11 months postpartum

I'm always doing updates on Grant's progress, but I thought it might be nice to give a little update on me for a change and to highlight what it feels like to be 11 months (almost a year!) postpartum.

First off, here's a picture from the week before I had a positive pregnancy test.

The week before my positive pregnancy test

Little did I know that I would retain SO MUCH WATER 9 months later!  This picture is from the week that I had Grant.  Man... It's hard to even look back at pictures from that month. 

9 months pregnant with Grant... oh the swelling!

 Here is a picture from a couple of weekends ago at the zoo.  I am SO happy with my weight loss progress.

11 months postpartum!

 So how much did I gain/lose?  Well I gained a total of 65 pounds during my pregnancy and I've lost 70 to date.  I blame the majority of the weight gain to water retention to be honest.  My ankles and legs were so incredibly swollen the last few weeks and the day I came home from the hospital I was already down almost 35 lbs.

I credit my weight loss 100% to breastfeeding.  I haven't had any spare time to go to the gym although I have been pretty consistent about getting out and taking Grant on walks around our neighborhood.  I haven't dieted at all and breastfeeding actually makes me pretty hungry! In the beginning I was an overproducer.  Since I exclusively pump, this meant I was making 50oz of milk a day which calculates to around 1000 calories burned.  I'm now down to around 30oz a day, but that's still 600 calories being burned a day.

I was also very lucky that I didn't get any stretch marks.  I'm not sure if it was due to good genes or just all of the product I slathered on my belly every night.  If you're interested I used:

Erbaorganics Mommy-To-Be Stretch Mark Oil

DreamBelly Stretch Mark Butter

 The DreamBelly smells DELICIOUS.  I'd alternate using regular cocoa butter lotion and mixing it with the oil and then using the Dream Belly.  Like I said, it could just be good genes, but I didn't get 1 stretch mark and my belly was BIG!

It's hard to tell if I'm back to normal hormonally since I'm still pumping.  I'm down to twice a day as of this week.  My goal is to be totally done with the pump by Grant's first birthday.  I have so much milk frozen, that I plan on weaning myself slowly now that he's 11 months old and using frozen if I don't pump enough in those 2 pumps. I'm so ready to be done worrying about where I'll be during my pump times and having to tote my pump when we go out of town.  I'm very thankful that I was able to give him 100% breastmilk and that my supply was enough to make it to his first birthday.

I've noticed that I've been having hot flashes lately.  I've wondered if this is due to weaning and my hormones attempting to regulate. They aren't too bad or too often though, and coming off of pregnancy hot flashes, these aren't even much of a bother!

I feel like I'm almost back to my normal self by this point and I'm so glad.  I feel comfortable in my own skin and like how clothes fit me again which is a relief.  Pregnancy really takes a toll on your body (and self-esteem) and it doesn't immediately improve after you give birth.  I honestly think that now, almost a year after giving birth, that I feel pretty close to the way I did pre-pregnancy.

So there's my pitiful attempt at an update on where things stand with me right now.  I'm busy with work and planning Grant's birthday party, so be on the lookout for his birthday post next month :)

Grant - 11 months!

My FAVORITE expression from Grant. Such a sweet smile!

Just enjoying an afternoon at the park.

Happy boy!

Age: 11 months

Weight:  24lbs

Eye Color: Looking hazel or green now.

Clothes: PJs: 12-18M, Onesies:  12-18M. Shirts: 12-18M Pants: 12M & 18M

Diapers: Size 4
 
Milestones:  *Can stand for a few seconds on his own.

*He's surprisingly steady!
*Cruises furniture like a champ
*Can walk holding on to the walker or our hands
*Says Mama, Dada

*Has 4 teeth, a top tooth just broke through on 4/27/15
*Took his first UNASSISTED step on 4/23/15, took two steps on 4/26/15.  Still wobbly and not confident, but we are working on his walking skills :)
*Took SIX steps on 4/27/15!

Best Moment(s) This Month:  He's so much more independent.  He wants to eat everything we are eating. He loves to chase the cats across the house while laughing.  He pulls up on everything and tries to eat everything he finds on the ground (cat food, june bugs, etc.) Gross! He's also so close to walking.

Loves: *to pull up on everything
*to put EVERYTHING in his mouth

*to eat what Mom and Dad are trying to eat

*Splashing in the bath

*He is OBSESSED with Cheerios! He could eat them non stop all day if I let him.

