Too fast mommy!

The pic says it all.

This was Anna's first trip to the park! (2/29/08)

Good Golly Miss Molly!!!

Miss Molly made her arrival just before 1 a.m. on Saturday, February 23rd. Did everyone feel the world get a little brighter that day??? Now you know why! Hooray for Anna's BFF!!!

Mamma Maria's Pet Peeves

OK, I promised myself when I created this blog that I would not use it as a forum to rant. But alas my dear readers (OK, I'll be honest - Aunt Em and Kayla) now that I am an oh-so experienced mom :-) there are just a few baby related things that get my goat. (But see, it's baby related so it's almost not breaking my no-rant rule!

-TOO MUCH BABY INFORMATION!!! When you are a newbie mom and don't know what to do....ever....anytime baby makes a wierd noise or gets a rash or pulls her ear or has green poop or sleeps too little or sleeps too mcuh....... there are ENTIRELY too many sources of baby information. It made me even crazier than I normally am to have to sort through the info... (Swaddling will prevent a baby from rolling over and is therefore safe for sleeping/swaddling will trap a baby on their tummy and is therefore not safe for sleeping.) (Crying is good/crying is bad.) (MUST give vitamin D drops/don't need to give vitamin D drops) And my personal favorite.... Curt and I spent EVERY diaper change for the first two and a half weeks cleaning Anna's umbilical chord with alcohol-which she HATED. (Curt was downright fanatical about it.) My neice is born three months later and now the word is to not to clean it at all and that it can irritate the skin to do so. Anna is THREE months old PEOPLE!!!!!!!!! Are you kidding me with this? ARRRRRGGGGHHHHH!
If you really want to know what to do for a baby, ask someonw who has been a mom in the last 2-3 years! Anyone with kids older than that has ALREADY forgotten the bad times. I'm not joking. They "just can't remember" how long it took for their kid to get a nap schedule or be calm in the evenings or anything else for that matter. Now that they've got a happy, charming kid, they don't remember the early horrors. So for the next 2-3 year, ask me. I'll tell it like it is!

-Complicated baby clothes!!! If you have a baby who kicks her legs, smacks her belly, poops enough to make a diaper pointless and moves her head and that is about the extent of her activity while awake, she does NOT need to wear a cutsie little dress with matching tights and booties (that never stay on) with a matching burp cloth, sweater, and bonnet. Oh, I forgot the matching head band and swaddling blanket. What that child needs, is a nice, WARM, sturdy ONE-piece outfit that is capable of being put on while the kid is screaming and thrashing and can withstand multiple washings with bleach. And that is ALL the kid needs until she is old enough to walk. Cutsie things are nice and pretty and only cute when OTHER PEOPLE dress, undress, change, and redress your child for you! Nuff said! (As I say this, I'm and gooing at the cutsie dresses with matching burp cloths Granny bought for Anna because, well, they are just so darn precious!)

-People that call their kid "the baby" LONG after that child is old enough to say their own name and what street they live on. It's just wierd reducing that little person to their "status" in the family. We don't say, "the old fart is visiting" when the other person knows it's Bob, but we say "I've got 'the baby' here". Not sure why this one bothers me so much. Just seems creepy.

-People that say "Sleep when the baby sleeps". That's just annoying. Do I tell YOU to make yourself eat when your body is not hungry, just because there is food in front of you at the moment? Or do I insist you rush to the bathroom, simply because we are walking past one, despite the fact that you have no urge to go. Likewise, I cannot just magically makeself get sleepy just because Anna is in her bed and there is a SLIGHT chance she'll actually stay there long enoght so that I can lay down and somehow force my body to relax enough in the middle of the day to conk out while the baby monitor drones on like a crazy alarm clock that can go off at any time... ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Wait, I missed what you said... I fell asleep there for a second because it happened to be a convenient time. ;-) I guess the reason this one bothers me is because I'd so very much like it to work, but it doesn't.

OK. That's it for the rant (for now- mwhoohahhahah [evil laugh].)

Anna video conferences

Anna will grow up in very different world than her parents. Here she is on her first video chat on skype, with her Uncle Matty. That's great-grandma Stokes holding her.



Of course, we took this too far, and decided to show off Anna's tennis-shoe-socks that her Uncle Josh got her. She did not like this, but she was really cute in showing her displeasure.



