More solids, less milk

Brodie is really taking to solids now. The stuff he used to not like (avocado and sweet potatoes), he now loves and will devour. Every new thing we’ve introduced, he eats. He might play around with it a little, but ultimately, he’ll eat it. His daycare feeding schedule for the last 2 months has looked like: 9:30 bottle, noon lunch, 2 bottle, 4:30 bottle. They didn’t always make it to the 3rd bottle, which was fine by me since the pump is now just a giant joke laughing in my face. And really, he can hold off another hour till we come pick him up.

Today, we decided to send more solid food and one less bottle. This is all in my grand plan to eventually stop having to express milk at all. I hate doing it, and it hates me equally. Going from 12 oz to 8 oz will still be a struggle for me to produce, but it does take quite a bit of pressure off of me. In a few weeks, if I’m struggling horribly with just the 8 oz, I’m going to start sending 1 bottle of frozen milk and 1 bottle of fresh. This will cut my demand to produce down to 4 oz a day. Eventually, I’m hoping Brodie gets all the calories he needs during work hours from solid food, and we can continue to nurse as he needs or wants to.

This has been such a source of stress on top of coming back to work. I know I probably could’ve saved myself from the extra inflammation by bringing formula into the picture, but I guess I’m pretty freakin’ stubborn. That and I know nothing about formula – how to prepare it, how much to “make” and what do you do in the middle of the night when he may or may not be hungry? As difficult as this whole working/pumping/juggling business is, the nursing itself is the easiest, most convenient, less messy way to feed my child, and I’m really thankful I’m able to have this relationship to lean on for every situation that Brodie requires attention.

He’s coming up on 8 months, 5 of which I’ve been a slave to the machine. At this rate, we may only have another 2 months (with the freezer stash I have built up), and I have to feel proud about that. EVERY working mom I know in person has had to quit breastfeeding because pumping was such a pain in the rear and eventually killed their supply before they wanted to end it. That makes me beyond sad.

Posted in Breastfeeding, Brodie, Chow | Leave a comment

Mother’s Day – I survived to tell the tale!

The last 3 days were rough. I was so far under the weather; I was pretty sure I was going to get buried. After 3 days of 101 degree fever off and on, chills, stabbing pains through my head, tremendous pressure in my sinuses and by my temples, swollen lymph nodes, constant snot and phlegm, joint pain, overall achy-ness and plain feeling like crap… I woke up with JUST a stiff neck. I call that a win. So I set off to start my first Mother’s Day on MY terms.

Brodie was talking to himself in his crib at 7 am, so I went in to greet him. I think he only woke up once during the night – Joe took care of him – but essentially slept through, which was nice. I got almost 8 hours of sleep, which I needed for recovery. I found this lovely card for me waiting in the nursery.

My Mother's Day card

After I got Brodie fed and his diaper changed, we played for a little bit in bed. He pulled Joe’s hair and flailed a lot. When he started rubbing his eyes again, I fed him some more, and he went down for a nap. I took myself to yoga to work out my stiff neck and aching body. Ah… the heat and the movement did wonders. I feel a million times better!

Since it was a gorgeous day outside, we stopped by this little taqueria we pass every day on our way to pick up Brodie at daycare.

El Tacorrido - the pig logo was enough to entice me

With tacos in hand, we headed downtown to this picnic table we pass all the time.

Part art, part public space

Pretty cool, made of aluminum

For the most part, Brodie did cute stuff like this:

I picture him saying, Hey, Mama! Happy Mother's Day! Now give me that camera strap to chew on.

And then we came home, watched the last episodes of Friday Night Lights, and Joe cooked me a giant spaghetti dinner (no photos, too busy eating). He also bought me tulips.

Pretty flowers

I’m glad I didn’t die of the plague or I would’ve missed out on all that. Thanks for a great Mother’s Day! I’m a pretty lucky mom.

