Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness

One of the worst things one can experience is the loss of a child. It doesn't matter if that child was 5 weeks along in pregnancy or 15 years old-it hurts no matter when it happens. The ache is different, but it's still there. I remember the crushing feeling when we learned Emerson no longer had a heartbeat. That feeling will never go away. It has certainly faded, but has not disappeared. I never thought that losing Emerson would bring any good, but I have learned otherwise.

Recently I was connected with a young woman who lost her child halfway through the pregnancy. While I am no professional I was able to offer a few things that helped us as we grieved and healed. This past week at Bible Study Fellowship I got to talking to another young mom in my group and found out she too had lost a little girl in early 2013. We were able to share our experiences and offer each other help two years later. And then just yesterday a woman posted in a local Facebook group that her friend just found out she lost her baby halfway through her pregnancy and was seeking advice on how to help her. I was able to reach out and offer some suggestions on what helped us.

We cannot forget the children we have lost. We cannot pretend they didn't exist and we didn't love them. We cannot erase them from our lives. We must remember these precious loves and celebrate the time we had with them. October is Infant Loss Awareness Month, but the big feelings that come along with this cannot be squeezed into one short month. We must remember all year around. So, next time you hear of someone who lost their littlest love don't brush it off, remember that precious gift and the impact he or she already had in their parents' lives.

If you have lost a baby prematurely, or know someone who has, PLEASE let me know. I would love to connect with them, pray for them, and offer whatever support I can. 

Little Things

Have you ever watched a little one explore? I mean really watched? One of the amazing joys of being able to stay home with Amelia Grace full time is I have plenty of chances to watch this little love explore the world around her and I love every second of it. From watching her feed herself for the first time to picking up piles of mulch and moving it around the playground (her current favorite activity), I have been so fortunate to experience these new things with her. The best part is her over the moon joy and excitement! 

We take for granted so much of what we see and do every day. Littles don't. Give us a pile of pine straw and we just sit and stare at it. Give it to a toddler and they can find all sorts of things to be excited about. Have you ever given a baby the sample cups Trader Joe's gives out with their coffee? Did you know they can be used as hats, music makers, and chew toys? When we went to Florida earlier this summer we didn't bring any toys with us; she entertained herself with coasters and old magazines. 

If only we could take the simple things in life and truly appreciate them too. The ability to feed ourselves a blueberry and not miss our mouths. Or moving a handful of crayons from one hand to the other. Or even the fact that we can comb our own hair! All of these tasks seem so menial, but are so exciting when first experienced and truly appreciated.

I am so thankful for all that I am able to do, but I'm even more thankful for being able to experience it all over again with her! 

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

-Matthew 19:14

A few of our favorite things. . . 6-12 months

A few months ago (6 months to be exact;-) ) I put together a list of some of our favorite things for parenting Amelia Grace from birth to six months. There are SO many lists out there suggesting what to buy to help you parent and even more products to choose from so I narrowed it down again for the next six months! Here are a few of our favorite things. . .

Jog Stroller

We were gifted with this AMAZING tool and we couldn't be more thankful. We use it at least once a day, but most days even more. This thing has gone to the beach, walked to grocery stores, strolled to Starbucks, and helped us explore our new digs. If you are at all active, I highly suggest adding this to your list of must-haves!

High Chair

I fought this for a while. I thought we'd be just fine with a little booster we could just strap to a chair and call it a day. Not so much. We ended up going with the Graco Dubliner 3-in-1 high chair and couldn't be happier. It allows us to have a highchair AND a booster to strap to a chair all in one. Definitely a win!

"Stand Up Thing"

I know there is a better name for it, but that's what it was referred in the Mobley house. She spent hours in this thing. First it was just standing and staring, then it was twisting and turning, and finally it was jumping and screaming. She loves this thing and I loved that it kept her trapped entertained.

Bath Seat

This little gem became so helpful as she started to sit up and become more active. We were able to have her sit unassisted in the tub as we cleaned her. Super helpful! 

"Eating Jacket"

This too has a fancier name, but we just referred to it as the "eating jacket". These were wonderful when she was first navigating the waters of food introduction. They helped save quite a few outfits there at the beginning!

