Celebrating Nabi's 1yr Birthday :)

Nabi, my corgi turned 1yrs old last Friday, April 12th! It feels like we had her so much longer haha. She still acts very much like a hyper puppy. Its pretty rough at times controlling her crazy energy but she is nonetheless a very sweet and playful dog we have grown to love.

Ever since Emma came in to the family she has been pretty much the same. She barely takes notice of her. She just wants to smell, lick her then move along. But she is still a hyper jumpy dog so it will be awhile until I let Emma and her stay too close for a long time.

So for her 1st birthday I baked her pupcakes using this recipe. It was super easy and luckily I had all the ingredients on hand, so I didn't have to go out and buy anything new. One thing I wish I had was some cottage cheese so I can make it look like frosting on top.

She enjoyed them very much!

She got so big!! And she looks so different from when she was a pup. I believe she is about 3-4 months old on the left picture.

Nabi and Emma relaxing on a Sat. afternoon :)

-Jess

Cloth Diapering!

I have been cloth diapering Emma starting from her second month. So it's been about a month since we started. I've been using pre-folds and covers (Flip, Thirsties and Econobum) for her so far and I've been really loving it! I also use cloth wipes with water. The fact that I save so much money on diapers is a huge plus. I haven't had any trouble with leaks esp. overnight yet, so I'm very happy about that.

Laundry is done every other day with 'All Free and Clear' detergent and all diapers are air dried inside, but when the weather is nice I put them out for the sun to get rid of any stains. I'm so happy that I chose to take this route in diapering because when I was using disposables the first month, it was scary how many diapers we were going through a day.

But honestly I think I'm able to cloth diaper only because I am a stay at home mom now. If I was working I probably would just stick to disposables.

The covers I've been using have been working great. I try to use the Econobum and Thirsties only during the day and the Flip at night. I feel like the Flip is more leak proof. However I don't really like the Flip inserts. I feel like it gives Emma diaper rashes, so I stopped using them for now. I'm gonna strip them and then see how they are on her. The Osocozy and the Econobum prefolds are working well for us now.

Econobum Set

Flip Cover

Thirsties Cover

OsoCozy Prefolds

Here is how I set up our changing area:

I also have some pocket diapers which was given from a friend, but I haven't tried those out yet because they are too big for Emma right now. I'll start using them once they fit her and see how they are. We also always keep disposables handy since we do still use them when we are out, but probably will stop soon and use cloth diapers exclusively.

-Jess

Loving Every Moment

It's 5am now and I have baby Emma in the ergo waiting for her to fall asleep. She has been up all night. Luckily tonight she's not screaming bloody murder. Haha. The night before I was also up until 6am but she was crying hysterically all throughout. She hasn't been up like since her first month. I really have no idea why she isn't sleeping!

Anyways I'm pretty tired, but I'm really loving every moment. I know she wont be this small for long. When I'm about to fall asleep in the middle of the night and she starts to get fussy, of course inside I'm wishing so bad she stops and goes to sleep, but then when I pick her up to soothe her she starts giving me the loveliest smiles and cooing sounds. I can't help but to smile back and play with her! I know it's not a good habit to do this at bedtime, but I just want her to keep going! These are the moments when I just want her to stay in my arms forever.

-Jess

DIY Earring Stand!

I've never been a huge jewelry person, but recently after deciding to dress myself up a little more at home (instead of being in PJ's all day), I decided to also start wearing some of the jewelry I have. I really don't have much, but they needed some re-organization. Since all of my jewelry were scattered in different boxes and hidden, I was always too lazy to dig through them.

So finally yesterday I decided to do some organizing. My hanging earrings were first on my list. I don't have much space on my dresser so I wanted a narrow stand. All the ones I saw at the stores were either expensive or bigger than what I needed. I went to a local thrift shop and found this kitchen tool (not sure what it's exactly used for), that was the perfect size with holes perfect for hanging. It only cost me 5 bucks!

All I needed to do was to decorate it so it wouldn't look so metal on my dresser.
Here is the finished result!


























Supplies used:
-Ribbon
-Fake Pearls (used for beading)
-Super Glue
-Scissors
-Needle and Thread

1. From the top of the square I inserted the ribbon, weaving on either side up to the handle. I knotted the ribbon around the back of the handle as tight as possible.



























2. I made a separate bow and sewed it on to the handle and knot at the back.

3. I took a separate ribbon and wrapped it around the handle and then sewed it down on the backside.



























4. Lastly, I super glued the pearls around the square on top of the ribbon.


Here is another item I picked up from the thrift store! it worked perfectly for my stud earrings, necklaces, rings and bracelets! This glass tray was only $6.00! It's in great condition too.





















Most of my jewelry used to be stuffed in to the two drawer box on the left.

-Jess

2 Month Update!

I cant believe Emma is already two months old! Seems so surreal. We went to her two month checkup today and she is now 11lbs 12oz! She went up to the 90th percentile!! I couldn't believe it. But I'm glad she is growing well! Her height is in the 20th percentile and her head in the 10th. It is a big difference from her weight. The doctor didn't seem too concerned so we shall see in her next appt.

Eating:
Breastfeeding has been going well. I'm still nursing every 2-3hrs. Now that she is getting older our nursing sessions are much shorter than the beginning. Now she finishes in 15 mins or less opposed to almost 45 mins! My supply has been pretty good so I stopped supplementing with formula as the doctor suggested. I think eating oatmeal every morning is helping!

