To nap.. or not to nap

I was going to take a nap along-side Addy when I came into my room at least 30 minutes ago. And then I opened my laptop..

Rob and I are going out on a "date" tonight.. sort of a double/triple date or something. Since Rob's parents are still here, we are taking advantage of the babysitting since we won't have that luxury when they are gone. We have left Addy for a few hours at a time to do some shopping or something. But, somehow going OUT tonight is making me feel a bit guilty. It is probably the last time (making this the only time) we will be able to go OUT for a long time, since his parents will be gone in just a few weeks. I probably just need to GET OVER IT.

So.. what I just wasted the last 30 minutes of my nap time doing is this - www.twitter.com. I became aware of the site through another blog I read. I'm not sure that my twitter account (/myaddy) will be getting much attention, but some others are interesting and entertaining. Supposedly it becomes addictive. Check it out!


Addy has awakened - so I must get going.

Baby Expo

The baby expo last weekend was awesome. We left with tons of goodies. Thank goodness for grandmas, because I would have been broke had I bought it all myself. There were several boutique owners there with booths selling their totally adorable items for a buttload of money! What I realized while we were admiring all of the nice things, was that many of them were fairly easy to make. The boutique owners had items that they made themselves and sold in their stores, in addition to other products..

I left there that day with lots of ambition and crazy ideas! Since then I dove into the idea of starting an online baby boutique, selling "handcrafted" items. I am putting my creativity to the test. I've started working on some items and I am building the website in my spare time (with Rob's help). I realize this sounds cheesey and maybe a little bit silly, but there's only one way to find out if it will work. The nice part about it is that I can take all the time I need to get things up and running. My expectations are low, I just like the idea of "working from home" while I am here with Addy. It gives me something to focus on (aside from her) and it's a possibility that I could make some extra money. I can only hope that the items get attention. All I know is that the items at the show were all hits and I'm taking those ideas and running with them.

I'm anxious to show off some of the things I have created already, but I am going to save it all for the "grand opening" of the site. I'm not sure how long it's going to take to build the site. We have made some good progress on it in the past few days, but it requires a lot more time then we have available to us right now. Of course making the items also requires time. So stay tuned for updates on that because (I'm hoping) you will love what's in store. The boutique is going to be primarily for baby girls although there will be certain items for older little girls as well. Let's just say we have sort of a princess theme going on. =) If you don't have a little girl of your own, you may just find some great gifts for someone else you know, or a baby shower you are attending.

Some of our favorite items from the show were:

Car Seat Covers by Pocket Full of Posies - (www.babyposies.com)

LifeCast statues by Little Treasures and More.. (www.littletreasuresofarizona.com)

Grocery Cart Cover by Cuter than a Ducks Butt

A SUPER soft & adorable baby blanket (boutique unknown)

Among many others..

Getting Stronger

Addy is practicing a lot and has gotten much better at holding her head up the past couple weeks. I was able to snap some pictures today while she was putting her strength to the test. She melts my heart! I can't get enough of her pretty little face.

I am super excited, because this weekend I am going to the baby expo at West World. It's probably the last thing I should be doing, since I am going to want to buy one of everything! But I saw it on TV and I just had to buy tickets! Besides.. those were cheap.. AND it's right down the street! How convenient! It doesn't take much to excite me these days anyway. Any little adventure outside the home is enough to thrill me!

Smile!

Addy's first BIG smile caught on camera. I love this picture. She is so sweet. She is starting to smile more and more, although it is still very random. I can't tell if she is smiling on purpose or not.

Addy and I are participating in Southern Arizona's 10th Annual Race for the Cure, in Tucson on April 6th. Of course Addy will most likely sleep in her stroller the entire time, letting me do all the work! Either way, I'll enjoy her company. I am currently trying to raise some money for the cause. Anyone interested in donating (even just a small amount, like $10) can do so here.

July 1st of this year will be 4 years since my grandmother passed away. Breast cancer (& the negligence of doctors) took her life. She is not the only person in my family who has suffered from breast cancer, but she is the first that didn't survive. I miss her every day and I wish she was here to meet her great-granddaughter. She would love her. It hurts to know that Addison will never have known my grandmother. She was such a wonderful and extremely caring person. I will always remember her..

