6 years and counting...

I didn't realize it had been quite so long without an update. Whew! A lot has happened since the holidays. Pictures will follow of course. 


Griffin enjoyed his two day a week Mommy's morning out program and still frequently talks about his teachers. He will attend the same school this fall for three days a week. He just completed a four week "camp" at another preschool to help combat his boredom from being stuck inside this summer due to the heat but also due to his sister. We celebrated Easter and Griffin's second birthday with a family trip to Oak Island. We rented a house so Hana could join us. She loves the beach and playing frisbee so it was wonderful that we could all be together before the baby arrived. 
When we returned home, Griffin had a play date outside with his friends Thomas and Bryn & Vince. The cupcakes were probably the best part. Grandma and Granddad were here too. G had to leave on a trip to Asia and then New & Popsi arrived later in the week to help. We spent May celebrating G's birthday and Mother's Day waiting for baby girl to arrive. 


Makenna Raine Hess joined us on May 24, 2012 at 3:24 a.m. weighing 10.5 lbs. and measuring 21 in. long! Many of the doctors and nurses marveled at her size and she was the biggest baby in the nursery during our stay. Luckily she came out healthy with all fingers and toes, as well as a head of black hair. I think she looks like her grandmother so far! :) She sleeps fairly well and the first two weeks of newborn bliss we would ask if there was a baby in the house. HA! After that of course she let us know she was definitely here- she has reflux like Griffin did and unfortunately some torticollis which makes her cranky the more I try to loosen her neck muscles. At her 1 month appt. she was already up to 13 lbs. and as of her 2 months appointment she is 14.5 lbs. and 24 3/4 in long. 


G and I just celebrated our 6th anniversary this weekend. My parents came to visit so we could try to have some time on our own. We were able to take a few hours without the kids and give us a needed mental break! It has been a long hot summer and August is just beginning. I am looking forward to fall so Griffin can continue school and hopefully get a break from the heat allowing us to get Makenna out of the house more. 
Hopefully it won't be so long without updates as I navigate handling two kids this year! :)

Christmas 2011

Click here to view these pictures larger

Where did fall go?

Once again, time has gotten away from us! At the end of summer, we headed to Louisville for a long week of family and friend time (well Griffin and I did but G had to work most of it in Indy). We tried to squeeze as many visits in as possible and still didn't get to see everyone we had hoped to see. Our trip home was delayed a day because our little guy got sick-only the second time so we can't complain.

At the end of Sept., we discovered that I was pregnant again! Baby Hess is due to arrive May 29th and we will see if he/she can be as punctual as Griffin. However, Uncle Brett says he would be happy to share his birthday on the 30th if not!

Griffin also began "school" or a Mom's morning out program 2x a week. He has really taken to it and is not upset when I leave him and I have also finally allowed myself to enjoy the quiet, although my morning sickness has made it not quite as fun as I hoped it would be. We love that he comes home with art projects and his clothes are covered in something every day so we know he is having fun. There are only 3 other kids in his class with 2 adults so it is a great environment.

Halloween was much more fun this year with Griffin being more aware and my parents visiting. Griffin went as Yoda from Star Wars. He wasn't scared of the costumes and only got the hang of taking candy from the basket once we were back home and kept taking it from Granddad who was trying to give it away!

There are too many cute photos from the fall so I will post them separately. With the rest of the holidays coming up and news in 2012 of the gender of Baby Hess, I hope to post more often until Baby #2 arrives anyway! :)

Summer 2011

Griffin is 1!

Happy Birthday Griffin! His celebration was well attended this past weekend by lots of family and friends. He handled himself quite well and I think enjoyed the sailboat cake I made for him. Thanks to everyone for coming and the gifts. I will let the pictures speak for themselves. His newest stats are 22 lbs. and 1.5 oz. and a lengthy 31.5 " tall! He also began taking steps in the last couple of weeks and I officially called it walking this week when he chose on his own to walk between the chairs instead of between G and I. However he hates shoes and he isn't fond of the grass so walking outside seems to be a little further off. Enjoy the birthday pictures!

