Lessons Learned

Exactly one year ago today, at about 8 PM, my contractions began and we started a very wild ride…

As my first year of parenthood winds down, I just want to reflect on a few of the things that I have learned this year.

* Slow down! Whether it be in the car, at the grocery store, in my desire for the future. I have learned to stop, take a deep breath, and live RIGHT NOW.

* Don't let others dictate what kind of mother you are going to be. Do what works best for your family.

* Breastfeeding is AWESOME!!!

* Look forward to holidays again. For me, around the age of 14, the holidays (namely Christmas) started to lose their luster. For whatever reason my anticipation and excitement surrounding the holidays has been on a downslide for years but now I can't wait to make holidays special again. I even bought Jack a huge V Day balloon…..and I HATE Valentine's Day.

* Have the courage to read out loud. I have had terrible anxiety about reading aloud since a very young age. Maybe it's because when I read out loud in class I felt like every one was watching me, which would cause me to get nervous and stumble and stammer like a fool. And while I still stumble on occassion while reading to Jack, I know my audience doesn't care...he just likes my voice :)

* It is possible to become a more patient person. Just have colicky, terrible-sleeper-for-the-first-5-months-of-life baby.

* Just because you are Mom does not mean you have to wear "mom" jeans, cut off your hair, and never have a cocktail again.

* Sometimes being an adult sucks! Ok, I may have kind of known this before Jack but having your own child makes the stakes go up, way up.

* Being alone is great….in small doses. I used to LOVE and cherish my alone time. I attribute it to only child syndrome. However, post baby, I admit I can't wait until "sleepy time" but after a few hours on my own I'm just lonely.

* "And baby makes three"= makes marriage even harder. I was totally one of those people who said "Oh we've been together for X years. It's like we are already married." And then I ACTUALLY got married and reality set in. Something inexplicable happens when you say I do (or at least it did for us). But then you throw another curveball, aka the baby, and you are left figuring life out all over again. For me, I had this picture in my head of exactly what kind of parent Justin was going to be and that was very unfair to him. Let's face it, this was a major first for both of us. Over the past year, I have had to learn to bite my tongue if J doesn't do something EXACTLY the way I would…in fact I'm still working on it. I think both of us have also had to adjust each other's new title and the new characteristics that parenthood has brought out in our personalities. Let's face it, "Lindsey" today is NOT the same "Lindsey" as a year ago.

* That being said, we make really cute babies ;)

* I DID learn all of the words to the "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"!

* It's ok to not instantly fall in love with the little bundle of joy. Give it a few weeks and he WILL become your everything. (Thanks Cole!)

* Being a parent is HARD work but it is the MOST rewarding experience of my life.

* I have learned that am stronger than I ever knew…

There is so so so much more…What an incredible year!



Lindsey

Farewell C Cups

Over the last few weeks, I have begun to wean Jack. It is VERY bittersweet. It means my baby is moving into the next stage of his life. It means those very intimate moments of mother and child are gone forever. It also mean my fabulous C cups will soon be a thing of the past.

I must say, I am very proud of myself. Breastfeeding is demanding and a huge commitment. It is also a very personal decision and I was really quite surprised by how much I enjoyed the experience. The first week was hard and I was doubtful of my ability and commitment but once both Jack and I got the hang of it it was wonderful. Breastfeeding makes life much easier in my opinion (I've always been terribly lazy about washing bottles!).

I can't tell you how many times during a 3 am feeding I would end up crying from just watching Jack with so much wonder and love flooding my heart. Those nights and memories are something I will cherish forever.

He has taken a bottle very well from day 1 and he has been slowing eliminating feedings by himself. For the past few months, though, he would walk over, tug on my shirt and wine, take a few "tugs" off of the boob and go back to playing. Five minutes later he would be back for more and this process would go on and on. I finally had had enough and we started to do a daily bottle, which began the weaning process. He has had no objections which has made this process much easier on me. Next week, we go down to one feeding (from me) a day (first thing in the morning) and the rest will come from bottles and solid foods.

Again, it's a bittersweet time but I am also REALLY looking forward to having my body belong to me again……if only for a short period of time.


(J took this picture during our fall family photo shoot. Jack was no longer maintaining so he needed a "boob break". Probably one of my favorite photos.)

Lindsey

Sleepy Time

When my sister-in-law enrolled her daughter in a baby sign language class a few years back, I was skeptical at best. And then one day while babysitting, she proved me wrong by signing that she was all done eating. How neat!

When it came time to enroll Jack, I was again skeptical. Not only in a 6 months olds ability to learn sign language but also my own.

