Shake your booty

A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

No wait, that's Star Wars.

Eons ago Neanderthals walked the earth...

Nope, not quite right.

I've got it! An indeterminate time ago (because she would kill me if I said an exact year) my mother was born. The eldest of 4 children she took on the role of older sister and eldest daughter with aplomb. And it served her well when she went on to become a mother of 4 children, including a set of triplets.

Grammy is a very cool mother and grandmother. She enjoys her Chardonnay a little too much, wins at poker even though she still doesn't know the rankings of the hands, and brags when she is done with her Christmas shopping in August. And of course she is the best-est mommy in the whole wide world. Are you sure you can't stay for another month, Mom?!? Happy birthday!

Look at all my chips!

Dancing at my wedding to "Stacy's Mom Has Got It Goin' On" natch.

A doting grandmother

Is Grammy the baby whisperer?

My mom has been visiting since Monday and it has been wonderful. She is very low key and aside from not wanting to watch ER and other procedural shows with me (I've been watching a lot of TV while breastfeeding) she is up for anything.

Hard to believe she is a grandmother of 4 (almost 5), isn't it?

We actually ran some errands with Cameron yesterday. I got some nursing bras and a couple of tops and picked up a few books from Barnes and Noble. Then we met with the lactation consultant again. Cameron still isn't at her birth weight but she is getting over 2 ounces from me at a feeding so she's gained 9 ounces in 8 days. Not too shabby! Plus the LC converted the grams from the hospital records and they say Cameron was 7 pounds 6 ounces, not 10 as originally indicated so she's just an ounce away right now. Either way, she's gaining weight but they do want me to come in for another weight check next week. So that's 4 appointments (counting the LC) in 3 weeks. Good times :-)

I'm not sure if it's Grammy's influence or the hand of god but Cameron has only been waking up for one feeding for the past two nights. On the flip side, she hasn't been falling asleep until about 10 PM (with the help of the swing) but she's usually done eating by 8:30 (including about one ounce supplement). She sleeps for 3 hours after her 6:00 AM feeding so I would prefer she's up then and sleeping after her 8:00 PM feeding. But I guess that will come in time. Not that I'm complaining about only one night feeding! DH fed her last night so I could sleep and I woke up at 6:00 AM with my boobs about to explode. I've been pumping before bed but with Cameron skipping the 12:00 AM feeding and DH feeding her at 2 or 3 AM I'm leaking everywhere. If she keeps up with this one time a night feeding I may have to suck it up and feed her and let DH sleep. But we'll see - I do like my sleep! I have been able to set aside about 8 ounces a day of additional milk which is awesome and will really help once Cameron is in daycare. Of course now we're running out of freezer space so Grammy is buying us a freezer chest for additional storage. Any recommendations?

Look at how wide awake I am!

I'm also looking for any advice on getting Cameron to sleep earlier in the evening. But I don't want to mess with the one feeding a night. Should I just wait it out and see how her schedule adjusts? Should I be forcing her to stay up after her 6 AM feeding? Right now she just conks back out and I go back to sleep myself until 9 after pumping. Her most wide awake time is early afternoon and evening.

Baby aerobics with Grammy.Watching baseball (the Yankees of course) with Daddy and Charlie.

AI Season 8: Top 8 perform songs from the year they were born

As Jordan says, this episode of American Idol makes me feel very old. It doesn't help that I just celebrated a birthday. No, I'm not advertising which year. Every season for as long as I have been watching there has been an episode where the contestants sing a song from the year they were born. And every year, we creep closer to the millennium. This year Allison Iraheta clocks in at 1992. 1992! Sigh. Do you all also realize that this decade is almost over? What decade are we calling it? The 0s? Will the next decade be the teens? Inquiring minds want to know.

Ryan introduces the judges (rather than the phantom voice that has been the norm this season) and shows us very cute baby pictures.

Up first is Danny Gokey (1980) singing "Stand By Me" which should be a good song for him. He starts the song out slow and mixes things up with the arrangement. I do prefer when he busts out with a higher energy performance. Randy questions the arrangement as does Kara but they both think he did a great job. Paula thinks Danny set the bar high and Simon said the beginning was good, middle was lazy and end was terrific.

