Sleep Fighter!

Sleep fighter! Sleep Fighter! I sing this as I play with the Little Misters' legs. I make him kick and I say "KaChow!" He gets a kick out of it and smiles and giggles....which by the way is one of the BEST things I've ever heard in my life. He really giggles now!

Cooper is a sleep fighter. He doesn't fight sleep all the time, just his afternoon nap naps. He's got a little schedule now, which is great, but literally only works if he is with his Fallible Mommy and stays at home ALL day. Just a smidge picky. Anyway, he goes down for his 10AM ish nap pretty well. Swaddle him, turn him on his side, and set the swing to 4 and he's good to go for anywhere between 1 1/2- 2 1/4 hours. Then around noonish, he eats...then we play. Then almost always, he sleep fights. I can put him down at 1:30...sleep fight. I can put him down at 2:00...sleep fight. He will squirm and depending on his mood, he will eventually sleep or SCREAM like he's on fire. No matter what he will eventually sleep for no more than an hour usually. Rinse and repeat. He then has a late afternoon nap which I cannot break him of-where he fights off sleep for about 30-45 minutes. He doesn't usually cry, he squirms and tries sooooo hard to keep his eyes open.

Bedtime is usually between 6:15-6:45. He eats and goes to sleep with relative ease. Then he wakes up every 3-4 hours to eat and then goes right back to sleep. I am grateful that he goes right back to sleep, but I truly long for a 5 hour stretch....5 hours for both Mike and I would be heavenly.

Oh and by the way...the next person that tells me that there child didn't sleep through the night until they were 2...3....4...5...6....I'm gonna punch in the ovary. OK not really, but you get the point.

Shedding and Shoes

Over the weekend I went out with a friend. We went to see The Hunger Games along with the rest of the population....it was awesome, not as awesome as the book but hey, do you know any movie that was better than the book? Anywho, after the movie we went out to have cocktails and, in my case, one too many cocktails is two. How sad. I decided to bestow my "having a baby" wisdom on her. Poor thing!

My "having a baby" wisdom included things that I was not prepared for. Things like....if you plan on delivering the old fashioned way, you better start doing P90X to prepare for it. I was prepared for a certain region to be in pain, I was not prepared for my entire body to feel like I had been hit by a semi. Seriously, every part of my being was in pain! Why didn't Jenny McCarthy warn me? Also, I was prepped in advance for the nurses to come in a press down on my abdomen....I was not prepared for the "crime scene" that followed the pressing. EWE. The last thing I was not ready for was the shedding. My hair began falling out 12 weeks post delivery. It is now 15 weeks post semi hit and I'm losing hair like a Siberian Husky in the summer. For reals.

Now onto shoes, oh, and socks. First, why does my three month old need no skid socks? Um, he's only rolled over once, he most certainly does not need no skid socks. I'lll tell you what he does need, some socks that stay on! Hey Gerber, Carters, Target...what the frick? He kicks those off in two shakes of a lambs tail. I love seeing those little sausage toes, so I guess I can live with falling socks.

My boy is a shoeless wonder. I find no need to add a necessary step to dressing Mr. A-Loop. But, I read a many blog and I shop around A LOT and it would seem that I may be the only Mommy out there who does not put shoes on her son. He's got one pair, and the poor little guy hasn't even wore them. I was out shopping yesterday and I saw a couple with twins who couldn't be more than 6 weeks old...both of them had on shoes. They have enough time and patience to put shoes on 4 feet. I'm too busy putting wrist rattles on his leg as if he wearing an ankle monitor and sunglasses because he looks like he might be blinded on a cloudy day.

The Tragic Life and Times of Liono Baggins

Once upon a time there was were two kittens named Sunny and Daisy. They were born in March of 2000. Sunny and Daisy spent the first months of their existence in a small cage in Chicago Heights. In July 2000, they were adopted by a loving couple...who promptly changed their lame names to Liono and Cheetara. They would forever be Thundercats to all.

Liono and the Mrs. had a bond like no other. She adored the cat and he in return, adored her. Without words or actions, she always knew what he wanted. Liono was not the best kitty on the block. He enjoyed chewing cords, climbing on things he shouldn't, singeing his hair on candles, sleeping curled up in the bathroom sink, running outside whenever he had a chance, and crying incessantly and loudly for the couple to wake up in the middle of the night. Yet, she loved the cat. Mrs. and Liono cuddled together on the couch and in bed. She adorned him with affection. He was her baby.

