Lauren Funny

So three must be the age where kids decide they are going to really start working their parents. I've noticed lately that Lauren will tell little white lies! YES my perfect little princess! While I was putting Colton to bed Wednesday night Kraig and Lauren were watching Wonder Pets. When I was done with Colton, I came out and the show was almost over. Kraig went into the bedroom and when the show went off I said "ok, lets go to bed" and she went right into bed and went to sleep like a princess...said "NO, dad said I could watch two!" and she meant it! I however was not born yesterday, so I said "no, daddy didn't" with a smile on my face and I put her to bed. I told Kraig what happened and he said he didn't tell her she could watch two...and so it begins! :-)

Colton's 1st Birthday!

Yesterday was my baby boy's first birthday! He spent the day with me going to the Dr for his 1 year check up, taking a nap at daddy's office, having lunch with Papa Barenberg and then playing with his sissy! It was a great day but I can't believe my baby boy is already 1 year old!!!! Crazy!

Stats:

Weight: 21 lbs 9 oz (30th percentile)

Height: 29.53 inches (50th percentile)

Head Size: 18.9 in round (90th percentile)

He got 4 shots yesterday...flu, chicken pox (Varicella 0.5 mL SC), Prevnar and Hib (HbOC) 0.5 mL IM

He looks so big here!

Lauren got her flu shot (mist) yesterday and did great!

She just had to smell it to see if it smelled like a flower! :-)

Playing hide and seek with daddy while waiting on Dr Furlow

(who we absolutely LOVE at NW Pediatrics in Fayetteville)

Snuggling Sissy

AND he got to sit in a big boy car seat front facing! He was so happy it was hilarious to see just how he was like "whoa this is a whole new world!"

He got a balloon from Western Sizzlin (my dad's favorite place to eat)

Had his first taste of ice cream as well as strawberries (couldn't give until 1 year old for allergy reasons)! My dad loves strawberries so he was happy to share his with Colton.

And this was the view this morning from the front seat looking back. Both kids facing forward! They were pretty happy!

Lauren Funny

Last week I was at Target with Lauren and Colton and Lauren was riding in the big part of the cart. She was sitting down until we got to the section with headbands (which is why we were there to begin with...she had to have a sparkly headband just like Hannah Nana)! She then stood up to look at headbands, etc and when it was time to go I asked her to sit down. She promptly sat down continued to stand up so I started counting 1....2...3...and then I spanked her...(don't worry it was not that hard)! She turned around and looked at me and said "that wasn't nice mommy!" The lady looking at clothes on the other aisle just started laughing...and so did I! Ha! Oh, the joys of a 3 year old!

Love you Lolo!

Great Book!

For all you new moms out there...this is the book that we used with Lauren and loved it! I used the same principles with Colton and he goes to bed every night without issue! I just feed him and then put him in his bed and he rolls over and goes to sleep!

Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child

First House Destruction Incident

Last Thursday I got to play in a charity golf tournament for work. I brought home a goody bad of golf balls and tees, etc. Lauren was playing with the golf tees and I turned my head for a second and when I looked back she was using the golf tee as a nail into the wall! This is what I found...

Then the same day we were in Lauren room and walked out into the hall and Kraig pointed this out...looks normal right?

Until you look a little closer. :-)

I mean who wouldn't want to decorate with cute kitty bandaids right?!?!?!

Love you Lauren!!!

Last weekend

Last weekend we got to keep this little sweetie (11 weeks old) Friday and Saturday while her parents were in St. Louis for the Ram's game weekend. She was so good and just went along with everything we did. And it was a busy Saturday!

First was Lauren's Soccer game where cousin Katlyn got to watch (brother Austin was playing his own game)

Granny Barenberg came too!

Then we watched Katlyn's game and Lauren ate her snacks

And Colton got in on the snacks too...his first Capri-Sun with Uncle Kody!

I think little Ava enjoyed being outside! She slept the whole time and i had to wake her up to eat!


