Top Ten

Here are the Top Ten Things Every Pregnant Mommy Should Know That I Learned From Another Mommy, a Book, or for Myself

(shout out to Whitney (due June) and Lauren (due September) Holla!!!!)

1. If you plan to breastfeed, put lanolin on "the girls" every day from 6 weeks before your due date on (it softens everything up and keeps things from cracking and drying up)

2. At the end of your pregnancy you cannot reach anything (sorry to be gross, but I'm talking about the restroom here)

3. You don't have to wash the babies clothes in Dreft, you can use a cheaper detergent like All Free & Clear. I have started to wash all of our clothes in it, so even when I just need to wash one or two things of Camille's, it can go in with the rest of our stuff.

4. Soothie pacifiers suck. Even though it is the pacifier that all the books I read recommend because it is more like mom's nipple. Seriously? I can't imagine anyone's nipple shaped like that.

5. Gather up as many menus from area restaurants that deliver or carry out and have them at your house. I would go so far as to store their numbers in your cell phone (actually your husband's cell phone, since he will be the one picking it up!) Some moms who are totally organized freeze things ahead of time (go Rachel!)--but if you are feeling like a beached whale like I was...get the menus.

6. No matter what the Pregnancy Police* says: YOU CANNOT SPOIL A NEWBORN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

7. The first 2 (I really say 3) months of your babies life--just survive. Don't freak your freak about schedules and sleep schedules, it will make your life a living...well, you know. But, if scheduling makes you feel better, go ahead and give it a whirl, it works for some people.

8. The Fog. For atleast the first 3 months of your baby's life, you will live in what I now call "The Fog". You don't know who you are, if you are nursing--you feel like a cow, none of your clothes fit, you are tired beyond your wildest imagination, you don't know what in the world you are doing, you cannot remember ANYTHING...I could go on and on. When your baby turns 3 months old, it begins to lift (or it has for me). I hear from other mommies that around 6 months old, you really feel alot better.

9. My amazing friend (and Camille's pediatrician) Dr. Kelly Lathem gave me the best advice when I called her freaking out because Camille hadn't slept in several hours (which all babies do:)) and I was quoting one of the 10 books I had read to her. She said, "Bethany, babies don't read the books." That hit me like a ton of bricks and I have quoted her to myself and everyone else since.

10. Don't feel bad about watching your babies eyelashes grow (or anything on his/her body for that matter). Your house could be falling apart all around you, but take the time to play with your baby (or just stare at them, like I do). Like Scarlett O'Hara says, "Tomorrow is another day". Just clean your house tomorrow (or next week, like me).

I really could do a Top 50, but I don't mean to overwhelm anyone--like you don't already feel that way. These things are what have worked for me and you will figure out what works for you and your baby!

*Pregnancy Police: The total strangers who approach you and give you advice about what you should do while you are pregnant or even after. I don't consider myself the Pregnancy Police, because you chose to read my blog, I didn't force it upon you:0)

Naked & Illiterate

Yes, my friends, I titled my blog, "Naked & Illiterate". When I was pregnant, my father-in-law saw me drinking a cup of coffee at church and he told me research had shown drinking coffee during pregnancy caused women's babies to be born naked and illiterate. I was instantly horrified and just as I headed off to pour out my coffee, I realized that ALL babies were born naked and illiterate! That one took a few minutes for my pregnant brain to grasp. How funny is that? When Camille was born, I looked at the nurses and told them I had drank too much coffee because she was naked and illiterate. It took them a second, too!
Camille is in the middle of her third nap of the day (Go, girl! We are entering hour #3!) and I have been surfing the Internet trying to figure out how I am going to make more money. I ran across Amazon Associates. If you link to products from your blog and people buy things from Amazon.com--you get commission from it. I keep thinking about all these books and products that I recommend to everyone having babies--could I use my blog to make money? Highly doubtful, but I'm going to look into it further and let you all know. Now, on to more important things...the girl is stirring, I'll check back soon!!

Mommy-licious

I'm thinking about changing the name of my blog to "Mommy-licious: Everything you need to know about being a mommy that NO ONE will tell you". I think that is probably already the name of a book somewhere--but since only 15 people read my blog, it is probably okay. Okay, I just took a second to Google that and about 800 things popped up...oh well.

