2 month doc appt (a little late!)

haley had her 2 month doc appt today -- a little late since she's 10 weeks old tomorrow!  she was "off the charts" in height (25 inches long, estimated 98th percentile since the chart stops at 95th percentile) and weighs 12 lbs (75th percentile)!!  her head circumference was in the 85th percentile too...so, she's a 'giant' 2 month old with lots of brains!

she also got 2 shots today, and trey and i were both shocked at how well she did.  she cried a total of 1 minute for both shots!!  she did even better with these two than with the first one last month!  both of us could not believe it.  what a trooper!! 

the doc was very impressed with her head/neck strength / control and recommend using a bumpo seat or exersaucer within the next weeks/month.  so i guess we will be adding to the collection of baby items soon! 

and her hip ultrasound turned out ok, so no worries with hip dysplasia from being breech.
all in all, it was a great visit!

we are getting ready for our flight to houston tomorrow.  hopefully she will do well and sleep during the flight!

we saw santa!

we dressed haley up & took her to sit on santa's lap last week.  she did really well, but would not look at the camera, so we had to make the photographer move.  we got a few great photos of her with santa & of us as a family.  i will share them later, though.  ;-) 

we had a low key thanksgiving, here at the house.  our friend jeff came over and we ate steak rolls.  they were good, but i accidentally burned the tar out of them, so they were a little overdone.  so, just had to add more gravy!  and i also made trey's favorite pumpkin roll....mmmm... 

since thanksgiving we have been busy with car stuff.  we bought my former boss's car and put trey's car on craig's list.  so, we met with a potential buyer, made a deal and then had to sit at the DMV to transfer title, register, pay taxes, etc.  but, it's all taken care of, and he is now driving a fully loaded '07 suv instead of  his 1995 chevy blazer!

haley is getting better at bath time, and it always calms her down for several hours.  it's great do before bedtime & i got a cute pic of her all bundled up after a bath.

also, the temperature has dropped to 30-50 so we are using her big hat & mittens more often.  i think she looks like pippy longstocking with the hat on!

eating has been a challenge for her the past few weeks, and the last few days have gotten even worse.  but we are working thru it and i will talk to her pediatrician at her next appt on dec 1.

haley & i will fly to houston on dec 2 for a month to hang out with our families!  we are so excited to go but will miss daddy big time!  he will join us for christmas, so we'll be without him for 3 weeks!  but i'm sure the time will go quickly. 

all decked out in pink & ready to go out

content & bundled in towels after a warm bath. anyone else think she looks like an egyptian pharaoh?

playing by herself for a few minutes

this weekend, haley started to play by herself for a few minutes.  it's really cute to see, and it gives us a nice break every now and then!  it usually only lasts about 5 minutes, either on the activity gym, under the mobile in her pack & play, in her swing, or in the car seat with a toy hanging from the handle.  here are a few pics & videos.

underneath the activity gym, delighted by the flashing lights above her

i love this one - she looks confused & is even scratching her head as if she's saying "what's going on here?"

playing with her butterfly & kitty while sitting in the car seat

captivated by the 3 monkeys in her pack & play

all good things must come to an end!  after she entertained herself for a few minutes, she was ready for some company from mom & dad!

i also wanted to throw this picture in so you can see how long she's getting - almost fills up the pack & play!

Video of her playing by herself

she's 8 weeks old today!

haley is 8 weeks old today...how time flies!  for the last 5 days, we think haley has been growing!  she's been eating every 2.5 hrs and sleeping a lot too. oh and she cries like mad when she's put down!  ;-(  it's been pretty demanding on me, which is why i'm just making new blog entries today.  i hope that things go back to "normal" soon.  the only nice thing is that the last 2 days she has gone longer thru the night, so i've caught up on some sleep i was lacking at the beginning of the week.

we have been trying to take her places so she gets used to being around other people & so she can be exposed to different sights and sounds. last week, we went to lunch two times to meet with my coworkers, and she did great both times.  we also went to a baby shower for a good friend on saturday, and she did very well there too.   she's getting very curious - loves being upright & looking around .  we were walking thru the mall this weekend and she was wide awake, holding her head up and just looking at everything around her!  it was neat.

she still gets the hiccups every day but its about twice versus 4 or 5 times a day that she had them when she was younger.  the difference between then and now, is that when she gets them now, it's about a 98% chance she'll spit up with the first few hiccups.  so, as soon as i hear her start, gotta grab the burp cloth!  it's much easier to throw a burp cloth in the hamper vs. changing her outfit.  ;-)

there are still fall leaves on the trees, so we've gone on a few walks weather permitting.  usually she sleeps but she does look around for a while before sawing logs.  i tried out a 'bundle me' yesterday in the carseat...it's basically like a sleeping bag that zips up all around to keep the babies warm in the carseat or stroller.  that thing is MAGIC - she slept like a log both times i had her in it!  it's super warm and sooo soft.  i wish i had one! 

