Post Partum Hair loss and Regrowth.

People. The things your body goes through after having a baby is ridiculous. And here I am, nine months later, with my baby being outside of me just as long as he was inside and the hormonal aftermath is still in full effect. You'd think everything would be level by now, but I still find myself very emotional, exhausted, paranoid, etc, etc... It definitely comes in waves. Immediately after coming home from the hospital I was an emotional wreck. Scared of keeping my baby alive! Worried about everything- even CRAZY things like the world was going to end I and I willingly brought him onto this earth. Then things leveled out, but now I think things are dipping again because Everett isn't nursing as much and I read that causes hormonal changes.

Anyway, the most physical hormonal change Ive seen has manifested in my hair. I always heard you lose hair after being pregnant, and for me it started when Ev was 3 months old. Clumps of hair everywhere. Hair in my food, on the baby, in his diaper (yes that happened), in the shower, hairballs all over the laundry.

You can see in the photo below how thin my hairline was (although at the time I didn't realize it):

Now 6 months later here it is growing back in:

I did not know that the hair you lost grew back so strangely. Now when I blow dry my hair I have all these baby hairs sticking up everywhere.

Stop.

Did you enjoy those awkward photos of me? Hormones be crazy people (and make people crazy!).

best buds

Everett and his cousin Ryan always have so much fun together. While having dinner at my moms Ryan busted open a container of puffs, and the boys went to town on them. It was so cute seeing them so excited over their treasured treats being on the floor to eat and eat and EAT! I think this also is a little window into all the fun (and maybe trouble) they will have as they grow older together!

Valentines Day!

Well its March 1st, so lets talk about Valentines! Sheesh I am so behind on everything it feels like- especially blogging. Here and over at my photo site. I have been blessed to be so busy with that but haven't been able to share my new work lately.

Anyway- Valentines day was more or less a regular day (we do always ALWAYS get take out and watch a movie- our little tradition) but the weekend before we went up to Show Low. Chris skied for a half day and Everett and I hung out in the hotel room, eating snacks and watching CABLE. It was glorious (minus the fact that 5 minutes into our room Ev fell off the bed. Horrible).

(rocking his rig burn from the fall)

(nap time)
When Chris got back we went to a very classy dinner at JB's diner, had dessert at Sonic and watched the intriguing show on NatGeo, Doomsday Preppers. That was a fun marathon to watch.

We tried to sleep- we thought having a king bed Everett would sleep well with us. Ha. He is a crazy sleeper. He likes to flip flop all night long- and even sits up and just looks around. None of us got rest. That boy is not a cuddlier and definitely likes his own space. A part of me so wishes he would cuddle and sleep with us (Chris would like that too), but he HATES it!

In the morning after the complimentary hotel breakfast we walked outside to SNOW! It was so fun to show Everett the snow.

I know he looks thrilled! Ha!

Then we drove up to Greer. Looked around some antique shops and explored the snow some more before driving the 3.5 hours back home!

Moms Birthday!

February 16th my mom turned 50! We had so much planned for her- a surprise trip from her sister and even a small surprise party. My grandparents were in town for her birthday and stayed here with us. I loved having them here- I wish they would've never left! Seriously! They loved playing with Everett and were willing to help any way I needed. It was the best visit ever!

My Grandpa Bill (as I always called him, now the great grandkids call him Papa Billy) will be 85 May 12 (a day after Ev turns one!). He is in great shape for his age and is such a pleasure to be around. I loved seeing him with my little boy. Melts my heart. My Grandma Wy is just wild about Everett too (well kids in general). I hope one day to be as great of parents/grandparents as they have been. What a legacy to leave.

Something new everyday

I keep telling everyone that Everett is doing something new every single day- and its so true. Since he turned 9 months old he seems to be unstoppable.

Heres a few things he's been up to lately-

• Saying "dad", "ma ma", and "bye", sometimes he tries to make a "dog" sounding word
• pulling the toilet paper off the roll
• pulling down the trash can
• walking along furniture
• pulling himself up on walls and the sliding glass door
• opening cabinets
• pulling everything out of said cabinets
• sitting down gently after standing up
• closing (or slamming) open doors
• opening the dog crate
• Giving the dogs food
• hes been clapping his hands for a while, but now will do it if I say "yay" or if he hears music
• hes also been blowing raspberries, but now will mimic us doing them, even with noise added. Also if I ask him a question, he sometimes responds with blowing a raspberry at me (not like hed ever answer with words), but its like hes this sarcastic comedian. This morning I woke up to Chris and Ev playing in the living room. I said hi to Chris, then walked into the kitchen and turned around and said "Oh, Hi Ev!" he blankly stared at me, then almost sighed as he blew a raspberry at me. It was like, "hey MOM! Dont forget to say hi to me EVER again. Ok?"

then Chris laughed, and Ev joined him. He's so funny.

