Almost 4 months

The time is passing quickly! I've been back to work for well over a month now and things have been pretty hectic. Trying to juggle a crazy schedule and an infant has been challenging - mostly tiring. I'm responsible for the daily daycare pickup and drop off, which makes things interesting. I had to be at work at the crack of dawn one day this week, so Darren managed to be responsible for daycare and the teachers said that he did great! We have a pretty good routine these days. She wakes up about once a night to eat. I get her up around 6 and we listen to the baby cds my mom got her while we get ready to leave. Our morning interactions are the best - she's full of energy and ready to play. It'd be pretty funny to be a fly on the wall in our house though. I'm sure it's ridiculous to the outside observer how Darren and I sing and dance to "This Old Man" while getting dressed. She likes it though and that's what's important. :) We're home by 6:30 and then we have an hour together before Darren gives her a bath. Obviously we don't have much time together during the workweek, so the weekends have become more important to us.

Newlyn has full head control now and is pretty active. She wiggles around all the time so I really have to watch her. This morning, when I went in her room to check on her, she was lying perpendicular in her crib! She's almost rolling over onto her tummy - I think she'll accomplish that in the next week or so. The daycare teachers think she's going to be an early talker because she's already trying so hard to get noise out. If I say "ahh-goo" to her, she says it back to me immediately. She has another few sounds that she can imitate easily. We're working on some basic words and signing, but obviously it's too early for her to really get them.

She really likes daycare and it's pretty cool to hear about what she does during the day with the other babies. I haven't been able to go feed her at lunchtime very often, but she's doing great and I really like having the extra adult time during the day. I haven't taken too many lunch breaks, but when I have, it's been really nice to have some alone time. I think that the absence during the day makes our time at night more special. She's always very happy to see us in the evenings. Her daycare couldn't possibly be any more perfect, so we're happy all around.

We're excited about the holidays, but probably going to lay low until that point. Darren and I don't have the energy to leave Pittsburgh on the weekends and it's hard to interrupt her schedule. We want to get out and do some hiking, but it's been really rainy on the weekends. We're hoping for good weather next weekend because most likely, we'll be in for the season after that.

Here's the baby last weekend. She's getting big...about 15.5 lbs and pushing 25 inches.

Summer's Over - Back to the Grind!

Oh boy, where to begin?! It's been a while since we last posted because we've been busy enjoying the end of the summer. We went to Cincinnati to see my aunt and uncle, took the baby to her first baseball game (go Reds!), visited with Darren's family over Labor Day, and caught up with some friends that weekend. Newlyn and I took our first road trip sans Daddy this week when we did a quick jaunt to Maryland to take my grandmother to a couple of doctor's appointments. We did very well, but it was pretty obvious that the baby didn't like being out of her routine and she missed Daddy. Hopefully we won't have to do any more trips without him for a while.

Newlyn is tons of fun to play with these days. She's cooing and laughing all the time now. Every morning she greets me with a big stretch followed by a big smile. We're so lucky to have such a happy baby! Here she is interacting with Darren.

I'm officially back to work now. Yesterday was my first day back, but I worked from home, so I didn't have to leave the baby. Monday will be my first time away from her and I'm pretty nervous about it. I've gone through all the stages of grieving the end of my maternity leave and I'm ready to get back to business. Having Newlyn has put some things in perspective though...work doesn't have to be the bulk of my life! I'm going to try to go feed her each day at lunchtime, so I'm pretty sure that'll help keep my blood pressure low. How can you be upset when you see this adorable face?!?!

Hiking at McConnell's Mill

Since we brought Newlyn home from the hospital, we've done a pretty good job of getting her out and about with us. She loves riding in the car, but is a bit of a backseat driver and will start to whine if we get caught in traffic or stuck at a redlight (this is one of her many endearing qualities). Her first roadtrip to visit family in Maryland went very well, so we figured we could change things up a bit from the usual trips to Target, Babies R Us, and the grocery store and head out for a hike to McConnell's Mill State Park. The heat and humidity have returned to the 'burgh, so we decided to start early so we could finish the hike around lunchtime for a picnic at the park.

