Gobs and Gobs and Gobs of Snow.

Gobs and gobs of snow. It makes a girl warm in her heart, especially when it is the week of her first baby's first Christmas.

What is not so heartwarming is the fact that we are still stuck without a condo. My husband and I would give anything to be snuggled at home right now, our heat jacked up with a blanket over the pair of us, our little Gabriel snuggled into his own blanket in our arms, our Christmas tree twinkling with white lights and crimson decor, Mommy and Daddy chomping on pieces of freshly-made fudge and enjoying our snow-covered and enchanting woodland view.

But this is not yet possible, and so, in the meantime, we hope the snow stays just a few days more so that we may enjoy this scene, this winter wonderland moment with babe, in just a day or so more.

The condo should be painted today or tomorrow, allowing us to return tomorrow or Tuesday evening. Just in time to get our tree decorated in time. I still have many presents to wrap, and 1 or 2 to purchase!

Our little female cat, Sage, is returning home today from the Pet Hotel (my husband ventured out onto the awful roads to drop my sister off at work and get Sage home in my Mom's 4-wheel-drive-equipped vehicle). I am sure she will be happy to sit in our windows and chatter at squirrels again.

What's sweet about our current not-so-snuggly situation is that we are holed up with family, and that is certainly nice. If you are going to be snowed in for an evening(see the aftermath picture-- i.e. where is our bumper?-- at right), I sure don't mind playing Taboo with my 3 sisters and my parents.

And so, that is the way of the weekend... enjoying family, gazing outside, and longing for the moment the Christmas my husband and I dreamed of from the moment we knew were expecting truly begins.

Oh, and while I lament, we also would like for Gabe's behavior last night to never occur again. He screamed everytime he was put down in the pack and play, and would immediately stop crying when my husband picked him up. I nursed him when he seemed hungry and when it seemed just a little milk would make him drunk enough to sleep, but the longest he went down was one hour. On weekend nights (most Fridays and all Saturdays), my husband tends to Gabe's antics between feedings, and I felt awful knowing he was not getting any rest. And to be honest, what sound rest does a Mommy get while she is hearing her babe cry and her husband sigh anyway?

Mommy FAIL post coming very soon.

Sweet Love of Mommy Blogs,

What a sweet contest! Head over to babyrabies.com and enter to win a Dyson asap! Drawing is tomorrow.

Alas. Alack. A period.

I got my period.

Seriously?

No, Seriously??


I am exclusively breastfeeding, and I started the mini pill last week... and BOOM- period here, cramps and all. At least the cramps are minor compared to what I had prior to pregnancy, and I hope that continues. I was worried at first that getting my period after a week on the pill would be problematic, but I then discovered that because the progesterone-only pill does not regulate my cycle at all. So I guess it is good I can go along as usual with the little pill. It's good I am not pregnant, right? Yeah... (in a severely sarcastic tone) because I was worried about that.

But, Seriously?

No, SERIOUSLY??? I thought I was going to miss my period for months upon months with breastfeeding. Yes, I know that does not always happen, but still, I am lamenting.

Alas. Alack. A period.

Thank You, Nordstrom...

...for the Women's Lounge and Mother's Room at the Cherry Hill Mall in Cherry Hill, NJ. It made an evening of holiday shopping with me, my husband, and my son, as convenient as possible for a breastfeeding new mommy.



Southern New Jersey Moms, check this out in a youtube special from ByMomsForMoms here.

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And thanks, Target, for having huge carts that fit my baby's carrier safely in the back of it, as well as dressing rooms with super fat plastic benches that made feeding Gabe possible on a day of interview and shopping mayhem with my Mom.

For the record, it was really awesome watching Gabriel coo in awe as we strolled through the mall and walked through Target over the past few days. My little man is so much more alert, and he is soaking in the world. This was confirmed when he started talking to (my parents' -- we will not be in our condo until Sunday at least-- arrrgh) Christmas tree.

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In other news, Gabe changed his entire grumpy late afternoon attitude yesterday when his Daddy got home from work. He looked up when he heard his Dad's voice in the room, turned toward him, and immediately stopped crying. In his sudden quiet alertness, he shifted to small smiles, realizing his hero was in da house. It was awesome.

Christmas Sneak Peek

Well, Gabe is still a wee lad of under 2 months so I am not too worried about him seeing my blog and having his Christmas spoiled so I figured I would share with you his "Top 3 Gifts." To give you an idea of what my husband and I decided to do for the little man this Christmas, we decided to build his library with books, and Santa will be giving him some Dr. Seuss among other favorites. Santa is also stuffing his stocking with little must-haves-not-already-had such as MAM pacifier holders and some more of Gabe's favorite butt paste. We're not spending more than $100 this Christmas on him, and I think we came to a total around $80, which, for a newborn, seems just fine to me.

Gift #1. Sassy Me In The Mirror (Santa's "big" gift)

First of all, he needed something for his crib that can entertain him and stimulate his senses. I was pretty disgruntled with the cost of most crib "soothers," as they are called. For the money ($35-$70), a little light up aquarium with mini sparkly fishies seemed really lame. My Mom swears by mirrors for little ones; it makes sense-- babies can see themselves, smile, coo, and watch their little lips move in a mirror. Bonus: Sassy makes a mirror that doubles as a tummy-time toy... you can lean it on the ground for little one to explore his face, too!



