tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89310555185022568382024-03-13T15:10:40.883-07:00IF MeWe have a beautiful baby girl now, after three years of struggling with fertility!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.comBlogger341125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-58078624680931366902015-02-06T07:41:00.000-08:002015-02-06T07:41:24.891-08:00Baby Boy's Birth Story (long edition)Baby girl: 21 months<br />
Baby boy: 12 days <br />
:)<br />
<br />
Hello friends!<br />
Sorry I have been absent for so long - I've written a million blog posts in my head, but that doesn't really count, does it?<br />
<br />
Yes, little brother is now on the outside! And with that comes a TMI birthstory for my ladies, yes?<br />
<br />
First
of all I'd just like to say how thrilled I am to have this little baby
boy. I am so grateful we had even on healthy baby, I still can't
believe we have two now.<br />
<br />
And I love this little
cuddlemonster to bits! He's really quite a good baby. We really lucked
out! A bit of gas now and then - but he's got less than his sister,
and we thought she was a good baby. :) I was hoping for a little
snugglebum, and I got one. Every day I reflect on how blessed we are. <br />
<br />
And
a little pause - if you are awaiting your first birth - your story
won't be like this one. This is a second, short, birth. In fact, maybe
don't read on, there's a bit of doom and gloom (but of course you will,
right?)<br />
<br />
So I had been feeling contractions on an off for a
few days. They say this is common in second labour - false starts. So
I wasn't too worried.<br />
<br />
But I did think he was coming
Friday Jan 23rd, because I'd had quite a bit of contractions Thursday
night. No dice. Then I had a bunch of contractions Friday night and
Saturday morning, so I thought fo' shizzle he was coming Saturday. No
dice - no further contractions during the day on Saturday. Pippa was
out with my sister in law all day, and I thought that would have been an
excellent time to birth, but no.<br />
<br />
So Saturday night
(Jan 24th) around 10pm, I started having some contractions again - but
this time they were harder than before. They weren't the classic 3 min
apart, 30s long - but they were 30-60s long, and about 7 min apart. We
decided to page the midwife at 11:00pm.<br />
<br />
We ended up
with a midwife we haven't met before calling us back, that was kind of a
surprise. But my primary mw was off call for the weekend, and my
secondary had two overnight births the preceding days. But she was
totally nice, it was fine.<br />
<br />
I told her about my pattern
(we were timing using an app), and she said she'd come by and check me
out. I felt kind of bad to drag her out of bed if labour was going to
stop, but she said it was fine, she'd rather check me out. (Babies uber
alles!)<br />
<br />
She came by and checked me and I was 4-5cm
(100% effaced) - thank goodness, these things were starting to hurt!
(or so I thought at the time). She stayed for about an hour, but things
didn't really pick up while she was over - they sort of dwindled - got
farther apart and not as hurty.<br />
<br />
She left, saying to
page her when I had 4-5 strong ones in a row. Well, pretty much as soon
as she left they got a lot stronger. Very much stronger - I went from
breathing through them to making the eyes-shut-screaming-face (no actual
noise). We paged her and she arrived back at 1:40am.<br />
<br />
I
had the idea maybe a hot shower would help - and it maybe did a little
for like 2 contractions. Then I decided to sit in the tub - that was
probably not a good idea. By this time I was in a LOT of pain - it felt
like every little movement hurt. No more 'rest' between contractions.<br />
<br />
I
was 6-7 cm by this time. "That's it? Are you kidding me?" I thought.
She said she thought the rest of labour would go fast, and I kind of
agreed. These contractions hurt too much to not be opening my cervix, I
thought. She called the backup midwife (there are always two at every
birth - one for the mom, one for the baby).<br />
<br />
The tub was
useless and hurty, I decided to get out. I made my way to my bedroom, I
arrived on the bed and got onto all fours. Not glamorous, but there
you have it. I couldn't take the idea of rotating into some other
position, I was in too much pain. Already my contractions were at the
"this is too much, I can't handle this" level. It was awful.<br />
<br />
3:51am
the backup midwife arrived. I did not care. I was already pushing.
Pushing baby girl out was different than baby boy. This pushing stage
lasted 14 min (according to the paperwork), but it was WAY more pain
than I could handle. (For reference, I pushed baby girl out for like
2.5hours - yikes).<br />
<br />
The midwife put some pressure on my
hips with every push - at one point I started a contraction and she
wasn't there, and I had forgotten her name and was just like "Midwife!".<br />
<br />
With
my first labour I yelled "OW" really loudly - this one I just
screamed. I kind of felt like a cow. ?? Serious. It was awful.
Really, really awful.<br />
<br />
He was born at 3:58am. Baby girl
slept through the whole thing, but we did have my sister in law come
stay the night just in case. <br />
<br />
DH and I decided to
not talk about a #3 for a year (well, it was mostly me) - but I don't
think I want to go through that again. It sounds selfish...but it was
really awful. "Awful" is the word to describe this birth.<br />
<br />
On
the other hand, recovery has been WAY better than the first time
around. And so far I haven't been sad - huge improvement over last
time, where i was inexplicably (well, due to hormones) sad for two
weeks. Nursing is going fine, baby boy gaining weight like a champ.<br />
<br />
He's a great baby. I loves.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-45184734177039332702014-10-24T08:38:00.000-07:002014-10-24T08:38:00.439-07:00Ninja baby gender revealIt's going to be a ....<br />
<br />
<span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>BOY!!!!!!!</b></span></span><br />
<br />
Hooray! We kind of wanted a boy for #2. :) We're so blessed!<br />
<br />
And I get to decorate a nursery in nautical theme, a silly dream of mine for years. :)<br />
<br />
Let's see if we can actually have that happen before he comes? I am doubting it. ;)<br />
<br />
I was a bit nervous about changing a boy's diaper (I had only ever baby sat girls), but I've been assured it's no big deal.<br />
<br />
Now I need a few new unisex cloth diapers to replace some outrageously girlie ones we have. DH is against this, he doesn't think it matters - but we're only talking about a couple of diapers here, and I do think it matters! (even if it's just to me)<br />
<br />
Hooray!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-17073556947289868212014-10-21T08:31:00.000-07:002014-10-21T08:31:57.838-07:00Baby girl is a year and a half today!!And the inside baby is 26weeks along.<br />
<br />
Babygirl sort of kicked off her half-birthday with some vomiting last night. Hello, last-night's-dinner! Poor girl. Everything is all laundered now, I'm home with her today - she's down for a nap now.<br />
<br />
I felt so bad taking away her favourite soft toy last night, but it was vomitous. It is now cleaned and back in her arms. :)<br />
<br />
<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Baby girl is getting a bit pickier, and clearly says "no" when she doesn't want something. She's in that throwing things on the floor stage. Not fun for Mommy to clean up (bending is beginning to be less fun for this pg Mama!). I don't really know how to stop it - she doesn't care that I react negatively, and time outs take too long to take her out of the high chair and wipe her up. Someone at work suggest moving the whole high chair into timeout. We'll see. She'll out grow it soon enough.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth Diapering</u>:<br />
We've outgrown our wool diaper cover! Poot. I need to order the next size up. This is because I crazy stuff them to catch her copious amounts of night pee. We're only left with Pampers in the house right now - means a trip to costco! I can't STAND the smell of scented diapers, we plan to send them to be used at daycare (who insists on disposables, if you'll recall). I think it is leftover from my IF days, the fake baby smell drives me crazy. Real babies don't smell like that anyhow (mine, anyway).<br />
<br />
<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
She's doing pretty good, I think, right on track. Lots more talking, animal sounds, body parts. We're working on colours, but so far no dice. (Although she can say "yellow" and once brought me a yellow book when I asked...but not to be repeated). She can count up to about six (well, ten, but a number might be missed), but I'm pretty sure she doesn't really get counting yet? The other night I brought her a book to read in bed, and it's one we don't read very often, and I was surprised she knew it was about hugs.<br />
<br />
<u>Fav Songs</u>: <br />
Hearing her sing songs is THE BEST, but so far I haven't been able to capture on video. She sings Old MacDonald, Twinkle Twinkle little star, Rain is falling down (which she actually brought up on her own while it was raining yesterday!), ABCs, How are you, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDcAHLuYNjI">Wind the bobbin up</a> (we are working on knowing where the ceiling, floor, window and door are. I think we've got Window so far). They all are sort of loose connections to the real song.<br />
<br />
<u>Baby Health</u>:<br />
Still has daycare running nose almost all the time. As mentioned, she vomited last night, but in general she's been ok. A bit of a rash last month that went away eventually. I found some really great <a href="http://www.betterbabyhealth.ca/cod-liver-oil-forte-fish-oil-by-genestra-300-or-500ml.html">cod liver oil for kids,</a> so I've been dosing her. I even like it - not fishy at all, which I take to mean it's quite fresh. It really does have a nice orange flavour. So we're doing four things to prep for fall flu season: vit D, pro-biotics, cod liver oil, and she'll get the flu shot. (Not that its supposed to be that good this year)<br />
<br />
<u>Sleeping</u>:<br />
We do have some nights of full sleep, but it isn't consistent yet. We were giving her milk in the night, because we think she was hungry, but our dentist scared us away from that, we only give water at night now. I still think she needs 2 naps a day - she easily naps twice a day on the weekends when she's home with me.<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
Doing good! So far this pg isn't too bad at all. :) Inside baby is starting to become more active. I'm starting to get rather big, so things are becoming less comfortable. Doing a bit of waddling, getting hard to bend down, that kind of stuff. 3rd trimester kind of stuff! DH has been pretty good at taking care of me and my food cravings. But I could be eating healthier.<br />
I haven't measured my weight at all this pg (I want to wait for the big number at the end), but I feel a bit ginourmous at times.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-41865343749346436172014-09-01T08:12:00.000-07:002014-09-01T08:12:32.539-07:0016 months/19 weeks!Again, sorry I'm late!<br />
