First, I read this article Can we please skip the goody bags
Then I started to comment on the article. And after I hit paragraph 5 or so I realized, I have more to say on this than a simple comment. So to the blog I go!
First, the recap: Goody bags are typically full of sugar and cheap crap toys, why do we keep doing them? And kids are rude about them and demand one from a party, but then don't care about them!
Now, I will start by saying that my son is only 10 months old, and so I'm new to this whole parenting thing. But he started going to birthday parties at 2 weeks old, and he's been to several.
The first goody bag I got, I was confused by, for pretty much the reasons stated in the article. It had a piece of taffy in it. Obviously, I ate that. But it also had bubbles, and it was my son's very first bottle of bubbles and I realized how quickly that bubbles are AWESOME!
So now I'm planning Scott's first birthday, and I'm making up goody bags (for the same kids whose birthdays he has gone to). There will be bubbles! And some cute card games that I got to give out as halloween treats to the younger kids, and it's a luau theme, so the kids will also get leis.
I am super excited to make the bags. I know they're unimportant, but at this age, the kids don't know Scott, the party is really for the adults, and to me they are party favors. In fact, I got incredibly cute boxes to put the loot in, so they'll in fact be decorations as well.
I think of goody bags the way I think of wedding favors. I didn't do jordan almonds at my wedding, or fancy chocolates. It was a wedding, there was food. Instead we gave away wine bottle stoppers and wine glass charms. It was something that reflected who we are (wine lovers :)) and they had love themes. People still use these gifts. I think for a kids birthday, the favors don't need to be something that will last a really long time, but something that can actually be used and enjoyed (and maybe even used up!) is a nice touch at the end of a party.
I wonder how I'll feel when Scott is 8 and I'm spending more every year to get things for a varying group of kids. But for now, I'll keep doing party favors, and I'll keep having fun with it.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Hello, Goodbye, Pre-Pregnancy Clothes
I've been moderately working out since March. I started swimming. At this point, I was a size larger than my pre-pregnancy clothes.
At the end of May I added a Metabolic Effect Boot Camp class once a week.
At the end of June I added a Zumba class once a week. When I started Zumba, I was in my pre-pregnancy clothes.
Today, at the end of July, I stood in front of my closet and thought, "I wonder if those pants fit?" I pulled them out, put them on, and zipped them up. Yes, they fit. Which pants are these? These are dress pants that I bought the summer before my senior year in college. I was 21 when I bought these pants. I weighed 15ish lbs less when I bought these pants. But today, they fit!
They are a size SMALLER than my pre-pregnancy clothes. Utterly amazing!
At the end of May I added a Metabolic Effect Boot Camp class once a week.
At the end of June I added a Zumba class once a week. When I started Zumba, I was in my pre-pregnancy clothes.
Today, at the end of July, I stood in front of my closet and thought, "I wonder if those pants fit?" I pulled them out, put them on, and zipped them up. Yes, they fit. Which pants are these? These are dress pants that I bought the summer before my senior year in college. I was 21 when I bought these pants. I weighed 15ish lbs less when I bought these pants. But today, they fit!
They are a size SMALLER than my pre-pregnancy clothes. Utterly amazing!
Formula before bed!
Ok, so we kicked Scott out of our bed like a week ago. So far so good. Well, mostly. He has still only been sleeping in 2 hour chunks, waking up pretty much every 2 hours like clockwork. LAME!
So I told my mom this and she suggested we give him formula before bed! My mom. My mom who made me cry because of the guilt trip she gave me for eating Jello while pregnant. So if it's approved by My mom, it must be worth trying.
We gave him 4oz of formula on Monday night (after Eric and I got the stomach flu and were both laid up all day), and he slept for 5 hours! Holy cow. He then nursed twice in an hour, and then slept for another 3.5 hours! That's insanity for us, and awesome. We tried again last night, another 5 hours! (Ok, I'm lying about both of these, in both cases, he woke up at some point during that 5 hour block, but he was able to be put back to sleep by Eric without needing to nurse, and fairly easily)
So tonight I will try giving him even more formula to see if we can make it longer. It's pretty exciting!
