New Pictures!

I snapped a few photos of Claire today and here are my 2 favorites! Have I mentioned how much I love her lately?

Which one is your favorite?

A few favorites

Here are some of the things that Claire has loved thus far. 

I threw a couple of my favorite products in too!

Click the product names if you want more information!

 

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 1. Yookidoo Snail

She loved the little black and white dots on the wheels when she was super little and now she watches the whole thing! The one pictured is the one we have but there is a new design on the market.

2. Carter's Sleep and Play

These are an absolute staple in any baby's wardrobe. They're soft and comfy cozy! Matt has a hard time with tops that go over her head and these are perfect for when they are alone. They are good for both bedtime and going out and about. I usually pair a headband with one when we go out! These are so much more practical than other articles of clothing because they are no-fuss-- nothing to keep rearranging/fixing.

3. Pottery Barn Bath Wrap

Santa brought Claire a Cheetah wrap for Christmas. It's furry and luxurious! They are so much thicker than the ones you buy at the big box store, which means baby stays dry and warm. Bath wraps are worth the splurge and I'll be ordering more in the future.

4. Fisher Price Soothe & Glow Seahorse

I held this lullaby seahorse to my stomach every night before bed and when Claire was born it would soothe her. The nurses at the hospital were shocked when she stopped crying when I played it. She still enjoys listening to it and stares at the glowing belly when we turn it on for her.

5. Dr. Seuss Sneetches on Beaches

Who doesn't love Dr. Seuss? This book is from the Nursery Collection and features pull tabs and exciting and bright illustrations. It has a good moral to the story too! Claire loves the rhyming.

6. Bumbo

I started setting Claire in this a little earlier than recommended but she has had great neck control since day one. I would set her in for just a minute or two, keeping my hands close to her head in case she got tired from holding it up. She sits in it for longer periods but only when I am sitting directly beside her.

7. Vulli Chan Pie Gnon Chew Toy

WOW! This toy is so silly! It's soft like the Sophie but the squeak is much more shrill. Claire thinks it's funny so we keep it around the house for her... Matt on the other hand, hates it!

8. Fisher Price Kick & Play Piano Gym

Claire got this for Christmas and it is my saving grace! She will lay on this for over an hour sometimes. I fully contribute her new found reaching ability to this toy. It features a mirror that looks down on baby and lots of toys to keep baby busy and entertained. Not to mention the keyboard at their toes! Perfect for babies with busy feet!

9. Vulli Sophie the Giraffe

Claire just recently started liking her Sophie. While most of her other toys are still a little too heavy, this one light enough for her to pick up and play with. She hasn't figured out how to make it squeak, and that's okay with momma and daddy!

10. Fisher Price Luv U Zoo Jumperoo

Another piece of equipment that I started using sooner than recommended. But it really helped her with her neck and back muscles. She isn't a fan of tummy time so I put her in this and put some small hand towels around her to support her. Once again, we started out in really small time intervals and have made our way to not having anything in the seat but Claire. She love the lights and the music.

11. Dr. Seuss Fox in Socks Bricks and Blocks

Same as the other book- silly with bright colors. This one is more of a tongue twister which will help your child when he/she starts to read. There are some interesting touchy/feely tabs along the side of the book that correlate with the story.

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12. Eric Carle firefly toy 

We have this for her carseat when it's dark out. She likes to watch it blink :)

13. Fisher-Price Little Glamour Set

Ohh how she loves this set! The big "diamond" ring is her favorite and is our go to toy in the car when she's upset. It's really reflective/shiny and makes loads of rattling noises!

14. Babylegs legwarmers

These make diaper changes a breeze, and they’re adorable too! Pair with a onsie and you're good to go! If it's cold, throw on a pair of socks!

15. Restoration Hardware Baby Luxe Faux Fur Stroller Blanket

Another item Santa brought for Christmas! This is my far one of my favorite items of all! It's so incredibly soft on one side and fuzzy, furry on the other! We use this all the time for photo shoots, cuddle time, and nap time.

16. Bumgenius Newborn Cloth Diaper

We have used these since Claire was a couple days old and we love them! She is currently only wearing them during the day as they are getting too small and don't provide the leak protection we need for nighttime.

17. Bumgenius 4.0 Cloth Diaper 

This is our nighttime diaper and soon to be full time diaper. We love these because they're pocket diaper which means you add as much absorbency as your baby needs. During the day, perhaps one insert will suffice, if not add another! These are great too because they dry much quicker than all-in-one diapers.

Love.

I love this little girl so much!

She's been growing like a wild monster! I tell her she's a wild woman, a wonderfully wild woman! In the past week and a half, she started playing with toys, found her feet, and started chewing on her toes! I'm blown away and I'm so in love!

well hello there!