<br />
We've been traveling - to visit my step-sister in Calgary, and then for a wedding of a very close friend in B.C. It was at a ski resort - fun! She was my maid of honour, and I was in her wedding party - fun! Even if I felt like a whale in the dress. ;) <br />
<br />
This last week I've been home with her - daycare is closed, so I took vacation. But we've had family in town, and it was a nice transition from being away, so it's been lovely. I miss mat leave!<br />
<br />
There have been some VERY exciting updates in the IF blogger community lately, that's been wonderful. Against all odds, TCIE is pg! Hooray! I cried when I heard that. Amazeballs, right? Love it! (Want more <i>details</i>!) And JellyBelly is really ready and close to adopting! Hooray! LOVE that. (And using such positive adoption language!) And JBTC's baby girl is now doing so much better - hooray!<br />
<br />
<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Good. Which makes me so happy, still! We were eating kinda junky on vacation (lots of pasta/pizza, oh my!), but we're home now and we're back on track. Well, at least the baby girl is - Mommy has not been eating enough vegetables.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth Diapering:</u><br />
It's been nice to use 100% cloth diapers while we're home! Now including night diapers, thanks to our fancy wool cover.<br />
<br />
<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
She's getting to know some body parts now! She knows ears, nose, belly button (which we call bee-bo, but close enough), and I think she knows belly now too. :) She really likes pointing at Mommy's bee-bo (as it ever expands!). She follows more complicated directions now (time to go upstairs/go put your shoes on) - not that she can put her own shoes on yet.<br />
<br />
<u>Fav Songs:</u><br />
Still Old MacDonald, If you're happy and you know it, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (which she kinda sings! cute!)<br />
<br />
<u>Baby Health</u>:<br />
She's had daycare runny nose since she started. Even while on vaca. <br />
<br />
<u>Sleeping:</u><br />
She's been sleeping a LOT since we got home, it had me a bit worried. I'm talking like 18-20hrs a day! I was a bit freaked out after she had a really lethargic awake period, but her awake periods seems to have gone back to normal. I think it's a growth spurt? Good think I was home to allow for all this sleeping. <br />
<br />
Sleeping is still a major beef I have with the daycare. Girl needs 2 naps, they only give her one. They have all sorts of blahblahblah about it, but it boils down to she needs it/too bad. Grrrr. I think sleep is VERY important, this does really upset me. But there's nothing to do but get a nanny, which we're hoping to do for when I go back to work after #2.<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
Baby #2 (Ninja!) seems good in there! I've started to feel some kicking in the last few days, so that's good. :)<br />
<br />
I had some pretty bad back problems while on vaca. They seem to be fading in and out now. Like, sort of a pinched nerve kinda deal. I think I need someone to nag me about my posture! It's time for ball-sitting at work now anyway (since we've passed 18 weeks), so hopefully that will help my posture.<br />
<br />
I take that whole <a href="http://spinningbabies.com/">spinning babie</a>s thing very seriously. I do think it helped while my labour for baby girl, because her position was good.<br />
<br />
ttys!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-63293370330854610612014-08-01T08:06:00.002-07:002014-08-01T08:06:51.902-07:0015.5 months/15 weeks!Sorry I am late!<br />
<br />
We've had a lot of changes in the IF Me household this month - DH got a full time (although contract) job, and Pippa started....daycare. wah wah.<br />
<br />
We've certainly had some trouble adjusting, but I *think* things are smoothing out, now after our second week at daycare. (Really, it's a Montessori). I'm so glad I'm only working for ~6 more months, I dislike this lifestyle heavily! I barely see her, it's mostly for eating/bathing/bedtime (and she's tired and cranky) - and then after she goes to bed it seems all we have to do is housework then to bed for me! Bah. (We just finished another reno, so the house was EXTRA dirty, so I am hoping that's why it seems like a bit overwhelming right now, and will calm down).<br />
<br />
I've had some crazy evenings with her this week, but hopefully she's adjusting a bit more. She does like daycare <i>I think</i> - since she is very social. They made us sign a year contract, and we talked them into at least letting her go part-time in March. It probably will be helpful to have her at school during the day when i have the new baby around, but after a month or two I would like to have her around!<br />
<br />
<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Mostly good - except when tired after a day at daycare. Oh man. Then it's Mommy feeding her on my lap while I say soothing words, and her not really eating a ton.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth Diapering:</u><br />
One of the worst things about daycare is the won't use cloth diapers! Grrrr. I HATE disposable diapers. I think this is really lame - my friends were all shocked, and said their daycares take cloth diapers. I did order that <a href="http://woollybottoms.com/category_41/Size-Medium.php">wool diaper cover</a> and it DOES work for overnight diapering - hooray! But using disposible all day means I can really only use cloth on the weekends, plus thurs/fri nights - because you can't leave the diapers sitting all week, there is a 3-4 day limit after which you should wash them.<br />
<br />
<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
We've blown past 20 words - I stopped counting. She says quite a lot of words, and knows what sounds quite a lot of animals say. (Lion, doggie, cat, monkey, snake....) She only knows where her ears are right now. If you ask where he nose is, she'll point at her ears. :) She can say a couple of two word phrases, but I'm not sure it counts - like "all clean!" or "all done!".<br />
<br />
<u>Fav Songs:</u><br />
5 Little Speckled Frogs. She says "E I E I" and we take that to mean she wants to sing Old MacDonald had a Farm. Which she loves. We have this horrendous kids CD in the car which calms her right down if she's freaking out on a car trip. But it's super mega awful (songs are slightly 'wrong' to how I know them, kids have bad accents, music is poor, timing of some songs are 'wrong' to me...ugh). So we're going to try this car trip this weekend with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singable_Songs_for_the_Very_Young">Raffi</a> in the car (which I love, and listened to as a kid!), and hopefully she likes it.<br />
<br />
<u>Baby Health:</u><br />
Well, she started daycare, so she has had a runny nose for the last two weeks. Nothing major yet. Also some teething going on, we've had a few rough nights.<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
Good, fine. Due date is ~Jan 20th. I have had a few headaches which I'll be speaking to the mw about (very unusual for me to have headaches that aren't related to eye strain). I have more energy now (back in the land of the living!), but work then putting the baby to bed does really drain me. I like to go to be at or before 9pm now - getting up at 6:30am has been hard for me.<br />
<br />
We're trying to have a 'cook day' (aka, Sunday) to cook the food for the week, so that lunches/dinners go very fast. So far so good, but Sunday is a lot of work, and takes longer than I'd think! I need to get more efficient, me thinks. DH complains I dirty too many pots. <br />
<br />
We're away this weekend, which is going to throw the whole system for a loop anyhoo.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-66302219262961078392014-06-22T16:38:00.000-07:002014-06-22T16:38:02.069-07:0014 months!14 months!<br />
~9 weeks!<br />
<br />
Times flies, right?<br />
<br />
Working is going a little more smoothly now, we're settled into a routine (I go to work early!). It still breaks my heart when I hear her say "Mama" over the phone though! (We have several phone calls throughout the day, that's nice)<br />
<br />
<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Good! She all of a sudden doesn't like sweet potatoes or squash...? I'm hoping this is just a passing fancy. Like avocado was - she's all over that now. She's been a bit fussier about eating her veg now.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth Diapering</u>:<br />
Still good. I ordered a wool diaper cover, am quite excited about that. Going to try night diapering again. Also, I am trying to get involved with a charitable organisation around here that gives used cloth diapers to families in need. <br />
<br />
<u>Milestone</u>s:<br />
She's saying many more words now, it is exploding all of a sudden in the last few days. They are still baby versions of things, but still cute. She's starting to repeat after us when we're like "Say banana!" she'll go "nana". Good enough! And so cute! In peekaboo songs, she'll now often go "peek boo". :)<br />
<br />
<u>Fav Songs</u>:<br />
"Rain is falling down, SPLASH" (specifically verse two about peekabooing). She's starting to get more interested in "Mr. Duck went for a walk" which is a fun puppet song (or hands, if no puppets available).<br />
<br />
<u>Baby Health</u>;<br />
Still excellent. Our normal easy sleeper has been taking a long time to put down lately. Let's hope this is just a stage! We're maybe shifting her bedtime up a bit to try and counter this?<br />
<br />
She FELL OUT OF HER CRIB last week, ohmygoodness. We put a thin mattress on the floor in case she does a jail break again....we also try and put her in a summer sleep sac, but so far she breaks free of it every night (it's homemade). I'll keep you posted.<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
Weirdly good. I don't feel pg most of the time. So far this has been much easier than the first time around. I do need to make sure I eat, but its really easy to avoid feeling sick, no big shakes. Last time there was high drama now and then.<br />
<br />
Going for another u/s next week to check on dates. Oh, had first mw appt! That was fun. Mostly I have questions about nursing a toddler and a newborn. She's says that's tots ok. I still have some Qs.<br />
<br />
I am so casual this pg, it's so weird. My Dad asked me how big the baby was, and he was expecting some kind of fruit answer, and I was just like "still really small".<br />
<br />
Oh, and my mw went over my bloodwork with me. All good! I am particularly proud of my iron levels, I will commence bragging - <b>144</b>! I guess it's all that grass fed beef? (Nah, I'm sure it has to do with body chemistry - I know beef farmer wives who have low iron). Anyhoo, no need for iron pills here. And since they do icky things, I feel quite happy skipping the whole caboodle.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-9942637560639235702014-06-07T07:16:00.001-07:002014-06-07T07:16:04.377-07:00Ninja's first u/s7 weeks, 2 days<br />
