What a ONEderful year!

It's still hard to believe that Maddie is a whole year old. It sure did go by quickly - but what a fun year it was!


In case your Friday night plans are as exciting as mine (aka watching three weeks worth of DVR'd Modern Family episodes and sipping white wine from a bottle that  was opened two weeks ago....), here is a little video I put together to celebrate Maddie's 1st year. A montage of blurry baby photos set the tune of sappy music, what more could you ask for? TGIF!


https://youtu.be/7lONh9WXwyU

Piece of cake

I ordered Maddie's first birthday cake yesterday from H-E-B.

I shoulda woulda could have ordered it weeks ago from some fancy bakery - something all-organic grass-fed gluten-free with no food dyes, like any proper Austin crunchy mom would. It's not that I've been putting it off, although I am maybe just a wee bit in denial. It's just that I have been so stinking busy lately that I never found the time.

Wake, dress, traffic. Work. Traffic. Dinner, bathtime, bedtime. Clean, prep, work. Sleep. Repeat. Day in and day out, not a spare second to be found. Of course I had heard that parenting is exhausting. But I more-so thought that just related to the sleeplessness from night-waking babies. Maddie sleeps through the night now, but I'm more exhausted than ever. Our house is messier than ever and my to-do list is longer than ever. One thing I've learned for sure about being a mother, is that is no piece of cake. Not easy as pie. There's no sugarcoating it. It's just the way the cookie crumbles. Ok, I'll stop with the dessert idioms.

I don't know how a year has passed so quickly. It's like I blinked and she was cooing. I blinked again and she was laughing. Closed my eyes for a second longer and she was crawling. Then suddenly it's time to plan a party to celebrate her first year, our first year.

Every day I love her more. With my whole heart, more than I ever knew I could. It's impossible to explain in words that type of love. But every parent knows it! It's bittersweet to think about her first birthday - I'm sad that time is passing so quickly, but at the same time, it is so fun to watch her grow. Every stage is my new favorite stage! She's started doing this thing where she strums her finger on her lips and makes a blub-blub-blub sound... cutest thing ever.

So as I reflect back on this past year, and look forward to the next, I plan to slow down. To stress less, to do less, to enjoy more. Because I know just how quickly the time disappears. It's impossible to have it all - to do it all.

They say you can't have your cake and eat it too. And if that's the case, I'll just plan to eat my cake. I'll serve it up on a paper plate so I don't have to wash dishes, and I won't even mind if the crumbs fall onto our grimy floors. I'll savor every last bite. And the fact that I can share my piece of the pie with Tom and Maddie? Well that's just icing on the cake!

And, of course, I know all too well that the 2nd birthday will be just around the corner and we'll eat cake again!

Happy [almost] birthday, Maddie Grace. I love you so much. How much is so? Way way more than you know. <3

Six Must-Haves for the First Six Months

There’s nothing earth-shattering about this list, and of course every baby is different.  But for what it’s worth, here are our favorite baby gadgets for the first six months.

1. Halo sleep sack – we love this sleep sack that has the option to swaddle with arms in or out. Keeps baby warm and cozy without the fear of loose blankets covering the face.
2. Aden and Anais muslin swaddle blankets – these lightweight blankets are so versatile. We used them to swaddle, as burp rags, and as a breathable stroller cover to protect from the sun.
3. Dohm white noise machine – *clank!* Did you hear that glass in the sink? Maddie didn’t! We love this sound machine to help block out household noises while baby sleeps. It has adjustable sound levels, which is really helpful depending on the size of the room you’re using it in. We don’t travel without this little machine!
4. 4moms infant tub – this bathtub constantly cycles through new clean water and has a temperature gage that beeps at you when the water is too warm. The tub is pretty big, and doesn’t fit in our kitchen sink like I’d hoped it would. But it works really well in our bathroom tub.
5. Bright Starts activity gym – easy entertainment! It comes with toys and links, and can be used for laying down, tummy time, or sitting. The play mat is machine washable too!
6. Lightweight travel stroller frame – just attach the infant car seat and voila! This stroller frame makes running errands a cinch. It’s super lightweight and folds up pretty thin. Perfect for a trip to the doctor’s office or running into Target before baby is big enough to be carried or ride in the shopping cart. Babywearing is of course a great option too, but I’ve found this stroller and it’s storage basket very helpful many a time!

