Poor baby and poor mommy!

I know its been a while since my last post, but its all due to the fact that our 7 week old little baby boy got his first cold. It is such a sad sad sight! It all started I believe with his cousin Cecilia and her cold. She is only 4 months old and got the sniffles and congestion and all and Ali and Dustin also got the cold. They spent a couple of nights up with her all night long and I was so thankkful that no one in our little family, especially Elem had gotten sick yet. Then woudlnt you know it, with how close our families are, one thing lead to another and we wake up on Monday morning-well Seth wakes up on Monday morning, Elem and I actually spent the entire night up together cause he was fussy all night long. When we got up on Monday I finally took his temperature because there was just nothing I could do for the little fella and wouldnt you know he had 100.8. :( I felt so bad because he was almost etting on my nerves cause I couldnt do anything for him all night. All the while he was feeling so sick and I didnt even know. I suck!

So I pretty much held him all day long and as the day progressed so did his snot and sneezing! He ran fever for about 2-3 days and then it pretty much passed. So by Wednesday he was actually looking a little better at times. Here and there at least he would have a few good hours. But the little dude still couldnt breathe.

So while I was getting so excited that he was feeling a little bit better, I notice this really sore throat coming on. And that turned into every time I swallowed it felt like my throat was on fire, and then my head started getting stuffy and my nose and all. So I immediatly went to the doc yesterday cause I ddint want to get Elem any more sick. And I have the freaking strep! No! I have not had that since I was like 6 years old!But now I have it. And I feel so aweful! He gave me a zpac and some meds for the sore throat. I think I got it because I got Elems cold and with all the lack of sleep and just straight up run down-ness that I have been going through, it just spiralled into something way worse that just the ole cold.

So since I got meds yesterday I decided to take little dude on in to the doc today cause I got nervous that he could get strep. Well we went to visit Dr. Stewart and she informed me that he just has a cold. His temp was only 99.7-which they took rectally I might add. :( Elem cried and I almost did too. I dont like that one bit. And she said it could last 5-10 days! ANd all the mucous that has been clotting his little eyes together where he cant even open his eyes, she said that is his snot backing up and coming out his tear ducs. What in the world!!!

But she did inform me that babies cant get strep because their tonsil tissue is not developed enough or something so I had no fears there. She pretty much sent me home with the directions to keep him away from any sick babies-wash my hands like crazy, and to get some saline drops and do the bulb suction like crazy to suction all that snot out of his nose. So I have been doing all of those things and I even cleaned my whole house to make sure everything was disenfected! Hopefully we are on the downward part of the hill and Elem will start feeling some comfort soon. For now, he is asleep in his crib snot filled nose and all. ANd me and my sore throat are taking it easy, hoping that the zpac pulls through and I am feeling lots better by tomorrow.

It is really hard to take care of an infant who is sick, when you are sick yourself. And to stay up all night to make sure they feel better, when you need someone to be taking care of you! I have such great respect for my mom and dad and all the mothers out there who take of their babies and kids through all those crazy sicknesses that you know we all had, when they were right there with us, getting sick along the same time! Cant wait to feel better and hopefully tomorrow Ill feel a whole lot better and Elem too. Ill try to post some pics of a happier baby than we have in the house tonight. I dont think he would enjoy me pestering him for some "sick photots" for the blog! haha! Peas-

This morning-

Well one thing I didnt know about being a mom is the planning of taking a shower. You know, planning of taking a shower around your baby's schedule! haha! Anyways, so this morning I couldnt ever really find a good time to take a shower with Elem up and then eating and then napping for only like 20 minutes and all the housework I had that I should have been doing. But when I did finally find some time, I just stuck him in my bed so I could hear him if he started to cry while I was in the shower. Sometimes I stick him in his little papasan chair in the bathroom with me, but he seems to like our bed a lot-a little too much actually-so he slept there. I took a quick shower and never heard him make a peep, so I was really excited, knowing that he was getting some good sleep. I got out and looked on my bed and found you know who babysitting for me! Sage of all things was laying practically on Elem -kinda of like watching over him while I wasnt in the room. It was like she knew that he shouldnt be left alone or something. How crazy. I am sooo excited to know that Sage is warming up to the little guy. I know its hard for her not to be the baby of the house any more and I really want them to be good friends. :):)

