Lullaby

This morning I lulled Klein off to sleep with Aqueous Transmission from Incubus. It is such a great lullaby. Also, I've always LOVED Pale September by Fiona Apple as a lullaby. Both songs that I have fallen asleep to myself. I'm not just talking baby here. I am wondering what you all fall asleep to. I would love to get some good suggestions.

I Just Love...

watching the Food Network on a Sunday nite. Tonite it was battle mackerel. I wonder who will win.

In a Effort

In an effort to improve my photography skills and my artistic eye, I have commissioned my friend Sjauna who lives across the country and is also photography-minded to start a project with me just like this one.

It is called Jem Days and it is one picture every morning for a year. I hope to make it into a coffee table book.

Here is the link

http://jemdays.blogspot.com/

Check it out if you feel so inclined.

A Day in the LIfe

I know tons of you are dying to know what it's like to be Klein. Well, for those of you who are interested, I am starting a photo blog of Klein's first year. He's not quite 7 weeks so even though I missed a few days, I'll be on track to get most of it documented. Starting today, I will be posting at least 1 picture a day of the Meister or something having to do with being him.

Here is the address:

http://kleinmeister.blogspot.com/

Hope you all enjoy!

Summing it Up

This pretty much sums up our (mine and Klein's) life right now. This is an actual picture of my face. I haven't posted it in a while (and with good reason). See little Kleiners looking at his mommy. I wonder if he knows me yet.

I don't know why I love his little fussy face so much!

Such a sweet boy.

His eyes are really starting to lighten to a blue color instead of the slate color they were when he was born. He's looking more and more like Daddy every day.

At 6 weeks this little man...

• weights over 11 pounds
• loves to lift his head up and look around
  
• loves the ceiling fan
• loves his rattle toy with a black and white bullseye
• loves faces
• smiles back with the cutest dimples
• is cooing
• is in the 50th percentile for height, weight, and head circumference
• is a happy boy
• is loved so much by all (especially his mommy)
  

Perks

One of the perks of being up at 3 in the morning is moments like these...

But I can't think of any other perks about being up at 3 in the morning.

Just enjoying the view.

Klein 3 Ways

These were taken a while ago to send to the girl who got us this cute outfit and I just think they're so funny.

Picture 1: Mischievous
Picture 2: Prayerful
Picture 3: Skeptical

Broadway

When Anne and I were younger, and sometimes still today, we have a song. It goes like this:

"Broadwaaay, I'm on Broadwaay..."

That's it. That's all there is. And it's so funny. Because we sing it in a Broadway voice and we joke that it is our dream to be on Broadway.

This picture reminds me of our song.
In Chi-Town a year ago, there was a sighting of Anne's Broadway ghost in front of the Water Tower.

It made me laugh so hard.

Going through old pictures, I became depressed thinking about the vast expanse between the way I look now and the way I'd like to look. Although it has only been one month since having the baby, and I definitely look better now than I did when I was preggers, I still have a long way to go...

This Thursday I should hopefully get the okay from my doctor that working out is fine and I hope to be able to get myself in gear and make Klein proud and reassure Grant that his marriage choice was not a bait and switch.

PS. Klein is asleep in his swing and he keeps grunting and then I hear these baby fartinhos (that's Portuguese for little baby farts). It makes me laugh. He's really working hard over there. It's funny because his fartinhos sound like adult farts, only cute. Grant and I were talking about how everything he does is cute. His sneezes, his coughs, his grunts and squeaks, his burps, his farts and poops (well, maybe his poops aren't cute, but they aren't gross). We are enjoying the cute phase,

and the dream of being on Broadwaay.

