Archive for the ‘Patter’ Category

Nearly 3 months old and life is tough!!

Posted on March 2, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Natalie looking a little sad. Hard to imagine why.. tough life, lots of responsibilities.

Getting her workout with her baby gym. Again, tough life.

Natalie’s first visit to the Long Beach Aquarium

Posted on March 2, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Natalie checks out the fish at the Long Beach Aquarium, from within the comfortable confines and perspective of a BABYBJÖRN. At almost 3 months old, she was completely awake throughout the tour and fixated on the fish. We highly recommend fish as a way to stimulate a baby’s eyes and brain. The fishes bright colors and movement within the bubbling water, combined to create a calm yet vibrant visual experience.  Also, the aquarium is a social setting packed with activity, chatter and excitement. We also suggest getting the annual pass for $80 — you’ll definitely want to make many return trips throughout the year. Check their site out here, and watch the videos below:

Sneezes, Coo’s and Smiles

Posted on February 21, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Natalie has finally started smiling more and frowning less. The smiling actually started around 6 weeks, but this was the first time we caught it on “film” (at around 9 weeks). She’s also trying to talk — not quite sure what she’s attempting to say, but it’s expression never-the-less. Finally something for US to smile about, after we’ve been dragged down colic street.

Natalie meets Eva

Posted on February 13, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Julie’s 4 year old Eva meets 7 week old Natalie. Already practicing to be a mom? I’m sure it will only be a matter of a couple years before the two will be hanging out together.

Rub-a-dub-dub, one baby in a tub

Posted on February 3, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

A 7 week old Natalie enjoying a nice warm bath before bed.  Something we’ve definitely noticed is how she opens her mouth when enjoying something.  Also, take a look at the amusing video below.

 

Natalie’s welcome home party

Posted on January 24, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Denise’s side of the family came over to our house to welcome 6 week old Natalie into the world. A kind of “post-birth” baby shower.

Grandma holding Natalie

Dad (me)  holding Natalie

Michael holding Natalie – getting a rude awakening from her colicky screams. You would never guess from this photo though.

Frowning as usual.

Frowning has now become darn right belligerent. Notice her Kung Fu fighting stance.

Michael joes Joesph something. Not sure Joseph is very interested though.

And who could forget Max. The furry baby and big brother.

Natalie in her Rainforest Swing

Posted on January 22, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

At 6 weeks old, Natalie is really starting to focus and track moving objects now. Here she’s in her Rainforest Swing checking out the rotating toucan, monkey etc above her. Also a great way to calm the dreaded colic.

6 weeks old and focusing

Posted on January 22, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Natalie is really starting to track and focus on things with her eyes. Whether it’s her toys, Manchester United on the telly, or the mysterious green stuff in the garden… her eyes are now working overtime!

Below, she focuses on catching up on some sleep.

Nearly a month old!

Posted on January 2, 2010 - by Bradley Hebdon

Here Natalie is nearly a month old – trying out Grandma’s homemade shawl and hat.  She’s really enjoying looking out the windows now, and her eyes are getting bigger and brighter by the day.

Max is never far away from Natalie.

Natalie’s First Christmas (2009)

Posted on December 28, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Here are some of the latest photos, taken over the last couple of weeks around Christmas.

Here she is in her “My first Christmas” outfit. Thanks Dawn! Here, she’s nearly 3 weeks old. 

 Mom, Natalie and Max (the furry baby) relaxing in luxury

Here, she’s about 2 weeks old

Happy Holidays everyone! (Christmas 2009)

Natalie 1 week old!

Posted on December 15, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Here Natalie is already over a week old! Finger nails have been cut, hair has grown and her face is turning pinker. Notice her hands raised as she sleeps – her signature sleeping style. Thanks to Grandma for the warm and cosy jacket.

Eyes wide open (4 Days Old)

Posted on December 11, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

At 4 days old, Natalie is really starting to open her eyes and inspect her surroundings. Things that she finds fascinating are: the Christmas tree, ceiling fans and the golf course. In the photo below, she’s wearing Grandmother’s newly knitted jacket, and a double chin.

Below, she’s “zonked” out in her Rainforest Swing. She absolutely loves the rocking motion and the jungle sounds.

Home, at last! (2 Days Old)

Posted on December 9, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

After a couple of days in the hospital, Natalie is allowed to come home where she is met by a curious Coco and jealous Max. To be fair, Max has already adjusted after only a few hours.  Notice her incredibly long fingers.. destined to be a pianist like her mom?

Natalie, meet your grandmothers (1 Day Old)

Posted on December 9, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

One day after Natalie’s birth, she meets her Grandmothers in the hospital. Bundled, sleepy and full of hair.

Facing the world, Testing Her Expressions

Posted on December 9, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Natalie trying out her facial expressions, albeit a little red in the face.

Mom and Baby Bond (1 Day old)

Posted on December 9, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Still in the hospital, Mom and baby bond 1 day after birth. Yes, that’s a full head of hair!

