Sam's favorite hobby

I know I am getting bad at posting every week, but here are some cute pictures and a really cute video of sam doing 2 of her favorite things. She loves to jump in her jumparoo and she loves to babble. In fact, last night we were treated to a concert from 1-2 am.

Who does she look like?

So a lot of people say sometimes they see me and sometimes they see Nick, depends on the pictures. Although, Sam has my coloring, so we are getting more and more that she looks like me. But I do see a lot of Nick in her. So here are some photos for comparison. The toddler ones are from Winter 1981, I am 2 1/2 and Nick was 1 1/2. There is also one of my mom and me when I was 15 days old. And I think that photo is exactly like Sam looked at that age. There is one of her at 8 days to compare. I do not have any of Nick that young, but I hope to scan some in next time we are in Phoenix.

Laughing time

Sam had her 4 month check up. She is now 26 inches long (95th percentile) and 14 pounds 4 ounces (75%). She is now rolling over from her tummy to back pretty regularly. She is also becoming more interested in the dogs, even giving cute belly laughs as opposed to her bird like laugh that we often hear. Check out the video!

4 months old!

Sam is now 4 months old (and 17 1/2 weeks). Here are more pictures of her with her giant panda, in GT gear, rooting on the cubs, and in a cute outfit. Also, her Great Aunt Julia and her friend Carol came to visit and we took Sam to Krystal to have breakfast.

Cute Story

Being A Mom
We are sitting at lunch one day when my daughter casually mentions that she and her husband are thinking of "starting a family." "We're taking a survey," she says half-joking. "Do you think I should have a baby?" "It will change your life," I say, carefully keeping my tone neutral. "I know," she says, "no more sleeping in on weekends, no more spontaneous vacations." But that is not what I meant at all. I look at my daughter, trying to decide what to tell her. I want her to know what she will never learn in childbirth classes. I want to tell her that the physical wounds of child bearing will heal, but becoming a mother will leave her with an emotional wound so raw that she will forever be vulnerable. I consider warning her that she will never again read a newspaper without asking, "What if that had been MY child?" That every plane crash, every house fire will haunt her. That when she sees pictures ofstarving children, she will wonder if anything could be worse than watching your child die. I look at her carefully manicured nails and stylish suit and think that no matter how sophisticated she is, becoming a mother will reduce her to the primitive level of a bear protecting her cub. That an urgent call of "Mom!" will cause her to drop a soufflé or her best crystal without a moments hesitation. I feel that I should warn her that no matter how many years she has invested in her career, she will be professionally derailed by motherhood. She might arrange for childcare, but one day she will be going into an important business meeting and she will think of her baby's sweet smell. She will have to use every ounce of discipline to keep from running home, just to make sure her baby is all right. I want my daughter to know that every day decisions will no longer be routine. That a five year old boy's desire to go to the men's room rather than the women's at McDonald's will become a major dilemma. That right there, in the midst of clattering trays and screaming children, issues of independence and gender identity will be weighed against the prospect that a child molester may be lurking in that restroom. However decisive she may be at the office, she will second-guess herself constantly as a mother. Looking at my attractive daughter, I want to assure her that eventually she will shed the pounds of pregnancy, but she will never feel the same about herself. That her life, now so important, will be of less value to her once she has a child. That she would give herself up in a moment to save her offspring, but will also begin to hope for more years, not to accomplish her own dreams, but to watch her child accomplish theirs. I want her to know that a cesarean scar or shiny stretch marks will become badges of honor. My daughter's relationship with her husband will change, but not in the way she thinks. I wish she could understand how much more you can love a man who is careful to powder the baby or who never hesitates to play with his child. I think she should know that she will fall in love with him again for reasons she would now find very unromantic. I wish my daughter could sense the bond she will feel with women throughout history who have tried to stop war, prejudice and drunk driving. I want to describe to my daughter the exhilaration of seeing your child learn to ride a bike. I want to capture for her the belly laugh of a baby who is touching the soft fur of a dog or cat for the first time. I want her to taste the joy that is so real it actually hurts. My daughter's quizzical look makes me realize that tears have formed in my eyes. "You'll never regret it," I finally say. Then I reached across the table, squeezed my daughter's hand and offered a silent prayer for her, and for me, and for all the mere mortal women who stumble their way into this most wonderful ofcallings.

More pictures

Here are some more pictures to enjoy. One from mother's day, one from Zoo Atlanta, and a few just cute ones.

What more does life have to offer?

So I have some interesting news to report.  On Monday I had some pain in my right side that was worse with walking, plus nausea and vomiting.  Given that I am breastfeeding, I have limited options, but I did try tums.  After a few hours and a consult with Nick's brother, we headed into the hospital at 6:30.  It took the whole night to finally get a CT scan to confirm that I had appendicitis.  So I had an appendectomy Tuesday morning.  I just got home earlier today.  Of course, all this means she had to be fed formula since I did not have enough pumped and I have to wait until it has been 24 hours from the last antibiotics.  Her first time on formula since the hospital when she needed it for jaundice.  Additionally, I cannot pick her up for two whole weeks.  But my mom has been awesome and stayed with Sam while Nick stayed with me.  My dad also helped out a lot.  I have no idea what we would have done without them.  And I don't know what I would have done without Nick, he keeps me sane.  It was rough, but hopefully I will recover quickly and things can get back to normal.  I am counting the days until I can pick up my baby.