Mason is 3 Months Old!

Big boy Mason is no longer considered a newborn. So bittersweet! Each week is my new favorite week. I can't get enough of this sweet little boy!

Feeding:
He's still eating about every 3 hours during the day. Our schedule is something like this every day:
7-8 AM- eat then play
9:45- nap
10:30-11:00- eat then play
12:30- nap
2:00- eat then play
3:30- nap
5:00- eat then play
6:30- refuse to nap most days haha
8:00- eat then bedtime

Sleeping:
He sleeps great at night in his crib or really where ever; while we were camping he slept all night in his pack'n'play and his car seat after his pack'n'play was rained on! Naps during the day are short unless he's being held, and even then he's a catnapper.

Growing:
He's just making the transition to size 2 diapers after days in a row of blowouts. Yikes! He is wearing 0-3 months or 3-6 months clothing.

Photo credit: Karen Richards Photography

Likes:
Playing in his gym, splashing in the bath, tummy-time, being outside, walks and hikes, being talked to, making new sounds, sucking on his hands, nursing, facing out, swinging, and his little stuffed bear on the swing (he gets lots of smiles!).

Mason went camping over the 4th of July for the first time! He spent the first night with just daddy and then 3 more nights with mommy and daddy. He did so great! He was pleasant and happy most of the time and slept like usual!

 

He also went swimming for the first time and totally loved it!!

He has been working on rolling back to front by twisting and arching his back up.

Photo credit: Karen Richards Photography

Mason is a busy guy. Sometimes when he's fussing while being held, the only thing he needs is to be set down to play and kick and stretch! He's a cute little ball of energy. Life is so much better with him in it!

Fitness Progress 2

Progress on goals:

1. Increase in pull-ups and push-ups! By any amount. Progress is progress, no matter how small.

---getting there. I have not been as focused on this as I could be. Maybe because I still feel so incredibly weak, and it's disheartening trying these. Push-ups are getting easier. Pull-ups are still a struggle. I do 3 sets of 3. My max is 4. 

2. Go mountain biking with Jeff!

----done! We biked Little Cottonwood Trail. It was a blast!

3. Improve diet and maintain water consumption. Less sugar!

---honestly, I think I've consumed more sugar. Not in treats, but I've been eating LOTS of cereal and granola bars. My milk supply is JUST enough for Mason and I try to keep my calories up, which makes me justify unhealthy choices. Need to work on that!! Water consumption is great!

4. Run that 10k!

---done! It was so fun. Not nearly as difficult as I expected. I could have kept going!

5. More hikes with Mason and friends. At least twice a week. 

---done! The only weeks I didn't go twice was when I went mountain biking and did that race. 

I haven't weighed myself lately. I'm nervous it'll be discouraging, because I felt pretty lean and now I'm feeling pretty... Fluffy. I'm betting it's my relaxed diet and decrease in high intensity workouts (to maintain milk supply). 

I've been trying to find a good balance so I can continue to improve my body and continue to fuel breastfeeding. But it seems so touch-and-go! After my five mile hike one day, I pumped 2.5 hours after I fed Mason for bedtime. And I barely pumped 2 ounces total. I heard a good rule of thumb is an ounce per hour, so not far from that. But I usually get 3 ounces at that pumping session. 

In an attempt to increase my supply, so I can maintain exercising how I'd like to, I have been pumping twice after Mason goes to bed.  So I pump at 10:30 PM and 2 AM. It's lame because I could be getting some good sleep, with how long he sleeps! But it's worth it to at least get some freezer storage, if nothing else. 

New goals:

1. Keep working on pull-ups and push-ups. Progress!!

2. Meal prep! Weekly. (This is probably the only thing that's kept my healthy eating in check before... I just love food so much, I want to eat it ALL)

3. Go to the gym to lift heavy 2x a week. 

4. Figure out exercising with returning to work night shifts. 

5. Start taking progress photos.

Mason is 2 Months Old!

 Little Mason is getting big so fast! Two months and cute as ever! Love love love this boy!

Feeding: he eats about every 3 hours during the day usually breastfeeding, but also getting bottles of breast milk. He generally eats once in the middle of the night. 

Sleeping: he's a fabulous night sleeper. He goes to bed around 8:30 and wakes up around 6 or 6:30 to eat. He is up for the day at 7:30 or 8. Naps during the day are short. Sometimes only 15 minutes, but usually closer to 45. But one or two naps during the day will be 90 minutes-ish. His favorite places to nap are in his carrier on hikes or in his swing. 

Growing: just under the 50th percentiles for height and weight. Head circumference is in the 87th! Big noggin!

Loves: warm baths, music, listening to Mommy and Daddy talk to him, nursing, hiking, walks, being outside, tummy time, gym time, and practicing standing up (with assistance of course).

