SingingWithTheVolumeUp

“Before you were born I carried you under my heart. From the moment you arrived in this world until the moment I leave it, I will always carry you in my heart.” ~Mandy Harrison

My precious gem,

We have somewhat fallen into a routine at bedtime, but tonight was different. I held you after you fell asleep…for hours…in a dark room only illuminated by the Netflix paused flat screen. I could only make out the traces of your face and listen to your cat like purrs as you slumbered, and that was all that was needed. I am so lucky that you chose me; chose me to be your guide on this side of heaven. You are so beautiful. Some say objectifying your beauty will cause lifelong complexes’, and that may be true, but it’s so hard not to when you are so perfectly present with me. One day I will cease as your guide on this planet so I want to take every opportunity to let you know how amazing you are. I recently told someone that it’s better to be spoiled than searching; for the behaviors of being entitled can be changed but the void of the lack of love is extremely hard to fill. I never want you for a second to doubt that you are loved; that your existence was yearned for; that your smile dries tears. You, my daughter, were chosen to walk this earth and be something great; and that fact that you chose me to be your guide, your mom, humbles me daily.

Well just like the past month, this one was a busy one! You got to meet a slew of your future friends on a few play dates this month. It was the most adorable things seeing you interact with other babies and their mamas. You tend to be shy in crowds right now, which is very similar to your father. You remind me so much of him: very quiet, observant, but present.

You celebrated your first Christmas and New Years! Though it melted mommy’s heart for days watching you interact with your family on Christmas, I couldn’t get over how excited your Dad was to watch you that morning. He had his video camera rolling and pictures snapping all day trying to capture your every moment. He is so proud to be your Dad!

By far the most important event this month was your christening (baby dedication). Having you brought before the Lord and asked for His special hand over your life was faith restoring. Your family came out in the masses to support you on this special day (planes, long car rides, little sleep…nothing stopped them from being on one accord with you that day). You looked like an angel plucked from heaven in your dress. After the church service (performed by Bishop Sykes) we spent the afternoon with family at Auntie Kiki’s house. You literally fell asleep sitting up you were so tired. Outside of the day you were born; it was the most joyous day thus far. It is my every wish as your mom to make sure you know and love the Lord with all your heart.

Other things we have noticed:
-You are officially sleeping in your own bed (bassinet)!!!!
-You got the sweating gene from mama (sorry)!
-You are very good at mimicking us (sticking out your tongue, talking back, etc…). This has to be Daddy’s favorite thing to do with you this month.
-You squeal when you are happy! Your squeals seriously make my heart skip a beat.
-You intentionally do things now for a smile or a laugh. Your favorite thing is kicking on the changing table and then watching me frantically try and grab your diaper. You find this quite hilarious.
-You are a thumb sucker! You have gotten pretty good at soothing yourself quickly with sucking your thumb.

You LOVE:
-The step and play. You sit in this thing and play symphonies for mom every day!
-Playing with your feet and toes
-Our morning song
-Pinching! Mommy and Daddy are NOT a fan of this, but it amuses you every time we squeal “ouch”.
-Looking in the mirror

You could pass on:
-The bumbo seat. You are sitting up in it, but getting you to sit in it for more than five minutes takes a lot of convincing.
-Getting dressed…yep still hate it.

Always with love,
Mom

“The soul is healed by being with children” – Fyodor Dostoyevsky

G.G. (This is the nickname I have called you the most this month),

Well the cliché is true; you have grown so fast! This month has been extremely eventful and at times I have felt a little out of control of our time and just yearned to lay with you and just smile at each other. I will admit that I selfishly adore and love our mommy / daughter time, especially first thing in the morning. You have gotten pretty good at waking me up by giggling and gently kicking mommy when you are ready to get the day started. You have started to sleep more in your own bed which Mommy and Daddy appreciate SO much and usually don’t sneak into bed with us until your last early morning nursing.

You are one strong little girl already. You absolutely love kicking, trying to push up on your feet, and holding your head up. And you surprised Mommy one day by ROLLING OVER (Dec. 2nd, 2013 at 4:05 P.M. was the exact date and time)! I have never squealed so loud in my life! I tried my hardest to get your next few rolls on camera but you were not having it. When Daddy comes home from work is your special time together and of course you rolled over for Daddy on camera when I wasn’t there….you sneaky girl! (Video uploaded on my Facebook).

