Back open for Business!

Hi there...in case you've forgotten, this is me:

From one working mother to another, or from one working mother to the stay-at-home mother (which believe me, is also WORK!), I welcome you to my new phase in blogging. I re-vamped this blog and its design for several reasons:

1.       Keep an online journal of what’s going on in my family’s life. Things are so hectic that baby books don’t get completed, photos don’t get printed often enough, and the (several) journals that I’ve purchased or received as gifts remain empty. In the immortal words of Sweet Brown … “Ain’t nobody got time for that!”  

2.   Enable my relatives that I don’t see often to stay posted on the life of my ever-growing baby boy, Conrad (C-Rad!) in an easier-to-read forum for family and friends

3.       Most important of all, to connect with other working moms…because no joke…this stuff is HARD! The biggest pet peeve of my pregnancy is that NO ONE TOLD ME IT WOULD BE THIS DIFFICULT!!!! Being a mother and on top of that a working-out-of-the-house mother is just plain ridiculously tough. More on this later.

I will warn you that there will be LOTS of pictures of my C-Rad, lots of discussions (aka my opinions) about life as a working mother, probably lots of complaining and griping (hey, that’s what a journal’s for!), and lots of other junk thrown in between. Sometimes I may blog about recipes, marriage, products, tips and tricks that I’ve found useful and I encourage the sharing of anything that helps make our lives as Jill-of-All-Trades easier. I tend to wander towards the square thing called my soap box and if you don’t agree with what I’m saying, that’s fine. All opinions are welcome…if they are the same as mine. Just kidding; I welcome open constructive discussion (read: no personal attacks, rudeness, meanness) for the purpose of enlightenment and thinking outside the box (read: my soapbox).

For those interested, the title of my blog was an idea that my husband, Sean, came up with. For me, due to the type A part of my personality (because I believe that everyone has both types in them), I try to run my life, our family’s life, in the most organized ways possible. We’re talking lists, budgets, calendars, constant emailing back and forth about the baby, house, schedules, chores, etc. Essentially, run like a business. This is probably where you’ll stop reading and think “ok, crazy controlling lady”. But really, I’m not an insane person here, it’s just how my mind functions best. Sean is the total opposite so this can create lots of arguments strife but we push through it. Opposites attract, right?

So welcome back to my own little corner of the blogosphere and happy reading. And don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Attempting to keep it together 24/7,

Elizabeth

Happy 4...and 5 months Conrad!

Yes, I have a lot of ground to cover here. This little one is not so little anymore! The past three months have been absolutely amazing as far as Conrad’s growth and development. We’ve seen him turn from a screaming, GERD-hurting, ear-infection burning, difficult to feed, no-sleeping baby (albeit still very cute) to a rolling around, sitting up, GERD almost gone, HUNGRY, laughing and interacting baby. THANK THE LORD. Those first three to four months were ROUGH. It took us a while to find the right formula, get on the right medications for his GERD, and a couple trips to the pediatrician for ear infections for us to finally have a happy, content baby. However, despite all the difficulties (and post-partum depression), I am SO happy to be Conrad’s mom and I am thankful every day for being chosen to be his mom. When times got hard, I kept reminding myself of something my mom used to say: “God doesn’t give you anything He think you can’t handle.” And I totally believe it – God gave us Conrad because He knew I would be patient and able to come out on the other side without being totally defeated. It also forced Sean and me to work as a team and as a result, bring us closer together – which we absolutely needed in our marriage.

Dear Conrad,

Mom and Dad can’t BELIEVE how much you’ve grown and how fast time flies. In a week and a half you’ll be 6 months old. We remember back to when you were a newborn and constantly crying, thinking, “when will this phase end??” And while I’m glad for your sake and ours that you are now a happy healthy baby, I am also sad that time has passed so quickly. You can now sit up on your own and have no need for the baby Bumbo seat (plus your legs are too fat!). You can now eat bananas, apples, green beans, and rice cereal – and you love it all. A LOT. I’ve never seen such a hungry baby!!

You have been rolling from your back to tummy for a while which makes falling asleep in your crib much easier at night – you just roll to your belly and fall right asleep. You’re just now learning to roll from your belly to your back and it’s so neat to see you try – you are so strong! And you love your bouncy seat that Grandma and Grandpa gave you – you’re legs are so big that you love trying to stand up on your own.

And you’ve found your voice! You love to talk and scream and LAUGH. Your little laugh, especially when it’s a big laugh-out-loud giggle is the most wonderful noise Mom and Dad have heard. And we love your little dimple in your left cheek when you smile.

We hope you continue to grow and thrive and get even happier day by day…and eventually sleep through the night.

Love you to the moon and back,

Mommy and Daddy

What not to say to a new mom:

Just like I wrote about in this post for pregnant ladies, there are several things you should not say to a new mom. In fact, I would highly recommend that if you have to stick to either that list of "no-no's" or this one, this one is the one to remember. I mean, come on: a majorly sleep-deprived woman who has not had time to eat, shower, or pee. On top of that,she's covered in spit up, still trying to lose that last 10 lbs, and is holding a screaming baby. Do you really want to test her?

