Long baby!

Corinne is now 5 months old and is in the 75th percentile for height (at 26 inches) and 40th percentile for weight (14 1/2 lbs). She grew out of her 3-6 month clothes a few weeks ago, but I didn't really think anything of it. Now we know that apparently she is a long baby. There's still no way to tell how tall she will end up being, but it makes me happy to know that she may have a chance at being a little taller than me!

She's also just started to laugh out loud and try to crawl. It's hilarious to watch. She gets on all fours and rocks back and forth. She also started to eat vegetables about 4 days ago at her pediatrician's recommendation. She's been eating cereal for about 3 weeks now. She'll be completely weaned from breastmilk in about a week. It makes me sad that she'll just be consuming formula. However, I feel good knowing that she was about 90% breastmilk for her first three months and about 25% breastmilk for month 4 through present, especially considering I had to pump just about everything she consumed.














(Cereal feeding with daddy.)





















(More peas, please? Actually, she liked the carrots and sweet potatoes much more than the peas.)

We're just soo thankful to have a healthy baby. She makes us laugh everyday!! She really makes us laugh during bathtime. She becomes such a happy baby!





















(Bathtime ducky with dada.)

We're looking forward to having a, hopefully, relaxing weekend. Thanksgiving day at Andrew's parents' house in Baton Rouge, and then a couple of days in Houma. We need a little break because our lives have been very hectic lately. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Active baby

We have realized that we have a very fiesty and active little girl! She's such a roly poly these days, rolling in all directions. She's also learning how to creep across the floor. It's absolutely amazing to see all of the new things she's able to do from week to week. She can sit as a little tripod on the floor with her hands in front of her. Also, as of 2 days ago, she no longer fights me feeding her cereal with a spoon. What's really adorable is she loves Gracie and Gus! Gracie's ear was the first thing she ever touched a few weeks ago. Now, she reaches out for Gracie and Gus when she sees them. Really cute.

For Corinne's first Halloween last week, we enjoyed a family trip to the zoo and then a BBQ. It was a really fun day! We got lucky with gorgeous weather. Corinne then enjoyed a little trick or treating with her cousin Londyn in our neighborhood.

(Corinne and cousin Thomas at the zoo.)

This past week, we went to visit her Auntie Jane and cousins Londyn and Thomas in Ft. Polk. Corinne had a lot of fun with her little cousins. I think Londyn is starting to enjoy having a little girl cousin. She was so sweet and gave me a pretty necklace that doesn't fit her anymore to give to Corinne when she's a little older.

(The cousins, Corinne, Thomas, and Londyn, playing together in Ft. Polk.)

Corinne and I are just looking forward to her daddy not having to work all the time. He's working so hard trying to get Parish Brewing started, we only see him for a little while each day. I suppose I'm just thankful that at least he's able to come home every night, even if it's just to spend a little time with us. However, it does get really exhausting having to do everything for her by myself after working all day. We're just looking forward to being able to do fun stuff on the weekends with him eventually.

We are looking forward to the upcoming holidays! We are going to Nana and Papa's house for Thanksgiving, then we are cooking at our house for Christmas. I'm already thinking about what gifts to get Corinne for Christmas. She's going to be one spoiled little girl this holiday season!! Oh, and we're taking our first family photos this Sunday afternoon. I'm really, really looking forward to it. Corinne will be wearing a black and pink polk-a-dot dress, Andrew will be wearing a black shirt, and I'll be wearing a pink shirt. It should be interesting!

(Corinne hanging out at the house and playing on the floor.)

Four months!

Our precious baby girl is now four months old! I can't believe she's getting so big. We just love her so much, and we love watching all of the new things she's able to do each day. She can now laugh out loud, roll over in one direction, grab and play with toys, and bear weight on her legs and stomp around. Her favorite toys are our cell phones, laptops, and food in our plates. Corinne is not really interested in rattles. She also loves her baby einstein piano and her new jumperoo. We had to put a photo album underneath the jumperoo so she can reach with her little feet to jump around! Today, I picked up a couple of used toys at a used toys/clothes store in Lafayette so she can have more toys to play with.

Things are going well in Broussard. Andrew's working ALL the time with his day job and with doing beer-related things for Parish Brewing. Corinne seems to really like her babysitter, Mrs. Martha, because she's all smiles when I drop her off with Mrs. Martha in the mornings. I'm working all day on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. By the time Thursdays come, I feel like I'm going to have a nervous breakdown from the stress of juggling work and getting Corinne to her sitter, etc. I have no idea how moms do it 5 days a week.

We also welcomed a new family member this week, Thomas Nicholas Van Horn. Thomas was born on Tuesday, October 12th and is so adorable!! He shares a birthday with his nana! Congrats Thomas and Jane!

Oh, and I will turn 30 tomorrow. Not excited about this birthday at all. I still feel 18, though!

I hope everyone's doing well!













Our precious girl at 4 months.

