Who needs a thumb when you have a foot!

So, I thought for sure that Grace might turn out to be a thumb sucker... especially if she is anything like her mother. Let me clarify: no, I do not suck my thumb, but yes, I did for a very long time. My thumb was my comfort and soother as a child. I was nervous that Grace might fall into this same habit. Fortunately she has not, however, she has found some other methods of pacifying herself:

So much to say...

"Mom, haven't you taken enough pictures already?"
"I spy with my little eyes..."
"This pool is the perfect size for a little peanut like me, thanks mom!"
"I like big books"...... "I like big chairs too"

Always Keeping Busy

So, it's been a while... but I have a good excuse for not being so diligent about blogging. First of all, this little one keeps me so busy. I think we have hit the teething stage and it seems that Grace is always a little grumpy. She does have her cute and happy moments though and I am amazed by all the new milestones she accomplishes.

My second good excuse, as some of you may know, I still work about 20 hrs a week for the clinic I worked full time at before having this little one. I have been doing medical transcription from home... it's a huge blessing. I also work a few hours every Saturday and teach a class for overweight children twice a week. It's fun to have other things to occupy my time, but it definitely can be pretty busy at times.

Last week, my friend Lindsey and I had a little photo shoot with Grace:

And of course I find some time for crafting. I made this onsie for a friend who actually had her baby prematurely... she probably won't be wearing it for a while because she is so tiny.
And I find some time for running. Grace loves the jogging stroller, but we'll have to start going early in the morning since it's starting to heat up.
And I also have to thank our little sweetie for being born on the 31st of December (just 4 hrs. short of the tax deduction deadline!). Thank you, Grace, for helping mommy and daddy with a little extra money.
I just can't resist those big blue eyes. Love you Grace!
And before I forget, my friend Emily took some amazing pictures of our family. I tried uploading them, but I was having some technical difficulties. So if you want to see some more pics of our little fam click here. There are also some pics from her blessing. Em, your awesome... thank you for some great memories!

And one more thing... little Grace has become such a copycat. It's amazing how much of an influence you can have on a little one.

Baby Seat

So, I bought Grace this nifty baby seat last night. She LOVES to sit up, but she can't quite keep herself completely upright. Steve, of course, thought this new gadget was ridiculous and often reminds me that she has way too many "things." Well, without me knowing, he took this picture this morning. He sent me a txt and said, "look at the pics on the camera," I had a good laugh. I guess she was trying to brush her gummy smile :)

He also thought it would help him study and used it as a thinking cap:Or not...And of course, its intended use:

Little Soccer Player

So this blog has basically become all about Grace (sorry, but she occupies my time 24/7 so there isn't much else to blog about). I promise the next post will have some variety.

The other day I put little one in her swing to play. She just had her shots so I didn't think she would be very active, but I guessed wrong:

Also, Steve got Grace dressed in her PJ's last week, I had a good laugh in the morning when she woke up, you'll see why:

Spring has Sprung!

After a fun spring break up in Utah, I have lots of cute pics to share of Grace. My friend Emily took some adorable pictures of our little family while we were there. They are currently still in the editing process so there will be more to come, but here is a little sneak peak...

She Made it to the Summit!

So, maybe she had a little help on the climb... in fact she slept the whole way. My parents were here a few weeks ago and we got outdoors and hiked Piestewa Peak in Phoenix. It was so nice to get out and be active... something I can't get enough of. My mom was here for an entire month to help with Grace; let's say she was my saving "grace." I can't thank her enough for all of her help.

Grace is such a cutie... that is when she is not fussing... something she tends to do often, but I can say that I think she is getting better. I guess it's tough being little and not being able to tell your mommy that your tummy hurts or you are having a hard time falling asleep.

Steve and I tend to talk for Grace (mostly me). It makes it easier for me to listen to the fussing and sometimes it's just a fun way to joke around when just Grace and I are at home. Here she says: "the light was to bright for my eyes, so I decided to put my blinders on."

