Big News!!!

No, I am not pregnant again...

We bought a house!!!

We are so excited about it! For the longest time we were set on moving to Macon. However, since we've had Reese it just made more sense for us to stay a little closer to our jobs. We had a target neighborhood in a little unincorporated town called Kathleen. It's in Houston County kind of between Warner Robins and Perry. So, it's about 15 minutes for each of us to get to work...maybe a little less for Cameron. We have been waiting for that one great deal and let me tell you...we got it! Apparently the person who lived in the house was involved in some torrid love triangle and was caught in an affair with a married woman. The scorned husband killed his wife, the man, and then himself...I swear I am not making this up! (Don't worry, no blood was shed in our house) So, the owner left the house to his brother, who has been so desperate to sell the house, which has been on the market for over a year, that he jumped at our offer. We closed on Wednesday, so it's officially ours!

We are so excited, but I'm a little sad at the same time. I will be sad to not live in this house anymore. This is the house my grandparents built and raised their family in. I spent much of my childhood at this house and it holds so many memories of my grandparents. My dad was 6 months old when they moved in to this house. I climbed the ginko tree in the front yard probably hundreds if not thousands of times. I hunted many Easter eggs in the back yard. This was the first house Cameron and I lived in as husband and wife. This was the house we brought our firstborn home to. It's always only been in my family and us not living here really makes it all the more real that Granny and Papa are really gone. It may be a little ranch house on the square, but it's been a good house and I'm gonna miss it a little bit.

There are, however, many things I will not miss. I will not miss having a teeny bathroom with a teeny tub and no shower. Our new bathroom has a huge two person soaking jetted tub and his and hers vanities. I will not miss the cat's litter box being in one of the bathrooms. I will not miss the laundry being in the kitchen. I will not miss the kitchen. Our new kitchen is ginormous and there's a seperate laundry room! We also have two huge his and hers closets in the master. This may the thing Cameron is the most excited about. Since Reese came along he doesn't really have any closet space. We have a little work to do, but it's pretty much ready for us! We are still have some issues with our photoshop, so as soon as it gets fixed I'm gonna put up a picture!

A Very Difficult Decision

I have made the difficult decision to start weaning Reese. Over the past three weeks I have tried to pump as much as I can at work in order to keep up with his demand, but it has proven to be too difficult. I am just not producing what I need to in order to keep him satisfied. And I am out of frozen milk. So, this weekend, I started supplementing him with formula. I am still going to nurse him as I am able, but he's going to have to have formula throughout the day in order to get what he needs. One downside is that now he is getting more used to the bottle, so when he's really hungry he gets really frustrated when he tries to nurse because it just won't come out fast enough. Once thing that I have noticed in the past day or two is that his diapers are much more wet, so I feel completely okay with my decision. While I am sad to not be exclusively breast feeding him anymore, I know that it is for the best. I feel like if I didn't have to work it would be easier to continue only nursing him, but I have done the best I can and have given him almost four months of only breast milk. After all my bouts with mastitis, I never thought I'd make it this far, so I'm proud of what I've accomplished. I am very fortunate that Reese is not phased at all by the bottle or by formula. He has not missed a beat and for that I am grateful!

When the Cat's Away...

The Mommy and Baby will play! If only that were true. We have been having a rough time in the Garvin household. As I have previously said, Reese is struggling with his daytime sleeping. He is being very fussy prior to going down and only sleeps for 30-45 minutes. He is still, however, sleeping well at night so I guess I should count my blessings. Last night we didn't hear a peep from him! So this weekend was a bit of a challenge. And when I say challenge, I mean I have a new respect for single mothers and mothers with two small children.



Let me elaborate...



This weekend Cameron, Reese, and I packed up (OMG...I never thought we'd need so much crap for two nights away from home) and headed up to Gainesville. Cameron and his buddies, aka groomsman, aka the four stooges, went on a hunting weekend in north GA. They were celebrating one of 'em's safe return from Iraq (thanks for protecting our freedom, Captain Pig!). So, I went with him as far as Gainesville to hang out with one of the wives and kids. Ellison and her son Ethan were my hosts for the weekend. I was a little nervous about going because I was unsure as to how Reese would do. And I was right to be nervous. Little Man was not a fan of not being at home. He was completely thrown by not being in his house and comfort zone. There were many times he cried inconsolably for upwards of an hour, which was not good for Mommy's heart or nerves. I am so used to tag-teaming with Cameron that it was very hard to not have his help. Thus my newfound respect for single moms. I have never been a huge fan of co-sleeping just because I feel like I would smother him, but let me tell you...we did it several times this weekend! For my sanity and the sanity of all those involved it was just easier for him to sleep nestled in my arms, than to scream through his nap! I'm certainly not going to make it a habit, but if it means he'll sleep, then I'm all for it!



