Thursday, January 31, 2013

Is This The Worst Part of Parenting?

I bet you're wondering what I am going to say here...you may be thinking, "it's way too early for her to even know what the worst thing about parenting is!"  Or perhaps you already know what I am going to say because you are a parent and you have been in my position.  So, without further ado...the worst part about parenting (besides the lack of sleep and general state of delirium I am constantly in) is when you AND your baby are sick!

Oh boy, no one warned me about this one and I didn't see it coming at all.  Nope.  I was so proud of myself for getting a flu shoot and I literally have been patting myself on the back because of all of the great hand washing I have been doing.  My dry, chapped hands are proof of that.  But a few days ago, I started to feel a little sick...no worries, I thought...just a runny nose.

I wish!  It was bad, I was achy and had a fever and then the snot came...and still resides.  In the midst of my illness, I began to notice my little one wasn't behaving like herself.  At first, it was a few sneezes, then it became a runny nose and then, the worst thing ever for a new parent of a first child...a fever!  Holy crap!  In my half crazy and sick state I started to flip out...no rational thinking going on at all.  I called my husband...I called my mom...and THEN I called the pediatrician's office...mind you, none of these people were freaking out...just me.

We were told to give her some tylenol and keep an eye on her.  If she still had a fever in the morning and was fussy, we were to bring her to the doctor's office.  Well, she indeed was fussy most of the evening and still had a fever, so in we went.  Half asleep and with a head full of snot, we somehow got ourselves out the door.  Luckily, Em didn't have the flu...just a cold.  Thank goodness.

Back home we went and then I hit the proverbial wall.  Let's just say when you feel like scummy yuckiness, the last thing you feel like doing is caring for someone else.  But, with a strong will and the encouragement of my mother, I did it...and am still doing it.  It's been hard...incredibly hard.  But, this is what I signed up for and she needs me more now than ever.

So, thank you to my mom, for all of the times you took care of me when I was sick.  I know I did my fair share of puking and sneezing on you...thanks for seeing me through those rough times.  You are amazing.  And to all of you moms out there...the sick times are hard, but just remember...it won't last...thank goodness!  Now go get a flu shot and go wash your hands!

Saturday, January 26, 2013

The Best Birthday

Today I celebrated my birth anniversary (my husband's term for birthdays).

I had a pretty good day, even though I am battling a little case of the sniffles.  It started with some yummy brunch with friends, then a fun outing with the little one and the husband followed by a decaf latte.

Could this day get any better? Why yes, because as I sit here and type this, the husband is busy in our kitchen making me a birthday meal.  Per his request, I am to sit and relax and not be concerned with what is going on in the kitchen.  This is hard for me to do, but he seems pretty serious about this request.  All I know is that it smells amazing and I have a feeling chocolate cupcakes are in my near future!  I am a lucky lady!

As I sit here and reflect on that fact, one thing in particular comes to mind.  My little miracle baby.  Just about this time last year we found out about our little bundle of joy.  It is amazing to have her here and in our world! And even though parenting has proved more difficult than I thought, I am beyond grateful for my little sweetheart.  She is by far, the best present I have ever received.

I have realized today just how lucky I am.  I have an amazing and blessed life.  I have great friends and a wonderful family!  What more could you ask for in life?

So here's to another year!

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Traumatized

There is one universal fear among new parents...cutting their sweet little baby's fingernails.  Why is there such a fear?  Well, likely because their fingernails are so small and paper thin.  But it has to be done.

I knew that I had to face this task because my little one was using her face as a scratching post.  Not cool.  We had gone to the pediatrician for one of her early visits and we still had those little mitts on her hands.  I asked the pediatrician if this was bad and she remarked that it would probably be good to get them off her hands.  I think I said something like "well, then what do we do about her fingernails?" I think she heard the disdain in my voice, but answered with a knowing smile, "you're going to have to cut them." I immediately got a little sick to my stomach and half jokingly asked the pediatrician if she could do it? No dice.

So, we went home and both the husband and I had a go at it.  I would say we were somewhat successful, getting at least 2 or 3 of them cut before surrendering.  Now that the husband is back to work, the challenge of cutting our bundle's fingernails has been left up to me.  Oh joy.  It seems her fingernails grow at increasingly fast pace.  Seriously...I have to cut them at least twice a week.  But maybe this is good because I have gotten less fearful of it.

However, yesterday I had noticed that her little thumbnail was getting scraggly and likely to blame for the big scratch I found on top of her head. Drat! I was going to have to cut it! (Drat because I find the thumbnail the hardest to cut.) So, I grabbed the baby nail clippers and lovingly talked to my little one as I grasped her thumb. So far so good. She stopped squirming and in I went in with the clippers.  I pushed back her little thumb pad to get a better angle at the nail, and went in for the cut.....except....I somehow managed to get some skin.  Next thing I know she was wailing and I am crying because I had just injured my precious little baby.  I was and am still traumatized by this event.  I rocked her and kissed her and apologized profusely...her tears dried up and all of the sudden she was smiling and giggling like nothing ever happened.  God bless her little heart.

So, I made it through my little one's first injury, but I am not looking forward to the next nail clipping.  I just wonder how I am going to react when she gets her first bruise or scraped knee?


Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Love that smile!

An amazing thing begins to happen when your baby hits the 2-3 month mark...she starts to smile!  No, not because of gas, but because of you!  There is nothing more wonderful than when your once emotionless babe gets a sense of humor.

I love to see her smile so much that I will do anything to elicit it. I once laughed at parents who seemed to do silly faces and voices at their babies. So much work sometimes for that smile. Now I totally get it. After four months of poor sleep, worry, and lots of crying (from both me and my daughter), I am relishing these smiles! I deserve these smiles...or at least I think I do.

So yes, I am one of those parents now. I make tons of silly faces and millions of dumb sounds every day and am greatly rewarded with one of those precious smiles.

For those of you in the early stages of newborn baby-dom, hang in there. It's all worth it and that smile is your reward for all of your hard work!

Smile and they will smile in return!

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Cooling off the Oven

Hello? Um, hello? Anybody out there?

Well, it finally happened! The bun is officially out of the oven. As you can probably tell due to the lapse in posts, I have been just a little bit busy.

Our little bundle of joy came into this world in September and our lives are forever changed! It wasn't the easiest delivery, but when I heard her cry and when they placed her on my chest, all the pain was forgotten.

Those first few weeks....oh, who am I kidding...these first few months have been HARD! Lack of sleep and trying to figure out our little one is like no other challenge I have ever faced. But it's a challenge I am ready to take on.

I am smitten and totally in love with my little one.  I will do my best to keep up with this blog, but with a new focus.  I will discuss the crazy, cute, funny, and not-so-funny things I encounter during parenthood and life with a newborn.  And, as she starts to eat, share recipes and other nutrition tidbits.

Well, that's all of the time I have now...I hear my little bundle waking up from a nap!