I was in a major funk for much of December. I feel much better now. I guarantee its these dang birth control pills. Maybe it'll keep gettin better.
Christmas turned out okay. Not wonderful, but okay. All my worries about pleasing everyone on Christmas morning were solved for me, though it wasn't pleasant. Mama ended up getting really sick Christmas Eve night. She threw up all night, and was still sick the next morning. Aunt Jeanette stayed up with her all night, and called me the next morning to tell me not to go over there. So we had breakfast at Paul's parents', then went to church, then had lunch at his Grandma's, then went to my Grandma's. We got home around 3:30-4 and just relaxed for a little while, then had supper at Paul's parents'. It was a long day. We ended up going to my Mama's the next night, when she was feeling better.
Claire acted funny off and on Christmas day, and that night was throwing up. The next day, she got a runny nose. We had an appointment Tuesday already for her 12 months shots, so we took her in. I'm so glad we did, because in addition to her cold, she had an ear infection. Her first one. :( She just finished up her antibiotics yesterday, and I think she's over it. She also started cutting her top 2 teeth over Christmas. Poor baby's been pretty miserable lately! One of the top teeth finally broke through last Saturday (12/31), and the other one is peeking through today.
At least she's been sleeping through the night again. With all the running around for Christmas, her bedtime routine got out of wack. Some nights she didn't go to bed until 10. But now she's back to bein asleep by 8:30, and sleeps until usually 6, sometimes later. Thankfully!! I'm sure lack of sleep affected me as well last month.
Paul and I are planning on a trip to Charleston next month for our 3 year anniversary. I'm so excited! It'll be a bit of a challenge with Claire, since it will probably be really cold and there's so much walking to do in that city, but we'll manage. It'll be great to get away, just the three of us.
Paul got me some jumps for Christmas, and I've been riding and jumping again. And having a ball! I forgot how much I love to jump. Poor Sunshine, though! I bet she's not happy with me, haha.
Okay this post is totally all over the place, but I'm in a good mood and my mind is cluttered. ( :
Friday, January 06, 2012
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Dec. 22 - I'm still a Grinch
I'm just not feelin Christmas this year. I'm lookin forward to Claire openin her presents, but that's it. And really, I've seen her open so many presents already this week, its not even a big deal anymore. I don't know what's wrong with me. Maybe I'm havin some kind of wierd, delays post-partum depression. Who knows. Or maybe its the birth control I started a few weeks ago. I'm super-sensitive to that crap, and I haven't had any in my system since the summer of '09. I'm on the "mini pill," which is progesterone only, but it stiff affects me. I bet that's what it is. Stupid hormone pills!!!
But, really, we don't need another baby right now. I'd LOVE another one (or 5, haha), but not right now. I never thought I'd be one of those women who wants lots of kids, but I've turned into that. Maybe I should see how I handle Claire's "terrible 2s" first, though!
She has been SO fussy lately. Last night, we finally understood why - she's gettin another tooth. This one's on top. Finally. She's had 2 bottom teeth since August, and no signs of any more until now. I was beginning to think she didn't have any more in there!
But her teething is not the only thing we can blame her behavorial changes on. Since she started walking, she's Miss Independence, and if you try to get her to do somethin (or not do somethin) that's not her idea, she rebels! She can arch her back all crazy, she'll throw her head back, and let out this gutteral scream that sounds less like a sweet baby girl and more like some kind of tortured demon. Seriously. And she can turn on the waterworks in a heartbeat (and turn them off just as quickly!). I have a feeling her teenage years are gonna be interesting...God help us.
So yesterday when I went to pick her up after work, Paul's parents had another present for her to open. Her very own toy tractor. She absolutely loves it. Paul's mother also baked a cake, and we all ate some and attempted to get Claire to eat some. She wasn't scared of it, but wasn't interesting in tasting it, either. She smashed her hands all into it, and kept lookin at them like, "ew!" After a few minutes she was ready for me to clean her hands. Such a little diva, can't get dirty!
I am thisclose to bein done with my Christmas shopping. I don't think I've ever not been done this close to Christmas. All I have left to do is pick up a few gift cards, though, so its not a big deal. And I have a little more wrapping to do.
I usually love to wrap presents, but this year its been such a hassle for me. I have zero motivation to wrap. The only time I can wrap is when Claire is asleep, so usually after 9pm. (Every night, she goes to sleep around 8-8:30, but I nurse her to sleep, so I'm glued to her, and then I have to let her get into a deep sleep before I can put her down in the crib. Maybe I should have her putting herself to sleep by now, but oh well.) And by then I'm just so tired, or there's too many other, more pressing things to do. Like last night, there was a sink full of dishes that I wanted to wash before bed. And I wanted to get the diapers folded that I'd washed after work. And I wanted to reorganize Claire's dresser because it was too crowded in there. Why didn't my husband help with the dishes or folding or wrapping presents? Good question. He was busy watching TV. There are just not enough hours in the day for me. I could get everything done with no problem if I didn't want to spend time with my daughter. Its just, when I get home from work I know I only have 2-3 hours with her before she goes to sleep, and I like to make the most of that time. She usually doesn't get up in the mornings until I wake her up, so I don't get to spend much time with her then. So my 2-3 hours after work is my only time with her until the weekends. Depressing. I can get a lot done with her "helping" me, but I'd rather do something fun with her. And no, my house is not spic-and-span these days, but it is orderly (except for my desk, haha) and for the most part neat. I'm not a freak about cleaning it. But I do like to keep it where I don't have to say "sorry for the mess" when someone comes to visit. Aaaaaand, once again, I'm back to "I wish I could be a stay-at-home-mom." Or work part-time. But there's no way.
And once again, I'm ending on a negative note. Sorry.
