we NEED to catch up *emergency surgery, my baby starting solids, & more*

🎵 🎵Take your time, fall in line, someday🎵 🎵 🎵It's so hard to win, hard to pin, one day🎵

Hello! It's been hard to pin one day.

Hello. I really feel like I should just start this off by addressing the elephant in the room. I'm two ounces lighter than the last time you guys saw me. I had a whole organ removed. From the moment I ended my last vlog till about two weeks ago,

I was experiencing the worst pain of my entire life. I had no idea that a super common thing to happen after you're pregnant is your gallbladder starts making gallstones. You need to get it removed. It's actually super common to get it removed while you're pregnant. When I found that out I was shocked that they can even do that. I have been a victim of postpartum gallbladder removal surgery. My whole trip to Indiana in pain.

I've officially decided that I would rather go through Pitocin contractions again than another gallbladder attack. I mean, I don't have a gallbladder, so I don't have to worry about it anymore. The attacks last like five to six hours for me. No position alleviates the pain.

For me, the pain would start in between my shoulder blades, but not like I had a sore back. It felt like somebody had a knife inside my back and was stabbing me in all directions if it was a really bad attack It would radiate all through my chest what set me into the ER was I genuinely believed I was having a heart attack My eyes were yellow I was really jaundiced because I had a gallstone stuck in the bile duct so the bile from my liver like couldn't get down into My digestive tract so it was all going back up into my liver

Mama Kelly flew down to be with me and to help Gerald out. When things like this happen, you realize how good or how bad your support system is. The ways that my mom and Gerald showed up for me, I'm extremely grateful. We're all good now. I feel healed. I feel fine.

I have a couple of scars on my belly and I can't eat fat anymore. Well, I can, but I's my reality now. I'm a girl from Wisconsin who loves cheese. If I eat cheese, I pay the price. I've heard that that can get better over time. Really praying it does.

Since I got it removed, I have lost 10 pounds by default. In the hospital, I was not allowed to eat for three days. The foods that I can eat now without being in pain are still limited, but the pain of IBS, digestion pain is so much better than that gallbladder pain. I'll be fine. It's just an adjustment. That is what has been going on over here the past few weeks. Let me know if anything exciting has happened in your life. Catch me up in the comments, okay? I went for my walk this morning. I've actually gone on a

walk four out of five days this week. I feel like I'm getting back into my routine post-surgery. You want to say? Big girl. Mwah. Mwah.

Hi.

Little baby boy is taking a nap, so we're just hanging out. Try and get some house stuff done maybe, while he naps,

so we can be ready to play.

Huh?

I don't know what I would do without my animals.

Here you go.

Gentle.

I mean, I would have less allergies, but a clear nose is not worth a life without my babies. Before we get into today's vlog, I am here to have a big sister moment with you. Thanks to the sponsor of today's video, ZocTalk. Going to the doctor and prioritizing your health is extremely important, but I'm gonna be very honest here in hopes that some of you guys understand. One of the things that I dreaded the most about becoming an adult was having to make my

own doctor's appointments. And due to that I have often chose to just skip going to the doctor altogether, which is not good. When I got pregnant I realized fairly quickly that I was going to be going to the doctor a ton, not only for myself but also for my son eventually. Meaning I was going to need to learn not only to make my own appointments but also find good doctors that were under my insurance and do it fast.

Truly, I wish I had known about ZocDoc earlier because it would have saved me so much stress. For those of you who haven't heard about ZocDoc, they're a free website where you can search and compare high quality in-network doctors. Choose the right one for your needs

and click instantly to book an appointment. They find you in network appointments with more than 100,000 healthcare providers with nearly every specialty. Dental health, eye care, mental health, dermatology, and more. Finding a good doctor can make the world of a difference in your experience. I had complications when I was pregnant and it was really important to me that I felt heard by the people that I was trusting my life

and my son's life with. It just made me feel so much more comfortable. Finding a doctor you can trust is so, so, so important and ZocDoc just makes that so much easier. You can filter doctors based on who takes your insurance, who is located nearby,

who's a good fit for any medical need you may have, and who are highly rated by verified patients. You can see their appointment openings, choose a time that fits into your schedule, and click instantly to book a visit. Zotac appointments happen fast, typically within just 24 to 72 hours of booking. Sometimes you can even get same-day appointments, and you don't even have to talk to anyone, which is my favorite part, and what usually kept me from booking appointments as someone

with social anxiety. You just book with literally a few clicks. Now whether it's for a quick checkup or a pediatric visit for my son, I can handle it all through ZocDoc easily. So stop putting off your doctor's appointments and book your next appointment like I will and go to ZocDoc.com backslash Samantha Jo.

It's also linked in the description. To find and instantly book a top rated doctor today. Thanks again to ZocTalk for sponsoring. Now let's get back into the video. You might hear a piano and some little feet kicking. The nap did not last long. I've decided it's time to go through my clothes.