Kris Allen joins Randy on stage and looks just a cute as always. I did think he would not be sticking around for long but he is proving me very wrong with some great performances. Kris was born in 1985 and wanted to be a taxi cab driver when he was little. He picks "All She Wants To Do Is Dance" and I scratch my head at his selection. It's a great song but not exactly his style. Immediately I think the arrangement is weird as is his position off the stage surrounded by adoring fans. Kara likes that Kris picked an up tempo song but it felt like homework rather than effortless (I'm paraphrasing because she natters on). Paula thinks he was heartfelt and made the song unique. Simon called it indulgent, boring and forgettable. Randy agrees with Simon.

Lil Rounds was born in 1984 and it turns out that Lil is her real name, not a nickname. She picks Tina Turner's "What's Love Got To Do With It" (excellent call, Jordan) and I worry for her again. She is channeling Tina Turner in her outfit and svelte haircut but the vocals aren't quite up to par. Tina Turner has such a distinctive voice it can be hard to avoid karaoke comparisons. Paula compliments Lil's outfit but doesn't think she made the song her own. Simon called it second rate and copy cat. Randy agrees with Simon and Paula. Kara thinks that her lower range isn't good and Lil isn't an artist yet.

Anoop Desai decides a lime green preppy sweater is the way to go. I shouldn't comment since I love lime green and just got a sweater from my grandmother (Hi Mimi!) for my birthday. But I'm not performing on American Idol either. Randy calls Anoop on his attitude from last week and Anoop basically apologizes. He was born in 1986 and selects "True Colors." I think this could be a good move for him. Anoop smartly keeps the song simple and pure and does an excellent job. Randy congratulates Anoop on the UNC win (go Tarheels!) and says it was a really nice vocal. Kara said Anoop controlled the song. Paula said he showed his "true colors" (groan). Simon called him a yo-yo and that this week was a good performance.

30 minutes in and we are halfway home. I love when we get performance shows down to one hour!

Scott McIntyre is up next and was born in 1985. He wanted to be a train conductor but as DH said, you really need to see in order to have that career work. Good thing he has music as a back up. He sings "The Search Is Over" by Survivor and plays the guitar. I say, "He plays the guitar?" DH responds, "Well, he holds it." Scott does his typical mediocre job with a few particularly sour notes. If he stays and Lil goes home I'll be pissed. DH predicts Christian Rock albums in his future. When will Simon go off on him???? Kara said the performance was mixed. Paula gave him credit for not using his piano crutch. Simon thinks Scott should go back to the piano and that the song was horrible. Randy called it OK. It is time for Scott to go.

Allison Iraheta was born in 1992. Damn I'm old. She decides on Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me" and I love this song! DH is happy that she slowed it down for a change and I agree. She does a really nice job but the performance is boring compared to her usual style. Paula thinks Allison gave her heart to the song. Simon thought it was very good but that Allison needs to be a bit more likable. Randy compares Allison to Kelly Clarkson. Kara calls her talented.

Matt Girard is up next and he was also born in 1985. Even as a child he had huge ears. He decides on Stevie Wonder's "Part Time Lover." Always a risk to pick a Stevie song. Matt does a good job and it's not too karaoke. What is less successful are the pants he's wearing. Very unflattering. Randy called it one of the best of the night, Kara said it was incredible, Paula gave it a standing ovation and Simon said well done. I love when the judges run out of time and give pithy comments.

Thank goodness I tape Fringe and had Adam Lambert's performance. He was born in 1982 and has always loved to dress up. I think the Phantom of the Opera costume gave away his sexual orientation early, don't you? He picks "Mad World" by Tears for Fears. Do I even need to say that in the money spot he blows it out of the water? The coolest part is that he kept it slow the whole time and used his falsetto. Simon gives him a standing ovation. Has that ever happened before?

So, what will happen this week? Lil is in trouble but I really hope Scott is the one going home.

SJ out.

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood

I had DH give Cameron a bottle last night (Kristin's suggestion) so I got more than 3 hours of sleep in a row. It was wonderful! I also napped during her morning nap so I am feeling more human today than I have since the c-section. I think this will be our new schedule.

Cameron and Mommy got some quality time in the morning while everyone else was sleeping.

