Talking in his sleep

My baby Travis has a thing for talking in his sleep. He does this almost on a weekly basis and possibly more. The first time it happened was while we were in Philippines. I woke up at 3 AM to use the bathroom and I heard him going “babababa” and giggling. I figured, “wow he’s awake early, maybe he’s hungry.” When I looked over though he was fast asleep! 

Another funny talking in his sleep moment was a few weeks ago when we returned to the US. I was still awake battling jetlag and chatting with Joseph when I heard him going “jejejeje” (his way of saying JJ) and then he went “dadada” and he was smiling and giggling. I’m assuming he was dreaming about playing with JJ and his dad.

Left lateral incisor

Another tooth has popped out! Travis’s left lateral incisor. The top 4 ones aren’t even done growing out, although it has popped out from his gums. My baby Travis is getting all his teeth at the same time! 

I Confess

Almost everyday I go on my FB and look at Travis’s photos from when he was a newborn. 

Sigh I miss holding him when he was that tiny. Even though he woke up every 2 hours and it took him forever to get back to bed, I would do anything right now go back to those days and re-live it again. 

I’m feeling a mixture of emotions at the moment. I’m happy yet a bit sad and nostalgic at the same time. In two days my baby Travis will be 9 months old. Every 7th day of the month I wake up and always think the same thing, “What happened to all the time? Why is time going by so fast?” 

I know that July will be a fast month and before I know it I will have a ten month old and ultimately a 1 year old. They weren’t kidding when they said that the first year goes by fast even though during his newborn days I thought the sleepless nights and days were going to last forever. I remember thinking, “I can’t wait for the day when he can finally sleep through the night.” I look back now and I regret it as silly as it may sound since him being able to sleep through the night meant that he was getting bigger.

I can’t believe my baby will be nine months soon and in three short months he will be a year old…

Playing outside this past Saturday

How we spent our Saturday afternoon. Travis was getting a bit bored in the house so I put his little exersaucer out in the backyard to enjoy the nice, cool wind, and sunny California weather. He was lovin' it!

JJ & Travis will be the best of friends someday.

Haven't been on here

Only because I've been busy blogging over at Tumblr!

Anyway, here's an update of all the silly things that my little prince has been doing:

• Become fascinated with the carpet. He kept running his hands through it the whole time we were at my uncle's house in San Diego
• Managed to crawl his way to his diaper bag from the blanket
• Threw his snail toy at my mom while she was lying down in the blanket with him
• Slammed his hand held music toy in my arm while I was dozing off next to him.
• Kept pressing his face up against the netting on his playpen. It kind of contorted his face and he looked funny doing it.
• Attempt to eat the dog's foot when I wasn't looking.

He is getting very very mobile now. I think it's time to invest in one of those baby gates that enclose the whole living room.


Oh and if any of your dear ladies have a Tumblr, follow me on there (only because I've had that Tumblr since 2009 & I tend to write more there). Here's the link: http://theejillz.tumblr.com

Crawling!

My baby Travis is crawling! I can’t believe it! I was on the laptop deleting email messages and then he started crawling right towards the laptop! The laptop seems to be his motivation because for the past month, he’s been trying to eat it and he’s fascinated with pressing the keys and what not.

Looks like I’m going to have a busy bee in my hands! I can’t believe he is so mobile now. Time to start baby proofing! 

Time to start planning!

Only 4 more months till my baby Travis turns 1! This means it’s time to start buying and planning all the things needed for his birthday party. As I’ve mentioned before, he’s having a carnival themed birthday party. I’ve set aside a budget and I’m HOPING that we stay within the budget and under budget if we can! So far I’ve bought the following:

• Customized banner and customized magnets (for party favors) - $50 (Yay for it being cheaper here in Philippines)
• Loot bags, party hats, and little toys that are going inside - $30
• Toys for the pabitin (a traditional Filipino game often played in children’s parties) - $30 (I still need to purchase more actually)

My estimates for the following: 

• Venue - $0 since my parents graciously offered to let us use their house. It’s perfect since they have a huge backyard. I’m thinking of giving them compensation though since we will be using electricity (a lot of it actually).
• Food - $300 to $500. It’s a mixture of us cooking and some of it being catered. I have yet to sit down to make an actual menu, but I’m safely assuming that it’ll be around this range. 
• Cake - $50 to $100
• Decor - $50 to $100 
• Invitations - $20 
• Bounce house - $100 to $150
• Concession stands such as a cotton candy station, snow cone station, or popcorn station (I plan to do 2) - $100 to $150
• Prizes for games - $20 to $50
• Games - $50 to $100 (Hoping I can find a place to rent these from)
• Clown - need to call
• Face painting - need to call

Did I leave anything out?!

