on Zavier!<br />
<br />
And here are his stats:<br />
Time born: 9:13am<br />
Weight: 8 lb 10 oz<br />
Length: 21 1/2"<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Zavier getting cleaned up!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting some up close time and getting some smooches in too!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy all over again!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o5Bhlns_r9U/Ujetyr-As6I/AAAAAAAACow/jsPP84XdmP0/s1600/_DSC8685.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o5Bhlns_r9U/Ujetyr-As6I/AAAAAAAACow/jsPP84XdmP0/s640/_DSC8685.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In recovery doing skin to skin :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1q5nfmERibs/UjetyifYCMI/AAAAAAAACo0/bOIFT5ykNgo/s1600/_DSC8692.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1q5nfmERibs/UjetyifYCMI/AAAAAAAACo0/bOIFT5ykNgo/s640/_DSC8692.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scarlett meeting Zavier</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our handsome, full head of hair baby boy!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First family picture!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Relaxing on Daddy's chest</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scarlett showing Zavier some love with lots of giggles!</td></tr>
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<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-44233032414562183852013-08-13T11:26:00.001-04:002013-08-13T11:26:25.094-04:00Stigma<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QMcgEN1iMHk/UgpNjQZXkTI/AAAAAAAACnI/vonIJ7KSPVs/s1600/TSNewLook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QMcgEN1iMHk/UgpNjQZXkTI/AAAAAAAACnI/vonIJ7KSPVs/s320/TSNewLook.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New Logo and Packaging!</td></tr>
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I feel as though I've been posting a lot about Tastefully Simple lately but hey, it is a side business and I do think about it a lot so why not share my thoughts?<br />
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Tastefully Simple just did a rebrand of their logo and packaging. They announced it along with their new fall seasonal line of products at an event called Party Palooza which was held in Minneapolis where the TS headquarters is located. This event filled my Facebook timeline from Thursday to Sunday with excitement and new product info. This is an event where great achievers in their business get recognized. My sponsor was one of them. She is awesome and continues to surprise me with her dedication to TS.<br />
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What I really wanted to talk about in this post though, is the stigma associated with businesses such as Tastefully Simple (like Pampered Chef and Thirty One, etc). I hate it... the stigma that is.<br />
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Tastefully Simple is exciting to me. I love food! I love making food! I love making food from scratch and I love making food that's easy to prepare from boxes! I love dips! I love party food! I love going to parties partly because of the food! This is mostly why I love Tastefully Simple. It makes it so freaking easy to make food and it tastes good. I would eat all my inventory right now if I could.<br />
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Now here are a couple of things I don't understand.. (I just want to preface that this is not directed at anyone, this is a general thought/feeling and trust me, i've had it too about parties in the past before I became a consultant for TS)<br />
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1. Why host a party if you aren't excited to host a party?<br />
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Now I'm still learning how to properly coach my hosts into success. I think in the future I might approach hosts by asking about their excitement level of eating food, making food, having get togethers with friends and earning free stuff. I can only hope that they are honest with me. It's tricky because back before I did this (and I know i've mentioned this a bit before) I had a pretty successful Pampered Chef party and as the host I was excited about most of it. Once the consultant got me to agree to a date to set the party and I sent out the invites and got the RSVPs, I was excited to have people over to my house to eat food, chat and offer them a chance to order stuff from the catalog. I knew most of them hadn't been to a party before or hadn't been to one in years so this was perfect. The thing I wasn't super excited about was the stigma. The stigma that I was only inviting people over so they could buy stuff so that I could get free stuff. The 'pressure' that they may feel to order something just because I was having a party and just because they were my family/friends.<br />
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I want my Tastefully Simple hosts to be excited about the products. I want them to feel so excited that they want to share these things with their friends and give them an opportunity to get excited as well. I don't like the stigma of the 'pressure' associated with purchasing something just because someone asks you to look at a catalog. I'm a pretty honest person in life and if I don't really want something, I don't buy it. I may look at it but I don't buy something <i>just because she bought something from me at my party</i>. That can be a vicious cycle.<br />
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One more thing, this isn't just for women.. men like food too. Get your male friends, boyfriends, husbands involved.<br />
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2. RSVPs<br />
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We live in a different world now. A world where the RSVP doesn't mean sh*t. Excuse my language but seriously, it means nothing! People used to care when they couldn't attend something and would have to call and verbally tell their regrets to the party host via phone. Now we have text and email and Facebook. If you can't go to a party or event that someone invited you to, cool.. that's fine, why wouldn't it be fine? Just RSVP no if they ask for regrets OR RSVP yes/no if they just ask for an RSVP. I understand that things come up and sometimes a yes becomes a no at the last minute BUT these days it seems like people do a lot based on how they feel that day. "Oh we'll see how I feel that day about going.." "Eh.. I don't really feel like it, and even though I RSVP'd (or worse, didn't even respond!) I will just go about my day like I was never invited to anything in the first place"<br />
