ROAD TRIP

Just before we left for our road trip, we took these cute pictures of Finley at the dinner table. We gave Finley a few pieces of steamed broccoli to chew on while we ate dinner. Im pretty sure she has just started teething and likes to chew on anything she can get her hands on. She is also getting better at grabbing things and is starting to be able to balance better when sitting up. We are excited for her upcoming 6 month appointment to see how big she is!



I have been looking forward to going to flyball nationals for a long time & when I had the opportunity to go with Indigo and Epic, I could not pass it up. We teamed up with my friends from Massachusetts and put together two very solid flyball teams. I had so much fun watching the best teams in the country and some amazing dog athletes.

Because I had so much fun at the tournament, I wouldnt say that I regret going. The drive there and especially the drive back were pretty horrible. Finley actually did much better than I expected. She slept in her portable crib through the night in the trailer and she was quiet in the car most of the time. When she cried in the car, however, it was extremely upsetting and stressful because I felt horrible for her. I learned several important lessons from the whole experience and probably wouldnt do it again under the same circumstances.

hanging out in the trailer in the evening after a long drive

the bunkroom in the trailer is used as a dog room

after a bath in the trailer

stopped at a rest stop along the way for dog exercise and baby stretching time

we camped at a place called Al's Oasis in South Dakota and decide to try their restaurant for breakfast. It was nice to have a hot breakfast. Finley did very well in her Bumbo chair while we ate.

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23 weeks with Pig instead of Owl

Indigo's family: her 1/2 sister Ezri, aunt Prancer, Grandma Brita and mom Dazzle

we stopped to visit Ignited Border Collies on the way there and got to play with puppies

Ben flew in to Indiana for the weekend to run his dog and help out with Finley

We were one of many trailers lined up at the fairgrounds

We went out to dinner with our friends from Massachusetts one night and forgot to pack a change of clothes in the diaper bag. All we had was a shirt and some baby leggings. Ooops!

The crowd watching the final races

Finley watched some Fraggle Rock while we drove. She was mildly entertained.

24 weeks with pig instead of owl

Joy holding Finley in Montana on the side of the road when we ran out of gas

Our new dog Pax! He is from Kentfield Whippets in California. He is in puppy class now and is starting flyball and agility. He is a very good boy and is fitting in well with the border collies.

new oct video

Here is some video that I took before we left, a few clips while we were on our trip and one from today. I plan to write a few posts in the next few days about our new dog Pax and our crazy drive to Indianapolis.

CLICK HERE

Videos!!

I have a pretty substantial backlog of video footage that I need to post. Here is the first installment.
Finley thinks it is very funny when Indy brings her toy back and shakes it up. She was really hooting and hollering but of course she stopped when I grabbed the camera. You can get a glimpse of it at the end of this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ieu_PfvNZP4

When Grandma and Grandpa came for a visit we took advantage of their hotel pool. Finley had a blast swimming around with Mom and Grandma!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CX22aGGiFFA

Finley decided she wanted to practice sitting. She has the most luck in her changing table because she can hold on to the sides. What a big girl!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tPSC3-ITQg

More to come soon!

weight gain during and loss after pregnancy

I had the worst morning sickness during my pregnancy. I was nauseated all day, everyday for several months. Our trip to Eastern Europe was a nightmare. My options were to get on bus everyday and drive on windy roads or stay in the cabin and smell all the nasty smells on the boat. A cruise is officially the worst place for someone with morning sickness.

The only thing that made me feel better was eating. I needed to run to the kitchen the second I woke up and eat and I had to keep eating to avoid any drops in blood sugar. The food that made me the least sick was anything spicy and anything carb loaded, with the latter being particularly bad for avoiding excessive weight gain. After several months of eating lots and lots of ice cream and scones and pasta and bread my weight started climbing fast.

When morning sickness was over, I had another issue that made it hard to keep my weight gain on track. I had severe pain in my pelvis and couldnt move around much. Exercise was out of the question. This was probably caused by my weight gain in the beginning of my pregnancy.


Here I am at the beginning of my pregnancy at a flyball tournament. I had to stop at 7-11 and get food to keep the nausea away!

When I was admitted to the hospital, I was 60 lbs over my pre-pregnancy weight. After giving birth, when I got home and weighed myself I had lost about 15 lbs. I was pretty overwhelmed by how much weight I had to lose. Its been a great experience (only a dietitian would say that about having to lose weight) and I think it will help me as a dietitian. 45 lbs to lose is a pretty daunting task. With breastfeeding, following a whole foods/low carb diet and exercising I have managed to lose all but 10 lbs in 5 months. Im still working on it. Its really true that the last 10 lbs is the hardest, but Im determined to keep at it.

UW hospital advertisement

After I gave birth we were moved to the postpartum area of the hospital, where we learned how to change diapers, breastfeed, and I recovered from my surgery. On our last day, there was a film crew working on a video to promote the Labor & Delivery Dept at UW hospital and they chose us to be in the video!

