A Diva and a Dog

Friday, September 26, 2014
It's Fashion Friday!!!!
Do I also love to dress up my sister and make her model?? Yes. Yes I do. She is rocking two of my most favourite fashion trends right now. A side braid and booties. She is also rocking one of the best accessories ever!!!! Her Pup! Kita is one of the most gorgeous dogs I've ever seen. And for good reason! She has a dog groomer as a mom. My Rebecca recently started her own Dog Grooming business called 'Posh Paws' up in Drayton Valley, AB. So look her up if your dog needs a good make-over!


Bad Mom

Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Yesterday was Aurora's check up at the Doctor's. We had her measured, weighed, etc. She is doing really well and perfectly healthy! When the Dr asked us about her sleep we answered that she's been sleeping 10-12 hours and waking up once to feed (ya she's awesome). She asked us what position she sleeps in and I said she absolutely LOVES sleeping on her belly and absolutely refuses to go on her back, so that's what we've been doing. And you should have seen the look on this woman's face when I said that. I saw complete disapproval. It was like she was saying I was a terrible Mother for doing that. My heart sank. Am I really being a Bad Mother by putting her on her tummy for sleep?? Have I been doing all this wrong!?? Am I putting my child in terrible danger!? Everything was going through my head at once and I just felt judged by this choice that we've made. And that's never a fun feeling as a parent.

We do know the risks of sleep positions. I feel like every position has good and bad to them. But I also know my child. She has the ability to roll onto her back if she needs to. She can lift up her head very very well (even the Dr said she had amazing control), and we don't have any hazards in the crib with her. She wakes up every morning ridiculously happy and we both are getting the sleep we need. I've tried putting her on her back while swaddled, but the longest she's ever lasted is 1 1/2 hours. Tops. So, she will remain on her tummy.


Anyway, drama over. My intention was to do a comparison post of my babes so lets just continue with that shall we!?



STATS:

She is 3 months old (Gosh stop growing!)
She currently weighs 11.2 pounds. (Ben weighed this at 2 months)
She has a super small head. She is in 10th percentile I think.
She is just below average in height and weight. 35th percentile ish

When she was younger I thought she looked SO MUCH like Ben, but as she is getting older I don't think she looks as much like him anymore. Their eyes and face shape are totally different. He is light and she is dark. Ben is a Mini Brittany and Rory is a Mini Maikal. I love it!!



Both are 3 months old in this picture

My Baby Must Have's

Friday, September 19, 2014
These 8 products have saved my sanity on multiple occasions and I can't imagine raising a baby without them! I thought I would share with you guys about my favourites so far. A few of these items are only essential for younger babies. But I will be doing different posts about things I like to have with me for every stage of Aurora's growth. So here we go!




1. Pampers Swaddlers Diapers - I have used Huggies, Kirkland, and Pampers Baby Dry Diapers for newborns and NONE of them compare to these. I especially hate the Pampers Baby Dry! She would wake up in the middle of night soaking wet because they can't hold enough liquid. And I hate wasting so of course I had to wait to buy the swaddlers until she used up all the baby dry. For and older baby we use Huggies. But until the switch, we use these and I give them A+ for efficiency!

2. Swaddling Blankets - You guys, these are so awesome. I never had one with Ben so I never knew their magic. They swaddle like nobody's business!! Aurora doesn't like to be swaddled alot of the time (bummer) but when she does she loves being in this little cocoon!

3. Penaten - This is a great bum creme! I've never had an issue with it and it always seems to do the trick. And it lasts FOREVER! But be sure to keep out of the hands of toddlers. Ben decided to paint himself with it one day. And that stuff doesn't rub off easy.

4. Live Clean Baby Wash & Shampoo - I love using 'green' products when it comes to stuff that I put on my babies. This stuff smells great and it gets the job done! And it's in such a cute bottle!

5. Fabric Breast Pads - Because ya know....boobs leak. These are WAY more comfortable than the johnsons breast pads that I've recently stopped using. And they don't have that weird 'fake nipple' on the pad like the johnsons so it doesn't look like its super nipply outside all the time. Plus they are so adorable!!! They are also re-usable so you can just throw them in the wash. But, I found that you do need to wash them before using them for the first time. For some reason they work better when they are washed first. You can find them Here

6. Gripe Water (Alcohol Free) - Aurora is beyond gassy. She still has problems but Gripe water seems to work! I have also found that she sleeps longer in the night when we give it her before bed. I think it soothes her tummy so she doesn't wake up with discomfort.

7. Mam Soothers - We used the Gum Drop soothers with Ben and he really liked them, but lets be honest, they are ugly. These soothers are both cute and effective! She took this kind right away. I am a huge soother user. Both my kids loved them and they work wonders for us when the babes get fussy. Babies naturally love to suck to sooth themselves so Im happy that she even takes a soother. they have lots of different kinds.

8. Medela Swing Breast Pump - Last but certainly not least!! I don't know where I would be without this thing. It is by far the most important product that I own for babies. I have a full big box of breast milk in the freezer because of this thing. I have a husband who takes a feeding in the night (when she needs it) because of the pump. Benjamin was fed Breast milk when he wouldn't latch because of this. I both need and love this pump! And it is so convenient! You can either plug it in or put in batteries and take it wherever! It is especially nice on road trips so we don't have to pull over and feed her. I can just pump in the car and lean back and feed her through a bottle. LOVE LOVE LOVE!

