Laughter is the Best Medicine

We got Elizabeth laughing the other day. She sure does warm our hearts. 

She is very talkative these days (especially in the morning). 

I love listening to all her jabbering & cooing. 

Six Weeks

Our darling daughter is six-weeks-old today! 

The early weeks are a blur in our memories..good thing we have photos! 

I'd bet weeks two and three are most blurred for Jonathan. He was working a lot and not sleeping much. Some of his co-workers have commented to me how rough he looked dragging into work some mornings. 

Jonah is just as smitten with her now as he was the first week. He loves hugging and kissing her. Every now and then he asks me not to get her (when she's crying for me), but usually he just jumps in and "helps."

one fish, two fish

I had a tiny little photo shoot to capture the kids in their matching shirts. The pictures could be better, but they could be worse too. 

If Eliza was looking, then Jonah was moving. If Jonah was cooperating, then Eliza had her hands in the way.  Oh well. I got pictures taken!

and, after editing, I've got my new favorite of my girl...gonna frame this one.

Elizabeth Anne 5.5 weeks

worth 1,000 words

i am loving this photo. it really captures the moment!

i'd love to know what it says to you. 

leave a comment with the caption you would give this picture.

sweet baby love

Big Brother/Baby Sister

While we were at the hospital Jonah spent the day with the Sparks family. They helped him make some pink lemonade cupcakes to celebrate Elizabeth's birth. When he came to meet her they put a candle in one of the cupcakes and he "gave" it to her. 

 This was Jonah's first little moment as a big brother!

And here he is wearing the gift Elizabeth "gave" him...

a shirt that reads "Big Brothers Rule."

 Our sweet little family of four!!!

 A few days later, when we were all home together, Jonah helped me give his sister her first bath. He presented her with a pink duck he and I had picked out for her a few months ago!

 They are my sweet babies!

I sure do love these little blessings. I pray that they become friends and truly love & appreciate one another someday. 

Elizabeth Anne has Arrived!

 On Tuesday morning, we loaded up and left the house as a family of 3. Jonathan and I made a quick stop to drop Jonah off to spend the day with some of our favorite people. Then we headed on to the hospital! 

 They asked us to be there 2.5 hrs before the scheduled c-section time. I couldn't imagine that it would really take that long to get checked in. There really wasn't a lot of "down time" though. We were busy filling out forms and answering questions right up until our scheduled time. THEN the waiting began. The surgical team was running behind. We were delayed almost an hour. 

 They got started at 12:49pm. 

She was out by 1:17pm. 

That crying (and let me tell you, it was some darn good crying) was the sweetest sound a mama could ever hear! The Dr.'s first comment was her good coloring. The nurses told us later she was one of the most beautiful babies they have seen. They see a lot of babies, so I'm not just biased when I say she is BEAUTIFUL! 

While the Dr. was stitching my belly, Jonathan accompanied the nurses who cleaned and checked the baby. We were very anxious to hear her weight, and then SHOCKED to learn she was 

8lbs. 9oz. 

Did I mention that she came a week before the actual due date?! That is nearly two pounds heavier than Jonah who came out full term! 

 As soon as I was put back together they let me recover in a delivery room...WITH my baby. This was different from my first c-section. When I had Jonah the labor and delivery was too crowded...I had to recover on the surgical floor away from my baby. THAT was torture. 

We feel so very blessed. My heart overflows with thankfulness. Jonah came home from Grandma and Grandpa's house last night. We have spent the day as a family of 4 and I LOVE it. I love our children so dearly. I am so thankful that God gave us such wonderful treasures. I pray I can parent them in a way that gives HIM praise! 

Beautiful Bedding

Would you like to see what I believe to be the most beautiful baby bedding I've ever laid my eyes on?

My mother is a genius with fabric. 

Mom and I don't usually agree on colors/styles. I usually like more colorful things, she usually likes more ruffles. But, when we found the fabrics used in Elizabeth's bedding, we both had love at first sight! And it's even more beautiful all put together. 

