4 weeks old tomorrow

I thought I would narrate the new slide show this week.
Picture this, oh wait. You don't have to imagine cause I included pictures. Silly me. We open with a shot of me sleeping in my car seat. This was a one shot deal. I got it right the first time. Of course this was taken at the end of a drive. Not sure what it is about riding in the car but I love it. It puts me right to sleep.
I included this next shot to show everyone how hard my daddy is working. He is a teacher, a real estate agent and when mommy is off napping he does housework too. My gramma might think this isn't a real photo but I can attest to the legitimacy of it. I was there, I was sleeping but I was there.
These next three shots are just mommy and me. I have developed an incredible sucking reflex when I get hungry and I tried to get some milk from mommy's lip. That experiment was unsuccessful although I did get a nice kiss out of it.
Lots of people notice my ears and say how cute they are but I wanted to show off my bellybutton. I think it looks like a mini Cinnabon. I've never had one but daddy says that's what it looks like. He say's I'll like Cinnabon when I get older.
In the middle of the week mommy got to go see her friend Tamara and her son Logan. I slept the whole time we were over there but Logan thought I was pretty neat.
Mommy is introducing me to the bouncy chair. It vibrates and plays music and has lights too. I like it more and more. Mommy can put me in it for a few minutes while she does some laundry or just lets her arms rest after holding me all morning. As you can see I am all about safety. I make sure I wear my seat belt each time I get in the chair. You can never be too careful.
Nothing special about this next photo. I just like blanket daddy made and I am having fun in the shot.
As you can see from this next photo I haven't been missing many meals and I can have some wicked hair days. Daddy has dubbed this one "Chuckles the Clown." Mommy doesn't like this shot but since Daddy is my administrative assistant he put it in for me. Let me just say if you can afford an admin it is worth every penny. It really frees up my day for the things I really want to be doing like sleeping or eating, peeing or pooping. Oh yeah that's all I do. Typing this blog would really cramp my style. Thanks again daddy. Your check is in the mail.
Wai Gong made it down from Elk Grove to see me this weekend. Wai Gong is Chinese for maternal grandfather. He was rather impressed with me until I started crying and I pretty much did that for the rest of his stay. Mind you he was only here for about 24 hours but I did my best to try and cry as much as I could. He also brought his buddy, Pinky. He found Pinky at Baskin Robbins and they travel everywhere together.
This last photo is a tough one for me. Nana went home for a couple of weeks and she took Kiwi with her so he could play with his sister Daisy. I miss them.
That's all for this week. My Auntie Steph is coming into town tomorrow to see me so I should have some crazy stories next week. I hope you are enjoying seeing me grow and getting the inside into what I'm thinking. Let me know what you think and leave a comment.
Good Night.
Love,
Kana

baby velociraptor

We've had a busy week! We made our first public appearance when we met baby Finn and baby Isabella for lunch at BJ's yesterday. Everyone slept through the meal, which was fabulous for the mommies! Then when it was picture time, Finn decided he'd had enough and woke up to eat. We had to rush home before Kana decided to do the same.
Daddy has nicknamed Kana "baby velociraptor" because of the funny sounds she makes when she is hungry... which is pretty much all the time. Everyone was shocked when we weighed her today and the scale read 9lbs! She is only 23 days old! The lady at the store said I must be making chocolate milk. (more like heavy cream! geeze!) Kana is outgrowing her cute little newborn clothes faster than we ever expected.
She had her first bath today, now that her belly button is completly healed. You can tell from the pictures how much she enjoyed that. ;o)-
Daddy had his first big night watching Kana alone. I took Nana to a musical while Sean stayed home with Kana and Kiwi. She napped like a perfect angel on daddys chest the whole time, of course. She was well rested when I got home, so we could stay up to party all night. Fun! Fun!

