Life changes when you have a baby. Everybody tells you that and it's true. The new fall lineup has come out. Normally, this would be an exciting time for me. Something to look forward to after work. Checking out new shows, enjoying new seasons of old favorites, etc. I love TV!
But all that has changed. I'm basically out of commission for the 7 - 8 p.m. time slot and often the 8 - 9 timeslot. This is because we have a night time routine now. It works for E.A., which is awesome, and I really enjoy it. She usually has her last meal between 6:30 and 7:00. Then, between 7:30 and 8:00 she gets to eat some cereal from a bowl. (not cornflakes...baby cereal).
Also, she gets a bath in there somewhere every other night. After all that is done, she goes upstairs and gets her PJ's on, I read her the book "Goodnight Moon," we rock a few minutes, and she goes to sleep. It's awesome. She's gotten used to it, so I can just put her in her crib and she'll play with the strings hanging from the mirror attached to her crib and then go to sleep.
This is wonderful. She's such a good baby. But I'm missing all the shows. So in the middle of caring for her we have to run around the house putting tapes in one or tw TV's to tape the shows we're missing. Last night there were 3 shows on at the same time that we wanted to see. We taped "House" and "Gilmore Girls" and I missed "Dancing with the Stars." And I LOVE that show.
I try to find other times to watch the shows. Sometimes I stay up after she's gone to sleep and watch them. But if I stay up too late, and then she wakes up early, I'm tired all day. And sometimes I watch them during the day, since I'm home with her now. It's working out O.K., but when I go back to work, I'm doomed.
Oh, the sacrifices of motherhood have already begun.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Friday, September 22, 2006
Roaming
Elizabeth is on the move. She can roll wherever she wants to go. It's pretty cool. She rolls from her stomach to her back to her stomach, etc. She usually just rolls in one direction, over and over. I've seen her roll over once or twice, but I realized the full extent of her rolling last week. I was at home doing laundry, and I put her on her tummy for the obligatory "tummy time."
I say obligatory, because nowadays babies are supposed to sleep on their backs all the time. It's supposed to be safer for them. So for them to develop the strength and skills they need to learn to crawl and walk, you have to put them on their tummies to practice baby push-ups and stuff.
Anyway, I was doing laundry and I came back into the den and I didn't see her. I kind of freaked out, and then I looked around and she was across the room, smiling at me. She had rolled all the way over there!!!
I've already put away some clothes that she's grown out of. 0-3 months. And it won't be long before I put away the 3-6 months stuff. It's funny. I can't wait for her to become more communicative, and to start doing new stuff. At the same time, it makes me sad that she is growing up. I look at those little clothes and it's like, "she'll never wear that again." My little girl is growing up!!
I say obligatory, because nowadays babies are supposed to sleep on their backs all the time. It's supposed to be safer for them. So for them to develop the strength and skills they need to learn to crawl and walk, you have to put them on their tummies to practice baby push-ups and stuff.
Anyway, I was doing laundry and I came back into the den and I didn't see her. I kind of freaked out, and then I looked around and she was across the room, smiling at me. She had rolled all the way over there!!!
I've already put away some clothes that she's grown out of. 0-3 months. And it won't be long before I put away the 3-6 months stuff. It's funny. I can't wait for her to become more communicative, and to start doing new stuff. At the same time, it makes me sad that she is growing up. I look at those little clothes and it's like, "she'll never wear that again." My little girl is growing up!!
Monday, September 11, 2006
I'm not worthy!
That's such a funny phrase. I'm not worthy. It's used flippantly, as a joke when people are in the presence of something or someone that they feel is very great. When I was expecting E.A., I would often imagine what it was going to be like to see her and hold her for the first time. I imagined that I would feel extreme joy, which I did. And I knew that I would feel so blessed and grateful to have successfully brought her into the world. After carrying a baby for 9 months, and worrying if everything was going to be allright (at least that's what I did!), it was such a relief to have her arrive, with 10 fingers and 10 toes, a tiny little miracle. I knew that I would be overwhelmed with emotion, which I was.