Gift #2. from the Urban Babies Wear Black Series:
Urban Babies Wear Black
Eco Babies Wear Green
Foodie Babies Wear Bibs
(Mommy and Daddy's "big" gift)



The cutest damn board books you will ever read or discover. Hell, I would put them on my coffee table even if I didn't have a 7-week-old. The text is hilarious, clever, and adorable, but when paired with the books' satirically-cute illustrations, I would suffice to call the series "genius." I highly encourage you to find them and enjoy them for yourself. The series consists of the three my husband and I are giving Gabe, as well as a book about Rocker Babies, Jet Set Babies, Country Babies, and Winter Babies, etc.








Gift #3. Babylegs
Union Jack, Yellow Dots


So I caved and bought babylegs. For my baby BOY. Go ahead and say they are a waste of money because they can be homemade, but I got a buy one/get one/free shipping deal, and it seemed worth it to me. And for those that say these little leg warmers are not for little boys, let me just say this: Gabe is a BABY. He will look AWESOME.





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BONUS SHARE
Gift from Mom-Mom and Grandad
a.k.a. Gabe is already spoiled, and it's wonderful.

Evenflo Triple Fun Jungle ExerSaucer

Lucky guy. It starts as a playmat, converts to a stationary play seat with incredibly colorful and interesting jungle creatures, and then forms into some sort of curvy amusement station for toddlers. I can't wait to watch Gabe's bright eyes look up at the rainforest on Christmas day!

Feeling Ornamental

Gabriel's First Christmas Ornament is here! And we just love it.

I found it on Department 56's website, and it was sold out almost everywhere I looked, online or in stores. Luckily, Boscov's internet store had it in stock (and on sale), and it got here in time for Gabe's very first Christmas!

Here it is:


Full Price: $12.50 new

The Battle of the Bottle

In middle school, it was Battle of the Books. In high school, it was Battle of the Bands. Now, in mommy-land, it is the Battle of the Bottle.

"What does that mean?" you may ask, thinking I am simply blogging dreary-eyed and delirious. "Why would there be a battle over a bottle? Baby hungry - baby eat."

Not so simple with Gabriel, my (not so) little breastfed baby. Every single evening when he gets his single bottle feeding (of pumped breast milk), he is a fussy, crying mess. He whimpers as he sucks, milk drips FLOODS all over his chin and neck, and he seems to be losing more milk than he eats.

I hate it. It breaks my heart to hear or see his feeding time as a battle of burps, air bubbles, spit up, and tears. It makes me feel like I'm evil for scampering off to another room for a shower or even *gasp* out into the world at Target while he is having a hissy fit during a meal.

I suppose it is the curse of the breastfed baby. Well-nourished, well-protected, well-almost-everything, but not well-adjusted to bottle feeding. Part of me wants to skip it altogether (Who would not like to avoid pumping one's breast as if it were a cow's utter on a dairy farm?), but it seems to be a necessary evil for the following reasons:
A. If I get sick, etc.
B. If, in some crazy world, I actually leave Gabe for longer than 4 hours, like on a date with my husband
C. If I get a job
(I am currently interviewing for a make-your-own-hours part-time position with a nonprofit-- I would love this sort of job situation, and the money would be excellent to have) i

I do think part of the issue is the nipple/bottle itself. I've tried Avent, and we regularly use Medela, but the nipples are just too easy for Gabe.I have read great things about MAM bottles, and in tandem with the fact that Gabe exclusively uses MAM pacifiers, it makes sense to purchase some of them to try. I am probably going to get them tomorrow. (will update how they work for him.)

And I hope my concerns over the battle of the bottle do not give you an all too rosy idea of nursing. Gabe and I have had many battles at the breast, too, but they do not happen often, especially these days. Some days I have to battle myself to keep breastfeeding because it is simply exhausting, and on growth spurt days, it can be beyond demanding.

Still, we're going strong- I pump in the morning after his 6-7ish feeding and get 4-5 oz. for a daily bottle, and I pump circa the time he eats his bottle to get 3-5 oz. for freezing.



I will leave you with this:

We're still staying at my parents' right now, and my sisters and Dad had thought my Mom bought a new type of lemon water ice when I started putting my stash in the garage freezer. Teehee.

Welcome, Josie Brooklyn/ Adios Internet Negativity.

At 1 lb. 6 oz., the 19th Duggar baby arrived via emergency c-section on December 10, 2009. She and her Mama and the rest of the Duggar fam are in my prayers. Read the story here and here.

What kills me when I read the story beyond being concerned that the little baby was born at a mere 25 weeks-- almost a medical marvel for surviving her birth alone-- is that people are so cruel. The comments under the story on People, Us Weekly, etc. are condemning of the Duggars. And hear me out-- I understand when people disagree with their lifestyle choices, but here's the thing: A woman and her baby are in serious medical trouble (pre-eclampsia for Michelle and preterm birth for Josie). Regardless of different life views and philosophies, shouldn't people be hoping these people recover and live happy lives?

Prayers are needed right now. Save the nastiness for another time.

Soapbox time done.