Cedar Fern

Just For Fun

2012-01-18T09:00:00.000-05:00

I took some pictures for my friend this evening, Since I had the lights and backdrop all set up, I decided to take some pics of Penelope. Here they are...

Happy Wednesday!

A New Year...Reflections, Ambitions, and All that Jazz

2012-01-06T09:31:00.000-05:00

So here's my obligatory post for the new year, where I will talk about the past year and what I hope the future will bring. Boy oh boy, was 2011 a whirlwind of a year! Here's a quick recap:

January:
I was pregnant, bloated and feeling generally awful. I was also extremely excited that my little girl was due in March and we'd be meeting her in the new year! I was busy planning her nursery and washing and folding clothes that friends and family generously handed down to us. I remember smelling the freshly laundered in Dreft detergent clothes and imagining what it would be like.

looking at my face and hands in this picture makes me sick. I had such severe swelling (which was due to preeclampsia only I didn't know at the time) I had no idea what was to come! It doesn't even look like me!

February:
WOW, now this was a crazy month! I had very bad swelling for most of my pregnancy, but when I woke up on February 3rd and my eyes were so swollen I could barely open them - I knew something was wrong. We happen to have a blood pressure cuff at our house, and I decided to check mine just to calm my fears. My blood pressure was 100/90 or something crazy like that so I called the doc, they had me come in, took some tests, and sent me to the hospital. I had preeclampsia and had to deliver early. 6 WEEKS early! It was a bad experience, but thankfully our beautiful daughter Penelope was born healthy (although very small at 3 lb, 9oz) on February 5, 2011. She spent the next 3 weeks in the NICU so the rest of the month is a blur of driving back and forth to the hospital and going from wishing they would send her home to being terrified that they'd send this teeny tiny baby home with us!

March:
Penelope came home! She was SO tiny and delicate. I was nervous for probably this entire month. Worrying if she would have some sort of episode and we wouldn't know what to do. She was still in premie clothes and her cry was so quiet. But Sean and I became more and more comfortable as time went on.

I mean seriously....how tiny was she?!?

April:
I think this is the month that I went to my first mommy group. I went to the last 2 sessions of one group and the entire 8 weeks of another group. In those 2 groups I met the most amazing group of women. I am so thankful for this program because I now have about 20 new close friends who I never would have met otherwise! When I moved to Columbia I was kind of worried because I didn't know anyone in the area. And all of my closest friends from college have all moved to various areas and have their own lives and families - we don't get together as often as I would like. But at least now Penelope and I both have a group of friends that we can get together with on a regular basis. We have lots of fun!

May:
Sean and I celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary. We had his parents come and watch Penelope so we could go out for dinner. It was weird being away from Penelope for even a couple of hours. I think we spent the entire time talking about our crazy first year of marriage and even more about our little girl.

wow...that feels like so long ago!

June:
Penelope and I spent a lot of time taking walks with our new mommy and baby friends. I was also starting to get more worried about a birthmark over Penelope's eye. It was continuing to grow and I had read online that it could effect her vision. She had already gone to see some doctors about it but nothing major was being done about it. We had another eye and dermatologist visit scheduled for July and I was nervous.

July:
Penelope went on her first vacation this month. It was definitely a new experience for Sean and I as well! No more spending hours lounging on the beach...our little Peanut wanted none of that! She did enjoy taking naps on the beach though. When we got back from vacation, we went to her doc appointments and it was decided that we would start her on propanolol for her birthmark. We ended up having to be admitted to the hospital for 2 days to watch her reaction to the medication. She did great, and we started giving her the medicine at home 3 times a day. 12 nooon, 8pm, and 4 AM!! This went on until very recently.

August:
Lots more hanging with our mommy and baby friends. A lot of the moms were going back to work in September (lots of teachers in this group) so we wanted to get as much hang time as we could!

September:
Penelope really started eating solids this month....well purees. It was fun seeing her try new things.

October:
Penelope celebrated her first Halloween with a bang! We had a huge party with a lot of her baby friends. It was so much fun seeing all the babies dressed up! Penelope was a little black cat...so cute!

November:
We enjoyed the leaves changing, and Penelope tried the swings for the first time. She loved it! We also celebrated Penelope's first Thanksgiving. She tried turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce.

December:
Those who know me know that I LOVE Christmas! I was so excited to have our first Christmas with Penelope, and the season did not disappoint! She looked adorable in her little holiday outfits, she stayed healthy (although Sean and I were both sick this month), and she got her 2 front teeth (along with 2 more on the top!) We went to holiday parties, spent time with family and Santa treated her very well! I couldn't have asked for a better month! And to top it all off...the best present to ME....we weaned Penelope off of her propanolol treatment for her eye. That means she is now able to sleep thorough the night without me waking her up at 4am for medicine and a bottle! That also means that I don't have to get up at 4am either! YAY! She is now sleeping on average from 8pm-7:30am. IT IS HEAVEN!

December is also the month that I started getting back into taking photos. After taking Penelope's pictures I started taking lots of pictures of my friend's babies. It has been so much fun and I'm really enjoying it! I hope to take more and more and continue to sharpen my skills!

So...this ended up being a lot longer than I anticipated. And I know that it's mostly about Penelope, but this year has been all about her. She has been our world and has turned it upside down. Sean and I were just talking about how difficult it is to remember life before her...and we don't mind at all.

For next year's resolutions (I'll keep this short) I plan to:
1. the obvious and cliche - get into shape, eat better, etc...bla bla bla
2. focus on my husband and relationship more now that the sleepless nights (and 4am wake ups) are over.
3. continue to hone my photography skills

That's about it. I hope you all had a fantastic 2011 and are as optimistic about the future as I am. I can't wait to see what 2012 will bring! Happy New Year!!

Family Visit for the Holidays

2012-01-03T09:46:00.001-05:00

My sister Tracy, bro-in-law Dave and niece Shannon all came for a visit over the holiday. We had such a nice time together and we were sad to see them leave. Penelope had such a great time with all of them...but especially with her cousin Shannon. She usually takes a while to warm up to people she hasn't seen in a while but she fell back in love with her instantly (and I think the feeling was mutual!)

Playing with her Uncle Dave

My sister Tracy

the family

Cousin Shannon and Penelope having a great time together!

Penelope enjoying her time with Shannon in the morning

Hope to see you guys soon! xoxo

Theo's Photo Shoot

2011-12-26T17:27:00.000-05:00

I have the pleasure of talking little Theo's pictures today. His mommy, Marlon, and daddy, Andrew were there to help make this little one smile. He was mister serious but gave us a few killer smiles. And man oh man when he did light up it was awesome - so many teeth! He really enjoyed clapping for us and even gave us a Tyra Banks worthy "smize!" Here are some of the best photos...

dimples!!

check out the "smize" - Tyra would be so proud!

family pic

Hope everyone is enjoying their day off!

Penelope's First Christmas - 2011

2011-12-26T11:44:00.000-05:00

We had an amazingly wonderful first Christmas with Penelope. She is such a good baby, which is why Santa treated her very well this Christmas! We started the day with opening presents. She had so much fun tearing the paper and seeing all of her new toys!

She had so much fun opening presents

playing with her new blocks

what's this?

ooh a book! Here's daddy reading to her.

the cats were not impressed

she loves her new doggy!

Sean not happy about getting undies for Christmas!

Me being VERY excited about getting a mini tripod. I got lots of photo stuff this Christmas and I can't WAIT to try it all out!

Showing Penelope how her new steering wheel works

Now there's a happy boy!

Daddy bought his little girl an ornament just from him. Nawww...so sweet

I just love her so much!

After opening presents we had our delicious breakfast of naughty cinnimon buns!

nom nom nom

Then it was off to Grandmom and Grandpop's house on the Eastern Shore. All of Sean's brothers and sisters were there and Penelope had so much fun!

Sitting on Grandpop's lap. He is in love with this little girl and didn't want to put her down.

the Grandparent's cat was not amused either!

she just LOVES getting her hair blown. So funny!

Sitting on her GREAT Grandmom's lap!

Opening more presents! This little girl raked it in this year!

riding on her new beautiful rocking horse that her grandparents gave her.

isn't it pretty? And when it rocks the little legs hit the wood slats and make a clip clop sound!

sitting on Grandmom's lap.

Hope you all had a very merry Christmas too! Hugs!!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

2011-12-24T16:40:00.000-05:00

We are having Christmas eve dinner at our house and Sean's brother is coming over to spend it with us. My sister in law (his wife) is a pediatric ER doctor and she's working tonight so she won't we joining us. We're bummed but glad that we can have his brother over to partake in some delicious dinner! I have the chicken in the oven and I'm about to start making all of the other fixins. Stuffing, candied sweet potatoes, biscuits....yuuum!!

We had a bit of a mishap this morning. I made a cheesecake and put a pan of water on the bottom rack so that it wouldn't crack. Unfortunately, the oven was kind of dirty...and as the water splashed onto the bottom of the stove...somehow a fire started! Sean was quick and put the fire out with a fire extinguisher. Unfortunately that means the cheesecake was ruined. As well as our lunch that was on the table...and anything else that wasn't covered! We spent the morning cleaning the oven and wiping the chemical dust off of everything. Whoopsie! At least I was making it early enough that I had time to go to the store to get supplies to make another one. The cheesecake is for tomorrow so I'll just make another one after dinner. Sigh...what's Christmas without a little drama, right? At least it was a small contained fire and nobody was hurt. Maybe my pride a little...but what can ya do? haha. Anyway...I won't be posting tomorrow so I wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! Hope you all have a very relaxing and drama-free time! Hugs!!

Brady's Photo Shoot

2011-12-23T10:00:00.000-05:00

I had the pleasure of taking my neighbor Faith's son's pictures the other day. He just turned one in November so I took some for his first birthday as well as for Christmas. Brady is all about walking these days and just wants to explore everything! And since our houses are laid out the same way he really knows how to get around the place! We had lots of fun trying to get him to stay still for the pictures - lots of playing with different toys and calling his name. We were able to get some good ones in the process. We also got some sweet pictures of him by the window because he just loved standing there and looking outside!

Here are some of the best shots from his first birthday shoot.

And here are some of the best ones from his Christmas shoot.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Grace's Photo Shoot

2011-12-22T10:00:00.000-05:00

Grace is such a funny little lady! She makes the cutest little crinkle face when she smiles! Her mommy, Clare, was a lot of help with wrangling this little one in! She just wanted to go, go GO! We had lots of fun getting her to smile...singing songs and making funny noises. She probably thought we were nuts! We also took her first birthday pics - which is right around the corner. I'll wait to post those until after the big event! She's the first baby to turn one in Penelope's group of friends...it's very exciting!! Anyway, here are her Christmas photos...check out the adorableness below!

Don't you just love the little bow in her hair?!

Sean's Photo Shoot

2011-12-21T09:06:00.000-05:00

Sean was the first little guy I took photos of after Penelope. I was nervous because I wanted them to come out great for his parents. I think his mommy, Andrea, was happy with them. He was so much fun to shoot...he has the most expressive big eyes and he had lots of smiles to give us! He is one of Penelope's best buddies - they have lots of playdates together. Anyway, here are some of his best shots!

Preciousness!

Nathan's Photo Shoot

2011-12-20T10:00:00.000-05:00

Now that everyone's Christmas cards have gone out I'm able to start blogging the photos I took for my friends. I had the pleasure of taking little Nathan's photos a few weeks ago. His mom Kelly brought him over with a bunch of different outfits and we had a blast getting him to pose for the camera. This little guy is FAST so we had to chase him around to get the shots. I think he had a good time (although by the end of the day his mom and I were exhausted!) haha! He's such a cutie and Penelope loved watching him zip around the house. I think she got a few pointers on how to crawl because she's getting closer every day!

Anyway, here are some of the best shots from Nathan's photo shoot!

Isn't he just the cutest?!