Flowers in her hair (sort of!)

I was about to throw away some flowers from this past weekend's birthday party, and I decided to do a quick photo shoot with Corinne. I couldn't get a really good smile out of her because she didn't really like the flowers. However, I did get some cute pictures. Here's one of them!











(11 weeks old)
















(10 weeks old; very serious sitting in the chair and looking out the window!)




It was another very busy week here for us. I'm planning to go to Houma for Labor Day weekend because I haven't been since sometime in May. Andrew's going to try to meet us there if he gets his brewing/ fantasy football stuff done. I'm looking forward to some good seafood and life on the bayou for a couple of days. It will be nice to get away after a very stressful week at work.

Hope everyone's doing well!!

Staying very busy

We have been staying incredibly busy the past few weeks with a new baby, work, and Andrew's burgeoning brewing company. Here's a quick recap of what we've been up to.

Parish Brewing Company is doing great! Andrew's beer has been for sale at appx. 6-8 bars/ restaurants in Lafayette, LA since the end of June. People seem to really love his beer! The last weekend of June was very busy for Parish. A launch party for Parish was held in downtown Lafayette at the Greenroom, and his beer was featured at a beer festival in Lafayette called Gulf Brew. His Canebrake seems to be the favorite and will likely end up being his flagship beer. Andrew's sights are now set on expanding his operations so he can supply more than just a handful of bars/ restaurants.






Parish Brewing Company debut at the Greenroom (Andrew with owner of the Greenroom)












His beer sold out!













Mom and Dad at Gulf Brew near the Parish table













People waiting in line to try Parish beer at Gulf Brew




Our precious baby, Corinne, is getting cuter by the day and is now 10 1/2 weeks old. At her 9 week appointment, she was 10 lbs, 11 oz and 22 1/2 inches long. She's essentially completely average for weight and height. Her eyes are still kind of blueish and seem to look gray-blue. I still think they'll probably turn brown, but we shall see. She absolutely loves to practice standing, and she loves to stomp her little feet! She's not really interested in being on her belly very much. She also loves these black and white photos on our wall of cane field workers and an old man shucking oysters. She starting to smile a lot! For the most part, though, she's a very pensive, serious baby. We're also trying to get her into more of a loose routine with her eating and napping during the day. She can sleep about 6-8 hrs at night now! She'll cry a little at about 2am, but I just rub her back a little to get her to fall back asleep. She's also been sleeping in her crib for a full week now! I miss her being next to me at night, but I think she was ready for her own room.

I started working again 4 weeks ago when Corinne was 6 1/2 weeks old. Thank goodness for my mom coming to stay with us a couple nights a week to watch the baby during the day. I'm just working Tues-Thur. all day right now, and my mom is watching her while I work. Corinne will start with a babysitter at the end of September. Her babysitter, Mrs. Martha, is an older lady who lives WAY on the other side of town but came very, very highly recommended. Mrs. Martha will be watching Corinne and one other baby, the 5-month old son of an attorney I work with. It has been extremely difficult to juggle work with taking care of a baby. I feel so exhausted during the week. Pumping at work is also one of the most miserable things I've ever done. I have to pump in what's basically a freezing-cold closet filled with old computers.

Here are some photos of Corinne over the past few weeks:









1 week old (our tiny, skinny baby; I was so worried about her)











2 weeks old (jaundice getting better)

















3 weeks old (sponge bath time; gaining a little weight)












4 weeks old (enjoying her bouncer; starting to really gain weight)












6 weeks old (a little personality!)













8 weeks old (pretty eyes and button nose)













9 weeks old (after watching Saints pre-season game)













10 weeks old (happy baby!)




In conclusion, here are some things I've learned since becoming a mom:

- Breastfeeding is incredibly challenging.
- My husband is an amazing dad.
- I'm so lucky to have a mom who's willing to help so much with our baby.
- I have wonderful mom friends.
- The years of late nights during law school and working as an attorney did not prepare me for the sleep-deprivation that comes with taking care of a newborn.
- Being a working mom is stressful, exhausting, and empowering.
- I never knew I could love a little helpless baby so much.
- Things get easier after 10 weeks.

Time to clean the house after yesterday's birthday party!!

Corinne's First Visitors

Following are pictures of Corinne with some of her first visitors (I didn't get pictures of everyone who came to visit, including Aunt Mary Katherine, Jaime and her mom, and Uncle Ian).











