What a Year....2009

Here it is...the last day of 2009. I'm always kinda sad when this day rolls around every year. I look back on what has happened in my life over the past year, and wish I could relive some of those moments. 2009 has brought us the best gift of all, our baby girl...who's quickly growing into a little girl. I'm planning her 1st birthday party already, and tears come to my eyes thinking about fast she's grown. I wish I could stop time....and keep her little forever. I have so many wonderful memories of this year and my life couldn't be any fuller than it is right now. We are so lucky to have our health, a home to keep us safe, and a beautiful daughter who makes us laugh hysterically :) 2009 you've been good to us! Can't wait to find out what life will be like in 2010. Happy New Year Everyone!!

We had a Merry 1st Christmas!

What a great Christmas this year! Eleanor got lots of cool new toys which she has been playing nonstop with :) And she also learned a little something new.....she stood by herself. She's getting too big! Judging by this recent development, we're thinking she'll probably be walking by her first birthday. Santa was very good to this little girl. And now Mommy & Daddy have to find room to put all the great new toys....giant ball pit....riding pony....and stuffed puppy. It's all good. Our house looks like a child lives here...and that's quite alright by me :)

9 months old & SNOW!

Her 9 month appt was great on Thursday. She's following her growth curve and is still in the 75-90th percentile for weight, length and head circumference. She's 29 inches long!! No wonder none of her pants fit :) We'll be getting some new clothes soon. She's quickly outgrowing everything we got this fall. It's so funny to think about where we were at this time last year. About to take our first birth class...and look at us know. We're old Pros :) Hahaha....not really...we just think we are :) Anywhooo....here's the latest video of her photos from this past month. I chose this Christmas song because I really "get" it this year. It's called Christmas Through Your Eyes by Gloria Estefan. Christmas means so much more to me this year, and I'm enjoying reliving my childhood with her and starting family traditions with her. Ones that she'll always remember like so many of the ones I have :) Merry Christmas!!

Oh...and it snowed here today. A. LOT. We're looking at almost 20 inches on the ground. Yippeee!! Pics of her playing in it tomorrow :)

Tickle me Eleanor :)

Here's some cute video of her saying what WE think is "tickle tickle tickle." We also think she's a genius baby...but I guess we're a little biased :) Enjoy!

We've got a crawler!

Here's the proof that she's actually doing it now :) Enjoy...and ignore the mess...:)

Fun video of her being cute.....

We finally got some video of her uploaded off the video camera. I took this of her when she was still "pre-crawling." Yes...the girl is fully mobile now...and getting into a lot. She has yet to discover the Christmas tree...which I'm really surprised she hasn't tipped over yet. Maybe because Mommy was smart and put all the ornaments around the top of the tree :) Anyway...enjoy the video. :)

Finally....

We FINALLY got in for a dr.'s appt to get the H1N1 shot! Whoohoo!! I was on the phone for 3 minutes...and it kept ringing busy. The whole time I'm thinking...ok we're never going to get through...when suddenly it rang and a super chipper voice on the other end said "how about 9:30am next Tuesday." That sounds great. We've been trying to decide what to do...do we get it...do we not....and we've decided yes, she should get the shot. We are limited on the information we have about this vaccine, but we just have to do what we think is best for her and her health. If we didn't get it...and she got the flu, I'd be kicking myself for not getting the shot. This is one of those moments that is so hard as a parent...but like I said...you just do what you think is best at the time, and with what information you have. I also want to make sure we don't become to lax in the hand-washing department just because she's had the shot. But I think I'll feel a little better about being out in public once she's through the couple weeks it takes to infiltrate her system.

In other news....we're getting our Christmas tree tomorrow evening!! Whoohoo!! So I'll be posting pics of the fam in front of the tree. We always go to the local volunteer fire department to get our tree, so we'll be doing that again this year. Can't wait to get out all the old ornaments and put some new ones on this year :)

Not really feeling Santa....

This picture says it all folks. She actually did pretty good for the most part....but she was looking at me when she made this face. Poor baby!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.....

We are "officially" parents now. Not because I suffered 9..well 10 months of carrying around a bowling ball in my belly...or having the traumatic experience of a c-section birth....but because we have a 4 foot blow up sledding penguin display in our front yard! LOL. Eleanor LOVES penguins...and has ever since she saw them on our trip to the San Diego Sea World back in September. She went nuts over the display last night when we got it all out. Aunt Jenni was right...totally worth it when she saw it :) Next thing you know we'll have colored lights outside......hmmmm....we'll see about that one :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!

So much to be thankful for this year....a wonderful husband who I love more and more each day, my family who always loves me unconditionally.. despite my many faults :), my Maryland family...who welcomed me into their fold immediately and always make me feel "at home", a home to keep us all safe & warm, a great job for M that provides more than enough....oh and there's that little peanut upstairs fast asleep that I am the most thankful for. She has truly brought so much joy & love into our lives. I thank God everyday for blessing us with her. I couldn't ask for anything more :)

I hope you all have a wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving.