Penelope's Pets

2011-12-19T10:57:00.000-05:00

I took some pictures of my friend's baby for Christmas this morning. Since I already had the backdrop in place, I decided to take some more pictures of our little girl. She loves our animals like crazy so I thought it would be fun to get some pictures of her with them. Unfortunately our one cat Gary would have nothing to do with it (he's a little timid) but I got some with her and her other buddies.

with her buddy Zeus

Zeus being a very good sport!

bring on the doggie!!

With her favorite pal, Mia

I better be getting a treat for this!

they love each other!

Happy Monday everyone!

Penelope's First Christmas Tree!

2011-12-05T10:00:00.000-05:00

This weekend we went to get Penelope's first Christmas tree. It was a beautiful day, so we packed our little peanut in the van and went off to the tree farm. We ended up picking a very fat douglas fir.

That's our tree behind us! Sean did a great job cutting it down. Penelope and I were impressed!

While we were there, Penelope got to visit with Santa!

she wasn't quite sure about it!

We realized when we got home that the tree was too fat to go in the corner we were planning on putting it in. Oh well, we think she's a beauty and just changed the location!

Penelpe thinks it's pretty too!

How are all of your Christmas preparations going?

Jordan's Christmas Photo Shoot

2011-12-02T10:02:00.001-05:00

I had the opportunity to take pictures of adorable Jordan last week. He is such a happy baby and seemed to have fun during the shoot. His mommy, Juli, was a huge help with getting him to smile. It was actually pretty funny (wish I had some pictures of that!) Oh well..you'll all just have to settle for photos of her ridiculously adorable little guy! Enjoy...

Penelope's Christmas Photo Shoot

2011-12-01T12:09:00.001-05:00

So the other day I was thinking of going to the mall to one of those picture places to get Penelope's "professional" pictures taken for Christmas. I have avoided these places thus far because I can't see spending a crap load of money for pictures when I have a decent camera and she is prone to crying in front of strangers (she is in her "stranger danger" phase). And after talking to a few of my friends that took their kids with the intent of spending $20 but walking out with over $100 in photos...I decided it wasn't a good idea for me to go. So I talked to Sean about it, and said that I wanted to take the photos at home. He said that if we could save the $$ on the photos that we could invest in another lens for my camera. Decision = MADE!

I went upstairs and grabbed the guest room bedspread, hopped on over to the craft store for some props, dressed our little girl in her Christmas outfit...and gots to shooting some pics. I think they turned out really well! And apparently so did some of my friends. I have already taken 2 of my friend's babies pics and I have 2 more scheduled later this week. I'm going to ask them if I can share some of the best ones so you all can see how they came out. In the meantime, here are some of Penelope's best pictures from her Christmas photo shoot. Take that Sears photo studio!!

look at that adorable baby butt!

Hope everyone is enjoying getting ready for the holidays! I know I am!!

Symphony Woods

2011-11-14T14:35:00.001-05:00

Sean took the day off today, and we decided to take full advantage of this beautiful weather. We took Penelope over to Symphony Woods where the leaves are beautiful still and took some pictures of her. She seemed to enjoy looking everywhere except me and the camera! It's ok though...she had a good time and so did we! Here are some of the best shots.

trying to eat the leaf!

Baby Halloween Party

2011-10-30T15:15:00.002-04:00

We had an amazing time hosting our first Halloween party for Penelope and her friends. They all looked so cute in their costumes and everyone had a fantastic time. I was actually quite impressed with how all of the babies held it together for the entire time! Yay babies! Here are some pictures of the adorableness!

Penelope the kitty

Hanging with her buddy Grace the cupcake!

Happy Halloween everyone!

Our Widdle Pumpkin'

2011-10-17T19:24:00.000-04:00

So I saw this adorable photo of a baby in a pumpkin on pinterest the other day and I knew I just had to do the same thing with Penelope! So when we all went to the pumpkin patch last week we bought the biggest pumpkin I have ever purchased and brought it home. This afternoon I carved it out and we got out the cameras. Check it out...

um....what are you guys up to. I would like to point out that I am sitting in a pumpkin!

this is AWESOME!

woah...what's that?!

muggin for the camera

the neighbor's doggie came over for a visit

getting sleepy

Hope everyone is getting ready for Halloween! I know we are!

Swinging and Flying

2011-10-10T09:44:00.000-04:00

Sean and I took advantage of Saturday's beautiful weather and brought Penelope to the park to go swinging. She had such a great time on the swings!

so happy!

After the park Sean threw Penelope up in the air. She LOVES this!

getting some serious air!

Then it was time for some more photo ops. I have had this rocking chair since I was a little girl and I wanted to get some pictures of her in it. Here are some of the best ones.

We love our little girl and have the best time with her!

blowing raspberries on her cheek!

Hope you all had as fantastic of a weekend as we did!

To the Pumpkin Patch We Go....Well Went

2011-10-06T11:11:00.002-04:00

Since yesterday was such a beautiful day, Sean decided to take a half day so we could go to the pumpkin patch and pick out pumpkins for Penelope's first Halloween. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day! Sean and I both brought our cameras and took lots of pictures of our little girl. We got 2 pumpkins while we were there and I have an awesome idea for one of them. I can't wait to share the finished product with you all. But for now....here are some of our combined best shots!

Sean carrying Penelope through the patch

Playing in the dirt

She is obsessed with her feet these days!

having fun!

Her pumpkin throne

Sean taking a picture of me taking a picture of Penelope

hanging out under a tree after the pumpkin patch

I hope everyone is having a fantastic day! It's another beautiful and sunny one and the weekend is supposed to be even better! Horray!

Playing in the Grass

2011-09-29T14:21:00.001-04:00

The sun actually came out for the first time in over a week (or at least it seems that way) so I decided to take Penelope outside to play in the grass. Actually, I think this is the first time she's actually played in the grass....I usually put her on a blanket. She's sitting up pretty well on her own so I figured it would be fun to see how she took to the green blades before the cold weather comes. Here are some of the best shots.

smizing

chubber cheeks!

feeling the grass

checkin' things out

"My Word" as she clutches her pearls!

Hope everyone is having a fantastic Thursday!

Eating, Playing, Living, Loving

2011-09-19T11:32:00.000-04:00

I figured it was time for another Penelope update, so here it goes.

She is really figuring out the whole eating thing. She loves to eat apples, pears, carrots, squash...really anything. Here she is eating avocado. She couldn't get enough. She kept grabbing the spoon and shoving it in. It's adorable!

She also has fallen in LOVE with the dog. Mia loves licking her (which is kind of gross but it makes P giggle so I let it slide from time to time.) Here is a picture of them lounging on the couch together. I think once Penelope starts dropping food it's all over and Mia may find a new best friend instead of me!

We love reading to her, and she loves it! Sometimes it's difficult because she's too busy trying to turn the pages but it's still a great time. Here is her daddy reading her a bedtime story. Melts my heart...

Grandma and Grandpa Diamond came for a visit for Grandparent's day. She just loves them to pieces.

She is still obsessed with playing in her exersauser

Oh, and we blew bubbles for the first time. She loves them!

And this weekend we had our first fire in the fireplace. She liked to watch the flame.

So that's about it. I'll end this post with an adorable video of her eating avocado. Hope you all have a fantastic week!

Photo Shoot

2011-08-22T11:47:00.000-04:00

Decided to take some pictures of Penelope today. Here are my favorites!

Also, today is my sister Terrie's birthday....happy birthday sis!

Visit with My Brother and Family

2011-08-21T19:37:00.000-04:00

My brother and his family came to visit this weekend to meet Penelope for the first time. We had a great time and little Penelope was the center of attention....which is her favorite!

With her Uncle Ricky and Cousin Chrissy

SuperBABY!

With her Uncle Ricky and Cousins Chrissy and Ricky

Checkin' our her Uncle's face

With her Aunt Sue

Ricky and Sue

We had a very nice time with the family. Our dog Mia is moping around the house now because of all the love and treats everyone gave her while they were here too. haha.

Also...here's another picture I took of her today. Doesn't really fit into the story but I think she looks super cute...so here it is.

Hope everyone else had a great weekend!

Supermodel

2011-08-16T15:23:00.003-04:00

My little baby girl is a supermodel! She posed for some baby headbands for a friend of a friend who is opening an etsy shop. Here are the best takes. I think it's time to start entering her in some glitz pageants! (Just Kidding!!!)

Moving on Up to Cereal and other updates

2011-08-14T14:06:00.000-04:00

Penelope tried rice cereal for the first time today. She didn't seem to like it too much but it sure was fun to watch her!

I don't know about this guys!

It's kinda weird tasting....


Get it out of my mouth!

She is doing really great! She loves her daddy, and loves to roll over on her belly!

This is AWESOME!

That's right...just chillin on my belly like a big girl!

I'm also very happy to report that her hemangioma is doing fantastic! We started her on Propanolol a month ago and it has drastically reduced the size of the mark. So much so that in our last eye doctor appointment on the 12th he said that her vision is symmetrical again and she is no longer in need of glasses! This medicine has saved her vision and she has had no side effects at all! We are so very lucky to live near Johns Hopkins where they are pioneering the use of proanolol as treatment for hemangiomas! Here are some before and after pics just so you can see how amazing this drug is!!

And in non-baby news.... it's crazy but it's true. 3 years ago today, Sean and I met for the first time. It's amazing how much has happened in the past 3 years. I love you Sean!

Our first picture together. Date #4 - day trip to Cape May, NJ

Right after he proposed on the beach in Cape May!

married!

Honeymoon.

our baby is born!

And now we're the lucky parents of a beautiful 6 month old little girl!

Have a happy weekend!

So many updates - Penelope Milestones, Birthmark, and Beach Trip

2011-07-25T16:25:00.000-04:00

Shew people....I sure do suck at blogging! I think I say that every time I post! Guess that means it's true..haha. Anyway, a lot has happened since I last posted so I figured I'd just do a cluster post of our lives in the past month.

Trip to Cape May, NJ:

Penelope had her first trip to the beach this summer. While I can say that bringing a baby to the beach does not make a relaxing vacation - it was still a good time! She spent a lot of time sleeping on the beach and rocking her awesome sunglasses! I can't wait to bring her back next year and hopefully dip her toes in the water a bit. It was way too cold and she would have just screamed this year.

sleeping away

hanging with daddy wearing her awesome sunglasses

Trip to the Hospital, Update on Penelope's Hemangioma:

Big things are happening for the better with Penelope's hemangioma. We brought her to the eye doctor right before our vacation and he said that her eyesight was getting worse and that she is probably going to need baby glasses (as I mentioned in the last post). Well, once we got back from vacation we met with her dermatologist and she said it was time to get more aggressive with the treatment. That meant it was time to have Penelope admitted to the hospital for a few days to start her on Propanolol. Propanolol is a hypertension medication that they've found also shrinks hemangiomas. We had to admit her to the hosptial for monitoring because the medication can have adverse effects such as low blood pressure or drops in glucose levels. We checked into the hospital this past Tuesday and Penelope rocked it like a champ! She was so good the whole time we were there and just played with her toys! She didn't even cry too much when they pricked her toe to check her blood sugar (well except for the first time!) We were out by Thursday and we can already see a huge improvement in both the size of the red part of the hemangioma as well as the stuff under the skin that is actually pressing on her eye!

hanging in the hospital

chillaxin in the hospital crib

Penelope's eye before any treatment

Penelope's eye after 1 month of timolol topical treatment and less than a week of Propanolol treatment! It's amazing!!

Penelope Milestones:

And now on to the fun stuff! Penelope has just been learning and growing so fast these days! She has discovered her tongue!

She has learned how to roll over!

What's up guys? Oh that's right....I just rolled over again. No biggie!

She has also learned how to grab things with her hands and bring them to her mouth! We are just so proud of our little girl! She is the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to Sean and I and we are amazed every day that she is ours! I couldn't possibly love her more than I already do.

just relaxing for a bit

Woah...what's that? A monkey!?!

