Changes in latitude, Changes in attitude....

Since we've had so many changes lately with the baby, I decided to do a little something for myself. I had to get my haircut (didn't want to look like a shaggy dog anymore)....while I was there, I decided to COLOR MY HAIR! Lots of fun--it's called "cherry cola" and is a darker, auburn color.

Here's new pics...the white and pink outfit was mine when I was little!

She Likes It!

Ahhhh....the life of a baby!

All of a sudden, the Nuk is great! (Of course, it has to be THIS Nuk, which they were out of at the store the other day.) Vivian has found that not only does she like to suck on it (as long as her tummy is full), but that if she puts her hand up it stays in her mouth better. She is so coordinated! Of course, sometimes she tries to hold it but doesn't quite get it...but we're workin' on it!

Happy Birthday to Meg and Pat---Hope the Twins/Cubs game was fun. We watched the series on TV.

Not much else is going on. I started Her Highness's scrapbook which has been fun! I was comparing pictures and am amazed at how different she looks already. She has a lot of facial expressions, which are so hard to capture with the digital...but I'm working on it! I think her hair is starting to fall out a little. Adam thinks it will come back in blonde, but I'm hoping for the darker hair still. (I guess most babies have the blonde hair though).

We're getting ready for the Alaska cruise, coming up soon... I have NO IDEA what to pack! The weather will probably be in the mid-sixties to mid-seventies which is pretty chilly for us. We've been in 90 degree weather for 3 months now!

Baptism

We will send out invitations as the date gets closer, but we wanted people to be able to plan in advance (in case of travel).

Vivian's baptism will be on Sunday, October 15, 2006 at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Schaumburg, IL. I believe it will be at the 9:30 service.

I think this is the same time as NEA, so the kids shouldn't have school that Thurs. or Fri., which might work out for traveling.

Vivian's next Dr. appt. is on Wed., July 5. It is her 2 month checkup and includes the dreaded shots.... As far as we can tell, she weighs about 12 lbs. and is at least 23 inches long. She is on the cusp of growing out of her 0-3 month clothes (especially her sleepers). Today she has a little bit of a stuffy nose, which is making her mad more than anything! We'll give more details after her appointment.....good thing we have LOTS of 3-6 month clothes though!

Things People Don't Like to Talk About

I haven't really done an indepth update in awhile. Lots of stuff has been going on in our lives lately, however. First of all, my brother came to town this weekend and we had a lot of fun catching up. Vivian was enthralled with Uncle Marc and I believe he felt the same way!








As for me, I've been up and down. When we were here in FL after Viv's birth and when we were in MN, I just didn't feel good. I was crying all the time and really not enjoying Vivian at all. In fact, I was convinced that she was a really hard baby who fussed all the time for me. (For everyone else, she was pretty good...but fussed a lot with me). Anyways, when we came back to FL a couple of weeks ago, I went in to my doctor. Sure enough, she diagnosed me with post-partum depression and was very glad that I called/came in right away. SO, here I am, 2.5 weeks later---taking Ativan when I feel anxiety and Zoloft every morning. Unfortunately, that means that I can no longer breastfeed---medicine would go to baby. But, the doctor said that since I was having so many issues with the milk, stopping was probably less stressful for me. Well, she got 5 weeks of the best food in the world, so I'm happy for that. I'm not crying anymore...in fact, Vivian has suddenly become very fun for me. She is starting to smile and loves to cuddle. She doesn't cry all the time with me. Probably just did that because I was so anxious and crying everytime she was with me. I feel a lot better about being a mom and I feel like I am able to handle things and roll with the punches again.

We're looking forward to our Alaska trip---cooler weather, here we come! (Whew!)
We're also looking forward to doing a little sightseeing in Seattle and Vancouver beforehand.

Happy Father's Day!

To all the fathers out there, have a wonderful day and know that your kids love you very much!

New Pics....

