20 weeks in.... what I've learned.

Twenty weeks into my pregnancy, I could have never imagined how much my life would change when my little boy made his way into this world.  And now, 20 weeks into motherhood, I can come up with a list a mile long of things I've learned from being a momma for almost five months!  FIVE months!  Can you believe it?  Time really does fly.  

As many of you know, I had a rough start to this whole parenthood thing.  It was kind of a slap in the face of my life and just sent shock waves through every inch of me.  As much as I wanted to be a mom, there were days when I wished I could have just rewinded time.  I know, that sounds awful but if you know me, you know I'm not going to butter you up with all kinds of glamorous stories.  But, as time went on, people kept telling me "it gets better, I promise".  And, low and behold, they were right.  I am LOVING being a mom and yes, I miss my old life of zero responsibility every now and then but I really wouldn't trade this for the world.  And, actually, me really loving this new gig just happened within the last month or so.  Max was a tough one up until about four months.  He was grumpy most of the time because he just didn't know how to sleep very well so he was constantly tired.  A tired baby= a bitchy momma.  haha  So, for whatever reason, Max hit four months and became a totally new little man.  He started napping better so he was MUCH more pleasant during the days and his personality just all of a sudden began to blossom.  We've also gotten him to start sleeping ALMOST through the night rather than waking every two hours like he was doing.  So, everything is going great!  Now, he'll be five months next week and it gets more and more fun each day.  

So, I've come up with a list of 20 things that I've learned so far in my first 20 weeks as a momma.  Enjoy!

1.  I am no longer allowed to be a control freak.  My child rules the world and no book or Google search can change that.  When Max was born, I expected to just be able to mold him into any little creature I wanted him to be.... to teach him how to sleep perfectly, to teach him how to only eat when I wanted him to eat, etc, etc, etc.  Yeah.... um.... ask me how that worked out and how much I've really been able to control.  haha  

2.  I really don't remember what it feels like to not be a mom.  People always say they don't remember life without their child.  It's true... whether that's good or bad.  

3.  It's not easy.  Anyone who says it's easy is lying and needs a swift kick to the face.  

4.  Moms are too hard on other moms.  Whether it's breastfeeding or formula feeding, having an epidural or going all natural, breastfeeding until kids are two or three years old, crying-it-out, co-sleeping, etc, etc, etc.... No matter what the argument, moms are MEAN.  I think any mom needs to mind her own damn business and worry about her own child and not about what's going on with another family.  As long as kids are safe and healthy, we never should impose our beliefs on anyone else.  

5.  I've never worried more about one human being in my life.  Seriously, it's nuts.  And, I know it will only get worse.

6.  People really never stop with the advice... and it gets old.  I know my own baby better than anyone so I smile and take every peice of advice with a little grain of salt.

7.  They really do grow fast.  It definitely didn't seem that way the first couple months.  But, now I look back at pictures and videos of when Max was a real newborn and holy cow, I barely remember it.  :(

8.  Babies are the only people on earth who it's polite to stare at.  This, I find kind of funny.  

9.  Things that never wake a new baby:  vacuums and blenders.  Things that almost always wake a new baby:  sitting down to eat a meal.

10.  I'm constantly excited to see the next new thing Max will learn to do.  It's so AWESOME to watch him figure stuff out.  Whether it's finding his hands, grasping onto a toy, passing that toy from one hand to another, grabbing his feet, rolling over, flashing that adorable smile or hearing him chuckle.... these little milestones never get old and they light up my entire world.  

11.  Relax.  As crazy as it is, I can totally tell that Max can pick up on my stress.  

12.  Every baby really is different and I've only done myself a disservice by comparing Max to other babies.  

13.  The internet is a new mom's worst enemy.  It will scare the shit out of you and/or make you feel like the worst mom in the world for the tiniest thing.  And, those damn forums online.... ugh, just remember, moms are MEAN!  haha  I vowed to stop Google-ing anything at all.  If I have a question now, I call the doctor or ask my mom or my cousin.  

