Meet Kimberley

What's Wrong With This Picture?

2012-01-12T20:08:00.001-07:00

Did you spot it?

Posted from my iPhone

First Birthday Baby!

2011-12-12T08:26:00.001-07:00

As Nathan's birthday approached I wrestled with the idea of inviting people over to celebrate with cake. In the end I'm glad that we didn't as Nathan did not sleep well the night before (hence I didn't sleep well), and he was a little "off" all day (referring to Saturday, not his actual b'day).

So we had a quiet celebration at home. On Friday (his actual birthday) we gave him our gifts (just a couple of books and a tub of MegaBlocks), but we saved cake for Saturday (because I hadn't gotten it made yet). It seemed all week that every time I would get 1 step ahead, something would set me back 2 steps.

Here he is opening a gift (although, truth be told, he preferred to push it around the room):

One view of his cake. It's blocks that spell out "Nathan". It didn't quite turn out as I had envisioned it, but I ended up rushing to get it done.

Wearing his birthday hat (and not liking it):

I love the look he's giving me:

Finally, eating his cake!

And now we just have to get through Xmas!

The Many Faces of Nathan

2011-12-11T08:26:00.000-07:00

Nathan is quite the goofball. He is very good natured and sometimes I'm sure that he does things to make us laugh. This past week he made up a new face:

Not to be insensitive, but we call it his "stroke face" as it looks like he only has control of one side of his mouth. It cracks me up every time.

Prior to that he would make this face:

Which Jason calls his "Whatcha talkin' 'bout Willis?" face.

Where Did The Year Go?

2011-12-09T08:23:00.001-07:00

Holy smokes! Did you see that? I think it was 2011 rushing past at the speed of light! It has to be otherwise how can it already be Nathan's first birthday?

A year ago he was this tiny, fragile, little baby. If only we knew then how much personality was in that tiny body!

We've marvelled at how much he has learned in his first year - from smiling & laughing to putting the lid on his bowl when he's done eating. And we've gotten more grey hairs as he chases the cats and opens the cabinets.

It will be fun to watch him grow and change some more in the next year to come.

Happy Birthday Nathan!!

Posted from my iPhone

Santa Fail!

2011-12-07T17:45:00.001-07:00

Better luck next year.

- Posted from my iPhone

New Bath Toy!

2011-11-24T17:17:00.001-07:00

This was an inexpensive bathtub toy that I bought yesterday. Nathan doesn't have a lot of tub toys. He really loved this one!

YouTube Video

I didn't think that he was ever going to let me stop. I love how he kept trying to catch the water as it fell.

Posted from my iPhone

Uh-oh

2011-11-15T10:41:00.001-07:00

Nathan has been pulling himself up about as long as he's been crawling. And he's used a push toy before. But yesterday was the first day when he really seemed to enjoy it. Whenever he would get stuck he'd freak out.

YouTube Video

There was a lot of going back and forth across the family room yesterday.
When he gets tired of walking that doesn't mean that the fun has to end.

YouTube Video

Posted from my iPhone

11 Months!

2011-11-14T08:52:00.000-07:00

Today Nathan is 11 months old. It's hard to believe that he will be 1 year old in just 1 month. It's true what they say: time does go faster when you have children.

When you think about it, it's truly amazing how much a child learns in their first year of life. I wonder if any adult learns that much in a year? In the past couple of weeks Nathan has learned to open (and close) doors. When he sees a door he goes straight for it. I'm so worried that he's going to pinch his fingers.

Unfortunately his eating habits have not improved. This summer Nathan was an eating champ. He ate 3 big meals of solids a day. But lately we're lucky to get him to eat even a few bites of food. I had assumed it was a phase that he would outgrow, then I figured that he was getting bored with his meal options (as he only had 2 teeth), now I'm not so sure. We've tried pureed foods, fresh foods, table foods, we even bought some jarred foods for him. No dice. Some days he'll eat great, the next he won't eat at all. Fortunately he gets all of the nutrition he needs from his formula. I did discover this week that if I feed him his breakfast in front of the t.v. I can get him to eat some. Talk about setting a bad precedence!

In the past month we started the hunt for childcare. As much as we would like to delay my return to work for another year, financially I don't think that we can. However, we have discovered the downfall of living close to work: the lack of day care. There are only a few day homes and day cares in our neighbourhood (and the surrounding neighbourhoods too) and they are all full. It's looking more and more like I will have to add about 1 hour (round trip) to my commute to and from work to drive Nathan to day care - or we will have to fork out for a nanny.

I have met with a few day homes but none have felt "right". Most, in my opinion, are trying to care for too many kids (especially kids under the age of 2). The rate isn't important to us if it's the right fit. I just wish that we had more to choose from. I'm having to widen my circle every day to look for care. I did meet with one lady in our neighbourhood, but I'm not going to settle just because the location is right. The good news is that Nathan does seem to enjoy visiting the day homes.

To get him used to the prospect of me leaving him we are going to start going to a playgroup this week. It's held in a day home (way too far to consider for him), so at least he will get used to being around a lot of kids all day. Our house is very quiet and our days are pretty chill and relaxed.

More and more Nathan enjoys his books. Some days he enjoys being read to, others he enjoys playing with the books, and others he enjoys chewing on them! I hope that we can instill a love for reading in him like both Jason and I have. I remember going to the bookmobile with my Dad every couple of weeks to get new books and it was always so much fun! Right now Nathan's favourite books are: Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb; Hop On Pop; and an alphabet picture book. He likes to flip the pages until he finds both the "C"at photo and the "K"itten photo!

2011-11-07T18:43:00.001-07:00

Just in case you missed them, here are my other boys. Gary is going to be 13 years old this week! I'm going to have to find some of his baby pictures to share with you.

- Posted from my iPhone

Late Summer / Early Fall Photos!

2011-10-24T16:18:00.000-06:00

I made an effort today to upload some of the photos from my camera. So basically that means I plunked Nathan down in front of the t.v. for a few minutes so I could get it done. Kudos to me because this time the photos only date back to September.

Shortly after learning to crawl:

Crawling day 2: climbing the steps:

My favourite photo from our visit to Linden Gardens in Penticton. (Sept/11)

Trying to destroy Grandma's tables:

Looking very pleased with his efforts:

At the petting zoo:

In the pumpkin patch - pumpkins? Who cares? There's grass here to play with!

Finally acknowledging a pumpkin:

Images from our 9 Month Photo Shoot

2011-10-22T12:20:00.000-06:00

In September we went for Nathan's "sitting up" photo shoot, which coincided nicely with his 9 month birthday. In reality we actually did 2 sittings because the first one was lost in a hard drive mishap. I think that the re-shoot resulted in better shots anyway.

Here's our new family photo:

And one of our cute little 9 month old:

Sir Naps A Not

2011-10-13T09:21:00.000-06:00

Well Nathan is recovering very well from his mishap. I was finally able to cut the steri-strips off his head (they were sticking out making him look like he had a tail). His cut is healing nicely too, with no signs of infection. Of course none of this has slowed him down at all!

Just yesterday he figured out how to get on the couch - he was after, you guessed it, a cat! One minute he's standing next to the couch, and a micro second later he's halfway across it! I was on the floor with him, but he caught me off guard. I ended up twisting my knee trying to get to him before he 1- pulled the cat's tail and/or 2 - fell off the couch.

He also seems to be over his cold, I wish I could say the same. I think that to get over a cold you need to sleep, but Nathan hasn't been very accommodating there. 3 nights in a row now he's not only gotten me up 3 times, but stays awake too. A typical night now goes like this: Nathan goes to bed around 8 pm - ish. Around 11:30 pm or 12 am he wakes up and I give him a small bottle. Next he wakes up around 1:30 am, and usually just needs to be rocked back to sleep. Next he wakes up between 3:30 am and 4 am. This time he needs a diaper and I give him a full bottle. And this is where the mom torture begins.

It's at the point now where I'm convinced that formula is actually Red Bull for babies. That second bottle makes Nathan wired! He will stay awake for around 2 hours! And he's not just awake, he's ready to play. I wish I could say the same. Eventually I get him back to sleep and, regardless of how long he was up during the night, he's awake for the day by 7:30 am. I am counting down the hours now until the weekend when Jason will be able to help out! I started to call him "Sir Naps A Not"!

Nathan's sleep had actually gotten better before this. He was only waking once to eat and only occasionally would stay awake beyond eating. I suspect that a couple of things are going on with him: growth spurt (which would account for the extra night feeding), and new teeth (one of which popped through yesterday).

I think that there are 3 more teeth on the way so far he has his two bottom middle incisors and the new one is a lower, lateral incisor. I suspect that his top 2 teeth will make an appearance soon. After that I hope that he will start to sleep a bit better. Teething aside, he is still our happy baby. His personality really hasn't changed through this process.

And now, if you can stand the cuteness, here's Nathan in his first ever Halloween costume!

