A week ago today, my little guy (who is 7 weeks old) had his first colicky night. During the episode my husband and I kept feeding/diapering/consoling and passing him back and forth, trying hard to calm his screaming. At 11:25pm (it had been 4 hours!) during yet another diaper change (he was pooping up a storm during this) I decided to try Little Tummys Gripe Water - that was in my medicine cabinet because my husband picked it up just 3 weeks before - and go for a drive. We gave him the half teaspoon, and then loaded him into his carseat. Before we could buckle him in - he went quiet.

Of course I made sure he was breathing at first because I couldn’t believe that the screaming could stop so suddenly. His eyes were closed, his hands were by his side. He fell asleep from exhaustion. He was back to his old, cooing and sleeping self. We thought maybe it was the car seat, so we kept him in it for about 20 more minutes. Then we took him out and set him his bassinet next to me. He stayed asleep and was that way for 4 hours before he woke up to feed again - but this time without screaming!

I am not being paid for this endorsement.

Every night this week at 7:30pm when he starts to get fussy I break out the gripe water sans car seat and he settles right down. I think that if my husband hadn’t picked it up earlier we would have been in for a hard hard week! It’s definitely a miracle remedy. Just thought I would share.

A few days later, I decided to stay away from dairy. He had some tummy troubles before, be it not so severe, and I had some suspicions it was a dairy sensitivity. Turns out it was. He burps a lot easier now, doesn’t writhe in pain after a feeding, and overall he seems happier. I love dairy and drank a gallon of milk every day during my pregnancy, so this seemed like torture to me…until I discovered Silk. That stuff is good! My husband is a soy milk drinker and I always had the vanilla kind in my fridge - I used it for coffee sometimes, but not often - but I never really thought “Mmmm soy milk!”. My husband went out and grabbed me some plain flavored Silk - which I had never tried - and I have to say it is very very good. I have a cow milk sensitivity that drinking organic helped (the hormones in regular milk always messed me up womanly wise) but I think I will stick with soy - its a lot healthier.

And BTW - the chocolate is FANTASTIC. Velvety smooth. Mmm.

So that has been my week!

Oh, and one more thing: I heard from someone about a writing gig for About.com - more about that later when I get the deets! I am really excited.

When we moved to OR three years ago we were introduced to the wonderful world of fresh organic produce and fell in love. I also moved into organic dairy (my husband is lactose intolerant so he did not venture into this territory with me) and within a few months I started to notice a change in my body. I felt better. I just felt better! I wasn’t almost feeling sick all the time, my migraines calmed down and my periods (sorry I should have warned before starting this) became lighter, less painful, and regular. I was having problem conceiving and, after the cow hormones/antibiotics/pesticides left my body, I conceived Logan with a healthier body!

Ever since then, we have tried to buy organic when we could (even though, it’s really not a too pricey option these days) and it became natural to assume that if we wanted a product there would be an organic version or alternative. And in OR there always was. After two years of shopping this way, it was a great shock to move to MI and find that the selection was fewer, and harder to find.

So this year we joined a certified organic CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program to alleviate this problem. We signed up for a half share a week, and last week we received a great bounty of mixed salad greens, arugula, radishes (5 varieties!) and spotted lettuce. Tomorrow we pick up our second share, and we are really looking forward to it. It seems that there are a lot of CSA programs that have sprung up around MI in the last few years, and since your local grocer doesn’t carry a lot of the items these farmers grow, the investment is really a small price to pay for great, organic, and healthy food. Our half share was 300 dollars and the program runs from June to November, with member events laced in between such as pumpkin carving, cooking workshops and member work days for weeding and other chores to help the farm (all optional, but some CSA’s offer discounted shares for those willing to help on the farm a number of days a month/week).

Our CSA, Natures Pace Organics, also keeps us informed via electronic newsletter of how the crops are doing, what will be in our share, and a recipe or two of the featured item of the week (next week is Napa cabbage - YUM!).

I have a written report on CSA’s in general, and if you would like more info on Community Supported Agriculture, I would be very happy to share it with you. Just comment below and I will be in touch!

