Welcome Back!

Nearly 3 months ago, I decided to stop blogging. (See previous post for reasons why.) I changed my mind. I enjoy reading my friend's blogs, and I thought, maybe there is someone who would enjoy reading mine again. When I wrote my final blog on January 1st, Nathan wasn't even 3 months old...now he's almost 6 months old! Ella is now 2 and a half. I was going through a rough patch, both physically and mentally. I was completely overwhelmed, trying to take care of 2 children while running on very little sleep. Fortunately, I have a wonderful husband, supportive family, and understanding friends to keep me going. Our days run much more smoothly now, and I actually have some free time in the evenings. 3 months is a long time, and I can't possibly remember everything that has happened, but I will try to give a brief summary.

ME: I went back to work at St. Luke's Medical Center in Milwaukee. I work Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:30-4:00. I've been working on 11LM, the same floor I've been working on for 2 years. The population is mostly geriatrics and the floor is considered an ACE unit. ACE stands for "Acute Care for the Elderly." The physical therapist up on 11LM has been up there for about 2 years as well, so we have become friends and work really well together. I have also gotten to know the other staff on the floor, from the nurses and aides, to the social worker and housekeepers. I feel comfortable on "my floor" and do enjoy getting out of the house 2 days a week. It's a perfect schedule for me, for right now.

I am continuing to breast feed, so I have to find time during my day at work to pump. I have to take the elevator from the 11th floor to the basement, weave my way through a maze of hallways with low ceilings, until I finally reach the "Nursing Nook," which is located right in between the cafeteria and the morgue. Lovely.

My most recent adventure is making homemade baby food. Today I made squash and sweet potatoes. I really hope Nate likes it because one large butternut squash and 4 medium sweet potatoes makes A TON of food! I don't know how long I will make baby food, but I thought it might be neat to try it. It was kinda fun actually!

I just finished up my "Zumba" exercise class, which is a mix of Latin dance and aerobics. Now my new class begins on Tuesday. Are you ready to hear what kind of exercise class I will be taking next? Get ready...pole dancing and lap dancing at a studio called, "Miss Pole." A few of my co-workers convinced me to join them. What was I thinking? Joe is very supportive and encouraging.

JOE: Joe's job is going very well. He's taking on a lot of responsibilities and is really good at what he does. He is currently anticipating the start of th Brewer's season. Joe wants to take Ella to a game, but thinks maybe next year would be more appropriate (and fun.) He is a super dad, always horsing around with Ella and making us all pancakes on Sunday mornings. We are a team.

ELLA: Ella is one smart cookie. I have to thank Ms. Linda, our daycare provider, and Dora the Explorer for teaching Ella many new things. She can recite the days of the week and the months of the year, all in song form, of course. She can also count to five in Spanish. Ella rides her big-wheel like a bat out of Hell and does somersaults off the couch. She's my blonde beauty. She challenges me daily and tests my patience every minute. Because of this, I am currently reading the following books: "Screemfree Parenting," Momma Zen: Walking the Crooked Path of Motherhood," and "Soft-spoken Parenting: 50 Ways to Not Lose Your Temper With Your Kids." Basically, I just need to breathe and realize that it's called the "terrible twos" for a reason. She'll be 3 in 6 months...I have a feeling it's only going to get worse before it gets better. And then she'll be a teenager. Oh boy. Ella has her first dentist appointment scheduled for this Wednesday. We're concerned because one of her front teeth is discolored, following a nasty fall where she hit her teeth on the floor. The dentist...she's growing up so fast.