Going into this weekend I knew I was possibly going be babysitting a two year old in addition to having Reese with me. Ellison is a nurse and she was on call this weekend. In order for her hubby to participate in Boy's Weekend, I went to hang with her so I could keep Ethan if she were to be called into the hospital (which was very unlikely)....otherwise, Jason would have to stay home. How could I refuse?!?! She did end up getting called in and it was totally fine. Ethan is a super sweet little boy and very well behaved. He has a ton of energy, but was very obedient and comfortable with me. He also really loved Reese. Reese on the other hand was a different story. He was so high maintanence that it was hard for me to give Ethan my attention. Hence my newfound respect for mothers with two small children (Faris, Kathryn...that would be you!). Overall it was a good weekend. It may have been hard to be away from home and not have Cameron around to help me with baby duty, but it was bound to happened sooner or later and I don't want Reese to be the kind of child that can't be away from home. But we are recovering and he's been much happier since we've been home. I forgot my camera so I don't have any pics, but he'll be four months old on Thursday, so they'll be plenty of pics then!

15 Weeks!

Wow...Little Man is a whopping 15 weeks old! I honestly don't know where the time is going. We are getting a little better with me being at work. He's not quite so grumpy, but my Mom has been coming to our house instead of me taking him there for now. We'll see how it goes this week to determine if we'll try her house next week. Cameron had to work today, so Mom's getting him three days this week! I think Reese is going through a growth spurt (or at least coming off of one). By my calculations, which are not the most scientific, he weighs around 13.5 lbs and is almost 24 inches long. He's long and lean! Speaking of weight...I have lost 15 lbs since starting Weight Watchers again. It's been two months, so I think I'm doing pretty well! I had already lost about 20-25 lbs before we started, but I still have a long way to go! Back to Reese...in addition to the growth spurt, I think he's ready to start extending his time between feeds and extending his wake time. I think we're about to go from three 1.5 hr naps to two 2 hr naps and one 30-45 minutes nap. I found this book I really like called "The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems". She follows the same principles as Babywise (Eat, Play, Sleep) but she is much easier to read and more matter-of-fact and helpful. I highly recommend it! Anyway...we're starting our transition today. He has been on a 3.5 hr routine, which he went to naturally. He has started to wake up early into his naps and won't go back to sleep, wake at the same time in the "middle" of the night (read: 5:15-5:30am) and has not seemed quite so famished when I get ready to feed him. Don't get me wrong, he's still a little piggy! According to the Baby Whisperer, those are all signs your baby is ready to transition to a 4 hour rountine, where they go 4 hours between feeds. This usually happens around the 4 month mark.

Aside from the issues we're having with so many new things happening at once, Reese is such a joy to be around. As soon as he gets done nursing the first thing he does (after he realizes he is full) is look up at his Mommy and grin! He pretty much keeps grinning the rest of the day. He loves playing peek-a-boo, singing with Mommy, and looking at the ceiling fan. Reese has gotten really good at reaching for things and grabbing onto the rings of his bouncy seat and batting at his "friends" on his play gym. He's almost getting big enough to carry on my hip, but he's not quite there yet. I can't believe how fast my Little Man is growing up!

Hey Mommy!

You make me smile!

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Well, yesterday was Reese's first day without Mommy and spending the whole day at G-Mommy's house. He was not happy. I think he was just confused because one, his Mommy wasn't there, and two, he wasn't in his house. I know he will eventually work it out and be comfortable there. I don't want him to only be able to sleep in his bed in his room. I just think maybe it was too much too quickly for him. Poor baby didn't really nap that great, even though I took his basket over there instead of just letting him sleep in his pack 'n' play. Mom finally just brought him back to our house so he could have one good nap because his first two were not. He did better once he was home, but he was kinda fussy during the night.

