Wednesday, April 29, 2009

8 Weeks today!













Wow...my little boy is 8 weeks old today! It's crazy that in just 2 months time you can become so attached to someone, that you can't imagine how you lived without them before. Gavin has became such a part of our little family, well, he's made us a family, but that's not what I'm trying to say. Let's see, how can I word this...I thought that in the first few months he would just be eating and sleeping most of the time, that he would be laying on his back, here but not here in personality...does that make sense? But he has such personality, he tries to talk to us, he laughs, he smiles, he coo's and goo's and POO's, lol (had to finish that with a rhyme). His eyes light up when he see's us, he just looks like he's thinking, ya know? He's more than a newborn, he's a little guy full of life and personality...he really does make us a FAMILY, our home a home full of joy, love, and warmth. And I truly do thank God for blessing us with HIM, our little Gavin David.










So what's going on with Mr. G these days---well, I'm having some bottle trouble! I started out with the Playtex Drop-ins. Yes, they are great bottles, don't make him gassy, don't cause any spit up...Gavin and the drop-ins mesh well together. BUT---I don't like that you have to buy bags everytime you run out & that you have to push the air our of the bags before each feeding and after each burp. SO, I thought I would try the Avent bottles. I happen to LOVE the bottles, they're so easy, I like the size, blah, blah, blah...but it's not really about me now is it! Gavin had been doing OK with the bottles, he had to get use to the quicker flow, but he had adjusted well until a couple of days ago. The last 2 days he has went from eating 6oz. to 4oz. What causes this??? Well, my expert opinion is that he is getting too much air, he's not burping enough and he THINKS he's full when he really hasn't had enough to eat. And he's been a little fussy too--maybe his stomach is hurting? It would be SOOOOO much easier if he would just SPEAK to me, but then again if he did that, I might die of a heart attack! So, this morning, I ran to Target to see if they had MEDIUM flow nipples for the Drop-Ins because the slow is a little too slow. Picture this...I roll out of bed, wearing Nelson's T-shirt, a pair of jogging pants, my hair wadded up in a bun and I head out the door to Target. One more minor detail...I didn't brush my teeth or wash my face or ANYTHING! (That's True Love, right!) So, I get to Target, they don't have medium flow nipples, don't even make them...only slow and fast. I look at all the bottles and they don't have exactly what I wanted to try (Dr. Brown's wide neck bottles), but they did have the regular ones, so I bought ONE Dr. Brown bottle. I haven't tried it yet, but at his next feeding I will be. I hate that it has all the extra parts, but if it works well for Gavin then I think I can take the extra time to wash a few pieces to a bottle.


BTW--my husband and mom think I'm going crazy, they both think I'm a worry wart and that I have spent way too much time thinking about this bottle situation. I look at it as I'm a very caring, concerned parent that wants nothing but the best for her baby & I think they need to get a new viewpoint on the issue! So, all my blogger friends---any of you that have fed with bottles, do you have a suggestion on what worked best for your baby? Please share.


(Proof that Nels thinks I'm coo-coo-->This was the note I found on my computer that Nelson left me while I was out of the room...notice the website I was visiting in the background, lol. He DOES still love me tho :op )










So I've posted a few new pics of Gavin. I wanted to edit them with CS3, but my computer is completely out of memory so I have to post them straight out of the camera. This is Gavin's Janie and Jack outfit (for any of you moms out there who haven't been to this store or website, you should go---especially if you have a girl, their clothes are pricey, but Beautiful!)










Wow--my blogs are a little long aren't they. Guess that's what happens when you are at home with a newborn all day and have NO adult conversations :o).


Until next time.....

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

And one more...big smiles!


Gavin the Pooh!


My little pooh bear is 7 weeks old today & such a happy little fella! Had to share the pics I took of him...this was just after waking up from a nap.











And he says "Okay Mom...that's enough pictures" LOL.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

My Big Boy!

