I am already feeling emotional about saying goodbye to 2009. It brought me my long-awaited little girl after 6 losses-she was worth the wait

Hazel is now 9 months old & officially weaned off of the boob! She still does the bottle thing but we are working on sippy cups & real cups.

SHE'S MOBILE! Saw her first 3 crawling steps this morning. Daddy saw it first when I was sleeping in. We are in trouble now. LOVE vacation!

Operation Daytime Sleep Training is going quite well. She is in the middle of her 2nd nap in the crib today. Should have done this earlier!

The Christmas celebrations are officially OVER! Whew...now time to rest and get healthy again. Yeah for vacation until Tuesday, January 5th.

Sniffles, coughs, & cramps-OH MY! Lawrence & I are losing our voices over coughing. It is a squeaky, medicated, mellow household right now.

OK just tried to put her down for a nap in her crib for the first time at home (usually she naps on me or in the swing)-found her pulling up

2 Christmases down and one to go. I am burnt! Tomorrow is recharge day! :)

Looking forward to taking Hazel on her first Amtrak ride on Tuesday morning. I think she will love it!

Ahhh, my last working day of 2009 is coming to a close. 2009 was a great year! I can only hope that 2010 is just as good or even better!

Now daddy's turn for the stuffiness. Hazel is almost done with it & I am feeling a little better each day. It will have run its course soon.

Now mommy has babies sniffles. It was bound to happen!

Great day to stay inside and play with a slightly sick baby!

Poor little girl has her second runny nose. I knew it was coming because last night she sneezed about 10 times in an hour. Ahhhh childcare!

What a great Sunday! Spent the day with Cass and the girls. Everyone napped and Cass got a writing break. A total win-win!

I think I have been starving my little girl in the AM-I gave her a bottle this morning first thing & she slammed 5+ ounces like nothing-OOPS

Hazel is 8 months old today! :)

I have 15 Google Wave invitations. Who wants one?

One of the best Saturdays EVER! Slept in, hubby watched Hazel, some at-home time, ran some errands, and ended the evening in celebration.

Turkey sandwich n pie for b-fast. Hazel has been asleep for over an hour in the swing after being insatiably hungry for days-grow baby grow!

The day before Thanksgiving! One of my favorite work days because they usually close the office at 2PM. I am already counting on it! :)

Hazel is now sitting unassisted for extended periods of time. She is also very mobile in her own special way. She rolls, spins, & scoots!

My poor baby is having a hard time going to sleep. She has her first cold. She slept with mommy in Hawaii & I knew it would be rough at home

Hazel and I are Kauai bound! ALOHA! :)

No more goopy eye! She has had green/yellow stuff coming out of her right tear duct since she was born. It has been 4 days now & NO GOOP! :)

Another nice sunny fall day in Oaktown! Looking forward to some outside time with Hazel and Marisa :)

Hazel learned to clap and kiss today. A GREAT day! :)

Feeling sad that Lawrence is for sure not going to Hawaii with us next week. :(

She was an excellent sleeper last night: 7PM-6AM. That means momma got great sleep too: 10PM-5:30AM. Then to top it off she took a good nap!

Is disliking all over the place on Facebook - goes along with my mood http://ping.fm/xwqJy

Happy Halloween! Don't forget to turn your clocks back an hour tonight! Yeah for an extra hour of sleep. Hope Hazel knows to sleep late! ;)

Hazel took her first BART ride yesterday and her second ride today. She loved watching the world pass by on the train and all of the people.

Hazel & I both got our H1N1 vaccines. It took 5 hours of waiting in line but it was worth it. I feel like a successful mom. Now I can rest!

We stood in line for 3 hours in the Mission waiting for the H1N1 vaccine-didn't get it. Left with a numbered paper (#203) to return tomorrow

Hazel and I were asked to move to the back of the meeting room today at WW. She was being too loud. At least they were happy baby noises!

She had her first taste of an Arizmendi baked good today and she liked it! Corn scone with cherries - who wouldn't like that?

I am so ready to be well again! Cough be gone! Resting is great but I am ready for more.

No likey the cottage cheese. More tofu down the hatch though! She has been sleeping from 6:45PM through to 5:30AM or 6 for the last 4 nights

Baby likes tofu! Next egg yolks and then cottage cheese. I might also try some avocado this weekend. I need to fatten her up!

6 month appointment today. Lots of shots=asleep in the swing. I should be napping too! 25th % in weight & 65th % in length = skinny & long!

