Monday, July 28, 2008

Duty-Free

Another benefit of breastfeeding....

Gets you out of jury duty.

Friday, July 25, 2008

TGIF

I love Fridays. They have always been my favorite day of the week. It used to be beacause I knew I would be off work for two days. Now it is because my husband will be off work for two days and Chloe and I get to spend two days with him.

We've had a good week. I had my OB/GYN check-up on Wednesday. Everything is good. I've lost my pregnancy weight (actually, I had lost 30 lbs at my 3 week check-up), my blood pressure is good, my uterus has shrunk to it's original size and the incision is healing beautifully.

Yesterday we met my friend Amanda and her little boy, Ryan, at the St. Louis Mills Mall. I think Amanda might post some pictures, so you'll have to go to her blog (Life In the Morrow Household) to check 'em out. We had a great time walking around and spending time with them. Amanda is fantastic and I love having her in my life. She's a mommy friend, so she "gets" all the things I'm going through. And, she is super-helpful to me. Being Mommies together, in my opinion, has taken our friendship to a new level.

Today, after Keith gets off work, we are heading to Decatur to see my family. My sister will be in town with her two kids. Chloe gets to meet her cousins, Riley and Tucker, for the first time! I can't wait for them to meet!!! My mom has a three day weekend, so we'll get lots of time with her too! And, we are managing to squeeze in a family reunion on Saturday.

So, that's been our last couple of days...

And, what's a post without one picture of our girl...


Oh, can I just mention that Chloe nursed at 9:20pm last night, was in bed by 10:00pm and is still sleeping?!?! Bless her lil heart.

Friday, July 18, 2008

My little (or not so little) wishlist

Just a few of the things I am daydreaming about....
A book I want for Chloe, but didn't find during our trip to Border's this week... will just have to order it online I guess...

A couple of the books I want for myself


Real coffee, not the decaf stuff I've been drinking... I know I can have a cup while breastfeeding, but I am choosing not to.

I desperately need a foil and pedicure. My feet and hair have been neglected for weeks now....


And, properly pedicured feet would deserve a pair of new shoes.. too bad these are Manolo Blahniks and cost over $600.. but still, a girl can dream, can't she?

I rented this movie a couple of weeks ago and watched it twice before I returned it. I would love to have it added to my DVD collection. So cute. I highly recommend it if you are in the mood for a great romantic comedy.

I love the water. I haven't got to swim once this summer. Oh, what I would give to be laying on this beach with my newly pedicured toes, reading one of the books I want.

A night out with my husband, at one of our favorite restaurants...


Like I said, just a few of the things I am daydreaming about.....

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Lessons Learned

Just a few of the things I have learned or realized over the past 6 weeks~

1. Love at first sight is absolutely possible.

2. Nothing can prepare you for the sleep deprivation you are going to encounter as a new parent. (not even getting up to pee 3 times a night during pregnancy, although I think that is a nice "warm-up") AND, we have a really good sleeper but still.....

3. You rely on your other "mommy friends" much more than you did in the past. AND, you don't hear from the "non-parent" friends as much, which is difficult to get used to. I believe that mommy and me groups are going to be a necessity!

4. It is possible to fall asleep on the toilet.

5. It is possible to go through 10 burp cloths in one day... which also makes for many loads of laundry.

6. Babies, at least our baby, likes to poop immediately after we change her diaper.

7. It is hard transitioning into motherhood. I feel like I lost myself a little bit, the old me, that is. I have a new me, which I am loving, but I do miss the old me a little bit.

8. Hormones can be evil things. I cried and cried for no reason at all. They caused me to doubt my abilities as a mother. They made me sad, angry, overwhelmed, impatient, and selfish. Thankfully, I think the hormones have leveled out now.

9. After birth, you can have 6 weeks of spotting. To me, spotting is worse than just having a regular period.

10. I appreciate things I used to take for granted- a shower, time to watch a tv show all the way through, being able to read a chapter in a book, reading blogs, going out to eat with my husband, sleeping in....

11. I have to "time" trips, even small trips to the grocery store or gas station. Everything right now depends on Chloe's nursing schedule.

12. It really is different when it is your child's dirty diaper or vomit.

13. Not all babies enjoy car rides... unfortunately.

14. I appreciate my own mom in a whole new way!
15. I never get tired of watching my beautiful daughter.

Wordless Wednesday- Chloe and her new friend, Anna



Friday, July 11, 2008

A Devotional for Today

My Mom sent me this devotional and it started my day off in just the right way. I hope that it does the same for you.....
___________________________________________________________________
2008/07/11
May God Smile on You
by Jon Walker


May the Lord smile on you. Numbers 6:25 (NLT)

*** *** *** ***

The smile of God is the goal of life.

