Traveling alone with a 6 month old? Piece of cake! NOT

This past week I traveled by plane to lovely Brownsville, Texas by myself with Piper, age 6 months 3 weeks for my uncle Jack's funeral.  In order to get there in one piece and function while away from home, all we had to pack/bring with us was the following:


1.  Large suitcase with clothes for the both of us
2.  Diaper bag containing bottles, wipes, diapers, burp cloth, toys, formula, bowl, spoon and baby food
3.  Car seat
4.  Car seat base

5.  Umbrella stroller

6.  Purse

7.  Pillow to use as an arm rest during the flight

8.  Baby blanket

9.  Baby


Question:  Know what's not easy to cart around by yourself? 
Answer:  Large suitcase, diaper bag, car seat, car seat base, umbrella stroller, purse, pillow, baby blanket, and baby.


Luckily I was able to manage with the help of lots of people along the way, but it wasn't without a LOT of stress and anxiety.


Once we made it to our tropical destination, after an hour and a half-long flight of straight turbulance, I was able to relax in the comfort of my aunt's house.  Until Piper had a blow out in her diaper.  I was passing her to a relative to hold when I noticed what I thought was black "ink" on her back until I quickly realized it was poop.  Nice.


After that, things were going smoothly.  We visited with aunts, uncles, cousins, distant relatives, and friends.  Everyone was ooohing and ahhing over Piper (as they should!) and she was her sweet, happy self.  Because there was so much going on, Piper never really did take any substantial naps, but it was fine because she was having so much fun being adorable!


That is, until, we arrived exhausted at our Best Western hotel room.  We shared a room with two of my aunts.  I was pleasantly surprised at how clean and nice the accommodations were and how inviting the queen bed that I would have all to myself looked.  Piper had a little pack-n-play provided by the hotel to sleep in next to my bed.  Since we had been up since 5:00AM and it was now 9:00PM, I fed her, changed her, put her PJ's on and put her to bed.  I crawled in to my nice, comfy bed and promptly went to sleep.


At 1:30AM, Piper began to cry.  Normally at home I would just let her cry it out, but since we were sharing a room with my two aunts, I picked her up, gave her a bottle for about 3 minutes and she went back to sleep. 


At 3:00AM, P Dawg started crying again.  Once again, I picked her up out of respect for my aunts (cursing under my breath that I didn't get my own room) and as I was going to make Piper a new bottle, dropped the container on the floor, spilling ALL of the formula that I had on the floor.  Not in a nice little pile, but as if it blew in the wind making a 4-foot smear on the tile and carpet.  Now what?!  Now I don't have ANY food to feed my kid.  WTH was I going to do?  What else?  Rock her to sleep in the pitch black bathroom while sitting on the toilet seat.  That only took an hour.  I finally put her back down at 4:00am.


5:00AM rolls around and Piper starts crying again!  WTH dude?!  I pick her up to find her soaking wet as she had peed through her pajamas... for the first time ever.  Her pack-n-play sheets were wet as well.  Since I didn't have the forethought to pack another set of pajamas for a 1-night trip, I didn't have anything else to put her in. I changed her wet diaper for a dry one and put her in bed with me to try and keep her warm.  She fussed quietly for a few minutes, but then fell asleep.  I was so stressed about having her in bed with me, that I couldn't for the life of me fall back to sleep. 


6:00AM and BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP the effing alarm clock in the room starts going off.  Piper immediately pops her sweet little head up and says with a big smile on her face, "goo goo, ga ga!"


Translation:  "Good morning!  I'm up!  Let's play!"


Put a gun to my head.


Have I mentioned that while all of this went on during the night, my aunts never made a peep?  I have no idea if they were pretending to sleep through it all or if they really did.  Either way, I should have just let Piper cry it out the first time and we probably would have had a good night's sleep.

Anyhoo... the night sucked and the morning was off to a rough start, but things eventually fell in to place.  I was able to get to the store for formula before she had a meltdown and we made it to the funeral just in time for... Piper to fall asleep and sleep through the whole thing.  Which was such a relief - poor little nugget was tuckered out! 