Now that Newlyn is big enough, she's able to ride in the Baby Bjorn carrier. If you're not familiar, it's one of those contraptions that make you look like you're about to take your infant skydiving. She loves it. We did a moderate two mile hike that follows the Slippery Rock Creek and is mostly in the shade. Lauren & I took turns with Newlyn in the Bjorn and two miles seemed to be just about the perfect length to coincide with her next feeding!

We're looking forward to taking her on more walks through Frick Park and back to Ohiopyle in the fall.

Family Everywhere!

We survived our first road trip with Newlyn last weekend. We drove to Maryland to visit with family. We stayed with my grandma ("Girty") and were able to see my Uncle Tracy and my mom. Girty loved the baby and spent hours holding her, which gave me a lovely break.

On Saturday, we ventured to the Frederick area for my grandfather's 85th birthday party. It was a mini family reunion and many of my cousins travelled in from out of the area. It was my dad and Vikki's first time meeting the baby. Everyone doted over her and again, she stayed in other folks' arms for several hours. She's such a good baby...doesn't complain about having new people hold her and rarely fusses in general.

On Sunday, we headed to Bedford to see Darren's parents. Luckily, Darren's uncle was in town from Tennessee, so he was able to meet the baby as well! Most of Bill and Judy's close friends were able to stop by to see the baby, so again, lots of new people held her. When we came home, she just wanted to hang out by herself and stretch out. She spent all of Monday morning in her bouncer - just happy to have some time to herself.

Newlyn will be six weeks old this Thursday and it's amazing to watch her develop. She's smiling more and more (although still not regularly in response to us) and can hold her head up for a while. She had her one-month doctor's appointment last week and she's in the 75th percentile for height and 50th for weight and head size. She's gained 3 pounds and 2.5 inches since birth! I'm particularly happy about this fact since it feels like I spend 100% of my time feeding her.

One Month

Newlyn turned one month old today! The time is passing very quickly and as much as I want her to grow and become more interactive with us, it's sad to think about how fast it's passing by us. Pretty soon, I'll be back to work and missing her like crazy!

Newlyn is a great baby. She really makes motherhood seem very easy. :) I'm hoping it stays this way! We haven't been to the doctor for a few weeks (we'll go later this week), so I don't have an official weight for her, but according to my rough estimate, she is about 8.5 pounds and 21 inches. She's gained nearly 3 pounds since her low point (5 pounds, 7 ounces) when she was sick and over 2 pounds since birth! She's eating like a champ (feedings are somewhere between 1.25 and 2.5 hours apart) and is sleeping well. She still eats 4-5 times at night, but usually goes right back to sleep after eating. We have her out and about constantly and she's really easy to get around with. We're going to the library for baby lapsit each week and she's really well behaved. We've visited my offices and Darren's as well. Everyone loves meeting her!

The Lloyd's came over for a visit yesterday. It was Newlyn's first time meeting Aunt Dana and Uncle Rob. Grandma and Pap Lloyd hadn't seen her in nearly three weeks, so it was obvious to them how much she's grown and how much stronger she's become. We went out to dinner together and Newlyn was a champ through all the loud noises during the meal. We sat outside at a restaurant in the southside and there were dogs barking and motorcycles riding by. She barely even flinched!

Here are the photos from yesterday.

Almost a Month Old

Newlyn is nearly a month old and seems to be growing like a weed. Darren commented today that he thought her head got bigger while he was at work. She's learned that the nighttime is for sleeping, so we're all doing much better. Just in the last few days, she's been sleeping well and going right back to sleep after each feeding. Darren's well-rested since she's not crying all night and I'm getting more sleep too.

Shannon has been visiting with us for a few days. We've had a good visit and Shannon has been a huge help around the house. This morning, she took care of Newlyn so I could take a much-needed nap. Today we went shopping and bought some really cute clothes for the baby. She's heading back to Virginia tomorrow though, so we'll go back to our normal routine.

We have lots of family visits planned for the next few weeks, so we'll be busy, but will try to post pictures quickly.