<br />
I had our first ultrasound earlier this week. Turns out I am now 7 weeks, 2 days, +/-3 days. Due date is January 21.<br />
<br />
We sort-of saw a little heart-beat like flicker, but its rather early.<br />
<br />
The Ninja is a singleton, good to know (twins frighten me).<br />
<br />
That's about it!<br />
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I still don't "feel pregnant" mostly, but now we know that's probably because it's so early. Maybe.<br />
<br />
Special thanks to Feather for coming up with "the Ninja" nickname - DH loves it. It's a good one, this baby is like a ninja, sliding in under the radar like that!<br />
<br />
First midwife appt is in a week, I'm looking forward to that. I have about a billion fewer questions than last time! :) My main questions are about nursing while pregnant.<br />
<br />
I am hooked up with our midwife from last time, that's great. We had a good experience, and of course the fewer people all up in your lady bits the better, IMHO.<br />
<br />
Hooray! All is well! We're so blessed!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-9820788447168930882014-06-02T14:43:00.002-07:002014-06-02T14:43:37.881-07:00A leeetle jokeJust plain ol' skip this post if you're IF. Skip. It's not really that funny,<br />
<br />
__________<br />
<br />
So at my cousin's wedding on the weekend, they had one of those complimentary baskets in the ladies room. You know what I'm talking about? With bobby pins and hair spray and handcream and things - you know, things you may need at a wedding. Well, in their ladies room basket was also a pregnancy test!<br />
<br />
I kind of laughed when I saw it - as if you'd <i>need</i> to check if you were pg at a wedding! I thought to myself "this is totally a gag!". So I went and told DH about it, and how it was funny, and together we sort of concocted a plan that I should take it!<br />
<br />
DH really had to talk me into it, but in the end I agreed it would be funny. So I went and took the test (it was still positive, thankgoodness!) and then DH wrote a little note "No drinking for me tonight I guess!" and we put in on the counter.<br />
<br />
Then we acted like it wasn't us. The bride and the bridesmaids were all whispering, and I had to look away guiltily. At one point the bride said "CS, was it you?" and I was all "What?" with what I was hoping was an innocent look, but probably I looked super guilty because I'm not much of a liar.<br />
<br />
The bride went up to the mic and asked who it was (because she wanted to congratulate them, she loves babies), but still I said nothing.<br />
<br />
After a bit I went over and told her, and we had a good laugh (we saw your gag gift, we thought we'd raise you one!). I did say she couldn't publicly congratulate me, but she understood it's early. Phew! I was worried she wouldn't find it funny, but she totally did (they are VERY easy going people). And I think her and my cousin will work on their own new baby very soon - we even did a "wouldn't it be fun to have babies the same age!?" thing.<br />
<br />
Funny. Or maybe you had to be there!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-23883621040118908542014-05-23T19:35:00.001-07:002014-05-23T19:35:57.997-07:0013 months and back to work![I wrote this piece on the weekend in anticipation of being being busy on her actual 13th-month-day. How a second line changes things! I've had to edit it! :)] <br />
<br />
Well, I'm back to work as of May 20th. I can't believe it's already been 13 months. Well, technically I've taken a little more time off...it's probably more like 13.5months, because she was overdue and whatnot. Sorry no pic this month!<br />
<br />
Some working-mom whining, you can skip:<br />
I was having a lot of trouble dealing with going back to work. I haven't been away from my baby girl for more than a few hours, ever! And now I'm supposed to leave her all day?! A LARGE part of me wants to sell the house and move somewhere rural and live off the land. But DH isn't so into that. And I mean, I'm SUPER lucky he will be staying home with her. But still...I want it to be me! Think of all the baby smiles I will be missing. Poot. And it's been a GREAT year - best year ever, hands down. If we are good and pay our mortgage off DH says I can retire. :) I really really like being a Mom. I even like changing her diaper. I still am in shock sometimes this is our life now. Love it. We've been so blessed. Even having DH home most of the year with me has been such a blessing. <br />
<br />
Knowing I'm pg makes going back to work way easier. In my head when things are already getting crazy at work, I'm like "I'm here for like 8 months, yo." - helps not to be too invested in things. <br />
<br />
<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Still great! She's even moved up from 15% on the weight chart, which doc says is very good. We are so lucky to have a good eater - she's really been enjoying her barley lately.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth diapering</u>:<br />
Still great! We had a little rash, but it disappeared in a day or so.<br />
<br />
<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
Walking like a prostar! (Well, actually, toddling like a toddler) She's a great walker now - not that she doesn't fall every now and then, but still having her walking is great. I would say easier than before.<br />
<br />
She says about 8 words now: Dad/Daddy, Mama, Up, Happy, Baby, Uh-oh, Hi, Baby and Pippa (but it sounds like Peee-pa - close enough). We have a "my first 20 words" page up on the fridge, that's fun.<br />
<br />
She's not doing too many baby signs these days, but we're still using them. She kinda does "water", but it's rather vague. (You use your W hand and tap your chin - she just sort of roughly aims at her mouth area). Because she eats like a maniac, she's been forced to do "more" so we don't cut her off early. Because we feed her a ton of food, and think that little baby tummy must be full, but she wants more!<br />
<br />
<u>Fav Songs:</u><br />
I think "How many days does my baby to play?", "Ride, Horsie, Ride", and "Nelly goes 'cross the ocean". DH will be taking over going to baby singing class now - I'm JEALOUS. But we have a great book (<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Whatll-Do-Baby-Nursery-Stories/dp/0969866615">What to do with the Baby-o</a>) which is basically the same as the class, so I can keep up. The song "Boom boom boom" made me break down in tears yesterday.<br />
<br />
<u>Baby Health</u>:<br />
Good! She had her MMR vaccine last week, it (I think) made her a bit fussy at times, but we seem to be past it.<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
<strike>Still no AF!</strike> -> Because of my BFP! Because I never had AF visit, I don't have too much idea about how pg I am. Dating ultrasound is scheduled for in two weeks, my doc hopes that will hit 7 weeks.<br />
<br />
I don't have too many symptoms yet - but unlike last time, I'm relaxed/happy about that. I know that symptoms may come (or may not, each pg is different, right?), so no need to wish them to happen. Puking in the parking lot at work is less fun than it sounds, I'm ok if that doesn't happen this time. ;) But I sort of expect it, so will at least be prepared. No worries.<br />
<br />
I'm not showing yet or anything. But I do think I'm starting to have cravings. Poor DH. Oh, and I've been sleeping like it's going out of style. Seriously, like 7pm kind of sleeping.<br />
<br />
<u>Sleeping</u>:<br />
Great. She was up twice a night for the last week, but she's back to magic. I think being up was maybe just from the MMR vaccine making her a bit fussier. She's back to - sleep all night until ~6am, nurse, back to sleep until ~9am. So far me going back to work has not influenced her schedule.<br />
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<br />CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-23758350097907719712014-05-19T07:52:00.000-07:002014-05-19T07:52:51.677-07:00Today turned from Sad to Glad with a Big Fat.....POSITIVE!<br />
<br />
OMG. Yes, you read that right - we are expecting again!<br />
<br />
I was expecting to be all "woe is me" - work starts tomorrow. I was very sad/nervous/upset about going back to work.<br />
<br />
I am seriously the most blessed/lucky/fortunate lady in the world. It's no big shakes going back to <i>now</i> - its only for 9 months! And we have to pay the mortgage/save up for the next mat leave.<br />
<br />
OMG. Next mat leave. Wow! It seems unbelievable!<br />
<br />
I know that there are no guarantees this pg will stick, so we'll take it one day at a time. And this is NOT yet confirmed by a blood test. It's a holiday here today, so we'll have to fit that in sometime this week.<br />
<br />
Wow, I totally have been wishing I could say to my boss when we talked about what I'd be doing back at work, tell her I was pg and only going to be there for 9 months. Amazing. And how lucky - its really best for her for planning to be able to know this upfront. That's actually why I tested today - so I would know for sure when I was going back to work. I didn't even pray for this or anything, it seemed way too greedy.<br />
<br />
Remember I've had no AF (still nursing), so we have no idea about dates or anything. But I tested sometime last month, so it's probably a few weeks along max. I feel super un-pregnant, which is why I'm maybe still feeling a bit of shock. Then again, I had a massive crying jag while watching 'Call the Midwife' (best show ever, btw) on Wednesday, but that was maybe pg hormones. I even said to DH, "I haven't cried that hard since I was pg!"<br />
<br />
Wow. Wow wow wow. Half of me wants another girl, the other half wants a boy. Ha!<br />
<br />
What a morning! I want to test again to make sure! :) (and obvi blood test!) It still seems so unreal. OMG, our little family is growing! We are so blessed. Like I've said before, we would be happy with just our baby girl, but we did want more than one if we were so blessed.<br />
<br />
<br />
PTL!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-33372959283610519342014-04-23T08:17:00.001-07:002014-04-23T08:17:18.615-07:00First Birthday!We just celebrated our baby girl's first birthday, can you believe it?! Yikes! Love her! We're still so thankful for her everyday. We often just stop and say..."Can you believe we're parents?!" <br />
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We made a cake to match her dress. It was tasty and pretty, we're so happy about how everything turned out. We had a little party at our house, mostly family and a few friends. Fun! I didn't want to go overboard on a one year old's birthday party. But birthday cakes are very important to DH and I (it's always a big deal what kind of cake you will choose for your bday), so we put a lot of effort into her cake. <br />
<br />
I did also end up making some whole-wheat sourdough bread and kefir-cultured butter for the party. :) <br />
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<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Still good. We're lucky she's such a good eater! I did end up giving her the sourdough bread I've been making this month to ready myself for the party. I think her fav food right now are still mangoes. I really try to make sure she eats a lot of veggies at every meal, but that can be tough. She loves chicken as well.<br />
