I have news. I've been working very hard on a new website and I am very excited to say that it is finished!
It includes many of WatchMeGrowBaby's posts. And more. This website will soon be set to private. Please continue to follow and join me at
www.thatlizzygirl.com
We will have lots of fun there! I promise!!!
Friday, May 4, 2012
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Pigs Fly, Pigs Fly!
6:27 AM. I wake up rested. Really, really rested. ...Somethings amiss. Did I sleep through her calls? No. I remember every little shuffle and occassional coo that came out of the crib in the far corner of our room. She didn't call... hmm... wait, what!? She didn't call!
SHE DIDN'T CALL!
PENELOPE SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!!!!!!!
My heart races. I pull my blankets up to my chin and smash myself as deep into my mattress as I can get. It has happened. My lovely sweet pea sleeps the night. I just experienced the first 7 1/2 hours of steady sleep since April of 2011 (pregnancy insomnia). Can anything feel this great? My body feels like the down comforter that I'm snuggling into. Nothing could make me move from this spot. I pulled the comforter over my head. Time for more sleep!
But I was too excited. She slept through the night! She never cried... not once! I didn't have to get up, change her diaper, and sit on the sofa in the dark next to her crib trying to stay awake as I nursed my infant back to sleep. And then, after forcing myself to stay awake for half an hour, I didn't have to figure out how to get myself back to sleep. I'm a light sleeper. It's hard work to sleep.
But last night required no effort. No effort at all. My child slept! I slept! We all slept!!!!
I smiled, peaking out from under my comforter and watching the rain fall past my window. Here I was. A second time mom, excited that my child slept instead of worrying, as I did as a first time mom, that some horrible fate had fallen and something was wrong with her and that is why she slept through the night. A first time Mom would creep over and check on her child. But not a second time mom.
Us second time moms are confident that our child is sleeping and breathing. We bask in the feeling of sleeping through the night for the first time. Nothing could move me.
Except... well... I guess I haven't heard her move for a while. When was her last shuffle? 4am?
...worry...
No. She's fine. I'm staying here.
...heart tugging...
No. She's fine. I'm staying here. In this sweet warm bed.
...but what if...
No What Ifs!
...but...
FINE! I gently slide out from under my covers and tip toe on the hardwood floor across the room. I peak over her crib, finding her in her typical position of putting her one foot square mini blanket right on top of her face (she always has the things smothering her face). My heart skips a beat. I lower my hand and lightly rest it on her chest.
Breath.
I thank God.
Smile.
And creep back to bed. I pull the covers back up to my chin, close my eyes, and wait.
I may not be a first time mom anymore. Nope. I'm a second time Mom. But what did I just learn? It doesn't matter. I'm a Mom.
6:54. She coos the most rested coo in the world.
7:01. I want to wake my husband and tell him that pigs fly but then I remind myself that he is sick and has no voice to respond anyways.
7:03. Her coos are louder. I slide out of bed, throw on my black pair of yoga pants with red rusty clorox spots and stripes, and pluck Penelope from her crib.
No waking the husband. No waking the toddler.
It's just us this morning. These precious minutes of feeding, playing, and loving.
And caffeine. There's got to be caffeine.
When did you experience pigs flying? How long did it take your baby to sleep through the night? Evelyn was 9 weeks. Penelope was a long 4 months and 28 days. But I know I'm lucky. That's pretty darn good!
SHE DIDN'T CALL!
PENELOPE SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!!!!!!!
My heart races. I pull my blankets up to my chin and smash myself as deep into my mattress as I can get. It has happened. My lovely sweet pea sleeps the night. I just experienced the first 7 1/2 hours of steady sleep since April of 2011 (pregnancy insomnia). Can anything feel this great? My body feels like the down comforter that I'm snuggling into. Nothing could make me move from this spot. I pulled the comforter over my head. Time for more sleep!
But I was too excited. She slept through the night! She never cried... not once! I didn't have to get up, change her diaper, and sit on the sofa in the dark next to her crib trying to stay awake as I nursed my infant back to sleep. And then, after forcing myself to stay awake for half an hour, I didn't have to figure out how to get myself back to sleep. I'm a light sleeper. It's hard work to sleep.
