Cute? Who Me?

These are the photos I could not get when Jack was at work and I was by myself. So sweet. Love the hoodie baby towels.

* If you click on the photo, it will enlarge

3 Months

Her 3 month photos are not my finest photography work....it  was morning so I was rushing and she was not super smiley. Regardless, you can't mess up a subject this cute.  I LOVE the outfit she is wearing, it's one my brother and his girlfriend purchased for her. She has grown quite a bit this month; in size and personality. She is not a chubby baby but very long. Her feet are at the very bottom of 9 month sleepers!

Please excuse the bed head. She has a wild cowlick in the back!

This one really depicts the stage she is in. She loves to pick up her feet and bring them toward her tummy.  I think she is trying to figure out how to roll over.  She also shoots her hands out to reach for stuff. I love it when she discovers new things.

Three months has flown by - I love her more and more each day! xo

Joy Ride

Shelby has been doing MUCH better in her car seat. One day a switch just flipped in her head and she realized that it is not such a bad place after all.  She’ll still fuss if she is wet or hungry, but I would expect that.  Other than that though, she now either “talks” to me or falls asleep.

Jack sent me this photo this morning as he was on his way to work…..much better than the scene he would have captured two weeks ago.

We're Alive

She made it.
I made it.
Jack made it.

We made it through the first couple days of day care and being back in the office. Phew!

All and all, I have been very pleased with the day care and I think Shelby has been doing ok - not great, but not terrible. She looks SO TIRED when I pick her up though. Yesterday she slept 30 minutes and today about 1.5 hours in a combination of cat naps. Typically she would sleep about 4 hours in that same period, so it's no wonder she is sleepy.

She is slowly taking to the bottle. She only took 1 oz a couple of times this morning, but then slugged down 4oz all at once this afternoon. The ladies there agreed that she still just doesn't fully understand how to suck from the bottle, but she's getting there. She sure loves to suck on her hands though....

They tell me that she really enjoys voices  and "circle time," when they do music and nursery rhymes. She has really amped up the cooing in the last ten days or so, so it does not surprise me that she enjoys the audible experiences.

As for me returning to work - I am tired. I pretty much sprint from 5:30 am to 7:30 am to get out the door, but we make it and are two-for-two for on-time departures. Work itself is not bad. I am very fortunate to work with the team and clients that I do. PR in this town is traditionally a little nutty, but my position is definitely manageable.

I certainly have more to share, but for now, I better get going. I only have so much energy.

Shelby's "teacher" sent this photo today with the caption "nap time," and it made me smile.

Thanks to all for the support and warm wishes....as Bob Wiley said on What About Bob "Baby Steps."

State of the Union

With my pumpkin starting Day Care tomorrow, I compiled a list of cliff notes about all things Shelby. I am sure the staff there will figure things out pretty quickly, but I thought putting together some notes might help alleviate at least one meltdown.

Below is what I put together. It's a State of the Union, if you will.....

Thank you so much for looking after my sweet Shelby while my husband and I are at work; we really appreciate the partnership. With your years of experience, I am sure the below will quickly become evident, however I have compiled some notes about Shelby in an effort to make the "getting to know you" period go a little more smoothly.

As of her first day, she'll be 12 weeks and 3 days. To this point she has been exclusively breastfed - no formula, water, cereal, etc. She has not been keen on the bottle. We have tried giving it to her off and on for weeks and only sporadically will she take it. On a optimistic note though, she has successfully taken several ounces on several occasions. She seems to like Avent bottles best, but if you have suggestions for another bottle after observing her habits, we're open to suggestions. Chances are, I have whatever brand you have in mind, at home.

I have been home with her to this point, so yes, she is a mama's girl. Just recently she has become a little more social though, so I believe she will enjoy the active environment. I would not be surprised though if she fusses for the first several days - we're normally together 24/7.

She just started taking a pacifier a couple of weeks ago and loves it. She really needed it for quite a while. I typically only give it to her when she is tired. You'll notice her gnawing on her hands when she gets really tired.  She plays with her hands often, but when she needs to suck, it's more aggressive and she often fusses.  She doesn't fully know how to keep it in her mouth, so if it falls out she may explode like a volcano.....the whole day care will know she lost her pacifier.

