Monday, June 30, 2008

A Happy Visit

Let me start by saying the guy on the right is NOT my hubby, it's my brother. Not that I wouldn't marry a guy like my brother I suppose, but if you have seen other pictures of my hubby you might have been confused by the transformation. Look closer and it's obvious we are related, I think the only genetic difference between me and my brother is that Y chromosome of his. ;)

Anyway, the point of my post was to say how much I enjoyed the recent visit by my aunt and uncle from Kansas. No one from KS ever seems to get up to visit us, which is surprising since OR is a great place to visit. (tourism is our number one industry, or at least it was when I was in high school. Maybe not now with gas prices keeping everyone at home!) They did come out 10 years ago when Brian and I got married. They came out this time to deliver the grandfather clock I inherited from my grandparents, and I convinced them to stay an extra day by scheduling Ru's baptism for Sunday.

If you're still studying the pic for genetic links, Sharon is my dad's sister, so she's the one I'm related too. Sadly a big genetic difference between her and her brother (my dad) is that Brodhagen metabolism. I think she ate just as much if not more than me when we went out, and I'm breastfeeding. Totally not fair.

While it would be easy to hate her for that reason alone, the truth is she is a truely wonderful person, as is her hubby Keith. Brian and I really enjoyed having them! I do hope they will visit again in another 10 years (sooner would be better!) Sharon was great with Ru, (hehe, and Keith was great with Sammy the dog) and we had many great conversations between the four of us. I was sad to see them go, and hope they have a safe and uneventful drive home. (and if you're reading this aunt Sharon, you did NOT need to leave the gas money! But I won't be sending it back... ;)

hugs,
Jenny
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Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Monday, June 23, 2008

Sleepy Ru loves daddy





















Since Brian has been home on his sabbatical, Ru has found a much better alternative to the crib. She's found Daddy is willing to hold her pretty much 24/7 as long as she is quiet and snuggly. (mama however, is as ruthless as ever (no pun intended) and still sticks her in the crib to sleep) Obviously, Ru is spending as much time as possible with her daddy. :) This arrangement works out good for Daddy as well, as he then has the perfect excuse to sit and watch videos on the computer all day. Mommy likes it too, because then I can actually get stuff done around the house. Not that Daddy doesn't when it's his turn, I just enjoy being productive, and for him it's just chores.

I also really like this arrangement because I know the days are counting down til Brian has to go back to work. I love seeing him play and snuggle with his daughter, he's a really great daddy. And I'm really happy to see them bonding and enjoying each other. I do love my little family!
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Sunday, June 15, 2008

Happy 2nd b-day Ru!



















Second month that is. ;) She is working on being able to hold up her head, but she is still a bit of a bobble-head. She looks at things quite well now, and holds eye contact. She is also learning to control her arms a bit, but she has a long way to go before she is ready to be playing with toys. But she's trying.

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Thursday, June 12, 2008

Bathtime beauty


Daddy expressed hesitation when I asked if he wanted to give Ru her bath, or if I should do it. He obviously was still a bit nervous about bathing our squirmy little daughter. So I did it...and warned him he'd better watch careful as he was doing it next time.

Actually, the next time I just made him get everything ready. Then this time I got everything ready and made him wash her.

Next time he gets to do it all by himself, from start to finish. Then I'll be willing to take back over most of the time again.

Anyhoo, the nice thing about Brian doing the scrubbing is I can man the camera. :)

The white thing she's kinda holding is a bunny bath mit. We put some sort of washcloth on her chest when we bathe her to help keep her warm.

I gave up on putting her actually in the water just yet. She just poops in it. This hammock thing on the bathtub works great! We like this bathtub as it should keep us out of trouble until she's ready to be sitting in the real bathtub. Heck, it might work for us until she's ready to shower...

She doesn't love bathtime by any stretch of the imagination, but Ru doesn't really mind it to much, either. She still tends to get pretty cold, despite us steaming up the bathroom with a hot shower first, then leaving the heat lamps on and the door closed, etc. So we make sure to snuggle her really well afterwards to get her warmed back up. I love how fluffly her fine little hair gets when it's clean, and you gotta love that clean baby smell!

Oh, btw, we do NOT like the body wash in the purple bottles you can see in the picture. They are supposed to help baby go to sleep, but they are WAY too perfumey for my nose. I used it to wash my hands once and decided it would be a bad idea to actually rub it all over my baby, esp as I'm guessing she has seasonal allergies, too. So she might be allergic to smelly stuff as well.

She's so cute! I'm gonna go snuggle her now. :)
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Saturday, June 7, 2008

Superstar!

I should have put this outfit on her sooner, it's totally cute and she's already just about outgrown it!
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Friday, June 6, 2008

Our latest accomplishments and a new buddy!

This week Ru has been getting so much better at looking around! It's great fun because now she looks at us and maintains eye contact. It's so much easier to feel a connection with her. She's turning into a little person already!

We also have a new buddy, my scrapping friend Amy (her blog link is in the right hand sidebar) had her baby, too! The fun part--he was born on my birthday! I'm looking forward to the time when they are old enough we can have play dates. Hmm....maybe Amy and I will have playdates, too. She can bring him on over and watch the two of them while I scrap for an hour, then we'll swap duties... This could work out really well! :)

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Growing like a weed!

The first pic is when we brought her home from the hospital. The second a couple days ago, approx 5 weeks later...
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3 Ps MOM tag

This is from Alyson's Three P's in a Pod blog, and it looked like a good way to record some of my thoughts at this stage of mommyhood. Besides, she's holding a giveaway and I'm all about free stuff. Happy 500th post Alyson!


