Friday, June 27, 2014

#6


Honestly, the last six years have been some of the best and worst of our lives. We've laughed together, cried together, celebrated together, & mourned together. We've faced situations neither of us ever imagined and yet our love & faith still remains strong.

Even six years later, I still can't believe God chose Sam as my other half because I don't feel deserving of such an amazing man to lead our family day in & day out. And for that, I'm eternally thankful!

Happy 6th Anniversary, my love!

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Dear Calvin // Two Months


Dear Calvin,

I can only describe this last month together as a roller coaster. It might be my new mama emotions lingering, but it felt like every one of our triumphs was followed with a tough struggle or two. Oh sweet baby boy... it's safe to say I never imagined how hard it would be to take care of someone who's only form of communication is crying.  And while it hurts my heart to see real tears rolling down your face, I think we are [slowly] figuring out what you need & when and that gives me some hope.

On a positive note, this month was full of some noteworthy firsts - first flight, first smile, first long [6 hour] stretch of sleep - all which took place when we went to visit grandad [my dad] in New Hampshire. We also had your two month appointment, where you received high praises from your pediatrician for how well you can hold your head up [yay!]. She also mentioned you might be an early mover [uh oh!]...

Regardless of how our days go, I find myself still thanking God for trusting us with your tiny, precious life.  And I know we'll figure each other out one of these days :)

love,
mama



Two month stats:
Height - 22.75" [31%]
Weight - 11lbs 4.5oz [21%]
Head Circumference - 41" [93%]

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Flying with a Baby

















Last week, we - my husband, myself, and our six week old son - took our first family vacation. Across the country. On an airplane.

Were we crazy? A little bit. But this trip was important because it meant introducing Calvin to grandparents, uncles, and extended family who weren't able to come out in April. However, as much as I was excited for our trip, I was equally as nervous about the flights.

I generally enjoy flying, but never traveling with a baby before was throwing me off my game. So I turned to friends, Twitter, and Pinterest for any & all tips on what to expect when flying with a baby. Some of the information was gold and some didn't apply to us, but the wealth of knowledge I found was reassuring to this new mama and I thought I'd share what ended up working for us.
















1. Carry-on

I used to be the person who ONLY brought a carry-on when I went on a trip, but after this trip, I'm convinced that the less you need to carry on the plane, the better. My husband & I still carried on multiple bags each, but I chalk that up to thinking we needed to bring everything with us.

My advice: only carry on the essentials - diapers, wipes, a change of clothes. With Calvin being six weeks old, he didn't require much and I found that I only ended up using said essentials.

2. Wear your baby

I've become a big fan of baby wearing since we brought Calvin home. And when it came to navigating the busy airport and crowded plane, my love for wearing my baby multiplied.

We went with the Ergo carrier with the infant insert so either my husband or I could wear the baby. Not only did this free up our hands to hold our carry-ons, but within minutes of putting Calvin in the carrier, he fell fast asleep. Another plus? We could carry him through security without taking him out of the carrier.
















3. Window seat

Pre-baby, I tended to prefer the aisle. After researching 'flying with a baby', one of the popular pieces of advice was to get a window seat and without hesitation I changed my seating assignment.

As the advice noted, sitting by the window brought several positive features: more privacy to nursing, kept people from ogling & touching Calvin, and gave me something to look at.

As an added bonus, our flight back east was not completely booked and we scored a full row to ourselves. This made our flight so much better than the return flight (without the extra room) because we could ALL spread out a bit.

4. Feed the baby during take-off & landing

Of all the advice we received, this was at the top. Due to the change in air pressure, I was advised to feed specifically during take-off & landing to force my baby's ears to unplug, so I did. Someone else told me to nurse whenever the baby wanted, so I did that as well. Thankfully, we didn't notice any discomfort in Calvin's ears on either flight.











5. Relax

Flying can be stressful, but add a baby into the mix and it seems to multiply. There were several times when Calvin began to cry and I instantly began to worry about disrupting those around us. I know we weren't the first to fly with a baby (or the last), so by remembering that fact & turning my full attention to the baby, I was able to re-focus & relax a little.

One last thing to note:

Jet lag is a thing. Alternate title: being up until 4am is rough after traveling all day.


Have you flown with a baby? Any advice you have to share?




Wednesday, June 4, 2014

June Goals


If I could sum the month of May in one word, it would be survival. Most days we (Calvin + I) didn't get out of our pajamas. The day light hours were spent hunkered down on the couch getting to know one another (+ feeding/changing diapers a lot) & at night we just rocked + prayed for a few continuous hours of sleep. And with a little perseverance, we were even starting to find ourselves in a routine by the end of the month.

Honestly, after I posted my May goals, I didn't look at them again. Thankfully I didn't set any outrageous ones, but there are a couple that will roll into June. But first...

May Recap:

1. Take a close look at our spending and start looking for ways to cut costs where we can. --- I didn't devote as much time as I'd like on this, therefore this will be a top goal of mine for June.

2. Speak life into my husband. --- With Sam returning back to work after Calvin's birth, I knew this would be a hard transition for all of us. I made a little effort to encourage & uplift him as much as possible, but when all is said & done, I could have done more, so I'm going to roll this one over as well.

3. Continue to learn Calvin's cues AND remember to give myself grace throughout these first few months. --- This goal took precedence last month for obvious reasons. I can't say I'm fluent in 'Calvin cues' yet, but I do feel more confident caring for him.

June Goals:

1. Look at our monthly budget and continue to save where possible.

2. Continue to speak life into my husband.

3. Refine a routine that works for us and begin to transition Calvin to sleeping in his own room.

4. Post at least one blog post per week on Grable Tales. (Seems easy, but with a 7 week old who loves to be held, I find it difficult to find time to post most of the time.)


Every month I link up my goals with Hayley of The Tiny Twig's Goals with Grace.