Anna's 9th & 10th weeks

I'm a little behind posting about Anna's 9th week, so this post will include Anna's 9th & 10th weeks. The next post will be about our almost THREE year old Eli!!

During Anna's 9th & 10th weeks, Anna has laughed 2 times, began to drool BIG TIME, discovered her hands, discovered her brother, fell asleep in the swing, and continues to smile, be a chatter box, and loves to be held up & out.

Anna laughed for the first time on Friday when Eli & I were laughing at her for doing something funny....and I can't even remember what!! We were both laughing at her and she just kept smiling and making noises and finally let out 2 distinct chuckles in a row!! It was too awesome and I was glad that her brother (with my help) was the first one to make her laugh. I have a feeling he will always be able to make her laugh throughout their life and Eli will LOVE the audience. He already is "showing off" to her to try to make her smile or laugh and boy, does she track him now!! She knows his voice immediately, looks for him, and then will track him even when he is running around the room. It's TOO cute because then she will even smile every once in awhile while watching him do his tricks and crazy maneuvers.

Anna also started to drool & make bubbles with her drool! She has become SO drooly now that she started to wear bibs today and went through 2 of them! She chews on her hands a lot and if she is resting against my chest on my shoulder, a nice little line of drool goes down my arm if there is no bib or burp cloth to catch it! Looking back at Eli's posts, he also began to drool around this age!!

Anna also has discovered the amazement of her hands! She will stare very intently at them and move one hand close to her face making her cross eyed and then back out again. Hopefully she won't punch herself out as she continues to love fists :)!

Anna has fallen in love with her swing. This is a wonderful love affair for mommy (and daddy & grandma when I return to work) as she really can spend a fair amount of time in the swing and be genuinely happy! She stares at the rotating animals above her head and just talks away! She also fell asleep and actually napped in the swing today which is something I NEVER experienced with Eli. Amazing :) Here's video of Anna in the swing & Eli mimicking her noises :)

Speaking of talking, Eli has always been a chatter box since early on, and Anna is no different. Who knows why this is but I remember a nurse asking me if I talked to Eli a lot at home. After thinking about it yes, I did. I remember talking to Eli like he was an adult about what we were going to do, where we were going, etc. along with the baby talk. She said that was probably why he was so noisy! In my babycenter email about Anna, it had a section about just that. It talks about the importance of talking, singing, and reading along with mimicking back to baby what you hear them saying. I do this ALL DAY pretty much, so much so that Eli does the same thing back to Anna! So, I guess it's my own fault I have chatty kids :)

Anna continues to enjoy her tummy time mat....but mostly on her back. She tolerates tummy time much better than Eli, probably due to her napping on her tummy at least once a day. But, she is yet to find motivation to try to lift her head off the mat. She usually just chews on her hands. While on her back, she hits the parrot with her hand, stares at the butterflies, and occasionally makes the cat sing by kicking it with her feet. When on the mat, Eli does great by wanting to lie next to her but must be reminded that he cannot run or throw things when she is on the floor!!

She also likes to "play" with and stare intently at her other toys while on the floor:

Here's a good picture of her looking at Eli even though she has to arch her neck back to see him!:

Holding her rattle!:

Almost outgrowing her adorable sleeper with her initial on it!! It's a 3-6 month size!:

Just some cute pictures on the boppy:

Sportin' her bib!:

Video of Anna tracking her mobile animals:



Oh, a bib AND a hair accessory....a must!:

In looking back at Eli's posts, I read that I brought out the bumbo and jumperoo at around 3 months for Eli. Eli loved both these items and stayed in his jumperoo until he was too tall for it!! I look forward to seeing how Anna does and if she loves them as much as he does!

Lastly, Anna continues to not take the bottle well. We have tried 6 types of bottles, several positions, different times of day, different people, etc. She has taken at most 1 oz., and that only happened once. She just doesn't like it....period. BUT, she is doing better with accepting it in her mouth...now she just needs to actually swallow the milk! With that said, I have been really nervous about returning to work. While I only work 24 hours a week, being gone 5-6 hours a day seemed like a long time for little Anna. She is much better now being soothed by daddy & grandma and is overall a happy baby. But, she has yet to be STARVING and having only the bottle to drink milk from. Thankfully, after talking to my very supportive boss (who previously had breastfed her daughter), I will start by working split shifts. That way Anna will only have to take a bottle while I'm gone 3 hours if she wants to and I will slowly add more time away. I am so happy for this as it will be a gradual transition and it will be easier for ALL of us. Yay!! My first day is Monday, August 16th....one week!

Next post coming up....Big brother Eli!

