::Henley:: On the MOVE!

It looks like it may be time to start baby proofing the house!! Baby is on the move ---



Happy Weekend All!!

Mere :-)

::Get Fit:: Stretch Marks Before and After!

If you've been reading for a while, you know that right after Henley was born I posted my goals for getting fit and healthy post partum. As part of that post I mentioned that I started using a cream on my stretch marks. I was initially using Bio Oil but had read great reviews about Mama Mio's Goodbye Stretch Marks so decided to give it a try. 

The directions say to use it three times a day but I didn't have time to dedicate to that. I put it on in the morning and any time I got out of the shower. I didn't use it on my breasts if I knew I would be feeding Henley soon thereafter and the marks on my breasts are darker than my stomach. This makes sense since I was much more diligent about putting it on my belly, I really didn't want Henley ingesting the lotion. I am about halfway through my second bottle of this.

Here we are three months since that post (five months since Henley's birth) with results from using this lotion. We have been going to the beach lately and my hubs pointed out how light the marks were. I knew they were getting better but hearing someone else point it out was great to hear. I took pictures this morning and now seeing the pictures side by side is proof how well they look. I almost didn't believe it. 

Before w/o flash

After w/o flash

Before w/ flash

After w/ flash

I am so pleased with these results. If you are having problems with stretch marks I highly recommend this cream. It's $70 but worth it for me. I just wanted to share and let you all know there is hope!

Thanks to the short week it's already Thursday! Yay! 

Mere :-)

::Holidays:: Happy Memorial Day!

Happy Memorial Day! We enjoyed a low key day on the beach and Henley rocked the most patriotic suit of all!

Have a Great Day!!

Mere :-)

::Henley:: 5 Month Update!

Many of my friends that already have babies kept telling me how fun it gets when the babies hit 4 months old and I couldn't agree more. This month has been full of milestones, laughs, giggles, smiles, and overall change. She sees us from across the room. She squawks and chats all of the time. She is so fun and it gets better and better each day! I can't wait to see what Month 5 has in store for us!

Weight

We went to the doctor's office for her 4 month appointment and she weighed 14 lbs 14 ozs. I have no idea what she weighs now but I'm guessing at least 15 lbs. Carrying her in the infant car seat is getting heavy! I actually ordered a convertible car seat today so we don't have to keep taking the car seat into day care (the hubs drops off and I pick up). I'm looking forward to not having to lug that thing around anymore.

Health

She's really had a great month overall. She got her 4 month shots last month and both mom and baby did better than we did for her two month shots. She is in the 60th and 75th percentiles for weight and height respectively. The doctor said everything looks great with her and she's right on schedule.

She's been getting congested at night pretty regularly since about 1-2 months old. She sounds fine during the day and I've read that this is just how some babies are. It really doesn't seem to bother her and she's still in a great mood so mama's learned to deal with it.

Sleep

This has been an exciting month for sleep. She has gone from her Rock n Play, to the Pack n Play, and finally to the crib. We started with putting her in the Pack n Play and she would last about 4-5 hours in there but after that, she wasn't interested. We tried swaddled, unswaddled, and only one arm swaddled but after her first stretch of sleep, she was done with the PnP and would end up in our bed.

About two weeks ago, my mom was visiting on a Saturday to hang out. When it was time for Henley to go down for a nap, we put her in the crib. We had been doing this for a few weeks but it just seemed like she loved it. She went down and slept for an hour in the crib. She would rumble and start to wake up and then put herself back to sleep. The next day, we did another nap in the crib and she slept for two hours in the crib. After that I started thinking it is time for the crib at night.

We weren't quite ready for her to be so far away and we have a guest bed in our nursery so we thought we would all try the crib out on that Sunday night. Trying the crib for the first time on a week night probably wasn't the best idea but it turned out great! Ted and I slept in the bed in her room, Fitz was totally perturbed (he hates change), and Henley slept from 7:30-6:30! She did this again the second and third nights! On the fourth night she got up at 4 and I nursed and put her back down. We didn't swaddle her since she was napping without the swaddle and now that she can roll, it's perfect. 

A typical night is Henley is in the crib at 7:30 unswaddled and she rolls on her side. Around midnight she rumbles and turns on her belly for the rest of the night. For the most part she is sleeping 10-11 hours straight although we've had a few nights of her waking at 2 or 4. Those nights I try to soothe her and if she doesn't fall back asleep, I nurse her and lay her back down. 

I have really been shocked how well this has been overall. While she was still sleeping in the RnP, she would stretch forever in the mornings, now that she's in the crib there is very little stretching. I really think this means that she was ready for the crib and had outgrown the RnP.

This has been even further confirmation of our parenting style---we really try to listen to her and follow her cues and so far it has proven to be successful for us. I know it may not work for every family but it's working for us.

Clothing

She is wearing 3-6 month clothes for the most part. She has tons of cute clothing that I have been buying from BabyGap, Old Navy, and Carters. Now that we aren't swaddling, she is wearing footy pj's (I die of cuteness) and the 6 month size of those is getting a little snug. I think it may be time to bump up the size in those. 

The larger size of cloth diapers are working out great!! We have had zero blow outs (which we can't say the same for the disposables at day care). She is wearing gDiapers in a Medium, Swaddlebees in a Medium, and Charlie Bananas in a Small. We have been loading the Charlie Bananas with two liners for night time and they have been perfect! No leaks and her skin is dry in the morning.

Diet

Only mama's milk still. Breastfeeding is still going great although now that she is more aware of her surroundings, it's a little more challenging. I find her looking around and pulling on my boob as she looks wherever noise is coming from.

The doctor told us to wait until six months for solids and we are going to try to stick with those recommendations. She is watching us eat but I think that is just mainly because she is checking everything out.

