Babywise

I had 3 friends mention that they followed the practices described in On Becoming Babywise. So I decided to take Allison up on her offer to borrow the book. I read it a few days ago. She also loaned me Secrets of the Baby Whisperer which I am about half-way through. The main message in both books is the same. They both recommend a pattern of feeding, wake time, and then sleep time, and "props" such as rocking the baby to sleep or nursing a baby to sleep are not to be used. Both also advocate becoming very attuned to reading a baby's cues (types of cries, body language) to determine when a baby is getting tired, needs a diaper change, is hungry, etc. Although both recommend that this cycle should be repeated every 2 1/2 to 3 hours (from start of feeding to start of feeding), they both advocate adjusting the time frames as needed based on baby's cues or other factors such as company coming over or whatever.

Nadia did sleep twice during the day yesterday somewhere other than in my arms (an hour in the bouncer in the morning and an hour in the crib in the afternoon). Since Paul hasn't been home since Sunday night, I have really needed her to be able to sleep somewhere other than on me. Monday I didn't even get a shower since she was in my arms ALL day long. I raced around like a crazy person during her time in the bouncer yesterday morning - got a shower, threw in a load of laundry, etc. This was even more the case in the afternoon as the realtor called about 1pm to tell me the house was being shown at 6:45pm. I still hadn't finished cleaning up from the party. So I cleaned like a mad woman during her time in the crib in the afternoon. I don't think I've ever accomplished so much cleaning in such a brief time before, LOL.

I decided to go to an ice cream place about 3 minutes from our home during the time our house was being shown (since she doesn't like being in a car seat - the shorter the drive the better!). It was my first time taking her out for frozen yogurt! Of course I was the only one who had any, LOL. My friend, Cheri, met us there which was really nice. Nadia was very alert and very well behaved while we were there.

I nursed her when we got home and put her to bed at 9:15. Surprisingly she woke up at 10pm. That is very unusual for her to have such a short stretch. I checked her diaper; it was only a little wet but I changed it anyhow. I nursed her a little more in case she was hungry. Then I put her down at 10:35 and she screamed, screamed, and screamed some more. Actually she would cry for say 10 minutes and then be quiet for 5 minutes and then start crying again. This went on for FIFTY minutes. I couldn't take it any more. I was determined to let her cry it out, but that was just TOO long. I laid her on my chest while I was lying in bed and she was asleep in a few minutes and I put her down a few minutes later and she slept for 4 1/2 hours. So she was tired, but she just wouldn't go to sleep on her own. This morning we had a very similar experience with her first nap except this time it was right around the 50 minute mark that she fell asleep on her own. Progress. The next nap was in my arms as I was on the phone when she fell asleep, but the one after that she slept in the crib without any crying. Right now she has been crying off and on for 40 minutes. Sigh. Training her to go to sleep on her own is not easy! The blessing of her taking a nap in her crib this afternoon was that I got to take a nap in my own bed which I really needed as I hadn't gotten any naps on Monday or Tuesday since I had been working on a project for work (which I submitted Tuesday morning!) and then cleaning the house for the showing. I now feel much more confident about my abilities to be a working mom. :-)

Paul is coming home tonight. YAHOOO! His entrance exams are over. He'll commute back and forth to PSU tomorrow and Friday. I can't wait to see him!!!! He usually puts out the garbage, and since I was up so late last night I got up later this morning. I didn't come downstairs until about 8:20 (after nursing Nadia) and then remembered it was the morning to put the garbage out. I put it out immediately, but it turns out they had already come by. Oops! Paul's mom and Brandi came up today. I went to the bank and grocery store while they were here, and they gave Nadia a bath while I was out. Paul's mom took the 3 garbage bags in her trunk to the plant (Paul's dad owns). I almost put it out last night as I feared this might happen, but Paul is always fearful of animals getting into the garbage. Although I am feeling better about going back to work (Nadia will be going with me MWF morning and Paul will watch her Tues pm), I must admit I really wish I wasn't teaching in the morning, especially not at 8am. I plan to leave the house at 7am and nurse her in my office prior to my first class. She is going to HAVE to start going to bed earlier or I will be a zombie as the only way I get at least 7 hours of sleep (8-9 was my norm before I had her) is if I sleep in longer than I usually do. If I am getting up at 6am I will likely only be getting 5 hours of sleep. Not enough! Well she's now been crying for 52 minutes so it's time to rescue the gal. I can't listen to her scream any more. For those of you who followed Babywise, did your babies scream THIS long??? I changed her diaper and fed her before putting her down. She was yawning so I knew she was tired.

