Here Are the Details for Mia : )

My cousin Mia left this comment on my last post:

So give us details on yours, how much does he weigh now, how is the breast feeding going, are you getting any sleep, how are the big sisters adjusting to the new boy in the house...what is it like being a mom of 3?

OK, Mia, I aim to please....

1. He weighs about 12 pounds already. Can you believe it? I took him into the pediatrician last week and her words were, "His weight gain is phenomenal!" I guess the "girls" are working. : )

2. Breastfeeding: Well- It's a miracle to me that I've made it six weeks and there are parts of it I love so much. I love the cuddle time, I love how much more convenient and cheap it is compared to formula and bottles, and I love the view I have when I look down and see him. I'm so thankful that it is working, but the thrush is still a problem and painful and I get discouraged. I'm thankful for all of the tips from everyone and I'm hopeful it will go away soon so we can get back to enjoying the nursing.

3. Oh sleep, glorious sleep. Isn't it funny how we don't appreciate the good things in life until they are gone? I can't wait to sleep again. There is hope. He's sleeping longer stretches and we have a pretty good routine and schedule down, so maybe he'll surprise me someday soon. (I hope, I hope, I hope....)

4. My girls ADORE their little BenBen. I wondered if there would be any jealousy issues, but thankfully it hasn't been a problem. They get frustrated with me for not letting them mother him and kiss him and hug him and hold him as much as they want to do.

5. Being a mom of 3: Sometimes it is a juggling act, but I have it pretty easy with the girls being older. They are pretty independent and do a lot to take care of themselves. Plus King Charming is a huge help. He makes them breakfast and gets them off to school. The hardest time of the day for me is the bedtime routine or the times when they all need me and I don't know who to help first. It's weird how much it feels like he has always been a part of our family. I can't believe it has been six weeks, because it has gone so fast, but I also can't believe it has only been six weeks because it feels like we've always had him with us.

I've got a cold right now and it is hard to be the responsible one. I just want to crawl into bed and say, "See you all when I feel better." : ) The house is a mess. I have NO IDEA what the girls are going to wear to school tomorrow because we are totally out of clean clothes. And I often feel housebound. I live for about 8:30 at night for that short window of time when all three kids are asleep, and I can have some me time. The good thing about this being the third time is knowing that this is all temporary. When you have your first baby you think, "My life is over." This time I remember that at about the three month mark life will feel normal again, so I just do my best and hang on until we get to normal again.

It helps to have the cutest, sweetest, bestest kids in the universe, too : )
(Remind me I said that tomorrow night at bedtime)

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OK...I Have to Brag a Little

Take a look at what my nephew can do...
This kid JUST turned three.
Two months ago he was only two years old.
Never underestimate the power of needing to keep up with your two older brothers. : )

Actually, Zac has many talents. Check out his cartwheels, it will bring a smile to your face. : )

Happy Monday!

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Tonight's Verses

I was reading Psalm 116 tonight and these verses were tonight's verses for me. They spoke to me:

1 I love the LORD, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.
2 Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.

And this one, too:

12 How can I repay the LORD
for all his goodness to me?

On a night when I was feeling the "Sunday Night Blues," I was reminded to go pray (which I'm going to go do right now) and reminded to count my blessings....actually they are too many to count. Thank you, Lord.

Love,

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Isn't He Beautiful?????

Just like I promised...the one month photo shoot.


I had a hard time picking my favorites to show you. Isn't our miracle beautiful? : )

I couldn't believe we caught it on film, but this is his actual, real, first smile.






My friend is so talented with her camera! She is hoping to have her own photography business someday and needs encouragement. Would you mind stopping by her blog and letting her know how good she is? : )

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A Few Things From Our Everyday Life

ALWAYS ON HER MIND:

My future vet is at it again. Look what I pulled out of her backpack after a trip to the school library:


Dogs, dogs, dogs...Always on her mind.

QUEEN FOR THE DAY:

Her little sister got to be Queen For the Day in Kindergarten last week. She got to wear a crown and sit on the red throne while the rest of her classmates sat on the carpet. She loved every minute of it!

NOW THIS IS WHAT I CALL HOMEWORK!

Part of her Kindergarten homework was to sort laundry. Thank you, teacher! She sorted by color (pink of course) and then counted how many shirts, pants, skirts, etc. we had of each. It's amazing how much pink there is in this household. : )

At the bottom of the worksheet it asked if she enjoyed this math activity. She answered an emphatic NO!!!!