My body is different postpartum and I feel like I'm holding onto a lot of clothes that just aren't serving me right now in this season. I like to go through my clothes every few months. I donate the ones that I just don't wear or I haven't touched in a while.

Eh, eh.

I'm only gonna do this one drawer right now. Eventually I'll make my way through the rest of them.

Eh, eh.

He's not gonna tolerate me doing this for very long. Like have I ever wore the skirt? Like having a plain black skirt's probably good, right? I need to be smarter than the article of clothing.

What's wrong?

Okay, you wanna go see mom? Woo, here, this one's fun.

Mommy's just going through some pants. Like these might be too big. So I'm gonna make like a try on pile as well as just like a get rid of pile

Okay, all right mommy can do this later

He started to babble Bless you dad dad dad dad dad this sensory activity 10 out of 10 get some little bath toys Put them in water. Let them play with it. We're getting towards the end of your wake window. This is how we are extending it.

Trying to get you to only take three naps.

Three naps!

This would be nap number two of the day.

The little toes.

Whose toe is this? It's yours, huh? Whose finger?

Mommy's fingers. Mama.

Phalanges. Dancing phalanges. That's a technical term for fingers. Or at least I think it is.

Stone said it was.

Ah. Ah.

Ah.

Duncan thinks it's funny.

Ah.

Ah.

Guess Duncan.

Tell your mama to go around.

High five.

Yay. High five. Yay!

High five.

Yay!

It's cool.

It's cool. It's cool.

It's just your foot.

Whew!

Pew!

Wee!

You got stinky feet.

But guess what?

Mommy loves your stinky feet.

Can you say dada?

Smack, smack. He like whispers. He goes, dada, dada. I'm talking about you.

Yeah, good job.

Dada.

Dada. Right now he's mad because the cat will come by him

Yeah, I wonder what you're saying

I'll turn All done, all done.

Santa's time.

Take a look at Mommy's nails, because they're gonna look different in a couple hours.

I'm getting colorful ones just for you. Colorful ones for you to look at.

Woo, colorful nails for you to look at. Uh-huh, ready?

Up, up.

We have a lot of milk to bag. And not a lot of time to do it. I pre-did some bags, I don't know if this is enough. This might be the most I've ever bagged in one sitting. Life does feel like a constant cycle of bagging milk and pumping and breastfeeding and drinking

water and eating. I want to say I have over 100 ounces from the last four days. I gotta rip these off. Six ounces.

Not a good start.

Again. No! It's 4.8 ounces.

We have 106 ounces including the bottle. 102 ounces of oversupply are going into the freezer. So happy that's done. I just made it to the nail salon. Gerald got home from work. He has MJ. It's time for a little bit of mommy time. This is what they look like now. I have like six inspiration pictures. I still don't know which one I'm gonna choose. There's only so many times a year you get your nails done. It's a big decision. Nail reveal! This is how the nails turned out.

I love having fun nails. These days my nails are one of those things that make me feel more human. It is the next day. Any and all attempts of vlogs for me are really just a mishmash mush of whenever I'm able to turn a camera on and like whenever I have a moment. I appreciate you bearing with me. It is a new day, a new dawn. I'm pretty sure I mentioned that I've been super consistent with my walks.

Now that I feel like that part of my routine has become a habit, I'm focusing now on another part of my routine that I want to become a habit and that's getting ready every single day. Getting ready looks different every single day. Today we're just gonna wash our face. Maybe put mascara on. This outfit might not be a vibe.

I got it on TikTok shop. It looked cute on the person in the video. It's not looking the same on me. It's almost too big. Whatever. I don't have plans to leave.

The only people that are going to be seeing me today is you. I only have to worry about you being judgy. judging. First up is a solid cleansing oil. Other moms out there, what activities do you do outside of the house with your baby that they like? Andre's only six months old but he's so fascinated by the world. Being a stay-at-home mom, I go a little bit stir-crazy during the week. I need ideas for activities that I can take us out of the house to go do that's not going for a walk or going to the

aquarium. I need to get yearly passes to the Tampa Aquarium other than those two things. Oh why did I take these off? I have one more face wash to do. It seems easier to find activities for like bigger kids because they're a little bit more independent. What do babies like? I once brought him to PetSmart. We just sat and looked at all of the fish for like 20 minutes. Pretty much the aquarium, but free. I doubt I'm the first person to do that or come up with that. I honestly discovered it by accident.

