I feel so bad, and here is why:
Today I had a dentist appointment at 11am, and now getting around with a baby is much more time consuming considering I like to feed her before I leave to go anywhere, which also means I need to pump too (since like I have said before, pumping is just easier for me). I didn't have to take a shower (probably need to though because I have only had 1 shower this week and that was at the neighbors house on Tuesday night) since we still didn't have a working water heater, so that saved a little on time. However, I tried multi-tasking very closely to the time I had to leave by pumping and feeding her by bottle at the same time (tried this once before and it was a disaster). It went pretty well and she was sucking and sucking and sucking...for about 15 minutes I would say. When I took the bottle away from her, I noticed that there was only about half an ounce if that gone, which I thought was strange considering she had been sucking on the bottle for so long, but we had to go. She fussed a little in the car, which is unusual because she normally falls right to sleep, but then once I was in the dentist chair, rocking her car seat with my foot, she fell asleep. She stayed asleep until I woke her up to feed her when we got home. I noticed once again that she wasn't eating anything, but sucking a lot. Well, smart me, finally checked the nipple which had nothing coming out! I switched the nipple and voila! she ate the whole thing and probably could have eaten a bit more! Definitely not getting 'Mom of the Year' with that one! :)
Keeping up with our family and our everyday little adventures!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Diapers - Size 1
We don't really have a strong brand preference over others, but we did think when she was just a few weeks old that Huggies were making her bottom red. However, I have put some Huggies on her since and we don't seem to have much of a problem. She has been in Pampers, Luvs, Huggies, Dollar General, and Parents' Choice. Overall, I have to say the Dollar General diapers were very comparable to Pampers Dry Max diapers and we were quite impressed (we had received these as a gift). Parents' Choice from Walmart, which are comparable to Pampers Baby Dry were pretty good too. So, once we run out of all the name brand diapers we had bought or received as gifts, I will probably just get the off brands because they are so comparable or get Pampers over Huggies and Luvs.
Although she is now in size 1 diapers, mainly because they were getting too short (torso-wise), she continues to not fit in 0/3 pants. She is still wearing newborn sized pants, but they appear to be getting a little shorter on her, but the waist in all larger sizes just don't fit her. I have been able to find just a couple of 0/3 pants to fit her, but not many at all! Also, 0/3 onesies are still pretty big on her and some of her newborn onesies are getting a little short in the arms. Trying to get clothes to fit on her is a chore sometimes!
Natalie has been more alert lately and it is so much fun to just watch her take everything in. Sometimes I would just like to know what she is thinking about or looking at. She does a pretty good job at holding her head up, but still much of a bobblehead! I have noticed she is an occasional thumb sucker (just like I was) and she will not take a pacifier; however, she really doesn't need a pacifier because she really only cries/fusses when she needs changed or is hungry. I love watching her when she sleeps, especially when she is just falling asleep because sometimes she smiles, gets mad, or even laughs (sorta) as if she is having dreams. It's just so cute to watch! She prefers to sleep on her stomach, but is only allowed to do that if she is supervised, so usually I allow this during the day when I am close by. She can sleep for hours on her stomach! At night, we have tried the SwaddleMe and she does alright, but she really prefers to sleep with both arms over her head, like "Stick 'em up" or "Praise the Lord." She is also now smiling more when she is awake and makes occasional cooing sounds as well.
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| Sleeping good on her stomach |
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| Can't really tell from this picture, but she was sucking her thumb :) |
Update: Water Heater
We still don't have hot water because the water heater Bobby bought was too wide for the small space we have to work with! Plus, Lowes sent an electric water heater instead of gas. Unfortunately, Lowes does not have ANY 16" diameter water heaters...neither did Menards or Lowes in Avon, IN. So, guess what?! Bobby had to deal with Sears again, blah! We would have much rather spent more money elsewhere than deal with Sears because neither of us would prefer to do any business with Sears, but we were really between a rock and a hard place. Since Lowes couldn't get us the water heater we needed until April 14th, Bobby had to go to Sears where we purchased one and will have it installed tomorrow. One more day of living primitively (as far as water goes)! Bobby said the saleswoman and manager (both were different from last night) weren't any better. It's so much fun being an adult and a homeowner sometimes! :)
There's more. So, after Bobby reluctantly bought a water heater at Sears, he called their corporate office to complain about our service last night and how we may never shop at Sears again due to their poor service. Since Bobby had complained about the manager and the saleswoman, we were told the district manager would need to get involved. About an hour after he got off the phone, he received a phone call from the manager at Sears that he had dealt with tonight. She said she didn't know any of the specifics, but that she was told to call Bobby and refund us $69.99 and would send the receipt in the mail. Therefore, in the end, after much hassle, we were able to use the coupon and have the service call refunded! Good job, Bobby!
He did also call Lowes corporate office to compliment them on what a good job and good experience we had at their store. The person that took his call thanked him for taking the time to call to report something good (I'm sure that's rarely done). Bobby also made the suggestion to Lowes that even though water heaters are probably not a fast moving item to keep at least 1 of each model they carry in stock for occasions just like this because we would have definitely bought from Lowes. However, since they couldn't get it in for 2 weeks, we were unable to go with them as our choice.
3/31/2011
Water heater is now installed!!!!!!!!!!!! Yay!
There's more. So, after Bobby reluctantly bought a water heater at Sears, he called their corporate office to complain about our service last night and how we may never shop at Sears again due to their poor service. Since Bobby had complained about the manager and the saleswoman, we were told the district manager would need to get involved. About an hour after he got off the phone, he received a phone call from the manager at Sears that he had dealt with tonight. She said she didn't know any of the specifics, but that she was told to call Bobby and refund us $69.99 and would send the receipt in the mail. Therefore, in the end, after much hassle, we were able to use the coupon and have the service call refunded! Good job, Bobby!
He did also call Lowes corporate office to compliment them on what a good job and good experience we had at their store. The person that took his call thanked him for taking the time to call to report something good (I'm sure that's rarely done). Bobby also made the suggestion to Lowes that even though water heaters are probably not a fast moving item to keep at least 1 of each model they carry in stock for occasions just like this because we would have definitely bought from Lowes. However, since they couldn't get it in for 2 weeks, we were unable to go with them as our choice.
3/31/2011
Water heater is now installed!!!!!!!!!!!! Yay!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Long and Eventful Day
Yesterday, we had no hot water after Bobby took his shower in the morning. By the time Bobby got home from work, he had called Benjamin Franklin (most expensive plumber in town) and they were going to come out this morning to take a look at the water heater. Well, when Bobby found out they were the most expensive, he called Sears who manufactures the water heater for their service people (of course the water heater was slightly past it's 6 year warranty) to come out and take a look. So the service guy came out to take a look and found that we had a faulty gas thingamajig (no idea what it was called) and that it would cost $309 to fix the part and we would have hot water tonight. However, due to the fact that since I moved into this house 4 years ago the water heater has sounded like there are rocks rolling all around on the inside every time you took a shower, washed dishes, or did laundry, I thought it was finally time to just get a new one! It cost us $69 for the guy to say what needed to be fixed, but said that if we bought a new one at Sears then the $69 we just paid could be taken off our bill, plus he had a coupon for $65 off any appliance within a certain price range.
