Jurbala Family Update

It's been a while since I gave an update on the family.  It's crazy to think that I had more time as a working mom of 1 kid to blog than a "woman of leisure" with 2 kids.

Denise, Bill, and Tim came out for a visit last week.  They seemed to have had a blast with the kiddos.  They took Gwen to see The Smurfs, baked cupcakes, went to the pool, Mike and his dad played a couple rounds of golf, and Mike and I got 2 dates!!  All in all it was a wonderful time and I know we were all sad to see them go. 

Gwen is starting to get back into the swing of things after their visit.  She has been rough lately, but we have high hopes that our sweet little girl will come back to us (for the record I hate age 3 and she doesn't actually turn 3 until October).  We have learned that bribing her with things works (and works way better than taking things away) and that she is meant to go to daycare.  We also learned that she hates being locked in her room :-)  She has only had 1 accident at night since her big decision to quit Pull Ups.  We are SO LUCKY on the potty training front as she pretty much potty trained herself.  She is an amazing big sister but is a bit rough on little Leo.  I guess he is going to have to be tough to survive her.  She is obsessed with Toy Story 3 and can even recite lines from the movie.  I am still in shock that she turns 3 in 1.5 months.  Time is going too fast.

Speaking of fast.........I can't believe little Leo is over 5 weeks old.  He is so alert and is up most of the day.  He is holding up his head really well, follows us with his eyes, and mimics us when we stick out our tongues.  He eats about every 2.5 hours during the day and will give me at least one 5 hour stretch at night..........the rest are 2.5-3 hours.  It's tough getting up 2-4 times/night, but oh well.  At least I don't have to go to work just yet. 

I am feeling good.  I go for my 6 week post partum check up next week.  I am on week 2 of the Couch to 5K running plan and will be starting Jillian's 30 Day Shred tomorrow.  I am down to my pre-pregnancy weight, but made the mistake of trying on my favorite jeans.  They button, but it is NOT pretty.  I have to get everything toned and back where it belongs :-)   Breastfeeding is going well.  I find it to be very lonely and sometimes catch myself feeling sad or crying, but I know it is what is best for Leo, so I am sticking to it.  On a good note, I already have more frozen milk now than I ever did with Gwen, so that is a plus.

This got way longer than expected.  I will update more as time flies by...............

Happy 1 Month My Little Man!

First of all, how is my baby boy already 1 month old?  Second of all, when did my daughter become so gorgeous???

Potty Training Part 2

On Thursday night Gwen came out of her room.  She had taken off her pull up and put on her underwear.  She then informed us that she will no longer be sleeping in pull ups.  It's been 3 nights and we haven't had any accidents.  She even gets up to pee when she has to go. 

I had just told Mike a couple days prior that at age 3 we would have to start thinking about potty training her at night and nap time.  Well she made it easy on us :-)

I Scream......

You Scream
We All Scream
For Ice Cream

My Sweet Boy............

Is This What They Mean By Regressing?

Everyone told me that once Leo came along Gwen would regress at certain things.  Is this what they meant?

"Eat Me"

I knew this would happen eventually.  I never thought it would happen at a neighborhood BBQ.........with neighbors I have recently acquainted myself with. 

Gwen was sitting in a little kid chair in the middle of our neighbor's lawn.  She had her "baby".  She starts taking off her top and says "I want my baby to eat me".   Everyone got a good laugh out of it.  I was a bit embarrassed.

A Photo Journey of the First 1.5 Weeks at Home

Holding her "babies"

Reading to her "babies"

2 weeks pp

Playing with her "baby"

First walk

2 Weeks Already?!?

Shockingly enough, it has been 2 weeks since Leo joined our life.  It has been a completely different experience than it was with Gwen.  We are not living in this complete haze and sleeping for survival.  We are actually enjoying ourselves, even though the days are flying by.  Here is a quick update on all of us:

LEO:  He had his 2 week checkup today.  He is now 8 lbs 9 oz (50%), 21.25 inches long (75%), and his head is in the 65th percentile (please don't get as gigantic as Gwen's).   He has clogged tear ducts, which has meant a lot of crusty goop in his eyes.  We now have antibiotic drops and have to massage his tear ducts 3X/day.  If it's not one thing, it's another right??  He is eating like a champ but likes to fall asleep while breastfeeding so it takes forever.  He poops more than any human should but only cries when hungry.  He is so sweet.  I don't know how I got so lucky............again.

