Back due to popular demand, I am re-posting the hilarious sitcom-esque story of Noah's birth. It was a comedy on all fronts and we barely got to the hospital in time!
You can read his very funny birth story here.
And here is my slideshow celebrating Noah's first year!
Untitled from rebecca geller on Vimeo.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Happy 1st Birthday to Noah!
I cannot believe Noah is 1 year old today! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
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| March 26, 2011 |
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| March 25, 2012 |
Here is the slideshow I created about Noah's 1st year! Personally, I can't watch it without crying.
He is an amazing and happy little guy. He loves his big brother Sam SO much -- they wrestle on the floor and Noah is a very resilient and tough boy.
Since he was 12 weeks old, Noah has slept about 11-12 hours/night. He takes a 2 hour nap in the afternoon, which usually coincides with Sam's naptime too (yay). At night/nap time we read several books, sing songs, cuddle, and then put him down in his crib wide awake. He listens to his music, plays in his crib, and falls asleep completely on his own. When he wakes up in the morning, he frequently plays happily in his crib for 30-45 minutes at a time.
He began rolling over at 3 weeks old on a regular basis -- truly a genius baby.
He sat up on his own at 4 months and 1 day. He began babbling around 6-7 months. He began pulling himself up on furniture and cruising at 7 months. Noah started crawling at 9 months. Right now Noah is standing on his own without holding onto anything for about 30 seconds at a time. We expect he will probably start walking any day now.
He began drinking from a sippy cup at 6 months and weaned himself from a bottle at 10 months -- and only drinks from a cup now. I just stopped nursing him and am very proud of reaching my goal of nursing Noah for 1 year!
Noah loves to eat. He began eating baby food around 5 months and started on table food at 9 months. He now truly eats more than Sam. He self-feeds in the high chair and eats pretty much whatever we put in front of him -- brussel sprouts, beans, broccoli, spinach, fish, spicy Indian food, -- you name, it he will eat it. His favorite foods include strawberries, blueberries, meatballs, cheese, bananas, yogurt, hummus (which he loves to smash into his hair), turkey, and bread. Despite the massive amounts of food he eats, he still only weighs 21 pounds which is about 40th percentile in weight charts -- probably because he is VERY active and never sits still!
After a series of ear infections between December and March, his ears are finally doing better and we are postponing the tubes surgery. He began saying "mama" around 8 months and "dada" at 10 months.
He now says the letters a, b, d, e, g, h, i, m, s and the words ba ba, gaga, dada, mama.
Sweet baby sounds like this
He is pointing at things and asking questions in his babble. His favorite sound is talking, singing, and he LOVES to laugh
He now says the letters a, b, d, e, g, h, i, m, s and the words ba ba, gaga, dada, mama.
Sweet baby sounds like this
He is pointing at things and asking questions in his babble. His favorite sound is talking, singing, and he LOVES to laugh
He began waving at 9 months and loves to give "high 5" and stick out his tongue. He has a new game of saying "ha ha" and trying to get someone to repeat it back to him -- he then laughs, and starts the "ha ha" game over and over again -- 50x in a row.
He loves music and has his own "singing voice". Here's a great video of him with Brad at music class at 2 months old
He is also starting to become very curious about the world around him. He loves to splash in the dog's water bowl, the toilet bowl, and thinks that dog food is a delicious snack. He likes to climb into the dishwasher and can climb up steps SO quickly! Our house is once again very child proofed and Noah has already learned the meaning of the word "no."
It has truly been an extraordinary first year for Noah and we are so in love and SO proud of our amazing little boy. I can only imagine what the next year will bring!
Happy birthday my sweet boy, I am so blessed to have you in my life.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Happy 3rd birthday to Sam!
I can't believe that Sam turns 3 today -- how did that happen? It's hard to believe that 3 years ago I was in the hospital giving birth to a premature baby born 2 months early. I was wrought with fear about what kind of disabilities and challenges my child would have due to his premature arrival.
Those fears have long been forgotten and we are incredibly grateful that Sam has blossomed into a smart, sweet, funny, energetic, highly verbal, social butterfly.
