One thing I've learned since Avery was born is that kids go through some crazy cycles.
Since she was 10 months old, she's been sleeping really well at night-12 hours straight usually without waking...and if she does wake, she puts herself back to sleep. She recently dropped down to 1 nap a day and depending on the day, it'll be short (1-1.5 hours) or long (2+ hours). This week we had an "off" sleep week. Wednesday was her surgery and that night she was up for 2 hours in the middle of the night then ended up sleeping in later than normal. Thursday night she did the same. Friday night she woke up twice overnight but put herself back to sleep like usual. Yesterday she took a later nap than normal (she went down around 2 instead of 1230ish) and slept for 3 hours! She didn't wake up until around 5pm so you can imagine that when bedtime came at 730, she had no interest in sleeping. She was up until 10pm then was up bright and early at 7am today! Today's nap stunk-only an hour long so by bedtime she was exhausted. It still took her awhile to fall asleep tonight, but hopefully she stays asleep all night and catches up.
Then there's the eating. Man, a few weeks ago she was a power eater! She would have several courses for each meal and would just inhale her food. She loves fruits and vegetables and we could count on her eating those for sure. This past week, she's been in a non-eating mode. She'll have 1-2 bites of something then it gets thrown on the floor. Anything we give her it's the same thing...I don't know if her rate of growth is slowing or what, but meal time has not been fun this week-she just doesn't want to eat and it gets frustrating for us!
Hopefully these things are just phases she's going through...another crazy cycle of Avery!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
To Build...or Not To Build...
...that is the question!
We are definitely thinking of moving within the next year or so. Ideally, it'll be next spring/summer.
Why?
Well...we live in the city which would eventually mean city schools for Avery (and other children we may have). We also don't have a garage which really sucks in the winter. And it also means we have very little storage for outdoor things. Avery's strollers are stored in our car trunks right now. And when she gets a bike? Yeah, no clue where that would go! And lastly, we have 3 bedrooms. We could obviously fit another kid in our house if we had to, but it would be tight. Our third bedroom is set up for visitors right now-our old bed is set up in there for when my Mom stays, etc. It's just nice to have an extra room that you can put stuff in.
So...we decided it was time to start looking. I've always wanted to build a house-I just think it would be awesome. Gabe wasn't too hot on the idea at all for some reason-I think he had a feeling we couldn't afford it.
But then his mind changed when we went to the home show in Buffalo. The houses (for once) were affordable and they were very nice. I think he could actually see us living in one of those homes which usually doesn't happen at those home shows. Typically you leave depressed because the houses are so over the top that you could never think of owning it.
So after the home show, Gabe really got into the idea of building. We went to the Rochester home show as well and from that we got a pretty good list of builders in the area. Over the past month or so, we met with 3 different builders in the area.
It's sort of a hard process because we have never done this before so we have no clue about anything that's involved in it. We're learning as we go-some things good, some things not so good. I think the thing that will hold us back is the deposit issue. Some builders require an insane deposit before they'll even break ground on your new house. The only way we could afford that deposit would be to sell our house first. The problem? You'd be homeless until your new house is built, which could be up to 5months! So basically you'd have to move twice and find interim housing....can we say PAIN IN THE ASS?! So...right now we're trying to find someone who will take less of a deposit to break ground. Ideally we would like to sell our house while the new one is being built and maybe rent our house back for a month or so until the new house is done. That's the plan at least!
We've been busy going through floor plans and picking out things we like and don't like. We're hoping to meet with a builder next week to try and price things out to see if this is really doable for us.
I'll keep you posted on things and will reveal more as we go...I'm just crossing my fingers (and toes) that this works out for us!
We are definitely thinking of moving within the next year or so. Ideally, it'll be next spring/summer.
Why?
Well...we live in the city which would eventually mean city schools for Avery (and other children we may have). We also don't have a garage which really sucks in the winter. And it also means we have very little storage for outdoor things. Avery's strollers are stored in our car trunks right now. And when she gets a bike? Yeah, no clue where that would go! And lastly, we have 3 bedrooms. We could obviously fit another kid in our house if we had to, but it would be tight. Our third bedroom is set up for visitors right now-our old bed is set up in there for when my Mom stays, etc. It's just nice to have an extra room that you can put stuff in.
So...we decided it was time to start looking. I've always wanted to build a house-I just think it would be awesome. Gabe wasn't too hot on the idea at all for some reason-I think he had a feeling we couldn't afford it.
But then his mind changed when we went to the home show in Buffalo. The houses (for once) were affordable and they were very nice. I think he could actually see us living in one of those homes which usually doesn't happen at those home shows. Typically you leave depressed because the houses are so over the top that you could never think of owning it.
