Piper at 2 months!

Piper, you are 2 months old!

• You currently weigh 12 lbs 4 oz, are 23 inches long, and have a head circumference of 14.5 inches.
• You give huge smiles in response to our smiles and words.  It is sooooooo adorable! 
• You are still not a huge crier, and we love it.  In fact, we feel quite spoiled by it!
• You just started sucking your thumb.  You are obsessed with the left thumb in particular.  Up until now, you've been loving the binkie like no other.
• You make this adorable cooing sound that makes it seem like you are trying to talk to us
• Had a hard month, but you weathered the storm with smiles!  You had a cold and got thrush in week 7.  We've had to give you medicine 4 / day in each each for two weeks, and you are generally pretty good.
• You have crazy crazy hair!  It sticks up like a troll doll and there is no taming it.  But we love it!
• You have beautiful almond shaped eyes that are big and brown.
•  You slept for 7 hours straight a few times!  It was heavenly for your parents.  It's not remotely consistent but we'll take it!  In general, you'll sleep for a 4 or 5 hour block, and then will sleep for an additional 2 or 3 hours.
• You are holding your head up much better now, but it still needs to be supported.
• You like the vibrating bouncing chair and now enjoy the little rainforest monkey, frog, and water feature and sounds on it.  You sit there in raptures for up to 30 minutes!  You like the monkey in particular.  This is a big deal because it used to overwhelm you a lot.
• You are taking fewer and fewer naps, for shorter durations.  You know will take maybe two naps a day for 30 minutes or so.
• You love love love when mom reads to you.  You smile and coo back at me as I read.

You are the light of our lives!  We love you so much!

Piper is 1 month old!

July 30, 2013:

Piper, at 1 month old, you:

•  weigh 10 lb 5 oz, are 22 inches long, and have a head circumference of 14 inches.
• are a GREAT baby.  You hardly cry right now, except when you are hungry and kept waiting.  And even then it's not an overwhelming cry.
• are very mellow.  You're pretty easy.  Last week, at your 3 AM feeding, I put you back in your crib as you were starting to doze off.  You opened and closed your eyes a few times, and didn't seem to be too bothered.  So I went back to bed and you fell asleep on your own.  No crying!
• have a ton of hair!  Which unfortunately is starting to thin out.  It started out as black and now is turning brown.
• have dark brown eyes!  And your daddy's signature dark blue ring around the iris.  It started out almost a violet color and has now turned into his blue. 
• melt into mama.  We call me "The Closer" because I can put you to sleep by holding you.  Hopefully this lasts more than 2.4 seconds.  You've even pushed up on mom's chest a bit with your hands in a cobra-like posture.
• are good at holding your head up!  You of course still need neck support, but when we burp you now, you hold your head up and look around.
• are a ravenous eater!  You eat a TON.  And you take mom's low milk supply in stride, easily alternating between nursing and using a bottle.  Your cheeks are filling out and your tummy is filling up with all the food you eat.
• babble a bit (you have this cute little sound you make) but haven't said anything that sounds remotely like a word yet (that is a ways off!)
• are not napping as much as you did when you were a newborn.  But we still consider you a good sleeper and us lucky!
• fall asleep at night somewhere around 11 pm and midnight, and then wake up at 3 am and around 6 am.  We feel like you are an easy sleeper, albeit still a newborn!  (Meaning, we MISS sleep).
• are so pretty.  You came out daddy's clone, but you are slowly looking more hapa (Half-Asian/Half-White).
•  like to take a bath!  You dip your toes over the side of the baby-bathtub sling into the water.  Hopefully you'll be a water baby like your parents!
• already love to sleep with a tiny blankie with blue satin trim.  It's completely small and basically covers only half your body.  You bunch it up and bring it up by your neck (mom always moves it back down)

You are the biggest joy in our lives.  We love you SO much.  It's hard to remember what life was like before you came...just a month ago.  And that's quite alright :)

Sicko Niko

Don't get sick while pregnant.