Just had to share this short video of Gavin reaching for a rattle. He will be 7 weeks old tomorrow, so I was so surprised when I saw that he was already taking so much interest in this toy and reaching for it! What can I say...I'm a proud mama!

And Gavin says "Thanks Aunt Kena, for buying me this nice little ensamble...I enjoy it!"

Monday, April 20, 2009

Family Matters

6 weeks and 4 days old!



Uhhh...Mondays, never fun. BUT what a nice weekend we had! Some of our family from Pensacola came down to meet baby G. Johnny, Miriam, and Melonie spent the weekend with us, arriving on Friday and leaving on Sunday. Melonie is 2 years old and I was a little worried about how the weekend would pan out with 2 babies, but it went pretty smoothly!

We definitely had to keep a close watch on the two, but Melonie just loved Gavin. She brought me blankets to cover him with, the paci---she was quite the little helper. And what a little doll she is. I'm so bad about living in the moment and I didn't get that many pics of them together, but I have one to share taken just before they left. Aren't the just adorable???

(More cousin pics from another visit---Kalyn & Todre w/Gav)




I'm so glad that Gavin got to spend time with his family this weekend. Even though he doesn't realize that they are family, it's nice to get to share him with people that I know love him. It's hard living so far away from everyone. I feel like I have this beautiful little boy that I want to share with the world...especially those that are so dear to us, but because of the distance, I can't. Fortunately my mom and aunt will be coming down to visit in May to watch the baby while I go back to work for 2.5 weeks. And I can't wait! I can't wait for them to see what a precious little boy I have! And for him to get lots of love, hugs, and kisses from people other than Nelson and I. It's important to me, enough said.

Updates on Gavin...he is the happiest little boy in the mornings! He smiles, coo's, the whole shabang and it's just adorable! ALSO--he seems to be somewhat of a "sweater"! Most mornings his clothes are a little damp from sweating in the night; I swaddle him before bedtime and I cover him with a thin blanket, do I overdo it? I just don't want to think that he's cold, but then I don't want him to lay in his sweat either! Oh well...at the end of the day, I would rather him be a little warm than cold. He is sleeping around 4 hours at a time now. But ALWAYS wakes up around 5 am and it's almost impossible to get him to go back to sleep. I think I've already started a bad habit of putting him in bed with us. But I'm just so exhausted at this hour and I'll do whatever I have to do to get a little shut eye! But this morning that didn't even work---he was awake every few minutes from 5 on it seemed. I can already tell that he wants to be included on everything, he's such a part of our little family already! He wants us to talk to him, follows us with his eyes if we walk by him, he has a little pretend cry to get attention, and he WANTS me to put him in bed with us in the mornings. I just love it! Oh! And just like baby Story...he's in a size 1 diaper now---our babies are growing up on us so fast :op!

Happy Monday to ALL! Have a wonderful week!

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Our little Getaway...









(not the best pic, but a family shot, nonetheless)



We had a very successful anniversary weekend; nice resort, great weather, and at the top of the list a WONDERFUL baby!!





(a visual of all that Gavin did over the weekend!)


The resort was beautiful...shame on me for not taking any pics! But it had a huge garden inside filled with palm trees and every kind of flower and plant you could think of! There were several nice restaurants, a bit too pricey, but hey it was our one year! The only downfall was that there was a MASSIVE cheerleading competition (COA) and every where you looked you saw a young girl with a high ponytail, tons of makeup, and the shortest of skirts, with the most fit bodies running around, lol. Sure made me feel good about myself ;o). But I remember those days of cheering very well and I too sported the short skirt; it's funny how age changes your thoughts on things...I'm not so in to cheerleading anymore, I really wasn't my senior year. But I've already decided that if I have a daughter and she wants to cheer I'll be the mom in the stands that you see standing up and cheering her on 100% of the way!