Favorite Toys:

Fisher-Price 3-in-1 Bounce, Stride and Ride Elephant

 

Fisher-Price Musical Lion Walker

Hates:
*getting his face cleaned after eating baby food
*getting his snot sucked out/wiping off his nose

Food:  Getting about 24-30oz of BM a day and 2-4 containers of baby food, plus random solids throughout the day (crackers, cheerios, vanilla wafers).  We've also started feeding him a large lunch or dinner meal.  He is very interested in solid food now and wants a bite of what we are eating!

Looking Forward To: Walking!

Grant's first trip to the zoo!

Grant - 10 Months

Waiting to get called back at the Dr.

Enjoying a day at the park

Age: 10 months

Weight:  21 lbs

Eye Color: Looking hazel or green now.

Clothes: PJs: 9/12M, Onesies:  9M and 12M. Pants: 9M & 12M

Diapers: Size 4
 
Milestones:  *Started pulling up on 3/3/15
*Cruising furniture! 3/18/15
*Got another bottom tooth (Lateral Incisor) on 3/15/15!
So he has 3 teeth total now, all on the bottom.
*He's crawling like a champ and wants to be standing all day. He pulls up on everything.
*First Snow (included on video)
*Says Mama, Dada (doesn't know what they mean, but he babbles them over and over)

Best Moment(s) This Month:  He's smiling a lot more and it's easier to make him laugh.  He's still very reserved around strangers, but at home he's such a happy boy!

Loves: *to pull up on everything
*to chew on everything
*to listen to me sing
*taking naps with mom on the weekends

Favorite Toys:

Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Singin' Storytime Puppy

 

Sophie the Giraffe Teether

Hates:
*getting his face cleaned after eating baby food
*the texture of solid food in his mouth
*getting his snot sucked out/wiping off his nose

Food:  Getting about 30oz of BM a day and 2-4 containers of baby food.  He went through a spell where he refused to eat anything but fruit for about a week, but now he's back to eating like a champ.  He has started to show interest in actual SOLID food now. He has eaten pancakes, spaghetti, peaches, graham crackers, and yogurt melts. He LOVED spaghetti and really likes the yogurt melts!

Looking Forward To: Walking!

Grant and his Daddy :)

Looking handsome at church

Grant - 9 Months! (Video overload)

First Valentine's Day

 Age: 9 months

Weight:  21 lbs

Eye Color: Brown

Clothes: PJs: 9/12M, Onesies:  9M and 12M. Pants: 9M/12M

Diapers: Size 4
 
Milestones:  *First Haircut on 2/7/15 - he wasn't a huge fan of the clippers. I think the vibrations tickled his head!

*We officially have a crawler! He started crawling forward on 2/21/15.  He was motivated by none other than a bottle full of milk - lol - He's still working on perfecting it and he has to be REALLY motivated to go after something at this point, but he CAN do it if he really wants to now.

*Not a good milestone, but he had his first ear infection this month.  He was a champ though and kept sleeping through the night!

Best Moment(s) This Month:  Watching Grant try and move all over the place. He also seems to smile and laugh more often now.  He's always been a very serious baby and we have to work for a laugh from him!

Loves: *to eat!
*Stand up and play
*Chew on everything!
*oranges!

Favorite Toys: 

LeapFrog My Pal Scout

Garanimals Froggie Teether Beads

Hates:
*getting his face cleaned after eating baby food
*the texture of solid food in his mouth
*getting his snot sucked out/wiping off his nose
*Peas (the first food he's refused to eat)

Food:   STILL pumping and giving him breastmilk. We are giving him solids 2-3 times a day. He eats around 8-12oz of baby food each day now.  He's finally opened up to oatmeal cereal, so I'm trying to include that once a day as well. He's moved up to some level 3 baby food and will sometimes eat (suck on) toast.

Looking Forward To: Celebrating my birthday next month with my handsome men :)

Tiger loves Grant!

Fresh out of the bath!

I had to add this hilarious video of Grant falling asleep! Poor thing was exhausted!

Here's Grant's 9 month video:

Grant - 8 Months!

Age: 8 months

Weight:  not too sure... I need to weigh him. I would guess 20 lbs!

Eye Color: They are looking pretty brown now - something I can claim he got from me!

