Get Your "Freshly Squeezed" Here

Did you know that selling and buying breast milk is big business? If the postings on various websites are true, there are some very desperate nursing mothers out there wanting to do whatever they can to ensure optimal nutrition for their babies. There are also other nursing mothers who claim that they are overproducing, have storage issues, and are willing to provide "free shipping", in some cases, if purchased from them. There are volume discounts, professional deep-freeze, next day FedEx delivery networks, and other facets of a burgeoning commercial trading market. They offer dietary diaries of what they've eaten before the "expressing" of milk as well as doctor-vouched medical records of good health and smoke/alcohol/drug-free state of being. Capitalism abounds!

Well, as for us, Lorraine is producing enough milk to rival a Wisconsin dairy farm and as we nurse and pump, we seem to be building quite a stock of our own. As frozen bags of breast milk take up increasingly more space in our freezer, the likelihood of me buying any more future frozen pizzas diminishes. Strangely, the thought of selling my wife's breast milk to strangers makes me feel like a organ broker - "yeah, I've got some of 'Mom's Juice' to sell. I'll even throw in a kidney if the price is right...". OK, perhaps I'm being a bit too sensitive but who knows what could happen? Maybe our diaper costs will get so high, I'll need to subsidize it somehow. Hmm. Gotta go now - I think I'll go consume the last of the frozen pizzas and check on the breast pump machine for increased production potential. Ya never know...

And yes, for the many of you who keep asking for more pictures...

BIG YAWN - 12/25: Just one of her moves in her complex wake-up routine; usually preceded by her stretching manoeuvres (see video from 12/19 entry below)...



FIRST CHRISTMAS - 12/24: Lauren slept through almost all of it despite receiving the most presents...



SHE'S GOT MAD SKILLZ! - 12/23: She usually gets one bottle a day, and usually tries, unsuccessfully, to hold the bottle with her hands; she got it this time (with no help from daddy, I swear)...



MY GIRLS - 12/22: Lorraine has been "glued" to this chair for feedings (see the "BOPPY" around her waist)...



WITH DADDY - 12/17: My little girl...



WITH MOMMY - 12/13: These stares we get back from her are just wonderful...



GETTING READY TO LEAVE THE HOSPITAL - 12/12: Hoag Hospital requires the baby to leave in mom's arms...



GOING HOME IN FIRST CAR RIDE - 12/12: I believe I may have driven home under the speed limit in the slow lane...

Lauren's First Christmas

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone. We had a family celebration last night with gift exchange and dinner on Christmas Eve. Given that we had both sets of grandparents, my brother, sister, and their significant others together here in California, and that this would be the first Christmas for all of us with Lauren, you can only image that only a "couple" of gifts would be exchanged...







Our dinner was a nice Korean-American fusion - honey-baked ham plus fixin's Ohio-style and Korean "kalbi" (BBQ ribs) and "jahp chae" brought down from L.A. There's something to be said about having a "Christmas BBQ" in California in 70 degree weather. It was quite the spread and fantastic company...





Among great family, friends, and fab food, Lauren, of course, was the constant center of attention (how could she not be?)...

Photo Shoots, Bloomies, and a Cheesecake Pose

Today was a very exciting day in the House of Lee. First of all, we had several house calls from visitors, to drop by for hellos and hold her for photo ops. Leading off, our friend from Orange, Sueann, who arrived with a cinnamon creme cake, her own make-up and wardrobe assistant, and an invitation for Lorraine to go out to lunch afterwards...



With my wife off with Sueann, that left me with Lauren for a few hours. So what did we do? We ventured over to Fashion Island (a pretentious local shopping extravaganza that I lovingly like to call "Fascist Island") to finish my Christmas shopping together. And then we hit Bloomingdale's. Man, I have to say, I must have been stopped about 15 times by female strangers who went goo-goo over her. I had no idea that a cute baby had such social stopping power! After a few minutes of me crashing into some Christmas product displays (still getting used to the stroller - I imagine this is what it's like to navigate a Hummer through a supermarket parking lot), we strolled around and I purchased a few more items for Lorraine. Only after I made my purchases did I realize that I may have subjected my little girl to her first taste of the retail infliction, "affluenza". I hope that this doesn't mean she'll be jonesing for some shopping at too early an age. Oh well, let's just put down to O.C. conditioning. Perhaps this will qualify her to be on a future series of MTV's Laguna Beach. Just kidding. Seriously.