So I told my mom this and she suggested we give him formula before bed! My mom. My mom who made me cry because of the guilt trip she gave me for eating Jello while pregnant. So if it's approved by My mom, it must be worth trying.
We gave him 4oz of formula on Monday night (after Eric and I got the stomach flu and were both laid up all day), and he slept for 5 hours! Holy cow. He then nursed twice in an hour, and then slept for another 3.5 hours! That's insanity for us, and awesome. We tried again last night, another 5 hours! (Ok, I'm lying about both of these, in both cases, he woke up at some point during that 5 hour block, but he was able to be put back to sleep by Eric without needing to nurse, and fairly easily)
So tonight I will try giving him even more formula to see if we can make it longer. It's pretty exciting!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
One way ticket back to the nursery
Today is Thursday, I think.
On Tuesday night, Scott had his worst night on record. He fussed a bunch falling asleep, it took 3 nursing sessions and an extra hour, and even then, he woke up within 30 minutes. He proceeded to wake up every hour all night long, demanding nursing before falling back asleep. Then he woke up at 5:45, roughly an hour before he normally wakes up.
We have (ahem, had) his crib set up as a side car kind of thing, next to my side of the bed. So he had his own space, but he was right there for me to grab and tend to. It means I can nurse in bed too, and if he's on the right side, he can roll back into his crib when he's done.
But no more. Tuesday night was officially the last straw. Cosleeping is OVER. On Wednesday Eric and I (mostly Eric) moved the crib back into the nursery and we moved the nursing chair next to it. This way I can nurse in the middle of the night if I so choose, or just rock him.
Last night was the first tnight of this. Fortunately, I correctly identified sleepy cues, so we got him to bed at a good time. Then the night basically ran like clock work, with Scott waking up every 2 hours to nurse. SO not good for a 9 month old. But since I first need to get him use to being in his room again, I'm going to let him nurse at will for a while. Also, I'm SO sleep deprived, that I didn't have the energy to walk around with a crying child at 2:30am. Bleh. I'll work on cutting out night feedings soon, but not this week.
And I'm seriously reconsidering ever letting any future children into my bed. I think cosleeping was really nice for a while, but it only works as long as everyone is getting their needs met, and I haven't been for a while.
So Scott is back in his room, I am back to having my correct side of the bed, and now I'm actually getting out of bed 4x a night to tend to a little one. Hopefully things improve and Scott learns to sleep through the night before his first birthday.
On Tuesday night, Scott had his worst night on record. He fussed a bunch falling asleep, it took 3 nursing sessions and an extra hour, and even then, he woke up within 30 minutes. He proceeded to wake up every hour all night long, demanding nursing before falling back asleep. Then he woke up at 5:45, roughly an hour before he normally wakes up.
We have (ahem, had) his crib set up as a side car kind of thing, next to my side of the bed. So he had his own space, but he was right there for me to grab and tend to. It means I can nurse in bed too, and if he's on the right side, he can roll back into his crib when he's done.
But no more. Tuesday night was officially the last straw. Cosleeping is OVER. On Wednesday Eric and I (mostly Eric) moved the crib back into the nursery and we moved the nursing chair next to it. This way I can nurse in the middle of the night if I so choose, or just rock him.
Last night was the first tnight of this. Fortunately, I correctly identified sleepy cues, so we got him to bed at a good time. Then the night basically ran like clock work, with Scott waking up every 2 hours to nurse. SO not good for a 9 month old. But since I first need to get him use to being in his room again, I'm going to let him nurse at will for a while. Also, I'm SO sleep deprived, that I didn't have the energy to walk around with a crying child at 2:30am. Bleh. I'll work on cutting out night feedings soon, but not this week.