Bathtime today

Since Elem is totally tuckered out from a bath a few minutes ago, I thought I would take this time to document the episode. Haha. Every bathtime is so funny to us-not us as in Me and Elem, but us as in me and Seth. This is how it usually goes. Elem eats, gets nice and full and is chillin ready to have a bath! Mommy gets him in the water and he loves it. He just kinda stares and looks around at the cealing and at the wall and at me and Seth and is super happy. Sometimes even cracks a couple of smiles and happy faces. Then after he is all washed up and has been in the bath as long as possible, its time to get out and face the cold. Which is not too bad, cause I take him from right out of the bath to directly into one of his little towels and bundle him up if just for a few minutes. This is the point it gets humorous. Haha. Then you know we have to do the lotion deal. So the towel has to come off and the lotion starts getting put on. Seriously it only takes about 50 seconds for me to get the lotion on, but when Elem starts to scream, you would think, I had left him named for like an hour in 20 degree weather. hahaha. So sad so sad. Then he is bundled up AGAIN, then the diaper and clothes and about 5 minutes later, out like a light.
So I thought everybody would enjoy this mini photo story of:

a day in the life of Elem and his bath

First we get on the couch and I get a bottle from mommy cause she thinks I take to long to breastfeed every time. hehehe. Its better for me, cause I get to eat super fast and get nice and full in about 15 minutes:



Then its off to the bathtub where I love it. Its nice and warm and I can just lay there while mommy keeps running water over me. Kinda like my personal slave. I think I'll stay here for a while.



She gets me nice and clean. Gets in between all my little wrinkles and cleans my hands and feet and fingers and toes. Opps except this time I spit up in the bath and peed too. Oh well, its all good times. I still feel good in this warm water. Maybe this time I dont have to have the lotion. hmm..



Uh oh, out I came straight into the towel. Which wasnt bad, I got all wrapped up and nice and warm........then in just a second the towel is off again. no no no no no, not the lotion. Please not the lotion. I said no lotion mommy its not fun. no!I want back in the bathtub.



Gish what a day. That bath was so much fun and then mommy had to go and ruin it. I am so tired I just cant take it anymore. I am takin a nap cause I cant keep my eyes open anymore. I just cant do it.



ANd thats it. My bathtime. :) Im just gonna keep hopin that the lotion time never happens again, but I think it will. I have a feeling its gonna happen everytime. Ill be up in about an hour and ready to eat again, cause that was stressful for me. Love you all. Peas!

Father's Day for Seth! Yay!

Welp, its official. Seth and I have had our first Mothers and Fathers Day with Elem. And honestly, its really weird, and I know I am speaking for Seth, but its like I neverf realized how special those days were to mothers and fathers until I became one. I mean they are even better than Christmas kinda. Just to know that you have a beautiful baby that you are going to take care of and watch them grow. So cool and so special.

Like I said this past weekend was Fathers Day-6.13.07 and it was Seths first. He was really excited and I think we managed to have a pretty special day.



I had planned on taking him to breakfast or brunch but we actually didnt wak up until 11:15am! Well he didnt wak up till then, Elem and I of course woke up at 4, 6, 9, and then got out of bed at 11am. Haha. So the breakfast thing was a no go but we got up and headed over to Seth's parents house to chill and lay out by the pool and just enjoy the day. But before we could head out, I got Elem up and ready and even bought this super cute outfit especially for Fathers Day! It was so so cute. It was a striped onsie and had little pockets on the side of the legs and everything! So like every other time we have tried to get out of the house, it takes forever!!! so I went ahead and put the outift on him, about 30 minutes before we actually were about to head out the door. Seirously, all we had to do was finish feeding him, and brush our teeth and we were done. Spoon was at the house so he was holding Elem while Seth and I brushed our teeth and then in he comes to our bathroom. Letting us know that Elem had "an explosion" hahaha. Its funny now, ut I of course knew what that meant, and was like give him to me. And just as I suspected, the poor little guy had gotten it all up his back and totally ruined the fathers day outfit! :( Before we could even get out the dang door. hahaha. Anyways, its all washed and fine now, but I totally made a special trip and everything to get that outift and he didnt even get to wear it! What do ya know!

