3 months with our baby

All I can say is it gets better all the time, and so much changes in a month.

-Rory stares at her hands and sucks on her fists and loves sitting and standing with some help. Her little legs are constantly kicking, and she blows bubbles and plays with her tongue all the time. She plays with her toes and constantly crosses her legs. She's slowly but surely putting on chunk [though nursing is still a little bit of a fight] and we are dying for her 4 month appointment to come so we can see where she's at on the growth charts. [dying for a doctor's appointment? to see growth charts? who am i?!]

-The bedtime routine is glorious. She goes down for the night between 8-8:30. Some nights she doesn't last quite until 8 and falls asleep for  a half hour before her last feeding, but it doesn't seem to affect her sleeping through the night. A few times a week she whines around 2 or 4am, but goes back to sleep within 10 minutes. Then she eats at 6am and goes back to sleep until 7 or 7:30. That's 10 hours of sleep people! Ten hours solid! It did take a short phase of letting her cry it out when she woke up at 2 in the morning to get to this point. It was hard, but so worth it. She's happy and sleeps like a champ and I am a happier mom.

-Naps were killer for a little bit. She refused to sleep anywhere but my arms for a few weeks and I thought I was going to die. I guess it was a combination of not napping well and going through a  clingy phase where she didn't really want to be put down. Basically I couldn't do anything. And I was frustrated. Eventually, I decided that it was more important for me to be a happy mom than to get everything done, and I just allowed myself to enjoy rocking her in the rocking chair and kissing her cheeks while she slept. I should have done that sooner. She still won't sleep in a crib for naps, but we've gotten to where she will sleep in the swing, and that's good enough for me for now. She gets 1-2 hour long naps per day, and typically one longer 2-2.5 hour nap. Babies that sleep well are happy babies. I'm serious.

-Drool. She definitely caught whatever drool gene my side of the family carries, and the girl can keep up with the best of them.

-Rory is a total mama's girl. I guess that's to be expected at this age where I am with her all day and  so responsible for her care. Jay wants her to love him so bad, and she does! But when push comes to shove and she is fussy and in need of comfort- I win every time. Sometimes he holds her next to me so she can watch me make dinner or sits her in her carseat on the counter next to me because it calms her down so much.

-She is starting to be really interactive and recognizes people. She has one smile that's so big her eyes close and she shakes her head back and forth like she can't handle how happy she is. It's the best. Of course smiles aren't exactly her strong suit. She's more into the somber, uninterested face which is actually really funny. And her cheeks are so big that they droop when she's serious, so there's that.

-She's cuddly when she is tired, but typically loves facing out and looking around. And she LOVES being outside- it's the cure for all fussiness and one of the only reasons I'm sad to see it get cold. 

-She loves Boo, and surprisingly Boo loves her too. I've gotten Boo to the point where she typically doesn't jump all over the baby, but I let her lick her toes and she does every time she sees Rory. It's really cute. Let's cross our fingers that it lasts when Rory starts pulling on her fur. haha.  

-Opinions run deep with this one. She lets you know immediately if she's uncomfortable or would prefer to be doing something else. Jay always tells me one of the things he loves about me is I wear my heart on my sleeve, and he never feels like he has to guess where I'm at. Well, you never have to guess where Rory is at either- I guess she gets it from me. [and let's just hope she finds someone like her daddy one day...]

-She is a total heater. Oh my word. For instance, it's fall here now- like windy and rainy and total sweater weather, but this morning when I went to get her from her bed she was sweaty. Like really sweaty. And that's exactly how I sleep. Sorry about that, mini me.

-Last but not least, her little hairs are very brown and her eyes are looking like they will be green, though they could still turn brown. I guess she didn't inherit those beautiful baby blues from her daddy after all.

 

Life lately in iphone pictures

Here's how life lately looks: [and pictures for grandma] 

-First things first, the pictures range from family vacation at the beach until now. Rory has been so blessed to have felt so much love during this first little stretch of her life! Grandma and grandpa great visited us, and then Clara and Winnie came and I swear I've never seen a two year old as obsessed with babies as Clara is with Rory. Every morning when we would come down the stairs she would rush out to see "baby cousin" and immediately plop down on her butt where ever she was and open her arms to hold her. It melted me every single time- I miss that chunky muffin. Anyways...

-We've moved! We're in Utah! Now, people keep asking me, "are you settled?", but the answer to that question is tricky. We are moved. We are living in our house. Jay has started his new job. I have a pseudo routine set up with Rory. But the house we bought is a foreclosure that needs a little tlc, so settled is not the right word. Our first day in our new house was spent ripping out the carpet because the previous owners had un-potty trained pets living inside.... it was disgusting. And nothing was really cleaned when they moved out, so everything had to be washed before anything could be put away. And doing that with a baby in arms is not the easiest thing I've ever attempted. As a mom, you find out really quick which things can be done with one arm and which can't. Also which things can be done with baby strapped to you. [though it helps, it doesn't make everything possible] So here we are, walking around in sandals indoors because we are living on mostly dusty concrete slab until they can finally come and put in our new floors... and putting only the most necessary furniture in the house [enter mattress and rocking chair] while the rest sits in the garage.

