Charlotte: 4 Months

I know I say this every month, but this month has FLOWN by!! Charlotte is changing every day and getting bigger and stronger so quickly!! One morning I was making breakfast and she was on the playmat. The next thing I knew she was on her belly and had used her toys in her play gym to help pull her over! I was so sad I missed her first rolling over, but it was ok, because she has continued to do it again and again! 

Charlotte was a Strawberry for Halloween and we had fun passing out candy to all the children in our neighborhood! 

She loves to be outside and go on walks or runs! She has even taken a ride in the BOB without her car seat! Such a big girl! 

At her 2 month checkup, she was diagnosed with torticollis, which is a tilt of her neck. She has been receiving physical therapy three times a week and has made great improvement! The PTs come to the house and are so great with her! They are both military spouses and are so sweet! I'm so proud of her progress! She is looking so straight and has a great range of motion! 

Having fun by the pool!

So happy!

Weight: 14 lbs. 2 oz., 26.5 inches
Diaper Size: still size 2, size 3 overnight diapers
Clothing Size: 3-6 months
Eye Color: soo Blue!
Sleeping Habits: Sleeping has definitely improved for our little one! She has been going down about an hour after she wakes up for a long nap (1.5-2 hours) if she gets a good nap in the morning, the rest of our day goes well. If she doesn't, we are in trouble and she is fussy. Her afternoon naps are always a little more challenging. Her bedtime routine starts at 6:00 and we do her bath, massage, sleep suit and then nurse. We need to get better about music and reading, but by 6:30 she is so ready to sleep!
Adventures this Month:  The month has flown by! We haven't done too many new things, just our normal routine! Charlotte celebrated her first Halloween and dressed up as a strawberry!  Daddy had a few weekend trips, so it was just us girls for a couple of nights. We missed him, but we managed just fine! We have also made it to the beach a couple of times, which is getting easier and easier as she gets older. 
Visitors: No visitors this month!

Milestones: Grabbing and holding onto to toys, rolling from back to stomach and stomach to back, sitting in her Bumbo, grabbing your face and giving kisses (very slobbery ones), drooling a ton (I think I see the beginnings of a tooth coming through), babbling and talking and repeating our sounds. 
Favorite Toy: Still loving music, rattle, alligator with ribbons and the toy that attaches to her carseat. She is constantly playing with the toys in the car. She has gotten really good at grabbing them!
Looking forward to: her first Thanksgiving and heading to Florida, again, a month from now fro Christmas!

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween

Fall is one of my favorite times of the year! Unfortunately in Hawaii, we don't really get seasons or weather change. It is mostly summer year round, but with a few cooler days here and there. While in Florida, the weather was much of the same... HOT and rainy too. We were able to venture to the pumpkin patch in Orlando for a few cute photos of the kids! :) 

My sister got these adorable skeleton PJs for the kids!
Robby 2 1/2, Charlotte and Kate 2 months

We used lots of bribery to get him to take pictures!

My mom picked up these adorable outfits last Halloween right after we found out we were expecting!

No naps meant a fussy Charlotte for picture time!

Go Gators and Happy Halloween! 

Gaga and her girls!

Halloween rolled around really quick this year!! My plan was to have a family costume, but we simply ran out of time! :( The strawberry was a hand me down costume and it worked perfectly! I knew Charlotte wouldn't last long in it because it was pretty hot, but she actually enjoyed wearing it and didn't fuss at all. 

Charlotte as a Strawberry for her 1st Halloween!

Our community has about 50 houses (mostly families with children), so we knew that we would need LOTS of candy!! Trick or treating started at about 6pm and boy were there some cute costumes!! We had a really great first Halloween with Charlotte! Time to start working on next year's costume! 

Halloween in our neighborhood!

Kyle was a nerd (he did the entire costume on his own) 

Happy Halloween Baby Girl!

Charlotte: 3 Months

Wow, the past month has been a whirlwind! A month ago, we were heading to the airport to fly home to Florida! We had a jam-packed 2 weeks in Florida that included meeting friends and family, going to Jacksonville, spending a few days in Miami, going back to Orlando, visiting Sea World and eating at my favorite restaurants! For the most part, the trip was perfect! Charlotte began to protest napping, which had me a little crazy, but I assured myself that it would all get back to normal once we returned home.

Well, we have been home for 2 weeks now and I think her pre-Florida schedule is slowly starting to return. The first few days back were pretty brutal. From about 3 weeks old, Charlotte slept for a good 6 hour stretch, so I never felt that exhausted. I would only "need" a nap about 6 days or so when I was feeling worn down. Less than 48 hours after I returned home, Kyle's aunts and grandmother arrived! I scrambled to get the house ready, as my original flight on Monday was cancelled because of weather in Dallas. Everything came together and we had a nice visit with Kyle's family! They got to spend time with Charlotte and we played tourist a couple of days too!