I’m super super excited!

Now this is happiness

Earlier today I had gone to the mall with my mom and cousin to inquire at the photo place since I’m planning to get Travis some photos. As soon as I got home, I went to the play den to hang out with Travis and the minute he saw me he said, “mamama!!!” I leaned forward to give him a kiss and to my surprise he held up his hands and pulled my face and gave me a kiss right smack in the middle of my face! 

I love him :) 

Being a mom

Last night I overheard a group of girls talking about the "cons" of motherhood such as, "It'll make your body ugly," to "You won't have a life," and all the way to, "It'll ruin your life." Of course, that is their opinion and that's totally fine, but in all honesty I don't think I can ever fully comprehend how someone can think that motherhood will "ruin your life" or how motherhood will make it so that "you won't have a life," or how "it'll make your body ugly."
For me and (assuming) for a majority of moms, motherhood has brought a profound positive change in their lives. For myself, becoming a mom brought along a whole new set of challenges, new emotions, a whole new level of happiness, and an intense love for my son. Never once in my life have I felt such a joy till I had my baby Travis. The joy and love that comes with having a child is much more intense than the happiness and love that comes from finding that right person for you.

Being a mother did come with a lot of sleep deprived days and nights, frantic worrying, stress, a body that just doesn't seem right, and at times frustration, but it is a beautiful experience and the most wonderful role to be in. The happiness that comes from seeing your baby after giving birth, to seeing him/her smile for the first time, and to hearing him/her say "mama" is indescribable.

So I may not be be able to go out all the time or have a booming career at the moment because I opt to not work as much. I may have stretch marks, bags under my eyes, a flabby stomach, and not be able to sleep in as I used too, but I am the happiest person in the world because of my little prince (and of course my wonderful husband and family)! 

First birthday party

Travis attended his very first birthday party last Sunday! He had a great time at the party to the point where he only took a 20 minute afternoon nap as oppose to his usual 1-2 hour naps! He was amazed at the clowns, all the kids running around, the bubbles, and all the balloons! 

Travis sitting by some balloons

Travis getting his arm painted

Keeping Travis's arm steady.

All done!

After an hour or so he was tired and napped for about 20 minutes.

After he woke up, it was about time to sing Happy Birthday. We got up on stage with the rest of the kids and sang. The whole time he was going “babababa” We didn’t participate in any of the games since he’s obviously too young, but he had a lot of fun observing and playing peek-a-boo with some of my cousins. After all the festivities, we got our loot bag for him and went home. He had so much fun! I hope he will have just as much fun on his birthday party. 

Happy 8 Months! (6.7.2011)

Happy 8 months my sweet little angel :) We’re almost to the double digits and I can’t believe it. This past month you seemed to have learned plenty of new skills and had new experiences.

• Two front teeth has finally emerged. Half of it is out already and your two front upper teeth are about to come out as well.
• You can sit by yourself now, but still need to be supervised because you topple over at times. 
• Attempting to crawl by pushing up your upper and lower extremities. You even do little push ups!
• You know how to give kisses even if you do it with your mouth wide open. 
• Saying “babababa” “dadadada” and “mamamama”
• Holding your bottle when you aren’t feeling lazy!
• First time swimming at the pool and beach and you enjoyed it!
• Christening
• Always starting conversations.
• Very curious about the laptop.
• You actually use your teething rings now.
• You put yourself into a standing position when you hold on to my hands.
• Brushing your teeth now.

I love and cherish every single moment with you. Can’t wait to see what new things you will learn this month! Me and your daddy love you very very much :)

What's your baby's feeding schedule?

Travis is 7 months old soon to be 8 months old on June 7th. His schedule for now is:

Breakfast (around 0730-0800): 6 ounce bottle + oatmeal cereal + half a jar of fruit

Midmorning snack: 4 ounce bottle

Lunch (1130-1230): Rice cereal + half a jar of veggies + water

Snack: 4 ounce bottle + half a jar of fruit 

Dinner: Rice cereal + half a jar of veggies (different vegetable) OR pureed meat + vegetables + water 

Snack: 6 ounce bottle before going to bed

He sleeps through the night and doesn’t wake up till it’s time for breakfast. 

