Walking and a One Year Update

Twelve months is easier for me to handle. It doesn't sound so, old. So let me begin again.

Walking and a twelve month update.

That's much better.

Grace is officially one (er, twelve months) and I was about to give you the usual updates, but she officially started moving and grooving tonight, so that takes precedence! She has taken a few steps over the past three weeks, but seemed to lose interest in walking until she got a push toy for her birthday. Heavens to Betsey, that child can circle the room in under 30 seconds! Last night she took two consecutive steps before falling three different times, and tonight she took six steps, twice. Danny and I couldn't believe it and I cried for a minute. When did she get old enough to walk? (Oh wait, last week, when she turned twelve months). I am loving it tonight, but I hear things are really about to get fun.

Miss G cut her third tooth this week, and by my calculations, has the other three top ones just waiting to cut thru at any time.

Danny thinks Grace somehow picked up French by mistake, because the only English words she knows are mama, dada, nana, papa, and sometimes she will say something that sounds a lot like duck. Everything else she says sounds exactly like French to us (say them out loud with a lilting inflection and you will get an idea of what we hear on a daily basis. And add a question mark at the end. Kind of like Canadians, "Eh?" Come on. It will be fun).
Bwee? Bweh? Do-uy? Wee? Wee Wee?
Yes, not only is she adorable, but she is mastering her first foreign language. We couldn't be more proud.

She has quite the personality and flair for the dramatic. I have met a lot of babies that are cute, some that are serious, some that are content, but a few that are really funny. And that know it. Grace is that way. She knows what makes us laugh, does it, and then waits for us to laugh. It is hilarious. I cannot describe her funny smiling face she does, but if you have seen it, you know what I'm talking about. It kind of looks like this.

She will keep doing it until you laugh at her (you should see her at United with the sackers, she is relentless) and if you don't she will look away and find someone else who will laugh at her.
She is also quite dramatic and will let you know very quickly when she isn't happy. Which isn't often, but when she is, forget it. Just duck and run for cover until she decides to get happy again.

We are going thru the Love and Logic parenting study at church and having a blast applying the foundations on our unsuspecting one year (ahem) twelve month old. The study is all about giving "control" to your child by giving them choices; i.e., "Would you like juice or milk? Would you like to carry your coat or wear it? etc... The other day I heard Danny say on the monitor, "Grace you can either cry when I change your diaper or not cry when I change your diaper. Your choice." Too funny. Whenever I listen to the other couples in class, almost all of whom have toddlers or older children, I think to myself, "I signed up for babies. Not parenting," and then proceed to break out in a cold sweat thinking about her toddler and teenage years. Stepping stones, right?

We went to the Dr. on Thursday for her shots and checkup. She ran a little fever and took a three and a half hour nap but was acting her usual self by Friday morning. She is still off the charts for height(30.5 inches, 97th percentile) but only gained 1 ounce in three months. She weighed 18.14 and while I had a suspicion she hadn't put on much weight, I was a little surprised at her being in the 10th percentile. Her Dr. told me not to worry (which I did anyway), and said that because Grace is still nursing and not very interested in solids when she is with me, she is not going to put on much weight. So I left with a list of foods to give her and this weekend we have been in Operation: Fatten Gracie Up mode. I think it is hard not to worry. I have heard that most babies triple their birth weight by the time they are one, which would have put us around 21.5 pounds, so for her to be three pounds shy makes me wonder if I am doing something wrong. But to be honest, with the amount of food we bought her Thursday night, I would guess she is going to more than triple her birth weight in the next week. Besides, tall and skinny never hurt any woman.

We are having an absolute blast and are actually quite ready to do this mama and dada thing again soon. If the next one is anything like the first, we will be in for a treat!

Birthday Day

It's been a great first birthday. A day full of laughing at mama's silly faces,
playing hide-and-go-seek,
watching Sesame Street,

letting Alisa hold me after she took pictures,


riding in my new car,


opening presents and being more interested in hangers than the clothes themselves,


Looking at the fish with nana,


trying to pop bubbles with papa,

making silly faces in the mirror,

and playing in the water with nana.

