Thank God for Breast Feeding

I'm back in size 10 jeans!!! I'm fully aware that is not a small size, but this is HUGE for my ego right now. I had my doubts about breast feeding burning a lot of calories and if it was going to help, but it really has. I was over 200 lbs when I went into the hospital and I'm happy to report that I'm around 10 lbs away from my pre-pregnancy weight.

Lately, Trip has been a little "off" with his schedule, so I'm not sure if that had something to do with being in Decatur for the holidays. He was so exhausted while we were home from all the attention, so he slept 8 hours all three nights. Last night, however, he was up practically all day long and still woke up at 2:00, 4:00, and 6:00 this morning. Just when you think you have things under control, we will have a night like last night.

Christmas was great and Trip got a ton of great stuff and it was such a special holiday. What a year this has been. This time last year, we weren't even really thinking about having a baby and then...bam! I'm so completely obsessed with him and I'm super bummed I only have a week and a half left of maternity leave. The good news is that I can work from home. He will still definitely have to go to daycare, but not full time. I'm so very blessed and cannot believe how wonderful a life I have! I'm looking forward to 2012 and what it will bring!!!

Best baby...ever

Last night I came to the realization that Trip is probably the best baby ever. He was officially 8 weeks yesterday and he slept 8 hours in a row. Now, I don't want to jinx anything, but I've been thinking he was close to dropping the 2/3:00 feeding for a couple of nights now. He slept from 9:30 and didn't wake up again until 5:15. I fed him for 10 minutes, put him back down and slept until 8:00!!

Yesterday I took him walking with a friend at Brookwood mall and ended up doing most of my Christmas shopping the rest of the day. Trip did great. He slept the whole time and everyone commented on how obviously cute he is :) I tried to push the limits and stop by the office afterwards and he got fussy. Maybe I just wore him out and this 8 hour sleep is just temporary but my fingers are crossed! Either way, he has been in a great routine ever since Thanksgiving. He had that growth spurt last week but that only last two days and we were back to normal.

I can't get over how much I love him and how I'm going to HATE going back to work. I have talked with my boss about possibly working from home, but I'm not sure its a possibility. I've become quite comfortable on maternity leave. Plus, having him in October was perfect. Once I got past the first 4 weeks where I was going cross-eyed, the holidays showed up and I can get out and do shopping to avoid the crowds and its soooo much fun decorating for Christmas! Plus, since he's such a good sleeper, its easy to take him around for all the holiday festivities. If I go missing again...Merry Christmas!!!

Bad blogger...bad!

Okay, so I haven't posted since probably a week after I got home from the hospital so I'm a terrible blogger! A lot has been happening and I'm getting quite comfortable on maternity leave. Even though I'm completely exhausted, I'm in love with Trip. I cannot believe he is already almost two months old!

The first week was great. I was getting up for every feeding even before he started crying, I was on a high, and I thought "oh yeah...I can totally do this". Well, then the second week came and he hit a growth spurt and my hormones crashed. Dear God, I never thought I would sleep again. He was getting up to eat every other hour around the clock. I kept reminding myself that Robyn from work said the exact same thing happened to her and that it was just a phase. I held on to my sanity, and we got through it.

At first, I was only pumping because I thought that might be easier for some reason. Well, I was wrong. Getting up to him crying, warming a bottle, feeding him, changing him, then pumping again, and washing all the pumping equipment just about killed me. About the third week after talking to some friends, they told me not to give up on nursing. So, we tried it again and he latched. Ever since then, we've been getting in some sort of a routine and I feel much better about breast feeding.

We had a great Thanksgiving in Decatur and my Dad is completely obsessed with Trip. It's the cutest thing!! He literally swatted people away to get to Trip. It was great seeing the family and letting Trip meet everyone! Plus, he slept great in the pack n' play which I was really worried about. Actually, he started sleeping six hour stretches while we were in Decatur over the holiday. I would feed him at 10:00 and he wouldn't wake up again until 4:00...it was the most glorious thing I've ever experienced. I was a new person!

Since then, we have been getting out more and more during the day. I'm actually showering before noon :)

The past few nights he started picking up the 2:00 feeding again, so I'm hoping this is just another growth spurt. For some reason he will get up at 2:00 and then wake up every two hours until about 8:00 in the morning.

All in all, he's a great baby, loves to snuggle, has the cutest damn smile I've ever seen, and loves to be rocked. I don't want to wish his life away, but I can't wait for him to start being able to play and and be more active. Although...it sure is nice to pop him in a swing and let him be for awhile.

Below are some recent pics...

6 weeks old!

one month old!!!

Off to run errands!

One of my absolute favorite sleeping pictures

Cutest pumpkin outfit made by Susan Ozier!

Right before our first doctor visit (2 weeks)

Oopsie, they are in reverse chronological order :)