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Saturday, May 10, 2008

Sleeping through the night: A baby's point of view

I found this on someone else's blog and laughed so hard. I guess I should start thinking about this again since baby girl will be here soon.


Sleeping through the night: A baby's point of view

OK, here's my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 7 months. The first few months were great--I cried, she picked me up and fed me, anytime, day or night. Then something happened.

Over the last few weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night).

At first, I thought it was just a phase, but it is only getting worse. I've talked to other babies, and it seems like it's pretty common after Mommies have had us for around 6 months.

Here's the thing: these Mommies don't really need to sleep. It's just a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep--they just don't need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the Crybaby Shuffle.

It goes like this:

Night 1--cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it's hard. It's hard to see your Mommy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding yourself, it's for her own good.

Night 2--cry every 2 hours until you get fed.

Night 3--every hour.

Most Mommies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights. Some Mommies are more alert, and may resist the change longer. These Mommies may stand in your doorway for hours, shhhh-ing. Don't give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!!

If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will expect it every night. I KNOW IT'S HARD! But she really does not need the sleep, she is just resisting the change.

If you have an especially alert Mommy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mommy once stayed awake for 10 hours straight, so I know she can do it. Last night, I cried every hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it.

BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with.
My sleep sack tickled my foot.
I felt a wrinkle under the sheet.
My mobile made a shadow on the wall.
I burped, and it tasted like pears (I hadn't eaten pears since lunch - what's up with that?)
The dog said 'woof' (I should know. My Mommy reminds me of this about 20 times a day. LOL.) Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the monitor in the other room.
Too hot, too cold, just right--doesn't matter! Keep crying!!
It took awhile, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my goal is 3:30am.
You need to slowly shorten the interval between feedings in order to reset your Mommies' internal clocks.

P.S. Don't let those rubber things fool you, no matter how long you suck on them, NO milk will come out! Trust me.

Friday, May 9, 2008

Why God made Moms

WHY GOD MADE MOMS
Answers given by
2nd grade school children to the following questions:

Why did God make mothers?

1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.



How did God make mothers?

1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me.

He just used bigger parts.


What ingredients are mothers made of ?

1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and

everything nice in the world and just one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.



Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?

1. We're related.
2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.



What kind of little girl was your mom?

1. My Mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would

be pretty bossy
3. They say she used to be nice.



What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?

1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook?

Does he get drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs

and YES to chores?


Why did your mom marry your dad?

1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot.
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.



Who's the boss at your house?

1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.



What's the difference between moms & dads?

1. Moms work at work and work at home and dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller & stronger, but moms have all the real power 'cause

that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend's.
4. Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.



What does your mom do in her spare time?

1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.



What would it take to make your mom perfect?

1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind

of plastic surgery.
2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.


If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?

1 She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean.

I'd get rid of that.
2. I'd make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my

sister who did it and not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the

back of her head.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

This and That



The above pictures are from Tuesday morning. Sam had gotten up and came into our bedroom to snuggle with Daddy. Usually he comes in to see me, but I was already up so Sam decided to relax with Todd. How cute are these pictures? I love my guys.

I had my 36 week check up today. My normal Dr. was out since she just gave birth to her fourth child on Monday so I had to see a different doctor. She was nice, but I had to wait a really long time even though I was her first appointment of the day and she didn't give me much of my info that I like to keep up with. I wound up asking the girl who checked me out to tell me the stats. So here's what we know:

Baby's heartbeat: 155
Baby measurement: right on target with 36 weeks
Weight gained: 3 lbs which brings me up to 10lbs total gain
Blood pressure: 116/65 or something close to that

It doesn't appear that I've progressed any more with the whole dilating thing and what not. Bummer. I was hoping I would have, but I guess I just have to be a little patient with it.

I have been having lots of pelvic pain which she said is normal since it does appear that the baby is even lower than before. So I guess that's good news. I'm also feeling really sick to my stomach a lot and having tons of heartburn even though I'm on meds for that. I guess that's just my body telling me something big is going to be happening soon. At least that's what I hope it means. :)

I'm not sleeping all that great and feel so tired all the time which is hard since obviously I can't sleep all the time when I have a toddler.

Sam is doing great. He has calmed down on the temper tantrums and seems to be sleeping better since we put the AC window unit in his room. Maybe it's the noise or it being cooler, but whatever the case he has been sleeping much better and not getting up so fussy in the mornings or at nap time. I am thankful for that. :)

He is also walking tons more. Every day he does more than the last. He's even starting to venture out a little more on his own outside. I think playing with the neighbor kids helps with that. It looks like any day now he will just take off in a run outside. I am so excited about his progress and can't wait to see what he does next.

