Learning time...

Grandma Aileen and Grandpa are visiting me. I got to play couch commander and choose which football and soccer games we watched. Grandpa's been trying to get me to say my vowels and roll over. I can make the mouth movements now, but matching the sound with the mouth movement is tough.


My vision is getting better though. I can track objects and focus on my favorite things - like Daddy's face.

My First Xmas

My first Christmas and I'm so excited. Look at all the presents for me! Big boxes came from my great aunts and uncles with lots of gifts. I can't wait to open them.


Mom and Dad made me model some of my presents. My Auntie Ea is determined to make me a soccer player. The new booties look like cleats - though they look more like clown soccer cleats right now. It will be a little while before I can kick a soccer ball.


Great Aunt Susan and Uncle Karl turned me into a warm and fuzzy pink teddy bear.


I now have tons of new stylish clothes, more noise makers than Mom & Dad can handle, and more beautiful handmade blankets. Thank you everyone!! Now I need a nap before Grandma and Grandpa Poehls arrive from California.

Many Adventures

I helped to decorate the Christmas tree by putting on the first ornament.


Bath time with my new pink bunny towel from Auntie Anna & Uncle Masaya.



My first tummy time on my beautiful quilt "Cassiopea" from Kate. I loved the quilt but didn't like tummy time after a couple of minutes.

Chubby Cheeks

I went to my second check up on Tuesday. I'm still healthy and growing like a weed. After 2 weeks I'm supposed to be back to my birth weight. Instead, I had gained a whole lot more - a pound since leaving the hospital and 12 oz since my first doctor visit. I'm now 7 lbs 3 oz! I think this is the only time in a girl's (or anyone's life) that its a good thing to gain 10%+ of your body weight in a week!! Mom is happy though - as I gain weight, she looses it.

While I'm gaining weight, the house is gaining clutter.

Adams Family Girls

Grandma Lily and Auntie Ea left today, but left a couple of presents for me under my first Christmas tree. We also took a picture in front of the tree. I'll miss being cuddled and coddled.


I also discovered the soothing comfort and fun of my new bouncer from our good friends Chris & Sarah. Thanks!

Mini-me

Par request from Auntie Anna, and others, here's mommy and me. (Happy Anna?) All the nurses said I looked just like mommy. I hope I look a little more rested (and a little less white) than her though. Daddy says we have the same double chin. :-)




Auntie Ea, my only real aunt, came all the way from California on the red eye to visit me. Even after 6 hours on a plane, she's more awake than I am. She's here to spoil me rotten cuz I'm so cute.

Dahlia Maribella Adams

I finally have a name - Dahlia Maribella Adams. Yes, another 'D' in the family - might as well fit in. Can anyone else (who wasn't already told about it) spot the cheeziness of my name? My parents were going for another pattern with my middle name.

These pictures are just to prove that I am capable of opening my eyes. Its a rare event these days. Hey... I've had a tough week. I need lots of sleep to recover. Luckily, I'm home now with no more nurses shoving thermometers in my armpit and making me cold to do things like weigh me. I can finally start to figure out this crazy new world.

Paparazzi

My first picture. I'm covered with icky stuff but there's a nice guy holding me and keeping me warm. I think he likes me.

Doing what I do best... sleep. In case you're interested, the thing I do second best is eat.


Aren't I cute when I'm quiet? Though my hair would look better if they stopped putting the ugly hats over my beautiful soft hair.

Finally here

34 hours after the last post... well at least after my water broke, Baby Adams joined the world outside of the womb. This post will be short as we are all very tired. Tomorrow pictures and a name. For now... here are the specs:
Female
6lbs 9 oz
19.75 in
born December 5th at 5:59 am
Mom, Dad and baby are all healthy and recovering well from a long labor and delivery.

The beginning...

... of the end.

I was bemoaning having nothing to post this weekend. The baby has responded and given me something to post. My water broke at 8pm tonight. No contractions yet... I'm sure those will come. In the meantime, Dan is still making fun of me... after he ran around in circles for a little while freaking out because he didn't pack yet and didn't know what to do. Now he's calmed down and is back to making fun of me... which he promises will end once I'm in pain. :-)

Well the next post will likely be to tell you all the numbers and specs of Baby Adams and provide pictures.

