Thankful

My family has so many things to be thankful for, really. In this horrible economy, we both have jobs that pay the bills. We can afford a sweet daycare in which everyone genuinely loves our little girl. Our little girl loves that daycare so very much that she looks out the window and asks "school?". She doesn't want to go home on some days!! Not only that but I know that I can give some credit to daycare for her advanced vocabulary and social skills.

We are healthy, goodness I want to say knock on wood. But the truth is that besides catching little colds, stomach bugs, etc. we are healthy. We have a cozy home with heat and water. We are doing fine. As of next week we will also have someone who cleans our house once a month. I feel frivolous for this but it will give me a week (okay maybe 2 if I can stretch it) of relaxing about cleaning. Pete doesn't understand why we need one. Okay we don't need one, I want one. I want to have a week in which I can cuddle Celia and play with her in the afternoons and not have this nagging feeling that I really should be doing something around the house.

We have a wonderful extended family that we don't get to see enough but we at least get to spend the holidays with them. My Mom has been so amazing since Celia has been born, we literaly would not have survived without her. She has been helping with Thanksgiving prep this year and with Celia. Not only that but she is giving Celia her Christmas gifts now so that she can watch her play with them. That is so sweet. Celia loves the gifts but really she just wants "Mom Mom" and she is satisfied. Pete's family (sadly his sister has to work) will be joining us for the feast tomorrow.

Celia had her Thanksgiving holiday show today and my Mom was able to go and see it. Celia was a chef and had a little shirt on that said "Kiss the cook". She sat in one of the buggies but my Mom said that she really would have liked to have been able to dance and join the older kids.

Okay well Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Anyone up for Black Friday shopping? Mom and I are off for some shopping on Friday, Celia is staying with Pete this year. Last year she was comfy in my Moby wrap while we shopped. Last year I was getting up at least 3x a night to nurse her for an hour each time!! I watched so much Fresh Prince of Bel Air... It is on at any hour of the night.

MENSA

The MENSA logo is on because I know that my daughter could be a member, she really could. However I don't believe in those sort of things so we will not be testing her at this time. So why do I think Celia should be in MENSA.

Well the following things.

She has an expanding vocabulary that includes the words- school, daddy, mommy, car, snack, splash, good girl (the phrase), Milo (My oh is her lovey that she sleeps with), Shoes, Shit, baby, Mom Mom, awe, up, diaper (diappy).

There are probably somemore.

Oh wait you noticed the 4 letter word she says, that will be explained later.

Okay well the biggest clue to how smart she is came this evening while we were reading one of her books. Celia pointed to a frog and I said, "Oh you see the froggy". Then I said "I see the ducky" and Celia put her finger on the duck. I said "I see David" and Celia put her finger on David. I then said "I see the froggy" and she put her finger on the frog. My daughter is a genius. She has even stopped eating my hair (okay she has cut back, but my hair is tasty).

We also played again today with a small squirt bottle. She tried to stick it in my mouth like I was a baby. So I started to cry. Everytime I cried she put it in my mouth. Now she could have just wanted to shut me up but she followed it once with a hug and an "awe" so I am thinking she was playing along. Now granted after the hug she basically lost interest in feeding me and insisted upon "na" or nursing.

Okay back to the shit. Yes my daughter said shit today, it was clear and it was my fault. Celia smashed sweet potatoes and a quesadilla together then dropped multiple pieces on the floor. I said "shit" because it was quite the mess. She then dropped one more piece and said "shit", then smiled. Nice, real, nice. The word wasn't repeated the rest of the evening. Since my Mom has a habit of saying "oh shit", I am blaming the situation on her. I blame it on her simply because I heard it so much growing up because she primarily said it when we were lost and well if you know me, you can guess that we were always lost.. So "oh shit" is drilled in my head that shit comes out easily. And of course the mother is always blamed...

Celia did talk to Mom Mom on the phone today. She was quite a chatterbox today after school. She talked to daddy and said Da Da and she said "ma ma" for Mom Mom.

My classroom is still about the same. Things are likely getting better but between the dragging kids by their feet to the bathroom, learning puppetry to gain their attention, and being the entertainment of the cafeteria I am exhausted. But... I am having fun. I like the group despite their craziness. It is an adventure. I will survive the year, beyond that I am not sure. Celia loves daycare so I go through the day with a very good feeling because she would actualy prefer to be then anywhere else on somedays (honestly!!). If she would only nap longer for them situation would be perfect.