Hey! It’s blogging time again!

So this week I am coming to you from my new 17 inch macbook pro. *Sigh* I really do have a problem. Seems that I buy a new computer every 6 months. But this one is to accommodate baby L - I can be mobile mommy now, and use this for school, design, and writing. I probably won’t buy another one for a long time. Atleast, that is what I am saying now. Who knows what the heck I will do in another 6 months.

Usually when I buy a new computer, I Ebay the old one (thus paying for the new computer) but this time around I am using my extra student loan funds and my husband took over the iMac I bought last year. He’s a web developer and has his own iMac, but he took on my machine and installed Windows 7 on it! Its pretty neat. He even has Synergy working on it so that he can use only one keyboard and mouse with the two machines. I am sure he will do a post about it on his blog: Ingusmat.com, and explain it better. He’s really excited, and it will improve his productivity - even though he works 12-16 hours a day already. Being a web person too, I am pretty impressed. I will probably use the machine from time to time to test too.

The last computer I sold was my black 13 inch macbook to pay for moving expenses when we bought our house last October. So in essence, I have always had a desktop and a laptop. This laptop is considered a desktop replacement, yet is still light enough to take with me…so it’s a great Mac for me now.

How many apples have I had in my lifetime you ask? This is my 5th. It all started with a 800mhz dome iMac that came out after the little fruity iMacs back in 2001, also used for school (I have an associates degree) and after for work! I then got a Titanium Powerbook in 2003 for graduation, in which the hinges broke in 2005, my sister has that machine now. After that I was using a PC for a while (frustrating!), sold the dome iMac and in 2007 I bought the black Macbook for traveling between OR and MI. Since I loved my macbook, and using a mac again period, I bought the 20 inch iMac in 2008 when we moved back to MI for freelance/school endeavors. I had been using that ever since Feb 08, then when I had little L, I needed something more mobile and voila! My current machine! I wonder if anyone else has a cool Mac history (or a cooler one that mine I guess, heh).

Anyway, I really like this machine so far. I have only had it for a day, though, so I am sure I will nitpick it later. I am writing a review on it for another site, so I will direct you all to that when it’s published. I am also doing an article about switching from PC to Mac….more about the writing stuff later (I am really excited about the project though!)

Let’s see, what else did I want to pop on here and say?

Oh yes breastfeeding.

I may have mentioned before that I am exclusively breastfeeding baby L - And I have been for almost 7 weeks now. And even though it was tough in the beginning, I am really getting ahold of it now. The baby has a perfect schedule going, the soreness is gone, and I’m not leaking tons anymore. The only downer - the pumping. My GAWD, I hate the pumping. I hate it so much that I don’t even do it anymore, but that makes leaving him with anyone else for a little while to get a little me time in impossible. In the beginning, I had a bit stored in the freezer for such reasons, but I was constantly pumping! You begin to start feeling like a cow after while when you do that. And he is eating much more now, so finding the time to pump when he hasn’t just fed, or is going to be hungry soon is impossible. He goes 2-3 hours between feedings right now. Some days every hour!

I am wondering if I should just let go, and let him have formula when he has a babysitter (*cough* grandparents *cough*) It wouldn’t be a total wash, he would still be exclusively BFing when he is with me…which is all the time…and only have formula maybe once a month… Does anyone else do this?

Still, giving my baby something from a cow is really unappealing to me.

But a good night’s sleep would feel fantastic right now!

Or maybe I should try pumping again and stop being a weeny about it. Ha!

… This is my world folks …  But I still love it!

I thought I would do a post about how I am feeling, and stay away from the baby talk for a bit (even though, there will be a bit in here!).

I am having my 6 week checkup on Thursday and am hoping to get the go ahead to start exercising. Since I have started breastfeeding, I lost 20 pounds what seemed like immediatley. Not only am I below my pre pregnancy weight, I am about 10 pounds lighter than I have been for the last 3 years. It feels fantastic to have a waist again, all my clothes fit well, and I have more energy than I have had for a long time. So I am going to try and lose some more, eat better and get fit now that I am a mama. I want to be around a long long time and watch this little guy grow up and have grandbabies!

