Twisting, rolling, and squirming into 5 months

It has been 1 year since we first heard our little girls heart beat and now she is 5 months old. I can't believe it has been 5 months since she was born. She has changed so much in such a short time. She is starting to show her personality and she will be a character. She has started laying on her side and squirming around. We had our first nap yesterday where she rolled on her belly and slept that way for the entire nap. I can’t wait to see what she will do next.


We are all very glad to see February go away! February proved to be our most trying month so far. We had ER visit, head trauma, ear infection, snotty nose, sore throat, and coughing. So we are looking forward to March being a calm month for us!

I think I have finally come into my own as a Mother, Wife, and friend. Clover and I have started to figure each other out. We have a pretty good routine going on right now with time to play, workout, clean, do homework, and make dinner. I am feeling pretty content with life right now, something I have not been able to say for a long time so it is a welcome change.

So here is to my little girl and to this journey of motherhood.

Week 16 Happy Birthday to me.....

Well things around her have been a bit hectic. I just finished my finals for Algebra and Nutrition. I got a B in Algebra and an A in Nutrition. So that is great. I really struggled with this round of classes. Having a baby and going to school is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. Now I have some time off and what am I doing with my time you might ask? I'm cleaning and organizing my house oh what fun..... What has become of my life, when a break constitutes cleaning and organizing! Egh....

So Clover is getting big and is getting such a personality! She really laughed for the first time yesterday. It was so great to hear her laugh like that. I also had my I'm a Mom moment yesterday it brought me to tears. Carl had it right from the get go but it has taken me awhile to feel that way about it. I guess its just because so much has changed in my life and I am not one for change that it has been a bit of a struggle for me to see the good in things.


My 22nd birthday is tomorrow... I finally get that whole it's just another day thing. I used to always thing that your Birthday was this special day that was to be celebrated but now I just don't really feel like it. I think it may because of this awful mood I am in but I am not sure if its just the fact that I am growing up and no more princess parties for me. It is amazing how much has changed since my Birthday last year. Last year I took a pregnancy test on my Birthday and it was negative little did I know I just took it too early and a week later I got a positive one. Now I have a daughter and I live thousands of miles away from everything I knew... Strange how much can change in just one years time.

Well I think that is about it for now.....

Week 13

Life is interesting... it is amazing how much my life has changed since last January. This is the first time in my life that I have been away from my family. It has been really hard especially since this is the time in my life when I need them all the most. However, I think it is good for me. I have always been pretty dependent on my family. Now I am becoming my own person. I am a mother and I have to fill the shoes of a mother now... I never knew that I would find my voice now that I have this life I have to shape and protect. I want to be strong for her! I want to show her the world and be a part of it not just a spectator. I have spent so much of my life on the side lines watching and now I want to be in the middle of it. I can't wait till Clover gets older and we can go exploring. I can see all ready how she will become my companion through life. I miss Carl terribly he works a lot now and we do not get to spend much quality time with one another. This has also forced me to step out side my self and do things I normally would not do. I never thought I would be where I am right now...life is interesting....

Happy 2010!!!!

Resolutions

Ok here are my resolutions from 2009…..

1. Get to a healthy weight by 2010 of 130-140. I have lost 16 pounds since this summer but I have 60 to go! And I’m committed to doing it this year. I have been working out almost every day and watching what I’m eating. I know I have had this resolution before but this year I WILL DO IT!!!!!!!
Well I blew this one! Haha! But having a baby kinda knulled this one. However I do weigh less now then I did last year so that is good.


2. Take care of myself. I don’t just want to lose weight I want to feel good. I have had such a crummy few years with my health and I want to get it all under control! I think my weight is a good start but I have to get really healthy!!
I do feel that I have made an effort to get healthier. I eat better now than I did last year and have been trying to work out more.

3. Keep my house clean!!!! I have been doing a lot better with it but I want to keep it that way and not let it get out of hand!
I have accomplished this goal!! My house is usually clean! Sometimes it is a bit messy but not for long!


