Grady's First Christmas!

Today is the our first day back to normal since the xmas rush began on xmas eve! The house has been tidied and the xmas tree along with all the decorations have been cleared. Some are very eager to keep the tree up as long as possible but I would prefer to start the new year with a clean house. This year I had extra motivation to get the tree down as Grady got so many toys there was no where to put them. So our very large tree had to come to make room....

Christmas Eve started with an outing to an open house at one of Nana's friends. It was a shorter stay as Grady had a nice long unexpected nap just before we left. One of many things that I have learned since Grady was born is you can't plan for anything anymore! Just when you think you have him figured out - he goes and changes it up.

Christmas eve dinner was at our house and was served rather late as Uncle Dave was serving up xmas margaritas and nachos and salsa. This gave us time to get a very tired little man to bed so the adults could enjoy a few bevies and a good meal. Everyone stayed over so there was no need to limit the drinks or worry about the roads on the way home. I find it really nice to wake up on xmas morning and everyone is there. Although this year Aunty Bo and I, and of course Grady, were the only ones in our PJs....

Grady was a very early riser as he was very excited to see what Santa brought him. He was up at 530am and in quite a good mood. I was the lucky one who got to spend 'quality' xmas morning time with him until 7. Then he gave me the best gift of all... a 2.5 hour nap. I crawled back into bed and was sleeping before my head even his the pillow. It was great!

First came the stockings... Santa was very good to all of us this year. Grady got all sorts of clothes, toys, and books and we hadn't even started on the 'real' presents yet!

Some of Grady's favorite toys were the xylophone from Dad, the ridem car from Grandma Paulette and Grandpa John, the baby Tad from Grandpa Lorne and Grandma Sheila and the carseat from Santa. Nana got a very special gift for Grady... it was a digger from when James was young that has been refinished. Apparently it was the 'coolest' toy and I must admit it is like nothing I have seen before. Although it will be a few years before Grady will be able to fully enjoy it, I am sure he will have tons of fun using it in the future!

Grady had 2 more short naps on xmas day but really didn't want to miss out on the excitement... so we had a very tired little boy by 6:00.... Grady again missed dinner as it was straight to bed for this young man.

Then boxing day it was time to clean up from xmas #1 and prepare for xmas #2. Grandma Paulette and Grandpa John arrived in the late afternoon on Boxing day to celebrate Grady's's first xmas.... and again he was very spoiled.

Santa even made an appearance on the morning of th 27th. He brought hats for all of us to wear, sang some songs, and brought the next round of gifts. This had always been a huge part of my xmas in Prince Albert and I was very surprised that my mom was able to convince Santa to work overtime to bring Grady his gifts. I am happy to report their were no tears.... but there were a few confused looks at the 'man' with all the white hair!

It was really special to be able to celebrate with both families and incorporate both traditions for Grady's first xmas. We know we may not be this fortunate every year.... but we are so pleased with how Grady's first xmas unraveled. I can not wait to see the look on his face next year when he is able to tear open the paper for himself and maybe even understand a little more about what xmas means.

James, Grady, and I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy New Year and a spectacular 2009! We just can't wait to see what the new year will bring!

Little Grady is Half a Year!

Grady will officially be 6 months on xmas eve... what a great day to half your half year birthday. WE are gearing up for Grady's first Christmas and are so excited to share this holiday season with him. Christmas really is about the kids so we have many fun Christmas' in the near future! I thought I would get one more post in before everyone gets busy with family and presents :)

1. I forgot to mention in the last post that we have purchased a DVD player for the car and it is working like a charm! We strapped the screen on to the middle console on the back seat so essentially it is right in his face! So far so good. We get in the car and don't hear a peep from him until we arrive at the location and turn off the car. It has worked for upto 45 minutes... one time we got lost on the way to baby group and spent over an hour in the car... After baby einstein had played twice in a row he got a little upset. I would to if you made me watch the same episode of Grey's twice in a row... no matter how much I like it! But that is another story.

2. We also had Grady's bapisim on Saturday December 6th. We had a house full of visitors over the weekend. Grandma and Grandpa T, Grandma and Grandpa R, Aunty Blaire and Kolby, James and Brittany, and Nana, Uncle Dave, and Aunty Bo. Basically the whole family was on hand to celebrate with Grady. I was really nervous as we left for the church as Grady missed his last nap of the day and was really grumpy. For those of you that know Grady you know he does not just sleep anywhere. And by the grace of God (literally) he fell asleep during the baptism shortly after it started. It was a beautiful service and I was so happy that everyone was there to witness it. Grady did so well when they poured the water over his head. Mind you, it was warm..... After the baptism we had dinner and played a family day of Cranium. We could not have asked for a better evening!

3. I am pleased to say that Grady is finally sleeping better at night and sleeps a solid 8 to 10 hour strech each night. No, this did not happen over night. It took a little tough love and a love of perseverance from mom and dad - but it seems to have paid off in the night department. In the meantime though, his naps are short to non existent. So... we are dealing with a pretty grumpy babies by late afternoon. I'm sure with some more perseverance the naps will fall into place! We are also dealing with a pretty grumpy mom by later afternoon since she has been up since 545 or 615 on a 'sleep in' day!

4. Grady started on solids this month. So far, it has only been rice cereal, apples, and yams but he is very eager to be getting something other than milk! For about a week he was eating non stop and up to 8 ounce bottles. So both Grandma and Nana recognized that it was time for rice cereal. After I asked them several times if they were sure we went ahead and fed him. I am really excited to introduce him to all the other foods. It will be so fun to see what he does and doesn't like! Up next is carrots, peas, and butternut squash.

5. Grady is very intersted in the xmas tree... I often hold him up to the tree with the ornaments just within reach... as you guessed - each one goes right into the mouth! I realize now that next year many of our ornaments will be put away for a few years since they will be choking hazards for Grady! We have also realized that Grady will by far have the most presents under the tree. How can such a little person 'need' so many things! I think this will be the case for many years to come. We are so grateful to friends and family who have send gifts to our little man who has already attempted to open one of them!

6. Grady welcomed another new friend. Koen Joeseph Herzog (formerly known as Baby H) was born on Dec. 1! Grady and I can't wait to meet the little guy and hope to see him in February or March when we plan to make our second trip back to SK to visit. Congratulations Carmen and Eric! Welcome to the world Koen!

That is it for now! Have a very Merry Christmas and a great 2009!

Full of Giggles!

Grandma Paulette was entertaining Grady over the weekend which resulted in lots of laughs! Notice he couldnt' be bothered to remove the banana toy from his mouth....

Bubbles

Grady just started blowing bubbles with his drool and it is so cute. Cute enough to share! Pardon my videography... I was holding Grady in one hand and the camera in the other!

5 Months Already!

So hear we are at 5 months... still can't believe how fast the time has gone. I am sure that I will think this for the next 18 years! As always, Grady is a joy to be around and is changing by the day. His smile melts my heart. After 5 sleepless months... I still find it hard to believe that James and I have a son.

Also note... I worked really hard for a smile and couldn't get one on my own. Hard to do when you are holding the camera!

Grady's 5th month was full of activity as listed below;

1. Grady went for his 4 months vaccinations this month and even James and I ended up getting shots! Both of us got the flu shot and I got a tetnus shot. Lucky me. Then Grady got the same 3 shots as at 2 months. I thought Grady did much better this time as the screams weren't as high pitched. James said it was the same as last time. He would probably know better since I can't watch the needles go in so I face a different direction. AT the appointment we found out he weighed 14lbs 7 oz. which is in the 50th percentile and he was 24 inches long which is the 25th percentile. Essentially they alluded that he is short and fat. I have no problems with this! I was just so surprised that he had gained 2 lbs in the month of October. So by my estimation he is well over 15 pounds now... no wonder my back hurts!

