Finally!!!

Nolan is holding his head up in his bebe pod. I knew it was only a matter of time since he did it whenever i held him. We keep placing him in his jumperoo but now he insists on putting his arm down with his leg in the leg hole. If we pull it out which we normally do because it looks so uncomfortable, he will scream. He is however playing with the toys on top and that makes me so happy. He also rolled from tummy to back yesterday on fathers day. So now he has rolled both ways!!! Im so proud of my big boy. Hes growing too fast!

Holding Head up & winner

Well Nolan has been holding his head up since a week old. He has always whipped it around and just held his head up. My mother and mother in law both kept saying he had the strongest neck ever. Well he still holds his head up but for a longer amount of time. We placed him in his jumper and he leans to one side but he is getting better and he almost touches the ground. Where has the time gone???

On june 9th he rolled over three times from his back to his belly. He has not mastered the other way around but he will. He babbles like no other and it is so adorable. The first time he did it was two weeks ago on the weekend and nick and i woke up to him babbling to himself and i swear i have hear "mum" and mommmmm several times but Nick just laughs. He smiles up a storm in the morning and he absolutely still does not like to have his clothes changed. I cannot help but laugh sometimes because he makes the silliest faces.

Similac Sensitive has been working so far for the last week *knock on wood*. We weighed him after his bath last night and he is 12 lbs 5 oz. He has a four month appointment next week so we will see where that takes us. He has always been between 12-18th% for weight so hes low. At first the doctor was concerned but he seems to be less worried now. His length is around the same percentile and his head circumfrance is 58th percentile. He gets that from his daddy for sure!!! Even when i was pregnant they always commented on the size of his head. He is having one side effect from the similac so i will talk to the doctor about it.

Also I read a wonderful blog Life with B&A (&D) and she did a giveaway for Kool Kids Legs and I was the winner. I was ecstatic to see that I won. I feel so lucky!!! Thank you Abby your a sweet heart!!! So i cannot wait to post a picture of Nolan wearing them.

Scratches and Formula Fail

So nolan's finger nails grow like crazy and we clip them constantly. He must scratch his face in the middle of the night because i wake up and find a new scratch. We bought a nail file from Target that vibrates. I have to say it obviously does not work and I even tried it on myself. Not only does it not help but you have to hold the button down the entire time. So i do not recommend this product. I believe it is by Safety 1st.

So Nolan has Acid Reflux and even went through several medical tests to prove he didnt have a hole in his stomach. He has been on every type of Enfamil possible and had several side effects. He has now been on 3 different types of similac. He also has taken Zantac and Prilosec. I really hope something works because he was so uncomfortable the last few days. Any other suggestions fellow parents??

Summer Time!!

It has been 90 degrees here. That is pretty much unheard of in Minnesota. Our summers in july and august usually top off at 80 degrees. So this is quite unseasonable. We are debating on where to take a vacation right now. We would love to go home to Ohio but that really isnt a vacation for us. So we are trying to think of a place to take a 4 month old. I keep looking at swim trunks for him and i am bound and determined he will have some even if he cannot swim! Since I love to swim i think it is so hard to think that he cannot swim yet but i know he cant.


He has been holding his head up for weeks but its to the side. I have to literally hold his head up straight. We have the bebepod so we are working on it. He still is having problems with reflux and now they want to try soy based formula. I just pray that something will work for him!


Gymboree has the cutest new outfit and im determined he needs it. He is lacking on shorts anyways! I think the crab is so cute!!!! I also have a latest addiction of pirate clothing for him. Here is the latest picture of him. His hair is red in the back and blonde on top so i do not know what he will end up with. I hope the red!!!!

Things we like or have needed

It always helped me to read what others like or needed when they had their babies and many of my friends are due soon or just found out they are expecting including some of our family members :) So here is what we have liked!!

Nolan really loves the bassinet part of his pack n play. We have a regular bassinet with a mobile, music, vibrations etc but he will only sleep in it for an hour at the most. In the pack n play he sleeps in the upper part 6-7 hours at night!! So that is sthe one we have from Babies R US. It is the Graco Hamilton Pack N play.

