One day at a time!

Trying to Crawl

Well, where to begin... I suppose the last few days have been all over the place. We have been working very hard at this napping thing and while some days it seems to work quite well and she goes down (although never for an 2 hours. Usually closer to 45-minutes to 1 hour), other days it does not seem to happen at all. I have been trying the same routine each day. I found that for Kaylee, going down for a nap at 9am was too early however by 10am (ish) she is usually tired enough to crash for a little bit. Around the 45 minute mark she begins to fuss and I have been going in to give her the suss and then leave the room. For 2 days in a row, she cried for the next hour and 15 minutes as I continually went in to sooth her and then leave the room. I don't care what anyone says... It does go against a mothers nature to just let her baby cry.

Anyways, there have been the few days in between where she simply refuses to go down for a nap. I go through our regular night time routine with a bottle in the rocking chair until she begins to dose off but as soon as she is in her crib she begins to scream and cry like you have never heard before. Aweful....
My Smilin little girl!!!

Anyhow, I know it is a work in progress and I will continue to keep at this new step for us. I do have a question for anyone listening however.... What do you do about your "routine" when you need to do something through the day. For instance, today I needed groceries and to mail my Mom's Mother's Day card... This required 2 stops.

I first ventured to sobeys at 1:30 and it took a little less then an hour, then off to the post office at the SuperStore to send the card... Ok I then ended up wandering around the Joe's baby clothes until Kaylee was screaming and I was forced to leave. So by the time I got home it was 3:20 and she was wide awake from our little adventure and refused once again to nap. I tried leaving her in the crib and letting her know it was nap time but to no avail. Ok so the question- when you have errands- must you work them around the "nap time" or can you work the nap around your errands? I have a play date to go to this Thursday and it will interupt this "Scheduled nap" as well... Is this not a smart move?

Anyway, other then that, on Sunday I attended my girlfriend Nicolle's surprise baby shower. It was a great hit! Anna and Sheena did a great job with everything! She seemed surprised, I was happy to see many of our old friends together enjoying the company... Not to mention it was really nice to speak to other Mom's, relate to them and speak to adults and not babbling as I spend many of my days doing. I opted not to bring Kaylee with me for the simple fact that she does not seem to be crazy over crowds of people and I didn't want her to cry and fuss the entire time. Jordon spent the day with her and I must say.... From what I gathered from him when I got home, it was a tough day.... He said "She's in her swing... I have to get out for a little bit and have a break... I am going fishing" and off he went!I think he got a good taste of what I do each day. That being said, men are not quite the multi-taskers women can be. His dishes from anything he managed to eat through the day were where he had sat to eat it, her outfit was laying on her change table, and the dogs were still not fed. When I asked why everything was a mess he said "I can't do everything at once Jaym"...

Picture of Nicolle on her way into the surprise shower!

Hmmm, funny concept! Us ladies seem to manage somehow... HAHAHA.

Anyway, I love that he watched her for the day because I had a fantastic time!

Today Kaylee was wonderful. We went out and she did not scream the entire time (there were moments however I do think that is somewhat normal)... She had a nap in the morning for over an hour and while she didn't nap in the afternoon she did lay quietly in her swing for a half hour.

Tonight she seemed conpletely pooped and I put her down at 7:30. She has been amazing at sleeping through the night lately and therefore I have been able to enjoy most evenings to myself.

Tonight however I feel absolutely exhuasted as well. Must be all the extra chores I am doing while she naps... Its amazing how fast you can teach yourself to move when your child does lay down- in order to accomplsih as much as possible! Today's task- shampoo the living room couch... Daunting but necessary.

Anyhow, enough for todays ramble. I am going to try and get back to doing this blog more often as I do enjoy it and when I don't do it for a few days, my posts just seem to get longer and drag on!

Have a great day!!!!

Hanging out in our Bumbo!

Update

Well, the last couple days have definitely been different.... The first 2 times I put Kaylee down, she wasn't impressed however after a couple of soothing reassurances she went to sleep. Yesterday for her afternoon nap, no questions asked, she went in her crib and slept for an hour an a half.

Today our "routine" isn't such a routine. It seems to be not 2, 2 hour naps but rather 3 shorter naps. I think this is acceptable if she is sleeping and if I try and maintain the same schedule.

Aside from just being shocked that she actually slept, I have kind of been a little lost. I am used to having Kaylee up all day with me, dealing with her fussing, bouncing all over the house and giggling and laughing with her. While we did that today, I found there were hours in between while she was napping that I was lost. I cleaned out 3 of my kitchen drawers today... LOL... I mean really, who does that.

