It's Baby Making Time...Baby Food Time That Is!!

About 2 weeks ago I started Boo Boo with rice cereal. He didn't care for it at all. So I moved on to oatmeal, after a couple days of it and a break from it, he now loves it! I can't get that spoon to his mouth fast enough! So flipping cute!

Anyways, so today I decided it was time to move forward with solids. I knew that I wanted to make his food. Seeing the prices of baby food helped also! I think homemade baby food is more tasty as well! I am not much for cooking or anything, so I do not know where this excitement for making baby food came from, but I am happy to have fun with it so far!

I decided to start with carrots. So I got a bag with 6 full size carrots for under a dollar. That whole bag made a full tray of food! So much cheaper! Anyways I did it in two batches. I first steamed the carrots after I chopped them. After about 15 minutes of steaming I put them in the blender and puree them. I also added some water from the pan to it as well to help. I think it turned out great! I was so proud of myself! I then put it in an ice cube tray and into the freezer.

So it was dinner time and it was time for Boo Boo to try it! I mixed about an oz (one ice cube worth) of warmed up carrots with 2 tablespoons of oatmeal. I figured it would be better to mix them so that it wasn't such a shock and for him to get use to it more easily.

The first bite Boo Boo gave me a funny look, but after that he ate it like a pro! So happy! Tomorrow he will get just oatmeal in the morning and just carrots at night. If he still needs some oatmeal in it I will do so, but I would love for him to eat it by itself. We will see I guess.

I know I am gonna do green beans next, then more veggies and lastly do fruits. See how it goes. It's all for practice now anyways.

Happy baby food making ;p

Month 5: Goals and Accomplishments for Boo Boo

Today Boo Boo turned 5 months old! Getting so big so fast! My friend just had her second child this week, and going to visit the adorable tiny newborn really opened my eyes how fast these babies do indeed grow!

What has Boo Boo accomplished in month 4?

• He starts to grab at a toy if you put it in front of him.  (I hold a toy out for him throughout his awake play times and take his hand to show his how to grab. I also take his hands and let him feel things so that he learns through touch.)   **Goal of mine**
• He recognizes the word "bottle" or "ba ba", also "nap time" or "ni ni". I think he recognizes "mama" but I am not 100% sure on this. (I say the words as I am doing things. I talk to him all day whenever he is awake.)   **Not a goal of mine**
• He sits really good in his bumbo chair and I would say has almost complete head control as I started to do the hip hold! (he loves it by the way).......(I would put him in his bumbo a couple minutes until his head got tired. I would also sit him up on the couch and on my lap.)   **Goal of mine**
• Sits good with support and loves to stand (with support of course)...........(I worked daily on him and always changed his positions so he got use to different things. I would go from standing for a minute to sitting with a toy, to laying on back for kicking, etc. He gets better every day.)   **Goal of mine**
• doing so much better with tummy time!! Holding that head up good and can roll from tummy to back. (I slowly built up his time on his tummy and he cried about it less and less. I now can get a decent tummy time before he starts to cry. I try to put him on his tummy at least twice a day or more.)   **Goal of mine**
• Bringing his legs up and trying to eat his feet. (Doing this to help with gas, now it has become a game and I see him doing it almost everytime he lays on his back. I encourage him by playing with his feet and bringing his foot to his mouth for him to enjoy.)    **Not a goal of mine**

What I think Boo Boo can accomplish in month 5:

• Eat with a spoon and realize it is for food. (I just started with oatmeal and he is starting to get the picture of it.)
• Roll from back to tummy. (He is almost ready for the tuck and roll as I call it. He brings his legs up to his knees and goes up to his side.)
• Sits unsupported on his own. (He sits pretty good with support and can go a second here or there when you let go, but ends up face plants.)
• Grabs at a toy on his own. (He will grab it if you put it in his face and encourage it, but will just otherwise just look at it.)
• Says Da Da and Ba Ba. (He can say Mama and hi and sometimes I think he says Ni Ni when its bedtime. He's an early talker, it runs in hubbys family I guess.)
• Start learning baby sign language. (I just started it this week, and I am not into habit of it yet. Just starting out with mama, daddy, and milk for now.)
• Laugh more often. (He loves to giggle, but a great laugh is very hard to come by for Boo Boo.)
• Sleep all of the night in his crib and only waking up once. (He wakes up a couple times and he always needs that closure and comfort of mama and I have to kick hubby out of bed and make my bed safe for Boo Boo and he sleeps on my arm for half of the night.)
• Naps in the crib. (He thinks his crib is nighttime bed and will only nap on mama's lap or in the car seat.)
• Enjoy his exersaucer for more than 10 minutes. (He likes it about 10 minutes and than wants out. I would like to do dishes, etc while he plays. Even just 20 minutes would be great!)