CLICK HERE TO VIEW

sleep & new puppies make everything better

Ben and I read pretty much every sleep book and they all tell you to have a schedule and not to put your baby in bed already asleep. We were not following either of these basic rules until recently.

We started having Finley fall asleep on her own in our bed recently and we reluctantly decided to also have a schedule. We started the schedule a few weeks ago and it goes something like this: wake up at 7:30 am, nap at 9:30-11:30, nap at 2 pm-3 pm and then maybe another nap at 5:30 and then bedtime at 8:30. Naps are supposed be at home, so to follow the rules perfectly, you really cant leave the house much. This does not work for me. We follow the rules as much as possible. She always gets at least one nap at home and we decided that this is good enough. When we are home we are good about following a routine before sleep time that she can get used to, for getting her relaxed. At bedtime Ben gives her a bath, puts PJs and sleep sack on, then I feed her, read her a story and then put her in HER OWN CRIB for bed time and her swing for naps.

Eventhough this whole strict schedule thing its pretty annoying and not natural for us. IT WORKS! ITS AMAZING! Last night I put Finley in her bed at 8:30, she fell asleep at 8:35 and she got up at 7:30 this morning with one short wake up at 5 am.

My only complaint was with eliminating the 3 am feeding. I have an oversupply of milk and whenever I cut out or skip a feeding, its super uncomfortable for me. Going 11 hours without feeding her, caused me big problems and led to me getting mastitis (fever, flu-like symptoms, feeling horrible). Im fine now, but have a feeling it will come back the next time we eliminate a feeding. My doctor and lactation consultant both suggested pumping in the middle of the night....NO WAY! I am sooo not doing that! I hate pumping and I hate gettting up a 3 am!

21 weeks. we missed 20 weeks while in Reno :(

Finley spends her morning in her jumperoo and jumps when she is happy. its very cute

We are working on getting Finley used to sitting at the table with us and giving her food to play with. Gotta get those family dinners started early.....

22 weeks

Oh look, Epic has a new buddy! Meet Pax! Pax is a 5 month old whippet. He is VERY different from a border collie, but lots of fun! He is moving way faster than expected in flyball training and is a star in puppy class. He will also be starting agility soon and we are hoping to give lure coursing and whippet racing a try too! We are working on some separation issues, as Im assuming he has never spent much time alone. As soon as everyone leaves the room, he starts howling!

Here are some of the summers harvests...

shallots

I made lots of pesto with garlic, basil and parsley from the garden! it will be good on meat, pasta, sandwiches or as flavoring for grains or other italian dishes!

5 month video

I will write a real post before I leave for my trip to Indiana. For now CLICK HERE for a short video....

our trip to reno

First an update on our little girl.....she has had a few major growth spurts and is now wearing 9 month clothes. Lots of people comment that she is big for her age. She is eating a lot less now, probably 6 times a day. I am weaning her night feeding by a few minutes every night. As of now, she is still sleeping in our bed, but we are getting a lot more sleep! The difference is that I am not feeding her to sleep and we are doing a routine that ends in her going to bed at around 8:30. Its play, bath, feeding, story, and then bedtime. Its working! She is getting to sleep on her own. The next step is her own bed! We are following the "Sleepeasy Solution" as much as possible to guide us through this process.


In terms of development, Finley isnt sitting on her own yet, but is trying very hard. When you put her down on her back she does crunches and holds the position for several seconds. She sleeps on her stomach and is getting good at flipping herself over. Her favorite things at the moment are Indy, dogs in general, being held, floor time, toys that are easy to pick up, going to new places and baths. She doesnt like her carseat, going to sleep on her own and having her eyes cleaned.

Now about our Reno trip....for our first plane ride with Finley, we wanted to make it short. The flight to Reno is 1.5 hours, which was perfect. We had 3 seats both ways and I was able to feed her during take off and landing. She got a little bit fussy, but was very good overall. On our 2nd day in Reno we took Finley to Virginia City, an old town outside of Reno. We checked out the old-fashioned stores including a candy store and a western book store.

$1 to feed the donkey

While we were in Reno, Frances had a party so that all her friends could meet Finley. It was lots of fun! Finley was a good sport and stayed happy through the whole thing, mainly because she had a break in the middle to take a nap. Overall, it was a nice and relaxing trip and Finley got to spend lots of quality time with her grandparents!

Gran got Finley this really cool stroller from a garage sale!

Finley and Grandpa

out to breakfast at the Stone House before getting on the plane back to Seattle

Zoo & Dahlias

19 weeks

Checking out the penguins

wild african dogs

Ben and Finley at the Woodland Park Zoo

Lunch at the North Bend Bar and Grill before Dahlia picking

The Dahlia Barn - You Pick Farm

Video of Finley on June 16th

Wasn't that nearly three months ago?, you may be wondering. When it comes to Ben and making videos you have to take what you can get. Plus looking back at Finley when she was only 6 weeks old can make you feel nostalgic for those simpler times.
In this video we can see her starting to learn to smile, perfecting her 'stick the tongue out at Mommy' skill, strengthening her neck muscles and performing some rudimentary dance moves as taught by Daddy.

CLICK HERE