Day 15 - Meeting more Family

Today, Kaycee met more family from Anthony's side.  Anthony took a half day and we drove up to our house in Racine to meet them.  It was a wonderful afternoon, chatting in our living room and snuggling with Kaycee.   They treated us to dinner at Qdoba, where we had more great conversation! It's so fabulous to be with them; they are so encouraging!

Anthony and I are so blessed to have them in our lives. Not only are they great family, but they are wonderful Christians, who encourage us to live a more Godly life. We always feel a sense of rejuvenation when we leave them.

We can't wait for them to come spend some time with us in the coming weeks to help care for Kaycee when I go back to work!

My prayer for today is that Kaycee grows up knowing how loved she is by all of her family, framily and extended family! 

Day 15 - The Night From ...

Last night Kaycee had a HARD time falling asleep. I'm not really sure what was the problem. Of course, I couldn't figure it out. Why would I want to figure out what was upsetting my baby? What good would that do?

She was awake from 8:30p - 12:30a. She screamed for most of that time. I walked her, I rocked her, I bounced her, I snuggled her, I put her in the swing, I sang to her, I talked to her, I shhhed her, I swaddled her, I unswaddled her, I burped her, I put her on my lap, I put her on my chest, I put her over my leg, I did everything I could think of.

Finally, my dad came out to sit with me. Boy was that a relief. I didn't realize how frustrated I was with myself, until there was someone else there. I didn't realize I was losing it and I could have cried at any moment. It was such a blessing to have Grandpa take a turn rocking her and walking her and talking to her and trying all the tricks.

She finally fell asleep, and I as so afraid to move. What if she woke up? What if she screamed again? Could my heart take it? God knew that it probably could not, so he allowed her to sleep for 4 more hours, and let me recoup! Thank you God for your blessings!

My prayer for today is that Momma is able to find the ticket item that calms Kaycee quickly. 

Day 14 - Church Day

Today was Kaycee's second appearance at church! She wore a new and totally adorable black polka dotted dress, picked out by her daddy! She also had a green polka dotted bow in her hair, that didn't make it into this picture. 

She, of course, was perfect the whole time; sleeping and looking adorable! It still amazes me how loved out little girl already is, by our church family. We are so blessed! 

My prayer for today is that Kaycee grows up to be a Godly woman who seeks to glorify Him through her life! 

Day 13 - Picture Day

Today was picture day! JAM came and spent the afternoon with the Neal family taking pictures of our sweet Kaycee. She did mostly great! I few fussy moments and a delayed nap time caused for some "fun"moments. But mostly it was a great afternoon. Kaycee provided some great laughs as we tried to pose her in the cute newborn baby poses. She can't hold her head up, so it proved to be a hilarious mission! 

This is not Kaycee's picture day outfit, but she's just sooo cute! 

My prayer for today is that Momma understands one cry today and can help Kaycee quickly, just one time today! 

Day 12 - First Post Baby Date

Tonight, Anthony and I did something we vowed we would NEVER EVER do! We followed in Aunt M and Uncle R's footsteps... We went on our first "post baby" date.

Ok, so that isn't exactly what we vowed we would never ever do. We made a vow that we would never go on shopping date. We vowed we would never run errands or go shopping and call it a date... 

Tonight, we went to Target to buy a baby swing on our date. Kaycee has been alive for less than 2 weeks and we already broke our vow to never go on shopping date. Oh boy! 

We also went to Dairy Queen for dessert, something Anthony had been promising me for several days. That was supposed to be our date. But when we got ready to go, without our baby, we decided to take advantage of our time away from the house. Kaycee stayed home with Grandma and both Uncle J's. Plus it was my first time away from Kaycee, and I wanted to spend some quality time with Anthony. Needless to say, we spent a long time deciding on a swing and only ran in to grab our Blizzards to go. 

I still call it a success, even though we broke our vow. 

(Anthony and I at Target)

(Anthony and I grabbing our Blizzards to go)

(Grandma snuggling with a sleeping Kaycee)

My prayer for today is a prayer of praise for a good report from the doctor, a less fussy baby, and 4 fairly good nights of sleep! 

Day 11 - Favorite Picture So Far!

This picture isn't from today, it's from a few days ago. But i just couldn't resist putting it up here. It's by far my favorite picture of Kaycee! 

I love this girl so much! 

Day 10 - Fussy Baby

Kaycee was extra fussy today. It's heart breaking to this Momma to hear her cry and not know what is wrong.  I want to make it better so badly, but I can't figure it out. I get so frustrated with myself and I start to feel like I'm failing her.  Anthony has been amazing through it all, reminding me that I'm doing my best and repeatedly telling me that I'm a good Momma.  No wonder God designed a baby to be raised by a Momma and a Daddy! 

