Feed Me

The new adventure starting baby food is, well, an adventure!  My sister-in-law gave us a bunch of baby food (thanks Heather) so Alex is all set for a while.  The resounding advice we got was, start with the veggies, well, duh :).  You give the kids the sweet yummy things, why would she want to go back to less tasty but oh so good for you veggies?

She's not sure she likes the peas

What are you looking at?

We started with what I thought would be the least popular, and in my personal opinion the least tasty.....peas.  We tried straight up peas the first time and we got the stink face.  I think it was part taste and part texture.  Once I mixed 1/2 rice cereal and 1/2 peas, she hoovered that bowl like it was an ice cream sundae.   Feeding Alex is a bit like feeding an angry animal.  It involves lots of grunting, whining, and crying if the food does not come fast enough.  Oh boy, she is her mother's daughter (usually minus the grunting).  She has my appetite though, and right now it's a bit like a sieve. You put food in and it doesn't seem to be enough.  I have no idea how much a 6 month old should be eating when it comes to food, but she'll easily take a bowl of rice cereal and a jar of baby food in 1 sitting, only a couple hours after having a full bottle.

She's doing a really good job keeping it all in despite her tendency to keep her tongue by the roof of her mouth.  She'll eat at the speed you feed her, but her preference tends to be fast.  The faster the better.  If you leave minimal time to swallow, she's just fine with that.  She really is a good eater, and has taken to peas with gusto.  I love my veggies, but peas are one of the few things that I will pass one, so I'm happy her taste buds don't seem to be all that picky at this point.

There's a smile :)

The biggest problem feeding her, besides not feeding her fast enough, is my lack of limbs to feed her.  She loves her fingers and is constantly putting fingers, hands, and toes in her mouth while we try to feed her.  I wish I had an extra hand or two to try to keep them out of the way.  She doesn't realize that food will come faster if your hands aren't in the way.  At the end of a feeding it usually looks like I tried to give her a bath in baby food, so a good cleaning is usually needed, which is fine with me, but Alex hates it!  She screams when I take a wet paper towel to her face, hair, hands, arms, legs etc to get the left over peas, beans or rice cereal that has taken residence in any little crevice it can find :).

I know eventually we'll start the bananas, pears and yummy things, but hopefully by then she'll be well established with the vegetables that she'll eat both.  Well, we can hope right?

6 months already

Man, it's been a busy couple of weeks.  Obviously getting ready for Mark's graduation and the last week with the 3rd year residents, it seems like life was really busy these past couple of weeks.  Hence the hiatus in blogging, but now we're back.

I am shocked to say that my baby is 6 months old.  A half a year has flown by in what I can only describe as warp speed.  It seems like a just gave birth to her yesterday, but in that same note it feels like eons ago.  It's this weird dichotomy of time standing still and jumping weeks at a time.  In any case, it's here and I find myself a bit sad.  Alex is no longer my tiny little baby, sleeping in my arms, not able to do anything but eat, sleep and poop.  Now she does those things in greater abundance :) and much much more!

Playing in the back yard

Yes, mama, can I help you?

At her 6 month visit she was 15 lbs 3 oz and 26 1/2 inches long, which are in the 35% and 73% percentiles.  She's a tall lean peanut, which I'm a little shocked about since neither Mark nor I are in the upper registers of height.  We are both by definition, average or slightly under.  I'm assuming the height part comes from Mark's side, somewhere, dormant waiting to be released.  It's sure not from my side where my birth parents were 4'11" and 5'6".  It's very noticeable though from her carseat, which she's getting too long for, to her clothes, she has the longest torso ever! And although she's only 15 lbs, she's a little over double what she was when she was born and grown 7 inches in 6 months, which is crazy!!

Sooooo Big

Big smiles :)

I do miss that new baby smell, which is better than any scent ever, but there are so many things she does now which are almost as good.  She of course smiles, giggles, and babbles to her hearts content.  One smile from her and you're sunk.  Even those tough days when you want to bang your head against the wall, the second she looks and you and grins, it's over.  She's also started sleeping through the night (knock on wood).  The last 2 weeks a switch went off and she's now sleeping 11 - 12 hours at night, and it's AMAZING!  She gets up early most days, around 6:30, but I will so take it.  She's also doing so much better at napping.  She still takes 3 a day, although the 3rd is really a cat nap, but she takes 2 good naps a day, and life is good.