But, really, we don't need another baby right now. I'd LOVE another one (or 5, haha), but not right now. I never thought I'd be one of those women who wants lots of kids, but I've turned into that. Maybe I should see how I handle Claire's "terrible 2s" first, though!
She has been SO fussy lately. Last night, we finally understood why - she's gettin another tooth. This one's on top. Finally. She's had 2 bottom teeth since August, and no signs of any more until now. I was beginning to think she didn't have any more in there!
But her teething is not the only thing we can blame her behavorial changes on. Since she started walking, she's Miss Independence, and if you try to get her to do somethin (or not do somethin) that's not her idea, she rebels! She can arch her back all crazy, she'll throw her head back, and let out this gutteral scream that sounds less like a sweet baby girl and more like some kind of tortured demon. Seriously. And she can turn on the waterworks in a heartbeat (and turn them off just as quickly!). I have a feeling her teenage years are gonna be interesting...God help us.
So yesterday when I went to pick her up after work, Paul's parents had another present for her to open. Her very own toy tractor. She absolutely loves it. Paul's mother also baked a cake, and we all ate some and attempted to get Claire to eat some. She wasn't scared of it, but wasn't interesting in tasting it, either. She smashed her hands all into it, and kept lookin at them like, "ew!" After a few minutes she was ready for me to clean her hands. Such a little diva, can't get dirty!
I am thisclose to bein done with my Christmas shopping. I don't think I've ever not been done this close to Christmas. All I have left to do is pick up a few gift cards, though, so its not a big deal. And I have a little more wrapping to do.
I usually love to wrap presents, but this year its been such a hassle for me. I have zero motivation to wrap. The only time I can wrap is when Claire is asleep, so usually after 9pm. (Every night, she goes to sleep around 8-8:30, but I nurse her to sleep, so I'm glued to her, and then I have to let her get into a deep sleep before I can put her down in the crib. Maybe I should have her putting herself to sleep by now, but oh well.) And by then I'm just so tired, or there's too many other, more pressing things to do. Like last night, there was a sink full of dishes that I wanted to wash before bed. And I wanted to get the diapers folded that I'd washed after work. And I wanted to reorganize Claire's dresser because it was too crowded in there. Why didn't my husband help with the dishes or folding or wrapping presents? Good question. He was busy watching TV. There are just not enough hours in the day for me. I could get everything done with no problem if I didn't want to spend time with my daughter. Its just, when I get home from work I know I only have 2-3 hours with her before she goes to sleep, and I like to make the most of that time. She usually doesn't get up in the mornings until I wake her up, so I don't get to spend much time with her then. So my 2-3 hours after work is my only time with her until the weekends. Depressing. I can get a lot done with her "helping" me, but I'd rather do something fun with her. And no, my house is not spic-and-span these days, but it is orderly (except for my desk, haha) and for the most part neat. I'm not a freak about cleaning it. But I do like to keep it where I don't have to say "sorry for the mess" when someone comes to visit. Aaaaaand, once again, I'm back to "I wish I could be a stay-at-home-mom." Or work part-time. But there's no way.
And once again, I'm ending on a negative note. Sorry.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Dec. 19
In 2 days I'll have a one-year-old. I STILL can't believe it!!
So Claire's party was interesting. It was pointed out to me on Saturday that some people didn't get invitations, and I realized that I forgot some people. Like Paul's great-aunt that lives down the road from us. Whoops. Despite the people I forgot, there were still about 75 people on the list, and we fully expected the majority of those to come. So I bought enough party stuff for about 85-90 people, just in case. (Luckily, I bought everything at the dollar store!) So Sunday we went to Rhodes with my family, and then rushed home to get changed for the party. The plan was to get back to the church at 1:30 to get everything set up. Well, Claire had a meltdown at home. She was tired and ready for a nap, but we didn't have time for her to take a nap at home. So we left early hoping that once we got there, I'd nurse her and get her to sleep, while Paul and his sister set up for the party. Claire had a MAJOR meltdown in the car. Screamed bloody murder. When we got to the church, I realized I didn't have a key to the fellowship hall, and of course it was locked. I tried to nurse C in the car, but she was too upset and wouldn't. Somehow, Paul got into the church (I never asked how!), but C was just still so upset. Karen came and started helpin Paul, and then Mama showed up. So I handed C to her, and of course the little booger calmed right down and was actin fine! Mama fed her some squash and played with her while we all set up the tables and everything.
At 2pm, we were barely finishing up the decorations, but no one was there yet. People started to trickle in slowly, but everyone just came in, sat down, and stared at C. It was kinda awkward. Kyle was late, and he had the picture/music slideshow, so it was really quiet for a while. Claire kept us all entertained, though. She was runnin around with a beach ball, havin a blast. She loves bein the center of attention!
Around 2:45 we realized that most of the people we'd invited weren't coming. My grandma wasn't there, one of my aunts wasn't there, and neither of Paul's aunts were there. Daddy was runnin late from work, so we decided to wait on him before doin the cake. Mama called Grandma, who said she thought the party was "floating," and she had planned on coming later! Grr. As soon as Daddy got there, we cut a piece of cake for C and sang to her. As expected, she wouldn't eat the cake. She did touch it, though, which was a leap. We tried to get her to taste it, but she wasn't havin any of it!
So we all ate cate, ice cream, and chips, and C munched on chips. Then we moved on to the presents. She was more into that! At first she didn't understand what to do, but it didn't take her long to figure out how to rip off paper. She was scared of most of her presents though! Several people got her stuffed animals that moved and talked, and she doesn't like that at all. haha. She did love the baby 4-wheeler Paul and I got her.