On the up side, it was nice to have her nap today as I am sick as a dog. I have been battling a cold since last Friday and it seemed to come upon me this morning with avengence. Needless to say, when she laid down, so did I... I am not a napper so this is not something I generally do... Today however, this cold was getting the better of me and I had a snooze.

In other news... In the last few days, Kaylee has gone from LOVING the tub and bath time to simple loosing it when we lay her down. I couldn't figure out why, but tonight we simply placed her in the bumbo in the tub and she was happy as a clam. Mum says that its because now that she is sitting, she is too afraid to miss something and doesn't like laying down. Maybe this is true, but if the Bumbo works, then I am going to use this method.

Other then that... Things have been quiet... I haven't been swimming the last couple of nights because of this cold but I have also steered clear of wine and not had quite the appetite the last few days, so I am hoping it doesn't kick my butt.

I haven't been taking any new pictures, so I will just pick a favorite for today! Have a great night!

Doctors Appointment

Well this morning Kaylee had her follow up doctors appointment. They have wanted to monitor her closely due to her head being 1cm smaller then it should be at our last appointment and all the chaos throughout my pregnancy. Anyway, as expected she is perfect. The 1cm she was small last time, she makes up for in the 3 she grew this time.

Anyhow, I mentioned to the doctor that I have a fussy little girl. At first I coped it up to her just being a baby, then it was that she may have gas, then it was she was not sleeping through the day, now it is Mummy at a loss and wants to know how to stop her little girl from crying so many hours in a day.

After a series of questions and honest answers she told me that she thinks Kaylee just needs to be sleeping during the day. She said that most people tend to have this problem with babies not sleeping through the night but because Kaylee is sleeping so wonderfully through the entire night, then we need to establish a routine through the day not allowing her to stay up the entire day!

How do we do this I ask, as I swear I have tried everything. The swing, the car, the stroller, the vibrating chair, rocking her in my arms in the rocking chair. We have even bought one of those "blackout" curtains for her room to give the idea that it is night time.

Simple answer from the doctor is to put her in the crib and let her cry. According to her night schedule right now- which is 7-730pm she goes down to bed, sleeps until 6-6:30am, then she should be ready for her first nap at 9-930am. Doctors instructions are to follow my usual bedtime routine steps minus the bath. So warm up a bottle, close the curtain, feed her in the rocking chair, then place her in her crib. If she cries then I am supposed to sooth her then leave the room. I am allowed to go back and comfort her 3 times. After this, of she continues to cry, then I let her cry for the remainder of her 2 hour nap. 11:30 I get her up or wake her up if she is still sleeping, keep her up until about 2pm in which time i repeat the process of putting her down for an afternoon nap.

According to my doctor, it may take about a week to master this and for her to realize she must nap or at least stay in her crib for this time. She told me that babies need a routine and their lives are much easier and they are more content once they have one. She also advised me that their is no such thing as a baby that will not nap and I must force this habit in order to have a happy baby.

Alright, so here I am, home from the doctors. I began with the bottle in the rocker and to my astonishment she actually dozed off. I placed in her crib with her soother (aka Suss) and left the room.

20 minutes later she began to scream. I did the 3 times go in comfort her, give her back the suss and then leave. Now I am sitting in the basement writing this blog to keep myself from thinking about the fact that I have a very unhappy little girl screaming in her crib. It gets better right? 1 week and then she will stop being fussy, nap and be a happier Kaylee. I am giving it one week. If at that point it doesn't work then I don't know.....

I was also asked by my doctor to keep a "baby diary" on my counter and mark down things in the day. IE: 6:30am wakes up, has bottle, fusses from 6:45-7am- as an example. With writing everything down I may be able to determine a pattern to what is making her fussy if it does prove to be something other then being over-tired.

Other then that, her stats are as follows: Height: 65cm= 96 percentile Weight 13.01lbs= 64 percentile.Other then being a cranky baby she is extremely healthy, the doctor cannot get over how string she is, holding herself standing up with some balance support from Mom.

I think I am now going to swiffer my floors to drown out the sound of her crying. I will keep posting on her progress! Here are a couple pictures of her in her new favorite thing- Her Bumbo chair!

Happy 3 Month Birthday Kaylee!!!

Alright, cheesy to celebrate such a small birthday? Maybe but hey, whatever gets me through the day!