Another year

So that is what I was doing this time last year. I think if I remember correctly that I ate my birthday meal either with Celia nursing or somehow she was attached to me. I do remember that I was either camped out on my bed or on the couch because Celia really would only sleep on someone and when she wasn't sleeping she wanted to be held. So now, a year later... Okay, she is still nursing when she can and she still would rather be in my arms then anywhere else. I was told by many people, enjoy it now because when she is walking she won't want to be held. Hmm... still waiting for that... She has been walking for awhile now and there are times where I think Celia wants to permanently glue herself to me so I can't possibly put her down. Thank goodness for my Ergo Carrier and the Moby Wrap. I retired the Moby over the summer but now that it is getting Chilly I think it needs to come out again! As for sleeping.. It took her awhile, a long while, but she is taking naps and has been since she was 8 months old. Thank goodness. She has even been better about naps at daycare even though I think she is the only one that takes a morning nap.
Life does change so much in a year. Since I have been back to work, my year off seems like a complete blur. The lifestyle is so different. I can't say that staying at home was easier. My life now is more stressful and rushed but it is so different. I think that staying at home is more difficult because there are no breaks. I get to go to the bathroom now by myself (that is while I am at work and when I can sneak out to go to the bathroom) and I get to take my 20 min. lunch by myself. My students are exhausting, oh my goodness are they exhausting!! But at the same point I haven't had this much fun with students in awhile.
Celia continues to love school. In fact she cries when she has to leave. That makes Pete and I feel so loved!! But the situation has made it so that I don't really worry at all about Celia while I am at work. I know that she is having a great time and she is learning things.
So I had a plan at the beginning of the school year that if I wasn't happy by the end of October that I would give my 60 day notice. I think that I will stick it out for the school year. We need the money and once I sort through all of the paperwork and get my classroom fully organized, things should be a little easier. Oh and if I can turn Pete into a cleaning machine that would help. Anybody know the name of a good hypnotist for that???

Sick Sick Sick

Okay so we knew that daycare would cause Celia to become sick more often and we knew that I would start to get sick more often but who knew it would happen at the same time. Oh and who know that I would be the one to get Celia sick and not daycare!! A student of mine started with this horrible cold at the end of last week, then another started getting a runny nose, then... You get the picture. So I wasn't suprised when Wednesday I had a little tickle in my throat that turned into a knife in my throat by the evening. I am glad though that it explained why on Tuesday even though I got a great night's sleep that I felt like a complete zombie.
In anycase Wednesday when Celia came home from daycare she fell asleep while nursing and couldn't be woken up. She just didn't want to and wasn't going to be disturbed. So she slept for about 45 min. and I figured it was because she didn't sleep well at daycare. That night she woke up with a very stuffy nose and by morning she had a slight fever and a very stuffy nose but was in a playful mood. So we did what great parents do, we pumped her with tylenol and sent her to daycare. Okay, okay... she was fine- dancing, playing, eating just had a 100.8 temp which is low for a baby. I had a temp of 101 and I went to work. We weren't totally awful, as I was not feeling perky at all I volunteered to be the one to take a half day. So I picked her up at noon and she was playing. She took almost a 3 hr. nap and seemed fine when she woke up except was totally pissed off at her nose (because it was so stuffy). By evening she had a 102 temp and was dragging, as was I. This cold totally sucks... no actualy it doesn't suck anything it totally does the opposite, clogs you up. I felt like someone had beat me up so I can't imagine how Celia felt. We both went to bed and woke up feeling much better except that we still have colds. Celia's fever returned this evening but just low grade for her. Pete took a half day and stayed home with Celia. So Celia got a good nap in at least.
We did decide to infect the neighbors this evening. We just thought, what would make a good birthday present for their 7 year old?? Okay, we didn't touch anyone and we tried to stay away. It is Celia's buddy Amber's birthday party so we took her gift over, visited for about 20 min. and then left Pete there. Pete had fun. Celia absolutely loves Amber. Amber came over one afternoon to deliver a package and Celia went up to her, I think gave her a hug if I remember correctly, then waved goodbye to me and was going to take off with Amber. Celia does frequently give and accept hugs from her buddy.
So what is Celia doing new?
Well her 1 year old check up stats are : 18 lbs (almost 19), 28 1/2 inches
She is making the fire engine sounds for her fire truck car
Her book of wisdom still remains a favorite toy
She loves, loves, loves clothes. No not to put on, to hold, lay on top of things, babble to, etc. I think they were her favorite birthday gift.
She has made friends at daycare, including her teacher. In fact in the morning she gets very excited when she is told it is time to go to school!


