Harper Lynn 5 month update

Happy 5th month of life sweet girl! Since this photo was taken (about two weeks ago) she's managed to put on another pound or so. This momma may or may not have had a meltdown packing away all of her tiny newborn Harpie clothes. I've also com to accept the fact that these will never ever be posted on time.

This month seems to be the month of firsts. First time in the snow, first solid food, first time rolling from her stomach to back, and first time laughing back as we laugh at her. She is thisclose to sitting up on her own (see failed photo below) and her first bottom tooth is almost through her gums. J and I have decided that she is never going to roll over from her back to belly because she hates laying on her beer gut. This winter has been perfect for giving us a few warm days to take her outside. So far she absolutely loves it! As for the food I think it is going to take a few tries. We tried rice cereal both with breastmilk and water plus bananas. All were rejected by miss priss. 

Harper used to be a rockstar sleeper from 9pm to 8am on the dot but has since changed. She still sleeps a good bit but some nights she wants to stay up and party until 10 or 11 and then wake up at 4 and pound a bottle or two. We're going to try some different foods this week and see if we can find one she likes that will stick to her ribs a little better overnight. Glory glory hallelujah she has finally started napping again during the day. Every 2-3 hours she's ready for a snooze and it. is. heavenly. Napping helped her attitude so much! She loves to play and hang out with us. Her obsession with Justin has grown from minor to full on daddy stalker. He's starting to rub off on her a little....

Her new favorite game is to throw her toys and make us get them. She's also discovered how to kick in the bathtub and it is the funniest thing ever to see her violenlty throwing her body around in her bath seat. Or crib. Or carseat. Actually, she just likes to spaz out wherever she may be. Half the time I get her out of bed and she's sideways holding onto the rungs of her crib. We recently figured out that she's much happier in the car since we took the newborn insert out of her carseat. We're getting to the time where we need to decide what her next carseat will be when she's done with her infant seat in the spring. I've been looking into this one but am open to any suggestions.

I cannot believe how fast the time is going, now we see how they grow up in the blink of an eye. She is the sass and spunk we always needed & we can't wait to see what's in store with this one. Happy 5 (& a half) months Harper Lynn, we love you!

Four Months of Harpie

Somehow another month (& a half by the time I got around to write this) has passed! I think it's safe to say that every month is my new favorite. 3 months was a big turning point for Harper as far as alertness, sleep, and development but the 4 month mark has been the craziest!

We tried to get a happy picture but figured this is a pretty accurate representation for how she is now. Totally happy or oh hell to the no mad. She's generally happy but if she needs anything she let's you know right away. She's been that way since she was less than 2 months old but now we've added temper tantrums to that. If she wants to lay on her back and play instead of her belly, tantrum. If she's hungry and there's not a bottle in her mouth rightthissecond, tantrum. If you look at her on a weird day, mega tantrum. We also got a video of her new favorite tantrum when she's laying on the floor and can't roll over by herself. We sat back and laughed. I know what you're thinking, parents of the year. 

At 4 months I think we've finally turned a corner with tummy time, I don't know if it's her big belly or just how she is but she hated it until she figured out how to turn in circles. The belly bumper and boppy were both a huge help when she was learning how to hold herself up. As you can see she's still obsessed with books too. The crinklier, the better :)

Her first Christmas was so much fun! Not only was it her first, but it was the first year Justin & I got to wake up and share the morning together :) Harper was confused when we started handing her presents and toys but she ended up loving it. We all watched frozen for the first time at her Geema and pappy's house on Christmas day & like all girls, she was obsessed. We headed from Geema and Pappy's, to Nana and Pap's, to her great grandparent's house to visit with them and her Mimi and Pap- Pap....She's a spoiled girl with not two, but three sets of grandparents to love on her! After our busy December 25th we spent the rest of our 2 day "Christmas break" hanging out in bed watching netflix & trying to recover from the mass amounts of food (and milk) we all consumed.  

