Tomorrow is October!

I love fall. 

And October.

And Halloween.

Love. Love. Love.

After having a Pumpkin Pie Latte with Anna Banana, Marlee and I headed to the store for some crafting supplies. I try to do a craft every year with Isaac and he loves to look back at all the old crafts from previous years. I already knew what I wanted to do but figured I would look around and see if I needed any other fall inspired decorations. 

Latte? Yes please!

I started with paper mache pumpkins because I wanted to do a trial run. I haven't done paper mache... well ever. And with Isaac coming over this weekend, I knew I should probably figure it out or he would loose interest really quick. My 'pumpkin' is still drying and I completed it five hours ago... 

 

We will see how that turns out...

I also did a festive little arrangement for the table.

Fancy!

 Marlee finally woke up from her nap and with the help of Nick, I figured I would do a craft involving her cute little hands and feet. In my mind, this was going to be cute and easy and quick. Well I will let the pictures tell how things really were...

Started with her feet...

Wait a second.. how did that get there?!?

 And now the hands... after we became more laundry friendly.

 And I don't even know how we ended up here...

This craft lead right to the bathtub!

I was really happy how it turned out though! I need ribbon to tie them together and hang it but the hard part is definitely behind us.

 

Now on to the fall baking and pumpkin picking and fall beer drinking!

First Round of Vaccinations

Vaccinations have begun!

And while I was able to be completely unaware of the Hep B shot that my baby girl received after she was born, I was right there in the middle of the action as Marlee received three huge needles to her chunky little thighs this afternoon. 

She wailed like I have never seen. And while I always thought my little girl was strong, she just about won the fight against the nurse and kicked those needles across the room.

I do not blame her - needles are not my forte either.

Much rather give them then receive them!

Confession time - I teared up. Just a little. It started with that tingly feeling in my nose and then -bam- watery eyes. I blame my husband. He made the comment that her cries were 'pain cries' instead of 'hungry cries' or 'tired cries' and I have never heard this type of cry before. It hurt my insides. The poor placement of the bandaid did not help either because as I scooped my nugget up to calm her, her blood was all over my arm.

Baby Marlee blood - On. My. Arm!

I had to work after so I couldn't even rock her to sleep tonight.
She did give me this smile before I left which made me know that she was going to be just fine with daddy.

 

Such a big, strong girl!

She is 12.3 lbs and 23 inches long which are both in the 75% percentile so she is very proportional!

No appointment for another two months which is great so she has time to recover till the next shots. 

Or maybe I need the time to recover...

Weigh-in Wednesday

After a very busy day and an insatiable desire to drink the root beer in my fridge, I am officially down TWO pounds! Yes, I said TWO! I am feeling pretty good and even did a half hour workout today. 

Yes, it was Wii hula hooping. 

But I was super sweaty when I was done! 

And Nick was able to get a good laugh at me. 

So it was win-win for the whole family. 

The MyFitnessPal app has been really helpful and even though I am over almost everyday, it is making me more accountable and aware of what I'm eating. Sugars - I eat toooo much. My sweet tooth is a combination of both of my parents and lets just say that my father single-handedly keeps the peanut M&Ms factory in business. 

Mmmm M&Ms. 

I am actually looking forward to using the Wii again tomorrow! I think this is a small but very positive victory toward a better (and thinner) me!

Two Months Old!

I was going to cheat and do Marlee's two month old pictures tomorrow since I had to work tonight but she had other plans in mind. Usually I try to rest and nap before work but after two blow outs (TWO!), one bed wetting incident, and a very large spit up in our bed (sure why not), I ended up having to give Marlee a bath and putting her in something other then PJ's. So this cute little romper it is! She still was not very cooperative but does not take away from her cuteness.
So without further ado...

Marlee is two months old!

She loves smiling at Daddy and making Mommy laugh with her funny faces.

She is has 'great muscle tone' (per the doctor) and prefers to sit up - with help of course!

She is just now sleeping in her crib which looks enormous compared to her little bassinet.

She was 11 lbs 2 oz and 22 inches long at her last visit and gets her first vaccinations on Friday!

She still loves her binky, bath time, and even watches cartoons in the morning.

She still prefers to be held but has been able to occupy herself on occasion.

She is getting so big!

Breastfeeding Warriors and Weigh-in Wednesday

I will start with the good news - I am down another pound!

As excited as I am to be losing some weight, it still seems like my goal is so far away.

