First Time Holding Up Her Bottle!

Any working mom will tell you missing the first time your baby does something is the absolute worst part of going back to work.  I knew that it was inevitable that I would miss something of Ke'alohi's, I just didn't know it would happen so soon.  That is why, to make myself feel better, nothing is "official" until I have seen it.  Therefore, even though the daycare told us on Friday that she held her bottle up all by herself, it didn't REALLY happen until tonight when I got to see her do it and was able to take a picture of her doing it.

While Lucas was feeding Ke'alohi tonight, she was so hungry and the angle Daddy was holding the bottle wasn't how she wanted it so she stuck up her hands and held the bottle herself!  It was the cutest thing but another indication that our little one is starting to be able to do things on her own.  Nooooo!

Ke'alohi's Newest Obsession

Yesterday we picked up Ke'alohi a Baby Einstein exersaucer and she loves it!  Her bouncer with the toy bar just isn't cutting it anymore for other than a few minutes at a time and for feeding her.  We knew that she needed something that stimulated her more and could really grab and keep her attention.

This exersaucer was the ticket and we can't wait until she can enjoy and reach all the toys as she uses this the next couple months!

Fridays Never Meant So Much to Me!

It's Friday night and I've realized that Fridays have a new meaning to me.  They mean I get to spend the next three nights and two days with my little girl.  I got such a treat at work today because Lucas was able to pick Ke'alohi up from daycare and bring her to my office when he picked me up from work.  I got to show her off to my coworkers and show Ke'alohi my office.  It was so much fun having her play on my desk!

I wish I could say that we have some exciting things planned for this weekend, but we don't because Ke'alohi came home from the daycare today with a cold.  It looks like Lucas and I are getting it too so we will be spending this weekend taking medicine and trying to get better.  Boo for colds!

First Day of Work...

If I could sum up this day in one word it would be "tears."  I thought these hormones and tears were supposed to stop after the pregnancy?  I guess they will never really go away when you become a mom.

We woke up extra early this morning to get Ke'alohi and myself ready for our first day apart.  As usual, she took it better than I did and went to her daycare like it was a place she has been going to for months.  I spent the day getting back into the swing of things at work, keeping busy with our 2012 budgets.  5 pm could not come soon enough and I was ecstatic to get her back into my arms.

For now, we are just trying to get adjusted to our new "normal."

Kasey's Baby Shower

Today was an exciting day!  Even though in the back of my head I was bumming that it was my last day of maternity leave, I am glad that I got to spend it with my friends laughing and smiling.  And we had a great reason to celebrate; Kasey is going to be a mom!

We spent the late morning and early afternoon munching on food, playing games and watching Kasey open presents!  We still couldn't get the options for the baby's name out of her though, but we'll keep trying.  Ke'alohi was able to stop by at the end of the party to show Auntie Kasey some love and to give Grandma Wafer, Kasey's mom, some practice.  As expected, Grandma Wafer and Auntie Kasey were naturals and more than ready for Baby Stinson to make her debut!

First Laugh!

Our little girl had her first laugh!  Every mom is right when they say that it is the most beautiful sound they could ever hear.  It all happened when Lucas was making funny faces at her and she just did it.  It took me by surprise but it seemed so natural to her like she has been doing it all along.

I can't wait to hear the next one!

Duke's Surgery

Poor Duke has been living a rough life recently.  We noticed that he started limping a couple months ago, but thought that it had to do with his weight and put him on a doggie diet.  In the last few weeks, we noticed that it was getting worse so we brought him in again to see the doctor.  The doctor let us know that he ruptured/tore his CCL in both of this knees.  The CCL is like the dog ACL ligament in his knee and was the same ligament that I tore my sophomore year at LMU playing soccer.  The left knee was definitely worse, so the doctor suggested that we have surgery on that one first and then come back in a couple months for surgery on the right knee.

