LE GIRAFFE

Lately, I just can't get enough giraffes.  They seem to be popping up everywhere - on baby clothes, reusable canvas bags, even wallpaper.  I love how they are lanky, knobby-kneed and slightly awkward, yet undeniably adorable.   Nate emailed me this pic which put a smile on my face. 

GIRLS ONLY

Today Annabelle had her 1 month doctor visit and her 2nd big weigh in.  She is up to an even 8 lbs., which according to the doctor, is right on track.  Nice job, girl - we must be doing something right.  We also addressed her "goopy eye" and the slight case of baby acne that is beginning to appear.  The doctor assured us both are just a phase that she will eventually grow out of. Coupled with her receding hairline, we are hoping this is true.  She is still a beauty though to us.

A. also had her first vaccination shot which she handled like a champ.  I think it was harder for me than it was for her.  She let out a cry, but then as soon as I picked her up she stopped.  What a brave girl.  She now sports a blue band-aid that matches her outfit nicely.

I decided to feed her before we hopped a cab home, since she doesn't like her car seat and the doctor warned me that the shot may make her fussy.  Car seat + hungry baby who had a shot = miserable commute home.  I headed to the "breast-feeding" corner of the doctor's office that offers privacy for moms.  That is until some dad had the audacity to hang out there with his wife and baby.  There we were, a group of 5 women with our boobs out, and some dude thinks it is okay to join!?  Not okay.  Ladies, please have husbands wait in the regular waiting room!  He may have seen you whip your boob out a million times, but for those of us who are not married to him, this made for an uncomfortable situation.  I saw a few of the other moms attempt to cover themselves and a few moms repositioned their babies to ward off any peep shows.  To make matters worse he jumped into the conversation and was attempting to talk to us as if we were at an open house!  A few moms, including me, decided snack time was over and as nonchalantly as possible fastened our nursing bras, buckled in our babies, and made our exit.  Have some respect, dads.  Stay out of the breast-feeding zone.  Girls only. 

STRAWBERRY FIELDS FOREVER

This past weekend we decided to get out of the city to enjoy some nature.  We planned a quick day trip to Harrimen State Park for a picnic by the lake.  A cool breeze, some shade, and lake view sounded just right.  Our plans changed however, when we remembered that the Gay Pride Parade was coming through the West Village, closing down all the neighborhood streets and bringing in the crowds.  Our fear of getting stuck in traffic with a crying baby, grounded us in Manhattan.  Instead we took the C Train up to Central Park and found a perfect grassy knoll under a canopy of trees in Strawberry Fields.  Manhattan's most precious slice of nature.  Just north of John Lennon's Imagine Memorial and away from the crowds, we found an ideal spot for reading, napping, and for, of course, eating strawberries.

P.S.
We dressed Annabelle in a dude outfit in celebration of gay pride.

THIS GUY

Yesterday was Father's Day, Nathan's first as a new daddy.  One of the early "daddy projects" Nate took on when we found out we were pregnant was to build a mobile to hang above the baby's crib.  We were unimpressed with the variety of mobiles in the store, and Nate knew he could come up with something better.  For the last few weeks before Annabelle's birth, he could be found paper mache-ing, painting, gluing, and measuring to come up with this piece of art that hangs above the crib.  Each fish is painted with its own personality and he was sure to include a variety of black/white fish since those are the colors babies can see in the early days.  With a slight breeze these fish swim through the air and will hopefully entertain Annabelle's upward glances to the sky, filling her with underwater dreams.   Let's just hope the shark doesn't cause nightmares.

I am one fortunate girl to have this guy in my life.  This guy is the voice of reason when I am worried and scared.  This guy is calm and relaxed when I get too worked up.  This guy does the best funny faces and voices to entertain our girl.  He gives fabulous foot massages and reassures me that it is okay to slow down and not do too much. This guy loves us no matter what and for that I am the most thankful.  Happy Father's Day, Nathan.  Two weeks down, a life-time to go!