Things

Things I didn't like so much surrounding Klein's birth:

• the tingling of the epidural
• the swelling of my body and face (even more than it was) resulting in me being the ugliest I have ever been in my life. period.
• waiting to dilate past a 4 for 17 hours
• the news that I would need a C-section
• the shaking due to labor/epidural
• wanting to sleep so bad but being so uncomfortable it was impossible
• throwing up from the medicine
• being told that Klein would have a cone head because I wasn't dilating and his head was just sinking further and further into a place that wasn't accommodating him (it really wasn't as bad as they thought, thank goodness)
  
• being the ugliest I have ever been in my life. period. (did I say that already?)
• the jello belly I had after he was born (I looked like Santa just in time for Christmas!)
  
• the first couple weeks of breastfeeding (2 lactation consultations later, even though one of the consultants came in and saw Klein eating and exclaimed, "he has a text book latch, text book...")
• not showering for 3 days
• not having a room with an ocean view... :(
• Klein losing 10% of his body weight and freaking me out half to death (because I wasn't having rational thoughts)
• my irrational thoughts freaking me out half to death (he'll die if my milk doesn't come in... he's sleeping too much, etc)
• having to wake Klein up to eat every 2 hours, and keep him awake to "eat"
  
• Being separated from Klein for his circumcision (and thinking how much pain he was in as they brought him back in to my room with a little pacifier next to him that had been used to comfort him during the procedure)
• Levi and Bailey not being able to come meet Klein because of flu season (hospital policy)
  

Things I rather liked surrounding Klein's birth:

• Aunt Annie driving through the nite from Utah, making it into town just in time to see me labor and hear the nurse decide a C-section would be best
• the fact that Grant and I were at Claim Jumper eating a chocolate chip calzone when I decided that I was in labor
  
• Grant making brownies at 1 in the morning for the nurses (a Hypnobabies suggestion) while I was upstairs listening to my hypnobabies cd waiting to go in to the hospital (the nurses were obsessed with him for the brownies that were amazing)
• the nurse that took care of me and all the staff at Hoag
• the fact that I had gone into labor on my own
• having Klein on his due date
• Having friends and family come visit and meet Klein
• the flowers that Grant's parents and my brother John sent to us
  
• the pain meds that made breastfeeding and moving possible
• the sponge bath that the nurse gave me (seriously)
• finally being able to take a shower and do my hair
• the electronic adjustable bed
• the tv
• the meals that were brought in
• getting Klein dressed to go home in his outfit that we bought him when we found out he was a boy
  
• Grant staying with me 24/7 in the hospital and afterwards

Things I loved surrounding Klein's birth:

• watching Klein be born (the anesthesiologist convinced me to watch Klein come out during the C-section stating that it wasn't going to be "that bad" and that I wouldn't see myself cut open, just the baby. I first saw his dark hair and then they pulled his little body out and held him up to the mirror so I could see him. I saw his little face for the first time as he was crying like crazy and I immediately fell in love and started crying out of joy. Probably the second time in my life I have cried out of joy. That moment was probably the best moment of my life.
• Hearing Grant say, "he looks like you! He's a Bench." about Klein right after he was born
• Hearing everyone else say he looked just like Grant, including my own mother
  
• Seeing Grant hold Klein as he brought him over to me while they were stitching me up. I just saw the back of Grant's head as he was enamored by Klein, rocking him and trying to hold him as close to me as possible so I could get a good look at him
• The doctors and Grant's reassurance that Klein's ballistic crying after he was born was really good, and Grant looking at him and telling me, "he's turning pink really quick"
• Hearing the nurse refer to me as Mommy to Klein for the first time right before she put him in my arms
• Having the moment with my mom when she came back to see Klein and I was holding him and feeding him (he rooted the second he was on me so I started to feed him right away) and she said, "Callie!" and put her hand to her mouth and we both started crying
• Anne coming back to meet Klein in the recovery room
• All the nurses and doctors telling us how beautiful the baby was and how he didn't "look like a newborn" and saying that "most the time, newborns aren't this cute"
• having him room in with me and holding him constantly
  
• Noticing Klein's dimples
• Our first moments together as a family
  
• Grant reassuring me that everything was going to be perfect while I was having my meltdowns and being there for Klein and I without fail 24/7
• the drive home from the hospital where I was sitting in back with Klein and Grant was driving and noticing Grant tear up as he was talking about looking at "that little face"
  

All in all, it was such a great experience that Grant and I will treasure forever.

