Harpers Christmas List

I cant believe we are coming up on Harper's first Christmas! We have had some people ask us what to buy for a 2.5 month old for Christmas. Surely she wont remember it and doesn't need lots of toys. I thought I would share what we are asking Santa for this year. (on her behalf) she sure has been a good girl this year so no naughty list!

1. Socks! Who doesn't love getting socks for Christmas? These are the only socks that fit her sweet feet right now. The elastic is great and they stay on even when she is kicking and doing her daily work outs. They also happen to be the cutest socks ever! No matter where we are people go crazy over these and have to ask me about them. We have ones with bows on the toes and I love matching them to her outfit.

Trumpette brand socks.

2. Diapers! Much needed. She is still in size 1 diapers but we have a few packs left. They fit her really well right now so I'm not sure at what point she will be moving on to size 2. Before I know it I'm sure! I'm hoping we have enough size one to last us till the end of the year, then we might be moving on up. Pampers swaddlers are awesome. They have a wetness indicator strip so you can see when they are wet. (great for daddies)

3. Wipes! We go through wipes like there is no tomorrow... we use pampers sensitive. They are so soft and clean very smoothly. (The things you have opinions on once you have a baby... we have found that not all brands of wipes are the same. We bought some huggies wipes that we hated!)
4. Baby food storage. Come April I will be hopefully making Harpers baby food. We would love some storage containers so that we can make the food ahead of time for the week.

5. Stroller. Once she can sit up we will be transitioning to an umbrella type stroller. They are light weight and a lot easier that the big infant stroller/car seat. (although I love mine so much! that's for a later post)

6. Halo sleep sack swaddler- Harper loves her swaddle me blankets. However, they are a little too much of a cocoon on her legs. She likes to move her legs around (especially when she gets gas in the middle of the night... joy) These swadders keep her hands and arms tight (which she loves) but her hips and legs can be more comfortable. Also, it keeps you from needing a blanket on them which can be dangerous in the crib.

7. Exercauser - the one toy item I hope she will enjoy. It helps her practice standing and she can bounce in it. Perfect for when Im trying to make dinner.

8. Crib Mobile - We never got her a crib mobile. I think she would really enjoy one. I found a cute simple one on amazon.

She doesn't need a lot of clothes as she has lots of 6 months items. They are hard to resist though. She is currently wearing size 3 months. Pants are huge, loose at the waist and too long. However one piece sleepers and onsies fit perfectly in the length... I predict she will grow out of them before she can fit into her separates. Therefore... if you cant resist clothes... we would love separates. (Will be great for spring when we might need to dress in layers) Even separates for PJ's which I cant seem to find.

I feel we might need a humidifier for her room. I don't know much about these but I know they can be good when they have colds... Comments? Advice? Suggestions?

Her list is on amazon... you can find it via the link below

http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/registry.html/ref=cm_br_js_reg?ie=UTF8&type=baby

1 month

We did it! We made it through the first month of being parents, of taking care of a newborn baby, of sleepless nights and fussy spells. Feels great!

Date : Friday November 9th - 1 month old

Stats : Her one month pediatrician check up she weighed 9lbs 9 oz. She has put on 1 full pound since her birth (not including the weight she lost and regained. She is 21.75" long.

Clothes: She cant fit into newborn clothes anymore. The onsies and snap pjs are too tight in the length. However, most of her 3 months clothes are huge. The pants are too long and not tight enough at the waist, the onsies make her look like a linebacker, the flowy tops look like dresses. I figure its better to have room to grow then to be too tight. We can at least make it work and sadly I can tell she is already starting to grow into them. 

Sleep:  This seems to be the big question. Everyone wants to know if I am sleeping , if she is sleeping, how long etc. Our day is divided into 3-3.5 hour cycles. They are eat, play, sleep cycles and last from the start of one feeding to the start of the next. She eats for about 30 minutes, she then gets a new diaper, then is wide awake. The dr is so surprised that she is such an alert baby. She loves to stare at your face, lay in her swing or bouncy seat, snuggle with mommy and daddy, and stare into the mirror at her changing table. We rotate through those things for about a hour. Then she gets fussy and falls asleep for a good hour nap. Then we repeat. This goes on for 7-8 cycles a day. Its hard sometimes for me to know when the day stops and starts!

I currently am sleeping on the couch & she sleeps in her pack in play. As of this week she eats at 730, falls asleep around 9 and sleeps till 1230-1. I have to force myself to sleep at this time as it is one of her longest stretches. Then she feeds approx. at 1/130, 4/430, and then 7. We start our day at 7 back with our eat, play, sleep routine. After she goes to sleep at 9pm our cycle is just eat, sleep, eat, sleep. I am able to get  anywhere between 2-3 hours of sleep at a time. 3.5 hours is the longest I have slept since October 7th! Somehow I am functioning. My series of naps just seems to be the new normal. Over the next 6 weeks or so  she will drop a nighttime feeding and hopefully when I go back to work will be sleeping 8 hours through the night at least.