8 Month Video

I can't believe we're only 4 short months away from her 1 year birthday. I've been looking through pictures of when she was born, and I can't get over how much I've learned...and most importantly....how I've survived being a new mom. It's crazy how when you're in the trenches of those first few weeks....you think...what in the world did I get myself into? And suddenly you find yourself..8 months later...wondering.....what in the world happened to all that time? It's really true when people tell you "it goes so fast....and enjoy it while it lasts." She has made our lives so full, and I can't wait to see what the next 4 months have in store for us.

A little something else she learned this week.....

She learned to clap....AND she learned how to "back up" into a sitting position! People...we are days....days away from crawling I tell you :) Seriously...could be more than days, but we're thinking by Thanksgiving she will be mobile. Boy....do we have a lot of baby proofing to get done!

I can't believe how quickly this month has went by. I can't believe my baby is going to be 8 months old on Tuesday. It seems like once she hit the 6 month mark, time sped up even faster. She finally has enough hair to hold a barrette (so cute)...so guess what Mommy will be buying more of :) Here's a recent picture of her since I haven't posted one in a while. Hanging out in her exersaucer...cuz that's the only place Mommy can get her to stay in one place...well..other than the swing that she absolutely LOVES. Hmmmm...funny how I remember the early days when she hated that thing!! Not anymore :)

New things

So one of her new things is to "share" with Mommy. I will get really close to her face and say, "Mommy wants some." And she takes whatever she has in her hand and puts it up to my mouth...and sometimes it goes in my eye...but at any rate, she's starting to figure that out. It's so cute! She will do it with just about anything, but mostly with her paci and with her food.

Today while we were out running errands, we went into to Babies R Us/Toys R Us. We went through the toy department after grabbing some things in the baby section. SHE WENT ABSOLUTELY NUTS! She was talking to all the toys and squealing up a storm. I showed her the Tickle Me Elmo......she started giggling...and giggling.....so much that a lady standing nearby started laughing too. Needless to say...I think that will be on her Christmas letter to Santa this year :)

Her 1st Halloween

WONDER WOMAN & Her invisible plane :)

Back to no pacifier at naptime/nighttime....

And we're wondering why in the world we slipped into letting her have it at night again. I guess it started again when we were in San Diego, without any type of noise to help her fall asleep. She's had some type of "white noise" in her room ever since she was born. We had a fan blowing in our room when she was sleeping in our room, a fan in her room during the summer, and now a humidifier in her room. I forgot how well she sleeps without the paci. I won't be making that mistake again.....at least I hope not :)

It's gonna be a loooooonnnnnnngggggggg day......

So not only has my 7 month old given up a nap during the day...that's right...my 7 month old is only taking 1 nap a day....she has decided that 1:00am is when she would like to start her day. It's almost 4:00am and we're still wide awake. She's playing in the exersaucer while I clean the house.

Here's my continuous prayer for the day: Lord help me to be patient with my child.

I'll let you know if we get any sleep today.....back to cleaning.....

Fun with my camera

Thought I'd share this great photo with you :) Just having some fun with photoshop while Eleanor is asleep. I have a feeling there will be some late nights this week.

Here's her 7 Month Video :)

Hope you enjoy it :)

A Year Ago Today...

We found out we were having a girl. Happy Birthday to Daddy today :)

We found a new toy today too. LOL....she LOVES it :)

She's so funny. Her new thing is to ham it up. She tries to make herself laugh...which then leads to us laughing at her. It's a crack up :)

Better week......so far......

She's much happier this week! Thank goodness :) One of her top teeth is almost through. I can't wait to see what she looks like with top teeth!! Yesterday we went to the park and played in the grass and then played on the swings. She just about fell asleep in the swing...poor baby. She's still only taking one nap...but I have a feeling she's gonna take 2 today. She had us up a lot last night, and was awake at 6:15 this morning. So everyone keep your fingers crossed!

The weather is a changing here. Supposed to be a high of 55 today...and I realize to some of you readers...that might sound like a heat wave!! I think it's safe for me to pack away all her summer clothes now. It kinda makes me sad everytime I put away some clothes that don't fit her anymore. Last night I flipped through pictures of when I was pregnant with her, and the ones of her the day she was born. I know I say this all the time, but I really can't believe how fast it goes. I have a feeling that she might be crawling soon folks. While we were visiting "Uncle" Mike & "Aunt" Katie the other night, she put both of her arms down and leaned forward and tried to get her legs behind her...but instead fell on her face. Hahaha....she was so cute and didn't even cry...she just flipped over on her back and went back to babbling. So maybe within the next couple weeks she'll be mobile. Oh geez...we gotta get to babyproofing!

