It's a bird, it's a plane, it's SUPERMOM

I will only call myself this on the rare occasion...and today fits. :-)
Not only did LEL and I sleep in until 10:30, but we also drank 6oz in one sitting, AND went down for 2 naps both without crying. *cheers*
Now that I think about it, these are more accomplishments for Lorelai than myself. Hmmm...well I still plan on taking some of the credit.

During her morning nap I was quite productive:

• I started a load of dishes
• I washed and dried a load of laundry
• Created and compiled a photobook for LEL using Shutterfly
• And I cleaned all LEL's bottles

My favorite part of the day so far was creating the photobook. It inspired me to really stick with my photography interest. A little side note on this: I did receive an awesome camera from my MIL. It is a minimally used Canon EOS 40D digital SLR from a few years back. It has 2 lens; 58mm and a 82mm, 2 battery packs, several different lens filters, basically everything you could want as a new photographer and then some. I was so psyched to use it! We charged the batteries over and popped them in and then...nothing. We checked the memory card, the 2 battery packs, lens, buttons, etc...the thing was dead. So, after contacting my MIL she informed me it is under warranty and she will take it in to have it looked at. I hope it is fixable! Maybe it was too good to be true. I am trying not to be too disappointed, it may all work out, and even if it doesn't, I didn't lose anything - I just didn't gain anything.
Anyway, back to Shutterfly: I received a flyer in the mail advertising for a free 20pg 8x8 album and decided to give a whirl (catch or no catch). It was so much fun. Not only did I get to showcase my pictures of my beautiful baby girl, but I got to exercise my love for design. I had to pick a theme from their predetermined selection, but that's ok...they were cute. I then could place my pictures (up to 4...maybe 5 a page) complete with captions. I had a blast putting it together...even though it took me about a hour to get happy with the final product. And the catch wasn't bad...just paying for shipping and handling. Once I get the book I will look it over, see the picture and construction quality...I may want to use it as a tool in the future for possible clients. I know I ordered a great one from my wedding photographer (not through Shutterfly) and still LOVE looking at.
Back to my day, Lorelai woke up, ate, played, and went down for her afternoon nap a few hours after her morning one. I then was able to get more accomplished.

• Folded the laundry from earlier
• Cleaned up the livingroom
• Dusted
• Put up the dishes from earlier

Chris will be home soonish and we can all have dinner together tonight! Now I just have to figure out what to make. *thinks* Oh well, I have some time to figure that one out. I hope everyone is having a wonderful and productive day too!

M LEWIS

*Snap*

I am researching cameras.

So much to learn, I am intrigued yet intimidated at the same time...mainly over money. I want a awesome camera to take beautiful pictures of my baby and then branch out to my friends for their needs. I just am incredibly cautious on the price. I don't want to pour in hundreds of dollars on a would-be hobby only to discover I don't have the passion for it like I thought.
Maybe I should just stick with the camera I have now? Maybe I can get photo software in the mean-time to satisfy my urge to create? Decisions, decisions.
I did already design my name logo for the pictures...man, I love seeing my name on photographs.

To any photographer out there: any advice, suggestions, encouragement, experience, etc are welcomed and appreciated. 

M LEWIS

Sleepless and Restless

My title is not LEL this time...it is me. :-(
I am wide awake after feeding the baby...sad thing is I was only asleep 1 hour. That will come back to bite in the you-know-where later. I did get a fair amount of sleep last night after I over-came my migraine. People throw the term "migraine" too easily in my opinion, but mine was definitely one for the record books. To me, a migraine is so excruciating that you have to sit in the dark with a pillow over your head just to get the slightest bit of relief. Every sound and trickle of light is enough to make you pass out...that is once your intense nausea has subsided. Anything less is just a bad headache. A migraine sucks out your ability to function...which is why I had to call my mom over to help. She brought serious medication and much-needed assistance to Chris concerning LEL. She was super unhappy and was making sure we knew it. Poor thing...I couldn't even be in the same room with her screaming without thinking I might vomit. Yeah...more than you wanted to know I'm sure; just trying to paint you a picture that was our night last night.
Tonight was much better, and I am incredibly thankful for that. Now I just need to wear-out my brain so I can rest. So many things I want to do creatively. I want to cut my hair (it has been bugging me with its boringness lately), I want to finish crocheting LEL's spring blanket (the small but oh-so-soft yarn is taking FOREVER), I want to decorate a house...painting mostly, and I want to get a better camera and investigate my interest in photography. The latter I really want to accomplish! I am pretty jazzed about it really.
I did feed my need for design a bit earlier...I bought a bag I can use for a diaper bag AND a purse. It is ivory,  has 2 different handles (one braided shoulder strap and one cross-body strap), and it fulfills my desire to be trendy again.
So much more I want to say but since my laptop glow is waking up my lil' one, I should go.

