Current Favorite Songs March 2020

Hey guys,

I thought I would do a blog post of my current favorite songs. If you have a favorite song, leave it in the comments and I'll check it out! :)

"First Man": Camila Cabello

I have been listening to this song pretty much repeatedly because I'm a daddy's girl and I'm my dad's only daughter. I hope I can experience what this song represents one day when he gives me away.

"Slow Down": Caleb And Kelsey

This song means a lot to me because I just became a mom and I feel like he's growing up way too fast! Time needs to slow down. He's going to be walking before I know it. 

"You'll Always Be My Son": Caleb And Kelsey

The main thing that I want my son to know as he grows up that I'm always here for him. I want to teach him to always be proud of who he is. I will never judge him and I hope he knows that. I'm his number one fan!

"Hostage" : Tiffany Woys

My brother introduced me to this song. At first I'll be honest and say that I wasn't a fan but the more that I listened to it, I started to like it. I like what the words are about and the beat of the song. 

<3 Amanda 

Baby Toys Favorites (Almost 8 Months)

Hey guys,

I'm loving being a mom to my little boy who will be 8 months in such a short time. One thing that I love doing with him is playing with him with his toys. These are some of his favorite toys.

Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Smart Stages Puppy

$14.99 (at Target)

https://www.target.com/p/fisher-price-laugh-and-learn-smart-stages-puppy/-/A-52137613

I got this for him for Christmas. He really likes the music and that it makes noise. I was surprised how much it actually does. It has 3 different levels.  His ear, both hands and one foot has a ton of different music/sayings. The other foot lets you change the levels. 

Nuby Ice Gel Baby Teether Keys

$3.89 (at Target)

https://www.target.com/p/nuby-ice-gel-baby-teether-keys/-/A-13361102

Since he has been teething, but currently has no teeth yet, he loves chewing on these keys. I think they are soft enough that it feels good on his gums. I haven't put them in the freezer tho.

Fisher-Price Brilliant Basics Nursery Rhyme Keys

$10.26 (at Wal-Mart)

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Fisher-Price-Brilliant-Basics-Nursery-Rhyme-Keys/14904090

Just like the puppy above, my son loves this toy because it makes noise. On the different keys, there are different things that he can play with. He loves it when I press the button and the music plays.

Toy Box Clip Clop Horse Activity Rattle Baby Stuffed Animal Playgro

$4.98 (at Wal-Mart)

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Toy-Box-Clip-Clop-Horse-Activity-Rattle-Baby-Stuffed-Animal-Playgro-0101145107/139525545

My son wasn't a huge fan of rattles but this one he definitely took to. I think it's because he can easily hold it, and that each "leg" has a different kind of texture. One has a mirror with tiny balls inside that makes noise (which he loves looking at himself), one makes noise when you crinkle it, one is just soft to hold, and the last one has little bumps on the bottom plus the tiny balls inside. On the handle of the rattle, there are also small blocks attached that he can move up and down. 

Lamaze Octopus Activity Toy

(Link for a pupule one: 

https://www.amazon.com/Lamaze-Octotunes-Purple-Octopus/dp/B01B5M8530/ref=sr_1_25?keywords=crib+toy&qid=1583175877&refinements=p_89%3ALamaze&sr=8-25 )

This toy has different textures/toys that my son enjoys. You can squeeze the octopus's head and make noise, there's a mirror on one leg, a teething toy and more. I think it's supposed to go on a crib, stroller or a car seat but he just plays with it as it is.

Teething Keys

I don't know which brand these teething keys are as they don't say any brand on them. My son got these from a cousin as part of hand-me downs. He loves chewing on them!

<3 Amanda 

Q and A About My Pregnancy, Labor/Delivery, Postpartum and Life Now

Hey guys,

As you might have known from my previous posts, I became a mom in July. I did what all of the first time moms do and that's google everything pretty much. I also asked friends if this or that was a normal thing during pregnancy. They were a big help. When you google things you tend to get a little flustered/confused because there are so many opinions out there from professionals and just normal people like myself.  For this post, I asked through Facebook what could some questions be that I could answer from my perspective and what I recently just went through almost 8 months ago. I hope these questions and my answers help you prepare and relax easier during your pregnancy. 

Q:What were things you didn't know or expect through your pregnancy/labor/motherhood journey?  
A:  Since I have never been pregnant before, there were a lot that I didn't know/expected, so I did a lot of googling, asking friends who are moms and especially sending messages to my doctor as well. One thing that come to mind that I didn't expect during pregnancy is nose bleeds. I didn't have any crazy nose bleeds. I would feel like I would have to blow my nose and then see that my nose was bleeding. 

Labor was similar to being pregnant, I didn't know what to expect. I thought my son was going to come early but then he decided to be late and we had to kick him out (be induced). I was prepared in case he decided to come during the night and had our(mine and my son's) bags by the door way before I even had him.  

