Jump-a-roo

This weekend Jeff and I bought Samantha a Jump-a-roo. I put it together tonight and let Samantha try it out. She is still too little to really enjoy a lot of the functions but she liked the change of scenery!

Jenny Johnson's (soon-to-be Hauser) wedding shower.

(Jenny opening her gifts!)

(Katie and Samantha.)

(Aunt Nana and Mawmaw gushing over Samantha!)

(The oldest and youngest Hauser Grand-children!)

Today Libby came over and we went to Jenny Johnson's wedding shower. Jenny is marrying Doug Hauser on Nov 7th and Jeff is going to be a groomsmen! But today was her shower for the Hauser side of the family. It was really nice getting to see everyone on that side of the family since we do not get to see them very often. Most of them had not met Samantha yet so it was nice to get to show her off to everyone. When Samantha and I got home we visited with Libby for a little bit. Samantha was loving her Mawmaw very much today...all smiles! Then when Jeff got home we gave Samantha a bath. She seems to be enjoying her bath time more and more these days. I hope she loves the water as much as I do.

Kissing Cousins

(Grady getting changed into his p.j.'s!)

(Samantha watching Grady watch T.V.)

(Grady giving Samantha one of the many hugs of the day!)

(Grady eating his snack while watching Baby Einstein!)

Today, Samantha and I babysat Grady for a few hours so Nick and Mandy could go see a movie! It made me rethink wanting to have another baby already! No really, they are easy babies to have together. It is amazing what all Grady can understand. He was having a snack in the high chair and he started to stand up so I asked him to put his feet down and he knew just what to do! I said, put your cup in your cup holder and he knew just what to do. It will be fun to be able to communicate with Samantha some day.

Grady wanted to hold, hug or kiss Samantha for most of the time he was here, which is totally cute! Although he did not like it when I nursed her...he stood at my feet telling Samantha "NO" the entire time she was eating. I think that Grady and Samantha will be great friends. There was one point when Grady was holding Samantha, with my assistance, and she was just staring at him and laughing! She loved watching him walk around, he was great entertainment for her.

She has hands...

Well she has always had hands but she finally found them! She has been entertaining herself a lot today by simply staring at her hands.

Playing

(Smiling and laughing at her VERY exciting toys!)

(Samantha was able to grab hold of her toy!)

Samantha continues to amaze us with her progress. She was able to reach up and grab one of her toys today. While to many this may not seem like a big deal; it is for us.

Last night was a pretty good sleeping night for her as she continues to improve in that area. I attempt to take care of her on the weekend so Lauren can get some solid sleep. We put Samantha to bed around 9:30 but that didn't take. We brought her to bed with us and just talked and played with her. She fell asleep sometime between 9:30-10pm. Lauren put her in her crib. She slept straight through until a little after 5am. I got up, changed her and fed her a bottle of breast milk that Lauren pumped earlier in the evening. Sam being the "chunky monkey" that she is, wanted more. So, I came down and made her a bottle. She polished off about 3 oz in a flash. Burped a couple times and was back to bed. She slept soundly until 9am when we woke her up. She had a dirty diaper and while we were in the process of changing her she managed to release the hounds and pee everywhere, laughing through the whole thing.

We went to church today with my parents as it was homecoming Sunday. Our beautiful baby was for sure the main attraction. Many of my extended family and people I attended church with growing up had never seen her in person. And of course everyone thought she was very beautiful.

Tomorrow begins another work week and it is really hard to leave Lauren and Samantha. I miss them so much while I am away and find myself more than ever not being able to wait to get home.

This cooler weather we have had this weekend has really made me excited for fall. I hope Samantha loves that time of year as much as I do. I cannot wait to play in the leaves with her, get her dressed up for Halloween and get her game day gear on for OSU Saturday's. So much fun to come...

Nieces and Painting

(After we were done with our awesome painting job!)

