Big Smiles

How can you not smile when you see this precious face! Oh how I love being a mommy!

Fun with Family!

"Why such a fussy face?" asks Aunt Pam.

Big Cousin Connor posin' for a pic!


Big Cousin Zoe taking charge!

This past week has been packed full of activity and family! It has been nice that everyone has been so willing to help. I don't know if it's willingness to help actually, or just a want to cuddle with a cute, cute baby! Either way it has been nice. Although there were a few times where I had to actively seek out my child because I hadn't seen her in a few hours! But that's the price I pay for such a loving family I guess! :)

Zoe, who recently turned 13, did just a wonderful job taking charge and helping with the feedings and diaper changes! She was excited to come and help and it was such a joy for me to have her here, remembering the times that I did those same things for her! I was 17 when Zoe was born and lived just as far from her as she does from Sophia, but it is such an exciting time for everyone!

Updates

Sophia in Zoe's adorable hat creation!

Aunt Cathy got to work sewing for Sophia!

Well first of all it is nice to know that we have such gifted seamstresses in our family. I can't sew, knit, stitch, and I can barely Velcro, so I'm happy to know that we have such loving resources for all the latest fashions! Zoe's hat was knitted by hand with possibly the softest yarn I've ever felt! It is absolutely perfect for the upcoming winter season and Sophia is very grateful for such a warm piece since she doesn't have much hair to keep that head warm! Cathy sewed the whole outfit from scratch...love it! The pink pants have little poodles all over them if you can't tell and the sweater is an adorable boat neck. She also made some green pants that make an appearance in Sophia's Halloween pics too!



Plan C, nursing via pumping, is going pretty well. It is much easier than the tear filled attempts at breastfeeding from the past. I realized that the most important thing to me was that Sophia was getting my milk, and now she is with much less headache. With all the craziness of the past few weeks, and total lack of sleep, my milk supply has unfortunately suffered. So I started back up on the Fenugreek to increase my milk, which sucks b/c I forgot that awful smell of syrup and now it's back, and I'm trying to pump more frequently. PLUS, I did manage to get some extra sleep the last three days. I also invested in the best invention ever...the hands free bustier! For those of you who don't know, this little thing is a gem, and a must have for any nursing mother! It is basically a tube top that zips up over your boobs. You thread the pump parts through it and viola...you have hands free pumping! This allows me to feed Sophia while I pump! This is a true life saver during the middle of the night and has cut my time in half! Plus, if I have another willing body to feed her, I get to read a magazine, a luxury I've missed out on lately! I'm going to continue pumping until I can't do it anymore mentally, or my milk runs out, whichever comes first!



Sophia continues to gain weight and be healthy. I was a little behind on scheduling her 2 month check-up, but she'll be going in at the end of the month for more shots, etc. Plus, this will be the first time we meet her doctor. I have been upset with her office b/c it's kind of like a baby factory with all the kids they move in and out and we haven't been "allowed" to schedule an appointment with the actual doctor. Up until now we've been seeing a nurse practitioner. I had considered changing offices, and still am, but I'd like to see how it goes with the actual doctor before I bail.



She still has bouts of fussiness that I think are due to a fairly mild case of colic. We think it's terrible, but from what I've heard, we ain't seen nuthin' yet! Thank God, let's keep it that way! I think we discovered that Chinese food does not agree with her, which is a bummer for me, so we've cut that out of the diet for now. She is smiling very regularly now and loves to play in the morning time. She is sleeping a bit longer at night, about 4-6 hours depending on her mood, and she absolutely loves the swing that sings! She actively tries to find her thumb to suck, which is too adorable for words. She's often not quite sure where or what it is, but knows there's something near her hand that she likes. So she'll sort of waive her hand near her mouth until something accidentally goes in and then she sucks. Sometimes she gets lucky, sometimes she doesn't. She also calms to the car and she still loves her Johnny Cash when we play it on the radio! We think she may turn out to be quite musical b/c she loves to listen to music and she is very noisy. So, she'll either sing or talk a lot...and since so far she has proven to be a lot like me, I'm voting for the latter! Yikes!



I started working out with something called Baby Boot Camp. It's a pretty cool program and wow, I got more of a workout than I bargained for! You can check it out on-line for anyone who's interested, but even after only one class, I think I'm going to like it. Well, at least I know it will help me get back into my clothes which is really the goal.

