Four Months and a Bug

Gunner turned four months old on February 23rd! He's getting so big. He is learning how to hold his toys by himself to chew on them, which is really cute. He might be cutting some teeth soon, there's been a lot of drool and he goes crazy when I give him a chilled teether ring.
His four month appointment was scheduled for this morning, but yesterday he was sick and his doctor recommended waiting a week since he will be getting another round of shots. Yesterday afternoon I thought he seemed a little fussy and his forehead seemed warmer than normal, so I checked his temp and he was running a slight fever. I was hoping that it would go down so I could keep his doctors appointment. He fell asleep not long after he woke up from a nap, so I just held him to let him sleep. I could tell he didn't feel good. When he woke up, he was crying like something was hurting, and he wouldn't eat. I changed his diaper and took his temp, and it was up to 101.2. I quickly called his doctor to see if they could get him in, and they could, but I had less than 15 minutes to get there! I hadn't dried my hair or anything, I looked horrible. So I threw on a hat, grabbed his diaper bag which had only one diaper in it, and ran out the door. Thankfully it was right before their office closed so there were no other patients. I saw the nurse practitioner and she checked his ears and decided he had a small ear infection in one ear, and the other looked like it was starting to get that way. She dug lots of wax out of his ears and he did not like that one bit! I had to hold him still, and it hurt my heart knowing he was feeling bad and having to deal with someone digging in his ears too. She called in a presctiption for him and I picked it up on my way home. I called Daniel to let him know what we were doing... I had not been able to finish my chores for the day so the house was a mess. He was so sweet though. He picked up some infant tylenol and take out so I wouldn't have to cook dinner. He rushed home and took Gunner while I got Gunner's medicine ready. After Gunner had taken the tylenol, you could tell he quickly started feeling better! He ate and went to bed, and slept all night! I did not: my head is so congested, my nose is running like a faucet, and my lymph nodes are swollen and sore.
Gunner's fever went down and he's been great all day! It was a very maternal moment though when I was holding him and he felt so bad. I'm just glad he got some sleep and isn't running a fever anymore.
I feel pretty awful today though. My dad is coming up to keep me company and help with Gunner. I hope I get over this soon, it's hard being sick and being a mom at the same time! I don't know how my mom did it all those years!

No Theme Today

This post isn't really themed today. Just a few random facts about my life the last few weeks.

I've been working with Gunner to get him to fall asleep on his own. It's going quite well I must say. He was in a habit of me rocking him to sleep. It was a problem because as soon as I would lay him down, he would wake up and cry. We've had some days of resistance since I started working with him, but for the most part, he doesn't make a peep and is out like a light! I'm so proud of him. This is so great, but it can seem like a problem for going out. He loves things to be predictable, so it's harder when we go somewhere and he has to nap in the car or something. I realize that life must go on so I'm trying to just go with it. I don't want him to hate being away from home because his mom was afraid to go anywhere! We're always adapting.

The weather this week has been magnificent!!!! It's been a little too windy to go for a walk with Gunner though. I have had the windows open to air out the house and it's been wonderful.

Daniel and I haven't had our Valentine's date yet, so tomorrow night Mom and Dad are babysitting and Daniel is taking me to dinner! He isn't telling me where we're going yet, but it's somewhere nice. I'm looking forward to something besides sandwiches!!!! Which is another topic...

The "diet" I have been on has been great for Gunner. He has had much less belly aches and gas and is still sleeping really well at night. I can't have ANY dairy (milk, eggs, cheese, ice cream), beans, broccoli, cauliflower, garlic, onions, seasonings or spices besides salt and pepper. (How much would your diet change if you couldn't eat these things?) Due to these restrictions, I have kept the weight that I have lost off! I'm not exercising yet so I haven't lost more, but within two months of Gunner's birth, I lost 30 pounds. I think I only gained 25-28 during the pregnancy so YEAH! Starting in March I will be doing at least 30 minutes of exercise a day three times a week. I'm part of a group from our church doing a fitness challenge for Blue Cross. It should help me get more weight off I hope!

Things are good! I'm looking forward to constant warmer weather, taking Gunner on walks, and maybe even playing in the back yard! Come on spring!

Time to Stop and Think

I don't enjoy reading blogs that are mostly negative and complain about everything. That's why I try to stick to positive topics and funny stories with mine. However, occasionally I feel the need to "rant" a little about some of my opinions. I really don't care what anyone thinks, I just feel like some times, things need to be said! (mainly to get it out of my system and make me stop thinking about it) I never set out to start conflicts either, so no need for a response if you disagree. Go post your opinions on your own blog if you feel differently.

First:

Let's all give Christina Aguilara a break. She is human. Singing the Star Spangled Banner in front of that many people (in person and on TV) cannot be easy. I don't like that we think celebrities should be perfect, and we act surprised when they show any flaws. People make mistakes. So ease up and move on with life.

Next:

Just because you may have watched every NFL game this season and stuck with one team the whole time doesn't mean that I have to do the same. I'm sure at least half the people who watch the super bowl never watched much of the NFL season, so when the big game comes up, we pick one of the two teams to cheer for, get together with friends, have some chips and dip and enjoy ourselves. There's nothing wrong with that! It's a game, it's meant to be fun, so let's all chill out and not make a big deal out of it.

Last:

[Non football game related.] I am always disappointed to see when people of the Christian faith are judgmental and arrogant. It does not help our image in this world. Judgmental is one word that many non-believers use when describing Christians. So we should all think about that before we do or say anything, and especially before posting things on the internet. Take a minute to think about what you are about to say or type, and ask yourself if it's out of love, or out of a selfish place. If you believe you are better than others because of your faith, take a moment and read these verses:

Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, "Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?" But when Jesus heard this, He said, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire compassion, and not sacrifice', for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Matthew 9:10-13

We all should think harder about what we say and do every day.

