Hates the Crib

Good Monday Morning!!

I hope most of you have a short week, or at least a half day on Friday due to the Easter holiday. Should make for a better start to your week, right?! 😀

This is just a quick post, I just need some advice, if possible.

We have a little issue with little Miss G Marie.

See since she got home from the hospital, she has been sleeping in her Rock n’ Play.

She loves it, and thankfully it has worked out perfectly for us so far.

Only problem now is that she is getting way too big for it. She can still fit (barely), so it’s not a safety concern…yet.

^^she’s no longer that little 🙂

You are probably asking, why not put her in her crib???

Well, that’s the whole problem. She hates it.

It’s terrible. I have tried all sorts of suggestions that I have read online- like make her more comfortable in it by playing with toys in there with it. I have also tried putting her in there just for nap time, which she wakes up almost instantly & will cry (pretty much just scream) until someone gets her. I can only let her cry for so long, and it really just breaks my heart.

I am hoping someone has some advice they can offer that may help her like her crib.

Some ideas that I have, that I’m hoping to start this week or next is to have her nap in her pack n’ play. That way it’s flat, not inclined like her rock n’ play. Also it is not as big as her crib, so maybe that will be a bit more comforting. I know part of the problem is that the crib is just so big compared to her rock n’ play.

We can always move her pack n’ play upstairs, that way it’s a start. I’m just not sure if she will even like that.

Other ideas- getting a mobile that is battery powered. She loves her mobile, but it only lasts for about 3 minutes, if that. She likes to look at it and I think that if she had something to look at continuously that may help.

The one good thing is that we have had her in her room since she was about two months old, so thankfully we don’t have to get her used to her room AND the crib, it’s just getting her used to the crib.

Any advice would be MUCH appreciated! 🙂

Gabriella says thank you in advance 😀 That was her basketball outfit that she wore to watch March Madness with her Daddy. She LOVES basketball, it calms her right down if she is fussy. I swear it’s in her blood.

Thank you, as always, for reading & for sharing experiences & suggestions that you my have I truly appreciate it and use the advice often.

 

 

Hot Topic: Letting Baby Cry

Welcome to another round of Hot Topic Tuesday! Again, he’s my little disclaimer- if you have no interest in babies, please feel free to pass over this post…tomorrow will be back to normal workout/ cooking/ Gabriella posts! 🙂

Now for the most part Gabriella is a very happy baby. I constantly get smiles from her, just even a glance at Mommy & she will smile. It completely melts my heart. EVERY.SINGLE.TIME.

I mean she even lets me dress her up in all of these silly outfits.

But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t get fussy sometimes…and it definitely doesn’t mean she doesn’t cry. She has her fussy periods every day, and we know they are coming. Usually it’s right before nap time, we always can tell when she is tired. And she ALWAYS gets cranky around 5pm every afternoon. Since she usually goes to bed around 6/ 6:30pm, this is just her pre bedtime fuss.

The thing is that once you have a child, you QUICKLY learn their many cries. There is the ‘I’m hungry cry, the ‘I’m tired cry’, the ‘Leave me alone cry’ <—we NEVER hear that one! haha, the ‘fuss to fuss cry.’ The one we get the most is the ‘fuss to fuss’ cry. It’s when Gabriella doesn’t want to do whatever it is we are doing. A lot of our runs start this way. She doesn’t want to be in the stroller, so she fusses. But then we get going, and about a mile in, she the smiling, happy girl we know.

But before 8 weeks I absolutely refused to let her cry. Any kind of cry. Craig was ok with letting her cry for like 5 minutes, but I wasn’t ok with any of it. I immediately would pick her up & comfort her. I just believe that under 8 weeks is too little to let a baby cry. They may be perfectly fine, fed, changed, and burped…but they may just want some comfort.

I told Craig that after 8 weeks I would try to let her cry a little. And by a little, I mean about 2 minutes. Well, I wasn’t very good at that either. I grabbed her pretty much the second she starting crying. He told me to ask the doctor about the crying situation at her 2 month appointment, so that’s exactly what I did.

