forever-waiting.net

Thank you for the comments on our little “on the fly” family photograph. I feel like I haven’t blogged in forever but it’s only been less than a week. December was looking pretty grim financially but a break here and another there has made it a lot more bearable on the pocket and we are able to still buy Christmas presents for our families now.

On the ick note, Randy finally got the support paperwork that states he has to pay $7,200 or something similar for spousal support to his ex wife. It’s at my parent’s house but we’re going to get it this weekend when we go over. We will be sending the absolute minimum possible per week, especially considering circumstances. It’s a messed up situation all over that never should’ve even occurred but NY is stupid like that. We have each other and our daughter. That’s something she can never have influence over.

So onto bigger and better things. Pictures are Monday at 3:30. Depending on sitting fee costs, I may consider family portraits if possible but who knows. I’ve never had professional pictures done before and they’re mad expensive from what I’ve seen. We have her little dress all picked out and everything. Winter has finally hit and I am NOT enjoying it. It’s cold, it’s wet, it’s windy/rainy/snowy. Welcome to December.

Here is a video of Gracie talking for a full 30 seconds. She was sitting on the couch, toppled over, and this is what she had to say about the whole thing.

Dear Gracie,

Today you are 2 months old. It’s hard to believe that I’ve been taking care of you for that long already. You’re already beginning to form your own personality and I’m very happy to say that daddy has become more involved with you now. We both love seeing you smile, coo, and stare at everything you can. You will often lay in bed with daddy while he watches cartoons and watch the different colors and movements. You’ve been a pretty happy baby lately.

You hold your head up for longer periods of time now and will bend your knees and then attempt to stand which is a surprise when you’re in my arms and try to jump out of them. You weighed 11lbs and 4 ounces at your 2 month appointment and 23 inches long. You got your first vaccines and handled them like a trooper. You cried for a minute or less and then snuggled with daddy. I think I was ready to cry myself. You seem to get incredibly frustrated when on your belly and can’t yet crawl but soon enough you will be able to.

You can still fit in newborn clothes although I’m going to begin packing some of the smaller items up. Cloth diapering is still going well with you as well. Your skin definitely knows the difference. You also had your first Thanksgiving but since you’re so young, you enjoyed breast milk instead of food. Next year you can enjoy some of the super yummy food with us.

You’re growing a lot more hair now and it’s beginning to stick up a lot. You also look more and more like your daddy every day, including his curse of big ears which I find adorable but he gets playfully teased about. We co-sleep with you and have no plans to transition you to a crib in the near future although we do need a bigger bed to fit you, me, daddy, and Colby. You love nursing to sleep but it’s a bit hard for mommy to do that due to big boobs so I get uncomfortable quickly but will stay that way if you go to sleep and stay that way. Mommy and daddy like sleep too.

Next month for Christmas we’re getting you a jumperoo to match your swing. It will be interesting to see you jump up and down and get to move a bit. I know you get bored. We look forward to seeing you grow and do new things each and every day.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

I was going to blog but we’re headed out to the door to Randy’s parent’s house for the day so I’ll leave you with 2 pictures.

Well I finally did something I’ve been wanting to do but have been too afraid to. I asked for help. I called the LC at the hospital and she told me to come in. So Gracie got fed at 6am and then we held off until 9 when we went to visit. I had attempted to get her to latch the night before and was granted with screaming. It was hard for the first few minutes because she resisted like crazy. Finally we got her on and apparently my production is fine. She is going on vacation but told me she’ll call me next week to check up. I went to Randy’s moms after because he had an appointment in the afternoon as well. We got back at 10:30 and that’s where the hell began. She wanted to latch and would not stop crying until she did. We did this until close to 2pm with me getting quite exhausted from the continous crying after she’d unlatch due to falling asleep. I was getting quite close to throwing in the towel already.

Randy had his appointment and came back. She had fallen asleep in the car on the way and woke up about 20 minutes later. Randy’s mom wanted to hold her and whatnot but she wanted no part of it. She wanted to be on me. Randy’s mom isn’t too happy about the breast feeding as evidenced by the “Can’t you pump so I can take her on Thursday?” 1. It’s too early to pump that much if even possible 2. She needs to avoid bottles. 3. She’s not a borrow-a-baby. Then his dad for some reason is anti breast feeding and keeps telling me to use formula even though I want her on BM. I explained her constipation issues and he’s like well switch formulas. I am, it’s called the body’s formula. I really need to avoid people like that because they’re very discouraging.

We got home with me exhausted beyond belief. After rocking gracie to sleep I managed to get 2 1/2-3 hours of sleep. Now we’re up. I’m nervous because she seems to want to be on constantly and I’m not sure whether it’s a comfort thing or she’s not getting enough. That’s my fear with breast feeding and partially the reason I stopped at the beginning, because she was so fussy due to not eating enough. I know about the wet diapers thing but her fussiness is what gets me. All we can do is keep going and see how things go.

And a picture from about 10 minutes ago. She always eats with her eyes closed

Dear Gracie,

Today you are 1 month old. It is hard to believe that 1 month ago I was headed to the hospital to be induced, incredibly excited to meet the little person who had been making me miserable (I kid… or not). I’ve seen so many changes in just 1 short month. You were 9lb 8oz at your last doctor appointment, a steady growth since you birth weight of 7lb 13oz. You used to scream bloody murder during diaper changes and we’re improving on that. You are now only throwing fits occasionally during diaper/clothing changes, mainly if you’re hungry during. You were breast fed for 5 days before we ran into issues. I then pumped for a few days exclusively before having to use formula in combination. Now we’re on formula alone which is not something I wanted but it was definitely a learning experience and I won’t make the same mistakes again. We also think we’ve taken care of your constipation problems. You had a pretty bad diaper rash early on but we combated that with Nystatin cream and more frequent diaper changes and everything has improved. Cloth diapers still have plenty of love and I’m so glad I decided not to use disposables.

You eat 3-4 ounces at a time and your appetite seems to stay steady. We’re not on a schedule but we’re not too bad when it comes to knowing when you’re going down for a nap. You love car rides and within a minute or two you fall asleep and don’t wake up until I disturb your slumber when taking you out. You also have given up your pacifier which I’m not complaining about because I’ve read about the stories of pacifier problems at 3-4 years old and we don’t want that. Colby is beginning to realize that you are a person and investigates when you cry now.

Everyone comments about what a good and happy baby you are. You only cry when you are wet or hungry. You’re not afraid to be put down for a minute which makes me so grateful that I can take 5 minutes or so to get something done if I have to. You also don’t mind being held by friends and family. You’re holding your head up a lot and it’s funny to watch you rock on your tummy with frustration because you don’t move anywhere just yet. You’re more alert and look at our faces a lot more. Daddy can’t wait until you’re a bit older so he can interact with you more. We love cuddling and co-sleeping is working out very well. You sleep so much better with mommy than in your bassinet. We both love you so much and are eager to see what the future brings in days, weeks, months, and even years.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy