9 Month Baby: Sleep, Nursing, Food & Routine!

Its been a few months since I’ve been on here sharing a little baby update and I think we all need a little more baby Sammy in our lives, right?!! Little man is NINE months old!

It has been a crazy 9 months and really just a whirlwind with 3 boys 5 & under! While each stage is incredible, it also brings different challenges. At times I really have to just take a deep breath and soak it all in. Its so easy to feel overwhelmed and stressed between things to do around the house and work! But, At the end of the day, there’s no rushing a nursing baby, and no ignoring a baby who wants his mama! That is the most important thing right now and I want to look back on this time fondly! The vacuuming, dishes, and dirty clothes can all wait. I think that has been the biggest lesson I’ve learned going from 2 kids to 3….! Just because your house is a mess for a period of the day doesn’t define anything about you as a wife, a mother, or a housekeeper! Let it go! You WILL get to it!

It’s been so fun to see Sammy’s personality emerge over the last few months as he starts to become less of a baby and more of a toddler! He definitely is going to have a funny sense of humor and already laughs and does things to be a smarty to his mom! He is still super duper smiley, happy and absolutely adores his brothers. I love watching their relationships grow as he gets older! He is super observant and wants to be in on the action with his busy older brothers!

I’m going to share about his schedule, milestones, nursing, FOOD, and of course our favorites! Later this week I’ll be sharing 9 Months Postpartum Part II- All about Postpartum including weight loss, how I’m feeling & coping, and my fitness goals moving forward.

Milestones

First…the milestones. This guy is crawling like nobody’s business. He is constantly on the go, exploring and getting into basically everything. I like to let him roam so he gets stronger with more movement…. BUT we have had to put the pack and play up because hello, I can’t follow him around the house all the time with 2 other kids ha. Or if I need to…say ….go to the bathroom, make dinner, etc. You know, life essentials lol! It also makes me nervous because he literally puts everything in his mouth so I’m constantly scouring the floors to make sure nothing that is dangerous is on the ground!

He isn’t cruising yet, but he’s pulling himself up on furniture, etc. and standing. I’m sure he’ll be cruising before we know it!

Sam is also channeling a little bit of ET and points at everything, ha! He is babbling and saying “da-da”, and “a”. Still working on mama! He just started to wave the other day and we are working on clapping!

Schedule

Sam has settled in to 2 naps a day naturally. It is so funny because I don’t really remember even trying to get to 2 naps. It just happened!. He is a super good napper- much better than my older two were. I feel like we really had to work on a nap schedule especially with my oldest (he was literally in the swing until he was a year haha. ).

I don’t really have a “set” time for his naps-I go by his wake time. In the mornings his wake time is usually anywhere between 2.5-3 hours, and in the afternoon 3 hours. He usually gets up between 6:30-7:30 am (although the last few days have been earlier ugh!) so he sleeps from about 10-11:30 am and again 2/2:30-3:45.

I nurse him before he naps and its one of my favorite times! Between the other two boys, and how busy and on the go he is, it is so nice to have relax together! There is something so special when they fall asleep nursing on you…ugh..brb crying….

Sleep

Like I mentioned already, he’s a really good napper. Rarely does he ever boycott a nap or have a catnap (unless we are on the go in the car). Although, I just typed this yesterday and today he had the worst naps and woke up super early because he is getting a cold! I jinxed myself. haha.

As for nighttime, I still haven’t officially sleep trained him. He’s been honestly improving slowly on his own sleeping in bigger chunks and most nights he only wakes once, which I don’t mind. I mostly don’t care as much because I know he is my last and I love, love, love those moments alone with him. Life is so busy, LOUD and hectic with 3 small boys and that time is so precious. Half of the time I’m nursing him is spent with his two brothers jumping around him and yelling! So to have quiet time with just him and I is priceless.

BUT, let me be clear…f he were to sleep through the night tonight, I definitely woulden’t hate it. Haha.

Some nights he will wake up more than once and I usually give it a minute or two before going into his room to see if he will self settle. He usually puts himself back to sleep. Obviously if he’s teething or sick, he doesn’t sleep well but thats pretty normal.

I’m still at the point where I feel legitimately exhausted pretty much all the time LOL, so hopefully over the winter he’ll get to sleeping through the night and I can get back to feeling somewhat like myself again!

Nursing

Speaking of nursing, Sam is still nursing and loving it. Every now and again I think about how we are closer and closer to the end and it makes me so emotional! Ah! Sam nurses about 4 times a day and then once or twice at night depending. He’s like a little ninja when he nurses with his legs and hands flying everywhere. For those of you who have nursed, you know what I’m talking about! lol! The only time he is relaxed is before naps and bedtime!

This is honestly my favorite time to nurse during the first year. All the kinks are out, they only nurse every 4 hours, and the pressure if off! Now that he is a little bit older and having food, its SO nice when I go to work and only have to pump once!

Food

Sam has been having puree since he was 6 months old and has worked his way up to about 3-4 oz per meal. He has Breakfast, lunch and dinner. We had his checkup the other day and the Dr encouraged me to start table foods and I’m over here like….ugh. How is my baby ready for real food?! Also…anyone else hate the process of feeding baby table food for the first time? I swear I’m so nervous about him chewing and choking! I don’t really remember this being a thing with my oldest, but with Seb i feel like it took forever for me to feel comfortable. Anyway, he loves puffs and does a great job with those. We’ve tried bread and he does ok so we are going to continue adding foods in slowly!

9 Month Baby Favorites

Here are a few of our 9 month baby favorites!

Loves

brothers
exploring
crawling
Balls
bathtime
animals
pulling himself up

Hates

His face being wiped
strangers holding him
Being in the pack and play on his own!

Thanks for following along

xo

Alex

6 Months Baby: Schedule, Sleep & Favorites!

Happy HALF birthday to our ((not so little anymore)) baby!

It literally blows my mind that its been 6 months since we added Samson to our family! Its been a wild, fun, EXHAUSTING, half of year full of laughs, smiles, and of course tears...from him, and some from me. Haha. #hormones.

I haven’t posted an update on here because for awhile it seemed to be very “status quo” but I feel as though once you hit 6 months, things start to change and quick. First and foremost: they’re moving. SOS.

Second, they’re sitting (or almost sitting) and…

THREE: FOOD!!

Development:

I’ll start first with some of the development stuff going on these days. Sam is rolling in both directions and trying so hard to crawl it is CRAZY. He is almost NEVER in the spot that I left him in. He’s just started to scoot backwards which is always the first stage they go through! Homeboy is going to be crawling soon which means RIP to me getting anything done around the house!

My other two refused to be caged into a pack and play (they screamed bloody murder) so I’m hoping he takes to it because I’m probably going to have to throw out every single toy we own because our house is basically a choking hazard. Kidding. But we really are going to have to do some serious organizing of the toys in a few weeks! Mom’s of multiple children I’m sure you feel me!

Sidenote- I’m not one to put baby into a pack and play for long periods of time because I do think how our kids were mobile/active quickly was because we let them roam (they all walked at about 10 months!)— BUT I will need it for things like…going to the bathroom, making dinner/eating or showering. You know, basic day to day necessities.

He is trying pretty hard to sit up on his own but still needs a little bit of help! We’ve moved into the regular stroller (YAY for getting rid of the carseat as a stroller). This is amazing because he likes walks so much more! He now sits in a high chair as well and the Summer Infant activity chair. He also sits/bounces in the Fisher Price bouncer/activity jungle! He loves playing with all of his activity jumpers and the toys they have on them- cause and effect, etc. Or just simply tries to eat them. lol.

He laughs, giggles, smiles, coos, and makes all kind of noises! I guess you would have to to make yourself heard being in a house of 3 rowdy boys. HE LOVES his brothers and laughing and giggling with them. He is sooo interested in everything they are doing!

He’s cut 2 tooth and another one on the way as we speak! Growth wise he is clocking in at about 18.5 pounds— 60th percentile in weight and 80th for height!

Nursing

Sam is nursing (or gets a bottle of pumped milk when I’m not home) every 3 -ish hours. Nursing is still going really well although he does get pretty distracted in the day because there is so much going on ((especially with his brothers!)) He also is just pretty much the most smily thing ever and will just stop eating to look up and smile at me! I honestly just want to freeze time in those moments.