So after the home show, Gabe really got into the idea of building. We went to the Rochester home show as well and from that we got a pretty good list of builders in the area. Over the past month or so, we met with 3 different builders in the area.
It's sort of a hard process because we have never done this before so we have no clue about anything that's involved in it. We're learning as we go-some things good, some things not so good. I think the thing that will hold us back is the deposit issue. Some builders require an insane deposit before they'll even break ground on your new house. The only way we could afford that deposit would be to sell our house first. The problem? You'd be homeless until your new house is built, which could be up to 5months! So basically you'd have to move twice and find interim housing....can we say PAIN IN THE ASS?! So...right now we're trying to find someone who will take less of a deposit to break ground. Ideally we would like to sell our house while the new one is being built and maybe rent our house back for a month or so until the new house is done. That's the plan at least!
We've been busy going through floor plans and picking out things we like and don't like. We're hoping to meet with a builder next week to try and price things out to see if this is really doable for us.
I'll keep you posted on things and will reveal more as we go...I'm just crossing my fingers (and toes) that this works out for us!
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Surgery Day
We got the call yesterday that Avery's arrival time for surgery was at 10am with surgery scheduled at 11am. I was hoping it would be earlier, but oh well. They do the youngest kids first and their first one was at 7am so there must have been a few kids younger than her there today. She was to have no food after midnight, no milk after 4am and no liquids after 8am.
Of course she slept until about 7:50 so we didn't give her anything when she woke up. We knew it was going to be hard not giving her anything this morning but luckily she's one of those kids that doesn't beg to eat when she wakes up. Around 9am she started asking for a drink and we had to keep distracting her. That was a long 45min before we left the house because she kept asking and we had to tell her "not now-later." She probably was wondering why we were ignoring her request!
Here she is walking around in her Pjs before we left:
Jacket on, ready to leave!
We got there just before 10am and I had to sign a few papers, show them my ID, and pay the copay. We were told they'd be with us shortly.
Here she is in the waiting room:
By 10:15 or so we were taken upstairs to the pre-op room. As soon as we got up there, they took us to a closet full of toys and said Avery could choose one to have. I had no idea what to pick for her, but chose a doll they had that had animals all over her outfit. That was a nice gesture that they give the kids a toy!
(and as of now, she hates the doll-I think it reminds her of being there!)
They asked us a few health questions and Avery had to be weighed and have her temperature taken (which she cried through the entire thing!). We took her out of her clothes and put her in a hospital gown. The nurse told us Avery would be inconsolable when she woke up from anesthesia and that it was completely normal. They warned us that nothing would soothe her and she might get sick as well. The doctor came by and reviewed the procedure with us and had us sign consent forms. Then the anesthesiologist came by and reviewed his role and had us sign consent for that as well. He said she would be "asleep" roughly 5mins for the procedure. After some tearful hugs, the anesthesiologist took her and carried her down the hallway.
I was surprised that she didn't scream her head off. She whimpered a bit, but it went a lot easier than I expected. We were told it would be about a half hour to 45mins until we saw her again. Time check-10:30am
We went back downstairs to the waiting area. My Mom and I got a cup of coffee and as soon as we sat down, our name was called. They told us to go back upstairs. Time check-10:35am (not joking!)
I have to admit I was a tad worried-they couldn't be done already could they? We were told it would be 30-45mins until we saw her and it was only 5mins!
We were told to sit in a room and the doctor would be in any minute. Sure enough, he came in and said she was finished and did great! He reviewed a few things-she might have a bloody nose, blood tinged tears, be tired/cranky. He went over her eye drops and to have her try not to rub her eye. After about 5mins of talking with him, he left and said they would come to get us momentarily to see her.
Within 2mins or so, a nurse came in and said we could see her. We walked down a long hallway and I didn't hear anything-I was waiting to hear her little scream down the hall! Once we got right outside, I could hear her crying.
Of course she slept until about 7:50 so we didn't give her anything when she woke up. We knew it was going to be hard not giving her anything this morning but luckily she's one of those kids that doesn't beg to eat when she wakes up. Around 9am she started asking for a drink and we had to keep distracting her. That was a long 45min before we left the house because she kept asking and we had to tell her "not now-later." She probably was wondering why we were ignoring her request!
Here she is walking around in her Pjs before we left:
Jacket on, ready to leave!
We got there just before 10am and I had to sign a few papers, show them my ID, and pay the copay. We were told they'd be with us shortly.