We were out of the church by around 4:30, thanks to everyone to stayed and helped clean up! Claire was exhausted cause she still hadn't had a nap, and she fell asleep soon after we got home. She only slept for 30 minutes, though. I tried to get her to go to bed at her usual time, but she was too tired and couldn't sleep. Her eyes were bloodshot, but she was laughin and just hyper. Around 9:30 she finally crashed. But then she was up most of the night, starting at midnight. *sigh* It was a long night.
Overall, it was a nice party and she had a good time, and that's what really mattered. I was disappointed in sevearl people for not coming. But whatever. We know who really cares about her now, I guess!
I'm so ready for this season of special days to be over and life can get back to normal. I'm such a Grinch this year!
So Claire's party was interesting. It was pointed out to me on Saturday that some people didn't get invitations, and I realized that I forgot some people. Like Paul's great-aunt that lives down the road from us. Whoops. Despite the people I forgot, there were still about 75 people on the list, and we fully expected the majority of those to come. So I bought enough party stuff for about 85-90 people, just in case. (Luckily, I bought everything at the dollar store!) So Sunday we went to Rhodes with my family, and then rushed home to get changed for the party. The plan was to get back to the church at 1:30 to get everything set up. Well, Claire had a meltdown at home. She was tired and ready for a nap, but we didn't have time for her to take a nap at home. So we left early hoping that once we got there, I'd nurse her and get her to sleep, while Paul and his sister set up for the party. Claire had a MAJOR meltdown in the car. Screamed bloody murder. When we got to the church, I realized I didn't have a key to the fellowship hall, and of course it was locked. I tried to nurse C in the car, but she was too upset and wouldn't. Somehow, Paul got into the church (I never asked how!), but C was just still so upset. Karen came and started helpin Paul, and then Mama showed up. So I handed C to her, and of course the little booger calmed right down and was actin fine! Mama fed her some squash and played with her while we all set up the tables and everything.
At 2pm, we were barely finishing up the decorations, but no one was there yet. People started to trickle in slowly, but everyone just came in, sat down, and stared at C. It was kinda awkward. Kyle was late, and he had the picture/music slideshow, so it was really quiet for a while. Claire kept us all entertained, though. She was runnin around with a beach ball, havin a blast. She loves bein the center of attention!
Around 2:45 we realized that most of the people we'd invited weren't coming. My grandma wasn't there, one of my aunts wasn't there, and neither of Paul's aunts were there. Daddy was runnin late from work, so we decided to wait on him before doin the cake. Mama called Grandma, who said she thought the party was "floating," and she had planned on coming later! Grr. As soon as Daddy got there, we cut a piece of cake for C and sang to her. As expected, she wouldn't eat the cake. She did touch it, though, which was a leap. We tried to get her to taste it, but she wasn't havin any of it!
So we all ate cate, ice cream, and chips, and C munched on chips. Then we moved on to the presents. She was more into that! At first she didn't understand what to do, but it didn't take her long to figure out how to rip off paper. She was scared of most of her presents though! Several people got her stuffed animals that moved and talked, and she doesn't like that at all. haha. She did love the baby 4-wheeler Paul and I got her.
We were out of the church by around 4:30, thanks to everyone to stayed and helped clean up! Claire was exhausted cause she still hadn't had a nap, and she fell asleep soon after we got home. She only slept for 30 minutes, though. I tried to get her to go to bed at her usual time, but she was too tired and couldn't sleep. Her eyes were bloodshot, but she was laughin and just hyper. Around 9:30 she finally crashed. But then she was up most of the night, starting at midnight. *sigh* It was a long night.
Overall, it was a nice party and she had a good time, and that's what really mattered. I was disappointed in sevearl people for not coming. But whatever. We know who really cares about her now, I guess!
I'm so ready for this season of special days to be over and life can get back to normal. I'm such a Grinch this year!
Friday, December 16, 2011
Dec. 16
Claire will be 1 in 5 days. Woah!
We've been really busy lately. Lots of Christmas stuff goin on. Claire's 12 month pictures went great. We were very happy witht he pictures, and I just got my order in today. We ordered pictures for almost everyone on our Christmas list, haha. Claire did have a meltdown at the end of the photo session, but by that point Erica had already gotten great shots. Stupid me forgot the cake though! The plan was to take her pictures in her Christmas dress and birthday outfit, then put on a pink t-shirt and her tutu and let her eat a gigantic cupcake my friend made. It was really cute. Well, I brought everything but the cake! But it turned out okay since she had her little meltdown at the end.
And...she turned out to be terrified of the cake! Paul and I tried the next night to take our own pictures, and Claire wouldn't have anything to do with the cake! We tried again another night, and she touched it, but then seemed freaked out that the frosting was on her fingers, and wouldn't let us put any in her mouth. So we gave up on the cake idea! Silly baby. We were gonna order a small cake for her birthday party, but we've decided not to since she probably won't touch it. So we've ordered a humongous sheet cake from Food Lion and we'll just give her a piece of that. If she does eat it, we'll still get cute cake-face pictures, so its all good.
The birthday party invitations was almost a disaster. For some reason, they were shipped UPS instead of going through the USPS. The UPS driver put them in the yard, and of course the dogs ripped into the package. When I got home - in the dark - I noticed pieces of paper all over the yard. When I realized what it was, I freaked out. Luckily, I was able to salvage about 40 of the invitations, so it wasn't a total loss. Many of them have teeth prints in them, though, and some are missing corners. *sigh* Oh, and I addressed all the envelopes that night before Paul realized that the envelopes were all SEALED from being outside all day! I was so mad. I was just thankful all the invitations weren't ruined, though. We'll certainly have lots of stories to tell Claire one day about her first birthday celebrations! Hopefully the party Sunday will go off without a hitch...
