Thanksgiving in Florida

We're having a good time here in Florida. It is so nice to be down here in the warm weather with the family. However, I now understand why people say that travelling with kids is tough. Violet definitely took a few days to get used to her new environment. The first few days she had a really tough time napping and sleeping in general and she even uncharacteristically cried when we took her on walks in the stroller! Perhaps she was freaked out by the oppressive humidity of south Florida? Luckily we're down here for a good long visit though and she's settled in and decided that she loves being with her family. It's certainly nice to have lots of baby holders and entertainers around. I've gotten in a couple nice runs which felt really good, but were extra tough since I haven't run in over a year. Now that we've been here for a couple days Violet's sleeping better at night and has taken several long naps. She's changed so much even since she's been down here. We took her for her first swim which she loved. Suddenly she likes toys - or at least eating them and today she discovered her feet!

Cribs

A very kind friend helped me move the guest bed out and put together Violet's crib the other night. The crib is very nice and was given to us by another very kind friend. I was sad to see the guest room go, but it will be really nice for Violet to have her own room. She still dosen't seem to want to sleep any longer than about 3 hours there --maybe when mommy gets around to finishing the nursery with a dresser and a rug? Tomorrow we're off to Florida - yay!!

Party Animal

We've survived the second week back to work full time and I dare say we're falling into a rhythm. Violet "was happy" every day last week! One day when I picked her up, she was just smiling and smiling at Naveed, one of her teachers who went on and on about Violet had had such a good day. I very happy that she seems loved. I do still worry though, about lots of things - including H1N1 which seems like a disaster waiting to happen there. I was able to get vaccinated myself this week, but babies have to be at least 6 months old.

This weekend was full of parties. Friday night there was a rocking potluck at daycare. We didn't stay too long as it was very hot and the chairs were all very small, but it was nice to meet some of the other parents and hear their thoughts on the center. Saturday we went to a neighbor's surprise birthday party down the street. Violet went to sleep in her car seat at 8:30 and mommy was able to enjoy some adult conversation and beverages. Today we went to a friends' "baby barn raising" party complete with a fiddle player and square dancing - Miss V even got her diaper changed on a hay bale for the first time! This weekend I also witnessed the first giggle - best sound ever! I wish I could stay home and tickle her forever!

100 Days

Violet is 100 days old today! In China, 100 days is an important day for the baby and the 100 day celebration represents the wish that the baby will live 100 years. Supposedly babies are supposed to wear pants with long fringe on the legs because the more fringe the more years. Above was Violet's outfit. She made up for the lack of fringe with style.

We made it throught the first week back to at work and day care full time. I pumped over 60 oz of milk, washed and sterilized 20 bottles and downed over 30 capsules of expensive Malunggay in an attempt to produce even more milk. Sometimes being away from the baby seems like more work than being with her! It's doable though and I definitely cherish every minute I have with her in the evenings. I never want to put her down and make (read heat up) dinner. Weekends are definitely cherished too. She seems to change even faster when I'm not with her every moment.

Baby love

If I ever get sad, I think all I'll have to do is watch this video.

What can brown do for you?

The color of the month at daycare is BROWN and today was dress in BROWN day. The shape of the month is the CIRCLE. The letters are A,B, and C and the numbers are 1,2, and 3. Today's report card said "was OK" - back to 30 minute naps.

"was happy"

Today Violet's report from daycare was that she "was happy"! We love "was happy" days. She was probably especially happy today because she took an almost 3 hour nap! Up until now, the longest nap she's taken there has been under an hour, so this is huge! I try not to log into the web cam too much when I'm at work, but every now and then I just miss her so much I can't help it. Today I logged on and watched her roll over! I have mixed feelings about the first time I've seen Violet really roll all the way over being on a web cam, but I'm definitely proud of her. And, she did it again this evening when we were playing.

We're making it through this first week of working full time ok so far. Perhaps it is true what some have told me that babies who are full time in daycare do better there because they get used to the routine. Who knows if it's her just getting older or what but she also seems to be going to sleep more easily at night. All that rolling and playing with her friends is tiring I guess! It certainly makes me feel a ton better about everything that she "was happy". Tonight I ate dinner, put V to bed, sterilized all the bottles and showered by 9:30pm! As soon as I pump one last time and sterilize all the pump parts, I will collapse into bed myself!