Sleeping:
Sleep is still unpredictable and we are still co-sleeping. She naps 3-4 times during the day, each being between 45mins to 2hrs. At night she goes down around 11-12pm (when we sleep), and wakes up at 2-3am for her first feeding then at 5-6am for her early morning feeding. After her first morning feeding we go back to sleep and wake up for the day between 9-10am.

The schedule above is a good day. On a bad day she doesn't go to sleep until 2am :(. Also she only goes to sleep at night with a pacifier in her mouth. This is the only way we have been able to have her fall asleep. Its not a good habit but...it works. During the day we hardly ever give it to her unless we really need it.

Misc.
Other new things for this month include Emma smiling and cooing more frequently. She loves it when we make her smile. I've been trying to do more tummy time, but she doesn't like it too much. Instead I started putting her down on a play mat, which she enjoys much more.
Also this week she found her hands! She started sucking on her little fists.

Playtime with mommy :)

Enjoying her playmat.

These pacifiers are awesome! So cute.
Wubbanub infant plush pacifier.

-Jess

My 1 1/2 Month Postpartum Update

Just wanted to make an update on how I've been doing.

Weight update:
Pre-pregnancy weight: About 110
Highest pregnancy weight: 156
2 weeks PP: 131
Current- 6 weeks PP: 125

Goal weight: 105lbs

Previously I wanted to go back down to 100lbs, which was my weight before marriage, but I decided to be more realistic...hah.

So I still have 20lbs to go.

Honestly I have not been working out these past few weeks as I should be. With the baby not on any schedule and lack of sleep, I have very little energy to get myself to exercise.

On a brighter note, because I've been so cooped up inside the house I've been so antsy to go out. This means now that the weather is getting warmer and Emma is reaching her two month mark, I can take her out for more walks and errands around the neighborhood. I actually took her out last week for some errands but totally regretted it. It was colder than I thought it would be so I was scared she was going to get sick. Luckily she didn't catch anything.

As for my food intake, I have been pretty much eating whatever I want but in moderation and portion control. Most of the days when I'm home alone, I hardly have time to cook anything, so I end up snacking or eating leftovers. The only set up meal I really have is dinner, which is with my husband. Other than dinner there is no breakfast time or lunch time, it's just whenever I wake up and have a chance to eat.

Other than weight, I've been doing pretty good overall. Usually when Im at home all day I never get out of my PJ's and have no makeup on, but now, I decided to try and get ready everyday even though Im not going out. This has actually been helping me boost my confidence and making me feel better about myself instead of a slob. I know my husband appreciates this too. Haha.

Also I don't know if this is related to giving birth, but for some reason I feel like my eyes have become super sensitive. I was cutting an onion the other day and my eyes started to burn like crazy with tears rolling down. I know this is common for many people, but not for me. I have cut many many onions and never have I had my eyes burn so much. This happened twice already. Also when I put lotion on. my eyes start burning too. It's so strange. I heard that eyes do become sensitive after birth but this is just crazy. I really hope this goes away soon.

-Jess

My Breastfeeding Experience

Since day one I have been breastfeeding Emma. Before she was born I knew that is what I wanted to do until she was at least 12 months old. But my two concerns were her not being able to latch on and not producing enough milk!

I remember the night she was born, I was lying on the hospital bed waiting for her after she was all checked up. When the nurse brought her in, she put Emma on my chest guiding her to my breast so she can latch on. I was worried she would not latch on correctly, but to my surprise, she latched on immediately and started to feed.

That night was really one of the most special moments we had together. Now every time she nurses, it just gives me another chance to gaze at her and caress every single part of her cute self. I can probably do it all day!

But ofcourse along with the good there is the bad. Because my milk did not come in until the 5th day or so, Emma was very very fussy. I knew I wasn't providing enough so I ended up supplementing with formula. It made me pretty sad but I knew it was the best for her.

After my milk started to come in, my breasts went through painful engorgement, nipple soreness, so I began pumping until I felt my milk supply started to stabilize. This took about 2 weeks.

When Emma went for her two week checkup she weighed in at 7lbs 5oz. Her birth weight was 6lbs 8oz. The doctor said she was growing ok but he would like her to gain a bit more weight. He wanted her to be about 9lbs for her one month checkup. He mentioned it is ok to feed her some formula too if she takes it after nursing. I didn't like the idea, so I kind of pushed the thought out of my mind. I felt she was pooing and peeing at a healthy range so I didn't worry.

When we went in for her one month checkup, she fell short by 2 ozs, weighing in at 8lbs 14oz. My doctor mentioned again about feeding her formula, so this time I decided to take some action. I started giving her formula at least once a day after a nursing session. Even though I knew she was growing at a steady rate, she was still below average weight in percentile. Of course as a first time mom I don't want her to fall behind if I can somewhat control it. I felt a bit disappointed at myself, but I know in the end its all about her health.

Many of the days I feel like I'm still not producing enough or fast enough, but i guess thats aways a concern for newly breastfeeding moms. Ive been eating a lot of oatmeal and drinking a cup of water after every feeding, so hopefully it will help!

Also this is not related to breastfeeding, but I just have to share this cute minnie mouse outfit her uncle got her!