2. This Halloween was busier than any other Halloween I remember as we had 2 kid parties and an adult party to attend. The first party was hosted by Grady and I for our baby group. There were about 10 babies all in costumes. I must say when we tried to take the photo it got pretty loud in here! It was the first 'event' I had hosted since Grady was born so I was a little nervous as I had to make the time to get everything organized in the morning. Grady cooperated and everything went really well.

On Saturday Grady attended Nicholas' party and he brought us along as well :). At this party there was more of a range of ages amongst the kids and this was nice to see. There were even kids younger than Grady! Again, all the kids were wearing costumes and posed for a few pictures. There are pics of both parties posted on the picassa link.

3. This month we started the dreaded task of finding a daycare to bring Grady to when I go back to work. It was awful. I really did go in really optomistic thinking I went to daycare when I was young - no big deal. I was wrong... very big deal. The day care itself was really nice - nice people, very organized, educated workers etc. etc. But when we walked into the infant room which holds 12 to 18 month olds... it was very sad. There were only 3 infants that day. One was being changed, one was standing there crying and the other was in an exersaucer by himself. I just can't imagine dropping Grady off there and leaving for 8+ hours. I think it is just that I can't imagine Grady at a year yet and I just keep thinking about dropping him at this age. I really expected to go in and think it was great... I think there will be a few tears shed when he starts daycare (by me that is!)

I have started looking into dayhomes as well to see if maybe I will have a different feel for them. I had really good experiences with dayhomes growing up so maybe I can find something similar here.... I realize now it is all about gut feel and mother's intuition. This daycare thing is going to be harder than I thought!

4. This month Grady suffered from his first cold. We are still confused about where he picked it up from since neither of us got sick... It was so sad to see him coughing and see his little nose running. Thankfully the worst of it only lasted 2 days. Those days were filled with sleepless nights and days as he would wake himself up by snorting....

5. You have already read about our big trip to PA which was a huge success... Grady can't wait to make a longer trip in the winter to do more visiting and especially playing with the cousins he met!

6. Last but not least... Grady is thrilled to announce that his first girlfriend Kailie was born on November 9! Congratulations Kandis and Joel!

Unfortunately as of today there has still been no birth of Baby H. We are still anxiously awaiting whether this will be a little playmate for Grady or a second girlfriend!

Grady will be 6 months on Christmas Eve... so expect our next long update shortly after Christmas! Unless something very exciting happens in the mean tine... oh and any random video I may post.

Grady's First Trip to PA!

We just got back this evening from our fun filled Trip to PA where Grady met all kinds of family and friends!

Our commute started on Wednesday night. We got Grady in his jammies and headed to the airport for an 8pm flight. Like our flight to NYC, Grady slept the whole way. We arrived to a bit of a snow storm and bad weather in Saskatoon, but Grandma Paulette got us home safely. For those of you wondering... Grady did sleep in the car as it was nearly 11 by the time we left the airport and he was pretty tired.

Thursday started bright and early when cousin Madison arrived for a visit. She bought Grady a book and a Canada T-shirt. The nursery book was a big hit with both kids! Although Grady is still too young to play with Madison - I think they will be great playmates in a few years... as long as they don't fight for Grandma's attention! Madison also brought along uncle James who seemed to make many early morning visits over the days that we were there. He also brough his 2 dogs which Grady enjoyed watching. I wonder if Grady will be a dog person like his dad.....

Thursday we also made our way over to visit GG (great grandma Rita) and met Grady's second cousins Zach and Drew. Grady had lots of smiles for GG and liked to watch the boys while they played with their toys. Not to mention they had the cartoon station on which Grady loved!

Friday we swung by Grandpa Lorne's house and saw Grandma Sheila and Aunty Kolby for a quick visit before heading back to Grandma Paulette's for supper. Madison helped bake a pink cake for Grady because it is her favorite! Grady was able to meet his great aunts and uncles and boy was he a good boy for the party! He was full of smiles and wasn't even grumpy until we tried to put him to sleep. Apparently he wasn't all that tired OR so overtired there was no way he was going down!

Speaking of sleep... I am happy to report that he slept for 7 hours 2 nights in a row! This is a record so far in Grady's short life! I hope this is going to be a trend, but I am not holding my breath :)

Saturday we spent a fun filled day with Grandma Sheila, Grandmpa Lorne, and Aunty Blaire and Aunty Kolby. Again Grady was on his best behavior and was full of smiles and ready to jump for whoever was willing to hold him.

Finally it was Sunday and time to made the dreaded car ride back to stoon. Grady did better than expected as he only cried about 30 minutes of the 90 minute car ride. This was due in part to the purchase of a DVD player for the car. We put in the Finding Nemo movie and it seemed to calm him down. I plan to try it out with the baby einstein movies this week as Grady LOVES these movies. They are my saving grace right now! I'll let you know if this solves our car ride problems. Again... I am not holding my breath!

We had a great lunch at Sara's where all the saskatoon girls met for a visit (except Deena who was missed very much!). I must say that overall Grady did very well with being in a great mood and not making strange considering he was functioning on very little sleep. But... he did spit up several times on the girls and on sara's couch and floor... Sorry Sara!

I am really proud of our little man who made it through 4 whole days of car rides, meeting new people, and a disrupted schedule. He was such a good sport and was such a pleasure to bring around. I hope all our future trips to SK will be this smooth!

I have already posted some pics on the picassa link from the weekend. Enjoy!

Grady Loves his Jolly Jumper!

Thanks for lending the jolly jumper to us Deena! Grady really seems to like it so far. This is day 2 using his newest toy....

On the Move!

I just can't wait until next month to tell everyone that Grady started rolling over today so here is a second post from Grady and I. Now that he is started he just can't seem stop! Our little baby boy is now a big boy! It was just before 8am this morning that he rolled over for the first time on the activity mat. I thought it may be a fluke as the mat is kinda slippery. He was reaching over his left hand shoulder to reach for a toy with his right had and right over he went.

Then.... I could hear grunting from his room when he woke up for his afternoon nap and sure enough I went up to check on him and he was on his tummy making noices beacause he couldn't get his arm out from under him.

I brought him downstairs and put him on his activity mat again in hopes of catching him rolling over on video to show James at work and within a minute he was at it again! I am just so proud of him I am beaming. I have called James, Grandma, and Nana multiple times today to share my excitement. I can't wait for James to see him rollover in real life tonite when he gets home from work.

Enjoy the video! I'm sure you can hear the excitement in my voice on it!

Grady is 4 Months!

Another month... another blog. i still can not believe how quickly our little man is growing and changing and how fast this year off with him is going to go. I get sad when ever I think of it. I keep reminding myself I am not even halfway through my mat leave yet...

So on to the events of Grady's 4th month!

We have confirmed a date for Grady's baptism... Saturday, December 6th. My brother and sisters, James, Kolby, and Blaire, will be Grady's Godparents and all of them (plus our parents) will be making the trip to Calgary to witness the baptism along with the R side of the family. So should be a very busy weekend. Grady will be baptized at St. Micheal's which is the church James and I were married. It will be nice to have both events happen at the same place. We have a preparation class in early November which will tell us all the specifics of the baptism so I will know more after that.

We have officially booked our trip back to Prince Albert so Grady can meet the rest of his family - most importantly his Great Grandma Rita (G.G.) and other great aunts and uncles that he hasn't yet had a chance to meet. We will be away for 4 nights. I figure after our trip to NYC, this trip should be a walk in the park. Thankfully James is coming with us to as it is always nice to have an extra set of hands at the airport! I don't think I am quite ready to conquer the trip on my own!

