We're back (in more ways than one!)

I couldn't resist this precious picture of Paige in her bathing suit!! 

It has been forever since I have updated, but I have been out of town! Paige and I headed north to visit my mom and dad while they summered in Alaska.  I spent a year there while my dad was with Nabors Drilling, and I keep going back every summer.  It is where David and I got engaged, so I have some wonderful memories there! Plus I hate being away from my mom for too long, so no way could I have gone all summer.  We missed David like crazy though, and it feels nice to be back home.

Flying = easy! Granted, I did spring for first class.  I was very nervous about a 5 hour flight (from Salt Lake to Anchorage) with a two month old, but she was great.  She had a massively dirty diaper while we were taxiing from the gate to the runway, so I had to wait about 15 minutes until we reached cruising altitude before I could get up and change it.  Luckily I sat next to some very baby-friendly people who didn't mind.

Everything was copasetic until yesterday (2 days after we got home).  She would not eat.  She would scream out in hunger pains, so we would sit down to feed her.  She would eat for maybe 10-15 seconds, then scream in pain, stiffen up her body, and flail hear little arms about.  This lasted all day! I was frustrated to tears, I called David several times, and this continued into the night.  She normally has 22-23 ounces per day.  Yesterday, she got down 12.  Finally at 10:00 PM, I paged the nurse.  I was so upset that David had to talk to her.  It is so hard to watch your baby be in pain.  I was so sad for her.  She said that since we are able to console her, we should just keep her over night and bring her in the next morning.  If that changed (meaning if we weren't able to console her, and she appears to be in constant pain), then we were to head to the ER.  Thank goodness that didn't happen, and at 4 AM, she actually woke up and ate! 4 ounces! With no apparent pain! YAY!!! So I am going to see how it goes this morning before I decide if I am taking her in or not.  

Great hair translates in all 50 states!
Goofy morning smiles!

Reunited with daddy at the airport! We missed you so much!

Camp mel! My mom's name is Melody and one of her girlfriends made shirts when they visited Anchorage.  My mom really does run a camp!


I have come to the conclusion that being a mom can just be hard some days.  When you think you have everything figured out, they throw you a curve ball.  

Fun game on a rainy day!

8 THINGS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO:
Paige smiling!

Going to Alaska with Paige

Getting a pedicure

Losing 10 pounds and putting on a swim suit!

Being pregnant again (I know I am nuts)

Getting better a golf

Eating at Moose's Tooth in Alaska

8 THINGS I DID YESTERDAY
Mopped my floors

Went to TJ Maxx and Target

Changed about 10-12 diapers

Played golf with the Frasier family

Ate fajitas and drank wine

Cleaned Paige's poop and pee at the country club

Cleaned bottles

Did abs

(love the life of a housewife!)

8 THINGS I WISH I COULD DO
Get pregnant by having sex

Get a hole in one

Fix my car by blinking me eyes

Lose weight by eating ice cream and drinking wine

Make Bob Stoops my boyfriend

Make Obama be less annoying (Oh no I didn't just say that!)

Have David all of a sudden decide he doesn't like golf that much and would rather just hang with me

Walk into the Bellagio spa right now for a few hours

8 SHOWS I WATCH
American Idol

Beverly Hills, 90210 (original)

Locked up Abroad

I survived

Intervention

FRIENDS

Grey's Anatomy

The Hills (Freaked out when K. Cavallari showed up at the end! Snap!) 

8 FAVORITE FRUITS
Strawberrys

Grapes

Oranges

Pineapple

Kiwi

Blueberry

Blackberry

Cherrys

I love fruit

8 PLACES I’D LIKE TO TRAVEL
Greece

Spain

Germany

Australia

Thailand

Southern California

New England

Scotland

8 PLACES I’VE LIVED
Anchorage, Alaska

Edmond, OK

Oklahoma City, OK

Norman, OK

That is it.

I am not going to tag anyone - so copy and paste and play if you want to!! : )

Fore!

My cute bug
David and I about to go out for our anniversary!

With my new baby Bjorn! I love this thing! I call Paige my little marsupial when she is in this.  So cute and she loves it!

Our first trip to the golf course...hence the title of this post.
We went out with Charlie, Michelle, and Ethan.  Michelle was smarter than me and brought her Bjorn.  But we had so much fun! Paige and Ethan were so good.  I did have to change a diaper on the #11 tee box, but no one seemed to mind.  We let a group play through us, and Paige started to coo a little in one of the guy's practice swings, but she quieted down in time.  Daddy has high hopes of Paige loving golf, so hopefully this got her started off on the right foot.

Other baby news:  Paige sleeps through the night.  11 PM to 7:15 AM last night.  Praise God! And we are getting closer on the smiling thing.  I saw Ethan smiling away at Michelle last night and it made me so excited for when my little one starts.  Come on, Paige! Mommy is funny...SMILE!!!!!

my post partum body - my anniversary...