GWEN:  She's definitely approaching 3 and is getting very defiant.  She has dropped her afternoon nap, most days.  It's been about 2 months since she napped regularly, so I am guessing it is not a phase.  We make her play quietly in her room for a couple of hours.  We lost complete control of bedtime.  The other night we laid with her for 2.5 hours and she still screamed when we left.  That was it.  We have since started taking back bedtime.  Other than the sleep issue, Gwen has been an amazing big sister.  She is always giving him hugs and kisses and is a big help when it comes to bringing us stuff for him.  I had them both, in public, by myself, on Monday, and she was as good as could be.  She listened to me and helped when I needed it.  It does break my heart a bit when I have to drop what I am doing with her, to tend to Leo. 

MIKE:  He's been great.  He hasn't been feeling well so I have been getting up at night by myself to let him sleep.  He helps where needed, but forgot that dads can't do much to calm a baby at this age.  He does most stuff with Gwen and that in itself is a huge deal (especially bedtime and prep for school).  They even went to the movies the other day to see the Winnie the Pooh movie.

ME:  I feel great.  Compared to how horrible I felt during my entire pregnancy, being exhausted is a breeze.  I have now added under eye cover up as part of my morning routine, since I can't stand my bags.  I do think the universe corrected itself though.  I am 2 lbs away from my pre-pregnancy weight, 7 lbs from my goal weight, and 12 lbs from my perfect weight.  Unfortunately my clothes aren't fitting because I have no ass and a mini-gut.  I've been walking and will start increasing my exercise at 4 weeks post partum.  Breastfeeding is going great and I feel so much more relaxed.  I start getting those "trapped" feelings like I had with Gwen so I will start pumping next week so other people can help feed him.  I have both kids on Mondays & Fridays and am really looking forward to that time with Gwen (Leo doesn't do much yet).

Home With Leo...........

Gross

Leo had the biggest blow out I have ever seen. He got it all over the car seat and himself (including his hands).  I literally cut the onsie off him because there was no clean way to get it off him without getting it all over his head/face.  Gwen was very interested in the situation and had to watch the whole thing unfold.  HUGE thanks to my dad for cleaning the car seat while I cleaned up Leo.

Differences.............

There are a lot of differences between the past week with Leo as a newborn and the first week of Gwen being a newborn.  People are constantly asking me how it is going, and it is definitely going a lot better than it did with Gwen:

1.  The whole birthing experience was wonderful.  I opted to get the epidural which allowed me to be awake and alert and truly enjoy watching my son enter the world.  Leo didn't have to be whisked away like Gwen did, so I got to enjoy his first hours of life.  I got to watch my husband and mother interact with him for the first time.  When he was born I looked at him and instantly fell in love (which didn't happen with Gwen).  I then looked at Mike and fell in love.  I then looked at my mom and knew I was so lucky to have her in my life and as Leo's grandmother. 

2.  The hospital was more of a mini-vacation than anything else.  All we did was eat, sleep, and watch TV.  We weren't stressed and everything wasn't a blur like it was with Gwen.  On top of that we had my parents come visit, which in my opinion was the one thing missing with Gwen.  The picture of my father walking in and seeing his grandson for the first time, will forever be ingrained in my memory.  It was the face of a man who was deeply in love.  Leo is extremely lucky to have my father in his life.

3.  Leo is definitely a different baby than Gwen.  He is a mama's boy who loves to be held and rocked.  He is already sleeping 4-5 hour stretches at night (I am hoping it is not a phase).  With Gwen we could put her in her bouncer for hours at a time.  Not Leo, he needs to be where the action is. 

4.  Breastfeeding is going great.  With Gwen I was very methodical and by the book.  I would track everything and write everything down. I was never comfortable.  It is a completely different experience this time.  I still wake him every 3 hours during the day and let him go at night, but don't write anything down and go with the flow.  Plus having a rocker makes it so much easier. 

5.  I feel like my emotions fluctuate so much more now.  I took Gwen to her music class today and almost started crying while we sang "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".  There is nothing I love more than my children.  I love watching Gwen with her baby brother.  She just LOVES him!! 

6.  I DO NOT MISS BEING PREGNANT!!