Rain

Today is just one of those days where I feel like everything is going wrong.  Without going into detail, let's just say that everything is piling up.  I actually broke down in tears today, and it has been a long time since that's happened.  I tend to let lots of little insignificant things build up and then when I can't hold it in any longer, they all come gushing out and it seems like a huge problem when in reality it's just a bunch of little ones. 

 

I start class tomorrow, and I am so worried I'm going to be overwhelmed.  I mean, I don't know how single moms go to school.  I can't imagine having to worry about providing income for my family, taking care of my family, AND going to school.  While I do all three of these things right now, I have the help of my husband.  He works so hard to support us, and I am VERY grateful for that. 

 

I know that I will get through anything with God on my side, but I'm just so stressed right now.  Life gets harder the older you get.  And when you think you have it all figured out (like I did on Monday) it all comes crashing down. :(

 

I am thankful for everyone that loves me and supports me.  I am happy to have a wonderful husband and a beautiful child, but when the storms come, it's hard to see all the beautiful things in life. 

 

Tip of the Day:  Take some time for yourself Mommas!  We all need a little time away from everything to just relax and be able to appreciate what we have been blessed with.  Whether you simply go to the store by yourself or go on a walk by yourself, do something!

 

"And I know there will be days when this life brings me pain, but if that's what it takes to praise you-Jesus bring the rain!"

Macie Grace :)

My sister had her baby!!!

 

Macie Grace Nataly greeted us with her presence on August 27, 2012.  She was born at 4:05 p.m.  She weighed 6 lbs 11 oz and was 21.25 in. long. 

 

(sorry I can't figure out how to rotate this picture haha)

 

 I now have a little niece! :)

 

And today, my child decides he needs to be held all the time.  Not easy when you have to get work done.  He is sitting in my lap watching me type this.  Good thing he is so adorable or I don't think I could deal with this haha

 

Tip of the Day:  Some days your child will need more attention than other days.  It may be because he or she has a belly ache or they just really need to feel your love.  You're not "spoiling" your child by giving them their needs.  Now, if they do this EVERY day, it may not be a need.  However, in my experience, I have realized my child needs attention more than other babies.  It's not necessarily being held that he wants, just someone to talk to him or look at him.  This works out fine when I can sing and clean or just talk to him while I do other things.  :)

 

Waiting...

Our laptop died...hence the no posts over the weekend...

It didn't necessarily die, but it wont charge, so therefore it's dead. 

I'm sitting at home (on the desktop computer) waiting waiting and waiting.  I'm gonna be an aunt (again) today!  I'm getting my first little niece :)  My sister is having her little baby today.  She went in this morning to be induced at 6 am and now were just waiting for her to come. 

In the mean time, Cameron tried baby cereal last week, and let's just say its a hit!  You cant feed him fast enough!  He loved it!

Sleep transitioning is going pretty well....Saturday night he only cried for 14 minutes!  However, last night he cried for about 30, but he is sleeping through the night pretty well!  Jimmy woke him up this morning because he had his hands and legs through the crib and Jimmy tried to move him.  But all in all, he loves his sleep! ((Wonder who he got that from?? haha))

So that's about all that's going on right now...oh wait, Jimmy and I start school this week :/ ugh....its kinda bittersweet because it is our last semester of college...my how the time flies...but i am not looking forward to 7:45 classes!

Tip of the Day:  Keep a baby book!  I may not be the best at keeping up with my baby book, but the things that I do have written down in there are so precious to me! Journal when you're pregnant and put some of that stuff in your baby book.  You won't regret it :) And hopefully one day, Cameron will love to look at it! :)

Thursday is ALMOST Friday :)

I babysat my nephew Conner last night while my sister did some Thirty-One thing.  Conner is almost 2 1/2 and I love him like he's my own.  I would do anything for that kid.  (Being an aunt is such an awesome thing because you get to be cool and not have to do too much disciplining)

 

This is an older picture, but you get the idea :)

 

Last night's babysitting went WAY better than the horrible time I had a few weeks ago.  My sister came home and I was panicked to say the least.  Having a two year old and a baby is NOT an easy task my friend.  My sister has a baby on the way (coming Monday hopefully) and I had her a little freaked I believe.  She came home (the first time I babysat, not last night) and I kept saying "I don't know how you're going to do it!"  She felt bad because her child was bad, but really he wasn't that bad, I'm just not used to having two kids around! 