But one emotion that I didn't expect to feel was unworthiness. I often look at her, and I just can't believe that God gave HER to ME! I feel like she is more than I deserve. Those first couple of weeks at home, I couldn't believe that they let me take her home from the hospital. Just like that. She was mine. I remember thinking, "shouldn't I have to take a test, get a background check...something??" Nope. God created her, and he gave her to me. What a gift!!!!!
I can only compare it to the feeling of becoming a Christian, and getting to the place where you get it...you realize that even though you didn't do anything to deserve it, God loved you so much that He made a way, through Christ, for you to be in fellowship with him forever. He gives us the gift of salvation. I remember being younger, and being so excited about that, and so excited about my relationship with the Lord. I would tell people about it, because I wanted them to know. Having my daughter has made me look anew at the wonder of his creative power. He is the Creator! And He is the Savior. And He loves us even when we don't deserve it, because that's who He is. And now there is another soul in the world, and I am already praying for her, that she will grow up with a tender heart, a heart that has a passion for God.
I am so thankful for and humbled by the precious little life that God is letting me be a part of.
But one emotion that I didn't expect to feel was unworthiness. I often look at her, and I just can't believe that God gave HER to ME! I feel like she is more than I deserve. Those first couple of weeks at home, I couldn't believe that they let me take her home from the hospital. Just like that. She was mine. I remember thinking, "shouldn't I have to take a test, get a background check...something??" Nope. God created her, and he gave her to me. What a gift!!!!!
I can only compare it to the feeling of becoming a Christian, and getting to the place where you get it...you realize that even though you didn't do anything to deserve it, God loved you so much that He made a way, through Christ, for you to be in fellowship with him forever. He gives us the gift of salvation. I remember being younger, and being so excited about that, and so excited about my relationship with the Lord. I would tell people about it, because I wanted them to know. Having my daughter has made me look anew at the wonder of his creative power. He is the Creator! And He is the Savior. And He loves us even when we don't deserve it, because that's who He is. And now there is another soul in the world, and I am already praying for her, that she will grow up with a tender heart, a heart that has a passion for God.
I am so thankful for and humbled by the precious little life that God is letting me be a part of.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
The Name, Part II
Once you pick out a name for your baby, the next thing you have to do is make sure that the initials are gonna be O.K. When we were in Florence last week, one of my mom's friends was talking about this. Her daughter's name is Heather, and she wanted to give her Olivia for a middle name, but then her initials would be HOT. Take away the T and it's HO. That is not cool for your baby girl. Not cool at all. Nobody wants the little boys on the playground to be screaming, "come here, Ho! Hey Ho, you are HOT!" I think she went with Briana for a middle name. HBT is much more respectable.
I also know a little girl whose initials spell out ASS. This kid is only like 6 or 7 and she's already having problems. Poor kid.
We picked Elizabeth Adell (Adell was my grandmother's name, which is why I wanted it), and that made her initials EAW. No problems there.
I also know a little girl whose initials spell out ASS. This kid is only like 6 or 7 and she's already having problems. Poor kid.
We picked Elizabeth Adell (Adell was my grandmother's name, which is why I wanted it), and that made her initials EAW. No problems there.
Sunday, August 27, 2006
The Name
One of the most important decisions an expectant parent has to make is what to name his or her child. When my husband, Danny, and I found out that we were going to have a baby, one of the first things we did was to start thinking about names.
It was fun, but at times pretty frustrating. Our conversations would go something like this: (I'm 'P' )
P: What about Mary?
D: Nah. I lived across the street from an ugly girl named Mary.
P: O.K. How about Susannah?
D: I don't like that song.
P: I really like the name Natalie.
D: The girl who dumped me the night before Senior prom was named Natalie. I spent $5000 on therapy to get over that. Not an option.
P: Well then.....(I"m starting to get frustrated-) Christina's a nice name. Whaddaya think?
D: My cousin already took that name. Next.
P: Good night.
D: ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
We didn't definitely decide on our daughter's name, Elizabeth, until the last minute. It was a name that we both liked alot. It's classic and beautiful and has lots of cute nicknames if we decide to go that way.
Her middle name, Adell, was even harder to choose. I always wanted it, but Danny wasn't sure. Toward the end of my pregnancy he told me that he wanted to name our daughter Adell because he remembered that I had told him a couple of years ago that I had a dream that I had a daughter and named her happy. He looked it up and Adell means joyful. So Elizabeth Adell it was. Pretty cool.
