Anna's First Year

New Blog Link

2009-06-08T22:30:00.000-05:00

http://anna2ndyear.blogspot.com/

For all interested...We have started a new blog....see link above.

Pics at the Hospital--Anna's first couple days

2009-06-03T06:03:00.003-05:00

Anna's First Birthday

2009-06-02T20:57:00.007-05:00

Today started off with a bang. For breakfast Anna enjoyed a sweet serenade from her Mommy and Daddy (Daddy over speakerphone). The song of choice was Happy Birthday. Anna enjoyed a nice "healthy" breakfast of pancakes with white chocolate chips.( Yes, we put the candle in the pancakes for the serenade.

At daycare Anna enjoyed another mini birthday with her friend Brookhanna.
Mommy was able to get off work a little early and had planned to take Anna to the lake to see the geese but it was pouring down rain. So instead we spent a little quality time together. For dinner we went over to Alex's house. There we sang happy birthday, had cake and opened presents. I would say Anna had a good first birthday.

This year has flown by as I am sure the following will. Anna has taught me a lot but I think one of the most important things she has taught me is "you never get this moment back, reflect on yesterday, prepare for tomorrow, but live IN today".

I can remember a year ago...anxiously awaiting the arrival of my baby girl. I was so nervous. I remember being so scared as they rushed me in for an emergency c-section, praying that God wouldnt take my baby. I kept myself calm by singing "you are my sunshine"

I remember worrying about what would she be like, what would I be like as a mother. Would I be good enough. From the moment I held her I didnt want to let her go. She was (still is and will always be) so precious.

I remember the days when she slept all the time and I would just sit in my chair and hold her as she slept curled up on my chest. I remember thinking how much I loved her and not imagining how much more I would love her the next day. I remember as she got older and didnt want to sleep in my arms, as much I needed to, how I wouldnt/couldnt put her down when she did fall asleep sitting with me. I remember sitting in my chair at night knowing it was getting late and that I needed to get chores done or get ready for work or bed. Yet, I still sat there and held her because it hurt my heart to lay her down.

Anna has been an angel. Yea, she has started to throw little tantrums but she is still an angel. I cant ever recall her throwing a tantrum out in public. She is my angel because she is a major inspiration for me to be a better person, to be her role model.

I love how friendly and outgoing she is. I love how she says "hi" or "hey" to 90% percent of the people she see's.

She amazes me on a daily basis as it seems she is always learning something new.
So far her vocab consists of:

act---cat
dog---dog
hat---hat
hi---hi
hey---hey
ball--ball
there---there
dat---dat
baph--bath
bell---belly
book---book
alec---alex
mama---mommy
dada---daddy
book---brookhanna
ap---apple
look---look
baw---balloon
duck---duck
ear---ear
da do---thank you
boooo-shoe
ba ba---bottle
up---cup
boo---blue
buh bye---bye bye

I am sure there are a few more that I will think after this is published. But that vocab list amazes me. It also amazes me that she knows what the word more is in sign language. She will sign more whenever she sees food that she wants. She hasnt gotten any other signs down but that still amazes me.

I am so proud of her. I love the fact that she is active (although, I am sure it will be challenging). I love the fact that she loves books and will sit with me as I read or as Daddy reads via a video (we did that so she could see Daddy reading to her while he was deployed).

I love how she cries a little when I drop her off at day care (only cause it makes you feel good to know they want you) but I also love how by the time I hit the front door she is happy with her provider.

I love when I pick her up from day care she gives me the best hug and makes a grunting sound like she is trying so hard to squeeze me more than she already is. I love the smile on her face when she sees me first thing in the morning or even when I open the car door to get her out.

I LOVE YOU SOOOOOOO MUCH ANNA! Daddy and I both love you for so many more precious reasons. Thank you Anna for being the person you are! You are amazing, unique, precious, beautiful....I could go on and on.

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY ANNA!!!! We cant wait to see what the next years bring us (ok...
we can wait...but only because we want to make sure we enjoy every moment possible!)

Anna's First Friends

2009-06-02T20:47:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to show off who Anna's first friends were.
This is Brookhanna.

Anna attends daycare at Brookhanna's house. We have been told they get along great. They play, laugh, whack each other but all in good fun. I love the fact that they are so close in age and get along so well. I believe Anna tries to say Brookhanna's name but it comes out sounding like "book". '

This is Alex. He lives in our neighborhood. Anna and Alex get to spend quite a bit of time together. They go on stroller rides, shopping, out to eat, play dates at each others house. Anna loves to say Alex's name.

Whats in store for Mommy...

2009-05-31T21:08:00.006-05:00

Anna got her first boo boo from falling today (Sunday 31 May). She was playing in the living room and fell over my leg as she was trying to get to her coveted corn puffs. (I know I should have moved my leg-but she was quicker than me). Well...she fell and got rug burn and a cut on her chin. She cried for a bit but less than 5 minutes later she was ok.
Ok...today was an adventure. (Sunday 31 MAY) Anna showed Mommy what she has in store for me. In less than 1 hour she dove out of her play house (the one outside)...twice. The first time I thought she used my chair (we have to put it next to the door so she doesnt push the door open) to pull herself out because she ended up sitting in the chair. (Yea, that was a surprise. I had put her in the house and put the chair there so I could clean up the lawn table from lunch...imagine my surprise when I turned around and saw her sitting in my lawn chair.) However, the second time as I was sitting there watching her she leaned over the door (like she was looking at the grass) and BAM!...out she tumbled! Luckily she didnt get hurt.(below is a pic of the house)

Next she climbed on her music table and sat on it...three different times (ok...the second and third time I didnt let her sit on it but she was trying to climb back up on it). THEN she tried to sit on her red rider turtle, turtles head and finally she sat on its back...ON HER KNEES! AND SHE ISNT FULLY WALKING YET!!!!
She did really good at walking this weekend. In the house she would let go of things and take 3-4 steps to get to something else. We also spent alot of time walking around the yard and to the mailbox. I would hold her hands and stand behind her and let her lead me. SHE LOVED IT!!!!

OH!!! Something else...I have been meaning to mention. For the past couple of weeks Anna will get excited and say "ALEC" whenever she sees her little friend Alex. Its amazing, she even knows when we go to his house, if she doesnt see him she will ask "Alec?" and when she sees his mom she will say "Alec?". How cute is that? Oh...and she knows the word hat. Today when I took of my beret (army hat) she grabbed it and sad "hat". She also says thank you. She doesnt quite have it down but I can tell that is what she saying it sounds more like "day do". I know she is saying thank you because she repeats it when I say it. Whenever she sees her bath cup she will say "up" and point to the cup!

Busy Bee

2009-05-29T11:28:00.005-05:00

The past couple of weeks were very very busy. Daddy came to visit before his deployment. The first week I had to work so Anna and Daddy got to spend a lot of quality time together. I think it was great. She took right to him, like he never missed a beat.
Grandma and Grandpa Shoemate also came at the end of the week and spent some quality time with Daddy and Anna. Then Nana and Poppop Durrette came!
On Saturday 23 May. We celebrated Anna's birthday with a cookout. Although it was a

little early we couldnt pass up the chance with everyone there! It was great. Anna at first wasnt too happy about the hat! But quickly took to opening presents. It was adorable. She is already hitting that stage of excitement when she see's her gift. She would open something (with Daddy's help) and look at it, then point and say "look!" If you didnt acknowledge her she would say it again or if she really liked the gift she would say it again! After presents it was cake time. Anna really enjoyed her cake and let us know by saying "mmmm!", "mmmm!" However, she did have some kind of reaction to the cake. We think it was the blue coloring in the frosting because her cheeks (which had frosting all over them) were bright red for a couple hours after. I am really glad that everyone got to be there. Oh...and me and Anna will do something small on her real bday!

On Sunday 24 May we all went to church where Daddy and Anna were baptized. I was so proud standing there beside my husband and baby. All the grandparents were there to witness this occasion which made it even more special.

Then on Monday we went to the zoo! Anna loved the zoo. She kept pointing and saying "look"! Anna even got to ride a merry-go-round! I wont lie in the beginning it was tricky. Anna almost slid off the side of the elephant when the elephant went up (I was almost too short to hold her on). I am soooooooo happy that we went while Daddy (and Nana and Poppop) were here.

Anna has started walking more...ok...trying to walk more. She will be playing across the room and hold something out to me. I usually say "bring it to mommy", she will smile, step away from what she holding onto and attempt to walk to me. The most steps she has taken at one time is 7 steps. She is really trying. If she is standing up facing away from me and sees something she wants, I will let go of her hands and she will try to walk to it. I can tell she is still nervous...or maybe she just gets so excited because when she gets close to whatever she was walking to, be it a toy or me, she will just fall forward and laugh.
Anna has started a new thing in the bathtub. She will take the cup and put a little ball in, still holding the ball (and only the ball) she will turn the cup over. I will then pull the cup off and she will giggle her little head off. Tonight she tried cramming the rubber ducky in the cup. However, she wasnt so happy when it got stuck.
I dont know where she gets it from but she has the most outgoing personality. She waves and says hi to almost 90% of the people she sees. Its so cute, walking thru the store holding her, all I hear over and over is "hi! or hey!".
We have gotten rid of the bottles...ok...not completely rid but she doesnt get them unless she is going down for a nap or bedtime. Now she only gets water in the bottle. Somedays she does really good with the sippy cup...somedays, well, she throws the cup at me...yea...we are working on that one.
Oh...and I have figured out that she thinks that anything bad is my fault. If she gets mad at something she will come over to me and hit me! YEA, we are working on that one too!

Daddy's coming

2009-05-08T05:53:00.004-05:00

(first yes that is food on Anna's face...she is practicing feeding herself).

Two more days and Daddy will be here. Anna and I are so excited! I love how Anna will now say bye bye almost on cue. Last night we left Daddy a phone message and she said "buh bye da da". It was adorable. She is so smart. She also knows when i come to day care in the evening that she is leaving. Its so cute because as soon as I pick her up she waves bye bye to the caregiver and smiles. That and the hug I get are priceless. I would want to start my evenings any other way. Last night Anna got adventourus and was standing up on her own a lot. She still used something to pull her up but she would let go and stand there. She would stand so long (about 30 seconds) that she would talk to me. Her stance makes me laugh. She kinda got a suedo half squat and her toes are point out at a forty five degree angle....hey maybe she is working on her leg strength so she can be a catcher like mommy :+). I want to get a picture of it but she would always try to grab the camera if I took a picture.
Ya know it makes you feel so good as a Mom knowing your child is happy (and of course safe) when you leave them with someone. Anna loves her daycare provider. She smiles and waves at her. The best is the caregiver has a little girl about one month older than Anna. Anna will get so excited when I take her there in the morning and she sees or hear Brookhanna. I am going to try to get some pics of them together.