I know I'm not exactly objective but Sam is extremely verbal and bright. By 2 years and 2 months, he could recognize all of the letters of the alphabet. By 2 years and 4 months, he knew all of his numbers. By 2 years and 6 months, he knew upper case and lower case letters.
He can count from 1-27 (although he sometimes skips numbers 16 or 21). He can count from 1-10 in Spanish. He knows how to spell his name and is beginning to learn to write the letters of the alphabet. He knows all of his shapes and can draw a perfect triangle, circle, heart, square, and rectangle. We spend a lot of time drawing with crayons and with chalk on the sidewalk.
He loves music and sings all day long. Some of his favorites right now include John Jacob, Old McDonald, Rain Rain Go Away, Wheels on Bus, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Twinkle twinkle.
His imagination is truly developing and it is amazing to watch. We frequently search our house for Swiper the Fox (from Dora) and play pretend games like "selling items in a store" or "chef in a restaurant.
Here are some pictures, videos, and reflections on Sam's life as he turns 3:
Sam is very athletic and loves to swing at the gym
Sharing is a very hard concept, but the boys are teaching each other some important lessons about sharing
There is never a dull moment in our busy, crazy, fun, challenging, sweet, and hilarious life. Sam is a terrific little guy and we are so excited to see what it will be like having a 3 year old in our house. Happy birthday Sam!
Those fears have long been forgotten and we are incredibly grateful that Sam has blossomed into a smart, sweet, funny, energetic, highly verbal, social butterfly.
I know I'm not exactly objective but Sam is extremely verbal and bright. By 2 years and 2 months, he could recognize all of the letters of the alphabet. By 2 years and 4 months, he knew all of his numbers. By 2 years and 6 months, he knew upper case and lower case letters.
He can count from 1-27 (although he sometimes skips numbers 16 or 21). He can count from 1-10 in Spanish. He knows how to spell his name and is beginning to learn to write the letters of the alphabet. He knows all of his shapes and can draw a perfect triangle, circle, heart, square, and rectangle. We spend a lot of time drawing with crayons and with chalk on the sidewalk.
He loves music and sings all day long. Some of his favorites right now include John Jacob, Old McDonald, Rain Rain Go Away, Wheels on Bus, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Twinkle twinkle.
His imagination is truly developing and it is amazing to watch. We frequently search our house for Swiper the Fox (from Dora) and play pretend games like "selling items in a store" or "chef in a restaurant.
Here are some pictures, videos, and reflections on Sam's life as he turns 3:
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| His boots are his favorite shoes and he asks to wear them all of the time - regardless of whether or not it is raining. He manages to find all puddles to jump in and loves throwing rocks into the water. |
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| As seen in this picture, Sam is holding his precious "baby doll" in his arm. Baby doll came to our family in March 2011, when baby Noah was born. Sam calls his baby doll his own "baby noah." Baby doll comes everywhere with us. He puts baby doll down for a nap, baby doll has his own special blanket. Sam pushes baby doll in the doll stroller. He even breastfeeds babydoll and changes his diaper/clothes. Babydoll wears Sam's old premie clothes! Baby doll is a very important part of our house. |
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| He loves wearing his backpack and pretending like he is going to school. We have a terrific creek by our house and we frequently walk there with the dog so the dog can go for a swim and Sam can throw rocks/sticks into the water -- one of his favorite activities. He doesn't understand why we won't let him go swimming (when it is 40 degrees). |
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| Mr. Cool loves the beach and playing with the sand. He also enjoys dressing up like the adults, wearing my sunglasses and my dad's watch. |
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| We have transitioned Sam from a crib to a toddler bed. He never tried to escape but he was becoming too big for the pack n play so we needed to adjust him to a toddler bed. The transition has been amazingly easy. He regularly says "i'm ready for naptime, i'm going to go upstairs and put myself down for a nap" -- and he does exactly that! If only potty training were this simple. |
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| He is quite a social butterfly and has a lot of friends. We go to about 20-30 birthday parties/year! This was his first game of "pin the tail on the donkey" |
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| He has learned to dress himself and regularly picks out his own outfits and puts on his clothes. This frequently results in some very odd outfits, shirts on backwards, and shoes (boots) on the wrong feet (as seen in this picture). But we like to encourage his independence. |
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| He LOVES playing with cards and trucks - and making up games to play -- as seen here with Uncle D. |
