Elias: 8 Month Update

Age: 8 Months. How? I'll never understand. I swear to you, he was just born last week. No. Freaking. Way. Is he 8 months old. No. Way.

And, I know. I'm a terrible, terrible mom for missing month updates. Ugh. I tried. I failed. I'll work on it. But, let's do a quick pic recap to make me feel a little better about my mother failure.

 

Stats:

Weight: About 20 pounds. Bub is SOLID. He's got rolls for days and I love every inch of them.

Height: No freaking clue. I think he's short for his age though. We'll see at his 9 month check up.

Diaper/Clothes Size: 6-9 month clothes, Size 3 diapers (4 overnight)

Sleep: We're a LOT better!! We did a gradual CIO method for overnight, MOTN sleep around 6 months. It took a few nights. It was miserable. It was horrible. I slept so little I was delirious. But, he started to get it. Then he got sick and it all went to shit. My life. So, we had to do it again, but it was quicker and much less painful that time. It's still not perfect. He's way, way less consistent with sleep than Bailey was, but it's better.

99% of the time, he goes to sleep mega easy. We do a bottle of about 7oz of pumped milk at 6:30pm. Then, we change into overnight diaper & PJs and get into the sleeping sack (he'll go to college wearing one of those suckers if I can help it). We read 2 books with Bailey, since You Are My Sunshine, and at 7pm put him into his crib wide awake with his paci, turn the mobile and a fan for white noise on, and walk out. 99% of the time, he goes straight to sleep without a peep. If he does fuss, it just takes 1 re-paci and he's out.

We used to do a dream feed at about 9:30pm, but we cut that a week shy of 8 months, so we're officially done with that. We cut the dream feed cold turkey with no issues whatsoever. 

Staying asleep has always been his issue. I'd say 75% of the time, he stays asleep til 5am. Which, is pretty damn good, I'd say. The other 25%, he'll wake once sometime around 3-4am simply for a quick re-paci. Stinker. Here or there, he'll make it all the way from 7pm-6:30am, but usually he's up at 5am for either a quick re-paci or h

e'll need 4-5 minutes of nursing and then he'll go back down til 6:30am. It's not perfect. We're still working on it. I have no idea when or how we'll get there. But we will. Somehow. I hope.

Schedule:

Our schedule has always had to be a bit more flexible and fluid than I ever was with Bailey. Poor 2nd kid. But, we do have a schedule that I work hard to maintain most days.

His schedule is generally:

6:30am: Wake, nurse, change

7:15am: Solids & I pump

8:30-10am: Nap 1

10am: Wake,nurse, change , play

12pm: Nurse, then solids

1-3/3:30pm: Nap 2 (also when Bailey naps)

3:30pm: Wake, nurse, change, play

5pm: Solids, then play

6:30pm: Bottle of pumped milk (6-7oz)

7pm: Bed

I work hard to try to get naps at home, in his crib. But, sometimes I have to wake him early or we do naps in the car so we can do something. It is what it is.

Eating/Nursing:

It's going well! We nurse 4 times a day and he gets a bottle of pumped BM once. I pump twice a day, once during breakfast and once after kids are in bed. I hate pumping, but it's working for us. Nothing super exciting about nursing. It's going.

Solids are going in full force! Super exciting!! We started around 5 months with traditional pureed baby foods and baby oatmeal and 1 meal. We moved to 2 meals around 6 months. Around 7 months we started really focusing on slowly transitioning away from purees and to real solids. With Bailey, we did BLW and really did very little baby food. That was always my plan with Elias, but we started earlier and I just felt he needed the food before he was ready for solids. So, we didn't start straight with BLW, but we're there now. We still do occasional purees here or there for convenience, but mainly we're doing plan ol' regular food. And, let me tell ya-- bub LOVES it. He loves every food he's tried. Broccoli, cheese, peanut butter, sweet potatoes, pears, sausage, chicken, waffles, eggs... you name it. He loves it and can't get enough. I legit have to cut him off. He's a beast. He doesn't quite have the pincher grasp down yet, but he's getting so close.

Likes:

His sister! OMG. He just loves watching her. It's adorable and makes my heart explode. He loves his bouncer, Sadie, being held by his mama, and eating. Oh, and he LOVES being outside. Often, if he's fussy, just going outside makes him turn into a totally new baby. It's amazing.

Dislikes:

He's a big mama's boy, so he's a little hit or miss when basically anyone else holds him. Stinkerbutt. He hates being poopy, being hungry, and being overtired. He's a total schedule baby and doesn't do great if I try to push him to be awake too long.