And that's about it for now!

Penelope Eye Update

2011-07-01T18:09:00.003-04:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted - I'm a bad blogger! I've just been so busy with making new friends with other moms, playing with Penelope, and just general life. I really don't have too much time to write now, but I wanted to give everyone an update on what's going on with Penelope's eye and her hemangioma. Basically we've been putting a topical beta blocker called topolol on her eye for the past month hoping that it would shrink the mark. It seems to be working ever so slowly...but we went to the eye doctor today and it wasn't good news. Basically her eye is in need of glasses at this point. He showed me the lenses of what her eyesight is like, and it's pretty blurry. He said that the best thing to do at this point is to put drops in her good eye to make it blurry so that she will be forced to use her bad eye. This will hopefully prevent her from developing a lazy eye. In 2 months we'll go back to him where he will probably prescribe baby glasses. We may also have to patch her good eye from time to time to continue making her use the bad eye and avoid a lazy eye situation.

We're going back to the dermatologist who prescribed the topical treatment on the 13th. We may decide to try a more aggressive treatment, depending on what she says. The eye doctor said that if this stops pressing on her eye soon that there may be a chance that her eye could go back to normal and her vision could improve....but if it just keeps pushing and pushing it's only going to get worse.

I was pretty upset when I heard all of this today, but I'm trying to keep it all in perspective. She's healthy, she's happy....and she's awesome. She just may take after her mommy and need glasses. They're pretty cute anyway, and I think she could rock them!

Well that's about it for now.

Visit with the Grandparents, Aunties and Great Grandma

2011-06-13T10:19:00.000-04:00

We had a wonderful visit with Sean's family this Sunday. Aunties Maura and Tara came down from Philly to see their little niece and celebrate an early father's day down on the eastern shore. Lots of baby snuggles happened between feasting on crabs and corn on the cob (yum!)

Here are some pictures from the day...

Aunt Maura and Aunt Tara snuggling with Penelope

Aunt Tara just can't get over how cute her little niece is!

Aunt Maura getting in some extra snuggles

Grandpa burping Penelope after a big lunch!

Penelope showing off her new owl hat that Aunt Tara crocheted for her. Isn't it the cutest!?!

We also stopped by to see Great Grandma while we were in town. She and Penelope had a great time together!!

Penelope had a fantastic time!

Things that I've been dreaming of

2011-06-09T18:13:00.000-04:00

There are so many things that I see online that I want for our little Peanut when she gets older. I figured I'd take a second and put some on here so I wouldn't forget about them.

1. Isn't this the most adorable bedroom ever? I'd love to have a toddler bed like this for her. It is darling!

via: http://taliaaudenart.blogspot.com/

2. I will learn how to make these wings for her!

via: http://llevoelinvierno.blogspot.com/

3. I kind of want to buy this print for her room now. Great message!

find here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/ParadaCreations

4. I am OBSESSED with these boots! This store is killing me! They're all sold out now but I'm tempted to order them as soon as they come back in stock in a size she'll grow into just so I can get them. Cutest boots EVER!

find here: http://joyfolie.com/_catalog_6055/Boots

5. When she's old enough for a pet hamster - this is the most awesome cage to get for it!

unfortunately only found in Italy: http://tinyurl.com/3w3pbxc

6. And finally, I am definitely going to do this when it's time for Penelope to start loosing her teeth. How cool to have a little fairy door on the wall where she magically comes out when it's time to leave our little sweetheart some money for her lost tooth.

found here: http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/inspiration/a-tooth-fairy-door-this-blessed-nest-144985

So that's what I'm thinking about these days. Yeah, she has a long way to go before these things become useful - but she's totally worth daydreaming about. I mean look at this face!

nawww! so cute!

Penelope Update - Mostly Pictures

2011-06-01T14:29:00.000-04:00

I haven't blogged in a while...so sorry! It's so hard to get anything like this done when I'm so busy enjoying my little girl! She has grown so much this past month and it's amazing! She turned 16 weeks this past Saturday - I can't believe she's been around for 4 months now! Time sure does fly! Here's what she's been up to...

Remember how much she hated bath time? Well now she LOVES it!

She loves having the water pour over her head!

Who knew this could be so awesome!?!

She also love staring at the ceiling fan....she could do it for hours (which is nice when I need to get something done)!

hypnotized by the ceiling fan...

She loves getting dressed up (or rather I LOVE dressing her)! She's my own living doll...tee hee!

cute little sundress

A jean skirt? I mean come on!! Cuteness overload!

Daddy themed outfit!

Another cute sundress

She's starting to do cool things like coo and hold her head up for longer periods of time!

She loves her activity mat!

Yaarr...I'm cooing people!

When she's upset she can pout like it's nobody's business!

that lower lip can crush your heart!

But after her bottle or some extra snuggles...she's all happy again and ready for a snooze.

zzzzzz

And maybe after a nap she's ready for a trip out and about.

I'm ready for my close up

chillaxin in the grass

Well, I guess that's about it for now. I hope everyone is enjoying this lovely weather! Penelope, Sean and I have been having a great time!

New Penelope Pics and Spring Cleaning

2011-05-12T12:15:00.000-04:00

I know what you all come here to see...pictures of our adorable Penelope! Here are some that are pretty new...

look at those chubby cheeks!!

hanging with her buddy Zeus

baby toes!!!

snoozing

I have the spring cleaning bug. I have been slowly trying to clean around the house and tackle some of the things I've been putting off for a long time. The biggest thing I've been dreading is my closet. There was so much crap in there I didn't wear, and the floor was covered in stuff that I kept shoving in there. After we got married, I had my dress cleaned and boxed up and I was determined to get that box into my closet! So today, I finally gave in and got to work!

before - notice the floor, the sweaters falling off the shelves, everything wedged in there!

3 bags of clothes for goodwill, 2 bags of trash, and a box packed with maternity clothes and here is the finished product!

yay! I can see the floor!!

I even color coordinated the clothes! Yes...total dork but I was so happy it was clean! Also, all the way to the left...tucked in the back...is that massive box with my wedding dress! YAY!

Little Penelope slept through the whole thing which was just amazing. I think I will reward her with a little time out in the fresh air! Have a great day!

Mothers Day 2011

2011-05-09T11:16:00.000-04:00

I had a fantastic first mothers day weekend with Sean and Penelope! Saturday was absolutely beautiful so we decided to do some yard work. At first we were just going to weed, but it was so nice out that we decided to just get it all done and plant flowers and mulch as well. We put the beach umbrella up in the front yard and parked Penelope under it in her little chair..and off to work we went. She was actually pretty content the entire time. There were a few times where I had to stop to play with her or feed her...but I think she was just enjoying the nice fresh air as much as we were. I planted some marigolds and some small white border flowers (I forget what they're called). I think it turned out really nice. Oh and we're very happy that the japanese maple is doing so well. We really thought it was a gonner 2 winters ago when half of the branches broke from the weight of all those snow storms!

Sunday was even better! Although I was super sore from all the yard work, it actually felt pretty good! Sean made me a fantastic mothers day breakfast complete with eggs, home fries, and scrapple (YES scrapple!) I was in heaven! He and Penelope both gave me cards (so cute!) and Sean gave me this adorable ceramic wall hanging. He found it on etsy with no prompting from me as to what I wanted! I absolutely love birds (as anyone who's been in my house would know) and so he got this little plaque that says mama's little bird. Isn't it the cutest?

After breakfast, I went and got my haircut. I was in desperate need of a haircut. It was more than halfway down my back but did not look good. And unfortunatly I am losing my hair at an alarming rate. Apparently that's pretty common for women who have had a baby, and I am one of the lucky ladies that is experiencing it. Now my hair is right around shoulder length and it looks and feels so much better! It has a bit more body to it now so that it doesn't look so thin.

We ended the day with some delicious mexican food and watching TV. Pefectly relaxing and wonderful. I just love my husband and daughter to pieces! I feel like a very lucky lady!

I hope all the other moms out there had a fantastic mothers day as well! Hugs!

Being your baby's advocate - hemangioma

2011-05-05T10:00:00.001-04:00

I haven't blogged in a while but I figured I'd give you all an update on how our wonderful Penelope is doing. She's a fantastic baby! She's learning how to make sounds and is cooing more often. She is super sweet and likes to play bouncy on the knee, kisses on the face, and being sung to.

As a new mom, I am learning new things every day. The thing I have been learning lately (what with my own experiences with doctors and now my daughter) is that you have to be your own advocate. And you are also responsible for being your child's advocate. Penelope has been developing a hemangioma on her right eyelid for about 5-6 weeks now. It started out as a tiny red dot that I thought was a scratch and has developed into a larger red puffy growth about the size of a grain of rice. When her eye is closed it's obvious that there is a bit of puffiness that isn't red - but more under the skin.

hemangioma 3/27/11

hemangioma 5/25/11

I talked to her pediatrician about it and she said that hemangiomas are very common with preemie babies and that it will probably continue to grow and then shrink and to not worry about it. At first I was worried about the cosmetic issues with having a red bump on her eyelid - but figured that if it will go away than no worries.

Then I did some research online and FREAKED OUT! Apparently with hemangiomas on the eyelid there are additional complications that I was not aware of. Because of where it is, it could possibly put pressure on the eyeball and cause an astigmatism. That is basically when your eyeball is more of a football shape instead of an orbital shape like normal eyes. I actually have an astigmatism and it's not a big deal - BUT if a baby or child has an astigmatism and it's not treated with either glasses or other possible treatments, it could create problems with brain development. Babies use their eyes to process information and if they are seeing a fuzzy image it could create either a lazy eye in the other eye or a delay in mental development.

In addition to this information I googled images of eyelid hemangiomas - some are huge and scary! Apparently in preemie children the fasted growth period for hemangiomas is between 4-6 months of age - so we're not even there yet. Yes...freaking out!

So, I decided to be Penelope's advocate and set up some doctor's appointments. The first was with a pediatric dermatologist at Johns Hopkins Hospital. She looked at her and said basically the same thing as our pediatrician. Keep an eye on it and see how it goes. I wasn't really that happy with the dermatologist because she didn't even touch Penelope. Just looked at her. We have another follow up appointment with her in a month but I'm thinking I may switch to a new dermatologist.

Then today we went to her optometrist. She had her eyes examined when she was 5 weeks old because preemies are at higher risk for eye problems in general. At that appointment her eyes were in perfect condition. This appointment showed that she is starting to have an astigmatism in her right eye. And the optometrist said that it's probably as a result of the hemangioma. He actually felt her eyelid and said that he felt that lumpy part of her eyelid indicated that the hemangioma is larger than what you can see and that part of it is deeper under the skin. While she is not at the point of needing glasses yet, if it keeps growing and pushing on her eyeball we may have to have baby glasses for her! We're going back to see him in 2 months to see how much her vision has changed.

So, basically I'm freaking out. I don't want this thing to grow huge and impact her vision negatively! I don't want to have to worry about her developing a lazy eye! I also don't want to have her be negatively impacted by the cosmetic aspects of this growth. Yes it's supposed to go away on it's own - but when? It could take years and I don't want her to be teased or bullied about something she can't help when she's in school. So do you do anything about it? There are treatments, but with every treatment there is a risk.

So at this point we're in a holding pattern. A wait and see with fingers crossed that it's done growing and will not impact her eyesight. That it will stay it's current size and then reduce in size so that it's gone by the time she's ready to enter school. These are all very hopeful scenarios so please keep the positive thoughts our way.

I know at this point there are so many worse things that we could be worrying about. But she's my baby and I love her and want everything in her life to be wonderful and perfect - and I hate that she has yet another thing to deal with. We have finally gotten her acid reflux under control, so I guess this is just the next hurdle.