I met Bobby at Sears (after getting done with Zumba) with my sister to talk about which water heater we should get. Of course there were no sales on water heaters, which I'm sure rarely, if ever happens due the fact that most people only buy water heaters when, they have no hot water (duh)! Bobby has awesome negotiating skills, but this saleswoman would not budge from the price at all. So, while we were in Sears, I'm looking on my phone to see the prices at Lowes, then Bobby called to find out how much Lowes' installation was. We decided to go with Sears since the price difference wasn't too much, plus we had a coupon and the $69 credit (at least we thought). When the saleswoman is about done with our transaction, Bobby mentions the coupon and receipt from the service guy. She then rudely says (with an eyeroll included) that he should have told her about those before she started doing anything. God forbid she have to go back a couple of screens to put in the coupon! (gasp) Well, the coupon wouldn't scan so she had to go back and talk to the manager and when she came back she said they could only do one or the other. Bobby asked to talk to the manager, who came out, but would not budge at all on his "policy" in which I replied that they should educate their service guys on their policies and should uphold the false information that we received about using both. What ever happened to the customer is always right? The manager tried to say that the company that services them is out of Indianapolis, but too bad all their service vans are sitting in Sears' parking lot! All three of us (Bobby, myself, and Amanda) all heard the service guy tell us about using both.
Amanda and I both thought (Bobby agreed later) that the manager was also rude. I was sick of dealing with the incompetent manager and saleswoman at Sears and just told them that we would buy a water heater at Lowes and I walked away. Bobby was not very happy because he said how I said it was rude, but I wasn't anymore rude to them than they were to us. However, as you will see later in this story, I think Bobby was just tired and didn't want to deal with this whole mess at the time! Amanda, Natalie, and I all left and went home after Sears, but Bobby made the trek to Lowes (right down the road) to negotiate with them. We have dealt with Lowes on many occasions before and have always had good customer service and they did not disappoint tonight either. Bobby was able to get Lowes to lower the price on the water heater (basically the same one only a different name), honor the $65 coupon, match Sears' installation price. So, we should once again have hot water sometime tomorrow!
As Bobby says, it isn't often that you spend over $600 on something and aren't excited for your purchase. Who can really get excited about a water heater?! Unless you are the mom/wife at home who would like to stop living primitively and is wanting to wash dishes and clothes like normal, and take a shower at your own home! Spending that kind of money in an "emergency" didn't seem too horrible due the the fact that we have a home repair fund that we put a little bit in each month, which helps take the sting out of little events like this. I am so happy that we did not have the added stress of "How are we going to afford/pay this?" That could have made this little situation much less humorous!
I'm am very glad we will soon have hot water because I feel like I am camping! At least we have electricity and heat unlike the lovely ice storm of 2011! I am having to heat up water in the microwave to wash dishes (which is constant with bottles and pumping stuff) and basically do a sponge bath for both Natalie and I. Bobby used the neighbors shower last night. Tonight, we both used their shower and as we were walking across our yard to their front door, I felt as though I was walking to the bathhouse at the campground to take my shower! The one thing that was much better than a bathhouse was no nasty shower floors or stalls and no huge bugs all over inside! All we need is a campfire, s'mores, and singing some Kumbaya :)
Going back a little bit in the story, Amanda had driven down to Terre Haute from Indy to go to Hip-Hop Zumba with me (plus she needed to get their leftovers from this weekend and Petunia's harness) and of course to see Natalie. So, while Bobby was dealing with the water heater service man and deciding what we should do, we were leaving to go to Zumba with Natalie in the care of Bobby. I hadn't made dinner yet either, so he was starving I'm sure. It was the first time I had worked out or attempted to workout without multi-tasking with Natalie. When I tried walking on the treadmill last Friday, I only got 15 minutes into it before Natalie was calling for me, so that didn't work too well. It was nice to get out of the house and do something for me. I was definitely out of shape, but not as bad as I had thought I would be. My legs felt a tad bit like Jello afterwards, but it has subsided now. This was Amanda's first time doing Zumba with other people (she has the Playstation game). I tell you the one thing that was not very comfortable were my now much larger boobs (they were definitely large enough pre-pregnancy...see what you get to look forward to, Natalie!). I had bought a new sports bra, but I don't think anything could really contain these things except maybe duct taping them so they don't move at all! (I just might have to try that...haha) Amanda and I both enjoyed ourselves and plan to try to get into a workout routine when she is here this summer to help with Natalie.
When we arrived to Sears, I noticed that Natalie was not in the outfit I had left her in before Zumba, so I asked Bobby what happened. Thinking she probably peed all over it, since this occasionally happens when changing her. But, that is not what happened at all. Bobby began telling us how somehow her diaper was folded so that the elastic wasn't properly snug to her leg/butt just right and she had an explosive poop...while laying on the white couch. So, Bobby not only had to clean up Natalie, but he also had to clean up the poop that shot out sideways from her butt/leg on the couch while dealing with purchasing a new water heater. I couldn't help but laugh/smile because I fortunately have not had this happen to me, but I unfortunately was the last one to change her diaper prior to this lovely episode...oops! Bobby handled it like a champ though. Spills/messes on the couch have surprisingly not affected Bobby like I think most people anticipated, but I think the cat and the dog prepared him well for all these unexpected messes!
Natalie and Bobby are now sleeping soundly (at least I hope) while I am sitting here pumping and blogging! Hopefully I am not too sore tomorrow after attempting Zumba after a long hiatus because I plan to continue it and get into a routine because it is so much fun. Can't wait to get the new water heater tomorrow; however, I must say it will be very strange not to hear "rocks" rattling around in the tank every time the hot water is running!
I met Bobby at Sears (after getting done with Zumba) with my sister to talk about which water heater we should get. Of course there were no sales on water heaters, which I'm sure rarely, if ever happens due the fact that most people only buy water heaters when, they have no hot water (duh)! Bobby has awesome negotiating skills, but this saleswoman would not budge from the price at all. So, while we were in Sears, I'm looking on my phone to see the prices at Lowes, then Bobby called to find out how much Lowes' installation was. We decided to go with Sears since the price difference wasn't too much, plus we had a coupon and the $69 credit (at least we thought). When the saleswoman is about done with our transaction, Bobby mentions the coupon and receipt from the service guy. She then rudely says (with an eyeroll included) that he should have told her about those before she started doing anything. God forbid she have to go back a couple of screens to put in the coupon! (gasp) Well, the coupon wouldn't scan so she had to go back and talk to the manager and when she came back she said they could only do one or the other. Bobby asked to talk to the manager, who came out, but would not budge at all on his "policy" in which I replied that they should educate their service guys on their policies and should uphold the false information that we received about using both. What ever happened to the customer is always right? The manager tried to say that the company that services them is out of Indianapolis, but too bad all their service vans are sitting in Sears' parking lot! All three of us (Bobby, myself, and Amanda) all heard the service guy tell us about using both.
Amanda and I both thought (Bobby agreed later) that the manager was also rude. I was sick of dealing with the incompetent manager and saleswoman at Sears and just told them that we would buy a water heater at Lowes and I walked away. Bobby was not very happy because he said how I said it was rude, but I wasn't anymore rude to them than they were to us. However, as you will see later in this story, I think Bobby was just tired and didn't want to deal with this whole mess at the time! Amanda, Natalie, and I all left and went home after Sears, but Bobby made the trek to Lowes (right down the road) to negotiate with them. We have dealt with Lowes on many occasions before and have always had good customer service and they did not disappoint tonight either. Bobby was able to get Lowes to lower the price on the water heater (basically the same one only a different name), honor the $65 coupon, match Sears' installation price. So, we should once again have hot water sometime tomorrow!
As Bobby says, it isn't often that you spend over $600 on something and aren't excited for your purchase. Who can really get excited about a water heater?! Unless you are the mom/wife at home who would like to stop living primitively and is wanting to wash dishes and clothes like normal, and take a shower at your own home! Spending that kind of money in an "emergency" didn't seem too horrible due the the fact that we have a home repair fund that we put a little bit in each month, which helps take the sting out of little events like this. I am so happy that we did not have the added stress of "How are we going to afford/pay this?" That could have made this little situation much less humorous!
