Questions Answered - Part 3

I think that this will be the final post of Questions Answered. If anyone thinks of any additional questions to ask, please feel free to ask at anytime! :)

What is the hardest "thing" for you to handle since Weston joined your family?

The hands down toughest thing for me to handle is the crying...I want my baby to be happy all of the time, and I hate when he cries, and I can't make him feel better. I just don't know what's wrong, and it makes me so sad. It's the worst at night...Weston cries himself to sleep, and it's not just a whimper, it's a full on cry. If we go in his room to comfort him, it only makes it worse, so we leave him to put himself to sleep. But it completely breaks my heart! The other hard thing is making time for myself...I used to be able to run to the grocery store real quickly or run errands or shower, etc. Now, I have to more carefully plan those things based on his naps or his schedule. It's tough, but it's SO worth it!

What has been the easiest "thing" for you to handle since Weston joined your family?

The easiest "thing" for me to handle has just been being a mom...we've easily fallen into the routine of working and spending time together, and I feel like it's been so smooth for our family. I love being a mom...absolutely love it!

Talk about your diagnosis with PCOS and your positive pregnancy test / experience...

So, as most of you know, Grant and I will have only be married for a year this upcoming weekend, and we got pregnant with Weston on our honeymoon. I can't imagine life being any different, and it worked out perfectly. We love our little boy, but he was definitely a huge surprise.

Here is my story: I had been on birth control since I was in the 8th grade due to irregular cycles, so I was anxious to get off of BC to see what would happen. So, I talked to Grant about it, and we agreed that I would get off birth control in September just to see what would happen, but we would use other forms of birth control in the interim. I only ovulated once on my own and once with help from the doctor by taking some pills from September to January, so I went to the doctor, and she did an ultrasound and blood tests, and she diagnosed me with PCOS. She told me that when we were ready, that we would go the route of using Clomid. I had 14 cysts on one ovary and 10 on the other. I was devastated, and I cried and cried thinking that it would be difficult to get pregnant, and I might never have a child.

Since we weren't ready yet, the doctor told me that to avoid additional cysts that I should get back on BC until we were ready to start trying, so I agreed and got back on birth control in late February. I took it regularly, but I didn't always take it at the same time everyday, and I sometimes missed a pill and took two in one day, because I didn't think that it was possible to get pregnant or to ovulate without medical assistance based on my diagnosis. So, Grant and I moved forward with our plans, got married, went on our honeymoon and a week after returning from our honeymoon, I got a positive pregnancy test.

I couldn't believe it...I had been diagnosed with PCOS, so this wasn't possible! I was shocked, and I was confused. It was an emotional time, and I felt like God had given me a miracle, because I had been told that getting pregnant was going to be difficult. Even though it's not how we planned it, I feel like God knew what he was doing, and he knew that the time was right. So, I'm anxious just thinking about the diagnosis and wondering whether it will be so easy next time or if it will be difficult. I'm scared that though we want two children, we may only have one. If that's the case, that's okay. God blessed us with a beautiful, healthy, happy baby boy, and we are SO lucky!

What are your favorite - hair/skin products?

My favorite hair products are Bumble & Bumble. I love it!! Specific products that I use regularly are Spray de Mode, Brown Hair Powder, Tonic Lotion, Warm Brunette Shampoo & Conditioner. As far as skin products go, I use a variety of products. I use a moisturizer, under eye cream and anti-wrinkle cream in the evenings. I use a sunscreen and general moisturizer, as well as, anti-puff eye roller in the mornings before leaving the house.

What is one thing you can do to make you feel pretty?

Take time to myself...in the evenings after work, I spend time with Weston, get him ready for bed and do his bedtime routine, then I prepare everything for the next day. We wash bottles, eat dinner, prepare bottles for the next day, etc. It's very busy, and I often just have a quick rushed shower. I love the weekends when I just have time to take a LONG shower, fix my hair, put on make-up slowly and do any other things to feel good about myself. Just taking my time and getting ready and not being rushed makes me walk out of the house feeling pretty! :)

Favorite drink?

My favorite non-alcoholic drink is Diet Coke. My favorite alcoholic drink is Margarita's especially on the beach with friends.

Have you chosen not to drink at all while breastfeeding?

No. I haven't chosen not to drink while breastfeeding. I try to avoid drinking large amounts, because I just don't know that it's good for him, though I don't think that it'll necessarily hurt him. There are so many mixed opinions and thoughts on the subject. I didn't drink a whole lot before I was pregnant. I drink socially...at parties, tailgates, etc. I also have the occasional glass or two (or three) of wine in the evenings, but never an abundance. I do not drink within two hours of the next feeding, so if I'm going to do it, it has to be after he goes to bed when I won't be feeding him for awhile, when I'm gone for a few hours, and he'll be getting a bottle or at the beginning of awake time after he has just eaten.