What a great day so far! We spent a fun morning playing at home, went over to Tom and Beth's to take pictures with Alisa, then headed to the Science Spectrum. Grace is taking her afternoon catnap before we go out to eat. Such a sweet and fun day celebrating our pumpkin. (I haven't cried once!)
Alisa emailed me one tiny little sneak peek of the shoot this afternoon. Love this picture! Can't wait to see the rest of them.

Happy almost Birthday, Gracie girl

Well, my sweet Grace, you turn one tomorrow. I asked you repeatedly to slow down again and again this year, but as with most things I ask you to do, you ignored me and decided to zip right on to your first birthday.
Time does fly, but sweet Grace, I have enjoyed every moment with you. The first nights home when you slept on my chest. The first time you smiled at me. Your first real bath. Our first road trip when we thought we left you at Subway but really just forgot to buckle you in. Your funny laugh. Watching baby Einstein nine hundred times. Taking you to the store and rocking you to sleep in my office. Watching you try and roll over for three weeks before you finally did it! Listening to you and your daddy talk to each other from the other room. Picking out all of your adorable outfits and matching bows. The way you smell when you get out of the bath. The first morning you were standing up in your crib, waiting for me with your arms open. Hearing you say "mama" for the first time. Watching you crawl and crying with you when you hurt yourself. The joy on your face when you learn something new. The way you looked up at me the night you were born and I instantly fell in love.


You are growing beautifully and wonderfully and I thank God for your sweet spirit, contagious laugh, funny personality, and open mouth, slobbery kisses.
My sweet girl, I hope one day I can describe the depth of love I have for you. I hope one day I can show you how proud I am of you and how proud I am to be your mommy.

I love you baby girl. Happy 1st Birthday.

Birthday Party

We had Grace's 1st birthday party on Saturday afternoon. What a fun, special day! I was shocked at how well she did and how much fun she seemed to be having. I know throwing an over the top birthday party for a one year old seems silly, but I think she loved having everyone there and really enjoyed herself.
We had awesome food from My Lips are Sealed and great desserts from Aunt Nories. Julia decorated the table for us and did a fantastic job. I forgot to get pictures of the bubble maker on the front porch and her gift table with the floating chandeliers and fairies! It was super fun!

Uncle Kyle

One of Grace's many male suitors, little Wade. Although they did sign the card "cousin Wade" so we will have to see about that. I'm all for keeping it in the family, but seriously...

Sweet Kristen and Hunter. He had a good time helping himself to the marshmallows on the table.

Kayci and little Ketcher. He was sad at first without his brother Kade, but then seemed to catch on to the idea that this was his opportunity to impress Grace without his other (quite charming) twin brother there to get in the way.

She had no shortage of gifts to open and got so many cute outfits and toys. She kept pulling the tissue out of the bags piece by piece and holding them between her first two fingers so delicately. It was adorable.

Just a little understated tutu.

It was so fun watching her try and figure out her cake. She kept leaning in toward it and then would back up. She would touch it with one finger but never quite dug into it until the end.

She got on all fours several times and put her face right in the top of it.
She had the cutest look on her face when I would give her a bite. You could tell she was not used to the sweet taste and kept looking up at me like, "this is so good, are you sure I'm allowed to eat this?"

Thank you so much to everyone who came or sent gifts and helped make it such a special day for Grace. We love you guys!
Mike, Tina, Wendy, Brooke, Loren, Wade, Memaw, Ingrid, Papa, Nana, Aunt Cheri, Mimi, Auntie Am, Brandon, Uncle Kyle, Jana, Kristen L., Peter, Kristi, Emily, Brayden, Kristen H., Hunter, Kayci, Ketcher, Debbie, and Micah.

This time last year...

I wrote the following post last year on November 1st. What a difference a year makes!