Yesterday our nieces Jessica and Katie came over to help us paint our bathroom and watch Samantha. The girls came over around 2 PM and we got started right away on painting the ceiling in the bathroom. We took our time and had fun doing it. Then we met up with the whole Hauser family at Massey's Pizza in Gahanna for dinner. It was Jeff, Samantha and I, Jessica and Katie, Jim and Libby, Lisa, Joe, Matt and Jillian, & Larry and Kathy. After dinner we went back to the house to feed Samantha. Then went to Kroger to pick stuff for breakfast then hit up Rita's on the way home! When we got home we played some Cash Cab and Catch Phrase before bed. I had to go pick up my friends from the airport at 11:30 PM so we did not get to bed until late. The girls and I all slept in our bed and Jeff slept in the guest room. It was like a girls sleepover! Us girls slept in until 9:30 AM or so and then Jeff made us all breakfast...eggs, sausage and pancakes!!! Then we got started on the second round of painting. We were completely done by 1 PM and the girls took off. It was really fun having them here and just getting to spend some quality time with them...hopefully we will be able to do it again sometime...without the painting of course.

Jeffersonville Outlet Mall

(This brings a whole new meaning to shop til you drop!)

(Grady holding Samantha...see his little hand on her left shoulder?)

Today Mandy, Grady, Samantha and I went to Jeffersonville Outlet Mall. We found a ton of great stuff but one of my proudest buys was a pink and white adirondack chair for $17.11 with tax. For Pottery Barn, that was a steal...it was originally $89.99! We hit all the good baby stores and left with a boat load of stuff. Samantha should have enough clothes to last her a life time! Now I need to start getting her toys!

Springfield, OH

(Samantha and I at my mamaw and papaw's grave.)

(4 generations of Davidson women!)

(Luella and Samantha at Collier's.)

(Happy girl!)

Today my mom, Aunt Vikki, Samantha and I went to Springfield, OH. We first stopped by my Mamaw and Papaw's grave site. Samantha is named after my mamaw...Thelma Mae! Then we went and picked up my mom's cousins Luella for lunch. We then met up with Sharon at Colliers restaurant. We had a really nice visit and Samantha was in a wonderful mood!

~Lauren

Cute as a button!

Samantha smiling today so big that her eyes are almost closed!

Susie and Chris's Wedding Day...

(Susie before the wedding...isn't she beautiful?)

(The fab four!)

(Becky and I in the limo.)

(Katie and Lisa in the limo.)

(Britney and Marleigh in the limo.)

(Daddy and Samantha at the wedding.)

(In the limo after the ceremony.)

(Mommy and Daddy with Samantha at the reception.)

(Becky, Samantha and I on the dance floor.)

(Becky, Lisa, Samantha and I dancing.)

This morning Jeff, Samantha and I got up at like 10 AM and met up with Katie, Becky, Lisa and Michael Moxley for breakfast at Tim Horton's. Then we all went back to our rooms and just hung out until it was time to get ready. I showered then Jeff and I bathed Samantha in the hotel bathtub...quite the adventure! Then Jeff took a shower and I met up with the girls. At 3 PM we started taking pictures with the photographer. Then a stretch limo picked us up and took us to the church. The ceremony was really nice although Susie had a hard time getting Chris's ring on... a good laugh for all of us! Then the limo took the whole wedding party to a near by park for pictures....complete with champagne! Then we were off to the reception. We were announced as we walked into the reception and had to dance up to the head table...I am a terrible dancer these days. Jeff and Michael were there with Samantha...those two make quite the pair. The reception was really fun. We got to dance and I even had Samantha up there on the dance floor. Jeff, Michael and I left with Samantha at 12:30 AM! Congrats to the beautiful bride and groom!

~Lauren

Daddy Time

(The view of Toronto from the water.)

(Samantha being changed in the bathroom of the boat.)