I'm am very glad we will soon have hot water because I feel like I am camping! At least we have electricity and heat unlike the lovely ice storm of 2011! I am having to heat up water in the microwave to wash dishes (which is constant with bottles and pumping stuff) and basically do a sponge bath for both Natalie and I. Bobby used the neighbors shower last night. Tonight, we both used their shower and as we were walking across our yard to their front door, I felt as though I was walking to the bathhouse at the campground to take my shower! The one thing that was much better than a bathhouse was no nasty shower floors or stalls and no huge bugs all over inside! All we need is a campfire, s'mores, and singing some Kumbaya :)
Going back a little bit in the story, Amanda had driven down to Terre Haute from Indy to go to Hip-Hop Zumba with me (plus she needed to get their leftovers from this weekend and Petunia's harness) and of course to see Natalie. So, while Bobby was dealing with the water heater service man and deciding what we should do, we were leaving to go to Zumba with Natalie in the care of Bobby. I hadn't made dinner yet either, so he was starving I'm sure. It was the first time I had worked out or attempted to workout without multi-tasking with Natalie. When I tried walking on the treadmill last Friday, I only got 15 minutes into it before Natalie was calling for me, so that didn't work too well. It was nice to get out of the house and do something for me. I was definitely out of shape, but not as bad as I had thought I would be. My legs felt a tad bit like Jello afterwards, but it has subsided now. This was Amanda's first time doing Zumba with other people (she has the Playstation game). I tell you the one thing that was not very comfortable were my now much larger boobs (they were definitely large enough pre-pregnancy...see what you get to look forward to, Natalie!). I had bought a new sports bra, but I don't think anything could really contain these things except maybe duct taping them so they don't move at all! (I just might have to try that...haha) Amanda and I both enjoyed ourselves and plan to try to get into a workout routine when she is here this summer to help with Natalie.
When we arrived to Sears, I noticed that Natalie was not in the outfit I had left her in before Zumba, so I asked Bobby what happened. Thinking she probably peed all over it, since this occasionally happens when changing her. But, that is not what happened at all. Bobby began telling us how somehow her diaper was folded so that the elastic wasn't properly snug to her leg/butt just right and she had an explosive poop...while laying on the white couch. So, Bobby not only had to clean up Natalie, but he also had to clean up the poop that shot out sideways from her butt/leg on the couch while dealing with purchasing a new water heater. I couldn't help but laugh/smile because I fortunately have not had this happen to me, but I unfortunately was the last one to change her diaper prior to this lovely episode...oops! Bobby handled it like a champ though. Spills/messes on the couch have surprisingly not affected Bobby like I think most people anticipated, but I think the cat and the dog prepared him well for all these unexpected messes!
Natalie and Bobby are now sleeping soundly (at least I hope) while I am sitting here pumping and blogging! Hopefully I am not too sore tomorrow after attempting Zumba after a long hiatus because I plan to continue it and get into a routine because it is so much fun. Can't wait to get the new water heater tomorrow; however, I must say it will be very strange not to hear "rocks" rattling around in the tank every time the hot water is running!
Monday, March 28, 2011
weekend visit with Auntie Amanda and Matt
This weekend was pretty laid back, but had a good visit with my sister, her fiance, and their dog, Petunia. They live in Greenwood, IN so only about an hour or so. It is so nice to have family that close. If only we lived closer to everyone so the visits with Natalie would be much more frequent. However, it is also nice to have the ability to Skype with my parents nightly since they are 4 hours away.
I know it is hard for them not to be able to physically see and hold their first grandchild, and it's also hard for me to be so far away from them now as well. Granted, I've always been close to my family, but now that I have a daughter, it's much harder to be away from them. I think I will always remember the day that my whole family left after Natalie was born. I just broke down and could not stop crying! Natalie was born on a Thursday and everyone left that Sunday. My parents had left around noon that day, but my sister and her fiance stayed a little bit longer. Bobby's parents had come over to our house later in the afternoon after they had checked out of their hotel and my sister and the neighbors were all over at the same time. When my sister had decided it was time for them to leave as well, I just lost it. I had gone into the bathroom and just cried. I could not come out of the bathroom because I was such a mess and when Bobby had come in to make sure I was okay, I just asked for my sister to come in and I just remember hugging her for awhile. Of course I made her cry too! I'm sure the hormones had taken over some too, but I just knew my family were all going to be so far away and it would be a while until I saw them all again. Luckily, I have seen them (maybe not all at the same time) but every couple of weeks since Natalie was born, which has been so nice!
Bobby and I have been talking more often lately about moving because our house is getting smaller with the new addition and all her "stuff!" Plus, when we have people stay at our house we have nowhere for them to stay since the "guest room" is now the "nursery." Our house has very little storage, which is very annoying because I feel like our house is just so cluttered with "stuff." Thinking of when Natalie gets older, I would love to have a "play room" where all her toys can stay. I have always looked online at houses and have emailed them to Bobby, but it hasn't been until recently that Bobby has really showed some interest in even possibly going to look at some houses.
It is such a hard decision though because I don't know that I really want to stay in Terre Haute another 5-10 years. Initially when I moved to Terre Haute, I bought my house with the intention of only staying 5 years and next spring will already be 5 years that I have been here! Thinking of staying here another 5-10 years does not seem like a horrible idea due to the fact that we both have good jobs here and have made good friends, but at the same time, Natalie will grow up without her grandparents or other family nearby! I know as she gets older and involved with school activities, my parents will definitely want to be there to go to her games or other activities and I want them to be able to do that too, but it won't happen often if we are 4 hours away from them. Bobby and I have always said that we don't really see ourselves back in the South Bend area, but at the same token, now that we have a family, I have kind of changed my mind on that. I wouldn't mind living in the South Bend area if we both (mainly Bobby) could find a great job like he has in Terre Haute. Since I lived in Indy for 5 years before coming to Terre Haute, I would love to live there again, but again only if we (mostly Bobby) could find a great job there. Indy would still be 2.5 hours from our family, but at least Indy is "on the way" to things rather than Terre Haute that you only go through if you are on your way to St. Louis or possibly going to Evansville from South Bend/Indy. I just don't know which way to lean toward...it's a very scary decision for me because of the unknown and picking up and leaving now that I'm an adult and have more responsibilities is harder than I thought. Bobby has been saying he wants 5 years of experience in networking and right now we are only in year 1, so I don't know. I feel a strong urge to move, just don't know where! I know some people say to pray about it and God will tell you which direction to go, but I have a hard time with the "hearing God speak to me" part. I have always strongly felt that things always happen for a reason, so maybe some things will happen that will just fall into place, we will see.
If we do decide to stay in Terre Haute and buy a house here (I guess even if we don't and move to Indy/South Bend) we have lots of decisions about selling our house and looking for another: Do we sell our house first? What if our house sells but we haven't found another yet? What if we find the house we love and want to move into, but our house is still not sold? If we are going to sell our house soon, should we replace the flooring (carpet needs replaced by us or whoever buys it) and if we replace the flooring should we do laminate/wood like we want or just do cheap carpet so it just looks nice? Should we replace the 3 windows that need replaced (we replaced most of the windows in our house about 2-3 years ago)? How much money should we really pour into a place that we only want to live in for only a year or less? Then adding moving out of the area into the mix, it just makes my head spin in a million different directions. Being an adult is hard sometimes(or most times)!
Back to this weekend. Friday night, Amanda and Matt came down, so this was Petunia's (their dog) first time to meet baby Natalie (or any baby for that matter). She did really well, probably better than I expected. She was very loving and curious with Natalie. She definitely had an obsession with wanting to lick Natalie's hands or her ear. Petunia also has an obsession with our cat, Annabelle. I don't think Annabelle made it past our bedroom (back of our house) until Sunday, but Annabelle definitely holds her own against Petunia, who is a miniature Sharpei (but there isn't much miniature to her!) That night, Amanda and Matt (who had to sleep in the living room) only got about 1-2 hours of sleep at a time due to Petunia constantly wanting to check out our room (door was closed) since the cat and our dog, Rusty were in there. Plus, anytime I got up with Natalie (about every 3 hours) Petunia wanted to check everything out. I think they got a little more sleep Saturday after the newness of Petunia being in a different place wore off.