NATHAN: Nate is now 16 pounds and is quickly growing out of 6-9 month clothing. He recently began teething and has 2 cute little teeth popping up on the bottom. There were a few days where it seemed like the teeth were bothering him, but otherwise, he's been a trooper. Nathan seems to get sick a lot, usually with a runny nose and a cough. He finished up a course of antibiotics a few weeks ago after his cough had lingered for over a month. His pediatrician thought it might have been a sinus infection. Who knows. Nate was also on an anti-reflux medication called Prilosec for about 10 days. His pediatrician thought he might have had "silent reflux" since he was getting the hiccups so frequently and sleeping so poorly. He also said we would notice a huge difference if it really was reflux. We didn't. We stopped the medication and tried to accept the fact that our son was just a horrible sleeper. I think I read every book on the market on the topic of sleep, or "sleep training." Joe and I decided to follow a method described in a book called, "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child," by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. His philosophy does involve some crying and it is considered a "cry-it-out" method, or "CIO." Nathan was used to Joe or I rocking, bouncing, walking, feeding/nursing, etc. to sleep and then being put down in his crib asleep. He didn't know how to self-soothe, so when he woke up, he couldn't get back to sleep on his own. We have made HUGE progress! Nate now goes into his crib awake, following our routine of books, bottle, rocking, and singing. He still cries, but the amount has decreased considerably each night, and he falls asleep on his own! He only wakes up once or twice during the night to eat, which I can handle. Joe and I have some time to relax in the evenings now since once Nathan falls asleep, he's generally asleep for a good 4-6 or more hours for his first stretch. We still need to work on lengthening his naps, but he does fall asleep on his own for his naps as well. Nathan can roll from his tummy to his back and today Joe found him on his tummy in his crib, after I had put him on his back. He LOVES his Rainforest Jumperoo and can really get going! He also enjoys his Baby Einstein Playmat. Nate is trying lots of new foods and is doing really well with it. After a few trials, there isn't anything he absolutely wont eat. Yet.

I hope I've kept your attention. I felt like I had to provide an update and summarize the past 3 months. The past 5 months have been the hardest months of my life. They have been challenging and trying, difficult and emotional, stressful and frustrating. But, they have also been amazing and rewarding, beautiful and exciting, fun and memorable. Our family is complete and it's finally starting to feel like we know what we're doing. For now.

Enjoy the video of my funny kids!

My Final Blog

I'm not even sure how many people read my blog, but for those of you who do, I'm sorry to say that this will be my last posting. Here are my reasons why:
1. Like scrapbooking, knowing that I have something unfinished makes me stressed out. Do I really need my blog to create MORE stress in my life? No.
2. My free time is spent...oh wait, that's right, I have no free time. :) Hehe!
3. I return to work on Tuesday. Even though it's only 2 days a week, it's going to be a big change at first.
4. And finally, most evenings are spent putting Nathan to bed. And "to bed" means, putting him in his crib, going downstairs, he wakes up, we go upstairs, calm him down, go back downstairs, rinse and repeat.

I plan on printing out many of my entries and putting them into Nathan's memory box. It's been neat having a blog for a while, but I'm done. I do really enjoy reading everyone else's blog though! So keep it up! :)

I will continue to post lots and lots of pictures on Snapfish, so you'll be able to see our lives in pictures rather than in words.

Just a brief update: Christmas was spent in Michigan. It was great to be with my parents for so long, and they had a blast with the grandkids. It was crazy, but as my mom put it, "a good crazy." I was able to see family and friends and introduce them all to Nathan. I finally met my the children of my friends, Jessica and Sarah. Noah and Halle are just adorable! I still need to meet Christine's son Danny, then I will feel complete! Our drive to Michigan was rough, but going back to Wisconsin was smooth sailing. I only had to climb into the back seat once. Thank God for mini-vans. (and mini-vans with DVD players!) New Years Eve was spent putting Nathan "to bed." (See above.) He rang in the new year with us and then stayed up another hour after that! He's just a party boy I guess. He gets cuter and cuter each day and gives us lots of smiles and coos. He loves looking at ceiling fans. No need for toys! Ella continues to amaze us with her vocabulary and cracks us up on a daily basis. I hope everyone has a wonderful 2009.