I CAN'T LEAVE OUT MONSTER TRUCK:

Our little MT has had a rough week with sleep. About 3 AM every night he is struck with gassiness that seems to be causing him a lot of pain. Tomorrow we are going to check in with the pediatrician about the possible thrush and the tummy aches. Hopefully he will be feeling better soon.

He's happy as can be during the day though. Today we saw our first crooked little smile. King Charming will say it doesn't count though because he didn't see it, but Princess A and I did see one today. I can't wait until we get more.

I cannot believe he is a month old already. Daiquiri promised me another photo shoot so I hope we'll have some good pictures to share soon.

Hope you are having a great week!

Love,

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I Will Lift My Eyes

Whenever I hear this song, I'm reminded of this post.



Whatever hurts today, lift your eyes to the Healer.

Love,

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Future Aspirations

You have never met a little girl who loves animals more than this one. Her biggest desire in life is to have her very own dog, but her parents keep saying no. (Aren't they cruel!?) : ) For some reason they think having a newborn baby and plans to adopt another one will keep them busy and they won't have time to take care of an animal, too. She insists that she is responsible enough to take care of one herself, but they haven't given in yet. : )

She even has a name picked out for her puppy...Wish...because she has had to wish for him for such a long time. She's hoping for a black and white spotted dog, but at this point I think she'll take what she can get.

(Maybe some day little girl!)

When you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, her answer is "I want to be a small animal veterinarian."

I truly believe some people are born animal people. She is definitely one of them.


The other day she decided it was time to open her first vet clinic in my living room. I was her first customer. I brought in my little (stuffed) doggie for a check-up. The vet asked me if my doggie was an indoor or outdoor pet, what brand of dog food I gave her, etc. It was a VERY thorough exam. My poor doggie needed surgery, but I new she was in good hands. The next time your (stuffed) pet is need of vet services, I HIGHLY recommend this office.

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Dumb 'Ol Bees! And More...

Princess A just came home from playing in her friend's backyard with two bee stings in the middle of her forehead and one in her armpit. She must have played too close to a wasp's nest. Poor girl!

That's a baking soda paste on her forehead in the picture. She is upstairs right now getting in the bathtub and feels pretty miserable. She's got a bad cold and now this! I'm downstairs, but I can hear her moaning and saying, "I didn't even do anything to them. I'm not a friend to bees ANY MORE!"

And boy this girl can hold a grudge, let me tell you! Those "dumb 'ol bees" will have to work hard to earn her friendship back. : )

She just came down and said, "Mommy, will you put a picture of me on your blog? I want everyone to know about my bee stings." What can I say? She loves sympathy, just like her Mommy. : )

And here's the "More" part of the post...

Grandma requested more Monster Truck photos. These aren't the greatest photo quality (I'll get you more Mom, I promise) but don't you just love it when babies sleep like this? Arms straight above their heads. He looks so comfy and relaxed. Oh to be so carefree and content.

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Thrush Anyone?

I know Works for Me Wednesday is supposed to be me giving advice, but I missed the backwards edition last week, and I'm hoping you'll forgive me for not following the rules as I ask for your advice...

I wasn't able to breastfeed the first two times I attempted it. One issue after another prevented me from being able to continue. I made it two weeks with my first baby until the pediatrician told me to stop, and I gave up in frustration after only four weeks with my second daughter.

This time, a lactation consultant was able to help me figure out what I was doing wrong before I left the hospital. It was such an answer to prayer. She had already been in to see me and the nurses had helped me and just as before, everyone said, "You are doing great!" but I knew I was heading down the road to all of the same complications. My nipples were already scabbing and painful and my milk hadn't even come in yet. The morning before I was to leave I prayed for help. I said, "Lord, please show me what I'm doing wrong." I wanted to make it work so badly.

Five minutes later, the consultant came in and said, "Oh, I see what's happening." Her tips were all that was needed to make it work this time. It has hurt, but nothing like it did the first two times, and for the most part it has been going great.

Now, though, I'm thinking we may have a case of thrush. His tongue has a white coating that won't go away, and I have a burning sensation during and after nursing. It is so discouraging for me. I'm not sure that it is thrush and it isn't unbearable, I could just keep going. My baby is only three and a half weeks old, so maybe this is just typical soreness. A part of me wants to ignore it and just hope it goes away. Everything I have read on the Internet makes it feel like a futile fight, that we'll just keep passing it back and forth to each other. I've been trying some home remedies like apple cider vinegar solution on his tongue and my nipples. It seems to be helping some, but not curing the problem.

