3 months old

Wow! I cant believe it has been a month and a half since I lasted posted! Rane is getting so big! She is really coming to life these days. She is starting to smile a lot more and will follow our voices and look for us! I think the BEST thing of all is bath time. She LOVES it! In fact, tonight, she laughed out loud for the first several minutes of her bath and she always cries when we take her out! She is so much fun! She has started to really be aware of her surroundings and loves to look around. We survived the 2 month shots with only a few minutes of screaming! We have also survived 3 trips to Montgomery and back! She actually travels pretty well! On Sept 7 she started WEE school at Highland. We laugh because for the 1st 2 weeks, she was the only baby in her class that DIDNT scream when being dropped off. We were worried that she might develop bad habits, but it seems that she has taught those other babies a thing or two about how to "chill." It is a nice break for me to be able to have child care for a few hours during the days. It still gives Mike and I each a day to stay home with her as WEE is only Tues-Thurs. Rane continues to operate on a good a predictable schedule. She still eats at 8, 1130, 3, 6 and then at around 8. She naps from 930-1030, 1-3, 430-530 and then 7-8. She is usually down for the night by 9 or so and usually sleeps until about 5 or 6, but with a quick insert of the paci, she is back down til 745! Its is WONDERFUL! She has already had one growth spurt that made me wonder if she was sick...but the very next day, she went from taking her usual 25oz/ day to a whopping 34oz! She was just hungry ALL day!
Tonight while trying to burp her, she did the funniest thing. Just as a goof, I was doing the cheer "GIve me a B....B, give me a U...U, give me an R...R, give me a P...P, What's that spell?" and as if she understood exactly what I had said, Rane burped on cue! It was hilarious to Mike and me!
Rane has gotten more and more interrested in music and singing. She loves when I put on her CDs and sing to her and make crazy faces/sounds. She also likes to watch TV...especially baseball and football...go figure!
She is getting so big so fast. She is already 25 inches long and is probably about 13.5lbs (just a guess) She has just started wearing her 3-6 months clothes and I had that tearful mommy moment while I packed away all of her outgrown newborn and 0-3 clothes. Its amazing how fast she has grown!
She continues to light up our world! I couldnt have asked for a better child, nor could I have predicted how much love I would have for this sweet little girl!

Time FLIES!!!

So it has now been 7 weeks since little Rane made her big debut! It is so hard to believe! I hate that I haven't been blogging as much as I had planned but it is hard to tear myself away from her! She is such a great baby! We are enjoying every little bit!
My mom stayed in town from the time she was born until July 19 (Her 41st wedding anniversary) and then Mike's parents arrived from NJ on July 20th to spend a few days! It was a whirlwind visit but it was great!
The biggest sigh of relief though came on Sunday July 25. Rane was officially 1 month old and we finally had a house that was only filled with the 3 of us! Our little family of 3 were able to just skip church, rest, relax and watch movies. It was so restful and it felt GREAT!
Mike and I have both had our struggles with getting used to caring for a baby, but we are both settling in. We enjoy giving Rane a bath...SHE LOVES IT and seems as though she could sit there for HOURS! Feeding her is a little frustrating sometimes, but honestly she eats the best at 3am! HAHA! The funny part of her feedings is that sometimes she absolutely REFUSES to burp for me. I can ask Mike to help, and within SECONDS of him taking her, she will let out the manliest burp! Its like their special little bond. It cracks me up!
She gets the hiccups all the time and is frustrates her but its really cute! She also coughs during her feedings and it is so funny because they sound so fake because they are such tiny little coughs, but I know they are real!
We have continued to enjoy watching her become more and more aware of her surroundings. She loves to look around and will follow our voices. She will reach for her bottle and pacifier and is able to roll from her side to her back on her own. She holds her head up GREAT and loves tummy time (as long as it is by laying on mine or Mike's chest) She's not crazy about being on the play mat on her belly.
We have ALMOST slept all the way through the night. Two nights ago, we put Rane to bed a little before 11 and she woke up around 5 or 5:30 to eat! I am hoping that within another week, she will be going all the way through the night!
We are so blessed that we own our own business. It has allowed Mike and I to take turns staying home with Rane while the other goes to work! We each enjoy our days with her and it is nice to know that we are not going to miss these precious moments.
We have gotten out with Rane a couple of times although the heat has been oppressive! We are excited to be out and about more once the temps drop. She enjoys being in the jogging stroller. It was fun to take a walk with her in the late evening and watch her look around at all of the sounds of the bugs in the trees. She did great! We also took her to downtown Florence for First Fridays where there are booths of vendors and live music. Again, it was hot, but she did awesome!
Rane is on a fantastic schedule. We now are VERY regulated. She eats at 8am, 11:30am, 3pm, 6:30pm, and 10pm. Then she wakes up once during the night to eat! She also has a regular nap time from about 1pm-3pm every day and will usually nap for an hour in the morning and an hour in the early evening! She is such an easy baby!
I still cant get over how big she is getting and how fast it is passing by! We love each new little development and milestone, but at the same time, I sometimes wish that she would stay tiny! Its the best feeling to cuddle up and let her nap on my chest, or have her nestled in my arm for her feedings. I know that the next time I blink she will be holding her own bottle and not needing me to hold her! But for now, I will LOVE every moment and take it all in! As I typed the last sentence, Rane started crying. Right on cue...3:02 pm...Nap over, time to eat!!!