But last night required no effort. No effort at all. My child slept! I slept! We all slept!!!!
I smiled, peaking out from under my comforter and watching the rain fall past my window. Here I was. A second time mom, excited that my child slept instead of worrying, as I did as a first time mom, that some horrible fate had fallen and something was wrong with her and that is why she slept through the night. A first time Mom would creep over and check on her child. But not a second time mom.
Us second time moms are confident that our child is sleeping and breathing. We bask in the feeling of sleeping through the night for the first time. Nothing could move me.
Except... well... I guess I haven't heard her move for a while. When was her last shuffle? 4am?
...worry...
No. She's fine. I'm staying here.
...heart tugging...
No. She's fine. I'm staying here. In this sweet warm bed.
...but what if...
No What Ifs!
...but...
FINE! I gently slide out from under my covers and tip toe on the hardwood floor across the room. I peak over her crib, finding her in her typical position of putting her one foot square mini blanket right on top of her face (she always has the things smothering her face). My heart skips a beat. I lower my hand and lightly rest it on her chest.
Breath.
I thank God.
Smile.
And creep back to bed. I pull the covers back up to my chin, close my eyes, and wait.
I may not be a first time mom anymore. Nope. I'm a second time Mom. But what did I just learn? It doesn't matter. I'm a Mom.
6:54. She coos the most rested coo in the world.
7:01. I want to wake my husband and tell him that pigs fly but then I remind myself that he is sick and has no voice to respond anyways.
7:03. Her coos are louder. I slide out of bed, throw on my black pair of yoga pants with red rusty clorox spots and stripes, and pluck Penelope from her crib.
No waking the husband. No waking the toddler.
It's just us this morning. These precious minutes of feeding, playing, and loving.
And caffeine. There's got to be caffeine.
When did you experience pigs flying? How long did it take your baby to sleep through the night? Evelyn was 9 weeks. Penelope was a long 4 months and 28 days. But I know I'm lucky. That's pretty darn good!
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Anne of Green Gables
Like many women, I am Anne from Anne of Green Gables. There is a place in my heart and soul that wants to experience this world in the lush descriptions and ways that Anne lived. Chasing cows through a meadow, reciting poetry in a rowboat on a creek, meeting your best friend at dark for a night forest adventure, stinging words spitting from your mouth, loving your first white lace dress, taming your tresses, being humbled in your craft, drinking tea with old ladies with funny porcelain dogs, giving into your heart and allowing yourself to love, listening to old captains tell tales of the sea, and finding your grace in motherhood.
I get these Anne moments and I just need to escape to a place of beauty. Today, I did.
At 7:30 in the morning, I put my 30mm lens on my Nikon D3100 and I ran out to my favorite spring tree. It is around the corner from our home and I love everything about it.
Now, I do not claim to be a professional photographer and I never will. In fact, I won't even claim to be a "photographer" because so rarely do I get to really spend time with my camera. But the moments I do have with it, I thoroughly enjoy.
How could you not with this beautiful tree in front of you?
The tree is good stuff. Fills up the Anne of Green Gables corner of my heart.
Where are your "Anne" places?
I get these Anne moments and I just need to escape to a place of beauty. Today, I did.
At 7:30 in the morning, I put my 30mm lens on my Nikon D3100 and I ran out to my favorite spring tree. It is around the corner from our home and I love everything about it.
Now, I do not claim to be a professional photographer and I never will. In fact, I won't even claim to be a "photographer" because so rarely do I get to really spend time with my camera. But the moments I do have with it, I thoroughly enjoy.
How could you not with this beautiful tree in front of you?
The tree is good stuff. Fills up the Anne of Green Gables corner of my heart.
Where are your "Anne" places?
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
My Weaver
Penelope is developing a lovely nature. She is very vocal when she is hungry or too tired. Very, very vocal. But, when her needs are met, she is just so content experiencing the little world around her. She smiles and studies her surroundings all the time. She waves her legs and arms around uncontrollably to try to get places and it is so, so funny.
