the bedding dilemma continues…

July 31, 2010 by · 3 Comments

Have you guys figured out that I can’t make a decision to save my life? Well if you haven’t, this post will seal the deal for you!

I love bedding. I love looking at bedding online, magazines, stores, and dreaming of what our master bedroom “could” be. Brandon, however, doesn’t care as long as the sheets are clean. This is where it is hard for me to share my passion for bedroom makeovers.

Me: We could get a duvet and a down comforter and be oh so cozy all the time.
B: What is wrong with the bedding we have?
Me: Umm, I am just tired of it and it’s not down. It’s not fluffy. It’s not inviting.
B: Well, we’ll see.

This is as far as I ever get in this conversation. Mostly, because Brandon doesn’t really care about the looks of the bed as long as it is clean and comfortable. And maybe a couple other things. But I want it to be warm, cozy, inviting, and say “wow, I could lay in here all day and read/drink coffee/nap.”

Here is my latest predicament. The new Pottery Barn catalog arrived in my hot little hands and I can’t decide between fluffy, cozy, down comforter or a quilt (because Brandon really loved quilts, especially handmade ones that could be passed down to our kids, etc.)

Here is the quilt from Pottery Barn that I am in love with. 
And here is the duvet set. 
The best part? Either way, we wouldn’t have to paint our room. I mean, we still could, but it wouldn’t really matter with these choices. So now I just have to decide: fluffy bed? Structured quilt? *sigh*
Filed Under: bedding ·

Momma Bear

July 30, 2010 by · 3 Comments

Before Brayden arrived into our world, I was a very energetic, happy, carefree, go-with-the-flow type of person. Apparently she left the building while I was in the hospital. She left behind a total momma bear.

Rarely do I ever leave Brayden with anyone. While I was working over the last couple of weeks, either my mom or sister had him, and he was only half of a mile away from me. It was the perfect situation. If I have to run errands in town, sometimes I leave him with my sister or she just comes along! Brayden has had a couple of overnights with my parents and does really well there, but I don’t want to wear out my welcome either! When he was little, I couldn’t leave him since I was nursing exclusively. I didn’t want to pump and that was a choice I made for me, for Brayden, and that Brandon was OK with. I stay at home so pumping seemed selfish to me. (note: my opinion, I understand why others pump!) I didn’t want to leave him. It is time I will never get back. I don’t want to miss anything. Those feelings have continued even now that he is a whole year old.

There’s been comments ever since Brayden arrived from seemingly everyone I know- “we can watch him anytime!” “You and Brandon need some time to yourselves” and the list goes on and on. While I know they only mean well, it’s easier said than done for me. He’s my first, my baby boy, the axis on which my world spins. I feel guilty every time I leave him, even if he is only that 1/2 mile away.

I guess part of that is my battle with anxiety. Although I have seen improvements in myself since being on Zoloft, I still get nervous when Brayden is not around me. And not in a oh-no-he-might-get-hurt way but what-if-he-needs-his-mommy way. And it’s nothing personal either. I just have a hard time letting others take care of my son. I guess I don’t think its that big of a deal, but on the other side, I can see why I have been getting lots of comments about it lately. I mean, he is ONE after all. And grandparents do need to be a part of his life. But I just can’t let go. He is my responsibility.

I have cried more tears in the past 2 weeks than I did the last month of pregnancy and the first month of his life. Dead serious. I just can’t come to terms with Brayden being one. Not a baby, but a toddler. A TODDLER. A walking, more independent, sassy, adorable, talking toddler. And I just don’t want to miss a single thing. So that’s where the momma bear comes from. And I don’t know if she will be hibernating anytime soon.

Filed Under: Brayden, life as a mom, the second year ·

Life after the big O-N-E

July 29, 2010 by · 3 Comments

If you read any of my posts regarding Brayden’s birthday, you saw how flat out exhausting last week was! Phew! It all ended up working out OK, although I had higher hopes for the Birthday boy. Wouldn’t you know, Monday morning Brayden woke up and looked better. I didn’t have my hopes too high, but as the day went on, I could tell that he was feeling more like himself. 


