A Long Overdue Thank-You

Over the holidays our good friend Kim was kind enough to take some professional photos of Baby O. Kim is a very talented photographer and I knew she would be able to get some great shots of the baby.

Kim who has her hands full with her five year old and a one year old set of twins, took time out her very busy life to take some amazing photos. This was Olivia's very first photo shoot and we knew it would be challenging. As you can see from this picture Olivia did not always cooperate...
Kim had many ideas as to what she wanted to do (she is very creative and talented as you will see). Since it was close to Christmas we thought we would have our very first family photo taken as well. So Kim got to work and provided us with some of the most beautiful pictures of our baby girl thus far. I wanted to share them with all of you and also thank Kim once again for taking time to do this for us. Here are some of our favorites...

Here is our first family Christmas photo...

Since the day Olivia was born we have been taking pictures like crazy. We don't want to miss capturing one moment on camera or on video. We have some amazing pictures that we will always have to look back on. But so far the pictures that Kim took for us over the holidays are by far our favorites.

So this is a long, overdue thank you to Kim for providing us with such beautiful pictures and memories that we will have with us always!

Daddy's Little GIrl

Since the day that I found out I was pregnant we debated about what we were going to have...boy or girl. In the beginning we both decided that we were not going to find out the gender of the baby, as we thought the suspense of not knowing would make it so much more exciting. Well after a few months Todd changed his mind. If it were up to him we would have found out. But it wasn't up to him and I decided that we would be strong and not give in to temptation! It surely was not easy, but we did it and I think it was well worth it. The point of all of this is that we always thought we were going to have a boy. With eight grandsons on Todd's side we figured it was not possible for a girl to be born into his family. Well we proved that theory wrong the day Olivia came into the world. And from that day she has been Daddy's Little Girl!

Since birth one of their favorite things to do together is take naps. As you can see she looks quite comfortable. Their naps have provided me with the time to be able to catch up on some things around the house from time to time, which is very helpful!

He is so good with her. I am so grateful to have such an amazing husband who is so willing to help out when I need him. His love and support have helped me through some difficult times since she has been born and I do not know what I would have done without him. I do not think it is possible for him to love her more, and I don't think he thought he was capable of loving someone so much...other than me of course!

And even though mommy seems to be the only one who can calm Livie down when she is upset, she saves lot of smiles for her daddy! It makes me so happy to see the way that she looks at him and to see her eyes light up when he walks in the door. Not too mention the kisses...which he gives her constantly. Someday she will cringe when we kiss her but for now there are not enough kisses in the world!

Even though we would have been happy with a boy or a girl, I think we both secretly wanted a baby girl in our lives. I think there has been a special place in Todd's heart just waiting to be filled with Olivia's love. Well he definitely loves her and has proven to be a better dad than I could have ever imagined. She is and always will be Daddy's Little Girl!

There is a well known saying that I just love..."Any man can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad." That could not be more true!

Two Month Mark

Baby O is two months old...and boy is she growing! We had our two month check-up at the pediatrician on Friday. I was very much looking forward to this appointment as there were some things that we desperately needed to discuss with the doctor. In the past week Olivia has become extremely fussy and seems quite uncomfortable at times. Usually the only time she is happy and smiling is right after she eats. Then about 30 minutes later the fussiness begins. After soothing her and getting her to fall asleep I am lucky if I can get a half hour nap out of her. After that she wakes up and usually fusses until her next feeding. That makes for some really long days. Based on all of our observations the doctor concluded that she may be having some troubles with acid reflux. So we started her on Zantac to help with the problem. Hopefully this will make Livie a happier baby and improve her naps!

So as you can see this past week was a difficult one. With my mom being out of town for the whole week I did not have much help during the day. She returned on Friday (thank goodness!) and took Olivia for the afternoon so I could take a long nap...which I needed so desperately. She also watched her quite a bit on Saturday so I could catch up on some things I had neglected this past week. Needless to say I am one lucky girl to have a mother so willing to help! I think, Livie and I needed a break from each other as our frustration levels were sky high this week. But we seem to be doing a little better now. She has been sleeping a little more over the past couple of days and I hope that continues!

But aside from the acid reflux Livie got a clean bill of health. She is growing beyond expectations! She weighs close to 13 lbs. now and is the 90th percentile. She has also added 3 inches on to her length putting her in the 75th percentile! Way to go Livie! So I am comforted knowing that she is very healthy and growing like a weed! She does so well with her head and neck control. She still needs some help from time to time but she almost has it under control. Here she is in her bumbo seat. We plan on getting more use out of this in the weeks to come...

I knew that this mom thing was going to be hard...but I never knew just how hard! But all of the sleepless nights and frustrations are all worth it. We are so lucky to have our little Livie!

Sleeping Like A Baby

...Well most of the time anyway! These first couple of months with Baby O have been a joy but have also been extremely trying. Todd and I have been doing our best adjusting to being new parents. We look at Olivia everyday and cannot believe how lucky we are to have such an amazing, beautiful and healthy baby in our lives. But along with all of the joy comes the difficulties of taking care of a little one. Since I have been breastfeeding, in the beginning I was feeding her every 2-3 hours during the day and getting up every 3-4 hours at night. Needless to say I was feeling pretty sleep deprived. I cannot even remember what it feels like to be able to sleep through the night and feel well rested. But things are starting to get better. She is now only getting up one time at night to eat which is a huge relief for me.

But unfortunately Olivia is not the soundest of sleepers. Not only is she a noisy sleeper but she seems to sleep best in awkward places such as her car seat, the boppy and the bouncer. She also sleeps very well in our arms...imagine that! But when she is put down in her bassinet or crib she does not do as well. This is something that I hope she grows out of as it is important to us that she gets good quality sleep, in the right places. I am starting to wonder if she may have some problems with acid-reflux. She has quite a few of the symptoms and that would explain why she prefers to sleep in places where she is more upright. We are visiting the pediatrician this Friday and I am going to have her take a closer look. So for the time being if she prefers to sleep in her bouncy seat then that is where she shall sleep. I keep telling myself that she is only two months old and things will get easier and she will become a better sleeper with more of a routine.

But when Olivia is sleeping it is the most precious thing ever!!! Here are some candid shots I caught of her while she was catching some z's...

We know she has crashed when the paci falls out of her mouth!

Whoa is me...life is tough as a baby!

Not sure what is going on here but she was comfortable!

Olivia also received her first round of shots this past week. I think it was harder for me than it was for her. I could barely watch as they stuck three big needles in my precious baby's thighs. As soon as they did her face turned bright red and she let out a huge cry. But I immediately stuck the pacifier in her mouth and within seconds she was ok. She handled it like the big girl she is! And even better...she did not seem to suffer any side effects from the shots! Way to go Livie!!!

So overall things are going well. I have one more full week off and then I must return to work...sob, sob! I am so glad that I have been able to spend so much quality time with my daughter in the first weeks of her life.

More updates to come later this week as Olivia will visit the doctor for her two month check-up!

Happy New Year everyone! Here's to a year full of happiness and new memories!