We had picked out a quilt pattern a long long time ago. Before I was pregnant, much less knew I was having a girl. We loved the Amy Butler quilt pattern. She took it a step further and made it two sided. I love both sides very much! 

I'm not sure the pictures do it justice. I LOVE it. 

Also pictured: our sweet baby bag (vera bradley, folkloric)

and my latest craft project...I took a wooden letter E for less than $3 and covered it in those pretty beads! 

This baby room is a joy for me to walk into! I'm loving it. 

Weekend Update: Baby Shower

This weekend my mom, aunt, and sister hosted a baby shower for me. We gathered at Emily's house for a Night Owl party! It was very very cute.

(yes, party is spelled wrong...because they reused the sign from my cousin's shower last weekend. It was originally written to match her baby's name, which is Charli Pepper) 

Isn't my cousin, Courtney, creative...she's the one who created this from scratch...chalkboard paint and everything!

The banner with Elizabeth's name will probably be hung in her room when I get it put together. And the cake is another Aunt Caroline masterpiece! It was strawberry on the inside...and just so you know, it was very tasty!

Lots of credit goes to my mom, who orchestrated the whole thing. Where would I be without such a fantastic mom?! I am also grateful my mother-in-law made the trip down for the occasion. I really appreciate my family. They are amazing! 

It was a lovely little gathering! Thanks everyone! 

p.s.... thanks to Auntie Em, Elizabeth may not have to ever wear the same thing twice. 

Anniversary Getaway

I posted about it being our five-year wedding anniversary a couple of weeks ago. We went on a little weekend trip to St. Louis while my mom and dad came to stay with Jonah. We had a blast, but didn't take very many photos. Or, at least not any with much variety.  

We hit up a couple of our favorite restaurants...Canyon Cafe & Cheesecake Factory (our vacations are always centered around the food). 

We took in an afternoon movie. 

We visited the Botanical Gardens. 

(it was a beautiful morning!)

This is one of my favorite spots in the entire place...near the Japanese Gardens. 

(30 weeks pregnant)

They were setting up for a lantern festival which was set to kick off the following weekend. this was a neat fountain display. 

Can you tell the dragons are made from dishes? 

The long skinny parts are teacups back-to-back and wrapped in plastic. 

 Most of the decorations were lighted. I bet it was really pretty at night. 

 (whimsical cherry blossoms?)

 I thought the globes were neat (also lighted for night viewing) so I made Jonathan pose near them. 

And then he struck a pose of his own in this wagon near the kiddie park. 

 Do you see the geckos that came out to say hi?! When I spotted the first one I thought it was planted there for ambiance...but then his friend came out to say hello as well. 

This was some kind of fruit that grows directly on the tree trunk. I thought it was photo worthy. 

"self-portrait"

Dear Jesus,

Jonah has been more and more vocal with prayer time lately. He has been asking to pray from time to time, and will repeat a prayer we prompt for him. Tonight Jonah prayed his bedtime prayer all by himself. It was one of the sweetest moments ever!!

He said: "Dear Jesus, thank you for a day, thank you for Ewizabeth, thank you softball game. A-Men!"

Jonah Bear

I don't know if I ever posted pictures of Jonah Bear. He was Jonah's first stuffed animal. We made him before Jonah was born...and included a sound card with Jonah's heartbeat inside of him. 

Today we went back to Build-A-Bear to buy another sound card...for the new baby. 

We let Jonah bring his bear to get some clothes. He chose a football uniform (which came with a ball and helmet). 

 I secretly had hoped he might choose something "cute" (ie: a shirt with a collar and pants with a button), but his choice made him very very happy. 

I also could not resist buying a little pair of glasses for the bear. 

My Favorite Jonah Quote!

Tonight Jonah said something really cute. It might be my favorite thing of all the cute things he's ever said! I smiled myself to happy tears. (but, then, that doesn't really take much when I'm pregnant)

He was sitting on my lap; we were face-to-face, or, more importantly, belly-to-belly when he said: 

"What's that?"

(me: what's what?)

"The girl, she's knocking!"

I guess his little sister had moved right when Jonah settled against my belly. It was a moment I will treasure for a long time! 

