How Does She Sleep Like That?

I'm convinced that my daughter's head is on crooked.

Whenever we go somewhere in the car, her head inevitably ends up in this horrible looking position. She usually sleeps in the car, so it must not be uncomfortable, but it looks horrible.

She doesn't save her strange sleeping positions for the car, I found her in this position the other day, and this was in her bouncer seat.

Wednesday is a Good Day For

Looking at the fantastic stacks of chub that have accumulated

on Stella's arms

and thighs

and it's also fun to look at her round tummy.

We call her round tummy Mount Saint Stella. Looking at it from the side is actually quite impressive!

So on this Windy Wednesday, enjoy the rolls.

Stella and the Pets

That title kind of sounds like a 60's one-hit-wonder singing group.

The animals in our house have varying stages of interest surrounding Stella. They are very interested in her gear, and they have become more interested in her since she has been spending a little more time laying on her blanket on the floor. A few days ago she was hanging out propped up on her boppy and I caught these shots.

Lucy (the cat) normally doesn't come anywhere close to Stella, but she does love her pacifiers, so she will try to steal those out of the car seat. Last night I found Lucy happily napping in the crib. This is problematic and a litte concerning. Stella does not yet sleep in her crib, but we are working on making that transition, and now I'm not sure how that will work since it seems the cat appears to have claimed that spot.

Rosie (the dog) is more interested in swaddle blankets and burp cloths. If we leave either of these items in a location that Rosie can reach when we leave the house she will steal them and take them under our bed. I have tested her on this, and she always fails the test. I have tried covering the blanket with various items, and she still manages to take it. When she gets caught she is always remorseful:

But she just can't help herself.

In the future I'm sure that Stella will have more interesting things to offer the animals than blankets and pacifiers, but for now, it seems they're adjusting well to the newest member of the household.

Built-In Babysitter

This was a phrase that I used to hear when I was younger and my mom was pregnant with my little brothers. Being 10 years older than Mike and 12 years older than Greg people used to tell my mom how lucky she was to have a "built-in babysitter." I did do some babysitting for my brothers, and I'm sure that was convenient for my mom to have responsible older kids in the house to rely on in a pinch. I did let Cole know early on in my pregnancy when we started to hear this phrase that I would not be relying on him to watch Stella unless he wanted to. I just didn't feel like it was his responsibility to take care of her. After all, it was Jim and I who decided to have a baby, not Cole.

Well, within a few days of Stella being home, Cole asked if I could show him how to change her diaper- just in case he ever needed to, and last week he offered to watch her while we went to the store. So, I needed to go to the dentist yesterday afternoon, so I put it out there that I was going to need someone to watch Stella for about an hour . Cole was all over it. He was very excited, and a little nervous, to be in charge and watch his sister for the first time.

In preparation for the big day, we talked technique. I showed him how to feed and burp her, swaddle her, and of course reminded him how the diaper change goes. He felt like he was set. The only thing he was really worried about was if she started to cry. He felt like he could handle anything else that she could throw at him- after all, she's little.

I'm happy to report that their first solo experience was successful! Cole had her fed and asleep in her bouncer seat when Jim got home. He was feeling pretty good about his accomplishment- rightfully so.

It really is so nice to know that there is a responsible young adult in the house who is fully capable of helping out in a pinch.

Patience is a Virtue

Last Saturday we finally bit the bullet and decided it was time to go buy new cell phones. I had my phone for 4 years, and Jim and Cole both had theirs for almost 3, so it was time. First let me point out the amazing part of that previous sentence: Cole had his phone for almost 3 years. He didn't lose it,  break it or get it wet. He did get a bunch of sand in it, but it still worked. Anyway- so off to Verizon we go. We pretty much already knew what we wanted, so we were hoping to be in and out quickly with 3 new phones. Jim and I were getting Droids, and we decided on the keyboard slider phone for Cole. The sales dude tells us that they are out of Cole's choice, but they could ship it to us and we'd have it by Monday. Cole is bummed, but agrees that he can wait until Monday. There's something to be said for delayed gratification- right?

So Monday comes and goes, no phone. Thanks for nothing Verizon dude.

Tuesday- no phone

Finally Wednesday...

Cole's package arrived. He was excited, and ready to go to the store to get it set up and get his numbers transfered over.

But, when you live with an infant and she's hungry- sometimes you have to wait.

But waiting with brownies is not so bad.

Finally- after waiting and waiting and waiting. We get a thumbs up! And the boy is happy.

Due Date

Today is our original due date. Obviously due to the complications, we wouldn't have made it to this point, because our doctor wasn't going to let us go past 38 weeks. Still, this is a date that we have been looking forward to for the past 9 months!

