Baby #2's First Pictures

We had the ultrasound for our second baby today. Everything looks good, but they changed the due date to September 21, 2010. I am not convinced that the ultrasound tech's measurements are accurate, but I also am not opposed to accepting a later due date. I also think it's likely the original date was off by about a week. I think that the baby will probably arrive between the 9th and the 21. My official prediction is a due date of September 16, 2010.

For the record, Hannah predicts: girl, September 16, 2010, 7lbs 7oz

Here are two profile shots.

A profile on the left, and face-on on the right.

A foot, and another face-on view.

Once again, the scary face-on view that looks like special effects from Harry Potter.

Trip to Nebraska

We took a trip to Nebraska for a party for Jarrod's farewell as he leaves for bootcamp and Libby's college graduation. We stayed at the Dickes' with the Becker's in Lincoln and had a great time! It was exhausting, but wonderful. We got in Thursday evening in time to hang out a little before bed time. Cecilia was wonderful on the drive. Hannah drove and Ben rode in back with Cecilia. She took 2 two-hour naps and played happily the rest of the time. The great drive was followed by a terrible night. Cecilia does not sleep well in new places, and she was scared and unsettled Thursday night.
Although we were all tired, we still had a great day Friday. Cecilia had eggs for the first time when Sara cooked an awesome breakfast. Then, we went to Omaha and Cecilia charmed everyone at Oma's work and we took great family pictures with Oma, Aunt Allison, Aunt Libby, and Uncle Jarrod. After that, Cecilia delighted in eating Spanish rice. We soon headed back to Lincoln to spend the evening with Grandpa Yount. Cecilia is very wary of men, so it took some time for her to get used to Grandpa Yount. She was playing with him by the time we left, though. That night was some terrible weather, and Cecilia got to experience her first storm on the plains. Although there were tornados around the area, none got close. After seeing Grandpa Yount, Oma and Aunt Arlene sat with the kids and Ben and Hannah joined Sara and Joe for some adult time at the home of one of Sara's friends. It was fun to have some time with grown-ups, but we were thankful to get some sleep. Cecilia slept very well on Friday night - probably from exhaustion!
Saturday was the party, and it was very busy! We helped get things ready, and then the whole family came to the Dickes' house to celebrate. Unfortunately, Cecilia was about done with meeting new people and was still tired. There always seem to be new situations that require us to stretch our parenting skills. Cecilia stayed close to us the whole day, and we did manage to get her to take a 45 minute nap. Even though Cecilia was unsettled that night, we managed to spend some good time with the family. Jarrod stayed all night, and it was good to be together playing games and hanging out. We probably won't get another chance to do this again for a long while, and it was special for all of us. However, it was another rough night with the baby (not as bad as Thursday), so we were all tired on Sunday.
After gathering ourselves together on Sunday, we ate a late breakfast with Oma and Aunt Allison before hitting the road. Hannah started out, but needed a break after about an hour so Ben drove for a hundred miles. Refreshed from a nap, Hannah resumed driving for the rest of the trip. Even though he wasn't driving, Daddy did not have it easy in the backseat with the baby. The weekend had taken its toll on Cecilia and she was a lot fussier on the way home. Ben spent a couple of hours singing to her, which she loves. She took a short nap at the beginning, but didn't sleep much the rest of the trip. Around her bedtime, she fell asleep for a couple hours but woke up when we got home. That got her excited!
Cecilia was SO glad to be home! She was so happy to see Na-naw, Paw-paw, and her toys that she couldn't hardly contain herself. We decided to dress her for bed and let her calm down before we even attempted bedtime. She raced around her toys and was kicking and literally bouncing. It took about an hour for her to calm to a more normal level. We skipped bath and did the rest of the bedtime routine, but it did take a while to get her down. It took a few days for all of us to catch up on sleep and we took part of Monday off to recuperate. Cecilia slept with us for a couple of days. She does not like change, just like her Daddy, so we'll have quite an adjustment when we move. We are so thankful, though, that she clings to us and can be content with Mommy and Daddy near.
Congrats to Libby, Goodluck to Jarrod, and THANK YOU to Aunt Arlene and the Beckers. We love you all and are so thrilled we got to see you! It was a wonderful trip and we would love to post the pictures we took, but they are all on Oma and Allison's cameras. So, guys ... can you send them to me?

Better at Walking!

