Growing, Growing, Growing!

A few weeks ago we took a picture of Palesa next to a Time magazine to show some perspective of her size.  Today we put her next to a phone book.  I wish I could weigh and measure her myself to see how big she is, but our little baby is definitely getting bigger!  Then, we propped her up on the phone book for some tummy time, and again, she happily held it for a few minutes.  That's our little girl!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

I felt a little guilty that Osei's birthday wasn't going to be very special.  We are in Colorado for a month living out of suitcases (which is definitely special), but Osei and I have been together almost every minute.  So no chance for surprise plans or gifts or anything like that.  And, it is not like you can completely avoid new parental responsibilities just because it is your birthday (though I changed the big ones!).  So, we had to improvise a little to make the day special!

Thursday morning we met with my old high school cross country coach, Joanne, for coffee at the Laughing Goat in Boulder.  We enjoyed catching up with Joanne, and I have a feeling she made a quick expert assessment that our little girl has some athletic potential (wishful thinking that she'll follow our footsteps and fall in love with running?)

Then Osei and I went to Beau Jo's pizza for lunch.  We weren't that impressed, but were pleasantly surprised when Grandma Nancy stopped by to say hello.  Yay us for making a plan and sticking to it!

Afterwards, we took a drive around the neighborhoods of Denver to explore a little.  As we plan our move to Colorado later this winter, we can definitely both see ourselves ending up in Denver!

Then we met up with a high school friend of mine (and fellow Fairview cross country runner) for happy hour.  We enjoyed meeting her new husband, Nadav, and spending time with both of them.

As if we couldn't pack more activities into our busy day, then we met Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Ralph at BJ's for dinner.  The pizza here exceeded our expectations, even though it meant a two-pizza kind of day!  I carried Palesa in the ring sling the whole evening, and she did wonderfully.  In fact, as we walked along Pearl Street to meet Beth, I even nursed Palesa in the sling (while walking).  We had a few strategically placed blankets for warmth, but otherwise, it was all pretty natural and normal!

Overall, I felt extremely blessed to spend another birthday with my dear husband, Osei.  Happy Birthday, love!

Rise and Shine my Little Angel!

On Thursday, Osei's birthday, Palesa woke up in such a beautiful mood.  We held her and played, and our little girl was all smiles.  One of my favorite things when she first wakes up is to lay her on my chest and we snooze and converse and just hang out until Osei wakes up.  She tends to push off of my belly and scooch up my chest until her beautiful fine hair tickles my chin.  I absolutely love it when her hair tickles my chin!  It is so silky, soft, and perfect!

She is our happy little baby... what a wonderful birthday present for her Daddy!

Palesa does her Party Tricks

On Wednesday, Osei, Palesa and I had dinner with Cyndi and Ron at their house.  The meal was delicious (no surprise there), the conversation wonderful, and all enjoyed getting to know Palesa.  Cyndi was astonished at the developmental progress Palesa had made in a few short weeks!  We put the blanket on the table and propped her up on her belly, and she was happy, smiling, and drooling the entire time.  She held her head and neck up for at least 3 minutes, though none of us bothered to time it as we encouraged her and made funny faces to keep her smiling.  This was especially fun for all of us because she maintained such good eye contact.

Yes, we make her work very hard to hold up her head and neck all by herself, but it is definitely paying off- Palesa is one strong little baby!

Babe in Arms

It is so challenging to take a successful picture while holding Palesa.  I can't get my arm far enough away to take the picture, I can't see her through the screen lens, and the angle is usually funny.  But this one turned out okay!  Palesa is now 6 weeks old.

I remember when she was about 10 days old taking a walk to the Post Office with Osei in Jamaica Plain.  We saw a mother with a 6 week old baby.  I remember looking at Palesa and the little boy, and I could hardly imagine that Palesa would ever be that big and that old.  But I guess as is to be expected, time moves forward, and Palesa hit 6 weeks!

Playing Piano with Grandpa Larry

On Monday, we went to visit Grandpa Larry.  He introduced her to his Baby Grand piano.  (Palesa got a kick out of the "Baby" part of it, but there is nothing small about that piano!)  Grandpa Larry noticed that she responded to the sounds, but didn't really look at the keys and didn't connect where the sound was coming from.  Then again, she's only 6 weeks old- she has plenty of time to figure that out!

Daddy Caught a Good One!

I'm not sure how (or why) Osei thought to wrap and carry Palesa like this, but it certainly stopped her fussing, despite her expression here.

More visits with Grandpa

On Sunday, Grandma Nancy, Grandpa Ralph and Great-Grandpa Dave came up to Windsor (at Suz and Bryan's house) to visit.  Palesa seemed pleased that the Broncos won, and enjoyed being held by her Great-Grandpa and hearing his stories.  He enjoyed watching her look around and make eye contact with her, and took extra delight when she smiled.  

This is what happens when Daddy falls asleep

I could not resit.

A few of the Grownups too...

Everywhere we go, people see us and excalim, "Palesa!!" and then say hello to us.  We figured it was time to take a picture of us parents.  Palesa was making faces, and finally, outright protesting!