Aw....the tenderness of a loving husband and father....

This past week, there have been two very notable moments when Kris has been exceptionally thoughtful and caring....thought I would share. 

1) Since Anne is allergic to milk protein I can't eat any dairy.  I have come to love the Little Caesar's $5 pepperoni pizza.  I haven't been able to have it in awhile.  Kris has lovingly supported the no dairy diet and has given up milk and cheese.  So...you can imagine my surprise at this moment:  On the way to Costco Kris tells me we're going to need to have separate dinners sometime this week because he really wants a Little Caesar's pizza.  So, I remark "really?  I've had to give up so much and you can't give up pizza?"  His response:  "It's Little Caesar's pizza!  ...well I guess I could...but I'm not gonna!"  I think I almost peed my pants laughing so hard and I definitely think we scared Anne (who was just falling asleep). 

2) One day, Kris and I were cuddling with Anne and talking about her cute hands and feet.  It was such a tender moment...until Kris says, "Damn she has manhands!"  Niiice. 

6 months? I can't believe it!

I can't believe Anne has been with us for half a year!  It's hard to imagine a life without her in it! 
Here is a list update: 
~She weighs 17 lbs 4 oz...75 percentile, length 26 1/2 in...75 percentile
~ She's been learning how to "wave" hello/goodbye.  Mostly I think she just likes moving her fingers and mimicking our wave.  :)
~She's been having a ton of poop blowouts despite moving up a diaper size.  So, we are trying out the Pampers Cruisers.  So far, those diapers have saved us twice. 
~We introducted sweet potatoes the other day.  She isn't really a huge fan, but we are going to keep trying.  Thanks to my sister, I was able to make them from scratch and am looking forward to continuing to make her food.  Thanks to Krisha, we have a great website with HOMEMADE BABY FOOD RECIPES.  We started Anne on rice cereal  a few weeks ago and she tolerated it.  When we switched over to oatmeal she tore it up!  She loves it!  Now, we are moving to the mixed cereal.
~Thanks to her jumperoo, her legs are really strong and she loves to stand.  She can bear her full weight on her legs, but cannot balance.  She loves to stand!
~She's been really digging faces these days.  She loves to touch faces, especially if there is facial hair there.  :) 
~One of her favorite toys is this HABA TOY from Patty.  I don't know what it is about this toy that she is crazy about...but she gets so happy when I pull it out of the box!
~Another funny thing she loves to play with are tags.  Toy tags, burp cloth tags, clothing tags, blanket tags, etc...she will pass up ANY toy for a tag!  Why is this?  I have no idea!
~I started putting her in her actual crib for naps. The first couple of times was rough, but she is getting the hang of it.  Once she starts sleeping through the night I'm going to try putting her in the crib for nighttime sleeping.
~Ahhh...Anne has become a member of the "No sock Union".  She is striking all socks and footwear!  She is constantly pulling them off and leaving them places.  I've found socks all over the place.  Following the sock strike...she either is found with her foot in her mouth or a lone sock in her mouth!  Sooo cute.  :)
~She's also starting to get really excited about peek-a-boo!  Sometimes she'll just pull a burp cloth or blanket over her head so that we'll play the game with her!
~She's getting pretty good at the backward army crawl and yesterday she kinda went forward a little.  She wants so badly to be on the move and gets frustrated when she can't.  :) 
~She can sit by herself...but cannot sit UP on her own yet.  She can sit up from a recline, but not from flat on her back. 
~She's been razzing a lot.  She can go on and on and on with the razzing.  It's so cute....and very messy.  :)  In addition to those noises, she also loves "talking".  She has also introduced screaming to her repertoire!  She'll just scream out of the blue...not in anger, just because. 
~I don't know if this is a normal baby thing or if she's taking after Oreo...but she's putting things in her mouth and leaving them there, like Oreo does with his toys.  :)
~And....our precious little angel has become "destructo".  She throws stuff, drops stuff, tears stuff.  She loves catalogs...loves to eat and tear them.  :)  When we were at the doctor's office the other day, she completely tore up the paper on the table! 
~We've also discovered she likes airplane rides, and other mom/dad rides.  She loves to sit and stand on us...and really loves to sit on Kris shoulders and play with his hair.  (...i hold her on kris' shoulders...)
~Home remodel.  Family room is waiting on doors!  As soon as they come in, Kris'll install the doors, pop in the flooring and put up the trim!  Then it's done.  The dining room looks great....Kris put the flooring in and the trim is going in this weekend!  The living room will be last.  Spindles and half walls have to come down, in addition to the flooring and new paint!  It's amazing how much better our house is looking.  Kris is doing an amazing job....

Well...the babe is waking...pictures are updated very regularly.  Check out the shutterfly pics/videos.  :)

so....what's worse than being sick when you're pregnant and can't take any medicine?

