Monday, June 30, 2008

My baby is 2 months old!

Yesterday was Goob's 2 month birthday! And today was Goob's 2 month physical.

All is well. He weighs 11 lbs, 8 oz and was 23 in long. Doc said he's looking perfect! Yay! He had to get 4 shots, plus 1 oral vaccine. He loved the oral vaccine. He chowed down as the nurse was giving it to him. And then came the needles, 2 in each leg. My poor baby turned as red as a tomato and screamed bloody murder. But as soon as I picked him up, he was fine.

We came home. Goob got some Baby Tylenol and went down for a nap.

Hopefully, he won't have any side effects from the vaccines.

I could never be a single mom!

So anyone that is, major KUDOS to you!

J left a few hours ago for a business trip. He'll only be gone until tomorrow night, but I'm already stressing out. Goob and I've never gone that long without him. I know we'll be fine, I'm just a little scared.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Working towards sleeping through the night...

A few nights ago, Goob slept from 10ish to around 6:30. It was amazing. But the next night it was back to normal with Goob waking up around 3 or 4. So J and I decided that we really needed to start working on getting him to sleep through the night. I picked up a book that I heard about, The Baby Whisperer. I started reading it last night. And I'm going to seriously try to put Goob on the EASY routine. But I did read a few things about sleeping through the night. The biggest thing I saw was that a baby Goob's size did NOT need to be waking to eat in the middle of the night. (Woo hoo!) And that if he was waking it was probably out of habit and not hunger.

So last night, we put Goob down at 9. At 11, I gave him a "dream feed." He barely opened his eyes. He took about 2 oz, and then was back to dreamland by the time I put him in his bassinet. So J and I were in bed around 11:45.

At 2:30 Goob is up. We had already decided to try and give him a pacifier instead of a bottle. So J got up, reswaddled him, and gave him a pacifier. And...sleep! (YAY!)

At 4, Goob is up. We decide to try the pacifer thing again. And after a few sucks, he's out like a light! (Yay!)

At 5, Goob is up. It's been about 6 hours since his last feeding, so we fed him. He finished his bottle. J changed him and played with him for a few minutes while I finished pumping, and Goob went back to bed for a few hours!

So, our first night trying for sleeping through the night was a step in the right direction. Woo hoo!!

Friday, June 27, 2008

Uh oh... & UPDATE!

Right now it's 92 degrees. And our A/C just went out...at 7:30 on Friday night.

Cross your fingers that we can get someone over here tonite otherwise I'm going to check into the Hilton. Seriously!



Thankfully, the first place we called answered and send someone over within 10 minutes. And he fixed it. It only cost $270. Woo hoo! And it's nice and cool in here!

A Juicy Secret



I love this picture. It looks like our little dog, Kiki, is telling Goob some juicy gossip! Look at these two cuties!

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Daycare Search and Goob's 1st Tour of the Neighborhood

So I started the day care search a few days ago. I got a list from the Dept of Family and Protective Services of all the day care centers in our town. There are about 15. My first choice (where my cousins go) has a waiting list of about 10 kids. My second choice has openings.

So today J and I went and took a look at the place. The director was running an errand so the asst took us around. I will be going back next week to talk to the director. The place looked okay. (I have nothing to compare it to though.) Right now they have 4 babies in the baby room and two teachers. Not bad! Goob would be the youngest if we decide to go there. There was a bunch of toys. Some tummy time mats. It looked like a good environment. I got a copy of their schedule. It looks good, and the teacher did make it a point to tell me that they do deviate from it when the babies need to.

The cost is $95 a week which is standard for our town. All the day cares I called had a weekly cost of $95. I think one was $85. It's always $95 no matter how many days or how long a day he's there. That's a bummer since Goob will only be in daycare a maximum of 4 days a week becuase of J's job. And every other week it'll only be 3 days a week. And they have no set time of when the kids have to be there. (I called one day care and they told me that they stop accepting kids after 8:30?!?!?! Huh?) So basically, if J's working late, he can drop Goob off at 2 and I'll be there to pick him up at 4. Not bad!

We didn't commit to anything, but we'll need to soon since space is filling up.

My mom was going to talk to my aunt about someone she knows who does child care and get some info. It's supposedly a real close family friend. So I'll check that out soon.

