Saturday, June 30, 2007

Adult t*ys

...no, it's not what some of you may be thinking...it's just the brand new iPhone that was released by Apple today!



Yes, after all these long weeks of me not posting, I finally emerge to tease you with the promise of some racy post of adult paraphernalia and what you get is my musings about Apple's newest cool gadget, the iPhone! My apologies to those of you who were hoping for something else. :)

Anyway, I have been awaiting the arrival of the iPhone with *almost* as much anticipation as I did Kylie's arrival. I'm what you might call a techno-gadget girl. I love to have all the coolest new gadgets from phones to computers to cool headphones to whatever! Just as long as it is really small, looks cool and it has at least the promise of making something I do alot be a little bit easier or more fun to do.

So, today was the day. At 6pm, Apple stores everywhere raised the curtain on selling these little wonders. Of course, I'm sitting in Arlington, TX instead of standing in line behind 50 other geeks at my local Apple store near my home in Portland. So, what do I do? Well, first I pout a bit... poor me - I can't get my new iPhone within minutes of it being available for sale. Next, I began to search the internet to locate an Apple store near where I'm staying. I finally located one about 20 miles away and at 8:45pm, decide I'll make the trip over and get my new little toy. You see, the new iPhone is activated by hooking it up to your computer, just like you would sync up an iPod or other MP3 device and it basically prompts you through activating your phone service and within a matter of minutes you're supposed to be up and cooking. So, I figured since that's how it worked, I could do that from right here in the LaQuinta Inn in Arlington, TX!

First, I did call the store to see 1) how long the line was and 2) if I got there and waited in the line, would they actually have one left when it was my turn. The harried sounding sales person said 1) there is no line and 2) we've got plenty. That's all I needed to hear. So, off I go to find the place and carry away my new toy. But, as it turns out, I had to learn the lesson (again) of making sure that when I ask questions, I ask *all* the right questions. You see, when I got there, they were out of the 8GB models (8GB is *alot* of room for those of you who don't do computer memory sizing math), which is what I wanted. I mean, hey...if you're going to get one of the coolest new toys out there, you'd may as well get the biggest, baddest, most loaded version of the sucker (and besides, you get double the capacity for only an extra $100....who could resist that?).

While I was sorely tempted to take the 4GB (which is *only* half of *alot* of memory), I bowed my head, admitted defeat and left the store without cussing or crying (I was pretty cool about the whole thing if you ask me). The little sales girl (i.e. Apple Associate, if I was being more politically correct) did look at me with a bit of concern and ask if I was going to be OK...so I guess I wasn't totally unemotional about not getting my toy, but I suppose I was allowed a bit of disappointment after driving 20 miles to a place I'd never been only to find out the thing I wanted to get was sold out. Sigh....

So, the wait continues. I'm back in my hotel, have packed my suitcase to prepare for my 8:30am flight home tomorrow morning and figured I'd soothe myself by sharing my experiences of the evening. Hmmmm..... I think I feel better, but I think I'd have preferred to be syncing my new iPhone right now instead.

- Karen

*** By the way, this has been the longest 6 days of my life being away from my two best girls. I can't wait to get home...and I won't even stop at the Apple store on my drive in from the airport! Now, that's love. ;)

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Hair

As I was brushing Kylie's hair last night after her bath, I noticed that she has lots of new hair growth. I noticed that she's losing quite a bit of hair as well.

She has these short, fine hairs close to her scalp and these long hairs on top but the long hairs are in clumps. So for now, she looks like she has a severe comb-over and receding hair line.

I wonder if her hair will all fall out at once and she'll be bald. Or if it will continue to fall out in clumps and look like she has mange.





Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Nanny

Kylie is sitting next to me, in her Bumbo chair, cooing away. She is telling me all about her day with the nanny.

Yes! I left the house today for four whole hours. And Kylie was with a nanny. And it all worked out fine! I trusted the nanny because she was referred to me by my good friend, Heather.

But of course, I had to get all anal and leave a page of do's and don'ts for the nanny. And of course, I had a hard time driving away. But the hours really flew by. When I returned to the house, Kylie was napping contentedly in the nanny's arms. And I REALLY had to nurse. Not to get too explicit, but one's breasts do not like to be away from one's baby for that long.

It was nice to be away from the house and baby-free for a few hours. But it was even nicer to come home.

I would write more but the baby needs me now. I'll leave you with a picutre.

-Wendy

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Our little night owl

Or should I say screech owl?




Monday, June 25, 2007

Hard

Last night Kylie didn't go to sleep until after 4:00am. She was awake from 8:00pm until 4:00am. YIKES.