3 months ago today Kaylee came into this world with no ease and to this day has not been too easy! In the last 3 months, I have gone from being a young woman with only myself to worry about, to a young Mom with no clue what I was doing, to what I consider myself now- a fairly new Mom who knows a few things but has a list miles long of things still to learn.

I may complain about how fussy Kaylee is, but the truth is, she is my little girl and I wouldn't change my life in any way. I adore the mornings when she is happy to wake up and play, the mid mornings when she is content to have a bottle and stare up at me in amazement and every night which I sit in my rocking chair looking down at her and she drifts to sleep. Yes our afternoons are hectic and often cranky but those other moments make up for it.

Today we went to Zellers and bought 4 new bottles. They are the Dr.Browns which were recommended to me by a friend for "fussy babies". I did a little research and apparently they really work with babies who are cranky as they have a tube down the middle to eliminate any possibilities for air/gas and they have a different nipple which is supposed to help with digestion. Anyways, it is worth a shot I figure.

One other thing which I thought I would mention as a 3 month milestone is trying cereal. I know it is early but I have been told by many that you can allow them to start trying it as early as 4 weeks. So the plain cereal mixed with some formula she is not a fan of.... Today I bought the fruit flavoured one (no sugar, nothing added) and she loved it. I couldn't put it on the spoon fast enough. It was awesome! We have also had our first play date, we have mastered standing up on Mom's knee with some support, we have discovered our hands, although not quite sure what to do with them, we have laughed, smiled and not to mention had Mommy and Daddy fall in love with her., all in the last 3 months!

Aww ok, enough with the cheesiness. I just wanted to post a birthday message about the good things :).

Enjoy a couple pictures of a happy little girl!

Carnkiest baby in history?

I know it has been a while, things have just kind of been- blah....

I suppose I am realizing a few things about myself and about my little girl... The first thing being that I am starting to get stir crazy. I have been off work since November 11th- yes- well before my due date.. For those who don't know, I got pneumonia followed by breaking 2 ribs from the violent coughing. This put me on short term disability in order to heal my ribs.

It seems now that I am settling into being a Mom, I am not so sure what to do with myself. I found that I was cooking a lot, which is great- however while I was cooking, I was having a glass of wine- which turned into a couple glasses. To stop this bad habit as well as help my belly, I have been swimming Sunday- Thursday for the last 2 1/2 weeks. Because I have to drive to the pool- I cannot drink anything. Perfect plan ;)

I have also done a lot of work trying to find information to complete my degree. I would like to do distance courses but it is difficult to have old credits transferred and it would seem like a waste not to have the university courses I did take, not applied but rather wasted. Anyway, I have since re-applied at the Mount as this is the University I attended and they will take my courses and apply them to any degree I choose to take. I am now just waiting to see how many are applicable.

Aside from that... I am not sure how to spend my days. I had an amazing time with the girls I worked with at the Lonestar last Wednesday. Kaylee screamed at the top of her lungs for about 5 straight hours, showing everyone just how content a baby she is.

You know I am really starting to wonder if I do have the crankiest baby there is? I like to say "she's not feeling well, she doesn't like big crowds, she is cutting a tooth".... But the truth is... I have no idea why she is always so cranky. Now don't get me wrong, she has a lot of time that she is pleasant and smiling and we play... But there is also a lot of time in a day when she just likes to cry. I try everything, but it seems that she just likes to cry. Sometimes it seems like its not even a cry but rather a yell, a fuss, a noise of some sort just for the sake of making a noise. Anyway... I guess I am becoming used to this but when I had the ladies over with their babies (who did not cry for more then a couple minutes at a time) it became very clear... to me and to the others.

Because she was quite a handleful on that day, I did not get to take any pictures... I know- a let down... However we have promised to get together more often... Make a play date event about once a month or so. I promise to make more of an effort next time. Maybe I will drive around for 40 minutes before arriving at someones house to make sure she is asleep and not so unhappy.

Anyway, other then that, we have been doing a lot of things we used to- such as dinner parties at the neighbours homes and little get togethers on the weekends. Of course this means a few glasses of wine and a headache to follow the next day! haha!

I was reading my girlfriend Katrina's blog and she was writing about clothing and make overs. I have to agree with her. It is incredibly hard at this point in my life to know how to dress. I feel like everything I own right now is either far to casual (or baggy) as these are my comfy everyday clothes, or I have the business attire which I bought but that does not fit me properly or do my body any favours. It's really defeating when you open you closet to pick from jeans and a comfy shirt or yoga pants and a cute shirt or jeans with a hoody. I don't know. A Mommy make over is definitly in need.

