The Smiley Baby at 3 Months

My How Time Flies!

My how time flies. It's amazing just how much life can change in a matter of a few months. In a couple of days our little Hattie will be turning FOUR months old! It's hard to believe but at the same time, we can't fathom life without her....a major piece of our hearts would be missing.

Hattie has been such a blessing! Every day she melts our hearts with one of her grand smiles, silly giggles, "chattiness" or reaching a new milestone. She IS a "Chatty Kathy" and especially loves to talk to her daddy, as he'll let her get a word in edge-wise.....Mommy is quite the chatter box herself as is Hattie's Uncle George and GranGee. Poor Trey didn't have a chance! :) She is very inquisitive and let's you know when she's puzzled by something with her expressive eyebrows. Her Great Unce John said it reminded him of a mini Winston Churchill.

Hattie, at barely three months impressed us with her first roll-over from her back to her tummy! Hattie and I were visiting GranGee and GranSnap in Tulsa at the time so she had quite the cheering section. Just a few days ago, she began rolling back over from her tummy to her back- what a big girl!

Speaking of big girls, we have her 4 month well baby check-up tomorrow and it'll be interesting to see where she is, size-wise in comparison to other babies her age. Last time (2 months) she had moved from the 50th percentile in weight and length to the 75th in both. She's a big pudge now, weighing in at 15 lbs 2 oz! I always wanted a chubby baby and I got one. I'm sure people look at Trey and think, "Where did THAT baby come from?!??" Ha!

Hattie found her thumbs a couple months ago and has her thumbs, hands, fingers...or something in her mouth at all times. She was sucking her thumb a couple of minutes after she was born and the nurse said, "We have an experienced thumb sucker here" so I guess her sucking her thumb now doesn't come as a surprise. She hasn't found her feet yet- maybe next month. She LOVES her bath, as do most babies, I would assume. Hattie is just figuring out cause and affect as it relates to splashing in the tub. She picks up her legs and slams them back down in the water to create big splashes and thinks it's great! Bath time is always entertaining.

We bought her a Johnny Jump-Up, which she dances around in on her toes and bounces up and down every once in a while. It's all so new- so much to explore and discover. We are capturing so much of it on video and/or camera and are having a blast with it.

Trey and I were faced with a very difficult decision about a month or so ago. Maternity Leave was coming to an end for me with International Paper and we had to decide whether or not I would return to work. I loved my job as a Sr. Buyer for the company here in Cincinnati and had studied and worked hard in school to achieve what I'd achieved, career-wise. We felt that the best decision for Hattie and our family was for one of us to be at home with her so I resigned from my position with the company. I know we made the right decision and am loving every minute of my days with her but it wasn't an easy thing to do. When people ask me what I do, it's also been strange saying, "I'm a stay-at-home mom" as opposed to "I'm a Sr. Buyer for an international Fortune 100 company" (not that I ever actually said it like that) :) I'm so very grateful that I'm able to be at home with our little Hattie.

That's all for now but I'll post more pictures soon. For now, here are a few from the last month plus a couple that got lost in my files of Dad and Hattie from Dad and Kathy's visit when Hattie was only 2 weeks old.

Welcome to Hattie's video store

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1331423

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1331445

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1331759

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1862553

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1862613

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1862598

http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=56647b844f5c5b50ea9e03f2d1653c30.1862796

January 2007 Visit from the Rosa's and Daddy's Birthday

The Happy "Buddah" baby!







"Aunt" Lindsay, Christian and
"Hattie-Beth" (nickname given by Lindsay) - pretty cute, I must say




Aunt Lindsay and "Hattie-Beth"







(right) Aunt Lindz (what a smile!) and the crew



(left) Kizer & "Aunt" Kristin, "Hattie-Beth" & "Aunt" Lindsay


Baby in a diaper- awwwww...




Uh Oh! It's "Uncle" Irv!



Trey's Birthday (1/17/07) dinner



What a face!









Hattie's all "dolled" up for
Daddy's birthday

Dec. 24 '06- Christmas Visit to Virginia Part II & Post X-Mas Visit from GranGee and GranSnap Back Home in Cincinnati

GranGee and Baby Hattie opening stockings




No more kisses Daddy!





Confused looking little Hattie





(left) Sleeping Beauty and Mommy




(right) "GranSnap" and Hattie- sweet




(below) The Buchanans meet Miss Hattie for the first time


Daddy loving on Hattie




Lou and Riley, Trey and Hattie at their parent's house in VA

Dec. 21-24 '06- Christmas Visit to Virginia Part I

right - Christmas Eve visiting the Dillon clan after service





below- Trey (and Hattie) on keys at his old stomping ground (our church in Franklin, VA) with Barry behind him on the guitar

above left- Trey (and Hattie) on keys at his old stomping ground (our church in Franklin, VA) with Barry behind him on the guitar

(left) Hattie's big day with some VA friends



right- The whole Culpepper clan at Hattie's dedication: from left to right-
Jo & Britt, Edna, Trey, Kristin and Hattie, Jennifer & Scott, Lou & Dylan



Aunt Lou and Hattie







Grandma "Jo-Jo" (Trey's Mom) and cousin Riley (Trey's sister, Lou's, son) with baby Hattie- what a fuss face Hattie has!