ANYWAY---->>>we mainly did a lot of hanging out by the pool. The weather was really nice and the baby boy just slept the entire time (in the shade of course). It was a very laid back, relaxing weekend. And it was nice to have the husband home for 3 full days straight without the interruptions of work.
( I had to share Gavin's mad face...we allowed him to get upset one time over the weekend, ;oP )

All I wanted for my anniversary was for Nelson to get up with the baby for one night and feed him so I could sleep. Yea, that wasn't so successful, but I do give him kudos for trying, God love his heart! Gavin slept from 11 until 3. That was his first time waking up, which was nice. While Nelson was preparing his bottle, I thought I would be nice and change his diaper really quick, then go back to dreamland...Not so much. In the middle of Gavin's feeding & my sleep, Nelson let's out the most terrifying gasp EVER. I literally thought Gavin had swallowed the nipple and was fighting for his life, lol. NO...just a little spit up, more like throw up. (I always call Nelson a "drama queen"). So, who jumps out of bed, grabs the baby, changes his clothes, & cleans up the mess??? That would be me, the sleeping queen, HA! But after that, Nelson took over...finished feeding him & got up with him again at 6. We even slept until almost 11 that morning, so all in all, Nelson was a great help!




Oh, Gavin is officially taking 5 oz. now! Hope I'm not overfeeding the little guy, but hey I have to give the boy what he wants, right??? AND I'm proud to say he is taking the paci...which is a MIRACLE worker when I need him to sleep or calm down! YAY!



Here we are eating our wedding cake...we both could only stomach one bite...it wasn't so good anymore :o(.





Until next time....

Thursday, April 9, 2009

typo, lol

in my happy anniversary blog i see that i have the word "mant" instead of "many". i don't know how to edit once i've posted. keep in mind any typo you see may be the result of typing with one hand while holding a baby in the other, haha.

Happy Anniversary!



Wow...in just a few days it will be one year of sweet marriage bliss with Nels. It doesn't seem possible that it could only be one year! On this day last year, I'm sure we were doing last minute things to prepare for the big day. My wedding was definitely a fairytale for me. My heart smiles thinking back on that day. First, we had rehearsal dinner (the night before) at a beachside park, where we enjoyed delicious food, great conversation, and the most beautiful sunset over the ocean. Then came the day that I married my best friend & the person that I knew almost from the moment we met that we were destined for eachother. It was a long and hard road that led me to him, but I wouldn't change a moment of the heartaches that I suffered through to make me appreciate, respect, honor, and trust the person that I feel like God created just for me. And I could never give enough thanks to Him. I have been more than blessed.




And now just one short year later, I look down at this little boy sleeping on my chest & I see the BEST of US and it could almost bring me to tears. I love him more than I ever could have imagined and I know so much of that is because he is the result of a love that has brought me so mant wonderful things.




We leave tomorrow to the Gaylord Palms Resort and we're taking our little creation with us. I'll be sure to post pics of our mini vaca as soon as we get back.




Until then, Happy Easter....and in case you ever read this Nels...Happy 1 Year Anniversary, I love you... "more than all the stars in the sky".

Monday, April 6, 2009

Naples for the weekend...




It was wonderful to get out this weekend and even better...Gavin was such a good boy!!! He slept on the drive to and from Naples (a 3 1/2 hour drive) and he suffered through the Naples heat & humidity like a trooper!




When we first go there he was somewhat fussy, I didn't really know what to do, I had fed him, changed him and he had plenty of sleep. My sis-n-law is a RN and a mother of three so I was glad that she would get to spend some time with Gavin and help me figure out what the cries and fussiness was all about. Her observation and advice was very helpful...she told me to feed him MORE> so now we're up to 4 oz. sometimes a little more. But he's sleeping longer, crying less, & seems to be happier. I get so paranoid about feeding him too much though, because I've now had two spit up incidents that shot out the mouth and nose, which terrifies me even though he doesn't shed a tear! One month old, weighs 9lbs., and eats 4oz. of formula...does that sound about right? Let me know all you experienced mothers!!!




Anywho...just wanted to share a few pics from the weekend...I got a few sweet ones of Gavin and Nelson together :o).