He does still wake at night to nurse. Usually around 11 and then at 4 am so its really not that bad. The last few nights have definitely NOT looked like that though. Thanks, teething!

A little part of me died inside when we started solids a few weeks ago. It is such a bittersweet moment, another sign that he needs me a little bit less. Maybe its just me, but I always feel a little bit sad as a nursing mom that the breastfeeding journey is going so quickly and will be over before I know it! This is probably my favorite age to nurse- you still have such great, intimate, moments but the time in between nursing sessions is longer (ie. your life has SOME flexibility #YES), your boobs aren’t as big/engorged, and any kinks you had nursing before are sorted out!

Solids

We started offering solids in the morning (when he was most fresh right before he turned 6 months old. He would wake, and I would nurse him. Then I would wait about an hour or 75 minutes and then offer solid food. We gave him cereal to start with but he didn’t seem to love it…I will probably add it back in now that we are doing 3 meals of baby food a day.

His favorite is probably sweet potato but he likes it all! He’s had carrots, apples, sweet potatoes, prunes, bananas, and butternut squash. I probably could have started him 3-4 weeks earlier (I know a lot of people that start around 4 or 5 months) but he was growing great and the dr. suggested 6 months.

We went from once a day (breakfast), to twice a day about 10 days later (breakfast and dinner), and just this week I started him with breakfast, lunch and dinner. Sometimes he wants a lot (1/2 jar) and other times he only has about a tablespoon. I let him take the lead!

Sleep

Ah, yes. Sleep. I feel like I’ve pretty much given up on this for awhile. Between teething, him learning to roll over …its been a long couple of months. I can’t tell you how many nights I had to roll him back over onto his back because he could only turn one way!

So, needless to say Sam has NOT slept through the night. I think his longest stretch was about 8 hours and right now he normally goes 7pn-11pm/12 am, and then goes back to sleep until 4 or 4:30 am. Then eats and goes back to sleep until 6:30/7. I try to look at the positives in that I’m only waking once between 11 pm and 7 am.

However, the last few nights have been ROUGH. Baby boy is in some serious pain and has needed some TLC! Usually I look to do official sleep training around 7-8 months so stay tuned for that!

Napping & Schedule

I FINALLY weaned Sam off the swing about a month ago and I’m kind of annoyed with myself that I didn’t do it earlier. It honesty took him like 2 days to adjust and he naps great in there. Right now I still have him on a Eat, Play, sleep scheudle with his wake time anywhere from 2-3 hours depending. I aim for 50-75% of his naps at home in the crib, and the rest on the go (ie. stroller or car seat).

For naps, we have a routine of a lullabye, close the blinds and put him in the sleep sack. We rock him for a few minutes and when he gets drowsy we place him in the crib awake. He’s honestly a good self soother so we got really lucky with that. He still naps usually 3 times a day and naps range anywhere from 2.5 hours to 45 minutes! Hopefully by 8 months he drops his third nap and we can transition to two naps!

Here are a few of our 6 Month Baby favorites:

Great Baby seat for the tub! He moves around SO much and this keeps him upright and in one place.
Fisher Price jumper
Pack and Play- keep them contained!
Fisher price Mat- still good for this month!
Summer Infant Activity center
Bibs- he is a drooling machine!
Stroller
These spoons are the best for solids
I had this car for my other two boys and my 2 year old still plays with it! Soo good for 6 months & up!
Noodle and Boo are my fave bath products. On sale through the #NSALE! Stock up - also makes a great baby shower gift!
Space Saver high chair!

Loves:

Putting anything in his mouth
Smiling
Baths
Walks
Jumping in his jolly jumper/Fisher price
his family
Food!

Hates:
Being left alone in a room

xo

Alex

2 Months: All about Baby, Sleep & Routine

Happy Tuesday everyone & Happy 2 months to our little babe! This is the best part of the “fourth trimester” for sure…once you hit month 2 everything starts to get better ((a little)) every day! You’ll always have “good” and “bad” days but things are on the up and up moving forward. 2 months signals baby’s first smile, a few giggles (soon!), more interaction, more sleep AT NIGHT and LESS CRYING y’all. #winning

Samson really has settled in the last 2-3 weeks. Weeks 3-6 were hard. Like really hard, not gonna lie. But once we got past that, our little guy is as happy as can be, sleeping longer at night, growing like a champ, and gave us our first smiles. He seems to be pretty laid back, even through the dreaded “witching hours” that haunt me from Max’s early days (and even Seb would get pretty fussy). He still catnaps through that time period (or doesn’t nap at all) but he isn’t THAT fussy so I’m thankful for that!

Routine & SLEEP

I wanted to share what routine Sammy is on. Everyone is different; some people might think what we do is quite “rigid” and have baby on no schedule; while others need more structure than what we do. I try to be somewhere in the middle realizing we have other kids and I can’t sit around the house all day catering to his naps-Especially when I’m on my own on weekends/nights and the kids want to get out of the house ((also for my sanity lol!)

I know there are all kinds of books “getting baby on schedule” like Moms on Call, etc. but for me forcing baby to wake at certain times of day at only 8 weeks is hard. I also think with older kids its hard to have such structured times for naps when you have preschool pickups, or have to get out with the other kids activities. In addition, Sammy usually does a 4-7 hour sleeping chunk at night (which is great for a 2 month old) so I don’t really think I have the need to change anything right now!

I am reading “Moms on Call” however for other sleeping tips though and just for ideas so if you ARE looking for some more structure and just help in general I would recommend that book for sure.

Currently Sammy is on an Eat, Play, Sleep schedule. He honestly settled into that on his own and its worked really well. My two others were the opposite where they nursed before they napped. I tried to incorporate that schedule with Max & Seb but it just never worked with them and sometimes you just have to listen to baby! I do like the Eat, play, sleep schedule because he won’t be associating sleep with nursing (and me, for that matter) and me nursing him before naps when he gets older (bc tbh I love nursing them to sleep :) ) will be on MY terms, not because he needs it to fall asleep!

Sammy is different; he self soothes A LOT better than my other boys which I think helps. I’ve also been trying to be mindful of letting him TRY to self soothe before rushing to get him during a nap or during the night. What’s helped me a ton is the book “Bringing Up Bebe” and what the French call the “pause” where they wait and observe their child rather than pick them up right when they make a sound.

“When a French baby cries in the night, the parents go in, pause, and observe for a few minutes," Druckerman explains. “They know that babies' sleep patterns include movements, noises, and two-hour sleep cycles, in between which the baby might cry. Left alone it might 'self-soothe' and go back to sleep."

Let me be clear in saying that this is not cry it out by any means; its just simply observing and allowing baby the opportunity to self soothe. If he doesn’t, I intervene.

We have him on a one hour- 75 min wake schedule. So basically that means when he wakes up, he has generally one hour of awake time before he has another nap. His wake times I base off of research on wake times and ultimately how long he is able to stay happy for awake time. He eats, sits in his bouncy chair, plays on his activity mat, does some tummy time and when he starts to get fussy/and or hits an hour (usually they tend to coincide) we head upstairs. He naps in his swing currently. I would love to wean him off of that but I’m not sure that will happen anytime soon! He usually takes around 4 naps a day and sometimes (like Saturday) they are horrible cat naps…then other days he has longer naps (90 min-2.5 hours). Erratic naps are still normal at this age so I’m not super worried about it. Generally the morning naps are better and longer; later in the day they are shorter (30-45 mins!).

Bedtime is usually between 7:30-8:45pm. Sometimes he goes down really easy and puts himself to sleep after making noise/whining for a little bit. Sometimes he does full on cry for a couple minutes; usually I wait it out to see if he can overcome it himself. After 3-4 mins I usually go up to soothe him. Then there’s other nights I have to put him down when he is fully asleep..meaning I wait the dreaded 15-20 mins waiting for him to go into his “deep sleep” so he doesn’t wake up right when I set him down because he’s just not able to soothe himself. And thats totally okay, especially because he’s still so little and we all have bad days #amirite??!! I have been working really hard at the “self soothing” though because in order for baby to sleep well, they have to know how to put themselves back to sleep. So this is pretty much #1 on my list of things to conquer.

