Monday, August 29, 2011

Dexter is one!!

8.27.2010
12:17 am
I became a mom.
No matter how big he gets, what decisions he makes, where his life takes him, this is how I will always think of him. That sweet new life being given oxygen, me screaming from across the room "WHY ISN'T HE CRYING?!" and then after what seemed like an hour them placing him on my chest. Holding him in that moment I held everything that mattered. I no longer was asking for a nap, I no longer hurt, I no longer cared that I had been in labor for 4 days. All that mattered to me was him. 


This is our family one year ago. I thought I was so prepared. As it turns out preparing a nursery, a "go" bag and having the right car seat does not prepare you for having a baby.
I remember leaving the hospital thinking, really thats it? You are letting me leave with him? Who is going to take care of him? Who is going to make sure he is okay? I can't do this! You people must be crazy to let me go home with him! I think I took him to the doctor at least 4 times that first month. I was so scared I was doing it wrong. I held him every day all day for the first two months until I went back to work. Then before work all I would do was hold him. I loved how warm and squishy he was. I loved nursing him. I loved snuggling him in bed with me those first 6 months. I wish I had let him stay in our bed longer. There are still nights that all I want to do is cuddle him. 
I honestly can't believe a year has gone by. I have tried my hardest every day this year no matter how dificult or frustrating they have been to just enjoy it. To take every advantage of the moments that I have been given with him. When he cries to hold him. When he falls to give extra kisses. To rock him to sleep every night. For a year my only goal has been to spoil him as much as possible. To do everything those crabby moms tell you not to, and to listen to the ones with grown children who look at your baby so lovingly and longingly. I took the advice not of the nay sayers who told me "let him cry it out" "let him scream in his crib tell he falls asleep, you will get more sleep that way" "Don't hold him so much" "You know you can spoil a baby, he will want to be held all the time if you do that". Instead I chose to take the advice of the moms who smile when they see your baby, who you can see the love for babies in their eyes, the ones who tell you "It goes by way to fast, hold on to him". So that is just what I did. I held him. I have been holding him for a year. The night before he turned one I nursed him longer then normal, for me not him. I rocked him well past when he fell asleep. I hugged him tighter that I ever have. I didn't want to let go. I didn't want to put him in his crib and except that in the morning I would have a one year old. That my first year as being a mom was over. I had watched him take his first breaths, and now here I am watching him walk. Watching him talk and growing into this little man with such a big personality. I love him more and more every day. I hope I never forget all the things he has done this year. I hope that next year I can hold him just as much, if not more. That I never stop cherishing every moment I have with him. I know this year will be harder he will be into more things, and as he gets older he is going to try me more and more. I hope this year I can speak kindly when I want to yell, that I can play when I want to clean. I hope for the rest of my life I never forget how those first few moments of his life in my arms felt. His warm body on my chest. His little body needing me. I hope I never forget how it felt to snuggle him. Well before I start crying thinking about my little man, here are some pictures. I hope you enjoy.



























This year Dexter has learned how to roll over, sit up, giggle, smile, wink, whistle (yes at one point he could whistle he has stopped doing it now though!) crawl, walk, play with toys, hold things, and melt my heart! I wonder what next year has in store for us! 

A dog party.

So I have been planing for Dexter's birthday parties, for months.  It finally came, and passed! I think it went pretty well. No children were hurt and Dexter seemed so excited to have all his friends there! This year we did a puppy dog theme, because Dex seems so in love with them. He always wants to pet dogs, every time we see one he has to point it out and shout "puppy!" We were so lucky to have all our family come down from Atlanta to spend the day with us too.

This is the kitchen I made little party hats for all the kids. They were made out of scrapbook paper and felt ears. Brittany made the ears for me. She is to nice! The happy birthday banner is a cheap 1 dollar one that I covered in more scrap book paper so it had the dog theme as well. Those balloons I bought from party city deflated by the end of the party! total waste of money! 

The toy room, all cleaned up! no decorations in here really just more balloons! Dexter loves balloons so I went all out with them!
The cake I made for everyone else, it came out a lot better in my head ;O)

Dexters smash cake! 

Dog bone cookies and veggies and fruit

The hats I made.
The living room.

Opening present. This was by far his favorite thing!

He sat on it the rest of the day! 

Cake time! MMM!

Kilo trying to help him with his cake.

Bath time after cake.

More gifts.

After everyone left he still felt like he needed to entertain us.



Wednesday, August 24, 2011

With motherhood comes craftiness


And I don’t just mean the kind where I pure chicken and give it to dexter with his other food.
Lately I have been working hard on getting our office to look more like an in home “studio” for our diaper business. I was tired of being embarrassed by the junk and clutter in the office and always having to apologize. So one day I went to Wal-Mart found a nice shade of teal in the “oops” section and got to work! I also decided to paint a chandelier we had got with the house that was ugly as some of the messes that Dexter makes in his diapers. I have seen countless number of these chandeliers out by the curbs, now I wish I had picked them up! A fresh coat of paint really makes a difference!  Here are some pictures of the office after:

  



This is the Chandelier before and this is it after!





I also found the time to make over Dexters less than admirable bookcase. Here that is.


I just added some fabric behind the shelves by stapling it onto the backing. I think it really helped! I bet right about now you are asking yourself “how does she find time to do all this and keep her house clean?”  I guess that will have to be my secret and I will never post pictures of my house.. hehehe
So onto the important now that you have read how great and wonderful my crafting has been lately.
Dexter is a walker. Well almost, he gets going real good then falls and remembers he knows how to crawl a lot faster and does that. But he can stand up with out holding onto anything and he can turn around. He walks like a dinosaur, but it is a very cute dinosaur. A Dexterasaurs. He has also learned how to climb. This was what I was afraid of. He likes to climb on the shelves in the office (after he has thrown everything off first of course!) and the coffee table. He has not fallen of anything, well he fell of my bed the other day but it was like this slow motion fall and then he just cried because he was scared so it doesn’t count. I am so not ready for the bumps and bruises that come along with a toddler!
So here's a videos of our little walking man.
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This is what dad and Dexter do while mom fixes her hair:



He fit himself between the shelves on our coffee table.

Well we will see everyone soon!
Megan