1/2 a Year

Yes, you heard me, half a year. Our little Evie Ray hit the half mark on Saturday. Where did the time go?

 

Evelyn Ray you are 6 months old!! I am not sure your exact weight, but two weeks ago you were 18 1/2 pounds and well over 27 inches so we will see what the ole scale says on Wednesday.

This month you got your first two teeth!  You are not quite sure how you feel about them, but its fun to watch you lick them and stick out your tongue.

This month you went to two TCU Games and slept through most of the first half. You met your Aunt Holly and Uncle Mike.  You have discovered the puppies and would like to make Sophie your best friend (chloe is still not sure about you).

You are rolling over and over and over the place.  You are getting better at sitting up, but only last a couple seconds before you face plant.

Although you like your exersaucer, you have no interest in jumping in or putting weight on your feet.  Oh well.

You did try chicken for the first time last night and loved every single bite.  We love her to the moon.

And here is a sneak peak of her 6 month photo shoot and some outtakes.

look at those feet go

and this was the next photo.... 0 to pout

She Rolls

Evelyn Ray is 4 months old!

This bundle of joy weighs 16 pounds and 4 ounces, (she is one big bundle) and is 25 inches long! That's 94% for height. She is giggling and talking up a storm like Mommy and growing tall like Daddy. She has spent a whole month at school and seems to be doing well.

This month we have seen so many new things. She has learned to grasp toys and her paci; watch TV, and roll over (well almost, she tends to get stuck on her arm). We also introduced some  solids. Banana was a hit... the sweet potatoes are another story.

We are still experiencing a slight sleep regression and Mommy will be ever so happy when it ends and she gets her nights back.

Our happy little peanut loves everything. She loves to listen to Daddy read to her at night, for Mommy to swing to her (albeit not the greatest), and enjoys watching her puppy sisters zoom around. She also likes to sit in her activity chair.

This will be the last pic you see of her sweet head of hair for while as she gets her DocBand on Friday and we will be on our way to fixin her flat and asymmetrical noggin.

Time sure has flown, but I would not change it for the world. We love Evie Ray. And Happy 4 months to our sweet friend Vivi! We love being almost birthday twins with you!

Friday Favs!

It's Friday. I have survived my first week back to work, Evie has loved school and she is 3 months old today!

My sweet girl is growing like a weed! I swear she never misses a meal and sleeps like a champ. She is in all 3-6 month clothes and will outgrow some of them soon if she keeps growing like this. I admit it was so sad to pack away her newborn and 0-3 months stuff when we moved and not unpack it.

This little one continues to light up our lives. I cannot wait to see her awake for two whole days this weekend!! I miss seeing her giggles and laughs since I am gone for 12 hours a day. But, I know she is learning and growing and her teachers are taking great care of her, and so is daddy when he picks her up.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, and send some prayers my way Monday. ( I will give you more details on the prayer request next week).

Evie Ray is 2 Months

Evelyn Ray you are 2 months old (yesterday).

You are 12 pounds 8 ounces of chunk and we love every little roll. You are also 23 inches long, which means you have grown 3 inches in 2 months! The doctor said you are doing just fine though!

You had three shots yesterday  and just let our a big whimper.

You like to laugh and giggle and play with your moose and bee. You are still sleeping in the rock n' play, but that will not last long as you are growing out of it, along with everything else. You are still in 0-3 months clothes, but some are starting to become snug... sad day.

You are eating 5-6 ounces per feeding. As for the sleep.... yeah you just have not figured that out yet.

Evie, you are the apple of your daddy's eye and look just like him (seriously people...). This is also mommy's last month home with you. Let's enjoy every moment.

One Month

Yesterday was more than my first Mother's Day, it was Evie's 1 month birthday! Yes, she is already one month old. Where did that month go?

This month has been rough on Mommy and Daddy. We are both still adjusting to having another person in our home. You are totally formula fed and will take between 3 and 4 ounces every 3 hours. Sometimes, when you are really hungry, you can down 5 ounces pretty quickly. Other than that, you like to take your time when eating and "meals" last between 30 to 50 minutes. While this is ok during the day, Mommy almost falls asleep during our nightly feedings.

Speaking of nights, you are sleeping 3-4 hours at night, but never more than 4 before you are awake and ready to eat. Its the getting you back to sleep that is the hard part. You just don't want to miss a thing, so after a feeding its another hour or so before you are finally back asleep. I admit, this is a bit of a struggle for Mommy as she is ready to be back asleep pronto.

You are sleeping either in your swing or rock 'n play right now because baby girl, you need to be moving 24/7. You love to be swaddled up and rocking, swinging, bopping, etc.... You are not one to like to lie flat. You still love to be swaddled and if one of your tiny hands creeps out you let us know.

You look so much like Daddy right now. Your dark hair is still full and seems to be holding steady. I do see  glints of gold in it sometimes so perhaps you will be blonde like Mommy yet. You are probably about 8 pounds now, but we won't know for sure until your 2 month appointment in June. You are still in newborn diapers, but that may change soon. You are also in  between clothing sizes. Your newborn pjs no longer fit, but most of the 0-3 months still swim on you. And bloomers, well let's say none of those fit, so we have not worn any of your cute dresses yet. You have the longest fingers and toes, but the squishiest cheeks. You are starting to fill out a bit, and Daddy says you have sushi arms (aka getting your rolls).

