Lucidia Lohman

She has acquired language!

On 11-22-09, 11 months and 4 days old, Lulu spoke her frist word with intent and precision. And I have to admit, it’s quite a symbolic word!

Oh, the things you can do!

You are worried about seeing him spend his early years in doing nothing. What! Is it nothing to be happy? Nothing to skip, play, and run around all day long? Never in his life will he be so busy again.
~Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Emile, 1762

Oh, my dear Lulu, how you are growing, changing, and evolving! From a mushy, squishy, ever-so-adorable-yet-ridiculously-helpless newborn to an amazingly independent, almost-11-month-old, bright-eyed girl. You are beyond words.

You are smiling all the time, rolling, and crawling (and you’re not just inch-worming it anymore; you are on your hands and knees!). (more…)

Independence is at Hand: Mobility is Upon Us

Yes, it is the truth. Our little Lulu is mobile. Well, sort of. She sort of needs motivation, something interesting and not-too-close-but-not-toooo-far-away to decide to crawl. And it’s not crawling either. It’s more like tummy carpet sliding.

And I am thrilled.

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To Our Photographer: Thanks!

So many people have been asking me who my photographer is. “Who did those Easter pictures of Lucidia? She’s so beautiful, and your photographer really caught that beauty.” “Who took those belly shots while you were pregnant?” “Beautifully stunning maternity photos!” “Where did you get those ‘LuLu at 2 weeks old’ shots? Gorgeous!”

Well, dear readers, I certainly haven’t been keeping it a secret that Detra Dowling of Dowling Photography is an amazing photographer with a keen eye for detail and the patience of a saint! She really cares about the people she’s photographing, she works with you, and makes sure she captures truth and beauty in every shot. She certainly knows how to get the most out of each photo shoot, even with an uncooperative baby!

So, Detra, thank you so much for everything. We will certainly be using your services for years to come.

By the way, I still need you to sign this photograph!

Lulu the Jetsetter

Oh. My. GAWD.

Lucidia is turning into a little jetsetter. For Memorial Day weekend, we were up and at ‘em, seeing everyone we could. We saw Granny, Grammy, Popsy, Pop Pop, uncles, and Danny, Jill, Colleen, Dorian, Ryan, and Aunt Kathy! We, however, did not see the Gorski side of the family yet again! And it breaks my heart. So we are going to try to get up there for the Gorski Reunion on July 3rd. Lucidia needs to meet her family! There just isn’t enough time in the day, and airline tickets are through the roof!

Speaking of the roof:

We here in SC replaced our roof and windows, and Dad is putting in a nice floor in the bonus room, which will eventually be Lulu’s playroom. Yes, we have been busy with home improvements for our little one.

HOWEVER

As of last night, our air conditioning unit decided to DIE. So now we need to replace that, too. Oh, the joys of home ownership. It never ends. (And it’s going to be 90 degrees today.)

So Gorskis, get ready to meet the newest addition to the family in July. She is so cute, she will melt your heart in the hot summer sun or in the coldest of winter months. We can’t wait to see you all!

Four Months

I have no idea how it happened, but you are now four months old. Four. That’s many days and weeks old. Almost too many. (You’re really four months and four days old, but who’s counting?)

When you were born, I told your father that we have a new clock, a new way to tell time—and it’s terrifying because I wonder if I’ll always want to slow it down, rewind it, to just stop time for a moment and admire you. But then I think If you’re this cool now, imagine what it’s going to be like when I can have complete, coherent conversations with you. What can I learn from you?

You were a newborn once, I swear to you (and myself) that you were. You were 8 pounds, 6.6 ounces, and you were mushy and happy and serene. You’re now eating rice cereal, refusing any kind of formula, you love apple juice (just like I did when I was a kid), and smiling. Oh, those smiles. There is one smile, though, I have yet to photograph, and I doubt I’ll ever get to. You give it only to me. It’s the smile very few people in life ever get to experience, like the kind where a long-lost lover returns, and you smile because your world just brightened up. It’s a subconscious, instantaneous smile of recognition, I think. You give it to me when I come to get you in the middle of the night when you’re cooing over the monitor, conversing happily with shadows, or when we get ready to nurse. (That’s when you also do “big eyes” and make an “Oooh!” sound.) Please remember to give me that smile just once in awhile when you’re a teenager, ok? It’ll help me put things in context.

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Lucidia Laughs!

(UPDATE: Here’s a YouTube video that Lulu’s dad captured this afternoon after a long outing and subsequent nap! Enjoy!)

Today we celebrate LuLu’s 12-week-old birthday. 12 weeks ago I was in hard labor. It was not fun.

So last night my LuLu was wheezing while smiling. I thought she was just making cooing sounds, but then I thought something was different. It sounded different. Her lungs were working too hard for it just to be simple wheezing.

Well… Lucidia learned how to laugh today. She laughed for the very first time when Dad lovingly yelled “STINKYSTINKYSTINKY” in her face. She laughed after each subsequent “STINKYSTINKYSTINKY” performance.

I am very proud.

A video will follow, I’m sure.

Here Comes LuLu Bean!

LuLu is on her way! My doctor sent me over to L&D, so hopefully this is it!

T-9 Days (But Hoping It’s Sooner)

With the hypothetical 9 days to go, I will begin my maternity leave on Monday, the 8th. I figure I need a good week to get used to the idea of being a mother along with getting the house in order. I’ll probably acquire a massage in the process. It’ll be my last one for a long time.

I sent the eviction notice to LuLu today.

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False Alarm on the Whole Labor Thing

So we had a false alarm last week. No labor yet. While I’ve been having some “possible labor” signs, there has been nothing definite.

I’m 37 weeks and 2 days pregnant, measuring close to 38 weeks, and the ultrasound today revealed that LuLu is weighing in at 7 pounds, 13 ounces (yes, you read that correctly). While ultrasounds can be off by up to 2 pounds each way (I shudder to think of an almost-ten-pound LuLu Bean coming out of me), the weight itself doesn’t surprise me. I can feel every ounce. That’s for sure.

And I’m only dilated 1 cm. So we have a ways to go.

We didn’t get any good pictures of LuLu because she’s so big and in the exact position she should be in. I can pretty much say, however, that she has a Gallagher nose, like me and my mom, and I’m pretty sure she has Lohman legs.

We’ll keep you all updated.