Trips and Pics

Well I guess I am not as regular a bloggger as I'd like to be.. oh well. It's been a fun and busy time in the McCulloch house hold. John has one week left of summer school! Horray! He has really done so much this summer...lot's of work and class and studying.. he's a stud. :)

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It was a long drive, but Emma did great! She was certainly the star of the show there at the McCulloch family reunion. She got to finally meet her uncle Ganes and bond some more with uncle Frank (Max) (they really have some connection going on.. it's pretty cool). The firework show there was so amazing. I'm sure it it was the best I've seen. We were very close and they got really loud but Emma loved them! Also while we were there she gave me her first real smile ! It melted my heart! Here is Emma with Ganes after playing hours of golf and getting attacked by mosquitoes (but before the West Nile really hit him).

We did a little hike to a waterfall. It was sooo green there! It was seriously neon green is some areas. So beautiful!!The next weekend was Emma's baby blessing. It was really a great day. My mom made her beautiful dress (which we had to pin in to fit her.. she's so little) We had a lot of great family support.. John gave her the blessing of course and we were able to have Papa, John's uncle Larry and good friend David Frost stand in the circle. (as well as a good friend from the ward). Here are Mama and Papa when the first got into town for the blessing. Mama made Emma's booties that she wore for the blessing. Here are the booties.. and aunt Megan finally got to meet Emma Jane..

Emma and Uncle Frank..
We are so crazy about our little Emma!The Shupe's...

The McCulloch's

The Rhiens... (well Nanny and Grumps)The great- grandparents..

The Palmers...The mothers...The close-up...the dress.....

yea.. we were taking pictures for a while.. don't worry we have a lot of other combinations that we got pictures of too..

Well Emma is just a little over two months old.. she smiles a ton now and is gaining weight a little better finally. I was looking back at pictures of her first six weeks and she looked soo skinny to me! I wish I would have figured out this no dairy thing a lot earlier. She had her first shots last week. She did pretty well.. just a little feverish and extra sleepy for a couple of days...sad! She is adorable.. here are some fun recent pictures of her.

yay for smiling!
This one cracks me up! this is after about 15 camera flashes in a row.. hilarious!!I am really into attachment parenting. Here is baby carrier number 3.. it might be the winner.. This is after a good warm bath and lotion massage.. She knows her mama loves her!!.. she's a doll..Here we are in front of our future home.. hopefully..We love it!... the closing date is set for August 11th.. but it turns out we need a new roof.. hopefully everything will work out! We are soo ready to move into our first house!! Wish us luck!

an update finally!

Well we sure have been busy.. I've tried to post something... often. I guess I don't have my schedule as a new mom figured out just yet...

Emma is doing well! She is getting bigger.. I'm not sure how much bigger... People ask me all the time how much she weighs.. I don't have a baby scale.. so I really don't know! But I do still worry about her getting enough milk and gaining enough all the time! I still pump every now and then and give it to her throughout the day. I probably shouldn't give her a pacifier.. she just loves it though! I think I have determined that she is somewhat allergic to the milk and dairy products I eat, so I am now really trying to cut out dairy. If anyone knows me, they know how much I love dairy! I am drinking this almond milk with my cereal, which isn't too bad. So far I think it's helped her..

We've been going out for walks in our snazzy jogging stroller.. I haven't actually jogged with it yet.. but that will be coming soon I hope! I have my follow up appointment with my obgyn in a week and a half.. which will actually be 7 weeks postpartum... Here's Emma before our first stroller walk. Looks pretty comfy, huh?

It's amazing to me how much muscle tone I have lost! I try to exercise some days and let Emma hang out it her bouncer or swing.. some days she actually lets me! A kid at our complex walked by when the door was open and asked if we had THREE babies! It sure looks like it with all her seating!

