15 Weeks Old

Here's a LINK for all the photos this week!
I love to go back to Jillian's babysite and read about what she was doing at Liv's current age.  Last week I told Liv she had better laugh this week if she wanted to keep up with her sister.  Well, sibling competition seems to work in our house because mere hours before I posted for this week, Liv let out a tiny giggle.  We were visiting with some of our local MOMS Club friends, and I told Heather that Liv was going to let Jillian beat her on this particular milestone.  Heather leaned down to tickle Liv and said, "You've got nothing to laugh about little girl?" Liv smiled and smiled at her and after a few more tickles and encouragement, let out a tiny little laugh.  So sweet.  So, not quite the big belly laugh Jillian did at 15 weeks, but regardless- it counts!  lol.  I'm sure Liv will be happy to read this when she is a little older!

Also this week, Liv continues to explore her hands and how to control her arms.  She is constantly batting at toys, grabbing things (hair! -ouch- ) and wiggling.  

On November 29th, Liv helped our family celebrate Ryan's 4th Alive Day.  Awhile back Ryan casually mentioned that he had always wanted a bonsai tree, so we go him one this year and the girls 'helped' him set it up...

In the photos from the week you'll also see Liv wearing the dress Jillian had on for her first Christmas photo.  I'd say the dress fits the girls about the same, but remember, Liv is 3 months younger than Jilli was when she wore it!  :)

'till next week...

Nancy

14 Weeks Old

Here's a LINK for the rest of the photos from this week, including our Thanksgiving feast!

A few fun details about Liv this week... Her eyes are still a dark, dark blue, but I think there is brown behind them. For now, she has a really pretty dark ring around the outside, deep blue in the middle, and a slightly lighter blue around her pupil. She's so pretty. :)

Liv rolled over once (early on) but has yet to repeat this feat. As of now, the most distance she travels is in the bath tub when she has the whole thing to herself with about two inches of water. She LOVES to splash around and is happy as a clam until she travels all the way to the end of the tub and knocks her head against the wall. When I move her all the way back near the drain, it's only a few minutes before she's back to the top. :)

Liv loves to snuggle. Always has. The hardest part about her right now is after she eats when it's supposed to be 'awake time' she'd really rather snuggle into me for a nice warm nap. Aww... me too.

Liv has started batting at toys hung above her, and is on the verge of laughing... next week maybe?! She makes these cute, cute little grunting noises when something is funny and smiles so BIG.

We can't say enough about how much we are enjoying this little girl... Until next week, enjoy the PHOTOS!

Nancy

13 Weeks Old

PHOTOS FROM THIS WEEK...

Officially 3 months old tomorrow...

She's making more coo-ing noises, holding her head up like a champ, storing up her um.... 'messy' diapers for a day or two to be sure when she does go, it's EVERYWHERE, loves to listen to her sister sing songs, and really likes being on her belly.  She's still eating every three hours during the day like clockwork (seriously, 10 minutes past feeding time, and she lets me know it!) and sleeps from 9:30pm-11 & then 11pm-8am regularly.  This is one fantastic little lady we've got!

She smiles SOooo much now (whenever we try to get a smile, we're always successful) and really adds so much to our happy house.  WE LOVE LIV!

Have a great week- there's not as many photos this week, but I'd like to think quality makes up for quantity.  The other baby sitting on the couch with her is our friend Leah... she was born a week after Liv.

Have a great day!

Nancy

12 Weeks Old

Click HERE to see all Liv's photos from this week!
Could it be?  12 weeks we've had the pleasure of knowing sweet Liv!?  Thursday sure rolls around quickly! What a bundle of joy she is.  I thought Jillian was an easy baby, but Livs even better.  In light of some recent effort, she's going through the night without a feeding (sometimes she wakes up, but a little reassurance, and she's back to sleep...).  I'm feeding her at 11pm before I go to bed (Ryan and I are night owls, and have always stayed up late so this is no problem) and she makes it through until around 7am.... anytime after 6am, I'm willing to feed her, but I sure won't argue with days like today when I had to go in at 8am to wake her up for breakfast!!!