Either she has her first cold or her daddies allergies. Either way, she has a runny nose and a cranky attitude. Poor baby! :(

Looking forward to spending the next 4 days with my beautiful daughter! :)

Biggest nap yet today: 3-5:45=growing? Will she go to bed at 7 & still sleep good? My sister says the more they sleep, the more they sleep.

Yeah for the weekend! :)

I have the BEST sister and brother-in-law in the world! They totally took care of me for our upcoming trip to Hawaii. I feel so much better!

I got an iPhone. Baby drank from her first sippy cup & had her first baby yogurt. A good day - except for the no napping & overtired crying.

Tomorrow is my Blackjack II anniversary ergo phone upgrade day for me! I've had a Blackjack for 2 years - it has served me well. iPhone next

The free pig was at the Chop Bar-serving FREE beer and JC wine. What a great event! 4th & Alice in Oakland. Hazel melted down but we had fun

Happy Friday! Looking forward to JC Cellars whole pig today after work with Josh. YUM! PIG!!!

Happy half birthday to Hazel! She is 6 months old today. I can hardly believe it. She is working on her crawling, looking like a mermaid. :)

She woke up briefly tonight but she put herself right back to sleep. I hope we are over the hard part of this sleep training stuff!

My good little sleeper only cried for 1 min. last night. I came into her room to close her window while she fussed & she didn't even see me.

She cried for only 12 min. and awoke at 2AM and 5AM for short feeds. Finally woke up at 7AM for good. Another good night!

BEST.NIGHT.SLEEP.EVER! She woke up at 5AM, fed her, went right back to sleep until after 7AM. I haven't slept this well since December!

After 50 excruciating minutes of crying, Hazel is now quiet without parental intervention. Let's hope the rest of the night goes as well!

Happy to report that Hazel is a very healthy 14 lbs. 12 oz. She has a bad case of the 6 month separation anxieties! Tonight= cry it out :(

Thanks for all of the advice! I am now thinking it is her ears. We had the hardest night yet last night. Seeing the doctor at 1:45pm!

I think she is teething. She pretty much cried for 45 min. straight after I tried to put her to bed. She would suck on the passie and cry.

Hazel was better last night. She slept from 8-12 but then woke up pretty much every hour after that. Tonight Tylenol-I think she is teething

For the second night in a row Hazel has woken up every hour after bed. Not sure what is going on with her but mommy needs some sleep!

Now that I work 80% and have Mondays off, I love Sunday nights! Had a great time at mom's digging through old memories but glad to be home.

Having a great girls weekend at mom's with the Dunn/Harris/Arrowsmith girls.

Sunday night=Taco Sunday-Lawrence leaves for San Diego for a few days tomorrow morning. Let's see how working & being a mommy by myself is.

It's 7pm on a Friday, baby is in bed w/ a full tummy of spinach & potato, adult beverage & take out Thai in hand - life is good!

Day 2 of my second 4 day work week. I am feeling the tired creeping in. Hopefully Hazel will sleep as well the next 2 nights as last night.

Yeah for 3 day work weeks!

Today Hazel is 5 months old & almost sporting a fohawk w/ thinning hair on both sides of her head. Daddy is pleased with her new hair style.

Is really hoping for another good night of sound sleeping for everyone in the house!

Hazel slept from 7am to 4pm last night! She might have slept longer if I hadn't gone in to check on her. I feel almost back to human today.

Happy 40th birthday to my sweet, sweet husband Lawrence! I LOVE YOU! I wish I had more energy to celebrate. Sleep is calling me...

TGIF! I can't wait to get more sleep tomorrow. Being a working mother is tiring. I hope Hazel's evening sleep pattern improves next week.

Lawrence is giving Hazel a bath without the infant liner in the tub for the first time. She is kicking and splashing like crazy. Video soon!

Yesterday she didn't like the sweet potato with chicken or the carrots but today she gobbled down both in record amounts!

Week 2 of work starts tomorrow. I better get all my lists ready!

My second 80% day tomorrow. SWEET!!!

My first work week is behind me! I feel a real sense of accomplishment. Hazel had mostly good days & some bad. Looking forward to next week.

I love these 80% days! Sleep in, surf computer, play with Hazel, work out, grocery shop, watch TV, read, and recharge my mommy batteries.

Tomorrow is back to work day...end of the maternity leave. It has been grand! Sorry to see it end but it's time to earn a living again.

SHE ROLLED OVER!!! Front to back, to her right. My baby is growing up! I totally cried. We did it twice just to make sure it wasn't a fluke.