Pregnancy comes with a crazy amount of mucus in your sinuses already (bleh), and bloody noses (because of all the increased blood flow in your body).  And your immune system is already comprimised.  So, getting a cold is awful.  Beyond the feeling of swallowing a thousand shards of glass, every time I blow my nose I gag (because of the mucus) to the point of throwing up half the time.  It's so glamourous.  All the while, you can't even take a ton of vitamins, cold medicine, and the thought of what they offer as relief (the neti pot) makes me cringe.

Not a happy camper.  This is why I hate the month of January.

But our baby's healthy, so that's the end of my whining.

Ryan's going through a really hard time at work right now.  The other night he was really pent up, and just kept repeating "I have a happy, healthy baby" as a mantra.  I need to take the advice of a wise husband!

We're Having a Girl

Ryan and I found out today that we're having a little girl!  Last summer, before I even got pregnant, I had a premonition that we were going to have a little girl next July.  Fast forward a few months, and we conceived in October, with a baby due in July.  My premonition was halfway there!  Needless to say, I've been pretty convinced the whole time that we would be having a girl. 

I'm tinkled pink (no pun intended).  I would have been happy with anything healthy, honestly.  But I adore little girl clothes, and the thought of having a girl so close to my niece Lena's age was almost too good to be true. 

For those of you (all three of you that may read this) wondering, Ryan REALLY didn't care what we had, so long as it was healthy.  He's been first and foremost concerned with the baby's health.  Our first ultrasound, he was pretty excited (excited by Ryan Menda standards, at least) to hear the heartbeat.  And each time, he really enjoys to see the heartbeat and hear it.  Today's ultrasound was particularly strong, and you could see it thumping.  He loved seeing that.

Our 12.5 week ultrasound in December showed that baby Menda has LONG legs.  Even the doctor made a comment.  Our ultrasound last week showed a HYPER baby Menda that doesn't stop moving it's hands.  In 3 out of 4 ultrasounds, baby Menda has waved at us.  It's super cute.  Today, while we were trying to find the gender (after last week's crossed-legged-umbilical-cord-in-the-way-unsuccessful attempt), little girl put her hand over her private parts.  She's going to be spunky.  I think it's the Sicilian in her.

I'm trying this blogging thing again.  We all know I suck at it.  We'll see how round 3 goes :)

Aerial Teacher Training Grad...Almost

This weekend was the second half of my aerial yoga teacher training.  I have to teach my community class in a couple weeks and I'll be good to go!  I'm insanely excited to be done with my yoga teacher training journey.  As my sister commented, 7 months ago, I wasn't certified to teach any class!  Now I'm almost certified to teach not only yoga, but aerial yoga as well.

Our group was a small group of 8 of the loveliest women you'll ever meet.  I'm so incredibly lucky to have these girls in my lives and to have trained with them.

I'm excited for this next chapter in my yoga journey.

My friend posted the below challenge pose on my Facebook wall (I really MUST start getting on Pinterest, where she finds these awesome poses for me).  I've already figured out a way to do with the aerial hammock ;oP

My New Everest

My old Everest conquered, it's time for a new Everest. Naturally, it should be an evolution of my old Everest right? Meet half Vrschikasana (scorpion pose) half something else...I have no idea what this pose is called!

I can't wait to get this one down....hopefully it doesn't take me 7 years like the last one!

Arm Balancing Workshops!

I'll be teaching two arm balancing workshops at Purple Monkey Yoga in Union City, in July!

July 7th: Beginners/Intermediate Arm Balances
Juky 28th: Intermediate/Advanced Arm Balances

Both Are Saturdays. Workshops will be about 2 - 3 hours long...I haven't decided yet! If you have always wanted to learn how to arm balance, but were too scared to do it, these are for you :)

Lost in Translation

Last night, I had a student who was brand new to yoga.  She was foreign, although I'm not sure where she was from (somewhere in Europe?).  After class, the receptionist asked her how it went:

Yogi: "Ughhh.  I feel really fat, ugly and out of shape."
Receptionist: "Ohhhh.  But did you at least enjoy yourself?"
Yogi: "Enjoy myself?!?!  NO, I did not enjoy myself.  But I did enjoy the teacher."

Sooooooo funny how we don't even realize how figures of speech may not make sense to other cultures.