She's not sick-no fever- just incredibly, incredibly restless and fussy. It had to be one of THE WORST NIGHTS for both of us.

Karen is out of town, in Texas, teaching for her job. The only thing that was different and the only thing I can figure is that Kylie missed her Momma. I called Karen at around 3:00 and she helped soothe me (I was really frazzled at that point!) so that I could soothe the baby. I don't know who had it worse, me, Kylie or Karen (who felt so helpless so many miles away from her baby).

To make matters worse, Kylie is now consistently pooping to the far left. So the poop goes up the diaper or leaks through and thoroughly soils whatever outfit she's wearing. So there's been lots of outfit changes and then the scrubbing of the outfit with the bleach pen.

So do me a favor and send some loving vibes to Kylie. It's not easy being a baby. You can send some hugs to me and Karen too.

-Wendy

Sunday, June 24, 2007

Colors

The other day I took some pictures of Kylie. Later, as I reviewed the pictures I noticed that even though Kylie was smiling and looking cute, the pictures looked like crap. It turns out that the culprit was the yellow blanket she was laying on. Yellow is not Kylie's color at all.

Do you remember some years ago when finding out your seasonal color palette was all the rage? Turns out that even thought I'm a "Spring", Kylie is probably a "Winter". This would explain why Kylie looks so lovely in white, pink, blue and purple and not so good in yellow and orange.

The neat thing about this is that Karen is also a Winter. So Kylie has my face shape but Karen's coloring. I like that Kylie looks like both of us (ps--we sorta planned it that way). Some of my favorite comments are the ones where people say Kylie looks like Karen. Anyway, no more yellow clothes or blankets for Kylie (at least not when she's going to have her picture taken).

Here's a fun picture that I snapped today. I like this one because it seems that Kylie and the bunny are leaning their bodies and their heads the same way (this was happenstance of course). I even think their smiles are similar. (You can click on the picture to see a larger version).


You can view a few more pictures by clicking here.


-Wendy

Friday, June 22, 2007

New

Kylie has started smacking her lips together after she finishes nursing as if to say, "Nice meal, Mommy." She's started to "talk" to us. Mostly it sounds like "Ah-goo" and "Aahh".

And then she does this during belly time which is too cute.


Our darlin' girl

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Love

I've found that it's easier to write and talk about the weird and tough parts about being a Mom. It's difficult to find the words to write about how much I love Kylie and how much joy she brings me. I could write- I love her, I love her, I love her-a hundred times and it wouldn't come close to defining the depths of love that I feel for her and how I love her more each day.

Isn't it the Eskimos who have so many words for snow and ice? I wish we could create a few more words to define love.

-Wendy


Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Boppy, pacifiers and more

Kylie is one random kid. One never knows the best way to soothe her or get her to sleep. One night it's patting her on the back while walking around, the next night it's bouncing her and then the next night it's nursing to exhaustion. And each night I'll think, "Okay, this is the magic formula". The next night I'll try it and Whoops! Doesn't work any more! Try lots of other things. I really love to follow methods and patterns and formulas. And the fact that she consistently resist this.......well....I'll just say that (while I grind my teeth) it's been a learning experience.

I both love and hate the Boppy. As breastfeeding pillows go, it's the best (I've tried some others). But I hate the fact that it's lovely soft material is so dang slippery. It seems like I'm constantly trying to keep Kylie from slipping off the pillow or to keep the pillow from slipping off my lap. At the end of the night, my wrists are sore from gripping it to keep it from slipping. It's not quite the right height and the way that it's supposed to wrap around my middle makes me think that I'm fat. So the eight to ten times a day that I'm using the cursed Boppy to nurse, it's shouting at me, "You're fat, you're fat, you're fat!".

Kylie likes her pacifier. She uses it as an after-dinner mint and a way to soothe herself to sleep. But when she first tastes the pacifer, she'll give me a look that says, "What is this gross, disgusting thing you are putting in my mouth!?" I've found that I need to pop the pacifier in and quickly pop it out a few times. This gets her spit on it so that when she next tastes it, she'll take it and suck away. This morning I was tried this technique and made her gag and spit up. Felt like Evil Mommy.

Lastly, I think I'm finally getting over this weird crap I've been doing. For WEEKS NOW, about an hour after falling asleep, I'll wake Karen up by patting frantically in the bed for the baby. I'm sound asleep as I do this. It's like in my dreaming, I've lost the baby in the bed and I'm trying to find her. The weird thing is that we don't ever have Kylie in the bed with us. Ever.