Now, 4 months later, we are both doing great! His favorite signs are "light" and "fan". Totally random, I know.

The other day he did the sign for bed and I couldn't have been any more proud. I don't know why this particular sign means so much to me…I just think it is so cool that at 10 months he is learning to express some of his needs in a way that clearly makes sense to me.

Here is the link for Signing Smart if any mommies out there are interesting in learning more: Signing Smart

ASL bed sign is here.

And for you skeptics out there here is Jack doing the sign :)



Lindsey

10 Months

Bubba hit 10 months today! Instead of a lengthy commentary describing how well he's doing and how proud I am, I'll just show you :).




Jack's favorite toy from Christmas is his xylophone. I was just amazed how he corrected himself and turned the hammer around so he could use it the right way.



Goodness…Is it time to start thinking about a 1st birthday party already?!!?!?

Lindsey

Sharing Is Fun

Jack has discovered how much fun sharing can be….Enjoy!



Lindsey

Christmas 2011

Our first Christmas as a family of three was a success! After a lot of debate, we decided to stay in Colorado for the holidays. An unpopular decision but one that we felt was right for our family.


This Thanksgiving and Christmas were two of the best I can remember in a long time. No running around, low on the stress level but still getting to spend a lot of quality time with most of our family. We laughed and bonded and for the most part took it easy. It was GREAT!


Henry, Evie and Jack opening presents on Christmas Eve morning.


Family.

This was the first time in 22 years that MY family was all together on Christmas. I think that it is truly fantastic that my parents have reached a point in life that spending a holiday together can be a reality…I never thought it would be possible. Let's face it, in the 20+ years since their divorce there have been A LOT of ups and downs (no matter what anyone says). Thanks guys….for making it easy on me and most of all Jack.


Terrible photo but you get the point :).

Jack got so much great stuff from all of his family…he's a VERY lucky little boy and he told me to thank everyone once again for thinking of him :)



Hoping everyone had a fantastic Christmas and NYE!




Lindsey

9 Months

Our little monkey man is 9 months today! It's crazy to think that he has been in our lives as long as I was pregnant! In either situation, time flies. Jack had his check up yesterday and his stats were: 16 lbs 2 oz (3%-yes, he is a SHRIMP but the doctor was not worried at all…small but might!), height-27 1/4 in (25%), and head-17 in (50%).

What he lacks in size, he more than makes up in gross motor skills. He has been pulling himself up and walking around objects or with a walker since 6 1/2 months and in the past few weeks he is beginning to let go of whatever is holding him up so that he can stand completely on his own. Granted it only its only for 5 or so seconds nonetheless exciting! He is also learning to maneuver between objects, say the coffee table and couch. And much to my surprise, Jack has mastered going up AND down the stairs! To say that the little man NEVER stops moving (unless he is sleeping) would be an understatement.



Speaking of sleeping, things are going great in this department. He is teetering somewhere between one and two naps a day. Bedtime is after dinner sometime between 6 and 7 and then (for the most part) he has been up at 5 am to nurse and then back to sleep until around 7 am. In the Voigts house, I totally qualify this "sleeping through the night." Considering what his first 4-5 months of nighttime habits were like, this I can handle!



His little personality is really starting to shine too. He LOVES other babies and kids! He is very social and we are still trying to figure out where this trait came from because neither J nor I are particularly outgoing. Jack is very good at what I call "independent play". I have different stations of toys set up around the family room and kitchen and he is perfectly content moving around and playing by himself. His favorite activity lately has been his walker. He has learned that when he runs out of space he can simply walk around to the other side of the walker and go back the way he came….it's so funny to watch him do laps back and forth across the kitchen :)



Jack loves Stella. Maybe because she is more his size but he loves to crawl over and lay on her or be near her. We are currently working on "gentle", sometimes he gets a little too excited! He has also started to do some sign language. I have been working with him daily for about 2 months on basic signs (like more, eat, drink, stop, fan, gentle) and he has finally signed eat, more, drink and fan back to me and J…very cool to see!!!



He is also proving to be a good listener…so far ;). When he gets into something he shouldn't be playing with, I do the firm mommy voice and say/sign Stop! He will turn to look at me, give an adorable little smile and laugh (it's so hard not to laugh back with him!) and after a few "stops" he will crawl away and move on to a new activity. Amazing! But I don't anticipate this lasting forever :(.

On a note so happy note, Jack now has 4 teeth which has been a not so pleasant experience for mama…ouch!

Overall, he is just the light of our lives and I couldn't be any more pleased with what a sweet, independent little boy he is becoming. I love you Jack-a-doodle, monkey man, senor stinky pants or…just Jack!