Feb. 26 has been circled on my calendar for many months. That date marks the official end of my maternity leave; I am, indeed, starting work this week. (I start on Thursday.) Although I’m working just two days for the next four weeks (before returning to a fuller schedule in late March), I view this as the start of a new chapter for Zoe and me. And over the past few days I’ve given a lot of thought to our time together these past few months.

The months I spent with Zoe were so much more rewarding – and fun – than I thought they would be. I had, quite honestly, expected the worst about maternity leave. I was afraid I would get no sleep and have no fun and never have a chance to shower or do anything on my own; I was afraid I would have difficulty soothing a constantly crying baby. The reality was quite different. I didn’t always get a lot of sleep, and Zoe wasn’t always the happiest baby, but we managed to have a good time together. The two of us developed a little routine, and we found ourselves out-and-about (usually walking, running errands or shopping) more frequently than I had anticipated. I had never had such a reliable companion before, and I quickly grew to love her constant, quiet presence.

In fact, when I look back upon my leave, I think the companionship is what I’ll remember (and miss) the most. Although I had been concerned (pre-Zoe) that having a baby would be somewhat of a burden, I actually wound up embracing the fact that I always had someone there with me.

I know it will be hard the first few times I drive to Stanford and see an empty backseat in my rearview mirror. (I have a lump in my throat just thinking about it.) But I also know it will feel good to get back in the swing of things at work, and I know Zoe and I will spend plenty of time together in coming weeks/months/years. The date on the calendar can’t change that…

-M

Zoe had another doctor’s appointment today and there was good news all around. First, her platelet count was over 500K. (For those who don’t know the platelet saga, that’s a good count. At one time, it was under 10K.) Second, she is now 14 lb. 1.5 oz. That is close to double her birth weight of 7 lb. 3 oz. And lastly, Zoe is now over 25 inches (up from her 21 inches at birth)! The doctor said Zoe is in the 90 percentile in terms of length, which shouldn’t surprise anyone (considering she has two tall parents). Sounds like she is following in her parents’ footsteps, but only time will tell…

Jon Q

You might be wondering what a 3-month-old girl does all day. Well, I thought I would share…

First, lots of sleeping:

Then after she gets up, she usually plays on the computer with dad:

Then more sleeping:

After her nap, she usually eats and then needs to be burped:

Then more sleeping:

She sometimes takes a bath before daddy gets home:

Then it’s happy time before she goes back for more sleep:

All in all, a pretty fun day!

Jon Q

It’s been three months since Zoe was born – which is terribly hard to believe! Time has gone really fast, but things with Zoe keep getting better and better. Just the other day, Q commented that he loves the three-month stage and that Zoe really seems more like a little girl than a baby now. (She’s certainly a BIG girl. Although she won’t be weighed again until Monday, I wouldn’t be surprised if she has doubled her birth weight by now.)

We saw a lot more of Zoe’s personality this past month, and our very early prediction (that she’s a mellow baby) seems to have been correct. Zoe spends most of her awake time just resting (on her Boppy pillow, in the stroller, etc.), looking around, cooing and smiling. She’s able to entertain herself doing this for good chunks of time; when she gets cranky, it usually just means it’s time for a nap. Speaking of naps, she gets about 12-14 hours of sleep a day, and she periodically goes the entire night without waking up to eat. (She’s actually had three 8+hour nights in a row, and we’re keeping our fingers crossed that this is the start of something permanent!)

As mentioned here previously, Zoe discovered her thumb this month – and she still sucks on it quite a bit, especially when she’s hungry. Another big development (which is a recent one) is that she coos, talks and even sort of laughs ALL of the time now. Smile or say a few words to her, and chances are good that she’ll smile or say something right back to you. She’s even started to smile when picked up first thing in the morning, which is nice to wake up to. Lastly, she’s gotten good at recognizing her parents’ voices; she now turns her head in our direction when we enter the room and greet her. (She wasn’t doing that as recently as a few weeks ago.)

Like Q, I feel like Zoe is at her best stage yet – and I know there is more good stuff ahead!

-M

As promised, here is a cute video of Zoe on her first plane ride.  This picture was taken just after the drink service, so she was feeling pretty happy!

Jon Q

I write about medical research for a living, so I’ve come across my fair share of unusual studies and findings. I have to admit being pretty surprised, though, when I read this morning about a Johns Hopkins study looking at the connection between a mom’s heartburn and her baby’s hair. The resesarchers set out to disprove the old wives’ tale (which I had never heard of) that women who experience heartburn during pregnancy will have babies with full heads of hair – yet the findings actually backed up the old adage. (Out of 28 women who reported moderate to severe heartburn, 23 had babies with average or above-average amounts of hair; out of 12 women who reported no heartburn, only two had babies with lots of hair.) The link – which has something to do with the hormones that cause heartburn – seems pretty bizarre to me, but I guess it could be valid. After all, I had fairly bad heartburn during the last trimester – and Zoe now has a nice big head of hair (as shown in this pic from earlier today).