Cecilia keeps getting better and better at walking! This is her new game in the evenings. She walks from person to person across the room and practices turning and changing directions. Occasionally, she'll even try to climb on someone (she's pretty good). A few times she's walked all over the house, but generally she still prefers a finger for accompaniment on her adventures. She's getting there!

Copying Na-naw

Cecilia had been copying Na-naw, but we didn't quite get it on camera. It is an adorable video of her sitting and playing. She likes to point at things as says "dsss". What a cute baby!

Daddy's Hat

Cecilia likes hats, and on this day she was walking around wearing Daddy's hat! She really loved it! Go Cards!

Baby #2

I forgot to give a quick update about the new baby. We went ahead and saw a doctor last week for the new baby since we're approaching 20 weeks and would like the 20 week ultrasound. Everything was fine and the heartbeat was in the 160s. He didn't listen long, but there was only one heartbeat and he said the size was normal for 19 weeks. Our ultrasound is scheduled for April 27th, so hopefully we'll still be here for it. We have a follow-up appointment the next day. We'll try to get the new baby's first picture on the blog pretty quick. Other than that, I feel fine and all is well!

Cardinals Game

Ben and I were invited to go to a Cardinals baseball game with Becky and Elliott. We didn't think we'd make it to a game this season, so it was a big treat. The tickets were free and the seats were great. An awesome date night! As a plus, it was fireworks night, which was more romantic than you'd think. Go Cards!

Tiddlywinks

Cecilia has a new game - she enjoys playing Tiddlywinks with her Cheerios (or, Tosty-O's as I believe the generic version is called). She can get them to jump pretty high.

Kicking the Ball

Cecilia has developed a new game, and it involves kicking her ball. Ben is so amazed at the eye-foot coordination that he has visions of the first female MLB player in history. It is amazing to watch her kick the ball, run after it, then kick it again. Granted, she's still holding on to Na-naw's hand! I'm afraid we have a soccer player, which will dash Ben's hopes and dreams. I suppose time will tell. In the meantime, congratulations to Cecilia for a new skill and stage of development!

A Nap After Time in the Sun

After Cecilia's afternoon in the sun (well, maybe 20 minutes?) she was worn out. Playing is hard work! She took a nap with Daddy. Mommy and Daddy are always up for a nap!

Playing in the Hose

Cecilia got her first taste of summer when we went outside and played in the hose. Her swimsuit - a boys xsm T-shirt. Slathered in sunscreen and sporting a wide-brimmed, floppy white hat, we splashed in the hose set to "mist." Seriously, any stronger spray scared the poor thing (she hates the shower too). She really enjoyed herself and we will definitely do this again! We're thinking of getting a wading pool for her in NY. Yeah summer!

Crawling

Well, Cecilia finally learned to crawl, even if it is almost 2 months after she took her first steps. I'm convinced that she will be doing things her own way her entire life. I got the crawling on video, and our girl is definitely mobile now. She crawls all over creation and is a pistol! We have to close doors and put up breakables because we have a baby on the move. Truth be told, she usually stays within eyeshot of Mommy or Daddy, but she has made forays behind the couch and into the bedroom alone. She sure is quick! In addition to her crawling, she is walking more on her own and better assisted. Watch out, she'll be driving soon! :)

An Afternoon at the Park

We took Cecilia to the park on a lovely Saturday to swing, and she hated the swing. We put her in it, and she cried. It was better when Daddy tried it than Mommy, but she still cried. That all changed when two things happened. First, our daredevil of a girl started enjoying herself when Daddy pushed her HIGH. Evidently our gentle pushes were to light to make her decide to enjoy herself. Secondly, a little girl came over wanting to play with her. It was so unsettling, because she was over with us for several minutes, trying to play with our baby and talking to strangers, and we never saw a parent. We sort of tried to deter her, but she really like Cecilia and Cecilia thought she was great - as you can see in the pictures.

On a side note, a few days earlier we were at the library and she stumbled into a coffee table while walking and got a bruise on her cheek. It hurt at the time, but she hasn't been bothered by it since and it's almost gone.

Peas!

Cecilia found a favorite food - peas! She eats them like they're candy! She won't eat them pureed out of a jar or homemade, but if you put a spoonfull of the peas the family eats on her tray she will eat them until they're gone. Spoonful after spoonful, she won't waste one by dropping it on the ground. Pretty impressive for this girl. She only eats what she can feed herself. It looks like peas are a hit!

Easter Candy

We let Cecilia chew on the packaging of this chocolate covered bunny. She really loved chewing on it, and I checked it a couple of times and it didn't look like she was getting through the packaging. Well, she did get just the end opened and started sucking the chocolate out. Later, she got a bite of a peanut butter egg and hated it. I think she's a chocolate girl.