He gets 20 oz of milk a day, but there are days where he gets 24 oz if I eliminate the half a jar of fruit from his snack and give him a 6 ounce bottle instead. 

Does he seem to be eating too much or too little? Do you guys think that’s enough milk for the day? 

Travis is getting so good at holding his bottle now. For his morning feeding, I didn’t even have to hold his bottle for him, he held it himself the entire time. I still need to watch him though because sometimes he forgets that he has to tilt the bottle to get more milk.

It’s amazing how he learns new things almost every single day

Travis says “mamama” now. He particularly likes to say it when he’s hungry or sees me eating something and wants to try it too! 

He is just too cute :) 

Gerber Contest

I entered Travis in the Gerber contest, voting starts on July 5-July 31! Please vote for him :)

(I will put up the link once the photo is approved & voting begins)

Time to brush your teeth Travis

I brushed Trav’s little toothsies for the first time today. Both teeth are not fully out yet (about halfway out), but I figured why not initiate good dental habits early? Luckily while I was at Mall of Asia (the second biggest mall here in Philippines, the place receives about 200,000 ppl daily), I found the perfect set of toothbrushes for him. The set contained three toothbrushes to be used in varying stages. Stage 1 & 2 can be used for the early milk teeth (stage 1 for 2-5 milk teeth, stage 2 for 6-10 milk teeth) and stage 3 is used for when the full set of milk teeth comes in. 

I didn’t use toothpaste since I didn’t have any baby toothpaste on me so I just brushed it with some water. He liked getting his teeth brushed. I’m assuming the ridges on the toothbrush massaged his gums. 

Swimming

We took an overnight trip to Manila last week and spent the night at the Hyatt Hotel & Casino. The hotel had a nice swimming pool and since it was nice and sunny (oh and hot), my mom and I decided to take baby Travis swimming. It was Travis’s first time swimming and he thoroughly enjoyed it. 

He kicked his little legs and feet away! He looks serious in these photos, but he smiled and giggled the whole entire time (minus when we took pictures). 

We might go swimming again this Sunday (depending on the weather) at Club Manila East, I’ll take more photos and post them! 

Best Feeling

One of the best feelings in the world is that feeling you get when you’re cuddling with your baby. Earlier I was cuddling with my baby Travis and he actually positioned himself in a side position so that he can face me. We looked at each other and the biggest smile came on his face. He started babbling and we had a little conversation until it was time for him to go to bed. 

How I love and cherish moments like this. Sometimes I wish my baby would just stay the way he is and never grow up!

Sharing

Earlier I was feeding Travis when all of a sudden he took his bottle out of his mouth and tried to put it in my mouth LOL! How cute he wants to share his milk with me!

Travis doing some push ups! 

Baptism

Travis was baptized this past Sunday (5.15.11). He was baptized at Christ the King church at Quezon City, which is about a half hour drive from where we are staying at here in Philippines. The baptism took about 30 to 45 minutes. 

His baptism outfit: traditional barong with matching shorts, cap, and shoes

Travis and I waiting for the baptism to begin

The priest pouring the holy water on his head

My sleeping baby

Travis and I after the service, I was looking at a different camera.

Two front teeth

Travis’s two front teeth is coming out! Actually, the top parts are already out so we’re just waiting for the rest of the tooth. Thankfully he isn’t fussy! He’s just been chewing on his hands a LOT.

The other tooth that was growing (his right lower molar - the first tooth that popped out actually) STOPPED growing! Does a tooth just stop growing?

Hopefully his teeth make an appearance here in a week or so! We’ll just wait and see :)

Earlier while playing with Travis on the bed, I found some crumbs that I dusted off from the sheets with my hand. Travis observing this began to laugh. I did it again and again and each time I did he would laugh and giggle. 

My baby Travis is so easily amused! I love how he is such a happy and easygoing baby :) 

Eastwood

Today my baby Travis and I had a mall date at Eastwood in Libis, Quezon City. We went there along with my cousin A’te Mye, my cousin Nathalie, my cousin A’te Sharon’s two boys, and my cousin A’te Jelynne’s son and her son’s nanny. We took the boys to the arcade/play area so they can let out some steam. The arcade/play area was too stimulating for Travis with all the loud music, flashing lights, kids running around, etc. So Nathalie and I took Travis out of the area and walked around the mall. We went to this toy store called Toy Town where I found out that they sell Dr. Brown’s bottles & accessories, and other items (that I thought I wouldn’t find in Philippines anyway) such as Tommee Tippee bottles & accessories, and Soothie bottles & accessories! I wish I had asked one of my cousins to check the stores prior to us coming here so I could have saved some space in my suitcase! I took all of Travis’s Dr. Brown’s bottles with me and had most of them (with the exception of the ones I took on the plane) stashed away between two different suitcases. 


