How cute

Madeline is really starting to talk up a storm now and she has her own way of saying things that are so cute. We don't drink coffee in the morning, but rather it's pronounced foc-ee. Mickey Mouse is Ma-Ma Mouse, Goofy is Gookie and Sophia is Fo-fie. And her beloved blankie is mankie. I'm sure there are more, but that's all I can remember for now.

Yesterday we had a sitter for her for a few hours and when we got back home, she seriously told us a story for like 5-10 minutes. I have no idea what she was saying, but she sure thought it was important.

One Month Today!

The monthly pictures are back! Except this time I'm changing things up a bit. I found these monthly stickers online instead of using a sign. Not only are they super cute, but it will be easier to get the shots when she gets older. It was tough keeping Madeline from grabbing her sign in the last few months of her pictures.

I took this when she was about 2 weeks old. So yeah, she wasn't exactly zero but close enough.

And here she is at one month. You can really tell she is longer and heavier. And you can see she is even starting to give me smiles. I love it! She doesn't go to the doctor for her check-up until next week so I don't know her stats yet.

Fun at daycare

Notes from her teacher...."Madeline has been showing all of her friends how to hold our baby dolls nicely. She waits for them to sit down and then hands them a baby and shows them how to hold them! So cute!"

"madeline loved getting tickled today"



"Crawling in and out and being carried around inside a bag is one thing she really likes to do when we play in the muscle room!"

"Madeline is having a lot of fun today, and so far she's kept her pigtails in all morning! She liked dressing up in our new bird costume and helping count her friends when we called everyone's names...she's really getting good at it!"

Thank You

Well once again, nursing hasn't worked out for me. I really tried hard and even took a prescription to help my supply. While it did help a little it wasn't enough for me to continue to endure the pain and discomfort that wouldn't go away. Whenever it seemed like nursing was getting easier, the next day was bad again. I was miserable and I think the prescription was making me slightly depressed (which is a known side-effect). I hated quiting but I just don't think my body was made to do this. I wanted to thank all my cheerleaders and supporters for helping me make it as long as I did. I couldn't have done it without your support and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Sophia is doing great and she is eating more and more everyday. She took a 5 oz. bottle yesterday and I couldn't believe it. It's hard to believe she can fit that much liquid in her little body, but she does. Unfortunately the switch to formula wasn't comfortable for her. She started to spit up a ton and was excessively gassy, so we switched her to a soy-based formula and she's been doing great ever since. At night she is going about 4-5 hours from bottle to bottle compared to 3 hours during the day. Every now and then she'll go longer, but it isn't typical yet. I sure can't wait until I can get more sleep.

Her personality is very different from Madeline. She grunts alot which is really cute and funny, but she is quiet in terms of crying. She will fuss first before she cries for a bottle. Madeline would wake up from a nap screaming for her bottle. If Sophia is screaming, then she is really, really upset about something. She was screaming the other night which is so not like her so I was actually kinda worried, but I think she was just overly tired from the day. Other than that, she usually only screams in her car seat. I think all kids hate that though.

Here are some new pictures of her. You can tell she is bulking up.

They are definitely sisters

Look at Madeline's newborn photos and see how much they look alike.

Our little sweet pea, Sophia

My good friend and photographer, Tammy, came over last weekend and took some newborn photos of Sophia for us. She did a wonderful job capturing her! I tried to narrow down my favorites as best I could to these. Only, I left my most favorite out. That one you will have to wait and see on her birth annoucement.

How cute is she?

Tammy is one hell of a photographer to have salvaged ANY pictures with Madeline in them. She was not being cooperative in the least bit and I thought for sure nothing would turn out. But sure enough, look at these.....

And she even grabbed one of me snagging a kiss.

Valentine's Day Part 2

My sister, my Mom and Alexis came up for a visit on Valentine's Day. We totally didn't plan their outfits, I swear. They had a blast playing with each other. When Madeline woke up from her afternoon nap and everyone was gone, she asked several times about what happened to Alexis. It was too cute!

And how adorable are these pig tails???

Happy Valentine's Day

From the girls....

My niece, the supermodel

How adorable is this picture of my niece, Alexis? She's ready for her close-up.

2 weeks

Another week, another weight check for Sophia and she did great!! She is now 6 pounds 11.5 oz. which is a 1 oz. gain per day from last week. She isn't back up to her birth weight yet, but that's okay. She is doing very well now and looks great.

As for me, breastfeeding has gotten better. A few people told me to just make it to 2 weeks and they were right. For awhile there, I really didn't think I could make it. The pain, latching issues, etc. were almost too much to take. But I made it and everything is going much better. I'm taking a prescription to help with my supply and even with that, I still have to supplement every now and then. But she is getting mostly breastmilk and we are happy with that.

I'm also feeling great with my incision. I don't have pain anymore and can do most normal activities. I still get tired pretty easily but I suppose that is combination of recovery and not getting much sleep with Sophia at night. I'm thinking one more week and I'll really be feeling great.

The Little Gym

We went to a birthday party at The Little Gym yesterday and had a blast!! I couldn't wait to get out of the house and do something fun and I knew Madeline would just love it. I think a few people thought I was crazy to bring Sophia there, but she was fine bundled in the sling the whole time. Unfortunately, I'm not healed enough to chase Madeline around a place like this, so Andy did that.

This was a big, bouncy area. Madeline LOVED this and was the first one on.

Then she tried out the balance beam.

This was fun too. She got to roll on the big wheel and then do a sumersault off the other side.

Bubble Time! This was the only group activity she cared to partake in.

We had a great time and I'm definitely keeping this place in mind for birthday parties for Madeline and Sophia.

Pictures

These were taken at the hospital by my good friend, Jody. She is just too adorable! Of course my opinion isn't biased at all.

I can't leave Madeline out. These are from daycare.

She looks like she is posing for a magazine ad here.

Andy caught Sophia and I taking a much needed afternoon nap. :)