Ready for her First Christmas - 8 Months Old!

We hope that everyone is having a wonderful holiday season.  Hannah continues to bring us such joy with her happy, silly nature! She now weighs 20.4 pounds and seems to be getting taller lately.  Her top two teeth are coming in, so the teething is in full force right now!

This past month has been one of many milestones! She started crawling at 7 1/2 months and is now pulling herself up.  She keeps herself busy trying to keep up with Emma and the dogs. Hannah loves to squeal, giggle, laugh and imitate sounds.  She also waves and claps now, which is quite cute!  

It has been really fun watching Hannah interact and play with Emma more.  She gets all excited every time we go into Emma's room to wake her up in the morning or from a nap because she knows she gets to get into Em's crib with her and play.  We are so excited to watch this bond between the two of them continue to grow stronger.  

Wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

7 Months!

Hannah Renee is seven months old today and is such a smiley, lovable bundle of joy.  Her little dimple when she flashes a big grin is the cutest thing.  She weighs 19.8 pounds and is as healthy as can be!

She continues to be on the verge of crawling.  She gets up on all fours, and rocks back and forth then usually pushes herself back into the seated position.  However, she can still usually manage to get where she wants to be by scooting and rolling herself across the room.  I keep saying any day now, so we'll see!

Hannah is eating lots of cereal, fruits and vegetables and seems to be eager to eat what we're eating!  She watches each bite as it goes into our mouths and sometimes gets frustrated she can't get a bite.  As far as teeth goes, she still just has the two, but seems to be doing a lot of teething lately so we'll see if any others pop up!

As the holidays approach, she is loving all of the lights, decorations and Christmas music, both at home and out shopping. Her favorite toys are ones that dance and sing!  Hannah's little BFF is still Emma and they get along really well.  Hannah  wants to do everything Emma is doing.  She is starting to teach Emma lots about sharing and patience,as she grabs at Emma's things more and more. ;)

We hope that everyone is having a wonderful start to the holiday season. Happy Thanksgiving!

6 Months Old!

Just last week Hannah celebrated her half birthday!  Hard to believe how quickly time flies by with this little angel by our sides.  At her 6 month doctor's appointment she weighed 18 pounds, 10 ounces and measured 26.5 inches long.

She is quite active, sitting and rolling herself/scooting across the floor to get where she wants to go.  Little Miss Hannah is determined to keep up with that big sister of hers!  Another favorite activity is going to the park with Emma and swinging on the baby swings and playing in the sand.

Hannah is eating solid foods several times per day now.  Her favorite are the vegetables and rice cereal/oatmeal.  She seems to think some of the fruits we've tried giving her are too sweet.  We'll see if they grow on her!  

Our sweet baby girl got her two first teeth right around 5 1/2 months. She is really teething a lot lately and it makes her a bit fussy at times.  Overall she is such a sweet, happy, good-natured baby.  Any time we get a camera out she smiles right away!  It is so much fun watching her grow.

5 Month Update

Fall is just around the corner and Hannah is already 5 months old!  We weighed her this morning and she is up to 17.9 pounds.  We just can't get enough of her chubby little thighs....so kissable!

This past month has been quite eventful for our baby girl.  She is now rolling over easily and always seems to like to be on her stomach.  Whenever we lay her down on her back, she is on her belly within no time! Hannah also scoots around quite a bit - kind of like an 'Army Crawl.'  She can turn herself around in a full 360 degree circle.  It's obvious by the way she watches Emma that she can't wait to be able to follow her around.  Lately she's also been liking sitting up (with our support).

In the food department, we have introduced her to brown rice cereal and oatmeal.... She loves both!  We tried giving her bananas today and she seemed to like them at first, but quickly changed her mind and acted disgusted by them.  Maybe they are too sweet for her.  Tomorrow we'll try a vegetable and see if she likes that better.  

Now that Hannah is older she is able to participate in the library classes (story time, music, tiny tots, etc.) I take the girls to, and she seems to really like them.  During the music class she kicks her feet with excitement and loves watching all of the big kids dance.  At Gymboree she loves watching the bright colors of the parachute and the bubbles.  She is very observant and engaging when people come up and talk to her.  