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Can you tell this is a sore area for me? :) This is definitely a direct correlation to events I've hosted in the past. Sorry I'm not sorry. See, honesty! Feels good, right?<br />
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3. Facebook Events and Specials<br />
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I recently ran a July Special because there was a sale of 20% off the Tastefully Simple large drink buckets and I wanted to incentivize people to buy them or other products they might've needed to stock up on. I'm just going to be honest on here and tell you that only one person took that offer. ONE! I'm not disappointed because I couldn't make money off of orders that were placed. I'm disappointed because those drink buckets are DELICIOUS and because they were an AWESOME DEAL and so many people missed out on them. Now, lucky for you all, I happened to stock up on some so if you're interested, I do have some I can sell you at the 20% discounted price which is $7.99 BUT I have to charge shipping on top of that because.. hello, I paid shipping, and tax actually. So that takes the price from $7.99 to $9.49 ..... original price (if purchased direct from me) would be $11.86 so you're saving $2.37. It's like a sale at the liquor store only better, and tastier. Samba Sangria Slush is yummy, trust me and perfect for parties. Sheesh! This gets me all kinds of hyped up and I really don't even know why but a deal is a deal, people!<br />
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Take advantage of specials, that's the bottom line. I create them to offer you something, not to take your money. And if you aren't interested in them, RSVP NO! to the event. You WILL NOT hurt my feelings, I promise!<br />
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If you're interested, 'like' my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/tastefullysimplewithmichelle" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a>. If you see the value of marketing, share some of the posts that I put up so that your friends may have the opportunity to see them. I'm not going to lie, this would help me tremendously and only takes a millisecond to click 'Share'.<br />
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~<br />
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This is getting long.. probably too long but I needed to get all of that out. So thanks for reading if you've even made it this far.<br />
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I would LOVE to hear your comments on this, if you don't want to log in, just comment anonymously, I will never know who it is but will at least get some feedback. All I ever want is honest feedback. Think the products are too expensive? Tell me! Think they taste like poo? Tell me! Think hosting is dumb? I want to knooow! Thanks in advance!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-16529497767031421632013-08-07T21:19:00.000-04:002013-08-07T21:19:03.684-04:00The Waiting Game<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The first time around, I knew Scarlett's birthday for weeks ahead of time. This time is a lot different, obviously because I'm now waiting to go into labor.<br />
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I really do not enjoy waiting of any kind, I never have. There's a ton of anticipation though with a birth which makes it even harder!<br />
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Today, at 39 weeks and 5 days, I had my membranes stripped. I found out that I made no new progress from last week but luckily I had a man doctor and he was able to perform the strip. I really, really hope that this jump starts us somehow. Since coming home from my appointment, I've had maybe two contractions.<br />
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Each night I go to bed hoping to be awoken by pain. I have never wished for pain more in my life (or ever?) .. but I keep hoping it will happen sooner rather than later.<br />
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Through all of the waiting, I am also taking time to relax.. as hard as that can be. I am squeezing Scarlett extra tight, holding on to these last couple of days with her as my only baby. It's hard to wrap my head around what's coming but at the same time, I also know what's coming. It's tricky.<br />
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Please cross your fingers and toes for me that it happens soon, goes fast and ends healthy :)Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-38340792205107006592013-07-13T13:09:00.000-04:002013-07-13T13:09:47.941-04:00Stay At Home Mom LifeI basically want to start every post I write with .. "Here's the thing.." but that seems silly, right? I should think of more creative titles. It's hard I tell you!<br />
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So i've now been a Stay At Home Mom (SAHM) for the past four weeks. I haven't quite gotten into a rhythm yet and what's the point really? I'm going to have another baby in a couple weeks which would throw it off anyway! I am most definitely enjoying spending so much time with Scarlett though and the only thing I miss about work are the people. I feel a ton more relaxed and I've gotten more housework done than I have in months.<br />
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We've had a couple of play dates with little friends so far and I have a couple scheduled for next week as well. Trying to keep things busy and interesting for Scarlett because she likes that sort of thing, plus it gets us out and about which is sometimes hard with my 'before baby to-do list' and the general tired/laziness that pregnancy often brings. Not to mention, she may have about 4 weeks of being less mobile than usual because of me recovering/getting the hang of mothering two children!<br />
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<b>Here's a couple things I've managed to do so far:</b><br />
<i>Set up the Crib in our room! </i>Originally, I thought I would be putting Scarlett in this crib and the new baby in Scarlett's current one but they're both drop side (read: convenient) and Scarlett is used to hers so why switch now. I learned this of course after setting the new one up in Scarlett's room only to take it down and set it up again in my room.<br />