I wanted the day to be special like I said, but as the day went on I ended up just being more tired haha and all I wanted to do was just relax. And seth too. Anyways, Seth got hooked up with lots of goodies for his big day, a hose caddy and a sprinkler from Elem and me (trust me, they were much needed), and the cutest picture frame ever from my mom-I should have taken a pic of it but I didnt. It says daddy rocks on the bottom. I just need to find a better pic to put in it for now, then Ill put it up here. And he got a shirt from his mom and dad and lots and lots and lots of sugar from Elem. :):) I made sure of that.





As the day went on, Chad and Leslie came out and Spoon Laura, and Ali and Dustin were there of course for Dustins first fathers day too. Oh and it was Seth's Dad's first Grandfathers day too.



So overall it was a super special Day. Unfortuntalely my dad couldnt be there cause they were in memphis, BUT he did get to come two weeks ago so at least he got some lovin from elem then. :) It was his first grandfathers day too!



It was a great day, just a good time to relax and enjoy the moment. Seth is such a great dad and I am so happy we got to celebrate such a special day with his friends and family. Its so freaking amazing to see him interact with Elem. I haved to admit, I was a little skiddish at the idea of Seth being responsible for a baby. haha! Not in a bad way, dont get me wrong he is really responsible and so loving and giving, but he is also a great big kid a lot of the time. And he had never really ever been around and kids at all, I think he had only held like his little cousins twice. But he has done so great. And now seeing him comfortable holding Elem and changing his diapers and clothed and carrying him around the house its awesome. And I really dont have anything to worry about. Elem is so lucky to have a dad that loves his so much., I know Seth will keep doing a great job. Now we just need to work on getting him up in the middle of the night for a feeding or two and he might just be on the road to a perfect man! :):)

one more swim pic

I just had to add this one. After one ruff day-well hour at the pool, here is my baby all tuckered out. Little Elem, up close and personal. How sweet. Seth and I are so lucky.

Elem's 1st swim

Yes, I know I know, he is so young for us to be puttin him in the pool, but hey, its super hot outside and the pool is warm, so we thought why not. Elem LOVES to be outside, and he just started liking the bath, so we thought, you know what, its time to introduce the boy to the pool. Not like we were going to have him in a float for the entire day or anything, we just wanted to get him in the cooler water-you know compared to bath water, to see what he would do. Both seth and I are water babies and we love to be in the sun all the time and be in the water and swim and just play, so we think Elem will like it too.

SOo we went over to Seth's parent's house around 1:00pm today just for a few minutes to take a dip. I stripped Elem Down to his diaper, because of course there are no new born swimsuits that I can find. And since he is still too small for the 0-3 month stuff, its hard to find stuff like that. Then I lubed him up in sunscreen from head to toe and off we went to the stairs. Unfortunatley he had been taking a nap cause like I said before he loves the heat and being outside in the sun. So he kinda was awoke by his feet hitting the somewhat cool water. It was apparnelty not pleasant to the little guy.



So daddy picked him up and cuddled him for a sec to make sure he was okay. He was cool with that for a few minutes. I thin it was just the initial shock of you pleasantly sleeping and then someone putting your feet into the water. haha



Then he went back in for a few swirlies with the feet. Still not feeling it! Although I thought it was coming. You know that he would realize hey its hot as hell out here and you know what mommy, I do want to chill in the pool with you guys. But no:




After that we decided to give him a break. I rocked him for all of 5 minutes and boy was he done. He was so tired from all the screaming that I think he just wanted to drift off. Poor thintg. We really were'nt trying to wear him out, we just wanted to introduce him to the pool and everything, Before I knoew it, he was out. :




Seth went inside and got the winnie the pooh chair so Elem could sit and enjoy the vibrating chair and watch mommy and daddy swim laps and frolick in the ole pool. And Papa mow the yard. It was really cool, but Elem just wanted to chill and check out the pooh chair toys:




After about an hor he was out and the day was complete. haha. So much for first time swimming, but at least we got him in there. I hope be starts to like the water though. I really want to keep him around it so he is excited and what not with the pool and just swimming and everything. Its so good for you and I was on a swim team all growing up. And seriously, not only was it like the best exercise for a kid ever,. but it was such a great time., I absolutley loved swimming on a swim team and all kids got ribbons. No matter what place. Its so goood for self esteem. anyways, we will see. So until next swimming lesson, we will think happy thoughts. But overall, what a great day. My baby got in the water! How cool!