Emergency Rooms

2009-04-21T16:17:00.006-05:00

This past week was mostly relaxing up till the weekend.
Anna got sick Saturday morning. It was coming out of everywhere and she had a temp. I felt so bad for her. She was so not herself. She just slept and wouldnt eat. We went to the doctor Sunday night and by the time the doctor came back to see us her temperature had broke. However, she still had the runny poo.
Besides that Anna is doing great. I have noticed over the past couple of weeks something that she picked up from me... I often pat her on the back when i give her a hug. SHE DOES THAT NOW! She did it to Daddy when he was here but it has become even more of a common occurance. Its amazing what children observe. Its a good reminder that you have to watch yourself because they are watching and learning from you.
Ok....so I wrote that first part awhile back...Things have been hectic. Anna got quite sick the following week. She ran a real high fever and had to take her to the emergency room, she wasnt eating and she was vomiting and had the runny poos. Well at the emergency room her temp finally broke, they checked her out and said it was just a virus and if she still was showing symptons to take her back to her doctor in a couple days. Well a couple days went by...she still wasnt really eating (pedialyte) was her staple and she still had explosions thru the diaper. I also noticed her hands and feet were intermittingly turning a shade of purple and getting really cold. So back we went to the doctor. Well the doctor didnt know what to make of her hands and feet. She said it could be nothing (sometimes since babies circulatory systems arent fully in sync this happens when they get sick) but she said it could be something....so....she sent us to an emergency room in downtown Kansas City. She sent us to a Childrens Hospital. Well off we went. Here I am driving down to Kansas City, worried sick that it is something to be worried sick about. Well bottom line they said since all he vitals were good and her heart sounded good they thought it was due to an immature circulatory system. Not to worry and just keep an eye on it. So that I did. Finally a couple days later, Anna was feeling normal and slowly her hands and feet stopped getting barneyfied (purple). I have noticed when she takes a bath they get purplish and cold but go back to being normal shortly after. So that was that week. You can imagine. It wasnt very fun. I did alot of her laundry, clothes, changing bed sheets. Just holding her because she didnt feel good. However, two visits to the emergency room in one week...not good.
The next week Anna was completely better and we had a more normal week.
She is growing so fast. My favorite part of the day is picking her up from daycare. I love the smile on her face and the hug that she gives me. It makes my day...something to really look forward to.
I think I am off a couple weeks. Seeing as how we are a month away from her being a year old and Im not even close to 48 weeks....soooo...I guess I will start titling these differently.

week 43 HAPPY EASTER

2009-04-13T19:15:00.004-05:00

Happy 1st Easter Anna! This was an exciting week.
On Thursday when I was putting Anna into the car she pointed at my shirt that was hanging up and said "blue"! I was so proud of her because the shirt is blue. She is trying so hard to talk, so hard to communicate. Its amazing watching her pick things up.
She also started signing "more" this week. The first time she did it was out of nowhere. It simply amazed me...again! I have been working a little on baby signs with her but honestly I was feeling bad because I didnt think I was doing it enough for her to learn anything.
Thursday we picked Daddy up from the airport. Anna did so good with Daddy. I was scared that she would be scared of him but she wasnt. She spent the weekend loving, hugging and playing with him. She would even call for him by saying "da" or "da-da".
Anna also took her first step this weekend. Well actually her first two steps. We were working on helping her stand by pulling her up and letting go of her hands. Most of the time she would just stand still and fall down a few seconds later. But TWO times she took one step and fell. I can barely keep up with her now...I dont know what I am going to do when she starts walking. Its really going to be time to baby proof the house!

On Saturday we went and saw the Easter bunny. We had to wait in the longest line but Anna was a good girl and waited as patiently as a 10 month old baby could be expected to wait. When we got up there she didnt cry a bit. She smiled and lookup at him. When we took her away she just kept pointing at him. We also dyed Easter eggs on Saturday. Anna tried to help...by trying to eat the eggs and knocking over the dye.

Anna really loved all of her easter baskets. She got one from the Easter bunny, one from Nana and Poppop and one from Grandma and Granpa.

We had such a great weekend. Its soooo sad to see it end. Daddy had to leave today but will be back in a few weeks. It was good to see Anna and Daddy spend time together. Hopefully the next time Daddy comes it will be warmer so we can go somewhere more exciting than Target!

week 42

2009-04-05T20:06:00.005-05:00

Anna is such a smart baby. I already see that she is going to be so much smarter than me. She loves her books. Another thing I noticed this week was when she was looking at a book she would see a cat, point to it and say cat. If we closed the book she would reopen it and look for the page with the cat. She also knows where our foster cat hangs out and will look for whenever we go upstairs.
Anna is starting to stand on her own. She cant just stand up but once she pulls herself up using support she can let go and stand there for up to ten seconds. Then she falls on her bottom. She hasnt tried to take a step...but she hasnt tried to take a step when I am holding her hands either. I cant imagine her walking she is going to be a mess to stay up with. Its hard keeping up with her now...I can only imagine.
Anna also loves to be flipped....and I have noticed that she seems to be trying to do it own her own. See sometimes I will pick her up and flip her over and have her land on her feet. I have noticed that when she is sitting she will put her head on the ground and rock like she is trying to tumble/flip!!!! Scary!
This week I think Anna is going thru a growth spurt she is eating so much! She has even woke up during the night a few nights wanting a bottle every two to three hours. Oh Anna loves peas, seafood gumbo and scallops! She is soooooo adorable when she eats something she likes she will say "mmmmmmmmm!" I will admit she says it alot! She is not a picky eater by far!
We are excited. Daddy comes to visit this week! We cant wait to see him!

week 41

2009-04-05T20:01:00.007-05:00

Our little Anna is getting so big so quick. This past week she showed that she can say "bye bye" and "hey"! I thought it was amazing that she actually knows who she is saying "bye bye" to. For instance, one day when i picked her up from daycare before we even started walking out I told her to say bye bye. She turned looked directly at her day care provider, waved and said "bye, bye"! It amazed me that she knew who she was saying bye bye to and it proved to me that she knew what bye bye meant.
We are trying to get Anna on a scheduled bed time. Im shooting for 830ish...a couple nights she went down ok...a couple of nights she fought it.
One thing I really need to work with Anna on is not hitting. When she gets excited she swings her arms and hits. I know she isnt doing it to be mean but its still not good. So...I have been taking her hand and rubbing it on my face and saying "soft touch" or when she pets the dog I do the same thing.
Anna is getting way better at pulling herself up on things and scooting around. I have even noticed that she loves to dance! She has this one leap frog music table and when she is standing at it and it is playing music she will shake her hips and legs. Its the cutest little thing.
This past couple weeks Anna officially hit the stage with seperation anxiety. Luckily its not real bad. She will just cry a little when I drop her off at day care, however, by the time I reach the door she has stopped crying.

week 40- 9 month checkup

2009-03-18T08:04:00.003-05:00

Anna's vocabulary is constantly growing. We went to the docter for her 9 month checkup and she started to get fussy. The nurse offered to make her a sticker "lollipop". Basically they take a tongue depresser and sticker two stickers together at the top. Anna loved it. She kept saying "duck". However, now that I look back she might be saying "that" in an asking manner. So I kept saying sticker...sticker...sticker. Finally out of the blue she said "sticker". the docters mouth dropped. She seemed to be amazed and said that she could tell that Anna was talked to alot. I was soooooo proud of Anna. At her appointment she weighed 16 lbs .8 ounces(which is in the 10% for her age), she is 27 inches long (25% for her age). You I cant how many people that see her look at her feet and hands and say oh....she is going to be tall. Hmmmmmmmmm.....I do think she has long feet but I dont really think she has big hands.

Anna also say's book alot. She loves to look at her books and be read to. She is also know getting to where she will point to things in the book.Sometimes it sounds like she is saying "that?" and sometimes it sounds like she is saying "duck". Anna is also starting to point to real items. Whether it be in a store, outside or inside the house. Again sometimes it sounds like she is asking "that?" other times it sounds like "duck".

Anna will not eat regular baby food any more for me. Instead I have to feed her the gerber graduates stage. Like the beenie weenies, the fruit, the pasta, the cheese doodle thingys. If I even try to sneak the other baby food (the stage 2 or three) she looks at me like I am crazy! Anna also loves to feed herself. I will put two or three items on her little table top (of the high chair) and she will pick them up and feed herself. I love watching her learn.

Everyday she continues to amaze me. My favorite part of the day, well I guess I have to parts of the day that are my favorite. One is in the morning when she wakes up and when she first sees me the smile on her face. The other is when I pick her up from daycare after work. I love walking in and seeing her playing and the minute she notices I am there her little face lights up and she gets the biggest smile. It makes all the headaches from work just dissappear.

36-39 weeks

2009-03-14T19:32:00.000-05:00

Man...I am seriously failing in my goal to write once a week for Anna's blog. I feel horrible. This was suppose to be my way of recording her moments for her to read later and...well lately I havent been able to make the time. Recently I got a promotion at my work. Well not really a promotion essentially i was put into a position of greater responsibilty. The bad thing is right now I am doing my old job and my new job. So not only is it jsut the added work load of the new responsibilities its that plus my old workload. Soon I hope I wont be doing my old job much and once that happens I will have a little more time. Anna and I have been getting home so late. Normally I will go pick her up from daycare at 5 and take her back to work until about 7-8. By the time we get home we spend most of the time getting Anna ready for the evening and getting everything ready for the next day. In the limited time that we have together I have opted to spend it interacting with her instead of getting on the computer.
Anna has had an exciting few weeks. Around week 37 she learned the word duck. I am not sure how she picked this up except that she has a duck she plays with a bath time. Only thing...everything she picks up for a while was "duck"! It was cute because it was like she was asking "duck?" and I would say "no...book" or "no block",etc.
In week 37 Anna had her first big experience with snow. We got about 5 inches. I was so excited that I was going to get to use her snowsuit. So I rushed to put her in it and take pictures. Well poor Anna was a little sleepy and didnt do to well sitting up. She kept falling on her back or own her side. She didnt have a problem falling these ways but when she fell on her face....she looked so pitiful. I had to run her into the house and wipe the snow off and she was still crying. It didnt take long for her to get over it but we didnt venture back out.

