Operation Relaxation a Success!

We finally made it back home about midnight last night after spending the day hanging out in the Phoenix airport. Luckily the 3 of us were able to sit together (after a little musical chairs with some of the other passengers.) Claire did beautifully on this flight, maybe her dad has the magic touch.
Our vacation was awesome. Certainly not as exciting or busy as other vacations we've had, but definitely the most relaxing. We spent a lot of time just hanging out and playing with Claire. We went swimming every day, which Claire loved. We didn't really have any schedule or itinerary. (which is very unlike me!) The weather was fantastic, in the upper 90's. There is definitely something to be said for the "dry heat." Even when it got close to 100, it never felt hot. We hardly even had to run the AC in the house.
The house was great, except for one little incident. Sue had warned me never to go outside without shoes on because of the scorpions, especially at night. I was quite prepared to see one on the patio some evening, but what I wasn't prepared for was to see one walking across the middle of the living room floor! He was just a little guy, but none the less, it freaked me out! I'm just so glad that we came across him on our last day there, rather than the first. Claire spent a lot of time playing on the floor all week (not to mention sleeping on the floor.) Had I have seen the scorpion the first day, her butt probably would have never touched the floor all week and my arms would be very tired right now.

Little Swimmer

The town too tough to die

We went to Tombstone, AZ today, a town known for the gunfight at the OK Corral, among other things. Basically just an old west town that reminded me of the tourist towns of western SD. This weekend was "Wyatt Earp Days" and they were doing reenactments and there were many people dressed in period costumes wandering around. I guess if you really know a lot about the history of that time it might be an interesting place to visit, but I wasn't terribly impressed.

Hiking with Baby

We spent part of the day at Madera Canyon. We had a picnic lunch and did a little hiking. It was a very beautiful area. Claire started out on Nate's front, and ended up on his back. You probably wouldn't normally carry a baby on your back facing backward like that, but Claire loved it. I walked behind them and she was just smiling and giggling at me the whole way!

Mexico

Still hot and sunny here! Today we drove down to the border (city of Nogales), it was only about 45 miles. Nate kind of had it in his head that we should take Claire into Mexico, as our guide book said if you just park on the AZ side and walk in, you don't need any documentation and there is a big market place just across the border. I was a little uneasy about this idea, and once we actually got there, Nate agreed with me that maybe it wasn't such a good idea seeing as we didn't have a passport or birth certificate with us for Claire. Even though the guide book says you shouldn't need any ID, we weren't really up for taking the risk, plus the area was a little sketchy (as I'm sure most of Mexico is.) But we did take pictures of the border. You can see the fence separating the countries, the right side of the fence is Mexico.

The other picture was taken from our patio...check out the mountains in the background! By the way, Claire is still a big hit wherever we go....Nate said it's like walking around with a movie star!

90 degrees and sunny

We are having a very relaxing and wonderful time here in AZ. The place we are staying is awesome. My boss Sue owns a house down here that will eventually be her retirement home, but for now she rents it out to Snowbirds in the winter, and pretty much all summer it just sits empty. A few weeks ago when I was telling her about Nate's vacation time coming up and that we hadn't decided on a destination yet, she offered up her house. And when she added the "free" part, I was hooked. We have been to AZ several times before and we both love it here, so we were more than happy to come back. The house is a fully furnished 2 bed, 2 bath, cable, AC, king size bed, patio...really nice! Plus having a kitchen stocked with dishes, pots and pans, we are also able to save a ton of money by making a lot of our meals here rather than eating out. We also have a grill that Nate started drooling over, so I think we will be grilling a lot. And did I mention the pool?! I can't even tell you how nice it is to have all this space to ourselves, rather than being stuck in a hotel room.

We are in Green Valley, which is about 20 miles southeast of Tucson. Basically the whole town is an age-restricted retirement community, with a median age of 73. When we went to the grocery store, I think we saw maybe one person under age 50. But let me tell you, Claire was a hit!! The older people are just drawn to her. I think every single person we passed stopped to see her. There was even a couple different people that told us seeing Claire just made their day. One of these was a guy who just stood and smiled at her forever and just kept saying how wonderful it was to see her, he seriously was almost in tears. It's nice that my little Claire can bring so much joy to other people! But I will say that the grocery store had a very limited selection of diapers and baby food.

