I haven't posted much since Evan's been born, and I haven't posted at all about the new baby. This was mainly due to the fact that for the first 9 weeks of his life, Evan was a holy terror! He cried and screamed almost 100% of the time he was awake, and we were spending all of that time just trying to get him to go back to sleep! I was miserable, Robert was barely coping and we were just barely surviving life with a colicky newborn and Colby, now 18 months old.
Almost two weeks ago, my mom brought over a book called "Colic Solved" written by a pediatric gastroenterologist which suggested that "colic" was not a diagnosis, but merely a concept, and that babies do not cry ad nauseum for no reason. There are two main reasons that babies "have colic": reflux and/or a milk protein allergy - not breast milk, but cow's milk, or dairy that can be transferred from the mother to the baby via breastmilk.
I had heard that giving up dairy might help Evan's fussiness, but since 1) the facts as they were presented to me weren't adding up and 2) Evan's pediatrician told me not to "sacrifice myself" and it wouldn't help matters anyway (more on this doctor's recommendations later), I had decided against it. After reading this book, specifically the chapter on milk protein allergy, I decided to try it again!
Five days into my non-dairy diet, my mom and I travelled with Evan to Keller for me to help host my best friend's baby shower. During that trip Evan was, I couldn't believe it, getting worse! By the time we returned home, I had called for an appointment to talk about reflux with the doctor, convinced it must be that, too, since the elimination of dairy clearly wasn't helping matters. This past Wednesday, the doctor listened to me, prescribed Prevacid and ordered an upper GI series for Evan. Also, on Wednesday, I noticed Evan's demeanor had significantly improved, though I wasn't ready to call it anything but an "off" day. I couldn't schedule the upper GI series until Friday, so I didn't give him the Prevacid, since it suppresses reflux - I didn't want a lack of reflux in the series to be muddled with a real lack of reflux or a reaction simply to the medication.
Friday rolled around, and I had the series scheduled for 8:30 that morning, and Evan's 2 month appointment scheduled for 10:30. While I was waiting for the procedure, I read up on it, discovering that the series doesn't really tell you the severity of reflux, like my doctor had suggested (more on that later) but routes the digestive system using barium to determine if there are any anatomy-related issues contributing to the reflux. The series showed that everything was in place and that yes, my son had reflux. The fact that reflux showed up during the procedure was not conclusive to act on it though, as all babies have some degree of reflux, and yes, I already knew that! So we wait for an hour to go to Evan's 2 month appointment.
He measured 22 inches (same as Colby did at 2 months) but 13 lbs 1 oz! The doctor mentioned that was the 9th percentile for height but the 70th percentile for weight. He then said, because of the discrepancy in percentiles, we needed to watch them, but if at 4 months it didn't resolve itself, we would need to put him on a diet. That's right, a diet - for a four month old! I very politely said "He's breastfed, and I was unaware that babies, especially breastfed babies, needed to be put on diets." He explained that we would put cereal in Evan's milk since cereal is only 9 cal/oz and breastmilk is 20 cal/oz. Inside, I was fuming! I resolved never to go back to this doctor. This was the last straw ina long line of advice he had given or somethings he's said that I disagreed on:
1) For both Colby and Evan, he tried to convince me that they had lost over 10% of their birthweight in the hospital - based on his assumption that an ounce was 1/10 of a pound. How do you graduate medical school without knowing that an ounce is 1/16 of a pound?!
2) He was convinced that at 15 months, with the discrepancies in Colby's weight and height percentiles that COLBY needed to be put on a diet of limited carbs. We don't feed Colby junkfood EVER, so I don't even know what we would limit or HOW we would cease to feed him!
3) He was convinced that my giving up dairy had nothing to do with an improvement in Evan's demeanour and was an "unnecessary self-sacrifice" Whatever. That is just clearly not true.
4) He did NOT tell me the true meaning of the upper GI series that he ordered for Evan - whether that was because he didn't know it, or didn't think I was smart enough to understand, or that I was merely a worried parent that needed to be placated by mistruths, it doesn't matter. I don't need my doctor to lie to me.
5) He is considering putting a FOUR MONTH OLD on a DIET! Enough said.