Griffin's days

When I started this blog, it was to keep in touch while we lived in CA and share our adventures out west. We moved back to Louisville and I didn't write as much and then Griffin came along and I thought this would be a nice diary of his activities but I found I am usually too busy to get to it so today before my 36th (GASP!) birthday I am actually making note of the first time Griffin climbed the stairs.
G. Paul and I had just discussed the need to put in the baby gates on the stairs and he started working on it this morning while Griffin and I napped. When Griffin woke I set him on the stairs to see what Daddy was doing and about two seconds later he was up three steps. He may have had this skill earlier I just have not really let him test it out so now we know.
The other funny detail of Griffin's life this last week is his clear obsession with a circle and oval from his foam shapes book. He carries these two wherever he goes and ignores the other two shapes completely. We took video last night to demonstrate and I will try to add it at some point. He crawls around with both in his hand and if he loses one, he stops to find it. G thinks this means that Griffin is a free thinker because he has chosen the circle and oval as opposed to the triangle and star :)
One of Griffin's new meals this week was pasta with a little Parmesan cheese and it went over well-Brussel sprouts are still liked least (I don't blame you kid) but he will eat them if they come first before something tastier.
We still haven't been around much of Charlotte as far as downtown which they call Uptown here. We did take Hana to a nice dog park yesterday that also has a huge playground when it gets warmer hopefully we can take both kids. Luckily we have seen our friends the Moore's and the Harper's (other families that left ELAN to work at Snap) a few times and I was even able to spend time with a sorority sister who used to live in Charlotte but unfortunately just left the area. As always we look forward to visitors and already have a few on the calendar so let us know if you want to use us as a stop over on the way to the beach. It looks like Griffin and I might be back in KY in the fall for a visit while G travels to Indianapolis for a show.
Until next time!

8 months of Griffin

We say it almost everyday- we can't believe how big our baby boy is getting!
I am sure every parent must say it in the first year as they change so much, but with G. Paul gone for the last two weeks it was more evident all the ways Griffin was changing. Unfortunately his sleep pattern was part of that and almost drove me crazy! I guess he is too busy practicing all his skills and must do it at 4 or 5 in the morning and last night he didn't go to bed until almost 10 because he was cruising around his crib.
He still won't crawl forward, only backwards and just rocks when he is on his knees to go forward but he is already standing up by himself for a few seconds and can really cruise his crib and most furniture without help from us and only a few falls when he is tired- like in the middle of the night which has me running in scared when he hits his head on the crib. He must have a hard head though because not too many bruises and he doesn't seem to mind :)

We closed on the house this past Tuesday and feeling very bittersweet about it all of course. G has loved this house and we love our friends and park out back, but we are excited to start the new year in a new city and meet new people. Plus the man we sold the house to is getting his first house and we know he will take care of it and has been so appreciative of G's hard work on the house.

G really is enjoying his new job though it was so hard for him to be away from us and knowing we were having a hard time getting rest or exercise (in Hana's case) without him. Not to mention the early cold December brought!
So Christmas will be brief because the movers come on the 27th! But we are going to enjoy Griffin's first Christmas as he is already in awe of the tree and lights.
Until next time- happy holidays!

WOW!

Things are moving fast around here so I thought I would add another post. After having our house on the market for a week and a half we are already in the process of closing. Inspections happened yesterday and went well so now we just have to wait for the buyer's financing to go through! This means that we are on schedule to close Dec. 8th and hand over the keys on Dec. 29th arriving in Charlotte, NC on Dec. 30th.
The movers will be here on Dec. 27th so the Christmas decorations will be coming down the day after Christmas this year. We are excited that things seem to be falling into place and hope they continue to go well- we have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving!
Everyone has had good things to say about Charlotte and G. Paul is beginning to get excited about his new job. Hopefully our kids (Hana and Griffin) will adjust well. They have both made good friends here that we will miss, not to mention being so close to family but it is time to start the next chapter of our family's journey. :)
More updates to follow once we know where we are moving!

How did it get to be November already?

I am late on adding Griffin's 6 month stats but as usual it is hard for me to get much done when I have a baby to hold way more than I should. Especially as heavy as he is-coming in at a solid 18.5 lbs and 26 3/4 in.; according to the dr. As of 7 months and our at home scale we have him at 19.5 lbs. and over 27" but the length is pretty rough since Griffin thought I was being mean by trying to make him lie still for measurements.

This picture was taken on Oct.10, 2010 in the park behind our house. He has been busy sitting up since he was 5 months old, trying to pull up and in general scooting around in a circle when on his tummy or back. He doesn't really want to roll over but does seem interested in crawling from a sitting position so we have to watch that he doesn't bang his head on the floor when he launches himself forward. When he is on his tummy he goes backwards and screams about that too, which really makes me laugh and I hope it doesn't hurt his feelings.

