The Good Life

I knew that having a baby in the winter was going to have its pros and cons (more cons than pros in my opinion). One big concern I had was “flu season” and all the fun that brings (public places and “germy” visitors), another concern was being able to get out and get fresh air - and for the baby to have some fresh air - without getting cold and sick. Sometimes January weather is not cooperative and doesn’t allow for having a newborn out to enjoy, but the weather has been amazing the past couple of days here in Greeneville. On Monday, the temps were in the mid 60’s and yesterday we hit a high of 72 degrees. This makes for one happy Mommy. I know I’m not alone in believing that sunshine is good for the soul. Something about being out in the sunshine helps me in so many ways…mentally, physically and spiritually. Our bodies need to interact with sunshine in order to process and utilize Vitamin D. Vitamin D has many benefits, but one of the most important is its role in the strengthenin...

On Saturday, we took Colton on his first trip. Clogging Champions of America ( www.ccaclog.com ) was hosting the annual Showdown of Champions in Knoxville and since it's only about an hour drive to Knoxville from the house, we decided it would be a good adventure for us. Not only was I ready to get out of the house and go somewhere besides the grocery store or doctor's office but I really wanted to see my "clogging family".  Of course getting myself ready is a lot harder than it used to be, so I started about an hour earlier than normal (and we still left later than planned). On top of getting myself ready, I had to make sure that we had everything we needed for Colton. Even though we were only going to be there for a few hours, I wanted to be prepared. So, we double checked to make sure we had enough everything for the little guy from bottles and diapers to a change of clothes. Once we had everything packed up - including Colton - we started our journey to Knoxvill...

Colton turned 3 weeks old yesterday. People weren't kidding when they told me "time flies once your baby is born". It's easy to feel like a baby is so small that they won't understand being on a schedule, but I am (now) a firm believer that it is never to early to start a baby with a routine. Colton was used to sleeping the amount of time he wanted (it didn't matter if he slept for an hour or 4 hours), and expected to eat on demand. On Sunday of last week, we started Colton's "schedule" of sleeping 3 hours and waking him to eat a full meal (4 to 6 oz) throughout the day in hopes that the pattern would catch on for night time sleeping. It took a few days, but finally on Wednesday night, Colton slept a 3 and 1/2 hour stretch for the first time since we brought him home from the hospital. At first, he was fussy when we woke him during the day and wasn't ready to wake up (much less eat) but now he is getting used to the pattern and does reall...

Today, I start my quest to get back in shape. After months of carrying extra weight, wearing maternity jeans, eating whatever tastes good and laying on the couch, it's finally time to get back in the groove of taking care of Mommy. I'm not going to lie, it's hard to think about taking time out of my day to commit to "working out" since I'm already exhausted and feel like my time is limited as it is. I have about a 3 hour window, every couple of hours to get things done like laundry, washing bottles, picking up around the house, showering, paying bills, laundry, washing bottles/pump accessories, trying to sleep and...did I mention laundry and washing bottles? So taking a half hour to an hour for "me time" is hard but I know that it's something I need to do for myself. Of course I have to start slow (which is a good thing because I feel slow) but getting started at all is a huge step for me. Since I'm breastfeeding, I can't "diet...

Having a new baby is exciting and wonderful but it's also tiring, worrisome and (at times) frustrating. I spent 9 months preparing for him to be here, but no amount of reading, asking questions and preparation actually got me ready for what really happens once that cord is cut. Colton is a very happy baby. He's expressive and doesn't demand a lot of "soothing". The only time he cries (knock on wood) is when he's hungry...but he is hungry a LOT. At first, I wasn't producing enough milk to keep him satisfied and he cried and cried and CRIED. Once we discovered that we needed to substitute formula, he has been a happy little guy. Yesterday was our first full day of no formula, as I was able to provide enough milk to keep him full, and I think we were all happy. Yay! Now that the feeding issue is "fixed", we are looking to solve the next "problem". Colton seems to have his nights and days confused. During the day he sleeps sound for ho...