January Baby Dates

Martin Luther King Jr. did a lot of awesome things for our nation and we are incredibly grateful for how hard he worked to push our nation towards equality. But there are few people more thankful than public school teachers. Why, you may ask, are teachers so grateful? Because the celebration of his accomplishments often leads to a much-needed day off from school ;-) All jokes aside, Dr. King was an impressive man whom we really are thankful for!

On this particular day off from school we were able to gather the little babies at our house for a few hours of "play", which really means chit chat for the mommas. The babes are starting to interact much more than they ever have before and we all can't wait until they actually play with each other!

Of course everyone wanted the same toys that made all the noises 

I know my hand tastes good, but how does yours taste?

Just chill in. . . 

 We forgot to take the picture before Adah had to head out, but Braylen and Amelia Grace cooperated for us;-)

Sadly we were missing one-fourth of our quartet this time around as Cohen battles some nasty viral bugs. We're hoping and praying this is the last of it for him and he can finally get some relief from all these germs!

I don't know who's more excited about their next break from school, us or them??

A few of our favorite things. . . . Birth-6 months

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

While those things are all wonderful, that's not what we're talking about here today. We're talking about baby gear, specifically the ones that get you from birth to the six month range. 

If you search the internet for what you need for a baby, you're going to be so inundated with information you may end up entering "shut down" mode like I did. I literally had to shut the laptop lid before I shut down from being so overwhelmed. There is SO much information out there! Most new parents end up registering for all this new stuff, and then a week or so in realize they don't half of it. Or, realize they need completely different stuff. Fun times, right? Not that we're professionals at this AT ALL, but I have been pondering the few items that really helped us the first few months. Without further adieu, a few of our favorite things. . .

 As you can see she spends a lot of time in the swing

Swing

Baby girl loves her some swing time! When she was fresh she would sleep in it pretty regularly (gotta love reflux!), but nowadays she just hangs out in it and "talks" to the baby in the mirror;-) We have the Fisher Price "Snug-a-Puppy" and couldn't be happier. It rotates in three different directions so we can turn her based on her preference as well as adjust the speed and music options. 

Playing is tough work

Play Mat

This thing is wonderful! She spends a good 30-45 minutes playing on it every morning. She lays there are gabs with the toys dangling while also trying to grab them and pull. I'm going to be so sad when she finally bores of this because it buys me time every morning to get going on the day! Bonus points for being able to fold up nice and easy.

Noise Machine 

Poor kid was in trouble from day 1 since neither of her parents can fall asleep without this either! It's nice to have when the dog barks or if we have people over in the evenings. There is never any worry about whether she'll wake up or not. I know it'll be a tough habit to break later, but today we're loving it!

Ignore her cranky face, she loves that thing!

Glider

No matter who your kid is and what their personal preference is, they're going to need to be rocked. A LOT. And a good glider is going to make those long nights of rocking a lot easier. Ours was gifted to us by my aunt after her kiddos outgrew it and we couldn't be happier. David has even asked a time or two if we can put it in front of the TV in the den!

Angelcare Monitor
Y'all this thing is wonderful. It has given me so much peace knowing that an obnoxious alarm would go off if she stopped moving after 15 seconds. SO.MUCH.PEACE.

Nose Frida
A lot of people have heard of it and are totally grossed out. Then they have a super sick/congested baby and give it a try. They are then fans for life. At least that's how it worked in our house. Baby girl had her first cold and this momma's heart was breaking in a million pieces-I was willing to try anything! Even sucking my child's boogers out through a tube. . . The first few times she wasn't into it, but now she just accepts it as a part of life. #parentingwin

I'm sure I'm forgetting some items, but these are a few of our definite favorites. What are your favorites??

Baby Date

About a month or so ago I posted about a little get together I and with some of my old teaching friends. What made this even more special was the addition of all of our babies! The ladies had a couple teacher workdays last week so we took advantage of the down-time after school hours and had another baby date! It was so much fun to get together and not only catch up on our lives (isn't that what playdates are really all about anyway??;-) ), but to also see the babies really interacting!

They have all grown so much in such a short amount of time. You always hear how fast they grow, but you have no idea until it's your little doing the growing! We managed to snag a few pictures of them being precious:

Amelia Grace (3mo), Adah (7mo), Braylen (5mo), Cohen (6mo)

I just love every bit of this picture!

