Catelin at One Month and Fourth of July

Catelin turned one month old on July 3rd, so I am a couple of weeks late on this post.  She has been doing really well and is growing like a weed. 



One month stats…weight: 9 lbs, 3 oz; height 21.5”

Catelin has smiled quite a few times, but it is usually as she is falling asleep (so I don’t think that counts as her first “real” smile).  It is adorable, though!  She loves to look at fans and turns her head to voices or loud noises.  She is not the biggest fan of tummy time and has even rolled over a few times because she was so mad!   Her big brothers absolutely adore her…



We are starting to work on her day time schedule, but I am mostly feeding her on demand right now.  The first couple of weeks, she was waking up 2-3 times a night; after she got up to her birth weight, I started doing the moms on call evening/night routine (bath, swaddle, white noise, etc).  She has done really well with it - most nights, she goes to bed around 9:30 and sleeps until some time between 2:30 and 3:45.  Her final wake up time is usually around 8:00. 

Needless to say, I am thankful that she is doing well with the sleeping.  Her nursing, however, has been a real struggle.  For the past few weeks, she would nurse 15-20 minutes on each side and about 10 minutes after finishing, she screamed like I never fed her.  I would end up pumping and giving her the rest in a bottle.  I really don’t have time to do that with two toddlers running around, so I decided to go to a lactation consult.  After a 2 hour long session with the lactation nurse, the bottom line is she has an “immature suck”…in other words, she is lazy.  Now I am trying to nurse her when I have time, but for most feedings I have to pump and give her a bottle. On top of that, I got mastitis last week (UGH!!).  I feel so blessed to have a healthy baby, and I know in the grand scheme of things this is a very small problem, but it is still incredibly frustrating.  I am hoping and praying that it will get better as she gets older.

On the fourth of July, we took the boys to the Dunwoody Country Club carnival (Lisa was kind enough to watch Catelin for the evening).  The club really went all out- they had carnival rides, 6 different bounce houses, tons of bubbles, snow cones, and cotton candy.  They even let the kids play in a sand trap like it was an enormous sandbox!  The night concluded with an impressive fireworks show – MJ absolutely loved it (Ty was a little scared of how loud they were and had his arms wrapped around me the entire time)!

Hot Summer Days

Here are a bunch of pictures from the past few weeks…

The week before our anniversary, Steve and I celebrated by going to the Lady Antebellum concert (the boys spent the night with my parents while Lisa watched Catelin)...it was wonderful to have an evening out!  The night of our anniversary, we had an incredible dinner at Restaurant Eugene – I have never been there before and it did not disappoint.

Having fun with grandma!

The boys survived their ISR swim classes again this year.  MJ only had to do a 2 week refresher course while Ty transitioned from float to the swim-float-swim sequence (which took 4 weeks).  In order to graduate, he had to swim across the pool solo while wearing winter clothes, shoes, and a regular diaper.  Here is the video

Ty’s first trophy!

We have been spending a lot of time at the country club pool- the boys love it, and Catelin hangs out in her car seat in the shade as long as it’s not too hot.  She even made a trip to the zoo!






Ann came to visit on Father’s Day weekend.  It was great to see her and catch up.  She spoiled the boys with bubbles (which they LOVED) while showering Catelin with adorable clothes and a gorgeous name plate for the nursery.

Ann with her Goddaughter

We moved Ty into MJ’s room when Catelin was a week old – Ty is now in the Thomas the train toddler bed and MJ is in a “junior” bunk bed.  The transition has gone surprisingly well, and they sleep great together at night.  Nap time is a different story- it takes about 30 minutes of me going in and out of their room to finally get them to go to sleep.  In the beginning, I was putting Ty in a Pack-N-Play in the guest room for his nap, but he quickly figured out how to climb out of it and now refuses to be in anything that resembles a crib (ugh)!

Here are a few more random pictures I just had to post:

At the park

My little Justin Bieber (why can’t I get his hair to stand up like that?!)

At the doctor’s office (Catelin’s 2 week appointment)

Catelin got her own sign on our swingset (“Catelin’s bridge”)

MJ showing off his soccer trophy

Both of my boys love coffee (who knew?!), so grandma treats them to their very own Starbucks “kids” cup when she comes over.  (yes, it is decaf)!

Eight years ago today...

 June 26, 2004

I married the man of my dreams.  To my "hubs"...

 2005

Thank you for supporting me in my hopes and dreams.

2006

Thank you for putting up with my quirks, flaws, and crazy life "phases" (especially my most recent pregnant "nesting" phase!)