Butt Scoot Boogie

Yesterday she actually scooted...well...I should say, rocked herself back and forth enough to "scoot" herself across the floor. She was sitting in front of the t.v. playing, and must have caught a glimpse of herself in the t.v. cabinet glass and was so excited. She was talking to herself and rocking away. Once she reached the glass she started banging on it. Another reason why we need to start childproofing the house. It's not going to be long folks and she's gonna be EVERYWHERE. Makes me tired just thinking about it :)

The teeth are still making her miserable. She's not eating from the spoon at all still. I'm hoping this is because of her teeth and not something else. She's stil nursing great, so I'm not too worried, but it's really frustrating trying to feed her when she screams back and me and shakes her head "no" and refuses to open her mouth. I even tried to give her yogurt mixed with blueberries last night. All I ended up with was a blueberry mess. I thought, hey...why not try and put some on her tray and see if she'll try to feed herself the yogurt. Nope....that didn't work....but she did like to paint with it. Oh well.....keep trying I guess :)

Toofers......

She's teething again...and it's not pretty. She has been miserable these last couple days. It's the top teeth this time, and I think both are coming in at the same time. I can kinda sorta see little whites in her gum line, but her gums are super swollen. We've tried orajel...which is good for immediate relief. We've tried the teething tablets....ok.....but not as effective as I'd hoped they would be. So right now the best thing for her is motrin. I give it to her before bed so she sleeps better. Poor baby!!

She still won't let me feed her anything. I'm guessing things are a little out of whack because of the teeth, so hopefully once they come through, she'll be eating better again. Right now her mealtimes consist of Cheerios, and Mum Mums. Oh and yesterday we tried some organic teething biscuits. What. A. Hoot! She was covered head to toe in that thing, and still wasn't finished with it. Next time we will try that without a shirt on...and right before bath time! :)

Little Miss Independent

Little stinker is wanting to become more independent every day. This morning she decided she didn't want ME to feed her anything. She wanted to put the cheerios in her own mouth :) So I let her do that....and gave in and cut up a few little pieces of banana so she could feed herself. She's also started squirming to get down from us holding her. She's happier sitting on the floor playing than having us squeeze and hold her. Makes me kinda sad that she's already starting this process. Oh well....you have to let them grow up right? :)

She learned something new this weekend....she shakes her head "yes" now. We'll have to get some video of this. It's so cute. She smiles the whole time she's doing it too. Funny girl!

6 month stats

We had her 6 month dr. appt on Tuesday and it went great. She is 16 lbs. 7 oz and a whopping 27 1/4 inches long! She grew a whole 2 inches in 2 months :) She just about gained 2 lbs in2 months as well. She got her first flu shot and her other regular immunizations. Boy was she a trooper. As soon as it was over, and I picked her, she was smiling and giggling at the nurse who poked her. Big girl :)

Tomorrow we go and get her 6 month pictures taken at JC Penny's. Can't wait to see how these turn out now that she sits up on her own. :Sigh: where does the time go? Next thing we know we'll be out buying Christmas presents for her...and she'll only be a few months away from turning a year old. I get it now. I understand it when people tell you while you're pregnant, "It goes so fast, you better enjoy it." Boy does it ever :)

Vote for Eleanor!

Ok...so we entered Eleanor in the Gap Casting Call. Aunt Jenni talked us into it. We know how cute she is...and really...she should have won the cutest baby contest...but oh well :) It's worth a shot right? No harm if she doesn't win....but if she does...that's pretty cool! We entered her 4 times...but here's the link to the picture we think might win.

Thanks for voting!!

We're home!

Ahhh....isn't it funny how much you appreciate your own bed when you've been on vacation? Don't get me wrong, we had a nice hotel room, but it never beats the comforts of your own home, and being back on a regular schedule :) We had a great time in San Diego! Loved SeaWorld, and especially loved the San Diego Zoo. Eleanor went nuts over the penguins at SeaWorld. So much in fact we bought her a penguin puppet. We also got her a little stuffed panda bear from the zoo. Us adults came back with a new fabulous bag (mine) and M brought back a nice tan! LOL :) Well...I have a nice tan too :)

6 Month Video

Enjoy! :)

Half a Year

Eleanor is 6 months old today. Wow. She's getting so big! Another milestone for this week: Sitting up. She's doing it all by herself. No need to prop the boppy behind her people, she's a BIG girl now :) She will eventually tip over at some point, but has gone for probably a good 30-45 minutes now. Can someone please stop her from growing?? My little baby isn't staying little like I told her :) Oh well....I guess I don't have any control over that now do I? She's been making funny faces at me again this week. Here's a good one I got of her today. I love her!

