4 months old

“Baby” Liam is 4 months old today!

We so love our happy, little guy, and look forward to the next few months of development!

On the up and up

The kiddies are starting to feel better, which mean’s I’M starting to feel better! Liam has resorted waking up every 3-4 hours at night, which is taking some getting used to. He tries to nurse, but is too stuffed up/congested to do so. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, our Vicks Vaporizer decided to kick it…. thankfully my wonderful friend Michelle lent me hers. It seemed to help L sleep – he’s taken some very long naps and has gone longer at night since she gave it to us.

In the weight department, I’m trying to lose while Liam is trying to gain! I’ve been throwing in the odd formula bottle every once in a while to see if that will help, and to see if it will help him go a little longer at night. It’s been working a little bit, and it’s also nice for him to be able to take a formula bottle if I need to go out. My milk supply is totally ample and I’ve dropped the domperidone for now. 2 more months to go……..

And one of my new year’s resolution has been successful since the start of January! I’ve lost a few inches, mainly off my waist and legs, and I’ve lost….. 8 POUNDS! It’s been 3 weeks now and the scale better not be lying! I’ve been counting calories (don’t worry, I’m accounting for BF’ing!) and working out almost every day. I’ve been taking Sundays off, it’s a day of rest, after all! And February is showing lots of promise to be just as rewarding – I have committed to a fitness challenge, competing against my good friend and accountability partner, M, to see who can attain the most points. The rewards are based on logging your food intake the day, drinking 8 cups of water, 1/2 hour workouts, and pounds lost. At the end of each week we’re going to check in with each other to see who has accumulated the most points. At the end of the month, the loser is going to treat the winner to something that we haven’t decided on yet. I can’t wait! I’m a competitive person at heart, and I think this competition is just what I need to keep my regime going. Game on, M!

Back to Liam for a minute, how can I completely fail to mention that my little almost-4-month-old (tomorrow) rolled over last week?! I put him on his tummy for some tummy time and came back into the room to find him on his back, flailing about. The next day I put him on his back, left the room for a minute and came back to find him on his tummy! We have a 2-way roller, folks!

The bumbo also presents another station for L to chill in… he doesn’t love it yet, but we’ll get there. We also hauled the trusty jumperoo out of storage and have already put a few miles of usage on that thing. Whoever invented it is a sheer genius!

We’ve been hit!

We’ve been hit……

By a nasty cold virus.

I’ve got two congested, stuffed-up, sniffling, wheezing, coughing, sneezing little kiddos on my hands and I’m not very thrilled about it.

I have remained untouched, thankfully, so I’m able to take care of the little ones without much complaint. Liam is still fairly happy, despite his ailments, but he is having a lot of trouble breathing while sleeping and nursing. I’ve been pumping and giving him bottles when he’s too stuffed up to nurse, and thankfully he is taking them no problem. He’s staying fairly hydrated, and still has wet diapers so I’m not concerned – yet.

Kenzie is just being miserable, though. She’s got quite the cough, and it saddens me to here her hacking away in her crib at night. She’s been sleeping SO much better lately, I just hope it lasts even with this nasty cold. A report on post-soother trauma; she’s forgotten all about it! Score. It was a long week and for a while there we thought we were going to buckle under the pressure, but we stuck with it and she’s finally sleeping through the night again without waking up. Naptimes are still all over the place, and she’s been waking up at the 1-hour mark… sometimes crying and going back to sleep, other times refusing to quit until I take her out. Oh well…. you win some……

That’s been life around here. We’re loving our days at home and our routine. I am working out hard with JM and her crew, and have lost some inches in the last couple weeks! 5 lbs. and I’m officially almost back to me pre-pre-preganancy weight (before I got pregnant with Kenzie!)

But I’m off…. Greg’s dad is staying here tonight and I don’t even have a bed made up yet. EEP!

Boxed in

Another Pinterest project completed!