Last Thursday, we moved Charlotte into her crib, cold turkey! She had been fighting sleeping on her back, but we knew it was time! She has such a beautiful room and we are glad that she is finally starting to use it! :)

The many faces of Charlotte... 

Weight: According to our scale at home, she is 13 lbs!
Diaper Size: Size 2 (and they are getting tight)
Clothing Size: 0-3 month clothes are TIGHT, anywhere from 3-6months is fitting her pretty well!
Eye Color: Pretty and Blue
Sleeping Habits: I don't think I can accurately describe her sleep schedule as she has slept as long as 5 hours to as short as 45 minutes at night. Naps are right around 20-45 minutes (I hope this changes, soon) She takes a little cat nap and feels instantly recharged! Great for her, but not great for this momma and getting things done!
Adventures this Month: Going on her first plane ride, visiting Florida, going to Sea World, seeing her first movie in the theater!
Visitors: her aunts and great grandma

Milestones: Started laughing (so cute), reaching and grabbing toys in her play gym, standing in our laps and taking little steps
Favorite Toy: She loves music and loves it when I sing to her. While in Florida, we visited my nephew's school and I did a presentation on Hawaii. They sang a song that went like this "Good Morning, Good Morning, Good Morning to you, A day is Beginning There's so Much to Do"! I sing that to her when I go into get her in the morning and she just loves it! She gives me the biggest smile. I need to capture it on video!
Looking forward to: being back home and getting back into our routine and schedule. Halloween is Friday, but we are still trying to nail down her costume! My grand plan for a family costume will have to wait until next year because we simply ran out of time! 

Vacation to Florida!

I've missed blogging! We are currently in Florida until Monday the 13th and we have been busy!! Charlotte has met her cousins Kate and Robby, her GG, Aunt Dee and Uncle Monty just to name a few! :) 

I can't wait to share all of our pictures! 

Charlotte's Baby Book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly photo books offer a variety of layouts and cover options to choose from.

Charlotte: 2 Months

Charlotte, 

Where do I even start? You are mommy's sidekick and I love you so much. You started smiling at us and at first I thought it was gas, but now I know it wasn't and you were just expressing your sweet personality! You light up when your daddy and I talk to you and sometimes you coo back at us. Mommy has a bad habit of calling you "boo-boo" and Daddy isn't a fan, but you love it and your smile shows it! You are so easy and go with the flow, I don't know how I got so lucky! You are sleeping and eating on a great schedule and you never complain or fuss about our on-the-go schedule. Because of that, you hate being still. You start to whimper the minute you feel the car slowing down to stop and you are instantly calm when we start moving. I try my best to choose routes where we don't have to stop and where we can turn right on red! :) When you nurse you sometimes pause to give me the sweetest little grin and it just melts my heart. I'm so lucky to be your mom! 

The many faces of Charlotte...

2 Month Check Up

She loves her daddy!

11lbs. 8 oz.

Such a trooper after 4 shots and 1 oral med

Weight: 11lbs. 8 oz.  (It's a tie for Daddy (11.7) and Grammy (11.9) on the correct weight guess
Diaper Size: Size 1
Clothing Size: Her NB sleepers are getting so tight! She mainly wears 0-3 month and 3 month clothing now!
Eye Color: Blue so far!
Sleeping Habits: Sleeps anywhere from 7-10pm until 1am or 2am depending on when she went down, then again at 5am or 6am. She usually takes one long nap (3-4 hours) at some point during the day. The past 2 nights we have started a bedtime routine and she has put herself to sleep after nursing. My plan is to put her in her crib when we return from Florida!
Adventures this Month: Ran/Strolled her first 8K, First Gator Game, a few beach trips, going to "daycare" while mommy does therapy for her back. Nothing too exciting, but looking forward to Florida next week!
Visitors: Gaga (my mom)
Milestones: Started smiling during the UF vs. Eastern Michigan game, coos and talks to mommy and daddy, recognizes and lights up when she sees mommy and daddy, rolling over, extended time with her head lifted!
Favorite Toy: She has a "toy ipod" that I play when I change her diaper, she spends more time in the swing now and she loves her Rainforest Gym that lights up and plays music!
Looking forward to: Trip to Florida and GG (Kyle's grandma) and Aunts visiting too!

Favorite Places Sign Party

My friend and fellow Stroller Warrior Mom, Sara, has the cutest little sign business here in Hawaii! I'm sure you have all heard of or been invited to a painting party of some type. You have a glass of wine, some appetizers and the instructor teaches you how to paint a particular picture. If you are like me, that picture doesn't turn out that pretty and instead of it gracing the walls of your lovely home, it gets shoved in a closet! I hope you have had better luck, but for most "art" stuff I put Kyle in charge!

