Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins, oh my!

Nina got to meet more of her family this past weekend as Aunt Andrea, Uncle Owen and her 18-month-old cousin Lucia came to visit. Lucia is quite amazing. She runs around and is beginning to say a few words ("shoes!", "duck!", "juice!" - yes everything has an exclamation point), but it is her non-verbal communication that is really cool. She pats the ground next to her if she wants you to sit down. She loves to bring you your shoes and take hers off. She seems to understand most things you say to her and can point out all the people in the room. She was curious about baby Nina ("Bebee!") but mostly she enjoyed breaking in Nina's toys!

At first, Lucia got quite jealous when her mom would hold the baby. She would hold her arms up demanding that Andrea also hold her. Of course as soon as Andrea gave Nina to someone else, Lucia totally lost interest and would scamper off on some other adventure. It was fascinating to see this special mommy bond!

Auntie Andrea holding Nina. Don't let Lucia see!

Uncle Owen, obviously an old pro at this.

Lucia admires her cousin.

She is very helpful in the kitchen!

Getting ready for a bath.

Bundling up the girls for a trip to the mall.

Who says you can't nurse discreetly?

Lucia explores the flower beds. Much more interesting than the shops.

Nina looks forward to future trips to Bloomy's.

How the dads spent the weekend.

Lucia tours Palo Alto in the baby jogger.

Princess of the Universe.

It was a wonderful visit! We miss them so much all already. I am still using the patented soothing techniques that Andrea showed me. They work like a charm on Nina. We look forward to getting the girls together again. I leave you with one final shot ...

aawww!

Slow News Day

Not much to report this week, but here are some lovely pictures of our dear daughter.

Here is a shot of Nina waking up from an afternoon nap. She actually slept in her crib! Well, for about five minutes anyway.

Best of Sunday morning photo shoot.

Enjoying a very warm Saturday in the park.

And finally, here is a movie of Nina .... well not doing much of anything. But why not, we haven't had a movie in awhile.

Click to watch the Movie

1 Month Doctor's Visit

Nina had her 1 month check-up yesterday (actually 5 weeks 5 days). She now weighs 10 lbs 9 oz - up almost 3 lbs from birth. She is 22 inches long and her head is 38 cm. She had her second shot for the Hepatitis B vaccine (the first one she got at the hospital). Dr. Enright said she looked great, and we agree!

All Smiles

Now we are definitely getting smiles! They are so precious and heartwarming.

First Smiles. ~5 1/2 weeks.

Other less glamorous milestones include drooling and crying real tears (so sad!).

Say what?!

Nina does know the best way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon...

Nap time.

1 Month

Yesterday was Nina's one month birthday! We dressed her up and our friends had a party for her. Actually, it was a Superbowl party, but don't tell her that!


She has grown like a weed in the past month. She is about 4 or 5 inches longer than when she was born and definitely has gained weight but we aren't sure how much. Her awake periods are getting longer. After a nap and a feeding, she's awake for an hour or two, generally just looking around and checking out the world. She is starting to gain a little control of her limbs - her arms and legs flail around slightly less, and she can lift her head for a second or two. Mirko claims that she smiles at him every morning, but everyone else thinks it is just gas! She tends to have a fussy period in the late afternoon and evening, but then when she does settle in for the night she'll sleep for stretches of up to four and half hours. Not too bad!

Having her nails done.

Another bath.

Walk with the grandparents.

Visitors

Yesterday, Grandma Vicky and Grandpa Dave came from Houston to visit!

Proud Grandparents!

In other news, Nina seems to be losing some of her newborn hair. Oddly, she has some male-pattern baldness action going on - she is losing it on the top of her head while the sides and back are just fine. She is not to happy about the resulting look...

"Waaaaaaahh!"