Put the scissors down and step away from the child!

If you look at my most recent posts you can see Ryans hair is out of control. Her bangs in particular, they hang in her face, and are unruly. So I decided that she needed a haircut! Hindsight being 20/20, there are a number of things I could have done differently to prevent a hair catastrophe, (left it alone, just give her a trim, taken her to a professional) however, ultimately it didnt turn out THAT bad...considering. I thought I was doing everything right-I bought brand new, small sharp scissors, I waited until after her baths so her hair would be wet (easier to cut) and I put on A Bug's Life (a movie she cannot keep her eyes off of). What I didnt count on was my own enthusiasm and ignorance. I sat her in my "lap" (which is basically my knees cause my belly takes up the rest) turned her to face the tv and came in from behind (sneak bang approach). But she was pretty far away (again, protruding belly) and being right handed I hadn't considered how I would tackle the left side. So after the first pass, she had the "right to left slant" starting out already pretty short. I decided the only way to get this right was the full frontal approach, so I could see what I was actually doing and reach her head (which is important). Here is how the rest of the haircut went, as I am sure you can predict:

A little off the left to even it out...ooooops...ok...a little off the right....ooooops....a little off the left.....CRAP...OK....STOP....Jennifer, just put the scissors down a step away from the child!

Looking at the pictures now, it doesnt look THAT bad-AND the good news is, with Leah coming I wont really have time to cut it, so hopefully I wont have to for a really long time!

PEED IN POTTY!

Jamey has taken over bath duty every night since the season ended. First because my protruding belly makes it very difficult, and secondly, because mommy needs a break after a long soccer season! I started noticing a routine when he would give the baths, of him taking off her diaper and letting her roam while the bath was running...well, running water, and no diaper equals pee on the floor! We had bought her potty a while back and let it hang out, pointing it out occasionally, putting her on it occasionally, but not really training her (other than letting her watch me-which seems weird to say out loud). But I figured, she is getting close, and instead of letting her pee on the floor, lets try sitting her on this thing. These are the instructions I gave Jamey- take off her diaper, and AS SOON AS YOU DO put her on the potty and tell her, "go pee pee in the potty". AND SHE DID! I missed it and I didnt even know it! He brings her downstairs like normal, brushes her hair (with her screaming) like normal, gave her milk like normal and watched tv...like normal. Then, out of the blue, Jamey says in his Jamey casual way, "Oh yeah, Ryan peed in her potty tonight." WHAT???!!! Are you kidding me?!! You didnt call me?! That is a BIG DEAL...did you make a BIG DEAL?! Then on to logistics, "did you give her toilet paper to wipe (which she knows how to do from watching me go-still weird) to which he states, "I didnt know what to do so I threw her in the tub!" Nice....well done! :) God, I love this man! Hilarious!
As badly as I would have wanted to see her go potty and praise her and all of that, the image in my head of Jamey trying to figure out how to clean her off and just deciding to lift her off and put her in the tub is just too cute....
Now I am sure this was a fluke moment, and of coarse we will keep trying with her (with me in attendance), but certainly a BIG step in the right direction (which is NO MORE DIAPERS)
BTW-I know this picture has NOTHING to do with potty training or baths, or anything, but I LOVE this picture and was dying to use it somehow! :)

She Speaks-really she does!

This was the "last weekend" of alone time with Nana and Papa Joe before Leah comes. Not really sure Ryan understood that, seeing how she really doesnt understand what is about to happen. But we wanted to try to make the most out of it. First, they brought Ryan the most gorgeous chest of drawers for her room, which seemed so "grown up" to me. However, to make room for the dresser, we moved the changing table, and rocking chair into our room for Leah's arrival. YIKES...so it's like..on now...very real, very quickly. I know I'm 9 months, I should have had that realization long ago, but something about seeing the room ready and all her clothes put away...whoa...

Anyway, back to Ryan-there is a phenomenon that I for the life of me cannot figure out. Maybe one day someone will explain it to me, but by then, it probably wont be an issue, so I will most likely wait this one out. Everyone knows how much Ryan can say, her vocabulary is expanding daily and even when she isnt saying "words" the girl has a language all her own and sometimes wont shut up (I mean that in the best "mom" way possible)! But whenever Jamey's parents come to town, or I take her into a crowd, she clams up like a CIA spy. Nothing...no words, no animal sounds, no expression on her face even...stoic...oddly quiet, focused. Its weird. It is very clear that she loves them, and knows them and seems to feel fairly comfortable around them, so why the hush-hush? I finally got a few words out of her, and she lightened up a bit at the end, but nothing in her normal realm of playtime. I know one day she will talk in front of them, but for now it pisses me off that she is making us look like liars! :)
Not to mention that since this was their last visit with her before Leah comes, the next time they see her, her world will be turned upside down and one of two things is going to happen-either she will be too busy throwing tantrums to speak, or she will find all of her words and be telling us where we all can go!

