New Addition

It's been quiet on the blog since life has been so busy lately.

We welcomed a new little guy to our family.  He was born a couple weeks early but is an amazing, amazing guy! We are so in love.

 

 

Aaron did need a little time adjusting to this new life but he is now just head over heels for his little brother.

 

 

 

We feel so blessed and so lucky to have these two. Life is just too perfect right now! It just makes me want another one! ;)

 

 

 

He really is our little superhero!

 

 

-XoXo





I took 85 pictures last night

I took little guy to the park last night after I got off work. Weather was perfect. Sun was still out. He loved it. I'm happy I had my camera with me. I got to capture that smile of his. That smile that I think about 24/7.

Have a Happy 4th & Stay Cool!! It's supposed to be close to the 100's in the DC area so I'm thinking POOL!!!

Am I ready for baby #2?

When I see things like this? I think YES I AM!!!! I can't wait until we have a baby girl. There are so many cute things out there for little girls, unfortunately that isn't the case for boys grrr.

In all honesty, we're not quite ready for baby #2 yet but I can at least start my must have list for when Leah comes (yes, I already know my future baby girl's name, hehe)

Shoes by Joyfolie.
Image source.

Like Father, Like Son

My husband is a shoe collector! what is that?

Well he has over 200 pairs of mostly Nike Shoes: Jordan's, Lebron's, etc....
He has been starting a little collection for the little guy too and even though this habit annoys me sometimes, it is sooo cute to see their shoes together!

Lebrons

By the way I took that pic!!! on semi-manual mode!!! Manual Focus Baby!!! I am getting better at using my camera. I had the blinds all the way open to bring the sun in and that just made it easy! so note to self, let in all light for great pics!

8 months

He'll be 9 months next week, but 8 months for my lil guy was a glorious time! He celebrated his first Christmas AND New Years! He crawled and then learned to pull himself up to a standing position, he also got his first 2 bottom teeth at the beginning of his 8th month and his bottom two are now growing.
He also FINALLY said MAMA and learned to wave. It was wonderful to witness it all, I am so proud of my lil man! and so proud to be his mama!

A couple more firsts

I never did post about his first Christmas!!!

It was amazing. We celebrated with family and he was passed around from loving arm to loving arm and was blessed with toys, clothes and shoes! He is one loved baby! and I love it!

My REAL Tips for a Better Marriage - Post baby

My girlfriend Diana emailed me a link to these great marriage tips and asked me if they were true, and yeah they are but come on, add a baby and real life to the mix, sometimes you just need some REAL tips! Here are mine:

1. If you feel like yelling & cussing him out, do it! It’s better to get it all out and move on then hold in it and have a grudge later. I know yelling isn't always best but hey that's how I deal!

2. Don’t compete. It’s easy to get caught up in, "I did the dishes 3 times this week" or "I stay up with the baby more than you", try not to do that, it will just cause an unnecessary fight.

3. Be real & be you 100% of the time. It isn’t about pleasing people all the time anymore, you need to be happy first!

4. The husband needs to learn how to cook & make a couple meals occasionally. I love when my hubby treats me to a homemade breakfast! Same goes for cleaning.

5. Chocolate. I like chocolate. Get us Chocolate!

We have only been married 2.5 years and have a 6 month old so I am sure I will be adding to this list, but this is what has helped us so far.


Got any tips that have helped you? Share!!!! I’ll compile & re-post.

Homemade Baby Food: Butternut Squash

My first attempt at homemade baby food was super succesful!
Now that Aaron is 6 months old it is time for solids! YAY.

I kept it simple and choose butternut squash. It was super easy & I have told ya'll before that I am super lazy so if it aint easy, I aint doing it!

Here's how I did it:

All you need is 1 butternut squash & a tiny amount of unsalted butter.

1. Wash & Peel
2. Cut up the squash into pieces.

3. Boil it

4. Puree it
My blender has a puree option so that is what I used, no need to go buy extra supplies.

I added a little butter and a little water to help get the consistency where I wanted it.

5. Store!

I got these super cute containers from babies r us, they are made by Annabel Karmel. They are cute, cheap and get the job done. I packed some for aaron to take to grandma's and froze the rest.

THAT'S IT!!! Literally took 15 minutes and I was done! 

Aaron's C-section Birth Story (6 months later)

I’ve noticed a trend among mommy bloggers to post their birth story- here’s mine. This was quite therapeutic so warning, it’s a long one so go grab a cup coffee and sit back & chillax while you read.

4.26 Monday
I remember going to bed Sunday night disappointed that Aaron hadn’t made his debut over the weekend, I was feeling really good, I mean the best I had ever felt throughout the entire pregnancy so I was sad that I would probably be pregnant forever!
I woke up at 2 am with the worst cramps –it took a couple minutes to register what was happening then I remembered that I had been to the hospital a couple months prior because I had some intense Braxton Hicks contractions, then I immediately recognized the discomfort and knew what was going on.