summer 2010 (92 photos), by Brynn Gilbreath

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Home from ECM through 1 month (82 photos), by Brynn Gilbreath

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
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3 weeks in!

So we have survived three full weeks of parenthood! Things have been going pretty well and in the last three days I feel like we are finally hitting our stride! Rane has been on a good schedule, although just today she decided to throw us a curve ball! However, its a GOOD curve ball...instead of eating 3-3.5 oz every 3 hours, she is going about 4-4.5 hours and eating 4 oz! Not sure where this new appetite and contentment came from but I LOVE IT!
I think I am finally starting to come out of my hormonal and emotional fog that caused me to cry for silly reasons and feel ridiculously overwhelmed. Now I am feeling confident as a Mom, I just have to regain my confidence as not only a Mom, but a Mom who is ALSO a successful business owner and wife. That's 3...count 'em...THREE full time jobs! :-) I am getting there though!
This little girl has already brought us tons of joy, lots of smiles and laughs (at her funny faces and sounds) and I think we are both surprised at how much love we have for this little person that we have only known for 3 weeks.

We took Rane to the doctor on Tuesday for her 2 week checkup and she has surpassed the Dr's expectation for weight gain. He was hoping that she would be back up to her birth weight (7 lb 5 oz) but she was already at 7 lb 13 oz. I was worried that in my emotional state, I would sob profusely when they pricked her heal to draw blood. Funny thing happened though, I could NOT stop laughing at Rane b/c she screamed like crazy when the nurse cleaned her foot with the alcohol pad...then didn't even flinch when they did the heal prick! It may sound mean to laugh at my child, but knowing that there was nothing hurting her...just cleaning her foot, I couldn't help it!

One of my favorite things about Rane is watching her wake up. She makes the funniest faces as she stretches and squirms! She cracks me up! We have unofficially nicknamed her "Squirmy Wormy" because she is a constant wiggle worm...when we feed her, change her, dress her, even just holding her...she is WIGGLY!!!

Within the last few days she has become increasingly more alert and spends her waking moments scanning the world around her and checking things out. I know that her vision is not very good yet, but she sure does seem interested in everything around her.

She still is an easy baby...not really fussy, unless she is hungry and she is just a joy to have around. I know that I sound like every other new mother who is totally enamored with her newborn, but what they say is true. You can never understand this love until you have a child of your own, and at the same time it gives me a whole new level of appreciation for my mother and all that she did in raising my brother and me!

God is good! He sent us the perfect little baby and we are thrilled and blessed to be her parents!

1 week old today!

Well, today Rane is one week old! She is a wonderful baby so far. She only cries when shes is cold (diaper change/bath time) or if she has a burp that just wont come out (which has only happened twice) She eats at regular 3-3.5hr intervals except at night. She seems to go about 5-6 hours between her "last" meal of the night and her "first" meal of the day! Last night she went down at 12:15am and I woke her up at 6:15am. She was still very content and could have probably gone longer, but due to her check up this morning, I wanted to get the day moving! She is just a joy to have around. She makes great faces and loves to stretch! Swaddling will fix almost ANY problem and she sleeps very well between feedings (This certainly helps us catch up on sleep/chores)
She will let anyone hold her or kiss her and I have yet to find anything that makes her unhappy (other than being cold).