I think I was getting dog food. I remembered that there were fish there and he loves to look at fish. Within the next couple of months, it's going to cool off a little bit here in Florida. We'll be able to spend more time outside. I did get over my whole fear of bringing him outside. I don't know why I was so afraid that he was just gonna immediately have heat stroke the second I took him outside. He's gotten used to the heat a little bit more. Would a

six-month-old like the zoo? But right now it's way too hot for the zoo. I wouldn't go to the zoo for another couple of months. Preferably we're talking indoor activities. I also don't hate the idea of finding him friends. I hate the idea of me having to socialize. I don't want my kid to be a hermit just because I am. I was talking to Aran yesterday about this, my nail tech. I hate confrontation. I feel like a lot of people are that way though.

If I was allergic to shrimp and a server accidentally brought me shrimp, I would simply eat the shrimp before I would tell them that I'm allergic. I hate feeling like I'm a bother to people. For some reason in my head, if I ask to send my food back, the server's gonna feel bad and I don't want them to feel bad. I'll pay, leave my tip, and then exit the restaurant before I start having my allergic reaction to the shrimp, just so they don't feel bad.

But, if somebody I love has an issue, I have no issue asking for it to be sent back. That's just an example. Wait, why did I start saying that? Does editing me remember? Did I brush my teeth this morning? Mm, that feels dry. I also think if I was doing more things, like going out and doing activities, like I said, I don't know what those activities are, I really need you to help me, I would have more

to film. Something else I was thinking about yesterday, it's so crazy how much your priorities change after having a baby. So many things I used to get so upset over, I now realize just don't matter. It's not even that they don't matter or they don't bother me anymore. I think it's simply the fact that I look down at my little human and I'm reminded that everything

else can go away, everything else can go wrong, and it will be okay because I have my little human. I'm definitely somebody who cares what people think of them. In my life that has been a big issue, especially with this job. I definitely have a fear of disappointing people. That controlled my life for so long.

And then this human came out of my body and suddenly I only care about what he thinks of me. Why have I ever cared what other people have to say? If I do my job and I'm a good mom and I raise him to be a good, productive member of society who doesn't cheat, I will not raise a cheater, I hope. Why do I care what someone random on the internet

has to say about me when they don't know me? Now, something that I've had to remind myself of as of late is that even when I feel like I have spent the day doing absolutely nothing, that that's not true because I spent the day keeping a human alive and helping a human grow. I think what I was trying to get at here is sometimes at the end of the day,

I will feel like I didn't accomplish anything because I stayed at home all day. And like when I used to stay at home all day, I was just probably genuinely doing nothing. I have to remind myself that being a stay at home mom is also a job. I may feel like I did nothing, but I didn't do nothing.

I fed my baby, I changed my baby, I played with my baby, I held my baby while they slept, I took my baby out on a walk. I accomplished a lot, it just looks different than it used to, if that makes sense. So I have to remind myself, you weren't sitting on your butt. You used to sit on your butt. You weren't sitting on your butt. You were taking care of your human.

He's six months old now, which means I've been a stay at home mom for three months. I definitely need to get out more. I was really nervous at first because I feel like I did not know what I was doing. Obviously as a first time mom, I got his teeth, I had no idea what to do. But it's so fun because he's growing and changing like so much every single day. I said he started babbling. Literally, he just woke up one day

and decided he knew how to babble. The other week, he didn't know how to roll over. He went down for a nap. He knew how to roll over when he woke up. When people say they change fast, believe them. really important not only for me but also for him. For me to get more comfortable doing things with just me and him during the week.

I also feel like his wake windows are finally getting long enough where I can like take him out to do things. I'm talking other than like running to the grocery store. I thought Google was my enemy before. Google is really my enemy now. It took me a second to realize that all babies are different.

I knew that statement, but it took me a minute to actually learn. This mascara kind of sucks. It got sent to me in PR. I don't know why I'm using it. Especially since he was born a little bit early, he has tended to be a couple weeks behind what they say. I would Google how long wake windows were supposed to be because I felt like he was getting really tired really fast, but he was taking really bad naps so I thought maybe I wasn't keeping him awake long enough. He is just now at the point where he's up for like two, two and a half hours. I think that's normal for this age.

I'm not really sure. Most days he only needs to take three naps which I'm pretty sure is also normal for this age. There might be a different version of Samantha in the future that regrets saying this but I cannot wait for him to only take two naps because I feel like I'll be able to stay at home let him take his first nap and then leave for the afternoon and go do an activity, come home, take a nap, wake up and do our whole bedtime stuff. That seems perfect. Especially because I have one kid maybe I would feel different if

I had multiple but I want to hang out with him. I like when he's awake. But right now, he really, really wants independence. He wants to be able to sit up, but he can't. He wants to be able to crawl around, but he can't. Most of his wake windows are just set with me moving him around and keeping him happy. All of this goes back to let me know

what you like doing with your baby.

Oh.

Try to fake some life in my skin. I'm not going to do any face makeup today. I'm getting my period so my skin's just not happy. Put in some earrings. To whom it may concern, I will be fixing my hair. I got these from Nordstrom. It's the brand Etiquette.

