Finding the right Formula

My formula review...

We've tried a few different types of formula Advanced, Sensitive Stomach, and Soy-Based. We've also tried a few brands, Parent's Choice, Similac, and Enfamil. 

Here are my pros and cons:

	Parent's Choice	Similac	Enfamil
Pros:	Price	Used from the beginning	Free Samples
	Design	Did well on her tummy	Smell
			Suggested by others
Cons:	Smell	Price	Price
	Off Brand/doesn't have as many studies and/or reviews		Design

As far as the type goes, I've not seen a lot of consistent differences. They all sometimes work and sometimes don't. One con to the sensitive stomach formula is the first ingredient is corn syrup, no matter the brand anything that is for sensitivity replaces the lactose with corn syrup. Personally, I'd rather not have the corn syrup if possible. 

I'm a sucker for design, no matter the product, if the design is to my liking I am a happy customer. You'll notice in the pictures the scoop is stored differently in the different formulas. The blue container is Parent's Choice and the scoop slides in a little notch above the powder. It doesn't have to fit into the lid with the handle on the left (I'm right handed). With the scoop on the lid I have problems getting it to fit so I end up just tossing it into the powder. That brings me to another issue...if there is no where to put the scoop or it is easier to just toss it into the powder...I have to touch the powder. Ew. I don't like the texture or the smell of the powder in the first place so having to touch it every time is gross to me. 

Lastly, the price. We don't make a lot of money and we'd like to save when we can. There is a pretty big difference in name brand vs. off brand. Go Parent's Choice! Lol. They have the very same ingredients. 

My last option is to try a whole food store and check their price and ingredients to see if we can afford to use a formula that possibly has more natural ingredients. Unfortunately, nothing about formula is "natural." Breast milk is the best option hands down BUT that isn't an option I have so I have to do the best I can

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Hospital Check List

While I was pregnant I found many hospital check lists. They were all great and I was thankful to have them. I put together what I most needed not because I think it will inspire hundreds of new moms, but I want to be able to remember what I needed most if I ever get the blessed chance to be a pregnant mom again. 

Feeling proud

Today I get to brag on myself. I wouldn't normally devote a post to talking about myself, but I think I owe it to my hard work to do so.

When I found out I was diabetic in October I weighed 209 lbs. An average number for me for the last few years. At my heaviest I weighed 230 lbs, that was about 3 years ago when I was in a really bad place. I had miscarried and was not coping well, I was depressed and I didn't care enough about myself to take interest in my best interest. When the doctor told me I was diabetic she said lose weight and you may never have to use insulin. So, I got to work and right away I lost 7 lbs. I started a pill called Metformin that works similarly to insulin. A month later I found out I was pregnant and the weight loss was not a priority anymore. Now, I needed to maintain. I also had to start insulin because Metformin could be harmful to my baby. Over the next 28 weeks I had to watch everything that I did, how much insulin I took, what I ate, how active I was, etc. I am proud to say that the day I got induced I weighed 234 lbs. I would love to say that number is lower, but considering where I started 25 lbs is a great gain during a pregnancy. Today my baby girl is 12 days old and I weigh 208 lbs. It took me 12 days to lose all of my "baby weight." I didn't work hard to lose that weight, but man oh man I worked hard during my pregnancy to not gain it! I'd like to say after a few more weeks of rest I'll go at losing more weight full steam ahead, but I know myself and know I need to take it one day at a time. My goal: maintain. My hope: lose weight and show Macy how being healthy is our lifestyle.

Macy Abigail

 To continue the belly pics...

A week ago I went to my weekly appointment at the OB to do my biophysical. To my surprise my little girl did not pass her test and the doctor sent us to the hospital to be monitored. After a few hours of keeping track of her heartbeat the doctor said she was looking great, but he was ready to go ahead and induce. After about 11 hours we had our little angel.

Baby Girl was born at 12:18am on June 6, 2013. She was 6 lbs 14 oz and 19 inches long. She had lots of curly brown hair and beautiful!
That following morning around 9am Mike and I decided to place middle names with our options for first names. Cadence Elizabeth and Macy Abigail. Elizabeth is my middle name and MAJ are Mike's initials.
We put them on our board and for fun let people vote, we had Lanie write them and then Grandma and her Aunts wrote them too. Mike and I tried the names when we would talk to her and by the next morning we were sure that our little girl was Macy Abigail.

Holding our Little Lady

Meeting her Cousins

 
On Friday afternoon we headed home with our wonderful Macy. She did great on the ride and she looked adorable! Daddy picked out her jacket, Aunt Jenny and Grandma Connie put her name on her dress, and I got to fix her hair all curly and put a giant flower on her head!

So Blessed!

Who will she look like?

Today as I was cleaning (really more of putting away things from the move) I found some pictures. I tried to find one of each of us at about the same age in about the same pose. I'm a little older in my pic than he is, but they're pretty close.

Looking at them this is my guess...big brown eyes and chubby cheeks for our little girl! The time is getting closer, we are a month away from our due date. I can't wait to meet our precious little one! 

Things with getting our house ready before she comes are a little rocky, but when I'm stressed with it all I have to remember what we are preparing for, not just the two of us anymore!

Belly Pics

I haven't obviously showed until later in my pregnancy, so I didn't really do belly pics. I decided I'd start doing weekly pics at 31 weeks, because I finally felt like there was something to show! Baby girl is doing great and growing just like she should. I do biophysicals weekly. That is a fancy way of saying they do a sono to check on her organ functions each week. Because I'm "high risk" they want to keep tabs on us. I can't complain, I get to see my little darling every week! Last time we learned that she has a lot of curly hair. Mike and I couldn't stop smiling when we heard that news. It was unexpected, I am used to the she weighs this and her kidneys look great, but to see her lil curlies on the sono, fun! Don't get me wrong, I love knowing she is growing into a healthy little girl more than anything! Next week we'll get an update on how much she weighs and how tall she is : )

Glimpses of heaven until we get there

From the pages of Beth Moore's study on the book of Esther...

"Beloved, when a moment like this comes, we need to take it. We often speak of happiness as a less noble term than joyfulness because the former is circumstantial and the latter less conditional. I won't argue with that, but when God intervenes in our circumstances and we get a chance not only to know we're blessed but feel blessed, nothing is more appropriate than seizing the happy moment. "A time of happiness" can come like a shot of B-12 to the soul to boost your system when darkness spreads once again like a virus.

One of the hardest challenges about taking advantage of a God-given time of happiness is the guilt of knowing that it coincides with someone else's sadness. No, we don't flaunt our light in someone else's darkness, but surely we can find a way to dip ourselves in the bubble bath of a second's bliss when it comes. Even if all we do is lean our heads back in the sunshine of our soul's Sabbath and take a minute to feel the glad emotion, it is meant by God to be medicine for our weary souls. Times of happiness are glimpses of heaven until we get there. Homesickness doesn't always feel sick. Sometimes it's a quick flash of happy that makes us long to find and keep it."

Today this made my heart cry and smile. No matter which side you're on, the hurt or the happy, it is not easy. When you are hurting it is so painful to see other's happy. When you are happy you do feel guilt because you know how that hurt feels. I've been on the hurt side a lot.

But right now, I am so happy, so blessed. I feel like each minute of the day I get a reminder of how great our God is and of the gift He has given me. God does intervene in our circumstances. He has blessed Mike and I, both labeled infertile by doctors, with the greatest blessing we could ever ask for, our baby girl. I couldn't have ever imagined how much I could love another human being...and she isn't even here yet!

God is good! I am so thankful for this glimpse of heaven until I get there.