And, then this happened....

Mrs. got pregnant. Liono KNEW something was different and in response, he became different. At first, he stopped following her around and wanting to cuddle. She would call his name and he would just glare at her. As the months progressed, he eventually came back to her; however, he began to pull his hair out and just seemed to be depressed. The vet agreed. The girl began to give him more attention and things started to get better for the kitty and the girl. He was still a bit hesitant but just couldn't pinpoint what was amiss.

And, then this happened...

The couple brought home a new creature. The newest addition was far more needy than Liono Baggins and louder too. Liono tried to be the focus...climbing on the girl as she fed the creature, pulling out more hair and leaving it throughout the house, ignoring the creature as he tried to wiggle himself onto her lap....nothing seemed to work. The girl was consumed and gave every ounce of attention to the new addition. He thought if he just waited patiently the creature would be returned to wherever it came from.

As time went on, Liono began to adjust and the girl tried to give him more attention. Slowly, things began to fall into a new normal for the kitty. And then, the girl went back to work. And, depression has set in once again. Liono Baggins seems sad once again. He is pulling out chunks of hair and leaving it throughout the house. Try as she might, it will never be the same attention as he once got. Things will never be the same.

I love my cat. I wish I could make all the changes easier on him. He turned 12 years old this month. Happy Birthday Liono Baggins. You are still loved.

Tasty Obsessions

So, throughout my pregnancy I had seriously insane acid reflux...I couldn't indulge in like any cravings. Virtually everything I ate came back up. I found that I was able to eat one thing without any problems...the best salad I ever ate. I am still ob.sess.ed with this salad. I could eat it EVERYDAY! Here it is...

My favorite. Anything else just won't do.

Red Onion...a MUST

Perfect.

Roma Tomatoes (diced)

Cucs

     

Who Knew?

No, not Craisins...

 

Perfectly seasoned

Regular shred- not fine

 

Marinade Chicken Breast in this and grill it up!

 LOVE IT! Now to balance this out. I am addicted to McDonalds Mocha Frappe's. There is absolutely nothing good about these. They are like heaven in a cup...heaven that is all sugar, all carbs, all calories, all fattening, all goodness. Do yourself a favor and stay away.

My other current tasty obsession are King Coop's feet. They are fat. They are always clapping together. They are very monkey-like. I l.o.v.e them and as it turns out...I am not alone! When Bridget brought Mr. Aloop to school on Friday, he and I took a quick stroll through the building and his feet were kissed by no less than 3 people. A calorie free option. Just stop by and enjoy!

 Today I formally introduced Cooper to Sophie the Giraffe and apparently, she tastes almost as good as his hands.

Hands down his favorite tasty obsession is his brand new Lovey, I just can't call it that. We'll just call it his Blanky.

How stinking cute is that? I bought it on Etsy. http://www.etsy.com/shop/MyRaggyObsession?ref=pr_shop_more I chose this pattern because of the black, he really likes looking at black things and the back is made of super soft turquoise minky. It has encouraged his fists of fury to open up and grab. Num, num, num....it tastes soooo good.

"You're not going to take this away are you?"

 

Perspective

Oh, the weather outside is.....GORGEOUS! It has been crazy warm here in The Bourley, upper 70's-low 80's and sunny. My kind of weather :0) So, why then are you plopped on the couch blogging? My goal today was to take Coop for a looooong walk and possibly do some shopping or at least browsing at the mall and Kohls.

Yesterday, Mike ran over the tire of the stroller. The stroller that I adore. It is broke. I cannot be fixed. :(

Chicco Keyfit travel system. I know some people hate the travel systems, but I have loved it. The stroller, while it may be a bit heavy, is so easy to open up and fold up...the carseat snaps in perfectly. It has been super convenient. I could go out and buy a stroller frame for the carseat, but we would still have to buy a stroller. Have I mentioned I love the stroller? We can buy the Chicco Keyfit stroller separately but it will no longer match and it will now be a lovely yellow or red or some cube print...ick.

When I was about to flip my lid after Mike had told me, I was talking to my co-workers, who did their best to keep me in check. One of them said, "at least Coop wasn't in the stroller"....for real, if that doesn't help put things into perspective I don't know what will.