So, I guess after all this I just have to tell everyone to be your kid's advocate. While I like our pediatrician and still trust her - I had a gut feeling that I should dig deeper with this issue. And I'm truly glad that I did. Now we know that there is the potential for very serious eye issues and we're watching it instead of waiting until it's too late.

Do what you need to in order to provide the best care for your child. A doctor is someone to be trusted, but you also need to follow your parental instincts. Do what you think is right because your opinion is just as valid as your physicians!

Tiptoe through the Tulips

2011-04-25T13:37:00.000-04:00

We had a wonderful Easter with Sean's family this weekend. Not only was there lots of good food to eat, but Penelope was spoiled with love from her grandparents and great grandmother. What a lucky baby! Also, as promised - here are some pictures of Penelope in her Easter dress!!

I also took a trip to the Baltimore tulip gardens today, Sherwood Gardens, to take some pictures of Penelope amongst the beautiful flowers. Unfortunately my white balance on my camera was incorrect but it looked fine through the viewfinder. Only a few of the hundreds I took came out halfway decent. I may have to go back in the next few days to take some more. It is so pretty there! Here are the few that came out...

I had her in her easter dress for a little bit

Hope you all had a happy Easter!

It's a beautiful day

2011-04-20T14:12:00.000-04:00

I can't believe how time is just flying by! Penelope has changed so much in the past 10 weeks. She's just getting so big and I just love her to bits. I am enjoying staying home with her more than I ever imagined. I'm definitely getting more into the groove of things and am able to get some things done during the day. I think the fact that I'm not pumping anymore has definitely freed up time as well. I'm finally over the guilt of not breastfeeding and am enjoying feeding her so much more now. AND as a bonus, now that she's on the acid reflux formula she is doing so much better too! Sure she still spits up, but it's not nearly as traumatic as it was before - so yay!

Anyway, here are some new pics of our little princess!

sleeping on our walk to the coffee shop

napping on mommy's chest

so strong - holding her head up during tummy time

looking cute in her spring outfit

sneaking peeks while napping on mommy

In other news, I have done some things to myself to change up my look for spring. I was trying to decide if I should cut my hair which is now halfway down my back..or if I should dye it dark again. And I decided on....

dark again for spring

And finally - I bought Penelope the most ADORABLE Easter outfit! I took some pictures of her in it today just in case the cloudy skies predicted for Sunday don't allow me to take good shots. I'm not going to share them until Easter - but...here is just a slice of the lovliness that you're going to see!

you have NO idea how beautiful she looks!

So I guess that's it for now. Penelope and I are going to go for a little walk now in this gorgeous weather! Hugs to all!

Feelin' like Spring

2011-04-11T12:37:00.000-04:00

Things have been going pretty good in the Diamond household the past few days. Penelope is on 100% formula. She has had problems with choking so our pediatrician told us to mix rice cereal into her formula. We tried this with breast milk but apparently the enzymes in breast milk break down the rice so it doesn't work. So, we tried it again with the formula and after many different tries of mixing formula with rice cereal, destroying a bunch of nipples to get the hole size right to pass the cereal through, etc...we have finally figured it out. We figured out that we shouldn't mix cereal in at all but to use Enfamil AR formula for acid reflux. It already has cereal mixed in so we don't have to worry about giving her too much cereal and empty calories and so far she hasn't had a major choking episode. We are using this formula with the 6 month Dr. Brown's nipples and it has been great! She is eating well again (about 3 ozs a feeding!) and she seems to be handling it well. I can't tell you what a relief this is after all of the feeding issues we've had trying to get this right. I feel so bad when I see my little girl in pain or struggling to eat.

In other news, I just took some photos of Penelope in her little spring dress. We are going to go visit my old office today so that they can meet her, so I figured I'd dress her up in a little cute outfit for the occasion. And it's super nice out today so what better excuse to put on a little dress!

She's so strong lifting her head!

2 Months Old

2011-04-05T13:47:00.000-04:00

bright eyed

I just can't believe it - you turn 2 months old today. So much has changed in the past month. You are out of the teeny tiny premie clothes and into the newborn size (although you can only fit in the Carter's brand - all the other brands are still too large). As I packed away all the premie clothes I found it hard to believe you were able to fit into them. You are almost double your birth weight and I am just so proud of how you're growing.

cutest outfit ever! Check out the socks!!

You are hating the bath a little bit less - but you would still rather be snuggled up in someone's arms. You are getting so good at lifting your head and you have a killer grip.

sleeping on mommy's chest

We are slowly switching you to formula, and for that I have had a lot of guilt. Because you had such trouble with breastfeeding, I was pumping exclusivly - and I just wasn't producing enough for you. We have used up all the reserves of breast milk in the freezer from when you were in the NICU and just had to face the fact that you would have to go to formula wheither we wanted you to or not. I'm sorry baby...I really tried. But - you have been handling the transition wonderfully. You are still drinking like a champ and gaining weight beautifully.

snuggled in a swaddle

We have had lots of visitors and everyone who meets you falls instantly in love. I can't blame them - you are the most beautiful little girl I have ever seen! I love you more and more every day and I just can't believe you are mine. Your daddy and I are so proud to be your parents and can't wait to get to know you more each and every day.

lifting her head!

Love,
Mommy

Little Miss Popularity

2011-04-01T10:06:00.000-04:00

Penelope is quite the popular gal. She's had quite a few visitors and she just loves the company! There is nothing she likes more than being held, and these past few weekends she has been in heaven!

2 weeks ago, Chris and Archana paid us a visit. Penelope was so happy to see them. She is also happy that Archana told me about the double swaddle. Now she's as snug as a bug during sleepy time!

I think P just tooted!

feeling cozy

Then last weekend we had lots of family over. My sister Tracy and her husband Dave came for a visit from NJ, Sean's sisters Maura and Tara from Philly, and his parents from the Eastern Shore. Lots of traveling to see our little girl! She was literally held from the time she woke up until late at night. I have never seen her sleep so much! Nothing like warm, snuggly family to curl up and nap with...that's her motto!

Aunt Tara and Aunt Maura seeing her for the first time since the hospital!

hanging with Grandpop

snuggling with Grandmom

sleeping in Uncle Dave's arms

Winding down after a fun day with Aunt Tracy

Aunt Stacey is coming over this afternoon and this weekend my dad is coming to visit from South Carolina. Penelope is very excited!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Parental Panic

2011-03-28T11:04:00.000-04:00

So we had a bit of a scare last week. I'll start with a little bit of back story. When Penelope was in the NICU she would sometimes have trouble with clearing her spit up and the nurses would have to use the aspriator bulb to help her from choking. The actually kept her a few extra days because of this. When we took her home we were aware that this could happen, so we were prepared. They told us she would arch her back and choke - so we knew what to look for...or so we thought.

Sean had told me that he had seen her do this a few times and he would pat her back and she would be fine. Then 2 weeks ago I saw what we thought was her choking. She would turn bright red, and she would go completely rigid - back arched, head turned to one side, arms and legs out straight. When you pick her up she basically felt like a plastic doll - no flexability at all. We just assumed that it was her choking but I was a little worried that it was something more.

Well, fast forward to this past Thursday morning. Peanut was just waking up for the morning when she went stiff as a board and completely red. Sean and I got her out of the bassinet and he patted her on the back and then we laid her down on the bed. She was still very stiff and not very responsive. That's when I was like...you know what, this doesn't seem like choking. I think she's having a seizure!

I called her pediatrician and told her what happened and she said we should immediately go to the emergency room. So we went, they checked her out, took blood (and she cried and cried and it was so sad!). Then the doctor came in...

He said that based on her symptoms he's pretty sure she has sandifer syndrome. It is basically her reaction to extreme acid reflux. Thankfully it isn't a seizure and should not have any long term negative effect on her health. But it IS scary as crap! They decided to keep her for 24 hours to monitor her. So we spent the night in the hospital. She seemed fine over night (but she doesn't have these episodes very often so I was pretty confident that they wouldn't see anything while we were there).

didn't think we'd be seeing the inside of a hospital so soon

Now she's on heartburn medicine and we're going to see how that goes. It doesn't always work and she may have more of these episodes but I feel a lot better knowing what it is (that it wasn't seizures). I feel horrible that my little girl has such bad indegestion but the hope is that she'll grow out of it.

My poor baby....

Spitting Image

2011-03-23T14:02:00.000-04:00

I mean I know she's my kid and everything, but seriously....

tell me she doesn't look exactly like her dad when he was a kid!

Fresh Pics and Hard Decisions

2011-03-17T17:04:00.000-04:00

I had to make a hard decision today. My wonderful friend Biscuit planned my baby shower for me. The original one was scheduled for February 20th, but that one was canceled as Peanut came early. We rescheduled it for this Sunday, March 20th which is 2 days after her actual due date. We figured it would be a fun "welcome to the world" shower. We also decided to have it at my house since it would be easier to cart gifts if they were already at our house. I guess I wasn't really thinking when we picked that date. You see...we're not even supposed to leave the house with her until she's 2 months old because she's premie and the risk of her getting sick is high.

Fast forward to now, and a few people that were supposed to attend the shower either have the flu or have been exposed to it. I had to do what's best for the little one and cancel the shower again. I'm bummed but at the same time I am kind of relieved. I have been stressing about having all of these people in the house around her. She is so vulnerable right now - her little body is just now catching up with itself and she's considered "full term now." I'd hate for her to get sick because someone came over who didn't even know they were sick accidentally passed something along.

So I had to make a decision that was hard. I am guessing it's one of many many hard decisions that I will have to make as a parent. As much as I wanted to see all of my friends and show off our little sweet Penelope, I had to do what's best for her. So...everyone will just have to wait a bit longer to meet our little one.

In the meantime, I took some pictures of her today with my good camera and I think they came out pretty good. Here are some of the best ones.

Bath time

2011-03-15T08:54:00.000-04:00

Peanut is NOT a fan of bath time. She screams and cries and is pretty pitiful. Here are some pics of her first bath.

I don't know about this....


why are you doing this to me?

This just isn't right....

Yes...dry me off!!

So yeah...not a fan. But she looks so cute when she's all clean. Her hair sticks up every wicha-way like a little baby chicken.

In other news, I'm still struggling with breastfeeding. I have had a lactation consultant come by twice so far. When she's here, Peanut will latch on and do pretty well, but as soon as the LC leaves it's like I'm trying to torture her and she's having none of it. I'm going to give it some time and try my best, but if it doesn't work out I'm prepared to exclusively breast pump. That way she'll still get all the benefits of the breast milk without making both baby and mommy cry out of frustration. But I'm not giving up yet...

And just because....here's another pic of my cutie

Milkmaid

2011-03-11T10:24:00.000-05:00

I have made the decision to breast feed. This is something I had decided from the get go. I knew it was going to be difficult, and that there would be some challenges - but I had no idea how frustrating it would be.

As those of you that have been following my blog know, Peanut was born 6 weeks early. While in the NICU she was fed my breast milk via feeding tube. I started pumping breast milk right from the start and it has been going really well. It wasn't that bad when she was still in the hospital because I had 4 hours to spare (8 times a day for a half hour each session). Sure it was difficult to fit them in - but I did it.

Now that she's home I'm finding it very hard to keep up with the pumping and take care of her at the same time. My doctor said I could breast feed her up to 4xs a day but she is not doing so well with it. Sometimes she'll latch on and eat with no problems - but most times she'll latch on and then just hang out. She won't suck, but basically just lays there with my breast in her mouth. I've tried changing her diaper right before, undressing her to wake her up a bit, waiting until she's really hungry - but nothing seems to be working. I'm frustrated. I want to be able to breast feed her. I don't want to pump, put it in a bottle, then feed her. Let's cut out the middle man so to say!

