Don't Hate Me But...

Don't hate me but being a second time mom has been so easy! So easy I want another one ASAP! Or two! But I might just be crazy so I'll ignore those desires...for now. My sweet baby girl sleeps all night with a quick wake up to feed 2xs. My toddler was pissy for like 2 weeks but he's over it and being the sweetest little angel. He takes a 2-3 hour nap and baby girl sleeps during this time too! Noelle loves the sound of the shower and hair dryer so I can do a full get ready in the morning stress free. She also loves watching me fold laundry so we've had more clean clothes lately than we've ever had. I feel so caught up on housework, I've gotten back into working out, we've been eating at home, I do store work and I only wish I had a little more time at the store but that's no biggie. Every grocery store run and target run with both littles in tow has gone smoother than a babies bottom! I've read how rough and crazy it can be adding a second child, especially in the beginning but nope, not for me. Easy as pie! Now before you totally do start hating me I must say that I KNOW this could all change tomorrow and probably will since I bragged but I'll stay thankful for how we've had things so far.Ive also had so much more help from my husband this time around Ashe was working 50 hour work weeks with unusual hours when our first was born. Also, our first was a very fussy baby who didn't sleep at all at night until like 6 months and even then woke up often. I could never imagine a baby being so good and sleeping so well. I didn't even think it was possible! If I knew if we had a next child that they would also be like this I would have another one in a heartbeat but...that's playing with fire and I sure don't want to get burned! 😀🔥

Thanks for listening to my brag post!

Danielle

1/11/16

Happy One Month

My sweet little baby just turned one month old today! She is definitely maintaining eye contact a lot more, regularly sleeps a 4 hour stretch of sleep at night and is overall very happy and content during the day. She loves warm baths, her bouncer seat, and just started using a pacifier. She does have a fussy stage at night. She doesn't scream and scream but she fusses for a good solid 2-3 hours and prefers a midnight bedtime which is a little late for a mama who hasn't had full doses of sleep. Her brother loves her and goes over to her saying "Hi Noelle,pelsey" (I had called her Noellesey Pelsey and it stuck with him)  He gives her lots of hugs and in general we are just a little busy so we don't get many days at home for us ALL to just be a family and hang out. I am feeling great as far as postpartum recovery goes. First few days seemed rougher than with Eli but I felt pretty much back to normal after the first week. I am still having some hip and pelvic pain that is annoying but I guess things are still shifting back into place. I have 10lbs to go to be back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I gained 45lbs so that's not too bad. I went for a jog last night and felt way out of shape but other than that pretty good. That was my first attempt at some working out with the exception of some stretches. I have about 2 weeks until my 6 week check up and then will really try to pick it up. This month flew by as I knew it would so here's to a beautiful month two! 

Danielle 

1/5/16

You are my sunshine!

When Eli was a new newborn, 1-3 weeks old I used to sing "You re my sunshine" to him and cry my eyes out. When it got to the line "please don't take my sunshine away" I imagined I was pleading to God not to let anything happen to my sweet baby boy. At that point I really thought he could die at any moment and there was nothing I could do. Being a 1st time mom is really the most unimaginable experience in life. You could never prepare for or imagine how you will feel after you give birth to your first child. I look back and feel a little guilty. I did not enjoy Eli's newborn stage. Not that their weren't enjoyable moments and not that I didn't love him with all of my heart but the emotions that you go through totally unprepared made it difficult to just enjoy him being a tiny, innocent, and helpless little baby. I have been enjoying Noelle so much at this stage and just find her to be the sweetest, most peaceful, and beautiful little baby I have ever seen! I sung "You are my sunshine" to her the other day fully expecting to let out a good cry but it didn't happen. I sung to her and smiled and watched her look up at me while she nursed and I just felt so content and at ease. I know God is watching over her and I know he could indeed decide she is too perfect to grow up on this earth but I don't have the fear I had with Eli. I'm so thankful to just savour and appreciate each moment of this short stage with joy and peace this time around. 

Danielle 

1/4/16

Growing & Growing

Baby number two seems to be a bit more painful and achy at the end than baby number one but maybe I just forgot how bad it gets. My belly most certainly feels much larger but the rest of me doesn't seem quite that large. I think that it actually is but I have just gotten better at hiding it than I was last time. I've also done great at not buying new maternity clothes. Last time I was so desperate to try to find something I felt good about myself in but this time I know the change is temporary and I'm not wasting any precious dollars on more maternity clothes. I posted at 20 weeks and haven't since so I thought I'd post a few before my final preggo pics pop up. 

This is at 29 weeks. 

This is at 35 weeks...

Like how I'm wearing black in all these pics. 😈 Told you...I got better at hiding it. I currently have 2 weeks and 3 days left until my due date. While I would love for her to come early, my favorite day of the year to work is Black Friday so I would like for her to hold off until then. 

I have some pics of me pregnant with Eli at 39 weeks and then 4 days past due. It will be fun to compare the end to the end and see if there's a difference. But maybe just maybe I won't have a 4 days past due to photograph. 

The final weeks are rough but like last time, I'm just trying to savour my family as it is before all changes. Extra snuggles and play time for Eli and date nights for Mark. 

11/18/15

Danielle 

Week 4

I wrote this then looked back in my one week and two week post and was blown away by how much better things have already gotten. From the beginning things have been so much easier with Noelle than I ever thought but the nursing issues have completely resolved (praise God) and Eli has come around to pretty much his normal self. Those two things were the biggest struggles this far. So....back to my post. 

Noelle is 4 weeks today and she is still such a joy. Everything is so much easier with her in this newborn stage than it was with Eli. We are going through a difficult time right now though. It is Sat and on Tues I took her to the pediatrician for some coughing she had been doing and vomiting. They diagnosed her with RSV and sent us straight to the emergency room. Fortunately this was just for monitoring and she seemed to be handling the virus quite well so they sent us home after an overnight stay. The next two days she seemed to be doing better but then seemed to take a turn for the worse yesterday and today. There is absolutely nothing we can do for her except saline and suction which we do pretty much all day. The mucus is entirely in her throat and chest and not in her nose at all so it is a challenge to clear her out. She coughs and chokes so hard when she has a rough spell and it's so scary to watch. They said the virus could last a while but the worse days are days 3, 4, and 5. We have no idea when it started but are very much looking forward to her feeling better. It is so scary. Despite her illness she is still very content and peaceful. The last several nights we had a span of several hours where she was fussy but tonight at 10pm she's been sleeping in my arms for 3 hours now. I truly feel so blessed to have this sweet baby girl. Eli had been fantastic lately too! He's been playing lots by himself and loving the train table Santa got him for Christmas and obviously the new race car too. Speaking of new race car, I got a new car as well. We could not all fit in the vibe anymore and I was feeling so cramped and crowded in there. So far I am feeling fantastic as a new mom of 2 despite a nasty head cold. I feel together, fairly organized, have kept the house fairly clean, and even feel fairly decent about the amount of sleep I'm getting. So much of that ha to do with what a wonderful baby this sweet little girl is and the other is having my wonderful husband around. He's not always catching on with everything that needs to get done but he has been helpful in keeping Eli entertained and letting me get some rest during the day. Overall I am just so happy and blessed, hoping Noelle recovers quickly and slightly waiting for the crazy to start because so far it's just seemed too easy. 

Danielle 

1/2/16