Our baby girl is born

Posted on December 8, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

We’re delighted to announce the birth of our beautiful baby girl, Natalie Claire Hebdon. She made her entrance into a stormy, rainy world on Monday December 7, at 8:40 am – that’s nearly 3 weeks earlier than her December 25 ETA.  Albeit a tad early, she still weighed in at a healthy 7 lbs, 10 ounces. 

Labor started on Sunday night at 11 pm, literally seconds after Denise had finished packing her bag for the hospital stay. It turned out to be a swift and smooth 8 hour event, but I’m glad it occurred over a weekend so I didn’t have to race down the 405 from work, when the time came.

A Baby Shower, Moroccan style

Posted on November 15, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Thanks to Jericoh, Marianne and Dawn for throwing the most amazing baby shower. It was hosted in Jericho’s Moroccan beautiful home, on the Naples canals.

 

 

 

27 Weeks Pregnant: A Photo Gallery

Posted on October 11, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Here are some photos of Denise at 27 weeks pregnant.

Baby Dancing to Beyonce

Posted on September 27, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

At first glance I thought this was fake. Are all babies born with the ability to dance?

Winners Announced for Sandra Magsamen’s Baby Book Giveaway!

Posted on September 22, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Congratulations to:
- Chris Skeene and his son Ezekile
- Marlene Pyle and her nephew Gavin

26 Weeks Pregnant and Emotional!

Posted on September 21, 2009 - by Denise Hebdon

I am just over 26 weeks pregnant now, 14 more weeks to go and I can’t wait!  I think all these hormones are hitting me, and they make me very emotional. Sometimes I am so happy and excited that I feel like crying and can’t wait to meet our baby. While other times, the idea of giving birth really scares me. I already feel huge, but I know my belly is going to get a lot larger.

It’s been a pretty miraculous experience as I feel my baby changing and kicking. I feel like I’m growing a new organ that has its own function and rhythm. One with its own heartbeat and spontaneous urge to move itself around.

I’m feeling great, other than consistantly having to go to the bathroom. That sort of drives me crazy! I try to take a 30 minute walk every day, and also make sure I’m getting enough to eat. Luckily, I’m falling asleep every easily.

I’m getting so much support and love from my family, friends and sweet husband. I feel so blessed, and that love makes me want to cry again! The baby has already brought so much happiness and love, even when she is still in my tummy!

Denise’s Baby Bump at 25 weeks

Posted on September 14, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Here’s Denise at 25 weeks. As you can see her baby bump has grown, and so has the frequency and force of baby’s kicks!

 

Baby is about about a pound and a half in weight now and is about 13 1/2 inches long.  Her hands are now fully developed and she spends most of her awake time groping around in the darkness and throwing the odd punch. Brain and nerve endings are developed enough now so that she can feel the sensation of touch. 

Baby’s nostrils, which have been plugged up until now, are cleared out and she is practicing breathing through her nose.

I finally feel baby move at 22 weeks!

Posted on August 24, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

It’s official. With my hand on Denise’s round tummy, I felt the baby move at 22 weeks. A pretty amazing experience which is hard to describe. After reading through a few blogs, it seems many dads-to-be are actually pretty freaked out by the experience and find it too unusual or weird.  I’ve also read that some dads ”communicate” with their baby via tapping on mom’s stomach, and being replied to by a swift punch. Not sure how mother’s feel about this game.

By the way, I wonder how “Octomom” felt with 8 babies all doing their Kung-Fu routines inside her?

What are your top 5 baby necessities?

Posted on August 22, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

We registered at Babies R Us today, an overwhelming task that is by no means complete.

The realization of having a baby really starts to sink in when you stare at 15 strollers blankly, with no clue which to pick.  I mean, do you really need a stroller? We’ve managed for thousands of years without them. That’s pretty much my thought process when I look at every item on the shelf. 

Any advice out there on what you would consider to be your top 5 baby necessities? And if it’s more than 5, then so be it.

Baby now at 22 weeks!

Posted on August 22, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Baby’s now nearly a pound and 11 inches from head to heel. She’s definitely stronger with more frequent and stronger punches, kicks and headbutts. In fact, her hands have grown bigger and stronger and she can now feel and touch with newly developed nerve endings in her fingers. Apparently she’ll try them out by touching her face and yank the umbilical cord — probably for more food, I’m sure. And by the way, she can also taste the amniotic fluid. Yes, she’s test-driving her new taste buds. She’s also sporting a short hair-do. White, I’m told. But this obviously changes over time once pigment appears.

Baby now at 20 weeks

Posted on August 7, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

At 20 weeks today, we’re half way there.  Although we’re told that the real growth starts now with the baby packing on the pounds.

The baby now weighs about 10 1/2 ounces and she’s around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana and the weight of a cantaloupe.

She can hear sounds now, and covers her ears with her hands if a loud sound is made. She’s also moving a lot — twisting, turning, punching, and kicking. This feels like butterflies or stomach rumblings. She’s been pretty active in that department, which we’re told is a good sign. Apparently it means she’s getting lots of oxygen.

