It's Been Awhile...

Hi!

(waves)

Remember me?

It's been awhile.

With an almost 10 week old who is very...spirited and fiery, blogging has definitely been pushed to the back burner. The way back burner. M is a doll baby most days, but requests a lot of attention and loves for her momma to hold and walk with her and of course entertain her. Add in the fact that she prefers to nap in my arms rather than anywhere else, well, that makes blogging, emailing or doing much of anything else for that matter, difficult to say the least. Thankfully, she is becoming more independent and interested in her surroundings, so I am slowly acquiring more "me" time during the day. I havent been very good at reading your blogs, much less commenting, but I am trying to catch up! Some very interesting, happy and/or challenging things have been happening to you, my bloggy loves, and I am eager to get caught up and back in touch with you!

A quick baby update:
M is smiling, cooing and laughing often throughout the day now. She hasnt mastered rolling over yet, but how could she, when she's always being held? So we're working on more tummy and playmat time. She learned how to spit and blow spit bubbles this past weekend. Not fun for mommy when Im trying to give her medication, but so adorable any other time. She's constantly chewing/sucking on something, be it her hand, my arm, daddy's fingers or her beloved Nuk paci. The drooling has also started. We have had a bout with thrush, a very mild case. She only had a couple of spots on her tongue, but thanks to my professional background, I knew exactly what it was and we caught it super early. We're both on meds for a week and Im very much hoping this kicks it. M was diagnosed with reflux when she was two weeks old. She's been on Zantac since, which has helped, but I have started a trial off of the Zantac to see if she really still needs it. Id like for her to only be taking medications if she truly needs them. So far, she's been doing great off of it.

She had her 2 month appt last week, complete with shots. No fun for mommy, but she handled them really well. I was able to breastfeed her during the injections and she only cried for about 30 seconds before going right back to eating. It was a great distraction and comfort measure for her and I highly recommend it to all of you breastfeeding mommas out there. She weighs almost 11 lbs and is just over 23 inches long. She's already grown out of so many of her clothing! Im so proud, but sad too. She's growing so quickly! We are cloth diapering and for the most part, love it! We have had a problem with a rash at night if she's wearing them. Im thinking it's either because she is going so long between changes at night or due to the detergent that we are using- Rocking Green, unscented. I spoke to a friend who recommended double stuffing the diapers at night since M soaks through one. Ill be trying that tonight.

We are prepping for Thanksgiving today. Im making a Pumpkin chocolate chip cake, a recipe I found here. Ive never made it before, but it looks and smells so good! I love all things pumpkin, so Thanksgiving just wouldnt be complete without a pumpkin dessert (or two!). I used the organic pumpkin that Becca sent me in my awesome care package. Im also making a chicken and green bean casserole that I found here. I cant believe Im not making anything from Pinterest! I did make two dinners this week that I found there. There were stellar! We are spending the holiday at a friends house with a few other couples and kids. I am excited, though I do wish we could be home with family. This is the second Thanksgiving in a row that we've missed at home. In fact, Ive only been home for two Thanksgivings in the last seven years. This was the "major" holiday that I always chose to work at the hospital so I could have Christmas off. We will be skyping with family tomorrow evening, so that will help with the homesickness. I think having a child now makes holidays that much more special and that much more difficult when we cant be with family. At least J will be home for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year! Woohoo!

What are all of you doing for Turkey Day? I hope you have a wonderful, laughter filled day! I am super jealous, but also relieved that I will be missing out on Black Friday yet again this year. Im pretty much finished with my Christmas shopping, so I dont need anything anyway, but I may cyber stalk a few of my favorite stores... =)

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!