Pink Tinks & other Things

Life has been hectic. A baby boy, and school is finishing, plus the normal responsibilities of wife, daughter, sister, friend, you get the idea.

I was very productive today. I did all of this schoolwork.

+ Ad analysis paper
+ Volunteer Analysis paper
+ Math Review
+ Government Quiz
+ 4 seminars for co-op class

I'm very proud of myself. I did all of that, plus I'm on my 3rd load of laundry, I cleaned the kitchen and my bedroom, and straightened the living room.

I guess now would be a good time to write my baby a letter.

Dear J,

You are now 5 weeks old (5 weeks 1 day, technically). I'm sorry for skipping a week, but Mommy has been so busy lately. Finals are coming up and Mommy is working extra hard to get good grades so she can finish school and stay home with you all summer instead of taking classes!

On your month birthday we took you to the mall, and the nice people at Kiddie Kandids took your picture! They were training a new person and we got 12 free birth announcements AND a free 8x10. Mommy and Daddy also bought a sheet of wallets so everyone could look at your pretty face!





Then we took your Aunt D to Rainforest Cafe and you were so good! You slept through the entire thing! Mommy and Daddy didn't know if you were going to be scared or not, but you were such a big boy, we're so proud of you!

Aunt Peanut has bought you a swing, and you love it, Mommy and Daddy do too! You like to be rocked to sleep and sometimes we're too tired and fall asleep before you, so now we can put you in there to fall asleep!

You met Great Grandma S (she doesn't want to be called 'Great', but Mommy and Daddy are going to anyway!) and you met your cousin, Adam! He was so sweet to you, he wanted to give you kisses on your forehead!

We went and saw Uncle D get baptized on Sunday and you stayed quiet during the entire church service, through the singing, announcements, baptisms and the sermon! You made Mommy so proud!

I love you my sweet angel. I thank the Lord for you every day.

- Mommy

Labels: baby j, letter, school

Dear Baby,

You are now 3 weeks and 1 day old. How time flies.

You're getting so big - 10 lbs already! You're feeding well and making the right amount of diapers. Speaking of, you're making a smelly diaper right now. The joys of being a parent. ;)

I'm going to start calling you my chunky monkey, you're just too cute. You've already outgrown your snap t-shirts for newborns, we had to move you up to the next size! Your diapers are too small now too. Luckily we have the next size up, but it looks like were going to have to exchange an unopened pack of your others next time we go to the store.

We had our first holiday this Sunday, Easter. Daddy doesn't consider it your first holiday though - he says you are still too small. Granmama bought you a nice Easter ornament, and Grandma and Grandpa Solesbee bought you some formula, hats, shirts, a blanket and a basket that says 'Jack' on it. You got tons of stuff!

You've really taken to rolling yourself on your side, and if you're on a pillow you love to roll yourself off of it. Incredibly adorable and frightening at the same time. We have to make sure one of us is with you if you're not in your crib or bassinet, as you love to roll yourself around into odd places.

You love tummy time and you're getting stronger everyday. Aunt Peanut and I took you for your first walk yesterday, and while you didn't love it, you didn't hate it either. I'm going to take you on longer walks with me when you get a bit older.

Keep on being my sweet baby.

Love,
Mommy

Labels: baby, baby j, letter

My dear sweet baby,

I'm sitting here, rocking you in your car seat with one hand and typing with the other. You are just a perfect little angel. I came home from school today and went straight to you and you were sitting in your car seat, wide awake, just being nice and calm and content - you are such an easy baby!

We are now in our third week and I can't believe how amazing you are already.

We took you for your 2-week check up yesterday (you are 16 days old, btw - I just was unable to get you in on day 14) and my how you've grown! You grew a half inch in length and put on nearly TWO entire pounds! You are now 9lbs (exactly) and 21" long - you were 7lbs 1oz and 20.5" at birth. You are growing like a weed! You didn't like it when the doctor examined you but were okay once it was over.

You now eat an entire two ounces of formula at a time, compared to the 1/4 or 1/2 ounce you took in the hospital. You sometimes want more, but your belly isn't that big, so we have to wait an hour or so before letting you have another ounce. Your eyes are bigger than your belly, poor thing!

You pulled your cord off two days ago and it was still a bit early so I have been keeping neosporin and a band-aid on it, but it looks much better now!