Anna also got a bad rash on her face this week. I think it was from being at someone elses house. She was laying and crawling on a blanket. I guess she isnt ready for big people laundry detergent.
In week 38 Anna and I had our first experience rushing to an emergency room. Anna woke up with a temp of 104...so off we went. It all started the night before when she had a 103 temp. I gave her some tylenol and called the doctor. The doctor said to wait an hour and see if her temp went down and call her back. It went down to 99 so the doctor said not to worry just to monitor it and if it hit 104 go immediately to the emergency room. Or if it was 101 or higher and wasnt responding to tylenol. Well we ran to the emergency room where they gave her motrin. She wasnt showing any other symptons of being sick and her temp dropped to 100 so they sent her home. But said that if it went back up to 104 to bring her back because that is the temp that babies start seizing at. Luckily it never went back that high. It would get as high as 102 but would drop once i gave her motrin or tylenol. This only lasted a couple days. I am convinced she had a tooth trying to break thru and that is what caused the temp.
In week 39 Anna learned "uh oh!" It was the cutest thing she would say "uh oh", then I would say spaghetti oh" and she would say "uh oh". She loved this game. This Nana and Poppop Durrette came to visit. Anna got to spend all day and night with them (she slept in their arms). Anna also went on her first big road trip to North Carolina from Kansas with Nana and Poppop. They tell me she did really good. I am so glad that she got to visit all the family in North Carolina!
Anna is eating more and more big people food. She loves pancakes and bread!
I really miss my baby and cant wait till tomorrow afternoon when I pick her and Nana up at the airport. I have been like a lost puppy dog the past few days with out her....

34th and 35th week

2009-02-18T14:48:00.000-06:00

Ok...Im a little upset I missed a week. I dont like missing weeks because then I forget about little things I want to mention. I still forget things even when I write every week...for example the other day I remembered something Anna did in like week I think 31. My brother (uncle Adam) sent her a little stuffed husky. I was watching Anna as she was in her playpen and she amazed me at what she did next. She was on one side of her playpen and she has a mirror on the other side. She crawled over to the side with the mirror (towing the puppy). She then sat down in front of the mirror and held the doggy up to the mirror!!!! Then she talked a little. I really think she was showing the doggy itself in the mirror! i thought this was amazing for her age. If she was really doing what I percieved her to be doing! A couple days later I caught her in front of the mirror clapping and smiling.

Week 34...

Anna was a little sick this week. I think it was because the change in weather. She never got congested just had a runny nose. The temps went from the 20's to the high 60's. One day it was so pretty I took her for a walk out by the lake to the see the swans...she didnt seem to interested in them. I think because they were too far away.

Week 35

This was an exciting week for us. Daddy, Grandma and Grandpa Shoe and Aunt Carrie and Adyn came to visit. We were excited for everyone to visit but really excited because Daddy's visit was unexpected. Daddy said Anna has gotten so much bigger. He was amazed at how much she is talking and how she is crawling like crazy and loves to pull herself up! it was a great weekend. We had so much fun spending time with family.

Anna got sick this weekend. We took her to the doctor and she has an upper respiratory infection. She was given some meds and banned from daycare for a day.

Nana and Poppop sent Anna this toy. She loves it. She loves to spin the wheel thing in the middle!

33 weeks

2009-02-08T13:37:00.000-06:00

Isnt that the most adorable smile! Well actually she was laughing at me! I love her laugh...it sends the warmest feeling thru my body.
Anna is doing great. 8 months have come and gone and it still seems like yesterday I was hearing her cry for the first time.
Im telling you little Ms. Anna keeps me busy. She has gotten in to routine of not wanting to fall asleep until 10 or 11 and by them I am trying my hardest to stay awake. She can usually play by herself for about 30 minutes but after that she wants "mommy time" which I love but it seems like I cant get enough done in that 30 minutes.
Anna is constantly pulling herself up on her baby gate. She hasnt pulled herself up on anything else but hasnt really been given the opportunity. She loves to stand and talk to me and will laugh when I talk back to her.
I swear she really thinks we are carrying on a conversation. I swear sometimes she is asking me a question. You know how someones voice changes when they ask a question...I cant think of the big word for it. But she sounds like that and then she looks at me like she wants a response. I think its so adorable.

32 weeks

2009-01-21T09:39:00.001-06:00

Last week I forgot to mention that we have started brushing Anna's two teeth. She really seems to enjoy it. She will open her mouth the minute she sees the toothbrush. I think she like the way the brush feels on her two teeth and on her gums.
This week Anna completely pulled herself up using her baby gate. She stayed standing for about ten minutes. I was so proud of her. She got the hugest smile on her face when I clapped my hands and said "yea!" I can't believe how fast she is learning. Its amazing. I can see in her eyes she wants to do so much more. AMAZING.
This week we started feeding Anna the Gerber Graduates Puffs. She did pretty good with them. They are tiny about the size of a dime and she would try to bite it in half before she chewed it up. She also started eating cookies...(thats what the pics are of) the cookies are a latin cookie named maria's. She loves them! Half of it end mashed up on the carpet but the half she got in her mouth, she really enjoyed.
One of my favorite things is when I open the back door of the truck. Whenever I open the back door Anna will already be looking at me with the hugest smile! I love it. Its so adorable!

...just a little more

2009-01-21T09:39:00.000-06:00

Week 31

2009-01-20T18:17:00.000-06:00

(this is Anna at 6:00 in the morning...I got up to run at 4:30 and she woke up, well while I was taking a shower I put her in this...and this is what I saw when I got out of the shower)

Anna is continuing to do well with her day care...she really like to play with the big girls. I love how when I pick her up from day care....well I love the huge smile she gets on her face when she first sees me and how she will get excited and crawl over to me. I LOVE IT! It makes my day to see her beautiful little smile.

This week Anna experienced her first snow. Well she really didnt get to experience it. I couldnt find a snow suit for her so she didnt get to go sit in it. (This made me sad...I really wanted to sit her in it and take a picture)

Anna continues to be the mover. She loves to crawl around. It amazes me how a couple weeks ago, at Christmas, she could barely move an inch. Now she is all over the place.

I can tell she wants to stand and walk. Whenever you grab her hands she will pull herself up and attempt to move her legs in a walking motion. I think its adorable how sometimes she picks her leg up like she is about to take a step but it ends up in the same place.

I have started letting Anna drink out of an open cup with my help. Whenever I feed her baby food I really try to do this. She seems to enjoy drinking like a big girl. She does pretty well, she cant hold the cup but she doesnt choke on the juice.

I dont really know how independent Anna is going to be. Sometimes she cant stand to have me out of her sight and other times she doesnt seem to care if I leave the room. I bought one of those baby play pens. Sometimes I feel so bad. Its really cute when she grabs the bars like she is in prison but it breaks my heart to hear her cry.

week 30

2009-01-18T20:28:00.000-06:00

towards the end of last week (2jan) we left for Kansas....

this week we started to get settled into our new house. We miss Daddy terribly but Nana was here to help make the move a little easier.

Anna started to really crawl this week. I mean really crawl...no more lunging...she moves...FAST! My favorite thing is how she will follow me around the house...i love the sound of her little hands slapping against the floor as she crawls. I also love how excited she gets when she gets to me!

Anna is also learning how to pull her self up. Most of the time she gets her legs totally straight but is bent over about at a 90 degree angle at the waist. She will just stand like that trying to figure out how to straighten up until her legs get tired and she falls. A couple times she pulled herself completely straight up when she used my shirt to pull herself up.

In addition to mastering the art of crawling and learning how to stand...Anna also is taking steps when you hold her hands. She can take about five or six steps. She has only done this a couple times but is absolutely amazed with herself when she does it.

I forgot to mention that last week (week 29) Anna mastered the art of clapping. She is adorable...if you say "yea Anna" she will clap!

Ok back to this week...one time this week Anna put her hands together and moved them like a fish....and mumbled. We think she was singing the fishy song...because when we sand it she got laughed and smiled.

Anna also started a home day care this week. I was nervous at first but she seems to be doing great. She is there with another baby (about 2 months) and two 3 year olds. Her caregiver said that she likes to be with the big girls. A couple times when I picked her up she was in the room playing with the big girls (ok playing in the same area) but she was so focused she didnt even realize I was there until I got right down in her face. That kind of made me sad because normally she turns as soon as she hears my voice but it also made me happy because she seemed to really be enjoying herself!

28-29 weeks

2009-01-09T08:38:00.000-06:00

I promise I havent been slacking on Anna's blog...its just with all the recent travel I havent really had the time to sit down and write.

week 28
This was the week of Anna's first plane ride. Anna and I flew from Honolulu to Atlanta to Nashville. Anna did sooooooo good on the plane. She didnt cry any...well one time in her sleep she whimpered but nothing else. She really enjoyed the gentleman that sat next to us on the first flight. Luckily he was a grandpa so he didnt mind her tugging on his sweater whenever she was awake. Anna was very cooperative in Atlanta when we had to change planes (and visited every concourse in Atlanta because we missed our first flight-not our fault...plane was late). She didnt cry or fuss at anytime. I was so proud of my baby girl. She spent the entire time just observing her surroundings.
This week Anna was able to meet her Grandma and Grandpaw Shoe for the first time. She also got to meet her cousins Maddy and Adyn for the first time. She did well with everyone. She seemed to spend most of her time laughing and smiling at everyone. There was one incident...where she acquired her first bruise...we will just say she had a spill off of a cousins lap...but all is ok.
This week was Anna's first Christmas. We spent Christmas day with the Shoemate side of the family. Anna didnt seem to get the whole concept...but is enjoying the toys. William and I were glad that everyone got to meet Anna while she was still younng
Anna is working really hard to learn to crawl. She can get up on all fours really well and lunges forward...but that is about it.

This week and part of week 29 we spent with the Durrette side of the family. Anna got to see her Nana and Poppop Durrette again and got to meet her Uncle Adam and her cousin Sophia. We celebrated another Christmas...which was fun. Sophia was the best to watch...if she didnt like a gift she would just throw it over her shoulder. the best this week was watching Sophia and Anna interact. Anna seemed to be constantly observing her. Anna spent this time also working on her crawling...still doing the lunge...but every once in awhile she will actually put one hand forward and move one foot...but that is about as far as she gets. Her favorite word is still Da Da...
This week although is was a great week was also a sad week. This week we said goodbye to Daddy as he headed back to Hawaii and we headed to Kansas.

27 WEEKS

2008-12-21T13:00:00.000-06:00

This week has been crazy busy. We spent almost everday running around trying to get our tickets, get scheduled for household good pickup, packing and running to stores to get last minute items for our trip.
On thursday we went to Daddys work for his Christmas party...it was nice but no Santa:(.
Yesterday we went to the beach in the morning. Anna loves the beach. She loves the water and the sand. I love to watch her face as she touches the sand. She has a perplexed look on her face, its so cute...like she is studying the sand.

Later in the afternoon we went back to Ko olina and tried to takr some family pics. This is one of our favs. By the end of our photo session Anna was done with the whole picture taking idea...but that was ok.

Anna crawled forward today!!!! She moved forward with one leg then fell on her face, then did it again and fell on her face again. It was adorable...i think she is gonna get it soon.
Today is a big day for Mommy and Anna...we are flying to the mainland today! Mommy is nervous but thinks everything will go ok. We cant wait to spend time with family. We do wish Daddy was flying on the same day and flight as us...but thats ok...(thats what happens when you buy a ticket with your miles..no flexibility).
MERRY CHRISTMAS!