 

Anyway, back to last night....Both kids were pretty good.  Cameron fell asleep, so I put him in Macie's (my sister's baby to come) swing so that he could sleep.  Well Conner LOVES to push Cam in the swing and kept saying "Push Keg!" (Yes, he calls my child Keg, and we have no idea why because it used to be a clear Cam).  So that was a little difficult...keeping Conner away from the swing. 

 

After Cam woke up, I decided to clean the living room up a bit.  Conner likes to bring pop cans from the kitchen to the livingroom, so as I was picking them up, I dropped one and pop shot around pretty much the whole room!  Both kids were screaming and I couldn't stop laughing! (until I realized it was ALL over the walls!)  When Cyndi (my sister) came home, Conner kept telling her the story and laughing haha 

 

Yet another night of the crib transition....

 

Last night I put him to sleep at 11:19 p.m. (it was so late because he had just taken a cat nap around 9)....he cried until 12:03 a.m.  That means we went from 65 minutes of crying (the night before) to 44 minutes of crying!  Not too bad!  If we cut 20 minutes off every night, next week will be a piece of cake!  However, my child is stubborn so I am hoping for the best, preparing for the worst :/

 

So now we're out work and we're patiently waiting for Friday! :)

 

Cam helping me out at work :)

 

Tip of the Day:  Once you have your baby and are trying to get him in to a sleep schedule, routine means everything!  Cameron's bedtime routine is eat, play, sing our songs, say our prayers, and go to sleep.  Some people like to give their babies a bath before they go to bed, but I don't bathe Cam everyday, so this wouldn't make for a good routine.  Find out what fits your baby and your family the best and stick with it.  The sooner the baby learns the routine, the sooner he'll be snoozing when you put him in his crib :)

What a Week!

My oh my what a week it has been and it's only Wednesday!

 

((How cute is this picture?? He was sooo happy and sitting up on his own!))

On Sunday, Cameron turned 4 months old.  This meant lots of changes in our household.  One being that Cam would go from our bed to his crib in his room.  I was always one of those people that said, "I will never let my child sleep in the same bed as me."  Partly because I am a wild sleeper, but also because I thought it was somewhat weird.  You may also see me as a hippie who breastfeeds and co-sleeps, but to each his own, or her own :)  In my opinion, every baby is different and you do what your baby needs.  My baby needs a LOT of attention.  He doesn't necessarily want to be held, he just likes it if you're talking, playing, or even simply looking at him.

When we came home from the hospital, the first night, Cameron cried the whole night.  We thought he was gassy because his belly was making all kinds of weird noises.  We put him in his bassinet, but he just cried more.  Because I was so sore and desperately needed sleep, we let him stay in our bed.  This quickly became a habit, and Cameron and I relied upon each other for comfort. 

I decided that four months in our bed was long enough.  I wouldn't trade the time we spent together for anything but he was just getting too big.  We only have a full size bed, and let's just say that two adults and a growing baby is quite the tight squeeze!

Now, back to Sunday night.  Cameron cried for nearly twenty minutes (ten of which included my tears) and Jimmy went and got him.  It was sweet now that I think back about it.  He brought him in with a big smile on Jimmy's face because he thought he was doing something sweet for me because I was lying on the bed in tears.  I wasn't happy at the time though because it meant we would have to go through all the tears again. :(  So I caved and he slept with us again.  He woke up the next morning to eat, like he normally does, and he usually goes back to sleep.  I decided to put him in his own bed in the morning, and he cried for 55 MINUTES!  It was painful.  However, he ended with a cute little sigh and went to sleep.  He slept til about 10 in there, so not too shabby.

Monday night I decided to have a different approach.  I rocked him to sleep.  Let's just say there were no tears that night, and he slept in his crib the whole night.  He woke up twice to eat though, which is more than usual.  He took two naps in his crib that day.  One for 30 minutes and one for 1 hour and 45 minutes!  (Getting closer!)

Tuesday was his four month Dr appointment.  This appointment included shots :( and lots and lots of questions by me!  I asked her about transitioning him to his crib and she told me that if I rock him to sleep he will never learn to put himself to sleep :(  So that means, I can't rock him til he falls to sleep, but I do rock him and sing our usual songs and say our prayers :)

((Waiting on the Dr.))

