month 5

Little chubba-bubba! Our baby is growing up!! This was quite an adventurous month for us. So many new things! We celebrated St. Patrick's day this month, had a visit from all the grands, a visit from Uncle Les and Sarah and even met her great Grandpa-O! Like I said, so many new things! We have also had some setbacks...tummy bugs, allergies, and sleep regression. Sleep regression is by far, the worst! This is definitely my favorite month so far. Not that the others weren't ah-mazing but she's such a little person now!!! Anyway, we have tons of pictures from this month so I will let them tell the story!

St. Pat's festival in Uptown Charlotte! Perfect weather and perfect angels. (Top: Baby Bethany 9mos).

We also had some family photos taken by our friend, Holly. It was a really nice day and we only suffered a few minor setbacks (spit ups/shoe kicking-off/drool drenched sweaters/greasy hair...the usual). Soooo, Jameson overload, commence!!!!!!!!!!!!!

one of my faves

this face! so many chins!

I can't get over her eyes! How did this happen??

Hoarding massive amounts of slobber to unleash on mom or dad...

I'm a sucker for this face.

and this one...

"Don't put my boobs on Facebook, Mom!"

Bubba meets her great grandpa! The best!

Okay, I lied! THIS is my fave!

Sleep:  We had a good run... We had a few weeks of sleeping 7-11pm and then 11-5:30am. Then, our baby decided she hated us. Jk, I think she got sick and it all went downhill from there. One week she woke up 3-4 times before 10:30pm and then woke up for 1.5 hours stretches in the middle of the night to play. It was seriously the worst week ever at work. The worst part is that she was sooooooo cute at 3am! I wanted to play too! We have slowly been able to get her back on track but she's still not there. She has been very stuffy at night so we are running the humidifier, using Vick's plugins, and suctioning like crazy. Cross your fingers she decides to sleep through the night just in time for her to start teething! 

Size: 13lbs and 5ozs......I think....I can't remember what they said when we were there last. She is probably more than that by now. They didn't measure her though...so I'm guessing the same size as last time. She went in for the sickies at 4 months which turned out to be allergies (apparently).

 
Clothes: Some 3-6 months but mostly 6 months. I've said this before...but baby clothes are the dumbest. I feel like some of her short sleeved onesies are snug...how is that possible with my little peanut??? Anyway, my new favorite thing is (are??) bubbles. They are exactly what they sound like once you see them on. So cute, so cute. Also, there is something wrong with me but I want to hoard every piece of clothing she has! I'm so reluctant to pack anything up even though I know it's out of season or way too small. I hooooooope she will have a sister someday to wear them all over! 

Diapers: Size 2! Side note to myself: stop trying to use up the random size 2 Huggies we have laying around!!!! YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED....and pooped on. We had one of our worst blow outs to date...Will had to change shirts. It was not pretty. Totally the dipes fault...generally it's "user error" but this was all dipe. Damn dirty dipes! 

Eating: 6 ounce bottles (4-5.5 a day) and....wait for it...2 meals of solids a day. Little Bubba is such a big girl. So far, we have tried rice cereal, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, bananas, applesauce, and peas. Will bought prunes and peaches but I'm hesitant to try those for some reason (probably because I would never EVER eat prunes in my entire life)...maybe carrots next?? She doesn't have a set amount she eats, we just feed her until she doesn't want anymore. Jameson eats a partial to whole container at lunch and then either rice cereal or the rest of her lunch before bed. We are still figuring this out so this will more than likely change the day after I post this....(Shhhhhh! I don't know what I'm doing!).

Update: Jameson is having 3 bottles at school and one meal....then comes home for a "meal" and a bottle. She also gets a few ounces at 11pm for her dream feed....so far so good.

Likes: Baths are always a hit. She likes her rice cereal. She LOVES Freddy the Firefly and Sophie. (And, obvi, Bearic....they are buds). She likes to try and help feed herself but she just gets everything everywhere instead. She will laugh, not giggle, but laugh at her dad doing anything silly. I've gotten some good giggles from peek-a-boo and "Peanut Butter Jelly Time"....yes that dumb internet/Family Guy song...but I'm no daddy. Oh and she does this awful and terrifying noise that sounds like she is gasping for breath. She has scared the shit out of daycare and mom and dad multiple times with it. She is totally messing with us though...she likes her new sounds. She is also soooo much better in the car (to and from daycare is waaaaaaaaaaay less stressful.