Elem and his one month milestones

I have been noticing some crazy changes in Elem and it is literally so amazing. Yes he is still just eating and sleeping most of the time, but when he is awake, he is really awake. And doing all kinds of things. It is so awesome too watch and to know that just a month ago all he did was barely look around when he was awake. Babies have an amazing way of growing up right before your eyes and I think most people miss the little things that they are learning to do. And then there is me, who is so proud of every little thing he does. Haha! Of course I can already tell that he is extremely smart. Probably genius level, Im not sure yet. Ha! :) Who knows though, he really is showing that he is so much more alert and can do so many more things. I wanted to document to ensure everyone knows where he is as far as growing and what not!

-Holds his head up pretty good, without too much bobbling!
-Focus on objects and faces for lengths of time.
-Follows objects as you move them arom side to side.
-Pushes back with feet, when they are pushed on a little bit.
-Lifts head and turn from right to left when on stomach.
-Recognizes familiar voices.
-Hands are still in fists most of the time-open some times.
-Appears to be a little ticklish! :0 Under the arms.
-Is starting to smile, yes some of it is most likely gas, BUT some of them are when he is happy.
-Already likes kisses, and opens up wide to kiss back when you go towards him!
-Loves to go outside, be in the heat, and look around.
-Weighs 10lbs 3oz.
-Moves arms and legs around like crazy. Never still!
-Has super strong grip and can push your finger when you hold his hand.
-Fusses when tired and wants to be rocked to sleep with passy.
-Likes warm water in bath for the most part and stays super relaxed, BUT does not like the lotion part afterwards!
-Loves to be close and cuddle at all times.
-Looks at his hand at random times-dont thin he is sure what it is yet!
-Eats hand when hungry.

Well I think that is the majority of them. I k now they are small and I get a little excited. But I mean it is so amazing to see him growing. He is getting so big!Ill keep ya posted with all the major milestone acheivements! :):)

We miss daddy.

Yes we miss daddy soo sooo much around here! He left on Sunday to go to Chicago for work wont be back till tonight! And we had no idea how much we were going to miss him. When he first left, I figured I would be fine and could handle Elem on my own. I mean how hard could it be, he is only a little over a month old, but geez its crazy how much you need someone else there. Not only to hold him when he is upset and screaming, so you can go pee but for your own sanity. Do you know what it is like to chill all day with only a baby who cant talk back to you. Haha Yes it is fun, but it is a little crazy if you think about it!

Luckily my mom and sis came down for sunday night and Monday all day so I had some adults to talk to and they were amazing. They totally helped me out and took super good care of Elem for me. I am so lucky to have them. But they left at about 2 on monday so since then Elem and I have pretty much been chillin at the house. Taking lots of walks, playin with the mobile, on the floor, reading books and taking naps. We also took a couple of car rides and those make the day go by a little faster.

Its weird too how messy your house gets when you dont have someone here to help you. You would think it would be the other way around, but when you dont have someone to take Elem, like after he takes a bottle, you chnage his clothes, give him a bath, you eat-anything-you tend to find a trail of what you have done throughout the day behind you. I mean I keep finding bottles when I think i am all caught up with cleaning them, my dishes, I just dont have time to wash, his clothes and blankets are all over the house, pacifiers everywhere, and so on and so on. Which leads me to a point-major props to single moms. Cause no matter what anybody says or thinks, it is a lot harder than anyone thinks. And I only have been by myself for a couple of days. Haha.

But like I said we miss Seth. Its been such a long time since he has gone out of town for this long, and he hasnt been out of town at all since Elem has been born. So I can not wait till he gets home. I know he misses Elem so much and cant wait to see him either. We have been taking lots of pictures on the camera and sending them to daddy while he has been gone, but I know they are no comparison to holding this little warm baby! And I really think Elem misses him too. He just needs a guy to hold him and to hear a guys voice. His daddys voice.

