Saturdays in Waco

It's hard having a newborn—cabin fever kicks in very quickly when you can't leave the house. But since ours officially had her first shots and flu season is coming to a close, we can finally leave the house without having to worry. GAME CHANGER. So Drew and I decided to spend this Saturday actually doin' stuff.

This morning the baby slept until 5:15 (A BIG DEAL) and then after she ate she slept again until 9. AKA Drew and I were able to get some REAL rest. *praise hands*

It was my sister Kamryn's senior prom today(!!!)

So, per tradition, my mom and I spent the day getting her all ready to go. 

It was actually so windy that this chick's false lashes almost came off.

Thank goodness for friends with lash glue, amirite?

It's hard to believe this little thing will be off on her next adventure so soon! 

Her date was a good sport, obvi.

After we sent her off, Drew and I took the baby downtown. It was so beautiful out! We had to take her for a walk by the river. We also stopped for a smoothie per my request.

As you can see, she spent a lot of the afternoon asleep. Saturdays are hard.
After we left, Drew got an invite from a friend to go to a concert tonight. So Arden and I sent him on his way, and spent our evening watching The Notebook.

I came to the conclusion today that our new normal includes a stroller permanently taking up too much space in our trunk, and Saturday nights spent blowing raspberries on an infant's belly.

I like it.

When sleep becomes currency

Two things are precious and hard to come by when you're a new mom—sleep and time. I'm permanently and insatiably exhausted. Even when Drew sweetly takes the baby on a Saturday morning so I can sleep two extra hours, I find myself wishing for a nap by 2 p.m. I don't understand it. 

Arden started going to stay with Lindsay this past week. Lindsay's husband works at Magnolia, which is how we know them! She has two boys of her own and stays home with them. I couldn't have dreamed up a better situation for Arden. I had sooo much anxiety about the daycare situation for so long and then BOOM, one day God came through in a big way. It's so perfect.

Being away from Arden was hard and easy all at the same time. I missed her during the day, but more like "I wonder what she's doing" kind of a miss. Never once did I worry about her. What a blessing. 

First day!

Second

Third

Fourth

Aaaaand fifth...

(More on this later)

Drew takes these pictures when he's dressing her every morning. (I have to be at work at 8, but Drew is 8:30, so he dresses and takes her.) I look forward to them every day!

Being back at work was a little surreal. It felt like I'd never left, but at the same time nothing was the same. We have a BEAUTIFUL new office space and that makes going to work so great. 

I have to pump three times a day—10, 1:30 and 4. It takes 15 minutes every time. I. Hate. It. There's not a good spot to do it, it interrupts my work flow, and putting the thing together and then breaking it back down three times is just obnoxious. Everyone at work is supportive, which helps, but I just know THIS will be the thing that turns me off of breastfeeding. My goal all along has been to make it to 6 months. So 4 more! 

Just unpacking and repacking the bags to get ready for a day at work is tiring. At night, I pull my pumped milk out of the tiny cooler I take to work, label and freeze it. Boil pump parts. Transfer frozen milk to the fridge so it's defrosted for the next day. In the mornings, I make sure there are diapers and wipes in the diaper bag. Lay out baby clothes. Make sure I have workout clothes/socks/shoes for barre/spin after work. Remember my water bottle and laptop. Make sure I have milk storage bags in my pump bag. Remember to grab both coolers for storing milk and pump parts. It's a WHOLE thing. I FULLY understand why moms go straight to formula, and I support you fully. You wont get any mommy judgment from me.

So why do I keep doing it if it's so much trouble? Heck, I don't know. If I'm being completely honest, maybe a lot of people told me I couldn't and I'm out to prove to myself that I can. Maybe I like burning 600 extra calories a day while I lose the last of my mommy weight. Maybe I like that Arden likes it. Maybe I want to be an example for other working moms that YOU CAN DO IT. (Even though I'm strugglin'. Hey, nobody's perfect.)

Arden started getting sick Wednesday night...I thought it was just allergies, but by Thursday evening she was running a fever. Drew and I panicked. I worked from home Friday and took her to the doctor. Hence the "day 5" picture being in her carseat with sad eyes. They ran blood tests and all kinds of junk. She was fine, there was nothing to worry about. But it didn't stop this new mom from worrying. (I read too many mommy messenger boards.)

First set of shots were Monday. Arden did pretty well! She cried, but she was fine. I did not cry, but I was ready for anything. At 2 months old, she's 11 lbs, 8 oz and 22 inches long.

Arden still doesn't sleep through the night. (Thank you, Lord, for the gift of coffee.) Typically, we put her down at midnight and she sleeps until 4. Back to sleep at 4:30 and awake for good at about 6:30. Every evening from about 7(ish) to 11, she has to be held or she cries. We're not quite sure what the deal is there. She usually starts a tantrum RIGHT as dinner is ready (her timing is impeccable), so Drew and I have to take turns eating. The house is a mess because after the whole day is done and we have a crying baby on our hands, we don't have energy for laundry or dishes. Shoot, we barely even have energy to watch TV. 

But don't be fooled, it's good. It's really good. Sometimes (okay, always) we are tired. When my alarm goes off, sometimes I daydream about taking Arden to Mrs. Lindsay's house and then coming back home and passing out for eight uninterrupted hours. Like I said, sleep is currency. But she's such a gift. We love her more than we could ever put into words. 

I'm extra thankful for Drew. He is patient, so supportive and SUCH a helper. He washes dinner dishes without me asking. He gets the baby to sleep like no other (we call it "daddy magic"). He boils my pump parts and defrosts milk and picks out hair bows and grocery shops and sucks out baby snot without ever complaining. He's the least lazy person I've ever met. I like him. 

Things arehard, but they're good. We're head-above-water.
More updates to come. Stick around.