Letters from Riesling

Hello Friends & Family,

I guess my mom finally let the cat out of the bag, I'm going to be a big sister!  Doesn't that sound so exciting?  I'm not exactly sure what it means but everyone gets so happy and cheery when they talk about that I figure it must be something fun.  They keep talking about a baby in Mommy's belly. Apparently she swallowed in on accident. I don't really know what a kind of baby it is, but I'm really hoping for a Baa Baa.  Baa Baa's are my favorite!!  We went to a petting zoo and the fair this month and I loved them the most.  I think the duckies were a close second.  I am having such a fun summer.

Love always, 

Riesling

Our Florida Adventure. Events & Activities

Yes, our vacation was 2 months ago.  I have so many posts started and just never take the time to sit down and finish them and soon enough the content is outdated and the thought/memory/idea behind it lost.  I promised to wrap up this Florida trip so let's just get this done and over with.  To refresh your memory: Florida Preview & Travels with Baby.

(edit 11/30/12.  Jim pointed out that I reused a few pictures from my previous post so I switched a few out for new ones.  I know everyone needs as many pictures of cutie pie as possible!)

BEACH, SUN & SWIMMING
When choosing a place to stay I made sure to pick a condo that had easy beach access within walking distance and a pool close by.  I wasn't sure how Riesling would react to the ocean, but I knew she loved the pool.  It ended up working out perfectly.

We tried to do our beach time early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid the intense sun.  It was a quick walk across the street to the beach so easy enough to just carry Riesling and a tote bag with towels, sunscreen, a few sand buckets and small bottled water and no big deal to trek back if we forgot something.  She was a huge fan of the ocean and the sand so no problems enjoying some family time.  The biggest issue was trying to get her to wear a sunhat.  It's a pain to get lotion all over her head & ears.  I used California Baby on her exposed arms, legs, most of her head and neck then tried one of those sunscreen sticks for her ears, cheeks, and smaller areas.  It seemed to work well.  She did get a little bit of a tan but no burn. (Sun is good for you it's the sunburn that's bad!)

We tried to stay at the beach as long as she would tolerate it.  Usually it was a nap that sent us back to the condo.  A sandy baby does cause some inconvenience for naptime, we just tried to just towel her off best we could and put her down in just a diaper for a short nap (she takes much longer and less frequent naps now but she was a morning catnapper back in September).  After morning nap we would try to hit up the pool to play for awhile and rinse off.  This required swimwear and sunscreen reapplication.  Nothing is fast with a baby around.

Thanks to a summer of swimming at home she was prepared for the pool and loved every minute.  When she needed a break Jim and I took turns sitting under an umbrella with her. After pool time she typically went down for a really long afternoon nap.  Jim and I took turns laying in bed with her (since we had no crib) and showering, making a run for ice coffee, and getting ready for our evening activities.

DINING OUT
I think this really depends on your baby.  Aside from the rehearsal dinner and wedding we managed to have dinner out twice.  We made a trip to the grocery store the first day and bought food for breakfast and lunch and decided to just see what happened as far as dinner.  The first night was not great but partly because of bad planning on our part.  It was later  in the evening, we tried to do a full dinner with drinks, appetizers, etc and by the end of it Riesling was fussy and miserable wanting to nurse and go to bed.  I ended up heading to the car and left Jim to pack up the rest of our dinners and pay the check.  The last night we were there we were smart enough to head out early and things went fine.  Babies at restaurants are not relaxing, even when on there best behavior. 

BOATING
The brides family was offering boat rides and tours of the area throughout the weekend.  Jim and I were big weenies and insisted on a life jacket for Riesling.  We were really polite about it and simply offered to take turns on the boat and staying on land with the baby but simply would not budge on letting her one the boat without one.  They ended up finding one at a second hand sporting store for under $15 so she did get to enjoy her first boating experience.   There was a moment during the low speed pontoon boat expedition that I felt a little silly making a fuss (especially since there was a 2 year old running around the boat with no life jacket on!) but I'm still happy with our decision.  Who knows what could happen.  She didn't seem to mind it anyways and ended up using it as a pillow for naptime.

REQUIRED  EVENTS

This was a big part of the trip since we were there for Jim's brothers wedding.  In addition to the wedding there was the rehearsal dinner and a day after brunch.  I tried my best to be conscience of her schedule and anticipate her needs before she had any breakdowns.  I also tried to limit the time she spent at any of the required events by driving separately from the larger group or leaving Jim behind to catch a ride with one of the guys so her and I could head back early for bedtime.  Of course I brought along extra toys to keep her occupied.