Next, the beloved seahorse!! Of course in blue. He fell asleep with him at first and lately has no problem doing it on his own. They do have it in pink also!!

Then the soothie pacifier!!! He did not like pacifiers until he was 6 weeks old and now this is the only kind he will take. Its just like our bottles, the Doctor Brown bottles are the only kind that he really cares for. We tried the playtex with liner bottles and he does not like those maybe he will when he is older but why force him to change.

We needed a ton of wash cloths so i always recommend those. I was one of those people who think they can just use regular washcloths so then we would not have to buy baby ones. Buy baby ones!! Trust me on this!! Its not the same fabric or softness that a baby needs.

Lastly, the gas drops are a lifesaver!! So i always will recommend those. We even ran out of them which seems impossible but until we figured out his acid reflux problem, they saved our lives.

One more thing i forgot was the swaddle me blankets. Some babies do not like these so they are a hit or miss with babies but it really helped Nolan go to sleep.

So far from 0-3 months, those are the things we have used the most of. We do have a moby wrap and have used it but now that he is getting longer i just dont wear it but i forsee it coming out again soon!! Also, when he grows out of the bassinet he will move into his crib. We also are just starting to use some teething items but only a few are acceptable for his age. So i will review those when he is older. Lastly if your baby gets baby acne i would definatelly recommend cortizone cream with cooling. He loved this and it helped it heal up a lot faster!! He still has some but its not nearly as bad!!

Two months later and a long update~!~

Sorry everyone!! Between the new house and Nolan, I have been quite busy. I have been sick recently and really unmotivated to work on the house. Slowly but surely we are getting there. We basically live on the top floor. We painted all of the rooms we wanted to paint right now. There is an almost complete nursery. We just need curtains really. Our room is complete and the living room is almost complete. We worked on the picture wall this weekend and finished that and we just need curtains in there as well. I am procrastinating because of the price of them really.

We met the two neighbors across the street and they are both really friendly, i just wish our house was done so we could go over and be social! Nolan really does not care for his bassinet anymore so he is currently in his pack n play in the bassinet seat on the top and he loves that!! He is getting long but is still a little guy. Hes just now 11lbs and will be 3 months old tomorrow! He is only in the 17th% for weight. His head and length are in the 58th percentile. Hes got a big head like his daddy!!

He's been having some troubles with Acid Reflux and we have tried zantac, prilosec, and are now on enfamil AR for spit up. If it doesnt work this week he will move on to Similac Sensitive. This pedi gives me bad vibes and i thought the whole time he should be on another formula so we are switching to the pedi we saw right when he was born. She was wonderful and i feel like i need to be comfortable taking him to his doctor because i am the one who is home. He smiles a lot at me when i make silly faces or i just Oooh and ahh at him and he cracks up and starts flirting :) Since Ive been sick, he and nick have had some good daddy time. His only nick names seem to be Baby boy, nick calls him double B all the time lol, and dude. One of the main reasons we picked his name other then we really love it is because it really cant have a nick name which i like. I really cant stand it when someone has a name and they give some random nick name like for Richard how they use Dick. That makes no sense to me. My sister in law calls him Noley ( and i cannot stand that!!) His name is nolan for a reason (sorry small vent).

Anyways i hope that i can utilize this blog more to document things that he does and etc. I will be starting my last internship hopefully this summer and then i will be done!!! So i cannot promise how many updates i will do but i will do my best. Have a great day everyone!!!

Nolan is here!

My birth story won't copy and past so heres a short jist of the story. I went in on Wednesday night and tried 2 medications to induce labor. After 20 hours i needed a c-section. Nolan was born on February 18th at 4:53 pm. He was 7 lbs 12 oz and 19 inches long. We stayed in the hospital for three more days and he lost too much weight so we had to supplement with formula. Hes slowly getting back to birth weight and just barely passed it now and he is three weeks old. He is still wearing newborn clothes and diapers and he is more alert now during the day. His hair is strawberry blonde and in sunlight looks just pure red like mine. We will see if that stays or changes. He is now over three weeks old and we love him more than anything. Sorry for the delay but a newborn keeps me quite busy along with a new house that we are closing on the 31st of this month! Lots of new things all in one time. Im healing alright it is slow going and everything they say is true. You cant be superwoman and be expected to be 100% two or three weeks later. It takes time and dont overdo it!