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| It is truly amazing to see him mimic our actions. Here he is dressed in his bathrobe and slippers drinking his coffee on Sunday morning -- just like daddy. |
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| Cooking is one of his favorite activities. He has a chef's hat and loves to help in the kitchen. Sometimes his "help" is actually not so helpful but we try to make family meals together. |
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| He loves to line things up in a row and get them in order. Not sure where he got this from since we're not exactly the most "orderly" of people! |
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| Arts & Crafts projects are favorite activities |
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| Sam is an amazing big brother (when he's not using Noah's head as a drum) and the boys play together beautifully, especially when they are happily digging in the sand. |
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| Although Sam has a clean bill of health, we go to the doctor more often than we would like due to past respiratory challenges (and another hospitalization in August 2011 -- we were there during the east coast earthquake). Sam has become a terrific patient and likes to play doctor with buddy Quinn. |
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| He has such joy in his life and gets excited by almost everything -- here he is overjoyed by the Valentine's Day card from Mimi & Pa. |
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| Yes, they are pretty darn cute in matching new year's outfits from Mimi & Pa |
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| Sam's mischevious side pops its lovely head from time to time -- like when he gets into mommy's makeup. |
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| He has a sweet tooth, especially for chocolate -- so proud to teach him how to eat Oreos! |
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| Both boys are quite musical and love singing, dancing, and making music. |
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| Playdoh fun with Mimi building a helicopter |
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| We spend a LOT of time outside when it is above 40 degrees - the boys are so funny on the playground and beginning to truly play together. |
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| We read 5-10 books every day and the boys frequently enjoy reading books by themselves too. This is part of our nightly routine when we read books, sing our prayers, and each say something we are thankful for. |
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| He LOVES his train table -- basically he loves anything with a wheel: car, truck, train, plane, bus, etc |
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| Last year we installed a fabulous swingset and treehouse for the boys. We love having picnics and playing in the backyard - Sam calls it his "castle". |
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| Mr Cool in his sunglasses, boots (even though it's not raining) and favorite wagon (which is the wagon I used when I was a kid!). We also love to sing songs and try to record videos as much as possible |
Sam is very athletic and loves to swing at the gym
Sharing is a very hard concept, but the boys are teaching each other some important lessons about sharing
There is never a dull moment in our busy, crazy, fun, challenging, sweet, and hilarious life. Sam is a terrific little guy and we are so excited to see what it will be like having a 3 year old in our house. Happy birthday Sam!
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Remembering March 21, 2009 -- one of the scariest days of my life
Every year when I wake up on March 21, I say a prayer and remember back to March 21, 2009 -- one of the scariest days of my life that truly ended in a miracle for my family.
It should have been a calm, lazy day -- I was 7 months pregnant with my first child. My best friends were planning a baby shower for me the following day. I had seen my obstetrician 4 days earlier and things were going beautifully - the baby was developing normally, I was healthy, and everything was great.
March 21, 2009 should have been a normal day during a very normal pregnancy, but it turned into a terrifying day that ended with me in pre-term labor at only 7 months pregnant. March 21 began a three day marathon of trying to stave off pre-term labor and ended with me having a very tiny, premature baby born 2 months early.
Here is a blog post that I wrote on March 21, 2010 to tell the emotional birth story surrounding the premature birth of Samuel Dame Geller-Cheney.
http://rebeccageller.blogspot.com/2010/03/reflecting-back-on-sams-first-birthday.html
Although March 21 is always a tough day for me -- I just have to take one look at my amazing almost 3 year old and know that he is truly a miracle. People are stunned to learn that Sam was born 2 months early.
He now speaks at a kindergarten level. He is a social butterfly with many many friends. He is an amazing big brother. He understands EVERYTHING. He is creative, loves to read, musical, determined, stubborn, funny, sweet, outdoorsy, and an overall exceptional little boy. He is very tall, skinny, with endless energy -- and is healthy!
As always, I have to thank the amazing doctors and nurses at Sibley hospital who are truly miracle workers. You will always hold a special place in our hearts.
