Embrace the Camera

I am failing hardcore at getting "real" pictures of myself & my girl. =( But we did take a lot of iPhone pictures yesterday, and she's taking a great nap right now, so it may be my only chance to make a post! This is kind of like a day in my life, via iPhone.

In the morning, Ruby woke up feeling MUCH better than the day before. Lets just say 2 month shots? Yeah, they suck. Poor baby. All better now though, and ready for a donut date with our friend Julie!

Since it was 7-11, we wanted to get out and find a 7-11 store to get a free Slurpee. I don't think I've even had a Slurpee since high school. I asked Keith if he knew where one was, and he told me North Bend. North Bend? GREAT! There just so happens to be a Carter's store there!

So off we went to NB, and lo and behold, what did we find in the Carter's store (for $2.99 no less)?

Obviously she had to have that. I couldn't believe I found something with her name on it! Then again, I was kind of sad because that means her name is getting popular. Something I really wanted to avoid, being a Jennifer in the 80's.

Anyway, we left Carter's, and I whipped out my phone to find the address of the 7-11.  Yeah...  There is no 7-11 in North Bend.  Rubes and I were sad.

So we went home with no Slurpees.  Somebody preferred a clean diaper and some milk to Slurpees anyway, so it was happy times again!

We decided to try tummy time on the Boppy.  This girl, she does not love her tummy time.  On the floor, that is.  It turns out, tummy time on Boppy = success!  A happy baby, showing off how big and strong she's getting!

Pretty soon it was time for Daddy to come home.  You'd think they were doing something cute like read a book or something, but no, they are watching me fold her laundry.  He doesn't know I took this picture.  In fact, he specifically told me not to take his picture, and thought I was just getting Ruby.  I told him he needed to embrace the camera so that she has pictures of her with her daddy to look back on.  He said maybe some other day.  I decided the day was now!  Oops! =)

Pretty soon after that we strapped into the stroller and took Braidy for a walk around the neighborhood.  Both my phone and camera were left at home, so no pictures of that, and once we were back, it was bed time for little girls!

So there you have it.  A day in our life (barely) embracing the camera.  I've got to get better at this.

A Little Sensitivity Goes a Long Way

Since I just recently un-privatized my blog, and have like, no followers, I doubt anyone will ever read this.  But it is important, and it's bugging me, and I need to get it out.  I want this post in here so that I don't forget, and also so I can find the link below if I ever need it.

Today I was doing what I do best: perusing Facebook on my phone while Ruby was sleep-nursing.  Something caught my eye as I was scrolling down.  A friend had commented on someone else's post.  That person had posted the MSN article, 10 Things Never to Say to Childless Friends.  I'd read the article before, when we were struggling to get pregnant.  It resonated with me, and I had the hope that if people saw it on their MSN page (or when someone posts it to FB), maybe, just maybe it would spare a little bit of hurt from people who are already hurting.

Turns out, people can read articles like that and still be just as insensitive and ignorant.

The comments from other people stated that the article was ridiculous.  That if they had to watch what they say about something silly like that around others, then they guessed they couldn't ever talk about anything because it might upset someone.  That saying, "when are you guys going to have kids?" shouldn't cause a reaction for anyone, and if it does, they are too sensitive.  That a question like that is the same as asking something innocent like, "where do your parents live?"

My fingers were itching over the keyboard to say something, but I didn't.  I don't know the person who posted the link, and I don't know the commenter.  And my FB friend whose friend it was, is someone I haven't seen since high school.  I guess I didn't want to cause a scene.  Maybe I should have.  It's people like that commenter that make the pain of infertility SO much harder to bear.  I really wanted to ask her if she would ask someone where their parents lived, if that person's parents had just died.  Dramatic?  Yes. But people mourn the loss of fertility just as they do the loss of a loved one.  It's losing the loved one you never got to have.

However...

One was scored for the good guys today, too.  Now that Ruby is asleep, I opened up my blog reader, and saw something that put a smile on my face.  A blogger I've been following for a couple of years announced her pregnancy.  I'm pretty sure that blogger has been trying to get pregnant at least since I started following her blog.  I don't know her, but I am SO happy for her success.  I can say with almost certainty that she had to endure comments like those talked about in that MSN article, and I know the relief she must feel now that they've stopped.

I wish everyone struggling would have success as well.  To want a child so badly, but not be able to have one is the worst thing to have to endure.  It is my hope that there will be more articles like that MSN one to pave the way for just a little bit of sensitivity.  It really does go a very long way.

