Mommy Monday: Baby socks

One of the biggest headaches of being a parent is baby socks. They are constantly falling off and getting miss placed, because of this you quickly become an expert in socks. We have socks littered all over our house, in all baby beds, in between couch cushions, under the couch and in our bed. Luckily since it is winter and we always have a blanket on Sloane when we go outside we have yet to lose any socks.

The fluffy socks that seem to be the most warm are also the one's that cause the most headache. They typically need to be stretched onto the babies foot to fit properly but due to their soft texture they quickly slip off. It doesn't help that a baby is constantly kicking their feet and rubbing them together. I really don't even understand why they make baby socks like these. The only thing I can think of is that the socks get lost so often that people have to buy more and that's how the manufactures makes money.

Thin ankle socks seem to be a bit better cause they aren't as fluffy and easy to slip off. You don't typically need to stretch them as much to have them fit properly so that is helpful but the fact that they are so short give them little to hang on with when the baby is kicking and rubbing her feet against everything.

We found some socks that are a bit thick but come up to be knee high and have a good amount of tightness that when worn as knee socks they stay on for a good amount of time. We were given these as a baby gift. They are from baby gap and they are pretty adorable but come in bright colors so they don't match many outfits as I would like.

My favorite socks that I have found is are the thin socks that fold. They fit babies foot just perfectly without having to be stretched out. The cuff of the sock hold them in place and I have found that they will stay on all day even when taking her pants off and on for diaper changes. I know the Circo makes these socks but I'm sure there are many other brands of these socks as well.

We also have some socks that look like shoes. These are a favorite of mine because they are just too adorable and I have found that they seem to stay on quite nicely also. They are also thin socks. I really think that makes a difference. The Nike Jordan socks we have fit in a completely unique way. They are loose on the foot but get a bit tighter at the ankle to hold them on. They still don't stay on that long but I have hope they will fit better when she gets bigger.

We rarely put the thick socks on Sloane anymore, unfortunately we have quite a few pairs and I don't want to waste them. I'm thankful that we got so many socks as a gifts that we were able to experiment with which socks we liked without having to go out and buy them.

Finally how do you fold your babies socks? I fold them together like I would my socks but I find that it makes the one sock on the outside stretched out and that is what makes one sock fall off all day while the other happily stays in place. What are your thoughts on baby socks? Am I just completely over analyzing this?

**please forgive me for not listing many brands of the socks, I was given all our socks as gifts and the only way I know who has made the socks is if it says on the bottom as a grip**

 

Neck pain equals a trip to the ER?

If you guys follow me on Twitter or Facebook than you probably already know that my Thursday turned crazy real quick!

It all started Monday while I was at work. I had a tummy ache since Sunday and then suddenly I got a neck ache. (already falling part on my second day back to work) The neck ache was super annoying just round my collar bone. I took some ibuprofen, tried stretching it out and messaging it in hopes to get it better. Come Wednesday and the pain was still bad and seemed to have gotten a bit worse. I also noticed that the stomach ache never really went away. It seemed like the two pains were connected (neck pain was far worse) so I decided I would make a Dr appointment after nearly everyone said i should. I got an appointment for the next day at 1:15pm.

Going to the Dr I didn't really have much hope that they would be able to help besides giving me some stretches to do since I am breast feeding and the pain killers I can take are limited. I got there right on time and described what my symptoms were and much to my surprise the Dr said that I needed to go to the ER. It was the combo of symptoms that worried her. My stomach ache that hadn't gone away was right under the middle of my rib cage was interpreted as chest pain I guess and the fact that my neck didn't really hurt when I moved but did when I took deep breaths lead to her think I could possibly have a blood clot. I was in shock! How does neck pain change to a blood clot so fast? The Dr offered to have a ambulance take me to the hospital but of course I refused. I was just having freaking neck pain! I texted Mat and told him to get dressed because he had to take me to the ER. I think I freaked him out a bit.

I drove myself home and got Sloane ready while Mat got dressed and we headed off to Evergreen Hospital. I packed a bunch of pumped milk in case they wanted to give me drugs that would prevent me from breast feeding. The car ride was pretty silent, I shouldn't have told Mat how bad a blood clot could be.

Checking into the hospital was easy cause the doctor had called and said I was on my way. I had to be wheeled around in a wheel chair which I thought was just ridiculous but "people with chest pain get the royal treatment" according to the nurses. Once checked in I was wheeled to room 24, right next to a room where the patient was screaming. To say I didn't feel like I should be there was an under statement.

They said they had to do some blood work, a chest x ray and hook me up to heart monitors and an IV. Once we were done with that it was a waiting game to see what the blood work said. The blood test was to see if I had a blood clot. If it came back positive it didn't actually mean I had a blood clot but it did mean they needed to take a closer look. Much to my surprise the test came back positive so I had to be given a cat scan.

Getting a cat scan for the first time was pretty exciting. The machine talks to you can tells you when to hold your breath and when to breath and when to swallow and not swallow. They also had to give me a injection to make my blood contrast in the pictures. The contrast injection was a crazy feeling. It makes you all warm, gives you a metallic taste in your mouth and makes you feel like you peed your pants. Once done they covered me in warmed blankets cause I was pretty cold and wheeled me back into my room to waiting Mat and Sloane. They said it would be a 45 minute wait for the results.

