"At least she won't remember it."

I keep saying this over and over. Clara's teething-her bottom front teeth. She's been insanely drooly on and off since 8 weeks or so, but the level of cranky has been ratcheted up in the last week or so. We've also begun to see and feel her teeth actually coming through. I'll be glad when they're all the way through! We've been doing our best to keep her comfortable: Tylenol, Ibuprofen at night, Orajel, cold teethers, and extra snuggling, but yesterday all she wanted to do was scream. I had to call Adam home from school early. Today he says she seems better; less cranky and more snuggly. I'm glad I know it's not easy growing up. She's almost 6 months old, which means we're also due for a growth spurt soon. With all the aches and pains that these kids go through, I'm glad she's too little to ever remember any of this.

I wish she could remember things like her first Christmas or Easter instead. :) Call it corny, but we're getting her an Easter basket. What the heck do you put in an Easter basket for an infant? I thought some things like some board books, a cute little outfit, and a couple new toys might be good options. I also hear rumors that Grandma and Grandpa are doing an Easter egg hunt for her Sunday. I hope I'm well enough to go!

I'm having dental implant surgery on Thursday. I'm hoping I'll be back up to snuff by Friday, but I guess we'll see. I've taken off of work for a week because I don't know if I'll be able to wear my false tooth by Monday when I would be returning and I'm NOT leaving the house without it...which is why I don't know if I'll make it anywhere Sunday, either. Time will tell. In the meantime, I'll try to enjoy the time off with my family, even though most of my day Thursday I'll be spending unconscious. :) 

It's funny how things change when you have a baby.

I'm pretty sure television is to blame. I don't think it's fair to portray motherhood as glamorous. TV moms are always impeccably dressed, made-up, and coiffed. I'm lucky if I make it out of my pajamas and into the shower on a daily basis. They also always have a clean house and dinner on the table at the same time every night. I don't think it's right. I think it makes those of us whose house looks like a tornado hit it feel like bad mothers. I used to like Leave it to Beaver. Now I just want to punch June Cleaver in her perfect teeth.

But those were the days of stay-at-home moms. In this economy most families rely on dual incomes. This is not the case in my house. Right now I'm working full-time so my amazing husband can go to school and eventually get a great job so that I can stay home for a change. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind working. In fact, even if we don't need my income, I'll probably end up getting a part-time job, especially once the kid(s) are in school. I used to even love the job that I have now. I think that might have been when I was all about the money. Yes, money is great, but once you have a baby, it just doesn't seem that important anymore...even when said baby only let you sleep for 3 non-consecutive hours the night before. But now, my going to work is a pain in the ass. I hate it. I like my actual job, I just hate all the bullshit that goes with it. I hate the politics. I hate the fact that if you actually use common sense, you'll come up with the wrong answer. I hate that 3 seconds makes a difference between keeping your job and losing your job. I hate the fact that they say that they're a family-friendly company, but that's only until you sign on the dotted line. Then you find out that they really don't give a shit if your kid was throwing up sick all night long and you slept for 20 minutes the entire night. They expect you to be here with a smile and a great attitude. The funny part is, most of the "they" have kids and understand what it's like. Has this place actually managed to suck the sympathy right out of people? Maybe it was just that I liked my job when our entire family didn't depend on it. Who knows. All I know is I'm tired.

Clara, I love you with everything I am and everything I have. But if you don't start sleeping better, thus letting Mommy and Daddy get some sleep, we'll be living in a cardboard box.

A bonus post! 5-Month survey

I was just on TheBump and one of my fellow bumpies posted this short survey to do every month. I really liked it so I'm going to try to do one every month. Here's the one for 5 months.

1) How old is your baby? 5 months


2) Stats

Weight:~17 lbs
Height:~28 inches
Clothing size: Mostly 9 months. Still fits some 3-6, though.

Diaper size: Huggies Size 2
Hair: Very light brown
Eyes: Blue, like Mom’s
Anything else you want to add:


3) Are they

Teething: Yes-2 bottom teeth visible beneath the gums, but not poking up just yet.
Talking: Babbling, but not really talking
Rolling: Yes, front to back and back to front
Crawling: No.
Walking: No, but she likes to stand up and can lean against things.

Anything else you want to add: She can tripod sit, but can’t sit completely on her own yet.

4) What they like

Toys: The suction cup toys for her high chair, the stuffed monkey my Grandma Kay got her for Valentine’s Day, her elephant Wubbanub, and her puppy.
Books: Not a big fan of books just now.
Song: Doesn’t really have a favorite.
Anything else you want to add: She loves to watch her “Your Baby Can Read” DVD and PBS Kids shows. She also LOVES baths. She likes to splash in the tub and also going for walks in the stroller. And Scooter, our dog. :)

5) What they dislike: Going to bed and naps.
Ways they like to be soothed: Rocking, paci, standing and patting on the back.

6) How are they sleeping? At night, pretty horrible. Naps are hit and miss.

7) How are they feeding? Great. She’s eating 3 solid meals a day of fruits, vegetables, and rice cereal. She’s also completely on formula and took to the change well.

8) Nicknames – Muffin, Magwi, the munchkin.

9) What are you looking forward to the next month? We’ll be doing 6-month photos with Katie. I’m hoping to get her into swimming class, too. She may attend her first Memorial Day Parade if the weather’s nice. Maybe we’ll go to the zoo or the wildlife sanctuary. Grandma & Grandpa are going camping and we’re going to go visit so that’ll be a first, too.

10) How are you handling Motherhood? Not as well as I would like, but I’m doing my best. It’s a struggle to be working full time and going to school as well as taking care of her so Adam can get his schooling done.

Likes: My favorite time is spending time entertaining her. I love to watch her face light up first thing in the morning when I get her from her crib in the morning or after I’ve been gone all day at work.

Dislikes: She doesn’t take good naps during the day and bedtime is a fight every time.

New Blogs

I've found a couple blogs to follow...They're quite hysterical! One of them is a blog written by a father (Message with a Bottle) and the other is by a mother (Moms who Drink and Swear). They're both really funny and also have Facebook pages if you'd like to follow that way, too. I'll also be linking them to the side of my page.

Things have been so busy I haven't gotten a chance to keep up with this very often. The little girl has been quite the handful lately. She's not wanting to sleep at night anymore. I do NOT look forward to bedtime anymore. It's a huge fight to get her down and there's no guarantee that she'll stay down once she is down and she is still waking up at least once per night to eat. She is learning lots of new things though! She's starting to tripod!! For those who aren't parents or haven't heard this term, it's when babies sit with their butts on the floor and then lean forward on their hands to help them sit up. She still tips over, but she's getting better at it. It helps if we put a toy in front of her, that way she has incentive lean forward. She's also starting to be a little more independent...at times anyway. There are times where she's happy just to play on the floor or in her pack n play, but when she does want someone to be with her, she's quite demanding about it! I'm also in the process of talking to Katie about getting Clara's 6-month pictures taken. She'll be 6 months old in May...holy crap, I can't believe it!!

Other than that, not much else going on. I've been really busy with work and school. Adam's almost done with school for this semester. I know he'll be glad. :) He starts online classes this summer and then HOPEFULLY he'll be able to get into Bellin in January. I know he's eager to get started on acutal nursing classes instead of all the bs leading up to it. :)

Anyway, that's about it for now. I'm going to TRY to get some more pictures taken! I've been such a slacker with it lately.