I'm a Party Girl, in my party world...

After holding her bottle by herself today, Grace is ready for some fun. Here is our little party girl ready for her New Years celebration. (Sung to "I want to be a cowboy")

Hanging with the folks

I got my horn - ready

I got my tutu - fluffy

I want to be a party girl

You can be my DD

I want to be a party girl

There are no huge plans tonight with our little lady. We are going to Adam's client's house for a bit and then the neighbors. Hope you enjoy your evening...go KU!!! Grace is now getting on her rally outfit.

Christmas Memories

Grace sure did have some memories
from her first Christmas. We attended the Christmas Eve services to only leave early because the little lady was hungry. Oh well, hopefully next year she will be able to make it. On Christmas Eve we spent time with the Peters side of the family, which I am getting photos from on Thursday. Alex was so excited for Santa to come, it really was fun bringing back memories of your own childhood waiting for Santa. That night we drove to the Petersen farm, about an hour North of town, for the rest of the week.

Grace gave me the best Christmas present by sleeping through the night. I was so lucky! Here are photos of the celebration. My dad had been talking about making a pond in front of their clubhouse and now "Gracie's pond and beach" are getting already for next summer's fun!

This past week Grace has changed into a fun little baby. She is full of smiles for most people and is watching everything we do now. While we were talking with her in her bouncy seat she kept switching her gaze between the two of us. Her tummy time is easier to handle now too since she is holding up her head so well. I am just amazed at how quickly she is growing and learning.

Here is a photo of Adam's Aunt Barbara, Margie's sister, from a dinner we had Sunday. Grace and her cousin look very different when they are next to each other.

We wish everyone a safe and a Happy New year. We will have photos of our celebration, which will be the earliest celebration we have had in years!

3 Months and growing

Saturday was Grace's 3 month birthday to the day! She continues to change and grow so very quickly now. Just today she is now fascinated with the world around her and tried her Bumbo out. Here is proof.

Adam was very excited that his Rams won their bowl game and Grace joined in the celebration, after she woke from her nap.

We are excited to be spending the holidays with our families and wish you a very special holiday season.

Three months to the day

It seems like just yesterday, and forever ago, that Adam and I were having our last sleep before Grace was born. That was exactly three months ago since we were induced on Sept 19th. Well last night I was able to sleep through the night again. After a good day at daycare, Grace slept through the whole night without her usual 1 - 2am feeding. Any mother can tell you that the sleep after that feeding time was not completely sound because you worry why they are not awake for a feeding. It is such a big step for Grace and we look forward to seeing what happens over the next couple weeks. We pray this isn't a fluke, though we know from our friend's experiences that it could be awhile before this is a routine.

My how things can change with a child daily!! Grace still amazes me everyday with her little actions...clasping her hands when looking at you, giving a little smerk/smile as if to say "I see you too" and everything she has to say. This Christmas season makes me more grateful for all the blessing God has given us, this includes His Son.

Only one happy household member with Day Care

My first day away from Gracie was yesterday. The only one in our household who was happy about this is Brandy. She get more attention from me during the day now and is remembering her good ol' days. "sleep, love, play, sleep, love, play" The first day had ups and downs. Grace played and slept well at Mel's. Mel, our neighbor caregiver, has a two year old son who is giving Grace a taste of what she will do in the future to our kid #2, God willing for #2 in the future. Yesterday Elijah dropped a sippie cup on her head. He is such a great kid that her crying made him realize that he needs to be more careful, as did Mel's instructions to him. It isn't like she got kicked in the head like I did...by my own mother. What can I say, the 70s had big skirts and high shoes leading to many bad choices made by those dressing in the 70s. Back in those days I was much smaller and harder to see on the ground with those outfits. I digress.

At 1:30 everything changed. Though Grace has had a bottle almost everyday this day was different. She would have nothing to do with bottle feeding and I had already pumped for the next day. Luckily she slept a bit longer and I was able to get her some milk and calm down. The rest of the day we were both out of sorts! Today life seems to be better and she even took a bottle at her AM feeding from Adam and Mel. I am waiting to see how the rest of the day goes. Tomorrow it will be so nice to have her with me at home while my mom watches her!

Many of my co-workers have sent me well wishes to help ease me back into work. The many prayers from all of you have also helped us get through this tough time. We do look forward to the next couple weeks. Adam has Wed - Fri off for the next two weeks. He will take on the Mr. Mom roll with the apron and all. I can see it now...I am working on the computer typing and email while Adam is changing diapers or clothes, and cleaning. The thought already brings a smile to my face.

Here is a photo of our superwoman, with Mr. Mom. After her bath she just stretches out until we wrap her in a blanket. We think it is adorable! The photo is perfectly censored too.

Here is a photo of Gracie in her Christmas outfit, thank you Aunt Joyce for mailing. It fits great, other then it is just a bit long. The hat fits just right.

Merry Christmas to everyone! We will write again soon.

Christmas time fun

These past couple weeks have been filled with many fun events. Grace spent her first hours away from the family at her daycare provider Mel's house. Everyone did fine but mom. While leaving I teared up and then what is the one place a mother shouldn't go when she misses her baby?!?! That is right, I went to Babies R Us to pick a few things up without my baby. Let's just say I won't be doing that again!

