World Series

(This was written a while ago, but somehow never got posted so here it is)

Our daughter is a HUGE sports fan. Sure she only weighed in at 6 Lbs 2 Ounces. Her birth and first few weeks have been told before, but not from an boisterous/hilarious/sports adventurous angle.

It was a dark night, many nights are dark, but this night, it was very dark. Perhaps someone had forgotten to turn on the night lights in the sky, or perhaps the narrator of this story is wearing sunglasses. Either way, it was dark. It was Friday, the weekend was looming. For many hours labor persisted, with groans, striving, sweat and tears, the labor continued. The hospital room was all in a buzz, nurses shouting, cheering, even chanting. Throughout the night there were ups and downs, highs and lows. Breathing at some points was difficult, but effort was always being given all for the sake of the goal. And that goal was almost in reach. For you see dear reader, it was game six of a best of seven series between the Milwaukee Brewers(the bad guys), and the St. Louis Cardinals (the good guys). The Cards were tied in the series 2-2, locked in an epic battle with their foes. 

But the night of her birth was not the only piece of evidence we had in discovering Alethea's passion for sports. She already has watched many football games, these games usually have been games in which her two favorite teams played: J-E-T-S (NY), and Lions(DET). Is it true that Alethea already has shown more sports passion in 5 weeks than most humans in their entire lives? Yes. Is it also true that Alethea has already learned how to throw a 90 MPH Fastball? No. But even if she never does, Alethea already has had a life filled with sports highlights. 

Alethea, As the narrator of this post I have to convey the message from your parents. They say to tell you they love you and always remember how big a fan you were, even on the dark, dark night on which you were born!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everyone! We hope you are enjoying time with your family and the Celebration of Jesus' Birth!! Here is a picture we took to ring in the holidays at our house. I will post more Christmas pictures soon, with Alethea in her adorable dress! But for now.. Enjoy!

2 Months!

Alethea was 2 months old on December 14th! (Sorry it took so long to write this post) I am finally in the groove of things. Now that I feel normal and am no longer recovering from surgery and pregnancy, I finally feel like I am doing what I am called to do. I love staying home and watching you grow. It has taken 2 months, but I am now able to take care of you, wallace, daddy and household chores.  Each day I look at you and see how you have grown and changed. You still look A LOT like your daddy and I love that. Although you look like daddy, you have taken on mommy's easy-going personality and whinyness.

Our dear Alethea, as soon as we think we have figured out your schedule you change it up. Most days you are awake somewhere between 730-8am and ready to start your day. If we are lucky you will sleep for 1.5-2 hours sometime in the morning and take another hour nap in the afternoon. Some days you like to go to sleep at 730-8pm and will sleep for 5hours straight and other nights you like to stay up late with daddy.

You have so many funny facial expressions and have started to giggle. I just love to look at you and see a huge smile on your face and listening to you giggle in your sleep.  It is great to see you developing a personality and we are learning what you do and do not like. You love to get your diaper changed! I have never seen a baby who hates to be wet as much as you do and who gets SO happy when they are sat on the changing table. We have some of our best bonding moments while you are getting changed. Not only do you talk to mommy and daddy, but you have also starting "talking" to your toy flower that looks at you during diaper changes. I have a feeling you will love playing with stuffed animals and spend hours talking to them.

Bath time is another one of your favorite activities. You can be pitching a fit but the moment you get in your little bath seat and the water touches you, you instantly relax. I am savoring the moments where you lie still in the bathtub and look up at us with your bath time smile. :)  I know that sometime in the near future you will be sitting up and start splashing in the tub and no longer my newborn baby.

I am looking forward to watching you grow up and start rolling over and seeing more of your silly faces. We love you Alethea!

Look what I can do!

I am a little late in posting this but look what Alethea can do! (she did this on December 10th 2011)

Just so everyone knows, I put the rattle in her hand, but she is now able to hold and shake a toy! She also notices where the sound is coming from. Our little girl is getting so big!

2 Month Dr. Appointment

Alethea did GREAT at her doctors appointment. She only cried for an instant when she was given her vaccinations and spent the rest of the day sleeping. I was expecting to have a very fussy and cranky baby for the entire day and enlisted the help of Nana. Nana came along to the appointment with us and was a great help during the day. (for me) I anticipated that I would have a horrible time watching her gets shots. I heard from so many other parents that it was harder for them when their child got their shots then it was for their baby. I must say, that I am pretty proud of myself for not crying and handling her shots well. 

Waiting to get shots

Another part of her appointment that I was worried about was her weight. Since she was born, Alethea has being a tiny girl and had some trouble gaining weight. I have been weighing her at home, but wasn't sure if the weight I had would match the one at the doctors.  But we were quite surprised!

               Alethea's 2 month Measurements

                           Height: 21.75inches

                           Weight: 8.88 (8lbs 88ounces)

                           Head Circumference: 36.8cm

She is still a very little girl (I think around 10th percentile for weight) but is growing wonderfully! She gained almost 2lbs exactly in 3 weeks!! Its so weird for this mommy to see her so big! I am consistently telling people how big she is compared to when she was born, but she is still SO little (the size of most newborns).  She was around the 15th percentile for height (not long at all). So we will see if Alethea becomes as tall as her daddy, or short like her mommy. 

Sleeping on the way Home

7 weeks old!

Dear Alethea,

You are 7 weeks old today and so big! You are now over 8lbs and almost completely out of your newborn clothing. Everyday I look at you and see that you have grown. You are now smiling all the time and love when your daddy sings to you.

This is a little video of you and daddy. Daddy was finishing up a paper for one of his classes while you watched and helped him sing.

You are so big and awesome Alethea! We love you and love sharing life with you!

Mommy and Daddy

Help

I have been working on this post for a while and meant to have it posted a while back, but now it seems very fitting that it will be posted during Thanksgiving. Over the past 6 weeks Jacob and I have recieved so much help from friends and family and wanted to thank everyone! We have had a hard couple of weeks and are thrilled to be back in the swing of things. Thank you to everyone who has helped us.

One of the main reasons we chose to attend Convenant Church was because it felt like home and we felt like family from the first day we visitied. Since then we have become members, been invovled in Bible studies, and Jacob is even helping in the office. We have been so blessed by these brothers and sisters through everything they have done. Our Elder's wife threw us a baby shower during our 8th month of pregnancy and introduced me to many women from our church. My entire pregnancy I wished that I could have a baby shower in St. Louis, our new home, but didn't know enough people to throw one. I was so shocked by everyone who came to the shower to support our family! Especially when many who came had never met us. Not only has Covenant Church made us feel welcome from the beginning, but they have been a wonderful help since Alethea's arrival. They coordinated meals so Jacob and I had dinner for the first month we were home, and have also helped out around the house with all the things that need to get done to maintain a home. Thank you so much! We don't know what we would have done without all the help from our Church.

We are also very thankful to my mom and sisters who have gone to great extremes to help out. From laundry to babysitting to watching Wallace they have been an immense help.  We have received many prayers from family and friends far and near. We are also thankful for Jacob's professors who have been extremely understanding and accommodating during this crazy time in our lives. Each day we are reminded that St. Louis is exactly where we should to be and how much this has become home. Thank you to everyone who has physically helped out and also those who have been diligent prayer warriors. We have had many  requests for prayer over the last year, and who knows what our lives would be like if so many faithful brothers and sisters were not praying for us.

This Thanksgiving we are thankful to ALL YOU who have helped make this time with our daughter special and memorable. Thank you!!