Things Isaiah says...

Isaiah is a chatter box and seems to have a pretty good memory for his age. He remembers names pretty well and will pick up on and repeat things he hears. 

Most repeated phrases:

What happened? 

Where did it go?

Okay?

Milk 

Please

Thank you 

Bye bye

I poo poo'd

Hurt 

Scared

Unusual sayings:

Mommy-daddy: he says this when he gets excited or sometimes randomly. "Please open mommy-daddy!" "Look mommy-daddy!"

No way: he must've picked this up at school and I find it very annoying. Trying to teach him to say no thank you instead but I don't think it's working. 

Mommy's boobs: he sees me feed Chloe and I made the mistake of calling my breast my boobs one day when feeding her. Since then I've been trying to get him to say mommy's chest instead. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. 

Chloe chocolate: this is what he calls my nipples. Lol!

Motherhood

This resonates with me. 

A day in the life

I enjoy looking back at these types of posts as a flashback in time. Here's what my day looked like yesterday having both kids at home alone for most of the day. Isaiah @ 2 years old. Chloe @ 1 month. 

1:49am: nurse Chloe. Left side 11 min. Contemplating pumping right side. Decide to sleep instead. Hear Isaiah coughing on the monitor. Hope he is not getting sick. 

2:12am: Try to sleep. 

5:16am: Nurse Chloe. Right side. 11 mins. Try to get her to burp. She falls asleep. 

7:15am: Hear Isaiah's Elmo toy playing music through the monitor. Hope he just rolled over on it and is not really awake. Meanwhile Chloe is making noises in her rock and play. Hope she is really not waking up too. She is. 

7:30am:  Nurse Chloe. Change her clothes in between changing sides. Continue to hear Isaiah playing on yet monitor. 

7:50am: Tell Michael to get Isaiah as he is now whining on the monitor. He goes to change his diaper then bring him back to our bed. He says hello to Chloe. 

Chloe spits up and Isaiah says yucky! 

8:15am: Michael goes to make Isaiah breakfast. I try to find some cartoons on TV in our room but none are really age-appropriate so end up on the sprout channel with the annoying chica show. Meanwhile Isaiah keeps asking for cheese balls for breakfast. 

8:22am: Isaiah's breakfast is ready (grilled cheese & ham on croissant + milk). Michael takes him to the kitchen. I swaddle up Chloe and put her in the swing hoping she will give me some time to eat breakfast, brush my teeth and freshen up to start the day. I hear Isaiah asking for cheese balls, and Michael telling him he has to eat breakfast first.

 

8:26am: Michael brings me breakfast in bed (Grilled cheese & ham on croissant). :) 

Chloe is fussing in the swing. I heat up yesterday's Starbucks leftover coffee and inhale my breakfast. 

8:45am: Give Capone Isaiah's leftover breakfast. Isaiah is already asking to watch Mickey Mouse on TV.  Instead set up Isaiah in the living room with his toys. 

Check on Chloe in the swing. She seems content. Might fall asleep soon. 

9:00am: Strip our bed of its sheets to wash later. Throw a load of kids' clothes in the washing machine. Pull out clean kids' clothes from the dryer to fold. Check on Chloe. She is asleep. Michael leaves for his mom's house. Start folding clothes. 

9:30am: Give in and turn on the TV to Disney Jr so I can fold the clothes. It's Sophia the first. Isaiah is not interested and play with toys instead of watching. 

9:45am: Throw a load of our clothes into the wash. Put first load into dryer. Keep folding clothes. Hear Chloe making noise in the swing in our room. Check on her. She is still asleep. 

10:10am: Chloe is awake. Quickly finish folding clothes and putting them away. 

10:18am: Nurse Chloe. Put on Mickey Mouse for Isaiah so he is occupied while I am feeding Chloe. Otherwise he tries to climb all over me or hold Chloe or get my attention while I feed her. 

10:45am: Put Chloe in her crib and hopes she naps. Put another load of laundry in the wash. Load #3. Get Isaiah's morning snack ready - clementines. 

11:00am: Chloe is not wanting to sleep in her crib. Put her on her playmat to play while Isaiah has a snack. 