Last night I had all 3 kids for bedtime….so let’s talk about that. Ha. I’ve had them on my own for bedtime on my own probably 8 times now. Every night is different because Samson still doesn’t have a “set” bedtime so I never know how its going to go!

But last night went SO WELL. Do you ever have those nights that everything goes well and you can’t. even. believe. it. Like am I the BEST MOM EVER?!! haha. ((and then the next day is a complete shit show!) But anyway, I got the baby down ((the boys had a snack and watched a Disney movie)) and the Routine was as follows:

Lullaby on (I have an app on my phone)
Draw blinds, etc
Massage with lotion, Change into jammies, wash face
Turn Lullaby off, nurse one side
Turn white noise on & swaddle (this is the swaddle we use, I love it because it doesn’t ride up around his face)
Feed other side
Put down awake

This whole process took 30 mins.
I put him down fully awake and he made a few noises but went to sleep on his own! And I was able to give the older two full attention after 7:30 pm and put them to bed without a screaming baby in the other room. Like I said, this doesn’t always go this way, but I sure felt like a ROCKSTAR last night. lol. He did wake up after his first sleep cycle and cry out, but it was for about a minute and he went back to sleep on his own.

And if you are reading this, and your baby is the same age as mine/older, screams every time you try to put them down, and NEVER self soothes, PLEASE DON’T COMPARE. Like I said, my oldest I never could have even attempted to put him down “drowsy but awake” this early on. Every baby is different and getting them to learn how to sleep is HARD. They all do it on their own time and you just have to listen to them and see what they are ready for. Listen to your momma instinct!

Last week Samson had a little cold so I had him sleeping in the rock and play to keep him elevated. He seems to really like sleeping on the angle and had his best sleeps in there. Nighttime sleep in the Rock and Play the last week has been AMAZING so this is why I’m resisting moving him from there. Do you blame me?? He has been doing 6-8 hour stretches at night. So basically he goes down at 7:30/8:30ish and then sleeps through til 2 or 3 am. Last week he even did a 8:45 pm-4:30 am. #GOALS.

Before he was sick he was sleeping in the dock-a-tot and was doing one 4-5 hour shift right when he went to sleep. I’m working on getting him in the crib without the dock-a-tot but it didn’t go so well saturday night. I’m not sure if its because he was so overtired from the short naps he had so I’ll keep persevering.

And don’t get me wrong-sometimes after his “long” stretch of sleep (the 5-7 hour window) he might get up every 2 hours after so some nights are harder for me than others!! Especially if he goes to bed earlier (like 7:30/7:45) and then he’s sleeping 7:30-2 am, and then up again at 4, and 6 am. Ick.

I’ll keep you all posted on how this progresses and anything I can pass along to you!

Breastfeeding

Nursing is going great. He weighs more than 13 lbs (in the 90th percentile for weight lol) so he is eating so well. Nursing sessions have cut down in time for sure which is great. I’m still leaking like crazy and getting engorged (especially at night) but I’m sure that will level off in the next 4-6 weeks.

I recently got the Willow pump in the mail and I’ll be trying that out and reviewing it here on the blog! For those that don’t know what it is, it is a wireless and cordless pumping system. It is also very quiet and you can pump on the go-while you’re playing with other kids, driving, while you cook, and you can even lay down pumping!

I do try and do one extra pump a day to stockpile milk; in addition to what Samson drinks we put my breastmilk in my older sons oatmeal (shh don’t tell!!). My middle boy also sometimes likes to drink it still out of a cup! I usually do this pump earlier in the day (morning) and pump only my right side. This side produces more milk for the pump; then I just feed on the other side because I know baby can get what he needs from there because they are more adept at pulling milk while breastfeeding than the pump is.

Milestones & Personality

Like I said before, Sammy is pretty chill. He loves to sit in his bouncy chair and look around and could honestly sit there for a good 15 minutes without a peep! He loves looking out the window, and likes taking walks. He doesn’t love car rides but is definitely getting a little bit better with it! He started smiling about 2 weeks ago (around 6/7 weeks). He kicks his legs fast when we speak to him and its so fun to see his reactions! I can’t wait for that first little giggle. He is also starting to enjoy his bathtime more and more & when he’s on his activity mat he sees everything so much more clear. Looking forward to when he is able to fully hold his head up and jump in the jolly jumper!

Brothers

The boys are honestly so awesome with him. I only worry about Seb because he is only 2 and doesn’t fully understand that he could really hurt the baby. But every single day they talk about Samson and tell me “he’s my best friend” ummm. HEART MELTED. Makes all the long nights and hard days worthwhile! Max is actually a pretty good little helper if I need something too!!

It’s going to be a little crazy no doubt trying to find a routine with all three boys but I think the biggest thing you learn after going with one to two kids is to just ROLL with it! So that’s what I’m doing…

2 month favorites

Here are our favorite 2 month baby favorites!

1.We’ve started to put Sammy in the bumbo for short increments! Its great for when you start solids and just somewhere “new” to put baby when you have to make dinner or tend to something else.

2. We love Mortimer the moose toy!

3. This baby einstein toy was a fave of our older two and plays fun music to catch their attention!

4. More toys

5. The shusher- amazing for on the go soothing!

6. This is a great early sit up seat for baby when they are young! Especially when you have other kids…keeps them entertained but still supports them!

7. The Mommy hook- but with a phone charger on it!!

8. Fun jungle gym that has a fun area for them to kick!

9. LOVE these mickey onesies!!

10. Baby towels from PB

11. Rattles

12. I want to get this portable sound machine!

13. Dock a tot that he loved sleeping/lounging in

14. The must have boppy for breastfeeding mamas

15. The rainforest play mat that we have had for all 3 kids!

16. Swing= LIFESAVER

17. The bouncer we have that he hangs out in

18. The best stroller IN ALL THE LAND. HANDS DOWN!!!

19. Lastly…how adorbs is this bunny onesie for Easter!!!?

Bumbo Floor Seat in Blue • Bumbo • $44.99
Lamaze Mortimer The Moose Plush Toy • Lamaze • $14.99
Baby Einstein Take-Along Tunes • Baby Einstein • $9.99
Baby Einstein Discover and Play Gift Set • Baby Einstein • $24.99
Baby Shusher: The Sleep Miracle • $34.99
Fisher Price Fisher-Price Deluxe Sit-Me-Up Floor Seat • Fisher-Price • $47.99
Mommy Power Stroller Hook • $39.99
Fisher-Price 2-in-1 Flip & Fun Activity Gym • Fisher-Price • $22.97
babyGap | Disney Mickey Mouse Bodysuit (3-Pack) • Gap • $19.99
Pig Nursery Bath Wrap, Pink • Pottery Barn Kids • $22.99–39.50
Fisher Price Fisher-Price Rattle 'n Rock Maracas • Fisher-Price • $6.29
Vtech VTech Myla the Monkey Portable Safe & Sound Storytelling Soother with Night Light in White • Vtech • $19.99
DockATot Deluxe+ Stage 1 Dock • $185–195
Boppy& Luxe Pillow with Reversible Slipcover in Elephant • Boppy • $49.99
Fisher Price Fisher-Price& Rainforest Music and Lights Deluxe Gym • Fisher-Price • $59.99
Fisher Price Fisher-Price Cradle 'n Swing in Safari Dreams • Fisher-Price • $164.99
My Little Snugapuppy Deluxe Bouncer • $39.99
Baby Jogger 2017 City Select Stroller in Black/Grey • Baby Jogger • $529.99
Bunny Sweater One-Piece • Gap • $39.95

Have a great Monday! xo

Alex

What I packed: Hospital Bag for Baby #3!

Hospital Bag Packing 101!

AHHHH! It’s almost time. I feel like the last 9 months have flown by and I can’t believe I’m going to have another baby! I wanted to share what you REALLY need in your hospital bag because after doing this two times…I know the drill ladies! If there’s anything you think I’ve missed let me know and add in comments.

