Don't get too excited...I'm not talking about me but my best friend, who is like family to me, went to the hospital this morning after her water broke. I am beyond thrilled to meet this new addition and am just beside myself with excitement! I can barely concentrate on work and my mind is going a mile a minute! We don't know the sex or name yet so I am crawling out of my skin with anticipation!
To my best friend, Diane -
I am so excited to welcome you to the mommy club. Your baby is one lucky kid to have you and Bob as parents. I cannot wait to watch you and your family grow together! Stella is also very excited that you made her a new friend :)
I love you!!!!
Ally
Please keep her and her family in your prayers today!
Friday, February 24, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Happy Birthday, Great Grandma!!
Today is Stella's Great Grandma's (on mommy's side) birthday so we took a little picture for her!
We feel so blessed to have Great Grandma Hedman (and all our grandparents and great grandparents) in our lives! We love you! Happy birthday!
We feel so blessed to have Great Grandma Hedman (and all our grandparents and great grandparents) in our lives! We love you! Happy birthday!
Friday, February 17, 2012
And We Can Clap!!
Look at who learned how to clap while mommy was out playing Bunco...Sorry it is sideways :)
Monday, February 13, 2012
The Wave
Miss Stella is perfecting the wave. Not the kind you see at sporting events but the kind you use to say hello and goodbye. She has figured out how to flick her wrist up and down and she now does it to everyone. Unfortunately, she still won't do it on command but, boy oh boy, when she is in the mood to wave, she will wave at anyone and everyone. Last night, we were shopping at Safeway and she would look down an aisle and wave at anyone in her path. It was pretty darn cute. Now if she would only do it on command. Our next trick we are trying to learn is clapping!
She has also discovered her shadow and found that it is the only friend that will never leave her when she wants to play. Here is a quick video of her recent discovery. You can see her wrist start to do the wave flick just a little bit in the video
She also loves playing with her football that Grammy gave her for the Superbowl. According to her daddy, she might be the first female kicker in the NFL...we'll see. I'm guessing kicking may be her best bet because she fumbles the ball quite a bit right now :)
As for an update on her weight issue, she still isn't so keen on drinking 8 oz of formula at one time but she is adjusting really well to it. The max we can get her to drink is about 6.5oz, which is great in my book. She is loving her solid foods and puffs, of course, and I am still nursing her as much as I can. I sort of feel like all she does is eat these days but I guess that is what she needs right now. I'm still dealing with a bit of mother's guilt but she is slowly helping me through that by being adorable and sweet. She is just growing into such a sweet little girl and I am so thankful to have her as my daughter!
She ate meats for the first time last week and she isn't quite sure about the taste. She had chicken with vegetables and she definitely eats it but doesn't scarf it down like she does her other foods.
She has also recently gone outside of the house with her nanny, Selah, during the day while I work. Selah takes her to the YMCA for some water play and then to the local library for a sit and read with kids her age. I'm glad that she is getting a chance to be exposed to other children. Being that she has a nanny that comes into our house, she doesn't really have that much exposure to other kids which is good for some things because she has stayed relatively healthy but she doesn't get the socialization that daycare kids get. In addition, she also spent Sunday morning in the church nursery. The woman in the nursery said that she just sat and watched two 18 month old boys run around and didn't make a peep. My chatty little girl went silent LOL.
Lastly, here is a picture of Stella lounging in a high chair while we ate breakfast (in her adorable outfit from Auntie Serena!). I'm not sure why she does this but she pulls her legs up over the bar and just leans back to relax. It is pretty funny to watch. We can always get her to sit properly by putting a few puffs on the table for her to reach and eat :)
That's all for now :) I will keep you posted on her progression.
She has also discovered her shadow and found that it is the only friend that will never leave her when she wants to play. Here is a quick video of her recent discovery. You can see her wrist start to do the wave flick just a little bit in the video
She also loves playing with her football that Grammy gave her for the Superbowl. According to her daddy, she might be the first female kicker in the NFL...we'll see. I'm guessing kicking may be her best bet because she fumbles the ball quite a bit right now :)
As for an update on her weight issue, she still isn't so keen on drinking 8 oz of formula at one time but she is adjusting really well to it. The max we can get her to drink is about 6.5oz, which is great in my book. She is loving her solid foods and puffs, of course, and I am still nursing her as much as I can. I sort of feel like all she does is eat these days but I guess that is what she needs right now. I'm still dealing with a bit of mother's guilt but she is slowly helping me through that by being adorable and sweet. She is just growing into such a sweet little girl and I am so thankful to have her as my daughter!
She ate meats for the first time last week and she isn't quite sure about the taste. She had chicken with vegetables and she definitely eats it but doesn't scarf it down like she does her other foods.