THE MAIN EVENT

Riesling was the cutest little flower girl ever!  I thought she would definitely cry and never make it down the aisle but she did great.  One of the bridesmaids carried her down with her and she looked adorable.  I didn't get any good pictures because I was too busy on standby in case she freaked out.  

She tolerated pictures for a little while but was due to a late start in the ceremony she was getting hungry and started to get fussy.  I haven't seen the photographers pictures yet but hope they got a few good ones of her all dressed up and innocent.

 Jim, Tim (the groom), and Miss Riesling

 Grandma & Grandpa

After pictures I found a quite place to nurse her and changed her into a comfortable sundress for the rest of the night.  She was a real trooper and lasted through most of the reception.  After dinner and the formal parts of the reception were through, I found a quite area of the beach and nursed her to sleep for a half hour or so but it was short lived....just too much action.  After some photobooth fun and a few turns on the dance floor we called it a night and made our way back to the condo. 

All in all a wonderful vacation!

Our Florida Adventure. Traveling with Baby.

I've been working on this long winded post for a month now.  I know it's outdated but I thought it might be useful to someone, even if that person is future me as reference.  

I was such a nervous wreck about flying and traveling with Riesling.  If it hadn't been for the obligation of Jim's brother's wedding there is no way in hell that I would have planned a Florida vacation with my 7 month old.  I had pretty much thought up every worst case scenario and tried to be prepared for it.  In the end everything was amazing and I wasted a lot of high cortisol levels for nothing.  But I guess it's best to be prepared....

I Love Florida!

FLYING
After some internal debate about cost, I decided to go with SouthWest airlines.  You can check 2 bags per person for free,  which is a huge bonus these days with the luggage costs most airlines charge.  They also allow you to change your flight date/time without any fees or penalties.  I thought worst case scenario if Riesling was sick and couldn't make the trip at least Jim could go and I could save my ticket for another time. The prices ended up dropping significantly so overall cost really didn't end up being much of a factor. 

Children under two years old are able to fly on your lap free of charge, but make sure you bring their birth certificate to verify the age.  They definitely ask.  You can also check a stroller and a car seat free of charge with your luggage or at the gate.  We brought our extra hand-me- down stroller and pushed it through the airport.   I was worried about checking the car seat with the luggage because they seem to toss stuff around without much thought, so on the flight there we checked it at the gate.  It was a bit annoying carrying it through security and dragging it around until we boarded, so we decided to check it with the luggage on the return flight.  It survived but my guess is the did not handle it with any extra care.  You can also rent a car seat from any of the rental car companies, but it costs extra and who knows how often or well they are cleaned.

As carrying on items I brought along her diaper bag, the GoPod, our Ergo, and a medium tote bag stuffed full of crap.  I definitely brought along a lot of stuff that we didn't use but who the heck knows what can happen once you're in the airport.  I had a few changes of clothes (including layers...it was very chilly in the airport!), extra blankets & burp cloths, plenty of diapers & toys.  There was enough room for the Ergo (when Riesling wasn't in it) and a small cooler bag in the tote bag so it wasn't like we had to carry a lot of items through the airport. In the cooler bag I put her breakfast, an empty sippy cup, a bib, several spoons, and a bottle with breast milk.  I did not expect her to take the bottle when she could just nurse on demand but I thought it would be nice to have 'just in case'.  I asked that the cooler bag not be put through the X-ray machine, so they hand checked it and swabbed it for gun powder or whatever they are looking for, with no problem.  Everyone at security was very nice and helpful.  They even have a separate family line so you can get through faster.  SCORE!

**CLAP CLAP**

Happy baby waiting for our morning flight

I tried to time it so that Riesling could nurse on the take off and hopefully again on the landing.   I had been told that some babies/kids have issues because their ears won't "pop" with the change in altitude and that the sucking helps.  She did nurse on the flight both times but really only because she was hungry.  She had no problem flying.  Not a single tear, whine, or whimper.  The worse thing that happened was when she reached over the seat and grab some guys newspaper.  He was nice about it so no harm done.  The hardest thing was keeping her occupied.   She did really great, but I will say that I'm glad it was a really long flight.

