Friday Fun

A friend of mine posts Friday pictures every week.  I love this idea!  I'm thinking I'll do something like this, or at least regular Friday posts in order to keep me posting regularly and sharing little bits of baby G.

I will say that I'm loving having Fridays off.  4 days of work is perfect for me - it gives me time to do social work, which I love, and then I'm ready to spend a few days with my son, who I love!

Without further ado, some pictures from the week! (Disclaimer... basically, we love how much this boy smiles and take pictures often.  You're getting smiley pictures.  Galore.)

He looks like such a big boy in this picture! 

He's most smiley in the morning after a good, long sleep.  So am I! ;-)

He loves playing with daddy, who always makes him smile.

What is that thing you're holding in your hand, mommy?

He loves playing on Mom & Dad's bed.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's off to work we go

This week marked a new era in our lives!  I started going back to work this week.  It's something I've been looking forward to, as I'm so passionate about being a social worker and want to continue doing this work.

Gideon and I had one sweet day together on Monday before I had to go to 3 days of new staff orientation.

We're so blessed to have found a great day care for Gideon to go to.  We've found a couple that provides care out of there home and currently only have a few kids.  We love this, as Gideon is able to get a little extra time with them and also spend time with other kids.  It's also 10 minutes from my work, which is a nice plus!

The best sign to me that Gideon is doing well at day care and we're slowly succeeding in this transition was yesterday after we got home and Gideon was extra smiley.  Those smiles melt a mama's heart! I'm so thankful to have Fridays off to spend the day with him and be able to get a few things done, too!

Here's my flirty little cheeseball, happy to be home with mama!

3 years and counting

Today we celebrate our 3 year anniversary.  It's incredible to me all that's happened in the span of just 3 years plus 1.5 years or so of dating/engagement.

Here we are at 6 months of dating.  I don't think we had any idea what the next 3.5 years held for us.  Blessed beyond our imagination!

And then we got married! This man makes me smile on such a regular basis.

Just over a year later, at Thanksgiving time.  What a handsome husband I have.

Less than 2 years after getting married, we bought a house! 

 Right after our 2- year anniversary, we found out we were pregnant, and I couldn't wait for my husband and love of my life to become a dad.

And then, a mere 3 months ago, Gideon Jacob entered the world and our lives.  

It's been an incredible 3 years, and I can't wait to see what many more years have in store for us!

Roll, baby, roll

I've read somewhere that rolling over isn't really a developmental milestone.  It kind of happens by accident, all of a sudden, and, well...  Who cares what "they" say.  We're pretty excited at our house that little G is now rolling over from his back to his stomach.  He's yet to master going the other way, and often doesn't really want to be on his stomach when he gets there.

It all started one night last week when I heard him in the middle of the night.  That's not unusual, as he's not yet consistently sleeping through the night.  This sounded like more of a "I'm stuck in the corner of my crib" cry than his usual "I'm hungry" cry.

I went in there and he was face down in the crib on his belly.  His arms were out of his swaddle blanket, one between the slats of the crib.  The next morning, he was on his belly again!

A few days later, I witnessed the roll myself as we were getting ready for bedtime.  A little momentum from his strong legs and he'd propelled himself onto his stomach.  He now does it often when lying on the floor, especially if there's something of interest off to the side!

This also means that we no longer fully swaddle him.  I know everyone's different about when they stop if they swaddle, but we figured learning to roll over was a good time to stop constraining his arms as well.  Here's my sweet boy, sound asleep with free arms:

Why I'm Still Breastfeeding

Last week was national breastfeeding week.  Through groups I'm part of, I saw lots of promo codes for discounts and free stuff for breastfeeding mamas.  And, I also saw a lot of posts about how much mamas love breastfeeding.

I'm going to be brutally honest.  I don't like breastfeeding.  For me, it's a means to an end.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm so happy for the mamas who love breastfeeding their babies.  I'm so happy that for some, it's a way to bond with your baby and get closer to them.  That's a fabulous way to connect with your baby.

It hasn't been that way for me.  3 months into the adventure, I'm finally nursing mostly pain-free.  We've had a lot of problems with a variety of issues, including poor latch, overactive letdown, and thrush (maybe?).  There are moments when I've thought it would be a lot easier to just give G a bottle and be done with it - that way anyone could feed him, at any time.  I think I would actually have a more positive reaction to feeding if it weren't connected to something that's been painful for me.

But, I'm still breastfeeding.  Why?  Because I can't deny the benefits that come with it.  If this were a paper, I'd start citing sources for you.  But, I'll just let you do the research on your own if you want to.  Basically, for G, it strengthens his immune system, gives him all-encompassing nutrition, and doesn't have some of the same effects that formula has (i.e. he won't be stuck on one type of formula because that's what he's gotten used to).

For me?  It lowers my risk of breast cancer, amazingly.  And, it's basically free.  Okay, we paid for a breast pump so that I can continue to nurse when I go back to work.  Other than that cost and some costs associated with it - nursing pads, milk bags, etc. - there's no other cost.  And, it doesn't require special storage - no need to prepare a bottle before he eats.  No planning on ice packs, measuring formula, paying for more formula, etc.

For moms who formula feed: I get it.  I really do.  And if it weren't for mamas that I've known who have nursed and for encouragement from places like WIC, maybe I would have gone the same route.  And for those of you who nurse and love it: I get it.  I've had moments where I've thought that it's so nice to have G so close to me.  But I'm not writing a love letter to breast feeding.  I do it because I know it's good for the both of us.

We're heading into a transition time, where I'll be going back to work and G will be going to day care.  I'm hoping we'll be able to successfully make that transition and continue pumping/breastfeeding.  Will I make it a year?  I'd like to.  Any time that I get, though, I consider a blessing.