Vivian is 5 months old

11/9/08

Today marked Vivian's second attempt at eating solid foods and surprisingly enough we achieved success! We took Lenore's advice of sitting her at an incline (we used the "happy seat") to help her swallow. She dribbled out the first couple of spoonfuls, but after seeing me eat a couple of bites she seemed to get the hang of it. She ate a quarter of the food that I made and actually savored some of it with her tongue!

What up, cuz? (part 2)

11/27/08

After the big Thanksgiving meal the Rowley/Collins cousins got together on the couch to take a couple of photos.

Mommy's Lil' Turkey

11/27/08

Our families all got together at Lenore's house to celebrate Thanksgiving together this year.
Each of us cooked a different part of the meal; Will was on Turkey duty, Lisa and Lenore made the pies, Allison brought the sweet potato, Dave made the rolls, my parents made the salsa/guacamole and I brought the mashed potatoes. Since everyone was going to be eating, we thought it would be a good idea to introduce La Vivi to solid foods. The main dish was rice cereal. We mixed the cereal with formula and sat her down in the baby Bumbo seat to commence eating. Needless to say most of it ended up on her bib. Better luck next time!

Vivian is 4 months old

11/9/08

Vivian is getting ready to crawl now.......................
This past month Vivian added one more move from last month: she is now rolling over from her stomach to her back! Also, when we set her on her tummy, she is able to lift her head and arch her back in about a 90 degree angle. She thrusts her legs and pushes with her feet quite a bit which indicates that she may be getting ready to crawl. According to my dad, it looks as if she might be walking before she even crawls because she likes to "stand" on our lap sometimes. Let's take it one step at a time, daddy-o (no pun intended!)

Party time!

11/24/08

Our cousin Wendy and her man Alonso got married this Saturday 11/22/08!
First, we celebrated their bridal shower at a restaurant in West Covina (sans
Vivian cuz she needed to get her nap) then we went to the wedding and
celebrated the reception at Tamayo's restaurant in L.A. Vivian got to put on her dancing shoes that night. A good time was had by all!

What up cuz?

10/26/08

One thing that Vivian is not going to lack in her life is family. Our families are fortunate enough to be healthy and continually growing. Here we are (top left) with my cousin Sandy and her newborn daughter Danielle who, coincidentally, was born just a few weeks after Vivian. Sandy's and my family got together on Friday, Oct. 10 to have dinner at Mama Petrillo's.
Elizabeth and William are Vivian's older cousins; 5 and 2 years old. Their cousin, Clayton, is Viv's cousin by default :) Above are all four of them chillin' on the couch together.

Vivian's comfort object?

10/20/08

This Monday, Oct. 20th I found Vivian sleeping on her side with her thumb in her mouth! I don't remember which thumb it was, however, she seems to be partial to the left thumb. Could this mean that she may be left handed?

Vivian is 3 months old

10/9/08

This month Vivian found yet another way to communicate with us; by blowing raspberries! She's becoming more and more vocal with her cooing and she smiles quite a bit, especially when we sing to her. She also loves when we dance with her...just like her mommy!

Vivian's Grandmothers

10/14/08


Vivian sure loves her grandmas!

The photo on the left was taken on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2008 on my mom's birthday. In this picture grandma Maria Gandara is holding her first granddaughter. She was thrilled to see us both when we came to visit her on the morning of her birthday.
Grandma Lenore Rowley "Granore" (on the right) will be looking after Vivian on Mondays and Wednesdays. Vivian loves to hang out on Granore's lap tucked away inside of her skirt as she watches grandma play online poker!

Vivian's stuff

10/7/08


The BUMBO

For those of you who are wondering: no, this is not a potty or a baby toilet. This is actually a foamy yet sturdy baby seat. Vivian likes to sit in it and just chill out. She also enjoys playing with her toys and watching us eat while she's sitting in it. Typically this seat can cost upwards of $20 but Granore (grandma Lenore) found it at a yard sale for a buck!


The PLAY MAT

This one makes Vivian laugh and smile; her excitement is such that she can't control herself! She lies on the mat looking up at the smiley-faced sun that lights up in sinc with the sound of the classical baby music (it's a "Baby Einstein" toy). She gets hypnotized; her eyes open wide and she can't look away. Ben calls this toy "baby crack".