I'm done with this man, and will be finding a new pediatrician as soon as possible.
I only started Prevacid on Friday, and Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday have seen a significant improvement in Evan's demeanor. Do not tell me that eliminating dairy has had no effect. I am a true believer at this point! I love my happy baby!
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
The Bunny Rabbit
Colby is almost 18 months old and can make a dozen or more animal sounds, one of which is sniffing his nose repetatively for a bunny rabbit. What he didn't know was that the bunny rabbit from all of his books was hopping around in our flower bed in the front yard.
We noticed him maybe a couple of weeks ago, and thought, "oh, how sweet!" A few days later I realized that sweet little bunny was eating my marigolds. And my verbena. And my lantana. Oh no, not my lantana, that I planted in October of last year and only just now, in the summer, almost 9 months later, has finally started to flourish! So I told Robert he needed to get rid of the bunny rabbit.
Neither of us wanted to kill the bunny rabbit. We wanted to catch it, alive, and drive it to a safe place and let it free. Somewhere far, far away from my lantanas. So Robert bought a small game trap, and put it in our flower bed with some celery and carrots. For about five days, he tried placing it in different places in the flower bed, corralling the bunny towards the entrance to the trap and night after night, replacing the celery and carrots. We realized that either the birds were stealing the food, or the bunny rabbit was too small to set the trap, or he was simply hopping over the pressure trigger. So different measures were needed.
Robert took out his bebe gun that he hadn't shot in ages. He explained that the bebe gun should only stun the rabbit and allow him to capture it, and then we could take it to the nice lantana-free place and set it free, so ultimately same end result as the trap. The first night he tried to get him with the bebe gun, a neighbor scared the rabbit right as Robert was getting ready to shoot. But the second night, Robert came back inside after his "hunt" with a triumphant look on his face...and a bloodied ax. Wait, what?
Apparently, Robert was able to hit the bunny with the bebe gun. The bebe gun, however, did not just stun the rabbit. It broke the skin, and sent the rabbit reeling, all over the yard - jumping and flipping and flailing. Robert apparently then grabbed an ax to put it out of its misery and chopped the bunny's head clean off. In our front yard. In front of who knows how many neighbors. Oops.
I wasn't too thrilled to hear this gory story, but I really didn't mourn the bunny more than a few seconds before thanking God that my flower beds were safe! :)
So let that be a lesson to all the bunnies out there - before you step in my flower beds, consider I have an Alaskan man with an ax in the house, ready and willing to chop your head off!
We noticed him maybe a couple of weeks ago, and thought, "oh, how sweet!" A few days later I realized that sweet little bunny was eating my marigolds. And my verbena. And my lantana. Oh no, not my lantana, that I planted in October of last year and only just now, in the summer, almost 9 months later, has finally started to flourish! So I told Robert he needed to get rid of the bunny rabbit.
Neither of us wanted to kill the bunny rabbit. We wanted to catch it, alive, and drive it to a safe place and let it free. Somewhere far, far away from my lantanas. So Robert bought a small game trap, and put it in our flower bed with some celery and carrots. For about five days, he tried placing it in different places in the flower bed, corralling the bunny towards the entrance to the trap and night after night, replacing the celery and carrots. We realized that either the birds were stealing the food, or the bunny rabbit was too small to set the trap, or he was simply hopping over the pressure trigger. So different measures were needed.
Robert took out his bebe gun that he hadn't shot in ages. He explained that the bebe gun should only stun the rabbit and allow him to capture it, and then we could take it to the nice lantana-free place and set it free, so ultimately same end result as the trap. The first night he tried to get him with the bebe gun, a neighbor scared the rabbit right as Robert was getting ready to shoot. But the second night, Robert came back inside after his "hunt" with a triumphant look on his face...and a bloodied ax. Wait, what?
Apparently, Robert was able to hit the bunny with the bebe gun. The bebe gun, however, did not just stun the rabbit. It broke the skin, and sent the rabbit reeling, all over the yard - jumping and flipping and flailing. Robert apparently then grabbed an ax to put it out of its misery and chopped the bunny's head clean off. In our front yard. In front of who knows how many neighbors. Oops.
