Feeding an 8 1/2 month old

Little man is loving blueberries this time of year! He is so interested in everything that we are eating! It is so fun to see him trying new things!

I was a bit of a worry wart when it came to feeding Logan. The first two month I was keeping track of how much he ate, how often, how many dirty diapers, what kind of diaper... It was a bit much, I mean honestly, he was gaining weight and healthy so there was no reason to be so neurotic about it, but I couldn't just let it go. The first thing I would ask when I picked him up from the family was how much he ate, how many diapers! At around 4 month I relaxed! The doctor told me it was fine to start cereals or some purees, he was a big boy and milk probably wasn't enough any more. This is the first time in my life I have questioned something a doctor told me. I just didn't feel like that was right for MY baby. He wasn't hungry all the time, he would go 3-4 hours between feedings, with 1 rarely 2 feedings at night.

This is when I started researching... I spent days upon days of researching. There is a ton of information online about feeding babies! This has been out "go to" site: http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/  They have amazing recipes and so much information!  We made the decision to wait until closer to 6 months to start solids. Now I do know some babies are not satisfied by just milk until 6 months, some babies seem to need a little help. But for Logan he was thriving on breast milk and I wasn't ready to start him on solids. Chris on the other hand wanted to be sharing bacon, cheeseburgers, and pancakes with him at 2 months... (I caught him sharing bacon at Christmas time... he was just letting him suck on it... but really bacon??) Anyways he would support me but he would sneak him little tastes of things here and there. I briefly thought about BLW (Baby Led Weaning) but I might have a slight (read major) problem with my reaction to choking. (My dads best friend choked to death)We bought some baby rice cereal... All natural organic, and fed that to him a few times. But I didn't really like feeding him something I wasn't making. It made me feel a little better that it was a natural organic brand though. So we started to make our own baby food... I still make some of his baby food but with us traveling to Portland and back every weekend or two it is harder. We do buy him Eath's Best Oragnic baby food, and he gets that when we are traveling. We actually tried a few Gerber's ones but he is a baby food snob and won't eat Gerber foods. With their recalls and all the things they are finding in Gerber foods didn't bother me a bit!

He is now entering that stage though where he doesn't want the puree's he want to feed himself and wants what I am eating. This has been by far the most fun we've had feeding him. He is still nursing but he loves to feed himself! His dad is loving feeding him new and different foods! We don't have food allergies on either side of our families. So the only thing we haven't really fed him are strawberries! And his favorite thing is blueberries! We do squish that a little bit and pull them in half sometimes. He has 4 top teeth and 2 bottom teeth and trust me he know how to use them! It is so funny to watch them chew their food. And get so excited when you set down his plate!

What do you guys feed you babies? And how many of you did BLW?

.

Milking It...

 

Any of you breast feeding moms out there ever feel like a dairy cow... Our little guy is breast fed and has never had any other milk besides mine. I work full time so that means I am pumping. Every single time I head back to my little area I feel like the dairy cows. The ones that when you are driving by them on the freeway/highway you can tell it is getting close to feeding/milking time because they are all in a line headed to the barn. I am pretty sure if it was called "milking" and not "pumping" I wouldn't be able to bring myself to do it! This thought pops into my head daily as I have to inform the other people in the office that I will be in the back room and they need to cover phones/front door. I am going to be in the back milking myself... YUCK!

So I am one of those moms whose never had supply problems as long as I pump every two hours... I can occasionally skip a session here or there but while I am at work I have to pump every two hours. Even now that Logan is 8 months and has started eating more and more solids. He doesn't drink very much milk during the day. Maybe 2, 4 ounce bottles from 8am - 5pm. As soon as I walk into that door he wants to nurse and then he'll nurse about 7:30 and then just before bed between 9:00 - 9:30. But for him to have enough milk in the freezer I have to stick to that pumping schedule and I hate it! I get busy and its a pain to stop my projects sometimes multiple times to pump!

