Life Lately: May

A few pictures of what we've been up to lately..

Austin and I on our first date night away from Jace. I only checked my phone 1 (or 5) times!

This kid loves sleeping with his hands spread out or up in the air and every time he does it it cracks me up!

He also loves being outside! Jace is pretty fussy right around dinner time every night so we take him outside to distract him!

My best friend Stacy and her family were in town from Arkansas for a few weeks to celebrate her baby girl Camryn turning 1! This year has flown by and I can't believe that precious little girl is already 1!

Another one of my good friends from nursing school was in town from Florida. Caitlin and our other friend Marlee and I spent a few hours sitting on the couch and drinking coffee while catching up. It was so refreshing! I really have the greatest friends!

Girls night out to celebrate my beautiful friend Elizabeth (center) turning 26! She has an adorable little apartment downtown and manages a cute clothing boutique. Her life is The Hills. Any day now I expect her to tell me she's besties with LC and Lo. 

Walking up Kennesaw Mountain with our buddies Amy and Oliver! Amy and I literally go through everything together. Middle school, nursing school, two jobs, married the same year, and babies who will be in the same grade! If she ever moves away I may just have to pack up and go with her. I tell her all the time I don't know how to be an adult without her.

My friend Nataley is due with her baby boy Brooks in just a few short weeks. She has the most adorable 15 month old son and I am so glad she has 2 precious boys for Jace to be best buddies with! Megan and I threw a baby sprinke for Brooks and after all these babies and weddings, I think we have showers down to a science. 

Love my precious mom and how she loves on my friends! 

We have been getting SO many smiles lately and O.M.G. I might just combust from this much cuteness!

Every morning after Jace wakes up I take him out of his crib and he snuggles with Austin for about an hour before Austin leaves for work. These two kill me!

 I have been reading to Jace at bedtime and so far he just falls asleep while I read. Maybe one day he will love books as much as momma does!

Bath time might be the best part of the day. Baby robes are just about the cutest baby invention ever made! 

I see now why parents go little overboard on pictures and scrapbooking. I'm wishing I could just have a camera man follow me around everywhere so I don't forget a single thing. These are the sweetest days. 

Pool Days and Thoughts On Friendship

We took Jace to the pool for the first time last night with our friends Joel and Brittanie and their little (almost) 6 month old baby Brantley. It was so fun dipping his little toes in the water and seeing his reaction. I am so excited for the day when Jace and Brantley are old enough to play together and enjoy the water! I thought about all of the hours I will probably spend by the pool with my little buddy and his friends. It is amazing to have friends with little kids around your age and friendship is one of the things I pray for Jace the most. 

Austin and I both grew up with pretty incredible friends and we think it is one of the main things that kept us on track. Proverbs 13:20 says it clear as day that if you walk with the wise, you become wise. You end up going where the people you're with are going. I pray that Jace would develop friends that encourage him, sharpen him, and run the race with him. I pray that Jace would be a friend that shows compassion, grace and understanding to his friends. I pray that he would be a good listener and make wise choices about the people he spends his time with. 

It is never too early (or too late) to start praying for your kids. My heart for prayer has totally changed since this little buddy came along. I feel helpless sometimes thinking of all of the things I need to instill in him, so I just constantly turn to prayer. My prayers range from concern over congestion, to praying he has a tender heart and a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. I wrote this verse down on a notecard and think I may want to have it blown up on my wall as a constant reminder-

Isaiah 40:11- "He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young."

Tend to my sweet boy like a shepherd Lord and gather him in your arms! It's not all up to me. Before Jace was my son, he was God's. The love I feel for him absolutely pales in comparison to the love the Father has for him. I am so thankful that He gently leads me on this path of motherhood.

Postpartum Recovery Tips

Compared to some of the horror stories I have seen and heard, I feel like I had a great recovery experience. Most of it was probably just the grace of God but I did have a little bit of knowledge under my belt being a postpartum nurse that helped me. There were a few key things I did that I felt like made all of the difference. 

1. Get out of bed. 

This is especially true when recovering from a c-section. After surgery get out of bed as soon as they will let you, ideally within 12 hours of surgery. You have medicine still pumping through you for the first 24 hours of your recovery and that is the best time to get up and moving. So much of the pain is related to gas trapped in your abdomen and the movement helps get it out. I got up and walked as soon as they let me and did a few laps in the hall every day I was in the hospital and it helped so much!

2. Drink tons of water.

They gave me this huge water cup in the hospital and I probably drank 10 of them a day. I could not get enough and have continued to drink a ton of water since Jace has arrived. I think this helped a lot with my energy levels, healing, and milk supply. Not only does breastfeeding take a lot of liquid out of you but the first few weeks after having a baby your body is undergoing a major fluid shift to reestablish your normal blood volume. I would wake up in the middle of the night soaked in my own sweat so I had to replenish some of that water I was losing. 