Here's some fun info about me:

I saw this on another blog I love to frequent, so I thought I'd share a little about myself with all of you...even though most of you already now enough about me :)

Making : Funny faces at Eleanor

Cooking :Pumpkin Bread to take with us this weekend
Drinking : Coffee with pumpkin creamer...notice a trend here :)
Reading: The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton
Wanting: Photoshop
Looking: At Eleanor playing in her exersaucer
Playing: On the floor with Eleanor
Wasting: Time doing this instead of laundry or cleaning up the house. It's a total wreck...so don't even think about stopping by. LOL :)
Sewing: Another quilt for Eleanor
Wishing: I wouldn't have been lazy and put a disposable diaper on Eleanor this morning. She just totally blew it out! Yuck!
Enjoying: The morning with my baby
Waiting: For all the baby weight to just magically disappear on it's own
Liking: That it's Friday and we get to hang out with M all weekend :)
Wondering: If Americans are starting to forget about 9/11
Loving: Staying home with Eleanor. I couldn't ask for a better job!
Hoping: It stays cool like this from now on. I'm done with summer...ready for fall!
Marvelling: At how quickly Eleanor is growing up. She ate Cheerios for the first time last night.
Needing: Some fall clothes that fit
Smelling: Eleanor's blown out diaper....need to take that downstairs...
Wearing: A nursing tank and a pair of M's boxers...I need to get dressed!
Following: A bunch of great crafty blogs
Noticing: That Eleanor looks more and more like M everyday
Knowing: Eventually I'll get it all together. Right now I'm just enjoying being a mommy
Thinking: I should get my rear end to the gym today.
Bookmarking: All those same crafty blogs I like to read so I don't forget where they are
Opening: Some really old mail...

Giggling: At watching Eleanor rolling over to her back after I purposely put her on her tummy for tummy time. Stinker!
Feeling: Tired....yes...very tired :)

Well...there ya have it. An honest look into my window. Not all that exciting, but we're definitely enjoying it :)

Working our way into fall....

Ahhh....the fall is the best time of the year I have to say. As much as I love summer and being outside, fall is still way better. I love being able to wear a sweatshirt and jeans and flip flops at the same time :) Last week M & I took Eleanor to Brown's Orchard...only our MOST favorite place to go for some really great apples. We got some great pictures while we were there. I'm sure we'll be back there again soon :)

Zucchini gets an F-!

So...she's not a big fan of zucchini. Can't blame her....she's got a sophisticated palate I guess. She likes flavor...and zucchini doesn't have much :) We also tried pears...and they are growing on her I guess. We'll keep trying :)

We had a great weekend visiting the grandparents on the E. shore. She got some more pool time and got lots and lots of squeezes and kisses :) This week we'll be trying some more foods...probably move onto some other fruits like bananas and peaches. I can't believe it's the last day of August already! This coming weekend we'll be heading down to NC to see Aunt Jenni & Uncle Tim and the cousins...and Grammie C will be flying in for a visit. Hopefully she'll get her first time at the beach and her first dip in the Atlantic Ocean before we head off to San Diego for 5 days. Here's a recent picture of her during bath time....she LOVES her bath!

Updates....

Here's a picture of her playing with Daddy outside yesterday while cheering on her "Aunt" Nicol at the Iron Girl Triathlon.

So we tried peas all of last week. They were a hit...and on Saturday we tried sweet potatoes for the first time. Another like! Whoohoo! No allergic reactions so far, which is good...so another couple days of sweet potatoes till we move onto something else. I have some frozen zucchini that I'll probably give her this week. Hopefully she likes that too :)

Other updates...tummy time. Well...we keep trying, that's all I have to say. She still hates it and cries during most of it. We did find that she will tolerate it better when she's laying on Daddy's tummy. She actually tried to scoot a little yesterday while having Daddy time. Silly girl!

We've eliminated the pacifier at bedtime and nap times all together this week. What a relief! We're back to sleeping through the night! Whoohoo!! She'll wake up once or twice a night and fuss for a little, but puts herself back to sleep. Exactly what we wanted her to learn. So we're still working on scheduled nap times...and they are working pretty good. The 9:00 nap is usually the hardest for her to fall asleep....even though she's tired, she likes to play in her crib awhile before falling asleep. Whatever works is my motto :)

5 months old...I can't believe it!

Seriously....I know I ask this every month...but where has the time gone? Last night I was looking at the videos we've made of her each month...and I can't believe how big she's gotten. When I see other newborn babies, I'm always shocked at how little they are....and think about her and if she was ever that small. Then I see pictures of her...and remember..yeh...she was that little once :)

She got to try peas last night for the first time. I think she liked 'em! Here's a picture of her....

One of those days.....

Ever had a day when you just wanted to bite the head of a lion?

Eleanor did.......I ♥ her so much!

Eleanor's new trick

So we've been feeding her rice cereal for over a week now...and she's not a big fan. We decided to go ahead and try the oatmeal...thinking she would probably like that better. We were right...she likes it a lot better, and actually opens her mouth for me :) She's also learned a new trick while we feed her. We've laughed so hard at it now, she knows to do it. Here's some video of her:

Day at the Park

We had a great time at the park today! We met up with our new friends, Christy (Mommy) and Aubrey (daughter). Aubrey is 3 days younger than Eleanor...and her mom & I became friends on Cafe Mom....another social networking site, but for moms. We got to check out some farm animals...some pigs, chickens, goats and a rooster, that I got a great shot of...

We walked all over the place and chit chatted away about all kinds of stuff. The cutest thing happened today as we were getting ready to leave. We got the girls out of their strollers and held them up to each other. Aubrey reached her little hand out...and Eleanor grabbed ahold of her hand...so they were holding hands! It was the sweetest thing...and totally made the mommy's laugh. Next time we'll be bringing the video cameras to capture those moments :)

Tummy time...

