Harris Christmas

This year as usual, we went up to Detroit to celebrate Christmas with Chad's family the weekend before Christmas. As always, we had a great time and Gavin in particular loved being with his grandparents, aunt & uncle and cousins. He just wants to run and do everything Kate and Morgan do. It's so fun to watch them all together. Syd on the other hand had a couple of rough nights--no sleep, lots of crying and some projectile spit up situations...nonetheless we survived and hope there are better nights to come. Here are the pics of our stay. Girls cousies first meeting!
Syd got lots of cuddles from Auntie Christa.
Uncle Nate is no stranger to holding baby girls.
Gavin experimenting with his snowman-making kit--carrot nose.

A little R & R with Daddy.

She is the "best gift ever."

Doesn't this look appetizing? Its tradition that on "Christmas Eve" Chad's family eats Oyster stew together. They say its a Norwegian thing...I say its a nasty thing!
As quickly as his first bite of oyster went in...it was out!
Napping with Daddy.
Moe & Kate are ready for presents!
The four Harris grandkids.
Kate LOVED her new horse from Gavin and Syd.
Morgan modeling her new "fancy nancy" wave in her new gloves.
Mickey Mouse!!!
This is how my festive little mistletoe enjoyed the festivities.
A whole set of play food from Gram and Gramp! A huge hit!
Grandma & Grandpa snuggling in with all the grandkids.
My little Mozart.
Hmmm...is that an 'A' or a 'C'
Our fam of four.
Grandma & Grandpa Norton's first time with Sydney.

Photo Shoot #3

Yes, yet another photo shoot. This one is actually official. When Syd was just about two weeks old we had a photographer from Bella Baby come to the house to take a variety of shots--newborn shots, family shots and some of the kids for her birth announcement/christmas card. Overall, it was a success. We got a ton of cute photos and although I was hoping for a more "creative" vantage point in some of the shots, the main thing was she cooperated and Gavin was smiling! yay! I look at these pictures and of course, just gush over how beautiful my two little blessings are. Here are some of my favorites (bear with me!)...

Photo Shoot #2

In an effort to get a picture of the kids together for the perfect "grandparent gift" this year. My brother and sister-in-law and Chad and I staged our own photo shoot of the kids. Seriously, we had to have taken 300 photos. Here were some of my favorites:

Photo Shoot

I tried taking some pictures of Sydney the other day but as soon as I sat down to do so, I had a little ham in my face saying "cheese"...apparently, Gavin was to be in the photos as well.

Syd meets Lo

Little do Sydney and Lauren Leonard but they are destined to be best friends...their mothers will force it upon them! Last week Carrie came from Kalamazoo for the day and night with Miss Lauren for visit and to meet Sydney. It was so nice to have her here and catch up. We always have plenty to talk about and it was really fun to see our little girls together. Carrie and I have been so blessed to have each other as best friends since college...and now we have been blessed with two little boys 3 weeks apart and little girls 10 weeks apart (not to mention Tay, little mother hen to them all). Having a friend like Carrie through the years makes all the challenges that come along with pregnancy, newborns and toddlers seem a bit more manageable. Thanks for coming Carrie--it means a lot! Now if only we could live 2 hours closer....

They already love each other--Syd kept giving Lauren her hand to suck on...if that's not friendship, what is?

Miss Lauren and those beautiful blues.

Moms and baby girls.

Aunt Carrie and Sydney.

One Month Old

Sydney has officially been in the world 1 month. I can't believe it. This last month has been so crazy adjusting to our new life. Syd is seriously a good baby. Don't get me wrong, there have been a few rough patches and a few pretty rough nights but they've been temporary and she's come back to that good happy baby status. Here is a run down on where we're at:

- Dr's appt states she is a whopping 11 lb 8 oz and just over 22 inches long. She is a big girl--with rolls and chins and all (95% in weight and 90% in height).
- She did not get her first shot b/c we were one day shy of the necessary 28 days since the first shot in the hospital.
- She loves to be held and cuddled--loves nestling up on her tummy into the crook of your neck. She would sleep all day there if you let her.
- Much like her brother before her, she is a quick and efficient nurser--no more than 10 minutes total.
- We've had a few overeating issues--at least that is what I think they are. So far there have been about 10 times where a short time after eating, she spits it ALL up...in a projectile fashion. It could be due to tummy issues or bubbles but whatever it is, its gross.
- She is a pooping machine. Again, in the projectile fashion (I'll just say, poor Chad). However, this could be why she is so happy and content...so bring on the poop.
- She sleeps ALOT. Most of the day. She has become more wakeful though and will often start staying awake for about an hour after eating. Then again..there are also times she falls asleep right after eating.
- She eats every 3 hours during the day and although it has gotten WAY better, sometimes I still have to wake her at that 3 hour mark.
- The last few nights she has only woken up 1 time to eat! Yay for sleep!! We are just trying to figure out her best hours of nighttime sleep after having a few VERY rough nights where she screamed from about 9 pm until midnight. Right now, we are working on putting her down around 9ish for the night and although she needs to eat at around 10/11, we are trying to get her to sleep right after that with one waking at night. So far, two nights of success.

Other than that, she has been a happy cuddly baby. She loves being held and is starting to focus on your face when you talk to her. She will take a paci but not consistently. I have been soaking her up as much as I can allow myself b/c it is such a treat to have a baby that loves to be cuddled. I am cherishing these moments b/c I know they will be over in a blink of an eye.

In Gavin news--he seems to have adjusted pretty well to her being around here. There are times when I will find him over her bouncy seat saying "hi baby" or trying to show her the lamb on her blanket "baby-baa, baa" or even trying to calm her "shh baby shh baby." All these moments are cute. There are also the moments where he vehemently grabs my hand motions for me to put the baby in her seat. However, ALL these moments are few and far between since overall, he just doesn't pay attention to her. At this point...I could think of worse things. :)