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[theaface]

Omg epidurals that work are freaking awesome! My son was born at 2:04 pm, 8 lbs exactly, 21 inches long. Start to finish it took 7 hours with only 32 minutes pushing. He looks exactly like our daughter.

Congratulations! Sounds like it all went as well as one could hope! Have you decided on a name for him yet?

We're now up to day 8 with Sullivan and things are going really well. He's being such a good boy. We've got ourselves into a feeding routine and aside from the expected sleep deprivation, we couldn't be happier. His jaundice is pretty much subsided entirely now as well.

Today we're doing a newborn photoshoot with him. Can't wait for the end results! Tomorrow is going to be a tough day for us as he's being circumcised (we're a Jewish family). I've every confidence it'll be fine and he'll be a brave little champ, but it's still horrible to see your child in pain, however briefly.

 

[Soulfire]

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[JoeNut]

Hey folks, so since he's been on the bottle (combination of breast milk and formula) Leo has been putting weight on every day and we've been discharged by the midwife as of yesterday. Happy days. Big relief

 

[Soulfire]

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[Skellig Gra]

Hey folks, so since he's been on the bottle (combination of breast milk and formula) Leo has been putting weight on every day and we've been discharged by the midwife as of yesterday. Happy days. Big relief

Excellent news!

 

[Silraru]

Hey folks, so since he's been on the bottle (combination of breast milk and formula) Leo has been putting weight on every day and we've been discharged by the midwife as of yesterday. Happy days. Big relief

That's awesome! Weight has been an issue with us too. After his circumcision Henry went two really long stretches refusing to wake up to eat. Even though I was pumping that ended up making milk take a little longer to come in, the combo meant he lost 5 oz in one day. We've had to go in for weight checks since coming home but hopefully tomorrow's is the last. He's eating like clockwork and my milk is in.

Hurray for both of you.

 

[Frostburn]

Hey folks, so since he's been on the bottle (combination of breast milk and formula) Leo has been putting weight on every day and we've been discharged by the midwife as of yesterday. Happy days. Big relief

Great news, I'm sure you are both very relieved!

 

[H.Protagonist]

I had to look into my daughter's tear-streaked face today and tell her the bad news: she has uneven thigh creases. Development checks lady says she needs an X-ray now to be safe. I told Mia she'll never be a leg model or a thigh jockey now. She's a different breed.



P.S. Congrats, Soulfire! Welcome to the confusion that is 2017, Henry~

 

[Soulfire]

.

 

[mrkgoo]

My little boy

I'm loving this baby app called Baby Manager. It keeps track of feedings, duration, pumping, volume, diapers, so far everything that I need. It's nice having all that info at my fingertips since I can't remember anything anymore. It even has graphs which is awesome until I realize I spent 411 minutes just breast feeding yesterday.

Cool little guy, congrats!

 

[WeirdoStalkerJr]

My daughter is a damn jedi

 

[Violence Jack]

GAF, I need some help to not start freaking out. My wife just called to tell me that she's pregnant. I feel woozy, shaken, and am probably in shock. What do I need to do over the next 8 1/2 months to prepare for this? I think my biggest concern is that we are saving up for a house, and I feel like this is going to change that plan significantly.

I think once the shock wears off, I'll be excited. But now I'm in future financial planning mode and overthinking everything.

 

[greepoman]

GAF, I need some help to not start freaking out. My wife just called to tell me that she's pregnant. I feel woozy, shaken, and am probably in shock. What do I need to do over the next 8 1/2 months to prepare for this? I think my biggest concern is that we are saving up for a house, and I feel like this is going to change that plan significantly.

I think once the shock wears off, I'll be excited. But now I'm in future financial planning mode and overthinking everything.

First child I'm assuming? Do you have good friends and family? Cause they will buy you a ton of stuff. Probably from work people as well. You might get a ton of toys...Don't feel bad returning toys for essential items. Have people help you construct a useful registry with all the great gizmos that make baby life easier.

Also since the miscarriage possibility is much higher in the first trimester we always waited to tell people closer to the 2nd trimester. It's not that you should be worried I've just seen some people get so excited they were destroyed when miscarriage happened.

If you're already over thinking I have a feeling you're gonna be a great dad and you will love having a kid.

