Strawberry Ruckus

Guess what we did this weekend???

2009-11-08T13:39:00.003-06:00

I can't type about it all now because it will take awhile and there will be lots of photos and maybe a video and it was truly a blogtastic event! Until I have time to record it all though, here is a hint....

Fun at the Zoo!

2009-11-06T14:23:00.007-06:00

Yesterday was MUCH better. She literally slept every second of the day that she wasn't eating. I believe it was growth spurt time. Thanks for all the encouraging comments! Today was even better because we went to the zoo with our dear old pals! It was Olivia's first time there and she did great. She slept in her stroller most of the day. I took pics of our cute kiddos and forgot to take any of the cute animals. Oh well I think the kids are way more adorable! Walking through the zoo is quite the workout. I think I am ready for an afternoon nap now!

Wishing I Could Read Her Mind

2009-11-05T07:57:00.003-06:00

Olivia crying in pics can be cute. Olivia crying for hours, sweating, turning purple, quitting breathing, arching her back, and refusing to nurse is NOT cute. And that is why there are no pictures of that. Because at that point yesterday I was in tears too, sweating, turning red, and refusing to try to nurse her anymore. My hubby was working on our broken car issue and I literally went to church last night for the sole reason to let someone else hold her for awhile. That's probably awful of me but it's the truth and I needed a break. She did sleep through the night so I'm hoping since she didn't sleep much yesterday that today she will make up for it and hurry and get back to her happy self. There's not anything worse than listening to your baby scream and not have any idea what's wrong, then trying to comfort her every way you know how and it seems to make her madder. Luckily those days are rare and right now she is in a dead sleep, smiling while she dreams beside me in bed and I'm praying today will be a better day. It has to be right?

Get it off my head!!!!!!!!!

2009-11-04T09:39:00.001-06:00

But once she saw how cute the hat was she immediately changed her mind.

Baby Ohm...or Om

2009-11-03T07:46:00.004-06:00

We've had a rough couple of days with car troubles lately and I'm not sure anything stresses us out more than car issues. We are borrowing a van right now from some friends so thankfully Olivia and I aren't stranded at home since she cannot legally be in Ryan's car. I think Olivia has been feeling the stress of car trouble too and Mommy and Me yoga was just the thing to relieve her tension. Check out how she spent most of our first class on Saturday.Passed out on the wood floor/mat. Yoga just puts her to sleep!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T11:14:00.011-05:00

Last night we carved pumpkins at the church and Olivia got to show off her jack-o-lantern outfit. Thank you aunt Amy for the adorable onesie! Here's Ryan scooping out the guts. Yuck! I hate that part. Those patterns and little tools sure do come in handy!We competed for best jack-o-lantern and although we didn't win I must day I think ours turned out pretty awesome. Here is mine all lit up.Ryan's is the one on the right. I think the judges didn't have the same appreciation for emoticons. The winner's is on the left.These were some others that I liked. I think tonight we will just be passing out candy but I guess we could bust out some costumes from years past (see here and here).

Is there anything you can't buy there?!

2009-10-29T07:31:00.003-05:00

I saw this info on someone's facebook status and HAD to check it out, and it's true. They sell caskets at Walmart online. And what's even weirder is that it's in the "home" section???? Some of the names of them: Supreme Distinction, White Haven, Executive Privilege, Sterling Deluxe, and Lovely in All Ways. Does anyone else find this hilarious?? Does anyone know of any other odd items they sell there??

So close!

2009-10-28T08:30:00.006-05:00

And right when my memory card was full...she smiled. Like an elusive endangered species, it's hard to capture on film but I promise she can! We'll get it one day. Until then, just enjoy the attempt and the awesome morning bed head, and imagine the adorable 3 seconds afterward....

Refrigeration Randomness

2009-10-27T13:22:00.002-05:00

The other day while helping a friend move in I noticed she kept her maple syrup on a cabinet shelf. I always refrigerate mine I guess because my parents did, so I never knew you didn't have to. This reminded me of the time Lo and I made cupcakes and she pulled a huge tub of crisco out of her fridge and I told her you don't put crisco in the fridge, but she had been doing it for years. So now I'm wondering if there are other foods that I refrigerate that you don't have to, or if others out there ever refrigerate weird things. Anybody got any stories about that?

Sorry no Olivia photos or videos....maybe if I deprive you for one day you'll appreciate it even more! I will try to catch her smiling today though because she's smiled at me a few times in the past 24 hours. I can't lie, it made feeding her at 3am much more enjoyable.

Life can be so hard

2009-10-26T08:19:00.004-05:00

Just try not to feel sorry for her. I dare you. I told you, she's learning from the best! We have to work on protruding the lower lip even further to be more convincing.

Whoops!!

