Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Gag Me
OMG...I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit. No seriously. So, tomorrow is garbage day and I figured it only makes sense to empty the Diaper Genie, right? Right. Apparently the last time I changed out the bag on the Diaper Genie, there was a slight tear in the bottom of the bag. Well, that tear must have gotten bigger with each pee soaked, poopy packed diaper that went in and man, I packed that sucker full. So anyways, I go to empty it, I flip the lid over, and diapers spill out EVERYWHERE! I'm telling you, they didn't smell very good going in and after stewing in there all week...ugh, I'm sorry, I can't even go there. There's a reason why I generally leave the Diaper Genie duties to Dad.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Working Mama
Whew! The first week back to work is officially under my belt. To say it was difficult would be an understatement. The alarm went off at 5:15 a.m. Monday morning and I was ecstatic to have gotten a glorious 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Yes, you heard me right. Ivy chose to start sleeping through the night a few nights earlier. My child has impeccable timing. Not only did she sleep through the night but she continued to sleep while I showered and got ready - the best case scenario I had hoped for. When I was done getting ready, I woke her up and savored every minute of getting her ready for the day. I couldn't take my tear-filled eyes off of her as I fed her a bottle and explained to her what was going to happen that day and that mommy promises she'll be back in the afternoon to pick her up.
The dreaded moment finally came and it was time to go. I loaded all of our gear into the car and cursed myself for picking a baby sitter that lives less than 2 minutes away. I wasn't ready to leave her yet! She was all smiles for me as I said my goodbyes and Ann assured me she would take good care of her. The tears began even before I got back to the car and thanks to the cold that Ivy was still battling, there were plenty of kleenex on hand. It seemed surreal that this day had finally come. As I drove to work, I couldn't help but think about how different my life was since the last time I had been there. Everything I do now has a new meaning - to give my daughter the best life possible. And with that thought, I headed into the building to start my day. I made one call to Ann before lunch time to see how things were going. I breathed a sigh of relief when she picked up the phone and I didn't hear crying in the background. That would have broken my heart. Ann assured me that things were going well and Ivy was doing great.
The rest of the day went by pretty quickly and 8.5 hours later, I was out the door and on my way to hold my little girl. Dave and I decided we would both pick her up on the first day so he met me there. We walked in and all the kids were out back in the pool. Ann was sitting on the swing with Ivy in her lap looking happy as can be. Again, I breathed a sigh of relief and wasted no time picking her up and showering her with kisses. Ann said she did really well, although I'm pretty sure she would have said that no matter what because that's what I needed to hear.
The rest of the week went pretty much the same and each day when I arrived to pick her up, she was either sleeping in Ann's arms or being held by her and looking very happy. She continued to sleep through the night the rest of the week with the exception of Thursday night. I really couldn't have asked for things to be going any smoother than they are. I'm making the most of every moment with her now because the evenings go by so quickly and the next thing I know, it's morning and I'm dropping her off at Ann's again. Weekends now have a whole new meaning and I don't intend on letting her out of my sight! Just a week in the life of a working mom I guess!
The dreaded moment finally came and it was time to go. I loaded all of our gear into the car and cursed myself for picking a baby sitter that lives less than 2 minutes away. I wasn't ready to leave her yet! She was all smiles for me as I said my goodbyes and Ann assured me she would take good care of her. The tears began even before I got back to the car and thanks to the cold that Ivy was still battling, there were plenty of kleenex on hand. It seemed surreal that this day had finally come. As I drove to work, I couldn't help but think about how different my life was since the last time I had been there. Everything I do now has a new meaning - to give my daughter the best life possible. And with that thought, I headed into the building to start my day. I made one call to Ann before lunch time to see how things were going. I breathed a sigh of relief when she picked up the phone and I didn't hear crying in the background. That would have broken my heart. Ann assured me that things were going well and Ivy was doing great.
The rest of the day went by pretty quickly and 8.5 hours later, I was out the door and on my way to hold my little girl. Dave and I decided we would both pick her up on the first day so he met me there. We walked in and all the kids were out back in the pool. Ann was sitting on the swing with Ivy in her lap looking happy as can be. Again, I breathed a sigh of relief and wasted no time picking her up and showering her with kisses. Ann said she did really well, although I'm pretty sure she would have said that no matter what because that's what I needed to hear.
The rest of the week went pretty much the same and each day when I arrived to pick her up, she was either sleeping in Ann's arms or being held by her and looking very happy. She continued to sleep through the night the rest of the week with the exception of Thursday night. I really couldn't have asked for things to be going any smoother than they are. I'm making the most of every moment with her now because the evenings go by so quickly and the next thing I know, it's morning and I'm dropping her off at Ann's again. Weekends now have a whole new meaning and I don't intend on letting her out of my sight! Just a week in the life of a working mom I guess!
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Busy Being a Mommy!
Life has been busy here in Ivy-Land so hopefully that will excuse my lack of updates. These days the problem is not what to blog about but rather, when to find the time to blog. You may have noticed I've changed the title of my blog to "The Time of Our Lives". So much has happened this past year and all of our dreams have come true so I thought this title was only fitting. We truly are happier than we have ever been and are enjoying every bit of parenthood!! Anyways, let me fill you in on what we have been up to the past few weeks.
2 Month Appointment - Ivy had her 2-month check up on July 26th. She weighed in at 11.1 lbs and measured 22 3/4 inches. She is in the 75th percentile for both height and weight. She was also given her first shots that day. I knew it wasn't going to be pleasant for either one of us but wow, did I under-estimate that. I held her hand while two nurses simultaneously gave her a shot in each leg and she screamed bloody murder. I tried to be strong but ever since she came, I've been a ball of emotions so naturally I shed a few tears too. After about 5 minutes of continuous wailing (which felt much longer) she finally calmed down and fell asleep. The nurse instructed me to give her some children's Tylenol to which I asked, "How do I do that?". How was I to know they make cherry and grape flavored liquid Tylenol for babies? Just another lesson learned!