Maternal Instincts

I hope that my maternal instincts are better at night than my regular instincts. Evolution should have made me more aware of the car that exploded two houses down, but instead I slept. Poor Dan came home late from a soccer game to two ambulances and a fire truck in front of our house. He ran upstairs to make sure I was okay. I was fine - sleeping away. I didn't notice a thing. I didn't hear the car alarm... then the explosion... then the fire trucks pull up to put out the flaming car. Oops. Hopefully, evolution will have equipped me to hear my baby in the next room and actually wake up!

FYI no one was hurt in the explosion.

New Additions

There are a couple of new additions to the nursery. After hours and hours of searching toy, boating, hardware, department (e.g. Target, etc), arts & crafts and every other type of store to find a 'fish' net, we found a suitable net at The Container Store. Why The Container Store has nets is beyond me, but I was just happy to stop walking around.


The fishy bookcases were delayed due to a lazy mom (me). There was finally a nice day with weather in the 70s, so I headed to the garage and finished up the fish... well at least these two. I still have 1 more planned - an orange pint size one for below these two - to complete the family. Chicken Little is the first and only book in the nursery bookcases right now.

Name me

We're having trouble coming up with boy names. Since many of you think the baby will be a boy, we probably should come up with a few choices. We need some help. Please leave us name suggestions, preferably names starting with a "D", in the comments. Note: we promise to look at all suggestions, but not necessarily to use them. THANKS!

The Disappearing Button

I had been hoping for months that I wouldn't loose my cute 'inny' belly button. Well, it has slowly disappeared and now is gone. I have no belly button, its neither an 'inny' or an 'outy'. The belly is just too big now. The belly button can't fight against the growing orb. All that is left is a flat, dark spot where there was once a cute little belly button.

And I can't fight the urges to be domestic... well sometimes. Dan cut off my feet in the picture - but here I am - barefoot (well socks only, it was cold) and pregnant in the kitchen. The belly is just taking over everything. I think I am now bigger from front to back than I am from side to side. The maternity clothes even are starting to be too small! Less than 1 month left till the due date.

A place for the little one

With only a few weeks left to go, we finally started to get the nursery together. Originality was not really on the menu... we went for a sea life theme. Very creative for a marine biologist, I know. I just couldn't resist the cute and very cheap sea creatures at IKEA. How can you say no to a bright orange pelican hamper (currently eating a fish rattle) for under $5? So its bright and cheery, though the walls are still a little bare. I'm sure once the baby and all the grandparents arrive the room will fill up quickly.

We were cheap, but adventurous when it came to the changing table. We built our own. We now know too much about anchors for hollow walls. And Dan painted for the first time. Now we just need a changing pad and all of the various ointments, powders, and other goo that goes on the baby's bottom.






We're getting there, slowly but surely. Thanks to Jim for the glider and to the WHOI gals for pitching in for the crib. It would go faster if I didn't sit down in the glider all of the time. It's just too comfy. At least the nursery is ready enough in case someone is feeling anxious to join the outside world... though why would anyone want to leave a warm swimming pool for the cold east coast fall and winter before they had to?

In utero

Baby Adams as of July 24th. Just like his/her father and grandfather, the baby was not cooperative when it came to getting a picture taken. At times, he/she even covered her/his face with one or both arms. We could see all 4 valves of the heart, but the baby didn't seem to want to let us determine the sex or getting good pictures of the face. These were the best two (only) pictures. Attempts for a fancy 3D picture looked more like an alien than a baby.

We still don't know the gender of the baby and probably won't find out until its born. Feel free to vote in our poll (to the right).

Plumpy at 7 mo

After months of people telling me how tiny I was, I'm starting to plump up. Luckily most of it is in the belly. There's less of a question of fat or pregnant.


At least I don't completely block the door of our new house in Maryland. The nursery, once we put together, will be the room right above the door.