This fact alone has made me consider weaning Logan. But there are 2 reasons I am still doing it. Well two other than the fact that is was perfectly made for MY baby. The first one being that I am afraid of what is put into our foods today. I am afraid of recalls and feeding my baby something that might make him sick. Have you looked at an ingredient list lately. Very few foods have all natural, whole ingredients in them! Most of them have lines and lines of things that I can't pronounce and have no idea what they do to our bodies and earth. The second reason... I am LAZY! I don't want to wake up in the middle of the night and have to make a bottle! It is very nice to just roll over and have on tap exactly what my baby wants!

But Logan is getting close to a year and I think at a year or as close to it as possible we will wean him. What do you give your baby once they are a year instead of breast milk. Can they just go to regular milk, coconut milk, almond milk, or do we still have to supplement with a formula?

8 Months!

This little man turned 8 month old on May 24th! I can't believe how fast time is going by! He still is not crawling but he is getting sooo close! He is starting to put different words together and making little sentences. Granted they are in his own baby language and we have no idea what he is trying to say, but it is so amazing! He had surgery at 7 months and just had his one month post op appointment! The Dr said everything looks perfect and he can now start swimming lessons! Everyone is amazed by how big he is! He is 24 pounds and over 32 inches tall! We really are blessed with such a good baby and he is spoiled rotten!

He looks like he should be well over a year old and people forget that he is just a baby and expect him to be doing so much more than he is... I am always worried that he isn't saying enough words, he isn't crawling, he isn't doing this or that... I have to remind myself daily that he will get there and he will do things on his own time... I don't know how many times I have googled "When should my baby be...." Fill in the blank with whatever action I think he should be doing. I think the internet is a great resource for information but sometimes I think it a curse! I am one of those people who like to be in charge and like things to happen when I want them too... Having Logan has been an adjustment for me!

Part-Time Single Momma

Baby Logan!! Look at all that cuteness!! He looks just like his daddy!! It is so crazy!

 So one week after Logan was born Chris (daddy) was sent to work out of town. So most week night it was just me and Logan, then daddy was home on the weekends. A little over a month ago that job ended so Chris got to come back home and be with us during the week and weekends! Chris is an electrician and anyone who has spouses in the construction business knows work is spotty... So two weeks ago we made the decision he would leave the company he has worked for, for 8 years, and take a job over 4 hours away. This job isn't quite like the job before though. The job before they would work 4 ten hour days. So he would leave Monday morning and be home Thursday night. With his new job, 1 week he works 5, 10 hour days, then 2 weeks of 6, 10 hour days. With him being so far from home and having an 8 month old baby we make a trip up there one of the weeks he works 6 days for 10 hours, then the week he only works 5 days he comes homes. So there is a week that we don't see him! It's hard but we are adjusting and thankfully he will only have to do this for a little over a year! So we have a lot of commuting that we do! I know that in bigger cities commuting to work is not that big of a thing... we live in such a small county that it has been quite an adjustment having to leave the house an hour to hour and a half before you have to be somewhere and only going 8 to 9 miles. I do commute to work but we live about 22 miles from where I works and I leave the house a half an hour before I have to be there and am still there with a few minutes to spare... a traffic jam in our town consists of a 5-6 car back up! So I am a part-time single parent!

Holy Moly I am not sure how single mothers and especially ones that live away from there families do it! I have soo much respect for single parents! And single parents that have multiple kids and in school and sports! I can't imagine! You mammas and daddies ROCK! I feel like I am just barely surviving it some days! I get up at 5 and am in bed after 11 every single night. I am/was a sleeper too, from the time my mom brought me home from the hospital I would sleep 10-12 hours a day and that lasted right up until the day I had Logan! And most nights the house work it pushed off until the weekend! And I only have one 8 month old baby who isn't even crawling yet... So he is still fairly simple to take care of! My average schedule is wake up at 5, nurse the baby, get up throw a load of laundry in the washer, put the stuff from the night before in the dryer, feed the cat, let it out, take a shower, get dressed, change the laundry one more time, pack the diaper bag if I didn't the night before, pack workout clothes if not done the night before, load everything in the car, wake up Logan, change his diaper take him to whoever is watching him that day (He gets to stay in jammies because its early and It's just family), head to work, work until 5, workout usually last until about 7, drive home, pick up Logan, start dinner, start Laundry, feed Logan, give Logan a bath, get Logan ready for bed, play with Logan (Sometimes we do this before dinner), Change laundry around, put Logan to bed, pack diaper bag/workout clothes, more laundry, dishes, bathroom, last load of laundry, bed.... I don't know where the time goes in the evenings! I feel like if I had multiple kids I don't think I would ever be able to sleep! I also feel like all my time is spent on other people, chores.

