Busy April!

April was a very busy month for us! I can always tell by how many pictures I have taken and I took around 300 in April! 

We had Ceci's 5 month check up on April 27th. She weighed 8.985 kilos which is a tad under 20 lbs and she measured 68.5 cm which is 27in. She is still over the curve in weight and in the 95th percentile in height. Our doctor expects her to be 1.76m or 5'9"!!! She will probably be quite a tall girl! 

After 5 months of nothing but mommy's milk we started Ceci on fruit juice. (In Brazil they do things quite differently about introducing food to a baby's diet) We started with a half of an orange, which she liked then we worked our way up to 2 oranges. She enjoyed her orange juice but then we added some papaya juice to her orange juice and she did not like it at all! Maybe I was sending her some negative energy because I dont like papaya juice. So from then on it has been kind of a battle to get her to drink juice. I tried orange/apple juice but she didnt like that too much either... I think we might take a couple of days off and try the juice again in a week. 

We also introduced fruit puree to Ceci. We started with apple puree I made with my BabyBullet. She made a very strange face when she first tasted it, and has been making the same face every time we try to feed her. I was telling Leto today, she opens her mouth all the time to smile but when we put her in her high chair and hold the spoon up to her mouth it is like fort knox! Leto and I thought she would love the juice and the food but she really prefers my milk! Its an ego boost for me but my boobs are getting tired! I was hoping to ween her off of the boobies soon, but if she keeps up rejecting the juice I just might have to keep on for a little longer!

Ceci is rolling over a lot. I was amazing; she was rolling over sporadically, like once every 3 days, then one day she decided to roll over like 7 times in one afternoon! She has been unstoppable ever since! Now we need to keep an eye on her at all times! We also bought her a little "car walker" that she loves, but she can only go backwards for now!.

We bought our tickets to California! We will arrive July 2nd and leave August 1st! Almost a whole month! I am super excited. I cant wait for everyone to meet her and to spend some good quality time with family and friends! 

I just love taking pictures of her! 

our beautiful  baby!

 

 Ceci's new ride!

 

Ceci's first juice!

All our Love,

Kathy, Leto and Ceci!

Happy Easter!

Sorry it has been a while since my last update, we have been busy!
We had Ceci's 4 month check up and she is getting bigger. On March 28th she was 8.17 kilos and 66cm long. That equals 18 lbs and 26 inches. This was her 4 month check up.... we know some 10 month old babies that are smaller than her! If you have seen pictures of her you know she is super chubby but our doctor isnt too worried because her length is just as high as her weight for her age. She is the size of an average 8 month old!
Ceci started laughing a little over a week ago. Its not very often, but when she does it we try to make her laugh more. We still need to discover what really makes her laugh!
We had a wonderful Easter. Here people give big chocolate eggs with toys or more chocolate inside. Ceci got a Hello Kitty egg and a Disney egg! Of course we will eat her chocolate but she can look at her toys! We had a nice lunch at Leto's parents house and reminisced about last Easter and how that was the day we told our families we were pregnant! Its amazing how much can happen in a year! After lunch we were all up stairs and I decided to put Ceci on her stomach. She pushed up to her hands, which she had never done before, and after a couple of tries she pushed herself over! We have a rolling baby! I was so happy, it was a magical moment and although I didnt record it, I will never forget it! It was so great that she did it in front of everyone too, although not everyone was paying attention.
We are planning to come to California in July. Hopefully Leto and Ceci will be able to experience their first 4th of July! I am so excited for everyone to meet Ceci, and for her to see her American side!


Here is a video of Ceci opening her Easter Eggs


Here are some recent pictures

We spent our day off for Good Friday at a beautiful place called Solo Sagrado (sacred soil)

Easter with cousin Manu.Easter lunch at Leto's parent's house
Right after she rolled over, trying to make her do it again!
Our Easter bunny! Photo by Leto's sister Sol
This was my baptism gown that I wore, that was made by my Grandma Hazel from my mother's brides maids dress.
Ceci with all her goodies!!

We hope you all had a wonderful Easter!
Oh and Happy Birthday to my mom who turned the big 6-0 and my nephew Patrick who turned 8! Love you guys!

Kathy, Leto and Ceci

Ceci is 4 months old!