I will never forget what he told me at her appointment. “In 20+ years of being a pediatrician, I’ve never heard of a baby expiring from crying.” It was kind of funny, and I definitely understood what he was saying. He said there is NOTHING wrong with letting baby cry a bit, especially since she was now 8 weeks old.

I asked him how he did with his daughter, and he said that he would let her cry. He said he knew nothing was wrong with her, and he had no problem letting her cry. His wife on the other hand was like me. She did not want her daughter crying. But he also said that it’s part of being a Mom, the whole ‘maternal instinct’ part of being a Mom kicks in.

After that appointment and hearing it from a doctor, I figured I could at least try 5 minutes. The only time she really cries is when it’s time for a nap or bed. She doesn’t really cry other times, I mean she will fuss if she wants to move around or do something different than what she is currently doing…but she doesn’t cry much other than when it’s time for sleep.

That night, once I put her to bed, she woke up about 15 minutes later crying. It started out as a little fuss & then it lead to a full on cry. I turned the timer on for 5 minutes. If she didn’t stop within that amount of time, I was going to go get her & rock her back to sleep.

Well, she didn’t stop…and I ended up going to get her. Craig told me that night he was proud of me though, because at least I TRIED & got 5 minutes.

It was NOT easy. I was like this close to crying myself, because I HATE hearing her cry. (even though I know it’s the ‘fuss to fuss’/ ‘I don’t want to sleep even though I’m tired’ cry)

One thing that helped me was thinking of what parents with multiple children or single Moms/ Dads do. I mean if you have more than one child, and you know that baby is just crying to cry & the other child needs you, you are going to attend to the other child & let baby cry for a bit. And then single moms & dads…oh how I give you all SO.MUCH.CREDIT. (it’s amazing how MUCH more you appreciate them when you have a child of your own) I mean if you are in a bind & NEED to get something done, like I don’t know..umm…go to the bathroom for example, and baby is crying the fuss cry. Well, you really have no choice, you have to let baby just cry. These are just examples that I would think about when she was doing her fuss cry…and it helped a lot.

^love that picture, because the onesie COMPLETELY describes her ‘small & sassy.’ 😉

Once I got past letting her crying tear me up inside, things got easier. Not just for me, but for G too. She knew when it was time to nap or go to bed that I wasn’t going to go & rush to grab her…and that she better at least try to sleep. She’s sleeping better, and her little routine seems to be working a lot better too.

Sometimes when I am having a hard day, and I hear her cry, I don’t care I will still go & get her the second I hear it. I don’t think that will ever change though. I absolutely LOVE holding her every second of the day, but there is nothing like holding a baby after a rough day. It is just heaven on earth. Just sitting there staring at her. I love it.

I know this is a HUGE hot topic in the parenting world. Some people are COMPLETELY against letting babies/ children cry at any age. And there are others that have no problem letting baby cry from day one. I honestly just think it depends on the person and the family. Whatever works for YOU & YOUR FAMILY is what is right. No sense listening to people that want to tell you what you are doing is the ‘wrong way.’ You know your family, and you know your baby!

If you have children, what is your opinion on crying? How did you approach the situation?

Book Recommendation for New Moms & Moms to Be

Happy Friday!!!

I hope you are all staying warm with this crazy cold front that swept the east coast.

G definitely is 😉

So today’s post is going to be for all of you Moms out there- new Moms, Moms to be, and those thinking about having children soon.

I have an AWESOME book to recommend.

I know a LOT of the ‘baby books’ out there are very controversial. Everyone has their own opinion, as to what works & what doesn’t. I totally understand that. EVERY baby is different! I can’t emphasize that enough. They all have their own little personalities, right from the get go.

It’s actually pretty funny HOW different they can be. Like I mentioned in yesterday’s post, Gabriella does NOT like to be put down. She isn’t entertained for very long in the little bouncers, pack n plays, etc. I definitely do NOT mind holding her…just gives me more snuggle time. 🙂 BUT, I do need a few minutes here & there to be able to work, get house stuff done, and you know…take a shower. 😀

One thing I have learned that ALL babies have in common is that THEY NEED SLEEP.

Honestly, this may sound dumb, but I had no idea HOW.MUCH.SLEEP they need. Of course I knew that babies slept a lot, but it’s even more than I thought. And it’s NOT just newborns.

