9 Months Old!!!

Time is flying by these days. I hardly even remember September or October. So Layla is nine months old now and she got a clean bill of health from her check up. She is now 27 inches tall and 17 lbs. My little skinny mini is still wearing a lot of her 6 month clothes. Now her head, on the other hand, is definitely a Heikes dome. Where her other stats put her at the 25th percentile, her head is at the 75th!

She is crawling around everywhere now, getting into whatever she can, and pulling up on anything she can. Nothing compared to what it will be once she is walking, but still, she is keeping me on my toes for sure. She has started taking steps while holding on to things, so I am sure walking will come soon. When Daddy holds her hands and walks with her, she will just cruise! I can't believe how fast she is. She just needs to work on the balance a bit more.

Talking all the time, she has mastered pretty much all of her alphabet sounds, and puts them together to make some pretty hilarious conversation. Her favorite is still dada so she says that a lot or variations of it. She loves to make weird sounds like clicking her tongue, breathing heavy through her gums (which if any of you know me well, you know how much I love that) or popping her lips. It is too cute.

She is cutting her third tooth now on the top right. I'm excited, but I will be sad once it comes in because it will make her seem so much older. I love that giant, two teeth grin that she has. I don't know if it is from the teething or not, but she has had a few rough nights over the last few weeks. She will randomly wake up crying and not be able to sooth herself back to sleep. Our version of the cry-it-out method usually works pretty well, but sometimes she just needs mom to hold her.

So overall she is doing very well. She is very attached to mommy these days, which isn't surprising, but she loves to smile at people when we are out, as long as they don't get too close.

She is my happy little munchkin!

Six Months!!!

Sorry it has been so long since my last post, but we were without internet for a month! It is amazing that a company can have that long of a wait period to reestablish service. Our roommate moved out and as the cable was in his name we had to cancel it and start it again. So stupid the way those cable companies work. Anyway, we are up and running now, and I am sure my little Layla bug will be soon, as well!!! She is growing up so fast. It is amazing how much she changes from day to day. She finally hit the six month mark, and I can't believe it has already gone by. I was watching a video of her when she was about a month old and it's like she isn't even the same baby.

Just in the last month Layla has started saying her first word, "da-da," and just two days ago she said "ma-ma" for the first time!!! Although, I have heard that only three or four times since, and she says da-da all day long. It is quite cute though, especially when she yells it when she is frustrated. I tell her that is what I do when I am frustrated too. =) She has also started sleeping in her crib in her room at night. I miss having her in the bassinet right next to me, but it is so nice not to have to tiptoe around when we are going to bed. It was a very easy transition for her too. Probably because her crib has to be so much more comfortable than her bassinet was.

She has also mastered sitting up. I just decided the other day that she was going to sit up on her own, so we went outside and I propped her up on the blanket and gave her some blocks. After about twenty minutes of constantly swaying and me having to steady her, she had it down. It seems that all I needed to do was just let her try more from the beginning instead of holding her up all the time. But she is sitting up quite well now and is loving it. She especially loves that she can see out from her stroller so much better when we take our walks. It also makes it much easier for her to entertain herself, which is important, both for her and me. =)

I'm sure the crawling is going to be just around the corner now. She will lunge forward on all fours every now and again and then rock a bit before doing a face plant. It is pretty comical. I must say that I am really okay, though, if she wants to take her time with that. I wouldn't be surprised, since it seems like she isn't a fan of being on her stomach much anyway. She is funny because she will roll over from her stomach to her back all the time, but she refuses to roll the other way. She will turn as far as she can to reach something, but if she starts to roll over she will immediately roll back. It is kind of nice though, cause I don't worry about her as much that way.

She is a noisy little bugger sometimes. She loves to shout, and babble, and moan. I love it, unless she is doing her shrill shouts indoors. She is beginning to become more attached to toys and will sometimes fuss when you take something away from her. Yay... She is also starting to cut her first tooth. I don't know if that is to blame, but she seems to be a bit of a fuss bucket more often these days. She will seem fine then just scream bloody murder, yet nothing seems to be wrong. I'm sure this is just a small portion of the feisty little red head she is going to be! =)

Layla's doctors appointment was the other day and he said she is perfect!!! Well, he didn't have to tell me that, I already knew it. =) She was 14lbs 13oz and 25 1/4 inches tall. That puts her in the 25th percent isle, which is awesome. I am so happy that she is maintaining her weight and not loosing.