Newborn No More

Yep, that's right Lil Mister...you are officially an infant. I can't believe how quickly the last month went!

Current Weight- 14lbs 4 oz (1.6lb gain)
Current Height- 26in (1 inch gain)
Current Favorites- Houdini moves with the Swaddleme, Pattycake with feet, "Eat the feet, numnumnum", Ceiling fans, New mobile, babbling on the activity mat
Current Dislikes- Tummy Time, Wearing a bib, Being expected to wait any amount of time to eat

I went about Googling what 3 months old meant for shiggles and here's what...

According to Fisher-Price.com, my three month old's sleeping and eating patterns have become more predictable. This my dear friends is not just funny but is laugh out loud funny. Coop will not be a man of routine, let alone predictable in nature. No siree. He is gonna keep me on my toes. Just when you think you've got the feeding down to a science of 5oz every 3 hours, he'll throw a wrench in it and just eat an ounce and then watch you cry as you pour that liquid gold down the drain. Bwhahaha!

WebMd says that he should be giving me some well needed rest. Bwhahahaha says Cooper!

Also, my three month old is "touching, grabbing, and feeling everything in reach". No not Cooper...he mainly is sporting fists of fury still. Occasionally, he will reach out and grab my hair, just to show me who the boss of the applesauce is.

Smartmomma.com says that Coop can "briefly" bear weight on his legs. Coop scoffs at the word brief. We are pretty sure he will bypass crawling and go straight into sprinting.

Well, I am not really caring what "they" all have to say. This little boy is completely rocking my world. He is absolutely perfect. He seems to just be taking everything in still, he stares intently on our mouths and saves his coos for times when he really has something important to share...like cures to diseases and such. I think that one day he will just go crazy with babbling, he's going to make us wait. He knows that we waited a loooong time for him and as it turns out, the juice was worth the squeeze.

Back in the Saddle

Business Casual by Cooper

 

I am no longer a stay at home Mommy. I went back to teaching Kindergarten yesterday. I was pretty excited to see my little "Kinder-Hoppers" again. I have a great bunch of kids this year :0) I think everyone expected me to be sad throughout the day, but it never came. I think it helps that I am blessed that my school administration and board allowed me to work Monday's, Wednesday's, and Friday's through the remainder of the year. It also helped that Monday's my little guy will stay at home with his Grandma, Wednesday's, he will work with Daddy from home, and on Friday's he will stay with my good friend Bridget. I know he will be well taken care of and loved. We are so lucky!

Holy Moly! I was EX.HAUST.ED when I got home! Oh, and so was King Coop...Grandma gave him 3 naps between 6:30AM and 4PM. Three naps totalling 3 1/2 hours for the day. But, this Mommy was tired...I'm yawning just thinking about it. I; however, did not take any naps...plus I had to get our classroom back in shape, teach, and do Peanut Butter, Tony Chestnut, and My Mother is a Baker with my kiddos because singing and dancing are some of the best parts of Kindergarten!

The weather is finally nice here and I was able to take Mr. A-Loop for a long walk on Sunday. To prove what a sleep fighter he is...he stayed awake the entire time. Then Mike took him for a walk later on, in hopes to get a nap outta him. He continued his sleep fighting ways. This boy is just like me! We are in for a loooong sleepless road. I am going to take him over to Perry Farm today and walk and walk and walk....we'll see how long he can fight it off.

Bujiggety Baby

Cooper is snoozing in his swing this morning. He's swaddled and turned on his side to help his little flat head. I've gone over there three times already to turn him back to his left side because he really likes sleeping on his right...thus that is the flatter of the two sides.

Anyway, as he takes his little Coopaloop nap, I'm sitting here just listening. The quiet lull of his swing and the array of sounds that comes from him. I'm in awe of how much I love hearing all of his little sounds. Before he was born, I went to the Lamaze class, I went to the Breastfeeding class, I read every review I could find of products we may need, I read Baby 411 and other books that may help, I sought advice from all the great Mom's I work with, I recalled things of the past (so I would not repeat them)....with all the things I did in preparation for his awesome arrival, no one can quite prepare you for the little things.

