I know who you are!

Or where you are, at least! I attached a google analytics tag on our blog, which allows us to see our visitors (and all the random statistics you could ever want to know about the visits).

Mom, Grandma T, wins the prize for most visits in the last month.

We watched a special on the Google search empire recently. It is amazing how much we reveal about ourselves online. But for our purposes, it is fun to see where our traffic comes from. :)

First Tooth

And tooth #2 has made its debut as well!

Adventures in NYC

(Disclaimer: Okay...after trying for hours...I cannot figure out how to work my text and pictures together properly. You will have to guess which text goes with which picture! I will try harder next time!)

Friday night we arrived in the Bronx to stay with Edmund and Gabie. We met PG for the first time (he is 5 days younger than Hannah). They showed us they are both hitting similar milestones in attempting forward mobility.

The next morning we got up early to go see the Pope. We had street tickets for his arrival and Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral. We ran up and down many many streets trying to find out how to get to the security check point. Unfortunately, due to misdirections from several police officers, and a long wait in several lines...we did not make it into the plaza. So, we watched the jumbotron for a few minutes (and were interviewed by a newsman from Chicago and another from Czechoslovakia).

Since we couldn't see too well, we took up an invitation from Gabie's previous employer, and hiked up 20 blocks to the World Youth Alliance offices on the upper East side. They downloaded the live feed from EWTN and put it up with the projector, where we watched part of the Mass.

Fearing we would miss the next opportunity to see Pope Benedict, we grabbed lunch to go and hiked a couple blocks back to 5th Ave to await the procession.

AND....HERE IS A CLIP OF THE POPE DRIVING BY!

Since others may have missed it. :)

Long Belated Slideshows

click here for Nothside Party
click here for Southside Party

Thanks again to our hosts/hostesses for the great parties! Thanks also to those whose pictures I have taken for my own selfish purposes. :)

No, She is NOT sleeping through the night

It has been awhile since I blogged...and awhile since I blogged about this topic. H's sleep saga continues:

For some reason, I find myself skirting around this question all the time. "So, is she sleeping through the night yet?" It always seems to come with an expectation that the answer is "yes, of course!" Sometimes, that is the answer I give. The quick way out. If my answer is anything else, I open myself up to the wide world of baby-sleeping politics.

Disclaimer: I am grateful for helpful suggestions, when offered lovingly and understandingly.

I am on Night #2 of logging H's sleep habits for the No Cry Sleep Solution. Last night she awoke 9 times between bedtime, 7:30pm, and wake time, 7:30am. For those of you gasping out there, this is my truth: "Hello, my name is Elisabeth, and I am a Sleep-Deprived Mom." PRAISE GOD, I'M A MOM!!! :-) And yes, this is a part of my reality for which I am eternally grateful!

So, I am logging tonight, just to double check our status and formulating a sleep plan. I think we are going to give the NCSS a go before trying anything else. A friend mentioned that around 6 months is when parenting can start to get tough. The lack of sleep starts wearing on you, making you do crazy things....like, for instance, opening yourself up to the politics of infant sleeping by posting such a controversial topic on your blog! :-P

For all those who just like to look at my pictures...more to come soon. :)

Easter Baby

We just returned from a wonderful visit to Chicago - and are still recovering from the 14 hour drive home. I have lots of pictures to update and will do that as soon as I get a few free minutes. For now, I wanted to share the Easter portraits I took before we left.

Jesus, thank you for dying for us. Thank you for new life!

H's First Hike...

...and what a MEMORABLE hike it was!! This one will go down in history! With the weather improving, and a brand new (used) baby carrier purchased off Ebay, it seemed the perfect scenario. We called friends that are relatively new to the area and invited them for a hike. Thinking to myself, that I didn't want anything too challenging, I quickly decided against the highest point in our county. "Scenic would be nice" I thought to myself. Remembering a picture we had taken, and where I thought it was taken, I suggested a nearby mountain. It looked like it would be cloudy, but as we approached our destination; the clouds cleared and left us with a perfect cool clear day. We met our friends, paid our fee and set out for a leisurely 4 mile scenic hike. The first overlook was about 100 yards from the center. It was perfect. Other than the fact that Hmissed her morning nap, it was 11:30am; we had the afternoon ahead of us. To my concern that H would not fall asleep in the pack, she quickly conked out.

Our friends helped us adjust her so that she would not be uncomfortable.

After fiddling with her for 2 minutes, she woke up. Darn it! "I am such a bad momma; I woke up my sleeping baby...so much for that morning nap." We continued on. First downhill, then, we began the uphill stretch. Paul did quite well considering he was carrying a 20 pound baby in an 8 pound pack.

After maybe an hour, we made it to the top of that stretch. Next was the “scenic plateau”. As we continued on, that scenic plateau became quick rocky. No problem, we have done this before, as I reminisced about hand over foot hiking that we had done in the past. After another hour of very rocky terrain, suddenly we were engaging in hand over foot rock climbing.