Last night is a prime example. P woke up at 4:30am to be fed. I went downstairs, prepared a bottle of breast milk that I pumped earlier in the day and fed her. If I was just breast feeding, that would have been it. But nope, I had to then put her down, go get all my pumping supplies ready, and start the 30 minute process of pumping. Right as I started, she started crying...so I had to figure out a way to hold her on a pillow on my lap so I could rock her while I was pumping. Since I have the pump attached to me I have to keep her at arms length. So I finally got her settled and then I had to just sit there until it was done. Then I had to put her down, label the bottles with the date/time, record it in my book, and clean the supplies for next time, and bring the bottles downstairs to put in the fridge (actually Sean did that for me). It's quite a process. I was actually on the verge of tears last night because I was just so frustrated by the whole process. If I could breastfeed, I could just feed her, rock her for a bit, and put her back down. Grr.

I've called 4 lactation consultants so far. The first one said she'd stop by on Saturday for her feeding between 5-6pm. Finally at 6pm with her not showing up or answering her phone I fed her myself. At 6:30pm she called and asked if she was "too late" because her last appointment went too long. Um, yeah lady...I had to feed my baby who was starving by that point! The other 3 that I've called haven't even called me back!

I don't know what to do. I'll try to call the other 3 again tomorrow and hope that one of them calls me back. I want to be successful with breast feeding. Especially since Peanut is premature, I want to give her any additional health benefits that I can...but I don't know if I can keep up the whole pumping and feeding her forever. Most days I can only get 7 pumps in and I'm afraid that I won't be able to keep up with her needs. So far it isn't a problem but as she grows she's going to want more to eat.

If anyone has suggestions, I'd greatly appreciate it. In the meantime I'll just keep trying to get a lactation consultant to return my call and help me down this difficult road.

*update - since I wrote this, I spoke with one of the LC's. She is going to call me back within a 1/2 hour to schedule a visit either today or tomorrow. Hopefully she'll start me on the road to successful breastfeeding!

Learning the Ropes

2011-03-10T15:43:00.000-05:00

So today is my first day alone with Peanut. Sean went back to work today and I've spent the day hanging with the little one. I'll admit it - it's weird. It was hard last night getting little sleep and then not having Sean here in the morning to switch off watching her so I could take a nap. It's going good though. I love hanging with this tiny little girl. She is so adorable.

I have some pictures of her first bath to post tomorrow - but for today, here are a few to tide you over.

blowing kisses

zzzzz

morning snuggles

Showing her Premie Side

2011-02-24T16:43:00.000-05:00

Well, Penelope is showing her premie side these days. Yes, she is doing great. Yes, she is growing leaps and bounds...but she is still not ready to come home. We thought she was going to come home today, but she decided she wasn't ready to leave her buddies in the NICU.

Tuesday night she had an episode where she had a brady, and then had a spit-up where she wasn't able to clear it herself and they had to use that little aspirator ball to clear it for her. Then it happened again last night. They just want to monitor her for a while to make sure she doesn't have any problems with reflux.

These are just little bumps in the life of a premature baby, and the doctor's don't seem overly concerned at this point. I just have to remind myself that she's still only 37weeks and that she hasn't had the time to develop inside my belly so she's doing the best she can out here in the world.

I am so very proud of our little Peanut. She is amazing and I could spend hours looking at her tiny face and watching her sleep (in fact I do spend hours at the NICU staring at her!)

I'll end on the positives - our little piggy is eating between 50-60cc's a feeding now (and the feeding tube is out!). And when she does get a burp out, she burps like a trucker. She's got an amazing grip with those little hands too!

And now for what you've all been waiting for - fresh baby pics!

sleeping beauty

look at her little hand tucked under her chin!

Shew - What a Whirlwind

2011-02-21T15:50:00.000-05:00

Penelope is 16 days old now and it has been quite the whirlwind. So many amazing things have happened since she was born and I am just so very much in love with this teeny tiny little girl.

I was able to start kangaroo care with her which is basically skin to skin contact. It was amazing! Just feeling her warm body with nothing but a diaper against my bare chest is like nothing I can describe. She seemed so peaceful and happy there too. We tried a bit of breastfeeding but she's still not quite there yet. She did get a few sips in there and she'll get better as she gets bigger and her sucking reflex gets further developed. It's amazing how much she needs to learn since she was born early. Stuff that full term babies just innately know from practice in the womb. My little Peanut is a champion though - so I have no doubt that she'll pick it up in time.

so amazing

I mean how could you NOT want to snuggle this?!

Oh and for those of you noticing the new tape mustache...it's nothing to worry about. She had a new feeding tube inserted because the one from Hopkins wasn't compatible with the stuff at HCC so they put a new one in and that's how it's secured. She doesn't seem to mind it but we can't wait until she's tube, tape and wire free!

The nurses are saying that if she keeps doing as well as she has been there is a chance she could be coming home this week. I don't want to get my hopes up too high - but that would just be the most amazingly wonderful thing ever! Sean and I are itching to get her home so we can snuggle with her all the time!

Penelope Birth Story - Part 4

2011-02-17T12:22:00.001-05:00

So Penelope is born at 7:36pm on Saturday. Sean, his parents and my sisters are all able to go see her in the NICU. I am stuck in bed, drugged up on MAG, and confused. I'm still seeing double, can't move my body at all, and feel very odd. I can't describe the feeling...excited that she's alive and that we had our baby - but also really sad and jealous that everyone gets to see her but me. Then I find out that they want to keep me on the MAG for 24 hours to make sure I am stable. I can't tell you how upset that made me. I wanted to start feeling better and see my baby and instead I'm stuck sucking on ice chips and feeling like I'm on heroine or something. MAG is the worst crap on the planet. I wouldn't wish this on anyone.

I was a swollen slug mess

Sean came back from seeing P in the NICU and showed me a picture on his phone of her. I could barely see it because my vision was so messed up...but I knew she was beautiful. I just started counting down the hours until I could get off the MAG and see her! Sunday is a blur, literally, but I knew the end of my slug state was in sight! At 7:30 pm on Sunday they finally took me off the MAG. They made my bed sit up and I was still really REALLY out of it.

But then a nurse asked me a question I had been waiting for for 4 DAYS...."would you like something to eat and drink?" UM YES!!! I had some ginger ale and a turkey sandwich. Sean said that turkey sandwich looked absolutely disgusting - but I'll tell you what, that was the best sandwich I think I've ever had in my entire life.

The puffy slug eats! Horray!

After I eat a nurse comes by and tells us that they're transferring me to the regular post delivery area. She also asks if I would like to swing by the NICU to see Penelope. I'll be honest, I didn't know if I would be able to. I told her I was scared I wouldn't be able to get into a wheel chair and I was so dizzy with the blurry double vision. Sean said it broke his heart to hear that I wasn't sure I was up to seeing her.

So, another nurse comes in and the 2 of them plus Sean were able to get me into a wheel chair. Once I was in there I decided...hey you know what? I can go see her. I can do this! I want to see my little girl! So off we went!

Sean told me later that the nurses in the NICU asked him if he wanted to hold Penelope, and he told them that he wanted to wait and let me be the first person to hold her. Isn't he amazing?!

They wheeled me down the hall and to the NICU...and there she was. So beautiful and amazing with a full head of hair! And I got to hold my baby for the first time!

First time mommy holds baby!

After that I started feeling better and better...and so did little Penelope! I was discharged the next day, my vision slowly improved, my legs started working again...and now I'm basically back to feeling like my old self.

As for Penelope - she's off all the tubes, no more IV's and now all she needs to do is gain weight. We also got word that they're going to hopefully be transferring her out of Hopkins to our local hospital! This will be awesome as I'm pretty sure I can start feeding her soon so I'll be able to go right over there. Right now I'm pumping and they're bottle feeding her...but we need to teach her to eat right from mama. Things are just looking up and up.


isn't she beautiful?!

So, I don't want to end this on a low note..so I'll end with pictures...BUT I wanted to write a bit of caution. If you EVER think that there is something wrong with your body, trust your instincts. Doctors don't always listen to you. If you have a gut feeling that something is wrong - push the issue. I didn't. I figured I was just being a baby and this was just how it was. I now think that I had the signs of pre-e for quite some time. Who knows, if I had pushed the issue they would have put me on bed rest and monitored me...and maybe I wouldn't have had to deliver this early. OR they could have monitored me and not let it get to this level of severity before they did something about it. I don't know...all I know is that I had a hunch that something was wrong, I told my doctors about my symptoms...and they missed it. You have to be your own advocate.

So that's my story...

Ok, enough preaching...here are some more pictures of my precious little girl. I can't wait until she gets home and I can just hold her and love her all day every day. She is our little Peanut.

our fancy girl!

teeny tiny hand

Proud Daddy!

Penelope Birth Story - Part 3

2011-02-17T08:34:00.000-05:00

Ok so now we're at the point where they start me on the pitocin. This is administered Friday night after the 2nd steroid shot. I am still extremely lethargic on the MAG, I am seeing double, I'm being poked every few hours for blood draws, and my arm is being squeezed every 15 minutes to take my blood pressure (which is still freakishly high).

Because I'm not due for another 6 weeks, the pitocin isn't really doing anything. I don't feel any contractions and my cervix isn't progressing. That's when they decided...hmm, she isn't uncomfortable enough - let's kick this up a notch. First they tried a ripening agent which was basically medicine that they put eh hem..up there for 3 hours in the hopes that it will help my dilate, that didn't do anything. Next, since I wasn't dilating they tried "stripping my membranes" a few times. I won't describe it for the faint of heart - but it HURT LIKE HELL! Anyway, that still didn't do anything so then they inserted a foley ball catheter into my cervix. Again, I won't describe it but yes that HURT LIKE HELL TOO! However, that did get me dilated to 3cm's...now we're getting somewhere. But still, I didn't feel any contractions. We were in for a long haul.

Sometime on Saturday things started happening. I started feeling contractions a little bit. They went from mild to pretty painful quickly. That's when it was time for me to ask for an epidural. So the anesthesiologist shows up and I'm told that I need to sit up and lean over the hospital tray table thingy so that they can put the needle in my spine. Um...sit up? Oh sure, no problem. I can barely move my arm to my face but I can just pop right up. Anyway - a few people had to assist me in sitting up and then I'm leaning over the table...

Ut oh...I start feeling like I'm going to pass out or throw up. Turns out that by sitting up my blood pressure dropped dangerously low! They quickly laid me back down on my side and put some meds in my IV to regulate my blood pressure again. So I cant' sit back up - thus making the epidural insertion more difficult for the anesthesiologist. Sorry guy!

So Sean is behind the nurse who's holding my hand and is watching the anesthesiologist's face. It took way longer than it should have, and it hurt like hell...and Sean told me afterwards that the guy's face made it seem that it wasn't going exactly as it should. Awesome!

So now it's in...I'm still having contractions...and I'm still feeling them. They are getting worse and I kept hitting the button to dose me and it isn't really doing anything. I called the anesthesiologist back a few more time to up the amount...but I think what happened is that it didn't go in exactly as it should and there was nothing he could do. Oh well...it's time for the show!

At this point my water hasn't broken yet so they decide they're going to break my water for me. After they take a look up there they decide not to because they aren't sure if the umbilical cord is in the way. They decide to give it just a little more time. About 15 minutes later (or at least that's what it felt like - it could have been hours for all I know)...I felt it break. It was a very weird feeling. I called the nurse and let her know. I don't know how much longer after that but all of a sudden I felt like stuff was about to happen. Like I said, I had the epidural but I still basically felt a lot down there so I felt a lot of pressure like she was close to coming out.

Next thing I know there are about a dozen people in the room and my legs are up and I'm pushing. The actual pushing part only lasted about 40 minutes...and then...out she came!

There were about 6 people off to the side waiting for her because she is a premie and they needed to tend to her. A few seconds after she came out we heard her cry - it was amazing! It was also scary because they basically just handed her off to this team of doctors and we hadn't even seen her yet. After about 15 minutes or so (again my timing could be off) they brought her over, let me kiss her on the cheek...and she was gone off to the NICU.