Eleanor's never liked tummy time. The only way we could get to her be on her tummy was to have her fall asleep on us when she was really little. We've tried doing mini sessions everyday...but they only last about 5 minutes because she starts screaming at me. Hence the reason why she has learned to roll the hard way first...from back to tummy. This week I am enforcing the hour tummy time rule. So here we are in day 2...and she's tolerating it...as long as she has her pacifier in her mouth. I figure as long as she's not upset, it's ok to do it as long as I can get her to do it. In the first few moments she'll hold herself up...but it's not long before she just kinda lays her head down. For a minute I thought she'd fall asleep today, but nope...she was just teasing me :)

Just like everything else we're trying new, this will eventually become part of her daily routine and she won't even realize it. I just feel bad that I've let it go this long. I'll keep you posted on how it's going :)

Making baby food

I can not express enough how excited I am to start making Eleanor's baby food. I experimented this past weekend with some zucchini. It turned out so great! It helps having the Babycook. It does all the work for you....and you only have to wash one thing instead of a big pot that you use to steam...and then either the blender or a food processor. It's all in one. Thanks Grammie C again for giving us this!! I can't wait for apple season when we can go crazy making applesauce!! Here's a picture of my zucchini, which I then froze in ice cube trays and have in a labeled freezer bag for when she can start on veggies :)

Trying New Things

That's our motto for the week. Today we tried out the nursery at church. I was a little hesitant...but M helped encourage me by asking me if we were taking her there. It was great. I missed having her right beside us in church, but got so much out of the message today. She did great in the nursery...took a little nap and got to snuggle with Miss Hollie in the rocker. We'll be taking her there from now on...and will hopefully get to volunteer our time in there as well :)

The other new thing that we're tackling now that we're back from vacation is sleeping in the big crib. She's doing awesome. We went cold turkey on the Miracle Blanket which has been hard cuz she LOVED that thing! But we're working through it...and each night gets a little easier. We're letting her fuss/cry a little at naptimes so she can figure out how to get herself to sleep on her own, and she's doing beautifully at that as well. I'm definitely not getting as much sleep as I did when we were swaddling...but she was so ready to be done with that. Like I said, we're working through it and each day is getting better. We've also started a nightly routine with her so she knows what to expect each night. We're doing the rice cereal before bed, then a bath, a book and then to bed. We'll keep you posted on how it's going :)

Rice Cereal!

We had her 4 month appt today. She's 14 lbs 9 oz and 25 inches long :) She's growing like a weed...and able to start on rice cereal!! We were so excited to hear that. She's been watching us eat...and even opened her mouth like a little birdie. So we tried some tonight....and it's safe to say that she loved it. We've got a hearty eater on our hands. Here's some video of her trying it out. Enjoy :)

Back from our trip

We made it back home Wednesday night...er....Thursday morning I should say. Our flight was delayed, but she did AWESOME! She was awake for take off....and played a little bit. I nursed her and then she passed out for the whole rest of the flight. Such a good baby :) Everything was going great...and we got off the plane and went to get our bags, when suddenly I realized that I was the last one there still waiting for one bag. The baggage carousel shut off and no more bags came out. What in the world?? I was sure my other bag made it on the plane....so where was it? Of course no one is willing to help at 11:30 at night. I was trying my best to keep it together...but my patience was wearing thin. I was told I would need to call an 800 number....yeh right. That's not helpful right now! Finally the gentleman manning the Midwest Airlines counter appeared...and helped me find my bag at the bottom of the baggage area! Thank the Lord!! Mark showed up and Eleanor gave him the BIGGEST smile ever!! She definitely missed her Daddy :)

We had a great time back in Nebraska and Colorado visiting everyone. She got to meet a bunch of new people including her Uncle Matthew....Great Grandpa...Great Aunt & Uncle....cousins....and good friends of Mommy's. We can't wait to go back...but next time with Daddy. Two weeks apart is hard on everyone :)

4th of July

The 4th of July weekend was full of "firsts." Her first 4th of July....her first overnight somewhere at Grammie Mary Lou's....and her first trip to the pool at Grammie & Popie's. She did great! Slept great in the pack n play all night too. What a good baby!!

She's also found her thumb...so we'll see if she gives up the pacifier for her thumb :) She so close to rolling over from her back to her tummy. Maybe she'll master that on our upcoming vacation back to Nebraska. We leave next Tuesday, so I've already started packing. I've got a lengthy list going...so I'll have to see if I can fit it all in. We're flying Midwest Airlines...so we have to pay the extra to check a bag. If I'm paying $15 I'm gonna make sure that sucker is loaded :)

Here's a pic of our little firecracker!

A year ago.....