Special Moments:

Well, like a gazillion since I've missed so many updates. He started rolling over back to belly around 7 months and rarely belly to back at the end of 7 months. He's cooing and making so many more noises. He started sitting up unassisted at about 6 months. He's not crawling yet, but he's working on it. He's getting super close to being able to hold his own bottle. He can stand on his own holding onto something, but can't pull himself up yet by himself.

Elias: 5 Month Update

Age: 5 Months

Stats:
Weight: Not really sure, but probably around 15-16 pounds. Little tank. He's just SOLID.
Diaper Size: 2's with 3 overnight diapers at night
Clothing Size: 3-6 month

Sleep: I always put him down wide awake and he generally does great at going to sleep with minimal, if any, fussing. Naps are pretty great. Night, however, is another story. He's generally down from 7pm-12am, with the DF. But, starting around 12am, he wakes several times needing me to go re-paci him or pat and shush him. I only feed him once, around 2am. Then, starting around 4:45am til DWT is a constant battle of re-paci's. It's exhausting and frustrating. I'm hoping now that I'm really working on the day time schedule and we're going to introduce solids, he'll cut that on his own. But, something tells me I'm going to need to do some very intentional and not so fun sleep training. Ugh. I'm giving him til 6 months.

Schedule: Right at about the 5 month mark, we began working pretty hard to get a better and set schedule. It's not easy and it's not fun. It's sacrificing going out and doing things during the day which can make me go a bit stir crazy, but it'll be worth it in the long run... I hope. His current schedule is (ideally):

6:30am: DWT and nurse, then play

8:30-10am: Nap

10am: Nurse and play (no nap, or at most a quick cat nap on our way home from somewhere)

12pm: Nurse and play

1-3pm: Nap

3:30pm: Nurse then play

4:30-5pm: Catnap

5-6:30pm: Play

6:30pm: Nurse, then bedtime routine

7pm: Bed

10:30pm: Dream Feed bottle

~2am: MOTN feed

Nurse/Eating: The same. We're nursing exclusively, with 2 bottles of pumped milk a day-- at about 3pm because my supply just seems to dip then and again at about 10:30pm from the Hubs while I'm asleep. I still stare longingly at the formula every time I'm at the store. I know formula would be easier, but I also know nursing important to me. So, after I stare for a few minutes I walk away empty handed. I don't know if we'll make it a whole year nursing, but I'm trying.

General: Still working through the colic. It's definitely not been easy. He's a high maintenance baby through and through. But, I do think he's getting easier and less fussy everyday. It's a slow process, but I think we're getting through it.

He LOVES to stand on his legs and to kick like crazy when he's laying down. He's got some super strong legs. Maybe a future soccer star!

Likes: Still super into the play mat. He also loves his bouncer thing.

Oh, and me. He's a total and complete mama's boy.

He loves watching his big sister which is just the cutest thing in the world.

He likes bath time until he gets out and then it's meltdown city. And, being outside. He'll be totally content for his longest stretches as long as he's in the fresh air.

Of course, with this being March in Michigan, the days we can get outside right now are limited, but we make sure to take full advantage of the nice days.  

Dislike: Losing his paci, getting into the carseat, and keeping socks on his feet. Kid is always barefoot.

Special Moments: More smiles and giggles. First St. Patrick's Day!

Little man is definitely a handful and keeps me busy. Those checks make me want to do nothing but kiss them all day! He is so very loved.  

Hi there!

I know. It's been FOREVER. Just over a year, actually. Which is essentially forever, right?

Why the break? Who knows. Life. I suppose since I wasn't running as much I felt like I had nothing to say. Which is crazy, I know. So, why am I back? Must be since I'm running again, if you follow my non-logical logic, right? Yeah, no. I'm not running much. Still. I don't really know why I'm back, except that it feels right. I have a lot some things going on in my mind and this seems like as good a place as any to try to make sense of it all. So, that's that. I'm back. For how long or how often? Who knows. I make no promises.

So, what have I been up to? Hmm... life!


The Hubs and I are still great.

He's working and I'm still staying home with Bailey, though I am now teaching one class at a local college, as well. I LOVE staying home with B. Like, LOVE. I can't believe I do, but I do. I really like teaching, too. It's a perfect mix.

Bailey is getting bigger everyday. I can't believe she's over 2 already. Where did time go?!?!

She's an amazing little girl who is so curious and smart and kind. I am amazed by her every, single day.

And, her and her big sister are still BFF's.

