When you are no longer a part of their support system.

2015, you are looking great!

I am seriously tickled with excitement for my husband right now. I won't share all the details just yet, but Justin got some mega great news at work. As you probably already assumed, it is work related. I am filled with so much happiness you guys, it's not even funny. Watching my husband's hard work, diligence, and focus pay off is one of the most heart warming feelings I have ever felt. I know I'm bias, but Justin is such a great leader. He takes care of his soldiers and he genuinely cares about them. Those are attributes I can only hope that will be instilled in our daughter. I know that his work ethic has definitely left me feeling completely motivated for when I take that leap back into the workplace.

In other news, I have taken on a new photography challenge from the wonderful Victoria Simmons, of Victoria Simmons Photography. I wanted to find a deeper focus with photography, and it looks like I've found it. I want to push myself even further and acquire even more skills this year. I still don't see myself taking photography into a career goal, but I genuinely enjoy taking pictures and learning how to edit them effectively. Up until about a week ago, I thought I really only enjoyed taking pictures of my family and our everyday happenings... I've noticed that this notion has changed. I took photos for some friends of mine this past week and I absolutely loved it.

I enjoyed being able to watch their love in the moments I was snapping away. I enjoyed being able to capture the essence of those outside of my everyday life. I seriously got chills down my spine at one point when I captured a kiss between the two love birds. I'm always a sucker for genuine love on camera. I'm not sure if this feeling I have is going to last, or how it came about, but I plan on exploring it completely. I can't remember the last time I left the house without my camera, and I hope this lasts the rest of my days for sure.

In even happier news, Ava bug is almost 20 months old. **Yes, I am still counting the months until my sweet girl is two years old** and I have so much to share on her 20 month update. She started saying a few more words, so naturally Justin and I are gushing! We've also been asking her if she'd like a sibling, and each time.. she nods her head yes. It is the SWEETEST thing I have ever seen and we are thrilled at her little toddler response. Let's just hope when the time actually arrives that she feels the same way.

Our move is approaching very quickly as well! We literally only have nine more days left until the big moving day! Everything is set to switch over to the new house, and of course Justin made sure direct t.v. was set to come before the playoffs this weekend. We also have a set date that we will be arriving in New York for Justin's grandfather's military memorial services. It looks like we will for sure be there in April to attend the memorial and spend time with his family. I'm still extremely saddened for the reason we are traveling, but I'm glad that we will finally be able to give tangible support to all of those who loved Papoo so very much.

Well, that's all for now guys. I have a new vlog coming out (hopefully) in the next week, so be sure to check that out! I hope the new year is treating you well and that you are still sticking to some of those resolutions!

Happy Tuesday all!

♥- Leilani

Breastfeeding

Of all the challenges that come with having a newborn, I'd say breastfeeding is the hardest, most rewarding challenge of all. In the beginning, breastfeeding seemed "easy" I'm talking in the hospital before your milk comes in, when all your new baby is receiving is colostrum. That part was a breeze for me. I had a baby that latched very effectively and I only had to worry about waking up every couple of hours to feed her. After coming home from the hospital, things were fairly easy for me. My milk came in on Ava's third day of life. I nursed on a schedule, so every two hours or even before that if Ava decided to nurse, I was feeding her. Sometimes if she wasn't waking up every two hours, I would wake her up to nurse. I stopped waking her up probably about eight days after she was born. I threw the clock out the window and I allowed my daughter to nurse on demand. that literally was me feeding Ava whenever and however long she wanted. This is still what I'm doing today and Ava is now a month old. The problem I have been having lately are three things. One, during the night Ava USUALLY wakes up every three hours. The last two nights she has slept in four hour increments. When I wake up to feed her I have very full breasts, it's painful! Tonight I actually grabbed my manual pump and grabbed an ounce out of the breast she did not nurse from. I plan on using a syringe to feed the expressed milk to Miss A. My biggest worry with breastfeeding is that I am going to dry up! I know with Ava nursing on demand my milk supply comes in correlation to how often she nurses. That being said four hours is a big gap for me. I've googled, I've read books, I mean I can't get an effective answer on what do when your baby starts sleeping in longer gaps of time while exclusively breastfeeding. My second issue right now is my dietary issues. Since I'm borderline anemia, I have to take iron supplements everyday. I took them throughout my pregnancy and I was told to continue to take them even after I gave birth. Here's the problem, Miss A has had some green poo. While not uncommon, her poo should be that mustard yellow that breastfeeding babies produce. She does most of the time, but here lately I've seen a bit more green poo. I have researched and apparently iron supplements can be the cause, dairy products in my diet, or even Ava receiving two much fore milk and no hind milk. My third problem right now is thrush! Ava was diagnosed with it at her two week check up. Super common in babies, and easily treated... So I thought. They prescribed her a medicine for it (I remember posting this in a previous post) that has not been effective! Now I think I may have thrush, for the first time since having chapped nipples, I am having some discomfort in my breasts. The doctor never treated me for thrush, not even to be on the safe side, so I believe I keep reinfecting my daughter. This has caused me to make an appointment at PEDS for her! My breasts aren't terribly uncomfortable, but it's annoying to know I could be the potential cause for Ava's thrush still being present. Her appointment is today so I'm hoping we can resolve the thrush issue at the very least. I am excited to see how much Ava weighs. It's been over two weeks since we last went into the pediatric center. Even with these challenges I'm facing, I will never give Ava formula if I don't have to. I will always keep pushing through all these obstacles. Giving her the best form of nutrition is a HUGE priority for me.