Kamikaze Baby

2011-10-04T22:04:00.001-06:00

This video shows you exactly why we are worried that our trip to the ER with Nathan won't be our last.

YouTube Video

Yup, that's him, going down the stairs, headfirst, with a toy in each hand. I tried many times to teach him the proper way to go down the stairs, but he just gets mad at me for slowing him down.

Besides, the cats go down headfirst.

- Posted from my iPhone

We Broke Our Baby!

2011-10-03T14:55:00.001-06:00

Nathan incurred his first injury last night. Nathan's a pretty tough kid, but he's also got a Kamikaze streak (he goes down the stairs head first) so I had expected a number of bumps and bruises as he learned to walk, but this was a wound that required a visit to the hospital!

I can't tell you for sure what happened as I was in the kitchen and I heard a crash, followed by a scream, and moments later Jason swearing. Nathan was pulling up on the side of the futon and either let go, or lost his balance, and fell backwards hitting his head on something that should not have been on the floor. Like most head wounds it bled profusely (we actually used a diaper insert to stop the bleeding).

Thankfully we live close to the children's hospital, and how busy could the ER be on a Sunday night? Pretty busy it turns out. They got us past triage pretty fast - the triage nurse put some numbing gel on Nathan's cut and wrapped his head in a bandage. But we had a very long wait ahead of us.

They have the waiting room divided into 2 areas: for injuries & for illness. However, since both Nathan & I have a cough with a cold we had to wait in the illness area, with all of the kids with fever & flu (I hope they kept their germs to themselves). I'm glad I grabbed a bottle and extra diapers before we left.

After waiting 4 hours we finally saw the doctor. He had a heck of a time trying to take the bandage off our squirmy boy! It was around that point that he decided that there was no way he'd be able to stitch his head without putting him under. Thankfully the cut wasn't too deep and instead he was able to glue it together.

So Nathan had to endure another traumatic experience: being held down by a nurse, while getting his head glued, and his parents didn't do anything to help him!

So we got home by 1 am. Nathan got some clean PJs on and had a bottle and fell asleep. Mom, on the other hand, wasn't able to sleep until after 3 am. It was a long night for all of us.

9 (Nearly 10) Months!

2011-09-27T15:36:00.000-06:00

It seems that the older Nathan gets the busier he gets. And as he gets busier I get less productive!

In some respects he is developing well ahead of the curve, and in others he seems to be lagging. He is a very tall baby (71st percentile for height), but skinny (1st percentile for weight). Not having any extra weight to drag around makes this one mobile baby! As you have already seen he crawls. Not content with just crawling, he started to climb the stairs literally 2 days later. Now he pulls himself up on anything that he can find. I'm sure that he will be walking soon.

It's funny to watch him watch his Baby TV. Before he would watch it but that's it. Now he watches it and laughs at what is going on. He's definitely becoming more and more aware of his surroundings.

And while not officially talking yet, he does chatter a lot. He tells us great stories in the mornings (if only we knew what he was saying). He doesn't just talk with "words", he also talks with his hands at the same time.

He still only has his 2 bottom teeth. The rest seem to be taking forever to come through. However he does give the best smiles with those 2 teeth!

But not all is perfect. He has become the laziest eater. He used to eat a lot of solid foods every day but since starting formula last month he's decided that eating is not for him! Of course if it's something that he really likes he'll eat it (like avocadoes or apple slices). I'm not overly concerned at this point. He only has 2 teeth so his food options are pretty limited anyway. Besides, I don't know any adults that don't eat food!

Right now he is a walking (crawling anyway) biohazard! He's caught his first cold. Considering he's not feeling very well it hasn't slowed him down any. I'm kind of wishing that he was able to take some cold medication so it would knock him out for a bit!

Here's Nathan in the park trying out the big kid swing for the first time:

A photo from his actual 9 month "birthday". I have a lot of photos of him in the tub!

Discovering how to climb the crib! (We lowered the mattress all the way after this)

A rare day when he decided to eat some lunch!

Getting braver with his walker (using only 1 hand):

Too Fast Too Soon!

2011-09-13T08:44:00.000-06:00

I love watching Nathan develop and discover new things. It's so fun to see the world through his eyes. Who knew that something as simple as a plastic lid could be so interesting?

My problem is that he seems to be discovering a lot very quickly! It seems that one day he was crawling and only a couple of days later he had mastered the stairs. And now he's mastered the art of pulling up on things. My brother was an early walker at 9 months and I'm beginning to wonder if Nathan will literally follow in his footsteps.

Other than genetics I blame the cats. If they weren't so darn cute Nathan wouldn't be in such a hurry to pet them! They keep trying to get out of his way, and he keeps outsmarting them. At first they would sit across the room from him, so he started to roll and then crawl their way. Next they would sit above the family room (the family room is sunken by 2 steps). Um yeah, did they really think that would keep him away? So then they started to spend more time on the couch, so he had to start pulling up.

Don't get me wrong, there are great benefits to having a mobile baby:

Clean floors for example. If only I'd registered for that outfit!

Lots of Fingerprints

2011-08-29T13:35:00.001-06:00

Our floor is covered with fingerprints (and knee-prints) too!

YouTube Video

The poor cat just couldn't get away.

- Posted from my iPhone

See how he crawls.

2011-08-24T13:38:00.001-06:00

He's gotten quite good at crawling.

YouTube Video

- Posted from my iPhone

Trip to Moose Jaw

2011-08-21T11:39:00.001-06:00

Edited to add: I started writing this post nearly 3 weeks ago. Sorry for the delay.

This past weekend marked Nathan's first trip to Saskatchewan, or as I like to call it, the Homeland. This was to be his second road trip so we were hoping that he would manage the time in the car okay. We left just before his morning nap and made it all the way to Medicine Hat before stopping for lunch at 5 Guys Burgers & Fries (yum).

This was Nathan's first time on a restaurant high chair and he loved it!

We stopped again in Swift Current for a quick pit stop. As you can see, Nathan seems to be enjoying the car:

Once in Moose Jaw it was a whirlwind few days of meeting lots of new people.

Here he is with his Great Aunt, Debbie (Nathan has about 20 great aunts, but has only met 3 of them so far):

I think that he would tell you that the best part of the weekend was going swimming! Nathan loved the pool.

I was so worried that he would get a sunburn! Poor kid had so many layers on.

Nathan also met his 2nd cousin Lilja who is only 3 weeks older than he is. They were both too busy to pose for a photo.

And to think that all of this happened before Saturday!

Saturday was a busy day too. Nathan and I drove to Ft Qu'Appelle to visit my long time friend Angela. Ange has 3 kids of her own that I have never met. Up until last year they lived in Texas. Here's a photo of us that Ange's husband Brian took:

Typically our summer trip to Moose Jaw involves going to a Rider game. I don't think that Nathan is quite old enough to appreciate the atmosphere at Taylor Field just yet. I stayed back while Jason and his parents went to the game.

All in all it was a good visit. Nathan did very well meeting all of the new people. I imagine that next year he will be way more excited about going in the pool.

Posted from my iPhone

Because They Can Use All of the Help They Can Get!

2011-08-19T10:22:00.000-06:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-18T14:26:00.001-06:00

- Posted from my iPhone

Something to tide you over until I finish my other post

2011-08-17T08:51:00.000-06:00

I do have a post half written about our trip to Saskatchewan. I'll try to finish that soon and get it up.

Nathan's crib was recalled recently. Apparently the slats can crack and splinter. We will be getting a brand new crib next month made out of stronger wood. Good thing I found out when I did as you can see:

Seriously??

2011-08-15T13:07:00.002-06:00

As seen in the Bay:

At least it was in the clearance bin.

- Posted from my iPhone

Airing Our Dirty Laundry

2011-07-23T14:33:00.001-06:00

This post requires a bit of an explanation. Each of us (Nathan included) has our own laundry basket and hamper. For the most part Jason and I do our own laundry. I lovingly refer to Jason's laundry basket as "Laundry Mountain".

Like any other mountain, you need to respect Laundry Mountain. Some days even the slightest noise or vibration could cause an avalanche.

Here is a recent conversation that he and I had via text message (my comments are in green, his in white):

Posted from my iPhone

Oh crap!

2011-07-21T13:46:00.001-06:00

This is happening way too fast!

- Posted from my iPhone

Bath Time!

2011-07-17T19:59:00.001-06:00

Nathan (much like his dad) loves a nice, long soak in the tub. Unfortunately he's outgrown his baby bathtub. Unfortunately for me that is. It's a lot harder for me to get him in and out of our big tub. But he loves it!

YouTube Video

Posted from my iPhone

Squeaky Clean

2011-07-14T23:50:00.001-06:00

Nathan has gotten too long to fit in his bathtub. So here he is having his first bath in the big tub.

He thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

- Posted from my iPhone

Mmm, Food

2011-07-14T10:27:00.001-06:00

Nathan has been on solids since he was 4 months. At first just a tablespoon or so of rice cereal. By 5 months we added oatmeal and he would eat a 1/4 cup of it every morning. Now we have expanded his palate quite a bit.