This week we met with the Canadian Scholarship Trust Fund to see if this is the route we will be taking with Grady's RESPs. There always seems to be so much to do and my list keeps getting longer and longer. Before we can start the RESP we need to first get a SIN card for him. Imagine that... a SIN card at 4 months! We have not made a decision where we will set this up yet - but we hope to have this done sometime this year!

We also had a great visit with Grandma Paulette earlier this month. She was very excited to see Grady as it had been almost 6 weeks - the longest she had gone without seeing him! She was pleasantly surprised that the pictures made him look bigger than he actually was although she did notice a tremendous change. While she was here we spent most of our time trying to get Grady on a schedule as we have been having some issues in the sleep department. By the time she left we had him napping 3times a day by bouncing on the exercise ball with a blanket over his head to block out the stimulation. I tell you... if there is any activity going on this kid wants to be a part of it. I have a feeling this will be something we will struggle with well into his toddler years... I think the farthest Grandma Paulette went was to Zellers to pick up a few things. Besides that we spent the whole time at home with Grady.

We also went to see the family doctor for the very first time. The visit was a success. Grady is continuing to grow and weighed 12 pounds 8 ounces at the time. I expect that he is well over 13 pounds now. We will have this verified at his 4 month vaccinations on Friday :(

Monday Grady and I started a class called Baby and You. The timing of it was great as Gardy is at his best in the morning. The class is from 1030 to 1230 for 4 Mondays. It is put on by the Calgary Health Region and is to get information and to socialize with other moms. The first class was mostly introductions and meeting the others in the class. It turns out that one of my former co-workers and her daughter were there. So very nice to see a familiar face!

Now looking forward we are hosting baby group here Halloween so look for some pictures of that day posted after the fact. We have invited close to 15 moms and babies so I am anxious to see what the turnout is like. All babies will be in costumes so it should be super cute! Grady is going to be a Caterpillar - pictures of his costume trial run are saved in the picassa link.

Also this month, we are looking forward to the birth of 2 of Grady's new friends! We are expecting the births of Baby Matthews at the beginning of November and Baby Herzog at the end of the month. So here's hoping for fast and easy labours to you both... Can't wait to hear about babies arrivals!

As always - I have been updating the picture link on a regular basis - hope you are enjoying watching Grady grow and change as much as I have!

The Big Apple!

So it is official... we have survived our first trip with Grady! And what a feat that is. After bringing a 3 month old baby to New York for a week and making it back in one piece I think we should be confident that we can do anything!

Bo and Dave picked us up very early on Monday morning and off to the airport we went for Grady's first flight. Thankfully we did not have any problems getting through security with our bottles and stroller. Having many sets of hands was very helpful. Grady surprised us all - especially me - when he slept through the entire flight. Having a baby who never sleeps, I was super surprised and pleased that we didn't hear a peep from him for the duration of the flight. Actually I lied. About 45 minutes before landing we heard a little something from his bottom and boy did we smell it. James and I were eager to wait it out and change him at the airport... but Nana Marla pulled through and changed his diaper in airplane bathroom. Brave soul...

We brought our own carseat to load in the car that picked us up from the airport, James strapped it in and off we went to the hotel. We stayed at the Sheraton in Times Square (the billboard in the picture was not far from our hotel). I loved it! And so did Grady as it was the biggest 'mobile' he has ever seen. He absolutely loved the lights and they seemed to keep him in a rather good mood.

We took in all the sites (or as many as we could squeeze in) over the 6ish days that we were there. We did a 2 day bus tour where you can hop on and hop off at any stop, a boat tour that circled the Statue of Liberty, visited ground zero, explored Times Square nightly, did a carriage ride through central park, went to a mets game, and saw the musical Avenue Q (which I highly recommend - it was hilarious!). As you can tell, our days were packed with activities but I still managed to get a little shopping in. Mostly for myself though....

Grady exceeded my exceptions as he was quite content to be lugged around in the stroller or baby bjorn. I am not going to lie to you... there were rough days and moments I wanted to go back to the hotel and cry. But these were very few and far between. My mood depended 100% on Grady's mood and behavior. There was really only once morning he was really cranky and we got through it without shedding any tears (well I did anyhow, Grady had plenty of tears).

Overall it was a great trip and I think that Grady loved New York and was sad to come back home where he is stuck alone with me all day!

I hate to admit that since we got back Grady has not been a very good sleeper. We had him up to 6 hour sleeping in his crib at night before we left and now I am lucky if I get 3. I hope he gets over this soon as I am becoming a walking zombie! The thing with babies is just when you start to get used to something it changes. And so here we are with a sleepless baby once again and trying to work through it and figure our little man out. On the brighter side... he is napping really well during the day. You know me - always the optimist!

As most of you have likely already seen... I have posted some pics from the vacation on the photo link. Enjoy!

Grady is (almost) 3 Months!

Another month flies by.... Grady is officially 3 months next week, however since I won't have access to a computer to post anything today it is. Here are some of Grady's adventures in the past month.

1. Grady got his 2 month immunization shots at the end of August. I think it was harder on James and I than it was on him! James had to hold him while the nurse poked him with not one but 3 needles. His little cry hit a new level that I hadn't heard before. I chose not to look. I don't like getting my own needles let alone watching my baby boy get one. At that time he weighed 11 pounds 2 ounces. I swear he must be getting close to 12 pounds as my arm is getting pretty ripped if I do say so myself!

2. The moms from our pre/post natal classes have formed a baby group that meets once a month at least to chat and let our little one play. Right now - they are really not even aware of each other and aren't really interested in playing - but maybe some day they will be.... Grady and I attended our first official 'meeting' at one of the moms house. She lives quite far from us, 45 minutes to be exact, and I remember each one as Grady cried the entire way. Unlike most babies... Grady is not fond of car rides. Please tell me he will grow out of this phase as it is heartbreaking.

3. On the Friday of the September long weekend James, Grady, Nana Marla, and I headed to the zoo. It was a blast. Grady did good in the stroller for the first little bit and slept while the rest of us watched the animals. Lets face it - at this age - the zoo is still for the adults! We saw a baby giraffe and a baby elephant. I posted pictures from that day on the picture link in case you haven't already seen them.

4. We had my friends from Saskatoon come and stay with us. We spent a day at the mall. The stroller came in very handy at the end of the day for holding all our purchases as Grady decided he was tired of being couped up in the stroller and wanted to be held. He was a very good boy for most of the day as he slept close to 3 hours while mom shopped. It was a great weekend to just kick back and have fun as there was so much help with Grady. Sara, Candace, and Deena all enjoyed holding him making my job much easier. Thankfully Grady loved spending time with all the ladies and Candace even took the time to teach him about make-up. Not sure if James was very happy about this... :)

5. The September long weekend was a busy one as Nana Marla's friends hosted a shower for Grady and I. Again we were spoiled with good food, great company, and lots of great gifts. Grady is getting to used to woman fussing over him and giving him gifts. Hope he doesn't expect this all the time! We had a blast and are very thankful for everything.

6. James and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary on September 10th so the R clan headed to Earl's to help us celebrate. Grady was mostly well behaved until part way through when he decided that all of us were eating and why wasn't he. I didn't realize that we had been there for nearly 2 hours!! Fortunately the 3 ladies sitting behind us were pediatric nurses and told us they enjoyed watching Grady over their dinner. It is amazing how many people talk to you when you have the cutest baby in the world :)

6. Last but not least... Grady is starting to sleep much longer at night. We usually put him to bed about 10pm and for 4 nights in a row he has slept until 4am!! This is great as I am getting some solid shut eye. More than I have had in 3 months. Knock on wood. Now that I have said this I will likely be up at 2, 4 and 6 am. Say a little prayer for me!

I think that about sums up our month in a nutshell. Expect an exciting update sometime after we return from the big apple which will by far be the excitement of Grady's third month!

