The End of the Semester!

Well, I made it through my first semester as a Mom. It was trying at times, but I did it. Thankfully, I have a supportive husband at home that is always willing to pick up the slack wherever it's needed. If I needed to get homework done, he was more than willing to be on "baby duty" until I was finished. As the end of the semester nears, I feel a breath of fresh air because I have proved to myself that I can do this. I'm sure as I trudge down the college road, it's going to continue to try my patience and also show me that there is light at the end of the tunnel. I'm glad that I decided to go back to college and I'm even more excited to prove to this that I can and I will reach my goal. Good luck to all of you pursuing your dreams, you can do it!

Pictures with Santa!

I was so excited to take Maci to see Santa! I was a little nervous at first because I didn't want her to cry like most little kids do. But, she did great! She stared at Santa with her big eyes and smiled up at him. It was so cute! I'm sure she probably didn't really see him as being a big scary stranger this year, but maybe next year will be different.

Christmas Shopping!

How do you buy for a seven month old? As much as I want to buy her so many things from Santa, I know it's basically pointless. She absolutely loves to tear up paper, so I'm pretty sure that ripping off every square inch of paper from the neatly wrapped boxes will be her favorite part. Well, I did it anyway. I bought Maci way too many things that she is not going to do much but glance at. I did hold off on a few things, but I still ended up buying her more than she'll ever care about. However, in order to make my life a little bit easier, I put all of the clothes I bought her in her closet. I'm sure she won't miss not opening the cute new shirts or brightly colored jeans that Mom bought her. I can hardly wait for Christmas morning, but I know this is the last year I'm going to be able to sleep in and get away with only buying a few things! I think I can say it will be worth it, though!

Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving, a time for food, family, and most of all being thankful! Well, this year I have a lot to be thankful for! I'm thankful for a loving and supportive family, a husband that stands by me, encourages me, and loves me even in the toughest of times, and a beautiful little girl that I have the privilege of calling my daughter! We visited two houses for Thanksgiving. First, was Steve's grandparents house where all of his family gathers and next was my parents house. Steve has a rather large family so going there first is always the best option. My family is very small so afer dinner there is plenty of time to just relax! Maci wasn't really sure what was going on at the big family gathering but she definitely enjoyed watching everyone talk and laugh. Although I think her favorite part of the whole day was getting to eat a few spoonfuls of mashed potatoes and then a few bites of Grandma's homemade chocolate pie! Who wouldn't like that?  After dinner, my Mom and I cleaned up the kitchen and I got Maci ready to go home with Steve so Mom and I could head out on our annual Black Friday Shopping!

6 months!

How could 6 months have gone by so quickly? It amazes me how fast the time goes! I remember counting down the days until summer break or the days until Christmas when I was a kid. Maci is growing so fast and is learning and doing new things every single day! We've gone from smiling and cooing once in awhile to there being very little silence in our house. She make me laugh! Even when I want to be mad at her for being crabby or wanting her own way, she makes it nearly impossible with that enormous toothless smile of hers! One of my favorite tricks of hers is this growl she has. It sounds as though she should be on "The Exorcist". I have never heard a baby make a noise quite as possessed at this. And, she loves to do it! Every morning I wake up to this loud growling sound telling me she's awake! 6 months is definitely bittersweet. I'm so sad to see my baby growing up so fast, but at the same time I'm so happy to see this beautiful little girl growing and learning new things everyday. One of the downfalls of 6 months is immunizations, again! Luckily, I have learned not to let them get to me. As much as I hate to see her cry while getting poked with 5 needles, I know that I am only doing what is best for her. She's such a strong little girl. She only cries for a minute and then she's done. And, they have never been any problem for her, no fever or fussiness!

Halloween

Well, Halloween didn't turn out to be too much fun. It was freezing cold and pouring rain! I couldn't stand the thought staying in and not letting Maci wear her Halloween costume, so we decided to go to my parents house and my husband's parents. I'm sure Maci probably wouldn't have really minded if we stayed home, it was more me than her! I didn't have a child pulling on my pant leg begging frantically, "Please, Mom!" So, we bundled up and braved the weather! Everyone was so happy to see her, it definitely made it work the venture. She was such a good sport, too! She smiled pretty much the whole time and was perfectly content wearing her costume! After all of the excitement of getting treats, like a rattle from one Grandma and a sucker from the other, it was apparent that she had had enough trick-or-treating and was ready to head home because she fell asleep as soon as I buckled her in her car seat to head home. I'm sure that she will never remember that cold, rainy night of her first Halloween, but I definitely will and I'm so glad that we decided to take her out!