As of today, Camille is over 3 months old. I don't know how many weeks, so don't ask. The fact that I can remember my entire name is a miracle within itself, keeping up with my child's age in weeks is asking waaaaay too much. The experience of having a child has been such a dichotomy. How can one little miniature person be both the best thing in your life and the most challenging? One second she is crying her eyes out because she is hungry and stuck in the car seat--I'm not about to get her out. #1: Unsafe #2: Illegal and I really don't want to have to call the Department of Family and Children Services on myself since I am a mandated reporter...silly counselor job. The next second she is smiling the biggest, gummiest, most beautiful smile in the whole world that melts any frustration I have away (as seen in the picture above!). She is getting more and more fun everyday. I'll admit it, we were not the best of friends for a few weeks. She went through a phase where she would cry like I was trying to chop her leg off with a butter knife everytime it was time to sleep (naptime, bedtime...basically anytime she was a tiny bit sleepy). Thankfully, that only lasted a few weeks, then we were best of friends again. This Mommy thing is so much harder than any job I have ever had in my entire life. It's amazing how I can feel like I have been working my tail off all day, and still be in the same position at the end of the day when Andy gets home as I was when he left in the morning.

Here are just a few of the things I have learned already:

1) I don't think twice about wearing an outfit that has been thrown up on (down the front and back--how do they do this?!?!)

2) I can brush my teeth and 2 minutes later try to remember if I have brushed my teeth. Since I cannot remember, I go feel my toothbrush to see if it is damp.

3) I have had to buy scented deodorant for the same reason, I can't remember if I have put it on and I couldn't smell the unscented kind.

4) I can be ready one hour ahead of time and it doesn't matter, we will still be late everywhere we go.

5) Camille has 150 burp cloths, but I can never find one when I need it.

6) I have never loved before like I love Andy & Camille.

7) I feel sheer joy when I hear one tiny laugh.

Hope this helps some of you mommies out there and mommies-to-be--I've decided that I am not going to sugar coat this new job I have, it is important to be honest so everyone will know that they are not crazy (or maybe I am the crazy one to lay it all out there...). Now that I am off for summer vacation, I will hopefully have more time to update. Blogger takes so long for pictures, it is easier to see new ones on Facebook. HAPPY SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!

I have a 3 week old!

Well, I finally took the pregnancy ticker off of the blog, because I am not 42 weeks pregnant--I am the mother of a 3 week old precious baby girl, Camille Rae Nix. Camille was born on Saturday, February 20th at 2:55 pm. She weighed 6 lbs. 11 oz. and was 21 inches long.

Everyone always wants to hear everyone's childbirth story, so I guess I will share mine. On Friday morning, I began having contractions which were very sporadic. Andy took me to the doctor's office to have them monitor me (so I wouldn't have to sit in triage at the hospital). They monitored me and checked me...nothing, so they sent me home to rest. I was very upset at first--then realized that the end was truly near and I would rather have early labor at home than in the hospital. So, I went home for the day, and Andy went to work to tie up a few loose ends (because he was planning on staying with me the first week we brought Camille home). We ate Chinese food that night (because my friend, Marcie, had eaten the same Chinese food the Friday before and went into labor, so I was trying to help things along:)). Well, it worked, that night at 12:30 am, I woke up having a contraction and then felt a POP! I thought Camille had head-butted me, but actually, my water broke. When I got up to go to the bathroom, I had to make a run for it. I went ahead and woke Andy up and took a shower. Off we went to the hospital. By the time we got to the hospital, I got out of the car and had to book it to the Women and Children's center because I was gushing stuff everywhere...just like on TV. I have never met or heard of anyone whose fluid ruptured like mine--it was crazy!

They quickly got me into a room and I was already asking for my epidural (which is a little piece of heaven here on earth, let me tell you). The nurse anesthescist who put it in was amazing, I didn't feel anything but the numbing shots they gave me--I told her that she had extra jewels in her crown in heaven for relieving me of my pain. From then on, we napped and watched the DVD's I brought of "Friends". We were thinking this whole ordeal was pretty laid back, and then I started pushing...2 hours later, Camille was here. "2 hours?!?!?" you ask? Yes, 2 hours. I was such a wimp, plus she was face up and apparently this makes the entrance into the world much more difficult for Mommy when she is pushing. I also had a fever (which Camille had as well when she came out) and she had had a bowel movement before she came out--so things were very interesting there for awhile.