A year ago yesterday is when we found we were pregnant. I'll never forget that day...and can't believe it's been a year. She's the most wonderful thing to happen to us, and I can't wait to see what's in store for us next year at this time :)

She's growing more and more each day. I measured her a couple days ago and she's around 25 1/2 inches long. I made it to the breastfeeding support group and got a chance to weigh her. Now keep in mind this is with clothes and a diaper on. She was 13 lbs 12 oz....little porker :) She's growing like a weed that's for sure....and I think she's having another growth spurt cuz she's been up the last 2 night wanting to eat at 3:30am. Whew...I was really getting used to her sleeping through...almost forgot what it was like to not get a good night's sleep.LOL :)

Need to make friends....

So I'm finally realizing that I need to make some new friends. Preferably new "mom" friends. I have plenty of things to do to fill my time here at home with her....but it sure would be nice to have some more mommy friends to do things with. Ya know...people who can understand what you're going through. I'd love to meet up with other mommies at the mall to walk and talk...or meet at a coffee shop. I'm hoping to attend one of the breastfeeding support group meetings to meet some new mommies. They have a meeting this Thursday, so my goal for this week is to sign up and go. I need to suck up the courage and go. It's so hard meeting new people...I've never really been that good about going out of my way to meet people...but I'm realizing that it's important to step out of your comfort zone. I know it's good for me and I want to set a good example for Eleanor too. I hope she's a social butterfly...but Mommy & Daddy neither one are....so we'll see :)

Help keep me accountable!!

3 Month Video

She's gotten so big!! My little punkin'.

Enjoy :)

Sleeping habits

I'm amazed! I can put her down at 8:00pm...wide awake, swaddled, paci in...and she puts herself to sleep. Boy....are we ever SPOILED! I realized tonight how lucky we are. She's such a good little sleeper :)

She's 3 months old tomorrow already. I can't believe my baby is getting so big. I'll have to do a weight check of our own tomorrow since we don't see the dr. this month. I'm guessing she'll be in the 12 lbs still. Although...yesterday she got 9....yes 9 feedings in. She usually only gets in 7...but yesterday was a rough one. So she might be up to 13...we shall see :)

Another video of her cuteness!!

This time she's talking..well..more like screaming at me, and eating her hand.

Enjoy this one...it's pretty cute :)

2 month checkup

So her shots were last Thursday. We made it through...although I think it was much harder on me than it was her. She was a real trooper! Here's her stats now:

Weight: 11lbs 11 1/2 oz (we might as well say 12 lbs)

Length: 24 inches...a whole 2 FEET!

Head Circumference: 41 1/2 cm

She's growing that's for sure! I've had to put away some of her clothes. My favorite jammies stopped fitting awhile ago. Now we're on to 3-6 months clothes :) Big girl!!

Some video of her playing!

Enjoy!

Does she look like me?

  

Hmmm....let me know what you think!!

Upcoming dr. visit

So the 2 month immunizations are coming up on Thursday. I'm already worrying about her and how I'm going to react to her getting poked. I never realized how much harder it is on the parents. I think back to when I was working in pediatrics, and I'd have to help hold a child for a shot or i.v. poke. I always thought to myself..."why are those parents getting so worked up? it's just a little poke".....now I get it! I'm terrified of seeing her get stuck....and am totally dreading it. I read that breastfeeding right before or during the shots can help with the pain. I'm going to try that, and I'll be giving her some Tylenol right before as well. Hopefully that will help...and she won't hate her mommy afterwards!! :)

In other news.....we got our first giggle last week. I was singing a song to her and she totally busted a gut. That was the best thing I've ever heard in my life!! She did it again a couple days later so DH got to hear her over the phone. I can't wait till she's doing this all the time!!

2 months old!

Can't believe it. She's 2 months old! Where has the time gone? We are so thankful for her everyday, and can't remember what life was like before her! Here's the new video of pictures from her second month. Enjoy!

Milestones Reached So Far....

Our little girl is 7 weeks old already! She's smiling all the time at her Mommy & Daddy. This past weekend at church she smiled at someone else for the first time. It was so cute! She's already started cooing at us, and is starting to hold her head up by herself when I burp her. She's not a big fan of tummy time, but we do it everyday...even if it's for 5 minutes :) We're working on trying to roll over...but I think that might take a little more time. 

I'm amazed at how big she's gotten already. We're wearing 3-6 months clothes for the length. She's gonna be a tall girl I think. At her 1 month check up she was already 22 1/2 inches, so I have a feeling her 2 month check up is going to shock us too.

I had my postpartum check up yesterday and everything was great. I'm still having some soreness occasionally...and the dr. said that it will probably take anywhere from 9-12 months before I'm completely healed. One more week until I can start vacuuming again :)

6 week growth spurt=Very tired Mommy & Daddy

Oh my! I thought the 3 week growth spurt was rough. This one is much harder. Luckily we're getting through it...slowly :) It all started with her screaming at me when trying to latch on. Well...we've solved that problem for the most part. I ended up calling the AAMC breastfeeding warmline for advice. I talked to the same lactation consultant that visited us in the hospital. She said it sounded like a growth spurt and to just hang in there. So that's what we're doing.