Six Weeks Old!

Nadia is six weeks old today! Wow! I love her soooooooooo much!!! I am sooooo thankful for my little sweetheart. I can't wait until she smiles at me on purpose. That will melt my heart I am sure!! I am going to take 2 photos of her today (at least, lol). One will be with the Steeler snuggle ball blanket that I posed her with 4 weeks ago. The second will be with a teddy bear I've owned for a very long time. I made good progress yesterday on my work project. So I guess I can be a working mommy - when daddy is out of town no less! Two more days of just us girls. Paul is taking 4 exams today (6.5 hours) - 3 chemistry (physical, biochemistry, analytical) and 1 math. I'm praying he'll do well even though he didn't get much time to study.

My how she's grown! The bouncer photos were from today and 7/2, and the Steeler photos were from today and 7/10.

Working Mommy

Well today I need to get some school work done - something that's due by 3pm tomorrow. I had started this project in May and hoped to finish it before Nadia's birth, but that didn't happen since she came earlier than expected. I have been telling myself the last couple of weeks that I needed to get started on it, but I just couldn't seem to make myself get back to work on it. Of course technically I am on maternity leave for 15 more days as we're allowed 8 weeks after a c/s. I haven't been attending the mtgs our dept has held the last few weeks. Of course it's always somewhat of a transition every fall from summer mode to back to school (except for the years like last summer when I taught all summer). I have done some schoolwork the past 6 weeks as I have kept current with my work email, finished the grading for the course which ended 6-25, and have been grading for an independent study which ends this Friday.

I have to say I am overwhelmed at the thought of returning to school 3 weeks from today. I haven't even fully resumed my duties here at home yet (ex. haven't cooked a single meal), and I am to begin teaching FT in just 3 weeks? Thankfully I only have to be on campus 17 hours a week, but even that feels overwhelming at the moment. I am also concerned about trying to pack/move while school is in session, but who knows when that will happen. Paul might be making the long commute for many months. Yesterday I said to Paul that maybe when our house sells we should move near PSU and I'll take a 4 year leave of absence from my job. We could rent and live off the equity from our home. Maybe between that and his stipend we'd have enough? We'd be dirt poor at the end with no money or equity, but maybe for our sanity that's the best option. The last 6 weeks has been super stressful. Paul wrote 95 pages since Nadia was born. I think why it's been really hard for me is Paul is usually the laid back one of the two of us. If someone is stressed, it's me, but he has been very stressed lately about writing his thesis, the defense, and his entrance exams at PSU. Well hopefully once his exams are over (Wed pm) and he finishes the revisions to his thesis(???), he will feel more relaxed.

Today marks the one year anniversary of the transfer of 3 of Nadia's siblings. As of 7-4-07 all 6 of her brothers and sisters were still alive. I'm not exactly sure when we lost the triplets in my womb or the other 3 in the lab. I feel sadness over losing these 6 little ones, but I also feel great joy over Nadia!!!!

To respond to some comments from previous posts. 1. I 100% agree that the 2 best photos were of Paul kissing Nadia and me leaning over her. 2. Yes, I had gotten a haircut that day and put on makeup for the 4th time in 6 weeks, but nope I haven't had a professional manicure in over a year or painted them myself in a few months. :-) 3. We own a vibrating bouncer and so far she doesn't last more than 5 minutes in it. 4. Thanks for all the kind words about the photos. I can't wait to pick them up on Friday! 5. I tried the Zout; it works better than what I had been using but not as good as the Spray & Wash stain stick did for me. Thanks for all the comments. I greatly appreciate them!

Last night Nadia slept from 9:15pm-1:45am and then she woke up every hour after that. I didn't sleep as well without Paul here. I've gotten more used to him not being in our bedroom, but whenever he's not at home, I find I am more aware of every little sound and don't sleep very well even though I didn't have that problem when I lived by myself for 5 years. The last 7 years I sleep better when my hubby is home. :-)

Weekend photos

We had a busy but special weekend. Millie did a great job catering Paul's party. We have lots of food left over so maybe I can delay my return back to cooking by one more week. :-)

My brother's Wii was a big hit with adults and kids alike. Nadia was also very popular. She's pictured with my dad and with her cousin, Holly, both of whom she met for the first time this weekend. The one photo below shows 4 generations.