Our sleepless baby did not like all the bouncing this entailed. And after reaching several peaks, only to see more treacherous rock climbs ahead, mommy nerves began to kick in.

We decided to take a break, have lunch and hope that we were at the end of our treachery. Passing hikers assured us there was much more to come. With lunch in her belly, I hoped H would fall asleep, which she did. We continued on.

Then we continued up, and up, and up. After several, "this still isn't the end???" peaks...we heard the wonderful sound of children. Those angelic little voices assured me there was hope ahead! And finally, we made it. Just as we climbed that last peak, we found a sign:

Okay, why wasn't that sign at the BEGINNING of the trail we took???? We hiked across the rocks and a man looked at us and said "You just came from there???? With a baby????" "Yes sir we did" Paul said proudly. And so, our story. We took a few more pictures and then continued down the "express trail to visitor center." We loaded up our tired baby, and our tired old bodies and headed home. Now, we can hardly move....but we have another memorable "First" for the baby book. :)

H's thoughts about the day

6 Month Report

Our precious bebe is now 6 months old. She is doing so well. We went to the Ped the other day and the lady at the front desk said she looked very...healthy. I joked that was code for chubby! H is a beautiful, lovable, kissable CHUB!! She is 21 lbs and 27 inches, wearing 12 month clothes (who sizes these clothes anyway?). Laying on her tummy she pushes herself backwards and is just started to attempt to pull up on her knees. She loves to bounce, and SCREAM (squeals of joy really).


Here is a new picture of her in my favorite sleeping position















Meeting her great-grandmother's twin sister

Grandma & H

Debt Freedom!!!

I am just blogging to share our wonderful news....we are debt free (except the house)!!!!!! This is HUGE for us as we have been struggling to overcome a significant chunk of consumer debt that we began our marriage with. For the first couple years of married life, I don't think we reduced our debt...just shifted it all around. Two years ago we were introduced to Dave Ramsey. We purchased his book on tape for around $25. This was some of the best money ever spent. It is SUCH a different philosophy and mindset to live this way. I have given up a salaried job with benefits to be a stay at home mom...and now, we are richer than we have ever been!! I am amazed that with the inspiration from Dave, we have come this far in just two years. While struggling with infertility, one thing I heard often "God has a plan." Of course, it was not our plan to be "well off" to have children. God, however, has ensured that all things come together for the good of those who love Him. On to Baby Step #3, a fully funded Emergency fund, to keep Murphy (Murphy's Law) out of our life.

The Babies Meet!

It was hard to get a picture of two dads holding their squirmy babies. Here is the best I came up with. Hopefully Becky had better luck.

Welcome Baby G!

Okay, so for our family, we are a little late in updating the blog on this...but I just got permission from the proud new parents to post a picture of cousin G. Isn't she just beautiful??!!

We are so thrilled that H has a little cousin to grow up with. Congratulations Steve and Becky and Welcome G! We can't wait to see you again!

Side note for non-family blog readers: G is another NaPro miracle...and of course, named for the powerful intercession of her saint. Praise God for His blessings.

Growing so fast!!

Neither of us can believe how fast our little bean is growing! Today we had a couple new firsts. This morning was H's first taste of "solids." She has been mimicking us so well at the table, I decided to pull out the rice cereal. It was as if she said "what have you been waiting for?" There was only one little "pppbbbttt" - before she ate up all that we offered her. No gag reflexes, no spit backs, no ugly faces. So it is rice cereal for a few days before we pull out the steamer, blender and food mill and start making some baby-food veggie purees.

Next, our friends opened up their "mountain" for sledding. So we had our first play in the snow with sledding (3 trips down the hill). We were on a half-deflated tube, so we didn't go too fast. :)

And, H has added raspberries to her repertoire. Here is a cute little clip:

Shampoo/Bath Wash Recommendations

I guess I am now taking requests for blogs. :-P Here is what I have found out. My mother-in-law had it right all along! Burt's Bees has a great baby line. I just purchased the Baby Shampoo and Wash from our local health food store. It smells delicious and is phthalate free. Since I need something for our cloth wipes (we don't like to leave a smelly bum smelly) - a drop of this product is enough to make a sudsy wipe solution. If you can't find the products locally, they are reasonably priced on Amazon.

I have also heard California Baby Products recommended as safe. They are phthalate free (see their statement here) and a bonus on this, they are sold at Target.

While looking at the Burt's Bee's line, I was also shopping for face wash and face cream. I would like to go organic on some more products I use...but they seemed a little greasy. I need to hear from more people before I rub carrots on my face! :)

BPA's and Phthalates

Watch out...I am getting "greener" by the minute. Well, Paul is protesting as I write this. Okay, I can't say I am "green." But I am on a BPA/Phthalate watch - since it involves all the products which we are currently actively using: Baby Shampoos, Pacifiers, Bottles, Teethers.