My hydrangea trough-thingy is done, and I’m LOVING the way it spruces up our mantel, especially now that our eyesore of a TV is mounted above it. PS – anyone else hate how having your TV on your wall allows EVERYONE driving by to see if and what you are watching?! I would now love to have faux wood blinds in our big living room window for that reason alone. Not that I am watching TV all day or watching anything questionable (ok, ok, my guilty daytime TV pleasure is Dr. Phil…. shhhhh!), but I just like to have my privacy! I ALWAYS look at what other people are watching on TV when I’m driving, so why wouldn’t people be peeping into my window?!

OK enough of that… on to my project of late!

First step was to pick up 2 pieces of untreated cedar 1×4 from Home Depot. I gave Greg my measurements, and he chopped up the pieces for me.

   

Next step was staining. I used some stain that we already owned (walnut color) and put 2 thin coats on the wood pieces.

 

Cedar soaks up stain pretty good, so I would definitely recommend the two coats for that rich color.

Next Greg used some small decorative nails and put the box together, voila:

 

And lastly, I added in my fake hydrangeas that I got at Michael’s last 50% off sale (all florals were half off, score!) and there you have it…. my mantle all spruced up!

I quite like it….

Have you completed any Pinterest “pins” lately? I challenge you that for every 10 things you pin, you actually DO one of them! It’s quite a rewarding experience, although your husband may disagree if you solicit his help, like I did.

Cooking fun

Lately I’ve been having so much fun in the kitchen. Sooo not me! I have a few recipes I just *have* to share….

The first is a soup that I’m crazy about. A friend made it for us one night and it was so delicious I begged her for the recipe, which she had to go to her mom for. Her mom had gotten it from a restaurant (?) I think, but anyway. It’s amazing. It will change your life!

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:
3 tbsp. butter
1 onion, chopped
3 c. roasted butternut squash (2 medium sized butternut squash)
1 granny smith apple, peeled  and chopped
3 tbsp. flour
1-2 tsp. curry powder
Pinch of nutmeg
3 c. chicken stock
1 ½ c. milk or cream
Grated rind & juice of 1 orange
Salt, pepper & pinch of sugar

Directions:
Roast squash until soft in 400 degree oven, about 1 hour. (I cut each squash in half, put face-down on a baking sheet, and filled baking sheet with about a half-inch of water). Steam apple until soft. In your soup pan, sauté onions until soft. Add squash & apple, sauté & stir often (emphasis on stirring often!) making sure it doesn’t burn. Add the flour, curry & nutmeg, blending well.

Add the chicken stock, orange juice and rind. Simmer for 30-45 minutes. Very carefully transfer a couple of cups at a time into a blender to puree, or use a hand blender in the pot. Transfer back to soup pot, then add milk or cream. Taste, add salt, pepper & sugar as needed.

Served with topped parsley. Can be prepared in advance, the flavour improves with time.

Another recipe that I’m loving right now is from the ABC cookbook. It’s an apple cheesecake and it’s so easy, fast, and you always have the ingredients in the house. It’s been a hit every time I’ve made it, so I’m passing it along:

Apple Cheesecake

Ingredients:

Crust:
1/2 c. margarine
1/3 c. white sugar
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 c. flour

Filling:
1 pkg. cream cheese
1/4 c. sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Apples:
2 or 3 apples, sliced
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

Mix together all crust ingredients until crumbly. Press crumbs on bottom of spring form pan and 1/2 inch up the sides.

Cream all filling ingredients together. Pour over crust

Arrange apple slices in circular design on cake surface. Mix sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle evenly over apples.

Bake at 450 F for 10 minutes. Then turn down heat to 350 for about 20 minutes. Watch, as it may burn quickly. It is done when filling is a little shaky.

With being house-bound for the last week due to the snow, I’ve been experimenting in the kitchen and I’ve been meal-planning again. If you want me to email you some of the meals I’ve been doing, I’ll send you the ones that are worth trying! Leave a comment and I’ll pass them along.