Well, he will be here hopefully this afternoon or tonight, so until then, think happy thoughts for me, and lets hope Elem has a good day till he gets here so I wont be all stressed when he walks in the door. :)

Off to the doc-A hernia?? Are you kidding me?

Well over the past few weeks we have noticed that Elem has been grunting tons! Like every sec of every day almost. And at first I thought it was his personality you know? Or just like what he did before he started crying. And it didnt seem like a big deal, but the more he did it, or the more days it kept occuring, of course my mind started to wonder. And I started thinking it was like something wrong. Then one thing lead to another and I noticed how he sounded like he had a cold, like his nose sounded runny and what not. And then I started finding all kinds of stuff wrong with him, like I thought he was constipated cause he wasnt going to the bathroom as much as he was, and then I thought he was having gas, cause he was like making the screams like he was hurt and curling up into a little ball. AND his belly button was looking crazy and all pokin out and stuff. I was thinking it was looking like a hernia cause I had seen one at the daycare I worked at a few years ago but was really hoping he didnt have one. Anyways, so with all those things running through my head that could be wrong I had to plan a doctor visit. Just to go ahead and let the doc look at him and tell me everything was okay.

So we took him in on Tuesday and she took a look. First of all, what blew my mind is that he weighs 10lbs and 3 oz!!! WOw. What in the world. he gained 3 and 1/2 pounds. Geez. I had no idea he had gained that weight. Breast milk must be seriously nourishing. Haha. ANyways, so they bagan to check him and out looks like everything was okay, he might be a little constipated, but that is pretty normal and all I need to do is give him a little pear juice here and there. So then onto the gas issue, just continue with the mylecon drops-which are these gas drops that have literally been my best friend. I have been giving him those just about with every feeding. Then the checked out the grunting and of course where I thought he was having all these problems breathing and everything, turns out he is completly fine. Nothing to worry about all at all. So that made me feel a whole lot better. Then what I was afraid of, was the hernia. They took one looka at my poor little babies insane outy and yup- no doubt that was a hernia. An umbilical hernia.

The umbilical hernia is not dangerous at all, the doc said she had only seen one case where the littloe girl had to have surgery and that the hernia should go away by age 5. Age 5??? Are you kidding??? I dont want my poor baby to have that thing till then!! But there is nothing I can do about it. It is there for good. And it doesnt really come from anything, just happens to a lot of babies, but most of then go away by 6 months or so. So lets hope for the best and pray that he doesnt have to have anything done to it. I highly doubt he will but you know what it is like to see your little baby with something like that. Its so sad. And the hernia is worse when he is screaming and upset, and pushing. It pokes out and is really hard. You can push it in though and it is supposed to relieve some of the pressure, but overall, it doesnt hurt him, so that is good! I posted some pics so you guys could see what it looks like. So sad! :(

Although I was sad to find out it was a hernia, I am just glad to know that my aby is healthy and nothing seriously wrong. You know with all the work I have done with kids and that being my major and what not, you would think that I would never be worried about anything. I always told myself that I wouldnt. But when it comes down to it, when its your baby, you DO worry. And you really cant hep it. Like I think I kinda turned into a worry wart for a minute there. Haha. But like I said, nothing is wrong and he is happy and healthy and growing every day. So cant complain!

Other than the visit to the doc, pretty much the same ole same ole. Just playing with him every day and feeling like a feeding machine. I mean for real, if I could tell you how much time I spend breast feeding, you would probably all laugh at me. I mean, the doc told me that some babies are great breast feeders and cant feed on each side for about 10 minutes and be good to go. Not Elem. Haha. He likes to linger and pretty much use me as a pacifier. You know chilling for hours at a time. Guess I cant blame him, its not like there is anything else he needs to be doing. :) So he eats and sleeps the majority of the day but is up about 4 hours a day or so-not including feeding times. Sometimes a little more sometimes a little less. Its so peaceful when he is asleep and I feel like there are a million things I need to get done, but at the same time all I want to do is sleep b ecause I am still waking up every 2 hours give or take at night. I am a very sleepy mommy! I cant wait till the 4-5 hour sleeping begins. Ill feel like a whole new woman! Okay baby is awake, gots to give him some lovin!

