Slowing Down

Well, things have finally started to slow down for the Triple D's and Double J's. We are getting into our groove and counting down the days until football season.

Julianne is 7 1/2 weeks old and she has started to smile. Sometimes I wonder if it's gas, but nonetheless, it's pretty cute. I have yet to capture a picture because every time I do, she stops. We are also sleeping through the night which is awesome. We're getting between 6 and 7 hours a night. She has definitely taken after me because I LOVE sleep!

One of my coworkers in MD sent us a nice quilt that she made.


We also tried out the bumbo chair this week. She's still small for it, but she likes sitting in and looking at herself in the bathroom mirror.


And I'm throwing these pictures in because they're funny...

1 Month....1 Month Old

Wow, where has the month gone? This week Julianne turned one month old and yesterday she had her second Dr. appointment. At this visit, she weighed 9lbs 1oz and measured 21 inches long. According to the Dr. she is the "gold standard" for babies. This made me very happy and optimistic that we have weeded out the short gene.

We also learned that Jeff and Beth are having a baby girl in December. Beth finally got her girl and Julianne will have a playmate :)

12...12 Days Old & The Lack of Sleep

Doug and I have entered into the land of the sleep deprived. We're trying to get that "sleep while the baby's sleeping" thing down, but sometimes it's hard to do during the day. Doug returned to work for 2 days this week, so I took the night shift. By yesterday I was exhausted so Doug took over last night. I think we're doing a great job splitting up nighttime duties, but it's definitely something different for us.


Not getting up and going to work is also an adjustment for me. I'm definitely enjoying my time away, but on Sunday I felt like I had to get up and go to work the next day...weird.

We've also been trying to get out of the house as much as we can, even if it's just for a drive. We did get to go out to dinner last night while Aunt Jann and Uncle Chris babysat. Miss Julianne had been fussy the ENTIRE day, (it all started with me trying to do a photo shoot with her new bear).

I figured this would probably be the last time they would be babysitting. Nope, she was awake and didn't cry at all for them. It figures!

We went to the doctor this week and everything was normal. She gained 1 oz, so she now weighs 7lbs 10oz and grew 1/4 inch. We go back in 2 weeks and this time she will get a shot, not fun.

Julianne Claire Minchau is here!

After months of waiting, we are happy to announce that Julianne Claire Minchau arrived on July 4th, 2009 at 1:45 AM. She weighed 7lbs. 9oz and was 20 inches long.

On July 3rd at 8:30AM while making the bed my water broke. Surprisingly I did not panic and called my sister, Julie to find out what in the heck to do. I guess I should have paid more attention at birth class. I called my midwife and she wanted us to come to the hospital to get checked out. We left after I took a much needed shower and ate breakfast. We got to the hospital around 9:30AM and they admitted us.

Everything was going pretty smoothly until around 1:00 PM. They gave me an epidural, but for some reason it did not work at all. After an hour of being miserable, they finally found the anesthesiologist to reinsert it. Finally it worked and everything was pretty pain free. My family arrived in the meantime and we watched Michael Jackson tributes because nothing else was on TV. Jann and Chris were on a motorcycle trip, so she continued texting Julie the entire time. When the time finally came to push, my family left and hung out in the waiting room and froze while they tried to get some sleep. Luckily dad had some extra golf clothes in his car that he, Julie and Mom wore to stay warm.



After 2 hours of pushing and not making any progress, my midwife called the Dr. and he arrived 45 minutes later to use the vacuum to get her out. He tells me in the middle of this that if the vacuum didn't work, then I might have to get a C-Section. I thought you have got to be kidding me, after 3 hours of this I'm going to have to get a C-Section. Not good. Finally the vacuum worked and the newest Minchau arrived.





We had a few visitors while we were in the hospital.



On Monday July 6th we were discharged and got to head home and a tropical ensemble purchase by Aunt Doodie...I mean Aunt Julie.



During our first week home we have tried to get outside as much as possible. So far, we have visited Uncle Jeff's and Aunt Jann's offices.





And Miss Julianne loves hanging out her in Boppy.

Ultrasound Today

Today we had the our second ultrasound. We got another confirmation that Ninja is a girl and at 37 weeks and 3 days weighs 6lbs 9oz.

Belly Shots

Most people who know me, know that I have an aversion to "Belly Shots". If other people want to do them that's ok, but I really do not want to flaunt my ever-growing midsection. I am happy that Ninja and I are healthy and growing, but I just don't understand the belly shot. It's not like you can see the little person in there.

So, to appease the masses, here is the closest thing there will be.

Baby Shower in Johnstown

On Sunday, May 17th Sue hosted a baby shower luncheon for us at the Sunnehanna Country Club in Johnstown, PA. Doug, Gary, Jeff, and Dad golfed while Mom, Sue, Beth, and I lunched and opened gifts.





The theme for the day were frogs...








Doug took a break from golfing and visited for awhile.


Mom even broke her shoe. I hope she bought some new ones by now.


Group Shot

More Pics from the BBQ...

Big Belly BBQ

On Saturday, May 9th, Jeff and Beth hosted a "Big Belly BBQ" for us.

About 40 of our friends and family attended the co-ed BBQ celebrating the arrival of Ninja.


Before Saturday, we joked about building an ark because it had rained everyday for a week straight. This was great for the grass we planted in the backyard, but not great for the party. Despite a very green Doppler radar, the weather held and food and drinks were enjoyed by all outside.

Julie even got crafty with her diaper cake for the occasion. She was the stand-in photographer since Danny and Justin did not make the trip up.

More pictures to come soon!