Birthday Party

As you all know, we had Imogen's first birthday party last Sunday on her birthday. I am finally getting some time now to post pictures of it!

Her 3-D cupcake birthday cake. Chris baked it and my mom iced it. It looked even more amazing in person!

The birthday girl toddling around in an outfit hand-crafted by my Aunt -- everyone commented on how beautiful it was!

We all sang 'Happy Birthday' as Imogen batted the cake! She got lots of help blowing out the candle by the other kiddos who were there to celebrate.

Not surprisingly, she was completely uninterested in the cake. We then brought out a small cupcake that we tried to get her to eat. She licked the icing a few times, but then got upset, so we got her out of the chair.

She also had her first vanilla frozen custard, which I definitely think she liked more than the cake! Again, she just licked -- but that is the best thing to do with ice-cream :-)

I'm sure that her favorite part of the whole party was opening presents! She really loved them all!

After they were all open, she kept knocking them over and pushing everything that played music or made noise...and she loved looking at the pictures of the kids on the sides of the boxes.

They're mine, all mine!

Four generations of women here! Nana, my mom, me (and my sis, Lisa) and Imogen.

At the end of the party, she was so tired, which made good use for the pacifier. She just sat on the deck and played with a spoon as we all said good-bye.

We had a great time and think everyone else did also!! Yay for Imogen being one!!!

A Look Back: Part III

Saturday morning was all business and no more fun in the hospital. At 9am I was told that if I hadn't made any progress by 4pm, that it would be recommended I have a c-section, which is exactly what I wanted to avoid. But, for some reason, I wasn't progressing at all. At noon, the nurse checked me and I still hadn't made any change from the day before. I was so upset! As I layed in bed crying and trying to talk through my options with Chris, my mom and dad, the most unexpected thing happened -- Imogen broke my water! It was so exciting and painful after that. But I didn't have to endure it for very long -- she was born in a hurry a mere 3 1/2 hours later!

It turns out that her head was tilted back instead of chin tucked and her left arm was up above her head and came out first (which they couldn't see on the ultrasound the day before)! I say she was a ballerina even in the womb :-) Anyway, those two things were the reason she wasn't descending and I wasn't progressing, but they were all forgotten the moment Imogen was layed on my stomach. Seeing her for the first time was the most surreal moment of my life -- one that I will never forget. My body grew and delivered a perfect little baby, and from that moment on, I have a new respect for it and for all women who have children.

Our last picture together before Imogen was born.

This was taken while she was getting examined by the midwife. The red mark above her left eye is broken capillaries, and it's almost completely healed itself now.

A proud new father.

Happy Grandparents!

After a long day, Imogen finally settled in for a snooze....while swaddled in 3 blankets (hospital policy).

I guess that's enough reminiscing for now! It was just a very special time for us last year and as Imogen's first birthday has come and gone, I wanted to remind myself of the incredible miracle we experienced.

She's One!

Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday dear Imogen!
Happy Birthday to you!

...and many more!

We can't believe a year has gone by, but our baby girl is now a toddling little lady! We're celebrating with a Cupcake-themed birthday party attended by our close family and friends. Thank you so much to everyone who has touched our lives in some way this past year -- all of you are very special to us! We look forward to what the next year brings!

Enjoy some pictures from our recent photo session.

"A Look Back: Part III" will be posted tomorrow due to all the celebration going on today! :-)

Photos curtosey of Sandy Yetter/Red Lotus Photography
http://www.redlotusphotography.com/

A Look Back: Part II

Day 2 in the hospital was an exciting day because we thought Imogen was going to be born this day. We woke up full of energy even though I had been contracting all night long every few minutes. The pitocin wasn't as bad as I expected -- as you can see, I'm still smiling!

I passed the time by looking at all the cute and very tiny accessories we brought for Imogen to wear and use when she arrived. We also watched a lot of tv and I enjoyed texting in between contractions! Sounds funny, but when you have all day laying in a bed waiting and waiting for labor to really start you find anything to do to keep yourself occupied!

My sister, Anna, arrived home from her semester in Sicily just in time for Imogen's arrival! I was so happy she could be there to see her niece :-)


To be continued....

A Look Back: Part I

Today, last year, was the day that I was admitted to the hospital to be induced because I had high blood pressure. I was so sad that I had to be induced because I really wanted to go into labor naturally and I knew in my heart that Imogen just wasn't ready to come out. But, alas, to keep both of us safe and on as few medications as possible, my midwives told me it was the best thing to do. Over the next three days, we'll look at some pictures taken just before the parenthood adventures began.