You fit into your clothes much better, and soon enough we'll have to retire some of them!

You met Great Granmama on Monday and boy were you confused! Who are all these strange people holding you? They're certainly not Mommy or Daddy!

You went to your first restaurant on Saturday (day 11). Great Grandma Frog and Great Grandpa Pappy came into town and we went to lunch with them and Grandma and Grandpa Cook (my mommy and daddy)! You got a bit fussy and wanted me to hold you, but it was because you were really hot in your car seat.

Daddy went back to work on Monday (day 13) and came home only 45 minutes late! That is wonderful timing for Daddy, and I know he hurried home because he missed you.

I went back to school on Tuesday and man was it hard! I didn't want to leave you- I wanted you to come to class with me! I figured you probably wouldn't like sitting through college algebra or speech, and I don't think I should make you sit through college algebra until you have to.

Well, this is about it Jackson. Not much else happening yet. Always remember how much Daddy and I love you!

- Mommy

One of Ryan's employees bought this onesie for Baby J, and I just had to share this picture. Please read said onesie. ;)


And now my update. School is school. I haven't received my first math test back and I haven't taken the second so I have no idea how I am doing in the class, but I think I know the first two and this 4th chapter pretty well, the 3rd I am concerned about.

I am doing okay in speech, a high B I believe, and I have to take the second test today, so we will see how that goes, with my extra credit points I should have a low A.

My baby is just growing so fast. I also really miss being pregnant. Well, not the actual pregnancy, but what it accomplished, and I am so ready to have another one! Ryan wants to wait 3 years though, and I would like to at least have my 2-year degree, so who knows. Maybe next January we will start working on another one, if I can convince him. (After all, it took 8 months for this one, and if we start trying in January, and it takes that long again, by the time the baby is actually born it will be just over two years.)

I am thinking I may be getting PPD, as I am feeling really overwhelmed at times, and depression does run in my family. My reasons for thinking this are the following:

I am REALLY overwhelmed

School is HARD

MATH is giving me the most problems and I stress out daily over this (to the point of either crying or becoming extremely angry about everything)

Speech is getting better, but the actual giving the speech part causes me so much anxiety my chest starts hurting, I turn bright red, I begin shaking, I can't catch my breath, and I get lightheaded

I love my baby to death, and I would give my life for him, but heaven help me, I wish he would sleep more than 2 hours at a time. I need sleep, and Ryan needs sleep, and I hate having to rely on my brothers to come spend the night on Mondays and Wednesdays because I can't even stay up those nights since I have school the next morning. If I don't have school I'll stay up for 24 hours or so and take care of the baby, but when I have school at 9a the next morning (and have to be up at 7:30a at the latest to get there in time), and MATH for my first class, I need to be semi-alert.

My house needs to be cleaned. It's not dirty, per say, just very cluttered at the moment. I guess I should say my house needs to be organized, not cleaned.

FORMULA IS EXPENSIVE! $25 for a can that lasts a week. Need I say more?

Okay, this entry is long enough I guess.

Anyone got any suggestions for a Persuasive Speech topic? (No abortion related, drugs should be legalized, etc. topics are allowed - basically none of the fall back ones.) Help is more than welcome!

Labels: baby, letter, PPD, school, speech

Dear Baby J,

You are now 8 days old and already I want you to stop growing.

It's hard to believe that it has already been 8 days since I was in a hospital pushing you out, with Daddy beside me, cheering me on, and whispering to me how beautiful you were, even though he could only see the top of your head. He was so proud the moment you were born - he was holding back tears, watching as they cleaned you up, weighed you, and made sure your vital signs were all okay. He even got to cut your umbilical cord, be the first to hold you, and he was the first to feed you. He even cried when he called Great Granmama to tell her the news. You are so lucky, my little baby; you have the best Daddy in the world, and he loves you so much.

We took you for your 2nd PKU screening today and the nurse commented on how big you were! My little baby is growing already. For the test the nurse had to prick your foot and fill 5 circles on a card with your blood - you were such a trooper! You just sighed when you got poked and made faces like you were going to cry when she squeezed the blood onto the card, but you never did cry! You are such a big boy already!