Keep in mind there are a few items that I have on here that are strictly for C-sections ((but they are lifesavers)) so if you know you are having a section, get them!!

Here we go:

For Baby:

Honestly, the hospital provides SO much. Diapers, wipes (basically use a cloth with water), vaseline, little tops for them to wear while in the hospital, receiving/swaddle blankets, etc. So you honestly don’t need a lot.

Just a going home outfit including a hat-I usually pack 2 or 3. One in Newborn, and one in 0-3 months because you don’t know how big they are going to be! My last two boys were almost 9 lb but did fit into NB for the first week. I also pack 2 of the NB outfits because tbh they poop so much that sometimes they might get poop on their outfit before you actually leave ha! It happened to me with Max so I am glad I packed two outfits!

I pack these swaddles because I am not great at swaddling. They have velcro and are super easy to use, especially when you get home and you don’t have the nurses help 24-7! I also pack paci’s for the way home, and I packed this baby shusher-it was great with Seb when he was a baby. Nothing worse than baby crying in the car!

Also, I love Little Giraffe blankets—they are so warm and cuddly (pricy but I got as a gift and LOVE). I also splurged and bought these little Ugg boots for him because its so cold :) . When you leave, be sure to bring diapers, vaseline, receiving blankets home with you (they are great for wiping spit up, spraying and leaking boobs…for everything lol) Basically what I’m saying is take stuff from the hospital home with you!!!

For Mama

OK, so as I said earlier I might pack a tad bit more because I am in the hospital longer/have a few extra products but I think its always better to be prepared!

1. Most important item: nipple cream. Yall don’t even KNOW how sore the girls are gonna get. I plan on doing a post on breastfeeding (fingers crossed this guy latches smoothly) to give my tips. Its SO HARD the first 2 weeks. You are so tired, boobs hurt, and everytime they latch it feels like a thousand needles! USE THE NIPPLE CREAM. every time after you nurse!!!

2. Comfy Jammies-I ordered these. They are so soft and comfy and run pretty big. Great for nursing.

3. Warm socks-hospitals can be cold!

4. Slippers-these are the uggs I have.

5. Nursing Bras- I have the Cake lingerie bra and its great for nighttime and right when your milk is coming in. My all time favorite are the Ollie Gray’s Bras! Great support, cute, easy to use, comfy!

6. Nursing Tanks- easy access and can be layered!

7. Boppy Pillow- my tried and true boppy makes nursing soooo much easier. I bring this with me to the hospital. I coulden’t have lived without this nursing my two boys each for over a year.

8. Diaper Bag- I love my skip hop bag. I even get compliments when I’m not with the kids. They have other colors, but I’m obsessed with this mauve color. Tons of compartments to keep things organized and has a back area for laptop/ipads/magazines!

9. Makeup wipes & My travel size Tula products

10. Flip flops for using the shower!

11. Super long iphone charger for hospital room (and when you go home and you’re stuck under a sleeping baby! lol)

12. Going home outfit: I love this flowy three dots top (I’ve shared before), and the Nordstrom wrap top is great too (I will be wearing to hospital). My anthro joggers are still in stock and prob what I’ll be wearing home. My Steve Madden sneaks are super fun and easy to get on and off!

13. I love these basic nursing tops from asos- I packed one of these for the hospital.

14. Fuji instax camera- for instant photos of the babe!

15. Leopard print comfy joggers from H & M! So fun and I live in them right now…will be wearing to hospital!

16. C Section items: The C-Panty are great for postpartum incision healing. They are WORTH THE PRICE. They have a silicone spot to go over your incision so there isn’t any rubbing or irritation, and they have compression in them as well. I have 3-4 pairs and wore them every day for the first 2 weeks. Keep in mind you might not need them at the hospital just because you’ll be wearing the hospital granny underwear (and want to wear the granny underwear because…yeah…lots going on down there yikes).

    I also ALWAYS wear a Belly Bandit Postpartum. THIS definitely helped my stomach go down and gave me support through the midsection (you are like the pilsbury dough boy after giving birth! Stomach is mush!!! LOL)

    .I swear you can see a difference in wearing it for just like 6 hours. I’ve also purchased for the first time the Belly Bandit C Section Panty version-I’m hoping this is more comfy for my C-section while giving me the compression and support that the Belly Bandit gave me for the first week or so when my incision is so fresh and healing.

17. I pack my own hospital gowns for post surgery. If you are delivering natural, you can wear these from the get go! I love that they are cute, but the back is CLOSED. Also, they have snap buttons on the sides to make it really easy to nurse. Usually that first day I don’t even get dressed so I just throw this on and feel totally covered and at least somewhat cute. I do have to wear the hospital provided gown for my surgery for obvious reasons. (scroll down and I linked the one I have comes in tons of designs)

18. I always have my Medela pump readily available incase baby doesn’t latch, along with my fave nursing pads for leaking. I also pack a latch assister from Lanisoh- my left boob happens to be a bit harder for my babies to latch on to so it just pulls it out. Sorry TMI but I thought I would share because you never know if someone else is having the same problem! I also pack a nipple shield (sometimes I need this for my left boob as well. See below for all of these products! I linked all these below on amazon.

A few other things to pack:

-Makeup/toiletries
-Towel (the towels are always small at the hospital so i always bring one of my own!)
-Any snacks you need/want
-Computer/Ipad, charger
-Magazines
-Water Bottle- Water is crucial for recovery as well as for breastfeeding!!
-Hair ties- these are my tried and trues!!
-I linked my suitcase here. It is great for organization, 4 way roller, and I get compliments every time I travel with it!!
I totally recommend bringing home everything from the hospital like PADS (they are huge and amazing lol), granny underwear that they provide, bath sitzer if you give birth vaginally…) Trust me!!!

I also plan on running to Target today to get little bags from the Dollar section and filling it with snacks/goodies for the nurses! Those nurses are your besties! Look after them!!

I hope this post helped you guys pack for your trip to the hospital!

xo

Alex

I guess 3 was meant to be....{{Pregnancy thoughts}}

Wow. What a crazy couple of months. I feel like I was getting into a great rhythm in LIFE..work, working out, family time, independence...also with my blog posts, and managing everything...and then BAM. Surprise! Baby #3 on the way, and RIP to me getting anything. done. ever. Ha. 

I guess thats the way life is sometimes, once you get the hang of something, it changes. 

I've always been really upfront and transparent as a person, and thats carried over onto this blog. We are super excited to add to our family, but it was definitely unexpected. I had so many mixed emotions finding out, the first being a little bit of shock. A little  bit of...I'm not sure if I can do this again. A little bit of I just started to get a little more independence...and SLEEP.

But you can be sure there was a lot of excitement in my heart wondering if it was a girl or boy, and knowing this baby would fully complete our family. 

I think deep down I knew I wanted to have one more child, I was just wrapping my head around actually doing it ALL over again. After all, I just stopped breastfeeding Seb in March.

Let's just put it this way: Since September of 2013, I've been breastfeeding or pregnant for all but 6 of those months. You guys...that is FIVE freaking years. I really wanted to enjoy the summer and just be me. Not breastfeeding. Not pregnant. Just me.

Thinking about a pregnancy, weight gain, and the stress/anxiety of expecting a baby and hoping everything goes smoothly...., and then when the baby actually arrives the sleepless nights, breastfeeding/pumping, and just adjusting to a completely different family dynamic. I just coulden't wrap my head around it. 

Family of 4 was just so easy in my mind- we were pretty much through the tough part. Seb is 2 in October, starting preschool. Max is super independent. Traveling gets easier every time, and when my husband is home we are man for man. I feel like we can give them enough attention. I enjoy the one on one time I have with each of them. And most importantly, we have two HEALTHY, beautiful, happy boys that I almost feel greedy wanting more.

But there was always a longing feeling inside of me feeling so heartbroken to not snuggle another baby, breastfeed again, and completely watch another human being change our lives and hearts.  You never hear people regret having their last child. You always hear people say "I wish I would have had more kids."

So, here we are. 14 weeks pregnant this week!