The main thing about motherhood that I didn't expect is the time goes by really really fast. I can't believe he'll already be 8 months in a few weeks. When you meet your little one for the first time, your heart literally explodes because you look down and you're like "I made this".

Q: What to expect those first two days after delivery? 
A: This answer varies from mom to mom. For me, I think I got lucky. I didn't have no cramps (that felt like contractions) afterwards that some moms get. The thing that I remember is if I walked too much or was on my feet too much during the day, I would be sore but I would just take Tylenol and then it was better. I also might be different in this case as well but I didn't mind the postpartum underwear.

Q: "How will my body change after pregnancy?"
A: Every woman and labor/delivery is different. For me, I was 125lbs pre-pregnancy and I went right back down to 125lbs after having my son because I was all baby (a lot of people told me that during my pregnancy).

Q:How or did you set boundaries with people wanting to help and/or visit once you were home?
A: I didn't have that many visitors at first when we came home from the hospital. When I did, they would message me to see what time/day worked for us because they knew that I was my son's primary caregiver and myself just had a baby so I was taking care of a newborn and myself. 

Q:How or did you set boundaries with visitors while in the hospital?
A:For me since I went through the majority of my labor alone until at the end, it was nice to have visitors plus I wanted to introduce my son to my family and friends who came up to visit. I would say if you want to know ahead of time who will be coming to visit is to have them text you to see if that time works for you because there will be nurses coming in/out of your room checking on you and your baby. Also, if you're not comfortable in breastfeeding (if you're planning on that) in front of others at first, ask them to go in the waiting room until you're done feeding your baby.

Q:Must haves that aren’t the most common thing
A: Wow, so mom brain is coming out tonight. The only thing that I can think of are snuggle-buddies. My son loves his.

I hope this post helps you out at least a little bit. If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments and I'll answer them :)

<3 Amanda 

Being A Mom Questionnaire

Hey everyone,

I thought it would be fun to create a questionnaire about being a mom. I have only been a mom for 7 months, but I'm loving it!! :)

1. How many children do you have? 1

2. How old are your children? He'll be 8 months on the 15th

3. How old were you when you became a mom for the first time? 28

4. What is your favorite thing about being a mom? Seeing all his smiles and cuddling him

5. What is your least favorite thing about being a mom? Seeing him in pain after surgery

6. What do you hope to teach your children? That he can be anything he wants to be and I will always be proud of him and will never judge him.

7. What's one thing you have learned about being a mom that you didn't know until you had your child (ren)? I was told that your love for your child will be a different kind of love that you'll ever experience. From the moment that he was placed on my chest, I started sobbing,not because there was anything wrong. I just knew instantly from that moment that there'll always be a boy who will always love me, and I will always love him. He's mommy's boy <3

8. Do you see any more children in the future? I hope so, when I find a man who will accept the responsibilities of being a father from the start and who will go through being pregnant and labor/delivery with me.

9.What do you want your children to know? That I'm always there for them.

10. What are you most excited to do with your child(ren)? Right now, I'm excited for his 1st birthday party. I know he'll only be one and won't remember any of it but still. There'll be a post about it probably at the end of July as his birthday is in July.

I tag:

Liz @ https://blueandhazel.com/
Chelsea @https://www.thecrazysahm.com/
Devon @https://www.thecrazysahm.com/


<3 Amanda

Birth Story Of Baby Boy

Hey all,

Looking back on the last post I wrote I was 23 weeks pregnant. A lot of time has past and I happy to announce to you all that I had my baby boy back in July, and I'm loving being a mom.He recently turned 4 months and I wanted to write this post about how he came into this world before I forget all the smaller details. So lets begin:

So if you didn't know this his due date was July 7th which gave me a sign that he was supposed to be in this world and be my son as the number 7 is my favorite number so I always felt like this was supposed to happen as his due date was 7-7-2019. Well baby boy didn't get that memo because on July 10th, I was at my OBYGN getting checked. She said he's not coming anytime soon because I wasn't dilated or effaced at all. Since I was past my due date, she scheduled me to be induced on that Sunday night (July 14th). Baby boy was low but was being stubborn.

I went home and spread the news that if baby boy didn't surprisingly come on his own then I would be induced that weekend. I made sure I had everything that I needed for baby boy and myself, and probably double checked more than a few times. Now, when I tell you his birth story I'm not sure of the times when everything happened as I was by myself so I wasn't too concerned on remembering what time different things happened.

Around 8pm on the 14th, baby boy's dad's mom and myself arrived at the hospital for induction. I got all checked in and changed into the gown.  His mom left shortly after that. The nurse that checked me in and the resident (I think that what her title was) came back in and inserted a pill into my cervix to see if it would do anything. They left that in for about 2 hours I believe, but it made not a big increase. At 1am, I was checked again and had the balloon inserted. That was really uncomfortable but I knew it had to be done in order to get baby boy down. The nurse would come in around every 1/2 hour and kind tug at it to see if baby boy moved down any. She then took it out. She advised me to get some sleep so I tried to but couldn't because of the contractions that I was getting so she gave me a sleeping pill but that didn't help at all. So after that she put something in my IV that helped me sleep a little bit. I then felt a pop and was pretty sure my water broke so I pressed the call button. She came in as she was noticing things on her end and told me to lay the other way. I told her that I think my water broke so she checked and was like yup, your water broke. She did say something about the color of it and how just in case when he's born there was going to be doctors for him just in case in the room.