Zoe, I think you owe me one!!

-M

 

As Q mentioned below, we made it back from Madison last night. I had been a bit nervous about flying with Zoe, but she handled it like a champ (and the airline – American – was great to us). As for the trip, we were only in town for a long weekend but we really packed a lot in. Zoe got the chance to hang out not only with her grandparents and Aunt Sandy, but also with some new friends: her cousins Aimee, Neill and baby Tanner (see 12.28 entry for more on Tanner); her great-aunt and uncle Joanne and Al; her mom’s college friends Eva, Beth and Drew; and her honorary great-aunt Kathy. Playing with Tanner, of course, was a real highlight: they’re only five days apart and had been dying to meet. Oh, and did I mention that Zoe saw snow for the first time??

Here are a few more pics from our weekend.

-M

 

It is official, Zoe made it out of California and back! Except for a little crying on the descent into SFO, she was pretty perfect. She slept the whole trip from Madison to Chicago. Then had a fun time people watching in Chicago (and people watching her.) Then on our longest leg (4 and a half hours) Zoe mostly slept and played. She is getting very talkative and the videos are soon to come.  For now, here are a few pictures of our final 2 flights…

Mom and Zoe on take off…

Zoe napping…

Wakey, wakey…

Sleeping on her second plane of the day…

Ready to play…

Jon Q

Flying was everything Zoe thought it would be…sleeping, people watching and little bags of peanuts!  She certainly was a model flyer and we will give everyone updates on all of her flights when we return.  We’ll also post a bunch of pictures of Zoe’s Madison trip in a few days (we have only taken 150 pictures so far, including 25 videos.)  But for now, here is a photo timeline of her first day of flight.

All set to go at 6am (of course, we didn’t leave until 6:30am) –

Ready for take-off (sleeping, her second favorite thing to do while flying) –

Snack time (eating, her favorite thing to do while flying) –

Layover in Chicago (people watching is also fun) –

Made it to Madison (at least one of us is well rested) –

With the Grandparents (hi, Grandma Vicki and Grandpa Larry!) –

 Jon Q

So, tomorrow is a big day for Zoe – it will be her first trip on an airplane! We are heading to Madison for the long weekend and will return on Tuesday afternoon. Zoe is very excited for this trip…she has already packed and is out shopping with her mom for some last minute clothes. The forecast is good for Zoe to see her first snow tomorrow. She keeps talking about sledding and ice skating, but for this trip she may just be staring at the snow through the window. We are crossing our fingers that she likes air travel as much as we do…

Jon Q

I’ve never been much of a baby person. I was never the type to stop moms on the street to coo at, or talk about, their babies – and I was always the first person to roll my eyes at the sound of a crying child. I never thought I was terribly maternal, either – a belief that was perpetuated by the fact that as a little girl, I would throw my dolls down the stairs (instead of hug and care for them). Although I *wanted* to be a mom, I honestly wasn’t overly excited about taking on this new role. (There were even a few times during my pregnancy when I told Q I couldn’t blog about what I was *really* feeling; I was convinced our readers would think I would be a terrible mother!)

Imagine my surprise, then, when I gave birth and fell madly in love with Zoe. Every cliche I’d ever heard about childbirth and parenthood played out before my eyes, and I understood in an instant what all the hub-bub about babies was about. I was completely (and foolishly, I know) unprepared for the intensity of my feelings and the experience, and I remain in awe over the fact that a person can care so much about someone they’ve just met.  

Twelve weeks after giving birth to Zoe (Happy 12-Week Birthday, Zoe!), I’m still recovering from the shock and wonder of everything that has transpired. I don’t necessarily feel like a totally different person (and I think that’s a good thing) – but I do consider myself a happier person. A luckier person. Oh, and maybe even a baby person. :)

-M

 

One more fun video of Zoe on Valentine’s Day 2007.

Jon Q

Zoe just wanted to wish everyone a happy Valentine’s Day!

Jon Q

Now that Zoe’s a bit older, she’s quite curious about the world around her – and she spends a good amount of time just sitting and taking in everything. Her two favorite hang-out spots are her pink Boppy pillow and her musical chair; check out a few of this morning’s chill-out minutes in the chair.

-M

OK, so it has been a few days…but Zoe has been very busy.  With her dad in Las Vegas and mom partying with Zia Angela someone had to take care of the house.  Well, we are all back now and having a good time.  Here are some fun pictures of little Zoe and a little video of her chillin with Dad.

Jon Q