She adores her older sister. She loves to touch Evelyn's hair and she actually gets quiet when Evelyn hugs her if she is sad. She watches Evelyn play. I can see the gears in her mind turning, "when I can move, I'm gonna ________." The day she learns how to crawl I am certain she will be busting into Evelyn's playroom and tearing through all of the toys.
She loves to cuddle and one of her favorite moments of the day is "massage" time. She gets a special full body massage before bed with wonderful lotion. She shrieks, coos, spits, blows bubbles, grabs, yanks, and turns in the lotion mess. It's that three minutes of life that is just so, so much fun!
I love my lovely Penelope dear. You make my heart sing!
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Who knew that at 26 I would still love to jump off the swings at the playground! Even though my feet were only about two feet off the ground (much taller now than in elementary school), I felt pretty cool.
Why?
Because Evelyn thought so. She made me swing and jump over and over again. We sat on the swings just giggling with one another. I was a star to her and that made me feel on top of the world. Well, either I was a star OR she was studying my moves so the next time we hit up the swing set she would try to do the same. ... oh dear... I hope not!
But you never do know with Evelyn. Like today, after being told she couldn't drink pop she promptly went into the other room where I kept hearing her smack her lips and say "Ahh" like she had just had a refreshing drink. And she did. ... I peaked around the corner and there was my girl dunking her face into the dog bowl. "Ahhh!" So refreshing! (p.s. this was AFTER I had given her a sippy cup of water that she was carrying with her at the time. So she wasn't just desperately thirsty. She was just being ... well... Evelyn!)
Anyways, here are two photos I took yesterday of Evelyn after a weekend of being a bit down in the dumps with a cold. A shot of our park adventure and her window drawing.
I did not grab a photo of her drinking the dogs water. Not that I'm above that. I'm not. I just didn't have an iPhone in hand at the time. And, honestly, I needed to get her immediately to timeout (a place that she has learned to love, which vexes us deeply. She even plants toys over there in the morning before she gets in trouble!). We really would love for our dog to experience a life where he can have water anytime and not just when the girls go to bed. Keep dreaming Lupin...Keep dreaming!
Why?
Because Evelyn thought so. She made me swing and jump over and over again. We sat on the swings just giggling with one another. I was a star to her and that made me feel on top of the world. Well, either I was a star OR she was studying my moves so the next time we hit up the swing set she would try to do the same. ... oh dear... I hope not!
But you never do know with Evelyn. Like today, after being told she couldn't drink pop she promptly went into the other room where I kept hearing her smack her lips and say "Ahh" like she had just had a refreshing drink. And she did. ... I peaked around the corner and there was my girl dunking her face into the dog bowl. "Ahhh!" So refreshing! (p.s. this was AFTER I had given her a sippy cup of water that she was carrying with her at the time. So she wasn't just desperately thirsty. She was just being ... well... Evelyn!)
Anyways, here are two photos I took yesterday of Evelyn after a weekend of being a bit down in the dumps with a cold. A shot of our park adventure and her window drawing.
I did not grab a photo of her drinking the dogs water. Not that I'm above that. I'm not. I just didn't have an iPhone in hand at the time. And, honestly, I needed to get her immediately to timeout (a place that she has learned to love, which vexes us deeply. She even plants toys over there in the morning before she gets in trouble!). We really would love for our dog to experience a life where he can have water anytime and not just when the girls go to bed. Keep dreaming Lupin...Keep dreaming!
What's in a name...
We frequently get asked why we chose Penelope as the name for, well... our Penelope.
Here are a few reasons why...
1) We feel it is a name with beauty, zest, and personality.
2) We love that the name means "weaver" and in Greek mythology Penelope is the wife of Oddyseus. Penelope was known to be a wise, clever, loyal and faithful woman because she devised tricks to delay suitors (one trick was weaving and then unraveling her work for 12 years) so she could wait for her love, Oddyseus to return. I just love her commitment, wit, and the power of her love.
