Fun Pictures

" Can I have my toy/book back please?!"

Rhowan and her 2nd cousin Chloe :)

Girls are so much fun...we went to a cousin's Barbie themed birthday party and Rhowan of course was princess/ballerina Barbie. Finally got some use out of one of her many tutus.

6 Month Check Up

Rhowan had her 6 month Dr appt on Tuesday. Can you believe it, 6 months has already passed since our princess was born. Wow, time flies when you are having fun. I didn't have my usual list of questions as I am constantly reading up on my 101 obsessions and calling my fellow mommy friends as well as working up my tab with Rhowan's nanny (RN) aka. "Big Jen," as TJ calls her. LOL. TJ took the morning off to go with us, as I refuse to take her for shots alone...it all just breaks my heart to watch her so upset after they poke her with those needles. She was in a real good mood, I made her appt for morning this time to avoid the cranky nurses she usually gets stuck with at the end of their shift, and she did so well. She was playing, eating the tissue paper on the bed, which I am sure isn't very sanitary, but whatta ya gonna do and daddy was being extra, extra attentive to his princess being she was getting shots.
I always start her on Tylenol a half hour before her shots to get into her system and keep up with it for every 4 hours for the next 24 hours to keep pain away before it comes. She always has a bad time with shots. She gets a fever, real groggy, not her usual playful self, doesn't eat very much, etc. I hate it...and this time it lasted for two days...and nights, long nights that thank goodness daddy took over one of the nights.
Rhowan is 17 lbs. and 14 oz. and 27 1/2 inches long. She is in the 75-90 percentile in her height, weight and with her head circumference, which I believe was 44 inches (don't remember that one.) She seems to be right on with where she should be...sitting up alone, clapping, moving objects from one hand to the other, almost crawling-getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth, she will sit on the rug and play with her toys, entertaining herself and loves when I read to her. She is very curious, ok nosey like her mommy, but the Dr says its good she's interested in her surroundings! She is eating vegetables and Dr gave the ok to move on to fruits. I have made homemade green beans (didn't like so much), sweet potatoes (favorite so far), and avocados (she isn't so sure about those either.) I went to the market and bought a lot of fresh produce for about $7 dollars, I was stoked. Once I make them all and freeze into ice cube trays it will give her enough food for almost a month. I bought more green beans (gonna keep trying), pears, squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, apples and avocados. The Dr just suggested to keep the same food for at least 4 days to make sure no allergic reaction and then switch to another food. It's weird, she loves plain, gross, tasteless oatmeal and isn't so impressed with other tastes, but I will keep introducing them as well as her getting most her nutrients still from nursing and formula. My goal was to nurse 6 months, but we are still chugging along. I only nurse in the am and evenings now and if she wakes up in the middle of the night, and she takes formula throughout the day. Dr says her gums are definitely swollen and more teeth (she has one already) will be making their way through. Her night time sleeping isn't going as well as it had been. Her bedtime routine has not changed, I hardly ever break it and if I do, only by an hour at the most. I feed her about 6 ish, bath about 6:30 ish, lotion, pjs, nurse and down in crib by 7:30. Every night I just never know, is she gonna wake up tonight? How many times? Is she hungry? In pain? Sometimes she goes through the night like she used to, others she is up 1-3 times. Oh and the Dr says she needs to learn to put herself to sleep...umm, yeah, I still rock her and put her in her crib sleeping! Shut up, she's my first baby and I will rock her until the next one comes along and I can't anymore. :/ Sometimes I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing and have so many questions if I am doing the right thing...my friends and family are so re assuring and telling me I am doing a great job. But it is scary to think every decision I make for her can shape her to be the person she will be in 10-15 years. Ok, totally babbling again...oh how I get so bored when TJ is gone.
Well we leave for San Luis Obispo tomorrow to spend the weekend with daddy on their last road trip. So off to finish packing I go...as I've babbled on and on you all can see our princess is very healthy, happy and growing so fast. Talk to you all soon.

lots of love
xoxoxo

Baseball Season

Just a few pictures from this weekend's game...we don't get to make many games this year with most being in the evening and it being so cold, I am anal about Rhowan sticking to her schedule, so Sundays are game days. We will be driving up to San Luis Obispo this weekend to be with daddy all weekend. This is their last road trip and then they are home most of May and then daddy leaves to coach in Alaska all summer. So I want to make as many games as we can in the up coming weeks. Rhowan is such a good girl at the games...guess she has no choice and better get used to a baseball field being her second home! LOL.

