Thursday, June 26, 2008

A Play Date for Reagan




Our friends Courtney and Paul had us over for a BBQ last weekend and it turned out to be a fun play date for Reagan as they have a little girl who was born 2 weeks after Reagan. Some other friends, Jenni and Phil were there with their baby boy who was born a week after Reagan, and there was also a 3 week old baby. So we layed them all on the bed side by side and watched them interact. It may have been more fun for the adults than the babies :)

A Whole Different Side of Reagan

Since we have been home from our trip to Michigan, Reagan's personality has changed quite a bit. She used to be so happy and easy going, and now, all of the sudden, she is quite fussy and temperamental. She has decided that she no longer likes the stroller, the car seat, or the pacifier (so in other words anything that makes her fall asleep). She basically hates to go to sleep! And I guess I can't blame her, I mean who would want to miss out on playing with me all day long :). But the stroller bit is really killing me because I loved being able to take her out on my morning run. Now she gets halfway down the block and screams constantly until the stroller comes to a stop in our garage. I'm hoping it is just a phase! Also, because she won't take the pacifier, it has become harder and harder to get her down for naps and asleep for the night. Many times, after lots of fussing and crying, I revert to nursing her to sleep. But a few nights ago, she was extremely tired but fighting sleep with all her might. So we decided (Steve made the ultimate decision) to let her cry herself to sleep in her crib for the first time ever. We decided we would go and get her if the crying lasted more than 15 minutes. But to our surprise, a miserable 11 minutes later, she was out! It was such a good feeling to know that she could get herself to sleep without being nursed, rocked, or walked for a hundred laps around the house! Since then she has done it several other times, but there have also been times when she has cried for more than 15 minutes and in those cases, I go to her and rock her to sleep. But we are making progress. And hopefully with a little more sleep, our good spirited little Reagan with reappear!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Our First Family Trip Home to Michigan












Reagan and I just returned from a two week trip home to Michigan. Steve couldn't take the whole two weeks off, but he was able to spend five days at home with us. The main reason for our trip was Tommy's High School graduation. Denise planned a wonderful graduation party for him at their home on Lake Huron. The weather was beautiful and Steve and Andrew did all the grilling for the event. Steve made a special marinade for the chicken and we all helped shape hundreds of hamburger patties the day before. Reagan was a huge hit at the party (although she decided to sleep through the first two hours of it). We also got to attend Tom's graduation! Congrats Tom, we are so proud of you! Good luck next year at Michigan State!
We spent the first few days at Grandma Denise's, and Reagan got to sleep in the same bassinet that was used by her father and her aunt and uncles. She did really well with all the company, and her only problem was that she did not want to be put down for bed or for naps because she didn't want to miss out on the action. The remainder of the trip we stayed at Grandma Barb's. Here, Reagan slept in a bassinet that her great-great grandfather made and that both Karly and I slept in. Grandma Barb read her lots of books and got her lots of stimulating toys. We spent most of the time visiting family and friends. We spent several days with Grandpa Bob and Grandma Margy and we had dinner at the ranch with Grandpa Cap. All in all, it was a wonderful trip! It was so nice to have Reagan surrounded by her loving family! Of course it went by way too fast, and the next time we are home, Reagan will be much bigger. Thank God for webcams :) Reagan also did very well on both plane rides. She nursed most of the time so the pressure wouldn't bother her. Aunt Cate was with us on the flight home as she is staying with us here in Charlotte for a month! I was so thankful to have her on the flight because about half way through it, Reagan had a huge blowout in her diaper! It went through her diaper, her onesie, her pants, and through the burp rag I desperately put around her. As soon as we landed, Cate and I ran to the airport restroom and stripped Reagan down. The only thing I had in the diaper bag was a sweater, so Reagan met Daddy and Aunt Karly in the airport in her diaper and a sweater :) We must have looked like real rednecks! But nevertheless, we made it home and had a wonderful trip! It is good to be home, but we can't wait for the next one!