Willkommen Iris Martina Deising!

My host-sister (from my other "family" in Germany), Vera, had a beautiful baby girl on August 31st.  Sweet baby girl Iris was a healthy 4,380 grams and 52 cm (9 lb 10.5 oz and 20.5 in).  Vera is SUPER MOM... she went to a birthing center at 8:00 AM, had Iris by 9:30 AM (without drugs, with a midwife) and was home 2 hours later.   Claudia, my host-mother, assures me this is not typical.  Iris has two older brothers, Mathis and Jannes, and one cousin, Jonas (Jörg's son).... all make up Ryder's "cousins" in Germany.  Iris is the first girl grandchild for Claudia and Bernhard.  Wonderful news for the entire Mayer Blasig family!

Vera and Iris

I love you, Iris!!

 To answer the common question I get, no I did not cut Ryder's hair.  Oddly enough, his hair has grown in this way.  It looks like a hair piece on top! :)

Labor of Love- Examining Elective Deliveries

I saw a great special on ABC tonight about preterm and premature babies called "Labor of Love".  The special focused on elective deliveries (scheduled induction and c-section) before 39 weeks.  Ladies, your baby needs all the time he/she can get in that heavenly oven of yours.  Please, do not elect to have your baby before 39 weeks because you are uncomfortable or ready to meet your baby.  In fact, do everything you can to prevent your baby from being born before 39 weeks.  You all know I speak from the experience of having a 33 week preemie.  The brain, lung, and liver development that happens in those final weeks is critical... not to mention the helpful weight gain. You do not want to see your baby in the NICU... and you do not want the worry that comes with a premature or preterm baby.  Listen to your body and never be afraid to go to the doctor if things feel odd... even if it is Christmas. 

Here are preterm birth stats for Georgia://www.marchofdimes.com/peristats/pdflib/195/13.pdf
Check out more about the special at http://www.wsbtv.com/news/29042497/detail.html.

4 lb 10.8 oz of MIRACLE!

 

Baby boy is 8 months old!

Ryder turned 8 months old last weekend!  It is hard to imagine where the last 8 months have gone... oh wait, I can tell you... smiling, laughing, crying (from overwhelming joy), and lots of hugging and kissing!  It has been said that the only constant is change... well, that is incredibly true with babies.  Ryder is changing so much every day.  All of you moms reading this can relate to the feeling I'm having... SLOW DOWN BOY!  I cherish each and every day of this baby stage, and am holding on tight with both hands.  Here are some cute baby faces from Ryder over the last few weeks...

Dates, Teeth and Sitting Up!

Over the last few weeks, Ryder has gone from an imobile little guy to a rolling, sitting, handsome little boy with two teeth!!  With some extra help from his physical therapist, aka Grandma, Ryder started rolling over with more control and frequency.  Ryder has fought a terrible cough, ear infection and now bronchiolitus (sp?).  Imagine this nightime routine-- saline solution in nose, followed by bulb syringe, cream on dry face, zantac for reflux, 2 puffs of inhaler, then bottle that has extra calories added (premie formula added to breast milk) and vitamin D!  Don't forget to turn on your cool mist humidifier! :) I love my little high maintenance baby!

Here's some of his progression... sorry some are sidways. I'm not a professional blogger, as you can tell.



Sitting up and playing music! (Aug 9)



Date night at Mellow Mushroom with Addie (Aug 12)



At the ER for a scary bad cough! (Aug 14)

Looking handsome- watch out girls! (Aug 15)

Two bottom teeth! (Aug 20)

Making baby food

I mentioned in the most recent posting that I have been making Ryder's food for several weeks.  I chose to make Ryder's because the store food label does not tell you that they use high heat to give the food an almost 2 year shelf life.  The food loses a lot of valuable nutrients during the high heating/preserving.  The store food has really come a long way, and if that is what you feed your baby, he or she will thrive and do great.  However, if you can find the hour or so once a week to batch prepare foods, your baby will get more nutrients from the food which he/she eats.  Also, I have read that babies who eat homemade foods transition better to table/finger foods because the tastes are the same (store food tastes more bland).  Here's broccoli I made last night (added breast milk to thin)!

Wash, steam (10 minutes), add milk, puree!



Some for now, some for later (freezing)!

How long does freshly made food stay good?

Strained fruits and vegetables 2-3 days in frig, 6-8 months in freezer

Strained meats and eggs 1 day in frig, 1-2 months in freezer

Meat/vegetable combinations 1-2 days in frig, 1-2 months in freezer

(from http://life.familyeducation.com/baby/foods/39378.html)

I'd love your tips on baby food making!!  Leave them in the comments for me and others!

Visits from my grandparents!

The end of July and beginning of August have quickly slipped through out fingers.  Hot summer days have kept us inside more than we like, but that has not slowed down Ryder!  He is sitting up much better and recently discovered his new favorite toy- a wooden man that makes noise when you shake him (a gift from Allie from her trip to Argentina).  We are working on rolling over.  His physical therapist, aka Grandma Larson, came and gave him a workout tonight.  He did well, and he should be rolling soon.  Ryder is working so hard to catch up with his full term friends!

my new favorite toy- until I shake it and bop my head

Lovin' my Nonnie and Pappy!

Squeezes from Grandpa and Grandma!

In other news, Ryder got his first ear infection this past week.  Poor boy... sleepless nights and a fever.  He is doing better after a few days on antibiotics.

Gotta love the cool effects of Instagram pictures!