Edit: FYI ..We were the people who weren't gonna have kids and didn't really like other people's kids so we put off having kids til pretty late in life. Now we're up to 3 and wishing we started sooner.

And congrats!

One last thing...Our hospital had free classes for parents that gave you and intro into pregnancy all the way through delivery and the first year. Great way to get some info and be around others in the same situation.

 

[theaface]

GAF, I need some help to not start freaking out. My wife just called to tell me that she's pregnant. I feel woozy, shaken, and am probably in shock. What do I need to do over the next 8 1/2 months to prepare for this? I think my biggest concern is that we are saving up for a house, and I feel like this is going to change that plan significantly.

I think once the shock wears off, I'll be excited. But now I'm in future financial planning mode and overthinking everything.

Deep breath, be calm. There's nothing to panic over (but plenty to be excited about)! Financially, you'll make it work. People with less always have. I know you say you're shocked but deep down both you and your wife knew this was a possibility when you do what the birds and the bees do. My point being, even on a subconscious level, you probably both wanted this, and this news is good news!

First concern is making sure mother and baby are both well. To most people, the 12 week scan is the point at which the risk of miscarriage drops significantly. Just worry about getting past that hurdle for now. Discuss and agree who you'll tell initially. Most people keep the circle small up until 12 weeks.

You've got plenty of time to get yourselves together, so don't stress. In time, maybe start with a simple book (e.g. The Expectant Dad's Handbook by Dean Beaumont), but otherwise just enjoy the idea of becoming a daddy!

As a new daddy myself (of a 2 and-a-bit week old), I can tell you a seismic shift is coming, but a very very good one.

 

[Silraru]

GAF, I need some help to not start freaking out. My wife just called to tell me that she's pregnant. I feel woozy, shaken, and am probably in shock. What do I need to do over the next 8 1/2 months to prepare for this? I think my biggest concern is that we are saving up for a house, and I feel like this is going to change that plan significantly.

I think once the shock wears off, I'll be excited. But now I'm in future financial planning mode and overthinking everything.

Be supportive of your wife especially during first semester. Ensures she gets plenty of rest and follow up on all necessary doctor check ups, prenatal screening etc. It goes a long way to ensure healthy pregnancy. As post above, best to wait until 2nd semester until announcing pregnancy is probably best. If budget is tight, get the baby essentials only like clothes, diapers, wipers, bath equipment, change pad, place for baby to sleep etc. Stuff like toys, change table, swings, white noise machines can wait until baby is born. (I change my son on the change pad on the floor.) Also take time to buy the stuff since the baby is not born for awhile. Wait for sales or buy used. Though something's should not be bought used like baby car seat. Just take a big breath and take time to get ready for the baby. The most important thing now is taking care of your wife which in turn also takes care of baby.

Edit: and congrats!

 

[greepoman]

As a new daddy myself (of a 2 and-a-bit week old), I can tell you a seismic shift is coming, but a very very good one.

Congrats as well! How's it going yourself? Our latest (of 3) is 2 months and still super smooth. Not colicky like our 2nd so he's just sleeping, eating and pooping. That surprised me the first child that actually your life doesn't change as much as you think. That is until they start getting around on their own.

Couple additional things:. It's actually 40 weeks which is closer to 10 months and even though due date will be like October, you get a tax credit(s) for the entire year! So that'll help you out a bit financially as well.

 

[theaface]

Congrats as well! How's it going yourself?

Thanks. So far, so good! Every day is a learning curve, but he seems to be feeding well which was our biggest concern around day 2/3. We're just totally besotted with him, as you can imagine any new parents would be.

 

[Violence Jack]

Thanks everyone! I do feel a bit better about it. I've been dreaming of our kid since we got married 3 months ago. I just want to do whatever I can to ensure that my child has a great life, and to take care of my wife during all of this. I'm sure I'll be on here a lot looking for more tips.

 

[greepoman]

Thanks. So far, so good! Every day is a learning curve, but he seems to be feeding well which was our biggest concern around day 2/3. We're just totally besotted with him, as you can imagine any new parents would be.

Great pic...those eyes look so introspective. Guess I got to post one too:

 

[QuantumSquid]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

 

[JesseZao]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

Never thought about it, why would I? I'll let them find their own interests. The world will be quite different in 10-15 years, anyway.