She is starting to grow hair on her head and a waxy skin covering is forming to protect her skin from the amnotic fluid. Her eyebrows are forming, and nail growth has started.  Amazingly, her uterus is fully formed and her vaginal canal is starting its development. She also has primitive eggs in her tiny little ovaries, seven million of them — though by the time she’s born, that number will be down to two million. And interestingly, she’ll be born with all the eggs she’ll ever have.

Naming a Baby Girl

Posted on August 5, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

Since we’ve found out we’re having a baby girl, we can now focus finding that perfect baby girl name.  It’s an incredibly overwhelming task, and the easiest way to approach this might be via the process of elimination.  For starters, we’re not interested in names that: are too common or too uncommon, have funky spelling, come from the Victorian era, contain negative connotations thanks to nutcase celebrates or other people we’ve met, hard to say or remember, are akin to fruit, and come from New Guinea.

After browsing around on the web, these are the Top 10 Girl Names for 2008:

1. Emma
2. Isabella
3. Emily
4. Madison
5. Ava
6. Olivia
7. Sophia
8. Abigail
9. Elizabeth
10. Chloë

View all 1000 >

We’d love to hear what names you like.

Memories from within the womb

Posted on August 5, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

During pregnancy, parents often attempt to communicate with the baby as it develops within the womb. They might play Mozart  to raise their baby’s IQ;  or talk to the baby in the hope that he might recognize their voices once born; or dad might poke mom’s belly in hope of a reciprical baby kick and also shine a flashlight to brighten their dark little cave.

 
While this might sound like fun and games, there’s a lot of research being done that has uncovered remarkable evidence of how babies respond to outside stimulation.

Audio Stimulation

The baby can in fact hear from within the womb and many studies now confirm that voices can be heard. A mother’s voice is particularly powerful because it is transmitted to the womb through her own body reaching the baby in a more audible form than the outside sounds.

Music is another source of stimulation and in one study, “Brahm’s Lullabye” was played throughout the day in a premature baby nursery. It was documented that the music produced faster weight gain than the effect of voice sounds. The baby’s heart rate can also be altered by sounds. In fact, only a 5 second stimulus of sound can change the heart rate and cause the baby to move around for up to an hour.

Visual Stimulation

Despite the baby’s eyelids remaining closed until the 26th week, they are sensitive to projections of light on the belly and respond with an accelerated heart rate.  It has also been observed that they can detect the location of needles entering the womb, even with their eyelids still fused. Despite their closed eyes, it’s assumed that they have some aspect of vision, but it’s not understood how. Babies have been observed either shrinking away from the needle, or attacking it with a fist. And when twins are in the womb together, they will often locate each other, touch faces and hold hands.

Dreaming

As early as 23 weeks, babies are starting to dream with rapid eye movement and they display facial expressions that can range from pleasant to unpleasant depending on the dream.  It’s also important to note that dreams are neither reactive or evoked which means that the baby has inner mental or emotional experiences. 

Other Stimulation

Believe it or not, ultrasounds have recorded erections as early as 16 weeks, which are often partnered with finger sucking. This suggests that pleasurable self-stimulation is already possible.  And in the third trimester, when the parents are engaged in intercourse, the baby’s heart rate fluctuates wildly and is directly associated with paternal and maternal orgasms!

Remembering Experiences

Now, it’s doubtful you remember anything from your days within the womb. But a new study suggests that a short-term memory could be present for fetuses at 30 weeks of age. This study tested how fetuses in nearly 100 pregnant women responded to a very low vibrating sound. The researchers then observed the reactions using an ultrasound. The fetus was startled when it first heard/felt the sound, but after repeating this stimulation it got used to the sound, and no longer reacted to it.

This lessened response to a repeated stimulus is called habituation, a process that both humans and animals are known to experience. For example, you might become habituated to the sound of your grandfather clock ticking. Hearing it at first, but growing used to the noise after a while and falling asleep. Habituation is a form of learning and memory.

The researchers also discovered that if they played the sound to the same fetus 4 weeks later, it stopped reacting to the sounds after only a few attempts. Whereas the fetus that had not been exposed to the stimulation 4 weeks earlier, took much longer to ignore it. This test illustrated that a 30 day short-term memory was in place.

It still hasn’t been proven that the baby can remember all the stimulation it receives, but it should make you think twice about the environment outside the womb, and how it can effect the baby within.

Finally we know the baby’s sex!

Posted on August 3, 2009 - by Bradley Hebdon

We’ve been waiting for this day for what seems like ages now.  In fact, it’s been 19 weeks, 3 days, 3 ultra sounds, and dozens of guesses that have separated the day we first knew we were expecting, and today’s milestone.  

For this third ultrasound, the doctor examined the brain, heart, organs and the rest of the anatomy; and without hesitation, informed us we’ll be having a baby girl! And if things are as they appear, a healthy baby girl. We honestly didn’t have one preference over another, only that he or she would be healthy.

So now what? Well now we can focus our planning towards decorating the nursery appropriately, return the generously donated boy’s clothing, and brainstorm girlie names!  Knowing the baby’s sex now, seems to make all the sense in the world to us.