Ella at One Month

It is hard to believe that one month has passed with Ella in our lives. It has been a busy month, full of doctor's appointments and family visiting. We are still getting our bearings with feeding, play time, and a daily routine with Jack. She definitely enjoys being held, and with feedings that last up to an hour, it seems like she has taken a lot of my time. However, I am so happy to have our complete family all together. I just keep thinking that Jack is going to have so much fun with her when she is about six months old. He is at such a fun age and sometimes I almost wish I could fast forward Ella to that age. However, I also want to cherish this time with a little one, whose needs are so simple and easy to manage.

Here are the stats for the week! Enjoy
Nicknames: Little Missy, Turtle, Hazel Nut

Weight: 7 lb. 5 oz. It has been a slow start, but she is picking up in weight. I have officially given her a bottle. We are still breastfeeding at the moment, while supplementing with formula. The bottle is given after each breastfeeding and it feels much easier to me. I think breastfeeding is harder in general not just because of my own complications, so I really appreciate the bottles...it makes the whole process faster.

Temperament: It still feels like Ella cries a lot, but I think that is because she likes to be held all the time. I don't remember if Jack was like that or if it is just her age and she will gain more independence with time. We shall see. I still find it to be such a cute cry though! She is awake more now so that means more time that I am trying to put her down. She is getting very curious and looking at the world around her. I think she is especially interested in Jack. He doesn't stay still for very long, but she when can, she is all eyes on him, studying his face. I can't wait for her first smile!

First/New Experiences: Last Saturday we organized a family climbing trip. It was awesome, because the weather was fantastic (at least at the beginning of the day). There were several babies and toddlers, with lots of parental support, so it made for a fun day outside. It was Ella's first time experiencing the outdoors, but I think she enjoyed it. I just read in Parents magazine that infants know the difference between the indoors and the outdoors and that they enjoy the change in scenery. This was very much true with Jack, who loves to be outside. Ella pretty much slept, but I have decided to take that as a good sign since we didn't have a huge cry fest (those happen everyday in our house).

Now, my task for the second month of her life is to take more pictures. Especially pictures that capture her cute little pout, or of her looking at her big brother. I look forward to warmer weather so we can bring her outside more everyday too. Plus, now that she is growing she will be wearing more clothes (I only had about five newborn outfits and the 0-3 were all huge on her). It should be a good next month...maybe I will be lucky and get more sleep too?

Recent Renovations

The house we live in is a work in progress...with every room. This past August we tackled two new rooms, the living room and the sun room attached, which we call the office. We are still working on the office, since it needs blinds and the office table, but don't the walls and the crown molding look good? This is the office above and the living room below.

Joe has also taken on the task of creating a third bedroom so we have a place for guests without having to kick out the baby. It is still not complete and he has been working on it since the beginning of December. It was probably our second largest project in this house (the bathroom took the most work and money). However, it is very near the end. All we have left to do is install the ceiling fan, the baseboards, and the window treatments. This room has come a long way. I am going to have to search for the before pics, but you can see them on this post of yore!

Ella at 3 Weeks Old

I have lost my camera charger at the moment, which is also the way that I upload photos. So this post will be short on the pictures, but as I was taking a shower this morning I was trying to think of all the things that I want to remember about Ella at this age. I was pondering over her differences from Jack. So that is what I want to write about. I will also give some stats too, just as an update.
* This is the picture we used for her birth announcement, which went out into the mail this week!

Nicknames: Ella Bella, Hazelnut, Little Turtle (this is her new nickname, because she has this way of stretching out her neck when she cries and she looks like a little turtle when she is all swaddled up in a blanket).

Weight: 7 lbs. After making two trips to the doctor this week we saw her weight start to pick up again! I'm still supplementing and I probably will need to do this for at least another month. I have decided that I will wean her off the formula after I know that she has reached 10 lbs. to be sure she is growing properly. I feel like I have been lucky to enjoy a tiny baby for a whole month, which is nice when you realize they grow so fast.

Temperament: Ella seems to be more awake everyday. In fact, I am always trying to find time that I can safely put her on a blanket or playmat without Jack hurting her. She loves to look around. It is great to see her curiously looking around the room.

She still has a fierce cry. I took her to the grocery store last night and she decided that she only wanted to be held or she was going to scream. That was definitely different that Jack, since he was always so easy to bring shopping. Even though her cry can be grinding to my ears, she also has some cries that I absolutely love. For example, after she has cried really hard she has this exasperated cry, as if it is so much work and it makes me smile every time I hear it. And sometimes shevcb just makes a little small pout like she was thinking about crying but then just decided against it.

For the most part although she is fussy and likes to be held, I have noticed that when she falls asleep, she is a super solid sleeper. I'm very thankful about that since Jack was and is still not a good sleeper. She likes to sleep on her side and I have noticed she seems much happier when she is on her side. Is this a crime that I like to let her sleep on her side? I figure we have about four months before she rolls over and wants to sleep on her stomach anyways. Oh and as for being held, I think she loves that more than Jack. In fact, I think Jack has always been quite independent and could play by himself so well. Maybe that was because he was not held very much his first few days of life. Ella, however, is happiest in someone's arms at all times.