...breastfeeding while sick (so no meds) WITH a sick baby at the same time.  Good gracious.... The good thing is that I think we're almost through it.  The last few nights were very rough with Anne waking up very often screaming and crying.  We did go to the pediatrician who said that she had A LOT of wax in her ears and lots of fluid but it wasn't infected...so we're just continuing with the Baby Vicks, saline drops, humidifier, and nighttime baths.  We discovered quickly that the nose bulb SUCKS...not literally though because that's the problem.  It's great if you just need to get a couple "friends"...but not when she's sick.  We've had to hold her down and are only minimally successful in clearing her nose.  So...I looked online to see if there was a trick to this stupid bulb...all the "tricks" were for inactive babies.  Anne is NOT inactive...she doesn't stop moving.  And then I came across a genius invention:  Electric Nasal Aspirator.  So.  I ordered THIS one from Amazon but it was taking too long so I got THIS one from Target.  The one from Target works but the suction power is pretty low.  The one from Amazon seems to have better suction power... 

Side note...at her pediatrician appointment they weighed and measured her. 
Weight: 16 lbs 12 oz
Height: 25 1/2 inches

23 weeks!

Well, now I understand when I hear people say they lose track of time when they have kids! Where has this past month gone?! Well, here is my lame attempt at an update.
Since my last post:
~We did in fact discover that Anne has a milk protein allergy so I’ve cut out dairy from my diet. We’ve switched over to soy milk in our coffee and I’ve given up my Mexican and Italian foods. We’ve noticed a big improvement in her spit up and overall demeanor since I’ve done this…
~Both Kris and I got our flu shots and Anne will get hers at her 6 month check up.
~We added rice cereal into her diet. Now she gets about 1 tbs twice a day. She loves it! She loves to HELP feed herself…I use the word help very loosely. After she finishes eating she gets to play with her food bowl…that’s very fun to watch.
~Bath time has taken on a new joy…toys! We are in that stage where she can’t sit up on her own yet but she can’t stand the bath ramp either. SO…we are using a Leachco bath and filling the main tub up a little with water. We also introduced some bath toys and Kris moved a space heater into the bathroom so she doesn’t get cold. It’s been a lot of fun! Last night, she started splashing!
~Anne has become infatuated with Oreo. She watches him like a hawk. When she is in her jumperoo she just jumps and screams when she sees him!
~Speaking of her JUMPEROO….she absolutely loves hers. She just jumps and plays and has such a good time in it.
~Anne was Baptized on her 5 month birthday at the church we got married at and by the pastor who married us! It was really wonderful. Both sets of grandparents were there, Kev and Bridget were there and Miriam came too! Anne did so great! She didn’t cry one bit! She just stared out at the congregation and smiled or laughed! Even when Pastor Burton put the water on her head and walked her down the aisle she was happy as a clam! Afterwards, my parents had a little reception at our house for the family. It was great to see everyone together with Anne! That was the first time we were all together. Leading up to her Baptism, I had a heck of a time finding a dress! I expected it to be easy but all the gowns I found were icky or ridiculously overpriced. I finally find one I loved at Burlington Coat Factory. I can’t believe how awesome their prices are there!
~I had my first MOM’s club event! It was a meet & greet Halloween party. Even though Anne couldn’t really play or take part in the activities…it was fun and I’m looking forward to more events with them. I still want to look into MOPS because I’ve heard great things about that group too.
~Anne got to wear her very first Halloween costume! Gramma Chamberlin (who is a costume master) got her a cupcake costume. So…I decided to go as an ice cream sundae.
~We also had another road trip. This time it was to Charleston, WV for a funeral. While the reason for the visit was very sad, we did have a lot of firsts on this trip. This was the first time she stayed in a hotel, first time she sat in her stroller without the carseat, and she got her first cold. And despite the sadness of the occasion, it was great to see CK, Sara, Nolan, Josh, Kevin and Bridget.
~Anne’s been doing really great at all my rehearsals, too. She loves to just watch while the kids are singing. Kristen even brought in Amelia’s Exersaucer so whenever we go to her school Anne has a fun toy!
~She’s been eating her cereal while sitting in her “big girl” high chair. We have to prop a pillow behind her, but this has been a lot more accommodating than the Bumbo.
~She’s real close to sitting up by herself and can hold herself up while sitting some of the time.
~She’s nuts about her toes and can’t stop putting them in her mouth.
~She also loves it when you kiss her neck and face. She just smiles and zones out!
~I’ve become infatuated with her hands. I don’t know why…but they are just so cute and perfect!
~We got this WUBBANUB pacifier because I thought it was so cute…it turns out that she absolutely loves it! We got the caterpillar and named it Carter. Unfortunately…on our Charleston trip Carter had an unfortunate accident so we had to get a couple more. Lucky the duck, Mo the monkey, and Carter the Caterpillar should be here later today!
~She has been so happy these days and smiles when she sees Kris or I. She is so very playful and loves to laugh and squeal. Those noises are the BEST.
~She reaches for toys now and knows which toys she wants to play with.  If you hand her the wrong one, she won't take it. 
~I’m sure there is much more that I’m missing…but I think this is the basics.

Check out the WEBSITE for more pictures and videos.