After walking around the mall, we met up with A’te Mye and the kids at the nearby McDonalds. The kids ate a quick snack until it was time for my cousin JR to pick them up since me and A’te Mye were going to stay to meet up with my other cousin, Jelynne and her friend, Neth. After the kids were picked up along with Travis (he went home with my cousin Nathalie & his nanny), Mye and I walked around the mall and got some frozen yogurt while we waited for A’te Jelynne and Neth to arrive. Upon their arrival, we went to the Blue Water Day Spa to get foot scrubs and massages followed by dinner at Teriyaki Boy.


It was a fun day and night. I was glad that Travis and I were able to go out and have some fun. My baby Travis was so happy to see a whole brand new place and interact with his cousins. I missed my baby Travis while I was at the spa. I couldn’t stop thinking about him! 


I love how my two cousins treated me out today! A’te Mye treated me to the spa while A’te Jelynne treated me out for dinner. Hopefully one of these days me along with my 18 first cousins (yes, I have 18 first cousins) can all go out!

Attempts at crawling

It’s so adorable how Travis is attempting to crawl. Right now he has his knees and arms raised and bobbing back and forth. It’s only a matter of time till he’s crawling everywhere! What happened to my little 6lb 3oz 19 inches baby? 

Hangin' Out in Manila

Travis and I made it to Manila safe and sound! We got here Friday, May 6 at 0330 AM Manila time (about 1230 PM May 5 Los Angeles time). The plane ride was GREAT! Travis DID NOT cry at all! Our flight left at 2230 from LAX so Travis was asleep by then. He did wake up a little because we had to take him out of his stroller when we got on the plane. He was awake when we took off, but he fell asleep soon after. Travis basically slept for a majority of the flight. The only times he did cry was when he had a number two and wanted to be changed, but other than that, Travis was excellent throughout the trip. Towards the end of the flight, the other passengers were asking “I thought you had a baby with you?” They were very surprised that he didn’t fuss at all!

After getting off the plane, we were stuck in the airport because the line at immigration and getting our baggages took FOREVER! Our flight wasn’t supposed to get in till 0630 because we originally had a stopover in Honolulu (to refuel), but at the last minute, the pilot decided that we did not need that stopover anymore so our flight ended up being a nonstop flight towards Manila. 

Other than that, Travis has been doing well with the time change. He’s sleep schedule is out of routine because of jet lag, but he’s slowly starting to adjust. The only thing that’s been getting both him and I is this dreadful heat! It is SUPER hot here in the Philippines!

Happy 7 Months!

• You like playing peek-a-boo
• Wearing 9-12 month clothing
• You love playing with other kids to the point where you don’t want to take a nap if there are other kids around
• You can transfer your toys from one hand to another
• You can roll over both ways!
• You LOVE tummy time now 
• You LOVE sleeping on your tummy to the point that you roll over while we are asleep
• You practice drinking from a sippy cup now
• So talkative!
• Eating solids 2-3 times daily 
• Trying to crawl
• You scoot backwards on your tummy instead of forward
• With a little help, you can pull yourself to a standing position
• You’re able to sit much longer now without assistance

Finally!

For some reason, Blogger was not letting me type anything! Now I can upload some posts :)

I Love

I love watching my baby Travis sleeping (not to sound like a creep)! He has the most peaceful and angelic looking face ever. I love his chubby little arms and legs, they are perfect for nibbling on! I love his baby smell. I love his cute double chin! I love how he smiles and giggles when we wake up and the first thing I say to him is, “Good morning baby Travis, did you sleep well last night? Ready for some milk?” I love how he always manages to scoot backwards and he gets upset because he’s farther away from his toys. I love his “screaming” hour where he screams to his heart’s content to see how loud he can scream. I love his little baby positions that manage to take up the space in the bed. I love how he kicks his little legs when he sees his bottle or bowl of food coming towards him (what a fatty)! love how he smiles, laughs, and babbles all day long. I love how he is such a happy baby! 

I love everything about my little prince and I can’t wait till tomorrow morning when he wakes up so I can shower him with hugs, cuddles, and kisses! 

Goodbye breastfeeding/pumping

I’m officially done! It was an eventful 6 1/2 months with you, but overall good!