Whole30, holy moly!

Whew! Tom and I just completed our first Whole30. Thirty consecutive days of clean, healthy eating. Saying it was our “first” implies that we might intend to do it again, and you know, we just might! We’re feeling so great!

A little bit about the program:
In a very quick and not at all inclusive explanation, Whole30 is a nutritional program aimed at eliminating inflammatory foods from your diet while resetting your body’s metabolism and food cravings. The list of “don’t eat” foods is daunting, and includes dairy, grains, legumes (beans), sugar, and alcohol. It’s probably better to view it from the “allowed to eat” standpoint of: vegetables, meats, eggs, fruits, tree nuts, oils and seeds. The Whole30 program is based around a book, It's Starts with Food, but truthfully, I haven't read it.My friend Katie read it,and she said, while it is a little extreme, it really made her think about food in a very different way. Maybe I'll get around to reading it someday, when Maddie is grown ;)

What made me hesitant:
I’m no stranger to dietary restrictions, so I wasn’t all that intimidated by the strict Whole30 rules. While I was pregnant, I avoided dairy meats, soft cheeses, alcohol and caffeine.  Once I had Maddie, I nixed dairy products due to her milk allergy. My biggest concern with the program was sugar. I have such a major sweet tooth! As in, chocolate every.single.day, without fail. I honestly cannot remember a time before Whole30 where I went without chocolate on any one given day. Chocolate makes me happy! Mmmmm, I’m imagining a hershey’s kiss melting in my mouth right now, popping a handful of M&Ms, smelling warm brownies in the oven, topped with a chocolate chip cookie, and a scoop of rocky road ice cream. And I’m in heaven! Except that, chocolate also makes me feel…. fat. I’m not saying I’m fat, don’t jump me, just hear me out. Eating chocolate does not make me feel healthy. And in the past 30 days, I’ve realized that feeling healthy makes me happy too! So my main takeaway in regards to sugar is, everything in moderation. I’m still going to eat Oreos occasionally. Just not an entire bag every week (yes, that was real life before Whole30).

What I most enjoyed:
I LOVED that I didn’t have to count calories. That would be difficult anyway since tomatoes don’t  come with a nutrition label ;) I’ve always been one to read nutrition labels, and to obnoxiously call Tom out. You know that thing has like half your saturated fats for the day, right!? Nevermind the fact that one package of Oreos has 1,920 calories in it. Every week I was eating a whole day's worth of calories in Oreos! Although the program encourages you to eat 3 meals a day and not snack, as a nursing mother, I am hungry around the clock. But I didn’t feel guilty at all for grabbing a banana or an orange in between meals!
(Side story - one time, while I was pregnant, that’s my “excuse” – we went to dairy queen and I ordered my favorite Georgia Mud Fudge Blizzard. Tom initally said he wasn’t going to get anything, he didn’t need any ice cream – politely implying that maybe a third Blizzard in one week wasn’t my healthiest meal choice. At the last minute, he added on cheese sticks to my order! I informed him that cheese sticks were worse than a Blizzard, but his disbelief directed me to the DQ website nutrition facts. And the truth? A medium DQ Georgia Mud Fudge blizzard = 850 calories VS. a large box of cheese sticks = 440 calories. Ouch! That's nearly twice as much in the Blizzard!)