She has been on solids now for quite some time and she is loving it. Pretty much all of the veggies I give her I have been mixing with sweet potatoes or yams, and that works out great. She loves the avocado, green beans, butternut squash, and zucchini that way. Not so much on the artichoke, carrots, or peas. They make her gag. (Carrots always made me gag too) But we will periodically keep trying. She also recently started getting a fruit in the morning with some oatmeal. She has had pears, mango, and nectarines so far, and she loves them all. I love making food for her. It is quite therapeutic for me. Although I am running out of freezer space for it all.

Belly Laughs!

Layla was having a good time sitting in her stimulus package the other day and she let out a little snort, which she does a lot, and so I snorted back, which in turn made me cough and Layla found this to be the funniest thing she has ever seen!

Layla's four month check up was today and it went really well. She did get her shots, which she hates doing, and I hate watching her get them. Poor thing. She was a trooper though. She only cried for a minute. She is now back up to the 25th percent isle on weight at 12lbs 12oz! Yay! She is almost double her birth weight, so apparently I am doing something right. =) She is also in the 25th percent isle for head size, so no Heikes dome there. And she is in the 50th percent isle for height at 23 1/4 inches.

The doctor said she looks and sounds great and is a strong girl, especially with her head control, so he said we can start her on rice cereal any time. I am probably going to start pretty soon and give her a bit just to see how she likes it. She has been eying our food and loves to watch me eat and drink, and has been making chewing motions with her mouth so I think she might be ready for it. I'm so excited to start spoon feeding her!

2 Month Checkup

Layla had her two month doctor's visit today. Three shots, poor girl. Her faced turned every color of red possible and she screamed so long that nothing was coming out. It just breaks my heart. She got over it pretty quickly though, so that is good. She is a little trooper.

Well she is still in the fifth percent isle for weight. She was up to 8 lbs, 15oz and she is now 22 inches long, which he said is right in the middle for height, and her head is in the 25th percent isle (she must have taken after my side on that one. =) ) The doctor said that since she isn't dropping off more on weight he isn't concerned, so he said just to keep doing what I am doing. So I will continue supplementing her once or twice a day and hopefully all will continue to go well. He said she looks great and she is really strong. We play Parachute (a more fun modification of the airplane) and her whole body is flat as a board when I hold her up. She is nothing but muscle, that one.

She is smiling more and more these days and she is starting to notice more around her. She stares at her hands every once in a while so it won't be too long before she will have more control over them. She also loves to stare at this little stuffed lion rattle with a bright colored mane. She follows it so well. My favorite, though, is when she talks to me. Her little coos are so adorable. I'm trying to take in every moment cause they all go by so fast.

Skinny Mini

Layla had her doctors visit yesterday and she is doing great. She is up to 7lbs 4oz, which was a bit lower than the doctor would have liked, she is only in the 10th percent isle for weight. However, after checking her he said she looks completely healthy and not too skinny at all. She grew a quarter inch too, which I figured since some of her outfits are almost too short. It is too bad since those are the ones that fit her skinny body the best. I put pants on her for the first time since her belly button is all healed and two kicks and the pants were off. They are the right length, but too wide around her little belly. My friend Geiger suggested suspenders, so we will have to see if they make those for infants. =)

Layla had her first real bath this week! She seemed to love it all up until mommy took her out of the warm water. It isn't easy washing a slippery little one squirming around in the water. I have a non slip foam pad to use, which I am sure will help, however it had a lovely coating of Jack's hair on it since the little brat has been sleeping in her tub in the closet. He just loves to be where he isn't supposed to. So we will be testing that out on her next bath.

So far Layla isn't in a schedule yet, which I think is pretty normal for a new baby. She definitely eats a lot during the day and then sleeps quite well at night, sometimes for five hours straight. It has been really nice for me. I'm paying attention to the times she goes to bed for the long periods and when she naps during the day (on the days she does take any sort of significant nap) and they are getting more and more consistent, but we are still a little ways from an exact schedule.

