Project 31. Days 4 and 5.

Day 4: Post a picture of you in your favorite outfit.
These days my favorite outfit is all about comfort. I alternate between wearing my pajamas all day long, and my maternity jeans paired with a gray or black tee. Since those aren't very glamorous outfits, I thought I'd post a picture of another favorite thing I wear: my baby.



Day 5: Write a blog thanking someone who has made your heart come alive.
I'm pretty sure most wives doing this project will write a letter to their husbands. I don't want to disturb that trend, so here goes:

Dear Kevin,
Can you believe we've been together over 9 years? When I think of us, I still picture us in my mind's eye as the 18 and 21 year olds that we were when we met. I don't see us as getting older or getting bogged down with life. I think that's a testament to how you've made me come alive. The love that's in my heart for you, and for us, is greater than it was then, but that first date was the very beginning of the rest of my life.

I am so very comfortable with you. I can be my complete and 100% self around you, without worry of judgment or embarrassment. There's nobody else I can say that about. We've been through a lot, but even through our trials I never worried about our security. Despite it all we've stuck together and grown stronger. Thank you for accepting me for exactly who I am.

And through that love, we've created a family! A perfect little family that makes my heart melt and jump and continue beating. This family is my life, and it's a life that I've wanted for so long. Now it's here, and even though it is passing by oh so quickly, it makes my heart feel alive.

We're awesome. :)
Love,
Kristina

Project 31. Days 2 and 3.

What makes you uniquely you?
It's going to sound so sappy and cliche, but I'm the only one who can call this man my husband:


And the only one who can call this girl my daughter:


Sure, I could list some qualities about myself, but the truth of the matter is that other people share those qualities, whether they're in my circle or not. But my family is uniquely mine, and I'd give up everything else for them. My world has changed and I love it!


Who is someone you know who inspires beauty?
I'm probably supposed to choose one person, but the truth of the matter is everyone that I call friend or family contributes something beautiful to the world. When a person knows who they are (or even if they don't completely, but are still confident in what they portray as themselves), it is beautiful and inspirational. My mom is a nurturer by nature. My sister is fiercely confident in herself. My best friend is wildly creative (and pretty wild, too). My husband is the most supportive person I know.

And of course, I know a lot more people than that, but the point has been made. Everyone contributes beauty in their own way. If you can look at that person and pull something from them, you've been inspired by their beauty.

Reading

Reading Truelove to my daughter! I hope she likes to read as much as I do.

Project 31. Day 1.

You know how some blogs do a thing a day for a certain number of days, following a theme? Well, I'm about to start doing that. I don't know that I'll actually get to it every day, as it really depends on the babe's naps and temperament each day, but I'm going to try.

Mandy over at She Breathes Deeply started a project based on Proverbs 31. If you want to read it, hop over there. Based on that proverb, she's come up with 31 prompts about beauty and being a woman. Now, I'm not religious, so I'll probably skip over a couple of the prompts (or make up my own), but I think it's a great way to start an internal conversation with myself about beauty. And being a new mom with a totally different body and priorities, it's important to understand what true beauty means.

So each day, I'm going to write according to that day's prompt, given by Mandy. I'll still post about Adelaide, of course! But this will be a little side project...


Day 1. What does beauty mean to you?
A person is beautiful when they appreciate life. When you are truly happy and can enjoy the little things in life, the people you surround yourself with, and your own self, you are beautiful. (Ever hear a guy say that they find confident women beautiful? It's true.)

Some of the little things in life I enjoy:
my daughter, my husband, my cats... they are my family. rain. fluffy green grass. the smell of baking bread. cheese, how i miss you and love you so! pawprints. a letter from a friend. musical numbers in tv shows. hitting all green lights. clean, tight sheets and a poufy comforter. freshly shaven legs (mine!). the colors green and teal. really sharp pencils. a clean house. crunchy leaves. my cat wheeze-sleeping on the chair. my daughter wheeze-sleeping on my chest. when my husband's wedding ring hits mine when we hold hands. 80's music. symmetry. art. pretty fabric. pretty pictures. finding a good deal. a deep laugh. inside jokes. good hair days.

Being in love with life is beautiful!

Adelaide {one month}

Dear Adelaide,

You are one month old today! This has been the shortest and longest month of my life! My days blur together with our crazy sleeping schedule (what schedule???), so to think that's it's already been a month seems so quick! But at the same time, some days seem so long that I don't think they'll ever end, and I count down the minutes before your daddy gets home from work so I can take a shower or even just fix something good to eat.


The past couple of weeks you've been really gassy. I don't know if it's something that you're sensitive to in my milk, or if you just swallow too much air. I am eating a dairy-free diet now to see if that will help you, because milk allergies are common in newborns. So far I don't see it helping, but it could be another couple of weeks before we start seeing changes. As far as you swallowing too much air - I know you are! When you nurse, you squeak, grunt, squeal, and you're constantly latching on and off. And sometimes I know my milk comes out really fast and I can hear you gulping. I try burping you a lot, and boy do you know how to burp!, but you still cry from gas pains. You get so upset sometimes that all I can do is hold you, nurse you, and let you sleep on me. I don't mind though... the weight of your little body feels so good in my arms. I just hope it gets better soon, little one!


