Christmas Time

In Finland the celebrations take place on the 24th and in Canada they are on the 25th...so we let Isabella wear her Christmas outfit for two days...luckily nothing bad happened to it in between! Also, in Finland Santa comes to your house on Christmas Eve and, as luck would have it...Santa had our new address! Isabella also had the chance (and surprisingly, the patience) to wear the Tonttu (Elf) hat that Jaana bought for her. She really enjoys the swing that Auntie Lotta provided. Guaranteed to put her to sleep at least for a while.
Not much happened around here other than Santa coming and opening presents. Of course the person that had no idea what was going on got the most pressies! So not fair...but I guess that is the circle of life as they say.

Christmas Eve Eve

So it has been a while since we posted...it is the Christmas season and there are so many things to do...but you all know that! We have now decorated the tree and washed Isabella's Christmas day outfit. Her socks contain angora...what is the world coming to?

We have been hard at work taking naps and buying presents and food. What do you buy a girl who needs nothing?

Taneli is now off work for 2 weeks...I left them alone yesterday and I came home to find her wearing her under shirt over her pants!!! Interesting way to wear an outfit. I also put together the gift from Michelle and John finally (no point before she was able to follow anything with her eyes). So now she has something to lay on the floor and look at!

So tomorrow is the big day here in Finland...we will just be at home, no plans as such. Just eat, sleep and be merry...(but not in the alcohol sense). I hope that you all have a great Christmas and that Santa brings you everything that you want!

A big day

Yesterday was a big day in Isabella's life...she went to her first party (it was Taneli's cousin's graduation party)...that led to the need for her first party dress (you can see it in the photos). After the party, we went to buy a christmas tree! For the first time in years, I decided that I wanted a real tree. So now it is already dropping needles on our floor...aaaah, Christmas! It was a busy day for her! She also got to meet more members of her Finnish family and when she came home, she had a bath...and this was the first bath she has had that didn't start and end with tears...that was a big moment for all of us! And finally, she used her baby sleeping bag for the first time. It seemed to go well with that. This big day yesterday means that she has been 'sleeping like a herring' as they say here in Finland today.

Get in the Christmas spirit....

I thought that this might help you all get into the Christmas spirit a little...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fe11OlMiz8

Our first bus ride

So today we took a bus to Helsinki to meet up with a friend of mine, Janina. The great thing here about the bus is that if you have a stroller, then you get to ride for free. So for the next few years, as long as I have Isabella with me, it is free to go on public transit! Not a bad deal at all!

As you can see with the photo, Isabella was totally overwhelmed by her first bus ride. I am sure that everyone thought that I was a total freak for taking a photo on the bus. Oh well, just one more reason...

A few days ago, it was soooo funny, Isabella has a habit of smacking her lips together when the bottle is taken from her mouth...making it sound like she really enjoyed her meal...but the other day, she had fallen asleep while eating and so I took the bottle out and she smacked her lips...but because she was sleeping, she managed to scare herself! It was so funny! Her arms and legs stretch out and go stiff and her eyes flew open...hilarious. A similar thing happened at the midwife yesterday. I to a rattling toy out of the midwife's box of toys on the table that Isabella was lying on and she obviously wasn't expecting it to make a noise (we don't have any noisy toys in the house :-) and when I shook the rattle, it scared the crap out of her! I burst out laughing and both the midwife and Taneli who were sitting at the desk looked at me funny.

Ooooh, the fun we have. Well, I guess that it beats proof-reading brochures!

Thanks for all your comments...keep 'em coming! Love to hear from you guys...

Back from the Midwife

So we took Isabella to have her month check-up. She is fine. She has a bit of a cough that will wake her up but apparently that is just little drops of milk that make it into her windpipe. Also, we were able to get some drops for her goopy eye. She has drops for everything! Children in Finland have to take vitamin D drops until they are 3...those are daily. Then there are the drops to break up the gas...those are given before every 'meal' and then there are the eye drops which are 4-6 times per day...and finally there are drops to balance some bacteria in milk...those are once a day. My head is swimming in trying to remember what to give when and how many drops!!!

She decided that she didn't really want to sleep at all today (but I did since I am coming down with something)...of course she finally fell asleep when we were waiting at the midwife's office...just the place where they need to be awake to measure and weigh her. Damn! So we had to wake her up.

She is now officially 52cm and 4.020kg. About the average size of most brand new babies! She put on a whole pound in the past 2 weeks...some of that is accounted for in the chins.

Also, you can blame Taneli for providing Isabella with the baby heroin...if it were entirely up to me, she would not have a soother/pacifier/dummy/tutti!!! (just trying to be multilingual with that word so everyone understands!)

Anyway, here is a photo from today...

When Grandma Came to Visit

When Isabella was just 10 days old, Grandma came to visit all the way from Canada. We didn't really do much while they were here. They don't like winter babies to go outside for at least 2 weeks here in Finland. So we were able to go to the mall...and get lost on the way back. Which spelled disaster for Taneli who was left at home with Isabella and was out of food! We had the food...and we were driving in the wrong direction!!!! There were frantic phone calls with a screaming baby on the other end.

The first days

Here are a few photos from the first couple of weeks...

Welcome- Day 25

I just wanted to set this up since everyone is so far away and it will give me a chance to have to only post things once now that time is tighter than before. Isabella is getting bigger and bigger...her chins are beginning to develop...as Michelle said on the phone, at least we know she is part North America...and we can now see which part that is! (the photo on the left was taken today...day 25)

Question: Are babies long or tall? They spend most of their lives lying down...and when a baby is born, they tell us how long it is...but they are people...and people are tall...not long. Anyway, just my thought for the day...hey, I didn't say that it was a good one! We will have another midwife check-up tomorrow so we should have an updated weight and height/length. Last time we were there, she was 3cm longer/taller than her birth length/height (someone is really going to have to answer that question...as it takes too much time to write both!!!). I have a feeling that her weight will be way up...as we have at least a few chins to weigh in.

No one has bothered with me...I guess once you have a baby, that is it...they don't care anymore. I could be rotting from the inside and no one would know. I have a feeling that all the attention I got when I was pregnant from the medical community was just them wanting something else!! I guess that I am chopped liver now that Isabella is out causing havoc!

Anyway, enough for today...Take care all!