Saturday, January 30, 2010

Rawr.

A Dragon's Lament

I'm tired of being a dragon,
Ferocious and brimming with flame,
The cause of unspeakable terror
When anyone mentions my name.
I'm bored with my bad reputation
For being a miserable brute,
And being routinely expected.
To brazenly pillage and loot.

I wish that I weren't repulsive,
Despicable, ruthless and fierce,
With talons designed to dismember
And fangs finely fashioned to pierce.
I've lost my desire for doing
The deeds any dragon should do,
But since I can't alter my nature,
I guess I'll just terrify you.

~ © Jack Prelutsky!

Blanket Genes

I think I was born with a blanket obsession. Knit ones, quilted ones, fleecy, silky, quillo ones. I don't discriminate when it comes to blankets. And I just assume that other people love them as much. I always tucked my cabbage patch dolls in with their blankets, I still make sure Moxie has her special one all fluffed up before she goes into her crate to sleep, and I always bring a blanket for Sawyer whenever we go out.

For me by blanket preference is and has always been to sleep with them wrapped around my head at night, kind of like a turban. Just ask my mom, any of my former roommates and now my husband who all know of this sleeping ritual. To some it's probably pretty funny looking. To me it's comforting. My eyes are covered, my ears are covered, I'm all warm, cozy and get the best zzzz's ever that way.

Matt snapped this the other day while we were napping. This red fleece blanket is usually wrapped 'round my head at night, but during nap time it's not always necessary. Sawyer may look like Matt, but he's definitely my kid when it comes to blankies. Is there such a gene that could be passed on? The blanket loving chromosome perhaps. All I have to do is put one over his eyes if he's sleepy and it's over. As soon as those little peepers are covered he konks out!

I give him a blanket and he'll pull it up over his face. Soooooooo my child.

What can we say? We know what we like and we really like blankets!

Monday, January 25, 2010

Sawyer Footage

Saturday, January 23, 2010

New Do'

Decided I should try Kate Gosselin's hair do from Jon and Kate Plus Eight.

What, you don't think spikes in the back and a cascading waterfall of hair in the front looks good on me? Yeah me neither. Good thing this was only a virtual makeover and not a real one. I was having way too much fun on the Lifetime website where you can upload a photo of yourself and then put all kinds of hair and make up on. Unfortunately for me I was supposed to be studying microbiology at the time and not messing around on the computer so I had to cut my makeovers (or make unders as in the kate hair scenario) short so I didn't get to goth out or glam up my make up in any photos .

How about the blonde long locks of Lauren Conrad?

Or just long blonde locks in general?

Perhaps an A line cute with bangs in a nice shade of auburn? Hmmmm. That sounds exactly like what I have already. Too bad the real thing doesn't look this polished!

Actually I've found the one. The ultimate new do for yours truly. Lady Ga Ga Gorgeous hair here I come?

Friday, January 22, 2010

Helping Haiti Babies

When watching the news on the destruction in Haiti I feel a number of different things. One of which is anger at the people who are looting and acting like animals. Then I see all the children though and my heart softens. Those children did not ask to be born in such a impoverished country and are now suffering through the aftermath of such a huge earthquake. It could have easily been me who had been born there, but God was gracious enough to allow me to be raised in America and by good parents. I felt helpless watching the news because it's not like Matt and I are in a situation that would allow us to donate money. But there is something else I can donate that there is a HUGE need for. Milk. For all the babies there who are now motherless. I know a lot of you who read this blog have new babies or are expecting so I thought I would let you know the milk donation process if any of you feel so inclined to donate as well.

The Haiti Emergency Relief Milk Program is ran by Human Milk Bank Association of North America. They are currently working on getting a system set up to get milk to Haiti. Right now they are asking that donors go to www.hmbana.org or call 1-866-998-4550 to build up the supply in the U.S. so that when they are ready to ship to Haiti, there will be an adequate amount of milk to meet the needs of the children there.

The minimum to donate is 100 ounces. You can donate frozen milk as far back as 5 months ago. If you check out the hmbana website you can find a center near you to donate. In my case the nearest one is in San Jose which is about five hours away, but if you contact them they will mail you containers, and pay for shipping to send the donations back.

Why use donor milk?

In the absence of the infant's own mother's milk, donor milk offers many of the benefits of human milk for the infant, including:

optimal nutrition
easy digestibility
immunologic protection against many organisms and diseases

Human milk also contains growth factors that can:

protect immature tissue
promote maturation, particularly in the gastrointestinal tract
promote healing of tissue damaged by infection.

Common reasons for prescribing donor milk include:

Prematurity
Allergies
Feeding/formula intolerance
Immunologic deficiencies
Post-operative nutrition
Infectious diseases
Inborn errors of metabolism

The whole process is pretty interesting . You can see below what they do with milk once they get it. Whatever is not shipped to Haiti will then be used for babies in hospitals throughout the U.S.

Processing


			Scrubbing
			Each pasteurization team member thoroughly scrubs her hands with antimicrobial soap before putting on gloves; gloves are always used when handling milk as part of the pasteurization process.



	Pouring
	Milk from a donor mother is carefully transferred from milk storage containers to glass flasks.


			Mixing & Pooling
			Each Pool (which usually includes milk from 3 to 5 donors) is thoroughly mixed to ensure an even distribution of milk components.