Newlyn Has Arrived!

Our beautiful baby girl, Newlyn Frances, was born at 7:56pm on July 2nd. We've been at home with her for a week now and things are going well. She was initially jaundiced and lost a significant amount of weight, but is better now. She's almost back to her birth weight of 6 lbs, 4 oz. Darren took this week off from work and has been amazing with the baby. She sleeps mostly during the day and stays up all night, so we've been working in shifts with her while the other sleeps. It's going to be rough when Darren goes back to work, but we're looking forward to a visit from Grandma Davis to help me out with that transition. Grandma and Pap Lloyd came by this week and brought us a fridge-full of food and clothes that actually fit Newlyn (she's too small for 0-3 month clothes still), which was a great surprise. Our families have been very supportive and hopefully we'll be able to have everyone meet her soon! She still hasn't met her Grandpa Davis and Vikki, Aunt Dana and Uncle Rob, or Uncle Cameron.

Here are some pictures - more to come soon.

Oh wow...I'm really big now...

I'm now 33.5 weeks and it's amazing how big I've gotten. The weather has warmed up and over the weekend, I really noticed how swollen I've gotten. I can't tell how much of my weight gain is water, but it feels like I'm really stiff and puffy, so I'm trying to blame my size on being swollen, not just being a cow. Here's a pic of us from over the weekend. Not flattering at all, but it's me.

My girlfriends visited from Virginia last weekend and we had a really nice time. It's amazing how quickly I get tired now though. I still haven't recuperated from having visitors all weekend. Thank goodness for the short work week! We've decided that I'm not going anywhere or making plans until well after the baby has arrived. Sorry - that means that you can't visit any time soon!! I just don't have the energy for it and poor D ends up having to do all the cleaning, etc to prep for visitors. I'm also a little worried about going into labor early and don't want to be far from home. I've really started to become uncomfortable and am having trouble sleeping. In fact, it's not quite 3am now and I've been up for a while. I guess it's good practice though.

I had an ultrasound at 32 weeks and then they estimated the baby's weight to be 4lbs 12oz (about a pound more than you'd expect at that point). I'm mentally preparing myself to have a big baby. The labor will probably be a little worse, but hopefully LBL will be healthy with a little extra weight!

Darren's doing well and just trying to enjoy the last few weeks before becoming a dad. Hopefully he'll be able to stay in the 'burgh during upcoming weekends so he can get a few rounds of golf in. I doubt he'll have the energy to play much after the baby comes.

10 weeks to go...but who's counting?!

As of today, we've reached the wonderful 30-week mark. I am so happy that there are only 10 more weeks until LBL is due! We're continuing to get ready for her arrival and are almost done. Her room is just missing a rocker and curtains at this point. Priscilla continues to explore the room as we add to it and I'm hopeful that she won't be so curious after her sister comes home.

Speaking of Priscilla - she's not amused by the baby growing in my belly. She won't sit on my lap anymore and really gets weirded out when she feels the baby move. Darren has been spending extra quality time with her to make up for her disinterest in me.

I'm finally feeling human again after being sick for nearly two weeks. I caught a nasty virus that invaded my head and chest, but also made me nauseous. I still have a bit of the cough, but otherwise I'm okay. It was incredibly frustrating though because there wasn't anything I could take to feel better. I went to the doctor and she wasn't very helpful...after a week and lots of begging, she finally gave me Tylenol with codeine to help me sleep. The timing of my illness was interesting. It feels like everyone around me has the thought that I contracted the swine flu.

D is doing well and has been really supportive. I've been completely miserable between the sickness and my messed-up back. It seems that pregnancy has caused me to have a pinched nerve in my back, so I've been in a fair amount of pain. I'm going to the chiropractor, but he's telling me that it's going to take several adjustments to get my back to stay fixed up. He's been able to provide temporary relief, but it just won't stick yet. I've decided that I'm not leaving Pittsburgh for the remainder of the pregnancy. It's too challenging for me to sit in the car, even on short trips, so I'm going to just stay at home. If I stay in bed, my back isn't as bad, so I spend most of my free time propped up in bed with my laptop. D has been spending his spare time at the driving range. I think it bums him out that I won't go with him, but it's just too much to sit around with this achy back and watch him hit balls.