More family pics! One month

So I cant not post these. They are way too cute! I mean first of all have you ever seen a cuter baby?? Of course not! And then furthermore, have you ever seen a hotter baby daddy? I think not! ha! Damn I love the,m, and that little dog too! :):) My happy family. Enjoy!

One month mark...and the mobile!

So today is Elem's one month birthday! Well actually I guess it should be on June 8th technically, but it is the fourth Tuesday since I had him, so I am counting today! hehe. I can not believe that time has flown by so fast! I mean seriously it seems like I was just complaining about how swollen my feet were and asking seth to help me tie my shoes like yesterday! Craziness! Well on Monday I went into the doc and had my check up, and she checked out the incision and everything. Laura said that the incision looked great, just still a little swollen and that it should continue to go down over the next couple of months. She also did an exam on me and continued to tell me that my pelvic bones were just a little too small for a babie's head to ever fit through! I was like Laura-that would have been nice to know before I went through 17 hours of labor just to find out I needed to have a c-section!! Hahaha. But for real, it would have been helpful! :)

Anyways, so the incision is all sealed up and I dont have to pack it anymore or wear ant kind of a bandage. And I am finally feeling good enough to run around about the whole day. It was a long recovery, but feeling good is awesome and I cant wait to be 100% and work out and get back into shape and not be a lazy mom! I feel like all I do is hold Elem all day and feed him and then feed him some more and then maybe chill with Seth for an hour or so at night. I plan on starting to work out next week and continue my daily walk to try an dlose a little bit of weight. I need to weigh myself to see how much I weigh too. I honestly have no idea and I need to get backto where I was before I got pregnant.

Now back too Elem-He is one month old today which you can see in the pics, he is getting bigger, AND he also hit a milestone today! He totally follwed his mobile around with his eyes today! It was so awesome. As most of you know, babies do not have very good vision when they are first born. They only hear your voice and see like a fuzzy vision for the longest. Then as they get older, like a month then two etc. they can finally see your actualy face and recognize people. So today, I put him in his crib and turned on the mobile with the classical music and he was just starring at the little things moving around. He would focus iun on one little animal or whatever and follow it all the way around in a circle. It was so cool to see him actually focusing in on it and then when he would hear me and he would look directly at me again. How awesome, my little Elem is looking directly at things and can follow them. I am so proud!

Other than that today was a pretty chilled day. Seth had to work late and once he got home he told me we had a few minutes to take pics so I took a couple to document the one month mark. This is the only BIG stuffed animal I can find in the house, so that is why we used that one. I am going to try and sit him next to that same animal each month to see his growth. My beat friend from Texas did that with her little girl and it is so cool to see how much she has grown, especially compared to the animal. Anyways, I hope you enjpy the pics of our family. :):) We are so happy it is a little ridiculous and I can not imagine being any happier than I am at this very moment. I love my baby, and I am so in love with Seth and I know they both love me! And we have sage who of course you all know I love, and just everything, my house everything! It is all so perfect. I am so so lucky to have such a great and loving family! Okay gots to go! Love you all!

Visit with the Granparents

On Friday my mom and dad and Aunt Betty-dad's sis, came down from Memphis for the day to see Elem. My mom has held him a couple times, but my dad hadn't really even held him or gotten a good look at him since the hospital when he was born. So I was super glad that they were coming back down. And then like I said they brought my aunt too so she could seehim. It worked out great cause they came down Friday around noon and we all just sat around and chatted and my mom brought lunch. Everybody got to hold him, including my dad. And give him some lovin/ Haha. My dkept holding him and just not moving and looking down at him. So so precious. They didnt stay too long, just the afternoon, but it was great. I am so glad they get to see himi when he is small. I would hate it if we all lived so far apart that he couldnt see them. or they couldnt see him while he is still small, you know?

My mom also took the bumper pads home, well the two big ones, and she is going to shorten them up a little bit. They are just a little too long for the crib, whiech sux cause I want to take a pic and post the whole nursery. Haha. No its all good. She is coming back this weekend and hopefully the bedding will finally be done. I love love love it. Just got to get it done!

The only things left to do is to put up the shelving cubes that I have and his name on the wall and we will be good to go. :)