The Scale:
Weight loss is certainly not the purpose of Whole30. But most participants do see a significant difference in their body composition. I had just 5 little pounds left to lose to be back at my pre-baby weight, and I was hopeful, after ready so many success stories, that I could kick those last few pounds. According to the program rules, you're not supposed to weigh yourself or take any measurements during the 30 days. And I held off all the way until Day 29, when I caved and pulled out the scale. I was feeling awesome. My pre-baby clothes were fitting, I felt light as a feather, floating on air. I was fully expecting the scale to give me a number lower than my pre-baby weight. And then BAM. I'd only lost 4 pounds. At first I was really ticked. WTF, all this healthy food and I only lost 4 pounds!? But as I gave it time to settle in... I was actually totally okay with the result. Even though the scale said 4 pounds lost, I felt so good when I looked in the mirror! It really showed me that the scale shouldn't dictate how I feel about my body and my health. It's just a number.
Now, Tom, on the other hand, lost 13 pounds! Isn't that crazy good!? And he is feeling so great, that he is still maintaining the Whole30 diet! (Ok ok, he did eat some popcorn tonight.. but he reported that it didn't even taste good and he felt guilty eating it!)

Full Disclosure:
I should tell you though, that I did cheat. The program guidelines tell you not even to contemplate what to do if you cheat, to not let it be an option. But I’ll be truthful in telling you, I cheated. I cheated by having a glass of wine (ok ok and a beer and a piece of cake) at my best friend’s wedding. I cheated by having a beer at ACL fest. I cheated at my parent’s house when I ate a dollop of mango coconut sauce with my veggie shish-ka-bob. I may have incidentally cheated when I ate out at restaurants and did my absolute best to pick the cleanest, healthiest option on the menu (that still might have been cooked in butter). I cheated by eating oatmeal for breakfast some mornings (I swear by it for milk production). And I cheated the one time I ate a chocolate Luna bar because my milk supply was tanking and I was panicked. Whew! I feel better getting all that off my chest. I am such a rule follower, and clearly, all of those cheats really made an impact on me because I remember every single one! I still feel like I got many benefits of the program despite my oopsies. So cut yourself some slack and don’t give up even if you do slip.

Favorite Recipes:
Crockpot Beef fajitas - http://www.stacymakescents.com/crock-pot-beef-fajitas

Mustard Chicken - http://painfreekitchen.com/2012/08/baked-mustard-lime-chicken-and-whole30-day-3/

Roasted sweet potatoes - http://leafparade.com/2013/08/02/roasted-balsamic-sweet-potatoes/

Chicken apple sausage - https://aidells.com/products

Burger salad - burgers on the grill, over a salad instead of on a bun

Mexican meat loaf - http://paleomg.com/paleo-southwest-meatloaf/

Stuffed peppers - http://paleopot.com/2012/10/paleo-sausage-stuffed-peppers/

Shrimp kabob, pineapple kabob - http://hollywouldifshecould.net/2012/08/coconut-lime-shrimp-skewers/

Cauliflower rice - http://everydaypaleo.com/cilantro-lime-cauliflower-rice/

Fried apple dessert - http://www.jensnaturalkitchen.com/paleo-fried-apples/

Tools of the trade:

Veggie steamer - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001FBCP7O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Mandoline Slicer - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001105FFS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Have I convinved you yet?? :)  Happy to answer any questions you might have and support you if you decide to give it a try!

On Being a FTM

In case your 2:00am google searches don’t land you on babycenter.com forums, allow me to explain.

FTM = First Time Mom

And LO = little one, DD = dear daughter, DS = dear son, DH = dear husband. Then there’s EBF = exclusively breastfed, BLW = baby led weaning, SAHM = stay at home mom, CIO = Cry it Out, and STTN = sleeping through the night. Seriously, the list goes on and on. I’m pretty sure the time it takes to decode the acronyms negates the time saved by typing them.

We’ve been doing this “new parent” thing for about four months now, and we’ve learned so much. We’ve read books and watched videos, called the doctor a couple of times. But mostly, we’ve learned by trial and error. Lots of trial and lots of error.

Here are a few pearls of wisdom we’ve learned along the way.


On Labor & Delivery

It’s rough. But it’s worth it. A few months out, your momnesia will kick in and you’ll forget just how rough it was. Momnesia – it’s a real thing! How else would anybody have more than one child!? Up until the 2 month point, I might have told you would never have another baby. The labor, the crying, the sleepless nights… they’re just a fuzzy memory now. What remains clear in my memory are the snuggles in the rocker, the fine downy hairs that covered her little forehead, the way she breathed so sweetly while she was falling asleep. A few hours of pain (or 28 hours in my case) for a lifetime of love. Worth it.