The funeral was beautiful - funny and touching and sad, but a wonderful send off for my sweet uncle.  May he rest in peace.

That afternoon all 55+ of us went to brunch after the service and Piper was a little angel.  She ate her peas like she had never had something so delicious in her life and then decided to show off her public speaking skillz by babbling at the top of her lungs.  Luckily Nana was there to rescue Mommy so I was actually able to eat lunch in peace.

After brunch we headed back to my Aunt's to rest before going back to the airport.  Piper finally took a legit nap and I was able to enjoy my family and laugh along with them to all of the funny stories and memories people had of my uncle.  It was a good time and I was grateful I made the trip - even with the difficulties.

Our flight home was uneventfull  - the flight was smooth, Piper played and was a good girl, and we even arrived back in Dallas 40 minutes early! 

Overall it was a good trip and I'm so happy we went.  Just for future reference though, here are some helpful tips for traveling alone with a baby:

1.  Pack twice as many clothes for the baby as you think you'll need.  I only brought 1 bib (it was disgusting after 1 day) and 1 set of pj's and they were peed on.  Plus, it was hot there, but cold here, so pack for both.  Luckily I had warm clothes to dress Piper in for when we arrived back in Dallas where it was only 50 degrees (it was 95 in Harlingen).

2.  Pack diapers like you're going to change the baby every hour.  I had exactly enough diapers for the trip, but any more accidents and I would have had to buy a whole new batch and then cart them around too.

3.  The pillow for the airplane is key.  I use it to put under my arm since she's on my lap and it makes a huge difference.  Plus, once she got tired of her toys on the plane, the tags on the pillow became instant entertainment.

4.  Food.  Pack like every meal will be her last meal.  I way underestimated her food intake and even if I hadn't spilled all of her food on the floor, I'm pretty sure I would have to go to the store and buy more anyway.  I miss nursing. 

5.  Remember these trials because they will be (and already are) funny.  Life is short.  Shit happens. 

She Sleeps





NOM NOM NOM... Learning how to eat.

Life is just going by too quickly! 

It feels like just yesterday I was treading the stormy waters of breastfeeding (in the beginning) and now my little nugget is eating baby food, oatmeal, avocados and yesterday, her first little puff.  She's still in the learning phase and gets bored of it pretty quickly, but we're trying! 

 One of the things I'm learning as we go is that this new type of eating is a time sucker!  I feel like it takes forever and at the same time, we're still feeding her bottles, so it's like double the work.  Maybe this will help put some weight on her little frame.  She's 6 months and 3 weeks old today and she's still wearing 3 month pants!  She's leetle!  

First time eating rice 9.26.11



Eating carrots 10.26.11
This was Daddy's mess to make and clean up

If things go my way, she'll have my appetite and she will not be a picky eater...

fingers crossed!

So I gave birth, but was it to an adult man because that's what my body looks like...

I used to be cute.  I used to have cute clothes that I could wear and sassy hair, and pretty skin, and... but now... nuh uh.  It's all gone.  What happened?! 

My stomach honestly looks like I am someone that lost 100+ pounds, but the funny thing is that I weigh more than I ever have in my life.  So NO, I haven't lost weight, I did however lose the person that was in my body and stretched my skin out so that I can now tuck my muffin top and lower belly into my pants.  FYI, that is NOT attractive and IS painful when wearing pants/skirts. 

Speaking of tucking in... my boobs.  I used to have the BEST boobs and now, yep, I can tuck them in to my pants too.

But, it's all worth it for this, right?!

Yes, it's worth it.

Well... She's here and she's 6 months old! Introducing Miss Piper Marie!

SHE'S HERE!!!

Piper Marie was born on Monday, April 25, 2011 at 11:31pm after a long day of labor.  She weighed 7 pounds 4 ounces and had a head of dark brown hair.  She was 19 inches long and had 10 fingers and 10 toes. 

