When Jessica was a mere 8 days old, she had a portrait session at the Sweet Pea Studio. She was awake and alert the entire portrait session (~45 minutes) and only got fussy once. The photographer was surprised she was so calm since she was awake. We received the link to the photos after a few days, but it took us a week and a half to decide which prints we wanted and then almost 5 weeks to receive them. Finally, here they are for you to view.
Favorite Image 1
Favorite Image 2
Favorite Image 3
Favorite Image 4
Favorite Image 5
It’s amazing how much she has grown in the 7 weeks since the portraits were taken.
Jessica has started to be more observant. In her crib, she will watch her mobile rotate. This is great since it will allow upwards to 10 or 15 minutes after changing her diaper for me to rinse it out or go start a load of laundry or even go prepare my lunch (reheated leftovers or a sandwich) so that I can eat my lunch while she eats hers.
Jessica Watching the Mobile, 11/30/09
On a fabulous side note, Jessica slept through the night for the first time Saturday. She slept from 9 to 7 for a total of 10 straight hours. It was awesome, but last night she was back to waking at 4, so I’ll wait to be super excited when it becomes an everyday thing. I estimate she weighs about 12 or 12.5 pounds and they say 11 pounds is the size needed to be able to sleep through the night.
She also really loves her Daddy flying her around. It is a very calming technique for her, because if she is a little upset or if we’re too slow in getting her to her dinner, it will quiet her cries and get her ready to eat. I still should get a video of the flying in action, but in the meantime, you’ll have to settle for this photo of James and Jessica before flying.
Daddy and Jessica, 12/1/09
Jessica is pretty good at keeping herself occupied. She even tries to stick her whole hand in her mouth. She hasn’t succeeded yet, but she continues to try.
Jessica Sucking on her Hand, 12/2/09
My parents came into town Thursday night after their tax conference ended. They babysat Jessica while I went into the office on Friday for a few hours. When I got home, they said she was an easy baby to care for, any parent’s hope.
Papa and Jessica, 12/4/09
As many people have commented, Jessica has a lot of hair. I finally remembered to put a bow in it yesterday. I initially was going to use a headband, because I thought it might stay in better, but her head is a tad too small for the headband. So instead I clipped it directly to her hair and it stayed beautifully. I can’t wait until it gets a little longer and I can put it in pigtails. Order some finery for your little girl at my friend Jillan’s Etsy shop.
Jessica in her Finery, 12/6/09
Jessica is truly a happy baby and we are very blessed.
Happy Jessica, 12/7/09
*** If you like any of the pictures I post and would like a copy, please let me know and I will email you the full-size version. I resize my pictures for the blog to 600 pixels wide to save memory and allow you to open without having to scroll to see the whole thing.
I made these for breakfast when we had company at Thanksgiving. I got the idea for them from Green Lite Bites, a blog I found about when James directed me to read an article about the lady who writes the blog that was on CNN’s website a little while back. Of course, I couldn’t make purely whole wheat pancakes if I wanted James to enjoy them. As it was, he thought they were just okay. I thought they were pretty good, even as leftovers a couple days later.
Cooking First Side
Apple-Cinnamon Pancakes
Ingredients:
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1 cup skim milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
Directions:
In medium bowl, whisk together applesauce, egg and milk. In smaller bowl, add the flour, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. Sift into apple mixture; mix until just blended.
Heat a skillet over medium heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Using about 1/4 cup of batter, form pancakes. Cook about 1-2 minutes per side (small bubbles will form but not as many as traditional pancakes).
Last year for Thanksgiving, we were in Tahiti and didn’t celebrate. This year, we had a newborn and didn’t want to travel so we invited James’ parents to visit. We enjoyed their visit.
Jessica enjoyed taking a nap with her Grandpa while Thanksgiving lunch was being prepared. See Monday’s post about what was prepared for lunch.
Jessica and her Grandpa Snoozing
About to Eat Thanksgiving Lunch
Friday morning, I made pancakes (see tomorrow’s post for the recipe). Dawson enjoyed talking to Jessica while the rest of us finished eating.
Dawson Talking to Jessica
Jessica Snoozing in Nana's Lap
In the afternoon, James’ Mom and I went to a craft store, which wasn’t too crowded. Afterward, we all went to Dick Nichols Park, where James and Dawson threw a ball back and forth.
"Hmmm, I think I like this park outing."
Was Dawson throwing or catching?
Saturday morning, James and I put up Christmas lights outside. We (well, I) then held a mini photo shoot of Jessica and her grandparents and some with her cousin Dawson.
Granpa, Jessica, Nana, and Dawson
Nana, Jessica and Grandpa
This last one was taken after Jessica sneezed and had a wet fart while changing her diaper that caused me to select different pants for her to wear. Who would think a wet fart could shoot a foot away?
Operation Write Home