Clara Jan Rogers

She has arrived and she is beautiful (at least her parents think so).  Clara joined our family on October 21, 2009 at 2:54 PM and she was BIG - 8 lbs 6 oz and 20 inches long.  We all think that she is the spitting image of Clark except for the dark hair (and maybe eyes - time will tell).  She even has his long skinny legs - so cute!  Mommy - that's me - is recovering nicely as well though a little nervous now that Grandma has gone back to Texas.  I would never have been able to survive these first two weeks without her support.  I am comforted to know that she will be back in two weeks for Thanksgiving along with all my siblings and Clark's family as well.  I can't wait to show off my beautiful girl.

Mommyhood so far is a wonderful experience with lots of love and humor.  We are lucky that Clara has a pretty stable stomach and we have not had to deal with spit-up.  Changing her diaper on the other hand . . . well let's just say proceed at your own risk (the major risk being projectile poop)!  I thought you only had to worry about being peed on by little boys - but apparently this is not the case.  If I don't change her diaper really fast, the open air makes her realize that her bladder and/or bowels are not quite empty and she had better act quickly before I replace her diaper.  Needless to say the first few days we were changing her clothes as well as her diaper (we've also learned that all diapers are not created equal).  Her first doctor's appointment was hilarious.  Of course I must say that the doctor's office is to blame; they insist that your baby be completely naked (no diaper) while they weigh and measure her (does it really matter if we are an ounce or inch off?).  With all that time and open air Clara peed all over the table and was kind enough to wait for the nurse to completely clean up her first mess before relieving herself a second time. 

Clara also hates baths - HATES them.  She wails, flails her arms, and grabs on to anything she possibly can in an attempt to pull herself out of the tub while her chin is shaking uncontrollably.  The first bath was probably as traumatic for me as it was for her because she looked so pathetic that by the end I was crying along with her.  If my mother had not been with me I may have decided never to give her a bath again - so what if she is "the smelly kid."  Each bath is getting a little easier but she still hates them.

I must say that she was the cutest pink cheetah the world has ever seen (for Halloween).  Clark and I considered trick-or-treating with her because she was so precious we were sure to rake in the candy!  Instead we just wore our costume all day and took lots of pictures.  She reminded me of that book (now a movie which I have not seen) "Where the Wild Things Are."