ONE BAD MOMMY and ONE BADASS CHEERLEADER

After last year's epic Halloween costume (Spider and her Web), there was a great deal of pressure on me to top it this year. That was of coarse before I got pregnant and therefore drastically inhibited my choices. I really liked the tradition of she and I (and now I guess Leah too) being a tandem/trio, so I had to really figure out what she could be and me being almost 8 months pregnant could be as well. EUREKA-I'm a genius...I will be "Mother Earth-busy creating and sustaining precious life" while my Ryanbug is a beautiful flower that I grew myself! Damn, now that is cute! So I had months to plan, (DID I? NO), had months to sew and/or buy Ryans flower (DID I? NO), instead I waited and waited and the more pregnant I became, the less energy I had and then the inevitable-the 11th hour and I was tapped, spent, officially "checked out". It didnt help that dad was out of town as well, the very notion of me painting my belly, and getting myself ready all the while getting her dressed and ready was more than I could wrap my head around, so I opted to simply "forget" the holiday all together! GASP!!! I know, all weekend I felt just awful, like I was doing the biggest injustice in the world to my daughter (like she had a clue). Late Saturday night the guilt just overwhelmed me and the stories and pictures I was reading of other childrens Halloween costumes and fun was too much to bear. I figured it out-she had a Wake Forest Cheerleader Costume in her closet....ohhh...perfect...no one would be the wiser...like I had planned it! Now how sad is that, as much as I demise cheerleaders, I had no choice but to fool the masses and trick myself into thinking this was a "costume". So in the end, while she may have missed the festivities, and was left with an empty pumpkin with no candy, there are pictures for her to look back on and everyone ultimately thought it was a great Halloween costume! Little do they know we slapped this one on her Sunday afternoon (day after Halloween) in our living room for like 15 minutes....Shhhhhhhhh......

BTW-I did some photoshopping, but she had the bloodiest nose in all the pictures...like she was the badass cheerleader who gets into fights for no reason-you should see the other girl! :)

Pumpkin Pickin in 80 degrees!

It just doesn't seem right-near 85 degrees in late October. But tradition is tradition and we had to make the obligatory Pumpkin Patch trip (especially since grandma was in town and we really didn't have a choice). So we threw on her most festive sweater to ensure she had a nice "glow" for the camera and trotted off in search of the perfect pumpkin. Now, not to brag, but I have an "eye" for these things-I can spot a perfectly proportioned, weighted, and colored pumpkin a mile away...its a gift. So while Ryan (who apparently hasn't inherited this gift) was sifting through small, puny, useless pumpkins, I spotted the Mother of all Pumpkins, the Mack Daddy, the Charlie Brown Great Pumpkin! I proclaimed for all the world (we were the only ones there) that I wanted THAT one...and grandma agreed, although I'm not sure why-in retrospect, $20 is an awful lot to pay for a pumpkin that I had no intention of carving, and really had no idea where I was going to put this monster. But alas, I got it, and didn't even notice my poor mom struggle to carry this beast to the car (it was heavier than it looked-like 30lbs or so). Sorry grandma!

Anyway, enough about me and my continued track record for pumpkin pickin-Ryan too did a decent job-picking the cutest little pumpkin that turned out to be less than a dollar and one she could carry herself-maybe SHE is the one with the gift...the gift of common sense!

"I DID IT!"

There has been a rash of "new" things Ryan can do, closing doors, opening doors, using a spoon, changing the channel/volume (to our dismay) but really, isn't that what it means to grow from a baby into a toddler-everything is something new you can do! But unlike every other day previously, she can now TELL me when she has done something! Her newest and by far the CUTEST thing she has said to date is: "I did it!". It all started when she got the puzzle pieces to her new puzzle in all the correct spots. I heard her say softly, "I got it" so I repeated it...I said, "You got it? You did it?" to which she then repeated it louder, "I DID IT!" Yeah, you did girl! This one really melts my heart, because before you could tell she was proud of herself, she would give herself a round of applause, or smile and shrug...but now to hear it out loud that self-admiration....it was too precious for words! Sadly, Jamey missed another "first", but the good news is, she said again the next morning, and NOT because we asked her to say it, but because once again she completed the puzzle and wanted to let him know, "I DID IT!"