We have been so blessed by an AMAZING group of family and friends. Our Sunday school class has gotten together to make sure that we have meals brought to us every other day from now until the middle of July! My mother has taken 2 weeks off of work to help out during the day with laundry, running errands, grocery shopping, addressing birth announcements, and watching the baby so I can shower, etc. Mike has stepped into the temporary role of Chick-fil-A Operator, taking care of all of the month end duties at work and making sure all is well there. My employees have been SOOO wonderful about being self sufficient and have only called a time or two, allowing me to rest and not worry about work! God has blessed us with such a great staff! I am just blown away!

I guess the theme for the last week is intense gratitude! Gratitude to God for a healthy baby girl and for the people He has put into our life, and gratitude to those people for the ways that they have gone out of their way to show their love to Mike and me!

To quote the chorus of an old church hymn:

"Count you blessings name them one by one, Count your blessings see what God has done, Count your many blessings, name them one by one. Count your many blessing see what God has done"

Rane Malise Albretsen

Here are my 2 favorite pictures of our new little one! These were taken on Monday June 27 at only 3 days old

Rane Malise Albretsen (65 photos), by Brynn Gilbreath

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waiting game

Well, we have made it past the "critical stage" on the whole bed rest thing! At this point, whenever our little one decides to arrive, the Dr will go ahead with it rather than try to stop it. Today is also my dad's 62nd birthday! Selfishly, I have been hoping that I would go into labor today and they would go ahead and deliver b/c I think it would be really special for them to share a birthday! I have a doctors appointment at 2pm today. Who knows, maybe I will be dilated enough for that to actually happen. She said if I dilate to 4cm she will go ahead and deliver, although last Thurs I wasn't dilated at all, so chances are SLIM! Oh well. It is a really strange feeling because I know that the longer she is able to "cook" the better, but I also want her to be born today. Its weird...I almost feel like, if she doesn't come today, then I'd just as soon wait until the 6th when we are scheduled. The only thing I was thinking would be neat with respect to her delivery date would be if if were on Dad's bday OR on/before Father's day (which is this coming Sunday). As of right now though, there are no real physical signs that anything will happen today (unless when we go to the Dr, my blood pressure is really high or I am dilated)
SO WE WAIT~! God is really trying to teach me patience with this child already...especially with the bed rest!!!
The last few days though have been really good! I woke up with TONS of energy on Saturday and it has maintained itself even today. Saturday and Monday were by far the most energetic days though! Its crazy! I haven't done any of the "scrubbing the floor with a toothbrush" type nesting things, but I did shop vac the basement, boil and prepare all of the bottles/nipples, did a little shopping and got a lot done at work yesterday! I have felt REALLY productive although I realize, it hasn't been really "restful"..but then again, I haven't felt that I have needed the rest! I have been resting since May 19!
Anyway...after all of that rambling, I am excited to see what the doctor says today! Hopefully there is either enough progress that we will be watching for an "any day now" delivery OR things are stable enough that I can be taken off bed rest and be allowed to resume my life! :-)

Better late than never...8 months Preggo!

So what's the cure for boredom?

Well, we are about 2 weeks in to this "modified bedrest" thing and I am trying to keep from going insane. I have tackled all the thank you notes for gifts recieved at showers, balanced the checkbook, paid the bills, put together those last few baby items including putting in batteries for anything that needs it, packed my hospital bag, completed a 1000 piece Thomas Kinkade puzzle and taken quite a few naps. I have gotten an education on Blood Diamonds, Revolutionary War, The REAL Robin Hood, The Boston Tea Party, and several other things thanks to the history channel and I think I have memorized most of the political ads on TV...."How's that working out for you?" happens to be the most annoying tag line at the end of one said commercial!