 

[mrkgoo]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

Not really. Once they're old enough to mess about and meaningfully participate on forums they're probably old enough to choose for themselves what and how they want to engage with (lol within reason of course). My concern is general supervision and awareness. Just teaching online etiquette and safety.


No doubt by that age the notion of internet and what services are popular will be vastly different to what I'm used to.

 

[theaface]

Great pic...those eyes look so introspective. Guess I got to post one too:

Cute! Reminds me of Tilda Swinton in Dr. Strange, and I mean that in an entirely complimentary way.

 

[JoeNut]

First day back at work, kinda lame being away from them both all day, but at least i actually got some sleep last night because the Mrs took charge of the night feeds to make sure i wasn't totally knackered this morning.

Looked back at pictures from the first couple of days he was born and he looks so different already, it's strange.

 

[Vincent Grayson]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

I don't see why I would. Kids now (like mine, at 10 and 12) already have their own forms of social media they use, and people pumping out kids today will likely see yet another new thing by 10-15 years from now.

I can't imagine my kids being interested in a message board like this.

 

[phisheep]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

Done. My boy is reasonably well versed in things GAF (but then, he is twenty-something).

I've no idea if he has an account here, if he has he is keeping very quiet about it.

 

[RetroMG]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

I don't know about GAF proper, but I have a couple of friends that I've made through GAF Mafia, so she'll probably know about them.

 

[theaface]

First day back at work, kinda lame being away from them both all day, but at least i actually got some sleep last night because the Mrs took charge of the night feeds to make sure i wasn't totally knackered this morning.

Looked back at pictures from the first couple of days he was born and he looks so different already, it's strange.

Parallel lives mate, exactly the same situation here! The comfort for me was the added excitement of what I was coming home to after work. Should get Sully's pictures back from his newborn photoshoot tomorrow - can't wait!

 

[aliengmr]

Thanks everyone! I do feel a bit better about it. I've been dreaming of our kid since we got married 3 months ago. I just want to do whatever I can to ensure that my child has a great life, and to take care of my wife during all of this. I'm sure I'll be on here a lot looking for more tips.

Also since the miscarriage possibility is much higher in the first trimester we always waited to tell people closer to the 2nd trimester. It's not that you should be worried I've just seen some people get so excited they were destroyed when miscarriage happened.

I feel like this needs to be repeated. My wife went through 2 miscarriages before our second son was born and it was so much harder on everyone when we told everyone before the 12 week mark.

After that, the pregnancy wasn't official until the second trimester. Dealing with the second miscarriage, though hard physically and mentally on my wife and I, was so much easier than the first.

It's hard not telling anyone for 12 weeks, but worth it.

Also, BUY CHEAP!!!!!!

You have no clue what your child will like. Our first hated the baby swing and we never used it. Our second loved it, so we used it until it died and had to get a new one. Let relatives buy that stuff or get them second hand. Also, take it easy on the toys. We got a whole bunch of toys, only to have them never played with.

Some of the things that have been really helpful:

Bottle warmer
Wash cloths (can never have too many)
Car seat stroller combo.

It can be financially scary at first but it won't be as bad as conventional wisdom suggests. Parenting is every they say it is, but a lot will surprise you.

 

[Silraru]

how many of you are planning on introducing your children to neoGAF once they're old enough?

My husband and I probably will let our kids discover on their own but we will monitor what they do. If they do show interest in neogaf, I would probably prefer them to be at least a teenager then because some posts and topics are not children friendly.

 

[Vengal]

My daughter is going to be 16 months in a few days and she has started rebel hard against food choice. Doesn't help that the quality of care at her daycare shifted due to several of the more veteran teachers going on prolonged medical leave so the newer ones don't I guess have the Midas touch that the others did.

Right now i'm trying to give her some chopped up carrots and oatmeal with mixed luck. Its hard now to let it get you down when you're worried (likely irrationally) that she isn't eating enough but my sore arms should be a clue that she's growing just fine.

I often wish I had someone IRL to swap baby stories with but none of my siblings or cousins have any interest in having kids, and due to the current social/political climate my wife has become an advocate for telling friends not to have kids which is awkward. I'm expecting my kid to be the Angelica of a baby crew if anyone else around me finally starts having kids in 5 or so years.