2009-10-23T10:01:00.003-05:00

This is the proper way Olivia is supposed to be in her swing and how she has been sleeping most nights. I realize she is not buckled in but she can't really be when she's swaddled.This is how I found her at 6am. Whoops! I guess she can wiggle out of it even with a swaddle on! Luckily the swing is only about 3 inches off the floor. She didn't seem upset by it but I think we will be putting her in the bassinet again at night!

Baby Friends!

2009-10-22T07:24:00.003-05:00

So you don't think ALL I do is watch TV, I have to share pics of some of Olivia's friends. We've had lots of outings already in her short 6 weeks: church, playgroups, friends houses, Daddy's workplace, Bible study groups and tonight is Bunco...I'm going to introduce her to gambling early. It helps me sooo much to get out of the house for at least a little bit each day and I think it helps her too. Here are Olivia and Desmond about 4 weeks ago. Desmond was born exactly 4 weeks before her and they get to hang out a lot! And here they were yesterday. They grew!And while I probably enjoy talking with the mommies and adults more than she enjoys staring at the other babies, I have faith that one day she will enjoy actually playing with all of these kiddos! It's such a blessing to be surrounded by friends who are going through the same time in life as you are. Here we are with Ash, Grady, Des, Lo, and Ben. Olivia needs some girlfriends!She does have a few girlfriends at church (I need to take my camera to church) and of course Piper from play group. Don't forget dog friends! She not only loves her sister Charlie, but Charlie's best friend Lucy as well! You can feel the love in this picture can't you??

Confessions of a SAHM: Television Part II

2009-10-21T08:28:00.003-05:00

I think I already touched on daytime TV so let's look at evening TV. I'm enjoying lots of shows and am hoping with the new comedies this season that maybe the sitcom is on it's way back! Since we don't have cable or DVR or Tivo or any of that stuff, it has been nice to be able to watch things on the internet (at any time of day while I feed a baby), via hulu mainly, whenever I want. Here are shows I enjoy:

The Middle is a new HILARIOUS family sitcom about a normal family living in the midwest. I laugh out loud at every episode. It reminds me of old school TGIF type shows that the whole family could watch but it's funnier and not cheesy (No Full House sappy music playing while the dad solves the episode's problem in a 5 second lecture)
Glee. Duh. Isn't everyone watching this show? My hubby is right though, it is totally High School Musical for adults, but I love it and the lady who plays the cheerleading coach is hysterical.
The Office of course I'm loving it! Jim and Pam got married and I got a little teary eyed. How awesome is it for the couple whose youtube video they copied?! I mean it was cool that millions of people viewed it on the web but then a famous TV show copied it...pretty awesome! I do kind of feel this season isn't as good as others but I still love it! I love it so much I watch reruns on netflix online pretty much every night while I go to sleep.
Community is a quirky new comedy about people at a community college. It stars the guy from The Soup and Chevy Chase. My favorite kid in the show though is Abed played by Danny Pudi. Or the asian spanish teacher....or The Soup guy. I dunno They are all funny.
Shark Tank is the show where entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to wealthy investors and try to get them to bite. Last night was the last one but I enjoyed this and it was about the only reality TV show I like....besides Antiques Roadshow.
Antiques Roadshow...a classic...still the only good thing about Mondays I think.
Modern Family is another new comedy about three separate families and it also makes me laugh out loud. Mostly the dad who tries to be friends with his teenage kid (Why the face? Did anyone else see that? Haha!)
Parks and Recreation is that mockumentary with Amy Poehler and it tends to be a hit or miss with me but lately it's been a hit.
30 Rock started last week and I'm sure will continue to be a hilarious show. Love it.
Psych is one I catch on hulu every now and then and is a funny detective type show about a guy who pretends to be psychic but just really uses his common sense. I'm curious as to how it all started but it's been on awhile I think and I've only seen the latest like 5 episodes. It's pretty humorous.
Flash Forward is probably going to be annoying like Lost but we will see. It's the drama/mystery about everyone in the world blacking out and seeing the future 6 months from now...so I'm thinking in 6 months we at least have to have one answer right? Speaking of Lost why doesn't it start until 2010??
Also not really on in the evening, but while we wait on daddy to get home from work we are usually watching (well one of us is eating) reruns of Reba, Earl and Two and a Half Men on the CW.

Do you see a theme here? I'm liking comedies mainly. Probably because after hanging out with a teeny baby who has been known to cry all day when not attached to my chest...I need a good laugh :) Looking over this it seems like I watch a lot of TV. Well to make myself feel better I do spend about 28 hours a week feeding Olivia so I don't feel as bad, but I really should read more during this time. Got any good book recommedations? If not what shows are you enjoying this season?