The past 2 days or so have been a little crazy and I havent followed Drs orders but I have been able to be involved at work. For those who arent familiar with my work...the end/beginning of the month is always CRAZY. So on top of the normal inventory, paperwork, accounting, payroll, etc that goes into month end, we are also rolling out a brand new product at Chick-fil-A...The SPICY chicken sandwich. Normally I am THRILLED with new product launches. Dont get me wrong, this sandwich is AMAZING (and if you havent tried it, you will be able to purchase one on Monday June 7,) but its exhausting trying to add one more thing into my life/schedule right now...and to top it off...HOLIDAY WEEKEND!!! Additionally, the manager that usually helps out with month end every month is on vacation in Alaska for 2.5 weeks. WHAT WAS I THINKING? At least he will be back before NEXT month end.
And if that didnt all stress me out enough, I have 7-8 people who are all on vacation next week, and 2 that will be in their 2nd week of their 2 week notice! AND IM ON BEDREST AND CANT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT!!!!!!!!!
Thankfully I do have a GREAT General Manager who is handling all of this with almost effortless ease and a husband who is picking up my slack with little to no complaint!
So the baby's room is done, clothes are folded/hung, and I have a small list of things that I have to purchase before she arrives which is on my list of things to do on Sunday! Otherwise, we are ready to go. I am 34 weeks as of now and I go to the Dr tomorrow. My C-section is still scheduled for July 6 which is exactly 5 weeks away. The Dr. is hoping that my blood pressure stays normal and that my water doesnt break before 37 weeks. If I go into labor before June 15 they will try to stop it, otherwise...whenever RMA decides to try to come they will just go with it.
For those of you who know me well, you know that I like to PLAN things. Its a little unnerving to know that sometime between 15-36 days from now (if all goes according to plan) I will be a mom to this little person that loves to kick my ribs and dance on my bladder. I don't even handle the 4 hour window given by the cable company well...and you want to give me a 21 day window? UGH! Everyone just keeps telling me that its good practice to get used to things NOT going as I plan, especially once the baby actually gets here.
I keep trying to think of more things that I can plan...like having a grocery list already ready with cash or credit card so mom or someone can have the house stocked for when I get home from the hospital, having the house cleaned, Drs appointments made, etc etc. I think I am driving Mike a little nuts but how is a Type A person supposed to cope under these circumstances? I keep telling people...I DON'T DO DOWN TIME!
When the highlight of your day is going to the bank, post office, and voting site....that's pretty sad! For those of you who are able to get up, go to work, work in the yard, clean the house, drive around, play with your pets, etc....CONSIDER YOURSELF BLESSED! When you are told NOT to do all of those things...you really start to realize and appreciate the VALUE of feeling productive and useful!

Sooner rather than later

So we just got back from the doctor and unfortunately, the appointment sort of went the way I expected it to go! I had just been telling Mike that I didnt think we would make it all the way to the scheduled C-Section date of July 6. I had also just told Amy at work, "what if I go in and she tells me I am already dilated and puts me on bed rest?"
Needless to say.....
Well actually I am not dilated yet, but she is concerned b/c the baby is putting a lot of pressure on my pelvic floor and I am already thinning. She put me on modified bed rest and laughed when I mentioned making it to July 6th. She politely smiled and said that June babies were great!
I love my doctor, her concern and her honesty. Basically at this point, we are just trying to make sure that I take it easy in hopes that we can hold out another 3-4 weeks. Her/Our hope is that we can eliminate the need for having a NICU stay! So I am a little scared and apprehensive, but also I am pleased that I am under the care of a doctor that I really like and trust. Its just a little nerve wracking to know that my daughter will probably be here in 1/2 the time that we thought! HOLY SMOKES!

Birthdate

So...
I officially feel pregnant. Not that I haven't already, but now I really feel like it. I have recently started gaining the actual baby weight so I feel like I have a 3-5lb BRICK sitting low in my stomach. My belly just feels heavy most of the time and my feet are starting to swell. You know, all the flattering parts about pregnancy!
My doctor said that it was time to stop teaching my BodyFlow class, which actually worked out ok, because this was my last week to do so anyway. I am on medication to prevent premature "water breakage" and am not supposed to be on my feet more than 2 hrs at a time. So, OFFICIALLY PREGNANT!
We have a date set for the C-Section now...July 6. Two of my employees are happy b/c it falls on their birthday. Mike was mostly interested in googling what famous people were born on that day and making sure that no one along the lines of Hitler or Stalin was born then. So...probably the most notable are George W. Bush, Sylvester Stalone and Dalai Lama. Who would have thought something like that would matter when selecting a birth date. Really I am aware that she could still come early, but looking online, I think most of the dates surrounding the 6th are free from the birth of lunatics. Mike thinks that the 4th of July is a good date...because of course we all know that Yankees legend George Steinbrenner was born on that day! I would prefer we avoid it b/c I don't want my daughters birthday to be overshadowed by a national holiday every year. She needs/deserves her OWN day!

Baby Bump progression beginning at 5 months

So THATS why!!!!