After mommy came back from her well-deserved break with Sueann (lunch by the ocean, apparently), Lauren's proud uncle, Johnny (my bro) and his girlfriend, Dawn, both rolled up to our door with their own photographer to shoot a few frames while visiting from San Francisco for the holidays...





Finally, I have my first "Oh Dad!" picture (one that I'll be sure to whip out to others to embarrass her when she's older). This "cheesecake" picture was originally for Sarah (from Charlotte), who gave Lauren a set of these socks as a gift. Lorraine took this picture with the intentions of sending it to her as a thank you message. Instead, Lauren now has her Aunt Sarah to thank for the opportunity to capture this first of many embarrassing lasting images for all to enjoy now and later. Strike a pose!



Lastly, I know that many of you are awaiting an entry from the mommy herself. She's asked me to let you all know that she'll be on the wire soon when she can find 2 1/2 minutes between nursing sessions, breast milk pumping, and her every other day showers. Hey, I'm just the warm-up guy. Bye for now...

Eat, Sleep, Poop, and "Pee" Merry

Today, Lauren is 10 days old and currently passes her time in series of perpetual 3-hour lives. She eats, sleeps, poops, and pees every 3-hours. Our favorite is when she needs to be awakened for her feeding. She always gives quite a production when coming out of her deep slumber (mind the karate kicks - you can't get too close)...


When trying to monitor Lauren's sleeping along side the feeding, pooping, and peeing, we have to record it in our "Tot Jot" to keep it all straight - click on the image below to check out the meticulously kept data. (Thanks, Sueann, for the book!)...



(I scanned the page from yesterday's log - the pee, butt cream, and poop stains that are on the page didn't quite show up on it but trust me, they're there). I often look back on a completed sheet and am left bewildered as to how much attention this one little being commands.

Nevertheless, her arrival has enlightened our home and I wouldn't trade it for anything else. Who would've thought bodily functions were so endearing?

Answers to some FAQs so far:

- The color of Lauren's eyes are blue and her hair brown
- She has 10 fingers and 10 toes
- She's very mild-mannered and silently torments us with her cuteness
- Lorraine and Lauren are perfect together...

Lauren 6 Hours Old

After delivery, we were given our "bonding time" together in our room. Here are mommy and Lauren's first moments together.

003 and a 1/2 (Licenced to Poop)

As of this morning, Lauren has been with us for 3 1/2 days. We arrived home from the hospital on Tue afternoon and it's been one adventure after another. Since we left the secure confines of the hospital, we've wandered through the past 2 days and nights trying to get our bearings and figure out how and when to use everything that we bought or was given to us. I mean I feel like I'm James Bond in those scenes where he walks through the "research" area with Q, the head inventor/scientist. "Now James, here's what looks like an ordinary fountain pen but when you push this button, it shoots out poisonous darts." "And over here we have what seems like an everyday 'learning gym' for new babies with innocuous rattling things hanging from its rafters - but if you assemble it using these 59 additional steps, it has IQ boosting powers to create intellectually gifted infant leaders to help spread democracy and take over the world." "And James, do behave and not touch these other gadgets for you will only misuse them I'm sure"... OK, you get the picture. So far, I've set up and activated a "spy cam" (baby video monitor), an ejection seat (baby rocker), an escape pod (car seat), among other neat contraptions.

