Junior Tee

It's been almost 3 months since my baby was born (CRY!). Recovery has been more difficult than I thought it would be for me, but I am starting to do much better now.

May I introduce you to Junior Tee!

He was born February 2nd, 2012. 6 pounds, 13 oz. 20 inches. He was and is so perfect!

He has been nothing but perfectly sweet. Very little colic and just so happy!

We arrived early morning at the hospital the day of the birth (I was 1st cesarean of the day), and I was quickly prepped for surgery. The epidural was quite painful for me; I wasn't really expecting that. I knew it would hurt, but wow! It immediately started to numb my right side, but my left still had feeling for a while. We were worried about it, so the nurses tipped me on my side to try to get the epidural to flow over. It worked (thank goodness!), and off we were to surgery! Mr Tee was right by my side, and things went fairly quickly. My anesthesiologist was named Patrick (Pat), and he was the kindest nurse I've ever had. When Jr Tee arrived, and Mr Tee went to care for him while I was being stitched up, Pat quietly removed my glasses and wiped my tears for me. It was a tender gesture I won't soon forget.

The moment Jr Tee was born, Audioslave's Like A Stone was playing on the radio in the operating room. Mr Tee didn't want to see any part of the surgery, so he stayed behind the curtain with me, but at the last moment, he hopped up and took a picture right as my doctor was removing Jr Tee. Then he plopped right back down. It was cute :) The doctors all declared how adorable he was, and I started crying right away. I was so overcome with love for him already, and I still hadn't even seen him! It reminded me of when we first met Little Tee at her birth. It is amazing how you can instantly love this little person you've never met before! It's so wonderful.

I do have to brag a little bit here. We were treated to the most amazing recovery room ever. It's called a "super-suite", and we got it because Mr Tee works for a company that serves this hospital. It literally was like a big hotel room....a big living room with a plush Murphy Bed for the husband, a sofa bed for any children, and their own bathroom, along with a kitchenette. Then I had my own bedroom just off the main area with a large stone bathroom and waterfall shower. It was magnificent! Because of some swelling issues, and because my silly epidural took a few days to wear off (not kidding...I couldn't walk or eat until it wore off!), we were in the hospital for 5 days. It was so great to have a little home instead of spending all of that time in a small room. Also, my own bidet. 'Nuff said. :D

We were also blessed that, due to a storm, Mr Tee's parents' flight was re-directed from Denver to Dallas. They were able to spend a few days with Little Tee, and they stayed with her at our home. The timing couldn't have been any better! Little Tee also stayed with some of our fantastic friends here...we really have such wonderful and selfless friends.

Little Tee has had very little jealousy, and has been eager to hug, kiss and help her little brother. She doesn't enjoy sharing toys with him, but she has occasionally offered her snacks to him!

We still haven't settled into much of a routine; the days and nights are still in flux, as are his feeding times. We just kind-of go with the flow, and soon enough, the day is already over! I started working again after 6 weeks, so our days are very full.


A few things about Jr Tee:
*He laughs in his sleep
*He started rolling onto his sides/rolling over at around 3 weeks old
*He started holding his head up at about 3 weeks as well
*He looks just like his daddy, red hair and all
*He has my nose, though
* Diaper time was terrifying for us for the first month or so. It was a race to get a new diaper on him, in hopes that he wouldn't shoot us with poo! Yeah. I know.
*He loves to "coo" and smile at us
*He nurses like a champ, but will usually accept a bottle of pumped milk as well (!!)
*He slept 7 hours at night starting at about 2 months
*He is the cutest baby boy I've ever seen!

Welcome, little one! We love you!

35 Weeks!

35 weeks?! How can this be? Pregnancy has flown by, and I know I will eventually feel like it almost never happened at all...that's what people tell me anyway. I am to the point now where I am physically ready for Little Man to be on the outside. Come into the big new world, Little Man! Of course, it's still too early for that, but give it a week, and he can come at any time! 40 weeks would be perfectly ideal for his development, so I don't want to go through the next few weeks wishing him here, but pretty much, my body hurts like the dickens.

What is "the dickens", anyway?

Whatever it is, my body hurts like it.

