Arden 7 Months

Arden turned 7 months old!

I can't believe how big she is getting. I feel like in my mind, she's stuck at 6 months. That's usually how old I tell people she is on accident. Also these month stickers were a waste of money! She always has her hands over it or tries to eat it!

She's doing great on her food. I really haven't found a food she doesn't like yet. 

I am scared to write this because I feel like when I do, she starts waking up, but she has started sleeping through the night consistently. She takes 2-3 naps a day (still in the swing - I know!). Every time I planned to move her something happened like we were going to Wichita Falls, or Rustin and I were going out of town, and I didn't want to transition her then. I will soon! She sleeps in her crib at night though (in her zippadee zip).

She can sit up on her own and loves it! She will grab anything within a six foot radius. I call her my wild woman. She kicks like crazy, and has quite the temper. If she's playing with something she shouldn't and I have to take it away, she throws a huge fit. She definitely lets you know when she doesn't like something.

I can tell we're going to have issues with sharing. Any time Arden gets any toy, Avery all of a sudden wants it. Luckily Arden doesn't care right now, but I am not looking forward to refereeing them when they get older.

Arden loves going places with us. This is us at Gloria's.

My little cutie - 

This is her with her cousin, Aidan. we put them on the blanket together to get a picture, but I had to protect Aidan because she immediately rolled on her side and tried to grab him. Her hands are dangerous! 

This is what dinner time looks like. Craziness. 

Arden 6 Months

How is she already a half year old?? I guess since she's my last I am emotional about everything with her - when she grows out of something or gets big enough for something or any milestone - I am a blubbering mess! I told her she has to stay my little baby forever but she's not obeying.

Here are her stats -
Weight: 15lbs 8oz

Length: 26 inches

Head Circumference: 16.5 inches

They said she is proportional and middle of the road on all of her measurements.

She started eating solid foods. I know I said a long time ago she started but I read a bunch of stuff saying to wait until 6 months, and I remembered I waited that long with Avery so I held off. But she is still an eater!

Another big thing - she stopped nursing. She got SUPER constipated - like for DAYS! I was about to have to take her to the doctor. I'm sure her tummy was hurting and she wouldn't nurse but she would devour a bottle. At first I felt liberated because it was getting REALLY hard to nurse her. She is super distractable and would only nurse if we were in her room, door shut, totally quiet. Of course that is hard to do with Avery around and us also not being at home at all times.

It was also hard because they digest breast milk so much faster so she was still waking up twice at night, which left me exhausted. My feelings of liberations soon turned to sadness. I was finished nursing my last baby. And I loved that bonding time with her. After she stopped being constipated I tried for several days to get her to nurse again and she just wouldn't do it. So now I am pumping and doing formula so she is about 50/50 breastmilk and formula.

Her and Avery are still best buds. She loves looking and laughing at Avery. 

She seriously grabs EVERYTHING and immediately puts it in her mouth. Her hands are pretty dangerous. Several times she has grabbed my face, nose and chunks of hair. 

Since starting her on formula she is only waking up once at night now. Most days she takes a nap at 9am, between 12 and 1, then sometimes a cat nap at 3:30-4. Of course there are still many days when she decides to take 30 minute naps and she has to take them more often. Those days are hard because I feel like I have no break since at least one kid is awake at all times. But I am starting to have days where they are both taking their afternoon nap at the same time and I might have 30 minutes to myself and it's amazing. 

I was obsessed with Arden when she was born and still am now! 

Arden Five Months

Our little munchkin is five months old! For some reason I feel like up to four months, they're still an "infant" but five months seems so BIG!

Here are a few "outtakes" from her photo shoot -

She has made a lot of transitions this month. She moved from the swing to the crib (whew!) and I thought we were done with transitions for a while because I planned to keep her swaddled as long as I could. (Avery was swaddled until six months and she was ready so the transition was super easy.)

Well Arden started rolling onto her tummy when swaddled. The first night she did it I thought it may have been a fluke because she hardly ever rolls from tummy to back (which is easier) and had NEVER rolled from back to tummy before. So I figured I would try again and sure enough the next morning she was on her tummy again.

It's a major suffocation risk to keep them swaddled when they can roll so I had to take it away and she was NOT happy. Her arms are so wild. They hit her in the face, rip her paci out of her mouth, etc. I tried swaddling her with arms out and also putting her in a sleep sack, but they didn't help at all because they didn't restrain her arms. I researched other options but the only thing I could find on the market that restrains arms a bit but is safe for rolling is a Zipadee Zip, which I remember seeing while watching Shark Tank.

