Stretchy Baby

Sophie loves to stretch when we take her out of a swaddle or out of her car seat.

Check out the satisfied face on this baby.

Stretch those legs

The Name Game

I got tagged by Robin, who was tagged by Stephanie, who was tagged by Leslie for The Name Game.

I named my daughter Sophie Grace.

When we got pregnant, I wanted to wait to see what we were having before discussing names, just to simplify the process, but that didn't happen. We got too excited to think of names, and began a list for both genders.

I was really undecided about boy names before we got our ultrasound, and was kind of hoping that we'd have a girl, just to give me more time to think about boy names. Jake & I threw around a bunch of girl names, and had our list narrowed down to a few that we both liked, but in different orders. My top name was Annie, and Jake's top name was Ella. Then we thought of Sophie, and added it to our list. I decided in my head that Sophie is what I really really wanted to use, but didn't say anything, as I was still up for using the other names. Then one day, Jake said, "I really like the name Sophie" so I jumped in and said that I did too, so it stuck.

We both feel it is really important to use a family name in the names of our children - either as the first name or as the middle name. Grace is Jake's paternal grandmother's name. He has always wanted to use it as a middle name, and it fit perfectly with Sophie, so that is how Sophie Grace got her name.

I tag Nana, Jill B., Jill S., & Shauntel (start a blog!)

Bath Time

Check out this cute belly.

Sophie finally lost her little black belly button ring on Tuesday, so as a reward, she got her first real bath yesterday. I was pretty nervous because I had heard that babies either love baths or hate them. Luckily for us, she loves them. She was a little hesitant when we first put her in the water (she gave us her concerned look, as reinacted in the photo below),
but then relaxed and really enjoyed herself.

She also must have known the camera was coming, because she kept herself modest for the pictures.

Don't Forget

Reminder:

The Halloween Costume Party is THIS FRIDAY!!!

Feel free to comment or e-mail with any questions.

See you Friday!

Bright Eyes

Dr. Karp Theories in Action

Today is Sophie's 2-week birthday. According to Dr. Karp, this is the time that babies begin to show signs of colic. Sophie is a very happy baby, but for the last couple days, she has had a hard time calming herself starting at around 7pm, with an additional fussy time somewhere between 3 & 6am.


So, here is Sophie with 3 of Dr. Karp's methods of calming in action. Notice her radio in the swing next to her. Prior to this she was fussy, sad, and flailing her arms and legs.

She has always loved to be Swaddled, and likes being carried around on her Side. About a week ago, we introduced her to naps in the Swing, which she took to nicely. Only yesterday did we introduce her to her radio. It's tuned in to her favorite station: White Noise. It stops her crying instantly. The hair dryer is just as effective, as is Jake or I Shushing her. She is still getting used to Sucking on a pacifier, but I think she's catching on.

I now fully appreciate Dr. Karp's theories, and encourage everyone on earth to read his book, "The Happiest Baby on the Block" (recommended to me by Stephanie). He has saved us from hours of walking around the house, bouncing a fussy baby. And more importantly, he has saved Sophie from what could have been hours of sad, red-faced cries.

Sorry for the 100% promotional blog entry here, but I thought it needed to be done. I'm very glad both Jake and I read his book before she was born, so we were ready for her when she came.

New Shoes

Dear Grandma Kim,














My new shoes fit great!

Love,
Sophie

Hooray for Visitors!

Sophie has had so many visitors this past week!

On Thursday, she had a great time with her Nana Susan, who can calm her instantly.

On Friday, she enjoyed her time with her Aunt Stephanie, who couldn't get enough of her great smell, and her 2 cousins: Mabel (who thought she was so soft) and Oliver (who was a little hesitant to come close to her).

On Saturday, her Aunt Robin & cousin Charlotte came to say hi (their relationships are a little more complicated than that - Robin is actually my cousin. This just seems easier). Robin made us a delicious dinner and Charlotte & Sophie get along great (for a one-week-old & a 9-month-old). They seem so far apart in age/size right now, but that will soon change.

And on Sunday, her Great-Grandma Donna stopped by to give her a kiss, and later that evening, her Grandma Kim came to love & snuggle her.

She is surrounded by family & friends who love her so much, and Jake & I appreciate the help and dinners provided.

p.s. Isn't she beautiful?

6 Days

Q: What does a 22 ¼ inch 6-day-old baby look like?

A:

My Sweet (yet exhausted) Husband

The other night, I was up at around 3am feeding my baby when she let out a nice, healthy burp. Immediately, my husband started beating his chest with his hand, like he was holding Sophie trying to burp her. He was fast asleep and doesn't remember doing it.

We're Home!

Thank you for all of the wonderful comments on my blog when I was in the hospital. And thank you to Jake for keeping the blog current all last week.

Sophie and I were finally released from the hospital last night, and got home at around 8:00pm.