<br />
We generally feed her what we're eating - but not if it's too salty.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth Diapering:</u><br />
Still am so happy we're doing it. Our dryer is working again, so I've moved back to drying them in the dryer. Also it's (finally!) getting warmer out, meaning our basement isn't quite so dry, so hanging them inside isn't as good an option any more. Soon they can go outside! <br />
<br />
I kind of don't understand why people (who having washers and dryers in their homes) <i>don't </i>cloth diaper. I've been thinking about this a lot. It's cheaper, much more environmentally friendly, good for babes bums...win-win-win. I think it <i>seems</i> hard, but if you tried it for a week you'd see it's no big shakes. There needs to be more diaper trial places out there, so you can see for yourself.<br />
<br />
<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
Walking! She's just about there. Can take 4-5 steps on her own. Right now she still prefers if you hold her hand while she walks, but every day she gets a bit better! You should see her in singing class, she's all over the room! (She's the aggressive kid, visiting every baby/Mom pair)<br />
<br />
Her first actual steps on her own were maybe 2 weeks ago. Both DH and I were there to see it. We were like "Did you see that?! She just walked! Woohoo!"<br />
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<u>Fav Songs</u>:<br />
Hrmm...I think "Mr Duck went for a walk". At Church on Easter it was pretty cute, she was clapping along as the choir sang a song. A lady in the choir who sits behind me pointed it out, and we both pretty much had a cute-attack.<br />
<br />
<u>Baby Health</u>:<br />
Some teething trouble this month, we had a few rough days, but then she was ok. She has 4 teeth coming in on top - two are mostly through already. We both got colds, and are both over them. I actually think it was worse for me, I had a fever, she had no fever (good!). She still hasn't had a fever yet - knock on wood!<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
Still no AF. A few weeks ago we were visiting friends, and it turns out they have #3 in the oven! We got to talking about AFs, and she says she hasn't had an AF in 4 years (due to baby baking and milking)! NICE, right?! Another friend and I made those ridiculous plans that fertile people make, that if we got pg she'd get pg too so we could be on mat leave together. Ridiculous. But I'd LOVE that. My IF brains says "ha! It's probably not going to be so easy!"... but one can hope. She's only giving me I think 5-6 months to get pg, then they'll probably go for it. Hahaha. Fertile people! I was inspired by all of this fertility that maybe I was pg already...but BFN. AF really just isn't back yet. <br />
<br />
I nurse far less than I used to, so maybe she'll be back...I suppose when I start work (planning on nursing still 2x a day then). The good thing (besides the obvious) about her being gone are that at least we're not <i>worrying</i> about #2 not arriving yet. For I do want another baby in my belly pronto! It would have been nice to go back to work pg, but it looks like that's not going to happen. Which is ok and all. I mean, if we don't end up having another we'll still be happy with our adorable baby. But I'd like another (at least. truth be told we're hoping for 3). They are cute. And the diaper are then even cheaper because they will work for the next baby, should we be so blessed.<br />
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<u>Sleeping</u>:<br />
Still a champ! Still about 12 hrs + 2 naps. 2 or 3 bad days while sick/teething, then back to her normal self. :) I think she secretly loves sleeping, or her crib toys or something, she normally doesn't kick up too much fuss when she goes down. Good girl!<br />
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<br />CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-21551959263929078282014-03-24T11:03:00.000-07:002014-03-24T11:03:05.106-07:0011 months!Like, a few days late. Sorry! I feel like I write these in my head all month, but when it gets down to it I haven't had much computer time lately.<br />
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That's not her "official" 11 month photo (it's a few days before) - but dang if it just doesn't tug at my heart strings every time I see it! <br />
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<u>Eating</u><br />
She generally eats everything now. I haven't given her wheat (besides the 'floor toast' incident at play group). I think I will wait until her first birthday, she'll get to have a bit of her birthday cake. Also, I'm starting a huge kefir kick, and did you know you can make kefir sourdough bread? Like, for reals. Coolio. So she may get some of that. (I am aiming to have some homemade kefir-sourdough bread and butter for her birthday. Neat, right? If I was super fancy I'd make some kefir-cultured butter too. Woah.)<br />
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She doesn't like avocado! She's like, the only person ever to not like avocado, right? hahah. She seems to like everything else. Well, besides some of the packet babyfood. But in all fairness, some of them sort of are icky. We mostly only eat those in a pinch.<br />
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<u>Cloth Diapering</u><br />
Still good! Our dryer broke several weeks ago. I thought this was going to slay me, but it turns out I just have to be a wee bit less lazy and a tiny bit more creative, and we're good to go! Diapers take ~24hr to dry (in our basement in the current weather), so I have to plan for an extra day of diapers. It just means I use covers once in a while. And I gave up our fancy inserts for a while, I was worried about them drying too slowly. I use prefolds as inserts, size 2. They can hold like 5000 cups of liquid. :) I may never go back.<br />
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<u>Milestones</u><br />
She seems like she 'gets' more communication with us now. Like if I say "Come here, Mommy will read you a book." she knows what's up, and she comes on over.<br />
<br />
Speaking of "up" - she can totally say "up" and she knows what it means. :) First "real" word, I would call it. She says "hi" appropriately too, come to think of it.<br />
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She is very solid on the 'milk' babysign now. We babysign lots of foods at her, but none are coming back yet. Many are a bit tricksy to do, I wouldn't expect them for a few months. I would think maybe '<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teWHDZ6z3OA">cheese</a>' would come next? (Still an excellent hi-fiver and bye-byer)<br />
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She's not walking yet, but getting there. A very good cruiser. We can play "walk to Mommy" game, but that's mostly her falling at me and getting cuddles.<br />
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<u>Favourite Songs</u><br />
This french song a friend taught us. Very fun. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0aMIKXajw8">Pirouette Cacaheaute</a>. We sing a slightly different tune though, haven't found it on youtube yet.<br />
<br />
'Mr Bears says Hello' (cutest name ever for a class, right?) starts this week, so I'm sure we'll be learning new songs soon. Any good advice on a days of the week song?<br />
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<u>Baby Health</u><br />
Fantastic. Nothing to see here. ;)<br />
Seriously, super good all month. She still has just her two little bottom teeth, so no teething even.<br />
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<u>My Health</u><br />
Remember I said you should go see a Pelvic Floor Physio? Yes. Do. She fixed my lady problems. I am going to cancel the gyno appt. (Don't need any more peeps up in my lady parts, you know?)<br />
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Still no sign of AF. I plan to return to work on May 20th.<br />
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<u>Sleeping</u><br />
She is lately a sleeping CHAMPION. This is a really great phase for us. She now sleeps from about 7:30pm to about ~6am. She'll feed, and then go down again until 8-9am. :) AND, she takes two 2hr naps in the day. Without much fussing usually.<br />
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Magic. I am almost afraid to speak of it lest it disappear. I know babies go in phases and this won't last forever, but we're enjoying it for now. <br />
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<br />CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-5353321618984357932014-03-05T19:19:00.000-08:002014-03-05T19:19:58.351-08:00$20 well spentA very lovely thing happened today, so I thought I'd share.<br />
<br />
____________________________________________________ <br />
<br />
Pips and I were out for a walk this afternoon. As we were walking by a subway station, an old woman approached us and asked for a token or change. I did my usual jerky "sorry, don't have any" and made to move on, but she was rather persistant.<br />
<br />
So, I looked for a token to give her. As I was looking for a token, she told me her pension had stopped because she hadn't filed her taxes, but she had just filed them and it would be starting back soon, but she was just in a bad place. She also showed me this massive bag of broccoli that she got for $1 (it was starting to turn). She said she's cook it with butter and maybe a potato and she'd be fine.<br />
<br />
I didn't have a token, but I gave her what I had - and that was like $0.40. Not much. She said thank you and we parted ways.<br />
<br />
But as I was about to turn the corner, something made me pause and look back. A thought went through my head - drug addicts don't buy broccoli! Now, I know there is a whole school of thought that says it isn't your business what someone does with any money you give them, but it rubs me the wrong way to give someone money for drugs or booze when they have addiction problems.<br />
<br />
And I started to feel guilty. I did have my bonus $20 in another part of my wallet afterall. You know the $20 you keep because you run on very little cash and there are times you need a bit of cash money?<br />
<br />
So I went after her and handed her the $20. And lo! I think she was overwhelmed for a bit. She said "PRAISE JESUS! Jesus brought you to me!" - and I have to wonder - maybe He did. She said Jesus would bless me for this, and I replied that He already had, giving me my baby.<br />
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Really, I would probably waste $20 in the blink of an eye, it's not that big a deal - I don't want this to come across as me thinking I'm so generous or anything. At church you always talk about helping others, and here was an <i>easy</i> opportunity for me to do so. She clearly needed a little bit of help to get by. She even said "It's not for drugs!" at one point, and I was like "I know!"<br />
