Good intentions.

So I had the best of intentions of getting back to regular blogging after my post last week.  Then all things were put on hold when my mom was put in the hospital.  

I will try to make a long story short and not bother you with too many specifics.  

Basically my mom was trying to get cleared for an elective surgery that was scheduled for mid June.  In order to clear her they required a stress test.  She failed.  So they wanted to do a heart cath just to make sure there were no blockages in her coronary arteries.  They did not expect to see anything and they thought she failed the stress test due to scar tissue from her open heart surgery to remove a tumor 18 years ago.

Well, of course, they found something!  Her right main coronary artery was completely blocked off!  They were able to open it back up and put a stent in, thank goodness, or she would have had to have another open heart surgery.  Since they put a stent in there she can not be cleared for her elective surgery for 6 more months.  More on that in another post.  She is very lucky she hadn't had a massive heart attack.  Her left coronary artery had created little vessels (called collaterals) to feed the right side of her heart.  Amazing.  

But this was not even the most difficult part.  Mom had told me once or twice over the last 6 weeks or so that she was feeling flutters.  I just figured she was having palpitations and it was no big deal.  She thought so too.  Well it turns out she has been in an abnormal heat rhythm called atrial fibrillation.  They mentioned it on her stress test but not at her doctor visit after that when they did an EKG.  But during her procedure she was in it and she hasn't been out of it since.  They kept her in the hospital to try and convert her back into a normal rhythm with medication.  It wasn't working and they sent her home (my house) in hopes of more time on the meds converting the rhythm.  

She goes back to the doctor in a few days but she still feels like it hasn't converted.  She is extra tired when doing tiny tasks and she can still feel flutters occasionally.  If the meds do not do the trick then they can do cardioversion, which is basically shocking her back into normal rhythm.  She does not want to go through that but she may have to!  

Anyway, so she has been at my house and we have been taking good care of her.  I am pretty sure Blakely just wants her to move in forever.  Last thing the child says every night is "GranDi spending the night?" and the first thing every morning has been, "let's go see GranDi!"  It has been very helpful to have her here even though she hasn't been 100%.  Blakely will stay in her room with her and play for a long time allowing me to get things done or just letting me hang out with Lonnie.  

We hope she is on the mend and she went back to her house yesterday because she was feeling better and she goes back to work tomorrow.  We want/need GranDi to be super healthy!  

We have big plans for this holiday weekend.  We are heading to my brother and sister in law's house to hang at the pool and just enjoy family, food and fireworks!  I hope everyone has a great 4th of July!  

Spending the night at GranDi's

Last weekend Blakely got to stay the night with my mom {GranDi}.  Since we were supposed to be out of town and she was going to watch B anyway we just went ahead and sent her over there.  That way Lonnie could rest and I could sleep in.  HOORAY!  

They had a ball, of course.  We took her over there late Saturday afternoon and told her she was going to go night night with GranDi.  She didn't even bat an eye.  She spends a lot of time over there anyway so I wasn't worried about her sleeping or going to bed or anything.  

On Sunday morning she woke up bright and early at 645 and immediately asked to swing.  So that is exactly what they did in their pajamas.

After a while they went back inside and had breakfast.  My mom gave her oatmeal.  B loves oatmeal but she also loves to spread it in her hair.  I guess I should have warned GranDi about this.  

After breakfast they went back outside for a long time.  It was a beautiful morning.  (I wouldn't know because I was asleep!)  They went on wagon rides and Blakely had long talks with Baby Doll.  (Sit baby doll!  Hi baby doll!  Kiss baby doll!)

They played in the sand box and she poured sand in her hair.  No big deal.  

I finally woke up at 11.  I know.  Amazing.  I did wake up at 7 and it took me a while to go back to sleep but, really, eleven!  I texted my mom to check on them and she said they had been up since the crack of dawn and had been outside playing since.  

I am so thankful that B and my mom have such a great relationship.  I know that my mom loves this baby just as much as I do and would do anything to see her happy.  My mom just lights up when she sees B and B does the same.  They are total buddies.  Later Sunday evening after I brought B home, my mom and I were texting.  This is one of the texts that she sent to me.  

I am thinking this spending the night with GranDi thing needs to happen again soon.  B agrees.  She's been saying night night GranDi all week long!  

Happy Weekend!!

Whirlwind Weekend

Whew.  What a weekend around here.  I am exhausted!