Rambo brought the biggest stick ever & expects Alex to play with him

Right now I feel overly blessed.  I really can't complain about anything, even the tough times we had and all of the growing pains.  I have a wonderful family, a healthy daughter, a loving husband, and we are just content in life right now.  I know things can change in an instant, but right now I'm reveling in 6 months of wonderful baby bliss and excited to see her grow in these next 6 months, although I'm sad with the thought of my baby getting even bigger :(.  Right now she's perfect, sitting on her own, starting "real food", and not too mobile.  She still cuddles, and likes to be rocked, so I'll take it, for now :)

7 Year Itch

It's happening, the 7 year itch!  No, not the kind you get in your marriage, it's been 7 years since Mark started on this journey of becoming a doctor and in 8 short work days he will no longer be a resident and become a full fledged MD.  Woot Woot.

3 1/2 years ago, Match Day, when we found out we'd be coming to La Crosse

I can't explain what it's like being a doctor's wife, it's one of those things that unless you experience it, it's hard to understand.  It's been almost 7 years of fully supporting my husband through this journey to make his dream a reality.  No, this isn't a pity poor me party in any sense of the word.  It's been my pleasure and privilege to be able to support my husband in order to make a better life for our family and so he can do what he loves, and therefore I can do what I love.  But, and there's a BIG But (hehe) it's been a difficult road full of challenges.

Graduation from Med School

I have currently moved twice for Mark.  Once to Milwaukee for Medical School and then again 3 years ago to La Crosse for his residency.  When he got a job here, I can only sigh my relief that I don't have to move again.  The sight of moving boxes makes me a little nauseous at this point.  Moving to a new city is tough.  You leave all your friends, your comfort zone, your family, and your home.  I had to find new jobs in each city and get readjusted.  He had an instant friends/co-worker base and I had to find my way.  He was busy with school, rotations and the like.  There were times I would cry since I was so lonely.  It also seems each time I make great friends we have to move and it starts all over again.  Thankfully, we don't have to move, but sadly some wonderful people in our lives are once again, moving on and away to their new jobs in other states.  It's one of the worst things about this profession. Along the way I've been blessed to meet some amazing people and lucky to still consider some of them my friends!

Some of my favorite people in the world we met during Medical School

Now, we have our own little family and for the first time in almost a decade, I can comfortably call somewhere home, other than Apple Valley.  We always joke that Mark makes the money and I do everything else :).  I am the CFO to his CEO and we makes things work.  I run the household, the finances, and most little things in between. His job is being the best he can be at work, and come home happy.  It's weird moving from this phase because we've been in a constant state of flux the last 7 years, never knowing what our next step would be. 

Mark's AMAZING residency class and families, I will miss them DEARLY!

I'm excited to have him around a little more, and I'm sure Alex will be too.  Putting up with 100 hour weeks and nights as an intern were difficult.  There would be 4-5 days when we'd literally see each other in passing as he came home to sleep and I went to work.  I know there are some families that do that all the time and I don't know how they make it work, but I commend them.  Having him on call and gone that first year was tough, and some months were better than others.  Now, it'll be a new schedule and a new adjustment, but we will make it work, we always do.  This time however it's different. 

Our family + Alex's friend Elly

So here's to the next step in our journey.  I am so proud of my husband and what he's accomplished and hope the next 11 years are as happy and eventful as the last 11 we've been together.

The Easy Button

Sometimes there are days where you just want life to be a little simpler.  In those times, I press my imaginary "easy" button.  Most often times this refers to meals and cooking.  Usually when Mark comes home I have dinner cooked and ready for him when he walks in the door.  Before we had Alex, I loved cooking big and elaborate meals.  I like to experiment and go all out.  Most of the time, it turns out pretty good if I do say so myself, I think I'm a pretty good cook.  Minus the Fish stew debacle of '04 (I'm so sorry honey), most of my creations have been winners or at least good.