ANNABELLE'S FIRST HOURS

I finally have downloaded the pictures from Week 1 and 2 of Annabelle's life onto our computer and am in the process of uploading them to Kodak Gallery to share with all.  The images are so huge the website says it will take 1,380 minutes to upload!  I may be here for awhile.  If anyone knows a way to not make the image file size so huge, let me know.  I may need to place a call to Josh for some Argyle photography advice.  Here are a few shots from the very first hours while we were still at the hospital...

MEET MONKS

When we were in Petaluma last Thanksgiving and announced we were pregnant with Annabelle, Diane pulled down a box of keepsakes from when Nathan and Bryan were babies.  Amongst the keepsakes was Nathan's favorite little buddy, Monks.  As you can see Monks was extremely well-loved and has a wise-beyond-his-years look about him.  We decided to bring him back to New York with us where he supervises our parenting from the shelf above our couch in the living room. 

While strolling a local street fair in Greenwich Village just before Annabelle was born we stumbled upon a vendor selling beautifully crafted sock monkeys.  Each sock monkey on the table was totally unique in colors, accents and accessories.  The monkeys were made by "Artists with Disabilities" and 100% of the proceeds go to their charity.  We could not pass up the opportunity to get Annabelle her own monkey that will hopefully be loved as much as Monks.  The decision was tough, given all the monkeys were so cute, but here is the one we selected...

THE BIG WEIGH IN

Yesterday was a big day for Annabelle.  We has our 10-day-old doctor appointment in which she would be weighed to see if she was back to her birth weight.  Though she was 7lbs 1 oz. at birth, though she lost a few ounces 3-days post-birth, as most babies do.  Due to her sleepy nature I was concerned that she was not getting enough food since according to the books she needs to feed 15 minutes each side to constitute a full feeding and this is supposed to happen 6-8 times a day!  Well, miss Annabelle was not really close to those figures, which of course caused me to worry.  The night before the big weigh in we had a few pep talks about being big and strong and low and behold when she hit the scales she weighed 7lbs. 3 oz!  Yeah, Annabelle!  Packing on the ounces - just what we want.  I must say, I am starting to think all those baby books drive new mother's crazy.  Though they set averages and guidelines that may be helpful for some, I am certainly not going to take them too seriously moving forward.  I just need to trust my instincts, right?

Following the doctor's appointment we went for a long walk and then rested up for visitors.  The ladies from Nate's work came by to meet Annabelle and gift her with what can only be described as incredible baby style.  The girls brought a ton of fashion-forward darling outfits of which Alex styled to be cuffed, layered, and mix-and-matched.  Annie-E can't wait to rock her new looks!  Once the girls departed, Brian Teter also swung to say hello direct from Cali.  He was in CT for a training and hopped a train into the city to meet our girl and watch part of the Laker game. 

All in all it was a good day.  The only hiccup happened when Teter went to leave and noticed our front door had been left ajar and Walter was missing.  Nate began to patrol the floors looking for our adventurous escape-ee.  We eventually found him up on the 6th floor keep a nice British family company...Phew...  Today is back to our routine + laundry...My, babies are messy!

OUR LITTLE PERSON

Annabelle Lee Ellis

June 4, 2010

9:42 a.m.

7 lbs., 1 oz.

A week ago today, we welcomed our little person, Annabelle Lee to the world.  For seven days we have been keeping busy getting to know each other and have been in a constant state of amazement that we were able to create such a tiny, perfect little being. Everyone says you can't imagine how much you can love, until you have a child of your own, and now I know what they are talking about.   I can spend hours studying her little face, crinkly feet and tiny hands.  I treasure each little coo, sigh, stretch and funny face - so far she has mastered the poo-poo face, the barracuda, the drunken sailor and the pirate.  These looks are mixed with wide-eyed gazes, grimaces, and what looks like smiles.  We feel so lucky to have this perfectly healthy little gift from God in our lives.

Annabelle Lee is named after her Aunt Adrienne Lee, who she can't wait to meet.  Uncle Jamie actually thought of the name and Nate and I both loved it too.  Anabelle Lee also happens to be the name of a sad but beautiful love poem written by Edgar Allen Poe.