10 Days Old

2009-10-19T08:51:00.016-05:00

We got her newborn pics back from Courtney and I'm having the hardest time deciding which ones to use for the birth announcement/Xmas card and which ones to frame. She is just so cute in all of them! Courtney did a great job! And thanks to Shannon for making the blue and green knit baby sacks. So cute! I get a little sad looking at the pics though because she's already changed so much and grown so much since these were taken. I need to slow down time! If you want to see more of them just look in my facebook album. I tried to narrow them down some here :)

5 weeks!

2009-10-17T20:20:00.004-05:00

This is just proof that she isn't a doll...she is indeed alive and can move. But still cute enough to be a doll :)

First Date....Thanks Grammy!

2009-10-15T16:28:00.007-05:00

So Grammy came back to see us last weekend thanks to some other Hendersonians who just so happened to be traveling this way and invited her to come along. We figured that would be a great weekend to go on our first date (post baby) while we had her here. Our hopes were almost ruined while Ryan spent most of the weekend under my car trying to fix it but thankfully he put it back together in time for us to go out Sunday night. We went to Chili's and to see The Invention of Lying. It was fun but felt weird to call and "check in on our kid." I still don't feel old enough to have a kid....when does that go away?We came home to these two crazy girls. Olivia likes to be bounced on the exercise ball. Charlie missed us so much she spent the evening like this while Olivia had her late night snack. Jealousy?Thanks Grammy for coming to play with us and let us get out for a night of baby free fun! Come back any time! We love you!

I disapprove of all of these pictures!

2009-10-13T14:48:00.003-05:00

Oh Olivia, I wouldn't be doing my job as a mother if I didn't annoy you. And you wouldn't be doing your job as a daughter if you didn't make this disgruntled face at me....I think she might be tired of the camera.....or maybe the hair bows....

Newsletter: One Month

2009-10-10T07:56:00.001-05:00

Dear Olivia
It's cliche' but time is flying and I truly can't believe it's already been a month! If this is how fast time is going to go by then you really will be headed to college soon! I'm going to try to write you a monthly letter on the blog since I may never get around to scrapbooking or writing things in a baby book, but I do seem to be pretty good at updating this thing so we'll give it a shot.From the moment you were born, you have always been alert. I first saw your chubby face when they held you up over the curtain. You had your eyes wide open and while the nurses examined you, you examined them right back with your big brown eyes. Not crying, just staring. When they brought you to me in the recovery room you just stared wide eyed at me for the longest time. I may have been in and out of it, thanks to lots of drugs in my IV, but I remember that moment. The nurses kept commenting on how bright eyed you were and how cute you were too!The first week you were home I seriously doubted my skills as a mother. I probably wasn't the only one since my mom stood by my bed in the middle of the night with you screaming in her arms because you were hungry and I was soooo tired (and maybe a little drugged on pain meds) that I didn't even wake up...and she stood there awhile...and you screamed the whole time.Now I can wake up when I hear you start squirming in the hallway--yes you sleep in the bassinet in the hallway right outside our bedroom door--but I rarely need to because you usually sleep for a 7 hour stretch at night! What newborn does that?! But you eat enough in the day and are gaining weight so I hear it's ok to let you sleep on! Granted I still wake up once during the night to pump for a few minutes, but that doesn't take near as long as it would to feed you....you are quite the slow eater.Your daddy and I were both very tired the first week and it was so nice to have some help in my parents (Grammy and Papa), aunt Amy, and Ryan's mom (Grandma). They all loved on you and you were held almost 24/7 for 2 weeks straight!Grammy got to stay longer than first planned and is with us again this weekend!! She just can't get enough of you and I'm pretty sure you like her too!

Since you've arrived, I have fallen in love with your daddy on a whole new level. I love watching him with you and from the moment you were born he was a pro. He has changed diapers (even the nastiest ones in the hospital), stayed up late nights, sang to you, read books to you, rocked you to sleep, and even come up with some very unconventional ways to try to put you to sleep too. Not only has he taken good care of you but he has been an excellent care giver for me in these postpartum weeks while I have recovered from a c-section and been through a nasty bout of mastitis. I'm already praying that you will find someone as loving and caring as your daddy is when you are grown up.

