The best breastfeeding app that I’ve found that works for me is called Baby Nursing. This is what it looks like in the app store, but the title is different and called Baby Breastfeeding Tracker. It is THE best app out there! It’s soo easy and convenient when you are breastfeeding your baby.
The home screen of the app looks like this. You can customize it and enter your baby’s name, and even add a photo! It shows all the different things you can track all in one page. And their is a lot of things you can track!
The nursing part is what I use the most. It’s soo so easy! When you click on the nursing section, this is what the screen looks like. As you can tell, I use this everyday since Huxley was born. All you do is click on the “L” for left boobie, or “R” for right boobie, whichever one you are going to feed on. And then a timer pops up, you can pause it for when they have to burp, or whatever the case may be. When you are finished, the app will say “last” on whichever boobie you last fed on.
To see what time you last fed was, all you do is click on the day and it has the breakdown of how many feedings you’ve done for the day, and how long, and which side. It’s awesome. The one that’s at 4:16am today, says 120 minutes which is wrong because sometimes I’ll forget to hit stop and it’ll keep going. I fell asleep I’m sure, because it was 4am. But what is really cool, is the app will send you a notification that says “You’ve been nursing Huxley for 60 minutes” because it probably knows that is wrong. As of today, I’ve done 287 feedings in the month of March! Sounds insane.
I remember with my daughter Hadley, I breastfed for around six weeks. And I wrote every single feeding down on a piece of paper. Oh my god was it a pain. Their might’ve been an app back then, but I wasn’t smart enough to look for one. This app has been a godsend!
You can also track baths, pumping, food, doctor visits, diapers, etc. So many things!
We had a lovely week/weekend, and I’m recapping it all on the blog!
Monday, March 21
Huxley has been falling asleep with his one hand on his face and it makes me so nervous! He puts his hand right on his face where it covers the nose and mouth. I always hesitate to move it, but always do because I’m terrified he can’t breathe. And then what happens, is he’ll wake up sometimes and then it’s all over trying to get him back to sleep.
Breakfast was pistachio bread, my staple smoothie, and water. Since the start of my pregnancy, I added bananas into every smoothie for how thick it makes them. Now that I’m no longer pregnant, I’m trying to wean myself off of bananas because of the high carb content.
My pump is the Spectra 2 and I love it. It’s a ton of work to pump and breastfeed, but I’m making it work. Some days I only get to pump one time, other days I’ll pump throughout the day. If I get to pump or not, just depends on how the day is going. And life with a new baby, is far from scheduled.
This is how I spend the majority of my days right now, sitting on the couch feeding and holding Huxley. I’m so glad we got a new couch when we did, it’s super comfy. So comfy that I think I’ve made an indentation in the spot I always sit at!
The weather was just beautiful! In true Cincinnati fashion, the weather is a tease some days. Mother Nature gives us just a taste of warmer weather, and then a cold front moves in. But by God, we enjoyed every second of this day and got outside for a little bit. We put Huxley in the stroller, and Hadley hopped on her scooter, and we took a little walk in the neighborhood. We found out one of the houses on the private drive has goats! Goats in the ‘burbs? So odd.
Tuesday, March 22
We had his first doctor’s appointment on Tuesday, weighing ten pounds, and healthy as a peach! He sure doesn’t look like he’s ten pounds yet, but he feels it when you hold him. So far, he does great in the car! I think he likes the motion / feel of the car, and he falls asleep most of the time.
We waited a few weeks to introduce a pacifier, since I’m breastfeeding and all. Not sure if that really matters, but I just wanted to wait. He likes it sometimes, he doesn’t love it just yet, but at least it’ll calm him down sometimes. Maybe he’ll be a thumb sucker like his sister Hadley, or maybe he’ll be a paci fan. Time will tell.
Wednesday, March 23
Wednesday afternoon, when Hadley got home from school and did her homework. Life looks a lot like this photo nowadays. Baby stuff all over the place, and Kevin and Hadley playing some type of game while I’m feeding Huxley. Hadley just loves monopoly, and does great at the game!