I've been pleasantly surprised at how well my body has done, because I was just sure my body would be awful. I knew I'd be violently ill the whole time, and probably end up on bed rest or something, because my body is just like that. My monthly enemy always made me so sick and vomitous...so I figured pregnancy would be crazy. Thankfully, it's been much more manageable than I expected! Yes, I hurt. My back isn't faring so well, and I've been wearing a super-attractive back brace under my already too-tight clothes. My back and legs seize up so painfully, and I literally can't walk. My sciatic is majorly upset, and is shooting death rays through my crazy-crampy legs. I've had some spotting issues, but thankfully, non-threatening to the baby. And swelling. Oh dear! I didn't realize how swollen I've become until I tried putting on my wedding ring.

Bad idea!

I haven't worn it in months, you know, just to be safe. However, we were going out the night before New Year's Eve to a fancy-pants restaurant, and I wanted to look all bling-y and, you know, wear my ice. As I was gracefully shoving it over my knuckle, I had the thought "I shouldn't do this..." but by then it was too late, because the ring had already slipped right into place. And then, right before my eyes, my finger swelled up, and enveloped a bit of the ring. It was big and blue/purple and really bad news. So I tried to keep calm, breathe, say a prayer, and get the darn thing off! I ran it under cold water - no luck. I slathered baby oil on it - still no luck. Then Vaseline, then crying, then calling in Mr. Tee, then ice and lots and lots of pulling, yanking and gnashing of teeth. Still no luck with the ring, but we were successful in cutting up and bruising my finger, so you know, there's that. The whole time, I was having horrible visions of having to go into the E.R. to have the ring cut off. I knew that was an option, because Mr. Tee works at a nearby hospital and a few months ago, and told me that he had to purchase a ring cutter for the E.R. I scoffed at the idea then, but I wasn't scoffing now.  I was so sad to think we would have to defile the symbol of our undying love and devotion to each other! Also, I really didn't want to miss our reservation. We hadn't been on a date in months...I was really looking forward to this. It's hard to flatter a big pregnant body, and I looked pretty good that night, even if I didn't get a chance to finish my eye makeup. I was not about to miss my expensive dinner! So anyhow, Mr. Tee looked at me and said the dreaded words

"We are going to have to cut it off".

Much crying ensued while we raced around the house getting a diaper bag ready for Little Tee, so we could unexpectedly drop her off at a friend's house (thanks again Liz...and thanks for not judging me for my crazy drama!). We grabbed an ice pack for my finger, Mr. Tee quickly changed out of his scrubs into a nice outfit (guys can get ready so fast!), and we were out the door. Once Little Tee was dropped off, we headed out to the hospital. Mr. Tee didn't know anyone at the front desk, and they acted as if we were just going to sit there for the night while other people went back first...apparently a blue/purple fat finger isn't high on the list of priorities, and our fancy dinner reservations didn't matter to them either, I'm sure. So Mr. Tee took his work I.D. badge, went through the back door, and found the nurses that he knows. They took me back, sliced off my little sparkler, we paid through the teeth for our copay, and we were off! It sure pays to know people in the E.R.! We were only 20 minutes late for dinner (we called and let them know). We went to Roy's, btw, and it was "eh". I know you were wondering. We decided to skip our movie for the night, but by that point, I was pooped.

So there you have it, my friends. Baby will be here soon, I (hopefully) won't be so puffy for too much longer, and we've gotta see if we can get the ring fixed. So much drama! We still haven't really prepared for Little Man to come, and we still can't agree on a name. Sigh. I'm sure it will all come together in the next few weeks. I guess it's going to have to come together...baby is coming whether we are ready or not!

You Asked For Them

You wanted them, so you shall receive.

3 Months

4 Months

5 Months

And yes, I am a couple weeks late on my 6 months picture. I'll catch up soon! I've totally balooned this last month!