 

Week 18

Woah...I've been in SERIOUS internet withdrawl. Our laptop's dc power jack was broken-so Kris took the laptop completely apart and replaced it. Now, the power cord is broken so we are waiting for that to come in the mail. While I COULD use the computer in the guest room...it's not very accessible when I'm with Anne. So...as soon as the laptop is fixed I'll be able to upload all my new pictures and videos!

We have also started the family room remodel. I'll be posting pictures of the remodel as it goes on. I'm really excited that Kris has already started on it!

I finally broke down and had my engagement and wedding rings resized. I feel like the swelling in my fingers is gone and that I'm not ever going to get back to that ring size again (and I haven't been able to wear my rings in over 7 months)...so they are currently being resized and I'm so excited to be able to wear them again soon!!! Also...WHAT THE HECK?!-My hair is falling out in CLUMPS! My hair is EVERYWHERE. All over the floors, counters, ANNE...I've had to pull my hair out of her mouth and hands many times. All you moms...explain please? And...what do I do about it???

OK...so here's the update you are really interested in...Anne's been a very busy girl these past couple weeks! 
~She is teething and her bottom center tooth is starting to come in.  I can feel a little ridge in there.  SO...we got all her "supplies" real fast.  She has:  4 frozen teething rings, 2 frozen washcloths, 1 textured teething ring, 1 vibrating teething ring, 1 textured teething pacifier, baby orajel, and teething tablets.  All these things seem to be helping, which is good.  She's also addicted to sucking on her fingers, thumb, and WRIST...really anything she can get in her mouth.  She has given herself and me numerous hickeys! 
~She is laughing a lot more these days...usually at something stupid I'm doing.  I just LOVE the sound of her laugh!!!
~ This past Friday Anne had rice cereal for the first time!  By the end of the "meal" she seemed to really like it!  She was moving towards the spoon and was very happy.  Since Saturday, though, we've been putting the rice cereal in a bottle with breastmilk before bed.... haven't noticed any improvement in her sleeping....
~Her pediatrician had her on the PolyViSol Vitamin drops.  They smell NASTY...and she's been throwing them back up since the beginning.  I finally gave up and stopped giving them to her (especially after talking to all my breastfeeding mom friends who didn't need to give their kids vitamins).  Our pediatrician really wanted Anne on vitamins, so we switched to TriViSol which has a cherry flavor.  She seems to be doing better with those...
~She is a TOE EATING monster. She is constantly grabbing her toes and just these last couple days puttting her feet in her mouth!
~Her doctors think Anne may be allergic to milk protein...so I've been on an elimination diet this week.  I can't eat anything with any kind of milk protein.  They gave me this list of foods/ingredients I could and couldn't eat...it's amazing how much milk protein is in foods!  I can't even eat Ragu pasta sauce, for example.  It's not been too bad for me...but I do miss my cereal.  :)
~We've definitely been having sleep issues.  We stopped using her sleep wedge and she seems to like that a lot...but she rolls around and plays a lot when it's sleep time.  These past couple weeks, she's been waking up every 2-2.5 hours at night...I'm hoping we will find the right amount of rice cereal to add to her bottle that will help her sleep longer.  Also these last couple weeks she's settled into a nice nap routine.  She wakes up at 7 AM and is up for less than a half hour.  She naps for 1-1.5 hours and is up for the day.  She plays, talks, eats until noon and then she takes a 1-2 hour nap!!!  Then she plays, talks, eats until around 3 when she takes an hour nap.  She's been taking a 30-60 minute nap around 7 and then goes to bed around 9.  It's been nice.  :)

She had her 4 month checkup last week.  She is 25 inches long, and weighs 14 lbs 11oz! 

And...we celebrated an important day since my last post:  On September 11, 2009 at 2:24 PM, Shady Grove Fertility Center transferred a single embryo into me....and today we have a gorgeous baby girl.  It's amazing what they were able to do.  I thank God everyday for giving those doctors the knowledge to make our dreams come true. 

WHEW! Been awhile since my last post!