Tippy Tumbles down the Stairs!

Holy Crap! So the scariest moment since her birth happened last night...and I dont like to place blame, but IT WAS ALL JAMEYS FAULT. I'm teasing, I think it is a man thing, men just dont think like women...its a fact. Anyway, back to Ryan's traumatic moment. So its bath time and for a while we got Ryan crawling upstairs every time, this way I wont have to carry her. It was working well, until one day, she just stopped and demanded to be picked up. Now, I am very lazy and would cave, and pick her up. Jamey, being infinitely more patient, decides to "work with her". To do this, he would go up a few steps ahead acting as a carrot and she would follow him up. I had no idea this was happening or I would have said something to the effect, "make sure you stay behind her at all times." "lets make sure you hold onto her at all times" ummm..."Let try NOT to let her fall down the stairs head over feet if we can." Poor Jamey got lulled into a sense of comfort because she never stood up before-well this time she did. And as soon as she did, being 18 months and NOT having the core strength to maintain balance, she immediately fell backwards! Now, I didnt see it-I wish I had, I am thinking the visual was way better than the audible version. I was in the bathroom underneath the stairs and to say it sounded like her head cracking on every stair all the way down lasting 10 minutes is an understatement. I ran around to find her at the bottom of the stairs. Jamey grabbed her straight away and she just laid her head on his shoulder, never crying once. Then without waring said, "Bye bye" as if she was heading back upstairs to get her bath. She giggled and waved the whole way up. She was fine....I however was NOT. I burst into tears and couldnt stop shaking. Somehow managed to keep myself calm enough to NOT go into labor, but it took a few hours to truly calm down. So lessons all the way around-
Ryan learned to be more careful on the stairs, Jamey learned to stay behind her when climbing the stairs, and I learned to anticipate instinctively the things that could harm Ryan and anticipate the fact that Jamey doesnt know them instinctively and clue him in-daddys dont have those instincts I guess...

The blind leading the blind leading the blind!

Does anyone in our house know anything???!!!!! The confusion in our house usually consisted of a newborn baby (rightfully, I cant really get mad at her-she couldn't even speak) and my husband Jamey (who CAN speak and is usually the culprit), but I somehow managed to keep the place running and well-organized. But now that I am 8 months pregnant and have clearly lost my mind, there are no answers to be found in our house and we all end up looking around at one another and doing the Ryanbug move (her answer to every question)-shrugging our shoulders, placing out hands in the air as if to say, "I don't know".
Begin scene.....
"Ryan, where is your doggie?" (Shruggs shoulders and puts hands in the air)
"Jamey, where are the keys?" (Shruggs shoulders, puts hands in the air) AND adds, "I don't know".
"Jen, where is the remote?" "Oh wait, here it is, you put it in the toaster!"
These are scary times in the Newsome household!!!

"I Go Poo-Poo"

I was telling this story to my co-worker when she tells me to make sure I write that in her baby book. Then it hits me-have I written anything in her baby book? Then I realize something else-THIS blog her baby book! So here I write about my daughters first 3 word sentence. Now before I do, I looked back and saw that I have made no mention of her "first" word or her first 2-word sentence (I mean seriously, why is it so freaking hard to keep up with a baby book-especially when it is digital for crying out loud?!) So for the sake of mentioning it, her first word (I think-WORST MOM EVER) was "ball" or "dada" and her first 2-word sentence was "All gone" or "I'm done". Now I can move forward without guilt to her first 3-word sentence.
Ryan had been napping on a Sunday afternoon for a long time, like 3 1/2 hours or so, very unusual. I decided that I should go wake her up, but chances were good she was already up, just chilling in her crib. I open the door and was immediately hit in the face with a pungent familiar smell-an immediate diaper change was in my future. I walk over and as predicted she was sitting up with a paci in her mouth. I walk over and ask, "How was your nap bug-a-boo?" To which she spits out her paci, and proclaims, "I GO POO-POO". And my instant response was, "Man, you aint never lie!" She then grabs her paci and places it back in her mouth and stands up ready for momma to change her! Which I promptly did once I picked myself off the floor from laughter!

Jasper Turns 2!!!