The past month was full of visitors. Harper is lucky ti have so many people around  that love her.She even got to meet her 91 year old great grandmother. Its quite special to have 4 generations together! It doesn't happen often! Yaya even was able to come stay with us for a week. I was so thankful to have the company when Dutch went back to work. I was able to shower and take a good morning nap. Thanks Yaya! 

She had her first car ride.

Her first bath.

                                        

Her first smile (not gas or dream induced)

                                      

And her first holiday. Halloween!

                                                 

Dont forget her first dinner at wild wings and first sonic drive through!

We have had a great month. Every day we learn something new about her. Dutch is amazing and is so great with her. I love when he talks about his daughter. We have so much love for her. I do forget what life was like before she was here. It is just like she belongs and was always meant to be with us. We cant want to see what her 2nd month has in store. She will get to have Thanksgiving, and her first set of shots... yikes. 

Harper we love you! You melt my heart everyday when we snuggle on the couch and you flash that big gummy , toothless grin right at momma. There is really nothing better.

Harper weeks 1-4

I have started on a photography project that I am going to do for the first 52 weeks of Baby Harper's life. I think it will be a fun way to document how she is growing. Everyone who meets her reminds me that the first year goes by way to fast. They say to cherish every moment you have with them, especially as newborns as it is just so special. I look forward when she starts to smile more and I can capture all of her little expressions. Enjoy!

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

pass the tissues....

39w6d

I first want to say congrats to my co-bumper /cousin Jenn and her Husband for welcoming their sweet baby boy Brody yesterday! Jenn your a champ! Brody is the first great grandchild on the Neidhardt side of the family! Harper will be the 2nd but the first girl! How perfect! What an exciting time it is for our family!

Yesterday we had our 39 week appointment and an ultrasound. There has finally been some progress to 2cm! Everything on the ultrasound looked great. They think she measured 7lbs 15 oz (what I weighed when I was born) and in the 60th percentile. I have an appointment for Monday morning and will schedule our induction then if needed. Hopefully Harper got the memo I've been trying to send her that today or tomorrow would be perfect! 

Current symptoms -

-Random bursts of energy... I almost raked the yard yesterday... but it was too warm. I vacuumed and moped the house instead.

-Urgent need to go buy a Brita pitcher at bed bath and beyond... I've been wanting one since I need to be drinking so much water but I apparently need to do it NOW!

-prego insomnia... sucks... toss and turn all night but I still get up when Dutch leaves for work.

-sore hips at night in bed.

-Excitement!

39w1d

39 weeks

Current Stats: 39 weeks 1 days. (6 days till my due date)
Baby Size - Somewhere around 19-20 inches, 7-7.5 lbs? At least that is average for 39 weeks. Doctors have been predicting her to be in the mid 7 pound range. I have an ultrasound on Thursday so they might be able to have a better guess at that point. (She is approx. the size of a watermelon... great)

Stats- Still about 70%/1cm, head down, ready to go. Measuring right on her week (as of my appt last Thursday)

Clothes - recently retired most of my maternity clothes (as they were for work) yay! Now just whatever is comfy for these last few days.

Symptoms - about a week ago I was dealing with lots of middle/upper back pain. It was worse when seated (which is  how I spend 75% of my day...) but the past few days it just went away. Weight gain has pretty much stopped or dramatically slowed. Hopefully this is one of the many potential signs that you will go into labor soon. (by soon they mean next few weeks...) The most annoying symptom right now is just having to go to the bathroom at least once a hour. Even after you just walk about it seems like you might as well go back. You've got to be proactive about it because when your sitting its not so bad but as soon as you stand up and her 7 pounds pushes directly on your bladder you will become very critical/judgmental about where stores/restaurants restrooms are placed.

Missing - sleeping through the night. 2 bathroom breaks are normal now. Dallas still hasn't figured out that she shouldn't lay right in front of the bathroom door as I will kick her in the face on accident... oops.

Preparations - still all set to go. Just waiting.

Looking forward to -I'm looking forward to not being stared at when I go places, I'm looking forward to strangers ending the need to ask me personal questions. The cashier at Carters Friday asked me if I was dilated and how much. The cashier at Old Navy told me how being induced is the most awful thing you could possibly imagine. My 401k advisor mentioned how his wife became very ill during childbirth and was in the hospital for 3 weeks...(that's on top of all the "what are you doing out of the house?" , "you haven't had that baby yet???", "are you ready for lots of dirty diapers and crying?",comments I also get)  I am sure all the unsolicited comments will just change into unsolicited comments about my sweet baby... lol.... oh well... I'm also looking forward to my ultrasound on Thursday as we will also schedule my induction date. Hopefully I wont need it but its good to know where is an end in sight. They asked for 2 dates that are our preference on when to be induced. Our first choice is to go in Wednesday night to deliver on Thursday (October 11th)

In most exciting news, Friday was my last day of work for 2012. I am now officially on maternity leave. Feels weird as I don't yet have a baby yet... either way, I hope to relax this week as we wait for Harper's arrival.

37 & 38 weeks

37 weeks

38 weeks