As first time parents, there are some things Boone and I often reflect on. I thought I’d share a few.

What I love about being a mom. I love Madelyn’s smell and the way she smiles with her whole face. I love her little clothes especially her little dresses. I love breastfeeding. I love watching Boone hold Madelyn. I love feeding her right before bed. I love picking her up from daycare and listening to the staff gush about her. I love her little noises and her big noises. I love watching my family while they play with Madelyn.

What I hate about being a mom. I hate the 4am feedings. I hate being tired all the time and I hate the smell of old milk. I hate it when Madelyn is crying for no reason. I hate traveling up north and all the extra work it brings. I hate finding a babysitter anytime we want to go out. I hate tights and all the extra laundry. I hate pumping.

What I miss about not having kids. I miss having free time. I miss spontaneity. I miss wearing normal bras and necklaces. I miss going out with my friends. I miss drinking a beer whenever I want. I miss reading books for fun.

What I don’t really miss. I don’t really miss TV shows. I don’t really miss shopping. I don’t really miss sleeping in. I don’t really miss the bar scene.

I’ve been playing the working mom game for almost two months now. Some days it seems like I’ve been doing it forever and some days it seems like I just came back last week. I’d thought I’d share some of my thoughts about it.

Adjustments for less sleep: Madelyn isn’t as good of a sleeper now as she use to be, but she still sleeps pretty well. However, I do get less sleep and less quality sleep. I definitely notice that I have less attention to detail and tend to forget things because of it. As a writer, that can be a problem. I don’t know how many times in the past few weeks I kick myself for forgetting to do something as simple as running spell check. Forcing myself to create and adhere to check lists seems to help.

I hate pumping: I really do. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy breastfeeding. But I find all the extra tools and time that comes with pumping annoying, and it gets in the way of my day. I am lucky enough to have zero supply issues, meaning that I can easily pump all that Madelyn needs, so I feel a little bad whining about pumping. But I still don’t like it. I found a few tricks to save myself some time at work and make it less annoying but it’s still a work in progress.

Focus is key: I find that I really can’t work many weekend and night hours anymore. I’m in bed much earlier and I want to spend as much weekend time with my family as I can. This means I need to be as productive as possible at work. I usually bring my lunch and eat while I work. I work while I pump. I take fewer breaks. Yes, it sucks but it means more time at home with Madelyn so I’ll deal.

Adult time is nice: It’s nice to have adult time during the week. Don’t get me wrong- I love Madelyn and I can’t wait to pick her up at 5pm or spend Saturdays with her. But I can honestly say that, with only a tiny bit of guilt, I enjoy the non-baby time I have during the week. It’s nice to have adult conversations and use different parts of my brain. It’s nice to have uninterrupted time to check my email here and there. It’s nice to wear clothes that I know aren’t going to get spit on (for a few hours anyway).

Good company helps: It helps that my employer is supportive of working moms. They helped me ease into the transition, they have lactation rooms for pumping, and they are pretty flexible on hours; if I need to go visit Madelyn or take her to the doctor, I can make up my time later. They have a cafeteria on site for days when I forget my lunch and they have a casual dress code, meaning I can roll out of bed and just throw on a t-shirt and jeans.

The routine: The mornings and evenings aren’t as hectic as I imagined. In the mornings Boone takes Madelyn to daycare and then comes back home to work. Getting out of the house in the mornings is easier with two adults and it gives Boone some time out of the condo. I pick Madelyn up and we’re home by 5:30pm. From 5:30pm to 7:00pm is Madelyn time; we play, eat, sometimes take a bath, read, snuggle, etc. Madelyn goes to bed at 7pm, giving me plenty of time to eat dinner, prep for the next day, and do a household chore or two.

Well, we’ve survived the first three months of Madelyn. I’ve heard this is the hardest time but then again, I’ve heard every age has it’s challenges. For now, I’m going to believe some of the really hard stuff is over.

We’ve had lots of milestones recently; Madelyn’s first smiles and giggles, her first car trips up north, her first weddings, her first day at “school” (daycare), mom’s first day back at work. Madelyn has been really flexible through all of it. She still sleeps through the night, though she did wake up a little again when we started daycare. One of our favorite things is when she “counts” the dots on the bumpers in her crib.

I am officially a working mom, as of two weeks ago. The first few days were harder on me then Madelyn I think. She still doesn’t drink from a bottle, though we’ve been trying for a month. It’s pretty frustrating for many reasons; I feel a little anchored to her, Boone feels a little left out, she doesn’t eat much of anything during the day, and it really stresses me out. But lots of people tell me babies do this and not to worry. She’s got a little chub to live off of until she decides to eat from the bottle. Until then, we keep trying and I keep pumping. I hope she takes to it soon because we are going to run out of freezer space very soon.

