4 The Merrier

four months.

for four months i have loved like i've never loved. worked like I've never worked. smiled like I've never smiled. and prayed like I've never prayed.

for four months i have been a mother...or i should say have become a mother. its a growing process, i become a little more confident, a little more comfortable every day in my new role. i would have never dreamed life could be so different, so sweet. taylor and i sit on the couch at night in just awe of how amazing she is. mostly we talk about how cute she is..but were here parents..she could have 3 legs and we would think she was the most beautiful girl in the world. I've never loved anyone the way i love her. its a different kind of love. i love my husband with my entire soul, ill love him until the end of our time here, and then some. but the love i have for leighton is different, its powerful, i could do anything, i would do anything, to keep her safe...the protect her...to guard her heart. it must be something to do with being a mother, i think its a little sneak peek at what Jesus's love for us is like. we can kill...steal...lie...turn away from him..embarass him...and he will STILL...he will ALWAYS love us. thats what its like to be a mother. its endless.

ok enough with the mush...lets get to this girl!

Weight/Height: We haven't been to the doctor since her 3 month vaccinations, our appointment for her next round is January 5th, so ill update this after we go! Im guessing somewhere around 14 lbs. We will see though! Still wearing 6month clothes. Were on our last package of size 2 diapers, then we will be moving to size three! AH!

Motor Development: She's getting much better at grabbing things. She has become stronger and more agile it seems just in the last week. She loves to lay on her back and play with her "ball". She seems to be getting bored with her gym/playmat...i think its the toys, so taylor and i bought her new ones to switch out for Christmas. She grabs for the bowl and spoon when i feed her, and bear hugs my arms when i change her diaper. She has discovered she has feet, still hasn't grabbed them yet, so far she's only made to it pulling back on her knees, can't wait for her stick those toes in her mouth :)


Sleep/Independence: What a great sleeper we have! Leighton is still following the eat, wake, sleep plan Babywise teaches, she's pretty much a pro! The end of the 3 month period was rough on us, i blame it on the move, growth spurt, and teething. But the week before she turned 4 months she was back on track! Ive heard 4 months is either a dream month, or the toughest month for mom and baby, so far were living the dream! Her schedule looks a little like this..on the good days :)

7:00 wake eat
7:45 Nap # 1
10:00 (ish ) wake eat (rice)
11:00 Nap # 2
1:00 wake eat
2:10 ( sometimes its 2:00 ) Nap # 3
4:00 wake eat (avocado)
6:30 bath, bed routine, bottle
7:00 in bed
10:00-10:30ish wake and feed, straight back to bed

Im always amazed at how well Leighton plays on her own. I lay her down give her a ball, or put her under the playmate, or put her in the johnny jumper, and she will do any of them happily for up to 30 minutes. Then we usually do something like work on tummy time, rolling over, read a book together etc.

Basically she's just awesome, as Taylor would say!

Blah Blah Blah

You know those days where you just have 900 different thoughts in your head, and none of it really goes together to form one singular thought...its just a bunch of STUFF. Sometimes being a stay at home mom has its disadvantages. Theres no one to unload on. I mean Leighton is a fabulous listener, but its just not the same :)

Last night I actually said to Taylor "Lets have another baby, this one is getting to old" and then I woke up this morning and reminded myself that sometimes I should keep my thoughts in my head haha. Funny part, his only problem with the idea was that he didn't want me to have to be pregnant for 9 months again..hmm. I won't think to much into that haha.

I lost my camera card, somewhere between printing pictures at the store, and making it through the front door. Its gone. Thank goodness I had just uploaded all the pictures on it onto my computer, but still...now I have to buy another. Blah.

On Sunday my husband will be 27. What an oldie. I still love him though :) The day after that Leighton turns 4 months old, I swear we just got back from the hospital. 5 days later is Christmas. LOVE it. January 13th Taylor and I will have been together for 11 years! Shut the front door I know...thats insane! Thats longer than most people stay married these day..which is sad. February 6th will be our 3 year wedding anniversary. So much celebrating, so little time :)

I really want a lot of things for Christmas, normally I have NO clue what I want...but this year, and I blame it on sitting at home looking online, there are several goodies on my wish list :) I want the Michael Kors iPhone wristlet, a cute maxi skirt, some boot socks, the Nook E-reader, a cute cover for it :), a shark steam mop, a keurig coffee maker, a new vacuum, to be forever tan without having to actually tan (HA), a brown watch, a new wedding band, some lenses for my camera, some jeans for this post-baby body. See, i told you, lots of things. We will see what santa leaves me under the tree :)

I really should work out. I used to have a pretty good body, but 9 weeks of bed rest will take its tole on you! I need to whip this business into shape! Mabye ill do P-90X.....maybe.