4. Save for a down payment on a house. We already have some savings but not enough so were going to be scrimping and saving as much as possible so we can own our own home!
Well life completely took a turn this year! We no longer have the money to out a down payment on a house but that’s what happens when you are unemployed, have a baby, and move clear across the country!


5. Get a raise! I have not had one for almost 3 years so I think it’s about time I get one!
Well this failed!! Haha I got a cut in pay now I get paid in drool and poop!

6. Complete my first year of collage with good grades!!
I did good in school I only got one b and that was in my accounting class. So that is great!

So this year’s resolutions are as follows:

1. Get my stomach muscles back into shape. Being stretched so much has really taken the strength out of me! Haha
2. Lose weight (I really can’t wait till this is no longer on my list)
3. Complete my AA!!
4. Step outside myself and meet people who I can be friends with
5. Find time for myself

Well I think that is about it! Happy 2010! I hope this is a better year than 2009 was!!!

Week 7 & 8 getting into the Holidays!

Well the past couple of weeks have been pretty uneventful. We celebrated Clover's first Thanksgiving. It was my first Thanksgiving not spent with my family so it was different for me but it was really nice. Carl and I went to Ponsdelion park in the morning and walked around on the trails. It was really nice. We then got Maddy and went to Grandma and Grandpas. We had a really nice dinner! It was a very calm day.



We went to Boca this weekend it was the first time we went out there since Clover was born. We did not go out to the Beach because we did not have ones for the parking and it was getting late. So we wondered around the town. It is so quite and peaceful there, it is the one part of Florida that I love. I could spend all my time there.


We also went to Fishermen Village to get Clover's picture with Santa. We were the first ones to see Santa. Clover gave him a huge smile it was great! She looked so cute in her little dress!


It amazes me how much Clover has changed since she was born it's been just two months but it seems like she has changed so much. She is getting much more interactive with you now. She smiles and coos a lot now. She also has started kicking here legs like crazy. She loves taking a bath and kicking away. We have gotten on a really good routine! She sleeps most nights from 9 to 6 or so some days she wakes at 3am and others she sleeps all the way through till 8. It is awesome to get to sleep all night however I think the days of restful sleep are far behind me. I think I am always listening for her so I don't really sleep soundly. It amazes me to watch Carl and her interact. I knew he would be a wonderful Father but to actually see it is amazing! She is so going to have him wrapped around her little finger that is for sure.

Since this will be our first Christmas as a real Family we have been discussing what we want to do for our holiday traditions. It's fun to think about all the things that you do with your family and what we want to do with ours. My Great Grandfather always makes this foamy drink thing for breakfast so Carl and I will be doing that and were going to have sweedish pancakes as well. We want to get a Christmas tree in a week or so. I just am hoping it will cool off so we can go and it be cold because there is just something wrong with getting a tree in shorts and a tank top! haha. I want to start baking cookies. That was always so much fun around Christmas baking cookies.

Well that is all for now...

Cooling off in week 6

We camped out on the patio this week because the weather was so nice and cool. It was nice hearing the noises of the outside. We have had the house all opened up this week which is really nice! One day the high was 66!!!! How great is that. Clover actually got to wear warm clothes. I love it when the weather is like that it makes living here not so horrible. We went to the park this weekend and it’s funny how with the change of weather brings out people. All summer there was maybe 2 other people at the park. This weekend there was 30 people there so Maddy did not get to run around.

This week we went to Lashly park in Punta Gorda, to see the traveling Vietnam memorial wall. It was really interesting to go see it. It is amazing how many people gave their lives for our country. I am thankful for all the people who have made this sacrifice and the people who have served. It is a very noble thing to do and those people do not get enough respect and support.