 2007

Thank you for believing in me.

 2008

Thank you for knowing exactly what I need at exactly the right moment.

2009

Thank you for being the most honest, genuine, amazing man I know.

 2010

Thank you for making me laugh every single day.

2011

Thank you for being an incredible hands-on father to our three beautiful children.

 2012

Thank you for loving me unconditionally.  I am blessed to have you as my life partner, my soulmate, my angel here on earth.  

Happy 8 years, my love.

Father’s Day

The kids and I had a wonderful time celebrating Steve on Father’s Day.  I found a few cute ideas for father’s day gifts on Pinterest and decided to give them a try.  Let me just say that the crafty lady who did our first DIY project made it sound like it would take 2-3 hours…it took me (with the help of our wonderful nanny Lisa) a week to finish it!!   We had to stain the wood, paint it, and get the kids handprints on scrapbook paper before sealing it (I thought I was going to lose my mind in the process, but it turned out to be very cute).

DIY project #1:



The kids presented it to Steve and he loved it!



We had a “photo shoot” for a DAD frame – Ty and MJ actually smiled for the camera and held the letters up perfectly (after about 50 tries)!  Catelin snoozed in her chair for the picture.









MJ made daddy a special tie at summer camp and Steve wore it the whole morning (MJ was so proud).



The kids even made daddy a photo card:



We spent the rest of this special day hanging out by the pool and enjoying family time. 


We were able to celebrate our amazing fathers earlier in the week – we had dinner with John before he left for Colorado and spent all day Saturday with my family while Ann was in town.

Meet Baby Catelin!

Catherine Linda “Catelin” Economos

Here is how our baby girl came into this world… 

At my 37 week check up, I was 3 cm dilated and the baby was fully engaged, so my OB expected me to deliver any day.  Well, baby #3 apparently had different plans…for the next week and a half, I had contractions constantly.  One day while I was at work they were coming every 5-8 minutes, so when I was finished seeing patients I went to the OB office for a labor check.  I was still 3 cm, and after I went home, the contractions started spreading out into longer intervals.  That was my first hint that baby #3 might be a girl…she was being stubborn and couldn’t make up her mind whether to stay in or come out!!  haha :)

Around 12:45 AM on June 3rd, I started having very painful contractions- they were initially coming every 15 minutes then shortened to 8 minute intervals.  I wanted to wait until they were every 5 minutes before we went in, so I got up to take a shower  and finish packing my hospital bag.  During that time, the contractions shortened to 3-5 minute intervals and Nick came over to watch the boys so Steve and I could head to the hospital. 

It was just before 7:00 AM when we got to Northside.  The nurse checked me and I was 5 cm dilated and in full blown labor.  Shortly thereafter, I got my epidural (thank goodness for anesthesia)!  




Our families came a couple of hours later.  MJ and Ty did not like that mommy was stuck in a hospital bed hooked up to IVs, so we gave them lollipops and fruit snacks as a special treat.  Here is our last picture as a family of four! 




The labor progressed nicely.  My OB actually drove in after church to deliver the baby -- she was 20 minutes away when I was going to start pushing and asked if I was comfortable enough to wait for her.  Thankfully, the baby was not in any distress and I was able to hold off for Dr. M to arrive- she was even in her Sunday dress and heels!  After Dr. M threw on her scrubs, I pushed 3 times, and baby #3 was born!  I think Steve was in such shock that he paused a second before telling me it was a GIRL!  I couldn’t believe it – I asked them to move the umbilical cord so I could see for myself!  :)     

It’s a GIRL!

Here is a video of Steve announcing the sex of the baby to our families (Ty is running around in the background some where)!  

More pictures of our baby girl:

Right after the delivery with Dr. Middleton

Mommy and Catelin

Our first picture as a family of 5!

Sleeping beauty

MJ and his little sister

Big brothers!

We spent the standard 2 days in the hospital…by the end of our stay, I was more than ready to go home and get settled.  Here are a few more pictures of us leaving the hospital:

I still can’t believe we have a girl! The boys absolutely love their little sister- MJ wants to hold her all of the time, and Ty is constantly giving her kisses. I am surprised (and thrilled) at how quickly they have embraced her as part of our family.  We are truly blessed.

It's a...

GIRL!!!


Catherine Linda "Catelin" Economos was born at 11:56 AM. She weighed in at 7 lbs, 12 oz and is 21" long. MJ and Ty are thrilled to have a baby sister!! Pictures to follow soon!