March of Dimes

Start/Finish line at the Coliseum

Walking our 3 miles :)

Rhowan is like, "mom, why am I here around all these people so early and not in my swing?!"

Saturday morning, I woke up at 6 am to go walk for Babies, The March of Dimes, which promotes healthy babies and supports families with pre mature born babies. It was a last minute thing we signed up for through our friend Jen, so my sister and I thought, what the heck, we've been wanting to do something to give back ever since we've read about Layla Grace. Although, this wasn't in support for her or her cause, I felt like I wanted and needed to get more involved. Anything to do with babies is so much more touching to me now that I am a mommy and I could never imagine going through some of the stories and things you hear. It was a great way to start off the morning...just a 3 mile walk, Rhowan slept half the walk, it only took us about 45 min., that's about 15 min. a mile, not bad for this being my first real exercise since Rhowan has been born. It made me want to do more walks/runs and had me telling myself that this summer I need to wake up and walk every morning while I am off! Let's just see if I can put those words into action! LOL. Anyway, just wanted to share some pictures with you.

Take Your Own Advice Heather...

Most of you will agree that you often hear me say, "Leave it up to God," or "Just allow things to fall into its place," "All will work itself out," etc. It's about dang time I take my own advice. I don't know if it's hormones lately, adjusting, just being overwhelmed and tired, being totally over critical of myself, too high of expectations, or just me being a stress case.
I have been really bumming it this past week...a lot on my mind, just thinking ahead, that come August neither TJ or I have jobs to fall back on, ins. for any of us and our careers passionately waiting to take off. When we got married who would have ever thought, almost 4 years later we'd still NOT have our careers off the ground. I have been really good about saying, "God will take care of it." Which he has been. I have such strong faith in knowing He will take care of us, but it is just scary. I am so scared for TJ to go away all summer, although I couldn't be more proud of him, I am scared that come June 1st he has no more stable income from his day job, which means no ins for Rhowan?! That kills me, I have been researching up and down trying to figure out our options. I could care less about TJ or me not having ins. but not our little princess. I will not allow that to happen. I have a long term coming up in two weeks to carry me through the end of the school year...12th grade government, which I am really nervous about, seniors, oh God! However, it will allow me to not have to work in the summer and have our house paid for the summer and then once August comes, that's it. I am just trying to "Leave it to God," and hope it all works out. I am just having such a hard time with all this right now and its really taking over me. I had a long, tiring week at work, stressing about summer, bills, my husband leaving, insurance, and everything else, I just can't seem to move forward. I feel like everything has been going so well for us and I just don't want it to start going backwards.
Then I have my overly self critic that tears myself up and down...I want to be the best possible mommy and wife I can be. I feel like there is always something I can and should be doing better. I want to make sure I am not creating bad habits or some of the kids I've seen in the career that I am in, I see a lot that I know are the product of home lives and parents. I don't want to repeat those mistakes. I kill myself over making sure Rhowan never has to come from a broken home. I want her to have two parents that are so in love with each other forever. That is so important to me. TJ and I have grown up together and I want us to live out our dreams together for better or worse.
I always think I am doing something wrong, second guessing myself an my friends and family have been telling me, "Heather, its ok, she is doing great, you can leave her for a few hours to have "you" time, leave her for a night, its normal...I just haven't been ready for that...however, I finally got coached through it and am glad I did it. Everyone has been so supportive and making me feel like I am not crazy. I feel like I over think everything and I don't want to do that, I want to enjoy her for the moments we will never get back. She is the light of our lives. She is our princess and has filled a void in my heart that I never knew existed or knew it was there, but didn't know why...now I know, I was meant to be a mommy and need to just enjoy it.
Well I've totally babbled, gone on tangents and this all probably doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but thanks to all our family and friends for being a part of our lives. Thank you for all your continued support, love and prayers.
Love,
The Bruce's

Update...