I went today to the Dollar Tree to get all the supplies for the party - balloons, plates, cups, etc. (Don't judge - the Dollar Tree around here has great party stuff, and everything's $1!) When I was ready to check out, the line for the register wrapped around the store. It was insane. This old lady behind me started talkin to me and the old lady in front of me. It was okay at first, she saw my decorations and I told her what they were for, then she launched into tales about her grandson, whom she'd recently thrown a surprise birthday party for. Then she told me about how her husband died when her grandson was 17 months, and how he reacted to the death and all this. THEN she started tellin us all these stories about fathers beheading their daughters, mothers drowing their kids or putting their babies in the mircowave...jeez! Totally depressed me. She wouldn't stop, either. I finally stopped lookin at her, and tried to ignore her, but she just kept on and on. Some people just need to stop watchin the news. I mean, really. When you see a young woman buyin birthday party supplies for her daughter, why would you ruin her mood by tellin her horrifying stories?! Grr.
I've always been sensitive to hearin stories like that, and I've always tried to avoid news stories about that type of thing, but its so much worse since last year. What with being pregnant, my ex-friend aborting her baby, and then actually havin my own baby, it just makes everything so much more intense for me. I STILL get upset over that abortion, and I haven't talked to that girl since May. I mean, I think about it daily. Sometimes I wonder if I should go to therapy about it. And then I feel stupid because it wasn't my decision and I had nothing to do with it. But its really affected me. I guess its worse because I lost a friend over it. Not that she was a great friend, but still. She had another baby a few weeks ago. I havne't seen pictures of him or anything, but I can see other people talking about him on facebook. Its wierd. Part of me wants to call her and congratulate her, and then I remember everything else and I don't. Okay, I have got to stop talkin about this, I'm gettin all depressed again...
Woah, I really meant for this to be a totally positive post. Whoops! Okay, so how's this for positive? (tongue-in-cheek) Here's our weekend schedule for the next 2 weekends:
tonight: out to eat for my brother's birthday
Dec. 18: church at my home church, Claire's party from 2-4, then to Eureka's Christmas play
Dec. 19: La Leche League meeting (I haven't been in a while, but I want to start going again)
Dec. 21: Claire's actual birthday!
Dec. 23: supper at my sister's house
Dec. 24: breakfast at my aunt's new house, and supper at Paul's great-aunt's house
Dec. 25: not sure how we're goin this day...Usually, we eat breakfast really early at Paul's mother's house and open presents with his siblings, then go to Mama's to do the same thing. Mama's not havin breakfast this year since Christmas is on Sunday and everyone is goin to church, which is why we're eating at my aunt's on Christmas Eve. But she wants us to go over there before church and open presents with her. Our church is at 10am, though, so its gonna be tricky. If we skip breakfast with Paul's family, he'll be upset and they'll be offended. If we skip goin to Mama's, I'll never hear the end of it, especially since we're not goin to church with her that day. *sigh* Moving on...after church, we'll have lunch at Paul's grandma's, exchange presents over there, then go to my grandma's and do the exact same thing. We'll probably eat supper at Paul's parents' that night. Which gives me a good idea...we should suggest skippin breakfast with them, since we'll be with them that night. Then we can go to Mama's before church, and everyone will be happy. Now to convince Paul that this is a good compromise...!
Okay, moving on. Im' off the 26th, thank goodness. I'm gonna be exhausted after all the runnin around! Claire's gettin her 12 month shots on the 27th, which I am dreading. And then the following Friday night we're going to eat supper with Paul's mother's side of the family. WHEW! I am tired just thinkin about the rest of this month. I love Christmas, but there is just way too much goin on to really enjoy it. Sometimes I wish we had moved away and couldn't see everybody on the same day!
We've been really busy lately. Lots of Christmas stuff goin on. Claire's 12 month pictures went great. We were very happy witht he pictures, and I just got my order in today. We ordered pictures for almost everyone on our Christmas list, haha. Claire did have a meltdown at the end of the photo session, but by that point Erica had already gotten great shots. Stupid me forgot the cake though! The plan was to take her pictures in her Christmas dress and birthday outfit, then put on a pink t-shirt and her tutu and let her eat a gigantic cupcake my friend made. It was really cute. Well, I brought everything but the cake! But it turned out okay since she had her little meltdown at the end.
And...she turned out to be terrified of the cake! Paul and I tried the next night to take our own pictures, and Claire wouldn't have anything to do with the cake! We tried again another night, and she touched it, but then seemed freaked out that the frosting was on her fingers, and wouldn't let us put any in her mouth. So we gave up on the cake idea! Silly baby. We were gonna order a small cake for her birthday party, but we've decided not to since she probably won't touch it. So we've ordered a humongous sheet cake from Food Lion and we'll just give her a piece of that. If she does eat it, we'll still get cute cake-face pictures, so its all good.
The birthday party invitations was almost a disaster. For some reason, they were shipped UPS instead of going through the USPS. The UPS driver put them in the yard, and of course the dogs ripped into the package. When I got home - in the dark - I noticed pieces of paper all over the yard. When I realized what it was, I freaked out. Luckily, I was able to salvage about 40 of the invitations, so it wasn't a total loss. Many of them have teeth prints in them, though, and some are missing corners. *sigh* Oh, and I addressed all the envelopes that night before Paul realized that the envelopes were all SEALED from being outside all day! I was so mad. I was just thankful all the invitations weren't ruined, though. We'll certainly have lots of stories to tell Claire one day about her first birthday celebrations! Hopefully the party Sunday will go off without a hitch...