<br />
We hugged. And I tell you, I had the BIGGEST smile on my face the whole way home. It was really moving, her response. And it kind of makes you wonder - what did make me pause and turn back to her?<br />
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All in all, I think I got my money's worth! Nice way to start lent! :)CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-39772449022915845382014-02-22T07:35:00.001-08:002014-02-22T07:35:59.051-08:0010 months!Our little Pipster is 10 months old (yesterday)! Can you believe how time flies?<br />
<br />
I have to give my boss a definite date to return....probably I should email her this weekend. It's a busy weekend what with the gold medal hockey game and all - we're having a party. Canadians take Olympic men's and women's hockey very seriously, yo. Otherwise I can't imagine people showing up at our house at 7am!<br />
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Oh, and speaking of returning to work - looks like DH will be a stay at home Dad. He's been doing some freelance, but hasn't got a full time job yet, so he'll stay at home. This is good. Someone needs to be home with her, and while I'm jealous it's not me, I think this will be a good thing.<br />
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Since I'll be back to work soon (only 2 or 3 months left! sad face.) once Olympics are over DH is going to start our renovation projects we have left. Next on the docket - built in bookcases in the living room. Wish us luck! ;)<br />
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[Seriously, we are a big Olympics household. Normally we don't watch TV until she's gone to bed, but it's on steadily for most of the day now! DH is a huge sports fan. We've been super Olympics lazy lately!] <br />
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<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Have started giving her grains - steel-cut oatmeal, hulled barley, buckwheat. All prepared in accordance with ma hippies. You know, soaked overnight with a bit of vinegar. For the buckwheat, I made it with butter and broth - very tasty! I am a bit wary of grains (just started reading "Grain Brain")...but they do help her sleep better, I think! I pray for grain discernment. Really. Scourge of mankind or nice thing that helps her sleep and put on weight? I canna decide.<br />
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We do a mixture of her self-feeding and we helping a bit with the spoon. We're on a good kick right now where every morning I make a blended veggie drink (it is SO pretty before I blend it I keep instagramming it!), and she drinks her portion throughout the day. I am very pleased she likes it - I don't add any fruit, and I often throw a raw clove of garlic in there, but she's down. And I <i>really</i> like that she's getting her veggies fresh instead of sitting in a jar for a few months. I think my in-laws are not jazzed that the food is raw, but....I think it's fine (better, actually).<br />
<br />
Breastfeeding is backing off a bit (more on that in the 'sleep' section).<br />
<br />
Oh, and we've started her on MILK (full fat). Like, from a goat or cow, not just from Mommy. She seems to like goat milk more, and to like it more if it's not super cold. We didn't even have a milk pitcher, we had to go out and buy one! (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_bag">Canadians drink milk from bags</a>. It's seriously better. I was pretty surprised when I lived in the US to find they don't sell milk in bags. It just makes more sense, y'all). She's drinking about 6-7 oz a day, which I am amazed at (we were previously having a lot of trouble to even drink like 1/2 oz). She can use a straw in a sippy cup - this seems to be the way she drinks the most. The doctor said she can drink up to 2-3 <b>cups</b> a day, so I knew we had to get some drinking going.<br />
<br />
I went out and bought some fancy organic milk in bags, and we freeze the bags we're not using yet. This way the milk is cheaper than buying by the litre, so I can buy the fanciest milk around. I think I saw some organic un-homogenized cow milk at the store, I will buy that after we finish the frozen bags of regular organic homo cow milk (Canadians also refer to full fat milk as "<b>homo</b>", and we don't even giggle. I know this doesn't make sense sine 2% and 1% milks are also homogenized, but we call those "<b>2%</b>" and "<b>1%</b>"). Hippies <a href="http://www.wellwise.org/blogs/kantha-shelke/homogenized-milk-better-or-worse-you">are not down with homogenization</a>, yo - although the jury is still out.<br />
<br />
My current plan is to alternate cow and goat milk (by the bag). They have different amounts of vitamins and minerals, I figure it's good to cover all the bases (cow has lower calcium but higher folic aicd, goat is the reverse, for example. Although goat tends to be fortified with folic acid, depending on the dairy.).<br />
<br />
<u>Infant pottying:</u><br />
Um. I kind of have given up. Sad, right? What can you do! She was starting to resist sitting on the toilet, and if she did sit there she didn't seem to pee as much as she used to. Like, hardly ever. Just this week I decided to throw in the towel and move her change station back to her bedroom. She's also stopped being quite so squirmy, so you can get a diaper on her without doing gymnastics anymore. It helps if I give her a shoe to munch on - she LOVES eating her shoes.<br />
<br />
<u>Cloth Diapering:</u><br />
So good! A friend of mine just had #2, and they're cloth diapering her! We handed down our prefolds to them. Isn't that nice that now they can handle a whole 'nother child without blinking? And she'll give them back if we are so blessed with a number two of our own. :) I plan on doing some diaper reviews soon, since we have about 4 billions different brands now, and I have some opinions.<br />
<br />
<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
Pretty darn good cruiser now. Can now stand a few seconds on her own, but this is still pretty shaky. Can climb stairs (with adult supervision!) very fast.<br />
<br />
She's pretty solid on the baby sign 'all done', and I swear I've seen 'milk' in there a few times. She can point at the milk when she wants it, which is new. I'm adding more signs in every day or two for different foods, she's watching me, but so far she's not dexterous enough to do them. Or just doesn't want to. ;)<br />
<br />
She's sort of chatty, and she <i>might</i> have a few words. She definitely says "Dada"/"Dad" type words, and "Nay nay nay" (for no), sometimes "ma ma" type words, but that is less linked to me. She can kinda say a baby version of "hug", and can say "baby" but I don't think she means it. <br />
<br />
She can high-five, kiss, come to Mommy/Daddy on command. So she kind of already meets her minimum 12 month milestones. Good girl. She will also laugh if you are laughing - very cute. DH will sometimes fake laugh, and she'll join in, which is funny and cute.<br />
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<u>Favourite Songs</u>:<br />
I'm still not doing much singing. Need to get back into a class. She likes this clapping song I made up. OH, and here is the best second verse to the "Itsy-bitsy spider" I've ever heard! Y'all northern ladies will be feelin' this!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: purple;"><i>The Winter Itsy-bitsy Spider </i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: purple;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: purple;">The Itsy-Bitsy spider climbed up the water spout</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: purple;">Down came the snow and <b>froze</b> the spider out!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: purple;">Out came the sun and <b>it didn't do a thing</b>,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: purple;">so the Itsy-Bitsy spider <b>had to wait for spring</b>!</span></div>
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<u>Baby Health</u>:<br />
Good! We're over all those colds. :) Her weight was good at the doctors at our nine month well baby group - she's still on that 15% for weight. Height (50%), head circumference still fine.<br />
<br />
<u>My Health</u>:<br />
Am over all those colds too, thank Goodness! So sign of AF yet. I was at the doc's for my own checkup, and they asked when my last menstrual period was, and I was like "um...about July 15th-ish....2012". hahhaa. I like that. I still feel so blessed.<br />
<br />
I do have a Gyno appt booked for the end of March to see about my lady parts. The doc suggested in the meantime I see a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist. Did you know that was a thing? I had no idea. So I went to see one yesterday. She recommends all ladies go after birth. Interesting, right?<br />
<br />
Also, they can help with endo pain! Who knew?<br />
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<u>Sleeping</u>:<br />
Much progress has been made - she's down to waking up 2-3 times a night (and now we call 'night' 7pm-7am). I don't think due to any magical sleep training, but I think the extra carbs in the day plus WHITE NOISE have been helping a lot. We bought a white noise track on iTunes, and play it when she sleeps her naps and overnight - this helps to cancel out some of our creaky house and busy street noises, I think.<br />
<br />
We still are on a path to cut down how much nursing she has a night. We have a whole timer system going. I sort of keep messing it up. We're right now allowing 1.5 min per side after the letdown (which can take ~2 min). BUT, this relies on me telling DH to start the timer at the letdown...well, last night I swear I was sleeping, I totally forgot, DH was not pleased.<br />
<br />
He also doesn't feed her every time she wakes. If its up to me I feed pretty much right away, her crying tears at my heart. So he's in charge. It's hard! But it's the right thing to do.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-37480198133264884152014-01-28T08:44:00.002-08:002014-01-28T08:44:48.039-08:00All done!~9 months old<br />
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Well, one day after I had posted that Pippa wasn't doing any baby signs yet - she started doing "all done"! :)<br />
<br />
It is very cute. I will try to catch it on video. It is like a new world, she can tell us at least this one thing! Sometimes we don't like it ("are you <i>sure</i> you're all done your carrots?"), but we're trying to respect it. I think we don't do "all done" the most common way, because I just tried to google for a picture of it and found all sorts of pics of how we <i>don't</i> do it. Oh well!<br />
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In health news, Pips has a bit of a vomit/diarrhea combo deal going on. The doc says it is going around. Poot! Should be done by tomorrow. The real question is whether or not DH and I will get it! Chinese New Year is coming up, it would be a shame to not be able to partake of the big family meal!<br />
<br />