Not much new to report...Adam and I are just completely enveloped in trying to figure out parenthood. I guess you never REALLY figure it out, but at least get to a point where you feel you have a good handle on it. I think we've actually figured out a pattern...which is a little helpful.

6:30-8:30am---awake...occasionally dosing off
8:30-10:30---actively awake
10:30-1:30/2---nap...if we're lucky
2:00-5:00---fun time! awake, happy
5:00-8:00---Yikes! Don't make plans. Could be an angel, could be a fussbuster.
8/8:30-2:30am-sleep
2:30-3:15am--awake and very hungry
3:15-6:00am--sleep

Of course, just when we think we have her figured out, she throws us for a loop. But hey, it is a start! (Notice that Little Miss Newborn only takes one nap a day). Maybe that means she'll continue to sleep longer and longer through the night!

Money in the bank!

Yep... we deposited the $0.04 check from the mortgage company.

But, that's not all! I decided to clean out our safe and gather our birth certificates together so that we are somewhat organized for the cruise. We haven't gotten around to getting passports yet but we'll have to for next year when they change Canadian law. Anyways, what do I find at the bottom of the safe???? $100!!! SCORE! Gotta love finding money that you forgot about!

Vivian updates: She smiled....officially...more than once. She proved that she can sleep 5-6 hours at night. She's done it since we were in MN, but we're not holding our breath that this pattern will continue...although we are wishfully thinking that it might. She has perfected the "fake, I want attention" cry. Pathetic. She is very active and alert. Only takes one nap each day for about 3 hours.

Opening the Mail

We had the post office hold our mail while we were in MN. I managed to get through about half the stack so far.

We got the insurance/doctor bill notification. With dread, I open it up...YIKES! Babies cost a lot in those 48 hours! Oh, wait....phew...the insurance covered most of it....

Oh, wait! Here's a refund from Chase Mortgage Co. because of an overage in our escrow. Maybe that will cover the amount we will owe the hospital.... $0.04. Yep. That's right. 4 measly little cents. Why? Why send 4 MEASLY LITTLE CENTS. Gosh. Got my hopes up. Oh well.

Viv is adjusting back to FL life quite well. She is working on eating more at each meal and eating less often. She is down to a feeding before bed, one at night and one in the (very early) morning.

At 1 month, she is very alert, verbal and well adjusted. She seems to be very particular---likes things "just so". I have recently found that she enjoys the swing, even though we think it swings way too fast. She can roll over from her back to her side. She enjoys baths in her tub, but not so much if we give her one in a sink. She is NOT a nuk girl right now, but will take it when she is cuddling before bed sometimes.

It's Been Awhile!

We're back in FL...our trip went well, all things considered. We enjoyed seeing our family and many friends while there....guess that was Edith's plan, bringing us all together.

It is almost 11:00 and I think the little munchkin is awake in her crib....more later!

Sad News

Our grandma Edith passed away today (Sat.). She has been living with alzheimer's for quite some time now and we believe that she is in heaven with grandpa with all of her precious memories back. We will miss her dearly but know that she is happy now with the rest of her family and know that we will see her again when our time on earth is done.

On that same note, we will be in Minnesota on Monday. We're not sure when we will be returning to Florida. We'll be staying up north for awhile at least--maybe a week or two.

It is times like this when we remember how fragile and precious life is. If you haven't told someone you love them or haven't visited someone as much as you should, take the time---you never know how much time God has planned for you.

We love you all!

New Pictures!

What a weekend!

We had an eventful weekend here....

My first day alone with Viv was on Friday---it went ok...we're still getting used to things here. She had her 2 week checkup...Dr. Kayaleh said she looks great, weighs 9lbs. 80z. (yikes!), grew 2 inches and is in the 90th percentile for weight, height and head circumference. She's very well proportioned! I think she's a little fussier than she should be...perhaps excess gas or something, but doc said everything looked normal!