PACKING
I hate packing!  I have a tendency to over pack even when we're just going to Ohio or camping for a long weekend.  I have lists and piles of stuff everywhere for at least a week before the trip.  Then I have to try and streamline it down, sort through the mess, and combine all my crazy lists.  I really am my own worst enemy in this category.  I have been trying to improve and with a little extra preparation I think I did pretty well this round. We had a 3 suitcases (one per person) and a garment bag for the wedding attire.  I tried to divide things up a little bit thinking that if one suitcase got lost at least one person wouldn't be without all his/her stuff.  For  Jim and I it was your normal vacation packing.  We ended up wearing/using pretty much everything so I think I consider it a packing success.  I did bring along a pair of long pants and sweatshirt for each of us, which we never ended up wearing because the weather was so nice while we were there.

I pretty much packed every piece of clothing that fit Riesling at the time.  She grows so fast that I try not to overbuy in one size.  She had about 10 onesies, a few pair of shorts, 3-4 dresses, 5-6 pair of PJs, 2 swimsuits & a sunhat, plus some long sleeves and pants which she also never wore.  I brought 3-4 lighter weight muslin blankets, all the burp cloths we own, and plenty of toys.  I recommend bringing along toys that can be washed or wiped off.  We were in all kinds of weird places throughout the trip and everything always gets dropped or thrown, so it turned out to be a wise decision.

I wasn't sure if we would make it through the trip without doing a load or two of laundry so I brought along a few scoops of powder detergent I use.  I also had a few dishwasher tabs in case there were none in the condo (I wanted to avoid buying a whole new bottle), a bottle brush and free & clear dish washing detergent that I use on Riesling stuff (and ours for that matter).  For feeding I packed a few extra spoons and an extra bib & sippy cup, in addition to the one in the carry on. (See EATING for further details)

For a moment I had the insane idea to bring along the cloth diapers and deal with washing them in the coin operated laundry at the development.  Thank god I came to my senses.  I love our cloth diapers but did enjoy having a little break and being able to toss them away with no extra thought.  I bought 2 packs of chlorine free EarthBest's diapers on sale before we left, brought plenty in the diaper bag & carry on and packed the rest. I also brought a pack of swim diapers.  And don't forget the sunscreen!  Our condo provided beach towels, bath towels, and linens so no worries there.  I threw in a small tote bag and an old flat top sheet to use at the beach.   I am hating packing even more than before just writing all this down!

Just remember whatever you bring you have to load/unload at the airport, while carting your baby around.  Which bring us to....

TRANSPORTATION
We used a valet service in Philadelphia that drops you off and picks you up in your own car.  This avoided any shuttles, car seat installation or extra loading/unloading of luggage. It was slightly more expensive but well worth it.  I got some good deals on other areas of the trip so I didn't mind splurging a little.  They dropped us off right at curb side check in and helped us unload and the same when we arrived back in Phila. We brought our extra car seat base so we didn't even have to worry about removing one at the airport.

In Florida we rented a car from Avis.  The biggest hassle was dragging our stuff from baggage claim to the car rental area.  It wasn't far but you only have so many hand.  Jim looked like a pack mule.  We thankfully had no issue with the rental car or any part of the experience surrounding it.

 Da Da and Riesling at the beach 

EATING
The great thing about nursing a baby is you can do it anywhere.  I breastfed Riesling at the airport, on the plane, at the beach, poolside, at the country club, at the wedding (which was on the beach), and pretty much anywhere in between.  It can be a little difficult at her age because she is easily distracted but if she's hungry enough she will eat regardless of what's going on around her.  I find the most important thing is making sure I wear something that is comfortable and makes for easy access.  I don't use a cover up or blanket so I usually just have a burp cloth on hand to put over the top of my breast if it's exposed and quickly pull it down if she unlatches.  The only trouble I had was at the actual wedding.  She was extra hungry after patiently waiting around to be in some of the pictures and started violently pulling at my dress which ended up ripping the seam.  Jim said no one would complain about a little extra cleavage.

At this point she was also eating a solids twice a day.  Because of my incessant concern over food allergies, I didn't introduce any new foods for several days before the trip or during.  I bought a little stock of EarthBest's pouches in pear and banana and that was it.  Normal for restaurant or out of home outings that involve food I use a portable high chair with a tray but it was too bulky to bring along.  Of course most restaurants have high chairs but some of them are a little too big for my squirming baby, plus I wanted something to use in the condo.  So I bought a collapsable one that hooks to the table and packed it in pieces. This turned out to be a waste of space because we never used it.  Our condo had a glass top table and it didn't hook on securely so we just fed her in the stroller and used whatever was available at the restaurants.  

