Back in the saddle again

In order to achieve my goal, I obviously need to do something.

I have been trying to figure out what would work for me. Do I try CrossFit? Do I try a gym that has a daycare facility, I've done classes before (zumba) that I've enjoyed, but then again I've been a member at Planet Fitness and enjoy that as well. I've run/walked a 5K, and in doing so I've determined that I am not a runner.

So when trying to get refocused, is it a good time to change and add something new? Or should I stick with what I know?

EPing journey / lip tied

Brenden is 10 months old now (holy cow) and I am nearing the end of my EPing journey. When Ben and I made the decision to EP, my long term goal was one year. One year of EPing with a freezer stash to get us thru cold and flu season. But when you are a stressed out and over tired new mom, one year seems like forever, so I went with mini-goals, and focused on 3 months at a time, When I made it 3 months, we tried for 6 and then for 9 and so on.

When Brenden was born, we had troubles breastfeeding. He had a difficult latch and also was very impatient with things, he would get frustrated when the milk wouldn't come quick enough. We had several meetings with the lactation people at the hospital, who said that he may have a tongue tie, so we went to our primary care doctor who referred us to an ENT doctor. He examined Brenden and said there was nothing structurally wrong with his mouth. I even had my chiropractor examine him since he shared his wife's struggles with breastfeeding. But after nothing, we went back to our primary care and she did a neuro evaluation, but again, he passed. Every test and doctor said there was nothing wrong with him.

In talking with the lactation people, they wanted us to go to Boston to get a second opinion, she really felt that he was tongue tied, and that it was presenting weird. But with the new mom over tiredness, and having already spent the first 2 weeks of his life in doctor's offices, I just couldn't anymore. So after talking over with Ben, we decided to EP.

Fast forward 10 months, we went back to the same ENT doctor for a chronic ear infection and while at the appointment, I had him check Brenden's lip for possibly being lip tied. And sure enough he agreed with me that he had one. Due to his age and how thick the tie was, in order for the doctor to correct it, Brenden would have to be put under. He suggested seeing a pediatric dentist in Massachusetts, who uses a laser to correct lip ties.

That is where Dr. Kaplan and Kid Care Dental comes in. I called an got an appointment that week. His office is nearly a 2 hour ride one way for me, but it was worth it. Dr. Kaplan has a great office, the staff are super friendly, and made this momma feel at ease. Dr. Kaplan took one look at Brenden's mouth and said, yes, he's got a significant lip tie, oh and he's got a posterior tongue tie as well. Separate, both can inhibit successful breastfeeding, but together can make it very difficult.

Dr. Kaplan said there wasn't a need to correct the tongue tie, but the lip tie was worth correcting, and best yet, he could do it right in the office, right now. Which is great, as it would save us from another trip down there. So after a quick chat with Ben about things, we opted to go ahead with the procedure.

I will say that the site looks nasty, I can't wait for it to heal over, and Brenden is not a fan of the post op care. We have to stretch out top lip as to prevent the site from adhering and having to go through this all over again. But I can already see improvement in his top lip, it doesn't seem as tight as it once was and when he takes his bottles, he's got a perfect seal.

I don't have any grand visions of getting Brenden to nurse, although it would be nice, he's 10 months old, he knows where to get his milk from, and it's not from my boob.

Dr. Kaplan did say that it was a shame that we didn't see him sooner, that if it had been caught sooner, that Brenden may have been able to be breastfed.

I was mad at first, here we tried to do everything right, and we saw plenty of doctors and we were told that everything looked normal. It was only after I thought I found something and asked did it get noticed. But then I reflected that no matter what we accomplished what we wanted, to give Brenden breastmilk - it may not have been the method we wanted, but the end result was achieved. In addition to deciding to EP, I've learned a lot more about pumping/breastfeeding/etc, which has enabled me to help others. But most of all, I've been able to donate my oversupply to several other babies. I've made friendships over EPing. We've fought thru clogs and MOTN pump sessions while everyone else is sleeping and more.

I will just chalk this up to knowledge and learning. Because when baby #2 comes in a few years, if there are any problems, I am going to keep after them.

I will post the before and after picture here for those who want to see it. It's a little graphic, but I think it serves a purpose. Brenden's lip tie was pretty "meaty" The doctor likened it to a sort of cleft palate, just with normal skin appearance on the outside. He also pointed out that it was mostly baby fat that he removed. His tie went from the roof of the lip and almost connected to the roof of his mouth. The gap in his teeth should close, but will most certainly be closed when his permanent teeth come in.

Goals... I got them

Before snow flies I would like to be below 300 so I can go for a beach ride with my favorite people and horses!

When I weighed myself this morning, I am 331.....

Let's make this happen

Boom!

We have a crawler!

While we were away on vacation (down to North Carolina) Mister Man finally got coordinated and started crawling! He'd been "assuming the position" for a solid 6 weeks before, and would do a step or two, but finally got everything coordinated and took off.

And he hasn't stopped since.

With his new found freedom he likes to wander around the house, if we leave the room, he tries to follow us.

On top of that we've discovered that he likes strings, tags, hair, shoelaces, anything that he can pull. Shoelaces being the big thing. Whenever he can, he makes a bee line for our shoes.

I love getting to watch him discover new things and pick them up to analyze them. He's such a great baby.

