Six Months

    month-6

    At six months Penny is on a more predictable schedule with three naps and eating before and after each rest time. She is usually up once in the night but is doing some longer stretches (7 PM – 2 AM). Penny hit a lot of physical milestones this month as she learned to roll from her tummy to her back and can sit up independently. She can get where she wants to go by rolling across the room and loves to play laying down and sitting up. As you can tell from her picture, she looks much more grown up. Nora is not sure how she feels about having to share so many of our “family” toys, but she is often heard saying, “You’re so adorable, Penny!”

    To read about Nora at six months, click here.

      Five Months

      month-5

      At five months Penny eats every two to three hours during the day and is up one to two times at night. She is definitely a thumb sucker and uses her thumb to tell us she is tired and soothe herself back to sleep. The big news is that Penny and Nora are sharing a room! While we were camping and road tripping this month, we all shared a room; the girls did great, so we decided to try it at home. They are napping separately but sleeping together at night. Nora loves getting to “sneak” into her room after Penny is sleeping.

      To read about Nora at five months, click here.

        Four Months

        Month-4

        At four months Penny eats every two to three hours during the day and one to three times during the night. We were up often at night as Penny started rolling over to her stomach. She began using her voice this month and can easily grab toys and bring them to her mouth. We made two road trips this month and discovered that Penny loves having toys hanging from her carseat. Her favorite is the lion. Penny is enamored with Nora and grins whenever she is in her line of sight.

        To read about Nora at four months, click here.

          3 Months

          Month-3

          At three months Penny eats every two hours during the day and one time during the night. She has started giggling and can now bat at the toys on her play mat. Her hair is growing in and she loves to rub it. We are not swaddling her anymore because she is a thumb sucker and able to soothe herself easily. Nora is the most interested in Penny when other people are paying attention to her. We are working on bottle feeding because sometimes Penny will take a bottle and sometimes she will not!

          To read about Nora at three months, click here.

            Two Months

            Month-2

            At two months Penny eats every 2-3 hours during the day and sleeps one 6-8 hour stretch at night. She started smiling this month and smiles whenever anyone is talking to her. Penny saw the doctor lots this month as she is having some trouble with her belly button. We will see a specialist next month for more information. We also completed our first road trip to Neenah with two kids. Penny was more trouble than Nora as she didn’t love being in her carseat when she was awake. Nora really enjoys playing with her when Penny is laying on her blanket or doing tummy time. This post is three weeks late. I am getting better!

            To read about Nora at two months, click here.

              One Month

              Month-1

              After one month Penny eats every 1.5-3 hours and sleeps two 4 hour chunks at night. She is a very content baby. She is growing quickly and already wearing 3 month clothes. Penny sleeps most of the day so Nora is mostly uninterested. This post is one month and one week late. Life with two is very busy!

              To read about Nora at one month, click here.

                Penny’s Birth Story

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                Because of complications during Nora’s birth, a repeat c-section was recommended for Penny’s birth. At 38 weeks I started having contractions and was concerned she would come early but everything proceeded as planned.

                At 39 weeks and 1 day we woke up to meet our baby. Jesse’s parents came to stay with Nora and my mom joined us at the hospital. The first thing we did was listen to the baby’s strong and steady heartbeat. She was sleeping at first but woke up as we were listening.

                They prepped me for surgery but my doctor was running a bit behind schedule. The anesthesia they used was a little harder on my system this time so I was a bit dizzy but alert when we heard Penny’s first cries. She was born at 10:23 am and was 7 pounds 14 ounces and 20.25 inches long.

                I began liking the name Penny when my friend Kristi was pregnant with her little girl. Her son, Tyler, always called the baby Polly but I mixed it up and thought he called her Penny. The whole time she was pregnant I thought they should name the baby Penny because it was so cute. When I found out I was pregnant with another girl, Penny was the top name on the list. To give Penny a more grown up name we decided on Penelope, but we call her Penny.

                To read about Nora’s birth story, click here.

                 

                First Trimester the Second Time

                Jesse and I are excitedly expecting our second child. Here are some answers to the most common questions.

                When is the baby due?

                March 20

                Are you going to find out the baby’s gender?

                Nora’s gender was a surprise until the very end. For Baby #2 we are planning a gender reveal at Thanksgiving. Every year my parents buy us a new ornament for our Christmas tree. My friend Anna from Make it Sweet is creating a gender reveal Christmas ornament that we will open with my family at Thanksgiving.

                Did you return to the infertility specialist for this pregnancy?

                We did not. This time the Lord has blessed us with a surprise pregnancy.

                How are you feeling?

                This pregnancy has been very different. I struggled most days with nausea day and night. At twenty-one weeks, I am finally starting to feel the return of my appetite and energy…and I am so grateful!

                Where is the bump?

                We decided to take a different strategy this time and have me wear the same shirt each week. Here is the progress from five weeks to eighteen weeks. If you want to compare, here are my pictures from Nora’s first trimester.

                BabyBump1