She has also recently gone outside of the house with her nanny, Selah, during the day while I work. Selah takes her to the YMCA for some water play and then to the local library for a sit and read with kids her age. I'm glad that she is getting a chance to be exposed to other children. Being that she has a nanny that comes into our house, she doesn't really have that much exposure to other kids which is good for some things because she has stayed relatively healthy but she doesn't get the socialization that daycare kids get. In addition, she also spent Sunday morning in the church nursery. The woman in the nursery said that she just sat and watched two 18 month old boys run around and didn't make a peep. My chatty little girl went silent LOL.
Lastly, here is a picture of Stella lounging in a high chair while we ate breakfast (in her adorable outfit from Auntie Serena!). I'm not sure why she does this but she pulls her legs up over the bar and just leans back to relax. It is pretty funny to watch. We can always get her to sit properly by putting a few puffs on the table for her to reach and eat :)
That's all for now :) I will keep you posted on her progression.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
A step back...
Motherhood has been an amazing journey so far but I feel like I am on a bit of a roller coaster sometimes. Over the past few months, Stella has become this happy, interactive little girl. She really only fusses when she is hungry and tired and both of those things have easy solutions so we have been able to maintain a pretty calm and happy household. We've been able to travel easily, go out in public for extended periods of time and have fun as a family.
Stella has been a little dream baby lately. She is so flexible and happy to go with the flow and be social so it has made life more fun and exciting. This weekend we went back to visit our family in Auburn and she was so content being at events and being with other people. She would even bop to music when it was played. I just glowed watching her interact with everyone and seeing how happy she is. I finally felt like I was getting a grip on this whole mothering thing...finally getting really confident in my abilities and with my instincts and then sure enough, I get a curve ball.
We had Stella's 9 month check up yesterday and she has lost weight. She went from being on the 50th percentile to being on the 5th for weight. She is back at her 4 month weight which is just shocking! I had a feeling she might be the same weight as her 6 month check up but I had no idea she had lost 2 pounds!! The girl is an eater! I am still breastfeeding her on demand. When she is fussy, she eats as long as it is within reason (meaning I wasn't feeding her every 30 minutes but she never goes longer than 4 hours without eating). I was doing what I thought was really best for my baby and breast feeding her and she was not getting enough nutrients from me. In addition to breastfeeding, she also eats solids 2-3 times per day and gets plenty of cereal puffs and fruits and veggies in her mesh feeder. She was so content and happy after breastfeeding that she didn't ever seem hungry or like she wasn't getting enough.
When I look at the situation, my logical brain knows that it isn't my fault and that I was doing the best I could but my emotional brain is dealing with a lot of guilt right now. How could I not have seen that kind of weight loss? What could I have done better? What am I doing wrong? What if this affects her long term? UGH!!!! It is so frustrating. My mommy confidence is really shaken by this whole thing and I feel extremely guilty for letting this occur to my sweet, sweet baby! I was doing everything that my instincts told me I was supposed to do and I thought everything was as it should be but it turns out I was wrong. Again, I know logically that I was doing the best that I could but it is really hard to swallow that this could happen right under my nose.
The doctor, although very concerned, was great about reassuring us that he knew we were loving parents and would never neglect Stella. He noted that he wrote that in his notes so that the insurance company would not put a red flag up about neglect due to her stats. Just writing that word breaks my heart! The fact that based off of the numbers presented someone could think that my baby was neglected! That just pains me to the core of who I am.
The doctor has asked us to supplement in 3x 8oz bottles of formula per day, along with 3x solid feedings and I will continue to breastfeed. So far we haven't been able to get her to drink more than 5oz and she refuses solids if she's taken in that much formula but I know that it will be a slow process to get her used to that much food. Baby steps for Miss Stella. We will be seen back in 1 month. Please pray for her and her growth.
Stella has been a little dream baby lately. She is so flexible and happy to go with the flow and be social so it has made life more fun and exciting. This weekend we went back to visit our family in Auburn and she was so content being at events and being with other people. She would even bop to music when it was played. I just glowed watching her interact with everyone and seeing how happy she is. I finally felt like I was getting a grip on this whole mothering thing...finally getting really confident in my abilities and with my instincts and then sure enough, I get a curve ball.
We had Stella's 9 month check up yesterday and she has lost weight. She went from being on the 50th percentile to being on the 5th for weight. She is back at her 4 month weight which is just shocking! I had a feeling she might be the same weight as her 6 month check up but I had no idea she had lost 2 pounds!! The girl is an eater! I am still breastfeeding her on demand. When she is fussy, she eats as long as it is within reason (meaning I wasn't feeding her every 30 minutes but she never goes longer than 4 hours without eating). I was doing what I thought was really best for my baby and breast feeding her and she was not getting enough nutrients from me. In addition to breastfeeding, she also eats solids 2-3 times per day and gets plenty of cereal puffs and fruits and veggies in her mesh feeder. She was so content and happy after breastfeeding that she didn't ever seem hungry or like she wasn't getting enough.