I guess technically the weekend started on Thursday night.  Hello football!  B even wore her football jammers...

B and I spent all of Friday playing.  She wanted to go outside so bad so I finally sucked it up and went out in the blazing heat.  She looks like she is ready for kindergarten here....

Saturday was the Razo.rback game.  B dressed up in her gear and I was trying to teach her to call the hogs.  She has the Wooooooooo part down and she yells "RAY-BACKS" at the right time.  Might be the cutest thing I've ever seen.  Will get it on video soon.  The best part? This dress was from last fall but fits because of no cloth diaper booty.  Panties for the win!  I am now pulling out all of her clothes from last fall because I think most of the stuff will still fit now.  

My mother in law also came on Saturday and brought C and S.  She had them for the weekend so she brought them down to play with B.  Blakely was beyond excited for one big reason.  Collier built her a fort within the first 3 minutes of being here.  She loved it and played in it the whole day.  They all stayed the night and had a big time.  

Cousins!

My mom and my aunt Jenni's birthday was on Sunday so we (me, them and all their friends!) went to eat on Saturday night.  I meant to take my good camera to get some pictures of them but I forgot.  My house was a crazy place and I tried to sneak out of there and ended up leaving it on the counter.  Boo.  Anyway, it was a good time.  We went to Jenni's house after and chatted and gave them their presents.  I got them both a photo album full of pictures of Blakely from 18 months until now.  I wrote out beside most of the pictures a little tidbit about where we were or just something funny about the picture.  I think they liked it ;)

Sunday was a big day mostly because it was FOOTBALL!  It was my first experience with my new N.FL Su.nday Ti.cket.  Needless to say I am in love with it...  Blakely went to my mom's house and Jenni and my Grand went over to spend the day with Blake.  They have a big time.  Blakely yells DAN-DI, GIGI, GEE-MAMA the whole way over.  

Sunday afternoon Lonnie and I had softball practice.  Have I mentioned we joined a co-ed league?  I can't remember.  Anyway, practice.  At 430 in the afternoon.  In the 100 degree heat.  Let me tell you something...that is not awesome.  And then it lasted for 3 hours!  I had been loading up on water for 2 days knowing it was going to be so hot.  It was good and I am so glad we joined because it is going to be really fun when it cools off a bit.  But I don't think I can do another one of those practices.  I felt fine after practice, just exhausted and hot, but on the drive home I started getting nauseated.  Got home and proceeded to puke for 5 minutes.  Then I was better!  Crazy.  Here's to cooler weather soon.  

Oh and I can barely move today.  Ouch.  A good ouch but still...  I haven't played softball in 13 years and my body definitely is reminding me of that today!  I am looking forward to getting back into it though.  There is a girl on our team that has a little girl Blakely's age.  I see a lot of playing in the dirt together in their future.  And it is something fun that Lonnie and I can do together.  I can't wait!  

Did you do anything fun this weekend?  

Five Months Old!

My sweet B turned five months old on the 13th!  I am a bit late in posting this but better late than never right??  

Dear Blake,
Your daddy and I love you so very much.  You change so much every day...it is amazing to watch!  I say to him every day, "When did she get this big?"  I feel like every time I come to get you out of your crib in the morning you are bigger than the night before!  You are showing more of your personality as well.  You are the sweetest thing and you LOVE your daddy so so much. You just light up when you see him.  It makes mommy so happy.  We are so proud to be your parents sweet girl!!

Firsts
Blakely tried rice cereal for the first time on 2-21-12..she's not really a fan..

We took B on her first vacation!  We drove to New Orleans and she did wonderful.  She was excited to get in the stroller every single day and go on an adventure!

She had her first Valentine's day!

She held her own bottle for the first time...