Clothes: PJs: 6/9 months, Onesies:  6M and 9M. Pants: 9M

Diapers: Size 3
 
Milestones:  *He slept through the night for the first time on 1/12/15
(He has been pretty consistent about sleeping through the night since then. If he does wake up, he will whine for 1-2 minutes and then roll over and go back to sleep on his own.  He no longer gets any bottles during the night.)
*Started cutting his first teeth (bottom two) on 1/11/15
(They are both through the gums now on 1/26/15, but still have a ways to push up!)
*He has started to kind of move around. He scoots backwards and is leaning forward and to the side a lot when he's sitting.  I can tell he is trying to figure out how to move forward, but hasn't quite got it worked out yet.

Best Moment(s) This Month:  Grant has been so AWARE this month.  He wants you to hold him more. He likes to play with the freckles on my arm and lay his head on my shoulder. He also got rid of all of his night feeds and is sleeping so much better at night now.
He's started giving "hugs".  When you are holding him, he will lean on you for a second like he's giving you a hug and then sit back up. It is the sweetest thing. I love my "hugs" from Grant.

Loves: *to eat!
*Stand up and play
*Chew on everything!

Favorite Toys:

VTech Busy Learners Activity Cube

LeapFrog Animal Adventure Learning Table

Hates:
*getting his face cleaned after eating baby food
*the texture of solid food in his mouth
*getting his snot sucked out/wiping off his nose

Food:   STILL pumping and giving him breastmilk. I'm really hoping that since I've made it this far that I can make it to my goal of 1 year.  I haven't had to dig into my frozen stash yet (I have about 2,500oz I think, our entire deep freeze is full!) so if I can pump until 10-11 months, my frozen stash should cover the rest.
We are giving him solids 2-3 times a day. He eats around 8-12oz of baby food each day now.  He's finally opened up to oatmeal cereal, so I'm trying to include that once a day as well.

Looking Forward To: Crawling!

 *all bundled up for a walk*

Grant - 7 Months

*First School Picture*

Grant has his first "school picture" at daycare.  He smiled like a champ! I love, love, love his smile.

 *those cheeks! I love them!*

Age: 7 months

Weight:   18 lbs!

Eye Color: Some days they look brown, other days they look hazel.

Clothes: PJs: 6/9 months, Onesies:  6M and 9M. Pants: 9M

Diapers: Size 3
 
Milestones:  *Very good at holding toys now

*Doesn't fall over when sitting anymore
*Rolls onto side all of the time and can roll from tummy to back
*Can stand holding on to something
*grabbed a puff and put it in his mouth last night, hated the texture, but it's progress!

Best Moment(s) This Month:  I enjoyed having some time off from work to celebrate his first Christmas.  He loved all of the excitement and has enjoyed his new toys so far.

Loves: *The Jumperoo
*Chewing on his hands
*Playing Peek-a-Boo
*Standing up and bouncing
*Bath time (he sits like a big boy in the bathtub now!)
*food!

Hates: *Tummy time
*Being left to play by himself for too long

Food:   STILL pumping and giving him breastmilk.  We are giving him solids 2-3 times a day now.  Since he hated cereal, his ped said I could start feeding him the baby food meat meals.  So he's moved up to level 2 baby food and has tried chicken, turkey, and tons of yummy fruits and veggies! He def loves fruit the most, but he would just keep eating it all if you let him.  I always have to end the feeding session because he's eaten so much or he finishes the container!

Looking Forward To: Mobility, he has shown zero interest in moving from one place to another so far, but I am looking forward to when he does!

*First Ornament he made at school*

I cannot believe my sweet boy is 7 months.  Each month I know I say the same thing, but it really feels like time is FLYING! I know his first birthday is going to be here before I know it.  I'm trying so hard to soak up all of these moments and remember what it feels like to rock him to sleep and hold him when he's sick. He's been battling his first cold for weeks now, so there have been quite a few cuddles happening :)

Grant - 6 Months Photo Shoot

There were so many adorable pictures from our photo shoot the other day that I decided to just do a separate post instead of cramming 20 pictures all into his 6 month update.

We FINALLY managed to get a picture with him smiling while I was holding him.  He was in such a great mood that afternoon at the park and was fascinated by all of the people walking by. So fun!  And all of the photo cred goes to my handsome hubby :)

I know that I'm biased, but how adorable is this face?

I love how his eyes light up when he smiles.

Handsome like his daddy.