You have been quite a social butterfly this month. Not only have you been visiting Mommy’s side of the family and getting to know your silly cousins, but you had very special visitors this month all the way from Texas! Your Great-grandmother (Granny Lulu), your grandmother (Grandma Lynda), and your Great-great uncle (Uncle Ray) got to spend some time with you and spoiled you rotten! You also went to your first party! Your cousin Kennedy celebrated her birthday and you were front and center at the festivities.

Speaking of festivities, you celebrated your first thanksgiving! Mommy was so overwhelmed with emotions as I FINALLY got to say I was thankful for my daughter during our family circle this year. It was the BEST feeling in the world to be able to thank God for you during our wonderful family tradition. On thanksgiving you also went to your first church service. All the wonderful church members were overjoyed by your existence. You had quite a few people pray over you that day and ask God for a special protection over your life.

Some other fun things we have noticed this month:
-You have light brown / blond hair growing in
-You stick your bottom lip out when you get upset
-You get quite distracted during nursing time
-You LOVE sucking your fingers
-Your tight curls are starting to change, the hair in the back of your head is completely straight now and the ones on the top of your head are starting to loosen. We are eager to see how it continues to change.

You love:
-Talking! You have become quite a chatty girl lately and we love it. When Mommy talks on the phone you try and mimic talking like her; which is usually loud and fast hahahahah
-Electronics. You constantly are trying to reach for Mommy’s phone. You even got to watch your first show (Barney) and you LOVED it! We try to limit too much screen time, but you sure do get a kick out of music time on the iPad with Daddy at night.
-StoryTime. You actually try and turn the pages while we read to you at night.

You could pass on:
-Loud noises
-Getting dressed. You hated this last month and you still hate it.
-Cloth diapers. We have been exploring the cloth diaper world and Mommy will be honest and say its not my favorite thing. You also are not a huge fan. They tend to be quite huge on you and give you rashes. We are still trying to figure out if it will work by testing a few different brands, but we will admit it brings quite a lot of laughter at changing time.

Last but not least, after a great deal of thinking Mommy and Daddy have decided for me to stay at home with you full time for at least a year. I feel so blessed to be able to spend this time with you and know that this is an honor that not all moms get to have with their little ones; so I promise to cherish it.

Always with love,
Mom

“To my children…If I had to choose between loving you and breathing I would use my last breath to tell you…I Love You”

My Dearest Genesis,
Before I delve into all the exciting things that have been happening since your birth, I must start with saying that Daddy and I owe everything in this past year (and in our lives) to God. He has truly been so faithful to us even when we didn’t express honor to Him. I want you to always know that in times of trouble AND joy, first go to God.

These past two months have been the most rewarding months of my life. It’s like winning a prize every morning that we get to wake up and see your smile. Yes you smile first thing in the morning. It is seriously the most precious thing in the world. You teach Daddy and I to be grateful for opening our eyes. Though you love opening your eyes, you are not too keen on closing them. Sleeping at night is not your favorite thing….especially alone. After tireless nights and sneaking you into the bed once Daddy was sleep, we both have given in and you now sleep in the bed with us. I know Granny (Mommy’s mom) always says “don’t let the baby sleep with you or they will never get out your bed”, but it’s so hard not to cuddle with you at night (and Mommy gets more sleep that way too)!

You have gotten so many visitors since you were born and they all say the same thing: “She is SO beautiful and quiet”. Looks like you got a piece of Mommy and Daddy….and Mommy is NOT quiet so you can guess which characteristic you got from each of us…hahahahaha. But it is true, you by far are the best baby ever! There were times I thought you were fussy, but I quickly learned it was me who didn’t quite know what you wanted. We are getting more in sync every day and there are less and less tears and more smiles.

You had your two month appointment on the 18th and you did AMAZING. You are almost 10 pounds, 22 ½ inches, and “strong as a four month old” (your doctor’s exact words). You took your shot like a champ and the only side effect was you sleeping quite a bit for the next few days. You are getting ready to celebrate your first holidays and I am so excited about that. Mommy absolutely LOVES the holiday season and I can’t wait for you to take pictures with your cousins in funny little clothes and attend your first church service. We also got to celebrate Daddy’s birthday (Oct. 8th) and we got to have a nice family day with just the three of us. He said it was one of his favorite birthdays .
I want you to know that being a Mommy has been the biggest privilege of my life and I couldn’t have asked God for a more perfect child. I love you baby girl.