Kana's Musings

Hi all. It has been a very busy week for me. Daddy went back to school last Monday so it was just Mommy and Nana looking after me. I was a perfect angel all week until Friday. I decided it was time for my first real meltdown. Nana left early for the airport and it was emotional for both of us. Mommy took me home and then Kiwi cut his foot. He was tracking blood all over the house and Mommy was a little upset about this. I wasn't getting enough attention so I made my move. I started to cry and boy did I a make a production of it. Daddy came home and I calmed down a little bit. Then Papa and Gramma showed up. I wanted attention but this was crazy. I was passed around like a hot potato. I would just get comfortable and then someone would have to get up. Then I was passed to the next person and it would take a long while to adjust to them. I pretty much cried all afternoon and evening.
They say you only have one chance to make a first impression. Let's just say it's a good thing I'm cute because my behavior was not endearing me to my grandparents. This behavior wasn't helping Daddy either cause I cried and fussed all night. Mommy is accustomed to my nighttime rants but Daddy isn't. Mommy takes me out of the room so Daddy isn't a walking zombie at work the next day but for the weekend Mommy wanted to make sure Daddy appreciates what she does for him. I got to spend all night keeping Daddy up.
I was so tired, after a 18 hours of fussing and crabbing, I slept on Papa in the Lovesac all morning. I started back up again Sat afternoon(just to show everyone who runs this house). By this point Papa and Gramma were sure that getting a hotel for the weekend was the best decision ever.
I was good on Sunday. I slept a lot and I even let them put me in the cradle to sleep. I don't know about you but I'm a stomach sleeper. I'll take a warm, loving chest where I'm on my stomach over a lousy crib or cradle, on my back, any day. The highlight of of my weekend was when Gramma sang and rocked me to sleep. She says she had forgotten lots of the words but hey, they are all new to me. I don't know any better. I slept for 4 hours on Gramma and I would have gone longer but Mommy woke me up to feed me. I was hungry but I could have waited a while longer. I was warm and cozy and feeling the love. So what if my diaper smelled like last weeks trash. I lived in my own filth for 40+ weeks, what's another hour in a wet nappy. Besides, Daddy is smelly when he holds me after working out. I don't make him shower(that's Mommy's job).
I turn 3 weeks old tomorrow and that's exciting. I'm growing like a weed and putting on weight. I'm the opposite of that show "The Biggest Loser." I have put together a new slide show for my fans. enjoy and I will talk to you next week.
Love,
Kana

Growing So Fast

Kana is 13 days old today and had her first appointment with her pediatrician. Everything went well. She pooped on the nurse while she was taking her temperature. I guess she was getting even with her for making her lay there naked in the cold.
She weighs 7lbs 14oz already! That is a huge weight gain since she was born at just 6lbs 12oz less than 2 weeks ago! She also gained some height! She is now 21 inches! She is in the 30th% for her weight and her head size, but 70th% for her height! My doctor always told me the baby would be tall and skinny. We can't believe how fast she is growing! We want to cherish every moment.
Daddy had to go back to work today and was very sad to leave Kana. Tonight is our 7th anniversary, so we will go out to dinner while Kana stays home with Nana. We tried a bottle the other day, but she gave daddy a hard time when it didn't heat well enough for her tastes. We'll see how it goes tonight. Luckily, fresh milk won't be too far away and can leave the restaurant if Kana can't handle it.
Her belly button fell off last night! Whoohoo! Now she has a pretty belly.
She is still sleeping the day away and partying all night. Kana and I have a lovely time changing diapers, eating and looking at the lights through the blinds while lying on the floor in the living room each night. Daddy brought the rocking chair upstairs for us last night, so that was a nice treat. I don't know why we even have a cradle, she never sleeps in there. I was more comfortable sleeping on the floor most of my pregnancy, so I guess Kana got used to that and wants to continue the tradition. ;o)-
Kana had her 1st blessing in church yesterday and was introduced to the congregation as the baby Jesus for this year's Christmas pageant.

My new friends

Here are a few cute photos of me lounging on my Boppy Pillow as well as some with my new friends. They aren't exactly new, we've known each other for about six months in utero. Ethan, the biggest of the three of us, was just born two days ago and Finn is the geezer of the group since he is a month old now. These were taken at our first group social in San Pedro.

