Five on Friday

 
TGIF! I am amazed at how fast the weeks have been flying by!  Every Monday Eric and I are both sad that it is Monday and he has to go to work.  But before I know it, we are back at Friday and looking forward to the weekend together as our little family of 3.  This Saturday, Eric has an all day training for work...he will have to miss Madison & me and the Texas A&M game.

 

 



 

 

1. How on earth can I have a 6 week old baby?! It seems like just yesterday I was sitting in the hospital, holding this tiny baby that I had gotten to know over the past 9 months. The first set of "baby is growing up tears" came when Madison didn't fit into her newborn clothes anymore.  I feel another cry coming on...6 weeks seems like such a milestone!  I still remember when we went for our 6 week ultrasound last January.  What a year it has been! Madison has started smiling this week, which just melts my heart. 

 
 

 

 

 

2. Has anyone see the new Carter's tv commercial?  Oh my gosh...talk about being a puddle of tears the first time I saw it!  I was siting on the couch a few days after we got home from the hospital with Madison.  Being a new mommy and full of emotions (hormones), I couldn't help but cry. The commercial plays on daytime tv constantly and it still makes my heart happy every time.  The part where the little kid says the first night home was a doozy- I couldn't think of a better way to describe our first few nights home. 

 

 

                                   

 

 

3. On to something a little less emotional...peanut butter! Last weekend at the store, I got a new peanut butter to try that is White Chocolate Peanut Butter.  It is AMAZING! I have had to force myself to not eat it all day long.  The brand is Peanut Butter & Co.  It turns out they have a restaurant in New York City that sells all kinds of peanut butter sandwiches.  I'm definitely adding this stop to my next trip to NYC!

 

 

 

 

4. Sticking with the food theme, my new obsession is strawberries with Cool Whip.  They are so delicious and the perfect dessert without being tons of calories.  For the past 2 weekends, we have bought a 2 lb. box of strawberries at the store and they have been gone by Tuesday.  This week, we bought 4 lbs of strawberries and they made it until Thursday night.  Four pounds-that's a lot of strawberries!

 

 

5. In just a couple short weeks, my friend Katie is coming to visit from New York City!  I am so excited for her to meet Madison and for us to be able to hang out.  Katie and I met in 2003, during the College Program at Disney World.  We worked at Pinocchio's Village House, a restaurant in the Magic Kingdom.  We have stayed in touch throughout the years and visited each other.  Last November, I went to NYC to visit Katie and had a wonderful trip.  Looking forward to getting to see her again this year, although I doubt a trip to Houston is as exciting as a trip to NYC. ;)

 

 



                           2004 @ Disney World 

 

 

                             2008 @ my wedding

 

 

                             2010 @ Texas

 

 

                          2012 @ NYC

 

 

Top Baby Items: 0-6 Weeks

Before Madison arrived, Eric and I were blessed with 3 baby showers with our family and friends.  We were showered with love and gifts for Madison.  Eric has also received so many gifts and diapers from his sweet patients.  Now that I am a mom, I have a better idea of what are necessities for Madison that help to make the days and nights even sweeter.  As we navigated our first 6 weeks of parenthood, here are some of our top baby items that helped us.

 

 

 

1. Wubbanub pacifier- This has been an absolute life saver!  I originally registered for this because it was so cute.  Within 6 hours of Madison being home from the hospital, I knew we had hit the jackpot.  The stuffed animal lays on her chest as it weighs down the pacifier to make it less likely to fall out and also gives her some comfort, like having your hand on her.  The green part that she sucks on was much easier for her to keep in her mouth than the pacifiers that were more flat than rounded.

2. Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper- Another life saver!  When Madison is in the rocker, she sits down in the middle, so the sides are wrapped around her.  It makes her feel more snug than laying in the pack and play, where she can't feel anything around her sides.  We are trying to transition her to the pack and play, but keep going back to the Rock and Play.  She has been having some issues with spitting up after she eats.  The Rock and Play lets her sleep at an incline, which makes me feel better that she won't choke if she spits up.

