Eight-Nine Weeks

Violet is growing up!! Ladies and Gentlemen, my little (err... not soo little) one is growing up. She had her two month pediatrician appointment this past Wednesday and it was so hard on me. Who knew? She got four shots (ouch! but thank-god the nurse was speedy) and some liquid medication. She was fine when we got back home. She took a nap and nursed-- as usual... until 3pm hit. I think that the pain from the shots and wooziness from the drugs started to hit her. She was so unhappy and crying that loud cry like, "What happened to me?" We ended up giving her some Children's Tylenol that calmed her down. Thank god.

Her pediatrician was able to tell us that Violet is now 13.3 lbs and 24 inches long (that's 2 feet!!)! Holy moly. Our child is in the 95th percentile for height AND weight for children her age. HA HA. Joe and I have a jumbo baby. I figured that the picture above was a good illustration of just how large our baby is. Uncle Den made a good point and said that at least she was 95% in both height and weight and it wasn't skewed one way or another. She's gaining proportionately.... for now. My obstetrician said, "Whoa! She came out big and is staying big!" That's my girl.

I actually took the picture because I thought that it was a funny sleeping position.


Still practicing the Heisman... but she does it with a tiny smile now.


Uncle Jonathan came from Chicago to visit the wee one!! We tried to take her outlet shopping but the FL heat was too much for her. She lasted about an hour before we threw in the towel and called it a day.


Auntie Karen came and visited too!! She's a newlywed and so we were super excited that she had time (even if it was for a few hours) to stop by and say hello!

New things that have been happening...

1. My brother and I had to put down my childhood dog Pepsi this past Saturday. He was 16 years old. :( He had a good life of chasing squirrels, pigeons, and raccoons. I like to think that he's in a world with plenty of small rodents placed there specifically for his chasing pleasure.

2. Violet is now sleeping through the night. She started doing this around 6 weeks. I didn't want to post anything about it because I didn't want to "jinx" it. Let's hope it sticks!! She'll go to bed between 9:30pm-10:00pm and will sleep until 5:00am-7am. It's been awesome... especially for me. Though, with that said, last night she woke up night at 2am... so we'll see.

3. I have been applying for positions to work in Orange County Public Schools... I don't know if I am going to get any jobs because the county has declared a "hiring freeze" due to budget cuts. Any open positions get first priority to the teachers whose jobs have been axed because there are just no funds. Just my luck... going from one budget deprived county to another.

4. We celebrated my first Mother's Day! Woohoo! We went over to April's for family fun time and bonding :). Where there is Violet and Finn, there are pictures. :)

Finn vs. Violet

And the battle begins. Violet has learned Finn's "elbow" technique!! It's neck and neck!!


Ohh! Violet tries to get some leverage with her elbow under his arm! It looks like she's trying to push him away!!


A swat on Finn's head by Violet!!


Finn is holding strong!! Violet starts to get frustrated!!


Finn wins and seems only slightly upset by Violet's battle moves!! Violet seems clearly distressed by her loss.

Oh little one, patience is a virtue. You can learn this lesson from your cousin Finn-- he is unphased and deemed the winner of this battle.

Seven-Eight Weeks (cont)

This was our first trip to Mimi (Joe's mom) and Pop's brand new, recently completed house!


Aww... twins in their matching Lacoste shirts.

Celebrating Mother's Day at Auntie April's.

Seven-Eight Weeks

Happy baby grew some cheeks!!


An action shop of Violet chillin on the Sweet Peace.


Only my daughter likes to be held on her stomach, legs dangling to sleep. I thought children want to be held gingerly... Apparently Violet likes to stray from the norm.


Hug me!

Yay and Violet enjoying nap time :).

Six-Seven Weeks

This past week has been Violet's most alert and expressive week yet! Not only is she smiling and recognizing voices and faces, but she's awake for more hours during the daytime. Needless to say, Joe and I have taken full advantage of the fact that she's awake and that's why there are a TON of pictures to document this incredible milestone.

KC, these pix are for u.

Thanks to Aunt Kacey, Violet has the most kickin' footwear. Here's just a sample of the badass-ness that adorn her lovely feet.



The socks look like little shoes!! These are red ballet flats with a floral "strap."

And again, I don't know how to rotate pictures but take note of the cute bunnies on her booties.

Six-Seven Weeks (cont.)

Pa'First came to Orlando just to spend time with Violet this weekend. The next time she visits her niece, Violet will probably be in the crawling/walking phase!


She's got her beanie on and is ready to go out on a walk with mom, dad, and the puppies.


Even in Yai's arms, Violet likes to sleep with her hands by her face.


Tummy Time is enjoyable in short spurts. We happened to capture one of the rare moments.


You can't see it but Violet is actually making funny faces at me. Daddy was taking the picture.


Joe and I think this picture is hilarious. This picture simply doesn't need a caption. It speaks for itself.