I'm sure you are thinking that getting surgery on a dog is crazy and also crazy expensive.  Well, it is that that is why I think we need to sell one of my kidneys.  Anyone interested?  Hahaha.  Just joking, Duke and Harley mean the world to us and we would do anything to help them have a good, happy and healthy life!

So Honored to be Godparents!

We are so unbelievably honored that our good friends, Bridget and Ely, asked us to be their daughter's godparents.  We LOVE Ilikea and can't wait to meet her and for her and Ke'alohi to be best friends.

It really does mean so much to us that they thought of us!  Here is the most recent picture of our GODDAUGHTER with her first doll!

Four-Month Doctor's Appointment

At this appointment with Dr. Ouchi, Ke'alohi weighed in at 16 pounds and 4 ounces, measured 25 inches and her head circumference was 16.75 inches.  Though the increase in Ke'alohi's weight and height (mostly weight) surprised me, she assured me that Ke'alohi is growing well, in the 95th percentile for weight and 75th for height.  We then talked about introducing solids into Ke'alohi's diet, but then all decided that we should wait until the next appointment at six months to really make any changes.  For now, she was doing great on her formula.  

Even though I knew the shots here coming, nothing really makes you okay with or prepared to see your child in pain.  They gave Ke'alohi one oral vaccination and three shots in her legs.  Lucky for us, Lucas took the day off of work to come with us for support and to spend my last day of maternity leave as a family.

We will be going back in two months for her six-month appointment to get her next set of shots and possibly get Ke'alohi's ears pierced.  I'm still working on Daddy!

Four Months Old!

Look who is four months old today! She is officially an infant and not a newborn.  I absolutely love watching her grow up and do new things.  Becoming a mother really is the most amazing thing I have ever experienced and I thank God each day for her.

Ten Facts about Ke'alohi at Four Months:

1. Weighs 16 pounds and 4 ounces and measures 25 inches.
2. Still sleeps great and mostly through the night in her crib!
3. Smiles and coos constantly, maybe a giggle coming soon.
4. Still likes to pull on Mommy's hair and necklace.
5. Can watch the crib mobile for hours.
6. Drinks six ounces of formula at each feeding.
7. Harley is her favorite thing to watch move around.
8. Primarily likes to sleep on her side or on her tummy.
9. Eyes are still dark, but not quite brown.
10. Her favorite toy to play with are the toy links.

First Night Sleeping in the Crib!

It is with a surprisingly heavy heart that I write that Ke'alohi is no longer sleeping in our room next to us in her bassinet.  When we first got pregnant, I really only pictured her sleeping in her crib from the beginning.  As we got closer to my due date, we realized that with my mom staying with us to help out, it would be easier for everyone if Ke'alohi stayed in our bedroom in the beginning because of all the late night feedings.  We planned on moving her to her own room once my mom left at six weeks.

Well that obviously came and went as I made up more and more reasons/excuses why she should stay with us.  We have now reached the point where she is growing out of her bassinet and Lucas made the call that she is old enough to sleep on her own.  She did great, only waking up once at 2:30 am for a quick late night snack and went back to bed with ease.

I'm sure it will be too soon when we will need to lower her mattress and convert her crib into the toddler bed.

LMU Alumni BBQ

The last weekend of every September is the LMU Alumni BBQ.  It is a great time to visit the campus and see old friends.  It was especially special for us this year because we had Ke'alohi with us.  When we look back, the last three times we have come here, we were at different milestones; engaged, married, or pregnant.  It's crazy to see how time is flying by!

We got to see so many friends and it was great that everyone we saw got to meet our daughter.  She was a trooper the whole day, staying busy napping, eating and being held by everyone and anyone.  It's weird to think that at next year's LMU Alumni BBQ, she will be walking and we will be having to keep up with her!

Surprise Visit to My Halau Sisters

This must be the week of visits and surprises!  It might be also because my maternity leave is nearing the end and I want to make sure to see as many people as possible that have loved and supported Lucas, Ke'alohi and I throughout this pregnancy and parenthood.  So, we decided to head down to South Bay and visit my hula sisters at practice.  They showed us a few beautiful dances (do they ever really dance anything but beautiful) and Ke'alohi had a great time watching them and showing off how she can almost sit up.

