Blog Sabbatical

So in case you haven't noticed, I haven't been blogging lately. I find this interface sort of annoying, and between facebook and flickr, I feel like we've updated as much as possible. I think I will pick it up again, maybe, someday... we'll see. I like the idea of a blog (like I like the idea of a journal, that never happened either) but right now it's just one more thing I don't need on my to-do list.

So, my blog-reading friends, head over to our flickr stream (but not right now because that's not updated either!) or shoot me an email, or come over for lunch!

Love, Amber

10 weeks

Myriah was 10 weeks old last weekend. I knew time would fly, and it really has. Every day with her is a treasure. She is an excellent baby, so happy when she's awake and a good sleeper too. We are so blessed. The major milestone we hit this weekend was her eye contact. We were getting concerned because she rarely would look at us and was much more interested in everything- the ceiling fan and the stuffed moose over her changing table, specifically. Then suddenly this weekend she just stares at us with these gorgeous blue eyes and as if our hearts couldn't melt anymore...

This weekend we continued our fall tradition of picking our own pumpkin from the pumpkin patch. I actually cried this morning before we left, because every year it seemed that everyone at the pumpkin patch had kids and we were just the two goofy adults who think they're still big kids. This year I finally had a kid to take! It was a very happy day. We got some amazing picture. The one below is probably my favorite picture of her to date. There are many more on our flickr site, check them out here: Joel and Amber's Photostream.

Happy Fall!

One month old

Precious Myriah is one month old tomorrow. We are celebrating by taking her to the pediatrician's office for a check up. Ha. But we are curious to see how she's grown, because she looks bigger to us.

Some fun developments over the month include:

• Bathtime is lots of fun! She likes to sit in the bath while Joel splashes water on her. She will stay in until we think the water is too cold for her.
• Nursing is going well. We are finally getting comfortable with each other and love the special time together.
• She is really interested in high contrast items, specifically the painting over our bed and the ceiling fans.
• She has already moved 2 snap sizes on her Fuzi Bunz cloth diapers on the legs!
• She is out of newborn clothes and now into 0-3 months sizes.
• She is sporting quite the mohawk. The hair on the sides of her head has basically rubbed off and the long hair (about 1.5") on top likes to stick straight up!
• We all love the Moby wrap. She takes at least 2 naps in this every day. We went out for ice cream and she had a nice nap in this while I tried not to drip on her! She also did well in church in it.
• She does have a fussy time around 8:30. You can usually set a clock that she will wake up and start fussing. We think it's gas but not sure why it happens at the same time every day. Her favorite soothing activity is to suck on mom or dad's finger and be held close.
• She is sleeping in her crib every night. We usually put her down around 9:45 and she sleeps until 2 or 3, then again until 6 or so, then until 9.
• She wakes up perky and smiling, until I change her diaper!

Overall, it has been a month of learning, transition, and precious memories. I wouldn't trade this for anything! We are both more in love with her than we thought possible, and are so immensely grateful to be so blessed by such a precious gift.

Myriah Kristine

Our precious daughter arrived July 31, 2010 at 3:49 am. I was diagnosed with preeclampsia on Thursday, July 29, and we went to the hospital on Friday, July 30 to be induced. It was a difficult labor, not exactly what we were hoping for (we had taken Bradley classes and were hoping for a drug free birth) but thanks to my incredible coach (Joel!) and an amazing midwife (Loudoun Community Midwives, can't recommend enough!) I had the best birth considering the circumstances and little Myriah arrived perky and healthy.

We have been home for almost 2 weeks now and life is good. I can honestly say this is the happiest we have ever been, even though it's also been difficult and definitely a learning process! I would write more but I'm needed by my daughter... so hang in there blog reading friends, I will do my best to update. Until then, check out our flickr site here for lots of pictures.

Babymoon at the Beach

For Memorial Day weekend, Joel and I drove 3 hours to the Eastern Shore for our last hurrah as a family of two... affectionately known in the land of pregnancy as the "Babymoon." We rented a beautiful house and had a sweet time together. Here are two pictures and there are many more on our flickr site, click here. Also, I highly encourage you to sign up for a free flickr account and then let me know your user name so we can connect and you can see our uploads anytime. Flickr will most likely be the place where baby pictures go up first!

Reading our baby books in prep for the big day! Joel is reading "The Baby Whisperer" and I'm reading "Husband Coached Childbirth". We have since moved on to newborn care books and feel as prepared as possible (thanks to our Bradley Class) for the birth!