Yesterday we had a hearing test for him. Mister Man has been having chronic ear infections and we finally got an appointment to see an ear, nose and throat doctor. Actually it's the same doctor who evaluated him for the possibility of being tongue tied. The audiologist who performed the test said everything looked good that his hearing was great. So now we wait till next week to see the doctor about what he thinks. But I am already preparing myself for tubes.

Mister Man is also cutting his top 2 teeth. They are huge! Especially when compared to his 2 bottom teeth, no wonder the have been bothering him.

He also got to meet some more of his extended family, as my family was up for their annual trip to Bow Lake. His third cousins loved getting to play with him and show him around. I am hoping to continue to make that a tradition. Of course I didn't take any pictures... lame. What kind of mom and blogger am I?

But I did manage to take a video of him crawling. For all your viewing pleasure.



This video was taken at Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh, NC. We had a great time there.

Ben's First Father's Day

June also means that Ben got to celebrate his first father's day. I had to work the previous day, so I got home that morning.

I left the day to Ben to decide what he wanted to do. And what did he opt to spend his special day? He wanted to go to the movies alone.

To be honest, I was a little shocked, a day meant to celebrate being a father and he wanted to be alone (at least a few hours alone). To go see the new Fast and Furious.

But it's what he wanted, so I agreed (I was going to say, I let him do it... but I didn't let him do anything.)

But I did ask him to bring me back a movie popcorn, I haven't had one of those in forever!

So off he went for the early matinee. Then on his way home he stopped at the grocery store, picked up some steaks for dinner and then watched the NASCAR race and kept Little man entertained while I took a nap (again remember I worked the previous day).

It actually turned out to be quite the nice day, although we were caught up in the Little man, I never got a chance to actually call MY dad and wish him a happy Father's Day. I feel like a total piece of crap :-(

Oh and what did Brenden get him for Father's day? Well we decided back in May, that we would do a joint gift (Mother's and Father's day) and we bought a patio set for our deck. So excited about getting to use that hopefully this summer!

But now I really want to go to the movies alone... or maybe a movie date.

So over another month goes by...

Man, if I had any readership left, I am sure they've left me by now! I can't believe I've been so horrible about updating my blog!

We are solidly in June now, the start of summer! Little man turns 9 months on Friday! We are also leaving for North Carolina that night. We are heading down to visit Uncle Nick and Aunt Lindsay for a week. This will be little man's longest journey (car ride), to say I am a little nervous would be an understatement. Little man doesn't do car rides well, certainly not long car rides. We are hopefully leaving in the early evening. We are hoping that if we can trade off driving and sleeping, that little man will sleep thru the night like he usually does, and we can get a fair amount of miles in. Hopefully we'll be in North Carolina either mid afternoon or early evening Saturday. But we also know that anything can happen, and that he sets our schedule.

June is also my birth month. I'll be 31... wow... that's crazy. So much of my life has changed in the last 10 years. I wouldn't change anything. I love my life.

We also set the date for our housewarming party. We bought the house in March, we figured that July would be good for a party ;-) hopefully the weather is good so we can BBQ and entertain outside!

And also coming up is Little Man's first birthday. Ben and I have been talking about some themes and what we want to do for his birthday.

Setting the date for the housewarming will hopefully light the fire under our butts to get some more stuff squared away and some more unpacking done. I'd really like to try and see if we can get the pool opened up and see if it's usable. I really hope it does, I think it'll be great to have.

We have a lot of my extended family we'll be seeing this summer. And at the end of the summer, we'll be returning to Bar Harbor (better known as Bah Habah, to the locals) to visit with Ben's extended family. We haven't been the Bar Harbor in 2 years (between wedding and baby) so I am super excited about going back there!

So with the last post I reported that Little man had his first ear infection (and a double one at that!) Well he got the all clear from the doc that the infection had passed and was good for about a week before the next ear infection came on. We are just about done with the antibiotic and the doc today said the ears look good. But it looks like if this continues, little man is going to be getting some tubes. bummer... I never really had issues with ear infections, but Ben did as well as my brother. And I guess there is a heredity factor. Sigh, Little man is still a trooper and just rolls with the punches. He really is a great baby and I am so lucky he's been good. He still has his fussy moments, but all in all, I am super blessed.

On the weight front, I'm stagnate. I haven't done anything. I am 5 pounds above my pre-preggo weight. Not really using it as an excuse, but with the pumping schedule I am keeping, I just can't find the time to get to the gym. I am hoping that after I am done pumping I can utilize that time that I spent pumping, to get to the gym (and still manage to get a solid amount of sleep/rest). I am by no means slacking off, I still stay quite active with Little man and we do get out for the occasional walk, but I know that I can be doing more.

So that's about it, I hope to be updating more frequently! 

Another milestone

And one that I am not excited about. Little man was diagnosed with his first ear infection. Not to be outdone, he made it a double ear infection. He made it over 7 months and in fact he's still taking it in stride.

I am glad that Ben and I listened to our parenting instincts and took him to the doctor today. I figured the worst they could say was that we were first time parents and we overreacted. But as it turns out, we were right.

We caught it early, so the doctor seems to think that it'll clear up easily, but would like to see him back in two weeks, just to make sure it did clear out. He still wants to play and he's still being a great baby.