I decided to give it a shot and I really like it! I mean, I would still swaddle if I could, but this is the next best thing. The other thing I like about it is it keeps her from sucking her thumb, which she is REALLY trying to do right now.

Also her hair has gotten quite a bit lighter. When she was born it was super black like mine was/is, but now it has gotten light brown.

I started giving her some solids and she LOVES it! I could hardly get Avery to eat anything, but Arden can't get enough. I started with rice cereal and moved on to green beans and she loves both.

She is OBSESSED with Avery. Anytime she is around, Arden can't keep her eyes off her. And if Avery talks to her, she cracks up the whole time. I love that they already love each other!

Arden Four Months

My little chunk is four months old!

Here are her stats:
Weight - 14lbs 2.5oz (63%)
Length - 25 inches (77%)
Head Circumference - 16 inches (42%)

...And she's wearing 9 month clothes at this point. I feel like she is way heavier than Avery but she is only one pound more than she was at this age. And it seems (according to the percentiles) she is middle of the road. Maybe all the rolls and double chin are throwing me off! :)

Apparently she looks just like me. (I'm on the left, Arden's on the right.)

I feel like she has developed quite the personality over the last month. She loves smiling and laughing (she's ticklish). She also kicks all. the. time. When she is on my lap I have to block her feet or she'll kick me to death. And I get soaked while giving her a bath from her kicking.

She has discovered her feet and her ability to spit. And she rolled over for the first time on January 9 (from tummy to back). 

She's been doing good in her own room. She takes about five 30 minute naps during the day but usually only wakes up once at night, so I'll take it. I remember the short naps drove me NUTS with Avery, but I learned from her there is nothing you can do about it, so I just go with it. Avery eventually grew out of it and I know she will too. This time it doesn't bother me so much because I am up all day with Avery anyway so it's not like I'm hoping for a nap of my own or anything.

Judge me if you will but she still sleeps in the swing. Avery did for six months and she's fine so I figure I'll move her eventually. 

Before she goes to sleep, she makes all this noise. We call it her "sleepy song." I sing "Jesus Loves Me" to her each time before putting her down and Rustin thinks it's her trying to sing along. I always know if she's making those sing-songy sounds that she is about to go to sleep. It's super cute.

I know I've said this before but she is seriously the most chill baby ever! Maybe you have to be when you're not the only one?

Arden 3 Months and Christmas and a Wedding

Well nothing like doing Arden's three month update days before she turns four months. Better late than never right?? 

She didn't have a well visit at three months so I don't have her "stats." I'm curious to see what they are at her four month because she is quite the chunk! She is wearing six month clothes in these pictures. 

When I went to do her photo shoot, Avery woke up from her nap and insisted on being in some of the pictures.

Cute outtakes- 

Up until she was three months, she slept in our room - usually right next to me. I figured I would move her to her room at three months, but when it came I wasn't quite ready. Sure I wanted my nights back and all, but I loved her cuddled up next to me. And I knew when she went to her room, she wasn't ever coming back. So I thought of keeping her until four months but she started being more social and not such a sound sleeper. I used to be able to just lay her down next to me and she would fall asleep while Rustin and I watched TV but she started not wanting to lay down with me, but play instead and the TV kept her awake so I figured it was time. I moved her in there and was bracing myself for the worst, but she really did ok with the transition. 

Here are a few more of her - 

Christmas was really fun this year with it being Arden's first and Avery being really into it. She had a "Christmas T-shirt Parade" at her preschool. They made shirts with angels on them using their footprint and handprints and wore the shirts as they marched down the hall ringing bells and singing songs while the parents watched. It was SUPER cute! 

Avery also attended her second wedding. One of my long-time friends, Shelby, got married and I was in the house party. 

She had a BLAST! The two girls in the picture above hung out with her the whole time and held her hand while they walked around. It was SO cute! They also went to the photo booth a few times by themselves. The pictures were pretty hilarious. That was sort of the first time at an event where she has gone off by herself. Usually she sticks by us and will only go somewhere if we go with her. Although we were glad she's now confident enough to do that, it was a little bittersweet. She's growing up too fast! 

We celebrated Christmas early in Wichita Falls. On the anniversary of my Grandad's passing we went to the cemetery and let him meet Arden. 

She was also able to meet her future husband, Luke. He is my friend Sarah's baby and was born about three weeks after Arden. 

 And then we were back in Allen for Christmas Eve/Day with Rustin's family. 

Hopefully I will be a little more timely with the next update. No promises though :)

Life with Two

How is life with two kids?

I get asked that question a lot lately. It's not a bad question at all, but since I have been asked it so much it has forced me to think more deeply about it than my typical response of "Oh we're making it."