How many more kids do you want to have?

Now that I've had Weston, and I've had such a great experience from the time I got the positive pregnancy test to the present that I told Grant the other day that I would be happy having four kids total, but in all reality, we are planning on having two. We don't want Weston to be an only child, because we want him to have that experience of having a sibling, but we also want to be able to provide for them financially as best as possible without having financial worries or stress. So, we've agreed to stop at two babies. :)

What is the best thing about being a mommy?!

I don't know if there is one best thing, because I feel like everything right now is just awesome! I really love when I go to get Weston from his crib in the morning, and he just looks up at me and grins this huge wide smile! I love it, and it makes the job SO easy. I also love cuddling with him and just holding him close. I love knowing that he relies on me, and I take care of him and would do anything for me. I don't have a "best" thing, because it's all so rewarding, and I'm SO lucky to be the mom to such an awesome little boy!

Weston with Aunt Amanda (my sister)

Questions Answered - Part 1

I'm going to answer as many of your questions as I can before I have to get back to work...it's been a busy week, so I haven't had a chance to post my responses. I will finish the responses that I don't get to early next week!

Did you have any girls names picked out? If so, what were they?

We really struggled with girls names, but we wanted to be completely prepared if we found out we were having a girl. It's really funny, because we both really have always wanted two boys, so we have had a boys name picked out since we first started dating. We started trying to think of girls names, and we came up with all the really popular girls names that we loved, such as, Abigail and Madison. We had settled upon Madison if it was a girl, but some of our best friends have decided to name their little girl, due next week, Madison. So, it looks like we'll be going with Abigail or something entirely different if our next child is a girl.

On another note, I've always wanted to have two boys, but now that we have one boy, I think I'd kind of like to have a girl next time, but I'd be so happy either way, and I'd love a boy or a girl! :)

How did you choose daycare for Weston? Did you have the option of leaving him with a family member or having a full time "nanny"? How did you choose that particular daycare?

I am completely Type A and OCD, so I started looking for Daycare Providers early on...I didn't go to a regular daycare when I was a baby, because my mom chose an "In Home" daycare provider. I knew that this was something that I wanted to look into, because I had a great experience. I still get Christmas and Birthday cards from my daycare lady, and she attended my high school graduation. The State of Georgia has a website that you can enter your zip code, and it gives you all of the daycare providers, in-home and commercial, within a certain radius from the zip code that you entered. It also allows you to see the reports on each of these individuals and the most recent licensing study. I made a detailed spreadsheet that included information on each of these individuals, location, contact information, distance from home and office, cost, etc. I then set-up meetings with five different women, and I made notes after the visits about what I liked and didn't like, etc. I then made a decision based on all the information that I had compiled, and it is the best decision that I have made. We LOVE her! She even cleaned the cradle cap out of his head yesterday, because I was too afraid to do it! Ha-Ha! :)

I didn't have the option of having a family member stay with Weston, because both Grandma's still work, and I didn't want to have a Nanny, because I felt like if I wasn't home, and he wasn't with a relative, then I would prefer him to be with other kids for the interaction and to build his immunity.

Any plans for more babies in [near or not] future?

Definitely...I had such a great experience both in pregnancy and birth, as well as, following birth with care, sleeping and breastfeeding. So, I'm actually really excited about having another one. We aren't ready yet, because Weston is still so young, but I'm planning to wean him before a year, so I can get my cycle and body back under control and then hopefully, start trying again when he is about a year old.

What's the one item in your closet that you just can't live without?

I can live without every item in my closet right now...I just hate my wardrobe right now, and while I can fit into a lot of my clothes, my boobs are too big, so I can't fit into my favorite tops! :( And I can't fit into my "skinny" jeans yet! I'd love to go out and buy a new wardrobe, but that's not happening right now, so I'll just live with what I have. I always thought that I'd get breast implants after a baby, but now, not so much. I don't want to have to buy all new shirts, and I want to fit back into some of my favorites!

How did you pick out your adorable furbaby?

Grant saw a Vizsla when he was in college, and he fell in love with his personality. I had never heard of them before until I met Grant. He had never had a family pet growing up, so he was nervous about getting one, but I really wanted one, so he said, that he was up for it, but he wanted a Vizsla. I did the research, and I gathered information about them and about breeders in our area. I set up a visit with one of the breeders who I had heard good things about, and we met her when she had puppies available. We agreed to purchase one, and it's been tons of fun! He is our 1st child, and we love him. He's great with Weston, and I recommend a Vizsla to everyone! :)

Are we related? We have the same last name!

I don't think so...I think that Harvey is a pretty common last name. :)

What breeder did you get Banks from?