I went today to the Dollar Tree to get all the supplies for the party - balloons, plates, cups, etc. (Don't judge - the Dollar Tree around here has great party stuff, and everything's $1!) When I was ready to check out, the line for the register wrapped around the store. It was insane. This old lady behind me started talkin to me and the old lady in front of me. It was okay at first, she saw my decorations and I told her what they were for, then she launched into tales about her grandson, whom she'd recently thrown a surprise birthday party for. Then she told me about how her husband died when her grandson was 17 months, and how he reacted to the death and all this. THEN she started tellin us all these stories about fathers beheading their daughters, mothers drowing their kids or putting their babies in the mircowave...jeez! Totally depressed me. She wouldn't stop, either. I finally stopped lookin at her, and tried to ignore her, but she just kept on and on. Some people just need to stop watchin the news. I mean, really. When you see a young woman buyin birthday party supplies for her daughter, why would you ruin her mood by tellin her horrifying stories?! Grr.
I've always been sensitive to hearin stories like that, and I've always tried to avoid news stories about that type of thing, but its so much worse since last year. What with being pregnant, my ex-friend aborting her baby, and then actually havin my own baby, it just makes everything so much more intense for me. I STILL get upset over that abortion, and I haven't talked to that girl since May. I mean, I think about it daily. Sometimes I wonder if I should go to therapy about it. And then I feel stupid because it wasn't my decision and I had nothing to do with it. But its really affected me. I guess its worse because I lost a friend over it. Not that she was a great friend, but still. She had another baby a few weeks ago. I havne't seen pictures of him or anything, but I can see other people talking about him on facebook. Its wierd. Part of me wants to call her and congratulate her, and then I remember everything else and I don't. Okay, I have got to stop talkin about this, I'm gettin all depressed again...
Woah, I really meant for this to be a totally positive post. Whoops! Okay, so how's this for positive? (tongue-in-cheek) Here's our weekend schedule for the next 2 weekends:
tonight: out to eat for my brother's birthday
Dec. 18: church at my home church, Claire's party from 2-4, then to Eureka's Christmas play
Dec. 19: La Leche League meeting (I haven't been in a while, but I want to start going again)
Dec. 21: Claire's actual birthday!
Dec. 23: supper at my sister's house
Dec. 24: breakfast at my aunt's new house, and supper at Paul's great-aunt's house
Dec. 25: not sure how we're goin this day...Usually, we eat breakfast really early at Paul's mother's house and open presents with his siblings, then go to Mama's to do the same thing. Mama's not havin breakfast this year since Christmas is on Sunday and everyone is goin to church, which is why we're eating at my aunt's on Christmas Eve. But she wants us to go over there before church and open presents with her. Our church is at 10am, though, so its gonna be tricky. If we skip breakfast with Paul's family, he'll be upset and they'll be offended. If we skip goin to Mama's, I'll never hear the end of it, especially since we're not goin to church with her that day. *sigh* Moving on...after church, we'll have lunch at Paul's grandma's, exchange presents over there, then go to my grandma's and do the exact same thing. We'll probably eat supper at Paul's parents' that night. Which gives me a good idea...we should suggest skippin breakfast with them, since we'll be with them that night. Then we can go to Mama's before church, and everyone will be happy. Now to convince Paul that this is a good compromise...!
Okay, moving on. Im' off the 26th, thank goodness. I'm gonna be exhausted after all the runnin around! Claire's gettin her 12 month shots on the 27th, which I am dreading. And then the following Friday night we're going to eat supper with Paul's mother's side of the family. WHEW! I am tired just thinkin about the rest of this month. I love Christmas, but there is just way too much goin on to really enjoy it. Sometimes I wish we had moved away and couldn't see everybody on the same day!
Friday, December 02, 2011
Dec. 2
Well, I just ordered the invitations to Claire's birthday party. Paul and I discussed it, and we decided to just plan the party and my mother could like it or not! Luckily, she seems to be okay with it. I made a guest list, and dang. Even with only invitin our close family and friends, there's around 75 people on the list! Our families are just way too big, haha. I'm hoping not everyone will come. I only ordered 50 invitations, and that should be plenty. We decided to have the party on the 18th, a Sunday, in the afteroon, 2-4pm. That way, people will have time to get to any other parties they have that night, or Christmas plays or whatever. And we wont' have to serve an actual meal. We're doin chips, cake, and ice cream and that's it. Sweet and simple. Now I'm lookin forward to it.
I'm also lookin forward to this Sunday. We're takin Claire to have her 12 month pictures taken. Yeah, she's not actually 12 months yet, but we want to be able to give prints as Christmas gifts to family. Usually, she's not so good at photo shoots, but I'm hopin she'll have fun at this one since she's older and can stand and walk. Plus, at the end we're givin her a huge cupcake to eat in front of the camera. I'm brinin my video camera for that one!
Oh yeah. The appointment with the specialist last week went really well. He said he wants to have a repeat ultrasound of her renal system done in 6 months to make sure the tubes aren't still swollen. But other than that, he said everything looked fine. So here's hoping that was her first and only UTI!!
That's it for today. Quick post. Gotta go pump and do a little Christmas/birthday shoppin on my lunch break. ( :
I'm also lookin forward to this Sunday. We're takin Claire to have her 12 month pictures taken. Yeah, she's not actually 12 months yet, but we want to be able to give prints as Christmas gifts to family. Usually, she's not so good at photo shoots, but I'm hopin she'll have fun at this one since she's older and can stand and walk. Plus, at the end we're givin her a huge cupcake to eat in front of the camera. I'm brinin my video camera for that one!
Oh yeah. The appointment with the specialist last week went really well. He said he wants to have a repeat ultrasound of her renal system done in 6 months to make sure the tubes aren't still swollen. But other than that, he said everything looked fine. So here's hoping that was her first and only UTI!!