I know it is hard for them not to be able to physically see and hold their first grandchild, and it's also hard for me to be so far away from them now as well. Granted, I've always been close to my family, but now that I have a daughter, it's much harder to be away from them. I think I will always remember the day that my whole family left after Natalie was born. I just broke down and could not stop crying! Natalie was born on a Thursday and everyone left that Sunday. My parents had left around noon that day, but my sister and her fiance stayed a little bit longer. Bobby's parents had come over to our house later in the afternoon after they had checked out of their hotel and my sister and the neighbors were all over at the same time. When my sister had decided it was time for them to leave as well, I just lost it. I had gone into the bathroom and just cried. I could not come out of the bathroom because I was such a mess and when Bobby had come in to make sure I was okay, I just asked for my sister to come in and I just remember hugging her for awhile. Of course I made her cry too! I'm sure the hormones had taken over some too, but I just knew my family were all going to be so far away and it would be a while until I saw them all again. Luckily, I have seen them (maybe not all at the same time) but every couple of weeks since Natalie was born, which has been so nice!
Bobby and I have been talking more often lately about moving because our house is getting smaller with the new addition and all her "stuff!" Plus, when we have people stay at our house we have nowhere for them to stay since the "guest room" is now the "nursery." Our house has very little storage, which is very annoying because I feel like our house is just so cluttered with "stuff." Thinking of when Natalie gets older, I would love to have a "play room" where all her toys can stay. I have always looked online at houses and have emailed them to Bobby, but it hasn't been until recently that Bobby has really showed some interest in even possibly going to look at some houses.
It is such a hard decision though because I don't know that I really want to stay in Terre Haute another 5-10 years. Initially when I moved to Terre Haute, I bought my house with the intention of only staying 5 years and next spring will already be 5 years that I have been here! Thinking of staying here another 5-10 years does not seem like a horrible idea due to the fact that we both have good jobs here and have made good friends, but at the same time, Natalie will grow up without her grandparents or other family nearby! I know as she gets older and involved with school activities, my parents will definitely want to be there to go to her games or other activities and I want them to be able to do that too, but it won't happen often if we are 4 hours away from them. Bobby and I have always said that we don't really see ourselves back in the South Bend area, but at the same token, now that we have a family, I have kind of changed my mind on that. I wouldn't mind living in the South Bend area if we both (mainly Bobby) could find a great job like he has in Terre Haute. Since I lived in Indy for 5 years before coming to Terre Haute, I would love to live there again, but again only if we (mostly Bobby) could find a great job there. Indy would still be 2.5 hours from our family, but at least Indy is "on the way" to things rather than Terre Haute that you only go through if you are on your way to St. Louis or possibly going to Evansville from South Bend/Indy. I just don't know which way to lean toward...it's a very scary decision for me because of the unknown and picking up and leaving now that I'm an adult and have more responsibilities is harder than I thought. Bobby has been saying he wants 5 years of experience in networking and right now we are only in year 1, so I don't know. I feel a strong urge to move, just don't know where! I know some people say to pray about it and God will tell you which direction to go, but I have a hard time with the "hearing God speak to me" part. I have always strongly felt that things always happen for a reason, so maybe some things will happen that will just fall into place, we will see.
If we do decide to stay in Terre Haute and buy a house here (I guess even if we don't and move to Indy/South Bend) we have lots of decisions about selling our house and looking for another: Do we sell our house first? What if our house sells but we haven't found another yet? What if we find the house we love and want to move into, but our house is still not sold? If we are going to sell our house soon, should we replace the flooring (carpet needs replaced by us or whoever buys it) and if we replace the flooring should we do laminate/wood like we want or just do cheap carpet so it just looks nice? Should we replace the 3 windows that need replaced (we replaced most of the windows in our house about 2-3 years ago)? How much money should we really pour into a place that we only want to live in for only a year or less? Then adding moving out of the area into the mix, it just makes my head spin in a million different directions. Being an adult is hard sometimes(or most times)!
Back to this weekend. Friday night, Amanda and Matt came down, so this was Petunia's (their dog) first time to meet baby Natalie (or any baby for that matter). She did really well, probably better than I expected. She was very loving and curious with Natalie. She definitely had an obsession with wanting to lick Natalie's hands or her ear. Petunia also has an obsession with our cat, Annabelle. I don't think Annabelle made it past our bedroom (back of our house) until Sunday, but Annabelle definitely holds her own against Petunia, who is a miniature Sharpei (but there isn't much miniature to her!) That night, Amanda and Matt (who had to sleep in the living room) only got about 1-2 hours of sleep at a time due to Petunia constantly wanting to check out our room (door was closed) since the cat and our dog, Rusty were in there. Plus, anytime I got up with Natalie (about every 3 hours) Petunia wanted to check everything out. I think they got a little more sleep Saturday after the newness of Petunia being in a different place wore off.
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| Petunia, "the protector" |
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Sniffles
Poor Natalie has the sniffles! I just feel so bad for her because sometimes when she breathes she just sounds so miserable because of her stuffiness! She definitely does not like me using the aspirator to get all the snot out, which I can't really blame her because who really wants something stuck up their nostril! She still has the sneezes too (has had since birth), but when she sneezes it sure makes it easier to get some of that junk out of there! She has now started to have a very occasional cough, so I hope this is all just a cold and not something worse like whooping cough or RSV!!! She isn't running a temperature and seems to be breathing better with her stuffed up nose most of the time. Debating whether I should call the doctor?! I think we'll just see what Friday and the weekend bring as long as she's still eating, sleeping, and breathing well. I have had the cool mist humidifier on at night while we are sleeping, so hopefully that will help as well.
So, because Natalie has been much more alert and interactive lately, I decided that she NEEDED an activity mat/gym! My sister had told me that I would need one of these and to put it on my registry, but I decided against it at the time. I would now recommend everyone with a baby to get one of these, especially the one I got that is red, black, and white mostly (since babies can see contrast, like black and white, and red the best)! She loves this thing, but geez are they expensive! Sixty bucks for a fabric mat and some dangly toys is crazy!!! I am definitely in the wrong business and should definitely start inventing "baby stuff!" This is Natalie's early Easter present...Happy Easter (a month early)!
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| Not sure if she could really see herself in the mirror, but she was definitely staring at it for a long time! |
Monday, March 21, 2011
Stay-at-home vs. Nanny vs. Daycare vs. Oh my!
There are just so many decisions that need to be made quickly before my 12 weeks of maternity leave are up! Before I was ever pregnant and Bobby and I would talk about having kids I would always say I wanted to stay-at-home. However, Bobby always vetoed that and said I needed to go back to work. Although we really have nothing against daycare, staying at home always felt like such a luxury.
Well, now that Natalie is here and the decisions need to be made, we are having a really hard time with it all! I do have a very flexible job in that I can make my own schedule, but at the same time I have an unpredictable schedule since I deal with patients and never really know what my caseload is going to be like. I am scheduled to go back to work May 16th, so even though that seems far away, I know it is quickly approaching.
Option 1: Daycare
Bobby and I have talked about daycare, and I had even called a few while I was pregnant (really only called 2). The first I called is where Bobby works, and even with the employee discount it is crazy expensive! Plus, they told me back in probably November that I would probably be on their waiting list until sometime in the Fall. Well, even though I had heard good things about their daycare, I thought waiting almost a whole year from the time I called was unreasonable. So, I called one of the local churches that people in town give rave reviews and they were a little more reasonable in price, plus at the time were expanding their nursery side of things and would more than likely have openings available in May when I would need it. However, I never put my name on the list because we were still "shopping around."
