PAIL - April Theme Post

I have had this blog for a few years, but never consistently updated it. I really regret not doing so during our infertility journey and first year of our little guys life. I am going to work really hard on keeping this up-to-date. I have joined PAIL, which is a wonderful blogger community for women like me. I am doing my first monthly theme post.

I dreamed/fantasized about being a parent most of my 20s and early 30s. I would be around family/friends and tell J I will never be that kind of parent or my kid will never do that. I think everyone has an opinion about parenting before you are a parent. I hated when friends would tell me "oh just wait until you have a kid of your own" and at the time it would be a blow to the heart. I would think I am trying to be a parent! But, now that I have my little guy I totally understand the sentiment. I read tons of books while pregnant and got plenty of advice from friends. I have stuck with some of the things I said I would never do and some things I've changed my perspective. I am a Babywise mom. I really feel it was an effective technique for our family. We did adapt in some areas to what we wanted, such as rocking. But, we did the parent led feeding and swaddled. We dropped the night feeds at 8 weeks per our pediatrician recommendation. He was sleeping all night starting at 9 weeks old. I really feel Babywise and scheduling is the reason. We both work full-time and need to keep to a routine to be able to accomplish all our daily needs. G is now almost 18 mths old and we still keep to a fairly strict routine. Yes this can have its disadvantages because if we deviate slightly from his routine it is melt down city. But, by having the schedule we can plan around his needs. I know some people disagree, but this is what works for our family. We did the CIO method (Ferber method)at 13 months because we could no longer "rock till we dropped" and we felt it was time. He did great and after 1 night of crying for a total of 40 minutes he now can be laid down at bedtime/nap with no crying and goes to sleep. We feel he sleeps better and now we rock for how long WE want to and then lay him down. I have worried about every new transition on him being slower to pick up. I never thought these things would bother me before having him. But, I have now come to the realization my boy loves routine and if I let him do it on his own time. He will transition with no issues. I thought I would be a by the book parent. You know drop the bottles at 12 months cold turkey. But, I just couldn't do it and at 16 months finally dropped his morning bottle. We had zero fuss. I think the biggest thing I've learned so far is "I am his parent and I do know best for my baby!" I now take all these milestones as recommendations not the law of parenting! I think it's easy to have an opinion of something when you're not in the moment. I have a trantrum throwing toddler and now refuse to go out to eat with him. I remember friends telling me this and thinking that's stupid just make them sit in their high chair. I now know how hard it is to JUST make them sit in their high chair. I am by no means the perfect mother. But, there is no one who loves G more than we do and wants what WE feel is best for him.

Shutterfly Holiday Cards

This year we did Grayson's birth announcements on www.shutterfly.com. Since we have our little man I decided to do our holiday cards through them as well this year. They have offered 50 free cards to bloggers this year if you post about their holiday cards.......awesome deal!

I love all of their designs and their website is so user friendly. I have already picked our card for this year, but it was so hard to choose. They are all so budget friendly and this made it even harder to choose the perfect card for our family. Here are the links to cards I liked, but ultimately didn't choose to use.

www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationary
www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationary/christmas-cards

So blogger friends head here http://blog.shutterfly.com/5358/holiday2010-blog-submission-form to check out there 50 free holiday card offer. Sign up, write a blog post, and you will receive the free cards. It is such a great deal!

I am so excited for Christmas this year. I can't wait to spend it with our new little family. I love seeing the decorations out in the stores. I'm going to have to get Jeff to get my decorations out. I hope I can find the time to put them up while I'm home with Grayson. But, he definitely is a full time job. I will have to do a little at a time.

Grayson Cole Jarrell

Meet our little man! We have waited 3 long years to be a parent. I had no idea how much you could love someone until we saw him for the first time. Jeff and I both can't believe he is our baby. I can't wait to spend the holidays with our new little family. Grayson is 3 weeks old. They say every day gets better and that is definitely true. We are working on getting on a schedule. Easier said than done. But, just thankful he is healthy!

The Shot

Wow! What a 3 day weekend! We had a fish fry Saturday night. We had so much fun. I haven't laughed like that in a long time. It is so nice to get everyone together. I gave myself my first shot tonight. I just took a deep breath and went for it. I didn't think it was bad. I might just be a little nurse after these hormones. Anyone need a shot? I do not want to go back to work tomorrow. I would love to have a few more days. I am so addicted to Twilight. I've already read the first book. I'm reading New Moon now. Of course, I had to rent the movie as soon as I finished the book. I liked the movie, but it wasn't as detailed as the book. I think I will be sad when the books end. I will have to find something else to read.

Why does my husband have to be so smart? Makes me sick!

The Infertility Journey

The journey of infertility has been crazy! I had exploratory surgery last week. They didn't find anything abnormal. I had mixed feelings about the results. I'm happy I'm okay, but part of me wanted them to find something. I just want answers on why I can't seem to get pregnant. I don't know if I will ever have an answer to this question. I'm finally feeling good. We decided this week to start hormone injections. I almost passed out when I found out it's going to cost me $1400. Of course, insurance doesn't pay for them. BIG SHOCKER! I will have to give myself a shot every day for a month. My husband thought he was going to get to give them to me. I can tell you the gleam in his eyes scared me. LOL But, I can do it myself since I can to the injections in my stomach. I can't wait to see what kind of crazed lunatic I will become on hormones. When I took Clomid, I had hot flashes as if I was experiencing menopause. I guess we will see. I have a calendar, but I'm still a nervous wreck about keeping track. Going through infertility treatments is like a second job. I pray this will work this time. I'm so thankful to have a friend who has experienced this difficult situation. She answers all of my questions. Keep us in your prayers!

OTS - I finally gave in and am reading Twilight. I can't wait to see if it is as good as everyone tells me.

Bad Bad Blogger

I have been a horrible blogger. I have to admit I've been on facebook way too much. Jeff and I are now seeing a fertility specialist at Baylor. We just started seeing him and are going through the testing phase. I'm hoping we will get to meet with the doctor this week to go over our options. I really like him!
We worked on our master bedroom this weekend. As most of you know, we are remodeling our house. I've posted some pics of the before and after of the windows.

Yah! Deer Season

Well, for any of you married to hunters, you know it is that time of year. My father is a hunter. I always loved this time of year. Because my mom and I would do some serious shopping while my dad was gone. Jeff is a hunter and on my family lease now. I know it sounds awful, but I love when he goes to the lease for the weekend. Jeff was gone this past weekend and will be gone the next 2 weekends. Some of my friends asked me if it made me mad he went to the lease so much. I just laughed and informed them quickly I love it. As many of you know, once you are married there is not a lot of alone or me time. The beauty of the lease is it gives me time. And a lot of weekends my mom comes up to spend quality mother/daughter time while the men are away. I love spending time with Jeff. But, I don't mind a quiet weekend of either shopping or staying in my PJs all day with a good book.