More Pics

Here are some more pictures of Madeleine from the last couple weeks. She continues to do really well and is starting to get a lot more chatty at times. She reacts to our smiles, faces, and stories, and even giggled for the first time last week. She is sleeping 11-12 hours at night and is full of smiles in the morning. Her daytime naps are getting shorter though, and she often only sleeps for 45min at a time, but we can't complain!

Our Week

This week we finally got Madeleine's Canadian passport and citizenship applications sent away. On Monday, we had her passport photo taken, and she was interested enough in the white screens and bright flash to stay calm for the entire process. Needless to say, it's not her cutest shot, but it certainly meets the requirements. We should get her passport in a few weeks, and then we can apply for her NZ visitor visa, which will require her to have a medical. Thankfully, they don't require bloodwork, urine samples, or chest x-rays for babies.

The local and national headlines this past week have all focused heavily on the "arrival of winter" - several cold and blustery storms have come over the country, and it certainly does feel colder. The storms have brought some beautiful rainbows though, like this one that I saw from our house.
Yesterday we had an unexpected visitor to our house. Barry, a 78 year old Kiwi now living in Australia, came to see the house he lived in until he was 10 years old. I saw him walk down the driveway, so went out to meet him, and he got quite emotional as the memories came back to him. I invited him in to see how the house has changed, which he thoroughly enjoyed, and he shared all sorts of stories with me. The toilet was an improvement from their "dunny" down in the bush, there was another bedroom in the now open-area lounge (to accommodate the five of them), and there was a woodburner in the middle of the lounge. There was no deck, and he said most of the bush and forest were 'new' - it had been mostly gorse and the kids regularly played in the now overgrown gully. It was fun to hear his stories, and he asked if I would mail him some of the pictures I took of him and the house.
It may be cooler, but we still get some beautiful clear days, so today Madeleine and I bundled up and went for a walk on some of the trails near us. We stayed nice and warm, and she even woke up for half of the walk - partly to let me know she was getting hungry, and partly to watch all the new surroundings. On our way back down the track, we came across a retired couple who were clearing a grass weed from the side of the track, to let the natural bushes grow better and live longer. The woman admired Madeleine, but quickly said "oh, it's too cold to have a little bubba outside!" I assured her we were quite warm.

Picasa Album

There are now over 80 pictures in the original "Madeleine" Picasa album, so I decided to start new albums for each month. Here is a link to the new July album, which I will add to as the month goes on.

Madeleine - July 2011

2 months

Our little munchkin is 8 weeks, or 2 months old now! It's hard to know when to move from counting the weeks to counting the months - either way, it feels like she is growing up so quickly. Last week I realized she would almost fit some of the cute onesies we were given, so she got to do a little fashion show... Aunt Kristin had sent us a CBC onesie, and at some point we will have to take a family CBC shot.

And Uncle Chris sent a cute Star Wars onesie, which Madeleine must have mistaken for a burp cloth, because shortly after this she spit up all over it.
It has been noticeably colder this past week or two, even though the days are now starting to get longer. A few strong southerlies blew in and the Antarctic winds always put a good chill in the air. Still, Madeleine and I get out for walks at least a few times a week. Every Monday we get together with the girls from our antenatal group, and go for a short walk and then have a coffee/lunch at a cafe. Even though we are all just brought together by having babies, we seem to get along well, and it's nice that so many of us are keen to meet up every week.

Madeleine is starting to have more of a routine to her day. She tends to fall asleep for the night quite late, like 10pm, and then often wakes for the day around 10am. She is usually only waking once in the early morning to feed, so this is definitely a welcome stretch of sleep. During the day, she naps well in her bassinet, and usually sleeps for a couple hours. Of course, the days that we are out doing errands, or going for walks or coffees are always different, and I think she is more settled when we have 'home' days. She is smiling a lot now, and watching us intently wherever we are in the room. She holds her head well, and absolutely loves being on her nappy changing area.