3)We came across the nickname Penna while researching Penelope. It is basically an unknown name here in America and we just find it so beautiful and, since meeting our Penelope, we know that Penna fits her just perfectly. Also, Penelope is a name that is slowly "coming back" so we feel like giving her the nickname Penna separates her a bit from this trend.
As I've thought about why we chose the name Penelope, I've been struck by how powerful the process and decision of naming your children is.
These names we choose, will stay with our children forever. Even if they hate the name and change it, no matter what, deep down they always will be what we've named them. Think of Marilyn Monroe- she was always Norma Jeane Baker and desperately wanting someone to find the Norma Jeane inside of her... but that's another story. I've been a bit obsessed with Norma lately- We share the same birthday, you know? Anyways...Names are powerful. We can't shake them.
And, not only is Naming powerful it is a very holy process. In fact, it is exactly what God does. He creates and He names.
And we, as parents, are given the honor of mirroring this in naming our children.
One of my favorite questions I ask parents in the NICU is why/how they chose their child's name. You get a range of responses from "it's a family name" to "we didn't like any names so we created our own!" but there is always thought behind it. No one ever says "eh...we liked Jack." It's more like "we've always loved the name Jack. We feel it is a very powerful, sturdy name and it is also the name of my great uncle who was married 50 years and had 12 children...." and the reasons go on and on.
For instance, I am "Elizabeth" named after my lovely Grandmother Elizabeth, a woman who was so clever she fooled her son into thinking he didn't like alcohol because she watered down the whisky bottles he stole from his dad with gross black tea. (My father eventually did recover and carried around a 6 pack of beer in his Tuba.)
What does your name mean? Where does it come from? How did you decide on your kids names? What are your stories? I'd love to know!
Update: To view previous post on Evelyn's name click here.
Here are a few reasons why...
1) We feel it is a name with beauty, zest, and personality.
2) We love that the name means "weaver" and in Greek mythology Penelope is the wife of Oddyseus. Penelope was known to be a wise, clever, loyal and faithful woman because she devised tricks to delay suitors (one trick was weaving and then unraveling her work for 12 years) so she could wait for her love, Oddyseus to return. I just love her commitment, wit, and the power of her love.
3)We came across the nickname Penna while researching Penelope. It is basically an unknown name here in America and we just find it so beautiful and, since meeting our Penelope, we know that Penna fits her just perfectly. Also, Penelope is a name that is slowly "coming back" so we feel like giving her the nickname Penna separates her a bit from this trend.
As I've thought about why we chose the name Penelope, I've been struck by how powerful the process and decision of naming your children is.
These names we choose, will stay with our children forever. Even if they hate the name and change it, no matter what, deep down they always will be what we've named them. Think of Marilyn Monroe- she was always Norma Jeane Baker and desperately wanting someone to find the Norma Jeane inside of her... but that's another story. I've been a bit obsessed with Norma lately- We share the same birthday, you know? Anyways...Names are powerful. We can't shake them.
And, not only is Naming powerful it is a very holy process. In fact, it is exactly what God does. He creates and He names.
And we, as parents, are given the honor of mirroring this in naming our children.
One of my favorite questions I ask parents in the NICU is why/how they chose their child's name. You get a range of responses from "it's a family name" to "we didn't like any names so we created our own!" but there is always thought behind it. No one ever says "eh...we liked Jack." It's more like "we've always loved the name Jack. We feel it is a very powerful, sturdy name and it is also the name of my great uncle who was married 50 years and had 12 children...." and the reasons go on and on.
For instance, I am "Elizabeth" named after my lovely Grandmother Elizabeth, a woman who was so clever she fooled her son into thinking he didn't like alcohol because she watered down the whisky bottles he stole from his dad with gross black tea. (My father eventually did recover and carried around a 6 pack of beer in his Tuba.)
What does your name mean? Where does it come from? How did you decide on your kids names? What are your stories? I'd love to know!
Update: To view previous post on Evelyn's name click here.
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