boo (hoo)

Libby had her two-month check up today, and she's doing great. She's in the 50th percentile for weight and head size, and the 60th for length. She weighs 10 pounds, 14 ounces and is 22.25 inches long. Unfortunately, she had to get 4 shots and one oral vaccination. Needless to say, the shots were no treat for Libby or Mommy and Daddy!

rock the vote!

There's only one day left to vote for Libby's Halloween costume! Check out your choices on the right and vote today!

Oh, yeah. And don't forget to vote on November 4th, or before!!!
I voted yesterday, it was pretty cool.

libby's first trip

Libby made her first trip to Edgerton this weekend to see Grandma & Grandpa Whitman, and to meet her aunt, uncle and cousins. It was a whirlwind trip! Friday, we drove up, stopping once for nursing and a diaper change. When we arrived, Kurt and Christy were pulling into the drive, so we got to spend time with them, Kraig, Casey, Chloe and Cayla that night. Kraig and Casey suddenly seem so grown up, and it was fun talking to them more as adults than kids. All four of the kids are so smart and funny.

Saturday, Libby attended her first auction where Grandpa was working, and she met lots of people (Keith is an auctioneer). We also made a trip to the Edgerton campground to see Kurt and Christy's new camper and campsite. Then we took Libby to meet both of her great grandmothers. Saturday night, Jenna, a childhood friend of Kevin's, came over for dinner with her 3-year-old son Jacob. He is convinced that he's Spiderman and was so cute and funny.

Sunday we attended the annual early Engler Christmas. Libby got to meet lots of aunts, uncles and cousins. We headed home after that, stopping at Bob Evans for dinner and diapering.

It was a fun weekend, but it's always nice to be home. Thanks to Keith and Kathy for all their hospitality!

busy little bee

Libby has been a very social girl this past week. Last Thursday, she and I met Daddy and our friends/his co-workers Gina, Erin and Josie at Don Pablos for lunch. Friday night, we went to a party at Daddy's boss's house. Libby was a big hit with all the ladies at both events, and Daddy played—and won—his first game of Euchre!

Saturday, we went to Hallzooween at the Cincinnati Zoo with Katie and Casey. It was a beautiful afternoon and fun to see all the little kids dressed up. All the animals were out, and they had treat stations where the kids could collect goodies. Casey was the cutest little skunk, and Libby wore all her Halloween apparel. We didn't get many photos, though, because we took video most of the time. Saturday night, Daddy and Libby stayed home and celebrated Sweetest Day together while Mommy, Katie and Nonny went to dinner at Dewey's Pizza and saw "The Secret Life of Bees." It's Nonny's favorite book, and she had bought it for both me and Katie.

Sunday, we met Doug, Sue and Gus for brunch at Lavomatic, then went to Findlay Market. Karen Wildey gave Libby a pretty fall flower bouquet (she did the flowers for our wedding, and we just love her and her husband, Ed). Then we went to see Nonny at Katie's (she was babysitting Casey while Katie and Matt were at the Bengals game).

Needless to say, we were very tired Sunday night and enjoyed a day at home Monday.

growing up

I think Libby might be going through a little growth spurt. She's been sleeping for longer stretches, and she's nursing for longer periods of time. She's also outgrown all her newborn sleepers and socks, and her newborn onesies are getting snug. Some other developments:

She seems to be finding her voice. Right now she's watching the giraffe mobile on her pack 'n play go round and round and letting out little squeals. She has always loved these "friends," and now I think she's trying to talk to them!

She's also started sucking on her hands and blowing spit bubbles. I read that these things can be a precursor to teething, even though that probably won't happen until at least 3 or 4 months (hopefully later, for the sake of this breastfeeding mom!). She's spitting up more often after she eats, too. Not much, but enough that we're plowing through the bibs and burp cloths lately. We really need to go buy some cuter bibs that match all her pink outfits.

She's showing more and more signs of recognition and happiness when we're around. Today she brightened up when I went to get her out of her crib after a short snooze. She's also been smiling and furrowing her brow inquisitively when I make funny faces and noises for her. She seems to alternate between being delighted and concerned, which is probably a pretty appropriate response to my nonsensical behavior, lol.

She seems to be happiest in the morning and little fussy in the evening, which seems typical for most babies. This makes lunch outings a little more pleasant than dinner dates. Her fussiness is very, very mild--she just likes to change positions constantly. She doesn't have trouble falling asleep in the morning or after she nurses overnight, but I think she fights sleep in the evening.