I am thinking about getting EA’s Sports Active game for my Wii to help with this. I already have Wii Fit ( though I recieved it as a gift when I was 3 months pregnant and couldn’t really vigorously get into it) so I have the balance board already. I need to do more research on it though. The price is right!

I am also going to take advantage of my free membership at UofM for being a student. We have a great facility there, with an olympic size pool, and I am going to be there 4 days a week anyway so I might as well get an hour in here and there. It will be good ‘me’ time too.

And I want to get a bike. Not just any bike, though. I have always loved the Trek Lime, and since my coordination is a bit off (I am surprised I can walk or drive straight), I think the simpleness of it fits me. But the price may be a little high…so I think that will be a birthday present.

I am thinking by 30 I will be at my desired weight. Which is good because I will be graduating that year too - It will be a great year! They say to be a great mom you have to take care of yourself, and I want to make sure I do that. I can too easily fall victim to being a SAHM couch potato, I know myself, so hopefully I can push through it. Not hopefully, I will! I will!

We are also participating in a CSA this year, so we will have veggies thrust upon us each week - that will help with the healthy eating. I don’t diet, I just need to exercise more and eat less fast food.

Well! I need to go change a diaper - Logan woke up from his nap! Talk atchya later!

Logan is now a month old! I still cannot believe that I am apart of the mommy brigade now. It’s such a joy. We have really gotten to know each other, and Logan trusts me with his whole heart now. That makes me feel awesome. I never knew that I would love being a mother…now I can’t imagine being anywhere else. Life is good.

Over the past month Logan has learned and started to do many different things. He smiles a lot now, not just when he is hungry and sees me taking off my shirt - LOL. He is getting very good at keeping his head up just long enough to look around, and tracks our movements with his eyes. He’s such a great kid, he never cries for long (only when he is hungry or needs a diaper change) and even though his sleeping pattern isn’t quite long enough for our taste (ha!) he really does sleep well! He only wakes up a few times during the night.

Matt and I have also learned a few things. Matt knows its his job to change diapers at night since I have to stay awake and feed him, and makes time for “Logi breaks” during the day. Since he works from home, having him here when I need to take a shower, or just when I need a break, is something I have been very grateful for! We have had our days alone together, when Matt is at his meetings across the state, though, which I love just as much!

I have also learned to slow down and be available for Logan whenever he needs anything! I spend most of my day feeding and cuddling with him, making sure to savor each moment of his babyhood because it will all be gone someday.

Nanny and Grandpa (My parents) have spent a lot of time with him, too. Every day they have off together, I can expect them to visit. They even watched him for an afternoon so Matt and I could catch a movie, which was really sweet. We came to pick him back up after, and there he was, in new jammies. My parents like to strip babies down and put them in jammies when they are at their house - he already has a closet full over at there.

Breastfeeding is going well too. He is still a champ at it and even though he gets a bottle of pumped milk every once in a while, he still prefers me. I am still making tons of extra milk to pump and it’s been quite an experience - from being sore all the time, to leaking when he is sleeping, having a growth spurt and not feeding as often - I have learned how to be the food source. It’s a strange feeling sometimes, but I love the bond I have with him because of it. I wouldn’t stop for a million dollars.

He had his first month appointment on Friday and even though I forgot his diaperbag and he decided to have his first leaky diaper at the office, it went well. He has gained 2 pounds in the last month - he is 8.5 now. He is in the 20th percentile for weight, and the 50th for length. Still a little peanut, but doc says all is normal and he can continue to breastfeed without supplementation.

It’s been quite a month, and hopefully I will be able to blog more since I have found out how and when to be on the computer while meeting all of Logan’s needs.

As always you can follow me on Twitter for more timely updates: http://www.Twitter.com/meganburleson

Later!

Wow! It has been quite a month!

