Uh... thanks?

When I'm out with Gemma, I am always bombarded by compliments.

"Look at all that beautiful hair!"

"She's gorgeous!"

"I love her big eyes!"

"She's doing that already?"

and so forth...

but the one I just can't get used to (and makes me blush every time) is

"your mommy must have some good breast milk!"

.... okay stranger. thanks for that. not awkward at all.

....

Traveling Woes

On Sunday, all of us were up at 7 and so decided to take an impromptu trip up to Edmonton. My mom hasn't been to her church since October and was really missing her church friends.

The drive there was okay. We stopped in Red Deer for Gemma to eat. After we dropped mom off at church, we went to southgate mall and fed Gemma there.

The drive home was much worse. It took us 5.5 hours to get home when it usually takes 3.5. It would be helpful if she could sleep, but she seems to be too uncomfortable in her car seat.

We have two weddings to go to this year, one in Victoria in July and one in St. Paul in October. We're not going to the Victoria wedding if Gemma continues to hate cars. Flying is out of the question until she is one. If I've weaned Gemma by October, then just Jesse and I may go to that wedding.

Baby and Me

When I went for Gemma's 2-month shots, the nurse told me about this drop-in class they have every week called Baby and Me. At first i was a little apprehensive about going (new people, new situation), but some of the topics sounded interesting, so i convinced my friend Crystal to come with me and went yesterday. 

There were like 18 moms and babies there - so a lot of people! The babies ranged in age from 2 months (Annika was the youngest) to i think 11.5 months. It was cool to see babies sitting up, crawling, playing with each other; a glimps of what's to come.Gemma was so fascinated by all the new faces, she just sat on my lap staring virtually the whole time. Then she got tired and slept a little in my arms.

They had changed the topic on us and so we learned about temperament. I initially thought Gemma was an intense baby, but thinking it through, she is actually very calm - however, very intense when she cries. Paige from my childbirth class came too and so it was nice to have some people i knew there. 

We chatted with one other mom at the end, who seemed really nice. I wish i knew her name.

I think we will definitely try to go back. Maybe I'll even muck up the courage to nurse during the class.

I remember when...

...Swaddlers size N was too big that we had to fold down the front.

...her 0-3 months sleepers were WAY too big and her feet would always come out of theirs "sockets".

...i would wake up to pump every couple of hours and then Jesse would feed her with the bottle while i work on the other side.

...she smelled like butterscotch.

...she could hardly eat 2 oz at a time.

...she would grunt and grunt all night long.

...she would kick her feet like she was swimming when i'd put her on her tummy.

...she would fall asleep on my chest.

...i would feel so nervous about holding her, scared i was going to break her in some way.

...i saw her for the first time and i instantly fell in love with her.

it all seems like so long ago...

Gemma, please sleep!

I don't know what happened. Last night was weird. I put her to bed a bit later (my own fault) at like 9:30 (she usually goes down slightly earlier). She was falling asleep while nursing so after trying to keep her sucking for as long as I could (probably 25 minutes), I put her down to sleep. She could hardly keep her eyes open as I tried to burp her, but as soon as her head hit the mattress, she cried out. and again. and again. I finally gave up trying and got Jesse to take over. He had the same results, so my mom took over. Then it was back to me. I don't think she actually fell asleep until an hour later. Usually at bedtime I can put her down wide awake and she is happy to sleep. I don't know what that was about last night. 

Then she woke up at 4 something. Again, very unusual. Tried to get her back to sleep, but she wouldn't. Finally after probably 30 minutes or so of fighting with her, I gave in and fed her. Even after I fed her, she wasn't gonna go down easy. Whatever. I was a total zombie and Jesse was more awake and so he took care of her after that until he left for work. 

Whatever is wrong with my baby, I hope it is a one-time thing and passes. We've been spoiled thus far and so maybe she's throwing this in there just to "mix it up". Bah.

goodbye my love!

Our family has decided to make a slow switch to eating better. This I don't mean just low-fat, low calorie. Specifically, our plan is to eliminate white rice (hence the title of this post - i LOVE white rice) and substitute brown rice/barley/beans instead, go with free range and/or organic meats wherever we can, as well as free range eggs (which we have been doing for awhile on and off), organic fruits and veggies, and organic milk when Gemma starts cow's milk.The biggie, however, is to eventually eliminate processed meats (goodbye hot dogs, lunchmeat, Spam!).

The change comes because within a few months Gemma will be starting solids and I want to start her off right. If she is used to eating brown rice from the beginning, then she won't miss the white rice later. That, and Jesse has a family history of just about every disease with a strong history of colon cancer, and so that's why we need to eliminate processed meats. I like my husband and want to keep him around for as long as I can.

There are other changes I'd like to make down the road, but baby steps first. Wish us luck!

Happy 100-day birthday!

My baby is 100 days old today. Can't believe it. For Koreans, it's a big deal to celebrate because back in the day babies rarely lived past this mark, and celebrate is what we did. 

We drove to Edmonton bright and early on Saturday morning. We had to stop once to nurse and were subsequently late for our own party... but we had a great time with our family and friends. Of course, Gemma got spoiled rotten. That girl now has enough dresses to last the entire summer!

Today when Jesse gets home, we are going to do Gemma's foot and handprints (we forgot to do it when she was born!). Then we may attempt a family picture (we actually have never taken one of the three of us, can you believe it?). 