I'm trying to be a little more diligent about tummy time, and as a result, Liv's bobble head is really improving.  She can hold her head up quite high (see this week's photos) and she seems to like it.

Also this week, Liv learned how to blow bubbles with her spit, played dress up with Jillian, posed for some naked photos to show off all her wonderful baby rolls, & met Vice President Biden & Dr. Jill Biden.  No photos of the Liv meeting the VP- before I could get a picture, she was kind enough to have a poop-tastrophy all over her patriotic outfit, and my shirt.  Sweet Ryan- pointed to my shirt and said, "Uh oh- position the baby over that mustard you got on your shirt!"  That's.  Not.  Mustard.  Ryan.  haha...

When Jillian was a baby, we went to storytime at the Library every week.  Today Liv got to go to the storytime for kids under 1, and we had a great time.  I can't wait to watch her progress through this great program the way Jillian has.  Jilli LOVES the Library.

That's it for this week- enjoy the PHOTOS, and check in on us again next Thursday!

11 Weeks Old

Up until this week, I would say Liv still slept the majority of the time.  But now, she's really starting to enjoy being awake, and looking around more.  She cracks me up.  Often, when I'm feeding her she will look at me and crack a huge grin.  It's adorable except for the fact that she always seems to do it with a mouthful of milk, and forgets to swallow first.  Haha- messy baby.

I took a video this week that I'll have to post- remember me telling you about the cranky baby on her changing pad?  Well, I decided to do something for Liv that I had done for Jillian:  cut out a photo of Daddy and put it on the bottom of the shelf that hangs above her changing area.  I would say that since the addition of this photo, Liv cries at least 50% less.  When she notices it, she always smiles and sticks out her tongue.  Livi loves her Daddy!

Developmentally, Liv is doing great- holding her head much better, starting to really put weight on her legs if you hold her standing up, and can lift her head really high when she is on her belly.  Much more cooing going on now too...  so sweet.

One of the photos on the Shutterfly site this week is Liv with an old yellow bear.  That was my bear growing up, and his name is Boo-Boo.  I had to dig him out when I put Liv in that fuzzy yellow sleeper thing, because she reminded me so much of him!

Until next week- there's LOTS more photos on the Shutterfly site- check 'em out!

Nancy

10 Weeks Old

It seems one of the only things that gets Liv in a funk is a diaper change.  We're in trouble with winter approaching I'm afraid, because when a cool breeze hits her big 'ol belly, she screams.  I've documented the face she makes HERE.  Interesting however, that as long as her bottom is in nice warm water (in the bath) a cold tummy is not offending at all.  This little baby  l o v e s bath time.

Honestly, writing about cranky Liv during diaper changes is only of note because most of the time, she's a peach.  She smiles a lot (especially in the evening before bed- I think she's already trying to manipulate me into keeping her up a little longer) enjoys tummy time (by enjoys, I mean promptly falls asleep) and loves to snuggle.

We're keeping busy around here, getting ready for Halloween, and trying our hardest not to contract a nasty flu virus...  lots of hand washing and avoiding stuffy crowded places going on since Liv can't get a shot...

Double digits already for Liv's weeks... 10!?  That's practically 1/5 of her first year!  Better start planning her first birthday party now!  ;)

Till next week- enjoy all the new photos on our SHUTTERFLY SITE.

Nancy

9 Weeks Old

What a busy week!  Click HERE for all the photos from the past 7 days- There are lots from our trip to Arizona!

This week was one of many firsts!  Liv went on her first plane ride to Arizona, and had a wonderful time!  She was able to meet her Uncle Travis for the first time, and many of my extended family and close friends too!  It was a wonderful trip (a little warm for these MD girls) and Liv was a perfect baby the entire time.  On the plane rides there and back she slept about 90% of the time, waking pretty much only to eat.  I could not ask for better than that!

While we were in Arizona, Liv also got to go to the zoo for the first time.  To be honest, she seemed less than impressed ;)

Developmentally, our little cutie seems right on track.  She is smiling, tracking things with her eyes, definitely recognizes her Mommy by sight and voice, moves her arms and legs a lot, makes plenty of cute noises, and is sleeping like a champ.  She loves to nap and snuggle, and is learning to fall asleep at night without her pacifier pretty well.  It's really rare at this point if she wakes more than once in the night to eat. We'll be working on dropping that feeding soon too- wish us luck!  ;)  Tomorrow she will have her 2 month pediatrics appointment, so we'll see where she falls on weight and height.  I think she is about the same as Jillian was at this age, but we'll see!  That would be pretty amazing considering she was more than a pound less than her sister at birth!  She sure is growing fast!

