Irony at its best

My life epitomizes this message:

I had originally started this blog as something fun for me to do when I was home on maternity leave.  Since I had SOO much free time to plan for, I had books lined up, crafts I was meaning to take on and a plethora of fun things planned for ALL this free time I would have while the baby was sleeping.  You know new Moms – ALL that time you have just sitting around twiddling your thumbs home on good ol’ Mat Leave (*please feel free to laugh as much as you like, I should have set my expectations on something a little more realistic, like alien abduction)

Enter Clara Jane. 

She is the sweetest thing I have ever laid eyes on.

She is also a whirlwind of activity.  I am not joking to say she did not nap for the first month or two (How was I to know she should have been?  In my sleep deprived hormonal state I was thinking I had the most active, slightly crabby baby on earth).  Even now at 14 weeks she wants to be held by her Mama all the time and has to be lured into any shuteye.  Such as this:

Sorry I couldn’t resist putting another picture of her up.  My precious baby has a new friend named Sophie Le Giraffe.

Needless to say I have eaten my words learned to see things through a new Mom’s eyes.  It started off small, like when I was in the hospital – I did not want to send Clara to the nursery (had read all about how rooming in was best).  Well, after more than 48 hours of running on adrenaline I changed my mind.  She did fine, I was temporarily more sane. 

And then there is the whole sleeping in the bed thing.  Yes, I broke down and let her sleep next to me in bed.  I know this is bad, did I not say she wasn’t napping?  I say with all seriousness that any Mom would pummel a Navy Seal in sleep deprivation survival training.  Also, if my Doctor is reading this I will deny any cosleeping at the next appointment inquisition.  I think she is too obsessed with making sure I lowered the temperature on my water heater anyway (of course not). 

Overall Lesson learned, let go of all the advice  – do what works for you and go with the flow.  I have also learned that I should probably not see anyone but family for the first few months after passing what felt like a watermelon out my nether-region.  I.was.very.scary.

Ok, sorry I am going a little nuts with the pictures.  I guess I should be focusing more on catching up on the last few months worth of news........Nah.....Let's look at another picture of Clara. 

Little Clara Jane, the sweetest girl on the Lane. 

Now I can go to sleep happy. (yes, I am now sleeping again...sometimes)

Back on Track

Any woman knows what hormones can do to your brain.  Let’s just say that women’s issues have come a long way (PMS can even be an excuse used in court, likely by people who expect McDonalds coffee to not be hot).  But even when your mind is slightly off track, if you are not careful you can lose your true focus of what is really important.  For me, with the house move, learning to work from home, and being off in baby-prep lala land (among many other silly things) I totally lost my center – which for me is my faith.  Being a new Christian, it is really important for me to read, go to bible studies, attend classes in church, etc. to keep me moving forward.  I got distracted by all the hub-bub around me and got as lost as a child at an amusement park.  Suddenly wondering how I got there, and confused how to get back.  How did this happen? 
Thankfully, I have been blessed with a husband who not only can read me like a book – but can see what the problem is and talk about it.  Being hormonal is no excuse!  I am embarrassed to say that I was selfish and self-focused, and lost touch with reality.  Am now delving into a great bible study for women from my church, reading the following books, starting and ending my days with prayer.  I cannot tell you what joy has returned.  How thankful I am that God is a forgiving God.  I am as far from perfect as they come!

Book feeding my brain at the moment: Grace Walk by Steve McVey

Next on the docket: William Barcley commentary on the gospel of John (when study is over), Beth Moore's Breaking Free Day by Day: A Year of Walking in Liberty, The Yada Yada Prayer Group (won some awards so I thought I would try it), and Peralandra by one of my favorites - C.S. Lewis.

Also - a great link for reading/watching sermons: John Piper's blog www.desiringgod.org

I heart MOPS

No, I am not talking the cleaning kind (my husband can attest to that, he loves the way our floors shine....after he cleans them) - I am talking Mothers of Preschoolers. 

My dear hubby always jokes that I think about things WAY too far in advance (I did join a 30-somethings group in my 20's, hmmm) so when I heard tales of this wonderful group - naturally, I thought I should check it out immediately.  I.e. gather information for when I have the pass to attend (a 8-9lb one).  Apparently it is not just for Moms whose kids are of preschool age, it is for all Moms......and even soon-to-be Moms as I found out since they welcomed me to attend even before I hit trimester 3.  Of course I went!  I was desperate hoping to get some juicy advice on my registry, and of random things I should be doing to prep.  What I found was a group of fabulous women that I can't wait to know better.  I even was assigned a mentor who is likely to have her patience tested once Baby K arrives and the machine-gun of questions opens fire.  Now I just have to wait till I have the energy to attend again, ironically it's the bambino who prevented me from making the last meeting.  I can't recommend it enough, or as Men on Film would say - "Two snaps up with a twist!"