She gets pretty fussy when she goes to the bathroom, which the doctor said is extremely common. It breaks my heart cause there is nothing I can do for her. I really hope that it gets better for her soon. Luckily it isn't all the time. The way she screams sometimes it is like she is tooting razorblades. I just hate it. Doctor tells me I shouldn't be bothered by a crying baby, cause a good crier means a healthy baby. So she is healthy, but I still feel awful watching her and not being able to immediately make it all better.

Opa and Mimi are in town visiting their grand baby for the week, and we have been having a great time. Layla loves her grandparent time. This weekend she gets to meet her Uncle Hap, Aunt Laurie, cousin Natalia, and her Great Oma. It will be a full house, and I am looking forward to it. Lots of love going around for Miss Layla.

40 Weeks!

Today is my due date!!!! I had my doctors appointment yesterday and I still haven't dilated at all, but I am 60% effaced and Baby is at 2 station so that is all good things I have my next check up on Friday and he said if I haven't gone into labor naturally we will talk inducing sometime next week. So crazy!!! I have my fingers crossed that they don't have to induce, but if they do, they do. He also said she is the perfect size, not too big and not too small. He was guessing about seven to seven and a half pounds.

I'm walking a lot to try and get things progressing, especially now that it is 80 degrees outside and I don't have to freeze. Everyone keeps telling me that spicy food is what will do it, but I have never been a spicy food fan, and the little bit I have had since being pregnant just gives me awful heartburn. Now the question is does horseradish or wasabi count? Cause that I will eat like crazy! I love that stuff. I even put some in my macaroni and cheese for an extra kick, and hello! It is delicious. I may just have to bite the bullet and suffer through the burning mouth feeling that spicy food gives me and the inevitable heartburn that will follow, cause having labor start naturally has got to be better than pitocin.

I think that my belly dropped a bit. I can breathe a little easier but I have to pee a lot more often now. Just means that things are happening! Everything is pretty much ready to go at this point. The only major thing that I still need to get is the breast pump, but I have no idea which one to get. Since I am going to be a stay at home mom, I don't need the uber crazy expensive kind since I won't be pumping every day, but I want a good one. If anyone has suggestions, please let me know!

36 Weeks

About a month to go and I can't even believe it. I had my doctor's appointment on Tuesday and everything is great. Baby is head down, which is so good to hear and my cervix is starting to soften. Baby is still really active, she even kicked Dr. Murphy while he was measuring my belly. He said her heartbeat is really strong and fast because she is so active.

My belly continues to grow and it is rather hard most of the time. I find that when I have been sitting for a while when I get up I walk kind of funny for a few steps until my belly stretches out. I have moments of uncomfortable these days either from eating too much and feeling too full, which happens quickly since my stomach doesn't have much room anymore, or my round ligament pain, or from just not being able to get comfortable if I'm sitting or laying. Pete and I were worried that I would have a lot of back pain because of my scholiosis, but I have been pretty lucky on that one. I only get back pain every once in a while, at least at this point. Overall, my baby girl has been really good to me, and I hope that continues through labor and delivery, and of course, beyond.

I went to Babies R Us yesterday and picked up a couple sleep sacks for her. Everyone says those are so great for babies during the winter months and I don't have very many. They were having a 50% off Carter's sleepwear sale, so I got a great deal. Unfortunately they don't have very many so I was limited.

Recently I decided I should attempt to put the carseat in my car now so I can make sure it is ready to go should we need it early. I decided to put it in the center, but I have a feeling I am going to want to have it on the side, cause it is kind of a pain to climb in and pull the seat up and out when it is empty, so I can only imagine when there is a baby in it. We will see I suppose. Everything fits; the front seats can't go back all the way, but there is still a decent amount of room. Eventually we will be getting me a new car anyway, but mine will work great for now.

35 Weeks

35 weeks along now and I can't believe how close it is getting. I'm starting to feel somewhat uncomfortable more often these days, especially if I get that awful ligament pain that lasts forever. But overall I'm still doing quite well. Pete and I went to our friends Ugly Christmas Sweater Party over the weekend, which was such a good time, as always. Baby got a lot of love from everyone.