I'm not running much these days, though I try to do at least some running every week. I ran 2 short races in October and 1 in November. Nothing serious and my speed is quite possibly gone forever. I'm cool with it. I'm still getting to the gym most days the week, just enjoying other things-- weights, elliptical, rower, classes.  

Wow. Is that really it? Exciting life I lead, eh? Consider yourself updated. :)

I have plenty more to say and just wanna start recording life a little better so I have something to selfishly look back on, but that's it for now.

DIY Crib Rail Guards

A few weeks ago Bailey started doing this super cute thing where she learned she could stand up in the crib. Not a big deal, right? I mean, she's not trying to jump over or anything. Buuuut, if you know Bailey you know she pretty much has to at least try to put everything in her mouth. And, I mean everything. Dog. Sand. Rocks. Mulch. String. Toys. Books. Table ends. Screen door. Everything.

Only way to keep mulch out her mouth? Paci in her mouth.

So, it should have come as no surprise to me when she started standing in her crib that she would also start to try to put the rails of her crib in her mouth. OBVIOUSLY, Meagan. Duh. Well, girl can't exactly get the entire crib in her mouth, but she can bite on the side rails pretty good. Like, left teeth marks in the wood good. Now, I'm not a huge no-scratches-on-the-furniture-look-don't-touch kinda person. Hello. I dent the shit outta our stuff all the time. I can't very well hold B to a higher standard, right? But, I also would like to avoid bite marks in the wood, if possible, especially as her crib is designed to turn into a toddler and then regular bed head/foot board. PLUUUUS, there's the whole Bailey injesting wood and/or paint thing that kinda rubs me wrong.

Phew. That was a lotta lead up to say, I went on the search for something to protect the crib rails. It goes without saying that I wanted to something cheap, right? I am me, after all. Well, that was a big no-go. Pre-made guards were minimum $20 a SIDE. Hello. Cribs have 3 sides you'd want to protect (the back side is still outta the munchkins reach). That's $60 to prevent teeth marks. No way.

So, I went on a DIY mission. I googled and YouTubed and Pinterested for hours. I decided to combine many tutorials I found, using this one as the main inspiration.

Next, it was time to get the materials. First stop, Michaels. Whoops. No go. Who knew Michaels's didn't sell fabric? Clearly not me. Perhaps now is a good time to mention I'm not the most crafty of people and this sorta DIY stuff does NOT come naturally to me. Anyway- I digress. Back to getting the supplies. Onto Hobby Lobby, which I did not want to resort to after the whole birth control nonsense, but desperate times call for Hobby Lobby apparently. They were NO help. They wouldn't cut 3 separate pieces for me and that's what I had measured and planned out and then they wouldn't help me figure out what that would be in 1 big piece and then they practically laughed in my face when I didn't know how to convert inches to yards. FINALLY when I knew how much I needed, they didn't even have that much in stock in yellow fleece. OF COURSE NOT.

STRIKE OUT.

I was seriously just gonna give up. Those are the only 2 craft stores in my town. But, I decided I had to make a trip out of town anyway and mine as well try JoAnn's Fabrics while I was there. SUCCESS! They were so nice and helpful and OMG SO CHEAP. I got all the fleece I needed (UGH! I'm a terrible blogger and don't remember how much in measurement it was, but I had PLENTY of left overs so it wouldn't help any way. Basically, I measured the length of each side I wanted to cover and then got it 20 inches long to wrap around the rail.) and it was on sale. I got the fleece I needed for $6! I also stopped by a Dollar Tree and got 3 pool noodles for $1/each.

Ok, supplies gathered. Now, onto construction. Ok, ok-- 2 weeks later, on to construction.

First, I cut the pool noodle length wise so I could put it onto the top of the rail. I quickly learned I wasted $2 as the 2 sides of my crib had a lip that the front didn't and were too wide for the noodle to work. Oh well. The noodle worked on the front perfectly!

Then, it was time to cut the fabric. I wish I had some elegant way to say I did this. I don't. I simply laid it on the side of the crib, drapped it over about as long as I thought I'd need to make the ties and then cuuuuuut. It wasn't straight. It wasn't pretty. But, it ended up working great and not mattering.

After I got the piece I needed cut, I draped it over the side and then started cutting slits for each tie. The other online tutorials are much more descriptive and have better pics, I know. I told you I'm not a craft DIY-er. But, I stuck with it and cut all the slits and tied all the ties and, if I do say so myself, the final product looked great!