Jasper is my bosses (Connie) sisters' (Kathy) son who she had the week I started working for Connie, is turning 2 and having a PARTY. This was Ryan's first invite (and from a boy) to a birthday party and I was very excited for her, but horribly nervous! Jamey was out of town and that meant, shopping on my own, getting her dressed (supposed to be a farm theme, more on her "outfit" later) getting myself dressed (which lets face is no small feet...I mean feat) and getting the present wrapped. We started out very rocky...she didn't go down for her nap until late, which made mommy panic (although, what doesn't these days?) but I came to terms with being a bit late (which I HATE). The getting ready part wasn't as bad as I anticipated, with the exception of her "cowgirl" outfit. Now here is where my insane vanity rears its ugly head. The shirt was cute enough, but she really didn't have shoes the would "go", and I couldn't get her hair "right" and ultimately the brown plaid shirt "washed her out". I really want to say that I am kidding and NOT be THAT girl, but sadly, clearly, I have a problem. The only thing on her body that could even somewhat resemble a "farm girl" was her denim skirt...but oh well, she looked cute as hell! So sad..I know..I'm thinking of getting help...

On the way, the debacle of "just getting there" continued..we had to stop at a dollar general store to pick up a gift bag, on the way there she got her shoes off, and bows out of her hair (the store is 1/2 mile down the road). So now I am 7 1/2 months pregnant, sweating like a pig from the humidity of an awful muggy September day, trying to put shoes back on and bows in sweaty hair. Now I have to carry her in/out of the store, with the shoes coming off twice in the process. Thank God for Elmo, which made the ride out to the farm quiet! Sensing it was going to be a BAD afternoon for Ryan, I came to terms with leaving early, full of apologies, and embarrassment. But once again Ryan came through in a clutch, and the entire time I was sweating from the heat AND nervousness, she was being just as good as she could be. She played with the toys, drank her drink, ate her cake, sat quiet, mingled, and looked as adorable as ever! I really hated that daddy missed this. She got a punching balloon on her way out (which she LOVED-all the way home) and basically made me question why I always anticipate the worst, when she always comes through being the best!

How did she do this?! Magic?!

Or...is that she is very good at what she does?! I HATE, and I don't use that word very often, HATE, but I HATE to have my picture taken. So between that and the fact that I love taking pictures, I am rarely IN any pictures (which is fine by me). But Rachael wanted to add to her portfolio and I wanted some kind of documentation of this pregnancy (and desperately needed a vacation) so I agreed to head to Asheville to be her guinea pig. It was so much fun, usually I am inhibited, timid, shy, and she just brought out the best in me. I trusted every decision she made and she put me completely at ease (it doesn't hurt that she is my best friend and I would trust her with my life). We went to maybe 10 different locations and she had me wrapped in scarves and changing along the side of the highway (laughing all the way)! I began to embrace my hugeness because she seemed to enjoy it so! :) All in all it was an amazing photo shoot and a great get away just before Leah is born! If Rachael and I weren't close before-we certainly are now!! :)

Leah in 4D!!!!!!!!!

We had our 30 week appointment and I knew we were going to get a shot at seeing her in 4D-they do it every time. But up until maybe 27 weeks, the 4D's are creepy-in my opinion. But I think it is fun nonetheless and while I dont remember Ryan looking anything like her 4D pictures, I still looked forward to it!

Everything looked great-her head was the right size, all her organs in the proper place, etc...however she was still breech. Which is fine, it is still early and I am most likely having a c-section anyway, so it really doesnt matter-Except when we went to look at her, both her legs and arms were covering her face! The best part was when the nurse asked me to roll on my side to see if we could get a better shot and Leah immediately shot her arm up to brace herself against my cervix and stop her from moving-I'm not making this up-it was very visible and very obvious. Fantastic...but here are the few we did manage to get. She looks a little like Ryan (I guess). It always strikes as odd to get these shots-everything up until now seems so abstract, weird blurry figures, talks of comparing the size of the fetus to fruit-then you see this face, and it becomes very real very fast that there is a tiny person, the length of loaf of bread walking around inside you! Hmmmm..... Wont be long now!!!! 9 weeks!!

Tailgating 2009

First of all, where did my baby go-seriously, look at her all growns up! It was parents weekend for Jamey's soccer team and we all went tailgating for GSU! It was blazing hot (as you can see from her lovely hairdo!) but despite that the parents loved meeting Ryan. I think she did some damage control for the bad start of the season! She stumbled upon kids handing out free footballs and snagged herself one (then went back to get another-nice try). I taught her a few of my moves and clearly she is a natural-just look at her form. And until her sister gets here she will just have to settle hiking it to herself and then play QB! We had a quick downpour at which point mommy was no longer comfortable (as if I was that comfortable to begin with) but we had to leave. I dont know how a 5'1 7 1/2 month along pregnant woman can look like a drowned rat, but I managed to do it!

