Merry Christmas!!!

Wishing you a very merry Christmas from our car-seat to yours!

3-Months

Cute as a button!

Tried to take some cute photos on her 3-month birthday and little miss wouldn't get her hand out of her mouth..I figured this captured the moment though. 3-month birthday=Mila has found her fist!!!

Mila LOOOVVEEES looking at her reflection in the mirror and cracks up every time. So cute!!!

This is probably one of those videos that only mom thinks is wonderful but here is a look at how much Mila loves her play gym. She has really discovered that by kicking and moving her arms she can make her toys move..how fun!

Mila Update - 10 & 11 Weeks

In car seat news..this happened (see video)! Woohoo!!! While this might seem silly to some, keep in mind our little Mila has never fallen asleep in "the seat" for more than 5 minutes or so and she used to never stay asleep beyond the car ride. Fingers crossed that her phobia is getting better!!!

Our baby girl is almost 3 months old! Cannot believe she is getting so BIG! We have had to pack up all of her newborn clothes and some of her 0-3 months clothes and she is almost outgrowing her size 1 diapers..holy moly! She is also officially sleeping in her own room! Totally nerve racking for mom but we moved her out of the cradle in our room and into her crib in her own nursery. Although her sleep patterns seem to change every night (ugh), she seems to sleep better in her own space. She visited the doctor last week and got her 2 month immunizations..again totally terrifying for mom but Mila was a rock star! She cried (obviously) but we were able to calm her down and get her home with no real problems. She did get a bit fussy the next two nights but nothing a little baby Tylenol couldn't fix. Poor girl! Here are some photos from the past couple of weeks. Enjoy!

All smiles for Aunt Kylie's 23rd Birthday..HAPPY BIRTHDAY KYLIE!

Mila and her friend Ansel (born 3 days before Mila) 

Mila holding hands and looking a bit shell shocked with her BFF and cousin Winona (12 days younger)

Out to lunch with Grandma!

Superstar babysitters Stephanie & Whitney

Totally entranced by the television (Trust me we do not want to start bad habits but when I need to make dinner or jump in the shower....the TV works like a charm) 

Starting to grip objects better and LOVES sucking on her hands/fingers. She has also discovered her feet and stares at them quite frequently

Operation Car Seat

As many of you already know, our Mila absolutely hates riding in her car seat. And when I say hate..I mean bloody murder, screaming her guts out HATE.  I struggle to even upload this photo of our little love bug bawling her eyes out but hey, it's a memory.. and one we will not soon forget i'm sure.  In an effort to help her enjoy riding in the car/stroller a little bit more, I have decided to take her on a ride in it at least once every day in hopes to familiarize her with the process a little more (maybe..hopefully ahh)! I'm basically desperate for something to work. We have tried extra padding in the car seat, toys, music, different positions and even tuning the car radio to AM static to provide that soothing "womb" sound new babies always seem to love....NOTHING WORKS. So my last resort is to try taking her out in it once every day (OPERATION CAR SEAT).  Sooo..if you live in the Lawrence area and are up for a visit from miss Mila and the dreaded seat..give me a buzz!

2 Months

Cannot believe our "Baby K" is 2 months old!!! Actually as I'm writing this she is almost 10 weeks old (too busy to post lately). Mila is doing wonderful..she is smiling regularly, rolling over from tummy to back(when she feels like it :) and gaining head/neck strength every day. She is developing more and more of a personality all the time.  Also(fingers crossed), the colic seems to be subsiding a little bit. Although she is still not a fan of her car seat, she is starting to have less fussy time throughout the day (yay)! Her night sleep habits are up and down but I cannot complain too much. She almost always sleeps 4 or 5 hours and some nights even 6 or 7!

We struggled to get a good 2 month photo so here are some of here smiling at her dad..not the camera :)

Love her little dimple

Finally looking at the camera but no smiles :(

Sleepy Baby

Entranced with the television and her fingers in her mouth

Tummy Time!

All Smiles at 8 Weeks!

Happy Halloween!!

We didn't spring for a "real costume" for Mila this Halloween just because we figured she wouldn't really last too long in it anyways, but she did wear a very cute cow onesie for the occasion! Cannot wait for next Halloween when she will actually know what's going on!

Tuckered out

After our visit to the Pumpkin Patch

7 Week Stats

Baby Mila had her 7-week appointment with the Doctor yesterday and she gets an A+ for development! Our little porker is almost 11 pounds!

Height: 21.75 inches; 44th percentile
Weight: 10 lbs 15 oz; 72nd percentile
Head Circumference: 14.75 inches; 32nd percentile

The doctor okay-ed her to sleep through the night, if she can, and guess who slept 6.5 straight hours for the first time?! Mom has never felt better!!

Yay Mila!!!

Photos: 7 weeks!

Happy 6 Weeks!

