a bunch of little paragraphs.

I have this new little obsession with Yoplait Light yogurt. You know the commercial where the husband calls his best friend and is talking about all the "dessert" they have in the house? But it's really all the yogurt in the fridge? Yeah. That yogurt. Apparently the rest of the world has caught on too, because it's always sold out at Walmart.

Today was A's pediatrician appointment. She got a shot. I cried. I always tell myself that I won't cry (ok. this is only her second appointment. but they stuck her to test her blood at her first one, and I cried then too...) but she does a different kind of cry when they poke her. The saddest little pain-ridden cry you ever did hear. Breaks my little heart.

Oh, and she weighs 9lbs 12oz!

Soon, we'll be trucking back home for Thanksgiving, and everyone will get to meet Adalyn. I'm most excited for Hudsie and Clayton to meet her. I can't imagine how sweet it will be to see her in Clayton's arms. I'm so, so excited!

I really want an Ergo. I love my Moby - true story - but I also want an Ergo. The ease of just slipping it on just seems like a dream. Plus I want to carry her on my back. It's currently the only thing on my Christmas wish list.

Oh, and I also want a personalized necklace from Etsy.

Mark is "working late" right now, and boy I tell you what... you never realize how much your spouse helps out until your spouse is no longer there. I'm doomed for this winter, because he's the biggest help ever, and I'm really gonna miss it. Family photos are scheduled for next week, and I couldn't be more excited. Our little sproutlet is not very photogenic at all and doesn't like to be posed, but hopefully she'll tolerate things, and it won't turn into shambles.

Thursday night television is the pits, so I guess I'll just sit and stare at my sleeping baby :)

my little 4-weeker

4 weeks ago this very second, I was in labor and the contractions were killing me. I was doubling over in pain, leaning on your daddy, and I was so ready for you to be born. Part of me can't believe that you are already four weeks old, but another part of me can, because I've really been living in the moment.

Life with you is full of snuggling with you asleep on my chest, nursing you like crazy, and trying to gently put you down without waking you up. You have a bad habit of popping your eyes open about 3 minutes after we put you down. And you look around for a few seconds and then start your "eh eh eh" noises. You really don't cry much at all, which we love!

Bath time is a disaster and you cry like we're torturing you. You hate pacifiers - and we've tried four brands. You make a disgusted face and start gagging on them. I'm the only pacifier you want, apparently! Around 6am, you like to wake up and stare at me with your bright blue eyes. I try my hardest to get you back to sleep for a couple more hours, but you want nothing to do with that. You like for me to stand you up and bounce you around while I make noises at you! I think it's fun too :)



When you nurse, I like to call you my baby bird. You open your mouth and bob your head around in the cutest fashion. You get pretty mad when you lose your latch, and it's adorable to watch. I also call you my Koala Mammal Baby, which daddy makes fun of.. but you like to cling to me like a baby koala bear! And you still have fuzzy ears and shoulders, so the name fits!! :)

Right now you wake up every 3-ish hours at night to eat. Sometimes you're so easy to put back down to sleep, but sometimes you get gassy, and things turn rough. Right now, you sleep in a special little baby chair all scrunched up in your Miracle Blanket. You love it, and so do we. You'll probably spend a couple more months in that chair!

I'm blogging with you nuzzled in my chest, and you're the most precious thing I've ever seen. I really look forward to the days when I can play with you and interact with you more, but I hate to see you growing up, honestly. Right now we have a super tight bond that Daddy often talks about, and I never want it to end. You're everything I ever dreamed about, and I love you.. my little koala baby!

our love of cloth diapering

Well, we've finally made the big "leap" to full-time cloth diapers.

And, guys, I couldn't be happier.



I was a little "worried" that cloth might be too hard. That there might be too much laundry. Too big of a mess. Too much to fiddle with. Not enough diapers to last her. But I couldn't have been more wrong. I am IN LOVE WITH our FuzziBunz, and that's no joke! I know a lot of you to-be mamas are prospective cloth diaperers, so I thought I'd give you insight on how we do it. It's so simple that you'll be shocked.

So, we bought 15 FuzziBunz from FuzziBunzStore.com. I was concerned that 15 wouldn't be enough, but it's completely fine. We bought a wide variety of bright colors, and I love them to death. You might know that FuzziBunz is unique because of the elastic in the legs and waist. They fit perfectly to our daughter's body, and poop never ever ever escapes. And, let me tell you, our daughter can really go...

FuzziBunz has 5 "settings" 1 through 5. 5 is the tightest and smallest elastic setting, used for newborns. As of now, we have her legs on 4s and 3s (there's two sets) and her waist is at a 3. So we snap them on her - and the snaps are GREAT, by the way - and off we go!

When we have a dirty diaper, I remove it and place it in a designated area. Right now they go on top of the washing machine, because I do a load of diapers daily. As she grows, and goes less often, I'll put them in our Arm & Hammer diaper pail. But newborns go quite frequently, so I wash diapers daily. Now, I'm not washing them ALL daily. I wash about 5 per day. So once I have 5 (or so) dirty diapers, I remove the insert and throw them in the washing machine.

Run a cold rinse with no detergent.
Then run a hot normal wash with 3 tablespoons of Rockin Green detergent.

When they're done washing, I dry the inserts on low heat.

AND THAT'S IT.

