sweet baby times

I'm convinced that no matter how much babies change so quickly, there are somethings that will stay exactly the same. Those deep eyes staring up at you, that sweet little round nose. Nursing Abbott has been such a blessing. The quality time I get to spend with him is awesome. It allows for ample staring time. I feel like I know every single little detail of his precious little face.

 Last night at around 3:26 in the morning (yikes!) I was reminded of what a privilege it is to be him mommy and to be able to take on all the feeding responsibility. It has been a bonding experience unlike any other. Laurelei was not able to BF exclusively because of her anemia, so this has been a whole new experience for me. At first I felt a lot like other new mom's I am sure. It was a little lonely. I was up in the middle of the night all by myself, so tired, so sleep deprived. I felt like I was tied to a chair the first couple of days, feeding non stop. That has all changed though. We are still on a 3 hour feeding schedule, but it doesn't seem lonely or limiting at all. We have learned to adjust our feeding times to fit our schedule for going out and being active. We have cut down our feedings to just one in the middle of the night (fingers crossed!) I am actually starting to think that I might be sad when that one goes away now. The middle of the night feeding time is our favorite.

Sweet Abbott has started to respond to things he likes with a smile. Every night now at some point I begin to hear the familiar sounds of a baby stirring. I get him quickly so as not to wake Matt and L. We snuggle into the recliner and Abbott begins to eat. And now, every night, about 2 minutes into our late night feeding he stops, looks up at me and smiles one big smile. It makes this mommy's heart melt and I instantaneously forget that I was so tired. I think it's Abbott's little way of telling me he appreciates me and he's happy to be awake in my arms, even if just for a few minutes. (It could also be him preparing me for the ten minutes after I change his diaper where he is wide awake and talking up a storm, daring me to be frustrated at his sweet grins and coos! Just like big sister this little schmoozer is!)

I know that going to back to work is going to be hard. We've been down that road before. I think giving up the day time feedings and snuggle sessions is going to be killer. However, I also know that somewhere in the middle of the night I will probably still be reminded of these sweet little mommy/baby times, as he doesn't seem to be anywhere close to giving up that feeding, which is okay with me! (And maybe, just maybe, I am writing that down so I always remember those words came out of my mouth when I go back to work! :)

Christmas time is...here?

I am one of those people who like to celebrate the Christmas season as soon as socially acceptable. Okay, well maybe even before it's truly accepted by all, but I'm okay with that. I keep trying to convince Matt that it's okay too. I mean, the way I see it, if you really do think Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, why not take two month instead of one to celebrate it?

Anyway, if you follow me on pinterest it is probably no surprise that I feel this way, seeing as how I am mostly pinning holiday cheer right about now. Here are some of my favorite finds that I am just loving so far (from a very, very long list!)

 

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I am planning on trying all of these things in similar ways this holiday season! I will have to come back with an update if I am able to be as productive as my ambitions this holiday season. I mean, even if I can't officially start decorating yet, I can at least prepare the decorations right? :)

One more thing I am loving today, besides the holiday m&m's I bought at the grocery store? This sweet picture from a sneak peak of some family photos we had taken by a friend. Didn't Jackie do a great job with this one? I am loving it!! I can't wait to see the full resolution files and all the rest of them!

Happy Wednesday!

our baby girl

our baby girl is so many things.

funny.

creative.

beautiful.

 

fearless.

loving. 

a little bit ornery.

And not really a baby anymore.

I swear they are different...

My babies look a lot alike. The other day L saw a picture of her as a baby and said, "Look mommy, it's me as Abbott." That really got me thinking about just how similar they really are. So, I took a little trip down memory lane this week and decided to see just how alike they really looked...

Laurelei

Abbott

...

 Abbott

Laurelei

...

Laurelei

Abbott

...

 

 Abbott

 Laurelei

That last one gets me every time! They are unique babies in almost every single other way, but right now when im picturing Abbott as a toddler, I'm envisioning another little Laurelei running around. Only time will tell I guess!

Happy Monday!

thankful

I love having the kind of husband I can slow dance in the kitchen with.

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I just wanted to always remember being thankful for that.

Those days

It's been one of, you know, those days. I can't quite put my finger on why, as nothing truly bad or outrageous has happened. And yet here we are at the end of the evening, and I am feeling more tired and overwhelmed than I have in a long time. Maybe it's the fact that the baby has been through three outfits and all the clean burp rags in the house, causing me to resort to paper towels? Or, maybe it's the 15 times I went in to appease Laurelei with some-version of some-thing before she would fall asleep? Still, it could be that it took a solid hour to find the living room floor? Whatever it is...whew! (And I'm not even back to work yet. Trust me, it's going to get interesting in a few weeks.)

I think part of the problem is my stress level about what to do with the babes when I go back to work. Yes, we do have a place to go, but for some reason something just doesn't feel right. L is at a great school that she loves, but sending Abbott there just isn't feeling right to me. And yes, we do have a back up plan for him, but sending them to two separate places just doesn't feel right either. I was trying to explain to Matt how I felt about the situation today. I want Abbott to be somewhere where they do more than just meet his needs. L can tell us that she is happy, we can see it on her face, she can advocate for herself. Abbott just can't do that yet. And while he might be perfectly happy just having his needs met, I'm not. Here in these precious days I want him to be loved and really cared for.

Laurelei was lucky. She got to spend her first year of life pretty much solely with me, then her sweet aunt Dana, then Matt. She was practically a whole year old when she went to a sitters. It was so worry free. I wish Abbott had those same chances. Today I stopped by the room he is going to attend in a few weeks and the lady working at the time had a look on her face of just pure apathy. I guess apathy can change a diaper and feed a baby, but I'm not sure that is enough.

 I've been praying about it but I just can't figure out what to do. Keep them together, split them up, or just keep looking for something better? These are my precious babies. They only get one childhood. What would you do?

What I'm Loving Wednesday

I am loving many, many things this week!

one. Time off. I was encouraged to take an extra week of maternity leave, wahoo! I don't go back until Thanksgiving now, such an answered prayer!

two. Friends. We have such good friends. And what a blessing that our friends love our kids too!

three. Abbott slept 6 hours through the night the other night. I LOVE the idea that this might happen again sometime soon! :)

four. Instagram iphone ap. Yes, I am late on the scene, but it's still fabulous to me. It makes phone pictures look the sweetest.

five. This necklace my sweet Matt gave me. Our babies initials. He's the best!

six. Abbott's smiles. He is getting old enough to respond with emotions and facial expressions to things he likes and doesn't like. His smiles are perfect!

 seven. Lunches out. As a teacher I don't get to eat lunches out. So far this week I've been to lunch everyday. It's my new favorite :). Want to grab lunch? I have 3 more weeks!

Happy Wednesday!