Anne is 16 weeks old!!!  I simply can NOT believe how fast the time has flown by!  Here are some new things she's doing/been up to:
~I think her favorite color is yellow.  She responds the most to it.  She laughs and smiles if she sees that color in a book, wall, or on TV!
~She's been laughing.  It's the cutest sound in the world!  She really thinks it's funny when I raise my eyebrows and make funny sounds.  :)  She squeals, "talks", and makes the funniest clucking sound!
~She puts everything in her mouth these days!  She especially loves sucking on her hands and arm (and mine too).  She has given me and herself a few hickeys!! 
~I can see two white caps in the bottom middle of her gums!  I know it'll take awhile to cut through...but it's exciting to see!
~She's been grabbing things quite a bit.  She can't grab big things, but she can get some things and she sure is trying!  She can put small stuff animals and toys in her mouth!  She can even grab her pacifier out of her mouth!
~She definitely loves to roll.  As soon as she wakes up from her nap, she rolls over and has tummy time before she eats! 
~She's been kicking a whole lot more with way more strength and accuracy.  She likes to kick us in the face, or me in the "milk maker". :)  She kicks any toy near her feet as well.
~She can almost hold herself up when sitting up and definitely loves sitting.  She is trying so hard to sit up all by herself.  Many times, I'll wake up to see her trying to lift her torso up into the sitting position...while she is sleeping!  Whenever she is reclined, she pulls herself up to a sitting position. 
~Her bum's been looking really good...especially since we stopped using the Desitin!  We transitioned from Vusion (which is amazing) to just vaseline until the rash completely cleared up.  And now, all we use is corn starch baby powder! 
~She has had some blood in her poop and we've been to the pediatrician who tested it and said there wasn't any bacteria in it.  I've been dairy free for a few weeks so I don't know what I'm eating that is causing the blood...but the pediatrician is working on finding out what the issue is.  Any suggestions anyone?
~We had our first road trip over Labor Day weekend.  It went pretty well.  She did great in the car.  She slept and played the whole time and only got fussy right at the very end.  When we crossed the WV line (on the way to Weirton) she was sleeping and I told her we had just crossed into WV-she smiled in her sleep!  :)  When we got close to the house, I told her we were in "Weirton, WV" and she started laughing!  It was so funny! We had a great visit with John (Pap) and Teri (Gram).  On Friday, we just hung out at the house and played.  On Saturday, Gram Anne and I went for a quick shopping trip to get Anne decked out in WVU gear.  Later that day, the Underdonks, George&Sandy, and Ange&Moose came over and watched the WVU game with us.  Anne loved watching the game!  She couldn't tear her eyes away from the game!  On Sunday, we hung out and played at the house in the morning, then we headed to the Robinson Towncenter and walked around the mall for a bit...and then came home and had Mario's homemade spaghetti and meatballs for dinner.  The weirdest thing happened at the mall.  I got a pretzel and strawberry lemonade from Auntie Anne's Pretzels and the total came out to $6.66.  Weird....  Both Gram and Pap got to read lots of stories to Anne and she loved looking at the books.  Gram has a new nickname for me...whenever Anne would look at me, Gram would say "What are you looking at?  Oh...you're looking at your bottle."  So...I've gone from DILTB (daughter in law to be) to Pin Cushion (during IVF) to now...Bottle.  LOL! 
~We are remodeling the family room (room off the garage) so today I moved everything into Kris' theater room.  I'm excited to see what Kris does!  I think he is taking the panelling off the walls, replacing all the trim, taking the sliding glass door that joins the room to the theater off, removing the 1/2 wall and spindles, removing the cork on the overhang, new paint on the walls, and either putting in new carpet or Pergo hardwood flooring. 

Check out all the new pictures & videos. 

Lots of new things

I neglected to update on her 3 month bday!  OOPS!! So, I'll update as we prepare for Anne's 100 day birthday!  In Korea, the 100 day birthday is a very important one.  Wednesday will be 100 days.  Click HERE to read more about this tradition.

She's been going nuts on her fingers, thumb, burb cloth, bib...it all goes in her mouth!  In fact, she'll take her pacifier out of her mouth and either get mad because it's not in her mouth anymore or put her hand/bib/burp cloth in her mouth!  I woke up in the middle of the night on Saturday to find her going to town on her thumb!  I'm not sure how I feel about this...it's cute but I'm a little apprehensive to let her suck on her hands...it does make her quite happy though.  She's also a drooling little gremlin! :)  Drool is everywhere...and she sucks on anything!  I have a couple hickeys on my arm! 

The last couple of nights when we've put her down for bed...she has not needed any help going to sleep.  She just stared at the shadows on the wall, and played with the material inside her pack and play until she fell asleep!  It was GREAT!  No need for help from me or her pacifier.  Normally she needs her Glo Worm to sleep...but we seem to have "killed" it-it sounds like a drunk glo worm.  We changed the battery but that did not fix the funny sounds!  We think we may have played the glo worm too much. 
Oh my goodness!  Anne was up most of the day on Sunday!  She was too excited about Kev/Bridget and Gramma/Hagi visiting that she missed 2 naps between 1:30-6:30.  She was cranky!  But then, she slept 7 straight hours that night! 

Anne has become very fascinated with Oreo.  She loves to just stare at him and her eyes will follow him around the room.  Oreo, however...is not fascinated with her.  He has discovered that whenever she is on the play mat she gets attention-so he will randomly put his toy on the play mat when he wants attention...or just go and lay down in the middle of the mat for attention!  What a booger!  :)
Kris and I are wondering if she may have a lactose intolerance.  I have been eating a lot of cereal and we've noticed an increase in her spitting up...and extraordinarly impressive diapers.  So...today is my first day with no dairy.  :(  Let's see if there's a difference.  Mom's out there-advice is welcome.  Is spitting up A LOT after every feeding normal?  When I say a lot..I mean like a few ounces at a time! 