So how she came to be...
Following the long Memorial Day weekend, I spent Tuesday and Wednesday getting ready for the arrival of our girl as well as the arrival of the grandmas.  My mom arrived on Thursday night, and on Friday morning we kicked things off with a long walk down by the river.  It was on the walk that I felt some really strong cramping/contractions.  Nothing unbearable, but enough to slow me down to take deep breaths.  Following the walk we headed uptown for lunch in Bryant Park and my doctor's appointment.  At my appointment the doctor said that my cervix was soft and the head was far down, but there were no signs of dialation and to make another appointment for the following Thursday.  Not four hours later, I was about to run out to the Duane Reade to pick up a prescription when my water broke.  Oh wow...go time.  Not 10 minutes later Nathan walked in the door from work, and we received a text that Diane had landed and was headed over from JFK.  Perfect timing.  I called the doctor's office and was happy to hear that one of my favorite doctors in the practice was on call.  She said that most people go into labor on their own after their water breaks, but if I didn't, then to head to hospital by 3:00 am.

The four of us made a nice pasta dinner and turned on the Laker's to pass the time.  In about the second quarter of the game I was having some pretty intense contractions and retreated to the bedroom to focus and due the exercises we learned in labor and delivery class.  At about 1:30 when my contractions were 3 minutes apart, we decided it was time to get to the hospital.  We grabbed our hospital bag - packed with all the things they tell you to bring (of which we used almost zero), and hailed a cab.  Nate made sure the taxi drove safe and sound, while I tried to deal with my agonizing pain.  We entered the hospital through the ER and headed to the Labor and Delivery Triage.  At St. Luke's Roosevelt they send you to Triage first, to check out your vitals and see how far along you are before assigning you to a labor and delivery room.  Triage is composed of about 8 curtained off tiny rooms that are dark, feel dirty and really lack any privacy at all.  Unfortunately for us, the staff said it was the most busy night they had had in years and there were no labor and delivery rooms available.  Even the Triage waiting room was packed with very calm looking couples sitting pretty.  Me - I was not so pretty - I was doubled over in pain, leaning on anything possible to support myself, bracing as each contraction waved through my body.  That was when I felt a wave a nausea coming on.  "I am going to throw up!" They quickly ushered me to the back in search of pan for me to use.  Unfortunately they were not quick enough, I ended up loosing my cookies all over a clean pile of gowns, my own feet and the charge nurse's legs.  Yikes.  So sorry!  I guess that is one tactic that works if you want to get a bed, at least in Triage.  They put us in the way back corner where they hooked me up to the heart monitors and I continued to labor.  When they checked me, I was three centimeters dilated.  They asked me if I wanted the epidural, and going against my labor strategy - I DID!  This was at around 2:00 am.  The staff did not so much as come back and check on us again until 6:00 am.  I was furious - where were the nurses?  had they called my doctor? why couldn't I get a delivery room?  was I next in line for a room? where was the anesthesiologist?  I kept sending Nate out to check and to be the squeaky wheel while I dealt with the contractions tearing through my body.  At 6:00 am, the staff had a shift change and new charge nurse came in at Nate's insistence that we had been there since 1:00 am, with false promises of an epidural, a room, or even a nurse!  She checked me and reported that I was 7 cm and was next up for a room.  At last!  They wheeled me away to the nicely decorated labor rooms that we had seen on our hospital tour (mind you, they never show you Triage or tell you that you may be stuck there for the majority of your labor, with only your husband to look after you - mind you he was a great support and I am forever thankful for him).