With my mom (Nina)












With Andrew's mom (Nana)

















With Sarah (Ra Ra)












With Andrew's dad (Papa)













With Aunt Scarlet














With Uncle Carson












With Aunt Jennifer (Jenn G) and Uncle Tommy (name tbd)
















With Uncle Beau












With my dad (Poppie) and Dale (Grandma)













With Auntie Jane and Londyn (Corinne's first cousin)










Andrew's first Father's Day (6/20/10)













With Elisa


















Gorgeous flowers and balloon sent by Auntie Cathy and Uncle Phil












With Dwazendra


















With Jessie












With Lindsay












With Bethany












With Tamara












With Aunt Lisanne

Pregnancy and Labor & Delivery Highlights

It was the day before my 29th birthday that Andrew & I found out we were going to be parents. We were thrilled yet very nervous. The news settled in, and I made an appointment to see my ob/gyn the following week. The blood results showed that my progesterone level was low, so I was put on a progesterone supplement for the entire first trimester. The first trimester left me feeling exhausted and nauseated throughout the entirety of most days. We had our first ultrasound at around 6 weeks. "Baby Godley" looked like some sort of tiny sea creature with a beating heart. Seeing the baby's heart beating was so relieving!

My doctor didn't deliver babies, so she referred me to Dr. Rose Kennedy, an ob in Lafayette who ended up being the most fantastic doctor. I began seeing Dr. Kennedy at around the 10 week mark. She was really funny and always left me feeling confident that everything was going well. I started to feel much better at around 14 weeks.










(appx. 16 weeks)


We had another ultrasound at around the 20 week mark. We found out that Baby Godley was a girl! I was a little nervous that perhaps the ultrasound technician may have missed a boy part, so I decided to get a 3d/4d ultrasound of just the baby's crotch to confirm baby was a girl. The 3d/4d ultrasound confirmed that she was indeed a girl, so the pink explosion in our house began!
















(appx. 20 weeks)


One of the most exciting moments was feeling the baby kick for the first time. I could feel little flutters from around week 16 through week 20. However, at the 21 week mark, I had my hand on my belly while laying in bed and felt an unmistakable kick with my hand! It was an amazing feeling. I finally felt more confident that baby was doing okay in there.

I was sent for the glucose screening test at around 24 weeks. I failed, so I had to undergo the 4 hour (they say it's 3 hours, but it's really 4 hours) screening for gestational diabetes at the 28 week mark. I had to put off making an appointment for the longer screening because I was extremely busy with work. The screening confirmed a gestational diabetes diagnoses. For the remainder of the pregnancy, I was on a diabetic diet. Blood work showed the diet was working in controlling my blood sugar levels, so I never needed insulin injections, thank goodness. Because of the diabetic diet, I only gained 12 lbs. during the entire pregnancy. The diet was miserable, though. No sugars were allowed, and the only thing I was craving was sweets! It was torture.

Andrew and I attended a total of four labor and delivery classes in the last trimester because I thought I'd like to try a medication-free delivery. More on that below!















(appx. 33 weeks following fabulous baby shower hosted by our moms and friends on May 1, 2010)


I started showing signs at around 36 weeks that I may go into early labor. I was already slightly dilated and effaced and having tons of Braxton Hicks contractions. The dilation and effacement never really progressed over the next few weeks. At 39 weeks my doctor suggested inducing labor because the baby's non-stress test at 38 weeks was not as reactive as she would have liked.

We were scheduled to be induced on Monday, June 14th at 5am. We went to Lafayette General and were told all the labor and delivery rooms were full. We were ultimately sent home. My doctor called later that day to explain that was a very rare occurrence and to reschedule the induction for Wednesday, June 16th. On Tuesday, June 15th, I was having mild contractions every 15-20 minutes all day long. At around 9:30pm, the contractions became closer together, at around 6-8 minutes apart, and this lasted until about 10pm. Then, all of sudden, the contractions were 3-4 minutes apart and unbearable. I thought labor was supposed to progress more gradually! At 11pm I called the hospital and explained my symptoms. The nurse advised we should go in. We packed a few last minute things and got to the hospital at around midnight.

Now, more on my naive idea to have a medication-free pregnancy. The contractions were so painful that I felt like I couldn't breathe and was going to vomit from the nausea. I wanted an epidural asap! By the time we checked in and got settled in, I finally got an epidural at around 1:30am. I was apparently too wimpy for a natural delivery! At 5:30am the nurses augmented my labor with Pitocin. Dr. Kennedy strolled in at 8am, hung up her purse on the door, checked the dilation progress, and said, "okay, let's start pushing." She and the nurse then got all of the medical supplies together, and I started pushing, even though I couldn't feel my right leg! Andrew was there for the entire delivery process. Our little angel was then born at 8:31am on Wednesday, June 16th!! She came out very healthy with a soft cry. Her two Apgar scores were both 9s. I'm very happy that I went into labor on my own and didn't need to be induced. We were eventually escorted to our mother-baby suite after the delivery and were discharged on Thursday afternoon.

Pictures below are of Corinne Jolie Godley, born at 8:31am on Wednesday, June 16, 2010. She weighed 6 lbs even and was 18.75 inches long. A tiny, yet perfect, baby girl!!











(my first time holding our beautiful baby girl)












(first family photo)











(with my fantastic doctor, Dr. Rose Kennedy)











(Andrew napping with Corinne a couple hours after she was born)