We had 8th grade awards night on Friday night at school. Viv and I went with Adam to that. He had to present some art awards.

Saturday was a long day for me. I don't know how single moms do it. Adam was at Busch Gardens ALL day with the 8th graders. It is an end of the year trip for them and Adam got blessed with chaperone duty. So, off her went at 6:30am and didn't get back until after 7:00. But, he had fun and we survived.

THE BEST THING THOUGH, WAS THAT EVEN THOUGH HE WAS WIPED OUT AFTER A DAY OF CHASING KIDS THROUGH THE PARK AND IN 93 DEGREE HEAT, HE STAYED UP WITH VIVIAN ALL NIGHT SO THAT I COULD SLEEP FOR MULTIPLE CONSECUTIVE HOURS! WHAT A GUY!

Sunday...well, we planned on going to church, but we couldn't quite get out the door on time. Sorry, God. We tried. Viv and I went to the annual church picnic this afternoon. Adam stayed behind to get the rest of his grading done. (Last week of school is this week!)

When I got home, Adam and I spent some time trying to figure out how to soothe a fussy baby. Don't get me wrong...she doesn't have colic, but just seems really unhappy when she's awake. She cries often and straightens out her body in frustration. Can't quite figure this out.

Need Ideas....

1. Viv has her days and nights mixed up. Not cool for mommy.

2. She also seems to have an un-ladylike problem....gas? poops? Who knows? Lots of grunting and getting mad in the face....

Otherwise, she remains as cute as ever. And strong...I think she'll be rolling over in no time, seeing as though she likes being on her tummy so much! (If only she could tummy sleep right now, we'd be in heaven!)

Girls, you know who you are, have fun on your girls only weekend! Give your guys extra hugs and kisses for staying with the kids!

More pics...sorry, didn't take the time to rotate!

Sleep....IT IS NOT OVERRATED!

I don't know how I will do it...Adam is back at work, so he's not getting up through the night. My mom leaves tomorrow, so she won't be up with Viv in the morning. When am I going to sleep??? I'm feeling pretty anxious about the prospect of being left alone with Viv. Pretty scared, actually. I'm not sure I know what to do!

Also, does anybody know if a baby can eat too much? Don't they stop when they are full? She eats....ALL THE TIME! If you've read past blog entries, you will know that eating has been a rough area so far---combination of breastmilk and formula. I'm afraid she'll gain weight too fast. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all of you mothers, mothers-to-be, godmothers, grandmothers....HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! Take some time to pamper yourself, enjoy your children, call YOUR mother, think of your mom.

The Birth Story

Ok, ok....found some time to write my story....

Tuesday, May 2, 8:00pm

Contractions are getting stronger and we're excitedly anticipating the arrival of Baby Girl Rosenbaum. At this point, I knew I was dilated to a 4, at least, and contractions were coming every 6-7 minutes. This continued on throughout the night, sometimes closer together. I didn't find that this was unmanageable at all--in fact, I was getting an awful lot done around the house (because sleep wasn't happening any time soon).

Wednesday, May 3, 4:00am

Wow! Contractions are getting closer together--4 minutes apart and lasting longer. I knew that I needed to get antibiotics, so it was about time to go to the hospital. SO--I took a shower, packed my bag, woke up Adam and told him to get ready. We still weren't in a big hurry, I know this whole labor thing could take forever. He showered, shaved, etc. and we were off. We stopped at the gas station and then headed to school to drop off Adam's lesson plans for the week. On to Celebration Hospital we went....

8:00am

They checked me--yes, contractions were coming pretty strongly and they figured I was progressing well. Nope. 4 cm. Yikes. So, we got checked in. What was nice is that all my monitors were cordless and I didn't have to have them much, so I was free to move about the hospital. We walked....and walked.....and walked....enjoyed the gardens, checked the lunch menu, etc. Eventually I had to get an IV so I had to get to the room...and drag a pole around with me for the rest of the time. (yuck).

