Physical Post Pregnancy Blues

The toes above belong to me, Kimberly & Heather. I snapped this photo during our sisters photo shoot while I was in Vegas. I had just gotten a pedicure from Jen.

Now about the title. You know after you have a baby & maybe move across the country & you are so busy that you never really look at yourself in the mirror. And then the day comes along that you actually do. And you think things like: "When did my eyebrows get so overgrown?!" & "When was the last time I put lotion on?!" & "Have I actually been wearing these clothes out of the house?!"

Well, that's what's happening to me. I ordered some new clothes online. Hopefully they'll fit & I won't have to send them back. I made an appointment to get my hair done next Saturday (I'm so ready for a cut now. I'm going to look horrible by then). Maybe if I find some time I can tidy up my eyebrows.

All little fixes that will help me feel better until I can lose the extra 15-20 pounds I'm now sporting. Oh man! I shouldn't have eaten all that crap while I was pregnant!

I think I'm going to try a new hairstyle. Probably not the best idea when I'm going to get my hair cut from somebody I've never even met before. But, I'm thinking long, shaggy, side swept bangs. Anybody have any other suggestions? I totally miss my hairdresser Emily. That's one really scary thing about moving. Who will cut your hair?!?!

Crazy Clevelander, Part 1

(Part 1, because I'm assuming there will be a lot more instalments)

Saturday morning. Dylan was at a service project. We had the front windows open & Sadie was going out on the front porch, which is actually a balcony since we're on the second floor. I was cleaning up the house & putting laundry away.

I hear somebody yelling "Michelle!" "Michelle!". I'm ignoring it because there are a lot of people that live on our street & I'm just assuming it's people in the neighborhood.

Then I hear "Michelle! Michelle, is that you?" To which Sadie yells out, "NO!". Ha ha. At that point I got curious & looked over the balcony to see this woman who was actually yelling at us. I told her that this wasn't Michelle's house & she apologized, kinda explained herself & went on walking down the sidewalk. CRAZY!!

The very best part about it though is what she was wearing. It was the bestest most 80's outfit:

A black t-shirt that said "Levi's" in pink writing.
Pink jeans. Yes, pink denim jeans.
A red belt.
and a side ponytial!!!

Hello Humidity

Okay. I am sitting here sweating. Today felt like a super muggy day. The temperature was in the high 80's. I was waiting for the weather forecast on the news tonight so we could find out what the humidity was. Finally we catch a weather report and....

IT'S ONLY 41% HUMIDITY!!!

We are NOT going to survive.

According to my downstairs neighbor...who comes outside shirtless, by the way, all proud of himself that he hasn't had to run his air conditioning yet this season. Oh yeah. He's a 70 year old man. Good ol' Jerry. Anyway, his words were "It's not humid".

I'm afraid to say this may be a harder weather adjustment than moving to Idaho in the winter. I dunno. We'll see. We were pretty cold those first few months in Rexburg.

And just because. A picture of Claire Bear.

7 Super Cool Years

Happy 7th Anniversary Dylan. I love you & I love our life together. I'm so glad we fell in love. Let's stay this way forever.

Thanks for asking me to marry you. Thanks for being my best friend. Thanks for having cute buns. Thanks for taking out the dog & the trash every night. Thanks for taking care of us. Thanks for making us laugh. So glad you're mine!

Supernanny

Do you ever watch this show? We have been without television since February of last year, but we are actually able to pick up the local channels here in Cleveland. So, I watched Supernanny last night while Dylan was putting Sadie to bed.

There was a little 3 yr. old girl on this episode that threw the worst tantrums. It reminded me so much of Sadie. But I kept thinking, "oh, that's a lot like Sadie...except Sadie's not THAT bad." True, Sadie may not be as horrific as that little girl on the show, but I was able to learn a few things & may even try to catch the show in the future so perhaps I can learn a few more things.

Here are my goals:

*Spend more one-on-one time with Sadie. This is especially important since Claire has joined the scene. I think Dylan & Sadie would benefit from this as well.

*Include her with caring for the needs of the baby. Have her get the diaper for me. Help me dress her, etc.

*Start working (again) on getting Sadie to go to bed on her own, so that Dylan & I can have some time together in the evenings. I think we need to introduce something into the routine that will help her calm down & unwind before going to bed. HELLO! Reading a book together.

Anyway, just some thoughts I needed to get down.

So......

I know everybody wants pictures of our new place, but I haven't taken any yet, so until I get around to it, here's one of our neighborhood. This was taken from our front balcony last Saturday. I sat outside with Sadie while she ran & jumped & sang really loud until I realized it was still pretty early on that rainy day & maybe all our neighbors with their windows open wouldn't appreciate that very much.

I love this baby girl so much. I especially love when she has her eyes open & is checking things out. I love her noises & her voice. She's still a pretty good sleeper. She likes to be held but is starting to go much longer playing or sleeping without being held. And although she's still a long, skinny thing, she has the best little squishy, warm cheeks that you know I can't resist.


And those feet. Oh, how we love those big ol' feet. I love that she still pulls her knees & legs in & curls up into a fetal position.

And, the two girls together. We are adjusting. Sadie is a bit difficult right now. Making this adjustment right during the "terrible twos" is pretty rough. But she loves her sister & it's pretty adorable. Now if she'd just stop picking up Claire whenever I leave the room. It's not like I haven't told her a million times that she's not allowed to.

Back at it!

Finally got our internet set up out here in Cleveland. Just wanted to share a few photos & let you know that we're still alive & everyone is doing well. I hope to be posting more soon. Just have to find some time when I'm not holding a newborn with a 2 yr. old trying to climb all over me at the same time. Most of my moments like that are reserved for eating & going potty & doing chores.

Taking a Break

I'm taking a break from blogging for a little bit. My delivery of Claire was really rough. Labored all day, really with everything going very well. When it came time to push, the baby's heart rate kept dropping really low with each contraction. The doctor all the sudden wanted her out immediately. Vacuum & forceps & then a decision to go immediately for an emergency c-section. Lots of tears from Dylan & I as I waited to hear this baby's cry....worried she may not make it. After that the process of stitching me back up took a really long time. I thought for sure that I had ruptured my uterus & that this would be my last baby.

Lots of blood lost that first night & I was in pretty bad shape. My oxygen levels kept dropping low when I'd fall asleep. Lots of people worried about me, including my doctor who told me that he couldn't sleep at all that night because he was worrying about me.

I did get a tear in my uterus as they were pulling the baby back out from the birth canal. Luckily it could be repaired & I am alright to have future pregnancies. My bleeding slowed through the night & I didn't have to go back in for another surgery. Recovery has been pretty quick considering all that happened & I'm now in Las Vegas for the week, recovering & getting help from my mom. I wouldn't have survived this last week & all that needed to be done for the move to Ohio without my mom.

Thanks for all the positive comments about our sweet baby girl. I will be back sometime soon & will be coming to you from Ohio!