Chili Cookoff

When we moved to Texas from Colorado and into our new neighborhood, Mr. Tee was really excited to get out and meet new people in our area during the Fall chili cookoff. After all, it is tradition in our church in Colorado, why wouldn't it be tradition here in our new church group? Sadly, Mr. Tee was very disappointed when said chili cookoff never materialized. He's a big competitor in these sort of things, and plans his chili throughout the year. He was super bummed, which made me feel sad, too.
I thought about this for a while, and decided that I would throw a chili cookoff for him and our friends to compete in. I happened to mention it to my friend, Liz, and she wanted in! She got really excited to help plan it, which was so great. There's no way I could have pulled it off by myself.

We set a time to use our church's outdoor pavilion, and Liz designed the awesome invitations as well as an official logo! She's one fancy and talented designer!

We set a few rules, namely that Liz and I could not compete, and that we couldn't be involved in our spouse's chili entries. We had 4 official judges (who couldn't compete, either) who really took it seriously! The judges tasted each chili anonymously and rated them by taste, texture and heat on a scale from 1 to 5. We had about 10 or 12 entries, and with a little good-natured smack-talk, competition was fierce! We also had a potluck where everyone brought side dishes and drinks, plus with root beer floats at the end, I am certain that nobody went home hungry. Seriously....so much food! All in all, I'd say we had about 50 to 60 people in attendance total.

We had games and prizes for the kids (namely silly bands), and a bunch of prizes for the chili competitors. All entrants received a certificate stating what the judges thought of their chili, along with a beaded necklace with a red chili pepper hanging from it and a ribbon for participating. The 2nd and 3rd place winners got the same, plus a 2nd or 3rd place ribbon and a crazy-awesome apron with our logo on it! Then the 1st place winner got everything plus a little trophy and a big stuffed red jalapeno (named Jacques, naturally he's French--which I sewed!). It was quite the coveted spot to be in.



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So I bet you are wondering who won the cookoff, aren't you? If you guessed Mr. Tee, you'd be right! Oh my goodness, when I saw that he had won (I really didn't have any idea until we tallied the scores-I wasn't there when the judges tried his), I about died! It was so funny! He had a big smile plastered on his face, and I was so proud of him :) It turned out to be a big success, and of course, it's an annual thing. I think people will bring their A-games next year!

Some of the prizes

Our winners!

It was truly a fun event, and I'm so glad we pulled it off! Until next year!

All I Ever Wanted/All I Ever Needed

Is here in my arms

Surprise!

Snips & Snails & Puppy-Dog Tails

Shout it from the rooftops, we have a little man on the way.

A BOY!

You know we thought it was a girl. We were convinced! So to say we were surprised is an understatement. It's time to start thinking about boy things! Something tells me little man won't appreciate looking back at old pictures of him sleeping in a pink crib and pink clothes...so it looks like a sale of the old crib, and a purchase of a gender-neutral crib is in order. Who knows how many more we may have; we better prepare just in case! Also, BOY CLOTHES (question mark?) Or should it be BOY CLOTHES (exclamation!)? So far, I'm a bit underwhelmed by the boy clothing market. However, I was recently gifted some adorable newborn boy onesies with peanuts and elephants on them, so I know there is hope out there somewhere!  Also, I'm preparing to rock the Celebrate The Boy archives.

Also, thoughts on sharing a room. Our plan so far is to have the kiddos share a room once Little Man moves out of our room. I'll be honest that it's a little bit selfish on my part...I really don't want to give up my sewing room! At the same time, I'm a big stickler for a sleeping baby. So what happens when one babe is fussing it up in the room? Then the other babe wakes up all cranky-pants too! Momma doesn't deal well at 2am when multiple babies are fussing. At the same time, I've heard lots of good things about sibling room-sharing. It builds life skills, or so my M.I.L. (mother-in-law) saw on the teevee. Mr. Tee's siblings shared rooms throughout the years, as did my sister and I. So there's the dilemma. To share or not to share? Or the real question: To give up sewing room, or not to give up sewing room?

So there are the current thoughts of the day. BOY! Clothes!/? Room? Input, please!

Head Banging

I'm seriously on the brink of losing my mind. It's getting bad; really I think I'm probably in for therapy.