	Filling Bottles
	Four ounce glass bottles are filled with milk prior to pasteurization


			Pasteurizing with the Holder Method
			Milk is gently heated in a shaking water bath using the Holder Method of pasteurization. Pasteurization eliminates bacteria while retaining the majority of the milk's beneficial components



	Lab Testing
	Milk samples are taken during the pasteurization process and cultured to check for bacterial growth. Contaminated milk is discarded.


			Pasteurized Milk
			Milk is now ready for freezing and storage. It can be dispensed after samples are cultured and show no bacteria growth. Milk is shipped frozen overnight to hospitals and individual recipients at home.

My Brest Post Yet

Even before we found out I was pregnant I knew that one day when I had a baby I wanted to breastfeed. I had read about all the benefits vs. formula and was determined to start nursing from the moment they entered the world. It wasn't easy in the beginning. Far from actually. After Sawyer was born I was nursing every hour and not knowing if he was getting anything or if my milk had come in yet. I didn't know what I was doing, he didn't know what he was doing so we were both trying to figure it out and from lack of experience I was so stinking sore! He wasn't latching on correctly so in the first two weeks whenever it was time for him to eat I told Matt and my mom (who was in town helping me) not talk to me during the initial latch on unless they wanted to get yelled at! I had to grit my teeth and refrain from using every swear word I knew.....but then thankfully by week three it had turned into a breeze.

I realize not every mother who tries to breastfeed succeeds at it, nor does it come easily and a lot end up not being able to for a number of reasons. But I applaud every mom who at least tries since it's been proven time and time again that it's in the best interest of the child. Now after all the education that's out there that "breast is best" and all the overwhelming literature on the benefits of breastmilk I can't help but wonder...why do so many people NOT support breastfeeding mothers? To steal from an article I read on this website because I can't say it any better then this: Some other mothers may be uncomfortable with breastfeeding, have unresolved feelings of guilt or anger, be prey to myths and misinformation, and intentionally or unintentionally try to undermine you. Obviously I am not the only one out there who has experienced that. It goes on to say: New moms don't need more judgement, pressure, or to be discriminated against for nursing, they deserve to be cheered on, coached and celebrated. Thank you! I couldn't agree more. Now if only I could wear a button that says that. I'd pin it right above my ta-ta's.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Bits N Pieces

For two people who shall not be named (ahem, mom and Linda) who have checked back daily to sadly find that I hadn't updated my blog in over 10 days! So here is a slew of new photos for you in no particular order.

Rainy days and Monday don't get us down. (which it was a combo of both today)

Look what I found amongst my clean laundry when I pulled it out of the dryer.

Moxie was trying her hardest tonight to get Matt's attention and jump onto his lap.

Second attempt and she actually made it.

But not for long since she proceeded to hurt both Matt's and Sawyer's nostrils with her foul toot.

And last but not least a photo of our little.....girl? Matt's mom was given this bouncer to keep at her place for when we come visit so we don't have to haul a bunch of baby stuff over. We were going to deck it out in blue, but figured Sawyer would never know. Well that is until he sees the pictures later on down the road. He does look a bit perplexed by it all!

And for the latest Sawyer news: He loves sitting up, standing on his legs while on your lap, blowing spit bubbles (my boy is so talented), drooling, sucking on his thumb and/or other phalanges that find their way to his mouth, is super ticklish around his neck and laughs every time I have to put a shirt on or off of him, is now wearing most of his 6 month outfits, weighs over 15 lbs, and is still not quite sure what to make of Moxie especially when she tries to lick him all over like a little puppy.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

King of Spit Up

Sawyer has a serious case of regurgitating his food like a little bird. Which wouldn't be a huge deal since I realize it's a common occurrence for babies to spit up, why else would I have been given a bunch of burp clothes at my baby shower (which I may need a dozen more of by the way). The real problem was that a lot of the time it was causing him serious pain. He would wake up out of a dead sleep screaming his little head off. At first I thought it was because he couldn't handle dairy so I stopped eating milk products. Easier said than done. I'll take eating gluten free any day over missing out on golden spoon frozen yogurt! Anyway it wasn't anything I was eating, turns out that instead he has acid reflux. Since he had projectile spit up a few times the doctor prescribed him Zantac, but we weren't sold on the idea of giving him something so strong. Instead we saw a chiropractor who showed us how to manipulate his tummy in such a way so that the contents in there don't try coming back up the pipe they came down in (real medical definition I know.) It seems to help and he even starts smiling in the process so it must make him feel better! But I thought I should document how much this little guy liked to shower me with his partially digested meals. Boy am I gonna miss walking around smelling like sour milk all the time. It's my favorite.

Me making my "oh no you didn't" face.

Notice front of black shirt looking like someone threw their milk shake at me.

After documenting my sprayed shirt I thought I would try taking an actual decent photo of the two of us. Would have been perfect if the little guy was looking at the camera.

Take two.

Unbelievable.

Can anyone spare a wet wipe?

Friday, January 1, 2010

Seeing Double

Sawyer is definitely his father's son. See if you can identify which baby is which.

He even has the same hairline and faux hawk that his dad sported back in 1980.

Being a cowboy runs in the family.

I can only hope that one day Sawyer can perfect this look that his dad mastered.

And now.....

who is this baby?

Sawyer?

Matt?

Nope it's Matt's dad Edward. If it weren't for the dated clothes, furniture, and colors in the photos I think all three of them could pass as the same baby!