2 month Stats and Shots

So this little girl has been with us for 2 months now and I think both Adam and I can say even though we don't think we can love her more than we already do, our love for her grows everyday. She has changed a lot this month, not the least of those changes being that she has gained over 2 lbs this month. After the little turkey took forever to gain back her birthweight, that first month, she has gone from 8lbs 9oz to 10lb 11oz this last month. We went for her 2 month appointment on Tuesday and she checked out great, hitting all of her milestones and being a healthy little girl.

Her stats are:

Weight - 10lbs 11.5 oz (45th percentile)
Height - 23 inches (70th percentile)
Head Circumference - 39.5 cm (65th percentile)

Of course this appointment included shots, actually 3 of them, and an oral vaccine for Rotavirus. She, as expected, let out the horrible "I'm in pain" cry and turned 8 shades of red, but we brought a bottle of breastmilk with us and gave that to her once she settled down just a bit. That turned out to be a good idea and she soon went to sleep in her carset. Actually for the next 17 hours pretty much all she did, just waking up long enough to eat a few times. I guess we should feel blessed that the shots made her sleepy and not cranky. I'm also happy that she didn't get feverish or any of the other side effects.

One of the big things that little missy is doing is that she started sleeping in her crib at night at about 6 weeks. On most nights she goes down between 9 and 10 gets up once at sometime between 3 and 5 and then goes back down until some time between 6 and 8. We can definetly handle the only one waking and the nice stretch of sleep. She has also just recently started taking some naps in her crib, we'll have to work more on this, but daycare might help this happen more regularly :)

Here is a picture of her on her 2 month birthday with her stuffed dog, that we are taking her picture with every month to show how much she is growing.

And here is her life in pictures of many of the things she has started doing this last month.

Its hard to see but she is all about blowing bubbles and does so almost constantly, when she isn't "talking", eating, or crying!!

Here she is getting ready for the Superbowl, this was a jersey that was her cousin Camryn's but it was 3-6 months and just wouldn't quite fit yet. We ended up dressing her in a Colts onsie we had so she could use her hands :)

We got out the Bumbo just to try it out, I think it might be a little while before her head control is enough that she looks comfortable.

And the best part of the last month has been all the smiles we get (I know this is a horrible picture, but you take what you can get). She melts my heart with her sweet little smile and now she is also "talking" to us constantly in the midst of these great smiles.

And here is a video of all that talking she has been doing.

http://vimeo.com/9356402 from Amanda Phillips on Vimeo.

We have a bag of potatoes

Leah and I went to a the Breastfeeding Support group at Clarian North yesterday and I'm able to weigh her there. She is now a big bag of potatoes and weighs 10lbs 2 oz, she gained a pound in 2 weeks which is right on target according to the doctor. And this kid is long, I'm interested in what she is measuring at her 2 month appt that is coming up, because due to length she can't fit in really any newborn clothes anymore and is basically in all 0-3 clothes and some 3 month clothes. I hope for her sake she is tall and lean like her daddy.

She is also really starting to notice her surroundings, especially her toys and mirror on her activity mat. I got a video of her playing from earlier today (if I upload this right)

Feeling Blessed!

Do you ever have those days when the blessings of life are just more apparent to you than others, I think I'm having one of those days. Here are some of the things I'm grateful for:

1. A nice warm home that is comfortable and a place where we can host friends and family, and use the blessings we have been given to bless others.

2. A perfect little girl that is healthy, and getting to watch her literally change every day and learn about the world around her. This week she loves seeing herself in the mirror on her activity mat and coos and smiles. She now give tons of smiles to Daddy and I and doesn't laugh yet but gets this really excited coo when we respond to her smiles. She also just seemed to realize there are toys hanging on her activity mat and hits them and gets really excited that she figured that out, as well as, laying on her tummy and holding her head up like a champ.

3. Being married to a man that is both an amazing father and husband. I didn't realize when we had a child how much more I would love my husband by watching him embrace his role as the rock of our family. I feel like our marriage has grown more in 6 weeks then it probably had in 3 years, b/c you forget all the little things that you used to argue about and just concentrate on taking care of this little person and being a team to accomplish things. The way he takes care of Leah and I melts my heart everyday. Leah is one lucky girl to have a daddy that loves her the way he does and is so hands on with taking care of her, never turning away from changing a diaper or giving a bath, or like this weekend nearly getting pooped on!! :)

4. Friends that want to help us in whatever way they can as we transition though life. We have had meals twice a week brought to us since the week after Leah was born, until this week. It seems like a small thing, but what a blessing to not have to worry about meal planning or eating really badly those first 6 weeks, and getting to spend that time as a family enjoying one another. It also gave us an excuse to get to visit with a lot of friends we don't see as often and get to introduce Leah to them. Also those friends that call to check in just to make sure you are doing OK or that try to help you with the small things b/c you usually have one arm occupied by a little person.