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<i>Upstairs bathroom cleaned! </i>Honestly, I've never deep cleaned that bathroom before. We've lived here 3 years. Sorry past house guests! I have cleaned it, just not extensively. I recently mopped the floors and got in the crevices (gross!), changed out the shower curtain, etc. Our tub and toilet up there are blue. It's wallpapered and I don't enjoy the flooring. The toilet is completely facing the wrong direction. I usually just can't go in there and Scarlett takes baths in our bathroom so I have little use for it. After this baby arrives and I have some time, I plan to at least paint the cabinetry and remove the wall paper. Eventually we'd like to completely renovate the whole thing and close off the jack/jill-ness.. I'm just not a fan of those.<br />
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<i>Master Bathroom Windows/Blinds cleaned!</i> This was long overdue. I need to do it in every room but I started with ours because of all the dust on them. Babies don't need to breathe extra dust.<br />
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<i>Baby Laundry!</i> This has been done and put away in two of my dresser drawers. I have far more clothing for him then I did for Scarlett for the first three months. Thank you consignment sales! I do need to get another crib sheet though and perhaps a crib skirt if I can find one I ilke.<br />
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<i>Vacuuming!</i> I do this multiple times a week now. The house just isn't clean enough and having cats surely complicates this. I don't think I notice this as much in the winter bc I walk around in slippers but with bare feet in the summer I hate feeling debris beneath my feet.<br />
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<i>Making Dinner!</i> I've started meal planning and buying accordingly while trying to stay within a budget at the grocery store. This has proven difficult so far because I love the grocery store and I love sales at grocery stores. It's always hard to resist a 2 for anything! I did join Amazon Mom though and have started utilizing more coupons online for different things. So that will pay off very soon.<br />
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<i>Other Random Stuff!</i> I feel like that list is pretty short but I'm not going to put daily chores like laundry and dishes on there. Just seems silly to write a paragraph about that sort of stuff but trust me it's getting done!!<br />
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<b>Still To Do:</b><br />
Deep Clean Master Bathroom<br />
Shampoo Master Bedroom Carpet<br />
Vacuum Car<br />
Organize Kitchen Desk<br />
Wash Blinds/Windows in Every Room<br />
Organize Actual Office Desk<br />
Clean/Organize Fridge/Freezer<br />
Sew Memory Foam Covers (for Scarlett's Crib, Toddler Bed & Pack N Play)<br />
Recover a bumper for Baby Boy's Crib and Fix Scarlett's bumper ties<br />
And probably more..<br />
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I take this SAHM thing pretty seriously. Alex has a job and so do I, to run a household. I try not to let him do most inside housework because he already does a lot outside and the inside is my territory. Who wants to work all day and then come home and have to do more work when I'm here all day? We'll see how crazy it gets once I add another baby to this picture though, ha!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-32266580293275194922013-07-10T10:17:00.000-04:002013-07-10T10:17:08.443-04:00Can I have a successful VBAC?As you may or may not know, Scarlett was frank breech and had to be delivered via C-Section. At first I was disappointed by this, however it truly was the only way she could come into this world safely and that is really all that mattered. The thing about having a scheduled C-Section is.. you're fully rested when you go in. I didn't go through 20 hours of labor or any amount of time pushing, my body was rested not exhausted. I believe that made my recovery faster and easier. And that's what scares me about a VBAC (among other things).<br />
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What if I go through 20 hours of labor this time and spend some time pushing and THEN end up with a C-Section anyway? One of the main reasons I want to attempt a VBAC is for a faster recovery, so that it doesn't hinder my ability to care for Scarlett as well as our new baby.<br />
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Now, I do have a couple things going for me here. I am almost a perfect candidate for a VBAC. The only reason I had a C-Section was due to her position, not because my hips were too narrow, etc. This gives me great hope that I can do it. However, from what I've read, and I'm not sure if my midwives would admit to this if asked, is when a VBAC patient comes into the hospital, the staff is immediately nervous due to the added complications that could occur. Honestly though, I did wait long enough for my scar to fully heal so a uterine rupture shouldn't be an issue but I am sure they will have it on the brain.<br />
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Another fear.. the unknown. I know what a C-Section is like. I do not know what a contraction feels like, what labor will feel like, what delivery will feel like or what recovery will be like. Obviously, first time moms probably have this fear and for some reason, I wasn't scared of the C-Section. Maybe because it was a surgery, not hours of pain. Add to this that I am planning to have an unmedicated birth. Not having had any crazy amount of pain before in my life (besides some terrible gas pains in the beginning of my first pregnancy), I'm not even sure of my pain tolerance level.<br />
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One thing I do know, this is going to be a wild ride and in the end, I get a baby. I am positive he will be worth any pain I have to go through to get him here. Things I plan to remember (or that I will be reminded of by Alex during labor..) are:<br />
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This terrible pain has a purpose.<br />
This pain has an endpoint.<br />
Count slowly to 30 and the contraction is half over.<br />
You CAN do this.<br />
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That's all I have so far. If you have any motivational phrases that worked for you during labor/delivery, I would love to hear them!<br />
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I hope to have a successful VBAC birth story once this little one arrives. Send some good vibes into the universe for me!<br />