Todays Surgery

I know I've mentioned Everetts ear infections a lot on here, and today we had tubes put in. Everyone said it would be fast, easy, and painless, and for the most part it was. I was totally freaked out about the "no eating past midnight" rule. He is still getting up at night, more so lately since he is cutting his second top tooth. I didn't want him to "smell" me (or pull my shirt down ha) if I got up with him at night, so I had my mom come stay with me. Chris was out of town all weekend and I had to go pick him up around midnight from the church ski trip he was on, so it was nice that my mom was there so I could pick him up baby free. Around the time I left my mom gave him a 6 oz bottle. He was good after that.

THEN 4:30 am came. This is usually his only night time feeding. I usually feed him and he will go back down until 7am. Well he woke up hysterical around then and my mom and Chris couldn't get him back to sleep. Oh it was horrible. We had to leave around 6:30 to get to the surgery center for a 7 am check in. He cried for a good hour until my mom just played and distracted him. He didn't cry at all after that- not on the drive or the waiting room.

We checked in at 7, had to pay (ouch) and fill out paperwork, then got taken back to pre-op. Our little boy is such a flirt, let me tell you. He smiled and smiled at the nurses. They were trying to get his blood pressure and he would reach out for the nurses face then giggle so hard. He had them all laughing. The doctor and anesthesiologist talked to us, and we were warned that he'd be extremely cranky after the procedure.

Then they took him away, and that boy who isn't afraid of anyone gladly left. We went to the recovery room and seriously 5 minutes later the Dr came in and said he was done. It was insanely fast. I then heard him crying and a couple minutes later he was carried in by a nurse and handed to me to be fed. He was very limp an groggy. He did eat, and then about 2 other families joined us in the waiting room- as I was exposed nursing! ha. We left then and he was still calm. Chris and I spoke too soon and said, "this is extreme crankiness?HAHA! Our son must be an angel"

Then we drove home and he cried the whole way.Getting out of the car I noticed his body jolted, I heard a "pop" then he screamed. Scared me to death but I didn't know what happened. It kept happening to the point where I started crying out of fear for him. It was just so bizarre. It seemed like he would burp, and it was also popping his ears. I called the dr and he said the anesthesia would give him gas but his ears wouldn't be popping. We are still dealing with gas from the anesthesia, about 6 hours later. It is very weird and scary and I hate that it hurts him. Lots and lots of tears today. My poor baby. I hope this is the end of ear infections.

9 months!

I am a little late posting this, but Everett turned 9 months old on 2/11/12!

This month went by especially fast, I think because everyday he is doing something new.

He is very very vocal. Giggling, babbling, making this dramatic inhale scream that I can't describe. Chris and I are pretty sure he says "Dada" and knows what it means. He has been saying it for a while, but the past couple weeks he mainly says it when Chris is around, or when he hears his voice over the phone.

He pulls himself up to stand. It still scares me, because he isnt too strong yet. He topples over most of the time, but each day he is getting better. He also crawls up on all 4's now, and is so stinking fast. He loves to follow me around the house!

He gets into everything. Opens cabinets, drawers, pulls things out and puts his mouth on everything. He stills puts everything in his mouth. If I turn my back for a second its guaranteed I will be fishing something out of his little mouth. It amazes me how he finds the smallest things!

He is so so busy. Always wanting down, to explore. He is a little wiggle worm.

He has 3 teeth. Two on the bottom and the top left one. He seems to be a slow teether. I will notice the tooth in the gum, but it won't come through for a couple weeks, if not longer. It doesn't seem to bother him too badly.

He had another ear infection this month. It was a double. He gets tubes Wednesday, mama is scared!

We are still doing sign language. He has mastered more, milk, and dog. We are working on eat and all done.

He is still nursing, although a lot less frequent. Its about 4 times a day. He eats 3 meals and loves food! He seems to be a little picky, but so far will try anything. He still won't let me spoon feed him (except for warm squash baby food), so he eats what we do and is great using his little teeth and gums to smash it all up. When he has a bottle he still gets excited seeing it and will hold it himself!

He waves bye all the time. He also waves hi! He is still very social and will let anyone hold him. As much as I want him to be, he doesn't seem attached to me. He is willing to go to anyone and will love on anyone as well. When we are out and about he stares at people with such a big grin, and will wait until they look at him. He loves attention! He gets lots of compliments on his big blue eyes and smile. We think he is adorable, but to hear it from others is so sweet!

I think the best thing is to hear how people think you are the sweetest, happiest baby. You really are. Always smiling, always giggling. You love to hug and give kisses (although you are too busy to cuddle!)