14.  I wish I would have never read a single baby book except "What to Expect in the First Year".  Books that promise that your baby will sleep 12 hours a night, nap for two hours, or eat on a specific schedule may work for some babies but if it doesn't work for yours, it will make you go insane.

15.  I feel there's too much pressure on new moms to be chipper and have a "life is grand" attitude all the time.  Sometimes when I'm asked "how are you enjoying motherhood?", I feel like I HAVE to say "oh, it's amazing and so fabulous and great" when sometimes I really want to say, "well, today, it sucks.  I haven't showered in two days and only got about four hours of sleep each night for the last three months, and my child constantly wants to be held." haha  But, I'm sure that's not what people expect.... especially those folks who have never been through it or are so removed from it that they can't remember!  

16.  Sleep when your baby sleeps is great advice but definitely not possible in some cases.

17.  Sometimes, I'm jealous of moms who go to work and get a break and I'm sure they are jealous of stay-at-home moms, too.  You never really can have it all, can you?

18.  The most rewarding meal I've ever made in my entire life is two ounces of pureed steamed carrots that my little man gobbled up tonight.  Really, I've never been more proud of my culinary efforts.  

19.  Once you get over one hurdle, another one is waiting around the bend. 

20.  One of my favorite rappers, Jay Z, said this about his new baby girl: "my greatest creation is you".  Seriously, nothing I've ever accomplished in my life will ever compare to my body creating a human being.  It's simply miraculous and something I can't even wrap my brain around.  

So, there you have it.  The things I've learned..... hopefully I can ease another new mom's anxiety.  

xoxo, 

Chrissi

*Happy Fourth of July!*

Hi everyone!

I know I haven't posted in a while but here's a quick update before I get into my regularly intended post for today:

Our trip to Florida was AWESOME!  I did NOT want to leave the family and Max had a great time spending time with grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles and friends.  He turned four months the day we got down there and I seriously think a switch flipped inside his little body at that point because he all of a sudden became so much more fun and happier!  He started napping better during the day so that helped his mood tremendously!  He's still up every 2-3 hours at night but we're working on that this week.  :-/  He also has started eating solids.  I wasn't being very consistent with it until this week.  We now have dinner at about 6-6:30 and then I nurse him when I put him down at 8.  So far, he really loves carrots and bananas!

So anyway, I hope you all are having a great holiday!  I know most of the country is going through a brutal heat wave and we're in on that too!  It was about 95 here today!  But, a nice breeze made it bearable in the shade.

Christian got home around 3 a.m. this morning from his three week trip to Japan.  It's so great to have him home!  We had SUCH an awesome day today.  Nothing really special but I have to say, today ranks up there as one of the best days of my life.  It was just a great summer day.  We woke up and played with Max a little before he went down for a good nap.  Then, we went a looked at furniture because I want to get rid of our coffee table and get one of those cocktail ottomans.  I found one that I LOVE but it's a little pricey.  So, I have to try and sell our coffee table and matching sofa table before Christian will even think about it.  haha  So, after furniture shopping, we just came back home and boys both took a nap.  :)  After that, we headed out to a BBQ.  My friend Talia who lives a few houses down from us and who has a little boy two weeks younger than Max invited us to her in-law's house for the afternoon.  Her in-laws were actually down at their shore house so it was just a bunch of people around our age and their kids over there.  It was so much fun.  They have a pool so we got in and let Max swim for a while.  He LOVES the water.  He swam for the first time when we were in Florida.  We were in the pool for about 30 minutes and he was kickin' the whole time!  So much fun.  I got some great pictures and video.

