New Blog!

I obviously haven't updated this blog in a while!! I wanted to share with my faithful readers (all 4 of you :)) that I have started a new blog! That I promise to update more regularly. So for all the Kambak happenings visit www.swimmingsideways.com

I'm pretty excited about it!

Guess I'm going to be a once a quarter blogger!! Sheesh! Well, working full time, having a 7 month old and training for a half marathon has definitely kept us busy.

Claire is getting so big. She's sitting up, eating solid foods and can pretty much get anywhere she wants by rolling! She still hasn't figured out how to crawl, she's scooting a little but not getting very far. She prefers to roll :) Also, she has been teething for MONTHS now. I thought for sure we were going to have a little tooth sprouting up early, but now 4 months later still no teeth. There is one that is so close to cutting through, she is so protective of that little tooth, she will go to great lengths to put her tongue over it, wiggle, squirm, scream, whatever it takes to not let you look at that tooth. It is quiet comical.

Work has been crazy! I started back from maternity leave to a huge project that had me working late nights and weekends. Oh my, that would have been tough even if I hadn't just had a baby. I was exhausted. It has gotten a little better. I still feel like I am never completely caught up on the work I need to get done, but I just have to draw a line and not cross it. I cannot work on weekends, I cannot work late every night. I just can't. I have to have that balance. I need time to see my baby and connect with my husband! Man, it is hard to find that balance, but we're getting there. I will say I really have enjoyed being back at work. I enjoy seeing my friends and getting in midday workouts!

Speaking of working out. I have been training for our 1/2 marathon like crazy! It's just 2 weeks away. My longest run so far has been 11 miles. I thought I would go all the way up to 13, but I'm not sure....those runs take up so much time (well, I'm pretty dang slow so that doesn't help). I feel ready though, I'm pretty sure if I've already done 11 I can make it 2 more :) I've also been doing reformer pilates, which I love! I'm slowly getting back in shape and have hope I will get back to my pre-pregnancy weight!

Back to the grind!

Wow, can't believe my lack of blogging! Well, we have been quite busy and a lot has happened since my last post. In early December my grandpa passed away. This was so hard for our entire family. Although he was "up there" in age, it was a bit unexpected and difficult that it happened during the holidays. He actually had kept pretty active and didn't like being held back by his health and age. He decided to dig a ditch one day which got him sick and from there he went down hill fast, he passed away within a few days of that. I have peace knowing that he is in heaven able to dig his ditches, catch the biggest fishes in sea, chop down all the trees he wants (I'll never forget the time he came over and chopped down our apple tree...I don't know if my dad told him to or not all I remember is all of us kids and my mom trying to get his attention to stop over the loud sound of his chain saw! haha), and grow the best gardens ever! He is definitely missed! I will say I did enjoy how this time of grieving brought our family together a few extra times this holiday season. Claire and I even spent a night with my grandma, which we both so enjoyed!

I started back to work, it's been over 2 full weeks now! I was nervous, excited, and sad all at the same time. I really do love my job and love working for Nike, so I knew that I at least wanted to take a stab at this whole "working mom" thing. But I was also sad to not get to spend all my days with Claire anymore. I have so enjoyed my time at home, I loved being present for every little milestone. That I think will be the hardest part, missing something!! Colin's mom was in town my first week and a half back and was able to watch Claire at our place which really helped the transition. I was able to come home from work, play with Claire and pump at home. It helped that I started Claire on a pretty good schedule early on so she is somewhat predictable. We've now had a full week at the sitter's (our friend Michele's) and Claire has done great! She really is a happy, adaptable little thing! And she is still sleeping great, most nights around 10 hours. Oh so wonderful!

Pumping at work, really hasn't been that bad either. Since Nike is such a large company they really have great accomodations. And I'm actually amazed by how many fellow pumping moms there are here!! I am so glad I kept up the breastfeeding, coming home and being able to feed Claire after being away all day really helps us reconnect and has made the transition easier!

I am so excited for the new year! We are continuning with our small group at church and we have some new people this year, which is always fun. We used to host this at our place but since having Claire, we've moved the location to our good friend's Natalie and Jesus' house. We are starting a book together called "Experiencing God." I'm looking forward to reading it. Colin and I are wanting to limit TV time during the week, which should give us more time to read! Also, Claire gets glued to the TV when it's on...she will find a way to look at it, even if she has to bend over backwards...no joke. It's almost scary how much power that box has!!! We want to start limiting that now!

I'm also excited to get back into shape this year! I was hoping to have more time to do this during the day while at work, but I have been so busy getting caught up that the extra time has been almost nonexistant so far. And going after work is not an option for me. I need my Claire time :) My plan is to run a few times a week and do pilates a few times a week. One of my co-workers and I signed up for a few personal pilates sessions! I'm so excited!!! We did this free trial class on the reformer machines and it was great. I was sore for like a week. Can't wait to start!

