8 Weeks!

We are finally at 8 weeks and Aubrey is still growing and changing every day.  She’s getting quite the chubbs on her little legs and is staying up a little more during the day.  The other day, she even rolled over to her side all by herself!  Looks like pretty soon, she will be rolling over completely, and I don’t know whether to be happy she’s hitting all her milestones or sad that she’s getting so big and just growing up too fast for me.  We are having her monthly birthday party on Friday, yay for more cupcakes!  Next week, we have her 2 month appointment and her shots, so wish us luck! Here she is getting ready to go see Daddy’s office today.

Another milestone for me personally is around the corner, which is the second month of my breastfeeding.  It’s been a really great experience, and I’m so glad that I we have been able to be successful at breastfeeding this far and to make it to my first (unpublished) goal – I have always said 6 months, but I do always celebrate each week that I make it closer to that goal.  I have pumped a decent stash as well that we can use when I go back to work and for bottle feedings when Daddy wants to take over.  One of the issues I have had has been nursing in public.  I’ve really only been able to do it in the car and when we are together with friends and family.  It’s my goal this next month is to branch out a little and maybe try to nurse in other places.  We’ll see, even though it’s so much easier just to bring a bottle of pumped milk.  I came across a cartoon the other day, that gave me a little giggle in regards to nursing in public.

7 weeks – Time is flying!

So we hit have the seven week mark and I just can’t believe how big my baby girl is!  She’s really getting into the regular habit of giving mama those amazing baby smiles and she’s really getting more alert and interactive.  I think I’m going to introduce some more toys this coming week to see how that goes.  Her head is also becoming a little steadier, which makes life a little less stressful for me and for the other people that hold her. 

Thankfully, this week is a little less hectic than last week, so it’s going to be nice to relax a little bit and to work on getting more of a routine nailed down.  I’m not a big fan of schedules, I think that trying to set a time for everything just adds stress, so I prefer just to start to create a predictable routine that we can have in place as she gets older.  Now that baby girl is starting to get into a groove, it can’t hurt for me to get into a groove as well.

Speaking of grooves, I have made the first steps this week to get back into my running groove.  I have run a couple of times so far and it feels pretty good to get back into things.  I don’t think I should have any problem finishing the 5k, it might not be my best time though.  There’s always time for improvement though, so I should be ready for the Scenic City 5k in February.

Recipe Share!

I have run across a couple of  wonderful recipes this week, and I thought I would pass them along.


This first one is for the moms out there that are nursing, but can easily be adjusted for everyone.  These cookies have helped to boost my milk supply, and they are delicious!  Just omit the brewer's yeast and the flaxseed meal, and you have some yummy treats.

Lactation Cookies

1/2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

4 tablespoons cocoa

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla

3 1/2 cups dry quick-cooking oats

½ cup ground flaxseed
2+tbs brewer’s yeast (must be brewer’s yeast!)  

1 Add the first four ingredients into a 4-quart sauce pan.

2 Bring to a rolling boil and hold for EXACTLY 1 minute.

3 Remove from heat.

4 Add peanut butter into the hot mixture and stir until melted.

5 Add in vanilla. (Almond extract is good also).

6 Mix in the oats, yeast and flaxseed meal and drop by tablespoons onto wax paper.

7 Let cool until set.

 

This next recipe was brought to our mom's meeting and these lemon blueberry bars are delicious!  This is also a fairly cheap dessert to make, especially since blueberries are in season and always on sale at the grocery store.

Blueberry Lemon Bars

1/2 c butter

1 yellow cake mix

2 eggs

2 tsp zest and 3T juice from 1 lemon

16 oz cream cheese

1/2 c sugar

2.5 c blueberries

Heat oven to 350

Line 13x9 pan with foil. Melt butter, add cake mix, 1 egg and 1 T lemon juice. Beat until well blended. Press 2/3 of mixture into bottom of pan.

Beat cream cheese and sugar until well blended. Add remaining egg, lemon juice and zest, mix well. Pour over crust and top with berries. Pinch small amounts of remaining cake mix in between your fingers and press into cream cheese layer.

Bake 48-50 minutes. Cool completely. Refrigerate 1 hour. Use foil to lift dessert and to cut into squares. Keep refrigerated.

Enjoy!