We hope all is well with all of our wonderful family and friends!  :)

August - 4 Months Old

Sweet Hannah Renee is already 4 months old and is doing so well.  She had her 4 month check-up yesterday and weighed 16 pounds, 3 ounces (84th percentile).  She measured 24 inches long.  Little Hannah impressed the doctor with how strong she is! :)  All went well except for a bit of swelling in her legs where she got her shots....poor baby! She got the go-ahead to start eating cereal, so she has had some brown rice cereal the past couple of days. After her very first bite, she was all smiles so I think it was a hit!

Hannah is awake a lot more now during the day and sleeps through the night most nights (knock on wood!). She really seems to enjoy her Tummy Time.  She rolled over on her 4 month birthday but of course it was when Mommy was looking away!  I was changing Emma's diaper and had laid her on her stomach on the floor, and when I turned around she was on her back.  Of course I've been trying to catch her doing it again so I can video tape it, but haven't had any luck!  She also likes spending time sitting up in her Bumbo chair....she feels like such a big girl!

Little Hannah is still so fascinated by her big sister and loves watching her every move.  She goes in with Mommy every day to get Emma up out of bed and her eyes light up, she grins and coos.  It is priceless! Both of the girls also like watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse together, and it's part of our nightly routine. It is so fun watching the girls form such a strong bond.

That's all for now....stay posted for more updates!

3 Months Old - July 2013

It is so hard to believe that Hannah is already three months old.  We feel so blessed to be her parents and can't imagine life without her.  Emma is so smitten with her and gives her kisses spontaneously throughout the day.  She even tries to share with Hannah which is pretty impressive for a toddler. :) 

Hannah now weighs 14.8 pounds and continues to get stronger every day.  She is holding her head up and is getting better at controlling her movements.  Baby Hannah is not a huge fan of 'tummy time' and often decides to just take that opportunity to take a nap on her tummy!  However, she does seem to like sitting in her Bumbo seat to play and look around.  She is having longer awake periods throughout the day so she gets lots of play time these days!  When we hold toys or books in front of her, she grabs at them and pulls them close to her.  It's so cute to see her jerky little movements become more coordinated.  

When it comes to sleep, Hannah has done amazingly well.  Her longest stretch of sleep has been 9.5 hours, which she has done several times now....such a treat for Mommy and Daddy!  

July has been a busy month for Hannah.  She went on her first road trip to San Diego for the Fourth of July to visit Grammy, Papa, aunts, uncles and cousins.  Then Gramma and Pa came to town for a visit. Lots of spoiling going on!  Finally, to end the month she will be taking another road trip to see our friends in Telluride.  

As always, we will continue to post pictures of our growing family's adventures. :) 

2 Months - June 2013

We just had Hannah's 2 month doctor's appointment today and charmed Dr. A with some smiles and sweet coos.  He complimented her for being so strong... when he put her on her tummy, she pushed all the way up onto her arms and held her head up high.

Hannah weighed in at 12 pounds, 12 ounces (75th percentile) and measured 23 1/4 inches long (also 75th percentile).  She is already wearing 3 month clothes comfortably and even fits into some 6 month clothes!  Hard to believe!  Baby girl has a healthy appetite and eats every 3-4 hours during the day.  Just recently (and I should knock on wood...) she has been sleeping for 6 straight hours every night.  This makes for just one middle of the night feeding instead of two - heaven for Mommy and Daddy!

Emma is a doting big sister to Hannah and it has been fun to watch them together.  Hannah will just stare at her busy big sister at times and you can tell she adores her already.  It won't be long before she's trying to keep up with Emma!  When we lay Hannah on a blanket on the floor to play and do tummy time, Emma will get right down there with her and play with her.  Hannah seems quite content by her big sister's side.

This next week we will be taking Hannah on her first little road trip to see Grammy, Papa, her aunts and uncles, and cousins.  It will be fun to see her with her 'twin cousin' Grayson!

1 Month Old - May 2013

Hannah is now one month old and is growing and changing a little bit each day.  She had her doctor's appointment today and weighed 10 pounds, 2 ounces (61 percentile) and measured 21.5 inches long (55 percentile).  We feel so blessed to have another healthy baby girl!  We had a scare at one of Hannah's first doctor's appointments that she may have had hip dysplasia, but after having an ultrasound on her hip found out that her hips were perfectly healthy.  Thank goodness!

We are finding that Hannah is such a sweet, mellow baby.  She lets us know when she's hungry, tired or has a dirty diaper, but that's to be expected!  As I write this she is sleeping peacefully next to me in her bassinet. Just this past week she has been starting to be awake more and for longer periods during the day.  We read her infant books which have black and white illustrations and she loves to stare at them.  She also likes tummy time (most of the time) and is very strong.  Her little legs get going and she scoots forward on the mat a bit.