Me and Baby Girl -- ready to labor together. I had to stay laying down the entire time because even when I sat up, my blood pressure rose into dangerous levels.

We had a beautiful view of downtown Pittsburgh from our room!

To be continued...

One-Year Doctor Visit & More

Today was Imogen's one-year doctor visit and it went very well! Here are her stats:

Weight: 20 pounds 9 ounces
Length: 29 inches

Those measurements are both in the 50th percentile for her age and so was her head circumference although I don't know the number for that. The doctor asked us lots of questions as to what Imogen was doing these days as far as development, and those answers, as well as her physical, put her in prime condition for a one-year-old. We are so happy and thankful to have a healthy little girl. And she was happy that she didn't have to get any shots today!

I finished another knitting project this week as well, and I have to say it's probably the cutest thing I've knitted for her thus far. It's a Halter dress! I bought this yarn because of the colorway name "Liana." It is Imogen's middle name minus the 'E' on the front :-)

Pattern: Sugerbubbie Halter
Yarn by: Candy Pants Yarn

Yarn type: Licorice Twist
Colorway: Liana

Size: 12-24 months

Next, Imogen has finally realized the purpose of a teething biscuit!

And a picture that will never get old...our little lady fell asleep in her jumperoo again this week! She doesn't play in it every day anymore, but when she does, she obviously wears herself out.

The Discovery of Grass

Last summer, Imogen was brand new and never had the chance to explore the outdoors much -- or if she was outdoors, we really never put her down to let her feel the grass or sand. Now that it's warming up, we've been taking her outside to play in the yard. The first time we set her on her feet in the grass, she just stood there. Literally for at least 5 minutes, she did not move a millimeter. We eventually sat her down and then she held her hands up and woudn't touch it. After a few swipes of her arms and a seemingly safe new toy, she started grabbing, and the grass didn't have a chance. She pulled and pulled and pulled! She was having a grand ole time! Now, she loves to walk on it, although the uneven terrain can sometimes get the best of her. The two photos above are her first experience with it in our front yard. The bottom two are at my parents house over the weekend.

Walking Video

Imogen took her first steps almost a month ago now and I finally took a good video of her showing off her new-found mode of transportation. Enjoy :-)

First Wedding

I've been meaning to post this all week, but every day when I get home from work, it seems that I get sidetracked with so many other things, that typing up a blog post gets pushed to the way-side. So, here I sit at work, eating lunch, and letting you know about Imogen's first wedding!

This past Saturday, we went to the wedding of two friends of ours and it was so much fun! The ceremony was held in a Catholic church and now that Imogen is more talkative, I was very worried that she would start babbling at the most inopertune time. But, as it turns out, we were able to keep her distracted and quiet except during the 'Our Father'....which didn't really matter since everyone else was talking aloud too! After the ceremony, we hung out downtown in a bar/restaurant with friends before heading over to the reception. And yes, we had Imogen in a bar (haha! non-smoking of course!). The reception was held at a great restaurant in downtown Pittsburgh and it was really unique because it had 2 in-door floors and then a roof-top terrace. It was a beautiful day and evening, so everyone could enjoy the sites and views from being up so high. The food was delicious -- and the cookies were even better!

While everyone was eating, I allowed Imogen to walk around on the dance floor since it was mostly empty. I couldn't believe how much she was walking -- it was like overnight, something clicked and she was on her feet everywhere. All that practice led to her being able to boogy down that night with some of the other kiddos there. There were these two little girls who had so much fun dancing with her. They would hold her hands and walk around to the music, and if she would fall, the other would pick her back up and they would continue on. It was really so precious!
We had a wonderful time, as you have read, and wish our friends many many years of health and happiness as a married couple!

Hope everyone's first May weekend was filled with smiles -- and here's onto the next.

May Day, May Day!

It's May. Yes, May. I've been dreading this month getting here because it means Imogen will be a year old by the end of it. No longer our little baby, our tiny tiny peanut, our bean burrito. Now she is walking around about 1/3 of the time! She always takes steps after letting go of anything and sometimes gets to her destination without falling. In the one picture below, she is simultaneously walking to my brother Joe and putting the paci in her mouth -- already a multitasker just like her mama! The other pictures below are Imogen looking out our back french doors toward the garage, where her dada was exercising and she just had to know where he was.

I'll be trying to post more often this month as the big day approaches. I hope everyone has a fantastic month! It's sure to be a special one for us.