Oh and a side note. I have a friend at work that just found out today that she is not pregnant. Okay, that is sad, but in her case it is so sad. She had talked to me about her own infertility journey and it was certainly longer then my own. They have been trying for 4 years, exhausted finances, exhausted her physically, and exhausted her completely emotionally. She tried IVF a few weeks ago and was hopeful that it worked. She and I talked, I shared my symptoms of hyperstimulation and my short infertility journey. I was so hopeful for her. In anycase when she told me I started to cry, I stopped myself, but it surprised me because I am not an emotional person. She of course said that she didn't have anymore tears left and I don't know how she has gone on for 4 years. But looking on the upside, they are going to adopt. They have already gone through the process, classes, home visit etc.. Now they are on a new journey. No matter if you struggle for a month or many years, infertility is the most frustrating and emotional draining experience. In anycase, I am keeping her in my thoughts. It also really confirms my desires that we don't have to go through that the second time around whenever we decide that time is.

The Parking Lot Baby Turns 1!

I can't believe that today my little tiny baby turned 1 today. This time last year she was just a few hours old. When I brought her home from daycare I told her that it was around that time that I called Daddy and said "Come home now!", he sure did and she was there about 90 min. later. I took a half day today to spend some time with Celia. It really didn't end up being that much time because she went down for her nap around 1:30 but I think it was a nice treat at least for me.

We went to the birth center after her nap to take pictures of her in the parking lot where she was born. We got some pictures of her in the birth center garden too. We had a couple curious stares and one pregnant woman stopped to find out what we were doing. So every year we are going to try to get her picture in that parking lot!

We have had quite a struggle in the past 2 weeks. I went back to work last week. Well work was complicated by the fact that our family got hit by the stomach bug. I was first, Pete was next, and Celia followed. I had to go into work late when Celia got it and come home to nurse her. I didn't mind that but I would have rather spent the day cuddling with her and letting her sleep beside me. Luckily my Mom was there to help us out. Honestly we would not have gotten through the past two weeks without my Mom. She came to watch Celia the first week I went back to work and then to help to transition Celia into daycare. She cooked and cleaned for us too!! Celia is going to miss her terribly when she goes.

Celia seems to like daycare and she is only 1 of 3, 2x a week and 1 of 4 babies the rest of the time. So it is a very good situation. I was told today that she had a great time in there splash room. She was riding a little car around and honking the horn.

How do I like my school?? Well I sobbed the first day when the kids arrived (okay, didn't do it outloud). But my students are insane. I have an amazing assistant, thank goodness. But these little ones are very bright (for being in a special ed. program outside of their regular school) but very active and stubborn. They are cute, they have that going for them. Oh boy are they cute. I have a short tubby little guy with alot of speech issues and a squeaky little voice. There is my newest student who I think saved my sanity when she came. I was dreading getting another one and she was questionable if she really fit in my room. I was picturing a low functioning student who according to the paperwork "would rather play then work" and "sits for very short periods of time". Well perhaps I got the wrong little girl. But the tiny little sweet girl that arrived is just 6 and knows her alphabet, can count, knows her numbers and colors, and sits as long as we ask her. She doesn't question doing anything. So now she is my model student, the one that I am hoping the trouble makers will follow!!

In anycase Celia has opened some gifts. Mom got her this cool shape sorter car that she loves, a doll that had to be put up because she is picking out the hair, books, babylegs, her first walking shoes, and probably other things as Mom Mom is very good to her!! She got a build a bear turtle from Aunt Vickie, Katie, Emmett, and Uncle Jack- oh and "Alice the Fairy". From Mommy and Daddy a card that plays "itsy bitsy spider", a new ball, and some clothes. We are going to get her a special toy after we find out what she gets for her b-day.

