March 31, 2007

Today we went to see Dr. Yano for Gianna's 6 month check-up. She weighs 17 lbs. 12 oz. and is 27 in. tall. She got her 3rd set of shots.

After the doctor's appointment, Gigi was exhausted. She fell asleep on the ride home, so Papa and I decided to have breakfast at The Kahala. We saw Auntie Ana there. :) We had a nice breakfast, and Gigi woke up at the end to say hello to everyone and to drink their special water.

For the rest of the day we all stayed in to watch the Final Four. Gigi is a little out of sorts, but she's much better than I expected. She and I are going to go to Wahiawa soon to take care of Kumadog. I hope everything goes well tonight.

They say a picture is worth a 1000 words...here's Gigi in the cosleeper in John's bedroom. When we got to Wahiawa, Gianna was fast asleep in the carseat. I had time to feed Kuma, and then the three of us went for a short walk. Kuma enjoyed the dinner and the walk.

Then I fed Gigi some cereal and sweet potatoes. She was sleepy, so I bathed her after she finished her dinner. At 6:20 PM, I had her dressed in her PJ's. I read to her for a little while, and I noticed that she was tired, so I put her in her "crib". She cried, of course, but I sang her a lullaby, then I left. Tonight my schedule is supposed to be 15 min., 20 min., and 25 min. for the rest of the night. After only 10 minutes, the crying stopped. I peeked in and saw Gigi on her belly. I could hear her mumbling, as if she were talking in her sleep. I stayed there for a few minutes to make sure that she could breathe okay. By the end of the first 15 minutes, Gigi was fast asleep. She's been asleep for over an hour now.

She's still on her belly, but her face is turned to the side so that she can breathe clearly. Papa called to check on us. :) I hope all goes well for the rest of the night.

March 30, 2007

Okay, this sleep thing is the hardest thing to do! The good news is that Gianna slept from 7:45 PM till 6:45 AM. I was the one who even woke her up this morning. I missed her so much! :( She was as happy as a clam when I greeted her. We had a great day together.

Now it is the evening, and things are rough! She's crying right now, but my schedule tonight is 10 min, 15 min, then 20 min for the rest of the night. I'm on the first 20 minutes, and it is a killer!

So here's the details, at the end of the 20 minutes, I went in to see Gigi. She was still sobbing, but not as hard as before. She was on all fours, so I rubbed her back. Then I flipped her onto her back and repositioned her. I stayed with her for 5 minutes, singing and rubbing her belly, and she fell asleep. She's been asleep since 7:15 PM.

March 29, 2007

Oh what a day!

I talked to Maile today, and she told me about her sleep dramas with Connor. She inspired me to try to put Gianna back on a schedule, since her teething pains seem to have subsided. Tonight, I started the sleep ritual at 5:30 PM.

At 5:30 PM, I woke her from a brief nap to feed her dinner. It was cereal and sweet potatoes. She ate it all up, but she was really sleepy.

At 6:00 PM, I gave her a bath. She loved it! She was splashing around like a mermaid!

At 6:15 PM, I took her out of the bath and got her dressed in her pj's.

At 6:30 PM, I left the bedroom with Gigi sobbing in her crib. I had sung her Brahms' Lullaby tree times before leaving.

At 6:35 PM I went back to soothe her, but not pick her up. I stayed for 3 minutes, then left the crying baby. I sang her Rock-a-bye Baby. :(

At 6:45 PM, I went back to soother her again. She has been crying non-stop since I left. I sang Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Again, I stayed for 3 minutes.

At 7:00 PM, I went back. She was still crying loudly and strongly. :( I stayed for 3 minutes, rubbing her belly and talking quietly and calmly to her. I stayed for 3 minutes. She started to quiet down, but when she saw that I was leaving, she started to wail again. :(

At 7 :15 PM, I went back again. She was on her belly this time, so I rubbed her back. She was sobbing into the crib bumper. She was so sad. I stayed for 3 minutes. She calmed down while I was with her, but when I left, she started to cry again.

At 7:30 PM, I went back in to see her, but I did not talk to her or rouse her. She was softly sobbing into the crib bumper again, but it looked like she was asleep. I watched her, and I tried to move the bumper out of her face so she could breathe better. I stayed there for about 10 minutes just watching her. She was asleep, but she was still whimpering in her sleep. I was brave enough to move her onto her back to the middle of the crib. She stayed asleep.

