Christmas 2008!

Hi everyone,

We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! We had a really nice time celebrating with family, ate way too much and got way too many presents from Santa. I guess we were all good this year! :) Here are a few pictures from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day...

Our happy little family!


All the lovely ladies!


My sister doing some last minute wrapping!


Elise having a meltdown!


The little angel was pooped after playing with her new "Perfectly Pink" Palace!









I can't believe Christmas is already over and in a few days it will be 2009! Where does the time go?!?!?!

Happy New Year!
Love,
Kim

Hi everyone,

Well, we made it safely to Atlanta. The drive went well and Elise was an angel, thankfully. We've been so busy since being in town. The day after we arrived I had a "sip 'n see" shower for my best friend Katie's second baby, Blake. He was born exacly 1 month after Elise was born and is so precious. We've already made plans for Elise and Blake's wedding!!! :)

Here's a picture of Katie with her new bundle, Blake, and myself:


We've been busy getting the rest of our Christmas presents purchased, baking cookies, cooking, and visiting with friends. Here's a peak into the past couple of days...

Here's my mom, rolling out dough for home-made pierogis! Yum!! :)


I even got a lesson so I can make them too!


While my mom and I were cooking, Greg and Elise were surfing the web:



Elise turned 7 weeks old on Monday! I can't believe how fast the time is going by now. She is doing so well and only waking up once during the night for a feeding. Here are a few new pictures of our sweet little angel:





And finally, my sister-in-law, Jodie got engaged on Sunday!! We are so excited for her and Bob. They make the sweetest couple! Bob is going to be Elise's first uncle so she is SUPER excited!

We hope you all have a very Merry Christmas! Check back again soon for more pictures and updates!

Love,
Kim

Catching Up

Hi everyone,

Sorry it has been a while since my last post. Unfortunately, my family received some horrible news last week...my grandma is no longer with us. My grandma and I were extremely close even though she lived in New Jersey and I only really got to see her once a year. When my sister and I were little we spent every summer with my grandma and grandpa in New Jersey and had the best time. They took such good care of us and spoiled us rotten. I am so thankful that I have those great memories which I will never forget. I know one day I will see my grandma again, until then she will be missed dearly.

Greg, Elise, Chloe and I are leaving this Friday for Atlanta where we will be spending two weeks with my parents and sister. We are so excited to be getting away...it almost feels like we are back in college and this is our "Christmas break!" It will be really nice to be around family. I'm looking forward to doing some baking, eating, shopping and of course, waiting for Santa! Since we will be spending Christmas with my family this year, we celebrated Christmas with Greg's parents and sisters last Saturday. Here are some pictures:


This was Elise's reaction when I told her about Santa:


This was her reaction when I told her about opening presents:


The proud mommy:


The proud papa:


Grammy Pammy and Geep:



Today I took Elise to the doctor for a follow up from her last appointment. They wanted to see how she was handling the medicine for acid reflux. Fortunately it is working and she seems to be a lot happier and feeling better. She weighs 11 pounds, 4 ounces already! I can't believe how fast she is growing! Here are some new pictures of her playing in her crib!






That's all for now!
Love,
Kim

Photo Session

Hi there,

A few weeks ago, we had a photographer come to the house to take newborn pictures of Elise. The photographer created a slideshow for viewing and I wanted to share it with everyone. Below are the link and instructions. (I think you will need to cut and paste the link into a new browser in order to view.) We hope you enjoy the show.

You may view the show by visiting this link: http://whiteislephoto.com/elise/. Make sure your speakers are turned on and the volume is turned up. Click on Elise.exe. You will notice a window pop up that will ask you if you would like to run or save the show, select "run" to view your show. You may exit the show at any time by pressing the escape button on your computer.


Enjoy the weekend!
Love,
Kim

1 Month Old!

Hi everyone,
Well we've made it to the one month mark! I can't believe Elise has already been on this earth for a month...time sure does fly, even when you're sleep deprived! :) Things have been going well for the most part. We actually were back at the pediatrician's office this morning because last week Elise came down with a nasty bug and our poor baby had the worst diarrhea and lost 8 ounces. I know that doesn't sound like a big deal but when you're only 8 pounds, it's pretty significant. The appointment went well this morning and she is definitely feeling better since she gained 2 pounds since last week! I was worried because she recently started spitting up after eating and has been extremely fussy. The pediatrician thinks it's acid reflux and prescribed medicine so I'm hopeful that it works and she will feel better soon so her mommy and daddy can get at least a couple hours of sleep at night! Right now the only way she will sleep is laying on her belly on our chests which does not make for good quality sleep for us. The medicine can take up to a week to start working so I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Here are a few new pictures of the birthday girl. As you can see she's getting bigger and bigger. She has already outgrown her "newborn" sized clothing and is onto "0-3 months!" WOW!!!





We hope you're all staying warm...it's only 68 here today so I know it's gotta be FREEZING up north! :)

Love,
Kim

Weekend Fun!