11:15am: outfit change #2 for Chloe. She spit up everywhere while playing. Also change Isaiah as he is sticky from the oranges. 

11:30am: Isaiah asks to hold Chloe. Michael happens to FaceTime at the same time. Trying to teach him how to be gentle when giving her the paci. 

11:45am: Chloe is sleepy. Put her in her bouncer as I get Isaiah's & my lunch ready. He is requesting carrots. So I make hummus + carrots & empanadas for lunch. 

12:00pm: Chloe has fallen asleep. Move her to her crib so I can monitor her when I put Isaiah down for his nap. 

12:15pm: Bring Isaiah in his room to get ready for nap time. Read a book and snuggle until he falls asleep. 

12:35pm: Hear Chloe crying over the monitor. Leave Isaiah in his room sleeping. Pick her up and she falls back asleep. Decide to snuggle with her on the couch and take a quick nap while both kids are sleeping. She'll probably be up in an hour or so to eat anyways. 

1:35pm: Chloe's up. Nurse again. Hope Isaiah stays asleep until she is done. Still have 1 load of kids' clothes & 2 loads of our clothes to fold. Also need to put sheets and towels in the wash. It's never ending. 

2:00pm: Eat a clementine for a snack. 

2:25pm: Isaiah is awake and ready to play. Meanwhile Chloe kind of fell asleep after eating but is now awake. I'm still hungry. Think about what to make Isaiah and I for a snack. Decide on peanut butter crackers. Rock and pat Chloe until she falls asleep but Isaiah is playing with his noisy trucks so she keeps waking up. 

2:45pm: Decide to try to put her in the swing to sleep. 

3:00pm: Chloe is asleep in the swing. Load the sheets into the washer. Load #4. 

3:15pm: Isaiah's afternoon snack. Peanut butter crackers. He just eats the middle and leaves the crackers. Keep folding clothes. 

4:15pm: Finally finish folding and putting away all of the clothes. Sheets are in the dryer but too lazy to put them on the bed right now. Isaiah just finished crying for no reason. Well he was upset that I wouldn't let him play with a bag of clothes. Settled him down to color. Meltdown #2. He is in his whiny phase of the day. Don't know why this happens but it tends to happen around this time every day. Not sure if it's because he is hungry but he says no when I ask if he wants to eat. 

Calm him down and play with Legos and Mickey Mouse toys. 

4:45pm: Start cooking rice for Isaiah's dinner. Meltdown #3 because I don't want to play in the kitchen. Instead I want to be in the living room since Chloe will likely wake up soon. 

Isaiah screams out "Daaaddyyy!" I feel the same way buddy. Get a text that Michael is leaving his mom's house. Relief is on the way!

4:55pm: Chloe is awake. Take out some rice to cool down so Isaiah can eat it later. Turn on Mickey Mouse so Isaiah doesn't have a melt down while I feed Chloe. 

5:30pm: Chloe is done eating, and Isaiah asks to hold her again. 

5:40pm: Sit Isaiah down for dinner. Rice and ham with milk. Chloe is fussy, her usual for this time of the day. Michael comes home. I work on settling Chloe. 

6:30pm: Chloe is still not settled. Bruno Mars timer goes off on Michael's phone, and we have an impromptu dance party. 

6:40pm: Isaiah opens some Christmas gifts Michael brought from his mom's house. 

Why is Isaiah shirtless? That's because he had rice all over his shirt and spilt his milk all over himself and the floor. 

Isaiah plays with his new toys while I hold Chloe trying to get her to sleep. Meanwhile Michael is getting dinner ready. I'm starving. 

7:30pm: I think Chloe is asleep enough to put her in her bouncer while I give Isaiah a bath. While I'm bathing Isaiah, I hear Chloe crying. Michael stops dinner prep to deal with her. 

7:45pm: Isaiah is fresh and clean, Mickey PJs on with teeth brushed. He comes out to the living room and starts cleaning up and putting away his toys. Chloe is hungry so I nurse her while Michael does Isaiah's bedtime routine. I am still starving. 