It should have been a calm, lazy day -- I was 7 months pregnant with my first child. My best friends were planning a baby shower for me the following day. I had seen my obstetrician 4 days earlier and things were going beautifully - the baby was developing normally, I was healthy, and everything was great.
March 21, 2009 should have been a normal day during a very normal pregnancy, but it turned into a terrifying day that ended with me in pre-term labor at only 7 months pregnant. March 21 began a three day marathon of trying to stave off pre-term labor and ended with me having a very tiny, premature baby born 2 months early.
Here is a blog post that I wrote on March 21, 2010 to tell the emotional birth story surrounding the premature birth of Samuel Dame Geller-Cheney.
http://rebeccageller.blogspot.com/2010/03/reflecting-back-on-sams-first-birthday.html
Although March 21 is always a tough day for me -- I just have to take one look at my amazing almost 3 year old and know that he is truly a miracle. People are stunned to learn that Sam was born 2 months early.
He now speaks at a kindergarten level. He is a social butterfly with many many friends. He is an amazing big brother. He understands EVERYTHING. He is creative, loves to read, musical, determined, stubborn, funny, sweet, outdoorsy, and an overall exceptional little boy. He is very tall, skinny, with endless energy -- and is healthy!
As always, I have to thank the amazing doctors and nurses at Sibley hospital who are truly miracle workers. You will always hold a special place in our hearts.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Top 10 things I learned over President's Day Weekend
10. Potty training is my least favorite parenting job. After 3 very frustrating days, I officially hate it.
9. Noah has discovered eating dog food and thinks it is delicious. Awesome.
8. Noah has also discovered that splashing in the dog's water bowl is "fun."
7. I really hate de-cluttering and organizing closets, basement, junk drawers, etc. I have many strengths in life, but cleaning and organizing is NOT one of them.
6. My almost 11 month old baby Noah has learned to climb the steps and climbed all 25 steps in one shot. I fear that he is not really a baby any more but quickly becoming a toddler. Yikes!
5. Did I mention how much I despise potty training?
4. Mother Nature is teasing us with the dusting of snow this weekend and my kids aren't going to be able to actually play in snow at all this year!
3. Waking Sam up to watch the snow fall and come outside to let the snow fall on his head was one of the best mommy decisions I have made in a while. The snow began about 5 minutes after I put him to bed, so I woke him up so we could enjoy the snow together.
2. Potty training really sucks. Being an adult is hard sometimes.
1. We are in desperate need of a vacation. Good thing we have one coming up WITHOUT THE KIDS! It will be my first time away from Noah overnight. I.AM.READY.
In addition to the frustrations of cleaning and potty training, we did have some sweet times at home with the boys. It's not often that we basically stay home for 3 days in a row! Here are some videos of Noah learning to conquer the steps and the boys being silly.
HAPPY PRESIDENT'S DAY!
9. Noah has discovered eating dog food and thinks it is delicious. Awesome.
8. Noah has also discovered that splashing in the dog's water bowl is "fun."
7. I really hate de-cluttering and organizing closets, basement, junk drawers, etc. I have many strengths in life, but cleaning and organizing is NOT one of them.
6. My almost 11 month old baby Noah has learned to climb the steps and climbed all 25 steps in one shot. I fear that he is not really a baby any more but quickly becoming a toddler. Yikes!
5. Did I mention how much I despise potty training?
4. Mother Nature is teasing us with the dusting of snow this weekend and my kids aren't going to be able to actually play in snow at all this year!
3. Waking Sam up to watch the snow fall and come outside to let the snow fall on his head was one of the best mommy decisions I have made in a while. The snow began about 5 minutes after I put him to bed, so I woke him up so we could enjoy the snow together.
2. Potty training really sucks. Being an adult is hard sometimes.
1. We are in desperate need of a vacation. Good thing we have one coming up WITHOUT THE KIDS! It will be my first time away from Noah overnight. I.AM.READY.
In addition to the frustrations of cleaning and potty training, we did have some sweet times at home with the boys. It's not often that we basically stay home for 3 days in a row! Here are some videos of Noah learning to conquer the steps and the boys being silly.
HAPPY PRESIDENT'S DAY!