A happy mommy also makes for a happy baby. Cameron has been really alert today and we had her hang out on the porch with us for a couple hours. Plus, the weather is so wonderful in Charlotte we took our first walk. I wish our neighborhood was a little bigger because we are bordered by a really busy road and have to cut through a neighbor's driveway to get to a larger neighborhood. It only takes about 15 minutes to walk up and back through our street. But that was plenty of time for Cameron. And Charlie was very excited too! I might try walking Cameron in the Moby wrap tomorrow.

I'm ready for my first walk!

What a beautiful Saturday for a walk!

Mommy and Cameron were tuckered out after the walk.

That nap looked so good that Mommy, Esq. had to try it out too!

Family visit to see Cameron

My brother Andrew arrived on Wednesday afternoon and my sister Kristin (aka Mommy, Esq.) came in bright and early this morning. It's nice to have family in town since it's usually just me and DH. I am especially happy because Kristin went through this (with twins) less than 8 months ago so her memory is fresh and she has lots of advice.

We had our first outing to Target with Cameron. She slept the whole time even while I was picking out a cute new onesie for her. It kind of wiped me out (coupled with the feedings every 2-3 hours) so I am just posting some more adorable pictures of my baby girl.

Doesn't Uncle Andrew look like a natural?

I think Mommy, Esq. wants another one!

Cameron all dressed up for her first trip to Target.

DH made a wonderful dinner and we actually ate in the dining room for the second time in 2 years!

Lessons in breastfeeding - part 2

I figured I would warn any of you not interested in reading about breastfeeding with the title of the post. Considerate of me, no?

Yesterday Cameron and I went to the pediatricians' office to meet with a lactation consultant. One of the things I really like about the practice we now go to is that they have a dedicated lactation consultant and I can see her as often as I want for just a co-pay.

The best part about the visit was that the consultant (Jan Ellen) weighed Cameron before, during and after the feedings so I could see how much intake she was actually getting. It turns out she is getting just under 2 ounces which is great. Jan Ellen also helped me to tweak the positioning of Cameron to make it more comfortable for both of us. And she was very non-judgemental and supportive of my use of a nipple shield. I do plan on weaning off of that soon but it's really helping with a quick latch.

As a result of the session I have been exclusively breastfeeding during the day and supplementing with some pumped milk at night. The extra milk at night has helped keep Cameron sleeping longer which is great for me and DH! Last night she slept from 8 PM to 9 AM with only 3 wake ups for feeding. That means DH and I got about 7 hours of sleep. How great is that? Not that I expect it to be that way every night but it was very, very nice. I'm pumping every other feeding to keep my supply up and am still managing to save and store some.

Now I need to get the trick of breastfeeding without hanging out everywhere :-) My brother, Andrew, is coming to visit today for a couple of nights and I doubt he wants to see his sister's boobs every couple of hours. Perhaps I'm better off just feeding Cameron in her nursery although if I run out of trashy magazines, that could get boring fast.

I promise more cute Cameron pictures tomorrow and perhaps a family photo now that we will have someone here to take pictures for us.

AI Season 8: Top 9 perform a popular iTunes song

American Idol has decided to bless us with less filler this week and shortened the program to an hour and 25 minutes. This new mother is very happy...

No surprise that Michael Sarver was out last week. What was a surprise was that Megan Joy wasn't in the bottom 3 but Matt Giraud was. We also saw Simon crush Michael's dreams of a save with his quick "no." I wonder if the "save" will be used at all this season considering the judges need to be unanimous.

Apparently Danny Gokey's grandfather died this week. It is interesting that aside from the audition phase we haven't heard anything about his dead wife. But with a dead grandfather in the mix I wonder if we will hear anything about it this week.

Ryan brings the Idols on his syndicated Top 40 show because of the theme of "Most Popular Downloads." This allows the Idols to basically pick whatever they want which means half of them will pick a terrible song.

Anoop is up first singing, "Caught Up" by Usher and promises us stage presence in his interview. I get nervous. I much prefer his ballads to an up tempo song. I do not know this song and think Anoop is a bit of a mess. DH comments on the incongruity of an Indian guy singing hip hop. Prejudiced? Perhaps but also a little true. Randy thinks Anoop picked up the swagger but that it wasn't a good song choice. Kara said he played it safe. Paula liked his playful side. Simon said it was a complete and utter mess. I love it when Simon agrees with me.

