Our Little Chatterbox

ok, so this was like, a month ago and i'm just getting it up here. being a mommy keeps you busy! enjoy!

Our munchkin is becoming a little chatterbox. And I LOVE it! She is so much fun to talk to, even if it is only baby babble. She can be excited, or serious, or playful, of any range of emotion and communicate that through her babble. She has intonations like in normal speech.

My little munchkin is so smart!

Post-Pregnancy Woes and Wonders

Having a baby changes your life-- well, duh. Anyone can tell you that, even if they don't have kids. I mean, one day you don't have a baby and the next you do. But I've discovered that after having a baby, there are things that change that don't necessarily have anything directly to do with that cute little bundle of joy. Here's my post-pregnancy woes and wonders.

Woes
1. stretch marks. they don't go away. they might fade and not look so bright, but it still leaves my skin feeling like a balloon formerly stuffed with pudding and now deflated and some pudding is still trapped inside. ugh!2. i've lost my abs. now, i've never been what people would call small, but i have to admit that i was quite proud of my "small" and FIRM abs. i mean, i could do 100 crunches or sit ups without breaking a sweat before i was preggers, and now i struggle to do a measly 10. and i've got a post-preggo gut. thanks, Heavenly Father for this humbling experience of losing my most prized feature of this wonderful body.










3. i thought my hips were huge before... boy, was i wrong. turns out, carrying and then pushing a baby out from between my hips made them even bigger.
4. i've lost all the baby weight and am a few pounds below my pre-preggy weight (this is NOT a woe!), and yet, all my clothes are too small. how does this happen???
5. my boobs can vary in size by over 1 cup size depending on time of day and how recently munchkin has eaten, and many times, i'm lopsided. especially in the morning when i feel like my left side is about to explode!
6. i'm losing hair... i loved my thicker hair while pregnant, and now i think i've lost enough to make myself a decent wig with my own hair.
7. you remember how when you're in high school and you think that everyone is always watching and judging you? but they're really not cuz everyone's too self-conscious and busy thinking the same thing that they don't really care about you. well, when you're a mom, suddenly, everyone and their dog is watching and judging you. perfect strangers in the baby section of a store can tell you how terrible a mother you are for letting your child have a binkie, buying less than the most expensive all-natural diapers, feeding your baby "evil" canned baby food "full of dangerous preservatives" instead of all-natural homemade baby food, and putting blue on a baby girl (because, of course we WANT to give her gender confusion and make everyone think she's a boy...?).

Wonders
1. I'm a mom. This seriously still amazes me everyday; i don't think it will ever cease to amaze me. This in itself is enough to balance out the above woes, but I'll continue.
2. I love someone that pukes on me on a daily basis. And occasionally poops or pees on me too; and then smiles about it.
3. I produce a 24 hr buffet for a baby. How awesome is it that my body was designed to feed my baby. I think it's pretty cool!
4. Breastfeeding and taking the mini-pill = no period! I love this!5. Watching my munchkin learn to do the simplest thing- like touch her feet to put them in her mouth, rolling over, laughing, smiling, and recognize her name.




6. Naomi sleeps through the night like an angel-- usually 10pm to 7 or 7:30am. I am probably the world's most spoiled mommy, because I can still get a full night's sleep almost every night!
7. Brad can and does change dirty diapers very often when he's home; even though he was adamantly opposed to it before munchkin was born. He's the best father and husband in the world!

A Grateful Heart is a Happy Heart

so, yesterday, munchkin was crying and i was getting a headache, and decided a nice walk outside would do us both some good. while out, i decided to go to the grocery store because we needed some milk and bread.

at the check out, the cashier-lady commented on how adorable she was. i mean, who can resist munchkin's cute little baby smiles? then she proceeds to tell me how much she would love to be able to stay home with her kids and just take care of them, and not have to work.
***now, i've been trying to find a a job all summer, so far, without success.***
and here's this kind woman here to remind me how awesome it is that i get to be a full-time mommy all day, everyday.

all i can reply is: "well, i'm very lucky right now. i get to do just that!"

I love my munchkin. I've decided that things will work out for the best. whether that means i get a job, or I get to stay home with munchkin. either one is good: a job means i can support out family; brad can take a full class load and quit his job (or at least cut back on hours); and we can move back east sooner. but staying at home with munchkin means: i get to see her everyday as she grows and develops SO FREAKIN" FAST and we don't have to leave her with a babysitter.

I love being a mommy, and I love my family. I'm so grateful I get to spend so much time with them. I'm happy!