Irrisistible Pics To Help Me Smile When I Go Back To Work

A Very Merry Birthday...

To my dad! I love this guy so much, and nothing was better than growing up under his influence!

From fencing to rock climbing, and hockey, this guy encouraged me to try all kinds of things and not to be afraid to try something at least once. He taught me how to think outside the box, and respect people and animals of all shapes and sizes. I am truly a better person because of him!



I love you poppy!

How Wonderful They Were, Day 4

*this dress was worn my my grandmother (as a blouse), my dad, me, and now Brylee!

The long, LONG nights....

Ok. So at this moment, after dealing with a child that decided not to sleep in the wee hours of the morning, this is not true. But I'm sure that when I look back on this years from now, I will smile fondly.

But no matter how tired I am right now though, rocking her to sleep with her tiny warm body against mine is a wonderful feeling. I'll still have to do this next week, and for several weeks after that, but I will probably be looking at the clock more than I did these last 8 weeks.

Before I went on maternity leave, I was curious as to why the time off was 6-8 weeks. But no matter what the reasons are, I am so glad to have that time (I loved the unexpected extra 2 weeks!) so that I could learn how to take care of my little one at all hours, as well as make sure that my other loved ones were taken care of.

I am so incredibly blessed to get to experience this, good and bad (just give me a nice healthy dose of caffeine to go with it!)

How Wonderful They Were, Day 3

Brylee is 8 weeks old today!!

And...she slept 6 hours between feedings last night!! I woke up Cary at 2:00 realizing this, and realizing that I didn't want her to go any longer without food. It was most likely because of our busy day yesterday, but still, our little girl is growing up so fast!

According to Babycenter.com:

Your baby can tell the difference between familiar voices and other sounds, and she's becoming a better listener. She can also show you that she's in tune with her environment. Notice how she looks to see where certain noises are coming from. An ongoing conversation (although seemingly one-sided) can help your baby develop her sense of place. She may even watch your mouth as you talk, fascinated by how it all works. You'll be amazed by her ability to communicate with a growing repertory of coos (musical, vowel-like sounds), smiles, and unique cries to express her different needs.

*On a side note: This morning I took her into the bathroom to look in the mirror. While she is fascinated with the lighting, she took a moment to look at the reflections of herself and me. My heart melted when she smiled the biggest, prettiest smile at us! I tried to get it on video a little later, but she got camera shy. Oh well, I'll try again later!

At Birth

One Week

2 Weeks

3 Weeks (she can wear clothes!)

4 Weeks

5 Weeks

6 Weeks

7 Weeks

8 Weeks!

How Wonderful They Were, Day 2

Lunches with the families.

It is normal for me to have lunches with Cary's parents every Wednesday, but while on maternity leave, it became a weekly meeting with my mom as well.

Today was the same, but slightly different. Okay, a LOT different. I had lunch with my mom and dad, and our friend Dawn at Palio's. But before going to the restaurant, I stopped inside mom's work to show off our little one.

Once T-ma saw her little grandbaby, she took off, showing her to all of her coworkers and loving on her.

After lunch, Cary and I went up to his work, where we were this time met by Oma, who also took her into her arms and went around showing everyone. Brylee got tired at one point and just zonked out...with no way to wake her up.

When I was driving home, I made the last minute decision to go ahead and go to my job. Why not? She was dressed adorably, and was nice and quiet. And it would allow 'us' time on our last Thursday and Friday together.

So off to my job I went, to surprise all of my co-workers. The funniest part about it was, there was a baby shower going on for one of my co-workers, whose girlfriend is expecting their first little girl soon.

It was great to see all of my friends again. I saw the ladies (and guy) who work on my row, and it actually felt good to be back there again. I made my way up and down the rows, and I think I saw everyone I was hoping to see, except for a couple, or make that 3...

It will still be hard to go back to work on Monday, but getting to see Penny, Lori, Nikitha, Brittani, Ramona, and Janell again will be awesome. And adult conversation (besides Cary and our parents!)--so much to catch up on! I can't wait to hear how everyone's holidays went, and how the scary year-end went as well.

So poor Brylee is exhausted. And that napping I told you I like to do? None of that for me today! But hopefully the rest of the week will be relaxing and more time to bond!


P.S.--If anyone didn't get to hold her that really wanted to, please let me know. I will be glad to give you the opportunity sometime!

How Wonderful They Were, Day 1

Naps!



So, today is the last Monday that I get to stay at home with Brylee. And this is when she is becoming so much fun!