Two other members of my family have suffered and survived breast cancer. It's such a serious reality in my family. This is much of the reason I try to support the cause as much as possible. Please help if you can! Any little bit helps.

One Month!

Addy is now one month old! I can't believe how fast the month went by. She is currently around 8 lbs, probably a little more. She is already starting to surprise us with new discoveries. She is half way to holding her head up on her own. She lifts it up to look at us when we hold her to our chest and she can hold it for about 30 seconds before she gets wobbly and lays it down. She is gaining much more control of her arms and her hands. She grabs onto my hand during feedings and she takes a hold of my shirt when I hold her to my chest. She has an occasional attitude problem already. When she is hungry and we dare try to hold her over with a pacifier, she will fling it out of her mouth with vengeance and scream. She is also requiring a lot more "attention" lately. She has developed a liking to be held - A LOT! Lucky for her I like to cuddle with her. I just don't want her getting TOO spoiled with it, but who can resist the little bundle of love?

Here are some of Addy's first portraits ..

Sleeping Addy

I recorded a little video of Addy sleeping in her swing. She makes funny noises when she sleeps sometimes. It sounds like some sort of bird mating call to me, just thought it was funny enough to share!

Baby's First Portraits

Yesterday I took Addy to get her very first portraits. They came out great. I have to wait almost two weeks to get them which is driving me nuts! I will surely post them when I have them though. She did really well. I was so worried that she would cry the whole time or sleep through them, but she was awake and happy and even looked at the camera! It was a success, I am so excited to get them!

The trip to JC Penney for portraits was also our very first "solo" outing together. Just Addy and I. It was nice.

That's all the big news I have for now. We are mostly staying home and doing a lot of nothing! It's amazing how much time flies just sitting around the house now. It seems like she feeds non-stop all day. As if she wants to start eating as soon as she finishes eating. Sometimes it's actually the case. This girl is eating a TON! She seems to be gaining weight just as she is suppose to though, so I guess she's just a growing baby with an appetite.

Nights are hit and miss. Most nights she will sleep 3-4 hours at a time, waking only 2-3 times to eat. Although she may turn into the she-devil at any which one of those awakenings. Sometimes at the beginning of the night, either before we have actually gone to sleep or right after we have fallen asleep, she will wake up and decide now it is time to play and if we don't want to, well too bad cause we sure as hell aren't going to get any sleep. Or sometimes (seems quite often lately..) it will be around 5:30am. This seems to be her favorite time to wake up and stay up. She also expects live entertainment. She needs to learn that mommy is not a morning person and it's in her best interest to sleep until 7 or so.. I will continue cutting her some slack for the time being, but this will definitely be addressed in the near future!

I've never been a believer of the "colic". At least - I believe if a baby is crying (non-stop, or not) it is for some reason. I have never believed that a baby will cry for NO reason. Addison is trying to make a believer out of me. She thinks it sounds like a fun venture. "The night of terror" was the only time Addy actually cried for 4 hours STRAIGHT with no "reason". At least not one I could figure out. I like to believe it was gas..But ever since that night she's been overall more fussy! When she is awake it seems that there is little time that she is content. This was why I was so concerned about pictures, but she seemed to enjoy it. Maybe it was the new environment. It has made things much more stressful for me though. Not only is it just flat out annoying that she insists on crying after she has been fed, changed, cuddled with, etc.. but it's also almost insulting to me. I feel like I am doing something wrong. I hate that I cannot make her happy. I have been 100% devoted to her and her every need since 5:07pm on Feb 2! The moment she popped out my priorities became - Addison! And still, no matter how much I do, sometimes she just isn't satisfied. So.. now I am on a NO dairy and NO chocolate diet, in order to determine if the cows milk in my diet, through my breast milk, is effecting her. We think (due to some research) that she may just be gassy and/or in pain a lot due to something in my diet that she is unable to digest properly. I never knew how much breastfeeding could rule my life!

Anyway, we hope to curb this problem soon so we can all be much happier around here. It was difficult when our happy two week old baby woke up one morning and decided she would no longer be happy! This is what frustrates me.