I finished the 2 shorter sides and viola! DONE! The actual construction part took me about 40 minutes and that was with a few pauses to take fleece away from Bailey or to chase her around. Not bad! And, definitey WAAAAY cheaper than buying it!

I had read just the fleece taste would stop the baby from biting the sides. Yeaaaah. No dice. Apparently Bailey loves fleece. So, she still goes to town on it, but it's stayed put for now and no more teeth marks! DIY Crib Guard Rails for $9... with 2 extra pool noodles and lots of left over fleece. SUCCESS!!

Life, I tell you.

Woah! Has it really been so long? How does that happen? Life, I tell you.

Speaking of life, it's been busy!

Family visits.

 

 Titi Jen and cousin Christian. SO cute!! Their visit was TOO SHORT!!

Picking blueberries.


A chipped tooth and dentist appointments. Yes, plural.


Bailey's first trip to the Zoo.

 She totally liked the tiger the best.

Lots of walks.


Cancelling a credit card I pretty much forgot I even had (whoops).


Spending time with friends.


Registering for a race!!!

It's a local 5-mile race. Not a half-marathon or anything, but hey-- it's something!

The Hubs working late and going on work trips.


Job interviews. Oh, and ya know-- trying to decide if I want to go back to work or stay home with Bailey for longer.


Life, man.


Sometimes being an adult isn't really all it's cracked up to be. So many decisions I never even imagined I'd have to make. So much responsibility. But, you can also eat cereal for dinner if you want to and drink all the diet pepsi you want, so I guess I won't complain too much.

I'll try to be a better blogger, I promise. I can't promise I'll succeed, but I'll try.

15 Thing Friday

1. Our AC was broken when we moved into our new apartment. The maintenance guy has now been out 4 times and each time swears it's fixed. Nope. Still not fixed. I can't be mad though because the guy was like "each time I see you called in an issue I come to you first because I know you have this adorable little baby." Awwwww. Ok. Fine. I don't need working AC in 85*+ temps. (Edited to add: I started this post last week and never got around to adding enough to post it. The AC has since been fixed. THANK GOD.)


2. We started solids with Bailey. I won't go into much detail (on this post) but let me just say OMG the poop totally changes. Can we get the old poop back? Never thought I'd ever say a sentence like that.

3. It was the Hubs birthday yesterday. We're having his family bday dinner this weekend. I'm in charge of the dessert and when I asked him what he wanted he said an ice cream sundae bar. Who is he? Cake? Brownies? Cookies? Pie? Nah. I'm 100% cool with it and love ice cream, but I just find it so random. Maybe I'm the freak and it's totally normal?


4. Because of said dessert request, B and I have a mission today to find all things ice cream. Wish us luck.

(source)

5. Speaking of the Hubs birthday... he now works in an office where people celebrate birthdays and such (you know, instead of the 3 person office he used to work in). So, people bring donuts in for their birthdays to celebrate. 2 things about this... (see #6 & #7)

 

 

6. Why would the person whose birthday it is bring in donuts? Shouldn't the boss bring in donuts to celebrate their employees birthday or a co-worker or something? Just seems weird to me.

 

 

7. He didn't save me a donut. Epic fail. This calls for a Dunkin' expedition for me today. Totally justified.

 

 

8. #7 is pretty fitting as today is National Donut Day! Why are there and who invented all these random National Whatever Days? Don't we have enough holidays? Not that I'm complaining today. Hello. Donuts. Enough said.

 

 

9. Random fact of the day: There are twice as many kangaroos in Australia as there are people. The kangaroo population is estimated at about 40 million. (source)

 

10. I'm not one to get political or controversial via blog, but I kinda love this

(source)

11. Since I'm already going there, can I please tell you how freaking ANGRY it makes me that the world is OK with essentially naked pictures of Rihanna, but pictures of a mother breastfeeding her baby are controversial?

(source)

Why, world? Why? Baby's gotta eat. Rihanna's just naked. Which is fine. Be naked. Totally up to you. But, why are pics of this on FB ok, but pics of a mother breastfeeding are flagged as PORN? Seriously. I just don't get the world sometimes.


12. And, PS- I don't think her dress is "one of the most powerful feminist statements the pop world has made to date". I think it's a dress and she was trying to cause a stir and she did. End of story. Feminism is about a whole lot more than being mostly naked.


13. It's FRIDAY! Which doesn't mean a whole in the SAHM (Stay At Home Mom) world, but it DOES mean the Hubs is home all weekend which makes for a happy Meagan. I sorta like him still.

 

 

14. I'm ending with 14 because Bailey is battling naps because of a little terror named teething. UGH. I'm out.