Happy Thanksgiving!

A Baptism, Halloween, Solids, First Cold & Two Teeth!

I can't believe it's already November and Rose will be 6 months old in just a few days. The last couple weeks have flown by. A lot has been happening keeping us pretty busy. We introduced Rose to solid food last weekend. We started with homemade puree of carrots and then sweet potatoes. This week we will try squash. It was one of the funniest things ever. She made some faces never seen before and didn't know what to think of that stuff we were trying to get in that little mouth. Hopefully she'll get the hang of it and start to enjoy it a little more.

What is this stuff?!

After drooling and putting everything in her mouth for the last several months, her two bottom teeth cut through! Rose officially has a couple of chompers. She was a trooper and didn't get a fever but was a little fussier than normal. We're on the lookout for more which will be coming soon.

Little fashion diva 

We also celebrated Rose's baptism with the family last Sunday. She was a very good girl, but was getting so tired at church since she missed her morning nap. Surprisingly, after fussing a bit throughout the long service, she was on her best behavior when it was show time with the minister. We really enjoyed having the family at our place afterwards. It was a good day.

At church

Sleepyhead was exhausted

Right after solids and then the baptism, Halloween was upon us. Rose was a sweet little strawberry this year. We didn't do any trick or treating but enjoyed her costume for some photo opps.

Happy Halloween

Trick or Treat

Why am I dressed like a strawberry

How can I eat this pumpkin?

I love my toys!

She started to get a little cough this past week and lost a bit of her appetite and was kind of fussy so we took her in to get checked. Rose has her first cold, but hopefully is on the mend. Mom and Dad have had a few short nights since that cough will wake her up. Poor thing :(

Daddy's Girl (in her guitar PJ's)

Check out my cool new ball

 Her official weigh in at 5.5 months was 17lb 6 oz and 26.5in long. She is getting so big and strong. She even started sitting up on her own this week. What an amazing transformation from our little newborn just a few months ago.

Go Green!

What a fun couple of weeks! Rose is getting more and more coordinated everyday. She is our little jumping bean in her jumper and has been rolling around more to reach out for her favorite toys. She loves anything she can chew on (including her feet) and anything with lights or music. She seems to really enjoy Cookie Monster (thanks to Grandma T) and you have to do the voice along with him. She grins from ear to ear.

Yum!

She had her friends Simona and Campbell over to cheer on the Spartans play the Wolverines. The kids looked so cute as their parents had them all decked out in green and white. We also went to celebrate her friend Ashley's first birthday this past Saturday. There were so many kids to keep an eye on and she really enjoyed seeing those on the move, especially little Miss Ashley. She was dolled up in an Elmo outfit, so adorable! Rose is fascinated watching other kids. She also got to spend some quality time with her cousin Jack, who spent the weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's house. He's a busy boy!

Future Spartans?

Over the last week, Rose has starting sleeping longer which gives Mom a well needed break. She's working on 7-8 hour stretches. We've even had a couple of 9 hour nights (keep your fingers crossed that this continues!) She has also moved out of our room and up into her crib this week. She seems to be doing just fine, but we miss having her so close.

Happy Girl

 Another big update is that her first tooth is appearing! She has been fussing a little more than normal and drooling like crazy. We checked on Monday night and we can see the bottom right one coming up. She's been doing pretty well so hopefully it doesn't bother her too much. We're also planning to start solids this coming weekend. I am going to attempt making the food at home and see how it goes. Stay tuned for the next big update.

Indian Summer

 This past weekend we had lots of fun enjoying the great weather. We hit the trail, (ok the mean streets of Saline), and enjoyed the neighborhood on Saturday and Sunday. Many people were out and there was a lot to look at! We did a little shopping at the mall and Rose was awake and checking things out the whole time. I think she really enjoyed all the shiny things at the Macy's Christmas display. Can you believe it's out already?!

We did lots of playing and I hit up a mom to mom sale and found some great finds. Rose now has her first toy guitar, much to Dad's delight. I'll need to get a picture of that.

We enjoyed celebrating Great Grandma W's belated birthday. Rose was full of smiles for everyone and busy in the exersaucer and her bumbo. Those thighs are getting pretty chunky so I think the bumbo's days are numbered.

