Chicken Wonder

When we burp her between feedings, Stella does this thing where she bobs her head around like a cross between a little chicken pecking around for food and a Stevie Wonder-style head weave. Stephen had her on his shoulder and she started weaving around, searching for more to eat. She really puts her whole torso into it, it is quite impressive for a 10 day old. Anyway in her head weaving food search, she came across his earlobe, latched on and started sucking. He was like "aah!" and couldn't stop laughing.

baby pics

when we got this little dress, we were sure she would never wear it. it is seriously like doll clothes.




Stella on the quilt that Grandma Celeste made:


Mom & baby, minus makeup & both probably needing a nap.

Stella meets her cousins

Saturday we had visitors, and Stella got to meet more of her aunts, uncles, cousins and Nana & Poppa. Jack saw her nursery and said "wow, she must really like pink!"
Here she is with cousins Zachary & Maxwell:

We love Grandma Celeste!

My mom is here and is a huge help. So far she has baked four kinds of cookies and made an apple crisp. Somehow I have still lost most of my baby weight. But then again she will be here for a while... so who knows how that will turn out! We love it though.

Bag O Baby

We bought a sling and Stella absolutely loves to be carried in it. Here are a few pictures. We took a family walk around the block the other day, she also likes to be in there around the house, which is nice because you can hold her and still have use of your arms. Jess still has a bit of recovery to do before she can manage the sling for long stretches.

Grandma Cold-Hands Warms Everyone's Hearts

goodbye grandpa mike & grandma jenny

My dad & Jenny just left this morning, they got her the day after Stella was born. It has been so wonderful having them here. We already miss them, and Stella definitely misses "grandma coldhands" who did such a great job helping me keep her awake during feedings. We hope they come back often and soon.

so far we are recovering well. i'm feeling pretty good and Stella is finally growing. we brought her back in today for a follow up with her pediatrician, and she had put on 4 oz since monday, which is exactly what we needed. i guess it is common for all babies, and especially c-section babies, to lose some of their birth weight in the beginning, then gain it back by end of the second week. still, it is a bit nerve-wracking, especially when you are the food source. but she is eating like a champ and today's weigh-in just validates that everything is going well.

My mom is still here and we are delighted to have her, Stella is just loving having her around. This weekend Stephen's parents and sister are coming, we can't wait for everyone to meet her! She has a really sweet disposition so far, cries when something is wrong but stops when you fix it.

so far so good!

I don't dare say it...

I don't want to jinx it, but so far it seems we may have a baby with not only Stephen's looks, but also his sleeping habits. We've had a couple of great nights, I really hope they continue...

Welcome Stella Rose Mandala

Home sweet Home

We're home. Never thought that our place could feel more like a home, but it does. Baby and Mom are doing great. Dad is even better!

She has a name!

please welcome Miss Stella Rose!

She's here!

healthy and perfect.
8 lbs 4 oz
20 inches long
37 cm head circumference.

we're doing fine. very happy.

Becca was with us and took lots of good pictures, you can see them on her Flickr site:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisandbecca/sets/72157604575290740/

We have a birthday!

Had weekly doctor appointment yesterday afternoon. She was still talking about letting labor start and all that, until she took a look at my cervix. Then, "Oh. You need a c-section."

So baby will be born Wednesday (tomorrow)!

We went out for a nice dinner with Becca & Chris to celebrate, since it will be one of the last times for a while where we won't need a sitter. Steak and yumminess.

Got to run, but that's the update. I'm just glad I didn't have to pick her birthday.

Nursery pics

Here are a few shots of the nursery. It is still a bit of a work in progress. Working on a mirror and a big flower thing for the walls, I think the artwork will just evolve as we go.



Mom made the bedding and curtains, and I finally found a use for my collection of little shoes - had these before I got married.





With the curtains closed, it sort of glows pink in the whole room. I love it.


Mom made the quilt on the chair too. Super cute.

Who needs a pack & play, anyway?

Apparently a stack of paper will do just fine... I bought a ream of paper today.

chick-free playdates

We found a pediatrician yesterday, so that's one more thing we can check off the list. Weird to be setting up all these things (picking a doctor, packing clothes, etc) for a person we haven't even met yet. We are excited!

On the way home I mentioned to Stephen that a colleague of mine has a husband who stays home with their newborn, and that he just got plugged in to a local network of stay at home dads.

S: I don't think I'm ready to think about that yet. I need to focus on the baby first.

J: Yeah, but it could be a fun group once we're in the swing of things. Playdates without all the chicks around.

