Charlotte - Week 4

Wow, I can't believe Charlotte is one month old already!! She is growing so fast and changing every day. Gamma has noticed a big difference in just the 3 days she's been here. In the past couple of days, Charlie has been trying really hard to smile. You can tell that any day she's going to break out into a huge grin but for now we're getting sweet little smirks. She is such a sweet spirited baby.

This week, Charlotte went to a baby shower, met her Gamma, went to a concert downtown and had her 2nd trip to the beach. We've been busy! Charlotte loves getting baths, being held and pooping her pants. Not necessarily in that order. She's also a big fan of Gamma walking her around while singing "This Old Man".

Ruby is doing so great as a big sister. She loves Charlotte to bits and calls her "sweetie-pumpkin" and "stinky-butt" and loves to give her kisses and hugs. She's a great helper with changing diapers and is always ready with a wipe and diaper cream. We still have our challenging moments but it's overall much, much better!

We are so happy to have Gamma here and already don't know what we're going to do when she leaves. It's been such a big help. We're looking forward to J-A and Mae arriving next Monday!

Gamma meets Charlotte.

Gamma and her girls.

She did this to herself. I swear.

So happy together...

Rubes and Chris. She was at the beach for a whole 3 minutes before her bottoms came off.

Sacked out on beach trip #2!

Are you my Gamma?

She's excited for Halloween AND Christmas!

Never a dull moment in the Vogt household. Maybe we shouldn't ask Gamma to babysit...

I kind of caught a smile on camera.

Ruby loves giving Charlie kisses and hugs.

Charlotte - Week 3

Things are slowly getting back to "normal" around here. We took our first trip to the beach with Charlotte on the weekend and she loved it! She pretty much slept the whole time, well until Ruby put a whole handful of sand in her face. She's going to be a tough cookie, that's for sure.

Charlotte had her 2nd doctor's appointment and in 11 days she gained 1 whole pound and grew 1 inch! The doctor said she looks great. Her umbilical cord is off and we've moved up from newborn sized diapers to size 1!

Charlotte continues to be a great baby but is getting a little bit more fussy than she used to be, which is pretty typical once babies hit 3 weeks or so. She really realizing that she likes to be held. :)

Ruby is doing much, much better and having the 2 of them on my own for a whole day is manageable now whereas this time last week, the thought of it brought me to tears. The novelty of having a new baby in the house is wearing off a bit and Ruby's now starting to play by herself with her old toys again a little bit. The weather here has been incredible this past week. Cool in the mornings and evenings with low humidity - perfect for getting outside to play.

We are SUPER excited for Gamma to come visit!!!! Only 2 more sleeps!

Charlotte's first trip to the beach!

Mommy and her girls.

Sweet Charlotte.

Rubes and her friend Jansen.

Hehe, sorry Doug!

Ruby showing Charlotte her new play mat.

Tummy time turned into nap time.

Charlie's first real bath!

So Ruby's breast feeding "Big Baby" under my nursing cover. :)

Oh the joys of breast feeding/pumping!!!

This is how we roll.

Rubes and her boyfriends Jacob and Ethan.

Charlotte - Week 2

Charlotte continues to be a joy and a wonderful addition to our family. She has such a sweet spirit and you can just tell she can't wait to smile. She's been a lot more alert over the past week and is just taking everything in. She is very patient with her big sister and endures the many "holding sessions" complete with smothering kisses, too hard squeezes and shrieks in the ear. The one good thing is that she's learned to sleep through anything!

Charlotte had her first dr. appointment last Thursday and she was perfectly healthy but was only weighing in at 7lbs, 4 oz - which the dr. said wasn't enough weight gain. She has another appointment next week just to be sure she's gaining enough, she's supposed to gain 1 oz/day! She definitely feels heavier to me so I'm sure she'll pass the next appointment with flying colors.

Big sister Ruby is doing much better with the big adjustment. We still have our challenging moments or afternoons but at least they aren't full challenging days anymore. :) Ruby has started going to school on M-W-F until 2:30 now instead of until noon and she loves it. It also has given Mommy and Charlotte a little more bonding time.

Charlotte has been here for 2 weeks now and we haven't had to cook a meal yet! Our friends and neighbors have been so wonderful and generous and we've had a hot meal delivered just about every day since we've been home! We couldn't ask for better friends.

First bath.

Milk coma.
Just thought this was a neat comparison. This is Ruby at 3 weeks.

Storytime.

Playtime! Taking it all in.

Holding Charlotte for a few quick minutes before heading off to school.

Sleeping through the torture.

Getting so tall!

Being silly before school.

Charlotte - Week 1

Charlotte Mackay was born on Wednesday, September 15th at 8:03am. She weighed in at 7lbs, 14 oz and was 20 inches long. She looks exactly like Doug and very similar to Ruby when she was born. The whole c-section process went so smoothly and we couldn't be happier with the hospital and staff. A really great experience over all. I'm recovering MUCH quicker with this c-section than I did with Ruby and am feeling pretty great one week out.

Auntie Em came and stayed with Ruby while we were in the hospital and it was a life-saver. Ruby was so excited to spend time with Em and it just put Doug and I at so much ease to know Ruby was being so well taken care of. Thank you Auntie Em, we love you and appreciate you so much.

Charlotte is one chill baby. She is laid back and content, a great eater and marathon sleeper! I guess she knew she had to be the calm one with big sister Ruby already here to runs the show. We are so in love with Charlotte already and are cherishing every moment of her being this small.

The first couple of days back home were a bit challenging with Ruby but the past couple of days have really been great. Rubes is a great big sister and always wants to hold and cuddle and kiss her baby sister. She's always right there to pass me the wipes and diapers or go get me the burp cloth or give Charlotte a pacifier, if she wants it or not :). She really is doing great. Today was my first day home alone with both of the girls and it went really well. I'm finding it amazing what I can do while breast-feeding, like give Ruby a bath. :)

We can't wait to see what Charlotte's personality is going to be like but so far she seems like a "go with the flow" kind of gal. She's very sweet and just loves watching the mobile on her pack 'n play. We can't wait to watch you grow Charlotte! xoxo

Welcome to the world, baby girl!

Proud Mommy and Daddy.

So small and sweet.

You forget how small they are until you see them with their Daddies.

Cuddles with Mommy.

Ruby and Charlotte meet.

Love at first sight.

"Daddy, give her back - she's MINE!"

Sisters.

Melts my heart.

A proud and very loved Auntie Em.

Sorry babe, had to add this. Doug just HAD to try out my leg compressions.
Hehe.

Sneaking a last cuddle before we head home.

Rubes is excited to FINALLY bring baby sister home!

Can we go yet?

Chilling out with Charlie.

Watching her mobile.

Ruby likes to hold Charlotte. A lot.

So tiny.