On a Postpartum Body

Remember that infamous picture of Duchess Kate in a blue dress outside the hospital after the birth of baby William? Everyone had something to say about her little belly bump still showing. I mostly remember a lot of praise for her, for not being afraid to show what a real postpartum body looks like. I was ready for that. I was prepared to look like Kate. Pretty hair, pretty dress, pretty little lingering bump. Well let’s be honest, I left the hospital looking a couple months more pregnant than Duchess Kate. And a couple months out, I still look like Kate did on day 2. But someone recently said something that really resonated with me. It took nine months to grow a baby, gain 40 pounds, and look like the pictures below. Why should the weight and roundness come off any faster?

 (I once swore you'd never see a picture of my bare pregnant belly on social media. But it's really too funny not to share, right? This was the day before Maddie was born)

Moral of the story, cut yourself some slack on the baby weight, it will come off eventually. There are more important things to worry about in the meantime.

On Hormones

Be prepared to cry before/during/after labor, and really for a few weeks (months?) after that. Every emotion – happy, sad, frustrated, elated – is 10x stronger than you’ve ever felt it before. There are good tears, bad tears, joy and struggles. Cut yourself some slack here too, it’s okay to cry. One of the most beautiful, incredible, terrifying, and absolutely life-changing things has happened to you. It’s perfectly normal to be emotional! And, well, while we’re on the topic of hormones, remember all that gorgeous thick hair you had during your pregnancy? It falls out =( For me it started happening around 2 months postpartum. Tom actually commented to me, “I feel like I’m constantly walking through spider webs in our house” *sigh* Goodbye thick hair.

 On Being Flexible

You know that boyscouts saying, “always be prepared”? It’s excellent advice. Plan for everything: packing your bags, getting to the hospital, the birth plan, how you will feed the baby, where the baby will sleep, who will do diapers, who will rock the baby at 2am, who will feed the dogs and cook the dinners and mow the yard and check the mail. Talk about it, write it down, have a plan. But possibly more important than having a plan, is being flexible. There’s another saying, “nothing ever goes as planned”. Yep, that one definitely applies to a newborn baby. Some things won’t go according to plan, and you’ll change your mind on things. Do what works for you and your family, even if it wasn’t in the plan.

 On Lowering your Expectations

Seriously on this one. Lower. Your. Expectations. Of yourself, of your spouse, of your baby, of the state of your house, of your [lack of] style. You’ll be a mess is every sense of the word. You’ll be tired, you’ll be frustrated, you might even feel like you’re failing. But you are not! Being a new parent is tough. Don’t make it tougher on yourself with unrealistic expectations. You will wake up one day and try to remember the last time you washed your hair and brushed your teeth. Your spouse will sleep right through a midnight crying session. Your baby will wake up every hour when you thought she’d sleep for three. Your sink will be full, your hamper overflowing, your vacuum untouched. Sweat pants and no make up will be your new MO. It’s OK! All of it, it’s OK! This time is fleeting. Let things go. Try your best to enjoy the good moments.

 On Technology

I highly recommend using an app to track your newborn’s activity for the first couple of weeks. We used (still use) Total Baby, and it’s been awesome. Now I just use it to track nursing sessions, because good heavens, I can never remember what side I last nursed on. But in the beginning, we tracked diapers too – better count those 4-6 wet diapers and 3 dirty diapers per day! Or whatever it is they tell you. I was a sucker for the blue line on the pampers diaper and changed it every time I saw a speck of blue... alright alright I still do.  Ok but back to the app, I found it really useful to try and find trends, count feedings, count diapers, etc. You can even track sleep, medications, doctors visits and more.