Halloween was short but sweet due to Griffin and I having a bit of a cold though he recovered much quicker than I - thankfully so! His costume was a dragon and did get cool enough for him to wear it even if we have been blessed with a warm October. This is Griffin's first friend, Eva, who is exactly a month older than him. We try to have weekly play dates more for her mom and I than for the kids. Although the last couple have been more fun as Griffin and Eva attempt to talk and touch each other.


Happy belated anniversary to my parents, my brother and sister in law, and happy belated birthdays to my college roomie, Christina, and the newest 40 year old on the block, Brennon! :)
Among other reasons that blog updates take so long, it is the constant question about our living situation. Most of you know that the move to KY was possibly temporary and ELAN allowed us to stay here longer when I was pregnant with Griffin. After Griffin was born and changes occurred within ELAN, it was time to move back into the territory and we had many debates about whether that would be back to San Diego or Denver. After really deciding that San Diego was where we wanted to be, G was offered a position in a different company and he has decided to take that job which now means we are headed a different direction, towards the East Coast and will make our new home in Charlotte, NC. This move will still happen quickly as G begins his new job after Thanksgiving and hopefully Griffin and I will join him shortly after Christmas. Our house has been on the market for just over a week with several showings just today but we already have a deal on the table so keep all fingers crossed that inspections go well. It would be nice to have this settled before the holidays because I can't keep a house clean with Hana, Griffin and the holidays coming up.
I would expect the next update to be around the holidays once we know where in Charlotte we are moving and lots of pictures with Griffin's 1st Thanksgiving and Christmas.

4 month update

Griffin was 4 months last week but we just went to the Dr. today for official weight and height.
He is still in the 90th percentile for both- weighing in at 17.8 lbs. and 26"; whew! I was beginning to think he was already 20 lbs.

He celebrated his 4 month birthday by finally pushing up on his arms when doing tummy time as opposed to just making his neck do all the work. Tummy time has become more fun and he seems quite determined to figure out how to move. Griffin loves to stand in his exersaucer and on my arm, you can see on his face how proud he is to be so independent.

We went to our first music class last night and although he is the youngest by far (even though it is for 0-18 months most are closer to the end of the spectrum) he had a good time and was exhausted when we left. I like having someone else come up with ways for me to entertain him one evening a week.

I am going back to teaching one yoga class a week and while G travels, Linda will help watch him on those nights. G's work has been very stressful the past couple of weeks with layoffs. We will have more about our future in regards to that in the next couple of weeks so check back. We are heading to OH this weekend to see sorority sisters and going to a birthday party so we will have lots of pictures to post next week. Hopefully I can get to it- I am so thankful Linda took Griffin this afternoon so I could write this update and vacuum :)

Griffin is 3 months old

It is taking a lot longer these days to get a chance to post. Imagine that with a three month old. He is getting bigger at 16 lbs. and 6 oz. but actually eating less frequently, which is good news for me. He is the champion of fighting sleep still and chooses about every 4th day to get a good night's sleep or nap well. This week he has started to squeal more and really test how loud he can get!

Happy belated birthdays, Mother's day and Father's day to all I missed in the last few months. Sleep deprivation causes memory loss among a host of other issues :)

I have only been to one yoga class and subbed one class since Griffin came along, went to a movie with Cara, G got to go biking once and we have had three dinners when New or friends babysit. That pretty much sums up the last 3 months. I was so excited to get a visit from my friend Mona and her little Maya who is just one week older than Griffin- she lives in London so we rarely get to see each other! Griffin also got to attend his first Riverbats baseball game in style when my friend Valerie came to visit- her dad invited us to his suite and it was a beautiful evening for a ball game.

Hana still seems to be adjusting to Griffin but now thinks that if he is getting in the car seat it might mean a walk for her; she still tries to lick him all over but now that his hands are going in his mouth we have to be extra vigilant about her sneaking in kisses. She also tries to steal certain plush toys or pacifiers if they are left out- no damage has been done yet because we have always caught her but I am sure one day it will happen.

Griffin River Hess is here!