Happy cooking!

The room reveal

FINALLY!

It’s been a long time coming, and there are still a couple loose ends to tie up, but here are some shots of Kenzie’s “almost-finished” room!

When you walk into her room, the first thing you see is the closet. Which needs a little organizing. Greg had to reconfigure the room a bit… most BC box houses have a room on the end like ours, but because the original owners had their washer/dryer stacker units in this room, we had to reposition the duct work. This room also didn’t have a closet before, as the master bedroom closet originally connected the master bedroom to this room.

Those colorful bins are from the Land of Nod – I just LOVE them! Thanks to Kendra/Kelly for the tip. They are so durable and are great for holding K’s toys.

The dresser is my favourite piece. I got it at Value Village for next to nothing, and refinished it the RIGHT way, with all the right steps – sanding, priming, painting, and veneering. A lot of work, but so worth it! The rug is from Urban Outfitters. I love how the mix of modern and vintage gives an eclectic look. The fabric for the curtains is from Tonic Living. Best site EVER to find great, unique fabric. The gallery wall was inspired by this one from the Young House Love blog. Most of the frames I had already, but I bought a few cheapies from Ikea. I spray-painted the ones I owned a matte white.

We haven’t come up with a convenient way to hang the Pottery Barn light fixture that I bought, but it looks like this:

You’ll notice that the curtain panels are not the same height. This is due to my lack of math skills. Oh boy. I am thinking to remedy this problem I will chop the same amount off the right panel and buy some cheap fabric to match, and sew a band on the bottom and maybe finish it off with some ribbon trim. Who knows. You can’t see the left panel unless you’re standing in the middle of the room. But it does irk me so I’m going to do something about it in the very near future. The little table is from Salvation Army and was given a quick once-over with a coat of white paint. The lamp is from Salvation Army as well, and I recovered the shade with some leftover fabric that I had kicking around.

I have yet to decide what to hang above Kenzie’s crib. In a few months we’ll be moving the crib to Liam’s room, and buying a twin bed for Kenzie,  so I’m trying not to do something too specific to where the crib is placed right now. I’ve been eyeing these prints from Katie Daisy’s Etsy store:

 

And here is Kenzie’s cozy reading nook:

The book ledges are Ribba shelves from Ikea – made for holding books, pictures, postcards, etc. They were only $9.99 each! Way cheaper than buying the wood and spending time making them! The chair was a splurge for K’s 1st birthday (from Winners).

And another fun piece that I love – the mirror that was on clearance from Home Sense. It was originally a bronzy-metal, but I spray-painted it a couple shades darker than the wall color for a subtle pop.

And there you have it! Kenzie’s *almost* completed room.

 

Over it

I’ve come a long way since my last post. I’m so over it.

I’m determined to breastfeed until at least 6 months and I’m well on my way. That is something to be thankful for! My baby boy is a happy, giggly, smiley, content “little” (emphasis on the word little!) guy who is healthy, despite what the scale says. I hold onto hope that he is growing just fine, and will give an update in 3 weeks when we have him weighed again.

A little of what we have been up to in the last couple weeks…. since the snow hit we’ve been to get a little innovative when it comes to passing the time!

  

Kenzie just LOVES to have me take “pishures” of her. In this particular photo, she is taking a “pishure” of me!

Rayelle was over for a day this week to give Renee some R&R and for Kenzie to have a playmate that is a little more up to her intelligence level. (Liam will get there, one day!)

  

Mr. Liam is gaining more and more strength every day! We are giving him lots of tummy time to encourage this. He is also rolling a lot from his back to his side…. I’m sure he’ll be flipping onto his tummy any day now!

  

Kenzie, Liam, and I met Kendra, Jack, and Quinn at the Walnut Grove Rec. centre for Tot Romp. The kiddies had an absolute BLAST running from play mat to play mat, driving in cars, and jumping on mini trampolines. What a great way for them to exert some pent-up energy with all the “indoor” time we’ve been having due to the snow!