Pumpkin Carving!

I wasn't sure if we were going to be carving pumpkins this year or not. After all, I haven't carved a pumpkin since I was a kid and it wasn't exactly my favorite thing to do. Well, after much debate, I decided that we should carve a pumpkin for Maci this year because it will be her first Halloween and we needed to be able to take pictures for her scrapbook and so on! Well, I'm glad we did! It was so much more fun than I had ever remembered and she loved watching every single second of it. We even decided to carve a pumpkin out for her to sit inside of with her Halloween shirt on! It turned out so cute!

Rolling Over!

A few of Mom's first "proud moments" have been accomplished by my little Maci. Her first major accomplishment was rolling over from her back to her stomach. She has learned to do this with ease. It seemed like it really took her no time at all. Every time I would lay her on her play mat to play with her toys, I'd turn around to do something and turn back She would start screaming to let me know she needed help rolling back over!
Her next accomplishment was "talking", or at least I think that's a good way to classify it! She makes so many funny noises. Her first, and one of my favorites, is growling! I couldn't believe when I heard that deep dark growl come from her the very first time. How could she make such a noise? It must be one of her favorites too, because she does it all the time. Her newest is a higher pitched "ahhh" with a little giggle added in. She has discovered that she has a voice and is definitely loving it!
Her latest accomplishment is finally being able to roll from her belly to her back! No more yelling for Mom to come rescue her! She can do it all by herself now! I'm not really sure if I should be happy or sad at all of the new things she is learning. It seems like she learns something new everyday! I'm happy because it's so much fun to see her learn to do things on her own. On the other hand, I'm sad because she's growing up way to fast. I'm not ready for that! I've had numerous people tell me how fast they grow up, even when I was pregnant. But, I don't think you truly understand just how fast that is until you experience it!

Preparing for the holidays!

Fall is fading fast and winter is quickly approaching. Soon, we will be waking up to a snowy covered ground and frost an inch thick on the windows. Fireplaces will be blazing and eventually the smell of fresh cut pine will fill the air. Along with these season changes comes our first set of holidays, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas! I'm looking forward to our first Halloween with "Peanut". We recently went on a Halloween camping trip and she got to wear her cute little fuzzy owl costume for the very first time. She was adorable! Now it's getting time to carve her very first pumpkin and go trick-or-treating for the first time. So many firsts! The camera will be getting some good use!
After the Halloween fun, the family get-togethers and bountiful feasts begin. I must admit, I'm tired already just thinking about it. Normally, Steve and I make our rounds to all of the family events. Although, this year may be a little different. We are lucky in the fact that all of our relatives live within a remotely close distance. However, taking a baby to several different places, in and out of the car a million times, all in one day could lead to nothing more than a disaster! Especially, when she's all dressed up! Christmas is going to be a lot different this year and with each year to come. Although Maci is only going to be seven months old, I think that she is going to enjoy seeing the Christmas tree all lit up and the beautiful shimmering decorations hanging from it. Luckily for us, we won't have to go too far overboard with presents and shopping this year, except for the fact that I love to go shopping on Black Friday and baby clothes and shoes are completely irresistible to me!

No more newborn!

Well, I officially no longer have a newborn! At least that's what they say. Apparently, only the first three months are considered the newborn period! In a nutshell, the last three months have been the best three months of my life! I never knew that having a baby would change my life so much. It probably helps that Maci is not a fussy baby and has slept through the night basically since she was born! It's amazing how quickly a baby can learn. It seems as though she learns something new every day. She's now to the point where there is constantly a string of slimy drool hanging from her bottom lip and everything she touches now goes directly to her mouth. She always seems to have that sweet little smile on her face and will giggle and coo to just about anything. She can't quite sit up on her own yet but she tries so hard. Maci is not the type of baby who wants to lay around, she would rather be sitting on your lap looking around, standing while you hold her up, or propped up with her Boppy pillow. She's pretty independent, already! Where did my baby go? Her newest addition is her jumper. She can't reach the floor whatsoever, but she loved to feel like she's standing up and being able to watch what's going on, all while playing with her toys. She does have a favorite toy, her elephant. It's bright blue with several other bright colors on it. Each foot has a crinkly sound to it as do the ears. It's so hard to believe all the things she can do in such a short amount of time. I'm looking forward to what's to come although I'm sad to see the time go!