8:10pm: Chloe projectile vomits all over me. She has been doing this every night the last few nights. Always a few minutes after nursing on the second breast. Maybe she is too full? I don't know but I hop in the shower then quickly scarf down my dinner (rice with fried eggplant). Still hungry so eat another clementine. 

8:45pm: Michael is getting ready to leave to go to the gym. Chloe is frantically sucking on her paci like she is hungry but I'm scared to nurse her and getting vomited on. 

9:00pm: Risk being vomited on again and nurse Chloe since she seems hungry. 

9:20pm: She's asleep. She's awake. Go to sleep child!!

9:35pm: Decide to try to put Chloe in the rock and play since she seems to be asleep for real. Realize there are no sheets on our bed so head to the laundry room to pull them out of the dryer. Find them damp in the washer. I must've forgotten to put them in the dryer earlier. Fail. Rewash them (quick cycle) so they don't have that wet clothes smell. Snuggle with Chloe on the couch but don't want to fall asleep and forget to put the sheets in the dryer again. So tired. 

9:45pm: remember that I have a salted caramel cake pop from Starbucks I forgot to eat yesterday. Enjoy it while Chloe sleeps in my arms. 

10:05pm: Throw sheets in the dryer. Decide to take a nap on the couch with Chloe while I wait for them to dry. 

11:40pm: Move into our room for the night. Michael put the sheets on the bed. Good night. Until she wakes up again. Probably in an hour or so. 

12:35am: Chloe is up again. Nurse side-lying. Get milk all over me when she pulls off because it's flowing out too fast. End up changing my shirt again before going back to bed. At least she is asleep. 

And that's what 24hr day looks like right now. This day I didn't pump since I had both kids alone. We also didn't give Chloe a bath. She got one the next morning since she vomited all over me again. Also she didn't get a bottle. She usually gets one at night while I pump but Michael was at the gym so that didn't happen. Should have done some studying but never had a chance to. Overall it was a pretty good day. Isaiah was pretty good for most of the day, and Chloe is a newborn so expectations are low for me getting much sleep. 

Salted Caramel

I ordered my favorite Starbucks drink: tall soy salted caramel mocha with extra caramel drizzle + a salted caramel cake pop. The guy at Starbucks said, "you must really like salted caramel." Yes Starbucks guy, I do! 

I am now enjoying the cake pop. I think I deserve it after taking both kids to the doctor alone yesterday! 

Nursing.

In the last 7 days, I've spent almost 23 hours nursing! 

Drowning in milk

Chloe continues to have difficult latching sometimes. I had similiar issue with Isaiah but mom-nesia makes this seem worse. I pumped tonight while Michael gave her a bottle of milk I had pumped earlier. We started with 3 oz but she still seemed hungry so gave her an additional 1oz so 4oz total. I pumped 6oz during this feeding. After nursing Chloe I often feel like my boobs still have milk and doesn't get fully drained. It causes my boobs to feel sore and hurt. It was such a relief to empty the boobs. I hope Chloe learns to handle the supply and my super fast and intense let-down soon. Both she and I are drowning in my milk. Her choking on it and me getting all over myself and sometimes the bed! 

Isaiah is 2!

Where does the time go? My little boy is 2. He is super sweet, a mama's boy, the ultimate snuggler. He gives the best hugs. He likes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, cars, trucks, planes and trains. He love to eat Mac n cheese, rice and can be bribed with raisins. Isaiah loves to laugh and be tickled. When he walks some where new he likes to hold both mama & papa's hands. Isaiah is very talkative and like to announce the color of things and point out animals and the sounds they make. He can sometimes count up to 5. Rarely, he will sing twinkle twinkle little star. He is my love and such a joy.  He is such a blessing. 

Mom-nesia

I sufferer from mom-nesia. I think it's necessary for us to agree to have a newborn again. Since Chloe had been jaundiced, I had to feed her every 2 hours to get the levels down. She nurses for about 30 mins so that is about 1.5hr spurts of sleep. I am exhausted. Not to mention that she takes about 3 and up to 10 min to latch which is extremely frustrating as I get milk all over myself and her while she gnaws at my nipples. They hurt. She latches then pulls off multiple times. I kind of remember Isaiah doing this but not to the extreme. 10 minutes of getting your nipples bitten is a lot. I hope this gets better soon! Her jaundice is down. Now just have to work on her latch. 