Anyway, that's about all I can think to update you all on at this time :)

Life Update!

Claire and I both have caught a seasonal cold. Man is it sad to hear a little baby coughing up pheglm like an old man. The first night she had trouble sleeping and the entire next day she barely napped. But last night, I think from just utter exhaustion, she slept 9.5 hours straight!! And when she woke up I went in and turned her light on and she started smiling at me. CUTEST thing ever!! I'm hoping she keeps up the sleeping through the night, especially for when I go back to work.

I'm getting more and more sad about going back to work in just 4 weeks. That's right I only have 4 more weeks. I was thinking about how lucky I am that I have been able to take off as much work as I have though...some people only get 6 weeks or barely that! I can't even imagine. I have had a few days where I felt very unproductive and antsy to get back to working and interacting with adults...probably a good sign that I am slowly getting ready to go back. Also to prepare, I am going to practice having friends watch Claire while I run a few errands during the day. I also need to practice pumping while I'm away from her. I think once I've done that a few times it will make going back not as stressful. One of our friends from church will be watching her during the day. I can't say how grateful I am to have found someone I know and trust to watch her. I really didn't want to put her in a random daycare!

Breastfeeding problems seem like something of the past now. She's a little feeding champ. I'm always confident that she has gotten enough after a feeding and even if she hasn't I know she'll let me know the next time she's hungry! It's funny how much things change so quickly!

Last weekend Colin and I completed the Jingle Bell 5k run. It was fun. I didn't do too bad for just having had a baby! It definitely motivated me to keep going. So Colin and I signed up for the Portland Rock n'Roll Half marathon in May! This will really force me to run. Our original plan was to do it as a family, Colin pushing Claire in the Jogging stroller and all. But she apparently has to be at least 8 months for it to be safe to jog with her and she'll be just about 8 months for the run, but that won't give us anytime to train with her. So she'll most likely be cheering us on on the sidelines with grandma or grandpa or someone!

Last weekend we also got our tree and put up our Christmas decorations! I just LOVE this time of year. Looking forward to holiday parties and time with good friends and family!

so thankful!

Wow, so much to be thankful for this year! A happy healthy baby, who is a wonderful sleeper. A loving supportive family. Great friends. An awesome husband who is growing into an amazing father. And a loving mericful God who has blessed us well beyond what we deserve! I love this time of year. I am so grateful that I get to be home during the holidays with Claire! I'm looking forward to doing some holiday decorating and baking!

I made this wreath to pin up our holiday cards we recieve this year! Found the idea from Martha.

This is probably the worse time of year to try and lose prenancy weight! All the food and parties and the darkness makes it tough to have self control and to get to the gym!! Colin and I have worked out a schedule for each of us to get some gym time though when he gets off work. I have been running a little bit (in prep for the Jingle Bell run) and doing some weights. Even if I don't do a whole lot at the gym it's just nice to get out and have a little time by myself. Exercise is something that is important to both Colin and I, so we're trying to figure out how to make it all work!

Claire is such a content little thing. She is so happy just lying in her crib or on her changing table, it's so funny. Night time is the funniest (is that a word?), I feed her right before I go to bed and when I put her back down she talks to herself for at least a half an hour. It is really cute! She is really trying to communicate, she makes all sorts of little sounds in response to us talking to her. And she is smiling a ton, Colin swears that when I was gone she had her first giggles...I will believe it when I see it! haha. He also thinks she said her first word (genious baby!)...Colin was saying "hi" repeatedly to her and she let out a little sound that sounded just like "hi," we both looked at each other and could not stop laughing, I'm sure it was coincidence but still it was a little creepy!!

Last weekend we enjoyed a visit from Colin's mom. It was a short trip, but I think she still enjoyed being able to see Claire in person and how much she has grown!

Yep, every week is different. New last week... Mastitis...Oh man, is this painful!! For those of you not familiar, it is a breast infection. I had been having pain for maybe a week but it wasn't accompanied with any other symptoms so I didn't think much of it. The pain increased throughout the week, and then I had chills all night last Friday and I was really dizzy. I just thought I was really tired and I swore our heater was broken! I finally took my temperature the next morning and realized that I had a fever. So we went to urgent care and got some antibiotics. I'm feeling better now. Saturday I was so ready to throw in the towel and give up on breastfeeding, but then Sunday and everyday since Claire has really gotten into a rythmn!!! Feedings aren't taking an hour anymore. I was also still a little worried that she wasn't getting enough, so Colin borrowed a meat scale from a co-worker and she weighed 9 pounds 1 ounce last weekend!!! So she has gained even more than they recommend! yay!