 On Doctors

I thought I had posted the story of how we switched OBGYN’s during my pregnancy but apparently I did not because I just searched through all of my posts and couldn't find it, *sigh*. But now you know, we switched doctors and it was the best decision. Annnnd, we did it again. We started Maddie out with our family practice doctor. We thought it would be convenient for all of us to see the same doctor. But a couple weeks in, we decided we would be more comfortable with a pediatrician. And I highly recommend that, seeing a pediatrician! At our first visit with our new doctor, he asked me, “and she’s taking her Vitamin D drops, right?” ... “Umm Vitamin D? Nobody mentioned Vitamin D” … “And that’s why you see a pediatrician!” he said. We’ve felt so much more comfortable and confident with our new doctor. Side note – both of her doctor’s are named Dr. Berg. And they are not related. Weird, yeah? Another side note – on the topic of Vitamin D, I HIGHLY recommend Carlson Labs Super Daily D drops. One tiny tiny drop, so much easier than the D-Vi-Sol syrup kind from Walgreens.

 On Cankles

Well there’s really nothing to say here, other than, your feet and ankles might look like this when you come home from the hospital, even if they never swelled during your pregnancy. Laugh at them and know that they will eventually go back to normal.

And there you have it, everything you need to know to be a new parent ;) HA! Just kidding. But in all seriousness, live and learn! To all the new parents out there, you’re doing a great job.

A Weekend in Wimberley: Katie’s Bachelorette!

Bring on the food, wine, and gossip! Last weekend, we loaded up for a girls weekend in Wimberley, Texas to celebrate the Future Mrs. Burton. It was my first overnight trip away from Maddie, and I didn’t even cry! Well okay, I might have teared up once. But really, it was such a fun trip and it felt so nice to indulge in good food, good wine, and good [grown-up] conversation.

Friday Night:

Girls night in! We stayed at these cottages, in #8 Black. It was adorable! Well maintained, plenty of space for the 5 of us, and had a small, but full kitchen. Which was perfect for our homemade pizzas! Katie’s cousin, Christine, has been having terrible heart-burn in her pregnancy, and I’m not eating dairy… so our slices of the pizza were pretty silly. No sauce on hers, no cheese on mine! Still delicious though :) We ate and drank, talked and took it easy. Since three fourths of the bridal party are mothers, the conversation included the usual bachelorette party banter, you know, breastfeeding, childbirth, baby-weight loss. Totally normal things to discuss while celebrating someone who is about to get married. I sure hope we didn’t completely bore the bride-to-be and her soon-to-be-sister-in-law!

Saturday:

Our first stop of the day, after a quick selfie outside our cottage of course, was The Leaning Pear for lunch. De-lish! The food was great and the restaurant was super cute. Everything in Wimberley is super cute. Katie sported her Bachelorette sash and looked stunning all day – don’t brides just have a glow!? Our waitress wore jean overall shorts (are those making a comeback?) and made a comment about how she would like to go to a drag show for her bachelorette.  Mmhmm, sure, crazy girl!  In case you care, I ate the chicken and grits – it was awesome.

Next up, we visited Bella Vista, for wine and olive oil tasting. Drinking shots of olive oil is… weird. But the wine was good and the girl pouring our wine was so fun! The vineyard was really pretty, but it was so dang hot outside. 

While there, another fellow wine-taster (slash Texas wine-connoisseur) recommended the Wimberley Valley Winery as another nearby location for us to visit. So we did! We made our way through winding roads to a second winery. This one had much more space, but the wine tasting was much less intimate and educational. But hey, wine is wine, and the wine was good! So good, in fact, that w oman approached me and suggested I should have a glass….

Lady in pink:       Is this your first baby?

Me:                      Yes! What gave it away? My pumping bag? [assuming she was referencing the tell-tale black Medela suitecase I was lugging around.]

Lady in pink:       [silence]

Me:                       Nevermind.

Lady in pink:       You should have a glass of wine, my doctor said it’s okay to have a glass while you’re pregnant!

