St. Patrick's Day at TCM

We loaded all 5 kids in the van and drove 2 hours to The Children’s Museum on Sunday, which is not really that big of a deal except that it’s been a long time since we’ve been. The last time we went was December of 2017. There's a picture from that visit of Rob carrying two sleeping toddlers at the end of the day. We didn’t go a single time during 2018. I feel like there were a lot of things we didn’t do, or didn’t do as much in 2018. I feel like my pregnancy, a new baby, two insane toddlers, it kept us from doing as much as we usually do. And that’s not to say we didn’t do things. Denver road trip, multiple lake vacays, the entire month of October. We did things, but I feel like what we did was limited. Limited to what I felt I could handle, or limited by how I thought Scarlett and Clark would act. 

I know I’ve talked about this before, but I sometimes feel like Scarlett and Clark get the short end of the stick. They don’t get to do as many fun things as their older siblings did. Part of that is because 5 kids is a lot to manage. Another aspect of it is that Scarlett and Clark are way more difficult for me to manage than Harrison and Brooke ever were. They don't listen, they constantly argue, and I don't want to have to be fighting with them all the time in order to keep them safe. It's just easier to stay home a lot of the time. 

On the way home from The Children's Museum Rob and I both agreed that the day went really well.  There were still tantrums, tears, and fighting(a meltdown over a wet shirt after playing in a water table comes to mind), but it was to a lesser degree than we're used to. We even talked about taking the kids back over spring break. It has me really looking forward to spring and summer ahead. There are so many opportunities to get the kids out of the house, and it seems like we're getting to a place in their lives where we can successfully do it.

Penelope Jo - 4 Months

4 months of Penelope Jo. We are so lucky. She is still the best baby. So happy. So talkative. So chill. As long as she gets to eat on demand and is home for bed before 7, she’s down for anything. (We are going to put that to the test this weekend when she goes to Indy for the first time. Wish us luck.)

Sleep is still mostly good, but sometimes all over the place. She sometimes sleeps from 7p-4am and other times wakes up at 1am demanding milk. Naps are mostly in her crib and occasionally in our bed. At night she is now in the crib full time. No more rock and play. She outgrow it about half way through the month. We are starting to let he have her arms out of the swaddle, which she seems to be a big fan of. She loves to suck on her thumb. She still loves her pacifier, but will use her hands if she wakes up in the middle of the night and isn’t ready to eat yet. There still isn’t much of a schedule when it comes to naps. Whenever she starts to get fussy, I know she’s tired. We definitely have not seen the emergence of two solid naps. I'm hoping we start to see that this month.

She still nurses on demand around every 2 hours, and then goes for a solid stretch at night without. Depending on how long any given nap or wakeful period is depends on if she eats before or after a nap. At home we almost always lay down in bed for her to nurse because she is either waking up or going to sleep, or still half way asleep if it’s during the middle of the night. Nursing sessions are down to only about 5 minutes on one side, and then she’s done. Very rarely does she want the other side. Her pediatrician gave us the ok to start solids if we want, but we are going to hold off as long as possible on that. At this point solids are just one more thing to have to find time for, and we already have plenty to do during our days. We also plan to do primarily baby led weaning, so it will be 6-7 months before we start solids.

She officially weighed in at 16lbz 12oz at her 4 month checkup and is 25.5 inches long. She is wearing everything from 3 months to 9 months depending on the brand. Her Cloud Island sleep and plays are still our favorite for daily wear, but their days are numbered. I don’t want to buy her new clothes(well I do but know I shouldn’t spend the money), but she is in a weird in between seasons/sizes phase with hand me downs. So we are stretching her outfits as long as possible until spring arrives and then she’ll have a whole new hand me down wardrobe. I am so looking forward to seeing her in some of the same outfits that her sisters wore.

We introduced the exersaucer this month, and she is a fan. About 10 minutes is all she can take before she’s ready to get out. Most of her time is still spent on her play mat. She has taken a major interest in the hanging toys and it now able to grab and hold onto them. In the evenings when I am cooking dinner she will rotate between the exersaucer and bouncy seat. She has great head control, puts weight on her feet, but has zero interest in rolling from back to belly.