And here are all 4 of us at Katlyn's game (Kraig left after Lauren's game because it was the first day of deer season so he went to the cabin but came back that night)
After Lauren's game and Katlyn's game, we had Lauren's soccer party at Party City where she got this bobble head trophy. Picture it...Ava in the stroller while I'm carrying Colton in the Baby Bjorn carrier and Lauren was running around playing! I literally had to run her down when it was time to leave because she would come down the slide so fast and run back up the stairs to do it again...I missed her twice but on the third try I caught her! :-)

Then it was off to the horse show to watch our hairdresser Becca in a horse show who did great and looked awesome while competing! I would not have made it here with 3 kids without Carrie and Jennifer! This was the only place little Ava was not happy at first...so I held her until she fell asleep and she was fine...but that meant that I didn't have a free hand for my other 2 kids. I took a photo of Jen and Carrie pushing Lauren, Colton and Addison (3 strollers with 2 adults) but I guess when I switched phones I lost it. :-( Just picture Carrie on the left pushing Lauren in the big stroller with her left hand and pushing the left side of Colton's stroller with her right hand while Jen was pushing the right side of Colton's stroller with her left hand and pushing Addison's stroller with her right hand while I walked behind rocking baby Ava. :-) Thanks girls for your help!

After the horse show we went home and Uncle Ryan and Aunt Lisa picked up baby Ava around 5...Kieran and Lauren played outside with Aunt Lisa while uncle Ryan got Ava's stuff together...but then Lauren was very sad (and a little mad) that baby Ava was leaving. She had what we call Crocodile tears! She was mad at Aunt Lisa and Uncle Ryan for taking Ava but we had to remind her that Kieran wanted to play with Ava too. :-)

So basically we were gone from 8:30 am to about 3:30 pm...busy day but lots of fun!

Colton's First Haircut!

So little man got his first haircut today! He is 11 1/2 months old. :-) Kraig was getting his hair cut at Lew's in Rogers so we just made little Colty an appointment too so he will look fly for his birthday party in a few weeks!

The finished look

That was tiring!

All Spiked up!

Speedy Gonzales is on the loose!

Watch out world her comes Colton!

Drinking Like a Big Boy!

First of all let me say No, I do not keep my children in a crib! I was hanging up Colton's clothes and put him in the crib to play...then Lauren came in and saw him and wanted to play with him in the crib. Who knew it is a great way to 'cage' them while I need to do stuff in his room!

Breastfeeding Challenges and Tips

So for those of you that know me well, you know I'm not good at hiding my feelings and/or thoughts, and I'm pretty straight forward. With that said if you think this is inappropriate to "publish for the world to see" don't read it...but I didn't want Lauren or Colton's future wife to look back in life and think "why do I feel this way" when she has her own child. And, I've had a few friends and family members have babies recently and I've told them all the same info so I don't want them to feel alone in their feelings/thoughts. I wanted to document it all for when Lauren becomes a mommy and when Colton's and his wife have a baby. :-)

First of all let me say that THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH FORMULA!

Second I was VERY lucky with both my kids in the fact that I was able to breastfeed both of them without issues.

Third let me say that Breastfeeding has been one of the most rewarding yet challenging things I've ever done because of the reasons below and because I did it for 9 months with Lolo and 12 months with Colton (almost there...just a few more weeks sadly)! (I actually went 15 months total...but started weaning at 12 months)

It is the most challenging because...

• 
  
  The first 2 weeks hurt with both kids. I bled, got cracks, etc.


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  It's time consuming


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  You are feeding your baby on demand so you never know when they will want to eat and you will have to pop out your b's anywhere! :-)


• 
  
  You can't travel away from the baby as easy as you used to travel, because you have to pump when you are not with the baby which takes time away from the vacation


• 
  
  You sometimes feel isolated because you are the only one that can console your child when they are crying and want to nurse to comfort them (colic for example) and you miss your show that's on tv or your friends that are over for dinner because you are in the nursery nursing your baby while all your friends are laughing, eating, etc in your living room.


• 
  
  You feel like a milking cow at times


• 
  
  You find yourself in unusual situations when you either need to feed your baby or pump (airport bathrooms (regular and private family bathrooms...I've used both), parking lots, meeting rooms at work, and even sharing a nursing room with another mom pumping while on a business trip for Abbott...yes you read that right! I shared a room with a lady once while on a business trip...awkward!)


• 
  
  You have to change your eating habits to accommodate your child...no caffeine, no milk for colicky baby, no broccoli, etc


• 
  
  Some days you don't get anything done because your child wants to eat non-stop


• 
  
  You feel like your b's are no longer yours and they are just on your body for the needs of your child


• 
  
  You don't get much sleep because breastfed babies don't sleep through the night as fast as non-breastfeed babies

However...It's one of the most rewarding because...