My realistic goals for Month 5 :

• Eat with his spoon. I don't think it will take him that much longer to get the hang of it. In fact, just last night he started to open his mouth, so we already have progress. I think by month 6 he will have started some solids (besides oatmeal) and will start enjoying baby foods.
• Roll from back to tummy. He already gets up to his side. If I just keep working and encouraging him to do so, I think that within a month he can accomplish this! Than the rolling across the room can begin!
• I think that by the end of the month I can have him doing pretty good on unsupported sitting, but I will take it slow and at his pace.
• I think he will be more into his toys in a month and will at least start to grab towards them. I will continue to show him and put them within his reaches and slowly make him work towards them.
• I think he may learn to say a new word or two, I will continue to talk with him and help him form his words. If he says something, great, if not, just keep talking. No biggie. 
• I think I can do all night in the crib, even if it means no sleep for me. Even if he wakes up, I will keep putting him there and not let him cry it out either. I at least hope to have great progress in a month.

Overall, I hope Boo Boo becomes a little more independent as in wanting to try new things and learn to enjoy his toys and moving around. I hope he learns to sit on his own very soon. I hope that in Month 6 he will be sleeping great in his crib and sitting and starting to maybe army crawl as well as being able to roll both ways. I also hope he really learns to enjoy tummy time very soon and starts to want to be put on his tummy more often. I hope that he learns new words and signs and starts to go into his convertible car seat.

Month 5 here we go!!! :)

My View on Goals and Milestones...

So you have this new baby and all of a sudden you are responsible for another human being. How overwhelming!!! Taking Boo Boo home I was in tears! Half of it was being so emotionally happy to finally have my bundle of joy to enjoy, the other half was me being terrified! What in the world was I going to do with this newborn baby? Will I be able to feed him enough, will I be able to comfort him, and will I be able to take care of his every need? Most importantly: will I be good enough to make sure he grows happy, healthy, and grow up to be a responsible and smart adult? The pressure is on! And for me I felt like it started out right away! That every step and milestone was so important. Luckily, with some time I learned that it wasn't so important when Boo Boo learned how to roll and that he was already saying "hi" at 11 weeks. Man, that was too stressful anyways and boy did I NOT need that!

Everyone always tells you that babies do things at different stages, blah, blah blah. And you find yourself telling other moms that as well when they come to you with worries of their own babies milestones. But, when it comes to YOUR baby, you find yourself with worry when they don't smile at about a month, and don't roll over about 3 months, etc, etc. Yet people keep telling you that all babies are different, and yet it remains to go in one ear and out the other. Obviously YOUR baby should be doing these things and the worrying begins when other moms on facebook brag about their babies doing these things. (as they should, as I do the same ;p )

But ever since Boo Boo turned about 4 months old, I took a different spin on things and got a different way of looking at the big picture. I now look at everything in a month by month span and focus on what I want Boo Boo to hopefully achieve in that month, and if he doesn't achieve it, I add it to the next months goals.  Now obviously if months go by and something isn't being done, I need to re look at it and maybe get the doctors views. If she is okay, than I move on and keep trying.  Hopefully this works well for us and keeps my stress down a bit. I use to always get mad at myself for not getting a good amount of tummy time in the day, I felt he was so behind in all that. Now if he goes a day without I don't freak as much. He will get there on his time. He will crawl when he is ready. It is like a tape recorder in my brain that I always have to press play. Look at his goals Mama JoJo. Look at his goals!!