I have been spending a lot of one on one time with Samantha the last few days so Lauren can really enjoy her time with her friends. I love spending time with Samantha and yesterday we had a good time. I took all the girls to the spa and when Samantha and I returned, she was not happy at all. She had eaten about an hour ago and didn't need a diaper change so I wasn't quite sure what was wrong. After many different attempts to make her happy, I finally gave her a bottle and she passed out. Michael (one of Laurens friends boyfriend), Samantha and myself decided to go explore downtown Toronto. We went to the CN tower first but they had an hour wait and I wasn't sure when Lauren would need me to pick her up so we decided to go on a boat tour of the harbour instead. Sam slept through most of the trek to the waterfront area while I received one heck of a workout! There were no ramps so I carried her in her stroller up, down, around multiple flights of stairs and up and over a bridge. We finally got on the boat. She slept through the first 15 mins of the 45 min ride. When she woke up, not too happy. I took her below deck, managed to change her diaper in a bathroom so small you couldn't turn around in. Finished the boat ride below deck with her. Around 2pm we left to go get Lauren from the spa. Toronto traffic is awful and it took us about an hour to travel about 15 miles. Mind you, this is 3pm on a Thursday!! Samantha screamed the whole way. I felt really bad. She needed to eat and I didn't anticipate being stuck in traffic so long.
We picked up Lauren and returned to the hotel. Samantha ate and was content. We all got ready for the rehearsal and got to the church around 5:45. Samantha managed to puke all over Laurens friend Becky, myself and dropped a huge load right in the church. We then went to dinner and all night Sam was just out of sorts. Never really happy, didn't sleep much and just seemed pissed to be in Canada. Got back to hotel and we all went down to the pool. It was loud, hot and Sam just wasn't having it. She had slept very little through out the day so we knew she was just exhausted but it's hard to get comfortable when you're constantly being moved around. I brought Samantha back up to the room and she was out for the count in about 10 mins. She slept from 10pm to 4am, then ate at 4 and slept again until 8am this morning. So far today, she has been pretty good. Slight meltdown during our breakfast at Tim Horton's but she ate and is now on the bed just looking around.
I have already started to pack all of our stuff up so we can hit the road bright and early tomorrow. I am ready to get out of this place!!!

Spa day!

(Becky and Samantha at the rehearsal dinner.)

(Jeff, Samantha and I at the rehearsal dinner.)

(Left to Right: Me, Marleigh, Lisa, Becky, Susie and Katie.)

(Becky getting her pedicure.)

(Susie and Marleigh getting their massages!)

(Becky, Lisa and Marleigh having champagne with lunch!)

Today all the bridesmaids and BRIDE went to the spa. Susie got all of us girls a spa day for our bridesmaid gift. We had so much fun. She rented out the whole spa so it was just us girls. We got matching robes and all had massages and pedicures. We also spent some time in the steam room. The spa served us lunch, champagne, fruit and dessert! Lisa and I were paired up and did our massages first. The ladies asked us if we wanted Deep-Tissue Massage or Relaxation Massages. We both picked the Deep-Tissue Massage and boy were we in for a treat! Within 10 minutes we were both wincing in pain! I sucked it up...barely and Lisa asked her lady to lighten up on the pressure. We were able to provide all the other girls with some valuable information before they had their massages! Then we went off to have our pedicures which was very relaxing. We ate a little lunch while chatting and watching chick flicks...what I call a perfect day! Jeff came to pick me up at around 3 PM so that I could go back to the hotel and feed Samantha and then get ready for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. All of us girls and Michael Moxley piled into Jeff's car and he took us to the church. It only took about half an hour to rehearse and we were off to the rehearsal dinner. We ate at a place called Marlowes. The food was great! We all got back to the hotel and got into the hot tub then went up to Susie's room to chat and be girly together...one of our favorite pastimes! We went to bed a little after midnight! Cannot wait for the big day tomorrow!

~Lauren

Canada...Day 1

(Samantha is watching t.v. while Jeff is cheesing!)

(The hotel provided us with this crib!)

(Stretching out after a long car ride!)

(Random water we passed once we crossed over into Canada!)

This morning, like 7 AM early, Jeff, Samantha and I left for Toronto, Canada. My girlfriend from College is getting married and I am a bridesmaid! We had no idea how Samantha would do on this long of a car ride but she is normally a good natured baby and we figured it would go well. She did not let us down. She virtually slept the entire time other than diaper change and feeding time. Once we got to our hotel...about 4 PM we were able to get her out and "play" with her! She was so happy and smiling...she was sick of being couped up. Right now she is watching t.v. with her daddy. Tonight we are going to go to dinner and then I am going out with the girls for Susie's Bachelorette Party...cannot wait!