My sweater was perfect because baby made the tree look somewhat three dimensional. I swear I can actually watch my belly getting bigger now. Just when you think it can't possibly get any larger you wake up, and it has.

She has been a little easier on my ribs these days, which is so nice, and she gets the hiccups all the time, which is so cute. I wish I knew how she was situated inside there so I knew what it was that was moving around. I think my doctor said at my last visit that she was head down, but I don't know if that means she will stay that way or if she is still moving all over.

My friend, Stacy took some pictures of my belly up in Santa Barbara over the weekend in the gorgeous weather we were having. I think she got some really cute ones so I will be posting those up as soon as they are ready. I can't wait! Thanks so so much Stacy!

34 Weeks

I have hit the 34 week mark and with it has come some pain in the form of round ligaments. Now let me tell you, these pains suck! I literally thought I had appendicitis because the pain was pretty intense and it was so concentrated on my lower right side. Fortunately, no appendicitis just painful round ligaments. Apparently this is the number one complaint of pregnant women, so I am not alone. It hurt for 12 hours straight last night, so between that and my worry that I was going to have to go the emergency room I didn't get a whole lot of sleep. Now if the pain hadn't been concentrated on my right lower abdomen, I probably wouldn't have worried much, but since it was and I take after my father, who is quite the worrier, it freaked me out. Fortunately today was my usual checkup and Dr. Murphy put me at ease. He is so great.

Other than that everything is going quite well. I got Baby a Christmas present. A baby swing! It is too cute and I hope she will like it. I got a smokin' deal on it on cyber Monday on Amazon. Regular $160, I got it for $89 shipped and no tax either! Woohoo! How I do love Amazon.

I've got the house all decorated for the holidays now, which I love. There is something about the glow from the little white lights on a tree that is so cozy. The tree was quite difficult to decorate as it is so full, but I definitely got the important ones up. And Pete got the outside lights up too, which I love cause the half of our street that we live on doesn't really do lights, so I like that we break the mold and are the only happy house!

I'm excited because this weekend my friend Stacy is taking some belly shots of me! I wanted to make sure I got some before it was too late, so I will be posting some in the next week or two. Hopefully they will turn out cute.

32 Weeks

I had my doctors appointment and everything looks and sounds perfect! That is always good news. I love to hear that little heartbeat. She is getting the hiccups all the time now, mostly in the middle of the night. Doctor says that is a good thing. It is pretty cute, which is weird cause my hiccups annoy the crap out of me. Belly is, of course, getting bigger and bigger. I am trying to be diligent and lube it up with my belly potion at least once a day now. I know it probably won't prevent stretch marks, but it makes my skin feel better.

She is a little stinker these days because she likes to get up under my ribs on my right side. It is a very strange feeling and one that I am not all that happy about. It is like a tickle (the annoying kind) and a jab at the same time, and it isn't always instant, sometimes she just chills there for a while. I try to push her down, but it doesn't always work. I've noticed that overall she seems to prefer my right side, which makes for it getting sore a lot. Doctor says that is common because she is pushing on my floating ribs. Not so pleasant. I'm constantly stretching my torso to the left to take the pressure off. I'm sure it is only going to get worse as she gets bigger.

The nursery is coming together a little more all the time. Once I get some more done on the walls I will post some pictures. I've been doing the laundry for everything baby lately, which is the only kind of laundry I enjoy at this point. I am sure once she is born that feeling will fade fast. I got the stroller and the carseat out and washed the covers for them so they are all ready to go. In the process Jack found yet another spot to occupy.

Pete will take him on walks through the house when he gets in there. I don't think he likes that part too much, though. He is more about lying in the stationary areas of the house, but it is quite funny to watch. I think he much prefers using one of my body pillows instead. It looks way more comfortable to me anyway.

3rd Trimester!!!

I can't believe I am already in my third trimester. Time is flying by. Pete and I did the tour of the maternity wing of the hospital yesterday and it is quite nice. Private rooms for everyone with your own bathroom and shower. They are like hotel rooms. It was recently remodeled so everything is so clean and new looking. Our names were even pulled from the raffle and we won a baby cd featuring songs from composers such as Mozart and Beethoven. I will have to give it a listen, as I do like the occasional classic instrumental music.