The story of Griffin's arrival: I decided that the night before his due date we would eat Mexican food in hopes that the myth of spicy foods setting off labor might actually work. Well it did or he is just a very punctual boy! By 11:30 that night I was having contractions but not sure if they were still Braxton Hicks until they became quite steady and by 3 a.m. they were coming every five minutes and increasingly uncomfortable. We headed to the hospital where they proceeded to tell me that I had not made any progress since my dr. visit on Wed.- I did not appreciate this news so they gave me the opportunity to get up and walk to see if that would move me along.
Well it made the contractions come quicker and stronger but still no progress so they sent me home with an Ambien to let me get some rest. HAHAHAHAHAHA

Within another two hours I was in the worst pain imaginable and the contractions were about 2 1/2 minutes apart. Off we went to the hospital again (Linda came to get Hana who was very worried about me and spent several minutes licking my hands- sweet puppy) and still no further progress- I told them to give me an epidural because I couldn't take the pain if it was going to last indefinitely. I hated to do it but there was no way to go on not knowing when it would stop. This of course slowed my labor and they added Pitocin to the mix to get me going again. The labor nurse was so great and by 6 p.m. I was ready to push. G. Paul was with me and parents plus Aunt Cara waited outside.

Griffin River arrived at 6:54 p.m. 8 lbs. 15 oz. and 21 in. long- beautiful but apparently big for me according to all the nurses and the doctor (who was not my dr. because mine was on vacation but you don't really care once it all starts happening). He is gorgeous and we love him to pieces. I am still in recovery mode and of course sleep deprived. G. Paul has already been the best dad doing a lot of diaper changing and soothing when I can't and he is the best husband for encouraging me to rest when I can and soothing me when I am hormonal, tired and frustrated.
Thanks to everyone for the lovely notes and gifts- it is nice to know this little boy has so much love.

2 posts in 1 day

Granted the shower pictures were promised awhile ago, but since G is working on projects before the baby gets here- I thought I better get caught up too.

So we are almost 38 weeks pregnant and as of last week, I had dilated to 1 cm and 60% effaced. Since then lots of Braxton Hicks contractions but not much else, however I am hoping when I go to the Dr. this week that there will be more progress. I really think he is getting too big as I am starting to have back ache and lower abdomen pain when I walk. Hana's walks are getting longer and longer because I am basically strolling at this point- it is very hard for G to slow down his usual pace too- he was secretly glad when I was at work yesterday that he could get Hana walked in under an hour.

The nursery is essentially ready. We just need to add some fun decorations. Also the Great Room is almost complete now that the wall is painted with matching speaker screens, a brand new shade (that of course upset Hana for a few days because it seems to move on its own), and our curtains are being made this week! whew. Now G is on to shelves in the garage for his tools and future kids toys.

Our bags are packed for the hospital and we think we are ready as we will ever be. I have no idea what to expect if and when labor should start on its own but it will be an adventure and I am sure a long blog post will follow once I get a chance to tell you all about the experience. In the meantime check your e-mail for an announcements! :)

Shower pictures at last!

Little boy? not so much

I am 35 weeks now and we excitedly went to get new ultrasound pictures of our little one today. If you recall from the last post, the Dr. thought I was measuring small- well Dr.'s can be wrong, really wrong! The guess now that he is closer to being in the 83rd percentile for weight at this point and I still have 5 weeks to go!!!
So in we go to see the Dr. after the ultrasound and I am preparing to hear that the due date has moved up and G will have to change his travel schedule. Nope- not at all. My due date remains the same as I now fear I will have a gigantic baby. The curious thing about all of it is I managed to lose a pound since the last visit- where is he getting this weight? The good news is he is already in position like he should be but the bad news for me is 5 more weeks potentially of him sitting on my bladder and the lower back ache that has begun. Ahh the joys of being pregnant!
I haven't had much to complain about for the past 8 months so I guess everyone will have to bear with me these last few weeks as it starts to get more and more uncomfortable.

I know everyone is asking for pictures from the shower and they are coming as soon as G puts them on the server. I am also working at thank you notes so don't think we didn't appreciate everything we got- it was really more than we could ever imagine and I think baby is set for the first few months for sure. Mom and Dad's preparation? We will have to see about that.

Happy Birthday to Popsi- we had a great dinner yesterday with the family and enjoyed the beautiful spring weather together.

33 weeks and growing?