Here she is in the waiting room:
By 10:15 or so we were taken upstairs to the pre-op room. As soon as we got up there, they took us to a closet full of toys and said Avery could choose one to have. I had no idea what to pick for her, but chose a doll they had that had animals all over her outfit. That was a nice gesture that they give the kids a toy!
(and as of now, she hates the doll-I think it reminds her of being there!)
They asked us a few health questions and Avery had to be weighed and have her temperature taken (which she cried through the entire thing!). We took her out of her clothes and put her in a hospital gown. The nurse told us Avery would be inconsolable when she woke up from anesthesia and that it was completely normal. They warned us that nothing would soothe her and she might get sick as well. The doctor came by and reviewed the procedure with us and had us sign consent forms. Then the anesthesiologist came by and reviewed his role and had us sign consent for that as well. He said she would be "asleep" roughly 5mins for the procedure. After some tearful hugs, the anesthesiologist took her and carried her down the hallway.
I was surprised that she didn't scream her head off. She whimpered a bit, but it went a lot easier than I expected. We were told it would be about a half hour to 45mins until we saw her again. Time check-10:30am
We went back downstairs to the waiting area. My Mom and I got a cup of coffee and as soon as we sat down, our name was called. They told us to go back upstairs. Time check-10:35am (not joking!)
I have to admit I was a tad worried-they couldn't be done already could they? We were told it would be 30-45mins until we saw her and it was only 5mins!
We were told to sit in a room and the doctor would be in any minute. Sure enough, he came in and said she was finished and did great! He reviewed a few things-she might have a bloody nose, blood tinged tears, be tired/cranky. He went over her eye drops and to have her try not to rub her eye. After about 5mins of talking with him, he left and said they would come to get us momentarily to see her.
Within 2mins or so, a nurse came in and said we could see her. We walked down a long hallway and I didn't hear anything-I was waiting to hear her little scream down the hall! Once we got right outside, I could hear her crying.
We walked in and a nurse had her wrapped in a blanket and she didn't look like herself at all-you could tell she was really out of it. She was crying on and off and shaky and almost gasping for breath from crying. Her face looked puffy to me-she just didn't look normal to me. Gabe took her first and held her and then she reached out to me. I sat in the rocking chair and held her-just hugging her and holding back the tears. I felt so helpless like there was nothing I could do for her. She was just in her diaper and all wrapped up in a blanket-we decided to keep her that way for the ride home to make it easier. They let us leave whenever we felt comfortable doing so. We felt like she just wanted out of there and to get home as soon as we could.
She dozed off briefly on the way home and once we got home, we gave her some water and some cheerios.
She was still pretty out of it and just relaxed, sitting in our laps. After awhile we got her in a comfy outfit. She went down for a nap around 1 and slept until 315.
She dozed off briefly on the way home and once we got home, we gave her some water and some cheerios.
She was still pretty out of it and just relaxed, sitting in our laps. After awhile we got her in a comfy outfit. She went down for a nap around 1 and slept until 315.
Once she got up, she was really hungry-the child ate nonstop until she went to bed!
She walked around and played and was acting pretty normal until around 630-then she got really whiny for some reason. We decided to take her up to bed early (7pm) and sure enough, she was sound asleep by 720. I think the day was rough for her and tired her out. Hopefully in the morning she'll be back to her usual self!
I'm just relieved this whole thing is over-I hope it ends up being successful so we don't have to repeat this again!
She walked around and played and was acting pretty normal until around 630-then she got really whiny for some reason. We decided to take her up to bed early (7pm) and sure enough, she was sound asleep by 720. I think the day was rough for her and tired her out. Hopefully in the morning she'll be back to her usual self!
I'm just relieved this whole thing is over-I hope it ends up being successful so we don't have to repeat this again!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Tomorrow is the Big Day
Tomorrow Avery goes in for her eye surgery.
If you haven't followed recently you might want to read this first to get yourself up to speed.
I'm a little anxious about it still and will be until it's over. I think the hardest part will be handing her over to someone and having them just walk away with her and there will be nothing I can do to comfort her. It'll be a very helpless feeling. And I hate that she'll be woken up with no one there she knows either. What a scary feeling for her!
I'm just relieved that she's young enough that she won't remember any of it.
Please say some extra prayers that all goes well and the surgery is successful.
If you haven't followed recently you might want to read this first to get yourself up to speed.
I'm a little anxious about it still and will be until it's over. I think the hardest part will be handing her over to someone and having them just walk away with her and there will be nothing I can do to comfort her. It'll be a very helpless feeling. And I hate that she'll be woken up with no one there she knows either. What a scary feeling for her!
I'm just relieved that she's young enough that she won't remember any of it.
Please say some extra prayers that all goes well and the surgery is successful.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Labor Day Weekend
Gotta love long weekends!