S: so what do they do, play poker and watch sports at non-smoking establishments? (thinks on this concept...) hmmm.... how many babies can you fit in a pack & play, anyway?

J: yeah, i don't think you're ready to think about this one yet.

Stephen vs. Pack & Play (part 2)

I've decided to get twisty ties and some chicken wire.

Stephen vs the pack and play

Round 1: Stephen tries to put together the pack and play.
Winner: Pack and Play

Round 2: Stephen gives up and tries to get the fucking thing back in the box.
Winner: Pack and Play

Round 3: The pack and play is returned to the store in several pieces--without a receipt.
Winner: Babies r us; i.e. the pack and play

To be continued....

i heart aquacize

Tonight I went to my water aerobics class. I usually go on Mondays and Wednesdays, and I can't recommend it highly enough, especially for pregnant chicks. Not only do you get the zero gravity thing, which feels wonderful, but pretty much all you have to do is show up and people start praising you for being so dedicated. Apparently doing any kind of activity while pregnant means you are a seriously dedicated athlete. Who knew?!

I get told things like "you are in such great shape!" which is SO NOT something I usually hear. I love it. The people in my class are really nice and excited for me; tonight they even went together and gave me a baby gift. So sweet. It is so easy to want to go with that kind of encouragement!

So far I have dragged my mom, Stephen, and Becca into attending with me. What good sports they are. It really is fun and feels way too silly to be as good a workout as it is. Stephen makes trouble, though, of course, and tries to start waterfights with everyone - and gets seriously drenched.

like an orange on a toothpick

So I'm thinking about this big-headed baby, and I can't help picturing this sweet little infant who can't lift her giant head. I guess she will have to have strong neck muscles. It will be interesting to see if she's really that big - sonograms can be notoriously wrong.

Good thing we're not having a boy - reminds me of this scene:

sometimes it's nice to know that someone would take a knife for you

Stephen the subconscious protector struck again last week. He was sleepwalking and thought that a knife was coming down from the ceiling to stab me. He valiantly threw his body over my head to protect me and bravely took a dream-induced stab wound to ensure my safety.

On the one hand it is a bit disconcerting to be tackled in your sleep. On the other hand, nice to know he would literally jump in front of a knife to save me!

my world is surely changing...

three signs:

• Becca calls and wants to work out with me (yay!!!)
• Stephen wants to go to dinner at Chuy's (which he hates)
• Dad & Jenny are coming to town a week before my due date, just in case a baby shows up (yay again!)

not to mention the preponderance of baby paraphenalia in our house...

stroke of (bum) genius?

I am ridiculously excited to have placed an order today for the cutest cloth diapers ever. They are called Bum Genius and are similar to Fuzzi Bunz, except that they grow with the child, so hopefully this one set will last until toddlerhood.

A good friend of mine does cloth and is very enthusiastic about it, we are pretty excited to try it out. I'm sure you're thinking, yuck, cloth diapers, pins and rubber pants... but things have changed a lot over the years. These are cute "pocket" style diapers, with removeable inserts. Fabrics have come a long way (hello, breatheable microfiber fleece and velco!) and they are machine washable. Disposable, flushable liners for solids also help.

So why cloth? Here's the theory, we'll see how well reality holds up:

• cheaper!
• more comfy for baby
• potty train earlier
• less diaper rash
• environmentally friendly
• less yuck factor - I would absolutely rather do a load of diapers in the laundry every night than have to buy a special stink-containing diaper pail to sit in my child's room

We'll see how this goes...

tick, tick, tick...

The countdown is on. Today I am 38 weeks and 1 day. Baby could come at any time now. Trying to find a balance between "stay active to help labor come on" and "stay rested in case labor comes on". Got to have a bike ride on Saturday which was AWESOME. Sweet spring air, sunny sky and cool breeze, especially on a bike. My friend Wes thinks the baby will be predisposed to techno music after living with my strong heartbeat all these months...

Dr. says we are looking at a 95% chance of a c-section, but we're going to let the baby get the party started. So hopefully I will just go into labor sometime in the next two weeks, then if things don't progress we will switch to a c-section. Turns out my cervix is backward, my pelvis is tiny (despite my ample hips), and the baby's head measurements are off the chart. Literally. At last week's sonogram, they did the measurements and the computer was like "does not compute!" Even with a tiny baby we would be looking at a difficult exit to this building, architecturally speaking. So my Dr. allows for the possibility for a miracle, which I suppose is a good quality in a physician, but we are preparing for a c-section. Truly I am happy with anything that gets this baby out safely!

One thing I can check off the list...

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