Your ring for your circumcision finally fell off today, and it looks like your umbilical stump is going to follow any day now. You're already pulling the pacifier out of your mouth and trying (sometimes succeeding) to put it back in again. When did you learn to do that?! You also recognize your bottle and start to wiggle around whenever you see it! You know the voices of your Mommy and Daddy, and you'll look around with those beautiful eyes if you hear us.

You don't cry hardly ever - in fact today was the first time you cried for no reason (that we could find anyway), but even then it was only for about a minute, and then you stopped. Normally you get fussy when you want to eat or be changed, and you only truly cry when getting your diaper changed. We've managed to stop that most of the time by playing music from your giraffe, but there is still the odd occasion when even that won't settle you. You are such a wonderfully good baby, I don't know how I got so lucky.

You had your first throw-up episode last night with Aunt Peanut. She was holding you, and your eyes had been bigger than your tummy with your feeding the hour beforehand and you got sick. Poor thing. Lucky for us both Aunt Peanut was holding you and quickly sat you up, held the burp cloth up to your mouth, and patiently waited until you were done. She didn't complain or say anything bad either! She just wanted to make sure you were okay. She loves you very much.

I guess this is all for now, Mommy has to go study. This has been the best eight days of my life, and I hope you can look back and read these one day, and see how loved you truly are.

Love,
Mommy

Labels: baby, baby j, letter, week 1

I dislike this law case very much. (This portion of content happily (sort of) stolen from Angelique. Link at the bottom left hand side.)

And now, more un-content for your eyes, since all I have to update about is more (boring) school work and how I had a migraine for 3 (yes, three) days. I'm also going with my M-I-L to look for a few maternity things tomorrow. I love her, she's nice. :)

Dear Non-Pregnant Person,

I hope you find these guidelines helpful in your interactions with pregnant women as failing to follow them may result in serious physical harm. If you are thinking, surely she doesn't mean me- then you should probably read this twice.


1) The appropriate response to a couple telling you they are having a baby is "Congratulations!" with enthusiasm. Any other response makes you an a$$.

2) Through the wonders of science, we now know that babies are made ONLY by the mother and father- not grandparents. Unless the baby is in your uterus or you are the man that helped put it there, you may not ever use the phrase "my baby".

3) On the same note, unless you made the baby as defined in #2, the pregnancy, birth and raising of the child are not about you. You do not have input. No one wants to hear your opinion unless they ask for it.

4) The body of a pregnant women should be treated the same as any other body. You would not randomly touch someone's stomach if they were not pregnant, nor would you inquire into the condition of their uterus, cervix or how they plan to use their breasts. Pregnancy does not remove all traces of privacy from a woman.

5) Likewise, no women wants to hear comments on her weight- ever. A pregnant woman does not find it flattering that you think she is about is pop, must be having twins, looks swollen or has gained weight in her face. Telling her she looks too small only makes her worry that she is somehow starving her baby. Making such comments invite her to critique your physical appearance and you may not act offended. The only acceptable comment on appearance is "You look fabulous!".

6) By the time we are 20-30 years old, most of us have picked up on the fact that the summer is hot. We are hot every summer when we are not pregnant. We don't need you to point out that we will be miserably hot before the baby comes.

7) There is a reason that tickets to L&D are not yet sold on Ticketmaster. Childbirth is actually not a public event. It may sound crazy, but some women really do not relish the idea of their mother, MIL or a host of other family members seeing their bare butt and genitals. Also, some people simply feel like the birth of their child is a private and emotional moment to be shared only by the parents.

8) Like everything else is life, unless you receive an invitation, you are NOT invited. This includes doctor appointments, ultrasounds, labor, delivery, the hospital and the parents home. You do not decide if you will be there for the birth or if you will move in with the new parents to "help out". If your assistance is desired, rest assured that you will be asked for it.

9) If you are asked to help after the birth, this means you should clean up the house, help with cooking meals, and generally stay out of the way. Holding the baby more than the parents, interfering with breastfeeding and sleeping schedules and making a woman who is still leaking fluid from multiple locations lift a finger in housework is not helping.

10) The only people entitled to time with the baby are the parents. Whether they choose to have you at the hospital for the birth or ask for you to wait three weeks to visit, appreciate that you are are being given the privilege of seeing their child. Complaining or showing disappointment only encourages the parents to include you less.

- The Pregnant Lady

Labels: boring, letter, migraine