Last night she was up from 1 am to 6 am. She would nod off now and then...but we were awake for most of that time. Little stinker she is!! :) She's napped good today and is in a great mood. Smiling lots for mommy...and starting to coo a little! Yay!! I can't believe how big she's getting already!

Here's a pic of her. Caution: Cuteness Overload!!

Her First Month Video

One month old today!

I can't believe she's already a month old! My big girl :) I finally feel like I'm starting to get the hang of this mothering thing. I'm sure a month from now I'll be saying the same thing. I feel like we're starting to get to know her, and what she likes/doesn't like. Last night was a rough one. She screamed bloody murder for a good hour or so. She didn't want to eat, but I knew she was hungry...so finally she took the bottle instead. We had to pick up new bottles because she hates the ones we have. So hopefully today will go smoother. We have her one month pictures at JCP today...so we'll be posting pics of that soon. Her dr. appt isn't until Monday, so hopefully we'll hear that she's doing good. She looks like she's gained weight....but a mother always worries :)

Our first day together

We're doing good on our own today! I didn't know how it would go...but we're hanging in there. She's been a sleeping angel most of the day...kinda makes me worried about what is in store for me tonight! :) She's over 2 weeks old already....and I've forgotten what life was like before her. 

Thought you might enjoy a photo of the sleeping babe.....

10 Days Old

It's went by so fast. I can't believe she's almost 2 weeks old...next thing I know she'll be graduating high school! :) We are SO in love with her. She's absolutely perfect in every way. I know all parents say that about their kids...but I'm pretty sure we're right ;) Hahaha.

She had another check up today. She's past her birth weight now....7 lbs 12 1/2 ounces...yay! At least that means I'm doing something right with the breastfeeding. I had my check up yesterday....and got my staples removed. It was a much easier process that what my mind had been conjuring up. Everything looked good in that department, so I follow up with her in 6 weeks.

H is doing great. He's such a great dad already....holding and snuggling her all the time....getting up with her in the middle of the night....walking around the house trying to calm her down. It's so amazing to see how we have changed as individuals as well as a couple now that she's here. It's better than it was before...even with all the chaos and lack of sleep....we're even more patient and affectionate than we were before. Life is good at the Parsons home :)

Parsons Look-alike Meter

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She's here!

We're still here at the hospital, but wanted to post some details about her! She was born on St. Patty's day at 5:35m. She was delivered by emergency c-section....scary but glad they did it. She weighed in at 7 lbs 11oz and was 20 1/2 inches long. She has lots of brown hair, and the cutest little face ever!!

We'll be posting pictures of her when we get home tomorrow afternoon. I'll be writing up her birth story as well :) Thanks for all the well wishes and emails...we can't wait to share her with everyone!!

40 weeks...3 days....and no baby

Well....still no baby! I'm beginning to think she really likes it in there....and doesn't want to leave! I'm to the point where we're trying home remedies....last night we tried the watermelon...no luck. Today I think we'll try and get some raspberry leaf tea....it's worth a shot. 

We have a dr. appt scheduled for next Tuesday...St. Patty's day...and if still no baby, we're going to start talking induction. I really hope it doesn't come down to that!!

39 weeks

Well...only less than a week to go till our due date....and we're finally finished with her room. 

Take a look....

I'm so happy with the way it's turned out! Now we just need her to get here already. :) Good news from my doctor's appointment this week...I'm 1 cm dilated already. Whoohoo! I know that I could stay at 1 cm for a couple weeks...but just knowing that something is going on is good enough for me :)

38 weeks....HOLY COW!

I can't believe we're this far along....where did the time go? I looked at my blog the other day and saw the floating baby and it said 1 week 5 days left! I had a slight panic attack when I saw that :) We're physically ready for her to be here....it's just the mental thing that we're working on. I know both of us are full of fears....what if we do something wrong....what if we drop her...all those "what if's" that every new parent goes through. But then the sensible side of my brain kicks in...and I know in my heart that we're going to be ok...and that yes, we will probably make some mistakes, but that's a part of learning. And good thing she won't be able to remember any of our blunders :)

Last night I started experiencing Braxton Hicks for the first time. Wow....who knew your belly could get so hard! I'm having a few of them today....but I only notice it when I'm sitting down. Next week's dr. appt will hopefully tell us that I'm dilating and effacing :) This week we learned that she's starting to drop down...so that's a good thing!!

Here's a much requested picture of my belly at this stage. I don't think I have enough nerve to take a naked belly picture at this point....but we'll see. How much airbrushing can I do? :) Enjoy!

Finished Product

Here's the finished quilt! I actually finished it last Thursday...but then had to do all the snipping of the edges. I think it turned out really great! Much better than the very first rag time quilt I made for myself :) There's the full picture and then a close up picture so you can see the detail.

Enjoy!

35 week belly picture

Here ya go....I know you've been asking for another pic...so enjoy :)

It's getting big!! A side by side comparison from when I was 24 weeks....I think there's a little difference :)

Update to quilt....

Here's an updated picture of the quilt I'm working on.