Megan Joy picks "Turn Your Lights Down Low" by Bob Marley and sung by Lauren Hill. She admits that last week was rough but promises a much better performance this week. She does not deliver. DH comments that Megan sounds like she is trying to have a reggae accent or something. I just don't think she is very good. Kara is disappointed, Paula wants her to perform stripped down version, Simon thinks it was an indulgent performance and Randy said it was like watching paint dry. Does this mean that Megan is done for? Please?!?

Danny is going to sing Rascal Flatts' "What Hurts The Most" which is an interesting song selection for him. No mention of dead relatives in his interview. Oh, I totally know this song and really like it! The first verse was a little rushed but other than that it was a very powerful performance. Danny put a lot of emotion into it and I'm surprised he wasn't awarded the money spot. Paula (who is looking a little old in her flat banged hair style) says it was a performance she would listen to again and again. Simon said it was Danny's best performance to date and clapped for him. Randy thinks he brought it and Kara felt he connected with the audience.

Allison Iraheta has very pink hair and decided to play the guitar to "Don't Speak" by No Doubt. DH gasps a little and thinks it will either be great or terrible. Allison is looking very punk and cool with her hair and dress. I approve. What I don't approve of is that she sings the song straight which doesn't really work with her rock voice. I wish she had done a more rock interpretation of it. The guitar was also kind of useless. Randy thinks she was a little ahead of the beat and hates what she is wearing. Kara thought the ensemble felt forced but that she had a good performance. Paula compliments Allison for bring out her axe and it just sounds funny to hear her use that slang term. Simon also hates her outfit. I guess my taste doesn't align with theirs.

Scott McIntyre picks Billy Joel's "Just The Way You Are" and will only be accompanied by his piano. I am hating the leather jacket and think it make him look like he's trying too hard. Of course he can't see himself so he has to rely on others for fashion advice. It's one of his better performances but it is just nice, not great. Kara thinks Scott made some smart decisions and likes his new look. Really? Paula is proud of him and it has nothing to do with his "challenge." Simon admits it is his best performance by a mile and compares his hair cut to Ryan Seacrest.

Matt Giraud is hoping to not be in the bottom three this week. He picks the ubiquitous "You Found Me" by The Fray. I think DH and I heard this song a million times on our drive up to Massachusetts last year. It starts out a little rough and like Matt is a beat or two ahead of the music. It wasn't a great performance for me perhaps because it was too much like the original. Paula starts out the critique and basically agrees with me. Simon thinks Matt should be happy that they don't like him this week. Randy agrees that it was rough and Kara thinks he's a talented guy and hopes he's OK. He could be in trouble this week.

Lil Rounds really struggled with her song selection and picks Celine Dion's "I Surrender." Doing Celine is like doing Mariah or Whitney. Never a good idea. She's wearing a frumpy prom dress and has her hair flattened down. It is not a good look for her. Why did she not pick a R&B song? This is terrible. The girl can sing, however. Randy starts the commentary and we see David Spade in the background spit out his gum and stick it to his seat. Crazy. Randy didn't like the song choice, Kara was also surprised but it was effortless, Paula and Simon also hated the song. I think Lil will be OK but I wish she would do better at her song selections.

Adam picks Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music" and still has that Grease-like pompadour. Not a good look for him. Adam does a great job, per usual, and I can see DH's foot tapping along. This kid has some serious stage presence. Paula almost falls out of her dress she loves it so much. Simon thinks it was very original and a good departure from the other performances. Randy thinks Adam is in the star zone. Kara loves him.

Kris Allen gets the money spot and selects "Ain't No Sunshine" by Bill Whithers which is going to be challenging because of how awesome the original is. He couples that challenge with accompanying himself on the piano. Is he growing a mustache? Looks like it. Wow. Kris does a phenomenal job with his performance. Definitely the best of the night. Randy called it creative and cool. Kara said "Three words: that was artistry" and I scratch my head. Paula thinks it could be the first cut of his album. Simon said Kris brought a lot of confidence and had a great arrangement.

So who is going home? I want it to be Megan but it will probably be Matt Giraud or Anoop. Overall I was expecting to be wowed but only Danny Gokey and Kris Allen really did that for me. Perhaps it is better when there is a more limited theme which forces song selections. What do you think?

SJ out.