<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-71662626476601606562013-07-05T09:30:00.000-04:002013-07-05T09:34:15.774-04:00Life as a Tastefully Simple ConsultantSo i'm not sure if anyone is really curious about this or not, but since I care about it I'm going to go ahead and write about it.<br />
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Back in October (as I believe I wrote on here) I was looking for something to do in my free time that would generate some income. My mom mentioned Tastefully Simple, which I had heard of very briefly. I looked at their site and decided that people like food, right? How hard could it be to sell that?? After writing about it on here, my now sponsor Tracy contacted me to see if I wanted more information and after talking with her, I joined up!<br />
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I started with a Grand Opening Party in November which went very well and I had a great time making the easy to prepare food, explaining it to my family and friends and then I chose a winner for the rewards the party generated. I have learned a TON since that first party and at each party I learn a little bit more.<br />
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I've done a handful of parties for friends and family since that time, one fundraiser for Relay 4 Life and one event, which was a community yard sale. Some parties weren't super successful and some were. All great learning experiences for sure! I have an event coming up on Saturday at Seven Valley's Winery in York which I'm very excited about. I know I will learn a lot from this too and I really hope to book some catalog parties for the months of July and August as well as some possible Fall Tasting Parties.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Wkj87efvqXo/UdbLH4n2oBI/AAAAAAAACmQ/GUdXTd6sMws/s1600/NachoCheddarCheeseBall403x403.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Wkj87efvqXo/UdbLH4n2oBI/AAAAAAAACmQ/GUdXTd6sMws/s200/NachoCheddarCheeseBall403x403.jpg" width="200" /></a>A Tasting Party is where the host prepares food samples for guests to taste before ordering. A Catalog Party is where the host takes catalogs and order forms around to family and friends over a longer period and collects orders to earn rewards. I set up Catalog Parties to also include two samples for tasting purposes. Facebook is pretty big right now with these types of parties because family and friends can just go online and order directly if they cannot make the Tasting Party or won't see the host in time to order for the Catalog Party.<br />
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Like I said, I have done one fundraiser so far. I am very interested in doing more but it's a little bit hard to get my name out there currently since I don't have school aged children. There are ways to do it that I plan to look into but for now, I send out messages to people I am interested in working with to see if they're interested in working with me.<br />
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Overall, the experience has been very positive and fun! My sponsor Tracy is amazing and she answers any and every single question I have and is a great role model because she has a ton of fundraisers going and sponsors a large number of consultants and that number keeps on growing! I'm part of her team's Facebook Group which is extremely helpful. There are plenty of TS Facebook groups that are helpful for sure, it's a great place to get new ideas from other consultants.<br />
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I have one recruit so far and hope to have more in the future. I currently have a coupon code for $100 off the Business Blast Off Kit. I've been told this is the first time they've ever done this (you end up paying about $70) and I'm hoping it's been successful so that they run it every year. My code expires July 10th so the clock is ticking. If you've ever thought about doing a business like this, now is the time. It really is easy and it's actually fun.<br />
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A couple years ago, I had a Pampered Chef Party and the consultant was very nice but used all the sales cliches you can think of to try to get me to sign on. I have absolutely nothing against PC.. I have tons of products from that party that I use all the time and I love them! I just thought at that time that I could never do that. I could never be a consultant like she was. She was very very nice but I didn't enjoy the extra pushes, though I now understand she was probably just following the playbook. If you don't talk about the opportunity to join, you'll never know if they would've said yes.<br />
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In conclusion, lol .. I am very happy to be a Tastefully Simple Consultant. And though I may not talk about it much, I am working on that. To be completely honest, my target demographic is older than I am so it's more difficult to get into those circles but I'm working on it. I want to be successful and I know I can do it!<br />
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If you ever have questions related to it, please let me know! I'd be happy to answer them!<br />
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If you want to order, you can go to my website at www.tastefullysimple.com/web/mbrubaker OR send me a message. I offer great incentives for hosts as well if you're interested in that. I try to make it as easy as possible for you to have a successful and positive experience while earning free stuff!Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-85610665749558088372013-07-02T10:00:00.000-04:002013-07-02T10:00:06.981-04:00Let's talk about Scarlett!Here's an update of how our girl is doing. I don't have stats because they were last taken at 15 months and she's currently 17 months. All I can tell you right now is she's over 26 lbs, her height is in the 98% and her head size is off the charts, haha!<br />
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She rarely walks, it's mostly running. She climbs. She holds our hands when she's forced to. She's an explorer to the max. She says about 40 words that we've counted and learns new ones every day. She absolutely loves fruit, especially any type of berry. She's a very good eater and hasn't turned too much down. She doesn't enjoy sweet potatoes much, but loves olives and pickles!<br />
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She still takes two naps a day and I love it. It must be all the exploring that makes her tired. If she's 'on schedule' she wakes up around 6:15, takes a nap around 9:30 (these vary in length) and then lays down again around 3:30/4 when we're home, if we're out, she's fine without a nap. She goes to bed consistently at 8pm each evening. She's a light sleeper and goes through sleep cycles often so it's not unusual to hear her make noises at night.<br />
