E's First Month!

What a beautiful first month with sweet Eleanor. She’s here. She’s healthy and I feel so lucky. 

This month she has met family and friends. She  has had lazy days with me and her sister. She has nursed like a champion (since I got help and have used a nipple guard- that thing is life changing !) 

Of course she has been up several times through the night and some days are foggy for me but it is a happy kind of tired. I actually love our nights together. Zara gets jealous so I try not to gush over Eleanor while she’s around even though I really want to. Nighttime is our alone time and I can flip out over how cute and amazing she is without hurting feelings. My body hurts from the uncomfortable sleeping positions but my heart is full and content while I’m sleeping with her :) 

Eleanor loves to be held so it’s tough to get much done. Sitting still is a challenge for me- I cannot help but think of my chore list- so it’s good for me to learn to enjoy these moments. Baby therapy should be a thing. It helps my to be more present for sure. 

When Eleanor cries she gets red immediately so we are learning to do things with her in our arms. Jonas even vacuums and puts dishes away while holding her. 

E had to have 3 blood tests because her TSH levels were a little high. Her doctor had to determine whether or not she had a thyroid issue. After getting a scary letter from the state of KY and waiting for results- all is well and her TSH levels are normal.

E did not need a well visit this month but she is really growing so I’m not worried. She is filling out her 0-3 month clothes already- She poops/ pees all the time and seems satisfied from nursing. 

Oh my goodness we are slow to get ready everyday but I suppose there has not been a need to rush lately. 

Gosh, Eleanor is so great. I just love her squeaks and her crazy expressions. I wish this first month could have lasted longer or that I could live it again. It was the best of times.

Looking just like her Dad::

First bath::

When you have to take them both to the salon, you play in the courtyard::

Church dresses::

Doctor visits. Z loves the toy drawer::

Nurses tried to take blood from her tiny arm :(

I love to have her close::

Stylish changing pad::

E wearing one of my favorite outfits from Zara::

This buys me a little time to cook::

3&4 week photos::

Love you so much::

2019 NuLu Festival.

We love our weekends as a family of 4 especially when it includes meals from Café Classico and NuLu Fest. It is crazy that at last year's festival I was dreaming of being pregnant and now I brought my lovely baby. I even bought a shirt from the nursing tent (seen below) because I am loving feeding her so much!

Zara had the best time collecting candy from several booths, playing on the Tiny Titans obstacle course, painting on a canvas and dancing!

I sure do love this city that enriches our lives so much !

flutter fest 2019.

I was so excited for Flutter Fest at the Louisville Zoo! It is such a lovely event to celebrate monarchs and their migration and importance. I hope to someday travel to Mexico to see them all.
For now it was lovely to experience their release from the zoo with my family- it was very magical and emotional. Zara wore her butterfly wings, got her face painted & made some crafts. I am thankful to the passionate people in our community who share their knowledge and love for the earth.

Zara Update (3 to 3.5) !

This has been the time of parenting where I really have had to begin to be more thoughtful about what I am doing. Zara has been going through a lot expecting a new sister, going to school and having new expectations the older she gets (even though she is still just a little one). RIE parenting really resonates with me and the way I see children- that they are to be respected & heard but also understand where they are in their development & guide them. I adore Janet Lansbury, her book “No Bad Kids”, her blog and her podcast. She has taught me so much. I have really needed her in my parenting journey to learn and be comfortable with Zara’s emotions, to give her a routine and expectations, to give her room & to observe/ understand certain behaviors. I have a long way to go but I could just cry over my gratitude for my parenting mentors in 2019.

- She is not potty trained yet but she is working on it. She wears regular underwear often- she is almost there.
- Rules are tough for her and for me (I know kids need boundaries but in my heart I despise arbitrary rules so it is hard for me to wrap my head around sometimes.) We are both working on it.
- She still loves to act like a lion, act like she is trapped in a cage as a lion or pretend to be a "bad man" and put others in as jail (peers and her parents).
- Z had her first night away from Mom & Dad (we went to a concert in St. Louis) She was fine but I may never do it again. I could not sleep being so far from her.
- Poor Zara has had to deal with my pregnancy exhaustion so I have not been present in the same way as before. She is already noticing that change is coming. She get upset if we talk about her being a big sister and it makes her sad. There are moments of excitement but it is a scary change for a little one. Sometimes she calls herself Eleanor (her new sister's name) and she calls the new baby, "Boss Baby."
- Zara is obsessed with her Dad! She really loves him. He is also taking on more with Z because I have been so tired or because I am taking time for home projects (nesting is intense this time!)
- She finally had her first hair cut- a little trim. It felt like such a big day! She was a little freaked out but loved her fresh look :) We had a nice time & had brunch together after.
- We had our ups & downs at her soccer clinic. It exhausted her and she had a hard time following her coach because she wanted to do her own thing. Sometimes I was frustrated but she is a toddler & it is supposed to be fun. I just also want her to be a person who follows through- someone come tell me to chill out, haha.
- We don't watch Game of Thrones with Zara around but a couple times she woke up, saw the show and asked "is that a bad man show?" Anything that is for grown ups is called a "bad man show."
- Zara visited the funeral home a lot with me lately. We go in the mornings and open up before school. So she has been obsessed with death, yikes. She talks about it, makes up songs about it and always finds a time to say "he died" about someone in a show or real life.
- Z constantly requests I sing "La La Lu" from Lady & the Tramp. I think she likes to act like a little baby & she will definitely always be my baby girl!

nine years!

Our 9 year anniversary fell when Eleanor was one week old. We were a little too tired and distracted to care. But we still took our anniversary photo a few days later- we even got the kiddos in there this year::

2 week young Eleanor.

The past two weeks have been wonderful. We are obsessed with this little one.

She is so sweet. She looks like an old man sometimes, haha. She spends a lot of time nursing- one evening for 5 hours- she is really into cluster feeding these days. I spend a lot of time enjoying her crazy faces- especially the random smiles ! She is back up to her birth weight. Unfortunately she will have to have her tsh level checked for the third time (good vibes welcome!) She sleeps for 4 or 5 hours in the night but we are all sleeping in until about 8:30 and I feel like I will never be on a normal schedule again! Eleanor loves to be held close and like all kids ever, the car puts her to sleep. Zara is getting used to her but I will never get used to errands with two little ones!