My child is awesome. I have a feeling 4 months is going to be a dream month. Sleeping through the night again, taking all her naps, being a good girl while running errands, laughing, eating food, rolling over, she's just awesome all around.

My husband loves the word awesome. He uses it all the time, usually in reference to himself, you would have to know him to understand. He's just sooooo special.

Ill stop rambling now, I do feel better getting that all out. Oh theres lots more, but I don't want to give you megan-junk-overload haha! Thanks for stopping by and listening reading! :)

Ch-ch-ch-changes

ALOT has changed since my last blog. Its been about a month! I promise I will TRY to be better :)


1. we've MOVED! woohoo! We are finally in our home. Our little two bedroom, slice of heaven and we couldn't be happier!

2. Leighton will be 4 months old in 6 days! I feel like its a little silly to do her 3 month post when we totally missed it...so heres a little summary of her month if I can think back that far! ha!

Is starting to drool...alot!
Loves talking to her Daddy...a little jealous..but thats ok :)
Is getting better at sitting up..with help of course
I think she weighed like 13 LBS or something close to that.
Went through a serious growth spurt I though would drive me mad.
Exclusively wearing 6 months clothes. She's healthy :)

Im sure there was more but these months fly by I tell you!

3. Our daily routine has changed a little. She takes 3, 2 hour naps a day, and now stays awake from 4-7. Sometimes she needs a little cat nap in there...were working on it.

4. We've made two trips our of town...one to Austin for Thanksgiving and one to Dallas for her great-grandads 80th birthday party. She did great during both trips. Slept the ENTIRE way in the car. She's awesome.

5. My photography website is up!! http://www.wix.com/megandianew/mdgphotography
Check it out! It still needs a little work..the "about me" section isn't done..its always seems a little weird to me to write about myself...

6. We got our Moby back! ( Our maltese ) we actually just got him yesterday. I was worried about Leighton showing an allergy to him..not so far so good! She can't keep her eyes off him..she frowned a little when he licked her face...and then she cracked up haha.

7. Were eating food! Just one for now...avacados. She LOVED it. Yesterday was her first taste and she wanted to eat it ALL! Were going to take food slowly though..so avocados this week, and I'm thinking butternut squash next week! I don't want to give her to many "sweet" foods and her only want to eat those, so were saving the fun things like bananas and sweet potato for last...such a mean mommy. Im pretty sure I'm getting the nook for Christmas, so Im waiting to buy some baby food books until I get it..that and the baby bullet! :) :)


Im sure there is SO much I'm forgetting. Life has just been so sweet lately. Our home is so full of love, and it can only get better! I look forward to every day with this little girl and my sweet husband. OH and our dog..i feel like I'm going to forget him all the time! haha! poor Moby.

Christmas is upon us! I have 4 people left on my list! If you know me AT ALL you know i LIVE for this time of year. Our Christmas tree is up..most of the gifts are wrapped underneath it, stockings are hung, burlap garland is made ( thank you pintrest ) burlap tree skirt is on the books to be finished this week. Morning coffee is had in snowmen coffee mugs. The rotation of Christmas pajamas has begun for Leighton and myself. And her week of Christmas outfits will begin soon also! I just love it all :)

Be on the look out for:

Blog on the house...pictures of our new little place :)
Blog on 4 months...pictures of the little lady at 4 months old..you can be sure it will be Christmas themed haha!

A Few Of My Favorite Things

So as promised this is the blog I'm dedicating to all the healthy things I've learned since becoming a mom! Now don't be thinking " oh geeze, Megan has turned into a tree hugging hippie who doesn't give her baby anything that she can't grow herself" I'm FAR from that! Ive just been doing a lot of research on whats natural, whats healthy, what actually helps our children other that temporarily pausing the problems they are having.

First is this little beauty.

I seriously don't know how more people don't know about this stuff. They should hand it out at the doctors office, tell you about it in the nursery after your delivery, sell it at baby clothing stores...ok thats a little extreme...but thats how much I love it! Its 100% all natural, and FDA approved. Its technically a type of gripe water, but 110% better! I first learned about it from Amber ( that will become a reoccurring statement in this blog. ha! ) I read it in one of her blogs, and when Leighton was having some gas issues I did some research on it, watched a few videos of babies taking it, and ran straight to CVS to get some. Its made with vegetable charcoal, which knocks down the acid in the babies stomach, or esophagus, if your little one is struggling with reflux. Leighton was having some silent reflux ( swallowing her spit up and burps instead of letting them out ) and had CONSTANT hiccups. I know they say hiccups don't hurt your baby, but tell that to a one month old's mother who's baby screams every time she gets them! The recommended does is 1/4 of a teaspoon, and you can repeat it as many times as needed! Once she would get the hiccups, or just seemed to be gassy in general, i would give her the 1/4 dose, and by the time she finished swallowing, the hiccups were gone, and the gas was gone within 5 minutes, and she was smiling! It really is amazing to see. I hear it works WONDERS on colicky babies as well! So if you don't have it, GO GET IT!

warning: it is jet black, and WILL stain yours and your babies clothes! so make sure you have a rag ready! the good news, it tastes good! ( yes, i tried it ) Leighton actually LOVES when i give it to her, she keeps opening her mouth for more.