Had my doctors visit yesterday as well, and now those visits are going to get closer and closer together. Everything was perfect. I met with Dr. Murphy again and he is my favorite. He is an older guy and he does this sort of humming thing while he works. It is so awesome and it always makes me smile and feel more at ease. He really seems like he cares too, which I like. There are a couple of the doctors I see that don't seem as invested, like they just need to move on to the next patient. So I have my fingers crossed that he will be the one that delivers me, but my luck it will be the one girl that I don't like so much. She is very callused and cold. Not something you want in a person who is going to be around for the happiest moment of your life.

Baby's heart was strong and her growth was right on target. We called her our little Baby Bear because Dr. Murphy said she was not too big and not too small, she was just right. Now that she is moving more and more and you can actually see it, I'm going to try and get some video footage. It is so cool, but it seriously seems like my belly should be in the latest sci fi movie.

Megan and Amy are throwing my shower this weekend with my girls (and Josh), which I am so looking forward to. After that I will definitely be posting pictures that will be more than just my silhouetted self with a giant belly almost popping through my tank top. Pretty soon I am going to have to find a new tank top to wear for those pictures. The current one is really being put to work.

Pete told me that I look more pregnant when I wear maternity shirts than I do when I am wearing just a regular t-shirt or sweatshirt. I'm just glad I can still wear the regular stuff even if it is mostly just to sleep in. Most importantly though, I'm so glad that I am able to wear my jeans with the hairband to hold the button. I don't know how long that will work, but I am hoping when that fails maybe those Bella Bands will work cause I so don't want to buy maternity jeans.

21 Weeks

I hit my 21 week mark this week. I had my monthly doctors check up and he said everything was great. I have started to gain weight, which is good. Baby is very active and we will be able to feel her move more and more as she runs out of extra space in there. Her heartbeat is really strong, as the doctor says it is like a washing machine. My belly continues to grow and it is getting harder to the touch.

Pete's sister's family came down for a visit this week. It was so good to see them, especially the girls. They are so much fun. They had a blast with their Uncle Pete too. He lent them his football jersey's so they could be cool like him. Might take a while before they fit.

We took them to the beach and Ventura Harbor for the day, which was a great time. The girls saw a small pod of dolphins as well as a seal, then we went to the harbor and got ice cream and they got to ride a pony. They were so excited!

I went down to Disneyland with them on Wednesday and we had a great time. The girls got a ton of autographs in their books and were so excited that they got to meet Belle, Cinderella, and Tinkerbell. They both were dressed up in their princess dresses for most of the day, which was too cute.

Lexi's favorite rides were Pirates of the Caribbean and the Mickey's Fun Wheel in California Adventure, which she dragged me on, even with my extreme fear of heights. She even made me ride in the gondola that swings. Not cool! I was freaking out. I think I scared the crap out of baby, because when I got off the ride she was kicking me for a good five minutes straight!

I think Mia's favorite was playing the Goofy Fishing Game in California Adventure because she won a big Mickey Mouse doll. She was so excited! The highlight for me was seeing the new World of Color show. It was like the Bellagio fountain show on steroids!!! Very creative those Disney people are.

By the end of the day, though, my feet were killing me and the muscles in my stomach felt a little worked. Some of that pain may have been from my screaming on the Mickey Fun Wheel. It was really hard to go there and not be able to go on my very favorite rides, being pregnant and all, but I had such a good time with the girls, Kristen and Paul.

IT'S A GIRL!!!!

We had an in-depth ultrasound on Tuesday to check how our little one is coming along, as well as to find out the sex. We are so excited to be having a little girl!!! I am keeping my fingers crossed that she gets my red hair and Pete's adorable dimples. The ultrasound technician said that she was perfect, everything was growing properly and she had a strong and steady heartbeat at 150 bpm. She is an active little one too, which is so great! I can't feel her yet, but I am sure that is coming soon.

On the not so exciting side, my computer decided to contract a virus. How happy am I? So it is in the shop for the next few days. Luckily I am able to use Pete's work computer for internet needs. However there will be a delay in pictures. I promise that as soon as I get my computer back, assuming it is in working order there will be pictures posted of my big fat belly, some new baby items, and a video of the 17 week ultrasound when we found out the sex of our little bean! So please stay tuned!!!