I ended up going to sleep on the couch because I would get maybe 15 minutes of sleep before the next contraction would come but I knew it wasn’t to the point of needing to go to the hospital yet. At around 8 am I emailed my boss telling them that I would be working from home. I think I knew what was going on but I didn’t think it would actually happen. I spent the day lounging around the house with Jason and took a nice long bath. I had been communicating with my OB throughout the day and when the contractions were about 7 minutes apart, we headed to the hospital.
We arrive at holy cross at 2pm and they start checking my vitals and they saw my blood pressure was really high – they decided to monitor me for about 3 hours and then it was decided to admit to high-risk maternity. I kept telling the nurses I didn’t believe them because I felt fine – aside from the contractions I felt amazing! Again – Denial.
I get admitted to high-risk maternity and then the contractions started slowing down – I remember around 5pm a doctor came over and wanted to induce labor. I really didn’t want to so they waited until a doctor from my ob practice arrived and when she did, she agreed not to induce and to let me walk around. Just then, my sisters arrived and provided a much-needed distraction from the contractions. After several hours, my sisters left and it was just Jason and I. From the time I was pregnant I thought I would want no one in the delivery room until after Aaron was born, I thought I didn’t want anyone to see my lovely lady bumps but now I don’t see why I even cared. So, while we kept everyone updated by phone we told everyone not to rush over. That is on thing I will change with baby #2 – I want my people there! It is so important to have that support system, I had Jason but sometime daddy’s need support as well.
At around 7-8pm the contractions picked up again and at 1:00 AM I was admitted to Labor & Delivery. Woo hoo!

4/27 - Tuesday
I remember getting to labor & delivery, Jason laying down on the couch and then falling asleep. All of a sudden 2 am rolls around and WHOAAAAAAA the pain went up a notch!!! I took Lamaze classes but for some reason every time a contraction came I held my breath, Jason had to keep reminding me to breath. At this point I think fear started setting in – the more intense it got the more scared I got. And while Jason was there for me, there was no one there for him and we were both exhausted!

At 4am, I was beyond exhausted and gave in to the epidural. Jason knew I didn’t want it but didn’t fight me much because he was too tired. I get the epidural and I am still feeling the pain – is that supposed to happen? My butt hurt like hell!!!!! I thought the epidural was supposed to take the pain awy! I kept trying to sleep and at around 6:30am my water finally broke!!! We could finally get this show on the road – I won’t suffer anymore (I am a drama queen!) And I can finally see his face! Well nope – all of a sudden about 3 nurses and a doctor rush in and tell me I was only 6 cm dilated and that Aaron’s heart rate had dropped. They tried to have me change positions and when that didn’t work they cranked down the epidural to see if that had any effect and then all of a sudden they throw Jason a gown and tell us they have to get Aaron out now!!! At that point, I went numb and my attitude was just whatever! I knew that this meant I wouldn’t be able to hold him right away and that killed me but I knew if he was in danger, I wanted him safe.
So as I am being taped down and given anesthesia and I kept wondering why the hell was taking Jason so long. I ask the doctors to wait for him- where was he? He was in the hallway taking pictures of his shoes! (I have pictures of his gown covered shoes in Aaron’s albums- NICE!) He finally comes and I remember telling Jason that I couldn’t breath but now when I look back I think it was nerves that everything was about to change! Or the anesthesia – who knows.

7:52 AM. At 7:52 AM, they tell us he’s here! Aaron is here and they call Jason to see him then he leaves me. It felt like I was waiting forever to hear his cry and when I heard it – it felt like a dream. I was mad that all these seconds were passing by and I still don’t know what he looks like, I hear Jason snapping pics and the nurses say he’s 6lbs 3 oz and they congratulate him. They tell us the cord was wrapped around his neck twice. Jason finally bring Aaron to me and he is just perfect! I can’t believe he is mine. Sometimes I still can’t believe it, I can’t believe I am this lucky to have him.


We go to recovery and my arms are numb, I still can’t hold him. That was the hardest part for me and I know I still struggle with this today! Jason got to hold him for hours and see him get his first bath and while I am so happy Jason got that moment with him and was there for him, I was supposed to be there too!
After 3 hours, when I got the sensation back in my arms, I was finally able to hold him and attempt breastfeeding. The one thing I do remember and won’t ever forget is the way Aaron looked at me, like he was waiting for me too.

Please excuse that I look like death!

