Easter, etc.

Happy First Easter Sadie: We went in to see my parents on Saturday. It was a beautiful day! My dad and I went for a bike ride, my brother drew with chalk on the driveway and we took Sadie for a walk in the neighbourhood. We had a really good time.
Sadie and my brother on our walk:
On Sunday the Easter Bunny came and spoiled Sadie! I think next year we'll tone down the gift a bit and make it more traditional (Easter basket, small toys etc.) but this year I've been online shopping - a lot. I kept adding things to her present and it kept getting bigger and bigger!
Sadie with her Easter Loot:
We really love Sadie's "My Pal Violet". It's a leap frog toy that can be programed with your child's name. How cute is this:

The Easter Bunny brought us iPhones and I'm totally in love with mine! Cellphones are a technology we had not really embraced. We'd been a couple with only a single cellphone for YEARS and it's really hard communicating with only one phone! Our excuse had generally been that "wer'e always together" but now that we have Sadie we really felt that we needed to be in constant 24/7 communication. That constant communication comes with the bonus of a really cool phone and mobile internet/blogging! Yay!!

In other news: Any apprehension I may have had about Sadie's new attitude has disappeared. She is turning into the sweetest, happiest baby ever! She's all smiles and is laughing quite a bit now. Here she is laughing as I tickle her:

Sadie's sleeping is improving so much. I'm starting to feel fully human again! Unbelievably she let me sleep in until 10:00 am on Good Friday! 10:00 am!!!!! She's generally going down at 9:00 pm, waking up between 2:00-3:00 am for a feeding and then sleeping until 6:30 am. We've even had an afternoon nap (co-sleeping). I haven't had any success with daytime naps in her crib so I've given up. If she'll sleep in the big bed that is fine with me.
We've also had a tummy time breakthrough. We'd been having a hard time and I'd been feeling very guilty. Tummy time used to be about screaming/crying and a suffocating baby who would face plant on the floor. I thought for sure there was something wrong! We've started using her Boppy and she's improved so much.

Drama: This weekend was not without a bit of (avoided) drama. I need feedback here and I apologize if I anger anyone with what I'm about to say because I know this is a sensitive topic.
Sadie's Great Grandma chain smokes. We went in to see my family on Saturday because we knew Great Grandma would be there on Sunday. I don't want someone who smells like a walking ashtray near my daughter. The result so far has been avoidance because I'm not sure how to approach this subject. I honestly think my stepmother's head will explode if I tell her mother she can't hold Sadie. Am I being completely over-reactive or would you do the same? It's not like Sadie has a choice about who holds her. We're the ones that make that decision for her and I wouldn't want to be pushed up against a smelly, toxic shirt. I wish there was an easy way for me to say to an elderly woman "You can't hold her, you smell and are toxic". The truth hurts.

10 Things

I was tagged by Jen, Tiff and Mr. Munchkin and Creating a Miracle.
I tag 2 Girls in Love and Other Motherhood!

10. I play ice hockey. I'm hoping to get on a team for the 2010/11 season after taking 3 seasons off for TTC/pregnancy.

9. I've seen the same Broadway Musical over 3 dozen times (lost count) and many other musicals multiple times. I know most people will not understand this and think I'm crazy but I love seeing shows with different casts and understudies. It's never really the same show twice.

8. D and I went to the same High School but didn't know each other until working together at a part time job after graduating.

7. When we first moved to Toronto I worked as an Assistant Store McManager. I have very good things to say about working for the McCompany (I wasn't at a franchise) but the job itself was horrible. I lasted just over a year before officially entering the rat race.

6. When I was a younger I wanted to be Jewish. I got in trouble for asking a Rabbi to convert me.

5. I got my beginners license at 17 but let it expire. I finally got my full license 6 years ago and bought my first car last year.

4. I used to hate cheesecake but now it is my favourite dessert. When we get Sadie's passport we're heading straight for The Cheesecake Factory!!! Yummmmmmy.

3. D and I go to Walt Disney World every chance we get. Our next trip will be in December 2011 for Sadie's 2nd Birthday!

2. We're currently house hunting. We want to move out of the city but may need to wait until I'm back at work so we can get approved for a higher mortgage. Until then we're enjoying our last year in the condo while keeping our eye on the market.

1. We plan on TTC#2 starting in September 2011! I will carry and we will be using the same donor.

In other news:

Stars and Strollers - Apparently suburban moms prefer Jennifer Aniston over Miley Cyrus because there wasn't a single baby in our theatre! I hadn't expected there to be people without children but I wasn't alone. WTH? At first I felt like we had to be quiet but then I thought about it and the 7 childless viewers were coming into a movie for babies. I had every right to have a loud baby! Although Sadie didn't cry she did make every baby noise possible including a HUGE frat boy burp!! GOOD GIRL!