He eats 3 meals of solids a day (on top of nursing). You would think that he would be a little chunk considering all that he eats, but somehow he stays slim and trim.

His favourite meal by far is lunch. That's when he gets avocado. As soon as he sees me mushing it up he gets very excited.

However, his meal options are limited as he still doesn't have any teeth. I wonder how excited he will be when he can try puffed wheat or cheerios?

Here he is with a teething biscuit that Grandma gave him (I love his eyes in this picture):

And here he is gumming my apricot. He seemed to like it.

And finally, here's a video of Jason feeding him some yogurt with banana:

YouTube Video

- Posted from my iPhone

I never get tired of this

2011-07-03T19:19:00.001-06:00

YouTube Video

- Posted from my iPhone

Happy Canada Day!

2011-07-01T18:35:00.001-06:00

For Canada Day today we decided to join the festivities at Prince's Island Park. By the look of things we guesstimated that there must have been at least 50,000 people there. The downtown streets and parking lots were busier than on a regular work day!

We had fun and found a patch of grass to sit. We listened to a couple of bands. Nathan slept through a lot of it but seemed to enjoy what he saw/heard.

Wearing his special Canada Day t-shirt:

- Posted from my iPhone

6 Months of Photos

2011-06-30T12:14:00.000-06:00

I finally uploaded the photos on my camera - 6 months worth! Here are just a few:

About 2 weeks old:

Look at those skinny legs:

First time in a cloth diaper:

3 months old

Meeting his Great-Grandparents (March 2011)

Meeting his Ohio family (April 2011)

Mother's Day (May 2011)

Such a big smile!

So happy

Look at all of that hair!

Feet! (6 months)

Monday Smile

2011-06-20T15:13:00.001-06:00

People often ask me what makes Nathan laugh. The truth of the matter is that anything, at any time, may strike him as funny (or it might not).

Today, for instance, Nathan seemed a little unsure when my cell phone vibrated next to his foot. So I tried to show him that there was nothing to fear by mimicking the buzz noise that the phone makes.

YouTube Video

I hope he finds bees to be as funny.

- Posted from my iPhone.

New Talent

2011-06-12T18:03:00.001-06:00

Nathan has been working hard to perfect his raspberry blowing technique.

YouTube Video

He's getting pretty good at it. Today he added a new twist:

YouTube Video

Raspberries with a mouthful. Let's just say it was a messy meal!

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

A Day in the Life

2011-06-10T20:38:00.001-06:00

Today I let Mommy sleep in a bit:

I'm so happy to see Mommy. Notice how I've turned myself around in my crib?

Here I am amusing myself in the kitchen while Mommy feeds the cats:

Now it's my turn to eat breakfast:

Mommy lets me watch Baby TV while she eats her breakfast:

Bath time!

After my bath we went for a walk:

Time for a new diaper!

And a new outfit too!

Dad surprised us and came home for lunch today.

Here's Mommy & me making faces in the mirror:

And now I'm in my carseat. I wonder where we're off to today?

The grocery store! I was very patient at the checkout today.

After we got home Mommy put me in my crib so she could put the groceries away. All I wanted to do was play with my socks:

So much activity really tires a little guy like me out:

Here's our cat Junior on my blanket:

Now I'm having a bit of fun in my Jumperoo before bed time.

And that's about it. Shortly after playing in the Jumperoo I crashed. There wasn't even any time for a bed time story.

I hope you enjoyed spending the day with me.

Sincerely,

Nathan

Green Beans

2011-06-10T07:48:00.001-06:00

Yesterday I gave Nathan his first taste of green beans. Let's just say they weren't a hit.

Hopefully he likes avocado better.

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

6 Months!

2011-06-09T13:09:00.000-06:00

Nathan is 6 months old today!! Holy cow! It was only about a year ago that we started to tell people that I was pregnant, and now he's celebrating his half-birthday.

Happy half-Birthday Nathan!

Jump Around

2011-06-08T17:37:00.000-06:00

Grandpa Jack thought that Nathan needed a Jolly Jumper. Looks like he was right.

YouTube Video

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

Home Again

2011-06-08T17:34:00.000-06:00

Nathan & I returned home last night after a 10 day visit to Kelowna. On one hand I am glad to be back home, but on the other hand I am going to miss having help with Nathan during the day (and also other adults to talk to).

My grandfather is in a rehab facility while his broken foot heals (I joked that both he & Nathan need to learn how to walk) and we visited often. Nathan was definitely the star attraction for a lot of the long term residents. So much so that I joked that walking down the hall to Charlie's room was akin to running the Gauntlet. There was always at least one little old lady who wanted me to stop so she could see the baby. I don't mind showing him off but was wary as many of them would get too close to fast or try to touch him.

I was also made to feel quite uncomfortable there, not once but twice, as Nathan's sweetness moved 2 old ladies to tears. He is just that awesome.

Starting Solids

2011-05-27T09:25:00.000-06:00

Nathan has done so well eating rice cereal and oatmeal that I decided to start him on other foods this week. First up: sweet potatoes.

At first he was all excited that he was going to be getting a midday meal. I put him in his chair and put on a bib. He knew what was coming and starting to kick his legs. When he saw the spoon he opened his mouth (no doubt anticipating more oatmeal). When I put the sweet potato in his mouth he stared at me with a look that can best be described as: "what the heck is that?"

But after a few mouthfuls he started to enjoy it more. By the second day (as you can see) he was really happy! He never even got the bib dirty.

Enjoying the Jumperoo

2011-05-21T12:04:00.001-06:00

Jason filmed this one.

YouTube Video

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

Look what I found

2011-05-20T13:38:00.001-06:00

Sorry that the links in the last post don't seem to be working. I'm not sure what happened. I'll try to get them fixed ASAP.

Look what I found. While I was in the hospital Jason was keeping the family notified of our progress via Twitter. He also posted some videos of Nathan (that I have never seen). Here is one of Nathan while we were still in the hospital.

Giggles & Oatmeal

2011-05-20T08:55:00.002-06:00

Two videos captured in the past two days. Both featuring the best subject ever - Nathan of course!

YouTube Video

Added: Link to video: http://youtu.be/HnzUAaWPj3c

YouTube Video

Added: Link to video: http://youtu.be/HnzUAaWPj3c

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

Growing Up

2011-05-16T16:29:00.001-06:00

While 5 months isn't really a very long time, when you're a baby it's a lifetime! It's fun for us to watch Nathan as he grows and changes on a near daily basis.

This weekend my friend came down from Edmonton with her boy, Connor. Connor is not quite 2 months older than Nathan. And although still a baby, it's amazing to get a glimpse into what our future with Nathan holds.

Before Nathan was born we bought him a spa bathtub after getting several glowing recommendations on it. He hated it and it was hard for us to use.

Here is Mom trying to give Nathan his first bath.

Now that Nathan is older, and loves bathtime, I decided to try his spa tub again. This time he loved it! At first he stood in it and wouldn't sit down. But once he sat and felt the warm water up to his shoulders he was hooked!

See how happy he is?

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

5 Months Old

2011-05-09T13:35:00.001-06:00

Today is Nathan's 5 month birthday - almost to the minute as I type this. Jason is home with us this week so we are sure to have lots of fun together.

It seems that Nathan changes from week to week now. His movements definitely have more purpose than before. He's not officially rolling over yet, but can get onto his side with no problems and pivots in his crib nearly every night.

Most recently he's finally decided to take notice of the cats. Something I'm sure that they are not going to be happy about. Junior is the main point of his focus simply because he is around most of the time. Last night he was up at 3 am to eat, but then woke up again at 3:30 am. When I went into his room to rock him back to sleep, Gary jumped onto the arm of the chair. Nathan broke out into a huge smile. When Gary settled on my lap I had to turn Nathan towards him because I thought he was going to strain his neck. Nathan reached out to pet Gary, and eventually went back to sleep to Gary's purrs.

Speaking of sleep (or lack of), Nathan has regressed some in that area. He had been sleeping for a solid 6 hours before waking to be fed. Lately it seems that he's waking up every 3 or 4 hours now. I keep telling myself that this is another growth spurt and that he will start sleeping again soon. Until then, I am so grateful that Jason is home this week so I can sleep in.

He's been eating rice cereal for a month now and he loves it. Sometimes he even grabs the spoon from me and shoves it in his mouth. I'm sure that he's ready for more solids but I'm going to wait a little longer. I'd like to establish more of a routine in our day before introducing more food. Plus I have to decide between starting with bananas or avocados. Decisions, decisions.

Nathan and I will be returning to Kelowna for another visit at the end of the month. I hope that he travels as well this trip as he did for his last trip.

Unfortunately in the past month I still haven't uploaded the photos from my camera. It's really shameful since there are some on there from December! I did however get most of them printed. Soon, I promise soon I will upload and share. In the meantime you can always look at the photos on my Flickr photostream.