Dislikes: Sleeping through the night. Jk, but maybe?? She hates anything going up, in, and around her nose. She fights me when I try to wipe her mouth and hands after meals. She also fights naps on the weekends...so hilarious but not really.

Other: Still drooling all over everything. She puts ANYthing in her mouth. I have jokingly offered her some tea from my to-go cup and she knows exactly what to do. She will clamp those slobbery lips right on the straw but then doesn't know how to suck. Bubba finally learned how to roll over! She has done tummy to back in front of us and then did a magic trick of back to tummy in her crib (haven't seen it since). I didn't witness it but she woke herself up at night after rolling onto her back and by the time I made it upstairs to check on her she was back on her tummy. Weirdo. She also can put her paci in her mouth by herself. I saw her do it in the car this weekend! She was holding out on us! She only does it when she wants and then wakes up at 3:45am so mom and dad can do it.

Milestones: Dang it! I typed half of my milestones up there. I will summarize:

-rolled tummy to back

-rolled back to tummy (only in secret though)

-can put her paci in her mouth on her own

-swallow solids without spitting it everywhere

Me: I quit. I have 6lbs left to lose to get back to pre-pregnancy weight but honestly, it will probably be there until Bubba decides to give us some rest at night. I went home at lunch to workout a few times which was actually nice but takes too long. By the time I'm home for the night I'm dead. Sometimes I fall asleep on her floor after putting her down for the night...true story! Anyway, I play soccer at least once a week but I can't wait until she finally sleeps through the night! I fully intend to go to bed at 9pm...no exceptions. I need sleep.

Mommy Fail(s): One night I fed Bubba too much sweet potatoes and she projectile vomited them. It went down my shirt and pants. I had to undress in the middle of the room while holding her and run upstairs. I had no idea what to do. I just froze after it happened. Should I move?!?!?! By the time Will got home I was rocking the baby to sleep sans pants. 
Also I didn't clean (I rinsed out the part that hold water but neglected the other piece it attaches to) Bubba's humidifier for 2-3 months and then finally opened it and saw the most disgusting thing ever....must have been 3 types of mold going on in there. I poisoned my child. We threw it out immediately and bought her a new one that looks like an elephant...and I googled how to clean it this time. Apparently white vinegar prevents mold...who knew? (Probably everyone but me).

month 4

this hair. this face. too much!

The boo!!! My baby is growing up so fast! So cute these days! I'm still working on settings on my new camera so bare with me while I take photos with poor lighting, shadows and interrupting cats...

here's Rose as he investigates his baby

I started this post the week before Jameson turned 4 months old so I had to do some updates to my previous statements (that's how much she changes week to week!). I've had a crazy week or 2 at work so I've been slacking on the blog. I was hoping to post weekly...but I'm not even close! Not to mention, the Daddy went out of town for 4 whole nights and days. This was our first time mostly alone (Mimsy came to help Thursday and Friday night :)) But Saturday was just us gals. We had a nice little visit with Bethany and Kirsten at Chick-fil-a and then a neighborhood stroll. It was sooooo nice this weekend. Anywho, we survived and here are our photos to prove it!:

Being a big girl without her car seat carrier.

The verdict is still out on riding in the stroller without her carrier...the first time she did it she was fussy but also hungry. The second time, she was fussy and had a ridiculously full diaper. So I'm hoping she was just fussy by coincidence. Also, she doesn't like the sun in her eyes but her shades are too big for her peanut head still. No idea where this small head came from...weird that her head is the only thing she's got  measuring in the 50th percentile. Haha. 

Bethany gave Jameson a quick foot massage after J  slept through most of lunch...and then tried to steal her sock. They were so cute together. 