For the past 9 months or so, Little Tee has been slamming her head on her crib headboard and footboard. It started back when she was still sleeping in her pack'n'play. I suppose she discovered that the mesh walls had a certain bounce to them, and once she did, there was no stopping her from bouncing in there. We could hear her laughing like crazy in her room every morning, and we knew she was bouncing away! It really was so cute that sometimes we'd leave her in there for a few minutes longer, just to hear her adorable giggles! One day though, I tried to open her door in the morning, and I couldn't get it open. She had been bouncing so hard and violently, that the pack'n'play had actually skipped across the room, and blocked her door!

That's when we decided a real-life crib was in order.

So we loaded ourselves up into our family transport vehicle, and made our way out to Ikea. That's where all of the fine furniture is these days, don't-cha-know? We chose out a very wonderful little crib, and I assembled it the following day.

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Look at these solid ends...perfect for slamming!

Little Tee was pleased as punch to be in her fancy-pants new pink crib! We were really happy with it too, until the banging started that night. Turns out, she wakes up throughout the night, and enjoys bouncing on the walls. The issue now was that her walls weren't bouncy anymore. So she was just slamming her head on the solid walls of her crib! I called her Dr after a few sleepless nights of this, concerned for her poor head, but he said that she wouldn't keep doing this if it was causing her pain. So now I know she's fine, but how do we get her to stop? It's been upwards of 9 months now, and we are still at a loss!

We pulled the crib out into the middle of the room, thinking that the bed must be slamming against the walls, and echoing throughout the house. So now she's in the middle of her room, and yet, we can still hear it and feel it echoing and vibrating. Our pictures are crooked, and my nerves are raw! I don't know how Mr. Tee can sleep through it, but I sure can't. All through nap time, all night long, and in the mornings, she pounds away.

I've decided that there isn't much I can do, besides padding her bed.

I've considered just padding my bedroom walls, since I really am losing it.

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Today I finally made the excursion out to Joann Fabric to procure some upholstery-style foam. I'm thinking 3" thick high-density foam will do the trick. She can bounce all she wants, and I'll get some sleep is the plan. I'm just preparing to sew up some fancy covers for the foam pads, with straps to attach around the back walls of her bed. Safety is paramount, so I'm making sure that she'll have no access to the straps, not to worry!

Now, as an aside, what's with the grump-tastic employees at Joann? Is that a requirement for hire there? At every location I've been to in multiple states, I have yet to find happy and helpful employees. It's too bad they sell EVERYTHING, otherwise I would just go somewhere else.

Also, the PRICE! I waited until foam was 50% off to purchase, and boy I'm glad I did! Holy cow, but that stuff is expensive! I really had no idea. It was almost $50 per yard for the 3" thick stuff. Thank goodness for half off, but I still had to sacrifice my Sonic beverage at the end of the drive, because I couldn't stomach spending more money. It was tragic.

So after spending my life savings, I sure hope this plan works! That would be so sad to spend all the money, and sew up the covers, for it not to work! It better work, I tell ya!


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Yeah, this post has been sitting in my queue for like 3 weeks now.....sorry folks! It's been 3 weeks since I sewed up the loveliest pillows you've ever seen (I'm sure). Drumrooooolllll........they didn't help! Little Tee sure loves to jump on them, though.

*insert hair pulling, gnashing of teeth, crying, etc.

We've been stuck ever since, wondering what to do next. Literally, I've prayed every night for relief. Help her stop, help me sleep through it, whatever! Just HELP! Mr. Tee still sleeps through it. How I envy him.

Well, the other night,  I had ENOUGH! She had been going for hours, and I just couldn't take it anymore. So at 4 am, I went in her room, and took her mattress out of her crib. She's now sleeping on her mattress on the floor! Poor gal, I'm sure she was totally confused and tired. Come morning, I told Mr. Tee that I should go check on her, and he asked why. He got a pretty good laugh out of it! What an adventure.

We have her sleeping on the mattress in the middle of the room (away from the walls), and she seems to be figuring it out alright. I checked on her last night, and she was asleep, face down, with her pillow over her head.....on the floor. Next to her mattress! What a goof! 2 nights down, and 2 nights of sleep! Hallelujah!

We will start looking for a "big-girl bed" in the next few weeks. There's no turning back now!

I sure hope this is the end of the head banging....only time will tell!