This weekend Grace got to experience her first cookie day! After spending a fun day with Grandma Jeanne, we spent the night at the farm. Grace spelt pretty well up there and is getting ready for out couple nights up there for Christmas. Cookie day is a special day with my girlfriend from KU, Julianne, and her mother to bake cookies all day to eat during the holiday season. Grace enjoyed her time with the ladies and the love from everyone. Next year will be even more exciting with a toddler. Here are a couple photos from the day. Julianne and her mother were so sweet and gave Grace some adorable gifts. The photo of her in her first tutu will be coming soon.

We were blessed to see our friends the Sandersons a lot this week. Shawna came down for a visit with the kids and we spent time with them up in Ft Collins. Phil kept talking to Adam about all of the 14ers he would like Adam to join him on next year. I guess Phil didn't ask Shawna about these hikes or me because he thinks there will be time for a couple hikes a month. These hikes take our men away for the whole day plus some. Adam's hall passes are not that many ;P Don't get me wrong, I do think guy time is important...not 2x a month for 24+ hours. Plus, Adam might have issues with the lack of sleep he receives when sleeping in the car with another snoring man at the bottom of the mountain.

This is the dreaded week. Wednesday I start work again. I know that Mel will take good care of Grace and she will be just fine. It is going to be hard to be home during the day working while knowing my daughter is a 5 minute walk away and I can't be with her all the time. We will continue the breastfeeding, so I might get one more time during the day to see her. So many changes in so little time!

I will update more this week but for now I have to get some Christmas shopping done during our subzero temperatures :(

Things that make me laugh

Some of Gracie's loves make me laugh and smile all the time.
1. She loves to "try on clothes" Since she continues to grow I have to keep putting clothes up to her to see if they are long enough and will fit. Every time I put clothes up to her to see if they will probably fit, she smiles. The girl loves her clothes.
2. She loves her new toy, a New Year's horn. This is the perfect toy because she can grab and hold onto the horn. At the end of the horn are also streamers for her to look at. The best part, if she hits herself with the horn there are not injuries.
3. She loves most Christmas songs. I guess the higher pitch isn't something that works for her because she didn't like me singing Oh Holy Night.
4. She loves it when I talk with her while she is in the bouncy chair. This past week, while she had her pacifier in her mouth, she was talking and said "ga, ga, ga". It doesn't sound as good in writing, though it was hilarious at the time.

Grace is our smiley happy girl. We truly are blessed to have her in our lives. Here is a video of her talking, it is about 3mins...if you want to hear her "talk"

Thanksgiving photo.

Here is our Thanksgiving photo

2 months and 80/60 rule

Monday was Grace's 2 month appt. We knew our little lady was growing and we were guessing pretty well. Adam and I both knew Grace would be above average in length and slightly above average in weight. Her new stats: 11.5 lbs (60th percentile), 23.5" (80th percentile), and 80th percentile for head size. Everything about her growth is right on schedule. This was a tramatic day for her. Just imagine enjoying the day with your parents, nice weather, bright colors at the dr.'s office and then wham...5 shots in two legs. I have never seen such tears in our little girl and this had to be her second worst day in her life. The first would be her birthday when everything changed for her.

Updates on Grace:

• She is enjoying tummy time and is able to lift her body up to almost her sholders at times.



• Bath time is still a joy. Her favorite part is when she gets a spray down at the end.



• The car seat is still good only when moving.



• Last Saturday night Grace went 7 hours between feedings. I got 4 hours of straight sleep!! After the shots the sleep has been effected. Since then the longest is usually 5 hours.



• While enjoying the play gym, Grace now is able to hit her toys and grab them too.

The past two weeks were full of events. Grace and I drove up to the Petersen Farm in Platteville and stayed the night. Saturday we got professional family photos to be added sometime soon. Thanksgiving was full of time with the Peters family. Saturday was another full day with family. Before Grace's dedication at our church we had a late Thanksgiving with my folks at their house. The dedication went well and we were so lucky to have so many wonderful friends there to celebrate. Godparents, Phil & Shawna Sanderson and Brian Peters, are up for the challenge of helping to raise Grace to learn and know Christ. A photo with the Peters family will be coming soon as well as a new cute image of Grace.

Funny things this week. As some know, I do sing a little bit and wanted to expose Grace to it. Christmas songs are some of my favorite and being home while they play on the radio is awesome. While serenading my little lady, as she smiled, I could see the expression on her face slowly change. As it turns out, she is not a fan of her mommy singing the high parts of "O Holy Night" Lesson learned, Grace enjoys singing closer to her mommy's good range. She is also tracking a whole lot better. Adam and I were talking with her this morning on either side of her and she kept moving her eyes back and forth between us. The competition for Grace's attention begins.

Black Wednesday has been set, I am going back to work on Wednesday December 17th. The only good things about this are: we have a good friend watching Grace who lives in the neighborhood, that week I only have to be away from her for two days since my mom is going to watch her at the house on Fridays, and working from home makes the commute to pick her up very short. Well, now I need to get back to the lady since I am trying to get to bed early tonight in hopes to get over my cold quickly.