And I'm seriously reconsidering ever letting any future children into my bed. I think cosleeping was really nice for a while, but it only works as long as everyone is getting their needs met, and I haven't been for a while.
So Scott is back in his room, I am back to having my correct side of the bed, and now I'm actually getting out of bed 4x a night to tend to a little one. Hopefully things improve and Scott learns to sleep through the night before his first birthday.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
A Sign and a 3rd Tooth!
Scott signed for the first time yesterday!
And today he cut his 3rd tooth!
But the signing, I went off to an event last night (and most of the afternoon) and left Scott home with daddy. We are working toward weaning, so we're focusing on food and not milk. He did really well and made it about 5 hours after I left. He was in the middle of dinner, happily eating, when he decided that he was done and it was milk time. Daddy tells me that he very deliberately signed milk, and upon being served milk, calmed right now. Super cool!
The tooth has no real story, except I'm looking forward to the other top tooth coming in so we can feed him more foods (although we don't really let teeth limit us too much right now), and so that sleep can go back to something more normal for us.
Scott is 9 months and 4 days old!
And today he cut his 3rd tooth!
But the signing, I went off to an event last night (and most of the afternoon) and left Scott home with daddy. We are working toward weaning, so we're focusing on food and not milk. He did really well and made it about 5 hours after I left. He was in the middle of dinner, happily eating, when he decided that he was done and it was milk time. Daddy tells me that he very deliberately signed milk, and upon being served milk, calmed right now. Super cool!
The tooth has no real story, except I'm looking forward to the other top tooth coming in so we can feed him more foods (although we don't really let teeth limit us too much right now), and so that sleep can go back to something more normal for us.
Scott is 9 months and 4 days old!
Friday, July 8, 2011
Toy Store Time!
Whoa! I stopped paying attention for 2 seconds and my house turned into a toy store!
I mean, I know that I'm super excited about all the kid toys, and the pop-up house and the ride/push train and the balls and the stuffed animals, but this is nutty. I really feel like my house went from "adults live here, oh and maybe a baby" to "Kid Central!" overnight.
Meh, Scott is entertained most of the time and I get to play too. :)
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Mom, where are my teeth!?
New photos are up on flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/hostofangells/
As far as I can tell, Scott is fairly typical in most ways. He's a little behind in language, ahead in motor skills. But there is one notable exception, at least to me.
He still, after 10 weeks of having them, only has 2 teeth. I know that teeth come in at different rates, but this just seems really odd to me to have two bottom teeth and no more. Seriously. I wish he would get some more teeth so I could give him more foods. Someday eh?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Scott will be 8 months old next week. That actually seems about right :)
But this post is about me. He's amazing, but his impact on me is interesting too. Two things have happened since I gave birth.
1) I'm sleep deprived. Seriously, long term, sleep deprived. Scott typically wakes up every 2-3 hours all night long, even now. He sleeps in his crib some, but he spends a lot of most nights in bed with us too. This is so that neither one of us needs to wake up to get him. Sometimes I sleep in the guest bed with just Scott so that we both have a little more room. The side effect of this is that I am not always the kind of person that I want to be, particularly with Eric. My patience is in short supply and nearly all of it goes to Scott. I am cranky and snappy and irritable. I know that it's directly related to my sleep deprivation, so I can often step back and appoligize for it, but I can rarely fix it in real time. At least I know I'm doing it.