Love to Bampa

My father passed away early yesterday morning. Although this is a time of great sadness in my life I am very thankful that he at least got to meet his granddaughter. I know that he loved her very much and she would have absolutely loved him if she had gotten to know him! I have posted the only pictures I have of him and Sophia.

When we were children, we called my dad's dad Bampa. He was a very loving man, but was also called from this world early in life. I was only about 6-7 when he died. When Shelby was born, my dad lit up with the thought that he too would now be a Bampa. Although his health was poor throughout my pregnancy he was always excited to see my progress and anxious to meet this new baby. He thought from the beginning that I was carrying a little girl, one of the few, and was not too surprised when she came out, because he had known all along.

During his final days we took Sophia to visit him in the hospital. He absolutely lit up when he saw her. He smiled and smiled and immediately reached out to hold her. He kept calling her a little doll, which of course she is, and loved her so much. Each time we would visit, she would wake up and start talking. She would be asleep the whole time before the visit and as soon as we got to his room, she'd wake up and start the party! I found this very fascinating.

On his final day, although unresponsive, I'm positive that he knew his little doll was there. I snuggled Sophia next to him in his bed and she just looked at him and cooed. She put her little hands on his face and even grabbed his beard. I think maybe they had their own line of communication.

She is a major factor in me coping with all of my feelings. I know that I have to go on for her because she needs me. Sometimes the thought of going on for myself just isn't enough. Before he passed, I informed my dad that I was counting on him to be her guardian angel. I hope that he is here with us helping me to watch over and protect our little girl.

We love you and miss you, Dad.

Trick or Treat

This Halloween thing is not all its cracked up to be!

Sleepin' on the job

When it was time to greet the trick-or-treaters, Sophia donned her costume too! She looked expectantly adorable in her pumpkin outfit. She helped us pass out some candy but mostly she just slept on the job! Darn baby!



Our neighborhood was very busy Halloween night. It makes me hopeful that when she becomes trick or treating age, she will be surrounded by nice children her own age to play with right on our own block!

Happy Halloween!

Who's that ghosty with the mosty?!

I look cute, but I'm not happy about it!

All tuckered out after a long day of meeting people!

Sophia was all decked out for Halloween and looking especially adorable in her new Halloween outfit courtesy of Kathleen and Lily!



I took Sophia to visit all my friends at school on Wednesday as well. I figured what better day to visit than Halloween...this plan was two fold. One, I knew that I wouldn't be stopping any learning going on that day by showing up unannounced into various classrooms as it was guaranteed to be crazy. Secondly, I did myself a favor by visiting on one of the worst and craziest days of the school year to remind myself that I did the right thing by not going back to work this year! I was successful on both accounts!



I enjoyed seeing all my friends and colleagues and everyone was thrilled to see Sophia. I worked there 7 years watching everyone else get married and have babies and it was my turn. And rest-assured, people made sure they I knew that they were thinking it was "about time" for my turn to come! Surprisingly I got a lot of people who voted on the Charlie front for who she looked like which was surprising since most people say she looks like me. I think the older she's getting the more she is looking like Charlie, but our baby pictures are pretty similar!

An Old Friend

Lily enjoying her pudding!

While Kathleen and I caught up on old times, Charlie and Sophia caught up on some Zzzzs!

I had a visit from my old friend Kathleen this week. She was my freshman year college roommate and we've been somewhat inseparable since then. I mean, the whole Baltimore-Kansas City thing kinda gets in the way, but she's always been a great friend and support for me over the years :) Plus, she's been an excellent baby resource and as some of you may remember, the inspiration for the blog.



Her daughter Lily had a great time walking with Sophia, chasing Walter and eating pudding. She is such a doll and it was hard to imagine that some day, Sophia will be 2 years old, walking, talking and being silly too! I hate to get too nostalgic since she's only 6 weeks old, but still, I was looking at her pictures from the day she was born and marveling at how much she's changed already. She smiles a lot and is very alert when she's awake. She likes the sounds the music and running water. So far U2 and Johnny Cash are at the top of her list!

I hated to say goodbye to the them as it is too infrequent that we get together. Hopefully however, they will be relocated to St. Louis soon and make it much easier for visits!