I don't want to forget:

• how your little eyes are puffy in the morning!
• how clear you say "dad" "dada" and "babababa"
• how you sleep with your bum up in the air
• how you point and look at the overhead light in the car that turns on when I turn the car off
• how you ALWAYS cross your feet at the ankles when you fall asleep in your carseat
• how you still "scratch" everything, especially your head when you're tired.
• how you hold the sides of my head and dive for a kiss
• how you look with those 3 teeth! One on top and two on bottom.

Happy Valentines!

Happy Valentines Day from the Worleys!

Here are my two Valentines:

this photo melts my heart.

boo-boos.

the first time he stood! We happened to be having a little photo shoot and I caught it on camera! yes, those blocks that are supposed to spell things like "xoxo", "kiss", "hugs" and "love" say "sex" in this photo. I had no clue, I sent this to my father in law and he pointed it out! whoops!

We haven't quite mastered the art of "pulling up to stand", but we sure are trying. There are a few places he can do it, but he tries to pull himself up on everything. Seriously everything! With this eagerness comes lots of falling. Most of the time he is ok, but sometimes he takes a hit that makes us both cry.

Last week it was the end table, he fell and bonked his cheek on the table leg. It left a bruise that will not fade!

We had to go to the Dr yesterday and I was so worried she'd think I was a bad mom or something, having a 9 month old with a bruise on his cheek.

Just now I changed Everetts diaper, then we played in his room before nap. He likes to open and close the door on his changing table. He also just discovered the knobs on the drawers. He tried to pull himself up using the knobs, but slipped and hit his face. I was right there too and couldn't stop it. Oh the crying he did, that made me also cry. I love this age of curiosity, but would give anything to make my child not hurt.

Oh, speaking of the above picture.. Everett has had a runny nose lately. I think it was just from cutting his two top teeth. I suspected it probably went to his ears, and sure enough, a double ear infection again. We see an ENT tomorrow. Please pray for my sweet boy, I am sure tubes are in order.

Last weekend

Its Friday and I am blogging about what we did a week ago. Ha.

Last Saturday Chris and I went out on a date. Man I needed it! He asked my mom to babysit without me knowing and we enjoyed a night baby free. I always miss that boy so much, but I think that sometimes missing him is just what I need. It like reboots us or something.

I have also been missing my husband so much- he has been working like a mad man and Ive barely seen him lately.

The top two are us at dinner- the bottom two are us taking Ev out to brunch!

This video is a few weeks old. This is him signing "more' (hands together with a patting motion), and waving bye. Yes he is eating sprinkle cheese.

This boy is on the move lately. Playing and sitting on his knees (which is the cutest), and trying to pull himself up to stand (he has been successful once on a bookcase in our spare room but we are rarely in there). Growing so fast.

January Photo a Day- Part 2

Dear very few readers (if any) that I have- I am failing at my photo a day challenge. Not this easy iPhone one, that is convenient, but the one with my real camera. Boo to me. I think I did maybe 22 pictures out of 31 last month. Forgive me....I will share later.

Anyway- here is the rest of the instagram challenge!

17. Water- Ev in the tub. He LOVES bath time.

18. Something you bought- I am loving this chalkboard paint! Its so fun!

19. Sweet- Chris brought this back for me from Vegas. It was to die for. Green apple covered in caramel, milk chocolate, and white chocolate.

20. Someone you love- I bought this necklace for my lil E who I am crazy for.

21. Reflection

22. Shoes- this is my closet

23. Old- these are old baby pictures of me. I think Ev looks like his mama.

24. Guilty Pleasure- The Bachelor. Yesssss.

25. Something you made- a giant measuring stick inspired by Pinterest. I love it even with its flaws! We will be tracking our kids growth!

26. Color- Brown and blue, me and Ev's eye colors.

27. Lunch- this day I ate whole wheat spaghetti with spicy garlic olive oil & Cheese, along with roasted broccoli and tomatoes. Eating broccoli really upsets Everetts stomach so I can't do that anymore :(

28. Light- this is at Oreganos Pizza from me and Chirs' date night. Its my favorite restaurant.

29. Inside your fridge

30. Nature- some random blossom on our walk

31. You again- there I am.

I loved doing this and will be doing it in February too! My username is shayworley if anyone wants to look me up!

daily struggles

Lately I have been struggling with being present. I am not sure if it comes from the ever fleeing time that passes when you have a new baby or what, but its been hard. The days pass so quickly. The time is always getting away from me. I worry I am not savoring every moment, every giggle, every smile from my boy. I try to keep up the house and some days my worry about when I will take a shower consumes me more than just sitting and being with my boy.

I hate the fight that goes on in my head, and the guilt that comes with it. Thoughts like:

Am I doing enough? Am I doing too much?