Mushy moment:  Liv woke up around 5 am this morning to eat.  I usually bring her into bed with me to do this, and then return her to her crib. Today however, we had a whole king size bed to ourselves (Ryan left early for a speech in NJ) so I let her stay and snuggle.  I almost got out of bed to get my camera because watching her lay there next to me on the bed was just so darn sweet.  Realizing I could not even hope to capture the sweetness of the moment on film, I soaked in a mental picture instead.  I love to lay there with my face right next to her and feel her breathing.  I love when our noses touch and I'm actually inhaling the same air she exhales.  There's nothing that smells or feels quite like that- it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about how special moments like that are.  Knowing this little person was created by Ryan and I... surreal.  

I suppose that's why I take so many photos.  A tiny chance to capture these moments that pass so quickly.  From one week to the next, it's like we've got a whole new baby in the house- always growing and changing.  As much as I miss 8 week old Liv, I'm also looking forward to weeks 9, 10, 11... Being a Mom is the best job in the whole world.  Ryan and I are so lucky, SO blessed to have these two beautiful girls to call our own.

Until next week!  Adios, and don't forget to check out all the PHOTOS!

8 Weeks Old

Click HERE to see all the photos from our week! Liv sure is getting big!

I can't believe our little girl is already almost 2 months old. Time flies! This week I got lots of photos of Liv enjoying a bath with her sister, and hanging out at home. More about the week later- I'm in AZ with the girls introducing Liv to friends and family!

7 Weeks Old

What a cutie pie!  For more photos from this week, click HERE!

This week we've had a lot of fun!  We went to a pumpkin patch near our house and had a great time.  I even got Liv balanced on top of a huge pumpkin for a photo!  Good thing she's such an agreeable baby!!!

I was also able to save up some milk so Ryan could give Liv a bottle!  This is pretty cool, because Ryan was never able to feed Jillian- (the little stinker would never take a bottle!) but Liv took it like a champ!  It feels so good to know she would not have a problem taking a meal this way- gives me so much more flexibility!

Liv smiles all the time, and is a wonderful baby!  We're trying to get her adjusted to sleeping without her pacifier...sometimes she wakes up when it falls out, so I decided to just do way with it for sleeping time.  This has produced some nap time/bed time tears, but she gets through it, and sleeps well.  The other night I fed her at 11pm, and she slept until 6am!  Woo Hoo!

Hope all is well out there- leave us a comment so we know you're checking in on us!  Weekly posts/photos are a lot of work and I love to read what you think!

:)  Nancy

TO CHECK OUT ALL THE WEEK SEVEN PHOTOS, CLICK HERE!

6 Weeks Old

Hey Mom- Trying to get a good photo of me for this week? Yeah? Well... this is what I think about you and that camera you're always flashing in my face!

Love,

Liv

Liv's such a great baby! She's getting stronger and stronger (not quite as much of a bobble head these days!) and has quite an appetite. She even accidentally rolled over while playing on our bed the other day. (It was just once though, and she was kinda propped to the side so it does not really count!) She loves to make eye contact with me while she is eating, and I love it right back. This is my favorite FAVORITE thing about nursing... it's just so darn sweet!

Ryan's parents came in to visit this past week and we enjoyed spending time with them, and introducing them to Liv- if you didn't see the post about our apple picking trip, check out the family blog- it was so much fun! (www.kulesfamily.blogspot.com)

As always, the photos from this week can be found on our Shutterfly site- at this LINK!

Have a great week!

Nancy

5 Weeks Old

Link: Week 5 Photos!

Sweeter and Sweeter every week!  Liv is really starting to get such a nice little personality.  She smiles and coos, and really tracks people and noises with her eyes.  At her 1 month appointment, she weighed in at a 1/2 ounce shy of 9lbs!  That's nearly 2 pounds of weight gain in a month!  I guess my, "special Mommy milk" (as Jillian would call it) is really doing the trick!