I don’t want to wish away her baby days, but I am really looking forward to the next few months. Spring, summer, the park, the zoo, swinging, the pool, lake visits, crawling in the grass, daily walks. Getting to watch her experience all of it for the first time has me so excited, plus I just love summer. I know I can’t keep her little forever, and our baby days are coming to a close, so I plan to soak up every first along the way.

Penelope Jo - 3 Months

My mom and I were talking this morning about how Penny was starting to be a little drooly and she was surprised when I said Penny was 3 months and that's about when all of my kids started getting drooly before sprouting teeth around 6 months. Obviously she knows that Penny is 3 months old just like I know shes already 3 months old, but it doesn't seem like it. Maybe it's because she's the last of my babies or maybe the last few months really have gone by that fast, but it doesn't seem like she should be 3 months old already.

She is such a happy baby. Her joyful personality is constantly on display. If her eyes are open, there's a good chance she's smiling. If you smile at her, she's definitely smiling back, unless you're the poor couple we talked to at Laser X that Penny decided to scream at. She smiles at me as soon as she wakes up and sees my face. She smiles when her siblings pinch her cheeks, which they think is hilarious so they are constantly doing it. She's the kind of baby that makes you want more babies. So laid back and happy.

Her sleep is about the same as last month. Naps are short and follow an hour of wakeful time. I am hoping we'll start to see longer naps this month. It feels like as soon as I lay her down and get started on something, she's already waking up. She is going to sleep between 6:30 and 7pm most nights. It takes her a little while to fully get to sleep, but once she does shes out for a few hours. occasionally she wakes as early as 12:30 for a quick snack, but usually she sleeps until between 2:00 and 4:00am before waking to eat. She is sleeping in her rock and play at night now, which has been great for me. I often let her stay in bed with us after her 3:00/4:00am feeding, but if she wakes before that I feed her and then it's back to the rock and play.

She had her first cold last month, which seemed to last forever. In reality she was sick for about 2 weeks. She never had a fever, but the runny nose and congestion lasted much longer for her than it did for her siblings. She also got to experience her first snow. She didn't care one way or the other. No tears, no smiles, just meh.

I mentioned in the 2 month post that there was concern over her head shape. It has thankfully turned out to be nothing so far, but we are still monitoring it. Her pediatrician wanted us to get a CT scan, but insurance said no CT scan so instead she had her first X-ray. Everything appears to be normal, but as some other moms who have experience craniosynostosis have pointed out, X-rays are not always 100% accurate. Thankfully our pediatrician is aware of that too and plans to continue keeping an eye on her head shape at all of her check ups. Her pediatrician joked that it is probably just her chubby cheeks throwing off the balance of her head. We pray that that truly is all it is.

We spend most days lounging around the house in pjs which seems to suit her well. She just happily takes it all in. On the days we leave the house to run errands or go on play dates, she's game for that too. She fits in so seamlessly with whatever we throw her way, truly the perfect final addition to our family.

Friday Favorites

The first week back after winter break is always rough. Back to the land of real clothes and not spending all day in our pajamas. Back to 7 am wake up calls and rushing to get the big kids to the bus stop on time instead of staying in bed and snuggling a sleeping baby. Back to swim lessons and girl scout meetings. Back to scheduled pediatrician checkups on back to back mornings this week. One of the appointments I even scheduled at 8:15 am. I'm pretty sure I wasn't thinking clearly when I agreed to that time. Thankfully the week is almost over and we have a whole lot of nothing planned for the weekend.

The Good Place was back last night along with Brooklyn 99's debut on NBC, Victoria is back on Masterpiece this Sunday, and the Schitt's Creek season premiere is coming up on Wednesday. Best week of TV ever? Quite possibly. I bought this mug for my best friend and I as Christmas gifts. It is my new favorite mug and I hear Alexis's voice every time I read it.

This coffee with this creamer. It has put the happy back into my non dairy morning coffee.

I am using this halter swim suit as motivation to loose the extra 20 lbs I gained with Penny and am still holding onto. Ralph Lauren swimwear is my favorite, especially after kids.

I'm not doing Whole 30, but I am cooking a lot of my favorite Whole 30 recipes for dinner right now. This chili recipe is an absolute favorite. I tone down the heat for the kids and then add pasta and cheese just before serving them.