I then got my epidural (which wasn't that bad to get) around 3cm and that helped me sleep until around 7:30ish where I got woken up saying something about his heart rate so they had me lay a different way. They also said I was 8cm now.A few minutes after that my son's dad's sister came in and then my aunt(who I was in contact with that morning) and my mom and my son's dad's mom came. Soon after that it was go time. I starting pushing and honestly it wasn't too terrible until his head started coming out was when I felt most of the pressure. I didn't really make any noises until that happened. He came out and they put him on my chest ,and I bawled. I wasn't expecting to cry that much and that hard but when you waited for that moment to finally happened and when you see your entire life looking up at you, your heart just melts.

Baby boy Grayson was:

 born on July 15th, 2019
11:32am after approx 14 hours in labor

   7lbs, 11 oz

   21 1/2 inches long

<3 Amanda 

Pregnancy Update

Hey guys,

So long no blog post?!  I thought I would pop on here to update you all on how my pregnancy is going this far. Yesterday (Sunday) I just turned 23 weeks, which seems crazy to think about since I was only about 5 weeks when I got my first positive hpt.  I've been to the doctor three times so far and everything looks great. I'm told I'm young and healthy, so that was good to hear. I've been to 2 ultrasounds. The first one at 9 weeks, 4 days and then at 21 weeks to find out the gender which will be in a future post. My pregnancy has been going good so far besides the fact that in the first trimester, I pretty much had all day sickness instead of the typical "morning sickness". I'm glad I'm out of the first trimester. About two weeks ago I want to say is when I first started feeling flutters in my uterus and this past week, I've started feeling the baby's kicks with my hand and was able to capture some movement on my phone.

The next pregnancy update will be where I announce if I'm having a daughter or a son, so keep an eye out for that. Let me know in the comments, what's your guess is :)

<3 Amanda

Get To Know Me

Hey guys,

Since it's the new year, I decided to do a tag of questions so you can get to know me better and who knows, we might have things in common.

1. How tall are you? 5'7
2. Dogs or Cats? I like both but I'm a dog person more
3. What year were you born? 1990 (Just turned 28)
4. Are you in/have you gone to college? I did an online college
5. What is your favorite drink? Water
6. Tea or Coffee? Neither 
7. What are your life goals? To be the best mom I can be and be happy in life.
8. What sports do you play or have you played? I did gymnastics when I was younger and Track/field in my junior yr in high school
9. What is your favorite movie? Coffee Shop (On Netflix)
10. Who are your favorite YouTubers? I have a lot. Some are: Clancy Burke, HeyKayli,ThatYouTube Family, Meet The Millers, Phillips FamBam,The LeRoys, The Ohana Adventure, The Cort Report, The Cooper Fam.
11. Do you speak any languages and how well? None, except a few words in Spanish
12. Are you single or taken? Single
13. How long was your longest relationship? Almost 3 years
14. How would you describe your fashion sense? Comfortable
15. What is your go to hairstyle? Ponytail or bun
16. How many siblings do you have? 3 brothers 
17. What is your go to fast food order? Most often chicken tenders and fries
18. What is your favorite Netflix show? Fuller House (I haven't seen the recent season tho, not yet)
19. What theme parks have you been to? Michigan Adventures, Disney World and Cedar Point.
20. Show us your songs tab on Spotify: Some of my favorite songs currently are "Drunk Me:-Mitchell Tenpenny, "No Place": Backstreet Boys, "Marry Me" Elle Mears
21. Do you have any bad habits? Picking at my nails
22. What is your favorite genre of film and why? It depends on the mood I'm in but it's never horror/scary/thriller.
23. Have you ever failed at anything and what did you learn? Algebra 2 in junior year of h.s. I learned that I'm not a math person. Lol
24. What are your pet peeves? When others cough/sneeze with their mouths opened and not against their shoulders.
25. How many countries have you traveled to? 1, Canada
26. What is your favorite color? Pink
27. What are your favorite values in friends? Honestly, Kindness, Respect, Supportive, Friendliness .
28. What is one thing you wished people knew about you? That even though I can be quiet at times doesn't mean that I don't like you.
29. What social media are you addicted to? To be honest, Facebook and Instagram
30. How well do you get along with your family? Somewhat
31. What is the biggest struggle you overcame? Being bullied in school and Selective Mutism
32. Who is your role model? I'd have to say my dad and one of my brothers.
33. Who is your celebrity crush? Zac Efron
34. What was your dream job as a kid? I remember teacher, Interior Designer and mom.
35. What is your coffee order? None!

<3 Amanda