Real Talk: Let's talk 1st trimester, because it is OVER. Thank you Lord! I found out around 6 weeks, and within a week I felt like I had contracted the boubonic plague. Having 2 littles and one on the way in the first trimester was ROUGH, y'all. I can't even explain the fatigue. My nutrition was absolute shit. I had no energy, and tbh you're supposed to limit caffeine? Well caffeine did not do a thing for me those first 6-8 weeks. I needed some sort of AED to give me life!!

I had the worst food aversions. Basically everything that I would normally eat (read: clean) was not going to happen. I've eaten far too many pieces of grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, and pizza the last month or so than I would care to share. I tried to eat the best I could (I'm prob not giving myself enough credit..but guys..the struggle was so so real) and I guess I've done a decent job? because I'm only up 5 or 6 lbs at almost 14 weeks. This is a little less than pregnancy #1 and #2 {{probs bc I never. ever. sit. down. with 2 toddlers lol}}. 

Other than the lack of energy and nausea here and there, I've felt good and have been really active. The great weather has certainly helped keep me active, and even when I was struggling for energy, I knew a workout would never make me feel worse ((it usually gives me more energy)) so I think being consistent with my daily activity (steps, walking) and workouts has really helped me. 

I'm feeling SO much better now, and excited to share my last pregnancy journey with you all!(yes, this will be our last :P) 

Thank you ALL for your sweet messages and love over the last week or so! We are so blessed to have baby 3 on the way and all of you in our lives!

xo

Alex

Sebby's 1st Birthday Party/1 year update

Hey everyone! Happy friday! Hope you had an awesome week. 

Last week was super hectic preparing for Seb's 1st bday party and then heading out 3 days later for vaca! I knew the timing wasn't going to be ideal but with our work schedules is was really the only weekend that worked. 

I decided to do a Peter Rabbit theme after seeing some supplies on zulily and thought they were super cute. He has a Peter Rabbit themed nursery so I thought it would kind of come full circle.

The weather has actually been really amazing lately so we had it outside at our house. Menu included your party favorites: veggie tray, snacks, pizza, subs, cake, and ice cream. I feel like its hard enough to prepare for a party but to cook too for it is really stretching it with 2 little ones so we just ordered out. 

                                                                                                             Fun with our cousins!

I got some really awesome Etsy decorations: center pieces, high chair "I'm one" decoration, a Peter Rabbit crown, Peter Rabbit water bottle stickers, Peter Rabbit, garland, paper plates, napkins, cups, a Peter Rabbit onesie, and my mom made some super cute descriptive food labels with Peter Rabbit on them. Etsy is literally the shit. They have everything you could want. Oh. and the cake. was. seriously. amazing. 

We had a decent day but the wind was blowing at 20 + mph in the morning which made setup really tough. The table cloths were blowing everywhere and it made setup slightly stressful haha. The party was super fun all in all and the kids all had a great time. 

Remember...when planning kids birthday parties:
1. ETSY and PInterest all the way for theme ideas, invites, and for specialized party supplies.
2. Dollar store for basic supplies, balloons, etc. 
3. Plan and order early, early, early. For instance, I ordered Seb's onesie and they sent a green one...so thankfully I had enough time to send it back and have them send a new one in baby blue! 
 

                                                                                      This cake though....Had to post an up close photo. 

My one year old:

As for Seb, he is a full blown toddler now! He is super mobile, walking everywhere (and trying to run), eating everything in sight and exploring and getting into everything. Unlike his brother, he could care less where I am and just takes off running! I'm gonna be that mom that has their kid on a leash at Disney next time haha.  He's also started to be super crazy with screaming. Max never really did that so this is new...he screams to get attention, when he doesn't get what he wants. I don't even understand it and it drives me crazy. His brother will then start screaming at the same time to be funny so...our house is super loud ! Also he is starting to stomp his feet. Soooo like I said, a toddler ((yikes)). The good thing is he's still pretty goofy and happy most of the time so hopefully this is just a phase he's going through until he learns how to talk.

SLEEP He's still up once a night but every now and again he will sleep through the night( he's done it twice while we have been on vacation...score!)Part of me wants to just completely night wean him but I think I'm holding on a little because I'm not sure we will have another. So for now its okay, I think he will wean himself on his own time. 

Nursing Still nursing before naps (so morning and afternoon), when he wakes for the day and before bed. If he wakes in the night he will nurse then and sometimes that takes the place of his morning nurse. So 4 times a day usually. I haven't tried to give him milk yet and I haven't really decided if I'm going to. Max hated it so we just give him yogurt and lots of cheese. So we will see I guess. 

Brother It amazes me how much he learns from his brother and how he feeds off energy from his brother! The next year will be tough but I think when Seb is around 2 yo they will be able to play more together :) 

Likes:

-trucks, cars
-balls
-food! 
-screaming

Dislikes: 
-face being cleaned
-nose being wiped
-being confined anywhere
-the word NO. lol
-sitting still

Hope you guys have a great weekend :) 

Alex

10/11 Month Sebby

Hope you guys all had an awesome weekend! We had a great weekend with some fall festivities and definitely enjoyed the warm weather! I missed sending out Seb's 10 month update so I'm going to combine it with his 11 month and call it a day :) 

So the big news would have to be we have a walker! Little man officially took his first steps just after he turned 10 months and he's fluently walking now.  It's definitely a bitter sweet moment! Hard to believe that I'm planning for his first birthday...

I definitely feel like this stage is where you start to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I can actually read to him and he's interested, he can play independently, I somewhat sleep, he's starting to walk, and he's still nursing but he's eating real foods so not as much is on me! Bingo! 

SLEEP

Is so much better. He is up usually once a night to nurse and then goes right back to sleep. He sleeps about 7:15/7:30- 6:15/6:30 am. Some days (rarely, but it happened last night) I am lucky and he sleeps through the night. Its funny because no matter how much sleep I get I still feel exhausted when I wake up! Which is totally crazy because I am getting so much more rest than I was like 4 months ago. Anyway I think its probably because the 4 am wake up is a total buzz kill and its hard to fall back asleep after being woke up that early. 

BREASTFEEDING/FOOD

Nursing wise he is still feeding about 4-5 times a day. His nursing is becoming more and more ninja like. I swear his legs are kicking everywhere and he grabs my mouth and face lol, We dropped his late afternoon feed and replaced it with some yogurt and moved his dinner up now that he is eating real dinner with us. Last week I had the worst week. I was totally sick from nursing-I had a clogged duct and it was so painful. I was achy, had the chills. Brutal. I feel like I've had a milk blister now too after the clogged duct. I know its from Seb eating less and less milk :( ughhhhh. Its so hard to get rid of the blisters and ducts when they are only nursing a few times a day. I know the end is near and I'm curious to see when he naturally drops his feeds. If I remember correctly it was just after Max's 1st birthday that he dropped his before nap feeds. 

His chewing has gotten so much better but I swear mealtime is like the longest. thing. ever. He clocks in at about 55 minutes to finish his dinner! He's pretty good with most foods except he doesn't really like eggs? Everything else we have given him he likes but of course his favorites are the standard kid foods like mac and cheese, grilled cheese, fajita, PB & J, pizza...He does eat what we eat though and has been doing pretty good with salmon, chicken and veggies. 

 

BROTHER

I still can't leave the boys in a room together but they do play side by side a bit better now! I'm trying to teach Max that if Seb takes one of his toys, to give him a different one rather than grabbing it back which almost always results in tears from his little brother. He's always trying to show his little brother things which is super cute and I'm excited for when Seb can walk and run to play with Max.

PLAY

Seb pretty much loves any toy that is in our playroom thats Max's. He loves anything that he can push (mower, walkers, etc.).I would have to say his most favorite thing for sure though would have to be balls. He throws them and chases after them. Its so funny.. now when I tell him to kick he kicks the ball :) 

Likes
-Balls-chases them all over the house! 
-grilled cheese, fruit, yogurt, O's
-the walker
-sleeping with his lovey
-swimming
-bath time
-any toy that he can’t have
-talking
-reading

Dislikes
-being changed-he moves everywhere
-face being wiped
-being confined
-eggs

Until next month...when my baby is 1 (((omg)))

xo 

Alex

9 Month Sebby

9 month Sebby

Wait…what.. Baby boy has been outside of my belly as long as he’s been in. Those first few weeks seem so hard, so long…but it really does go by fast! 9 months has brought us even more glimmers of his personality and lots of movement. Seb can walk with help and its honestly just a struggle to go anywhere. He hates being constricted to anything..whether its the car seat, pack and play, and even protests unless the stroller is moving! The toughest part to manage is when his brother wants to play outside and he is just crawling around and eating grass and getting into everything! 