More tummy time fun!


Violet had her first official "social" outing yesterday. Joe and I were invited to his co-workers apartment for a BBQ. We dressed Violet in some of her best clothes (please note the awesomeness of the tomato pockets) and took these pictures before we left.


She's loving life, swinging her arms around in the air.


Happy Violet discovers her wide range of arm movements.


Check me out!


Practicing her arm signals in case her turning lights ever malfunction on her car. It's never too early to practice safety.


I love this little girl soo much.

Five-Six Weeks

Let's sing it everyone--"Ohh you make me live. Whatever this world can give to me. It's you, you're all I see. Oooh you make live now honey... You're my best friend..."

Hands up little girl! I'm taking your money!! AGAIN!

She's very well-nourished. Please note the double chin in the picture :).

Violet's first trip to Tampa was this past weekend. Here she is with Yay, wearing her adorable Violet colored polo dress.

Mommy with her little bundle of joy at home in Tampa.

Violet got to meet Pa'First this weekend! Aunties Ana, Sara, Amanda, Shannon, Carmelina, Jenny, Uncles Jason, Zam, Loong Den, friends Giovanni, Anna, and Fiona were all on hand this weekend to meet and greet Violet in Tampa.

Loong Den finally decided that he can "hold" Violet with the use of the Baby Bjorn. Loong Den figured that he couldn't drop her if she was strapped on to him.

Violet was very hungry today and thought that Yay's arm would supply her with the milk that she needed. Ha ha. I'm a bad mom for wanting to take pictures of Violet eating her grandmother's arm rather than trying to whisk her up to feed her.

Another milestone

We have hit a milestone this week! On Sunday my cousin, P'Mam, was holding Violet. As I walked by them, I stopped to say hello. My baby looked me right in the eye and gave me the biggest smile any baby her size could. It's starting-- the process of socialization :).

1 Month Check-Up

We had Violet's 1 month check-up last week. She now weighs 11 lbs 2 oz and is 22 1/2 in long! Holy Moly! My girl is growing up fast. She's pretty much outgrown all of her newborn clothes already. She's able to pick up her neck and look around. Her movements are also slightly less jerky and she has more alert moments throughout the day.

One big milestone has happened--Joe picked up her up the other day and she laughed.

My heart melted. I'm in love.

Three- Four Weeks

Look, my first tooth! Oh wait, it's just my feeding blister. Don't worry--it doesn't hurt me!
The biggest teeny tiny feet in the land.
Swaddled and ready to bounce.
Violet is all dolled up. She went to the Thai Temple for the first time to celebrate Thai New Year.
Sleeping peacefully in her car seat. In the picture below, she likes to sleep crooked in the "Thinking Man's Pose."

Sho 'nough.

According to some of the baby books that I have been reading, fussiness occurs around 2-3 weeks of age and reappears at 6 weeks. Violet has hit the 3 week period and boy oh boy-- has she been fussssy! Apparently babies hit growth spurts around those times and they need to eat... around the clock.

And, we've hit a milestone!! Her belly button finally fell off last night! Woo hoo! She's growing up so fast. I still haven't adjusted to seeing her adorable (if I do say so myself) belly button without the umbilical cord nub though. Oh yes? Where is her fallen nub you ask? I put it on Joe's nightstand. :)

Motherhood

It's been a whirlwind these past few weeks. I can't begin to describe the crazy emotions that I have been feeling since having my little Baby V. She's precious!! You think you can anticipate how you'll feel about your baby while pregnant but you can't. Well, I couldn't. I see her and I feel these surge of overwhelming emotions-- pride, happiness, and protectiveness. It's amazing how strong my maternal instincts have gotten.

She's growing big and strong. We had our 2nd pediatrician appointment this past Tuesday and she's healthily gaining weight (9 lbs 10 ounces) and growing in length (22 1/4 in)!! She's even starting to get some chub to her (she's sporting a double chin with some *slight* thigh rolls).

As you can tell from the pictures, she's quite the expressive baby. She smiles, does the "Elvis lip" curl with her upper lip, and makes the cutest noises known to man. Even her little grunts and farts are adorable!

The puppies are doing good too. Skooter took to her immediately. He ran up to her and licked her face as soon as they were introduced. Benson, on the other hand, has made his introduction slow and steady. The most interaction I've gotten with Benson and Violet is some sniffing. However, Benson will lie down next to me when I'm feeding Violet which I think is cute.

Two Weeks

Hands up!! I'm taking all of your money little girl!!

2nd meeting with Cousins Finn and Maddie. Violet was a little bit hungry when it came to picture time. She wasn't having any of it.

Violet has many poses. I like to call this one, "Surprised Violet."


Violet practicing to become the next Heisman trophy statuette.


I'm gonna eat you! Nom, nom, nom! (One of my favorite pictures of her yet.)


Close up!