Merry Christmas

From our little family to yours, we are wishing you all a wonderful Christmas and all the best in the new year. I'll be taking a little break to really enjoy the holidays with my boys but I'll be back to posting in 2014 :)

Noah 13 Months

I Well the big guy is one month into toddler-hood. I still think of him as my little baby, but often I look at him and think to myself what a big boy he's become so quickly. The week before Xmas we were on a family ski trip, and Tim and I looked down at Noah asleep in his pack n play and we both said look how large he is in that thing! He spans the entire length of it now. 

On to some highlites this month:

Weight: still around 23 lbs.

Health: he's had a few colds here and there since starting daycare, but nothing major to report. Teething issues have subsided for the past little bit as well, nice to have a break from that.

Sleep: other than this week (we've been travelling), he's been sleeping through the night from 7-7. Some nights he's down by 630, and sometimes he's awake between 6-630. Over the holidays he's been sleeping in until 8am every day (amen!!) He only takes one long afternoon nap when he's at daycare, 1230-3. On weekends at home he's down to one nap usually as well.

Clothes: all size 18-24 months and size 4 pampers.

Likes: he loves pushing his walker all over the house, he loves to be outside in the sled or swing, he's also obsessed with mega blocks.

Dislikes: he's not a huge fan of long car rides, or not getting his own way. Doesn't like getting his hair combed at bedtime or waiting for his bedtime bottle.

Milestones: he's waving bye-bye and walking with his walker. Saying a few words but only audible ones are mama and dada.

Food: he eats everything we eat, but most mornings is still having his baby cereal. He loves grilled cheese, pancakes, apple sauce and yogurt. Still taking 3 bottles of whole milk/day but were hoping to get rid of those over the holidays and get down to only one bottle at bedtime.

We've been having a ton of fun this month, little man loves his grampy's (both of them) and is definitely still a mama's boy. He loves to play with the other kids at daycare and push his trucks around making noises. He's a babbler and always chatting to himself. Christmas was so much fun this year, were looking forward to all the joys to come in 2014!!

Returning to Work - The Life of a Working Mama

Well I am finishing my 4th week of being back to work, I am now a Working Mama, and it's been an adjustment on all of our family. The days are long, and busy, and we are all exhausted by the time baby's bedtime hits. We try to be out the door for 7:45am, hubs does drop-offs and I do pick-ups at 4:15pm. Most days we are up at 6:45am, and not home until 4:45. Then its supper, clean-up, followed by some family time, and then bath and bed for Noah. By 7pm he is always asleep, and hubs and I crash on the couch or he goes back to work for the evening. When do people find time to exercise?

 

That being said, I feel incredibly fortunate to live in a country that believes in a work/life balance and that shows that by giving all mother's a year maternity leave with each of their children. Having a year off has been so much fun! Especially with your first child. You never get that time back, because with the next one, there will be two little ones to chase after!

 

I remember thinking when Noah was born that I had heaps of time.  November 2013 was so far away. Now the date has come and gone, and now every morning I get him up and dressed dressed, fed and out the door in the morning like so many other working-out of the house-moms.

Over the last few months leading up to my return to work date I have definitely run through a ton of emotions.  It started with excitement to get back to the "real" world and actually have something in my day to call my own. Then there was anxiety, "how would he nap"? "how would he adjust to life without Mama?" And then there is the guilt...which to be perfectly honest, hasn't really gone away.

 

If I put my mommy brain aside, I realize that there are several people in this world that are completely capable of taking great care of my son.  That being said, it is hard to find anyone you would trust with your life, let alone your baby! But, we found a true gem. Noah is so happy where he is at. It is a little bit out of the way for us, but so so worth it!  

 

I've found that even though we are all so tired when we get home and fed and cleaned up, that those special few hours we have together are so important. I have really learned to appreciate each moment that we spend together. For any new mom or mom-to-be out there, I know it sounds cliche, but enjoy every minute, time really does go way to fast!

 

So so happy to pick this little face up every day :)

 

Weaning: Part 3

Sadly, all good things must come to an end. After 12.5 months, we are now officially done breast-feeding, and have been for about ten days now. Noah handled it without the blink of an eye, honestly its like he couldn't care less. I expected some resistance, maybe a few upset bedtimes, but honesty its been a breeze which sits really well with me. It was the right time. 

It couldn't have been any easier. We gave up the morning session my very 1st day back to work. I offered it to him, and he pushed me away. It was like he knew something was different that day. So I gave him a bottle, which he took no problem, and we kept that up every day since. That was 3 weeks ago.

The bedtime feeding I wasn't in a huge rush to wean from, but last weekend we had a busy few nights in which I wasn't around to nurse him at bedtime. It wasn't my intention to wean him that particular weekend, but it just kind of happened, and once we were back home to our regular routine I just didm't offer and he hasn't been looking so we just kind of finished a week ago Thursday. 

Definitely lots of mixed emotions going on here. At this point, nursing was so easy. He was so quick, efficient, down to business so he could carry on with playtime. But nursing a toddler was never really something I wanted to do. But that being said, I will miss those snuggles, lying in bed together or rocking and feeding him. The way he'd touch my face and smile at me. We still enjoy our nightly rocking/cuddle sessions while he enjoys his bottle of whole milk, but its not quite the same.

Sigh, it's also time for me now to adjust my diet. I no longer have the excuse of being able to eat an extra 500 calories/day because I am breastfeeding. And let me tell you, it doesn't take long to pack on a few lbs!! In 2 weeks, i've gained 1.5 pounds!

I know there will be other babies to nurse, but I will miss nursing THIS baby. My 1st baby. My boy.

How To Survive Your Little One's First Birthday

Well we all survived Noah's first birthday two weeks ago, and what a great day! I can honestly say it went off fabulously. Not that Noah will remember it, but I still wanted each little detail to be done with love.

I actually kind of feel like it was more of a celebration for hubs and I of making it through Noah's first year. We kept our baby healthy, warm, and most of all happy. We endured many MANY sleepless nights, but we made it through the daze together. It's been the best year of our lives!

There was lots we took into consideration in ensuring it was a great day, here's a few things that we kept in mind:

1. Pick a time that works for the birthday boy (or girl) - we debated a few different times, but in the end we went with A time that worked for Noah's schedule, not everyone else. Because nothing is worse that a cranky/overtired bday boy! We chose 3pm after his long 3 hour afternoon nap. He was well rested and ready to party!

2. Don't Over-Invite - it's easy to get carried away with inviting lots of little play date friends, YOUR friends, and family. But that gets really overwhelming for a little person. We kept things small, immediate family, godparents and very close friends. 14-15 people tops.

3. Don't Overdo It - I wanted to decorate, bake, cook, I wanted to do it all for my baby's first birthday. But then I decided I'd rather enjoy my time with my boy, rather than going crazy for days trying to get it all together. So I made a few things myself (and family did some too) and we catered the rest (sandwiches, cupcakes, cake). It worked out so well, and I feel relatively guilt-free at not having made my child's 1st birthday cake myself!