You love:
-Laying on your changing table. We are not quite sure what it is but every time we lay you there you just giggle and kick and talk.
-The first hour of the day. You wake up smiling and talking with Daddy and I. It is indeed our favorite part of the day. I will have to say you get waking up with a smile from your Dad.
-Music. Anytime I play music or make up silly songs you just kick and coo away!
-Bath time. You are a little dolphin and not scared at all.
-Car rides. As long as the car is moving you love being in your car seat and looking around.
-Trying to stand. You love pushing up on your legs when lying in Mommy’s arms (even though it’s WAY too early). But I always knew you would be an overachiever.

You could pass on:
-Being alone or not getting attention. You hate it! As long as you can see one of us or we are talking you are pretty content.
-Changing clothes. Hands down your least favorite part of the day.
-Daddy’s beard. LOL I think it’s a little to scruffy for you.

Always with love,
Mom

“The soul is healed by being with children.” -Fyodor Dostoevsky

Baby Notes: I was one of those freaks that actually really enjoyed being pregnant. Even though my pregnancy was considered high risk for the majority of it, I had to be on bed rest for nearly five months, and I was constantly in pain; I truly loved so many aspects of the process. I will forever cherish having Genesis tucked safe and sound in my belly and feeling her roll around; I feel like those moments I didn’t have to share with anyone but the with the two of us and it started our bond that I hope to have forever. I also can’t complain about how quickly my hair grew and being waited on hand and foot at times. However, these past few weeks have been rough! I sleep about 45 minutes at a time because of the pure pain of sleeping on my hips and constantly getting up to pee. My stretch marks have taken over my stomach and literally look like ivy growing up to my boobs. But, I have to say the best part is gaining 37 pounds (to date). MAKE IT STOP! I have somewhat become a crabby patty when I sit and think about all the negatives of being pregnant and then I received one of the most thoughtful gifts from a friend. She sent me three children’s books all about women who had either been scarred or deemed unacceptable by society in some way. In her note she wrote promise to remind Genesis of Proverbs 31:30. So I grabbed my Bible looked up the verse and was brought to tears.

Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vein but a woman who fears The Lord is to be praised.

It was so powerful to me. I thought about all the complaining I had done, but then this made me realize the true gift behind the scars and I got so emotional. In no way am I saying I love my stretch marks or that I still won’t wish they weren’t there when I put on a bathing suit from time to time, but I pray I instill strength in Genesis beyond her appearance and remind her what true beauty is. Beauty is in the process not the product.

This month in pictures:

Weeks 35-38:

Nursery: We have officially finished the nursery…well at least for the time being. We have all the furniture we could fit in her room with the guest bed. We haven’t started to decorate just yet and will probably hold off on it until we set up her crib.

Appointments: During our last doctor’s appointment we saw that my fluid looks pretty low. Fluid should range between 8-20 and mine was at an 8.5 so that doctor reminded me of my strict bed rest and has me drinking a lot of fluids to try and get it up again. We also did a stress test as Genesis movements have been slowing. It took her a while but she finally hit all the marks she needed too. The appointment had Byron and I really nervous and we still are a tad nervous about the fluid, but staying positive until our next appointment.

Maternity Pictures: Our pictures are back!!!! Feel free to look at the entire collection on my Facebook page.

Parenting Classes: We are officially done with all our parenting classes. However I would like to still sign up for a baby CPR class. I am certified but really want to take the class with Byron so we are both on the same page.

Ultrasounds: We got to see Genesis a few times in the past month and she is officially a thumb sucker! I was a thumb sucker as a kid, but my mom broke me so I started sucking my tongue in secret LOL! It really was a bad habit until I was about 8 years old, so it looks like I will have to come up with some creative ways to soothe her without letting her create a bad habit.

Baby Updates:

Today the baby is the size of: watermelon

Cravings: anything cold and liquid (its so hot). Plus I have been having some problems with my jaw and chewing causes a lot of pain so liquids it is.

Next Appointment: Sept 5th

Mochi Update: Mochi went into heat for the first time! Her new parents said she got a little crabby during that time so they are moving forward with getting her spade. We got some pictures but I had a problem uploading them (will try and load them on my next post). She still seems really happy with her new family, but we miss her tons.

Mommy feels: GREAT in the morning for about three hours and then crashes for the rest of the day.

Coming next week: 39 week post…or a Welcome New Baby Post (crossing our fingers).

Thank you for joining us on this wonderful journey!

Always with love,
Modo