I love her look of noble resignation at the end of that video!

Happy 12 week birthday, Anna!!!!!!!!

Now that we are approaching twelve weeks, I wanted to take a moment to reflect back on where we've been together - Anna, Curt and I.

Week One: From the moment I saw her, I kept thinking, "I did NOT just birth that tiny little perfect person. Uh uh. No way." I kept just looking at her thinking that there's no way I created Anna. Staring, I was amazed at every little sound and movement. I didn't get any sleep, but strangely enough, didn't need it. I was running on pure awe!
Often heard from my mouth: "How the heck am I doing this? I used to only be able to go ONE DAY with this little sleep!"

Week Two: We moved into our new home, in our new city and I felt temporarily overwhelmed!!! Yikes! How the heck do I keep little Anna alive and happy without constant supervision.... of ME! I was settling in to feeling like a mom but still didn't know my role or our rhythms. I still felt like I was winging it. Also, I still felt like Anna was a little stranger. I was impatient for us to get to know each other.
Often heard: (When people asked me, "Do you think she's hungry?" "Do you think she needs her diaper changed" etc.) "I don't know" "Who knows?" "Maybe!" (Shoulder shrug)

Week Three: OK, now we were on a roll. Anna was more alert and fussy and I was getting more and more sleep deprived! But, I was more confident that we would skirt the colic monsters and I was learning a little more about her! This was the week we learned about Anna's stinky torticollis. My poor baby with a bum neck. This would simply not do! We learned some neck excercises that Anna was not a fan of and began to do those daily! (Oh man!)
Often heard: "Must get sleep, must get sleep."

Weeks four - five: Anna was REALLY stimulated and fussy now but also more alert. Also, she was too strong and active to be easily swaddled. Also, my sleep deprivation was reaching emergency levels at this point and many days would find Anna and I in tears. Luckily, I had big sis Emily to call who talked me down from my wailings of, "I love her but I'm SO MAD at her!!!" My love for her was really deepening at this point as she and I rode the waves of these early weeks. I was starting to get what everyone means when they say that they'd die for their kids. She was smiling by this point (our little overachiever) and that was just lovely!
Often heard: "Ohhhh I love her so much!" "HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY STILL BE CRYING" "Oh my gosh, is she supposed to be on a schedule? The schedule doesn't work. There's something wrong with me! There's something wrong with Anna! Sleep, sleep....OMG I NEED SLEEP!" (Luckily at this point, Curt stepped in and hid the ridiculous baby books from me. Those things are dangerous!)

Week Six: Anna and I found our groove. She was feeling more settled in her world and I was feeling like I had the hang of things. Also, my sleep deprivation took a big turn! I started to feel like my old self again.
Oftten heard: "Gooshie gooshie goo! Anna Bananna Pants! Who's moommy's little girlie whirlykins?" Etc.!

Week Seven-Eight: More smiles and more developements. I love her so much! She is holding her head up on her own a little bit more. What a big girl! She let me read her a WHOLE book and held a toy that her dad gave her!
Often heard: "Ewwww - you are the BEST!"

Week Nine: OH THE HORROR!!!!!!!!!!!! Vaccinations!!!!!!!!!!! My poor little angel got stuck by those mean old nurses and it took all week for her to recover! I swear I had tears in my eyes even before she did. Seeing her eyes widen in shock the second those needles went in made me age ten years! I made several emergency calls to Saint Emily this week. My poor baby learned that there was pain in the world and I learned what it feels like when your child feels pain. What a week!!! On a fun note, she sat in the bumbo chair for the first time! She looked like such a big girl!
Often heard: "Waaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! (From both Anna AND I)

Week Eleven: What a wonderful and strange week! Anna was so close to rolling over! She also learned a game where we hold her under her arms and she shoots (not just stands) up! Then she'll do a cute little baby dance on her wobbly legs and sit back down. She was just plain happy, happy (except close to nap times - which she has unfortunately not decided just when those will be). What a joy to be a mom to the most amazing baby that ever lived!
Often heard: "Who's my big girl?" "Can I get a smile?" "KISS ATTACK!"