I still really enjoy breastfeeding. It's a very special time just between me and you, and I love those moments when you look up at me. You're also getting more control of your hands and you like to either hold my finger or rest your palm on my chest. I love it! And I love all those sounds you make. I keep thinking I need to record them before you stop making them - I know one day I will miss all those grunts.


You're officially smiling now. For a while I wasn't sure if it was just a reflex from gas or real social smiles, but now I'm sure that you are really happily smiling at your daddy and me. It makes me so happy when you do smile, that I repeat whatever I was doing at the moment for the next 10 minutes to try and make you smile again. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. You have a beautiful smile and it melts my heart (and your daddy's)!


You love, love, love getting your diaper changed, which is a good thing because we change 8-10 diapers a day! We have a whole routine. After undressing and taking off your dirty diaper, we do lots of tummy massages to try and help you toot. My daily accomplishments have been reduced to whether or not I can help you fart! It really does help you though, since you're having such gas and tummy troubles. You coo and squeal and smile a lot when we're doing the massages, so I think you like them a lot! We've been doing cloth diapers with you since day 10, and we love it. It's a lot of work to wash and dry them every other day, but it's worth it to be able to save money and keep disposables out of the landfill (and off of your body!).


You are still sleeping a lot during the day, and at night you sleep anywhere from two hours to three and a half. Since you sleep in the bed with daddy and me, we can hear you as soon as you start fussing. I get up and change you (and play and try to get you to smile), then I bring you back to bed and nurse you back to sleep. It usually takes at least half an hour (but sometimes more) to get you back to sleep, what with all the grunting and squeaking! Daddy and I can't sleep while you nurse because you make so much noise!


Adelaide, we love you so, so, so much! We are so happy now that you're in our lives! I can't believe my body grew you, and now it seems surreal to think that I carried you all that time! I am so glad every time we stare at each other, and I know that you love us too. Being a mom is so much better than I imagined, and nothing will top it.

I love you, my sweet daughter,
Moma

Project 31. Day 9.

What virtues do you value in yourself?
To be honest, I had to look up the word "virtue" in the dictionary. I didn't know if it was the same thing as "value" or not, so I looked it up. The definition I like is "a particularly efficacious, good, or beneficial quality; advantage"... so, basically the same thing, right?

Well, the good qualities I like in myself: compassion for all living things. I am a vegetarian because I know animals feel, just like people. I am sad when I read/hear about someone dying, even if it's someone on death row who did something terrible themself. I brake for butterflies and swerve for squirrels. I can't watch really sad movies without getting upset because I automatically think about it happening to someone in real life.

I'm honest. My best friend says that she likes my advice because it's brutally honest. Why lie when you can sincerely communicate?

I'm organized and kind of a clean-freak. My husband may beg to differ about this being a good quality, because I can tend to drive him nuts with it. But I believe that taking care of your surroundings shows respect to yourself and the people you share those surroundings with.

I'm also funny and smart and nurturing and crafty and appreciative and happy. :)

By the way... New Years!

I forgot to mention: Happy New Year's! We stayed up as we usually do, hanging out at home. Our first new year's as a family! We typically don't go out for new year's, but this year there was no way we'd consider it, even if we did have invites to parties or whatnot, given the recent arrival of our little babe.


We still haven't gotten around to writing our resolutions/goals, but hopefully we'll make time soon for that. We have a new year's scrapbook where I put reflections of the passing year, and goals for each of us for the new year, as well as a photo or two from new year's eve.

(She already looks different from that night!)

Moby!

Take a look at the awesomeness below:


That's my baby, sleeping soundly all wrapped up in our Moby. Complete awesomeness. I got the wrap as a gift from the family I used to babysit for. I was, oh, 7 months pregnant when they gifted it to me, and I attempted to put it on then over my big belly. Then the older girl went and got her American Girl doll so we could get a (very poor) feel for how it would go with a baby. Needless to say, a real-live baby feels so much better than a stiff doll!

I'd tried to put it on before and put Adelaide in the cradle hold, but she had none of that. This morning, however, during a spell of calmness (in between the grunting and pooting, that is), I set her on the bed and talked her through putting on the Moby wrap. And then I took a quick peek at the directions for the Newborn Hug hold, and tada!

She fussed for all of two minutes with the newness of it, but then conked out and stayed that way for over an hour. I tucked her head in and then danced around a bit for Kevin, and saying "this is so cool!" and "hands free!" while I did jazz hands.