That's it for today. Quick post. Gotta go pump and do a little Christmas/birthday shoppin on my lunch break. ( :
Photo Card
Having Fun Girl Birthday
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Thursday, December 01, 2011
Claire bday
Having Fun Girl Birthday
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Monday, November 21, 2011
November 21
Happy 11 months to my beautiful daughter! I'd insert some recent pictures here, but I'm at work and don't have my memory card with me. Just trust me when I say she is gorgeous. ( :
I don't have a whole lot to report. No new developments. We thought a few weeks ago that Claire's top teeth might be making an appearnce soon (so far she only has 2 on the bottom), but so far that hasn't happened. Not that I'm rushing it! I'm sure there will be a few bites to my boobs when the next teeth emerge, and I'm not lookin forward to that! (It hurts bad enough now, and there's only gums on top, ha!) She still hasn't graduated to REALLY walking yet, although she does let go of our fingers more and more now to walk on her own. Which terrifies us, so we usually end up walking behind her with our arms out making a circle around her. lol.
Tomorrow we go to a pediatric urologist in Cary. Claire had a UTI last month (while we were on vacation, of course!), and her regular pediatrician referred us to this specialist. I'm not really sure why. Sometimes doctors send babies to specialists with their first UTI, and some doctors wait until they get a 2nd one. But we had her renal system ultrasounded last month, and it showed some swelling of the ureter. But Dr. Cook said it was probably due to the infection, so we didn't worry too much. Then Claire just wasn't actin right one day, so I took her back to Dr. Cook, who called the specialist, who said he wanted to see her. We also had a VCUG test done, which basically checks to see if she has kidney reflux. (Instead of urine goin from the kidneys to the bladder and out, with reflux the urine goes back up into the kidneys. Which causes frequent infections and can end up damaging the kidneys.) Thankfully, the VCUG test was negative, though the radiologist's notes said that Claire's bladder wasn't emptying all the way. No one has said if that was a problem or not. We'll find out tomorrow, I guess. I do want to talk to the specialist because I feel like Claire pees a LOT. I don't have any previous experience with baby girls, but even Paul's mama said she pees an awful lot. Kidney problems run in my family, so I'm not taking any chances here. (And my 2 year old cousin has kidney reflux. SHe's been on antibiotics for a year now, and might have to have surgery.)
Paul and I are also gearing up to start planning for Caire's 1st birthday party. Its hard since its so close to Christmas, and so much is going on at that time. Plus, I don't want to have the party on her actual birthday. Its on a Wednesday, and we'll be at work and then she usually goes to bed around 8-8:30, so a party would be hard to squeeze in. Obviously, we can't have the party the weekend after her birthday, since that's Christmas. And the weekend before already has a lot goin on. We haven't decided anything yet. My mother wants to have a huge party and invite everyone in both our churches, plus our entire families. But Paul and I don't want that. We want something small and quiet. Should be interesting to see what actually happens.
So. I'm leaving work early tomorrow to go to Cary, my boss will be gone on Wednesday, and I'm off Thursday and Friday (Thanksgiving). Not a bad week!
I don't have a whole lot to report. No new developments. We thought a few weeks ago that Claire's top teeth might be making an appearnce soon (so far she only has 2 on the bottom), but so far that hasn't happened. Not that I'm rushing it! I'm sure there will be a few bites to my boobs when the next teeth emerge, and I'm not lookin forward to that! (It hurts bad enough now, and there's only gums on top, ha!) She still hasn't graduated to REALLY walking yet, although she does let go of our fingers more and more now to walk on her own. Which terrifies us, so we usually end up walking behind her with our arms out making a circle around her. lol.
Tomorrow we go to a pediatric urologist in Cary. Claire had a UTI last month (while we were on vacation, of course!), and her regular pediatrician referred us to this specialist. I'm not really sure why. Sometimes doctors send babies to specialists with their first UTI, and some doctors wait until they get a 2nd one. But we had her renal system ultrasounded last month, and it showed some swelling of the ureter. But Dr. Cook said it was probably due to the infection, so we didn't worry too much. Then Claire just wasn't actin right one day, so I took her back to Dr. Cook, who called the specialist, who said he wanted to see her. We also had a VCUG test done, which basically checks to see if she has kidney reflux. (Instead of urine goin from the kidneys to the bladder and out, with reflux the urine goes back up into the kidneys. Which causes frequent infections and can end up damaging the kidneys.) Thankfully, the VCUG test was negative, though the radiologist's notes said that Claire's bladder wasn't emptying all the way. No one has said if that was a problem or not. We'll find out tomorrow, I guess. I do want to talk to the specialist because I feel like Claire pees a LOT. I don't have any previous experience with baby girls, but even Paul's mama said she pees an awful lot. Kidney problems run in my family, so I'm not taking any chances here. (And my 2 year old cousin has kidney reflux. SHe's been on antibiotics for a year now, and might have to have surgery.)
Paul and I are also gearing up to start planning for Caire's 1st birthday party. Its hard since its so close to Christmas, and so much is going on at that time. Plus, I don't want to have the party on her actual birthday. Its on a Wednesday, and we'll be at work and then she usually goes to bed around 8-8:30, so a party would be hard to squeeze in. Obviously, we can't have the party the weekend after her birthday, since that's Christmas. And the weekend before already has a lot goin on. We haven't decided anything yet. My mother wants to have a huge party and invite everyone in both our churches, plus our entire families. But Paul and I don't want that. We want something small and quiet. Should be interesting to see what actually happens.
So. I'm leaving work early tomorrow to go to Cary, my boss will be gone on Wednesday, and I'm off Thursday and Friday (Thanksgiving). Not a bad week!