We are very aware of how lucky we are having such a healthy baby who was a little bit tiny, born 5 weeks early, but absolutely perfect. Aside from a little jaundice, Stella did not have any of the issues that could have been a problem for a preemie.

Here is Stella on her actual Birth Day. Taken just a few hours after she was born- she is still in the incubator in this picture.

Immediately after she was born, Jim and I got to hold her for about 3 minutes and then she was taken to the NICU. This was really the first time that I was able to see her after her birth- and I had to beg the nurses to let me go down to see her. Looking at this picture, and remembering her birthday brings back a flood of emotions.

Here she is today- wearing her awesome frog outfit that her brother picked out for her to wear in the hospital when people came to visit. Due to her preemie status, and her stay in the NICU, we really weren't able to have visitors ~and~ this outfit was way too big for her then anyway, but it fits her perfect now!

This morning Stella and I have already been busy- we had her first professional photo shoot this morning at Casey Fritton Photography. We had a great time, and Stella performed so well.  I thought it would be fun to have her pictures taken on her actual due date. Now I can't wait to see the pictures.

We also made a trip to Milkworks this morning to weigh her. She weighed in at 7 lbs 14 oz! She's doing so well. From the look of those cheeks- she is clearly not missing many meals!

Happy Due Date Stella!!!!

The Boy Loves His Sister

I don't know what it's like to raise children who are close in age, Cole and Stella are almost 14 years apart. Cole will be a freshman in college when Stella starts Kindergarten. I can't say I would want it any other way. It has been a thrill to watch Cole become an awesome big brother to his little sister.

He actually "calls" Stella-time in the evenings when she's being especially cute so that he gets time to spend with her. Last night Jim and I needed to go to Sam's and Cole wanted to know how long we'd be gone because he thought it might be a good time for him to attempt his first solo-Stella time. Turns out that we had other errands to run as well, and 90 minutes might be too long. He's looking forward to babysitting though.

Here is a little quality Stella time. Not sure Stella is enjoying watching her brother text....

These two are going to be great friends some day.

Wishing a Happy 26th Birthday today to my brother Mike. When he was a baby and I was 10 I wrote a letter to him calling him an "attention stealer." My mom shared this letter with Cole last weekend and I'm sure Cole could definitely relate to those sentiments. I got over it- and now can't imagine my life without both of my younger brothers. I'm sure Cole already feels the same way about his sister.

Harvey Karp- You're a Genius

Since we brought Stella home, she has been a really easy baby. She falls asleep easy and doesn't wake up when you lay her down. She sleeps for good stretches of time at night. She doesn't really cry a lot. We wondered if maybe some of her easiness was due to the fact that she was a preemie. Now that she has reached the one month mark, and is closer to her actual due date, we are seeing more "typical" newborn behaviors including the fact that she has become a little more difficult to soothe.

When we took our childbirth class we watched a video that featured a pediatrician who talked about soothing fussy babies- Dr. Harvey Karp. He wrote a book called "The Happiest Baby On The Block" and in the video, Jim and I thought he was the funniest, craziest guy ever. We were the only couple in our childbirth class who could not stop ourselves from cracking up when he was shushing the babies. It was hilarious! We left the class thinking that he was insane, and that we would never be using his methods because our baby was going to be perfect. Most of Stella's first month was easy, so we didn't ever really think much about Harvey Karp, but then in the last week, she has become a little more difficult to soothe, and so we had to YouTube Harvey Karp to remind us what his method was. Stella was grouchy on Saturday evening, so we gave it a shot. Jim swaddled her and laid her on her side, she shushed her and eventually put her in her swing- genius! She was out! Peace has returned to our house thanks to Harvey Karp. I only wish that I had known about Dr. Karp when Cole was a baby.

Here is Stella happily napping

Black Beans are NOT Stella Friendly

It has taken me a few days to write about this event, mostly because I was traumatized, but also because I've been busy.

So I'm still a relative newbie to the amazing act of nursing a baby. Of course I know that whatever I eat, ultimately nourishes Stella as well, but the usual things that all nursing mothers are warned about don't seem to bother her (pizza, dairy, spicy food). So I got a little complacent in my diet. Big mistake!

Last week I tapped into my supply of pre-prepared meals that I had frozen earlier in my pregnancy and pulled out a Crock Pot Black Bean Salsa Chicken deliciousness. Not a very creative name for a dish that was actually really good- and easy. The next day, Stella was pretty fussy. I didn't really think much about it- all infants have fussy days right? Good news was that I had Black Bean Salsa Chicken leftovers to soothe my frazzled nerves. This was also the day of our Chipotle picnic, so more black beans for Mom! Yes- it was a good day :)

Stella was pretty fussy the next day as well, but I just figured it was because she's getting older and is finding her voice a little more- right? Plus Jim was out of town, so maybe she was missing her Dad. That's what I kept telling myself anyway. That is until bathtime that evening, after which she promptly projectile vomited all over me, and herself. This was not just a little spit up- this was more along the lines of the entire contents of her stomach- and I did not know how much liquid a little baby could hold- it's a lot. Cole was impressed with his sister's newfound grossness and has talked about the amount of vomit every day since it happened! He also thought I was going to have to cut myself out of my shirt- no person in their right mind would pull that shirt off over their head- right!