Claire and I have such a good routine going now. I can really tell that it makes a HUGE difference. She sleeps amazingly at night when we stick to the routine during the day and when we don't she doesn't sleep quite as well. I read this great book called "On Becoming Babwise" that was recommended to me by several people and it is great. It's all about getting your baby on a schedule and helping them get great sleep. My only advice I will ever give to new moms is for them to realize that they are the mom and they don't have to take any advice from anyone. So this isn't advice I'm just going to share what has worked for us so far! One thing the book suggests is that you do a continuous eat/wake/sleep cycle throughout the day. This makes it so baby doesn't rely on being nursed to sleep. They also suggest that you don't give them any "sleep props" and let them cry it out so that they learn to fall asleep on their own. This way if they have to fall alseep somewhere new they won't have as much trouble with it. I will say this book does have controversy around it because many people don't believe in feeding your baby on a schedule or with letting newborns cry it out, but honestly I have to say it is totally working for us. Claire really only cries about 5 minutes before she is fast asleep and most babies need to cry a little to let off some energy before they can fall asleep anyway. And with the feeding on a schedule thing, the book recommends to get in full feedings, no little snacks here and there and naturally they fall into a 2.5-3 hour schedule anyway. And it's totally flexible. It just gives mom and baby some reassurance knowing what is coming next! For the first few weeks we had Claire sleeping in our room in a bassinette, but she makes little grunts and squeaks ALL night long! I wasn't getting ANY sleep, I also noticed that she slept great in her crib during the day so I finally transferred her there for night time sleep and we are all getting lots more sleep! I think it is really important that mom and baby get good sleep...a tired, worn out mom is no good!

With Claire taking naps in her crib I have more time to do things for me...like take showers :) and bake and do some little craft projects. I figured I should really take advantage of this time as stay at home mom and do some stay-at-home-momish stuff (instead of just watching hours of daytime TV). This week I made a necklace that I saw on pinterest and I started a fall wreath to hang on our door, I still need to buy a glue gun before I can finish it.

My mother in law bought me a cookbook called "Deceptively Delicious " that has all these fun recipes that add vegetable purees to them. It's basically hiding veggies to get your kids to eat more, but I totally need this to eat my veggies too! I made applesauce muffins that have a carrot puree and chocolate chip cookies that have carrot puree and chickpea puree. Um, so good. And it really wasn't that hard to make the purees. You can make a ton and freeze small amounts so you always have some to cook/bake with. I'm totally thinking about making some of my own baby food when that time comes...or start while I'm home and freeze for when that time comes! It's something you could spend one day a month doing (on a weekend) and have a ton of baby food for super cheap!

Yesterday I had my 6 week post-partum visit and I got the go ahead to resume regular exercise. I definitely need to start slow, I don't feel 100% yet and can't imagine just jumping right back into it. I have signed up for my first post-baby run though to give me a little motivation, the Jingle Bell Run 5k on Decemeber 2nd! So I will need to start running again soon so I don't die.

It seems everyday is so different from the last. Claire has been a bit more fussy at night, she's not the brand-new-sleeps-all-the-time-baby anymore! Two nights ago was probably the worst, she woke up several times hungry and then cried (loudly) when I put her down again. I got maybe 3 hours of sleep total that night. Oh man I thought for sure she must have been sick. But then last night was the best night we've had yet! She only woke up once to be fed, giving me a couple good 4 hour streches of sleep! I so needed that rest, thank you Jesus! And she is taking a good nap right now so I can actually sneak in a little blogging :) I love that she is getting more aware of her surroundings, she sits in her swing and stares out the window...I don't even have to turn the swing on. The breastfeeding has also gotten better. On Sunday we had another lactation appointment and I left more frustrated than ever. Every time we go we end up seeing a new person even when I specifically asked this time if I could see someone we had seen before, but when arrived it was someone different. It feels like we have to start over again with the whole story and we weren't getting any progressive help. Claire actually did get enough milk at this last appointment even though it felt like a bad feed. So I decided to be done with lactation consultants for a while and just try things on my own. This week I decided to go cold turkey with her and eliminate all bottles and just breastfeed (it takes about 45-50 minutes a feeding for me to be confident that she got enough though), even if she was fussy after, I just did not give her the bottle. And seriously I think it is working, she is getting better at it everyday and not fussing and acting like she wants a bottle after. What a difference a week makes. I prayed about this whole feeding thing and the Lord really showed me that I, as Claire's mother, can make the decisions on how we do things. I don't have to do exactly what the "experts" tell me too. I gotta go with my mom intuition sometimes and do what works for us! That has brought major relief, when trying to go with all the advice the lacation consultants, pediatrition, books I was reading, etc. were giving us it made me really stressed out and not confident in what I was doing.

I don't think I ever posted any final nursery pictures so here are a few...it actually isn't totally done...the book shelf still needs work. We'll see if it ever gets done!