Two Months Old

Annalise turned two months old today...time is flying already! She's smiling more frequently and "talking" during her waking hours.She likes to wiggle her arms and legs. She still doesn't really know which way they're going when she moves them, but she has a good time exercising nonetheless. She has grown out of her newborn clothes and has moved into the 3 Month size, which she's swimming in for now. She's enjoying about 10 feedings each day, averaging 3 ounces of milk or formula per meal. Her longest stretch of sleep was about 6 hours, but 3 to 4 hours at night is more her speed most of the time. She's spending more time awake and alert during the day. She loves her green poppy/pacifier. She doesn't just burp, she belches! She likes to sit in her high chair and watch Mommy work in the kitchen and she even joins us at the table for most meals.

A couple of videos of our baby girl playing with Mommy tonight...

And one more...around 30 seconds into this clip she gives a grin, then again around 45 seconds. The best!

Special Christmas Eve

Annalise had her acting debut as Baby Jesus at our church's Christmas Eve mass. It was such an honor for our family and an occasion we'll remember fondly each holiday season. Here she is snoozing in the manger.Here is a short video of the processional as Father Kevin (the priest who married us 5 1/2 years ago) carries her to the altar and places her in the manger, where she slept the entire 90 minute mass...quite a feat considering she wasn't closing her eyes more than 45 minutes between feedings the two days prior! Daddy and I were seriously sleep deprived for the holidays, but seeing our little princess behave so angelically made us forget about that for a little while.

Big brother Tommy was pretty well-behaved for the service also, keeping busy in the pew with Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Cindy. Also in attendance were Grandpa Tom and Ann-ma, and Mommy's godmother Margaret and her husband Gary...they also have a granddaughter named Annalise.

Additionally, Annalise gave Mommy her first big smile Christmas Eve night. She's been giving grins to Daddy for about two weeks now, but she was saving her big, beaming cheese for Mommy for a special occasion.

Big Brother, Little Sister

As I said in the previous post, Tommy gets a kick out of matching outfits. Here the wee Wedewers sport coordinating shirts.

Merry Christmas!

Tommy and Annalise ham it up for the camera in their matching PJs on Christmas morning. Tommy gets the biggest kick out of the two of them wearing the same outfit! Santa was very good to both kids this year...Tommy received more cars and airplanes than a little boy could ever ask for and Annalise got some new pacifiers and crib toys. It was a joyous morning for us all...if only we could all see the holiday through the eyes of a child.

"Oh, that's right...the STORK brings babies, not SANTA!"

Snuggly and cute in her little seat.Wearing her holiday best. The beautiful little shoes were a baby shower gift from Aunt Cindy, unfortunately she wiggled them off her feet the moment I got them on. Guess I need to teach her a thing or two about the importance of fashion over comfort someday! She wasn't a huge fan of the headband, either, but Uncle Derick has taken to calling her "Mrs. Burns" in homage to the Simpsons character with a similar hairline, so the bow is a way for her look to scream little girl before she grows pigtails. Please schedule an intervention if you ever catch me strapping a big flower to her head, though!Posing with Grandpa Tom and Big Brother Tommy. What a dapper group!Mommy, Daddy, Tommy and Annalise on Christmas Eve.

Great Grandma and Grandpa Thompson

Here is a picture from Great Grandma Lucille and Grandpa Rick's visit.

Pretty in Pink

Here our little princess poses in one of her many pink ensembles. She's finally growing into some of her clothes! The hat is becoming a necessity, as the temperature has dropped and so has her number of follicles. Yep, she's going bald just like her big brother did, but she's sporting a nice little mullet in the back.

First Date

Annalise had her first "date" with her boyfriend Charlie Agulles last week. The two were born exactly one month apart (Annalise is the cradle-robber here!) and their time together proved to be a real snore. Perhaps the sparks will fly later?

Christmas Cards - Behind the Scenes

Here's what it takes to stage a successful Christmas photo of two kids under the age of three...

1) Mommy hiding behind the bench to hold the baby up

2) Two crazy kiddos having fun

3) Lots of screaming (she's as red as the backdrop!)

4) A pacifier

5) Cuddles from your big bro

Final product coming to your mailbox soon!

My First Visit with Santa

I took Annalise and Tommy to visit Santa December 9 at Town Square Las Vegas. Tommy was kind enough to share Santa's lap and show his little sis the ropes of getting what you want for Christmas. She just snoozed while she got cuddles from Santa.