Here's how my night went. Cameron and I fell asleep on the sofa watching the Bama/Texas game and I woke up around 11:30. We usually get Reese up by 11 to do his dreamfeed, so that means I didn't get in bed until about 12:15 since we got started so late. So, around 2am I heard this beeping noise. About 15 minutes later (just as I was falling back asleep) I heard it again. This went on for over an hour...I could NOT figure out where it was coming from. It sounded like it was coming from my nightstand. It was, however, coming from Cameron's cell phone. He got a text from a friend and his phone has a reminder beep that continues until the text is read. So, by the time I got really good and asleep, Reese started crying. I go up and put his paci in and just as I got good and asleep...he started crying again. Got up, put his paci in again and got good and asleep...he started wailing! It was 5:15. So, I decided to nurse him and put him back to bed. I crawled back in bed around 5:50. Our day starts at 7 so it was back up for me! I did take a nap while Reese slept this morning and I very well might do it again this afternoon!! I felt bad this morning because I was kind of mean to Cameron this morning. He was like "you're in a fabulous mood today"! Well, I was essentially up off and on from 2 until 6...I haven't had to do that for several weeks now! Oh well...it's hard to be too frustrated when you are greeted with a smile. How can you be mad at this face!?

What a Difference a Day Makes!

Oh, yesterday was so much better for Reese! My mom came over to the house and kept him while I was at work. He was a much happier baby than he was day before. Mom said he was more playful and smiley (he's still not laughing regularly, but he wants to sooooo badly!) and way less fussy. He went down easily for his naps and stayed asleep. I am trying to move him gradually from a three hour routine during the day to a four hour routine. We are currently at about 3.5 hours between feedings during the day. I think he might be going through a growth spurt because he is eating longer and wanting to get up earlier to eat (read: 6am instead of 7am). For the past few days we have been trying to move his bedtime earlier. When he was eating every three hours his "bedtime" wasn't until 9 or 9:30. Well, now he eats around 5:30, plays, has a bath if it's a bath day, and gets topped off around 7:15-7:30 and then goes to bed. We are still getting him up at 11 for his dreamfeed and putting him right back down. He then sleeps till 6 or 7. He's been doing well today, too, so hopefully he's adjusting.

So far, I have been able to pump at work roughly when Reese is getting his bottles, once mid-morning and once mid-afternoon. So he is still getting breast milk only for now. I have a little reserve in the freezer if I need it. But, so far so good on that front.

If there were a bad parent award for furbabies, Cameron and I would totally get it! Last night around 11:30 I looked at Cameron and said "Ella hasn't eaten today!" Well, turns out we never feed her the day before either...OOOPPPS!! Ella's never been much for food, but she was a hungry little puppy. Poor thing...please don't call animal control on us! We'll do better!

Struggling

Well, the day I've been dreading has come and gone...yesterday was my first day back at work. When I started dental school I was totally resentful of people who had a negative attitude torward female dentists. Not all of them only practice for 10-15 years and quit just because they have kids. But, man do I totally get it now! I missed Reese so much yesterday, but I really wasn't that emotional about it because he was with his Daddy all day. Here's how it's gonna work. Reese will be at home with Daddy on Mondays (unless Cameron randomly has to work), he'll be with G-Mommy on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and with Mommy on Wednesdays and Fridays. So I think because he's familiar with everyone he'll be fine. Honestly, I think yesterday was more rough for Reese than me. It's amazing to me how babies know something is not quite right. Cameron said he was just kinda cranky all day and he didn't nap very well, waking several times during each nap, which he rarely does. We had an hour and a half struggle at bedtime because he would just not settle down and go to sleep. It was very disheartening! But, I can't say I'm surprised. He's been used to his Mommy being there all day every day of his life and this was the longest he'd been away from me. And then he fussed twice in the middle of the night and woke up at 6 wanting to eat. Needless to say I was tired this morning...and I had to go work all day! It's hard being a working mom, that's for sure...but those student loans aren't goint to pay themselves off! Hopefully tomorrow will be better!

Happy 2010!

Happy New Year! I am so excited for the new year with my new family. 2009 was great with the birth of Reese, but I'm looking forward to a year of not being pregnant (because it felt like I was pregnant for a year!). We had a very low key day/night. Cameron cooked an amazing dinner, cuz he's good like that, and we watched tv, rang in the New Year with champagne, and hit the hay! I do have some resolutions. One is to completely quit biting my nails. I was down to biting only two, but now it's crept back up to three. That one pretty much always stays on my list. The other constant resolution is to lose weight. I want to get down to my pre-baby weight and then some. It'll be a challenge, but I'm well on my way. Do you have any resolutions?

On another note, NYE six years ago was my first "date" with Cameron. I say "date" because I wanted to go to dinner just as friends, but he had other things in mind. Honestly, in the back of my head I did too, I just wasn't ready to admit it! It was my mother's idea for me to call him to see if he had plans (thanks, Mom!) and he said he didn't so we made dinner plans. It was a fun night and, as Humphrey Bogart said in Casablanca, it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Now, six years later, we've been married for over two years and have the sweetest, most precious little boy! Hope 2010 brings you and your family many blessings!