3. Britax B-Agile Travel System- We were so lucky to have my parents buy our travel system for us.  In March, we went to Disney World with Eric's family.  Heather had a Baby Jogger City Select for the twins.  It was so smooth to push, even throughout Disney for many days.  Since the City Select was for twins, we went with the Britax B-Agile, which had the same smooth feel when you push it.  It included the car seat, which can come off the stroller and slip into the base in our cars. 

4. Sound Spa on-the-go- My mom bought this for us at Buy Buy Baby on a whim, thinking that it was cute and could be good for the stroller.  We have used this every night since the 2nd night we were home.  After long hours without sleep, we discovered the beautiful sound of white noise.  This has 4 different sounds- white noise, heartbeat, music and ocean.

5. Playtex VentAire bottles- For the first week of Madison's life, we were on the quest for the perfect bottle/nipple.  We went through 3 different brand of bottles and 4 types of nipples, before we had success with the Playtex VentAire bottles.  While Madison is mostly breastfed, we do give her bottles sometimes when we are going out, she needs extra milk after a feeding (when she had jaundice in the beginning) or Mommy just needs a break in the middle of the night.  I think what makes these bottles work well for Madison is the way they sit at an angle while she eats.  They don't flow too fast and she takes a bottle without fuss. 

We are always looking for recommendations of things that work for other parents.  We are lucky to have so many friends and family in our live who have had multiple children before us to help us navigate through the trial and error of being first time parents.  Let us know what things work well as we move onto the next stages!

 

The Great Pumpkin Patch

     Madison's 1 month birthday was on October 6th and the weather was beautiful that day!  We decided to celebrate by going to the pumpkin patch at Clear Lake Methodist.  I was so impressed with the pumpkin patch!  I couldn't get over how big the pumpkins were!  My parents went with us, so we were able to take pictures of each other.  I was surprised that the pumpkin patch wasn't more crowded, given that it was the first nice Fall weather we have had all year.  I can't wait to see what Madison says when she is older about all the bows I made her wear and the compromising positions to get the "perfect picture". 

 

Madison's 1 Month Birthday

 

 

Madison- You are one month old!  The past month has been the best month for Mommy and Daddy.  We are so lucky to have you in our lives.  We love you more than you will ever know!

October 6, 2013

Weight: 9.5-10 pounds...we will go back to the doctor for your 2 month visit for an “official” weight. You have outgrown almost all your newborn clothes and wear mostly 0-3 month. You are also out of newborn diapers and into size 1.

Sleeping: you sleep for solid 3 hours stretches at night.  Sometimes we are lucky and get a 4 hour stretch.  During the day, you have a long morning and long afternoon nap.  You take short catnaps at other times.

Eating: you are eating like a champ! You eat every 2.5-3 hours and don't mind taking a bottle every now and then. You are eating mostly breast milk instead of having to supplement with formula.

Milestones:

·         Lifting your head

·         Rolling over 3 times

·         More alert and looking around

·         Getting more attached to special people

·         You love your Wubbanub pacifier

Special Moments: Daddy took a week off from work to stay home. We took our first outings to Starbucks, Target and a few restaurants. There were lots of special people who came to see you.  You attended your first birthday party to celebrate your boy cousins, Cainan (5), Brennin (1) and Westin (1). We celebrated your 1 month birthday at the pumpkin patch!

 

 

 

 

I Heart Shopping!

This picture was too cute not to share! Madison and I went to the mall today to walk around and get out of the house for a little while. After about an hour and half she started to wake up. She was so excited to look around at everything. I think we have a shopper on our hands!

Madison Elisabeth Konesheck

                                                      Madison Elisabeth Konesheck

                                                      September 6, 2013  10:19 AM

                                                             7 lbs. 9 oz.    20 inches