Happy Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-08T20:15:00.001-06:00

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

Look Who Likes to Sit Up

2011-05-06T10:48:00.001-06:00

While not quite able to sit up unassisted, Nathan sure does love being upright.

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

Family Visit - 2011

2011-04-24T09:28:00.002-06:00

This past week was a busy week for us. Not only were my parents in town but so was my brother and his family. It was their first chance to meet Nathan.

Nathan did a pretty good job of warming up to his aunt and uncle, but he really liked his cousin Monica. It seemed as though he was fascinated by her curly hair.

Meeting his uncle Trever:

With Grandma:

With his Cousins Eric & Monica:

This was my niece and nephew's first visit to Calgary. I would have liked to have played a more active role as tour guide but it wasn't always possible. They did get to experience downhill skiing for the first time. They must have liked it since they went back a second day.

I will share more photos after I upload them off my camera.

- Posted from my iPhone while on the go!

Belly Laughs!

2011-04-18T11:53:00.000-06:00

I have an awesome video of Nathan laughing to share. Unfortunately I can't post it directly from my phone, and my USB cable that connects my phone to my laptop is broken. I'm so bummed. I wanted to share it with you first. Instead I had to post it on Facebook - as I was eager to share it with everyone.

Forgive me if this doesn't work very well. I'm linking you to my Facebook posting.

Isn't he just so cute?

Testing a New App

2011-04-13T22:41:00.001-06:00

I finally found an "app" that will let me write and post from my phone to my blog. If it works well you can expect to see more frequent updates here.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

4 Months!

2011-04-10T11:19:00.000-06:00

I'm sure I'll start every monthly post by saying this: Can you believe that it's been 4 months already?

Since last month Nathan has not only found his hands, but is doing his best to master control of them. He's able to grab most things that you put in front of him, and of course they all go into his mouth! He's gnawing on everything too. We've begun to think that he is already starting the teething process. If he manages to get your finger into his mouth watch out! Teeth or no, it hurts when he bites.

He hasn't yet mastered rolling over. I think he's regressed a bit actually. From when he was only a couple of weeks old he could roll over from his front to his back, now when you put him on his tummy he just cries. I think he forgot how to turn. Last week he nearly rolled over from front to back though. He purposely turned but stopped when he got onto his side. That's okay. Rolling = movement and I'm not yet ready for him to be mobile. I'm sure the cats aren't either.

Speaking of the cats Nathan pretty much ignores them. He shows no interest in them at all. Gary has even tried to sit across Nathan on numerous occasions (usually when he's nursing) and Nathan doesn't care. The other day though, while Nathan was in his Jumperoo, I was playing with Junior on the floor. Junior was getting pretty excited and dove under Nathan's blanket that was on the floor, then he popped his head out. When he did that Nathan actually laughed!

Nathan has shown extreme interest in food for a few weeks now. He watches us with great interest when we're eating and will move his mouth to mimic us. So although we hadn't planned to do so just yet, we started Nathan on rice cereal the other day. He loves it. I feed him about a tablespoon full in the mornings. As soon as he sees the bib he gets excited. He doesn't need it for the nutrition so I'm not sure if I should add a second feeding or not.

This is a busy month for us. Tomorrow Nathan gets his 4 month vaccinations - keep your fingers crossed that he doesn't scream like he did at his 2 month ones. Then Jason's parents will be staying here for a few days on their return trip from Mexico. A few days after they leave my family arrives (Mom & Dad and the Ohio cousins), and the next week my friend and her 3 kids will be in town.

I've been really lazy - I have tons of photos still on my camera that I haven't uploaded yet. It's just so darn easy to upload photos off of my iPhone by comparison. Unfortunately the quality just isn't the same, but at least the subject is just as cute!

A Video!

2011-03-24T15:07:00.000-06:00

If you're on Facebook then you have probably already seen this video. If you haven't, then I warn you, it's not for the faint (or is it feint?) of heart!

And that, dear readers, is my son. Full of fun noises!

Kelowna Trip

2011-03-23T13:24:00.000-06:00

Nathan and I went to Kelowna last week to visit our family. It was a short visit (only 5 days) but I didn't want Jason to miss us too much. It took Nathan a couple of days to get settled in and back to his normal sleeping patterns. Our days were busier than we're used to as well. But when you have 2 extra people in the house to keep an eye on him you can accomplish so much more in a day <--- like showering!

Here's Nathan on the plane watching the tv on the seat back:

Here we both are prior to take off:

Napping with Grandma:

With his Great-Grandparents (this is off of my phone, I have a better photo on my camera that I'll share once I upload it):

Having a laugh:

Meeting his Great-Uncle Mel:

Finally! A photo with Grandpa!

3 Months Old

2011-03-09T16:46:00.000-07:00

Today Nathan turns 3 months old. By my eyes at least he is getting so big! But others tell me that they think he looks so small. I guess it all depends on what you're used to. In the past 3 months Nathan has grown from 49 to 61 cm and has nearly doubled his birthweight to 10 pounds 10 ounces.

He smiles a lot and is doing his darndest to laugh. Since last month he has found his left hand and is often sucking on it. Last week he found his right hand too! He hasn't rolled over back to front yet but I often discover him in a new position in the crib in the mornings. So he is obviously doing a lot of pushing with his feet.

Next week he will go on his first plane ride as he and I travel to Kelowna to show him off to the rest of my family.

Here he is making some cute sounds:

Nathan showing off one of his diapers:

Wearing his sock monkey PJs:

All smiles in the morning:

In the bath this morning:

What We Did Yesterday

2011-03-02T09:28:00.001-07:00

March 1:

Our day starts with a bath. Nathan watched himself in the mirror the entire time. He finally loves bath time and now he cries when I take him out instead of when I put him in!

Look how much he's chunked up!

I had to put on his St. Paddy's Day PJs a couple of weeks early 'cause I'm worried that he will outgrow them! He seemed to like them!

Many hours later, Nathan is all ready for bed. Wearing my favourite sleep sack which he is sure to outgrow this week!

2 Months

2011-02-18T10:08:00.000-07:00

Nathan is already 2 months old. It's true what they say - time sure goes fast when you have kids. On his actual 2 month birthday he had his first vaccinations - that did not go well. Unfortunately it's not a one time experience.

At 2 months babies get 3 needles, adult size needles. When they gave him his first needle he screamed so loud! He didn't even scream that loud on the day he was born. And no wonder, the needles are so long I swear they practically touched his femur. Repeat that twice more and that makes for a very unhappy baby! On the plus side, he did not get a fever or anything.

Last week we had some beautiful winter weather here in Calgary. Nathan and I tried to get out of the house every day to enjoy it. I have found that if we are just going for a walk, without a destination in mind, that putting him in the wrap is a lot easier than getting out the stroller. Plus, he usually falls asleep - a bonus for me!

Unfortunately the weather has turned cold again. Such is life in Calgary - warm one week, normal temps the next, unusually cold the next. Mother Nature keeps us on our toes.

This week Mom is here visiting. I've noticed that since she's been here Nathan is less fussy in the evenings. I'm wondering if maybe he gets fussy in the evenings because he's sick of me all day! Or maybe he's getting better at night because we have started him on a bedtime routine. Either way he is sleeping better and longer - something we all appreciate!

The cloth diapering is going extremely well. He is still wearing the X-small size but they are starting to get small on him. We are all ready to move onto the next size when he is ready. I think that they are more absorbent at night than disposables (and certainly they have to be more comfortable for him).

At his last appointment he weighed a whopping 9 lbs, 2 oz! He is gaining about 2 pounds per month - which is what they want to see. And while most of you would consider him to still be small, he is ahead of the curve developmentally. He smiles and laughs, has found his hand (just one so far), holds up his head, can turn over (front to back), and can follow noises.

Good Morning!

2011-02-04T09:09:00.000-07:00

Nathan is not an early riser (that is to say he doesn't stay up when he wakes me up at 6:30), but he is a morning person.

When he does wake up for the day (usually between 9 - 9:30 am) he can be found waiting in his crib for me in a good mood. Quite often I will hear that he's up on the monitor for at least 30 minutes before I go in to get him. He doesn't seem to mind the delay.

Yesterday he was in such a good mood that I had to take a photo. Of course the camera was in another room so my cell phone camera had to suffice.

Playing with my Macbook

2011-02-02T12:14:00.002-07:00

I've had my laptop for close to 3 years. Just the other day I discovered the "photo booth" application. Using the built in camera you can take photos and even use some effects too.

Here's Nathan in Warhol fashion:

Here we are using the thermal feature.

Fun times.

My Other Boys

2011-02-01T12:13:00.000-07:00

The cats are adjusting to Nathan. But I think that they are a little attention deprived. Gary will sometimes wake me up in the middle of the night for some love and attention. The other day I had Nathan and both cats sleeping on me while I sat on the couch.

