12 weeks!

finley turned 12 weeks today. which is insane.

he has changed from a tiny newborn to a healthy sized baby. he is alert and vocal, has found his hands (sort of), and is just a sweet little man. the best part about this time is the new found sleep (ok, it might still be his adorable face, snuggling into his little head, and kissing his soft baby hairs).

we are using a woombie and it has changed his sleep for the better. before the woombie and sleep routine, he was sleeping 11pm-3am and 4am-7am. now, we begin bedtime at 9:15pm and he is in his crib (in the woombie) by 10pm. by some miracle, he sleeps until 6am. he's been sleeping this way for about 2 weeks, but i didn't want to say anything before i got some good sleep myself. if i jinx it, at least we had a good run...

the latest development would be his increased fussiness. i can't tell if it's constipation, general baby crabbiness, or teething. he has been drooling and gums/chews objects in his mouth. and our fix-all, the soothie pacifier, isn't working as well. he still smiles for me, but a lot more of his awake time is spent crying or disgruntled than ever before. it's definitely harder to deal, so it's a good thing he's cute!

i was able to catch him while he was happy for a few pictures:

"budget" nurseries

i rarely use this blog for venting purposes of the non pg/new mom related nature. but, i've got to write it down somewhere that i am so annoyed about these "budget" nurseries that keep popping up on blogs and design sites that are not at all budget. and i understand that "budget" is relative. you can buy a clothes basket and some receiving blankets on the cheap, but i'm referring to designer style nurseries at a reduced cost.

here's my rant: if you are repurposing your own old furniture or using things that were gifts, they still cost money. they are not "free". that old ikea bookshelf from your office? it still cost $60. crib gift from grandparents? did they steal it? then it wasn't free. when you write up the total cost of the nursery, show us the money. if you were gifted a nice item, please tell us the cost. to reproduce or borrow ideas, "we" might need to pay for them. if you repaint, reuse, thrift, etc. an item from your house and it wasn't a garage sale find from 30 years ago, say so. most of the items people list as free/gift are actually pretty spendy (cribs, dressers, chairs) and tend to push a "budget" nursery of listed costs to quite a bit more.

so, yeah. here's finn with his grumpy face:

while i never itemized the cost of our nursery, i did consider it budget friendly for a semi-designer style (we were featured on spearmintbaby.com and ohdeedoh.com, so i can only assume someone thought it was nice). our crib, while a gift, was about $300. the rocker was the splurge, but the ikea furniture, handmade art, and mix and match decor kept our cost quite low. we did receive many items from family and if someone were to want to replicate any of our nursery (or anyone else's!), they probably wouldn't get the same things as gifts.

so that's my vent. if someone paid money for it, ever, to be in your nursery, then it wasn't "free!".

first mother's day

i celebrated my first mother's day yesterday with my most amazing family. finley got me a lovely necklace with an initial (his) charm and took me out for an all day shopping spree (mr. h3b helped). i also enjoyed a mani-pedi the day after my birthday, so i had a fun, celebratory weekend.

mother's day makes me so thankful for my own mother and the time, love, and patience she has given to raise me. (i made that card above for her, in honor of her mom, my grandma, who loved hummingbirds.) having a child make me realize what a special bond that is, and i am so lucky to have my new baby boy and my loving, supportive mother (plus an equally amazing mother-in-law!). i can't wait to watch finn grow and learn and i am excited to see more milestones in his life.

here's my peanut being adorable:

and here we are this weekend after my birthday dinner. finn was a good boy at the restaurant :)

10 weeks

i have a 10 week old! 10 weeks ago, at this very moment, i was just starting active labor. my mom and mr. h3b were talking me through and we were still able to carry on lengthy conversations. now i have a baby that is no longer a newborn. i noticed today, and mr. h3b agreed, that finley has made some sort of growth leap in the past few days. he holds his head up, pushes to stand, coos and squeals, smiles at faces - he just seems to understand and connect with (a tiny bit) the world around him. he loves bath time and is happiest in the mornings. he is learning to put himself to sleep at night (not crying to sleep, but to fall asleep drowsy after a feeding). he is noisiest during tummy time and loves to swat at his toys on the bouncer and playmat.

he had his 2 month well baby on wednesday (we're behind). my little, one month early boy is now in the 95% for height (24 1/4in) and between the 50 and 75% for weight (12lb 3oz). she was pleased with his skills (rolling over and kicking legs all day) and happy to hear that we've started a bedtime routine. she suggested using hydro-cortisone on has face for cradle cap/acne, so we've started that. hopefully his poor face clears up...he's had bad acne for 6 weeks now and i just want a smooth skinned baby face to snuggle with!