Induction tonight!

Im terrified and nervous. I of course cannot wait to meet our little boy but i did not expect my doctor to only give me one choice in the matter. Im not happy about it but i have no other way around it. At 630 pm i will be admitted to the hospital because my fluids have gone from a 12 to a 4. My doctor said anything under a 5 requires that the baby come out soon. She predicts he will be here by late tomorrow at the lastest Friday morning but i really hope its tomorrow! I want quick and painless which i know is asking way too much. Thoughts and prayers are welcome!

Overdue

Well my due date came and went. Im just trying to get through day to day until our baby boy is here. Tomorrow i have a 40+ wk appointment and my doctor will decide what to do with me next. I really hope she says your going to have him Thursday and then we know when it will happen. I think he decided its far too cold and snowy outside to come out and enjoy the winter weather. I know everyone is so excited for us and they want to plan trips to come and visit but the phone calls have got to stop. Everyday is a challenge to get through but at this point im so close to the end i just have to relax. Sorry i havent updated in a while i just had a bad spout where i had no energy and wasnt feeling well. Updates to come after i go to the doctor! Wish me luck!!

Its February!!

So its the first of the month and so far so good. No contractions so far that im aware of and baby is very active. He has been really giving his mommy some good hard kicks!! I have my 38 wk appt on weds and i seriously have some things to get off my chest with my doctor. She is amazing and wonderful but i need to let her really know how this anxiety is effecting me. I even have a feeling i will be crying during the whole appointment. That is how bad the anxiety is now.

I cant believe i will be someone's mommy this month! I noticed nick is doing a lot of busy work around the house lately, packing up boxes and cleaning the cars and just remaining that way. Call me crazy but i think someone is nervous! Which i am too so that does not help me. People had warned me how i would get phone calls and comments saying 'is he here yet? is your water broken?" These people are very close to me and im sorry but your going to be one of the first ones to know so please stop asking. That will get old really quickly i can see it now. Thats all for now just wanted to say happy February to everyone!

No induction needed!

As of right now i do not need an induction unless i go a week overdue. This was excellent news. I did not want to be induced because of all of the bad things i heard about medications and etc. I also tested negative for my swab test so that is also good news so i can labor at home until its 3-4 minutes apart. His growth is still ahead as always and so far no contractions as much as im aware of at least.

I will need some intense prayers over the next few weeks. Im highly anxious about the whole process and i need to trust my body but i just cannot seem to. Im dreading the pain and everything involved with checking me. Trust me ive known all along what is involved but chose not to worry too much ahead of time. People may laugh and think oh please everyone does it. Please dont compare my body to another persons when you have no idea what its been like to go through this pregnancy with such intense pain. I really hope that someone is watching over me and blesses me with an easy delivery and labor. I just want to see him and not worry about the pain.

37 weeks!!!

Sorry for the late recap on my 36 week appointment. Baby boy is 6 lbs 11 oz!! I just cannot believe it. That places him in the 73rd percentile. The midwife did my appointment and said that i need to speak with the doctor about the size. Sometimes they consider that to be large so they induce early. Induction is not what i wanted to hear. I cannot wait to meet our baby boy but i have heard of all the effects and things that happen. I honestly wish for a c-section for multiple reasons. Many people do not understand that and even some women feel bad if they have a c-section, I on the other hand would not. I have had far too many pain problems and I am extremely concerned about what my body can handle. He is head down and just chillin. They gave us a picture of his face and he so has nicks big cheeks!!!