I got all the pieces cut out, and stuffed with the batting...so now I just need to sew the batting in and then I can start piecing everything together :) If you click on the picture it will make it a little bigger so you can see the detail.

My new project....

I'm starting a little sewing project to help pass the time. I'm making a baby version of the ragtime quilt. I can't wait to get started! I found this fabric and fell in love with it...so here's a quick little picture of what it looks like :) More to come as I work my way through the process :)

35 weeks & 35 days to go.....

Wow!! That hits home now doesn't it? :) I can't believe how fast it's coming now. I thought for sure with me staying home now that the days would drag on...but they're not. I actually fill up my day...doing laundry...picking stuff up around the house....washing some of her new stuff, etc. Yesterday I had enough energy to take Maggie for a walk...and actually slept through the night because of it :) Not sure if I'll be doing that today...it's snowing here again today.

I'm starting to realize that it might be a good idea to get myself on a daily schedule now before she gets here...that way it's not total chaos...ok...who am I kidding...it will still be chaos I'm sure! But before she gets here it gives me something to focus on...like laundry day will be Wednesdays...grocery shopping is Tuesdays....cleaning bathrooms on Thursdays..etc. We'll see if I actually stick to that....but I think it will help me not get so overwhelmed with everything I have to do once she's here. If I can accomplish one big thing each day...that's good enough for me :)

A gift from Hubby!

So...it was supposed to be a Valentine's gift...but we decided we're just giving each other cards this year. So it turned into a baby shower gift. I got it last night...and haven't stopped playing with it since :) It's our diaper bag...and I LOVE it!!

Inside of the bag

The changing pad is built right in, and can detach

Outside of the bag

It has straps on the back side so I can wear it like a backpack, or is has a shoulder strap. It also has these cool straps you can use to attach it to your stroller handle! I'll have to try that later and add a pic of that :) Can you tell I'm excited?

Updated Nursery Pics

So no dr. appt today. With all the ice and snow we got the office was closed today. I have to call back tomorrow morning to reschedule. I'm not sure if they'll want to see me, since next week starts my weekly appointments, but we'll see. 

DH stayed home today...and we were productive. He showed great patience hanging up the letters of her name. Who knew how hard it would be to hang some letters...let alone decide how we wanted them to look. I think he did a great job! See for yourself in the second picture. We thought it would be better to hang them above her changing table instead of her crib...in case they fall off accidentally :)

34 weeks

Happy snowy day! Yes Virginia...it's snowing in Maryland today! I love that I can actually enjoy the snow...and not "have" to go out in it. Although...I do need to go to the store...but I think that can wait :) Tomorrow is our 34 week dr. appt. I'm hoping that I haven't gained too much weight. My baby shower provided lots of goodies...not just goodies for the baby...but edible goodies :) Jenni...those cupcakes were the bomb!!

I'm sending out a HUGE hug to everyone that was there...both physically and in spirit. Thank you all for all the wonderful gifts. We can't wait to start using all of them :)

Here's a pic of me...not the best...but whaddya gonna do. I am pregnant after all :)

New poll....Guess her weight

Ok....be nice. Remember she has to come out of me in some way :)
Enjoy!

Cloth Diaper Pics!

Lucky you....2 posts in one day! That's rare :)

Thought I'd show you the cloth diapers we got in the mail yesterday. We're so excited to use them! Enjoy!

These are the diaper covers that go over the following diapers:

Here's the actual diaper. I put the tape there so you can compare size. It's sooo tiny!

And these are for when she gets a little bigger. They are one size fits all, so you can snap them down to make the size smaller or bigger. They don't need a cover since they are waterproof.

Birth class and pics!

Dh & I had our first week of birth class last night. It was great! I have to admit I was a little nervous...not knowing what to expect....wanting to make a good impression....worried that the teacher would call on me and I wouldn't know the answer..that type of thing. We talked about the stages of labor...what to pack....when to come to the hospital, so we learned a lot. We got to watch the dvd that showed 2 births...but neither were that bad. I got a little teary eyed in the one video after the baby was born and the mom was holding her. I guess I started to identify with her...and was picturing myself in that situation. Only 8 more weeks and I will be :) I did find out that the hospital that we are delivering at does not provide pacifiers because it interferes with breastfeeding. I thought that was great! There's something I don't have to worry about now. I am set on breastfeeding...and am going to do everything I can to keep doing it as long as possible. I found it really encouraging knowing that we will be in a supportive environment when we deliver.

Anywhoo....here's some pictures I thought I'd share with ya.

This is her coming home outfit:

And a look at her closet now......

Thanks to my lovely sister for providing so many great clothes for her!! She's kind enough to let us use some of my nieces clothes :) Yay!! Thanks Jenni!!

It's a New Year!

It's 2009...can you believe it? In just 2 short months...baby girl will be here! I feel like we have so much to do still...but we're actually doing pretty good. I think we found the perfect coming home outfit...so I'll post a pic of that tonight. It's so cute! In the meantime, here's a pic that was taken on Christmas day....I was 29 weeks in this picture...so we're due for another this week.

Enjoy!