Funny nursing story...  While my cousin Heidi was here visiting, Jillian asked me, "Does Heidi have special Mommy milk too?"  I explained how you only have Mommy milk if you had a baby in your belly.... to which Jillian replied: "Oh.  Well...  Hmm.... does Heidi have water?!"  Lol... I love kids.

Anyway- back to Liv.  Last night, she slept from 8-11pm, ate at 11, and went back to sleep.  From 12:30-1:30 she was a little fussy so I fed her again at 2am.  Then, after that feeding she slept until 8:30am!  6.5 hours! 

Liv enjoyed having my parents in town for a week, and we were sad to see them go on Tuesday.  Ryan's parents will be arriving for a visit this weekend though, so the girls will be happy to have extra attention again!  

Be sure to check out all the PHOTOS from this week, and see if you can guess which shot I've titled, "One good reason to have a sibling".

The biggest milestone for this week:  I put Liv's hair in a teeny-tiny ponytail for the first time!  Then I was able to use that to attach a clip.  Finally accessorizing!  ;)

:)  Nancy

4 Weeks Old!

What a week!  

First of all, a description of what's going on in all the photos I posted:

Liv got to hang out with her baby friend Sarah, go to a fancy lobster dinner with Mommy, Daddy and Jillian (including an amazing dessert bar!), pose for Mommy in her room, open her first piece of official mail (her social security card arrived!), play at the kids gymnastics place near our house (she was GREAT at climbing the rock wall), AND meet my parents for the first time!  Woo Hoo!  We have had so much fun!

It's been great having my parents around for the last couple of days, and they have really enjoyed spending time with the girls.  They can vouch for the fact that Jillian really loves her little sister, and that Liv is even more adorable in person than in her photos ;)

Last night Liv slept for almost 5 hours between feedings, so it was a pretty fantastic night.  She usually goes about 3-3.5 hours...  She is getting stronger and stronger every day.  She can easily pick up her head and turn it from side to side, she's tracking people and noises with her eyes, she is starting to look amused (has almost really smiled!) and she has more gas than any person I've ever met.  Seriously.  She's the gassiest baby I've ever met.   I'm sure she will love me documenting that!!!

Better run- My Dad ran electrical for two new ceiling fans in the house, and he and Ryan are busy installing them right now.  I suppose I should be helping rather than blogging...

Have a great week, and don't forget to look at all the new PHOTOS!

Nancy

3 Weeks Old!

Click HERE for Liv's 3 week old photo slide show!

Another week? Is it fair to say that I might start every post talking about how I can't believe another week has passed? Probably. Definitely.

Time passes so quickly with an infant- it's amazing to watch this little girl growing and changing. Right now she's wide awake and laying in my lap as I type. Totally happy just sucking on her pacifier and staring at me. So sweet.

The pacifier is one big difference between our girls. Jillian did not use one at all (HATED it) but Liv really likes it. I think it's because I introduced it much earlier this time. Last time the lactation consultants scared me into not introducing anything for the first 6 weeks, and as a result, Jillian never took a bottle. Good thing I didn't have anything better to do than be with Jillian every 3 hours for the first year... haha... Hoping things will be different on that front this time around.

This week Liv got to spend a lot of time with my cousin Heidi. Heidi came from Omaha to help out for a week, and we had a wonderful time. She's the best! Thanks for taking the time to come hang out with us Heidi! Liv also got to go check out Ryan's golf club, go to her 2 week well baby appointment (7.5lbs!), take her first shower with Mommy, visit Severna Park MD (where we plan to move before the girls start school), help Daddy out at work, meet more friends from our MOMS Club, and relax at home. Whew! It was a great week. Enjoy all the PHOTOS, and be sure to check in on us again next week!

Nancy

2 Weeks Old!

Has it been a week already?!

It's amazing to think my due date was actually today... I feel kinda sneaky having gotten to spend the last 14 days with sweet Liv in our house! What a wonderful baby she is!

Check out all the photos from this week... Liv has had a lot of fun!