At 8:30 PM, I went to check on her. She was sound asleep, no remnant sobbing.

I hope she sleeps for the rest of the night!

March 28, 2007

Today is the day we went back home. In the morning, I was busy packing, while Gigi spent a few more moments with her butterfly rocker, which is staying in Orinda.

We made to the airport in no time! Now that we are a family of three, we get to go across the Bay Bridge for free...carpool!

Here's Gianna and Papa in the Red Carpet Club. They were watching the High School Basketball game.

So our flight started off really well. Gigi fell asleep before we even took off. The unfortunate thing is that she only slept for about 45 minutes. We has to entertain her for awile. Here she is on her "seat". If I stuff a pillow case with a few airline pillows and put it on the armrest between us, then Gianna gets her own seat. Papa got us the last row in first class, so we wouldn't disturb other people.

Here's one shot of Gigi in her seat, and here is another.

Gigi also watched some of the inflight movie, Happy Feet.

After the movie, Gianna fell asleep until it was time for us to land. Here she is, happy to be home in Hawaii.

March 27, 2007

Today the whole family went to the City to San Francisco Centre. We had lunch at 'WichCraft", and Gigi SLEPT! The sandwiches were great!

We strolled around the entire centre and ended up at a little cafe to have gelato. Here's Gigi with Grandma B. Gianna had a very nice time.

Notice the nice COUCHES at the mall! They make very comfy changing tables! Check out Gianna's Snoopy pants. She's also wearing a Snoopy shirt, but it's beneath the sweater she's wearing. The Snoop clothes are gifts from Grandma B.

After we got back, Sid, Ted, and I went to run errands while Gianna stayed home with Grandma B. We brought back this rocking butterfly for Gigi...

and this toy farmhouse, that Gigi just wanted to taste.

March 26, 2007

Here is Gianna in her bunting outfit from Eric and Nellie. It finally fits! It was a chilly morning, so I bundled her up and we went outside to see the bird that's trying to peck a hole in the side of the house. It's a tiny little bird.


Here's Gigi after her morning nap.


Ted entertained Gianna with his juggling skills. Gigi LOVED it! She was laughing the whole time. She even laughed harder when he messed up. Here she is with Grandma B and Uncle Ted. I have video of this, and it is precious!



Gianna and I also watched "Sing-a-long Sound of Music" that Uncle Ted got for us from London. We watched the movie on Grandma B's new laptop.


The whole family went out to an Italian restaurant in Moraga for dinner. I had a toy for Gigi to play with, but she was more interested in the luggage tag I had attached to her carseat. Again, Gigi was WIDE awake during the whole meal. We had to take turns carrying her around.


Here's Papa and Gigi looking in at us from outside of the restaurant.


Later in the night, Gianna started to make "ba" sounds. When I would say "ba ba" or "pa pa", she would laugh! It was so funny. I took video of this, too.

March 25, 2007

Today we went down to the South Bay to visit Eric, Nellie, & Violet Tam, who was born on March 21st! I didn't take any pictures, though. :( The entire family was doing well. In the evening, we met up in Menlo Park with the Chens for dinner at Left Bank.

Griffin's mom made this PhotoShow...

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Here's Papa & Gigi.

Gigi was WIDE awake for the entire dinner. She was just too excited about seeing Griffin again.


Here's Griffin giving Gianna a true French greeting. You'll have to watch the slideshow for the whole scoop on their official second date. :)

March 24, 2007

Gigi had a rough time falling asleep last night. I think she was just exhausted from our trip. She slept in very late. Here she is having pureed organic bananas with Grandma B for breakfast.
In the afternoon, we strolled around Cal with Uncle Ted.

Here we are by the cherry blossoms by the dining commons.

Here's Gigi & Papa by the Campanille.

Gigi in the main quad with Sather Gate in the background. I remember hanging out on these benches...people watching...looking for Papa. :)

When we got back home, Gigi played with Grandma.

Here's Gianna learning the finer points of crawling from Uncle Ted.

For dinner, we met the Setos in Walnut Creek. Here's Gigi with Uncle Mike.

