Here’s me hoisting up Ben’s brother Jack and his cousin Ted while we were at the science museum.  Jack is pretty darn awesome, too and hanging with him and Ted is lots of fun.

We took Sarah to her two week well-check today.  The doctor said that she looked great and that she had gained back enough weight that she was over her birth weight (which is what they hope for by two weeks.)  She is now 8lb 12oz which puts her in the 60th percentile for weight.  She is 21.5 inches tall, which is the 90th percentile for height!  She didn’t get that from me!

A lot of Sarah’s facial expressions and movements remind me of Ted when he was this small.  One thing I don’t remember is him being this vocal though.  I don’t mean crying.  Sarah is frequently making little noises.  She squeaks, purrs, snores, and makes little noises that seem to say, “hello?  I am over here.”

This past weekend Auntie Christine came to visit and help us get ready for Christmas.  On Friday we got a tree from the Farmer’s Market.  Saturday we decorated the tree and the house and went to the Christmas Parade.  On Sunday Ted got to spend some quality time playing with Auntie outside.  Then Sunday night after Auntie had to head back to Boston, Ted and Pat went to the Christmas Celebration at Pullen Park.  It was a very fun, action-packed weekend.

Ted putting the rocket ship on the top of the tree.

Sarah’s First Parade!

Ted had the best view.

Keeping the couch firmly planted.

Train ride at Pullen Park.

Natural Science museum

Boat ride at Pullen Park.

Sarah is one week old today!  Hard to believe I spent the the entire week before last with one thought going through my mind:  I cannot believe she has not been born yet!  I was sure she would be born by Thanksgiving if not sooner.  With Ted I was convinced he would be late and then he was born on his due date.  A doctor told me second children usually come earlier than firstborns.  Not in this case!  Who knows how long Sarah would have stayed in there had she not been induced or evicted, as I like to say.

Eight days after her due date Pat and I headed to the hospital for a scheduled induction.  I was worried that forcing her out before she was ready would lead to a longer labor or even a c-section.  Luckily none of that came to pass and I had a much shorter labor and was able to forgo the pain medication again.

Since we were expecting her so much earlier she missed meeting Auntie Kim, Auntie Anne, and cousins Jack and Ben by a day.  She also only had super short visits with Auntie Christine, Grampa, and Gramma.  Luckily Sarah did get to spend some quality time with Gram and will get to see Auntie Christine again this weekend.

This week we took Sarah to the doctor twice.  The first time was her 48 hours after leaving the hospital weight check.  She was down to 7lbs 12oz from her birth weight of 8lb 9oz.  They asked us to come back in another two days to check again.  She gained 3oz in those two days so they were satisfied she is on the right track and our next appointment is her two week well check.

Sarah sleeps in our room in a bedside co-sleeper.  I am absolutely loving this.  When we had Ted in our room during his first days it was in a pack and play and I had to get out of bed to see him.  Which I did every time he made a little noise.  I didn’t sleep at all when he was in our room.  We moved him to his crib in his own room pretty quickly.  This let me sleep between feedings which was wonderful, but after walking back from his room I usually had some trouble falling back asleep.  So far with Sarah I have been able to place her back in the co-sleeper and fall back asleep immediately*.  Of course now that I have admitted this, it will change, because that is what babies do.

*Except for the couple of times when she has turned into what Pat and I lovingly call her voracious velociraptor moments, where she will go four hours trying to nurse constantly with no break, chomping on anything within her reach.

Kate and I are lucky in life to have both her and Ted.

Things are a little chaotic now, but we’ll have more photos up soon.

I’m awfully glad to have known him, and really sad that Ted and Sarah won’t have the same chance.

Ted and Aunt Deirdre on the playground:

We went gem mining – we dug through rocks and dirt to find interesting rocks.

And Aunt Jackie helped us identify them.