We're also planning on sleeping over at his parents, so DH can ring in the new year with family, and everyone can eat breakfast together (if we eat the first meal together we'll be together all year). We're also madly cleaning up today - it's a luck thing, no cleaning on New Years day, so it's a good reason to 'spring' clean before CNYE. Until DH and I were married, I had no idea what a big deal Chinese New Year is!<br />
<br />
Oh, and a word about<b> banana baby food</b> - I will say, I think I have been shopping at 'Bananas R Us'! On a weekend trip to America (to visit a friend who has a baby due soon! super fun!) we found lots more veggie options in packets (I was limited to packets when buying cruise food). I brought home a few so they'd be around if I ever was in a fix and needed some food pronto.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-89321244590319896782014-01-21T13:20:00.000-08:002014-01-21T13:24:37.373-08:009 monthsOur baby girl is 3/4 of a year old! Man, how time flies!<br />
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Our little baby girl is even bigger now! Can't believe it!<br />
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<u>Eating</u>:<br />
Still mixing purees/mooshed food and a bit of her feeding herself. She really loves gnawing down on a carrot or piece of apple. Still haven't fed her any grains - gave her a bit of buckwheat yesterday, she wasn't too jazzed by it. I will try again later.<br />
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She loves greek yoghurt! So I give her that with an egg yolk for breakfast some days - helps her to eat the egg yolk. I had to throw out all my nicely prepared beef liver after the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/news/toronto-power-outage">power outage</a> (we were out ~60+ hrs), I'm just now getting around to preparing another beef liver.<br />
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On the cruise she ate the baby food I brought for her, and we fed her off our plates when appropriate. So...store bought baby food is like, mostly bananas? I'm not super impressed. Even the fancy organic ones are mostly bananas and apples. Um...babies need veggies and protein too, ja? They would have kale or broccoli on the front and in the name, but if you tasted it...bananas.<br />
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I did like the lentils we brought, and gave her some lentil curry that I made this week - she likes! :)<br />
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Still breastfeeding like mad. <br />
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Speaking of cruise - here is our baby girl on a beach in the Cayman Islands! That was a fun day. DH, Pippa, my Dad (heretoknown as G-Dad) and I hung out at the beach.<br />
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<u>Infant Pottying:</u><br />
I think the cruise week has put us off track a bit. She was in disposables all week, we hardly pottyed her at all. She really protests when we put her on the toilet. But once on, she settles down and pees if she needs to. I'm hoping this is just a stage and she'll be back to it soon.<br />
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Her poos have gotten less gucky, so I can just flip them into the toilet, it's not too much fuss.<br />
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<u>Cloth Diapering</u>:<br />
Yes, still on it - except for the cruise week. My little Pipster is a VERY squirmy baby. It is now super hard to put prefolds on her - she just won't stay still! Even with the 'leg over' technique. So I've ordered a few more velcro diapers (yes, yes, I'm a diaper hog!). I can put the velcro ones on her while she's standing up - which is what she loves to do in the bathroom, just stand and hold on to the edge of the tub.<br />
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<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
Sort of the same as last month. Is <i>better</i> at standing. Does some cruising but not very often. We're trying to teach her to 'high five', but it's in the early stages still. Meets all her 9 month milestones. Hasn't done any baby signing back to me yet.<br />
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<u>Favourite Songs</u>:<br />
Um...haven't been doing too much singing! I need to sign up for another baby signing class, so I keep my head in the game! We're old enough now for 'Mr Bear Says Hello'.<br />
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<u>Baby Health</u>:<br />
She did get a cold this month, and has a bit of a cough still. Otherwise good.<br />
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<u>My Health</u>:<br />
I did come down with the same sickness that she had. I developed quite the chest cough on the cruise, which I am terming "cruise cough". <br />
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My lady parts did not quite heal as I would have liked after the birth, I will make an appt to see about this soon. Still no sign of AF.<br />
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<u>Sleeping</u>:<br />
Here is our focus for the next month. She's still feeding about the same number of times a night as ever. DH and I have decided to bite the bullet and sleep-train her next week (we're planning to go visit some friends on the weekend, we'll start after that. When we're 'done' we'll go to my hometown to visit Pippa's new born cousin!). I think it will be rough. But hopefully it will work, and will have been worth it.<br />
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We're planning on reducing her night feedings by one minute a night - to theoretically shift her eating from night into day. She's still feeding like 3-4 times a night, and that's not going to be cool when I go back to work. I have a friend who this worked for, so hopefully it will work for us! :)CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-23196414527323742752013-12-21T12:11:00.002-08:002013-12-21T12:11:59.510-08:008 months!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Merry Christmas everyone! Thoughts are with you all this holiday season! :)<br />
I can't believe I have an 8 month old baby! In my head this is the transition from little baby to big baby, and here we are! <br />
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<u>Eating</u>:<br />
We're still on mostly purees, with some pincher practise (organic peas). I've given her sheep and cow yogourt, she seems fine with it. She still hasn't refused anything yet, but she's now keeping her mouth shut to indicate she's done. We're lucky she's so far such an easy girl! I'm not sure she knows that she can refuse food. :) I suspect this time might be over soon.<br />
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She eats twice a day, I'm thinking of adding a 'snack' in the morning as well. Also, I've given her some coconut cream this week - fat good for the baby! <br />
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We go away on a cruise next month, I think I will bring store bought food to cover the week. Customs won't allow homemade food through, so I think this will be our best bet. If there is some food I can give her that we're eating I will, but I will have baby food as backup. I'm thinking the packets will travel well. Any mommy tips about travelling with food?<br />
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Breastfeeding still the rest of the time. Really, it hasn't slowed down at all. Tried giving her formula once, but she was having none of it.<br />
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<u>Infant Potting</u>:<br />
We've moved to changing her diaper on the bathroom floor since she's such a squirmykins (in the middle of a diaper change she can pull a fast roll and suddenly be on her tummy - yikes!). Way safer. And I can use the 'leg over' technique if I have to! <br />
<br />
This bring pottying to the next level - she goes right on the toilet. Cleanup is a DREAM. She poos about half the time in the toilet now. EXCELLENT. Every poo in the toilet is waaaaaay less work for me. Scraping the poo from the diaper into the toilet is fine, but often poo seems to get everywhere still. Blech. Even with gloves, still...it's a bit of a mess at times. So I much prefer the poo directly into the potty! :)<br />
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<u>Cloth diapering</u>:<br />
Yes, we still are. It's going great! With the change of soap (to Tide free and clear) all my diapers are working fine now. I've had to start stuffing them with more liners since Pips is peeing more since she's bigger.<br />
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My 'China cheapies' came and they're fine. A bit on the big side. I'm going to buy my friend who is expecting a whack load of them (like I think I'll be able to get ~21 for ~$100). Exciting and fun! Feel a bit guilty....but 21 pocket diapers is pretty much all you need! Another friend and I will split it - we were kind of a threesome in university, it's great we're still close.<br />
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How I deal with grown up poop? I have a scraper that I keep in a bucket next to the toilet with gloves. I scrape the poopey diaper in, and rinse the scraper in the toilet, then put the diaper in the pail. It's ok to have a bit of poop on the diaper, just not loads of it. It all comes off in the wash. :)<br />
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<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
Super duper awesome crawler now. Twice now she's actually crawled over other babies lying on the ground. Pulls herself to standing pretty easily now. She's really a physical kid, she's tough! She's still not super keen on sitting. She <i>can</i>, but she's not all that into it. Likes playing at climbing a mound of pillows, although she doesn't actually climb yet.<br />
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Lots of babbling! Says "da da" type of words often, but I don't think she's quite connecting it to DH yet, but we're trying to reinforce that. Waves "bye-bye" with one arm - that's my favourite! :)<br />
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Still hasn't been sick yet, knock on wood! <br />
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<u>Favourite songs</u>:<br />
Alas, no automatic song smiles anymore. Seems to like "Hello Pippa, and how are you?" the best right now. Also likes "Let the fall leaves fall".<br />
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<u>Sleeping</u>:<br />
No real change. She still is generally up 2-3 times in the night for breastfeeding. It can be a bit rough. Sometimes its 4 times. <br />
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She's sleeping her own room now, so DH gets up and brings her to me. I'm a super lucky lady! I sometimes bring her back, sometimes DH does. She does generally go right back to sleep, so that part is good - it's the being woken up out of a dead sleep that can be hard if it happens a few times in a night. I do wish she'd go a bit longer between feeds, am trying to feed her more in the day, but not seeing much of a change. Again, if it <i>really</i> bothered me we'd do some fancy protocol to reduce night feeds, but I'm not there yet.<br />
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Last night she did sleep from 11:30pm right to 5:30am - awesome, right?!!!<br />