At the Country Club for the rehearsal dinner 

Where we nursed in the ladies room (quite lovely)

SLEEPING
This area seemed like it could be a challenge for some families.  I think the best option for most is to rent a crib.  I guess you could bring a pack n play but that just one more thing to carry around and risk getting damaged on a flight.  We are Ok with co-sleeping so I just planned on Riesling being in our bed and didn't give it much thought beyond that.  The only issue was during her naps one of us had to stay in the bedroom to make sure she didn't wake up and crawl off the side.  There was a TV in the room so one of us either napped with her, read or watched TV.

 Early Morning wake up call

Part II coming soon.....

Florida preview

We survived our first big family vacation to the beach!  We had to make a trip to Florida for Jim's brother's wedding, so we decided to extend our stay and make a little vacation out of it.  I was really nervous about the whole thing:  flying with a baby dealing with a place that didn't have all the amenities of home, a wedding, the ocean....it just seemed like a lot could go wrong! 

Riesling actually seemed to love every minute.  She loved the ocean and the sand, took nice long naps, and even made it down the aisle in her flower girl dress.   I'm hoping to posts some more details about ours travels and the wedding this weekend but for now a few pictures of Riesling discovering and enjoying sand for the first time...

 

Big Girl!

Riesling has taken some major leaps and bounds in the past week (I have been trying to finish writing this for about 5 days now so I'm really referring to last week).  Labor Day weekend we were in Ohio visiting family, playing with cousins, taking family photos, watching the big kids ride 4-wheelers (a video hopefully later this week), and meeting Granny Granny Stidd. Riesling was being her usually cutie pie self but nothing out of the ordinary.  If anything the larger groups of people had her a bit on the shy and reserved side.

 

 Papa & his ladies

After a nice long car ride, we arrived back home mid afternoon on Monday.   Within a matter of hours Riesling decided she wanted to start sitting up.  She has been able to sit with assistance for some time now, but only if you put her in that position she was super wobbly and never stayed there long.  Monday evening I walked into her nursery and she was sitting there in her crib with teddy bear in hand and the BIGGEST grin on her face.  I think it was definitely a very proud and exciting moment for Miss Riesling.

I decided it was time to put the bumpers on her crib because she was moving around so much and bumped her head a few times.  She was also starting to pull up on the railing so I thought that might distract her from it.  Wrong...

 

Apparently all she needed was a few spoonfuls of banana because by the end of the week she was pulling herself up to standing in her crib, with the help of her bumpers!   Jim lowered the mattress all the way down, which oddly I kind of felt bad about.  I watched her each day try to solve another piece of the puzzle, figuring out how to coordinate her movements and put those little muscles to work in the correct sequence, her little mind exploding with the idea of depth perception.  She went through all that work to figure out how to pull herself up and was so proud and then we take it away from her in an instant.   How confusing!  Of course no one, especially me, wanted to see her little head topple over the edge so safety trumped exploration.

In the end I don't think it had much of an effect.  She's climbing and exploring more than ever, which explains why it took me almost a week to finish this post. 

First Foods

A little follow up to starting "solid" foods with Riesling for any interested readers....

• I either nurse her or the babysitter gives her a bottle first, then she is offered food.  At first she was taking a few sloppy spoonfuls or even snubbing her nose at the bananas all together.  But, not to worry because it's not about getting her belly full or providing essential nourishment at this point, that's what the "liquid gold" is for.   
• I finally purchased some appropriate baby feeding supplies.  I bought a few different types of spoons (option 1, option 2),  some small storage containers, plus some plastic bowls (which I don't think I'll use for a few months but they were on sale).
• I also started forcing her to keep a bib on.  Apparently banana stains?  I got a few of these as gifts and they seem to be working well and easy to wipe clean.
• I've been using our Magic Bullet which is working for us at this point since I'm making such small portions. I will probably switch over to the food processor when I start steaming veggies and cooking stuff so I can make larger patches and freeze some.  I also stopped mixing in breast milk with the bananas and she seems to prefer it. 
• A lot of folks follow the 4 day wait rule, which means you offer one new food at a time and wait 4 days before introducing another.  Our pediatrician said we could extend the period to 5-6 days since I was concerned about food allergies.  I waited 5, which means we started avocados this morning and she LOVED it!  I offered her just banana first which she tolerated but with little enthusiasm.  Then I mixed in the avocado and she went crazy.  It was pretty darn cute.
• I also started her on a probiotic.  I purchase it from my acupuncturist but I'm sure you can find one at your local health food store.

Nanas!!!