For those of who reading this on our blog, I’ve got a few more pictures to post. (For those of you reading this on Facebook, you’ve probably seen them all.) Everyone tells me months 3 and 4 are pretty fun so I’m sure we’ll have even more pics.

With Madelyn here, we have thought less and less about our condo woes. But that doesn’t make them go away. We have been trying to sell our condo for about a year now and it’s not going well. So we talked with our realtor and came up with a few options. None of them are especially good but at least we have options.

1. We keep doing what we are doing. It’s obviously not working but doing nothing is an option.
2. We take the condo off the market for a while. We are a little mentally exhausted from selling for so long. Plus, it’s not like we can’t afford our place and we could get rid of some stuff to make some more room. But Madelyn is going to keep getting bigger and this place is going to keep getting smaller, so I’m not sure this option helps us in the long run.
3. We rent out the condo and then rent our own place somewhere else. This would get us into a bigger place and we could save up for a house down payment faster. However, I don’t know how I feel about being a landlord and it seems like we are just putting off the problem for a year or two.
4. We rent this place out and buy a house. This option has the same benefits and problems as number three, and then some. We would be in a house but we would have to find a bank that would allow us to have two mortgages, something I think is pretty rare lately. Plus, if our renters left, we would be stuck with two mortgages.
5. We drop the price a lot and short sale our condo. Short sale means we sell for less then we owe. We would have to work with the bank on this option, to see if they will let us do this, and it might mean we have to get a new loan for what is left after the sale.

So, there we are. We would like to get out of here before Madelyn becomes mobile but we’ll see if that’s possible.

Madelyn is almost two months! She’s got adorable chubby cheeks and chubby legs which makes it hard to believe we had trouble breastfeeding the first two weeks. Our measurements at home show she is about 24 inches long and weighs about 13 pounds. Her newborn clothes are too small and the 3 month clothes mostly fit. Our favorite time of the day is when she wakes up. She is super smiley and wiggly, and makes lots of fun noises such as clicks and ahs. Madelyn has a very sweet personality, no attitude at all, and enjoys being around people. Our only struggles so far are she doesn’t like to nap during the day unless it’s on Mommy or Daddy, and she get’s cranky when she gets sleep. But I’ll take it.

I only have four weeks left of maternity leave. It’s hard to believe I go back to work already. We met with our daycare center last week and we are really happy with them, but I have mixed feelings about going back to work. I really like my job and I think I’m good at it, plus I’m excited to have adult conversations again and me working is better for us financially. However, it’s hard to think of someone else spending so much time with Madelyn and I’m afraid of what we’ll miss out on. Plus, I have this unrealistic fear of her forgetting that we are Mommy and Daddy. Luckily, our daycare center is understanding and since it’s so close to my office, I can stop by over lunch if I want. I’m sure I will the first week or two. 🙂

I can’t believe it’s the end of July already. The summer is flying by, mostly because we have a baby! I’ll try to sum up the last few months in this catch up post.

The last few weeks of my pregnancy were fine. I was pretty tired and some of the nausea came back, but nothing too terrible. At about 38 weeks, the light braxton hicks contractions started and continued straight until the end. They weren’t bothersome or painful, just awkward – like my stomach was doing crunches for me. As my due date approached, I realized that I probably wasn’t going to be early like everyone said.

On Sunday, June 12th, I woke up early like always but things felt different. I let Boone sleep in a little while I ate breakfast, but when he woke up I told him I thought today was it. The contractions started getting stronger around 10am and we labored at home until almost 2pm. At that point, we went in to the hospital. We walked around the triage area for a few hours while they waited to see my progress, and they admitted me around 4pm.

Now, I’m not one of those people to share every detail of my labor experience. I think it’s something private and special between Boone and I. But I’ll give you the highlights. I labored for 28 hours total, with an epidural at hour 15. I pushed for three hours but baby was face-up, sometimes called sunny-side up, which put her at a bad angle. So, we did a c-section. I was a little upset about it at first, but as my OB said, ‘Our goal is healthy mom and healthy baby, and this is what we need to do to achieve that goal.’ The surgery wasn’t fun, but it wasn’t emergency surgery which is much safer and easier on everyone. Plus, the surgical staff were actually quite friendly.