You can find ALL these products except the breast pads at Walmart, Superstore, or Babies R Us.

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend! xoxo

Lace on Lace

Sunday, September 14, 2014
Sometimes I like to pretend I'm a model. This week I sported Lace on Lace for my Outfit Of The Day! I am a sucker for lace. Anything lace, I'm there. And I had to add a little colour pop of Teal. Who doesn't love a pop of colour! I also decided I wanted to actually style my hair and gave a curling iron a try. And holy moly do I love what it does to my hair!! I felt like a whole new woman. People would always say that Im 'Fun and Crazy Brittany' with Curly hair and 'Serious and Fierce Brittany' with Straight hair. So I guess maybe with this style I'm a bit of both!?? Anyways it's my new favourite.


The Mango

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

I have a new love you guys.
This year I was introduced to the Mango.
I had my very first one while living in Hawaii and I almost died it was so delicious!
My husband hates Mango's so I guess I just assumed that I also would hate them so I never had one.
And I can't believe i've been going so long without them!!! They are so delicious!! And they are PACKED full of good stuff for you!

Did you know:

-They help fight against cancer
-Lowers cholesterol
-Helps to clear skin (I will need to find a DIY face mask for mango's!)
-Increases the health of your eyes
-Alkalizes the body
-Helps with Diabetes
-Very high in Vitamin E (which helps to increase sex drive)
-Very high in fibre, which in turn improves digestion
-It cools your body down. So if you are prone to heat stroke (like me) Mango's will help to cool you off!
-And it just overall boosts your immune system!!

(source from http://www.care2.com/greenliving/10-health-benefits-of-mangos.html )

I know that Mango's are a hit and miss with tons of people. But for me, it is my new favourite fruit!!!
I could eat 3 a day. In one sitting.
Love Love Love.

All About Aurora

Friday, September 5, 2014
As promised I am going to dedicate this whole post to my sweets! I feel like a need to write about so much because so much has happened this summer! But one at a time...

Once upon a time I became pregnant with a little baby girl. I was super uneasy about how I felt about raising a girl. I loved having a little boy and I had no idea what was in store with a girl. But once I gave birth I was overcome with joy for her!! I mean how could I not...look at that face!! She was so little and looked just like her daddy. Her most 'daddy' looking feature is her nostrils haha. Those things are huge! She still has dark curly hair (with some red undertone) and brown eyes with long skinny fingers and toes. She is Lowry.

It's bitter/sweet watching her grow. I want my teensie weensie baby back with her sleep cuddles! But I love watching her grow. She is starting to get personality and I love it. She smiles with her whole entire face and I die everytime. She has always been really good at lifting her head up and she started rolling at about 4-5 weeks old. She's a strong one. She is also super smiley! It's my fav! Ben didn't start smiling till about 8 weeks and she was busting out the gums at about 3 weeks.

As far as the sleeping. Her nights and days were switched for about 5 weeks. It was so brutal. She would go 4 hours in the day and 2.5 hrs in the night. It really sucked. And it was especially hard to get my naps in with having two kids. I try my best to sync their naps but it doesn't always work out. But my saving grace is Maikal being a night owl! Every night I will feed her right before bed (about 9 or 10pm) then I will pump some milk. Maikal will then take her next feeding! So i will be able to get at least 6 hours of straight sleep before getting up and feeding her again, then I go right back to sleep. So I rarely feel exhausted during the day! It's amazing. With Ben, Maikal was in school in the beginning so I was taking every feeding. It was too much for me. But I feel like I get a decent amount of sleep in the night.

Currently she sleeps in her bed about 10-12 hours in the night and waking up for 2 feedings. She usually goes two 5hr stretches. I am hoping she will do 8 hrs straight then go another 2 or 3. The goal is 9pm-5am, feed, then 5:30am-8am. Crossing my fingers is happens soon! She absolutely hates being on her back. She will freak out as soon as it happens. So she's been sleeping on her belly for a month now and she loves it. We also put her in her own room at about 8 weeks old. It would have been sooner but we were up at my parents house for a few weeks.

And can we just take a second and talk about the clothes and accessories please. I've never seen so many cute clothes in my life! Most of them are for when shes a bit older, but im so excited! I have a feeling I will be dressing vicariously through her.

Onto the nursing. She's pretty good. She's no chugger like some babies, she really likes to take her time which is annoying. I don't love it, but I don't hate it either. There was a problem with my milk supply. I was like a milk cow in the beginning month or so and then all of a sudden, my milk goes down to about 1/4 of what I was producing before. I definitely don't want to be done nursing this early so I looked up some natural milk producing stuff. I am currently taking Fenugreek and it seems to be doing the trick! It took a few days to kick in but I could feel my supply increase so im less worried about that now.

I won't lie though, I have broken down a handful of times. Nothing too serious but I am keeping an eye out for post-partum depression. Definitely don't want to go through that again. For the most part, I am extremely happy! Life is so wonderful. This summer was packed full of good memories and fun activities!

She has an amazing and sweet spirit around her. We love that she was sent down to us. I can't wait to see her change and learn new things! We love our little girl!

Now onto the best part, Pictures!




1 week
3 weeks
These are Aurora's Besties.
Aurora 2 weeks. Lexi 9 weeks. Ellie 4 weeks. Ethan 11 weeks.

1 month
2 months
10 weeks

I hope you all have a great weekend xoxo!
 
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