The Growing Caldwell Family

I could just eat her up!

Grancy sent us this DVD and another about counting a while back.  While SG was feeling bad with a cold I put this one in and she really liked it.  We watched it several times that day and have watched it more since.  Now that she is feeling better, Sarah Graves will dance and clap to the music.  That is the cutest.  The DVD was filmed at the San Diego Zoo and focuses on baby animals they have in the zoo and they sing some cute songs.  The series has several cartoon type animal characters that show up in all the videos and they dance and play instruments.  The DVD comes with a CD, so that you can continue to listen to the songs after the DVD is over.   Aaron recently put them on an iPod for Sarah Graves to listen to in the nursery.  Now, I come to work every day with a song about how much Franky loves the baby elephants stuck in my head.  I'm sure my co-workers would love it if I belted out a few verses. 

So here I sit 4 days away from my baby's first birthday extremely proud that she has been exclusively breastfed. I feel fortunate to have worked full time and kept it up, but I don't think luck is the only thing that got us this far. I think persistence and strong support are what made the difference. When Sarah Graves was fussy at two days old and my milk had not yet come in, no one suggested we try formula and still didn't when I was exhausted from nights of getting up to give my baby the one thing that soothed her. Whether it was because he knew how important it is to me or because he truly believes in the benefits of it, Aaron never suggested we try formula. Having that kind of support and no one doubting you and what you are trying to do makes a big difference. That kind of support is one of the kindest things that the people closest to you can do in the early days of being a mother. When she woke up at 2 am and I was exhausted, nursing was mine. When she looked...

Yesterday we had our first play date with Allison.  We had a great time visiting with Allison and her mom, Katie.  Allison is a few months younger than Sarah Graves and they managed to get along well with one another.  Sarah Graves was willing to let Allison play with her toys and Allison decided that Sophie was a great toy!  Allison was fascinated with Sarah Graves' bow, and Sarah Graves thought she would stand on Allison (we stopped her from doing that) and attempted to hug her. Katie and I haven't had much opportunity to catch up in the past year, so this was a good time for us.    We attempted a group picture, but SG was not real interested.  Allison, on the other hand, was happy to pose! We had such a fun time that I am sure we will do it again!

Yesterday morning we were able to get off of our street. It felt strange to wear shoes and pants that buttoned after several days of wearing lounge wear in the house. Aaron brought me to work, then he brought Sarah Graves to my Mom's. When he tried to leave to go to work, he was surprised to find that the hill you have to go up to leave their street was too icy for him. He tried multiple times before going back in the house. After hanging out there for a while, he gave it another go, this time building up a lot of speed, and he made it. In the afternoon, several men from the neighborhood got out with sledgehammers and shovels to break up the ice. A local news chopper caught it and they were featured on our local ABC news channel! So the hill was no longer a problem for Aaron in the evening. Today is day 5 since the big snowfall and things are getting back to normal. I wanted to show this picture of how much snow and ice remains. This isn't a great shot because it is f...

I have been working hard to get an invitation ready for Sarah Graves' birthday and I finally had it done on Saturday night.  Then, the snow hit.  At first, I thought it wouldn't be a big deal and we would mail them out on Tuesday.  Now it's Wednesday and we really haven't been able to leave.  Aaron just made it up our street and has been able to see the conditions of the roads in the area.  The overpass that we use as one way to get to and from our neighborhood is totally iced over and the intersection I go through to get to work he said is a mess with only one lane operational.  Aaron is a good Dad and despite the conditions of the roads (and due to his cabin fever) he is trying to get to the post office to get Sarah Graves' birthday invites in the mail.  Let's hope that he is successful!  Here's a peak at her invite!  I think she looks pretty cute in her first birthday outfit that Ms. Margaret Ann made her.  I have been working ...

These photos are a good depiction of today at our house.  SG stayed in her fleece pajamas all day and basically played and had a great time being at home.  She starts off a little cranky and movin slow in the mornings and seems to get up to full speed by lunch.  I know how she feels.  Waking up congested from a cold in the mornings takes a little warming up.