Somehow everything that measured perfectly at 30 weeks did not continue to do so at 32 weeks- but the Dr. isn't worried, she left that for me to do. I am sure all is well but she did schedule an ultrasound for 2 weeks from now to check if this little boy is growing at quite the right rate. I find this immensely confusing because I am managing to gain weight and feel he is stretched across my entire body- her measurements did not indicate that this is true and here I was waiting for the announcement that he would in fact come early because he is big. He has other plans perhaps.
I am excited we get to see his picture again because so much will have changed since our 20 week ultrasound and hopefully it will put all my first time mom fears at ease. The good news is we have also survived G's 5 weeks on the road to have him home this week- Hana is as excited as I am because someone else can entertain her. She has still not been quite right herself since being ill last week so she is also headed to the doctor on Tuesday for a check up. However when the sun came out today and the temperature reached 60 degrees but snow was still on the ground- well this thrilled her to no end and I was able to enjoy being outside with her!
We will be sure to post ultrasound pictures in a couple of weeks!

Pictures!

New pictures of Hana in the snow with her friend Midget and my birthday celebration. Enjoy!

Went to the Dr. yesterday for 30 week check up and everything is measuring perfectly. I go every two weeks from now until 36 weeks and then once a week until this baby boy decides to meet the world. We are getting very excited- carpets cleaned this morning and picking up furniture this weekend. Not to mention a U of L game against Rutgers this afternoon- Go Cards! :)

30 weeks already!

I know I have been promising pictures forever so on my birthday I allowed a few pregnancy photos to be taken. I am now 30 weeks along and feel as if I am getting bigger everyday but the Dr. says I am the right size. Sleeping is becoming a bit uncomfortable and I can officially say that I can't see my feet when I look down anymore but otherwise still feeling good.

We painted the nursery this weekend with the help of G's parents and we are really happy with the way it turned out. Luckily the phone calls just came telling us that our furniture has arrived as well so as soon as the carpet is cleaned we will start furnishing and decorating Baby Hess's room. No he still does not have a name but if he did I don't think we would share it so that no one can make fun of it. :)

I had a great birthday with family and lots of desserts- we made the mistake of trying the new dessert place up the street- The Comfy Cow. Named appropriately because you will feel like a cow when you leave there but a great place for a group of people to SHARE dessert.

Snow day!

First official snow fall of 2010! Most of you would think I would be very upset by this (and I have been missing San Diego something fierce since they are having unseasonably warm weather at the same time) but because the wind has died down, the temperature is not as bad as it has been and therefore a little more bearable. Speaking of Bears :), Hana has already had two wonderful romps in the snow including one with her friend Midget. They ran as if they had been let loose from jail and when we came back in, Hana could barely walk for all the ice and snow accumulation on her paws. G is of course not enjoying this weather because he is nice and comfy in the 60 degree weather out in Vegas for the CES show. Hopefully he can make it home tomorrow despite the weather! The pack isn't the same without him.

I added a new blog to our ohana- my friend Christina has so many great stories from riding the Metro around D.C. and you will get a kick out of it if you ever take public transportation. I am also hoping to add pictures from the holidays and Hana's playing in the snow this weekend- for those of you who again have been asking there will be photos of the big belly!

Happy New Year and Go Cards!

I am currently baking Chex Mix for the annual U of L vs. UK basketball game so I thought it would be a good time to blog. I hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2010- it will be a very exciting year for us when Baby Boy Hess arrives- yes he is still just called Baby Boy because we have not come up with a name. We went to the doctor right before Christmas for just a quick check up and all seems well though I feel as if he is sitting really low, the Dr. told me there weren't any problems. I will go in next week for my glucose test (after the Christmas cookies have made their way through my system) and then I see the Dr. again before my birthday!

We had a very nice Christmas- spending the morning walking Hana as usual and then opening gifts, on to G's parents for lunch and presents, and then more presents when my parents arrived the day after Christmas. I should specify that the majority of gifts were already for the baby so we are under pressure to get this nursery started just to have a place to store all of it- Hana doesn't really want to share her room with baby toys if she can't play with them :) For those of you worried about our nursery progress- we are ordering furniture this weekend and have ordered some bedding so we just have to get calking and painting before any of that arrives. We are also scheduled to take a marathon baby education class at the hospital this month.

New Years eve was even more low key with just a movie and countdown between the two of us- at least we made it to midnight! On the 1st we sang Happy Birthday to Hana because we think she was born 2 years ago right around the beginning of the year- we are still so thankful for our sweet pup who gives us lots of love and reasons to be outside walking in the cold even if we don't want to- watching her chase snow flakes definitely takes your mind off the frigid temps.

Hopefully U of L will pull off a surprise win this afternoon and start 2010 off right! Go Cards!