Baby Gear Love

This month has really been the start of her getting to play with her bigger toys.

The Baby Einstein Activity Saucer is one of her favorite things. She will sit in there and play with everything. She has started even hitting the buttons to get it to sing.

We are finally using the Moby Go Carrier instead of the Bjorn. This supports her body better, instead of her dangling from her crotch, her whole body is supported.

When we moved her to her room, one thing we noticed was that all of her soothers were on timers. In our room, we had an iHome alarm clock that played the white noise constantly but in her room, once the soothers stopped, she would wake up. We researched on Amazon and got her the Munchkin Nursery Projector ---This is so great! It has continuous play, has a nightlight and a projector. For $24.99 there is no better deal!

Some of the other toys that she really has been drawn to are the Taggies blanket and this toy from Target.


Crying

Same on this---she only cries when she is hungry or tired which I know is amazing. We are blessed!

Social

Lots of exciting stuff going on in the world of Henley! She has really been great to go out with and it's great to get into a new normal with her.

On Saturday, April 20th Henley participated in the breaking of the Guinness Book of World Record for the most cloth diapers changed at one time. There was an expo in town that had vendors from various local green businesses, a cloth diaper swap, and bunch of activities for children and families. During this was the Great Cloth Diaper Change. Since it was a Guinness Record, there were certain rules to follow in order for it to count (apparently these were being held all over the country at the exact same time). At 11:00am, all of the moms and babies were on stage, they blew a whistle and a-changing we went. Afterwards we all held the babies up for a picture. My cousin happened to be there too so Henley and Brooklyn (who are two weeks apart) participated together.

On stage getting ready for the change

Holding our clean cloth diapers up before the change

Changing

All Done!!

We went to my mom's pool and hung out.

Henley had her first "school" pictures. Mama made sure to put her in the most adorable outfit we could find---complete with pink glitter shoes!

On Mother's Day, I got to go to Henley's school for muffins with mom. It was so great having a break in my day to see her plus I got a cute keepsake that I have hanging in my office.

On Mother's Day weekend Henley got dedicated at church.

We went to the beach for Mother's Day. Henley was great. She played on her belly for a while, fell asleep for an hour, and then played a little more.

Snoozing

We went on our first run with Henley in the BoB. She was out about one mile in. It was great to get out there and run.

Postpartum

This mama is going bald! My biggest complaint at the moment is mega hair loss. I swear I have bald spots and a receding hair line. It's out of control. I have heard this slows down at around six months postpartum, I can't wait!!

I have been using Goodbye Stretch Marks from Mama Mio for about four months now and they are almost gone! It's so great. I recommend this to anyone!

This week I weighed myself and I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight (yay). I still have a lot of toning to do but back to this weight is a start :-)


Milestones

This month she has been crazy with milestones.

First one was that Henley rolled from back to belly.

Once she learned to roll it would take about 15 seconds before she was onto her belly. It took her about three weeks but yesterday she finally rolled from belly to her back. 

About two weeks ago she started sitting up. She folds forward but she is definitely getting control of sitting. I love this picture, I think it's because I can see her neck. I don't get to see it very often with all of that chunk around!

Like I said, this month has been more than great! I cannot wait for things to come.

A little photo shoot with mama :-)

As you can see these posts are massive! I feel like weekly updates are too frequent but these are so pack with info and photos they get a little daunting. I need to find a happy median. :-)

It's finally the weekend!!! I am battling a little cold or something so say a little prayer I feel better! Hope your weekend is awesome!

Mere :-)

::Henley:: My First Mother's Day & Henley's Dedication

My first Mother's Day weekend was amazing! The fun really started on Friday. I had such a busy week at work that I could not wait to get Henley from daycare on Friday. I picked her up and we ran some errands looking for Mother's Day gifts for all of the special ladies in our lives. I hate carrying her around in the car seat because it's so heavy. Well I didn't have the stroller so I just carried her on my hip---it's so great that she is getting sturdy enough to comfortably be carried like that. Everything went great except a little projectile vomiting in Hallmark (at least she missed the cards)

 We ended up making these pictures for Henley's Grandmas and Nana. I picked up these signs at Hallmark and plan to keep them for future years.

I put these in frames with three picture holes. I think they came out great and I wish I was a grandma so I could put these up in my house :-)

On Saturday, we dedicated Henley at church. This service is similar to a baby baptism but instead of Henley getting baptized, this service is the parents and the church commit to raising the babies in accordance to God's word. The little dedication was great and all of our family came out. It's really special seeing how loved Henley is. She has so many people who are loving her and ready to be there for her however she needs. These are so pictures of her with our families:

It was really a great day!! On Sunday we went to the beach and relaxed! Henley loved the beach and actually took a nap for an hour. It was great feeling a little bit of normalcy and just laying out. I hope this is the first of many beach trips to come. 

My husband did an awesome job of making me feel special for Mother's Day. While being a mom is hard and challenging, the rewards are tenfold and one thing I know for sure is that I could not do all that I do for Henley without my husband. Thank you for everything babe! We are quite the team! :-)

I hope all of my new mama friends had a great Mother's Day too. Now if only Mother's Day wasn't followed by work! I had a hard time leaving Hens this morning and I couldn't wait to get her afterwards. She's such a little blessing and I love her so! Hoping this week flies by!

Mere :-)

::Love Mere:: My New Etsy Shop

It is here! My Etsy shop is finally open!! I have a shop for all kind of things, mostly baby related---skirts and ties, burp cloths, and soap bits for cloth wipes are among my first listings.

Onesie & Skirt

Skirt

Ties

Burp Cloths

I'm planning to post blankets, pillows, and other nursery decor soon so be sure to follow me so you get the latest updates! Let me know what you think!!

Mere :-)