That’s one thing I can cross off from my daily to do list: finding time to pump!

Now that he’s on formula, I now realize how expensive it is. OUCH for me and Joseph’s wallet! Unfortunately, we don’t qualify for WIC :(

Sitting Up

My baby Travis can sit up for a little bit longer now! Before he can sit up unassisted for about a minute or two and then he’ll take a little tumble. Now he can sit for a few minutes unassisted! I am so proud and so in love with my little mister!

Baby boy can’t get to a sitting position by himself just yet. However, he can pull himself up if you hold his hands (when he’s lying down) and if you pull him up just a teeny bit, about an inch off the ground, he’ll do the rest.

Newborn memories

I would repeat those sleepless nights again just to relieve the moments of Travis being a small little baby <3

Scootin' so far

My baby Travis is getting much better at scooting on his tummy! Before he would only be able to scoot an inch or two forward or go in a circle (haha), but now he’s able to scoot further! My parents had laid out a blanket in the family room earlier for him to play on and he was able to scoot all the way to the edge (from the middle) and all the way to the carpet.

He’s also raising his torso and butt up in the air. It will only be a matter of time till he’s crawling EVERYWHERE!

Not going to lie

Thinking about my baby Travis turning one is making me cry buckets of tears at the moment :(

Before I know it, he's not going to need me and replace me with some ugly ass b*tch! LOL!

Carnival themed birthday party

With Travis’s first birthday is fast approaching (well six months away), Joseph and I have decided to go along with our original idea of giving him a carnival themed birthday party - only because Joseph and I are so un-original and we can’t think of anything else haha.

The location will be at my parents’ house. They have ample space in the backyard (as in it’s so huge, you can probably put a guest house there) so it’ll be a mix of outdoor/indoor party. Since his birthday falls on October, the weather will still be nice and cool. I haven’t really tallied up the number of guests, but I’m thinking there will be about 10-15 children present and the rest adults.

It’s going to be like any other Filipino party - lots and lots of food! For sure there will be lumpia (spring rolls), Korean chicken wings, pancit, leche flan, my mom’s fruit salad, and of course the birthday cake! This is only a small part of the menu, I am sure that there will be more food in addition to what I just listed.

In addition to having lots of food, I’m thinking of renting a bounce house! I know Travis will love that. I’m also thinking of a clown, which I need to do a test run on in case he’s scared of clowns, a pinata, this Filipino game called pabitin, and other carnival game and of course prizes!

For favors I’m going to order some magnets with Travis’s picture on it and maybe some cotton candy. I’m debating whether to get the bagged cotton candy or renting a machine (I just don’t want the kids getting too crazy or too close to the machine). LOL because to be honest, I kind of want a snow cone machine more!

Can you tell that I’m excited!

I want his first birthday to be a big event! It’s a very special day for us because that day will celebrate his first year of life. My baby boy deserves everything his little heart desires that day and Joseph and I will do everything to make sure that his day will be as special and happy as it can be :)

That First Night

One of my favorite moments with Travis was during our very first night in the hospital. I love it because it was just me and him and the fact that I was the first person to have him all to myself. 

My mom and Joseph were insisting that one of them would stay (mainly my mom since she didn't know how to get back to our house from the hospital). Joseph wouldn't have been able to stay since his paternity leave didn't start till the 11th (I delivered on the 7th). He was unsure if he would be able to take the day off the next day since his CO didn't tell him over the phone that he could have the next day off when he had called to tell them that I was delivering (long story short, he went to work the next day and he ended up getting the day off). 

I reassured them that Travis and I will be fine and encouraged them to go home since both have been awake since 0400 and were probably exhausted. Surprisingly, I wasn't as exhausted as I thought I would be. After much deliberation and reassurance, my husband and mom left and I looked forward to my first night all alone with my baby Travis. 

Travis slept well that night. He rarely cried that night except for those moments when I changed his diaper and when I would tickle his feet to wake him up so he can eat. It was amazing just being able to hold him and look at him. I held him in my arms and rocked him even though he wasn't crying or even needed to be rocked. I gave him lots of little kisses and enjoyed that new baby smell. 