So yes, every month I will have a list of goals and milestones I hope Boo Boo accomplishes and what he has accomplished in the last month.  These goals may coincide with what the book tells me they should be, but overall I will base it off what I think Boo Boo can do himself. Yes, I will still be looking at facebook and babycenter communities to what other babies his age are doing because I think it is good to know the averages (great to help make reasonable goals as well) and of course I love hearing about how other babies are doing! Also, I love to see how other moms accomplish what their babies are doing and to get great advice on doing things! What a great tool the internet is for us moms! Although I may add that sometimes the internet can be a foe. It doesn't help when you have so many babies to compare to, and it makes it harder to stick with your goals and your own time line for your baby.  You just have to keep yourself in check and don't be afraid to use the valuable resources at hand and take what other babies are doing to help guide you and not to worry or stress you. (yes, easier said than done my friend, easier said than done!).  Focus on your baby and your monthly goals. That is my plan. I think it is helping me greatly so far!

Here is how I will set up my month to month goals, etc. :

• First off, I will list everything Boo Boo has accomplished in the last month and if it was on my last months goals or not. I will write how I helped him or if he did it on his own. I will write my feelings and emotions for his accomplishments. 
• Than I will write what I think he CAN accomplish in the next month and my goals to help him succeed in those. 
• After that I will write out my realistic goals I think Boo Boo will do in that month and try to keep it as reasonable as possible and my reasoning for choosing these goals.
• Lastly, I will write up a summary on how I hope the month will go and to take a quick glance on what I hope for the next month to be and what I hope his near future milestones and accomplishments are.

I will make time to do this every month. I feel this is important for me and Boo Boo. It shouldn't take too long and I can write/type while he naps or is playing with daddy, etc.

I think it will be great to look back and see what Boo Boo has done every month! It will help me understand him better and to see his strengths and weaknesses. When he gets older(probably at a year old), I will probably go to a bi-yearly goal as he really won't need it monthly. A friend of mine (Weird24Seven) gave me this great idea of yearly goals on the birthday which I think is a GREAT idea by the way! Totally doing that one with Boo Boo! 

I also hope for Boo Boo to look back one day and enjoy looking at what he did when he was a baby/toddler. My mom lost my baby book and sometimes I wish I knew what I did as a baby! Specially now being a mom for some reason I would love to compare mine with Boo Boos. Again, this falls under all babies do everything different, but come on! We all fall into this trap at certain points, I think it is programmed into us!

I will tell myself again: all babies do everything at different stages,
All babies do everything at different stages, all babies do everything at different stages,
All babies do everything at different stages, all babies do everything at different stages!!!
Maybe shouting it will work? ALL BABIES DO EVERYTHING AT DIFFERENT STAGES!!!

Nope, still wondering what other 5 month old babies are doing and why Boo Boo is or isn't doing the same... Now, if you are one of those moms who are lax about these things, good for you! I inspire to be like you! I do try, taking it a day at a time. Oh no, why isn't my Boo Boo grabbing at his toys yet? I see pictures of babies that are 3 months or 4 months playing with toys, but Boo Boo is just starting into this! Again, I need to re focus and look at my goals here! ALL BABIES DO EVERYTHING AT DIFFERENT STAGES. Grabbing is just something Boo Boo doesn't always want to do. But boy is he one observer and is so alert!! (I think finding something positive always helps reassure that Boo Boo is indeed doing great.)

One day this will stick. ;)  Hopefully my new month by month take on it will help me out. So try it if you are like me or most moms out there! Even if you only start out every couple months, or bi-yearly, or even yearly on their birthdays. Give it a try! I think that you and your child(ren) will enjoy it and grow from it!

Breastfeeding: My Personal Journey

I knew even before I got pregnant with Boo Boo that I was going to breastfeed. I also thought that I would breastfeed the whole year and even possibly beyond that. I knew it would be difficult, but I guess I really didn't know exactly how difficult it was going to be for me. Quitting before 6 months was a no-no for me, but than when the whole house gets sick and you have a 103.7 degree fever, you do things you wouldn't normally do...