I did change my apps up a bit and convinced my sister to join MyFitnessPal. I figured this would be a way to keep us both a little more accountable. I deleted the Waterlogged app because I needed more room for Marlee pictures and MyFitnessPal has a water counter all ready built right in!

I mean who doesn't want more Marlee pictures?!

I have been a little annoyed lately with some breastfeeding posts I have been reading lately. I find them either on Facebook, Google +, or even through Yahoo. I always read them because I think I can learn something new or even just relate to some aspect of the story/question/problem. More and more lately, I have been feeling that I am a rare brand of breastfeeder. The -eh- breastfeeder if you will. I am not 100% or 0% about it. I am more like 55%. When my doctor would ask if I was going to breastfeed, I always said that I was going to try. She always seemed kinda put off by that answer and now I see why. Breastfeeders have a bit of a reputation for being overly entusiatic about the feeding method they choose. Sorry if this offends but I feel as if the articles I read about breastfeeding are all about the protests, or the declaration of rights, or the rebellion of somekind.

This article was the most recent one I read:

School Discriminates Against Mother

I just have to ask myself; who is this mother really fighting for? Did she even consider how her 8 year old feels? I know Isaac would be mortified. I mean there are 85 people scheduled to show up for this event. And now the Facebook page is just an entire debate on breastfeeding. I am sure they are not going to change anyones mind on breastfeeding by doing this 'nurse-in'. The mother AND the teacher should have just had more respect for each other and did a little communicating about the issue. Boom.

Problem averted. 

I also feel that if you are not about breastfeeding your child till they self ween, then you are cast out of the breastfeeding circle. As if my six months of breastfeeding that I hope to accomplish is less important or not even worth it at all. And then add in the baby wearing, and co-sleeping, and cloth diapers... AHH! All of a sudden, I am a worthless mother.   

I have always been a passive person. I don't bother you as long as you don't bother me. If you want to breastfeed your kid in public, then do so. If you want to breastfeed till three years of age, then do so. If you do not want to breastfeed at all, then don't do so. I really do not have an opinion either way because while I know the pros and cons of breastfeeding, who am I to sway your opinion one way or the other?

Are there any other -eh- breastfeeders out there? The ones who breastfeed because it was cheap, easy, and good for your little nugget? Who may or may not be comfortable enough to feed in public but wouldn't want to make anyone else uncomfortable either? Who see these protests a little unnecessary and extreme? 

Can I be considered a breastfeeder without choosing a side? 

Typical Browns Fan

The Cleveland Browns.

The gosh darn Cleveland Browns.

I just want a $%#&^@*#^ touchdown!

I did get to put Marlee in her Browns outfit from Auntie Kristin.

So sports analysis Marlee Jo has the low down on the game.

The game started out pretty good but we did not want to get too excited.

Then we were winning at half time and we started to get even more excited!

But things started to look a little too familiar...

And ultimately we lost. Ugh we hate the Ravens!

Then daddy came to the rescue and turned her into a Miami Dolphin lover for the rest of the day.

I couldn't even complain considering Dolphins are 2-0. 

Get it together Browns so I can give Marlee SOMETHING to cheer for when she gets older. 

Or daddy might get his wish and end up with another Dolphin fan in the house.

Cleveland Indians Game

My whole goal for today was to sleep in extra late and catch up on the sleep I have missed in the last couple of days..

Marlee had other plans. 

After a large blow out, I had to take apart her bassinet, hand scrub it, and hang it out on the line to dry. 

She is now being punished with a sleep sack. 

Pure torture. No leg holes for you Marlee!

Oh well, I have been wanting to post pictures from the Indians game we went to on Saturday.

Nick, Isaac, Marlee, and I took a family trip to Cleveland for dinner and the Indians (vs Mets) game and I seriously had such a great time! I forgot how much I enjoyed sporting events. The Indians won, we received a free Bourn jersey, and even snacked on free popcorn (thanks again Lise!). The fireworks were amazing (thanks Nick Swisher!) and by the end of the game, we were all exhausted. 

Pre-game shenanigans

Isaac was so excited!

This photo actually made the big screen at the game!!

Marlee's first Indians game!

This was about the time Isaac started to get bored. Eight year olds attention spans are only so long.

This little photo session kept him busy for a minute.

Photobomb!

Family picture! Marlee just sleeping away.

Go Mets! Sike. You lost!

(He thinks Marlee is a Mets fan)

Perfect Saturday night. 

We took a risk taking Marlee out for so long considering she has been such a pistol lately but she is part of our family and I hate leaving her out of things. And these memories are something I will cherish forever.