Developmentally, Harper is so close to rolling over but isn't quite there. She loves to hold your fingers she can pull herself up to sit and stand. I'm convinced this kid is never going to crawl and will skip straight to sitting & furniture creeping. When I pump she sits in her boppy to eat and tries to sit up. Independent is the name of the game with this one. As far as sleep we typically start bath time at 8:15, give her a bottle and put her down by 9\9:15. Unless she's sick or having a bad night with her teeth, she sleeps until 8am. The pediatrician confirmed my suspicions at her 4 month check-up that she is indeed working on two teeth. Unfortunately she got the miserable attitude, fever, and pink cheeks to go with it. Teething breaks my momma heart. For the past week she has also completely outlawed naps and takes 1-2 10 minute power naps on me after her bottle and then wakes up crabby. 

Her favorites this month are snuggling her blankies, burying her face in your chest and growling, dancing, having "conversations", throwing her body out of her bath seat & picking her nose like a beast :)

They're not kidding when they say each stage breezes by & brings its own challenges. She may have grown out of her colic stage but her demanding attitude is equally as challenging, especially when she is going all day long. Lawd help us when she's mobile. Despite your dramatic, spunky, LOUD personality, we love you so much miss Harper Lynn!

Harper 3 months

Where has the time gone! Our once sleepy, yellow (jaundice) baby who never made a peep is now a chubby, loud, little girl who knows exactly what she wants. She started smiling last month but has really stepped up her game in the happiness department, we've even gotten a few giggles. If daddy is around? Total infatuation. 

Prepare for the baby spam. This month we celebrated her 1st Thanksgiving which was quickly turned upside down when she woke up with a fever & cold. We spent the holiday at my parents with my in-laws and grandma. Poor Justin was scheduled to work at 4 so our family time was cut short. The rest of the day consisted of 5 minute naps & temper tantrums because someone was overtired. She finally took a short nap on her Gee-Ma as my grandma and I housed a pumpkin pie. Black friday is typically its own holiday for me. With a sick baby I opted out which ended up being a good plan since I woke up friday morning sick as a dog. The holiday weekend did however get a little better when Harper gave us the shock of a lifetime and slept from 9pm-8am on friday. Just what this sick momma needed to feel slightly less dead.

Our smart cookie also learned how to hold her bottle this month. She can't do it completely by herself but she's almost there. Not bad for a 3 month old who was born 1 month early. She's also mastered tummy time. However, she will throw a royal fit unless theres a hockey game on to entertain her in said position. The older she gets the more content she is to hang out and look around. From 3 weeks to 2 and a half months she wasn't happy unless she was entertained 24/7. We thought we were totally screwed. She still has her moments but we continue to see the light at the end of the tunnel when she's happy to just hang with us. After Justin was finished working on friday we had another family first and purchased our 1st car as married couple! His current car is a bit too nascar and not quite enough dad. He's maintaining his manliness in a new Subaru XV Crosstrek. After looking for awhile we decided it was the one. Unlike his current car it's great in the snow and has plenty of room to toss a carseat in the back. We love outdoor sports like mountain biking and snowboarding so it is the perfect car to throw our stuff in and go have an adventure. All of our paperwork and bargaining took over 3 hours and little miss priss was perfectly happy to just chill. 

I'll probably say it every month, but month 3 has been my favorite so far. She's still tiny enough that she wants to cuddle with us but is old enough and developed enough to interact with us and her surroundings. Every morning I wake to her "crying" on the monitor and go in to a huge smile because she knows her fake yelling worked. With every nap is seems as though she's grown another month older and wiser. I feel like I finally understand the phrase "let them be little". Because even when the days are long I know we'll look back and wonder where the years have gone.

oh darling don't you ever grow up, just stay this little.

Why we chose to exclusively pump

Since Harper was born I've gotten asked "Are you breastfeeding?" approximately 7,000 times. At first I didn't know how to answer because yes, she was getting breastmilk. But no, not always directly from me. Harper was born just shy of 36 weeks with a host of preemie latch issues. She was also born with the worlds biggest tongue. Those along with some issues I was having made it nearly impossible to breastfeed. Before we left the hospital we had 2 meetings with the lactation consultant and it seemed like she was finally getting it with a shield. After 3 days home (and still no milk) it felt like things were going south. I began reading everything I could and eventually came to an article telling me shields decreased milk production. At this point we were trying to feed both sides for 10 minutes each, pumping and feeding her that with a syringe, 15 minutes of trying to get her to burp, washing all of the pump parts, changing her diaper, and getting her to nap. By the time the cycle finished it was time to start again. That was still not enough milk for Harper and not enough sleep for momma. No Bueno.