Guess what Santa forgot at our house...

and when he found out, he had a hissy fit.

then Oma talked to him and he calmed down a bit.

she showed him the gift that Santa left for him.

Daddy talked to him and after much consideration...

He decided to stay.

Tubby Time

Klein got his first tubby last nite. It was fun and he seemed to like it. The picture on the top left is him right when he got in. He's deciding what he thinks about the whole bath thing. It was fun as Grant held his head straight and I cleaned him. We tried to quickly dry him off so he wouldn't get cold. It was a fun Family Home Evening activity.

It seems that when I gave birth, I entered into the Twilight Zone. Nothing is normal yet and taking care of the little man has proved to be a taxing task. Although, I really love it. There are so many wonderful things about being a new mom, but so many difficult things as well. The hardest part, you guessed it, the lack of sleep in the night. In the hospital, we had to wake him up to eat, but now, he has certainly mastered the task of waking me up to eat. Grant takes the first shift in the nite, from 10 to 3, and then I take over after that.

I am just so grateful for a patient partner, who does so much to help, who has really embraced his role as a father, but hasn't forgotten about being a husband.

Nothing to complain about, just a lot of things to get used to. Klein is such a good baby and makes the funniest faces to entertain me during the day. And I love his squeaks. And when he straightens his legs right out when I change him. Also, when he goes cross-eyed and sticks his lips out like a fish. He is a fun little guy. He will be three weeks on Tuesday and we are the happiest family living in the Twilight Zone.

Check It Out Klein

Check out a glimpse of Klein's first professional photo shoot here at Danielle Locken's Photography Blog. Danielle is such a talented photographer. I'm so glad she was able to do these. They are just perfect, same as my little man. If any of you want yours or your little one's photos taken, call her! She's amazing.

Kleiners

Grant was so happy about our new arrival that he blogged for the first time. Thanks to all of you for your congratulations and love! We are so blessed to have so many friends and family to share our joy with.

I will write soon about all the details but I wanted to share a picture of the cutest face I've ever seen.

Introducing...

He's here! Klein Richman Lippard arrived yesterday at 2:01pm, weighing in at 7 lbs, 8 oz and a lanky 20.5 inches. He has momma's chin and ears and daddy's dimple and long fingers!

Here he is in the incubator right after he was delivered. He was super calm and happy right from the start.

I think he takes after the Bench side but Callie, Oma Ludloff, and a lot of the nurses think he looks like daddy. What do you think?

After 17 hours of labor, Callie had a C-section as the labor failed to progress but she was happy to meet our little guy sooner rather than later. Baby and mom are both doing wonderfully. Klein has been perfectly content and has passed all his tests with flying colors and he's already flirting with all the nurses.
We are very proud of him and can't wait to take him home on Friday or Saturday! We'll post more pics soon!

Update

My due date is tomorrow! I was checked for the first time today to see if I was dilated or effaced (which hurt a lot). Anyway, the doctor told me I was 0% dilated and 0% effaced which concerned me because usually I guess people are at least at a 1 or a 2 by now! It was discouraging. Does this mean I am going to end up being 42 weeks pregnant (yikes) and have to be induced or have a C-section?! I am a little beside myself right now. Anyone have a similar experience? I know everyone is different but I am just so ready to have this baby and to feel like it could be still 2 weeks away! That's just insane!

Guess Who This Is

I will give you one guess (because I know who you'll pick)

If any of you guessed Gisele Bundchen, you are...

Wrong.

It's me, but I know it kinda looks like her pregnant body so I don't blame you for guessing her. I seriously get it all the time.

38 weeks and counting...