Shelby is a great sleeper and really has been since birth. I know her schedule will soon change to accommodate her new school routine, but to date, she is pretty accustom to the below. She does not stick to this every day, but surprisingly, she does not deviate much. She has been swaddled for her noon nap and at night time since birth. If she is relaxed and very tired, you may notice her crossing her arms across her chest - this means she is ready to conk out.

6:30 am                Wake up, eat a ton

7:30 am                Back to sleep for 60 -90 minutes

9:00 am                Wake up, eat, bath, play

10:30 am              Quick Nap

11:00 am              Eat, play, tummy time - starts wanting pacifier

12:30 pm              Take long (swaddled) nap for anywhere for 2 to 4 hours (recently they have been 2)

3:00 pm                Wake up, eat, play

5:00 pm                Quick nap

5:30 pm                Wake up, eat, play

7:00 pm                Change into PJ's

7:30 pm                Quick nap

8:00 pm                Wake up, eat, start winding down, wants pacifier

9 - 10 pm              Falls asleep for the night              

Some other items of note...

She recently started to babble. It's awesome. If you talk to her directly and/or if there is music playing she'll start to try and "talk."

She loves toys with music and lights.

She is getting close to rolling over, but not quite there yet.

She cannot yet sit on her elbows/stomach. She def needs tummy time, as the doctors have concern about her head becoming flat (yikes!).

Sadly, she has a little bit of diaper rash. I am trying diligently to make it go away, but will need your help in keeping those fat rolls clean.

She only poops every few days or so. Sometimes she'll go daily and on other occasions it will be several days between bowel movements. She has MANY wet diapers in a day though.

I think those are the major "talking points" that I can think of to share. I really look forward to working with you to make this the best possible experience for Shelby. I know all of the above will soon change and she'll have new goals, routines, etc.

If you ever have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Kind Regards,

Michelle Schenk

Baby Power Tools
Meet the Booger Sucker 2000:

Ok, the proper name is the Graco Nasalclear 0+ Months Battery Operated Aspirator  but I prefer to call it the Booger Sucker 2000. This thing cracks me up.  It is a battery operated snot sucker! When Shelby was sick the doctor suggested it, noting that the old school "bulbs" are not often too helpful. At first, I was terrified of it - how much suction? Will it hurt? Suck out her brains? Of course, Jack thought it was awesome and got right to work.  Immediately we noticed a couple of things that made us laugh. First, you can press a button and it plays a lullaby. Nothing more soothing than having your snot sucked and being rocked to sleep. Second, there is a "do not fill last this line," line in that clear area. Eww, gross! WHO HAS THAT MUCH SNOT?! 

Anyway, it actually is far more usful than the bulb and surprisingly, Shelby likes it. It must be the hum of the motor or something that gets her attention.

Never in a million years would I have thought such a tool would exist, but even babies need their power tools.

Storage Wars

Admittedly, the situation in our freezer is a little out of hand. Shelby's future meals have pretty much taken over the entire top portion of our freezer. If you strain your vision you can see Kashi waffles and some frozen pint glasses, but that's about it. Nothing like reaching past 100 oz of milk to get your beer glass.

Jack jokingly questions the saneness of the whole situation, but to me it's like a trophy case! To me, all I see is freedom and hopefully, one less runny nose from day care! Once I am back to work though I have no doubt that this will clear out rapidly.  Until then, all frozen items will just have to stay downstairs.

Move Over Folgers

This is my best part of waking up.....although coffee is the next runner up. As far as things to have to wake up for, this is a pretty awesome by most standards.

Below is only part of her routine. I am not kidding, she stretches for nearly a minute. It's so funny - Dad would be proud!

Time to Move On, Time to Get Goin'

This week marks not only the end of my maternity leave, but the end of a small chapter in my life. I definitely hope to have more children, but I know that any future leave won't be like this one. I won't be able to just hold my peanut for hours on end and just focus on all things baby. I will have Shelby to chase around, entertain and love on too. I will also have to schlep baby 2 around to various activities.....I am sure a toddler doesn't do too well cooped up for 12 weeks (or 12 days for that matter). I am sure the only thing better than one sweet child is two, but I can't help to get sentimental.

