Hello sweet blogger friends! Sorry I've been MIA and so sweet of some of y'all to check on me :). See below post update below on Henry and why it has been so long since I have posted. Way past time for a pregnancy update. This pregnancy is flying!! Unbelievable how fast it is going...almost to the point where I wish I could stop time for a second to just enjoy this moment. Given our infertility history, pregnancy is an especially sweet time for me. I just love every second of it! And I've also been blessed by easy pregnancies both times especially this time. I'm 19 weeks pregnant, and I wouldn't know it if it wasn't for the sweet baby kicks I'm feeling now and my growing bump....and the need for naps and reflux issues :). I feel bad blogging because I know so many who are still waiting for their precious miracles whether through adoption or attempting treatments, and I don't want to make anyone feel bad. I haven't forgotten for a second the pain of infertility and the daily struggle of walking through it.
At our most recent dr appt (18 weeks)...we had our big ultrasound! And we found out that our sweet baby is a.....
GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I can't believe it!! I really thought I would be a mom to a bunch of boys :). I'm the youngest of four with three brothers...shaun has three brothers and there is one granddaughter and seven grandsons on my side! lots and lots of boys and blue. So everyone is excited for some pink, bows, baby dolls, dresses, tutus etc etc etc :) :) :)!!!!
Honestly, I feel like I'm in a dream right now and that someone needs to pinch me and wake up. I feel so blessed to have such a sweet little boy and now a girl. I've only known for a week now and with all of the sickness in our family, I haven't even had time to look at girl stuff and plan and dream and really believe that I'm having a girl. We had a great report that she looks healthy and that everything so far is going well which is of course what is most important to us. I don't want y'all to think I didn't want a boy...I really didn't care either way! I was actually super excited about having two boys and had the cutest name picked out :).
So now we have to name her! We really love the name Kate so I think that will be the name, but Shaun wants to go through the entire baby name book before we decide for sure. Now the challenge is to come up with a middle name....Kate (insert three syllable name here??) two syllable last name. Comment if you have any ideas :).
Here are some sweet pics of miss precious :)
baby feet
sweet button nose
She had her two hands together by her cheek and I said that looked "girly" before I knew she was a girl :)
It has been way too long! I've been a horrible little blogger lately. I really hope to get better at posting more often soon so if anyone is still out there reading...thanks for still following along :). The first few months of 2011 are flying by with keeping up with my busy little guy, napping during henry's naps (my former blog time), enjoying this sweet baby and pregnancy, doula clients, and lots of sickness!!! We are all well right now, and I pray that it stays that way for some time...we need a break. But so thankful that all we've had to deal with are things like stomach bugs, colds etc and nothing more serious.
Now to talk about my little man :)...there is so much to say that it is hard to know what to even include in this blog post. I have found 18 months old (he's almost 19 mo now...eek!) to be the perfect combination of the cutest/sweetest age mixed with the most challenging age yet! Let me explain.
First the cute....Henry is talking up a storm and everything that comes out of his mouth is about as cute as it gets. He is also showing quite the little personality lately with the way he interacts with us, and it is just adorable. For instance, he will say "oh no" while holding his cheeks and just yesterday he struck this little pose while asking if he could see pictures of babies that had me laughing so hard (it is hard to describe but put your chin on the top of your shoulder and you might be able to tell what I'm talking about). The other day at the bookstore, Henry saw two cute little toddler sisters and turned on the charm big time with a cute dimple smile and said "hey girls!" really loud. He just never stops amazing us at the stuff he comes up with every day. One of his favorite things to do righ now is to make "a mess." He will go around the house looking for how he can make a mess while mommy cleans. As much as we sing the cleanup song, and I try to demonstrate putting away toys etc...he has absolutely no interest....he just wants to make a mess. And so I will hear him around the house saying "oh no! a mess" or just "a mess!!" Henry loves all things boy...his favorties right now are still choo choos but he is also getting more and more into "race cars." I can't believe how much he can distinguish between vehicles/construction equipment...he will see a jeep, sports car, race car, backhoe, crane, fire truck etc and tell me what he is seeing. It is so fun to see his little brain just soak up as much information as he can. He has also started singing some of the songs we sing like twinkle twinkle, row row, splish splash, old mcdonald, shake your booty....is there a sweeter sound?? He can even him the thomas the train theme song! Henry also loves to talk about what belongs to who like "mama's shirt, dada's pants, papa's trucks" We will even be going down the road, and he will say "samuel's shirt" (his cousin) or "micah's shirt (his friend). Naps are finally wonderful.....woooohooo! He goes down at noon and takes usually a 2 hr nap (even a 3 hr the other day!!). He also is getting better about not being as cranky when he wakes in the morning or from his nap...he will cry for just a minute and then he will yell for me as loud as he can so I hear him across the house "mama!!." I love waking up to that ;). So now sleep gets to be in the cute category for Henry...if y'all have followed me from the beginning...I bet y'all are all shocked...me too :).
