Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Check-Ups Galore

What a busy day we had today! Bailey and Adrienne were scheduled for their well baby appointments (Bailey for 2 months, Adrienne for 2 years) and then late last night Brookie started running a high fever. Thankfully they got them all in together and made the whole process as painless as possible but it was still a daunting task. Here's how they all checked out...

Brooke:

All of the usual suspects for high fevers checked out great. She has been having some accidents that are NOT like her so I had mentioned a possible UTI. Sure enough, her urine showed bacteria in it. However, before putting her on an antibiotic they said they really wanted to get the culture back in order to give her the proper one. At the time that seemed reasonable but since then I have been on the phone with the doctor due to Brooke having a pesky fever in the mid 104's. It's been awful and the poor girl is pitiful! They said they would call back in the morning with more information on what medicine she'll be on but it's just SO frustrating that she's so sick right now. It breaks my heart! She also weighed in today at mere 133 pounds with shoes and jeans on. What a peanut!

Adrienne:

All checked out great with her! She weighed in at 24 pounds, 12 ounces and is 33 inches tall... 25th percentile for weight and 50th for height. She, too, is just a peanut! My girls always get super big as babies, stop growing once they get mobile, and stay tiny. That's the trend thus far, anyways. The doctor was quite pleased with her development!

Bailey:

She is a chubby girl for now... 13 pounds, 12 ounces and 22 inches long- 95Th percentile for weight, 50Th for height. I'm telling you, though, the other girls were within a pound of that at this age, also. I must make whole milk or something:-) Lol. The reflux has still been a HUGE problem for us and the doctor was concerned about that. Even though she's gaining weight it's still a problem because I literally have to feed her constantly. She almost always throws up everything I give to her so it takes me an hour of feeding her sometimes to get it to stay down. It makes managing the other two girls difficult at times. Anyways, he had determined that she needed to see a specialist to figure out why she's vomiting so much so often and then, it happened... She threw up everywhere. It wasn't near the amount that she usually vomits but nonetheless, the doctor grew MUCH more concerned when he saw it with his own two eyes. He said that it's not safe for her, obviously, and there's no reason why that amount would be normal by any means. That kind of made me feel good because it validated my fears about all this. At the same time, though, it made me more nervous because if the doctor is concerned, should I be, too? He's supposed to be calling me within a couple of days with a plan of attack. He said he wanted to think about it and talk to some other doctors as to what test and/or medications that should be included in the plan. I just want her to get better!

In other Bailey news, she had her Roto Virus oral vaccine (which she threw up, go figure) and then three shots. She was PITIFUL and I cried right along with her! She has been grumpy and tired this afternoon and has been exceptionally sleepy.

So, that's the scoop on my girls. We have a few minor issues but in the grand scheme of things, my girls are growing strong and healthy! Thank you, God! We are incredibly blessed:-)

Friday, May 27, 2011

Happy Birthday, Adrienne!!

My precious Adrienne,

It's hard for me to believe that two whole years have passed since I first met you. I looked into your big blue eyes and instantly fell in love with you. It's amazing how my heart grew the day that you were born!

Through your life I am continually reminded to appreciate the small things in my own.. The beautiful blue bird outside the window in the morning, the raindrops falling from the sky and even the dandelions that are taking over our yard. You are continually amazed by the beautiful, yet common, things around you and I love that about you. You live life so large and everything seems to be a gift to you!

I love the way that you can light up a room with your goofiness or crazy dancing, spinning, or twirling. Your timely jokes and lighthearted smiles make our family that much more happy. You don't really take too much in life seriously and when somebody makes you made you just get over it. It's so funny that even though I'm the mommy here, YOU are the one teaching ME!

These past few months have been crazy with a new baby sister and all but you have been so loving to Bailey and you're a huge help to me. In the midst of all of the change in our lives, my love for you has never changed and I will always, always look at you as my baby.