I am always looking for new books to read, even though I don’t have a lot of free time to read anymore. But I do love reading books about babies. I have read Babywise, which I do know is very controversial. I read it before we had Gabriella, just to see what the whole ‘Babywise controversy’ is all about.

I liked the whole idea of it, but once I had Gabriella it was totally different. Babywise just didn’t work for our family, and that’s ok! It works for other people, but it just didn’t work for us. It was a bit too strict for me.

Now I have to admit, I’m not ok with her crying. I’m a sucker….and I’m TOTALLY fine with that! 😀 G cries when she doesn’t want to sleep, and it’s Mommy to the rescue. Yes, I do realize this can’t ALWAYS be the case, but for now I don’t mind.

I mean, look at that face, could you resist?! 😉

Babywise somewhat advocates the idea of letting them cry. And yes, I do believe that there is a time & place for them to cry. I now KNOW her cries- the ‘I’m hungry,’ ‘I’m tired,’ ‘I just want to be held,’ and the ‘I’m going to fuss to fuss cry.’ It’s funny HOW QUICK you learn their cries. 😀

So when she does the ‘I’m going to fuss to fuss’ cry…I’m ok with letting her cry for a bit. I mean there is nothing I can do. She usually has this time every afternoon, right before bedtime. And I know it’s coming, so I just deal.

But one of the things I learned is that babies should go to bed early. After reading the book, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, it opened my eyes to a whole new light.

The author recommends an early bedtime for your baby- like around 6pm or 6:30pm. Now, you would think that keeping them up would mean that you would get more sleep…NOPE! It’s actually the opposite. Babies NEED SLEEP. The longer you keep them up, the more overtired they become. And putting an overtired baby to bed is NO FUN! Trust me. Been there, done that. Yuck.

But the reason that I loved this book, and why I recommend it, is because it’s full of tips & suggestions. It’s not as strict as Babywise. It gives you advice on looking for baby’s ‘tired signals’- when they are sleepy & may need a nap. Another thing they suggest is that you do NOT keep a baby awake for more than 2 hours at a time. And it’s funny, because if you watch for the ‘sleepy signals,’ you will see them before two hours.

I’ve been using the early bedtime with G for about two weeks now- she usually goes to bed around 6pm or 6:30pm- and I notice SUCH a difference. She only gets up usually twice a night- around 1 or 2am & then again around 4 or 5am- to eat, and then she goes back to bed & is up for the day around 7am.

She just seems to like her new schedule SO MUCH BETTER! She usually takes a long morning nap (after our run, typically)- for about two hours- and then an afternoon nap for about an hour & a half. She gets  a few ‘cat naps’ here & there, especially when we are out for our morning run & then for our afternoon walk.

I just wanted to share this book with you, since it has really been helpful for me, thought it may be helpful for someone else too!

If you have any other parenting books you would like to recommend, please feel free to let me know!! 🙂 I love reading ALL types!

Sleeping baby= happy baby!

I hope you enjoy your weekend! & as ALWAYS, go RAVENS 😀

Labor- Part 1

So about that little thing called labor……

The first thing I want to say is that no matter HOW much you read, hear stories, and Google different subjects, I can almost guarantee you that labor will be nothing like what you expect.

I’m sure you have heard the common saying, that you can never ‘plan’ your delivery…and to make sure you are open to the idea that it will NOT go according to your ‘plan.’

Of course the whole experience is a WONDERFUL experience because you are welcoming a new little LIFE into the world!

Here is how my labor went….

I knew from the beginning of my pregnancy that I would be induced. The reason for this is because I have Crohn’s disease and apparently if you go past your due date it can effect the disease.

(that’s me at 39 weeks- almost time to go in to be induced…please ignore the toilet paper in the back ground..ha!)

Now I had heard MANY stories of women being induced- the good & the horror stories. To be honest, I feel like I’m a bit odd because I never got nervous about labor/ delivery. I really don’t know WHY, since it’s kind of a big deal…& something that you have never experienced  before, but I just never got those nervous feelings. I think I was just SO excited to meet little G that I really didn’t care how she got here, I just wanted to meet her ASAP!