 I then spent the next 2 days vomiting from the effects of the anesthesia and I just kept could not stay wake! I kept dozing off, so I don’t remember much. I am not sure if that is normal, since I was planning for a natural birth I did not read up or look into c-sections at all, since I had a healthy pregnancy it never came up with my doctor either. I will say I am lucky that I recovered quickly but I am really hoping to avoid a c-section for baby #2. The worst part of having a c-section for me was the difficulties with breastfeeding. If there are any first time mommies out there who end up needing a c-section, please make sure you have a super supportive nurse and that you are able to see a lactation consultant. After about 9-10 days we were able to work it out but thru a lots of tears on both mama & baby’s part!

All in all he is healthy and happy so I can’t ask for more. Now it’s time for picture overload!

Time sure does fly!

I cannot believe it has been 6 months since I met my little guy. He is already learning to sit, plays with toys, loves to splash in the water, trying to figure out crawling but instead rolls to his destination. He is just so fun. We will be starting solids very soon, like maybe this week and I think we’ll go the homemade route. We have randomly given him a taste of sweet potatoes and bananas but he wasn’t ready yet so he’s been indulging in oatmeal once a day.

We recently went to the farm to see if we can get a pumpkin but instead we left with apple cinnamon donuts ( I hang my head in shame!) – here are some pics of the little guy checking out the scenery.

And here are some pics of me messing around with my new obsession! The canon rebel – it’s so much fun learning photography.

I just started my own Project 365 - Check it out!

So this is what that mommy guilt feels like

Looking back on my pregnancy, I feel like I was so naïve on so many things, especially Breastfeeding!
Having had an unplanned emergency c-section (birth story coming soon), breastfeeding was extremely difficult for me. It took nine days for my milk to come in and the first nurse assigned to me post-delivery was not knowledgeable on breastfeeding so that didn’t help matters either.

I think it took 2 weeks to get Aaron to latch properly and get the hang of breastfeeding. The first 2 weeks were extremely difficult because I truly felt like a failure. While pregnant, breastfeeding was really the only choice for me. I mean on my baby registry, I didn’t even register for bottles, I registered for a pump and a slew of bf accessories. So I was completely unprepared at how "unnatural" it seemed to be for me at first. I mean it seemed so easy & natural for others, so what was wrong with me!?

I am proud to say that we did we finally get the hang of breastfeeding and I enjoyed it! I found it calmed me down to be able to do something that only I can do for my baby. The problem was when I returned to work when Aaron was 14 weeks. The first couple weeks weren’t that bad, I was able to go to the “Mother’s Room”, as it’s called, 3 times a day for a good 15-20 minutes at a time. I would bring my laptop down and answer emails as I pumped away, but as the weeks went on, my office was in the middle of renovations, we had staff turnover, we have an annual meeting coming, I was lucky if I was able to pump twice a day. I then noticed a huge decrease in my supply and had to once again, supplement with formula!

So this week at 4.5 months, after my supply just kept going down and down and having a frustrated baby who didn’t want to take to the breast anymore, I threw in the towel. I just couldn’t deal with the stress anymore! After all a happy mama means a happy baby right?? Well then why do I feel so guilty!!!! Sigh.

I went ahead, packed up my PIS, and put it away for baby #2. :(

You have been good to us! Sniff Sniff

At least I can say I know what not to do/what to do for the next baby. At least I can say I gave it a good 4.5 months. At least I can say I am proud I didn't give up right away. But I still feel like a failure! I still feel guilty! I still have the tears! I know time will heal this process but WOW! I was not ready for all these feelings on breastfeeding! I am glad that I care this much! I am glad that this experience has served as motivation to help others, how? I don't know yet but I will find a way.

Childbirth Education

When I was seven months pregnant, I began to explore my options in childbirth, working where I work helped me a lot and I was able to get my hands on a lot of research. I decided to take childbirth education classes and went through Lamaze. I had great experience and I was recently featured on the new blog Giving Birth with Confidence, where I talk about the impact the class had on me. The article is below but feel free to click here for the original post.


Why did you decide to attend a childbirth education class?

As a first-time mom, I didn’t know what to expect. I wanted to take a class to help prepare my husband and myself. The last thing I wanted to feel was anxious or nervous – I just wanted to be focused on meeting my baby.

Why did you choose a Lamaze class?

The main thing that attracts me to Lamaze is the Healthy Birth Practices; they are so simple and so natural. I did not want to go in to the hospital on birth day and follow blindly whatever a doctor or nurse said just because they are professionals — I wanted to be an informed woman. I have always been like that; my dad always told me that I started asking why to everything as soon as I could talk. To me, Lamaze was all about educating yourself to make the best decisions for you and your baby and that made me feel comfortable. I also did not want to have to learn a technique; I wanted something that would come naturally and relax me.

What was the format of your classes?

I took a class one evening a week for 2.5 hours for a period of 4-5 weeks. I took my class thru the DC chapter of Lamaze.

What were your impressions of the first class?

