A Parker in a Box

Why give the kid fancy toys when he can entertain himself with a box?

Ways I've Used Oils in the Past Week

So I'm one week into my essential oil journey and we've already used them a ton!

• Grapefruit oil in my water:  I was doing this before I got my big box of oils.  A drop of grapefruit in my (glass) water bottle.  It's supposed to curb cravings plus it's vitamin C.
• Cleaning spray:  Water, vinegar and lemon oil makes me a happy cleaner.  If you know me, you know I hate cleaner, but I whipped up this concoction and have actually been using it!  Because the bottles aren't an eye sore, I can leave them in plain site, and so I actually grab them and spray down counter tops when the mood strikes!
• Diffusing lavender: My headache and cramps went away.  Coincidence?  Maybe.  But I choose to think it was the lavender.
• Cleaned my veggies with a fruit and veggie spray
• Made lavender rollers to help me sleep
• Made lavender spray to freshen the air and spray in Parker's room to help him sleep
• Used germ spray on my toilet after rinsing a stinky diaper
• Used antibacterial spray after changing above stinky diaper
• Rubbed fennel and coconut oil onto my belly for digestion/acid reflux - and it actually seemed to help! I was sceptical too!
• I've also made made congestion roller bottles and immune boost roller bottles as well as tub and toilet scrub.  And I'm excited to get using all of them!  There are way more roller bottle recipes that I was interested in, but I'm supposed to avoid peppermint as I'm still nursing and a lot of them included peppermint.

Plus how pretty are those bottles...

Look What I Can Do

Somebody pulled himself up in his crib.  

Somebody else is pretty happy that she finally got around to moving his crib down a level before this happened.

Just Letting Loose After Birthing

A friend told my sister that he didn't know I liked the Jays.  She told him that I've been loving them during the postseason and get really into the game.  

His response?

"That's good though, gives her a let loose from birthing."

You know that birthing babies thing, it gets us real wound up...

Unfortunately the Jays were eliminated on Friday night so I will have to find a new way to let loose I guess.

Parker at 9 Months

Parker turned 9 months old yesterday!  Every month I'm shocked that he's a month older, like I've completely forgotten how time works...

Weight: 12lbs 13oz  Ya, I was disappointed too.  I swore he had gained weight in the past couple weeks, but nope.  The doctor says he's doing great developmentally and is even a bit advanced in some areas, which is nice to hear.  But of course as a mama, in a world where babies are massive and weight gain is the primary concern I get worried.  I wonder if I'm doing the right thing, if he needs more solids, if he should be getting formula....  But at the end of the day he's happy and healthy and that's what counts. 

Height: 25 inches

Feeding:  Parker probably nurses about 6 times a day and over the last month he has also been waking for a night feeding usually between 1:30-3:30.  The past few nights he has slept through so I'm hoping we are over that little hump.  But it might also be the reason for weight gain, so that's ok.

He eats 2-3 solid meals per day (or 1 on a bad day when I'm out and forget about it).  I'm trying to get him used to 3 meals a day, but since he's pretty messy I don't want the aggravation if we are out in public, or sometimes I will go somewhere and forget to bring him food.  He typically eats yogurt mixed with fruit for breakfast, some sort of vegetable for lunch and chicken mixed with veggies for dinner.  New foods this month are potatoes, asparagus, yogurt and chicken.

Sleeping: He typically naps twice a day, around 10am for anywhere from 1 hour to 2 hours and then again between 2-4 depending on when he actually when down in the morning and how long he slept for.  I try to get him to bed a bit earlier now because I think he needs it, but it's still between 9 and 10:30 typically when he gets to bed.  Sometimes he wakes up for a night feed but then typically still sleeps in until 8-8:30 unless I get him up earlier if we have somewhere to go.

Likes:  Swimming.  He likes to sit in his boat while I'm doing my diaper fit class but as soon as we go to the warm pool he gets a big grin on his face like he knows it's fun time for him!  He doesn't mind being dunked either.

Still loving the bath.  Gerald the Giraffe.  Being naked.  

Dislikes: Mom dislikes diaper changes.  Thank goodness he's tiny because I have to hold him down while I'm changing his diaper so that he doesn't roll over.  He still gets a few good rolls in during every change.

Milestones:
In the past few days he has started pulling him self up off a seated position either to grab something off the poof in his bedroom or to look into a box that I have sitting in the office.  