Anyways, we left that day care, we went window shopping looking at some of the other day cares on my list. Several of them got vetoed. Some because of location. They were just too far away. Some because of the look of the place.


After day care hunting, we went to dinner, came home, and busted out the jogging stroller. It wasn't hot. The sun was going down. Goob had just finished eating so we strapped him in and went walking. At first, Goob got a little whiny, but once we got going, he was in awe looking around and exploring. We showed him some ducks, a lake, willow trees, palm trees. He saw his first cat. We went one and a half miles, and then Goob was done. We cut the walk short and went home. Just in time too, because as we walked up the driveway, Goob was hysterical.

It was kinda bittersweet on the walk. The last time J and I walked was April 27 (the day before I went into labor). Things were a lot different this time around.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Weekly Pics: Week 8

June 24th, 8 weeks old



(I forgot to take a picture today. I remembered after I got back from walking, but he was already knocked out on Daddy. So I took a sleeping baby pic! He's gotten so big!)

Monday, June 23, 2008

I spent $100, but saved $52.

I am so awesome.

Here's why:

Yesterday we went to Target. I needed to get some toiletries and paper products that we had run out of. (Well, I have a list of all the toiletries, cleaning supplies, and paper products that we use. On this list, I have the best price that I've found and where I've found it. Most of the items on the list have their best prices at Target since J gets a 10% discount.) So anyways, off to Target we went. Before we went I looked at Target's weekly ad so I had a game plan! And it was an awesome game plan. I saved $52.08.

I saved $15 on Enfamil formula using formual checks. Goob isn't on formula yet, but we wanted to start stocking up since he will be in a few months.

I saved $7.32 on paper towels. Target had a special on Bounty. I usually spend $11 for 12 rolls and they were $7 for 12 rolls. We bought two packages.

I saved $10 on cereal. Target had a special to buy 4 boxes of Kellogg's cereal for $10. AND if you bought 4 boxes, you'd get a $5 Target Gift Card. So we bough 8 boxes of cereal, and got 2 $5 gift cards. (J loves cereal!)

I saved $6.92 on deoderant. They were packaged 3 deoderants for $4.99. Regular price would have been $6.72 for 3. So we took advantage and bought 2 3-packs for me and 2 3-packs for J.

I saved $.86 on face wash and astringent. They were just 10% off, but since every little bit helps, I stocked up.

Finally, we saved $10.84 with J's 10% discount.

In the car on the way home, J apologized for thinking I'm nuts for being a coupon fanatic and so frugal. Yay.

We're starting the day care search

But I don't want to. I don't know how I'm going to have to drop him off every morning. I'm tearing up just calling all these places, and he won't even start for another two months.

I've called three places so far. I've been put on two waiting lists. One is a waiting list of 10 kids and the other is a waiting list of 3 kids. The director of the 3 kid waiting list was really optimistic about a spot being open for Goob. She was going to call us back this week when she double checks. The third place I called has space available, but I need to call back to speak with the director this afternoon.


I've got a few other places to call. J is off on Wednesday so we're gonna go check out these places.

I just don't want to.

Sunday, June 22, 2008

I'm a cow.

At least I'm feeling like one. I've been exclusively pumping for 7+ weeks. It'll be 8 weeks on Tuesday. (I'd much rather be nursing, but that's another story!) My supply has steadily increased from 10 ounces a day during week 1 to about 40 ounces a day now. I've managed to get a good sized freezer supply. YAY! At last count I had about 400 ounces.

Since I wasn't able to breastfeed, our goal was to make it to 6 weeks of exclusively pumping and I did it! And I'm not ready to quit yet.

I'm hoping to try to space out my pumping sessions so that it won't affect my supply to start working again at the end of August.

Now I can catch my breath...

Wow. I feel like I've been on the go this whole weekend. My parents and cousin came down from Houston on Friday morning. They left Houston at 4 am and I had my phone ringing at 9 to tell me that they were just getting into town. (Usually when my parents visit, they go to my grandma's house and I go over there. Not anymore. Their grandbaby is the first priority now.) Well, Goob was asleep still. So I jumped in the shower. I barely had time to put on my clothes before the doorbell rang. I let them in and my mom just barged into my room to the pack 'n play to get Goob.

They hung out for a few hours at the house just playing and holding Goob. He's changed so much since the last time they saw him. They were shocked. He was smiling and talking to them. (He's so cute!) Then we went out to lunch and to see my grandma.

