Jenna's Flour Baby Blog

I feel like one of the biggest challenges of being a teen mom would be trying to to balance and juggle being a parent and going to to school while earning enough money to satisfy your child’s wants and needs. I also think it would be extremely difficult being judged as a teen mom daily. Going out with Sloan I felt eyes on me all the time and she in reality is a sack of flour. Having a baby as a teen is definitely out of the social norms and it would be so hard dealing with all of the judgments.

Family portrait!! Sloan drew a picture of “mommy and me” on her 4th birthday!

Sloan has grown up oh so fast. As a three year old she just LOVED art. We have an art table in our house and she just could not get enough of drawing and painting. She loves drawing our little family when she is at school and her abstract art just puts a smile on my face. She has loved making new friends at school and has play dates at our house on occasion. She didn’t love going to other people’s houses but we have worked on it. Sloan loves talking and talks a lot at home but when she is at school she rarely talks and I am not sure why, though it may be that she is just not as comfortable there. When she is with her friends, they love that arts and crafts table and just cannot get enough of playing with baby dolls. It is the cutest thing when her and her friends have little conversations with each other and pretend to have a family of their own together. Throughout when she was three I read the same book every night and by a certain time she had most of it memorized and she wanted to “read” it to me instead. Right before Sloan turned three she was started to climb out of her climb so I got her a big girl bed which she loves and likes to show it off to all of her friends. She had no problem not sleeping in her crib anymore and has slept through the night in her bed  just like she was in her crib. Lately Sloan has not been listening to me especially when I ask her to clean up her toys. After doing some research I decided that the right punishment is to count to 3 and if she has not started cleaning up her toys or doing what I asked her to do she will sit on her bed in her room until she is ready to come out and listen. http://www.kidsgrowth.com/resources/articledetail.cfm?id=793. As a four year old, Sloan loves everything new- while she used to like reading the same book each night, she loves new books now and could stay and read books in the children’s section of the library. While she used to always sleep through the night, she occasionally meanders her way to my room from nightmares. When I ask her what her dreams are about she always talks about the same creature that has been “living in her closet.” The other day Sloan lied for the first time. I asked her what she had for lunch at her friends house after school had she said an apple and string cheese but I was talking to her friends mom and she apologized by saying that the kids weren't hungry for lunch and she gave them a cupcake. Since I have told Sloan that she cannot just have dessert for her meals she lied to me because she is always so worried about pleasing me. I did some research and decided to go along with what the article said and explained to Sloan how honesty is really important in our family. http://raisingchildren.net.au/articles/lies.html  After we had a little chat about being honest, Sloan has been telling the truth for the most part. I am loving the age that Sloan is right now because she is such a chatterbox and we are just having so much fun with each other.

Celebrating her third birthday with a friend from daycare!! Somehow she stole that binky back..

This little sticker pot even tried to take off the tape from the outlets. She couldn’t, so I think my baby proofing is working!!! You’re two... you should know better