I was worried last night would be a bad night as Nadia slept a lot yesterday afternoon and early evening, but we put her down at 10:15pm and she slept until 4:45am. Woohoo! I had a hard time sleeping the last part of that as I was in pain, but still I was VERY thankful! That was by far the longest she ever slept before. The previous night had been pretty good also although the longest stretch was 3 hours and 45 minutes that night. It amazes me how tired I still am even though I'm getting at least 7 hours of sleep lately and some days (like today) I still take a nap. How long will this last? When will I no longer feel so tired? I know for Lucia it was a VERY long time, but she had two babies. I wonder what it was like for others of you who only had one baby. I also wonder when you started to feel normal emotionally. I still find myself crying rather easily these days. Well all in all it was a very nice weekend although the turkey and deer did not cooperate and my parents and brother didn't get to see them. Paul starts at PSU tomorrow so he is heading out tonight to stay at a friend's house who lives in State College. So Nadia and I will be home alone for about 72 hours. I must admit my admiration for single parents has risen tremendously. Wow. It is tough to care for a newborn by yourself 24 hours a day in my opinion. Unfortunately Nadia also doesn't like the swing so that's part of the problem. I have no where to put her for a few minutes while I go to the bathroom or something that doesn't lead to her screaming. Hopefully in time we'll find something that works for our little sweetheart.

Sears photos!

I hope you enjoy the photos! I also have to say that Nadia took a two hour nap IN HER CRIB this morning!!! What a blessing!!! I weeded some flower beds, did some cleaning, took a shower, blowdried my hair, etc. Woohoooo! I love holding the gal, but there are other things I need to accomplish in a day besides care for my sweet little girl.

I hope Saturday is a special day for Paul. Including us there will be about 25 people here for his party - 3 from my family, 9 from his family, 2 friends from PSU, his current advisor's family, and some chemistry grad students.

Life Began

Nadia's life began one year ago! Most people can't be totally sure of the exact date of conception, but when life begins in a petri dish that's a different story! :-) August 1, 2007 was the date of my egg retrieval. I had at least 30 follicles that were deemed by ultrasound to be "mature." However a few of these proved to be empty, and a couple were too dangerous to reach. Twenty-six eggs were retrieved, and they tried to fertilize eighteen of those by ICSI. Seven fertilized, and Nadia was one of those seven! The egg retrieval was excruciating. I remember wondering last year how it compared to labor. Well I can answer that now. I would say the intensity of the pain was the greatest during the ER. I couldn't believe it when the nurse pointed the needle out to me on the ultrasound screen. I could feel it! I didn't need to see it! However labor was harder altogether since it lasted far longer. I threw up and passed out every time I tried to get vertical for 6 hours after the ER. Thankfully they let me be wheeled to the car in a wheelchair or I would have been admitted to the hospital. However the recovery from that was much quicker than from L & D. The contractions didn't bother me TOO much the first six hours. They weren't pleasant, but the main reason they were bothersome is I was tired and wanted to sleep! The hardest part of labor for me was from when I reached 8cm until they let me start pushing (which was about 8 hours) and then again at the end when they told me to stop pushing (while preparing for the c/s). The nurse made a comment while I was pushing about how this began with pleasure but getting her out is painful. Paul told the nurse that Nadia was from a FET and then the nurse acknowledged the beginning was also painful in my case. I have to say though our sweet little girl was worth it all!!!! I am sooooooooo thankful God allowed this little miracle's life to begin 1 year ago!!!!!!!!!!

Nadia gets to see Grandma Harton again and meet Grandpa Harton & Uncle Maurice for the first time this evening. Yahooooo! My brother really wants to see the deer and turkey that we often see in our yard. I hope the wild animals cooperate so that he can see them tonight or tomorrow morning! We saw ahen & more than 10 baby turkeys yesterday on more than one occasion so hopefully they'll show up again while he's looking. :-)

Nadia had her first GOOD night of sleep in a few days. WOOHOO! She slept about 9 hours over a 12 hour period, and I slept about 8 hours without needing any help from Daddy. She finally had another 4 hour stretch of sleep. I can't wait until it becomes the norm for her to have at least one 4 hour stretch every night (or maybe even longer!). Of course we probably won't put her down at 7:30pm tonight in light of the company coming about that time! :-)

Busy Day!