I switched over her clothes this weekend...so all her 3-6 months stuff is out.  And..there is just NO way we are going to get all those outfits worn!  I'm trying though!  :) 

Well...there are more pictures up on the picture site...I'll update again later!  :)

Fun visit from the Babcocks!

CK, Sara, and Nolan came out to visit us this weekend!  We had a great time! 

We played at the house.

We made homemade pizzas.

We HAD to have Nodi egg sandwiches...

We went to Gilligans for lunch and fun!

We went to Gilbert Run Park.

We BBQ'ed burgers and sweet corn (from the Babcocks).  And I FINALLY got to drink a glass (or two) of my favorite wine!  I hadn't had it in almost a year!  And...of course:  There was tons of Wii play time! 

There were only two downsides to the weekend...1) It had to end and 2) Anne was not feeling her usual chipper self. Between her tummy ache and her not wanting to nap-it made for a challenging weekend.  :)  This is a picture from Sunday morning when she finally decided to nap.  Also...she has been napping most of today-go figure.

Nolan drew a picture for Anne....

 COMPLETELY unrelated...here is my birthday balloon that is STILL full of air.  My mom gave it to me on June 12....can you believe 2 months later it's still up?

Click HERE to see more pictures and videos of their visit!  :)

some cute little updates

Every morning when I wake up Anne looks like she got bigger!  She is doing so much more these days!  She is awake and playful longer and has been napping for longer periods of time, as well.  Her schedule had been:  nap 30 minutes, awake 1 hour, nap 30 minutes, awake 1 hour, etc....now it's more like:  nap 45-60 minutes, awake for a couple hours.  She is enjoying her individual playtime so I can still get things done when she is awake!  Nightime sleep has been getting much better!  We transitioned her back into the pack and play next to our bed, sleeping on her sleep wedge.  The first few nights was rough...up every 2-3 hours, but now....we are at 5-6 hour stretches!  I've also been putting her there for nap time and taking the monitor with me so I can watch her.  I've been getting more comfortable with walking away from her when she is sleeping. 

My parents came over to visit on Tuesday.  They came over to give me a break.....

It looks like they took a break themselves!!!  I went up to take a shower and when I came back downstairs...I found the three of them passed out like this!  I took these pictures and they didn't even wake up! 

So...we discovered that Anne doesn't like one of my favorite foods!  ...MI YUK GOOK.  It's soooo good.  But...after a day of intense SCREAMING, and some nasty diapers, I had to give up breast feeding for almost 2 days.  All I could do was pump and dump...and then thaw frozen milk from the fridge.  She is much better now...but she was rather unhappy a couple days ago!  YIKES!  What kind of 1/4 Korean baby doesn't like this AWESOME soup?  :(  oh well...

So...I got some new toys for her!  She has been so active and needs a lot of diversity during play time...so we got bunches of cool things!
3 way activity mat:  can use it on her back, tummy, and as a crawl tunnel!
Activity bar that attaches to her car seat, and any seat she is in!

And a bunch of light up toys and books! 

We have discovered that she loves loves LOVES this random slideshow we have on our laptop as a screen saver.  It's all her pictures from the PORTRAIT INNOVATIONS appointment.  She will just stare at it for a long time!  It's one of our "go to" strategies when she is really upset.  The other thing she has come to love (and we love it too) is this GloWork that Teri got for her.    As soon as we turn it on, she calms down and falls asleep!  It's, as my mom puts it, "Magic". 

I think she is days away from sitting up on her own.  When we put her in our laps in a sitting position, she can hold herself there.  When we recline her, in that same position, she can sit up.  In the Ship's bouncer, she can sit up from that recline position!  When I prop her up on pillows on the bed, she can hold herself in the sitting position!  We've also found that sitting calms her down.  She is sooo curious...and sometimes when she gets upset, all she wants is to sit and watch what's going on!  And of course, she has been using her Bumbo!  She also can hold her head and chest up very well.  She loves "flying" on daddy!  

She found her feet!  During one of her sitting sessions, she spotted them and grabbed them.  Now, whenever she sits up, she bends completely over and just stares at them!  Sometimes she grabs them.  It's sooo cute!  She is also days away from rolling from her back to tummy...in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she does it today!  She is soooo close!    She is so determined!  She has also started "pre crawling".  When she is on her tummy, she can pull herself forward (a little) with her arms.  She has discovered that her knees and legs are also helpful in this endeavor, so she's been trying to get them involved!  I think she is going to be crawling soon!!!!  Click HERE to see videos! 

Anne gave daddy a special gift!  :)  ...it's only fair after he gave her a new nickname....Al Bundy (from Married with Children).  She keeps sticking her hand in her diaper during changes!  :)

So...this morning, she was staring, smiling, and laughing at my WV mug!  I didn't get a smiling picture...but look at that focus! 

And this next picture is graphic...sorry ahead of time! 

So, you know you're in trouble when you are changing your kid's diaper and they smile at you like this....

First overnight trip!