Etiquette, Etiquette.

I also got this bracelet. This bracelet is also from there, although I don't know that I recommend it because I've only worn it a couple of times and this clasp is already changing colors. And it wasn't like cheap, cheap. I want to say it was like $40 and I get it.

You can't expect the best for $40. $40 isn't cheap either.

Why give up on that?

This is not going on today. I took off my other jewelry downstairs. I don't wanna be stinky. No stinky in this house.

No stinky in this house. No stinky in this house. No stinky in this house.

No stinky in this house. No stinky in this house. I'm in the era of trying to get my baby to eat food. I did not expect a child of mine to not want food. I thought it was genetic. We're slowly introducing him to foods. I'm chopping up this banana, I will be mushing it. I was pretty confident we were going

to strictly do baby lead weaning. Yet another reason that all babies are different, when we try to give him food, he gets so angry. At first I thought it was because we were doing baby lead weaning, and he was just like, this is not for me,

I want the purees. We tried giving him purees, he doesn't like that either. Even though he's not really eating the food, I wanna keep offering it to him so he can be exposed to different textures. Not sure if he's gonna eat this. The foods we have had success with are eggs,

strips of steak, he'll sit and chew on it and suck the juices out, and potatoes, but only in the shape of a french fry. Everything else makes him cry. I mashed up some bananas. Gonna attempt to put some breast milk in it. Maybe that'll help. That was too much.

I went ahead and cooked the eggs now because he's gonna wake up any second. I want it to be fully cooled down before I give it to him. Breast milk and bananas. I'm not even gonna bother trying with an avocado right now. just as much as he hates bananas. The egg is definitely more baby-led weaning style. So I'm just gonna cut it into strips that he can hold.

Like a little strip of egg. I mixed breast milk into these as well. I know I was shitting on Google earlier, but according to Google, babies can have certain seasonings. They just recommend you introduce them one at a time.

Seems to be okay with garlic powder. So I'm gonna put like the tiniest bit of garlic powder on one of these see if that makes any difference. I'm putting more strips of eggs on here than he needs in hopes that something makes it into his mouth. I'm gonna give him like a strip of banana like maybe he'll pick those up and put them in his mouth. Obviously his main nutrition is breast milk but your girl was a super picky eater growing up. Honestly that's not fun. I don't think it was fun for my mom to deal with. As an adult I'm still

learning to overcome a lot of those like picky eating tendencies and like my fear with certain foods. I want to expose him as much as possible. I know this is just banana and eggs but I'm not gonna lie I was a little discouraged at first when he wouldn't eat food because I thought this was gonna be like such a fun time. I have since learned that it's really normal for babies to not be into food right away. Some are, some are not, and some it takes like months before they're actually really excited to sit down and eat. From what I've gathered he can't be

too hungry when I offer the food and he can't be too full. You kind of have to do it right in the middle. I think I hear him. That's actually perfect. I ordered some different utensils that weren't just like straight up baby spoons. We have these little spoons that I got from Target. While we're still getting him used to the food, these kind of just look like teethers. If I put a little bit of the banana on there,

he might just stick it in his mouth because it looks like a teether. Help him transition into it. I also got these wide bottom spoons and forks. It's shorter and it's fatter, which is easier for him to grip. We're gonna see what he eats or what he puts in his mouth. Or maybe he'll cry and that's fine too. But if he starts crying,

I'm not gonna sit and like force him to be interested in it and to eat it because I don't want him to have a negative connotation with food. I do wanna keep offering it to him every day. Wish me luck.

Hopefully it goes well. high up. When you're short you have, when you're short you have to be creative. I feel like I might be getting sick. My throat feels a little funny and my ear is starting to hurt. I'm gonna try and combat that with some emergency. I don't know how much this really helps. I mean it can't hurt anything. Cheers. At least I know MJ will be safe even if I do sick, or at least better off than me because of the booby milk.

This is a stacker. We're gonna put the ring on. The ring is on the stacker.

Rings on, on. Yay!

See, Piper's proud of you too.

Yay! Are Piper's proud of you too. Yay!

Are you guys playing?

Are those your siblings? See, can I do both?

I can't reach. I can't reach.

Gotta bring it here.

Duncan!

Oh no, it's on top of the couch.

So good!

Do you like it? I know you like it, Duncan. Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez.

Oh, jeez.

Oh, jeez.

Oh, jeez.

Oh, jeez. Yummy. Wanna hold this one? Cause mommy's holding this one. That's so yummy. Your brother and sister, I'm sure, will finish all the food you don't eat over the next few years.

I'm not in a rush.

Mommy's patient. These seem to be a good way to introduce it to him. Usually when you give him a banana, he cries.

This is progress.

All done. All done.

You did so good.