8 week old Rockstar

This past week we were able to enjoy the increasing awake time with Grace. She is so fun and loves to "talk" telling me about her day. We have been able to enjoy a lot of the wonderfully warm weather. Today we even took an hour long walk with our neighbor and doggie. Saturday was Gracie's first celebration with her Peters cousins, A.J. and Alex. Grace slept through A.J.'s baptism and most of the after party. Sunday we enjoyed some much needed family time in the sun. She is also doing well at sleeping through the night. The past couple nights Grace has been sleeping in 4 to 6 hours stints.

The coming week is going to be full of fun as well. Thursday we are going to Fort Collins, then the farm, Bunco on Friday, and family photos Saturday. Grace has been such a trouper with all of the different outings. Here are a couple photos from this week. This is Grace's Rockstar photo, even flashing a little attitude. The other photo is one that I requested. As she continues to grow so does her adorable bootie. This is her bottie shot with mom before bath time :)

I have to rant a little about Target today. Sunday we ordered a $270 car seat for $40 that they had available online. The offer seemed to good to be true, which it was. So, it didn't surprise me that they had made an error in the pricing. They sent an email that stated they wouldn't honor the order and I would not be receiving the car seats. Now it doesn't shock me that they wouldn't honor such an amazing price, but they didn't offer anything as a consolation. You would think they would offer some sort of discount or percentage off the purchase of the car seat though them still. We will just say that I am going to fight it.

Final thoughts...I can't believe that Thanksgiving is just around the corner. We are getting Grace dedicated at our church the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It is amazing to think that 8 weeks have already ended. Now I am going to cherish the remaining 4 weeks that I have. Got to get back to her now.

First Date night

Adam was such a sweetie and took me on our first date night, which was a complete surprise. He arrived home at about 5:45 with a pizza, bottle of wine, and the Peters babysitting service arrived shortly there after. Margie & Neil were able to enjoy a lot of Grace cuddle time while we went to go see a movie. Adam had received good reviews from fellow church members regarding a movie we had heard about. Fireproof has a powerful message. Here is a link if you haven't heard about it...http://www.fireproofthemovie.com/

We will just say the acting isn't that great, since not that many mainstream actors would like to be in a movie focusing on Christianity. Our previous music leader, John Waller, has one of his songs featured during the movie..."While I am Waiting". It was a special time for us to enjoy being together at such a wonderful point in our lives. Speaking of that, I have to run now and get the little lady who is now awake and ready to eat.

Hey Jealousy

Every new parenting book you read talks about the possibility of either or both parents getting jealous of the attention given to the baby or the attention received from the baby. You have so much love for this new life that it is hard to describe. The new love changes your life and interaction with your spouse. Yes, I do have a whole new appreciation for my mother and all mothers out there.

I have to admit, the jealousy is on my part. Grace will just light up and smile over and over again. It is hard for a mother not to be light of the child she is constantly caring for. This nemesis that I am talking about is our ceiling fan...you are reading right. Usually in the morning Grace will have breakfast while we work to get ready in the morning. It never fails, once she is done eating we will place her in her boppy pillow as we finish up our morning prep. Once she looks up and sees her beloved ceiling fan the largest grin comes over her face. She continues to stare at the fan and smiles over and over again. How exactly am I suppose to recreate this for my daughter to make her smile at me that way?!?! At least she is happy and gives us some free time.

Today we had a very nice outing with another realization...she doesn't love the library. As many of you know, I am not the quietest person out there and I love to have background noise. My daughter is the same way and tolerated the silence of the library for a bit. The 15 minutes of quietness was enough for her and she started to get fussy. It was interesting.

Our Broadway Star or Awards show host

Yesterday Gracie was the woman. Every Broadway star and Awards show host are pros at having people help them to change outfits in a very short period of time. Grace is starting her training early. "Who are you wearing?"

The diva started at 4:30am. The first outfit was a wonderful purple number, with flowers, that ended up getting too wet from spit-up to have her continue to sleep in. I was on duty to start the day. Outfit two was a comfy pink zip-up sleeper sporting a daisy on the pocket. In the morning Adam put on outfit three, a flowered onesie. She continued her connection with daddy and peed on him followed by a blow-out. He decided to be ironic and put on her "Cutie" gown, which did last the longest. While eating at Grandma's house, there was another blow-out through all two layers and even on to mommy. (she loves me, she really loves, me.) Thank goodness for cupcakes. We were smart and packed a couple extra outfits in her diaper bag, the cupcake gown was included. She saved the best outfit for last. Like every good diva, she wailed when getting changed though she was very happy with each new outfit. It was a fun day and I thought I would share...

The saga of the new parents continue. No matter how many outfits we had to change, one smile from her and it was all worth it!

Say cheese, cheese and more cheese

This week Gracie probably was seeing spots the whole time because of the large number of flash photos we took of her. Since this is her first Halloween we wanted to capture some good photos of our smiley girl. This is a photo of our little lady and her first dolly that is almost her twin. Grace still has her blue eyes like the dolly. My dr at my six week appt gave me the all clear to get back to regular life...exercising here I come!