Claire and the Cactus

Arizona or Bust

We are in sunny Arizona on a little family vacation. The three of us flew down here yesterday evening and we plan to stay for about a week. Nathan gets travel benefits through work, which is so nice because we get to fly for free, but with the good comes the bad. We fly stand-by (we only get on if there are open seats.) After missing a couple flights that were full, we got on one that had just one seat available. We really only need one, since Nate can fly in the cockpit if necessary. Unfortunately that leaves me with Claire for 3.5 hours with 160 other people, crammed in a middle seat between two rather large people. Not the ideal situation for a fussy baby. She was very smiley and happy for the first 30 minutes, but anyone that knows Claire knows that the switch can be flipped in a matter of seconds. And it did. She started screaming! I felt bad for the people sitting next to us, but what could I do. I was actually rather lucky as my two neighbors were very understanding and did their best to help me out. Claire finally cried herself to sleep and slept the rest of the flight. We received a couple of glares and some under the breath comments, but we made it here! Pictures and more vacation highlights to come!

The Great Escape

I'm actually going to tell a story for once that doesn't involve Claire! So last night after Claire was in bed we were sitting around visiting with one of our friends, Mike D. who stopped over to meet Claire and talk shop with Nate. We had the glass door to our deck open, so it was just the screen door, and our cat Rex was bouncing off the screen trying to catch all the bugs that were trying to get to the light inside. Anyway, all of a sudden he comes running into the living room chasing after this HUGE bug. My first reaction was to laugh and think, 'the mighty bug-hunter is at it again!' But then, 'wait a second, a bug that big could not get through the screen, how did it get inside??' I run to the door to find the screen door open about 6 inches and our cat Rylie nowhere in sight. Our cats are inside cats. Rylie has tried this escaping thing a few times over the years, but I've always either seen her escape or at least been able to spot her immediately. Not the case this time. I quickly look under the deck, under the neighbors' deck, in the yard, nowhere. Of course it didn't help that it was 11:30 at night and completely dark. So I start panicking. Another note about Rylie when she gets outside...she turns into this undomesticated Wild animal. She will not come when you call her name, and if you manage to grab her, she will viciously claw and bite! Nate, Mike, and I grab flashlights and take off trying to spot her.(and don't worry I took Claire's portable monitor with me, I now know the full range of it!) Rylie could have gone anywhere, I really thought that we had very little hope of finding her, especially in the dark. Of course I'm in tears and already planning in my head how to make the 'Lost Cat' posters and Nate's just swearing under his breath. After what seemed like an eternity (probably closer to 20-30 minutes), I hear Mike yell out, I found her! Mike gets the reward for finding my crazy cat! She was hiding out in the pine trees just down the hill from our house. Nate got on one side of the trees, and I was on the other and he pushed her my direction and I grabbed her. But of course being scared and wild, she started clawing me so I had to let go of her or risk losing my hand. Thank goodness when she took off this time, she headed straight back to our deck!! I swear that cat takes years off my life every time she pulls one of her stunts. Now I just wonder, how did she get that screen door open?

Check out the pearly white!

Here's a pretty good shot of tooth #1. The second tooth is also there, but just barely. She never lets me have a good look at #2 but when I stick my finger in her mouth I can definitely feel it.

(by the way, she's had two awesome nights of sleep since that since that second tooth broke through)

Check out the Archives!

Over the last couple weeks I've been adding pictures and important events from Claire's first 2 months to her archives. If you're interested in checking them out just look under 'Claire's archives' over on the left side of this page and click on 2006. Scroll all the way to the bottom if you want to start at the beginning!

Block Baby

Let's Eat!

From www.wholesomebabyfood.com--
"One of the most commonly asked questions is "Is it worth it to make my own baby food when the jars are so convenient? The jars aren't really THAT expensive are they?"
The cost benefits are just another bonus of Making Your Own Baby
Food that adds to the Nutritional and Health Benefits!
This is specifically true as baby moves to "Stage 2-3, or Toddler Meals" commercial foods. Stage 1 foods seldom have fillers however the advanced line of baby foods contains starchy fillers and other ingredients that are not of any nutritional value. Remember that the cost savings is an additional benefit; beginning good healthy eating habits early and knowing exactly what is going into your baby's tummy is really priceless!" Gerber peas $.23/oz homemade $.04/oz
Gerber bananas $.23/oz homemade $.01/oz
Gerber sweet potatoes $.23/oz homemade $.04/oz
Gerber apples $.23/oz homemade $.03/oz

I have been making all of Claire's food. The cost savings isn't huge, but when you're pinching pennies as we are, every little bit counts. Plus, it's easy, it really doesn't take very long and it's kind of fun! And if you've ever looked at baby food, they only have like 4 kinds of vegetables and 4 kinds of fruits. I don't want to limit her to just those, so with me making her food, we will be able to try lots of different things. She's still just eating fruits and vegetables, but when she gets older, I will probably just grind up whatever I'm having for dinner to give to her. So far I've made sweet potatoes, acorn squash, pumpkin, carrots, green beans, peas, avocado, bananas, apples, pears, white potato, and zucchini. Our freezer is stocked!