Fast forward to 6 months later and here's what she looks like today...

She is the absolute LOVE of our lives and I look forward to sharing our ups, downs, trials, tribulations, as well as our funny stories along the way in this blog.  It's good to be back!

Dear Easter Bunny,

Dear Easter Bunny,
Please bring me a baby Piper in my basket this year.  I've been a really good girl.
Thank you.
Amen.
Love,
Stephanie, Josh, and Piper

Cause you gotta have friends...

By the way, I'm Wonder Woman in this picture

 One of the most important and wonderful parts of my pregnancy has been being able to go through this with several of my friends that are knocked up too. 

This has been so helpful in so many ways and I feel incredibly blessed that we're going through this together otherwise, I would have definitely gone off the deep end by now. 

It's been so nice to have someone to vent to that can relate - whether my complaint has been about my body, my emotions, or about my husband because inevitably they have been through it recently already, are going through it currently or are about to very soon.  We have commisserated about what's going on with our babies, our doctors, work, and again with our husbands and just knowing that someone else out there feels the same way or has dealt with the same thing makes this process much easier.

For example:
My friend Lindsey is/was 3 weeks ahead of me in my pregnancy and our husbands just happen to be good friends.  If I didn't have her to vent to, I wouldn't have known that while my husband felt deserving of no less than 10 "last hurrahs", her husband was doing the same thing too - driving her as mad as Josh was me!  We could both bitch about what idiots they are and feel better that at least we "got it" while they were clueless.

Another example:
My friend Jennifer is 4 weeks behind me in her pregnancy and she sent me a text worried because at 33 weeks her baby had the hiccups twice a day.  It was nice that I was able to tell her that my baby has the hiccups a minimum of 4 times a day, every single day and that is okay.  She didn't need to worry.  I can't speak for her, but just knowing that someone else is out there to bounce stuff off of really helps a nervous mommy-to-be.

Of course there are all of the other women in our lives that we can and do talk to, but sometimes they don't really remember exactly how they felt when they were in the midst of an emotional meltdown and the friends I have that are currently pregnant relate just a little bit better at the time.

Sometimes in life we feel all alone, but this pregnancy has allowed me to become closer to people that I wasn't with before and for that alone, I am blessed!

I love you other mommies-to-be! 

P.S.  My dear friend Lindsey welcomed her baby boy, Hayes Karns Colter at 12:21 AM on April 6, 2011.  He weighed in at a healthy 7 lbs even and he's just as beautiful as can be!  Congratulations Lindsey & Matt!  We love you!!!

37 Weeks - Full Term!

Tomorrow Piper will officially be considered full term!  Way to go, little one!  At this point I'm still growing bigger each day.  Some days I'll see my reflection in a window or something and it shocks me how big I am!  I can't believe my body can look or stretch like this, but then again, I love it and am so happy that she's in there and getting bigger all the time.

Today Piper was given her first baby doll.  It's so cute and I have a feeling it's going to be very loved.  I can't wait to give it to her in person!

Piper, Mommy is so ready to see your sweet little face! 

Count your blessings

Today an 8.9 earthquake hit Japan and a tsunami followed creating massive destruction and death.  It's on days like this that I can't help but thank G-d for all of the things that I am blessed with and send out lots of prayers for those that are less fortunate, especially in times like these.  Today, and every day,  I am thankful for the following (not necessarily in order):       

1.  My precious baby girl, growing in my belly.  All of her hiccups, kicks, and jabs that let me know that she's still okay.

2.  My incredible husband with his hilarious sense of humor, his dedication, attention, affection, loyalty, friendship, intelligence, and patience with me, our pregnancy and lives.

3.  My huge family - my mom and her side, my dad and his side, my step-mother and her side, and Josh's side and all of my brothers and sisters and their families too. 