 

[Silraru]

My daughter is going to be 16 months in a few days and she has started rebel hard against food choice. Doesn't help that the quality of care at her daycare shifted due to several of the more veteran teachers going on prolonged medical leave so the newer ones don't I guess have the Midas touch that the others did.

Right now i'm trying to give her some chopped up carrots and oatmeal with mixed luck. Its hard now to let it get you down when you're worried (likely irrationally) that she isn't eating enough but my sore arms should be a clue that she's growing just fine.

I often wish I had someone IRL to swap baby stories with but none of my siblings or cousins have any interest in having kids, and due to the current social/political climate my wife has become an advocate for telling friends not to have kids which is awkward. I'm expecting my kid to be the Angelica of a baby crew if anyone else around me finally starts having kids in 5 or so years.

It is hard not to worry as a parent. My son is almost 4 years old and I still worry. I know he can eat lots if he wants but he doesn't. Though one comfort I do have is that if he is hungry enough he will eat something. Over the years I have just offer various food choices to him. Now I have found soup is the easiest, least fussy way to get him to eat his veggies. Still a battle tho at meal times.

 

[TheBryanJZX90]

It is hard not to worry as a parent. My son is almost 4 years old and I still worry. I know he can eat lots if he wants but he doesn't. Though one comfort I do have is that if he is hungry enough he will eat something. Over the years I have just offer various food choices to him. Now I have found soup is the easiest, least fussy way to get him to eat his veggies. Still a battle tho at meal times.

An endless battle. My daughter hardly eats anything, hardly sleeps, and yet she's taller than most kids two years older than her. Also I'm getting fat eating her leftovers.

 

[Jive Turkey]

My daughter is going to be 16 months in a few days and she has started rebel hard against food choice. Doesn't help that the quality of care at her daycare shifted due to several of the more veteran teachers going on prolonged medical leave so the newer ones don't I guess have the Midas touch that the others did.

Right now i'm trying to give her some chopped up carrots and oatmeal with mixed luck. Its hard now to let it get you down when you're worried (likely irrationally) that she isn't eating enough but my sore arms should be a clue that she's growing just fine.

My son eats in waves and it started roughly around your daughter's age. Some days he would refuse most everything I gave him and then a day or two later he'd inhale any food within his grasp. Saturday he ate very little and then last night he ate a large plate of veggies, black beans and rice, and a whole pork chop. I always figured it was a growth spurt thing. As long as your little girl isn't underweight I doubt you have anything to worry about.

Also remember at that age kids are still figuring out what they like and their tastes may change dramatically from day to day. I remember when my son couldn't get enough carrots and then just flat out rejected them for a couple of weeks. Tough it out and soon you'll make it to the next crazy thing she does in no time.

 

[Silraru]

An endless battle. My daughter hardly eats anything, hardly sleeps, and yet she's taller than most kids two years older than her. Also I'm getting fat eating her leftovers.

Yep, same here. I am likely gaining weight from eating my son's leftovers. I even started using the word "mommyburator".

My son eats in waves and it started roughly around your daughter's age. Some days he would refuse most everything I gave him and then a day or two later he'd inhale any food within his grasp. Saturday he ate very little and then last night he ate a large plate of veggies, black beans and rice, and a whole pork chop. I always figured it was a growth spurt thing. As long as your little girl isn't underweight I doubt you have anything to worry about.

Also remember at that age kids are still figuring out what they like and their tastes may change dramatically from day to day. I remember when my son couldn't get enough carrots and then just flat out rejected them for a couple of weeks. Tough it out and soon you'll make it to the next crazy thing she does in no time.

I did notice my son seem to work in cycles. He will eat yogurt for few weeks, stop, and start eating them few days later.

 

[Grug]

Man, for all the struggles, these little creatures can make you laugh like nothing else.

My son Charlie (14 months) accidentally gave himself a raspberry on his arm (as in blowing on your skin to make the fart noise) during dinner while trying to eat some stray mash potatoes and we of course laughed. We then instantly saw the light bulb go on in his head and he just kept doing it over again inciting more laughter and then cracking up himself. Biggest belly laughs we've seen him do.