I must say Sloane did so great while there. I fed her when we first got there and then she was a happy baby watching everyone hooking me up to all the machines. Of course everyone commented about how adorable she was and what a good baby she was. She fussed for just a little bit when she got tired but we put her in her car seat, closed to cover and rocked her till she fell asleep. The highlight of the ER was seeing her little feet poking out from under the car seat cover.

They came back with the results about an hours later and said it all looked good. No blood clot!!  I was relieved but to be honest I never really believed that I had anything that serious to begin with. I mostly felt ridiculous about being at the ER. They said they did see some little spot right under my diaphragm that I should have looked at again in like 9 months, just to see if it hasn't grown or anything, but nothing really to worry about. So they sent me on my way. I wasn't really thinking, I should have asked what to do about my neck, so I left still in pain. I was just happy to be getting out of there.

Mat and I hadn't eaten anything since we had breakfast so we headed to burgermaster for dinner. I was too excited to have a burger, fries and a peanut butter shake after the crazy day I had. I was exhausted and ready to just relax from the stress. I felt bad cause it was my forth day back to work and I was already back in the hospital. I swear I hope I don't see another hospital till I have our next baby, which won't be for a few years at least!

 

Beauty Wise Wednesday: Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch review

Welcome to another Beauty Wise Wednesday! This week I'm going to review a concealer that was recomended to me by a YouTuber: Glamour Wonderland. It was her best of 2012 video and for some reason she really made this concealer sound appealing. It's called Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch in Radiant and you can get it at any drug store for around $7.

I don't typically wear concealer, but I don't usually wear much make up besides a cover girl liquid to solid compact. I have to say I really do like this concealer. I remember when I did wear concealer they were thick and never really felt so natural on my face. Another issue I had with concealer was that I have already have a very red face so I wasn't ever sure where to put the concealer. I always felt like I should just put it all over my face. Again thanks to the magic of YouTube I have gotta tips as to where to put concealer.

So where do I put this concealer? Well this concealer is also a double purpose as a highlighter. I put it first on my under eyes to cover those pesky dark circles under my eyes and while I'm at it I put it into the inner corner of my eyes to brighten my face and make me look a bit more awake. (an important thing for a new mommy like myself) I then put it down the middle of my nose to give it a highlight as well as the side creases of my nose that tend to get bit red this time of year. Also if I'm not feeling like wearing too much eye shadow I will wear this concealer right under my eyebrows as a highlight. Then i finish it up on any blemishes I have on my face, which I seem to have quite a few after giving birth!

So how does this concealer last through the day? I think it does pretty amazing. The dark circles under my eyes are still concealed after an 8 hour shift at work. It also does a great job at concealing my huge red zits that constantly cover my chin these days, which I am very grateful for.

Overall I would 100% recommend this concealer to someone looking for something at a reasonable price, that has a soft finish and lasts all day with good coverage.


**Please forgive my horrible photography, I just took the pictures with my IPhone, I'll be hopefully using a better camera in the future!**

Mommy Monday

Well I'm in the middle of day two back to work. (I'm lucky to be able to sneak in blogging at work) First day was quite a struggle.

First of all I forgot my nipple shields for my breast pump so by the end of my 8 hr shift a was a leaky mess. (I attempted to hand express but that takes way too long to make any difference. Secondly Sloane was still struggled to take a bottle which added to my stress of leaving her. Mat said she cried for nearly 2 hrs straight then fell asleep. Luckily mat attempted to feed her right as she woke up and she finally took the bottle. She was fine after that.

I'm so thankful for modern technology that allows mat to communicate with me. He was able to send a picture to me of her sleeping and once she has happy and fed he sent me a video of her sitting in her bumpo. The video nearly made me cry knowing that they had made it through an were happy.

Day two it seemed that she ate a bit easier but was still a bit fussy. Do you think she is stressed because I'm not home with her? I'm happy that Mat has this time to bond with her cause I just know she is a daddies girl in the making! I also successfully pumped at work. I think by the end of the week we should have routines down and we will all be less stressed.

The night before returning to work

Well it is the night before I return to work and man am I a bundle of emotions! We are trying to get Sloane to take a bottle from daddy so that I feel confident about him feeding her tomorrow while I'm at work for 8 hours. So far it has been almost two hours of her screaming, falling asleep, taking the bottle for two seconds then screaming again. I want to know that she will eventually take the bottle so we are holding off nursing her for as long as we can stand it. I've been told that she will eventually eat.

Right now daddy is in Sloane's room with the door closed trying to feed her while I am out in the living room trying not to cry my eyes out! I read that if i'm where i can be seen or heard she could refuse the bottle. Writing this blog is my distration, before this I picked out pictures for the new frames we got for the living room.

I am going to leave mat with a dropper, a spoon and a sippy cup tomorrow cause I've read those are other ways to feed a baby that refuses a bottle. If going back to work when Sloane is only 9 weeks old isn't stressful enough, her refusing a bottle is just adding to my anxiety!


** Later that night we gave up, gave her a bath and put her in her bumpo seat for the first time. She watched an entire episode (25 minutes) of Blues Clues, eyes glued to it while sitting happily in her bumpo!**

Parenthood can be hard but all the fun things make it 1000x worth it!

 

What kind of struggles have you faced and how did you ge through them?