Apparently blogging hasn't been very high on my priority list, but I certainly do miss it! I start work in less than 2 weeks and I'm so sad that I will have to leave Claire. The only time we are apart is when she is sleeping. I have enjoyed every single moment since she's been born. Luckily she'll be home with daddy for the whole month of December (he's still not back to work). However, she will not take a bottle and I'm growing more and more anxious everyday thinking about her reaction to not being able nurse while I'm away. Good news is that I only work about 4 hours each day, so perhaps she'll learn to hold out for me and nurse the moment I walk through the door.

While we're on the subject, any of you breastfeeding, working moms have any advice on how to get my little Claire to take a bottle? We've tried, as of now, four different kinds/brands of bottles and she hasn't liked a single one. Matt tried while I was out of the room, propping her up against his knees, grandma tried, and still no interest. She also will not take a pacifier, we've tried several brands of these as well. She does, however, suck on her hands which sometimes soothes her. Overall, she loves milk straight from the tap and will only pacify on me... she won't even suck my pinky as others have suggested.

I will not complain because she is a super happy baby. Since she's been born, she's only had 2 crying fits and they weren't as bad as I think they could have been. She's an absolute angel ;) {perhaps i'm slightly bias?}

She loves to lay in her crib and look at the tree decal on her wall. She'll stare at the wall and her mobile and will chatter for about 45 minutes or so. Claire also loves laying on her changing table. Whether she's naked or fully clothed, she talks and squeals with mamma! Evidence:

looking at her mobile

she spotted me... well actually the camera!

 Claire's first Thanksgiving was a hit! We drove home and spent a few days with our families. She was an absolute trooper. I was so worried she would be fussy due to the fact that everything was new and foreign, but she was her happy ol' self. She wore a beautiful 'Happy Thanksgiving dress' (that's what we called her dress) from Old Navy.

Happy Thanksgiving! with her Great Grandma Marzucco!

 We put up our Christmas tree last night and we got Claire dressed in her Christmas fleece footie jimjams (that what we call pajamas) but she cried because she was too hot so we put on her "Santa's little helper" onsie for the festivities! We were so excited to add her "first Christmas" ornament on our tree. We are so blessed to have her in our lives.

her first ornament from Hallmark

She was dressed up and ready to help put up the Christmas tree :)

so smart!

Claire keeps me super busy, hence the reason my blog is suffering, not that I mind AT ALL! I just had to share this video with you all! She surprises me everyday with how much she is able to do... my heart is so full, I think it may explode!

Here she is, just 6 weeks old, talking up a storm with her momma!



and some photos too!

1 week

 1 week old

My goodness gracious, where did the first week go baby girl? I'm not sure I know... but I can say that it flew by quicker than I could have ever imagined. You are so healthy, so your pediatrician says. You eat like a true Henretta and are changing your looks each and every day. Your daddy and I are so truly and madly in love with you. Not only have we managed to expand our hearts in order to fit all the love we have for you, we also had to make room for the new love we have for one another.

You are so strong already. Since you were two days old, you've been lifting your head all by yourself and you are so aware of everything around you. You love to be swaddled but the walls come down if mommy accidentally swaddles your hannies (hands)... you have to have your arms loose so you can suck on your sweet little hannies. You don't really like to be by yourself- you want to be held all the time and that's a-okay, except for at night. Mommy needs her beauty sleep too Claire Marie!

Your cheeks are still as chubby as they were the day you were born and I just cannot seem to get enough of them. Numm num num! I've been slathering you with baby oil because your lil body is so dry, especially your tootsies and hannies. Nanny had to go shopping for you because you are too small for all of your clothes. She bought you lots of cute outfits! Too bad you despise getting your clothes changed. Hopefully that will fade because once you can fit into 0-3 your going to have your clothes changed more frequently.

When you were 3 days old, we stated putting your cloth diapers on you. Your lil bum looks so cute! We still use disposables at night, but once this pack is done you will only be wearing cloth. We love love love Bumgenius Newborn diapers- they fit the absolute best. I'm hoping that I will start liking the way the kissaluv/prefolds and thirsties covers fit on your lil body.

Claire's Birth Story

We went to my scheduled appointment on Tuesday, the 25th to check my amniotic fluid level. I was 40 weeks and 4 days pregnant and I knew an induction was pending, though the exact date was unknown. While sitting in the waiting room, my midwife popped out to see me. She asked how I was doing and told me that she was probably going to induce me the following night, Wednesday.

