Happy Birthday, Steve!

Steve's birthday was on Wednesday and we didn't really get to celebrate too much (though I did have dinner ready) because I had to leave about 15 minutes after he got home from work so that I could go to work. Steve doesn't care for desserts too much (I, on the other hand, feel that they are necessary for every meal!), so I made some blueberry muffins and put a candle in one so that he could still make a wish and blow out the candle on his birthday.

Bathtime With My Daddy

I couldn't resist taking this photo of Steve giving Sam a bath yesterday morning. She loves bathtime ... She never cries in the bathtub and often helps by grabbing onto the washcloth when I am using it to wash her. She especially loves getting sprayed off by the kitchen hose before wrapping her up in a towel!

Our Birthday Celebration with the Lapinski Family

Steve and I both have birthdays this week -- Steve's birthday is on the 25th (Wednesday) and mine is on the 27th (Friday). We celebrated today at Deb and Dennis' house with chili and cornbread ... and of course, cake and ice cream!

The festivities were a little tiring for Samantha, so she rested for a little bit in her bouncy chair. We have found that she likes to sit in this chair on the tabletop while we are eating dinner. It works out nicely because we can eat together and she can still be a part of the dinner with us.

Spending Time With "Big Brother"

Ever since we brought Samantha home from the hospital, our cat, Fuzz, has not seemed the least bit bothered or intimiated by her. (I am very grateful for this). He has never once tried to scratch her or show any aggression, and I have often chuckled to myself because he seems oblivious to all of the smelly diapers and the crying that she does. In extreme circumstances, he will just simply leave the room.

His favorite spot seems to be the end of the bed that is doubling as my changing station while Samantha continues to sleep in our room. He prefers to make his little nest there and sleep on top, and almost always, I have to move him out of the way when I bring Sam in for a changing. Today, I was getting her undressed for her bath and snapped this picture of her and " her big brother." She is now starting to interact with him when he is nearby, and I fear the day that she really does tug tightly on his tail!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I am posting a couple of pictures of Samantha on her first Valentine's Day ... The first picture shows her pretty bib that she will likely have on all day today because she is drooling a lot lately. In fact, it is a full-time job for Mom to keep wiping her pretty bubbles away! The other shows the cute outfit that Grammy bought for her. Isn't she adorable?

Back To State!

Today, I took Samantha to Michigan State to visit some of my old friends and professors there. I usually go to lunch with my friend, Monika , once a month. We were in the same research group together and I miss seeing her since I graduated a year and a half ago. This was the first time that she (and the professors there) were able to meet my little one.

Samantha was on her best behavior and didn't seem to mind all of the strange people that were holding her. She even gave some of her best smiles to those that encouraged her. I've noticed in the last week that she has become a little more calm -- less crying and more consistent feeding and napping schedules (or so it seems). She is officially 3 months old now and maybe that has something to do with it ... Either way, she is absolutely the joy of our lives!

A Visit To See Great-Grandpa Koan!

Today, Steve and I took Samantha to see her Great-Grandpa. She was so happy and content after the hour-long ride (she loves to travel in the car -- it is a very soothing thing for her to be in her carseat and to feel the gentle rumble of the car). However, once we put her in Great-Grandpa's arms, she wasn't too happy about it. I felt bad for Great-Grandpa because he was so excited to see her. He seemed a lot more relaxed than he was when we first took her to meet him a couple of months ago. It's been a while since he held a baby in his arms.


Great Aunt Beth was in town and she came over to see Samantha as well. Great "Aunt Baa" (as I often called her when I was little) seemed to have the magic touch and she was able to "bounce" her off to sleep.

I don't feel well ...

As evidenced by this picture, Samantha is not feeling very well today ... She started coming down with a cold yesterday and her nose is running today and her eyes are watering. It breaks my heart to know that she isn't feeling well and there isn't a lot that I can do for her.

I took her to the doctor today because I wanted to make sure that she didn't have an ear infection (those can be so painful for a baby). With the weekend coming, I didn't want her to be misearable until Monday. The good news is that there isn't an ear infection. The bad news is that I just need to let the cold run its course. In the meantime, she's getting a lot of hugs from Mommy ...

Major Cutie!

A couple of weeks ago, Steve surprised me ... I came home from work one evening (I teach in the evenings) and Steve had laid out two outfits that he had chosen and purchased himself for Samantha. One of the outfits was the onesie pictured here. The camo onesie has the words, "Major Cutie" on the front of it.

The other outfit will be pictured this summer -- it is her first Detroit Tigers outfit. Steve and I are both HUGE Tigers fans and I hope to be able to take her with us to a game in the summer. Steve thinks that we should start small and take her to a Lansing Lugnuts game first ... Either way, she will be going to a baseball game this summer!

Welcome!

I would like to take a moment and welcome you to our family blog! Several of my friends have been active "bloggers" for a while now, and I have really enjoyed reading their posts and continue to admire all of the pictures that they share with us. Now that I have a little one of my own, I have decided that this would be a nice way to keep all of our family and friends updated on our lives and how much Samantha is changing. She will be 11 weeks old tomorrow and I can't believe how quickly the time has flown!