10 Months

Cwyn Danae at 10 Months

Height/Weight: In the beginning of Nov at her 9 month check-up she was 15.2 lbs and 27.5 in long

Likes: Food, playing with Adi (my parents' dog), her daddy coming home, playing with things that aren't toys, reading books, cruising around the house, snacks, food, more snacks and bath time!

Dislikes: Being told no, sitting in her carseat, and naptime

Foods: There isn't anything this girl won't eat

Words: Mama, Dada, Adi, ooo aa (when you ask what a monkey says), hot, pease (please), uh oh, baba (baby), hi, Papa, Oma, Gama (grandma), Gaypa (grandpa) and Biya (Violet, her stuffed dog)

Signs: more, all done, milk and please

Sizes: 12 month clothes (they're a bit big but 9 months are too small), size 2 or 3 shoes depending on the style, and size 3 diapers

Sleeping: She sleeps through the night from 7p-5a when she wakes up to nurse and then she sleeps until 7:00 or 7:30a. We are hit or miss on naps.  Sometimes she takes two long ones and sometimes she takes three small ones and other times she doesn't take any at all.  We always do bedtime at 7:00 since naptime is so random and it works out perfect!

This month she has really become a funny girl! She is into EVERYTHING and I think it's great! When I cook she pulls tupperware and lids out of drawers and "helps" me, she also folds unfolds all the laundry for me and tries to help me vacuum and sweep.  She's cruising and will take steps by herself but she still thinks crawling is faster so after about 5 steps she'll stop and plop down to crawl.  She's a talker! She is literally learning a new word almost everyday and will repeat anything you say to her.  I love this girl and all of her silliness! Time is going by so fast and I do miss my little baby, but I have to admit, this age is THE BEST! 

My New Job

I figured I should probably catch everyone up on where we're at.  Last year in June, a month after graduating college, I found out that I was pregnant.  To say we were shocked is an understatement, but we were also excited and couldn't wait to meet our new baby.  My life plans changed within a second.  I thought I would be finishing out the summer as a softball coach and then starting a job teaching elementary in the Fall but God had other better plans!  I knew that I wouldn't be able to give my all as a first year teacher if I had to leave in January for maternity leave and I didn't think that was fair for my future classroom, so I looked elsewhere for jobs and started working in a daycare.  I loved working with kids again, especially the two year olds, and I thought for sure that I had found the perfect situation.  When I had our baby I could come back from maternity leave and still work and teach while my baby was in the same building as me.  I could see her on break and cuddle her and I thought that would make the transition as a mom/career woman so much easier.  The first time I held our daughter I felt that instant mommy feeling, the one where you want to spend every second loving and kissing on that little baby.  I stayed home with her and cuddled all day, everyday, for six weeks and then one Tuesday morning it was time; I packed her up and headed to work.  The night before I went to work I had that mommy guilt that said I shouldn't be doing this, but I, and my husband, thought it would pass pretty quickly once I was back in the groove of things.  The first day was miserable.  I cried all morning and counted down the minutes til I was done.  Day two went about the same.  I tried everything to make the days less miserable but all I wanted was to be a mom to my baby.  I hated the thought that someone else was comforting her when she cried, and as much as I didn't miss the dirty diapers, I even wanted to change those.  About a month after being back I sat my husband down after work and told him we really needed to talk.  I talked cried and rambled on for hours before my husband finally stopped me.  I never expected to hear him say, "Hun, I've been praying about it and I haven't felt like this was the right thing for our family.  I've just been waiting for you to let me know if it was what you wanted!" HALLELUJAH! I don't think I could have imagined that going any better!  I told my boss, tried to enjoy my last few weeks, and then I was finally home with my baby.

I expected it to be so blissful and perfect but it really wasn't, not at first at least.  We had just bought a house and were renovating it and the stress of that, on top of being the sole caregiver to a new baby, stressed me out.  It took a lot of talking to my husband and praying for me to realize that being a mom is more than good enough! I felt like I was failing by not using the degree I had worked so hard for but my heart was pulling so hard to be home with my baby and I knew it was the right thing! Now we're in our new house, we have a routine down, and 6 months after I started my new job, I'm loving it! Cwyn is 10 months and knowing that everyday since she's been born I've been the one caring for her is the best feeling in the world.  Watching her search for me in a crowd because I'm her constant makes all the struggles seem less important! Sure, it's definitely hard at times and I'm not always comfortable in this new role but it's the one I've chosen and been given and I'm going to cherish every second of it!

Naptime..

Once upon a time I was a newlywed and I started a blog.  It was so much fun to be able to write about life and my thoughts and have somewhere to share it.  Everyone in my family could feel involved in our lives, as newlyweds, and it gave me a place to document the highs and lows of our marriage.  But then I realized that I was a newlywed and there was someone else I'd rather be spending any spare time I had with then the rest of the world via my blog. So, I stopped writing and promised myself that after a year, when I was done with school and we were done "honeymooning," I would start it up again.  Fast forward two years and here we are, still feeling like we're honeymooning, but this time, with a baby! I'm a stay-at-home mom now and while I love being the one to watch my daughter grow and teach her about life, I needed NEED an outlet.  I have always been a writer, reader, teacher and learner and now that the only display of intelligence I partake in all day long is, "What does a dog say?, Where is the blue one?, and Where's your nose?" I really need this.  I'm not sure what this blog will become, how long I'll do it, or if it'll even be something that anyone except a few people ever see, but I"m doing it and I know I'll enjoy having somewhere to share my thoughts. I'd like to shower before naptime is over so until next time here's a picture of my little family!