Okay enough of the rambling on...

Breastfeeding Group and Apologies for the sposie

I think this picture is very funny because it is something new that Celia has decided to do while nursing. I have nearly broken her of the habit, but it was funny so my Mom took a picture. Only those that have nursed will understand that I am a bit bummed that I never got a newborn nursing picture of Celia. In this picture you can't even really tell what she is doing. I didn't bother to watermark this because you really can't see her face. I did notice and not many will understand, but I am upset that there is a disposable (sposie) peaking out from underneath her nighttime onsie. We still put her in a sposie at night, I am actualy thinking about stopping that though as she is waking up too often with a red bum. I know it sounds bizarre but those who have joined the cloth diaper cult would understand. By the way, I just recently was able to sell 3 of her "pretty but didn't work with Celia" diapers and made back just about what I paid for them. Very economical, don't you think.

Okay, this won't be the most exciting post. But yesterday marked a day of goodbyes, there will be alot of those to come. Since Celia was 2 weeks old we have attended a breastfeeding group as part of my birthcenter 2x a month. We only missed one group meeting. No, I didn't need that much breastfeeding support (in the beginning absolutely) but after awhile it was more for husband venting, hanging out with friends, socialization, adult conversation, etc.

The group of girls are amazing that go to this group. They were instrumental to my "natural" parenting philosophy. I imagine that I would have been a totally different Mom if I had given birth in a hospital setting and not been provided the support that my birth center has given me. I think that Celia would be formula fed (not a bad thing if you have to do it, but breastmilk does provide some extras), I wouldn't have known about babywearing, and I likely would have been a bit more overprotective. This group of women lead me to my first miracle find of being a mother- the Moby Wrap. Celia loves that thing, it was the only thing that got her to sleep some days and it is still my favorite carrier. I would have never thought that having her sleep in my room for 3 + months was not only okay but better for her. I would not have known that Pete's response to the 6lb bundle was normal (he is amazing now, just a little scared in the beginning). I would never have felt that anything I decided to do for my baby was fine.

There is no judging done in the group. Celia has enjoyed hanging out with some playmates and yesterday when we pulled up to the building, she became so excited. She couldn't get out of her carseat fast enough. She also showed off her walking to the group leader, Patty a few times. I can't even express how much support Patty has provided. She was there for the infamous parking lot birth, there to great my crazy (but oh so sweet) husband who waited for the elevator instead of taking the stairs. She gave Pete a look that made me yell at him to get off his stupid cell phone for 5 seconds. Okay, only I probably understand that, but it was important to me.

So we will visit and hopefully see some of the same people again. I am sure that when there is a 2nd we will go to the group again, we must. But I can't express how much this group has meant to me. I not only have a wealth of knowledge about breastfeeding however I now have a group of women that I can still get support from even if it is through the web.

Thank you, Thank you!! Who knows where my nursing story will go from here. One of the things that this group has stressed from the beginning is to let the child lead you (not take over, just lead). So I will let Celia show me where it is going.

She's Almost Racewalking

I am hoping this will work. Celia started taking more steps and is now walking with 6 to 10 steps at a time. I think that she might start doing it more quickly but she isn't really impressed with herself. She likes my reaction to her walking but still very much prefers to crawl. Today she was very busy in her crib. I have sort of been going "old school" with her diapers these past 2 days and she has mainly been wearing flats or prefolds (think the old fashioned diapers) with a velcro cover. Well I put her down for her nap in a prefold, a velcro cover, and a microfiber towel folded in between the cover and prefold for extra absorbency. Well she slept for 45 min, which was not a long nap. So I let her babble and chat in her crib for about 30 min. while I finished with some housework. She seemed to be enjoying herself so I was comfortable doing that. She fell back asleep and around 10:40 and I had to get her because we had to go to her daycare to train her teacher about her cloth diapers (don't worry I am sending velcro pocket diapers there). So I found Celia asleep and I thought something looked odd but I couldn't put my finger on it. I then noticed the microfiber towel hanging on the side of her crib. Her velcro cover was beside her and she was sleeping sounding in her prefold. Luckily, the prefold did not leak onto her sheets. So evidently she took her cover off and felt the need to hang the microfiber towel up (it was dry). So Miss Celia will now be taking naps with pants on or in her sleep sack!!