You have such a beautiful personality, my sweet daughter. You are so much like your Daddy.. You love your time to yourself, you are often quiet and you have to take your time warming up to new people. To go along with that, you are also fiercely stubborn, absolutely afraid of NOTHING and so extremely tough. You have about a million scabs and bruises on you from falling countless times. It never seems to bother you and you rarely shed a tear. Most of all, though, you are incredibly sweet and hate to see people sad. You have a HUGE heart!

I cannot wait to watch you grow, princess! The past two years have meant the world to me.. To be there for you every step of the way and to be the one you want when you're sad or happy or hurt or excited. I love being your Mommy and am SO proud of you and in this life of change and uncertainty, that is one thing that you can always depend on. I love you so incredible much!

With all my heart,
Mama

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Flying Solo

The good Lord knew what he was doing by sending me my husband so early in life. It is a well known and continually proven fact that I'm just not good on my own. I'm not saying I'm an idiot who needs someone to walk her through every step but I definitely need to be kept company. If John isn't here I think of who I can call or send a text message to because I SO enjoy human interaction.

John left last evening to go to some shooting school for work and he won't be home until late tomorrow night. When his work asked him to go they also told him that they knew he had just had a baby and that it might be too much for me. What kind of wife would I be if I didn't allow him to have this opportunity though?? So of course I gave him my blessing and reassured him that I would be fine. Three days without him is obviously a lot of work for me but mostly, I'm just LONELY. I tell him everything and without his presence in this house things are just.... Empty. I sent him a message yesterday saying, "I'm so glad you're just out of town and not dead." Lol. I can't even imagine.

There is just something about a Daddy that makes children behave. At least in our house, anyways. He's also my best friend and I genuinely LOVE being with him so I'm kind of down in the dumps. I VERY much look forward to tomorrow night when he comes back home!

All of you military wives and single moms out there get mega credit from me. I don't see how you all do it on your own for so long. WOW!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

The Night Crew

Lately I've been feeling like a one of those night crews that goes into offices and cleans late at night after everyone has gone home. In my case, however, I tiptoe around sleeping children and cringe every time they stir.

The only way that I'm staying on top of things lately is devoting at least an hour (most times more) to the house every night. I lay down with John from 9-10 while he naps before work and then I get up while he gets ready and start working. I ship him off at 10:30 and then finish up my work. I've always been a "night owl" so it doesn't really bother me, though I do miss the rest and relaxation of the nighttime hours.

For now this is the only reasonable solution that I've been able to find. If I become too engrossed in housework during the day I feel bad for the girls. I would rather play another game of Memory with Brooke or let Adrienne fix my hair... again! A little bit of housework is totally doable but when I do most of it at night all I have to do is clean as we go during the day.

As for the laundry, I think the easiest time of day to hang up the girls' clothes is when they're sleeping. I've always done it that way, even since Brooke was a baby. If I hang up clothes during the day I have to haul all the girls upstairs, make sure they're not too crazy while they're up there because John is sleeping, and then pick up all their messes they make while they're waiting for me. Oh yes, and break up about a million fights. If I wait until the late hours of the night then it only takes a few minutes. With a baby that throws up constantly and soaks multiple outfits, blankets and burp cloths a day, I feel like all I do is laundry but this method has me staying on top of things.

I'm just trying so hard to be the noble woman that the Bible speaks about in Proverbs. I love the part that says (and I'm paraphrasing here) that she doesn't worry when the weather gets cold because she's taken care of her family's winter clothes- mending them, cleaning them, whatever. The weight of running a home and caring for her family is on that woman and I strive to be more like her!

Friday, May 13, 2011

The New Normal

I am so excited because life feels "normal" again!! Adjusting to a new baby always requires coming up with a new routine to suite the latest addition but I'm happy to say that things are going great!

I'm most happy because Bailey is starting to develop her own little personality. She started smiling on her one-month birthday and she shows off her gorgeous dimples every time. It completely melts me and steals my heart! She has also started cooing a little bit and despite throwing up constantly (no joke) she is an extremely content and easy-going little creature. She has also fallen into somewhat of a schedule and for that I'm thankful! She sleeps in her bed for on 4-6 hour stretch each night and she always goes down between 9 and 10. I have started using those nighttime hours for housework and laundry because it's the only way that I'm staying on top of things. John gets ready for work at 10 and that's when I start working so it doesn't take time away from him.