Next on the list....

Once again, first read about this on Ambers blog haha! Now I know first hand about the problems of having an out of whack digestive system, as well as reflux. When I was one I had half my large intestine removed, and in high school I was diagnosed with Barrett's Esophagus and GERD. ( Gastro Intestinal Reflux Disease ) Barrett's esophagus is where the cells lining your esophagus become pre-cancerous due to years and years of acid reflux, hints the GERD. Now, I no longer suffer from these issues ( even though neither one has a cure, thank the Lord HE can cure ALL things ) So yea...this is an important issue for me. Your body literally cannot function properly if your digestive tract isn't working at a top notch rate. We should ALL take pro-biotics. Like I said before, I just never really thought about how important it was until I became a mom! Well let me tell you something, Leighton thrives on this stuff, I put one pack in her bottle ( if you bottle feed do NOT warm up the bottle, and if your doing milk free for you baby make sure you buy a milk free pro-biotic also! ) She goes to the bathroom every day. I think since she's been on it ( about 3 weeks ) she's maybe skipped one day. Which in baby land is pretty awesome! No constipation in this house!! Empty bowels make for a happy baby :)

Vitamin D. This one should be pretty self explanatory. Its especially important for infants, since they aren't getting out into the sun daily, and even more important if your breastfeeding! The recommendation on the bottle is 400IU's, thats one drop. But the recommended dosage for a infant up to 6 months is 1000IU's a day. I personally put the drops in one of Leighton's bottles, but you can also just put it right in their mouth! Going into the flu and cold season the Vitamin D is really important! Im going to do my best to not forget this one everyday! :)

If cuteness alone is not a good enough reason to buy this, I don't know what is! Were all going to be turning on our heaters soon, so this is deffinantley going to be an essential! I turn this on when Leighton is congested, but it also helps to keep the air in her room moist when the heater is running, there is nothing worse than a dry throat!!! And of COURSE I would buy the elephant...between my obsession with elephants, and Taylors thing for penguins, she's not going to really have any choice of what her favorite animal will be! ha!

Last but not least...

So this is another beauty from Amber! -Dont worry I've been doing some research and WILL have some ideas of my own soon..i promise! haha-
This stuff is next to impossible to find, if your in abilene, don't even bother...just order it! Leighton got pretty congested the day before yesterday...I was kind of expecting it, I was pretty sick with a cold and had a fever...I tried my best not to pass it on, but I failed. She seems to handle sickness a lot better than me....but then again she gets to sleep a lot more! ha! I put 5 drops of this in her bottle in the morning. It has some alcohol in it, so 5 drops is really the max amount they should receive, BUT adults can take up to 50 drops a day! It already seems to be drying her nose up, and the gunk in her chest is sounding loose...so I'm hoping within the next day or two she will be snot free!! Now we just started taking this...shes only had it twice, but i plan on giving it to her twice a week for preventative reasons! If we can prevent the colds instead of treat them I'm all for it!


So I'm sure theres plenty of you out there who think I've lost my mind...go ahead...talk about it. haha. I'm okay with it, things change sometimes! Just don't take me wrong, YES I still love Leightons doctor and think that there are times when you just need some professional help. Were just trying to use alternative options instead of antibiotics. Im sure ill come across many more fun things, were only in month 2 of her life...so I will be sure to share! And feel free to send me anything you've learned as well! :)

Halloween, House, and Health

SO...its been awhile! Life has been a little "busy" Lots of work, taking care of a 2 1/2 month old, trying to spend some time with an always working husband..but I made it back! ...today anyway! :)

It was this little girls first Halloween. This was actually her "day before halloween" outfit. We didn't do anything on actual halloween. Reasons?
1. Daddy hates halloween, he was always sick as a kid on halloween so he has a personal grudge ha.
2. She's too little, I mean really, she isn't going to remember it.
3. I didn't want to get stuck with all the candy! I deff don't need all that sugar !