2) I'm motivated to actually work out. I want to lose the pregnancy weight (which I have), and fit back into my pre-pregnancy clothes (which I do, officially, as of last week), and have the stamina and strength to keep up with a little boy. I've never wanted to work out. When it was easy and free and I had access to pools and gyms, I didn't really do anything. At least, not regularly (beyond one semester in college). Sure, I've taken lots of dance classes, but I've never wanted to work out for working out's sake before. But now I do! And I've managed to fit it into my life. I swim one day a week with a friend and I do an aerobics weight lifting class another day. I feel so good about myself. Startlingly good. It's not that I'm super hot, I'm not really. I still have a belly and I'm 10 lbs overweight (by BMI standards), but I look better than I did 6 months ago, or even last month. And I have more energy. Despite the sleep deprivation, I am not exhausted all the time anymore! And it's all internal! That's the best part. I have one friend who looks at me regularly and comments on my weight loss success, but mostly it's all my opinion of me. I may have the best opinion of myself that I've ever had in life. Pretty funny, especially considering that I weighed 40 lbs less a decade ago.
So Scott is currently causing me to be less zen than I would like, but he's improved my desire to take control of my body and my self esteem. Overall, I think positive changes.
But this post is about me. He's amazing, but his impact on me is interesting too. Two things have happened since I gave birth.
1) I'm sleep deprived. Seriously, long term, sleep deprived. Scott typically wakes up every 2-3 hours all night long, even now. He sleeps in his crib some, but he spends a lot of most nights in bed with us too. This is so that neither one of us needs to wake up to get him. Sometimes I sleep in the guest bed with just Scott so that we both have a little more room. The side effect of this is that I am not always the kind of person that I want to be, particularly with Eric. My patience is in short supply and nearly all of it goes to Scott. I am cranky and snappy and irritable. I know that it's directly related to my sleep deprivation, so I can often step back and appoligize for it, but I can rarely fix it in real time. At least I know I'm doing it.
2) I'm motivated to actually work out. I want to lose the pregnancy weight (which I have), and fit back into my pre-pregnancy clothes (which I do, officially, as of last week), and have the stamina and strength to keep up with a little boy. I've never wanted to work out. When it was easy and free and I had access to pools and gyms, I didn't really do anything. At least, not regularly (beyond one semester in college). Sure, I've taken lots of dance classes, but I've never wanted to work out for working out's sake before. But now I do! And I've managed to fit it into my life. I swim one day a week with a friend and I do an aerobics weight lifting class another day. I feel so good about myself. Startlingly good. It's not that I'm super hot, I'm not really. I still have a belly and I'm 10 lbs overweight (by BMI standards), but I look better than I did 6 months ago, or even last month. And I have more energy. Despite the sleep deprivation, I am not exhausted all the time anymore! And it's all internal! That's the best part. I have one friend who looks at me regularly and comments on my weight loss success, but mostly it's all my opinion of me. I may have the best opinion of myself that I've ever had in life. Pretty funny, especially considering that I weighed 40 lbs less a decade ago.
So Scott is currently causing me to be less zen than I would like, but he's improved my desire to take control of my body and my self esteem. Overall, I think positive changes.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
On pregnancy weight gain
So, I started trying to get pregnant in 2009. At that time I weighed X. With each pregnancy and miscarriage, I gained 5 lbs. When I finally got pregnant with Scott, I weighed X+10. Then I gained 40 lbs with my pregnancy.
I've done a good job losing the pregnancy weight. I currently weigh X+6, meaning I've lost all of the "pregnancy" weight. I thought I was doing really well. Until I saw some photos taken of me over the last couple of weeks. I am startled at how different my body is. The hardest thing is the disconnect between reality and my self image. For the first time in my life, I think I look better than I really do. I know that it's only been 7.5 months, but I thought my weight loss was an indication that I was back in my pre-pregnancy shape. I'm not.
Something to work on I guess.
I've done a good job losing the pregnancy weight. I currently weigh X+6, meaning I've lost all of the "pregnancy" weight. I thought I was doing really well. Until I saw some photos taken of me over the last couple of weeks. I am startled at how different my body is. The hardest thing is the disconnect between reality and my self image. For the first time in my life, I think I look better than I really do. I know that it's only been 7.5 months, but I thought my weight loss was an indication that I was back in my pre-pregnancy shape. I'm not.
Something to work on I guess.
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