Yesterday, the roofers came to install our new roof-so Oreo went to stay at BLUE SPRING KENNEL with Auntie Pat and Anne and I went to my parents house in Woodbridge to get away from all the noise.  Anne and I ended up staying the night and we had a great time!  With Gramma and Hagi, we played, ate, cuddled, read stories, took a bath and had all sorts of fun times!  Click HERE to see pictures and videos of our fun day/night! 

Getting active

Anne is starting to get really active!  She is kicking and punching everything that is even close to her!  She loves the Shipman's bouncer (they loaned us)...especially the monkey toy that is hanging from the bar!  That monkey makes her laugh and smile SOOO much!  :)

She also loves to grab her bib and burp cloth now! 

I got her these wrist rattles...and they are too cute!  I put them on her wrists and sometimes her ankles and she is starting to realize they make noises!

She has been really interested in sitting up. She can't really hold her body there for long...but she likes to sit up and watch things going on! She even likes to chill in Kris' theater recliners!

I think she is also beginning to realize her feet are attached to her.  She has reached for them a few times already!  :)  And, she definitely stares at them quite a bit.  I put her kick piano in the car on the seat her carseat is on. She loves staring at it when I'm driving, and kicking it! She has also started reaching down and trying to grab her diaper when we are changing her...that's going to get messy one of these times!  This past weekend, while John and Teri were visiting, Anne finally realized that she likes her hand/fingers better than her pacifier.  We would put her pacifier in, she would spit it out and put her hand in instead!  Sometimes she would try to fake me out and pretend that she was looking over her shoulder...and then she would jam her hand in her mouth!!!  HA!  So...I've been much more vigilant about replacing her hand with the pacifier. 
 
Anne has been exploring her little voice, too!  She's been making all sorts of cute noises!  She does more and more "talking", laughing, and other cute noises! 

Portrait Innovations Pictures are up...

I uploaded the pictures from the Portrait Innovations appointment.  Click HERE to see more!

Lots of good 2 months news!

On her 2 month birthday, Kris bought a new car for us!  Here is a picture of it, but you can see more HERE. 

On Tuesday, she had some pictures done at PORTRAIT INNOVATIONS.  Here's one of the pictures... I'll post some more in a couple days.  But...they were amazing!  She did great, too!  She didn't cry or fuss the entire 2 hour appointment!  She did fall asleep the last 15 minutes though!  Afterwards, we went to North Point to visit some friends!  It was great to see everyone and Anne got lots of attention!  Later that day, my parents came up to visit, which was especially great since Kris was out of town and they were able to give me a little break so I could get some things done around the house! 

Yesterday, Anne had her 2 month check up!  She weighs 12 lbs, 1 oz.  She is 22 inches long.  Her head is 15 inches.  The doctor was very pleased with how she is doing!  She also got 2 big vaccinations and some rotovirus drops.  She took the shots like a champ...even though it broke my heart to see and hear her scream like that!  But...she didn't seem to be in too much pain the rest of the day.  Our pediatrician suggested that both Kris and I get the Tdap vaccination (Tetanus, Diptheria, Pertussis) so we are scheduled to do that on Wednesday. 

2 months old

What a way for Anne to "celebrate" her 2 month birthday!  ...

• We had to go to the pediatrician this morning because she has a diaper rash that won't go away.  It looks pretty bad and she was in pain.  She spent most of yesterday either screaming or sleeping on my chest.  Turns out she has a Strep infection.  :(  I feel horrible.  I know diaper rashes are a common occurence...but I still feel horrible.  After the rash clears up, I am going to do things very differently with her bum.  Thankfully, she has stopped screaming in pain.  We've temporarily discountined using wipes and Desitin.  We are using a squirt bottle of water, wet wash cloth, Vaseline, and a special ointment from the doctor...and at least 2 hours of NBT (naked bottom time).  Our doctor also gave her some antibiotics... I never knew there was so much to babies bums!  In any case, now I know...   At her appointment this morning, she weighed in at 12 pounds 5 ounces.  She did have a shirt and pants on, though...
• So....yesterday was a rough day for me.  Anne was doing pretty good until about 11AM.  And then from 11 AM-the end of the day, she was miserable.  She cried/screamed whenever she was awake.  She would only sleep on my chest or in my arms.  She would wake up screaming if I put her down.  By the time Kris got home from work I was close to a meltdown.  Then the night brought more excitement.  During her late night and middle of the night diaper changes, she soaked through a changing pad, a couple receiving blankets, TWO sleepers, and spit up all over another one.  And then...in the middle of the night I woke up to Oreo throwing up on the bed right next to me.  So...we had to change the ENTIRE bedding, including the mattress pad.  And then of course...we had to be up and out of the houes by 8:45 AM for her pediatrician appointment.  I'm definitely going to need a power nap today.  
• On a positive note, she's been enjoying looking at books and toys.  She sometimes will hit her activity mat toys.  She has been able to grab her pacifier...but I don't think she really knows what she is doing with it.  :)  She's also been smiling a whole heck of a lot!  She'll smile in response to our smiles, if she likes something we do...and when we walk into the room.  She can sit in her bumbo...but she doesn't like to do so for very long.  She's still building up those neck muscles!  She does love to roll over!  She can roll from tummy to back and recently she has been trying to roll back to tummy.  She's been making lots of cute little noises...we sometimes have nice little "conversations."  She also has started to respond to me sticking my tongue out at her-she'll stick hers out at me in response!  HA!  She also loves her pacifier!  She sometimes gets so excited that she grunts and pumps her hands and legs!  And she LOVES LOVES LOVES sucking on her hands! 
• Physically, she's getting pretty sturdy.  Her legs are really strong.  Her eyelashes has gotten SO long, thick and black!  They are gorgeous!!!  Her eyes are starting to darken.  Her belly button, which has been an outie since her umbilical cord fell off has gone in considerably!  Her hair has gotten long and thick enough that I need to comb it after her bath! 
• We have been slowly establishing a good routine.  I've been keeping a spreadsheet (color coded by category OF COURSE) that tracks her sleep, eating, and awake periods.  I feel like we are getting into a good rhythm.  She tends to follow the same nap schedule every day and "enjoys" our activity times. 
• Kris is looking at cars, as I type this.  He's been working himself into the ground trying to get the perfect car...I hope he finds it so he can get some R&R soon!  I think it's down to the Nissan Murano and Ford Edge...

