Weekend Update

This weekend was pretty low-key since we're trying to get everyone in the house feeling better.  The Husband was sick last week and was out of work Thursday & Friday.  I think Dafney & I are both finally starting to feel back to "normal" (KNOCK ON WOOD).  

Friday we just stayed in & were really lazy...nothing wrong with that!  Saturday we got to "sleep in" until 6:15am - YEAH =)  Getting up that early makes the day feel like it's about 50 hours long.  

In the morning, some of my work buddies stopped over on their way down to run the Get in Gear 5 & 10K.  I had every intention to head down there with Dafney to cheer them on, but it was cold and wet - not a great combination when you're trying to get & stay well.  Therefore, we just wished them "good luck" and they were on their way.  

Congrats to Carly, Kristin & Kathy on their great races!!  

We didn't do much during the day, but that night our friends had a "last minute" celebratory party in honor of the Shrewsbury soccer team (in England) doing something good (sorry, I really couldn't tell you what they did, all I know is we celebrated!).  We headed over for some pizza and adult beverages.  We even stayed out until a whopping 8pm...yep, we're crazy party animals! 


Sunday morning Dafney let us sleep late.  In fact, I ended up waking her around 9:30am.  It was absolutely wonderful to sleep past 6am.  I felt refreshed and {somewhat} rested.  

I think Sunday morning was the highlight of my weekend.  We gave Dafney RICE CEREAL for the 1st time.  It was exciting and sad all in one.  Exciting - because this starts a whole new part of her "life".  Starting to eat "real" food is kind of a big deal when you're 4 months old.  However, I felt really sad.  I know it seems weird, but for the past 4.5 months, I've been the sole person to provide her source of nutrition & food.  I think I might be the small percentage of people that absolutely loved, loved, loved breastfeeding.  For me, it was easy from day 1.  Dafney took to it with absolutely no problems, which in turn made it really easy & enjoyable for me.  It never hurt for me and I never looked at it as an annoyance or something that I "had" to do.  I always looked at it as a great way to bond with my daughter...it was our very special time together.  Something that no-one else had with her and that no-one else could give her.  It truly was special.  

So, now that we're slowly moving on-to some solid foods, it makes me a little (okay, a lot) sad that we won't have as much bonding time.  Seriously, she's growing up too fast!  I want her to stay my baby forever...okay, at least for a little while longer. 


Anyway...back to the rice cereal experience: it was okay.  She was very content on being in her highchair...(that was obstacle #1).  She's not a huge fan of being in her car seat, so I wasn't sure how being strapped into a highchair was going to be, but she did really well.  She took the food into her mouth with the spoon (obstacle #2) with no problems.  However, she would take her tongue and push the food right out (obstacle #3).  I don't think she actually took in much food, but it was a start.  We're going to continue giving her this food daily and hopefully in time, she'll start to enjoy it.  After a few weeks of working with the rice cereal, our Pediatrician said we could introduce a new food every 3-4 days.  Oh, how time flies. 


Here are some pictures of our cutie with her first rice cereal experience:

Getting ready to try rice cereal for the FIRST time

Not so sure about this...

Spitting most of it out...oh well!

Happy Monday!

Regrets & Hair Loss?

No, regrets & hair loss are in no way, shape or form related.  Excuse the randomness!

I try not to live my life with many "regrets".  Unfortunately, every now & then, they happen.  I'm proud (?) to say that I only have one real regret since the birth of Dafney.  It's nothing major {okay, in my head it's major, but it's certainly not life or death}.  

BUT, I regret not having newborn pictures of Dafney taken =(  I see all of these ADORABLE pictures of newborns and am so sad that we never did them.  I think I would have done them had I been a tiny bit more organized and had a photographer, etc. lined up prior to Dafney's arrival.  I mean, I was a little busy once Dafney was born....between feedings, snuggle sessions, more feedings and trying to catch up on sleep, pictures weren't exactly on my mind.   

Thankfully we've taken a picture of our sweet baby girl almost every day since she was born.  So, at least she'll have something to look back on =)  However, before another second goes by, I want to capture Dafney's adorable-ness in a professional picture setting!  

Trying to figure out which out of the thousands of photographers to use is the challenge.  I've received a ton of great recommendations - but I can't seem to pick one.  I mean, they all look like they do a great job!  I'm not looking for anything super "pose-y" and would like something very casual.  I don't want to spend my child's future college fund on these pictures, either.  Truthfully, I just want to capture the "real" Dafney....and if they get some with her smiling, great...if not, well, better luck next time, right? 