The new Lee Family Three left the house for the first time today as a unit. Lauren was strapped into her rocket pack (actually, it's the car seat, which took a frustratingly unnecessary amount of time figuring out how to get it in and out of the base - actually, I really don't want to talk more about it), Lorraine made sure we brought all of our secret information (baby file), and I had brought my multiple-use utility pack (the Diaper Dude diaper bag). Our mission: to successfully meet and exchange valuable information with our official contact, codename The Baby Doctor, without any altercations (safely navigate the labyrinth of roads while avoiding crazy Californian drivers), avoid any enemy contact (the Evil Poops), and with strict noise discipline (no wailing to give away our staged casualness). Well, one out of three wasn't bad - we drove to our location safely. Lauren, however, showed off her lung capacity by wailing up the place at the pediatrician's office (I heard that a few 3-5 year olds ran out of the building covering their ears) and had two encounters with the Poops (one on the examining table and one in the car after our appointment). Thank goodness for the utility pack that had everything to address the situation then and there in the parking lot. Batman and GI Joe would be proud. Seriously, this has been one great adventure so far - the most wonderful experience I've ever had (well, we would like a few more winks of sleep and better waste management skills). Otherwise, it's all good.

I've heard you all loud and clear - here are some more pictures:

PROUD GRANDPARENTS AND AUNT (Watch this space for Uncles and Cousins soon)








LAUREN WORKING OUT AT THE GYM





MOMMY AND BABY ON DAY 3

Introducing Baby Lauren

Lauren entered into our lives last night, Sunday, December 10th at 7.09pm, weighing in at 7 lbs, 3 oz, and stretching out to a "long 19 inches". Lorraine and Lauren are doing well and send their hellos. Thanks to many of you who have called and left kind words for the three of us. We have one more night at the hospital tonight and will be back home on Tue afternoon so we'll be getting back to you all later this week. Due to the many requests over the past 24 hours, however, I am pleased to take a couple of minutes to upload pictures (I will provide the accommpanying commentary later). Besides, I just came home for a few minutes to pick up some items and really must get back to my new family. "New family" - sounds wonderful...

PRIMED AND READY (DREAMING ABOUT THE EPIDURAL)


ROOM WITH A VIEW


MINUTES OLD


NEW FAMILY


MOMMY AND BABY




LAUREN


This has been a wonderful (and exhausting) past 36 hours. As always, with Lorraine and me, there's always going to be a series of comedic events that I can only shake my head at right now as I recount them in my head. I'll share more later this week. Bye for now!

7 Minutes and Counting

I think D-Day may be here. Lorraine has been having contractions for the past 2 hours, now 7 minutes apart. I had a little dad-to-daughter talk last night letting Lauren know that she needs to work with her mom to "sort things out" by moving this delivery along. And now look at the result, she listened! Man, this parenting thing is a breeze! *grin*.

This may be it, folks. Or if not, it would have been a good practice run. If the magic does happen, you'll be sure to get a call. I have to get back to my wife and her contracting uterus. Stay tuned...

Lorraine's Anatomy

My husband has been using a standard line of reasoning over the past 39 weeks whenever I complained about my body – “well, Lorraine, your body is going through some changes…” To capture these "changes", I have renamed some of my body parts to help keep things in perspective and to stay on the lighter side of fretfulness. For your pleasure, allow me to share a few:

My fingers = sausage links
These were served up to me rather recently. They are plump little fellows that aren’t necessarily sizzling but they are tingling!

My arms = orangutan limbs
Already long, my arms feel very heavy as though they are being pulled downward. I might as well be dragging my knuckles on the ground like the evolutionary early man.

My breasts = cantaloupes
Not accustomed to being voluptuous, this is the least appealing change to my body. What good is it in having an increase in size when everything else on my body is growing at a rapid rate as well? There is nothing sexy about it.

My feet = baked potatoes
I must thank my cousin-in-law, Shirley, as she coined this one. This is the perfect description of these wide, plump things that have taken over the nice petite little bony feet I used to have.

I’ll be sure to share these delightful observations with Lauren over the course of her lifetime. I find that I'm thanking my mom a lot lately.