2-16-12 was the first time someone else put her to bed besides Lonnie or me.  She did ok and is getting better at it every time.  

first time wearing shoes ;)

first time wearing a hat ;)

Feeding:  We are still exclusively breastfeeding.  She gets one bottle of breast milk a day, sometimes every other day.  I pump in the morning and before I go to bed and that is enough for two bottles the next day.  If I only give her one then I freeze the rest.  I am estimating she takes about 4-5 ounces per feeding.  I'm not sure what my goal is with breastfeeding.  Will I do it for the whole first year?  I don't know.  I think my freezer stash is enough for about 6-8 weeks.  So will I stop around 10 months?  Not sure.  I am just enjoying doing it for now and will keep doing it as long as it keeps going well.  Weaning sounds horrible because the child loves the boob...  Oh, and I will keep doing it through the summer so I can FINALLY have big boobs in a bathing suit :)

Sleeping:  Weeeeeeellllll, this is ok.  I can't complain because she does sleep great.  But, she has been a little off the past few weeks.  She still sleeps good just not as long.  She will sleep until 5 in the morning and then wake up and want to eat.  I then put her in bed with me and we will sleep until 8ish.  So that is still really good, I know.  Mama was just getting used to no interrupted sleep so this has messed me up!  SInce I don't go to bed until 2 or 3 hours after her I am not getting a whole lot of sleep.  My own fault!  I think we are just in a transition period with her schedule.  I think she wants to go to bed a little earlier and then she will sleep longer, weird, I know.  But the few times that I have tried it it worked!  So we will see how this next month goes.  

Diapers:  We are doing cloth diapers all of the time except over night.  I am working on that one.  While we were on our trip we did disposables and it was fine.  I moved her up to a size 3 and we had fewer blowouts.  I think the three is a little big but since we really only use it overnight it works fine because it holds more pee!  And since it goes up higher in the back it did hold the poop better on vacation.  

Clothing:  She is in 6 month clothes or 6-9 month clothes.  Just depends on the brand.  The weather has been awesome here so we have been getting into our spring and summer dresses!  

Weight: On our home scale she weighed a little over 16 pounds.  

Height:  25 inches long.  

Eyes:  They are the most beautiful blue.  They are closer to Lonnie's blue than mine.  Mine are a little lighter than his.  

Hair:  Still rocking the bald spot in the back but it does seem to be trying to grow back in.  It is a light brown color and sometimes looks pretty red!

Daily Routine:  Our routine is pretty much the same as last month.  Vacation messed up our schedule a little bit.  Like I said before, we are kind of in transition so it is not the same every day.  She is still eating 7 times a day and I am trying to get down to 6.  We are up for the day around 730 and go down for the night at 9pm.  Still takes 2-3 naps a day but she has cut out the small catnap in the evening.  

Favorite toy:  She really loves all of her toys.  But I have to say her favorite thing in the whole world is her daddy!!  She smiles so big when he comes home from work and she wants all of his attention :)

She does love her Baby Dotty and her Baby Dolly too.  She usually wants to kiss on them when she is sleepy.  This is Dotty...

She does like "reading" her books now...

A few other things...

Blakely LOVES being naked.  She got a teeny diaper rash about a month ago so we let her be naked on the floor for a little bit.  She had so much fun!  We have been trying to do it once a day now since she likes it so much.  She gets all excited and moves her arms and legs around like crazy.

She is this close to rolling from back to front.  She can get her hips all the way over but she can't quite get her arm out from under her.  She will do it very soon though.  

She talks all the time.  I mean all.the.time.  It is adorable.  Any time we go to a restaurant she talks the entire time.  We can only go to places that are loud.  She and I just talk all day long.  

She loves her Grand Di (my mom).  Since she has been staying here they have totally bonded.  I can go put B on the bed with her and they just play while I get things done.  It.is.awesome.  In the beginning Blake would get fussy after a while and I would have to go get her.  Since mom couldn't stand up with her she couldn't be consoled.  Now Grand Di can console her, sing her to sleep, and play all day long.  I am sure going to miss her when she goes home and so will Blake!  

Blakely loves to be startled!  She thinks it is hilarious!  She jumps and then laughs out loud.  It all started out with peek a boo and has turned into strait jumping out and scaring her.  Here is one of the many videos I have taken of this.  

The weather here has been beautiful this month.  Spring has definitely sprung and we have been taking full advantage.  Here are a few pics of our days at the park, walking downtown, and laying on a blanket in our yard.  

B is not a fan of the bumbo seat.  She acts really uncomfortable when she is in it.  She straightens her legs out so that makes butt pop up out of it.  We don't ever use it anymore.  I try it every so often just to see.  

Nicknames:  We have so many nicknames for our little princess.  We rarely call her Blakely!  
Blake
Blakes
Blakers
Blakey
Blakester
B
Sweet pea
Pea pod...this one is used a LOT

I love being your mommy, sweet girl.  Every day is better than the last and I can't believe how big you are getting.  You will soon be half of a year old!  I remember so vividly bringing you into this world and it seems like it was yesterday.  I am so proud of you baby girl.  