Thursday, March 24
Thursday morning, we both headed to Kroger to fill up. We always fill up together and use our Kroger fuel points so we get the $1.00 off or whatever the discount is that month. Kevin’s truck was loaded down with the pontoon boat seats, he was taking them to get reupholstered.
Sometimes, he’ll fall asleep in the weirdest positions. Here he’s on the nursing pillow, with my hand propping his head up, and he’s passed out asleep.
Friday, March 25
Breakfast on Friday morning, scrambled eggs with cream cheese and melted cheese on top. And a smoothie without the banana. I added in avocado in place of the banana, and it was pretty good!
Had my six-week checkup, a little earlier than the actual six weeks after birth. The doctor said everything is good to go, cleared for exercise and I cannot wait to start working out again!
Kevin and Hadley went out to get softball cleats for this year, and I asked what does the “Trout” mean? Kevin’s response was, “he’s only like the best in baseball right now.” Can you say clueless? They look good though right?
Saturday, March 26
Saturday morning, Hadley is all ready for her soccer game. And Huxley is just chilling after eating.
Hadley playing indoor soccer, she just loves sports. No goals this game, but she tries! She runs her little heart out and gets so red in the face. Just like her Mama.
After her soccer game, we went to dinner with my brother-in-law, and sister-in-law. Hadley had a birthday party to go to, so we ventured out by our house. I’m not a fan of breastfeeding in public, so I like to feed him right before we go somewhere. Maybe I’ll have a change of heart, but for now, I’m just not comfortable breastfeeding in public.
Huxley was a champ, and slept right through dinner.
Sunday, March 27
Whether you are a stay-at-home mom, or have a career to balance alongside motherhood, you have your hands full! Trust me, no one has it all together all the time. So, cut yourself some slack.
You can do anything, but you can’t do everything, especially not all at once. Prioritize what’s important and focus your energy on doing one thing at a time.
If you don’t know what this photo is from by now, then you are living in a hole. Just Google Will Smith and Chris Rock. At the Oscar’s, Will Smith literally smacked Chris Rock. Shocker to me.
Who doesn’t love Amazon am I right? As an avid Amazon Prime shopper, here is a breakdown of what I ordered in March this year.
Homebody Sweatshirt
This sweatshirt is very soft and comfortable. I’ve worn it a few times already, and want to order another one in the grey color. This sweatshirt is very fitting for my life right now, on maternity leave and always home for the most part. Sweatshirt linked here.
Brewers Yeast Powder
I’ve been looking up recipes that help with increasing milk supply, since I am breastfeeding. The ingredient, Brewers Yeast is in a lot of the recipes I’ve been finding and they do not sell this at the local grocery store. Not that I can find anyway. Powder linked here.
Digital TV Antenna
This might come as a shock to some people, but we do not have cable. We haven’t for as long as I can remember now. We stream a lot from Netflix, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. When we do watch regular TV, we’ve been needing an updated antenna aka bunny ears. This digital antenna works pretty good, all you do is place the black screen on the wall or window behind the TV. Antenna linked here.
Newborn baby boy St. Patrick’s Day Outift
Had to have something green for baby Huxley to wear this year for St. Patrick’s Day! It was a tad big, but you can never be exactly sure on how things fit when they are babies. The quality was super soft. Outfit linked here.
Red Beaded Tassel Earrings
We have a lot of “red” things that we go to in our lives, for example, my daughters school colors are red/black/yellow, the fire department is red, the Reds baseball season is about to start which is red/white, UC Bearcats are red/black, our boat is red, we just really love red! Red earrings linked here.
St. Patrick’s Day Beaded Green Shamrock EarringsÂ
Wore these for St. Patrick’s Day this year, they are super light and stay on the ear. Earrings like these, are typically heavy on my ear but these were great! Shamrock earrings linked here.
Shamrock Stud Earrings
Ordered these for Hadley, they were a little big for her ears but she still loved them and wore them all day for St. Patrick’s Day. Shamrock stud earrings liked here.
Glitter Jelly Bangles Bracelets
The jelly bracelets are coming back! These are super cute. Jelly bracelets linked here.
