Babies, babies, everywhere

So I just have to thank you all...again... :)

Just recently it has dawned on me that Evan is moving from the baby stage to the toddler stage and as he squirms out of arms a lot more these days, I'm jonesin for a baby.

Since I can't have another one of those and since God has not yet directed us towards adoption, this doesn't seem like I'll get my wish anytime soon.

BUT God in all his grace has started to provide to me all kinds of little babies popping up in my life so that I can get my cuddle time in. :D

So thank you to all you preggers out there or all the brand new moms that will let me snuggle with their munchkins.

Back again

Hey everyone, I'm not sure who's looking at this anymore. :) But if anyone is, I just want to say THANKS to all my mom friends. I never realized how nice it is to be able to bounce things off of people and make sure my son is not the ONLY child in the world doing this or that I'm not the craziest mom in the world. :) I love all my friends, but I am especially thankful for those of you that get what I'm going through. LOVE YOU ALL!

Moms Recommend...

Christy's last post inspired me to add another section to the Blog. Please feel free to add anything you've found helpful, fun, inspiring, whatever. :) Also the Good Sites section is open to everyone.

Registering for Enfamil Now!

Well, the "in utero" mom of the group finds all the boob talk very enlightening. This week I have had encounters with you guys (the moms I can get behind) and another mom who breastfed her son until he was 3. She said she knew it was time to stop when he lifted up her shirt in a restaurant. Here's the kicker- she didn't mind if he lifted up her shirt at home, it was just in public that bothered her. Um, no thanks. I plan to give it a shot but that's all I can guarantee. Kat - good to hear your routine.

On another note, would you guys tell me the 1-2 best products you've gotten for your babies? We're starting to register and as you know it's a little overwhelming. It's always good to hear about favorites.

Boobs and Naps

Nursing SUCKS! Anyone who says, "It's so great! It bonds you with your baby and it's wonderful!" is a crazy person who shouldn't be allowed to have kids in the first place!!! The best thing I found is to give them a bottle of formula before you put them down at 6pm or 7pm. Wait until 9pm and pump both sides. Use that milk at night for 1 or 2 feedings then nurse in the morning one side and nurse every other side for every other nursing session. That allows them to drink the first part of the milk and "the rich hind milk" or so they say... Also, if one side is a marathon producer - pump it and do the bottle. And don't feel bad about switching to formula! The best part is the first few months then it is OK to switch. Regarding naps - yep, you are pretty much at home for the duration. Cooper is almost 3 and sleeps 2 - 3 hours a day. He will sleep at his school for about an hour twice a week and when he is with me is it 2 - 3 hours a day. The two naps go to one at around 1 year I think and then they stay (sometimes until kinder garden.) I kind of like it because I get a little freedom to work, get stuff done, talk on the phone, etc. A few days with short naps or no naps won't kill him. You have probably noticed that he is a lot nicer when he gets to nap so sometimes it is just easier to give him and let him sleep!

The boobs....

OK Let me first start off this posting by saying I never really thought about my boobs much until I had Evan. No really....they were just the things to put a pretty bra on...now, they are a daily part of my conversations. How did that happen?

The current troublesome issue is the fact that despite my attempts to "equally feed" and nurse first on the small side, my left boob consistently stays bigger than the right. And we're not talking just a bit, oh no...this is an ENTIRE CUP SIZE. Talk about self conscious!!

All my shirts fit funny, my bras are never comfortable and I swear everyone that I see is looking at me like some kind of circus freak!

I'm telling you, plastic surgery has never sounded so nice!!

As much as I love being able to nurse and save us money and give Evan good nutrition and all that, I really have to admit, at this point, I am counting down the months until it is over. :)

Wet Nurse is SOOOOOO not in my future. :)

Slave to the Nap

OK..so here's my question. Am I destined to have to plan my entire life in 2-3 hour increments forever?!?! At this point Evan is taking a morning nap and an afternoon nap. He's on a fairly good schedule as far as when. Between 9-10 AM and then 1-2 PM.

So here's the dilemma, If I happen to go anywhere that is further than 10 minutes away (and those that live local know that pretty much means anywhere) he falls asleep in the car and then the naps are shot. I'm screwed for the rest of the day. No matter how hard I've tried, if he gets a 20 minute power nap in the car, he will count that as his real nap! :(( Sooooo if any of you brilliant friends of mine have any suggestions, I'm all ears. OR if that's just life and your only answer is "Suck it up Rachel" :) then I will resign myself to this for the next couple years at least. :)

Cute Babies

I mean seriously...how cute is this?!?!

Baby Yoga

For those that are interested, Destination Maternity and the Pea in the Pod have free Baby yoga and Post Natal yoga classes. They are thursdays at Destination Maternity and Wednesdays at Pea in the Pod. The Baby Yoga "Itsy Bitsy Yoga" is at 10am then you slide baby to the side and do postnatal at 11am. You can stop and nurse or feed as needed. It is a lot of fun and there are a lot of benefits for baby! They also offer free pre-natal yoga and several educational type classes each month.

http://www.destinationmaternity.com/stores/Calendar_June.Dallas_updated.pdf

http://www.destinationmaternity.com/stores/Pea_Dallas_June.pdf

The Mission....

If you choose to accept it.. NOT

Like we need more to do. :)

Actually, I just thought that I have all these great friends that are great moms and I have a hard time keeping up with everyone. You are all pretty tech savvy as well so I thought....HEY...let's have a blog! This way we can chat, ask advise, vent, brag about our kids, etc. etc. :D What ya think?

I know there's a million mommy blogs and forums out there but I know for me getting advise and hearing stories from women I know and trust would be a lot more valuable than the random lady on Yahoo. :D

So, that was my motivation behind this. There's no pressure, just a place to blab if you need to.

I'm going to add all of you as Blog Authors so that you can add Site Links and Blog Links and whatever else you find useful or interesting. :D

Any who...hope you find this fun and/or helpful. Please let me know if you're not interested and I'll take you off the list.

But for those who are interested....BLOG AWAY.....