This past week, it rained for 3 days straight, and when I say 3 days straight, I mean (literally) non stop, day and night, downpour rain. I'm already in a hibernating type mode with a new baby and the rain just makes it even worse. I am really looking forward to getting Colton out in some sunshine! On Thursday, all that rain turned to snow and we accumulated about 3 inches by early evening. The great thing about living in East Tennessee is that we only get a snow like that every couple of years and it doesn't stick around long. Most of the snow has melted off and if we can just get the temps back up to the 60s, we would be all set. Colton turned 2 weeks old on Thursday- and he had a special visitor from Texas to help celebrate. Mamaw Neal (Matt's Mom) came up to meet her newest grandson. I'm so thankful for the love and support we have from all of Colton's grandparents and I'm happy that Mamaw Neal has been able to spend time with our little man for the p...

As I sit here watching my baby sleep, I can’t help but think “being a mommy is awesome”. Of course there are long nights of little to no sleep, sore breasts, fat to lose and feeling clean for only 30 minutes after a shower because I’m either spit up, pooped or peed on but the little smiles and precious expressions make me forget all about all the other stuff and make me proud to be just that…a mommy. Colton is so expressive already and I think he’s going to have quite a personality. If he learns how to use his smile to his advantage, one day those dimples are going to make him a heart breaker. During and after meal time is when I get to see his   wonderful expressions the most, 1) because while eating is when he usually makes a dirty diaper for mommy (and smiles about it) 2) after eating is when he is the happiest and 3) feeding time is when he is actually awake. He used to fall asleep right after eating but now he’s sta...

  On Saturday, Colton had his first professional pictures taken – another big day for our little guy. Missi Shelton of “Memories by Missi” traveled from Hixon, TN to Greeneville for the photo shoot and she got some amazing pictures of our little man. I can see why the name of her business is “Memories by Missi” because she definitely captured some memories for us. Missi is married to my cousin (more like a brother) Jody and it was so nice to not only get some great pictures of Colton but visit with family at the same time. You can tell that Missi has a passion for photography and she is wonderful with babies. She was able to keep Colton comfortable and happy during the entire photo shoot, in turn getting some adorable pictures. This blog entry is dedicated to promoting “Memories by Missi”. You can visit her on Facebook ( http://www.facebook.com/pages/Memories-by-Missi-Photography/368450743237015?ref=ts&fref=ts ) and check out some of he...

Journal Entry 8 - January 11, 2013 We are making progress. So many wonderful things have happened between our visit to Dr. Woods on Monday and today. Mommy has been less stressed since Colton has been eating and sleeping on a much better schedule. My milk is (slowly) increasing. I'm a little frustrated that it's taking - what seems like - so long to be enough for him on its own without formula substitute, but I'm thankful that we are getting some and that he's a cooperative baby when it comes to switching back and forth. Colton turned 1 week old yesterday, he took his first stroll outside with daddy, he got to meet Scout, his umbilical cord fell off, he is learning to smile (he has the cutest dimples) and he's reacting to the sound of my voice. I know he can't see me very well yet, but I can see the recognition in his eyes when I talk to him and that just melts my heart. These precious little moments are amazing and I wouldn't trade them for anything. To...

Journal Entry 6 - January 7, 2013 Colton was scheduled to see Dr. Woods today and after a horribly long night on Sunday, I was feeling worn out, confused, somewhat overwhelmed and very much looking forward to our visit to the doctor so she could reassure me that everything was fine with our baby. Being a new mom is enough of a reason to feel overwhelmed and if you mix that with no sleep, a crying baby, out of control hormones and me just being me, it's a recipe for a melt down. I did a pretty good job (with Matt's help) at keeping myself together and reminding myself that all new moms probably feel this way. But let's be honest, I was starting to question everything I thought I knew about being a mom. I managed to get myself and Colton ready to go and we headed out on our first trip without daddy. I was nervous and I was so tired that everything made me feel like crying. My sweet baby boy did much better than I did, he slept the whole way to the doctor without a peep. O...

Journal Entry 5 - January 6, 2013 After a good "first night", we had a good day at home with our little man. Colton's great Mamaw and Papaw Bishop came to visit him and that was the highlight of his day. The rest of the day he just did baby stuff (eat, poop, sleep and be super cute). I was starting to feel the lack of sleep from the past several days and Colton had switched from waking up every 3 hours to every 2 hours to eat. Since I'm breastfeeding, I can't really tell how much milk he is actually getting. Because my milk supply hasn't come in fully, he is eating more frequently and I'm hoping he's getting enough to fill his little belly. As the day went on, I found myself stuck in the "feeding position" on the couch for more hours out of the day than I care to count. That time with him is precious and I know it won't last long. By evening time, Colton started getting very fussy and that didn't change right up to bedtime. He ...