D and I went to Lamaze class yesterday. We're doing a two-weekend intensive class and both of us agree that it's kind of a waste. Since I have practiced yoga on and off for several years, the breathing and focus techniques are pretty common sense to me. It was hilarious that most of the people in the class asked questions about epidurals...it was as if no one had the confidence that they could have their child without medical intervention. I'm definitely not opposed to the drugs and will probably take them to me, but haven't made up my mind yet.

We have officially agreed on LBL's name, which is very exciting! We're not spilling the beans until she arrives, but it's nice to know what we're going to call her.

Here I am at 30 weeks. I woke up on Friday this week and could actually feel how my stomach had grown - almost overnight. I'm starting to become more paranoid about stretch marks as a result. :)

Happy Easter!

Darren is now referring to this as my blog...hence the reason why he hasn't posted in months. I'll see if I can convince him to write something so you're not just hearing baby-babble from me.

It's Easter Sunday and our house is full, but everyone else is sleeping. I thought I'd take the time to write a little something. There's not much new to report on our end, we've just been busy with little things. The weather is starting to get nicer - last weekend was sunny and 65, but on Monday and Tuesday is snowed. Now it's starting to warm up again. Our tulips are starting to sprout, so hopefully we'll have some color in the yard in a couple of weeks.

Last weekend we went to my grandmother's house for a quick trip. My mom and uncle were in as well, so we had a good time eating ourselves silly. We didn't make the requisite hot dog trip to Hanover, PA, but I had a really good cheeseburger sub from the ice cream place that we used to frequent when I was little. I've realized that I'm now judging "a good time" by the food selections. I'm eating all the time and really starting to chunk up. I keep telling myself to slow down, but at the same time, I'm just too hungry to stop! Anyway, it was good to see the family - I only get to hang out with that group about once per year. Hopefully that will change after the arrival of LBL. My mom brought a bunch of stuff from her house that we're using in the nursery. I was most excited about a big box of children's books, but Darren really liked this old doll that I had. He's using it to practice being a parent. :)

This weekend, Darren's family is in town with us. We went to see A Chorus Line yesterday, which was pretty good. I'm not a big fan of musicals with limited sets, etc, but the show was still decent. We went to dinner at Pittsburgh's new Hofbrauhaus, which was an event. The wait was FOREVER, so of course I was in a bad mood (nothing should stand between me and my next meal!!). The food/beer was okay...I think the place is more about the atmosphere than anything. We haven't done much else this weekend - it's a quick trip for the Lloyd's and they'll be heading out this afternoon.

Priscilla is pretty funny these days. She's definitely aware that something is "up." She won't sit in my lap anymore - I think it's because she feels the baby squirming in my tummy. At the same time, she's being really loving. Darren's hanging out with her all the time, which I think she likes. She's also happy with the spring sunshine. Here she is in our bedroom window.

And finally, what would a blog post be without the consistent pictures of my growing gut. These are from yesterday - 27 weeks.

Happy Easter, everyone!

23 Weeks

This week has been busy for both of us. We're trying to take care of the nursery so that we have one less thing to do when I'm gigantic and uncomfortable, which will be here before we know it. Darren and I cleaned out the office and he took care of the painting. We decided to use the same khaki-ish color as we used in most of the house, but painted one wall chartreuse. I think it's okay - Darren really likes it and has promised me that it'll look great once the furniture arrives. Here are some shots of the painting project.

(Notice the fact that Darren is already wearing "dad jeans.")

We purchased the nursery furniture today, which was really exciting. It should arrive in PGH somewhere between 8 and 12 weeks from now - I guess it's a good thing that we ordered it now! Now we just need to buy the rocking chair and pick out curtains and the room will be done. I haven't seen any curtains I like and I don't think I'll be able to convince my mom to make them for us... We have the crib bedding already as well. We've picked out most of the stuff we need and are starting to chip away at buying it. It's amazing how much stuff you supposedly need to take care of a baby!