Like I mentioned earlier, Max has become such a fun baby.  He smiles and laughs all the time and he's so good!  So, it has been AWESOME for Christian to see how much he changed in a measly little three weeks!  Christian and I both fed Max his carrots tonight and cracked up so many times at how goofy our little guy is.  Then, we gave him a bath and played a little after bathtime and I stood back and just watched as Christian made Max crack up by blowing on his tummy.  Tears came to my eyes as I thought how wonderful my life is.  We are truly blessed.

So, all in all, a pretty perfect day here in Moorestown, New Jersey.  Max is now in bed and Christian and I are relaxing and watching New York's fireworks on TV.

Well, happy fourth everyone!  "I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free"!

xoxo,

Chrissi

Such a neat tradition

Hey guys!

I am perusing Facebook while Max naps and there is a group on there called Moms2MomsNJ.  Basically a bunch of NJ moms bouncing ideas and sharing tips with each other.  Well, the creator of it posted this today:

Just got back from the cutest neighborhood thing ever and wanted to share: So we are new to the neighborhood, but for the last 5 years on the last day of school a bunch of the moms and dads gather at the end of the road and wait for the kids to get dropped off from the bus. They have water guns, water balloons and silly string and get the kids as they get off. Then it turns into a HUGE neighborhood water fight! Everyone brings a snack and they have balloons and Happy Summer signs all over. It is adorable and although my little guy just finished preschool, I can't wait to enjoy this tradition for years to come! Wanted to share so that maybe you and your neighbors could plan a similar fun day...what memories the kids were making! :) - Sandy


How AWESOME is that?!?  I hope I can remember this on Max's last day of school each year!  Such an amazing memory maker!  


Thought I'd share.  It put a smile on my face just knowing that there are such fun, wholesome things going on. :)


-Chrissi

Happy Birthday to me!

Hey y'all!

Well, I'm officially in my late twenties as Christian decided to inform me this morning.... only three more years and I'll be THIRTY!  What the heck....

Today probably won't be too exciting.  Christian had to leave this morning for this three week det in Japan and Max is still a little fussy from his shots yesterday so we're just going to lay low and relax.  So, no big birthday celebration in store for me.  We went out to dinner last night to celebrate.  If Max is feeling up to it later, we may make a little trip to the mall for a little b-day present for myself.  :)

My big birthday present is going to come next Monday when I get to Florida though!!!  I CAN'T WAIT!  I'm so excited to be home and around family for two whole weeks!  I wish it was 2 whole years!  haha

As I mentioned, Max had shots yesterday at his four month well visit.  He's a healthy boy and growing perfectly.  He weighs 14 pounds, 2.5 ounces and is 25 inches long.  He's in the 20th percentile for weight and 60th percentile for height.  We have a long and lean boy!  We talked with the doctor about his sleep issues and explained that Max is not sleeping well during the day and only goes about five hours at the MOST during the night before waking up (and that's rare these days).  He asked if Max was fussy during the day or content and I told him he's getting more and more fussy... especially when he doesn't sleep well.  So, he said it's probably time to get a little tough with him.  He recommended the Ferber method which is a modified version of cry-it-out (you go in an reassure him at timed intervals while he's crying rather than just letting him cry alone).  I told him that we are going out of town next week and he recommended that I wait until we get back in town to start anything so I can dedicate two weeks to it.  He said prepare to be totally sleep deprived for two weeks because it may take that long for Max to get the hang of it.  Hopefully, it works a LOT faster than the two weeks though!  Dr. King also recommended we start him on solids once a day now.  He said he's not a believer that it helps babies sleep any better but that it does work for some people.  So, we tried a little bit of oatmeal last night and he spit most of it out.  He'll get the hang of it.  I'm going to try some carrots or sweet potatoes later this week to see if he likes it a little more.  I'll take some pictures for sure.  :)

Anyway, I hope you're all having a great week and I'll see a lot of you next week!!!!