Our class only had four other couples, so it was very intimate. I didn’t know what to expect, but our instructor involved the dads first. She got them to talk about their fears and expectations. Listening to them talk made me and I’m sure the other moms feel more relaxed and free to voice our feelings as well. Being 7 months pregnant when we took the class, I really liked the relaxation exercises and massages we practiced too!

Talk about some of the more notable details of your class.

The one thing I noticed is that we were all first time parents. One of the first questions the instructor asked was if anyone was planning to take advantage of the pain relief options at the hospital. She was not judgmental, but rather let the course information present itself to help women make their decision. All of the moms present at the beginning of the course were planning on getting an epidural because of their perception of childbirth. I remember one of our classes had to be rescheduled because our teacher was also a doula. She came to class the next week and told us about her client’s birthing experience. She told us the client was moving around during labor and trying different positions – several of the moms didn’t even know that was possible. At the end of the class, two of the moms decided to find a midwife instead of continuing to see their ob/gyn and one mom decided to find a hospital that would allow a water birth.

How have your emotions and thoughts and the way you feel about childbirth changed after taking the class?

For some reason, when people see that you’re pregnant, they decide to tell you about their labor experience and of course, they are all scary stories of people laboring for days with 4th degree tears! So naturally I was very nervous about giving birth, and I didn’t think I could do it. That fear is what drew me to take a childbirth education class.

During the class, the teacher made it seem like birth wasn’t so bad. That was the first time anyone described birth to me that way. She showed us a video where a woman was laboring at home but was sitting on the floor watching TV with her husband – she was so relaxed! Nothing like the movies! I was starting to feel like, “I can do this!” The class left me wanting to educate myself even more! I searched for more videos, blogs and articles on natural birth and the more I learned, the more natural it seemed. It seemed like the only way to go and made me wonder why people were not exploring this option more. I came across one woman’s blog who had her natural birth with her family and friends present and after the baby was born, they celebrated with champagne. She looked so happy in the pictures, even while she was pushing I didn’t see pain in her face, but rather determination. I knew that was the experience I wanted!

~.~.~.~.

Be on the lookout for the birth story coming soon!

15 Week Update

This week I went back to work. The first day was hard! But after talking to several moms who reassured me that all would be fine in the world, I just stopped stressing and realized I had to do what I had to do. So as the week goes on it's getting a little better each day. However, it's not only missing my baby that I have to adjust to but because I am still breastfeeding I have the joys of pumping at work, exciting eh? (not really!)

Aaron is now 3 months and 3 weeks old (it's crazy that this time last year I was 3 weeks pregnant with him and puking on the metro on my way home- awesome!) and is finding his voice, he likes to talk to us and is getting louder and louder, he even does a girly scream when hes angry and loves grunting, it's just hilarious. He's also learning to graps toys and of ocurse with that comes putting things in his mouth. He's such a happy baby that all he mostly does is smile, laugh and coo, and I am upset I miss this being at work!!!! (ok, so I am still having trouble being away).

Other things: We will start cloth diapering next week. I am brand spanking new to the cloth revolution but will be starting with Gdiapers, so i'll update on that later.

It is now 4:50 and I am dying to go home and snuggle with my gummy bear! Then catch up on True blood, Teen Mom and Kourtney and Khlow! Also, apparently the duggars new season started yesterday so I will try to watch that, I'd like to see how baby Josie is doing.

2 months old

9 weeks old and he is smiling, cooing, and just being so darn cute!!!! But not sleeping thru the night :( lol/

Nursery Inspiration

The Crib is here!!!! We'll start putting it together next week but in the meantime, I am thinking of how do I want to decorate!

Hubby loves starwars and would love a star wars theme. PB kids (My favorite store right now) has an awesome star wars collection but it's for toddlers and up not babies and it's quite pricey. I came across this DIY nursery:
This couple also had a Star Wars themed baby shower, you can see more here.
Though I love Star Wars too I could go in another direction. I am not really interested in a certain theme! Though I love trains for a sweet baby boy, like this one from PB Kids:


I am also an animal lover so a cute jungle theme might be nice. But I am really looking for something modern that he can grow with. Here a couple random images I plan to use for inspiration.

I really love their use of Shelving:
More details here.

Ikea is a great place for modern looking pieces at affordable prices:
If we go this route we (meaning hubby) will def. have to paint to match the espresso crib. I really love thier matching wall shelf also.

Here are some great designs for small places:

Very Cute design by Madelyn Ridgeway - I love the wall decals! CLICK HERE
Since we're renters, we will def. be looking at the wall decals route.

more....


http://www.thedesignfile.net/thedesignfile/2010/03/beautiful-modern-nursery-in-an-urban-condo.html

I really like the simplicy of this look:



www.projectnursery.com

I'd also love to see what you've done with your nurseries!