Todd is working tons of hours trying to do what he can before the baby makes her arrival. I'm thankful for all his hard work and how hard he works at supporting us all. With him working at Saul Good we are able to visit too so that is nice especially on days where I feel like I'm going to lose my mind. If you are in the Lexington area and still haven't tried the food you should it's a nice place and the food is great.

Well...I think that's about it for now.

Sunday, May 4, 2008

Weekend Update

I'm tired. I just thought I would start off with that. It's been a long and tiring weekend. Good but exhausting.

Friday Sam and I went up to see Todd at Saul Good since he was working a double. I was already feeling pretty tired and worn out, but went up for lunch and to chat with Todd between his tables. It was still pretty early in the day so Saul Good wasn't too busy. Lunch was good and then Sam and I headed home. After that he pretty much fussed and cried about something all day long. He wasn't happy for one reason or another and continued to pitch a fit whenever he saw fit. I actually took a "mommy time out" and stepped outside my front door to get a breath of fresh air while Sam banged on the front door (it's a screen door I just didn't up and leave my kiddo where I couldn't see him at all). After a few minutes he and I both felt a little bit better. A couple hours later though we went to a Surprise birthday party for a friend and Sam lost it there again. It was angry the whole time anyone but me held him, refused to let me eat or eat himself, and cried the whole time. I think we stayed like an hour and then left. I couldn't handle it anymore. I was beyond frustrated, tired, and worn out. After that he seemed fine. He finally went to bed and it was finally quite in the house for the first time all day. lol.

I don't know why Sam has been in a mood lately, but it sure can be rough. I think he may be going through a growth spurt or something. He wants to eat all the time (except for when we are not at home of course) and gets mad if you tell him there isn't anymore. He's also adapting well to playing outside more and easily looses his temper as soon as it's time to come in. Ah...he's almost 2 so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised. It's just hard since I have a hard time keeping up with him and have little to no patience for his tantrums.

Saturday was another busy day. Lucky for me Todd was off and was able to watch and hang out with Sam. I had a Pampered Chef meeting in the morning and then had my baby shower at 2pm. I had a lot of fun and was blessed to receive some really cute clothes for baby girl. We had tons of cake and cupcakes left over so after getting back from the shower I walked around the neighborhood handing out goodies to the neighbors that were home. I'll try and get some pictures up of the shower when I get them from Colleen later on. She did an amazing job planning and getting everything together and I'm thankful for all her hard work and love that she put into the shower. After all that I'm exhausted more than I was before. lol.

The end must be in sight on this pregnancy as I'm feeling very worn out and also wanting to prepare for her arrival as much as possible. I feel like I have a hundred things I want to get done or do before she comes. Pray for me that I am able to rest and feel rested and that I wont feel the need to be in hyper speed all the time. :) My back and legs are killing me too so it becoming harder to keep up with Sam and his path of destruction around the house. lol If you have a toddler or work with little kids you will understand how quick they are and how fast they move from one mess to the next. All prayers will be appreciated.

Anyways....that gets us up to today. We didn't go to church as I was too tired and worn out to even attempt getting myself and the little man ready to do that. I hope today is more restful than the last several have been. I need the rest.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

35 week update

I had my 35 week update this morning which is exciting since that means I will soon be done with being pregnant. :) The appointment went well and here's the stuff everyone wants to know.

Blood pressure: 112/66 lower than last time so they think last time may have just been a fluke that it was higher at my last appointment. Overall blood pressure is on target.

Weight Gain: I gained 4 lbs in the last two weeks. So after losing 3 1/2 from being dehydrated I am now up a grand total of 7lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight. Yes I know I suck for those of you that are going to complain about how little weight I've gained. I lost a lot of weight through out this pregnancy from being so sick so I'm just glad to have gained my normal weight back plus a little bit more. I still have several weeks to go too so I could still gain more weight.

Measurements: Baby is measuring right on target for 35 weeks.

Other news: The baby is in the right position to be born. I am already 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. Yeah!! Still having mild contractions and the doctor said that if I went into labor in the next 2 to 3 weeks that they wouldn't stop me since I would be considered full term. She hasn't changed my due date, but still thinks it is unlikely that I will have to wait until June 6th for this baby to come.

I go back in one week and will have more news then. Everything is moving along and soon our little girl will be here.