At night Hannah is still waking up every 3-4 hours most nights to eat.  Her longest stretch was 6 hours just a couple of nights ago.  Of course that hasn't happened again since! ;)  She is sleeping in her bassinet now, which is a relief because at first we struggled with getting her to sleep anywhere except on Mommy's chest.

During Hannah's first month, both sets of grandparents got to spend time cuddling and visiting their newest little granddaughter.  It was so nice to see them and to have their help!  Uncle Matt and Aunt Robyn also made a trip out and spent the weekend with us.  Aunt Robyn did a photo shoot of little Miss Hannah, and got some adorable pictures.  Robyn was so patient and Hannah did great!  

During the next month, we look forward to continuing to introduce our sweet Hannah Renee to more friends in the area and then in July we will be headed to San Diego for some fun at the beach with the family!

Hannah Renee is Here!

Our sweet little Hannah Renee arrived early!  She was born on April 18, 2013 at 5:10 pm.  Hannah weighed in at 8 pounds, 5 ounces and measured 20.5 inches long.  Of course, it was love at first sight.

Let me back up a little bit and tell you about how Hannah decided to make her entrance into the world.  All week long at work, teachers had been telling me it would be any day now that I would go into labor.  I didn't quite believe them and kind of just brushed it off because I figured I would go all the way up to my due date and end up getting induced.  Although, I think Justin and I both wanted something more climatic to happen like for my water to break or to start having contractions.  On the night of April 17th, I woke up on the couch around 11 pm feeling a lot of pressure.  I tried to brush it off but an hour later ended up calling the doctor to see what was going on.  She said to wait until I was having steady contractions to go in to the hospital.  At 2 am I woke yet again, but this time I was having contractions about 5 minutes apart.  I woke Justin up and told him it was time to go.  We had to get poor little Emma up in the middle of the night and drop her off with our friends.  When we got to the hospital, they admitted us and started the Pitocin drip.  Once the contractions started getting more intense, I got my epidural and was able to get some rest before it was time to push.  Once I started pushing, it only took 4 minutes for Hannah to enter the world.

After two days in the hospital, we headed home on April 20th.  It was so nice to be home with Emma again and our new little family of four finally felt complete.  Emma has been an amazing big sister so far.  She says 'Hannah' and gives her kisses on the head, pats and hugs her.  So far she has not been jealous and has been very patient and loving.

We feel so blessed about our growing family and are enjoying every moment - even the chaotic ones!

Final Countdown - 38 Weeks

The past month has gone by so fast and all of a sudden the birth of our newest little angel is just around the corner!  We cannot wait to meet her.  Mommy is now going to the doctor weekly and at the most recent appointment discovered I am 1 centimeter dilated.  I've been having contractions here and there but nothing too painful. The doctor offered to induce me next week, but my reaction was, "Whoa, I don't know if I'm ready next week!!"  I think we'll wait until her due date. :) 

I have to say (and Justin can attest to this!) that this pregnancy has been a bit tougher than my first... bad swelling of the feet/ankles, pregnancy carpal tunnel (arms/hands fall asleep every night), sore back; just to name a few things that are going on!

We feel ready....baby's room is done, hospital registration is complete, double stroller is picked out... Now we just need to pack our bags for the hospital!  

      

33 Weeks

We are in the home stretch and so excited to meet baby girl #2 in 7 weeks!  We have not yet decided on a name, so we'll have to refer to her as that for now. :)

Our last ultrasound, taken at 32 weeks, showed the baby was an estimated 4.5 lbs (measuring a week ahead of schedule).  The doctor said everything is looking good and Mommy is feeling healthy... just dealing with the typical heartburn and swollen fingers/feet/ankles. Baby Girl is kicking around like crazy, especially in the evenings. Emma loves to give hugs and kisses to the baby in the belly.  She really seems to know there's a baby in there!

As far as pregnancy cravings go, well, let's just say that Justin has become a regular at Wendy's and stops there almost every night on his way home from work to bring Mommy a Frosty!

The nursery is now almost complete. Justin got the furniture all put together last week. We love it (Emma loves spending time in there as well and cries when we take her out of the baby's crib)! We went with an owl theme for this baby girl and Justin put up a really cute owl/tree decal last weekend.  Everything is coming together and we are ready.... bring on the baby!!!