3. Get comfort gels and nipple cream.

Medela and lanolin make these awesome comfort gels that are a cool hydrogel pad you can tuck into your bra. They seriously feel SO good. If you really want to be in heaven, put them in the freezer for a few minutes before using them. No matter what the experts tell you, you will most likely be at least a little sore. Especially with your first baby it is a learning curve for both of you and you aren't likely to get the "perfect latch" every single time. Buy a nipple cream that's safe for baby to ingest so you don't have to wipe your tender nipples and keep the comfort gels on. I found some that stuck onto my leak pads and wore them constantly for the first 2 weeks. They also keep your nipples from sticking to your bra which is great! 

4. Find a way to enjoy the night feedings.

Keep a yummy protein snack by your bed for the 3am feeding. Your milk supply is really high the first few hours of the morning and I eat the majority of my calories before lunch because I'm so hungry in the morning. Eating a little snack kept me from getting to the point of being famished. I've also started listening to audiobooks in the middle of the night. They keep me awake and I always look forward to picking up where I left off. It makes it so much more enjoyable to sit in a cozy chair, eat a yummy snack, and listen to my book while feeding my boy.

5. Buy some new jeans.

I referenced this in a previous post but I'll say it again, buy some new jeans. Even just one pair. I lost a good bit of weight really quickly but still can't shimmy into my old jeans. For a while I just wore maternity leggings every day and then finally I bought jeans and a few tops a few sizes bigger then normal. It felt so amazing to be in normal clothes again and way more flattering then pregnancy clothes. Also if you plan on having more kids those in between sizes will be great for the awkward early pregnant days where you just feel chubby and bloated. 

6. Call your pediatrician.

You will have questions about your baby and you will have concerns and I would highly advise you, skip google and pinterest and call the pediatrician! My head was literally spinning at one point of all the millions of things I should do differently and I made the mistake of going to everyone but my pediatrician. Once I went to the pediatrician, he cleared up all of my concerns in 5 minutes. I wish that I would have skipped every other way of getting advice and gone to him first. Every little problem feels like it's the end of the world when you have a new baby and your pediatrician will help you distinguish what's actually worth worrying about. Talking to every well-meaning person about your concerns will only magnify them and make them a bigger deal then they are. 

These are just a few of the things that really seemed to help me! Sleep when you can, get a good support system, and snuggle that sweet baby as much as possible. We are almost 7 weeks in and Jace changes every day. I seriously cannot get enough of him and remind myself constantly that everything is a phase. Even fussy periods are just a phase and next thing I know he will be 25 and I will give anything to have just one more moment cuddling with my little baby. The days may be long, but the years are short! You got this momma!

Old Friends

Old friends are like your favorite old t-shirt. Like they are made just for you and so comforting and comfortable. You don't have to adjust to a new fit or new fabric, or be someone you're not. These girls are my friends like these. Almost 10 years ago we started girls night every Saturday night which later translated to Saturday breakfast dates watching every Beth Moore bible study we could get our hands on. Those years were some of the times I have watched God move more then ever before. We would share our biggest desires and needs, pray for each other, and watch things happen. It was a time we all experienced restoration and favor like never before. We know the good, bad and ugly of each other. 

We have been through our share of heartbreak and triumph together. It has been a long time since we have all seen each other, but getting back together was like putting on that favorite t-shirt. We laughed so hard and I was reminded of just how important old friends are. Having people that know the insides of you better then the outside of you. No pretense or expectations. People who know your history and understand why your highs are high and your lows are low. These girls are those friends for me. 

Gift Ideas For The New Mom

Having a baby is a time in your life where everyone around you is eager to help. Let them! You are overjoyed and happy yet so fragile and emotional and need encouragement right now... and presents never hurt! Seeing as I am currently living the new mom status, I consider myself a pretty good resource for the best gifts to get us! Here are a few practical gift ideas and ways to help the new mom in your life:

1. A water cup-
Those first few weeks I chugged water like my life depended on it. I was thirsting for some water like I was in a dry and weary land and this cup still lives on my nightstand. Even if you don't want to get this one- a cute cup to constantly refill makes a great gift for a new mom who's working on feeding another tiny human. 

2. A clothing gift card-

Austin gifted me with a lululemon gift card for my "push" present (more like cut open and pulled out present haha), but either way... it was awesome! Encourage that new mom to go buy herself some in-between clothes that make her feel beautiful. Mom's- just go buy new jeans. It may be a while before you can fit back into your pre-pregnancy clothing and trying to shimmy into your old jeans is depressing. Remind her that she is beautiful and not to be hard on herself. For goodness sakes you just had another human life taken out of your human body. Can we all just give ourselves a big giant break and buy bigger jeans?!

