Celebrating NATALIE!

My Very Cute Christmas Outfit

Grandma's Pink Tree Created Just for Natalie

All Tuckered Out After Tree Decorating

Tonight Natalie and I went to Grandma's to help decorate her tree. Natalie was dressed for the occasion. She looked too cute. Grandma had decided to decorate her tree in all pink and with the letter "N" in honor of Natalie. It ended up looking really good - the picture doesn't do it justice. After we decorated, Natalie took a nap and we ate dinner. It was a very fun and memorable evening!

Natalie's Baptism

Natalie being baptized

Natalie being introduced to the congregation

Mommy, Daddy and Natalie

Natalie's Godparents, Jenny and Jared

Tonight Natalie was baptized! It was such an exciting and special time for our family and friends. She wore a beautiful dress given to her by Grandma. And for the first time in weeks she did not have a crying spell. She was an angel. I was so proud and enjoyed her so much. Earlier in the day we got her to take a pacifier and it was a life saver tonight. I am sure we will regret it in 2 years, but we will deal with that when it comes! Now we are enjoying the peace and quite it helps provide! After the baptism, since Natalie was doing so well, we went to Jeff's family's to hang out for a while. It was the first time we have really been out of the house! Natalie was just great and even let people hold her. It was so nice to not be in my house. And it was wonderful that other people got to enjoy our little Natalie!

Happy Thanksgiving

Yesterday we celebrated Natalie's first Thanksgiving! She celebrated by sleeping, pooping in 2 outfits and then becoming very cranky. It was a fun filled day! We hope all of you had a great day with family and friends!

Not Alone...

In a previous post I mentioned how the hair dryer calmed Natalie down when she was really upset. Well, running hair dryers for hours on end can be a fire hazard, so Grandma made a tape recording of a hair dryer and it works just as well! The only problem with the tape, is that it only lasts an hour and is loud when it runs out. So, last night I searched the Internet and found that we are not alone. For $9.99 I can buy a CD of a hair dryer, not only that but they offer washing machines, dryers, vacuum cleaners and lots of other noises! I couldn't believe it. So, I have over- nighted the CD, Jeff said that anything on the Internet that says it helps with colic should have free shipping, and am waiting to get it. It will be great, we can loop it all night and even take it in the car. The website is purewhitenoise.com if you want to check it out, or if you know someone who has a cranky, colicky baby!

Jeff's Birthday

Last Wednesday was Jeff's birthday. I thought Natalie could handle a trip to Hallmark to get cards for Jeff, but when we got there she started screaming! It was so bad that an employee came back and asked me if everything was OK. Talk about embarrassing. I wanted to tell her no it wasn't ok, but after some rocking and tight cuddling, she quited down. Oh well, we got the cards and raced home. Teaches me to take a 1 month old anywhere.

Natalie is wearing her "I love Daddy" shirt in honor of Jeff's birthday and Riley, our labradoodle, wouldn't stay out of the photo!!

Bath Time

So, as we are learning more about what makes Natalie happy, we have found that she loves her bath time! Jeff and I were terrified to bathe her at first, I mean she is so little and so floppy, I just thought we were going to hurt her every time! We are getting better at it and now all of us are enjoying it. She loves to hang her feet off the side of the hammock and dangle them in the water. I can't wait until she is old enough to sit in the tub, she is going to love it! I hope she loves swimming as much as she loves her bath.

Acid Reflux, Colic and Gas...OH MY!

For the past few days, Natalie has been screeching and eating around the clock starting around mid afternoon until what is supposed to be bedtime. The night before last she had a huge vomiting incident that had me calling Grandma in the middle of the night. Yesterday, after she had been up all night and all day and I could not get her to settle down - at my wits end - I called the Doc and we went to see him.

He told me that she is suffering from Acid Reflux, Gas and a case of Colic. Great. Now what. Well, we got meds for the Acid Reflux and Gas and some suggestions for the Colic. After we feed her we have to lay her on her stomach on a bed that is elevated at a 30 degree angle for thirty minutes. He also said that she would want to eat a lot, I guess that makes them feel better.

So, last night we tried it and it what a difference! In fact she slept for almost 7 hours. I guess that is what happens when you aren't spitting up all night!!! Hopefully it is a cure that will last. We have also found out that when she is having one of her crying spells she loves the hair dryer - hey whatever works right?!

Zzzz....

As many of you know, sleep and newborns do not go hand in hand - sleep deprivation is at the top of any new parents list. Jeff and I are no different. I don't think I have slept more than 5 hours any night since we brought Natalie home....last night though the little angel slept!!!

We finally got her to sleep at midnight after trying since 10. I thought it would be short lived, but we didn't hear from her until 4am! Total sleep 4 hours.

I got up and fed her and we were back in bed by 5. She woke up again at 7:30. Total sleep 2.5 hours.

I got up and fed her again and we were back in bed by 8:00. The next time we heard from little Natalie? 11:00!! Total sleep 3 hours.

So, although it was broken, I got a total of 9.5 hours of sleep last night! God bless little Natalie and her ability to sleep last night!

I am sure that tonight will be a different story! :)

3 Weeks and 1 Day Old!

Today Natalie is 3 weeks and 1 day old! We can't believe it. I would like to say the time is just flying by, but anyone who has had kids know that the first few weeks are so hard! Natalie is doing better at breastfeeding and we aren't supplementing her except at night. She does like to eat and has been doing so every 1-2 hours which is wearing Mom out. We are trying to get her to go longer in between, but you can imagine how that is going. Sometimes at night we get a 4 hour stretch, but most nights we are up a couple times for at least an hour. The weekends are great because Daddy can take one of the feedings and then we each only have to get up once. I wish it was the weekend all the time. We are getting to know each other a little better and figuring each other out. I think the hard part is that each day seems like a new day, always something new to learn and just because something happened yesterday, doesn't mean it will happen today. I am trying to just roll with the punches, but anyone that knows me, knows that is really hard for me, the planner. Oh well, I am trying to welcome this new time in my life. We are enjoying Natalie everyday and I can't wait for her to respond to us - that first smile will be amazing!!

Grandpa Is Here!

This week was very exciting for Natalie. Her Grandpa from Texas came into town to meet her. She had a great time hanging out with him and Mommy and Daddy even went to dinner and let Grandpa babysit! It was so nice to get out and know she was in good hands. We will be sad to see him go...

I am 2 weeks old today!

Natalie is 2 weeks old today!! We just can't believe it. To celebrate we took her for her first professional photos. They turned out so good. Jeff and I couldn't believe how good she was! She has another check up tomorrow, hopefully she is gaining weight. She should be - all she wants to do is eat! :)