Yesterday Ceci turned 4 months old! Its hard to believe that she is 4 months already. Sometimes it seems that time has flown by, but then sometimes it feels like these have been the longest 4 months of my life!

We are all doing great! Ceci has been sleeping in her room for a week now and she has been doing awesome! She is sleeping from 5-6.5 hours, waking up and then going right back to bed! The first night I didnt sleep so well because I was afraid I wouldnt hear her, but I heard her fine and it has been nice to have our room back!

I went back to work on March 6th. It has been very nice. I only work Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday morning. The rest of the days I am with Ceci 24/7. I think it has worked out for everyone. I get to get out of the apartment and make a little money. Leto gets to see Ceci a little more because he works right next to his parents house. Leto's family has really enjoyed seeing Ceci so often. And Ceci loves to be around her family! I have been able to keep up my milk supply so Ceci has still only had my milk to eat! I think this is quite an accomplishment because breastfeeding is hard stuff!!! The only other thing she has swallowed is medicine! I think sometime this month we will introduce fruit juice (real fruit juice, no store bought stuff...) In Brazil babies dont really eat cereal, they go straight to fruit juice then pureed fruit.

Ceci is officially a dual citizen of Brazil and the United States! We got her US passport in the mail a few days ago and her certificate saying that she was a US citizen at birth! This week we will go to the federal police and get her Brazilian passport. I am so happy that so many doors will be open to her! Our American Brazilian baby!

Leto and I had a nice night out celebrating St. Patrick's Day. We went to a British pub with our friend Ligia, and Leto's sisters and some of their friends. It was so much fun, and so nice to know that Ceci was being taken care of by Leto's mother! We did call it a night early (11:30) because we both missed our baby girl!

Ceci got her 4 month shot today. Thankfully it was just one shot in the leg and 2 orally. She did great. She only cried for about 10 seconds! Our girl is growing up!


Here are some recent pictures!

Ceci is 4 months old! March 18th
St. Patrick's Day with Ligia!
Ceci's first St. Patrick's Day!
She is getting sooooooo big!
Trying to get her foot in her mouth! It was there but she couldnt keep it there to suck on it! Her thighs are too big! I dont know how she can get her foot that far!
Our pretty girl!
Helping daddy support Santos!
Too cute!
Sleeping angel!
Bubble bath!
Lots of Love!
Kathy, Leto and Ceci

3 month check-up!

We just got back from Ceci's 3 month check-up! She is 3 months and 11 days and weights 7.18 kilos (15.83p pounds) 65.5cm (24.6inches). She is over the curve for weight and is in the 90th percentile for length! We have ourselves a BIG girl!!

I want to take a minute and say how much we love Ceci's pediatrician!!! We were with her for over an hour... probably closer to 1.5 hours, talking, and having ALL of our (my) questions answered!! And this is normal for us. She is a private doc, which means we pay R$300 a month... about US$175, but it is COMPLETELY worth it!! She gives all of her patients her personal cell phone number and is available 24/7. When Ceci had her cold we could text and call her any time! She even answered a text at 230am once!! She is amazing. And the best part.... she is super fluent in English!!!

I go back to work next Tuesday and I am not gonna lie, I am getting nervous! Ceci loves Leto's mom, but it is a long day away from me! I hope she adjusts well, and enjoys the busy house. I know some times she gets bored with just me and likes to interact with more than just her mommy and daddy!

Here is a video of Ceci playing with her feet! She just discovered them a week ago and can't get enough of them! She is super close to putting one in her mouth!


Tummy time!

Finding her feet!

Happy Leap Day to all!

All our love!
Kathy, Leto and Ceci!

Ceci is 3 months!

Wow, I haven't written in a while! Sorry about that!

Ceci turned 3 months last Saturday! And sadly we couldn't really enjoy it because she got her first cold! She has had a bad nose for a week now! Heartbreaking! But at least it is just her nose, not even a cough. We are hopeful that she will get over it very soon! We have had to delay her 3 month shots because she is sick and I dont think I can deal with a sick baby who is in pain an may have a bad reaction...

Ceci had her first Valentine's Day. She was nice enough so stay with her grandma and aunts while Leto and I enjoying a nice dinner date! Here in Brazil, Valentine's Day is June 12th, so Feb 14th is not much of a celebration.

