Friday, April 20, 2012
Water dragon
The weather has been so nice that we have been spending our free time at the beach and pool. Demitri seemed to enjoy his first trip to the beach (minus the sun being in his eyes) the didn't mind getting his feet wet or touching the sand. Daniel's friend Kevin is already trying to get him on a surf board, he just needs to learn to actually swim first. After his first trip to the beach he had his first trip to the pool. We actually only took him in the hot tub but he enjoyed it and splashed around a little bit, our little (Chinese) water dragon might be a water loving baby after all.
Beach time with mommy!
Hot tubbin' with dad!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
8 weeks old & baby's first Easter!
I'm just a tad bit late with this posting considering he is 9 weeks old now close to being 10 weeks, but here is Demitri's 8 week/1st Easter pictures.
I had been so excited for his first Easter, giving him his basket, pictures, and just spending our first real holiday together as a family. The day went great. We skipped the Easter Sunday service at church since we went Friday evening (to avoid the crowd) so that morning we got up and helped Demitri go through the basket that we put together for him.
He may not have been excited for his basket or gifts but I had fun putting it together and getting pictures. His basket had: 2 new gDiapers, a new outfit (jeans and a jacket), teether chew toy, toy car keys, and a stuffed Darth Vader with bunny ears all stuffed in a Yoda bucket.
Daddy also helped Demitri go egg hunting, he "found" five eggs.
That afternoon after going through his basket and hunting for eggs we went to a picnic lunch, which ended in a whipped cream and water gun fight.
It ended up being a great day with my little family!
I had been so excited for his first Easter, giving him his basket, pictures, and just spending our first real holiday together as a family. The day went great. We skipped the Easter Sunday service at church since we went Friday evening (to avoid the crowd) so that morning we got up and helped Demitri go through the basket that we put together for him.
That afternoon after going through his basket and hunting for eggs we went to a picnic lunch, which ended in a whipped cream and water gun fight.
It ended up being a great day with my little family!
Monday, April 9, 2012
Help us win! Please.
So I entered Demitri into a facebook photo contest, and the prize is 6 free sitting and 50% off prints. If you would help us out and go to Michele Parsley Photography and like her page, and then like the picture of Demitri, I would appreciate it SO much! I would love to win and be able to get professional pictures of him at each milestone and holiday!
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Gdiapers (review)
Per request here is a short little review post about one of our favorite cloth diaper brands-Gdiapers. Cute, trim, and easy!
Demitri's first cloth diaper, actually the first diaper ever to be on his bum, was a XS Gdiaper. They were the perfect choice for use because they have a snap down making them umbilical cord stump safe.
Now, a lot of people are turned off from cloth diapering because they think that it will be to difficult and time consuming. That you have to use big pre-folds, safety pins, and ugly rubber pants.
But Gdiapers make it EASY. So easy in fact that they convinced my husband that cloth diapering full time would be just as simple as if we were to use disposable diapers. They are now his favorite brand of diapers to use on Demitri and asks that I buy more so they can be what our diaper stash is made of.
Gdiapers are pretty darn simple.
They kind of remind me of disposable diaper as far as their fastening goes. There are Velcro tabs on both sides that you open up and pull to the back fastening the diaper closed. And yes, I said to the back, compared to a traditional diaper Gdiapers are put on backwards, but they are still super easy to do. At first Daniel did not like they way they closed so he did actually put them on backwards but after a few times of putting them on Demitri the way they are intended to go he was used to it.
Gdiapers come in 4 different sizes: XS, S, M, and L. Which means that as your baby grows you need to get the next size up vs a one-size which will grow with your baby. But Gdiapers are very resonibly priced each cloth cover is only $20 and you can reuse them multiple times. How? Well Gdiapers have snap in PUL (water proof) liners along with hemp cloth inserts. So when one of your cloth inserts becomes soiled you only have to snap out the liner, snap in a clean one, and put a new insert in. Easy-peasy
Gdiapers also have biodegradable disposable inserts. So if washing the cloth inserts isn't your thing or you want to use a form of disposable (without using an actual disposable diaper) while on vacation or away from home, then these are a good option!
So, that is about it for Gdiapers. I would definitely recommend adding them as part of your stash or even for the whole thing, like I said they are super easy aka daddy proof. If you want to try out Gdiapers you can order them online from gdiapers.com and on orders $100 or more use the code TRYIT for 10 off + FREE shipping on orders $75 or more.
Remember no matter what type of diaper you use nothing says I love you like a clean one.
Demitri's first cloth diaper, actually the first diaper ever to be on his bum, was a XS Gdiaper. They were the perfect choice for use because they have a snap down making them umbilical cord stump safe.