Our Big Girl Has A Big Week!

So Rose has been very busy this past week. She enjoyed her very first sleepover with Grandma and Grandpa T last Saturday! She was a very good girl, so will hopefully be welcomed back :) She also spent three days in a row with Grandma H enjoying the nice weather and all her toys.

We set up her jumper last weekend and she enjoys bouncing around while trying to put any or all of her toys in her mouth at the same time. No teeth have popped up quite yet, but we are certainly going through the bibs trying to catch that drool.

She has discovered her feet and likes putting those toes in her mouth after bath time. She squeals with delight at this newfound talent. Such fun :)

4 Month Checkup

Today we had Rose's 4 month checkup. She has been doing great and getting big so we were wondering how she would measure up. She's up to 15lb 13oz, and was 25.5in long! She checked out beautifully and we are so happy to have a healthy girl. She even put a brave face on for her shots. She only cried for a few seconds before starting to giggle at mom's silly faces.

Ready for my Saturday walk-Let's go!

I love to play!!

We also put the exersaucer together this weekend. She is having lots of fun working on standing and checking out her new toys. She is so busy and doesn't want to miss a thing.

Love at First Sight-Happy Birthday Rose!

Rose's Birth Story

It was about 4:45am on Sunday May 15th and contractions woke me up. My official due date was May 18th, so we were within striking distance. I had my membranes swept at the doctor on Friday the 13th, which also happened to be my last day at work. I alerted Ryan that I thought that something was happening and he quickly woke up and became very concerned. The contractions were coming regularly, about 4-5 minutes apart. They kept coming so I called the doctor and Ryan took a quick shower and loaded up the car with the bags I had packed for weeks now. We were on our way, could we really be having this baby?!

We didn't hear back from the doctor's office within a half hour so we just left for the hospital and arrived about 6:15am. Both of my mom's labors were very fast and she hardly had time to spare after arriving to the hospital so I didn't want that to happen. They wheeled me up to labor and delivery where I had to fill out some paperwork and then they took me to an exam room. The contractions were becoming closer together and the pain was more intense. They checked me and I was between 3-4cm dilated. My water hadn't broken, but I was fully effaced. They admitted me, so there was no turning back now and optimistically thought I might even have the baby by lunchtime, but Rose had other ideas. 

I elected to receive an epidural and got this about 9:30am. It helped for about an hour or two. My contractions were topping the chart every 2 minutes and each lasted about 90 seconds so I didn't have much relief between them. All of a sudden, I started to feel intense pain in my back and low in my pelvis. Rose moved her position and her head was facing the outside of my left hip. Unfortunately, the anethesiologist came back and said when the baby is in that position, so low in the birth canal and turned that way, the epidural doesn't relieve that pain. No kidding!! All I could do was try different positions and I have never been more mentally focused in my life, even more than when I ran the Cleveland marathon. That was only 4 hours. This experience ended up being about 15 hours.

The labor room was quiet and calm all day. I had my eyes closed and didn't say much. I kept thinking about being on the beaches in Maui or driving along the ocean. Ryan was so supportive and had my music playlist going in the background. My mom was also there for a while to be there with us. Both of our parents, Ray, PJ, and the kids were eagerly anticipating the news in the hospital waiting room as the hours kept passing.

After a very long day, it looked like I was ready to push at about 6pm, approximately 13 hours after my contractions began. At 7:19pm, Rose Makena was born. She weighed 7 pounds 9 ounces and was 20 inches long. She was perfect and beautiful!! At last, we had met our little one and the difficulty of the day seemed to be a distant memory. She was so tough and strong throughout the entire pregnancy and day. The doctor and nurses couldn't believe how stable her heart rate and vitals were through my crazy day of contractions. Most people, would have had a c-section under those circumstances but Rose was tough and wanted to come when she was ready. 

We are so thrilled to have her here with us and can't wait to share news and updates about her. Here are some of the earliest pics from the hospital.

Proud Parents

My beautiful girl

Grandma T

Grandpa H Got a Smile

Finally a little girl for Grandma H

Grandpa T