6 Weeks - Happy Father's Day!

As you can maybe tell by my late post this week, we have been crazy busy this week, and I’m so glad that we have made it to the weekend.  We have been out to do errands, go to events, or have been out at the grandparents every day this week.  Luckily, next week is looking a little more relaxed and hopefully I will be able to get some things done around the house next week.  I just can’t believe how fast the days go by with a newborn.  I guess it’s like that because you kind of lose the differentiation between day and night.  I’m thinking it will start to get more clear when we are consistently sleeping a little longer through the night.  Not that I’m rushing it, those night time feedings can be sweet moments, and I’m trying to treasure everything.  She has started smiling a lot more this week and loves to interact.  She’s also focusing on objects more and will respond to noises.

Last week we piled into the car and went down to my office to meet everyone.  Aubrey did great, and we are looking forward to going again later this summer.  This week was VBS, my 6 week appointment and the Junior Achievement Bowl a Thon kickoff.  I helped Thommy prepare a wonderful spaghetti dinner, and it was great to get into the kitchen again.  Baby girl was supervising and she spent most of the day sleeping.  The 6 week appointment went great and I was cleared for exercise, so I guess I will be starting my 5k training next week.  Here’s hoping I don’t pass out on my first running attempt in almost a year!

This weekend is Micah and Sheri’s shower and I can’t wait.  The twins will be here before you know it, and it’s so great to have so many blessings in our family this year after losing Papaw last year.  This past weekend was the 1 year anniversary of his passing, and I still miss him, especially now that Aubrey is here and I would love to have been able to share her with him. 

Also this weekend was Father’s Day.  We spent Saturday night with Joe (Big Daddy), and the Sunday with my dad (Papaw) at the lake.  We then came home Sunday night for BBQ chicken ring and a quiet night at home. 

Here are a few pics from Father’s Day and the past week.  I can’t believe how much she’s growing and changing every day.

5 Weeks and Being Amazing

Aubrey was 5 weeks old Tuesday, and I swear that she is just getting way too big.  I am trying to savor every moment that I have with her and wishing that she would just stay this size forever.  We are starting to work on tummy and play time a little more this week, although, she’s not really enjoying the tummy time too much at the moment.

We had her one month birthday party on Saturday, which was really just an excuse for us adults to eat some cupcakes, we got some cute pictures though, and we plan on doing this every month until she turns one.  We all need some more cupcakes, right? 

On Sunday, we had her baptism during our regular Mass at church, which was great, because we got to share it with our amazing church family.  It was rather surreal because back before I was pregnant, I had purchased a Mass intention for my late grandfather for that Mass, and my mother in law had purchased the altar flowers for that service for Joey’s late grandmother.  It was really cool to still have them involved even though they are no longer with us.  After Mass, we had a great reception at the church, and then a party at Joe and Helen’s house.  It was a great day with family and friends, and we got some great pictures of Aubrey with her godparents, Aunt Diana and Uncle Thommy.

The mother’s group met again today, and once again we had a great time.  There were some great topics in our devotional books and I personally feel that it’s been great to have a little time each day to work on my relationship with God and also reflect on how to make my family life better.

Next week, I have my six week check-up at the doctor and hopefully I will be cleared to really start working out again.  I have been going on walks some mornings, but it’s going to be nice to start weight training and also easing into training for the 5k that I am planning on doing in September.  I can’t wait!

One Month Old Today!

I can’t believe that my Baby Girl is already one month old!  Time has just flown so fast and I want it to just stop.  She is growing and changing every day.   She’s grown quite a bit, last we measured was a quarter inch from her 2 weeks visit.  She also weighed in at over 8lbs, which is over a pound more than she was at her last ped visit.  She has occasional long stretches in sleeping at night, which leads to fussy evenings, but we are happy to take the fussy evenings for a little extra sleep.  She has also started to focus in on moving objects, but that’s about it.  She is just a great baby and we are so grateful to have been chosen to take care of her! 

4 weeks – Getting Used to Bath Time!

Last night, Daddy gave Aubrey a bath.  Although it wasn’t her first bath, we are finally getting a good routine down and one that doesn’t leave Aubrey a screaming mess.  Since she was pretty calm during this bath, I was able to snap a few pictures.

This week has been a pretty quiet one, and we have really enjoyed all of this extra time that we have gotten to spend with family since Aubrey came along.  I love getting together for family dinners and just hanging out in general with the people I care about.  Just to get some mommy time, I snuck out on Saturday to get a pedicure, and my grandmother watched Aubrey.  I think everyone greatly benefited from the arrangement, especially my grandmother.   The big events this coming week are Aubrey’s one month birthday on Friday and her baptism on Sunday.  It’s going to be a great weekend!  I will definitely be posting pictures!