I have finally uploaded pictures from TJ's birthday and Rhowan's First Easter. I posted a few on the last post just before this. I do have to say that this was one of the best Easter's we've had. I just feel like Easter is such a holiday for the little ones and now that we finally have one of our own, it made it that much more special. However, two of the most important and key people in our family were missing...they were enjoying themselves on a vacation of a lifetime, a cruise to the Panama Canal, but they were truly missed. Grandma and Grandpa/ Gigi and Papa, we hope you never miss another holiday. I know you would've loved to of been there. Aunt Peggy did a great job as a hostess and planner for the festivities of the day. It all went so well, the food was great, the games were fun and the company was enjoyable. Overall, great day. :)
Rhowan was truly spoiled. She got her Easter basket at home before church, then after church she went to Oma and Papa's and got two Easter baskets there (from Auntie Nichole and Uncle Anthony and Oma and Papa) then we went to Aunt Peggy's and she got more goodies. Then last but not least, she went to Grandma and Grandpa's and got another Easter basket. She is so blessed and spoiled, we couldn't be more thankful for all that people love her with.
I am feeling like Rhowan is growing faster than I can blink an eye...it is one milestone after another and I can't stay on top of the blog posts, baby books, house work, working during the day and loving my precious princess. Wow, where do the hours in a day go?
Our princess will be 6 months on the 20th. She is now eating baby food...I made my own homemade baby food tonight for the first time. I was given a baby food maker and wow, it was a bit complicated at first with directions, I had my asst "Big Jen" or "Nurse Jen" as one of her many nicknames we call her and we got it all figured out. Rhowan was in her bumpo supervising and Jen was reading the directions. We were successful, Rhowan loved her sweet potatoes and wanted more and more of them! It was the greatest feeling knowing I was able to make her such a healthy and safe meal with no crap added in the jar, and not to mention so cost effective. I bought ice cube trays and made her meals for the week! I am so excited...my next goal is to go buy a baby cook book! :) She is such a good eater, she helps me bring the spoon to her mouth and everything! LOL. It is so exciting...soon she will be eating real food, its crazy how fast it goes.
Her one bottom tooth is almost completely through, you can see the top of it peeking up through the gums and since then, Easter Sunday, she has been back to sleeping much better. She is sitting up on her own, rolling all over and army crawling backwards and rocking on all fours getting ready to crawl. It will be soon, so baby proofing here we come. I left her in her room, on her play mat for 2 minutes to change laundry and she had backward crawled and turned herself all around across the entire room!
She is also getting to the point where she knows and recognizes people. As her book says, "stranger anxiety," she definitely cries and gets nervous if she doesn't recognize someone. I feel bad when she does that, but I know its a part of her development and she will hopefully get past that! She is just such a happy baby and so good. She totally sits on her own in a high chair and even a shopping cart now. I feel like my baby is already so grown up...no more carrying that heavy baby carrier around (although, I got good biceps from that thing). I have one of those high chair and shopping cart covers, which is the best invention ever, they have toys attached and strings to hold things for her, its pretty cool and a life saver. Makes things much easier on mommy. I used to break my back doing grocery shopping with her in the baby bjourn! She sits in her high chair and entertains herself, so curious and wanting our food, but behaving herself so well, that mommy even gets to enjoy her meals now! :)
Well that is just some of what's new in our crazy, busy lives. I know it seems like a lot, but like I said, its "crazy, busy."
I will continue to update as much as I can. I am working as much as I can to save for summer. I start my long term in May to take me to the end of the school year, then plan on heading to Alaska to see Daddy for a few weeks. We have a lot upcoming, so stay posted!
Love and miss you all. We think of you all often even if the days get away from us and we don't get to see or talk often.

xoxoxo,
The Bruce's

Daddy's Bday and Rhowan's 1st Easter

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