Ohhhh. You think that I’m… Ohhhh. Well this is weird. In order to avoid making things awkward or creating a scene, I simply said thanks. And promptly rushed to the ladies room to evaluate my silhouette and determine if I did, in fact, look pregnant. Perhaps I hadn’t made the best wardrobe decision, but hey, my pre-baby pants were fitting again, and my husband says I look great, so I thought I could pull off a fitted maxi skirt. Maybe I do still have a bit of a baby bulge. But truthfully, it doesn’t really bother me… didn’t really bother me, until someone called me out on it. Then it bothered me more than I thought it would. I grew a human in there! Just three months ago! Anyway, looking back on the situation, I wish I would have told the lady in pink that I’m not pregnant. Then maybe she would think twice the next time she feels compelled to give advice. Whew, okay, way off track there, back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Before heading back to our cottage, we stopped by the Cypress Creek Reserve rum distillery. The rum was good and the owner was friendly, but the distillery was not air conditioned. And, as previously mentioned, it was so dang hot outside. We toughed it out, drank some rum, learned about the distillery process, and sweated out any lingering wine in our systems.

Time for a rest! We had a couple hours before dinner, so we relaxed at our cottage for a bit. Katie took a nap while the rest of us chit-chatted and I had a visit from Tom and Maddie. You didn’t really think I could go a whole weekend without seeing my girl, did you!? They actually stopped by twice on Saturday so I could pass off milk bottles. Maddie love love loved visiting with the girls. She was really quite the talker. And who wouldn’t want a tiny baby (and someone’s husband) at their bachelorette party!? ;)

Next up on our tour of Wimberley was Kate’s Place for dinner. As with everything else in town, this place was adorable! Had the weather been cooler, we would have loved to sit out on the patio. The food was really good, although some of us thought our meals were slighty overcooked. We enjoyed more girly conversations, reminisced on old times, and of course, drank more wine! I would definitely recommend this restaurant, but do note, they don’t do split checks. I ate the pork chop, and the honey-serrano glaze was especially tasty.

Still feeling festive, we decided to check out the night-life in downtown Wimberley. I had read about a place online that supposedly had live music. We parked where my phone map said we should, but we couldn’t see the bar and the girls were possibly a leeeetle skeptical of my bar choice. Especially because we could hear live outdoor music coming from somewhere nearby. But I persevered and convinced them to follow me into what turned out to be the cutest little small-town bar of all time, the Buzzard Bar, where a band was covering Brown Eyed Girl but singing it with the lyrics green eyed girl. The dance floor was packed and all the tables were full. The place was straight out of Hope Floats or some other hometown movie. So stinking cute! But when the song ended, the band announced they were taking a break. Off we went in search of the live outdoor music!

We crossed the street to Inoz, where a band was playing on the patio. We made it just in time for a round of drinks before the bar was closing (at 10pm). The temperature had cooled just enough for us to enjoy the music outside. The band was fun, but we only caught a couple songs before they finished, and we stuck around long enough to be told by our waitress that we had to leave. Closed down bar #1 of the night!

Back over the Buzzard Bar for more music, people-watching, having the cutest little waitress ever, laughing at the guy sleeping on the patio, oogling over the doggie outside, and dancing next to crazy-legs. Oh and guess who we saw? Overalls girl from lunch! Katie and Laura proudly partied through until 1am while the mothers started yawning and struggling to stay awake ;) We made it until they flashed the lights and announced the last call! Before stepping out of the picturesque scene, the girls got caught up in the bathroom chatting with a lady who couldn’t believe she didn’t have a ring yet after 5 months of dating someone! I think she went home with Katie’s oversized, flashing bachelorette ring.

Sunday:

Jessica and Laura had flights to catch, so we didn’t stick around long on Sunday. We awoke early, packed, and cleaned, said our goodbyes and headed back to reality. We had such a great time celebrating Katie’s upcoming nuptials, and I would absolutely recommend Wimberley for a weekend getaway or a bachelorette party! It’s not far off the beaten path, but it’s a whole ‘nother quaint and sweet little world.

Love you, Katie! Can’t wait for the wedding!

Selfie photo credits to Christine’s camera and Laura’s fabulous long arms

And special thanks to the best husband ever, who managed to care for the baby and two dogs all weekend long while I partied it up. His mother said he was…. frazzled. But he seemed calm and collected every time I saw him. Which was often, because he and Maddie drove back and forth several times to meet up with me. I had no doubt he would do an awesome job, he is such a wonderful dad! And a great husband too :)

"She really wasn't that close to the ledge"