Amelia's dedication

We held a special dedication for Amelia at our church on my birthday. Here are a few pics!

Christmas 2010

3 months

Wow! Amelia is 3 months old today!

**She weighs 13 lbs. 4 oz and is 24 inches long.

**She is wearing size 2 disposable diapers when we are out, and cloth diapers at home (most of the time now.)

**She can still fit in some 0-3 month clothing, but 3-6 month sizes fit a little better.

**She loves to have her diaper changed and to lay on her changing table.

**She loves laying on her playmat. She can bat at the toys now and can grab and hold onto the rings.

**She still hates tummy time!

**She does little laughs, but no belly laughs yet.

**She is still breastfeeding. I am still dealing with soreness though. Not sure what the problem is...hope to make it at least 3 more months.

**We have taken her off of the zantac for reflux. She is gassy now and still spits up...but she has been waaaay less fussy PTL! I'm thankful to have her on no meds though.

**We have learned that she sleeps alot better being swaddled. I tried a few nights without it, and she just didn't sleep as well. She does break free from it though sometimes.

**She is officially in her crib every night now! Patrick said, "no more swing or rock n play...she is sleeping in her crib!" The mattress was propped up, but it is now flat and she does fine with that too.

**She has been in a growth spurt, waking up a few times a night to eat. She has good nights and bad nights.

**We have been able to get her to bed earlier lately too, so that's nice.

**She loves her hands and sucking on them. We usually have to keep a dribble bib on her because she drools up a storm!

**She loves watching T.V. We actually googled this one night to see if it was OK for a baby her age. I guess she just loves the colors and shapes. We do not want to get her into the habit of this though.

**Amelia was dedicated unto the Lord on my birthday, December 12th! This was the best birthday present ever!! We had a nice dinner after and she got some very nice gifts.

**Her left eye still has a clogged tear duct. We tried drops, which did not work. Hopefully this will clear on its own by 6 months.

Wordless Wednesday: Amelia and Santa at the mall :)

2 months old (11-21)...late post

She loves her mobile in her crib!


Big smile!


Chillin in the rocker in her room.



Close-up



**Miss Amelia is 2 months old!

**She weighs 11 lbs. 12 oz. and is 23 inches long. Her lowest weight after birth was 6 lbs. 4 oz...so she has gained 5 1/2 lbs in 8 weeks.

**She still hates tummy time.

**She still hates the pacifier. I am still determined to get her to like it. I went out and bought 5 different kinds. She will suck on the NUK kind for maybe 2 minutes tops.

**She no longer crosses her eyes, but actually can follow objects now. I love seeing her watch us.

**She is still in size 1 diapers (probably could wear size 2) and 0-3 month for clothes.

**Breastfeeding has had its ups and downs. My supply has been plenty, which can be hard for Amelia. I also think I have an overactive letdown. I have dried a few different methods to make this easier for her. She has only taken a bottle of breastmilk 3 times. I need to start pumping to get a supply again for the freezer...eeeeek!!

**Amelia comes along with me to work. We usually work Monday through Friday in the afternoons. Not quite sure if this is going to work though. It gets kinda complicated trying to get stuff done, talk to people that come in, and tend to her.

**She has struggled alot this past month with being fussy and having digestive issues. There have been a few nights where it has taken us 4-5 hours to get her to go down at night. We now have a routine where we bathe her, swaddle her, feed her and turn on the kitchen fan to high. Patrick usually rocks her to sleep. This seems to work for her.

**She sometimes sleeps for 5 hours stretches in the night. But, with some of her stomach issues, she seems to stretch, squirm and grunt alot in her sleep.

**We are just starting to give her Zantac to help her with her reflux. I pray this helps her! The poor girl has been congested alot, has painful hiccups and just seems to be uncomfortable most days.

**I am in love with her smile! Even though she is in pain sometimes, she will still show us a smile. She smiles a ton in the morning. She squeels and coos now too. Her smile is so cute because she scrunches up her nose and almost shuts her eyes completely (she looks like her daddy when she does this)!