Harper's 1 week well baby visit actually ended up happening when she was 2 weeks old due to her jaundice hospital stay. Just like the "breast is best and pumping is the devil" boob thumpers, the doctor was less than impressed that we had already switched to only pumping. As she concluded the appointment by telling me I had a healthy baby, she also said she was going to schedule a 1 hour lactation consult before her next appointment to "get her back where she should be". Right after I knocked her out cold left the room I quickly scheduled her next appointment with a different physician, no consult. My baby was perfectly healthy, so we headed home and read up on just how to exclusively pump. Now, after 3 months I feel like we've gotten the hang of it & may have some helpful tips.

Here's what's up

1. Call your insurance company. Before you go and buy that $400 gem you read all about online, call your insurance carrier. Ours sent us a Ameda Purely Yours double electric pump with 2 sets of flanges, 4-6 valves, 4 storage bottles, and a carrying tote for all free. They also supply us with 3, 50 count refills of storage bags every 90 days sent right to our door. Call ahead while you're pregnant and before you register for gifts.

2. Free parts. Most hospitals have either a Medela or Ameda pump for you to use during your postpartum stay. If they have the same brand pump as you, take the parts! Ours had an ameda pump and we were able to leave with extra tubing, a set of flanges, 4 valves, and 12 storage tubes. Some may have the storage bottles, but take advantage of either! I still store small amounts of freshly pumped milk in the tubes and keep extras in my pump bag in case I make more than a storage bottle can hold.

3. Extra parts. Getting a few complete sets of pump parts will help you immensely. The parts that came with the pump plus the parts from the hospital still weren't enough. Our sweet friends recently gifted us 2 extra sets of storage bottles and it has made all the difference! It means no more washing in the middle of the night. Always have 1-2 extra sets of storage bottles than you have flanges and keep a few extra valves on hand. One night I was in a total panic that my pump had stopped working. After some research it turns out the tiniest of tears in the rubber can make the whole thing useless.

4. Nutrition. I cannot stress it enough, drink drink drink! I was a terrible water drinker before so this one was hard. I went from maybe 1-2 bottles a day to 1.5-2gallons. I recently added up and on average I produce from 1.5-2 liters of milk per day. The more you drink, the more milk you'll make. Eating is another thing. It's already hard enough to eat with a new baby, I keep a banana, protein bar, and giant mason jar full of water on the end table so even during the middle of the night I'm getting enough food and water to keep making good milk.

5. Storage. Most moms I know store their freshly pumped milk in either bags or storage bottles. If you're exclusively pumping and not just supplementing, this becomes a lot of work. To save time I pump and pour straight into the feeding bottles. We typically have 5-6 full bottles ready to be warmed, front left is the oldest that needs eaten, back right is the newest that can last. It cuts time and saves you from yet another round of dishes. We use the Latch by Munchkin bottles, they're rated as one of the best to go between breast and bottle as well as prevent gas with their anti-colic valve. Harper loves them and even did well in her preemie crappy eating days. However I have had some issues with them leaking around the valves. I purposefully chose them because they had less parts than the Dr Brown bottles, but I think next time we'll go with a simple design like the Phillips Avent bottles. I may have chosen the blue because I want a boy next time. Ahem, Justin ;)

6. Schedule. Just as a baby would want to nurse every 2-3 hours, that's when you should be pumping. Initially I pumped on that schedule, then as she started to stretch longer through the night and I went back to work my 2-3 hours turned to 4, then sometimes as long as 6. Not only did I end up with a nasty case of mastitis, but my supply decreased drastically. After a week of dragging myself out of bed on the 3 hour mark and sticking to the 2-3 hour rule my supply went back to normal and put out an extra 16-20 oz a day!