Kenzie is still hooked on ‘Piggle’ (aka In the Night Garden). I’ve upgraded her from watching youTube clips on the iTouch to DVDs from the library. 1 show a day! 

And my smiley, happy little boy. What a joy he is becoming! I just love him so so much and his smile just melts my heart.

Stay tuned – I have uploaded pics onto my computer of Kenzie’s room!! I know you’ve all been anxiously (or not so…) waiting for pictures. Bear with the quality, as they are iPhone pictures. I’ve accepted the fact that a new wide angle lens is simply NOT in our budget right now. Partly thanks to Greg’s purchase of a new TV. More on that as well. :S

Enjoy the fluffy, white stuff!!

Frustration is mounting…

I sit here stewing in frustration. I’m trying not to, but here I am. The cause of my frustration is a combination of things, but the problem at the forefront is….. breastfeeding. <Insert sigh here>

I feel like things with nursing are going so well. Liam is feeding 7-8 times a day, sometimes 9 times, sometimes 6, depending on how he does at night. He’s happy during the day, and he’s got about 4-5 wet diapers a day (could be more, but I feel like I’m wasting diapers if I change him more than that!), and 2-3 BMs. So the last factor that would indicate that breastfeeding is going well is his weight gain. And that’s where the frustration comes in….

We were at the dr.’s office again today for a monthly weigh-in to see how L is doing. I felt like he had gained at LEAST 2 pounds judging by how heavy he is to carry, and he had a major growth spurt last week and was feeding every 3 hours through the night for a few nights. I felt confident that he had gained adequate weight this past month. But to no avail, the scale indicates that he has only gained 1 lb. Arg!

The RN assured me that there was no reason to panic, but since he was born in the 25th percentile for weight and is on a steady decline and is now in the 15th percentile, she wants me to go on Domperidone to see if increasing my milk supply will help. How ironic – with Kenzie I had too much milk and that was the reason for me quitting breastfeeding, and now with Liam I’m super determined to make it to 6 months and I don’t have enough milk! Of course.

I’m hoping that this will be the answer to Liam’s weight gain mystery. At this point I’m not worried, per se, but more annoyed/frustrated. I want Liam to be a healthy, thriving baby but can’t handle when people are constantly commenting on how small he is for his age, or what a skinny baby he is. It makes me feel inadequate as a breastfeeding mom, and it SHOULDN’T! He might just be a tall, slender boy when he grows up and there might be nothing I can do about it! When people make comments like that it makes me feel like a mother is judged by how big of a baby she has. As if I’m starving my kid!

Anyways. The nurse will be checking Liam again at his 4 month immunizations in a month, and if he hasn’t stayed the same or gotten on a higher growth curve, she is going to write up a consult to see a pediatrician, just to make sure we aren’t missing something like a deficiency of some sort. Thank goodness the word “supplementing” or “formula” didn’t come up!

Rant #1: complete. Commencing Rant #2 now.

On Tuesday I cut the tip of Kenzie’s soother off. I was at a breaking point with the soother; if she got hurt, she’d ask for her ‘dooder’, if she was tired, she asked for her ‘dooder’, and if she was just upset or frustrated, she’d ask for the blinkin’ ‘dooder’. I was sick of it. So we cut it up together, and she put it in the garbage can. She seemed to forget about it at nap time, and fell asleep after crying for about 5-10 minutes. Bedtime was a little harder. She asked for her ‘dooder’ and I simply explained to her that it was all gone, and that we threw it in the garbage. She cried for about 15-20 minutes, and Greg and I each took turns going into her room, laying her down, and telling her she didn’t need her soother anymore. That morning when she got out of bed she went straight to the garbage can, tried to open the cabinet door and said ‘dooder!’. Grooooan.