xoxo,

Chrissi

Too funny (and tragic) not to share

So, as you all know, Max is 15 weeks old as of this past Saturday and, as I have written about many times, he's not a great sleeper.  He's had a few nights where he's slept for about 7 hours straight but that's about all we can seem to get so far.  One thing I haven't clearly stated is that I am the only one who has EVER gotten up with him in the middle of the night.  For one, I'm nursing so unless I pump, I'm the only one who can feed him.  Another reason is that Christian has to work and I don't so I can actually rest during the day if I need to.  And, if I'm being totally honest, another reason is that I think I'm the only one who knows how to do everything the "right" way.  ((Hi, my name is Chrissi and I'm a control freak))

Well, last night I decided to let Christian take Max duty when he woke up for the first time.  I had a bottle all ready for him when we went to bed around 11 last night (which is very late for us).  Max actually went to bed around 6:30.  He's been falling asleep earlier and earlier lately.  So anyway.... Max woke up at about midnight and his first little whimper wakes me up but Christian is always able to sleep right through anything.  I guess it's a mother thing- I am such a light sleeper now.  I had to practically shake Christian to death in order to wake him up to go in there and feed Max.  Finally he wakes up and goes and gets Max and starts feeding him.  I then hear Christian walking out of Max's room and into the bathroom.  I'm laying in bed wondering what the hell he's doing.  Then, I hear him peeing.  Then.... I hear something drop.  Then... I hear Max kind of start to fuss and Christian shushing him a little.  Then.... I hear Christian walking back towards our bedroom and he says "you'll never guess what just happened".  At that point I knew.  My darling husband was trying to pee and feed Max as the same time.  He was holding the bottle in Max's mouth with his chin while his other hand (the one that wasn't holding Max) was "occupied".  Then, Max decided to move his head a little, like all babies do, and the whole damn bottle fell into the toilet.

Oh. My. God.  I wanted to murder Christian.  Six ounces of breastmilk (which is more valuable than gold in our house) was floating in a bowl of pee.  Fabulous, freaking fabulous.  So, obviously, I had to go in and finish that feeding.

I could tell Christian felt horrible and we ended up laughing about it but I hope he learned a lesson!  And, I may have learned to stick with my control freak ways.  haha

Anyway, I thought all of you would enjoy that.  Hope you're having a great week!!

xoxo,

Chrissi

How the heck is it JUNE?!

I'll repeat the title of this post- HOW THE HECK IS IT JUNE?!  I can't believe this year is almost half over.  That is craaaaazy.  I guess time flies when you're having fun (and raising a baby).  :)

I hope all of you are doing well and having a great weekend!  Christian's squadron is having their annual picnic today so Max and I are about to head out to base to meet Christian for that.  Christian is getting in the dunk tank so this should be fun!  haha  Apparently, he got the most votes within the squadron to be the person in the tank.  I'm starting to wonder if people don't like him.  haha  Just kidding.  :)

Last night we had our friend Scott come in town.  He's checking out Christian's squadron as a potential squadron to drill with as a reservist.  So, he got in around 5 and we all went out to Haddonfield's First Friday celebration.  But, it wasn't as crowded as usual because of the threat of major weather that we had last night.  It wasn't too bad around here but apparently areas south of us got it pretty hard.  Hoping everyone that was affected is OK!