7. Accessories. My new favorite thing, a pumping bra. At first I thought I could wing it. Much to Justin's terror, I walked into the bedroom in an old sports bra with holes cut out of the middle. At first my redneck pumping bra worked, but as soon as the bottles began to fill they fell off. Our awesome friends who gifted us the storage bottles also sent over the pumping bra. It is a life. Saver. It also gives me the ability to pop Harper in the boppy and feed her while I pump. Hello multitasking. Second, get a good drying rack. We use the Boon Lawn with the Twig and Stem accessories. I can fit 4 complete sets of parts on here at once! Lastly, get a car adapter for your pump. Too many times I've been running errands and hopped in the back of my SUV to feed Harper wishing I could pump my ticking time bombs. Now, I can! Note: I have tinted windows and hand a blanket over the front and back headrests. No peep shows here :)

As long as my "factory" as justin calls it keeps going, I would love to keep feeding her breast milk until the 6-9 month mark. I would be lying if I said it wouldn't be nice to go between nursing and pumping, but this is what our situation calls for. You can read every article and have everything planned out, but once your baby comes you ultimately have to do what is best for them and yourself. These tips for pumping exclusively won't work for everyone, but this is what works for us. Plus....Bonus! Justin gets the experience of feeding her that he wouldn't get otherwise. 

We may have put her in a cat bed instead of the boppy at our friends house this weekend. 

Until next time, 

That girl in the ugly green boots.

Harper Two Months

I can't believe it's been 2 months since our little Harpie joined the family. It has been the fastest, slowest, best, and worst 2 months of our lives. Now looking back, we see why everybody says the time passes in the blink of an eye.

Since she was born, Harper has been very clear about letting us know exactly how she feels and what she needs. The stereotypical laid back first kid? Nope. Not here. If she wants to eat, has a poop, or just wants your attention you'd better do it now. Wonder where she gets that from ;)

It seems as though there have been more changes between month 1 & 2 than there from birth to the first month. She loves to make silly faces, nap on our chests, and wiggle around. We recent had to ditch the swaddle me wrap at night because she has become an expert swaddle ninja, escaping random body parts for us to find hanging out in the morning.  As of her 2 month birthday she loves to watch tv, specifically winter sports like hockey and snowboarding (you win, Justin) and Sofia the first. She loves tummy time and hanging out on her play mat. She also loves to read her books and has started smiling at us when we talk to her.

 

 

 

| Moccasins | Love my mummy onesie | Floral leggings from Carter's | Green syrup onesie from the Vermont syrup shop |

We have had so much fun watching her begin to change into the little lady she'll be some day. On days I'm frustrated or tired it's important to step back and soak up these sweet baby days because they won't last forever.

"I wish there was a way to know you're in the good old days before you've actually left them".

Xoxo

The Culotta clan

Harper's Nursery

The time has come to FINALLY share pictures of Harper's nursery! I had initially planned on posting these back in August but went into labor the night I took the pictures. Typical Harper deciding how things were going to go. Shortly after finding out I was pregnant I'd started dreaming of our baby's room, specifically of a little blue and pink mermaid nursery & the tiny baby that would sleep in it......Ten months later we have that nursery and a not so tiny little girl :)

| Tassel garland | Crib | Crib skirt made by Nana (similar) | Letters |

Quilt handmade by nana

Coral pillow from target, similar here

Bookcase from target | pink storage bins |

Piggy bank that Harper's GeeMa had specially made for her

| Glass turquoise knobs | White seahorse knobs | White shelves | Pink changing pad cover | Wire basket | Clear glass jars | Dada book |

We also gave my old dresser a face lift with a touch up and some new knobs. The shelves were still unfinished when the pictures were taken, however I plan on using them as a changing space with different books and decorations for each season. We love holidays here :) Still to be added to the nursery is a picture wall behind the recliner with some mermaid inspired glitter prints. Harper's room is such a happy place, we can't wait until she's a little bit older and can actually spend the night in it!

Until next time, xoxo.

Harper's Birth Story

She is finally here! Harper Lynn Culotta joined the family on August 26th, 2015 at 11:15pm weighing in at 6 pounds 2 ounces and 18 inches long. Welcome to the world baby girl! We love you so much already.