I have been beyond grateful that I really haven't had to stress about work much. After about the first 2 weeks of leave, my phone was no longer synched to my work email, making it really easy for me to disconnect. I would check my inbox every week or two, but only to make sure there was nothing personal or super urgent in there.  I report back to the office on Monday morning. I was a big Tom Petty fan in junior high and high school.  Despite the fact the original lyrics are about a break up (I think),  the lyrics to his song "Time to Move On" keep playing in my head...

Time to Move On
Time to Get Goin'
What lies ahead I have no way of knowin'
etc., etc.,

Monday will also be sweet Shelby's first day of day care. Sighhhhh. I attempted to get her in for half days this week to transition her in, but they said that actually makes things more difficult; they like to start the babies off with their routines on day one. Shelby is a major creature of habit, so I suppose that is probably a good idea. She still resists the bottle, which of course, gives me great anxiety about leaving her for 8 hours at a time. Thing around here have been a full on bottle battleground for about 4 weeks and I have EVERY type of bottle they make....Born Free, Tommee Tippee, Avent, Playtex, etc.  I hope it's just a battle of wills and that when the time comes, she'll eat. She has taken the Advent bottles a couple of times, but it has to be the perfect scenario for her. Other friends who have nursed their babies said they found themselves in similar situations and the Program Director at the school reassured me that "she's never seen a baby starve."

I have give Jack some MAJOR kudos for all his help over the last 3 months as well....especially in the beginning. It wasn't until recently that I could dash to the store while she was sleeping or even run a couple of errands with her. He was a major help with grocery runs, cooking, helping with dinner, chores, etc. He has also been a trooper with Shelby and ummmm her method for "expressing her love" for Daddy (ie screaming her head off). She has been slow to take to her Daddy, but Jack has powered through hour-long screaming sessions with her so I could run to the gym or various things. I feel like this will get better after some time in day care and after she is accustom to the bottle. Hope so.....

So for now I will just soak up these last few days. I have quite a few social things lined up between now and Monday - probably more than I've had in several weeks. I do look forward to some adult interaction and not being trapped in my house all day, but my heart does break for sweet Shelby.

As my Dad always say, "On With the Adventure!" So here we go.

We're Making Progress

My little one is making progress with holding her head up. She still loathes tummy times after about 90 seconds, so I've been trying to help her sit up a lot more.  We're not quite there yet, but she has made great strides. I give it two more weeks and she'll be sitting pretty in her little Bumbo seat.

Apparently the Bumbo will soon make a good babysitter too....

Ok, confession: I staged that photo, but still pretty cute.

A Monday Miracle

No, seriously - it was. I made it to the grocery store, shopped (without forgetting half my list) and home without a single holler from my sweet passenger. For those of you who have had to pleasure of sharing a car ride with Shelby, you understand how amazing this is! She has made it to a destination and sometimes even through an errand, but she normally has a melt down of some variety on the way home.....or more commonly, loses her mind the whole time! Early on, she would only cry when the car stopped moving (as in a red light), but slowly it evolved to full on disdain for her seat and the whole leaving the house experience. For this very reason I have spend days in a row at home this summer. So glamorous.

I am probably jinxing myself by even bringing it up, but it totally made my day. She has to start day care next week and it would be far better for her to not show up a snotty, hot, sweaty, teary mess each morning. Here's to hoping.

Proud Mama,
Michelle

Bursting With Happiness!

Today my dear friend Amanda and her sweet husband Josh welcomed a darling baby boy into the world! She shot me at text this morning at 5am saying she was at the hospital and then about an hour ago, I got the "It's a boy" text and photo. They named him Jett and he was 7lbs, 4oz and 21 inches long.

I just couldn't be happier; Amanda has been a close friend of mine since 7th grade. Since having Shelby I now fully understand the joy of a new baby and am just bursting with happiness for the two of them. What a lucky baby boy.

Love you Amanda!

My Sunshine

One of my favorite parts of the day is watching Shelby play on her "play yard." I put it by the window and she has a grand old time. She has really started to get a kick out of in the last week or so. Since the lighting is so great, I snapped some photos and took a quick video.