Hi there,

We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Greg, Elise, Chloe and I spent the day at my in-law's house enjoying the company and of course, the yummy food! It was really fun to celebrate the holiday with our new baby. Of course Elise was the main attraction...followed closely by the turkey and fixings! :) It's been so nice having Greg home for the long holiday weekend. We actually ventured out to a few stores yesterday for Black Friday and Elise was a complete angel. She's going to follow in her mommy's footsteps and be a great shopper...I can tell already! We've also started getting in the holiday cheer by decorating the house with Christmas decorations, putting our tree up and listening to Christmas music! Here's a picture of our sweet angel relaxing while we were hard at work today. She must've really enjoyed the Christmas music!!



I absolutely love Christmas and this year is going to be extra special since it will be Elise's very first one! I'm so excited to have a baby to shop for even though I know she can't open presents yet and has no idea what Christmas is!

Something else we are excited about is Greg's Birthday. Tomorrow he will be 28! Happy Birthday Greg!! You are an amazing husband and now daddy! Elise, Chloe and I are such lucky girls!! :) We love you!






That's all for now. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
Love,
Kim

A Few New Pictures!

Hi everyone,

It's been a busy couple of days here. Greg got home on Friday from being out of town all week and it was so nice to have him back! Friday night was a rough one; for some reason Elise was extremely fussy and did NOT want to sleep. Thankfully Greg took the morning duty so I was able to sleep for a few hours since I was up all throughout the night. We managed to run a few errands yesterday...it's amazing how much longer it takes to get ready and leave the house when you have a baby in tow. ;) Greg made a great dinner for my mom and I last night and we all just relaxed and hung out. Thankfully Elise had a much better night last night. She still woke up every 3 hours to eat but that is to be expected from a 2.5 week old! Greg was on daddy-duty again today for a few hours so my mom and I could leave the house and do a little shopping. I was in need of some new non-maternity clothes and surprisingly I hit the jackpot (normally when you're looking for clothes you can never find them)!!!!

Tonight we gave Elise a bath...it was only her second one since her belly button fell off and she seemed to handle it better this time. She actually relaxed a little and enjoyed it. Here are a few pictures: (I'm sure Elise will love that I'm sharing these with you!)





Elise drying off and staying warm:




Here she is enjoying her swing:




That's all that's new with us. My mom is leaving this Wednesday so I'm a little anxious about being alone with Elise. It's been so great having her here...she has been such a great help!!
Love,
Kim

Update!

Hi everyone,

Elise had her second week pediatrician appointment and everything went really well. She is back to her birth weight...and then some, weighing 7 pounds, 15 ounces! She's now 21.5 inches long, so she's either growing a ton or is able to stretch out her little body more now that she's out of my tummy! ;) It's such a relief to know that our little pumpkin is doing well and thriving. It makes me feel like I'm doing things right because as a first-time mom, you just never know!

Greg is coming back into town tomorrow after being out of town for a week for work and I know he will practically recognize Elise since she has grown so much! Here's a recent picture of her sleeping in her bassinet. I love how she has her arms above her head!


We hope everyone is doing well!
Love,
Kim

Two Weeks Old!

Hi everyone,

Today is officially Elise's 2 week birthday! I can't believe two weeks ago today she entered the world! While it seems like it just happened yesterday, it also feels like these past couple of weeks have been like 2 months. ;) Elise seems to be eating better and getting on somewhat of a routine, waking up every three hours to nurse. Her next pediatrician appointment is on Wednesday so I'm curious to see how much weight she has gained. Hopefully she will be back at her birth weight...keep your fingers crossed!

In other news, my sister came into town today from Atlanta. She's a proud new aunty and Elise loves her so much already! Here are a few pictures:






I had a postpartum appointment today and got a good report. My blood pressure is still on the low side but I feel good and seem to be gaining my energy back...the doctor is hopefully that in a couple more weeks I will be back to my old self! I have already lost 30 pounds...I know...how is that possible in two weeks?! Trust me, I gained a lot of water weight near the end of my pregnancy. I still have a few pounds to go to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight but at this point, I feel pretty good!

We hope everyone has a good week. Keep checking in for updates and more pictures.
Love,
Kim

1st Doctor Appointment!

Hi everyone,

Elise had her very first appointment with the pediatrician this past Monday. I was a little nervous since it was only the 2nd time we've taken her out in public, but she did great! She slept in the car on the way to and from the appointment and was very cooperative with the nurse and doctor while they were poking and prodding her. She has apparently already grown 3/4 of an inch so she is in the 70th percentile. She also lost 2 ounces, which puts her in the 24th percentile for weight, so our mission is to beef her up before her next appointment which is next week. That means more frequent feedings and for longer amounts of time. I swear, breastfeeding could be a full-time job!

Here's a picture of Elise ready for her first doctor appointment:

Here are a few pictures of Elise with her eyes actually OPEN!