Isaiah's progress report.

I'm glad he likes his school now. 

Chloe's birth

it all happened so quickly.  i want to remember it all.

throughout this pregnancy, i've had the feeling that i wouldn't make it to 40 weeks.  this pregnancy was definitely more difficult than my first.  the first trimester, i had terrible morning/all day sickness (but no vomiting thankfully).  as the pregnancy moved forward, things got better until i developed wicked heart burn toward the end of the 2nd trimester.  the 3rd trimester was exhausting and uncomfortable with a significant amount of swelling and back pain.  at my ob appointment a week before chloe was born, i had gained 9lbs in 2 weeks due to swelling.  i was 1cm dilated.  

the morning before chloe was born, i passed my mucus plug.  i knew my body was getting ready for labor soon and began to feel the urgency to get things ready for her arrival.  that morning before work, with the help of my mom, i washed the essentials just in case she came that day: the car seat insert, the rock n play insert, the bouncy seat insert, the changing pad cover, the crib sheets, a few newborn clothes, socks and blankets.  mom and rolly were supposed to take isaiah to school that morning but decided to keep him at their house instead since he had a runny nose.  while i was at work, mom sorted through the baby clothes and sorted them according to size and put away ones that she wouldn't need for awhile.  i went to work as usual, feeling tired and uncomfortable.  that morning i had an ob appointment.  i was 2cm, 75% effaced and i knew chloe would make her arrival soon.  once i finished up rounding at work, i came home and had this "burst of energy" and began nesting like crazy.  lucky for us, mom suggested that isaiah could spend the night at her house that night while michael and i finished getting things ready for chloe, thanksgiving and isaiah's birthday party.  

first, michael and i went to the grocery store and bought everything we needed for thanksgiving as we planned to host dinner at our house this year.  i was too uncomfortable and tired to walk after being on my feet all day at work so i actually used one of those electric carts around the store.  it was crazy packed!  we then went to the dollar store to buy some things for isaiah's birthday party.  once we got home, i washed the rest of chloe's clothes and other items like the swing cover, the boppy cover, ect.  while that was going, i made michael move the chest of drawers he had painted and put together from the kitchen into isaiah's room.  i then moved all of isaiah's clothes out of the dresser in chloe's room to make room for her clothes.  after that i began working on some of the decorations for isaiah's birthday party.  it was around 11:30pm when i finally tried to lie down for the night.  this was very unusual for me since lately i'd been going to bed at 9pm sometimes earlier.  

i got a call around 2am to go into the hospital for a delivery of a 28week baby.  i remember being so tired and frustrated that i had to go into work.  i got up, brushed my teeth, changed into scrubs and drove in.  as i was pulling into the hospital, i get a call that the baby is actually 36weeks and i didn't need to come in.  i remember thinking, good because being on my feet taking care of a 28 weeker, putting in lines and possibly intubating could cause me to go into labor!  little did i know what was in store.

i got home and tried to sleep some more.  at 3:30am i woke up feeling like i needed to go to the bathroom.  once i got to the bathroom and sat down, i had a long, strong contraction.  i called out to michael, "babe!" but got no response.  i had another contraction about 10-15 minutes later while still sitting in the bathroom because i didn't feel like i could get up.  "babe!" i called out again.  he said, "what?"  i said, "GET UP! i'm having contractions!"  the contractions were so painful.  as soon as i could feel one building up, i braced myself and began to curse because of the pain.  by this time i made it back to our bed and was ordering michael around to get stuff ready to go to the hospital.  i had put aside some clothes that morning that i meant to pack in a bag but never got around to it.  luckily i had the forethought to put aside some essentials: nursing tank, yoga pants, nursing bra, ect.  i instructed michael to throw things into a bag in between cussing and contracting.  at around 4am as i was walking from our bed back to the bathroom, my water broke.  i called my ob's answering service to let them know i was headed into the hospital.  michael asked if i wanted to take a shower before we left and luckily i said no, we don't have enough time.  luckily isaiah was not at home that night or it would have been even more chaotic!    