The horrible part about this is that I've wacked Karen some good ones. Here she is sleeping peacefully, only to wake up by having her wife slapping at her. Apparently, in my dreaming frantic search, I'm hitting Karen and the bed pretty hard. Karen will sit up, wrap her arms around me, and lower me back to the bed while telling me that the baby is safe in her crib over and over. I don't remember any of this. Each morning I'll ask Karen about it and each morning she'll tell me, "Yep. You did it again!" and I'll just feel awful.

But two nights ago, something shifted. As I was falling asleep, I actually felt the anxiety. My mind was rushing all of these images of the day past me really quickly. It was like a strobe light. I could see all of these near misses that happened that day such as a car hitting us (instead of missing us which is what really happened) or a dog that we were playing with scratching Kylie (instead of staying away from her which is what really happened). It was like all of the worse case possibilities that could have happened were flashing by.

And I felt all tight, like I was bracing myself the way you do when you have to slam on your car brakes. So I threw my arm and leg around Karen and nestled into her arms and just breathed through it, telling myself that it was okay. That none of those bad things had happened and that we were all just fine. In a few minutes, the anxiety passed.

And that night, I didn't beat the bed looking for the baby. My diagnosis is that my anxiety had moved from my subconscious to conscious mind and now I was able to deal with it. But who cares about the diagnosis. The most important thing is that I didn't beat the bed or my wife.

I tell you....motherhood is QUITE the trip!

And now as a reward for reading this long, rambling post, I give you a picture of Kylie.

-Wendy

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Kylie on her playmat

Click for larger picture.

Monday, June 18, 2007

Birthday and shots


Yesterday was Kylie's two month birthday!

She now weighs 10lbs 12 oz (which is an increase of 1lb. 14oz since last month and 3 pounds since her birth).
Her weight is in the 50 percentile.
She is 23 inches long (up three inches since birth) which is in the 75% percentile.

Kylie is really looking around a lot these days.
  • She watches our faces intently and can recognize us from a distance.
  • She can raise and move her head from side to side and is just beginning to "turtle" when on her belly.
  • She loves to stretch out her long limbs and squirm about.
  • She's taken a few swipes at her dangling toys.
  • She opens and shuts her hands a lot. She holds onto our shirts as we feed her.
  • She still loves to hold her hair.
  • She sleeps in her crib in her room at night. She "practices" facial expressions as she's falling asleep.
  • She loves to suck on her fists and her pacifier. She's just started licking or sucking our arms as we hold her.

    Today she had her four shots (DTap, Polio, Hib/HepB, and pneumococcal conjugate). She had two shots in each leg. Of course she screamed like a banshee but calmed down as soon as I nursed her. She's had her dose of Tylenol and we will watch her closely for signs of fever and such.

    She managed to give us this smile when we got home.


    And I love this picture because if you look closely, you can see her profile (including her eyelashes) shadowed on the couch.
  • Friday, June 15, 2007

    Mobile

    We finally found a mobile!

    We've been on the hunt for a mobile for weeks but couldn't find one to work with our lifestyle convertible crib. The crib has a lip on it's rim that doesn't work with most of the mobile types. Karen and I have had some very fun conversations talking about ways that we could overcome this obstacle and install a mobile. Karen's imaginary mobile inventions included carpentry clamps and mine included garden plant hooks.

    But finally we found a mobile that fits through the crib bars and doesn't have to sit on the rails. It's the Fisher Price Ocean Wonders mobile and Kylie adores it.


    Before she was born, we hadn't planned on getting a mobile at all. But Kylie was fascinated with the cheap mobile on her Pack n Play. Karen and I would stand for long periods of time and manually turn this mobile just to see her smile. So we knew we had to get her a better mobile. We also finally found a mobile adapter in case we decide to put a motion mobile on her Pack n Play.

    Kylie's expression is priceless when she's watching her mobile. The look on her face is, "Dang! These crazy fish things are floating in the air. That's so cool!" Her sense of wonder is such a joy.


    Kylie is changing her sleep patterns just a bit. She's now going to sleep around 11:00pm instead of 12:30 or 1:00am and staying asleep for around four hours. It makes a big difference for us to get to bed at this earlier time. She has a quick feed around 3:00am and then sleeps until 7:30-8:00am.

    I attribute this positive change to the fact that she's gaining weight (she's now at 10lbs 11oz), eating more during her feeds and that she's switching her hours to be a daytime baby. We've also incorporated some of the ideas from the book "The No-Cry Sleep Solution" which have seemed to help. Needless to say, we're all thrilled with more sleep!

    Thursday, June 14, 2007

    Anniversary

    Four years together. Many more to come.

    Wednesday, June 13, 2007

    Garden

    I have got to make some time to weed and cut the landscaping in our front and back yards. It's like a jungle out there. It's so bushy it's hard for the eye to focus on the beauty of the plants.