It was fun, but at times pretty frustrating. Our conversations would go something like this: (I'm 'P' )
P: What about Mary?
D: Nah. I lived across the street from an ugly girl named Mary.
P: O.K. How about Susannah?
D: I don't like that song.
P: I really like the name Natalie.
D: The girl who dumped me the night before Senior prom was named Natalie. I spent $5000 on therapy to get over that. Not an option.
P: Well then.....(I"m starting to get frustrated-) Christina's a nice name. Whaddaya think?
D: My cousin already took that name. Next.
P: Good night.
D: ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
We didn't definitely decide on our daughter's name, Elizabeth, until the last minute. It was a name that we both liked alot. It's classic and beautiful and has lots of cute nicknames if we decide to go that way.
Her middle name, Adell, was even harder to choose. I always wanted it, but Danny wasn't sure. Toward the end of my pregnancy he told me that he wanted to name our daughter Adell because he remembered that I had told him a couple of years ago that I had a dream that I had a daughter and named her happy. He looked it up and Adell means joyful. So Elizabeth Adell it was. Pretty cool.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Separation Anxiety
According to some experts, separation anxiety doesn't start for babies until they are a little older, maybe 8 or 9 months old. Supposedly, very young infants (under 6 months), can adapt well to other caregivers. However, this doesn't seem to be the case with little A.E. Whenever other people watch her, or even hold her, she often fusses and cries. Since she was born, my husband has referred to himself as "not the momma." Does this mean that she's brilliant and way ahead of the curve? (that's my theory!) Or is she just an anxiety-ridded little person, destined to scream and wail every time I leave her, for the REST OF HER LIFE.
Who knows. Time will tell. But here's an example. My friend Elise took me out for dinner for my birthday last weekend. My husband, of course, cheerfully agreed to stay home with the baby. I left her at 6:15 p.m., fed and content. When I got home at 9:15, both daddy and baby were asleep. But baby didn't have on her PJ's, and I knew she hadn't eaten, because I feed her.
My husband woke up from a half sleep and said, "she wouldn't stop crying. She sobbed for an hour and a half!" She just cried and cried and then passed out in exhaustion around 8, still gasping for breath like babies do when they cry really hard. I picked her up, put on her pj's, and of course she woke up, and I fed her, but she wouldn't go back to sleep until about 11.
So, it seems that my little one is a Momma's girl. It's a blessing and a curse at the same time.
Who knows. Time will tell. But here's an example. My friend Elise took me out for dinner for my birthday last weekend. My husband, of course, cheerfully agreed to stay home with the baby. I left her at 6:15 p.m., fed and content. When I got home at 9:15, both daddy and baby were asleep. But baby didn't have on her PJ's, and I knew she hadn't eaten, because I feed her.
My husband woke up from a half sleep and said, "she wouldn't stop crying. She sobbed for an hour and a half!" She just cried and cried and then passed out in exhaustion around 8, still gasping for breath like babies do when they cry really hard. I picked her up, put on her pj's, and of course she woke up, and I fed her, but she wouldn't go back to sleep until about 11.
So, it seems that my little one is a Momma's girl. It's a blessing and a curse at the same time.
traveling woes
Once you have a baby, traveling takes on a whole new level of stress. I decided to go with my mom and dad this week to Florence, where they used to live. Of course E.A. came, so that we could show her off to friends.
First of all, there's the packing. In addition to my stuff, I have to pack TONS of stuff for her: clothes, diapers, wipes, toys, etc. It took me two hours to pack, and I had 3 bags and a bulky plastic toy (her play mat that has a cow, a pig, and a chicken hanging from a musical plastic arch).
My parents, God love them, are kind of slow when it comes to traveling, so I thought I was running late when I got to their house, but it was 2 more hours before they were ready to go. My mom made ME call her friends and tell them that we were running late. We called her friend Marsha, who was expecting us mid-afternoon. When I told her I wouldn't be there until around 7 she said, "Oh my goodness. I figured you would be a little late, but not that late!" Of course, I just blamed it on the baby: "ha, ha. you know how it is, traveling with a baby."
