Bathroom antics and privacy

Okay so I know you don't want to hear about my personal bathroom habits so I won't disgust you with those. :-)

What I will say is that privacy is an issue around here. Think studio apartment, but smaller. Upstairs is a one room bedroom with a bathroom. Downstairs is accessed by the outside deck and is a kitchen, bathroom, laundry room. Obviously, we live upstairs. So, bathroom use is, since we had the baby, always done with the door open (to be able to hear her cry, so she can see us, etc.) The only time I'm able to have privacy is if she's sleeping and D is gone. Otherwise, no privacy. It wears on a person.

So, that's all for the subject post. As an update, we took Bucket in for her 9 month checkup. She only had to get one shot thankfully. Unfortunately, she was very sleepy and had only been able to nap for about 5min. before the nurse came in with the shot. Although, after the appt., her grandmother (Giggy) and I went to IHOP for lunch and she did awesome. She did sleep for two hours after we got home, though.

BTW, her stats at her appointment were: Length - 26in. Weight - 17lb. 7oz. Head Circumference - 18 in.

They said she was a bit underweight for her age/size, but she's been a lot more active lately so they weren't too surprised. She's not technically crawling yet, but she scoots backwards on her belly. She does crawl some on the bed, but she also pulls herself into a standing position (using her daddy and I) on the bed.

I still can't believe she's almost a year old. Just three more months. It seems only yesterday that I was cradling her in my arms to put her to sleep. Now, I've got to lay down with her in our bed. Yes, she co-sleeps with us and I know a lot of people have issues with that, but screw it. I love it. I love being able to cuddle my baby while I sleep. I love waking up to her head in the crook of my elbow and her legs thrown over my arm. When she fusses, all I've got to do is roll over, plop her paci in her mouth, and cuddle her...as opposed to getting out of bed (to walk across the room to her crib [yes she has one]) and stay there until she falls back asleep, hopefully.

In other news...she's eating very well. While, like I said, she was a bit underweight, she loves all her foods that she's tried. Peas, green beans, squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, peaches, apple sauce, pears, and bananas. Obviously, she likes the fruits the best, but she still likes the veggies, which is awesome as we're a heavy veggie eating family. We just recently started her on veggie/meat mixtures and, while she's not sure about them, she still likes to eat them.\

As far as a sippy cup goes...she's not quite ready for it yet. We're trying, but she seems to like and do better with an actual cup...kinda like she tries to crawl, but likes standing and us helping her walk around better. I think she might be a bit advanced for her age. :-)

Well...that's about it on her. She's a healthy happy baby...the pediatrician said so (like I needed her to tell me that).

Anywho...I think, most days, I love being a mom! :-)

Has it really only been two months?

I've started calling the little critter "Bucket" for whatever reason. Y'know, like bucket 'o' cute...bucket 'o' love...bucket 'o' chub, etc. It just stuck.

So, Bucket is now two months old. Maybe it's the lack of sleep, but it seems like it's been a whole helluva lot longer. Unfortunately, Bucket is going through a phase of sleeping most of the day and being awake most of the night. From about 3am until 7 or 8am she's quite bright eyed and bushy tailed. It could always be worse, though. At least for the most part she's in a good mood and rarely does anything beyond mild fussing.

She's been grabbing at things for a while now, although she's still quite uncoordinated. She's also babbling up a storm. It's fun talking to her and she tries so hard to answer back...I swear she understands what's being said to her and that she's supposed to respond. No laughing as of yet, but I have a feeling we're getting close. I tell you, the best feeling in the world is when she lays eyes on either D or I and gives us her wide, gummy grin. :-))

There was a while, th0ugh, when that wasn't the case. Early on, say within the first month, she would get aweful, painful gas. She would wail for at least an hour straight almost every night and sometimes during the day. When we took her for her one month well visit, the doctor told us about Mylicon drops. I tell you, they have been our saviour. What it does is break up the big gas bubbles into smaller, easier to expel bubbles. TMI? It's rare now that she cries due to gas build up.

In other news, thanks to some lovely medication, my post partum crap is under much better control. D hasn't had a crying conversation with me in over two weeks and I've been able to handle the stress a lot better. It also has helped that I'm more accepting of help from other people. I went into this whole parenting thing feeling like I should be able to take care of her and everything else (dishes, cleaning, laundry...), but all that on top of not getting much sleep was so extremely draining. Then, D got a contract position back at one of the companies he used to work for so, not only is he gone most of the day during the week, but I've had to completely take over the night shift. I was, I think, literally losing my mind. But, like I said, being on medication and accepting help from D's mom and letting her take Bucket while I catch a nap and get some other things done has been a lifesaver. I'm also able to enjoy her more.

So, all in all a slightly stressful, but great two months so far.