Evelyn Ray, we are trying so hard to be good parents, but its hard. Each day brings some new struggle. Mommy and Daddy love you to death, so just hang in there with us as we adjust and learn.

5 on Friday

Breast-shaming

Ahoy! I am alive and yes everyone is alive. We are 2 1/2 weeks in and man its been tough to find time to do much of anything, let alone blog. So, I am stealing a couple of minutes to share with you all.

As I said in her birth story, Evie had jaundice and had to be fed donor milk, from a bottle. Now, all the nurses said it would be ok, and she would still take to nursing. Yeah, right. I tried. I promise I tried to feed that sweet girl from the breast. I tried every hour of every day. She did not latch well without a breast shield, so breast shield I tried. It helped, some. Evie still just did not nurse well. She would drink and then fall asleep. I had to literally strip her down and put cold cloths on her to keep her awake to get just a little bit of milk. And then after an hour or so I would finally be in tears and have to give her the supplement so she would be full. And then I would pump. Pump to relieve the pressure and give my baby nourishment.

I tried this routine for a week. I was exhausted, stressed, frustrated and so was Evie. We met with a lactation consultant and low and behold, she did everything perfect. I came home so refreshed and thinking we had finally hit our stride, and then she was hungry. And it started all over again. She would just use my breast as a bona fide pacifier rather than feeding. I was faced with a decision to keep trying to nurse or just go to pumping. I decided to pump. She took a bottle with ease and I was producing plenty of milk, so pumped I did.

I had supportive friends who cheered me on and said it would be fine and they had done the same thing. So the routine began. Feed, diaper, soothe, get her to sleep, pump. Get in perhaps an hour of sleep and it would begin again. Except when she would not sleep and I went too many hours between pumpings or when I was mid pump and she would begin to scream. I was constantly exhausted, frustrated and often found crying over my baby at 2am by my husband.

I felt inadequate and useless and most of all like a failure. I wanted to give my baby the best, but it was just too much. I did not want to be that mom to who resented her child. With the routine I wasn't holding her and cuddling her, i was just a milk machine who found herself hysterical and yelling at her infant.

I then realized nursing doesn;t work for everyone. And guess what, its ok. Yes I got some slack from people. I even was breastshamed when I reached out to the local facebook mom's group to ask about formula. I got advice of, take this to increase your supply and keep pumping, or I'm a lactation consultant contact me, breast is best.... Yes, people I get it, but I know this is the best decision for me. Moms are supposed to support one another, not judge or force beliefs. I just wanted some advice on formulas.

I cried a little. I was mad, upset and frustrated. I just want to provide the best atmosphere and life for my baby. I was raised on formula, my husband was raised on formula, I have friends who never even tried to breastfeed. So, why did I face such opposition, such pushback, why was I being breastshamed?

When did it become a crime to feed your baby formula? Yes I know breast is best, but sometimes, its not best when it causes you to become someone you don;t want to be with your sweet innocent child.

Don't shame other mothers, not for how they feed, diaper, console, or raise their children. Support one another. What works for one person doesn't always work for another one. Yes, I am going to feed my baby formula and its ok.

So, let's nourish our babies with shame. Yes, breastfeeding  may be best, but bottle feeding is feeding too, and as long as that baby is loved and healthy, who cares how they get that nourishment.

Today's Post is Brought to you by the Letter E.

It's such a strange feeling to sit here and type this at 10pm on a Monday night while watching my sweet newborn swinging away just feet from me. She is a week and a half old and came in like a lion.

As most of you know, I work an hour from home, in Dallas. So, last Wednesday I began working from home so I would be closer to the hospital in the event Evie arrived. I was also so uncomfortable and the commute made my Braxton Hicks worse, so work from home it was. Wednesday went well and the pups sure enjoyed the frequent walks they got as mommy tried to relieve discomfort and get Evelyn to come down.

Thursday  I woke up with the sun and began doing some tasks at work, ya know normal lawyer stuff like drafting discovery, returning client calls, etc... I also talked with one of the associated in our Philly office for a while on drafting jury instructions in Texas. She joked with me about things not to do so jump start labor (she is preggo with her 4th) and I told her I would be sure to send pics. It's funny, I googled signs or labor, and even googled whats is like for your water to brake.

I ate some lunch at noon and then took the pups out for a walk. I had just used the bathroom, so when I walked outside and felt a small trickle, I was embarrassed. I brushed it ff and started on our walk. However, my belly starting feeling heavy. We rounded the corner and were back in front of our steps when bam. The flood gates opened and right there on the steps my water broke.

I quickly got up inside and waddled to the bathroom. I called J and told him the news. He dropped everything and was on his way home. Meanwhile, I panicked. I was home alone and not sure what to do. I finally got upstairs to the master bath and waited for J. Meanwhile, I called my brother just to calm me down. I then let my office know and J arrived. We finished packing our bags, I brushed my teeth, put my hair up and called the dog sitter.

We arrived at the hospital at 1:30 and were immediately admitted. It hit me. There I was, blue gown, hospital bed, heartbeat monitor, contraction monitor and husband. Our sweet nurse Lindsey started a pitocin drip since I was barely dilated. We called our parents and my godparents and settled in ready to have a baby. We thought, April 9th sounds like a good day for a baby.

To be continued...