Sorted in no particular order by category, the people that really irk a new mom:

1. Patronizer (is that a word? I'm making it a word). Again, same as with the pregnant lady: "Just you wait" or "You'll see". I'm sorry, but can you sound more patronizing? I totally get that your child's teething, first ear infection, etc. are horrible and their screaming is maddening, but I think I somewhat understand how it feels to have a screaming baby. I dealt with that for 15+ hours in a day for the first 6 weeks of Conrad's life. Please don't make it sound like I haven't got a clue.

2. Question One-Upper/passive competitor: Conrad really hasn't hit any major milestones yet so I myself haven't been privy to these. However, I've often heard moms ask other moms questions in what seems to be a way to then one up them. To me, this is worse than someone who is outright competitive (although those people are obnoxious as well).

Example:

           Mom A:  "Is Jack walking yet?" When Jack is clearly only crawling at this time.

           Mom B:  "No, but he's getting close"

           Mom A:  "Oh really? Well Aiden walked at 9 months!"

Seriously? That's nice, but can you be more obvious? It's so surprising how often I've heard this. It's not a competition folks!!! Just wait until little Jack can say his ABC's before your Aiden, then you'll be sorry you asked.

3. The Judger: About anything: "You're not breastfeeding??"I did for the first 8 weeks but due to Conrad's GERD I began pumping instead. "You didn't want to have him sleep in your bedroom, weren't you worried?" I chose NOT to have Conrad sleep with us at all. It was too much to jump out of bed at every movement and chirp. Natural childbirth vs. childbirth with medication (ie. epidural) Don't get me started on this - yes, I got an epidural after the first four hours and there's no way in hell I would have gone a full 18 hours in that kind of pain. I had nothing to prove to anyone.

4. The un-asked-for advice giver: plain and simple: if I didn't ask for it, I don't want it. My kid is not yours, all my experiences will be different from yours. I will ask if I need anything.

Basically, just smile, ask how old the baby is, and tell me he's cute. And if I call you crying and complaining that my child has not stopped screaming for three days straight, don't say "Just you wait until..." or "Really? I don't remember my kid doing that" Just say "you're doing a great job and you are a wonderful mother". That's all you need to do for now...until we get pregnant again. 

Attempting to keep it together 24/7,

Elizabeth

Conrad is 3 Months!

I can't believe it but today is Conrad's 3 month birthday! This time has flown by and I'm so sad to go back to work next week. Just when he's getting a personality, smiling, laughing, and responding, I have to leave him. I'm definitely NOT looking forward to it.

Dear Conrad,

You continue to amaze Mommy and Daddy every day! The amount that you've grown not only physically but developmentally is simply breathtaking. Every day brings something new. We love your laugh, smile, and baby talk! You are quite the little man and can hold yourself up so well. You still love your vibrating seat and play mat. The swing is good for napping as well and we recently introduced you to your big boy Bumbo seat!

Unfortunately you were diagnosed with GERD...finally! Your Mom and Dad kept insisting to the pediatricians that this was the reason for your feeding issues, your constant crankiness, continual heavy spit-up, arched-back screaming, and tongue depression. These symptoms were NOT caused by improper breast feeding, colic, or a faulty frenulum (which, BTW, they insisted we have snipped!). It wasn't until we saw the nurse practitioner that she really took a look at him and LISTENED to us that she prescribed some acid reflux medication. This has definitely helped with your pain and discomfort. You now eat up to 6 oz in a feeding and weigh over 13 pounds! You are in the 50-75th percentile for your size. Mommy and Daddy's growing boy!

I'm so sad to leave you next week to go back to work as you are changing every day before our eyes. I love you to the moon and back and am so thankful you are mine. I am so excited to see what the next three months will bring! We love you!!

Mommy and Daddy

Conrad's First Christmas in Pictures

Attempting to keep it together 24/7,

Elizabeth

7 and 8 Week Catch Up!

This Mom has been negligent in posting Conrad's 7 and 8 week pictures as we've been very very busy! For Thanksgiving, we were away at both grandparent's homes from that Wednesday through Sunday and then this past weekend was Sean's 30th birthday so I was busy planning that party.

So here's Conrad's 7 and 8 week old pictures:

But in even bigger news, last week was his 2 month birthday - this maternity leave is flying by WAY TOO FAST!

Attempting to keep it together 24/7,

Elizabeth

Thankful Thursdays

So, you may have guessed it, but this Thursday I'm thankful for this guy:

Despite the lack of sleep, showers, and adult interaction on a daily basis, I can't imagine my life without Mr. Conrad Cayce. When he smiles like this it makes my heart swell so big! I am so thankful for a relatively easy pregnancy, and despite its complications, a safe birth. I'm thankful for the doctors and nurses that brought him into the world and our family that supports us every day.

We love you Conrad! And because I couldn't resist, here's a couple more:

Attempting to keep it together 24/7,

Elizabeth