Now for the challenging part...I've heard that some toddlers start the twos a little early, and I think that is the case for our sweet Henry. I've wondered if maybe because he is talking so much that might be why he is starting so soon. Tantrums are very frequent at our house right now. It could be he couldn't get a toy to work like he thinks it should or that I didn't do something they way he wanted etc. The funny thing about Henry is that he gives us a pre-warning of his tantrum by saying "uh oh" and then he proceeds to throw himself on the floor. I ignore the tantrums for the most part and just walk away because I've heard that is the best way to teach them that they don't work. I don't think that he is trying to throw the tantrum to get me to change his mind...it is more of an involuntary response of his body to the frustration he is feeling so I almost feel sorry for him. I have really come to accept that this is just part of being 18 months. He thinks he is capable of doing so much more than he actually is so it is very frustrating for him and as a mom there is very little that I can do to reason with him logically at this age which also makes it challenging. I really just recognize this as a stage, but it does make for some long days sometimes. Another issue we have with our sweet Henry is some very aggressive behavior...pinching, pulling hair, biting etc. And I'm going to vent for a second because this is one of the reasons I like to blog :). This is probably the most challenging issue I've faced yet with behavior with Henry because it involves others. It makes me so upset that he would hurt other children and me and his daddy but at the same time it is hard to deal with being told your son is so awful all of the time. It starts to really get to a mama when every time I pick him up from nursery/mother's morning out etc...I get a report on how my little guy has "beat up" on all the kids in the nursery (and yes Henry I know you are laughing about this if you are reading this twenty years from now :). I get all of the advice at the nursery door about saying no, time outs, spanking etc, and it just gets hard to hear. I'm glad that they are giving him timeout and being consistent and that some kids are scratching him back etc because that is how he is going to learn. But I'm being consistent at home too!!! Just because your child has a behavioral problem does not mean the mama is at fault :). I got so sick of it on Sunday that I told the nursery worker (who was a fill-in so it wasn't the nursery worker that Henry and I love and know well) that "well I guess you will understand one day when he is a nfl football player." How hillarious is it that I said that? I'm so hormonal right now that sometimes things just come out of my mouth especially when they are talking about my baby :). I also get it from other mamas too. And yes I know it is not fun to see your child to be pinched etc, but if you don't like it then remove your child from the situation. Moms need breaks too, and I can't watch Henry every second when we are at a social function.
But the good news is that the cuteness far outweighs the challenges! So blessed to have my sweet little guy, and I'm so enjoying this time with just him. He really is about as precious as they come :)
first juice box by myself
so proud!
so happy and cute...and yes I love this shirt on him :)
Well here I am in the last week of my first trimester (12 weeks)....hard to believe!! This pregnancy is going by so much faster than Henry's because I'm not as worried this time, and I'm so busy chasing after my precious little guy :). I'm honestly still having a hard time even wrapping my brain around the fact that I'm pregnant. It just doesn't feel real (more like a dream) and even when I talk about it...it almost feels like I'm pretending. I remember struggling with similar feelings during my first trimester with Henry, but I also think that I was a little bit more emotionally prepared for that pregnancy. This pregnancy was a huge surprise (in an infertile getting pregnant naturally surprise...not the annoying we didn't even try and we want to tell the world how fertile we are surprise) so I think it is taking a little longer to soak in this time. I know once I start feeling stronger movements (just started feeling some tiny flutters recently) that it will become more real to me, and I honestly can't wait to get to that stage!! I'm not calling this baby "baby #2" because I don't think it is fair to my first baby that I lost. I just don't feel comfortable calling him or her that and so we are just calling the baby "baby" and then by his or her name after the big ultrasound. I want this sweet baby to know (in case you read this someday) that just because our season of waiting was shorter than with Henry, it doesn't mean you were wanted any less. We wanted you just as much as your brother, and you are just as much of a miracle!!
