Arden's 6 month Check Up

Arden had her 6 month checkup today on her 6 month birthday! That's right we've kept her alive for half a year! Yay! Wow, I can't believe it's been half a year since we had her, that's crazy to me. The doctor was impressed that she hasn't been in for any sick visits yet, but warned us that she may get sick in the coming months. She gained exactly 2 lbs since her last visit- she's up to 14 lbs. 15 oz. This weight actually dropped her down into the 25% for her weight (meaning that 75% of baby girls her age are heavier), but the doctor was not worried, saying she never really chunked up like some babies do. She did say though that it was probably a good indication to start ramping on the solids. So in about a week we'll start with fruits and veggies in addition to the cereal. Should be interesting. She has gotten better the past 2 nights with swallowing, but not great and it's still a huge mess, so I don't see this putting weight on her very fast anytime soon. And now I understand why babies get baths EVERY night around this age because she has been covered head to toe with rice cereal.

The highlight of the checkup for Arden was probably the discovery of the mirror next to her on the examining table, or rather her "twin" in the mirror. She's noticed the mirror before but this time she was reaching out to herself, and giving herself high fives and even kissing the mirror and her new found twin. It was really cute.

She did get more shots at this checkup, not her or Mommy's favorite part at all. But she was a trooper, and only cried for a little bit and then was good. Then she fell asleep on the car ride home for her morning nap before Mommy & Me yoga.

Arden's 1st "Meal"

So Sunday night Arden had her first "meal" of rice cereal mixed with breast milk. The current practice is that babies start solids between 4-6 months and we decided to wait until 6 months. It just seemed like one more thing to do, so we weren't in a rush. We got her a feeding chair that will take her from now until she's like 3 or so, one of the ones that attaches to a regular chair. She was pretty indifferent to the whole food thing, except the fact that she wanted to eat the spoon. Not the food on the spoon, just the spoon. I think she might have indirexctly eaten maybe 1 tablespoon of actual rice cereal, which is fine. It's all about learning "how" to eat for the next month or so, rather then the actual quantity.

Daddy Giggles

So Arden is definitely a smiley baby, but she's not a over giggly baby. However, she has a soft spot for her Dad. And I think she likes his beard tickling her. Pretty consistently she giggles when Dave does his changing table routine and blows "raspberries" on her neck and tummy. I've tried but she doesn't react the same for me. This is a short version because by the time I got the camera to record it, they'd been at the giggling for a few mintues. It's a special father-daughter moment.

Thanks for My Family

At the risk of sound cliche, let me premise this entry with the fact that I am very grateful for many things in my and my family's world.
I am grateful for my beautiful, healthy daughter,
I am grateful for my loving supportive husband that stands beside me on this path of partnership and parenthood,
I am grateful for the friendship and support of my mother,
I am grateful for the listening ears and warm hearts of all my friends from all walks of life,
I am grateful for the ability to teach my child by example about the diversity in this world, and that every decision she makes she should work to make it with an open mind and a heart full of compassion and free of judgement. She may not always be succesful, but it's something to strive for continually.

On this holiday Dave and I are happy and thankful to have found a renewed resolve in raising Arden in a house full of love and faith, free from negativity and resentment.

Dad's 60th Birthday

My dad turned 60 this past weekend, so my brother, Brian, Dave, Arden and I decided to surprise him by showing up at Mom & Dad's for the weekend. Brian flew down from Annapolis, and then we drove the 2.5 hours to my parent's place. First trip with Arden awake while it was dark out, which she's not a big fan of, but she fell asleep eventually, and then woke up right before the surprise. The weekend was great, lounging around watching a movie, visting with my parent's good friends, and just spending time with the family. Maybe not as action packed as my mom would have liked it, but exactly my dad's speed. He was really touched and grateful that we had come you could tell. Happy Birthday Dad!

More pictures of the weekend here

Baby Quilt from "Aunt" Becky

My good friend Becky hand stiches very beautiful quilts, so back when I was pregnant and embarking on the crib bedding sewing project with my mom, I had asked her if she would use some of the leftover fabric to make Arden a matching quilt. She went above and beyond what I expected. I almost cried when I opened the box and saw what she had made for her. It's all done in batiks, with the exception of the greenish/blue fabric which is actually from Dave's baby quilt that his grandmother made for him. That was his contribution and it was somewhat emotional for him ;-)

The backing fabric of the quilt is the crib bumper fabric, and then the pink/purple tie dye is the same as the crib's dust ruffle and piping. Then in each block, Becky hand stiched the letters for Arden's name. Arden Drenzek fits perfectly. Then as an added personal touch she got the words for the purification mantra that we do in my yoga class and ironed it on to piece of fabric and it is sewn under the K block.


The whole thing is absolutely gorgeous. I was scared to even put Arden on it thinking she would ruin it, but Becky assured me that I was not allowed to hang it on the wall, that's not a baby quilt is for. Arden loves it and I'm sure it will become more and more special as the years go by.

Thanks Aunt Becky!!!

New Blog!

So I'm jumping on the Blogger bandwagon. Now I have yet another internet outlet to share our family stories with the world! I'm sure everyone is thrilled!

Actually, I plan to have this blog replace the baby website that we created during my pregnancy, because I think it will be much easier to navigate and I can link our photo flickr site to it easier. And I like blogs. Our Flickr site link is over there ----> to the right and it has most all of our pictures of Arden's activites. I've kinda backlogged and added entries since Arden's arrival back in May. But as you notice the more current entries have more detail.

So I hope our family and friends enjoy our updates!