He has developed quite the goofy personality and is always laughing. The antics that he already does at 9 months is making me nervous for when he is a full blown toddler boy! He rocks himself in the high chair to the point I think he’s going to be concussed, grabs my face while nursing, laughs at my sunglasses and grabs them off my head, and climbs on me and pulls my hair! He is a handful. He has started to protest with a clench of the fist and a moan/growl when he doesn't want to do something..its hilarious. 

Sleep

Ugh. The never ending topic. Sleep. At 9 months I basically sleep trained my first, so in the back of mind this was slightly haunting me. I hate, hate, hate sleep training. I honestly laugh when people talk about potty training. Sleep training is far worse. Listening to my baby scream for extended periods of time is seriously torture. I realized that whenever Seb puts himself completely asleep, he sleeps so much better- ie. only wakes up once. So last week I started to put him down while awake (rather than the “fall asleep at the boob and transfer him into the crib after he’s pretty much asleep!), and let him figure it out. We had 60 minutes of full crying (obviously with checkins periodically). I swear it took every ounce of me to not pick him up. I honestly was coaching myself “you can do this. you are an adult. he is a baby. he is just resisting change.” Sure enough, after the 60 minutes of crying, I didn’t hear from him until 3 am, and then I nursed him, and he went back to sleep until 6:45 am. Success! Each night the crying decreased and he now can (most nights) put himself to sleep. He is still inconsistent with his wakings but at least we are getting the once a night wakings more often. For example, this week he woke once a night wednesday and thursday, and last night was up twice. I'm hopeful that he will slowly drop feedings like his brother by the time he is 1 so I don't have to actively pursue night weaning! Any tips/suggestions welcome :) 

Breastfeeding/Food

It’s funny because even though not much time has passed since I had Max in these exact stages, I feel like I don’t remember some of it! Take for instance..starting real food. I don’t remember this being a “thing”. In my mind, Max just somehow already knew how to eat and chew. Of course, that can’t be possible but I seriously don’t even remember it. {this could also be because M had about 8-10 teeth at 9 months where S only has 6} Anyway, the last couple of weeks we have been trying to get Seb to eat some different “first foods” where he has to actually chew. First attempt was cheerios, which I used with Max. This was a no go. Clearly had NO IDEA what to do and it made me way too nervous having the cheerio sit in his mouth. Next tried mashed bananas…they became too mushy and he wasn’t able to pick them up. I had a few people suggest Puffs. I generally try to stay away from stuff like this, but honestly its been a god send with Seb! It crunches so he knows to bite, but it basically disintegrates in their mouth if they don’t necessarily chew the whole thing. He is doing so much better now and soon I think he’ll be ready for cheerios and maybe some soft bread. Phew! 

My love/hate relationship continues with breastfeeding. I love nursing, I really do. But I can’t WAIT to have my own body back. I try and pause a second and just take it all in every time when I’m nursing because I am never going to know when will be the last time. I hope that he weans himself similar to what my oldest did because I don’t want to have to make the decision for him! Pretty soon he’ll only be nursing 2-3 times a day so holding on to the moments because I know they’re going to fly by! 

Brother

I’ve heard from everyone that having two so close in age is hard but totally worth it for so many different reasons. I’m still waiting for the “worth it” phase to come! Between the “hugs” (which sometimes resemble tackling), toy taking, and bandwagon screaming…I think I might go craxy. Like I said…still waiting. Current occupation is referee and hoping it ends soon! 

Play

Seb loves free play (where he can just roam) and toys where he can completely stand up. He is really loving his jumper-roo or his walker at the moment. Its crazy how they go in phases! He starts jumping before I even put him in the jumper-roo where 2 months ago he would cry!! 

Likes

-Balls-chases them all over the house! 
-Bouncing
-eating
-swimming
-bath time
-standing
-any toy that he can’t have
-talking
-being outside 

Dislikes
-pack and play
-face being wiped

Until next month...

xo 

Alex

8 Month sebby

You know that awesome phase that babies go through where they can sit up, but they can't really move? Yeah, I am totally out of that phase already. It lasted about 2 weeks. Sigh.

Summer is officially here and every day my baby takes one step closer to becoming a toddler. Sunday morning he was babblng "ma-ma" and later on that day he put his arms through his shirt on his own. I swear I died a little inside. Don't get me wrong, I love when they can become more independent..its just a catch 22. You want them to be babies..but you don't at the same time! ha! 

Things are starting to get crazier and crazier at our house now that Seb is moving and grooving! Between him and his brother I feel like its complete chaos...all day.

Sleep

Well. Sleep has definitely improved but I guess it really coulden't have gotten much worse than it was? For about a two week period my main man was sleeping until about 2 or 3 am, nursing, and then back to bed until 6:30. #heaven ....Then came along 4 TEETH ALL AT ONCE #help. So now we are back to waking 2 times a night. Hopefully once the eye teeth cash in we'll get back to the once a night waking...

Breastfeeding

Not much to report here other than a few fun clogged ducts and milk blisters over the last 6 weeks. With Max I was lucky enough to only have 1 clogged duct but with Seb I've had two so far and one milk blister. NO BUENO. I'm not sure if it's due to just adjusting to less feedings but luckily they have seemed to stop! I have about 400 ounces of frozen milk and I've started to use that for his cereal and on the days I bring home 1-3 oz less than what he drinks. I don't want to add an extra pump in while at work because that would give me a major oversupply. I'm Ok tapping into that frozen stash a couple of times a week especially as we start to introduce more solid food. Hey, thats what its there for, right? 

Brother

Not much new to report here. Sebby continues to impress me with his toughness around his brother! Max is still like Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde with his baby brother and I'm not sure its going to change anytime soon! They are already entertaining each other and egging each other on. Shocking enough Max has actually fed more off of what Seb is doing...whether he's rocking violently in his high chair (see: my instagram stories. Max thinks its hilarious which only makes Max laugh harder and do it too), or crying (Max will start screaming to make the situation louder and clearly more obnoxious)...I know I am going to need a lot of wine and caffeine in my near future! 

Play

Seb loves to roam. He's crawling everywhere and getting into everything! I've tried the pack and play but honestly the screams sounds like I am seriously torturing him when I dare place him in there. He hates to be constricted. Which is super AWESOME. I Psych. I swear he thinks he owns me. I need eyes in the back of my head!!!

He can pull himself to a standing position and takes steps holding our hands. I have a feeling this guy will be walking by the end of July which is a good and a bad thing I guess! 

Favorite toys include the fisher price car, fisher price house, and anything that he can press and it makes noise!

Likes: 
-Being held
-Walks
-his brother
-balls (he will chase them all over the house)
-making funny noises with his mouth
-swimming and bath time

Dislikes:

-the pack and play
-face being wiped
-when his brother takes his toy
-any sort of hygiene check: teeth, fingernails, toenails, ears...typical BOY! LOL
 

Have a great weekend everyone! xo

Alex

Six month sebby

The time has been flying and I am SO excited for the summer. We have been loving taking the boys for longer walks now that the weather is starting to get warmer. Our little Sebby hit his half year old birthday last week! 

The days go by and Sebby is more alert than ever. He is so different from his brother, yet so alike in some ways. He is such a happy little boy and content most of the time (complete opposite of his brother at this age) but is so in tune with EVERYTHING around him. I swear both boys from Day 1 have eyes in the back of their heads! 