Around 2300, the nurse knocks on the door since they just had a shift change so it was another round of vitals and assessments (they did 8 hour shifts in that unit versus 12 hours). The nurse took Travis to the nursery to get weighed. So I waited thinking it'll only be about ten minutes. Well ten minutes passed, then fifteen, and so on. I was starting to have a nervous breakdown because I was thinking "Why didn't she bing my baby back yet? Was there something wrong?" I walked out to the nurse's station and asked about my baby. The nurse informed me that he was probably still waiting to get weighed since the nurses take the babies back there all at the same time. So I figured "Okay, he's probably just waiting still." I went back to my room and after another fifteen minutes, the nurse brought him back to me. He had a nice new blanket and a new diaper since he had peed while he was in there. It turns out that his temperature was a bit on the low end of normal so they had put him under the warmer for a bit. 

It was already about 2340 when he got back into my room. Travis slept and I woke him up again 0130-0200 to feed him and change him. After that, I told myself that I would get some sleep, but I couldn't because I was too busy looking at him and making sure he was alright. I finally fell asleep around 0300 and set my alarm for 0500-0600 so I can wake up to feed him. Well I didn't hear my alarm and I woke up around 0700 because my OB was knocking on the door so she can assess me. I had a mini freak out inside because I thought, "OMG, my baby must be starving! He didn't even wake up or cry to eat or did he and I didn't hear him?" Thankfully, my OB did a quick assessment and I was able to feed Travis. 

And that concludes me and Travis's first night together :) 

My mom told me that everytime I talk to Travis on the phone, his eyes gets big and he starts smiling. Baby Travis even babbles back to me, it's so cute that we're having our own little conversation. Today while I was talking to him, Travis actually kissed the phone (from what my mom said)! That definitely made my day better and put a smile on my face. I love my baby Travis so much! 

On another note, Travis is loving his new skill of rolling over from back to tummy. Everytime we lie him on his back, he will immediately roll over to his tummy! I guess he's enjoying being on tummy time more now because he has control of it. 

Stigma around c-sections

Someone on Tumblr posted an entry about c-sections and the stigma that comes with it. I didn't have a c-section, but I think it’s pathetic that there are moms out there who assume that a mom wasn’t putting her best effort or that she took the “easy” way out just because she had a c-section! Why be so judgmental? Why can’t other moms just be happy that another mom delivered a happy and healthy baby? 

Moms shouldn’t judge other moms (unless that mom was doing something really horrible). Raising a child is not an easy task. We should all support each other!

Rolled over both ways!

Today my baby Travis finally rolled over from his back to tummy! My mom told me all about it! She said that he was lying down on a blanket playing, turned her head for about a minute or so, and he was on his tummy! 

I wish I could have been there to see it myself :( 

Anywho, I am very proud of my baby Travis even though he forgot how to roll back from his tummy to back (he’s not too fond of tummy time)! 

I wish

I wish more hospitals had onsite 24 hour daycare.

As a nurse, you never have a set schedule and you work odd shifts that are not really daycare friendly (especially if you work 12 hour shifts like me). You either work 7AM to 7PM (most daycares close at 6PM) or you work 7PM to 7AM (a time that no daycares are open; this is also the shift that I work majority of the time).

Whoever said that nursing was a flexible job was lying! It is definitely not flexible and not family friendly.

Travis,

I hope you never think that I don't love you. I hope you don't think that I go to work because I don't want to be with you. I work because I want to make sure you are well taken care of and so that I can provide you with everything you want and need. I work because I want you to have a good future. 

Love,

Mommy 

Travis dislikes

So I found one food that Travis dislikes, the Plum Organics Broccoli and Apple mashup/puree. He would not even eat it at all, he kept spitting it out. I can’t blame him though, broccoli and apple doesn’t sound too delicious :) 

On a better note, he is enjoying his stage 2 foods. Earlier he had some peas and brown rice puree/mashup from Earth’s Best and ate the whole jar. Yup, the whole 4oz jar. My mom also made him some more sweet potatoes and added some squash to it, which he loves. 

Earth's Best Diapers

I'm loving these diapers so far! We decided to switch Travis to these diapers since it was chlorine free and environmentally friendly, which is a plus. I get a 140 count through Amazon Mom for $25 with free two day shipping. Gotta love Amazon!

Six month goal

So I made it through my six month goal of breastfeeding/pumping. Would it be horrible if I said that part of me wants to stop? 


I guess it's safe to say that part of me feels selfish for wanting to stop. It's gotten more difficult the past two months because of work. Of course, that's not the whole reason. As I've mentioned before, Travis gets a bottle of formula here and there and to be honest it seems like that he favors the formula more these days.


So, would it be bad if I stop? 

My parents ended up buying him an exersaucer since they didn’t have enough space in the van to take his along. 