I've enjoyed looking back at old blog posts of Henry's pregnancy so I want to make sure that I write down some of the symptoms and fun stuff to remember. This pregnancy so far hasn't been too difficult. I was a little more nauseaous this time but only from weeks five through eightish and not enough to make me throw up (except for a horrible stomach bug at 7 weeks). I've definitely been tired as I always feel like I need a nap in the afternoon, and I almost always fall asleep on the couch in the evening. Looking forward to getting a burst of energy hopefully soon! Frequent urination--oh wow. definitely had this so much more this time from weeks 4 to 11. Now that the baby has popped up and out a little and taken a little pressure off my bladder, I'm not needing to go as often (for now!). Gag attacks--gag attacks are back!! I was wondering where they were because I'm pretty sure I got them earlier with Henry, but they started last week at 11 weeks. I just gag out of nowhere or especially if a smell gets to me. Mood--I feel like I haven't been that moody yet (Shaun might disagree), but I can definitely get emotional at sillly things especially on tv. Starting to show--I feel like I just pop fast compared to some girls, but it is definitely time for some maternity jean shopping this weekend! Cravings--Henry was my mexican baby couldn't get enough of it but this baby has been my italian baby. I could eat spaghetti like several times a week. I couldn't stand sweets with Henry, but I love a good sweet treat with this pregnancy. I'm honestly surprised that I've only gained 2 lbs so far (think it was six at this point last time) because I've got a serious appetite. I couldn't eat very much from like 5 to 9ish weeks, but I'm starting to get to eat bigger portions now. I know some women get really annoyed at women like me because I have it easy in the first tri unlike my sweet friend Andrea (send her some hugs and congrats!). I honestly can't imagine how hard it would be to be that sick for that long :(. Andrea was such a wonderful friend to me through my infertility before Henry and then I got to walk with her through hers the last two years. We are blown away that God would have us to be pregnant together only like four days apart. What a blessing!!!! We both didn't even dream that as a possibility!
I really need to get better from here on out with belly shots...I just took one this morning so that I could post one (no face in the pic=no makeup...a southern girl just doesn't post that to the world :).
I can't believe it has been October since I have last blogged on here. wow. This fall has really gone by fast!! I wanted to take a few moments to write down a few things about sweet Henry because he is turning into such a big boy, and I don't want to forget this precious age (16 months). We just love him to bits!!
Size- 18 mo clothes and starting to look so long...can't believe how long he looks when he stretches out in the tub to "swim"
Henry's Favorites- He is still absolutely obsessed with choo choos, but he is also starting to love trucks and cars more too. I love the way he says "choo choo"...melts my heart every time. He says "tank you" the same way he says choo choo too. His favorite animal right now is probably an elephant, dog or cat, but he loves to say all of the animal sounds. His favorite book is any train book but especially "the little train" that we ended up buying from the public library because he destroyed it/loved on it so much.
Favorite words/phrases- We definitely have a talker! Henry loves to communicate, and he is getting to the point now where he is almost adding a word daily. I was writing down his first words through 15 months, but there is no way that I can keep up a list now. I really believe the reason he has started talking early is baby signs. I'm a huge fan of starting baby signs around 6 to 8 months of age. I've seen so many moms afraid of teaching signs to their babies because they think that it will keep their baby from talking but all of the research shows (or at least the studies I've seen) that it actually helps babies/toddlers to talk early.
His favorite phrase by far right now is "fix it." He absolutely loves to bring me or Shaun something that is "broken" to "fix it." He actually put three words together for the first time this past weekend when Shaun was working with tools in the garage..."Dada fix it!" Thankfully, the door from the house to the garage was open so I got to hear it too. Other favorite phrases are "all done" and "all aboard" (this one melts my heart every time too). I'm trying to get as many of these first words on video because obviously writing doesn't even begin to do it justice. He is starting to have fun with opposite words too like open/close, up/down. He loves saying "shirt" right now and just recently said "mama's shirt"...although sometimes that "r" goes missing so it sounds pretty funny :).
Henry is such a boy! He absolutely adores making sounds and mimicking and thinks certain sounds are especially funny. Especially....poots :). I can thank his dada for teaching him this one. I will never forget recently when I was sitting with Henry in a rocking chair, and he pooted. He looked up at me with the biggest proud eyes and said "poot" and then laughed his head off. THEN...he proceeded to hike up one leg and do it again. I was laughing so hard...it was too funny. I guess since I grew up with three brothers that bathroom humor doesn't bother me too much. Now Henry even says the past tense "pooted"...oh boy! I'm in for it!
Other fun firsts this month-
Turning around in a circle for dancing
Stomping
Using a fork (just starting this one...)
First time to see santa!
Loving Christmas this year (amazing to watch Christmas through his eyes)
Saying "no" to questions that we ask him sometimes now...oh boy starting the twos early?
I need to upload the pics from my camera but until now how about a cell phone pic of a pic?
Here is Henry sitting on Santa's lap! He actually liked Santa and was talking to him. I was so surprised!
And for those of you who don't read prayingforalittleone...Henry is a big brother! Baby Sirmon is due July 25, 2011!!! Praising God for this precious miracle!! I will be blogging over here about my pregnancy so look for a post coming soon!