More pics: 2012.05.13 Mother’s Day

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Photo update: Los Angeles

Waiting to get on his first flight

Stayed at the Hotel Palomar in Westwood

Found a little cafe in Westwood Village for breakfast

Brodie was fascinated by the decorations at Trader Joe's

Brodie took his first tram ride

The only 30 seconds of the whole trip he let us put sunglasses on him - at the Getty Center

He made too many joyful noises in the exhibit space, so we had to take him outside

Fun with mirrors in the family room

Pretty cool cactus garden

Santa Monica Pier

Ocean = Happy

Brodie training for greatness

We found Shirley Temple's handprints

At the Grove - not sure why Brodie looks pissed

Hanging out with his new buddy Matt

Ramen for dinner (Thanks to Linda's friend's recommendation)

In-N-Out Burger, of course

The boys we came to see

See the rest here:
2012.05.02 Los Angeles
2012.05.03 Los Angeles
2012.05.04 Los Angeles
2012.05.05 Los Angeles

Posted in Brodie, Family, Life with Joe, Photos, Travel | Leave a comment

Dear Brodie

Dear Brodie,

I want you to know that once upon a time in our great nation, people of one race were not allowed to even use the same public restroom as another or drink from the same water fountain. There were also laws prohibiting a man and a woman of different races to marry. These were closed-minded times, filled with irrational fear and hatred that I cannot even fathom and try to explain. It simply didn’t make sense why two people who love each other and are committed to each other could not share a life together and be recognized by the law like everyone else.

Thankfully, people put their heads on right and made those laws go away so that people like your dad and I could be legally married and have a beautiful hapa baby like you. Ultimately, enough people understood that true love and a strong partnership exist well beyond the color of your skin, what religion you believe in, the language you speak or where you’re from.

But now there is another nonsensical movement happening in North Carolina and punctuated throughout our country. They have banned all gay marriages and even civil unions. While you are too young at this time to understand romantic love, one day you will suddenly have a giant crush on someone else and think they are just the bee’s knees. Majority of romantic love is between a boy and a girl, but for some people, they simply get those butterflies for someone of the same gender. It’s a feeling that is deep within them like my feeling of love for you.

I want you to understand that love is love. It can’t always be explained, but it can be felt. And as you get older and experience more in this world, I hope that you know it’s not right for bigots to determine who you or anyone else can love and marry. Whether you end up in the straight majority or the gay minority, Dad and I will always love you and support you. And I hope you will stand up and do the same for others who are being discriminated against out of fear and hatred.

Of course, by the time you can read this, I hope this is all a non-issue, and we can laugh at silly archaic laws. Just remember that you are a product of love that was once banned, and it’s not right to hurt others using similar tactics.

Love,

Mama

Posted in Brodie, Current Events, Life with Joe | 6 Comments

Back from Lala-land

We are back from vacation – my first flight in a year (since Germany) and Brodie’s first official flight ever. Surprisingly, the plane ride in both directions wasn’t too bad. Brodie fussed at take off and landing on the way out, which were right at his meal times anyway. And then, on the way back, he only fussed at take off, promptly passed out for his morning nap and handled landing like a champ. The people behind us really enjoyed seeing his smiling face as he enjoyed looking all around the plane.

We flew on JetBlue, which has a direct flight from Austin to Long Beach. I really enjoy flying into tiny airports because it’s so easy to get in and out. Thankfully, there weren’t any delays because I can see how it would get boring, but otherwise, LGB was great. We got off the plane, grabbed our stuff and walked across the street to the car rental. Enterprise had a bunch of nicer cars to choose from than most cities we’ve visited. They originally offered us a Ford Focus. I’m glad I asked what else they had. We paid the extra $5 a day for a Honda Accord. Across from us in the lot was a VW Jetta and a Volvo sedan. I was impressed they had such a selection since most places have Ford, Hyundai or Kia.

Once we got the carseat installed and all our luggage loaded, we drove up the 405 toward Westwood. There’s a ton of construction going on right at our exit (Santa Monica/Wilshire), and that was our first taste of LA traffic. Got checked in at the Hotel Palomar the first night, which was great as usual. I had a free night to use up, so we cashed that in. Since it was well past Brodie’s bedtime by the time we got there (7pm PST = 9pm CST), I was worried he’d be a total cranky pants. But he had a second wind and really enjoyed hanging out with our friend Matt. We had dinner at 16 Blvd, the restaurant in the hotel. Delicious food. Brodie passed out pretty quickly as soon as we got back upstairs to our room.