tomorrow is my birthday so finn and i plan to go out so we're not stuck inside, alone, all day. then i celebrate my first mother's day this weekend and i am so lucky to both have a fantastic mother (and mother-in-law) and to to be a mother to my wonderful, happy baby. finn is spoiling me with a much needed mani-pedi :)

mobile tutorial

i've had some interest in the mobile i made, so i figured i'd share how i did it. this mobile is based off of a beautiful piece i found at fawn & forest. but i was on a budget for decor items and couldn't spend quite that much on a mobile. this was an experiment and i did it without measuring or planning ahead. as a warning, keep away from baby as there is a risk of tangling from the craft line (i have mine securely hung quite far above the crib).

materials:
colored cardstock (about 5 sheets)
circle punch
paperboard disc (i spray painted mine yellow)
clear craft line
needle

this mobile has 7 strands with 9 circle discs on each strand

1. make circles out of cardstock using punch, 63 in total (more for mistakes)
2. punch a needle hole through the center of each disc
3. cut 7 long strands of craft line and tie a small knot at one end of each
4. thread a disc along the craft line (the knot keeps it in place)
5. about 2 inches up, tie another knot, thread another disc
6. repeat process of knot + disc 9 times per strand
7. repeat threading process for all 7 strands
8. punch 7 holes into edge of paperboard disc, evenly spaced around the perimeter
9. thread each strand through a hole from the bottom and tie a knot in each at the top
10. punch 4 holes into paperboard disc at 12, 3, 6, and 9 (as on a clock)
11. cut 2 long strands of craft line of equal length and tie a knot at the end of each
12. from the bottom, thread a strand up from hole "12" and down into "6", tie a knot to secure
13. repeat from "3" to "9" (these strands should fold in half and cross over at the peak)
14. cut a strand of craft line, tie at the cross point of the two crossed hanging strands
15. hang (i used a 3m command hook to hang from the ceiling)

confused? here's a simple diagram:

as you can see, this is an inexpensive alternative. it took a while to complete because punching 60+ discs (thanks mr. h3b!) and needles holes and tying a ton of knots does require some time. but it looks great hanging in the nursery and finley loves to watch it as the air from the ceiling fan blows the discs gently. please let me know if you have any questions. i did my best to explain the process since i didn't plan it out before i began.

2 months!

finley turned 8 weeks last friday and 2 months by date yesterday. what?! how is he that old? my tiny peanut baby of 5 and a half pounds is a big baby now. he's alert, smiling more and more (though only once directly at my face), and growing like crazy. his hair is most definitely reddish and his eyes are dark blue. he's got the cutest round belly and a perfect belly button. his biggest changes are the new rolls - creases in his wrists, an extra thigh meat, and two squishy chins. he's taken to breast milk like a fish to water, as baby should do, and it makes me happy to know he's getting chunky just from me.

my biggest (and really, only) complaint right now is the severe tendinitis i have from holding, carrying, and mainly, nursing finley. the way i hold him has caused some pretty bad pain that has been keeping me from getting good sleep and is basically agonizing as i try to lift and position finn. i'm working on getting some sort of treatment, because it's making me resent feedings for a whole different reason than i did before. plus, it's almost unsafe for me to carrying him certain ways and i don't want that!

aside from that pain, i am doing really well. i got sick last week but am looking forward to starting the 30 day shred as well as maintaining my (almost) daily walks as soon as it gets consistently nice out. i bought a new pair of jeans today two sizes up from pre-pregnancy and while that was difficult, i need to get out of maternity pants. still waiting for the magical breastfeeding meltaway people touted...

we started a bedtime routine and are hoping finn will adapt to it. i feed on demand, so this routine starts between 9:30 and 10:00 pm based on his last feeding. we do a bath, lotion massage, bedtime story, and rocking/nursing in the dark to lullabies from the ipod (mama doesn't sing...). last night the bath resulted in an epic crying fest, so we'll see how tonight goes. he typically loves his bath, but night time is fussy time in the h3b home. my goal is to have him down and asleep by 11:00 pm, with a feeding at 3 am and 7 am. we'll see!

rolling over!

the little peanut is rolling over!

i wasn't sure when last thursday he seemed to accidentally roll halfway onto his side from his tummy. but then yesterday he rolled 4 times and today i caught it on video. he has only made it from tummy over his left shoulder to his back, but he can do it!

it is seriously amazing to watch. all these things changing everyday; i swear i wake up and he is a little bigger and doing something new. new noises with softer coos and high pitched screams that aren't cries. new faces, tongue sticking out, and tiny smiles at the wall. new rolls on his thighs, a bigger belly, and more control over his head and neck. he just keeps getting cuter!

i'm so lucky to spend my sometimes sleepless nights and days with my son. i know that these days will continue to go so quick and i'm trying to cherish them. it can be hard at times when he is fussy or won't sleep when i'm tired, but he is so sweet and innocent that i just remind myself these things are precious. so i smell his freshly washed hair and hold his little hands and look at him while he stares in amazement at all the things around him. funny how i am equally amazed by him just being him.