4.  A beautiful roof over our head.

5.  Reliable transportation.

6.  Health.

7.  Insurance.

8.  Scooter & Bailey that bring a smile to my face many, many times a day.

9.  Food. 

10.  Education.

11.  Employment (even though I may not love my job).

12.  Friends.  Josh and I are very blessed with all of the wonderful people we can call friends.

13.  Freedom.

14.  Religion.

15.  Clean water.

16.  Running water, electricity, and gas.

17.  Good neighbors.

18.  Clothes (even if almost none of them fit right now) and shoes.

19.  Medical care.

20.  Disposable income.

What are you thankful for?

You're Waddling! I WISH!

The past couple weeks have been hard.  The pregnancy has been going great, but now that Piper is in position (head down) I am in a LOT of pain. 

What is the Sciatic Nerve?
The sciatic nerve is the longest and thickest nerve in the human body, measuring just under an inch in width, comparative to the diameter of a finger. The sciatic nerve runs from the lower spine, through the pelvic area, and down through the hip and back of the leg. The sciatic nerve is the major nerve supplier to the legs, and it branches out to provides movement and feeling to the hip, thigh, knee, calf, ankle, foot and toes.
The sciatic nerve, in spite of its length and size, normally behaves like all other nerves; it transmits signals to and from the muscles and the brain. All movement and feeling in the legs and feet are dependent on the proper function of the sciatic nerve and its branches.

When the sciatic nerve becomes inflamed, pinched, or injured, the symptoms are known as sciatica. A troublesome sciatic nerve resulting in sciatica can cause acute pain anywhere from the lower back and hips to the feet and toes. In these severe cases, sciatica can result in a loss of feeling or reflexes, and/or weakness in the hips and legs. 

Symptoms of sciatica can include pains such as cramping, burning, or shooting sensations in the hip and thigh, though the pain can extend all the way to the foot and toes. These symptoms can be aggravated by simple movements such as coughing, bending, or squatting, all of which put pressure on the sciatic nerve.

Pregnant women often suffer from sciatica as the sciatic nerve runs directly under the uterus from the spine to the legs. The developing baby puts pressure on the sciatic nerve, resulting in mounting pain through the course of the pregnancy.

Lucky me.  This is exactly what has been going on.  For the past 2 weeks or so, I have had trouble walking.  I definitely "waddle" because I can barely walk one foot in front of the other due to the pain.  It feels better to walk when I dig my thumb in to one particular part of my butt while I walk, but since people look at you funny when you do this, I try not to do it at work. 

It's gotten so bad that I don't get up to get water during the day at work because A) I have to walk too far to the kitchen to get it and B) then I have to go to the bathroom all the time and it's too far. 

This week, I have had 3 awful episodes.  In the first one, I couldn't get off the couch and I was basically paralyzed.  It was scary!  The second episode happened when I was standing in Piper's closet putting stuff away and I couldn't walk out of the closet.  It feels like I've been struck by lightening and I can't move my legs without screaming in pain.  Josh eventually helped me down on the floor (half in the closet, half out) where I laid for about 20 minutes before I could move.  The third time happened on Monday when I was at Taco Bueno (my favorite) by myself for lunch and I couldn't get up out of the booth I was sitting in.  I had to sit there for about 15 minutes trying to get the feeling back in my legs.  Not fun.  Totally embarassing (when in public).  And not cool!

I go to the doctor today for my 33 week check up.  Hopefully she can recommend something to relieve the pain.  If not, it's going to be a looooonnnnnnggg and painful 7 weeks...

Parents-To-Be with Priorit-Tees

Before (and after) Josh and I got married we had a tradition of really living it up on St. Patrick's day here in Dallas.  I have always said, "it's the best day in Dallas".  In fact, it was on this day in 2005 that we decided to take our "friendship" to a new level and began dating. 

This year, although 8 months pregnant, is no different.  Unless of course you count the fact that we are signed up for breastfeeding classes that morning.  From 9:00AM until 11:30 that morning we will be learning the ins and outs of one of the most important bonding experiences we can share with our little baby. 

In years past, from 9:00-11:30 on this very day, we would be imbibing on bloody marys until we switched to beer for the rest of the day. 