Last weekend was Carnaval and we went to our friend Ligia's beach house. Ceci was sick so the ride there and back was no fun, but she did great while we were there! I sure have changed! I used to be a sun worshiper, but now because of Ceci, I think I was in the sun for 5 minutes the whole time we were there! And I didnt mind, I just wanted Ceci to be comfortable and cool. (She hates the heat!) Ceci got to take a dip in the kiddie pool, and I am pretty sure she loved it. She only complained when we tried to put her in the big pool and it was too cold for her little toes!

Ceci loves to sit up. Of course she needs help to stay there, but she prefers sitting over laying down now. She can roll to her side but gets stuck there and sucks on the blanket or sheet. She has found her toes and is in love with them! She seems to be so fascinated by them and loves to hit her foot! Ceci gets bigger daily! She is the biggest of all her friends, but she is also the youngest! There has got to be something in my milk! We like to call her Miss 30 Minute Nap, because she wakes up right at the 30 minute mark. Her internal clock is amazing! Luckily this is only during the day. At night she will sleep up to 6 hours. It has been a little less since she has been sick, but i am sure she will go back to normal when she kicks this cold. She loves to suck on her hand and fingers. Her face is so funny if she bites her finer or tastes something strange. She still wont take a pacifier, but thankfully she has gotten used to the car seat. It took us 6 hours to come back from Carnaval and she did amazing, even with her cold! This is good practice for our upcoming trip to California in July! Ceci is still smiling all the time! It is so amazing! She is one happy baby!!

Leto and I are doing great! I go back to work in about 10 days now... I will only work Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturday mornings, so I am not too sad about going back. It will be nice to have some "me" time and I know Leto's mother is looking forward to watching her! Leto works right next door to his parents house, so he will get to see her a lot more too! It works out for everyone!

Ceci has a doctors appointment on Feb 29th, so I will update with her new weight and length! Then on March 2nd we have an appointment at the US Embassy to get her a passport and citizenship! Hopefully that goes smoothly!

She loves to poop! Especially after we just change her!

Sitting Ceci!

Felipe's 2nd birthday

Carnaval with friends! Sophia 6months and Ju 2 and a half!

3 months old!
Giving her monkey a kiss!
Tummy time!
Carnaval!
Lots of Love!
Kathy, Leto and Ceci!

Ceci's 2 month check up!

Here in Brazil the do things a little different when it comes to babies and their immunizations. Babies go to a clinic to get the immunizations, not to the doctor. This makes going to the doctor for the check-ups such a pleasurable experience. If every time we went to her doctor she got shots, I would never want to take her to the doctor, but because we get her shots at the clinics, I love going to see her doctor and getting all of my questions answered!

So last week we took her to the clinic to get her shots. It was the government clinic so I was expecting a long wait and a lot of paper work to fill out... Well this is not the US! We didnt have to wait 2 minutes before the nurses were prepping her shots, and I think Leto just had to sign a paper or 2. Ceci had two oral immunizations that she took with no complaints... probably because they were sweet. Then she had 2 shots, one in each leg. I didnt want to look at all but I forced myself, to comfort Ceci, but I am sure the look on my face was no comfort. She had the look of "OH what is this!" Then the scream came and the crying. She cried hysterically for about 1 minute, but it felt like an eternity to me. Then she cried while they readied the second shot. She did the exact same thing for the second shot. When she calmed down I got out the only thing that really calms her all the way down, my boob. We stayed in the room for a little then headed to Leto''s parents house, which was down the street. She did great, and took a nap, but then she woke up screaming and even my boob woulnt help. This went on for about 3 hours, her falling asleep and waking up screaming. Super heart breaking! We texted our doc and she said we could give her baby tylenol so we headed home and picked some up. That helped A LOT! The next day she had a little temperature which scared me a little, but more baby tylenol helped. She was back to her normal self later that day.