Last week we took a trip to my folk's office and their neighbor's house for a fall photo. Below are some photos my dad got of our little pumpkin with her pumpkin and Lois' leaves. Grace wasn't in the mood to smile that much, though we did get some good photos. Between the three Canon photogs in the family, Grace is not going to want for any additional photos of her for the rest of her life!

Oct 30th we did get her first formal photos. Luckily I have learned her usual schedule and knew she would be more inclined to smile after lunch. So, we took a trip to mall and enjoyed the Nordstrom's bathroom twice for our feedings. They know how to treat a mom with a separate room for feeding and changing. Mother's know how important this can be. As a mother, I continue to learn my limits. I cannot breastfeed my baby while walking through Costco like I saw on Saturday. Feeding at the mall bathroom did allowed Gracie to be at her best for the photos below. Jessica & Randy gave us a great outfit for Grace at the shower in July. We thought it would be fun to have her photos in her little giraffe outfit and stylish boots that you can't see. It was lucky that another baby getting photographed had a giraffe for us to borrow. Having a 3 generation photo is important to me and my mother, so my mom met us there too. Don't worry, we will be sending copies of these photos to close friends and family.

Halloween proved to be very busy because of the very warm weather. Grace enjoyed her swing and sleeping through most of it. Sunday we enjoyed our first family outing. After our first church service as a family, we headed to Golden for the afternoon. It was such a beautiful day, which Grace slept through most of. I can't believe she is six weeks already. These remaining six weeks I do plan on cherishing!

Congratulations to Ryan and Rebecca as well on their new son Graham Himango. Grace is going to have her choice of many boy friends while growing-up...yes I separated the words on purpose. We aren't even close to being ready for boyfriends. That isn't a good thought for the king of back rubs in high school. As Adam said, "80% of back rubs lead to some additional physical contact" God has a wonderful sense of humor to give Adam a daughter.

Have a wonderful week!

George & Gracie

For those that don't know, in the 50's CBS aired the Burns and Allen show that stared George Burns and Gracie Allen. Little did we know that over 50 years later we would have our own George and Gracie show. It just so happens that they were born within 45 minutes of each other. Anne and I could enjoy looking at our own George and Gracie show all day. They are just too sweet. Here are photos from our time together.

Here is George trying to kiss our Gracie.

Here is a photo of Gracie talking George to sleep

Here are just adorable photos.

We had a great time and we can't wait to watch these birthday buddies grow together.

One Month

Happy one month birthday Gracie & George.

I am going to copy a our birthday buddy's one month blog, because it was great. This is what we have learned over the past 30 days.

• She is a cuddler and lover. No matter who it is, she loves to be held by everyone and gives so much love back.


• Her wardrobe is filled with many pink and purple items. She looks adorable in the outfits and even went through three outfits in one day.


• Grace takes after her planning parents and is pretty much a three hour girl. Ever three hours she is ready to eat with only a few nightly feeds that are four hours apart.


• We are lucky that Grace doesn't cry much outside of the usual reasons. When she does cry Brandy is the first to let us know and check on her.


• She continues to develop with tracking images and she loves the paintings on her wall. They are perfect to keep her entertained while changing her.


• Like George she doesn't like being dressed, loves baths, hates leaving the baths, is losing her hair in the front, and loves spending time looking at daddy.
  

Here are a couple photos to compare her growth from the first few days of life. Her cheeks were so adorable and chubby when she was born. Those cheeks have slimmed down a little. These two animals are her lovies. The monkey was selected because that is daddy's pet name for his little girl. We bought the zebra at Frontier Ranch where we spent many of church retreats.

This past week was great. Adam did have his first night away from Grace...he will fill you in on that later. My mom came over for the night to help and spent some special time with our three generations. Today I visited a lactation consultant to help finalize a few things and I think we are going to have an even better week and I will hopefully get some more sleep as well. Enjoy the photos.

The bond between a father and daughter

The bond between a father and a daughter is hard to explain. From the beginning a little girl has her daddy wrapped around her little finger, and in Adam's case their little fingers look the same. I know that my bond with my father, though we have had ups and downs like any pair, is so strong and something that only the two of us share. The bond between a mother and a daughter is just as special and very different. There is a strong understanding and kinship between ladies. Why do I write about these relationships? Adam and Grace have had a special relationship that I have not had that much experience in since her birth. There are only a few times that she and I have had the bond.

The bond I speak of...this morning as Adam was about to change Gracie's diaper he said "now don't pee or poop while daddy is changing your diaper" Their bond is starting out really strong with her defiance. Again, right as Adam was changing between the clean and dirty diaper Grace peed all over her and luckily a little of the clean diaper this time. Grace has a crazy knack for peeing when Adam is in the middle of the diaper switch...and he doesn't even take long to perform the switch. This is a bond that I don't understand and am glad that I usually don't experience. Thank goodness for changing pad covers and the fact that we have a washer in our house. Could you imagine if we had a boy?!?!?

Hope everyone enjoyed this little glimpse into the bond between a father and daughter. I am interested to see what their future relationship will be like.

