Eat. Play. Sleep. Repeat.

Life is pretty simple for a 6 month old baby. All they do is eat, play, sleep and repeat it all over again. So why have Blaze's first several months been so HARD?! Because He. Doesn't. Sleep. He wakes up every 3-4 hours at night to eat, even if I dream feed at 11 pm! It wasn't until recently (his 6th month) that he finally began sleeping for 6 hour stretches... for the most part. Naps are getting better. For the longest time he'd nap for 45 minutes at a time throughout the day (that 45 minutes goes by so fast!). He's now napping for an hour and a half to two or more hours at a time! And most days takes 2 decent naps. I'm surprised at how little he sleeps. He is ready for action both day and night. He doesn't sleep nearly as much as Sadie did at this age. I am so grateful Juan's current position allows him to work from home. He has been an invaluable resource, companion, and friend to me. I'm sure the transition from one to two kids wouldn't have been as smooth.

Blaze started smiling around 6 weeks old. This is my favorite milestone because it makes all the sleepless nights totally worth it when he greets us with an excited grin. He discovered his voice around 3 months. He doesn't babble as much as Sadie did but he can sure squeal, maybe even louder than Sadie did! He can roll over from tummy to back but refuses to roll over from back to tummy. I can't get him to stay for more than a few seconds on his belly without using force. It makes me wonder if he'll crawl!  His 6th month was quite the eventful month. His first two teeth came out, he began sitting on his own, and eating table food - he hasn't refused any food yet and his favorites seem to be bananas, avocado, grapes and prunes. He's becoming more and more social every day. He mimics our facial expressions and sounds. He pretends to sneeze and cough. His new tricks include clapping, waving, and pointing to things he wants. He shrieks loudly to attract our attention. He loves watching people dance and dunks his own head in shower.

Growth Chart
1 month 10 lbs 13 oz and 22 inches long
 2 months 13 lbs 11 oz and 24 inches long
4 months 16 lbs 9 oz and 25.5 inches long
6 months 18 lbs 10 oz and 27 inches long

 Sadie feeding him his first bites of "real food"

Best big sister!

Now he feeds himself

Toes are a favorite afternoon snack

As tired as we are (and we're seriously tired) we haven't yet tired from looking at our adorable little man.  :)

Sadie, My Four Year Old Princess

Sadie is a lot like me when it comes to personality...moody, sassy, outgoing, yet shy and introverted at the same time.  She's not antisocial, she's selectively social.  When she chooses to be, she's the life of party.  She giggles, cracks jokes, makes silly faces, jumps, dances, sings, and farts (not one of my traits).  I have to admit its both cute and sobering to see your own personality displayed in its raw unrestrained form day in and day out!

Her favorite color is pink.  Her favorite things to do right now are play school, play with her barbies and Ninja Turtles, go to Chuck E Cheese, tickle fights, and hop scotch.  She doesn't like soda, but she LOVES chocolate, especially Kit Kats.  One of the lines she quotes most from Frozen is when Anna and Elsa are watching the guests at the coronation celebration and Elsa says "What is that amazing smell?"  They both close their eyes, inhale and say giggling "Chocolate!"  She's a daddy's girl through and through and recently told me Papi is her favorite person in the whole world.  Though it hurt a little, ok a lot, I couldn't be happier that she has such a deep affection for Juan.  I think fathers play an important role in setting the stage for how girls view themselves and how they expect to be treated by other men.  They need someone who will love them, listen to them, discipline them, play with them, and tell them they're beautiful.  Sadie struck gold with Juan.  So I'm over it for now.  A close friend reassured me that once Sadie starts having her own kids I'll probably be her favorite from then on out.  And who wants to compete with Juan on the fun scale anyway?!  You're right Jamie.  :)  

She is imaginative.

She is beautiful.

She is sensational.

She is Sadie...and we love her.

Getting Sadie to look at the camera and smile is near impossible.  Here she is being silly and making faces for the camera before leaving for Disney on Ice.  It reminds me so much of Juan.

Papi, her favorite in the world 

 Sadie recently celebrated her 4th birthday.  She wanted a Frozen/Ninja Turtle themed party and a jumping castle.  Thanks to all our family and friends who braved the cold and made the day so special for her.  Here are some pictures from the party.

Here she is with her favorite girls...Gwacie

 ...and Maddy

Enjoying what was probably the last warm day of the year.  Temps reached the mid 70s!

 

Papi's Back!