I wasn't too thrilled to hear this gory story, but I really didn't mourn the bunny more than a few seconds before thanking God that my flower beds were safe! :)
So let that be a lesson to all the bunnies out there - before you step in my flower beds, consider I have an Alaskan man with an ax in the house, ready and willing to chop your head off!
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Bedrest
Well, I've survived a week of bedrest (modified a bit)!
Last week, on Thursday, at the end of the work day, I was feeling a lot of pressure and even pain at times really low down in my pelvis. I was exactly 35weeks and 1 day along. I called my doctor, who's nurse said if I wasn't having contractions, that it was probably just the baby's position and not to worry about it. On my way home, I started feeling Braxton Hicks contractions and noticed that during those contractions, the pain was worse...when I got home, I laid down and tried to find a comfortable position to make the pain go away, but ultimately ended up calling my doctor again. It was after hours at this point, so of course she advised me to go to the hospital.
My sister was already at the house, since we had been planning to go out to dinner, so she stayed with Colby while I quickly packed a hospital bag, and Robert grabbed the cordblood kit and we left for the hospital. When we got to labor and delivery, they immediately got me garbed in a hospital gown, took a urine sample, got my blood pressure (normal) and hooked me up to a fetal monitor. The nurse mentioned I wasn't having contractions, and by now, of course, the pain had gone away too. We waited through shift change for another nurse, and she came and checked me: my cervix was dilated 3 cm and 70% effaced. This was unexpected, but doesn't really mean anything, as women can walk around for weeks at 3 cm without going into labor. But the nurse then immediately said, "I'll go call your doctor, she'll most likely want a c section tonight." I started freaking out immediately. I told her, through tears, "wait, hold on, why? my blood pressure isn't high, I'm not having contractions, and people can walk around for weeks at 3 cm dilation!" She just said she'd talk to the doctor, explain my concerns and see what she said.
While we were waiting on a response from my doctor, one of the nurses came in and told me that I was, in fact having contractions. My doctor decided that since I wasn't feeling the contractions, they would wait 2 hours and then check me again to be sure I wasn't progressing. Two hours later I was still at a "good 3 cm" but still having contractions, so my doctor decided I should stay overnight and they'd check again in the morning. Once they got me into a room Robert left for home, and we decided he would come around 7 am to see what the doctor said. After a long, and mostly sleepless night in a hospital bed, on Friday morning my doctor came in just before 7 to check me, and I was still at 3 cm, no blood pressure issues, although I had continued contractions throughout the night. So she sent me home on bedrest and wanted a follow up on Monday. I was given all my discharge documents, etc, before Robert had even gotten to the hospital. When I was headed downstairs, he was just pulling up so all in all the discharge was pretty quick and easy.
My doctor did put me on bedrest, since I was only 35 weeks. I asked if I could at least work from home, and she said I could, since it is just a desk job. So later on Friday, my dad went to my office and picked up all my computer and papers, and this past week I've been doing just that. I have also been doing a lot of lying around, and really paying attention to my body, just in case this happens again. I had my follow up on Monday, and I'm still at 3 cm, so far, so good. If I can just make it to next Wednesday, I'll be 37 weeks, considered full term, and feeling much better about this baby coming!
Last week, on Thursday, at the end of the work day, I was feeling a lot of pressure and even pain at times really low down in my pelvis. I was exactly 35weeks and 1 day along. I called my doctor, who's nurse said if I wasn't having contractions, that it was probably just the baby's position and not to worry about it. On my way home, I started feeling Braxton Hicks contractions and noticed that during those contractions, the pain was worse...when I got home, I laid down and tried to find a comfortable position to make the pain go away, but ultimately ended up calling my doctor again. It was after hours at this point, so of course she advised me to go to the hospital.
