Anniversary!

Hello everyone,
Today, Jason and I celebrate our 2nd Anniversary! It is amazing to look back over the past two years at all that has changed in our lives. Even with the occasional curveball that life sometimes throws, I am so happy and blessed to report that our love is stronger than ever.

For me, marriage has been about learning how to give up some of my independence and work with my partner to find our common ground. I'm sure Jason would agree that we are both strong and (sometimes) stubborn individuals, so we have to try to see things from the other's perspective.

One of the best things about being married to your best friend is truly knowing a person, and loving them all the more for it. Finding the humor in life is also key. I have learned that Jason is really good at cleaning up a baby with sticky fingers and food all over her face. He is excellent at packing a suitcase and loading up the car. He refuses to stop at rest areas on road trips because he says they are bastions of crime and devious behavior (I just thought they were places to go to the bathroom!). He may be the only person that I know who doesn't like 'smores, but he will gag one down around the campfire with friends to be social... I have also learned that he is an absolutely devoted husband and amazing father. Yeah, sometimes I think I hit the jackpot.

Last night, Babygirl gave us our anniversary present early by showing off a new skill... CRAWLING!  It was a big milestone in our world as now she is officially mobile. Time to kick the baby-proofing into high gear.

For the weeks leading up to this milestone, Jason has been "training" her for what I call the Baby Olympics. He would stack cups across the room and entice her to crawl/wiggle or otherwise mobilize herself to come and knock them over. We are also getting really good at throwing balls and toys in a competition I call the "Binki Toss". We have observed that she does a lot with her left hand so we might have a southpaw in the making like both my dad and grandfather on the Coughlin side. Unlike my dad who was chastised at Catholic school by the nuns for being lefthanded (because they thought it was a "mark of the devil"), I think we will come down on the side of whatever Olivia prefers!

Olive is getting in to more solid foods these days; sucking on pickles, lemons and limes is a favorite pasttime. Here she is working on a lime at a favorite mexican restaurant.

Baby number 2 is cooking right along and I am feeling really good. Signing off until next time, Love Claire

Round Two!

Hi all,
So as you know by now if you've followed this blog, we are gearing up for baby number two come December.  This pregnancy is just flying by for me and I am feeling really good overall. Speaking of that, Olive has some news to share about the new baby:

FYI, her shirt says "Dear Diary, I asked for a puppy, not a brother."

So what I suspected all along is true... we're having a boy!! We're very excited and feel so very blessed.  I know that the days to come will be crazy and chaotic at times, but I know Jason and I are up to the task.

Now, more serious planning can commence, like decorating the new baby's room and deciding on a name.

In other news, we had a great time in Madeline Island, WI with my sister and her family in early July. Here's a picture of Olive on the ferry boat to the island.

These days, Morton and Olive often play a game that I call "Baby Fetch". They sit on the rug about a foot apart and roll the tennis ball back and forth to each other.  She takes breaks periodically to stroke and pull the hair on his front paws and to feel his toenails which really interest her.  I think it's funny that we have all of these baby books with fake fur that the baby is supposed to want to touch, but she would rather go for the real thing!

Take care and stay cool in this summer heat. Love, Claire

Summer Fun!

Hi All,
We've been enjoying this (very hot) summer and getting out and about with Olive. She is on the verge of cutting teeth and crawling, but hasn't done either just yet. So we have two major milestones coming up soon which is exciting!  She is very active and interested in things.

My mom took her horse-back riding a few weeks ago and I have some pictures of them riding our beloved retired show horse Willie.  Then we went out to the barn again about a week ago and had great fun riding with cousins and other family members on the Cunningham side.  She really likes horses!

Saddled up and ready to go!

Grandma, give me the reins! I can do this on my own!

And of course, we know she likes puppies!

She's also had a great time at the pool at Jason's dad's house.  Finally, this last weekend, she decided the pool was not too cold and really fun!  She probably could have stayed in the water all day.

With the next blog update, we should know the sex of baby #2 and we will be sure to share that news. Until then, stay cool in this summer heat. Love ~ claire

News from Olive

Hi all!
We're gearing up for a fun Father's Day weekend here in KC! It will be Jason's first official Father's Day so celebration is definitely in order.  Last week, he purchased a cool smoker for the occasion which has already been fired up a few times. This morning, Olive was in a very chatty mood.  She started babbling in the letter of "D" and I swear I heard a "dada" in there somewhere!

Olive has some news to share with everyone.... believe me, this surprised look is similar to the look Mommy had when she found out!

It is true!  We are really excited to be welcoming baby #2 before the end of the year.  The due date as of now is 12/21/12.  I'm feeling a lot better this time around, thank Heavens. And time is flying by... this baby will be here before we know it!

As our "old" baby approaches 7 months of age, I realize how quickly they grow on you! So we're doing our best to record the moments with some good pictures.  See a few faves from her recent 6 month photo session with Little Bird Photo.

And another fun candid shot at home - blowing bubbles, of course!

Love, Claire, Jason, Olive & ?? Cunningham

Dog Crazy

Hello!
Since the last post, we have been on another road trip to Southwest Kansas with baby-girl and our beloved chocolate lab, Morton. Olivia does well on road trips, and I know the presence of her 4-legged "brother" and sweet friend help comfort her and pass the time.