Monday, January 02, 2012
2011 Memories: Video Slideshow of Geller-Cheney Family
Happy New Year! We hope that you enjoy this video slideshow that chronicles the many adventures of our family during 2011.
You can watch the video HERE (dare you not to cry!)
You can watch the video HERE (dare you not to cry!)
Overview of 2011
2011 has been another wonderful year in the Geller-Cheney home. On March 26, 2011, we welcomed Noah Daniel Geller-Cheney into our family. Over the past 9 months, we have fallen in love with Noah's sunny disposition, full belly laughs, adventurous nature, easygoing personality, and affinity for cuddling. Noah adores his big brother Sam, despite Sam's sometimes not-so gentle hugs. The boys frequently read books together, sing songs, attempt to share toys, and take turns waking us up early in the morning.
Sam has adjusted quite well to his role as big brother and is a wonderful helper, when he is not getting into mischief. Sam will turn 3 in March and is full of personality. He speaks in full sentences and is quite the social butterfly. He loves his music class, swimming in the pool, cooking in his toy kitchen, dancing, riding his tricycle, painting on his easel, playing on our new swingset, jumping in puddles, and loves any toy that has a wheel (trucks, cars, buses, trains, etc). Both Sam and Noah thoroughly enjoy harassing our wonderful dog Lucy, who is in denial that we have brought another child into our home, which is now completely full of toys!
With two young children, our travels have slowed significantly. However, we have enjoyed trips this year to Kiawah Island, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Boston, Nashville, Chicago, and Lake Tahoe. Brad continues to enjoy his job as the Director of Legislative Affairs at the Mortgage Bankers Association. Rebecca has left her law firm and launched her own consulting company to help small businesses develop (please visit her website www.silverbrooksolutions.com to learn more about her new business venture). Between work, kids, and volunteering in the community, we lead a happy and busy life!
We hope that you have a happy new year!
Sunday, January 01, 2012
Hanukkah 2011
We had a wonderful time celebrating the 8 nights of Hanukkah with our families and friends. Between the many holiday parties and gatherings, it was a busy week! The boys had a great time lighting the menorah, making Hanukkah cookies, playing dreidle, and of course - receiving presents (although we worked hard on buying very few gifts this year).
This year Sam learned to open the chocolate gelt (gold coins) before eating the chocolate inside. Last year he was a bit over-eager and ate the gold foil too. Sam learned most of the words to the Hanukkah prayers and enjoyed the rituals associated with the holiday -- and the train table too.
Hope that you all had a wonderful Hanukkah too!
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| Mixing the cookie dough with Pa & Mimi |
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| Rolling out the dough with Mimi |
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| Noah wanted to join the fun with Sam & Mimi! |
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| First Hanukkah as a Family of 4! |
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| Noah loves pulling Uncle D's hair during our Hanukkah celebration |
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| Uncle D gave Noah a fun new stuffed animal! |
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| Jenn helping Sam unwrap gifts - check out the awesome new Hanukkah wall-hanger to help us count the days of Hanukkah! |
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| Noah likes his new Jack In The Box, but he prefers to play with the tissue paper more |
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| Sam said WOW!!! Train table from Mimi & Pa! |
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| Sam made a special hat for Mimi at the synagogue Hanukkah party |
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| Pa gave Noah his first bite of latkes |
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| Silly Rabbi!!! |
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| Moon bounce ended = Sam jumps on Pa! |
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| Singing songs and stories with Rabbi Aft |
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| Enjoying his new train table |
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| Noah's first night of his first Hanukkah! |
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| Second night of Hanukkah at the Papkins' Hanukkah party - Sam Geller-Cheney helping Sam Papkin light the menorah |
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| Lighting the 3rd night with Pa |
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| More fun with Uncle D |
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| Fourth night with buddies Brooke & Brayden. It is dreidle time! |
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| Geller-Cheney family photo! |
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| 6th night of Hanukkah in Boston with the Dame-Cheney families |
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| Noah with Aunt Suriyah |
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| 7th night of Hanukkah |
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| Brad lighting the candles with Sam in Boston - last night of Hanukkah |
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| Sam's homemade menorah = delicious! |
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| Sam LOVES the train menorah that Mimi & Pa bought for him in Israel |
Hope that you all had a wonderful Hanukkah too!
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