My sister was already at the house, since we had been planning to go out to dinner, so she stayed with Colby while I quickly packed a hospital bag, and Robert grabbed the cordblood kit and we left for the hospital. When we got to labor and delivery, they immediately got me garbed in a hospital gown, took a urine sample, got my blood pressure (normal) and hooked me up to a fetal monitor. The nurse mentioned I wasn't having contractions, and by now, of course, the pain had gone away too. We waited through shift change for another nurse, and she came and checked me: my cervix was dilated 3 cm and 70% effaced. This was unexpected, but doesn't really mean anything, as women can walk around for weeks at 3 cm without going into labor. But the nurse then immediately said, "I'll go call your doctor, she'll most likely want a c section tonight." I started freaking out immediately. I told her, through tears, "wait, hold on, why? my blood pressure isn't high, I'm not having contractions, and people can walk around for weeks at 3 cm dilation!" She just said she'd talk to the doctor, explain my concerns and see what she said.
While we were waiting on a response from my doctor, one of the nurses came in and told me that I was, in fact having contractions. My doctor decided that since I wasn't feeling the contractions, they would wait 2 hours and then check me again to be sure I wasn't progressing. Two hours later I was still at a "good 3 cm" but still having contractions, so my doctor decided I should stay overnight and they'd check again in the morning. Once they got me into a room Robert left for home, and we decided he would come around 7 am to see what the doctor said. After a long, and mostly sleepless night in a hospital bed, on Friday morning my doctor came in just before 7 to check me, and I was still at 3 cm, no blood pressure issues, although I had continued contractions throughout the night. So she sent me home on bedrest and wanted a follow up on Monday. I was given all my discharge documents, etc, before Robert had even gotten to the hospital. When I was headed downstairs, he was just pulling up so all in all the discharge was pretty quick and easy.
My doctor did put me on bedrest, since I was only 35 weeks. I asked if I could at least work from home, and she said I could, since it is just a desk job. So later on Friday, my dad went to my office and picked up all my computer and papers, and this past week I've been doing just that. I have also been doing a lot of lying around, and really paying attention to my body, just in case this happens again. I had my follow up on Monday, and I'm still at 3 cm, so far, so good. If I can just make it to next Wednesday, I'll be 37 weeks, considered full term, and feeling much better about this baby coming!
Sunday, March 17, 2013
My Birthday Week
I am definitely old enough that birthdays are not as big of a deal,
but this time, for my 28th birthday, I feel like I hit the jackpot! My
birthday is March 13th, which fell on a Wednesday this year, so I wasn't
planning on having a huge party or anything, or even a small party.
BUT my day turned into a week-long experience, thanks to Robert, my mom,
Starbucks and Ooh La La!
On Tuesday, I went over to my parents for a small party, partly for my birthday and partly because my dad was leaving for Azerbaijan the next day. My sister, Amanda was also home from College Station, which was great to see her! My mom made a delicious strawberry cake (my request), we had ice cream, sang "Happy Birthday" and I opened some presents. Colby had cake for the third time in his life. He was sitting in my dad's lap while Dad gave him cake, and he was SO cuddly! I don't know if it was his love of Grandpa or his love of cake that made him so affectionate that night...It was a great way to send my dad off for his second hitch and just the right intimate family setting.
Wednesday was my actual birthday, but it was a work night, so Robert made me a nice meal of Cornish Game Hens at home and we celebrated with sparkling apple cider. Another very small affair and just perfect to make me feel loved.
Thursday I had my 30 week appointment and was told everything was perfect with me and baby! So I stopped off at Ooh La La and claimed my free birthday cupcake - mint chocolate! mmmm! That night after Colby went to bed, I watched my favorite show, Smash, and ate my birthday cupcake
T
Friday, we finally got into our mailbox (it was too full to open Tues-Thurs so Robert stalked the mailman and waited at the mail kiosk until he arrived so that we could get our mail) and I received four birthday cards! Hooray!
Saturday was a very special day that Robert planned. He arranged for my mom to watch Colby all day. So at 10:30 we drove to a state park, had a picnic, Robert got his first experience shelling pecans and they were so good, even though they're a bit late in the season...Then he took me to a "surprise" destination - a jewelry store where I got to pick out diamond earrings! I'm such a lucky girl! Then we went to see Oz: The Great and Powerful at the theatre and afterwards had a nice dinner at a restaurant of my choosing.