michael drove me to the hospital and quickly wheeled me up to L&D.  i was placed in labor room 4 where my nurse, bernie (filipino), began asking me questions and hooking me up to the monitor.  i was having significant, severe contractions 2-4 minutes apart.  michael kept asking how long it would take for me to get an epidural.  the nurse said my platelet count had to come back before the anesthesiologist could put one in.  i was worried because previously it had been very difficult getting an iv during my labor with isaiah.  i was worried it would take too long to get my platelet count back.  i was worried i missed my window to get an epidural.  luckily, it took one stick to get my lab work and iv.  my nurse checked me and i was 7cm dilated already.  the anesthesiologist came and placed the epidural.  meanwhile i was still having very painful contractions.  even after the epidural/spinal combo was placed, the contractions were severe.  the medicine wasn't touching it.  i was so afraid that i would be having a natural, unmedicated delivery.  my nurse checked me and i was complete with just a small anterior lip.  the medicine was still not working.  the anesthesiologist bolused me with some other pain med though my epidural and luckily it worked.  i could still feel the contractions but the edge had been taken off some.  don't get me wrong, they still hurt.  after 10-15 more minutes, the contractions were no longer painful.  thank the Lord!  my nurse checked me again and i was complete.  she wanted to see how i pushed so i pushed once, and she told me to stop.  she called my doctor who came in even though she wasn't on call to deliver me.  we waited for her to arrive.  once she got there, i got into position, pushed 3 times and chloe was born!!  i was in labor for a little less than 3 hours and we had a beautiful baby girl.  it was all so fast!

Work shower

My work threw me a baby shower last week. It was so sweet of them. I also had an awesome baby shower thrown by my girlfriends a few weeks ago too. We are really blessed. (Have I written any thank you cards? No. Sorry Martha Stewart. I have bad manners. I am really thankful. Just so busy and tired and have many excuses.)

Sleep naked.

Sometimes I find Isaiah in the morning half naked. Crazy baby!

 

Blame it on the heartburn.

I'm up because of heartburn. I've already taken a Pepcid and am using 2 pillows to prop myself up a little. Neither of these are helping tonight. I've already gotten up twice since laying down at 10pm to go pee. I saw my ob last week. I gained 9lbs in 2 weeks due to swelling. I have cankels. I wear compression stockings. I'm supposed to check my blood pressure daily but have only done so once. It was fine. I was 1.5 cm dilated last week, and everyone tells me I look like I've dropped. 

I still have a ton on my to do list to complete: wash baby clothes, carseat, rock and play, bounce chair. Pack a hospital bag. Wash bottles and get replacement pump parts. Move the crib mattress back up to a higher position. Ect. 

On top of that we are having thanksgiving at our house this year and are expecting around 25 or so for dinner. We need to go grocery shopping tomorrow which after working all day I'm sure my cankels will explode. Also I'm planning Isaiah's birthday party and need to finish a few things for that. And to top it all off, I'm scheduled to work 19 out of the next 21 days! I don't think baby girl is going to wait to come out until her due date. My ob warned me that if my BP is high, I might have to be induced. I'd like to just make it until December at least. We'll see how that goes! I see my OB tomorrow!

Last week we lost Michael's beloved grandmother, Inang. Luckily Michael and Isaiah got to see her a couple of days before she passed away. Isaiah made her smile and gave her kisses. May she rest in peace. 

Random ramblings

Who knows where this post will end up being about. I guess I can update about Isaiah's big boy room transition status. There isn't much to say. He's done really well. We keep the same routine: bath, pjs & brush teeth (Michael), hang out in the living room for a bit before he give his papa a hug and kiss good night around 7:45-8:00pm. Isaiah and I read 2-3 books (making up stories and skipping pages sometimes) & say our prayers (sign of the cross, God bless Mama, Papa, Isaiah & Baby. God bless family and friends, Amen.) He sleeps with Ellie the elephant and Drago the dragon and a blankie. He hugs them while I tuck him in and turn off the lights. He gives me a kiss good night,  and I sing "you are my sunshine" off key while snuggling him and stroking his hair. I say "close your eyes, good night, mama loves you" and then walk out and shut the door (he has a night light).