"Christmas" Baby in SoCal

It’s winter in Southern California. This week, the weather has dipped into the low 60s, and I’ve observed many brave souls confronting the cold with wooly sweaters and heavy coats. Having lived most of our lives in four-season climates, we’ve become conditioned to expect it to get “wintery” (properly) this time of year – yes, you start with the usual reminders: presents, jingles, Christmas TV specials, shopping madness… and crisp December days, snow flurries… Wait, we obviously don't get the last two bennies over here on the Left Coast. This year is our third Christmas in SoCal and we've had to mentally prepare ourselves each time for the new December expectations out here. This year, I’ve been completely oblivious to the mounting holiday fever. I suppose the crescendo of pregnancy drama over the past 8 1/2 months has been slightly distracting. Nevertheless, it hit us with full impact the day after Thanksgiving – it’s Christmas (or Hanukkah or Festivus ["for the rest of us"] or whatever designation suits your fancy). This sudden realization produced a slight panic - "we have to get into the Christmas spirit!" Battling through the turkey food comas, we immediately put up our Christmas tree...



The result: it did make us think of Christmas but even more so, made us reminisce about recent residences with wonderful Decembers that were truly “wintery”…

London 1998-2003 (living steps away from the Albert Bridge, this illuminated structure always seem to shine brightest when needed most during the winters):



New York City 2003 (yes, that’s THE Christmas tree at Rockefeller Plaza; yes, it’s very touristy; yes, Lorraine had to drag me out of our apartment, trek into midtown through armies of people and taxis, and pay some guy $10 for this blurry Polaroid):



Now, we're looking forward to adding the following entry to our Winter's Greatest Hits list…

Newport Beach 2006 (the arrival of our Christmas baby): our OB told us in the early months that she would only allow Lauren to be one week past her due date (12/18), which placed that date as the 25th. Ever since then, she’s been our Christmas baby. So whatever the weather or day she arrives this December in Southern California, I’m sure this will be, like, the most awesome Festivus ever!

Saving Private Henry

We just received our orders from "up top" (our obstetrician): stand ready to parachute straight into the action on D(elivery)-Day, which can be any day now, and be prepared for what may come out of the Bunker. Although the initially briefed D-Day would not be for another 4 weeks, Lauren has apparently "dropped" down into Lorraine's pelvis, headfirst and already in the "ready" position - this is good news because moms usually have to push in the first stage of labor to get their babies there. The Doc was able to "feel the top of her head" during Lorraine's check up on Monday! What?! (I'll leave it up to your imagination engines to figure out how the OB was able to do this).

Seriously, for this greenhorn (um, me), my alert status has moved up a couple of levels since hearing this news. Did I pack my chute correctly? Will I forget my reserve? We're going in with two suitcases - one for labor/delivery and one for the overnight stay. Am I bringing enough equipment? Too much? This is like being back in a Rapid Deployment Unit.

Fortunately, we have long range support units (read: Lorraine's parents) arriving from Ohio on Dec 1 and staying at our barracks for 6 weeks. Until then, we have the local support unit (my parents and sister) who are an hour-long Humvee drive away to make trips back to the rear and keep the supply lines running. Thank goodness for all this support - I have a feeling we're going to need the Calvary...

Welcome to the Hotel California

Hi everyone, it's Lorraine here. Well, we painfully watched Notre Dame kill Army today. It was a rough one. Now, as we continue our day of football with OSU and Michigan battling it out, Lauren is throwing a few blocks and making a few tackles of her own inside my belly. If there was a referee here to see this, she would be penalized a “personal foul” for “unnecessary roughness." OUCH!

Though her hotel room is getting incredibly small at 36 weeks, it does not keep her from trying to make it her own comfy digs. While she’s enjoying her cozy and tranquil hotel surroundings, I’m getting socked and fluffed like an inadequate down pillow. She’s not calling for room service much but I better talk to the housekeeping staff ASAP. As for me, I’ve been searching for the ice bucket lately. I’ve developed a very bizarre affinity towards ice chips these days. I’m crunching and munching on them all the time. I suppose I’ll feel right at home in the hospital’s labor and delivery room as that’s all I get until this little munchkin decides to meet her check out time. Maybe she’ll decide to cut her trip short and check out early? Stay tuned.