 

Attempting to escape her Bumbo yet again! And tasting everything...everything is always so soaked!

such pretty eyes! we might have some trouble with those brows though!....jk

Sleep:  We were all over the place! It seems like just when we were making progress on sleeping through the night she would get sick or we would travel with her and she would get all thrown off! For the past 2-3 weeks we have been having a bottle of formula (GASP!!!) before bed and then waking up for a "dream feed" at 11pm. The formula seems to help her sleep longer so we are sticking to that. Now she is in the habit of getting the dream feed so we will keep it up until she grows out of it. We also tried early bedtimes, late bedtimes, and bedtimes in our room. It took a few weeks but we finally found a routine that works. One of the first things my lactation consultant AND pediatrician both said was that "she will sleep through the night when she is ready". They told me not to worry about trying to train her because she will eventually just do it when she is ready and that babies that are "sleep trained" just coincidentally got into their routine (I was doubtful). Even though we didn't really stick to anything strict...they were exactly right! One day after daycare she started showing us how sleepy she was by rubbing her eyes and it was 7:30....and the next day it was 7 and the next was 6:30! It came out of nowhere! Now I find myself rushing home because she gets so sleepy! 

Size: 12lbs 5.5oz. Still a little nugget but 23.75" long! Good job bubba! She is still in the 10-25th percentile for everything except her noggin! Head circumference is in the 50th percentile! Haha, Sonefeld head!

Clothes: Baby clothes are the dumbest. Carter's makes 3 month clothes and 0-3 month clothes and then 6 month and 3-6 month sized clothes so I never know what is going to fit until I actually get her in it. I will just say she is wearing clothes at this point...since everything seems to fit and not fit at the same time.

Diapers: Size 1 but after we run out of these I think we will go ahead and graduate to size 2! We still use Swaddlers in the day time and the 12 Hour Baby Dry at night. Those things will hold so much pee that it's like handling a grenade once you take it off......don't make any sudden movements or that thing will explode!!!!

Eating: 5 ounces...I'm thinking it's time to move up another bottle nipple size (side note: don't ever google "size 3 nipples" while you're at work...unless you want to be contacted by HR). She takes the full 5oz but sometimes she gets worn out before she finishes and takes a little break and then comes back...I'm thinking she is having to work too hard! Oh and like I said before, we are eating 6-7 bottles a day depending on when you start your day (ahem....3am??) and one of those bottles is formula. For anyone reading this that hasn't had the pleasure of smelling a formula burp or fart....you are one of the lucky ones. So, so, so sick. That smell alone is enough to make me change my mind about weening off the breast milk....

**update** Since I first typed this up, little bebe has started solids! Rice cereal and applesauce more specifically! She seems to like the rice cereal best. We have a few bites before bedtime and then her bottle. I'm guessing it is helping her sleep a little better. When she gets better at eating we will send her to "school" with some for breakfast and lunch! Little bebe is getting so grown up!

Likes: Baths, Bearic, Sophie, daycare (I guess) and hilarious dance moves. That is her dad's specialty.  I think we might need to invest in some bath toys...she is stating to play and splash. It's so cute!

Dislikes: Burping halfway through her bottle...you would think we were pinching her! She squeals and whines when we take the bottle out! Diva. Still hates being buckled in her car seat. Still hates the bulb syringe and hates taking any sort of medicine...even when it tastes like bubble gum.

Other: So drooly right now. She puts everything in her mouth. Her hand, my hand, Bearic's "hand", and if she could reach...probably her feet. She does a small amount of babbling, which is hilarious...even at 4am when she thinks it's time to play. She also likes to use her nails to scratch any surface. It makes Will's skin crawl and makes me laugh. I love it...so stupid looking but cute!


Milestones: We made it a full week of daycare (twice)! She also had her first hotel stay. She handled that like a champ...I didn't. I went stir crazy and made us go home a night early. Two nights were enough for me! She slept through an earthquake and the loudest thunderstorm EVER. Good work bub. Oh, and solids!