Easter Morning

I made an Easter cake! I didn't count on the letters running because the frosting wasn't totally dry. Oh well. For those who can't read it, it's supposed to say "Rejoice! He is Risen!"

We did Easter baskets on Easter morning with Cecilia, then actually made it to 9:30 mass early enough to get a seat! Yeah us! After a quick nap after mass, we headed over to Ben's Aunt Mary Ellen's for dinner and family time. All the aunts were there, and Cecilia was a big hit. She also got to see her Great-Grandma Swoboda, which was really special. Even though Cecilia's been feeling poorly the last few days, she did really well all afternoon. Ben's cousin Katie came over with her children before we left, and Cecilia got to see Danika and Drake. Danika and Cecilia checked each other out, which was adorable. It ended with a hug, which we didn't get on camera but was precious. No video, but there are lots of pictures!

I made our Easter baskets this year. Cecilia's has the yellow ribbon, I have the purple ribbon, and Ben's is blue with a fish theme. Cecilia chose her own ribbon, flower, and butterfly.

Our Easter baskets after the Easter Bunny came!

Cecilia all ready to got to church. She's wearing the new headband and necklace the Easter bunny brought.

The whole family after church. Happy Easter!

Cecilia with Great-Grandma Swoboda and Paw-paw.

Cecilia riding Paw-paw's knee. She was starting to get crabby and we were trying to make her laugh.

Cecilia trying to make friends with Danika. I think it's funny how Katie and I look at our daughter's the same way.

Cecilia and her Sword

Cecilia is a Swoboda girl, so of course she would aquire and play with a sword. I thought this scene was funny. A pretty little girl in a pretty flowered dress playing with a sword bigger than she is.

Here she's saying "What?"

"I have a sword!"

"Yummmm..."

"Cleaning" the Floor

For a long time Cecilia had a nemesis - the dust mop. This mop scared her, but nearly everyday Cecilia would approach this dust mop with a trusted companion (often Na-naw) and touch it. She would play with it, and Na-naw would carry her around and dust the floors. As time went on, Cecilia began to conquer this fear of the dust mop until, one special day, the fear was gone. We've noticed this bravery in her before. She gets scared of a lot of things, but she faces it and usually wins. Thus far, the mixer and blowdrier are still not conquered. Now that she has defeated the fear of the dustmop, she has found a new toy and a new game. She enjoys taking the spare dustmop and cleaning the floors. I got some pictures and video of this new activity!

Cecilia's Favorite Pastime

Cecilia's favorite pastime is exploring the house. She'll grab ahold of any willing hand and bring them with her on an adventure. Her favorite place to go is Na-naw and Paw-paw's bathroom. It has a great echo in it and she only goes there with Na-naw. I took some pictures of her travels.

Here is Cecilia investigating one of the nightstands. She likes to hear the music play. There are neat books and a basket on the other side that she enjoys investigating.

Here is Cecilia in the bathroom. She makes a lot of noise in here. You can also see her pointing at me - one of her new favorite things. She will point and then wave.

After leaving the bathroom, she pointed again. We're heading out of the bedroom and down the hall to check on Daddy.

Daddy is working hard. Cecilia likes to check on him sometimes and give him hugs. She misses him while he's working.

The complete document of our trip around the house is in the Facebook folder "Cape 2010."

Mama

I do have some pictures and a video to post, but I had to post this ASAP. Celia called me "mama" today. She says "da" to Ben sometimes, but today she utter some barely intelligible form of "mama." The first time, she walked into the kitchen where I was (with Na-naw) and we thought we heard her say it. I didn't get to excited, though, because she babbles constantly. Later in the day, I came home after running a few errands (she was napping when I left) and when she saw me she excitedly called "mama." We're pretty sure she said it. I may not hear it again for many months, but she came running to me and hugged me afterwards. Precious baby.

On a side note, our angel is sick. She's been vomiting on and off all week. We aren't really sure what's going on because it's not continuous. She'll vomit, then not again for a few hours, then not for a couple days. Today has been the worst. She threw up at 5 am and 10 am, then took a break until bedtime when she threw up at 8:30 and 10 pm. We've been feeding her in small amounts and trying not to lay her down right after eating, which seem to help. Things are still coming out, but our poor girl doesn't feel well. We think it may be partly due to drainage from allergies. We'll see. Keep her in your prayers.