So, I have to fess up to something.  :-/  Many of you may have seen on Facebook that Max and I went to the beach this week.  We had such a great time with friends and he loves the beach.  However, (and I cringe as I type this) he got his first little sunburn.  We were under an umbrella the entire time and he was never in direct sunlight but the reflections off the sand got him.  I feel AWFULLLLLLLL.  Seriously, I've never felt worse about myself in my entire life.  BUT, it doesn't seem to bother him AT ALL.  He's happy as can be and sleeping just the same as always.  It's on his forehead and he even had little tiny water blisters.  Yeah, imagine having to look at your little angel with a red face and little bumps.  AWFUL!  I called his pediatrician yesterday morning (the morning after it happened) and asked if there is anything I should do and he said as long as Max doesn't seem bothered by it, don't worry about it.  But, as the day went on yesterday, I couldn't get ANYTHING done because I couldn't stop looking up stuff online to help calm my nerves about it.  Yeah, the internet sucks for that.  So, I called the doctor's office again and asked if I could bring him in just to have it looked at.  They said sure so I took him in.  The doctor just gave me some pointers for the next time we're out at the beach (which isn't in my near future since I still feel horrible about it) to help block the reflections and all that jazz.  He's still a little too young for sunscreen, she says, so I have to be super careful in just keeping him out of the sun.  She suggested I just put Aquaphor (a thick healing cream for babies) on it to keep it moisturized and to nurse him more often to make sure he's staying super hydrated.  But, like I said, he's totally fine and content and doesn't even flinch with I put the lotion on him.  I also gave him a bath this morning and washed his hair and face and he just kept on splashing like always!  haha   I think it's way worse for me than it is for him.  I HATE it and I've apologized to him about a thousand times.  haha

Well, other than that debacle, we are just having a great time watching Max grow and become so much fun!  He's so darn cute and he learns new things so quickly!  I can't wait to get back down to Florida for the family to see him!  Only about two more weeks until I'm there!  I'm soooo excited!  I'm flying out of Washington DC since they have direct flights.  I'm going to stay with my father-in-law (Jurgen) in Baltimore the night before and he'll drive me and Max down to the airport for our flight out.  It's about a two and a half hour flight so hopefully Max will do really well again.  He's not as fussy as he used to be but he stays awake longer and wants to play so hopefully he won't get too antsy.

Also, we FINALLY ordered the pictures that we had taken when Max was two weeks old.  They're so precious!  I'll post them on Facebook ASAP so y'all can take a look.  The files are too big and take too long to upload on here.  :)

Well, enjoy your weekend and have a happy day!

xoxo,

Chrissi

Rain, rain, go away!

Hey everyone,

I hope someone, somewhere in the country, is enjoying delightful weather.  Because it's been gloomyyyyy up here!  I'm looking forward to the end of the week when it's supposed to be sunny and 75!  This rainy/cloudy weather is no good for my mood which is already subpar due to lack of sleep.  :-/  Yes, folks, you heard it here... my son refuses to sleep.  OK, so it's not AWFUL or anything but it's not ideal either.  During the day, he still isn't sleeping more than about 45 minutes at a time.  So, that's just super.  haha  Then, at night, we've been trying to put him down earlier so Christian and I can have a little alone time.  So, his bedtime is now between 7 & 8.  Well, he usually sleeps until midnight or 1 a.m. and then he's up about every two to three hours after that.  We usually go to bed between 9 & 10 so it's just not a whole lot of sleep.  Like last night, put him down at 7:30 and he woke at midnight, 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. and then laid in bed with me until about 8:15.  It could be worse, I know.  But why does it seem that almost everyone else's baby sleeps through the night??  Blah.  I just like to think Max is getting all kinds of super nutrients at night and he'll be a genius one day because of it.  Hahaha.... rriiiiiiiight.

It's a bummer because it seems like we're going backwards in nighttime sleep.  He was only waking up once a night around 3 a.m. and then we'd get up around 7 a.m.  That wasn't bad AT ALL!  I didn't mind the one midnight feeding... but, two or three is a bit draining.  Maybe we'll have to sacrifice our mommy/daddy time a little while longer and keep a later bedtime.  :(  I feel like Christian and I just haven't had much quality time together that isn't spent with baby in tow or when we weren't too tired to even focus on anything other than a boring show on t.v.  Again, I wish we lived near family so we had all sorts of baby sitters!  But, right now, we don't so I'll just suck it up.