He's woken up once whining I thinks because he was cold, and we didn't have the heater on. He never sleeps with the blanket/comforter on. So far he hasn't fallen out of bed or gotten out of bed on his own even though his bed is low enough for him to do so. We are blessed to have such a good boy. Not that he is an angel all of the time. He definitely has his moments like this morning when I took too long to make breakfast or when we don't let him watch TV. 

We are in the middle of trying to plan thanksgiving dinner at our house, Isaiah's 2nd birthday while anticipating the coming of baby girl. I am feeling huge and tired. Working a lot. I should be studying for my boards but I haven't been. I'm not sure who is coming to thanksgiving dinner so it's hard to plan the menu. As far as Isaiah's birthday, we are likely going to have it at a bounce/indoor play place. Since Isaiah is obsessed with Mickey Mouse, that's the theme. But I don't have the energy or brain power to plan a Pinterest-worthy party with DIY decorations/party favors. We made a list of kids to invite. Just family alone is 14-15 kids so all in all I think close to 30 kids? I told Michael not everyone will come but then that got me thinking about Christmas and when the hell am I going to have time to do that with a newborn and what should we get 20+ kids of varying ages for Christmas?!? 

Brain overload. 

Good night. 

 

Big boy room

Friday we put Isaiah in his big boy room to sleep. He did pretty well. He cried/whined for 5 minutes or so then he played in his bed with his stuffed animals for about 1.5 hours. Later on he woke up at 3:30am crying. I went in twice and Michael once to tell him to go back to bed. Eventually he went to bed and woke up as usual. The next night he spent at his Lola and Lolo's house so we are at it again tonight. Hopefully it goes well! 

So tired.

Warning: I am a grumpy pregnant lady. 

I. am. so. tired. 

I am working a ton. I haven't had a complete day off since Oct 18 and wont have one off until Nov 8. That is 21 days. I am on my feet. A LOT. Next month I only have 5 days off. The entire month. I work 3/5 weekends. I'm getting to that uncomfortable stage much earlier than I remember with my first pregnancy. I wake up once a night due to reflux, gagging and wanting to vomit. It hurts to carry Isaiah for more than 3 minutes. I am exhausted but can't fall asleep. I suffer from early satiety. (I get full after eating 4-5 bites of food which is frustrating because of course I'm hungry an hour later.) The house is a hot mess. We have our old queen mattress and box spring stacked up against a wall in our bedroom. We have dirty dishes pilled up in our kitchen sink which is a big pet peeve of mine but I am too tired to do anything about it. I haven't washed our sheets or Isaiah's sheets in an embarrassingly long time. We have 2 hampers full of clothes that need to be folded and 3-4 loads of laundry that need to be done. Michael starts his work at 7am which means having to get Isaiah up and ready for school by myself most days. Unless I am post-call then Michael has to wake him up and take him at the butt crack of dawn. We set up Isaiah's big boy bed but the guard rail I bought won't work with it. Planning on using a giant pool noodle as a bumper guard. It's supposed to rain on Halloween, and I really want to see Isaiah in his Halloween costume. My eyebrows are out of control, and I am in desperate need of a massage and pedicure. Oh what I wouldn't do to have a giant glass of red wine!! 

Snuggle time is still my favorite though. 

Here's a sneak peak of Isaiah's big boy bed without the bumper. 

Happy early Halloween! (This is not his costume.)

Let the nesting begin.

I am 31 weeks along, and I think it's really starting to hit me that we are going to be taking home a baby girl soon, God willing. This past weekend, I enjoyed my joint baby shower with friends. We got so many cute baby girl clothes! It got the wheels turning in my head about all of the things we need to get done before she gets here. (This is list is mainly for me not the 2 people who read this blog)

- set up Isaiah's big boy room: buy twin bed frame (check), buy twin mattress, buy dresser for Isaiah's clothes (check), whitewash said dresser (Michael wants to do this), get twin comforter dry cleaned, twin bedding set (check), get decor for big boy room, buy hamper

- set up baby girl nursery: buy girlie crib sheets, sort through Isaiah's clothes and wash gender neutral ones, buy new nipples for baby bottles, wash baby bottles, see if I need new pump parts, wash bouncy chair, swing and rock n play and car seat fabrics, wash baby girl clothes, decor?