I am about to be a mother. You have got to be kidding me. People keep asking, "are you ready?" like I have any idea what there could possibly be to get ready for, but I say "yes" anyway. But with my scheduled c-section now less than two weeks away, I would like to retract my "yes" statements and replace each one with an emphatic "no." Think about it. Completely responsible for another human being- how can anyone be ready for such a task? My fears include, but are not limited to:
1. What if I drop her?
2. What if she grows up to hate me and blame all of her problems on me?
3. I'm a heavy sleeper- what if I don't wake up in the middle of the night when she needs me?
4. I've never been cut open. Not exactly my idea of a good time.
5. Breastfeeding. Nothing sounds natural or beautiful about it to me.
6. Recovery- I'm worried about having to rely on other people to help me do everything. I'm not exactly the codependent type.
7. Warning, this next fear is shallow. What if she isn't cute? Sometimes two cute people make not cute babies (example Gwenyth Paltrow and Chris Martin from Coldplay)
8. I'm still afraid I might die and leave Danny alone with a new baby. Totally morbid, but a valid fear.
I have heard that the minute I see her, all of the worries will go away and be replaced with new worries as she grows up. Here's hoping that's true.

How funny to read back and remember being 9 months pregnant and scared out of my mind.
I didn't drop her, but I let her fall off the bed.
She is growing up, but she still seems to like me. At least for now.
I quickly turned into a light sleeper and now wish I could revert back to being a heavy sleeper and not wake up in the middle of the night when she cries!!
Being cut open wasn't fun, but they managed to stitch me back up somehow.
Breastfeeding was horrible the first two weeks and a year later, neither one of us are ready to quit. It has become quite natural, although beautiful is a strong word...
Recovery was awful. Any kind of surgery is awful. Add to it a newborn, and it's just plain awful. But I would do it again in a second.
No worries anymore about my child not being cute. Are you kidding me? She is ridiculous. Refer to below picture for proof.

As for my morbid fear, I still think it was valid...

If I only would have known that the baby part isn't scary, it's the parenting part that I'm freaking out about! Someone said last night during Love and Logic that whatever stage your child is in is the best phase. A good reminder for this sad mama planning her daughter's first birthday party...

To wean or not to wean...

Warning:

If you are a male, or I suppose even a female, that is unnerved or bothered by words like breastfeeding, weaning, pumping, or milk supply, you can stop reading now. Or if you are a grandparent who only checks the blog to see pictures of the little miss, know in advance that there are no pictures on this post. I am saving you disappointment, really. You're welcome.

I.

Repeat.

Stop.

Reading.

I knew you really wouldn't stop. But don't say you weren't warned.

I have debated whether or not to blog about what may or may not be a sensitive topic to some readers but then decided that after a clearly posted warning and even a second chance to stop reading, ultimately it's my blog and I'll write about weaning if I want to. (Reference to 60's pop song clearly intended).

To wean or not to wean: this is my question. With Grace coming up on her one year birthday, I have some decisions to make on how our little miss will continue to be fed. I go back and forth on a daily basis. For starters, I don't want to be that mom; you know the one I'm talking about. The mom who has a talking, walking little one who can lift her shirt up and ask for it. Not to offend, but I don't want to be that mom.

I also don't want to be the mom who gives in to social pressure to quit nursing my baby when she turns one just because that is the "normal" thing to do. I love nursing. I will admit it. It is easy cheesey japan-eesy, convenient, free, and I love that it is something only I can do for my child. Especially with the winter months coming up and all of the sickness going around, a part of me wants to get her through this time with the healthiest option. Mostly, I know Grace isn't ready. I have tried the last few weeks to go from five feedings a day to three and I know she hates it. When she is around me, she claws at me and I know she is mad we have gone to three feedings a day. On weekends it is really more like four and a half but I digress...
But a big part of me is ready to stop for what I feel are selfish reasons. Mostly, I want my body back. I want my boobs to be my boobs again, you know what I mean? Feeling like a dairy cow on a daily basis gets old. I have also read and heard numerous times that when you stop nursing you have an easier time losing those last pesky five or ten pounds. That part sounds nice. I am also ready to quit pumping!! Can I get a what what? I have a love hate relationship with that machine and the freedom it affords me to not have Grace attached to my hip all day every day.

