This is for all the East-Coast Family and Friends

Thought I'd start a blog for those that would like to know what the little red-haired baby is up to. It kills us that we are all the way across the country from most of our friends and family.



After a grueling 19-hour labor (epidural fell out during transition), Catharyne Minnie Collins was born on August 13th. She weighed 8 lbs. 8 1/2 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches. She had bright red hair from her first day here. She is a squirmer, but I could have told you that way before she was born. She's super strong, already standing up on her little legs for a couple of seconds. She hates to wallow in even the cleanest of dirty diapers, so we minions are averaging 20 diaper changes a day. She makes the funniest faces, especially when she is making a dirty diaper. She acts like pooping is such a chore. She loves to arch her back away from her dirty diaper while pursing her lips. It is just too cute not to kiss her face off and make her mad.



This has been a really lazy day, the first full day after my Mom left. She had been here for exactly 2 weeks and having her here was amazing. sigh. She was such a huge help with the baby and letting me get some much-needed rest. She cooked amazing meals and even allowed us to go out for a night without Minnie. She left with two new nicknames: Mimi (her grandmother name) and Baby Whisperer. She taught us lots of baby tricks to soothe sweet Minnie. I am still incredibly sad that she had to leave. We had a great time together. First car rides and first store visits with Minnie, figuring out the stroller, unknowingly stealing from Target, sampling wine, first bath time including a mouth full of soap for Minnie! My sister, Morgan, or Aunt Momo, was here for an entire week as well. She helped me get through some trying times with breastfeeding and constantly asked me what she could do. I wouldn't have made it through the two weeks without my Mom and sister. I am so very lucky.



Following Morgan's arrival was Uncle Walt and Papa (my brother-in-law and Dad) for the long weekend. My Dad suped up our sound system and Walt installed shelves in the bathroom. We all had a great time, ate good food, drank wine, and did a ton of touristy trips. Minnie is quite the trooper and spent a least 5 hours on the road and in her stroller each day so that her minions could have fun. She had her first outing at 4 days old. We went to the Rose Garden in Portland and lots of people cooed over her, couldn't believe she was out and about at 4 days old.



So the first night without my Mom, I finally got on the phone with a friend after a phone hiatus since she was born. After I hung up, I came into the living room and she was in her pink bouncy boppy. She loves this thing. She even sleeps in it at night. I got closer to her and noticed she had a shiny sheen all over her outfit. She had thrown up all over herself! Ryan had forgotten to burp her after a big bottle drink. So it was off to the bath for the second time in one day. As I was getting it ready, her diaper leaked poopy all over Ryan's work pants. So gross. He had to stand there and hold her with poop down his leg, waiting for me to get the bath water ready. So she enjoyed her bath and was wrapped tight in a pink towel with sweet animals all over it. I got her diaper and outfit ready while Ryan again held her in her towel. He didn't want to give her up. We never realized how cute an infant's naked body is. So he held her a little longer than he should have and, yep, she went poopy all over herself and the towel and Ryan, again! Back to the bathtub. My Mom had only been gone for 8 hours by this point. How am I ever going to do this without her?!