He is so busy and active. He started to roll from tummy to back at 7 weeks old! He is smiling and cooing; he has become quite the little flirt. Each and every day is getting more and more fun. 

Fitness Progress 1

Progress on my goals:

1. Make a daily routine/time for exercise with Mason. 

--- after we get up for the day at 8, I feed Mason, change and dress him for the day, put him on his mat for tummy time while I pump. Then I put him down for his nap around 8:50 and I workout. OR after I pump I put him in his car seat and go for a run with the stroller and he naps then. 

2. Wake up and put on workout attire. (So helpful and motivating to me)

---- I do this! Or I go to bed in workout clothes. 

3. Mindfully eat. 

---- I could be doing better. It's so hard not to indulge when I feel like nursing is burning it all away hahaha! But my meals have cleaned up. Lots of veggies and protein. 

4. Drink LOTS of water for health and milk supply. 

--- you won't see me without a water bottle. 

5. Register for a race of some kind and start training. 

--- doing the 10k Dirty Dash on 6/6! I've been running/cycling to train. 

6. Start upper body lifting at home or on walks. 

--- I re-enrolled for a gym membership. I go there when I can. Otherwise I lift at home. I started doing the Bikini Body Guide workouts. I do 3 days of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and 3 days of LISS (low intensity steady state) alternating throughout the week with a day of rest. 

Weight is still 115. I can tell I'm leaning out though. My belly is getting flatter, although I definitely have loose skin and stretch marks that I've accepted as permanent accessories. ;)

I've hit the point in exercise routines, where the day doesn't feel right without some exercise! I love getting to that point. So much easier to stay on track.

On top of my exercise regimen, I've still been going on many hikes with Mason in the front carrier. It's the best! I seriously love it. 

Working out during pregnancy had benefits I'm sure, but it is amazing the amount of strength, muscle mass and endurance I've lost. I used to do 3 sets of 12 pull-ups. Now I do 3 very strenuous sets of 3 very difficult pull-ups. I used to do 50+ push-ups. Now 15 burns! As much as it sucks to feel like I'm starting all over, I remember how motivating progress is, so that thought is keeping me positive. 

New goals:

1. Increase in pull-ups and push-ups! By any amount. Progress is progress, no matter how small.

2. Go mountain biking with Jeff!

3. Improve diet and maintain water consumption. Less sugar!

4. Run that 10k!

5. More hikes with Mason and friends. At least twice a week. 

Mason is One Month Old!

This first month flew by! We have loved having Mason in our lives. He is such a good baby. We feel so very fortunate that he is ours and love him more than we knew was possible. 

Eating: he mainly breastfeeds, but he gets the occasional bottle of breast milk for convenience so he will take a bottle when I return to work. He eats every 3 hours during the day, almost like clockwork. He has been that way from the start! During the night he eats less frequently, somewhere between 3-6 hours. I am pretty sure he has reflux, making him a little fussy and uncomfortable after feedings, but it is short-lived and he just needs a little extra love after eating.
 

Sleeping: he sleeps like a total champ at night. From the start, he has always given us at least 4 hours and then goes right back to sleep for another 3 or more. At 3 weeks he started sleeping for 6 hour stretches after we put him down for the night. They say we should wake him up after 4 hours, but I don't believe in doing so, because he is growing like he should be.
 

Growing: at 3 weeks, he weighed 9 lb. 1 oz. up from 8 lb. 4 oz. at the 2 week appointment. He is definitely growing just fine! His length at birth was measured 21.25, but he has remained around 20 inches at his appointments. His little (or not so little) noggin measures between the 75th and 94th percentile. He is now in size 1 diapers and moved out of newborn clothes between 3 and 4 weeks.
 

Loves: music, music, music! He also loves  hiking with Mom and Dad in the front carrier, sitting up and observing the world, kisses, cuddles, warm baths, nursing, and riding in the car.
 

Mason has been hiking several times, been on many walk and runs, road-tripped to Logan and to Idaho Falls, and has been a total trooper through it all.
 

We just can't get enough of our sweet boy.
 

Hindsight and Goals

Before I decided I was ready to have a baby, I was so nervous about "giving up my body" for pregnancy. My mentality changed a lot leading up to getting pregnant and I came to accept the fact that a body is more than just a figure, but also a vessel for life and that was much more important. I still honestly dreaded what would come of my body as I had been keeping up on my fitness goals for so long and was happy and confident with my body. 

Little did I know, my future self would want to smack my past self for ever pondering the idea of never having a child. It has been by far the most rewarding and happiest things I have ever done. I would "give up" my body over and over again for Mason. He is perfect and I'm proud of my body for providing a safe and healthy home for him. 