With not being from around here, it is definitely hard to find a place to entrust the care of your newborn! We mostly have to go by word of mouth from friends/co-workers in regard to this matter. A friend from church had given us the name of a local in-home daycare not far from our house at all, while I had heard several great things about this place from co-workers as well. So, I called last week to get pricing and availability, in which she said there probably wouldn't be openings until June or mid-
August. Talking to the woman on the phone, I really felt comfortable talking with her on the phone and her program sounded great, but it didn't really help me right now. I did put my name on the waiting list though, just hoping that maybe things would fall into place the way they need to.
Option 2: Nanny (aka Auntie Amanda)
Our next option for the summer anyway would be for my sister, who is a teacher, to be our in-home "nanny" for 2-3 days a week. The only problem I foresee with this situation is that she is planning her wedding for this July and I really don't want any drama that goes along with the stress of all that! Also, our house is not conducive size-wise to really house another person comfortably (we would really need to do some rearranging). It would be absolutely fantastic to have a family member take care of her a little longer before we would need to put her in daycare! However, we would still have the problem with the couple weeks between May 16th and the end of my sister's school year that we would need to figure out something.
Option 3: Stay-at-home (at least mostly)
Another option is for me to stay home altogether for the least amount of time of 6 months and the most 1 year. Although financially it is doable, Bobby feels more comfortable if we had slightly more income than his coming in, which I agree would be a nice cushion, but then again I think the welfare of Natalie is more important than finances at this point. Bobby would feel more comfortable if I saw some patients after he got home from work and then on occasional Saturdays when we are in town or don't have plans. However, I don't really like this idea only because I wouldn't probably be able to see many patients after he got off work at 5 due to most patients not liking to be seen later in the evening (maximum of maybe 2 patients a night) and Saturdays are so inconsistent with us being in town that I don't see that happening much either.
Ideally, what I would like is to stay at home with Natalie until she is a year old, and have my sister come down this summer to help out so I could work a little bit longer just to have that extra income and then cut back to only doing PRN in the evenings after Bobby gets home from work (or really not having to do that at all!) We really need to come to a decision soon so that I can work things out with my work, as well as set-up the appropriate care for Natalie! It's so confusing with all these different options and opinions of Bobby and I.
Bobby has been the one lately to bring up me staying at home with Natalie, so I think he really sees the benefit (while she is so young) for her. Maybe if I start making him fantastic dinners and have the house spic and span, he will want me to stay at home indefinitely :) I can dream, right?! In all seriousness, it has really surprised me that Bobby has been the one bringing these conversations up and makes me happy!
I just pray that God sends me some direction/guidance to follow in making this big decision!
Well, now that Natalie is here and the decisions need to be made, we are having a really hard time with it all! I do have a very flexible job in that I can make my own schedule, but at the same time I have an unpredictable schedule since I deal with patients and never really know what my caseload is going to be like. I am scheduled to go back to work May 16th, so even though that seems far away, I know it is quickly approaching.
Option 1: Daycare
Bobby and I have talked about daycare, and I had even called a few while I was pregnant (really only called 2). The first I called is where Bobby works, and even with the employee discount it is crazy expensive! Plus, they told me back in probably November that I would probably be on their waiting list until sometime in the Fall. Well, even though I had heard good things about their daycare, I thought waiting almost a whole year from the time I called was unreasonable. So, I called one of the local churches that people in town give rave reviews and they were a little more reasonable in price, plus at the time were expanding their nursery side of things and would more than likely have openings available in May when I would need it. However, I never put my name on the list because we were still "shopping around."
With not being from around here, it is definitely hard to find a place to entrust the care of your newborn! We mostly have to go by word of mouth from friends/co-workers in regard to this matter. A friend from church had given us the name of a local in-home daycare not far from our house at all, while I had heard several great things about this place from co-workers as well. So, I called last week to get pricing and availability, in which she said there probably wouldn't be openings until June or mid-
August. Talking to the woman on the phone, I really felt comfortable talking with her on the phone and her program sounded great, but it didn't really help me right now. I did put my name on the waiting list though, just hoping that maybe things would fall into place the way they need to.
Option 2: Nanny (aka Auntie Amanda)
Our next option for the summer anyway would be for my sister, who is a teacher, to be our in-home "nanny" for 2-3 days a week. The only problem I foresee with this situation is that she is planning her wedding for this July and I really don't want any drama that goes along with the stress of all that! Also, our house is not conducive size-wise to really house another person comfortably (we would really need to do some rearranging). It would be absolutely fantastic to have a family member take care of her a little longer before we would need to put her in daycare! However, we would still have the problem with the couple weeks between May 16th and the end of my sister's school year that we would need to figure out something.
Option 3: Stay-at-home (at least mostly)
Another option is for me to stay home altogether for the least amount of time of 6 months and the most 1 year. Although financially it is doable, Bobby feels more comfortable if we had slightly more income than his coming in, which I agree would be a nice cushion, but then again I think the welfare of Natalie is more important than finances at this point. Bobby would feel more comfortable if I saw some patients after he got home from work and then on occasional Saturdays when we are in town or don't have plans. However, I don't really like this idea only because I wouldn't probably be able to see many patients after he got off work at 5 due to most patients not liking to be seen later in the evening (maximum of maybe 2 patients a night) and Saturdays are so inconsistent with us being in town that I don't see that happening much either.
Ideally, what I would like is to stay at home with Natalie until she is a year old, and have my sister come down this summer to help out so I could work a little bit longer just to have that extra income and then cut back to only doing PRN in the evenings after Bobby gets home from work (or really not having to do that at all!) We really need to come to a decision soon so that I can work things out with my work, as well as set-up the appropriate care for Natalie! It's so confusing with all these different options and opinions of Bobby and I.
Bobby has been the one lately to bring up me staying at home with Natalie, so I think he really sees the benefit (while she is so young) for her. Maybe if I start making him fantastic dinners and have the house spic and span, he will want me to stay at home indefinitely :) I can dream, right?! In all seriousness, it has really surprised me that Bobby has been the one bringing these conversations up and makes me happy!
I just pray that God sends me some direction/guidance to follow in making this big decision!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Sleepyhead...
Last night (Friday night) was a success...Natalie slept through the night for about 7 hours! I had woken up a little before 7am and couldn't believe that she was still asleep. She had just started to stir a little after 7, and once she was fed and changed, she went right back to sleep. She kept this sleeping, eating, getting changed cycle for most of the day with only brief periods of being bright-eyed for an hour at a time at most until around 8p. She is a night owl like her Daddy, but she was also the most active at night while I was still pregnant too!
Needless to say, Saturday was a pretty lazy day for Natalie and I. Bobby was supposed to start work from home around 9am, but things changed and he went back to sleep until around 1p. After he got up for the day, he helped out friends who were moving to a new house, then ran 9 miles with our neighbor, and then started working from home in the evening. He was much more active than we were today! However, Natalie and I did take a little shopping trip this evening.
Shopping is much different and not as enjoyable as it used to be for me, at least when I have Natalie. She is a great shopper (sleeps through it all)! However, today we stopped at Once Upon A Child, Baby Depot in Burlington Coat Factory, and Hobby Lobby and all of them have super small grocery carts or none at all for your shopping pleasure! Now, as a first-time mom, I really had no clue what to do with the carseat when you go shopping, so I 'googled' it and found that you are not supposed to place the carseat on top of the cart due to making the cart top heavy with potential of injuring the baby if the carseat should fall. Well, of course I do not want that scenario so it said on this particular website to place the entire carseat inside the cart and just place items around the baby. I have done this so far at Kroger and Walmart, but today, none of the stores allowed me to do this because of their tiny carts! I did see a couple other people in the stores placing their babies in the carseat on top of the cart, which would definitely be much easier, but I think for now I will refrain from that. Carrying around a carseat with a baby inside and trying to hold other items while shopping is NOT ideal nor comfortable. Therefore, we didn't shop long, but I did find some of the things I was looking for, but decided not to go anywhere else due to the heaviness of carrying the carseat all around.