Morning, afternoon and night were quickly passing by. The length of time was certainly taking its toll on my tolerance level...exhaustion was setting in. I was focusing a lot more and concentrating on breathing that baby down. Around 9:00pm on Wed. night, contractions were very intense, but I wasn't dilating any further. My labor seemed to have stalled out at only 6cm dilation. We didn't have any progression... Truthfully, at this point, I was exhausted and couldn't stop shaking. I'm not sure where the shaking thing came from...

Around 11:30pm, they administered the dreaded epidural---I was still 6cm. Adam helped me make the decision that it be done, nausea or not, I was too exhausted to continue. (I had been awake for 42 hours, laboring for 27 at this point). The epidural hurt worse than anything I could have imagined and I absolutely hated losing feeling in the lower half of my body. Luckily though, I didn't throw up (although I was VERY dizzy).

Thursday, May 4, 2006

Once I was able to relax a little more and stop shaking, I progressed from a 6 to a 10 in 2.5 hours. I started pushing at 2:15am....pushed for a half hour, and out she came. All 8lbs. 13 oz. of her. I was extremely happy that I could feel her coming out---wasn't totally numb after all---and knew when and how to push. The doctor was surprised that she came out so quickly with the epi, but I wasn't. I knew what to do and did it. And she is beautiful. What a miracle and a joy.

All in all, it wasn't an ideal natural labor/delivery for me--I continued to be dizzy for a few days. I really feel that the hypnobirthing helped me stay focused for the first 27 hours, but pure exhaustion set in. I think I could have done it completely natural if labor had been shorter. It wasn't the pain/pressure at all.

Eating Issues...Resolved...

Viv went to the doctor on Tuesday for her first checkup. Doc was concerned that she was losing too much weight (she was down to 8lbs. 3oz.). It turns out that I don't produce enough milk, partly due to anemia. So, we're currently having to supplement with formula in addition to milk---not an ideal situation, but at least she's not crying from hunger. I'm still pumping in the meantime so she's getting as much milk as I can give her. We had a nightmare few days of constant crying (which we feel HORRIBLE about) before we all figured out what was going on. Most thought she was just a fussy/colicky baby. In actuality, she's such a mellow, peaceful baby so far...

We went back to the doctor today for a weight check---all is better, she gained 5 oz. back!

We're lovin' every minute of being with her and learning all about her. She's so vibrant and alert--tracks us pretty well with her eyes and LOVES her hands. She always has them up by her face and likes to suck on them as well. Her current favorite thing to do is sleep on daddy's chest during her morning nap. (I think that is his favorite thing too!). She sleeps well during the night and is a content little bug during the day. We couldn't be happier!

More pictures and a quick update!

Here's a quick update while Vivi Voo is sleeping on daddy (her favorite place!).
We got home on Saturday afternoon--they debated keeping her longer because of jaundice, but then checked her again and her levels had dropped :). Friday and Saturday night were both rough---she was super fussy and rightfully so...so many peaceful months with mom and then BAM!--lights, sounds, environments like never before!

Sunday night was GREAT! She fed at 9:00pm, 12:30am and 4:45am...otherwise, she slept soundly all night...yea! Now, if we could only be so blessed as to have that happen again!

Feeding has been a challenge, to say the least. Our girl is such a little drama queen...quite feisty...I DON'T HAVE A CLUE WHERE SHE GETS THOSE BEHAVIORS! :) If she doesn't get milk immediately, it is all over! She howls like a banshee and it is tough to calm her after that. She's learning though...

She's a great sleeper so far and makes the best facial expressions. She's very curious and seems to have good hand-eye coordination (Adam is happy because she tends to favor her right hand over left....whatever....left handed people are cool too, gosh!)

She's HERE!

Introducing VIVIAN JADE ROSENBAUM!
8 lbs. 13 oz.
20" long
Born on May 4, 2006
2:45am