A common question that I'm getting right now as more of my friends are hearing that I'm training to become a doula (along with "what is a doula?"..dona.org has great info on that but I will address in another post) is "what made you want to be a doula?" I really feel like in order to answer this question that I need to start back to why I desired a natural childbirth with Henry and what I've learned about my body since labor/delivery/breastfeeding. So this is just part one :).
Growing up, my mother always spoke of her labor and deliveries so positively that she made me see labor and delivery as something to look forward to in the future. I loved hearing her birth stories growing up (all four of them!) and how she described labor as "Christmas morning" for her. I've always been proud of my mom for many reasons but lately I've come to an even greater appreciation of how she was willing to be different. For example, my dad was the second dad to ever be allowed in the delivery room in our small town (because they asked!!) and my mom's labor and delivery nurse asked if she could watch my mom's first latch with breastfeeding because she "never saw that before." I guess we have come a long way in some aspects of the l&d process since the 1970s :). My mom's descriptions of her labor and contractions made me realize that this "pain" was different. Labor "pain" is different than any other pain that we experience in our life because it is pain that actually means that something good is happening. She explained to me often the importance of relaxing during a contraction as becoming tense made it so much worse. I kept this advice in mind when I wanted to curl up in a ball with horrible menstrual cramps (thanks to endometriosis). One of my favorite parts of my mom's first birth story with my brother Ethan is how she tells about how the first l&d nurse that saw her (checked her) told her that she wasn't in labor and how my mom knew that wasn't true. I love how my mom believed her own body at such a young age when someone older and experienced was telling her differently. I wish I could say that I had the same strength when it was my turn. After experiencing a miscarriage and infertility, I felt that my body was broken and was extremely fearful that my body would not know what to do when it came to labor and delivery and breastfeeding. I can remember answering people's questions about if I planned to breastfeed with "I definitely want to breastfeed if I can" as if my body literally wouldn't produce the milk (which by the way only happens in a very, very small percentage of women). It would be like me saying that I definitely want to get some ice cream if I don't get struck by lightning on the way. I will never forget a comment left on my blog by my friend from high school Elizabeth who is training to be a midwife (yay!) when I was in tears (okay sobs!) over another fingertip dilated vaginal check (which I now know was completely unnecessary...please read this article if you are preg) and the possibility of csection/induction. She gave me the famous quote by Ina May Gaskin..."your body is not a lemon." Oh how I wish I would have listened to the truth behind that quote. I wouldn't have had an elective induction at 39 weeks. I was so terrified of my body not acting correctly or the baby being "too big" that I would "need" a csection that I didn't listen to my gut or my friend. For years, I dreamed of what labor and delivery would be like...making the phone call to shaun to come home from work because I was in labor...resting and breathing deeply in the arms of my hubby during labor...feeling every contraction and knowing we were one step closer to finally meeting our baby. I didn't want to be propped up in a bed while everyone came to visit like it was a party completely unaware that a miracle was taking place. Some women desire that type of labor and delivery and that is their choice (one of the reasons for the high csection rate), but it wasn't for me.
Even though my birth story with Henry has some regrets, it was still the best day of our lives as we met our sweet Henry. The time that we spent in labor were some of the most bonding moments in our marriage. We just needed someone to help us along. Someone who could have assured me that my body works and that I wouldn't carry Henry around for 11 months and to talk to my doctor about my options. Someone who could have told me that I was in transition and that ten cm was right around the corner. Someone who could have make sure that the music playing that was helping me so much would stay on (it kept turning off and shaun didn't have time to fix it in between contractions!) or done something with the alarm that kept going off. Someone who could have gotten my nurse when I needed to go to the bathroom or to remind me that I needed to go (always hurt worse with a full bladder!). Someone who could have given my poor hubby a break who rubbed me without time for food or drink for hours and hours (he told me later that this is part of the reason why he didn't try to encourage me to rethink the epi when I asked for it...oh and he had a pulled muscle in his back that hurt so bad the entire day and didn't say a word about it...wow.).
I want to be that someone for couples in our area who are desiring natural childbirth. I can't imagine what a joy it is going to be for me to guide my first couple through their labor and delivery and first latch. And that is just one of the reasons why I want to be a doula :).
Before my sweet little boy turns fifteen months (what??!!), I wanted to take a moment to write down a few things that I don't want to forget from 14 months. I know I can write some long updates, but I'm going to try to keep this one as just a little summary :). October is getting away from me so fast (I keep writing this post and saving because I never have time to finish it so now it is like 3 days away from November…wow.). If you aren't a follower, you might want to also check prayingforalittleone as I'm posting a little more over there these days too.