But Gdiapers make it EASY. So easy in fact that they convinced my husband that cloth diapering full time would be just as simple as if we were to use disposable diapers. They are now his favorite brand of diapers to use on Demitri and asks that I buy more so they can be what our diaper stash is made of.
Gdiapers are pretty darn simple.
They kind of remind me of disposable diaper as far as their fastening goes. There are Velcro tabs on both sides that you open up and pull to the back fastening the diaper closed. And yes, I said to the back, compared to a traditional diaper Gdiapers are put on backwards, but they are still super easy to do. At first Daniel did not like they way they closed so he did actually put them on backwards but after a few times of putting them on Demitri the way they are intended to go he was used to it.
Gdiapers come in 4 different sizes: XS, S, M, and L. Which means that as your baby grows you need to get the next size up vs a one-size which will grow with your baby. But Gdiapers are very resonibly priced each cloth cover is only $20 and you can reuse them multiple times. How? Well Gdiapers have snap in PUL (water proof) liners along with hemp cloth inserts. So when one of your cloth inserts becomes soiled you only have to snap out the liner, snap in a clean one, and put a new insert in. Easy-peasy
So, that is about it for Gdiapers. I would definitely recommend adding them as part of your stash or even for the whole thing, like I said they are super easy aka daddy proof. If you want to try out Gdiapers you can order them online from gdiapers.com and on orders $100 or more use the code TRYIT for 10 off + FREE shipping on orders $75 or more.
Remember no matter what type of diaper you use nothing says I love you like a clean one.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
7 weeks old
Demitri you are 7 weeks old today.
The last weeks (or two) have been really crazy. They have gone by so fast and while you haven't changed much you have changed so much.
We have been off of the nipple shield for, hmm, over a week now and while we struggled the first 3 or 4 days of being without it you are now nursing like a champ as though we never had any issues with breastfeeding, and while it may sound silly to some I am so proud of you!
I can't wait for your first Easter! Dad and I were shopping for things to put into your basket and I found a lot of stuff that I would like to get you but that you would not need or be able to use till you are older so those things will wait till Christmas. You wont remember your first Easter at all but it will be our first as a family!
Well you are fussing again so it must be time for you to eat.
Love you kiddo
The last weeks (or two) have been really crazy. They have gone by so fast and while you haven't changed much you have changed so much.
We have been off of the nipple shield for, hmm, over a week now and while we struggled the first 3 or 4 days of being without it you are now nursing like a champ as though we never had any issues with breastfeeding, and while it may sound silly to some I am so proud of you!
I can't wait for your first Easter! Dad and I were shopping for things to put into your basket and I found a lot of stuff that I would like to get you but that you would not need or be able to use till you are older so those things will wait till Christmas. You wont remember your first Easter at all but it will be our first as a family!
Well you are fussing again so it must be time for you to eat.
Love you kiddo
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Breastfeeding
Now the point of this post is not to scare anybody only to point out that breastfeeding can be more difficult than some may think.
Oh breastfeeding.
Completely natural, good for baby, good for mom, and not always as easy as "they" say it is.
When I was pregnant I was truly honestly excited about breastfeeding. I thought (because I had never heard other wise) that it would be this beautiful, natural, easything.
That right from the start your baby goes to the breast and knows exactly how to properly latch, that your milk comes in right away with no issues, everything is right in the world and you are both able to just relax and bond when you breastfeed.
And you know for some it is just that easy, but the more women I talk to the more I find that it isn't always so.
Honestly, breastfeeding can be really rough, and drain you both physically and emotionally. You can feel as though all you are doing is breastfeeding that you hardly have time to do anything for yourself-like go to the bathroom.
When your milk does come in (usually an average of 3 days after birth) it can also be very painful. Your breasts can become engorged and feel as hard as rocks. You can get clogged ducts which are super painful and if you do not remove the clog (which can be difficult) it can turn into an infection which is even worse.
Your nipples can feel like somebody took sandpaper to them and that they are about to fall off. They can get blisters, crack, and bleed making you crying in pain.
Your baby can have latch issues making it even more difficult.
But if you have determination to stick with breastfeeding and get over each bump that you (may) encounter you can have a great experience and that beautiful picture that is in your head.
But, it is ok to choose not to continue with breastfeeding, not every mom can make it work and you should not feel like a failure because of it. While it is healthiest physically for both mom and baby, you do have options. One being formula, and the other being donor milk through a "milk share" program like Human Milk 4 Human Babies. It may seem odd to some but there are a LOT of women out there who are willing to just give extra breast milk that they have pumped to moms/babies in need.
Demitri and I have hit bump, after bump, after bump on our so far short breastfeeding road. First, he is tongue tied (meaning the tip of his tongue is heart shaped) and he has a short frenulum (the webbing under the tongue). Because of both those issues he could not latch properly and my nipples became blistered, cracked, and bled.