Since pleasing God is the first purpose of your life, your most important task is to discover how to do that. The Bible says, “Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it” (Ephesians 5:10 MSG).

Fortunately, the Bible gives us a clear example of a life that gives pleasure to God. The man’s name was Noah.

In Noah’s day, the entire world had become morally bankrupt. Everyone lived for their own pleasure, not God’s. God couldn’t find anyone on earth interested in pleasing him, so he was grieved and regretted making man. God became so disgusted with the human race that he considered wiping it out.

But there was one man who made God smile. The Bible says, “Noah was a pleasure to the Lord” (Genesis 6:8 LB).

God said, “This guy brings me pleasure. He makes me smile. I’ll start over with his family.” Because Noah brought pleasure to God, you and I are alive today.

Over the next few days, we will learn from Noah’s life the five acts of worship that make God smile.

God smiles when we love him supremely. Noah loved God more than anything else in the world, even when no one else did! The Bible tells us Noah “consistently followed God’s will and enjoyed a close relationship with him” (Genesis 6:9 NLT).

This is what God wants most from you: a relationship! It’s the most astounding truth in the universe: our Creator wants to fellowship with us. God made you to love you, and he longs for you to love him back. He says, “I don’t want your sacrifices – I want your love; I don’t want your offerings – I want you to know me” (Hosea 6:6 LB).

Can you sense God’s passion for you in this verse? God deeply loves you and desires your love in return. He longs for you to know him and spend time with him. This is why learning to love God and to be loved by him should be the greatest objective of your life.

Nothing else comes close in importance. Jesus called it the greatest commandment. He said, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment” (Matthew 22:37-38 NIV).

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

A Peak Into Our World.....

I can't help but post a few more pictures of Chloe.

She will be 5 weeks tomorrow! 5 weeks! Where does the time go?
I can't believe how much I love her. It truly is amazing- to be a parent and watch this little miracle grow right before your eyes. I'm thankful to say that my hormones are returning to normal and I'm really able to enjoy my time with my daughter. Not that I didn't enjoy it before, but somehow it's different. Maybe it is that I am becoming more comfortable in my new role.

I LOVE watching Keith with her. Melts my heart. He is an amazing Daddy, I always knew he would be. He is so good with her and she loves him right back. As my love for her grows, so does my love for my husband. Becoming parents, sharing a new bond with him, has taken our relationship to a new level. God has blessed me with such a wonderful little family. I am so thankful.

Oh, and this last picture is Chloe's first workout. We went to visit Keith at the gym last week and we couldn't help but start her exercise routine. Since her Daddy is a personal trainer, she'll be no stranger to the gym!!!

Oh, we had her one month check up yesterday. She got her second dose of Hep B shot (I think it was worse for me than it was for her) and weighed in at 10 lbs 4 oz and is 22 1/4 inches long! We have a very healthy, growing girl on our hands!


Til next time....

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Summer Days

Like everyone else, we've been keeping busy this summer! Leaves little time for blogging.

We took our first road trip with Chloe this past weekend. We packed up the car and went to Decatur to visit my family. It was a very quick trip, just a little over 24 hours, but worth it. My grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles and even some cousins got to meet Chloe.



While we were home my friend, Beth, gave us 3 Miracle Blankets to use. If you aren't familiar, they are these fantastic swaddling blankets. And, MIRACLE is the appropriate word! We have used the blanket for the past 2 nights and Chloe has had the longest stretches of sleep yet. Sunday night she slept from 7:00pm til midnight, and last night she slept from 8:30 til 2:45am! It was amazing! We got more than 4 hours of sleep at a time! I don't know if it is the blanket, but I am thankful for the last two nights!!!


My fantastic, wonderful friend Tracy is coming today!!! She lives in NC and is in IL visiting family. She is taking the time to drive down to STL today and staying the night. I am so excited to see her! She got to meet Chloe while we were in Decatur this weekend, but only for a few minutes. So, she'll really get some quality time with us today. Tracy has two little girls of her own, Emma and Abby, whom I adore. I know that our daughters will be lifelong friends, just like their Mommas!
I think we are going to try to take a trip to the mall. I haven't been to the mall in quite some time. It will have to be a quick trip, but a trip nonetheless!

Just one more picture to close out the post....

Hope everyone is having a great summer!!!