This week, I went back to work after six weeks of being at home with my newborn daughter. As you can tell, I made it through! Thankfully I went back on a Wednesday so I only had to make it through three days. And being that it was a Wednesday, my husband took care of our daughter, as he will from here on out. His boss is kind enough to let him work on Saturdays so that he can have Wednesdays at home - not that working on Saturdays is better, but it is nice that he can be home one day a week. We are also very lucky to have a friend and a relative watch our daughter the other days of the week. No daycare for us!

The transition was easier than I thought it would be, although I would much rather be at home. Having spent six weeks at home with my little one brought me so much joy and happiness that I started dreaming about becoming a stay-at-home mother - something I never thought I would have desired! I hope to live out that dream someday.

Back to reality. Coworkers wished me "welcome back" when they saw me this week and immediately asked to see pictures. Of course, I didn't hesitate to show them our cute Vie! I was also able to come home during my lunch hour and feed or pump. I'm happy that so far the plan has worked, and that I live close enough to home to be able to walk back and forth so that I can have a little bit of bonding time with my daughter during the day. Plus I get my exercise, so no complaints there :)

I'm curious to find out what these next few weeks will bring in terms of being a working mother. Will the transition become easier? Will some other new opportunities present themselves? I am also curious to find out what the future holds in other areas of my life. Since giving birth, I have felt a new sense of freedom - the ability to return to life as it was before I was pregnant, and also the ability to create a new life - but that's a story for a whole other post entirely!

Thankful for the weekend!

In an effort to constantly improve my blog and make my presence known to the social media world, I am always trying to think of topics about which to write. Therefore, I have come up with a list of topics that will soon make their appearance in posts. Leave a comment below with suggestions of other topics you would like to read about on my blog!

Recent topics of interest:

+ mama style & baby style

+ tips, tricks, and information on cloth diapering, breastfeeding, co-sleeping, "5 S's" cure for soothing colicky babies

+ going against the grain (in terms of pregnancy, motherhood, and raising children) in today's society: thumb sucking vs. pacifiers, cloth vs. disposable diapering, co-sleeping vs. sleeping in separate rooms, breast vs. bottle feeding, labor & delivery methods

+ life after returning to work - finding a good balance as a working mother

+ more about me: dreams and desires, new adventures in life, daily musings

My baby is a month old already! It still seems like yesterday we were spending a weekend in the hospital bonding as a family. Over the past few weeks I have thought of that weekend a number of times. It still seems unreal to me - the timeline of events from beginning of labor to birth, the emotions we felt and how they constantly changed, the "feeling" of Vienna's birth day and the weekend ... all of that. I think about the day we came home from the hospital and everything was as we left it just two days before: dirty dishes in the sink, our pajamas and a notebook I was using to track contractions opened up on the bed, windows open, the area of the living room floor where I was doing labor positions early Friday morning. It's like we had a moment of time captured to relive; or rather, remember. I suppose the same could be said when you go on vacation for awhile and then come back home to see everything as it was before you left. Time stands still.

The first month of motherhood has been great. Getting used to having a baby around has been an adjustment, but we love it. Although I am more tired than usual, I love caring for my daughter. She is such a sweetheart, and a rather good baby, and I am blessed to have her as a part of my family. And this month, she was added to another family - our church family! We were fortunate enough to have her baptized into the Catholic community a few weeks ago. It's refreshing to know that she has so much love and support around her. We are grateful to be witnesses to this Sacrament and now have even more responsibility as parents to guide her as she grows.

Speaking of growing, Vienna has done a lot of that this month! Just a week and a half after her birth, she had already gained 13oz - she weighed in at over 9lbs! And Asa and I can tell that she has put on more weight since then for she feels heavier these days :) She has also grown in length. She is already getting to be too big for her bassinet (unless she is swaddled)! We might have to transition to a crib sooner than we thought. It has been fun to witness her growth physically and mentally over the past month.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to witness her growth in such close quarters too much anymore. Next week I must return to work so our bonding moments will be saved for evenings and during lunch hour when I plan to come home and feed her. This situation is one that has weighed heavily on my heart since a few months before giving birth, but I must trust that in time God will provide us with the means for me to become a stay-at-home mama. And although I do have to return to work, I shouldn't dwell on it too much because the past month of bonding with my daughter has been wonderful and will be able to continue even once I start working again.

But enough "woe is me" ... life is great! My husband and I are very blessed and fortunate for everything that we have and are. I am looking forward to the changing of the seasons from summer to fall, watching Vienna grow each day, our one year wedding anniversary, our future as a family and the prospect of owning a home to call our own, the everyday goods and bads, growing in my roles as wife, mother, & homemaker, and whatever else comes our way!

On Friday, July 25th at 4:08pm, Asa and I welcomed our daughter into the world. At 8lbs 4oz, she was perfection and immediately daddy's little girl.