Grandma bought Kaycee a super adorable outfit last night! It's a white onsie with giraffes, yellow giraffe print pants with a giraffe face on the tushy and a pink t-shirt with a Momma giraffe and baby giraffe.  Thank you Grandma for a perfect outfit!!  

(Kaycee isn't sporting her pink t-shirt here because this was after lunch and we didn't want to ruin the shirt lol)

My prayer for today is that Momma continues to learn Kaycee's different cries, so that I can help her more quickly.  

Day 9 - Letting Baby Cry

Letting Kaycee cry herself to sleep = hardest thing I've done as a mommy, so far! 

We knew that it's best for the baby to teach them to self soothe and to go to sleep, by themselves, when it's nap time. We also knew that it was time to start teaching her this skill, to establish a good routine, good metabolism, and good sleep habits. We also knew that this is good in theory but really really really hard emotionally. 

We started last night and let her cry herself to sleep. It took about 20 min. Almost too long for me to handle. I had to turn the sound off on the monitor and the video off, so that I couldn't hear or see her crying. I would check back every few minutes, and want to cry myself as I watched her cry and scream. I wanted to hold her and rock her to sleep. But Anthony was strong and helped me stay strong. Finally, SHE DID IT! She fell asleep. 

So I tried again this morning. After her morning feeding and wake time (time spent out in the kitchen with Grandma and Grandpa, exploring the world!) it was nap time. I put her in her bassinet and walked away. (hardest thing ever!) I listened to her cry for 17 minutes before she fell asleep. That's a 3 minute improvement from last night! We're making progress. It's so hard to let my perfect little angel cry.

Her next 2 naps were not so good. She screams, at the top of her lungs, and it kills me every time. She did not fall asleep within the 20 minutes, either time. Kaycee Lou what am I gonna do?

"If you want a fussy baby, pick him up every time he cries. Never let him learn the skill of self-soothing and always run to his side whenever he fusses." We don't want a fussy baby. We're gonna kick that habit! Wish us luck! 

Kaycee slept so well last night! She gave Anthony and I a total of almost 8 hours of sleep, in the form of 3 naps. At her 11 o'clock feeding, she was too tired and couldn't wake up. It was almost scary. We tried talking to her, that didn't wake up. We tried playing with her hands and feet, that didn't work. We tried stripping her down to her diaper and rubbing her tummy, that didn't work. We tried a wet wipe on her feet, tummy and back, that didn't work. Finally, we decided to put her back to sleep and let her wake us up when she was ready to eat. Boy, was that a good decision! She slept for a total of 3 hours and 45 min during that nap time! Daddy should have a good day at work today! Praise to God for answered prayers!

My prayer for today is that Kaycee self-soothes quickly and mommy doesn't lose it emotionally every time she cries herself to sleep. 

Day 8 - 1 week birthday!!

Happy 1 Week Birthday, Kaycee Louise! 

Today marks 1 week from Kaycee's birth. It's hard to believe that it was a whole week ago that my water broke and Anthony and I went to the hospital, anxiously waiting the arrival of our precious peanut. The last week has been an emotional high for me.  There is pure joy in holding our daughter and pure terror in the thought that she is completely our responsibility.   I wouldn't trade her for anything!  She has been loved by so many this week and we are grateful to have such a huge support system around us. We know that it takes an army to raise a baby, and we'll definitely need all the help we can get. 

Tonight was bath night. We filled the tub will warm water and put Kaycee in it. She started to fuss and then she realized that maybe baths aren't that bad.  It turns out that she really enjoyed the bath, except the getting out of the water part. Bath's are a two man job! Anthony stands near her head, to make sure it doesn't flop from one side to the other and into the water. I wash her little body with soap and a ducky wash cloth. Then Anthony is in charge of drying her off and lotioning her body! She's on a good track to be a swimmer!  

Grandma, Kaycee and I went to Grammy's house today. Kaycee met her great grandma and her great uncle. She was so peaceful during her nap and while they were holding her! She has a fantastic family!

Last night Kaycee gave us 3 great naps during the night, which is fantastic. But the best part of the night was that there was no wake time. She did not need daddy to walk her around the family room. She went right back to sleep on her own.  Anthony got a decent amount of sleep for his first day of work! Praise to God for answered prayers! 

My prayer for today is that Kaycee has another decent night of sleep, so daddy's second day of work can go just as well as the first!