8 weeks

I blinked and all of a sudden our baby is 8 weeks old!  WOAH! We've had a full week...

• We have been looking for a new car.  Kris has been researching and test driving a bunch of family cars.  We have it narrowed down and (as I type this) Kris is going to Annapolis to see a car we are considering.  He has done an AMAZING job reading reviews and exploring lots of different options.  I think we are down to three cars:  Nissan Murano, Acura CX-9, and Ford Edge.  I've driven the Murano and CX-9 but not the Edge yet.  I was really surprised how comfy the Murano was!!!  So...hopefully in the next couple of weeks we'll have a better family car!  :)
• Anne sat in her Bumbo for the first time!  I can't believe she is already able to do that!  She's not a HUGE fan of it yet, but I think she is starting to enjoy the freedom! 

• She is becoming obsessed with sucking on hands and fingers.  :)  We don't want her to get into thumb sucking, but it sure is cute to watch her explore!  She also likes tasting our arms, chin, and whatever body part happens to be nearby!  She even tried to get a stuffed animal in her mouth!  :) 
• I had my first OB appointment since the delivery.  I checked out just fine.  I've lost 25 pounds so far...I am aiming to lose another 30....oh gosh that sounds harder now that I've written it down.  I got the OK to start exercising, which is good.  Everything checked out fine in my appointment.  They didn't have an answer to why I had hemorrhaged so bad after delivery and don't know if I will have complications next time we deliver. 
• We went up to see the Olexia's new baby girl, Lilian Jane!  They were in the SAME postpartum room we were in!  How weird is that?  Lily is absolutely gorgeous...and I couldn't believe that our little Anne had been that tiny just 8 weeks ago! 
• Anne's been finding a schedule these days and that is helping me out a lot.  I'm starting to be able to get things done and make plans.  We did have some concern on Saturday, though.  She slept from 11:30 Friday night-3:30 Saturday afternoon.  She woke up when she was hungry...but that was it.  I made my first pediatrician call!  They were really helpful and she is fine.  Everyone was telling me that it was a growth spurt.  We were worried that she might not sleep Saturday night and that we were in for a rough night...but she slept just fine!  At night, she sleeps 4-5 hours between feedings.  
• She has started reacting to smiles!  She will usually smile back when we smile at her.  She also reacts with smiles if we do something she likes.  Kris was giving her kisses on her ear and she just loved that!  She had big smiles! 
• She is also starting to react to toys.  Sometimes she tries to reach for them, but can't quite figure that out.  She has started hitting at toys.  If you move a noisy toy in front of her, she'll follow it with her eyes. 
• She also follows Kris and I if we leave a room.  It's neat to see her head and eyes follow along as one of us leaves! 
• I've been using our video monitor during the day naps this week.  This monitor is awesome....if you are ever looking for one, I highly recommend the Summer Video Monitor. 
• She's also starting to make lots of new little noises!  They are sooo cute! 

Check out our picture website to see more pics/videos. 

ANNE ROLLED OVER!!!

Oh my gosh!  Anne rolled over.  Yesterday we were laying on the bed (and it's pretty firm) and she rolled over from her tummy to back.  I figured it was because the bed surface was soft so I didn't think anything of it. 

Then, TODAY, we were doing tummy time and I was taking video with my cell phone for my mom and mother in law to show them Anne doing her little push ups.  All of a sudden, she rolled over!  I didn't believe it, so I put her back on her tummy.  She rolled over.  I did it again...she rolled over.  On the fourth attempt, I got the video camera!  OMG!!!!!

Here's the video from my cell of her FIRST roll over.

Here's the video from our camera of her FOURTH roll over!

Success in the Nodianos home!

