Tag Archives: baby

I Miss Yoga and T-Shirts

yoga first t-shirt

Well hello there. It’s been almost seven months, hasn’t it?

Turns out two kids are more time consuming than one. Surprise surprise.

Rowan is a lovely little person who is now sitting up, eating some foods and figuring out just how much noise he can make with his voice and his hands.

He is not nearly so content as Iris was as a baby. Back then I sort of hoped that any future babies would be more cuddly and attached to me. I got my wish, and then some. No complaints – it’s just more challenging when it’s 24/7.

The first few months of Rowan’s life had some difficult patches. By his two-month well-baby appointment, he’d stopped gaining weight, required an ultrasound on his spine and had a mysterious red spot on his bottom lip. While all tests and efforts resulted in our now very healthy baby, I had my share of freak-out moments this spring.

But, all’s well. And the cute little strawberry on his lip (properly known as a hemangioma) should fade with time. As a side note, we had no idea that his pre-birth nickname of Baby Vamp would be so apt. The kid literally always has blood on his lips. Goes well with the pale skin and widow’s peak.

As for me, I find a second baby to come with far less culture shock than a first. With Iris, I had to adjust after a decade of what was a mostly free-spirited adulthood. With Rowan, I was used to a more structured existence.

However, by the time Iris was this age I was back to exercising regularly and more frequently taking a night off, when I could wear normal clothes that didn’t center around easy access to my chest.

I’m really beginning to miss yoga, and wish I could wear some of the t-shirts in my closet.

Then I remind myself that the Squishy will never be this squishy again, and decide to enjoy the time I spend laying with him on the couch and feeding his fabulous little face.

I’m going to try to do this again before another seven months pass.

Happy Wednesday!

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Filed under Health, Of Family and Children

Rowan Reilly Mitchell

newborn baby boy

We had another baby.

Rowan Reilly Mitchell was born on February 2, 2016 at 12:23 pm. Like the day of his sister’s birth, this Tuesday was a minor “holiday”, unseasonably warm and a day before the due date. Unlike that experience, this one was relatively calm and quick, with labor only lasting about 15 hours altogether.

According to legend, the Celts organized their year according to trees. The period of late January to mid-February centers on the Rowan tree, and the strong wood and red berries figure into several other ancient mythologies. Just as does the name Iris (which has meanings within botany, Greek mythology and explanations of human evolution), Rowan comes with a colorful richness of which we didn’t even know when we simply liked the sound of the name.

Our new wee one carries it well, especially as his ruddy complexion heightens during his little fits of rage (having one’s diaper changed is apparently a maddening experience).

So, once again, I go on official hiatus. Enjoy the rest of your winter, and sail easily into Spring!

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Filed under AutoBio, Of Family and Children

Summer, One Year Later

mom and sleeping baby in inflatable pool

One year ago tomorrow was my last day of freedom.

Well, kind of. More specifically, July 10, 2011, was the last time I hung out with a friend and drank indulgent quantities of wine by large bodies of water without being concerned about caring for my child.

I probably would have behaved differently had I known I was four weeks pregnant. But I didn’t, so I didn’t.

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Filed under Of Family and Children

Freelance Mommy: 2 Months In

baby on chest while at laptop

I’m not gonna lie – working from home with a new baby is tough.

Hence the infrequent posting.

I began incorporating some work back into life after Iris was about three weeks old. I started slow with just a few little jobs here and there. The biggest thing I did was go into the office where I answer phones and do some work for a friend’s publishing company, and that was just two shifts of two hours each. Most of the time was spent gabbing about the baby anyway.

But now, we’re over two months in, and I’m already more than three weeks past when many women go back to full time. I certainly am not pushing myself to work anywhere close to 40 hours – I have to breastfeed and wash diapers and play with my daughter, and those are time consuming tasks.

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Filed under I'm a Professional

10 Days Early

pink green white knit baby dress

I saw my mom last night, and the first thing she said to me was that if our baby comes as early as I did, she’ll be born tomorrow.

O.M.G.

Granted, we technically have two due dates – March 15 and March 18. I’ve seen both in the paperwork, and realize that it’s likely to be neither of them anyway, but STILL!

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Filed under Of Family and Children