Rinse, repeat for about 5 minutes. Had to be there I guess but these little moments are the best.

 

[Vengal]

Yeah kids are strange, and while im running on like an hour of sleep today she'll just fart and make a face like "where did that come from" and it somehow makes the fatigue go away.

Going to try some different foods and see how it goes. She seems to be a champ about food pouches though as her goto comfort food however. I've been trying to make my own yogurt/fruit/oat style concoctions but my proportions haven't been great. I really should find a recipe instead of just winging it.

 

[battousai11]

My son was born three weeks ago. He had to be born early (37 weeks) and went through an emergency c-section. He failed his hearing screening exam at the hospital. He's perfect otherwise though.

Fast forward three weeks and we had an audiologist appointment where they did ABR and found that he has moderate to severe hearing loss in both ears. The audiologist says its something with his inner ear, but they'll repeat the test in 8 weeks and we'll have an ENT appointment after that.

It's just surreal to know that he can't hear anything except loud noises. My wife and I are devastated and there's quite a long road ahead of us in terms of getting him up to speed linguistically.

Anyone else have experience with this? I'm still in shock, I think.

 

[mrkgoo]

My son was born three weeks ago. He had to be born early (37 weeks) and went through an emergency c-section. He failed his hearing screening exam at the hospital. He's perfect otherwise though.

Fast forward three weeks and we had an audiologist appointment where they did ABR and found that he has moderate to severe hearing loss in both ears. The audiologist says its something with his inner ear, but they'll repeat the test in 8 weeks and we'll have an ENT appointment after that.

It's just surreal to know that he can't hear anything except loud noises. My wife and I are devastated and there's quite a long road ahead of us in terms of getting him up to speed linguistically.

Anyone else have experience with this? I'm still in shock, I think.

My son failed his newborn hearing test. They said oh maybe it's just fluid etc. eventually it escalated to getting more tests done at a hearing clinic etc.

He's 1.5 now and we've been having hearing checks roughly every 3 months to monitor. They think it's a very minor hearing loss in one ear but I've also heard them say both. It's difficult to test as they need to stick something in his ear and he now hates that.

The most we can do is keep going with the checks and at those doing the best we can. Hopefully one day we can get more conclusive results if he cooperates better.

I guess fortunately for us it's supposedly very minor as in he MIGHT not hear us if we are quiet in another room. It's hard to tell because he tends to ignore us when we call him anyway - we generally believe his hearing is mostly ok. Like on a day to day basis he seems to react to small sounds and stuff.

It doesn't seem serious enough to warrant hearing aids, but the specialists have said it's kind of up to us. He wouldn't want to put them in his ear anyway lol

 

[JoeNut]

My son was born three weeks ago. He had to be born early (37 weeks) and went through an emergency c-section. He failed his hearing screening exam at the hospital. He's perfect otherwise though.

Fast forward three weeks and we had an audiologist appointment where they did ABR and found that he has moderate to severe hearing loss in both ears. The audiologist says its something with his inner ear, but they'll repeat the test in 8 weeks and we'll have an ENT appointment after that.

It's just surreal to know that he can't hear anything except loud noises. My wife and I are devastated and there's quite a long road ahead of us in terms of getting him up to speed linguistically.

Anyone else have experience with this? I'm still in shock, I think.

sorry to hear this, at least these days it is picked up early and that if there is a way to fix/improve it then he has the best available options while he' young and knows no different.

 

[battousai11]

My son failed his newborn hearing test. They said oh maybe it's just fluid etc. eventually it escalated to getting more tests done at a hearing clinic etc.

He's 1.5 now and we've been having hearing checks roughly every 3 months to monitor. They think it's a very minor hearing loss in one ear but I've also heard them say both. It's difficult to test as they need to stick something in his ear and he now hates that.

The most we can do is keep going with the checks and at those doing the best we can. Hopefully one day we can get more conclusive results if he cooperates better.

I guess fortunately for us it's supposedly very minor as in he MIGHT not hear us if we are quiet in another room. It's hard to tell because he tends to ignore us when we call him anyway - we generally believe his hearing is mostly ok. Like on a day to day basis he seems to react to small sounds and stuff.