Who's a Daddy's Girl?

Oh forget it-I'm done fighting this. She loves her dad! What can I say? I am the one who picks her up from daycare, feeds her, bathes her, reads to her, loves on her, plays with her, puts her to bed and it is still Daddy who gets the squeals when he comes home. Maybe because she rarely sees him these days so when she does she is super siked? But here is hoping Leah is a mommy's girl-cause I need some loving too!

Back to reality!

We got back from the beach Sunday evening, come Monday morning-we all looked this-bags under our eyes, hair all disheveled, cranky! Now, for Ryan, it also happened to be her first day of her new daycare class after being "moved up" to hang with the big kids. No more napping when you want, eating when want, tormenting the newborn babies....Nope, everything changes now! She has a schedule and curriculum to follow, a very strict nap time and a sharing policy you would think would be easy to abide by. Between recovering from vacation, playing hard on the playground, painting a bear, getting bit (and subsequently biting back) and being forced to listen to her teacher, she fell a sleep like 15 minutes after getting home! :) And so did Mommy!

Little Leah or (L.L. Coolbug)

I feel just awful that I havent really mentioned much regarding Leah! Not that there is that much to say, but maybe announcing her name would be a start! So her name is Leah Nicole Newsome (Daddy's pick with Mommy's middle name). Right now as of today, she is just over a pound and is 25 weeks old! As you can see from her ultasound picture (to really see it you have to close your right eye, squint out of your left and tilt you head ever so slightly) her sucking her thumb! You can also see that she is already just as cute a Ryan and takes cues better-we were never able to get this shot of Ryan no matter how hard we tried! :)

But so far she is perfectly healthy and for me, December seems like a lifetime away!

A Visual Preamble...

I knew it was going to be hard to pick which beach pictures to put on my blog so here are a few to get you started.....also, for my close friends (you know who you are) and family, here is the link to my Photobucket page, so you may enjoy them all!! http://s266.photobucket.com/albums/ii276/jnewsome33/?start=0

My Malibu Tomboy

She can look cute in a suit, but isn't afraid to get dirty! There are many things to possibly dread when taking a 15 month old on her first beach trip-the fear of her hating the sand, and/or the water, the dread of lugging everything out to the beach only to have to lug it back in 30 minutes (flashbacks from Tybee with Rachael when she was 3 months), the fear of sunburn (applying sunscreen literally every 10 minutes) and the then there is the "wont sleep through the night" fear! All these things could lead to a disastrous week, but None-I repeat, NONE of those things occurred! We initially were a bit bummed due to our condo being on the second floor-but quickly realized that Ryan upon entering the condo for the first time ran straight to the balcony and started playing her favorite new game of open/close door (each time waving and saying Bye-bye as she closed the french doors). Now had we been on the ground floor, there would have been no way to contain her-so this turned out to be a happy accident. The first night, there happened to be a band playing across the street, so we walked over and let Ryan work the crowd like the rock star she is, dancing and making friends everywhere! On the way home she encounters a gaggle of ducks, which she thought was cool at first-then they started "chasing her"-not cool...but we had a week to make them our friends (and did-with bagels).

From the next morning on, (after grandma arrived) we got into a great routine, beach in the morning, lunch/naps/pool, then St. Augustine in the evenings. I have to mention how amazing Ryan was at the beach-like she had been going to the beach everyday her entire little life. She got out her sand toys (only stopping to eat the sand a handful of times and a handful at a time), she followed daddy to the ocean, and if we had let her, she would have been half way to the sandbar before we could blink, she collected sea shells with grandma, and took strolls to the pier and back. All these things are very important because, well, I am happy to see her enjoying the beach so much, but mainly it allowed me to chill in the sun without chasing, yelling, or getting up even!

She never got scared, never got burnt, never pitched a fit, never woke up in the middle of the night, basically allowed us to have the best beach vacation you could possibly have with a 15 month old and being 6 months pregnant! One quick story I have to tell, and yes, I am afraid it may be one of those stories you had to see for yourself, but since I am using this blog as her baby book, I have to tell it. On her "walks", she would take off by herself, and all three of us would say, "Where ya goin?". Everytime, she would turn around, wave and say "Bye-Bye!", walk a few feet, turn, wave and say, "Bye-Bye!".....I think you can tell from the first picture above just how cute that could have been!

I do have to give Jamey big hugs for being our pack mule this trip and to grandma for her eagle eye that I never appreciated growing up-but counted on several times this trip!