We have purchased our car seat, snap and go, pack n play (which we are using for the bassinet and changing table to save on space), and we are waiting on a bid for my double electric breast pump. Fun!! I can't wait to hook that thing up :) I need to find a diaper bag. We've got diapers, wipes and tons of cute clothes and great stuff (thanks to my wonderful friends and family that attended my baby showers and sent gifts... Thanks so much!!!)and yet there is still so much to get it seems like! And then there's the question, what to pack in the hospital bag? So far we've got snacks, camera, socks, grant comfy outfits, outfit to bring home baby, a couple receiving blankets, laptop, makeup, shampoo and conditioner, change for the vending machine, uh... am I forgetting anything?!

Probably.

My Baby's Face

In a recent post, I mentioned how weird it was coming to the realization that my baby already has a face. Well, yesterday I saw it! It was during my 37 week ultrasound that my mom and I saw the precious one's profile as he held his fist up to his face. The only problem was, his profile looked like Homer Simpson! Mayday Mayday!! My mom and I were both kinda like, "Uhm, cute...kinda" with worried looks, I burst out in tears. Just kidding. It wasn't that dramatic and I have enough sense to know that I can't possibly tell what my bundle of joy will look like when he makes his appearance from a fuzzy ultrasound pic (right?! anyone, anyone??) where you can't make out what anything is unless the ultrasound tech tells you and points it out. "This is his femur, this is his head, this is his stomach, this is his middle finger..." Just kidding. I'm sure they don't point that out. Anyway. I panicked a little, but rest assured, I will love my baby whether he looks as cute as a button or like a grown cartoon man. Luckily, our baby boy's brain is the normal size, so in that respect, he won't be like Homer.

(Has anyone else had this experience where the baby looked weird in the ultrasound? Or even right after they were born? I need some reassurance here. Please say yes!)

The rest of the ultrasound was exciting though. He was in the right position (head down) which I figured he wasn't since I am constantly feeling blunt force trauma to my hips (not in my ribs like everyone else). It hurts!! And I figured it was him kicking me, but it turns out, his head is down so they must be punches. (I'm always so surprised when things go right with this pregnancy for some reason). The ultrasound lady also said, "he must be thinking about something because I can see his eyes moving around". That was funny. His foot was so far over on my side that she couldn't see it with the machine and he has grown so much since the last ultrasound. She did some calculations and said he weighs about 6.5 pounds (so what's the other 35 pounds about?!) so she estimates that he'll weight about 7.5-8 lbs when he's born. We'll see... I will be full term on Wednesday so they say he could come any day, but I'm not counting on it. I expect him around Dec. 10th or something... although I wouldn't mind him coming earlier. Maybe that's what he was thinking about. Debating whether or not to come out now or wait a little while longer...I wonder what I could do to sway his decision. Let the mind games and manipulation that is parenting begin! Or is that what you do when you're the kid?

Pregnancy Dream

Sjauna just made a comment on my previous post that reminded me of something I wanted to document (thank you Sj).

My Pregnancy Dream:

A couple months ago, I had a dream! I dreamed (is dreamt really not a word?! Since when?) that I was pregnant (which I am) and that the baby was moving around a ton (which he is). One nite (in my dream) the baby was moving around so much and was pushing his hand on my belly, but he was pushing so hard that I thought he was going to rip my skin open with his hand. I looked down at my stomach and saw his hand and arm pushing my skin so tight (kinda like the picture above only a million times stronger). I went to the doctor and expressed how I thought the baby was going to rip my skin open and the doctor said that it was an emergency and I needed a C-Section to get him out because he was suffering from claustrophobia.

After I woke up, I told Grant and he said,

"You would have a dream where your baby needed to come out because of a psychological disorder."

It was funny. My baby already has psychological issues and he's not even born yet! I think I'm a little paranoid or something, and I think the dream stems from a combination of seeing the picture above, (which I've seen before and thought it was amazing), the baby moving so much and me worrying he doesn't have enough room, my dad being a psychiatrist, and having a few family and friends that needed emergency C-sections. I think that's why I dreamed that.