The lowdown on mommy hood

I was talking to one of my parents after school today. She is the mother of 3 and her youngest cutie pie is 4 months old. I was out with Lilly the first of the week since she was still under the weather. I told her all about Lilly's rash and fever and how she just wanted to nurse and be comforted. And then this thought popped into my head... You see, before Lilly was born we always said Mike would be the one who would stay home with her on sick days. He has a crazy amount of sick time and I barely have any after maternity leave so it just made sense. It's easy to think things like this while your baby is still safe and warm all up in that belly. But then that baby is born and your whole entire life changes. Things you thought would be easy seem impossible all of a sudden. Why did I ever think I would be able to leave my sick baby? Mike is more than capable of keeping Lilly and is a darn good daddy but there is no way I could leave that sweet baby. So now I have even less sick days and a huge todo list at work but it's all worth it. My parent totally understood what I was saying too. It's like this secret mommy code.

There are other things that happen too after you hold that sweet baby for the first time. I'm like a sponge.. Constantly reading, researching, and learning new things about babies everyday! I'm obsessed! I have formed so many of my own opinions about raising a baby, where as BL (before Lilly) I just knew what I had seen or heard others do. And I never thought about doing it differently. I have learned that mommy instincts are a real thing and I follow mine all of time. If I don't feel right about something then I'm not going to do it... No matter who has done it before me. For instance, Lilly still sleeps in our room because it is what makes us feel comfortable (I might add that Mike has a good daddy instinct and we have been on the same page with these things). We are waiting until at least 6 months to start solids. We know that breastmilk should still be Lilly's #1 source of nutrition her first year of life. We feel that we should always comfort Lilly instead of letting her cry it out. This builds trust and confidence. I had no idea I would become so passionate about breastfeeding. I had no idea i would be able to breastfeed in front of my brothers (who are by the way awesome). I had no idea I wouldn't want Lilly to sleep in her own room. I had no idea it would be so hard to go back to work. I had no idea I would want to skip cereal or make our own baby food. But the second I looked into those beautiful eyes my mommy switch turned on big time and now I truly get it. Now I can fully understand all of these things. It's not just a thought anymore. It's everyday life. And boy do I have a good one.

And what's even more cool is that every mommy has the right to make their own decisions because every mommy is following their own heart, doing their own research, and forming their own opinions about what is best for their child. And that makes every mommy awesome. :-)

Connect the Dots

Once again Lilly Bug is under the weather with a fever... And this time she has a nice rash to go with it! Her fever started on Saturday and we noticed little red dots all over her last night. We took her up to the after hours clinic to get her checked out. They say it's just a virus! Got home around 9:00 and Lilly would not let us lay her down for a second. Poor baby just wanted to nurse and be held all night... So that's exactly what momma did! I used a sick day today to stay home with her and we just woke up from a nice nap. :-) She hasn't had a fever today so hopefully she will have a better night and start feeling better.

We went home this weekend to celebrate our birthdays (they are 4 days apart!). Lilly got her daddy a spongebob card. She got to hang out with cousin Cole too. They "talked" to each other and Cole showed her where her nose is and held her hand. Best Friends Forever! Cole is going to take good care of her. I see fishing and camping trips in their future.

Little Miss Popular

I'm convinced that we have the most perfect baby in the whole world. We can't go anywhere without people wanting to see and talk to Lilly...And she will talk right back to them. She has been so much fun this weekend. We went to a cookout last night and Lilly showed off her short vowel a skills. She talked to the whole grocery store today too. She has also learned how to make a high pitched squeal which I'm sure will embarrass us the next time we go out to eat :-) Aw, who am I kidding? We will probably make funny noises right back and the whole restaurant will be staring at us.

In other news, we are trying to transition Lilly into sleeping in her pack-n-play that's in our bedroom. Right now she sleeps in her fisher price rock and play sleeper. That thing has been awesome! BUT... She is going to outgrow it soon. The past few nights we have put her in the pack-n-play and she wakes up about an hour later. Not sure what is waking her up. She sleeps great in her rock and play. We are going to have to keep working on this. Her crib would be better but even her doctor recommended that she sleeps in the room with us until at least 6 months to reduce the risk of SIDS. And we are both A OK with this. Upstairs is just too far away! Mike would go check on her every hour I'm sure! And besides, what else am I going to stare at when I can't sleep!? I just love waking up to that sweet face.

Speaking of Mike, he has been the most supportive husband in the world when it comes to breastfeeding. He is a huge reason of why it has been so perfect and stress free. He makes me feel so proud of myself. I knew I would enjoy breastfeeding but I had no idea how much I would love it. I already feel like it's one of the biggest accomplishments of my life. And it's also been a tremendous help seeing my sister-in-laws breastfeed their babies. They have answered so many of my questions. I will definitely make it to my goal of 1 year. I love him!

I need to vacuum and fold clothes but I think I will hold Lilly and let her nurse a little longer... That's a no brainier! It can ALWAYS wait until tomorrow. :-)

Chatty Cathy

Lilly has officially started exploring her words and sounds! Last Sunday she was in her swing and just started saying babababa! It's so cool to see them actually form a sound and not just gurgle and coo. I picked her up from daycare on Friday and she was talking up a storm. The ladies said that Lilly is their talker and she talks all day long to the other babies. It is so cute. Then on Saturday she learned how to say mamamama. And when you say those sounds to her she studies your mouth so hard! Now we just need to practice our dada sound.

We took a trip home to Sanford this weekend. Lilly slept the whole way there and the whole way back today. This is also a first! She was so perfect all weekend. We took my grandparents to lunch and she talked and laughed the whole time. She even got some cute new fall outfits from her grandmas AND she got to see Aunt Liz! She had to show her how big she's gotten.

As far as this pesky cold, it's still hanging around but it's a lot better. The humidifier we got has helped a lot! Maybe she will be 100% better this week and she will never ever be sick again! ;-)

We made it!

We made it through my first week of school! I forgot how exhausting the first week is. Luckily Lilly slept through the night ALL week!! She even started going to bed earlier than usual. She must be sleepy from her fun filled days at school. The past few days she has been talking and laughing when I go to pick her up. They said she is adjusting well! And she is drinking her bottles like a pro! Such a huge difference in just a few weeks!

On the down side, Lilly is STILL fighting this horrible cold! She now has a terrible cough to go along with the snotty nose. We took her to the dr last night to get her checked out. Everything looked good, just a cold! I just needed some peace of mind and to make sure she was ok. Thank goodness for the after hours clinic! We are so ready to say goodbye to this cold!

Looking forward to our day off tomorrow! I plan on going through Lilly's clothes and putting her smaller outfits in storage (you know, in case we have another girl in the future!!) She will be 5 MONTHS OLD on Tuesday! I just can't believe it! She is so perfect in every way.