Grady's Newest Trick

Grady newest feat is pulling himself to a sitting position and then right up on to his feet. We are such proud parents we had to share this little video clip with everyone else!

Video

This is a video we took yesterday of Grady on his activity mat. I know he probably isn't hitting the toy on purpose... but I like to think that he is!! He is moving his limbs around much more and babbling up a storm. This isn't surprising as he as me as his mother and gets to listen to me talk all day!

Grady is 2 Months!

Another month has passed and Grady continues to grow and change on a daily basis! I do not know where the time has gone. We are finally settling in to our new life with Grady and loving every sleep deprived minute of it! Here are a few items to note during this second month of Grady's life.

First we'll start with how my month has gone. Grandma Paulette was here for a visit and let me pamper myself and I finally started to feel like a normal person again. I got my hair cut, went for a massage, and even managed to get some groceries! Grandma even spends Grady time early in the morning so I can get some much needed rest. We LOVE Grandma's visits as always! I am so productive when she is here as I don't have Grady attached to me all day. She is more than willing to do the holding and bottle feedsings while I clean the house and run errands.

Grady has finally outgrown his newborn diapers and is now into 'big boy' diapers. He was 7 pounds 2 ounces when he was born and is now close to 11 pounds by my estimation. We will have this confirmed later this week when we go for his 2 month immunization shots. I am not looking forward to this. So after some trouble with feeding and weight gain in the first 2 weeks - Grady is packing on the pounds and is a very healthy (and chubby) little boy!

Grady has now been to 2 movies at the theater. They have this great program called Stars and Strollers that is geared toward moms and their babies where they offer movies with lower volume and increased lighting. This is what they advertise... but I'm not sure this is actually the case. It is great as they have a changing station outside the theater and you can openly breast feed and not worry if the baby cries. Nana Marla and I went to see Mamma Mia (which I LOVED) and Grady and I went to see Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants with our baby group from pre/post natal classes. Grady was much better behaved when Nana held him through the first movie.....

Last night James and I had our first 'date night' since Grady was born. We attended Lindsay's wedding (one of my friends from KPMG) which was a blast. It was exactly what I needed to lift my spirits and to remind me that I am not only a mom, but a woman, wife, and friend. I commented to James on the way there that it was the first time James and I had been alone in the 2 months since Grady was born. And..... we talked a lot about Grady while we were out. Nana Marla did a great job babysitting and we can't wait to use her services again. I managed to only call home once during the 4 hours that we were gone. To be perfectly honest... I didn't feel I had to phone anymore. I missed him at some points during the night as there were other babies at the wedding about his age. As we turned the corner towards Nana's house I will admit I had a big smile on my face ready to see my little boy! I am happy to have that first outing under our belt and to have it gone so well... thanks again Nana!

I think our most exciting news of the month is that we have booked a trip to New York for next month with James' family. Nana, Uncle Dave, Aunty Bo, James, Grady and I will be leaving for NYC on a Monday and returning on Sunday. I am very excited as this is a city I have always wanted to visit... however I am also a little scared as I never imagined doing it with a 3 month old baby! I think it is safely in numbers as there will be 5 adults to one Grady - we should survive... shouldn't we???? If you have any tips on traveling with babies, especially air travel - it would be much appreciated!!

That is it for now...

New Picture Site

I ran out of free space on Flikr... so I am now updating pictures on picassa which offers way more free space for storing picures. The link to see the photos is: http://picasaweb.google.com/christy.james.grady. I have updated the links on the side to include both the new and old sites as the June/July pictures will continue to be stored at the old site.

I have uploaded a few pictures... Enjoy!

As Promised...

... here is the post I promised the other day. My goal is to update the blog monthly go forward as my time is filled with being a mommy which includes, feeding, changing clothes, changing diapers, resting, and feeding more and changing more diapers. I do intend to update the photo link more often than that so don't forget to check the link for new pictures of our little man, Grady.

Below is a list of events over past few weeks in no particular order:

1. Grandpa Lorne, Grandma Sheila, Auntie Blaire, Auntie Kolby, and Uncle Joel came to visit and meet Grady a few weeks back. We went for an outing to the mall and Grady was a perfect angel. It was after this outing that I realized I could make it all the way to the mall and back in one piece all on my own. It was a turning point I tell you!

2. Grady is officially smiling for real (not just gas). He still makes you work really hard for it but when he flashes you a smile it melt your heart. I thought he was cute before but now he is super duper cute! Watch out ladies!

3. We have had some incidents with projectile vomit and leaky diapers which always seems to be a hot topic of conversation around here these days. He once spit up and drenched Nana's shirt! Needless to say there have been many outfit changes and more and more laundry to fill my days!

4. Grady has also started growing out of clothes. It is very exciting to know that he is growing but sad that he is no longer our sweet newborn boy that we brought home from the hospital only 7 weeks ago. Although in the back of my mind I know the bigger he gets the more likely he is to sleep through the night... ahhhhh.... sleep :)

5. Grady also has more clothes than me and James combined it seems. He has already filled up a closet and has 2 giant bags of clothes packed away for later. We can't wait to get him into the cute 'little man' outfits as right now his wardrobe largely consists of onesies and sleepers. Comfort comes first!

6. my friend Cheryne hosted a baby shower for Grady and I over the weekend and as always... he was a spoiled little boy. We came home with toys, books, and oodles of clothes. Thank you so much to Cheryne and all the other ladies that helped out and attended the shower. We had a great time!

7. Grandma Paulette has made more trips as well. She just can't get enough of her grandson! We love her visits as she lets me sleep in, babysits while I shop or go to the spa, and always ensures Grady has had more than enough bottles to fill his tummy. She is a great Grady-sitter and we always look forward to her visits. Can't wait until the next!

8. On Grandma's last visit - the three of us (including Grady) conquered Ikea and Costco in the same day!! What a feat! We bought a white bookshelf for Grady's room to fill with books, bears, and misc. items. Before the shelf - the items lived on the floor in his room and created quite a mess. We are very pleased with the outcome.

I hope that this gi-normous update suffices for a few weeks as I accumulate more stories of life with Mr. Grady!

PS - Pictures have been updated!

Picture Update

Be sure to check out the new photos on the photo link... I have been adding pictures periodically.

Expect a better update soon! I know I have been a slacker. This mom thing is harder than it looks!

Grady is 1 Month Old!

Today marks the first month of Grady's life and boy has it gone quickly. On the other hand, in some ways I can't believe it has only been a month. It seems as if he has been a part of our family forever! Some of the highlights of our month include:
- mom and dad staring at Grady and talking about how perfect he is
- learning the ins and outs of breastfeeding
- learning how to change a little boys diaper quickly and without getting peed on
- attending birth and babies classes and meeting all the other babies
- a few outings with mom and grandma to the mall, the doctors office, and Nexen
- introduction to formula for parents and Grady
- Visits to Nana and Grandpa's house
- peeing on the wall more than once in a day
- multiple outfit changes leading to oodles of laundry
- explosive poops
- spit up galore
- tummy time
- meeting Grady's friends (Willis, Nicholas, Niko, and Charlie)

And the list could go on and on as it has by far been the best month of our life and every moment seems to be important and exciting as both us and Grady are experiencing so many new things.

I wonder what month 2 will bring.... let the learning continue!

Impeccable Timing

Last night at baby class (yes we are still in classes until next week) the instructor went around the circle asking each of us how our week was... I said good and mentioned that Grady hadn't pooped in just about 48 hours. As I began to elaborate... Grady let out the biggest wet fart. If you have kids you know there will be no surprises when you open the diaper. The whole class laughed and I finished by saying 'I guess we don't have that problem anymore'. He let out 2 more big ones before we finally changed his VERY dirty and full diaper. Good work Grady! I know it is kinda a gross story but to funny not to share.