The trip, which is about 2 1/2 hours, went smoothly. E.A. slept most of the way, which was great. But when it came time to go to sleep that night, things got ugly. She didn't want to go to sleep, and didn't until almost 10:30, about 1 1/2 hours past her usual 9 p.m. bedtime. She slept in a pack-n-play that Marsha has here at her house, which was great. But she kept waking up. She was up at 1:30 a.m., and didn't go back to sleep until almost 3, and then up again at 6. I hardly slept all night. So I was a zombie all day yesterday at my mom's friends' house. Since E.A. was tired, she fussed most of the day yesterday, and didn't even want to nap much. It was a rough day. I was really nervous and exhausted by the end of the day. I think it's gonna be a while before I go out of town again. I need a few weeks to recover and forget the stress of traveling with an infant.
First of all, there's the packing. In addition to my stuff, I have to pack TONS of stuff for her: clothes, diapers, wipes, toys, etc. It took me two hours to pack, and I had 3 bags and a bulky plastic toy (her play mat that has a cow, a pig, and a chicken hanging from a musical plastic arch).
My parents, God love them, are kind of slow when it comes to traveling, so I thought I was running late when I got to their house, but it was 2 more hours before they were ready to go. My mom made ME call her friends and tell them that we were running late. We called her friend Marsha, who was expecting us mid-afternoon. When I told her I wouldn't be there until around 7 she said, "Oh my goodness. I figured you would be a little late, but not that late!" Of course, I just blamed it on the baby: "ha, ha. you know how it is, traveling with a baby."
The trip, which is about 2 1/2 hours, went smoothly. E.A. slept most of the way, which was great. But when it came time to go to sleep that night, things got ugly. She didn't want to go to sleep, and didn't until almost 10:30, about 1 1/2 hours past her usual 9 p.m. bedtime. She slept in a pack-n-play that Marsha has here at her house, which was great. But she kept waking up. She was up at 1:30 a.m., and didn't go back to sleep until almost 3, and then up again at 6. I hardly slept all night. So I was a zombie all day yesterday at my mom's friends' house. Since E.A. was tired, she fussed most of the day yesterday, and didn't even want to nap much. It was a rough day. I was really nervous and exhausted by the end of the day. I think it's gonna be a while before I go out of town again. I need a few weeks to recover and forget the stress of traveling with an infant.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Welcome to Boopsie Poo
This is my first post. I'm super excited to be in the bloggesphere.
Boopsie and Poo are two nicknames I had as a child / adoloescent. Only my mom calls me boopsie, and only my mom, dad, and best friend from high school Susan call me Poo. They are silly nicknames, but they make me happy because they remind me of happy times from my childhood.
I'm blogging mainly to chronicle the ups and downs (mostly ups so far) of raising my first child, Elizabeth Adell. She's four months old now and she is totally awesome!!!
Her nickname of the moment is "Little Elf", because she looks like a little Elf in her three month pictures we got made of her at Sears.
Today she got her 4-month check up at the pediatrician. She was 17.1 lbs, which is the 75th percentile. Her height was 26.5 inches, which is the 95th percentile. Her head was 17.25 inches around, also the 95th percentile. I think she's got a big head because her brain is so big!
She got 4 shots today, and she hardly cried. I was impressed.
Boopsie and Poo are two nicknames I had as a child / adoloescent. Only my mom calls me boopsie, and only my mom, dad, and best friend from high school Susan call me Poo. They are silly nicknames, but they make me happy because they remind me of happy times from my childhood.
I'm blogging mainly to chronicle the ups and downs (mostly ups so far) of raising my first child, Elizabeth Adell. She's four months old now and she is totally awesome!!!
Her nickname of the moment is "Little Elf", because she looks like a little Elf in her three month pictures we got made of her at Sears.
Today she got her 4-month check up at the pediatrician. She was 17.1 lbs, which is the 75th percentile. Her height was 26.5 inches, which is the 95th percentile. Her head was 17.25 inches around, also the 95th percentile. I think she's got a big head because her brain is so big!
She got 4 shots today, and she hardly cried. I was impressed.
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