I felt like such a lucky girl to have a whole week of celebrating my birthday! But it wasn't over yet - today, during Colby's nap, I went to Starbucks to read magazines and claim my free birthday drink! I stayed for about an hour, and it was great just to have some "me" time.
I am so blessed to have such a loving family and husband, and son! This has been the perfect birthday. I can't wait to see what this new year of my life brings!
On Tuesday, I went over to my parents for a small party, partly for my birthday and partly because my dad was leaving for Azerbaijan the next day. My sister, Amanda was also home from College Station, which was great to see her! My mom made a delicious strawberry cake (my request), we had ice cream, sang "Happy Birthday" and I opened some presents. Colby had cake for the third time in his life. He was sitting in my dad's lap while Dad gave him cake, and he was SO cuddly! I don't know if it was his love of Grandpa or his love of cake that made him so affectionate that night...It was a great way to send my dad off for his second hitch and just the right intimate family setting.
Wednesday was my actual birthday, but it was a work night, so Robert made me a nice meal of Cornish Game Hens at home and we celebrated with sparkling apple cider. Another very small affair and just perfect to make me feel loved.
Thursday I had my 30 week appointment and was told everything was perfect with me and baby! So I stopped off at Ooh La La and claimed my free birthday cupcake - mint chocolate! mmmm! That night after Colby went to bed, I watched my favorite show, Smash, and ate my birthday cupcake
T
Friday, we finally got into our mailbox (it was too full to open Tues-Thurs so Robert stalked the mailman and waited at the mail kiosk until he arrived so that we could get our mail) and I received four birthday cards! Hooray!
Saturday was a very special day that Robert planned. He arranged for my mom to watch Colby all day. So at 10:30 we drove to a state park, had a picnic, Robert got his first experience shelling pecans and they were so good, even though they're a bit late in the season...Then he took me to a "surprise" destination - a jewelry store where I got to pick out diamond earrings! I'm such a lucky girl! Then we went to see Oz: The Great and Powerful at the theatre and afterwards had a nice dinner at a restaurant of my choosing.
I felt like such a lucky girl to have a whole week of celebrating my birthday! But it wasn't over yet - today, during Colby's nap, I went to Starbucks to read magazines and claim my free birthday drink! I stayed for about an hour, and it was great just to have some "me" time.
I am so blessed to have such a loving family and husband, and son! This has been the perfect birthday. I can't wait to see what this new year of my life brings!
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Pre-Nesting
I know most women around this time in their pregnancy go through a
"nesting" phase, where they clean their house and prepare for the baby
that's coming. I am, however, doing a version of pre-nesting...getting
the REST of the house in order in preparation for preparing for the new
baby.
Two weekends ago, we finished up the garden - I had posted in November about round 1 of the garden landscaping. Well, over the winter, a few things died and had to be replaced, and a few fillers were needed. Also, we needed to mix the horrible clay-soil with some real dirt so the plants would be happy. So when I say "we," Robert removed all the plants from the garden, and tilled the soil to mix it in the clay, then replanted the plants that were still alive. We went to the nursery and picked up the plants I needed, and planted them. Now we just have to wait for them to grow!
The next thing we did was FINALLY finish decorating our bedroom! This post has been a long time coming and I'm happy to say the bedroom is FINISHED! It literally took months, and here's the breakdown:
August 2012: Created the ombre-lime-green-spoon circle (ultimately was not a mirror)
September 2012: Picked out the material for the curtains (carousel.com), and the curtain rods (JC Penney)
October 2012: Picked out flowers and vase (Hobby Lobby). My mom did the flower arrangement for me. After I picked out the paint, Robert painted the bedroom and painted the dresser (Lowes). Picked out the pillows for the ledge (Garden Ridge). I also bought a sewing machine to make the curtains (Walmart). Wow! I didn't realize how much was done in October!
November 2012: Picked out the king size bed (Rooms to Go), sheets and comforter (Target). Somewhere between October and November I must have sewn the curtains, but I don't remember exactly when. I just know it took a WHILE and I finished them before Christmas.
December 2012: Robert made the lampstands for the bedside lamps, and got me the lampshades for Christmas!
January 2013: I painted the chevron pattern on the lampshades and the room is FINISHED!