Mila is six weeks old today! Here is a fun video of her rolling over from tummy to back for the first time! We actually caught it on camera and she did it twice in a row! Please disregard our silly comments in the background and the fact that she is only wearing one sock :)

Mila is becoming more and more engaged every day! She is turning into quite the babbler and is as active as ever. Also, we are seeing pretty regular smiles (makes me tear up every single time). She is able to follow objects with her eyes and is absolutely mesmerized by the ceiling fans in our apartment. I can actually fit in a shower most mornings by laying her on her back to watch the fan. We also tried out sitting for the first time!

 I can't complain too much about her sleep patterns. We take it night by night but on average, she is able to go about 5 hours between feedings (usually 9pm-2am) then back to 3 or 2 1/2 hours between. Not too shabby! - especially compared to every 2 or 2 1/2 hours round the clock like the first month. 

Our little 'burrito' - she LOVES the swaddle

Time Flies: Mila at ONE MONTH!

Miss Mila is one month old! It is crazy how much she has changed and developed in just one month. Her little personality is shining through more and more every day and she has become a very active baby! She loves kicking her legs and is already a pro at tummy time. Also, Mila is starting to coo for mom and dad and SMILE! We have seen lots of deliberate smiles which could be the most wonderful feeling on earth. Her 'happy' time is definitely in the morning and we are able to get her to smile and respond to us..SO CUTE!

Because I have not had a chance to post (let alone shower :) Here are Mila's stats from her 3 week check-up with Dr. Riordan. We feel like she has definitely grown since then so we will update soon .

Mila at 3 Weeks:
Height: 21 inches - 66th percentile
Weight: 8 lbs 9 ounces (our little porker..she gained 9 oz in 4 days)! - 47th percentile
Head Circ: 14.25 inches - 45th percentile

Mila is as healthy as can be although the doctor thinks she has a bit of Colic(ugh). She is a screamer for sure but we love her all the same and are holding out hope that Colic goes away on its own, usually by 3 months. Until then, we are trying to learn how to soothe her and keep her from crying as much as possible. She responds to the swaddle and the "shooshing" sound, so our noise machine has become our best friend (thanks, Grandma!!), and she loves bouncing around the living room. I have been able to fit in a workout every hour with her in my arms - I am hoping the baby weight will just come right off.

She may be a little pistol but Mila is doing just GREAT! Dad is back at work and I am enjoying being home with her and watching her change every day.

Snuggles with Daddy before work

Mommy Snuggles!

First visit with Grandma and Grandpa Koester

Mila with both sets of Grandparents..such a lucky girl!

First walk outside! She slept the whole time...this was before the Colic set in :)

Favorite expression

Bath Time! The first one didn't go over so well but now she loves them!


More to come soon!

Introducing Mila Elise Koester

We are the PROUD parents of a beautiful baby GIRL!!! So excited to introduce the love of our lives..Miss Mila Elise Koester. She finally entered the world on Friday, September 9th at 9:19 pm weighing a perfect 7lbs 8oz and measuring 20 & 3/4 inches long. LOVE LOVE LOVE!  This is one of my favorite first pictures of her. It definitely displays how alert she was just minutes after birth. The nurses had to give her a bit of oxygen and everyone was cracking up in our delivery room because she reached up her little hand and held the oxygen mask to her own face! This was just a preview of what was to come..every day Mila grows more and more alert and we continue to be amazed by new skills, movements, sounds and facial expressions. She is definitely gaining a personality of her own..and a very feisty one at that :)

Labor was long and hard but so worth it. I was induced at 11:30pm on the 8th and after 22 hours Mila finally decided to grace us with her presence and much to MY surprise..he is a she!! Patrick definitely called it. He has been convinced from day one that our little one is a girl.  We couldn't be more happy with our experience at LMH. Everyone we met took such great care of us - all of the nurses, doctors and other staff members. We were discharged from the hospital on Sunday the 11th with the great news that we have a healthy, happy daughter. Aside from some fussiness and feeding issues, she is perfect and already weighing in at 8 lbs!

She's here, she's here!!

These past two weeks Patrick and I have been trying to settle into a routine, get SOME sleep (4 hours   is considered a good night at this point and this is total..not consecutive) but mostly just enjoying every minute of our new lives as mom and dad. Patrick was able to take one full week off work and come to all of Mila's first doctors appointments, etc. It was wonderful to have him home for a few days and gave our new family a chance to bond. Mila has been spoiled rotten with new outfits, accessories, books, toys and well wishes. We could not have survived without our wonderful family and friends and a huge thank you to everyone who made us food our first week home from the hospital. We would have been living off of frozen pizza and Arbys if not for you.  Here are some favorite photos from Mila's first two weeks of life! She is such a joy.

Last pregnancy photo..yay!

She's here!!! First mother daughter photo

Proud father

Love bug

Grandma and Grandpa Fritzel! - Grandparents for the 3rd time in 3 years!

Our waiting room cheerleaders!!! Two sets of great-grandparents, grandparents and Auntie Kylie

Winking & smiling! So happy to be home from the hospital