**We are trying to transition her to her crib. We lay her down for her naps in it. She usually just stares up at the mobile, smiling and squeeling. Then after about 10minutes she starts to fuss. We will hopefully have her in her crib full-time by the end of the year.

**She was a lady bug for halloween. Her friend Kilah was a ballerina and spent the evening with her passing out candy and watching a movie.


**UPDATED...the Zantac seems to help her. She is sleeping alot better and is overall more happy. I'm thinking that part of her issue is from foremilk/hindmilk imbalance (overactive supply) from what I've read. I hope to meet with a lactation consultant soon to get this all squared away.

Graydon Robert

I am still catching up on here. I hope to post some nursery pics on my next post!

On Oct. 2, Anne delivered a beautiful baby boy Graydon Robert. He weighed 8 lbs. 7 ounces and was 22 1/2 in. long. I am so proud and happy for her that she had a drug-free, natural delivery...and it was fairly quick for her first time. My mom was able to be there for his birth.




This was our first visit meeting Graydon. The kids did not like getting their pictures taken. It was comical :)










So Amelia has a cousin only 11 days apart from her. He will be here to play with her again this weekend!

Newborn pictures

I am still behind on blogging some posts. Anyway, I am slowly starting to catch up.

My friend Libby is a great photographer. She came over to our house when Amelia was 13 days old and took some pictures for us. Here are few that I have to share with you all.










Go to Libby's blog for some more info. on her photography. :) http://thekozys.blogspot.com/

1 month old already!

**Miss Amelia is one month old! She has met many people her first month of life. She has made trips to Saginaw, Midland and Grand Rapids. She has been to church twice and over to Grandma and Grandpa Buchinger's and Grandma and Grandpa Draper's houses. Most days we spend at home enjoying our time together.

**She does not like tummy time and actually rolls over onto her back to get out of it. She is a wiggle worm!

**She was throwing-up about once a day, until the last two days, where she threw-up 3 times. Not just spitting-up but projectile vomiting. She seems to be more gassy and uncomfortable. We are going to the doctor to talk to her about her stomach issues later.

**Amelia is overall a content baby. She has been very alert the past 2 weeks. She likes to look around and sometimes when she makes eye contact, she crosses her eyes. It is sooo cute.

**We used the nipple shield to start breastfeeding, but took her off of that when she was 10 days old. She now loves to feed.

**Daddy and Amelia sit and play piano together. We are hoping she will take to it!

**She is now in size 1 diapers and in both newborn and 0-3 months clothes.

**She does not like a pacifier.

**She weighed 7 lbs. 4 oz. at 2 1/2 weeks old and grew 1/4 - 1/2 an inch. We will hopefully have her weighed tonight and update her weight. UPDATE: She now weighs 8 lbs. 8 oz...that means she gained 20 ounces in 11 days!! Woo-hooo!

This past month has been challenging, but rewarding. We love our little girl so much already! What an honor to get to be her parents! Thank you Lord for this opportunity!!









Amelia has been starting to smile in the last week. She does half smiles or little quick ones. I was able to snap a picture of her trying to smile!

4 week postpartum survey

Postpartum survery...4 weeks.

How far along were you when you had your baby? according to my calculations 37 1/2 weeks...according to the doctors 38 1/2 weeks.
How long was labor? c-section because of breech position
Total weight gain: 27 pounds
Total weight loss since:22 lbs...I weighed 130 at 2 weeks postpartum...only 5 lbs to go baby!
Back into your own clothes yet? Mostly...maternity pants still are comfortable because of the incision.
Did you get stretch marks? no.
Did you deliver vaginally or by c-section? C-sec.
Best moment this week: Seeing Amelia roll over...she did it 4 times in a row today! and Grandma Cherie was here to see too :)
What I miss about being pregnant: Feeling her moving inside me.
How big is baby: She was 6.15 at birth...I think she's probably 8 to 9 now.
Baby's temperament? She is usually content and more alert now. She does have her gassy moments and she doesn't like to be changed. But overall she is a good baby so far.
What I am looking forward to: Seeing her laugh...I think she has smiled at me a few times though.