MOM Tag

1. Typically, what time do you wake up?

Which time? Ru is up around 1 or 2ish, we go back to sleep 5 or 6ish, then sleep (with a break for feeding/pumping) til noon

2. On a good night, what time are your kids in bed?

Well she's only 7 weeks old, so I'm not sure how to answer. Daddy usually has "swing shift" and hardly ever has her in her crib. He just holds her for hours. So she lands in her crib for a while when I get up.

3. How long have you been a mommy?

7 weeks. I'm a noob.

4. How old were you when you became a mom?

31

5. What is your favorite kids T.V. show?
6. What is your least favorite kids T.V. show?

We don't have a TV, so I'm not up on them anymore.

7. What is your favorite chore?

Laundry lets me do other things at the same time, and I can get it DONE. (until someone spits up anyways)

8. What is your favorite meal to cook?

I haven't cooked since Ru was born, except mac and cheese with chili in it. I do enjoy roasts or corned beef in the slow cooker.

9. What is your least favorite meal to cook?

Anything that involves my hands being slimy for any length of time. (meatloaf comes to mind)

10. What is your kids favorite meal?

Ha! Breastmilk with formula mixed in.

11. What is your favorite thing your husband does with your kids?

He just gets such a kick out of watching her little antics, and it's not like she has that many just yet. He does a lot of tummy time with her.

12. What are 5 things that make you smile when you are being a mom?

Getting to take a nap.
Baby snuggles.
Ru nursing well.
Sleeping.
Getting to take a nap.

13. If you could take your kids anywhere, where would it be?

I wish I could have got to KS before g-ma passed away, and since the funeral is today that would be cool, too. Generally speaking, we want to go to disneyworld/epcot someday.

14. When was the last time you went out without your kids?

I went to youth group sunday night, altho technically I'm working when I do that. Uh...I don't remember if bunco or the night I went out for ice cream with Terry Mac was more recent.

15. What is your favorite pastime/activity to do with your kids?

Right now just snuggling.

16. Name one thing you said you would never say as a mother.

"because I said so"

17. Name something you do, that your mom did.

Don't ask for help when I should.

18. What is your favorite quality your mom has?

She's very independent. (hehe, altho obviously that shared trait bites us in the behind, as in #17)

19. What is your favorite kids book?

We don't have that many yet! We do like "God gave us you" that my friend Lory gave us.

20. What is your favorite advice for new moms?

Not sure I'm a good person to be doling out advice... But I guess I would say don't expect yourself to get anything productive done for the first couple of months. That had been really frustrating for me as I like to feel like I accomplished something at the end of the day. Taking care of the baby is pretty time intensive (esp when she's up for hours and hours at night...)

21. What is your most heartbreaking moment as a mom?

When they took Ru to St. Vinnies and I was stuck at the Newberg Hospital.

22. What is your most joyful moment being a mom?

Getting to take her home.

23. When was the last time you told one of your kids you loved them?

Uh...sometime in the last hour I'm sure.

24. When was the last time you were told?

Well she's not exactly talking yet, but hubby told me before he went to bed.



Monday, June 2, 2008

One more reason I love my church

Ruthie and I went to church for the first time yesterday. (well, it wasn't MY first time!) She was SUCH a good girl and slept thru the entire service with nary a peep. Well, she did squeak just a little bit towards the end of the sermon, but I suspect she was just letting pastor know it was time to move on. (actually, only a couple people even noticed that, but it helps that there was another noisy toddler in there whining all thru the choir piece, so Ru's couple of quiet squeaks during the sermon were no biggie)

Of course everyone was thrilled to meet her, which is no surprise as Brian and I are very popular at church. (I suppose it could be personality related, altho I suspect it has to do with us being one of just two couples in their 30s that attend regularly, and Brian and I are both pretty active helpers as well)

But on to the one more reason part. I had commented to Brian last week that I was getting seriously annoyed with all the negative comments folks seem love to share with new parents. When they ask how I am and I say "tired...but I figure that's to be expected with a newborn." They reply with "get used to it, don't expect to get any sleep until they are in their 20s, maybe!" Or I say I can't wait to just feel back to normal. They say "don't expect to ever be back to normal again!" Ok, I don't EXPECT life to be the same as it was before, duh! But it would be nice to be able to sit up out of bed without being in pain. That's the kind of normal I mean, physically recovered from my surgery. And I think they know it (either that or think I am really stupid) and just get pleasure in being the bearer of bad news. Or something. I don't really understand all the pessimism they cheerfully pass along to me. As if the post partum hormones aren't enough, I don't need to hear your horror stories of how bad it was for you and I'm doomed to the same. (especially since I expect these well rested appearing parents are exaggerating greatly in many cases)

So at church, they ask how I am, and I give the same sort of answers. Except here, I get replies like "hang in there, it will get better" and "the first three months are the worst." No smug "I've been there and you shall suffer forever like I did" type answers. At church I get sympathy and encouragement. The stories my friends at church tell me are more geared towards what they did to help their child learn to sleep at night. Or maybe even the same sort of "my child didn't sleep at night at all either, and nothing worked" story, but they follow up with the fact that their kid sleeps great now. The comments are intended to give me hope for a future less sleep deprived. (are the rest of you ppl listening?!?)

So I learn from all these new baby experiences. I have also now learned to watch my own comments carefully. I have several friends that are pregnant right now, and I'm sure I'll have plenty of others in my lifetime. I will do my best to always be the sort of friend that passes along hopeful, encouraging type messages that will actually help my sleep deprived comrades, rather than the cheerful pessimism that seems so prevalent in others. I'll even try to hold back advice unless it's asked for (altho I'm not gonna make any promises on that one, a girl can't be too perfect now... ;)