Yum Yum

Fast forward 5 1/2 months post Alex.  Cooking and getting meals ready is much more difficult now.  I have a little one that requires lots of attention now that she's getting bigger, and she's not even moving yet! That'll be a whole new set of obstacles when that happens.  I usually start getting dinner ready when she takes her short 30-40 min afternoon nap.  When she's awake, I can usually put her in her bouncer or on her mat for 10-15 min. by herself before life is not happy and she wants attention.  That doesn't allow for a lot of cooking time.  I used to cook fancier meals, but now it's usually something quick like chicken wraps, spaghetti, or frozen fish.  I can honestly say that those frozen steamed veggie packets are probably one of my favorite inventions ever!  It's been even more difficult since Mark and I have been eating better because it's tough to find really good meals that are frozen and healthy.

Anyways, this week I've just pressed the "easy" button pretty much constantly which usually means frozen pizza, or ordering out.  I don't love doing it a lot, but there are weeks like this one where you're so tired and drained and cooking is the last thing on your mind, and I've learned that pushing the easy button is ok.

So many smiles and giggles

The other area where I struggle at times is the cloth vs. disposable diapers.  We've been doing cloth diapers since Alex was about 2 weeks old.  For the most part I've been pretty happy with them.  We've already paid the cost off what we would pay for disposables, they're better for the environment and really cute!  However, they are a lot more work.  I have to do double the laundry, which is already a lot, and now that she's on formula, and no longer has those runny breast milk poop, we now have to hose off the diapers, and yes, it's a gross as it sounds.  We have one of those attachments to the toilet, and yeah, it's a life saver.  Anyways, sometimes like this week when Alex was sick and having G.I issues, we did disposables since it was just gross.  Doing disposables reminded me how easy they are, but alas, we'll go back to the cloth.

Add caption

Sometimes it's just easier to make those little compromises like not doing the dishes, or doing disposable diapers to maintain some sanity.  It's hard since I want to be super mom and do everything, but it's just not possible all of the time.  It's funny when people ask, don't you get bored at home?  Right now I just laugh, because I haven't had time to be bored, I'm too tired :).  Maybe at some point I might, but not if I can help it, and I'm doing my job right!

Cabin Fever in June??

Ok, I am OVER this heat. Yeah, I'm whiney and complaining, but this is my right :).  First of all, having the kid born at Christmas meant 3 months of being stuck inside with below freezing temps.  This was an especially frigid winter and sadly with a new baby, we couldn't go anywhere.  It was a long and lonely winter, but we survived and it started getting nicer, or did it?  Somehow we went from snow to heat wave with nothing in between, seriously, nothing.  I remember April 19th we had snow, and 2 days later is was 85 degrees.  Seriously, what is going on?  The Apocalypse maybe, global warning, who knows, but whatever it is, I don't like it.

Alex not sure she likes the grass, but she hasn't been in it much

I will fully admit I love the cold, which is probably good since we live in Wisconsin.  I do not especially love snow, unless it's around Christmas, but I love cold weather.  I sleep with the window open in winter, I don't need a million layers to go outside, I'm naturally a warm blooded person.  I apparently have good circulation, because I'm not one of those people that gets freezing hands or feet in winter.  I stay pretty toasty.  Which does not make me the best hot weather person.  Alex, takes after me in more ways that some, and this is one of them.

Fascinated by grass

 Alex is a warm blooded creature.  I swear she's always running 3 degrees warmer than normal people.  She gets flushed easily and doesn't seem to mind being in cold places.  Needless to say this record setting heat is not my idea of an enjoyable time.  We've been pretty much home bound which kind of stinks.  It's too hot to go for walks or go to the park (and she's too little to do anything but watch right now anyway).  I've even been cautious to go places because the car ends up getting 120 degrees baking in the sun, and even with AC, it's not super comfortable.  We have braved the Y a couple of times so I can workout a bit, but that's about it. 