I talked my mom and cousin into going to Babies R Us with me. My parents owed me a birthday present so I told them I wanted a jogging stroller. Plus I wanted to look for some shoes, books and toys for Goob. Plus, I needed to get a gift for my cousin's girlfriends baby shower in a few weeks. (Goob's first little friend!)

So we went to BRU and spent some serious money. My mom bought the stroller and a high chair for my Annie (cousin's girlfriend), plus a bunch of rompers and shoes for Goob. My cousin (who adores Goob!) got him a ton of toys. And I got him 2 Baby Einstein tapes and some books, plus a contour pad for Annie. Now the funny part was trying to fit it all in my poor little SUV. It was hilarious. There were two huge boxes, plus my big ole normal stroller, plus a car seat, plus the three of us. My mom had to squeeze between Goob and the stroller.

Before we started home my Aunt Stella called and since we were close to her work she wanted us to stop by. So we did. Goob was oohed and aahed over. (He's so cute!)

Finally made it back to my grandma's house, 4 hours later and about $500 poorer. J finally got out of work and we all went to dinner. I had a strawberry daiquari (sp?). Delicious!! And over dinner, my parents start in on me about letting Goob stay the night with them on Saturday. They were staying with my grandma. I'd told them I'd think about it. And they kept going on and on and on and on.

After dinner, my parents went back to my grandma's, J, Goob, my cousin and I went home. We put Goobto bed. And the rest of us watched Supersize Me. Ugh. Not a pleasant movie. Halfway through the movie, Goob got lonely and J went and got him. He came out of the bedroom all smiling and happy. J held him for a few minutes and he fell right back to sleep.

Saturday morning my dad and J took a trip to Home Depot and did a bunch of home repairs. We added wooden blinds in our dining room and kitchen and Goob's room. What a difference. The house is so much cooler. It's amazing!!! They also replaced the toilet in our bathroom. Our original toilet was turquoise and was put in by the builders of the home over 25 years ago. J spent a bunch of money at Home Depot, but I think it was all worth it. The blinds should help us save on our eletricity bill and the toilet is supposed to conserve water. We'll see. Oh and I made J use a $5 off Home Depot coupon. Yay!

J went to work and Monica (my cousin) and I watched Sex and the City most of the afternoon. My parents and Monica finally convinced me to let Goob sleep over. So I started packing everything he would need. I packed 5 4 oz bottles, plus I packed 2 frozen packets of breast milk. I was so worried about him not having enough to eat. We took him over to my parents, had a delicious dinner that my mom made. Homemade chicken enchiladas with Spanish rice. Yum!!!

When it came time to say goodbye, my parents had to practically force me out the door. Goob was being so good and happy and smiley. I almost started crying. Almost.

Monica and I went to play Bingo. I've never been but Monica went last weekend in Houston and wanted to go play again so we found a bingo hall. IT was crazy. It was packed. It cost us $20 each to play bingo from 7 to around 10. They had some really good jackpots ($250 or $500) and some crazy bingo games. I didn't win. Boo. But we had a blast laughing at all the people. IT was mostly old folks and they certainly take this game seriously. Once woman had a specially made Bingo Bag! And we would get dirty looks for talking or laughing too loudly which only made us laugh more. I had a really good time.

After Bingo, I called my mom and she said that Goob sounded congested. Since I didn't pack his drops, I ran to Walgreens and went back to my grandma's house to give it to him. I seriously considered just taking him home but my parents wouldn't let me.

We came home and watched more SEx and the City. We finally called it a night around 12:30.

J called and told me he was on his way home. So I decided to pump right then so when he got home, we could just go to bed. And I had alrady decided that I wasn't gonna wake up to pump, I was going to try and get some uninterrupted sleep. The longest sleep I've gotten in the past two month is about 5 hours. So I pumped and J got home around 1:30 and we went to bed.

I woke up at 8......and was in agony. My boobs were like rocks. I pumped 12 ounces! I've never pumped 12 ounces. The most I've ever pumped in a pumping session was 8 ounces. And afterwards I felt so much better. And I felt so accomplished. :D

And then I threw on jeans and brushed my teeth and picked up my son. He was sleeping but I couldn't resist picking him up. And the best part was when I was holding him and he woke up, he gave me the biggest smile!!