- office/guest room: move full size bed in there, get full bed frame, clean out closet, donate printers, get some storage drawers, move bookcase out, move recliner out

-our room: find a place to put a changing pad or get a cheap changing table, buy king bedding, move queen bed frame into garage (check), donate mattress

It's not that much stuff but for some reason I just want it all done now. We really need to move Isaiah into his big boy room soon so the transition isn't so hard for him. 

Isaiah has no idea what's coming! He's such a good, sweet boy. I'm trying to soak up the last couple of months of him being an only child. He's so used to being the center of attention and is so attached to me. I'm sure it will be hard for both of us to adjust to me having to divide my time and attention. For now I am enjoying the hugs and kisses, mommy & Zae time at the park and of course snuggly naps. 

Upgrade

So I finally bought my first car. While I really liked the Infiniti JX, I went with the more affordable Toyota Highlander. We bought it on the last day of the month which supposedly is when dealers are the most desperate to sell. I think we got a pretty good deal. Michael did most of the negotiating. It was around lunch time, and I was hungry and grumpy and just wanted to buy it and get out of there OR come back after eating. The process took a long time but in the end I think we made a good purchase. 

The next day we also upgraded our bed and finally got a king size tempur-pedi bed with some nice keep-cool-gel pillows and a grey tufted headboard set. We love our new bed!

So those are our upgrades for the month. No more big purchase for a while. Gotta hold off on my diamond earrings and nice purse I guess! 

Let's talk about money

It's a subject that we don't like to talk about. It's not polite talk about how much money you make or ask someone else about how much they make. I think we assume that our family and friends make enough to live comfortably but really have no idea what we actually do for a living on a day to day basis or how much income that earns us. 

Before medical school I was very money conscious. I always paid credit cards off every month and only took out what I needed for student loans. As I went through medical school, I was sick of living like a college student. While other friends were working, and I assumed making pretty decent incomes, I was spending hours a day in class then many more hours studying in the library. I thought I deserved certain extras, like nice beach vacations or the occasional pair of shoes, ect. I didn't mind taking out more loans to do this. I wasn't living extravagantly by any means but maybe ended up with little bit more student loans than I should have. I don't regret taking those vacations or splurging every once in a while. I think my sanity depended on it. 

It wasn't until residency that I began spending more than I really should. First it was the wedding. Then vacations we wanted to take. That snowballed into moving expenses to Nashville. More vacations and of course a baby. Daycare. Add to that 7+ months of paying rent and mortgage when we couldn't find a tenant. And there you have it. How we ended up in more debt than we realized. 

Student loans debts were inevitable. The monthly payments for those in and of themselves are more than most people's mortgages. I'd have to say that some of the credit card debt was also inevitable. Some of it was probably irresponsible. But you know what? I don't regret going on vacations or traveling home for the holidays. In the end, we made memories, and spent time with family and friends and that is what life is about. 

So recently we sat down and really took a look at our finances. We've come up with a plan to pay off our credit card debts. We'll then work toward student loans, college funds, ect. I want to be responsible and get our debts paid off but at the same time I want to enjoy finally having some extra income that I've worked so hard for so many years to obtain. We need to save for a home and really need to buy a new car. We also need to save more for retirement. But I also want to buy a new pair of diamond earring since I lost one of the diamond solitaire earrings Michael got me for my 30th birthday. And maybe a really nice purse. And some shoes. And clothes for baby girl. Luckily I'm preggo and don't really want to buy clothes right now but eventually I want to buy jeans from somewhere other then Old Navy. See??? Financial planning is hard!! I need Dave Ramsey or Susan Orman to help me out!

Separation anxiety.

Someone has it bad. 

Facetiming from work may be a bad idea for now. :(