John has been working pretty hard this summer.. lots of hours working and doing math homework, and not as much sleep as he's used to. So, three weeks ago we went up to his favorite place (and definitely one of mine.. it's where he proposed!) .. the family cabin in Vallecito, Colorado. We looove it there. We were both feeling overwhelmed and tired and stressed and it was amazing how we could actually feel the stress lifting off our shoulders the closer we got to the cabin and the more green and scenic the drive became. Nancy and Kenny met us up there. It was a wonderful weekend and much needed retreat! We took Emma in a carrier on her first hike, a little over a mile right next to the lake..and here is Emma and I after a nice nap in the "napping room." It is the back room (sun room) of the cabin which has a beautiful view of the lake. It is very conducive to sleep! I tried to study for dental hygiene boards in this room a couple of years ago.. I think I lasted 10 minutes!

Here we are in front of the cabin on our way to leave..(she was already buckled in so we didn't want to take her out)

Here she is with Nancy and Kenny (also known as Granny Nanny and Grumps): (she is about as big as Grumps' forearm. They are such great grandparents!)

After we left the cabin we went to Farmington for a father's day dessert over at Mama and Papa's house. We got a few generation pictures with Emma's great-grandparents (which unfortunately none of them really turned out) here's one where at least the lighting is somewhat okay..We did get to have a quick photo shoot with John's very talented cousin Rachel. She took a bunch of pictures of Emma for us. Check out her web page http://www.rachelclarephoto.com/

and her blog. ..http://www.rachelclarephoto.com/blog/ There are three pictures there of Emma under the title "New Baby E (June 18th)" .. you have to scroll down a bit to get to them.. but it's worth it! And ALL the pictures on there are soo beautiful! I wish they weren't moving so she can always take pictures of all our kids!

So.. after our wonderful father's day weekend at the cabin we came back to Albuquerque.. to our crazy apartment management.. and homework and our crazy pets! We have this great tortoise that is about 5 years old named Truman.. and one night about 1 am I was feeding Emma and John was doing homework and he looks down and is shocked to see that it looks like his guts have literally fallen out! We were so worried and sad.. I'm thinking that I don't give him enough water and he's dying and I don't even have a vet for him! So we put him in the bathtub to give him some water.. and his guts went back inside.. hmm...after 20 minutes or so searching on the Internet we find out those were not his guts, as "congratulations, it's a boy" comes across the screen. Yep Truman is officially a boy. He is sexually mature now and decided to let it all hang out.. and yea, it was a lot to hang out! Here he is looking innocent..

So, after the initial shock and trauma were over I go back to feeding Emma in the living room to see this! Sorry for the graphic picture.. but seriously! We have a real animal planet thing going on in the house! I don't think we'll see any tadpoles though because I'm sure the fish will eat them up unfortunately.. (you may have to click on the picture to enlarge it)

Well here are some pictures of Emma at one month .. (she'll actually be 6 weeks tomorrow)

Soo.. we have been managing our apartment complex for almost two years.. it wasn't bad the first year. We actually liked it.. the free rent has always been nice.. but the past several months have been increasing in frustration until we were counting down the days that we were not managers any longer.. so we put in our two weeks and not one moment too soon we put up a sign over the manager's sign saying .. well to pretty much leave us alone now! It's great.. now I don't feel guilty for not opening the door when I get knocks throughout the day! We were so happy and excited to put up the sign we had our friend take pictures for us..

Well John and I have been looking for our first house for about two or three months now and we just finally moved on from one house we really loved after making three different offers.. and even offering 98% of the asking price .. and still being refused.. we are convinced that she really doesn't want to sell her home.. so now we are writing up an offer on another house we actually found a month and a half ago and fell in love with.. but it was out of our price range.. but we are hopefully going to get an offer out on it tomorrow! Wish us luck! With how many problems we are having I wonder if we are not meant to buy a house right now.. but we are persevering and will hopefully be in one soon. Maybe even this one! We love the neighborhood and the house and the yard are perfect for us..we'll see how it goes.