The SWINGS

Vivian has 2 swings; the rainforest swing which stays at our house and the happy day swing which belongs to my parents. Vivian loves the motions, sights and sounds of these two baby contraptions.


The CHAIR

This is one of Vivian's favorite places to be. We call it the "happy chair/seat" or sometimes I call it the "bouncy chair". What makes this chair so "happy" you ask? Well, this is one of the few places in which she can not only play and get excited, but also where she can wind down and relax. It's a multipurpose and lightweight toy which goes everywhere with us; from bedroom to bedroom and even to other people's homes!

Our First Race!

9/27/08

Our family participated in the San Dimas 5K/1 Mile Walk Run which was held to benefit the San Dimas youth recreation programs. First, Susy ran the 5K on her own which started at 7:30 a.m.
Later, at 8:30 a.m., Ben and Vivian met Susy at the 1 mile start and we jogged for most of the event. We received a ribbon and a free healthy breakfast (oatmeal, apples and milk) for participating.

Vivian is 2 months old

9/9/08

This month was a big month for Vivian Marie Rowley. She achieved a couple of very important milestones. The first being that she started sleeping through the night! It happened on Thursday, August 21, 2008 when we put her down by midnight and she stayed fast asleep until 7:00 a.m. She continued to sleep about 7 hours per night until August 27th when she surprised us by sleeping a full 10 hours! To this day, Vivian sleeps 7-10 hours every night and now has a regular sleep schedule/routine. We owe this accomplishment, in part, to the advice given to us in one of our books called "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Weissbluth (thank you Lisa!) and also due to her genes--Rowleys are good sleepers :)

Her second milestone was achieved on Saturday, August 30, 2008 when Vivian flashed us her first toothless grin. We were so excited to finally see a smile that had not been caused by gas!

Vivian is 1 month old

8/9/08

This month Vivian started holding her head up without help.
She is sleeping between 3 and 5 hours at a time and enjoys
sitting in her "happy chair".

The Arboretum: Our First Family Outing

8/21/08

This was the day that we all went on our first day trip together. We chose the L.A. Arboretum because we enjoy being out in nature and thought that Vivian would like the same. She liked looking at all of the plants and flowers, and especially enjoyed listening to the sound of the waterfalls.
Coincidentally, this was the first night that baby Vivi slept the whole night through! She slept 7 hours straight and since then has been sleeping 7-10 hours every night. Vivian was about 1 1/2 months when she started sleeping through the night; and what a blessing it's been!

Vivian weeks 1-4 (newborn shots)

8/6/08 Week #4

Vivian's got a BIG appetite! In the first couple of weeks she was eating about 2 ounces per sitting, now she has gone up to 4 and 5 ounces. Not to mention that she is eating at least every 2 hours. She has gained about 1 pound.



7/30/08 Week #3

Here she is looking really cute and posing for the camera. She is finally fitting into her onesies (which used to fit her too big!) She likes to have her arms free when she sleeps thus swaddling her has gone out the window. We have achieved success on the latch-on and nursing her has been a dream this past week. Thank goodness mommy (and baby) did not give up!

7/23/08 Week #2

Vivian recognizes mommy's voice and touch according to her grandma Lenore. She likes the dark & light contrast of my hair and skin, and seems to calm down when I pick her up. "Lizard skin" (as I call it) started to appear this week as layers of her dermis have been coming off. Also, she started getting cradle cap this week. This is when little layers of skin start coming off of her scalp; it almost looks like fish scales! She continues to get many visitors and people who meet her say that she is very alert for her age.



7/16/08
Week #1

Vivian is one week old! She loves "tummy time" with daddy and enjoys skin-to-skin with mommy. Breastfeeding has been a challenge as Vivian clamps on really hard so we are seeing a lactation consultant who is helping us to get her to pull out her tongue. In the meantime, I bought a breast pump(to supplement with the nursing) so Ben and I take turns on the feeding and diaper changing; it's a team effort.

7/9/08 Baby Vivian has arrived!

Wednesday, July 9, 2008 6:31 a.m.

After a 45 hour labor and a slew of visitors (mostly from the Rowley tribe), baby Vivian arrived. Wide eyed and inquisitive, she weighed in at 7 pounds .06 ounces and measured 20 inches in length.
Her long and dainty fingers and toes suggest that she will be tall. She has her father's blue eyes and pug nose, and her mother's small ears and rosy lips.
Her name-Vivian-means "full of life".