Sloan took her first steps at 11 months and was walking right after her first birthday. I love watching her progress and she just keeps taking me by surprise. Having her walking shook up my life yet again because she’s a busy bee and starting to get into all kinds of trouble. I had to child proof EVERYTHING. I got a cute little cover for the faucet in the bathtub and boy did we learn that the hard way. Sloan touched the hot faucet while the water was running and burnt the heck out of her hand. From there on I child proofed everything in my house: all of the outlets are covered so she doesn’t electrocute her little fingers, the low cabinets in the kitchen are locked so she doesn’t smash her fingers and of course so she doesn’t get into everything, the stairs have a baby gate so she doesn’t take a tumble…the list is never ending and man did I spend too much money. So far Sloan is growing up just like any other- walking at the average age, starting to speak a little and understand small phrases at one year and sleeping in her crib in her own room a couple weeks before her first birthday. Like I said, at around 12 months she could speak a couple understandable words such a “baba” for bottle, “more” when wanted more food, “bink” for binky and “min” for her special blanket. But now that she is almost two years old she is talking much more. Taking after her mama, she absolutely loves to play with her baby dolls just like I did. She carries them wherever she goes and loves to feed them and pretend to give them baths. She likes to parallel play with others around her age but it takes a little bit of time to warm up to them. Lately she has been having play dates with a few friends that we met at mommy and me daycare. Not only has Sloan met friend but I have too and have learned so much from the other mothers at the daycare. A couple weeks before her first birthday, I transitioned Sloan to sleeping in her crib in her own room. It was a pretty smooth transition- definitely some tears before going to bed but lately she crawls right in and is fast asleep. I decided to make this transition after hearing from my “mom friends” that they were beginning to have their kids sleep in their own rooms. My major parenting decision was when and how to take her pacifier away. I decided to start taking it away when she was 22 months and I am worried to see what comes from that. I did some research to see how that process will be and to make it a gradual process. So I gave it back to her at naps and bedtime so we could both get some sleep and that really helped. She knew her binky stays in her crib and is not to leave. When she was in her early twos she still had her pacifier when she is sleeping but ever since I took it away from her during the day she has talked much more. http://www.babysleepsite.com/tag/pacifier-weaning/.  Technology has been a little bit difficult because it is such a part of life today. I had to make a tough decision as to how often I am going to allow technology use and when that time will take place. I decided that she could watch a show or two before school and one while I cook dinner and it seems to work well for her. She enjoys watching television but knows she when she is allowed to and doesn’t ask to watch it when it is not time. http://www.parents.com/fun/entertainment/gadgets/is-technology-good-for-little-kids/ I had definitely heard about kids as two year olds and how they are often referred to as “terrible twos” and I’d say that was very true until she was about 2 ½. She would cry and throw a tantrum if anything did not go her way or if our daily schedule was off. She has achieved so many more milestones since her last birthday. She can now speak in sentences but earlier this year she had just started putting two words together.  It was so nice knowing exactly what she wanted rather than her crying and me trying to figure it out. Ryder is completely potty trained during the day but is still wearing pull-ups at night. I knew she was ready to be potty trained because she would always tell me when she had to go to the bathroom. She was easy to potty train and it only took about a week to have no accidents during the day! http://www.babycenter.com/0_parents-say-potty-training-tips_12599.bc. 

The night of Sloan’s first birthday falling fast to sleep!

Baby Sloan being bottle fed!!

So so happy with Enfamil!! Greatest recommendation from Dr. Arizona Robbins! Both Sloan and I are so happy with their product!

A few days ago I visited Dr. Robbins reguarding breast feeding because I am having troubles getting Sloan enough nutrients. What I shouldn’t have done was do research before I visited the doctor because it truly made me feel more guilty because most websites say that breastfeeding is by far the best option. I began thinking that bottle feeding Sloan was not going to give her all that she needs because breast milk contains antibodies and passing on that milk to a newborn can strengthen their immune system which is a huge plus in the long run and can help babies fight off any infections in their first few months. Also breast feeding “can help prevent SIDS, sudden infant death syndrome” according to WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby/your-babys-feeding-breast-vs-bottle On one websit it said, “about 2 percent of all women can't produce enough milk.”  https://www.parenting.com/article/the-breastfeeding-police When I read this, it worried me because this statistic seemed fairly low and I now know that I am a part of the 2 percent. Though as I kept reading that article, it stated that “less than 65 percent of new mothers nurse and just 16 percent continue through the first year.” This made me feel better because even though breast feeding may be the “better” choice, many mother’s do not follow through with it and after talking to my Doctor I have realized it is not an option for me. Dr. Robbin’s has made me feel much better by giving me a bunch of formula options and I did research when I got home about formulas and recommendations. It has become apparent to me that with all of the technology that we have today, infant formulas have gotten better and better and match the ingredients and proportions to that of human milk. I am so thankful for all of the recommendations and so happy that Sloan is going to be able to grow as a happy and healthy little one!