MOPS website: http://www.mops.org/

Is there a Doctor in the house?

My husband, who has been working tirelessly for this goal for 7+ years, just passed the last step of his PsyD!  WoooHoooo! 

Chad, you are truly an inspiration to us all.  Me, Baby K, and our menagerie of furry things are so blessed to have such an intelligent hardworking man leading us.   We love you so and are so proud of all that you have accomplished!!!  

Baby Hints - Part I

So I have been a little obsessed with baby prep lately.  Being at 9 months I think that is a perfect excuse to be irrational about waterproof pads or butt paste, as odd as it sounds when I say type it.  I don’t have many friends who are also cooking a little bean, so I must spill my long-researched hints and advice somewhere before I start dictating to people in the grocery check out line. 
My whole baby gear philosophy is shaped by (a) having as much space/storage as a NYC apt or small boat, and (b) we are currently watching our pennies with career changes abound (I guess who isn’t nowadays).  So Baby K, this is some of the things your Mama learned along the way:

1)   Get what gear you can before the baby comes (using the discounts some registries offer) BUT you don’t need everything they tell you!  Here are some items we passed on:

a.   Highchair: solids only start around 6 months anyway, plus you can get a booster/highchair that attaches right to regular chairs for SO much cheaper. 

b.   Ear Thermometer: This is a total sham, these are only recommended by the APA for children over 2 years old.  How they get away for marketing them to new Moms I will never know.

c.   Crib Bumpers/comforters/pillow: They are illegal in many countries already due to SIDS/baby suffocation.  Totally unnecessary – they just like to lure the parents (Fabric Sirens!) with beautiful designs to waste money.  Serena & Lily, I love your gorgeous patterns - can't you put more of them on just the sheets?
d.   Baby bathtub: This is more preference; we have zero storage so we opted to not go the route of the huge awkward tub.  You can get a sponge-type insert to use in the bottom of the bathtub which takes up minimal room (see picture, this is Muchkin brand from Target, but BRU also has one too.  They cost around $5-7). 

e.   Bouncy seat: We got a hand-me-down travel swing which is pretty close, so why should we waste money on a similar seat with no auto-movement?  Going to just use the swing for both (hope she likes it!).

f.    Playmat: We registered for and got a Chicco Pack & Play (thanks Jan and Shelley!).  The mat from that, with the criss-cross mobile comes out and can lay right on the floor so no need for a second one at an exorbitant price.

g.   Fancy lotions/shampoos/products:  Dreft is a expensive name for a perfume-free detergent, you can get Tide/All/Generic “free” brand for much cheaper.  You do not need baby lotions or shampoos either.  Dove sensitive skin/perfume free bar soap comes highly recommended for newborns and instead of lotion you can use plain mineral oil from any pharmacy.  Ironically I have been using these two products for several years by recommendation from my dermatologist – AND my Ob-Gyn told me that my belly handled the pregnancy so well specifically cause I was using them (no stretch marks – woohoo!).  The one exception to the no special stuff rule is detergent for cloth diapers – if you do go that route you will have to buy a separate soap for washing these.  Regular detergent will ruin the absorbency.

h.   Multiple strollers: Am really hoping this one does not bite me in the rear.  We went with one all-terrain jogging stroller WITH the insert of a Snuzzler which should let us put her in it right from the start.  Yes, we won’t have the convenience of letting sleeping baby stay in her car-seat but I heard that manually moving her is good for her to learn to sleep through anything (hoping this works) and also – it is bad.bad.bad for baby to keep them in that carseat too long anyway.  Am hoping my gamble pays off, and I do not have to eat these words.

i.    We also passed on this:

                         Unless you throw in a dog-sled team, what is the point?

Have to end my ranting here, Part II will have more positive hints since I feel like some of these have a finger pointed feeling to them.  Disclaimer: These hints are yet only theory as my only child is still wiggling (constantly) in my belly.  Hopefully very shortly I can begin the testing the validity of these claims. 

My first blog post

This is my first ever blog posting, so please bear with me as I try to assemble something decent lovely for others to read.  This blog is meant to be my Maternity Leave project, something to elicit creativity, keep me sane and be an online diary of random things.  I am horrible at spelling, let's just get that out on the table right from the start.  And I also have horrible grammer as my red-headed sister loves to tell me often (hey, respect your elders!).  So now that you have been warned and I have broken the ice with this post, I can start posting all kinds of silliness - technically my brain is already on Mat leave most of the time anyway.  (T-minus 20 days & counting till the due date!  WooHoo!)