Size: no weight or height update...still wearing 12-18 mo
Baby Signs: No new signs this month because mr. henry is moving on to words! He definitely still uses some of his favorite signs, but I haven't been teaching him any new ones. His favorite signs: keys (he made up the sign for this!! it looks like he is turning the key...so cute!!), airplane, bird, bath, more, please, book.
Words: Henry has really started talking this month, and it has been sooooo much fun. I love to hear his sweet voice....oh it just melts my heart!! I'm going to be annoying and list all of his new words but as I've said before this blog is my baby book so I use it for my record :). And yes, I had to start writing them down this month on a notepad on our kitchen counter.
baby, cheese, hot (one of his favs) choo choo (his favorite word), shoes, bus, truck, yay, ball, poopoo, spoon, book, grape, juice, yuck, chip, night night, go, balloon, gatti, teeth, belly button, keys (calls them da now he was saying keys), hello, three, bread, stuck (another fav), bubbles.
Book- Favorite book this month is any "choochoo" book...the boy is in LOVE with trains. It is so cute :).
Breastfeeding- Still going strong...not weaning yet because I don't want to, and I can tell Henry doesn’t either. He does seem to be able to tolerate goat's milk so I'm very happy that we have something to wean to now when we decide to someday.
Sleep--no comment. lol just kidding...but seriously sleep and henry just don't belong together in the same sentence :). I'm sure that good long afternoon nap will come someday....(and since this is a late update…he is starting to do a lot better now at almost 15 months).
A couple cute things:
Middle of the night talking—If Henry wakes in the middle of the night and I go in to see him, he immediately stops crying and starts talking. I sometimes wonder if he is telling me about his dreams…”choo choo” or “dada” “book” “mama” are some of his favs ;).
Snap—One day Shaun was snapping to some music, and Henry started trying to snap. He was moving his fingers and not hearing any sound so he started making the sound with his mouth while moving his fingers. He still does it sometimes if we start snapping…so cute :)
Pointing out dada/mama- Henry now loves to point out everybody in pictures around our house especially mama and dada. He especially loves our wedding photos and always says our names with the most excited voice.
Imagining- Henry is just starting imaginary play, and I’m so excited because imaginary play is so fun to me. The first time I ever noticed Henry pretending was when he went over to his music table and pinched like he was picking up some “food” and brought it over to me to “eat.”
I know I say it every month, but this really is such a sweet age. We are so love with our buddy. I can’t believe how big he is now. He really is such a little toddler now :)
No pics this time because I haven't uploaded them on my computer...will just have to put a bunch on the 15 mo update soon :)!
But here is an adorable video of a duet with my favorite two people in this entire world! Hope you enjoy! (Shaun is embarassed by his singing voice but I think he sounds great!)...And because it is in hd...half of the video is getting cut off because of the way my blog is formatted...so it might be easier to watch on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rg7WC8ApqSs
I really have been a bad blogger recently, and I hope to do better this fall! We've had some computer and internet problems, but my techy hubby seems to have us back up and running so hopefully more posts will come soon. I miss blogging when I don't get to write!! I really use it as a way to process my feelings/thoughts, and I think I would still do it even if no one read or commented (although I heart my readers-thank you for putting up with my silly posts!!). But enough about me and blogging...time to catch up on mr. hen hen. This month I've witnessed him grow from a baby to a toddler. It is such a fun age, but a little sad for me as I'm really having a tough time with not having a baby anymore. I think this is mainly because he is my first, and I'm also scared that it could be years before I have another baby. As I pack up baby blankets and bibs, I can't help but question whether I'm going to need them at all in the near future. I didn't really get too upset around his birthday and this past month because he was still a baby to me. But now he is 13 months, and he is walking all over the place/wearing shoes/drinking from a big sippy/stinking like a boy when he gets hot...he is definitely a toddler. I'm excited though about this year and this new stage! I've found that one of things I love most about being a mom is teaching Henry. As we move into the toddler stage, I can already see many more opportunities for learning together. There is so much to explore and see!
Size: 22 lbs at 12 mo checkup 31 inches (75th percentile in height and weight)
Walking: Henry started officially walking on August 26th and has gotten increasingly faster over the past few weeks. The monkey crawl that everyone loved is fading away, and I expect in the next few weeks that it will be gone. It is so crazy to see him walking all over the house...practically running already!! Watch out world...here Henry comes!
Baby Signs: new signs--banana, book, bath, please and we are working on war eagle :) (go auburn!!). He has about 18 signs now, and he uses most of them daily along with trying to say the word. I need to get a baby signs book at the library to learn a few more because I'm not really teaching him any new signs...i've run out of ideas!