Me: I seem to have plateaued at 154....I'm hoping the last 6-10lbs just magically disappear. I started playing coed soccer again...I'm so dreadful though. I know it will take time but I'm impatient. Hopefully once baby sleeps through the night without the dream feed, I will have enough energy to run/workout when I get home. Right now I play with Jameson, eat, put Jameson to bed, pump, dream feed and pass out. The mom life! I just bought a work out DVD so hopefully I'll actually do it!!

**Bonus**

Mommy Fail(s): So this is new but I feel like it is necessary...I will look back and these and laugh one day but, for now, I will count them as "mommy fails". This month's fail is brought to you by: Chicco Key Fit Car Seats. 

For the past few days Jameson has had RAGE when I put her in her car seat. We even had to pull over on the way home from daycare Thursday. She always fidgets when I put her in her seat but this time it was screaming when I put her in the seat.  Sometimes she falls asleep but these past few times she has NOT. Sooo I was telling Kirsten during our lunch Saturday that Jameson screamed the entire 2 miles to Chick-fil-a and she mentioned that there are adjustments for the shoulder straps. DUUUUUUUUUUUUMB. Not like just tightening and loosening the straps but turning the thing over and moving the straps up a notch. How did I NOT know this? More importantly, why did this never cross my mind?? Mommy brain is worse than pregnancy brain I swear! I mean, in hindsight, obviously a newborn and 6 month old wouldn't have the same size requirements but I just didn't occur to me to even look for an adjustment. I just kept cramming that poor baby down in there. Poor Bub. Luckily, she won't remember these Mommy Fails at all :)

DISCLAIMER

This post was mostly written and edited late at night while watching Too Fast, Too Furious...sooo there are probably tons of typos as I was distracted by the amazing plot twists and the incredible acting styles of Chis "Ludacris" Bridges. Yes, I hate myself for wasting 2 hours of precious sleep time on it, and no, this is not the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd time seeing this movie. But definitely less than my 5th time.... 

R.I.P. Paul Walker!

happy valentine's day!

this picture of me makes me want to throw up and run 1,000 miles but the bebe looks so cute!!!

month 3

Month 3...our toughest month yet! Jameson had her first ER visit and 3 additional doctor visits in one week! Crazy. She is feeling much better but it's been a rough week and a half. Sadly, the illness pretty much trumped any other memory of anything she did this month. We did manage to get some really cute pictures with our new camera though!

sitting in the ER on her 3 month bday....so cute in her little gown

it's her best friend, Bearic!

snotty baby...but still cute

we love naked time!

such much easier to take her picture this month!

Sleep:  We are experiencing some sort of sleep regression! Jameson started waking up more often right around the time she got sick (which was right when I started work...convenient, baby!). We are working on getting her back in her crib. She currently sleeps in the angled Rock n' Play or her swing. I think the angle helps with drainage. She has been waking up anywhere between 2-5am and then falls back asleep until 9ish (or 7:45am if we go to daycare).

Size: 11lbs 9oz according to her last doctor's visit! We didn't have her measured but she has a well-baby checkup in February. I'm sure she'll be at least 12lbs by then. Grow baby grow!

Clothes: She can still squeeze into a 0-3 months sleeper but mostly 3 month play clothes and some 3-6 month clothes. 3 month pants are getting a little short...maybe she'll have my legs instead of Will's stumps. Jk at least he has ankles!

Diapers: Size 1 but sometimes she can wear Size 2 Huggies...those came from Party Cousin Dylan...he outgrew them so we inherited them. Thanks Baby D! Diapers are like currency among mommy friends...waste not, my friends!

Eating: 5 ounces! When she was sick she could only take 2 ounces at a time but a lot more often. She is back to inhaling her 5 ounces. We have to put her "bubble-gum medicine" in her morning and night bottles because she won't take the medicine without it. Diva! She is very particular about the temperature of those bottles too. Cool to room temperature ONLY...no warm bottles please.

Likes: Bearic!! For those who don't know Bearic...he is photographed above. They are best friends. She still loves bath time with Dad...duh...and her play-mat from Mimsy. Before getting sick I swear she was going to roll over on it, but we took a week off from it so we'll have to start our training over.