26 weeks

2008-12-17T20:31:00.001-06:00

Anna starting drinking from a this week. She loves apple juice!!!! We havent tried anything else because the commissary only had apple and pear juice. She loves applesauce but isnt very fond of pears so...we figured she would love apple juice and not pear juice. She is still working on tipping the cup to get everything out of it but she is learning.

Anna is still working on crawling. She will get up on all fours and rock back and forth but hasnt quite got the handle on how to move forward. Every once in awhile Anna will crawl backwards but its a rare occasion. She loves to roll and around to get where she needs or wants to go.

Anna still a big gabber. She loves to talk to herself or anyone that will listen. Ok not anyone...she gets shy around people she doesnt know.

I think everyday Anna looks forward to bathtime. She loves it sooooo much. She will squeal with excitement when she sees her little bathtub...its sooooo cute!

Anna has officially mastered sitting up on her own. She cant get up and situp on her own. But if you sit her up she will sit there and play and gab away until she see something she needs to roll to. she also loves to sit and "read" (ok...look at) her books.

Ohhh...currently Anna's favorite toy...an old laptop! She always tries to bang on the keys when she is sitting in our laps so we decided to let her play with an old one. She loved it!

25 weeks

2008-12-09T15:03:00.000-06:00

We had a busy week this week. We had Anna's half 1st birthday, babysat for a neighbor, had a 6 month checkup, went to Kaneohe and spent the weekend with Daddy (Mommy had drill).

We wrote all about Anna's half birthday in the last post...she was sooooo cute attacking the little cake!

On Friday we had to babysit in the morning for our neighbor. Anna did so well with the other little girl who is 2. Anna spent her time rolling around on the ground, playing with toys and trying to sleep.

Also on Friday we had Anna's 6 month checkup. She weighed 13 pounds 10.7 ounces and was 25.4 inches long. The docter said she is still in the 5O percentile for height and is in the 16-17 percentile for weight. However, he said not to worry about her weight as breastfed babies generally dont gain as much weight as formula fed babies. So bottom line she is doing GREAT! Anna also got three shots, she did very good. She cried but calmed down very quickly.

Anna and Daddy had some quality time together this weekend. They spent part of it watching football and soccer. Anna got to cheer for UNC womens soccer team as they won the National Championship. Daddy said Anna loved watching the soccer game. She sat up indian style and seemed mesmerized by it at times...(maybe a sign of things to come...our little soccer player?)

Anna is still not sleeping thru the night. I seriously think her bed is uncomfortable. She will fall asleep in it but will wake up in the middle of the night.

HAPPY HALF FIRST BIRTHDAY

2008-12-03T21:48:00.000-06:00

December 2nd was Anna's Half 1st Birthday. We got the idea of celebrating Anna's half birthday from a friend I had in college (thanks Sheila). Anna really enjoyed her half birthday. She had a mini-cake with a candle. The flame fascinated her or maybe she was reaching for the chocolate. Daddy let Anna have her first taste of chocolate! As soon as she tasted the icing, Anna dove headfirst at the cake!

Anna didnt do so good unwrapping her present. She tried to eat the paper...and promply gave us her mean face when she realized it wasnt chocolate!

Anna-Happy first half birthday. I cant wait to experience more bdays with you! Daddy and I love you!

24 weeks

2008-12-01T18:45:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving week and we have so much to be thankful for...most of all our beautiful healthy baby girl. Anna is growing so fast. She loves to talk to herself and to other people. Her vocab is expanding to "words" other than da da. She even said ma ma today! WHOOO HOOOOO! However, her new favorite sound to make is her fake laugh. I have no clue where she picked it up but it is so funny. Out of the blue she will just literally go "HA HA"! Nothing has to be going on...she can just be sitting there and she will do it. When you look at her she gets the biggest smile on her face and will often do the fake laugh again.
For Thanksgiving we went to the DFAC because Daddy had to serve the Soldiers. It was amazing how many families were there.
On Friday we had a first...our firt BLACK FRIDAY. We got up at 4 in the morning and headed to the mall. By the time we got to the mall, the line for toys'r'us was already about 200 people long...JUST TO GET IN THE DOOR. So needless to say we didnt get to that store. However, we did get a lot of shopping done and Anna picked out some new winter outfits. Anna did so good shopping we got her a new toy...its one of those bed bug bopper things (see pic below). SHE LOVES IT. Most of the time she just bangs the bugs with her hand (ok she is banging the entire bed) but there are times when she will use the hammer and try to bang the bugs. She gets so excited with this toy. Its so cute to sit her in her chair and watch her.

Two nights ago Anna crawled for the first time!!! BACKWARD!!!! She didnt go very far and hasnt done it since but it was funny to see her go backwards!
Anna is starting to get very picky with what foods she will eat. Currently her two favorite foods are prunes (no idea where she got this from) and applesauce.

Anna is also staring to whine a little more than we are used to. She doesnt cry, she just kind of whines. Not sure where this came from but we think it has to do a little with her teething.
Today Anna turns 6 months old! WOW!!!! Amazing. I think it will always seem like just yesterday she was born.

23 weeks...a bunch of firsts

2008-11-24T21:45:00.000-06:00

Week 23 brought some more exciting firsts for Anna. On friday we went to our first movie in a theater. Anna really enjoyed the previews...but then fell asleep for the movie and slept thru the whole movie. Too bad I think she would have really enjoyed watching Bolt...
Anna also went to her first birthday party. She wasnt too fond of wearing her birthday hat...

but she did enjoy chewing on the hat...which we happily let her enjoy until we noticed her two little teeth (ok...the tip tops of her little teeth) were blue. She had little bits of the paper on her teeth. It was sooo cute but we took the hat away. She also dipped her feet in the pool for the first time. We had been afraid to put her in the pool before because her skin seems to be so sensitive. She didnt break out on her feet...so I guess she is cleared for the pool.
Anna went out to eat at Roy's with Mommy and Daddy for our anniversary. Before dinner we walked around and took pictures at Ko Olina.

Anna is starting to really enjoy tummy time. Although I dont know if she spends more time on her tummy or on her back. She has finally figured out how to get around...she rolls whereever she wants to go. Its the cutest little thing. She will roll over to her toy and then roll back....then roll over to Roxy...then back over. She is non-stop rolling if you put her on the floor. Here she is contemplating her next roll...

Anna also experienced her first Thanksgiving feast. We decided to have our Thanksgiving meal early because Daddy has to serve meals on Thanksgiving to the Soldiers. The feast was great...and Mommy and Daddy are still eating off of it (we cooked it on Saturday!) I think we will have turkey sandwhichs for at least a couple weeks!

22 weeks

2008-11-18T14:29:00.000-06:00

Anna's new trick this week is putting her foot in her mouth and sucking on her big toe. Its so funny watching her try to get her foot to her mouth. She strains and struggles and is finally rewarded with her prize...her big toe! She does do it all the time, just sometimes when she is laying on her back or if she is sitting in her car seat but not strapped in. I am upset that I didnt get a picture of it...I did get a video but for some reason I have trouble loading videos to my blog. I will try to capture it again this week.

Anna also decided she was going to display her "mean" face this week. The first coupel time she did it, it was directed at Daddy. William would just be playing with her and then all of a sudden she would give him the "mean" look. I guess it meant she was doen playing. She finally showed me the "mean" look when I was feeding her pears the other day. Anna was doing fine eating and smiling..banging her hands around...gabbing and all of a sudden...I got the "mean" look. I guessed it meant she wasnt hungry anymore so we put the peaches away!

This past week both Mommy and Daddy were sick but luckily Anna didnt catch it. (YEA ANTIBODIES!!!) I think she got a little itsy bitsy bit of it because she broke out with a few bumps and one day woke up in the middle of the day and threw up but that was it. I am so glad she didnt get what Mommy and Daddy had....it wasnt fun.

Anna wore her cheerleader outfit again on Saturday for the UNC football and basketball game...it brought luck only to the basketball team...but that is ok...we will take that luck over no luck.

Anna continues to gab away. She loves to say da da. Oh and her two bottom teeth broke thru a little bit more this week. You can now see the very tops of them. She still hasnt been fussy over them...(trust me, we are counting our blessings on that one).

My little Tarheel!

2008-11-13T14:30:00.000-06:00

ISNT SHE ADORABLE!!! MY LITTLE TARHEEL!

I cant believe I didnt show off my little Tarheel in my last post. These pics are from this past week (21st week). Nana and Poppop bought Anna a "cheerleader" outfit when they went to visit family in North Carolina.

Anna got to where the outfit as we watch North Carolina play football online! The Tarheels won so we are deeming the outfit lucky!

Anna looks so good in Tarheel blue! Somethings are just destiny...ok...I know I gotta let her make her mind where she wants to go...but I can give her a little nudge...and if she chooses North Carolina...well...lets just say WHOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOO!!!!

Anna had a great time sitting in her little Tarheel outfit...watching football and pretending like she was drinking Sundrop! She just couldnt get enough of that green bottle. Everytime Daddy would put it on the table she would just stare at it, lean towards it and grab at it! (oh and notice in the picture...Daddy is sporting Tarheel blue too!!!) GO HEELS!!!!

21 weeks

2008-11-12T17:42:00.000-06:00

Anna had a busy weekend! We went to the beach 3 out of the 4 days (daddy had a four day weekend) We spent most of our time at White Sands. Anna even got to see her first Hawaiian monk seal...up close...(actually two of them). She didnt seem all that excited about them but that could have been because they were just laying there.

Although Anna wasnt very enthusiatic about the seals I am still glad that she got to see them. They are an endangered species that only lives in Hawaii (or so the volunteer told us)...the sad part is by the time she is mine and Williams age there is a good chance they wont be around. They were so cute. The volunteer told us that one was named Irma and the other Benny. Irma had had pups about two months ago and the reason she was onshore was to shed her skin...Benny came in everyday to "check in on her"...Irma didnt want much to do with Benny's checking!

We also went to Ala Moana Beach Park and hung out at the beach. It was a little chilly so we couldnt play in the water much. But Anna seemed to be really interested in the water despite the chilliness. She splashed around and smiled and then got all wrapped up in a huge beach towel to get warm. We definetely got to go back there again. We like White Sands for the surf but Ala Moana Beach Parks water is so calm so much better Anna to play in.

Anna is getting better at rolling from her tummy to her back...although she still gets upsept about being on her tummy...

she will "put up" with it. She really like to lay on her back and "scoot" around...I think we are watching too much UFC and she is praticing getting out of submissions.