    I planted several new plants in the early Spring. I need to see which plants have survived. There are a few that are blooming nicely.

    The campanula-


    The new foxgloves that I planted in early spring are doing well. Although if I had to do it again, I would have planted them in bunches rather than so spread out.




    And the astilbe looks radiant in the sun




    Of course, Kylie is the prettiest flower in the garden!

    Monday, June 11, 2007

    Pictures

    I have a bunch of pictures to show you. You can click on the picture to see a larger version. Sorry for any of you who may still have dial-up connections.

    I love these two pictures of Kylie and Karen




    Me and Kylie in the backyard


    Kylie loves her swing.

    I had a slight panic moment when the swing ran out of batteries this morning. Fortunately, I was able to pull some D batteries out of some flashlights and get it going again (hope there's not a power outage tonight). The "experts" say that she shouldn't be in the swing for more than 30 minutes twice a day and that I should take her out before she falls asleep. Well, I'm missing the mark on both counts. No matter how gently I try to take her out of the swing, she always wakes up (and is quite angry about it!)

    When Kylie cries these days, she sheds tears. Before, in her early weeks, she would slowly work her way into a cry with whimpers and grunts. Nowadays, she lets loose with her full-throated cry right off the bat. She certainly has found her voice! Here she is in a bit of a snit:


    But the majority of the time she is a happy, easy-going, smiley baby.


    Friday, June 08, 2007

    Smiles

    A few little smiles for the camera!


    Where did the week go?

    What happened to the time when I could blog every day? Where did the week go?

    The past few days have just been a blur. How can it be such a challenge to simply fold the clothes from the dryer every day when Kylie sleeps so much?

    Anyway, in our spare time, Karen and I have scrapbooked a couple of pages. I'll take some pictures and post them later. The scrapbooking stuff takes up our entire dining room table. At meals, I try to clear off a little area but we end up eating hunched over this tiny, scrapbook free space on the table.

    And our favorite, baby-free pasttime is to go to the various scrapbook/craft stores and wander the aisles. Where we used to run errands together, now we take turns. And usually our turns find us for a brief stop for scrapbooking stuff. Dang! The amount of stuff you can buy for scrapbooking is almost as never-ending as the stuff you can buy for a baby!

    We bought a little storage shelf unit to put in the office to hold all our craft supplies. To make room, I moved one of our cat towers out of the office. (We actually have two of those carpet-covered cat towers in our small office. I also have two little cat beds on my desk. Can you tell we love our cats?)

    Anyway, I moved the tower out into the hall with the intention of taking it to Goodwill. For the cats, it's like "New Toy! New Toy!" and they have been playing all over it all day.

    Geesh...this is a rambling post. But I felt the need to post something....anything!!!

    Kylie now weighs 10 pounds, 3 oz. She has found her fist (as you can see in the below photo). Whenever her hand comes near her mouth, she's sucking on it. Her head is getting really strong. She's holding it up and turning it left and right really well now. Yesterday, I saw the hint of a "turtle" when she had belly time on her playmat.



    Baby Girl has some serious core strength to lift those legs like that. We do something similar for our abs at Jazzercise and I don't do it nearly as well as Kylie!

    Guess that's all for now. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

    Monday, June 04, 2007

    What's Up?

    I snapped this picture yesterday. To me, it looks like Kylie is saying (with an urban, rapper accent), "What's Up?"

    Speaking of urban, do you know about the urban dictionary? I read it every day--don't ask me why--I'm weird that way.

    Anyway, Kylie's acne is starting to clear up. I predict it will be completely gone by the end of the week. And we can't wait! Both for her sake and ours because we've missed taking tons of photographs of her every day.

    Our little girl is holding her head and turning it from side to side really well now. And she loves to scoot off her baby positioner when she's in her crib.

    Here's something interesting: When Kylie lays on my chest, she instinctively inches her way down to the nursing position. Even if she is completely full, she won't simply lay or sleep on my chest. And once she's in nursing position, she won't settle unless she's nursing.

    But she loves to sleep on Karen's chest. Normally this seems fair. I get to nurse Kylie and Karen gets sleepy-time, heart to heart time with her. But today I had to have a bit of a pout about it.

    Is this true for any other breastfeeding Moms out there?

    Whenever I want to hold Kylie close, I'll put her in her sling. That way we can cuddle and I can have her close to my heart. We didn't really plan to practice Attachment Parenting but our little girl is so content in her sling. So she's held by one of us almost all the time.

    Well...I've got to go now....Kylie needs to be fed. Cheers!

    -Wendy

    Friday, June 01, 2007

    Growing


    Kylie weighs ten pounds as of today. Here's a picture of her resting on Momma Karen's lap.