Snow Day!

Well, we got a TON of snow. I am not really sure how much, partly because I haven't really stepped foot in the snow. We've had a few snows since Gunner was born but this was the first one I took him outside in. I bundled him up in his little bear suit and we took some pictures!




Mommy and Gunner enjoying our snow day!

He's a Big Boy Now...and Mommy is Tired

Gunner has made the transition to sleeping in his crib full time! This began last Friday night. I wanted to try it at the beginning of the weekend in case he got up several times so that Daniel would let me nap the following day... He actually slept all night! And that was the ONLY night he slept all night. Every night since then he has woken up more than twice, and I have been woken up by his Angel Care monitor alarm at least once every night. He gets gassy during his sleep and grunts and scoots around his crib which places him off the sensor that's under the matress. This causes the alarm to sound since it can't pick up the movement of his breathing which causes Mommy and Daddy mild cardiac arrest while they sprint to the other side of the house. (More so Mommy than Daddy since the first time it went off Daddy kept trying to turn off the alarm clock...)

Hopefully in a few weeks we will figure this out and he will go back to sleeping all night. Here are some pics of him playing in his crib wrapped in Daddy's old baby blanket!

Too Much of a Good Thing

Poor Gunner. I have too much milk! I never thought that would be a problem, but it is. There are even articles about it on La Leche League's site. Interesting. He has been having a hard time nursing lately and I've been more uncomfortable too. We're working to get everything back to normal, and I think we're on track.

If you're a mom-to-be and planning to breastfeed, you might check out LLLI's site. (llli.org) Don't make fun, I don't know how to do that link thing...
Anyway, they have some great info and it might be a good idea to read up on some possible struggles new moms have in case you run into that at some point.

This post is short. Gunner is about to wake from his nap. Here is a quick summary of how we're doing though!

-Nap time is great. He takes several naps a day (all in his crib, in his room!) and he goes down very easily. All I have to do is change him and swaddle him, and he starts to doze off. He's that easy in the evenings too...

-Night time is still wonderful. He goes to sleep quickly and sleeps between 8 and 10 hours!! We're getting ready to permanently move him to his room for all sleeping though.

-His reflux is much better. The meds the doctor gave him work great and he spits up a lot less.

-I am still loving being at home. I am getting excited about the spring and summer where we can play outside!

That's all for now! I think I hear the little man stirring!

This And That

I have yet to update on how cloth diapers are going, and it's been over a month since I started them! To sum up, it's been wonderful. I have figured them out and gotten in the groove of washing. Shortly after starting cloth diapers, I also started using cloth wipes. That is probably more work than the diapers, but it's helped his poor little sensitive bottom. And it's saving us more money! I'm using squares of flannel material that my mom cut out and she sewed the edges for a clean look. I roll them up in my wipe warmer and pour on my homemade solution. I need to get more wipes, but other than that, it's going great.

Gunner had his first shots on his two month "birthday". He cried, and I had to try hard not to cry. I had Daniel there to hold him while he was getting his shots. I couldn't watch. He is growing fast! On 12-23 he weighed just over ten pounds and was 22 1/4 inches long. He has moved out of newborn clothes into 0-3 month clothes. He is holding his head up great and smiling and laughing a ton. He is still having tummy troubles, but the doctor put him on some medicine for his reflux so that's helped.

I am still enjoying being a SAHM! (stay at home mom) The main question people ask me is "Do you get bored?" and the answer is no. I am never bored. Gunner keeps me on my toes and there is always house work to be done. I had been sick on and off during the last couple of weeks though, so I'm looking forward to getting back on my normal "schedule". I've got high hopes to get some major cleaning projects done this month though, so hopefully I can accomplish those.

Unless you've actually ever stayed home with a baby, you would probably think there is a lot of down time. This is not true. A typical day of mine is spent waking up between 5am and 8am, depending on when Gunner gets up. (Usually around 6) I change him, feed him, and burp him. This usually takes a good hour. I sit him in his bouncer for a bit and eat breakfast, maybe take a shower (sometimes I don't get a shower until noon...) and by the time two hours have passed, he is ready for a nap. This is where it begins to vary depending on how he is feeling. Most of the time he is out and sleeps for at least 45 minutes. Some times he wakes up 15 minutes later. Either way, I try to get some things done. (He is napping now, but today I was able to get his diapers and wipes folded and put away while the other laundry is washing and drying) When he wakes up, it's time to change, feed and burp him again, another hour. He eats every 2.5-3 hours, so most of my day is spent feeding and burping him. I have to make sure and burp him well or else he will spit it all up. Between feedings, I am either taking a shower or getting ready, doing laundry, cleaning the kitchen, cooking, or cleaning other parts of the house. This is on a normal day. There are days where he is having a lot of stomach issues and cries a ton, and during those days I am usually trying to calm him down and make him feel better. I get much less done those days. On a good day I can get all the laundry done, his room cleaned, the house picked up, the kitchen cleaned and possibly do a little relaxing. On a day where I have to go somewhere or run errands, MUCH less is done since I have to time it right to get anywhere on time. If I get in the shower right after he eats, I can be done getting ready just in time for him to be changed and eat again. My days are never the same.

I have completely cut out all dairy from my diet in an attempt to help with his tummy troubles. I think it's been 5 days. It's HARD since I love to drink milk, but I think it's helping. Plus, he should have a better tolerance in about a month or two.

I desperately need a hair cut. I am going to try and call to make an appointment today. I think my last appointment was in September.

Just a few random things I wanted to share!