Words: Henry has really surprised us this month with how much he is saying and what he is trying to say. A lot of the words he says now started as baby signs so I'm glad that we did signs with him.
Dada, mama, book, bird, frog (not very clear but he says it every time he sees a frog), banana (baboo), bye, hey, juice, baby (baba or babee), boy, apple, ball, diaper, poo poo (ha!), elmo (mo), oh (for uh oh when he falls). There are several more words that I think he is saying like truck and bus, but he has only said them a few times so we will see if he adds them this month.
Sounds: I'm not going to be able to remember all of the sounds that he makes because he looooves to make sound effects (such a boy!). But his favorite new sounds to make are for a lion (roooooar--which he says very loud), and he LOVES owls (whooo whooo)...I don't know why owls but every time we see one in a book...he just wants to stay and look at them and make the sound. So funny!!
Book- Henry's favorite book this month is "The Noisy Jungle" and "B is for Bear" (if you have a one year old...you have to get this book!!)
Breastfeeding- Still breastfeeding! I'm going to be sad about stopping, but I'm kinda getting ready at the same time. This past year of bfeeding has been so sweet. I'm going to write a post about it soon along with the first year of parenting post. I'm attempting to wean this month if Henry can tolerate goat's milk. I mentioned last month that Henry is allergic to cow's milk. I really would prefer not to give him soy milk so we are trying goat's milk first. There are two different types of milk proteins. One is in just cow's milk and the other is in both cow and goat so it is possible that Henry will be allergic to goat's milk as well. I'm hoping he will be okay with goat's milk although it is expensive!!
Sleeping- Attachment parenting readers might want to stop reading now.
We are sleep training for naps and going down at night. It got way out of control way longer than it should, and I finally have become strong enough to do what it takes. Believe me!! It is not easy. But my sweet Henry was/is making my days extremely hard/emotional because he fought sleep every time, which ISN'T what is best for him either. So I've had to start not going back in his room at all. He actually hasn't cried for that long which I'm grateful for but it still hasn't been easy. Really not interested in hearing any negative comments about this so just know that your comment will be deleted if it is negative.
So overall a fun and busy month (and obviously difficult at times too :). Looking forward to a cool fall with lots of new things for my little buddy like pumpkins, fall leaves, and afternoon naps :).
I can't believe how much y'all want to see these pics :)...makes me a happy blogger that y'all care! Shaun and I have never thrown a party this big before (invited our entire sunday school community) so we really learned a lot in the process, but we had a great time at the party and were very pleased with the turnout for Henry (it meant a lot to us!!). One of my biggest regrets is the pictures...I tried to take some good ones, but I really didn't have time so I didn't pics of a lot of the cute decorations and especially Henry. Next time, I will hire a hobby photographer to take pics and video so I can focus on enjoying the party without worrying that I'm missing moments!
The invite! (pics and invite done by the so talented Peepeye Designs--find her on facebook)--scratched my number out
Wreath for front door--my talented friend Claire stayed up making these ducks one night! thanks c :)
Close-up of ducks on wreath
Favors on the entryway table (duck book and bubbles)...there were ducks floating in water and frames with pics of Henry with ducks when he was a little baby.
Food table...bbq, potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, chips and cupcakes
Favorite pics from each month...birth to 12 mo
Blowing out the candle...was just about to start sobbing but then...
Henry touched the hot candle and became terrified of his mean rubber ducky cupcake
No traditional smashing of the cake for this little buddy :)
Holding up our one!
And last but definitely not least...the adorable cupcakes made by my super talented friend Jessica
Family pic (henry wasn't cooperating with pics...too much fun things to watch and do!)
On this day a year ago, your dad and I were anxiously awaiting to meet you. For nine months, you were in my belly and even though we knew we would get to meet you....it almost seemed like a dream. I can remember a quiet moment in the delivery room right before it was time for you to be born that it finally hit your dad and I that you were going to be here. It was no longer going to be just the two of us, and we couldn't hold back the happy tears. I don't know that you will ever understand how much you are loved and how much you were wanted. Henry, you are the answer to our prayers. You are our miracle from God. I will never forget when I saw your face for the first time. I felt like I knew you immediately. All of the waiting and tears, it all made sense when I looked into your eyes. You were so alert and wide awake taking in the new world around you and all of our family and friends at the hospital couldn't believe how you were just looking around checking everything out. It makes me laugh now looking back at the videos and pictures from your birth day because that is so you. You are always taking in the world around you. As a newborn at 2 AM, you would rather look around and talk than sleep. Now as a one year old, you don't wake at 2 AM anymore (yay!), but you are constantly pointing out to us things that you see and hear. We love that about you. You are showing us so many things that we started to not notice before you were here. Every morning, you want me to open the blinds so that you can look outside while you eat breakfast. I always say, "wow! it is a beautiful day," and you make the cutest sigh. I never realized how many beautiful weather mornings that we actually have until I started saying that to you everyday. Or how many birds hang out around our house now that you point them out to me. Or how many people actually wear hats! You are teaching us to look at the world through your eyes, and it is such a beautiful creation. But the most beautiful (or handsome) creation of all...is you! You get your adorable looks from your daddy. And your dimples from me :). I love your sweet eyelashes, and your precious smile. I can't believe how much you have grown in a year. Last year, you were so tiny and now you are starting to look more like a toddler than a baby. You are the cutest, most sweetest, precious little boy! I'm so blessed to be your mom and to get to take care of you. I love you more than words can express.