So here we are at week 12! Anna still hasn't decided on a schedule yet and her naps are all over the place (30 mins to two hours - more often 30 minutes). She still goes to bed anywhere between 8:00 and midnight - just to keep us guessing how much sleep we'll actually get. BUT, once asleep she usually sleeps for 12 hours with a couple of feeding thrown in for good measure. She just noticed the kitties and has big smiles for them - they completely igore her - so like a cat! She isn't as addicted to her mobile anymore ("That was like - so last week!" We are still struggling with her torticollis - meaning, she is struggling against the excercises, but I can tell her neck is getting better and better.

What a joy Anna is on her big 12 week birthday!!! We love you Anna!

If stretching were an Olympic sport, Anna would be a gold medalist in the Beijing Games.

Dad here, hijacking Mom's blog. Had to share this video of Anna stretching.

GROSS!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I was upstairs in the kitchen and I hear Curt yell "Oh GROSS!" from downstairs. I figured it involves Anna and some bodily function. So in my eagerness to help I.... stayed upstairs and stayed quiet! :-) But my curiosity got the better of me and I asked what happened. Turns out it involved spit up and a certain open orafice of Curt's that was smiling up at her. He he he. Too gross for words. Babies are fun! Curt took it like a champ though and just said, "It was bound to happen eventually!" What a sport!

Anna in a big girl chair for the FIRST TIME!!!

I was a video taking fool yesterday! Here is a video of Anna using a big girl chair for the FIRST TIME!!!! Anna + Bumbo chair = cutalicious!

Video of Anna on Playmat

Here is a fantastic video of Anna Banana on her playmat. She gets happier and happier everyday!

Back at it again...

OK, I promise... I'll stop blogging soon. But I just wanted to put my evening out there in the universe so it'll return many like this to me in the future. So, little Senorita Stinkypants went to bed at 8ish and has STAYED THERE.... what?????? I should've gone to bed already but keep telling myself that she'll sound the alarm at any minute. Not true - my mommy instincts are telling me. The origional Mr Stinkers (Curt) went to bed at nine. I'm oh so happy for him to go to bed at a decent time, since he woke up before five am to work out at the Y (Thanks Granny and Grandpa!) Anyway, as I sat here on the computer, I heard a thunderstorm a-brewin. I headed outside in my short sleeved t-shirt (this is February 4rd in Tel-Aviv, evidently) and just stood there looking at the glorious sight of rain in the streetlight. Every once in a while the wind would blow some rain under the porch and onto my skin and I would just giggle. I listened to the wind and the rain and the distant rumbles and had good thoughts for all humankind. I wish you had all been there! Or maybe not - perhaps that was a moment best spent alone. When I came inside, I remember thinking, "I feel like I just went to church!" It was delicious. Well, I need to stop being irresponsible and go to bed in case this night escapade for Anna really IS a big fake and I'll be on duty soon. Love, Me

Second post, whoohoo!

Here are pics of Anna Bananna. The first was the second day of Anna's life, and the second was yesterday, the day before her ten week birthday! She's such a doll. We had a great day today. It was 74 degrees on February 4th!!!! We went on a walk and she absolutely loved it. Ok, well.. she slept through it but she told me later that she loved it. Later, Curt and I grilled dinner outside on the porch. Not bad for the middle of winter! We are all eagerly awaiting the birth of Anna's BFF cousin, Molly, who will be making her debut any day now. Well, that's enough for tonight. Gotta go get something done before the Anna alarm goes off!

Anna Bananna and The Terrifying Tale

OK, So we'll see if I actually follow through with this blogging stuff. A friend from my (ex)work got me hooked on her blog so I thought I'd try it out.
Right now, I'm typing on a laptop while my hubby, daughter, and probably my cats are all snoozing. What is wrong with me? Why am I not alseep? Because I'm not quite convinced that the Anna Alarm will not sound soon and ruin this.
Curt calls her "the terrorist" because you never know when she'll stike and she lulls you into complacency before ripping apart the peace. Ahhh but she's wonderful. What kind of crazy parent hormone make you say someones a terrorist and wonderful in the same inch? Yikes.
Right now Anna is one day short of being ten weeks old. I'll fill you in on the ten weeks some other time. Right now, sleep calls. The terrorist/cutey/poop-machine/snugly/amazing person might sound the Anna Alarm at any time and I need to pretend that I'm about to sleep through the night to convince myself to conk out. Ta ta!