glorious sleep

tristan slept for ten hours last night! He woke up twice to eat for about twenty minutes then it was right back to bed! I didn't get out of bed for good until after nine!!! I know it won't go on like this for very long so I had to chronicle the one night that I got this much sleep with a two month old baby :)

Saturdays with Tristan

I love Saturdays! Since I have had to return to work to help keep our little family afloat Saturdays are my day to spend with Tristan. While dad sleeps or goes to work we have cuddle time, tummy time, and baby talk time. Tristan's little eyes light up when I place him on the changing table and talk to him and he has just started staring and "talking" to his toys which is just adorable. Today we opened up all the blinds and let the wonderful spring sun come in while he enjoyed tummy time and watching himself in the mirror. We enjoy all these moments during the week as well, but the time is so different when there is no running around to do to try and get everything ready in time to go to daycare and then off to work. Sitting around in comfy clothes and cuddling with a sweet baby is THE best way to spend a saturday!

Longest week ever

this week felt like the longest week ever. The week started out fine, but on Tuesday I woke up with pink eye and the cold i have been fighting for a month now had moved into my chest. So, it was off to urgent care while Jake took care of Tristan. To make the day worse the doctor told me I was really contagious....wonderful. It really was a miracle that Jake and Tristan did not catch pink eye, but Tristan did catch my cough. It is so pitiful to hear him cough I think I might go get the antibiotic filled that the doctor gave me. He said not to fill it unless it was really needed, but I am tired of my little guy being sick so I think I will break down and get it filled. Hopefully that takes care of this stubborn bug that just won't go away! I hate to kill all the good stuff in my body right along with the bad, but such is life.

Grab that bargain!!

My great friend Amanda found this awesome store in Burlington, NC where bargains abound. It is a scratch and dent kind of store which means the goods there have either damaged boxes, missing parts, will soon expire(or are already expired), or have been returned to a store and cannot be resold by that store. However, some of the products are perfectly normal, have not been opened and are not expired. Almost everything there is priced at 1.00 with some items ranging a little lower or higher just depending. Wading through the dirty boxes and crowded shelves and bins is totally worth it for the bargains you will find....just make sure to bring along your wet wipes and hand sanitizer!!

My favorite bargains of the day?

hair dye-$1
Pampers diapers- $4
playtex bottles- $1
Cover Girl mascara and concealer- $1
Quantum dish washer tablets-1.50

Here are some pictures of the great finds! All in all I spent 53 dollars and some change. Can't beat that!

back to work

I go back to work on monday. I will have to leave Tristan for the first time at day care and it is such a scary thing to think about! I found a good day care center and he will only be there for the four hours that I am working, but it still is nerve wracking to leave such a little baby in the care of someone else while I leave him. It is not an option for me right now to stop working. Working is the only way I can keep my health insurance and Tristans health insurance. We applied for medicaid for Tristan but we have not heard yet whether or not he is eligible. I think he may not be because we have too much money in our savings account from when Jake was in Iraq. BUT the money in that savings account pays the extra bills right now since Jake and I both only have part time jobs. On another note (which makes me feel guilty sometimes) I don't want to stop working. I think I would go crazy if I stayed at home all the time. I know it is great for children to be raised by a stay at home mom, but I can't imagine not working. I have realized over these six weeks at home with Tristan that you have to have a lot of patience and be super organized in order to be a stay at home mom. Needless to say patience is the least of my virtues and the independent feeling i get at work I really enjoy. I also feel like I learn so much at work every day I can't imagine not learning new things and improving my resume! If we were in a better place I would probably stay at home with Tristan until he was older, but my husband and I both believe that you should not live off of the government if you can help it and that you should work to avoid taking advantage of the system. I don't think getting medicaid is taking advantage because most working people cannot afford health insurance right now. However I don't want to be forced into food stamps and welfare because I'm too selfish to work. You have to make your own way in this world and if you can take care of yourself you should.

New Year, New Baby

We have had a busy and exciting new year so far. We kicked off the new year with the birth of our baby boy Tristan Maximus Smith. We headed to the hospital at 2:30am on the 31st of December and at 1:57am on Jan 1st Tristan was born! Here is the story of how it happened :

On December 30th I woke up feeling normal but tired. I started having contractions off and on all day but nothing consistent. That night my contractions started coming every ten minutes apart and were getting painful, but not enough to go to the hospital. I went upstairs and took a shower and laid down to read a book. Nothing happened. I came downstairs at about 2:00am and told my husband I was going to bed and as soon as I laid down and started to relax the contractions started coming really close together and very painful! I came down the stairs and told Jake it was time to go. We packed our car up and headed out to UNC and called our parents to let them know the first grandchild was on the way! I was 4cm dilated when the doctor checked me at the hospital so they checked us into a labor and delivery room, got me started on the iv and gave me morphine for the pain so I could sleep. The next day not too much had changed. I wasn't dilating much at all so the doctors broke my water and gave me pitocin to get things going. After my water was broken I got an epidural which was a life saver! Even with the pitocin and breaking of my water things progressed very slowly. The baby started to have some drops in heart rate, but the doctors gave me oxygen and turned me different directions which seemed to help. At about 12:30 my nurse let me know it was time to start pushing and about an hour later Tristan was born! He was the first baby to be born at UNC in 2011. Tristan had some bruising and had to have his lungs suctioned out because he had swallowed some meconium which happened because he was born after his due date and the labor took so long. But, everything worked out and I had no problems other than a minor inside tear which the doctor gave me three stitches for. We stayed in the hospital for two days and then brought our precious little boy home. It was a great new years and even though we missed the new years celebrations and dropping of the ball, I will always remember 2011 as the being the best new years ever!

christmas time is here

As Christmas approaches I hope you all have had time to celebrate the wonderful gifts that God has given to all of us. We have all been blessed with the gift of Jesus and it is encouraging this time of the year to remember that no matter what changes await us in the new year He will always be there guiding us and showing us His will for our lives. I hope that you are all able to spend time with your family enjoying the simple joys of being together during the holiday season and our thoughts and prayers go out to all of those who are unable to be with their families this year. I am blessed to have my husband home this year and to be living in our own home and expecting our first child. This year has been laced with trials (especially related to jobs and income) but through it all God has brought us closer as a couple and this Christmas really reminds me of all He has done for us this year. So, take a few minutes to reflect on all the awesome things that have happened to you this year and enjoy your Christmas with family and never forget that Jesus is the reason we celebrate Christmas!