She has now been in our lives for 3 weeks. Andy stayed home with me the first week, my mom the second week, and this past week, I was on my on (sort of--I've had lots of help with my wonderful mother-in-law, Sandra). I am amazed day by day of how much I love this little girl. I was also surprised to find out how much more it made me love Andy--something no one ever told me. It is crazy to know that there is a little piece of both of us in Camille, unreal. I also have to wish Andy a Happy Birthday--he will be 31 years old this Wednesday, St. Paddy's Day. Here are a few pictures of Camille. Enjoy!

38 weeks and counting...

We are 38 weeks and 3 days pregnant as of today--I cannot believe how fast the time has flown. Chris Anne and my mom came down for the weekend and helped me do some last minute things (like getting a pedicure, eating Mexican food, and shopping at Target--very important!). As the song goes, "My bags are packed, I'm ready to go..." I am fully prepared to have this baby at anytime. Unfortunately, she is not ready to come just yet. I have been checked at the doctor's office the last two Mondays, and no dilation or effacement--I had an ultrasound on Monday and they are guess-timating that she weighs 6 lbs. 15 oz. She should be an average size little bundle. I go back to the doctor tomorrow to be checked once more, I am expecting the same news...no progress. I'm trying to enjoy my final days of getting to be selfish and hanging out with Andy and Callie, it's too bad I feel like a beached whale trying to get around:) February 25th: here we come!!

And Now Presenting...BELLY PICS!!!

Okay, all you belly stalkers out there, here are some (clothed) pictures of my belly growth! You'll notice by the end of these pictures, it is just a belly pic, no face in it--I have now banned belly pictures with my face in them--for any of you that have been pregnant, I'm sure you can understand! I hope you enjoy these alot more than I am enjoying posting them for the world to see!19 weeks

23 weeks--on the beach at Jekyll Island when we went down for the UGA/Florida game

27 weeks: Thanksgiving Day

Me and the grandmothers at my family & church shower in Gainesville
28 weeks

Happy Birthday to my LITTLE brother!

Okay, one day late isn't bad! Happy 27th birthday to Eli (yesterday)! He is quite the old man now. I have an awesome brother who makes me almost pee my pants laughing all the time. You kind of get attached to someone when you have been around them for 27 years. Eli is such a blessing to me and everyone he is around, I'm so glad I get to call him my brother (and that Camille will get to call him "Uncle"). Love you, Eli!!!!!!

26 weeks

Now, friends, let me explain the lack of belly pics. I have recently changed computers, and have not had the chance to download my camera program onto the new computer. So, sorry! I know I will have to get on the ball before this baby comes (in 98 days, yikes!). We have been busy and I'm looking forward to a break from work--it is too hectic being the only counselor for 750 little ones. I'm excited about eating over the holidays in maternity pants--no unbuttoning necessary! Have a great Thanksgiving week!

I've Joined the Knocked Up Club!

Well, it has happened...Andy and I have joined the Knocked Up Club! I am 20 weeks pregnant with a healthy little girl--it is so hard to believe! Our due date is February 25th--so we are half way there. Everyone has been asking for belly pics, and once I get up the nerve to post these on the Internet, I'll share with you! Please keep us in your prayers! Love to all!

Happy 30th Birthday to Andy...

...this Tuesday! Andy is a St. Patrick's Day baby! I cannot even begin to write how blessed I am to be married to Andy. Even in the midst of all the tragedy we have recently experienced, he has been by my side the entire time, taking care of me. It is such an amazing thing to be able to say that I love this guy more and more every single day. I'm blessed!

Catch Up!

I have been downloading these pictures over the past couple of weekends, and keep forgetting to post this blog entry. These pictures summarize our wonderful Christmas break that we had. We spent Christmas from Gainesville to Dalton to Nashville. Now, we have been back to work for about 3 weeks, and we are leaving for a cruise in February with Chris Anne and Dave! Whoo Hoo! It is going to be awesome! I don't have much to say, so just enjoy the pictures!