I was not prepared for jaundice, having to supplement, low milk supply, sensitivities/allergies, GERD....but nothing can prepare you for how focused on sounds you can be. Waking up and hearing coo's come from his room, little sleep cries that just make me crack up, how incredibly loud his snoring can be, cries in the middle of the night (is he awake?)...one of my FAVORITES is when he gets "bujiggety". This is a term that I coined for my restless leg syndrome...when you just feel the need to move around and just can't get comfy. When Coop gets bujiggety, I know it's time to swaddle him. I lay out the Swaddleme on the couch and set him on top. At first he fusses, then as I scoop his legs, he smiles. He will usually lay his arms flat for me and as I begin to swaddle him up, I will talk to him and he smiles and talks back. Once he is completely swaddled he coos and smiles some more...he is completely calm. And, all is right in the world.

Today is a difficult day for my friends at school. God is with us and will see that Gale is at peace now. I am thinking of you all.

Mojo Lost

Have I mentioned how much I love to cook and bake? I have some very good recipes, and I am always looking for new ones to try and then tweak. Two days before my world was rocked I made the following to freeze; spaghetti sauce and meatballs, chicken noodle soup, lemon pepper chicken and wild rice soup, italian soup, and lasagna. Oh, I also made a basket of double chocolate chip cookies for the nurses the day before. Look at how cute their basket was...

I enjoy all things kitchen related really; however, since the birth of Cooper, I have lost my mojo. I made a big Christmas dinner for both the 24th and 25th, banana bread pancakes for my in-laws, and one night I made White Chicken Enchilada's courtesy of http://joyful-mommas-kitchen.blogspot.com/2011/09/white-chicken-enchiladas.html?m=1. That recipe is all the rage on Pinterest...with a bit of tweaking, they were sooooo tasty. That's it...everything else has been things I've frozen or take out. I don't really even feel like cooking. It's weird because while I don't want to make Mike and I food, I cannot wait to make Coop food.

I've already got everything in my Amazon shopping cart ready....

Tovolo Perfect Cube Silicone Trays

Norpro 4 Qt Steamer 

Silicone Rubber Thin Scraper Spatula

 Wilton Silicone Mold

 
I've got two baby food cookbooks and I've scouted a handful of sites for recipes. Coop will be well fed, while Mommy and Daddy continue to eat Panera.

Hallelujah!

Today we got the BEST news from our insurance company! Cooper's formula will be covered at 100%. This is such a big deal for us because he is on Similac Alimentum's Ready to Feed. Why do you ask is he on this...

When Cooper was born, my goal was to exclusively breastfeed. The first two days, we had serious latch issues. So, I bought nipple shields (two different sizes....an awesome good time...not frustrating at all). This was working; however, he was extremely sleepy due to jaundice and it was not improving and he was losing a lot of weight, so the pediatrician had us supplement. Then King Coop did not want to go back to the breast....more awesomeness. I began pumping like crazy (every 2-3 hours) except I was only able to get 1.5-2.5 ounces from each side each time. I began taking Fenugreek which is one of the most disgusting things you can take. I took 3 pills 3 times a day and I got a prescription to increase my supply. While all this was going on, Cooper had HORRIBLE tummy issues. We had to keep switching the supplemental formula to find what worked best. I was told I should probably go dairy free. If I went dairy free, I would have to pump and dump for a month for all the dairy to be out of my system in order to give him my breast milk.

I was heartbroken to give up breastfeeding, but it was all just too much. We switched him to Similac Alimentum powder formula exclusively and yet, I still had a boy who cried and was irritable all the time. Then I read I should try the Ready to Feed and it worked. Praise God! The lowest cost we found for Ready to Feed was $9.17 per 32oz at Walmart. Our current average is 32oz per day. Cost per week $59.19 (with a coupon) plus tax per week. And, you know babies...they just keep upping their demand...little buggers!

About a month ago, I thought that it would be worth a shot to try to get the insurance to cover his formula. I thought my case was pretty good...low milk supply and cow's milk protein sensitivity or allergy. We had to get a predetermination which meant the doctors office had to submit a bunch of paperwork. Funny thing...the office didn't even know the codes to submit because they had never had anyone try to get it covered through the insurance. I googled and googled. Here are the codes you need to get the insurance to cover it...The HCPCS code for Similac Alimentum is B4161 and the NDC-format codes are
70074-0576-64 for 16-oz Powder, 70074-0575-09 for 8-fl-oz Ready To Feed and 70074-
0575-13 for 32-fl-oz Ready To Feed.

I'm sure that many insurance plans would still deny it; however it is always worth a shot!