The Jones Journal: Father's Day, Nursing updates, Mad's Walking and Mom Sewing....so many updates!

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

It has been a while since I’ve posted and that’s because so much has been going on!

We finally have the kitchen complete! YAY! It looks beautiful and we just love our new backsplash. My sister, Laura, came by one day to go shopping and when she saw our kitchen she said, “It looks like an Italian kitchen.” I told her that’s exactly what we were going for: a Tuscan or rustic look. I think we pulled it off.

Before

After. We haven't moved our things back into the kitchen, yet, in this picture, but you get the idea.

I have also been on the phone for hours on end working on getting a breast pump. I had one that I had been using since Maddie was born, a hand-me-down from my wonderful friend, Sandy, but it finally went caput. I was doing the same thing I had been doing but, although I could hear the motor running, I couldn’t get any milk to actually flow. I was afraid that I was drying up since I had been having problems with Maddie’s interest level for nursing starting to go down and I thought that I wasn’t producing as much milk as I had been before due to her resistance to drink. But, it turns out that it wasn’t a problem with my production, but a problem with my pump.

I called my insurance company and found out that they cover breast pumps at 100%. I was so excited! So, I called the doctor for a referral, but they wrote me a prescription. Then I called the pharmacy to find out about how to get the pump, but they told me they couldn’t do it. I called the insurance again to find out where to get the pump from, but they referred me back to the doctor. Then the doctor told me to call the insurance. Then the insurance told me to call the doctor again. The doctor sent me to Durable Medical Equipment Group. DME Group told me I wasn’t covered and to call my insurance. Insurance told me to call the Medical Group and FINALLY I got someone on the phone who knew what she was doing. She told me she’d straighten it all out, returned my call within 20 minutes and informed me that my pump was shipped and would be at my door in 2 days. YAY! But, wow. What a process.

So, I have my handy-dandy new pump: It’s a Medela Personal Advanced Double Breastpump, but looking at the ones at the stores, it seems like it might just be the Pump In Style but called something different in the insurance/medical world. It came with all of the accessories I could possibly need and even cooler packs for chilling the milk. WOW. Now, I am hooked back up and flowing again. Woohoo. Back to storing up milk for when I wean Maddie.

Maddie is almost 11 months old now, which means that I will be nursing her for a little more than a month. Then, I’ll start weaning her by cutting down one feeding every week and giving her sippy cups instead. I am trying to prepare myself for this emotionally, but I get choked up whenever I think about stopping. Breastfeeding has been such a rewarding experience for me and I know it is so beneficial to Mads, too, not just nutritionally, but for our bonding and closeness. It is a quiet time for us to snuggle up and just be together and I am going to miss it. But, the time has come. As I mentioned before, Maddie is starting to become less interested, so nursing has become difficult at times. She is very distracted and I think frustrated that the milk doesn’t come as easily as it does from the sippy cup, for example. So, I feel like the decision to stop soon is the right one.

Plus, Maddie is going to be walking around in no time! Watching her grow up and become more independent and mobile has made me realize that she’s not a tiny little infant, anymore, but she is becoming a little girl. It warms and breaks my heart at the same time. I am enjoying every moment of her development and I look forward to the next steps, but I miss the stages that she has so quickly grown out of. Everyone says it goes fast…. I say, it seems slow while you are in the moment, but it seems fast when you look back on the memories.

Hanging out at the park

Swinging with mom

But, back to the walking: Maddie took her first steps on my dad’s birthday, June 22! Oh, how exciting it was!!! She balanced herself against the couch and then walked towards me (2 steps) before toppling forward into my ready hands. Then she did it again! Another 2 steps! Now, she is walking unassisted behind her push-walker (well, with me trailing behind her to make sure she doesn’t fall, which she does after a few steps). And, she pulled herself up onto a box of diapers yesterday for the first time. She has been practicing pulling herself up on our legs, but she is so short that she can’t reach anything else. I realized that the diaper box was just the right height and, sure enough, she reached up, lifted onto her knees and then stepped up onto her two little feet. I am such a proud mama. Adrenaline, excitement and joy immediately filled my chest and I swooped her up and kissed her uncontrollably. She giggled. (I just love her so much).

So, as I mentioned, My sister, Laura, came over one day with Dylan, her son and Maddie’s cousin. We had lunch and a shopping day and tons of fun. Maddie and Dylan were so cute together. They would baby talk back and forth to each other like they knew what the other was saying. When Maddie was crying in her play pen, Dylan would walk over to her and Maddie would immediately stop, fascinated my her friend. Maddie really took to Laura and just loved to be held by her.

Maddie just loves Laura!

For father’s day, Phil and I woke early, as usual, and I gave him his gifts. I bought him a few items for the kitchen (a BIG mortar and pestle and a ravioli press), a gourmet popcorn kit and a new shirt. Nothing over the top, but he seemed to like his gifts. We went to church in the morning, Maddie dressed in her “I love Daddy” shirt and then over to my parent’s house for lunch. We celebrated Dad’s Day and my dad’s birthday. Rachel and Kaylee were able to stop by, too, which was really nice! It was so good to see them since we don’t get to very often.

The best daddy in the world!

Happy father's day! Two generations of great daddies!

My Dad being silly with his little granddaughter. XOXO to them both.

We are now preparing for a few upcoming events: vacation in a week and Maddie’s birthday in a little over a month. We are going up to Door County and wil be swimming at times, so I decided to see how Maddie would like water. I filled a wading pool with just a few inches and stepped into it with her. As soon as I sat with her in my lap, she began screaming! She had the same reaction when I took her to the splash pad for our play date with Jacob and his mommy, Vicky. Maddie wants nothing to do with water outside of her bathtub. Ha! Well, I am sure she will warm up to it over time.

I have taken up a new hobby! I got a sewing table off of Freecycle (score!) and have set up shop, patterns and all! I made a little dress, some bloomers and a little jacket. Sadly, the pattern’s sizes run big, so the dress is too big for Maddie to actually wear, yet, but she’ll grow into it and look adorable. I also made a pair of summer shorts for her yesterday, which was an adventure working with polyester (not easy to sew compared to cotton). But, they turned out cute!