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She gives us hugs and kisses. She doesn't generally like older people, especially if they have white hair. Sometimes it takes her 10 minutes to warm up to people she doesn't know. She plays with her princesses in their castle now and makes them hug and kiss. She pretty much makes everything hug and kiss. When she hugs her stuffed animals she says "aww!" and then I die of the cuteness. She loves reading books. Her favorite was 'Goodnight Beach' but more recently it's 'Goodnight Pennsylvania'. She thoroughly enjoys the iPad and any iPhone she can get her hands on. She really likes Sofia the First and Little Einsteins. She likes to dance so she likes the shows that sing a lot. She rarely watches anything on TV unless it's a commerical.<br />
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She has almost all of her teeth, she's missing a front lateral incisor on the bottom and all of her cuspids. She has taken a while to get her teeth so we don't expect the cuspids for a while, who knows what's going on with the incisor. Teething does bother her from time to time so we use the numbing gel (put onto her paci) and occasionally some Tylenol or Motrin but rarely a full dose.<br />
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I just thought today that I should write down some "Parent Tid-Bits" that I have, one being.. when you go to the grocery store, always park close to the cart return.. this way you can get a cart on the way in and you're close to it when you need to return it at the end of the trip. I probably thought about it more today after carrying her into multiple places while walking a semi-far distance while 34 weeks pregnant. I'll try to document more as they come up.<br />
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Overall, Scarlett is full of love. She smiles a lot and she laughs a lot. Her personality seems very fun-loving and we're thrilled that she is growing into such a little darling (who never sits still).<br />
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<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-80361724866775084702013-07-01T20:57:00.001-04:002013-07-01T20:57:37.255-04:00Pregnancy Update!Today, I am 34 weeks and 3 days along. There are roughly 5-6 weeks remaining. This is crazy to me.<br />
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Time flies when you're already chasing after a wee one who is a non-stop mover/shaker. Let's review the past couple of trimesters, shall we?<br />
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1st Trimester<br />
Everything went just as smoothly as it did with Scarlett. Small hiccup with an umbilical cyst but it resolved itself within a couple of weeks (probably a pretty common occurrence). No more tired or hormonal than usual and no morning sickness. Score! We told our families and friends around Christmas and New Years if not sooner. We didn't wait until we were out of the first trimester to spill the beans. Bumps grow much faster the second time around though too, so people probably knew!<br />
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2nd Trimester<br />
Bump continued its growth spurts. I felt the first flutters and Alex felt movement soon after that. We found out we were having a baby boy! And we decided on his first name, which will remain secret until his birth. Sleeping became more difficult as time went on and I was forced to move from belly/back sleeping to side/side sleeping.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There's his little face!</td></tr>
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3rd Trimester<br />
I generally feel huge but I've come to terms with it. This boy does some crazy acrobatics in there that I didn't experience with Scarlett because of her position. He tends to sleep when I'm sleeping with naps throughout the day as well. He has been in numerous positions but stressed me a wee bit the past 4-5 weeks with the midwives saying he was breech. Today they said he's head down so he better stay that way. I am trying for a VBAC so wish me luck! I haven't had any braxton hicks but did have some belly button pain that went away with some rest. Also some groin pain when I over-do it, which also goes away with rest. I just have so much to do it's hard to slow down sometimes.<br />
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With 5 1/2 weeks left I have a full plan of things to clean and organize. I need to wash all of his baby clothing and organize the closet and my dresser drawer they'll be stored in. I need to move Scarlett from her crib into the other crib we have so that the baby can be in the drop side in our room. I need to pack a hospital bag at some point and maybe read about labor since I hope to go into it at some point. I need to bust out the car seat base from Scarlett and put it in my car and set up the pack and play and get out the bouncer seat from storage. The list goes on..<br />
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I haven't done anything nursery related because it's our current guest room and that will probably stay that way until he moves upstairs which will be when we're closer to being out of winter around 6 months.<br />
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That pretty much sums it up. Almost my whole pregnancy right there in a nutshell.<br />
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<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-10957256382753929672013-07-01T10:26:00.000-04:002013-07-01T10:48:37.133-04:00I'm baaaaack!So lots has been going on around here lately so I'll start by explaining the absence!<br />
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Last fall, work started getting pretty stressful and in addition to my part time hours, I started working at home as well during Scarlett's nap times and sometimes even in the evening. This contributed to the slow down of posting to the blog.<br />
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In November, I got pregnant (found out in December) plus the holiday season which seemed busier than previous years, probably because I had Scarlett to think about and plan for! I also started as a Tastefully Simple Consultant, so that took up some of my free time as well.<br />