He often looks like he's going to flip onto his knees to crawl, but he usually topples over when he tries.

He rolls across the floor to get places and sometimes I think he will never learn to crawl.

This Month: We had our first real battles with sickness this month.  First he got a fever and some sort of bug that had him throwing up mass quantities of fluid.  This is bad for any parent, but for a parent of a tiny baby who can't afford to loose weight I hated it.  He lost an ounce over 5 days.  Once that was over he got a viral rash, it didn't bother him but it looked awful.  Then a few days later we all got colds.  Parker was very congested and kept his runny nose and a bit of a cough for a few weeks.  He threw up a few more times during the cold from coughing.  The time he threw up all over his crib and me at 2am, that was fun... But we all made it through!  Babes get sick, that's life!

Why are you wearing a life preserver?

Today is the day that Marty McFly comes to the future.  So in honour of that, Parker put on his back to the future vest.  It's a bit small on him now so right after I took this picture he toppled over...

The Back to the Future trilogy are probably my favourite movies of all time.  That's why I married Ryan, because he owned the trilogy on DVD.  Ok so there were other reasons that I married him too, but that was a huge bonus!  I have watched those DVDs so many times! (And might have to watch at least one of them today if I can fit it in around activities and the Jays game.)

I've heard that some of the things that Back to the Future predicted do exist.  I think that Nike has made the self tightening shoes, there may be a hover board out there, the glasses are like google glass.... But overall, the things that they thought were prevalent in the year 2015 aren't really everywhere.  But technology sure has changed since the 80's and they seemed to know that there would be big changes!

Ok Parker and I have to get going now, things to do, places to be....Where we're going, we don't need roads.

Oil Delivery Day

It started with cloth diapering, then I started making my own baby food.  Now I'm jumping on the essential oils bandwagon.

He's excited too!

Today I received my first order of Young Living essential oils and I'm really excited about it!  I must admit, I was a bit hesitant at first.  I went to an oils 101 session and although they sounded amazing, I was afraid to spend a bunch of money and then never use them.  I was also nervous about the education aspect.  I wanted to do my research first and make sure that everything I was told was true.  The research will definitely be ongoing as I figure out what is right and safe for my family.

But here we are, with a starter pack of 11 oils and a diffuser and I'm ready to jump in.  What really pushed me to do this was Parker.  It's funny once you have a baby you look at things differently.  Even while I was pregnant, every time I cleaned with cleaning products, I wondered how safe they were.  I think that Parker, and my family can benefit from many aspects of oils!

I hope to share more about my journey as time goes on and to update everyone on how things are going!

Oops, he fell...

#cometogether

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm not really a sports kind of girl.  But you give me a sport where Canada actually has a chance of doing well (because lets face it, we usually choke) and I'm all for it!  The winter olympics are my favourite.  Canada comes together and the energy in this country is unbelievable.  

We typically don't get that from our sports leagues.  The Blue Jays and the Maple Leafs aren't generally the best teams there are.  Until this year.  The Jays have been incredible.  And as our country's only major league baseball team, they have united the entire country and were favourited to win this year's world series.  And then they lost the first two games... talk about nerve wracking!

Last night's game was scary.  It was all or nothing for the Jays, but luckily Bautista saved the day and we are on to the next series!

There's nothing like the feeling of an entire family or a group of friends sitting together to watch important games.  I just love the energy and I love seeing my country join together for something.  Oh and I also love watching this team when they win, because they seriously all look like they are best friends.

And you know I've been watching too much baseball when I can tell you the order of the Jays line up... I think my mom was shocked.

Let's go Jays!

"Just swing, just throw, just catch.  Don't think everybody.  Just win." - Kawasaki

Thankful

Of course Thanksgiving always makes you think about what you are really thankful for.  First of all, I am thankful for Thanksgiving weekends.  What's not to love about October, Family, Turkey and winning baseball games.

On Saturday we went up to the cottage and then Ryan, Parker and I went to Ravenna for delicious sandwiches and The Farmer's Pantry to visit the donkeys.  I'm forcing my love of donkeys on Parker.

The rest of the weekend was spent at the cottage.  We had 27 people at our Thanksgiving dinner.  It's a mad house, but I wouldn't want it any other way.  Oh and Parker gets absolutely no attention when he's at the cottage, so he hates it....or not.