I do look forward to the day when the cats decided to cuddle up with Nathan. I remember as a child how happy I would be when the cat would sit with me (which wasn't often until I got older). Right now they tend to avoid getting too close to Nathan.

But since we remodeled Nathan's room, the cats spend more and more time in there. Probably because we made them a nice perch in the window where they can bask in the sunshine.

As an added bonus, they can keep an eye on Nathan when he's in his crib!

The Anatomy of a Yawn

2011-01-24T15:12:00.000-07:00

Just Photos

2011-01-22T17:48:00.000-07:00

Fist bump:

Chatting with Dad

Nathan 365?

2011-01-16T17:11:00.000-07:00

A lot of my online friends have committed to a 365 photo blog. That's when you take (and post) and new photo every day of the year.

I'm not going to commit to a 365 day challenge. I'm a new mom. I can barely commit to getting dressed every day.

But I will try to at least take a new photo of Nathan every day (most likely on my iPhone). And if I can, I will try to post one on Facebook. For those of you not on Facebook, I will try to post more photos here.

Here are a few of Junior. He's finally realized that Nathan is here to stay and he's trying to make the best of it.

He's also realized that small human creatures come with new toys! He's discovered Nathan's Baby Gym and he likes it!

Why We're Cloth Diapering

2011-01-13T15:44:00.000-07:00

Tell the world that you have chosen to use cloth diapers and it seems to open up a can of worms. Far be it from me to tell others how to parent, we have our own reasons to use cloth versus disposables. I realize that the choice of diaper is a very personal one. This was the best option for us.

In no particular order (just as they pop into my head):

Cost. Disposable diapers are pricey. I don't care if you buy them in bulk at Costco, they are pricey! Sure it costs a bundle to get started with cloth, but once you have them, you have them. We saved even more on our cloth by buying used - okay some of you would never do that, but why not? The newborn diapers were used for only a few weeks and were in top notch condition. The larger ones that we bought "used" were really just "pre-owned" in that the prior owners never used them. We have been using disposables while we wait for Nathan to grow into his cloth ones. In just under 5 weeks, we have already spent more on disposables than we did for a lifetime supply of cloth. Plus, for those who plan on having more than one child, you never need to repurchase them.
Convenience. We are not likely to run out of diapers in the middle of the night! That is, as long as we have done our laundry!
Safety. I've heard too many stories of babies getting chemical burns from the congealing agents in disposable diapers. Yes, I realize that this is not very common, but I don't want to risk it.
Environment. We all know that disposable diapers will be in the landfill for at least 100 years. When we do finally toss out the cloth diapers they will break down much sooner. Plus, they will have been used more than one time.
Potty Training. Cloth diapered babies potty train earlier. Probably because they can feel the wetness in their diapers compared to disposables.

We do plan to use disposables when travelling - for convenience sake. Unless of course we opt for gDiapers in the future. Then we can get disposable inserts and still use the cloth cover. We'll see how much travel that we plan to do with Nathan.

Yes, using cloth does mean more laundry. But since we are already doing a load of Nathan's things every other day, what's 1 more load every 2 days? Like I said to one friend, it's not like I have to walk to the river and wash them by hand using rocks! I just pop them in the machine and press a button.

Cloth also means more diaper changes. Because the baby can feel the wetness, they want to be dry - who wouldn't? So instead of changing Nathan every 3 hours or so, we do so every 2. Big deal.

I wanted to upload a photo of my boy wearing his first cloth diaper, but it's still on my camera which is up 2 floors. You'll have to wait.

PS - in case you are wondering, we are using Fuzzi Bunz for newborn diapers. For the next size up we have an assortment of brands including Eco Bums, Kushies, and a couple of others that I can't remember.

1 Month!

2011-01-10T21:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Nathan turned 1 month old. We must be doing something right.

Here he is enjoying some time with his gym. I love how he kicks his legs!

Whose Baby Is It Anyway?

2011-01-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

I once read/heard somewhere that all babies resemble their fathers when they're first born. It's nature's way of proving paternity or something. Nathan was no exception - the very first time that I saw him I thought that he looked exactly like Jason's dad - proof indeed that he is a Pitzel!

But that was nearly 4 weeks ago. I thought that by now I'd start to see some of me in him too. But I haven't. Then I came across this baby photo of me (doesn't Dad look so young?):

And if I compare this photo of me to one of Nathan:

Voila! Resemblance!

First Smile!

2011-01-03T07:44:00.002-07:00

Nathan is becoming much more aware of his surroundings. Gone are the days of having a lazy newborn. Now he wants to stay awake more and see what's happening around him. While this can sometimes mean that getting him to sleep can be difficult, it also means that his personality is starting to show.

I can now get Nathan to smile by tickling his cheek & chin. This isn't a fluke, he'll do it nearly every single time.

Maternity leave, etc.

2011-01-02T17:17:00.000-07:00

I'm officially on mat leave which means that my income is reduced to about 30% of what we're used to. So while money is indeed very tight, I'm so grateful that I'm able to take a year off with benefits (reduced thought they may be).

We spent a LOT of money in 2010. We've been updating our house pretty much since we moved in 6 years ago. Of course we're not much on DIY so we prefer to hire professionals to get the job done right. On top of that we also hate having debt so it's taking us 6 years (plus) to get the job done! With the bedroom renovations that we did, plus buying a bigger car, plus Nathan we spent a LOT of money in 2010!

Money may be tight, but I'm sorely tempted to order Nathan a shirt with this sentiment on it:

I've been meaning to write down a 2010 year in review for Nathan. I want to list all of the big events that took place during his birth year - and there were a lot (Earthquake in Haiti, BP oil spill, Chilean miners, etc)! Of course I haven't even begun! Thankfully we live in the Internet age so I won't have to go by memory when I do get started.

As for Nathan - he's doing quite well. I don't know what his current weight is, but I'm sure that he's growing. His 5 lbs shirts are starting to get a little short so I went and bought a few 7 lbs shirts. The big size indicator for us will be when he finally fits into his cloth diapers. Disposable diapers are so ridiculously priced! I can't imagine how any family can afford to use disposables for more than a couple of months.

Anyway, I'm sure that you are all here not to read what I'm writing, but instead to see my gorgeous son!

My 3 Boys:

Nathan meeting his cousins Jenna & Ty:

Sleeping like a baby:

Best stocking stuffer ever:

Identity and Titles

2010-12-30T11:59:00.000-07:00

Within a few days of birth we're all given a name, but that doesn't mean that name is the only way that people refer to us in our lifetime. We're given nicknames and we're introduced based on our relationship with others.

At a mere 3 weeks old, Nathan is no exception.

On his birthday:

His name is Nathan. His monicker is Nate (so far - who knows what his future classmates will come up with?). But he's also a son, a grandson, a great-grandson. He's a cousin (1st, 1st once & twice removed, 2nd, etc) to well over 150 people. He's a nephew, great-nephew, and great-great nephew.

Tummy Time!

It's hard to believe that 1 little guy already has so many titles!

A Little Late

2010-12-26T19:39:00.002-07:00

1 month before my due date I went in for some professional prenatal photos. We just picked up the photos the other day at our newborn photo shoot. I guess it's a good thing that I didn't book a later date!

Here are a couple of my favourite shots:

I'm glad that I had these shots taken. It's hard to believe that my belly looked that big. I've been very fortunate in that my belly is pretty much looking like it did before I got pregnant.

I wonder what Nathan will think of these shots when he gets older?

5 Pound Baby, 10 Pound Cat,

2010-12-23T07:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a photo of Nathan next to Gary. I hope that it helps put his size into perspective. If that doesn't help you, compare Nathan's head to Jason's hand. He's one tiny boy!

13 Days Old

2010-12-22T12:00:00.003-07:00

Each time we would see the doctor and they would express their concerns about Nathan's size, we would discuss it privately after. Nathan is a very happy, healthy baby who loves to eat. It's normal for babies to lose weight after birth and Nathan was no exception. Last week at our doctor appointment they were concerned that he was not gaining weight fast enough. His birth weight was 5 lbs, 7 oz. Last week it was 5 lbs, 2 oz. They wanted to see him back again today.

Today, just like we predicted, he showed them. He gained 8 oz (more than is expected). Today he weighs 5 lbs, 10 oz!

Sleeping like a baby:

I realize that for 99.9% of you that is still really, really tiny. I'm actually glad that he's small. He's much easier to hold and to carry. Plus this way he will be a baby just a little bit longer. Since Nathan is it for us (barring any unforeseen miracles) it's nice to know that I can enjoy him as a baby longer (even if it's only for a couple of weeks longer).

Although small in size, Nathan is very well developed

for his age. He lifts his head and is already enjoying some "tummy time". He has been sleeping in his crib every night and, although he prefers to be held when he's awake late at night, will play peacefully in his crib if we aren't able to hold him.

