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Well, Isabella is almost seven months old! We're still here, chugging along. A big change looms in the very near future-we got a house! So, we are in the process of moving. Closing is set for March 18, so it looks like we will be moving on the 19th. I'm excited, but I'm also very nervous. We have so much to get done and doing it all with a baby in tow is very difficult. It's not impossible, but it sure is tough! She is getting over her first cold and add the shots from yesterday's pediatrician appointment, she's super clingy and wants to snuggle. So not a whole lot has been done. It's scary to think about it. But that's a HUGE change in our lives and it's going to be excellent for Isabella.
I'm still breastfeeding. I love it. I honestly really never thought it would be as amazing of an experience as it is. My initial reason for choosing it was that it saved so much money. Teachers are poor in the summer, you know? With a summer baby, breastfeeding seemed to be the less expensive route. And it's been truly the most rewarding and amazing experience of being a Mom. There is something so beautiful, so personal, and so intimate about that moment of nursing, whether it be for nutrition, comfort, or sleep. My baby looks to me for her source of comfort and it just melts my heart.
Isabella is doing so many exciting things now. She's got a tooth getting ready to cut through the gums. The outline is there on her gums, it just hasn't popped through yet. She's been playing with a lot more of her toys and initiating the play with them. She's figured out how to get her pacifier back into her mouth. She reaches out to pet the dog. She's so excited about little things, like seeing her Daddy walk into the room. In fact, now, she reaches out for him so that he can pick her up.
We went to the park last week when it was strangely (and beautifully) 70 degrees in February in NJ. It was her first time walking to the park in an umbrella stroller and she loved it. She went in the swings and at first, she wasn't sure what to think. It was new, probably a bit scary. But once she got the feeling of the back and forth movement, she was all giggles!
She had her well baby checkup and my little jellybean is up to 15 pounds. She's about 24 inches long, so she's a short one! The pediatrician is very pleased with her growth, so no worries. She's doing well! She's still getting over her first cold, which she had last week and the week before. So she's still more tired than usual, but she'll get back to normal soon.
I'll leave you with some pictures from this month including on from the park.
Where do I start with all that's going on around here...I guess I'll just make it a short list. There's really not all that much going on, but it's enough!
1. Isabella is already six months old! WHAT?! Where does time go? Seriously, my baby girl is growing so quickly and I'm just so in awe of her. She's beautiful, sweet, and generally so happy. I'm so blessed and just can't believe she has been with me for a half a year now.
2. She's teething...big time. There aren't any teeth ready to pop through yet, but she's really been bothered by her gums lately. She's in her six month growth spurt. So with that and the teething, her sleep patterns have changed. I feel like we are back in the first two months again when we are up all hours of the night with a crying baby. She has a wet diaper. She's hungry. She wants her pacifier. It's all the joys of parenthood. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. But it sure is taking a toll on me. I've had a migraine off and on for the past three days.
3. Isabella's been sleeping in her big girl crib now for four nights. Tonight will be the 5th night. It's a little scary for me to not have her in the room with me in her bassinet. And maybe that's what is causing some of her sleep issues, but we'll see how things go in the weeks to come. She'll get used to it.
4. I'm still have blood pressure issues. It was an issue before I got pregnant with Isabella. But throughout most of the pregnancy, it wasn't a big deal. It didn't get bad until the third trimester. So now, my family doctor wants me to have all these tests done to see what the cause is and to see if it is affecting any major organs. So I saw the cardiologist yesterday. I had a stress echo cardiogram done and I passed with flying colors. So it's not my heart. I am getting blood work done next Friday. I guess we'll see what happens with that. I am due for my annual exam with my OB and I'm sure he'll ask me if I've done anything about my blood pressure issues. At least I can answer him with a "yes" even though they haven't figured it out yet.
5. The biggest news of all-Hubby and I are going to be homeowners! I'm so excited. We have been searching for a home since right after Christmas. In fact, we had an offer on three other homes and nothing came of those offers that was worth doing anything about. So we are so excited about this townhouse two-story townhouse with a full finished basement. It's the perfect space to raise a family. So now, we can think about conceiving #2 in the fall as long as my blood pressure issues are better under control.