I've started buying clothes for LBL, which is really addicting. She's definitely going to be a well-dressed baby! There are already several outfits hanging in her closet. Darren groans when he hears that I've bought things for her, but he totally melts when he sees the stuff.

Darren continues to read to my stomach every night. She seems to respond well to it. We went to the movies last night and saw The Wrestler. The theater was really loud and LBL reacted unfavorably. It was like she was pounding on the wall of a neighboring apartment to get people to shut up. I don't think she likes loud noises.

I'm feeling pretty good these days. My back is really achy and I'm dying for a massage. Darren's mom gave me and his sister Christmas gift certificates for massages at the Bedford Springs and I'm about ready to hop on the turnpike to redeem it. I'm also puffy, which can't be a great thing this early in the game. Otherwise, I feel fine and don't have any major complaints.

Work has been very busy for each of us. Darren potentially has a new project that he's excited about and my job is just always busy. You'd think that with the economy being slow, recruiting and HR would be slow, but somehow that doesn't affect me. I'm not complaining - it's a good thing that I'm busy. :)

We're trying to schedule some trips to see friends in the coming weeks. We want to get down to MD and NoVA in April or May since we know that we won't be on the road for a while after the baby arrives. Darren's family is visiting us over Easter weekend as well, so our weekends will be packed for a while!

LBL is a GIRL!

We found out two weeks ago that Little Baby Lloyd is a girl. I was really shocked - I completely believed we were having a boy. Darren really thought that it was a girl, so he was right and I was wrong (par for the course!). Once the shock wore off, we both got really excited about the idea of having a little girl run around. My mom is convinced that she's going to have dark hair like mine and look like the Samantha American Girl doll and is now hunting for one (they've stopped making them). I'm flattered that my mom is already dropping that much coin on her grandaughter!!

I'm 21 weeks now and the baby is really active. Her kicks/jabs are much stronger than I would have expected for this stage in the pregnancy. It's really comforting knowing that she's in there and apparently doing pretty well. She's head-up, so hopefully she'll move herself into a more appropriate position soon. It feels like she's doing backflips in there, so I'm hoping that she'll drop head-down easily. I find myself worrying about her constantly. My big (really silly) concern is that she's not going to recognize Darren's voice and but be familiar with my co-workers because I spend so much time around them. I realize this is rediculous, but I'm still thinking about it. As a result, Darren is reading to my stomach each night. She seems to respond to it...she squirms around like crazy while he's reading. I'm taking that as a sign that she likes it and she's going to be a big reader like I am.

This pic is from over a week ago, but it's the most recent one I have. We'll add more soon.

18 Weeks

Well, we're getting close to the halfway point in the pregnancy. I realized today that my stomach is rounding out...I felt it when I tried to put my socks on this evening. My tummy is starting to get in the way of me! I guess that's only going to get worse as things progress though. The other fun thing is that I'm swelling. My ankles look puffy (my ankles actually puffed over my socks the other day) and my face looks really big (see photo below).

Assuming LBL cooperates, we'll find out the sex this coming Wednesday. At this point, he or she is about 7 oz and 5.6-6 inches long. They'll give us a DVD of the ultrasound, so hopefully I can post that on this site.

Little Barack Lloyd (aka LBL)

In case you haven't heard, D and I have decided to reproduce. I'm currently 17 weeks pregnant and am starting to feel human again - the first trimester was not pleasant. LBL is due in mid-July and we're very excited. To answer all the standard questions, yes, we're going to find out the sex (on 2/18 if LBL cooperates) and yes, we're going to tell people. We've decided not to disclose our list of baby names prior to his or her arrival though - LBL is just our affectionate name for the fetus. D's very interested in taking pictures of my stomach, so I'm sure we'll post those on here for your viewing pleasure. Here are the first two.

Barely pregnant (just a little chubby):

16 weeks:I actually weigh less now than I did in the first pic, but I've become really moon-faced. Just think how bad it's going to be 5 months from now! To quote my grandmother, I'm going to "look like the moon coming over the mountain."