Four Months Old!!!!

Crazy long post ahead with boatloads of adorable baby pics!  You've been warned ;)

Blakely turned four months old on February 13.  The time needs to start slowing down because I can't believe she is this grown up.  Sometimes I look at her and just think back to when she was a little newborn...I guess I will do that her whole life!

Firsts:  She rolled from tummy to back for the first time on 1-21-12.  She has done this quite a few times since but she doesn't really do it on purpose.  It still sort of surprises her.  I think she is close to rolling from back to tummy because she sleeps on her side most of the time so she just needs that last little push to get over.  

She had her first hard core growth spurt.  She wanted to eat pretty much all the time for about 4 days.  I fed her about every 1.5 to 2 hours for two whole days and my nipples weren't even that sore the first week of breastfeeding!  She was super fussy during this time and only wanted to be on the boob or asleep.  We just hung out in bed for days....it was nice to snuggle :)

She found her feet and plays with them all the time now.  

She took her first ride in the big girl stroller.

She attended her first baby shower.  It was for my friend Anna who is due with baby boy Hudson on my birthday, March 17!  She did so great.  

She started reaching out and grabbing her toys this month.  I noticed her doing it on purpose over and over again on 1-31-12.  

Her first time wearing a hoodie!

Her first jean skirt!

First time sitting up in her Bumbo seat

Her first snow day!  Although by the time I got her all dressed up to go out in it, the snow had melted....

Her first Super Bowl

Her first time in the Jumparoo!

Feeding:  We are still exclusively breastfeeding.  I dont' have any intentions to stop any time soon....boobies are magic!  She has started taking a bottle SO.MUCH.BETTER.  She still only likes to take it from me or Lonnie but we are working on that.  I usually give her a bottle once or twice a day and it is always the last feeding or two of the day.  I wanted to start giving her a bottle to go down for the night so Lonnie and I wouldn't always have to be home at 9 every night.  We tried to go out the other night and have my aunt put her down but she didn't really want to take the bottle from her.  We will keep trying though!  

This is what she has started doing when I feed her.  It's like she thinks my boob is hilarious!

At the doctor today he talked to us about starting solids.  He said it was up to us as to when we wanted to do it.  He said that from 4-6 months anything that we give her is just practice to get her used to eating with a spoon.  All of her nutrition will still come from breast milk.  When she gets to six months he wants her to have cereal every day to get more iron since she is breastfed.  So I bought a box of rice cereal.  I don't know when we will try it out...Lonnie wanted to do it like yesterday so we will see.  Maybe this weekend.  I just don't quite think she is ready but maybe I'm just sad she is growing up so fast? 

Sleeping:  She is still such an awesome sleeper at night!  I feel like we are so very lucky when it comes to this.  She sleeps about 10-11 hours each night.  Her naps during the day have gotten so much better as well.  She will usually take 2-3 naps a days and then a small cat nap in the evening.  

Diapers:  She is still in size 2 disposable diapers but we have switched to cloth!  Right now I am still figuring out which one is my favorite before I order a whole stash.  I have 10 different diapers (I know, I am obsessed) so we are cloth throughout the day.  Still disposable at night.  I just got some hemp inserts today so as soon as I get those washed I will try one at night.  I will do an entire cloth post soon to let y'all know what I like and what I don't...although I am so not an expert!  

Look at that cuteness!!!

The diaper is cute but the only thing I see in this pic is her bald spot!!!  

Clothing:  We are in a weird spot with clothes.  0-3 month stuff is getting pretty small and she can't wear any of it with the cloth diapers now.  So we are pretty much in 3-6 month or just 6 month since switching to cloth.  The 0-3 dresses will still fit with the cloth diapers.  I got so many clothes from my showers but not really any 6 month stuff.  I have a ton of all other sizes!  So I have had to order some 6 month things for her.  I hate to order anything for the cold weather because spring is right around the corner so I feel like she is wearing the same things over and over again...which is totally fine, I know :)  I can tell that she will be up a size in pants with the cloth diapers.  But I figure with spring and summer coming I can just keep her in dresses and rompers to show off her super cute diapers!  I should probably stop ordering all girly print diapers....I can't help it....the cuteness is unbearable....