I'll leave you with some recent pictures of Isabella, some from her six-month pictures and some from this past weekend. Enjoy!
I never imagined I'd be the mom who discreetly covered up and nursed in public. I thought I'd be the formula-buying, bottle wielding mom who was prepared with filled bottles in the diaper bag, on guard and ready to go. Even at the beginning of my pregnancy, I was on the fence, really not sure if I wanted to go through the beginning learning process of breastfeeding. I chose to go with breastfeeding for two reasons-bonding and cheapness. Okay, I know, cheapness? Really? Yes, really. I'm a teacher. I'm married to a teacher. Isabella was a summer baby. Everyone knows that teachers are poor in the summer. So I weighed the cost of nursing pads and lanolin cream with the cost of formula. It's obvious which one costs less. So I chose to go with breastfeeding and prayed that I would have sufficient milk for my little princess.
The first day breastfeeding was far from joyous, I have to admit. Isabella had a lot of difficulty latching on, thanks to my morphine drip (oh the joys of c-sections). But I'm so thankful that the hospital had excellent lactation consultants hanging around. They gave me the silicone nipple shield and said that morphine makes your body tissues soft, not a good thing for getting a newborn to learn how to nurse. But that shield made all the difference in the world. It was uncomfortable. My nipples were very raw, sore, chapped. Isabella would nurse for a half hour on each side for the first two days. She would fall asleep. I never had doubts, though. I never wanted to throw in the towel in those first few days. Even when my milk came in all at once and the engorgement was painful, I never wanted to give up. Even when I was shopping for well-fitting nursing bras two weeks after giving birth and I started leaking something fierce in the dressing room, I didn't want to give up.
There is something so intimate, so amazing, so beautiful about breastfeeding. It's an art. When you think of art, you think of something beautiful, magical, enjoyable, and peaceful. That's breastfeeding! I'm so blessed to have an ample supply. I'm so blessed to be able to provide that sort of bond for Isabella. It has really helped my little Isabella put on much needed weight, since she was in the bottom 5th percentile when she was born. Our bond is unquestionably very close. She comes to me for nourishment. She also relies on me for comfort. Yes, even at six months, she still comfort nurses and enjoys nursing to sleep. I just love those moments when I can look down and just enjoy the view of my beautiful child looking up at me.
I will admit that pumping at work isn't the most amazing or beautiful experience in the world. In fact, it's rather ridiculous. I chose to set up my classroom with my desk in the far corner so that from the doorway, you can't see it. I lock my door, sit in the corner, and pump. That's how I spend my lunch every single day. It's not intimate. It's not amazing. But it means Isabella still has that connection to me during the day when she's at my parents' house. It's just all part of it. I hate pumping. But I do whatever it takes to provide for my little darling. After all, if I have the supply of milk, it would be a shame to not use it!
Six months into Isabella's precious life, I am still breastfeeding. I get stares, glares, and comments out in public. I hear the whispers, I get the comments of "I know what you're doing under there" as they walk past my covered up child nursing. Do I have to cover up? No. But I chose to. Some people just aren't okay with public breastfeeding and I honestly feel more modest being covered up. But I'm still going strong. It isn't about saving money by choosing the cheap feeding option anymore. It's about enjoying my Mommy moments with Isabella. It's about sharing that intimate bond with her as she relies on me for food, for comfort, for sleep (when she's cranky and just can't get to sleep). It's just one of my sources of joy with being a mother!
Ten months ago, my friend A. lost her husband J. in a horrific car accident. I know I posted on it around that time. She was pregnant and had a child turning two years old. In the past ten months, I have learned so much about life, family, love, courage, strength, and faith just from watching her, helping her, listening to her, and spending time with her. A. is a woman of unbelievable strength. Of course her strength doesn't come from her own self, it comes from the loving God we serve. But she just amazes me. In the midst of so much personal pain and grief, she still serves her family, her friends, her church. She gives where she can give, helps when she can help, and reaches out when she feels the need to serve others. I stand amazed of the courage she has to get up each day, a single mom of two children, and continue on with life. She is so brave. I know A. doesn't always think so. She mourns still, grieves still, and really misses J. He was the love of her life, her childhood sweetheart. I've never known anyone else to have the love they shared. J. was such a unique and fun person. I'm sure there were days when A. had to have a lot of patience to live with someone who would get up at 5am, wide awake, singing. But that was J.