She did wear a little ladybug onesie with a hat that had antennas to her babysitters house, but I forgot to take a picture...yes i know, I'm on top of things! :)


GOOD news! Our house is alllllmost done. SO excited! Were hoping to be moving next week sometime...fingers crossed! I can't wait to set up Leighton's room! Her bedding, curtains, dresser, lamp, all of it has just been sitting in storage since her shower, its going to be like getting gifts all over again when I open it up! ha! Im hoping she adjusts to our new digs quickly...her sleeping and staying with her sitter Tiffany went seamlessly, so heres to hoping its the same with this new place! Taylor gave me a little "re-decorating" budget. Most of our decorations from our old house were reds, oranges, very much fall colors. This time I want to do a cleaner look, more whites, creams, apple green...we will see how it turns out! Pretty soon after we move in it will be time to bust out the Christmas decor! (ill blog later about my burlap Christmas! Ah! ) Wahoo! I can't wait!! :)

So thanks to a fellow blooger/facebook friend/babywise mommy I've come across lots of healthy things for my little girl. You know before I had Leighton, I wasn't an all-natural health type person at all. And i ALWAYS said "just because you become a mom doesn't mean you have to change, or the way you think has to change" BOY was I wrong. Theres something about becoming a mother that just makes you look at everything differently...everrrryythingggg.

I have always been sick. My entire life, its always something. Asthma as a child, tonsils removed in middle school, in and out of the hospital for SO many things its hard to even remember them all, being diagnosed with Barretts Esopohagous in high school, then Chrones disease ( which praise God I have been healed of ) its been a roller coaster of sickness. I desperately want something different for Leighton. Its been nice to follow Ambers blog , and be able to reach out to her for suggestions, as well as doing some research of my own. So on my next blog Im going to share what I've learned, for all the new moms I know, who never thought they would "think" that way!! Im excited about a healthier lifestyle, for myself and my little girl :)

2 months

So technically, Leighton won't be 2 months old for 2 more days. But I've got the morning free since pinterest isn't working, and it isn't time to wake the girl up yet.

Really not a WHOLE lot has changed since my last post. But heres the run down on whats happening in the world of a two-month old :)

* Not exactly sure how much she weighs, we really need to get a scale. Im guessing 11lbs 5 ounces.
*Is laughing all the time now, mostly when I change her diaper. But she also laughs a lot at her cousin Shayne, I haven't really seen her do it but Erin swears she does it haha!
* In size 2 diapers, 3 month old clothes, and is starting to outgrow her woombie swaddle, I can't find one that goes over size 12 lbs in Abilene, go figure, it IS Abilene. I guess I will have to order one.
*Were doing tummy time once every time she's awake. In the morning when we lay her on her tummy she rolls over...every time. Im kind of impressed haha! But she ONLY does it in the morning..guess she's picky about when to show off?
* Taking pro-biotics once a day, eats 4 oz of formula 6 times a day, and Colic Calm for those "fussy" nights or when her tummy hurts.
*Still loves "wheels on the bus" (her cousin Shayne's version is the cutest, it includes parts about Leighton hiccuping on the bus, and Shayne consoling her...so precious, I pray Leighton is a smart as that girl one day ) but also really likes "Rise" by Shawn McDonald when were in the car.
*Likes to be carried facing out, or up on your shoulder, she's not so crazy about the "cradle" hold anymore...gosh she's so big.
* Still doesn't like her bouncy ( but she likes aunt Erins? ) or her boppy. Just the plain ol' floor for her. I can't wait for her to be big enough for her bumbo, and jumper!.....or maybe I can?

Its all happening so fast. You know how people say " nothing can prepare you for what its like to be a mother " ? They are SO right. I mean no matter how much your around children, or how many siblings you have, NOTHING comes close to this. Its the most amazing, nerve racking, precious, hair ripping, blessed, time of my life. I cannot imagine my world without this little girl, its hard to imagine it ever existed any other way! 2 months has FLOWN by and before I know it she will be sitting, then crawling, eating real food, talking, walking, driving, omg. I look forward to every little bit of ALL of it.

Love you baby girl. Happy 2 months to you...and me :)

( I promise there will be pictures soon! )

Play Time At Tiffany's

Just a pre warning...there are no pictures in this post. Sorry! My camera is broken ( sad sad day... ) so I'm a little behind on the whole picture thing.

I feel like so much has happened since my last post.