The real answer is it's stinkin' hard. But I haven't wanted to say that. I feel like I don't have a "right" to say that. I know people with three, four, heck I even personally know a woman with 12 kids. What right do I have to say two- just two - kids are hard?? Not only do I only have two kids, but I stay home, I have a supportive husband, and just the fact that I live in the United States means I have many MANY more luxuries than my fellow moms in say Africa.

But knowing all of those things doesn't make it less hard. I think being aware of how fortunate I am is good because it creates a sense of gratitude in me, but sometimes it creates a feeling of worthlessness. Because it's not really helpful to see the woman with 12 kids wearing something other than sweat pants (an act I have not been able to pull off in days). It makes me feel like even more of a failure. (If she can do it, why can't I??) I think at times we have to allow ourselves to be ok with the fact that we're struggling.

I remember it was hard with just one kid. Avery only took 20 minute naps and when she was awake she was crying. I went from having free time to zero free time. Side note to people without kids: you may think you have no free time now because you're busy with work, etc. and I'm not discounting that, but please, just take pleasure in the fact that you can use the restroom ALONE.

Now with two I have even less free time. Maybe that sounds selfish of me that I need free time, but hear me out - I am an introvert and if you have ever done the Myers Briggs testing you know that the difference between and introvert and extrovert is not how good you are at talking to people, it's where you get your energy. Extroverts get their energy from others, and introverts get their energy from alone/down time. We need some time to just recharge with no one around. And now I no longer have that recharge time that I NEED.

At least with Avery (when she got older) she napped during the day so I had a few hours there, then she went to bed at a somewhat decent hour and I got a few more hours before I went to sleep. Now I think they have conspired so that one of them is awake at all times. I kid you not, there have been days that the SECOND I put one of them down to nap, the other immediately wakes up and it continues like that all day.

And let's talk about going places. I need to get out of the house. Even though I am an introvert, believe it or not, I do like being around people. In fact, I NEED to be around other people sometimes or I go insane. But I pretty much can't leave the house unless I'm going to a place with childcare and only women (because I just can't bring myself to nurse in front of men). Arden takes 40 minute naps every 1.5 hours, and she eats every 2-3 hours. So if you want to try to do the math that leaves me about one 30 minute window to go somewhere, but 30 minutes is how long it now takes us to all get into the car.

It's an adjustment, and I keep telling myself it WILL get better (it did with Avery). But for all you other moms out there with only one or two kids who are struggling and then you see the mom of 12 with actual pants on (you know, ones that button) and then you feel like a failure, just know you are not alone. It's hard. And just because some people have it harder, contrary to popular opinion, that does not somehow make it easier for you.

And a little PSA for husbands: When your wife is confiding in you how she's having a hard time, the worst thing you can do is to remind her how so-and-so did it/is doing it and is fine. You're welcome.

Arden Two Months

Arden turned two months on Nov. 26! Here are her stats:

Weight: 11 lbs 7oz 59%
Length: 22.75" 56%
Head Circumference: 15" 27%

Here is her two month picture-

She has now celebrated her first Halloween and Thanksgiving! Here is Halloween -

And we were in Wichita Falls over Thanksgiving and went to the Fantasy of Lights -

She is really such a great baby. And if you read that and are bitter, please go back and read my posts from this time with Avery. TRUST me, I paid my dues!

Even though she is great, it is still a big adjustment going from one to two. She may be an easy baby but I also have a 3 year old this time! I keep saying I am overwhelmed with life. I am having a hard time finding a minute to do normal tasks like empty the dishwasher and do laundry. I keep telling myself it will get better... it will get better...

Arden is still sleeping in our room. I moved Avery to her own room super early - like two weeks I think. I don't know what it is with Arden - whether it's that I know she's my last baby or that her room  is all the way upstairs. With Avery we were still living in our one-story, but now Arden's room is literally the furthest room from ours in the house and I am dreading making that trek in the middle of the night. But I will say there have been several nights where she's slept all the way through - from like 9pm-6am. My goal is to start transitioning her to her room at 3 months.

And like her sister, she sleeps in a swing. People may say what they will but I really believe babies need a "4th trimester" and Avery gave it up when she was ready, so when Arden is ready I will move her to her bed.

Almost every night Avery wants me to take her and Arden's picture so here are a couple -

And here are a few of Arden just hanging out.

I also let her take naps on me when I can (so pretty much only when Avery's napping) and I love those little cuddles! Also, she does not take a pacifier! I was so thrown off by that since Avery was obsessed with it, but they are certainly their own person as I can already tell.

I really have so much more to write about but there are about 50 other things I need to be doing right now so I guess it will have to wait :) Happy two months, Arden! We love you!