World Breastfeeding Week

This last week, August 1-7, was World Breastfeeding Week. Since becoming a mommy, I have become quite the advocate and become involved in organizations that support breastfeeding. Having had such a struggle with Eli while nursing, I sought out a lot of education and support and would not have made it through more than a month had it not been for the support I received from breastfeeding support group and La Leche League. I delivered both Eli & Anna at Centerpoint Hospital in Independence and was lucky enough to start attending their breastfeeding support group from it's inception. Centerpoint had only opened 3 months prior to Eli's birth, so we were the first mamas to start the group. I am SO glad I made the decision to attend group as I am still close friends with the mamas I met 3 years ago through that group. In fact many of us have now had our 2nd child and cherish our group of supportive mommies. Along with the supportive mommies, the group is run by 2 wonderful lactation consultants, Sharon & Mary Ann, whose knowledge and supportive nature kept us each attending every week to weigh our babies, learn from their knowledge, and chat with other women experiencing the journey of breastfeeding and parenthood. Thank you Sharon & MaryAnn and thank you mommies for keeping me on the track of breastfeeding my baby. I am proud to say I have been a breastfeeding mommy for 3 years and will be for probably another 1-2 years! Wow!!

In recognition of this week, a close mommy friend from our group, Cheryl, came up with the idea to honor the support group and the lactation consultants. She sent out an email asking the other mommies if anyone would be interested in organizing a potluck and maybe putting together a special gift for the LC's. Well, after some phone calls to the hospital staff and hard work from many mommies, not only was a potluck held, but a 2 hour event was sponsored by the hospital today to educate the community about breastfeeding. It was awesome to be a part of this and I cannot thank Cheryl enough for the idea and for keeping everything on track. The event today included a talk by a pediatrician about the importance of breastfeeding, a panel of moms (yes, from our group :) talking about their experiences with breastfeeding, a breastpump demonstration, and several vendors and giveaways. It felt really good to be a part of this and I was once again reminded how blessed I am to have found this group of mommies!

The potluck was held on Monday and the LC's were presented with flowers, a picture of our kiddos put together very creatively by Tiffany, a gift basket, and a picture quilt. The room was FULL of breastfeeding mommies and I know Sharon & Mary Ann felt very honored. Here are some pictures from the evening:

Happy World Breastfeeding Week!

Anna's Sip n See

My sisters threw Anna a really great Sip n See this past weekend. I had attended one for another friend after her baby was born and really liked the idea of it instead of a shower BEFORE baby is born. It was great to see everyone and show off our little girl! Thanks Sarah & Holly!

Before the Sip n See, vacuuming the house with Anna:

Aunt Sarah & Aunt Stephanie reading with Eli. Aunt Stephanie is due with little Katelynn on Halloween. How exciting!!:

Aunt Stephanie practicing her baby skills with Anna:

Anna all dressed up for the party. Earlier she had a feather poof attached to the headband. She only tolerated for a short while:

The set up...pretty and pink!:

Mommy & Anna:

Aunt Holly & Anna:

Anna was tired most of the Sip n See and I held her so she could fall asleep and not be crabby for all her guests :)

My friend Da's cute little girl, Lucy:

I'm looking forward to returning the favor for Sarah & Stephanie in September. I love showering babies....and mamas!!

Deanna Rose Farmstead

Last week, Eric took the day off and we went to Deanna Rose Farmstead. It's a great little place that is free of charge during the week and only $2/person on weekends. We love free! :) We went last summer, too, and hope to return in the fall since it was so HOT which made it hard to enjoy. I'm already ready for fall! We met up with a few friends there and it was great to have Eric there to keep up with Eli while I pushed around or carried Anna. Here are the pictures of our day!

Slide built off of a barn:

Heading up to the slide!:

Looking at the sheep with friends Andrew & Callie:

The caravan!:

Eli & Callie. They are supposed to be dating, but Eli can come across a little aggressive which can turn Callie off sometimes....:)

Speaking of aggressive, holy goats!:

Awww...Eli the butterfly:

Walking through the fun children's garden:

What would a farm be without chickens!:

Miss Anna enjoying her ride:

The kiddos L to R: Madison, Callie, Eli & Andrew:

The boys:

Looks similar to the background of Eric & I's engagement pictures....hmmmm....:)

Eli in the swing 2010:

And 2009:

So many fish:

Eli's first day of school....well, not really, but his first day of preschool will be September 14th!!:

The school house was one of two places air conditioned....awwww:

Eli in the tractor wheel 2010:

And 2009:

Country boys :)

Fun time! Look forward to returning when the weather is cooler! Hope we can also fit in the KC Zoo, Powell Gardens bug exhibit, and the Dino exhibit at Crown Center...although that one is inside, thank goodness!