For anyone that cares apparently once they hit 1 month old newborns can go 4 days without pooping if they are formula fed and 10 days if they are breast fed. I tell you... us new moms learn something everyday....

Another Week...

.. another post. I can't seem to keep up to my pre-babies posting abilities... but at least if i can post one a week I am happy. Besides - no one is interested in me anymore - I am just Grady's mom! I have posted some updated July pictures for those of you that have become blog stalkers over the past nine months... As always - check out the link in the top left corner.

So far, life with Grady is great! Always filled with ups and downs but oh so rewarding. He does not seem to be a sleeper as i had hoped. He fights sleep like crazy during the day as he doesn't want to miss anything... just like his Dad apparently! Fortunately he seems to catch up on some of this missed sleep at night as he is already sleeping in 4+ hour increments at night. No complaints there.

He has changed so much in just 4 weeks it is crazy. He still has gorgeous blue eyes which he shows us more and more each day. He is already spoiled as he prefers to be held hen to sleep anywhere else. So... he is draped across my chest as I write this update and catch up on my emails for the day. No matter how little sleep i get - I still love Grady to pieces and can't imagine our life without him.

We are looking forward to a visit from Grandpa and Grandma Rice and Auntie Blaire and Auntie Kolby this weekend. Grady can't wait to meet them!

Newborn Photos!

Grady is sound asleep in his chair so I have finally uploaded the newborn photos to flickr. The link is on the top left of the page where the other pics are posted. We used 'This Life Photography' here in Calgary and she did a great job! She came to our house for the photo session on July 3rd when Grady was 9 days and shot a ton of pics. She provides all pictures in both black and white and color so you may notice some duplicates... it was just to hard to choose whether I liked it in color or black and white! I posted what I think are the best of the bunch... although I did like them all!

Videos

I know, I know... long time no post. James, Grady, and I are adjusting to our new life together and boy has it been busy! I expected this whole stay at home thing to be much easier than it has started out. By the time I feed, burp, change, and sleep... there is little time for emailing and blogging - who knew! However, everyone reassures me that it does get easier and that eventually I will have some time during the day for 'me time'. Can't wait!

In the meantime, for all you blog stockers, my friend Deena has uploaded some videos of Grady taken in his first 2 weeks of life. She is great at making videos and putting them to music. Although she keeps telling me that this was a really simple program with not many options - I think it is great and think she did a wonderful job. Once my life has slowed down a little, I hope to learn how to do this on my own so I can post updated videos of our little man.

So - there are 2 videos and the password for both is Grady:

http://www.vimeo.com/1319822
http://www.vimeo.com/1319899

I hope you enjoy!

PS - we had professional newborn photos done last week and got the disk today. I will post some pics from that soon. They turned out great!

We Miss You Already Grandma!

Earlier this evening James dropped Grandma Paulette off at the airport after staying with us for nearly 2 weeks. I miss her already and I can tell Grady does to. She has been great to have around as she helped with the cooking (even if we didn't eat until 9pm), did laundry, vacuumed, and really anything else we asked her for help with.

Not only did she help around the house... we were also able to watch a 'pro' with Grady. Being that this is her third Grandchild - she is very experienced in this department. We learned the ins and outs of swaddling, burping, bathing, stain removal, diaper changes, and public outings with baby. She even had 'grandma time' while I caught some zzz's. Sometimes this special time was spent at 1am or even 6am.... she has been a lifesaver and we were sad to see her go.

Thanks for all your help Mom and we can't wait for your next visit!

Week 1

I LOVE this pic... thought I'd share it. Mr Grady was having some 'Grandma time' while James and I slept. When I came down the sun was shining in the living room and we were starting to slowly wake him up to feed.

Tomorrow morning will mark a week since Grady's arrival and I can no longer imagine life without him. I knew life would change when he was born... but I never comprehended how much and how fast! Everything we do takes 3 times longer than expected if we even get it done at all.

We have made a few trips over to Nana and Grandpa R's in the past week and Grady seems to feel right at home there as he always shows them what a good little baby he is!

We have had visitors over at the house and also met lots of Nana and Grandpa's friends. We even attended a BBQ for one of James' friends birthdays on Saturday. We have had many opportunities to show off our little man!

Everyone comments on how much he looks like James. Marla pulled out a picture of what James looked like when he was a baby and I must admit that he looks a lot like his Daddy. I looked long and hard for a trait that he got from me and finally found one... he has my big toe! If you have seen my feet you will know what that means - a big stumpy small nailed big toe. That is it! We are still hoping that he will get my eyes but as of now they aren't open a whole lot and are still the dark blue that most babies have.

That is it for now... hope everyone has had a great long weekend enjoying the weather while our little family has spent it indoors admiring our new family addition!

Pictures of Grady!

I have created a Flickr account to post pictures of Grady. The link is http://www.flickr.com/photos/christy_lee/. It is also available to the left of the posts. I will update the pics on the site periodically so you can watch Mr. Grady grow.

Please let me know if you have problems accessing the link.

Enjoy!!

Grady's Baby Pool

Congratulations Kristi! You are the official winner of the baby pool after 2 disqualifications for using insider information!! You can check out how you did by going back to the baby pool. It is the lowest amount of points that wins. Note that James came in 17th I came in 20th....

Although Kristi guessed the wrong sex.... she had the earliest date of Jun 23. The next closest date was Jun 29. Good Work Kristi!

Thanks to everyone who took part as I really enjoyed reading the guesses!

Grady has Arrived!

Our precious baby boy Grady arrived June 24th, 2008 at 6:24am and at that moment our lives changes for the better. He weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces and is 48cm.

I ended up being induced after my water broke on Saturday night. After a trip to labor and delivery on Saturday they told us that it was not my water. James encouraged (aka forced) me to go and get checked out again on Monday... and sure enough - it had in fact ruptured. So off to the hospital it was!

We arrived shortly after 630pm and finally got induced at 130am. As you can tell from the time of birth - it was quick. A mere 5 hours later Grady was born.

James was absolutely phenomenal in the delivery room and I couldn't have asked for a better support person. It was unreal to go through this together and to welcome our son in the world. No one could have prepared me for the rush of emotion and the amount of love you can have for your child and husband at that second. I feel absolutely blessed.

My mom was also with us in the delivery room and is staying with us for the time being until we have this parent thing a little more under control. Thanks Mom!

Here are a few pics to tide you over until Grady pulls away from feeding long enough to give me some computer time :)

Maternity Leave - Day 1

Today is not going quite as I had expected... James has been suffering from a toothahce since late Friday night so today's first line of business was getting him into the dentist to get checked out. He has been popping T3s and penicillin to manage the pain and sometime yesterday they seemed to stop being as effective. His regular dentist is not open on Mondays so we got him in to see a different dentist down the street. He took x-rays and didn't see anything so did nothing. We are not really sure how to proceed from here. Likely he will go in and get it checked by his regular dentist tomorrow. My biggst fear is going into labor before he gets this taken care of so I am going to be on his case until this is resolved.

So I am working around him as I try to get things in order for baby Dill's arrival. Not really how I expected the day to go, but I guess I am getting to spend some extra 'quality time' with my husband before baby arrives... which is what everyone keeps telling me to do!

Maternity Leave Begins!

Today was my last day at FCP before beginning my 1 year maternity leave. What I thought was going to be a great day was much harder than I ever imagined. I have been counting down the days of work left for weeks now and telling anyone who would listen how excited I was to be done. In reality... it was kinda sad. I have become friends with my co-workers and am accustomed to seeing them everyday. They really have experienced this pregnancy with me. So it felt strange to walk out at the end of the day and say 'I'll be in touch' rather than 'See you tomorrow'.