THE END

Sunday Bloody Sunday

Joe and Nathan enjoying some relaxing time by the Christmas tree. Now onto my story...
Sunday started off with Ella climbing out of bed and standing in her doorway behind the gate, yelling, "Mommy, I's awake." Her yelling then woke up Nathan. Super. Not to worry though, I was able to feed Nathan and then put him back in his crib for a while...until Ella ran upstairs and woke him up again. Oh well, it was time to get ready for church anyways. Somehow we got everyone ready and out the door, buckled into carseats, and backing out of the garage we went...very slowly, and with a strange noise. Something was wrong. A flat tire! So we pull back up into the driveway, I run inside to grab the extra carseat base to install into the Mazda, Joe gets Ella into her other carseat, and away we went...again. We made it to church with a minute to spare. I dropped Ella off in the nursery while Joe and Nathan went to sit down. Ella is doing much better with going to the nursery. She doesn't cry anymore, which makes it much easier to leave her there. When I found Joe and Nathan, Joe gave me a look...not a good look. When Joe took Nathan out of the carrier, his outfit was completely soaked. He had peed through everything! Bad Target diapers, bad. So Joe takes him to change his diaper, but we didn't have an extra outfit in the diaper bag. I can't think of everything! So Nathan spent all of the service wrapped in a blanket, in just a diaper underneath. I hope nobody noticed! When we got home, we ate lunch, put Ella down for a nap, and all Joe wanted to do was watch the Packer game. No such luck...he was on-call, and got called, and had to spend most of the afternoon trying to fix a problem at work. Then he took the tire to try and get it patched, but it was beyond repair, so we had to get a brand new tire. Needless to say, we were exhausted by the end of the night.

On a positive note, we were invited to dinner by a family at church Saturday night. They have 2 children and we brought Ella and Nathan. Ella had fun playing with their 2 girls and Joe and I had a nice time having adult conversation and a wonderful meal.

On a not so positive note, Nathan still isn't sleeping great and has yet to establish a good routine. Ella fell into a routine on her own, but Nathan isn't, so we're a bit clueless as to what to do. I am willing to try anything to get him to sleep for more than a 2 hour stretch. We recently purchased a Homedics Sound Spa Lullaby machine and the Miracle Blanket. We got both items on the same day, and that night Nathan slept for 5 hours straight. I thought it really was a miracle. We haven't gotten a 5 hour stretch again. I still have to get up with him 3, sometimes 4 times. He melts my heart when he smiles at me though.

Gigi and Puppa (my parents) will be arriving on Wednesday, then they will drive with me and the kids in the van back to Michigan on Friday. Joe will drive my parents car to Michigan the day before Christmas Eve. Then Joe, the kids, and myself will drive back to Wisconsin on the 28th. I am really looking forward to going to Michigan! Many people will get to meet Nathan, and I will get to see some friends that I haven't seen in a long time. I will finally get to meet THEIR kids!

Happy Holidays to all!

Holiday Cheer

Just wanted to share some pictures showing off our holiday decorations. And of course, my little elf, giving a smile for the camera!

These are The Days of Our Lives

I'm finally getting into a groove with my two kids! Yeah, it's still really difficult at times, but it's starting to become "normal." This is my life now, and even though every day is different and brings new challenges, I am so grateful for these two amazing creatures!

Ella continues to go to Miss Linda's house every Tuesday and Thursday. On those days, Nathan and I get some alone time to bond. I probably kiss his cheeks a hundred times or more! I also tend to do my errands on those days...it's much easier carting around one kid at Target. Nathan's sleep is improving, but it's still not great. He goes to bed between 10:00 and 11:00pm, and for two nights in a row, slept for 4 hours straight, and the next night, 3 hours straight. Then he was up every 2 hours until he was up for good for the day. However, last night he was up every 2 hours. I didn't get the 3-4 hours in the beginning. Darn. He seems to fall asleep about 2 hours after he gets up for the day, but sometimes not. I'm hoping in the next few weeks, we'll get on a better schedule...before I go back to work. Speaking of work, I took Nathan into work last week to "show him off." :) It was nice to see my co-workers and talk to my supervisor about my return. I will start back on Tuesday, January 6th, 2009. I will be working Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8 hour days, not 10 like originally planned. I also got a flu shot while at the hospital. My arm hurt for 3 days! But...I am NOT getting sick again!

Ella is learning so much every day. She is able to recite the ABCs all by herself. It's the cutest thing to hear. She also said to Joe and I, "I wish you a merry Christmas." I wonder if they're singing Christmas carols at Miss Linda's? Ella is being much more gentle with Nathan. She loves to give him hugs and kisses, and asks to hold him. She is definately 2 years old however. I tell her to stop doing something, and she looks right at me and does it again. She also has this horrible habit of saying "HUH?" whenever you ask her a question. It is so much fun being able to do activities with her and have conversations with her. I try to do some sort of art project or craft on the days she is home with me. We made Turkeys for Thanksgiving by tracing her hands and feet, and just last night made reindeer with traced hands and feet also.