It's supposed to be crappy this weekend, so I've made it my goal to research, find & contact a photographer.  Any thoughts, comments, or questions I should ask/keep in mind while looking? 

On to hair loss.  UGH!  I've heard that after your pregnancy it can be normal to loose hair, but holy crap, it's coming out by the fist-fulls.  Not cool!  It's gross, but I truly believe I could have knit a whole freakin' wardrobe for myself with all the hair I've lost.  Thankfully I have a fuller head of hair, so it's not showing yet, but if this continues, I may need to invest in some sort of hat or {gulp} wig!  How long does this typically last? 

On those very random notes, have a great weekend! 

4 Things for FOUR Months

Dear Dafney,

I know that you're already FOUR months old, but I thought I'd start a new "feature" to my blog each month featuring x amount of things for x amount of months old you are.  I thought it might be a fun way to document the special, fun, exciting & new things you're doing/liking/hating each month.  I hope that someday, you can look back at this and read all the amazing things you've done over the years!  And this way, we won't forget some of your major milestones in life =)  So, here it goes:

4 things for FOUR months

1.  Your personality is starting to show and it's adorable!  You are very laid back, but you definitely know what you want, when you want it {and you usually get what you want}!  For the most part, you're a very h-a-p-p-y baby and we cherish every {gummy} smile you give us!!

2.  You have discovered that you have HANDS.  You are grabbing & reaching for everything and anything!  It's especially funny when Daddy is holding you and you grab onto his chest hair...however, it's not so funny in the middle of the night when Mommy's holding you and you grab onto her hair =)  But, you really love to hold onto your toys, which is fun to see!

3.  Everything goes in your mouth...I'm not sure if you're teething, or if it's just that "everything goes into your mouth" infant stage, but everything ends up in your mouth at some point in time: nuks, mommy/daddy's hands, your hands {your personal favorite}, toys, blankets, clothes....pretty much anything you can get your little hands on. 

4.  You're so close to being able to roll over.  You get to your side and then you either stay there, or roll to your back.  One of these days your going to surprise us and we're going to find you on your belly!  You are really good at slamming your legs down and moving yourself, though.  There have been several occasions when we've put you to bed and when we come get you, you're facing the opposite direction; we think you're going to be a mover!!

We look forward to seeing what FIVE months will bring and we're excited to share those moments with you via this blog!  

Love, 

Mommy & Daddy♥

From Mama to Be, To MAMA...All in 365 Days!

I can't believe a year ago we were finding out we were pregnant.  Even though it's been a year, I can remember that day so vividly.  It was truly one of the greatest moments ever and the start to what's been an amazing journey.  

I looked at my daughter today and couldn't help but think that a year ago, she was as small as the period (.) at the end of this sentence.  And now, she's a beautiful, growing, little girl.  

This past year was a whirlwind of emotions filled with TONS of ups and minimal downs (mostly those 1st trimester "blah's").  Truthfully, our lives have changed {for the better} ever since we found out this little {but very important} nugget of information!  I couldn't be happier; I have a gorgeous & amazing daughter, an over-the-top wonderful husband, and the greatest furbaby EVER!  I certainly am one lucky girl.  

From this....

 

...to THIS =)

Happy Friday!!

What the....

Oh lord...things have been crazy, with a capital C this past week.  Last Wednesday, our sweet baby girl got pink eye...in both eyes.  Awesome.  Actually, this Mama didn't really mind getting to skip out on work spending a whole day with her baby!  Yes, I felt really bad that she was "sick", but I really enjoyed our day together.  And, even though she had pink eye, she was really happy & smiley, which made me one happy mama =)  

Then, on Friday the 13th, we took Dafney in for her 4 month appointment.  Thankfully, she is completely healthy.  But, those pesky shots made for one unhappy little girl.  So, I spent the night up with her.  I "slept" in our basement in the recliner with her in my arms.  Truthfully, I didn't mind one bit...I really do love every second I get to spend with her.  

Saturday I was pretty tired from my lack of sleep, so it was nice to not have much on the agenda.  However, I was still fighting a cold I'd had and was trying to ward off the "flu" like symptoms I was noticing (chills, fever, achy body, headache, sore throat).  

Sunday night, our little furbaby was having some problems south of the border, if you get my drift.  She ended up waking us up every 3 hours to go outside and do her thang.  And, since our alarm system is in Dafney's room, it would wake her up every time we went in there to turn the alarm off to let Hannah out.  So, I'd get up to let the dog out and then I'd sit with Dafney for 20-30 minutes.  Let's just say, no-one in our house got much sleep Sunday night.  