Once we realized that we would be in class on this very important day, our first thought was to reschedule the class.  I even contacted the hospital to see about switching to another day when it occurred to me that this class is a priority! 

What were we thinking?!  From now on, our daughter comes first and if that means we have to show up to the St. Patty's day festivities 3 hours later than normal, then she's worth it.

See?  We're growing up and maturing right before your very eyes!  I'm so proud of us.  :)

¿No Aqua?

Two days ago I decided to go ahead and bring the gift bag that I got from registering at BuyBuy Baby in from the car.  It was loaded with little goodies like free baby wipes, lotions, a bottle, coupons and a couple of magazines, one called Baby Talk and another for expectant new moms like me.

I sat down to leaf through the magazines and I was surprised at how quickly I became engrossed!  I never pegged myself as someone that would read, learn and/or be interested in something in them besides articles about how to dress cute while pregnant.  But there I was, reading each and every single article, wondering if I would be able to actually retain any of the good advice I was ingesting. 

One article in particular caught my eye and it was referring to milestones in a baby's life.  Of course there are the biggies:  smiling, laughing, cooing, crawling, walking, etc.  But then I learned there are others like this one in particular that scared me to death! 

Am I the only dumbass that never knew that you can't give a baby water until at least 6 months and even only after you've gotten your doctor's expert opinion?!  If I didn't even know this, what other harmful "milestones" will I mess up, potentially harming my child? 

When can my baby drink water?
Stephen R. Daniels, pediatrician

In general, it's not a good idea to give your baby water until he's about 6 months old. Until then, he'll get all the hydration he needs from breast milk or formula, even in hot weather.

Giving a baby younger than 6 months old too much water can interfere with his body's ability to absorb the nutrients in breast milk or formula. It can also cause his tummy to feel full, which curbs his desire to feed. (While small sips of water probably won't hurt your baby, it's best to check with his doctor beforehand during those first six months.)

In rare cases, a baby who drinks too much water can develop a condition known as water intoxication, which can cause seizures and even a coma. Water intoxication happens when too much water dilutes the concentration of sodium in the body, upsetting the electrolyte balance and causing tissues to swell.

Adding too much water to your baby's formula not only risks water intoxication, it means that your baby is taking in fewer nutrients than he needs. Carefully follow the package directions for mixing powdered or concentrated formula and don't try to stretch formula by using more than the recommended amount of water.

In some instances – if your baby has gastroenteritis, for example – the doctor might advise you to give him an electrolyte drink like Pedialyte or Infalyte to help prevent dehydration.

Once your baby is 6 months old, it's okay to give him sips of water when he's thirsty. You still don't want to overdo it, though, or you might give him a tummy ache or make him too full to eat well. After his first birthday, when your baby's eating solids and drinking whole milk, you can let him drink as much water as he likes.

My precious daughter

As the weeks fly by, I am getting more and more excited about meeting our sweet little Piper.  I think about her all the time and my heart just feels so full of love her her. 

Two days ago I was driving home from work and the song, "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars came on.  Normally I would change the channel because that song was too annoying, but as I listened to the words and applied them to my sweet baby girl, I realized it is the perfect song for her.

When I see your face

There's not a thing that I would change

Cause you're amazing

Just the way you are

And when you smile,

The whole world stops and stares for awhile

Cause girl you're amazing

Just the way you are

 

The way you are

The way you are

Girl you're amazing

Just the way you are

Piper, I can't wait to see you.

Third Trimester - The "real" countdown has begun!

Today marks the first day of my third trimester.  I'm 27 weeks and I swear, getting bigger every day!  Piper is a strong kicker and gets the hiccups every couple of days or so.  She's much more active during the day than she used to be too. 