i put her hand in the ring so she could work on her grip, and she fell asleep holding it! 

sheepish grin!

this is the magic "bundle me" that i referred to earlier.  she is so cozy and slept away, even after we got back from our walk!  it zips up on the sides, so is like a sleeping bag.  and it has holes in the back so you can still strap her in.

a few videos: fake cry & "talking"

we got a few videos of all the noises haley is making.  the first one is her 'fake' cry - the one where she's not really hurting or mad, just wants attention.  ;-) 

the other two videos are of her 'talking' to us.  her face is dark because we are right under the recessed light.  we swear she said 'hi' in the last video! hahaha 

more smiles!

when it rains, it pours!  i was lucky enough to capture many more smiles!  she's half dressed in some of these, but hey, you gotta "seize the moment" when it presents itself! 

finally caught a smile!

i finally caught haley smiling when i had my camera handy!  here are a few pics of her grin, most of them wiht her tongue out.  ;-)  i was shooting so fast that i was off  focus a bit, so a few of them are a little fuzzy.

super girl !

haley has discovered her legs and loves boucing off of them when she's in an upright position.  she loves being up so she can see all around - even when we hold her.  i started out with her by just bouncing her on my lap, but trey decided to take it to the next level, lift her up and let her 'fly' like super girl.  it's really cute, but sometimes that's all she wants to do, so my arms get really tired!  (getting back in the gym will help that!)

oh the passie...

so the dilemma is the passie vs. the thumb....on one hand (hahaha) the thumb is always there and she can soothe herself...but on the other hand it's always there, so she might end up like me and suck her thumb for years! then there's the passie, which is temporary and she can eventually be 'weened' off of it.  but, when it falls out of her mouth, guess who has to put it back in?? 

but for now, we're sticking to the passie, but as you can see in the picture below, she gets really MAD when it falls out!

SOMEBODY GIVE ME MY #&#^#  PASSIE !!

pouty face

haley has started to make a pouty face & shed a few tears when she cries.  it's so cute!  i don't have a great picture, but here are a few that give you an idea of her pout.

play mat videos

here's a few videos of haley on her play mat.  she's making lots of noises, so volume would be great when you are watching these.  the videos look the same but they are different.  ;-)

she's growing up!

i was reading in a book from Marla that after 1 month, babies start to 'mirror' your expressions. the book   mentioned smiling & sticking out your tongue. so, trey has been sticking out his tongue at haley to see if she notices it. 

here's the "play by play":   sunday nite, trey was holding her on his shoulder, and he pulled his head back to look at her.  next, she pulled her head back/up and looked at him. he stuck his tongue out at her, and low and behold, she stuck hers out back at him!!  he got SO excited / tickled that it worked, and has been doing it a lot since then.  i have not had any luck, but saw her do it once with him.  it's so cute!  no pics of that, tho.

she's started making a pouty face before she cries & even generates little tears now!  i keep missing the photo opportunity for it, however.

she's also starting to really see things.  she loves lying on her play mat & staring at the little toys and kicking them.  she's batting at things with her hands too & her eyes light up when she hits them.  it's adorable.  her neck is getting even stronger and she's constantly picking up her head when we hold her and even when she's in the car seat & stroller.

she's trying to hold her passie in but often ends up knocking it out of her mouth. when it falls out she's starting to find her hands and managed to suck her thumb a few times.  she even held her bottle for a few seconds the other day.  little miss independent!

big yawn

my favorite things - passie, rattle, & my puppy dog, Spot

family hands

snuggled in the blankie from aunt kerrie

holding my bottle for a few seconds while daddy feeds me!

here's a video clip of haley looking for her thumb after she drops her passie:

1 month doc appt

haley's one month doc appt was nov 1 -- although she was really 5 wks and 4 days old at that time.  we wanted to see a specific doctor so delayed a week to get a slot with him.   everything is going well, but we wanted to get his opinion on the shaping of her head to be sure we don't need to do anything by a certain time.  the doc thinks things are perfectly normal and that there is nothing to do (consistent with the other doc we saw at her 1 month appt), so we were happy to hear that.  he said her hips are also looking good, but we will schedule an ultrasound in the coming weeks just to be sure everything is A-OK.  (breech baby girls have a high risk of hip dysplasia, but they think she'll be fine).  everything else was great.


she weighed 10 lbs 2 oz (50-75 percentile), and measured 23 inches long (95 percentile). she has a very long torso, so we have been wearing 3 month size outfits the past few weeks! 
she did have to get a shot, though.  i was not looking forward to that part, but she did excellent, all things considered.  she only cried for a few minutes and was calm once we loaded her in the car seat and daddy started 'swinging' her in the room.  then, just a few whimpers in the car and she was fast asleep after i started driving.  she even did well while i ran a few errands after the appt.  she's such a trooper!  


here's a pic of her battle wound...well, the band-aid on her thigh!