Anna loves to eat her "solid" food. I think her two favorites are bananas and applesauce. She can eat a whole jar of those two in one sitting. The other flavors she likes (sweet potatoes, peaches, green beans and pears) takes her about two sittings to eat.

Annas interest in books seems to be growing she gets excited when you pull a book out and start reading to her. I love the smile she gets on her face as she looks at the book and then looks at whoever is reading to her. I also love watching her when she gets ahold of the book...she will study it...look it over...turn it upside down...turn it around...look at it...and then put the corner in her mouth.

Anna loves to go to the store and see all of the items. Her little eyes get so big to take everything in and she starts gabbing away so excitedly.
This weekend Anna picked out one of her nighties for Christmas. Now we need to get her one more so she will have one for Grandma and Grandpa Shoes house and one for Nana and Poppops house.

I am so excited for Christmas. I havent been this excited for Christmas in a long time. Im cant wait to take Anna to see Santa and to have her open her gifts! I know she might be a little too young to get it this year but I cant help but be excited for her. If we were spending Christmas here, I would have already gotten a tree, thats how excited I am.

Ohhhhh....how could I almost forget...Anna's two bottom teeth are really coming in. YOU CAN SEE the TOPS of them. They have broken through a little but still arent really above her gums. I am surprised because she hasnt been grumpy or run a fever yet...hopefully it isnt bothering her much and it continues not to bother her. I also noticed that over the last month she hasnt been drooling as much as she used to...she's learning to be a lady!

20 weeks

2008-11-04T19:10:00.000-06:00

Anna said "Da Da"! It was sooooo cute! William was unloading groceries from the car and had put Anna on the counter. She was just sitting there babbling in her car seat, when all of a sudden she said "Da Da"! William was right there! He started saying...did you hear her? "Did you hear her?" Anna has only said it that once but it was still so cute, we both cant wait until she says it again!

This week was halloween and Anna was a pumpkin. She looked so adorable. We just laughed and laughed when we put her costume on. We didnt take her trick-or-treating since she cant eat the candy. Instead we all sat on the porch and passed out candy to all the trick-or-treaters. Personally...I think she was the cutest...call me biased!

Anna got to spend all weekend watching football with Daddy since Mommy had drill. Mommy missed Anna but Mommy is happy that Daddy and Anna got to have time alone.

Anna still cant roll-over from her tummy to her back. But she has become a pro going from her back to her tummy. Only problem is she doesnt like to be on her tummy...so when she rolls over she gets upset. I have tried to let "work it out" and see if she would roll back but no luck. I guess she knows Mommy and Daddy cant stand to her her cry and will roll her over.

Anna is doing great at eating solids. This week she really didnt like squash but loved applesauce, pears and bananas. Anna loves to grab the spoon and put it her mouth. She is pretty good with her aim. She hasnt quite figured out how to get food on the spoon and doesnt seem much interested in that aspect but loves when food is already there and ends up in her mouth

This coming weekend we have a four-day weekend with Daddy and CANT WAIT!

19 WEEKS

2008-10-29T18:40:00.000-05:00

This past week was seemed like it lasted soooooo long...but in a good way. Daddy had a four day weekend so we got to spend a lot of time together.

Anna tried some new baby foods this week. She really liked peaches and sweet potatoes...she didnt like beef and gravy at all. She is really good at eating her baby food. She will open her mouth real wide when she sees the spoon and will often lunge forward at it. She does pretty good keeping most of it in her mouth...but when it does escape she still uses her hand to push it back in. Its so fun to watch her eat. I love the different faces she makes as she is eating. Sometimes it looks like she is making a face like "ewwwwww...what was that"...most of the time she does this on the first bite. Then she gets excited.

This weekend we went to the beach. Anna played in the sand with Daddy. She loves move her feet around in the sand. She also loves to look at the ocean. We tried to get pictures of Anna and us....but it was a little difficult because she kept looking towards the ocean. I guess we could have made it easier by turning around...but we wanted the ocean in the background.

We also went to the pumpkin patch. It was surreal to think that last year when we went to the pumpkin patch Anna was still growing in my belly. Anna liked the pumpkins she wanted to hold her pumpkin but...even though it was little it still was too big for her.

Anna is also getting better at rolling over. She likes to rollover from her back to her stomach but hasnt quite got the stomach to back down yet. Its fun to watch her rollover. She will rock on her back until she gets enough momentum to roll herself over. However, she still isnt really a fan of tummy time...so when she does rollover...she often gets fussy real quick.
Anna is sleeping better at night...but sometimes has a hard time falling asleep at first. She can be totally exhausted but will fight sleep. Sometimes holding her helps...most of the time it doesnt. Last night she woke us up a few times whimpering (like she was about to start crying). When I looked in her crib she was asleep. So I just said "shhhhhh its ok Anna" and she would stop. She does this during the day sometimes too...it makes me sad. I wonder what is she dreaming about that makes her want to cry. The only part that makes me feel good is most of the time she stops as soon as I talk to her.
Anna has become very interested in faces this week. Both William and I have noticed that she likes to grab our faces. She smiles when she does this and sometimes she has that studying look on her face.
She still loves her flash cards and gets so excited when she sees them. She loves to hold them and look at the pictures. It also seems that ABC's are still is still her favorite song (especially when i sign as I sing).
Anna got her first Halloween card from MawMaw and Granddad Durrette. We gave it to her opened and she had so much fun holding it and waving it around. When we took it from her to open it, she got upset until she saw the picture of the cat on the card. She smiled so big and grabbed the card and wouldnt let it go...eventually we had to take it from her because she decided she wanted to try eat it.

Everyday Anna seems to change...its so amazing watching her grow...in a few more days she will hit her 5 month bday...I still cant believe it!

18 WEEKS

2008-10-21T20:44:00.000-05:00

18 weeks! Wow! It doesnt feel like its been two days since Anna was born. It feels like just yesterday but then I look at her and see how much she has grown. How smart she is becoming! How she is growing into a unique little girl.

This week Anna has continued to wake up in the middle of the night to eat. I think she is going through a growth spurt because she seems to be more hungry during the day as well. Anna tried baby food bananas for the first time this week. She made the funniest face when she first tasted it. It looked like she didnt like it at all. But when she was offered more she gobbled it up. She LOVED it! Now we gotta pick another kind for Anna to try. I think the next one might be beef...I dont think she will like it but I dont wont to just give her the sweet kind at first. Maybe if we mix up she will like the "not so good ones" too!

Anna and Daddy had an scary but exciting moment at the beach. While Mommy was out surfing Daddy noticed a huge shadow in the water really close to the shoreline. Daddy was really nervous...his first thought "SHARK". Daddy didnt know what to do...should he yell for Mommy to come in...but that would mean she would have to come near the shadow...or should he let her stay out and hope the shadow went the other way....so Daddy watched the shadow as it continued to approach the shoreline....all of a sudden...the shadow poked its head out of the water. It wasnt a shark...it was just a monk seal. Daddy took some pictures of it.

Anna also taught Daddy a new game. As we were driving back from the beach Anna started to cough. But it was a fake cough. Daddy was sitting in the back seat with Anna and asked her what she was doing. She faked cough again. So Daddy faked coughed and then Anna fake coughed...the played this games a few times before Anna tired of it. We both though it was so funny that she was copying Daddy...and that she fake coughed to get attention.

Anna still likes to play peek-a-boo whenever you change her diaper. She will grab her pants and pull them over her face until you ask where is Anna? Then she pulls them off and smiles. I want to get this on video but always forget the camera whenever we change her.

Anna did something else that amazed us this past weekend. We came downstairs in the morning and Daddy sat down with Anna on his lap. He noticed she was looking around. Then she started looking over his shoulder. We thought she might be looking for Mommy but noooooooo....when she saw Roxy she smiled. She also looked at the cat cage for the cats! So smart! She loves the animals!

Peek-a-boo!

2008-10-16T16:32:00.000-05:00

Anna has picked up a new game! Yesterday while I was changing her I placed her pants up by her head. Anna rolled to her side and picked up her pants. She then rolled back to her back and put the pants over her face. So I said "where's Anna?"...and as soon as I said that she pulled the pants away from her face and smiled. She then put the pants right back on her face...so again I said "where's Anna?" and again she pulled the pants away from her face and smiled. She did this four or five times before she stopped.
She is such a smart baby. William and I have played peek-a-boo with her but not alot because she never really reacted to it. I just think its so smart that she picked it up.
So leason learned even though she may not react to a game...it doesnt mean she isnt paying attention and learning!

17 weeks

2008-10-15T15:57:00.000-05:00

We had so much fun this past weekend. Daddy had a four day weekend (friday-monday) off and we went to the beach everymorning. The first three mornings we went to White Sands beach and Anna and Daddy watched Mommy attempt to surf. Mommy did pretty good each day she caught 3 good waves and was only in the water about 30 minutes each day. Anna loved the beached. One day after surfing we took Anna over to Iroquios Point beach. We were hoping the water would be calmer so Anna could play in it. It was a little bit calmer. Anna seemed to really like when the water would come up and hit her. She would watch the ocean as if she was waiting. When she got bored she reached down and grabbed a handful of sand. Luckily she didnt put it in her mouth! I think she would have but at that moment the water came up and hit her and she dropped the sand. She didnt squeal her happy sound but she didnt cry...so I think she enjoyed it...but was wondering what everything was. On Monday we went to the North Shore to watch the big waves. This time Anna spent the whole time in Mommy's lap kicking the sand. I think she liked the way it felt on her feet because everytime I tried to scoot her out of the sand she wiggled her way back into it.

Anna has continued to find her voice. Her new favorite activity...screaming! It would probably be annoying to someone if we were out at a restaruant or something but I think its hilarious. I just laugh at her. Its not an upset scream or anything like that its more just a scream to her herself...and boy does Anna love her own voice!

We have started putting Anna in her crib...which is hard for Mommy. I liked having her close. I liked being able to her breathe or feel her movements. So...the crib is right next to the bed. I am doing ok with it. I really like it when she has her binkie because I can her her sucking on it. I often find myself waking up when I dont hear it...most of the time its because she has let it fall out of her mouth. Anna is doing good with sleeping in her crib. We still have her sleep on the little mat so she cant roll over. She likes to "talk" herself to sleep...often "talking" Mommy and Daddy to sleep too! She loves to hug and pet her pink hippo as she falls asleep. Its so adorable to look in the crib, hear her "talking", see her eyes slowly closing and her hugging and petting the hippo. I take the hippo out of her crib once she falls asleep just because I am a nervous Mommy.

Anna has started a new habit....MIDNIGHT snacking! Not so fun for Mommy and Daddy. She wakes up anywhere between 1-3 hungry. So I get up feed her and she falls right back to sleep and normally doesnt wake until about 6:30. Its not bad. Honestly I kind of like it because I know she is ok

I love Anna's hair...the curls continue to pop up out of nowhere.

