Ouchy's

It's amazing how life has changed, in every single aspect.  As a nurse, giving shots to a baby probably isn't my favorite part of the job, but it's certainly "no big deal".  And when the parents become uneasy regarding the pain I inflict upon their little ones, I soothe them by always saying "they will have a lot of hurts in life, some good, some bad... this is a good hurt".  Well, now that I am in the other role, with another nurse attempting to tell me the same thing... it doesn't matter.  My sweet baby has to go through pain and there's nothing I can do to stop it.

I never thought I would be one of "those" moms... maybe a few of you readers could see it coming from miles away... but I may have cried more than Sweet Caroline did with her shots.  Phillip took off work this morning, meeting us at the doctors office... and when offered to either hold her, or leave her on the exam table for the vaccinations, Phillip jumped at the opportunity to hold her.  As she wailed with each (of the THREE) shots she received, it was all I could do to stay strong with the nurse in the room.  After the nurse placed band aids (MAJOR ICK!!!) on my baby (that I promptly removed as soon as she left the room), she left and allowed Phillip and I to gather our things and redress Callie.  It was then, Phillip turned to me and asked, "are you OK" that the tears started streaming.  He did such a good job consoling our baby and being her "protector", all the while I was gathering all the strength in my body to not break down in front of the health care provider, I still feel so selfish.

This is so much harder than I ever thought it could be! (don't worry, I'll come to grips with it soon, I promise to not be one of "those" mothers).

**Taken on my iPhone**

Ugh... but the good news is, is that she has had her first round of vaccines, and she won't need anymore shots until her 4 month visit, at the end of August.  Also, her diaper rash has reappeared (UGH), so I had the doctor spend a little bit of time examining that as well... her conclusion, Callie has sensitive skin and we're probably going to fight a constantly recurring diaper rash until she's about 6 months old... poor Noodle.  I just couldn't figure out why, with the no-wipe, warm soft paper towel, blow dryer, and slather of A&D ointment routine that her little bum wasn't staying clear.  Now I suppose I will just attempt to control it the best I can and know that I simply may not be able to make it go away.  Also we're now switching from A&D to Triple Cream... so we'll see if that helps at all.

Our little Noodle now weighs in at 10 pounds 5 ounces, placing her in the 50% for weight and she's 22 3/4 (I had previously measured her at 24 inches, so I don't entirely trust this measurement) which places her in the 75% for height (still tall, shocking, right? :)

So, it's been an eventful day... and after the doctor appointment, mommy treated herself (and Callie, indirectly :) to Braums Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream & too much Hershey's chocolate sauce... it always makes everything better.

Callie seems to be doing well so far, a little sleepy, a little fussy, but doing fairly well.  I keep trying to move her legs and massage the site where she received the vaccines, in hopes of her legs not becoming too stiff or sore.

**Big Brother Sneebie taking care of his Baby Sister while she sleeps**

This is a snap shot of what's happening right now as I'm typing :)

Saturday we go to Omaha for the holiday weekend where we get to meet Great Grampa Faith for the first time, as well as other uncle's, second cousins and Miss Hazel McCann.  Hopefully the shots don't put her too out for this visit, and she can be her bright smiley self for everyone to meet.

Well... I'm off to edit a few more photos, hopefully you enjoy the ones I've posted thus far... don't forget to check out the ones I've uploaded to facebook.

All our love to everyone!

**This is what Daddy does when he's on the computer and thinking hard too... we call it "hand and mouth disease"** 

Anyhow... she's checking her emails here :)

The Second Month... and she's mine :)

If I thought the first month ended quickly... then the second month FLEW by!  How do I have a two month old baby?  Why am I still wearing little more than my black and white robe & out of fashion black glasses?  I suppose I know the answer to both of those rhetorical questions, the first, time is moving way too fast, the second, because my other accessory is baby "urp" (thank you Graber's for the fabulous verbage :).

Our little Callie is just growing and learning so much these days.  She has found her sweet little fists and enjoys licking them (we say she learned this from Big Brother Sneebie)... I've even caught her with her thumb in her mouth a couple of times (see following photo), obviously taking after both Mommy and Daddy.  She has become quite the talker, one of her favorite words being "boo", which is coincidentally also the nickname for Auntie Alex.  She is still a bobble head... but gaining more and more control of that big noggin every day.  She has also become an amazing sleeper, (just like her mommy!), generally going to bed at 11pm and waking around 7am... I absolutely couldn't ask for more!  But probably my very favorite thing she has mastered is a big toothless grin when she sees her mommy.  Life is incredibly rewarding now that I know that smile isn't just because of a big toot she has brewing, but because she is just genuinely happy to see her mommy... even if it's in that old robe and glasses, I think she recognizes me better in them :).

Perhaps I'm the first mother to feel this way... or simply the first to admit it... but I finally feel like, she's mine.  This is my baby.  This is my little love thing that needs me... and wants me, not that Sneebie wasn't this.  But I'm finally understanding that bond.  Between mother and child.  The first month... I knew I loved her... but this month... I can't imagine my life without her.  I am absolutely living my dream.  It's an exhausting dream... but it's an amazing one.

