9 Month Update

Hello!
We are all doing well here and enjoying the end of Summer. Olive is keeping us busy watching her as she explores "kid friendly" parts of the house.  It seems that playing with toys is no longer fun, but pulling books out and digging through drawers is really a blast. We are slowly getting our kid-proofing game together and hoping to stay one step ahead of her!

Feeding her these days calls to mind the negotiation and selling tactics book "Start with No" - I think the author must have been trying to spoon feed an infant when they came up with the idea for that book. She enjoys telling us "no" by shaking her head and going "uh uh" when she is done eating or doesn't like what is offered.

We have been working with her on "no" when she gets into something that is off-limits. When you tell her no, she will stop and look at you... then smile and giggle as if to disarm you by her charm and cuteness (which sometimes almost works!). Then she will often test the wrong behavior again but more slowly and with an eye cocked in your direction.

We had a great time in Colorado in early August, relaxing and spending lots of fun family time. Here is a picture of Jason hiking with Olive near the house.

I can't believe how much she has changed in the past month. She has less "baby" look about her and more little girl. Waving bye bye and clapping hands are fun these days too.

The one on the way is doing great. I am at about 23 weeks now and feeling good. Take care. Love, c  

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