We cleaned up from the party, cleaned out the toy box, boxed up the “baby” toys, and made a list for Sam’s Club. Brayden played and played and played- and was a worn out little boy from all of the new stuff he has to keep him occupied! 
Tuesday, he had his one year well check appointment. He weighed in at 23 pounds (50th percentile if I remember correctly) is 31″ in length (70th percentile? the paper is in his room!) and looks great. He kicked that nasty virus and was a squirmy wormy at the office. He cried for about 10 seconds during his shots, fell asleep on the way home, and played like it was the last day he would get to have toys when we got home. I’d say that things are looking up around here- for now! 

Filed Under: Brayden, the second year ·

Birthday Celebrations- The Party!

July 28, 2010 by · 6 Comments
The party could have been better as far as Brayden feeling great, but we still managed to have a good time. He napped from 11-2 and the party started at 3, so even though normally that would have been perfect, he still wasn’t 100%.
Brooke, Jason, and Lainie :)  
This picture pretty much sums up how Brayden was for his party. 
Blowing out the candle!

Not a happy birthday boy. 
All in all, it was nice to see everyone, and Brayden got lots of new toys and clothes! After everyone left, he calmed down a little boy, played with his new toys, and was in bed fast asleep by 9pm. Parties wear him out! 
Filed Under: Brayden's First Birthday ·

Birthday Celebrations- His actual birthday!

July 27, 2010 by · 1 Comment

After a long night, Brandon and I were relieved when Brayden slept in until 8am. We both went into his room when he woke up to wish him a Happy Birthday, and then I proceeded to make chocolate chip pancakes with homemade whipped cream. He was all over it.

After that, he had a quick bath…..
…and then I turned on the Wonder Pets. 
We have had our fill of Linny, Tuck, and Ming Ming, too. 
In the meantime, my sister and I got started on the cake and cupcakes for Brayden’s party. Pretty sure we dirtied every bowl, spatuala, and used about 25 ziploc bags for the piping. We definitely had a mess. 
After we gave Brayden some lunch, we let him have a cupcake for practice. He LOVED it! (all of these pictures are yellowish because of the fluorescent lighting in our kitchen and I haven’t found the perfect remedy yet.) 
After yet ANOTHER bath, we played with some more blocks. And went to bed. And hoped that the birthday boy would hold it together for his party the next day. 
Filed Under: Brayden's First Birthday ·

Birthday Celebrations- the week of

July 26, 2010 by · 4 Comments

I have to split this into multiple posts or it will be super overwhelming! But before we get to the birthday celebrations, let’s take a quick recap of the events of the past week leading up to the big party.

Tuesday afternoon, Brayden woke up from his nap very warm, clingy, and not his usual happy self. I started him on ibuprofen immediately, hoping for the best. I should have known the worst was coming. Wednesday morning he woke up burning up, screaming, and would not stop crying. Didn’t want his sippy, didn’t want to eat, didn’t want to play. Just clung to me and fell back asleep an hour after waking up. Thinking he had an ear infection (because I don’t see anymore teeth) I called the dr. and we went at 1pm that afternoon. She said he had a really bad sore throat and that this summer head cold was going around. In little kids, it just makes them achy, whiny, and not interested in doing much. They swabbed him for strep, it was negative, so I was just to keep him on tylenol and ibuprofen and push the fluids. She said when he was at the end of it, he would develop a rash on his body but not to worry because it’s not contagious and it doesn’t itch or bother him.

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were awful. Brayden just was not himself. In fact, Thursday afternoon from 2:30-5:30 he took a nap on my chest in the chair. He hasn’t done that since he was about 5 months old, and as I sat there and realized just how big my baby was, I started to cry. I felt so bad for him, and wanted nothing more than to make it better for him. But I was out of options, so we just carried on.

Friday night, he went to bed with no problems, but woke up at 12:15am just screaming. I let him cry for a few minutes, seeing if he would just go back to sleep, but he continually got louder, so I went to get him. I gave him another dose of meds, a sippy of milk, his paci, and rocked him. And rocked him. And rocked him. Nothing. Finally, after about an hour, I woke Brandon up to sit with him so I could go to the bathroom. I was on the verge of a meltdown. I changed him and rocked him some more to no avail. Finally, I figured if he was awake he must be hungry, so I got out some cereal and applesauce (at 1:30am mind you) and tried that. He ate, but then got a HUGE smile on his face and wanted to play. I on the other hand, wanted to scream. I had big plans for the next morning, a birthday breakfast, getting things ready for his party- and this was putting a huge damper on them.