Weight:  She weighed 14 lbs 2 oz at the doctor this morning.  That is right at the 50th percentile.

Height:  She is 24 inches long and that is just under the 50th percentile.  

He was happy with her growth and said that she was doing great!  She got her four shots and she screamed for a few minutes.  Lonnie had to get some blood work done so I carried her out to the car while we waited for him.  She was really upset in the car from the shots and being so sleepy so I fed her and she conked out for a while.  We came home and all took a three hour nap...it.was.awesome!

Eyes: They are still blue.  They are a darker blue like Lonnie's but they do seem to be getting a little bit brighter blue.  

Hair:  Her hair is still light brown and sometimes it looks a little red!  She has a bald rim around the back of her head now from rubbing her head and turning it back and forth when she is playing.  It is more bald on the right side because that is the side that she always wants to sleep on.  The front is getting pretty long.  

Daily Routine:  I stick to this routine pretty much every day.  Sometimes it gets a little off but I just adjust throughout the day to get back on.  

730 to 8am-wake up for the day.  First feeding.  She usually only eats off of one side (bc it is so dang engorged!) so I pump after.  
8 to 930am-play in the bouncer and watch mommy clean up the house and get Grand Di dressed and ready for the day. 
930 to 1100-morning nap.  This is still her best nap.
11am-next feeding.
1130am to 2pm-we usually play on the floor or with Grand Di since she is staying with us for a while.  Sometimes she will take a small nap from 1-2
2pm-next feeding.  If she napped before this feeding then we will play til about 415 before the next nap.  If this is only her 2nd nap then she starts to get real fussy around 3.  I usually have to rock her or put her in the swing to get her to go to sleep.  Sometimes it even takes the boob.  
5pm-next feeding and daddy comes home to play. 
7pm-next feeding and sometimes this is from the bottle if mommy has had a cocktail ;)
9pm-last feeding and she goes down for the night.  
I usually pump again when I go to bed which is like 1130...way too late!

Favorite Toy:  By far her favorite toy is this ball.

It is quite possibly the best baby toy ever invented.  Except, of course, for Sophie...

A few other things I want to remember...

She is starting to actually like tummy time.  But only if we are playing with her.  

This dolly is one of her favorites as well.  And this picture is one of MY favorites...

She LOVES LOVES LOVES taking a bath now.  She just stares at herself in the mirror the whole time.

Or she watches the water fall onto her belly...

When she went through her growth spurt and was so fussy Lonnie would carry her around all evening long like this.  She absolutely loves it and she will stop crying immediately if you hold her like this.  

She has started drooling like crazy...

She is such a daddy's girl.  It is the cutest thing ever.  She just lights up when she sees him or hears him talking.  If I am feeding her then she stops eating and starts looking around if she hears him.  When he gets home in the afternoons and she sees him for the first time she starts smiling and wiggling all over the place.  He is so good with her...she is so lucky to have such a great daddy!

my loves

She has started trying so hard to sit up.  She doesn't really want to be laying on her back anymore.  When she is laying she starts doing crunches to try and sit up...so cute!

Sometimes I put her on the floor with a couple of toys.  I'll come back a little bit later and the toys are scattered all over the place and she is totally passed out.  She played so much she wore herself out!

She smiles all the time.  It makes my heart smile...

She has started to get a little bit of stranger anxiety the past few weeks.  When someone takes her from us or picks her up she is ok for about 30 seconds.  Then she starts wailing!  I hate it for the person holding her but she will usually stop after a minute or so.  Especially if Lonnie or I get in her face.  

We don't go anywhere without Jaffy the pink giraffe.  She is always in the car seat, swing, or bouncer with B.  

Mommy:  I am doing good.  This month has been a little overwhelming for me.  Since my mom is staying here because she broke her ankle and is non weight bearing for at least 3 more weeks I have been SUPER busy.  I enjoy having her here though.  I'm actually getting used to it and I'm not sure I want her to go!  She is able to do a little more for herself now so that helps me out a lot.  She and Blakely have totally bonded and that makes me very happy :)

Daddy:  Daddy is doing ok this month.  He has had a few health issues that are making him very tired.  He wants to go to bed early but once her sees her smiling face he has a hard time doing that!  

I love this little girl with my whole heart.  It is impossible to even put in to words.  I love being her mommy and I am so excited to watch her grow up.  

She is just so beautiful....