Craig & I went in on November 4th to start the whole process. Lucky for us we were able to watch the Ravens game at 1pm, and then we had to be at the hospital at 5pm. It was a win-win 😉 (& yep, the Ravens did win that game…we figured that was a good sign of things to come)

(yep, Ravens fan from the start!)

Once we got checked in, the nurse went over the whole process & what we should expect. Now this could be a REALLY long post about my labor, but I’m going to try to just cut to the main points.

Around 6pm she said I would be starting the miso pill (misoprostol) to induce labor. This is a little tiny pill (about the size of aspirin) that is inserted UNDER your cervix. All I’m going to say about this pill is OW! Not that the pill itself hurt, but the process of putting it in my body hurt like HELL. Once it was in though there were no side effects, and I would not of even known it was there.

After the pill is inserted they check you every hour to see if you are dialated. I went into the hospital not dialted at all, and about 80% effaced. After three hours if my contractions were not too close together then they would insert another pill. (lucky me 😉 )

Really the time was just a waiting process, so Craig & I were just going to watch the Sunday night game. Welllllll we had some surprise visitors….Craig’s parents!!!! My parents were already down in Orlando just waiting to head to the hospital & Craig’s parents had planned a trip later in November to come & meet her. But as I was speaking to the nurse, they came in to surprise us. 🙂 They didn’t want to miss G’s big entrance into the world! It was an awesome surprise & I’m truly so happy they were there!

(both of our families)

We actually had the BEST pre-delivery experience. It was AWESOME having both of our parents there, we all just sat around in my labor room & watched football, caught up on life, and laughed & laughed. I would not of changed a thing!

Now the fun part, I’m REALLY going to sum this up…because I doubt you want to hear hour by hour details 😉 So I wasn’t dialating AT ALL, but I was having contractions apart 2-3 minutes apart- so I couldn’t have another miso pill & they didn’t want to start the pitocin if I wasn’t dialated.

My doctor decided to go ahead and start the pitocin around 1am November 5th. So that’s what we did….and still NOTHING.

(that would be me…just waiting…and waiting for SOMETHING to happen)

At 9am a new nurse came in to see how things were ‘progressing.’ ….and NOTHING. Not dialated at all. At this point I was looking for anything that could help push this labor along- they sat I could try bouncing on a birthing ball. (I just used a regular exercise ball) So I sat there bouncing away & I also did a TON of squats. I swear I got the biggest leg workout in the day of delivery 😉

Around 10am the doctors that were going to do my epidural came into talk to me because that was the part that I was the MOST nervous about. I had heard HORROR stories of epidurals gone wrong…and I kept thinking ‘oh gosh, I’m going to be paralyzed after all of this.’  The doctors were AWESOME & very calming….I knew there was no way in heck I was NOT getting an epidural, I just needed to calm down about it.

Around 10:30am I started getting SUPER painful contractions. I called the nurse in & talked to her…asked if it was too soon for an epidural. She wanted to check me first, and said I was about 1cm. So I was progressing, but they don’t recommend an epidural until about 4-5cm. I just said ok, and figured I would tough out the pain.

At this point I thought I was a HUGE chicken because I was complaining about this pain & I was only 1cm?! Well at 11:30am, we called the nurse in again because I didn’t care I wanted the epidural. I was IN PAIN. & this wasn’t ‘normal pain’…this was real.

The nurse was kind of hesitant about it, only because she was like…you are BARELY dialated & you want to go ahead with the epidural?! (again…felt like a huge chicken) I asked what other options we had…and she mentioned that we could just call it a day & HEAD HOME since there was no progressing & WAIT FOR THINGS TO HAPPEN NATURALLY. I looked up at Craig & he was about to LOSE it.

I calmly asked the nurse to please give us a few minutes to talk alone. Craig & I were both in the same boat….I mean we had already come so far & the thought of ‘packing it up & heading home’ after all of this made me want to cry.

AS we were talking at 11:45am MY WATER BROKE! Naturally!!!!!!!!!

I immediately starting crying because I was somewhat overwhelmed with thoughts- SO excited, but also just overwhelming. Craig was running around the room, kissing me on my head & just saying “Babe, this is what we wanted! This is what we wanted!!”