I had to use a nipple shield to nurse while they healed. My milk supply in my left breast just dropped off and we are still working on getting it back up. Demitri started losing weight because he could not get enough milk to satisfy himself and properly grow. And now that I stopped using the shield he had to pretty much learn how to nurse all over again.
It was frustrating beyond belief and I shed lots of tears... but despite all those issues we have stuck it out and things are so much better now! I am so glad that I didn't give it up. Daniel has been super supportive of my breastfeeding the whole time and always tells me that I am a rock star.Ameda Hydrogel Pads
Finally if you want to have success with breastfeeding you MUST have a good support system. As I said breastfeeding is emotionally (and physically) draining you will have tearful days and nights and having somebody that you can just cry to and get a hug from will be a life saver. See if there is a La Leche League in your area that you can get hooked up with. Don't delay in seeing a lactation consultant if you feel even the slightest need to.
And when I was have a really rough time a online friend told me this, "it's ok to stop breastfeeding but don't do it on a bad day when you are feeling emotional and defeated" that was definitely something that got me through a few rough nights.
Products not to be without!
Bamboobies (nursing pads)
Wireless Nursing Tank Tops (Target)
Lansinoh HPA Lanolin
LilyPadz
Oh breastfeeding.
Completely natural, good for baby, good for mom, and not always as easy as "they" say it is.
When I was pregnant I was truly honestly excited about breastfeeding. I thought (because I had never heard other wise) that it would be this beautiful, natural, easything.
That right from the start your baby goes to the breast and knows exactly how to properly latch, that your milk comes in right away with no issues, everything is right in the world and you are both able to just relax and bond when you breastfeed.
And you know for some it is just that easy, but the more women I talk to the more I find that it isn't always so.
Honestly, breastfeeding can be really rough, and drain you both physically and emotionally. You can feel as though all you are doing is breastfeeding that you hardly have time to do anything for yourself-like go to the bathroom.
When your milk does come in (usually an average of 3 days after birth) it can also be very painful. Your breasts can become engorged and feel as hard as rocks. You can get clogged ducts which are super painful and if you do not remove the clog (which can be difficult) it can turn into an infection which is even worse.
Your nipples can feel like somebody took sandpaper to them and that they are about to fall off. They can get blisters, crack, and bleed making you crying in pain.
Your baby can have latch issues making it even more difficult.
But if you have determination to stick with breastfeeding and get over each bump that you (may) encounter you can have a great experience and that beautiful picture that is in your head.
But, it is ok to choose not to continue with breastfeeding, not every mom can make it work and you should not feel like a failure because of it. While it is healthiest physically for both mom and baby, you do have options. One being formula, and the other being donor milk through a "milk share" program like Human Milk 4 Human Babies. It may seem odd to some but there are a LOT of women out there who are willing to just give extra breast milk that they have pumped to moms/babies in need.
Demitri and I have hit bump, after bump, after bump on our so far short breastfeeding road. First, he is tongue tied (meaning the tip of his tongue is heart shaped) and he has a short frenulum (the webbing under the tongue). Because of both those issues he could not latch properly and my nipples became blistered, cracked, and bled.
I had to use a nipple shield to nurse while they healed. My milk supply in my left breast just dropped off and we are still working on getting it back up. Demitri started losing weight because he could not get enough milk to satisfy himself and properly grow. And now that I stopped using the shield he had to pretty much learn how to nurse all over again.
It was frustrating beyond belief and I shed lots of tears... but despite all those issues we have stuck it out and things are so much better now! I am so glad that I didn't give it up. Daniel has been super supportive of my breastfeeding the whole time and always tells me that I am a rock star.Ameda Hydrogel Pads
Finally if you want to have success with breastfeeding you MUST have a good support system. As I said breastfeeding is emotionally (and physically) draining you will have tearful days and nights and having somebody that you can just cry to and get a hug from will be a life saver. See if there is a La Leche League in your area that you can get hooked up with. Don't delay in seeing a lactation consultant if you feel even the slightest need to.
And when I was have a really rough time a online friend told me this, "it's ok to stop breastfeeding but don't do it on a bad day when you are feeling emotional and defeated" that was definitely something that got me through a few rough nights.
Products not to be without!
Bamboobies (nursing pads)
Wireless Nursing Tank Tops (Target)
Lansinoh HPA Lanolin
LilyPadz
Before&After
I just entered this picture into a contest with a local photographer (who did our maternity shoot & and has a second studio in Jacksonville NC for anybody located out there) to try and win 6 free shoots! So when voting starts for that I will post details so those of you who want can help us win!
I LOVE these two pictures individually but even more side by side! Every time I look at it I just smile.
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