Madelyn Kiersten Sesvold was born at 2:06pm on June 13th, a very sunny Monday afternoon. She weighed 7 pounds and 7.7 ounces (lucky sevens!) and was 20 inches long. She had dark brown hair, even though we thought she’d be blonde, and slate blue eyes. We had two names picked out, and decided she looked like a Madelyn. There’s no special meaning; we just liked it and we liked that we can call her Maddie/Maddy/Madi (We haven’t decided how to spell the nickname yet.). Kiersten is a traditional Scandinavian name, following our Norwegian heritage. I’ll never forget looking at her in Boone’s arms nor will I forget the look on his face as he looked at her.

It’s been a little over six weeks now and we are adjusting to the baby life. Madelyn is a very good baby – she started sleeping six hours straight at two weeks old. She’s gaining weight and growing like a champ, and learning all sorts of new sounds and tricks. We recently went out with some friends who had a three-week old and we couldn’t remember Madelyn being that small! I’ll try to keep this updated with pictures and tales as they happen. You can find pictures on the Madelyn picture page.

You all probably know by now that we are keeping our final baby name a secret. And a lot people we’ve talked to say it’s a good idea. Keeping the name a secret seems to cut down on others’ opinions and stories. (I don’t need to know that X was the name of your crazy ex-girlfriend or your parent’s dog.)

However, for those of you who just can’t wait, here’s a list of some possible names. Some we picked out, some our parents like, and some our close friends suggested. Some names we like, some names we don’t.

Jess here.

I’ve been MIA most of the week because my Grandpa Jim passed away over the weekend. Here’s a link to his obituary. Being a WWII vet, his burial included a gun salute and flag ceremony. I hadn’t been to a funeral with those ceremories included and they were very beautiful.

My family asked me to collect thoughts and memories into a eulogy and give the speech at the funeral. It’s an honor I’m reluctant to accept. There is something so healing about sharing stories and memories, so I’m happy to help the family with the task. Here’s what I read at the funeral for those who are interested:

Grandpa Jim was a marine and a hero to his family and community. His sons Buzz and Chuck grew up in a time where the heroes on TV were Roy Rogers, John Wayne, and Bart Starr. My Uncle Chuck remembers seeing John Wayne in a WWII movie and thinking, my dad did that. He’s a hero just like John Wayne!

After his three years serving in the Marines and fighting for our country in the Pacific, Grandpa Jim returned to Osseo and got to work. He instilled a strong work ethic in his children by living by example. He respected an honest day’s work, he showed up early, and left late. He worked while he went to vocational school, worked for local businesses like the Ford garage and the high school, and owned his own business. He did a lot of jobs that probably weren’t a lot of fun or easy like late night car towings or urgent EMT calls. Grandpa Jim did them without complaint.

Grandpa Jim was a model community citizen. He believed in being a part of his community and did so in many ways. He coached baseball, taught Sunday School, was a Fire Chief on the Osseo Fire Department, participated in the local Legion, was an EMT, and worked with the Osseo Cub and Boy Scouts.

No matter how active Grandpa Jim was, he was always there for his six children. Family was important and precious to him. He was a supportive and loving dad, even when his kids were in trouble (which of course never happened, right guys?). He stood behind his kids no matter what they chose to do. His family sat around the dinner table, eating and playing cards, and sharing stories. Grandpa Jim would listen to his family at the dinner table, joining in with a story or two himself.

My Aunt Tammy remembers the camping trips the family took when my aunts and uncles were all kids. There they were, packed like sardines in a single tent. The kids fished with sticks and fishing line, and with the help of Grandpa, they always caught lots of fish. Grandpa Jim told them that if they had any fishing questions, they needed to ask Grandma Donna because she was the fisherman of the family.

Grandpa Jim enjoyed watching thunderstorms with his children and grandchildren, even when they were afraid. Grandpa Jim would wrap his arms around them, protecting them from the rain and the noise, all the while explaining how thunderstorms were good for the earth. He said they shook up the soil and fed the crops. Lightening was ‘God’s Fireworks’. My Aunt Susan remembers Grandpa Jim helping her get over her childhood fear of thunderstorms with his bravery and his calm words.

Grandpa Jim was a fun and loving and fun-loving grandfather. Many of us grandkids remember fishing and watching football with Grandpa, or trying to figure out how Grandpa could wiggle his ears like that. I know I’m not the only one who remembers Grandpa teasing me by flicking his nose with his thumb, making fists by his face, and saying “Wanna fight?” My cousin Dan remembers when he was little, and wasn’t feeling well or was feeling awkward, Grandpa Jim would wrestle with him, examine him, and then prescribe him a knuckle sandwich.