Nothing like starting the week off extremely tired.  I made it through work Monday just fine, but was ready to crash by about 7pm that night.  Once I got Dafney to sleep, I jumped into bed myself (I'm finally understanding how IMPORTANT it is to "sleep when baby sleeps").  Dafney hadn't been sleeping great since she started Daycare.  So, imagine my excitement when we put her down at 8pm and didn't hear a peep out of her until 4:30am.  My not-so-great mathematical skills tell me she slept for eight and a half hours straight...yeah, Dafney!  

However, remember how I told you the furbaby was having "tummy troubles", well, they continued Monday night and again she had us up every 2-3 hours.  WHAT THE...Tuesday, Hannah was still having some troubles, so we brought her into the Vet to make sure everything was okay with her.  Thankfully, it's nothing serious - apparently she's been feasting on some rabbit turds...um lovely, Hannah, just lovely.  They gave us some meds and $150 later, we think she's finally on the up and up!  She didn't wake us up once last night AND Dafney slept about 6.25 hours straight.  

Wait, don't cue the signing angels quite yet.  This morning, I woke up with...yep, you guessed it, pink eye.  My oh-so-lovely daughter shared with me!  One of these days, we're ALL bound to feel 100%, right?  

Nothing says family like sharing colds, flu's & eye fungus'!  

I will end with this adorable  {no, I'm not biased at all =)} picture of Dafney!  Happy Wednesday!

4 Months Old

I think I say this every time, but I can hardly believe my baby is FOUR months old already.  Seriously, where has the time gone?  It seems like just yesterday we were finding out we were pregnant.  We took Dafney in on Friday for her four month well visit and bottom line, SHE'S HEALTHY!!  Here are her "stats":

Weight: 11lbs 9oz - 10th percentile

Height - 23.5 inches - 20th percentile

Head Circumference: 15.3 inches - 5th percentile

Yes, we have a teeny, tiny little girl!  She did really well at this appointment.  She did cry when they stabbed her legs gave her the 4 month shots.  Thankfully Kyle was there with me as I can't even stand to watch them give her the shots.  I think her legs were really sore that night because we had a long, rough night.  I slept downstairs with baby girl in my arms because every time I put her in her crib, she would scream.  I felt bad for the sweet girl!  

Thankfully, Saturday morning she was back to her smiley, normal self :)

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing.  It seems like I've been fighting a cold ever since Dafney started Daycare, so it was nice to not have anything on the agenda.  

Happy 4 months to my baby girl!!

What's for dinner: Kung Pao Chicken

I'm always looking for fun, delicious, easy recipes to try and I found a WINNER with this one.  It's my version of "Kung Pao Chicken"!  This is one of our "go to meals" and has been for the last couple years.  So, I decided I would share this with the blogger world!  Enjoy!

Kung Pao Chicken 

4 Servings

Chicken Marinade Ingredients:

1lb Chicken, cut into 1 inch cubes

3 TBSP Soy Sauce (I use low-sodium soy sauce)

3 TBSP Sherry

2 TBSP Vegetable Oil

2 TBSP Corn Starch

Mix together and let sit for about an hour or so.

Meanwhile, mix the following together and let sit:

3 TBSP Soy Sauce (again, I use low-sodium)

3 TBSP Shery

3 TBSP Red Wine Vinegar

2 TBSP Sugar

2 TBSP Corn Starch

Other ingredients:

1 Red Bell Pepper, sliced

1 Green Bell Pepper, sliced

1 Head of Broccoli cut up into bite size pieces

1TBSP Fresh Ginger, finely chopped

3-4 TBSP Green Onion, diced 

1 TSP Sesame Oil

1 TSP Vegetable Oil

1 TBSP Red Pepper Flakes (**NOTE: we like our food spicy, so you can scale this down to your desired heat level)

1/2 Cup Peanuts 

Brown (or white) rice, cooked (I make enough for 4 servings)

1.  Heat vegetable oil in a WOK and add the red pepper flakes for about 1 minute. 

2.  Add the chicken mixture and stir frequently until chicken is basically cooked through (3-4 minutes).  

3.  Add the ginger and green onions.  Stir for about a minute.  

4.  Add the vegetables.  Stir for about 2 minutes. 

5.  Add the Soy Sauce mixture.  Stir for about a minute. 

6.  Add the Sesame oil and mix for about a minute.  

7.  Serve over rice.  Add peanuts to the dish. 

8.  ENJOY! 

I hope you enjoy this dish as much as my Husband and I do! 

    

Cheers!