*also, she doesn't mind having her temp taken in the butt...what a weirdo.

Dislikes: OMG the bulb syringe. It is her worst enemy. I know it makes her feel better but she feels the need to scream every time it comes near her...that along with Boogie Wipes. Still doesn't like clothes going over her head. Right now she doesn't like laying on her tummy or laying completely flat (except on her playmat)...so hopefully that will change once she is completely well. She doesn't like being strapped into things...especially the car seat. Sometimes we have to "hold hands" in the car just so she won't cry the whole way to our destination.

*oh, and shockingly, she hates baby catheters....who knew?!?! She had to get one at the ER and I had to leave the room and cry in the hall. Will wins every dad award ever invented for helping her through that. Having both had one we were VERY sympathetic....but I was just emotional and weepy...Will stayed strong! You did it Will!
Other: Still drooly, like she is teething, but no sign of teeth. She has developed her first diaper rash and requires a dry diaper at all times. So bossy! Jk, I'm happy to change that poor soggy baby. She also started daycare :(. She has gone a total of 4 times in 2 weeks so hopefully we'll be back to full time this week.....right Jameson!??!

Milestones: Got through her first illness (mostly). She actually handled it better than mom and dad. Made it through some daycare days. I cried every time I dropped her off. This has been a weird month so I can't remember much besides the sicky times.

Me: Down to 155 woo hoo! I still need to lose 10 more lbs but at least I don't feel huge anymore. Wearing work clothes again is awkward. I just feel chubby most days since I still have zero muscle tone. I tried playing soccer once and wanted to run off the field from embarrassment. I haven't gone back since :( Still breastfeeding/pumping and hoping to last until month 6 (at least). Having a "Mother's Privacy Room" at work definitely makes it a lot easier.

happy new year (and my un-resolution list)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

side note: this is the first time in my life i cursed fireworks...sleeping babies do NOT like fireworks!

So I already failed one of my new year's resolutions (spoiler alert: it was swearing in front of the baby)...in-light of that, I will now compile a list of things that I will NOT give up as a new year's resolution:

1. SODA. Who am I kidding?!!? I'm addicted to soda sooo hard! I thought that I could do just weekend sodas but then it just spilled over into the week. I might try to not keep soda in the house as a way to limit my intake but once work starts back up all bets are off.

2. FAST FOOD. I typically start the year by saying NO fast food...then it turns into "okay, only for breakfast", and then it turns into "whoops, I ate fast food 12 times this week". Soo maybe I'll just try for way less fast food than when I was pregnant...

3. WORKING OUT MORE. As much as I really, really want to work out I can barely find time and I'm not even back at work yet. I don't know how people do this??? I would like to get back to Monday night coed soccer...but that requires a babysitter. We'll see how that goes.

4. LESS TV. Yea right. We don't have a TV in the bedroom anymore so I definitely won't be up late watching. My new favorite show is this:

get it? 'cause it's my baby monitor screen??

5. KEEP MY HOUSE CLEAN AND ORGANIZED. Bahahahahahahahhahaha! Good one.

Okay, that was just for funsies. I would really like to try and "resolve" those issues but I wanted to try a different approach. Maybe if there is less pressure I might actually do it? Maybe? I will leave you with this image:

here's how we feel about me starting work in a week and a half

My hair is actually washed in this photo...brushed...that's a different story!

month 2 and Christmas

my little baby is getting so big!! (10 weeks in this photo)

Super delayed but here is Jameson's 2 month update! We were very busy this month. I tried to summarize the month in photos but it doesn't even come close to the amount of photos actually taken throughout the month. Okay here it is!

