A Little About My Job!

For anyone who reads my blog (which is probably just my little sister, Hi Jahnaia!), I mentioned that I have found a job. I am working as a Breastfeeding Peer Counselor through our local health department. This position is not unheard of but it is usually through WIC so this is a new area for everyone. I will be able to work with anyone who uses the health department for services (this is includes WIC but doesn't exclude those who do not qualify for WIC). Since starting the job, I have met lots of amazing women and realized that the position I am in is actually really important and there are a lot of people who are not only excited about it but also expecting me to do a great job. No pressure or anything but it is motivating me to work hard and try to make the most of the position.
Although I work through the health department, I am technically not a health department employee. I don't have an office, I don't come in to work everyday, I actually work mostly from home. When nursing moms need assistance, I receive a referral from the health department informing me of the issue(s) that the mom is experiencing. I then contact the mom and see if I can assist her by stopping by and giving her nursing advice. Well, I have received four referrals this week. I really wasn't expecting to even have any referrals so this was an awesome surprise. So far, I've only met with two moms (who were really nice) and although I don't have all the answers, I hope that I helped them out as much as I can.
After my two counselings, I realized that I would love to do this as a career. As of right now, I am completely satisfied being a BFPC but I eventually want to become a LPN and continue the path to becoming a board certified lactation consultant. Those are future plans though. Right now, I want to be a great resource for nursing moms in my county. I want moms to know that if I don't have the answer, I will do my hardest to figure it out for them. That being said, I need to get started on some online training while Liam is sleeping. Have a great weekend everyone!

What We've Been Up To...

So, I haven't been updating like I should (do you forgive me??). No worries though, things are good here (except for a little car trouble but that's taken care of now). We've been chugging along and things really seem to be falling into place. Liam has turned into Spiderman and is climbing everything. He decided that he wanted the car keys off the dining room table this morning and figured he'd just climb onto a chair and make his way on top of the table. I almost had a heart attack. That boy is trying to kill me!

In recent news (well, sort of recent news). Will and I celebrated our two year anniversary on March 24th. We just went to a nice baby-free dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Houlihan's. If you get a chance to go there, try their Seared Tuna Wontons. Best App Ever!

I mentioned that I am now working as a Breastfeeding Peer Counselor. I'm still super stoked about this job and really hope I can live up to the expectations of the program. I'm still trying to figure out exactly how everything will work (and so is everyone else since this is the first time the health department has offered this position). Once I get things perfected, I'll definitely do an update.

We also celebrated a low key Easter with family and friends. The weather was perfect and even though we decided to just do a small, fun Easter egg hunt at home instead of going to our town's annual event. Liam did not understand the concept of finding eggs so maybe it was a good thing we put off the actual Easter egg hunt until next year.

We also celebrated another low key event: My 27th birthday! I never do much for my birthday and honestly woke up that morning and didn't even remember it was my special day. The intake manifold on our Mustang cracked the day before so it was in the shop and I got to drive around our roommates Altima (definitely didn't want to give that back). I had a breastfeeding seminar during the day and went grocery shopping with my mom afterwards. When I got home, Will and Marks (our roommate) surprised me with a cake and ice cream. I was not expecting that at all since we had just planned on going to dinner this weekend to celebrate my birthday. That, along with all the Facebook love, made my day super special.

So, needless to say, things are good here. And here's a little visual entertainment courtesy of my Galaxy S2 (since I have no clue where my camera is) for you guys.

I Know What I Want To Be When I Grow Up...

Over the last few weeks, I've done a lot of soul searching. Reflecting.
Trying to figure out who I am when I'm not Will's wife and Liam's mommy.

There are things that I want to have figured out before Liam is in school and before we decide to have another child (although my baby fever has been out of control lately). I have always had the desire to work with women (I even majored in Women's Studies while in college) but I wasn't exactly sure how to go about finding a career that would work for our lives. As I started looking into portable careers, working in the medical field started to seem more and more appealing to me. I began to get excited at the thought of working as a nurse in a maternity ward (or birthing center) until I thought about the downside of a job like that. Then it clicked with me.

I want to be a Lactation Consultant! Breastfeeding has become a huge part of my life and it is something that I feel very passionate about. Since making this life altering discovery, I have been researching the pathways I can take to make this a reality. One of the things I will need to do in order to becoming a certified l.c. is log hours assisting nursing moms. I was wondering how I would be able to achieve this until I ran across an ad for a Breastfeeding Peer Consultant at our local health department. I decided to apply and guess what?! I got the job!! I am beyond excited for this opportunity and to be able to do something I enjoy. Everything seems to be falling into place and I feel great! Oh, and Liam and Will are great as well.

Hotel Living

Liam and I are back in home after a week (well until Thursday) in our hotel. It's wasn't too bad now that we've gotten the hang of things. We had a little mix up Monday morning so he ended up coming to work with me for a few hours. It was definitely different and messed up my pumping schedule. I let Liam nurse on one side and didn't pump the other, big mistake. Let's just say, I'm definitely paying for it later. Lesson learned: Change in pumping/nursing schedule = Engorgement and possible clogged milk duct.