Friday, April 3, 2009

The Dreadful POSTPARTUM BODY!

I debated on even blogging about such shallow, vain things as my appearance, but I think I might feel ***A LITTLE*** better if I share and maybe hear about others' experience with the issue.

I thank God for Gavin...he's worth every single ounce of fat, blubber, cellulite a milllion times over. BUT, at the same time, I am struggling with this new look I have going on! I know it has only been 4 weeks, but of the 40lbs. that I gained, I've only lost around 21lbs. and I feel like this last 21 is taking forever and a day to GO AWAY! I am honestly feeling really down about how I look and I know that is ridiculous. I have so many things to be grateful for, we have our health, wonderful family, friends, a home, food, etc. so why should I complain really? But as much as I try to fight it, I'm bothered. Have any of you been there? Felt this way? I'm trying to be positive, but when I go to the mall, pick out clothes to try on, put them on & have what they call a "muffin top" because even the bigger sizes aren't big enough, I get so discouraged. On top of that I'm very pale...which just doesn't work when you live in Florida...and my complexion is still a mess (this began with the pregnancy). So, now I'm complaining. I'll stop with that, because I sound so superficial, I guess I'm just trying to adjust to this new person I've become. Lord---be with me!

On a better note...we took our baby boy to get his picture taken with the Easter Bunny today! We went to the Mall at Millenia, where they had a beautiful set-up. Gavin was a little angel and so darn cute! I'll try to scan the pic somehow and upload eventually. I was worried that he would cry, but they put him in the Easter Bunny's basket & he layed there so perfectly, he even smiled a few times. I don't want to brag too much (lol) but he did have a crowd :o).

Have a FABULOUS weekend!!!

Lindsay

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Goodbye breastmilk...Hello formula :o(

The title says it all. After 4 weeks of pain, frustration, guilt, and putting 100% effort and heart in to breastfeeding, I've came to a crossroad and it looks as though I am forced to take the formula route. I really wanted to breastfeed, but on top of the fact that I don't think I'm producing enough milk, I have a bruised breast, and lots of pain to go with it! I've pumped the sore breast 3 times in the past 2 days for around 10 minutes or so @ a time and I've only gotten 4oz. On the left breast I'm lucky to pump a 1/2oz @ a time. Because of this Gavin was nursing around every hour and a half...I was literally getting one hour between each feeding & I'm pretty sure this is part of where the pain comes from. My little baby was spending a lot of time crying & I think it was due to being hungry constantly. So, I'm giving formula a go. It seems to be going a little better & my hands are baby free for longer periods. Please pray for us...that the "drying up" period isn't painful for me, but most importantly that Gavin adjusts well.


I have a hair appointment today, it will be the first time that I've went anywhere alone & that Nelson has watched the baby by himself. It will seem odd to get out, but part of me looks forward to spending some time on ME!!! Does that sound selfish or what??? It's just that the last 4 weeks...I have really neglected myself & I don't think thats good for my self-esteem, my mood, or for my husband, lol...I still want to look nice for him, I mean after all, I would still consider us newlyweds. Our 1 year anniversary is April 12th, just a little over a week away, & on Easter! We are going to the Gaylord Palms resort for the weekend, it's wonderful to have something to look forward to. I would definitely classify myself as someone who NEEDS things to look forward to...it really helps my emotional state, hehe! But the last 2 1/2 years will be hard to top...moving to Miami, moving to Orlando, getting engaged, getting married, & having a baby; makes a stay at Gaylord seem very minimal, doesn't it! But I'm still very excited just the same!


This weekend we are headed to Naples for my nephews birthday. Nicolas will be 5...where does time go??? Let's hope the 3 hour drive is a pleasant one & that the weekend is too!


Guess it's time to take my daily walk before it gets too warm out...still have a lot of work to do on this postpartum body & w/o breastfeeding, it's going to be an even bigger challenge! Wish me luck!!! I'm in a wedding this summer & I MUST get myself together!


I love my boys sooooo much!!!!!