Anna is starting to really enjoy tummy time! She also likes laying on her back and playing. She is still working on the rolling over...She however has another talent. Somehow she turns her body and her feet end up where her head was and her head where her feet were.

Anna also loves her flash cards. She loves to take them from Mommy...look at it for a bit and then see how it taste! She gets so excited when she sees her flash cards. She really pays attention to what is on the card, its so cute to see the concentration on her face as I say the word and she looks at the card.

Rolling...rolling...rolling

2008-10-09T17:16:00.000-05:00

OK....maybe just ROLL...Anna rolled over last night for the 1st time! ok...maybe she kinda fell over...but its the first time she completed the roll/fall. Everyother time she would get to her side and roll/fall the same direction she came from. But last night she kept going. I dont think she knows what she did but thats ok...I couldnt be prouder. Now we will wait to see when she rolls again!
Oh I forgot to mention about Anna's doctor appointment. She weighed 12lbs 10 ounces and was 24.4 inches long. The doctor said according to her growth chart she is going to be "tall". Not sure where she got that from...not sure if the doctor paid much attention to the gene pool in the room...but hey at least she seems to have a chance to be taller than Mommy!

16 weeks

2008-10-07T20:31:00.000-05:00

Ohhhhh what a busy week we have had. On Oct 2 Anna officially turned 4 months!!!! Whooohooo happy 1/3 birthday! We celebrated by letting Anna try cereal for the first time....very milky baby cereal...and the results...SHE LOVED IT! She grabbed at the spoon and would pull it to her mouth. She ate the cereal so well. Only a little bit "slipped" out of her mouth but when that happened she would shove her fist up to her mouth like she was trying to push the cereal back in. It was so cute...then all of a sudden she started to cry. When I held her I could tell she wanted milk...I think she was scared she wasnt gonna get the milk anymore so she cried. Once she started to drink her milk she was happy again. We only tried the cereal once because she kinda had a little rash the next day...not sure if it was from the cereal or just her little random rash popping up again..So we decided to wait until the rash went completely away. I dont think she was allergic to it but better safe than sorry.

This weekend Anna got to spend time with a babysitter. Melissa did great with Anna...and from what Im told Anna did great too. She said she didnt cry or get fussy unless she was hungry or needed her diaper changed. Im proud of Anna because everytime I picked her up she was wearing the same clothes...which means she didnt have one of her infamous blowouts. Leaving your baby with someone new is rough. I was nervous. I trusted Melissa but its still a little rough just cause you miss her so much...you wonder what she is doing...how she is doing...you wonder if she misses you. Sadly I dont think she much missed me. But I would rather she did like she did than cry all day. It does make you feel good to know your baby is happy and well taken care of.

Anna is doing great with sleeping at night. She has gotten away (knock on wood) from the 4- 4:30 feeding. She now sleeps until about 6:30. We get up at 6:30 eat, get dressed and go running. She loves her new stroller. I think she really like the fact that she can see more. Although she still like to take a cat nap during the run. Im so paranoid...that everymorning I douse her with sunscreen to make sure she doesnt get burnt. She has such fair skin, I dont think I would forgive myself if she got burnt.

Anna is still as vocal as can be. She loves to scream and "talk" most of the time she is awake. I love "talking" with her. She seems to really enjoy the interaction and will scream louder if she doesnt think she is being paid the proper attention.

We are excited for this weekend. Daddy will have a four day weekend...and we are planning on soaking up some beach time.

week 15

2008-10-01T19:12:00.000-05:00

I forgot to mention how my little girl is an amazing problem solver. I think it was last week we were riding in the car and she started to get fussy. I looked in the mirror and noticed her binkie was between her legs and she couldnt reach it. It was so cute watching her try to reach it. Since we were in traffic I couldnt pull over to give it to her. So she continued to be fussy (her fussiness is like she is yelling (but not loudly) at something). So I continued to watch her. I then saw her do what I thought was the most amazing thing. See we have one of those things that wraps into the binkie and you can attach it to the baby's clothes so the binkie doesnt fall on the floor. Well she grabbed the ribbon and pulled the pinkie to her other hand. She then grabbed the binkie with her other hand and proceeded to try to put the binkie in her mouth...a task she is working on as most of the time she tries to put it in backwards. But I thought that was so amazing. Such a problem solver.

This past week was a little busy for us. On Saturday we went to a baby shower and Anna was such a good baby. She ate...slept and tried to talk to everyone. She did really good when other people held her. I was so proud of her.

Yesterday we went to the grocery store...Anna talk for the first thirty minutes we were there then crashed. Its so cute...she will be talking, talking, talking and the next thing you know she is knocked out. She woke up for the last thirty minutes of shopping and just spent the whole time looking around. She loves the baby bjorn. She will look all around at everything and then look up at me and smile. I love her smile!

This week was the first time that Anna really reacted to Roxy (our dog). Roxy came up to her and Anna started to laugh. It was the cutest thing. She would squeal when roxy came close to her. She "noticed" the animals a couple weeks ago and even tried to "pet" them but this was her first time really reacting to one of them. Again so cute.

Sharing and Smiles

2008-09-26T16:09:00.001-05:00

Oh...my little baby girl is the sweetest little thing. She loves to try to share...see she loves to chew on her fingers. She will chew, chew, chew...all the while babling on happily...if your lucky enough while your holding her she will look up at you and the next thing you know she is pushing her fingers to your mouth. How sweet is it that something she so enjoys she wants to share. If you take her fingers in your hand and pretend to stick them in your mouth and make the chewing sounds...she screams with giddiness. Its the cutest little thing. She will also share another of her most prized possessions...her binkie. If she is laying down and you bend over to talk to her, she sometimes takes her binkie out and pushes it towards your mouth. Such a little sweetie, so kind. (or could she be trying to place these things in my mouth to get me to stop talking...NAH...)
I often watch Anna in the morning as she sleeps. Just laying there so peaceful so angelic. I love the smile she has on her face. But I love even more as she wakes up and looks around... the big smile she gets on her face as she sees me. Oh how it makes my day. What a precious and sweet way to start your day...I thank God everymorning that I am blessed with seeing that sweet little smile.

14 weeks

2008-09-23T16:07:00.000-05:00

We didnt get to stay at the beach long this weekend...after Anna got out of the water she started to cry...ALOT. She did not want to stay any longer. There have only been a very few times she has cried like that. Turns out she was just tired because the minute we took off in the car she stopped crying. (i tried uploading a video of her in the water...but it didnt work :+( )

Anna is getting a little better at putting her binkie in her mouth. However, I saw this and thought it was too cute. Notice how she put it in upside down. She slept like this for an hour. I guess she was too tired to care that it was in wrong or maybe she was just happy it was in her mouth. When I started to take pictures she woke up...I guess she was surprised that I was taking a picture.

We finally broke down and bought another running stroller...we broke the last one. The break liked to fall down on its own and the squeaking wheel not only drove us crazy but I am sure woke people up as we ran by their houses. Anna loves her new stroller the shade pulls down further so I dont have to put a sheet up and she can actually see outside as I run. She also sleeps alot longer in this one...probally because she doesnt have the squeaking wheel to wake her. Anna got to spend some one-on-one time with Daddy this past weekend because Mommy had to work. I think she loves spending time with Daddy because he feeds her everytime she gets fussy...and the fact that she loves to watch football with Daddy.

13 weeks

2008-09-17T21:00:00.000-05:00

Oh...I forgot to mention that in Anna has or is trying to pick up another skill. Starting at about week 11 she started to try to hold her bottle. I was so amazed especially since she doesnt get bottle fed much. She is such a smart baby!
This past week was a very chill week. We really didnt do too much but stay at home, read some books, looked at flash cards and sang some songs. I found out that when Anna starts to get a little grumpy for no reason all I got to do is sing ABC's and she gets quite. Out of all the songs I sing to her it seems like she pays the most attention to the ABC song.
Oh yea...I caught Anna substituting her thumb for her binkie...

and while I think its so cute...I immediately took her thumb out of her mouth (ok not immediately, I had to take pictures first) and replaced it with her binkie. Some may wonder why I did this, I have long been told its harder to break the thumbsucking habit then the binkie habit. From personal experience (a family member who was a thumbsucker) I know thumbsucking is real hard to break plus its not good for their teeth.

My little Anna has started to break out in a rash again. I feel so bad for her. It looks so painful. Right now its a little bit on the right side of her face but mostly under her chin and on her upper chest. Hopefully it goes away soon...its starting to look really dry even though I put lotion on it...I just hope its not painful. You know...I think it is due to allergies. It started to flare up after this past weekend when it rained a ton. My allergies always act up when it rains...hopefully her body is building tolerance now so when she gets older she wont have bad allergies.

week 11 and 12

2008-09-14T00:33:00.000-05:00

I have been a bad Mommy. My goal was to write on this blog every week for Anna...as you can tell I have missed a couple weeks. My computers internet stopped working and when I would try to load pictures on Williams computer it would often take so long that the pictures wouldnt load. Well...I finally figured out how to load them faster. I also had a hard time getting to this website...but now we are back. These past couple weeks have been pretty busy. Anna continues to amaze us. She is "talking" more and more everyday. I think she likes the sound of her voice...every once in awhile she lets a little scream escape.
We bought her a little walker that she loves. She will sit in it reaching for one little toy in particular, trying her hardest to make it spin (its a little ball like toy that has beads in it and rattles when it spins). It so adorable to see the concentration on her face. She also loves to play with her little blue horse toy. Her little legs are about 5 inches from the floor but she will smile like crazy if you push her around the house in the walker.

Anna continues to love the beach. We recently put her feet in the water for the first time...i think she was a little perplexed as she just stared down at her feet the whole time. We bought her a little hat and sunglasses so she could "style" at he beach...I think she likes them...yeah...i know she will get me back later for that picture. One day when Daddy was getting Anna dressed for the beach, she showed her excitement by getting really excited when she saw her bathing suit...she doesnt get that excited for her other clothes. Anna has also started to enjoy tummy time a lot more. She will lay on er tummy for about 5 minutes before she gets cranky. She really likes laying her back and kicking her feet...future soccer player? She is now sleeping from about 9ish to 530ish...wakes up eats and goes back to sleep until around 7ish...such a good baby. Oh she loves bath time! We give her a bath before bedtime and she loves the water. I think she spends the whole time seeing how much of the water she can kick out of her tub onto Daddy...she is going to be a mess when she gets bigger!