Speaking of living near family, we got some weird news today in regards to Christian's career that kind of throws a loop in plans.  We have always been under the impression that Christian would be able to continue flying for the rest of his time in the Navy until he retires in five years.  Well, apparently that might not be possible now because of so many squadrons decommissioning and so many new applicants for the program he's in right now.  So, now, there's some kind of guideline that states he can't do two of the same kind of tours after his department head tour, which he's in right now.  Basically, the only way he'll be able to get a flying position next is if there's some kind of billet that can't be filled with a new applicant.  Those are few and far between.  It looks like we'll be doing some kind of staff tour somewhere and hoping that during that staff tour, Christian can still fly with a squadron that's close by so he can maintain his currency and get a job flying when he retires.  So, there are all kinds of NOSC (not sure what that stands for but it's the position name) locations all over the country... even in Pensacola.  We're still a little far out to even have any clue what our options are but Christian's going to start talking to his CO and detailer soon to get some ideas.  Obviously I'm pushing for us to come back to Florida in any way possible.  My mindset has TOTALLY changed since having Max.  Before him, I really didn't mind living away from family because it was relatively easy for me to hop on a flight for a visit.  Now, it's a totally different ballgame.  And, to add one more kid in the mix eventually would just make it that much harder to travel by air in the next four or five years until they're old enough to walk along with me.  Then, by that time, I'd have to buy three tickets if I wanted to take the kids down to Florida!  AHHH!  haha  These are the things I think about in the long run and my darling husband just doesn't.  So, we have some things to figure out and decisions to make.  Hopefully we still have quite a bit of say-so in regards to where we end up.  I'll update you guys once we know more.

So anyway, everything else is going well.  Max is getting big and he's so funny.  He smiles quite a bit now, especially after he wakes up and after he eats.  In between those times, he's a bit more grumpy.  haha  Right now, I hear him fussing up a storm downstairs with Christian.  But, I deal with it all day long so I'm letting daddy get a little taste.  haha  He's been kind of a pill today anyway so I'm enjoying the little break!  Not sure if he's going through a growth spurt lately or what but he gets frustrated while breastfeeding and won't finish a feeding but takes a bottle of pumped milk perfectly.  So, this afternoon, I'm just pumping and giving him a bottle so I know he's getting a full feeding.  :(  Hopefully he stays a little more chilled out and lets me get more than a couple hours of sleep at a time.  :)  I know it will eventually happen and I will eventually get a normal night's sleep but man, oh man, I miss my 10 hours of sleep that I used to get.  haha  Those are long gone.

Well, I hope you guys are having a great week so far!  I think we're going to go visit the Underwoods this weekend down in Baltimore but those are our only plans.  Thankfully the weather will be nice!


I'll talk to you all soon!

xo,

Chrissi

It's May, y'all!

Hey everybody!

Can any of you believe it's already May?  It seems like yesterday I was taking down my Christmas tree!  Now, it's almost summertime!  Crazy how time flies when your a super busy mom!  haha

We made it back from Florida and I did NOT want to come home!  I had such a great time and I really got to experience what it would be like to live near family and MAN OH MAN do I wish we could live near my family.  :(  I guess it makes it more special when we do get to see everyone, though.  I hope those of you who get to have your kids around your extended family never take that for granted!  So anyway, we had a great trip!  It was a blast seeing Max meet everyone.  He even met some new friends- cousin Bram, the twins, Lilah and Colin and big man Easton!  He did great around them.  :)  He also had his first real beach day which he loved.  The sounds of the water and birds put him right to sleep.  I think Max and I are going to come back in June for a couple weeks while Christian is in Japan.  There are direct flights out of DC that are pretty cheap so I'll fly out of there and won't have to worry about a layover anywhere.  Perfect!  The flight I'm looking at now gets in the evening of June 18th and I'll come back July 1st.  That will give me two weeks down there which will be great!  Plus, many of my friends are teachers so they'll already be off for the summer so we'll have plenty of playmates!

