Prayers for sleep!!

I really need Rylie to sleep better tonight.....

Kiddo loved the asparagus!

Made some green stalks for dinner tonight to go with our leftover tortellini. She really went to town on it - but the joke will be on me when her wet diaper stinks like an old man's dirty sock. I'll let you know how that turns out!!

Baby's not such a baby anymore

If you are a Mommy or a Daddy, you know that cow’s milk is a huge no-no until babies reach their first birthday.  Up until then it’s breast milk only (or formula if you are going that route).  Rylie is a booby baby, she hated bottles until she was about 6 months and could hold them herself.  Since I work all day and she spends the day with a sitter, I pump milk for her to drink the following day.  It is a HUGE commitment to pump each and every day while trying to work a full time job and many a determined lady has had to put her pump on the shelf in favor of formula.  I am, if nothing else, very stubborn and type A.  So quitting was never any option for me.  I only would have stopped if I tried every possible avenue and still wasn’t making adequate milk for the kiddo.  But as it is, despite its challenges (which I may detail later on) we are fast approaching the ever important first birthday.  My, my, where has the time gone?

The point of all this is that dropping the pump and being able to offer cow’s milk will drastically change my days and I am really looking forward to it.  I pump three times per day (2x at work, 1x before bed at home).  I should be able to drop them slowly, first the evening, then 1x at work, then none.  And then I’ll have a real lunch hour again, and will be able to go to bed as early as I like and will spend less time washing plastic pieces and, and, and….  So, I’m really excited, albeit a little nervous (because it’s a change, and change is big and scary).  I was thinking of dropping my evening pump this week and just counting on my freezer stash to make up the difference, but I think I should wait just a few more days.  Oh, it’s so close I can almost taste it!!  Seriously, you won’t believe how this will change my life.  Just wait and see!!!

What an evening!

Seriously it was a toughie. Rylie usually goes to bed at 7:30 - but she was so exhausted - I put her down at 6:30. I hope it's not a disasterous night of sleep. I just watched a teeny bopper movie, called Easy A. Makes me feel old, because I am so far away from high school it's like it never happened. I've always thought I could do better the second time around - but honestly I bet it would still suck. Anyway, makes me think about Rylie going to high school. I hope I can help her to make it really good and avoid making the mistakes I did!!!

Getting ready for bed now. No way am I waiting for Joe to get home...I did not get out for my run. Rylie just wasn't up for it and my achilles tendons are killing me from hiking. Maybe tomorrow....

Updated: HORRIBLE night of sleep!!  They say never to use all caps when you are typing because it's like you are yelling, but I feel like yelling, so CAPS, CAPS, CAPS!!  Anyway, kiddo was up about 3 times again, finally Joe stepped in at 4 and got her back in her crib and back to sleep.  Not sure what to do next.  She was a happy little munchkin this morning though, so maybe we are on the downhill side of this cold and we can address the sleeping issues as they come. I'm a walking zombie today, but I'll keep caffeinating and hopefully I can get through till bedtime tonight.  A run tonight??  Hum....

They grow up so fast

What do you mean I went over my texting limit this month?  There's a limit?

Night time isn't what it used to be

Rylie was up 3 times last night!!! Boo - I finally just brought her into bed at 4:30, but it's not like I get much sleep with her hogging up the bed. She has a sniffly nose, so I'm guessing that's what all the fuss was. Uhg, just what we need, another cold. She didn't seem that bad this morning so I doped her up with vitamin - I and sent her off to school. Wonder if I'll hear from them today? I'm prepping myself for some time off this week and Joe is doing the same.

Tonight is supposed to be a running night, but I'm not sure if it's going to happen. Joe is going skiing after work, which means single parent evening with a fussy, cranky baby. All the more reason to go, right? We'll see I guess. No wonder I am out of shape....

Here's the plan

Before Rylie was born, Joe and I were super active.  We got used to fit bodies and sore muscles.  It was a way of life to ride our bikes and ski during all our free time.  We did a lot of stuff as a couple and when we decided to have a baby we knew that things would really change in that area.  And of course they have, and of course it’s still tough some days.  It’s not that I miss sweating up and down mountains all day long, at least not really, it’s just that I feel like a part of my identity has been lost.  The person I thought I was isn’t so clear anymore.  And I want to find that person again because I know she can exist, even as a Mom.  I want to be that person so that Rylie has a role model of a healthy, active well balanced woman.

The challenge is to be active with very limited time and often not a lot of sleep and motivation.  It seems the best answer is going to be running.  It maximizes results for limited time spent exercising and I can take Rylie in the jogging stroller if I have to.  But….the problem is I’m not much of a runner and since Rylie is almost a year old, I am not in fighting shape anymore.  So I have to start out slow, which is really hard.  My first goal is to be able run a continuous 30 mins without overdoing it and getting sore.  I did a 10K over the summer essentially off the couch, so it’s not an impossibility, but I was hurting the next day for sure!!!

As of today, I have gone running twice and on Sunday went hiking.  Thursday was walk 6, run 8, walk 6, run 8, walk home.  And then Saturday was walk 5, run 9, walk 5, run 9.  My plan is to run Tues, Thurs, Sat, Sun – it will be a big accomplishment with my schedule!!!  I’ll be back here to post along the way J

Meet Rylie

This is the day after Rylie was born. She was born a full month early and spent her first 5 days in the NICU. But no problem for her, she was up and out before the nurses could even blink. She really blew all my expectations out of the water.

What does it mean?

I think my first post should begin by explaining the title of this blog.  Rylie was born 344 days ago, therefore it has been 345 days since I last saw the person that I was.  I don't want that to sound depressing - because it's not really, but anyone that has children can tell you that the person before kids is not the same as the one after.  And for most people, maybe all people, the new person is bigger, wiser, grander in lots of ways.  BUT, you knew there was a "but" coming right?, giving birth to a new person takes some getting used to.  And by new person I of course mean me.....although I suppose Rylie is a bit of a miracle too :)