I figure once I wake up tomorrow I will have forgotten all about work and will be really excited that one more milestone has passed that brings us closer to becoming parents.

Week 38

Last night James and I attended baby class #5 on breastfeeding. I expected it to be more mom orientated - but I thought they did a good job of incorporating the Dad's and what they can do support a mom that breast feeds. I would practice the position with a fake (creepy) baby and James would burp it and change the baby's clothes. We got some handouts that will likely be useful in the first couple weeks after baby.

One interesting fact we learned is that the maternity leave was extended to 1 year to promote breast feeding for longer periods. They figure if women had more time off work - they would breastfeed longer, have healthier babies and in turn reduce health care costs in the long run. Interesting tidbit for a Wednesday morning....

The most exciting part of the class is that the first baby arrived! As I have mentioned before - these classes are until July 29th so everyone will have their babies during this time and the intent is for you to bring them to class with you and tell your birth story. This woman had the best labor ever - her water broke at 730am and she had the baby before 2pm! The only question I had was how do I get myself one of those labors??

The baby was 8 days old and so tiny. Both James and I noticed how the parents would look at the baby and just grin ear to ear. Come on Dill... let's get going so James and I can be the proud, grinning parents!

One other thing they stressed is to try and limit the visitors in the first week and really focus on getting some rest and bonding with baby. However... they do recommend having helpers lined up to do the cooking, the laundry, and the cleaning. James figures this should work great as Grandma Paulette will be living with us for a few days and she can do his laundry for him. I told him this was wishful thinking. But who knows what an excited grandma will do to ensure she can stay as long as she wants....

PS - 38 week picture has been loaded to the left.

Doctor's Appointment

Friday we had a doctor's appt. where she quite frankly told us 'It is now safe for the baby to born'. Although I knew this already, hearing it from the doctor brought on a whole new meaning.... it could really be any day now. Very exciting and scary. I hope Dill can hold out until the 29th when Grandma Paulette arrives - but essentially I have no control over this. Given that I was like 3 weeks late I am not counting on having an early delivery.

James was able to join me for the appointment which was a nice treat. He thought it was boring with the exception of hearing the heart beat (146 bpm).

So, the waiting continues.....

Week 37

This week Dill is considered full term (or fully baked). That means the lungs, which are the last to develop, are complete and baby could breathe on its own if born today.

I have finally reached the point where I am ready to move on from pregnancy into motherhood. I love being pregnant... but I think I will love being a mom more. I am sick of the extra weight and especially the waiting. Now that I know it is healthy for Dill to arrive any day - the waiting game just seems that much longer. How can 8 months seem to fly by and the last month seems to take forever??

In the meantime, I am counting down the days of work left (4) and the days until EDD (19). I'm not sure what I am going to countdown if July 2nd comes and goes. Let's hope it doesn't come to that!

I also posted the 37 week pic on the side bar.

Heel 'n' Wheel-a-Thon

Sunday morning mom and I took part in the annual Heel 'n' Wheel-a-Thon to raise money for IBD (Inflamatory Bowel Disease) which includes both Crohn's and Colitis. This is the 3rd year that I have taken part and the first year for my Mom. James was off the hook as he spent the day at the office :(

Essentially it is a 5km walk/run/rollar blade/bike followed by a BBQ and entertainment. This year the location moved from the U of C to Fish Creek park. The location was great except instead of being in a loop, it was 2.5 km down a path and then turn around and walk back. Much nicer location than walking on the road and through the university...

After the walk, mom and I checked the prize board and were surprised to see that we both won! She won a very nice sleeveless pink golf shirt (it was even ladies) and I won a very ugly blue rain jacket that said 'BITE' accross the back. I figure since I won't be golfing this year that mom would get more use than me so I didn't even try to trade!

The weather held out nicely for us considering the amount of rain Calgary saw this weekend. We each brought an umbrella but thankfully neither of us needed to use it - instead we had to carry them around. Both of us were thankful to have hoods to protect us from the little bits of rain that fell here and there. Overall it was a great morning spent supporting a good cause.

I hope to make this a yearly event as it is encouraged to bring your kids and even your dogs and make it a family event.

Maternity Photos

Today my Mom and I spent a few hours playing around with the camera taking maternity shots of me and Dill (for now known as the belly). I thought about getting professional ones taken but in the end decided that i wouldn't really show anyone so it would be a waste of money. Besides, i would rather put the money towards having pictures of the baby taken instead. Those of course will be much cuter pictures :).




So... I draped a dark brown sheet in the family room and before you knew it, we had a mini photography studio right in the house. Mom took close to 150 shots! We browsed the Internet for ideas and tried to re-create some of the pictures. Considering neither of us has ever attempted something like this I figure we did pretty well.






I'd also like to point out that I squeezed my expanding butt and thighs into a pair of pre-preggo jeans. Although I will admit it is not the first pair I tried on. the first pair were not all that flattering and barely made it over the hips. But I thought pair number 2 was still pretty good. Makes me optimistic that I will in fact get back into my pre-pregnancy jeans sooner than I thought... fingers crossed.









My biggest motivation to have the pictures taken was that I have embraced all the body changes in anticipation of what pregnancy will lead to. I have wanted to be a Mom for as long as I remember and am so excited to have this moment within my grasp. My spiritual side really kicks in as pregnancy and birth is such a miracle and I feel so blessed to experience it even once. I really want to capture the beauty of it and look back at the pictures in years to come to remember what I looked like when I was pregnant. I have already been told that even months after it is hard to believe that you were ever that big. Now I will have proof!

Mom - Thank you so much for spending the afternoon taking pictures of me and my belly. You did a great job and I am so happy with how they turned out!

Pictures for Nursery

These are 2 pictures we decided to hang in Dill's nursery. I actually crossed stitched both of them for James in the first 2 years were were dating. Since then I have re-matted them and purchased matching frames. Here is the finished product.

We also have some vintage Disney pictures still in the plastic wrap from when James went to Disney World over 15 years ago. We would also like to put these up, but because of their size, framing them is proving to be a little more difficult. They are not huge, just not standard sized so we may have to have a framer do it which always means more money.....

I would also like to get large wooden letters so spell out baby's name over the crib and purchase either a light pink or blue shelf from Ikea. Both of these purchases obviously have to wait until after Dill arrives. Hopefully in about 3 weeks :)

Week 36

This week Dill is the size of a crenshaw melon shown above and weighs about 6 pounds. Who comes up with these comparisons?? There is actually a link on babycenter.com that will tell you what fruit/veggie your baby is most like for all of the 40 weeks. One exciting thing to note is that after this week that baby is full term and all major development is complete. It is a relief that if Dill were to arrive early that he/she is fully 'baked'.

I had my doctor appointment today and it wasn't as boring as usual. A few things to note:

-the heartbeat was 140ish (which is normal)

-My tummy measured 36.5 cm. I am exactly 36 weeks today... so if you remember from a previous post, your tummy should be the same size in cm as you are in weeks. So I am bang on.

-My weight gain is normal. Although I sometimes go weeks with no weight gain at all, I (Dill) am capable of catching up in just one week. This week I gained nearly 4 pounds!! Who knew that was possible??

-I also asked about being late - and she told me that they will not let you go more than 41 weeks 4 days. So the latest Dill will arrive is July 13 by my calculations.

I do not get to see my regular doctor for the next 2 weeks as she is out of the office. I think this works to my advantage for 2 reasons:

1. She will not be on holidays the first 2 weeks of July.

2. I will get the opportunity to meet 2 other doctors which increases the odds of the doctor delivering the baby will be one I have met.

So far I don't mind going to the doctor too much... but I am guessing these weekly appointments are going to get old really fast!

PS - 8 more days of work and the countdown continues!

1 month to go!