Sophie had a little jaundice problem, and had to spend the last 24 hours of her hospital stay sunbathing under the blue lights. The nursery RNs said that she was one of the most well-behaved babies under the lights they had seen in a long time. She really enjoyed her mask and beauty sleep, and even had a little jaundice tan around her eyes for a while. It was totally cute.

The doctors were worried that she wouldn't be ready to go on Wednesday, and we almost had to leave her overnight, since I had to check out no matter what. But we got the good news at about 5pm that she could go home with us.

Here we are in our regular clothes, ready to leave.
I can almost stand up straight now, and I have a cute little tummy.
Thanks Aunt Lindsi for the cute stripey PJs!

Sophie loves her car seat. It puts her to sleep instantly.

Getting all buckled up.
Sophie's first car ride.

Welcome home!

Sophie is a power sleeper. I think that we can credit at least a portion of that to the pain killers that I am on, but she loves to sleep. She sleeps extra well when she is a Sophie Burrito. Last night, she woke up at about 3:30 for a feeding, and afterward, Jake changed her and swaddled her, and she didn't wake up until 8:00. Actually, I woke her up at 8:00 to feed, since she had slept so long.

She had her first out-of-the-hospital doctor's appointment and did really really good. She weighs 8lbs, 6oz. That's 9 ounces below her birth weight, but about 6 ounces up from her lowest hospital weight, so we were really proud of her. She also grew to 22 1/4", putting her in the "greater than 95th percentile".

And here are a couple more pictures just because I think she's absolutely adorable and because I'm pretty much smitten by her. She's too sweet.

Day 2

Yesterday was a good day for Sophie. It was almost like she was twice as old as she was the day before. She's breastfeeding well and was happy most of the day. She was down about 13 ounces, to 8 lbs, 2 oz, but the doctors aren't too worried, and the weight should pick up soon, when the milk comes in.

We also received a visit from Sophie's 2nd cousin, Kiley, along with her parents, Ben and Macey. Kiley is 6 weeks old, and is very cute and sweet. You can see more of her at Macey's blog. Here are a couple pictures from the last 24 hours (sorry, Nana, no feet or hand pictures yet - she gets mad when we un-swaddle her):

Abbie is doing well also. We went for a 15 minute walk yesterday and she did awesome. She will be discharged tomorrow at 3:00 pm. We look forward to both getting to sleep in a comfortable bed again (although for only 2-3 hours at a time). If anyone wants to call us, and doesn't have the number, our telephone number in the room is (520) 694-3721.

Day 1

Well, after just over 24 hours with Sophie, we're convinced that she's the most beautiful, well-behaved, sweetest-smelling child in the whole world. See for yourself:

You can see the bruise on the right side of her upper lip

from where she got stuck on the way out

Abbie, teaching Sophie to kiss. She's a quick study.

She has quite the little head of hair. We're pretty surprised.

Sophie and her dad. She gets a lot of him while Abbie is recovering.

Sophie with Grandpa.

My two sweet girls

Sophie Grace

Sophie Grace was born last night 10:07. She weighed 8 lbs, 15 oz and was 21 1/2 inches long.

After 25 hours of pitocin and almost 3 hours of pushing, the doctors realized that this baby just didn't want to come out. Actually, her head was cocked to the side, and was stuck in Abbie's pelvic bone. The doctors scheduled an emergency c-section and delivered the baby without a hitch (except for some pain for mom). Needless to say, we're all glad it's over. Both mom and baby are doing very well, especially considering what they've both been through. Pictures and a video will follow in the next day or so.

Grandma's Birthday

At the beginning of the summer, when I was living in Mesa, my grandma told me that I should have my baby on her birthday. While I thought that it sounded like a great idea, I also thought, 'Grandma's birthday is a week and a half past my due date, it's not going to happen'.

Well, today I'd just like to say, HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!!!

It turns out that I'm not going to have my baby on her birthday, I'm going to have her AFTER her birthday. I would have never guessed that at the beginning of the summer.

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. We (the doctor, the student RN, Jake, & I) all decided that it would be best for the baby if she came out now. My doctor suggested getting induced in the next 24 to 48 hours. I tried to get an appointment for today, so that she would be born on Grandma's birthday, but the schedule at the hospital was already full. I'm scheduled to go in tomorrow morning. Stay tuned!

Dear Baby,

Dear Baby,

I know that you are quite comfortable where you are. I've created a nice, cozy place for you to live inside my belly. However, you may have noticed recently that your cozy little home is getting smaller and smaller. That is because you are getting bigger, and, well, it's time to leave. I know it doesn't make sense to leave such a wonderful place full of comforting rocking and swooshing noises, but your dad and I have created a wonderful new place for you, and we think you should give it a try. This new place is full of love and cuddles and kisses, so it will be very cozy too.

Not only that, but your Grandma got you a swing so you can be rocked all you want, and your Nana got you a bouncy chair, so you can be wherever I am, and still hear my voice. You can even be in the office with your dad when he's studying, since you like him so much too.

So what do you say? Will you give your new home a try sometime soon? Please let me know as soon as possible. There are a lot of people here waiting to meet you.

Love,
your Mama