Wearing some Rider Pride:

Some of you have asked what our other "babies" think of Nathan. The answer to that is "not much". Gary sometimes gets a bit jealous and will demand attention from me. He is practically crazy glued to my side when I'm in bed and sometimes he likes to sit on the nursing pillow when Nathan is eating. Otherwise, Gary doesn't rea

lly care. Junior is less impressed with the changes. When mom was here Junior attached himself to her and would follow her around the house. He is slowly coming out of his shell and is getting braver when Nathan is near. He even sniffed his head a couple of times the other day. Since Nathan is about half of their size, I'm hoping to get a photo of him beside Gary soon, but I never seem to have my camera handy when Gary is on the couch with us.

Sitting with Grandma E:

Speaking of photos we have been really negligent in taking them. Nathan is nearly 2 weeks old and we don't have a single photo of the 3 of us together! We will be sending out birth announcements at some point, but obviously we will need some photos first! The ones that I have posted so far are the ones that I took on my iPhone so the quality is not the best. Even so, I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

We Survived Our First Week

2010-12-20T10:30:00.003-07:00

Nathan & I have been home about a week now. The first couple of nights were tough, but now they seem to be getting easier. Unfortunately for us, Nathan is a bit of a night owl - often staying awake until 1 or 2 am. When he does that I will give him to Jason for some male bonding time while I go to bed.

Overall he is a very good baby. The worst part of his day is when he gets the hiccups - often 2 or 3 times a day. They obviously annoy him and there's nothing that we can do for him when that happens.

Showing his Rider Pride:

Mom has been here for about a week to help out. She said that our photos of Nathan don't accurately represent his true size. He is definitely a small guy! I told his cousin Eric that his head is about the size of a softball! Imagine that if you can. None of his little hats fit him yet. Mom has been busy crocheting a few that do fit.

Nathan is a champion of making faces. He smiles, he winks, he can even raise one eyebrow! How much of that he's doing on purpose I don't know. We all have fun watching though.

Making silly faces:

Nathan has already progressed from loving to be swaddled to loving his freedom. He loves to stretch his arms and legs and no matter how tight he's swaddled, he will get his hands free.

And it's obvious that he is better able to focus his eyes now. He loves to look around a room to see what's there. I'm sure that he will be fascinated by the Xmas tree once we get the lights on it.

If I was to give a tip to a new mom it would be to buy a package of pre-fold flannel diapers. I was given a package of 8 from a lady that I bought some fitted diapers from, and they are fabulous! Not as diapers, but for receiving blankets and burp cloths. Nathan is small enough that we can even swaddle him in them. Plus, they're cheap (especially if you can get them free like I did).

Speaking of diapers, it is our plan to cloth diaper Nathan. Unfortunately right now he is still a little too small to fit into the fitted diapers so we are having to use disposables. Thankfully Huggies makes some that are unscented - I really hate the smell of baby powder scented diapers.

The Baby Has Arrived!

2010-12-14T15:35:00.003-07:00

Introducing Nathan John Michael:

Moments after birth:

Such a cutie!

Finally on our way home:

So I'm catching heck for not updating my blog sooner, sorry about that, I've been rather busy!

Throughout my pregnancy I was closely monitored, even though it was an easy pregnancy. First it was discovered that I had a low lying placenta, so that was monitored via ultrasound. Once that was no longer a concern they continued to monitor me every 2 weeks as Nathan was measuring small. For the past couple of weeks they also were concerned that the placenta was starting to tire out. At my ultrasound on Monday, December 6 they decided that I needed to be induced that week. The Perinatologist was going to call my maternity Dr. Before we even left the building my Drs. office called and I was booked to see them on Tuesday morning.

Tuesday morning my doctor sent off the requisition for induction to the hospital. Jason and I went out for a late breakfast and planned to have at least a day or two until we heard from the hospital. We had barely finished eating when the hospital called and said to come in. And some think that our Healthcare system is slow!

*WARNING* There will be some talk about "girl parts" from here on out.

I was admitted to the hospital around 1 pm on Monday. My body was not ready for labour at all. My cervix was not dilated and was still in a posterior position. At 2:20 pm the medication Cervidil was inserted to hopefully start the process. At 4pm I was moved to a new room where we waited, and waited. The worst part of this day was that I got a roommate around 11pm and she was quite the snorer!

On Wednesday at 2:20 pm (24 hours later) they checked on my progress. It was minimal, around a fingertip dilated. The 2 options at this point were to replace the Cervidil with a new one, or to try a Foley Balloon Catheter (which I won't explain here). I'll be honest, neither sounded too appealing to me. The doctors felt that the balloon was the best option for me. At this point we are now in a procedure room, which at one time was a storage closet, waiting for a new room. Eventually they put me in another room (by now we were getting so impatient and tired). Jason went home for a while and came back after supper. We tried walking around the halls and going up and down the stairs to get the balloon to work. It didn't work.

Around 10 pm my own doctor came in to check on me. She was able to remove the balloon and said that it did help some. I was now dilated about 2cm. She said that as soon as a labour room comes available I will move (again) and they will start me on an Oxytocin drip.

By 11:30 I was in my private L&D room and the drip was inserted. One of the downsides to the drip is that I had to be on a fetal monitor the entire time, so I wasn't able to move around much. I did sleep some.

Which brings us to Thursday - are you getting sick of this yet? At 7 am I had maxed out on the dose of Oxytocin and no labour. My Dr. checked me again and felt that I was dilated enough to break the water - so she did. Not much happened at first. I even texted Jason and told him to bring me a coffee. He was planning to come around 9 am. By around 8:15 am I finally started to have contractions. By 9 am they were already pretty intense and only 2.5 minutes apart.

I got the epidural around 10 ish - I had put it off because I was afraid that it would slow down my labour. The Anesthesiologist was thankfully free and able to come right away. The whole process didn't take very long and the effects started right away. It was a wonderful feeling indeed! I do not understand why some women don't want an epidural - it's a wonderful thing!

By noon I was fully dilated but they made me wait to push as they were having some trouble keeping the baby on the monitor and they needed to monitor his heartbeat. Eventually they had to go with an internal monitor (poor guy). I think I only had to push 3 or 4 times before Nathan was born. Thanks to the epidural I didn't feel a thing! I didn't even believe them when they said that he was out! So they grabbed him and put him on my chest. He was so tiny, but he gripped my finger right away.

Here are the specifics:

Nathan John Michael

Born December 9, 2010

2477 grams (5 lbs, 7 oz)

49 cm long (19 inches)

More details to follow.

Another Day, Another Ultrasound

2010-11-29T13:12:00.002-07:00

Since I'm 37 weeks pregnant I'm *technically* full term now. Which means that should I happen to go into labour, the doctors will not do anything to stop it at this point. But don't get excited, I'm still anticipating another 3 -4 weeks of pregnancy.

On that note, I am now officially on maternity leave. I'm hoping to get at least 3 weeks off before the baby arrives so that I have time to rest and relax and get organized before the Progeny arrives.

As always I'm coming off of another very busy weekend. Mom and Dad came for a visit so that Mom could attend my baby shower on Saturday. Of course we all watched the Grey Cup on Sunday as well.

The shower was great. Have I mentioned how great my coworkers are? My manager hosted the shower at her house and it was a full house. The food was amazing and the gifts are very much appreciated. I forgot to download the photos from Mom's camera before they left this morning so you will have to take my word on it. As soon as my hand regains some feeling I will be getting on the thank you cards.

This morning we had yet another ultrasound. For some reason medical doctors have a real distrust of a small baby. Maybe "distrust" is not the right word. Here's the scoop: our baby is small - still measuring within the normal range, but on the small end. Our baby is also very active and is developing normally. Even so, the doctors insist that I keep going for regular ultrasounds to monitor the growth.

Today the Progeny measured approximately 2.4 kg (about 5.5 lbs) with another 3 weeks to go until our due date I think that's fine. After all, I was a small baby, so it stands to reason that my baby will be small too. The doctors still want to have me come back next week - again. Ultrasounds used to be fun, now they're just a PITA.

That's all I know for now.

Baby Pool!

2010-11-20T21:31:00.003-07:00

With the countdown officially started, we have started a Baby Pool.

Take a guess and see how close you get to guessing when the baby will be born and if the baby is a boy or girl.

Good luck!

Exclusively for my blog readers

2010-11-07T10:00:00.003-07:00

You won't see this on Facebook I promise you. Some say that I'm self conscious about how I look, in reality I don't think that Facebook is an appropriate place to share such personal things. Let's face it, I look awesome - why wouldn't I want to brag about it?

Today, we're 6 weeks away from our due date. At this point I've gained about 20 lbs, which is right on track for where I want to be by now. And no, I'm not dieting or watching what I eat. I've always been a healthy eater and that hasn't changed. I still eat what I want, when I want. The only thing that has changed is that I can't be as active as I used to be.

