Sunday, July 31, 2011

Happy 30th, Daddy!

Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy 30th Birthday to Daddy!
Happy Birthday to you!!





Saturday, July 16, 2011

Rosemary, 1 Month

Dear Rosemary,
I did these monthly postings for the other two kids, and I'm going to try to keep it up for you- even though you are the third child! ;) You will grow and change so fast in this first exciting year, and it's always so neat to have your little milestones and precious moments recorded somewhere. And since this mommy doesn't do baby books, this is our only shot!
This first month has flown by- daddy and I keep saying "I can't believe it's been a full month"! Of course, we know from experience as we look at your big sister and brother, each day with our babies flies by! You are sweetly moving from newborn stage to baby stage, losing the "brand-new" look, starting to open your eyes and look around more, and plumping up in your cheeks and baby rolls. Here are a few highlights:

~Stats: At your 1 month checkup (7/15) you weighed 9 lbs 2 oz (52%), height: 21 inches (51%)- right in the middle, but up from your previous percentages so we know you are growing great.
You are eating 3-3.5 oz, 7x per day, from 6-7am first feeding till midnight last feeding, then sleeping from about 12:30am-6-7am. You win for Hipp sleeping thru the night the earliest! Not sure how that happened, only that maybe brother and sister wear you out like they do mommy every day! ;) We (mommy!) are SO grateful for this gift of sleep and can only give credit to our schedule and God for making you this way! We can only hope this will continue!
~You are having longer awake times, which are so fun because we get to interact with you! You are holding eye contact better, looking for someone when you hear a voice or noise, and even giving a few beginning smiles- mostly to Georgia and Lincoln. I guess daddy and I aren't as funny as them! Your longest wake time seems to be in the evening, when you'll often stay awake from about 8:30 till 10:30-11:30pm. You still sleep a LOT (not complaining!!), but these longer wake times are fun too!
Sisters...
Big brother love...
~One funny story about your new ability to be awake & aware is your new "friend"- when being changed you always stare intently at the baby on the Huggies package sitting on the edge of your changing table. You're only one month old and already have a little friend to hang out with!
Another funny thing- you must really be soothed by the sound of water, because when I give you a bath in the kitchen sink you fall fast asleep, right there in the water! I think you're going to be a bubble bath girl!
~It amazes us that we haven't had to pull out a pacifier for you yet. We just haven't needed it! You have had some "fussy" times, but generally can be calmed down to a reasonable volume by just being held. You also love to find your thumb or fingers for sucking comfort, and I often find you with one wiggled out of your swaddle and jammed in your mouth in the morning. Again- we are not against paci's, as your sister and brother used them from the beginning, and we're just waiting to see where this goes! But it is cute to see you find your thumb and hold it against your little mouth like its the best thing ever!

~Your first month hasn't been all smooth sailing. At 3 weeks you developed the worst diaper rash I'd ever seen- horrible blisters all over your diaper area! I took you in to the Doc and it was thought it might be a staph infection. (Thankfully tested not to be staph, days later, just a horrible rash.) On top of that I found out you had thrush (a yeast infection in your mouth, common in babies but uncomfortable). So we got you on an antibiotic, thrush medicine for your mouth, an ointment for the rash, and special soap for baths. Thankfully it all cleared up over a few days, and you handled it like a champ.
~You're also the first Hipp to have hip issues- because you were breech at birth you showed a bit of hip dysplasia, meaning one of your hips is not sitting completely in the hip socket, something that is common in breech babies. So we've been to see a pediatric orthopedist who will keep an eye on the development of that hip for the next month. This is really just a precaution and the doc is optimistic that it will be fine and no further treatment will be needed. In the meantime- baby got back! :) We have to triple diaper you (literally 2 extra diapers on top of your regular diaper) in an effort to hold your legs in a more outward splayed position, which (I think) is to help that hip settle back into the socket. This gives you some serious padding in the rear!
1 Week Old
1 Month Old

It's been such a sweet first month with you, baby Rosemary! I am loving your little bitty-ness, and precious baby-ness. Some afternoons, when brother and sister are still napping and the house is quiet, I lay down with you snuggled against my chest. We take a little snooze together and just enjoy the peace. We are all still so excited you're here, and Georgia and Lincoln can't get enough of you. We thank God for you every day, that you are healthy and well, being such a great baby sister, and that we get to enjoy you. What a sweet and precious gift He has entrusted us with, and we are praying for your future knowing Him already! We love you, baby Rosemary- happy first month!
love, mommy

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Tutus and Mud

We've been playing at Grammie and Grandad's house this weekend- swimming in the pool, and the kids got their first taste of the bay, literally, as the explored and swam under the dock. Don't let Georgia's pink tutu bathing suit- that she picked out and insisted on wearing- fool you- - she likes getting mucky, finding treasures under slime and picking up creepy-crawlies! Lincoln is the one that actually carefully picks along, following only after Georgia paves the way. But they both loved it, and provided mommy with some great photo ops!














Thursday, July 7, 2011

Week Three with Rosemary

Rosemary is three weeks old today... I'm caught somewhere in the middle of:
Three weeks already?! Where is the time going?? and
Only three weeks?! It seems like she's always been here!
Remember the blog post about our little family of four? How soon we wouldn't even remember what life was like BBS (Before Baby Sister)? I think we're already entering into that time. I think it's because my days focus so much on her- feeding, changing, holding, sleeping... We're definitely not doing much else around here.
She's a little thumb-sucker! We gave the other 2 kids a paci right from the start, but we haven't even really given it to her yet, just b/c it hasn't been needed. We'll see where we go from here on this...
Fingers work too, when you can't find your thumb!

The two big kids (it's kinda weird that I can all them the "big kids" now!) are thankfully putting up with this new daily grind pretty well. We spend a lot of time just playing- I recently saw the quote "Imagination is the child of boredom" and it definitely fits our days right now! They get bored- I tell them to go play- and then they off are building roads across the living room out of blocks, and setting up a doctor's office with the Mr. Potato Heads, and "building" a dog house under the dining room table with Lincoln's tools. If you've been around a 2 & 4 year old, you can imagine the kind of mess these games create, but we're just rolling with it!
Grammie also brought over a fun surprise- an inflatable pool that's just big enough to splash, kick, and roll around in during these hot summer days!




BabyRosemary (as Lincoln calls her, like it's one word) is doing great, and starting to have more awake time a couple of times a day, which is fun. The kids get very excited when they see her eyes open- that's how rare it's been these first few weeks! She's earned her nickname "The Snoozer"! She's a very laid-back baby- so far- and we're grateful. Who knows how long it will last!! We know she'll enter the chaos at full volume at some point!

She certainly does love her daddy- he is by far her favorite snoozin spot!
It's amazing how quickly babies grow and change in these early days. We already feel like she's growing out of the newborn days into "baby-ness". She still doesn't "do" much- and I try to soak that in every day! Since these days of having an "itty-bitty" around are already passing by, I try to fully absorb every minute! And she is happy to oblige me, just being her beautiful little self and lying content in my arms. Ahhhh- sweet baby love!!!

More thumb love!

Rosemary, 2-3 Weeks Old