Our former neighbor from Virginia- her "Great-Grandma" Beatrice...we miss having her next door (sorry the pic. is sideways...) :)






Our special friends the Butlers- a Christmas visit



Great-Grandmother Edna (Trey's Dad's Mom) & Hattie


Pastor Dillon and Patty (in Franklin, VA) the day before they performed Hattie's baby dedication service








A hooded Hattie

6 wks Old Hattie

Hattie buying her first Christmas tree with Mommy and Daddy. As you can tell she was overwhelmed by all the excitement!







Our little snow bunny wearing her Uncle George's little outfit from when he was a baby



A family pic from a wonderful visit with the Romeisers: Mommy, Hattie, "Oncle Jean"(Uncle John) and "Auntie Carole"





An attempted Thanksgiving Day picture- would've been great had Hattie been a bit more alert- too much turkey, I guess!







Helping Daddy study....




Here she is having an animated conversation with her "GranGee". Pardon the outfit and the hair...the outfit was Mommy's as a baby and she'd not had her a.m. bath yet- she didn't expect to have her picture taken!

We're On Our Own - Part 2

Is she cute or what?

Snoozin' in Mommy's lap

Two lovely ladies! (Signed, Trey)

Naptime for Hattie and Daddy

We're On Our Own- Oh My!

Hattie celebrated her three week birthday yesterday at 1:36 p.m. It's hard to believe that she's been with us for three weeks already yet, at the same time, it's difficult to remember life pre-Hattie. She just belongs here and completes our little family. As most of you know, Mom came to Cincinnati to spend a few weeks around the time of Hattie's birth. She arrived on the 18th of October, giving us a week or so to get some last minute things done around the house.... Christmas presents ordered and wrapped....I guess she knew all too well what was coming down the road for us once little Miss Hattie arrived on the scene! ;) Thank heavens we had that time before hand- it was very special.

Once Hattie entered the picture, it was quite an adjustment but Trey and I were able to ease into it since Mom was handling the laundry, dishes, straightening up the house....let me repeat laundry- boy does that little one go through clothes! Mom helped us with her first bath, changed probably all but 10 diapers while she was here (she claimed it was "a priviledge" since she wouldn't be able to change them anymore once she went home) and helped me establish some sort of schedule for Hattie (as much of one as a two week old can maintain). Most importantly, she acted as a sounding board for what to do with Hattie when she fussed or I was dumbfounded by a certain cry....the list goes on. There are just so many questions you never anticipate pre-motherhood that are real stumpers once the little one is here. Mom gave me confidence that all was well and would continue to be well with baby Hattie. I sure wish Mom was still nearby. We chat every day, as we did pre-Hattie but it just isn't the same as having her here to spend time with and for her to get to see her first grandchild grow a little older each day. For now, mere pictures will have to do.

It was an appropriately dreary day when Trey, Hattie and I had to say goodbye to "GranGee". Needless to say, the ride home was not a cheery one. Trey's parents had come into town a couple days prior to meet their first granddaughter and celebrate her two week birthday. That helped take my mind off my mom's departure a bit. We had a nice visit and they departed five days later. The evening they left, my dad and Kathy flew in from NYC for a day and a half, which was also a lovely visit. It's funny- I'd always wondered what Mom and Dad would be like with their grandchildren, since I don't recall what they were like with George when he was a baby. It was 100% natural, though. Watching them interact with our little girl brought tears to my eyes on more that one occasion. It was a beautiful encounter, a beautiful sight.

This brings us to Friday, Nov. 17th, my first day on my own with Hattie. I never imagined what a challenge mom's (or dad's) at home alone with a newborn faced. It seemed so simple, almost relaxing to me before I experienced it myself. Even if Trey, Mom, Dad, Kathy, Jo, or Britt were just holding or watching Hattie, it allowed me to do a bit of laundry, some dishes, sort through some mail, those PILES of catalogues (especially this time of year) or grab a quick shower. Well, with none of them here, I basically accomplished nothing on Friday. Any of you that know me well know that a good day is a productive day. Whether it's checking things off my list such as grocery shopping, other errands, a walk, getting the housework under control or making a nice dinner, I, and those around me must be productive for me to feel good about my day! Wierd, I know....AND it looks like this will have to change about me if I'm to remain sane over the next couple months! I'm coming to the conclusion that amidst the fussy episodes that require constant attention, attempts to get Hattie to become familiar with and enjoy her crib, and other pieces of equipment (swing, bouncy chair...), feedings, changing her diapers and constantly washing her clothes that get dirty in the midst of or as a result of having to change her diapers...........I have some very UNproductive days ahead of me. That's okay, though, it'll be good for me to learn to slow down, give Hattie my full attention and learn that that investment is far more important than any check list I might have waiting to get done. After many basically sleepless nights, I'm amazed at how wonderful an hour or two of sleep can feel. I think that the week ahead, I'll take the advise of many mothers and sleep when she sleeps and remember that the checklists can wait a bit...at least until "Daddy" gets home...ha.

I know that all too soon she'll be on that much dreamed of schedule where she doesn't get her days and nights confused and takes naps like a good little girl but until then I'm in no rush because these days are all to fleeting and all too precious. Every day, Trey and I just stare at her, sleeping, awake, fussing....whatever her state may be and thank God for such a perfectly precious little blessing. She is such a joy to us already and we pray that she touches everyone reading this in the same way one day as well as the many others she encounters down the road.

Enjoy the latest pictures.....and thanks for reading.

Our Happy Little Family

Kick around time with Mommy and Esther

GranGee and Baby Hattie

First Bath!