Wow! I couldn't believe it. I mean, the moment I've been waiting for was finally here and I was incredibly excited, anxious, and nervous at the same time. Anxious and excited to finally meet my baby girl and nervous because I REALLY did not want to be induced. With all the research I've done, it seemed that women who had to be induced experienced such hard labor that they usually ended up with an epidural. The fact that I was already going to have one medication pumping through my body made me crazy, but the idea of plugging another one into my little girl put me over the edge.

My midwife went on her way and we waited a few more minutes until the ultrasound tech came and retrieved us for our check-up. We got to the back and she got right to work. She measured the baby's legs and a couple of other things before trying to measure her head. She was so far down that she couldn't really get an accurate reading, but estimated Claire's size to be 8 pounds 6 ounces. Next, she moved onto her heart. Come to find out, Claire's little heartbeat was really really fast. It kept jumping from the 160 range up into the high 180/low 190's. She immediately excused herself and went to get my midwife. I started crying and praying that my little girl was safe. She came back shortly and measured the fluid level. It was low. Dangerously low. My midwife finished up with her patient and popped in to check things out with baby girl.

Verdict was in, I was going to be induced that afternoon. I was going to have my baby. I was finally going to meet the precious little being that I've been growing in my body for past nine plus months. I was feeling more nervous and anxious than ever. Thankfully, Claire's heart rate went back down. The tech cleaned up my belly and we headed into an exam room to check my blood pressure and cervix position. Blood pressure was slightly elevated and I was 3-4 cm. Thank God. I was only 1-2 cms on Friday so my cervix was opening nicely.

I got dressed and headed up to maternity to be induced.

can you tell i was a little nervous??

We had to wait until more nurses arrived to get the pitocin rolling. In the meantime, my dad, aunt, and father/mother-in-law arrived. At 3:35 my nurse, Christy, came in and got the pitocin hooked up to my hep-lock. This was it, no turning back. I was going into labor. Real labor. No more Braxton-hicks contractions, real contractions. It only took about 10 minutes for them to start and when they did, they were already 5-6 minutes apart.

I labored on the ball for about 2 hours. My midwife came in at 5:30 and I was 5 cms. I decided to get into the tub because I was becoming more and more uncomfortable as each contraction passed. I was experiencing back labor and I was desperate for some relief. The tub felt incredible. The nurse put a towel across my stomach and told Matt to pour water over the towel during each contraction.

Speaking of Matt. Wow. What an awesome, amazing, incredible coach he was. He was by my side the.entire.time. He sat on the edge of the tub for about 2 hours. He would tell me jokes between contractions and poured water during them. Contractions were getting super strong at this point and I remember saying to him. 'It hurts so bad. It hurts so bad." He would look at me with the most reassuring eyes and tell me how amazing I was doing and how each one was bringing us closer to meeting our little girl. He was my rock and the reason I did such an awesome job bringing our baby girl into the world.

I got out of the tub because I had to got to the bathroom. I peed and pooped (sorry if TMI) and decided to get back on the ball. At 9:30 my midwife checked me again. This time, during a contraction. OMG it hurt like hell. Pure hell. This is where everything goes a little foggy for me... details are hard the remember.

Time stopped and I focused solely on birthing my baby. I got back in the tub. I remember getting out to get on the toilet. It felt better sitting on the toilet. That's when I started feeling the urge to push. It came and went. Some contractions, the urge was there, and other times, there wasn't a single ounce of desire. They moved me to the bed and checked me again. I think I was only 8 cms. I can remember being so disappointed with my progress and everyone telling me how great I was doing. Shortly after, my water broke. At one point, I remember hearing my mother-in-law handling her rosary beads.

They had me lay on my side and that, my friends, was an awful position to be in. I had them sit my back way up and I can remember putting my fists into the bed and lifting my butt away from the bed each time I had a contraction. It was around this time that I had them turn my ipod on. It was just what I needed to focus on my body.

The urge to push was so strong so my midwife checked my and I was 10 cms BUT there was still a small lip of cervix left. I got through a few more contractions when I started to hyperventilate. I was so exhausted and I was having a hard time breathing. They had to administer a small amount of morphine to help me relax. I can remember the room getting a little quieter. The pain was still immense but I felt a bit more calm. Soon after, around 10:30 pm, I started pushing.

For the next 2 hours I would push with every ounce of everything I had in my body. My mom, mother-in-law, Matt, and Christy held my legs, gave me water and apple juice, and applied icy cold wash cloths to my head, neck, and chest. I was so incredibly hot. I pushed on my back, leaning over the back of the bed, while 'playing tug-of-war' with a nurse, and using handle bars. I pushed so hard and for so long that I managed to break every single blood vessel in my face.