On another note, we call Natalie our "little bobblehead" due to her trying to hold her head up on her own more and more and as she does her head just bobs all around. She is doing much better with her neck strength and you can tell she is getting stronger as she can now hold her head up for several seconds without difficulty. It is so awesome interacting with and watching her explore new things and be fascinated with the lights and computer screen when I Skype with my parents. She also loves to look out the window in the living room, but I think it's the red curtain she sees. Today I ordered her an activity mat gym where she can play on the floor exploring new things as she looks up or does tummy time. I think she's going to love it! They sure are pricey though, but she's definitely worth it. We'll just consider it her 'early' Easter present :)
Each and every day I just fall more and more in love with her! She is amazing!
Update: Well, last night (Saturday night) wasn't as successful as Friday, but wasn't horrible. Natalie slept from 12(midnight) until 4:30a, then 5am until 7am, then 7:30a until 8:30a.
Needless to say, Saturday was a pretty lazy day for Natalie and I. Bobby was supposed to start work from home around 9am, but things changed and he went back to sleep until around 1p. After he got up for the day, he helped out friends who were moving to a new house, then ran 9 miles with our neighbor, and then started working from home in the evening. He was much more active than we were today! However, Natalie and I did take a little shopping trip this evening.
Shopping is much different and not as enjoyable as it used to be for me, at least when I have Natalie. She is a great shopper (sleeps through it all)! However, today we stopped at Once Upon A Child, Baby Depot in Burlington Coat Factory, and Hobby Lobby and all of them have super small grocery carts or none at all for your shopping pleasure! Now, as a first-time mom, I really had no clue what to do with the carseat when you go shopping, so I 'googled' it and found that you are not supposed to place the carseat on top of the cart due to making the cart top heavy with potential of injuring the baby if the carseat should fall. Well, of course I do not want that scenario so it said on this particular website to place the entire carseat inside the cart and just place items around the baby. I have done this so far at Kroger and Walmart, but today, none of the stores allowed me to do this because of their tiny carts! I did see a couple other people in the stores placing their babies in the carseat on top of the cart, which would definitely be much easier, but I think for now I will refrain from that. Carrying around a carseat with a baby inside and trying to hold other items while shopping is NOT ideal nor comfortable. Therefore, we didn't shop long, but I did find some of the things I was looking for, but decided not to go anywhere else due to the heaviness of carrying the carseat all around.
On another note, we call Natalie our "little bobblehead" due to her trying to hold her head up on her own more and more and as she does her head just bobs all around. She is doing much better with her neck strength and you can tell she is getting stronger as she can now hold her head up for several seconds without difficulty. It is so awesome interacting with and watching her explore new things and be fascinated with the lights and computer screen when I Skype with my parents. She also loves to look out the window in the living room, but I think it's the red curtain she sees. Today I ordered her an activity mat gym where she can play on the floor exploring new things as she looks up or does tummy time. I think she's going to love it! They sure are pricey though, but she's definitely worth it. We'll just consider it her 'early' Easter present :)
Each and every day I just fall more and more in love with her! She is amazing!
Update: Well, last night (Saturday night) wasn't as successful as Friday, but wasn't horrible. Natalie slept from 12(midnight) until 4:30a, then 5am until 7am, then 7:30a until 8:30a.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Tough Love
Today started out sleepy. Natalie slept 3 hours at a time during the night like she has been doing. Our day started a little later than it has been due to Natalie and I both falling back to sleep after Bobby left for work before 8am.
I had every intention today of doing stuff around the house, like vacuuming, laundry, organizing, going to work to get my TB test read, running errands to the store for groceries/other things, dishes, etc. However, I only got laundry, very little organizing done, did get showered and Natalie bathed before Bobby got home early from work around 3p. She did take a long nap in her Mamaroo, but during that time I was able to get my shower, get some organizing done (at least Bobby noticed I did something), pump, run the washer/dryer, and wash the few dishes in the sink. Now that I write it all down, it seems like I did more than I felt like I got accomplished.
It was nice that Bobby got home early from work, so that I didn't have to drag Natalie to the office just to get my TB test read! Then, when I got home, we all headed out to the grocery store to pick up a few things, run to the post office and the bank, all to get back home by 5:30p for our generous friends that were bringing us dinner! It was so nice to have Bobby with me grocery shopping! I don't think he had gone with me for maybe months, so having an extra set of hands sped up the whole process and made the trip a lot easier. Of course Natalie slept the whole time, she just loves the car rides and grocery cart rides while in her carseat:)
Today was probably one of the first days that Bobby got to see Natalie in her "fussy" form where a bottle, diaper change, or Mamaroo couldn't solve...only being held really helped! He wasn't tired when he got home from work even though his sleep was interrupted from having to get up at 3am to make sure no problems happened with the servers (or whatever it is he does at 3am every other Friday), but I think Natalie probably definitely wore him down. Now, she was not super fussy or intolerable, but when you have a baby that pretty much is content the majority of the time except for when she lets you know she's hungry or dirty...it definitely makes for a little more difficult parenting!
It doesn't help that Natalie has been doing this thing that she will be hungry but only eat an ounce (typically she eats about 3oz at a feeding) and then she is done, only to want more in an hour or so. I'm not really sure why she has been doing this, but it seems to occur in the evening. After feeding her a few times in a couple of hours, I was rocking her in the glider in the nursery while playing lullaby music with the lights dim and she fell asleep in my arms. Those moments make all the fussiness (no matter how much there has been during the day) worth it while I'm just holding my baby girl sleeping peacefully.
Let's see how tonight goes...:)
Holding her with her butt up in the air and legs tucked under her while she fits just perfectly on your chest with her head under your chin is absolutely my favorite activity of the day! I just still can't get over how Natalie is ours! We made her and she lived in me for 9 months! It is just so crazy how God works in our lives and I have never been more blessed! I absolutely love being a Mommy even with how exhausting it can be! I never thought I could love anyone as much as I love this little 31 day old girl!
I had every intention today of doing stuff around the house, like vacuuming, laundry, organizing, going to work to get my TB test read, running errands to the store for groceries/other things, dishes, etc. However, I only got laundry, very little organizing done, did get showered and Natalie bathed before Bobby got home early from work around 3p. She did take a long nap in her Mamaroo, but during that time I was able to get my shower, get some organizing done (at least Bobby noticed I did something), pump, run the washer/dryer, and wash the few dishes in the sink. Now that I write it all down, it seems like I did more than I felt like I got accomplished.
It was nice that Bobby got home early from work, so that I didn't have to drag Natalie to the office just to get my TB test read! Then, when I got home, we all headed out to the grocery store to pick up a few things, run to the post office and the bank, all to get back home by 5:30p for our generous friends that were bringing us dinner! It was so nice to have Bobby with me grocery shopping! I don't think he had gone with me for maybe months, so having an extra set of hands sped up the whole process and made the trip a lot easier. Of course Natalie slept the whole time, she just loves the car rides and grocery cart rides while in her carseat:)
Today was probably one of the first days that Bobby got to see Natalie in her "fussy" form where a bottle, diaper change, or Mamaroo couldn't solve...only being held really helped! He wasn't tired when he got home from work even though his sleep was interrupted from having to get up at 3am to make sure no problems happened with the servers (or whatever it is he does at 3am every other Friday), but I think Natalie probably definitely wore him down. Now, she was not super fussy or intolerable, but when you have a baby that pretty much is content the majority of the time except for when she lets you know she's hungry or dirty...it definitely makes for a little more difficult parenting!