When I saw Sara's signs on Facebook, I was instantly intrigued because everyone's "art" looked picture perfect! I immediately told Sara I wanted to host a party and we decided on what design we would do. The "favorite places" sign is great because it is so versatile. You can put duty stations, places you've been with your husband or like most of did, our favorite places! The writing on the sign is vinyl, so it's fail proof and looks so cute! 

We all chose colors for our boards; one for the bottom and one for the top and then we distressed them. While our boards dried, we were able mingle and enjoy some wine and apps!

I love how unique all of the signs were and how we were all able to add our own personal touch! Thank you Sara for your awesome design eye and for handling all eleven signs! If you are interested in hosting a party, you can contact Sara on her Facebook page, Simply Signs by Sara Sealy!

Applying the vinyl!

With our finished signs!

Hiring a Doula for your Birth: What to Expect and What to Ask

When I found out I was pregnant, it never even crossed my mind that I would try to give birth without an epidural. When it comes to needles and pain, I am a wimp! I'm the patient that has been chased around the doctor's office to get a shot and also the one that gets sweaty palms when I see that needle coming towards me. What I realized throughout my pregnancy, is that alot of my fear was simply caused by the anxiety leading up to the shot, blood draw or procedure. I would let my mind go to a scary place instead of breathing and focusing on happy things!

About halfway through my pregnancy, I had read a few books and done a little research like most moms do at that point! One night I decided that we would watch "The Business of Being Born" on Netflix. We made some homemade pizza, Kyle had some wine and I had a big glass of water and we snuggled on the couch to watch the documentary. If you haven't watched this documentary, I would highly recommend it. 

Coming from a "medical family"( my dad was a surgeon and my mom is an RN), I never really thought about or explored other options regarding birth. I'm not blaming this on my parents, but I was just raised that doctors know best and you should always listen to them even if you don't necessarily agree with the recommendations. 

After watching the documentary, I had lots of questions and I began talking to Kyle about all of our options. We decided to take a Lamaze class, because even if I did plan on getting an epidural, I wouldn't be able to get it right away and I needed to have options to deal with my pain. Our Lamaze class was a one on one class with Nicia from the The Right Path Birth Class. For 3 weeks, we learned all about childbirth, practiced scenarios and birthing techniques and asked lots of questions. During the "scenarios", Nicia showed Kyle different touch techniques and holds to make me comfortable. Kyle did awesome learning the techniques and keeping me focused, but at the end of the day, something was lacking. This is hard to explain, but I responded more to Nicia's touch than Kyle's touch. I don't know why, but it was more maternal and felt more comforting. Of course, this was very hard to tell Kyle because I knew that he would be a great coach, but I felt like I needed a little more support if I was going to have Charlotte without any pain medication. I knew it would be a long and intense labor and I felt like Kyle could use help to help me as well! 

So, we started looking into a doula. Once again, never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought about hiring a doula. Just like many things related to birth, breastfeeding, etc. there are alot of stigmas and I am guilty of having a judgement of doulas before I really knew what they did! 

I would highly recommend a doula or labor support coach to anyone who is giving birth, regardless of whether or not you want to have a natural birth. 

Our birth team with our doula, Miki

Charlotte and Miki

We only interviewed one doula, but here are some questions to ask so you can see if she is a good fit for you. 

• What kind of training or certifications have you received? 
• What is your background in? 
• Our doula was a massage therapist and certified yoga instructor. I think this made a huge difference because she was the "total package". She was able to do pressure points and massage through contractions and help me with breathing.
• How many births have you been a part of? 
• Are you familiar with the hospital or birthing center? 
• What items do you provide during labor? 
• This would include essential oils, tennis balls for massage, yoga mat, birthing ball, ice packs, washcloths, etc. 
• Who is your backup should you be unavailable? 
• Are you comfortable with my birth plan? 
• I was very upfront and honest with my doula in letting her know that I probably would get an epidural at some point. Set expectations with your doula so she can be on the same page. 
• When do your services start and when do they end? 
• Your doula should have several pre-birth meetings to discuss your birth plan and get to know you as a couple! My doula even did a pre-natal massage for me! 
• Our doula came to our house and helped me labor at home and then moved to the hospital. 
• How involved are you after the birth? 
• Your doula should follow up with you in some regard after the birth, whether it be by phone, email or in person. 
• There are also doulas that specialize in care once you are home from the hospital to help with baby and your transition into motherhood. 
• What are your fees?
• Here in Hawaii, doulas range from $500-$1200 for the entire experience (pre-meetings, labor and follow up) or approximately $20/hour for after birth care. 

By no means as I am expert when it comes to doulas. A reader asked me to blog about my doula experience, so that is the root of this post. For those who are pregnant, I really hope you consider a doula. I promise you will not regret the decision! Comment or shoot me an email with any questions!