Well, on May 5th (Cinco DeMayo) Logan Timothy was born! He was 7 pounds 0 oz, and 19.5 inches long. After only 6 hours of labor, he was born at 12:22 pm. During the labor, my hypnosis kicked in - and even though I could feel pain and still opted for the epidural so I could rest a bit, I never lost control - and had a wonderful joyful experience. My pain management was mainly breathing (they gave me  small dose of the epidural, so by the time I was 9cm and waiting for 10 it was gone!) and talking myself through it. I also couldn’t have done it without my wonderful nurses, and my supportive husband.

I wrote Logan’s birth story after so I didn’t forget a thing. If you would like to read it, I have it in .doc format and can send it to you if you would like leave a comment.

Logan is a wonderful baby, very calm and very observant. He’s so very happy to be here too, and is already giving us lots of smiles! We couldn’t have asked for a better baby. He sleeps really well at night too, last night he slept for 6 hours straight before waking us up for a diaper change and a feeding! Then, he slept for 4. 10 hours of sleep for new parents! Wow! Even though, the first night with him wasn’t horrible either, we have been sleeping pretty well for the last 10 days. Every 2-3 hours isn’t bad at all!

He also already has his own Flickr album! He looks more and more like daddy everyday - he definitely has his daddies eyes. He’s a cute little cutie!

We are loving parenthood right now, and getting into the groove with things. Tomorrow, I will be trying to take some newborn photos of him - We bought a new Nikon D60 and I want to push it and see what it can do (most of the Flickr set was taken on auto). I also have a ton of energy, and am really happy to not be pregnant anymore! It’s so nice to be able to get up out of bed easily now! And being a mommy is so rewarding. I can’t wait until he isn’t just a bump on a log! But I will, because I don’t want him to grow up too fast!!

So far Logan likes: Boobies, kisses, sleeping on daddy, smiling at mommy, and when Matt and I sing/talk to him. And he likes his kissaluvs contour diapers and thirsties covers! We also use prefolds, but he really likes the kissaluvs better. Cloth diapering is awesome. I really recommend it, especially during this economy, when saving money on diapers can go a long way! You do laundry anyway when you have a baby, might as well wash diapers too!

I am going to try and blog more this year, and document as much as I can since I will be a SAHM this year. Logan is 10 days old as of this writing. And we are so so so blessed to have him in our lives.

How wonderful life is, now you’re in the world.

I had my 36 week appointment today and I am already dilating! Exciting. My doc and my mom think I will be going into labor within the next couple of weeks… I am going to wait one more week before I start drinking red raspberry leaf tea - which helped me get pregnant, and also helps your uterus tone for strong more effective contractions!

I have also been brushing up on my hypnobabies hypnosis…the only thing is is I am having a hard time creating a safe place vision… I picture a beach. But I dont know why… I think it’s just a default from meditating most of my life. But there is nothing meaningful behind it. Perhaps I should find a picture to look at instead of leaving it up to my own devices.

Not much happening on the design front. I have pretty much gone on hiatus from my projects, and just relaxing until the baby comes. I have worked a little on a new blog design for this blog, but it’s not really ready. I love that I can read php now though, and play with wordpress alot more! It’s really interesting.

I made a twitter bg for my twitter page, and that was fun! You can see it at: http://www.twitter.com/meganburleson — It took me a bit to get the sizing right. I haven’t looked at it on anything smaller than a 1024/768 screen though. Accept my new netbook - but noones twitter bg looks right on those yet.

We bought one of those Acer Aspires - and I really like it. It’s a simple machine, not a mac , but I still like it. And my husband uses it alot for work. Testing websites on it instead of having to switch back and forth to windows on his iMac. It will be nice for travel, and for being mobile mommy! I don’t think I will probably touch my computer for 6 months after the baby is born… but we will find a rythm. Then back to work for me. Which is okay because we both work from home!

I plan on focusing alot on mommyhood, and design part time for the first year. I do have funds in place to go back to school if I so wish, but me and my husband have an understanding that being a mommy will be my first priority.