For fellow Cloth Diaperer's - what wipe solution do you use? Bum Genius now makes a bpa/phthalate free product...or see the BG! founder's blog for more info.

Next...for BPA Teethers and Pacifiers, go back to the Nature Mom's blog.

I am sure Paul will consider disowning me if I keep posting along these lines. Follow Nature Mom's blogs for more info! :)

Bebe au Natural

So most of our family knows we are trying to do things "naturally":
- Surgery to heal my Endo, leading to a natural conception
- Natural child birth
- Cloth diapers
- Baby Wearing
- Breast feeding
- prefer wood toys to plastics
I am planning to make our own baby food, and just got this great book on the topic.

While I don't consider either of us to be particularly "green"...this is the way our life is going. Recently, ABC news did a report on harmful chemicals in baby products. This caught my attention because it warns these chemicals can affect future fertility. While I realize that every generation has their own warnings: butter vs margarine, etc; I am also of the firm belief that endometriosis (and so many other health conditions) are largely affected by the environment. The premise of the recent news report is that "phthalates" are being found in infants' urine. Phthalates, as I understand, are found in plastics and leach into the products contained by them. Since we are a plastic society, that means almost everything poses a threat. Babies are more at risk because of their sensitive systems.

So, Paul and I began talking last night about the topic. It seems that the "safer" baby products, would be those not contained in plastic. Paul somewhat joking suggested that we will have to look for glass baby bottles for our next child. This morning I came across a link to this blog which discusses the topic. It seems glass bottles are coming back, as well as stainless steel sippy- cups. Shameless plug to grandparents: I have added a few to my Amazon wish-list as the days of sippy-cups may be coming before too long.

I certainly don't know what the answers are...but, for now, we seem to keep moving in the direction of au natural. That IS different than hippie, right???? :-)

Dressed up for Today

H's First March for Life

Awake for a few minutes to pose in front of the Washington Monument









H and 3 Fathers :)









Made it all the way to the Supreme Court, and still asleep

Every day, more lessons learned!

Before H made her way into our arms, vaccinations were a topic that Paul and I discussed and researched. I was convinced I wanted to selectively vaccinate and I carefully chose a pediatrician that would allow us that flexibility. Two things changed for us since then:
1. I got whopping cough in my last trimester (which I do NOT recommend)
2. That carefully chosen pediatrician gave my baby a shot when she was two days old, which left me shaking and in tears (there was much more to this story...but overall, I was not happy with the office)

I decided to switch to a more popular pediatrician to maintain my sanity. While I love the doctor and the office, they do require all vaccinations be given in a timely fashion.

Last week, H had her 4 month shots. Subsequently, I stayed up all.night.long with a feverish, crying baby. From that night, I learned that my instincts for dealing with a feverish child were right on! Next, I learned that when taking a rectal temperature (as our Dr recommends), it is a good idea to be awake enough to deal with the OUTcome...if you know what I mean (not only did I have a feverish baby...but I had poop - all over). I also learned that baths are WAY more fun at 3 AM, at least according to H.

So, we have now survived three rounds of vaccinations - each with their own challenges. I still have research to do on this topic - for moral reasons, as well as the hope of making the right decisions for my baby.

Oh, and re: sleeping....I have also learned that swaddling is amazing! I have not swaddled Hannah since she was a newborn. It is quite different, and slightly hilarious, trying to swaddle an 18 pounder...but she naps so much better. There is more on the topic of sleep...but I will save that for another post. :)

Spit Up - Schmidt Up

Spit Up....really, who cares? With H passing the 4 month mark...I have gotten to the point of saying "who really cares that my shirt is wet and smells of sour milk?" Or H's for that matter. At 1 month, when she would spit up on herself, I would quickly change her clothes...or yell at Paul for attempting to use her clothing to clean it up. Now, the leather computer chair where I sit has a white trail of spit up from back to bottom - I noticed it two days ago and haven't done anything yet. My shoulder is wet, H's shirt is wet. No clothes are being changed.

My current clothes-change policy: If we can go out in public without people looking at us in disgust, then the clothes can stay on. Poopy clothes (where H has "pooped out her diaper) get changed, because that is just gross! :) Oh, and Paul and I can use whom-evers clothes to wipe up whatever mess (excluding poop, of course...gross!).

My last bad-mommy moment is worth sharing. H was sitting on my lap as I was typing away the other day. She started fussing, but wasn't all out crying. I let her fuss on my lap as I continued to compute. After a couple minutes, I turned her around. Her chunky-milk spit up was beginning to dry on her sad face as she looked at me pathetically. Paul and I both laughed. She got cleaned up, eventually, with some one's clothes. :)

Yes, I still love being a mommy!