I love to take naps. Before having Brylee, I would take on every Saturday, and fit one in any time I could. After having her, it became a little more difficult to settle down once I was tired and take a nap because I had to work with her schedule as well as everyone else's.

But I also discovered how absolutely wonderful it is to fall asleep with her laying on top of me. She falls asleep very quickly as well, and an hour or so later, I wake up refreshed and comforted in so many ways.

I used to look forward to our daily naps, but starting next week, I will not get to experience them again, at least not on the workdays. Part of me debated on trying to stay awake all day this week to get back into the swing of things, but I just enjoy them too much!

Brylee Milestones

She's almost 8 weeks old, and to me, growing too quickly! Here are some things she has accomplished so far. I don't know how typical these are for 7 1/2 week-olds, but we sure are proud!

• She holds her head up pretty well, and she has been doing so for a while
• She is starting to smile, and not just gassy ones either!
• She now wears newborn and 0-3 clothing, which was a feat after 3 weeks of Gerber Newborn onsies that sagged on her (she was just a touch too big for Preemies). The 0-3 clothing is still big, but she is so cute in them!
• She has slept 5 hours between feedings the last 2 nights. What a joy! At the same time, we are starting to get a better routine going at night, easier to get back to sleep.
• She looks around and takes in everything she sees. It is so fun to show her pictures and watch her gaze for a long time before she is ready for the next one.
• She was born at 5 lbs, 9 oz, and now weighs (according to a regular scale, not doctor scale) 8.4 lbs!
  

I love the bonding time I have had with her these last 7 1/2 weeks. This next one is going to be emotional as I think about how the return to work is so near. She has come so far in such a short time, and she will develop so much more, and I can't wait to come home from work and see her each night. Poor Cary, he has a lot of emotion to face the next few days!

By Popular Demand

More pictures of Brylee!

Saturday...In The Museum

Saturday my parents took Brylee for the day, and night. And as always, what a blessing! My grandparents and uncle came to visit her and she got some of the cutest clothing! I can't wait for the weather to get a little warmer so she can wear one outfit (wait--am I feeling ok? I just asked for WARMER WEATHER!?!?!)

Cary and I took advantage of the situation of course and spent the day in Ft. Worth checking out the new Ft. Worth Museum of Science and History. But first, lunch at a hole-in-the-wall fried chicken joint, Lisa's Chicken! (we survived, but ate different things, you know, just in case). The food really wasn't bad--pretty tasty!

The museum had just opened after renovations, so it was pretty busy. But there were so many rooms of activities for kids to do, and the parents were learning alongside. In one room there was the opportunity to build straw bridges, in another do spirographs and other gluing and concoctions.

Outside there was a water-work feature, where kids could shoot water, build dams, and just sit on a table that sprayed water down on them.

There was also a room that talked about the trolley car, another that had Native American clothing.

But my favorite room was the CSI exhibit, where you got to choose 1 of 3 cases, go and look at the crime scene, then walk around and try to figure out the clues and guess who the murderer was. If it wasn't so busy, I would have loved to have sat down and looked at the clues in more depth, but I felt like people were crowding me, so we gave up kinda quickly after looking at all of the sections briefly.

After checking out the entire museum, we went to the Omni Theater and checked out the Alps feature. This is the room that is the giant round dome and you feel like you are going to fall over. Then when the movie starts, you feel like you are flying around above buildings and mountains...always a trip!

When the film was over (they were also showing A Christmas Carol, but we didn't take the opportunity to see this), Cary and I drove to the square in Ft. Worth where we enjoyed a hamburger dinner from Jake's (they use poppy seeds to sprinkle on top of the hamburger bun!), and spent a little time walking the square, where they still had the Christmas tree and some decorations up), and then drove back to our home turf, where we decided to catch the next showing of Sherlock Holmes.

I'm not too familiar with Sherlock Holmes, except I know he's a detective, kind of crazy (per Cary), his friend Dr. Watson, and we saw a set in London. I really enjoyed this movie! Too bad we didn't see it before we checked out the CSI exhibit at the museum...I would have spent more time trying to figure out the who-done-it, even with all the pressure to move on quickly!

After this was over, Cary and I went home to a warm, cozy bed...I slept well after a busy day! And, of course, I was happy to see my baby and Chester again on Sunday.

Thank you again T-Ma and B-Pa for helping us enjoy each other and refreshing ourselves so that we can take better care of Brylee!

So Excited...

Look what Cary and I found this last weekend!

The Joys Of Buying Gifts For Dogs

So this is what Chester does with his new bed he got for Christmas...


At least he doesn't ignore it completely!