17 Weeks

I hit the 17 week mark today! For those of you (Amy) who are totally off with the week thing, that is about four months. I had my monthly checkup today, and everything looks good. I got to hear the bean's little heartbeat at my appointment, which is the best sound in the world, and next week we get to find out what we are having!!!! I can't wait! I am still down as far as weight goes, but doing okay. I am trying to incorporate more protein in my diet, which will help, and Pete got me some Haagen Dazs dark chocolate ice cream, so that has got to pack on something!

I have my first food cravings since my initial pickles and turkey burger when I first became pregnant. Dried apricots. I love them and I nibble on them all day long. They are the best. I can't eat large bites of them, cause then they just don't taste as good so it takes me about 15 to 20 bites to get through one. I know this makes me crazy, but it could also be that I just want that one apricot to last as long as possible, and little bites are a way to get that done. I am glad that it is something healthy and not donuts or something. Mmmm...donuts.

Here is my 17 week picture. Found a much more pleasing spot in the house to take it. Silhouettes are so much more pleasing than harsh, blown out pictures, with terrible lighting. My tummy is getting harder and harder by the day. For these pictures I refrain from sucking in at all, which I have found seems to be a females natural instinct when a picture is being taken. I know that eventually I won't be able to anymore, so I figure this will be the most accurate representation of my belly's growth.

Last Week of 1st Trimester!

Just got back from my Aunt Sally's Farm yesterday. It was so much fun to see the family and tell them all the exciting news. My mom was really happy too cause she didn't have to keep the secret anymore, since she had already known for a couple weeks. My brother took this picture of us while we were there, and I love it.

Can you tell that our little one is going to have blue eyes?! So today I had my Dr's check up as well as an ultrasound at the pregnancy clinic, which was great because Mom and Dad were able to come with me to it.

My Dr's visit went great. I got to hear the babies heartbeat, which was so amazing. It just makes you feel so much better when you can hear or see the baby. Then you know that all is going well since I can't feel the little bean yet.

The ultrasound was amazing. The little one was moving around all over the place. Jumping, turning, stretching the arms and legs. It is crazy to watch them doing all that movement, yet I can't feel a thing. Plus, at 12 weeks now the baby actually looks so much like a baby! Some of the pictures can be a bit scary or alien like, like this one:

Scary! I told Pete that it looks like the baby is wearing a motorcycle helmet. Definitely Pete's kid! It was cool to actually see all the parts of the baby. Like this one of the spine:

This one was the only decent one we got of the whole babies body since it was moving around so much. I think it is just precious, however, I might be biased. That little chubby belly is too cute.

My next check-up isn't for another month and hopefully sometime close to then we will be finding out the sex of the baby!!! We can't wait!

7 Weeks

I had my follow up appointment today and everything looked good. The ultrasound looked more like an actual baby this time and less like a paint blob. Based on the measurements from this ultrasound the Dr. said the due date was January 19th again. This is getting pretty crazy.

So the whole "morning" sickness thing has started to kick in these last few days, but for me, I feel the best in the morning. Then it slowly progresses into pretty much awful by the evening. Plus I have this overactive saliva thing going on, which is less than pleasant so I have spittoons around the house so I don't always have to run to the sink. It is pretty much the most disgusting thing ever. So, sorry for the details, but if reading about it is gross, imagine living it. I am just hopeful that this whole situation doesn't last for my entire pregnancy, because I would actually like to enjoy it.

Momentary Scare

Yesterday I was doing some spring cleaning around the house and lifting and moving probably more things then I should have. This morning I woke up and had a bit of a scare when I noticed some spotting. I called the doctors office and made an appointment to come in. He performed an ultrasound to make sure everything looked okay, but since I was only five weeks along you couldn't really see much, just the amniotic sac and the yolk sac.

The Dr. was an older man and he was so cute cause he would humm while checking me. It was quite hilarious. Worked though, cause it definitely kept me at ease. He reassured me that everything looked fine and that the bleeding seemed to be external, and most likely caused from too much lifting. He told me to take it easy for the next couple weeks and not to worry. He gave me a new due date based on the ultrasound measurements of January 27th, which made Pete happy.