Immunizations

Immunizations! I think that is one of the scariest days for parents! I definitely wasn't looking forward to the day when I had to take Maci to get her first set of immunizations! I knew it was one of those things that had to be done, but it was also one of those things I wanted to put on the bottom of my list to do. I had discussed the topic with many friends, family members, and the pediatrician. I wanted to keep my baby protected from as many diseases and illnesses as I possibly could, I just didn't want to see her in pain!

 Another issue that had been brought to my attention was the possibility of autism. There were several cases shown on the news that were cases of autism thought to be caused from immunizations. What do I do now? I wanted my daughter immunized, but I also wasn't sure I wanted to take the risk of causing autism. I decided to wait to have her immunized until after her two-month checkup so that I could discuss my concerns with the pediatrician. Upon discussing this topic with our pediatrician, she informed us that the studies that were shown were in fact not reliable. There were many other issues of concern when scientists reviewed the evidence. I felt much better knowing that I was able to do what I felt was the right thing without having to worry about the consequences.

Well, it was time. I didn't get much sleep the night before anticipating the day ahead and knowing my poor little girl was going to have to get 2 pokes in each leg. Finally, it was over. She only cried for a minute and I was so relieved to have it over with for the next two months! Hopefully, next time will be a little better now that I know what to expect!

Routine...

Well, the last few months have been a little change of pace in my house! We have gone from being able to get ready and go, to worrying whether or not we have everything we need for the baby. Thankfully, after the first few weeks we had our schedule established. Maci and I would wake up at 4:30 with Steve, he would be up and getting ready for work while I fed her. After she ate, it was time for Steve to leave the house and Maci would be ready to sleep for awhile longer, and so was I! She would sleep until around 8:00 and then time to eat again! Nap time usually came around 11:00. Once she was asleep, I would put her in her swing and get a few things done around the house. I needed to complete my to-do list according to priority! 1:00, time to eat! After eating, we would talk and cuddle for while before her next nap! 4:00, nap time again! Now, it was time to get dinner ready for Steve and hope he would be home and showered so we could eat before she woke up! We usually accomplished that! 6:00, and time to eat! After eating, it was play time first, and then bath time! Bath time is most definitely her favorite time of day! After bath time, it's time to eat, again! Now, I'm ready to relax with Steve and Maci for awhile. 10:00 and Steve's ready for bed and guess what, so are we! One more feeding before bedtime and she's out like a light and so am I. Luckily for me, she only ever woke up once a night and it wasn't until 2:30! Same time, every night but only for the first month. Since then, she sleeps all night long!

Today is the day....

May 14, 2013, my life as I knew it had changed forever. I had been in the hospital for two days already and that morning when the doctor came into my room, she promised me that I would be having a baby that day. She was right! I had started being induced two days prior on Sunday evening. As the morning went on, my contractions were getting stronger and very close together, however, there was one problem, I was not dilating. When the doctor came in around eight o'clock that morning, she checked my cervix and it was still only dilated to a one even with all of my contractions, so she decided to break my water in hopes to get things moving. The nurse, Wendy, came in later on in the morning after looking through all of my fetal monitoring strips and decided to check me again. No change. I was so disappointed. It got to be around noon and lunch time at the office, so the doctor stopped in to check me again, no change. Once again, disappointment. I was starting to be in quite a bit of pain from all of the contractions so Wendy called to see if I could have anything to relax me. She came back in to let me know that the doctor agreed to let me have my epidural. After waiting for what seemed like forever, the anesthesiologist came in to begin the process. Finally, after about fifteen minutes, the procedure was over and I was told I should start to feel some relief. And, I did. Wendy decided that maybe she should check me again just to be sure nothing had changed. Well, it had. Finally, I was dilated to a seven just from being able to relax a little bit. It was time to start pushing. I was instructed to push a long, hard push with every contraction. After two pushes, Wendy went out to call the doctor to let her know that delivery was just around the corner. She came back in just in time for another contraction. With that push, her head was visible! Five pushes later and at two o'clock exactly, my beautiful baby girl, Maci Sue, was born!