It's funny that as soon as I hit 26 weeks, everything in my pregnancy started to change.  For example: 

• I cannot breathe sitting straight up, after walking to/from my car, after walking up stairs...
• Some of the maternity pants that Kimberly gave me are too tight around my middle/hips
• I get so tired mid-day and again driving home from work, and need to go to bed early again
• It's getting harder and harder to find something to wear to work each day
• I'm so uncomfortable
• My sciatic nerve hurts so bad that by the time it's time to leave work, I look like I walk with a limp
• I get full so fast and even though the food tastes good, I can't eat another bite
• Gas is not my friend and shows up unannounced from time to time
• Heartburn is hanging out with Gas and they are friends.  I don't like them.

BUT, here's the good news... there's a light at the end of the tunnel.  Piper Marie should be here within the next 13 weeks and that is SO exciting!  I have started to get some stuff for her and even got my first baby gift off our registry: an umbrella stroller that I tried to put Scooter in, but he didn't appreciate it as much as I had hoped he would.  He wouldn't even pose for a picture.  Maybe I'll put the new onesie I got for her on him and take a picture of that... 

Speaking of Scooter, my dad says that he might be my "baby" for now, but as soon as Piper is here, he'll go back to being "just a dog".  I hope not. 

So 13 weeks (maybe less) and counting... I can hardly wait!

The never ending checklist. Is it really necessary?

Having a baby is super exciting and the answer to our long awaited prayers, but the checklist of stuff to do to prepare for Piper's arrival seems never ending.  There is so much to think about, do, plan, consider, and buy that I get overwhelmed. 

I keep trying to tell myself that I am very blessed and that most people in the world do not have the opportunity to prepare like we do.  Most people on earth don't register, set up a nursery, take classes, see a doctor on a regular basis, and have the financial means that we do in order to "have a baby".  I feel incredibly spoiled when I put things in to perspective like that.  Is it all really necessary? 

I'm pretty sure that if Piper were to show up tomorrow, we would still be able to function.  Not well, but she wouldn't perish either.  And neither would we.

Just a thought.  Now I'm going to go sign up for "Preparation for Childbirth" classes...

My burning heart

Pregnancy just keeps getting better!  I am 25 weeks along and 2 nights ago, I had my first real case of heartburn.  That's fun.  Not. 

At first, I didn't realize what it was.  My stomach hurt at the top of my belly and I had no appetite (I could only eat toast for dinner).  And, I didn't put two and two together because it came on 5 hours after my last meal and before my delicious toast dinner - both nights in a row. 

Last night I had it so bad that I ended up eating some TUMS at 12:00 in the morning.  If you don't know me well, it takes a lot for me to actually take medicine and even more to get out of bed!  I'm glad I did though because not long after, I was snoring like a dog.  Or Josh. 

This morning I also had my monthly check up with Dr. Chhutani.  My blood pressure is good and I've gained 2 more pounds for a total of 6 pounds more than my pre-pregnancy weight.  Again she said that it was okay and not to worry about gaining more.  I really am trying to put on weight because I'm a little concerned that she's going to be a teeny tiny baby, but then again Josh and I aren't the biggest people you ever met, so we knew we would probably have a little baby. 

At 25 weeks, babies typically weigh 1.5 lbs and are about 13 inches long.  Our little Piper has been measured in the 44th percentile for size.  Her weight is on target, but she's short.  Go figure.  I guess she'll have to settle with being a gold medal winning gymast instead of a lumbering WNBA forward.  Or she can be the brillant inventor of the flying car we've all been waiting for.  I'll be happy with either.

Registering a Baby - Oy Vey!

So the pressure is on for me to register for my little Piper-to-be, but I am completely overwhelmed!  There is sooo much stuff out there and I don't have the first clue as to how to navigate the registry maze! 

First of all, I haven't even started on our nursery.  Does that come first?  I sort of think that is a good place to start because it means some of the big stuff like a crib, dresser, changing table, bedding, etc.  But is that right? 

Or, am I supposed to start with the small things like bottles, diapers, soaps, bibs, and tiny clothes?

Or, do you start with car seats, strollers, high chairs, carriers and bouncy seats?

I have no idea and I need help.  HELP!