3 Weeks and loving life

Life is good for us. Grace is sleeping very well at nights and we are working on her day sleeping. She continues to be the light of our life no matter if she is crying, sleeping, or just looking at us. Grace continues to love being held, amazing isn't it :P She is obsessed with being swaddled, her pacifier, and the sounds of the ocean. Without these, no one in the Peters household would be sleeping or happy.

We had her first bath this week, and only took a few photos afterwards. She enjoyed the actual bath, when the water was warm. Grace furrowed her eyebrows when I refilled the bath with clean accidentally colder water. Here is a photo after the bath was over. The happy camper changed her tune.

Saturday we took our first road trip which went really well. Adam went to the CSU homecoming game for a networking event and the ladies were able to enjoy time with the Sandersons. Abigail finally was able to meet baby Grace, the baby in Karla's tummy. Her 6 month old brother, Ian, loved Grace and wanted to get a little closer to her...as you can see in the photos. Let's just say Phil better watch his son's grabby hands in the coming years. Adam is already protective of his little girl.

Yesterday I was able to organize my clothes and pack away most of the maternity wear. It was good that I bought some clothes a little bigger last spring, now I have some in-between clothes. Sunday will be Adam's first night away from Grace for his quarterly planning at work. My mother is coming over and the ladies will enjoy an evening at home with some good tv. I will update the blog again soon, it is harder then I thought to get some down time for sometime. The rest of the day I am going to be working on some thank yous I am behind on. Enjoy the new photos.

Diapers, Sleep, and Burping...oh my.

What a wonderfully crazy week. We have enjoyed spending our time with our daughter and getting to know her likes and dislikes. This week we have learned she doesn't like to sleep on her back for a long period of time. She of course loves to sleep in the arms of anyone, as our many visitors this weekend would back-up. Grace's two week appointment was on Monday and she is up to 8lbs, 7ozs. Like the pregnancy, she is right on target and is in the 50th percentile for weight. She continues to eat well and is starting to sleep even better at night.

This was a busy weekend with so many visitors and we were able to finally introduce Grace to her cousin Andrew. The two look adorable together and it is hard to believe they are six days apart because Grace does look bigger then Andrew. Everyone at the other Peters' household are doing well. I will update with a photo of the two later.

I continue to forge ahead as a new mother. The infection is gone though I am still working though breastfeeding. Grace is a good eater and is about every three hours. This is wonderful at night being able to get some good sleep. It is hard, but I do try and nap during the day as well. Her umbilical cord fell-off last week and seems to be healing well. I also am healing well and took my first solo drive to the grocery store on Saturday. Being without Grace was a little strange, though it was liberating to be driving myself as well. It was just in time for the dr. appts this week.

Here is a photo of our little pumpkin and her pumpkin that Grandpa Kent gave her. She wishes everyone a very happy fall! I will try and update again soon.

October 1st Already!?!?!

Let's just say things are looking brighter everyday. Like I stated in the last post, there were some complications with breast feeding that got worse actually on Monday. After reaching a 101.3 fever Monday at 2am, we scheduled a dr.'s appt on Monday morning. It turns out I was getting an infection and needed antibiotics to clear it up. My mother was able to come and help our her girls for the next two days. Can we say...life savor? Grace can't get the infection and was still able to keep her nursing up. Her two week appt is on Monday and we will see how much weight she has gained. It is amazing to look at her birth photos, with the big adorable cheeks, and now her more lean look. We will see how she keeps growing.

Yesterday was Adam's first full day back to work and he came home missing his little lady. Here is an adorable photo I got of the love between the two.

Today I am completely back to normal and making it through my first day home alone with Grace. Sorry I haven't been able to talk with as many of you as I would like. I am going to have more time now. This week we are going to start taking some photos of the little lady with the pumpkin her Grandpa Kent gave her in one of the adorable pumpkin outfits. Well, back to the little lady. We will update again soon.

Last day of Daddy's leave

What a crazy couple of days at home with the little lady. Thursday was a very big day. Gracie was introduced to her doggie. Brandy was unsure about Gracie and still is. She has to get use to a lot of changes, though she is doing really well. On Thursday we also had her first Dr. appt and everything checked out great. She gained back 3ozs in a couple days and was 8lbs. I think she has probably gained 3 more ounces since then because she is eating really well. Friday morning we had our first bath which Grace didn't love, other then having her hair washed. The photo after the bath is included.

Most nights Grace has been able to sleep fairly well, though the past couple nights have had some fussy times. We are going to try some new options tonight to see if that helps. My mother stayed with us on Friday night, which was a wonderful blessing! Adam and I were able to get some really good sleep and my mom got to remember what it was like 30+ years ago. Let's just say she went to bed really early on Saturday night.

We are also pleased to announce the birth of Grace's second cousin Andrew Joseph Peters, born September 26, 2008 at 8:50am. He was two weeks early and was still 8bs 2ozs, and 21" long. Michelle had a easier delivery with this son and they are heading home today. Hopefully this week the two cousins will be able to meet. The plan was to bring Grace to the hospital yesterday, but I wasn't feeling that great. Breastfeeding can produce a few complications, which I did experience on Saturday. Today I am feeling much better.