And, here's Gigi with Auntie Anne. She LOVES Auntie Anne!

March 23, 2007

Here's Gianna in Papa's old highchair! She fits! Grandma B is feeding Gigi her supper.

March 22, 2007

Today Gianna turned six months old! We celebrated by meeting Auntie Tyra and Mason at Kapiolani Park for a nice stroll and a mini-play date. Here she is hanging out with Mason.

After the play date, we went home to get ready for our trip to California. Gianna's going to see Uncle Ted and Grandma Bernice! Grandma Jane came over early to help babysit while I did some last minute packing. I bought Panda Express lunches for the two of us, and my fortune said that I would have a pleasant journey. I told Grandma Jane that it must mean that Gianna will sleep during our flight. Here we are going through security. Gigi's in a diaper bag that comes with a built-in baby carrier. It was great!

So the fortune came true! Gianna slept through the ENTIRE flight! I didn't get up out of my seat at all, because Gigi was sleeping in my lap. I gave her a bottle during take-off, and she fell immediately asleep. I woke her up during our descent to give her another bottle, and she was mellow the entire rest of our journey to Orinda.

Here she is crashed out in the car, and on the right is Gigi waking up as we arrived at Grandma's house.

March 21, 2007

Today we finally made it to Stroller Strides. Although my left butt still hurts, it was good to get outside. I did more walking than jogging, but I was glad to be out in the fresh air. Jill, our teacher, made us work out our upper body and abs...just what I needed!

When we got home, I pureed some organic apple bananas for Gianna. She LOVED it! Here she is after her meal. I thought it was so funny that she grabs her toes while sitting in her high chair.

Grandma & Grandma came over today, after Sid took out Grandpa's stitches at Pali Momi. I was able to finish packing for Gigi and myself. All I have to do is pack for Sid.

The big news is that Gianna can MOVE! She can scoot herself all around our bed. It is so funny to see. She brings her knees to her hands while on all fours, then she lunges her arms forward to move forward and brings her knees back up to her hands. She can move quickly, too! We had a great time playing together this evening. I wish I had captured the moment on video.

March 20, 2007

Gianna and I went to yoga this morning, and our teacher, Cathy Louise, sent us this photo from today's class. Gigi is getting so mobile that she's about ready to do yoga on her own pretty soon.

Grandma came over to help watch Gianna, while I started to pack for our trip on Thursday. Here she is feeding Gigi homemade pureed organic corn. Notice the big bib. These bibs are great! They protect her whole body.

March 19, 2007

Today, I made Gianna pureed pears for breakfast and pureed peas for dinner. Both of the purees turned out really well! The fresh pureed pears are way tastier than the jarred baby food. I bought the organic pears from Kokua Market.

The peas were frozen, but they were still really tasty! Cathy-Louise, my yoga teacher, told me to go to Costco and buy the organic mixed veggies. So I did. I separated the corn, the carrots, the peas, and the beans into separate ziploc bags. To make the peas, I just boiled a snack bag-full of peas for 15 minutes, then I pureed them up. I even served the extra puree to Sid as an appetizer with a little shredded parmesean cheese on it. We had cheese-filled tortellini with chicken & asparagus in a pesto sauce for dinner. That was tasty, too.

Gianna LOVES bath time. I finally took a picture of her in her tub. Now that she can sit up, she enjoys bath time even more.

Here she is splashing around. She doesn't mind getting her face wet.

Here's my squeaky clean baby!

March 18, 2007

Today we spent the day with Grandma & Grandpa in Wahiawa. Gigi and I went out there after our jog/walk to Kapiolani Park. During the jog down to the park, I hurt my left butt. :( I had to hobble back up the hill, because Sid had already left for work. As soon as I made it back home, I loaded Gigi in the car and we drove out to Wahiawa.

This is Gigi demonstrating how well she can sit up. I padded the floor with three layers of blankets in case Gigi tipped over.

We stayed till about 8 PM, then we drove home. Gigi fell asleep during the ride home, and I was able to transfer her to her crib nicely. It's crazy how much she moves around during the night. I went to check on her, and I found her like this. The nightgown doesn't work well anymore since she moves so much now. I need to put her in pajamas from now on.