waving to the camera, and showing off her taz band aid from her shot

haley's first vineyard

trey was off on friday and it was a gorgeous fall day...so, after having a great lunch with my former boss and his wife, we headed to linden vineyards, about an hour west of our house.  they have a large enclosed deck, so we were protected from the wind, while still having a beautiful view of the fall colors and enjoying the day.  it was my first drink since new years, but i only had about a half a glass.  it was delicious and we had a really nice time.

view from the deck

either had gas or a good dream!

fall baby

we found a great tree in our neighborhood, with beautiful orange & red leaves this fall.  so, during a walk, we brought a few things and set haley up for some fall season pictures! 

sorry all you aggies out there...but it looks like haley already made her university choice at 1 month age! 

she's grabbing onto everything now - it's really cool

just chillin in my sunglasses from aunt kerrie!

i'm so comfy on my tummy

wiggle worm

at 2 and 1/2 weeks old, haley surprised us by rolling onto her side!!!  then a few days ago, at 3 weeks old, we had her on her tummy and she rolled from tummy to her side to her back!  she did it 2 times in a row, but i missed the first half on my video.  she is also lifting her head up a lot on her own, but still has the typical newborn flail.  sometimes when we put her on her tummy to strengthen her neck/arms, she just falls asleep.  i guess she's going to be a tummy sleeper like her mommy!  she's so strong already - we're going to have our hands full!!

haley on her side at 2 1/2 wks old

haley also loves to stretch out - i guess it's because she was so crammed up at the end of my pregnancy! here's a pic of her 'chillin' on the couch.  it's hard to measure her, but we think she's close to 22 inches long by now.

here's a video of haley rolling to her side in her pack & play.

all the visitors

haley had lots of visitors the first few weeks of her life!  at the hospital, we had our friends tamara, brian and chris, then trey's roomate of 8 years jeff, plus my friends from work jennifer & nick.  after the hospital, our friends steve & kerri came over.  we also got some beautiful flowers from all of trey's colleagues.  thanks to everyone for visiting! 

tamara & brian



jennifer & nick



haley & kerri



beautiful flowers from trey's coworkers

hiccup monster!

during my 3rd trimester, haley got hiccups 4-5 times per day, some strong enough to wake me up at night.  well, the trend has continued since she's was born, and they are super loud and strong sometimes.  we feel really bad for her, but luckily she doesn't seem to mind.  she's only gotten upset a few times when she's had them, thank God.  here's a short video clip of her with the hiccups.  even with a passie, it's still really loud!

Grandma & Grandpa Preisler in town!

We dropped my mom off at the airport on Oct 9, and waited there about 30 minutes to pick up trey's parents, who stayed for the next 7 days.  So, we had 2 solid weeks of help!  It was great having them here - their last visit was over 5 years ago, when we had just moved into the house.  And of course they were excited to meet haley in person!  Unfotunately it had been 3 hours since we left the house till we got back from the airport, so i had to feed haley right when we got home.  So, grandma had to wait even longer before she could hold her.  But, they got plenty of bonding time in and there weren't many moments that week when she wasn't being held!  ;-)  Grandpa warmed up to her too and was holding her like a champ soon enough. 

Trey worked some during that week, but also spent some good quality time with his parents.  Dad really helped trey out with fixing the fence, gate & stairs in the back yard.  The fence was bowing out and we got a letter from the homeowners association saying we needed to fix it.  So, dad used his experience to get the right items (auger anchors) to help trey fix it.  And, they made the stairs look real nice & put rebar down to ensure that they don't shift, even when the dirt washes away. (there's a hill right behind our fence, so lots of soil erosion.)  Everything looks great, and now i can actually open the back gate!  They also put up a motion detecting light in the back, so we are all fixed up! 

In addition to bonding with haley, grandma helped out around the house with cooking, laundry and cleaning as well!  That was a big help for me since i was busy feeding haley every few hours!  and haley got two more baths with  me and grandma that week--she did so well.

We also tried the first bottle that week.  It was at Carrabas on Saturday night, after we went to church.  I didn't have a way to heat it up, so it didn't go over that well, but she managed to drink about 2 oz which was enough to hold her over a few hours.  it was a team effort with trey holding her and me holding the bottle!  hahaha. 

by sunday night, i was so exhausted that I agreed to let grandma give her a bottle for the midnight shift so i could get several hours of sleep in a row.  this time, it was heated and grandma said she did really well.  It was awesome for me too, to get 4-5 hours of sleep in a row!  so, we kept doing that the rest of the week while they were here.  i really appreciated that. 

we also went on a few trips with grandma to babies r us and in haley's jogging stroller around the neighborhood.  the jogging stroller was a gift from lorie, sara, kerrie, and lindsey (shower hostesses) and works so well going up and down over bumps in the sidewalk.  haley slept with her mouth wide open the entire walk, but luckily did not catch any bugs!  ;-) 

here are a few pics from grandma & grandpa's trip here. 

Grandpa & Haley!

i love how haley is looking at grandma!

haley was working grandpa - making him put her passie in each time she spit it out!  ;-)