Our baby is one!! I was so emotional leading up to the day and a little on the day of his birthday but today I'm just excited about the new adventures to look forward to this year. He is still my baby and will always be so I'm not ready to refer to him as a toddler yet...maybe I'll go with pre-toddler.
Stats:
No update on height and weight yet...we go tomorrow to his one year appt which I almost cried when his nurse called me to remind me of his appointment.
Size 4 diapers
12 to 18 mo clothes
Walking?-- not yet!! But boy is he close. He took five steps for Shaun today so I know it will probably be any day/week from now.
Baby Signs- This is where I've seen a huge leap of development this month. Henry is really wanting to communicate to us everything that he sees, and I love it. I can't explain the joy it brings me to see him do a sign for the first time! And signing is really helping us know what he wants when he is getting frustrated instead of guessing. His signs so far are: eat (he LOVES to use this sign when he is hungry and mama LOVES that she can get him to a high chair stat without having to figure out why he is upset), milk (new today!), more, all done (which is followed by him trying to push the tray away), listen (cups his hand around his ear--new this week), bird, bye bye also waves for hey, fan, hat (this is precious because he will point out when someone is wearing a hat...he even did the sign when he saw little girls with bows in their hair), flower, ball, fish, plane, one.
Words- I can tell Henry is staring to try to say a lot more words by mimicking us. But right now he just has a few: dada, mama (still rarely says it), baby, duck, bird, bye.
Sounds- Oh how I love the sounds this little guy makes. He is such a boy. I'm amazed by the "quality" of his sounds already :). Makes sounds for: truck, sheep (baaaa), cow (moooooo), helicopter, airplane, dog.
Favorite books- Henry got a lot of new books this past month for his birthday, and he is in love with them all. His favorite book ever though is still his baby book. He says "ba" (for baby) when I pick it up, and he can anticipate what is coming next in the book because we have read it so much.
Breastfeeding- We made it to our goal!! I'm not really in a hurry to wean, but we probably will soon. I'm torn because I enjoy breastfeeding and Henry does as well, but he is getting to the stage where he is more aggressive and distracted which can be difficult at times. But then there are the feedings where he is being so calm and sweet that just make me want to go longer. Also, Henry is reacting to whole milk with a rash and diarrhea so we will have to see what his ped says about other alternatives tomorrow. I'm concerned about lack of fat content in rice or almond milk and soy is NOT an option for us because of recent studies showing boys drinking soy milk/formula had a much higher level of estrogen in their blood (we will pass on that one...).
Sleep- Sleep is so much better this month! Sleeping about 11 hours at night...yippee! He is also taking a GREAT morning nap. But...there is always a but when henry and sleep are in the same sentence ;)....he is fighting his afternoon nap. Looks like we are headed to one nap a day. Needing advice on this: I'm wanting to just quit the morning nap cold turkey instead of trying to inch it back little by little. When would be an approx good time to start the nap for a beginner? 11ish? Am I crazy for doing it this way? How did you take your toddlers/babies to one nap?
I have a lot more to posts to post including a letter to henry on his first birthday, birthday party post, and a look back at our first year of parenting. But now for the pics...having a hard time picking just a few because I love so many from this month!
Dressing up like a lil' cow for chickfila day
Family trip to the natural science museum
Checking out the bear at the museum
Went to an extra fun splash park...he loved it
so cute in a hat!
I love bananas and walmart
Eating lunch out with his friend Micah
Holding up our "one" for one year old before his family bday party in AL
Stopped to visit and eat great seafood on the coast with Nana on the way home
Happy!
Still can't get enough of him one year later...
and neither can daddy :)--he is asleep in this photo :)
How is my baby turning one on Saturday??!! I just can't believe it. Hoping to have a one year post (I can't even hardly type the words without crying) up by Saturday so stay tuned...