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<br />CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-5240378395367516912013-11-30T17:48:00.001-08:002013-11-30T17:48:18.068-08:00Move to crib! <p dir=ltr>What I said about keeping her in the pack and play a while longer? Lies. </p>
<p dir=ltr>My snuggle bum today can pull herself up on the crib sides! Yikes! So crib and pack and play will be lowered tonight, and we'll begin transition to big girl crib. Yikes! </p>
<p dir=ltr>She's growing up so fast. </p>
<div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj44Y1ztbHdpOFi5ILqiDM2tWLGv6Ocbeku_sVawDJ6RwPcet2Z-NC3NoK7eLF0wO8rX3AHmZXGHnBeiUBKJOfYQZ7RkpwEuZZc_-XRri6fmLd0wCDRecD4K_BvsxDkuYqunIsOXvoJg1w/s1600/IMG_20131130_153142.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj44Y1ztbHdpOFi5ILqiDM2tWLGv6Ocbeku_sVawDJ6RwPcet2Z-NC3NoK7eLF0wO8rX3AHmZXGHnBeiUBKJOfYQZ7RkpwEuZZc_-XRri6fmLd0wCDRecD4K_BvsxDkuYqunIsOXvoJg1w/s640/IMG_20131130_153142.jpg' /> </a> </div>CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-4940570040447018662013-11-28T09:08:00.000-08:002013-11-28T09:08:01.032-08:007 months (better late than never)Our 7 month State-of-the-Union!<br />
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<u>Eating</u><br />
We've started solids! We started at 6.5 months. She's had boiled (in bone broth) root vegetables (carrots, sweet potatoes, rutabagas, turnips, parsnips), avocado (pictured above), liver pureed with bone broth (from 100% grass fed cow), a bit of caviar (that I rinsed to make less salty), prune puree, squash puree, peas, pear puree I made with a bit of lime and gelatin...I think that's it to date. Oh, and some pig's blood - you know, the Chinese dish? Just a bit. Iron. She doesn't seem to love or hate much yet. Ok, ok, she doesn't seem to enjoy the liver so much, but she does eat it. And I only give her a few baby spoonfuls every other day.<br />
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We were all for <a href="http://www.babyledweaning.com/">baby led weaning</a>, but she was having some constipation problems, so we moved to purees. We seem to be back on track, this week I plan to do half purees (I used the broth to puree) and half boiled veg she can feed herself. <br />
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Still breastfeeding the rest of the time, and I give her a little water or broth to help with the poo-ing.<br />
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<u>Infant Pottying</u>:<br />
Going well! She often poo-poos in the potty. Now that she's eating solids, this is a huge deal. Waaaay easier to clean up. But it's up to us to race to the potty when she starts straining. Still pee-pees in the potty when we make the cueing noise if she has to pee (usually she does).<br />
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<u>Cloth Diapering</u>:<br />
We still are. I will say this has gone trickier with the grown-up type poos coming now. I don't quite have a good system down yet for getting the poo off the diaper when it doesn't all go in the potty. It tends to sort of get everywhere (GLOVES are worn!). Hopefully this will get smoother.<br />
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My Bum Genius pocket diapers have started to repel. Bah. This means an instant leak as soon as baby pees. Lame! So I tried to strip them following instructions found online (loads of washing, use Dawn dish detergent). They may be incompatible with the coconut oil I used on my diaper wipes? I recently read that maybe it's my laundry soap causing the problem, Nature Clean. I've used this for ALL of Pippa's clothes from day1, and never had a problem, but apparently it can cause repeling in some diapers (not her Happy Heinys, those are still AWESOME). I'm currently deciding what to try next - I may keep washing them, or may give them to a friend unlikely to use homemade diaper wipes.<br />
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I have bought four more pocket diapers - "China cheapies". They are like 1/5th the cost of fancy diapers made in North America. But now I feel guilty (they haven't arrived yet, actually). So today I'm going to go out and buy a $20 AMP <a href="http://www.ampdiapers.com/">pocket diaper that is made in Canada </a>and has great reviews. Am excited. Diapers are kinda a hobby, these days! :) And as they'll last for the *cross your fingers* next baby, a good investment.<br />
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<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
Definitely knows her name now. Doesn't always look at you when you call her, but that's cuz she's being cheeky! ;) Is a great "creeper", but isn't fully crawling yet with bum lifted. Can really locomote around a room, whatever you call it! She knows that when you move a toy out of sight it hasn't disappeared, she goes and tries to get it. Loves peek-a-boo type games. Sits up only for ... maybe 10 seconds before toppling. Not super interested in walking at all, prefers her tummy/back, but she does stand with support. She babbles quite a bit - we like to "sing" together, which is me imitating her noises. Amazingly (to me), when I'm dressing her and she's playing with a toy, she knows to move the toy to the other hand because I'm going to need to put her other hand in the sleeve soon. :) She's not quite reaching to be picked up and held, but she's thinking about it. :)<br />
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<u>Favourite Songs</u>:<br />
You can no longer guarantee a smile by singing her fav songs. Too bad. I'm not sure if I just need to get her a new fav song, or she's done that stage. With the exception of "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3PUpef5OPE">Grand Old Duke of York</a>" (that's the song, but we raise her up which is what makes her smile - and I don't sing it all weird and creepy like the vid), she still always smiles to that - except in swim class. She will generally laugh to near/far type games with kisses.<br />
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<u>Sleep</u>:<br />
No change. Still wakes up twice or three times a night to feed. We seem to know LOTS of babies that sleep through the night now. But...I'm not bothered by it enough yet to enact complicated plans to get rid of a feed. Maybe next month? She's still in the pack-n-play next to our bed, so it's not terribly inconvenient. I laid down the law said she can't move to her own crib until she's down to one feed a night. I know we planned to move her at six months.... but this seems like too much for me, to get up 2-3 times and go into her room.<br />
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Things are going really well in generally, I'm really quite happy. As she ages she's much easier to handle, I'm still really enjoying my maternity leave.<br />
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CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-46118005734586407342013-11-27T08:24:00.001-08:002013-11-27T08:24:43.689-08:00Baptism baby!Pippa is 7 months old<br />
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Pippa was baptized this Sunday at Church! It was a lovely ceremony. :) Loads of people came back to our house for lunch after, that was nice. We counted 42 - woah! Our little house was rammed, but it was very festive.<br />
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This is Pippa being held by a friend of the family. We don't have too many great photos of the event/baby, alas, so this is what you get! Thank you for the gown advice MHE! I decided to buy here gown online, but not quite so fancy (DH would have never gone for a really pricey gown). It was the <a href="http://www.adorable-kids.com/Cotton_Baptism_Gown_Christening_Dress_Halifax_p/kayla.htm">Kayla</a> gown. It was reasonably priced and made in the USA, I was very happy with it. It actually garnered a lot of compliments - and older English lady at church said it "made her day" to see a traditional gown! Hah! :)<br />
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I was SUPER excited the whole lead up to it. How many times have you sat in Church during a nice baptism and wanted it to be your baby? Loads. Me too. I couldn't believe it was finally our turn.<br />
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Pippa's Godmother will be her Aunt (DH's oldest sister). No Godfather, as she's not married. We're sort of all about family being the godparents - well, until we run out of Aunts. ;) My own Godparents are friends of my parents. My Mom and the one Godmother fell out when I was a baby, so I've never met her. Lame. And the other ones we were all in touch (they have a girl about my age) until I was maybe.... 9ish? Then they divorced and scattered and I never really saw them again. Lame. You can never divorce your Aunties, so our theory is they will always be in Pippa's life. :)<br />
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Since both of DH's sisters don't have children, we kind of are having the kids for them, they are very involved. That's good. I likes. :) It's very good for Pippa to have lots of Aunties. I have lots of Aunties (like, I have...10?), and I think it has benefited me.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-35465463469169342582013-10-21T17:02:00.001-07:002013-10-21T17:02:57.181-07:00Happy Half Birthday, my Sweetie!My baby girl is 6 months old today! How time flies! Sorry I've been so absent. Hard to find time on the computer lately!<br />
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I thought I'd do a quick state-of-the-union, to update on how things are going.<br />
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<u>Infant Pottying</u>:<br />
Pretty good. We're part time still. So whenever we change her diaper (or when I think of it in between), we put her on the potty and see if she needs to pee (which she does maybe half the time). <i>Sometimes</i> it seems like she's waiting for this. Poos are still only occasional on the potty. But really, we're not super consistent - if we're out all day, she doesn't get many chances to potty. We're recently started adding the ASL signs for pee and poo, so we'll see if that turns out useful! :) It is super awesome when she pees on a grown up toilet (if we're out). We're so proud of our good girl.<br />
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<u>Cloth diapering</u>:<br />
Still great! My friend gave me some of her fancy cloth diapers (her kid is now like 4, and they've decided they're not having any more). They are super fun to use, but I probably wouldn't have spent so much for them, but I sure am glad to have them as hand me downs! I have 2 <a href="http://www.happyheiny.com/our-products/pocket-diapers">Happy Heinys</a> pocket diapers which are my fav, and we're considering buying one more. We have about 6 Bum Genius pocket diapers, which are my second fav. I save these fancy pocket diapers for naps/car trips - they magically wick away moisture and so her skin stays dry. Not that we've encountered diaper rash (yet), but I still imagine its much more comfortable for her.<br />