Tuesday, November 08, 2011
November 8, 2011
Wow, I can't believe I haven't updated this thing since January! I thought I'd be better at updating about Claire. Oh well. She amazes me, daily. It amazes me at how much I love her, and at how much I love bein a mama. I never thought I'd be like this. I went back to work February 9th, and I cried 1/2 the day. It was horrible. Its still really tough leaving her, even after almost 9 months of doing it. I HATE leavin her all day, even though I know she's in good hands with my mother-in-law. I wish all the time that there was a way we can live off just Paul's salary alone. I'd be a stay-at-home mom in a heartbeat! I missed a lot of her firsts, which is so sad. But I was the only one to see her take her first steps!
We're still breastfeeding, though I did introduce solids at 9 months. Actually, I let her try squash at 6 months, and she liked it but neither of us were quite ready for solids yet. So between 6 and 9 months she got solids occasionally, like maybe once or twice a week, if I remembered. At 9 months I finally gave in to everyone around me ("when are you gonna feed that baby?!" grr) and started her on solids once a day. Now, at 10 1/2 months, she still nurses as much as she wants when I'm around, has 2 bottles of breastmilk a day, and eats soilds for lunch and 2 snacks. She LOVES bananas, and some of her other favorite foods are sweet potatoes, apples, yellow squash, butternut squash, and carrots. And little puffs, bread, and crackers, oh and hushpuppies. So far, she doesn't like anything green, but I'm tryin not to worry about it too much. I'm gonna stop pumping at the end of the year, so she'll get more solids, but I'll still breastfeed her as much as she wants when we're together. I used to think people who breastfed after a year were crazy, but now I can't imagine stopping yet. I'm gonna let Claire decide that one.
My riding lesson business has really suffered since I had Claire, but that's okay. I taught up until the very end of my pregnancy, but it took me a lot longer than I expected to recover from delivery, and I lost a student or 2 in that time. I've still got little Erin, though she's still terrified to canter, so we just walk/trot. But that's okay. And the other girl, Claire, comes every once in a great while, but they're not consistent about bringin her. That's it. I have recently started ridin again, though. I rode probably 10 weeks or so after Claire's birth, but it exhausted me and I just found it so hard to peel myself away from Claire to go outside! Its still hard for me, but I'm gettin better about it. Lately, I ride on Sundays when she goes down for her long afternoon nap. That way I don't miss anything! ( :
I started riding Wiley again a few weeks ago. Surprisingly, he's been a perfect angel. I figured a year and 1/2 of nothing would ruin him, but he acts just like he did last year. I haven't cantered him yet, but at the walk and trot he remembers everything I taught him. He's so fat though! Once I get him in better shape, we'll start workin on jumping again. I don't ride Sunshine very often since she's my lesson horse, but I did hop on her this past Sunday. That was so much fun! We jumped, and I haven't done that in I don't know how long. Probably since last April, before I found out I was pregnant.
I am so out of shape, its not even funny. I have lost ALL my leg muscles. Of course, my arms and back are pretty good since I'm constantly pickin up and totin Claire around. But my legs? Ugh. And who has time to exercise! I gained 42lbs durin my pregnancy, and as of last week I've lost 56lbs. I weigh less than I did when I got married, and I was pretty small then. Its wierd. I eat like a pig, literally. I guess breastfeedin is gettin my body back to what it should be, weight-wise. Its nice to not have to wear "fat" clothes anymore, but now I'm to the point where most of my jeans are way too big on me and look sloppy. And I can't wear anything too tight cause I have so much loose skin on my stomach that it hangs over like a spare tire. Its gross! I look like someone who used to be huge and had gastric bypass. lol. Oh well. My skin'll be all stretched out for the next baby! (Whenever that may be! Ideally, I'd like another one when C is around 3, but who knows.)
We're still breastfeeding, though I did introduce solids at 9 months. Actually, I let her try squash at 6 months, and she liked it but neither of us were quite ready for solids yet. So between 6 and 9 months she got solids occasionally, like maybe once or twice a week, if I remembered. At 9 months I finally gave in to everyone around me ("when are you gonna feed that baby?!" grr) and started her on solids once a day. Now, at 10 1/2 months, she still nurses as much as she wants when I'm around, has 2 bottles of breastmilk a day, and eats soilds for lunch and 2 snacks. She LOVES bananas, and some of her other favorite foods are sweet potatoes, apples, yellow squash, butternut squash, and carrots. And little puffs, bread, and crackers, oh and hushpuppies. So far, she doesn't like anything green, but I'm tryin not to worry about it too much. I'm gonna stop pumping at the end of the year, so she'll get more solids, but I'll still breastfeed her as much as she wants when we're together. I used to think people who breastfed after a year were crazy, but now I can't imagine stopping yet. I'm gonna let Claire decide that one.
My riding lesson business has really suffered since I had Claire, but that's okay. I taught up until the very end of my pregnancy, but it took me a lot longer than I expected to recover from delivery, and I lost a student or 2 in that time. I've still got little Erin, though she's still terrified to canter, so we just walk/trot. But that's okay. And the other girl, Claire, comes every once in a great while, but they're not consistent about bringin her. That's it. I have recently started ridin again, though. I rode probably 10 weeks or so after Claire's birth, but it exhausted me and I just found it so hard to peel myself away from Claire to go outside! Its still hard for me, but I'm gettin better about it. Lately, I ride on Sundays when she goes down for her long afternoon nap. That way I don't miss anything! ( :
I started riding Wiley again a few weeks ago. Surprisingly, he's been a perfect angel. I figured a year and 1/2 of nothing would ruin him, but he acts just like he did last year. I haven't cantered him yet, but at the walk and trot he remembers everything I taught him. He's so fat though! Once I get him in better shape, we'll start workin on jumping again. I don't ride Sunshine very often since she's my lesson horse, but I did hop on her this past Sunday. That was so much fun! We jumped, and I haven't done that in I don't know how long. Probably since last April, before I found out I was pregnant.