An extra day off of work, another day to sleep in (what's that?), more time to relax and be with family....
Saturday Gabe went running then I went to the gym. We were going to try to go to a hot air balloon festival with my Mom, but it got cancelled due to the weather. It was very cool out and windy with on and off rain. So, instead we just did a run to Sam's Club then we went to Bill Gray's for dinner. We haven't been there in a long time and figured it was kid friendly. Since it's getting cooler out, Avery has some new outfits to wear. I have to say that on Saturday she looked so darn cute. Not that she's not super cute everyday, but Saturday she was extra cute in this outfit!
Yesterday we made a day trip to Buffalo. We haven't been since July so we were overdue for a visit. We started out at my Dad's-they made us lunch which was very good. Here's Avery and Colleen on the swing:
After that we went to my Mom's house and relaxed. Avery played outside a little bit and 0f course we had a very good dinner. Avery didn't nap much so she passed out in the car. She woke up when we were about 20min away from home and cried. Getting her to bed was a chore too-she just was overtired and cranky! I think she finally fell asleep around 930 which is very late for her.
Today we wanted to do something fun and summery since we had the day off together. We planned on going back to Seabreeze so we could take Avery in the waterpark there. Yesterday they forecasted sun and 80 degrees so it looked like a perfect day for it. Of course today when we woke up it was dark and gloomy out. We checked the weather again and it had changed to mostly cloudy with showers and a high of 77. So, we decided against Seabreezee which is a bummer. Avery is napping right now so I think when she wakes up we're going to go to Strong Museum again and then maybe out for a bite to eat. We'll see what the day brings us!
An extra day off of work, another day to sleep in (what's that?), more time to relax and be with family....
Saturday Gabe went running then I went to the gym. We were going to try to go to a hot air balloon festival with my Mom, but it got cancelled due to the weather. It was very cool out and windy with on and off rain. So, instead we just did a run to Sam's Club then we went to Bill Gray's for dinner. We haven't been there in a long time and figured it was kid friendly. Since it's getting cooler out, Avery has some new outfits to wear. I have to say that on Saturday she looked so darn cute. Not that she's not super cute everyday, but Saturday she was extra cute in this outfit!
Yesterday we made a day trip to Buffalo. We haven't been since July so we were overdue for a visit. We started out at my Dad's-they made us lunch which was very good. Here's Avery and Colleen on the swing:
After that we went to my Mom's house and relaxed. Avery played outside a little bit and 0f course we had a very good dinner. Avery didn't nap much so she passed out in the car. She woke up when we were about 20min away from home and cried. Getting her to bed was a chore too-she just was overtired and cranky! I think she finally fell asleep around 930 which is very late for her.
Today we wanted to do something fun and summery since we had the day off together. We planned on going back to Seabreeze so we could take Avery in the waterpark there. Yesterday they forecasted sun and 80 degrees so it looked like a perfect day for it. Of course today when we woke up it was dark and gloomy out. We checked the weather again and it had changed to mostly cloudy with showers and a high of 77. So, we decided against Seabreezee which is a bummer. Avery is napping right now so I think when she wakes up we're going to go to Strong Museum again and then maybe out for a bite to eat. We'll see what the day brings us!
I also have to add that the baby stage is officially over....today I packed up my breastpump and all of Avery's bottles for good. Another bittersweet moment...
Happy Labor Day!
Friday, September 3, 2010
1 in 10
Today starts a nice stretch for me.
In the next 10 days, I only work once.
My typical schedule is Mon, Tues, Thurs each week. With this being Labor Day weekend, I have Monday off-so there's my 4 day weekend.
I work on Tuesday next week.
Avery has her eye surgery on Wednesday.
It just happened that Thursday next week there are no doctors in our office so we were all able to take a vacation day if we wanted. It worked out perfectly so that I could stay home and keep an eye on Avery to make sure she is doing ok after her surgery Wednesday. The doctor said she should be fine, but we just have to watch that she doesn't rub her eyes, etc. So I took advantage and used a vacation day. Then of course it'll be the weekend again.
It's like a vacation and I only used 1 true vacation day! And the best part is that for most of it I don't have any plans. It'll be great!
In the next 10 days, I only work once.
My typical schedule is Mon, Tues, Thurs each week. With this being Labor Day weekend, I have Monday off-so there's my 4 day weekend.
I work on Tuesday next week.
Avery has her eye surgery on Wednesday.
It just happened that Thursday next week there are no doctors in our office so we were all able to take a vacation day if we wanted. It worked out perfectly so that I could stay home and keep an eye on Avery to make sure she is doing ok after her surgery Wednesday. The doctor said she should be fine, but we just have to watch that she doesn't rub her eyes, etc. So I took advantage and used a vacation day. Then of course it'll be the weekend again.