I was left on the bed being stitched up (yes I was lucky enough to tear on a 3lb 9oz baby!) and my baby was gone. It was a very surreal feeling because I was so incredibly drugged up and out of it. I kept thinking to myself...did I just have a baby? What the hell just happened?

*next up...the final chapter of the birth story. 24 hours of MAG to go and updates on baby P

Penelope Birth Story - Part 2

2011-02-15T11:16:00.000-05:00

So after the ultrasound, I'm still not sure what's going on. I think they may have given me my first dose of magnesium sulfate (I'll call it MAG from now on). I told Sean to go home and take a shower, eat something and grab some stuff from home in case we're going to be a while. We figured we'd just lounge around and play with our iPads or watch TV or something...no biggie. I don't remember if it was before or after he left but at some point they gave me a shot of steroids in my thigh to start maturing the baby's lungs so I could deliver her. I still didn't realize that this was the plan...but with the steroids what the hope is - is they give you 1 shot of steroids, another in 24 hours...and then you deliver in another 24 hours. That's the ideal amount of time to help the baby's lungs mature before she comes out.

Sean leaves...and I go from feeling ok to not really quickly. By the time he got back to the hospital I was in pretty bad shape. Shaking uncontrollably and also pretty nauseous. I think it was shortly after he got back that I started projectile vomiting and feeling a mess. Then they tell us that the NICU at our hospital is full so they're going to have to transfer me downtown to Johns Hopkins. I was so upset. We have been so excited about how close our hospital is and how convenient it would be...and now they're talking about putting me in an ambulance to deliver my baby downtown. What could I do...no choice. So I'm sick and feeling awful and the ambulance guys come and take me and drive me to Hopkins. Unfortunately I didn't make it all the way there without throwing up in the ambulance. Whoops!

They admit me into Hopkins and tell me their plans. Basically I have advanced preeclampsia and they are going to try to give me the steroid treatment and then induce me to deliver the baby. I was so scared. She wasn't due for another 6 weeks and now I'm going to have to deliver her?

At this point they have started pumping me full of MAG. Basically what this does is dilate everything in my body to turn me into a human slug. It helps to keep my blood pressure down and reduces the chance of me having a seizure. My blood pressure had sky rocked to around 170s/100s which is seizure/stroke level so they pumped me full of MAG to help lower it. They also did a lot of blood draws to make sure my kidneys/liver were not failing. This is another risk of pre-e.

So this is all still Thursday night. As the MAG goes in I start feeling worse and worse as my body stops being able to do anything. It was hard for me to move at all...AND they wouldn't let me eat anything. I hadn't eaten since Wednesday night for dinner but since I was at risk of seizure plus there was always the possibility that they would have to do an emergency C-section they didn't want me to have any food. I was SO HUNGRY! At one point a doc came in to do a check on me and I got one wiff of him and said, "you've been eating an orange haven't you?" Sean said I sounded like I was accusing him of something awful...haha!

I was basically in this state for most of Friday as well. They didn't start putting the Pitocin in my IV until after the 2nd shot of steroids was put into my thigh around 5:30pm on Friday night.

Here goes the roller coaster....

* I'll finish the rest of the story tomorrow but now I'm off to the NICU to go visit our little Peanut!

Penelope's Birth Story - Part 1

2011-02-15T08:58:00.000-05:00

Ok, shew...this one is going to be a long one. Well, a few long ones - I'll break them down for ya. I'm warning you. Also, I warn that it may be a bit TMI for some - but I feel it's important to document all that happened during the birth of our beautiful daughter. Thankfully baby and mommy are doing great...but it was a scary road. And honestly, I think it's a road we shouldn't have had to go down. Deep breath, here it goes.

For those of you who have read my blog for a while, you may have noticed a recurring theme. I was constantly complaining about being swollen and puffy in the ankles, hands and face. I also was extremely tired. Freakishly tired I would say. Although I had brought up these things to my midwives (I go to a practice with about 6 midwives and so I rarely see the same one) they said it was just a part of being pregnant. I figured they knew what they were talking about and moved along. I also, at one point, said that I didn't feel my baby moving that much. They hooked me up to a fetal heartbeat monitor and all seemed fine. I figured it was my anterior placenta (the placenta was in the front and therefore acts as a pillow to muffle the kicks). They didn't do an ultrasound at this time. Then a week before the shit went down I had a routine appointment and there was protein and blood in my urine. They didn't seem too concerned and told me to come back in a week to follow up. So yeah....the signs were ALL THERE...but yet this is what happened.

So, I woke up on Thursday morning and my hands and face and ankles were extremely swollen. Way more so than they have been (mind you that they have been varying degrees of swollen for over a month at this point). I was concerned and decided to take my blood pressure because I read about preeclampsia and knew that the puffiness was a sign of it along with high blood pressure. Thankfully we have a blood pressure cuff in the house. I took it and it was around 170/90. That's pretty high. My husband and I decided I should try to get in to see the midwives "just in case something was wrong." I I had brought up the preeclampsia to my midwives before because of the face/hands swelling - but again nobody seemed to worried about it, so I wasn't that concerned when I walked into the midwives office that morning. They bring me in, I do a pee test, they take my blood pressure....and the midwife says "I hate to tell you but you have to go to the hospital right away." Um, ok? So I called Sean and said I had to go to the hospital, and at this point we're not really worried. We just figured they'd monitor me and probably send me home on bed rest or something like that. We live across the street from our local hospital so I drove back home, switched cars, and he drove me over and came with me to the hospital.

So now I'm at the hospital and they're checking my blood pressure and it's high. They do some blood work, another urine test...and then we go to the ultrasound. At this point I'm starting to freak a little bit. They start the ultrasound....and the baby is not moving. Her heartbeat is going but her little legs and arms are not moving. They're wiggling my belly, asking me to cough...and she barely moves. Then they measured the blood flow going from the umbilical cord to her...and it wasn't giving her as much as it should be. Oh crap...this just got scary.

Penelope Charlotte Diamond is here!

2011-02-08T22:39:00.000-05:00

I have so much to post about - the birth story of the century....but that's for another day. I just wanted to post a few pics now to announce the unexpected and early arrival of our beautiful little girl, Penelope Charlotte Diamond. She was born on February 5th at 7:36pm - 3lbs, 9oz and 16 inches long. She's in the NICU and will be for a while since she's still so tiny and needs to develop a bit more - but she's doing GREAT! I'll share all the details in a post later in the week...too much to write now - but I just couldn't wait to shout from the rooftops any longer how much we love this little girl! Hugs to everyone! Here she is!!


so tiny and beautiful!

They like me....they really like me!

2011-02-02T11:10:00.000-05:00

My new buddy Natalie over at I was told there would be pajamas, nominated me for this here "I heart this blog" award, and I am truely honored. I love reading her blog and all about her pregnancy and life. We have a lot in common - it's kinda creepy! As for me, I am a crap blogger who is not very good at keeping up with regular postings (even when I promise to!). I mean I still haven't posted about all of the crafty things I did for my wedding and that was 7 months ago! At this point I don't know if anyone even cares anymore that I made paper poofs, or cupcake sticks. Ah well, that's another story for another day (here I go again, making empty promises).

Back on track - thanks Natalie for nominating me. Here are the details of what the next steps are:

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award
2. Share 7 things about yourself (Thank goodness this doesn't say 7 "interesting" things)
3. Award some recently discovered bloggers that are deserving
4. Contact those bloggers and let them know about the award

Let’s see, 7 things about me….oh there are so many random things I could pick. Here we go…

1. I have short pinkies. I think I have written about this a while ago but I’ll say it again. Yes, I have short pinkies. The weird thing is I didn’t even notice I had short pinkies until I was in my 20s. Nobody in our family has short pinkies but me. (My mom may have, but she passed away before I noticed and so far I haven’t been able to find any close up hand shots). Here is a pic of my hands in case you don’t believe me (and yes I am aware they look like sausages – I’m pregnant and retaining water, awesome!)….now if you look at your own hands chances are your pinky comes to the knuckle line of your ring finger, right? Yeah…I’m a freak!

2. I have a cat named Jesus. Well, it’s pronounced in the lovely language of espanol (heeey-seus) but yeah, it’s Jesus. See, what’sa happened was. My BFF Biscuit found this fantastic kitty back in 1998 behind a liquor store in our college town. I had just come back from break for the new semester and went over to her apartment to catch up…and there he was. So adorable, and with a little dreadlock behind one ear. He was scrappy but SO SWEET! Needless to say, Jen was in love. Biscuit said I could have him but ONLY if I kept his name. That’s when she laid it on me….his name is Jesus. I tried to protest, but she said it was the only way I could have him. That Biscuit is a tricky lass and I knew she would stick to her guns….so, here it is years later and I have my lovable Jesus.

3. There is nothing that scares me more than eye injuries! Specifically – the thought of getting a paper cut in the eye has haunted me for as long as I can remember. I have vivid memories of sitting in class in fear when kids would haphazardly pass papers back without even looking where they were flailing them! I am actually glad that I wear glasses because they provide some sort of protection from something hurting my eyes! In a moment of desperation I actually tried to get contacts so that I wouldn’t have to wear my glasses at my wedding. I really REALLY tried! I got fitted, and sat in that damn optometrist’s office for an hour trying to get one in. No dice. My eyeballs hurt so bad from poking at them that I had a migraine by the time I got home. I didn’t give up and gave it another go 2 days later..same result. So eff it, I gave up and had blurry vision on the big day. Thankfully I’m not so blind that I couldn’t see what was going on. It kind of gave it a romantic haze. Anyway, glasses for life and stay the eff away from my eyeballs with that paper damnit!

4. I grew up in New Jersey. I know those of you who have never been to the Garden State may think…..ew gross, there is nothing good about that trash and toll state. To you I say – SHUT IT! I grew up in NJ – but more the south central part. It was all farms and fields and fresh produce. I dare you to find a better tasting tomato or sweet corn than those that come from NJ! I grew up climbing the hay bales trying to catch the barn cats at my friend Patty’s cow farm, and going to parties in corn fields, and getting frisky on the bank of an irrigation ditch (not lying!) I think that New Jersey is a great state, and I’m proud to be a Jersey girl!

5. I hate drinking! Now before you think I’m getting all judgmental about drinking alcohol…that’s not exactly what I mean. I mean that I, personally, do not like to drink anything. Biscuit calls me the human camel and doesn’t understand how I can normally survive on such little liquid intake. It has been especially difficult being pregnant and trying desperately to get in the amount of water I’m supposed to each day. Sean has to keep on me at home to make sure I’m drinking water. It’s basically like torture to me. If left to my own devices, I could probably go on as little as 1-2 glasses of liquid in a day. I also don’t like drinking alcohol – but I think that may have a lot to do with the fact that it’s a liquid and I just have such trouble getting it down.

6. Another intake related one – I have a horrible sweet tooth. If I was allowed and there were no health or weight related consequences (and I wouldn’t go into a sugar coma) I could live on cake, ice cream, cookies and chocolate. Unfortunately if I actually tried to do that I would be about 1,000 pounds and probably die of diabetic shock. Lame! Bring on the steamed veggies…hmph

7. This last one is going to be a bit sappy, but whatever – my blog = my rules. Sean has definitely made me a better person. Before we moved in together I would wait until I had about 10 loads of laundry to do and it would be all over my bedroom floor. I was awful! He does his laundry every Sunday. Because of him…now I do too! I don’t want to be the slobby one with clothes all over the floor! Before I get all – horray me, I am doing such a good job being clean….that’s not entirely true. He is still way more tidy than me and usually beats me to emptying out the dishwasher and stuff like that – BUT I have been a slacker preggo lately who doesn’t have the energy to get off the couch. I am going to try my best once I have this baby and get my energy back to be a better partner and continue to follow his example of being proactive with things like laundry and dishes and whatnot. I hope he knows how much I appreciate him!