Today we had her doctor check up, and what we already know was confirmed! Our baby is HUGE!!!! On Dec 21st, our last check up, she weighed 4.155 kilos which is about 9.1 lbs. Today she weighed 6.1 kilos which is about 13.5 lbs. She gained 2 kilos/ 4.5lbs in a little over a month! On Dec 21st she was 55.5 cm long which is 21.85 inches. Today she measured 60cm or 23.6 inches! Our baby is almost 2 feet long! Our doctor said that they want babies to grow 15cm by the time they are 6 months old...Ceci has already grown 11! She is in the 90-95th percentile for weight and length! We knew she was big compared to our friends' babies, but we didnt know she was THAT big! We have already put away her 0-3 months clothes, and fits pretty snugly in her 3-6 month clothes! There must be something in my milk, or our baby is on her way to being a giant! Or supermodel, or volleyball player. (But if daddy has his way she will be a pro tennis player!!)

Ceci is smiling all the time now and I swear I heard her laugh... but she was asleep at the time so we are not going to count that ;-) She can kinda roll to her side if she has motivation, like the TV or her hand that she wants to suck on. She tries to fit her whole hand in her mouth, but her Depintor huge hands just wont fit! She is now sleeping up to 4 and a half hours most nights! We are loving every minute of our little girl!

Right before the shots!!!

Happy Baby!!!
Bath time!
Ceci is huge!!!! Manuela, her 2nd couson is 7 months old and Ceci is 2 months!

Lots of Love!
Kathy, Leto and Ceci!

Ceci is 2 months!

It is hard to believe that only 2 months ago Ceci was born! It seems like we have had her forever! Everyone says that time flies when you have a baby, but these last 2 months have seemed like a lifetime... a very good lifetime!
Here are some things that Ceci loves:
She loves to eat! As you can see from her recent pictures she is quite the chubster! I have also learned about 100 new words in Portuguese all meaning chubby, from friends and family commenting on her size! I am so happy that she is so big. I remember 2 months ago she was so small, and all I wanted was for her to get bigger! Well, I got my wish!
She loves to watch TV! Already! We lay her on our couch and she twists her head so she can watch the TV. She likes to watch Friends and Ellen, but she will watch anything!
She loves to smile! When she wakes up in the morning after I have fed her and changed her diaper she will look at me and smile and make the cutest baby noises! She smiles a lot and it just makes my day with her so much brighter!
She loves to be held by daddy! (when he is not super hot) She hangs her head over his arm, which looks super uncomfortable to me, but she loves it!
She loves to sleep at NIGHT!!!! Thank the lord! We give her a bath at about 9 or 930 and daddy gives her a bottle of my breast milk. Sometimes she falls asleep with daddy but a lot of the time i need to step in and offer my boob and then she goes to sleep. She usually falls asleep around 1045-1130 and sleeps an average of 3 and a half hours. There was one night she slept 4 and a half hours but of course that was the night I went to sleep super late, so i didnt get to enjoy her long sleep. She wakes up at 3am and then again at about 6 am, and then i try to make her sleep more but we just get hour sleeps in until about 1030. She takes a few power naps during the day, but these are getting shorter and shorter.
She loves her glow worm! I can hold it in front of her and it will calm her down, and she can stare at it for a good 20 minutes! Thanks Aunt Brenda!!!
She loves to hold her head up! When I put her on my chest to burp her she refuses to put her head down! We have to be careful because she is still working on controlling it and sometimes she swings her head around and hits my face or chest.
She loves to look at herself and mommy in the mirror. I dont think she recognizes herself but when she sees me she lights up!

Here are couple things she doesnt love...
She doesnt love being strapped into her carseat... which is unfortunate if we want to go anywhere! She is getting better though and I think she will grow out of this... I hope!
She doesnt love the pacifier. This is unfortunate too because she is using my nipple as a pacifier! There is an "all natural" gel or something that people put on the pacifier to get them to take it... But I dont know if that is for us. I dont know what is worse... a baby who wont take a pacifier or a 5 year old who wont give it up...

Tomorrow we will go get her 2 month shots... i am not excited about this... I hope she does ok!

Here are a couple recent pics!

Her last bath in her hammock! She grew out of that fast! Look at those rolls, and that buda belly!

Our angel sleeping!
Ceci watching TV!
Leto thinks she looks like the baby dinosaur from the old TV show! Not the mamma!

Leto calls this her "falling" pose. When she is asleep and we move her she does this. You can really see how big she is!

Lots of Love,
Kathy, Leto and Ceci!