It's like a vacation and I only used 1 true vacation day! And the best part is that for most of it I don't have any plans. It'll be great!
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Bittersweet
Last night and tonight have been the start of something bittersweet....
If all goes according to plan, last night was my last time nursing Avery at bedtime (or anytime for that matter!).
I just decided it was time....
She has been down to nursing only once a day for at least a month now. I know she's not getting much anymore because I don't really hear her swallowing much. I have a feeling she wants it more out of habit and routine and to help her fall asleep.
I figured it would be easier to break it now then to wait until she's ready-heck, that could be months from now! And I thought the older she got, the harder it might be to break her of it.
So last night was it. Why last night? Well, I wanted to have a few days after at home in case I get engorged or uncomfortable at all. I think the chances of that are slim, but didn't want to take a risk. I had to work today, but am off the next four days for the long Labor day weekend so I thought it would be a good time.
It's been emotional though I will say. Last night while she nursed I tried to drink up every last second of it. I didn't rush her or anything and I just savored the time with her. I shed a few tears (and am shedding some now) while looking at that sweet face and thinking of our journey.
I went into breastfeeding very open-minded. I knew I wanted to try it, but if it didn't work out for us, it wouldn't have been the end of the world. It's probably one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. It's stressful, time consuming, painful, and exhausting. But the rewards are countless. No matter how hard it was, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I honestly didn't think I would be so emotional about it ending, but I am.
I'm going to miss my bonding time with her-but I keep telling myself I can still bond with her, it'll just be in different ways. Plus, now Gabe can look forward to doing bedtime with her as well.
Tonight was the first night of not nursing her. I wasn't sure how it would go for either of us. We gave her a bath first, then Gabe got her dressed and ready for bed. I went in and we all read a story together. Once it was done, she started signing milk and looking at me. I picked her up and gave her some hugs and a kiss and Gabe told her he was going to give her milk tonight. She went back to him and drank out of her sippy cup (which is also new-she usually does a bottle if not nursing). He rocked and sang with her then put her to bed. About 10minutes later, she was sound asleep. It went so much easier than I anticipated. And I held up ok until I started writing this. I just hope it continues to go this smoothly!
I am finally going to have my body back....it's been almost 2 years since my body has been my own.
It will be mine.
And I will feel free.
And I'm proud that I nursed my baby for 14 months.
If all goes according to plan, last night was my last time nursing Avery at bedtime (or anytime for that matter!).
I just decided it was time....
She has been down to nursing only once a day for at least a month now. I know she's not getting much anymore because I don't really hear her swallowing much. I have a feeling she wants it more out of habit and routine and to help her fall asleep.
I figured it would be easier to break it now then to wait until she's ready-heck, that could be months from now! And I thought the older she got, the harder it might be to break her of it.
So last night was it. Why last night? Well, I wanted to have a few days after at home in case I get engorged or uncomfortable at all. I think the chances of that are slim, but didn't want to take a risk. I had to work today, but am off the next four days for the long Labor day weekend so I thought it would be a good time.
It's been emotional though I will say. Last night while she nursed I tried to drink up every last second of it. I didn't rush her or anything and I just savored the time with her. I shed a few tears (and am shedding some now) while looking at that sweet face and thinking of our journey.
I went into breastfeeding very open-minded. I knew I wanted to try it, but if it didn't work out for us, it wouldn't have been the end of the world. It's probably one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. It's stressful, time consuming, painful, and exhausting. But the rewards are countless. No matter how hard it was, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I honestly didn't think I would be so emotional about it ending, but I am.
I'm going to miss my bonding time with her-but I keep telling myself I can still bond with her, it'll just be in different ways. Plus, now Gabe can look forward to doing bedtime with her as well.
Tonight was the first night of not nursing her. I wasn't sure how it would go for either of us. We gave her a bath first, then Gabe got her dressed and ready for bed. I went in and we all read a story together. Once it was done, she started signing milk and looking at me. I picked her up and gave her some hugs and a kiss and Gabe told her he was going to give her milk tonight. She went back to him and drank out of her sippy cup (which is also new-she usually does a bottle if not nursing). He rocked and sang with her then put her to bed. About 10minutes later, she was sound asleep. It went so much easier than I anticipated. And I held up ok until I started writing this. I just hope it continues to go this smoothly!
I am finally going to have my body back....it's been almost 2 years since my body has been my own.
It will be mine.
And I will feel free.
And I'm proud that I nursed my baby for 14 months.
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