Pampers Baby Wipes, 8X Pop-Top Packs and 8 Refill Packs for Dispenser Tub
When you have a newborn, you’ll need massive wipes. Period. Wipes linked here.
Pampers Baby Wipes Tub
It’s easier to get the wipes out of the tub, verses the pack. We still use the pack wipes for the diaper bag, but the tub is easier for the house. Wipes tub linked here.
Plastic Hand Scoop
We use lots of ice in our house, so much that our refrigerator can’t keep up so we typically have to get the ice by hand out of the bottom shelf. We’ve always used a plastic cup from our cup shelf to get the ice. So I finally looked up an ice scoop to get and came across this one. And it just had to be red! We love it. Plastic hand scoop linked here.
Milkscreen Test Strips
Pretty self explanatory, test strips to detect alcohol in breastmilk. I wanted to try these for when I have a few drinks. Test strips linked here.
Happy Monday! Have you ordered any of these before? Would love to know!
Huxley was a surprise. One of the biggest of my life. Some call you an “oops.” Some call you a surprise. The baby that wasn’t planned.
I hesitate even saying unplanned, because God has a plan. He always does. Sometimes the timing doesn’t always pan out to what we had hoped for. We just have to remember; things happen for a reason and it’s up to us to figure that out.
When we announced, we were going to have another baby, the majority of the responses were wonderful. Friends and family were so happy for us. But there were those few that had the comments that weren’t so positive. We heard things like…
– “Don’t you know how that works?” – “How old are you again?” – “Are you excited?” – “You’re going to be this age when your baby is this age” – “Was this planned?”
The one that gets me every time, is when people would ask if we were excited. Yes, how can you not be excited about a new baby coming? We were elated! I don’t know where some of those comments stemmed from but I’m glad that part of the pregnancy is over.
I call you the best surprise ever! You weren’t even a thought in my head when you were forming in the womb, but God had a plan before time began. He knew every detail of your precious face. Every hair on your lovely head. He saw your entire life set out in front of you with a reason specific to you.
There is absolutely nothing unexpected about you, my sweet little man.
You are no “oops.” You, my love, are a constant sign that his ways are better than mine. His plans are better than mine. You are a part of God’s great plan. And I’m so, so thankful my plans didn’t get in the way. Because you are the greatest surprise I’ve ever known.
“Sometimes the littlest things take up the most room in your heart.” – Winnie the Pooh
Meet the newest addition to our family, Huxley Beau!
He was born on a Monday afternoon in February. 2.21.22 at 3:40 PM. He was 8 lbs 7 oz and 21.5 inches. He came one day early.
I was scheduled for an induction on Sunday night at 10 PM. They gave me two doses of Cytotec, and was then dilated to 2cm. This was going into Monday morning, ate breakfast and then they started Pitocin. After about an hour, I was already to 5-6 cm. At this point, the contractions weren’t too bad, they hurt but bearable. This is when I ordered the epidural, because with my daughter I waited until I was 8 cm for the epidural, and it wasn’t fun. The epidural was at 2:10pm, I felt the urge to push around 3:00pm. They held me off to push because my doctor was tied up in a surgery, so the resident doctor had to deliver me. I swear, it felt like there were a million people in the room but I could’ve cared less. The urge to push was the most intense wonderful feeling I’ve ever felt. To try and describe it, was almost like when you have to pee really bad, and you hold it in but it feels like it’s going to come out any second. Felt just like that, but multiplied by a hundred! I managed to wait to push until 3:36pm, little man was born at 3:40pm. Literally pushed for four minutes and he was born.
It was amazing.
Huxley was the easiest birth compared to my daughter Hadley. I had no plans as far as a birth plan goes. I know some people like an idea of what they want, but I just want what’s best for the baby and myself. All I wanted was for myself and the baby to be healthy. With him being my second child, knowing what to expect made it so much easier. I know every delivery is different, but the general gist is the same. Labor, contractions, etc.