5. An OB/GYN and Pediatrician that are wonderful doctors but that care for the people they see and not just medicine. My OB is close to my age and has two small kids so her opinions are nice to hear and she is helpful and encouraging in being a new mom. She is also very good about making sure that both myself and Adam are taking care of ourselves so we can adequately take care of Leah. Our pediatrician was totally picked by a couple of referrals of friends and he has turned out to be nothing but great. He is awesome with Leah, supportive of me and breastfeeding and willing to allow me try different things to stick with it, and also makes sure Adam and I are doing well so we can be good parents to Miss Leah.

6. Our families. You never know how much you love your parents until you are one yourself. Although I was already really close to my Mom I feel even closer to her now, understanding what it is like to be a Mom. She has been supportive, encouraging, and there whenever I needed her while letting us have our space as needed.

So those are some things going through my mind today and just wanted to get it down to have it to read when I may not being having one of those "I feel so blessed" days :)

One month post ( a little late)

On January 9th, Leah turned 1 month old. I'm going to try and take a picture each month with this same stuffed dog to see how she is growing. Her first month was a great and totally busy month with Christmas and all the other things going on during that time. We finally had some success in the weight gaining department and by the time she was 4 weeks old she was several ounces over her birth weight, it was a lot of work for all involved to get that pound of weight on that little girl. We have enjoyed getting to know our little one and can't wait to see what the future months have in store and how much she is growing and changing.

And this picture if from this weekend at about 6 1/2 weeks, hasn't she changed so much, and Leah just wanted to say "Go Horse"!!!!

Catching up

We've been a little behind on blogging these days so this will be a catch up entry. On Christmas morning we woke up for our first Christmas as a family of 3 and really the only ones with gifts under the tree were Leah and Abbi. Adam and I didn't really worry about getting presents for each other this year since we had so many other things going on with having a baby.




Leah was sporting her Christmas wardrobe and looked a bit like a candy cane, a cute candy cane, of course.




On Christmas Eve Leah got to meet her Uncle Ryan, my brother, since he hadn't been home from St. Louis since she was born. It was weird that my little brother wanted to hold this tiny newborn right away, but I guess having a child of your own gets most guys over the I'm going to break the baby thing. On the Saturday after Christmas she met her Uncle Chris, Aunt Kacey, and only boy cousin, Nolan. We hadn't seen Nolan since this summer, because he and his parents are now living in Boston, and boy has he changed from a 1 year old to an almost 18 month old. He is a very active little boy and is starting to try and talk more, although his words are a little cryptic right now he can get his point across :)

We were a bit busy over the Christmas weekend and just needed some recoup time after that weekend. Adam said next time we need to have better timing and not have a newborn right at Christmas, as if we have that much control :) The last week of the year we just spent a lot of time together since it was the last week before Adam went back to work.

We didn't really do much for NYE since we didn't know if we would be awake, asleep, or feeding a child, we slept through the ball dropping and I think said "Happy New Years" to one another about 2:00 am when Leah woke up to eat.

Below was Leah's first time wearing her Boiler gear for the game against West Virginia on New Year's day. We think she might be the cutest little Boiler fan out there!



In my previous posts I mentioned some issues we have had with Leah's weight gain. After her 2 week appt where she hadn't really gained any weight and was below her birth weight still we tried a different approach to feeding and she lost another 3 oz, at this point the pediatrician was a bit more concerned and so for the next week I exclusively pumped and fed her all the breast milk I could pump and then supplemented with formula until she was full, which seemed to top off at about 3 oz. She did great with the bottle and it was actually a little bit nice that Adam could help me feed her. In that week she gained 13 oz and went from a sleepy, kind of apathetic, eater to a really hungry demanding eater. She was finally back up to her birth weight plus a little more. The pediatrician then said that I could just pump and feed every other feeding and go back to nursing the other feedings. We visited the office again this week for a last weight check and she is still gaining weight, finally this kid is heading in positive territory. We are still doing the combo of pumped milk and nursing but I hardly have to supplement anymore so its working for now and our baby is gaining weight so we are happy.

Although I definitely want her to have the benefits of breast milk, I'm glad I have been pretty open and flexible to how we are feeding her so that we can do what works for us as a family and not get so wrapped up in success or failure on the breastfeeding front. A mindset I would recommend for any new mommy, everything is new and not easy so feeling like you are a failure at something is just a stress that you as a new mom and your family doesn't need!

And here is just a cute picture of our little peanut and as you might be able to tell she is filling out more, you can see it in those chubby little cheeks!! She was done with me taking pictures of her but I think she is so cute when she gets fussy, at least when its during the day and only last a minute or two :)

My Second Week

Well, hello again everyone, I'm now a whole 2 weeks old and life just keeps getting more interesting. Lets see what has happened in week number two, well first of all my cord fell off last week and has been healing very nicely. Mommy and Daddy couldn't figure out where it was for a while after they noticed it fell off, but then Daddy found it in my onesie. Glad my furry friend Abbi didn't find it on the floor and eat it, yuck!!