My parents left almost two weeks ago, but it honestly feels like ages since they were here. We are doing fine on our own, although it has made us appreciate (even more) how much they did for us. They had a wonderful and well-earned relaxing holiday on the island of Rarotonga, and are now home in B.C. We are starting to think more about our travels home in October, and found out today that since Madeleine is not a NZ citizen, we have to apply for a visitor's visa for her. We are also in the process of applying for a Canadian passport and proof of citizenship... so lots of paperwork!

Here is the view from our house at sunset last night. Even though moving while pregnant was a pain, we are so pleased to be in this house. It has been so much warmer than our old house, and we have some lovely neighbours here as well. Plus, there are several nice bush walks on the hills behind us, and some are even suitable for strollers, so it has been really great for getting out with Madeleine.

6 weeks

Madeleine was 6 weeks old this past weekend! I will sound like a seasoned parent when I say the time has flown by, but it really is true. This is a big week for all of us here at 66 Howard Rd - it marks the end of my parents' stay with us (they fly out on the 23rd), the end of our care from the midwife, and Madeleine's first trip to the GP (for her immunizations). Madeleine continues to do really well, especially in the weight gain department. She is in the 91st percentile of weight gain for her age, and was 11lb 9oz at her last weigh-in 5 days ago. It must be my nightly bowl of ice cream that is treating her so well. Her eyes are still dark blue, her hair is still dark brown... it will be interesting to see if these traits last or not.

Chubby, kissable cheeks...
I tried to make some more cute footprints with paint, but poor Madeleine did not enjoy this, and the footprints didn't even turn out. Little does she know, I still have one more type of ink to try!
Madeleine continues to be spoiled with cuddles and endless attention from Grammie Jean and Grandpa Mark. She is sure to miss their stories, kisses, and songs. I know Steve and I will miss their endless efforts around the house - now will be the real adjustment period for us!
I'm happy to report that Miss Madeleine seems to have made her peace with the bath. She no longer screams or even cries (usually), but she still has a ways to go before she actually enjoys it. With all her rolls and creases though, her baths have had to increase from weekly to nearly every other day. I'm pretty sure that soon it will be a daily event.

4 weeks

We continue to be amazed at how quickly Madeleine is growing and changing. The midwife weighed her at the visit last week, and she was already 10lb 1oz! That was nearly a week ago, so she is surely more than that now. She is becoming more alert and awake, and even starting to crack smiles now and then.

We have been trying various bathing methods with Madeleine, since each one has resulted in her screaming. Tonight was bath #5, and we went back to the kitchen sink so that she could just sit and adjust to the water for a bit. She was unsure at first, but then got more comfortable, and in the end, she didn't scream at all.

My parents are here just another 2.5 weeks, and we will be sad to see them go. Not only because they have been keeping us well-fed, and our fridge well-stocked, but also because it is so much fun to share these moments in Madeleine's life with family.

2 weeks old!

Even though it feels like Madeleine has been part of our family for a lot longer than just two weeks, we are far from having her figured out! Thankfully, apart from the odd gas attack, she has continued to be a very settled baby so far. She constantly entertains us with her faces, expressions, and noises, and we are amazed at how much she has grown already. At the last midwife visit a couple of days ago, she was up to 8.8lb (from 8.1 at birth)! Steve has been back at work this week, and I have continued to rest up, but did manage to take Madeleine out for her first, very short, walk in the stroller earlier this week. After a bit of fussing, she fell right asleep.

We have been using cloth nappies - a combination of old Curity diapers that Mom brought over (used on my sister and me some 30+ years ago!), and YoYo nappies made by a woman here in NZ. So far they have been working really well, and we have had enough sunny days to get them mostly dried outside.
Today was a beautiful, calm, sunny Sunday, so we headed out to the Pencarrow Coast for a walk. Madeleine slept the entire time, and we enjoyed a picnic lunch on the shore.

We have created a new web album for Madeleine, so feel free to check it out (click on the picture below) - we will update it regularly and post more pictures of her there than here on the blog.

Madeleine Ngaio Gibson