As for me, it's so awesome to feel physically normal again. After all those months of pregnancy and then recovering from the C-Section, it's nice to be back to plain old me. I have also been on a diet to lose those pesky pregnancy pounds and when I went for my postpartum visit the other day I was VERY happy to hear that I'm one pound lighter than I was at my first prenatal visit!! It's nice to work so hard and get results!

My big girls are also doing quite well and they adore Bailey... A little TOO much sometimes but that's okay:-) Adrienne has been a bit challenging but I attribute that to her age and not to the new baby. I just can't believe that she'll be TWO in a few weeks. Where has the time gone?

I'm also happy because I'm not afraid of going out alone with all three of the girls anymore. I used to avoid the grocery store (even for a quick trip) or other outings if John wasn't present but not anymore. I've conquered my fear!

I'm absolutely loving the complete feeling that I feel when I think of my sweet little family! Things are sometimes crazy and stressful with three kiddos around but I wouldn't trade either of them for anything in the universe!

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you fellow mothers out there! These little beauties right here are what it's all about:-) Enjoy your day!

Friday, May 6, 2011

Circus Fun!!

My husband is amazing! Can't a girl just brag? I love how he is constantly seeking fun and exciting things for our family to do together. When he heard about the circus coming to a location near us he jumped on the opportunity to buy tickets for us to go. It didn't matter to him that it would be a lot of work to cart our three children there near their bedtime or that it would cost him money. I'm more practical about stuff like this but he keeps life fun!

We ended up having the best time with our little family! My initial thought was that Bailey and I should stay home because it would be too much work to take all three of them. However, she ended up sleeping for most of the time so we had some really awesome quality time with the older girls. John got the girls cotton candy, popcorn, nachos, and a pretzel with cheese sauce and went way over the top to treat all of us like royalty! The girls were in heaven! At one point John took the girls for a walk they came back with light up wands that they were SO proud of.

Bailey woke up close to the end to nurse and when I went to burp her she miraculously puked over the burp cloth and onto the lady's hair in front of us. YIKES! It was during the flying trapeze event and everyone was so enamored by that that she didn't even notice. I certainly didn't tell her and the poor thing probably had a nice surprise when she got home. Lol. That Bailey and her throw up!

I hope that my girls look back on times likes those and remember the laughter and fun we shared as a family. After all, it's a big responsibility to give them the best childhood that we can! It's not like you get more than one chance.
Just watching the smiles on my girls' faces made the whole night so special and looking over at my husband who was in his glory was the best part. Sure, the animals and acrobats were pretty cool but they definitely weren't the main attraction for me!

Monday, May 2, 2011

One Box of Clothes

It has been no secret that we are DONE having babies. I feel happy about that because I have this wonderful sense of completion when it comes to our family. It's also nice to be able to move forward, knowing that we'll never have to start over again. I'm totally at peace with being where we're at.

HOWEVER... There's this big box of maternity clothes in my bedroom that I've been having a hard time parting with. While I'm done have babies, I'm not quite as ready to never be pregnant again. It's kind of a weird mix emotions to be content but somehow having a hard time with this aspect of it. The thought of never having a baby again doesn't even remotely phase me but to never know the feeling of a baby inside of me again is what is sad.

It's silly because I don't want to give my box to someone I know because seeing the clothes on someone else would kind of make me a little sad. Silly, right? If I wasn't done it wouldn't be sad to see them on someone else but because I am, somehow it is. This is so irrational that I'm by no means expecting anyone to "get it." Lol

The bottom line is this... I've carried three precious babies in my womb, which is more than some women could ever even dream for, and for that I am blessed beyond measure. It's time to move on from this stage of my life and on to the next one. That brings me back to this question though... What about that darn box of clothes????