Monday, July 29, 2013

Four Months


12 lbs 14 oz (10th-25th percentile)
24.5" long (25th-50th percentile)
15.75" head circumference (10th-25th percentile)

She's a chunky little peanut!  Wouldn't have guessed that her growth slowed relative to the general baby population with those cheeks and arm/leg rolls, but she is still wearing a lot of cute 0-3 month clothes.  :)  And, I still cannot believe she has a small head.  I mean, how is she our child!?  The magic of IVF... ;)

We sure love her.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Stitch Fix

There is an awesome new service called Stitch Fix.  It is your own online personal shopper!  My friend alerted me to this.  This is for anyone, but is especially awesome for those of us who are so busy that shopping is a rare luxury or those who hate shopping (or both!).  Basically, you fill out a profile about your style by answering some questions (both verbal and visual), give them your sizes, and a stylist will pick out clothes and accessories just for you.  I linked to "my style board" on pinterest, as well as my LinkedIn profile so they could see what I do for a living.

If you sign up here - http://stitchfix.com/sign_up?referrer_id=3137262 - I will get a referral bonus (and be your BFF) once you make your first purchase.  And then you can refer others and get that same bonus for yourself.

The best thing... it's almost free!  You will be charged $20 for the styling fee but that is credited toward anything you keep from your Fix.  You tell them how much you are willing to spend on different items such as dresses, tops, and accessories, and they will shop within your budget.  It's all sent straight to your door, along with tips on how to style the items, and you ship back whatever you don't want in the packaging they send.  I have my first Fix coming next week, so I will report back on what I think.  I figure if I hate everything and I'm out $20, that is a risk I'm willing to take for someone to tell me what to wear and how to wear it!  :)

Monday, July 22, 2013

Time flies

There's a saying that I hear often from moms with young kids... the days are long but the years are short (or something like that). Well, I'm here to tell you that when you're a working mom, the days are short and the years are short! Phew! I am not complaining, don't get me wrong, but all time is just flying by, especially now that I'm back at work. I get up between 5:45 and 6:15 (depending on whether or not I'm washing my hair), get myself ready, get Greer up around 7 and feed her, grab an insane amount of bags plus my coffee and her in her infant carseat and somehow make it out the door (I now keep my heels in my car and do this in flip flops, mind you), drop her off at Mr. Craig's, get to work around 8 and eat my boiled egg and fruit, the next thing I know it's time to pump, then it's time to cram food in my mouth at my desk because it's almost time to pump again and I haven't eaten (and I don't have time for a real lunch break), then holy crap I have to fly out of here to get home so I can nurse Greer at 5, then I (and Matt) have to wash pump parts, wash bottles, play with her, make dinner, wash dishes, do bathtime, wash cloth diapers, feed her again at 8, put her down, then I am generally ready to collapse into bed myself. Rinse and repeat.
 
It's somewhat exhausting, but so far, it truly isn't too bad. I definitely psyched myself out about going back to work and leaving her, and it ended up being easier than I thought. I don't love my job, but I like it enough that it's manageable leaving her four days per week (yep, I got my wish and have a four day work week! holla!) to enter into an adult environment and use my brain (well, the small amount that my job requires me to use my brain... it ain't rocket science, folks). In the whopping two weeks I've been back, it's reinforced to me that although I would love to stay home with her, I think I will always need some type of job for my own mentality and sanity. I'd love to continue to work part time my entire career until my children are grown, and once they are in school, shift to a schedule that allows me to be home with them at the end of the day. Just my random thought for the day.
 
Greer will be FOUR months old this coming Sunday. I don't even understand. And, it is mind blowing to me how much changes during this time. I feel like she's doing something new every other day. Some highlights since the last update:
 
*Rolled from front to back, but only twice
*Rolled from back to front, but only once
*Flails about in her crib and ends up all over the place, glad the video monitor remotely pans :)
*Tolerates tummy time now, even enjoys it if she's propped up on the boppy
*Has grown to like her bumbo for long periods of time
*Developed a love affair with Sophie and loves her Oball
*Loses interest in her playmat more easily
*Still LOVES her changing pad
*Loves kicking around in the bath tub and swimming in the pool (if it's warm enough)
*Much prefers her fingers to her paci (never took her paci much anyway)
*Talks all kinds of talk and makes the cutest and funniest sounds... we'll see if I can post the video Matt took yesterday, she was telling quite the story!
*Loves to sing and do the motions for the Itsy Bitsy Spider (or more accurately, loves it when I sing and force her to do the motions)
*Has gone on several pseudo hunger strikes at "daycare" (she's in an in-home situation w/ three other children, I like to call Mr. Craig our "manny"... yes, a man watches my daughter while I'm at work and two of the children are his
 *Also refused to nurse twice this weekend thus missing two feedings, much to momma's dismay... I think she was just really tired (I hope that's all it is, no fever and she was happy after a nice, long nap yesterday)
*First time with a babysitter (besides Mr. Craig) Saturday night while we went out to celebrate Jenny's birthday... not sure if sweet Ellie is ever going to babysit again after the show Greer put on (first refusal to eat was before we left to go out... then when Ellie got her up from about an hour evening nap to play and eat, she fussed for almost an hour and a half and only took 3 ounces... she finally just put her down and she passed right out)
*Gives the biggest and best smiles ever
*Thinks her daddy is HILARIOUS... he can get her talking and laughing like no one else can
*Still won't nap in her crib for longer than 45 minutes
*Not napping as well out and about because she's so alert and doesn't want to miss a thing (this is probably part of what led to not eating this weekend, assuming it was a result of just being too tired)
*Her hair is finally growing on the top of her head so she doesn't have the old man 'do with just hair around the sides and in the back :)
*Her eyes are definitely brown (maybe hazel but not dark gray)
 
We have also traveled to Jacksonville to visit the family and to Blue Ridge, Georgia to hang out with friends over the 4th of July holiday. Greer did great on both trips. She brings so much joy to our lives! I've already been writing this post since Thursday, adding what I can when I have time (not much), so I am going to hit post and add more pictures when I have access to them. :)


Excited about the 4th of July


Before her first day at Mr. Craig's - "What's happening!?"


With Ryann, my HS BF's daughter

Play group with Mac and Welden... will miss this!

Passed out in Blue Ridge

Chilling with Owen in Blue Ridge

Yum.

With sweet Charlotte - Friday pool night!

Sleeping in the swing, typical :)

Sunday stroll through Piedmont Park... momma and daddy could have used a fan too

Cheeks McGee
The quality stinks (not sure why... Matt took it) but she could see herself on the screen, so she was obviously had a lot to tell that other baby :)

Friday, July 12, 2013

Greer in Photos

One of my bestest friends also happens to be an amazing photographer.  She took Greer's newborn pics then went into labor early before she could edit them all.  Well, they were worth the wait!!  Here are just a few.  :)














My best friend from high school is another uber talented photographer!  If you're in the Jacksonville, FL area, check out Holli Janelle Photography.  She snapped some 3 month photos while we were visiting Jacksonville, and although Greer wasn't being super cooperative, she still got some great shots.









 
 
I started back to work this week and Greer is 15 weeks old, so I have some catching up to do!