David and I will celebrate three years of wedded bliss on Tuesday, June 2nd.  We are celebrating tonight though : )  We are going to Red Prime Steakhouse downtown.  Neither of us have ever been there, so we are excited! We have a sitter for the bug and are ready for a night out just the two of us.  Marriage is such a blessing.  It has it's ups and downs, but at the end of the day - David is the best thing that has happened to me (Paige comes a close second!).

We had a beautiful wedding in Maui, HI on June 2nd, 2006.  We also had a reception at home that was so much fun, but nothing will beat that day!


These are of me - 5 weeks post partum.  Yuck.  I have lost 35 pounds (remember, I only gained 30), but my body is so different.  My stomach is mush.  I just don't look good.  Forget getting in a swim suit.  NOT HAPPENING! However - I am doing something about it.  I hate when people complain about their body, but do nothing to change it.  I started working out again last week and Monday I will start eating better (I refuse to start a diet the day I am going out to celebrate my anniversary!!).  I want to lose 10 pounds, lose my love handles, and get that pre-marriage and baby stomach back! Wish me luck : )

Happy one month, Bug!

In her jammies - ready for bed after a big day!
Her little dress says daddy's girl.  Awwww : )
Momma and her bug
I am going to do her monthly pictures in her chair, so we can see how she grows in it
Little bug - big chair!

David's dad came in to town yesterday.  It was his first time to meet her, so that was fun.  Life with Paige is still wonderful - I can't believe a whole month has gone by since we had her.  I have a feeling time is going to fly for the rest of our lives.  I am trying so hard to enjoy her tinyness, and I can already feel my baby bug growing and growing.

Personal progress:  I think I can cross bitter off my list of qualities.  Finally! When I was trying to get pregnant, pregnancy announcements were something I dreaded.  How was it that it was so easy for other people and so hard for me?  Hearing a friend was pregnant left me in tears on the phone to David, which of course made me feel horribly guilty for feeling nothing but joy for them...which led to more tears.  Awful cycle.  

Even though I wish it could be easier for David and I to build our family, I wouldn't change how it happened for us.  Just think:  if I had gotten pregnant at any other time, it wouldn't be Paige!  Not to mention all the things I learned those 19 months.  I am a different person, for the better.  

Being a stay-at-home mommy

We had a fun play date with Erin's sweet baby, J.  We met at Louie's and walked around the lake after that.  We were sitting in this restaurant with business people on their lunch breaks, and we have our baby carriers and whip out our bottles and are feeding and burping our babies.  I am sure they were like - this is not a daycare! But when Paige is hungry, she has to eat!!
My sweet bug
Paige isn't quite interested in her playmat just yet.  She likes to sleep on it, though!

Paige is the absolute love of my life.  She is such a wonderful baby.  She still only wakes up one time in the night, and goes right back down after she eats.  I am ready for her to drop that 3 AM feeding, but I know I SHOULD NOT complain, because I know it could be much worse with a 4 week old.

Tomorrow we have another play date with Ethan F.  I'll take pictures of that too.  I have my 4 week post partum check-up in the morning, and I am hoping to get back in the gym after that! 

I feel so blessed that I get to stay at home with her.  I can't imagine having just two more weeks with her before I had to send her to daycare and only have a few hours a day with her.  Breaks my heart even thinking about it.  I am going to start leaving her with my parents on Monday-Wednesday-Friday mornings so I can do a workout class at Chesapeake, and I think that will be good for us.  But from 8:30-11 is long enough!!

Paige's new love = pacifier!

My chickadee who has discovered her pacifier! She loves it! It is so funny - you put it in her mouth and she just goes crazy on it!  She is also starting to track things with her eyes, which I know is a sign of good development.  T- 30 minutes or so until we leave for Dallas.  I have twice as much stuff for her as I do for David and I combined! 

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

A brave venture out of town

Big news for this week:  we are taking Paige to Dallas this weekend! I admit, I am very nervous about how this is going to work.  How is she going to sleep in a new place without her swing?  We are going to drag diapers, wipes, all her clothes (she spits up and pees on many an outfit!), stroller, breast pump haha...but such is life with a baby!

David is playing in the Byron Nelson pro-am golf tournament at the 4 Seasons down there, and Paige and I are going to tag along!  I'll document her first trip south of the Red River in photos, don't worry!

Other news:  I am in my pre-pregnancy jeans, and 3 pounds lighter than I was when I got pregnant.  Yay! I have been eating ice cream at night and not working out still, so I am not sure how this is happening.  Breast feeding?  I guess it really does burn calories!  I am ready to get back in that gym, though! I am a good girl who is waiting for my 4 week post-partum check-up.