My baby is growing up oh so fast...

huh? that was weird.

after nearly a 2-hour playtime, i was carrying Gemma in my arms when she lowered her head against my chest. That is a sure-fire sign that she is sleepy, so i took her over to my bed where her swaddle blanket was ready. Usually when i put her down to swaddle her, she whines and cries until i am done swaddling and pick her back up, but this time she just passed out. even as i was wrapping her, she couldn't stay awake enough to protest. so i just moved her to the middle of my bed and left her sleeping there (keep your gasps to yourself; i'm keeping a close eye on her). I'm just surprised because this is so unlike her. she must have been super pooped.

Gemma the Observer

My baby LOVES to look at things. She came into this world with eyes wide open and with those beautiful eyes, she loves to watch the world around her. Every picture on the wall is a fascinating thing, even though she has seen it a million times. She also loves to talk to photos of herself; only pictures of herself. It's really funny. 

Shaw offered us cable at $10/month for a year and so we decided to go with it. She loves to watch TV. ALREADY. My mom is already predicting lots of fights between me and her trying to get her off the TV. She loves to sit on my mom's lap and watch Korean dramas with her too. haha. Pretty soon she'll be addicted to them like her harmony.

keeping her healthy

I've been tremendously lucky thus far. Gemma has not been sick yet.

This Saturday we are holding a 100-day birthday party for Gemma with my family and a few friends. I'm worried, however, because it's become apparent that quite a few people are sick with colds, chest infections, etc. While I am hopeful that the sickies will limit their contact with Gemma, if they don't, what shall I do? Even though they are family, it would be rather impolite to ask them not to cuddle her, don't you think? and unfortunately not all are nazi hand washers and I'd hate to see Gemma get sick from her own birthday party. and yes, I realize that she will get sick SOME TIME - I just want to avoid it for as long as I can. Can you blame me?

so strong!

speaking of milestones, i don't know if this is considered one, but...

Yesterday, my mom was sitting on the floor with her knees up with Gemma lying back on her lap. When my mom put her fingers in Gemma's hands, she pulled herself up into a standing position!

i need to take a video of this. hard to explain in words.

Reaching and Grabbing

This has been a busy week for Gemma's developmental milestones. On top of laughing and holding her head up steady, she is now reaching for objects and grabbing them. Of course, she doesn't always succeed in grabbing her intended target, but she does especially well when she is on her tummy and has things lying in front of her.

Bad Mommy

Gemma had a massive poop today and so i had to take her into the shower to rinse her off. Usually I turn on the water first, then take her in, but in my haste i took her into the tub and then turned the shower on, wihch really frightened her. She screamed in fear (such a different kind of screaming than her usual screams) and i felt so bad. 

Then later in the afternoon, I met Paige and her daughter, Maeve, for a walk. When I left the house, it was sunny with a very light wind. Gemma wore a sleeper and then fleece pants and fleece hoodie on top of that. I also took a knitted blanket, but mostly to drape over the stroller to keep the sun out of her face. Well it got super cold and super windy and poor thing must have been freezing. Luckily Paige had an extra pair of Maeve's mittens in her stroller, which I borrowed. Gemma was a trooper, though, and even though her nose was bright red by the end, she slept for the most part and didn't complain too much. 

Mommy's sorry.

what's so funny?

Gemma has just started laughing out loud. She has been smiling and sqealing for a long time now, but now it is a definite laugh. 

Tonight, Jesse was making funny noises with his mouth when she started to laugh. Later on, he laid on the floor and lifted Gemma on top of him and she laughed. 

It is truly music to my ears.

My New Hobby

I recently discovered instructions on how to make a tutu. It looked so easy - absolutely no sewing required! and while we are not looking to raise a girly girl, I HAD to try making one and put it on Gemma. 

Well, it was as easy as it sounded. Here is the result. 

Isn't she so adorable!?!??!?!? 

3-month appointment

Just got back from the doctor. Boy, she hates going there. Gemma screamed the entire time from the moment I undressed her for a weigh-in until we got in the car. 

Here are the highlights: 

• She weighed in at 13 lb 6 oz and is between the 75th and 95th percentile. 
• She looks healthy, doc says.
• Gemma has been pulling on her ear while nursing sometimes and she had red cheeks on a few occasions. not to mention she has been drooling like crazy and starting to shove her fist in her mouth. oh and don't forget the biting, which she does more and more, almost at every feeding (which is juuuuuuuust great). Also, when i wipe her gums with a washcloth wrapped around my finger, she is busy clamping down, which she didn't used to do. So the ear pulling can be many things, but two of the most common things it indicates is an ear infection and teething. He checked her ears and they are clear. He felt her gums and thought her two top teeth (yes, her top teeth) might be coming in; wasn't a 100% sure, but thought maybe. Why a 3-month-old needs teeth, i don't know. 
• He was impressed with her sleeping abilities (last night she slept almost 11 hours without waking to eat). 
• We went over any breastfeeding issues, but there aren't any. Things have been just fine and dandy since the last time we saw him. No more gas, no more grunting, no more choking, etc. We have finally found a rhythm.

So in conclusion, Gemma is fit as a fiddle and healthy as can be. She has a good set of lungs, as the doctor jokes.

Thank you God for this healthy and beautiful baby. 

mom's group

it went well as could be expected. i'm just happy to know my baby isn't the only one who screams unhappily, although most of them were content with being in mommy's arms. haha. now i'm more confident about going out into public more. 

we ate and chatted and shared labor experiences, etc. everyone had such quick labors... argh.

there were talks of joining the moms and tots swimming class when it is up and running in April. i'd love to go to that. Gemma likes baths, so i'm guessing she would like that also. so i guess soon we'll have to go and find a bathing suit for both of us!