Tuesday, October 18, 2011

T-W-O




Happy Birthday to my blue eyed, happy, stubborn, emotional, curious, full of energy, fiercely independent boy!


I am proud to be your mama and watch you grow. It seems like yesterday you were born and we were basking the newness of being parents.

Today you are 36 inches and 35 pounds of perfection in our eyes.

I may be a week late posting this, but know that I have been soaking you up, enjoying you and celebrating you!

Monday, October 17, 2011

Our People- Support



Almost seven weeks in with a newborn and I am struck by something that I can’t get out of my head. I can’t find a catchy title for this post. I can’t find something to relate it to so that people understand. All I can do is write about it.

My ma’s biggest concern about where we live is that we don’t have in her words a “support system”. Neighbors that we trust in our time of need, people a stone’s throw away who can come over in a moment’s notice to hold a baby or someone one their way to Target who knocks on our door to see if we need anything.

I get it.

She is right.

We don’t.

We live on a great block in “the city”. We live in an area where people want to live. We are the newest members of our block with the exception of a few rentals. Most of the people on our street have lived here a long time. They are friendly with each other and some are actually very close. But we don’t fit in to this street community. I could attribute it to a lot of things. We are two-parent working household. Both of us work in the suburbs adding more minutes we are away from home. Our kids are two of the youngest on the block. Our opportunity to get to know our neighbors is slim and our time at home during the week even slimmer.

Yet, the past two weeks I have been constantly reminded by the fact that we do have a support system. We have people who care. We have friends that are more like family.

A Thursday morning visit in pajamas with friend I was initially introduced to thru my husband. She came over and let me cry as I told her how hard it has been. Starbucks in hand she sat on the couch, listened, never past judgment and offered support and reassurance as tears rolled down my cheeks. She is the reason we pushed going to the pediatrician three times in one week and why Cate is now on Zantac for reflux. She watched me cry and she never made me feel inadequate.

A phone call from a childhood friend. It started with a simple, “How are you? I am worried about you.” It continued with a honest, real, and emotional conversation telling me I am not alone. She asked what she could do and told me of her own struggles. Something so difficult to share but paving the way for me to tell her my fears. She reminded me that years have nothing on true friends.

A Friday night visit from one of my best friends. She was hoping for dinner and drinks and instead she walked in, sat down on the couch, had a beer with me and just listened. She calls me constantly just to see how I am and to tell me she is thinking about me. She offers advice, laughs with me and even says prayers when we needed them most.

A Wednesday visit from my other best friend. She is a new mama herself and has had more than enough going on in her life yet, she came, she listened, she laughed with me and she helped me.

A package in the mail all the way from Alabama with pink knit hats and pink knit botties for Cate. Sent from a friend from college whose gesture and short note reminds me that community stretches years and that she is still here.

An unexpected Friday visit from both of our siblings to take a walk to Starbucks, play with Brady and with arms willing to hold our sweet baby Cate. They are blood and they are good to us.

A sibling and his wife willing to drive an hour to spend an hour at a pumpkin patch. Knowing we couldn't do it alone and realizing that we needed their help so that our oldest could have some fun.

A husband who knows me as well as anyone. He knows when to push me to "buck up" and when to take his arms and wrap them around me. He levels me, steadies me, and is the voice of reason when I think we are in over our heads.

Community. I got it.

And ma, you are one of the most important parts of it.

Community, we have it. And I am thankful for it.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

So You Want to Know About Cate- 1 Month



One Month.

Our sweet, yet pretty feisty, baby girl is one month old.


To say that this month has been a whirlwind is an understatement. Maybe it's because we have a toddler who keeps us on our toes and doesn't let us catch our breath. Or maybe it's because it is the second time around so we know some of things to expect. I literally bounce between feeling like she has been here forever to feeling like we just brought her home. Or maybe it is just purely the fatigue has put me in a fog that doesn't allow me to think completely clear about the concept of time.


She is loud.
She is skinny-legged.
She wiggles.
She knows what she wants and demands it instantly.
She snuggles and cudddles
She sleeps like a champion.
She does everything with a purpose...from crying, to wiggling to pooping...the girl does everything at 150%.

I have tried so hard not to compare my kids in these first few weeks. Not to talk about which one did what when but I have to be honest when I say compared to Brady, she is a hard baby. She has given us a run for our money. It doesn't mean we love her less, it just means she needs us more than Brady ever did. And it's hard. It's been hard on my marriage if I am being completely honest. It's hard because I can't leave her to get my haircut or have dinner with my husband.

It is like clockwork. The minute we get Brady in bed, the screaming begins. It wears on you. It digs on you soul usually bringing me to tears. It frustrates the living hell out of me because I am fixer. I want to fix problems and this isn't one I can so far. It's hard to hear your baby cry. We play pass the baby for the couple of hours before we go to bed. We try to soothe her yet nothing seems to work.

It's hard to sit in the pediatrician's office and hear them use the words: fussy, colic, reflux, gastro-intestinal and high needs and not to feel sorry for yourself. And, those are the tip of the iceberg. And I am not even sure I believe any of them define my daughter at this point in time.

So, we will continue to snuggle her. We will continue to love on her and will keep moving forward. She is one month old and I love her more than she will ever know.

Stats:
Weight- 9 pounds 13 ounces
Length- 22 3/4 inches