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In the beginning of 2013, we had Scarlett's birthday party which was a blast, then in addition to working my part time job while at home, I also started a freelance project that also took more free time. Work was still pretty stressful so Alex and I started thinking about August (our due month) and how we were going to handle having two children with me working part time and if it would be worth it to look into me staying home.<br />
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Alex got a new job April 1st which has been a huge blessing. He is about 200x happier in this position and I really feel that he is now on a career path instead of just having a job. He has been loving it so far and I just know that will continue!<br />
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In May, we made the decision that I would stop working mid-June right before our vacations with our families. I put in three weeks notice after Memorial Day. My lovely coworkers threw me a surprise baby shower/best wishes party prior to my departure and it was all very bittersweet. Working at the same place for almost six years was such a great experience. I learned so very much and I'm thankful for all the great people I met there.<br />
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I went to OBX with my family a couple weeks ago and then met Alex and his family in Bethany Beach the following weekend for a few days there. I will write separate posts on those fun times with pictures! Returning last week and not going back to work on Thursday was a bit strange, and this week will be my first official full week without a steady job.<br />
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It's exciting (and a little scary) but I just know this is the right decision for our family and I am so thankful that we are in a position to do this. Plus, I can get back to writing here and documenting our life, if not just for myself, for my family and friends as well!<br />
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I definitely feel that our little boy hasn't gotten the blog attention that I dedicated to Scarlett over her time in utero but I'm going to write a couple of posts on it now and then definitely keep up on it when he arrives. Having a blog like this is like having a baby book and I love going back and reading about Scarlett and my pregnancy with her. I can't wait to do the same with him.<br />
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So stay tuned.. !Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-68718642495844620992013-02-07T08:00:00.000-05:002013-02-07T08:00:14.475-05:00This past weekendThis past weekend was pretty eventful. Friday during the day I went up to see my mom and sisters with Scarlett and also saw my grandmother. Later, I got my niece from my oldest sister and brought her back home with me for a sleepover. We had grilled cheese for dinner and watched The Smurfs :) Went to bed early bc we were tired and I slept most of the night hugging the edge.<br />
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Saturday, I had a Tastefully Simple party in the afternoon, so we all hung out in the morning, we watched one of the Narnia movies, Scarlett napped, I prepped for the party and soon enough it was time to go. I took my niece back to my sister and headed to the party. I learn more and more each time I do one of these and I think/hope that is making me better at it. My least favorite part is heating up the hot beverage and the soup.. neither of them really stayed hot for me or even warm really. I made new note cards though which helped immensely. It felt like we flew through the tasting part. I think next time I will engage people more, go around and introduce ourselves and if we've ever been to a TS party before, etc. Just to get people talking. A lot of people knew each other so that was good but I will remember this for next time. The party went well and I headed home around six. Hung out with Scarlett for a bit then put her to bed. Alex and I didn't do much after that, I enter orders plus we did our usual tv watching and also heading to bed early.. we're pretty early to bed these days with a 6am wake up call each morning.<br />
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Sunday, we had all day to relax until a Super Bowl party later on. We did our usual stuff. Alex has been re-seasoning some cast iron skillets for family members so he worked on that a little bit. I went to the grocery store for some supplies and made a yummy salad for this week's lunches. I posted the recipe <a href="http://abrubakerstory.blogspot.com/2013/02/southwestern-chopped-salad.html" target="_blank">here</a>.. I got it from Pinterest and it's so easy and delicious! We headed to the super bowl party around four and had a great time as we usually do with our friends. It was so fun watching our girls play together.. or beside each other. And it's awesome to watch them all grow up. We went home at halftime and Scarlett went right to bed. Alex stayed up to watch the game and I headed to bed around nine thirty.<br />
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Overall a great weekend. I love the mix of relaxation and plans. I think our coming weekends will be more of the same and I'll do my best to take more pictures of these events! :)Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-21210563155958521732013-02-06T12:28:00.001-05:002013-02-06T12:28:23.575-05:0012-13 weeks: round 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last Friday I was 13 weeks along but thought I would recap the last two weeks and even into the beginning of my pregnancy.. I talked about how we found out and more details about that in the last post.<br />
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My pregnancy so far has been going swimmingly. Pretty much the same as last time except a little more tired.. I attribute this to waking up at 6am every morning as opposed to last time when I could sleep longer.<br />
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I'm not having any food aversions or serious cravings, usually I hear something and it either sounds good or sounds gross, usually there are more goods then grosses. I have been reigning myself in though for the most part and def not going crazy food wise like I did at the end of the last go round. I want to gain less weight this time and make it easier to lose afterward. <br />
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No morning sickness in the first trimester again which was glorious.. I can't imagine having to deal with that while watching after Scarlett. I'm also starting to get to the chub phase where I look more chubby than pregnant. At the end of the day it's def a baby bump but in the morning, it's just plain chub. Photos coming soon.<br />