Grace has had some visitors over the past couple days, which she has enjoyed all of cuddle time. She is never in need of being loved on. Sadly tomorrow Daddy has to go back to work. My mother is again coming to stay the night to help us get the week started off great. It is a little scary to think that I am going to be caring for Grace by myself for most of the week. We will see how I do! I am looking forward to some fun Mommy Daughter time.

The First Night Home

Yesterday we finally left the hospital at 2pm. Three main things helped in that decision...first I felt up to it even after my procedure (to be explained in a minute), a horrible interaction with a lactation consultant/devil, and hearing my screaming hungry baby come down the hall to eat because the nursery staff waiting too long to get her to me.

Knowing I had never had major surgery I knew that an epidural was in my future...little did I know there would be three. Friday night I received two epidurals. The first went into a blood vessel, so it had to be removed. The second worked for a bit and then moved into a blood vessel. Thank goodness for the c-section they just used a spinal block. During one of those many pokes in my back, some how they must have nicked something to release a tiny bit of spinal fluid into the epidural space. Monday morning I woke-up with the largest headache I have ever felt in my life and only laying flat helped. Luckily our nurse that day was amazing and helped to diagnose the problem and got the solution quickly. The best way to fix this is to receive another "epidural" but instead of receiving medication they shoot your own blood into the area to create a "patch" to stop to fluid leak. Thank God that worked, though Monday I had the usual epidural backache. The other good thing is the pain is relieved within 30mins or less, and I was back to my normal self for the day.

The lactation consultant that checked on me yesterday sent me over the edge and Adam was amazing at interpreting my look of death to him. He shooed this woman out of our room as fast as he could because he knew I might go postal on her. Isn't their job to help you feel more comfortable at breast feeding not doing paperwork while I try to get the crying baby, which she made cry and get so upset, to latch-on and eat? Thank goodness our first lactation nurse was great!

Last night we had some really good feedings and we were able to hear our little lady tell us she was hungry before the crying. You also know you are a parent when your child's poopy & wet diapers make you happy because it has been too long since you have seen one. She felt better after them too. Adam got the joy of being peed on today...then again he is getting the joy of having his daughter nap on his chest today too. He enjoyed the nap more especially after being up with her for 40 mins last night while she hiccuped.

Thanks to Jill for the coffee today! We get a call at 8:30 this morning and couldn't imagine who was calling...our neighbor brought us coffee/tea, some cute blankets, an outfit, and met Grace. Her son is only a couple months older then Grace and it is amazing to think Grace will get that big so quickly. I am feeling good today with no problems moving around, navigating the stairs, and even got a wonderful shower.

We look forward to the next couple days at home as a family. Adam won't go back to work until Monday, so he has been my wonderful go-to man! I know woman are suppose to get the push gifts, but I think he should get the recovery gift. To use for contractions, or so I thought, I did get him a fun CSU watch that should tide him over for a bit. Well, I better get going and feed the little lady. Until the next post, have a great day!

3 Days Old

Grace is now a little over 75 hours old and is doing great! We have been blessed in that she will sleep for 3, or sometimes 4, hours at a time during the night if she's well fed. A lot of that is due to keeping her in the nursery during the night and taking advantage of the great nursing staff here at Sky Ridge. We are also very blessed to have a number of our family and friends visit us over the past few days. Grace in not usually fussy, but she'll definitely let you know if she's hungry, has a messy diaper or is dealing with gas!

Here are a few highlights...

Everyone seems to love Grace's chubby cheeks, blue eyes and strawberry-blonde hair. We especially like watching her sleep and seeing all of the "old man" faces she makes while dreaming. We are still debating which features come more from Mommy vs. Daddy. Not totally sure on that yet, but we do know she's got Adam's pinkies and his smile. She gets the blue eyes and blonde hair from mom (although Karla was born with dark hair). Grace also makes a noise like a baby crocodile (google the "umph" sound); not sure who she got that from but it's very cute.

As of right now (9/23) we are still in the hospital. Yesterday, Karla had her 3rd epidural "poke" since Saturday morning. While that got rid of the splitting headache, it also gave her more of a backache which is starting to get better. Although we can stay until tomorrow morning if we'd like or to allow more time for Karla to recoup, we are thinking this afternoon will be the right time to take Grace home.

Thanks again to all of you who stopped by, called or emails with your best wishes, gifts, food, encouragement and love. Look forward to seeing all of you in the very near future and introducing you to our sweet baby girl. Here is our first official family photo.

It's a Girl, September 20,2008

We officially had our daughter at 6:02am on September 20, 2008 via a c. section. After 20 hours of trying pitocin, breaking my water, and doing what we thought we could to not have a c section, the baby had a mind of her own. She wouldn't drop at all and was very happy where she was. So at 5am we decided on the c-section and we went in...we will add more details later.

Grace Karla was born at 6:02am, 8lbs 9ozs, 21" long

We have all been doing great! She has been eating like a champ, Adam is the king of diapers, since the section has been limiting my activities, and I am healing very well. Here are a couple photos of our little lady...she has officially broken the streak of only male Peters for 3 generations. That is our girl! The middle name is also a family tradition and we decided to continue on my mothers side. We can't wait to share our little blonde haired, blue eyed sweetie with you all.