Goodnight for now...I hope!

M LEWIS

Filling up Days

Exhaustion is apart of motherhood...I think I handle the constant lack of sleep pretty well. LEL was sleeping for large (large for her) amounts of time for awhile but now she is back to waking up every 2.5-3 hours. It is definitely not my favorite part of being a mom, but hey, it comes with the territory.
Her new 3 month (almost) habits include a disinterest in breastfeeding. She loves to look around and take in her surroundings and being placed under a shirt or blanket to feed is not high on her contentment list. She will actually scream and cry at me until I put a bottle in her mouth. Therefore, I am drying up quite quickly now days...I know I said I was looking forward to it but somehow I feel I am losing my little baby. Like I mentioned earlier, she will be 3 months old in a matter of days and that marks the end of being a "newborn", they are then considered an "infant". It's exciting, but I wish I could have my newborn LEL back for another month or so. But whenever I feel that way I just remind myself of her sleeping patterns and realize she is still has "newborn" in her.
She got some fun new accessories yesterday. Since it has all of a sudden gotten extremely warm (over 80 degrees!) Chris and I got her some cute little sandals and sunglasses for the spring and summer months. Speaking of needed that "newborn-ness" her feet look so tiny in the size newborn sandals...it made me smile.
I am not a fan of this weather. 80 should be the hottest it gets in the summer if you ask me...not the temperature in mid February. I look forward to a cool down soon.

Phoebe, however, is enjoying the warmer weather. She loves playing outside...at least for short periods of time. We took her to the vet this past week, and while she did not like the trip, she is a healthy puppy.
I now sit here while Chris works his last weekend and I watch Phoebe play with a tennis ball and LEL play with her colored rings and I am thinking surely there are more productive things to do...but none more fulfilling. Though I still have a nice pile of yarn in front of me waiting for me to turn more of it into LEL's spring blanket...maybe I will tackle that in an hour. That and a couple of loads of laundry, dishes, and other chores.

...Maybe.

M LEWIS

Bright Side of Spring

I'll say we have a pretty productive weekend.

Yesterday Chris worked in the morning then we ran errands (Ikea, Target, Best Buy) and ate dinner with my family. I will never turn down that offer. ;-) Today was my younger brother's 21st birthday so we went over to my parents to celebrate with him and his gf. He is not the easiest person to buy for and since I exhausted my creativity with him at Christmas, I just stuck with some cash. Everyone likes $. We then came home where LEL promptly fell asleep. *grin* I was then able to cut Chris' hair, throw in some laundry (hopefully get to another load tonight) and clean up the apartment some. We have clutter starting to pile up and I have to clean it up before it gets too bad or else I will not have the energy to tackle it later.
The weather was much warmer today, and even though I am always sad to see the cooler months pass, I am looking forward to some things in spring...and have therefore been trying to list the positive things in my mind in hopes of out-weighing the negative ones.

Negatives:

• Warmer weather quickly turns into hot weather here...there is very little transition
• Allergies! They are the worst for me in the spring.
• No more "sleep in" mornings with LEL because it's "too cold to get up yet"
• Having fewer excuses for drinking cups and cups of coffee (I know, I know...I shouldn't drink so much anyway)
• No more jackets, sweaters, hoodies, coats, scarves or any other cuddly forms of clothing that I love
• No more cute boots and slippers that I also love to wear
• The comfort level of burying myself under blanket on the couch great diminishes
• The early dark evenings
• The simpleness of quick, hot meals like soup
• The fact that the months are in fact passing me by and I will never have my newborn Lorelai again 

Positives:

• Iced tea back in the refrigerator
• Easier time dressing and traveling with LEL
• Less coats and jackets thrown over chairs and tables
• Phoebe can get out and play more
• Gas bill will drop
• LEL will be learning new things
• Most of my siblings have spring birthdays, so we will have lots of family time
• Fruit salads Yummmm :-)
• Skin won't be so dry
• New sets of clothing to pull out and wear
• Simple slip-on shoes
• Sounds and smells of thunderstorms

I will try to be more up-beat about the changing seasons for now...don't expect this list for summer. 