Let's start at my birth of Boo Boo. I was induced at 37 weeks due to high blood pressure. After a ultrasound showing Boo Boo was breech (more diagonal), it was off to a cesarean I was. Boy was I terrified! But it actually went pretty smooth thankfully. Well, after Boo Boo was born, his oxygen levels weren't high enough so they wheeled his to the NICU while they finished me up. Thankfully by the time he got to the NICU his levels were perfect. So he didn't get to go to recovery with me, I was by myself as hubby was with Boo Boo. I missed his first bath and everything. I had Boo Boo at 4:42 and I didn't get to the room with him until after 7pm.  Of course I was drugged up a little from the surgery and Boo Boo was already past his birth wakefulness. At least hubby still let me be the first to hold him! Anyways, with the grandparents trying to hover in, and me not even being able to move, I was overwhelmed with trying to breastfeed. It really wasn't going good. By the end of the next day it STILL wasn't going good. I couldn't get a good position or latch at all.  The hospital sent over a lactation consultant, but she was very pushy and rude. I was still in pain and wasn't comfortable at all doing the football position. The LC was trying to get me to pump and basically yelled at me for not breastfeeding enough ( I was trying every few hours! geez) and put a nipple shield on me and walked out. Well, the nipple shield worked!! A picture of a nipple shield is down below. Basically it is a clear rubbery shield that goes over your nipple. It has 4 holes for the milk to come out. Boo Boo always did really good with it. Thank goodness for that! (If you have latch issues, I suggest trying one out!) I also just sucked it up and held Boo Boo in cradle position because that worked best for us.  So off to the races we were! 

( I also want to add for pacifier users: Boo Boo uses the soothie one, has since birth and never had nipple confusion. I only gave it to him AFTER a feeding and mainly at night time. He figured out the difference very fast! If he was still hungry he spit it out and cried, so I knew he was still hungry and it was no big deal.)

We went home after 3 days in the hospital and my milk came in the night we got home! (Probably because I finally relaxed once we got there!) Boo Boo was very happy for that let me tell you! He still needed the nipple shield, but I was okay with that because he was nursing still. We got through the first rough weeks and overall I was pleased with how things were going. (Although I felt like a cow, he nursed about every hour during the day!)

Now it was 8 weeks later and it was time for mama JoJo to go back to her part time retail job! Part of me missed work, but mostly I hated that I had to leave Boo Boo, even for just a four hour shift! Luckily MIL is a willing babysitter for Boo Boo, so no day care for us.
When Boo Boo was about 6 weeks old, I started pumping (with my crap single sided pump, but it was a hand me down, so I can't complain). It was a Medela Swing one. (picture is below) Never was a good pumper, but I could make enough for at least one of the two bottles (and sometimes for both of them :) ) while I was at work. I usually got 2 oz for a 20 minute pump on one side. Although I could always get a little more out of my left boob, that one was bigger and had more milk in it. After looking on babycenter.com birth boards (August 2010 and September 2010) and kellymom.com (GREAT website for breastfeeding!), I realized most pumpers don't get a lot of milk and I was actually getting a good amount for what I had to pump with. Luckily Boo Boo got more when he nursed! I miss those milk drunk faces!!!
Now comes the dagger....the damn bottle. I feed him one about a week before I went back to see how he would do and if I needed to work with him at all on it. Well, let me tell you. It was love at first sight for Boo Boo with that bottle. I didn't think too much of it at the time, but it only got worse with time.

The bottles I used was the breast-flow ones by first year. A picture is below. They are kind of a pain to deal with, the nipple has 2 parts that connect, but it seemed to work good for Boo Boo. He only got bottles in the morning while I was at work and nursed the rest of the day. By the time Boo Boo was 3 months old, he started fighting me that first nursing session getting home from work. It was heartbreaking to me. Here I always pictured him choosing my milk and that bonding time we had over anything else. But I guess those dreams were never really a reality for me, and I had to move on from that.

Anyways, the fighting of the nursing sessions just got bigger and bigger. Sometimes I just had to cave in and give him a bottle. He really has the Irish temper in him from both sides. Everyone told me to not give in and that he would eat, but he wouldn't! I couldn't bear it anymore and just starting caving in. I hated him crying like that! By the end of 3 months he had his morning bottles and one at night. He ended up fine with that and nursed during the day and when he woke up at night.

We were doing okay with this until the week before Christmas. I got Mastitis for the second time along with the 24 hour bug. I couldn't even move, let alone take care of Boo Boo and nurse him. Luckily it was hubbys day off and he could take care of me and Boo Boo. Well, when afternoon time came and Boo Boo was getting bottles, he knew he could get a bottle whenever he wanted! Yes, at 4 months I think Boo Boo was that smart!!  On top of that he got a cold (thanks to me), and really didn't wanna nurse with his stuffy nose. It was so hard fighting it, and it was exhausting.  Neither of us were happy, so I made that terrifying decision to stop. It really broke my heart, but in the end my child was happy and was getting feed and that is really what matters.