The Sciortino family at Andrew's birthday party

Andrew and Campbell


Close up!!

Callie and her pseudo-puppies--we gave them as presents to Andrew and Campbell, but they looked so much like Callie I had to take her picture with them!

Our family

Bros and Sis-In-Laws

Eli & Dad

Carrie, Lauren, and me at our shopping excursion to Green Hills mall

My awesome hubby

Callie discovered her stocking and stared at it and cried until I put it somewhere else!

Family Christmas in Dalton

At Junior League Charity Ball with my friends Tess & Kelly

Charity Ball photo op

Christmas at Maw Maw's

Stunned over Thanksgiving Break!

My dad has taken up SCUBA diving as his new hobby. Over Thanksgiving break, he shared lots of stories and pictures of his training and certification test dives. Very interesting! But, imagine my surprise when he told me about the new bumper sticker he has on his truck to show the world his new hobby. I could not find the actual bumper sticker online, but below is a coffee mug with the picture on it. Please read carefully: OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Unfortunately, my dad did not realize exactly what this meant--and he had made the mistake of asking my mom if it was okay to put on, and she told him it was fine. Imagine the horror of having to explain to your parents why this was not an appropriate bumper sticker for one of their cars! Eli, Andy, and I laughed until we cried over this! Sorry I had to sell you out on my blog, Dad, but it was too funny of a story not to share!! Needless to say, we had a great Thanksgiving break with our families. I hope all of your Thanksgivings were wonderful as well!

New Pictures

I've been neglectful when it comes to pictures on my blog posts. Many apologies. I am now on Thanksgiving Break, so I have some extra time! Here is a random montage of pictures. Happy Thanksgiving! Andrea, Alesha, and me tailgating before the UGA/Bama game. It wasn't a great turn out for our Dawgs, but we did have fun!

Dre and Me

This is Perry, daughter of our friends Darrell and Celeste. They were over at our house for our Sunday/Wednesday class get together. I had to take Perry's picture with Callie because they have the same hair! Plus, they absolutely loved each other!

Can you tell where Perry's hair ends and Callie's begins?

Family picture at my mom's birthday party

Andy & his cousin, Scott, after Scott's wedding

Here is a shot of a beautiful rainbow that appeared at our house after a rain shower!

Stuff -n- Things

I have had a great week! I began my week by going shopping with Kate Hazlewood at the outlets (which is exactly halfway between my house and hers!). It was so good to be able to hang out with Kate, and we only had to drive 20 minutes to meet up! I didn't get much Christmas shopping done, but the company was completely worth it! Of course my week at school was as interesting as always: dealing with kids saying inappropriate comments about their teacher (I don't even want to type any of them out), helping kids, organizing our Secret Santa program, and getting ready for our annual school counselors conference. Carol Ann and I headed to Augusta for our conference and learned lots of fun new things that we can implement. One of the presentations we saw that sticks out in my head was a presentation from the Feingold Organization (http://www.feingold.org/). The presenter talked about how all the preservatives, artificial flavorings, and dyes in our food can affect children's (and adults!) behavior. They are hearing great success stories from parents whose children have a spectrum of medical diagnoses (autism, AD/HD, bipolar, etc.) and from parents who just want to remove this stuff from their diet. I would encourage you to check out their website and do some research of your own to see what you think! It is very interesting. Whitney, this is right up your alley!
When I returned from Augusta, I had a date planned with my sister-in-laws and a friend from church, Emily. We journeyed to the movie theatre for the opening night of "Twilight". We were surrounded by teeny-boppers galore, and they kept us laughing, because they would freak out and yell when one of the main characters, Edward, came onto the screen. I'll admit that my heart did go pitter-patter as well, but I kept my "Whoo Hoos!" to myself. We enjoyed the movie, but as always, the book was better. I won't bore you all with my critique of the movie, but for my fellow fans, let me know what you think when you see it! I hope your Thanksgiving week is great!

Blog Facelift

I've been playing with this blog for the past hour, and have given it a major facelift! I've added a new fun background, picture, and if you check out the right side of the web page, you can see all the people I check up on/stalk on a regular occasion!