Sleep

Remember when I said that Sebby is more alert than ever? No more "sleeping like a baby." The 4 month sleep regression hit our household hard. REAL hard. Sebby was up basically every 90 minutes all. night. long. After 3-4 weeks of this boot camp, I decided enough was enough. {{If you're a co-sleeper or attachment parent you may want to stop reading here!!}} Once he was fed and I knew there were no other issues, if he cried, I would let him cry and check on him periodically. There was no way I could function running a business, being a mom to him (and his brother), and trying to live my life with me sleeping in a rocking chair with him attached to my boob the entire night or being a human swing every 90 min. I've gotten him to the point where he can actually put himself to sleep when I put him to bed fully awake. This is really an incredible feat in my opinion after having Max, who would scream before I even laid him down until he was 9 months old. On a good night, Sebby is still up once between 10 pm and 5 or 6 am. Normally most nights he is up 2-3 times during the 12 hours he is down and I am still nursing him. I think I'll start to really crack down on it in a month or so if he doesn't drop any of those wakings. I do feel positive though because, well, we've improved from him getting up about 5 times a night during the sleep regression and basically sleeping in the swing most of the night! 

Breastfeeding

To tell you the truth, I LOVE this stage of breastfeeding. No more engorgement, hurting nipples, or feedings on the hour. Both you and baby are in a groove! They can control their heads better and latch on completely without any assistance (yes, this matters, especially at 3 am when theres's no lights on! I swear they just know where it is!) Sebby's still nursing (or if I'm not there) gets a bottle every 2-3 hours. He gets supperrrr distracted especially with his brother around, so I have to get creative when I'm on my own with the two of them. I cherish the moments when its just him and I though. I think this could be why I resist trying to completely night wean him. That, combined with the boost it gives my supply I think I'll hang on for another month or two. There's nothing like the smell of my little boy snuggled up next to me all milk drunk :) I've managed to freeze almost 400 oz of milk- an awesome feeling to have that little bit of backup just incase something happens to me or my supply! 

Solids

This little man does NOT miss a meal. Clocking in at over 21 lbs, we decided to start with some rice cereal just after he turned 5 months. The struggle to keep the food off his chin was SO real. The improvement he made with the spoon after about 10-14 days was so good and I feel like now he is really doing well with solids. I feed him twice a day, usually cereal and fruits in the morning, and in the evening he has cereal and veggies. I do like to keep the cereal in the mix the first couple of months because its something their stomach is used to (the breastmilk). The only food he hasn't liked has been green beans, spinach, and peas. Can you blame him? I don't think I would either! Everything else goes down without a hitch: peas, sweet potatoes, bananas, apple, prunes, carrots...now that he has hit 6 months I'm going to start working on more of the combination fruit and veggie mixes. We will see how those go!! 

Brother

I think one of the most common questions I get is ...How is Max with his brother? My answer is...he loves him. BUT I can't leave them in the same room together for obvious reasons. Max may have the best intentions at heart, but his "hug" may accidentally crush his little brother! In all seriousness, Max is a great big brother about 80% of the time. Every now and again though, he has a moment where he'll swat, poke, pinch his brother and has to do a few minutes in time out. I guess thats normal though (hopefully). Its been neat to see them interacting now that Sebby is growing into himself and smiling at his brother or laughing at him! 

Play

Sebbys favorites include the Fischer price Gym- he spends so much time reaching for things and tummy time on this (see above with his brother :): 

He loves the jolly jumper:

He's such a boy already..loves his fisher price car!

Likes: 

-PEOPLE. This little man is full of smiles whether you're family or a stranger!
-Putting anything in his mouth
-Pulling my hair
-His brother
-Bath time
-Trying to sit up. I swear he does about 698 situps a day! 
-Going for walks
-Mortimor the Moose
-His swing. Yeah, we're still napping in that. #DONTJUDGE #imworkingonit
 

Dislikes: 

-Having his nose wiped. 
-The end of the day #grumpy
 

Stay tuned for MY 6 month postpartum update....xo

Alex

Our New Normal: 4 Months

Family of four. 4.5 Months. 19 weeks. 

Our New Normal.

Now that we've become a family of four, its almost like its always been this way. Those initial first {{really}} tough days are in the past and we've settled into somewhat of a routine. And yeah. Its gotten easier. Definitely not EASY. But easier. Some days I totally feel like I've got it all together. And then I have days like today where I'm trying to nurse the baby to sleep upstairs and my toddler is screaming {{literally hyperventilating}} in his playroom downstairs to let him out. 

I swear that I don't even blink an eye now thinking about packing both kids up to go somewhere, and I'm slowly coming to terms with the fact that there is no down time with 2. When one is napping, the other one is ready to party! But I woulden't change it for anything. 

                                                                                                At Sebastian's Christening last month

Now that I'm a real veteran with multiple kids (haha JOKE) here's 7 things I've learned {fast} as a mommy of 2: 

1. Multi tasking: As women, we are conditioned to multi task. We do it at work, at home, and I swear even in our sleep! I always considered myself pretty good in that department. Then, baby 2 came along. I learned pretty quickly that I had to step up my game or I literally would not survive! Things like Breastfeeding while cutting up my toddlers lunch and doing squats while the baby is in the carrier have become the new normal. 

2. Divide and Conquer: I can't stress this enough. I think back to having just one baby and how if one of us had Max, the other was free. To do ...whatever. the. hell. they. wanted! Wow..those were the days. Now we're man to man. And having one seems SO EASY you guys. Life is so much easier when you're only dealing with one little persons needs. Your statistics for a meltdown are cut in half so your outing is already going to be more successful! Even at home, knowing that my husband is playing with Max while I'm putting the baby down for a nap makes so much of a difference. So. Divide and conquer my friends (when you can). 

3. Lower your expectations: This honestly goes for everything in your life. I know for a FACT I have become less productive due to the sheer fact that I never sleep. On top of that I have two little peoples needs that I am constantly juggling. Lower your expectations. Shit like dishes, laundry etc. can wait. I know its hard, but when you're on your own sometimes it just needs to wait until one of them is down for the count catching some ZZ's. Life will get easier ....soon. 

4. Get out: I know how much energy it is to plan to get out with multiple kids. You're juggling eating and napping schedules and spit up and poop and potty training and everything else that kids do and are. Without either one having a complete meltdown or the older one seriously injuring the other when  my back is turned..but just GET OUT. I always find when I make the trip out its just better. Yeah, the baby is a handful sometimes and do I love nursing in public? NO. BUT THE KIDS GOTTA EAT, people. Max is so much happier when stimulated so if I can even take them for a run around the {{smaller}} mall, or even Barnes and Noble for an hour I do. A happy toddler = a happy mom. And lets be honest as long as there's milk and my arms, the baby is pretty happy. 

5. Just say NO: I know this may sound like a contradiction (see #4), but sometimes you just have to say NO. I went through a period {{a very dark period lol}} where both of my kids were sick {{read: no one was sleeping, least of all me between the two of them}} and I had to bail on two social events with BFFs within a 3 day time period. Yeah, that was a drag. I was working on about 3-4 hours of broken sleep, a full working schedule, 2 sick kids, and being sick myself. The guilt train was in full effect. I miss my friends. And sometimes IT ISNT FAIR but thats life with kids and it won't always be this way. Sometimes, you have to say no and look after yourself. A majority of the time they will totally get it. They've been there. And if they don't get it, why are you friends?!!! Cut yourself a break and just go to bed. There will be time to catch up with friends. Just not when you're sick. And your kids are sick. 4 months after giving birth. 

6. Bribery: Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. When I'm on my own 2-3 times a week for bedtime and I don't want to hear my toddler screaming for me in our playroom when I'm nursing/putting the baby to bed, he gets to use my computer. Or gets to use the washable bath crayons in the tub IF HE's GOOD and waits patiently. Yeah, it sucks when I have to clean the washable crayon when he's in bed and in essence its making more work for me, but I get 10 mins of {{sweet, sweet }} silence putting my baby to sleep and we are all happier for it. 

7. Crying is ok sometimes: At the end of the day, I'm only one person and I can only do so much multi-tasking. And I'm doing my best. As long as they are both healthy, safe, warm, and fed, its ok that I can't get to them right. this. second. They'll survive. And not only will they survive, they'll also slowly over time learn the important lesson that the world doesn't revolve around them. 