Will I Ever...

... stop needing to go in and check on her while she sleeps?

I love how you can just see that her right arm is up by her face through the blanket.  Don't love that she put her blanket over her face.

That picture was from another night (I couldn't believe she'd busted her swaddle already - it'd only been 30 minutes!), but every night is the same. Until I fall asleep, I periodically have to go in and check on her. Mostly I just want to make sure she's breathing. I'm blessed to have a good nighttime sleeper at 2 months old already, but when she's still on the monitor for too long, well, I worry.

Yes, it's 79 degrees in her room at 10:00pm right now.

They drill into your head the scariness of SIDS, and that sure sticks with you.  Plus, Ruby has choked on her spit while sleeping a couple of times already, totally freaking us out.  She was always fine, and able to breathe, and scream because it scared her.  And we were awake still both times, and heard her make a funny noise, and ran in to get her as she started to scream, but still...  The hallway seems so long when it is separating me from my baby.

So I'll stare at the monitor.  I'll convince myself she's fine, and I don't need to go in there.  Then five seconds later, get up to go do it.  Luckily, Ruby must have a sixth sense about me.  More often than not, just as I've decided, that's it, I'm going in, she stirs.  It is just enough to calm my new-mommy nerves.  Until next time.

Embrace the Camera

It's no lie, I hate having my picture taken.  Add in post-pregnancy weight to lose, and it's down right torture.  But I stumbled across Emily's Embrace the Camera posts.  She started them for her kids, every week making sure to take some time out to be in pictures with her kids so that they have them to look back upon one day.  How cool is that?

So for my Ruby, I will do it.  I actually meant to have Keith take some pics of us yesterday when she was all dressed up for the holiday, but, well, it was hard enough getting pics of just her.  She was quite the grouch-baby yesterday, and is today as well.  Which explains our poor quality iphone pictures.  In most of our self-portraits, she's screaming.

Like this one.

Oh, Rubes.  I love you, even if you are the grouchiest of little girls.  Camera, consider yourself embraced.

Happy 4th!

Nicknames...

... she has a lot of them.

When Ruby was in my belly, she had one nickname, and one only.  Freebie.  I remember calling her that in front of my coworker, Laurel, and it drove her nuts.  She said that was a terrible nickname for a child, and I kind of agree (but it is a great name for a fetus!).  I hoped she'd earn her own nicknames once she was an outside baby.  Boy has she ever.

These photos have nothing to do with this post, but isn't she cute??

Already we call her:

*Rubes - this one's a given.  I actually hated it at first, but it has definitely grown on me.

*Rubes McGoobs

*McGoobs or just Goobs - clearly a spin off of the above.

*Toots McGoots - apparently we like McNicknames.  Also, she is a seriously gassy baby!

*Toots

It's worth mentioning that I hate safari animals or cartoony crap for babies.  So I didn't buy this outfit for her, BUT, wouldn't you know it?  These are some great pics of her.

*Grouch-Baby

*Groucher or Little Groucher - these two stem from that fact that, well, she's crabby!

*Little One

*Peanut

*Babes or Baby

Swingin' those fists of goodness.

*Rubik's Cube or Rubes Cubes

*Rhubarb Pie

ETA: I thought of another one!!!  "Baby Bird"  We call her that because when she's hungry, she makes a little beak with her lips and opens and closes them.  Ah, my little Baby Bird. =)

And the list, I'm sure, will go on.  In fact, I didn't know the proper spelling of Rubik's Cube, so I googled it.  As I was typing it in, up popped suggestions and there was one we hadn't thought of yet.  Rubicon.  Maybe not the best nickname, but who knows what will come out of our mouths.  She's been called "Ruby-doo" (like Scooby-doo) by some family members, but for some reason that one really bugs me.  So we don't call her that.

I pooh-pooh your Ruby-doo nickname!

At our parent-baby class last week, the guest presenter asked if any of our babies recognize and respond to their own names yet.  As I shook my head "no", I thought to myself, how could she?  We call her a different name every time we talk to her!  Poor kid.

Five Years

Five years ago Keith and I had our first date.  Those years were full of moving in together, moving to our current house, getting our beloved Braidy-dog, a few vacations (a couple of them Hawaiian), buying a car, getting married, and most importantly, becoming parents.  It's been quite a ride, and I'm looking forward to the next 5!