State Fair 2010

My day started off at 4am with a feeding. Then pumping and a shower. I had a bowl of cereal to tide me over until getting to the fair. I got everything packed up and ready to go, time to get Jolynn in her car seat. Woke her up at 7:30 and she was ready to eat - so I had to feed her and then we were off to Grandma and Grandpa Benson's at 8:00am. Once we got there they were ready to go. We got to the fair around 9:00am. We went to a restaurant called Hamline dining hall (or something like that). Sally met us there when we were just about done. We mapped out all the places we wanted to go and times of things we wanted to see.

First was the Robot Demonstrations in the Educational building. I wasn't impressed. I guess I was expecting more like robot wars. So we passed on that and took a walk around. We found a booth that was taking pictures and putting them on a calendar for FREE. Score! Jolynn brings a lot of attention where ever she goes. How can you resist such an adorable little girl :) The Educational building also had free bags. Jolynn was ready to eat after this excursion. So we went back to the Hamline dining hall and asked for some hot water - they were very nice and didn't mind giving me this and letting me sit in there to feed her out of the sun.

Then we went to see the chickens. My mom is now into raising chickens, so she really wanted to go see them. Jolynn and I waited outside. This was the only photo I took the entire time we were there. Don't worry - you didn't miss anything. This is what she did the entire time we were at the fair.
After the chickens I was on a mission to get my cheese curds. I stopped and got corn on the way. Then we got to the cheese curds. I got those and should have shared. I ended up getting a belly ache and was in the bathroom later.

It was pretty warm. Every now and again there would be a breeze. I was drinking pop (not caffeinated). Pop is not a good source to keep you hydrated. I started to feel faint and decided I better head back to the car and home. Once we got to the car my mom had some water in her cooler. I drank that and combined with the AC in the car, was feeling much better. Note for next time is to bring water, sunscreen, and a hat.

Jon's 30

We celebrated Jon turning 30 at Fogo de Chao. Both grandparents were there, Jason, Olaf and his friend Stephanie. Of course Jolynn had to get passed around.

One Month

I can't believe our little girl is a month old already. People weren't kidding when they said time would fly by. I would love to say that Jolynn has reached some great milestones, but she hasn't-there isn't much to accomplish in the first month. There were the little ones like making it back to her birth weight, and reaching a weight where she could go out in her car seat legally. She also lost her cord and has an innie belly button.

We started off bottle feeding and were able to do both breastfeeding and bottle. She even recently started breastfeeding without the nipple shield. That is once in a blue moon however. I imagine soon she will be making sounds and faces that will actually mean something, instead of the normal smile because she has gas. She sleeps great, normally 3-4+ hours at a time. Jon has been great with helping with the feedings. It was a little rough at first because of him going back to work, but I think he is starting to get acclimated to a few hours of sleep at a time. I had the whole pregnancy to get used to that with getting up to go to the bathroom. Now instead of bathroom breaks I'm getting up to feed Jolynn.
One of the questions I often get is, "how is parenthood treating me?"
Some days it feels like I am babysitting someone's kid. There are also days where I am absolutely fed up with her squirming and fussing. That's when Jon takes over, or she has a visit with a grandparent. When I get her back I look at her and appreciate her so much more. I wonder to myself, how could I ever leave or be mad at this little angel. Then of course it happens again. Takes a few days for this pressure to build up, but it is nice to have a release and calm yourself.

We had our first photo session with Gracia Joy Nelson. She came to our house and took some great photos. I can't wait to do Jolynn's birth announcements now. Below is ONE of my favorites. There were 282 photos that I loaded, 36 were loaded to Facebook. I thought picking out the clothes was the hard part - now I have to choose from so many great photos for her announcements...this is going to be tough.

First Bath

She was a little squirmy. I had hoped Jon would have taken video, but he only took 3 photos. It was a quick process because she kept falling to the side.










She smelled so good after - then she spit up. Lesson for this: feed then bathe.

Outings

I am learning each time we go out. First time out we went to National Night Out - luckily only 1 block away. Didn't think we would be staying too long because it was hot out, so I didn't bring ANY milk. Ended up staying longer and it was time for a feeding, so I walked home and heated up a bottle. Only to get back and find her fast asleep.

Today we picked up Margaret from the airport at 9:30am. We fed Jolynn at 8:00 thinking she would be good until we got to Oakdale. I packed her diaper bag with the normal stuff (diapers, wipes, extra clothes). I even packed the Gripe Water and Mylicon. Thinking that we would not be there for more than a couple hours I only packed 2 partial bottles of milk. I brought my Udder Cover to breastfeed too. Unfortunately, I forgot the nipple shield. She was not having me the old fashioned way, so Grandma Moritz fed her a bottle. Since she didn't breastfeed from me since 6am I was feeling a bit "full". I texted Naomi because they live very close and was able to use her pump. Then Jon decided he wanted to go to Mongolian and we asked Jason if he wanted to come with us. Then we had to wait for Jason to get to Oakdale. Jolynn was fed one more time - using up all the milk I had brought. After eating at Mongolian Jason had to pick up stuff from his place in Hudson. No problem, I wanted to see his place anyway. It did not end up being a short stop. Jon got on Jason's computer and started playing a test realm in World of Warcraft. Margaret texted and said she thought Jolynn was hungry again. I told Jon we had to get going.

By the time we got back to Oakdale and left for home it was 4pm - rush hour. All highways were backed up. Jon decided to take Hwy 10 home instead of 694. Jolynn got so hungry I took 20ml that was left in a container and fed that to her. She was still upset. I didn't know what else to do so I tried to hand pump myself. Yes, HAND. It kind of worked. I was able to "pump" another 20ml. We finally got home and she was still hungry so we gave her another 1/2 oz. I think I know how a cow really feels now.

Live and Learn

Need I say more? The shirt says it all.

Jolynn is 3 weeks old today. I can't believe she has been home for two weeks already. Time really is flying by. The first few days of 4 hour feedings I knew days were going to go by quickly. Every time I hold her in my arms as she falls asleep I wish I had my camera strapped to my wrist. She makes the funniest faces as she sleeps. She has been staying awake more after feedings, but mostly in and out of slumber because her pacifier falls out. We started breastfeeding again and Jon bottle feeds when he is home. I've stock-piled a bin of milk in the freezer downstairs (over 100 oz) and almost have another bin filled upstairs.

We had our doctor visit a couple days after she was brought home and they told us we didn't need to come back until she was 2 months. I found this a little strange since she is a preemie. Babycenter and the hospital told us that she should be fine as long as she doesn't present a fever over 100.4, her outtake is normal, and she keeps gaining weight. So far all those things are good. She has had a few episodes of projectile vomit. Almost all the times we knew why it happened. Live and learn. She tends to have a few episodes of spitting up when she gets the hiccups, so we started giving her .5ml of Gripe Water when she has hiccups. They go away instantly. Now she has been bearing down a lot like she has to poop, but nothing comes out. When she eats (and sometimes at rest) she has a lot of gurgling in her stomach/intestines. When she scrunches up sometimes I hear her fart, so I figure it is gas. I started giving her .3ml of Mylicon - that worked really well. She slept for almost 4 hours and there were no gurgling noises when she ate next. Hopefully it will give her some relief.

Jolynn had her first outing this past Tuesday for National Night Out. It was fun to bring her out in the stroller. She slept the whole time, but we still got out of the house (even if it was only a block down the road). I would love to go on more walks with her, but it has been sooo hot. 90+ every day and will be for the next week. Maybe in September.