With that being said, I still have fitness goals and realize I actually didn't give up anything permanently! My abs are gone, yes. But I will get them back in time. So for now, I am jotting down small, achievable goals and tracking my postpartum fitness journey here on the blog so I can hold myself accountable and to be able to refer to this for any future pregnancies. 

As I have written in previous blog posts, I kept up with exercise during pregnancy. Nothing crazy, but some lifting and cardio. 

My current goals are:

1. Make a daily routine/time for exercise with Mason. 

2. Wake up and put on workout attire. (So helpful and motivating to me)

3. Mindfully eat. 

4. Drink LOTS of water for health and milk supply. 

5. Register for a race of some kind and start training. 

6. Start upper body lifting at home or on walks. 

My progress:

My goals for the first 3 weeks postpartum were to walk and soak up every ounce of baby loving with Mason. 

I did that, and even squeezed in a 2-mile run which encouraged me to look at races. 

Pre-pregnancy weight: 115

Final pregnancy weight: 145

2 days postpartum: 130

1 week postpartum: 117

Now: 117 

(I realize the scale only tells you so much, I'm more focused on how I FEEL)

I cannot wear all my pre-pregnancy clothes yet. My hips are still wide. I can wear my size 3 jeans. I obviously lost quite a bit of muscle too, so the numbers on the scale really are skewed. 

3 weeks postpartum today and feeling ready to tackle this challenge!

Mason James Andreason

On a warm April day, we were preparing for our biggest adventure yet – we were going to be admitted to the hospital that evening to welcome you into the world.  We spent the day enjoying the sunshine, each other, and the blissful pondering of what was to come.

We arrived at the hospital at 5:30 PM, bags packed and in tow.  We were as ready as we could be! We settled into Room 11 in Labor and Delivery and the reality of your arrival became much clearer, as this was the room we would be meeting you in.  It was the largest room on the unit with a bath tub.

At 7:30 PM, after being assessed and monitored, the doctor placed a Cook catheter (dilation balloon) to dilate my cervix before inducing labor.  The monitors showed I was having consistent natural contractions upon arrival, but they weren’t very productive yet.  The dilation balloon caused the contractions to become more uncomfortable, so I labored throughout the night switching from walking around, bathing, and relaxing in bed.  Your daddy was the perfect coach giving me plenty of positive affirmations and counter-pressure, which worked wonders for the back pain.

The medical team came in throughout the night to check the progress of the dilation.  At 1:00 AM, I was still only 1 cm dilated and 70% effaced, which is what I was upon admission.  We did not let that discourage us, as we were told it could take up to 12 hours for the balloon to take effect.  At 6:10 AM, they checked again and I was 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced, which meant the balloon could come out! Great news! Pitocin was started at 6:40 AM, to help my natural contractions be more rhythmic and productive.  My water was broken at 8:00 AM.  Things really started to pick up after this.  The contractions became much more painful and much closer together.  They would last about 1.5 minutes with 20-30 seconds of break in between.  Again, I labored walking around and bathing, with the help of Daddy as my coach.  By 11:20 AM, I decided it was time to relieve the pain.  I was given an epidural and was able to relax and enjoy the company who had come to visit us.  By noon, I was 6 cm dilated.  By 2:00 PM, I was 7+ cm dilated and 90% effaced.  Getting close!

At 5:00 PM, they checked me once more and found I was complete.  You were not positioned well for delivery, so we gave you time to turn your head from the side and settle down in the pelvis.  I lied on my side to help you turn, which also made it so all the pain relief was gone from one side of my body.  Daddy helped apply counter-pressure for the hour we waited for you to get ready.  By 6:00 PM, they checked your placement, and you were ready!

At 6:26 PM, I began pushing.  Each and every contraction was productive and so motivating.  I could tell things were moving along by watching your daddy’s facial expressions.  He was getting really excited!  I pushed through about 10 contractions before it was time for you to be delivered.  Daddy gowned up and gloved up, in preparation to deliver you.  “This is it!” “Here he comes!” With one long push, out you came at 7:26 PM! Daddy caught you and placed you upon my chest.  In that moment, nothing else seemed to exist in the world.  You cried immediately, which was one of the most beautiful, reassuring sounds we had ever heard.  Once the cord stopped pulsing, it was clamped and Daddy cut it.  You made it known you were hungry and ready to eat, by squirming and rooting around on my chest.  At just minutes old, you nursed for the first time like a champ!  After we were settled, the nurse weighed and assessed you.  Daddy put on your first diaper.  The next several hours were spent bonding with you and soaking up our new life as a family of three.  You were perfect. Our hearts were full.  Our lives were changed forever.

Photo Credit: Karen Richards
http://www.karenrichardsphotography.com/

Mason James Andreason

Born: April 3rd, 2015

Weight: 7 lb. 15.3 oz.

Length: 21.25 in.