Sweet Moments

I often joke to Steven that he looks like a single dad because I am always taking the pictures and I'm never in any of them. As it is with most moms I'm sure.

But, he did a good job and took some pictures of Aubrey and I snoozing during an afternoon nap.

The nap was very needed because the past few days have been rough. Aubrey has been very fussy, and definitely not sleeping as well as normal. I feel like it is too early for teething, but if it is not that, I am at a loss. I'm hoping my happy baby will be returning shortly.

Most of the time, I get really excited to watch her discover new things and grow. But, some days when she is so cute and snuggly, I just want her to stay my little baby forever.

Beach & Feet

Steven may have to work a ton of hours, but one perk of working at E&Y is extra days off at all major holidays. So, we are enjoying our first four-day weekend. And... we decided to spend it at the beach:

We are getting used to this sunny California lifestyle. It was a little windy today, but Aubrey loves to people watch so she was a trooper. Seriously, what better place to people watch than a beach boardwalk? There were some strange folk out.

And... somebody has found her feet! Gotta love those chubby legs.

Swimming Playdate

Today was Aubrey's first time swimming. I think that experiencing all of the "firsts" with your child is one of life's great joys.

I was probably the more excited one of the two of us. She kind of just chilled there in the pool.  But she has come a long way from the baby who sobbed every time I gave her a bath.

 (yes, I had her wear a hat... I just took it off for the picture)

I'm lucky that I have already made some great friends here. Most have first babies similar in age to Aubrey, so we have some fun playdates.

And, I felt bad this morning because as he was getting ready to go to work Steven said, "so, I get to go to work all day while you go to the pool?" Yes, there are sleepless nights, but being a mom sure has its perks.

I can't believe.....

that she is already 5 months old today! It has also been 1 year since I woke Steven up at 5 in the morning to let him know we were going to be parents.

And, just like her father, she already thinks that goofy faces are better than smiles once the camera is out:

Where does the time go? I seriously feel like I JUST had a baby.

May Updates

Here is a bit of a recap of what is going on in the Foote household in May:

Steven- is BUSY BUSY BUSY. He works average of 50-70 hour weeks, and on top of that is studying another 15-20 for the CPA exam. He takes his second exam tomorrow, and should be done with all 4 in August. We can't wait. He is also managing to have some fun by riding his bike and hanging out with his favorite people (Aubrey & me).

Paige- is getting the hang of this whole mom and housewife thing. I think that I have the cleaning, keeping baby happy, and cooking part going pretty well. But, I feel like a "craft mom failure" because despite my attempts, I suck at sewing. My mom even got me a quilt kit, cut out all the pieces, and ALL I had to do was sew them together. Not happening. Oh well. I am also riding my bike every morning before Steven goes to work, making new friends, and loving spending my days with Aubrey.

Aubrey- of course the most interesting member of the household. She has discovered her yelling voice, babbles constantly, has gotten over her hatred of tummy time, and is still such a joy. She is also grabbing at everything and of course putting it all in her mouth. She rarely cries but often "tells me off" when she doesn't like something. I sense some temper tantrums in the future :)

I have been terrible at bringing our camera around as we discover all parts of the Bay Area. We are having a great time, but I need to be better at documenting. So instead of pictures, I have videos!

We got a Flip Video camera for Christmas and it sadly has not gotten too much use. But, I pulled it out yesterday and found the first video we took with it on Christmas in the hospital, and then we shot a quick one last night. Enjoy.

Milk?

Since Aubrey spent the first three weeks of her life being fed by gavage (tube-fed), I could not nurse her right away. I was still pretty determined to nurse her, but it took a lot of patience and a lot of pumping to get to that point. Which, right now is working great.

I kept bringing my pumped milk into the NICU, the nurses kept putting it into a fridge, and I never saw it again. Much to my surprise, when they discharged Aubrey, not only did I get to bring home an adorable little girl, but a huge bag of pumped milk. I have only added quite a bit to my "stash" since then.

In order to gain extra weight and get extra vitamins she needs, I have been mostly nursing, but twice a day I pump and give her a bottle with extra fortifier/vitamins in the bottle. My plan was to rotate through my milk supply, and so I always would have some on hand, and then use it up when I wean her.

Some plan!

Aubrey will NOT take any of the frozen milk. At all. She cries and pushes the bottle away. I even tried mixing in just a little bit of frozen. Nothing. So.... all that milk is basically useless. And a lot of it is about to go past the recommend date for freezer storage.

I haven't had the heart to throw it away yet. So I took it out today, and at least took a picture. It represents a lot of tired nights and a lot of work. I counted and it is currently at 254 ounces. Yikes.

I figure that most of my friends are also moms, so I am asking for help. Any suggestions? Is it all a complete waste?

Taxes to Babies

I was lucky and got to spend a sunny afternoon yesterday with Lauren and Lisa. We all did the tax MAcc at BYU together, became CPA's, and now we are moving onto the mom life:

I had Aubrey in December, Lisa's little boy Blake was born in March, and Lauren will be joining us in mommy-hood in October.

I said to Steven right before I went that I was excited because Aubrey had never been around a baby that was smaller than her. Well, her little buddy Blake is already catching up in size even though he is 3 months younger. I guess even with her chubby cheeks, I can't start calling her chunker yet. 

I had a great time and I am lucky that these girls live so close. Our husbands all work long hours, and it is nice to have friends that can relate.

It also made me realize how there really are "seasons of life," and I am trying to enjoy and become better at each one. Just a few years ago, we were all together studying tax laws and now we are feeding babies. And I love it.

Lauren and I even got to be on the BYU tax team where we competed against other schools across the USA and we were crowned national tax champions. It came with an an all-expense paid trip to Florida, some prize money, and I even got to hold a giant check. I know, I'm cool.

It will most certainly be my only chance to be a national champion, but I think that I could currently compete in "how to change the fastest diaper while keeping squirmy baby foot out of the poop", or "fastest refluxes to catch projectile spit-up."

I'm definitely practicing my skills in those areas :)