Now he has THREE exersaucers. What am I going to do with three! 

I'll miss you!

Dear Travis,

Mommy will miss you! See you soon :)

Love, 

Mommy

(If you don't know what I'm talking about click here).

I am buying this for our trip. It's $54.99 right now on Amazon!

Happy 6 months! (4.7.2011)

Travis,

Has it really been half a year already? I can't believe you're 6 months old! I woke up today and asked myself, "where did time go?" Time seems to have just flown by the past 6 months because it feels like I just took you home from the hospital yesterday. You were so tiny still, I remember your newborn clothes were still baggy on you because you were a tiny little prince! Now you're so big and chunky! 

Six month stats:

• 18lbs and 12oz! Triple your birth weight (well almost) of 6lbs 3oz! You are at the 75th percentile for weight. 
• 26 1/4 inches, putting you at 50th percentile for height (your pediatrician says you're a bit chunky in proportion to your height, but that's okay!).
• Eating more solids. Your favorites are: peas, carrots, sweet potato, bananas, pears, rice cereal, and oatmeal.
• Eating 2 times a day, sometimes 3.
• Still in size 3 diapers.
• Slowly growing out of your 6 month clothing and growing into your 9 month clothing.
• Drinking six ounces of breastmilk approximately 4-5 times a day.
• Enjoying tummy time a bit more when he's in the right mood.
• Able to sit unassisted for a few minutes
• You can pull yourself to a sitting position from a lying down position when I take your hands and pull you up a bit.
• You can scoot (on your tummy) a few inches forward and all the way around!
• You love sleeping on your side.
• You can almost roll over from your back to tummy if you just give it that one last push!

Even though daddy isn't here with us for now, just know that daddy and I love you very very much! You're our world. You have brought so much joy and happiness to me and your dad's life. We are thankful every single moment we spend with you. My baby Travis you are such a blessing and the best gift ever! 

Excited for our trip

So in less than a month, Travis, myself, and my mom will be on the plane en route to Manila! I'm very excited because I haven't been home since 2004! Even better this time around is that I'm bringing my little mister with me. I wish Joseph was here though, it would be much funner if he was with us.

Mixed in with my excitement is some nervousness. This will be my first time traveling with a baby. Well actually, I've traveled on a plane with my sister when she was 10 months, but that doesn't really count because I wasn't really responsible for her! Anyway, I'm nervous about flying a 16 hour flight with an infant. We didn't qualify for the bassinet anymore since Travis would have exceeded the age limit (on Philippine Airlines it's up to six months), so he's going to be sitting on my lap (well mines and my mom's) the whole time. Looking back, I really wish I would have purchased a seat for Travis.

So I've made a packing list of what to bring for Travis on the plane and to Manila. My mom and I sent a box back in February filled with diapers, baby food, and some formula (just in case I can't express enough milk). I'm bringing more diapers and some more baby food en route there. I think we'll be alright since it's two 50lb luggages for me and one 15lb luggage for him and a stroller.

What I'll be bringing on the plane (Travis):

• Adequate amount of diapers and wipes (I'm thinking about 6 diapers in the diaper bag which will double as my purse, plus 10 more in the hand carry, highly doubt that I'll use all 16 up. I'm also bring two extra travel size wipes in the hand carry).
• Diaper rash cream (The 2 oz size of Boudreaux's All Natural Butt Paste, hahaha I love the term butt paste).
• Travel size baby wash & lotion (not that I'll be giving him a bath or anything, but just to give him a quick wipe down especially if he has a massive #2)
• Baby Tylenol
• Baby hair brush
• Extra outfits (Two jogging pants, two short sleeve body suits, two long sleeve body suits, light sweater, a onesie).
• Outfit for our arrival in Manila (It's summer there right now)
• Socks, a cap, and mittens
• 3 extra bibs
• 3 burp cloths
• 2 wash cloths
• 1 thick blanket
• 1 light blanket
• 2 receiving blankets (I haven't used any since he was a newborn, but I always carry these since they can make excellent burp cloths or be used to lay baby down for diaper changes)
• Diaper changing pad
• 2 Playtex bottles and liners
• 3 bowls with lids and 3 spoons
• 3 Similac ready to feed formula, Similac powder packets, and bottles filled with water (I'm bringing these in case I don't express enough milk for him during our plane ride)
• Saline drops
• Thermometer
• The three Lamaze friends: Jacques the Peacock, Freddie the Firefly, & Captain Calamari (I love how they have hooks attached to them so I can hook them onto the diaper bag handles)
• Books (2-3)
• Rattles (good thing they're small so I can bring quite a few)
• Two new toys (to distract him when he's getting tired of the others)
• Jars of his baby food and oatmeal and rice cereal packets
• Small bags (I get them from the $1 store, it's the one for disposing dirty diapers) along with extra zip lock bags to store dirty clothes)
• Vaccination card and insurance card
• Two extra pacifiers