Cutie

Annalise enjoys "Tummy Time" with Daddy, Mommy & Tommy. Actually, I think Tommy likes it best...he's constantly saying "Mommy, it's TUMMY TIME!" He really likes to be involved with his sister, which is such a blessing. This photo was taken in late November. I hope to get around to taking a few more pictures this week and updating her blog accordingly. We've had a lot going on.

Annalise's Baptism

Sunday, November 18 was a very blessed day for our family. Annalise Michele was baptized at our parish, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church. She was such a good girl for the service, sleeping the entire time...perhaps to make up for her brother's performance at his own baptism? (For those who might recall, he screamed the whole time!)

Special guests included Grandma Norma visiting from Bozeman, MT; Grandpa Tom & Ann-ma, in from their cabin in Southern California; Aunt Michele, in from Juneau, Alaska; and Uncle Jeremy & Aunt Cindy, visiting from Redondo Beach. Local family attending included Uncle Brian, Aunt Lisa, cousins Cameron & Cody, and Uncle Derick. Our friends Marshall & Tamica Minor also attended with their kids M3 & Kai.

Here she's wrapped in a blanket her Great Grandma Untz made for her by hand.

The procession into the church.Her godparents are Mommy's Aunt Ginger and Uncle Don, who came from Boulder City for her special day. They are pictured here with Mommy, Daddy, Annalise and the deacon as she is baptized. She even slept through this part!With Mommy and Daddy in the pew.With her godparents.With Mommy.Posing after the service with Daddy, Mommy, Aunt Ginger and Uncle Don.The Wedewer Family.

Surprise, Daddy!

Annalise attended her first big event this weekend, Daddy's surprise 30th birthday party. Pictured from left to right: Ann-ma, Mommy, Daddy, Tommy, Grandma Norma, Annalise and Grandpa Tom. She snoozed in Grandpa's arms most of the party...perhaps she's waiting until she's a few months old to unleash her inner party animal?

First Shopping Trip

Annalise joined Tommy, Mommy, Daddy and Grandma Norma for her first official shopping trip. We visited Town Square Las Vegas, a brand new shopping center near the Strip. Tommy shows us the way...I think he was pointing at the playground in this picture.
This was our first outing using the double stroller, which is quite a vessel to navigate! It is large and in charge...holding two kids, diaper bag and many purchases with ease. It's the only stroller I keep in the car, so when it's just Annalise and me I feel ridiculous pushing this gigantic boat around for one tiny baby, but it does it's job wonderfully.

How Annalise Relaxes

Annalise takes a short nap in the baby papasan.

And she enjoys her pacifier while trying to poke her own eye out, too.Here's a short video of the pacifier in action.

First Bath

How many hands does it take to bathe one newborn?Apparently six...Daddy to support her in the tub, Mommy to wash her, and Big Bro to splash, er, rinse her with the cup!"I don't know how I feel about this!"

Toasty in her towel.

The finished product...squeaky clean!

The Real Annalise

Here's a picture of a real two-week old baby...screaming! Annalise is very much the typical baby girl. She sleeps, eats, pees and cries (mostly in that order). But we sure think she's cute no matter what.

Doctor's Visit

Annalise made a visit to see her pediatrician at 10 days old. Her umbilical cord looked a little yucky and she was showing early signs of a cold, so being slightly paranoid parents we took her in for a quick exam.

Everything turned out fine. Her umbilical cord fell off on her twelfth day and the doctor said many newborns in Las Vegas get what can only be described as the Desert Snorts...the dry air affects their little noses and throats in a way that makes them snort and snore a little in the early weeks.

Annalise's weight was up quite a bit, too. She tipped the scales at 6 lbs. 14 oz., which was 10 ounces heavier than the previous week. She had on a onesie for this weigh-in, so the reading wasn't completely accurate, but she's certainly making progress in that department! She's been eating just about every hour today, so I'm sure she'll be growing out of the clothes she's currently swimming in very soon.

Little Snoozer

Our little girl dozes off into dreamland. Funny how big her hat is on her little head, but I know she'll grow out of it before we know it.

Tommy Cuddles Annalise

Annalise gets cuddles from her big brother, Tommy.