Since our work/daycare/hotel adventures have begun, I have realized Liam is becoming such an independent baby. He has started to entertain himself and loves to play with his toys. But by far, his favorite thing to do is stand. It's amazing how just eight months ago, he was a little guy and now he's such a big boy.

Back to Work...

Liam and I are finally home after my eleventh straight day of working at my base. Today is day one of our three day weekend (yay!). We still have six more workdays to go (four days next week and two days the following week). So far things have been pretty good. Tamara, a family friend, has been watching Liam through the week for me except for this past weekend. My base contracts childcare for drill weekends so Liam spent the weekend with Kay. During the first few days with Tamara, he was not happy at all. He cried a lot and even fussed once we were together at the hotel. I decided that it was a mix of separation anxiety and teething (his top two teeth are coming in). When I picked him up from Tamara Friday after work, she told me that he did a lot better but I was still worried about how he would do with Kay. Well, I was glad to find out that he was amazing! Kay loved him and said that she wished she could watch him full-time. She even took pictures of him (as well as the other Air Force kids) and sent us a slideshow during work. This week, Liam did amazing at Tamara's as well.
While working, we stayed in a hotel since my base is over an hour away from home. It was definitely interesting living in a hotel with an infant. At first I was not looking forward to it but Liam and I bonded even more (if that's possible). These past eleven days have made me love my little man even more. He's an amazing little guy and feels my heart with joy.
Even though our daycare, work and hotel journey isn't over, we made it past the hard part and I realized that it wasn't really that hard after all. Now, we just need Daddy to come home so we can use our future weekend hotel stays as mini staycations.

Back After A Short Break

Things have been a little crazy for Liam and I. We're back at home after a couple days out of town working. Liam stayed with my cousin instead who lives in town instead of going to a daycare.

As much as I love Liam, I was definitely excited to head to work for a few days. It gives me a break from being
home and allows me to talk to other adults. Overall, the trip was a success. Liam got to play with other kids while I was at work and we spent the night in a nice hotel. It was a little taste of what our lives will be like in a couple weeks since I will be working for a majority of August.

Besides our trip, things have been pretty laid back around the house. With my mom and siblings gone, it is definitely a lot quieter (which I LOVE). Now, if only I had the motivation to start some decorating projects. Speaking of motivation, that seems to be something I am definitely lacking. I think this may have something to do with it though:

It's Hot!!

It's a little hard to stay motivated when you break a sweat by just walking outside. Liam and I have been spending most of our day inside only daring to venture out early in the morning.
One things for sure: I'm definitely ready for fall! Stay cool everyone!

Let Me Update You!

The past week or so has been pretty laid back for Liam and I. We've been trying to stay cool, getting the house in tip-top shape, attempting to crawl (well, mostly Liam, I mastered crawling years ago), mailing birthday packages (post to come once Will receives his package in the mail) and enjoying the festivities of the 4th of July holiday.

Our town has an annual fair-style event for the 4th of July holiday so Liam and I attended the first day of the event along with his godmother, Krystal, and her daughter. It was unbelievably hot and things too a turn for the worse when Krystal passed out while getting food. She was fine after drinking water and sitting for awhile but needless to say, that was the only day we ended up at the fair.
I can't seem to find my camera so I snapped a few pictures of Liam pre-fair on my iPad.

Baby Wayfarers and he loved them!

"Please Mom, no more pictures!"

We did partake in a few 4th of July festivities including a barbeque on the 4th. We stayed away from the fireworks for two reasons: 1) Liam is far to small to do anything of the sort and 2) I am a little scared of fireworks. It I had my way, Liam would only want to play with sparklers but since that's very unlikely, fireworks will be a Daddy job.

So, all in all, our holiday was pretty mellow. We're relaxing this weekend in preparation for a week of daycare and hotel room living since I have to work at my base. Hope you all have a relaxing weekend as well.

Returning to Work (boo!)

I don't know how I forgot to mention returning to my National Guard base this past weekend. After three months off, I returned to work on March 5th. For days beforehand, I was dreading leaving because I hate crying (even the thought of crying upsets me and therefore, makes me want to cry). Since my base is over an hour away and work starts at 0700, I had to leave the house around 0530. I usually stay the weekend but the base daycare was full so my mom watched Liam and I came home Saturday after work.
Come to find out, all my worrying was for nothing. The day flew by since I had three months of classes to catch up on. I was busy all day doing physicals, online classes, an interview for another job, etc. Now don't get me wrong, I definitely missed Liam but I got to talk to all the other parents in my shop about our kids so it was fun. It also helped that my boss put the birth announcement I sent on the fridge :)
Hopefully I'll be able to stay the night with Liam next month instead of driving home but either way, I'm sure I'll miss being with him. Next month will also be the first time I will be away overnight since I have a conference two hours away. I know that Liam will be in good hands as long as I start pumping to make sure that he won't starve.
Uh, oh. Someone's waking up from their nap. Goodbye for now!

<3 Jaye