I thought I'd ask you all and see if any of you have dealt with thrush and conquered it. Any tips? Have you tried natural remedies? If it keeps up, who am I supposed to ask for help from, my OB? my family doctor? my pediatrician?

Thanks in advance for your help...(and sorry to my male readers for the topic) : )

For more WFMW tips go here. I learn new things every week.

Here's a link to my past WFMW posts where I followed the rules : )

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Everyday Becky Gets Political : )

In my last post I wrote how excited I was to watch Sarah Palin's speech at the Republic Convention on Wednesday. I did get to watch it, and I wasn't disappointed.

I'm surprised by how much I like this woman. And even more surprising for me is how much pride I feel as a woman in this nomination. It has never been all that important to me that a woman hold a high position in the White House. I've always wanted the most qualified person I can trust to keep my country free and safe, and someone who shares my values. I didn't trust Hilary Clinton in either of those categories. I wouldn't have voted for her simply to have a woman in office. But watching Sarah Palin on Wednesday night, I felt pride in the fact that she was a woman. It surprised me.

The pride I felt wasn't just in the fact she is a woman. She is a woman I can relate to, down to earth, real, shares my values, but also a woman who inspired me with her class, intelligence, and talent.

I had never heard of her before McCain announced his decision last week. After watching her on Wednesday, I was thrilled. Even thought I typically vote Republican and am a conservative, I was not sure that I would vote for McCain. I'm still not sure how I feel about him as president, but by selecting Palin as his running mate he made a huge leap in the right direction of earning my vote. (Not that Obama has a chance of getting it either) : )

I was talking to some girlfriends today who wanted to know what I liked about Palin. So here are my first impressions:

Her speech had substance, not empty promises.
She proved that she is strong, intelligent, and a leader, but was graceful and feminine at the same time.
She was spunky and fun.
She was real, not your typical politician.
She made me believe I could trust her.
She was right on about energy independence.
She is a gifted communicator- her teleprompter stopped working half way through her speech and she didn't miss a beat. Take the teleprompter away from the men in this campaign and you'd hear more "uh, uh, uhs" than you could count. : )
She proved loyal to her family as she brought her pregnant teenage daughter on the stage with the father of the baby and without words made a statement that showed they were dealing with things as a family in a loving way.
She has the right attitude about being a servant leader.
Her convictions align with my convictions and the Republican platform. I'm so tired of RINOs (Republican in Name Only)
I could go on and on....
I guess all I can really say is I really like her. : )

You know who else I've been impressed with lately? Tim Pawlenty, the governor of Minnesota. I listened to him take on Tom Brokenjaw (oops I mean Brokaw) on Meet the Press on Sunday. He was impressive.

Hey, how about a Palin-Pawlenty ticket in the future! Sounds good to me!

In case you missed the speech...here it is:

Part One:


Part Two:


Part Three:


Part Four:


Part Five:

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I'm Still Here

A whole week and a half since my last post?? That might be an Everyday Becky record. : )

I'm thinking my blog title might need to change from Everyday Becky to "The Sleepless One." Every day melts into the night which melts into the next day of round the clock feedings. I can't believe that three weeks have gone by since our baby arrived. How is that possible?

I've been so well taken care of, though. My mom stayed for the first week and my husband took time off work to help me and our girls adjust to a new school year. I've been spoiled. He's doing the cooking, laundry, and getting up with the girls every morning to send them off on the school bus. We are all going to miss him so much on Monday when he goes back to work. I'm nervous about flying solo.

All of the sleeplessness and hard stuff is covered with this amazing sense of gratitude and joy over having our little boy here at last. He is such a sweet baby. I am so content right now. The last three years, I've felt in limbo, like things weren't right. I don't feel that way any more. Things feel very right at last. He sure has his mommy wrapped around his little, teeny, tiny fingers.

I'll try to post more soon.

On a different subject, I've been really interested in what's going on in the political arena right now with the presidential campaign. I'm excited about Sarah Palin and can't wait to watch her speech tonight. Her nomination has breathed new life into all of this for me. I love who she is on paper and can't wait to know more about her tonight.

I'll close with a picture of the princesses with Prince Charming. We are all enjoying our sweet baby boy:

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