Things have been good since we got back home.  Max is still having nap issues but he's only waking once at night, which is good.  I guess you gotta take the bad with the good, right?  Ugh...  With his naps only being about 45 minutes, it's very hard for me to get anything done.  I either get to eat, clean or take a shower... and it's usually one of those per nap.  haha  But, the crappy thing is, when he wakes from his nap, it's not like he's rested and a happy baby.  He's kind of fussy and I can tell he's still super tired.  He'll get fussy and his eyes stay in little slits but he won't sleep hard.  I've tried pretty much everything but if any of you have any ideas, please send them my way!

Anyway, Christian leaves tomorrow for about five days so that kind of stinks.  :(  His traveling really stinks now that Max is here.  If we could just win the lottery or something and have Christian not work and we could all just hang out every day, that would be fabulous!  haha  I can dream, right?

Well, I hope all of you had a great week and are looking forward to a great weekend!

xo,

Chrissi

Florida in 3 days!!!

Hey y'all!

I'm getting so excited about going to Pensacola!  I'm so pumped to watch my best friend in the entire world get married Saturday!  Woohoo!  I'm also so excited for everyone to meet Max!  I know he's going to love it, too.  :)

So, everything is going well up here.  Christian is on another trip until tomorrow.  He went down to Central or South America somewhere... I can't remember.  haha  So, he'll be back tomorrow and take Thursday off and then we'll fly down to Florida Friday morning bright and early.  Our flight leaves at 6 a.m. so that will be awesome.  (sarcasm)  haha

Max is still doing well.  We've hit a few road blocks with his routine and he's been a little more fussy and waking up more at night lately.  It's been about a week of him only napping about 45 minutes at a time so it's been draining me.  Then, he sleeps about 4-5 hours right when I put him down at night but then he's up every two hours.  UGH!  Needless to say, I'm a little sleepy.  But, I'm making it.  I think he's starting to have trouble transitioning through sleep cycles.  A typical sleep cycle for infants is 45 minutes and I can time it to the minute of when he'll wake up.  It's really crazy.  So, something I just tried on his most recent nap is to go into his room about five minutes before he wakes up (since I know exactly when he wakes) and put some firm pressure on his legs and arms so he doesn't startle himself awake.  Then, I have to stand there like that while he goes through the REM cycle.  It's really interesting to watch and  I get to stare at my little precious angel while he sleeps.  So, it's not so bad.  This seemed to work on this particular nap because he's been down for about 2 hours now and I went in twice to help him!  Hopefully that is the issue and I can help him get a little more rest during the day since I know that helps him sleep much better at night.  Plus, it helps me determine what he's in need of!  When he was waking after 45 minutes, I had no idea what he needed!  I'd change his diaper and that wasn't it.  I'd try to feed him and he'd fuss the whole time and barely eat so I know he's not waking out of hunger.  So, I'm really hoping I've found the culprit.  Wish me luck!  Things that I've read online say that I may have to help him transition for about a week but I'm willing to do it if it helps him learn to do it on his on and not wake himself up totally and be grumpy!

So anyway, it's been crazy warm up here the past two days!  Yesterday it was 90 degrees!!!  Today, it's about 80 and it's been beautiful both days.  Yesterday, we went out to Point Pleasant Beach here in NJ with my friend Amy and her little boy.  We just drove out, had lunch and walked the boardwalk a little bit but it was a good time.  Like I said, the weather was gorgeous and it was actually a lot cooler by the ocean.  So, that was fun.  Today, I just ran to the grocery store and went to pick up my bridesmaid dress from the seamstress.  It fits perfectly so I'm super happy about that.  I'm getting a spray tan on Thursday to mask some of my white girl look.  haha  I'm so pale, it's ridiculous!

But anyway, I hope all of you are having a great week and I'll see a lot of you in the next week or so!!!

xoxo,

Chrissi

Update

Hi everyone!

Well, Christian made it home last week.  He was delayed a couple days but he's home now and I couldn't be happier about that!  It's amazing how much easier caring for a baby is when you actually have your husband around!  haha  Well, it's not exactly easy... but it's certainly easier than doing it all on my own!