10th week

2008-08-18T23:30:00.000-05:00

Look at my precious baby standing with help from Daddy. She loves doing this...you cab even hear her "talk" at the end of the clip. She is growing so fast. Getting so big. I love how exited she gets when she stands up. Its so cute. Anna still hates tummy time. She gets so mad when you put her on her tummy. The only time she doesnt mind being on her tummy is when she is laying on her Mommy or her Daddy. Anna is also becoming more aware of her hands and their capabilities. She is starting to grab at things...and put them or try to put them in her mouth...I know...I know...going to have to keep a real good eye on her. We had an exciting...(some of it good, some of it bad) week. Lets just say Mommy wont be reaching for any more Ben and Jerry's when shopping with Anna...they tend to fly out of the freezer and hit people on the head. We went to the beach on Saturday...Anna spent 95% of the time sleeping...and the other 5% of the time eating..so I dont think she even realized she was outside the house. Then we went to the doggie park and all the doggies wanted to hide under Anna's stroller. On Sunday we went to church and again Anna did so good. She was awake the whole time and didnt get fussy once. Anna also helped Mommy work on improving her running this week...Mommy runs real slow but is trying to get faster...at least I can run 5 miles without feeling like Im gonna pass out...probably because it takes me an hour to run 5.4 miles...oh well..its a good pace for Anna...gives her just enough time to take a morning nap! Here is Anna in her stroller getting ready to head out with Mommy. well until next week...

9th week

2008-08-10T20:54:00.000-05:00

Anna had her 2 month appointment today. She wieghed 10 pounds 4 ounces and was 22 1/2 inches long! She is getting so big...so fast. Somedays she seems so tiny still...then other days I pick her up and I cant believe at how much she has grown. she did really well at her checkup...all looked great! She even did good with her shots...yea she cried a little but as soon as we held her she stopped crying.
This week was a pretty relaxing week for us...we played a lot with our flash cards. Anna loves to look at the animals...(ok its probably just the different colors that interest her but...I think she likes the animals). We worked on our sign language...ok Mommy practiced her sign language while Anna tried to laugh at her.
Anna is trying so very hard to laugh...she has got the facial and mouth movements down...but cant get the sounds to come out. Its the cutest silent laugh!!!! However, she is "talking" more and more it seems. Its not all the time but usually in the morning and then in the evening she goes into a "talkative" mood. We love to talk back to her and listen as she tries to "talk" even more.We tried to get some more tummy time in...but as you can see from the picture below...Anna is not a fan of tummy time! She would much rather spend her time on her feet.

Yesterday Anna got to spend almost three hours with Daddy walking around the mall and walking to get our car as Mommy got her hair highlighted. All the salon ladies were amazed at how well Anna or I guess how well William was doing with Anna. I told them "I know...we are lucky...he is very good with her."
Today we went to church and I think Anna's fav part was when everyone was singing. She probably liked it because she couldnt her Mommy over everyone else :+).
All in all it was another amazing week. Cant wait to see what the next one will bring!

8 weeks

2008-07-31T03:13:00.000-05:00

Anna has had a wonderful 8th week! (wow 2 months...i cant believe my baby girl is two months already!!!) This week Anna's Poppop (my Dad) came to visit. Anna got to go see lots of neat things with me and Poppop. We went to the swap meet at the stadium, the swap meet at pearlrigde, had a doc appointment, went to Ford Island (to take pictures of the Arizona), went to the North Shore, went to the PX, went to Fort Shafter, went to the commissary, went walking in the stroller every night...and just chilled at home with her Poppop...it was a fun and exciting week.
Anna is getting bigger everyday! She continues to amaze me. She loves looking at flash cards with pictures (it even calms her down when she is fussy). She is also grabbing at her binky more and more. Today she even grabbed her binky and was waving it around...at times she seemed like she was trying to get it to her mouth...it was so cute! I got a cute video of it but its on my phone and I cant find the adapter to download it...ahhhhhhhhh!
Anna is starting to fight sleeping more during the day...I dont think sh ewants to miss out on anything. However, she falls asleep fine at night...so it doesnt bother me at all that she doesnt want to miss anything during the day!
Can i just say I love my baby girl. She is so precious, so amazing! Everyday I take a moment or two (ok lots of moments) just to remember some of her moments so far. I try to remember, her birth, the first time i heard her cry, holding her in the hospital, bringing her home, and little moments up until now. I hate that I have a bad memory because I dont want to forget anything...I wish i could capture it all in my head and replay it at will. Thank you God for blessing William and I with a healthy, happy, beautiful baby girl. She is more precious and more perfect than I ever could have imagined. I could never say thank you enough. THANK YOU!

7 weeks

2008-07-24T19:04:00.000-05:00

Anna turned 7 weeks this past Monday! WOW!
She continues to be such a calm peaceful baby. She does fight sleep but the only time she will fight sleep is in the early evening. She will cry and try her hardest to keep her sweet little eyes open. I think this is because this is around the time that Daddy comes home and she knows it. I think she is afraid she is going to miss seeing him if she falls asleep. There isnt really any other time that she fights going to sleep at least not to the point where she will cry.
This is an eventful week. On Monday we went to my work and she got to meet more of my coworkers. Then yesterday we went out to eat lunch with Nancy and Karen came over to visit us in the evening. I could tell that by seeing Anna, it made Nancy miss her neice even more than she already does. Anna did great with both Nancy and Karen. She started to get a little upset both times but didnt really cry at all. She especially loved it when Nancy held her and when Karen walked her around (yea she is spoiled but oh well your only a baby once!)
Today Daddy left to go see Anna's stepsister Kimberly and today Pop Pop (my daddy, Anna's granddad) is coming to visit. I am so excited for him to meet her. She is smiling so much now and is trying so hard to communicate. Normally about three times a day she will start cooing and if you talk to her she will coo even more. Its the cutest and sweetest little noise!
She has also officially found her hand. She loves to try to stick her whole fist in her mouth. Even though she can get the whole thing in there she will suck at it like its the a cherry flavored lollipop...i laugh so much when she does this.
Everyday she smiles more and more in response to mine and Williams voices. And she still loves to see her reflection in the mirror in the car. You can see the amazement in her eyes when she first sees herself...she must be thinking who is that beautiful baby!

i love the pictures of her sleeping at top. she looks like an angel...maybe because she is one! i love how she sleeps with her arms out its so adorable. and look at that coy little smile...i see trouble!

6 weeks

2008-07-17T21:27:00.000-05:00

Anna turned 6 weeks on Monday. Wow!!! I cant believe its been 6 weeks. It has gone by so fast. They say time flys when you are having fun...so true.
Anna is growing fast. Just last week we had to start putting size 1 diapers on her. It ws a sad but happy day...I already miss her being so small but look forward to every day and seeing how she grows.
She loves to be read to. We also bought her some kiddy flash cards. They have pictures of things like a dog, cat, keys, firetruck...she loves when we play with them. I normally have the stack of cards in my left hand. I will pull one out with my right hand and put it in front of her face. She will look at it and sometimes smile or she will make noises and/or move her arms around like she is excited. Here is a picture of what she looks like when she gets excited.

Anna and Daddy got to spend a lot of one on one time together this past weekend. I had to go to drill. I will admit I cried the first morning. It was sad. I knew I wasnt going to see my baby for 12 hours. I knew she would be fine with Daddy, I just didnt want to leave her. Like I said her and Daddy did great together. Daddy spent time feeding her, changing her, reading to her and putting her to sleep.

Anna's rash has pretty much cleared up. Right now her skin is a little dry but I think that is just the rash drying out. She just looks so much more comfortable.

She still loves to "stand". Its the cutest thing. I need to get a video and post it. She will grunt and groan...working so hard to stand.

I swear she put her binkie in her mouth all by herself this week. I put her down and the binkie was on her shoulder. I came back a few minutes later and she had the binkie in her mouth...

Curly Hair

2008-07-07T16:22:00.000-05:00

Another week has passed us. Anna is 5 weeks old today. Crazy! I think it will forever feel like she was just born. I wish I could remember every little moment with her. Every little sound she makes. They are all so perfect.

So...from the picture above you can see what happens when we dont brush Anna's hair after we wash it. It just goes all curly! Its so cute! I wonder if this means that she is going to have curly hair. Or do all babies hair do this?

She is growing so fast. Sometimes its hard to see the physical changes but other times I look at her and I am amazed at how much she has changed. How is is growing more beautiful everday.

She is continually growing more and more aware of her surroundings. She even loves to look at herself in a mirror. (uh-oh that could be trouble :+) ). Its amazing how she will notice something and not want to look away just taking it all in.

She is becoming more and more interactive with me and William. She even "talks" to you when you hold her and talk to her. Anna loves to smile at you when you sing or talk to her. Its the cutest thing I have ever seen. I love her smile.

The best is when she first wakes up in the morning...if you let her wake up on her on and lay there for a little...and then peek over her bed and say "goodmorning Anna"..she greets you with the biggest smile and makes waking up worth every minute!

Oh and below is a picture of another favorite Anna activity....blowing spit bubbles. Soooo cute!

Happy Birthday!

2008-07-02T21:31:00.001-05:00

Today is Anna's one month birthday!!!!! YEAAAA. She is doing so good. This week she really started to respond as she is talked to. She will often focus on the person talking to her as long as that person is holding her. She also seems to be trying to laugh as her smiles have become longer. She is also starting to make more sounds with her mouth (mostly they are little grunts). This week she noticed the zebra toy that is attached to her swing and started reaching for it. It was so cute. A couple times when she touched it her eyes got so big! (the third picture is of her reaching for the zebra)
I have started singing ABC's to her and at the same time signing them as well. She seems to notice that I am doing something with my fingers and will focus on them for the middle part of the alphabet.
She also seems to have a little seperation anxiety if she cant see someone. She will cry out with an "ahhh" sound and if I dont go to her she will start to whimper. It is so cute!
oh and her hair is starting to curl!!!! its so cute in the front she has a few curls. if you look closely at the picture you can see her curl! (the first picture)
One of the things that i love the most i just holding her. I love the way she curls up so close to me and the cute little sounds she makes while she is sleeping. Sometimes I think I am spoiling her because I hold her so much...but my theory is your only a baby once... and one day she will do thru a period where she wont want me to hold her and then she will be too big to be held...so i am getting it all in while I can!
I cant believe how big she is getting. We went to the doctor yesterday (for her rash) and she weighed 9 lbs! I think she is actually a little under 9lbs because they left all her clothes and diaper on. But still...that means she has gained almost two pounds since she left the hospital. Such a big girl.
I love being Anna's Mommy...she is such an amazing baby!