Week 6 was a pretty good week! We had just finished up a weekend of SCREAMING and being completely out of sorts so it was nice to get things back on track this week. I took Clover to the doctor this week for her 1 month check up. She is 10 pounds 1 ounce! She is measuring tall and has a BIG head thanks to her Clapp genes! Haha! The results of her genetic testing came back and she does NOT have MCAD or any other of the genetic disorders they test for. So that is wonderful! We also got the go ahead for sleeping all night! So far we still have one middle of the night feeding. I am hoping in the next couple weeks she will go all night sleeping. (Diana I feel for you! I do not know how you have done it for so long!! You totally ROCK!) She got her Hep B shot as well. She has a hemangioma on her back, it started off as what looked like a pinch on her and it has gotten worse. It is about the size of the tip of my finger and getting bumpy. The nurse said it was normal and it should go away with in a year or so. No let me tell you just take a doctors word for things don’t go doing your own research! Haha! I went on the computer and looked it up and thoroughly freaked myself out! Some of them get HUGE!! I just hope hers stays small. They don’t do anything to them tell they are older because they are so vascular. SO luckily it is on her back and can be covered up. So all in all everything is good with the little monster.

I have decided that I hate not knowing where I am. After the doctor Clover and I needed to go to the post office and stop by to see Aunt Julie at the dive shop. I knew that both those things were near each other but it took me a good 25 minutes to find them both. Egh… I miss knowing where I am. But I am trying to get the hang of it the best I can. Thank god for GPS! Haha.

Well that is all for week 6 on to week 7………

Reflecting on week 5....

Week 5 of this adventure in motherhood was pretty uneventful. I started school this week so that really sucked all my free time. I had been able to take a shower and clean a bit when the monster was napping but now it seems like 9pm rolls around and I am still in my Pajamas and the house is in an ever increasing state of disorder. I think I am going to have to bite the bullet and work on myself and the house during the day then stay up late to work on homework. I hate to do that because then I am just exhausted. Like last night I stayed up until eleven working on homework. I fed her at 9:30 so I set my alarm for 3:00 so I would get up to feed her 6 ½ hours is as long as I want to let her go until we talk to the pediatrician again. I just don’t know if it is ok to let her sleep longer than that. Normally she wakes up on her own around that time so it has not been an issue. But last night I was so tired that I do not even remember turning my alarm off. I woke up at 5am because she was starting to wake up so 8 ½ hours!! So I was worried that she went so long and I figured she would eat a lot. But she was too busy taking a crap and fussing to eat. So I tried the bottle because with that I can tell how much she ate. But she still was not interested. She does not seem to be any different than normal so I put her down and got her back up at 7:00 she ate for 5 mins and then was out like a light. We shall see how she does here in a little bit. If she was acting weird I would be worried but she is fine just maybe a little sleepier than normal. I worry because we have not gotten the results of the MCAD but I would assume that they would have notified us if something was wrong. The joys of motherhood the constant state of worry!!

We celebrated Clover’s 1st Halloween this weekend. It was really nice to have all of the family over to share the evening with us. I made all kinds of neat stuff and we had pizza. Grandma came in a fabulous which hat! Clover was a Giraffe, Carl and I did not dress up this year. Normally we do but I just did not feel like it. It was odd having Halloween without my niece and nephew. My house has been the place to be for Halloween for the past 3 years and I always have them over so they can trick or treat. I have had my moments of truly missing my family and California and Halloween was one of those times. I think I just realized that the holidays are coming and I won’t see any of them for it. Not only will I not see them but they are missing all of Clover’s firsts. They have already missed so much… I do like it here. Carl and I have a much better relationship. I am not stressed like I was. Our house is wonderful. But I do miss California. I miss my family most of all. I have spent my whole life having them right there and now they are not. It makes it hard but I know it will make me a stronger more independent person. Unfortunately, even though I know that in my head my heart does not believe it.

Anyways lets move on from my downer daisy mood. The weather is cooling off and not so humid so that is fantastic!! I truly hate the weather here! If it was less humid and cooler with a breeze like it is today it would not be so bad, but it seems that is not the norm for this place. We have started to get the snow birds back. Carl has had a few run ins with them and he has decided he hates old people hahaha! What a cheerful boy. I hope this cool weather lasts because Fort Myers is having the sand castle competition this weekend. I would love to go see it!! But we are at the mercy of the weather for miss Clover.