Finally, after 45 more minutes of rocking, at 2:45am I carried him to his room because he was finally asleep. Wouldn’t you know, I tripped over his toy aquarium that wasn’t turned off and his eyes got to the size of dinner plates. I swayed with him in my arms until his eyes closed, and laid him down. He sat straight up, started crying, and I walked out and shut the door. I felt like the worst mother on the planet. I have never just left him in his crib to cry it out, but honestly, I was done. I couldn’t deal with him one more second. I KNEW he was exhausted, and he just wouldn’t give it up. I walked into our bedroom, crying, telling Brandon that I laid him down and he sat right up crying and that I just walked out. He said to turn the monitor on. I didn’t hear anything. Brayden had already gone to sleep. I breathed a sigh of relief, but stayed awake just a little longer to make sure he was asleep. At 3am, I drifted back off to sleep…hoping that the birthday boy would wake up in a better mood on Saturday morning for his birthday breakfast that I had planned!

(to be continued…..)

Filed Under: Brayden's First Birthday, the second year ·

Happy Birthday, Brayden!

July 24, 2010 by · 4 Comments

Dear Brayden,
A year ago yesterday, this was your dad and I getting ready to leave for the hospital. There was no rush because I was being induced, and Aunt Jamie was more impatient then all of us combined!

After almost 24 hours and a C-section later (stubborn?), you were brought into this world on July 24, 2009 at 6:32pm, weighing in at 7 pounds, 9 ounces and were 19.5 inches long. You were perfect. I couldn’t wait to hold you, but I had to wake up completely first. When I saw your daddy carrying you towards me, I started bawling. You were finally here. At about 7:05pm, I finally got to hold you. My baby boy. We had started our family, and you were the perfect beginning. 
I remember how proud your daddy was that day (and still is!) and I remember thinking that there is no greater love in this whole world than the love I have for you and your daddy. We prayed for you for a long time before we were blessed with you, and continue to pray for you daily.

We love playing with you, rocking you, teaching you new things, and watching you grow. This is the absolute toughest job on the planet- it isn’t always this much fun- but it is SO worth it and SO rewarding.

You are the most curious little boy, wanting to know how the world works. Of course, I think you are incredibly smart and you are a comic in your own right. You love playing with toy balls, your Mickey Mouse from Sheana, blocks, Tupperware, and books. You find ways to get things to work the way YOU want them to, and I can’t wait to see where that takes you in life.

I love being your momma. You bring joy to my every day, and I often wonder what I did without you. I love you big.

Momma

Filed Under: Brayden, the first year ·

Yay- it’s FRIDAY!

July 23, 2010 by · 2 Comments

First of all, I want to thank my 4 guest posters this week! It was fun to host all of you, have some new visitors to my blog, and read all of your great posts! I look forward to doing it again soon!

Secondly, Brayden’s 1st birthday is TOMORROW! I can’t believe how fast this past year has gone. Tomorrow there will be a special post up- my one year letter to my little man. I hope you will stop by over the weekend to read it. It took me almost 2 weeks to write. There is just SO much I want to say!

Have a great weekend! Brayden’s party is on Sunday, so look for a recap next week!

Filed Under: Brayden, the second year ·

Guest Blogger- Kim Michelle

July 22, 2010 by · 1 Comment

I have been a follower/lover of Kim Michelle’s blog for a long time. Like even before she announced her and Mr. M were expecting. Their little girl is such a cutie pie! Kim is a blogger who inspired me when I started blogging, and I like how she covered a variety of topics, from recipes and food, to fun, crafty things! I was thrilled when she said she would guest post for me! SO read below, leave her some comment love, and then head on over to her blog. You won’t be disappointed.

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As a new mom, I’ve realized that the list of my “most valuable possessions” has radically changed in the past few months. I didn’t take notice of it, really, until I started to sweat with excitement over the new Iphone4. Unlike Julie here, I had owned an OG iphone (yes… that’s actually a 1stGen, but OG just sounds so much cooler!) for the past 2.5 years and enjoyed it immensely. But when the new phone was announced, I realized that an upgrade would give me access to clearer baby photos on the go, HD videos of every silly kid moment I wanted to capture, and I could talk to the grandparents using FaceTime… and I was smitten! Fast forward through 3 weeks of ownership, and I’ve already made a movie and filled my phone with about 100 new photos. It is, hands down, my favorite possession at the moment. I think I’ve completely forgotten that it’s primarily a device used to speak to others, but more of a all-in-one super toy for a mom to enjoy.