Now you say, why couldn't I just pump so he still got breast milk? Yes, I made mistakes indeed when it came to pumping! Here they are:

• Borrowing a pump from a family member without knowing anything about it beforehand. (she finally gave it to us at the hospital!)
• Not stepping up and getting a good pump (or renting one) that was a double one. ( I had a single one, so it took about 40 minutes total for about 4 oz...)
• Not getting good pumping sessions. I could never find the time between feedings (like I said, he nursed EVERY hour during the day). Also work didn't allow me to pump there. ( I don't even take a break while I work...my choice not to).
• Not starting right away and building up a supply. Dealing with a newborn was tough work! Trying to find time to pump...yeah right! So I kept procrastinating, which also affected my supply I might add!
• Formula just made it too easy. Knowing he could just have formula at grandmas did not motivate me to keep pumping...now I really wish it did!

So the formula Boo Boo went on full time was Enfamil. He gets really gassy, but other than that he is fine with it. I hope my next child chooses nursing over the bottle and will nurse a year and beyond. If not, I know that my children are happy and growing, and in the end that is all a mother could ask for. Sometimes I feel so down and guilty, but it is getting better with time. My breasts are dry now and I just got my first postpartum period.
So Boo Boo won in the end...with that damn bottle.... and I am okay with that. :) 

3 Years Later....Hubby and I

Wow, I can't believe that about 3 years ago I started dating Hubby. Funny thing, it was the NFC Championship game, Favre's last game as a Packer. Now we are in the Championship game again today against the Bears....hahaha.

A lot has happened in 3 years. I went from dreaming of being a crazy cat lady with my 3 cats, to dating the best guy ever, to getting married on my 21st birthday, and already being pregnant twice, and my 5 month old Boo Boo. Wow. Take a deep breath. ;)

Well, I know this isn't really about parenting, but without hubby and I getting together, there would be no Boo Boo to enjoy.
Speaking of Boo Boo, he just woke up from a nap, luckily he's not crying...yet. Last night he was up until after midnight, oh boy. But giving him more gas drops worked. So remember, sometimes giving a late dose of gas drops works. Only sometimes though.

Have a fun day everyone, and Go Packers!!

Gas Pains

Well, Boo Boo is up screaming in horrible gas pains with hubby trying to get some gas out for him I am so done with this. I am calling dr again Monday. Something isn't right. It's times like these I can kick myself for giving up breastfeeding....but that's a whole different post there.

Best ways to get his gas out:

• Bring his knees up to his stomach for 10 seconds at a time (with pushing down onto his stomach)
• Do bicycles with his legs
• Put him on his tummy and kinda rock him

Anyways, my goal is to get him out of pain from this gas. I need some answers.
I already:

• Give him gas drops
• Changed his bottles to the Playtex airvente ones
• Move his legs a lot
• Changed to Gentlease formula.

So I hope I get some answers Monday....I really do.
Now that I am thinking about it, he was super gassy when he nursed as well, just not like this...
I hate when it wakes him because it is so hard to calm him back to sleep. He's been up about 20 minutes now screaming. I tried, now hubby is. Oh wait, he's back...with the only thing that soothes him...a bottle. And hubby just told him he shouldn't have given up nursing. Yep Boo Boo, I told you that bottle isn't better than mama....;p
I will beat you gas! Now go away and let my Boo Boo sleep!!!!
Goodnight and wish me luck...

Hello :)

Hello,
It's after 6 pm, getting ready for another Oatmeal attempt with Boo Boo. His gas has been horrible and it seems that no one really cares but me and my husband. So far this "gentleease" crap isn't working. My MIL suggested solids to calm him down. Starting slow because I really want to wait until he's 6 months to do foods. But I am trying everything. Dr keeps saying gas drops and that if it doesn't improve soon she wants to see him. So yeah....
He really isn't digging the food yet, it's a mess, but oh well, he will get it.
It's singing and dancing time with my Boo Boo before food, so I will keep this first one short, but don't worry, many posts to come on everything and anything. I really hope I keep this up. Please someone yell at me if I go more than a week without posting ;p