Once in the Labor room we were greeted by not only daylight (to my surprise, the sun had risen) and a very nice nurse who assured me my epidural was on the way (I had heard that before!).  Sure enough, she was good to her word and not five minutes later the anesthesiologist arrived with his cart of feel-good meds.  As soon as he did what he needed to do, I went from Beast of Burden to what may have even been recognizable as the woman Nathan married.  I was able to talk again, breathe again, smile, even joke with the doctor.  Comparatively, I was in bliss.  Warm and tingly.  My doctor told me to rest and she would be back in an hour for us to have this baby girl. Nate and I both fell asleep until she returned in her full delivery gear.  She was so super supportive and coached me through each push with the help of Nathan and the nurse.  Just thirty minutes later, we witnessed the miracle of baby Annabelle's arrival, screaming and covered in green poo.  She was placed on my chest and we had our very first moments together as a family.  They cleaned her up, weighed her, and let us enjoy her fresh life on earth.

An hour later, my mom came in to meet little Annabelle.  She accompanied me to the recovery room (of which we had to wait in the hall for as well, until a patient was discharged because, yup, you guessed it, they were all full!)  Nate accompanied Annabelle to the nursery for her thorough cleaning and tests.  The grandmas and Nate hung out until the late evening hours when they had to leave.  Annabelle and I had a solo sleepover where we learned the basics: breast-feeding (way harder than I thought it would be), changing diapers and swaddling.  This repeated through out the night and has not stopped since:  feed, change, swaddle, repeat.  By 1:00 pm I had had enough of the hospital, my roommate (more on that later), and the recovery room facilities.  My doctor said if I did not want to stay another night I didn't have to, so we decided to book it out of there.  We packed our bags with our new essentials, and were discharged.

The week has flown by, as I am sure time will continue to do through out Annabelle's life.  My mom and Diane were such a tremendous help through the week; cooking delish healthy meals, doing the dishes, playing with Annabelle and just being there to offer their love and support.  We can't thank them enough and miss them already.

Looking back the whole birth experience seems surreal.  Did that really all happen to me? to us?!?  I am still amazed.  I am healing very quickly, though am incredibly emotional.  A song will come on the ipod, or I will see Nathan holding her and I start crying because I am so happy (or incredibly hormonal).  I have already had my first tear-filled call to the pediatrician, because I was worried our girl was sleeping too much and not eating enough, though I think she is okay now.  In general life is beautiful and I am so happy to be the mom of Annabelle.  Can't wait for everyone to meet the newest Ellis.

ANY DAY

Any day now our girl will arrive.  This morning I woke up crampy and have felt so for most of the day.  Perhaps it is a sign she is coming tonight, or tomorrow or the next day?  Or it could be those pesky Braxton Hicks.  Rather than sit around on my first day on maternity leave, I strapped on my running shoes for a long walk.  Then I took off to run some errands, followed by lunch and a pedicure.  Next, I put all my pic in albums from 2006 - 2007.  I still have to organize and order the New York years.  Perhaps tomorrow!  Now I am making cookies to use for ice cream sandwiches.  Not bad for a 40 week pregnant chick.  While running errands today, I received my favorite stranger comment to-date.  Some dude at the cross walk said, "Good job mama, nice legs." Hah!  Funny considering I have definitely started waddling and still have a bad case of cankles.

Nate and I spent most of this past Memorial Day weekend eating out, visiting friends and doing stuff couples without children do.  Aside from, the nesting of course.  We attempted to go to beach on Sunday, but the traffic was terrible and the beach parking lot full - we opted to turn around and headed back to the city where we scrubbed the home and worked on an art project, that will eventually be the mobile hanging above our baby girl's crib.  Yesterday we got an earlier start and beat the traffic to the beach.  We spent the afternoon relaxing and people watching.  Then off to a BBQ at a friend's new shop.  One of Nate's co-workers recently opened a bridal boutique called Lovely in an old brownstone around the corner from our house.  It is one of those darling boutiques that makes you want to get married all over again, or at least plan a dazzling wedding.  Lanie and her husband, Chris, have done an amazing job remodeling and decorating the store and they have one of those West Village "secret garden" backyards behind the store that they hosted the BBQ at.  Delightful.

I am excited that tomorrow my mom arrives to visit, and on Wednesday Grandma Diane arrives.  We hope our little one will make an appearance soon, so the G-Mas can get optimum time with the little one.  That's all for now...