We can't wait for her to join the keiki class and start dancing hula!

Visit with Auntie Hayley and Hartlee

Hayley was one of my sorority sisters and was also in my "Theta Family."  We both got pregnant around the same time and had girls about two weeks apart.  Because of all the craziness with being new moms, we weren't able to actually hang out and see each other until now.  

It was so much fun watching Hartlee and Ke'alohi play with each other and asking each other the standard new mom questions of "Does your daughter do this?" and "Is it normal for them to do this?"  The visit was way too short but gave me a great excuse to dress up Ke'alohi in a cute outfit and show off her inner L.A. Diva!

Surprise Visit to Auntie Jill's Office

Jill is without a doubt one of my closest friends and is truly there whenever I need her.  Ke'alohi and I wanted to show her a little love so we surprised her at work with flowers.  If you know Jill, she works harder than anyone I know, so we knew that the best place to surprise her or to see her was her office.  We were right that she was crazy busy, but she was able to show us her office and hang out for a few minutes.

We love you Auntie Jill!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

We all know that Ke'alohi is a daddy's girl, so we loved that we got to spend his first birthday since her birth as a family.  We spent the day shopping for the perfect gift for him; a stroller!  Well actually the gift is more for Ke'alohi but we have gotten used to the fact that most of "our" presents now days will be really for Ke'alohi.

Ohh, the joys of parenthood!  Here is a picture of Daddy and Ke'alohi yesterday at Lobsterfest!

Visit from Auntie Caley

Caley is one of my closest friends and bridesmaid in our wedding that lives up in Northern California.  She was in town for the weekend and was nice enough to stop by, bring breakfast and COFFEE.  Any new parent knows that caffeine is the key to parenting in the beginning when the little one doesn't sleep through the night or when they do, wake up very early.

We had a fabulous time talking about Caley's wedding next September and can't wait to see her walk down the aisle to Ryan, looking stunning as always!  Hopefully we can make a trip up to them or they can come down before the big day!

Lobsterfest!

I LOVE LOBSTER!  It was one of the things I craved most while I was pregnant.  I know what you are thinking, "Now that's an expensive craving!" It was! Every September, usually on Lucas' birthday weekend, the Port of Los Angeles hosts the annual Lobster Festival of Los Angeles.  This is the third time we have gone and we had loads of fun, this time with my mom and Lucas' parents.

My mom, who I got my love of food from, was in town because she helped me fly back with Ke'alohi from our trip to Missouri.  There is no way I would have been able to carry and load everything without another set of hands.  They don't tell you how much things you need to bring when you travel with a baby!

We spent the afternoon munching on lobster, the NomNom Truck, cheesecurds (a Midwest staple we actually found here in Los Angeles) and lemonade.  I can't wait for next year when Ke'alohi can try some of the food!

Happy Grandparents Day...

Not only is today the 10th anniversary of 9/11 but it is Grandparents Day.  We are very lucky to have both of our parents in Ke'alohi's life and even luckier to be able to spend the day with my parents on the lake.  We spent our time on the boat going to Coconuts Caribbean Beach Bar and Grill and the Bagnell Dam which is at the bottom of the lake.  It was a clear day and the water was perfect.  Puna even took the boat to 43 mph on the way back.  It was the fastest she had ever driven in the boat.  She made it a point to pass all the pontoon boats along the way.

We had marinated Pork Tenderloins for dinner.  While Opa was grilling, Ke'alohi entertained him with cooing and kept him in stitches.  They were a riot together!

Someone is Trying to Sit Up

This little girl is growing up before my eyes.  Today, when we were practicing tummy time, we decided to see how she is doing with sitting.  Once we positioned her legs and arms for her she was able to stay up for a few seconds and flash us a smile.

That smile melts my heart!