I was super sick for close to 2 weeks with a terrible cold. I lost my voice, had tonsilitis, and was unable to sleep for several nights because of coughing episodes. I am just so thankful to feel better again! I can't believe that Amelia is almost a month old already!!

Maternity pics finally!!

My sister-in-law Emileigh took some maternity pictures for us 3 days before I delivered Amelia. We were all hanging out in Caseville and we were able to go down to the beach and get some pictures around sunset. This was her first "photography session" and it was a great time! Here are a few...









We had narrowed down the names to 3 and took a picture with all 3 names in the sand. Here is your name Amelia!

Thanks Em!!

October 15

Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day.

We are remembering our baby boy Liam Charles today. 7-23-09 You are now a big brother to a precious baby sister. We miss you so much everyday and we look forward to being with you in heaven one day!

We also reflect on our miscarriage of twins back in October of 2007.





Thanks for the shirt Auntie Anne!!

Amelia pictures and quick version of birth story

I plan on writing the complete birth story in the next few days. I'll write out that short version now. I had went in last Tuesday for my 38 week check-up. The midwife checked my cervix and said she could feel a butt. We went over to the ultrasound room to find out that baby girl was breech! I was 2-3 cm. diallated. She sent me to the hospital to talk with Dr. Fettinger and Dr. Wechter (our specialist that we have seen before). Anyways, they said I was in labor (contracting every 2-3 minutes) and thought it best to deliver her that day! We had prayed that God would give the doctors wisdom on what was best for us, so we were OK with getting a c-section (not what we really wanted though). We are just so thankful to be home and healthy...all 3 of us!!


Amelia Rose

Introducing Amelia Rose

She's here!! She arrived Tuesday Sept. 21 at 4:21pm. She weighed 6 lbs. 15 oz. 20 1/2 inches long. Details coming soon!!

Friend Shower

Another post that is overdue. My friend's from high school: Tiffany, Abby, Kim, Arin, and Jolene hosted a shower for me at Tiffany's house on Aug. 22. I feel undeserved to have such caring friends, and so grateful to them for their love for us! Everything was beautiful!!!

The hostesses and their daughters, Abby, with daughter Chloe, Arin with daughters Selah and Luella. Love all of these girls!!





Lovely diaper cakes made by Abby and Kim.



Some of the decorations.

37 week stats and pics

How far along?: 37 weeks
How big is baby?: Probably over 6 pounds
Weight Gain?: Down a pound this past week. Total weight gain: 25 pounds...I'm happy with that! Weight as of thursday morning: 150 lbs.
Maternity Clothes?: yes...busted out some warmer clothes this past week.
Sleep?: Still tossing and turning, still get up lots to pee.
Best moment this week?: Getting to take a nap after work on thursday. I really haven't napped this pregnancy...and I'm exhausted.
Food Cravings?: Cinnamon toast!
Gender?: She's a girl! AHHH---we still need a name people!!
Stretch Marks: Nada that I can see thankfully!
Movement?: some days more than others...I think she's running out of room.
What I miss?: Feeling energized
Belly Button?: In just a tad...almost flat. I don't think it will pop though.
Labor Signs?: Just tons of Braxton Hicks...and having menstrual type cramps more and more.
What I'm looking forward to?: Seeing some family this weekend, possibly.
Nursery progress: Just waiting on our wall decal for the crib wall. We still need to hang the memory boxes. Everything else is all set! I have our bags mostly packed too. Car seat is installed.
Main symptoms this week: I am really thankful...I have not had any swelling so far this pregnancy, I can still wear my rings. I haven't had acid reflux in a few weeks. I've been able to eat full meals. I think she is sitting really low now. I just started having achy groin/upper legs. Super tired. Braxton Hicks all the time...some that kinda take my breath away. But, really I think I feel pretty good overall at this point! Can't complain :)

I'm just so so so thankful to the Lord for allowing us to get this far in this pregnancy. He has brought us through so much! I'm trying to not have any expectations for the labor/delivery part. I'm trying to just trust in His plan for us, and praying for good wisdom from the doctors and nurses. We'll be in good hands!


WARNING: bare belly pics!!! Decided we have to do at least one for this pregnancy!