If this doesn't make you smile, I am pretty sure nothing will.

The many faces of my Little Miss:

People Watching

The other night Jack's mom took Shelby for 30 or 40 minutes while I buzzed around the kitchen cooking dinner. Shelby was in awe and had so much fun watching all the activity in the kitchen. It was just far too cute, so I had to snap a couple of photos.

This Sucks

My peanut is finally taking a pacifier - phew. Now, I'd imagine most parents wouldn't want to introduce something that they'll eventually have to take away, but she really needed it. Every day, without fail, when Shelby would get tired she would fuss and fuss and gnaw on her hands. She would try with all her tiny might to get that fist of hers into her mouth and, for obvious reasons,  would fail time and time again.  She has actually done this since she was a couple weeks old. The other alternative would be that she'd try to nurse, but not really need to eat, and then get sick.

In the past I had tried to give it to her, but she never really caught on and it would pop right out, often with force. She will take it now, but it still takes a few seconds for her to get the hang of it. I definitely don't give it to her all the time or when she cries, but right before her noon-ish nap and before she goes down for the night, she really needs it. I feel so bad that it has taken me this long to give it t get the hang of it.

Here she is peacefully snoozing in her "G-Ma's" arms with her pacifier.

Woombie

There have been many "firsts" around here in the last week or so. We've been fortunate to have company this week though, so I am a little behind in my blogging.....

This past week we transitioned Shelby out of her Pack n Play in our room, to her crib. With Day Care on the horizon, we thought this was one less thing we'd throw at her all at once.  We planned on doing it sooner, but with her being sick and then her shots, we thought keeping her close by was the prudent thing to do. She seems to do just fine in her crib, I didn't really doubt that she would. She has slept through the night (8 hrs) since about 5.5 weeks, so for her to derail now, would be odd.

She did pretty well the first couple nights, but then the third night I heard chaos on my monitor around 4am. With weary eyes I turned on the video portion only to catch her totally unswaddled, arms and legs thrashing about. It was actually kind of funny and I was certainly not expecting it. I went in her room, tried to rock her and re-swaddle her, but she wanted to eat....so we did that too.

After her snack, she was still kind of wiggly so I tried out my baby straightjacket, I mean Woombie:
*No, that's not Shelby in the photo.

My friend Emily (who has a super fancy, money generating blog: http://www.familylifeinlv.com/) suggested this product long ago. It was in one of those "if you buy one single baby product, buy this..." type conversations. So I did, but didn't give it a try until now.

All Woombie'd up, she slept like a dream the rest of the night. Fast forward 24 hours and we found ourselves in the same situation; the baby monitor going bananas, only to kind my baby kicking and wiggling like a roach on its back. Again, I Woombie'd her and back to baby sleepy land.

Last night I went ahead and zipped her into to glowworm costume from the get go and she slept through the night, like usual. I will probably be using the Woombie now, as it appears my Little Miss can now escape her swaddle in the night (she still does ok swaddled for naps).

Woombie - where do they come up with this stuff???

4th of July

We spent the 4th of the July with many of our close friends at the Familian's House. They have a stunning home in Henderson with one of the best views of Las Vegas that I have ever seen and no doubt, the best backyard! As the fireworks lit up the sky, they were visible in all parts of the valley; it was truly amazing. As a special treat Jack's parents are visiting, so they took part in the fun.

Shelby spit up on her original 4th of July outfit, so after a change we ended up being twins.
Our first family 4th of July photo:

I Can Do The Impossible

I really can. You know when someone gives you a house plant and says "Don't worry, this is impossible to kill." Well, guess what - I can kill it! I am arguably the WORST person at keeping plants, both indoor and out, alive. The funny thing is, I never forget about them - it's actually the opposite - I obsess about if I am watering them enough or too much. I am always amazed when people have had plants for 15+ years. That doesn't even seem possible in my book!

Jack recently decided we need more green in our house and bought a few house plants, including a window herb garden. So-far-so-good. It will be pretty fun if it actually yields herbs that I can cook with. We'll see.....