First Week as a SAHM

When Andy finally had to go back to work last week, it meant Ariella took on a new job title, too: "SAHM" (Stay at Home Mom). How did it go? See for yourself.

Monday, 8/16:

We kick off most mornings with walks to the train to drop Daddy off for work, followed by long walks around the neighborhood. On Monday, Morgan thought she needed to cool off in her water table after a vigorous walk! (Getting pushed around in a stroller is harder than it looks.)

Monday afternoon, Morgan requested to feed Gwen for the first time. She did a good job, and even tried the "hold the bottle in Gwen's mouth with your chin so you can use your hand for something else" trick.

Tuesday, 8/17:

Lately, Morgan has been obsessed with tomatoes. So she was thrilled to help Mom make stuffed tomatoes for dinner (and steal a taste or two). Another favorite pastime of Morgan's is playing in the sink. So Ariella killed two birds with one stone by handing her soapy scrubbing brush. (Who knew doing the dishes could be so much fun?) Meanwhile, Gwen learned that even though she loves being held by Mom, sometimes she needs to ride in the swing, too.

Wednesday, 8/18:

Wednesday was a rainy, muggy day. But that's nothing a stack of construction paper, some popsicle sticks, and a tube of Elmer's Glue can't fix!

Thursday, 8/19:

Gwen celebrated her first Monthday with a trip to the Voorhees Library to check out some puzzles and books with Mom and Morgan.

Friday, 8/20:

Ariella, Morgan and Gwen met up with Karen, Katie and Andrew at "Pump It Up" gym for some slide and climbing fun. All this excitement wore everyone out. In fact, Gwen got a head start on nap time while still at the gym.

Saturday, 8/21:

"SAHM" and the girls had a great week filled with all sorts of fun adventures. To cap it off, Morgan pretended the the gold chair was a school bus, and took her favorite new passenger for a ride.

Gwen at 1 Month

The first month of Gwen's life went as smoothly as we could have ever expected. She was a good sleeper from day one, and is now sleeping 4-5 hours at a time at night.

She's got a hearty appetite. As a result, after one week, she had put on 6 ounces. At our latest "unofficial" weigh-in, she was close to 10 pounds.

In the last few weeks, she has gotten much better at holding her head up, and we can tell her vision is getting better every day.

Now we're just waiting for is for Gwen to flash her first pretty smile. We can't wait.

Gwen's Turn to Wear "The Hat"

Two years ago, we posted a photo of a Morgan sitting on our leather chair wearing an orange outfit and her yellow sun hat. When Ariella put Gwen in the same orange outfit the other day, we were amazed at how much our two girls look alike at this age.

Here's the proof:

(Just in case you're confused, Gwen is the photo on the bottom. Morgan is the photo on the top.)

Time Flies

A week ago, Andy thought, "Whoa... I can't believe I've got another whole week of paternity leave before I have to go back to work!" As of tonight, he's thinking, "Whoa... where the heck did my two weeks go!?!"

Needless to say, the two weeks have gone by fast. But, luckily, it's given us time to introduce Gwen to her family (both sets of grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins), time for us to watch her develop (she's becoming more alert every day, and she's starting to hold her head up by herself), and time to watch Morgan show everyone what an amazing big sister she'll be.

It's hard to believe that Gwen will be one month old on Thursday. Time flies.

Here are some more photos from our whirlwind couple weeks...

And, while we're on the topic of "time flies", check out the photos below. For the past two summers, we've taken a photo of the Saucier/Coleman cousins on the dock at the Lake. This year, we had to move the photo shoot to our front porch. But the change in location can't hide the fact that they're all growing up so fast.

Monkey-Face Cookies: the Next Generation

25 years ago, a young Brownie scout named Ariella Sakraida became a media sensation in the Asbury Park Press by taking a traditional molasses cookie recipe, adding some raisins for eyes and a mouth, and re-naming them "Monkey-Face" cookies. Her creation took top prize in the notoriously competitive Brownie Scout division.

Last weekend, another fresh-faced, aspiring chef from New Jersey took her first stab at her Mom's championship dish.

Morgan took some creative license with the raisins when making her faces. But, according to head cookie judge -- and belated birthday boy -- P-Pa (Andys' Dad), the cookies were a delicious success.

Earth to Belly Button: We've lost contact

After nearly 3 weeks, Gwen finally jettisoned the remnants of her umbilical cord this weekend. (Thanks for getting us this far, umbilical cord, we'll take it from here.)

Because of a small hernia above her navel, Gwen is now sporting a classic "outie". Although, our doctors tell us that as the hernia heals itself, there's a good chance Gwen's belly button will go from outie to innie.

(Before)

(After)

Odds & Gwens

It's been a busy couple of weeks here at the Saucier household. So much so, in fact, that we haven't had a chance to post any pictures of Gwen since she came home from the hospital. (No, this isn't a case of "2nd child gets ignored". If you want proof, just look at how many photos there are below... there's almost a dozen. See? We're really busy.)

Hectic schedules aside, the first few weeks as a family of four have been great. At night, Gwen is sleeping 2-3 hours at a time, so Ariella and Andy have both been able to get some rest.

Gwen guzzles formula like it's her job. At her 1-week pediatrician appointment, she weighed 8 lbs, 10 oz -- up 6 ounces in her first week. By now, we figure she's close to 9 pounds.

Here's a rundown and photos of what's been going on...

First Bath:

Meeting the Family:

Nanna (Sheila) and P-Pa (Joe) visited for the first 2 weeks of Gwen's post-partum existence. And Aunt Aimee, Uncle Russ also made a hop down the Jersey Turnpike to meet their new little niece. Throw in a couple visits with the Fricke clan, and Gwen already has a whole bunch of potential friends for whenever she decides to sign up for Facebook.

Tummy Time:

Just like her big sister, Gwen is taking to tummy time like a fish takes to water. She's starting to get the hang of picking her head up, and seems to like seeing things from a vertical point of view. (Of course, she can still only see about 18 inches. But that's beside the point.)

Learning the Ropes from Big Sister:

Morgan has been a huge help with Gwen. She shows Gwen her toys and sings songs for her. She likes to give Gwen hugs, or pat her on the head. And she's always there with a soothing binky whenever Gwen needs to "take the edge off".

Take a little off the back, please

Morgan finally went for her first haircut this morning. After carefully weighing her options, she ultimately decided the giant green frog was the best seat in the house.

While Gwen watched from her car seat on the floor (okay, technically she slept through this whole event), the hair stylist wet Morgan's hair. (Before the stylist had even made the first clip, Morgan declared "I want a lollipop".) Five minutes later, Morgan's hair was 2-3 inches shorter. It's not a huge difference -- but, for the first time since she was bald, it's all the same length.

After a couple of quick photos with Mom, Morgan got her First Haircut Certificate and checked out her new look in the mirror. (And, yes, she finally got her lollipop.)