Things have been fairly boring here--which is absolutely wonderful, if you ask me. I thought about borrowing a kid from my across-the-street neighbor to write about. She has 4, so I thought she wouldn't miss them if I borrowed one for a while, but I guess that is not a great idea, huh? Oh, well...maybe next post! I hope your November is wonderful!

Reader's Digest

I am at my parents' house this weekend, and picked up Reader's Digest (I love how I can chill here!). The article, "Get a Great Deal on Anything" caught my eye, since Dave Ramsey rules my life. The author had some great tips on websites that can save you money! I have been surfing around looking at some of them, and thought I would share them with you all. Here they are: here's to cheap and close-to-home shopping!
www.retailmenot.com : This is the website where you get all the discount codes you can put in at the end of checking out online and they have lots of printable coupons!
www.dealcatcher.com : More coupons!!
www.pricegrabber.com; www.shopping.com ; www.shopzilla.com : comparison shopping to see if you are getting the best price--or to find the best price for you!
www.freepeats.org : Alright all you mamas who love the hand-me-downs! This is a website which gives you access to people to swap baby, kid, and maternity finds in 25 cities for a onetime charge of $4.95.

Happy Birthday to Mama Jan!

Happy Birthday to my awesome Mom (on Friday)! She is absolutely the best in the whole wide world! Love you mom!

Here is a great picture from our beach trip!

I've got good news and bad news...

...Let's go with the good news first! Sandra's neurologist called with the awesome news that the only thing that her latest MRI shows is a little arthritis in her spine (no big deal)--so all is clear! I know she feels like the weight of the world is off of her shoulders and she will go back to the neurologist for an appointment at the end of October. So, we still don't know what caused her episodes, but whatever it was, it is gone now! Isn't that awesome?!

Now, for the bad news. My Georgia Bulldogs got a good old-fashioned butt kicking by the Crimson Tide on Saturday night. We were there for the game, and the only fun part was the third quarter. But, the Dawgs did not give up, so that speaks for something...right? We had a great time with Andrea and Hunter (who came down for the game)--and most of the day was a blast! SEC football is crazy!!! Everyone was impressed by how nice and polite the Bama fans were--but I knew that anyway, since half of my friends Roll with the Tide.
Kudos to Alabama...I suppose.

Junior League and The Women

In an attempt to spread my wings out further in Gainesville--well, actually, to get completely out of my comfort zone, I have joined the Junior League in town. For those of you who do not know what Junior League is (or if you have preconceived notions)--let me tell you a little about it. It is a service organization for women, which requires a 7 year commitment (yes, 7 years, folks!). Each year, each member must volunteer in a charitable organization for a minumum of 40 hours. The first year (my provisional year)--we are not placed, but learn all about "The League" as some people call it in several different meetings. I am really excited about it, and I have met a lot of new women in the community. Our provisional class has about 36 women in it, and I am feeling a little bit like I am back in the pledging world--but a little more grown up. I always thought Junior League was made up of people that could be kind of snotty--but that before I had ever met anyone in it:)! So far, there is not a snob in the bunch! Thanks to Carol Ann for opening my eyes!

Back in the summer, I recommended the "Twilight" series of books--and many people have now gotten addicted to them. I apologize to your husbands and children if you were one of my victims--but they are just that good. Now, I am going to recommend a movie. Last night, I went with a bunch of girls to see "The Women" starring, well, basically half the famous women in Hollywood: Meg Ryan, Annette Benning, Jada Pinkett Smith, Debra Messing, etc. You have to get a group of girls together to go see it--it is a total chick flick--and there is not ONE man in the entire movie, I guess that is why it is called "The Women". We all really enjoyed it! Well, I'm off to eat supper, then watch UGA take on Arizona State--GO DAWGS!! You've gotta love college football season!

Still No News

Sandra had her MRI yesterday afternoon--but her follow up doctor's appointment is not until the end of October! Yeah, that is ridiculous! We had another family friend who had the same MRI done, and found out the results by the end of the week, so we're not sure if the doctor's office will call with the results, or just try to move her appointment up (both options would be good!). Thanks for all the emails and prayers--keep going with those. I'll keep you updated!