Hours of browsing Pinterest and hours of DIY projects that Pinterest made look so easy. Phew! All that's left now is to get nightstands (right now we're using a flimsy table and a file cabinet for my and Robert's side of the bed, respecitively). And maybe get some free-floating shelves for above the dresser. Here are some pictures!
Two weekends ago, we finished up the garden - I had posted in November about round 1 of the garden landscaping. Well, over the winter, a few things died and had to be replaced, and a few fillers were needed. Also, we needed to mix the horrible clay-soil with some real dirt so the plants would be happy. So when I say "we," Robert removed all the plants from the garden, and tilled the soil to mix it in the clay, then replanted the plants that were still alive. We went to the nursery and picked up the plants I needed, and planted them. Now we just have to wait for them to grow!
The next thing we did was FINALLY finish decorating our bedroom! This post has been a long time coming and I'm happy to say the bedroom is FINISHED! It literally took months, and here's the breakdown:
August 2012: Created the ombre-lime-green-spoon circle (ultimately was not a mirror)
September 2012: Picked out the material for the curtains (carousel.com), and the curtain rods (JC Penney)
October 2012: Picked out flowers and vase (Hobby Lobby). My mom did the flower arrangement for me. After I picked out the paint, Robert painted the bedroom and painted the dresser (Lowes). Picked out the pillows for the ledge (Garden Ridge). I also bought a sewing machine to make the curtains (Walmart). Wow! I didn't realize how much was done in October!
November 2012: Picked out the king size bed (Rooms to Go), sheets and comforter (Target). Somewhere between October and November I must have sewn the curtains, but I don't remember exactly when. I just know it took a WHILE and I finished them before Christmas.
December 2012: Robert made the lampstands for the bedside lamps, and got me the lampshades for Christmas!
January 2013: I painted the chevron pattern on the lampshades and the room is FINISHED!
Hours of browsing Pinterest and hours of DIY projects that Pinterest made look so easy. Phew! All that's left now is to get nightstands (right now we're using a flimsy table and a file cabinet for my and Robert's side of the bed, respecitively). And maybe get some free-floating shelves for above the dresser. Here are some pictures!
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| Robert's craftsmanship in the lampstand, my DIY-ness in the lampshade |
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| The room from the door |
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| The dresser |
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| The ledge with curtains and pillows |
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| The bed and bedside lamps |
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| Close-up of ombre-spoons |
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| Bedside |
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| The flower arrangement |
Saturday, March 2, 2013
One Massive Update
So I realize I've been a bit lax in updating this blog with details of our lives. The last REAL post was around Christmas time, so there are several subjects to cover:
Christmas:
The night before Christmas, we all went to mass and then everyone came over to our house "for drinks" but what my dad didn't realize was that was when we were giving him his outdoor bar that Robert made him. Robert spent a LOT of time on this thing - pictures below, and I have to say that was probably the highlight of Christmas. Apart from being Colby's first, of course. Since it was Colby's first Christmas, although the rest of my family was in town, Robert, Colby and I had our own Christmas and THEN went over to my parents to open gifts. This was a big deal for me because this was the first time that I was in town, but I didn't participate in the 7 am ritual of gift-opening! So ultimately a very good Christmas. The day after Christmas, we all went down to the "party house" at the Frio River and stayed with all of my aunts, uncles and cousins - and Mema and Great Uncle Harold! We had a game tournament of bocci ball, scattergories and washers which Robert and my cousin Casey tied for first place! It was great to be outside and playing, but this was the first time I realized this pregnancy has been giving me sleep anxiety...more on that later.
Front of the bar
Back of the bar
Playing a game on Christmas
Colby's moose hat and Christmas outfit - thanks Aunt Angela and Amanda!
After mass on Christmas
At the party house
Colby's playing washers!