Terminally Guilty

It's Henry (again). I sit here in Terminal 3 of the San Francisco Airport waiting for my flight home. I've been riddled with guilt over the past 36 hours, which was when I left home (and my 8 month pregnant wife) for a business trip up here. To make matters worse, my return flight has been delayed. The fact that it's only an hour flight away only makes me feel slightly better. Having my iPod and listening to the excellent new Snow Patrol CD, Eyes Open, only minimally provides additional relief. Thus, I thought that this confessional would lend me some pardon - it doesn't.

On a another note, a few of you have noted that my inclusion of the video in my last entry was a bit insensitive. You've unknowingly kicked a wounded man while he's down. Remedies: I'll put up a more uplifting video soon (Lorraine running on the beach or something). Also, here's one of my favorite pictures as of late...



I'll be home soon, my dear...

Lorraine's Heartfelt Feelings

Lorraine at a weak moment in San Diego hotel... (Henry) - I know that this is the same video as you clicked to see on the last entry but I'm figuring out how to embed video with text on this blog...

Truth in San Diego

This is Henry again - Lorraine and I just returned from 24 hours in San Diego. I had a business meeting and dinner with a client scheduled down there yesterday so we decided to make it a mini-break and drove down together on Fri. I felt guilty about having Lorraine persevere through the drive so I made sure we ended up in a state-of-posh environment. We stayed at the US Grant Hotel and after the long 2-hour drive to San Diego, I caught Lorraine in a semi-delirious state in our hotel room to record the following segment before I left for my meeting...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4862158057568038128

Lauren will find these "heartfelt" words from her mother very useful in a future therapy session, I'm sure.

Also, I must apologize for the poor camerawork and editing as I am still learning how to use my latest toy, our Sony DCR-S80 digital camcorder. It was originally on my 10/28 "Henry's Must-Haves Before He Can Never Have" list but I justified the purchase as one that would be for "our family" beforehand.

Seriously, now that I, er, "we" have this essential piece of equipment, you can rest assured (or uneasily) that it will be put to good use (especially for this blog). Have a great weekend, all.

CPR for Our Baby and Our Nation

Hi everyone, it's Henry. Many apologies for not being able to post an entry sooner. First of all, let me thank (and remind) you about providing "comments". We love to read them (you can click on "Comment" at the bottom of this and each entry and follow the easy instructions). We will post more of our own comments in response to yours so keep checking back!

OK, let's get started: here's Lorraine going into this week, our 34th...



Tonight, Lorraine and I attended the "Baby Savers" class at the hospital. I learned of a very interesting safety fact that I would have never considered: "Introduce your child to a fireman. Tragically, many child fire deaths occur because children run and hide from firefighters. They are found dead in closets and under beds". Yes, this is an exact quote. In fact, I'm going to stop by the local fire station myself tomorrow just make sure I'm over my own fear. All of the "watch outs" (most of which we haven't addressed yet in our own home) made us feel as if we would be providing a hazardous environment for Lauren that only Indiana Jones could safely navigate through. I'm thinking of wrapping everything we have in bubble wrap. Seriously, this class did teach us an important lesson: how to give CPR to save an infant or child.

Last night (and this morning), our nation received a series of resusitations of its own (click on each to enlarge):

The Nursery

All anxiety aside, we are certainly NOT worried about how prepared we are for Lauren’s arrival thanks to all of our family and friend's thoughtfulness and generosity. Between Henry building, hanging, and moving and my organization, we have created a beautiful little nest for Lauren once she arrives and wanted to be sure to share it with all of you. As you can see, Lauren will not only be lavished in soft pink surroundings but check out her wardrobe! She is going to be the most stylish little gal around! How about those wheels? Between her travel system given to us by my sister and friends and my dad refurbishing the old carriage that once wheeled me around when I was an infant, Lauren definitely will be cruising about in style no matter which one she’s taking a ride in. I also thought it would be a good time to share the nursery now (before baby) as I fear it will never look this tidy once our little sweetie arrives : )