This Wednesday I am going to a babywearing meetup, and hopefully I'll get some tips on how to put on the Moby a little quicker and neater. And maybe she how to do a hold where I can breastfeed her. I can't wait to get just a little better at it, so I'll feel comfortable wearing her at the grocery store or out on a walk (when there isn't snow in the forecast, like there is tonight - maybe Kevin will get a snow day???)!

Oh the gas...

A couple of posts ago, I mentioned that we were having an issue with Adelaide being gassy. Well, that issue has yet to resolve itself. I went to the pediatrician for her two week checkup on Thursday and mentioned the gassiness, and the doctor told me a couple of things to try, and Kevin and I have been googling like it's our job to find some remedies.

We just feel so bad for her when she's grunting and screaming from the gas pains. It's truly upsetting for all of us - I've cried a bunch when she gets really fussy about it because I can just imagine how frustrating/painful it can be! She'll be nursing and then scream all of a sudden, or she'll wake right up screaming sometimes. I really feel so bad for her. The past couple of nights she'll seem so tired, but can't sleep. *sigh*

Here's what we're doing to try and help the problem (none working much yet):

• I'm going on a dairy-free diet. This is the age where her little digestive system will be sensitive to dairy, so I'm cutting it out completely. Today is day three of the diet. I'm already vegetarian, so except for eggs, I'm pretty much going vegan for this little girl! I'm doing this for a month, and then if things are seeming better I'll do a dairy challenge where I eat dairy with every meal for a couple of days to see if it'll cause a reaction. If nothing else, cutting out high fat cheese and other dairy products and upping my veggie intake will help me lose some more of this baby weight!
• Gas drops. Mylicol is the brand name, but we're doing the Walgreens store brand version. We started last night, giving her a little bit after each feeding. The active ingredient, simethicone, breaks down larger gas bubbles into smaller, less painful ones that are easier to pass. We did notice a lot of tooting last night, but she still shrieked and cried a bunch too.
• Belly massages. Here's one I found online that got a toot out: Rub from ribcage to belly button downward with alternating hands for a count of 15. Push knees to chest and hold for count of 15. Rub in a clockwise motion from belly button and around for a count of 15. Push knees to chest and hold for count of 15. Repeat.
• Pump the legs. Basically it's helping her do the "bicycle" motion with her legs. It just helps her work it out.
• Lots of burping. Sitting her upright after feeding so gas can move up and lots of patting her back. She often falls asleep for a little bit doing this as well.

Like I said, none of these are true fixes right now, but we're hoping that it's helping a little bit. Kevin's a pro at the belly massages apparently, and she seems to enjoy changing time with him because that's when we do it. And she does NOT like the taste of the gas drops. I'm sure it's a lot different than the breastmilk!

Any of you have gassy babies or experience with it? I'd love any advice or tips!!!

Two weeks old!

Little Adelaide turned two weeks old yesterday. In some ways it feels like those two weeks have flown, and in other ways it seems she's been here forever. Maybe it's the sleep-deprived part of me that feels like it's been an eternity of nursing, changing diapers, and sitting up at night trying to figure out why she's fussy? Probably.

To commemorate the two-week mark, I took some pictures of my little one all wrapped up in fuzzy blankets in a basket that was originally the carrier of Harry and David fruit (a congrats gift from the family I used to babysit for).

I didn't quite get the shots that I was hoping for... you know, the naked newborn booty photos, but I did get a few that showed how expressive Adelaide can be. And of course, how beautiful she is.

At one point I moved the basket (which was on my kitchen table) and the table was all wet. Turns out she peed, and the blanket, basket, and table were the victims. I should have kept a diaper on her, but I was really hoping for those butt shots, and didn't want the marks from the diapers on her cute little tush. Next time I'll know better!

Noisy baby.

I think I have the noisiest baby ever. She grunts, groans, moans, screams, cries, coos... it goes on and on.

She doesn't just eat. She verbalizes every bite. At night, we can't sleep because she talks through supper. Poor Kevin doesn't get to sleep in like I do when she finally chooses to knock out.

The past couple of nights have been tough, too. My midwife says this is about the time that she'll get sensitive to certain foods I'm eating, so today is my first day trying no dairy, in case that's what's the problem. She has been gassy and really fussy, and today not as much. But... wait until 10:30, when the fussiness has been kicking in... we'll see!


She is still so precious, noise and all. :)

First walk with the little one.

Today was so nice! 62 degrees with just a bit of breeze.

Kevin and I took the opportunity with this awesome weather to get in our first walk with the little lady. She slept through it, but it was nice to get out and get some fresh air in my lungs.

This house has felt a little suffocating lately, so to be able to get out and walk around was awesome. I'd been used to walking so much leading up to the labor anyhow, it felt weird not to go on a walk for eleven days!


And now that this first one with papa was so successful, maybe I'll go on a walk alone with Adelaide when he's at work, so long as the weather is decent. All I have to do is fill her up and let her fall asleep first, haha! :)