How do we as mothers, especially ones who don't have significant others around all the time, make time in our busy routines and piles of laundry for the "me" time we had before. Don't get me wrong I love spending every moment with Logan and feel like I am the luckiest momma in the world that he was chosen for us! But it gets tiring! I have realized my "Me" time has changed... I spend extra time playing with the baby, or a few extra moments visiting when I pick him up from one of the grandparents or aunties, a walk down the aisle of the grocery store when I don't actually need anything there. It's so strange how every aspect of your life changes when you have a baby! I can say though I would change one single thing about our life! I love being this little boys mommy more than anything!

How many of you are single mommas, or daddies? How do you make time for yourselves?

Big Changes

Wow How long has it been since I posted! Holy COW! I posted that last post with every intention to make this my sort of online journal and then I never came back! HAHAHA That is so me! My oh my how things have changed! I went for wanting to be engaged so badly my last post to having a 8 month old baby this post! Well let me first say that no I still have not gotten my ring and right now I am OK with that. Do I wish we were married and starting out this journey? More than anything, is there really anything I can do to change that now? Nope and as long as we are married before our baby starts school that is fine by me. So let me tell you a little bit about this bundle we created! He was born September 24, 2012 at a whooping 9 pounds 11 ounces and 23 inches long! He has been the best baby and fit perfectly into our little family! 3 days after he was born his daddy was sent out of town to work! So during the week its just us two! I am thankful that I have a large family and everyone lives close! We made the decision that I would go back to work. So some days babyboy gets to come to work with me and other days one of the grandparents, or his auntie watches him. I am a firm believer in having family watch him and not taking him to a baby sitter. I know there are some great baby sitters but in my experience growning up we never had that great of baby sitters. Not that it was my parents fault they just weren't very nice! I am kind of a crazy person about the way my child is taken care of and I just don't trust people outside of my family to do as good of a job as the people in my family! I know there are GREAT baby sitters and child care professionals out there I just feel like this is what is best for our little man! I love this little boy more than anything in the world, well his daddy ranks right up there as well! So I guess this blog is going to turn into a mommy scrap book. A place that I can write about my baby and what we are going through since I always forget to get things into his baby book!

Patiently waiting...

Boyfriend and I have been together just short of FOREVER... OK not literaly but we met January 2006 My senior year of high scool, by June of 2006 we were refering to eachother as boyfriend/girlfiend, September of 2006 we were living together. It is now November of 2011 and I am pretty sure it is time to get engaged! If only he was on my same time line. I think we should be engaged NOW, He thinks we should wait another year and a half... 1.5 years. I want to have a longer enagement like 1.5 or 2 years... I know that he doesn't want to get married until he is done with his electrical schooling. He'll be done with school in 2 years, I have no problem with waiting to get married until then. I just think that we should be engaged now. I have no idea where this crazyness came from. But it just takes over and I can't help but get frustrated with him... I know its not fair or even attractive way to act but i can't help it! I had a really bad day not so long ago and told him he had a year to propose because I wasn't going to wait forever! What the heck I love boyfriend and I would never leave him just because he didn't buy me a ring in a certain amount of time, but some days i have this crazy part that takes over and is so demanding that is happens NOW!!I have a ring picked out and all different kinds of other things picked out for my "Someday wedding". I serisouly have lost my mind! LOL So what do you do when all you can think about is getting engaged/married and your SO isn't on the same page as you?

Below are some pictures and I am sure the reason I am obsessed with all things wedding.

http://www.sohappitogetherblog.com/2008_06_01_archive.html

 

http://www.harryritchies.com/two_hearts_collection_princess_cut_diamond_engagement_ring_496_prd1.htm

http://greenweddingshoes.com/real-wedding-lydia-joshuas-backyard-wedding/

http://wedding.allwomenstalk.com/5-rustic-wedding-centerpiece-ideas/