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Thus far we've had two ultrasounds, that's two more than we had with Scarlett at this point. It's def fun to see the baby but crazy that its less than an inch (8 weeks) then about two inches (12 weeks) and you can see it moving but can't feel it. We're looking forward to finding out the gender in 7 weeks! Sounds like a long time but these days are flying, I can't believe I'm already 13 weeks!<br />
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Until next time..Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-83682055677633378222013-02-06T12:27:00.000-05:002013-02-06T12:27:25.610-05:00Number Two<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
We have some exciting news to share, we're expecting number baby two! Most of you know this already!<br />
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We found out mid-December and since then have found out the due date which is August 9th!<br />
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The gist of the finding out story is, we've basically been 'trying' since Scarlett was born. I breastfeed for 9 months until my supply dipped so low we switched to formula. That's when I got pregnant. I had been waiting for weeks to finally cycle and had a weird inkling that on Nov 10th I was ovulating.. I waited 5 weeks after that to test for pregnancy since I had just tested around the 10th and I was basically testing once a month anyway. We were pretty surprised when the test was positive. I texted a photo to Alex and then had to go buy more tests bc of course that was my last one! I called the doctor the following day and scheduled the first appointment. I don't know why they didn't just schedule me and ultrasound right then since I told them there was no way to know when I was due. But in went for the blood test and normal first appt. It was at a different location than I was used to which was annoying bc I took Scarlett and I had to walk around for a while and ask people before I found it. And she's heavy! Giving blood was a real treat as Scarlett wiggled around after prematurely finishing the bottle I brought to drink while i gave blood. :) I scheduled the ultrasound for the following week though, silly Christmas time schedules. <br />
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The ultrasound determined the date as August 9th, which was close to both Alex's and my guess of mid-August. It was fun to see the babe on the screen looking like a tiny bean. They found a cyst on the umbilical cord which I did not find out until someone called a couple days later, maybe they had to send it for more tests or something.. Regardless they wanted a follow up ultrasound at 12 weeks, which was fine with us. Apparently these are common and usually resolve and aren't even seen bc most people don't have early ultrasounds. <br />
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At 12 weeks, we got that ultrasound and everything is cleared up and looking good. We always decline the first trimester screen but kind of got it as a freebie bc they tested/measured that stuff during this ultrasound to rule out most chromosomal abnormalities.<br />
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Here we are now, weekly posts coming soon!<br />
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And Here's to 7 more healthy months and hopefully a successful vbac! Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-15102894702878802312013-02-06T12:24:00.002-05:002013-02-06T12:24:47.757-05:00Scarlett :: 12 MonthsStats<br />
Length: 31"<br />
Weight: 24 lbs<br />
Head size..over the 100th percentile, ha!<br />
<br />
Eats: Still drinking the formula. We did test milk but went back to formula .. Looking back we should've just stayed with milk or a mix. She drinks about 6-8 oz about 5 times a day. On New Year's Day we visited urgent care and she was 25 lbs, height unknown! She eats 3 meals a day with snacks in between if she's still hungry, it's usually not necessary unless we're out somewhere. Overall she's a good eater and there's nothing she hasn't liked, even Ethiopian!<br />
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Sleeps: 2 naps a day, goes to bed around 7 and wakes around 6. Naps range from 45 min to 2 hours. She's a light sleeper and I'm wondering if that will be constant in her life.<br />
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Activities: well she's still walking and sometimes faster than we like. She babbles constantly but only says a couple words including yum and mama. She can clap and point and stack things, she can put things into holes so they fit and she loves music. Her favorite song and music video is gangham style, the remix one that the girl sings. <br />
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Other:<br />
She was fish kissing her lips together, one time. It was cute but didn't happen again. She has four teeth and sometimes it seems like she's teething but then is over it after a couple days with nothing to show for it. <br />
<br />
She can definitely understand us and decides whether to listen or not. She's generally good though and knows what she's not supposed to get into. She loves other children, especially her cousin Makayla. Instant laughs when she sees her. Overall, her mood is almost always pleasant and she smiles and laughs and is just filled with love. Sometimes you can see it oozing out of her, it's awesome!<br />
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She's been into cuddling more, hugging and kissing. Before naps we sit for a little bit and cuddle. She cuddles her panda bear and monkey and she likes to lay her head down on different blankets when she's sleepy. It's cute and also fun to see her little personality.<br />
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She's the best!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r2a5VU0Kk0Y/URKQFf0PS5I/AAAAAAAACjQ/MZbg1bWmvWI/s1600/_DSC7937.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r2a5VU0Kk0Y/URKQFf0PS5I/AAAAAAAACjQ/MZbg1bWmvWI/s640/_DSC7937.jpg" width="558" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Someone turned 1!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iCmJEoMzs_U/URKQFI7w5PI/AAAAAAAACjM/rNgKb7-_fjE/s1600/_DSC7957.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iCmJEoMzs_U/URKQFI7w5PI/AAAAAAAACjM/rNgKb7-_fjE/s640/_DSC7957.JPG" width="600" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She didn't really open many gifts herself. But enjoy them nonetheless!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She loved this quilt right away!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JM5QhSzMQUI/URKQGsx77LI/AAAAAAAACjc/q2qbkeTtbiA/s1600/_DSC8055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JM5QhSzMQUI/URKQGsx77LI/AAAAAAAACjc/q2qbkeTtbiA/s640/_DSC8055.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just wanted to add in one picture of decor.. it was kind of falling down at the end when I took this :)</td></tr>