Amelia Grace was trying her darndest to hold her head up like her friends!

PS-Please not Braylen blending into the blanket, haha. 

A little blurry, but I still love. Thanks, Brittany!

I wish we could meet more often, but it makes the dates even more special:-) 

Oh, To Be a Baby. . .

Babies have the life! If only they could truly appreciate all the awesomeness that is being a precious little smash. Here are a few things that come to mind. . .

Being rocked to sleep

Who wouldn't love being rocked to sleep on a regular basis?

On that same note, being ENCOURAGED to sleep

I can't remember the last time I was actively encouraged to sleep. Probably since I was a baby!

Gaining weight = a good thing

I want someone to praise me for gaining weight and for all the rolls on my legs. Bonus points for requiring bigger clothes!

Constant entertainment

It only requires a bit of crying and fussiness before someone is fawning all over trying to entertain you.

Never having to worry about anything

Why worry, someone else is doing all of that for you!

Constant supply of food

It's the same deal as the entertainment-you need only mew and someone is there with pure yumminess. 

That smile makes me think she realizes her power;-)

Lesson Learned

There are a lot of things I miss about being at school and teaching, but one of the things I miss the most is seeing my school family. Y'all, these people are amazing. You need a hug? Their arms are wide open. Advice? They've got a story. A laugh? They have a million to share! Seriously, I miss these people. A few Fridays ago Amelia Grace and I got to hang out with some of them!

Remember this picture?

Well, here we are now!

It's so wonderful sharing stories of our little loves and the chance to see them grow up together:-)

BUT, before we even made it to this wonderful playdate we stopped by the school to visit with a few others. A sweet friend of mine was holding AG while we were all just catching up when I noticed the tell-tale yellow on her dress. Mommas know what I'm talking about. That lovely mustard yellow that signals a poop explosion. Awesome. 

I quickly grabbed AG away from Teri in hopes that she didn't spread the wealth. Luckily she hadn't! Not so luckily was the fact that I didn't have a spare outfit. Little miss had used that one the weekend before when we were in Winston Salem and I had forgotten to replace it. Well, I was not about to let this spoil our coffee date, so what's a girl to do? Put your baby (clad only in her diaper, mind you) and race over to Walmart to pick something up. Mother of the year right here, folks. She was not the least bit fazed and fit right in with the other kooks at the Wally World;-)

Needless to say there are now TWO spare outfits in the diaper bag. 

Lesson learned.

Motherhood is. . .

I know I'm new to this game, but a few of my thoughts thus far on what motherhood is. . .

. . . getting all your daily steps in walking up and down the hallway to a fussy baby who refuses to sleep.

. . . learning after one poop explosion you always have an extra outfit with you.

Story to come

. . . prepping supper HOURS beforehand because that's the only time your arms will be empty all day.

. . . letting your baby sleep in the carrier no matter how many times you said you would never do that because that's the only place the baby would sleep that day.

. . . sleeping on the floor next to the crib because you would rather get a few extra seconds of sleep on the floor than waste time walking down the hallway and letting the baby get more worked up.

. . . giving the baby a pacy after a week despite pledging that your baby wouldn't have a pacy until she was at least 6 weeks old. Hmph.

. . . deleting all the other pictures on your phone to make room for a million different pictures of the same thing.

. . . thinking about every day down.to.the.minute. in an effort to maximize naps and happy baby time.

And my personal favorite realization

. . . rocking your baby long after they fall asleep because you just love the baby snuggles.

I love motherhood:-)

An Explosion

Having a newborn means lots of flexibility and little routine. One routine we have gotten in to is baths a few times a week. She's not a full convert yet, but we're getting there. She only screams through part of it now, not the entire thing. We'll take it!

Monday evening after about an hour of screaming (stupid, reflux!) she finally calmed down. We decided to try our luck and wash out some of the spit up that had gotten caked in her neck folds and hair. I started running the bath while David undressed her. They came in before I finished filling the baby tub and were looking in the mirror. The next thing I know David is yelling and I turn to see this:

Yep, that's definitely poop in our sink. Homegirl just let it rip all over Daddy and the bathroom. I about died I was laughing so hard. Last week she peed all over him, but that was nothing compared to this! Needless to say the bathroom is in for a deep disinfectant cleaning.