We love her to pieces and are so glad that she is now part of our family. I look forward to all the months of seeing her develop and bond with each member of our family. It is great to be her mom.

Ella is Two Weeks Old

Not too much different to share for the second week of life. My mother left yesterday, so we are officially doing everything on our own. Well, almost everything. We have had some friends bring over meals this week and that has been a huge help. I have really felt loved and it just makes me want to do more for others because they have been so thoughtful to us. It is also official that Ella is our second child, because I have already noticed that I have taken far less pictures than I did with Jack. I don't think I pulled out the camera once this last week, oops! I guess I have been too busy whipping out my breasts, because we are seriously working on breastfeeding. I think I might be able to do it without supplementing. I have learned a lot in the last two weeks to increase my milk supply. It would certainly make life easier and cheaper if I don't have to have formula. Okay, on with the details!

*All pictures added are from Joe's phone since I didn't take any pictures myself.

Nicknames: Cloven Hoof Princess (Joe's nickname for her since she has a turned foot), Little Turtle, and Hazelnut

Weight and Length: We have had some concerns about Ella's weight. Earlier this week we went into the doctor's office to do a check up on her weight and found that she had only increased by 1 ounce to 6lb. 13 oz., which is not enough. So we set an appointment for Friday and found that she lost 2 ounces. Maybe I'm just not giving her enough breast milk. She also was not pooping that much either. So I have been discouraged and started supplementing again at each feeding. I tried to pump after a feeding to use that for the supplement, but the hand pumps really suck and I don't get much from them. So I should know if her weight increases next week, because we have another appointment on Tuesday. However, I don't think I will continue supplementing like this after a month's time. If my milk supply doesn't increase, then I may just go straight to bottles...I just don't know. As far as her length, she keeps growing and is not 21.5 inches.

Temperament: Ella is more aware everyday. I have been trying to remember to put her on the floor play mat for tummy time and she does so good. I could never do that with Jack, because he would cry after about 10 seconds. He didn't like to be on his stomach until he was able to roll onto it. Ella would probably sleep on her stomach, actually I think she is more of a side sleeper (I let her do that for naps when I am around). I have to sit next to her when I put her on the floor though, because Jack would be all over her otherwise. He has not concept of gentle. And even though she cries when he grabs, hits, kisses, or bumps her she doesn't seem to get too upset. I have a feeling to is going to do well as the second child. Oh, and I have learned that she really does not like to take baths. Her cry gets very loud and extreme. I almost feel bad trying to keep her clean.

Items/Toys That We Love The Most: I still love swaddling her. It seems to be one of the most comforting things for her at this point.

First/New Experiences: Nothing to new yet. My mom left this week, so I guess we officially had our first days without support. Oh, I did take her to music class with Jack, but she slept through the whole thing...I guess it was a sweet sound!

Ella at 1 Week Old

Introducing Ella Hazel DeGaetano
January 19, 2012
7 lb. 4 oz., 18.5 inches

Ella Hazel is officially one week old and we are one week wiser on how to manage two children. I know it feels overwhelming to bring home the first baby, but I must say, it is even more challenging to have two children to deal with. Of course, it might just be especially hard because they are only 16 months apart so I have two in diapers, two that don't speak, and two that cry! We are adjusting though, and with my mom's help we are slowly adjusting into this new phase of life. I am hoping to continue the blog updates about Ella, just like I did with Jack. Of course, my time is less available, since I'm basically breastfeeding all the time. So for the first month, I will update once a week and then it will be once a month. Oh, and don't worry I haven't forgotten about Jack, he will get a post update at 18 months (only two months away).
Nicknames: Hazelnut, Sweet Pea, Ella Bella, Little Cloven Hoof Princess

Weight and Length: She started at 7 lb. 4 oz., but dropped to 6 lb. 12 oz. at her first doctor's appointment. Ella's length started at 18.5 inches at the hospital and was measured at 20 inches at the doctor's office...for some reason I think she was measured wrong at the hospital, or could she really have grown that much in five days?

Temperament: Well, she is still so little it is hard to say. She sleeps a lot. In fact, she was pretty jaundice so she was especially sleepy. Even now I still have to wake her up for feedings. If I didn't, I think she would sleep at least four to five hours at night. I am hoping that is a good sign for our future (maybe we will have one child that likes to sleep through the night). Since she sleeps so much, she hasn't been too much trouble. She usually just cries for food and if we have a hard time with the latching process she can get really upset. However, I have noticed that she will let you know when she is mad. The cry becomes very intense, almost to a point that she gets worn out from crying. It is really cute.