The last couple nights have been absolutely agonizing. She was up at 3 AM this morning just BESIDE herself, wanting her soother. Greg and I each must’ve gone in there about 5 times, and finally, after an hour of screaming on and off we took her into our bed where we all fell alseep until 7:30. Ok, I had to get up and feed Liam at 4, so it made for a long morning.

I’m determined to keep at it though. She has to start sleeping through the night again eventually, right? Does anyone else’s 2-year old wake up often in the night? Am I all alone in this, lol?

Our resolutions

In true “New Year’s” fashion, we (Greg and I) have come up with some resolutions for 2012. They are as follows:

Greg:
Lose 10 lbs
Work out more

Lynette:
1. Lose inches (not exactly sure how to set a realistic goal in inches?) and a couple pounds
2. Eat and cook healthier (using www.myfitnesspal.com to track my caloric intake – I downloaded the app for my iPhone and it’s super convenient!)
3. Finish off 2011 photo book
4. Re-vamp recipe binder with a new, cohesive look

Kenzie:
1. Kick the soother
2. Kick the sleep sack
3. Transition to a big-girl bed
4. Get potty-trained
5. Continue to be a fun-loving, energetic, crazy toddler

Liam:
1. Sleep 12 hours consistently at night (haha! A mom can dream, can’t she?!)
2. Transition to milk/sippy cup
3. Continue to be a wonderful, happy baby

All of us – except Liam – have started to accomplish one or more of our resolutions today. I snipped the tip off Kenzie’s soother, so she doesn’t really have a chance to fail, but I do. We threw it away into the garbage together, and she is now <finally> asleep after Greg and I both having to go in there seperately to calm her down. Hopefully she doesn’t wake up in the middle of the night wondering where here ‘dooder’ is! :S

And I started off the year right by a healthy grocery shop. Tons of veggies, no packaged snacks, lots of yogurt, granola, and fruit for breakfasts and snacks. Greg just got off the bike after an hour-long ride. Here’s to a healthier 2012!

Good-bye 2011. It’s been nice knowing you.

We began our NYE festivities like any other year, except that we were +1 this year. We had everything arranged beautifully – we would pick up our two babysitters on our way out to Aldergrove, and we’d leave all the kids (minus newborns) at one house, and have our party a few doors down. 2 babysitters + 3 toddlers = splitting the $ between 3 couples instead of on our own. And on the plus side, the kiddos would be right down the road from where we were partying, so if anything went wrong we were right there.

Sounds like a great plan, yes?

What we couldn’t account for was a sick(ish) toddler puking everywhere in the car on the way to the babysitter’s house. Oh.My.Word. So much puke. We turned around, got Kenzie bathed, got the car cleaned up, and installed our backup carseat in the vehicle as we did NOT have time to hose down the carseat and wash the cover, etc.

On our way to the babysitter’s for the second time! Everyone is piled in and we’re 5 minutes away from our destination. Puking disaster #2 occurs. On Fraser Hwy. In the vehicle. Babysitter #1 has her hand by Kenzie’s mouth, holding the vomit. Oh.My.Word. So much puke. We pull over and do a mini cleanup. We call our friends and debate whether or not we should continue. Either we stay at home with our puking child and have no fun, and ruin everyone else’s night by taking their babysitters with us, or we have a puking child and at least attempt to have a good time.

We continue on.

We arrive at Kevin and Kendra’s and bathe Kenzie for a second time. She seems to be in good spirits and shows no signs of a fever. We put her into her spare pj’s and a few minutes after being out of the tub she throws up again in the sink. And again five minutes after that. We decide to take her with us to Mark and Katie’s, just down the road. She throws up a few more times at Mark and Katie’s, but her stomach is empty and it’s just bile and water. She falls asleep in Michelle’s arms and we put her down for the night. She slept the whole time, and we enjoyed our evening. Liam slept as well, so we had a nice break!

What a new year’s!