But back to the story- that amount of spit up, while impressive, was out of the ordinary for Miss Stella, so I started to think about what I had been eating that might have caused a problem- the final verdict- yep- black beans. So I'm bummed because I love black beans, but I do not love being covered in vomit, so I will abstain. And Stella definitely does not like black beans. If that is the only thing that I love to eat, that I now have to abstain from, I can deal with that.

And here's some Stella cuteness- enjoy!

Stella modeling her new jeans from Uncle Greg & Aunt Emily- she's very stylish.

I love these tiny toes.

Even without the beans, the girl is getting plenty to eat- look at those cheeks! She's going to give her big brother a run for his money in the baby chub factor!

Happy Tuesday Friends!

4 Weeks!!!!

Here's our girl- looking so big at 4 weeks old today! It's really hard to believe that it has only been 4 weeks since our lives were so blessed with the addition of this sweet little chick. Looking back at some of her first pictures, she has already changed so much.

Here are some of the things she likes to do:

She loves bath time. We usually see lots of smiles during bath time. In this picture she just looks bored.

This morning I caught her doing this little trick. Yep- her 2 middle fingers are in her mouth. I have also at times caught her with her thumb in her mouth.

She's still a little tiny for her swing, but it's fun to put her in it. She doesn't like it that much yet.

She's getting better in the car. We try to get out at least once a day- usually to pick up big brother from school. We successfully made it through the whole week without any major breakdowns!

A Fall Picnic

The kids and I were on our own yesterday- Jim was out of town overnight for work- so I decided that we needed to try to do something fun so we decided on a picnic. Before I sound too much like a Suzy Homemaker, let me explain my version of a picnic. We get takeout from a restaurant, and we head out to Pioneers Park with a blanket and we sit and eat our dinner. Sometimes we also bring a frisbee. For this picnic, we got Chipotle. This was going to be Stella's first picnic, so there was some added pressure to make it extra special.

Unfortunately- this is how Stella spent most of her first picnic. She was not impressed.

She did enjoy some tummy time in the park, which saved the trip in the end for all of us. Looks like Cole enjoyed his tummy time too.

We will try the picnic again soon- and hopefully Stella can enjoy it a little more the next time.

Stella's Straight Jacket

So I had heard from several people that the swaddlers were the way to go when Stella is sleeping. Greg & Emily swear by them for Calyn, so we decided last night that Stella was finally big enough to try it out. First of all, I'm not really sure that I totally got it on right- she was a bit squirmy. More importantly, though, once I got it on her, I immediately felt like a horrible mother for placing my daughter in a straight jacket! I mean- the girl could NOT move. Judging by the look on her face, I don't think she's any worse for the wear, but I'm not sure that I'm emotionally ready to try the swaddler again any time soon. She did sleep well, but I'm not sure I can attribute that to the swaddler- she always sleeps well.

She Sleeps

Like all expecting couples, we heard lots of advice and warnings as we awaited the arrival of Miss Stella. And like most expecting couples, we were told to get used to sleepless nights. At some point, I'm sure that we will have some sleepless nights, but I'm telling you- the girl can sleep. Normally she will wake once overnight, and occasionally, twice. The last couple of nights, we have been able to put together 6-7 restful hours. I can live with that. ;)

Family Tummy Time

Tummy time has become a night-time favorite around our house. Miss Stella loves laying on the floor and kicking her legs around. She has been getting more control of her head and neck, and can turn her head from side to side. Another fun element of tummy time is the fun noises that Stella makes- unfortunately it makes our poor Rosie a little worried about what is happening to the girl so investigation is always necessary.

XC 2010-Our runner boy

 Cole wrapped up his final season of Middle School Cross Country.

 There he goes- #29

Oh, the look on that face...

2.1 miles in 16:39. Way to go young man!

3 Weeks!!!!

Our little lady is 3 weeks old already! She had her 3 week check-up and is growing like a weed. She weighed in at 6 pounds 11 oz, and was 19 3/4 inches long. It's so hard for us to believe how much she has already changed- and changed our lives in the past 3 weeks. We still feel so lucky every day that things have worked out as well as they have.

Welcome

Welcome to our blog! We're hoping that the blog will keep our family and friends up to date on the adventures of the two kiddos in our house! Thanks for checking us out :)