4 months down,  a lifetime of learning to go. 

xo

Alex

6 Weeks Postpartum..Life with Sebastian

Wow...In some ways I can't believe its been 6 weeks since Seb was born. On the other hand, its completely DRAGGED by. I think anyone who is a parent, especially a mom, can absolutely relate to this! It was never my intention to wait this long to blog, but I think obviously time (and sleep!) is limited with a newborn, toddler, and recovering from a major surgery. In addition to that, I had so many emotions in the weeks following the delivery I was waiting to settle and really get ahold of where my head was at.  

Delivery: 

As a lot of you know, it was a tough decision for me to decide to go with a C-section as opposed to trying for a VBAC. The whole process this time around was MUCH easier than the 20 + hours of labor I put in and then was wheeled in for surgery for a C -section with Max. On Wednesday, October 5th, we dropped Max off at Grandma and Grandpa's and headed to the hospital. This was definitely a little bit of an emotional moment for me..saying goodbye to our "family of three" and my alone time with Max. Little did I know how much that was going to affect me the first couple of weeks! I had no idea how difficult of a transition that was going to be.

After arriving to the hospital, I was hooked up to a couple of machines prior to heading into the OR and I was actually getting contractions. I wasn't too surprised considering I had been in some pain the last week or two. The OR was running a little behind so we had to wait a little bit longer than our "scheduled" surgery time. When it came time for me to be wheeled in, it was a completely different feeling. I had spent some time with our Resident (who was soo nice and from NYC), and the anesthesiologist who was in love with my husband and his New Zealand accent. And of course, I got to know my doctor even better this time around throughout the pregnancy and over the last 2 years so I felt so much more comfortable. The room was a lot smaller and I felt more at ease.

The spinal was literally a piece of cake compared to any sort of contractions and off they went. I tried to keep myself as calm as possible and before I knew it, I was numb and they were working to get baby Sebastian out. They were having some difficulty getting his head out and had the anesthesiologist help push on my ribs to get him out. I swear my ribs were going to crack with the amount of pressure I felt! Ha! They were able to get him out and I waited for the fateful cry to know that he was okay. After our early scare in the pregnancy and everything we have gone through, we were so happy and grateful that he was here, nice and healthy!

 Sebastian Joseph Lines clocked in at 8 pounds, 11 oz and 20.75 oz delivered 5 days before his due date. Our first, Max, was 8 pounds 9 ounces born 5 days late. I am pretty sure that Seb would have clocked in at 9 lb + if he would have gone full term! Yikes! 

                                                                                     Baby Seb...looks very similar to his big brother here! 

The Aftermath

With this being my second c-section, I knew what to expect. The worst moment I would have to say is when you have to walk for the first time. Ugh. You feel like your legs are going to give out, your lungs are tight and you feel like you can't breath ..and the blood. Yeah. I won't get even go there. Your whole body is just a complete mess. Seb was very sleepy but had a great latch so my only challenge was to keep him awake during feeding sessions! 

                                                                                              The Boys at the hospital

I was feeling pretty good after the 48 hours so I decided to go home. I feel like you can never get any real rest when you're in the hospital. Between feeding your baby and the nurses/doctors coming in to check your vitals and incision, you never get any rest! So I coulden't wait to get home. But when I did get home, I literally burst into tears. It was so overwhelming being back home and knowing I couldn't move around at all and being completely dependent on other people. I had horrible engorgement the night I got home (a lot worse than the first time) and literally iced the ENTIRE night! 

I would have to say those first 3 weeks were so hard for me. I think first, breastfeeding is just super demanding the first couple of months and even more so the early weeks. It seems the babies want to eat 24-7 and everything is on you. I remembered these feelings from my first pregnancy, but it didn't make it any easier to handle especially when you're getting literally no sleep.

The part of this whole process that really hit me hard was how emotional I was about the change in our family dynamic and particularly my relationship with Max. It broke my heart to spend every waking moment with Seb and miss out on so many things that I used to do with Max. As much as I love Seb dearly and wanted to have him, those first couple of weeks were so, so hard and a lot of tears were shed. I knew that I needed to give Seb what I gave Max {{as much bonding time as possible}} but I coulden't help but feel a little bit of resentment and longing for the way my life "was" and I wondered how come nobody warned me?? And did I make a mistake having another...haha. Everyone always talked about how easy the second is because you "know what to expect..." but I disagree. I think they are both equally challenging in their own ways.! It helped reaching out to others and knowing they too had those feelings (obviously temporary feelings), and that it was normal to feel that way and soon enough we would all find our groove, routine and life as a family of 4 and it would be better than ever.

And of course I heard a lot of {{..the worst parenting advice on EARTH}} "It gets better" which we all know, but in that moment of despair with a crying infant, it seems like it will never. ever. be. better. again. 

Life with Seb

Seb is a such a little koala bear and so loved by all of us, especially his big brother Max. Max is always laying down with him on his playmat during tummy time and wanting to sit next to me when we nurse. He will try and help in any way possible..almost too much sometimes! ha ha. 

Seb is definitely an easier going baby than Max {{thank the lord}}. I actually have a baby that sleeps in the swing without the vacuum cleaner, and doesn't cry non stop all day long or need a hair dryer sound to calm him..ha ha. He is a champion breastfeeder and regained his birthweight and MORE just 5 days after his birth. He's currently clocking in at 13 pounds at 6 weeks..ha! Max better starting hitting the weights. Seb is cooing and smiling and we are loving it!

Sleeping wise he has been your average baby waking every 2 hours the first few weeks. The last couple of weeks he has given me usually a 3 or 4 hour stint right when he goes to bed. After that he is up every 2 hours for a feed and cuddle which is a drag but it is what it is, right?. I'm spending A LOTTTT of time in the rocker and am majorly sleep deprived but I know there is a light at the end of the tunnell..at some point. It might not be tomorrow- but it is there. ha. 

                                                                                                   One month photo!

Recovery

Where do I begin? Recovery from any birth sucks. I really, really, tried to take it easy and not move around as much to let my body heal after the surgery.  I enlisted as much help as I could to keep Max busy and have things taken care of around the house. Let's be honest though, its just an awful time for your body regardless of whether or not you deliver vaginally or by Section! 

Once I hit the 3 week point, I started to really feel a lot better and started to go for 20 minute walks. I still hesitated in taking Max or the baby anywhere because I didn't want to push it or strain/lift. I mean, I felt like I was on house arrest!

Unfortunately, last weekend at about 4.5 weeks postpartum I noticed some of my scar tissue widening. I knew immediately what was happening. Sure enough, a day later when I woke my incision had opened where the scar tissue was thickest mid-incision. I was so frustrated as this happened with Max 6.5 weeks postpartum. I'm not sure at this point if there is just something about this particular surgery that my body just doesn't like!! Anyway, there's no infection after seeing my doctor and its just something that needs to heal on its own so I've been laying low the last couple of weeks. Treatment wise I have been steri-stripping the open wound part and I'm hopeful it will be closed by December. Laying low has been so hard. All I want to do is get moving and get back to my normal routine..and drop a few of these last few pounds ;) 

Speaking of pounds. Ugh.  I've dropped 28 of the 38 pounds that I gained. I'm not so much concerned with the actual weight as opposed to the pilsbury doughboy/elephant skin stomach I currently have. ha. I would love to see that shrink a little in the next 6 weeks. So, for the next week or two, cleaning up my diet has been my main focus until I can start walking/elliptical and slowly get back into weights. I CANNOT wait to get back in the gym and tighten this thing up! 

                                                                                                      The road back begins!

All in all, its been a crazy 6 weeks. I have good days and bad days and so do the kids. I do have anxiety about tomorrow, and how I'm going to manage the next stage, but I have to tell myself to just. slow. down. Don't worry about bedtime routines and nap schedules. It will all be okay. It WILL get better, and at some point all of this will seem like a blip on the screen. So, in the meantime, I try to enjoy my koala bear snuggles and watching my boys interact in hopefully what is to become a great friendship between two brothers!

                                                                                                                      Brothers!! 

Mamas..what did you think was harder? Baby #1 or the addition of Baby #2? 

Thanks for reading and hope you all have a great week! xo

Alex