Today officially marks 1 month until Dill's approximate arrival. I know that the baby could be late and try to mentally prepare myself for this. You spend so much time counting down to a specific date that is really just a guess. Only 8% of babies are born on their due dates and 80% of babies are born within 2 weeks of the due date. so looking on the bright side... Dill could arrive early. Let's all cross our fingers on this!!

As per the blog countdown - there are 29 days until EDD (estimated dill date)! Although I am very pregnanat now - the reality that we will have a new additions to our little family has still not sunk in. You spend lots of time doing what you are suppoesd to, i.e. reading about babies, shopping for cribs, taking classes etc. etc. but the reality that we will have a baby in a month is surreal.

James and I think it will hit us when we bring the little one home, look around, and think 'this baby now lives with us - now what?'.

I just can't beleive how quickly the pregnancy has passed and how excited both James and I are for our baby to arrive.

Parents-to-be

James and I in Dill's room. Won't be empty for very much longer....

Heat Wave!

For weeks now I have been hoping and praying for the nice weather to finally arrive but, apparently pregnant Christy is reacting differently to heat than regular Christy. I usually LOVE the hot weather and could lie at the beach for hours. Not this year... It is currently 20 degrees (which really isn't that hot if you think about it) in Calgary and I decided to take a leisurely stroll down 17th ave over lunch. Big mistake! I swear the A/C was broken in every store I went into as I would immediately start to sweat when I went indoors. Could be a long month of staying in the air conditioned house if this keeps up. I am now very happy that James convinced me we needed A/C!

Week 35

34 days and counting....

Baby dill now weighs over 5 pounds and is the weight of a honey dew melon. I think all the baby really does for the next couple weeks is grow and put on weight - hence the bigger belly. I am all good with that!

I had my doctor's appointment on Monday and the doctor confirmed that Dill is head down and ready to go. I had suspected this given where I feel the kicks and the hiccups. I should have been a doctor as I was spot on. It is crazy how the doc can poke around and then announce- here is the head! I went home and tried to locate the head - no luck.

My weight gain has slowed down this month as the baby is pushing on my stomach and I find it hard to get a full meal in. After every meal, no matter what I eat, it feels like I have just finished eating Christmas dinner. Note that it is not the plesant feeling you get while you are eating the meal, it is the 'I need to lay on the couch and undo my pants' feeling you get right after the meal. The doctor assured me that this is normal that the Dill is growing right on target. That made me feel better.

She also informed me that it is time for weekly appointments until Dill is born. I don't mind going to the doctor though. You get the chance to ask questions and to hear the heartbeat. What more can a mom-to-be ask for!

Last night we attended our second baby class where we learned all about labour positions and relaxation. We had practice contractions timed by the instructor where we would try out the different positions. We also watched the long awaited birth video.... I think I have seen enough and hope to not see any more videos in the next 5 weeks! I must admit though I teared up a little when the baby was born - I just can't wait to meet our little one. Had I been alone - I likely would have sobbed uncontrollably. You guessed it... we are back to hormone central!

Baby Pool Analysis

For those of you that have not checked in with the baby pool since you casted your vote.... as any accountant would, I have summarized the results thus far below:

- 67% of people think we are having a boy. I must say this is better odds than I expected as everyone including strangers guess we are having a boy. I keep reminding everyone (including Dill's Dad) that there is still a 50/50 chance on the gender and we will just have to wait until Dill arrives.

-The birthday guesses range from Jun 23 to Jul 16 - quite a wide range of guesses. I am hoping for the earlier end - although Grandma Paulette would be quite upset to have the baby arrive that early. She plans to arrive in Calgary on June 30 and stay until the baby is born. She is also the person to guess July 16 which I am not thrilled about. I think I can handle a week overdue - I think after that Dill will be getting an eviction notice from 'Hotel Christy'!

- The weight guesses are pretty spread out ranging from 6'15 to 8'6. Nearly 40% of people think the baby will be over 8lbs which is a big baby as far as I am concerned! They obviously think the baby is taking after my size at birth!

if you haven't already taken a guess - the link to the pool is on the left toolbar. Only Dill will determine who the winner will be!

Baby Classes!

James and I attended our first Birth and Babies class last night. This is a series of weekly classes that run for 10 weeks and spread over the birth of the babies. I think the goal is to have 5 classes before and 5 classes after baby – but of course, babies are unpredictable. I noticed that the earliest due date was June 20 and the latest was July 4th. So of course… we are at the end. I just hope we don’t have the last baby. It would be so discouraging to go week after week and still be the ‘pregnant couple’! Again – this is up to Dill – not us!

Because there are some couples that could potentially have their babies in 2 to 3 weeks, they dive right into the labor process and birth. Last night we covered first stage labor which we learnt is the process leading up to becoming 10cm dilated. So no birth video yet – that is next week! I think James may have been relieved that we didn’t have to watch the video on the first night!

I had really been looking forward to starting these classes – but boy is it an eye opener! I didn’t realize how long it could take just to get into what they call active labor and how long they want you to actually stay at home for. Apparently you should not go to the hospital until the contractions are 3-5minutes apart. That is quite close together if you consider that this includes the contraction time. Both James and I agreed that the most important thing we learnt was how to time a contraction – from the beginning of one to the beginning of the next. I told James to take notes during this part as I will not be timing myself .

They also told us to start thinking of what kinds of foods we should be eating when I start contractions and what we will do to pass the time. When James asked me what I wanted to eat, I immediately answered spaghetti and garlic toast. They said it should be a high carb meal as it is like preparing for a marathon or another cardiovascular event. Whether I get the spaghetti or not is another story. James thought scrabble was a good idea to pass time… but I would go crazy waiting for him on his turn. He is the slowest scrabble player ever. I think we will have to go back to the drawing board on this one.

The best part of the night for me was when we did a relaxation exercise where the husbands had to massage their wives while the woman worked on visualization. To be perfectly honest – I didn’t hear a word the instructor said but thoroughly enjoyed my 8 minute massage!

Week 34

I cannot believe there are only 6ish weeks until Dill arrives! That is 41 days… YIKES! The time seems to be going quite quickly (knock on wood)! I am now noticing that the extra weight/belly is catching up with me. Getting on and off the couch/bed is a chore and my walking has slowed down substantially. I am proud to report that Dill and I still get out for a half hour morning walk most days. Starting in May we have moved from the treadmill to walking outdoors. I just find the sunshine such a breath of fresh air first thing in the morning before work. Speaking of which… I only have 4 weeks of work left after this week which is only 15 office days thanks to extra vacation days and courses.

As per the weekly updates… Dill is nearly 5 pounds and has a 99% survival chance if he/she were born this week. The lungs are substantially developed and it is the nervous system that will continue to develop over the next several weeks. Dill’s hearing is also fully developed now and can hear both James and I talking. Better watch the language Dad! I must admit both of us talk to the baby but not as much as we could. We’ll have to work on this over the next several weeks.

I hope to post the 34 week picture later today. I ran out of time before I left for work this morning!

Cheryne and Les's Wedding

Introducing the new Mr. and Mrs.!



This picture was taken right after the outdoor ceremony by the river. You could not have asked for a more perfect day for a wedding. The sun was out and shining. If anything... it was too hot. Never thought I would utter those words. But when you are standing there and you can feel sweat dripping down your leg - you know it is starting to get a little warm! Those poor guys in the tuxes... I can't even begin to imagine how hot they were.



Of course I had to get a belly shot in my dress. As of Saturday I was exactly 7.5 months pregnant or 33 weeks and 3 days. If you remember from a way earlier post - this was the first maternity item I purchased and I finally got to wear it. Dill fit nice and snugly in there. The dress ended up being a tad on the long side which left me either holding the dress up or tripping over the back of the dress. I think overall thought the 3 bridesmaid dresses looked great together and tied in just perfectly with Cheryne's dress with the red detailing. It was nice to finally see the finished product!.