It doesn't seem serious enough to warrant hearing aids, but the specialists have said it's kind of up to us. He wouldn't want to put them in his ear anyway lol

Well after reading up on it, my son may get by with hearing aids (really depends on what the cause of the hearing loss is). If the retest finds the same hearing loss designation, he probably won't qualify for a cochlear implant until he's older.

There's so much information, and so much uncertainty at this point that it's pretty overwhelming. I just want him to grow up and enjoy being a kid.

sorry to hear this, at least these days it is picked up early and that if there is a way to fix/improve it then he has the best available options while he' young and knows no different.

That's the silver lining in all this. Studies have shown that if there's early intervention (earlier than 6 months), then children with hearing loss do really well and most end up in step with children without hearing loss.

 

[theaface]

Finally got Sully's pictures back from his newborn shoot (when he was 8 days old). Thought you might appreciate some of the geekier ones...

Yesterday, away from the camera, he managed to shit all over my wife's hand, top and all over the bathroom floor whilst we were readying the bath for him. Couldn't get him in the tub quickly enough! Was a particularly hilarious horror show.

p.s. Yes, that is a NES Classic Mini. I was one of the lucky chosen ones to actually manage to get a pre-order.

 

[Silraru]

My condolences battousai11. Hopefully having caught it early helps.

Aw, Sully is so cute. Love baby photos.

 

[mrkgoo]

Finally got Sully's pictures back from his newborn shoot (when he was 8 days old). Thought you might appreciate some of the geekier ones...



Yesterday, away from the camera, he managed to shit all over my wife's hand, top and all over the bathroom floor whilst we were readying the bath for him. Couldn't get him in the tub quickly enough! Was a particularly hilarious horror show.

p.s. Yes, that is a NES Classic Mini. I was one of the lucky chosen ones to actually manage to get a pre-order.

The other day, our kid took a dump IN the bath tub. Makes a new definition of "floater". Fortunately we had another tub and filled that to transfer him in while I cleaned up. Unfortunately, he still had some small clingers in the second tub that were floating around and he was trying to grab them.

A code red situation, I tell you....

 

[Grug]

Finally got Sully's pictures back from his newborn shoot (when he was 8 days old). Thought you might appreciate some of the geekier ones...



Yesterday, away from the camera, he managed to shit all over my wife's hand, top and all over the bathroom floor whilst we were readying the bath for him. Couldn't get him in the tub quickly enough! Was a particularly hilarious horror show.

p.s. Yes, that is a NES Classic Mini. I was one of the lucky chosen ones to actually manage to get a pre-order.

Adorable <3

Get back to us when you get his poo in your hair or or his vomit in your mouth though. It will happen.

 

[JoeNut]

aface those pics are brilliant and now I'm thinking i missed an opportunity!!

 

[Silraru]

aface those pics are brilliant and now I'm thinking i missed an opportunity!!

Don't think it is too late for your baby yet. My 2nd son is almost 4 months and I am thinking I might want some baby photos done now. Won't be newborn baby photos but probably still adorable.

 

[Fred-87]

Parentgaf, a close family member is getting a baby in 8 months or so. I heared the news yesterday and i wanted to write something nice. But i was thinking even a expensive card is not nice enough. Still i want something written as that person can look at those words whenever she needs support. Since i have no experience with anyone close getting a baby i have no idea what exists. Is there some sort of baby book where within the first words can be written my words? Anyone can give me a direction what to look for.

Thanks in advance

 

[emag]

Parentgaf, a close family member is getting a baby in 8 months or so. I heared the news yesterday and i wanted to write something nice. But i was thinking even a expensive card is not nice enough. Still i want something written as that person can look at those words whenever she needs support. Since i have no experience with anyone close getting a baby i have no idea what exists. Is there some sort of baby book where within the first words can be written my words? Anyone can give me a direction what to look for.

Thanks in advance

There are a lot of baby journals available both for pregnancy and for the first year (or so) of a child's life. You can write a dedication in the front flap. Alternatively, you could get a baby shower guest book and take the first entry for yourself.

aface those pics are brilliant and now I'm thinking i missed an opportunity!!

We had no hope for any sort of posed newborn photos, given how restless ours was, both awake and asleep. Not that that has changed in the last 20 months, but at least once in a while we can get something.

 

[Red]

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