People often comment on how much hair you have, your cute little lips, your beautiful big eyes, your long fingers and toes, and your dark eyebrows. I never knew eyebrows on a baby were such a unique thing but people sure do notice them a lot. I can already tell how much you are changing: your hair has already gotten lighter, all that peeling newborn skin has come off, your cheeks aren't as chubby as they first were, your hair is getting longer (but thankfully not falling out!). With each thing I notice, I get a little sad and I want to freeze time. I want to catch each facial expression you make on camera so I don't forget it. The pictures are never as adorable as you are in person and no matter how hard I try I just can't capture in a picture how cute you are in real life! When I first saw you I couldn't believe what a beautiful baby we created....even in my wildest imagination you weren't that cute!Another thing that people notice...once they've been around you is your cry. You cry like a little billy goat with a very shaky wail. You can pout your lip out with the best of them (and I should know because I'm one of the best!) Your daddy told me in the hospital that you looked just like me when you pouted your lip. You are also an expert snorter and we often call you "little pig" because you snort when you cry and you snort when you eat and it's just too cute!This month has changed my life. Just 4 weeks ago I had a huge belly and was waiting anxiously to meet you and now I don't even remember what it felt like to be pregnant! Hours pass by quickly, but then I'll realize all I've done that day is feed you, rock you, change diapers, and watch you sleep. Who knew staring at a baby could be so fun?!

I can't lie though...this has also been the hardest month of my life. I have never had so little sleep, so many hormonal issues, so much pain, and so many crazy mixtures of emotions. I don't say all this to hang it over your head someday (ok maybe a little bit) but to let it be a reminder to myself of all we've been through and that things are getting easier. It's taken a month, but I feel like I'm getting the hang of this finally! Day by day I'm getting to know you better and love you more and more for all the things that make you, you! I'm trying to enjoy each moment and hold onto it because I know time will keep flying and the piling laundry and dishes aren't as important as watching my precious daughter grow before my eyes. I love you sweet girl!

Love,
Mama

More Sisterly Love

2009-10-09T07:28:00.001-05:00

Charlie loves to play with Olivia on the floor and chew her bones beside her.

She loves to give her kisses until mom and dad say that's enough Charlie.She is even so thoughtful she taught Olivia how to do the fist-bump so she doesn't spread swine flu germs.They stare at each other and I think look forward to the day they can actually play together. I love my two little girls :)

Her Mama's Curls

2009-10-08T07:35:00.001-05:00

She may have a receding hairline but it sure is a cute and curly receding hairline when it's wet!! The bows help hide the lack of hair in the front. :) And then right after this bath she had a CRAZY explosiveness in her diaper. Surprisingly the cloth diaper and cover actually contained it all but taking it off of her caused her to get it ALL over her legs and pretty much all of the lower half of her body. It truly is amazing how much poop one baby can hold! I think we went through a whole container of wipes just cleaning it up.....next time we'll just go straight back to the bath tub!

Our doula

2009-10-07T07:35:00.001-05:00

Karen was our amazing doula who was there for us during pregnancy and was about the only one encouraging us and remaining positive through the last 17 hours of labor. She came by this weekend to see Olivia, answer some breastfeeding questions, and let us use her scale (Olivia was 9 lbs. 5 oz before eating) and I got this adorable picture of them. I highly recommend her if anyone is looking for a doula!

Sunday Best

2009-10-06T08:05:00.003-05:00

This Sunday Olivia wore her first "skirt" and she looked so cute! I want to take pics of every outfit because they're all so cute and I know she'll only wear them like once. Around the house we usually don't put clothes on her because it's a hassle to undo all those snaps during diaper changes and they inevitably get peed, pooped, or spit up on which just makes more laundry. I'm feeling a bit better today and my fever broke last night, so Ryan is going back to work. I got an antibiotic yesterday so I think if it continues to work I'll be like new soon...hopefully. I plan to take it easy today though and maybe nap (if my daughter lets me). Olivia literally ate every hour on the hour yesterday, she slept well at night though so it might be a fair trade off.

OUCH!

2009-10-05T09:35:00.004-05:00

Just when breastfeeding was starting to get easier and almost enjoyable....I get mastitis. Take the flu with its fever and chills, add in sharp shooting pains in your chest, then multiply it by 1000 and that's how I feel. I'm warning you new moms...contractions are nothing to all the other joys and symptoms of motherhood. Ryan is staying home with me today since I can barely raise my right arm and don't want to move in general. Hopefully my prescription will come in soon.....
I can see how people give up on this breastfeeding, but I'm still determined to keep trying. The things I do for this kid. I guess it's just more for me to hang over her head when she's a teenager right?

Moore Blogs!!

2009-10-03T17:57:00.005-05:00

Cute genes just run in the family and if you need to see proof you can check out my sister in law's new blog! I'm so glad she started one so I can see my nephews and new niece more often! You can see my other nieces here. :)

So disrespectful

2009-10-02T08:45:00.004-05:00

Already flipping her dad the bird...tsktsk...I don't know where she picked that up at. I thought we'd have a few more years before bad words and habits entered the house. It must've been that play group or the church ladies book review we went to. Actually I think she just favors this finger. She flipped him off at Barnes and Noble the other day too.

P.S. Do you notice my husband's crazy long eyelashes? I hope Olivia gets them. He used to TRIM them because they were so long they'd get stuck together. Silly boy.