3 WEEKS!!!

2008-06-27T17:20:00.000-05:00

Ok...so people that read this are probably going to get sick of how much I say I am in disbelief...but I cant help it. Everytime I see Anna I am in disbelief. She is just so amazing.
This week she really started responding to William and I when we talk to her. She loves to be talked to and shows it by smiling. Sometimes I think she is already trying to talk back and is imitating what we do with our mouth. I have noticed that alot of times when I make the o shape with my mouth (when saying a word)...she will make the o shape with her mouth. So...Im going to be the proud Momma and say she is trying to imitate me. She has also started to make more noises when you talk to her. Most of the time she just grunts but it is so adorable.
She loves to "practice standing", this is one of her fav games to play. She will straighten her legs out and lock them. If you stand her up she will stay standing...of course you have to hold her for balance and she will often bend over at the waist but she seems to have such strong little legs and likes to use them.
Another game she likes to play is hiding her pacifer. She will take it out and somehow it ends up underneath her. Once she has it under her she will make a noise (usually it sounds like the start of a cry but she doesnt cry)... So I will go get her pacifer out from under her and put it back in her mouth...5 minutes later samething...
last week she broke out with "newborn rash"...it made me so sad because it looks painful. throughout the week it got worse so I took her to the doctor on Monday. they gave her a little bit of medicine. Now it comes and goes but seems to be getting better.
she is such a good baby. William and I are so lucky!

Our Angel

2008-06-19T16:46:00.000-05:00

Everyday I look at my little Anna and cant believe she is mine and Williams baby. I dont think I will ever wake up and not be in disbelief. She is just so amazing, so beautiful, so perfect...its hard to believe that we were blessed with such a wonderful little baby.. I still cant believe Im a Mommy...I mean I know its real but it still seems surreal.

Its been two weeks and three days since we were blessed with the arrival of Anna...and she continues to be a blessing. We have had a wonderful two weeks. Anna got to spend a lot of quality time with her Nana (my Mommy) and we were very sad to see her go. She was such a big help throughout the end of the pregnancy and when we first brought Anna home...and even more importantly it was just great to see her and Anna together. I am so glad that she came out to visit. I always wanted her to be there when I had my babies. I am really happy that she was a part of the birth experience and Anna's first two weeks home, it makes my heart smile to know that she was able to share in such a wonderous experience with William and I.

Everyday William comes home and sees Anna he says she looks so different. I love the look on his face when he sees her. I love seeing him hold her and talk to her. Its so amazing to see the love in his eyes. He is such a good Daddy. Anna is so lucky to have a father like him and I am so lucky to have a husband like him.

Anna continues to be such a good baby. She loves to nap and eat. She also loves tummy time...when she is laying on someones chest...more than when she is laying on her tummy time mat. Anna and I go for walks every morning (as long as is it isnt raining or we dont have appts). Most of the time Anna will fall asleep while riding in her stroller. She seems to enjoy riding in the car, the only time she gets upset is when you buckle her in or unbuckle her. She also enjoys bathtime. She really seems to enjoy bath time. She is a very calm content baby. The only time she really cries is when she is hungry or if she thinks she is alone and wants to be held (even then she hardly cries). She really makes things easy...(makes me wonder if she is saving up for something :+) ).

I love watching her sleep. She is so adorable and makes the cutest faces and the sweetest sounds (I wonder what she is dreaming about). I also love taking naps with her...its so sweet when she falls asleep on your chest...all snuggled up...I love it. She is starting to smile even more...I have gotten her to smile a few times when I kiss her (oh how that melts my heart).

My little Angel

2008-06-12T00:18:00.000-05:00

It has been one week and two days since my little Angel came into this world and it has been an amazing week. A week I hope I never forget.

It all started Jun 1...Sunday evening. We went into the hospital to be induced as Anna was a little over a week overdue.

Everything started off great. They hooked me up to all the monitors and I was even having contractions at that point (every 5-10 min). They gave me something to help me dialate because I was only 2-3. That helped the contractions get even stronger (this is when I gave in and got the epidural) and eventually I was a solid 3-4cm. Around that time they decided to break my water. Then the contractions slowed down. The doctor came in and talked about giving me pitocin but we didnt ever make it to that point as Anna's heartbeat starte to act up. At first it was it was going up and down. The doctors came in and talked about how they wanted to monitor it for 30 minutes and then we would talk about our options. Depending on what her heartrate was doing we would either get a c-section to be safe or go with pitocin to speed up labor. The docters walked out and what seemed like not 5 minutes later they were back in our room saying we were going to have to have a c-section that it wasnt an option. So...we were rushed down to the OR..at 0608 they started the surgery and at 0612 our precious, perfect little angel came into this world. Hearing her sweet little cry was the most beautiful sound I ever heard. I was so scared as they were rolling me into the OR and as they were conducting the surgery. The only thing that calmed me down was seeing me husband and the look in his eyes but even then I was still scared. Hearing her cry and then seeing her...I have never felt such relief in my life, I have never went from being so scared, so nervous to so happy and so thankful. She was simply amazing, simply beautiful, simply a miracle. I remember holding her and just in disbelief that something so perfect was a part of me, that God had blessed me with such this little miracle. That everything was ok, that she was here, that she was a part of me and my husband and that she was perfect.

We have been home now for a week and two days. Anna is such a sweet and peaceful baby. She doesnt hardly ever cry. The most she has cried was the first time we gave her a sponge bath and a couple times when she got fustrated feeding. I hate to hear her cry (it breaks my heart, to see her with tears in her eyes) so I am glad that she doesnt do it often. She is such a happy and content little baby. She loves to smile which always makes my day.

Everyday I look at her in disbelief, I cant believe I have been blessed with her.

Everyday I look at her and I thank God for her. She is simply my little Angel.

40 weeks and still counting

2008-05-28T11:38:00.000-05:00

So...tomorrow I will be 41 weeks! Wow...ok I am READY for my little Anna...officially ready (ok a little just a little bit more ready)....

However, I think she has plans of her own, as she seems to be taking her time making her entrance into this world. Hopefully this isnt how she is going to be in actual labor! We went to the docter yesterday...good news...im a little bit more ready than before. Lets just say Im not completely closed...but really that gives no clue as to when she will be born. The docter said he was looking more at induction on Monday. We have to go back to the docter on Friday to do a non stress test and to check to see if Im any more "open"....everyone please cross your fingers....

this weekend was very relaxing. On Monday we drove out to the North Shore to go look for shells on the beach. Well the beach ended up being way to crowded...go figure it was Memorial Day...so we walked around and got Shave Ice...it was sooooooooooo gooooooooood!

Attached is a picture of William and I and my Mommy and I at Sharks cove.

40 weeks

2008-05-23T12:00:00.000-05:00

Today is 40 weeks! wow I can't believe it. Anna could really come any day now...any day now. We went to the docter yesterday and...nothing. No new news. He said everything looked about the same. Crazy! so we asked about induction and he said when we come back next week...if we come back next week...then we would probably schedule the induction for friday-monday....seems so far away. Hopefully our little Anna comes on her own before then. However everything is good. Really the biggest thing I have to remind myself is how easy this pregnancy has been. I mean I have had ny aches and pains and there still is that feeling of nausea and flushness every once in awhile but I know I had it way easier than most women. and I thank Anna for that. She has been such a good baby...I can't wait to see her!

39 weeks and 6 days

2008-05-21T13:09:00.000-05:00

Here is a picture of me at 39 weeks...

Ok....so I thought for sure Anna was coming early. But I guess not since tomorrow I am 40 weeks and I dont foresee her coming any time soon. All is going well. No complications. No major pains besides the normal aches and pains. However, I am ready as ready can be. Every night I go to sleep hoping that the next day will be the day...every morning I wake up wondering will something happen today. I guess my little Anna is going to be a drama queen. She is loving this building up the anticipation. She knows she is in control right now and isnt giving that up! Tomorrow we have our 40 week appt. Hopefully we get an induction date. All the walking isnt working but I guess it is keeping me in shape and the puppy sure enjoys the walks.

My Mommy has been here almost two weeks, its been great having her around. Fun to have someone to hang out with and someone to go walking with in the mornings.

37 WEEKS!

2008-05-01T15:47:00.000-05:00

Wow!!! It seems like just yesterday we found out we were pregnant and now we are 3 weeks from our due date. Up until this point it all seemed surreal, now its really starting to sink in. In less than a month...little Anna will be here! Wow! How amazing is that. I cant believe it. I have finally reached the point where I can imagine it. I can imagine seeing her, holding her, comforting her. I can imagine being a mommy. It warms my heart to think that its right around the corner. Anna seems to be getting a little more crowded as she doesnt kick as much instead I just feel her pushing. I am assuming she is trying to stretch out. I feel bad she does have much room to go up or down...she must be so squished. So yea...37 weeks! Wow I cant believe its coming to an end. Its kind of sad. I am excited for her to be here in the world but I will miss having her all to myself. That may sound wierd but I will miss being so close to her.

Oh the picture is of me at 36 weeks! Looks like she dropped. The docter said she was in the right position....just standing by now....

Doctors Appt

2008-04-23T15:46:00.000-05:00

We had our 36 week OB appt two days ago....and I think I am now officially becoming over nervous due to it. During the exam the docter had me laying on my back while he and an intern checked the position of the Anna and her heart rate. At first I was fine. Then I started to become short of breathe. I didnt think anything of it because I often get short of breathe. We had previously discussed this with the docter and he sad it was normal. Well of a sudden as I am laying there I get a real sick feeling. I looked over at William and told him I needed to sit up. When he helped me up I felt really disorientated, flushed, nauseos and just wrong....well turns out the docter just thinks Anna was laying on an artery and that caused my symptoms. He sad not to worry unless the feeling doesnt go away. However, now anytime I get short of breathe I get nervous. It seriously felt like I was about to pass out and thats the last thing I need. William has been real good and calls or texts throughout the day to check on me but I will admit I am still worried even when he is here.

We are so close...I cant wait...two more weeks till the next appt.

Yesterday I washed all of Anna's clothes and blankets. It took all day. She has so much stuff. Thanks to everyone that has bought or sent her anything...I think she will be well-dressed for the first 3 months...she has a ton of newborn clothes and has an aqeduate amount of other clothes. At least enough to get started.

Today when I woke up William said it looked like my belly dropped...

Attached is a pic of me at 35 weeks...

Fishing

2008-04-19T14:02:00.000-05:00

Fishing at Hickam....Maybe I should just call it sitting at Hickam watching the airplanes come into HNL ...since we didnt catch anything. But it was still fun and very relaxing...I cant wait to go watch airplanes...I mean fish again :+)

35 weeks

2008-04-17T13:52:00.000-05:00

Wow...yesterday I hit 35 weeks. I cant believe I am 35 weeks pregnant. It is so amazing. Anna is getting so big and is even with the "limited" space. She is very active. Her most active period seems to be in the evening around dinner time although she moves throughout the day. I think we are pretty much ready for her. We have all the basics minus a few essential items...but those will be aquired shortly.

I will probably say the same thing over and over for the next few weeks...but WE CANT WAIT TO MEET HER. As the anticipation builds so does a little anxiety. Its true your perspective changes.

William and I....(okay mostly William) did a big time house cleaning last weekend. However, I think the nesting phase....because today I NEEDED to clean again.