Sorry for the loooooooong update.. I need to be more regular about this... We're off to Colorado for the Fourth.. I hope everyone has a wonderful Independence Day!!

7 Random Facts

1. We have 6 Bleeding Heart Tetras in our fishtank that hide in the back most of the day, but since I have been up feeding Emma I see that they are super active and school and swim in circles and loops during the night.. our frogs, however, are always entertaining.
2. When Emma wrinkles up her forehead she looks strikingly like E.T.
3. John and I are still looking for the perfect house for us to move into. We're getting closer, I can feel it!
4. John put in his 2 week notice today as a resident manager of our apartment manager. At the 2 week mark I'm pretty sure he will turn his phone off for at least a week.
4. Global warming is a farce. 2007 was actually one degree cooler than the last 30 years.
5. Breastfed babies have higher I.Q.'s, better health, better mouths and vision and are generally happier.
6. I was only breastfed for a month or two.
7. If there was someway we could pull it off we would spend all summer, every summer at John's family cabin in Vallecito, CO. It is a little bit of Heaven.

I tag... Nichole and Jana

Motherhood: Week 3

Emma Jane is 3 weeks old today. I seriously loving being a mom. It is the best thing I have ever done. It is really a way to learn true selflessness and sacrafice! I am also amazed at how much I worry already!! Emma is such a little baby, as you know and the most emotionally draining and chanllenging thing is making sure she is eating well and gaining weight. At 2 and a half weeks she had still not gotten back to her birth-weight. :( She is a very sleepy baby and a bit jaundiced and I know that is part of the problem. She is happy to just keep sleeping instead of eating!! But I've been waking her up more often to eat and am now pumping a little to keep my supply up and make sure she gets what I pump. So far it is working. Tomorrow I am seeing a lactation consultant to see what else I can do to get her to gain weight. I want a little rolly polly baby! I feel confidant that she will gain weight and be okay.. she is totally healthy and happy and content.. she's just lazy! I guess John was like that.. he would sleep 9 hours straight at birth!

You can see how she is a little yellow still in this picture.

She loves her baths! She moved so much when I was pregnant I would always say she was doing her water aerobics. I'm sure the warm water makes her feel right at home. She actually was really fussy a couple of days ago while I was bathing her and I couldn't figure out why until she pooped ALL over the towel. That is actually the only time she really cries.. right before she poops!

When Bob, Amy and Madison were here Amy and I got some fabric together to make these awesome hooter hiders! I am feeding Emma in this picture.. It's so handy because you can actually see what you're doing and have both your hands free. I haven't had to use it yet, but when I do I'll be glad I have it.

So Emma has to be woken up for most of her feedings and I usually do this by changing her diaper and it is so cute how she stretches and looks around and she makes the funniest faces!!

She loves her changing table.. she looks around so wide-eyed and wiggles and grabs the bars..

she also does this funny lip pucker all the time! I love it! My mom said she got that from me...

And here is the usual end result.. a sleeping Emma with milk on her face. :)

Emma Jane McCulloch

Well I am a mother! I just noticed that I went into labor just hours after posting my last blog..

Emma Jane was born May 22nd at 7:20 pm. She was 6 pounds 4 ounces and 19 1/2 inches of cuteness. Wow.. what a whirlwind of emotions! Our lives are changed forever and I am so grateful! She is two weeks old today and she already seems like she is growing and changing.

I couldn't have asked for much more throughout my labor and delivery (okay I could. .. It really hurt and was pretty terrible! ) But we really feel blessed and that everything went okay. I woke up about 5:00 Thursday morning with contractions in my back. John and I went on a walk and then came home and laid down to see if they would go away, but they just got worse so we knew we were going to have a baby! We were in and out of triage at the hospital while I was in early labor. We spent two hours walking at a park and then three hours at home (actually cleaning!) until I drank some rasberry tea and took a warm shower which put me into active labor. ..my contractions were suddenly a lot more intense and evey 2-3 minutes apart (not to mention still in my lower back!) Here's us at the park.. you can tell that I am not in too much pain .. yet..