Aside from that, Kaylee has been sleeping at night very well. She refuses to nap during the day. Generally speaking she may cat nap for about 15 minutes at a time 1-2 times a day. This however does cause her to be not only tired by the time 5:30 rolls around but also unbelievably cranky. Jordon seems to come home each night only to hear her crying. He usually takes her and gives her a bath around 6:30-7ish which she does really enjoy. This can sometimes be the only time in the evening Jordon gets to see her not crying and therefore it has officially been handed off as Daddy Duty. After her bath, he dries her off, puts her in a clean sleeper and I rock her with a bottle while she gives into the sleep which she has denied all day. 7:00-7:30 she falls asleep and for the last week or so she has been sleeping right through until 6am. At this point Jordon is getting up for work, I put on a bottle, change her and she has her bottle in her swing. So while the mornings come early, having a solid nights sleep seems like magic to me. I wake up at 6am just soooo happy to have gotten sleep. If there is a toss up between sleeping through the night and having a baby awake all day or havinbg a baby nap and then having to get up through the night... Then I definitly choose the sleeping through the night.

Anyway, I have been told I tend to rant and go on and on and on in my blogs so I will end this here and add a couple pictures and a video of Kaylee actually smiling :)

Ok- video will not upload... Maybe another day....

Quiet Week

Hey everyone who may possibly read my blog... I know there are not many of you and I am happy I have the couple of you who do read this.
I want to first say that you to the ladies who did message me after I wrote about the resentment issue. I received some great tips from other Mom's and support which was really nice.
The last week has been much better. It was definitely quiet which was kind of nice after company for a week. We enjoyed some at home time playing, LAUGHING (which she did for the first time), and chatting.
Thursday however rolled along and your not going to believe this... But she had a fever and was very very cranky. I could not put my finger on what would be going on.
The next day was exactly the same thing. Needless to say I began trying to figure out absolutely everything I thought it could be. Some of you may thing I am crazy for thinking this but I am pretty sure she is cutting a tooth. I know she is only 11 weeks old... However, Her one cheek has been bright pink, the fever, the constant onset of drooling and the white spot under her gum on the right hand side is what is making me believe this.
Is this as bizarre as I think it is? I thought 6 months plus was when you start expecting teeth?
Anyways, other then that things have been alright. I am finding that Kaylee is becoming much more attached to me. I realize that I am the primary care giver and she spends all of her time with me (most of the time anyways)... But it seems that she is even fussing when Jordon picks her up.
Jordon doesn't like this fact anymore then I do. For starters it means she gets handed back to me much more often, but also it upsets Jordon that she is not nearly as comforted by him. He tries so hard and she continues to cry, when I take her from him she instantly stops. That alone upsets Jordon. He really feels defeated.
Anyways, other then that, like I said i was a very quiet week. I swam each night at the pool except Friday and Saturday as there is no lane swimming, but last Sunday through Thursday I did.
This weekend we went over to our neighbours to play some Poker. I made a Sheppard's pie, which turned out to be a huge hit.. I didn't win at Poker of course but as always it was tons of fun. Saturday I also managed to sneak out for a pedicure while Jordon and Kaylee spent the afternoon together. My girlfriend Adele came over and spent the night last night. We had a lazy evening, lounging around in sweatpants, eating snacks and watching TV.
This week we do have one date planned. It seems that all the girls I used to work with at the Lonestar have either had a baby, are having a baby or are trying to have a baby. Needless to say one of the girls suggested we all get together with our little babies and have a play date, Mom's chat session. I volunteered the have the first date at my house and so this Wednesday we should be joined by a couple adorable little babies and there beautiful Mom's. I will be sure to ask if I can take pictures of them for my blog.
Other then that, not too much is going on. I will write as soon as I have something good to say! Take care!!!

Weekend with Family

Well, Happy Easter Everyone!!!!!!!!!

I hope the Easter Bunny treated everyone well and that you enjoyed the nice weather all of Canada seemed to have.

The last week or so has been a first in a number of ways. I would first like to say, Saturday April 3rd will be a date for the record as Kaylee slept threw the entire night for the first time ever. She went down around 8pm and slept until 6:30am. I am telling you right now that I feel like a new woman with a full nights sleep! It was incredible. What a solid 7 hours can do!

To back up a little, last week Jordon's father arrived as I had mentioned in my last blog. However on Wednesday evening Jordon's sister Cheryl and her husband JR arrived. It was a late arrival but when they got here it seemed we were up until the early hours of the morning catching up and enjoying each others company.