We will update when we have more time.

Congratulations to Grace's birthday buddy...George O'Reilly. We were lucky enough to be pregnant with Adam's good friend and co-worker, we even told mutual friends about the pregnancies on the same night. Little did we know that they would share a birthday. CONGRATULATIONS O'REILLY FAMILY.

Induction Date

For all of you that are anxiously awaiting Sweet Pea's arrival...you can keep waiting. That's what we are doing! We arrived at the hospital today at 7:30 and Karla got her Pitocin drip started by 9am. 8 hours later there is not much to report. She is having more contractions but not the consistency the Dr. would like. They've been changing the amount of Pitocin to see if we can establish more regular contractions, and hopefully have Sweet Pea drop down (he or she is still "very high" which means we're probably not that close). Hence the reason I can update the blog during the early evening.

We appreciate all the thoughts and prayers from our family and friends. We'll let you know more as news develops.

No update & Coldplay

Well I haven't had much of a change since the dr appt yesterday. Today is my last day at work and I am going to enjoy some time off tomorrow, if the baby lets me. We will let you know of any changes. BTW, the song last night was Coldplay's Viva La Vida.

We are getting very excited!!!

Dr. Appt & music, music, music

Today's dr. appt was a little disappointing. There really is no change with me or the baby. The baby hasn't dropped/engaged, making it hard for the dr to even guess the weight of the baby. About 7.5lbs is the current guess and that would be mine as well or a bit bigger. I am on my way to about 2cm, this doctor is known for being generous in her dilation amounts and she said I was 2cm. The next sentence has warnings: non-partners you can skip it, men ask your wives if they know, and many women can relate. To try and get things moving the dr "stripped my membranes." This action has a 50% chance of starting labor within 48 hours...which is right near our induction date anyway.

So if nothing changes before Friday, we will be heading to the hospital about 7am. If the baby still hasn't dropped by Friday they will have to hook me up to pitocin first to start contractions and get the baby to drop. Then we will progress from there.

Music, music, music, every night at one of the many bathroom breaks while trying to fall back asleep and I have a new song in my head keeping me from sleeping. Sunday was "Rock Star" by Nickelback, Monday was Pink's new song "So What", Tuesday was Maroon 5. It doesn't sound like a problem until you can't get the song out of your head for 30+ mins and you are singing many of the same lines over and over again. I wonder what tonight's song will be.

Thank you everyone for your calls and emails. We will keep you updated if the baby decides to come before Friday.

40 weeks and ready as we will ever be.

Well even with some painless contractions Friday and Saturday, Sweet P wasn't ready to enter the world this weekend. The baby allowed us one final weekend to work on final projects, enjoy some alone time together, time with friends/family, and a really good Broncos game (I know, with a bad call.) It was so nice to get a few things done around the house: trim hedges, laundry, organizing the baby's room just a bit more, and enjoying time together. In honor of the baby we did watch Baby Mama. It has been ages since we rented a movie at blockbuster, we had Netflix for some time and then we just rented at the $1 red box. This will also be one of the last times we rent at Blockbuster because it was over $5!!! We did enjoy the predictable movie.

Tomorrow is our 40 week appointment and we will have a better idea if any of the aches and painless contractions I have been having are getting my body more ready for labor. Our appt is at 11am. If we do make the induction date, my last day at work will be Wednesday because one day to myself to get anything finalized sounds perfect to me!

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We will be sure to keep you updated via the blog, emails, and calls when possible.

Almost 40 weeks and no baby.

For those that are checking the blog I thought I would update again...with the fact that there is no change with me or the baby. Sweet P has decided to allow Adam and I time to get our work completely squared away. It actually scared me that we would be having the baby today because Adam said "You can't go into labor on Friday I have 4 meetings scheduled." Don't worry he would have cancelled the meetings :P

Maybe the change in weather this week will impact the baby's decision to greet the world. Today is a high of 62 and rainy. So much for the adorable girl summer outfit I bought. The baby could be a boy and it wouldn't have mattered anyway. This morning I did say to Adam that I am looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow, for one of the last times in a while.

Hope you have enjoyed this tiny update. Monday is the official due date, September 15, 2009. Our next Dr. appt is Tuesday the 16th though. Our induction is with Dr. Chu on Friday Sept 19th at 7:30am and she doesn't work on Mondays, so we are having a 40 week and one day appt. I can't believe in a week we will officially be parents. The thought is very surreal that is for sure. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers this week. We will let everyone know as soon as we can.

Sept 10th, a day to celebrate (IKEA)

My mother just called and told me some of the best news....Ikea is coming, Ikea is coming!!!! Ikea, one of the stores I love to stop at, is coming to Centennial, CO. This is one town away from me. Parker now has Costco and will have the Ikea close to it. Big box stores make the suburban wife happy :)

This store is wonderful and I can't wait to take Sweet P there. There is so much to shop for that the store has a play area for kids to keep them busy while the parents shop. This should help me through some possible postpartum depression because this store is something huge to look forward to and budget for.

Call me crazy I know, but this is so exciting!!!

