Summer Shape Up Check in

So it's Friday again - we survived the first week of daycare and both mom and baby are still happy and sane!  In fact, the consistency has been great for Noah and he's sleeping better than ever (and now that I say that he's going to throw me for a loop I'm sure!).  And I'm actually getting work done for work which, in order to keep my job, is a necessity!

Time for an accountability check with the Summer Shape Up!

I've done well with boxing - it's fun enough that I want to go on a regular basis and the workouts are different and challenging every time!  I've managed to do the 3x a week that I wanted to so far and forsee that continuing.  It's tricky when we go out of town for the weekend and means I end up doing three days in a row which is tough but hey, whatever it takes right?

I also started to watch my calories more closely.  You can't lose weight unless you take in less than you burn but if you take in too little then your body enters starvation mode and it's completely counter productive so I've had to start watching.  So far so good....

Stats for this week:
Day 1 - 142lbs
Day 8 - 138lbs - woohoo!
Day 24 - 140lbs - ouch...no excuses, I have a new workout regime and a new resolve for eating healthy...we should start seeing that number drop.
Day 38 - 139.5 - okay, .5 lbs!  I attribute that to the fact that i'm putting on muscle and muscle weighs more than fat right??:)

My clothes are starting to fit better and I can feel my abs getting stronger.  I need to figure ot how to get a bit more cardio in there now...maybe on my off days a quick run or even fast walk will probably help -let's see if I can do that!

Daycare Day 1....

The day I've been dreading since I first found out we were expecting has finally arrived - the first day at daycare.  Dropping Noah off was torture…I made it to the car before the tears started and managed to gather myself enough to drive home.  However, walking into my office where his swing and bouncy seat were staring me in the face finished me off and I ended up curled up on the bed crying.  Macie (our Viszla) was soo upset that I was upset and didn't know what to do with me. I wanted to cuddle with her and all she wanted to do was lick my face and ears. I guess that's her way of saying, "It's okay mom.  It will all be okay."  Have I mentioned how much I love my dog??

I managed to make it thru the day with only a few more teary episodes (an hour of boxing did wonders as it had my endorphins pumping for most of the afternoon) and was ready and waiting by the front door when DH pulled up with little Noey in tow!  He seemed none worse for the wear and his daily report was wonderful.  He napped when he should have napped and ate like a champ at just the right times (guess we were on more of a schedule than I thought).  He did seem exhausted - guess there's lots going on at daycare.  So, we wrapped up his day with a quick walk, a nice bath, a bottle and some cuddle time (I just couldn't bear to put him in his crib even though he was fast asleep on my chest).  I finally put him down around 8:30 and he was out until 1am.

People say you don't know love until you have a child and all childless people think, "um ya...okay...that's crazy" (i know i did) but boy was I wrong.  I know I love my husband with all my heart and I don't want to diminish because without him I'd not be me.  But my love for Noah exceeds anything I ever thought was possible.  It's a different kind of love than what I feel for my husband.  Noah is my heart! Part of me out in the world and quite vulnerable.  This quote said it best:

Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.  ~Elizabeth Stone

So, here's to day 1 of daycare having come and gone and we're all still sane and happy and hoping that day 2 goes better!

My First Mothers day, a birthday, and a baptism...

This weekend was quite a weekend in our house hold!  Not only did I get to celebrate my very first mothers day and turn 30, we also celebrated Noah's baptism!

Yes, we're a little nutz for trying to fit it all in but it was the perfect opportunity to have all the moms in one place for mothers day.  Our birthday was just a bonus (or rather curse I'd rather forget - the bug 3 OH!) Anywho...since there's no flash during the church service our brother in law had his work cut out for him with the pics.

Noah did okay during the baptism.  He was hungry and proceeded to snack on my shoulder the entire time we were up there (much to the amusement of the congregation).  He started to squawk until Pastor Paul held him up in the air - my son the attention seeker.  He immediatley stopped crying and started looking around (and then started crying again when he was handed back to me).

All in all it was a great weekend.  We spent lots of time with our families and enjoyed celebrating Noah.

New Bloggy Badge...

Lookie over there ---> See it? Yes, thanks to new bestest friend Jenn @ South of Sheridan I have a new adorable bloggy button to share!!  Thanks so much Jenn for helping me put that together!!!:)

Life as art...

I don't usually talk about giveaways in my normal blog posts but this one is too good not to share!  Modern Bird Studios is using the power of viral marketing to get their art out there and these designs are fantastic!  So fantastic that I've entered every giveaway I see in hopes of winning one of these beauties!

From their website -

Modern Bird Studios creates personalized, modern art from your photographs. Each work is a one-of-a-kind, original studio piece created with a combination of digital, hand, and painting processes on an Oak composite. We take your photograph, and break it down into a two-color image, which results in abstract shapes that make up the form. We then choose two contrasting colors to create the painting. The result is a marriage between technology and traditional painting to create a totally hip urban-style art piece that enriches your home.

How cool is that??  And I have just the perfect picture!  Want one for yourself?  Go to Boutique Cafe to enter the giveaway..or better yet, don't - I want to increase my odds of winning:) (but do follow Modern Bird on twitter and fbook - they're hilarious!)

Cross your fingers for me please!

Time out to beg...

Okay, see that pretty new button in the right there ------------->  Topmommyblogs.com?  Pretty pretty please, if you like me (heck, even if you don't like me and just stumbled on this site by way of whatever), cruise on over to that button and click thru:)  Pretty pretty please with sugar on top?? (and fudge and whipped cream)

I just joined the site so my bloggy doesn't even show up yet.  A few clickys by my bloggy friends will make it appear:)

Sooo..that's the secret...