Tuesday night, He ate at 9 p.m., we played for a little bit, sang our songs, said our prayers, and I put him in his bed at 10:25.  HE CRIED UNTIL 11:30!  This is so hard for a Momma to hear her baby crying and not go get him :(  However, when he finally did fall asleep at 11:30, he slept until 7:15 a.m. with NO feedings at night! WOW!  This is not common at all!  I woke up at 5:30 because my breasts were hurting because he wasn't eating and I was freaking out!  I ran to his room to check on him and there he was, fast asleep. :)  He had his little feet propped up on the side of the crib like he was so relaxed.  I had to pump some milk in order to fall back asleep because I was in so much pain!  He woke up at 7:15 ready to eat, and I brought him to our bed because Daddy was going to work.  I love Mommy and baby time together :) He ate and fell back asleep until 10 :)

Needless to say, it has been quite a week!  Not to mention that Jimmy and I both had to finish an independent study by Tuesday, so our days consisted of lots of papers!  I am happy to see that Cam is sleeping through the night, but we will take this one day at a time. 

P.S.  Cameron gets to start baby cereal now! :)  I will definitely post pics of that :)

Tip of the Day:  When transitioning your baby to his or her crib, DON'T GIVE UP!  When you hear them cry, try not to give in because then they will think that you will come whenever they cry.  This is actually advice that my sister gave me because it was SO hard for me!  Just like she did, I cried along with him!  It will be hard, but it will be worth it when he grows up and can sleep in his own bed :)

Summer is Almost Over :(

Let me just say, I am a horrible blogger!

I get so excited about doing it, but actually finding the time to do it is not an easy task!  Between dirty diapers and typing papers, my time is pretty consumed. 

I have six days left of this summer class, then about one week til my fall class begins.  I only have one class on campus which I am VERY grateful for, but I am NOT happy that it is at 7:45 a.m. haha

So, I am working on my birth story, but it is not going as fast as I thought it would!  I want to make it like a journal so that I can always remember the day, but there are so many little details!  I WILL finish it though...one day. :)

I'm not really sad about summer being over for several reasons

1. I hate the sun and it hates me (I went on a walk yesterday and got burnt! We didn't even walk for an hour!)

2. I only have one class to take, so I don't think I will get too overwhelmed

3. I LOVE FALL!  It is by FAR my favorite season :)

4. Pumpkin Show!  I'm thinking about putting Cameron in a baby contest, but I don't want to be "one of those" moms haha

5. This is my last semester of college!!!!!!

So here's to a lame post.  Hope you enjoyed :)

Tip of the day:  Cherish every moment with your little one.  They grow up too fast.  I'm so glad that I take tons of pictures and video lots of moments because I can look back on them and remember exactly how it felt to have a little one.  Even if it's as small as a smile, capture it and store it so you can reflect on it in the years to come.

Vacation is Over :(

Well friends, vacation is over and it is time to go back to reality :( I had this awesome post from my phone that I had done before we left, but it wouldn't publish :( 

We went to Tennessee with my Mom, Dad, Sister, her husband,their son, my Brother, my Husband, and Cameron.  It was quite the adventure traveling with a two year old and a three month old.  I would prefer to not do it again haha

Now I am back to reality and I need to get on the ball!  I have an Independent study course that I have to complete everything for by the 22nd of August.  Let's just say I don't have a lot done :( And it doesn't help that the Olympics are so freaking distracting!!  Jimmy and I watch the Olympics anytime we are home.  And if we are gone when it is time for them to be on, we rush home to watch it haha.  Our life is revolving around the Olympics right now....we can't help it though, they are crazy good!  I don't remember liking them so much when I was younger!  I mean, I used to ADORE watching the gymnastics because I always wanted to be like them, but now I love watching it all!  Well, maybe not ALL, but most of what NBC covers, I enjoy :)

However, the Olympics are not my only distraction.  I also have an adorable baby boy that keeps me pretty busy!  He started rolling over today! :)  Only from his belly to his back, but it is crazy to me that he is already doing that much!  I feel like he was born 2 days ago! 

I don't have any way to post pictures today, so I will try to do it another time.  Sorry :( I'm sure you all are dying to see what's going on in my life haha

Hopefully I will be able to write sooner rather than later.  I'm seriously slacking on my blogging thing :(  I guess that's life as a Momma though!

Tip of the Day:  Take advantage of the time when your little one is sleeping.

Cameron has just recently started getting on a real schedule.  He sleeps from about 10 p.m. to 10 a.m. with a feeding in the middle of the night and one around 8 a.m.  I am NOT a morning person though, so I try my best to keep him asleep as long as he can!  He's not much of a napper during the day though so I don't usually go to bed early that way I can get some stuff done while he's asleep.

Whether taking advantage of this time means sleeping, cleaning, doing homework, spending time with your spouse, etc., when he or she is snoozing, squeeze all that you can in that time period!  Things are so much easier to get done when you don't have a little cutie smiling back at you to distract you :)