39 weeks & counting

Classes, car seats, bags, oh my. We are officially done with all of our classes, the car seats have been checked and installed correctly and the 3 hospital bags are packed (one for me, one for hubby, and one for baby). The car seat location had to be confirmed by Hillary and Adam passed the installation with pretty much flying colors!

Our 39 week appt yesterday was good. The baby still hasn't engaged, though it feels lower then ever, I am 1cm dilated still and now 70% effaced. To make sure we have a good appt time, we scheduled an induction for Friday Sept 19th at 7:30am. Based on my mother's history with quick induction deliveries, Sweet P will be here within the next 10 days if history repeats it's self.

This was a busy week with work and fun. Wednesday was a perfect day...for a shower gift my parents paid to have our house to be cleaned. There is nothing like a clean house to make you feel more ready for a baby. During the week I was fighting the cold and was able to slow myself down a little to not get the brunt of it. My marathon Saturday was wonderful!! The shower with our neighbors was so much fun and a special time to spend with everyone that is going to watch Sweet P grow so quickly. Thank you Jill & Michelle! Then off to my sister-in-law's shower for our nephew, who right now will be named Andrew Joseph or as Alex likes to call his little brother "cake". Then that night we had some of our good friends over, the Shiers & Evans. The infant care class on Sunday went well and I was able to finally work on the growing thank you list, which is now almost completed.

Yesterday we completed our legal paperwork, thank you to the Boschens! It was a bit weird discussing some contingencies in there for our grandchildren! Between now and then I am sure things will change and get updated, but it was surreal. Tonight I get to go and see Avenue Q with my mom. The baby was sweet enough to let me make it until the show, which I really wanted to see again. We first saw it in London, which was something I was curious about. How would a group of Londoners sing and act like characters from Queens, NY? Because the baby does like musicals so much, the baby moves all the time during the shows, maybe it wanted to hear the show too. We won't say that it could be a coincidence, the baby's love for musicals and it's normal active time is in the evenings from 7-9, which is during the shows...baby likes the theatre. I do hope to also make it to my hair cut on Thursday. Other then that, baby you can come any time :P

Here are a few new photos. Yes my shirt color is the same, though these photos are a sweater since it was a high of 55 yesterday. This is probably our last family photo without Sweet P. Our new camera makes really funny beeps when the timer is going and it makes Brandy give her curious face, which I love! The second photo is of me next to the rocker that Adam and his father restored. This was the rocker my folks used for my brother and me. We can't wait to use it for Sweet P.

Hopefully the next posting will be about Sweet P.'s arrival or at the very least an update on my dilation progress. Thank you for all your prayers and wonderful thoughts. I have tried my best to respond to all emails, though it had been more difficult lately with the many, many, many thoughts in my head. We will update soon.

38 weeks: the good, the bad, the ugly

Let us start off with the good. Adam and I had a great Labor Day weekend. He hiked Longs peak, a 14er, with our friend Phil, as well as Meeker, a Centennial peak. After limited sleep in the 4-runner they started hiking with headlamps at 3am. {adam- limited sleep is an understatement...the most amount of sleep I think I got was about 1.5 hours. Apparently someone snores, yeah, for only an hour straight....damn you Phil. Well, that is not really the amount you want to get before going on a 12+ hour hike. The "loft" route up to Meeker and Long's was a great idea that I have to give thanks to Phil for. It was an incredible sight to see the summit of Meeker and Long's in the "morning-glow" at 6am. This was three hours into our twelve hour trek. The day was perfect for hiking/climbing but we now can empathize with all of those folks who say the last part of the day is the 'death-march' back to your car. Funny how long seven miles takes after you've been climbing for seven hours already. Overall, it was a challenging but very rewarding day on the peaks}

The men hiked, while Shawna and I enjoyed much needed girl time together with the kids. Abigail is adorable and ever active. She will be on the hike with them in only a few years. Sunday and Monday we were able to get a whole lot done around the house. Adam got the lawn ready, we hung the canvases (FINALLY), got the baby's room ready and finished the black-out shades.

The bad, hanging curtain rods is never fun! A couple hours later we were able to hang the two rods. Let's just say, it is better when the instructions are actually right with sizes and recommendations. Also, this week I started getting a cold that I am getting over.

The ugly, and updates. We went to our 38 week appt on Tuesday morning. Yes, I have finally dilated 1cm and am still 50% effaced. Based on the slow moving baby, during our 39 week appt on Monday we will schedule an induction. The hospital we are delivering at, Sky Ridge Medical Facility, is very popular for delivering and we need to make sure we can get some time scheduled. I want to make sure I have a medicine ball for me to use during labor...depending on how they might induce.

This week we continue to get ready for the baby...and Saturday is my last marathon day. We have a shower with our neighbors, my sister-in-law's shower, car seat checks, and friends over for dinner. If that doesn't help me move along in dilation I don't know what will. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We continue to get excited when the baby is moving, which is usually 7-9pm guaranteed. Sweet P responds to Adam's voice which is so special. When asked, Sweet P still won't give us a clue on it's sex. We are about 50/50 on boy and girl. In about 10 days we will probably know. We will keep you posted.