Life's certainly better when Juan's home.  Juan was in Alaska on business for 16 days!  It was probably the most emotionally, physically, mentally trying time of my life.  I have a new respect for single parents.  I was aware of the hard road they walk on, but it wasn't until I had to actually do it myself that I really "got it."  Raising kids is hard even when you have help and and support.  When you're on your own, it must sometimes feel like the loneliest, most vulnerable place in the world.  I was so lucky to have helpers while Juan was gone.  A BIG thanks to my cousin Kaitlyn and BFF Brittney for cuddling my kids and helping feed, bathe and put them to bed.   

Yiiikes, we have a long way to go!

So sad Papi's gone

 Kaitlyn and kids at Oak Brook Mall

 Taking a break from shopping

My cousin Luke came to visit from Poland!

One more night!

  At the airport.  Sadie was thrilled to have him back...as was I.  We both literally did a happy dance when we parked the car in the parking lot!

He knocked out for a couple hours when he got home, but we didn't mind.  We were just happy to have Papi back home :)

My dear grandmother passed away on August 12.  No one can prepare you for a loss.  But we take comfort in knowing that she is now resting in the arms of God.

The Many Faces of Blaze

Here's a peak at what Blaze looked like this afternoon.  He's changing so much already! 

We can't get enough of that sweet face!

Birth Story

Wednesday, April 30th wasn't an ordinary day from the beginning...it was Brittney's birthday! I spent the morning with Brittney and her roommate Sarah at Lula Cafe for a birthday breakfast. We planned to continue the celebration, with dinner and some live music at the Green Mill later that evening, but at about 5:30 pm I started having contractions.  I didn't know what to do because I didn't want to ditch Brittney on her birthday(!), especially since the days leading up to her birthday she had been asking me "are you gonna have your baby on my birthday, should I plan to hang out with someone else?"  I kept telling her that chances are high I won't have him on her birthday since my due date is more than a week after that.  And here I was, contracting on her birthday.  At first, the contractions were pretty far apart and felt like menstrual cramps - totally bearable.  I even questioned a few times whether they were true labor contractions.  At 10:30 pm they subsided and I went to bed thinking it's probably just Braxton hicks contractions.

At about 2 in the morning I woke up to a strong contraction.  They were getting stronger and closer together.  I tried going back to bed but I'd wake up at the start of every contraction so it was impossible to sleep that night.  I labored by myself for a couple hours as Juan was sick and I didn't want to wake him.  Around 4 am I started having back labor.  It was like someone was operating a jackhammer on my lower back every few minutes. I woke Juan up to help me through the pain by putting pressure on my lower back.  I also started feeling nauseous again and throwing up.  Around 6 am Juan finally said "I think it's time we go."  I was so happy to hear him say that; I was relying on him to help me labor at home as long as possible.    

On the way to the hospital I started feeling better.  I told Juan we should turn around because I didn't want to get sent home for coming in too early.  But he said we should keep going to beat rush hour traffic.  We arrived at the hospital a little before 7 am.  We checked in at the maternity ward, signed some paper work and then got set up in triage.  The nurse checked to see how far along I was, I guessed 6 or 7 cm since contractions weren't so bad.  I was so pleased to hear I was 9 centimeters!  I couldn't believe it.  Juan and I high-fived each other and I thought to myself I can totally do this again.

I waddled into the Alternative Birthing Center (ABC) room.  I insisted on getting into the tub immediately, though the warm water only fleetingly blunted the pain.  Labor was still pretty moderate for the next hour.  I didn't really have the "urge to push".  Every 15 minutes or so my midwife Kelly would listen to Blaze's heartbeat through a stethoscope and assure me everything was OK.  She said it's going slow because my bag of waters didn't break yet.  So we decided to have her break it to just get on with it.  That's when the intensity began in full force!  

The contractions were unbearable. I grunted through the pain and pressure and Kelly reassured me I was doing exactly what I was supposed to do.  Juan was wonderfully supportive and let me know what a great job I was doing.  Thanks Babe!  I couldn't do it without you. I pushed for about 30 minutes total.  Blaze was born at 10:29 am.  Kelly put him on my chest right away.  It felt euphoric.  Juan and I were so amazed to see this beautiful baby boy God had given us.  After Juan cut the umbilical cord the nurse took him and said "Wow, that's a big boy!"  He weighed in at 8 pounds 7 ounces and was 20 inches long.  Whoever said that babies get bigger each time was definitely right in my case.  Sadie was only 7 pounds 9 ounces and 18 inches long.   

We are so blessed.  He is perfect!