Now for myself:

• Ameda breast pump (very very very important)
• Lansinoh breast milk storage bags
• Medela pump wipes 
• Extra breast pump accessories
• A bag to store cool breast milk such as Munchkin's Cool Wrap Bottle Bag along with the frozen gel packs
• Extra zip lock bags (in case TSA makes me throw away the frozen gel packs - I can get ice from the plane)
• Extra batteries
• Nursing cover
• Blank labels
• Extra shirt
• Light sweater

Do you guys think I forgot anything?

Does anyone know if the flight attendants will let you store expressed breast milk in their refrigerator and will allow me to put the frozen gel packs in their freezer? 

Sale at Aeropostale!

Everything was 50% off at Aeropostale yesterday! I bought me and my sis a hoodie and a shirt. Hoodies were going for $20 and shirts were going for $7.99. Best $60 I spent so far!

I went to Babies R Us today to get some food for Travis to take while he's at mama's (my mom) house. This one has carrots, peas & brown rice, winter squash, and sweet potatoes. Usually we make his food, but he also eats jarred food when we go out!

Judge if you must

I don't even know how to begin this post, so here goes.

I just found out last week (her MD called) that my mom needs to return to San Diego for a follow up doctor's appointment and to get some diagnostic test done (just tests that are routinely done as you get older). Well as you all may know my husband is deployed and my mom is here taking care of Travis while I'm at work.

Her leaving presents the problem of who will be taking care of Travis while I'm at work. Travis doesn't go to daycare and cannot go to daycare since the daycares here in my area (including the one on base) do not match up with the times I go to work. The daycares in our area including CDC (child development center, on base) are only open from 0600-1800. I work mostly night shifts (1845-0715) and when I do work day shifts it's from 0645-1915! Either way, daycare won't be open on the shifts that I mostly work and I'll be getting off way past the time it closes when I work day shifts.

Getting out of work is basically out of the question. The schedule is set and on top of that there are three nurses on vacation right now. Also, Travis and I are going on vacation so I'll already be out of work from the last weekend of April all the way June 29th. Poor planning? Partly. If I would have known way ahead of time that my mom needed a follow up appointment prior to us leaving on vacation, I would have adjusted the time that I requested to start earlier.

So after much deliberation with Joseph, we decided that Travis will be going with my mom to San Diego for the meantime. He will be with her for about two weeks until my leave starts (last week of April). Once my leave starts, I will be going down to San Diego until we go on vacation (May 4). We're leaving from LAX so either way me, Travis, and my mom need to be down in SoCal.

Is this an ideal arrangement? Definitely not! I will miss my son so much. It's upsetting that my son has to go with my mom for a few weeks, but what can I do? Leave my son home all alone? Take him to someone who I barely know? I know he will be in good hands, but him leaving me even if only for two weeks breaks my heart and I feel like a horrible mother that it had to come to this.

I wish Joseph wasn't deployed. If Joseph wasn't deployed, it would definitely have been easier to deal with this.

A solids update

So far, Travis has enjoyed all the fruits and vegetables I've introduced. For vegetables he's had carrots, peas, squash, sweet potato, and green beans. For fruits he's had apples and bananas. I introduced mostly the vegetables first. Tomorrow he will try some pears followed by some peaches and mangoes after the 3 day wait in between each new fruit. 

I actually had to reintroduce the green beans after a few weeks. The first time I made green beans, it did not puree it to the texture he was accustomed too and he refused to eat it. When I reintroduced it again I went ahead and bought the Gerber Organics Green Beans and he loved it! I also made him some sweet potato today. I just poked holes in it, stuck it in the oven for an hour at 400, peeled the skin off and mashed it up!He loved the sweet potato as well. I should have made some more because I couldn't stop eating the sweet potato myself!

Travis's favorites so far are the peas, sweet potatoes, carrots, and bananas. We'll see in the next few weeks how he'll like the pears, peaches, and mangoes!

Found them!

So I found my old blogs. I downloaded them and I'm going to finish importing them tomorrow! I only got half of it imported the past hour.