A. is getting by. Her oldest daughter, M. is going to be 3 years old in April. Her younger daughter, A.J., was born in early September. A. is a SAHM right now and a single mom to boot. Even with lack of sleep, she still inspires all the women, wives, and moms around her. I don't know that I would be able to be as wise, calm, patient, or strong as she is with all that she is going through.
With all of that said, please pray for A. She has a lot of personal challenges she's being faced with right now. I know that God doesn't give us more than we can handle, but I know there are days when she feels the burdens are getting too heavy to bear. Time supposedly makes the grief a little less heavy, but losing your spouse has to be one of the hardest things life can offer. She really misses J. and her heart just aches for what he gave. So just pray for her, for her family, and for her children. God has been good in providing friends who can comfort, but we just can't understand the true mourning of her heart.
Through all of the grief, she remains strong for her children. She greats each day with the courage to go through it and see what God would have her do. A., you are an inspiration to me. I love you very much and I'm so blessed to call you a dear friend. Thank you for all that you teach me through your actions and through your life.
We celebrated Isabella's first Christmas this year! Oh how I've waited for the year that I could hold a baby in my arms on Christmas morning. It was magical. Nothing short of a miracle for me. I am so overwhelmed with love for my little dear. Christmas was exciting! We opened her stocking with her. We didn't buy a lot of gifts for her because I didn't know what everyone else was getting for her. So we'll go shopping and get a bunch of things in a few days. But going through that first stocking is something so special. The week before Christmas, Isabella had her first meeting with Santa. We weren't sure about doing the whole Santa thing, but we decided we would go ahead and do the Santa thing. But we want to make sure we always place the birth of Christ higher than Santa.
We also had our first major snowfall of the winter season. I took Izzy out in it for a few minutes just to get pictures. It is sooooo coooold outside, though, so I couldn't keep her outside for long. It was fun, though, to get pictures of the baby in the snow!! She wasn't sure what she thought about it. But she'll grow to love it. After all the snow we had when she was in the womb, she'll be a snow bunny, that's for sure!
She had her first cereal a few weeks back. But we started oatmeal yesterday. This coming weekend, we move on to yellow and orange baby food vegetables! YAY! My little baby is growing up too quickly. She's also going to be graduating to her "Big Girl" crib in a few days. I don't want to think about Isabella sleeping in her own room, but she needs to do it for herself and for me. It's time. :-(
There's not too much to post on other than what I already posted. So I'll just leave you with a few pictures from Christmas and the snow. Enjoy!
It seems like yesterday I wrote that Isabella had arrived. And yet now, we are approaching the 5 month mark. In a mere 10 days, she will be 5 months old. Gosh, it seems so strange to say that! I have a 5 month old. Nope. Just seems too strange!
So let me catch you up on all that has been going on. At her 4-month check-up, Isabella was up to 13 pounds and she's almost 24 inches long. She's growing leaps and bounds. The pedi was very happy with her growth. She was so happy with Izzy's growth that we started solid foods last week. That's going okay. She doesn't like plain rice cereal very much, so today, we tried rice with apple. I didn't know they made flavored rice cereal. Isabella definitely liked it. We're hoping to start barley tomorrow and then oats in 5 days. After that, it's yellow and orange vegetables for her! I can't believe it.
Work is going well. I can't believe it's been two months since I went back. My parents are the greatest. They watch Isabella every day. I would love to stay home some days, but I do love my job teaching, so it is what it is. I can't afford to stay home anyway, so it's a good thing I like my job!
Isabella is still breastfed. Nursing is going well. I never thought I would enjoy nursing. I never wanted to nurse until it got closer to time for Isabella's birth. Sure, there are times when it would be much easier to just make a bottle and heat it up, but it's all part of being a Mommy. Isabella does take a bottle of formula, since my parents need to supplement. She is a pig. I pump at work. I generally get anywhere from 6 to 10 ounces pumped out at work and then I pump when I get home. Pumping is just oh such a beautiful thing. At least my ample milk supply has stayed steady.
Not too much else is going on. I'm going to post a few pictures of my beautiful little one. She just gets more beautiful as time goes on!