Journal Entry 4 - January 5, 2013 Today we got the okay to leave the hospital and take Colton home. I had been so pre-occupied with the labor and delivery that I hadn't thought about the trip home. The past two days had been full of instructions, advice, paperwork, excitement, exhaustion and joy and I had been focusing all my attention on just getting through a minute at a time. I'm brand new to this mommy business and I am learning as I go. I don't have any reason to look too far ahead because as soon as I have a plan, those plans change. My goal is to listen to my heart (and my new mommy instincts) and enjoy every minute with our new little miracle. Once we had everything packed up from our room, we were faced with the task of getting Colton in his car seat. I practiced putting a baby doll in the car seat several times just so I would be ready for this moment, but let me tell you, it was nothing like I practiced. After some worry (on my end) that I was going to brea...

Journal Entry 2 - January 4, 2013 Today was Colton's first full day in this world and our (Matt and I) second full day in the hospital. We had visitors in the morning and a check-in from Dr. Woods. Mr. Colton had to have blood work done and he had his picture taken for the hospital nursery website (we still haven't figured out how to find those online, but honestly I really haven't given it too much of my attention). As the day passed by, we were given so much information, instructions and more paperwork (mostly for Colton this time around) and by evening, Dr Woods was ready for the little guy's circumcision procedure. When we got Colton back to the room, he was worn out and so were mommy and daddy. The events of the previous day had caught up with all of us. I was feeling the aches and pains from the delivery, Matt was feeling exhaustion from stress and sleeping on a hospital cot for 2 nights in a row and little Colton was busy putting to use the skills he had sp...

Journal Entry 1 - January 3, 2013 After delivery of Colton, we were moved from the delivery room to "our room". We had several visitors ready to meet the new addition to our family (some of who were there from 6am until late evening patiently waiting). What a blessing to have so much support. Our first night with the little guy went pretty well. I was physically exhausted from labor and delivery and Matt was mentally exhausted from the stress of not being able to "do anything" (even though he did more than he'll ever know). Once our visitors were gone and the nurses helped us settle in, we were alone for the first time. It was just Matt, Me and Colton. Despite being sore, tired and overwhelmed with emotions I was so happy that the three of us were alone. Colton was still in a "baby coma" from the hard work he endured making his entrance. It's just amazing how something so small can fill a spot so big in my heart. I'm pretty sure he wor...

I have been a little busy over the past few days and have so many new things to share. I don't really know where to start - so I will just start with saying I am beyond blessed. At 3:34 in the afternoon on Thursday, January 3, I gave birth to a beautiful, healthy, precious baby boy. Colton Matthew Neal is finally with us. It all started on Wednesday evening when Matt and I checked in at Laughlin Memorial Hospital around 7:00pm. Since Colton was past his due date (if only by a couple of days), we were admitted to the OB where we were schedule to induce. Once we were settled into the room, things moved quickly with nurses in and out and so much paperwork that I felt like I was buying a house instead of having a baby. I was only dilated to 2cm when the nurses checked me, so we started a hormone called Cytotec to jump start contractions and dilation. I was only allowed 1 pill every 2 hours and I could only have a total of 3 doses. So at 8:30pm, I took my first dose of Cytot...

Happy New Year!!! We are already 2 days into 2013 and that just blows my mind. Yesterday, Matt and I enjoyed lunch at Applebees since it could be a while before we get a chance to do that again. :-) I ate way too much, but it was delicious! It rained ALL day here in East Tennessee, so filling my belly and taking a nap made for a pretty good day. I took advantage of my last afternoon and evening at home without a baby. What did I just say? The next evening I'm at home I will have a baby?...crazy! We were really hoping that Colton would decide to make his way out on his own, but it looks like he's just too comfy in there. I could wait another week to see if he changes his mind, which would consist of testing and doctor visits every other day or so, or we have the option to induce. I didn't think inducing labor would be something I would want, but my doctor recommends it and is confident that things will go well, so that's the route we have chosen. I would be lying if I ...