So here is the moment that so many of you have been waiting for:

31 Weeks:

33 Weeks:

See how much I've "popped" in just 2 weeks? My co-workers seemed to enjoy telling me that a lot this week. But it's true, my "waist" grew by 3 inches between these photos. It is definitely harder to find a comfortable position. My tops are getting tighter, but I'm not going to waste any money by buying more now.

And I hope you noticed my lovely Rider jersey. There are still 3 more weeks until the Grey Cup, I'm hopeful that it will still fit by then (of course if it doesn't I can always wear my old, practice jersey that is bigger).

Speaking of 3 more weeks, I also only have 3 more weeks of work left. And my baby shower is in 3 weeks as well. I have the best co-workers ever for putting that together. I am getting excited for it. But since there won't be a baby to hold, maybe I'll have to ask Jenna to bring her chihuahua for everyone to hold instead!

That's it for an update. Our next ultrasound is on November 15th. We'll see then how much the Progeny has grown.

Don't expect regular updates for a while

2010-10-31T11:17:00.004-06:00

This pregnancy has actually been fairly easy on me (in the physical sense, not the emotional sense). While I may be a bit more nervous than most moms to be, I can't really complain about typical pregnancy side effects.

But lately I have developed a new symptom that is keeping me away from the computer: carpal tunnel syndrome. My chiropractor best explained it: My body has twice the amount of blood pumping through it, and I'm retaining more water than before, so it's not uncommon for my hands and fingers to get tingly. My doctor has suggested that I wear wrist braces both day and night to prevent the pain. I guess I'm thankful it's an easy enough fix. Unfortunately the symptoms aren't likely to go away until several weeks after the baby is born.

So what are some other, lesser known pregnancy symptoms that no one ever tells you about. Parents magazine lists 10 of them in this article.

Otherwise, everything else is fine. My last ultrasound revealed that the placenta is out of the danger zone and that will dramatically decrease the chances for needing a c-section. I will still be getting regular ultrasounds to monitor the baby's growth though. Since the baby is getting pretty squished in there we aren't getting any more photos, you will all have to wait a few more weeks to see the Progeny again.

Name wise: If the Progeny is a girl there are several names that we both like. If the Progeny is a boy, then it's likely that he won't have a name for a long time!

We think that we have all of the basics for the Progeny. So now we wait.

Why I Vote

2010-10-22T09:16:00.002-06:00

Calgary had a civic election on Monday. We are notorious for having low voter turnout. If I recall correctly, 6 years ago our voter turnout was only 20% (however I do recall that we had a snowstorm on election day), 3 years ago our voter turnout was about 38%, this year everyone was thrilled that our voter turnout was 53%. Personally, I'd love to see it near the 80% mark.

I don't understand why some people don't vote. I get that there will always be some circumstances that make it unavoidable (e.g. illness, accident, etc). But for those who purposely chose not to vote, I don't get it.

This is why I vote:

Because I can. There are so many in the world who are fighting wars for this right, and so many of us take it for granted. We have so many rights here in Canada, including the right of free speech (of which voting is included), while many others in the world are imprisoned for speaking out.
Because it's only been in the past century that women have had the right to vote. Have you ever heard of the term "suffrage"? Our women ancestors fought long and hard to give us the right to vote. Women in Canada (excluding Quebec) were only granted the right to vote in 1918. I'm sure that Nellie McClung would turn over in her grave to see women today treat voting so casually.
Because by voting, I now have the right to complain about what our elected officials are doing (or not). Didn't vote? Don't complain to me about politics.

I've often heard from my friends that they didn't vote because they "didn't know enough about the candidates to make an informed decision". What kind of crap excuse is that? We live in the world of Google. Not knowing who is running is entirely your fault. Elections aren't called and held overnight. The law requires that there be a minimum time between calling an election and the election being held. I think that for Federal Elections that time is 3 months.

So how did my candidates do this election? 1 out of 3 got elected. 2 out of the 3 were close enough for a recall. I'm happy.

30 Week Ultrasound

2010-10-08T12:46:00.001-06:00

We had another ultrasound today specifically to check on the location of the placenta. At my last ultrasound (about 5 weeks ago), the placenta was a mere 0.5 cm from the cervix. Anything less than 2 cm is something that the doctors like to keep an eye on. Depending on what they saw today I could have been put on bed rest, modified bed rest, or told to maintain my "take it easy" lifestyle that I've been practicing for the past 5 weeks.

The good news is that the placenta is moving! The bad news is that it's still really close (about 1.2 cm away). The OB on site told me that he would expect it to move about 1 mm a week. Therefore I will be getting regular ultrasounds every 2 weeks or so.

The Progeny is still a stubborn child (again proof that it's ours). The tech couldn't get any good shots although she tried really hard. I explained that the Progeny is not a morning person and was probably still asleep.

Even so, no matter what, those hands were never moved away from the face. See?

We did get to see the Progeny blinking and yawning which was really neat. The Progeny is also already head down (and hopefully stays that way).

This shot shows everything all squished together (feet, hands, and face).

The best shot of the day was of the chambers of the heart. A strong and steady heartbeat of 163 bpm was measured.

Some Progress

2010-09-27T19:28:00.003-06:00

The house is a disaster right now. I dread the day that we finally redo the kitchen. I'm hoping that by then (since we will have won the lottery in order to pay for a kitchen overhaul) that we can move into a new house while the renos are going on so I don't have to live with the mess.

I think I mentioned in a prior post that we had put off buying anything for the Progeny partially out of superstition and partly to wait for the renos to be done. We had expected to have to wait several weeks for the crib but were surprised that we could take it home right away. We decided to set it up to make sure that it wasn't missing any pieces.

Here it is:

And here it is with the mattress and dust ruffle. The rest of the bedding we'll set up closer to arrival date.

What we like about this crib is that 1 - it's made out of solid wood, and 2 - it converts into first a toddler day bed and then into a double bed. So if we ever moved to house with more bedrooms we'll already have a bed, and if not, the Progeny can take it to university when s/he goes.

Check out the new floors in the photos as well!

Do You Trust the "Science"

2010-09-20T12:24:00.000-06:00

Way back in April/May when I was in Ohio I bought a baby gender predictor kit. As far as I know, these aren't available in Canada. I had to wait several weeks to use it to ensure accuracy.

Here are the photos, what do you think?

I can't remember the company website for you to look up comparison photos. At this point you will have to decide whether or not you trust the "science" behind the test!

3 Months / 13 Weeks / 91 Days

2010-09-19T06:33:00.000-06:00

Today I officially enter into the 3rd trimester! Our official due date is only 3 months away, or 13 weeks, or 91 days depending on how you prefer to track it.

Though the renovations are still in progress we had a moment of clarity last week and realized that we'd better start to buy the essentials or time may run out! Last weekend we ordered a glider/recliner (which is being custom made with the fabric of our choice) and carseat (which was out of stock). Plus we bought a stroller (which we didn't actually plan to buy until the New Year, but was on sale).

Today we bought a crib (technically Mom & Dad bought us a crib - Thanks Mom!) and since it was in stock we were able to bring it home today. We had figured that it would be a few weeks before we had a crib and by then the renos would be done. Oh well, things could be worse.

Jason got the crib all set up and we put the mattress in. As soon as it was all done Gary decided to check it out. I'm sure that Gary will think that this is his own personal bed. He's going to be sorely disappointed come December!

As for the renos the electrician will be in on Friday to put up the new lights. Then the painters come the following Monday. After that all that's left is the new closet organizers (I can't wait), new closet doors (which the painter will paint on Monday - then they just have to be hung), and the new blinds. I'll be looking for new bedding for the guest bed as well. I can't wait! I hate living in chaos but I love the end result. Maybe we'll get lucky and win the lottery so we can update the kitchen next.

Renovations - Week 2

2010-09-11T12:23:00.004-06:00

It's been a long week - which it shouldn't have been since there was a holiday in there. We have been trying to adapt to me being on lots of restrictions, work responsibilities, and renovations all at once.

We've put off updating the bedrooms for years (okay, I've put off updating the bedrooms). The carpeting was really old and ugly and would never come clean. Jason had suggested on numerous occasions that we replace it. I always said "no" because it's never as simple as that. I theorized that since we'd have to pack up the bedrooms to put in new flooring, then we may as well paint at the same time. Plus our closet organizers were a little worse for wear so what better time to replace them than when they were empty. And while we were at it, let's get rid of the ugly closet doors too. It's like my Dad always says "one can of paint costs you $1000".

So we put it off and put it off, until we could put it off no longer. So now the bedrooms are packed up and everything is stacked everywhere else. We are living in partial chaos for the next few weeks.

On top of the chaos, poor Jason has to do all of the furniture moving and bin hauling on his own. It drove me nuts yesterday not to be able to rearrange things and put things back where I wanted to see them.

The new flooring is in. (Sorry no photos of the new carpeting yet) Now we wait for everything else: closet doors are on order, paint is picked out, light fixtures are ordered, closet organizers are picked and we're awaiting the quote, and we're still waiting for the window blind quote. It would be so great to have a renovations magic wand to wave to get it all done at once!