So, I figured it out. Braxton Hicks! That I believe is the root to my icky-ness and discomfort. Those darn contractions have started and now that I have pinpointed it, somehow I feel better about it. I knew that alot of my issue was mental!
So I have now resigned myself to the fact that:
1. Yes, doing one load of laundry can wear me out to the point of needing a nap, and that's ok.
2. Braxton Hicks contractions are going to happen from now until RMA gets here.
3. They are uncomfortable but not painful so I can deal with it.
and now that I know the root cause; I can mentally snap myself out of it and move on!
HOORAY!
(plus, Chinese food with friends and a Sonic Blast help to snap me out of a funk as well!)

Third Trimester changes

So, people were telling me that the 2nd trimester was great but then the 3rd trimester would hit and it would all be down hill. Up until yesterday I was thinking that maybe I was safe from that. It is such a strange thing to try to explain but I just feel like I have been beat up. Its that weird feeling you get either right before or right after you have been sick and you just cant muster the strength to do anything. I feel like such a weenie because it's not like I feel BAD, I just don't feel GOOD. Its sort of frustrating.

I am just wondering what else to expect over the next 9 weeks or so. Is this BLAH, unproductive and icky feeling going to plague me until my little one arrives? If so, can I just raise my hand and say "I'm done"? I hate feeling this way! I am the type of person that does not do well with down time. I like to stay busy, productive and active. Any suggestions on shaking this or does it just come with the territory?

So needless to say, yesterday I battled this new phenomenon and today I have been battling it as well. I think the main annoying part of it is that I know so much of it is mental! The point is, its now 3:15pm, we are under a tornado warning, and I sit here in my PJs with the dogs crated in the hallway and I have done nothing more than 2 loads of laundry all day. PITIFUL!

On a completely different note:

Its so strange the way my brain works! Since I grew up on a farm in AL, I keep thinking of the 2 horses and either 4 or 5 cows that we had that actually gave birth in tornado warnings/horrible weather. It makes me wonder...could either my friend Nikki Dee or I go into labor with this storm?! I know its not really realistic, but how close are we to animals in that respect? Go ahead...laugh!

Time is drawing near~

So I don't know how much I will actually use this blog, but I do find myself enjoying the blogs of other mothers to be and the info/advice that I get from other moms so, I thought, why not. I may or may not find this to be something that I enjoy or have the time to do, but better to start NOW before baby comes than trying to start afterward...although, I will probably have more interesting things to say AFTER she gets here.
I used to REALLY enjoy blogging many years ago. It was a creative outlet for me and was quite therapeutic really. People have been telling me that I need to savor these last few weeks and do something that lets me relax and so, maybe this is it. The pregnancy really has been great. So many people that I know have really tough ones, filled with sickness, pain, discomfort or complications. Honestly, I have been really blessed. Sure there have been days where I break into tears for almost no reason, feel a little nauseated and just want to do nothing but sleep, but those are all minor inconveniences for the blessing of life that is coming our way.
The funny thing is that I am STILL ME...even when consumed by a baby on the way. I have imposed strict "schedules" on myself about when to have the nursery ready, what has to get done and even "planning" when she will arrive. I cant help that I am a Type-A personality, so I just try to use it to my advantage. But thanks to that, the nursery has been ready since March, her closet is already STOCKED until she is 2 (literally) thanks to some really generous friends with 3 daughters and I haven't even had my 1st shower.
I have already enrolled her in WEE school. That's a strange feeling...putting down a deposit and filling out registration forms for someone you have never even met! How am I supposed to know what her sleeping/eating habits are and what things make caring for her easier (soothing/comfort items, etc)? But regardless, she is enrolled!
Its a bit bizarre to look at the calendar and realize that we are only 10 weeks away from meeting our daughter. We looked to see what was going on in our lives between now and her arrival and realized that there is only 1 weekend that is "free" between now and her arrival.
This weekend (5/2): my 1st shower weekend,
next weekend (5/9): mother's day weekend,
the week after that (5/16): Chris and Angela's wedding weekend in NJ,
the week after that (5/23): my shower, Emily's wedding and big Managers meeting with work,
after that (5/30): end of the month paperwork,
after that (6/6) Sunday school fellowship/shower weekend,
after that (6/13) 10 yr high school reunion weekend,
after that (6/20): Father's day weekend,
after that (6/27): FREE WEEKEND,
after that (7/4) Fourth of July weekend....AND SHE'S HERE!
HOLY COW!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know it is strange to evaluate my life by my weekends, but typically its how I measure things since Sunday is my only day off.
Anyway...hopefully I will be pretty good about keeping this relatively up to date and can use it as our little girl grows to post photos/videos and updates especially for our extended family that wont be able to see her as often.