Thursday was our first full day in town, and since Brodie was still on Texas time, that meant a LOT of very early mornings. He was up around 5:30am local time, ready to play. We took him downstairs around 6:30 so we could get some complimentary coffee/tea and checked out the hotel pool. Brodie took his morning nap at 8 am, and we were out the door by 9 am. We decided to head to the Westwood Village near UCLA to grab some breakfast. We found a little cafe for brunch foods, then walked around to Trader Joe’s to pick up fruit, veggies and snacks to take with us to the apartment we rented through HomeAway. By the time we got back to the car, Brodie was ready for his “afternoon” nap. We took advantage of that time to drive around the UCLA campus, Bel Air, Rodeo Dr. and Beverly Hills before heading to the Getty Center.

Brodie woke up just in time for the Getty Center, where I could nurse him in the car. We walked through some of the art exhibits, but Brodie’s squeals of delight were distracting. We enjoyed the view and the architecture instead. The Center Garden was being renovated in prep for summer tourist season, so we didn’t get to walk down there. The breeze was so nice, and the view was pretty amazing.

We tackled more traffic to get to the apartment, which was near Venice Beach. Great location and the perfect size for us. It was a one bedroom, small living room, and decent sized kitchen. Having that kitchen was incredibly helpful for getting solid foods prepped for Brodie. We brought along our microwave steamer, and I just tossed some cauliflower we bought at Trader Joe’s into it and voila! Brodie has food to eat. Since he was pretty much hitting his bedtime at 4:30pm local, we found a little Hawaiian cafe around the corner for a quick early dinner. Got him bathed and in the pack-n-play by 6 pm. While this is way earlier than we normally end our days on vacation, I really didn’t mind. I went to bed at 8pm myself, which helped with the night wakings and the early mornings.

Friday, we spent the morning walking along Santa Monica Beach and checking out the pier before meeting up with Matt at Highland and Hollywood. That’s the big touristy spot for Grauman’s Chinese Theater and the Kodak Theater. We found Shirley Temple’s handprints, where I have a picture from the first time I’d ever visited LA as a kid. And I knew not to stop to take pictures with any of the people dressed up in character! Then, we went over to the Grove so I could go peruse the Athleta store. There are only a handful of brick-and-mortar stores open, mostly on the east and west coast. But they are conveniently set up much like Lululemon. :) I tried on a pair of yoga leggings and a cute yoga top and kept my purchases to just that. It was nice to try on the clothes first, which you obviously can’t do from looking at the catalog. While I was shopping, the boys hung out on the lawn outside, where they saw Selma Blair and her baby.

By Friday night, Brodie’s congestion was getting pretty bad. I always forget how dry California is, and he woke up feeling pretty miserable. We made the bathroom into a giant humidifier by running the hot water and letting him breathe in the steam. It’s a good thing we didn’t have any huge plans for Saturday. We just went over to In-N-Out Burger (because we HAVE to when we’re on the west coast), which was also near a Costco (nuts on a Saturday!). Then, we headed up to Santa Monica’s 3rd Street Promenade to walk around before spending the rest of the day at Rito’s. He had a Cinco de MargaRito party at his condo, and Brodie had a good time playing with the other kids. He also got to meet Devon, Matt’s wife. By the time we left the party, it was well past Brodie’s bedtime (local and Texas time). We got him down pretty easily before re-organizing all the bags, ready for our flight in the morning.

And that was our trip! We’re a little jet lagged this morning with the time change and Brodie still not sleeping through the night, but we all had a great time. Brodie has been army crawling all over the place. We really have to watch where we put him and what’s within crawling distance. He ate half an avocado on his own in a single sitting and chowed down on sweet potatoes. He had more fun mashing the cauliflower in his hands than eating it, but that’s ok. He seems to be alright with the taste and will just need some practice putting it in his mouth. He’s working on his pincher grasp (ouch) and his downward facing dog. Overall, he did so well throughout the trip, and we enjoyed a slower pace to our vacation.

Oh, and while we were out of town, I got a call from my endocrinologist’s office saying my blood work showed the meds working a bit too well. I can cut my medicine in half from 10 mg to 5 mg. Whew! Hopefully this slows down my weight gain, and my body can start to normalize.

Pics to come later once I get them off the memory card.

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Posted in Brodie, Life with Joe, Thyroid, Travel | 1 Comment