~Lauren

HAPPY 32nd BIRTHDAY JEFF and Samantha is 2 months old today!

(Smiling Girl! The pink blanket she is laying on was made for Samantha by my Grandmother Hague.)

(Samantha sleeping peacefully after her doctors appointment.)

Today Samantha had her 2 month check up with her pediatrician. Dr. Heiny is a very good doctor. Although we did have to wait about 45 minutes to see him! Samantha weighed 12.7 pounds yesterday fully dressed but today she was only 12.5 pounds naked. Still, she was in the 95th percentile for height, 90th percentile for weight and 75th percentile for head circumference! She is 24 inches long and her head circumference is 15.6 inches. Dr. Heiny said that since her height and weight at in line with each other he is not concerned about her high percentiles. He did say, she is just going to be a big girl...I hope that means tall! At the end of her appointment she had to get 4 vaccinations. First she got an oral vaccination witch she slurped down. Then I gave her a little Children's Tylenol to help take the edge off the other vaccinations. Then she had two shots in her right thigh and one in her left. The first two went fine, no crying. But the third was a whole different story...as soon as she starting putting in the shot Samantha started crying. Luckily she stopped crying within 30 seconds and was smiling again. She received the Rotavirus Vaccine, Polio Vaccine, Diphtheria, Tetnus & Pertussis Vaccine and her 2nd round of Hepatitis B. She feel asleep in the car on the way home and is happily snoozing away!

More testing at Children's

(She doesn't look very happy here but she was actually really calm during the whole ultra-sound!)

Today Samantha had to have another ultra-sound. It is just one of the "jelly on the belly" type so luckily there were no needles involved! After the ultra-sound we went to meet with her Pediatric Urologist, Dr. Jayanthi. The long and short of it is there is still no official diagnosis and she has to go back for a Nuclear Medicine Renal Ultra-Sound in October. What we do know is that she has Hydronephrosis of what I call her second kidney (the lower right kidney.) This is not too scary since the doctor thinks that she will grow out of it. She will still take her antibiotic to make sure she does not get any infections but overall it is not too bad. Her left kidney (what I call her 1st kidney) is in perfect working condition...so that is great. It means she will not ever need a kidney transplant, kidney dialysis or have kidney infections, all great news. The big problem at this point is kidney # 3, the upper right kidney. She has dilation in this kidney and they cannot tell if there is a blockage yet. That is what the testing is going to hopefully be able to tell us in October. There are two possible places there could be blockage; in the ureter or at the top of the kidney. Blockage in the ureter is pretty common but it is very rare to have blockage at the top of her kidney. They are unsure at this point if there is even a blockage at all but it is looking like that is a very real possibility. When she goes back for the NM Renal Ultra-sound she will also have to have a needle put into her kidney and they will put some dye in there to see if/where the blockage is. They will have to sedate her for this procedure. If they do find a blockage it will not correct itself and they will have to do surgery. But I am getting ahead of myself. Right now we are praying there is no blockage but if there is we will just have to do what is best for Samantha. Luckily, Samantha is a happy little girl and has no clue that she has too many kidneys! And she will not ever remember any of these test! Keep us all in your prayers!

~Lauren

PS: Samantha weighs 12.7 lbs today!

Jeff's Birthday Party.

(Funny card?)

(Katie and I.)

(I think the only one posing is Jillian!)

(Lisa, Lib and Matt.)

(Jessica is great at getting Samantha to sleep!)

(Jeff and I.)

(Hoping all his birthday wishes come true!)

(Birthday Boy.)

(Everyone at dinner, except me...I'm the photographer!)

Today we celebrated Jeff's 32nd birthday. Since his family is so big we just invited our immediate families and still had 17 people there. We went to dinner at Damon's and then came back to our house for some DQ ice cream cake! It was really nice getting to hang our with everyone. The kids played Cash Cab with the kids and had a blast.