New Year's Eve:
My three sisters and I left the "party house" early to head to NYC! Angela lives there now, so we went partly to visit her and partly to spend NYE in NYC! This was the first girl's trip we've taken all together, and it was the first time we could all drink (apart from me, of course, although I guess I could have, if I wanted to). This trip to NYC was a bit different because we had all been to NYC several times before, so we skipped a bunch of the tourist stuff (although, we did see a show on Broadway). Mostly, though, we just tooled around East Village, where Angela lives and visited shops and bars and restaurants near her home that she hadn't tried yet. It was great! Then on New Year's Eve, we had booked a comedy show at a club near Times Square. It was madness trying to get there and Angela had to sweet-talk/lawyer-argue some policemen into letting us through some barriers, but we ultimately made it! We had made the decision early on not to be in Times Square at midnight, because we would've had to be out there in the cold from 2 pm, with no food, no bathrooms and alcohol was not allowed. So we decided the comedy club NEAR Times Square at midnight was the next best thing. HOWEVER, the show ended at 11:45 pm, and then a guy stood up and said if you want to go out to Times Square just head up these stairs and take a right! So we did...and there we were! Before we knew it the countdown started, midnight was here, music played, confetti flew and we found ourselves in between barriers in Times Square and only had to wait 15 minutes out in the cold! That was one for the books - New Year's Eve in Times Square
Colby's Birthday:
Next up, on January 6, Colby turned 1 year old! We decided, based on the fact that I wanted to make a lion cake, that it would be safari-themed. We invited some family members that live in Houston, my parents, some friends of mine with kids around the same age, and our neighbors. Bonus: my godparents were in that weekend visiting my parents so they came too! We had lots of snacky type food set out and the kids had fun just playing with all of Colby's toys. For decorations, we hung streamers and balloons, I printed out some pictures of Colby at each month of his life, and hung it as a banner behind his high chair. We set out some of his animals on the table, and of course made a lion cake. I also order a shirt from etsy that had his name and a lion on the front of a big number one. It's super cute, and he still wears it now! On top of doing the usual ceremonial cake-eating and present-opening, I decided it would be a good time to reveal the gender of our next baby! So Colby opened the present and out popped...a BLUE balloon! We gave out bubbles as party favors to the little ones. I don't know much about throwing baby birthday parties, but all in all, I'd say it was a success!
Speaking of a blue balloon...
Here's a pregnancy update, too! I am now just over 28 weeks pregnant, and since I'll be having a scheduled c section this time around, we will meet this new little one in no more than 11 weeks! I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has gone! For the most part, it has been as easy as my pregnancy with Colby - no morning sickness, no cravings, no real symptoms at all, EXCEPT I seem to have trouble sleeping. At first it was sporadic, but these last four weeks I've averaged about 2 nights a week that I either haven't been able to fall asleep or if I fall asleep, if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't fall BACK asleep! My OB assures me that this is a pregnancy symptom, so ironically, I can't wait until this baby comes, so I can get some SLEEP (even if it is only in 2-3 hour increments)! Other than that, this baby is growing healthily and I've had a very uneventful pregnancy thus far. I hope this baby can stay cooking a little longer than Colby did, since he was born just over 37 weeks, but we will see... :) I've been a little better at taking bump pictures every other week, so I put together a little documentation of my growth (I definitely popped from 5 to 6 months, and that was two weeks ago...!):
Finally, I just wanted to boast a bit about how smart Colby is - he can say "Dada" in a meaningful way, and "Boom!" which means "please stack up my blocks so that I may knock them down". He also can make animal noises for elephant, snake and cow (although sometimes he makes an elephant sound for zebra as well...). He's walking very sturdily now and thinks turning lights on and off is the funniest thing in the world!
Christmas:
The night before Christmas, we all went to mass and then everyone came over to our house "for drinks" but what my dad didn't realize was that was when we were giving him his outdoor bar that Robert made him. Robert spent a LOT of time on this thing - pictures below, and I have to say that was probably the highlight of Christmas. Apart from being Colby's first, of course. Since it was Colby's first Christmas, although the rest of my family was in town, Robert, Colby and I had our own Christmas and THEN went over to my parents to open gifts. This was a big deal for me because this was the first time that I was in town, but I didn't participate in the 7 am ritual of gift-opening! So ultimately a very good Christmas. The day after Christmas, we all went down to the "party house" at the Frio River and stayed with all of my aunts, uncles and cousins - and Mema and Great Uncle Harold! We had a game tournament of bocci ball, scattergories and washers which Robert and my cousin Casey tied for first place! It was great to be outside and playing, but this was the first time I realized this pregnancy has been giving me sleep anxiety...more on that later.
