Photo Catchup

Here is a link to our latest photo folder on picasa. It's some pictures from last weekend with Dan and family.

Also not sure if we put this folder up either, but it's pretty. It's from when Denis and Martine came for a visit.

Another Busy Week

We had a very busy week last week.  I had my first soccer game, which we won, my first baby and me class, a trip to Olds, a visit from my brother, Tina and Madeleine and my very first official Mother`s Day.

I was a little nervous at first about playing soccer so soon after Sophie was born.  I realize you get the okay to start exercising 6 weeks after delivery as long as you are feeling up to it, but soccer can be quite intense and I am known to give it my all even if I am in pain.  Also, last time I played ultimate frisbee, I had to quit the team half way through the season because of my hip injury.  But we had a great first game and I even managed to assist a goal.  I am still feeling my hip injury but I am making sure to stretch and ice it after the games so as to keep it from getting worse.  It is great to get out of the house for an hour two times a week and I think Ryan enjoys his time with Sophie, even if he does try to keep her asleep most of the time.

I also attended my first baby and me class Wednesday at the YMCA.  I signed up for this class to meet other new moms in the area, as well as a reason to get out of the house.  I have to say, and I may be biaised since it is my own child, but Sophie is by far the cutest baby there.

Thursday, Sophie and I made a trip to Olds to visit Averley, Ally and Grace.  We enjoyed some chocolate covered strawberries made by Ally and Averley (Yum!) and then went for a walk.  Ally and I practiced our soccer skills since this is her first year playing on a team.  We practiced kicking and passing but mostly I chased after her as she tried to keep the ball away from me.  After we headed back to the house for some snacks and took as many pictures as we could of the girls before Sophie got tired of being propped up.  It was a wonderful day and we look forward to having another get-together with them soon.

Dan and Tina decided to come to Calgary for a visit this past weekend.  Tina and I wanted to treat ourselves to a pedicure but when I called around, they were all booked for Saturday.  So Tina brought everything we needed to have a pedicure at home.  It was a great surprise.  It was also a lot of fun watching the two girls interact with each other.  Madeleine, who is only 4 months older than Sophie, loves to pet her.  Sounds silly but it is actually very sweet.  She also loves when Baron licks her hands.  I am excited to watch Madeleine and Sophie grow up together and I hope they become close friends one day.

To finish off an already terrific weekend, I celebrated my very first Mother`s Day with Ryan and Sophie.  Sophie and I decided to skip the Mother`s Day run since it looked like it might rain on us and we slept in instead.  After seeing Dan and Tina off, we had a relaxing day, cuddling on the couch and watching movies.  Ryan bought me a beautiful pendant. It is an amythyst, which is Sophie`s birthstone. I have to say I was quite impressed; it may be the most thoughtful and romantic gift Ryan has given me since we have been together (although a close second would probably be the gps I got for Christmas).

Top 10 things about being a mom

10 - a great excuse to buy clothes - when you need a minimum of three tee-shirts a day due to spit ups, times 7 days a week, that`s a lot of tops!

9 - not having to get up early for work

8 - no parent-teacher interviews or report cards

7 - the late night feedings when the house is silent and we stare into each others eyes

6 - watching Ryan play with his daughter

5 - knowing what to do - knowing how to make her stop crying and how to make her smile

4 - listening to her coos and gurgles

3 - her huge smile first thing in the morning when I go to get her and she sees it is me

2 - watching her learn and grow 

1 - the love that fills my heart when I look at my child

Almost as Good as First Place

It was 7:30am and 4 degrees with rain on a gloomy Mother's Day, both Nicole and Hunter ended up ditching me (both for good reasons) and so I braved the elements alone.

I ran in my second Mothers Day Run and Walk and finished in a respectable 557th place.  I'm pretty happy with the results, I was able to keep myself to the pace I wanted and had a great time even though at the end I could hardly see with the rain and fogged glasses.

Race results are here, you can search for my name or anyone else's name you want.

One Last Kick at Winter

So we left it for the very end, but Hunter and I did get out for a day on the hills.  Last Sunday we got up nice and early and hit the highways.  The roads were pretty bad in the morning and it took us longer than expected to get to Nakiska. Once we were there the weather was pretty mild and it snowed most of the day giving us a great time on the hills.

We put in a couple runs before Hunter's lesson to warm him up and then I powered through 6 runs in the 1.5 hours of his lesson.  It was fast and furious, reminding me how skiing once a year doesn't really get you in shape.  We followed the morning with a relaxing lunch and then a couple more runs before everyone was tired and we headed for home.

All in all a great time.

Rub-a-dub-dub

So I have heard that it is important to set a routine before bed and that a bath and massage is recommended.  It is a good way to relax your baby and prepare her for a long night of peaceful dreams.  We thought we would give it a try.  Unfortunately (and fortunately), Sophie loooves the bath but it seems to have the opposite effect of her.

Also, she hates massages.  She screams when I try to rub her down with cream after her bath.  However, it may simply be because I have taken her out of the bath that she enjoys so much.

All But The Trim

So I know there was a dry spell for posting, now look, a couple posts in a couple days.

I know with all the pictures of the baby you'd think there wasn't much else going on in our lives, but that would be false. On top of the baby I've been crazy busy in the basement as well.  So much so that Nicole was starting to wonder if Sophie would ever know her dad.

Well I have good news for you Sophie, here I am.  The basement is pretty much complete. I have the plumber scheduled to come finish the bathroom, and except for that and some finishing trim, IT'S DONE!



You'll maybe notice the doors and trim are missing, I'll get to those once I get to know my baby first.

For a bit of a trip down memory lane you can see the basement progress here.
The permit
Framing
Plumbing
Electrical
Ready for drywall
Drywall done

5 weeks young!

Sophie is five weeks young today.  So far, most of her days have been filled with feedings, cuddles and naps.  We also try to squeeze in some playtime.  Despite this very uneventful schedule, time seems to fly by.  My days are a little more busy, trying to do laundry (wow!  babies make a lot of dirty clothes) and keep the house somewhat tidy.  This would explain the lack of posts; our apologies to those who have been checking in.  We have managed to introduce Sophie to most of our family and friends over the past five weeks.  We have had a number of visitors eager to meet her.  We also hosted an open house where friends and family stopped in to welcome Sophie.  She has consistently been a pleasure with visitors around.  She will sleep in anybody's arms which makes both visitor and Sophie very happy. 

We even made a trip to Edmonton so Sophie could meet her great grandparents, uncles, aunt and cousin.  While she has been very sweet for the visitors who have come to our home, she was a bit cranky for the trip.  I guess she doesn't like travelling very much which is surprising since we stayed at Hotel MacDonald.  5 star hotels just aren't her thing.  I guess there really is no place like home.  Sophie and I have also managed to make a few outings on our own as well, grocery shopping, Chapter's, the chiropractor (she hung her upside down!), visiting friends, and we have even taken Baron for a few walks, although they have been few since the weather has been so miserable. 

So far, she has been a great baby.  Evenings seem to be the most challenging, as she can get fussy and demand constant rocking but nights have been pretty good.  There are the typical feedings every 1, 2 or 3 hours but then she usually has no problem going back to sleep.  I keep meaning to start a routine for bedtime so she can go down as easily as her cousin Gus but so far I haven't been very sucessful.  I may need some help with that one (Jordan and Cyd, do you have any pointers for me?).

Sophie is growing very quickly and can already hold her head up for anywhere between five and ten seconds.  She also seems eager to crawl.  When we put her on her belly, she tries hard to move forward.  Her head is up, her legs are pushing forward, she just lacks the strength in her arms to get this going.  Soon enough Sophie!