* Im back at work.
* Leighton is now 11 lbs
* Which in turn means I left Leighton for more than 2 hours, the previous record.
* She has a clogged eye duct, so it oozes all day..its pretty gross. ha! I had them a lot when I was a baby.
* Her vision is PERFECT..praise God.
* She now sleeps in her car seat, and through most shopping trips....most.
* She officially wears only size 3 month.
* This week we have to move to size 2 diapers...I STILL don't know where this adorable chubbiness is coming from?!
* Still hates to get dressed...this she is going to need to grow out of haha
* Still taking all her naps, and sleeping like a pro at night. Although this week she has woken at 4, and 6, at 4 she cries it out and at 6 i give her her paci and she goes back down till 7. Im thinking the whole transition from going back to work etc has her a little thrown off. We will get back to 10-7 soon enough. :)
* Isn't really reaching for any toys yet, but kicks her legs like crazy.
* Talking ( cooing haha ) constantly. Mostly with me, and her GiGi. Everyone else she prefers to just stare at haha.
* Does this cute thing where she folds her arms across her chest and holds her hands. So precious.
* Getting cuter and smarter every day. Oh and fatter to :)

So much has been happening in her little world. Obviously the most significant would be me going back to work. Thankfully Taylor's bosses wife Tiffany is keeping her at her house! I was going to put her in the daycare where my sister works, I know they would have taken amazing care of her, but it was SO expensive, and I knew they wouldn't be able to keep her on her schedule that Baby Wise teaches, so I was so excited when Tiffany offered! She has a 3 year old little boy, whom apparently Leighton has grown attached to. Tiffany said she just stares at him while she's playing on the floor. Her first crush, how sweet :)

I was a little nervous going back to work. Not so much for Leighton, but for Tiffany. I can be stressful taking care of a little baby your not familiar with, so I was just nervous Leighton wouldn't nap for her, be fussy etc. Yesterday when I picked her up I asked Tiffany how she had done, and she just went on and on about what an amazing baby she was, how she was such a joy to be with, how she ate, played, and napped so easily and how happy she was when she was awake. She said " You seriously have the easiest happiest baby Ive ever seen! " I was so ecstatic! I so wanted Tiffany to enjoy her being there, and I wanted Leighton to be just as comfortable with Tiffany as she was with me..and so far it seems to be going that way! Its awesome knowing that while I'm at work, she's having a good time :)

Well, time to get my coffee, load up the kid, go to the sitters, and head to work! This whole new world of "working mom" is exhausting. Cant wait for 6:00 to come home and see my baby!

10 Pound Perfection

Before I forget...here are some 1 month pictures like I promised.

How sweet are those chubby cheeks? Melt my heart.

So why 10 pound perfection? Last week I took Leighton to the doctor to check on her acid reflux, and she weighed 10 pounds! 10 pounds?! seriously?1 When did that happen!! thats an ounce and half a week since birth..thats half an ounce more than whats considered "normal" per week for a infant. haha. oops! she's just a hungry girl. i don't know what else to say!

Since she has reflux, she SHOULD weigh less...thats actually one of the main things doctors and moms are concerned with when their babies have reflux, but Leighton has silent reflux, which means she swallows her burps and spit up instead of letting them out..i have to say my wardrobe is thankful for this..but her little esophagus isn't. Thankfully Dr. Capra insisted we switch her formula, to a sensitive one, thinking she might have a milk allergy. I was really happy he wanted to try this before loading my baby girl up on medication. The outcome? It worked like a dream, what a different baby we had after just 3 days! Her tummy must have been MUCH happier..because she sure was, and still is!

At her appointment I forgot to ask Dr Capra about her eyes. We were concerned with her lack of focus, she would just stare aimlessly at the lights on the ceiling, but nothing else. She wouldn't look at toys, your fingers, or even my face...which made me pretty sad. So we went back today to have them checked out. First of all let me tell you that she weighed in at 10lbs10ounces! omg...10 ounces in 7 days?! can that be right?! haha! surely not....

Anyway..Dr Capra looked at her eyes, and while he didn't have an "opinion" on it..he said she needed to see a specialist. Apparently no eye doctors in Abilene see infants, so a specialist from Fort Worth comes in once a month to Dr Capras office and sees all the babies that need some special attention. We still aren't sure what day her appointment is..sometime in October. Right now were on a mission to strengthen her eyes as much as possible before he arrives! Lots of "face time", drawing pictures and putting them in her crib for her to look at, getting a mobile hung up asap. And of course most importantly lots of prayers that God will strengthen her little eyes :)

Its overwhelming how many people have already been praying for her. We have such an amazing support system of friends and family...even strangers, who stepped up to battle for our little love.

After the doctor today I brought Leighton home and laid her under her play mat, I started to move her toys around, and she actually looked at them! She even swung her arms at a few of them! Amazing! God is so good GREAT! ( I have a video but have NO clue how to put it on here...someone help me haha )

So to sum it up...little Leighton isn't so "little" anymore. Her reflux is MUCH better. Her tummy and heart are happy. And her precious little eyes are about to get the work out of their life :)

One Month

Leighton is officially one month old....well actually as i write this she is one month and one week, I'm a little behind i know!