She was telling us that she was coming out today & there was NO ‘heading home & waiting it out….’ This girl had other plans…

…..I will continue this story in another post as it’s getting pretty long 🙂

I want to leave you with a cute picture, here is a sneak peak at our newborn pictures:

Blue or Pink????

In case anyone still reads this silly little blog of mine…that I barely post on….just wanted to let you know that are BEYOND happy to announce….

We are having a GIRL!!!!!!!

That’s our little baby girl!! 🙂 And let me tell you, that little lady is already completely spoiled!!!!

We can’t wait for her to get here…still scheduled due date is November 3rd!

Shortly after I found out we were having a girl, I had to text Janae to let her know that our little girls would soon be BFF’s!! 😀 Two little runner girls…sounds perfect to me!!

Well since I don’t post much on here…life has gotten busy (YAY!), if you’d like to stay in touch, please find me on Facebook! 🙂

How Workouts Have Changed

First, you guys are the BEST.

I cannot even tell you how MUCH your Congrats, emails, texts, and Facebook messages made me smile.

I haven’t even been on here much, obviously not posting much, nor have I been much of a ‘commenter’ on other blogs, and for that I’m sorry! I am trying to improve now. I was just EXHAUSTED during my first trimester.

I mean I thought I knew what exhausted felt like. HA! I was totally wrong. Pregnancy exhaustion is a WHOLE NEW LEVEL.

I’m used to getting up at 5am everyday to head to the gym. Well around my 6 week mark this was just NOT happening anymore. I could BARELY pull my butt out of bed by 7am. So typically I would try to get my workout in during my lunchbreak. (I would take a long lunch break, so that I had time to shower & try to look presentable again. 🙂 )

But there were other days when the gym was just NOT going to happen. Physically my body was done. I felt like I ran a marathon at the end of the day. I have NEVER been so tired in my entire life. I was LUCKY to make it past 7:30pm. Oh yes, I was in bed when there was still light outside!

Honestly I think it was just what my body needed. I promised myself from the MINUTE that I found out I was pregnant that I would LISTEN to my body. If I was too tired to workout, then that is OK! There is absolutely no need to push myself when my body is doing the MOST important job that it has EVER done…making my little bean!! 🙂

So yes, it took a little adjusting MENTALLY because I’m SO stuck in a routine & get down on myself for missing a workout. But you know what?? This little bean FAR FAR FAR outweighs ANY silly little thing that my mind could be trying to tell me. (Like it’s terrible to miss a workout)

I took a few days off each week from working out during my first trimester, and really only did VERY light workouts- like walking & light weight lifting. (Lower weight, high reps) If I didn’t feel up to it, I just didn’t do it. And you know what the best part is? I didn’t care. It didn’t matter. All that I care about it taking perfect care of this baby & in order to do that, I have to take care of myself!

Now that I’m in my second trimester I’m finally getting my energy back & it feels SO good!!! 😀 I no longer require a bedtime of 7:30pm, I can actually make it to 9pm…most nights. 😉 I have been back in the gym- about 5-6 days a week & it leaves me feeling EVEN better after a workout- much more energy!! I have been taking BodyPump classes & then either walking on the treadmill, doing some light jogging, or spending time on the elliptical.

Now I cannot tell a lie, I have very much enjoyed being back in the gym. I just feel more like myself. I feel like HOLLY again!!

But that’s not to say that if I really do not feel up for a workout, then I still go. Nope. I just don’t go. I listen to what my body is telling me, and what my little bean is saying.

So far I’ve felt great & up for my workouts. Like I said, it’s amazing what an hour or so of some exercise really picks up my energy levels! It’s nice to go back to work energized & ready to press on through my day.

I have a feeling this might turn into more of a pregnancy blog. Sorry, I’m not sorry, but it’s the most important thing in my life right now!! 😀 So it tends to take up much of my thinking. I’m sure you understand.

I’d love to share ‘how it all happened’ (Well, I’m SURE you know that 😉 – haha!), but I mean in relation to my Crohn’s disease, birth control, thoughts about my body, etc. I figure I’ll save those for another day…since this is getting pretty lengthy.

I’ve SURE missed you all!!! Thank you again for sticking with me!!! 😀