Next on the list would have to be my digital SLR camera. Now I loved this thing before the baby came around for all of our photography-hobby needs, but suddenly it needs to travel everywhere we go. I mean, what if she just looks insanely cute and I only have a iphone4 photo of the moment? I can’t blow that up into an 11×14 image?!? I need the big giant camera to capture the best photo of her I can… and in the meantime capture the extra bags below mom and dad’s eyes. Hey, you win some cute baby shots for every bad one you grab of mom. I can deal with that.

And finally… I really never thought I’d say this… but… our “washing” appliances top the list as well. My dishwasher and washing machine never disappoint as they do double duty daily for the endless supply of things that need to be washed. I’ll admit that when we were nesting, I was more thrilled with the idea of how they completed our home than anything else. Now, if I stopped to think what life would be like if my washing machine wasn’t so quick or quiet or spacious, I’d be at a complete loss for words. Stains come out (of our clothes and hers), bottles get disinfected and washed, and life just goes on day after day without me wondering how it all happened. 

People often remark on how parenthood changes your priorities dramatically, but I’m going to say that after looking at this list, it changes your perspectives on things just as much. The super cute new dress at Banana Republic is “dry clean only” (aka. not baby spit-up approved), the bigger TV just means you have to come up with more ways to avert a child’s eyes from it, and there’s no way you can make from the door to the car with the bottle bag and baby in a new pair of high heeled boots. Life just fits a little differently on you… but it’s still your same life, just viewed from a different angle. 

Filed Under: guest blog ·

Guest Blogger: Sue

July 21, 2010 by · Leave a Comment

Continuing on in our week of guest bloggers, next up is Sue! She writes the blog diaperbliss.blogspot.com and is one of my newest blog finds! What she wrote for me is hilarious- so enjoy! And leave some comment love!

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Nap times are priceless….

Nap-times are priceless. The hardest part though, is deciding what to do in those 90 or so minutes. Wah,wah,wah! Yes the life of a stay-at-home mom, I get it; stop the whine! Nevertheless, these are my usual options: catching up on my phone call list, house cleaning, the treadmill, or beauty & hygiene. Sadly, beauty & hygiene a rare runner up!

Unfortunately, it sucks when you pick the wrong one for the day…

Ever have that day when the house is a total disaster, I don’t mean just a few dirty dishes in the kitchen sink and a bed or two to make…I’m talking “dog-gone chaos where your scared where your feet will land next” kind-a-mess! Perhaps the daunting task of cleaning it all up seemed overwhelming and although clearly, cleaning should have been the choice, I picked a bath instead. After a week of a teething toddler and entertaining guests, I felt entitled to a day for me! A long, bubbly bath with all the girlie scents I could muster together. (By the way, lavender & vanilla by Suave with Bath & Body’s Cherry Blossom are great together!) I even made an aromatic herbal tea to sip and lit an apple spice candle as I enjoyed the peace and the quiet. I began to relax and forget about the splattered grape juice on the wall and the smashed banana pieces under the table that even the dogs forgot to lick up…

Aahh! the peace…and quiet…my eyes felt heavy and my body relaxed…That is, until the doorbell rang!

Uggh, I thought, as I rushed and covered up with a towel and robe and wondered what gadget my husband ordered this time that would be the cause of this disruption! I slowly walk over to the living room carefully determining each foot placement in order not to trip over choo-choo trains and tractors. My heart starts to race as the sound of a child at the door becomes more evident… Now my mind starts racing until a recollection of me inviting over a new friend for Greyson and his mommy we had just met at the park two days ago becomes more and more clear.

For a brief second I think, I could hide and not answer… I mean, what an awful impression! How could I let this person I barely know see what a horrific home I keep. I imagined the look of horror as she entered my home clinging to her son tightly.

While getting closer to our entrance, I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror: A barefoot and robed, towel-turban scatterbrain!

Walking over to the front door, feet still stomping wet, I opened it. She looked somewhat confused as I greeted her warmly and invited them inside (right before kicking a dirty sock my dog had been chewing behind the door). As she walked in I noticed something strange….OMG!, she too was wearing a robe and towel turban!?!?!? what?!

Then suddenly, the sound of a child crying from the baby monitor becomes more and more recognizable as little G’s cry…My eyes opened and I realized I just had the best nap ever…AHH! Nap-times are priceless…

Filed Under: guest blog ·
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