She's gained some weight for sure ( not sure exactly how much ) she's a GREAT eater, when she's not having gas/reflux issues. 4 oz at most meals :)

Speaking of reflux, i think she might have silent reflux. Its defiantly something I'm going to be talking to her doctor about at her next appointment, but I've done hours and hours of research, looking up her symptoms, and I'm pretty positive she has it. I lived with G.E.R.D for years ( before the Lord healed me of it..another day another blog ) so I know just how uncomfortable she is. After figuring out the silent reflux thing i got a little frustrated. I reallllly didn't want to start her on such serious medication at a MONTH old. It just seems like her little body wouldn't be able to process something like that without some side effects in the future. Thankfully I remembered a fellow blogger of mine, and someone who's becoming a good mommy friend, Amber Ruth, mentioning something about some all natural drops called "Colic Calm", so i looked it up in reference to reflux in infants and found a million testimonials from moms who had a lot of success with it! The minute Taylor got home that night I ran straight to CVS to grab some. At her next feeding, she swallowed a burp, which is always the start to her pain, and started screaming. I unloaded 1/4 of a tsp of that stuff into her mouth and she slipped into a little piece of relaxation heaven! It was amazing! The BEST part by far is that its 100% natural, and FDA approved! So to all the new moms out there...if your little one is having gas, reflux, colic, and even hiccups..try this stuff out! I promise you won't be disappointed!

On a brighter note! She's starting to get the funniest littler personality. She makes faces EXACTLY like her dad. It melts me every time. She smiles almost every time he kisses her...slightly jealous here. And when she's not having reflux issues she's a complete joy to be around! ( i love being with her all day every day, but I'm sure for others the screaming isn't so cute haha! )

She's doing really well on her schedule. She goes down for most naps without a peep. We rarely have to cry it out anymore! ( with the exception of right now, this blog is supposed to be distracting me from the crying coming out of the monitor...no such luck.) The past week has been a little more difficult, with the onset of her reflux, and waking up with gas pains. We've also started swaddling her. She WAS sleeping on her tummy, but she scooted all over the place and would wake up the complete opposite direction of where i put her..and it made me nervous. We have to swaddle because this girl has CRAZY arms! She also scratches the tar out of her face, so swaddling it is :) some days she's a little grumpy about it, others she doesn't mind at all! This week were going to start to try and ween her off her middle of the night feeding ( usually around 3 or 4am ) she eats well, but then won't take a full feeding at 7, so i pretty sure she's ready to go without it! Wish us luck! :) I would love a full nights sleep..im sure she would too!! ( full night meaning 11pm-6:30 am )


Life with Leighton couldn't be any sweeter. Sure there have been days when I felt out of control ( reminder to self..you are not in control...ever. God is ) There have been moments when she was crying and I couldn't fix it that i felt like a failure. Then i think, EVERY mom goes through this. EVERY mom doubts herself. Today is not going to last forever. Thats when you catch the good stuff, the smile amidst the cries, the snuggles in the morning, the sighs of relief when you lay them down to sleep. And every day, theres good stuff, no matter how much bad is mixed in with it. And one day she will be 16 rolling her eyes and saying "whatev" ( if my daughter every shortens her words i might lose it on her haha )

One month into this little life and I feel like there was never a day without her. Its like she's been here all along. I guess in a way, she was always part of His plan, and he's been preparing me for her from day one. Im so thankful for this sweet little soul, and for a God who ALWAYS knows what he's doing. :)

Be on the look out for our one month pics....yes I'm also behind on these. SORRY!!

Bringing Up Leighton

Here we are one month into my little girls life, and one month is proving itself to be pretty sweet :)

When Leighton was born I was a little clueless, despite having helped raise my little sister, and working 2 years in a daycare...theres just something different about it being "your" child. Mabye the fear of totally messing up somewhere along the way? Who knows. The first week she was with it I was pretty sick, recovering, suffering from some post partum, and exhausted to say the least. The second week I was determined to institute some structure into our lives. I mean who isn't more calm and satisfied when their day has some structure?

I had heard about Babywise from some friends, and decided it was worth a trip to the bookstore. I think i read the entire book in one evening. I consumed it. It instantly made sense to me, the contents just spoke to what I felt like Leighton, and I needed. The whole basis of the book is "sleep training" although I have to say I hate the term "sleep training" it sounds so impersonal. Anywhoo...Its a basic schedule for the day, a constant rotation of "eat/wake/sleep" The first week on the schedule was up and down, I didn't want to throw her into it cold turkey so we were a little more lenient. By her third week she was getting the hang of it.