Now for this week. Valentine's day, visit to the post office, vet appointment, helping my mom out with her car, and hopefully some more sleep. ;-)

Hope everyone had a great weekend, and I wish you all a lovely Valentine's day!

M LEWIS

Routines and Life

I sit here trying to think of something new and worthwhile to write about, but I always come back to Lorelai and mommyhood. But hey, that is my life right now...and for many years to come.

Speaking of which, LEL is sleeping in her cradle next to me. I  We have created a pretty good schedule for us. We have kind of just fallen into it, but it works well. Like right now, I put her in her cradle around 10pm, and for the past several days she has just fallen right to sleep...as if she is learning what her job is in the cradle. This pleases and thrills me. She sleeps for a few hours (5 is her recent record) and wakes around 2-3am for a feeding and goes right back to sleep for several more hours (till about 6-7am). I feed her again and usually let her sleep in bed with me then. She seems to fuss longer if I don't...I think she gets lonely and I don't mind the cuddles.

We wake around 9am (10 if I am lucky) and I get the best reaction from her lately. I am greeted by huge smiles and happy coos. Best way to start my morning. That, and coffee. ;)

Around 11am we eat again, and during the day she seems to want more than just breastmilk and that is where supplementing with formula comes in. Throughout the day she probably consumes 6-8oz of formula. It naturally increases as she grows. Given more time, and my breastmilk will be the supplement to the formula...but that's the breaks. (I know I said I was weaning but who knew that will be so much work?! I am still kind of weaning...very slowly.)

 We play and stretch and talk for several hours, feed again; then if I am lucky, I get her to nap for a few hours in the afternoon. As of late, she seems to take more cat naps throughout the day instead of one big nap. Harder for me to get things done, but that's ok. She tends to snack a bit between nap and her finally feeding around 9pm. Then we are back in bed around 10pm again.

I cannot wait until she can sit up, talk, and even crawl...but I know when she starts walking I am going to miss my "baby" Lorelai. Luckily, I have many more months to go before I need to think about that. Right now I would be happy if she didn't scream at me during tummy-time.

Phoebe keeps me company during all of this and she is pretty cute while doing it.

Chris and I actually left LEL and Phoebe with my Mom and sister one evening to go celebrate our 1 year wedding anniversary. It was a lot of fun, but I wouldn't mind not doing it again for a little while. ;) After all, she is just 10 weeks old (though it sounds so old to me...10 whole weeks...wow). So much has changed in 1 year, it has been exhausting at times, but it has been wonderful.

This is a cake I made to replicate the top tier of our wedding cake. It even has the same flavors, there is raspberry filling inside! It saved us money and I had a blast testing out a possible new skill. Now I want to experiment with all cakes.

10 weeks and I am still working off some baby weight (look above to see what is NOT helping, haha). Chris was awesome and got me a wii fit so I have been using that and I really enjoy it. I hate exercising in public so this allows me to be antisocial in a new way. Hehe.

I think all the snow and ice have past us for awhile (inside almost a whole week!) and I look forward to getting out and about more with LEL. I will miss winter once it passes, it is the only season I have spent with LEL, but I think spring will be good for all of us. I welcome it, its experiences and its joys. :)

M LEWIS

Hello Blogger

Well, since everyone I know uses Blogger, I decided to put my livejournal account (lewis-lifestyle.livejournal.com) on hold and join this website. I am not deleting my livejournal, I want to document everything my family has accomplished so far...it depress me if I deleted anything from it. Hey...while on the subject...does anyone know if you can transfer old blogs to a new account? I doubt it is possible, but you never know these days.

I will make an actual post later, but for now you all at least know I am here.

M LEWIS