I am celebrating my last day of Maternity Leave (instead of crying in my decaf)!

Butternut squash was a BIG hit with Hazel tonight. Just like my wise sister told me it would be... :)

Hazel dropped off at daycare @9AM-breakfast out, hair, nails, lunch out, gym, second shower-Hazel picked up @4:30PM, sprinkle in a few tears

A strange thing happened to me on the way to the gym today - I actually started looking forward to a day without Hazel tomorrow. A day of me

Lost 1 lb. at WW today, walked the lake again before it gets too hot, and looking forward to Sushi with Marisa tonight. Today is a good day!

I am not going to work for entire week and the tears have already started like it is happening now. This is going to be a long few weeks!

Momma and baby BOTH need a nice long Sunday nap!

Had a nice walk around the lake with Jackie and Connor this morning before it gets hot. She even gave me his old Baby Bjorn. BONUS!

Lawrence just found this enormous ball of raisins in his cereal - so proud he promptly knocked the box off of the table and onto the floor.

Pumping has finally become more consistent and dare I say easier. Whew!

Hazel totally has this spoon thing down - opening her mouth like a little bird and everything!

Hazel totally has this spoon thing down - opening her little mouth like a bird and everything!

She slept from 8pm to 6am! Was it the shots, rice cereal, or sweet potato? Possibly all three! Of course I had to check on her at 4am.

Hazel had her 4 month check-up today. Solid foods are in her very near future! FUN!

Had a sad day today and couldn't shake it. Maybe because today was supposed to be Hazel's first day in childcare but now it will be 8/12

Out with the 0-3 month clothes bin and in with the 3-6 month clothes bin. Some outfits stay but most are banished to storage just in case!

Had a nice Saturday night out with the family in the hood. It is possible to have a nice dinner out with a cranky baby!

Hung out with friends and had beer tonight. What a treat! Hazel was a real gem all day long.

Experimented with giving Hazel some rice cereal watered down with breast milk today. She didn't love it but she didn't hate it either.

Got a one week reprieve! Return to work date pushed back to 8/17. Enough vacation and comp time to cover. Woo hoo!!!

Woke up feeling anxious. That pesky return to work date looming...half looking forward and half dreading the change in daily routine. :(

Going out without baby tonight... :)

Successful 8PM bedtime! I think we have this one down. Now if I could just get the pumping down before I go back in 2 weeks :(

Looking forward to a walk in the sun today with Hazel!

Only 3 weeks left of Maternity Leave! I am so grateful for this time with Hazel. I couldn't imagine sending her to day care at 6 weeks...

Hazel talked and talked and talked today. Who knew she had so much to say! It is still going on now...

Daddy walking Hazel and leaving mommy at home alone - take two!

Hazel is testing the volume of her voice. How loud can she scream - in a good way!

Daddy is taking baby for a walk by himself today for the first time! Mommy is home alone...STRANGE!

So far nap times seem to be around 11am, 2pm, and 5pm for little Hazel. Sometimes she naps in the swing, stroller, on mommy, or in her crib.

New bedtime plan for Hazel. No more falling asleep on Mommy/Daddy laps after dinner. Firm 9PM (or earlier) bedtime with 10 min timed crying.

Hazel rolled onto her left side while on her Tiny Love today. She will be rolling over soon! Too soon!!!

It still amazes me how LOUD an infants gas can be!

Motherhood is difficult but rewarding-if you don't like what one day brings just wait for the next-it almost always gets better - Thank You!

She is not that fussy so I feel like a bad mom for even getting to frustration with her but I hit my wall last night and the tears fell for us both

Hazel must be growing. She pretty much ate and slept the entire day - attached to mommy, crying if I put her down

Look for the new Developmental Studies Center fan page!

Hazel totally grabs the foot of the giraffe on her Tiny Love and holds on for dear life! file:///Users/dsc/Desktop/51v00OYz4JL._SL500_AA280_.jpg

Just added Ping.fm let's see how this works!

What Me Blog?

I never felt the need to post a blog. Who would care what I have to say? What would I say in it? How would I have content enough to keep on posting?

Then I realized... I send out these group emails about me and my daughter all of the time. I started when I found out I was pregnant. My pregnancy was not the run of the mill kind so lots of people wanted updates - frequently. Instead of telling the same stories over and over, I created an email list. I send out a group email whenever there was a doctor's appointment or symptom or whatever. I guess that was sorta like a blog.

So, here I am! It's brain dump time.