I cannot wait to squeeze them :) At this point in time, we are stalled on two different houses. One is about a 30 minute commute for nick to work while the other is just down the street. They are so drastically different in looks and price so that is why we are so torn. To live here where we have everything at our fingertips costs more money for location wheras the other house is further and there is basically no stores, doctors, etc. I grew up 30 minutes from everything so for me it is really no change other then i am now accustomed to having conveinances. The baby and house stress has my anxiety at an all time high but i know that in the end things will work out the way they are meant to. The big scary "swab" test i had was not so bad as they let me do it myself and was pain free just a bit awkward was all. I find out the results this week at my doctors appointment. I can honestly say i cannot believe that 3 weeks from today is my due date!!!!! Time literally has flown by for me. All of these other women in my life say it will drag and you will be wishing it was over. I have yet to feel that way at all. So for now no news is good news :)

Hospital tour, anxiety, and getting closer!!

We went to the hospital tour and of course Nick was bored because he see's that everyday. The rooms are nothing special at all and quite small but in all honesty what will i care at that moment in time. It didnt increase or decrease my anxiety. It was extra funny that my OB was sitting up there when we toured. I told the baby he better not get any ideas :)

My anxiety is at an extreme level. I had a melt down the other day. As i stated before it is not because im nervous about becoming a mommy because i have all the confidence in the world that i can do that. Im worried about the labor process, the pain, the length and the what ifs. If i hear "Women do it everyday" one more time i think i may go off. I have been in complete silence about the overwhelming anxiety i have. I have an upcoming GBS test this week as well as a growth ultrasound. Im terrified of the GBS test and i cannot really get into detail without including too much information. Sometimes it would be comforting to know that im not the only one out there who has all of these physical barriers and pain problems.

Tomorrow i only have four weeks left. I cannot believe it literally. I love feeling him kick and move around in there and the aches and pains and sleepless nights are so worth it right now. I cannot wait to meet him but he needs to stay put until February for sure. Nick is more then excited to meet his little boy. Im excited and terrified all together and just overall concerned about the day i have him. My one and only support will be Nick and it will be that way until family starts to arrive the following week. Thats all for now until my appointment on Wednesday.

Nurseries

Most people do not know, but were not setting up a nursery since we are planning on moving into a house. Weve already looked at 10 houses and none have worked out so far. So baby boy will be in a bassinet in our room with a few things in the apartment until we move. Here are some nurseries that i enjoy :)

I need to whine, complain, vent!

I have done pretty well keeping a lot of things to myself lately including any mild complaints but now i just need to release them and what better way then here. Im at the point where bending over no longer exists, in fact its painful so why even do it. I experienced my very first dose of braxton hicks last night. Nick has me laughing so hard and my stomach was so tight i could barely breathe. Both signs that it was BH.

I have had a tremendous amount of anxiety on my mind the last few weeks and it still continues. Please dont anyone respond and say "thats normal." because this isnt in the least. Im expressing all of my concerns to the doctor and hoping she will tell me what i would like to hear and we can schedule a c-section. More then likely i will not know for another 3 weeks if i have c-section or not. The dr also had me stop my nausea meds which is not going well. Im still feeling constantly sick, im just one of those women who have it the whole pregnancy.

For those who dont know, Nick and I are avidly looking for a house, yes perfect timing right. We know that we probably wont move until after our little boy is born which is fine with us but at the same time i dont get to set up a real nursery. The slightest thing seems to get me down and i cant really express that to anyone because i dont want to hear well your just emotional.

Finally, people always seem concerned or at least ask how things are going but then once i get used to updating them on a normal basis, they dont even respond which im sorry makes me furious. You wanted to know the information but dont care about it now. So i guess from now on i will only update through the blog to relieve my stress. I feel like an invisible wall who is unable to be heard at most times. Lastly, there are things going in my personal family life that no one is aware of that cause some considerable amounts of stress and before people start assuming it has nothing to do with Nick. Family is one of the most important things and i prefer to keep some of that private and it weighs heavily on my shoulders. So please do not assume that you know what is going on. It made me realize that some problems are so minute compared to what happens in life so do not take it for granted at all.