I picked a wake time of 7am, she eats, has wake time...meaning tummy time, bath, go on a walk etc. then she goes down for a nap. Then we repeat the process at 10. etc. She eats consistently every 3 hours, and has about 45 minutes of wake time ( give or take 10 mins ) then goes down for a nap. The whole point is to set her internally to understand day sleep and night sleep, so that she will start sleeping through the night by week 8 ( fingers crossed )

I know what your thinking, and TRUST me I've heard more than enough opinions on this. It sounds extreme, it sounds slightly crazy, especially waking a sleeping baby to eat, and occasionally letting a baby "cry it out" But its all so crucial to helping bring up a independent, content, trusting, happy baby. She will never have to question when she will eat, when she will nap...she can trust in the routine. ( and me :) )

Granted Babywise isn't for everyone, and if it isn't for you thats fine. I put all my trust in the Lord, and I know that he has his hand in raising Leighton, he has chosen me as her mother, Taylor as her father, and we lean on him and him alone in making all of our decisions. So of course I've prayed and prayed about this topic, and every time I come to him with questions of "am i doing this right, is this what you want for her" i come away reassured that we've made the right decision.

There were a couple rough days there where sweet girl was having a lot of gas issues, and tooooons of hiccups, which led to one fussy grumpy baby, and a mom with frayed nerves. I prayed and prayed for healing of her hiccups, for something to help her deal with them and to help her tummy feel better. The next day I was talking to my sister about her issues and she mentioned trying "gripe water" ( thank God for a sister who's worked in the baby room at a day care !! ha! ) we immediately went out and grabbed some! its all natural so I feel a lot better about giving it to her before all of her day bottles...not drugging your child always makes you feel good haha! We used it at her next feeding and she did great! She still gets hiccups every now and again, but she seems to be able to eat better, and her tummy doesn't bother her as much anymore...which makes my heart happy. :) It always amazes me when God answers your prayers...thanks Erin for being Gods vessel for this one !!

The past 2 days have been confirmation of what I'm trying to achieve with Leighton. She has eaten every bottle, been SO alter and happy during wake time, and gone down for almost every single nap without crying! ( I put her down in her crib awake, on her tummy, with her pink elephant friend..ellie..so original i know..) the fact that she puts herself to sleep is HUGE for me..and without crying for the most part..just makes me smile :) Today we went to visit GiGi and Granny..everyone was loving on her and playing with her..she started to show signs of being sleep and I laid her down on the blanket in the middle of the living room, put ellie in front of her face just like i do in her crib, and she fell asleep like that!! with everyone talking, lights on, and she never even made a sound!! I was SOOOO proud..it made me feel like THIS is what its all about, a content baby, who knows its nap time, and put herself to sleep..on the floor. Loved it..

So while it may seem unconventional, and it may be different than what most people are used to, this is the plan we've chosen...and were sticking to it :)

Our Birth Story

Well as promised this post will be dedicated to the journey of the birth of our little girl.

I'll start at the very beginning! Last October Taylor and I were so excited to find out that we were expecting...we hadn't really been trying for very long..and it was news we just couldn't wait to share. However we decided we wanted to wait until we saw my Dad at Christmas to tell him in person before we would tell anyone. Three days after Thanksgiving I lost the baby. Nothing can prepare you for something like that, I don't think it matters when in your pregnancy you lose a child, its a loss non the same and it hurts so much deeper than you could ever imagine. I still think about that baby, someday ill meet him/her, that i can be sure of.

Then something happened. A couple days before Christmas I was at work and I just had this "feeling"...I couldn't shake it. For some reason I actually had a pregnancy test in my purse..random, yes. I snuck into the bathroom..leaving the sales floor unattended..oops..and took the test. I carried it into our back room at work and left it there for 5 minutes before I went back to check it.

Positive.

I couldn't believe it, even though somehow I already knew what it was going to say. I called Taylor and blurted it out while running up and down the hallway of the dressing room area. That was the longest shift of my life! We decided to tell all of our close friends and family this time, the more prayers we had headed this babies way the better! We did ask everyone to keep it off Facebook because we still planned on telling my Dad a couple weeks later when we went to visit him in California.

Everything was going smooth the first couple weeks, we got to California and told my dad the first night we were there. Everyone was so excited!! While visiting we made a day trip to San Francisco. We had a great day sightseeing and eating great food, that night we went to dinner and I just wasn't feeling right. I went to the bathroom and realized I was spotting. My stomach dropped, it was the exact same time frame as the first baby. I texted my sister and Taylor from the bathroom, and then anyone else I could think of who could pray for us. That night when we got back to my dads house I remember falling on the bathroom floor begging God to spare my baby. I prayed and prayed and cried and cried. Ive actually never told anyone that so you should all feel very privileged! ha! I went to bed feeling confident the Lord would do what he saw fit for me, and that he hears our prayers and answers accordingly. I woke up the next day to no spotting...God is so good.