Music Class - Music class was so much fun!! Sadie was the youngest by probably 6 months but still really enjoyed it. We sang a bunch of songs and also played with instruments. Most of the songs included the babies being lift in the air or bounced on our knees. One thing I found interesting about the class were the names of the other babies. Old lady names are clearly IN this year! The other little girls were: Esme, Ida, Gwyneth and Beatrice.

Nap/Sleep etc.
Our movie going messed up Sadie's nap times yesterday and I'm hoping music class will not do the same today.
After Music Class we made it 2/3 of the way home from the class before Sadie had a major meltdown in the car. Thankfully I found a parking spot and pulled over so ended up having lunch at The Royal Conservatory Espresso bar! Sadie fell asleep after she ate so I delayed going back to the car for an hour. We walked around and went into the Royal Ontario Museum boutique. We've been home for over an hour now and I've left Sadie in her car seat. She's sound asleep!!
The result of yesterday's nap disruption meant our bedtime routine was ruined. Sadie eats at 9:00 pm and goes to bed immediately after. She would NOT go to sleep last night! I think we finally had her in bed by 10:30!!
I think it is OK for Sadie to be out during nap time but she still needs to be able to sleep. The movie didn't allow for that because she was so interested in watching it!! I think she's been able to catch up since our outing today so we may be ok tonight.
How on earth does "Super Mom" keep up with that crazy schedule of hers???????

This entry is brought to you by names beginning with the letter "S".
First - I started writing a comment in response to my previous entry but realized that it's an entry on its own. So Thank-you to S., Shannon, Shea and Stacey for making me feel better about Sadie's recent frustrating behaviour. Everyone says that the first 6 weeks are the hardest but that isn't necessarily true! You are certainly the most tired during that time but Sadie was so small and sweet. She'd sleep and cuddle all day long. I guess what I'm saying is that I wasn't prepared for her to start demanding independence so soon. So far I've been practicing "fly by the seat of your pants" parenting but I think it may be time to start reading up on development. I want to be sure I'm not boring her and that I'm providing the stimulation she needs to grow and learn. It's a lot pressure.
Sleep Schedule - We're not going to have a strict sleep schedule because that is a pain. I want Sadie to be flexible to nap anywhere at anytime just like her Momma! What I have noticed is that the more she naps in the day the more she sleeps at night. We've had some success over the weekend since I've started implementing "forced naps". She slept for 6.5 hours on Sunday night. That's the longest to date and it was LUXURIOUS. I've also started to experiment with putting her in her crib when she is still awake and she has fallen asleep 3x on her own. Another battle is working on nap time in her crib. I went to Ikea yesterday to pick up dark curtains so our bedroom isn't as bright in the day time. I'm honestly not sure what it is with the crib but Sadie sleeps in it at night but is so stubborn about it during the day. I'm really hoping she will eventually sleep in the crib more than she sleeps on me! Maybe the darker room will help?

Happy 3 Month Birthday Sadie!!

Our baby girl is now officially 3 months old and has:
* Laughed for the first time yesterday! So adorable!! Mommy was able to hear it over the phone.
* Started to grab at her toys. She is having a lot more fun playing with her gym.
* Discovered her hands and feet.
* Likes to be carried forward facing in her carrier.
Sadie forward facing in her Sleepy Wrap:

Sadie in her Bumbo (it has really helped with her desire to sit-up and is strengthening her neck muscles):Tomorrow we are going to "Stars and Strollers" to see the movie "The Last Song". There are two movies shown every Wednesday that are specifically for the parent/baby crowed. I'm hoping this works out because I'm an entertainment junkie and really miss seeing first run movies in the theatre!
We also have our first music class this week and next week we start Salsa Babies! After my lunch with "Super-mom" I looked into Salsa Babies and decided to drop stroller fit and do it instead. I figured Sadie would get a lot more out of dancing than being pushed around in a stroller.
It feels good to get out. I hope our activities work out!

NOTE: Not sure why some of this has underlined but I have no time to fix it!!

TGIF!!