Guys, the washing machine does it all. It's the easiest thing ever. Our diapers don't have a SPECK of a stain. Rockin Green is AMAZING, and I *highly* recommend it. Our beautiful FuzziBunz are completely spotless, and they smell so fresh. I would like to add a note that using cloth isn't gross at all. I exclusively breastfeed, so her poop doesn't even have an odor. At all. It doesn't even begin to gross us out. Once she starts solids, it will be a different story :) But right now it is so easy and there is absolutely no ick-factor.

Now I'm off to stare at my beautiful daughter, who is sleeping in my arms as I type this blog post. Oh, and relish the thought of how much money we're saving by not buying those expensive disposables. We use our cloth diapers at night, too, so our disposable days are over!! Yahoo!!

The best decision we ever made.

Edited to add: Since I breastfeed her, there's no need to remove poop before I throw the diapers in the washing machine. Breastfed poop is water soluble, so I toss them in. It sounds gross, but that's how things roll. Once she starts solids, I'll have to knock off the solid poop into the toilet (or use rice paper, which I will). But for now, it just all gets thrown in.

free Christmas cards!!!

Guess what, guys? I have the coolest news: If you're a blogger, you're eligible to receive 50 FREE (totally free. for real. no gimmicks.) Christmas cards from Shutterfly! I kid you not. Too good to be true?! It isn't!!

My best friend, Brittney told me all about it in her blog post. She always finds the neatest things and always tells me. Thanks, Britt!!!!!

So, we always use Shutterfly for our photo needs. And I'm not just saying this because I'm blogging about the free photos. We really do, and so does my sister. They're super cheap. And, if you want, you can send them to be printed at Target, and you don't have to pay for shipping! And I order hundreds (literally) of photos at a time, so that really helps!

But back to the free Christmas cards -

They have zillions of Christmas card layouts - the best I've seen anywhere - and it's SO hard to choose which one I like best! I really like this one:



Since I can add a personal touch, especially about our upcoming family situations, so that's a nice option.. but I'm waiting to see our photos that our friend Lindsay took before I make a final decision. Mark and I will have to sit and look through them all and figure out which one we want! A super hard task :)

They also have gift tags and calendars that you can make too! How neat!!

All YOU have to do is blog about their awesome deal, and you can get in on the 50 free cards yourself!! Easy peasy, folks! Sign up HERE and get started!!! I sooo cannot wait to send out our very first Christmas cards as a family of three! How precious :)

your baby needs this.

To all my (many) pregnant friends out there:

Your baby needs a Miracle Blanket. No exaggeration here. And, actually, YOU need the Miracle Blanket.


I first heard about the Miracle Blanket from MckMama, and boy I am so glad I did. We brought our pink camo blanket to the hospital and used it on Adalyn in her first day of life. Since then, we have used it every.single.day. and I cannot imagine our lives without it.

I probably sound dramatic here. But, guys, this thing just about saves our lives. I can't stress it enough!

What makes this blanket different from an average blanket is that it has these folds of fabric that tuck under your baby's arms and over their legs. So, essentially, it's kind of like a baby straight-jacket. But your baby will love it.




I can't imagine putting her to sleep at night without it. It keeps her so tight, warm, and secure. Her instant calmness is proof that this swaddling blanket really does work miracles. When she naps without her blanket, her little arms will flail and wake her up EVERY single time. The startle reflex always wakes her, and the Miracle Blanket prevents that. I'm so, SO glad that we have this awesome product.

snug as a bug in a rug :D

visit their website HERE!
you can thank me later :)

life with my baby :)

I'm the worst mommy blogger ever. I have to change that.

Mommyhood is going just as I thought it would. Some days are easy and some days are more challenging. I think my "exposure" to my 3 nephews has helped, since I've learned a few "techniques" from my sister on calming and caring for babies. I think she's a pretty relaxed baby.. most of the time. She's pretty fond of me :) and loves breastmilk more than any child I've ever known. She gulps it down like she's chugging coke. If she could chug coke, that is. And she won't be chugging coke for years to come.. I hope. Haha.. ahem.

We obviously have no routine right now, but she generally wakes up every 2.5 hours at night to eat. We've transferred her to her bassinet (she was sleeping in Hudson's "special" chair), and she seems to like it more. At night, she doesn't cry. I wake up to a little..

eh eh eh

lips smack smack smack

*annoyed sound*

eh eh eh

..and that's my sign to wake up and get her! I feed her and she falls right back to sleep. Hopefully me typing this isn't jinxing me.. if jinxing existed.. but nighttime goes pretty great. The biggest struggle, for us, is getting her to stay asleep initially.


And earlier when I said that she loved breastmilk, I wasn't joking. She gained 15 ounces in one week, which we found out at her second pediatrician's appointment on Wednesday. And her belly button fell off when she was just 6 days old. She's growing up on us! ;)


So these days are full of lots of feedings, lots of "shhing," lots of pats on her bottom, and me plotting my next nap. I really, really try to consciously remember that I'm going to miss this, and that I shouldn't wish away her newborn days. Sometimes I catch myself dreaming about the day when she can sit up and play and sleep for longer stretches.. but woah woah woah. I need to enjoy her right this second. Because I guarantee myself that I'll look back at her photos and miss her being so teeny tiny and vulnerable. I'm just sentimental like that :)