Friday, March 23, 2012

Birthday Preparation

I LOVE planning parties! Deciding on the theme, making the decorations, putting together a menu, but for me it is definately all about the decor. This just sets the stage! So, for Mira's first birthday I expect nothing but perfection. I have been gathering pictures of inspiration for months. Collecting recipes and putting together a checklist of things "To Do" and To Buy". It has all been organized in one neat birthday binder. I have gotten quite a bit of flack for this binder, but it's her first birthday and like I said it has to be perfect! So, make fun of me all you want, this is going to be the best birthday ever (until next year).

Here is just a little of what I have been doing...

the birthday girl's party hat-

the pinata-
and much, much more...

Sunday, March 11, 2012

pack and play

Today the pack and play came down.  As I started to disassemble it I became sentimental. This time last year I was getting ready to bring home baby. The house was spotless, bottles sanitized, crib is up, pack and play is ready and in mommy and daddy’s room. Now all we need is a baby.  So, as I started pulling it apart I have to admit it brought a tear to my eye. How could it be time for this? Granted she has been sleeping in her own room and in her own crib for months now, but removing it from our room just makes it seem so much more final. Her infancy is coming to an end…  Then I started to forget all of this and became EXTEMELY FRUSTRATED BECAUSE I COULD NOT GET THE DAMN THING TO PACK THE WAY THE DIRECTIONS SAYS IT DOES. SERIOUSLY, THERE IS NO POSSIBLE WAY THAT EVERY PIECE OF THIS THING PACKS INTO A PERFECT RECTANGLE. NOW I JUST WANT THIS THING AWAY!

Well,after an hour or two of struggling, sweating and throwing the piece that just doesn't fit,I think it's safe to say the pack and play won! But I finally got it packed...well most of it. A little furniture rearranging and our bedroom is starting to feel like it belongs to us again. Was our room always this big? It was hard taking it down and admitting she doesn't need it any more, but it feels pretty good claiming a room back.

Next it will be the exersaucer and the jump-a-roo. Then there will be no containing her!

Thursday, March 8, 2012

a year in review

I have been wanting to do this for quite some time now. From about the time I found out I was pregnant. You know so I could share all of the pain joys of pregnancy and labor. But life got real busy, real fast and on April 1, 2011 our lives changed forever. It has definately been one of the hardest but one of the greatest years of my life and I don't think I'm ready, nor do I think I want to do it all again, but(warning cliche ahead)she is pretty amazing and it really has all been worth it! So here it begins...my year in review.


the birth

It's March 31, 2011 and I am one day past my due date. Huge and uncomfortable, all I wanted was this baby out. So, I did what every normal pregnant person does, took the day off of work and walked on the treadmill all morning. I'm not sure if it actually worked or if it was just a coincidence, but I called Alin and told him I think this may be it. The contractions started getting more painful and closer together, but nothing too serious. I thought my water was leaking, so i called the doctor and she said to go to the hospital to get checked. I really didn't want to go to the hospital yet. I thought we were going to get there and they would just send me right home. So, we didn't call anyone to let them know what was going on. The last thing we wanted was a hospital full of frantic people, especially if we were just going to be sen right home. Our phones kept ringing off the hook. So, I'm pretty sure everyone was putting two and two together. We get the hospital and they wire me up. Not much was happening and then all of a sudden...yep, I think my water broke (phew, glad it happened at the hospital and not in my house or car!). The nurse confirmed it, we are having a baby real soon! This is when things started to get really painful. Alin said he went to the car to grab our overnight bag and when he came back I was having a nervous breakdown. Epidural please! Ahh much better. Now to get some sleep, yeah right. It's now 5 a.m. and I'm fully dilated. Time to call the family, we are going to start pushing. Or so we thought. I gave a few pushes but nothing happened so we waited a while longer. By this time the epidural started to wear off, so they gave me a little hit. But not too much I felt so over medicated as it was. So, yes I felt some of the contractions and a lot of pain. Finally after 2 1/2 hours of pushing she was finally here! The doctor confirmed, "it's a girl, and she is big". And on April 1, 2011 Mirabelle was born. Hence my blog...pretty little plum.

Mirabelle Jacqueline
8 lbs. 14 oz
April 1, 2011 @ 11:41 a.m.

our new life

The first two or three weeks were the hardest days of my life. Sleep deprived is putting it lightly. How about no sleep. Stressing about breast feeding. Constantly worrying about SIDS. Forgetting to eat. Taking a shower...what's that? This year has been all about baby. Baby needs to eat. Baby needs to sleep. Baby needs to be cuddled. Baby needs a diaper change. Baby needs a bath. And so on and so on and so on. Then it's all of the milestones. Baby rolled over. Baby is sitting up. Baby is eating solid foods. Baby is crawling. Baby is eating finger foods. Baby is pulling up. Baby is cruising. A spontaneous hop in the car is a distant memory. Now there is a checklist, although over time that list has greatly diminished and eventually it will no longer be. The thought of this is bittersweet. This just means she is one year older and one year closer to becoming the person she is meant to be. But it's also one year closer to her not "needing" me. I know that this is a long time away, but it's hard not to think about. So to sum this year up; it has been the hardest, most amazing, something I was completely prepared for yet not prepared at all for, indescribable years of my life.

This year I became a mom.

(p.s. this post was much better the first time I wrote it, but it got deleted! I think you still get the gist.)