I'm posting a picture of her "sitting up" in her chair. She's actually falling over, so I think we'll wait a few more weeks before we try the sitting up position again. I thought this pic was cute, though.

lucky libby

Saturday night, we attended a dinner at Great Wolf Lodge to benefit HART, the dog and cat rescue group Katie volunteers with and through which we adopted Gilmore. In addition to a great dinner, silent auction, live auction and several raffles, there were about 20 door prizes distributed. Because our family (Katie, Matt, Casey, me, Kevin, Libby, Mom and Mom's friend Carolyn) bought an entire table, Libby was a registered attendee and eligible for the raffle. We joked as we filled out her entry that it would be so funny if a 6-week-old baby won. Well, Libby must have inherited her mama's good luck because, sure enough, she was a winner. When they called her name, Kevin had to go up in front of everyone to claim her prize. Most of the baskets were dog-themed or had items suitable for grown-ups. But Libby had the good fortune of winning a basket of Easter items for a little girl. There's pastel bath confetti, a puppy wearing bunny ears, a tiny butterfly purse and more. I packed everything away to give to her for Easter when she's a little older, but we snapped a photo of her with her winnings at the dinner. Katie and Matt also won door prizes, so we must have been seated at the lucky table!

Libby also took her first trip to Findlay Market on Saturday. Then we went shopping at Kohl's for some new sleepers for her since she outgrew all her newborn ones this week. It was a big day!

itzbeen awesome

As a new mom, I've already discovered a few products that make my life so much easier. Here, Libby will model all three while I explain why we love them so much.

Itzbeen Timer. This tiny tool has four different buttons you can use to either time how long you've done something, such as fed the baby or changed her diaper, or you can set each as an alarm to remind you to do something, such as dispense medicine. It also has a clock, a flashlight, and a little switch you can use to remind yourself which breast to start with the next time you nurse. It even has a clip for easy carrying. At first I used it mostly as an alarm to take my own medicine, since I was taking pain medication every 6 hours and blood pressure medicine every 8 hours. Then we used it to keep track of Libby's diaper rash medicine applications. Now I use it religiously to time how long Libby nurses and how long it's been since she last ate. Day or night, this little gadget is always within arm's reach.

Boppy. Some people think the Boppy, a crescent shaped pillow used primarily for nursing, is a waste of money. I think it's one of the best inventions yet. It's so helpful to have support not only across your lap for the baby, but by your sides to prop up your arms as they support your baby's head. We use ours all day long, and we love the soft cover Doug and Sue bought for us. It's also great to lay your baby in, and it's supportive when they first learn to sit up since it wraps around behind them to cushion them when they tip over.

Zippered Sleepers. I quickly learned that zippers are so much easier to maneuver than snaps when you're trying to change your baby in the middle of the night without turning a bright light on. Why don't more sleepers zip?

all clear

I had my 6-week checkup with my doctor yesterday and all is well. My incision looks great, my uterus is back to normal size, and I don't have any restrictions on activities anymore. It's weird to have this journey come to its end. I really enjoyed being pregnant and looked forward to my doctor visits. I even have some nostalgia for my hospital stay. I feel a little bit like I just broke up with someone who I still like a great deal but just don't really need to have around anymore, lol. Plus, the next time I go to the doctor, I'll have a co-pay again. When you're pregnant, you pay one co-pay at your first visit, and that covers all your subsequent visits. How great is that?

Libby is doing well, too. She's sleeping longer stretches through the night—4 or 5 hours–so I'm only having to get up once to feed her between the hours of 10 or 11 p.m. and 6 or 7 a.m. She's starting to smile at us more, and she follows us with her eyes now. We've started to read books to her in an effort to ease into a bedtime routine, and she seems to like listening to our voices. She still sleeps a lot, but we're not concerned since she's eating well and growing like a weed. We've been trying to get out of the house to do something every other day in an effort to avoid going stir-crazy but not run ourselves ragged. Yesterday, Libby stayed with Katie and Casey while I went to my doctor's appointment, got an allergy shot and went to Trader Joe's in Kenwood. Today, we're vegging at home, and tomorrow we're going to my office to see my staff and all my other co-workers who were so kind to me while I was pregnant. Let us know if you'd like to plan a date with us in the next few weeks. I don't go back to work until 11/11.

libby's first photo shoot

You may have already seen them in our gallery, but I wanted to post the photos we selected from Libby's first photo shoot last week. Enjoy!

libby's one-month check-up

We saw Dr. Z again today for Libby's one-month well-visit. Kevin had to work at the Western Hills office near our house, so we picked him up for lunch, then he went to the appointment with us. Libby is 9 pounds, 7 ounces (she's gained 7 ounces since Friday!), 22 inches long, and her head is 15 inches. She's in the 75th percentile for all three measurements. It's very encouraging to know that breastfeeding is going so well for both of us. Dr. Z said she looked perfect once again and gave her another A+. Her eyes look so much better since we've been using the ointment, and her diaper rash/yeast infection is clearing up. We really like Dr. Z. Thanks for the recommendation, Melissa!

Libby did have to get one shot today--a Hepititis B booster. I've read about people who cry when their babies get shots and thought, "I'll never do that." But when they stuck her with that needle, she let out a cry so loud that my eyes teared up from the sheer shock of it. She's such a mellow baby, so we'd never heard her scream like that, even when she was born. Clearly it hurt! Daddy held her and gave her a pacifier and she quieted down after a few minutes, and she seems to be doing fine now. It's a gloomy, chilly day, very fall-like—perfect conditions for a little mommy and baby snooze.