My parents and cousin left around 2 to go back to Houston. J went to work at the same time so I've been alone all afternoon. Goob was used to everyone holding him all weekend and didn't want to be set down so I didn't get much cleaning or laundry done. Okay, I didn't get ANYthing done.

I just put the boy to bed. And I'm hoping that he'll go to sleep quickly. J should be home around 12 or 1 to feed him so I'm hoping he'll stay asleep until then. Fingers crossed.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

I love coupons!

I've recently become a coupon freak. I clip out all I can find from the Sunday paper, I check the back of my receipts at HEB (there's always coupons!), I print off online coupons, I love coupons!!! And my husband thinks I'm ridiculous. He thinks it's a waste of time. It's not. It saves us money. So I've decided to keep a running total of how much I've saved with coupons, just so I can prove him wrong!

I just got back from HEB. I saved a total of $2.25 which was 6.79% of my total cost. I saved on 2 boxes of cereal, biscuits, and lunch meat! Yay!

This is Goob's mischievous face!

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Weekly Pics: Week 7

June 17th, 7 weeks old


Monday, June 16, 2008

"How do you have time to read?"

I was asked this today by an online friend who came across my listing to the right of all the books I've read in '08 (FYI: it's not a complete listing, it's only the latest 10 entries. Right now the list currently stands at 38 books to date.)

Well, I can't stop reading. It's what I do to destress and get back on track when life gets too rough. I have to do it. I'm crazy without it. I've always been a huge reader. It's just a part of me.

So, I have to make time to read.
  • The majority of my reading time comes when I'm pumping. (I've been exclusively pumping for almost 7 weeks. That's a whole other story though.) I currently pump for 20 minutes every 3 hours during the day and every 4 hours at night. I read while I pump. It's an art form. J laughs at me but it makes pumping a little less like a nuisance and a little more enjoyable. I even will whip out my book while pumping at 4 in the morning! I'm dedicated.
  • I read in the car (not when I'm driving!) If J and I and Goob have to go somewhere, I always pull out my book. Even if we're just driving 5 minutes away, that's five minutes of reading time.
  • I read during my baths. I can put Goob down for a nap in the afternoons, and I know that I have at least half an hour to take a long, hot bath and enjoy my book.
  • I also read while J spends quality time with Goob in the evenings.
  • Basically, anytime I'm not playing with Goob, feeding Goob, changing Goob, washing bottles, cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, or sleeping, I'm reading!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Happy 1st Father's Day!

J got an amazing present! A big toothless grin!

Today was Goob's first real smile!!! I was just taking some pictures of him and J for Father's Day when all of a sudden he just smiled! I screamed for J to look at him and then tried to take a picture, but since I have the slowest camera ever, I didn't get a shot of him. So I tried to make him smile again but acting crazy. I had my camera aimed and ready and he did!!! And then he smiled again!! We've never seen his face light up like this. It was the most amazing moment.

And you can really tell he's his father's son by his eyes. They narrowed when he smiles, just like Daddy!

Friday, June 13, 2008

Baby Games

(This is just for me so I don't forget!)

Birth to 3 months

To the outside observer, a newborn basically seems like a pooping ball of protoplasm. Your baby will mostly just lie there, except when he's crying. So how can you connect with him and have fun?

Your best chance of doing this is to engage your baby's senses: touch, sight (remember, your baby is still very nearsighted), smell, and hearing. (Let's leave taste out for now.) By the end of his first three months, your baby may reach out and try to grab things and will be fascinated by sounds, smells, and patterns.

Note: It may take your newborn several seconds to respond to you or he may not respond much at all. Be patient — you may need to keep trying or wait a while for him to enter an alert, responsive state.

Dance, Dance Revolution

In the afternoons when my baby got grumpy, nothing worked as well as dancing with her. I'd put on some music — she preferred soulful tunes from Stevie Wonder and James Brown — and either put her in the sling or hold her in my arms.

At first she preferred soft swaying. Later on she liked me to swing her in the air or bump her up and down rather rudely. (Just be sure to offer neck support and don't shake your baby.) When your arms get tired, put your baby down and keep up the dance.

Silly exaggerated movements like jazz hands or shaking your butt are particularly funny to babies. Close the drapes so the neighbors won't see.