Party planning for Henry's first birthday is officially underway! I'm now staring at way too many rubber duckies and ribbon and decor in my office. I really wasn't going to go overboard with the first birthday, but I guess I can't help myself. I'm so emotional/sentimental about making it to this milestone. My baby is growing up. It is so fun and sweet and sad all at the same time! Can't wait to share pics of the bday party (which I just realized is only TEN days away!!).
I'm about to ovulate. Got a positive opk yesterday, and Shaun and I got together this morning. Still holding out hope for a "surprise" pregnancy but planning on going back to the RE in the near future.
Just accomplished observing a 12 hr lamaze childbirth education class for my doula training. Yes you read that right...I'm going to be a doula! For those of you who don't know, a doula is a trained labor support person who stays with the mom from (at least) active labor through the first latch with breastfeeding. This really deserves its own post, but I'm very excited about becoming a doula!
Henry just woke up from his morning nap so I have to go, but he is changing so much right now and acting more and more like a little pre-toddler. He loves to push the garage door button to open it for his daddy in the morning, and he gave Shaun the most precious are-you-proud-of-me look this morning when he pushed it!! It was sooooo cute :).
This is my last month update before Henry turns one...how is that possible??!! I have been a very bad blogger this month as I just realized that my last post was Henry's 10 month update. We have been super busy this past month with lots of fun summer activities, all three of us getting sick for a week (boo!), and getting to travel to Bham to spend time with our nephews and to welcome their little brother into the world. I know it took 11 months lol, but I really feel like Shaun and I have completely transitioned to parenthood and marriage with baby. Shaun is an incredible daddy (as he has always been from day one!), and I can tell that he is loving the stage that Henry is in now. He takes Henry on Saturday mornings for a little daddy/son time, and Shaun comes back talking about how much fun they had. It is so cute ;).
Now for the always ridiculously long update!
Stats:
Weight- Still hanging on to the 20 lb range...he eats like a cow, but he isn't gaining much
Height--??
Size 4 diapers
12 to 18 mo clothes
Milestones:
Standing alone/getting to standing without holding on to anything--He just started doing this in the last week/few days! Henry has been pretty cautious to let go even though he can definitely do it! This makes me think that he might be a little bit of a late walker, which I'm completely okay with since he is doing great with his other milestones.
Baby Signs--Henry added "bath" this month, but he will only do it when he sees a baby in a bath tub in one of the books we are reading. He has made the sign for "more" several times now, but he doesn't do it consistently. He is also pointing out birds and trying to make a sign but not really making the sign yet. "Fan" and "All Done" are still his two favorite signs, and he also likes to wave bye bye a lot if the mood strikes him. Dada took him to Lowe's and showed him the fans, and Shaun reported back that he LOVED it.
Words- Dada is still his favorite word, but he is added a few more! He won't say mama that much right now if at all, but I'm sure he will start saying it again soon. He is saying "duck" a lot more, and he has said "bye bye" and "baby" (but he doesn't say those on a regular basis).
Animal sounds- Henry is really interested in listening to sounds this month so we have started teaching him a lot more animal sounds. He gets so excited when he hears the birds outside! The only sounds he can make so far is moooo for cow and baba for sheep. He rarely will make the sheep sound, but he will make the mooo sound if we make it first.
Acting like a big boy- He is starting to help a little with getting dressed by pushing out his arms. Henry likes to push the garage door button to close it with one finger. Starting to point to objects to let us know that he saw it. Turning off lights. And understanding so much of what we say!
Favorite books- Henry is still in love with books! I think his favorite this month would definitely be any books with animals. I can tell he really enjoys when I make the sounds or tickle the dog's belly.
Breastfeeding- Still going well although I'm starting to feel like I will be ready to wean in a month. I know it will be sad, but it will also be good to have more freedom. But I will be really happy to make it to our goal!
Sleep- Sleep training continues after a little setback from traveling and getting sick! Henry is improving with going down for his naps and nighttime sleep so I'm happy! I've really finally realized that Henry is a sensitive baby, and he can NOT go down to sleep if he is overtired. I'm basically having to stay home with him until after his afternoon nap to make sure that he doesn't get overstimulated. I have finally accepted that this is just how he needs it for now. I'm still making an exception for one or two times a week so that we can have some social time with friends.
This is such a sweet age. I think I might say that every month, but it is so true!!
Now for some pics!
Playing with cousins in bham!
My fake "cheese" grin...love it!
Hanging out like a big boy with his cousins waiting for John Paul to arrive!
In love with the dog in Old Navy
He ended up pushing his stroller around by himself by the end of the night!!
Love this picture! Henry on daddy's shoulders watching the hot air balloons takeoff