Shopping Trips! - Grandma McAllister and I have decided it's best to start Ivy out early and get her accustomed to out of town shopping trips, of which there are sure to be many in the future! She's already been to Davenport twice and Cedar Rapids once. She's such a good little shopper. And the ladies at Talbot's even remembered her on our second visit! She's already a preferred customer!
Baptism - Ivy received the sacrament of Baptism on Sunday, August 1st. Again, I was completely emotional that day and I just felt so proud of her. She wore a lavendar and white rosebud dress that her daddy had picked out even before she was born. He had held the dress in his arms as if he were holding a baby and said if we had a girl, he was coming back to the store to get the dress. Sure enough, a few days after she was born, he came home with it! For the baptism ceremony itself, she wore a gown that has been in my family for over 100 years. My grandfather and my dad were baptized in it, along with many aunts, uncles, and cousins. What made the weekend even more special was that my sister who is also Ivy's godmother was able to come all the way home from New Jersey to be there for the occasion. It was so great to see Lindsay and to watch her with Ivy. I can just see how much she loves her already and it melts my heart!!
Going Back To Work - This week is officially my last week of maternity leave. I feel so lucky to have been able to take 12 weeks off work and while it is going to be a major adjustment to go back, I've realized that I'm definitely not cut out to be a stay at home mom. Now THAT'S a challenging job! Ivy will be going to an in-home daycare which is only a couple of blocks from home. I took her for a half day "trial run" last week and it went really well. When I picked her up, the sitter was holding her and cuddling with her and she assured me that she would love her as if she were her own. That meant so much to me and solidified our decision to take her there.
Sniffles! - It's official. Ivy has her first cold! I noticed yesterday that she seemed a little stuffed up and had a bit of a cough and it seems to have gotten worse overnight. She doesn't have a temperature but I can just hear in her cry that she doesn't feel well. I called the doctor this morning to see if I should bring her in but they just instructed me to give her Tylenol and some Little Noses nasal spray and to have the humidifier on in her room. Hopefully this clears up soon because the prospect of going back to work is bad enough but if she's sick, it will completely break my heart!
Last but not least, here are some recent pics of the little Ivy-Bug! Isn't she getting big??
Ivy on her baptism day!
Ivy with her BFF, aunt Lindsay!
Ivy in her Bumbo Seat!
2 Month Appointment - Ivy had her 2-month check up on July 26th. She weighed in at 11.1 lbs and measured 22 3/4 inches. She is in the 75th percentile for both height and weight. She was also given her first shots that day. I knew it wasn't going to be pleasant for either one of us but wow, did I under-estimate that. I held her hand while two nurses simultaneously gave her a shot in each leg and she screamed bloody murder. I tried to be strong but ever since she came, I've been a ball of emotions so naturally I shed a few tears too. After about 5 minutes of continuous wailing (which felt much longer) she finally calmed down and fell asleep. The nurse instructed me to give her some children's Tylenol to which I asked, "How do I do that?". How was I to know they make cherry and grape flavored liquid Tylenol for babies? Just another lesson learned!
Shopping Trips! - Grandma McAllister and I have decided it's best to start Ivy out early and get her accustomed to out of town shopping trips, of which there are sure to be many in the future! She's already been to Davenport twice and Cedar Rapids once. She's such a good little shopper. And the ladies at Talbot's even remembered her on our second visit! She's already a preferred customer!
Baptism - Ivy received the sacrament of Baptism on Sunday, August 1st. Again, I was completely emotional that day and I just felt so proud of her. She wore a lavendar and white rosebud dress that her daddy had picked out even before she was born. He had held the dress in his arms as if he were holding a baby and said if we had a girl, he was coming back to the store to get the dress. Sure enough, a few days after she was born, he came home with it! For the baptism ceremony itself, she wore a gown that has been in my family for over 100 years. My grandfather and my dad were baptized in it, along with many aunts, uncles, and cousins. What made the weekend even more special was that my sister who is also Ivy's godmother was able to come all the way home from New Jersey to be there for the occasion. It was so great to see Lindsay and to watch her with Ivy. I can just see how much she loves her already and it melts my heart!!
Going Back To Work - This week is officially my last week of maternity leave. I feel so lucky to have been able to take 12 weeks off work and while it is going to be a major adjustment to go back, I've realized that I'm definitely not cut out to be a stay at home mom. Now THAT'S a challenging job! Ivy will be going to an in-home daycare which is only a couple of blocks from home. I took her for a half day "trial run" last week and it went really well. When I picked her up, the sitter was holding her and cuddling with her and she assured me that she would love her as if she were her own. That meant so much to me and solidified our decision to take her there.
Sniffles! - It's official. Ivy has her first cold! I noticed yesterday that she seemed a little stuffed up and had a bit of a cough and it seems to have gotten worse overnight. She doesn't have a temperature but I can just hear in her cry that she doesn't feel well. I called the doctor this morning to see if I should bring her in but they just instructed me to give her Tylenol and some Little Noses nasal spray and to have the humidifier on in her room. Hopefully this clears up soon because the prospect of going back to work is bad enough but if she's sick, it will completely break my heart!
Last but not least, here are some recent pics of the little Ivy-Bug! Isn't she getting big??
Ivy on her baptism day!
Ivy with her BFF, aunt Lindsay!
Ivy in her Bumbo Seat!
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