It's becoming increasing difficult being homebound since Alex is getting bigger and more curious.  It's an awesome stage, but one that's not super mobile yet.  She's in this weird limbo between baby and toddler-ish abilities.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not in any hurry for her to grow up any faster than she is, which is warp speed if you ask me.  She's curious, sitting up by herself, and eating rice cereal with a spoon.  I feel like I should be exposing her to new things and she LOVES being outside.  She stares up at the trees and tracks the sounds of birds and other creatures.  She loves being in a new environment, even though we haven't gotten to get out much.  If the weather keeps this up, I'm going to be very angry.  I love being outside and am sad my daughter is missing Spring.  The cool breezes, the crisp smell of flowers, and the feel of the sun without sweating like a hog. 

Look how big I am

Do I have something on my face?

 
I know beggars can't be choosers, but honestly the weather the past 2 months has sucked.  Between Tornadoes, Hail, Record Heat, Humidity and Snow, all within days of each other what else can Mother Nature hit us with?  At this rate I wouldn't be surprised with snow in July.  Hopefully things will turn around so we can start enjoying the outdoors as a family especially since Mark will have 2 months off coming up in a couple weeks!!

Memorial Day weekend

I can't believe May has come and gone.  I feel like time is speeding up and there's no way to stop it.  Memorial Day weekend was a lot of fun, although busy.  Alex and I have gotten in a pretty good rhythm lately.  We have our routine and right now it works for us.  It doesn't allow a lot of time or flexibility at this point, but that's ok.  I figure the more we can be consistent now, then later, it'll be easier for all of us.  That doesn't mean we never stray from her routine, we do now and then, and right now it seems to throw her for a loop, which makes me a little nervous leaving her for 6 days while her daddy and I go to Aruba, but that's for another day.

The reason for straying the most often is going up to the cabin.  Mark's family has one near Wisconsin Rapids and we try to get up there as much as possible.  Which means a couple of things.  First of all, traveling to and from the cabin.  Thankfully it's a brisk 1 1/2 hour trek, which isn't bad, but it can be challenging if this little monkey is in a mood.  We've been trying to schedule the car ride when she should be napping, and some clever arranging of blankets to cover up her car seat and make it dark, have resulted so far in some successful naps at least most of the time.  For a child who takes really short naps, this is an accomplishment!  When she decides to get fussy, it's a very frustrating and looooong ride with me climbing back and forth between the front and back seat at times.  I'm sure some fellow travelers are getting a nice butt shot of me climbing back and forth!

I'm ready to go :)

Second, it's getting out of her environment and crib, where she's comfortable and sleeps well.  It also puts her with us in the same room.  There are only 3 bedrooms and when Mark's parents and Brother and my Sister-in-law and their 4 year old are there, we all share our room with the kids.  I can only say that it sucks.  Alex takes after her mama and is a light sleeper, so sleeping in the same room with her is beyond difficult for me.  I hear every squeak, noise, and shuffle.  Not to mention we usually let her cry if she wakes up a lot, and we keep her in her crib in the morning.  We can't do that at the cabin, as letting her scream would wake everyone else up, so EVERY TIME she fusses, we pick her up, yeah, that's great for when we have to go back home and start all over again.  I would want to let her cry, but once again, not fair to the 5 other people trying to sleep (6 if you include my husband, and let's be honest, he probably wouldn't wake up anyway :P).

Uncle Scott & Rylee, and yes, Alex sitting there with the remote! Haha

Alex and her Cousin Rylee who is obsessed with her in the best way

 Needless to say, we only stayed 24 hours, because with that many people it's chaotic and we can't really let Alex do her thing.  I think it'll get easier the bigger she gets.  In any case, it was nice to have some family time during the weekend also.  As a family we drove over to Hixon Forest and went for a little hike.  It was nice, except next time we either need to get an off road type stroller or put her in her carrier.  The stroller we took was not made for the bumpy gravel trail.  However, it was a beautiful day and a fun weekend.  I get happy and sad when these things happen because it's fun to take her on these little adventures, but I get sad since she's getting older and less like a baby every day :(.

Ready to go for a mini hike

Sportin the shades

Alex and her papa in Hixon Forest

Alex and Me for her first hike in Hixon