This man right here has been THE best. Let me start off by saying I feel extremely lucky to have him by my side. He has truly been there for us as a family since Huxley was born. Checking on him at the hospital right after delivery, watching the nurses weigh him, measure him, and to make sure they don’t give him any vaccinations we weren’t aware of. Never know nowadays! The first and only night at the hospital, we were super lucky and Huxley slept the entire night! I think it was the amazing sleep sack they put on him, and sadly didn’t let us take it home.
My husband is lucky in the sense he gets so much time off from work for this birth. We take turns at night, which has been a godsend. Since I am breastfeeding, I’ll feed him for the late after dinner feeding like 10/11pm whenever the time comes. I’ll go upstairs and sleep in our bed, while the hubby will stay downstairs and sleep on the couch while Huxley sleeps. When he wakes up, Kevin will either text me or come upstairs and get me and then I’ll feed him and stay downstairs with him while Kevin sleeps in our bed. It has worked so much better this way! We both are getting decent sleep, versus having the baby in our room and both of us get woken up during the night. I can’t wait for Huxley to be in his crib, which we will introduce soon.
Kevin has been cooking lunch and dinner almost everyday. I’ve been so spoiled, I don’t want him to go back to work! He’s just been amazing throughout this entire time. Hadley and Huxley are lucky to have him home this long too. He takes and picks up Hadley for school, helps with homework, while managing to cook and sometimes clean! When I’m able to, I’ll take or pick up Hadley for school, and do the homework, and all the things. When I am able to do those things, Hadley gets so excited. It’s been a little tough for her to get used to having a new baby in the house. She’s adjusting just like any other kid, who’s used to having Mom and Dad’s undivided attention.
First bath at the hospital. It amazes me how they whip these little newborns around like they are baby dolls. They are so fragile to me in those first few weeks. He loved the bath, didn’t cry just looked super relaxed. He smelled so good after he finally got all the “birth” smell off him.
Huxley laying on Daddy’s firefighter hoodie.
The hospital had a team of nursing students that asked to take Huxley for a few minutes. They did a few assessments on him, and was so good. He was gone for more than a few minutes, so me being the Mama bear that I am, had to go check on him. He was loving life, with all these nurses giving him so much attention and stimulation.
Recovery this time around was absolutely…amazing! I truly believe it was all the exercise I was doing prior to getting pregnant, and then continuing the exercise throughout the pregnancy. Highly highly recommend exercising if you are pregnant, or plan to become pregnant!
Everything about this pregnancy and birth was seriously amazing. After he was born, I had such a small tear (down there), that wasn’t even big enough for a stitch so I had zero stitches! That alone was awesome! The hard part after birth was the delivery of the placenta, that wasn’t as fun. All the nurses tending to my lady bits, and pushing on my stomach every 15 minutes, ugh that sucked. The ice pads they give you in the hospital are the best, and once I got home I used the Tucks pads and cream they recommended which helped so much too. 4 weeks postpartum now and the bleeding has almost completely stopped! Also, I recommend taking ibuprofen around the clock the first few days to help with the random bursts of pain down there.
First trip to Daddy’s firehouse, first of many many more to come!
2 weeks / first bath at home. Big sister Hadley slowly started wanting more and more to do with her baby brother. Helping with baths was a huge stepping stone for her.
3 weeks / first walk.
3 weeks / Big sister finally held him! Hadley has always done everything on her own terms, when she is ready. We followed her lead, and kept asking if she wanted to help with little things here and there and eventually she did!
Our little lucky charm.
All the kiddos together! Brady, Natalie, Hadley, and Huxley. They loved taking this picture, I had them all lay on the carpet in the family room as I stood on the couch.
4 weeks / Introduced a pacifier. With my daughter Hadley, she wanted nothing to do with a pacifier because she was a thumb sucker. Still is at night too. Huxley has not found his thumb yet, and some days he gets extra cranky with either having trouble passing gas or burp after a feeding. So one random night this week, we whipped out the paci they give you at the hospital and he took it and immediately calmed down! I might be jinxing myself, but he’s had very good sleeping nights since this photo was taken which has been almost a week.
Huxley Beau, you are a dream. We are so glad you are here.
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