I am so out of shape, its not even funny. I have lost ALL my leg muscles. Of course, my arms and back are pretty good since I'm constantly pickin up and totin Claire around. But my legs? Ugh. And who has time to exercise! I gained 42lbs durin my pregnancy, and as of last week I've lost 56lbs. I weigh less than I did when I got married, and I was pretty small then. Its wierd. I eat like a pig, literally. I guess breastfeedin is gettin my body back to what it should be, weight-wise. Its nice to not have to wear "fat" clothes anymore, but now I'm to the point where most of my jeans are way too big on me and look sloppy. And I can't wear anything too tight cause I have so much loose skin on my stomach that it hangs over like a spare tire. Its gross! I look like someone who used to be huge and had gastric bypass. lol. Oh well. My skin'll be all stretched out for the next baby! (Whenever that may be! Ideally, I'd like another one when C is around 3, but who knows.)
Monday, January 17, 2011
January 17
I love being a mommy. Seriously. I knew I would like it but not this much! I'm supposed to go back to work in 2 weeks or so. I've always said I would HATE bein a stay at home mom and I'd be ready to go back to work. But I was wrong. I could totally keep doin this. I don't want to go back to work next month. If we could afford it, I would totally ask Paul if I could stay home! But we can't. :(
Claire is awesome. I'm still figuring her out, but I pretty much know what she needs and wants most of the time now. Her new thing is she cries every night for a few hours. Its frustrating, but after that she has been sleeping most of the night, so I can't really complain. I did figure out that rock music calms her down when she's fussy. Its so funny! I guess they really can hear in the womb. I listen to rock more than anything, and I usually jam out on the way to and from work. So I guess she remembers that!
She changes a little every day. You can tell she's the same baby, but she looks nothing like she did when she was born. And she's developing mentally, too. She stays awake for longer periods during the day, and likes to look at colorful or moving things. And she smiles more. Soon she'll start cooing, and I can't wait for that! That's part of the reason I don't want to go back to work - I'm scared I'll miss something.
As for me, I'm slowly healing. Some days I feel great and I'll be really active. Then the next day I'll pay for it! I keep forgetting that my body went through a LOT recently and it takes a while to recover. I go for my 6 week check up in a few weeks though. Hopefully I'll get the go ahead to start exercising. I've lost most of my stomach, but I think the rest will stick around until I can work it off. I haven't weighed in over a week, but last time I checked I still had about 12 lbs to go to get back to my prepregnancy weight. I can wear one pair of non-maternity jeans, but they are a sie bigger than I usually wear. I can fit into all my old jeans in the butt, but I can't get them to button yet. Hopefully that will happen soon! Shirts are tricky, too. My boobs are humongous but I can still wear most of my old shirts. But I usually wear maternity shirts cause they are big on me now and its easier breastfeeding in a loose shirt.
My cousin Meredith got engaged last Friday night. It was exciting, but expected; she's been dating her fiance for over 3 years I think, so we all figured it would happen eventually! The wedding won't be until 2012 or 13, but she said I will be the matron of honor and Claire will be a flower girl. I try to picture Claire in a year or two, wearing a cute purple dress (cause that's Meredith's favorite color) and throwing flowers down the aisle. But I can't picture what she'l look like! Right now, her eyes are dark blue, but who knows if they'll stay that way. And right now, her hair is straight and fine and light brown/reddish (like mine), but most babies loose their hair after a few months and it can come back totally different.
Well that's enough gushing about my beautiful baby! ( :
Claire is awesome. I'm still figuring her out, but I pretty much know what she needs and wants most of the time now. Her new thing is she cries every night for a few hours. Its frustrating, but after that she has been sleeping most of the night, so I can't really complain. I did figure out that rock music calms her down when she's fussy. Its so funny! I guess they really can hear in the womb. I listen to rock more than anything, and I usually jam out on the way to and from work. So I guess she remembers that!
She changes a little every day. You can tell she's the same baby, but she looks nothing like she did when she was born. And she's developing mentally, too. She stays awake for longer periods during the day, and likes to look at colorful or moving things. And she smiles more. Soon she'll start cooing, and I can't wait for that! That's part of the reason I don't want to go back to work - I'm scared I'll miss something.
As for me, I'm slowly healing. Some days I feel great and I'll be really active. Then the next day I'll pay for it! I keep forgetting that my body went through a LOT recently and it takes a while to recover. I go for my 6 week check up in a few weeks though. Hopefully I'll get the go ahead to start exercising. I've lost most of my stomach, but I think the rest will stick around until I can work it off. I haven't weighed in over a week, but last time I checked I still had about 12 lbs to go to get back to my prepregnancy weight. I can wear one pair of non-maternity jeans, but they are a sie bigger than I usually wear. I can fit into all my old jeans in the butt, but I can't get them to button yet. Hopefully that will happen soon! Shirts are tricky, too. My boobs are humongous but I can still wear most of my old shirts. But I usually wear maternity shirts cause they are big on me now and its easier breastfeeding in a loose shirt.
My cousin Meredith got engaged last Friday night. It was exciting, but expected; she's been dating her fiance for over 3 years I think, so we all figured it would happen eventually! The wedding won't be until 2012 or 13, but she said I will be the matron of honor and Claire will be a flower girl. I try to picture Claire in a year or two, wearing a cute purple dress (cause that's Meredith's favorite color) and throwing flowers down the aisle. But I can't picture what she'l look like! Right now, her eyes are dark blue, but who knows if they'll stay that way. And right now, her hair is straight and fine and light brown/reddish (like mine), but most babies loose their hair after a few months and it can come back totally different.
Well that's enough gushing about my beautiful baby! ( :
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