Cheryne was an absolutely beautiful bride and I was so proud to stand up for her. We had several busy days of wedding festivities. It started Friday morning with a trip to the spa for manicures and pedicures. Followed by some decorating, a rehearsal, and dinner. Saturday morning we were off to the hair salon for 9:30am where there were lots of laughs to be had. The ceremony went off without a hitch, there was plenty of time for pictures and finally we were off to the reception.



James and I had our first dance since we became pregnant. I think it may be our last... it felt a little awkward to be standing so far away and leaning in towards him at the same time. Oh well - we gave it a go. Kinda reminds me of giving a hug as I have to put my butt out!

Overall the day was a blast and we wish Les and Cheryne a long and happy marriage!

Week 33

Dill now weighs about 4.3 pounds. A really amazing fact is they (being doctors I assume) estimate that about half of the weight I gain between now and birth will go directly to baby. So at approx. 1 pound a week Dill could gain 3.5 more pounds! I think that is pretty amazing!

It is also likely that the head is now drifting downwards into the correct position and getting ready for birth. I have suspected this for some time as I only feel the hiccups at the very bottom and slightly to the right of my belly and the majority of the kicks are high and to the right. I plan to verify this with the doctor next visit - I forgot the last time I was there. I have not had any braxton hicks (fake contractions) which could also happen at any time.

Swelling is also common at this stage of pregnancy. So far I am happy to say that I still have ankles! Who knows if I will be fortuntae enough to keep them for the next 7 weeks.

I still feel great and little Dill is kicking me as I write this. I guess that is his/her way of saying 'Hi'!

PS - 48 days to go per the countdown to the left!

The Dress Fits!

I have had many people ask me if my bridesmaid dress fits... and it DOES!! I went for a fitting last week and it now falls nicely along my sides rather than all wrinkly and tight in the back. I tried it on this morning to make sure it was still good, and alas it is! Really... not even a person 7.5 month pregnant person could grow that much in one week! I assured Cheryne when she asked me to be a bridesmaid that I intented to be a 'cute pregnant person' and so far I think I am pretty cute if I do say so myself :)... but no promises over the next 7 weeks!

Stay tuned for pictures of the dress in action after the weekend!

Infant CPR

Last night, Auntie Bo, Uncle Dave, James and I headed to an infant CPR course put on by the Calgary Health Region. I must admit the material was a little dry and boring at times... but overall I am glad to have gone. We started with adult CPR and moved to toddler and finally infant. It also tackled adult/toddler/infant choking.

I had never taken a CPR course so it gave me the peace of mind knowing I could help Dill - or really anyone around me if I needed to. The one that scares me the most is choking. This, to me, is the one we would most likely need to use on an infant/toddler. It really feels like you are hitting the child and you have to flip them from front to back. I would be scared of physically dropping the child on its head. We did get to practice all the techniques on a dummy or baby. FYI - all the dolls were baby girls :)

James and I are both happy to have gone as it at least equipped us with the basics of what to do in an emergency. We are confident that Auntie Bo and Uncle Dave will be great baby sitters as they have the same skills as us (or better). After watching me try and give the dummy chest compressions and seeing that I could barely move the thing Bo declared she hopes I am not the only one around if she has a heart attack! I am blaming my lack of strength on the fact I had to stand at a table to do it. Beleive it or not - my stomach did not allow me to bend over and gives the dummy breaths while kneeling on the floor....

Next week is our first weekly Birth and Babies class. So stay tuned for how those go. I heard the first class is the birthing class with the dreaded video - Can't wait! (I hope you can sense the sarcasm there!)

Nursery Pictures

As the last post revealed... the crib and dresser have finally arrived in our household!! Papa John and Daddy (aka James) set up the crib Saturday afternoon while Grandma Paulette and I shopped. Good deal if you ask me!




The other 2 pics are of my mom and I being goofy and a closer up view of the crib. Overall - we are thrilled with how the room is coming together and are very eager to fill it with a baby!

Mother's Day

Happy Belated Mother's Day to all the mom's out there! Yesterday James and I were fortunate enough to be spend time with both our mom's. This is the first time in many years that I have had the pleasure of celebrating mother's day with my mom - so I was very excited.

We started the day by going to the R's where the 4 'kids' made and served breakfast. Then followed up with supper at our place with my parents. Talk about a lot of food! I still feel stuffed today!

James informed me I was not 'allowed' to celebrate mother's day since I am technically not a mom yet. He is obviously not carrying around an extra 20+ pounds and feeling the baby kicks on a regular basis. He surprised me with a "Happy 90% Mother's Day" card that he made on the computer. I thought this was very sweet.

In my mind.... Saturday was Mom's-to-be Day as I was spoiled with baby shopping day with my mom and also James and John working around the house.

First, they picked up the crib and dresser and set them up (pictures to follow). So when we returned, Dill's room was essentially done! We had to try out a few different locations as we are not quite happy with the original furniture placement. But I think all 4 of us agreed on a way that looks great. Then.... they installed our new outdoor lights for the house. Mom and I pulled up to the house after shopping and there they were in the front yard working away! I was super pleased with their productive day. Thanks again Papa John for all your help!

I hate to say it... but shopping for all the misc. baby item's was not as fun as I expected it to be! Thankfully my mom was there to provide advice on what was needed and what wasn't. It is just so overwhelming in the baby section and I really didn't know what I did and didn't need. I think we managed to cover everything for the baby except diapers. Believe it or not... Walmart didn't have ANY newborn diapers. It wasn't even that we were being picky! We bought everything from bath stuff for Dill, to the change pad for the dresser. Not even one item of clothing was purchased - now that takes willpower! We even bought some things for my hospital stay like slippers and a cheapy housecoat. I was so tired by the time we finally arrived home!

We spent last night going through all the clothes and blankets getting them ready to be washed and put away. The next big job is to take all the purchases and actually decide where to put them. Right now - everything is just thrown in the closet. It looks really clean in the room.... until you attempt to open the closet dwarer!

All in all it was a great Mother's Day spent with our family and preparing for the little family that will be expanding soon! Can't wait to celebrate with Dill next year!

Week 32

Dill now weighs nearly 4 pounds and is about 17 inches from head to toe. I still find it hard to believe that there is a room for a baby that size in my belly! At this point, I think baby is fully developed except for the lungs which will continue to mature right until birth. Dill continues to ‘practice breath’ as hiccups are now a daily occurrence. I can feel them right at the bottom of my tummy which I hope means that Dills head is moving in the right direction and he/she will not end up breach. I have a doctor’s appointment this week and I am hoping she can shed some light on this. This will be my last monthly appointment, as now I will be going every 2 weeks and eventually every week.

I am so excited to see all the guesses on the baby pool! A few comments on the ones there so far…
• July 6th seems to be a popular arrival date. It is a Sunday….. I can live with 4 days overdue.
• As expected, the majority of the guesses are for boys. Thanks to those that went out on a limb and guessed girl. I keep telling everyone there is a 50% chance Dill will in fact be a girl.
• It looks like the majority think that the baby will take after it’s mom in size. I noted there are several 8 pounders and a few high 7 pounders. Thank you for not guessing in the 9’s. I may have cried if someone guessed that big!

I did confirm with my mom that I was in fact 9 pounds 4 ounces. I am surprised she had another… and brother James was in the high 8 pounds! I really hope this is not hereditary. Although speaking of genetics – if I have to have a big baby I hope I get her good labor as well!!

Thanks again to everyone who took part in the baby pool… it will be a great keepsake! I look forward to those yet to be posted!

PS – as always… the 32 week picture is posted to the left!