I was pushing and I can remember a burning and screaming at the top of my lungs. At 12:32 I opened my eyes for the first time in 2 hours eyes and it was then that I was staring down at my baby. My beautiful baby girl. I was so overwhelmed that I couldn't even muster a tear. I just kept repeating 'my baby, my baby'. I looked at Matt, who was still by by side, and the amazement that I saw in his eyes was/is indescribable.

welcome to the world Claire Marie

 letting out her first cry

the perfect size

They left her on my stomach for a while and Matt cut the cord once the cord stopped pulsating. I nursed her immediately and she did amazing. They took her away so the placenta could be delivered, which was not a good time at all. The cord ended up breaking and she had to manually extract the placenta. Yes. She had to stick her hand up inside me and retrieve it. It was treacherous. My midwife apologized the entire time she was doing it. Five minutes later she was stitching me up and Claire was placed back into my arms. She nursed again. I was so in love.

God blessed me so immensely that night and I couldn't be more thankful for this gift he gave us. 

I have had a beautiful recovery and Claire's already back up to her original birth weight. She is as healthy as a baby can be and she loves loves loves to eat! She wakes up so bright eye and bushy tailed that morning has officially went from my least favorite part of the day to my favorite.

Here she is today :0 ) 6 days old!

3 days old

I don't have much time but I wanted to share a photo of Claire with you all! Here she is last night, 3 days old! We are so in love with this little girl!

Claire Marie is finally here!

Lil babe Henretta arrived on Wednesday September 26th at 12:32 am weighing 7 pounds and 13 perfect ounces. She's 21 inches long and all cheeks! I was induced after my ultrasound at 40 weeks and 4 days showed low fluid. After 7 hours of labor and 2 hours of agonizing pushing, baby Claire was placed on my tummy. She's a fabulous baby and is nursing beautifully.

Once things settle down a little I will share her birth story. For now I'm off to get ready to go home with my new little family!!

This one's for you Jenna!

After reading a comment left by sweet Jenna from The Three Little Birdies (go check her out right now), I couldn't help but share a few photos of some of the new things in Claire's nursery. I won't be giving you the whole reveal until we get her dresser, but these should hold you over in the meantime! Sorry ahead of time for the quality of some of these... iphones are great, but not for photography! Let me know what you think :)

old washstand turned changing table/cloth diaper storage

 I really wanted a storage solution for my cloth diapers but didn't really want a conventional changing table. Matt was going to make me one but I couldn't decide on what I wanted. I did however know that I wanted a piece of furniture that can be re-purposed once she's out of the diaper phase. When I saw this beauty at the antique shop I knew it was exactly what I wanted. We only spruced her up a little tiny bit since we didn't want to diminish the integrity of this old washstand.

lamp, before/after

I told my mom to keep her eye out for a floor lamp because she's such lucky person when it comes to finding diamonds in the rough at her local goodwill. Well lo and behold, she found one, and I absolutley LOVE IT! It appears to be very vintage as it has these super awesome glass tubes around the neck and it's base is really heavy. Things just aren't made that way anymore. It will look different in the final reveal since I added something extra to it post photoshoot ;)

before

 We found this pretty shelf at the same store as the washstand/changing table. We (both my mom and I) have been searching feverishly for floating shelves, but weren't having any luck. My mom spotted this beauty and it's like it was meant to be in our baby girl's nursery. It's the perfect scale and her dresser will be positioned underneath it once it arrives.

after

 Things aren't evenly spaced in this photo but this is the shelf all painted and decorated. So simple and sweet, just the way I wanted it.

"antique toys" from the early '60s

Kind of a funny story about that dog pull-toy! First, let me start by saying that when we entered the store, the owner told us to make sure that once we walked through, to walk back through the opposite way because we would most likely miss something the first time around. Moving on. While we were walking through the store (the first time) I overheard Matt telling my mom that he would love to find "one of those old dog toys". As we made our way back through the opposite way I spotted the exact toy he was looking for! I was so excited to show him what I found. I was also thankful for that woman's advice. Needless to say, we walked around a couple more times before finally making our final purchases!

just for fun... what I see when I try to see my toes :)

34 week aerial view of the bump! haha

The day I've been waiting for!

We finally got to hear that beautiful baby heartbeat! Wow. What an incredible experience. I still think I'm a little in shock. I just cannot believe that I have a human growing inside of me. If that's not a miracle, then I don't know what is. Anyways, here's a video of baby Henretta's beautiful heartbeat.


Untitled from Erikka Henretta on Vimeo.

Notice the heartbeat is 160. An old wives tales says that anything over 160 indicates a girl. I know it's an old wives tale, but it only furthers my belief that this little angel is a girl (not that I have a preference). Only time will tell.