I know this can be a touchy topic, but talking it over with a few friends this week made me feel normal. I have friends who were never able to nurse, those who are still nursing their babies at 14 months, those who quit the day their baby turned one, those who have a "no talking or walking rule," and one who is still nursing her two year old baby.
I think mostly I am shocked to be the mom contemplating nursing past a year. I remember the first breastfeeding support group class I went to when Grace was a month old. Moms with babies of varying ages sat and shared about nursing- the good, the bad, and the ugly- and a woman with an 11 month old baby started talking about how she wasn't ready to give up nursing. I remember thinking, "dear Lord, just let me make it past three months. I won't feel like a failure if I can just make it to three months..." and that the woman was crazy. She must be one of those moms, who can't let go, the mother-earth, hippie chickie type that weans her child the day they start kindergarten. I am in her shoes right now and still haven't fully made my decision. I know EXACTLY where she is coming from.
I may change my mind next week, but as of the publish date of this post, I have decided to let Grace decide. (To a point. But don't ask me what that point is. I'm not sure yet. Clearly. Haven't you been reading this post?) To be honest, I am hoping that she makes the decision for me. A lot of my friends said you will know when she is done. Fingers crossed that happens to us. I hope she is before kindergarten...
Your thoughts? I was going to say that I forbade those without mammaries to comment, but if you have made it this far, comment until your heart is content. I am curious to hear what other moms are doing, have done, plan to do...

11 months...sheesh

Eleven months old today. As in, one month away from twelve. And according to popular opinion, twelve months equals one year. Lord, make it slow down.
Time for the monthly update:
She is still cruising along everything, but no walking yet. She will stand on her own for a few seconds at a time and then realizes she isn't holding on to anything and immediately plops down.
For the last month she has been "dancing" and bouncing every time she hears music. It is absolutely adorable. We will say, "bounce, Gracie, bounce!" and she starts bouncing up and down.

She found the tupperware drawer a few weeks ago and I put her inside it for fun. And fun she had.

Yes, it's a cool whip bowl. But it's cool whip lite, mind you.

She started sleeping thru the night again after we left Cleveland last month (she was on hiatus from month 6-9) and it has been wonderful. I think we were laying her down too early- in Cleveland we wouldn't get her to sleep until 9:15-9:45 and she did wonderfully. We kept with that schedule once we got back and it has worked like a charm ever since. She is still taking two long naps a day and I consider myself a blessed mommy to have a few hours a day to get things done.
I realized I never updated on Grace's PDO. After day three, she really seemed to start enjoying it and her daily reports started saying things like, "she is such a happy girl!" and "wonderful day today! she loves to smile!" She is still on a bottle strike while she is there, and naps aren't really her thing, but she is happy and enjoys playing with the other babies, so I feel at ease. She has yet to cry when I drop her off, and we have even added Tuesdays so I can work a bit more. So our schedule right now is M-W until 2:30 at PDO and with Nana on Friday mornings. I have been struggling a bit with balance the last month, but that is another blog for another time.
She learned how to drink from a straw a few weeks ago and now thinks that anyone's straw wherever we go is hers.

She is babbling ma-ma, da-da, pa-pa, n's, b's and g's, but not much else. I work with her on other sounds but da-da is her go to word for everything.
She is eating more table food and loves it. She pretty much eats a modified version of what we eat, and I think she is going thru a growth spurt. My milk supply isn't keeping up with her, and she is still hungry nearly everytime I feed her. Weaning scares and excites me all at the same time, but again, another blog for another time.
She has such a funny little personality. She loves to make people laugh and does this scrunched up smile thing at nearly everyone (she is a hit everytime we go to the grocery store).

She also has a flair for the dramatic and her little spurts of tantrum are over as quickly as they begin. Hard to imagine, I'm sure...