We got to meet a new friend from our MOMS Club- baby Leah. In the photos you can see Liv introducing herself via an attempt to feed off of Leah's nose! haha!

Also this week, Liv's umbilical cord fell off, so we were able to give her a real bath. Jillian helped (of course!) and Liv was pretty okay with the whole ordeal... She's not a big fan of being cold though, so there were some serious Daddy snuggles needed when she had to get out. After the snuggles Mommy fed her and prepared to get her dressed again, when Liv decided she would help me by pooping all over the clean sheets on our bed. We had JUST put the bed back together after a thorough AM washing caused by a similar issue. This time though, she hit the comforter, top sheet, fitted sheet, & mattress pad... Oh joy!

Liv's first metro ride into DC was this week too. My cousin Heidi is in town helping out with the girls, so we decided to head into the city to have a birthday lunch with my good friend Natalie. The girls were both great, and we enjoyed strolling around (trying to get a good view of the Washington Monument for Jillian) in the great weather.

On Sunday, Liv joined our family for our traditional morning bowling event. It was nice to introduce her to some of the people we see there every week.

Liv also met some of our military friends- the Decker's, & Heather, went to the park, strolled in Annapolis, and posed for plenty of photos on some of the cute quilts we've gotten from family and friends!

What a busy week for a 14 day old person!!!

Other than that, she's doing a great job eating and sleeping... She eats about every 3 hours, and still sleeps a lot. The last few days we've been getting to see her dark blue eyes more and more so that is nice. When she's laying on her belly, she can pick up her head and turn it from side to side... she loves being in her swing, and seems to enjoy car rides... Overall, just one fantastic baby! We're so darn lucky!

Enjoy the photos, and I'll update again next week!

Nancy

TO SEE LIV'S 2 WEEK PHOTOS, CLICK HERE!  

1 Week Old!

Okay, in addition to the 100 or so photos I've posted of Liv so far, you can:
CLICK HERE for more new photos!
I also have a few more from this first week (like the one below) I'll share later, but they are from the batch of photos I took for her birth announcements, so I don't want to reveal them all just yet ;)
During Jillian's first year, I updated about her progress once a week. My intention is to do the same for sweet Liv. Already this week so many things have changed, so I welcome this opportunity to sit down, and reflect on what we've experienced so far with her.

In general, having a newborn in the house is one of the most amazing things... It's exhausting, wonderful, overwhelming, and simply amazing. To be honest, I've always loved newborns. The little puzzle of figuring out what makes them happy, reading their cues and responding to their needs... Breathing in the very essence of them. They are unlike anything else in the world. Such a tiny package of promise and potential. I love them. I love Liv. I can sit and stare at her for such long periods of time, and she can bring a lump to my throat by just laying there making her sweet tiny baby noises. It's magical.

So far Livy sleeps like a champ. We had one rough night when all she wanted was to eat and snuggle, but overall it's been great. Waking up every 3 hours or so to eat, and then right back down. We've been keeping her in our room so far, but I think the crib will come next week... She's doing well in there for some of her naps during the day so I think she can handle it- (assuming I can!) haha...

Eating is going well too- I'm getting used to the whole thing again, and she's slowly learning. I forgot how much coaching they need in the beginning! We brought her to her first pediatrics appointment yesterday, and she was only down a little from her birth weight, so that's good.

Even though this blog is about Liv, I think it's important to add that Jillian simply loves her. She is adjusting SO well, and looks for Liv in the morning to say, "Good morning baby Liv!" It's very sweet. She wants to hold her often (and then after about 5 seconds always says, "She wants her Mommy" and nudges her back to me). Lots of kisses, lots of helping Mommy and Daddy, and lots of saying, "Ew! Baby Liv pooped!" ;)

This week Liv got to meet quite a few of our friends from MOMS Club as they have coordinated bringing meals for our family. I feel so lucky to have found such a wonderful group of parents and children to call our friends. Thanks for all your support ladies!

Ryan's also been a great support. Jillian sure loves that guy! ;) He took this whole week off of work, so there's been lots of quality family time and extra attention for Jillian. It's been really nice.

Okay- that's it for this week. Tune in next Thursday for another batch of photos and an update on Liv!