So...we tried a NEW sleeping arrangement.  We moved the cradle swing upstairs next to the bed because Anne seemed to like sleeping in that.  It was a brilliant idea!  She started sleeping 3-4 hours at a time on Wednesday night!  And then on Friday night she slept for 5 hours!  YAY!

Thursday, we went for another walk with the Ships.  I decided not to use the stroller and use the baby front carrier instead.  She loved it!  She slept the whole time.  I had brought Oreo on our walk today...he didn't last very long!  About 30 minutes into the walk he just stopped in the middle of the road and laid down.  He would go no further.  He was done.  Chad had to carry him the rest of the way!  HA! 

Later on, she was laying on her Baby Einstein activity mat for ALMOST AN HOUR!  She was just looking around!  I cooked dinner and finished folding the laundry!  It was awesome!  :) 

On Saturday, Anne and Kris went on their first walk together!  Despite Anne's longer sleep schedule, I couldn't get up to join them! 

Then before we headed off to Costco, we were hanging out and 1) she lifted and held her head up WITHOUT the use of her arms!  2) she realized Oreo was around and she was just staring at him!  and 3)we had to take the newborn adjuster out of the bouncer AND swing!  and 4) she slept in her bassinet (downstairs) for 30 minutes!  That was a new record!  :)

While we were on our way home from Costco, she was soooo interested in her surroundings!

She started doing this new thing with her tongue!  She keeps sticking it out!  Click HERE to see it. 

6 weeks

Today we had a pediatrician appointment because we were concerned with some rashes that have appeared all over our little baby's body!  It turns out to be a combination of milia and baby acne.  Our PA, Jackie, thinks that Anne's skin is just really sensitive.  She recommended a few products to use: corn starch in the folds of her neck, Vaseline on her face/chest/back, and Aquaphor bodywash/shampoo.  She also told me to limit skin to skin contact with anyone other than Kris and I.  She said that Anne's skin can break out from lipstick, chapstick, make up, perfume, scented body lotion, etc...  The good news it that this is common and that it'll go away in a couple months.  The bad side to it is that we have to be more mindful of what we put on our skin and clothes!  The rash looks really icky.  :(  It's all over her face, chest, and back. 

They also weighed and measured her today.  She weighs 11 pounds 10 ounces!  She measures 22 1/4 inches long!  WOAH!  This little one is growing FAST! 

I also discovered a birth mark on her left knee!  :)  It looks a lot like the one I have on my neck, but hers is on the bottom side of her knee!  :)  I'll try to snap a picture of it sometime! 

OMGosh

This was the face right before.....

HHHAAAAAAAA! 

A week of firsts!

This week we've had a bunch of "First Times"!

On Thursday, Anne and I had an appointment with Becky from MILKY WAY (lactation consultant). The appointment was awesome. She weighed Anne and she was: 10 lbs 9.7 oz! WOAH! We learned that Anne has reflux and I do have hyper lactation syndrome. She gave us suggestions to help with both problems. I felt so much better by the time we left. She was very encouraging and informative. We are currently trying new nursing positions, which are soooo much more comfortable for both of us. I'm now on a block feeding schedule, which means I nurse only on one side for 4 hours and then switch sides. This will help get the right balance of sugar and fat in my milk. :) So far, this is working out really well. Anne slept great Thursday and Friday night. :) We will continue to try all these new suggestions. On Thursday, we also had our first restaraunt trip! Patty, Evie, Anne and I went to Einstein Bagel for lunch! I even had to nurse Anne while we were there...so that was my first public feeding! All in all, I thought the trip was very successful. :)

On Friday, we had our first mall trip! The four of us went to the mall to walk around. I decided to bring along a bottle so I didn't have to nurse there. So, I gave Anne my first bottle! Evie was kind enough to assist with the bottle feeding!

I also did my first public diaper change! The four of us piled into the family bathroom. While I was changing Anne, Evie went potty. This is when the chaos began. :) The toilet Evie was using kept flushing randomly, Anne started crying, then when Evie went to wash her hands-the cold water wasn't working so it was too hot for her, and then finally there were no towels to dry the hands so we used wipes! It was very comical! Later that night, Patty and I went out for a girls night! We had dinner at the Olive Garden while Kris hung out with Evie and Anne...they watched "Princess and the Frog." I also had my first glass of wine since....Bridget and Kev's wedding last August?

After we got back, I went to change Anne's diaper and she started sucking her thumb big time! 
When we got home, I was changing Anne's diaper when she started sucking her thumb big time!

On Saturday night, Kris had his first outing with Anne (all of us went). We went to dinner at Famous Dave's, and then went to the mall so Evie could enjoy Playtown and they all got Dairy Queen! :) Patty also walked into TWO PARKED cars.... hee hee hee!

Since Tuesday night, when Patty and Evie arrived, Evie has been an amazing cousin! She has helped change Anne's diaper, feed her, give her medicine, pick her clothes, pick and put on her bib, push her stroller, "babysit" and much more! She's more of a big sister than a cousin! It's been amazing to see Evie and Anne interacting!

BTW...I cannot believe how fast Anne's growing. She's already grown out of QUITE a few things!