 Yesterday Nadia slept too much during the day - particularly in the early evening. We went on our first walk as a family of three yesterday afternoon. Paul carried her in the Snugli. It was her first time being in the Snugli. Boy am I out of shape! I think we went about 2 miles RT and that was enough for me. I will gradually build myself up to our usual route. Unfortunately whatever calorie benefit I got from the walk was probably cancelled out by dinner at Applebee's as they were having the 3 course deal for $9.99 which I couldn't resist as I love their chocolate mousse. :-) It was really nice to have dinner out though. It felt like the first time in along time that Paul and I could have a long conversation together about this and that. She slept through the walk, Applebee's and Walmart so that was too much sleeping in the late afternoon/early evening. Thanfully Paul stayed up with her from 9:30pm - 12:30am so I could get some sleep. I fed her when she woke up at 1:15am and again at 2:15, 3:00, etc. So it wasn't a great night, but since Paul stayed up with her those first 3 hours that meant I did get a decent amount of sleep altogether.

Anyhow today was a busy day as Paul's mom and niece came over for about 90 minutes this morning during which time they babysat Nadia so I could do some cleaning for the party. Brandi also helped me some with cleaning, and they gave Nadia a bath so she'd be ready for her pictures. Then I took Nadia with me to my hair appt. My beautician wanted to meet Nadia. She gave me a baby gift - how sweet and unexpected! Paul came and got her part way through the appt (I called him) as she wasn't sleeping well in the car seat that I brought into the beauty salon. I got home and changed really quickly and then we left for the photo appt at Sears.

Nadia had been screaming at home when Daddy changed her diaper and her clothes (maybe in part bc he had her dress on backwards? LOL), but she was a GEM for the photos. She was sleepy so her eyes weren't always open, but she was very good and we only needed to use the pacifier to help her stop crying at the very end. Then she slept while we picked out which photos to purchase. It was hard to decide. The special effects they do to the photos were nice but too pricey in our opinion so we narrowed it down to just the regular ones. I had a coupon to get one 10x13, one 8x10, two 5x7, 8 wallets, and 16 mini's for $10 total which seemed like a good deal, but all of those had to be from the same pose. We ended up picking one where she was lying on a white blanket with her eyes open (total body shot). I had ironed her dress that morning, but it wrinkles easily. I should have waited until we got to Sears to put it on her. Lesson learned! The peter pan collar also was a challenge to keep down (didn't want it hiding her face!) so again lesson learned; I will stick with dresses without a collar for future photo shoots. The other shots I really liked were one of Paul kissing her, one of her hand wrapped around one of my fingers, and one of me looking down at her. Paul really liked this close up photo of just her face (her eyes were opened for that one also). So we ended up buying for ourselves (we'll give most of the other photos away to friends and family) one sheet that is a collage. The big picture is of the three of us (not the best of Paul but they only took one shot of that pose of the three of us), and then on the right there are three different small photos. The top one will be of Paul kissing Nadia, the middle one the close up of her face that was Paul's favorite, and the bottom one of myself & Nadia. They had taken two poses of me with Nadia and surprisingly they both were nice (I usually don't like pics of myself). The collage was $30 so that was our splurge, but I think it will be really nice. So altogether we spent $42.38 which wasn't too bad considering the first packages we were offered started at $120 and went up from there! I figure we can do the hand photo at home. They also had one of her feet in Paul's hands which we could pose ourselves as well.

I think I'll take her either back to Sears or to Walmart in late November for a Christmas photo. She'll be 5 months old then. Wow. I remember someone told me that she almost had the "perfect birthday." This person said that the perfect birthday is 6-25 as it's exactly 6 months before/after Christmas. It is nice to have more separation between Christmas and one's bday. Paul's bday is Jan 3 and that's not the greatest day to have one's bday although not as bad as my friend, Sharon, whose bday is December 25.

Five Weeks Old!

Well last night was a case of "three steps forward, two steps back" with last night being the "two steps back" part. I honestly have no idea how I functioned on 2-3 hours of sleep a night those first few weeks as I probably got 5 hours last night and I feel awful. Unfortunately she woke up EVERY hour with the exception of the last stretch when she did go 2 hours (4-6am). There was one point in particular when I wanted to pull my hair out. I had fed her for an hour and changed her diaper and she was wide awake. I let her cry for a really long time and even that didn't work. I finally nursed her in bed, and she fell asleep with us. Paul carried her to bed when he got up at 3am to keep working on his thesis defense. Hopefully tonight will be a better night.

