2 Weeks Old!

We had her 2 week check-up yesterday.  She's starting to really beef up!  She's 4 lbs. 14 ozs.  She is very strong, has a strong neck and it almost seems like she's holding her head up some times.
This week has been mostly about trying to get a schedule down.
She eats & sleeps pretty good and we keep to the 3 hour feeding schedule.
She had her first photo-shoot this week with an old friend of mine Sarah Crank.  -So many cute photo's I can't wait to post them.  You can check them out here and please sign the guest book.

http://www.pictage.com/1170689

She went to her first birthday party for our friend Nicole.
She's awake a little more each after each time we feed her.
Last night she met her Grandpa Shaw.
So far we're totally in love with her.  We have a hard time putting her down, we love cuddling with her so much and I think the feeling is mutual.

Until next week.
Meg.

One Week Old!

Already? It's been a whirlwind of a week.  We are slowly but surely figuring things out.  We were able to take her home on the first day.  Everyone was so impressed at what a healthy baby she was for being a 35 week old preemie.  I would like to document her first year of life with weekly updates.  So this just the beginning and what we've learned so far...

• She loves to have her arms free or up by her face at the least - swaddling them down is a terrible idea.
• The car seat is way too big for her - OZ and I were so nervous about bringing her home since she is about as big as the buckle that holds her in. (We've since put a blanket under her to raise her up)
• Her clothes are all way too big.
• She's been to the doctor 3 times already, 2 weight checks and a hearing test. 
• She sleeps, eats and pees & poops mostly.
• She does not like being cold.
• She has her mom's fingers and her dad's lips
• She has dimples in both her cheeks.
• We wake her up to eat every 3 hours and she'll sometimes stay awake for a few minutes after, which we love.
• She makes lots of sounds that we enjoy... it lets us know she's still breathing.  

She's had tons and tons of visitors, at the hospital & home. The party never seems stops in the Shaw household. We love to be surrounded by our friends and family! OZ is back to work, Taylor and I are getting along just fine. We're looking forward to learning more about her each week.

http://goteamshaw.shutterfly.com/pictures/107   http://goteamshaw.shutterfly.com/pictures/108

Taylor Poppy Shaw Arrived!

What an amazing experience! So after a week of bed rest, which if you know me you know is a challenge in it self, I was actually laying in bed when my water broke around 9am Wednesday morning (Nov. 9th).  I guess this baby is coming today I thought, 5 weeks early, but she was ready to come out.  I took a shower and ate a bowl of cheerios, checked the mail, double checked my hospital bag and a couple of hours later called OZ.  He said he was on his way home to make us lunch.  When I told him my water broke, he said, "Well then I guess I'm on my way home to take you to the hospital".  We were both pretty excited.  We arrived at the hospital around 1 in the afternoon.  Called all our folks to let them know she was on her way.  I was only dilated to 1 centimeter, so we walked for about 3 hours.  Around 6 pm they started me on a slow drip of pitocin.  It took about 5 hours to kick in.  We had plenty of company in the mean time.  My good girlfriend Liz works at the hospital was with us, my mom and dad arrived, our good friends Chris & Nikki, Jonathan & Jake joined us as well.  Everyone was waiting for Taylor's big arrival.  Everyone put in their bets around what time she would make her debut.  Around 11pm folk all decided it wasn't happening and went home.  At 11:30pm my contractions started kicking it up a notch and I went from 1 centimeter to 3.  I was at 3 centimeters for about an hour.    Around 12:45 I hit 5 centimeters, then went to 10 in matter of minutes.  Three pushes and Taylor was out.  I looked at OZ and said, "That wasn't so bad, I could do that again." lol. (I was delirious!)  It is amazing how once they are out, all the pain is over.

We named her Taylor Poppy Shaw.  Taylor after my maiden name and Poppy after our good friend  Chris Pappaioanou who we love and adore. We call Chris the Fun Poppy or just Poppy for short.  We've had years of adventures together and look forward to many more in the years to come.  When everyone returned in the morning, my cousin Michael, my mom & dad, Liz, Chris & Nikki & Jonathan.  OZ popped the magnum bottle of champagne Liz brought us and we introduced Miss Taylor Poppy Shaw to her new family & friends! I think we surprised Poppy by naming our first born after him. ;)

She came out looking like most aliens do as OZ would say.  No fat on her bones just yet.  She was small, but healthy.  She weighed 4lbs 9ozs and was 17 & 3/4 inches long.  We were just so delighted that she was 100% healthy.

Here's a few pictures from the great event.  http://goteamshaw.shutterfly.com/pictures/27