So handsome and silly!

As for who to nominate....that's a tough one. There are only a few that I haven't been reading for a LONG time, but here are 2 newer discoveries that are pretty fantastic!

http://yellowsquarelove.com/ - I have been reading this blog for a few months now and I love reading about her pregnancy and what she's been going through and feeling. Our due dates are only a few apart and we're both expecting little girls so I'm super excited for her and love reading every post!

http://trentiscute.blogspot.com/ - while I have known this woman for many years, I recently started following her blog and love to read about her little boy Trent and all the adorable things he does!

32 & 1/2 weeks

2011-01-25T14:20:00.000-05:00

My partner in crime (biscuit) is back on the scene, so she was able to snap a belly pic of me today. Please disregard my overall puffy PUFFY face and eyes because that's the norm for me these days. While the acne hasn't subsided since I was about a week pregnant - I now have the additional water retention in the ankles/feet, hands and face. I knew about ankle swelling but had no idea that my eyelids would swell to the point where I look like I'm having an allergic reaction. I am down to just wearing mascara because any additional makeup would just get swallowed by my fat eyelids. It's oh so beautiful. Oh well..only a few short weeks to go and our little girl will be here. I consider myself lucky that I don't have gestational diabetes or anything serious - so a little swelling (ok a LOT swelling) I can deal with. The hardest thing is writing these days. My handwriting was awful before - but now that my fingers are like sausages it is nearly impossible to write something legible. Sorry in advance to anyone who has to try to decipher my scribble!

Additonally, I have revamped the blog layout....again! Yes I know I did it a while back but I was really not happy with the result. I was just getting frustrated so I gave up and went with the last one that I got working. Now I think I've got it where I want it. I hope you all like - it's a lot cleaner I think.

Well, back to the grind. Enjoy the latest belly pic in all it's glory!

can you believe I still have 8 weeks?!?

The Nursery Reveal

2011-01-24T09:49:00.001-05:00

So we've been working hard on the nursery and it's pretty much done. We have a few things to add (curtains for one...hence the empty curtain rod) but for the most part it's complete. Now all we need is our little girl to snuggle with and rock to sleep in our awesome glider! Anyway, here are the pics!

here is the view from the doorway


the repainted vintage furniture (with new knobs) and the shelves/baskets that Sean put up for me! Oh AND the awesome print that I won from the tinyandlittle blog! Yay!!

another view of the crib. I was considering putting another piece of art on the blank wall behind the crib, but I'm hoping we'll get a mobile and that will go there...so I figured I'd wait and see how that looks first!


The shelves along the opposite wall of the crib. The top row are all my old "Little Golden Books" and my first dolls. Also on the top right are my first pair of baby shoes. The bottom row holds all our little girl's first toys! Aren't they adorable?!

View of wall opposite of crib. I am in love with these dressers we got off of Craig's list - they are prefect!

Our new rocking chair that my sisters gave us complete with a cute owl pillow AND the adorable Oh Susanna doll that I won from the dandelion blog in Australia! Isn't she darling?!

So there it is. I just love walking in there at random times during the day and imagine what it will be like once she's here with us. So excited!

In other news - I just called the doctor to get the results from my latest glucose tolerance test and I'm very happy to report that I do NOT have gestational diabetes! I can not tell you how relieved I am. Sure I still need to watch my sugar and diet but I am not considered high risk and I don't have to worry about checking my blood every few hours and all that. I have been so worried about this the past few weeks (since my last test came back inconclusive) but now that I'm in the clear I can focus my energy on all the happiness! Horray!

32 Weeks!

2011-01-21T12:18:00.000-05:00

We hit 32 weeks today - Only 8 more weeks until my due date. It's getting so close! This week I had my 2nd glucose tolerance test and now I'm just waiting for the results. Fingers crossed that it comes back negative and I can stop worrying about gestational diabetes! Even if it does come back negative I am still going to keep my sugar and white carbs intake in check. Whatever is best for our little girl! Speaking of our little peanut - I am starting to get really curious about what she's going to look like. Sean and I talk about it from time to time....will she have blonde hair or brown hair? Will she have my nose and his lips? Who knows?! I have been looking at pictures from when we were both little and trying to imaging what little pieces of us will be looking back at us from the eyes our our precious baby.

For some fun - here are a few pics of Sean and I as little ones.

Dad dressed me on picture day this year - hence the large yarn bow!

I mean can he be any cuter? Look at the little hair flip!

The bow tie!! the BOW TIE!!

big head....and what was I watching? Sheesh mom....that's some racy TV!

So no belly pic today because my parter in crime isn't at work today to take the picture. I promise to share one soon. Sean and I have our childbirthing class this Sunday. I think it's really going to hit me that I have to get this baby out of me somehow very VERY soon. I'm trying not to panic but I'm pretty scared. At least in the end it will all be worth it and we'll have our beautiful girl here with us!

Happy Friday!

First update in the new year!

2011-01-06T10:00:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! I haven’t updated in a while (I know, shocker!) so I figured I’d pop in and let you know what’s been going on. It’s been a roller coaster – but all in all it’s been pretty great.

About a week before Christmas I went in for my regular glucose tolerance test – and it came back high. That meant that I had to go back and take the 3 hour test to see if I have gestational diabetes. I was pretty scared but figured if I had it, I’d deal with it. I had to go on a high carb diet for 3 days and then fast the night before the test. Sean was great and drove me back and forth to the blood lab every hour for 3 hours so I could lay on the couch between blood draws (ah the beauty of living right across the street from the doctor!) I got the results this week and it came back that 1 of the blood glucose levels was high. If 2 of them came back high I would be designated a diabetic. But since it’s only 1 level, I have to retake the test at 32 weeks. LAME! I am basically on a diabetic diet right now – no more cake and cookies or white bread. I’m basically on weight watchers without counting the points. I’m not trying to lose weight but I have to eat lots of lean proteins and veggies and less refined sugars and carbs. Figures I’d be the one that has to still be on a diet while I’m preggers! Oh well, whatever will keep our baby healthy!

I also had a little scare with the baby last week. I think I was just paranoid, but I swore that she wasn’t moving around as much as she should in there. I called my doc and they brought me in and hooked me up to a fetal stress monitor. Basically it’s just some bands that go around my belly and chart the baby’s heartbeat. Sean came with me and it was pretty cool to sit there and listen to the baby’s heartbeat for 20 minutes. She even kicked a few times while I was hooked up. When the doctor came back in she said that everything looked fantastic! And honestly, since we did that I’ve been feeling her a lot more. Maybe she was moving around the whole time but I had convinced myself that something was wrong. Who knows? Being responsible for growing a little person is very stressful and I think my fears got the best of me.

Oh and remember when I posted about what I wanted for Christmas? Well, Sean is getting me the ultimate gift! In a very sweet card (he gives the best cards!) he made me a coupon that said “good for 1 minivan!” Yay…this new mama is getting herself a minivan! I don’t care if they aren’t “cool.” My jeep just won’t be as great for carting around our new little one and all the stuff she comes with. I’m so excited! I’m just waiting to receive the lein release on my car and then we’re going shopping!

I have made some major progress on the nursery. All the little clothes that we have received from the NJ shower as well as all the adorable hand me downs that people have given us are all washed, folded and put away. We also got a mattress for the crib and the linens I ordered should be here any day now. I have my art project started for the walls and bought some shelves to put up. I also found some of my old dolls to put in there. I should be able to post pics very soon! I can’t wait to share with everyone!

And finally – my latest belly pic. I am growing at lighting speed! I’m starting to waddle and it’s getting harder and harder to get up and roll over in bed. Good times! But hey – only about 70 days to go!

bamm!

The Pregnancy Saga Continues

2010-12-16T14:30:00.000-05:00

So I haven’t been feeling like blogging much lately, but figured it’s been a while so I should write an update on what’s been going on. There is a lot of stuff that happens that nobody tells you about before you’re pregnant. I have had horrible charlie horses in my calves that wake me up from a dead sleep with crippling pain. Then there is the bloody nose I woke up to the other day. Oh and the other day I had just gotten out of the shower, sneezed, and peed myself. Thankfully I wasn’t dressed yet and was able to jump right back in the shower. These things happen more than I’d like to admit (thank goodness for panty liners!) And now…my belly is getting so big…that it’s hard to breathe or put my pants on, or my socks, or shave my legs. I just never thought about all this stuff.

HOWEVER…

Now that she’s getting bigger I’m starting to feel her move more. Having the anterior placenta has been such a drag because I couldn’t really feel her moving around inside me. But lately she’s moving around a lot in there and I can feel it! It is so magical it makes all the other stuff totally worth it. I have been hoping that Sean would be able to feel her move – and have had him put his hands on my belly many times only for him to feel nothing. But this morning – he felt her kick two times! I am so happy! I hope he’ll be able to feel it more often now.

Here are some pics from today. I'm hitting 27 weeks tomorrow! Same as last time, I'm at work so the pics aren't all pretty and photoshopped to look like my skin is all glowing (more like preggo acneness) - but I figured you really just want a peek at that huge belly anyway so here it is!

BOOM - there it is!

Baby and Mama checking out the snow!

for my husband

2010-12-13T16:04:00.000-05:00

I'll admit it....this post is basically for my husband who has no clue what to get me for Christmas. I figured I'd just write a post of "things I like" and see where it goes. For the rest of you - maybe you'll like something you see for yourself OR you can just see a bit into what kinds of pretty things I like. Either way...here it goes.

- a nice candle from yankee
- a new perfume or gift certificate to Ulta where I can pick one
- a new scent of bubble bath

or...here are some links to other stuff I like

Rustic Trees Painting (from the StudioZen Etsy shop)

I think this woud look nice above the couch

Blossom Wall Art from Bed, Bath and Beyond

this would look nice in either the living room OR the bedroom

Portable Photo Studio from Think Geek

this would be great for when I get back to my etsy store!

Gift Card to Massage Envy

because - who doesn't love a massage?!

Black Gloves (from Amazon)

my tiny black gloves don't cover my wrists....so cold!

Rib Slouch Hat in Black (from Etsy Store tomiffy )

cause it's cute and can keep my head warm!

Washi Tape (from Happy Tape)

this tape is so pretty and has so many uses!

Honda Odyssey

just sayin....

Like I said...these are just suggestions - I don't expect to get anything off this list. But he asked so I searched the internet and this is what I came up with. Honestly, I have been so focused on our little girl coming into the world that all the things I "want" are things for her....or for us as a new family. It was a struggle to even come up with a list. It's funny how priorities change and she's not even here yet.

Baby...you already gave me the greatest gift....a family! You're the best (and yes...you all can go barf now!)

The Velveteen Etsy Shop is Up!!

2010-12-10T13:07:00.000-05:00

My good friend Biscuit just opened her etsy shop and it is awesome! She makes the most adorable headbands for both adults and kids. Each piece is more adorable than the last and I am just so proud of her. She's been working hard to get this shop up and running, and I'm so glad she's joined the etsy community. Click HERE to check it out!

Here are some of the beautiful things she has for sale!

Seriously - go HERE and scoop up a custom headband for yourself or someone you love for the holidays!

24 1/2 weeks

2010-12-01T12:55:00.000-05:00

I just had WB take my picture in the hallway at work because I keep forgetting to ask Sean to do it and the weeks are flying by. My hair is a mess, I have no makeup on, and (you can't see it) but I have bright pink argyle socks on. I just don't care these days if I look put together because I feel like everyone stares at my belly anyway. Hah...that's fine by me! That little girl inside of me can get all the attention!