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We have about a billion <a href="http://www.amazon.com/OsoCozy-Prefolds-Unbleached-Cloth-Diapers/dp/B003AJHDQW">prefold diapers</a> (like, 24 or 36), and 5 <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thirsties-Wrap-Snap-Meadow-Size/dp/B003AJXY1U/ref=sr_1_1?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1382369582&sr=1-1&keywords=thirsties+duo+wrap">covers</a>. Love them too. Easy to wash, and CHEAP. Because I have so many, I can do wash every three days. Easy breezy. And really I can stretch it to four days if pressed (since she does pee in the potty sometimes). Once the whole wash routine is down, it isn't a big deal. We'll see how it is when she starts eating.<br />
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I have started making my own diaper wipes. I love them so much, they deserve their own post.<br />
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<u>Milestones</u>:<br />
She started to roll both ways right on her 5 month birthday! :) She's just such a big girl compared to the tiny infant she was only recently. I know all you mothers out there are like "duh", but it's surprising to me all the things she can do now. :) She almost <i>answers</i> to her name - she's not quite all the way there yet. And she's SUPER roll-y.<br />
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<u>Eating</u>:<br />
She's still exclusively breast-fed. Well, excepting vitamin D drops and pro-biotics. I read somewhere that children that use pro-biotics have fewer colds. Sign me up! (she hasn't been sick yet, knock on wood!) We're planning on starting her on food when we get back from vacation in two weeks. I plan to slow cook some grass-fed liver, and see if she wants like a teaspoon of that. And to cook some root vegetables in bone broth. And egg yolk. We're planning on doing baby led weaning. We'll see how it goes!<br />
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Breastfeeding is much much much much easier than before. Now it is no big shakes. Although I do still have to use Lansinoh, or I can get a little sore. But a LITTLE sore. Nothing like before. <br />
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<u>Favourite Songs</u>:<br />
Let the fall leaves fall, Pippa's so Pretty, Pippa's been working on the Railroad (to which I try and rub her back to), Skinamarinkeedinkydink, mm mm went the little green frog, the Grand old Duke of York, Hello Pippa and How are you. She used to be partial to her ABC's, but I think she's over it. It is very cute. When one of her favourite songs is being sung to her, she gets a look of joy on her face. :) <br />
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<u>Sleep</u>:<br />
She's generally a happy baby. Happiest when just up from a nap, tending towards grumpy as it is time to have another nap. She still sleeps tons throughout the day. Love my sleepy baby! In the night she tends to wake up about twice for feeding. She's still in her pack 'n' play in our room, but we're going to transition her to her crib when we get back from vaca (2 weeks). Ah! Not sure how that will go. <br />
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Lots of changes coming!CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-79872226023454465022013-10-19T19:29:00.001-07:002013-10-19T19:29:17.359-07:00Baptism gown recommendation?<p dir=ltr>Hello! This is just a quick note tonight! Things are going really well, I'm enjoying our baby very much. <br>
Question - Pippa's baptism is coming up, and I remember reading some blog posts where yall had beautiful gowns for the babies. Any tips? There are a lot of Greek stores around here, but I am picturing something more simple.thx!</p>
CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-17413516863053115202013-08-27T18:57:00.000-07:002013-08-27T18:57:00.859-07:00Making more milk~4 months<br />
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So we were having what I was thinking of was minor supply issues, in the breastmilk department. So I started reading up on the million things you can do to increase breastmilk.<br />
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I'd also like to say - different strokes for different folks. I think different solutions work well for different people.<br />
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I even went to the SUPER hippie herbalist and bought gross tea (and kind of expensive) to bring on the milk. But even thought I was downing 3 pots of that stuff a day, it didn't really help that much.<br />
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You know what does reliably work for me? Beer. As in super dark beer, like a fancy stout or Guinness. After a bit of beer, I can feel much more milk in my boobs. Interesting, right?<br />
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Now I have a friend that swears she thinks it works because you're more relaxed - but I don't think so. I'm pretty relaxed. And I don't drink enough that I think it affects my mood - I literally can drink like 2-3 shots of beer, and feel more milk.<br />
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I am of course concerned about my baby drinking (read some scary stuff on the Internet, but I also have read a lot of stuff saying it's no big deal, so...?), so I exercise extreme caution - I don't actually drink an entire beer (more like half a beer a day, max, spread out over several hours), and I don't feel drunk at all.<br />
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I even tried eating a lot of barley, because I read that maybe it was the barley in the beer - but that didn't do much.<br />
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So I've taken to buying fancy stout beer in bottles, and putting a wine bottle corker in it to help it stay carbonated-ish. Works pretty well. One of those fancy beers lasts me many days. And it is tasty.<br />
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So that's my story for now. BF'ing had taken a sort of nasty turn, and everything was hurty again, but we're back on track, things are good the last week or so. I think it's the beer. Or maybe that she's done a growth spurt.<br />
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Only ~2 more months of exclusive breastfeeding left! Time flies. While it will be exciting to give her food, I am enjoying this stage in her life.CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-14699271375042361432013-08-25T18:45:00.000-07:002013-08-25T18:45:34.118-07:00Camping!4 months + 4 days<br />
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As you can see:<br />
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Last weekend we went camping. It was super fun! They say camping with a baby isn't hard, and I see they were right! At this age feeding is easy because I brought my boobs along, and she doesn't crawl in the dirt and run around the fire or anything, so.... not too bad! It was great seeing a lot of my University friends as well.<br />
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Last year I was a tiny bit pregnant on this trip. :) The year before - sad that we were the only married couple without kids. <br />
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Nighttime was a bit tricksy - first she was too hot, then too cold - but we did figure it out in the end. Second night was waaay better than the first night. Lately she's been sleeping rather well - knock wood! We are lucky to have a pretty good sleeper on our hands - at least for now.<br />
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Now that she's four months I said I would put her on a schedule...haven't done this yet. Maybe I will start tomorrow - my plan is to observe for a few days, then try to fit a schedule to when she is generally napping already.<br />
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I signed us up for Mom and Baby Diaper Aqua-fit starting in September. I'm kind of excited for it. She has the cutest swim diaper and rash guard (for warmth) ever....so pretty much I am just excited to use them! Hahha. Yes. I've become obsessed by diapers. <br />
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I'm even planning to try out reusable wipes. Now, before Pippa was born this was our plan, which we quickly abandoned. BUT - I want to give it a try again. Even though I kind of love the Kirkland wipes - can't stand throwing 2.2 cents out the door with every wipe! hahha. Just wasn't hippie enough for me, I guess. So I'm going to try reusable again. It was a hassle before because we tried it when she was a newborn and we weren't using cloth diapers yet... but now that I'm doing a diaper load every 2-3 days anyway, I can't see how washing some added wipes will be that big a deal. I can see how having to make up a solution every week or so will be a hassle, so we'll see.... :)<br />
CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8931055518502256838.post-67991319891572077712013-08-10T20:15:00.000-07:002013-08-10T20:15:00.702-07:00Pillow BabyJust a little slice of crazy for you today:<br />
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I use two pillows at night. One under my head, and a hugging pillow. So EVERY SINGLE NIGHT, I think my hugging pillow is my baby.<br />
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It freaks me out, yo.<br />
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One minute, I am holding my baby, she is breathing and a real little baby...then gradually she turns into a pillow. Is she under the pillow? No. IS SHE IN THE PILLOW? CAN SHE BREATHE?<br />
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Oh, wait. She's in the pack and play like she is every night. She's fine. Ok. Back to sleep.<br />
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This seriously happens every night, and we are 3.5 months in! Hahahahah. My poor husband. I very often wake him up to confirm where the baby is. <i>Sometimes</i> I figure it out on my own, because, like, duh, I do this every night. But still at least every few days I wake him to confirm her whereabouts, because she seemed <i>particularly</i> real before turning into a pillow.<br />
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Our brief experiment with co-sleeping probably started all this lunacy, mayhaps. But I am a known crazy sleeper - somehow dreams take a little longer to fade than they should. But never before in my life have I done the exact same thing night after night.<br />
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(To be clear, we've settled in with her sleeping in a pack and play [top shelf] on DH's side - this seems to work best for us - and travelling is easy, we take her bed with us, no transition! The doctor now seems to recommend sleeping in the same room for 6 months, and this works very well for all of us so far. For night feeding DH just has to hand her over when she starts to fuss, before she actually has to cry. And she's calmed down from her infant grunting stage, so she's not very loud, so we all get a decent sleep, generally.) <br />
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Well, this was your insaneagram for today. :)CShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00597841466164722667noreply@blogger.com1