I have been meaning to post about my baby food making endeavors for weeks, but have not gotten around to it.  I have gone from apples all the way to zucchini (so far his favorite) with many fruits and vegetables along the way!  This weekend was our first dabble with combinations-- green beans and potatoes.  I urge all of my mom friends to try making your child's food.  The store food has come a LONG way since we were children, but it still pales in comparison to freshly made food.  There are a ton of blogs and websites with tips.  My tip- go buy an old fashioned baby food cook book at your local book store.  In addition to making healthy food for your child, you also get more creative in the kitchen for your own meals.

freeze using ice cube trays- each cube is about 1 oz.

Apples and rice cereal- breakfast of champions!

you can even add breast milk to thin!

Elaine's Baby Shower

Some girlfriends and I threw our dear friend, Elaine, a baby shower this past Saturday.  Elaine and Brad are expecting baby boy Lucas Ralph in late September.  Elaine looks great and is growing a healthy little one!  We are so excited to meet Lucas and for Ryder to have another buddy!

Baby Lucas is hiding behind me!

Welcome Elsa Maxine Larson

With joy and excitement we share the news of Ryder's new cousin, Elsa Maxine Larson.  Proud parents Liz and Brian (Eric's brother) welcomed their daughter into the world on Wednesday, July 20, at 2:16 PM.  Elsa was 8 lb 6 oz and 20.5 inches.  She is a healthy and beautiful baby girl!  Eric and I are excited to meet our niece in September when Brian and Liz bring her for a visit.  Here are a couple pictures. 

The hospital pictures



 

Meine beste Freundin!

My good friend (and travel partner pre-Eric), Allison, was in town this weekend from Raleigh.  We met for lunch and caught up.  Chatting about old times reminded me of how simple life was in college and how lucky I was to experience so many great places, cultures and people.  Allison and I shared two study abroad experiences in 2002 and 2003- both to Germany.  I look forward to Ryder studying in Europe and to him having a life long friend, like I have in Allison, with whom he can share the experience! 

Speaking of Germany, I think I have Eric convinced we can take Ryder over the pond next May.  Are we crazy to think we can take Ryder to meet his family in Germany!?!  Here we come Claudia and Bernhard!!

Me, Allison and our classmate in Florence, Italy in August 2002

Allison meets Ryder-- July 2011 (we look the same 9 years later, right!?)

Ryder's 6 Month Pictures, Dancing Queen & Chamblee Fireworks

Here are a handful of the great shots that Lindsey Turner took of Ryder (http://www.lindsey-turner.com/) over 4th of July weekend.  You may have seen these on Lindsey's blog, but I agree with her that they were some of the best shots. 

Just learning to sit up!

 

This boy LOVES his daddy!

 

What's cuter than a baby in a bucket!?!

 Ryder is doing great!  He is happy as can be, but he is in no hurry to move much.  He rolls over with help and sitting is still touch and go, but he'll get there.  Ryder started "real food" this weekend with his first meal of sweet potatoes.  I started making his food this evening...steaming potatoes, cooking apples, etc... I'll post about my food making adventures soon.

We had a "date night" Friday night with the Sprinkle/Shaver crew (Chastain Park- Abba cover band with Atlanta Symphony Orch.), and Grandma and Grandpa Larson watched Ryder.  Abba's music is so timeless- Dancing Queen was the highlight of the show!  We also enjoyed the Chamblee Fireworks on Saturday night (postponed from 4th of July) after a great dinner with our neighbors/friends, the Spallas.

Lindsey, Jeff, Heather & Eric (Allie took the picture!)

Super cool iphone app called Instagram retouches the pic

I love this chalk board conversation bubble (etsy.com)

Sneak Peak @ Ryder's 6 Month Pictures

Check out pictures of Ryder from this weekend: http://lindsey-turnerblog.com. I will post the actual pictures after I receive them from the photographer, Lindsey Turner. I love the one of him laughing with Eric!

God Bless America!

Happy 4th of July to everyone.  We enjoyed our long weekend and extra time with Ryder.  Eric and I ran the Peachtree Road Race yesterday in just over an hour.  It is a 10K, for all of my non-Atlanta followers.  The weather was super hot!  We did not make it to any firework shows this year due to the bad weather and a sleeping baby.  Maybe next year!  Here's my happy little all-American boy!

Proud to be an American (but can't wait to travel the world)!

Atlanta Zoo & Six Month Photos

Happy 4th of July weekend!!  I started the weekend off right by taking Friday off and spoiling my Godchildren, Charlie and Angelina, with a trip to the zoo for a VIP experience with the elephants.  We fed Kelly the elephant, watched the father-to-be tiger play in his pool (mommy tiger due with a cub in a couple weeks), enjoyed the pandas and gave lots of "yucks" at the reptile house.  Here are a few pictures:

Charlie knew so much about each animal!  He's so smart!

Kelly the ele' loved apples, watermelon and peaches! Charlie fed her many times.

Angelina was all girl... one feeding and she was done.

That's a face of someone having fun!? It was quite hairy!

 

Ryder was along for the ride.  He loves his cousins!

Ryder turned 6 months old on Monday, June 27th.  To say the past 6 months have gone by quickly would be a gross understatement.  Our world has changed in the most unimaginable way, and we could not be happier.  Ryder Louis is a great baby, and Eric and I are so proud to be his parents.  Here are some candid pictures and a couple from his photo shoot.  The photographer's pictures will be posted in about a week.

Lots of smiles until the photo session! Then he was Mr serious!

"Help mom- I can't sit that well yet!"

Great beverage tin from the Schreiber's!

Hopefully the photographer got the few smiles Ryder gave.