We got Banks from Vizcaya Vizslas in Winder, GA. She has some beautiful dogs, and Banks is featured on the home page slide show twice...once in the dryer and once with Weston. He is also featured on the "In the Field" page and the "Up and Coming Titles" page. Check him out! I'm one proud mom!

How did you and your hubs meet? How did he propose?

Grant and I met at work, and we both still work for the same employer. I was managing a project, and he was selected as one of the tester's for the application. I had spoken to him on the phone, but I had never seen him. He walked into my office that day, and we never looked back. I explained testing to him, then I emailed him and asked if he wanted to go to lunch. We enjoyed lunch at Loco's, and we had a great time talking and getting to know one another. I was going to see Milledgeville to see Luke Bryan over the weekend, and we were really anxious to see one another again, so I asked if he wanted to come with me. He ended up coming, and we spent the whole weekend together. We've spent every weekend since together except for one...he lived four hours away in Jesup, GA when we first met, and he got transferred to Athens after we had been dating almost a year.

He proposed on the 4th of July. I wanted to hang out with friends, and he kept saying that we shouldn't worry about it, and we should just do something fun together. So, I set-up dinner with my parents instead. We had dinner with my parents, and I could tell he was a little frustrated, but I didn't think much about it. We then went to see the fireworks afterwards at the park, and we were laying on our blanket, and I went to get up, so we could leave before the crowds during the finale, and he stopped me and asked me to marry him. I started crying, and I thought he was joking! It was the best day, and it was perfect for us! We waited until the next day to call all of our friends and family to let them know the news, and we spend an enjoyable night basking in our newly engaged status! :)

Alright, I've got to get back to work...I'll post some additional responses, hopefully, on Monday!

Weston & Gramps

New Mom Questions

So, to all you mothers out there...I've got some questions. I'm 100% Type A, so it's difficult to have a newborn that's tough to plan around, but I understand that, and I feel like I've been adjusting well. Wes is sleeping for four hours at a stretch then waking to eat, then sleeping for another four hour stretch at night, so I feel like things are going well in the sleeping area, and we are all feeling much more rested and happy around the Harvey household.

However, as a mother, I worry. I think that's only natural, but I'm so worried that I'm doing something wrong, so I need your advice on how you guys did things.

Here are my questions:
1.) Sleeping - Wes is doing pretty well (knock on wood) sleeping! I know that books and people typically say that he needs to eat every three hours at night, so I should wake him, but he has been sleeping four-five hours through the night, and I haven't been waking him. He is peeing and pooping enough, so I know that he is hydrated, and I know he's getting enough, so I just don't wake him up. I know that he is gaining weight, as well. How did you get your little one to sleep through through night or was it ever a problem for you? I know he isn't ready to sleep through the night yet, because he needs to eat at least once through the night, but when he is how to you cut back his/her middle of the night feeding?

2.) Nursery - How did you get your little ones to sleep in their room? Did you start them off in their room right away? Or did they sleep in your room for the first little bit? If they slept in your room for a little while, how did you get her to switch and sleep in their own room? Wes is sleeping in our room right now, because the first few nights he was really fussy, and we couldn't get him to sleep, so it was really tough having to get up and down all night with him screaming. Secondly, it's just tough having to get up and go to the other room to nurse him at night, so it was easier having him in our room.

3.) Schedule - If you had your little one on a schedule, how do you work them up to that schedule and what was your schedule. Right now, he's obviously not on any type of schedule. We wake at the same time every morning, so he's eating at basically the same time every three hours everyday, but he's not going to bed at a specific time yet, and it's fairly late that he's going to bed, because it's when we go to bed. We do have him in a nightime routine of bathing him, putting him into PJ's, reading him a book, nursing him and then going to bed. But when did you start putting your baby down in their crib at a certain time each night and how did you start that routine. When did you get them on an eating and napping schedule and what was that like?

4.) Nursing - Wes seems to nurse for a really long time...people say 15-20 minutes, but it takes Wes at least a half hour. I know that he is getting milk, because I see it in his mouth, coming out of his cheeks as his nurses, etc., but it just takes him SO long. And he is also a fussy eater...I could never take him and nurse in public at this point, because he shakes his head back and forth, and he he screams like he can't find it sometimes, but he's right on it. I'm not sure what that's about, but it's like he's just getting SO excited, so it takes a lot of patience to feed him. We are up close to an hour nursing in the night, so that's tough, but I love the bonding that I have with him, and I'll do whatever it takes to successfully breastfeed. Any advice or suggestions on making this process easier for both of us?

Anyways, if anyone has any advice or suggestions that would be great. I'm just looking for any ideas that people have or ideas on how you did things, so I can hopefully do things a little easier than I'm doing now. Thanks in advance for any ideas you might have! And what post is complete without a picture of my little guy! :)