Anatomy of a Photo Shoot

Okay moms and dads, I'm sure you can relate. Getting that "perfect" picture of your little one is not an easy task. [I know they are all perfect, but I'm talking about the ones where they look angelic and have that sweet little baby smile] I rarely snap the photo quick enough. So even though the pictures are far from "perfect," they end up being some of my favorites. From Jane's expressions to her crazy and sometimes inappropriate gestures they make me laugh over and over.

In this latest photo shoot I was trying to get a smiling picture of Jane on her 12 week birthday. I took over 26 and my silly girl was done. She'd had enough. The last picture says it all...hah.

Two Months

Better late than never, right?

Last Monday sweet Jane had her 2 month well baby check up and got her first round of immunizations. 4 shots and one oral vaccine. Poor thing.

Jane is doing great growth wise. She is already 23 inches long and weighs 10 pounds 11 ounces.

I'm still mourning the loss of dairy in my diet, but Jane is like a whole new baby without it. Seriously, the difference is crazy.

We didn't make it to church for Jane's first Easter. I was told something was dairy-free at a restaurant on Saturday, but apparently it was cooked with butter...errr. So sweet Jane had a rough night and morning. There was going to be no going any where that required her to not be screaming. It is just so, so frustrating.

Despite the dairy, we did have a great Easter weekend. Jim's aunt, uncle and cousin from Memphis were in town. It was so great to see them. On Saturday we took Jane to the lake house for the first time. It was a beautiful day, boats were out and even a few brave souls wake boarding...brrr. On Sunday my sister and Dustin came to town and we had a lovely afternoon and enjoyed a tasty meal that my mom cooked.

In other news, my last day working for Auburn University was Friday. I decided I needed to take time to focus on raising my little girl and focus on my jewelry business. If you would have told me a year ago that in a year I would have a baby and be a stay-at-home mom I would have laughed at you and told you you're crazy. But, life is just funny like that. :-)

In about a week and a half we're headed to California so Jane can meet the rest of my family. Poor Jim has to stay here and work so it will just be me, Jane and my mom. I'm a little nervous about flying with Jane. It is about a 5 hour flight and I really don't want to be that person. You know, the one with a baby that screams the whole flight...oh well. I'm so excited to see my family and for all of them to meet our sweet baby girl!

Here are some snap shots and a video from the past month:

Hanging out in the mamaRoo. Best thing in the entire world.

She thinks it is funny that she just tinkled everywhere
while I was changing her. hah.

Bath time!

Aunt Laura came to visit and Libby had to get in on the snuggles too!

Buona Pasqua

We are hanging out at my mom's this afternoon. Enjoying a beautiful spring day in fellowship with family. My mom shared the following passage that she wrote to give to family and friends for Easter. It moved me and I hope it moves you.

Happy Easter.

God’s Gift

God created humanity for a LOVE RELATIONSHIP with himself.

He gave us FREEDOM OF CHOICE because love is only love if it is freely chosen. 

Our choice has always been GOD or NOT GOD.

But, we are SELF-CENTERED by nature and quest mostly for things that gratify self.

We do this so much that we EXCLUDE RELATIONSHIP with

the very God who created us.

But, God loved us so much that HE CAME IN PERSON to draw us back to himself.

He came as JESUS to cover our selfishness even while we were still selfish.

He made a way to RESTORE relationship.

Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross REDEEMED RELATIONSHIP FOR ALL

 - for everyone who will receive it

 - for all time!

We have only to CLAIM it.  To thank God for loving us so much that he came for us and to CHOOSE

 the love he offers.

The promise for those who choose is relationship FOREVER with God.

To not choose – to quest only for SELF and the fleeting things of this world – is to REJECT GOD – to 

choose to live forever WITHOUT Him.

We are SPIRIT BEINGS.  Once created, our spirits live FOREVER.

–        Either with God or without Him.

To live forever with God is JOY.  To live forever without him is TORMENT.

When we die our spirits will be with God or without him - FOREVER.

* * * * * * * * * * *

My Dear Friend, I pray that you see how much God loves you … He has been waiting YOUR WHOLE LIFE for you to see it, sustaining you, providing for you, desiring you to come to him before your time of choosing (this earthly life) is over.