When I look at the situation, my logical brain knows that it isn't my fault and that I was doing the best I could but my emotional brain is dealing with a lot of guilt right now. How could I not have seen that kind of weight loss? What could I have done better? What am I doing wrong? What if this affects her long term? UGH!!!! It is so frustrating. My mommy confidence is really shaken by this whole thing and I feel extremely guilty for letting this occur to my sweet, sweet baby! I was doing everything that my instincts told me I was supposed to do and I thought everything was as it should be but it turns out I was wrong. Again, I know logically that I was doing the best that I could but it is really hard to swallow that this could happen right under my nose.
The doctor, although very concerned, was great about reassuring us that he knew we were loving parents and would never neglect Stella. He noted that he wrote that in his notes so that the insurance company would not put a red flag up about neglect due to her stats. Just writing that word breaks my heart! The fact that based off of the numbers presented someone could think that my baby was neglected! That just pains me to the core of who I am.
The doctor has asked us to supplement in 3x 8oz bottles of formula per day, along with 3x solid feedings and I will continue to breastfeed. So far we haven't been able to get her to drink more than 5oz and she refuses solids if she's taken in that much formula but I know that it will be a slow process to get her used to that much food. Baby steps for Miss Stella. We will be seen back in 1 month. Please pray for her and her growth.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Stella's First Word!!! Mama!
It is official people...Stella said her first word today and it was mama. As many of you know, I am a telecommuter so I work out of my home office. During my work day, we have a nanny come in and take care of Stella so that I can focus on work but I get to sneak down and give her a little snuggle on breaks and at lunch. Well, today I went downstairs to get some coffee and Stella was laying on her tummy and gave me a HUGE smile when she saw me, which I totally love every time she does that. Anyway, she started making this grunting noise she does when she's excited and I just said, "Can you say mama?" Sure enough, she said, "mama". I looked at our nanny and asked if she heard it and she confirmed that she did. Thinking it was definitely a fluke, I repeated it. "Stella, can you say mama?" Stella repeated, "mama". Her nanny and I both started jumping up and down and let our excited squeals of our own. So much so that it scared Stella and she started to cry. After I was done with work, I kept trying to get her to say it again and she would say it really softly or sometimes not stop with 2x and just keep saying, "mamamamamama".
She said it in front of Matt tonight, although he said he didn't really hear it.
At 8 months, I was not expecting her to be able to repeat any words but I guess she is choosing to advance in her vocabulary since she still is refusing to crawl :)
So...we are going to continue to work on mama and work on dada too. That way she'll be able to call for dada in the middle of the night when she wants attention LOL.
Shopping with Auntie Diane
Saturday was a fun day for Stella! First, she got to go to her very first birthday party. Her friend, Finley, turns 1 on 1/11 (what an awesome birthday) and his party was on Saturday. She had only gotten about an hour nap before the party so we were a little worried that she would be a grumpy girl but she was so good and happy the entire time. She let our friends hold her and stayed jolly throughout it all. She loved watching Finn eat his cake and was introduced to balloons, which she thinks are really cool. Finn was such a stud the whole time and he was so well behaved through the whole party. I kept telling Stella that she should take notes for her party. In addition, I'm also going to hire Finn's mom as my party planner because that party was so amazing and so put together! I am still amazed at all of the time that must have gone into planning that party! SOOOOO FUN!
After the party, we went shopping with Auntie Diane. I was thinking she would fall asleep in the car and take, at least, a little nap but nope...no 2nd nap for Stella. At this point, I was really worried that she would be so grumpy the rest of the day since she is used to at least 2x 1.5-2 hour naps per day. We went to DSW, Ulta, Carters and then off to the downtown mall. Stella got to ride in her stroller facing out, like a big girl, rather than in her infant seat clicked into the stroller and boy oh boy...she LOVED it! My daughter, who normally mean mugs strangers, was smiling and cooing at everyone she saw. By the time we got to Nordstrom, she was in rare form (in a good way). She was smiling and squealing all over the store and mall. It was actually a bit embarrassing because she was so loud with her little, joyful squeal. People from all over were coming up and telling me how adorable she was. I, of course, think she is pretty darn cute but it never really gets old hearing it from other people.
Finally, 5 hours later, we got ready to get back in the car to go home and finally she let out a fussy cry as I was putting her in her car seat. I gotta say...that was WAY better than I expected and that might have been the happiest I have ever seen her. Let's hope its because we were with Auntie Diane and not because she loves to shop so much or else we could be in trouble if we have a little shopaholic!
What a fun weekend! We couldn't have asked for anything better!
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