Cloud Island sleep and plays are my current favorite thing to dress Penny in for one simple reason, they zip from the bottom, plus the patterns are pretty adorable. It makes those 5am diaper changes a little bit easier when you don't have to fully unzip the sleeper and sleep sack.

I had a couple people mention the Haakkaa to me while I was still pregnant with Penny. I immediately bought one and it has come in so handy. It was great for when my milk came in and I was engorged all the time. I would get 3 ounces each time I used it. Now that my supply has regulated I get way less, but its still a great way to build a freezer stash without actually having to pump. I haven't been away from her for a feeding yet, but I know the time will come that I have to be.

If you follow me on Instagram (@jennpargeon) and watch my stories, you know that I love the band Tall Heights. Their album Pretty Colors For Your Actions has been on repeat pretty much nonstop since it came out and I am still loving it.

No favorites post would be complete without my favorite thing in the whole world right now, Penelope's smile. It's my absolute favorite when babies learn to smile and eventually laugh. The absolute best.

Penelope Jo - 2 Months

December flew by and our baby girl is now 2 months old. She had a lot of firsts last month. First evening with a babysitter(Grandma), first time rolling over, first time sleeping through the night(9 hours), first real smile, first Christmas, first New Year, first pub visit, first time meeting her aunts, uncles, and cousins. She slept through most of it, although we are starting to see lots more awake time.

Sleep is of course top priority with a newborn, and we are really lucking out in that department. She still refuses to sleep in the rock and play at night, but she will happily take naps there. We are still swaddling and make use of the pacifier during naps. At bedtime she refuses the pacifier if I'm around, but will occasionally take it from dad, or one of her siblings. Usually the pacifier results in her fussing again after 2 minutes. I'm sure we could push the pacifier more, but at this point, why bother? She prefers snuggles and nursing, and I don't mind giving it to her. One of my favorite things is being curled up next to her and feeling her little feet wiggle around against my legs while she nurses. It's the sweetest thing and something I will always remember about cosleeping with her.

She doesn't have a set wake time and her naps are very sporadic. She's usually ready for a nap after an hour to hour and a half of awake time, but it's anyone's guess as to how long she'll stay asleep. Sometimes she'll only naps 20 minutes, and other times she'll nap 2 hours. We try to stick with an E.A.S.Y( eat, activity, sleep, your time) schedule, but sometimes it ends up being more E.A.E.S.Y or E.A.E.S.A.E.S.Y. Not enough sleeping, way more eating, you get the idea. Activity consists of laying on her play mat, chilling in the bouncy seat, or having face to face time with whoever is holding her. She's definitely becoming more interested in the stimulation her toys provide. She will happily chill in her bouncy seat while I make dinner most nights.

She had her two month checkup yesterday and is weighing in at 14 lbs, up just over 2 lbs from last month, and is 23" long. There is some minor concern about the growth plates in her head, which I'll share more about once we know what's going on. I personally think it will turn out to be nothing, but our pediatrician wants us to evaluate the situation further. She was diagnosed with oral thrush at her 1 month check up and I thought we had it cleared up, but apparently not all the way. So she's back on Nystatin again until we can clear the thrush. Thankfully it hasn't effected me at all. Overall she is a big, healthy baby.

She had her hearing test done this month, and as we suspected there is no cause for concern. She passed her test and they are attributing the failed test in the hospital to retained fluid in her ears. None of our other kids had that problem, but it is relatively common, especially in c-section babies.

After two months I am still asking myself if she is really the easiest baby ever or if I just think that because she's a singleton after two sets of twins. I still have no definitive answer to that question, but I have a feeling it's a little of both. Whatever the reason, she fits in perfectly with the rest of our crazies.

Penelope Newborn Pictures

I hope you're ready for newborn Penelope overload. Back when she was just 10 days old, we had a newborn session with the talented Gillian Dyan Photography. Gill has been taking pictures of our family since Harrison and Brooke were a year old. With the exception of Scarlett and Clark's newborn session, all of our professional pictures since then have been taken by Gill. We've had a lot of great sessions with her, but this one is by far my favorite. None of the kids were too excited about participating, but she still managed to get a couple pictures where they're all looking in the general area of the camera and no one is picking their nose. I consider that a win. Penelope was a champ for the whole session and slept for basically 4 hours straight. 

All photos property of Gillian Dyan Photography.