It doesn't help that Natalie has been doing this thing that she will be hungry but only eat an ounce (typically she eats about 3oz at a feeding) and then she is done, only to want more in an hour or so. I'm not really sure why she has been doing this, but it seems to occur in the evening. After feeding her a few times in a couple of hours, I was rocking her in the glider in the nursery while playing lullaby music with the lights dim and she fell asleep in my arms. Those moments make all the fussiness (no matter how much there has been during the day) worth it while I'm just holding my baby girl sleeping peacefully.
Let's see how tonight goes...:)
Holding her with her butt up in the air and legs tucked under her while she fits just perfectly on your chest with her head under your chin is absolutely my favorite activity of the day! I just still can't get over how Natalie is ours! We made her and she lived in me for 9 months! It is just so crazy how God works in our lives and I have never been more blessed! I absolutely love being a Mommy even with how exhausting it can be! I never thought I could love anyone as much as I love this little 31 day old girl!
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| One of her very short cat naps today |
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| Love her! |
Thursday, March 17, 2011
One Month Old...Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!!
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| My shirt may be too big, but I have my green on...at least for the picture :) |
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| I love this picture of Rusty and Natalie looking at each other! |
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| Little baby toes! |
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| I think she was getting sick of me by this point...but there is more! |
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| Bright-eyed! |
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| What a big girl! Happy 1 Month Birthday! |
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| Trying to capture a smile...got part of one |
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| Are we done yet? |
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| Love these little socks! |
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| BIG yawn! Time for a nap! |
Happy 1 Month Birthday, baby girl!
and
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Today was my doctor appointment and Natalie was SO good! She was awake for most of it and was as content as could be just sitting in her carseat just waiting! She didn't make a peep the entire time! Then, once we went from the 2nd floor down to the basement to see her Daddy, she was asleep and wouldn't open her eyes for him!
Then, we headed to Babies R Us to get an extra storage bottle for pumping, but of course I came out of there with a couple more things than that! Oh well, I couldn't resist.
It is such a nice day today...sun shining and warm air, but with quite a gust of wind. We will definitely be taking a walk for sure!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
One Month Check-Up
Today we went to the pediatrician. Natalie only cried a couple of times when the doctor was examining her. She now weighs 8 pounds, 11 ounces. They measured her length at 21.5 inches and her head circumference at 37 centimeters. According to the doctor, Natalie is in the 50-55 percentile on all her measurements. She also said everything else looked great and for us to keep up whatever we are doing!
Bobby was supposed to meet us at the doctor office, but got stuck at work and plus he didn't want to have to wait in the waiting room for an hour like we did at her first appointment. However, when Natalie and I got to the office, we were the only ones in the waiting room and had gotten out of there within 45 minutes of when we arrived! I was pretty impressed, especially because of the length of our last trip there!
By the time we had gotten back home, I was not feeling well at all and was running a fever of 100.3! Ugh! Obviously I have an infection going on somewhere since I was feeling like this last week too. Luckily I have a doctor appointment tomorrow, so hopefully they can put me on something (even though I am not one to want to take antibiotics) because the ibuprofen is only masking my symptoms! I had a little talk with Miss Natalie about how she needed to be good until Daddy got home since Mommy wasn't feeling well, and she was good and took a little nap with me. The nap was definitely needed.
By the time Bobby got home from work and Natalie was fed and I pumped, it was still light out! So, we took a little walk around the neighborhood since it was in the high 50's/low 60's outside. Natalie went right to sleep during our walk, but woke up as soon as we got home! I hope she continues to love the car rides and stroller rides because there are going to be many more in our future! Tomorrow is supposed to be 70 degrees, so hopefully before or after my doctor appointment we can take another walk! I love springtime when you can finally get out and do things!
I cannot believe Natalie will ONE MONTH OLD tomorrow! It's so bittersweet, but I feel so blessed to have such a perfectly healthy little girl! I know Bobby loves it too! He is such a good dad, and I know they will be such great buddies!
Bobby was supposed to meet us at the doctor office, but got stuck at work and plus he didn't want to have to wait in the waiting room for an hour like we did at her first appointment. However, when Natalie and I got to the office, we were the only ones in the waiting room and had gotten out of there within 45 minutes of when we arrived! I was pretty impressed, especially because of the length of our last trip there!
By the time we had gotten back home, I was not feeling well at all and was running a fever of 100.3! Ugh! Obviously I have an infection going on somewhere since I was feeling like this last week too. Luckily I have a doctor appointment tomorrow, so hopefully they can put me on something (even though I am not one to want to take antibiotics) because the ibuprofen is only masking my symptoms! I had a little talk with Miss Natalie about how she needed to be good until Daddy got home since Mommy wasn't feeling well, and she was good and took a little nap with me. The nap was definitely needed.
By the time Bobby got home from work and Natalie was fed and I pumped, it was still light out! So, we took a little walk around the neighborhood since it was in the high 50's/low 60's outside. Natalie went right to sleep during our walk, but woke up as soon as we got home! I hope she continues to love the car rides and stroller rides because there are going to be many more in our future! Tomorrow is supposed to be 70 degrees, so hopefully before or after my doctor appointment we can take another walk! I love springtime when you can finally get out and do things!
I cannot believe Natalie will ONE MONTH OLD tomorrow! It's so bittersweet, but I feel so blessed to have such a perfectly healthy little girl! I know Bobby loves it too! He is such a good dad, and I know they will be such great buddies!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Little Miss Diva
We had a busy day today!
With Natalie getting up about every 3 hours, by the time I put her back to bed and when I finally can go to bed after pumping I think I get about 2 hours of sleep at a time. Makes for a very tired mommy! We finally got up at 10am to start the day. By the time I got her and me cleaned up, dressed, and fed, we left the house around 11:45 or so. We headed toward the hospital with intentions of bringing Bobby lunch, but by only communicating through text messages since they were having a major issue at work, bringing lunch to him didn't go as smoothly as planned.
By the time I had got done talking with the lactation consultant due to having an infection from the breastfeeding/pumping (hopefully all the topical medication heals everything!), Natalie and I were able to get Bobby some food. We stopped at Clabber Girl (luckily there was a parking stop not far from the door) and picked up lunch. It is definitely much more work to juggle a carseat, car keys, money, and carryout! So, while we waited for our food to be ready, I decided I would just finish my drink there so I didn't have to carry it out to the car with everything else, which wasn't very smart because then I was thirsty later, but oh well!
After dropping of lunch to Bobby, we headed to my work so I could complete the Ed Fair that was going on today! What should have only taken an hour, took about 2 by the time everyone got done meeting her! She did pretty well, but was fussy and would not drink her bottle since it was room temperature and not warm like it would have been at home...my little diva! Luckily, the ladies at the office enjoyed holding and attempting to comfort her while I finished all the education and we were on our way back home by 2:45p.
My intentions were to head to Walmart prior to heading home, but had to go home for just a little bit to warm up her bottle (which she drank right up after it was warmed) to make for a happy baby at her first trip to the store! I'm glad I didn't have to get a ton of things because with her carseat in the main part of the cart, it doesn't allow for much room surrounding her to put any groceries! She slept through the whole thing, such a good baby! Even slept through a stop at Kroger as well since I had forgotten something at Walmart! So, by the time we got home it was after 5p. Definitely takes a lot more time/effort to go anywhere with a baby, but it was nice to get out of the house! Needless to say, we took a short little nap while Bobby went to a basketball meeting!
This week will remain busy with her doctor appointment tomorrow and my doctor appointment on Thursday. I cannot believe that she is going to be 1 MONTH OLD on Thursday already! At least she is still in newborn clothes and diapers...for NOW anyway!
With Natalie getting up about every 3 hours, by the time I put her back to bed and when I finally can go to bed after pumping I think I get about 2 hours of sleep at a time. Makes for a very tired mommy! We finally got up at 10am to start the day. By the time I got her and me cleaned up, dressed, and fed, we left the house around 11:45 or so. We headed toward the hospital with intentions of bringing Bobby lunch, but by only communicating through text messages since they were having a major issue at work, bringing lunch to him didn't go as smoothly as planned.