Grace doesn't seem to like the adorable bassinet we scored on craigslist for her. She prefers to sleep in the bouncer. I must say it's nice because I don't have to get out of bed when she wakes up.

Once again she says: "Is it morning already? I need a little more shut eye since I was up most of the night... sorry mom. Can you please dim the lights?"

You'll notice this adorable onesie Grace is wearing. My friend Brooke made it for her... she is so crafty. Thanks Brooke!

To help with the fussing, I have to give thanks to the Sleep Sheep. This adorable little stuft animal makes 5 different soothing sounds; Grace prefers "ocean," but "rain" sometimes does the trick as well. We tote this little friend all around. I also think Grace's tummy tends to give her trouble. These gas relief drops have helped tremendously... we're almost already on a second bottle.

Baby Grace

She's finally here! Our baby girl was born on New Year's Eve and she made quite an entrance. Last week Steve was joking around with me during a moment of stress and said "well our little girl is in 'breech' of contract."A few days before Grace was born we found out that what we thought was her bottom was actually her head. Yep, our baby girl decided that she liked to be right side up instead up upside down... and nothing would make her budge... she was what is medically termed as a"breech" baby. Interestingly this occurs in only 3% of pregnancies... Grace likes to do things different, just like her mom :)

Her first night home...Getting ready for bed in soft jammies...A proud daddy...So, I will now tell you the iteresting story of the days before Grace's birth. The day after we got the news, we decided to try EVERYTHING we could to turn our baby. I did handstands in a pool, layed for hours at a 30 degree incline, attempted a headstand, coaxing with music, wrapping my belly with an ace wrap, and chasing her with an ice pack. None of these natural measures seemed to work. So the next day I went to the hospital to have what is called a "version" to manually turn the baby. This just left me with a sore red belly.

The next day I was having consistent contractions and I thought that there was a possibility that I could be in labor. We finally decided to go to the hospital, when we arrived my contractions seemed to stop completely... I basically spent 4 hours hooked up to a monitor for no reason. They asked me if I wanted to schedule a c-section while I was there. I was totally exhausted and I felt that for some reason our baby wasn't supposed to turn. I asked if I could schedule it for the next day (New Year's Eve). Apparently it was completely booked up and I couldn't be scheduled unil the following Tuesday. I went home discouraged and exhausted.

Trying to coax her with music...

With the help of some Ambien, I finally got good nights sleep. The much needed sleep must have given my tired body the energy to actually go into labor. I had contractions all day that definetly felt different than before. I didn't want to go to the hospital for fear that the contractions would stop, but they were getting pretty intense. By the time I finally gave into the idea that it was "real" labor, my contractions were 2 min. apart and lasted a good 45 sec.-1 min. We got to the hospital at 6:30 and baby Grace was born an hour later.

I never even considered the idea that I may have a c-section during my pregnancy. I spent a lot of time planning my natural childbirth and pushed the alternatives aside. Grace was pretty much folded in half inside of me (she looked like a diver in a pike position). I couldn't imagine trying have a vaginal birth considering the circumstances. I am just grateful that she arrived safely and that I was still able to make it a special experience. Before I had the c-section, I gave the nurse this blanket to wrap her in. I hung it in my closet so that it would have my scent since I couldn't hold her immediatly after she was born. After a quick weigh in and other measurements, Steve was able to bring her close to me. (She came in at 6 lbs. 12 oz. and 22 inches long).The whole procedure was actually pretty quick and she was in my arms just 1/2 hr. later.I told the nurses not to give her a bath until I was able to get up and share that experience with Steve... she didn't like it all that much, but she loved having her hair rinsed under the faucet.We arrived home a day early. I did laps around the nurses station while pushing Grace in the bassinet... they really had no reason to keep me another day.Grace has been such a good baby. I am so grateful that our little angel is here... we love her so much.