Harper made it VERY clear through labor & delivery (and pregnancy) that she would do things her way. I was initially due the 24th of September which was changed to the 17th after an anatomy scan, then changed back to the 24th once we were in the hospital. Hello confusion. The night of August 24th I texted my best friend excited that some early labor signs were starting. I told myself if I could sleep through my timed "contractions" then they weren't real. Much to my dismay, I woke up the next morning after a full night's sleep. I spent that entire day food shopping and walking laps through the mall. Later that night I told Justin I was having the contractions again and kept telling him it might be time. After the disappointment the night before we decided not to tell anybody what was going on. Around 11 o'clock I headed to bed. 12 passed, then 1, 2, and before I knew it 4am had rolled around and the contractions clearly were not going to stop. Justin woke up for work at 6 and tried to show up for a little bit. After making it through a handful of more painful contractions, he made the decision to head home around 9. By that time we were 6-7 minutes apart. I called the Dr. on call who assured me that they were probably Braxton Hicks but that I could still come in to get checked. After all, I wasn't due for a month and first babies never come on time. Harpie thought differently.

After an hour and a half commute to the hospital (thanks, Penndot) we were finally in the ER. By the time we made it there contractions were 5 minutes and I was in a fair amount of pain, no longer able to talk through them. The first person to come in and check was a student on rounds. "Well..." she said, "You're 100% effaced and 6cm". 6cm! We were so excited. They sent in a second Dr. who immediately pooped on our parade and told us I was indeed, 100% effaced, but only 3cm. The Dr. who did the second check was not the OB on call through my office. The two met up and made the decision if I didn't progress within an hour I would be sent home. With preterm babies, I was 35 weeks 6 days, they won't induce, break water, or do a C-section unless it's an emergency. An hour later I was in the worst pain of my life crying like an idiot through each contraction which were only 2 minutes apart. The new nurse in triage saw the pain I was in, heard my husband's opinion loud and clear (thanks babe), and took it to the doctors responsible for the decision. Thank God she was convincing, they admitted me and moved us upstairs to labor and delivery.

Despite being admitted, we were still in a waiting period to see what the game plan would be. Our new, awesome, nurse hooked me up to IV pain meds which promptly made me profess my love to said nurse as she rolled me upstairs and I thumb uped everyone we passed. 2 bags of pain meds and a morphine shot to the behind later and nothing could touch the amount of pain I was in. Contractions had moved to 1 minute apart and my nurses convinced the new OB on call to administer an epidural and break my water. Within 2 hours I progressed from 3 to 6cm. And then a half hour later I called the nurses and told them "There's something down there and I need you to check again". They thought I was nuts. Sure enough I was at 10cm and she was right there. Who's crazy now, guys. 

At 10pm we practiced pushing as the Dr. and nurses suited up. The entire night we had joked that I had to get her out before midnight when it was officially the 27th and Justin's birthday. At 11:05 he looked at me and said "you have 55 minutes". 10 minutes later the Dr. told me to back off pushing for a minute and we heard the most perfect little cry. The nurse popped her on my chest and there it was, our new family. I was so in love with this new little person until I turned to my left to see my husband falling head over heels for the same tiny human. Only then was my love for her surpassed.

We spent that night and the next in the hospital then headed home Friday morning. At her 1 week appointment the following Tuesday morning they were concerned with how jaundice she was and sent us for blood work to check her bilirubin levels. At a family picnic that night we got the call that she'd need to stay at the hospital to get light therapy. While there are many worse things to deal with, we were absolutely crushed. We'd just gotten our family home and now we had to leave our safe place. We spent 2 nights there in a tiny, 80 degree room on pleather couches. We were only allowed to take her out from under the lights to change and feed her. Feedings moved to every 2 hours to help flush out the bilirubin. Despite the circumstances, Harper was a happy little girl.

We were so excited to get the news Thursday morning that we could finally go home! We packed our bags and pretty much ran to the car. Since then we've been enjoying our time as a family of 3, living on little sleep and lots of coffee. Turns out things like cooking dinner, showering, and blogging are next to impossible with a newborn. But that's okay, we think we'll keep her :)

Thank you to everyone for following us through pregnancy, for all of the gifts, and all of the love you've shown us! We are truly blessed to be surrounded by you all as we do this thing called life. Until next time....