I'm still in a funk. You'd think that after almost 3 months I'd be a pro at this but instead I'm getting more and more worn out. I'm so tired and I'm finding Sadie harder to deal with right now. She's constantly trying to sit up. She's always squirming and grunting and generally isn't satisfied until she's in an upright position. This means her bouncer is out, her swing is out, lounging in her boppy is out, laying in my arms is out - the ONLY thing she wants to do is sit in my lap and generally prefers facing the TV. Yes, our daughter is essentially turning into a couch potato. Because of this I've taken to leaving the TV off. Sorry kiddo but you're not going to be a 3 month old that is addicted to TV. I'm pretty bored but it's worth it.
I've also found that she is getting really cranky when she's tired. Before it seemed like she'd just fall asleep when she needed to. Now she stays up until she NEEDS a nap and we pretty much force her to. I'll take her in my arms with a Soothie and she'll be asleep in seconds. I think this means it's time to start scheduling naps?
Thankfully it's Friday. I'm looking forward to the weekend with D because I need a break! My goal for next week is to get her on a schedule. I also went out and bought her a bumbo and I hope that satisfies her need to be an independent sitting up baby!

Here are a few pictures!!
I made Sadie a Tutu. There is more Tutu than baby!!

As you can see, it isn't easy to take pictures of Sadie these days. She's always moving!

Sadie and her Momma!! (Me!)

Then and Now

The other day I looked at Sadie and realized she's grown so much and so quickly. I already miss her teeny tiny stage. It makes me so sad.
So big.
So fast.
To get enough of the little baby days I'd need to be a Duggar.

In need of FRIENDS

I'm in a funk.
In an attempt to make a mommy friend I went out for lunch with the mom from my prenatal class whose daughter was born 5 days before Sadie.
After hearing her weekly schedule (mommy group 1, salsa baby, mommy group 2, baby care class, and baby yoga) she told me I should look into finding a mommy group too. No suggestions offered.
We're likely going to meet again but I left feeling like we hadn't hit it off. Through this meeting I also found out that our prenatal class had a get together that we were not aware of.
I'm not sure what we've done. Even our pre-baby childless friends have disapeared (which was sort of expected).
I'm feeling so left out.

-- Post From My iPod Touch

Stuff

This is going to be LONG and there is more! I have saved drafts I haven't published and some date back to JANUARY! Oh my!!

MOTHER - My mom has gone home and I miss her. I kept forgetting she was gone and for the first 2 nights after she left would quietly take Sadie down for her night feedings expecting to hear her ask what time it was. She may not have allowed for any napping but she did sit with me late at night and got up with me early in the morning. Sadie and I are alone together most of the time so it was very nice to have some company. I hope she'll come down again soon.
Although the visit was nice we were not without some issues. She explained that she was upset with me (crazy phone call that happened in December) because she couldn't understand why I didn't want HER to take care of Sadie over a stranger (day care). We've come to an agreement and I've told her she can take care of Sadie for the 8 months (12-20 months) before Sadie goes to Montessori School. If she does move down to Toronto we may consider half-day Montessori although we do want some sort of structured early education.
She also cried when my dad called. Sobbing tears and cursed him out to D the entire time I was on the phone with him. She is really pissed off that my Dad gets more time with us and Sadie and I'm not allowed to remind her that he lives closer.
We really need to get my mom back down to Southern Ontario. Her fantasy of living on an island is OVER and it is becoming so obvious she feels trapped and is miserable.

Montessori School: I went on a tour of the Montessori school we want Sadie to attend and got her on the wait list for September 2011. We were told there would be a spot for her based on where she was on the wait list and because 12 spots were opening up due to children graduating to Casa. For this school the children enter during either the Fall or Winter semester and need to be 18 months. The curriculum includes french 3x per week, drama and yoga. I was able to see the lunch/snack menu and it was all very healthy food. Registration is next February.

Activities: Sadie starts music class at the end of the month. It is a 3 month program for parents and children under 1. She really responds to music so I'm looking forward to learning some new songs to sing with her. Other upcoming activities include Stroller Fit starting in May and swimming class once she is 6 months old. We'd like to try Gymboree as well but I think she is too young right now. Maybe in the fall?

Play date: I'm meeting up with a mom from my prenatal class on Thursday. Her daughter was born on Christmas day so she is only 5 days older than Sadie. She is also the only other girl born from our class. There is a strong potential for future play dates so I'm hoping we get along. Sadie could have her first little friend!

Shopping: I've been spending way too much money lately! I ordered a Sleepy Wrap from ebay this morning after reading about how much Jen (Adventures of Jen, Tiff and Mr. Munchkin) loves hers. We already have a Peanut Shell wrap that is the same concept but it is black with a rhinestone bedazzled cupcake. It's functional but tacky and I'm justifying my purchase by saying Sadie will be too hot in black this summer. CLEARLY pink is the better option.
I'll be known as "the girl with the baby in the pink Sleepy Wrap".

PMS: AF is on her evil way or I've turned into a monster bitch. I actually yelled at a car today (as a pedestrian). WTH was I thinking?

Sadie is stirring which brigs this post to a close - not that it was cutoff too short or anything!!