Let's Look at Stuff

Most of your early playtime will be spent showing your baby stuff. Any object in the house that won't poison, electrocute, or otherwise hurt him is fair game. Babies love egg beaters, spoons, wire whisks, spatulas, books and magazines with pictures, bottles of shampoo or conditioner (don't leave your baby alone with these!), record albums, colorful fabrics or clothes, fruits and vegetables, and so on.

Keep a little stash of objects beside you and sit with your baby. When the moment's right, whip something out like a magician. "Look, Kyle, Daddy's bicycle bell." Hold the object still about a foot from his face and stare at it yourself. Hey, now that you look at it, that bicycle bell is kind of interesting. Congratulations! You're thinking like a baby!

Oh, and don't expect babies to really "get" books at this age. You'll know they're enjoying them by their way of getting still and watchful when you bring a favorite book out.

Babies don't tend to sit through a whole story, though, and when they're a few months older they'll grab the books from you and close them. This is all developmental stuff. Babies love looking at books and cuddling close to you, but they usually don't care about the plot.

Journey Into Mom's Closet

You haven't spent a lifetime accumulating a closetful of bright, slinky, tactile clothing for nothing. Dig into your closet and show your baby your cashmere sweater, your cottony-soft favorite jeans, your brilliant plaid skirt. Run soft or silky fabrics over his face, hands, and feet. Lay fuzzy stuff down on the floor and put your baby on top of it.

In a few months, your baby will want to run his hands over anything beaded, embroidered, or otherwise embellished. But for now, he may just be content to gaze in wonder.

Hey! What's Over My Head?

You'll be amazed at how much fun you can have with the simplest stuff around your house. Here are three ideas to start you off:

Tie or tape some ribbons, fabric, or other interesting streamers onto a wooden spoon and dangle them gently over and in front of your baby's face.

Take a floaty scarf and fling it into the air, letting it settle on your baby's head.

Tie a toy to an elastic string (like the kind used for cat toys) and bounce it up and down in front of your baby's face, saying "Boing! Boing!" every time it descends.

Remember, never leave your baby alone with strings or ribbons that could encircle his neck or that he could get into his mouth.

The Diva Within

You may have a terrible voice — but your kid doesn't know it! Now's the time to sing at volume 10, so set free that opera voice inside you.

Your baby may like absolutely anything you sing, but there are some classics you should know. "Itsy Bitsy Spider" was the only song that made my baby stop crying when she was on a jag. And most kids like any song with movements — "The Wheels on the Bus," "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes," and "Patty-Cake," to name a few. (If you don't remember the words to a favorite song, try an Internet search. )

You may feel silly at first, but as your child gets into it, so will you. Try adding your baby's name to the song: "Old Mac Ethan had a farm," "Kate is my sunshine, my only sunshine," and so on. Try songs with silly sounds or animal noises in them, like "Witch Doctor" or "How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?"

Try singing a song in a low growly voice and then in a high squeaky voice, to see which gets the most reaction. Try singing the song breathily into your baby's ear, or use a hand puppet (or a napkin or sock willing to play the part of a hand puppet). And get used to singing, because this could begin to eat up a significant portion of your day.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Visitor Tomorrow

My SIL is coming to visit tomorrow. It'll be her first time to see Goob. I'm excited for the company and for J being off for the weekend! Yay!

Before I Was A Mom....

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put him down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom -
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.

I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache,

the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

My Little Taurus

Taurus (April 20-May 20): "the Tender baby"



Probably the most physical sign of the zodiac, a Taurus baby needs to be held and comforted constantly. Parents of a Taurus baby should always be ready to shower him/her with hugs and kisses! They take in their surroundings slowly and at their own pace; a gentle manner and constant reassurance are great tools when trying to coax your baby out of his/her comfort zones [think potty training]. Stubborn but sweet, a Taurus baby will most likely live life with both feet firmly planted on the ground.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Weekly Pics (Weeks 0-6)

I've decided to take a picture of Goob every week on Tuesday to see how he's changed. Here are the first pictures. The earliest are at the bottom.

June 10th, 6 weeks old:


June 3rd, 5 weeks old:

May 27th, 4 weeks old:

May 20th, 3 weeks old:

May 13th, 2 weeks old:

May 6th, 1 week old:

April 29th, 0 weeks old (his birthday!):

Monday, June 9, 2008

Happy One Year Anniversary!

It's been a magical year. So much has changed in our life!






I'm looking forward to many more years together!