People ask us who we think she looks like, and honestly, we aren't sure. But, she does have some visible qualities from each of us already. She has my husband's cowlick and curved toes, and my big feet and long fingers. It also looks like she is going to share our blue eye color. And of course, she's a total cutie :)

The first week at home went by all too quickly. My husband didn't work all week which was something that I really enjoyed - it was nice having him around. We also had lots of visitors who brought meals and gifts which was definitely appreciated. Obviously, there has been an adjustment with having a baby around, but we made it through - nothing too unbearable yet.

Motherhood has been about what I expected. Actually, I sort of fell into it rather easily. It has been an enjoyable experience so far learning and experiencing new things, having a new priority and responsibility, and making sacrifices for my family. I hope I'm being the best mom I can be to my little girl!

Things I learned this past week:
+ there truly are not enough hours in the day
+ caffeine and naps are a must
+ nursing is painful at first and at times inconvenient, but totally worth it
+ thank goodness we chose to use cloth diapers instead of disposables - babies go through so many of them!
+ eight hours of uninterrupted sleep at night is no longer an option (hence why naps are a must)
+ my husband is the best at changing diapers and shhing our baby when she's crying
+ I have more patience than I thought
+ raising children is definitely a team effort and I'm so thankful for my husband and all he does
+ what once was thought to be a burden is now a blessing
+ knowing I'm no longer pregnant gives me a whole new sense of freedom

I am now a mama to a beautiful girl - what a precious gift!

Waiting Game

This week I started my maternity leave from work. What a relief! It has been nice to be able to stay home and get things done. Although, I had to create a list of things to do to keep myself occupied after other tasks were finished so as to not sit around worrying about labor or "waste" my time off doing absolutely nothing. Thankfully, worrying about labor hasn't settled in my mind - perhaps that will change once I am actually in it! Although labor has been a fear of mine in the past and is something that is rather unsettling, lately I have simply thought "I will deal with it when it comes. No big deal. I'm confident enough in myself and my body, and my body was meant to do this, so no problem." And, since I do not know what to expect, do not know how it will go, how painful it will be, etc., how can I even fathom how the process is going to be? So, I am ready and will deal with it when it comes.

Speaking of which, Asa and I are hoping for the baby to make its appearance this weekend! We are ready to meet our babe - and having heard of a few births recently of friends/people we know - are eager to see who our baby is and welcome him/her into our life. So, pray that will have the baby this weekend! Dealing with some aches and pains this week has me hopeful that we are very close to having the baby - granted, we have less than a week until the due date anyway, so any day now could be labor day :)

So what have I been doing this week while I am sitting around playing the waiting game? Well, my list wasn't as fun as you may think, but as long as I was able to cross things off of it, then I am satisfied :)

things to do (done) while waiting for labor:

+ clean the apartment: laundry, bathroom, kitchen sink, sweep, vacuum, dust, clean the stove, dishes.

+ homemaking: organize books and papers around apartment, change place settings for the dinner table, make dinner each night, bake cookies (peanut butter).

+ baby things: practice using cloth diapers, practice swaddling, reread about the "5 S's" to cure colicky babies, read sections of pregnancy/parenting books, practice using Moby wrap, add more and more "one last thing!" to diaper bag & hospital bag, print off poem to add to decoration above the bassinet.

+ mama time: tv, movies, see a couple of friends, church and prayer, blog, and much needed naps!

Hopefully I won't have to come up with another list for next week! Pray that we'll get to celebrate a birthday in our family this weekend :)

We're almost done!

How far along?  - 38 weeks

Total weight gain/loss:   - 25lbs

Maternity clothes?   - A few, but only purchased one item myself!

Stretch marks?   - Nope!

Best moment recently:   Hearing my husband talk about how excited he is to meet the baby.

Miss anything:  - Not having to get up to pee every night (thankfully I only do it once!)

Movement:   - Yes, although I think it has slowed down a little since there isn't much room left in there!

Food cravings:   - None

Anything making you queasy or sick:   - Nope

Have you started to show yet:   - Obviously

Exercise:   - Not as much as I should be! But I still try to walk to as many places as I can: to/from work, farmer's market, walks with Asa, basically anywhere close to home

Gender:   - Do not know!

Labor Signs:   - Some painless braxton hicks. Also, the head has descended into my pelvis.

Other Aches/Pains:   - A bit of back pain, hip pain sometimes from sleeping on my sides, the baby's head in my pelvis, pushing against my nerves and giving me a little leg shock!

Belly Button in or out?   - Just a tip of the top portion is out, haha

Wedding rings on or off?   - On

Happy or Moody most of the time:   - I suppose getting a little more moody from time to time, but generally in a happy mood.

Favorite “New Dad” moment:   - Comments he makes about seeing, hugging, and holding the baby; how proud he is to get to talk about having a baby soon

Looking forward to:   - The relief of getting the baby out! Also, having a summer babe and enjoying the rest of the summer with him/her.

Mini Maternity Session

The lighting in my bedroom was perfect this morning so I decided to snap some maternity shots before it's too late. The due date is a couple weeks away, but we could be welcoming our baby any time now!