I should be busier. I should be doing less.

We need to get out more. We need to follow a schedule.

Does Chris value me at home? Do I need a job to feel like I contribute?

I should try to market my photo business. But I don't feel like I'm good enough.

I should play with Ev more. Is he ok entertaining himself? Does he need me?

Did I savor every moment today? Or did I wish it away?

Being a mom is seriously the best thing that has ever happened to me. It has also shaken my world and changed it forever, mostly for the better but some things take getting used to. You question yourself, your abilities, and your choices but also are willing to fight til the death over those exact things. I also have never experienced time flying by so fast. In a few months my baby will be one, and we will be celebrating 5 years of marriage. I just wish for a moment, time would slow, or if it can't, I wish I could be ok with it flying by. I wish I could just revel in each moment with Everett and welcome the next. My biggest wish is that when he is older, and thinks of his mom, that he will know I loved each and every moment with him.

our weekend

We had a great weekend over here! It was quiet and full of my favorite things: shopping and sleep!

I love having Chris home to see how Ev and I do things around here while he's working. He gets to help with diapers (ha), early morning wake-ups (well I don't make him get up that early, but he did let me sleep while they played), bath time and walks with the dogs.

Lately on walks Ev has been reaching out and grabbing Samsons leash, I think its adorable!



Saturday we went with Chris to the batting cages



Sunday Everett took his morning nap around 9 (which he's been doing lately) and slept til around 11. He's hasn't been napping for longer than an hour so I was surprised. When he woke up, I noticed his second tooth finally broke through! Seriously its been right there, visible under the gums since Christmas! His first tooth took this long too. I sure hope the rest go faster because teething is no joke people.

Chris is on a softball league on Sunday nights and Ev and I tagged along last night, but first we went to lunch and did some shopping at the Scottsdale mall, which is a rare treat. We also stopped for Sprinkles cupcakes because Chris had never been. We got the new Smores cupcake and it was delicious!



At the softball game...



We got home and put the babe to bed and then a miracle happened, he slept 10 hours in a row. 10! This hasn't happened since probably October....once the teething and ear infections started he hasn't been sleeping longer than 5 hours at a time. I of course didn't sleep, I kept checking on him and had to get up and pump since he didn't need a feeding. I hope this good sleep lasts a little while, until the next tooth starts!

January Photo a Day

I have been doing another form of "photo a day" this time on the Instagram app for the iPhone.
I thought I would share my photos here for those of you who haven't seen them!

1. Me! This is me on Christmas Day.

2. Breakfast- Everett was eating egg yolks for the first time this day.

3. Something you adore- my sweet boys chubby hands.

4. Letterbox- our mailbox? I didn't understand this one. Ha.

5. Something you wore- leggings, longs shirts and boot socks are my life these days.

6. Makes you smile- when I hear the garage door open followed by this man walking in the door!

7. Favorite- my boys skinny jeans and cute shoes!

8. Your sky- This was in Queen Creek as I was driving home from a photo shoot.

9. Your routine- inspired my "day in a life" post. My morning is almost always the same so I posted pictures of that!

10. Childhood- my baby blanket. I still sleep with it (cringe I know) and I am so sad that is it getting very thin and worn. I don't think it'll last any more washes. I should put it away but.i.cant.

11. Where you sleep- this is our room. After 5 years I still love our bedding and bedroom set! Our room needs some more decor though.

12. Close up- I was not too creative on this one. I had my sister take a picture of my eyeliner.

13. In your bag- I only carry a diaper bag and a wallet these days. Basically consists of baby items and chapstick!

14. Something you're reading- I am not reading anything still. (this is a screen shot of my empty iBooks app) I read to Everett at night, and I use my Bible app but I am not reading a novel right now. I'd like to read the Hunger Games series!

15. Happiness- holding a sleeping baby. Melts me with joy.

16. Morning- we are morning people around here! Up around 6/6:30. No complaints about it, and Ev is so happy in morning.

I will share the rest of the months challenge photos when this month is over!

Photoa Day- Week 2

So I kinda fell off the bandwagon here- my husband was out of town for 3 days and I tried to stay busy and my camera didn't get picked up. Here are the ones I took last week- I only took 6 but not all on different days. Forgive me :)

1/10/12

Playing with the dogs- or wanting to at least! He LOVES them!

Playing at my feet

1/11/12

Ev playing around during his 8 month photoshoot.

1/12/11

With as obsessed as he is with the mop/vacuum/swifffer, I should teach him how to use them!

1/13/11

Some Sea Salt Brown Butter Chocolate Chips cookies I made and we enjoyed for a few days. So good!

1/14/11

By no means a good picture, but he is adorable!