Front of the bar
Playing a game on Christmas
Colby's moose hat and Christmas outfit - thanks Aunt Angela and Amanda!
After mass on Christmas
At the party house
Colby's playing washers!
New Year's Eve:
My three sisters and I left the "party house" early to head to NYC! Angela lives there now, so we went partly to visit her and partly to spend NYE in NYC! This was the first girl's trip we've taken all together, and it was the first time we could all drink (apart from me, of course, although I guess I could have, if I wanted to). This trip to NYC was a bit different because we had all been to NYC several times before, so we skipped a bunch of the tourist stuff (although, we did see a show on Broadway). Mostly, though, we just tooled around East Village, where Angela lives and visited shops and bars and restaurants near her home that she hadn't tried yet. It was great! Then on New Year's Eve, we had booked a comedy show at a club near Times Square. It was madness trying to get there and Angela had to sweet-talk/lawyer-argue some policemen into letting us through some barriers, but we ultimately made it! We had made the decision early on not to be in Times Square at midnight, because we would've had to be out there in the cold from 2 pm, with no food, no bathrooms and alcohol was not allowed. So we decided the comedy club NEAR Times Square at midnight was the next best thing. HOWEVER, the show ended at 11:45 pm, and then a guy stood up and said if you want to go out to Times Square just head up these stairs and take a right! So we did...and there we were! Before we knew it the countdown started, midnight was here, music played, confetti flew and we found ourselves in between barriers in Times Square and only had to wait 15 minutes out in the cold! That was one for the books - New Year's Eve in Times Square
Colby's Birthday:
Next up, on January 6, Colby turned 1 year old! We decided, based on the fact that I wanted to make a lion cake, that it would be safari-themed. We invited some family members that live in Houston, my parents, some friends of mine with kids around the same age, and our neighbors. Bonus: my godparents were in that weekend visiting my parents so they came too! We had lots of snacky type food set out and the kids had fun just playing with all of Colby's toys. For decorations, we hung streamers and balloons, I printed out some pictures of Colby at each month of his life, and hung it as a banner behind his high chair. We set out some of his animals on the table, and of course made a lion cake. I also order a shirt from etsy that had his name and a lion on the front of a big number one. It's super cute, and he still wears it now! On top of doing the usual ceremonial cake-eating and present-opening, I decided it would be a good time to reveal the gender of our next baby! So Colby opened the present and out popped...a BLUE balloon! We gave out bubbles as party favors to the little ones. I don't know much about throwing baby birthday parties, but all in all, I'd say it was a success!
Speaking of a blue balloon...
Here's a pregnancy update, too! I am now just over 28 weeks pregnant, and since I'll be having a scheduled c section this time around, we will meet this new little one in no more than 11 weeks! I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has gone! For the most part, it has been as easy as my pregnancy with Colby - no morning sickness, no cravings, no real symptoms at all, EXCEPT I seem to have trouble sleeping. At first it was sporadic, but these last four weeks I've averaged about 2 nights a week that I either haven't been able to fall asleep or if I fall asleep, if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't fall BACK asleep! My OB assures me that this is a pregnancy symptom, so ironically, I can't wait until this baby comes, so I can get some SLEEP (even if it is only in 2-3 hour increments)! Other than that, this baby is growing healthily and I've had a very uneventful pregnancy thus far. I hope this baby can stay cooking a little longer than Colby did, since he was born just over 37 weeks, but we will see... :) I've been a little better at taking bump pictures every other week, so I put together a little documentation of my growth (I definitely popped from 5 to 6 months, and that was two weeks ago...!):
Finally, I just wanted to boast a bit about how smart Colby is - he can say "Dada" in a meaningful way, and "Boom!" which means "please stack up my blocks so that I may knock them down". He also can make animal noises for elephant, snake and cow (although sometimes he makes an elephant sound for zebra as well...). He's walking very sturdily now and thinks turning lights on and off is the funniest thing in the world!
Sunday, January 20, 2013
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