We planned to go to the defense together (the 3 of us), but then Paul made an appointment to meet with his advisor again this morning and he also is going to a dinner this evening that a student is hosting for the chemistry grad students who defended last week or are defending this week. So I would have needed to drive there separately. If Nadia would sleep in the car, that would work fine, but after our experience on Sunday where she screamed almost the whole way to and from church, I wasn't up for potentially 90 minutes (RT) of her screaming. My plan had been that Paul would drive, and I would sit in the back seat and give her a bottle or pacifier if she was unhappy. So anyhow I am rather tearful today as I really wanted to be there even though I know I wouldn't understand much of his presentation. I am very proud of him. He got all dressed up - he even took a tie with him and he usually only wears a tie when attending a wedding or funeral. Well I will certainly be praying for him at 1pm.

Today I dressed Nadia in the green polka dotted dress that I brought to the hospital to be her "going home" outfit. It was given to me by the senior choir and handbell choir. It's size 0-3 months, and it's still too big for her, but I am afraid that she won't grow into this size before the weather gets cooler, so I decided to have her wear some of the 0-3 month clothing from time to time. At least a dress is more "forgiving" than say a short outfit. I don't think it's supposed to go all the way to her ankles though. :-) Paul likes the ladybugs on the dress. I will take a photo later of her and add it to this post.

Napping in the pack n play didn't work this morning BUT napping in the boppy on the couch did. That seems to be progress as at least she's not in my arms, and I can get up and do stuff. Thanks for the input on which dress to have her wear on Thursday afternoon. Although I like the white & pink flowered dress better, I agree that the purple polka dotted one would be better for the photos. Plus Paul likes purple on her a lot more than pink so purple dress it is!

Progress!

Well Nadia took 45 minutes of a nap in her pack n play this afternoon. It's been quite awhile since she's slept more than 5-10 minutes in either her pack n play or crib during the day. I keep thinking why is it no problem for her to sleep in her crib at night but it is during the day?!? This morning she didn't sleep in bed with me at all either which was also a good thing as usually her last stretch is with me. I even tried letting her cry it out in her crib earlier this afternoon to no avail (of course I caved after 5 minutes so maybe it would have worked if I hadn't caved so soon). I am going to borrow a swing from Allison (Thanks!) to see if she likes them or not. I am grateful she'll stay in the bouncer for a few minutes, but it's usually only about enough time for me to go to the bathroom and make a short phone call or something like that. It would have been nice this morning for example when I was giving Paul a haircut if she would have enjoyed staying in the bouncer. A lot less crying would have been involved!

We got good news this morning that the appraisal hadn't taken place yet on the house we were hoping to buy (it had already taken place on our home). So that means if we aren't eventually able to buy that house, we're "only" out the $430 we paid for the inspections. That's not wonderful, but it's better than being out $730! And maybe we will buy that house some day so we won't be out any $$ over this failed offer on our home. The realtor is suggesting we lower the price on our house again. We've lowered it twice so far, but it's been awhile. I agree with her but want to discuss it with Paul tonight (he's at school) before I answer her email.

Tomorrow Nadia and I will be going with Paul to his university to watch his defense. He kept working on his thesis this weekend, and it's now 102 pages long! My hubby does not like to write At All so that is truly amazing!!! Now he needs to finish his PowerPoint for his defense which is at 1pm tomorrow. I'm hoping he won't have too many revisions to make as I'm really hoping to see him a bit more Wed-Sun before he starts at PSU next Monday. Of course he also needs to study for his entrance exams which are next week so he'll be busy the rest of the week, but maybe he'll have time to take at least one walk with us and maybe we can go out to eat to dinner once to celebrate my promotion to Associate Professor and his completion of his Master's Degree? We're going to Sears for photos on Thursday afternoon. I am hoping Nadia will cooperate!

First Laugh!

I can't believe I forgot to mention it in yesterday's post, but I heard Nadia laugh for the first time yesterday afternoon! Of course it was NOT purposeful (she was sleeping), but it was such a sweet sound and such a sweet expression on her face! I can't wait until she smiles and laughs purposefully, but until then I will enjoy these!!! If only I had been videotaping her while it happened so I could share it with you all! :-)

Yesterday evening my friend, Cheri, her husband, Eric, and grandniece, Bianca, stopped over to meet Nadia. Bianca kept saying what a cutie Nadia is; of course I agree! :-)

We are now on a good roll as far as sleeping at night! Although the longest stretch was 3.5 hours, over a period of 11.25 hours I got 8.75 hours of sleep! That's the most I've gotten in one night in the last month!!! Naps aside from on Mommy are atill a struggle. I've tried the bouncer, and she'll stay in it for a few moments on vibrate, but that's it so far. I don't own a swing. If I knew she'd like it I'd buy one, but I'm having a hard time deciding given how $$ they are.