I was lacking motivation to put up Christmas decorations this year, but I did it anyways, and I'm glad I did. It makes the house look festive and puts me in the holiday spirit. Joe and Ella went to get a Christmas tree over the weekend, and after much adjusting, the tree is somewhat straight. I put all the lights on last night but still need to work on hanging the ornaments. I also have been playing Christmas carols on the piano, which has been fun and brings back memories. My parents will be coming to Wisconsin on December 17th and leaving their car here. Then they will drive back to Michigan with the kids and I in the van on the 19th. Joe will drive their car back to Michigan on the 23rd to join us. Then, Joe, the kids, and I will drive our van back to Wisconsin on the 28th. I am so looking forward to seeing family and friends, many who have not met Nathan yet. I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season!

6 Weeks Ago...

This little man came into our lives. And what an amazing, difficult, crazy, chaotic, time! Immediately following Nathan's birth, I came down with a nasty cold which lasted a good 2 weeks. Not a good start. Then I had to deal with the epidural headache which lasted a few weeks as well. Last week, I get strep throat! I haven't been that sick in a long time. I had high fevers, getting up to 103.5, the worst chills, body aches, migraines, and a severe sore throat. I was prescribed Penicillin, which has finally done it's job and I am starting to finally feel better. Normally it takes 24-48 hours to feel better once starting the antibiotics...not for me though! Nope, my body decided to take a full 72 hours to start feeling better. I was beginning to doubt that I was ever going to get better. Joe has been taking very good care of me. Over the weekend, he took the kids over to his sister's house to play and then went to visit some friends, so I could sleep. And sleep I did. All day long, as much as I could. Sunday afternoon I was still feeling pretty bad and was wondering how I was going to take care of both Ella and Nathan on Monday. Joe's parents stepped in and offered to take Ella for a few days. I miss her so much but I know it was a smart move. I need to be 100% better so I can be on top of my game! I also realized that I can't let myself get so run-down. My immune system must be pretty weak right now. I have to take better care of myself and I plan on it. Ella will be back in 2 days, on Thanksgiving. I can't wait to see her. We've been talking on the phone nightly. (Which is always amusing!)

Nathan had his 6 week check-up today. 6 weeks ago, Nathan weighed 8 pounds and was 20 inches long. Today, he weighed 10 pounds, 2.5 ounces, and was 22 and 1/4 in. long. Head measured 39 cm. For weight, he is in the 25-50th percentile, length is 50-75th percentile, and head is 25-50th percentile. He had to get 3 shots! Poor guy...he wasn't happy. He's been sleeping pretty much ever since then, which worries me for what the night ahead will bring. I gave him a little Tylenol, so that should help with any discomfort. I almost started crying myself. That part doesn't get any easier with the 2nd baby. I almost had to laugh when the pediatrician asked, "So, when do you rest?" He was genuinely concerned and I appreciated that. Right after Nathan's appointment, we headed over to my OB for my 6 week post-partum check. Won't go into details, but everything is good with me as well. My platelet count went back to normal, I've lost all the weight I gained and then some, and was told I looked tired. Ha!

We are looking forward to seeing Joe's family for Thanksgiving this year. I am in charge of making 2 pies, which I enjoy doing every year. We are celebrating Joe's 29th birthday on his birthday, this Friday, with family. On Saturday I am going to a bridal shower, and then we have a family portrait being taken in the afternoon (possible Christmas card???). On Sunday, we are becoming official members of the church we have been attending since this past May, Community United Methodist Church, where Nathan will be baptized in January. We've asked our close friends, Brian and Jenny Lerch to be Nathan's Godparents, and they more than willingly accepted.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!
We have so much to be thankful for!

Strep Throat

Yep, I've got strep throat. A few nights ago I had a 101 fever, as I wrote in one of my entries. Then the next day I started to have a sore throat, and I thought it was probably just another cold. Last night, I had another fever and really bad chills. This morning, my friend Jessica (a.k.a "Lifesaver") came over so I could run over to an Aurora Quick Care Clinic. I still had a temperature and my strep culture came back positive. So now I am on a course of antibiotics for 10 days. It is 9:00pm and I am going to bed. We decided to introduce formula to Nathan, just as a supplement. I still plan on breastfeeding 90% of the time, but for those times when I want to go to bed and don't have any pumped milk stored, Nathan will enjoy a bottle of yummy Similac, fed to him by his daddy. Good night!