So we get back to the hospital and soon after my water breaks and there is meconium in it. I was worried about it but the doctors seemed to be okay with it. At this point I am really hurting.. all still in my back. Once we were in the delivery room I pretty much hung out on the bed leaning over my big exercise ball. I was trying to get the pressure off my back. John would push and rub really hard on it which did help most of the time...It all seems like a whirlwind now. .. I'm not sure how long we were in the delivery room.. but I started pushing around 6:30 and about 45 minutes later she was born. I did it all with out any pain medications.. It was really hard but I'm glad I did it. It was the most amazing day. So exhausting but the best thing ever! John and I just sobbed right after she was born. It was incredible. It is amazing how you can love someone so much!

She is healthy and beautiful and such a joy. They did say it looked like she had the meconium for a while, so it's a good thing she came 10 days early. We feel so blessed. .. with all my blood pressure stuff and preeclamsia worries I did great. Literally as soon as she came out my blood pressure went back to normal. So no worries there. John's mom, Nancy came to help out with the labor and delivery (really to be our doula) and I am so glad she was there. She was awesome. I know if her and John were not there I would have had that epidural (and probably 10 extra hours of labor). I really feel like I have a great sence of accomplishment after that.

Doesn't he look like a brand-new father? I love this picture. He is so good with her and loves her so much. I'm so grateful for him.

In this picture we are both feeling happy that labor and delivery is over! :

She was a little jaundice so I would put her in the sun for a little bit every day. She is doing a lot better now. It's amazing how protective I am over her and how much there is to worry about her already! Thank goodness breastfeeding has been getting better everyday...

I love this picture.. Emma likes to have here hands by her face when she sleeps. It's adorable. She sleeps a LOT! Even a lot a night.. which is great but I wake up on my own worrying that she needs to eat..

She is just amazing and so much fun. She has all this soft brown hair and blue eyes and the cutest little mouth! She also has John's feet! (Sorry Emma) She smiles in her sleep and it just melts my heart. I am seriously in love with her. :)

Thank you everyone for all your visits and calls and dinners and gifts and support! We love you!

11 Days and counting

Okay I know we have not posted in so long! It has been such a busy month ! John did pretty good on his finals and he is back to his happy self again! We got the mario cart game for the wii and the indiana jones trilogy.. he is my happy 5 year old again. I love it. Too bad summer school starts in a couple of weeks..
Yea, I have only 11 days left until my due date. Somedays I feel terrible and "know" that labor is right around the corner and then I wake up the next day feeling great and still pregnant! My mom really does not want her to come early because she'll miss the birth.. but i'm playing selfish.. we want her to come now! I'm just so excited! I've been doing some "nesting" this afternoon and it smells like baby powder in this room and I love it. At my last appointment (last thursday morning) I was dialated to "not quite a 2" and 50% effaced and the baby was posited at a -1. soo.. that means it could be soon.. or a long time. But that night (so almost a week ago) I THINK I lost my mucous plug. How do you know for sure? I read that means labor could come in 2 days or 2 weeks. ha! Well I am doing all the self- labor inducing things.. except the castor oil. Maybe I'll try it if I get desperate. ..
An update on the house shopping. .. We have been looking at more houses and searching for the perfect house at the perfect price (which is actually realllllly hard to come by we are finding). The house we put an offer on is not available to us.. We found out after a week of waiting that because of the prior owner's situation our type of loan cannot buy that house. LAME! We did find one that we LOVE. It's perfect. Except the lady wants 30K more than we want to pay. :( I think we are going to make an offer anyways though. I'm getting a little stressed about it all .. but know I shouldn't . I really know Heavenly Father knows what is best and is watching out for us. Everything will work out how it should . We'll post some pictures soon .. and hopefully some pictures of our new house!!