By the time I had got done talking with the lactation consultant due to having an infection from the breastfeeding/pumping (hopefully all the topical medication heals everything!), Natalie and I were able to get Bobby some food. We stopped at Clabber Girl (luckily there was a parking stop not far from the door) and picked up lunch. It is definitely much more work to juggle a carseat, car keys, money, and carryout! So, while we waited for our food to be ready, I decided I would just finish my drink there so I didn't have to carry it out to the car with everything else, which wasn't very smart because then I was thirsty later, but oh well!
After dropping of lunch to Bobby, we headed to my work so I could complete the Ed Fair that was going on today! What should have only taken an hour, took about 2 by the time everyone got done meeting her! She did pretty well, but was fussy and would not drink her bottle since it was room temperature and not warm like it would have been at home...my little diva! Luckily, the ladies at the office enjoyed holding and attempting to comfort her while I finished all the education and we were on our way back home by 2:45p.
My intentions were to head to Walmart prior to heading home, but had to go home for just a little bit to warm up her bottle (which she drank right up after it was warmed) to make for a happy baby at her first trip to the store! I'm glad I didn't have to get a ton of things because with her carseat in the main part of the cart, it doesn't allow for much room surrounding her to put any groceries! She slept through the whole thing, such a good baby! Even slept through a stop at Kroger as well since I had forgotten something at Walmart! So, by the time we got home it was after 5p. Definitely takes a lot more time/effort to go anywhere with a baby, but it was nice to get out of the house! Needless to say, we took a short little nap while Bobby went to a basketball meeting!
This week will remain busy with her doctor appointment tomorrow and my doctor appointment on Thursday. I cannot believe that she is going to be 1 MONTH OLD on Thursday already! At least she is still in newborn clothes and diapers...for NOW anyway!
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| First trip to the store with Mommy |
Sunday, March 13, 2011
First Long Road Trip
On Friday, we left to head up north to South Bend to see our families and celebrate Bobby's nephew's 3rd birthday! The longest Natalie had ever been in the car is around Terre Haute to see the doctor, visit Bobby at work, and going out to eat at Cheeseburger in Paradise with Bobby's family. Every time she had gone for a car ride, she slept for the 10-20 minutes we were in the car. We had a full car for her first trip: Bobby and I, my mom, Natalie, and Rusty along with back storage area full of our stuff and my mom's things.
I would say I packed pretty well for our first weekend trip away from home since having the baby and I didn't forget anything, which is a major accomplishment in itself. Since newborn clothes are so tiny, it was definitely easy to pack her clothes in our suitcase! It was definitely different packing a breast pump and several bottles, but I loved it!
It usually takes us 3.5 to 4 hours to make the trek from Terre Haute to South Bend, but this trip was slightly different because we met Amanda and Matt for dinner at the Melting Pot in Greenwood for Matt's 31st birthday. Natalie slept the 1.5 hours to Greenwood with only one slight cry when the car had stopped at a stoplight, but then she remained sleeping during the entire 2.5 hour meal. I had to take her out of the carseat and wake her up to feed her and mom changed her before we headed out for the rest of the trip. She then slept the next 2.5 hours to South Bend! She was such a good baby and loved the car ride, so hopefully that continues since we travel quite often!
While we were home, my mom and dad got up with her at night on Friday and Saturday, which was awesome because on Saturday night I was able to sleep for probably 8 hours uninterrupted! It was the best sleep I had had for the last 9 months or so and I can't thank my mom and dad enough for that! They loved every minute of it also because they love Natalie so much! I love seeing my parents as grandparents...they are AWESOME! On Sunday, while Bobby and I went to Preston's birthday party, my parents watched Natalie.
I would say I packed pretty well for our first weekend trip away from home since having the baby and I didn't forget anything, which is a major accomplishment in itself. Since newborn clothes are so tiny, it was definitely easy to pack her clothes in our suitcase! It was definitely different packing a breast pump and several bottles, but I loved it!
It usually takes us 3.5 to 4 hours to make the trek from Terre Haute to South Bend, but this trip was slightly different because we met Amanda and Matt for dinner at the Melting Pot in Greenwood for Matt's 31st birthday. Natalie slept the 1.5 hours to Greenwood with only one slight cry when the car had stopped at a stoplight, but then she remained sleeping during the entire 2.5 hour meal. I had to take her out of the carseat and wake her up to feed her and mom changed her before we headed out for the rest of the trip. She then slept the next 2.5 hours to South Bend! She was such a good baby and loved the car ride, so hopefully that continues since we travel quite often!
While we were home, my mom and dad got up with her at night on Friday and Saturday, which was awesome because on Saturday night I was able to sleep for probably 8 hours uninterrupted! It was the best sleep I had had for the last 9 months or so and I can't thank my mom and dad enough for that! They loved every minute of it also because they love Natalie so much! I love seeing my parents as grandparents...they are AWESOME! On Sunday, while Bobby and I went to Preston's birthday party, my parents watched Natalie.
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| Great Aunt Krista |
Thursday, March 10, 2011
3 Weeks Old Today
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| Our first date night since Natalie was born |
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| Grandma and Natalie ready for girls' night |
Natalie Lynne is 3 weeks old today and I cannot believe it! It seems like just yesterday we were just a family of 2 with a dog and a cat. I told Bobby today that it still seems surreal that this little girl is ours to keep!
My mom, Grandma Lisa, has been down here all week over her Spring Break to help us out, which has been so great for all of us. Although she does not feel she has helped out a lot, I am so grateful she has been able and willing to take her break to cuddle, talk, feed, and love on Miss Natalie, as well as helping me out with a little bit of laundry, dishes and other household tasks here and there. At least that is until Natalie wants Grandma's attention!
Grandma was especially helpful yesterday when Mommy was running a fever and not feeling too well! I could not have gotten sick at a more opportune time because I don't know how I would have managed Natalie by myself while feeling so bad!
Today, Daddy was home from work and got to spend time one-on-one with his daughter which was great with all the hours he has been working since he went back to work last Wednesday. This entire week, Natalie has been much more awake and active during the day, but of course today when Grandma and Mommy left the house for a few hours to run some errands, she decided she would sleep most of the day with Daddy. I am glad she slept, but she had also slept pretty well during the night...a whole 4 hours at a time once and then woke up every 2.5 hours after that. Mommy needed the sleep since she wasn't feeling well the day before. Now, of course tonight she does not want to go to bed and is probably going to keep Mommy and Grandma awake!
Tonight, Grandma babysat while we got to go out on our first date since the arrival of Natalie. We ate at Applebee's (because we had a giftcard courtesy of my grandparents), walked around the mall looking for a St. Patty's Day outfit for Natalie (decided against it because Bobby thought I was crazy for wanting to get an outfit to be worn for one day), then found Natalie's Easter outfit from The Children's Place (shopping at the mall has changed greatly since it is all about Natalie now and not about shopping for me which will be a big adjustment since I loved shopping for me at times), then ended our night at the bowling alley (proud to say I bowled over 100, but of course Bobby had won both games). It was nice to be out and about tonight as a couple, but definitely not the same after only getting a few hours of sleep at a time during the night and not wanting to be out too long due to me needing to get back home to pump so my boobs wouldn't feel like they were going to explode:) Oh, the joys of breastfeeding!
Tomorrow will be our first long trip in the car with Natalie along with having Rusty and Grandma in the car too. Needless to say it will definitely be an adventure that I will definitely be sharing when I get the time! We will be going out to dinner with Matt and Amanda; my mom; Bobby, Natalie, and I. It will be interesting on juggling a long trip as a new parent and see just exactly how long it will actually take to get up to South Bend when it usually only takes 4 hours or less!
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