Being a parent

Being a parent means even though you are exhausted you get up out of bed any way and learn a new meaning for exhaustion every day. Being a parent means sleeping on the couch just so your baby can have a good nights sleep and constantly checking just in case. Being a parent means giving too many kisses to count, being delighted to see your child every time, and living for every smile. Being a parent means showing up to parent conferences, paying attention to when progress reports come home, and putting your kids work on the refrigerator. Being a parent means spending every spare minute of every day thinking of, praying about, and wishing for your child. Being a parent means preparing meals, picking out clothes, and kissing good night. Being a parent means doing things you never thought you would do. Being a parent means giving your everything. Being a parent is the most wonderful feeling in the world.

Lucky

My friend Katie delivered her baby on St. Patrick's Day and found out about 24 hours later that he was having some health problems. I went to visit Katie and baby P today, only to walk away with one word stuck in my head-LUCKY. Lucky that baby P has made it this far, lucky that we live in a nation with such wonderful hospitals and doctors, lucky to have family and friends to lean on when times are hard, lucky to have such a beautiful and healthy baby of my own. We all pray that our children will stay safe and healthy and grow up to lead normal lives, yet we take it for granted when that actually happens. Katie feels lucky that her baby has a problem that is fixable, something that really hits home when you walk through the halls of a children's hospital and listen to the tears of others. As soon as I saw Charlotte again I gobbled her up with kisses, we are so lucky to have her. I was so inspired by what I witnessed today, we are SO LUCKY to have top notch medical treatment available to us! Both Scottish Rite and Egleston's accept clothing donations for children (it looked like one pieces and sleepers are best) and trial size toiletries for families who stay overnight, if you have anything spare to give I know first hand that there are families in need who would love to have whatever you can offer.
I put a short description that Katie emailed me below so you can follow what's happening, and I am blogging to ask for your prayers. Baby P will be having laparoscopic surgery on Monday to see if they can make any repairs and I can only imagine what it will feel like to wait on the results. Please pray that God will heal baby P and let him come home to the loving family that awaits him.

We were told on Friday that he has two holes in his heart, one between the top chambers and one between the bottom chambers, and these will eventually require surgery to correct but they will be managed with medication as long as his body can tolerate it so that he can grow and give them a bigger heart to eventually operate on. As for the diaphragmatic hernia after another set of tests they have determined that although on one side there is a hole that his liver has 'wedged' into it is also not a condition that will require immediate surgery. And on the other side there is not an actual hernia, but simply a 'weak spot' on the diaphragm that allowed the stomach to 'bulge' into but not actually penetrate through.
P's surgeon has decided he would like to get a 'first hand' view of the hernia in his diaphragm so they will be putting him under general anesthesia (to sleep) and making a small incision under his rib cage and inserting a camera to see what they can see. Apparently this laparoscopic surgery is the least invasive option, and the doc said that when they get in there IF they can make the repairs right then they will, or they may determine that he needs a more invasive surgery down the road, or that he doesn't require any surgery. I'm hoping it's either the first option (quick repair) or the last option (no repair needed), but regardless of the potential outcome if you could please send up a few prayers for him, his surgical team and maybe a little extra strength for me.

Extra Lovin'

Charlotte seems to find a little extra lovin' everywhere she goes....



Love from Grandma Fulcher.....

Love from Grandpa McCratic.....

Love from Grandma McCratic.....

Love from Baxter and Lola.....

6 month check up

We took Charlotte to her six month check up today. I have learned very quickly that these things are usually an all day event, or at least the sap all of your energy for the day. My Charlotte is growing beautifully, she is now 16 pounds .5 ounces (which is in the 50% for her weight). I think they must have measured her wrong last time, because today she measured 26 inches and I know that she has grown more than 1/4 an inch....I had to roll the cuff of the pants she had on today a month ago and now they fit her just right. I am going to start adding formula to her bottles this week until she is up to a full five ounces of formula so that I can stop pumping at work. I am seriously dreaming of the day I can put that pump back in it's box. It has been a life saver but it feels like a life drainer now! Charlotte also got the go ahead for solid foods. We gave her some applesauce today, which she liked better than the squash but she still didn't love it. I am waiting to find that food that she just can't get enough of. I feel like I asked a million questions, but basically Charlotte is right on track for where she should be. This little girl has become the love of our lives!


Baby Love

Charlotte loves her Daddy

Big girl playing by herself

Very first taste of applesauce

Bryce put together her beautiful highchair, Charlotte thought she was hot stuff!

Bryce insisted that Charlotte get a little taste of a real banana at her high chair

Swaddle Update

We've given up! Charlotte was waking up two and three times a night, and I just couldn't take it.....we'll give it another try during Spring Break. I am really not good at "crying it out", every minute I lay there listening feels like an hour!
Thanks for all the advice, we definitely have the sleep sacks and will give it another try before she's thirteen.....

Swaddle me!

We didn't even make it to midnight last night before the Swaddle was back on. I think I've convinced myself to wait until Spring Break to really crack down on sleeping without a swaddle and sleeping through the night (gulp!). Any suggestions for how to ease her out of the swaddle?

Half of a year old!