I can't believe my little monkey is old enough to be trying foods!  I know some parents start their babes a little earlier, but we were in no hurry.  I knew from the start that I wanted to do a full six months of exclusive breast feeding. I view breast milk as a superfood for babies and found a lot of comfort in knowing that Riesling was getting the exact nourishment she needed plus for us it's convenient, travels well, and is not messy.  I was also a little concerned about food allergies and sensitivities since I have several myself.  Her six month birthday was two weeks ago but we had a couple of hectic weeks ending with traveling to Ohio, so I decided to wait until we got back from our little trip. 

I did a little research, mainly here and here, and spoke with a few mom friends with older kids to get some tips and pointers and ultimately decided that I will just kind of see what happens and adjusts my methods accordingly.  I plan on making most of her food myself but did pick up some Earth Best's organic pouches that were on sale when I was out today thinking they might be good for traveling situations.   

I had planned on starting with avocado but there were none ripe at the grocery store so I went for the classic banana instead.  I heated half a small banana in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds just to soften it.  Using a fork I mixed some of it with breast milk.   I also left some of it in little chunks so Riesling could try grabbing it and feeding herself.  During this process I realized I didn't even have a baby spoon, expect for this one by Boon that was given as a shower gift.  It's intended to put the food in the handle portion and squeeze onto the spoon, but the spoon part is kinda big and I think Riesling had a hard time with it.  Even delaying it by nearly two weeks I was still not really prepared!

All things considered I think her first try went well.  Daddy captured every moment on this action packed 5 minute video.  Action packed might be an exaggeration but you might found it a little exciting if you like babies.  And possibly thrilling if you particularly like my baby.

At this point we're experimenting.  It's mostly about introducing her to textures and the idea of feeding herself so I don't worry if little or none actually goes in her mouth.  Consistency seems to be a big issue.  Today I tried putting some in the Magic Bullet to make it a little more soupy and she seemed to like that better.  I also tried storing some of the uneaten overnight and she really snubbed her nose at it yesterday morning.  I tasted it myself and it did taste a little funny but I'm not sure why....maybe the breast milk?  So for now we're sticking with small, freshly made batches once or twice a day.  We do a little with the spoon, some off my finger, some on the tray....it's a real party over here people!

Boobs

I'm been working on a post about breastfeeding for months and months but just never seem to finish it.  It's been in the media so much lately....there was of course the controversial cover of TIME magazine and just today I spotted this article about military moms.  Get over it people!  They are just breast!  Breast that happen to be providing nourishment to a child. 

Baby Robinson is here!!

We proudly welcome to the world Ms. Riesling Debra Robinson.....

February 22, 2012

4:40pm
8 lbs 1 oz
20 1/4 inches

Jim did an absolutely amazing job as my birthing coach! I'm so happy that I was able to stick with our birth plan and go through delivery without any pain medication. We had a rough start to things once we arrived at the hospital (a story for another day) but it all worked out as planned. I won't try to fool anyone into thinking it wasn't just a wee bit painful but I felt so good when it was all over and so did Riesling. It was worth every scream, grunt, and holler.

It's more love than we ever knew possible.....

Come out and play Baby!

image

I'm officially on maternity leave. I think it was more for the patients than me. They were started to suddenly have no complaints and only concerns about the baby and whether or not it was actually Ok for me to still be working. Good peps I have in my office. Now I just have to figure out how to fill up my endless days and nights.

Things have been pretty low key recently. No major house projects. No travel or adventure (obviously). I haven't even been cooking anything new or exciting. We've just kinda been sticking to a wintery routine of walking the neighborhood, running errands, and getting things organized around the house. But now that we've accomplished that and Baby is still not here.....

What did you do while waiting for your first baby to arrive?
Any book or movie recommendations?
Did you start any strange nesting projects?

Swaddled

We rented and watched The Happiest Baby on the Block Sunday night. Jim is now an expert teddy bear swaddler.


Doesn't Mr. Bear look so cozy?

Fever?

I've been thinking about motherhood lately. Maybe it's the thought of our soon-to-be first home and all it's empty bedrooms; the fact that over half of my female friends are pregnant right now; reading too many mom blogs; or the excessive number of patients and co-workers that have asked me if I'm pregnant over the two weeks (guess I need to get back to the gym!).

I've also been thinking about road trips, backpacking excursions, and exotic beach vacations; my career and my future as a healthcare provider; mint juleps, margaritas, Coronas, and other cool, refreshing summertime beverages; and new spring fashions.

They seem to be opposites; contradictions almost; two worlds that would surely collide.

I do love the way a baby skin is so soft...
and those sweet little snotty faces.

I do also love that the ones I know go home with someone else...