-THUS... we have so many people we want to see and have over, but our house isn't really ready to entertain (much less functionally eat dinner in) right now, so we are having to hold off on being hosts until we at least get floors. But we love you! We are working on it!

-A huge plus about being in Utah is that it puts us close to Jay's extended family. Our first Sunday here, his grandma invited everyone over for dessert and it was so fun! Jay has a whole passel of girl cousins from ages 9-24 (ish) and I'll just say that Rory never got put down with all of them there and loved every minute of it. We love being here so close to them!

-She is the funniest sleeper. First, she's loud- it is so so funny. She grunts and makes these little throaty groans in her sleep and it's hilarious. Also, she drools hardcore and if she escapes the swaddle she twists as far as she can onto her side and puts her hands straight up in the air.

-Within the first week we were here, there were a few really tough days. The kind where she didn't sleep well at night, took no naps during the day, and refused to be out of my arms for longer than 60 seconds. Luckily [though I thought for sure it would] it didn't last forever and now we are back to a totally livable schedule of a couple solid naps per day and only 1-2 nighttime nursings. Hallelujah, because I wasn't sure I could make it. One of the last pictures shows how I ended up at the end of one of those days- still in sweats, with baby strapped to me to keep her calm while I laid in bed to rest for just a second. Also shoutout to my sister's (and my) friend Erin for bringing me dinner on one of those rough days. You are a true gem and a lifesaver.

-Baby girl LOVES music. If I need to keep her calm a little longer to brush my teeth/do the dishes I just put some music on and sit her by the window she loves to look out and we swing it pretty nicely.

-Rory has just started this weekend to try to smile, which is the most adorable thing I've ever seen. So basically I'm now addicted to trying to make her do it again and I spend most of her waking moments talking to her and giving her the cheesiest grins. Somehow though, I just can't get the same amount of smiles Jay can- go figure.

-She's still SO TALL! I put her in some 3 month footie pajamas I had packed for the move thinking they wouldn't fit, and they are too short! Her leg can't quite straighten all the way in them! Really. It's wild- I measured her and looked up the growth charts and she's still somewhere above 90th percentile.

-Her baby acne has cleared up, but her skin has gotten so so dry since we moved! Her poor little cheeks look almost like they've got a mild case of eczema, and are so rough and scaly even though I use lotion every day. I've ordered Tubby Todd's lotion and baby wash to see if it will clear it up- I'll keep you updated on how that goes.

-Mostly, we are loving being here. Jay is loving his new job, and for now all my spare time is spent trying to furnish the house, clean, and get ready for all the company we have coming into town these next few weeks. We are a very happy little family of three.

(*oh, and we maybe snuck in to visit Aunt Karlee at the Oakland visitor's center and I made her kiss Rory's cheeks!)

 

my wedding day: something old

You know, I'm not one for following traditions that don't mean much to me. 

But if they do, you better believe I will do them wholeheartedly. 

So "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue"...

was not something I thought a whole lot about. 

Some things just happened. 

A new dress, and mom's borrowed tennis bracelet.

But there was only one I really planned.

A few years ago I experienced one of those rare occasions 

where I got to spend some alone time with Grandma Veater.

I can't remember exactly how it came about, 

but we stumbled across this amazing head piece.

You see, grandma's mother worked in a dress shop, 

so class was in her blood and certainly not lacking on her wedding day 

[or in her whole life]

The piece was made of real, soft feathers and sprinkled with rhinestones. 

As I sat in her walk in closet and admired it, 

she told me how she had worn it with her exit outfit when her and my grandpa were married.

Right then it became even more magical.

She told me I could have it if I wanted, and asked if I would ever use it. 

I gave a resounding yes and tenderly wrapped it in tissue paper, placed it in a box,

and quietly planned the day when I would wear it.

I don't know if she noticed, and you can hardly tell in pictures

but it sure meant something to me to have a part of my heritage with me on my wedding day. 

Thanks for giving me the classiest something old a girl could have, grandma.

my wedding day: my people and the details

Ok, so I was blessed.
There will be no denying that.

I had a bridesmaid who told me after the wedding day,
"you just seemed so calm and happy"
Half of that was because I knew that if I started being stressed....
I would lose it.
Maybe selfishly, I decided that I just didn't care to be anything but happy.
So I was.
The larger half was because of my people.
If I can say one thing about my wedding day it would be that.
Guests, bridesmaids, family, family, family.
I was with my people, and because of that I was happy.

My bridesmaids came to my house early in the morning, and hair and makeup ensued.
The "thank you" succulents were thought to be lost and found dried out in an upside down box,
and bridesmaids came to the rescue.
I learned that mine were the best kind.
Helpful, never complaining, and standing by my side both metaphorically and physically.

My sister was my maid (ok, so she's a matron) of honor and everything I could have ever hoped to have.
She forced me to go to bed and laid out my pajamas and hung my dress in the window.
She did my makeup and was equally as giddy as I was [if not more. per the usual] about the day ahead.

I wore mom's tennis bracelet that I helped pick out with dad, 
and all the commotion happened in my hometown 
and in my very favorite place in that town: my home. 

My place, my people, and small details made for the most wonderful morning.
And the start to the most wonderful day.