"sleeping Santa" at the mall. we had a tights-pooping incident just before we saw Santa but we still made the nice list

our white trash Christmas tree (soon to be Jameson's tree in her nursery)

sassy Christmas dress from Mimsy's coworker

this baby was not pleased with her elf costume

Patti and Jameson coordinated outfits and hair-dos! haha jk mom

Sleep:  So, so, so much better! Her naps are still few and short but she has been sleeping so much better at night. She averages about 6 hours. When we have messed up her routine she woke up during the night a couple times to be fed or changed but she mostly will sleep the whole way through. But since I'm an overprotective mom I will get up every now and then when she makes noises...just to make sure. I even occassionaly wake up and stare at the monitor to make sure I see her breathing...and to check the room temp (she is a hot sleeper). Her schedule right now is this:

-Anywhere between 9-10:30pm we give her a bath (depending on her last feeding/nap)
-After the bath she usually gets another bottle and then I start the bedtime process (this can take anywhere from 45-90mins...including feeding and burping). I usually feed her and then if she doesn't fall asleep immediately I will burp her and rock her until she is limp. If I try to put her down too early she will wiggle and get fussy. Usually I pick her up and she just needs to burp again and go right back down but occasionally it takes me 2-3 tries. I'll take it if it means sleeping 6 hours though! 
-So on average she is sleeping from 11ish to 6:30ish (give or take an hour on either side).
-Once she has her morning bottle she will go back to sleep on me for like 3 more hours. If Will is around to help I let him feed her in the morning and I go and pump and then we can all go back to bed until close to 10am......yesssss! 

Size: 10lbs 5oz and 21.75 inches. So far she has an average head and then is in the 10-25% range for weight and height.

Clothes: Size 0-3 months and 3 months only. No more newborn outfits!

Diapers: Size 1 only! Good job baby chunk! We use Pampers Swaddlers but have recently tried the Pampers Baby Dry version for nighttime...they keep dry up to 12 hours so she doesn't wake up when she has a wet diaper. So far they seem to be working! We tried this purely by mistake after I bought the wrong kind....

Eating: 4 ounces! Sometimes more...but she will spit up when she eats more than 4 ounces...not sure why she likes to punish herself.

Likes: She still loves baths so much...to the point where she gets upset when she gets out! This is a special Will/Jameson event that I have yet to partake in. I watch every now and then but it's usually a good time for me to wash all the bottles and pump parts from the day and get everything ready for bed.

Also...I'm embarrassed to admit...she LOOOOVES tv. Like, loves it. Mostly soccer since that is all her and her dad watch. She loves the green. And much to my dismay, she loves the color orange. For some reason she has an abundance of orange colored toys that she just stares and stares at. 


Dislikes: Clothes over the head! She is such a brat about that sometimes. I think she is starting to not like her car seat too. She used to sleep through dinners-out in her car seat but lately she starts to wake up and gets uncomfortable and wants out. She is easy though since she can usually be pacified by a bottle or just being taken out of the seat to sit up and look around.

*Side note: twice when I have been at a restaurant I have seen couples with babies around Jameson's age that just bring in their baby. No car seat, no diaper bag....nothing! I just can't see myself doing that....I don't know why it makes me nervous?!? 


Other: Jameson has been having signs of teething. She is extra drooly and will gnaw on things that we put in her mouth (i.e. fingers, toys, and most recently the kitty). I don't know if she actually is teething though...we went out and bought that ridiculous $25 Sophie giraffe just in case. (It's way too big for her mouth though)

Milestones: Sleeping (mostly) through the night!! We can make her smile and "talk" to her. She will talk to the tv when she is watching it. She is super super close to sitting up in her Bumbo by herself. I know it's too early for that but she really does a good job in there if we watch her. 

Me: Thanks to a stomach bug I am a little closer to my pre-pregnancy weight. I am down to 160...12lbs away from where I started. I was getting better about running a few times a week on the treadmill and then we went out of town for about a week and I got sick so now I get to start all over! Will got some free weights for Christmas so I will have to start using those now that baby chunk is getting heavier! I could barely lift my friends 6 month old baby the other week! 

baby's first thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

 Had to share these...better late than never!

this makes me laugh every time...poor tortured baby! she's upset that we didn't go the the parade. me too, baby, me too.

my all time favorite picture...no way she can top this 

The pictures below are of Jameson in her awesome turkey bib from Aunt Karen, Uncle Dean, Johanna, and Melissa...the perfect thing for her Thanksgiving milk-feast! We had a lot of outtakes and by the end she was totally over it! But I can't stop taking pictures!!