Our sweet Charlotte has been in our arms for half of a year now. I simply cannot believe how much time has gone by. We are truly so blessed with such a sweet and beautiful child. Our lives are so full of love with Charlotte in them. I've wanted to be a mother for as long as I can remember. I can remember two occasions where I begged for a certain baby doll and proceeded to care for them day and night as if they were real. I also used to try and feed our dogs with baby bottles full of water! When Bryce and I got married it took a little while for the baby bug to bite me, mainly because we were so busy trying to build a home and life suitable for a family. Ever since we got pregnant though I have known there is nothing I would rather be than Charlotte's mother. My faith in God has doubled, maybe even tripled, simply because I see firsthand his beautiful work every day. There is no doubt in my mind that God created Charlotte for Bryce and I. She is the perfect baby for us, and we are the perfect parents for her. I absolutely adore watching Bryce with Charlotte, nothing is better than watching the two things you love more than anything else in the world make each other so happy. The past six months have been the happiest of my life.

Charlotte had a full day of celebrating! When we woke up she got a new toy that Bryce picked out for her (with a six month old rating on the box!). With her evening feeding she got to eat some Squash. She definitely liked it better than the rice cereal, but she didn't gobble it down like I thought she would. She had to think about every bite before she would swallow it. We finished out the day watching Baby Einstein, First Signs (also a six month old rating!). She sat in awe staring at the screen throughout the whole video. She is currently spending her first night out of her swaddle (she is just too big for it now, every time she woke up last night she was uncovered) we'll see how many times her arms flailing wake her up tonight.
I can't wait to see all the exciting changes the next six months will bring.....

Where does the time go?

I put my baby to bed one night and woke up to find a little girl in her crib. Charlotte has such a take charge attitude (I have NO idea where she got that from!), she wants to drink from a cup, always wants to sit upright, and thinks she is too big for those baby toys like a bouncy seat. She won't even let me hold her like a baby anymore. I will call her almost sitting, she is working the balance out a bit but can usually sit by herself for close to 30 seconds. She usually gets tickled about something and starts to wobble but she is doing a really good job. Charlotte loves to stand on everyone and everything, much to the dismay of the dogs. Sometimes she is able to hold on to something and stand for a better look at the world around her. And speaking of the dogs they are always available for entertainment. Charlotte loves to giggle and squeal when they run by... I simply cannot believe how fast she is growing up! Every single person told me this would happen before I became a Mom, but you really have to experience it for yourself to understand.

Spring Forward

Springing forward has not been nearly as hard as it was to fall back. It is always a transition when you "lose" an hour, but babies can't read the clock so it is extra hard to convince them it is bedtime when you go through a time change. Charlotte has had a few blips here and there where she has not wanted to go to sleep, but she has also been incredibly playful. We had such a good weekend soaking up the sunshine whenever we could, taking walks, and meeting up with my parents for some shopping. It seems like everyone I pass lately comments "What a happy baby!".

Life with Mrs. D

Mrs. D is the in-home daycare provider that has agreed to watch Charlotte for us. Today was the first day for Charlotte to experience life with Mrs. D. It was a total change of pace for everyone....Bryce is in charge of dropping Charlotte off and picking her up from Mrs. D's, there is lots more noise, more lights, and more children than Charlotte is used to, and I got an extra thirty minutes of sleep. Mrs. D said that Charlotte was absolutely wonderful and that she laughed and "talked" to everyone all day. Other than fussing a little when she was hungry or tired, Mrs. D said she pretty much stayed on her schedule and took her regular naps. She did miss her long nap this morning because she usually falls asleep in the car on our ride to Bryce's mom's house and stays asleep until about 9:00 but today she stayed awake during that time. Charlotte came home and took two naps to make up for it, but I would rather have a happy baby all day and a sleep baby at night than a fussy baby all day so it all worked out just fine. Mrs. D said what a sweet baby Charlotte is, which really made me feel good. Of course, in my heart I thought Charlotte was a sweet baby but it is nice to have it confirmed from someone other than family!


My friend Erica said something very profound to me, and I hope it is something I can keep in mind as Charlotte continues to grow. She told me that my entire job of being a mother is to grow my children so that I may slowly, incrementally let go. Returning to work was one step towards that goal, after my tears this morning I think I've moved another inch. I was not worried about the care Charlotte would receive, it simply made me sad to think that another life changing event was occurring in Charlotte's short little life.


Here's our happy girl!

We didn't have anything with Charlotte's name on it, so I really fell in love with these bibs. They are really thick so they don't leak through onto her clothes, and just so darn cute! (plus machine washable!). I ordered them from my friend Tara, along with some burp cloths to match. As Raigan would say "Charlotte looks fancy"!

Our 100th post!

I thought the best way to celebrate would be an "Ode to the Big Green Chair"

July 2008: Ready and waiting


September 2008: Holding a bitty baby


February 2009: A wonderland to explore

Snow Day!

I literally did a little dance this morning when I turned on the TV and saw that school was closed. All you northerners can make fun of us for shutting down with 2 inches but it's worth it for an extra day home with Bryce and Charlotte.


Check out her cute little boots, courtesy of Grandpa McCratic!


Her first feel and taste of real snow, we had to get out there fast before it all melted!

Charlotte's first snow!

Charlotte watching the snow fall
I have been convinced all winter that we were finally going to get to see some snow....it waited until March but at least we got it! Bryce and I holed up and watched movies all day, occasionally venturing outside with Charlotte to let her check out the pretty snow. She was really entranced watching it come down, this is actually the first day that I got to experience the magic of child wonder at seeing something new. Her eyes were literally sparkling as she was looking at the snow. I could almost see her brain working as she was trying to figure out what was happening. I can't really put into words what I was feeling but I could literally feel my heart swell a little bit just thinking about how much we get to show her. I don't want her to grow up too fast, but I can't wait until we can go play in the snow together!


Within about thirty minutes we were covered!