In case you did not know this, we are dog people (I've had a few cats along the way too but find that cats and dogs are hard to mix). Apparently the "Olive" doesn't fall far from the tree! She is one dog-crazy-baby.  Wherever we go, she can spot a dog a half mile off. She loves to watch them and gets excited when they do things like fetch, bark, wag their tails, you name it. It is actually a beautiful distraction that works even when she is fussy! Poor Morton often gets called over to help "babysit" (i.e. entertain the baby).

We are of course VERY careful with her around dogs (especially dogs that are not named Morton). We trust him a little more because ever since we brought her home at 2 days old, he had this sweet, gentle manner and awareness around her so that's why we give him a little more slack.

The other day, Jason said something to Olive about going home to see Morton, and she lit up with excitement.  I think it's possible that she will know/speak his name before she even says Momma or Dadda!

Teething (and associated drooling) is still in full swing at our house with nothing to show for it just yet. Last weekend she woke up at 2 am with a 102 degree fever.  So Jason embarked on what is probably an initiation rite for new parents: a 3 am drive around town for a 24 hour pharmacy and Baby Tylenol.  She is doing fine now. Might have picked up a bug from daycare but it has passed.

She is sitting up really well now - see picture of the babies from our Bradley class at a recent picnic (Olive is top left in lime green).

Our neighbors have a baby who outgrew a jumper so they gave it to us. Olive LOVES it!  This is a great thing to use when we are making dinner in the evenings.  We put Morton on entertainment duty and she hardly ever tires jumping in the thing.

I hope all is well with you and yours.  I hope to have another update fairly soon when we get the pictures from her recent 6 month photo shoot.

Take care ~Claire, Jason, Olive and Morton

Babies of the Night

Hello all!
Sorry for the tardiness with this update but things have been a little sleepy around our household lately.  Our baby-girl who was so good at sleeping through the night has rediscovered the pattern of nighttime waking, feeding and playing.  The last few weeks has been closer to the first few weeks in terms of loss of sleep than any of us would like to admit.

The other morning, Jason was up with her, rocking her to try to get her back down and she just wanted to be awake and play. So he laid her down on a blanket on the floor of her room and got a pillow and blanket for himself to lay down too. When I went in to check on them, he said groggily that they were "camping".  She just looked up at me, beaming big smiles in the moonlight, wiggling and being silly. Someday camping will truly be fun but for now, we need to get some sleep!

I think some of the night time activity can be attributed to teething too (I wish those darn things would show up already!).  We are changing up her diet now with the introduction of some foods and I'm supplementing her breastmilk intake with homemade baby formula. That is all going well and I can already tell her sleep is improving.

Regarding her new skills -- she has completely mastered rolling over and she is very near mastery of sitting up solely on her own. She needs just a little back support these days.

Her personality is really blossoming too - she loves to laugh and giggle at us. She "blows bubbles" and makes silly noises.  We're having a blast with her and though teething and some of that fussiness isn't a lot of fun, we are looking beyond that to when she will be more mobile and able to communicate with us.

We had a 6 month photo session the other day so I will have some new pics to share soon. Here are some candid shots around the house.

Love always, Claire

Easter Bunny

Hello all!
I hope this update finds everyone well. We're doing great here and enjoying the beautiful Spring season here in KC.

Olive and I had a fun play-date last weekend with a friend and her 6 month old who is a beautiful and sweet and BIG baby boy.  I think play dates at this age are really meant for moms to hang out and socialize! We're not yet chasing our kiddos around but it won't be long!  Both being new moms, we were reflecting on the crazy adjustment to parenthood and how it's impacted us personally and in our relationships.  We both agreed that after you get past the first few weeks/months where there is just so much change/turmoil combined with so little sleep, it gets TONS better!

You basically find a new version of "normal" and eventually you forget the freedom you once had when you were single or married w/o kids.  You establish the routine and it eventually feels like less work.  You may even figure out how to get out the door in less than an hour in the morning (I'm down to about 50 minutes, YAY!).  I've come to value the sharing of advice and ideas from other women, especially when the advice is not judgmental or too tied to your outcome. 

And I absolutely love nursing the baby-girl... It wasn't always a favorite thing.  In the early days, it was like a job. Every few hours, on command, I would whip the boob out. It seemed like I was constantly feeding her!  Now, I value that time as our special quiet time-out together (I put away the smartphone, iPad, no TV, etc. so it is just us)  It's the time when I smell her, play with her hair, tickle her, clip her nails and notice how long/heavy she is getting!  Of course it isn't always sweetness and light (sometimes there is hair-pulling and spit up involved too! :) - but it is always good, it is nurturing and that's probably why I love it so much.

Another thing that I really enjoy is seeing Olivia interact with her Daddy. She and Jason have a really special bond that is so wonderful.  And it's really cool to see that side of him, silly voices and impressions and all.  He loves getting her to do the "belly laugh" -- it is really funny!

Our pediatrician told me something out of the blue on our first visit when Olive was 10 days old that I will never forget -- "Remember, motherhood is not martyrhood."  I take that to mean several things, depending on the message that I need at the time.  (1) ask for help and you shall receive; don't over-burden yourself, (2) sometimes you have to let things go and trust, (3) don't feel sorry for yourself; we all have jobs to do and (4) kids grow up, you will always be their mother, but she needs you so much now. Remember this time will not last forever.

Here are a few current pics of the Babygirl. She is coming up on 5 months in a few weeks!  She's currently rolling over and sitting up with assistance.

In the picture above, Dad is holding an Easter egg with her name on it! Next year she will be toddling around and maybe even finding her own eggs :)

Take care all, ~claire