3. A Chick-Fil-A gift card-

This should not need an explanation. If I told you I sometimes eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner would you believe me? #sorrynotsorry

4. Snack basket-

Maybe I'm the only one, but I get so enamored with my little love bug sometimes I forget to eat and go from feeling like a Disney princess to an angry, hungry ogre. Buy her some kind bars, cliff bars, snicker bars, or whatever she likes and encourage her to keep one with her at all times. My mom made us a big snack basket with all kinds of grab and go snacks to keep on the counter. Cute baskets are my jam and a new mom can never have enough to hold all of the tiny little things that come with a tiny little human. 

5. Candles-

With a new baby you will be home a lot. My typical routine the first few days would be bed, shower, couch, bed, couch, bed. I love a cozy home and nothing makes a home cozier then a candle. Lighting a candle and playing some soft music is a great way to destress from the stressful moments and here's one of my favorites...

6. House cleaning service-

Oh man, this is a good one! For our baby gift my parents hired a professional cleaning service to come in and clean my house. Oh wow this was awesome. I left my house to go to Target and came home to sparkling floors and perfect vacuum lines. In heaven I hope there are perfect vacuum lines that never fade when you walk on them! Seriously my mom is a genius and this may be one of the best things you could get new parents. 

7. Encouragement-

This is definitely the most important one and if you do nothing else, do this. Hold all of your well-meaning advice in for now and instead, offer a word of encouragement. I have never felt more fragile and vulnerable then I did when Jace first came. It was so intense and emotional discovering the new love that a mom feels. You so badly want to do right by your kids and are so scared to mess it all up. Tell her she's an amazing mom. Tell her she's beautiful. Tell her she is doing a wonderful job. Tell her all the time. New dad's- this one is so important. She needs to hear this from you. And new mom's- you need to reciprocate this to your husbands. Support each other and extend more grace then you thought possible. Let each other do it your own way and don't micromanage each other. Encourage, encourage and encourage some more. 

Remind that new mom over and over again to soak this time in. I here it almost every day- this season is short, soak it up! I love hearing that because I tell myself that every day. Don't wish this time away because you never get it back. Soak up those newborn snuggles, drink your water, light your candle, and keep people around you that tell you that you are a beautiful, amazing momma! 

My First Mother's Day and 26th Birthday

I really really love the beach. My maid of honor at my wedding told Austin that if I he ever doubted how to surprise me to stick to the basics... coffee, shopping, and the beach. I have been dying to get to the beach pretty much since we left the beach last year. There is just something about the sound of the waves and the view of the ocean that sets my heart at peace. I see God's presence and creativity all over the place when I'm at the beach and all of the important things in life become more crystal clear. Knowing all of this about me, Austin surprised me for my first Mother's Day and my 26th birthday by taking me to Gulf Shores just the three of us.  

Friday afternoon we set out in the car with our little buddy boy and a car full of stuff. How does one tiny person take up so much trunk space? Jace was a champ in his carseat and we stopped twice to eat and were there in time to see the sunset. 

Saturday morning Jace and I were up early and I thought to myself that having a baby has it's perks when these are your views for early morning feedings...

We laid around for a while relaxing on the porch and letting Jace nap on our chests. The sound of the waves had that little boy snoozing hard and he slept so much all weekend. I am convinced he has my love for the ocean already running through his veins. 

We went down to the beach around 11 and set up for the day. We got this awesome tent that pops up in one step and was the perfect nap spot for us. If you have a baby or just like having some shade at the beach, I would highly recommend it. It's super lightweight and easy to set up and made all the difference for taking a newborn to the beach for us. Jace napped while I listened to my audiobook and Austin fished. We headed in early and went to dinner at 4pm because we are old. One of the best parts about having a baby is that they are a built in excuse to go to bed early and not stay out late. We headed back to the beach after dinner for Austin to fish and Jace and I snuggled. We both imagined the days when Jace will be out fishing with Austin but I sure will miss these sweet baby snuggles. That night we came back to the condo and watched movies and gave Jace his first sink bath which was so fun!

The next morning was my birthday and another beautiful morning watching the sunrise and relaxing on the porch. Austin got me a yeti cup which I am truly obsessed with. I haven't stopped using it in a week straight and love how cold it keeps my water. We went down to the beach for a little while again and then came back in for the Hawks game where we were reminded of the chronic disappointment of being an Atlanta Sports fan. All I wanted for my birthday/Mother's Day dinner was to eat as much pizza as I wanted and to snuggle on the couch with my boys. It was absolutely perfect. 

The first few weeks with a new baby are spent with all of the people you love the most surrounding you. It is a constant flow of family and friends in your house and truly some of the sweetest days. But there was something so special about having a few days with just the three of us. There comes a point in your marriage where your husband is more of your "home" then your parents and you realize that your family unit has changed. That feeling has magnified since having Jace and makes me crave time with just Jace and Austin. It was an incredible weekend and I'm so glad we took our little baby to the beach for the first time. He is at the perfect stage to travel with as much as he sleeps and I'm thinking we will have to plan a few more family trips for this summer!