Ha! if you would have told me I would write that sentence a year ago — I would said heck no! But, when there is a little one on the way, you take stock of what is really important…

So I had my 34 week appointment on Thursday and found out that I have high blood pressure. He wasn’t really too alarmed about it, until I told him about the headaches I had been having all week. I have been ordered to take it easy, and come back Monday and Thursday of next week to get checked. It’s really scary, because I have had a pretty much picture perfect pregnancy so far, and I am a little scared about this turning into hypertension. But, Matt has been taking care of me, and making sure I have my feet up and am relaxed. So maybe it was just a fluke.

Just wanted to update on that. Other than that we are having a pretty good weekend.

I did get out of the house yesterday with Matt and did some baby shopping/nerd shopping/fun shopping. It had been a while since we just threw caution into the wind and spent money. It felt good. But we won’t get used to it again. We used to shop constantly in Portland, but I think it was because we were making a lot more money there, and I was always needing retail therapy from missing everyone so much. Now I have this baby to buy for, and it is sooo much fun.

Okay, I should get back in bed. Yay. If the doctor puts me on bedrest, you better believe I am getting netbook.

So I haven’t been blogging much on here because I have been addicted to Twitter. I have changed my username on there to: MeganBurleson so add me if you like!

Let’s see what has gone on since the end of last year? A WHOLE HECK OF ALOT! I am now 34 weeks pregnant, and yeah, not feeling so small anymore:

Logan is a big big boy! We can’t wait to meet him!

We had our baby shower this past weekend, and finished all the classes, so we are ready I think. Ready for the next chapter! Chapter 5: Parenthood!

I had my 28th birthday also, and spent it in Megan style: With my feet up on the recliner, eating Outback Steakhouse take out, and watching HBO/Showtime series on TV. It was honestly really great, because I didn’t have the energy for anything else! Also, my husband was so gracious to get me the CS4 suite, and that has made me a lot more creative lately.

Well, up to about the last two weeks I was really creative, now, not so much. But I think I am getting my energy back a little bit. Which is spent on “nesting”. We got Logan’s room all ready, and pulled up the nasty carpet in the front room. Slowly but surely this big new house is turning into ours…it’s amazing how a coat of paint can make it feel like home!

Speaking of creativity, it has been mostly spent on web design. I am doing our cousin Katie’s photography site and having a lot of fun with it. It is boosting my confidence that yes, maybe I could freelance and be okay! But I have to get the mommy routine down first. Matt works from home, and supports us that way pretty well, so he and I decided that me taking some time off to be mommy for a couple of years is pretty okay! But I think I will want to go back to work eventually. And if I can start my own business, hey, even better! It’s not like I haven’t done it before!

Can you follow all that? Jeesh, they really aren’t kidding when it comes to preggo brain. I ramble constantly and rarely make any sense.

I’ll make sure and update more.

…even though this blog is still a little empty.

Anyway — Hello! So Christmas was great. It was definitley better than last year, which was spent 3000 miles away with only a webcam - bleah! I think last Christmas was the point at which I started thinking about moving back home. And I am glad we did. It was so nice to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with our families.

Christmas Eve was spent with Matt’s family, and it was a lovely time. It always is. I love sitting around the table snacking, and talking to everyone. I am really lucky to have such great inlaws. They remind me alot of my family in the sense that we are all really close. And you don’t have to be someone else around them. It was great.

Then Christmas day was at my sisters house, where there was a smorgous board of delicious food and a 2 year old still opening her santa gifts. I left her house full and happy. I don’t know if it was the hormones, or what, but I was just full of warmth for days after seeing everyone and having two great Christmas’s.

Everyone loved the gifts we got them, and we even got somethings for Logan(!) which was suprise. He has clothes now! And some toys…I can’t wait for him to see them all.

Tomorrow we are spending New Years Eve with my sister and her husband Joe. We all decided we weren’t really into big parties this year ( I just don’t have the energy ) and so we will be going out to dinner and then back to our house for desert and video games! Sounds like a good night.

Talk to you soon!