First Doctor's Appointment

Friday, November 2 was Annalise's first doctor's appointment. She weighed in at 6 lbs. 4 oz. (a little weight loss is normal for newborns) and measured 18 3/4" in length...this is a full 3/4" longer than she measured at the hospital. James chalks that up to the baby nurses not stretching her legs as straight as they could go for her first measurement. I know it's only 3/4", but every little bit counts when you come from a long line of shorties! All in all, our little girl is as healthy as can be. We return for her next well-baby check-up in mid-December.

Homecoming

Annalise came home the evening of October 30. Mommy would have brought her home that morning, but newborns are required to stay 24 hours to complete a series of tests. Here she poses with Daddy.
And here's a quick pic with Mommy.
Here she is in her car seat...swimming in it! It was about 8:30pm by the time we pulled in the driveway, so Big Brother Tommy was already snoozing. Aunt Lisa, who'd been keeping our little guy company most of the day, was there to greet us and we settled in pretty quickly. She only woke us 4 times during the night!

Arrival Story

Last Monday we were blessed with the most beautiful baby girl in the world, Annalise Michele. The road was smooth in the end, but the few days leading up to her arrival were a little tough on Mommy and Daddy.

In a previous post I detailed our false alarm, which was a frustrating experience. Thinking you're in labor only to be sent home is a little embarrassing to say the least! Here is our last family picture of just the three of us...taken before James and I went to the hospital for aforementioned false alarm.

The following morning I began to experience some bleeding, which had us worried, but it tapered off by the end of the day. Sunday night I began having contractions every 10-15 minutes...things were really starting to happen! But when the bleeding started up again Monday morning I was worried and called my doctor, who told us to skip coming to his office and just meet him at the hospital.

We gathered Tommy's things, my hospital bag and loaded up the car. I was feeling really nervous so we went straight to the hospital and had Brian and Lisa meet us there to pick up Tommy. He joined us in the Labor and Delivery triage room for a short time and didn't really like being there. He kept saying "Don't want to cooperate" and became very clingy with me...must've been scary to see Mommy sitting in a hospital bed. He liked sitting on the bed with me and got crumbs from his snack all over the sheets.

The reluctant Big Brother.

So in triage they hooked me up to the fetal monitors and an IV for hydration, which promptly stopped my contractions! My doctor came over nonetheless and did an amniocentesis to make sure our baby's lungs were developed enough for life on the outside, which is standard in his practice for pregnancies prior to 39 weeks (I was 38 weeks, 4 days...so it wasn't really that necessary!) The results came back in the affirmative and since I'd already dilated to 4cm and was 80% effaced we got the go-ahead to induce labor a few days earlier than we had planned.

We got into the labor and delivery room around 2:30pm and I had my epidural and Pitocin drip in place by 2:45. Look how happy I was to be in the homestretch!

The nurse came in to break my water and was really surprised that no fluid came out...she chalked it up to Baby's head acting as a plug. When the doctor came in to deliver the baby a couple of hours later he asked "Why didn't they break your water?" so it looks like the nurse goofed a little. I probably would have had her an hour earlier if my water had been broken, though!

The doctor arrived around a quarter to 6 and after pushing through just three contractions, Annalise Michele Wedewer was here! She came out screaming at the top of her lungs and immediately peed on the doctor, which made us all laugh, including Dr. Joe. I cried, of course, because she was so beautiful. James commented that his little girl was absolutely gorgeous while the nurses cleaned her up. We all noticed what big feet she had for such a tiny little girl...sad to say she probably inherited Mommy's giant feet (I'm only 5'4" and wear a 9.5 shoe!). She weighed in at 6 lbs. 8 oz. and they measured her at 18" tall (turns out she's 18 3/4" tall upon being measured at the pediatrician Friday). Her APGAR scores were both 9, which means she came out strong and healthy. And did we mention just how pretty she is? Here she is with the wonderful doctor who delivered her, Dr. Joe Rojas.

After a few minutes we decided on her name. She didn't look like a Brooke or a Danielle, and Annalise really seemed to fit her. Her middle name, Michele, is for my favorite sister. The baby nurse who gave Annalise her first bath was named Michelle, too, and joked "Oh, you shouldn't have!" Here are her first photos.

Happy Mommy.
Happy family.

Tommy was out in the waiting room with Brian, Lisa, Dillon, Cameron and Cody. They all came in to visit along with Uncle Derick. Tommy didn't seem to mind Mommy holding his new little sister, but when Uncle Derick picked her up he was quite unhappy!