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<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-13643163529663395332013-02-06T12:22:00.002-05:002013-02-06T12:29:44.611-05:00Scarlett :: 11 MonthsNo Stats and No actual sticker shirt pictures.. :)<br />
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Eats:<br />
She drinks about 5-6 bottles a day, varying in volume. We
do about 75% formula and 25% cow's milk. She eats 3 meals a day with
snacks in between if she's hungry. This past month she's tried lots of
new things including having thanksgiving turkey dinners twice. Thus far
she is not too picky, she eats whatever we feed her which is nice.<br />
<br />
Sleeps:<br />
She
has been sleeping through the night since mid-November. She does still
wake up sometimes and whimper but goes right back to sleep afterward. We
eventually just had to let her self soothe through one night and then
she kind of caught on. She doesn't cry when we put her to bed anymore,
she just cuddles up to her monkey and either chats herself to sleep or
drifts right off. Her bedtime is a consistent 7-7:30pm. Her naps are
pretty consistent now too, and longer than before. One day she gave me
2.5 hours. I didn't know what to do with myself! She usually lays down
from 9-10am and then from 2-3pm and the naps last anywhere from 1-2.5
hours. Morning naps are generally longer.<br />
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Activities:<br />
She's
been full time walking for a while now. She also added climbing to her
repertoire. She can climb up on top of our hearth and stand up. Problem
is, she doesn't know how to properly get down... we had it blocked off
pretty well for a while but with an upcoming fireplace insert being
installed, we aren't sure yet how we're going to prevent that. She
babbles like a brook a lot of the time and loves to sit and laugh at her
books still. She has said mama, baby and yum consistently now for a
month. She likes to grab blocks that have been stacked and carry them
around, trying to keep them stacked. She kicks her soccer ball and
volleyball around the room a lot too.<br />
<br />
Other:<br />
Let's
see, this past month she had her first Thanksgiving and she sat on
Santa's lap which went really well. She found a snuggle buddy with her
monkey which is the first time we've seen her actually cuddle something
intentionally. We moved her nursery to the other bedroom upstairs for
noise purposes and it's been working out so far. She loves to smile and
laugh. It's so easy to make her laugh by saying "pee-yew" or tickling
her. She's just so pleasant.<br />
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We love her so much!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vhNY_Mvncys/URKQCi_UJNI/AAAAAAAACis/eYzoOxIwY7Q/s1600/_DSC7616.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vhNY_Mvncys/URKQCi_UJNI/AAAAAAAACis/eYzoOxIwY7Q/s640/_DSC7616.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We got our Christmas Tree!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cjb_3kNL-cs/URKQDcCFGDI/AAAAAAAACi0/lSlTVE8Olgg/s1600/_DSC7626.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cjb_3kNL-cs/URKQDcCFGDI/AAAAAAAACi0/lSlTVE8Olgg/s640/_DSC7626.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is the lucky tree.. we always choose really tall and then cut part of the way up!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Jr3tj-mFEhU/URKQDS5AHeI/AAAAAAAACiw/ycK1OdAJbEc/s1600/_DSC7749.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Jr3tj-mFEhU/URKQDS5AHeI/AAAAAAAACiw/ycK1OdAJbEc/s640/_DSC7749.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas Morning!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-00HuMiFCxlc/URKQEexI0KI/AAAAAAAACjE/izYxcmFkqbs/s1600/_DSC7911.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-00HuMiFCxlc/URKQEexI0KI/AAAAAAAACjE/izYxcmFkqbs/s640/_DSC7911.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gotta sit in a tire at the Farm Show!</td></tr>
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<br />Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5373205124744095813.post-64211658200990434222013-02-06T12:20:00.003-05:002013-02-06T12:29:44.614-05:00Scarlett : 10 Months<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Op5SHrzw4JA/URKQBYIsAiI/AAAAAAAACiY/2X4m97TBn4E/s1600/_DSC7552.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Op5SHrzw4JA/URKQBYIsAiI/AAAAAAAACiY/2X4m97TBn4E/s400/_DSC7552.jpg" width="266" /></a><b>Stats</b><br />
Weight: ??<br />
Length: ??<br />
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<b>Eats</b><br />
We added chicken to the mix this month, hoping she might sleep a little longer at night if she had some more protein in her belly to process.. nope! It worked the first night but none following that. She's been eating the same and I asked the doctor about starting whole milk in the evening.<br />
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<b>Sleeps</b><br />
So far, same as usual. Consistently up at 6am. Daylight savings has not been nice to us so far.<br />
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<b>Activities</b><br />
She's definitely walking more and more. She squats down to pick something up and stands back up again. Sometimes she gets ahead of herself and tries to run, which makes her fall down. She probably walks/crawls 70/30. We chase her all over the house.<br />
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<b>Other</b><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Hp4cryZrY-M/URKQCPapLGI/AAAAAAAACig/EXpVrKYe3NY/s1600/_DSC7602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Hp4cryZrY-M/URKQCPapLGI/AAAAAAAACig/EXpVrKYe3NY/s400/_DSC7602.jpg" width="266" /></a>She's working on her top teeth right now. Teething is not a fun process. I look forward to the end of that but seeing teeth in her mouth is such a sight when you're used to seeing so much of her gums.<br />
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Wow, this is the shortest monthly update yet. This is due to my lack of free time and hence, the little blog hiatus I was on. But i'm back! ;) Michellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14795524908217617777noreply@blogger.com0