Pregnancy Oddities/Reflections

Yesterday marked a big day... only one month to go until our little girl arrives. I've been meaning to post for a while about the funny/strange things that are going on with me and my big belly, so here goes:

The biggest thing that has happened this past month is Joel being away in Thailand for work.... for the whole month! It has been a long month, and sad because we were apart for Father's Day, our 7th anniversary, and my 29th birthday. He sent flowers for the last two occasions, and we celebrated Father's Day before he left. He finally comes home on Thursday, I'm SO glad! Now that we've hit the "one month and counting" mark every day I pray that this little girl waits to come home until her daddy does! He did buy her some adorable Thai linen dresses, and took some pictures with her little baby shoes at various Thai monuments, which will be posted on flickr when he's home.

The other big milestone that happened just last week is my "retiring" from landscape architecture! I am now officially a stay at home mom! I always dreamed of this day, and can't believe it's actually here. Of course, right now my baby is pretty easy to care for, and I'm thankful to have the time to rest (two naps a day, minimum) and nest (hanging picture frames, making hair bows, etc).

A lot of people have asked about cravings. I haven't had many instances where I "need" something oddly out of the ordinary, although 2 nights ago I sprung out of bed with a really desperate case of "needing" peanut butter and banana on toast. It was 4:24 am. Thank goodness I actually had the ingredients! A few nights ago I "needed" to eat just about everything I could think of, so even though I was by myself, I headed to Golden Coral for the buffet. It definitely hit the spot for variety but since there's mostly baby in my belly, and not much stomach room left, I came home feeling pretty sick. No regrets, though.

One thing I have noticed about eating when you're pregnant is certain things that used to be so-so before are now the most amazing things in the world. And these are where it gets a little weird: My mouth waters over radishes, cucumbers, and ketchup and mustard (has to be on something, I'm not that desperate!). Strawberries and watermelon are also two of the most wonderful things I can think of, which I liked before but not like this...

I also remember a friend telling me that nothing tastes as good as ice water when you're pregnant, and I remember thinking that was odd. Well, Melody, you were absolutely correct. I probably drink at least 100 oz of ice water a day. I go to a restaurant and slurp down 3 or 4 glasses, then leave the restaurant and 5 min later need more water. It's insane. Speaking of water, where is my cup?... (I will put in a little plug here, if you love ice water as much as I have lately: I splurged for this "Tervis Tumbler" from Bed Bath and Beyond- bought the biggest one I could find (24 oz) with the lid, straw and travel lid. It's insulated (but clear) and amazing! Yesterday it was in the car for 4 hours at 80-90 degrees (outside temperate, sure it was hotter in the car) and there was still ice when I got back in! Highly recommended for the $20. I know, I thought it was steep too but I figured I'd take it back if I didn't like it. Well, it's not going back and is attached to me pretty much 24/7).

While Joel's been gone I have been able to do some fun things. One of these included two weekends spent with my friend Nicole and her mom in Ocean City, Md. The weekends are the longest part of being by yourself, and I'm so thankful for her being willing to take me along. The other fun thing has been my pool pass. About 15 minutes from my house there is a little waterpark called "Volcano Island". It's really a huge pool, splash pad, 2 water slides (no, I didn't go down them!) and a shallow entry play area with a big bucket and other squirty things. I bought a season pass (although my "season" will be short!) and have gone almost every day for the past week. The water is so helpful for back pain, and I walk in the pool which is good for doing some exercise... gravity is not my friend right now- this is one heavy baby!

That's about all I can think of for now. Regarding the baby herself, she's now about 6 lbs and over 18" long, according to babycenter.com. She's been head down for the past 6 or more weeks, and hopefully that means she's camped out that way. I love being able to feel her little pieces. Sometimes she really gets going in there with her feet/heels/elbows? and she feels so close. I am just so amazed at this little blessing who just 30 or so weeks ago was the size of a poppy seed! We are beyond excited to meet her, even if it means going through labor and carting around this big belly for another month!

Longwood Gardens and Virginia Baby Shower

A few days after we got back from Alaska, Claire was able to fly over for another baby shower that was hosted by some friends, as well as to celebrate Mother's Day and her birthday all together. It was a fun and busy week!

For Mother's Day we went to Longwood Gardens, which is a beautiful place any time of the year! Here I am in full bloom! This is the only group shot we got, but it's a great one!

Baby shower time! The luau theme was a surprise, and they didn't even know this was the same theme we had for our rehearsal dinner! Very appropriate for us. The sign read "Aloha, baby girl". I loved it!

Claire and Chelsea lovingly made this yummy and adorable cake for us!
Opening presents. We are so thankful for everyone's generosity!
Here we are with Trent, Amy and Nadia. What sweet and precious friends!
At home in the nursery, unpacking and organizing. It's looking really good in there now, I'll have to get more pictures up. All of the little clothes are washed and put away, cloth diapers ordered and on the way (www.fuzzibunzworld.com) and all that we need is baby... 10 weeks and counting!