Jordon had to work on Thursday so his family and I spent the day out shopping and hanging out. It was nice because living so far apart we have never really gotten to know each other well. I feel like this weekend was definitely a step in the right direction.

I also feel like a lot of things have changed. Once kids are involved, family seems to take on a whole different meaning. This is not to say that I loved my parents or Jordon's family any less before Kaylee was born. But now that she is here, it feels like it would be wrong for us not to spend the time and let them spend the time together with her. I got to experience first hand the difference having family far and close makes. My Nanny and Poppa were never more then an hour away throughout my entire childhood. I knew them well, I loved them deeply and always looked forward to the time I was able to spend with them. My Granny and Grandad however lived in Montreal and I saw them twice a year. Yes this was nice but as a kid it was much more... formal in a sense. I felt like I was spending time with them because we should as they were only there every so often and not because I wanted to.

Anyways, now that I have a child of my own I want her to be a part of all of her family.

It really drives home that I would like to move back to Ontario within the next couple of years to be close to everyone. I hate the city but cannot get past the fact that being isolated away from family just does not feel right.

Anyway, Kaylee did amazing with so many new faces this weekend. Of course she had a few fussy periods where she was a little overwhelmed with all the new faces and arms that passed her around, however overall she was a beautiful little girl that gave everyone smiles and kisses.

We had our very first laugh this weekend as well. Kaylee had woken up before the rest of our company and her and I were laying on the couch chatting back and forth. I would say "Tell me a story" and she would follow with 30 seconds of "goo's and gaw's and nah's" etc. I smiled really big as she was telling one of her "stories" and she started to laugh. It was incredible. It made my smile turn into one of those dumb grins you see on proud parents in the audience of school plays. What a sweet little girl!

Friday morning we were supposed to have a friend take some family photos for us, however last minute he let me know he wouldn't be able. At first I was a little upset but everyone else seemed to let it slide without another thought, so I followed suit. We walked along the waterfront downtown Halifax, enjoying the sun. We stopped at Salty's, a nice restaurant along the water for lunch and enjoyed good food and great company. Kaylee was incredible. I was a little hesitant taking her into a nice restaurant- after all, who wants to listen to a baby cry when they are out for something to eat. But, she proved me wrong and sat happily in my lap as we had a beer and lunch.

Saturday we had incredible weather. It was 22 degrees and so we sat on the back deck having a few beer and chatting for hours. Jordon bought a greenhouse which is now in our backyard with all of my seeds. I am sure that this is going to help our garden out! Kaylee jumped from lap to lap, laughing or crying in someone elses lap each time.

An important thing I learned about her this weekend is that she seems to get overwhelmed with the company and enjoys time on her own. Saturday afternoon she was fussing for no apparent reason. I took her to her room and layed her in her crib and she layed there wide awake, looking around, up at her mobile for an hour and a half happy as can be. I think she is going to be an independent little girl and enjoy time on her own either reading or doing some sort of activity away from others. Regardless it was nice to see her in her crib and not fussing even though she was awake.

We made a simple supper Saturday night and our neighbours stayed to enjoy the grub. 2 Beer can chickens and macaroni salad. Simple yet so tasty.

This morning I woke up with Kaylee around 6:30 after another solid sleep. It was fantastic. She seems to wake up so happy and well rested in the mornings, I can't help but be happy to be up at that hour. I made my big Easter Dinner today and we sat on the back deck ion the sun to have our ham, baby taters and candy carrots. Yum- it totally hit the spot.

Cheryl and JR flew out today and had to leave around 4pm. It was amazing to have them but as everyone knows its nice to go home (for them) and nice to have my house back to a normal state. I wouldn't have changed the weekend in the slightest. All the chatting, games of cards and times spent with Kaylee was really awesome.

I also want to say, when people say that your baby changes everyday, it is an understatement. I swear sometimes I can look at Kaylee and she looks like a different little girl from morning to night.

I feel like I am really falling in love. Yes I loved her with my whole being before but the last few weeks as she has started to become a little person and her personality is coming through.... My oh my.... I look at her with nothing but a sense of being proud of what I have made and a love of who she is.

I guess the easy way to say what I feel about this weekend is that family is so important. I have a wonderful, beautiful little girl, I have an incredible hubby, I have the best parents in the world, a little sister capable of taking on the world and an extended family- Jordon's father, sister and her husband that have really showed that they are just as important in our lives.

Anyways, enough of all the mushy gushy... I will write again soon.