• 
  
  After the first 2 weeks I was golden! Didn't hurt at all (ok well until they starting biting) :-)


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  Even though it's time consuming that is time I will never get back and it's guaranteed 1 on 1 time with my baby!


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  Even though you might be uncomfortable about where you have to feed your child you will probably look back and laugh at it later on!


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  I will have a lifetime to travel without my baby (and when I'm older I will wish I my baby wanted to travel with me)...so I can adjust my travel schedule for 1 year...no problem...and at times when traveling for work pumping is a good way to get out of a boring meeting! :-)


• 
  
  Being the only one who can console your child makes you feel GREAT when you know YOU are the reason they feel better...you will be able to watch your show at another time...and your friends will still come over another night. :-)


• 
  
  Even though you feel like a milking cow at times that milk makes your b's look GREAT and full! I've never had more cleavage than what I have when I'm breastfeeding. That's a major perk (pun intended hehe)


• 
  
  Again the unusual situations give you a good laugh when you need one!


• 
  
  The good thing about changing my eating habits is that I really don't need caffeine! I also learned that milk upsets my stomach...so this actually helped me too!


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  On the days you can't do anything but feed your child because they are growing or hurting...just relax...the laundry will always be there tomorrow. This was a way for me to spend more quality time with my child.


• 
  
  Again...even though your b's are no longer yours they look great and you will one day have them back!


• 
  
  I learned that I don't need as much sleep as I thought and hearing my baby coo in the middle of the night and touch my face with their tiny hands, etc is the sweetest thing in the middle of the night...I'll wake up for that any night! And I know that I'm doing my baby good because the reason they are not sleeping through the night yet is because breast milk is more easily digested than formula...so I know it's easier on their stomachs.


• 
  
  I'm burning 500+ calories a day!!! Woo Hoo! Great diet plan!

Tips/Things I've learned

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  When pumping, routine is key! Pump at the same time each day (try to find a time that you know your child will be sleeping so you can pump without the stress of them crying in the background)


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  Routine, routine, routine! Pump for the same amount of time each day (20 min etc)


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  Drink LOTS of water! Nursing drains fluid from you so if you are pumping you will get more if you stay hydrated…you will notice on days you don’t drink as much water that you will not get the same amount you normally get when hydrated.


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  Don’t get nervous if you only pump 2 oz at first…it takes your body a week or so to adjust to the ‘extra’ session so just stick with it and you will produce more. Also at first your body is only used to producing a small amount because your baby is only 2 weeks old for example and her stomach is the size of her fist…so don’t think you won’t be able to produce more…you will over time.


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  You might have to nurse more often the first week due to the fact that you are pumping for the extra session so when she eats there won’t be as much there for her until your body learns to produce enough for her and your pump session.


• 
  
  Start with 1 pump session a day and if you are wanting to store more then add in another one a week or two later (after your body adjust to 1 extra session)…but if you are just pumping to start storing milk for when you go back to work or even for when you just need to get out for an hour or so 1 session a day should be enough.


• 
  
  If you are going to be out and miss a feeding, try to time it so you can either feed her and then leave or pump before you go so your body doesn’t miss that feeding.


• 
  
  When traveling take your pump as a carry on instead of checking it so that it doesn't get broken or lost on the way to your destination.


• 
  
  Feed your baby whenever they want to eat...don't try to 'schedule' their nursing sessions...at least at first. Some days they might want to eat every 3 hours and then some days they might want to eat every hour. I know it can be hard but it's worth it...and the more often you feed your baby the first few days the faster your milk will come in.


• 
  
  If you can, try to not supplement...if you have just fed your baby and they seem hungry 1 hour later go ahead and feed them again...there might not be much there but that's ok...they will get what they need as God has a way of producing what we need when we need it.


• 
  
  Something else I’ve heard (haven't tried it as I don't like the taste of beer) is to drink a beer a day…the wheat in it helps you produce more milk. Also Mother’s Milk tea and Fenugreek pills also help in production. I have only used these when going on a trip so I didn't see much result from them but I've heard they work great!

I think that's about it. Whew! LOL Long post I know but I wanted to get it all in. :-)