I've been a single mother for the past month... not because Phillip or I chose this... unfortunately, no matter the year, Harvest will always steal him away more than any of us like.  And don't get me wrong, he certainly did his best... after an 18 hour day, coming home and giving Miss Callie the most of himself he could... for all of 15 minutes before nearly passing out from exhaustion.  It just became exhausting for me too.  I'm not sure how women do it alone, or why anyone would choose to do it alone.  All I have to say is that I'm incredibly thankful for my super supportive family... my Mother is a fabulous woman, as she came to my rescue a couple of times, just so I could even get a shower in, catch up on laundry, etc.  But the best news of all is that for Salina, Harvest is 90% completed... so there is light at the end of the tunnel... where we can actually do life as a family again, I can't wait to have my partner back.

Callie has had quite an adventurous two months of life.  Traveling first to Wichita, Derby, Rose Hill, Grove, Cheyenne, and next to Omaha... making that 4 states she has visited, 5 including driving through Colorado.  Lucky for us, she is a great car-rider... aside from the initial fussing about actually having to get into her car seat, the lull of the car ride puts her fast asleep.  The same seems to go for her big brother as well.

Well... via the baby monitor I hear some rustling in the crib with a few squeaks... so nap time is nearly over... again, I will attempt to promise a more timely blog update... but time seems to get away so easily, and it's hard to pull myself away from a happy, smiling little girl... or even from watching her sleep... she's such a miracle!

I am including the link from the Wichita Eagle of the story they did on my friend Sarah, most of my family knows of her... and I thought they did a very nice job on this... so grab a box of Kleenex... it's beautiful!

Newspaper Photos of Sarah

Part 1, Sarah's Story

Part 2, Sarah's Story

Part 3, Her Happy Ending

Here are a few photos I've done... I have so many on my camera I just need to edit and post... And Poppa U... I promise I will print some and send them your way soon!  All our love to everyone!

The First Month

I cannot believe that I'm already able to write that as a title... or that it's taken me that long to update again.  Has it really been a whole month?  Have Phillip and I been parents for 4 full weeks?  What on Earth was God thinking when he in trusted US with this little life... He must not have been paying attention to what He was doing.  This all seems so impossible... then again, neither of us have slept for longer than a 4 hour time span... so perhaps this is the real thing :)

Our sweet little baby girl Callie Faith.  It's still weird to me that, this name Phillip and I created... belongs to this tiny person.  This tiny person that thinks Phillip and I are the greatest things ever.  This little girl who has begun cooing and smiling... that makes that 3 am feeding totally worth every hour of sleep I've been missing out on for the past month.  Her sweet little eyes, that once she locks contact with yours makes you think she's gazing into your soul... and makes me crave to be a better person... for her... for us.

Life has changed... forever.

Phillip and I, not that we didn't before, we just have a totally different appreciation for it all... have discovered an utmost respect and gratitude for all of the sacrifices our parents... and grandparents gave for us to be the people we are today.  This is NOT easy... but you all seem to have a totally different level of excitement we can't understand... but perhaps the reward of a tiny sleep smile from Callie is the beginning of why you all are so excited for her little life.

Callie is an amazing baby... she rarely cries... and when she does, it's generally for a true need, whether she be hungry, dirty, or has a big burpy that she needs to share with everyone.  She's a great car-rider and lets Mommy play dress up with her without putting up much of a fuss.  We are incredibly blessed... she hardly even makes a peep as I wipe her angry little bottom, with what has to be the worst diaper rash ever (or maybe nurse mommy is just a little over the top :).  Phillip and I have agreed that at least God knew that Callie would have to break us in easy and teach us how to be parents... she's a wonderful instructor.

She'll be 5 weeks old on Thursday... I'm wanting her to stop growing up so quickly already... all I want to do is snuggle her in my arms and love on her.  Anyone who has been around me knows that I hate to have her anywhere but in the arms of someone that loves her... the swing, bouncer, car seat... simply will not do :)

Big brother Sneebie is adjusting... slowly... and hates the time I spend with her while she is nursing.  He's a good boy... but he was an only child so it's only appropriate that not having ALL of the attention from everyone is difficult for him.  Phillip has done an amazing job with devoting as much time as he possibly can to Sneebert and training him with the new commands we made for him, "Gentle" when he is around Callie, and "Leave it" for her toys and things.

I love her... being away from her for the first time, for a trip to Walmart with Phillip only set that in deeper.  For the entire 2 hours we spent away from her, for our first "date" without any babies, to Taco Bell and Walmart in Grove, Oklahoma, we talked about how much we love our new little family... and how we cut the trip out short, so we could hurry home to snuggle her.  Phillip and I make a great team... I can't imagine having any other partner by my side in this game called Life.  God is good...

I haven't got much time... I'm learning how important it is to utilize nap times to the fullest!  So I will post a couple of photos of Callie, Sneebie and I playing dress up... and her birth announcement (I'm working on getting it printed!).

Thank you again... to all of our friends and family... you're an amazing bunch... we are incredibly blessed...  our Sweet Caroline is a lucky girl :)

**The front side of the birth announcement... special thanks to Auntie Emily for designing the announcement & Grampa Steve for helping me to understand how to capture an image like this :)

**The back side of the birth announcement... it wouldn't be a complete announcement unless it included both of our children!

A Photo I took of Phillip holding our sweet little one...  I promised him, if he purchased me the nice camera I wanted, I wouldn't spend tons of money on having professional photos taken... I think we're both pleased with how this one turned out :)