My pregnancy is how would you say....eventful!! The nausea that started the first week after i found out followed me through several months. I would up on some pretty good medication that kicked it as long as i took it in time!! At around 28 weeks I started having some cramps at work, I was pretty nervous because the day before i got overheated during a family photo shoot, so I called the doctor and they told me to come in right away. Turns out I was having contractions. My body was trying to deliver prematurely. Dr Ward put me on procardia to stop the contractions and put me on bed rest. I had to go in every tuesday to be monitored, and have my cervix checked to see how far effaced I was. I wound up on bed rest for 8 weeks, and at every appointment I was further and further effaced. Leighton was extremely low, she had already moved through my pelvic bone by 34 weeks, something most babies haven't even done by labor.

THE BIG DAY. I had been having strong painful contractions for several hours, so my sister Erin drove me to the hospital where Taylor met us. We didn't call anyone, we wanted to make sure this "was it" before we got everyone all worked up. I was 90% effaced, and dialated to a 2, the nurse sent me home and told me to come back when the contractions were stronger, and closer together. A whole day went by...a long..painful day. I did EVERYTHING you could think of, ate spicy food, walked about a million miles..everything. I decided to just let it go, and wait on her to make her appearance when she was ready. August 19th, around 3:30 in the morning some pretty serious contractions woke me up. I laid there for about an hour timing them on my handy dandy contraction counter app I downloaded to my iPhone haha! 5 mins apart exactly, some coming in at 4 minutes. In typical Megan fashion I got up without waking Taylor and went to the bathroom to do my makeup and hair! When I did wake him up he asked me about 30 times if I was SURE. I guess I can't blame him, this whole process was getting a little ridiculous haha! When i got to the hospital i was 100% effaced, and dilated to a 3.

I waited for the epidural until I was at a 6, for some reason I just wanted to feel the contractions and wasn't comfortable getting it to early into labor. When I finally did get it I was feeling pretty good! Everything was moving quickly, It felt like it all happened in about 3 hours, before I know it it was 5:30, I was fully dilated and ready to push!! After about 15 minutes of pushing Dr Ward came in, Leighton's head was turned sideways and kind of lodged in my pelvic bone, so Dr Ward opted to use the vacuum to get her out. I was a little nervous about it, but I knew God had his hand on her. A couple minutes later Leighton Erin Gibbs entered the world, at 7lbs3ounces, 19.5 inches long, and as beautiful as can be :)
Taylor went with her to the nursery and I stayed behind to get "cleaned up"

Well....thats when it all went downhill. Dr Ward looked at me and said " Oh no, she ripped you all the way through" This is when I was EXTREMELY grateful for my wonderful epidural that worked so well. It took him longer to sew me up than it did to deliver Leighton. By the time he was done my body was shaking, I was dizzy and hot, and felt this unnerving urge to go to the bathroom. The nurse helped me in and left me in there while she changed my sheets. The next several hours are a blur, I know I almost passed out in the bathroom...it took 2 nurses to get me into a wheel chair and then back into the bed. I was then loaded up with pain killers and sent to my new room.

I nursed Leighton every 3 hours that night, and then sent her straight back to the nursery seeing as i was to drugged to take care of her. The next night she stayed with us, and that afternoon we were released to go home!

This whole journey of motherhood has been a roller coaster of highs and lows. Everyday is something different, a new blessing, a new challenge, and every day I can't wait to see what the day holds for me, Taylor, and our beautiful little girl.

Introductions

Here goes nothing! This is my first attempt at blogging. Yes i realize my blog isn't fancy, but I'm working on it! Any tips from all your "pro" bloggers wouldn't be greatly appreciated! This is just an introductory post, i'll get into the deep stuff when I have this thing all figured out. If you don't know me, which you probably should, you ARE reading my blog, my name is Megan...i'm married to an amazing man, his name is Taylor, and exactly 4 weeks ago today I brought a beautiful baby girl into the world named Leighton !! She's the most amazing blessing to our lives and just 4 weeks into this new adventure I can't imagine life any other way! For now an update on where we are right NOW. The lovely little house were planning on moving into is currently being renovated, so as of now we are staying with Taylor's dad and step mom. It has been such a blessing to have family around in these early weeks of Leighton's life, but we sure are ready to be settled in our own home. I think I'm just anxious to get Leighton's room decorated and to hang all my clothes up in my closet...it really is the little things haha. My pregnancy was a little rough and I spent 8 weeks on bed rest before I delivered Leighton 3 weeks early. So I've been out of work for 12 weeks so far. I have 4 more weeks to stay at home, and then its back to work. Im dreading it. But I know God will guide me through the whole process and that makes everything OK. Well my little toot sounds like she's waking up from her nap...so thats the end of this post! Next Post: My birth story :)