In these last years, Grandpa Jim took great joy in his 17 grandkids and 21 great-grandkids who he loved so much. Whether it was music, baseball, softball, or school, Grandpa delighted in hearing about his large family and all their achievements. Even thought he couldn’t attend many of the events, he enjoyed the frequent visits we all made to the nursing home and he wall-papered his room in family photos.

Everyone remembers Grandpa Jim’s laughter and smile. My Aunt Gloria remembers him roaring and grinning with his kids over card games. My cousin Karla and I remember him laughing and smiling at the squirrels and birds on Grandma Donna’s deck. The nurses at the August nursing home remember his laughs and smiles in the hallways. Laugher and smiling made Grandpa feel good, even when he really wasn’t feeling so good, and it made all of us around him feel good too. His love of laughter and smiling reminds us to enjoy life, and to laugh and smile often.

We will remember Grandpa Jim for being many things- a marine, a husband, a dad, a grandpa, a great-grandpa, a community member, a hard-worker, a friend, and a very good man. He laid a solid foundation for his family and his community to live on and make the world a better place.

We learned at our 20 week ultrasound that we are having a girl in June. Without a doubt, it’s a girl. The ultrasound was a really cool experience. We saw the four sections of the heart, the kidneys, the bones, the brain – it’s truly amazing what you can see! This will be the first girl great-grandchild on my mom’s side and the first girl Boone’s mom gets to shop for. I have a feeling she’s going to get a lot of pink/ruffle/sparkly stuff from those people. And I’m ok with that. Every girl needs a little bit of that.

Now that we’ve seen the healthy baby and know the sex, it feels like we can get started with the serious stuff like names, shopping, daycare, and parenting. Shopping is the hardest thing to do since our condo is staged and we don’t know where we are going to be when the baby gets here. If we are still in the condo, the baby will share Boone’s office, we’ll buy/keep less stuff, and we’ll have to get creative with IKEA storage solutions. If we are in an apartment or a house, the baby will have her own room and we’ll do a more traditional nursery.

If you want to know names, sorry but we are going to keep the name a surprise until she is born. We have a list of favorites and we might publish that, but we think it’s fun to keep the name a secret. You only have to wait a few more months though. 🙂

We’ve been terribly lazy with the blog lately. We’ll have more to share in 2011. Here’s a recap of 2010:

Boone’s company was purchased by another company in California early in 2010. Luckily they kept everyone at the Madison office and in August, they closed the Madison location and had all the Madison staff work from home. Boone now works out of our office everyday. It was a little bit of an adjustment, but I think he’s used to working from home now.

The biggest adventure of the year was our trip to Europe. In July, we spent three weeks in Greece, Italy, and France. We visited Athens, Santorini, Venice, Florence, the Cinque Terre, and Paris. We saw the Parthenon, the canals of Venice, St. Mark’s square, Michelangelo’s “David” statue, the Eiffle Tower, the Louvre Museum, and many more beautiful places and people. It was an amazing experience and we have lots of great stories and memories. We’ll post some pictures on the blog soon.

We went to a couple weddings this year, but the biggest was definitely my brother’s wedding in Mexico in September. Ben married Andrea Labor Day weekend and a lot of our family got to be there. The resort was a different, more relaxing vacation from our Europe trip, and it was a lot of fun. I got another wonderful sister out of the deal and Ben got yet another sister as well. Ben will have to wait for everyone to get married for him to have more brothers.

We put our condo on the market in August and we had a few bites through out the fall. We love our condo, but we are ready for a house and something a little bigger. It’s a tough market so we expect a long hard fight. We are continuing to try to sell this coming Spring and reevaluate in March.

The most exciting news of the year is that in June 2011 we are going to have a baby! We are excited and so are our families. This will be the first grandchild and the first niece or nephew for both our families. For great-grandchildren, this will be the 5th great-grandchild on my mom’s side, the 22nd on my dad’s family, the 3rd on Boone’s mom’s side, and the 19th on Boone’s dad’s side. It’s been a good pregnancy so far; I’ve been really tired but not too sick and everything has been normal. I’m well into the second trimester (just starting month 5) and while I haven’t had any weird cravings yet, I mostly want cheese, ice cream, and fruit like apples. It’s definitely a Wisconsin baby. 🙂

2011 looks like a busy year for us – hopefully a new house, definitely a new baby, a few weddings, and lots of other day-to-day adventures. We’ll try to post more since we have more to talk about.