IT's A......

Drum roll, please......

*

wait for it

*

*

* 

The ultrasound revealed that we are having a....

healthy baby.....

and ......

Her name shall be Elizabeth Anne. I might just call her Eliza. I can't help myself! We are so in love with her sweet feet and cute little toes that she kept moving for us to see!

Ultrasound Day!

Do you like the shirt my sister found for me? I thought it was pretty clever. This is me at 20 1/2 weeks. The black is a little slimming...and the photo just doesn't show much of the baby bump, but it is there. 

We have an appointment for an ultrasound this afternoon. We hope to learn the gender of our sweet little baby and maybe decide on a name! We are still certain of our girl name, but may be hung up on the boy name. I've taken full advantage of my present state and changed my mind! 

Jonah has decided on the name he likes...no matter the gender. He thinks we should name the baby:

"Chesco Nollie" 

(aka:Franchesco Bernoulli)...

...after this Cars2 character! 

Sorry, sweetie. that isn't going to happen. 

Five for Friday: My Wish List

Getting into this pregnancy I've begun to think about products that might be useful. I have most of the "baby" things (highchair, crib, car seat, etc.) that I need. But, I've discovered some neat things that might prove handy after the baby comes. 

These bumpy labels will be my our first purchase after the ultra sound. Once we know the gender I'll order a package of these with the baby's name on them.  They are great for the church nursery. Especially when there is more than one kid with the same type bottle/sippy cup. 

I just saw this little thing called the Tag-Along. I've been debating this double stroller . But, I already have a Graco stroller that matches our car seat. I'd hate to not use it. And we have an umbrella stroller...and a jogging stroller...I just don't think I want to purchase/store another stroller. I'll have to keep thinking about this one. I wonder if the tag along will hook on to a shopping cart?

Speaking of strollers/car seats. What about these mesh "bug screens?" Since we will spend time outside (ie: have nice weather and a two-year-old) when this baby comes, I want to protect the infant. 

I also think I want one of these Cooshee Boosters for our big boy. 

 The new baby won't need the high chair for a while, so I have time to shop around. 

While I'm wishing, why not wish big! 

How about this nice video monitor. The monitor we use now is just fine. It is a 13-year-old hand-me-down, but works for us. I would probably rest more easily with a video feed of the infant. (especially with our split floor plan...save me a trip across the house in the night) We have some friends who said we could have theirs when they are done, but their baby will be exactly a year when ours is born. I wonder if they will be ready to part with it then? (or 3 months from then when we move the baby to the crib, perhaps)

I would love to hear from those of you who've made the one-to-two transition...are there any FABULOUS products out there that I should know about? 

Any input I shouldn't live without? 

Drano Test

Maybe you've heard of the Drano Gender Test. I tried it with my first pregnancy. And now I've tried it with this one. The results?? Rather inconclusive if you ask me. 

If you want the full details/instructions, click HERE.

Basically, you mix a certain amount of drano crystals with a certain amount of first morning urine. If it changes color within a certain time frame, you're having a boy. If it doesn't change, it means a girl. 

You are supposed to base your results on the first 10-15 seconds...of the "reaction."

(yes, there is quite a reaction in that jar...the test MUST be 

done outside)

I did my best to get some video (while avoiding the fumes).

Well, when we did the test, it didn't start reacting right away. I don't know what that means. But, it did end up turning very  dark, which I assume is brown, so I guess it indicates a boy. 

I have no idea at what point I should have started timing the 15-20 seconds. 

When I was expecting Jonah I did this test three times. Each time the end result had a different appearance. I am not going to waste the product/effort on multiple tries anymore. I'll wait to find out in a less crude, more modern way! 

BUT, the GOOD NEWS is we have an ultrasound scheduled for March 16th.

 I am so excited to learn the gender of our little one.  

We already have names picked out. We've had the girl name in mind since we got married. The boy name came to me last summer (before we ever  even anticipated another pregnancy) when a friend was having trouble choosing a name for her boy.  Once we know the gender for certain, we will call the baby by name and let Jonah get to know his sibling more tangibly.