On Saturday one of Mommy's friends, Kathy, came and took pictures of me and everyone said I was being so good. I didn't cry at all for the awake ones and once they wanted some pictures with my peepers closed I feel right to sleep. I only got a little frustrated at the end when they woke me up to put me in a Christmas dress for some Christmasy pictures, after a couple hours I decided I was done being a model :)

On Sunday I made my first trip to church and all the ladies loved all my hair and that Mommy could already put a bow in it. I slept in my seat for nearly the whole service, until Mommy smelled something a bit foul coming from my direction and determined I had a dirty diaper that needed changed. Mommy and Daddy did a good job scheduling so that I ate right before we went to church and was hungry right when we got home, we all worked together and it was nice for Mommy and Daddy to get out of the house for just a bit.

Other than that we have a ran a few errands here and there for Mommy and Daddy to finish some Christmas shopping or grab some groceries, but I always stay in my seat or we wait in the car so I don't get too many germies around me, being so little and all.

Yesterday we went for my 2 week check-up and I was supposed to have gained enough weight to be back to my birth weight. Well I had a surprise for Mommy and Daddy, even though I seem to be a great eater, I hadn't gained any weight from my 1 week check-up and still need to gain 9 oz to get to my birth weight. I think Mommy and Daddy were a little bummed about that, maybe I just have a good metabolism :) Dr M., my pediatrician, said this happens pretty frequently and that for the next week we need to breastfeed and then Mommy needs to pump and feed me that as a supplement. I go back next week and hopefully have gained quite a bit of weight. This new schedule is a little harder on everyone because it now takes longer to feed me and Mommy and Daddy are trying to get in more feeds a day, so sleep deprivation for them might be back for awhile. I'm a really good sleeper so they were kind of getting used to having some decent periods of sleep at night before starting this new schedule, I just like to keep them on their toes.

Well tomorrow is Christmas Eve and we are heading to Mamaw and Pampa Love's for the day, and then on Christmas, after we open our presents that morning, Grandpa and Nana Phillips and Uncle Matt are coming over for lunch. I'll have to fill you in more on my first Christmas in the next post.

My first week....from Leah's perspective

Hello everyone, this it little Leah and I have been out in the big bad world for a week now (actually a little longer, but it took me a few times of asking to get Mommy to sit down and type this). Things have been good so far; me, Mommy, and Daddy have gotten to know each other better everyday and are doing pretty well and are starting to get more settled into feeling comfortable with feeding and other things and getting faster at them all the time.

I've had a lot of family coming to see me, of course my grandparents are always up for a visit and like to snuggle with me. They only seem to complain about my little green friend, my soothie paci, they say its always in my mouth when they want to get a picture. Mommy and Daddy don't care about good pictures, like me, and are just glad that my paci and I are such good friends when other things don't make me happy!!

I have tried out my activity mat, my bouncer, and my swing. I like them all for about 10 to 20 minutes and then I'm ready to be with either Mommy or Daddy for awhile. I think I might try them for longer periods of time to give Mommy and Daddy more breaks.

I'm a really good eater and at my first Doctor's appointment on Tuesday I had gained back 3 oz from the weight I was at when discharged from the hospital, my Doctor was really happy with this. I am also making lots of wet and dirty diapers for Mommy and Daddy and I like giving Daddy the nicest gifts which usually require a new onesie and changing pad protector, he still loves me though. Mommy and Daddy take me back to the doctor next week and hopefully I am back up to my birthweight or more, if my eating is any indicator I don't think it should be a problem.

The last few days Mommy and Daddy have felt much better because I have been really good at going down after my night feedings and letting them get 2 1/2 or 3 hour stretches of sleep before the next feeding. Sometimes they have to wake me up to feed because I like sleeping so much. We figured out the trick was swaddling me in my Aden and Anais muslin blankets. Mommy is so glad she got those for me after some raving reviews by her mommy friends. I sometimes play tricks on Mommy and Daddy and sleeep a lot during the day so that they think I will never sleep at night, but I still sleep at night, I just like to make them sweat :)!!

Mommy and Daddy have an older furry child named Abbi and so far we get along just great. Abbi likes me and is somewhat protective of me. If I am crying a lot she wants to make sure I am ok and will follow Mommy and Daddy everywhere with me until she knows it is ok. She also checks out everyone that comes over to visit me to make sure they are OK. She likes to sniff me and sometimes her hair tickles my nose which makes me squirm. I think as I get older we will continue to be friends, she seems like a nice doggy.

Just in the last few days Mommy has gotten out the Moby "D" wrap and Slingling for carrying me around hands-free, and I love them. I get all warm and cozy and plus I get to be close to Mommy and hear her heartbeat which puts me right to sleep. This is going to be a great help for Mommy once Daddy goes back to work and she needs to use both of her hands to do things around the house.

Well that is about all I can think of to tell you right now, but I'll be back to tell you more about my 2nd week and my first Christmas.