So today I'm feeling thankful for my cottage, for extended family, for good food and good health, for pumpkin cheesecake and coffee.  I'm thankful for the great weather that we had this weekend.  I'm thankful that the Jays won on Sunday and Monday and are finally playing like the great team that they are.  I'm thankful that last night Parker made it through the night without eating for the first time in over two weeks.  Mostly I'm thankful for these two because they make my heart happy.  Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving with your loved ones!

The Mom Cold

I'm sure you've all heard of the man cold.  It's the worst.  

After we got through Parker's flu a week ago, I thought the worst was over.  Then Ryan got a cold.  I shouldn't really complain because as far as man colds go, this one was pretty mild.

But now I'm here to talk about the mom cold.  What happens when us moms get sick?  Can I just take a sick day?  Set Parker in his crib and say see you tomorrow?  I don't think so.  The kid still needs to eat and have his diaper changed and I'm pretty sure he would last in his crib for about 30 seconds before saying what the heck mom?  Let's play!

So a mom cold is me going about my day, dreading everything that has to be done, but feeding my baby, and washing dishes, changing poopy diapers and then laundering those diapers despite the fact that I can't breathe through my nose, my head hurts and apparently when you're breastfeeding, cold medicine is a no no.  I still can't take meds?  This is news to me!

Luckily, I have a baby who slept until 9 this morning (he did get up at 1:30am to eat though...) so I got to sleep in.  

Yes he is playing with a popcorn bowl and yes he is wearing an I heart boobies shirt.  What can I say, we're classy around here on sick days.

Thanksgiving Came Early

Yesterday we celebrated Ryan's birthday and Thanksgiving with his family.  This is one of my favourite occasions because we always get outside and spend some good time together.

 

 We all wear plaid jackets when we walk.  I think it started out accidentally and now it's just something that we have to do.  We're the plaid family.  So of course Parker needed plaid too and luckily I came across this cute little shirt that is big enough to go over his sweater!  And the Padraig slippers... the men don't seem to get them but I think they are the cutest things to ever be placed on a baby's toostsie!

This was Parker's very first Thanksgiving experience and I think he loved it!  We spent lots of time outdoors in the back yard and walking around their property.  As much as I love the summer, I love this time of year because it's so pretty outside and there's just something about the crisp fall air!

We also spent some time indoors and Parker played with the dogs.  He's the size of Willis' leg but they seemed to get along pretty well.

And then there was the food.  Oh my most favourite part of Thanksgiving.  Turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce.... And my mother in law may have made 3 desserts and I might have sampled all three.... just maybe...

Thanksgiving we will see you again next weekend!

Time

My view on time has changed greatly since having a baby.

Before I had a baby I would think, I wish time would go faster.  If I could only graduate high school things would be better.  If I can just get through this year of university, it will be summer.  When I graduate university and get a real job, life will be perfect.  When I get married, life will be complete.  And it goes on and on.

For the first half of pregnancy, I wanted time to go so fast.  I was terrified of something happening to the baby.  Once we got past the first half though it got a bit better.  We knew the baby was healthy, I could feel little baby flutters and I loved being pregnant.  

And then the baby was born, and this concept of time is completely different from my pre-baby concept of time.  I blinked and 8 months passed me by.  And now I'm terrified that I will blink again and 25 years will have passed me by.  

As adults, we don't really change all that quickly.  It takes years to notice how we age, and it's usually not until you look at an old picture that you think, whoa!  I look older!  But with kids, they change so rapidly.  They get fatter, they grow an inch taller a month, one day they roll over, and it seems like the next day they can sit up.  And time goes fast.

I love everything about watching Parker develop and grow, but I don't want it to fly by.  I just want to sit back, slow down and enjoy it.  I look at my parents, who have 3 kids in their twenties and wonder what it's like to be there.  To have all your kids out of the house (ok they don't quite have that...).  But to have them be independent, making their own money, possibly married with their own kids, and I can't imagine!  

We have one life and we have a short span of time to be with our kids when they are truly dependent on us.  When they look to us for all of their needs, for snuggles, for tickles and for stories.  And that time is going to go fast.  And I'm not looking to the future to fulfill me anymore.  My time is now.  This is the best time of my life and someday I will look back and think how did my 4 pound baby turn into a 6 foot tall man?