Sean has been very sweet lately, kissing me AND my belly when he sees me. I think now that I'm getting bigger he's getting more excited and it's more real for him. The only bummer is that I have a front facing (anterior) placenta. It's nothing to be concerned about and happens in about 30% of pregnancies. What it DOES mean is that the baby is basically kicking the placenta in the front instead of my uterine wall. So...it's kind of muffled - like she's kicking through a pillow. So, I can barely feel the kicks compared to other women at my stage of pregnancy and Sean still can't feel it from the outside. I really wish he could experience this amazing thing with me..and I know in time he will, but that it will just take a bit longer. But it's still really neat and I'm just thankful that she's healthy and I'm doing so well so far. Other than my tailbone pain and sleepiness I feel pretty great!

So, here is my huge belly at 24 1/2 weeks!

dang - that's a big belly!

Giving Thanks

2010-11-29T10:51:00.002-05:00

This weekend was great….very hectic, way too short and great! It started on Thursday morning with us packing our stuff into a very large enterprise van and driving up to New Jersey for my family’s thanksgiving feast. My family does thanksgiving like nobody else I know. Every year my mom’s side of the family gets together for an epic celebration. 75 family members (aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins and now third cousins!) all get together and feast! There is a list of what each family will bring (I was in charge of sternos, 2 desserts, and enough lettuce for 75 sandwiches) and a hall is rented. We have had thanksgiving in the same hall for the past 5 years or so…it’s the basement of a church in a sleepy NJ town. Folding tables line each side of the room and are filled with turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry, and everything else you can imagine you’d want for your thanksgiving dinner. Then there is the dessert table. About 50 desserts to choose from! I think I had about 4 different types of pie!

It’s such a great time…being able to see all of those people, seeing the kids grow, seeing my young cousins getting engaged, married, having children of their own. And seeing my aunts and uncles…knowing these are precious moments that we get to spend together now that I’ve moved away from NJ and now with my father moving down to South Carolina in a few short months. The fact that we all still get together for this event every year – that this has been going on since before I was born…is amazing. It’s so great that we can all get together and get along and spend this time together.

This thanksgiving was especially wonderful because my sisters had something up their sleeves that I was unaware of. Right after I finished up dessert I was sitting at a table with my Aunt chit chatting when all of a sudden my sister came up behind me waving a pink ribbon over my head yelling for everyone’s attention. It took a few minutes for me to realize what was going on – my sisters had planned a surprise baby shower for me in the middle of thanksgiving dinner! Sean didn’t know either – we were both shocked! I turned bright red, turned around and saw that they had set up two chairs, pink decorations, and there were a pile of presents sitting there. I had my back turned talking to my Aunt while they were decorating and had no clue this was happening behind us!

So over we went, and opened presents and got to ooh and aah over all the adorable little girlie things that my wonderful family gave to us. It was hard to absorb what was even going on…it was such a treat! To be able to celebrate our little girl coming into our lives with all of this family around us was amazing. It was almost like my mom was there with us…it was really special.

I know I said I wasn’t a fan of surprises…but if this is what it’s like to be surprised, well maybe I had it all wrong. My sisters did an amazing job and surprised the crap out of us…and I couldn’t be more thankful for them or that moment.

A big ol' pain in the a$$

2010-11-23T15:34:00.000-05:00

I hate to complain...well that's not true, I'm actually pretty darn good at complaining. But I feel bad complaining about the problems of being pregnant when I'm so very happy that I am pregnant. Let me just say though, that I had no idea it would be such a pain in my ass. Literally.

My sciatic nerve is killing my will to live. I have pain from the back of my right knee all the way up to my tailbone. Sitting at my desk has become something close to torture. Walking for too long makes me feel like my tailbone is going to just rip off and fall to the ground. The only time I'm comfortable is when I'm laying down - either the couch or the bed. Unfortunately the won't allow a chaise or couch next to my desk.

I am now wearing what can only be compared to as a heavy lifter belt.

this is NOT me....

It's actually supposed to support my belly and lift it up a bit to take pressure of my spine. It's helping ever so slightly. It mostly helps when I'm standing or walking - but the sitting is still pretty unbearable. I am sitting on a pillow at my desk but my fat ass has already mushed that thing to a pancake so it's no longer giving support.

I have been getting back rubs from the hubby at night and using a heating pad. These are both wonderful things - I just wish I could figure out how to make the 8 hours at work more bearable. At this point I just want to cry and lay down on the floor to get relief from this pain in my ass. I can't believe I have another 4 months of this pain. It is definitely not as bad as morning sickness...but it is a close second.

Sorry for my bitch session...I'm just having a pity party....table for one.

Hot n' Tasty

2010-11-17T12:39:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you all...but I need to get me a pair of these here waffle pants. They combine my 2 favorite things....pants and breakfast!

mmmm tasty pantaloons

image via The Gloss

Nesting

2010-11-15T10:51:00.000-05:00

The nesting has begun. I have started thinking and dreaming about how I want our little girl’s nursery to look. It is pretty funny….she is still months away but I am obsessed with getting everything ready now. I guess it’s good to do it before I get huge and can’t move around like I can now.

So…I started with looking for furniture. I wanted to get a few pieces for her room – like a dresser, changing table, and things of that nature. I started my quest by looking in the typical places. Target, Ikea, Babies R Us….but nothing caught my eye. Then I looked at Land of Nod and Crate and Barrel…and holy crap that stuff is ridiculously expensive! Scratch that. So then I decided to do a quick peek on craigslist. And the stars aligned….and I found this!

A solid wood bedroom set from the 1950s. These pieces were a lady’s great grandmother’s furniture. Beautiful curved details, perfectly working drawers, and solid! And the best part? We got the entire set for $50!!! I mean is that a steal or what?

So obviously our daughter won’t need a makeup vanity or headboard for a while – but the 2 dressers and cabinet are perfect. We’ll just keep the other pieces in storage until it’s time for her to transition to them. The taller dresser is the perfect height to put a changing pad on top and the other one sits a bit lower. The cabinet is perfect to store extra blankets and diapers. Horray!

So a minor setback was when our friends freaked us out by saying it could have lead paint on there since the furniture is so old. We made a trip to Home Depot to pick up a lead paint test and thankfully it came back negative! YAY!!

The stuff was painted an off white with yellow streaked paint. It had a few places where the paint was chipped so we decided to paint it white. (Well I decided and Sean had to paint it…hey, I’m not allowed to). So this past weekend Sean went to work. He did a light sanding and used spray paint.

He's such a good sport...and handsome too!

While he was busy painting, I was busy shopping! I went to Anthropologie and bought the most beautiful knobs for the cabinet doors. I am in love!!

1 coat of primer and 2 coats of paint and it’s all done! He did such a great job and I can’t wait to get it in the room! I promise to share pics once we have everything in place! YAY!!

IT'S A GIRL!

2010-11-04T13:52:00.000-04:00

I am so excited to finally be able to tell everyone that it is a girl! We went and had our follow up ultrasound today and she was in a good position this time to get all the images they needed. Everything looks great and she is dancing all around in there. And they were able to see for sure that it's a girl! Now I can finally start really thinking about the nursery and names and all the sugar and spice and everything nice that comes with little girls! I can not wait to meet her!!!

Horray!!

2010-11-02T10:57:00.002-04:00

I am so super duper excited! Ever since I got pregnant, my jewelry making has come to a grinding halt. First I felt too sick to sit in my little craft nook and work, and then it was just too darn hot in that front bedroom to sit for any length of time. Then there was the whole issue of nothing selling on the etsy shop for months. All of these things kind of zapped my creative energy. However…

I have sold 3 pieces in the past week! I am so excited! Two necklaces and a pair of earrings! To 2 different people! This is making me feel that my stuff is worth selling…worth putting out there to the etsy consumers. I hope that people like my stuff, but it’s scary to put your jewelry out on the market after you’ve created from the heart. I feel like Sally Field – “They like me…they REALLY like me!” Ok, yes I’m a total nerd…but this is a huge boost of confidence for me.

And now I have a renewed energy to get back into my little craft nook and create some fun and sweet pieces to add to the shop. Stay tuned!

Joies - Simple & Sweet Jewelry

19 Weeks!

2010-10-25T09:33:00.000-04:00

Well, I’m now a little over 19 weeks preggo now and I feel great. Sure I’m tired all the time…but I can do stuff on the weekends other than lay on the couch all day whining to my husband about how sick I feel. I consider this a huge improvement! Around 9pm I lose all energy and have to drag myself to bed, but until then I’m in pretty good shape.

Anyway, I realized I hadn’t taken or posted any belly pictures so I figured I’d do that today. Sean and I went to Larriland Farms in Woodbine, MD Sunday to pick out pumpkins. This place is awesome! There was a hay bale maze, hayrides, a beautiful lake, cute goats you can pet, and lots of tasty treats. We sampled some sweet potato fries and a piece of pumpkin pie and sipped on fresh lemonade. It was fantastic! And it was really warm out too! Almost too warm…but a nice treat for so late in the fall! I couldn’t have asked for a better day! I can’t wait until we have a little one that we can bring here to pick apples and pumpkins in the fall and berries and peaches in the spring/summer!

19 weeks preggo...look at that belly!

my handsome hubby and I

franken-nerd

yeah....we're dorks!

It's a ???

2010-10-22T09:53:00.001-04:00

We went and had our “determine the sex of the baby” ultrasound yesterday….and received the ultrasound tech’s MOST DIFFICULT BABY OF THE DAY award. Apparently the bebbe was laying in the most inconvenient position. We were there for an hour and a half.

We still need to go back in 2 weeks because they were not able to see the spine, 1 of the kidneys, and a bunch of other stuff. They also were only able to get one good look at the parts that tell you if it’s a boy and a girl. They gave us a 90% sure that it’s a ------ but until they have a few different angles they can’t be sure. I figure 90% is pretty good odds that it’s a ------, but I’m not going to announce it to the interwebs just yet. We told our families what they said it is, but before I alert the masses, I figured we’d better be sure. So, keep posted for the official announcement on November 4^th!

Registry Panic

2010-10-06T14:37:00.001-04:00

So...just for funsies I decided to start a registry on Babies R Us a few minutes ago. You know...just kind of get it started to see what kinds of things we will need when the baby comes in March. I know I wrote about this earlier in a silly post about all the insane stuff people buy that they don't need. But after looking at the registry site and all the stuff they suggest plus all the other stuff that is out there - I'll admit it. I'm pretty terrified. How the heck are you supposed to A. know what you need and B. know what to do with half of the crap once you get it? Holy crap you guys, I'm having a bit of a panic attack right now. How the heck are you supposed to know about this stuff? I didn't grow up around kids, and the one little guy I watch on occasion (big ups to Wiz!) comes with a small bag of the essentials. I never had to tend to sick babies, and I never had to pick out what type of diapers, bottles, strollers, car seats, etc that are the best. I know we have a while to go before the little one gets here - but how do you even get a clue between now and then to even fathom what to do with all this stuff?

It's times like this when I miss my mom the most. I know it would have been a long time since she had kids, and it's just as easy to ask my sisters or a friend...but there is something different about asking mom, ya know? Like I don't want to impose on my friends or family, I don't want to freak out to them about all the fears I have about not having a frickin' clue about what I'm doing. I know my mom would have been able to calm me in these times.

I know I'm having a minor freak out and it will pass...all in all my emotions have been pretty level considering the hormones that are raging in my body...but I'm missing my mom and freaking out and am terrified that I won't know what to do.

I just miss my mommy.

Being Pregnant is sometimes terrifying

2010-10-05T11:33:00.002-04:00

It's crazy how every little thing your body does freaks you out when your preggers. Any kind of change can send you into a whirlwind of fear that something crazy bad is happening. I have never been so conscious about what I eat, what I drink, my bodily functions, every pain and every noise that comes from my body. I take better care of myself than I ever did before - it's pretty crazy. Now that I am responsible for someone other than myself, I make sure to drink milk and eat veggies and get lots of sleep. I just want this little baby inside me to have the best chance at a healthy and good life...and if I can somehow spearhead that with being good to myself than so be it!