Kana and Kiwi

Kana and Kiwi are getting to be best buddies. Kiwi was very curious at first and tried to lick her aggressively every time he could get close enough, but now he is used to her and just wants to protect her and sniff her diaper. ;o)- When she cries, he runs around to let every one know. He looks for her in the cradle every morning when he returns from his morning walk with Nana. He still has some jealousy issues, but he is learning.
Mom & dad are doing extremely well on little sleep... guess it's all that international flying that trained us to function on no sleep. We are just in awe of Kana's every move. She loves to make funny faces and has already learned to flip herself over. She is very strong. It must be from mom lifting weights the morning that she went into labor. Mom is already back in her favorite jeans thanks to Kana being such a good eater. Nana is having a great time changing baby outfits 5x a day with matching socks and hats, of course. Our friend, baby Ethan was born today, so that completes the yoga baby group. Soon we will all be hanging out together again.

One Week New

Kana's first week

Baby Kana's first week of life has been the most amazing experience of our lives. She is such a blessing. She was worth the wait! We had our lactation appointment today and she already weighs 7 lbs! She peed while naked on the scale in a waterfall onto the nurse! The nurse said that she can now feed on demand and sleep as long as she wants because she has no problem gaining weight. Whew! I didn't like waking her up in the middle of the night every 2-3 hours when she was sleeping so soundly. She is a great eater and a really happy baby. She loves being held and looking at lights. Her neck is really strong and she's been moving her head around on her own. She had a date with baby Finn yesterday. We had been going on movie and lunch dates with her other friends for months. The pregnant moms would sit boy-girl-boy-girl at the movies. We can't wait to get the whole gang together again. I think Kana is eating like a maniac so she can catch up to her friends. She is still swimming in the newborn clothes, so tiny and adorable... but she's growing every day so we are cherishing these moments! We have pictures of her every move, of course. She can't wait to explore the world and meet everyone!
Thank you all for your warm wishes!

Birthday photos

I'm here.

Hi everyone. I just arrived in town today at 3:25pm. I weighed in at 6 pounds 12 ounces with a length of 19.5 inches. Oh yeah, my feet are HUGE. That's why mommy's ribs have been sore lately.
My trip out didn't start so well. Mom woke up at 11:30pm on 9/1/08, in labor on Labor Day, after she had been asleep for less than an hour. The contractions were hard and pretty close together, about every 3 minutes. Mommy woke up Daddy a little while later and said, " I think these are the real ones. They don't feel anything like last week's. So daddy monitored mommy's contractions for over an hour and since they were so regular he said it was time to head for the hospital.
At Kaiser Harbor City, the nurse told mommy that she was only 1cm dilated and she needed to walk for the next 2 hours. Mommy was freezing the the mean nurse wouldn't let her wear her warm pants, only the breezy hospital gown! She was not the most compassionate lady around. Mommy was crying and she told her that the pain would only get worse. Her contractions got harder and came faster until mommy was exhausted. The pain was really bad and mommy thought she was going to die. Fortunately there was a shift change in the staff and the new nurse & midwife got mommy out of the bed and into the rocking chair. Then mommy got this injection that numbed a lot of the pain & made her sleepy so she napped between contractions with her eyes rolling back in her head, freaking daddy out a bit. She went from 1-4cm and I could start to see the light.
About 11am, Mommy got an epidural and that sealed the deal. Almost all the pain went away except for her right hip. Poor daddy could hardly stand seeing mommy in all of that pain.
By 2pm mommy was fully dilated and she started to push me out around 2:30ish. The whole time mommy was calm and relaxed (who would have thought) and I popped out at 3:25pm(on Nana's birthday). I was so happy to be out of that hot and humid womb that I just lay on mommy's chest and snuggled up.
I really like my mommy and daddy. I have mommy's eyelids and daddy's eyes(gray). I got mommy's cute button nose and her long legs but I got daddy's little lips. He will hear about that when I'm a teenager. I'm including some new pictures of me. I hope to see you soon. I want to meet everyone whose has been following my story.
We had a nice relaxing 48 hours in the hospital as little family. Mommy never thought she would want to stay, but she really enjoyed it there.
Love,
Kana Keilani McCue