Items/Toys That We Love The Most: She is still too little to care about much. I have noticed that she only likes to be swaddled in a blanket. Whenever I try to use a swaddle that Velcros she will begin to cry and will not stop until I remove it. If I had tried to swaddle Jack in a blanket then he would have squirmed his way out of it. Ella, however, lays pretty still or if she does move her arms out, then it doesn't seem to wake her up. I think I might also become a huge fan of my baby slings/carriers. How else am I going to make dinner with Jack pulling on my pants and Ella crying? So I figure it will be used a lot more than it was with just one child.
First/New Experiences: Everything has been new and different with Ella. She is so different and her needs have been so different. First of all, the delivery was very different that my first, but I will write about that later. Fortunatemly, she was healthy and able to be in my arms right away. That meant we were able to try breastfeeding immediately and she was good at latching. Then it was fun to be able to have her in the hospital room with us. Plus, we left after just 24 hours, so that was new and special for us as a family.

We also noticed that one of her feet was all the way bent backwards. Of course we were concerned, but my doctor suggested that we give it time, because it might have just been bent from being in the womb. After speaking with the hospital pediatrician, we were even more concerned because we thought she had a club foot. An appointment was made for two days later to go to a pediatric orthopedist. We did a lot of research on the Internet and only grew more worried. I thought I would have to drive up to Morgantown, WV (about a two and a half hour drive) to see this specialist each week. We had anticipated her having a new cast every week to help straighten out her foot. The good news is that the specialist said it was not club foot. It was just bent from being squished in the womb. Each day we need to do stretches to help put it into the correct place and we are hoping that it will improve around a month's time. I included the picture below to show what it looks like.

We also had different complications with her and jaundice. I guess I didn't worry so much about the jaundice with Jack, because he was in the hospital so they treated it with the bilirubin lights. She stopped pooping on Sunday (at four days old) and didn't poop again until late Monday night. I was concerned that I was not giving her enough breast milk, so I decided to supplement. I used a system that would allow me to give a little formula while she still breastfed. This would allow her to still stimulate and increase my milk supply. So far that system has been working good and she began to poop. Fortunately there has been a tremendous support system in town with my friends. I feel encouraged to keep it up and I am already decreasing the amount of supplemental formula. Hopefully I will be able to breast feed on my own.

*I took some pictures in hopes to find one that I like enough for a birth announcement. I would like to get those ordered this week and sent in the mail as soon as possible. Here are a few of the pictures below.

A Homemade Christmas

The last two years we have been more strapped for money. As a one salary house, it means we are taking less vacations, spending less on eating out, and it also means we needed to cut back on the money we spent for gifts. I had a lot of fun coming up with some homemade gifts last year and I wanted to continue that process as much as possible this year too. However, Joe and I did spend a little on each other (probably because we haven't bought gifts for each other since we have been married) so that was our splurge.

I was really pleased with all the things that we made as a family. I forgot to take pictures of the gifts that were given to my in-laws, but I will tell you about them. First up though, is my favorite gift that we made...a hat rack for my brother. It was a family project. Joe, cut and prepped the wood and painted two gray strips, then Jack finger painted, I mod-podged, and finally Joe screwed in the hat hangers. I love it and look forward to making some art that is similar.I made a quilt for my sister. She asked me to and I knew what I needed to do, plus she provided the supplies with her old jeans and t-shirts. I think it turned out pretty good, but I did break a couple needles on my machine until I bought a jean needle. It was also pretty heavy, but it has got me thinking about a picnic blanket that I want to make with my old maternity jeans! I can't wait.

We went digital for my dad, my mother-in-law, and my grandparents. I went to a website where I could personalize calendars and mugs. I made a mug for my dad with a picture of his grandson and his dog (Roxey is basically his favorite child). Then we made two different calendars for my grandparents and my mother-in-law. I especially loved my grandpa's reaction as he wondered how we were able to make it...he doesn't really understand the whole computer thing!
I made a simple recipe book for my mom with some of my favorite things to cook. I knew she would appreciate it, because it would be tested and worthy dishes for her to make. I also made homemade vanilla extract for her and my mother-in-law. I even made one for myself, which I really need to test out sometime soon.
I made a small make-up bag and some foot scrubs for one of my sister-in-laws. The other family members were given items that were purchased, but that's okay, because they were reasonably priced. And although our Christmas celebrations were spread out over two weekends (one with family and then on the actual day we were at home on our own), I look forward to next year, when I can come up with even more ideas of homemade items and hopefully get Jack and our baby girl involved too!

Inner Harbor, MD

We decided to make a visit home to our families in mid December. That was important, because we were also celebrating my Mother-in-laws 60th birthday party. So a day was dedicated to her and we took a trip to the inner harbor. I have never been there before. I guess it is pretty new development. It was nice to walk through the main hotel and see it decorated for the holidays. Plus, we went into lots of stores...especially since it was so cold and windy. Jack hadn't napped well that day so he was a bit cranky, but it was a fun trip with all of my husband's family!
Perfect pictures, like the one of Kevin above, are hard to come by! As you can see in the three below, it was hard to get everyone to look at the same time!