The picture is Claire showing off a few of the bibs I made for her!

Daddy's Little Girl

Breast is Best

I've made it to the 30% club.

What's the 30% club? The number of moms still breastfeeding at 6 months.
Here are the statistics: Ever breastfed--73%; still breastfeeding at 3 months--39%; at 6 months --30%; at 1 year-- 20%; at 18 months--7%

The American Academy of Pediatrics(AAP) recommends breast feeding for AT LEAST 12 months. The World Health Organization recommends breast feeding for 2 years.
I know there are many reasons why moms choose not to, or can't breastfeed and I don't judge them for their decision. But with the knowledge of all the benefits of breast feeding, the percentages seem so low to me.

I'll admit that it certainly wasn't easy in the beginning and it would have been much easier on me to give up, but I realized that I only get one chance to do this right, one chance to give Claire the best possible start. And I was determined to stick it out. And I did. It has now become second nature. And in these almost 7 months, there have been other bumps in the road, but I just remind myself that this is the best thing for Claire, and why wouldn't I want to do what's best for her? For the most part, I do enjoy it. I wasn't expecting it to be as wonderful of an experience as it has turned out to be. How long will I continue? I don't really want to set a deadline or goal, because I don't want to feel guilty if I don't make it. We will keep going as long as it keeps working for both of us.

Other statistics:
Rates of Breastfeeding among:
RACE--
Asian--81%
Hispanic--79%
White--75%
African-American--59%

AGE--
under 20 -- 50%
between 20-29 -- 68%
30 and over -- 77%

EDUCATION--
less than HS diploma--63%
college graduate--84%

INCOME--
living below poverty--63%
living at 350% above poverty-- 82%

Play Time

Now that cold/flu season in over, Claire and I decided we needed to do some socializing. Claire had her first playdate yesterday. There were 6 other babies ranging in age from 5 to 10 months. She was the second youngest. Come to think of it, there was a baby representing every age month. It was neat to see the developmental milestones each month will bring. The 8 mo. old was waving, the 9 mo. old was crawling, and the 10 mo. old was pulling himself up to stand. Claire wasn't terribly interested in the other babies, but she was very excited to have new toys to play with. She did get poked in the eye by one of the other girls, but Claire just got back at her by pulling her hair. That's my girl...she can stand up for herself! It was nice to do something different and visit with other moms/babies. We will probably try to attend a playdate once a week or at least once every other week.

My Dad

I just wanted to take a minute and thank my dad for everything he's done for me over the years and the things that I know he will continue to do for us in the future. He's a great guy, a wonderful dad, and caring grandfather. He's taught me a lot and I think we are very alike in a lot of ways. I couldn't have asked for a better dad! I Love You Dad! Happy Birthday!!

Pictures-- Nov. 1979 (Nikki 4 days old) and Nov. 2006 (Claire 4 weeks old)

You say it's your birthday...

Happy Birthday Aunt Kallie!

(thanks for the piano lesson!)

Love, Claire

Momma's Day

I was a little disappointed that Nate had to be gone for my first Mother's Day, but over the years of him missing holidays, birthdays etc. I guess I kind of get used to it. It was a nice day nonetheless. Claire and I drove down to Mankato in the morning and we went out to lunch with Nathan's mom. Then we spent the afternoon visiting with some family friends. We got to meet 6 week old Max. I can't believe the huge difference between a 6 week old and a 6 month old. (I'll say it again..) I can't believe how fast babies grow and change! Seeing little Max, makes Claire look much more like a toddler than a baby. Oh no, my baby's growing up too fast!

We spent the rest of the day and evening hanging out with family and having a nice dinner with everyone. I told Claire what I wanted for Mother's Day was for her to be a super good baby. Well she did pretty good, but by the late afternoon she was just sooo tired and got a little cranky. She let quite a few different people hold her for a few minutes at a time. She has this very loud, very high pitched scream when she gets scared that immediately lands her back in my arms. I brought along her high chair with visions of her sitting and playing quietly during dinner, but of course that didn't happen. Grandpa K. had to hold and rock her while everyone else ate. (although, I have a feeling that he didn't mind too much!) Overall it was a nice Mother's Day and Claire was quite exhausted by the end of the day.

Before I was a Mom...

BEFORE I WAS A MOM--
I made and ate hot meals.
I had unstained clothing.
I had quiet conversations on the phone.
Before I was a Mom I slept as late as I wanted.
And never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.
Before I was Mom I cleaned my house everyday.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to lullabies.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.
Before I was a Mom I had never been puked on...
Pooped on...
Spit on...
Chewed on...
Peed on...
Or pinched by tiny fingers.
Before I was a Mom I had complete control of my mind...
My thoughts...
My body...
And my money.
I slept all night before I was a Mom.
I never held down a screaming child
So that doctors could do tests or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.
Before I was a Mom I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew how much I would love being a Mom.
Before I was a Mom I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't understand the bond between a Mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important.
Before I was a Mom I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth...
The joy...
The heartache...
The wonderment...
Or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.

Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms and Moms-to-be!!

'Cute' is my middle name

Modeling one of her super cute outfits from Grandma K.

Sweet Tooth

After several nights of blissful sleep (6-7 hour stretches!), Claire was up last night about half a dozen times. I'm sure it's a tooth. Did I mention she already has one tooth? About a month ago, we went through this same thing...up practically every hour screaming and not wanting to be put down. I can't even tell you how frustrating that was, knowing something was wrong, but not knowing what it was. This pattern happened on and off for about 2-3 weeks. Then I saw it. That little jagged white spot coming up from her gums. I've heard that each tooth from now on will get a little easier, and I really hope that is true. Last night, I knew it must be a new tooth bothering her, so it made it less frustrating, but still a really long night. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I see this new tooth popping through soon, I don't want to deal with weeks of these restless nights again. She doesn't really let you see her gums, she's quite secretive about them, you can usually only get a good look when she's screaming. But my beautiful gummy smile is a thing of the past. Just another milestone to remind me how fast she's growing up!!

Bring on the Sun

1. "Hey, how's it goin'?" (I've really been working on this waving thing) I'm just soaking up some rays on my lounge chair!

2. It's really sunny out here. Mom accidentally took the picture before I had finished adjusting my shades.

3. It was a little too hot (almost 90 degrees!) sitting out in the sun, so I decided to take a dip in my pool. Dad is being goofy and splashing me with his water fountain.

4. This pool thing is pretty cool. I could play out here all day!

Spring has Sprung!

Who does she look like?

Ever since the moment Claire was born, everyone has had an opinion on who she most looks like. And from family, friends, nurses at the hospital, neighbors, her doctor, even complete strangers at the mall, everyone has come to the same conclusion. Most of you already know what the consensus is, but in case you haven't heard, I will let you come to your own opinion. I tried to find pictures of Claire with similar facial expressions for both Nate and my baby pictures. I would love to hear everyone's comments! Just click below where it says 'comments', you can post anonymously if you wish.

(and just in case you can't tell, the first picture is me, 2nd is Claire, 3rd pic is Nathan, 4th is Claire -- and click on the pictures if you want to see them larger)

They don't call them 'Grand' for nothing!

Happy Birthday Grandma K.!!

Love, Claire

Updates

Just a couple updates on things that I frequently get asked about...

Acid reflux -- She's doing a lot better with it. She is no longer sleeping at an incline and we slowly eliminated her evening dose of medicine and she seems to be doing great. There's been a couple days where I have forgotten to give her the medicine right away in the morning and I could definitely tell the reflux was bothering her, so she hasn't completely outgrown it yet, so we will keep with the once a day dose for now.

Sleeping -- She's still not back to sleeping through the night, but it's getting better. She's had a couple nights of 5 hour stretches. It's definitely not bad enough to convince me to let her cry it out all night. She's also back in her room (she was sleeping in our room for a while because I was getting sick of having to get out of bed every 2 hours) I've also been turning off the monitor and just sleeping with the doors open. That way I don't wake up to every little squeak, and trust me, I don't need a monitor to hear her when she's really upset.

Eating --

Loves: sweet potatoes, squash

Hates: peas

Doesn't love, but tolerates: carrots, green beans

(Picture-- Talking to her Dad on the phone...Where is that voice coming from?!)

Happy Birthday!

Claire would like to wish a Happy 80th Birthday to her Great-Grandma B. and also a Happy Birthday to her Uncle Brady!!

(both pictures are from Christmas)

I scream, you scream, we all scream

Have I mentioned that Claire likes to scream . . . for fun? Not so fun for me, except watching how excited she gets. The best way I can describe it is like horror movie screaming. I’m afraid the windows may shatter, or all the neighborhood dogs will come running. And now that the weather has been warm enough to have the windows open (as I’m sure my neighbors do also), I’m waiting for Social Services to show up at my door. And of course she gets a kick out of it, and everyday has a goal of being even louder than the day before.

Fun in the Sun

The three of us spent the afternoon at Como Park in St. Paul. We went to the zoo, the conservatory, and the park.

Barefoot and Fancy Free

Claire doesn't get a very good grip on the floor with socks or shoes on, so she cruises in her baby walker with bare feet. And no, our kitchen floor isn't that dirty! Nathan took her outside with him while he was working on some things in the garage. Claire gets so excited cruising in her little "Tot Rider." And she doesn't seem to mind the dirty feet.