Soon we will have to start to buy things for the Progeny.

Ultrasound #4

2010-09-08T17:11:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I had my 4th ultrasound - and I've got at least 2 more on the horizon. And to think that some women only get one for their entire pregnancy.

This ultrasound was done to check for something called Placenta Previa (I'll let you look that one up yourselves). It was purely for diagnostic purposes so no sexing - mom!

The baby is measuring a little small for 25 weeks, but still within normal range. They're not overly concerned at this point about baby's size as 1 - I'm petite and 2 - the baby is very active! I'm not surprised though - I'm eating something every hour or two, but I still haven't gained lot of weight (just under 10 lbs). I guess I'll have to start eating more junk food!

To continue to monitor my progress I will get ultrasound #5 in 2 weeks, and then #6 in 4 weeks.

In the meantime I get to rest and take things easy. So no more triathlons for me! Also no more carrying in the groceries (shucks), vacuuming, gardening, or basically housework of any type! Jealous??

New Floors!

2010-09-04T20:30:00.003-06:00

First off I want you all to know that I haven't abandoned my 30 day blog journal, I've just been a little sidetracked lately.

Our bedroom renovations are finally underway! Yesterday they laid the new flooring in the hall and the guest/baby's room. I can't believe what a difference it makes. The bedroom looks so much bigger!

On Tuesday we are finally getting a screen door installed on the balcony door. Hopefully that will help cool off the bedroom at night next summer. Then on Friday we will have the new carpet installed on the stairs and in our bedroom. It's a pain to get the rooms ready for the work, but the end result is worth it.

Here's some photos of the new floor - sorry they're so tiny, I captured them off my cell phone.

Progeny Update

2010-08-27T15:49:00.005-06:00

Hi all, I thought I'd give you a quick update on how our Progeny is doing. I had my monthly doctor appointment today. No worries on weight gain (although I am the heaviest that I have ever been), my blood pressure is a little low, but they are happy about that. The baby's heartbeat (although hard to find because of activity) is strong and regular at 140 bpm.

My only complaint is my allergies which, although they are better this summer than the past 2 summers, are a pain in the butt. I also seem to have developed a smoker's cough - presumably from all of the forest fire smoke in the air. My doctor said that she would rather I not suffer and prescribed an antihistamine spray to take until the season ends.

It's nearly time for the dreaded glucose tolerance test. That's where they have me drink a glass of nearly pure syrup and then take my blood to see how I process it in order to check for gestational diabetes. I'm not looking forward to that one, but at least I don't have to fast!

And they booked my next ultrasound appointment for early October. One of the benefits of being a wee bit older, and having a stubborn child, means that you get to have a lot more ultrasounds. This next one will be #4. It will be interesting to see the changes that have occurred in the past 3 months.

While walking home from my appointment today (and listening to my iPod) I've decided that the theme song to this pregnancy should be I Wanna Be Sedated by The Ramones!

Hopefully by then our household renovations will be complete. As you know, we have been de-80's our house for the past 6 years, one room at a time (as we can afford it). We've put off doing the bedrooms out of laziness (it's a pain to clean out the rooms). We're finally doing it. So, starting next week we will be living in disarray for awhile. Both bedrooms and the hall are getting new floors, both closets will get new organizers and doors, the track lighting is getting the boot, we'll freshen up the paint, and the guest/baby room will get new blinds. It will look great when it's done, but it's a pain in the butt to get it done!

Once the work is done we can finally start buying things for the Progeny. I know that we have lots of time left, but we know that it will go by quickly as well. Hopefully the renos don't drain our savings completely.

And that's about it.

30 day Blog Journal - Day 20

2010-08-27T10:44:00.002-06:00

A hobby of mine:

I like to crochet while I watch t.v. Here are a couple of my most recent projects:

30 day Blog Journal - Day 19

2010-08-26T10:38:00.003-06:00

A Talent of Mine:

I take fairly good photos. I've even done some wedding photography. All as a hobby of course.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 18

2010-08-25T10:34:00.002-06:00

My Wedding:

We got married nearly 14 years ago and back then photos were taken on something called "film" and that film had to be sent away for processing before you could see the photos. As such, I have only scanned a few photos from our wedding onto the computer (the desktop, not the laptop). To see those you can click here for my Flickr set.

If you knew me then you'll remember that Jason and I went away to get married, just the two of us. We did have a reception about a month later for our family and close friends. On that day we had some professional photos taken. This is one of my favourites from that day:

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 17

2010-08-24T10:30:00.002-06:00

An art piece:

How about 2? We bought these (plus 1 other) on our trip to Spain 4 years ago. They really capture what the towns really look like. The white buildings and the bright flowers and the blue sky.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 16

2010-08-23T10:29:00.000-06:00

A Song that makes me cry (or nearly)

Is it fait to say that I can't think of one? Pregnancy hormones or not, I'm just not much of a crier. Sorry to disappoint.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 15

2010-08-22T15:27:00.002-06:00

My Dream House:

I don't have a photo of my dream house - just a concept of it really. Here's what it would have:

Separate master closets and bathrooms
At least 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms
A guest suite
A media room
A library (with wooden shelves with a ladder that rolls along in front of them)
A beautiful garden
In a nice neighbourhood with mature trees, within walking distance to shops and services (like the neighbourhood we're in now)
A big kitchen with a walk in pantry (or a butler's pantry, but then I'd need a butler)

That's all that comes to mind right now.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 14

2010-08-21T15:23:00.000-06:00

A Non-Fiction Book:

I've talked about this book before. Given what's recently happened in Pakistan I think it's worth bringing up again.

This book gives you a glimpse into the lives of the people of Pakistan that have been forgotten by the government. These are the people from the remote villages that have no amenities and have no access to medial aide or education. This book tells us how literally 1 man set about to change that and to bring education to these people.

It is well written and has been endorsed by countless Canadian and US soldiers who have served in Afghanistan. In fact, in some squadrons, it is required reading.

I urge you to read it too.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 13

2010-08-20T15:21:00.000-06:00

A Fictional Book:

How about this one that I'm currently reading?

I just started to read this the other day so I haven't formed an opinion yet. I hope that it's as good as the first book in the series.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 12

2010-08-19T15:15:00.000-06:00

Something you are OCD about:

Oh my, where do I begin? I could probably write a really long post about these things, but you would stop reading and Mom would send me an e-mail about it (just checking to see if you're reading Mom).

I'll stick to 2 things that I'm "OCD" about.

The first is toilet paper. When you put a new roll on the stick (what is that thing called anyway?) - the paper should go OVER not under. See the diagram below:

This is how it is done in hotels and, I assume, in royal castles so it must be the correct way to do it.

The other related thing that I'm "OCD" about is the lid of the toilet seat. The lid should always be CLOSED until you need to use the toilet. Not only does this look nicer, it is more hygienic and it keeps pets and children out of the toilet as well. Plus, you won't ruin anything that happens to fall off the bathroom counter when the lid is down. Why people don't close the lid is beyond me.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 11

2010-08-18T15:05:00.000-06:00

A photo of me recently.

I know that you've all been longing to see a belly picture, but today is not your day. Tomorrow's not looking too good for you either!

There were a few photos taken of me at the Pitzel reunion a couple of weeks ago, but I don't have any copies of them. And since I'm usually the photo-taker, it's hard to find a photo of me.

This one goes all the way back to late April/ early May when I was in Cincinnati. I'm at the conservatory at the annual butterfly exhibition. You might not be able to tell, but there is a butterfly on my head.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 10

2010-08-17T15:09:00.002-06:00

Mom, Trever & me 1976
Originally uploaded by kimberleyd.

A photo taken over 10 years ago of me.

This is hard because most of those photos are not digitized! Let me see what I can find that I've scanned already.

This one should do - I figure it was taken in about 1976.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 9

2010-08-16T19:58:00.000-06:00

A photo I took:

Cherries on the tree in West Kelowna.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 8

2010-08-15T19:50:00.000-06:00

A photo that makes me angry/sad:

Images of the flooding/devastation in Pakistan this week.

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 7

2010-08-14T19:48:00.000-06:00

A photo that makes me happy:

30 Day Blog Journal - Day 6

2010-08-13T19:38:00.001-06:00

20 of my favourite things:

In no particular order (just as they popped into my head)

Cats & kittens
Horses
A good book
A quiet room
A good night's sleep
Falling asleep with a purring cat next to me
Watching the snow fall
Buying something and finding out it's on sale when you get to the till
Getting a nice, shady spot on the beach
A weed-free garden
A clean house (that stays clean for at least 2 days)
Travel
No line at the ski lift
Fresh herbs for cooking
Korean bulgogi for dinner
Shoes that look great and are comfortable
When a plan comes together
Photography
Going out for breakfast on the weekends
Being able to sleep in!