Happy mother's day!

Photo shoot for your viewing pleasure.  

My first mother's day as a mom.  From now on, every mother's day, I will be a mom.  What an amazing thing!  We are going to eat at my brother's house tonight.  My mom and grandmother will be there will be there to help me celebrate.  I feel very blessed today! 

Life with bug:  still going well! Paige wakes up one time in the night to eat.  Then she goes right back down.  Last night, we left her with my mom for the first time.  I cried, of course, but did fine.  We had a couple's shower to go to, then we went to dinner with some friends.  It was fun, but I missed Paige.  I missed her little noises, her smell...I just missed her!  I was nervous about getting her out of the little routine we have established, but she did great! We put her down around 11:30, she woke up at 3 to eat, then went right back down, then woke up again around 7:30.  Getting six-seven hours of sleep at night with a newborn is an amazing thing - or so I have been told.  Bug is such a good girl : )

We also had her newborn photos done yesterday! I'm excited to see how they turn out.  She was great all day! Very alert!  She only cried when we tried to put hats on her.  So we only got a few of those shots.

Happy mother's day to all the happy mommys out there!

A survey in honor of mother's day!

Here you go mommies - a different kind of survey for a change - it's all about your first born! Just copy and paste it in a new note for yourself!


1. WAS YOUR PREGNANCY PLANNED
Yes

2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME?
Yes

3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS?
Shocked that it finally worked, and beyond excited!

4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU?
Never

5. HOW OLD WERE YOU?
25

6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT?
Took a first response early result pregnancy test on 8/23/08 : )

7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST?
David

8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX?
Of course!!!

9. DUE DATE
May 2, 2009

10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS?
Not really.  Just a few headaches

11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE?
Grilled cheese, tater tots, and strawberry slush from Sonic.  Thanks for the 30 extra pounds.

12.WHAT IRRITATED YOU?
David drinking and me having to drive him around!

13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD'S SEX?
GIRL : )

14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING?
At first, we kind of preferred a boy, but I CAN NOT imagine not having my sweet girl now.  I want all girls now!

15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY
30 on the dot.

16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER?
Yes! They were both so fun!

17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW?
I knew

18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY?
Yes.  It was all normal until I was 38 weeks when my non-stress tests started showing signs of fetal distress.  I ended up being induced early, which ended up in an emergency C-Section.

19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH?
Mercy Hospital.  Love it!

20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR?
10 hours of labor that ended in a C-Section

21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL?
Myself.  I was not expecting to give birth that day - I was just going for a regular doctor's appointment.

22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH?
David.  He peeked around the curtain a few times ; )

23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION?
C-section

24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN?
Duh!

25. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH?
7 lbs. 3 oz

28. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN?
April 23, 2009

30. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER?
Paige Madeline

Bath time, sleep time!

In the middle of the night, Paige peed all over herself while changing her diaper.  I stripped her down, wiped her down with a baby wipe, and swaddled her up with just her diaper on.  At 3 AM, I really don't care if my kid is dressed cute!! But she did look so cute when we woke up in the morning : )
Little power nap before her first bath!
Paige's belly stump fell off a few days ago, so we were able to give her a bath in the sink! She really liked it...

...until we took her out.  Please excuse the scariness of my appearance.  Two nights ago was awful.  It took a few hours to get Paige down for the night.  After her bottle at 10, she just didn't want to go to sleep.  I finally put her on my chest in bed, and got about an hour and forty-five minutes of sleep.  She woke up again at 2 to eat, and I put her on the breast.  She ate for a while, and we tried to put her back down.  At 5 AM, she finally went to sleep.  Then woke up again at 6:30 to eat again.  So add that up - I slept a total of 3 hours, and not at the same time.  Many tears were shed.

I started thinking:  I wonder how much milk Paige is actually getting from the breast?  It seems like she struggles and gets frustrated nursing.  So yesterday, I did an experiment.  I pumped every 3-4 hours and gave her bottles.  She ate like a champ each time (between 3 and 4 ounces), had plenty of dirty and wet diapers, and was just a happier baby than she had been the last week.  Then last night, she went down right away after her 10 PM bottle, and slept until 2.  David gave her a bottle while I pumped, and she went right back down until 6:30.  We got at least 6 hours of sleep last night, and I feel like a new person.  I feel like I have a new baby.  I am not thinking of this as giving up - because Paige is still exclusively getting breast milk...it is just coming from a bottle.  And if it makes for a happier baby and a happier mommy, well then that is just what we are going to do.  Pumping is easy and takes 15 minutes at the most, and I don't mind doing it every 4 hours.  It is important to me that she gets breast milk. Wow, that was long.  But my point is - every baby is different, and every mom has to find her own way.