All it takes is a quiet, heartfelt prayer receiving Jesus as God’s way

 for you to have relationship with him.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son,

That whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,

but to save the world through him.

- John 3:16-17

6 weeks

Well, it's just been business as usually in the baby department. She is six weeks old today and is growing like a weed. She's up to 9lbs. 14oz., that's up 2lbs. 2oz. from her birth weight.

Jane is changing every day. I can't begin to explain how fun it is to watch. She came out of me wanting to hold her head up, but now she is getting a little more control. We practice that on our walks when I have her in the harness. We've tried and tried "tummy time," but she HATES it. She's getting pretty talkative too. All those little giggles and coos are starting...nice to hear something other than screaming coming from her. hah

In other baby news it turns out that Jane is allergic to the cow's milk protein from my diet. After a series of very bad diapers and some skin reactions we decided to try cutting that out. I'm happy/sad to report that the symptoms have cleared up. Happy for Jane...sad for me. Goodbye my beloved dairy products. But, if that makes Jane happier and healthier then I'm totally willing to make the sacrifice, especially if it means I can keep exclusively breastfeeding. Plus it will also help with loosing this last bit of baby weight...no ice cream, no butter, no cheese. 

Here are some snapshots of her life the past 2 weeks:

First night in her crib! (This was about a week and a half ago)
Jane is doing great, she consistently only wakes up once at
night to nurse then usually goes right back to sleep. 

Me and Jane (and Libby too) getting ready for our daily afternoon walk.

Finally fitting in my 0-3 month clothes!

Love her funny faces.

...and little smiles.

So serious.

Just kidding!

One Month Old

What a month it has been.

I think I can speak for both of us when I say it has been the most challenging month ever and the most wonderful month ever.

When they say nothing can prepare you to be a parent, they are right. You spend 40 weeks (or 41.5 weeks in my case) imagining what life will be like with a baby and then all of a sudden the baby is there - all the time. No more imagining. Thankfully something just takes over. You can suddenly function on way less sleep. You can distinguish between the cries to know exactly what she needs. And, you figure out all the funny little tricks to calm her down. Jane loves the Daddy bench press (and Jim enjoys the work out...hah).

I feel like we're settling in to a pretty good routine. Jane is a great baby. She is calm and easy. She has her moments, but honestly, who doesn't? She sleeps well at night. She wakes up to nurse every three or so hours, but is good about going right back to sleep. Jane is getting more and more alert and interactive everyday, and she is turning in to quite the "talker."

It's been so fun to watch Jane grow and change over this first month of her life. Here are some snapshots:

Words cannot express how happy this picture makes me.
I'm SO proud of our little Libby. She loves her little sister. :-)

All bundled and strapped in tight, ready for a walk
around the neighborhood.

One of Jane's favorite faces

Proud Daddy!

Jane taking her first bottle of pumped milk.

Nap time rocks!

I'm talking about Jane's nap time...not mine. :-)

Slowly Jane is getting on a regular schedule and that means "predictable" nap times where this mommy can get stuff done. Hooray!

During today's morning nap I'm prepping for tonight's dinner. So what's on the menu? Chicken with roasted garlic in the Crock Pot. I based it on this recipe from Betty Crocker. I'm on a quest these days to find quick easy meals for weeknights which means me and my trusty Crock Pot are besties. It took about 15 minutes to prep and will cook for the next 8 hours. When Jim gets home from work I'll throw some asparagus in the oven and roast it for about 15 minutes. Then we'll just dish it up and have a nice healthy dinner that took no effort to prepare. I think this recipe will be a winner.

Other nap time accomplishments will include cleaning the kitchen, catching up on laundry I didn't get to this weekend, and maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to make some jewelry. We'll see.

This Mom thing is hard...

Yesterday felt impossible.

Our sweet Jane cried from 7:30 in the morning until sometime after midnight. We had spurts of calm, but nothing longer than 30 minutes. Jim even came home early from work to give me some relief.

They say it is totally normal for newborns to have painful gas and digestive problems, but when there is nothing you can do to take the pain away from your baby it is heartbreaking. So Jane was crying and I was crying - all day.

Thankfully every morning we get a fresh start. Today is a night and day difference. Jane is back to her "normal routine." She's been sleeping all day, only waking up to nurse and be held for a bit.

Today feels possible and for that I am thankful.