That's all for now. We hope you are all doing well.
Love,
Kim

Update on our Angel!

Hi everyone,

It's been a few days so I thought I'd share an update with everyone. Parenthood has been terrific so far. Sleep is no longer a word in our vocabulary but I don't mind really. It's probably all of the endorphins that I still have from giving birth to such an angel. Speaking of angels, Elise is doing so great...she definitely likes to eat, which is keeping me busy. ;) We think she is just beautiful...I can't stop taking pictures of her! We have our first pediatrician appointment tomorrow morning so I hope it goes well.

Here are a few pictures of Elise. She's growing and changing everyday so I promise to continue to share more pictues with you soon!







Love,
Kim

Introducing...

Hi everyone,

Greg and I are home with our beautiful baby girl, ELISE DIOR PATTEE! She graced us with her presence on November 3rd, at 12:20PM and weighed 7 pounds, 12 ounces and was 20 inches long. Labor and delivery went really well, I was already 4cm dilated before they started the Pitocin so I was only on it for an hour and a half. The Pitocin strengthened my contractions obviously so I had an epidural soon after. I did experience several contractions so I could really appreciate the pain relief that came with the epidural. :) Here's a picture of me, right after getting the epidural. Notice the smile...




Soon after the epidural, I made a lot of good progress quickly and I only had to push on-and-off for about 30 minutes. After the last push I heard the sweetest cry from our baby girl. Here's our first family portrait, please pardon the puffiness in my face.



Unfortunately that's pretty much where our luck ended. I had a significant "repair" done after the birth, which was fine at the time since I still felt the relief from the epidural, but is now extremely painful. Also, after I was in our post-partum room the nurses could tell that my uterus was not contracting. Because of this I had a very significant blood loss and almost had to get a blood transfusion. I will spare you the details but it was the scariest and most painful 24 hours of my life. All I wanted to do was to hold and enjoy our new little bundle which made things even worse because I obviously wasn't able to.

We are home now with Elise and she is doing really well. We can't get enough of her and love her SO much. I am on several pain medications along with a large does of iron due to the extreme blood loss and thankfully I am feeling better. My mom and dad were here for the birth which made the after-birth situation a little easier to handle. Unfortunately my dad is back in Atlanta but my mom will be here until a few days before Thanksgiving, which will be a great help, and my sister will be here in a couple of weeks!

Enough about me, here are a few pictures of our sweet little angel, Elise.






Elise has been doing really well. I know that we are partial, but she really is a great baby. :) We've both gotten the hang of nursing and I think we are all in the clear now and things will only continue to get better and better. I love being a mommy and Greg loves being a daddy. We are so blessed to have such a healthy, beautiful baby!

Thank you all for sharing my pregnancy with me, Greg and Elise. We promise to continue to keep the blog updated with pictures, etc. so please check back often.

Love,
The Pattees!

Progress Report!

Hi everyone,

Well I had my weekly appointment this morning and I am progressing quite nicely! I am already 3cm dilated!!!! My doctor seems to think that I will go into labor within the next day or two, which is so exciting!! If I don't though, he scheduled an induction for Monday, November 3rd!!!!!! I am so excited I can hardly contain myself. Just knowing that the end is near and pretty soon I will be able to hold our baby girl is the best feeling in the world!! I have a few things I need to get done around the house before Monday so I will be busy this weekend. I will try and keep the blog as up to date as possible! That's all for now!

Love,
Kim

Pumpkin-Palooza!

Hi everyone,

Since it's now Fall, Greg and I decided to pick up pumpkins last weekend and try to get in the holiday cheer. Initially, we were planning on going to a pumpkin patch but finding one was a bit more difficult that we had imagined. The few that we saw consisted of a few pumpkins sitting near the side of the road. Now, being from Chicago originally, both Greg and I were expecting a bigger event with tons of pumpkins of all different shapes and sizes, haunted houses, hot apple cider and cocoa, little kids dressed up in their costumes, etc. To say I was a little disappointed is an understatement but I didn't let it get the best of me! Instead, Greg and I stopped at Publix (a grocery store in the southeast for those of you that aren't familiar) and picked out our pumpkin. The funniest part was when we were paying for the pumpkin, the cashier asked us if we were going to carve it. We were nice and answered her question by saying yes, but once we were in the car we were both laughing because we weren't sure what else we would do with the pumpkin if we weren't going to carve it! Sometimes it feels like living in Florida is like living on another planet! :)

Anyway, here are Greg and I in action, having fun carving our pumpkin:





We used a stencil this year and I think it turned out pretty well. Here's the final product:




On Sunday, I was still in the holiday mood, so I decided to do a little cooking...it must be the whole "nesting" thing! I swear, I've nested throughout this entire pregnancy. Anyway, here are the popcorn balls I made and the apple bread/cake that I baked.





We hope you are all enjoying this fall season and getting ready for Halloween! Maybe I will get to "dress up" as a mom this year!

Love,
Kim