So, he made it home Tuesday and we left Thursday to head out to his dad's in Maryland.  This weekend was the first time that side of the family has seen Max so it was a nice little visit.  He traveled in the car really well and pretty much slept the entire way except to eat and get his diaper changed.  So, that was a breeze!  However, he certainly knew he wasn't at home.  The first night we were there, he woke up every two hours.  NOT FUN!  It was especially disheartening because the two nights before that, he slept about seven hours straight!  So, now that we're back home, I'm hoping he gets back to that.  Last night we got home and he slept five hours, woke up once at 3 a.m. and then slept again until about 6:15 this morning.  So, not too bad.  But anyway, Max met his "pappy" (Christian's dad), his Uncle Jesse and Aunt Lori, and his great grandmother!  A couple of Christian's cousins stopped by too.  We took Max to church with us on Easter Sunday and he slept the entire service which was great!  haha  We were all in our nice little Easter outfits and I forgot to take a family picture before we all changed into more comfy stuff.  Oh well.  :(

Everything else is going well as far as Max and parenthood goes.  We're still using the Baby Wise routine thing and it is really nice.  Basically he eats, is awake for about 30-45 minutes after that and then sleeps for about 1.5-2 hours.  He's starting to have a little more awake time as he gets older but the routine is nice because it makes things predictable for me.  I know when he's going to eat and can pretty much predict when he'll sleep through something if I need to go somewhere.  Breastfeeding is still going well too!  I almost gave up about two weeks ago because he was going through a growth spurt for almost THREE DAYS and I was here by myself and it was just absolutely exhausting and I felt like a dairy cow.  But, I'm glad I didn't give up.  The only tough thing is not knowing how much he eats.  We give him a bottle about three or four times a week and he seems to be eating between 3.5 and 4 ounces but I'm just worried that one day he will want a lot more than what I have in a bottle.  I guess we just always have to have back-up!  Breastfeeding isn't the most glamourous thing though.  I have a pretty robust supply so milk gets everywhere.  haha  It leaks through my shirts (and breast pads) at night and sprays Max in the face sometimes.  hahahah  It's really ridiculous.  TMI?  haha

Max had his two month pediatric appointment today.  He won't actually be two months until next Wednesday.  So, he's a healthy 10 pounds, 11.5 ounces now so he's gaining weight well and everything else is looking good too.  But, this doc appointment was pitiful!  Max had to have three shots and he also had to have a hemoglobin test redone where they prick his heel and squeeze blood out to be sent off to a lab.  The shots weren't terribly awful but he did scream as soon as each one was administered.  So, that sucked to start with.  Then, the heel prick was just absolutely awful!  The prick itself hurt him but his feet were cold so his blood wasn't flowing really well so the doc had to keep squeezing the crap out of his heel to get enough blood to fill five little circles on a piece of paper for the test.  He screamed and had big tears coming out of his eyes.  At that point, I started crying.  It was horrible!  I felt so awful for him.  The doctor then told me she's never had that hard of a time getting enough blood out.  Ugh.  Poor little guy.  So, after that appointment, he crashed from exhaustion while we went to the grocery store and then he slept a little more when we got home.  :(  He's ok now but I can tell his little legs are sore where the shots went in.  He lets out little pitiful cries when I hold him the wrong way or when I'm changing his diaper and touch his leg.  :(  Hopefully he feels better very soon.

Well, next Friday we have our big trip down to Florida!  I can't wait to get down there and see my family and friends!  I'm so excited about my BEST FRIEND's wedding!!!  I'm also super pumped that we're staying at the beach for a few days on the trip!  Woohoo!  I'm hoping Max does well on the flight and that his sleep doesn't get too messed up like it did this past weekend.  Maybe now that he's done one trip, he'll do fine on the next one.  ((Wishful thinking- haha)).

I hope all of you are having a great week!  I'll post again soon!

xoxo,

Chrissi