So, from day one from the hospital Noah was a fairly pleasant baby.  He slept like a newborn should sleep and when he was awake he was alert and looking around.  However, at about 1 month he started to show his cranky side. Generally around 6:00pm he'd start fussing/crying and only calm down if he was being held.  He'd be like this until 9:30pm or sometimes 10:00pm at which he fell asleep but only for a few hours.  At that point we'd repeat the process - I was exhausted!

Now, we tried a number of things thinking it was gas - gas drops, new bottles, different formula and each had an impact but it was minimal.  So, being the ever loving, ever doting, my-child-is-perfect-in-his-own-way mom that I am I just accepted that he was going to be a grumpy baby and prepared myself accordingly (and reminded myself that this too shall pass). Until one day I was reading a book on sleep training (in preparation for the months to come when we'd set a routine and hopefully have a happy, protest free naptime and bedtime). 

The book suggested that no newborn/infant should go more than 2 hours without a nap of some sort (and some nap every hour).  I looked back at my babybix.com sleep charts and realized that Noah was going for 4 and 5 hours during the day time hours without a single nap and that I was putting him down waaay late.  Little man was only getting 12 hours a sleep a day (which apparently is not enough).  His cranking in the evenings had to do with him being uber tired and unable to soothe himself to sleep (and I likely didn't help what with my singing, dancing, and trying to get him to play with me all the time)

So, I started to watch more closely for his sleepy queues and at that point would try to wind him down into a nap.  It took a while to get it right and I still fight it here and there but it seems to be working.  DH has even commented on how pleasant he is in the evenings now.  Plus, he's sleeping longer at night! Now, that may just be maturity but it could also be the naps!

Who'da thunk that more sleep during the day ='s more sleep at night and a happier baby! 

Here's his schedule:

6am he's up for a bottle and then back down till 8 or sometimes 9.  Then generally he's napping every 2 - 3 hours for at least 30 min each (there's usually one longer nap in the AM or early mid day and sometimes a second in the afternoon.  If he misses that then we just cat nap thru the afternoon ever hour or two).  We start the bed time ritual by 7:00 and he's generally out like a light by 8:00.  There he sleeps until 11, wakes for a bottle and immediately goes back down.  Then, depending on how much he took in that 11:00 bottle he'll be down until 3 or so.  Last night he went from 1am to 5am before he woke up!

I'm sooo happy my pleasant baby is back!  Now, when he's away he's calm and usually smiley (unless he's hungry).  But as soon as he starts to zone out or rub his eyes we know it's time to wind him done and try for a nap!  Hopefully this continues thru our first days at daycare!!

Blogger Badge

So, my computer with all my fun photo processing and graphic software is back at HP being fixed (stupid bum fan).  Anyone of my super duper awesome creative friends in bloggy world want to help me create a blog badge?? pretty please??:)  I'll be forever grateful and sing you praises to all 22 of my followers:)

Little Miss Macie...

I've mentioned her before plenty - Macie, our 2 year old Vizsla.  In fact, she's all I blogged about before Noah (on our Photography Blog). Seems silly to spend so much time documenting an animal but I'll contest that Macie is not just any animal.  She's one of the best dogs I've ever known (and I've known alot of dogs!).

Vizslas are known for their gentle nature, need-to-be-an-equal-member-of-the-family mentality, full-of-energy-please-exercise-me look, and this-is-my-baby-now protectiveness.  They're affectionately referred to as Velcro Vizslas because they must be with you at all times (if you don't want help going to the bathroom or showering ever again - don't get a V) and they forget that they're 40+lbs when they climb into your lap.  Macie's no exception!  She exhibits all the best qualities of  V and more:)

She follows you from room to room and then finds the softest comfiest spot to plop down and relax.  Often times that's an 8"x8" square pillow on our couch that she turns and turns until she finds a comfortable way to drop down.  If there is a pillow handy she's using it. If there's a blanket in the vicinity she's under it.  This dog is all about comfort.

More than that she's so laid back and what we all "pliable."  She will let you pick her up, man handle her, rearrange her, pull on her tail, pull on her ears, sit on her back whatever...she just takes it.  Sometimes you get the look like "are you done yet?" but most times she just lays there and waits for you to finish so she can snuggle in again and get comfy.

She has a borderline unhealthy obsession with tennis balls and will do anything for those mini carrots or a cheese cube.  She only eats when she's told, loves to cuddle in bed but only when you say it's okay, loves dogs more than she loves people and would be happy as a clam to spend her day chasing balls down at the field.  Her recall is not so great but add a tennis ball or the possibility at cheese and your odds at getting her to come to you increase dramatically!

At the end of a long day of playing all she wants to do is cuddle up next to her people and snooze.  If she can rest her head on your lap (or put herself fully in your lap) she's happiest. She appears to love Noah and plants the occasional kiss on him (although it's a mini kiss with just the tip of her tongue rather than a full out slurp) when we're not looking.  She's become fiercely protective and will bark at anyone that comes to the door  but she's more likely to cover you in kisses than bite you once you come in - don't tell the door to door solicitors that!

I gush about her and could probably go on for days but it's all because I realize how lucky we are to have a pup that loves everyone in our family and has taken to the new baby with grace and ease. 

Okay...I'm done being sappy about my dog now:)

My little model...

Next week is Noah's baptism and since I know we're going to be crazed running around trying to get everything ready and what not I know that we'll likely slip on some of the pics I thought I'd do a quick photo session today with him to get a few shots of the beautiful gown he's wearing.  He was even hanging with me long enough to get a few without the gown on:)

The gown has been used in his family for a very long time.  His daddy wore it when he was baptized as did his gramma before him.  In fact, all of his gramma's siblings, most of their children, and their children's children were baptized in this gown.  The gown has been refurbished a few times and now bears the names of all those that have worn it for their baptism.