My goodness does time fly! I cannot believe how quickly my sweet girl is growing up! Like I was saying in my last post, I had to begin bottle feeding when I realized nursing wasn’t an option. Not that this was a self-choice, it was a big step for me to change to formula feeding. I did a lot of research and found the perfect formula that Sloan loves and have found their to be a lot of convenience to bottle feed your children. https://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby/your-babys-feeding-breast-vs-bottle Coming to the conclusion of bottle feeding was hard for me to process but I am really satisfied and Sloan is healthy and happy. Right before she approached her one month, she started smiling and her smile was the cutest darn thing i’ve ever seen. Everytime I played peek-a-boo she would smile and her smile puts a smile on my face. When I covered my face she thought I was no longer there because she was in her sensory motor stage meaning that she was experiencing the world through her senses and what is out of sight is out of mind (because she couldn’t see my face anymore, I wasn’t actually there anymore in her eyes). Sloan was and still is a good sleeper- she woke me up when she was hungry but now that she is getting older she is sleeping through the night. Ever since Sloan was days old, she loved being swaddled. My doctor said that swaddling reduces SIDS, soothes your baby and will make your baby cry less- with this information I had to try it and you could tell she felt very content when she was all wrapped up like a burrito in her baby blanket.. When she started getting too big, I started putting her in a sleepsack at night and it seemed to work well by quieting her before bed. She started sleeping through the night at four months and I started finally being able to catch up on sleep. As Sloan was approaching 6 months I started introducing rice and baby puffs. Her all time favorite gerber puffs are the apple favored ones. She just cannot get enough of them. I knew she was ready to try solid food because she had head control, she was sitting with support and constantly eyed my food while I was eating in front of her. http://www.babycenter.com/0_introducing-solids_113.bc  March 6th was a big day- she turned 4 months and Sloan rolled over for the first time. She started sitting and crawling when she turned 6 months. All of these milestones make me so proud of my baby girl. Sloan said her first word “mama” at 9 months but before that she babbled a lot starting at around 6 months. When she was 3 months, she was able to recognize my voice and turned toward other voices around the house whether is was a friend, family or music playing in the background. When she was just about 1 year old, she was able to stand up while holding onto something in the house. Almost every night she stands in her crib while holding onto the railing but it worries me that she will let go because she could hurt herself. http://www.tesco-baby.com/epc/how-can-i-stop-my-baby-standing-up-in-his-cot/. I went back to work part time when she was five months old but in about one month I will need to go back full time. While I was working part time I had my mom watch her but going back full time, I am planning on finding a daycare for Sloan to attend daily. I am worried she will cry a lot because when she is left with a babysitter she begins to feel stranger anxiety quickly because she is used to being left with someone she knows well. As of now I am trying to find the perfect daycare for Sloan and we have visited many. I know I will find the perfect one for my little Sloan.

Ultrasound of baby Sloan!!!

Hi! My name is Jenna Kisner and I am so excited to publicly announce that I am having a baby girl! After the long process of searching for a name, the name Sloan came to mind after the ‘Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital’ in which she will be born at. Being friends with Arizona Robbins (who also plays as a plays as a pediatric surgeon in Greys Anatomy), we have already established that she will my labor and delivery nurse. I have been wanting to have a baby for years and finally decided to be inseminated using my eggs and a donor sperm so baby Sloan is biologically mine. After looking for a while, I finally chose a man who is similar in age to me and has great qualities. Knowing before undergoing the insemination process that the US success rates are below 50% worried me, though I went through with it and was lucky enough to have success with my first try. https://www.advancedfertility.com/iui-success-rates.htm  I am far along in my pregnancy and baby Sloan has developed many characteristics while being in the womb: heart beating, visible facial features, development of vocal cords, achieving viability and maturing lungs. My pregnancy has been pretty typical with no complications. At the beginning I was experiencing some morning sickness but it faded as the months progressed. I have been going to doctor  appointments every other week and will soon be going weekly. Listening to my doctor’s request, I have been counting my baby’s kicks after my meals to ensure that my baby is healthy. My baby has been very active throughout my pregnancy which I have heard can affect the way she acts later on in life. In an article I read it says that the baby may cry more than other babies because she moves around so much in the womb. The article also says that the baby may be more active and unpredictable and that the baby might be less easily frustrated at 1 year and more independent at age 2. (http://scienceofmom.com/2014/10/30/can-fetal-movements-tell-us-anything-about-a-babys-temperament/) After reading this article it helps me better understand what is coming in the near future. I am not easily bothered by crying babies and have a lot of experience with them. I cannot wait to see if any of the facts from the article are true to my baby girl.  Going into this, knowing I am going to be a single parent, I understand that there will be difficulties but I am ready to take on the challenge. I am hoping that I will be able to balance work and raising a child and not have either job have a negative impact on the other. I hope that Sloan will not have to be reliant on a nanny or a daycare because I think it is really important to have a mother figure in her life as I did while growing up. An assistant professor at Ohio State University says that children raised in single-parent households are more likely to be successful than raised in a two-parent household. The reasoning behind this is because children raised by two parents have an multiple advantage over children raised by one parent. (http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/familystability.htm). Though I am nervous to take the baby home and raise her, I am overly excited to meet this bundle of joy and share  out my experience with baby Sloan.