Happy Wednesday

Hello Everyone! I am growing so very fast...almost 20 inches in length! (We measured with a tape measurer!) :)

Sadly Daddy went to work today. We miss him and want him HOME! But, we're keeping busy and doing what we do best...eating, sleeping, & playing.
This morning we went for a walk in our stroller - it was early so the weather was so nice! It was our first time around the block. Thankfully, Pops had stopped by so he took a picture of our first walk together. There will be many more to come in the future!

Libby really enjoyed the time outside, as did I. She is just such a doll baby!

So Sweet

Here are a few more pictures of our baby girl just hanging out at home.

I put her in her crib just to see how she liked it. She was, of course, in true Libby fashion, a perfect angel. She simply laid there and looked around.


This is a fun expression she likes to make. Quite content!
She is looking at her Dad in this one. It looks like she's about to say, "Well, you know, Dad..." and start a very intellectual conversation with her father!

Three Weeks Old!

It's so hard to believe she's already three weeks old. On the same hand, it's stranger still that we have only had her for three weeks, when it seems like we've had her our whole lives and we wonder what we ever did before she arrived!

Life is good around our house, we're enjoying everything and cherishing each moment. It's amazing how fast and how much she is changing!! Her hair is so much lighter and is growing in the back already. I think she has my straight hair? Other than that, she is her father's child all the way. Everyone says that she looks just like Matt, and I have to agree!

She makes us laugh all the time. Her grunts, her expressions, her yawns, her sighs, her mouth crinkling up to form a perfect "O" while sticking out her tongue, the way she cuts her eyes at us, her tiny little eyebrows going up if she's trying to figure something out....every single thing she does is precious, and new, and we love it all.

Still thanking God for each and every moment!

Libby and her Dad

Ok, here is another video of Libby. This time, its Libby and me playing together. Look at that wide-open yawn!

A smile to Mommy

For those of you looking for your daily dose of Libby, we've got a nice little video for you. This was shot this morning, while she and Mom were hanging out on the bed. There's a smile in there for you to see. Enjoy.

15 Days Old

Cannot believe she's 15 days old today - she is getting too big, too fast! I love the videos of our girl taking her first bath. She is so awesome. I am having so much fun getting to know her, seeing her personality come out, and spending such wonderful time with her. We both fall in love with the little princess more and more everyday!



She is currently resting in her bassinet beside me (with the hiccups) so I wanted to take advantage of this time to write a bit about her and what she's up to these days.

First of all, she loves to eat. I mean, she LOVES to eat. :) She is latching on from miles away and she can sense my presence from afar. It's very cute and tiring and fulfilling (for us both) all at the same time. We're on a great schedule - called "Libby's Schedule" for now. I'm nursing on demand and sometimes that means once every 1.5 hours, once every 3 hours, or once an hour for 40 minutes at a time, then have a diaper change, then back at it again. I think she'd sleep through the night if I let her, but we're getting up every 3 hours for some midnight snacks. Our nighttimes together are priceless. She just looks at me, smiles, frowns, sighs, coos, and makes me know that I was born to be her mommy. I am so in love! It's the best having that time with her, without any interruptions. Just the two of us. Sometimes Dad gets up with us and when he does, we both just talk about how we can't imagine what we did before her!

We get up in the mornings and she loves to be cuddled and talked to while her diaper is changed. She looks outside the whole time, completely content and happy. I get in her face and kiss her a million times and she just opens her mouth and loves it. And Dad makes funny faces and opens his mouth and she copies him as best she can. Very sweet!! She loves her Daddy! It is such a special relationship that they share, I love seeing how they interact with each other. Already it's obvious how important that relationship is!! She has a wonderful Dad.

She is a stretcher - loves to stretch her arms and legs. She just lies there and makes the funniest sounds.

Yawning - for a little baby she is a big yawner! And she opens her mouth so wide and for so long. This little squeaky sound comes out of her mouth that sounds like a dolphin, so I call her Flipper sometimes!

We don't nap very much during the day - she went through a few days where there was confusion between night and daytime, and we're still figuring that out. But I'm resting much more than I was in the beginning. She allows for that during the night these days, which is so nice. I'm not bragging I promise, she is just a GREAT baby!!

It's way too hot to be outside with her, but I'm just so anxious to take her out for walks. I just can't do that with the temp being so high though. I am ready for Fall!

She's holding her head up - if I have her cuddled up to my neck, she strains and reaches up with her little hands and pulls back so she can see my face. She likes to track where I am and what I'm doing.

I do a lot of singing to her, her favorites are Jesus Loves Me and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. She is also a fan of the alphabet, she laughs (I'm not kidding) when I sing, "LMNOP".....those notes makes her happy.

I play classical music for her when she is about to fall asleep...no clue if it makes a difference but it does make the mood in the house very calm and peaceful. Her favorite sound on the sound machine on the bassinet mobile is the ocean. Like mother, like daughter - an Island Girl through and through!

Another song we sing to her: "Wake up Little Libby, Wake Up!" - to the tune of "Wake up Little Susie, Wake Up" - she loves it even though we can't sing or hold a tune!

She loves to see her fingers and hands in front of her face, I imagine she did that while in the womb and she's still very fond of her little hands. So am I.

Hiccups - at least once a day. While I was pregnant the precious baby got them once a day, at least as well, usually around 10 pm every night. Poor little girl!

She just gets better everyday. I know I keep saying that but it's so true! When she's sleeping, I miss her and just want to wake her up. Like right now, I'm looking at her sound asleep, listening to sweet breathing and little noises and I can't wait for her to open those big blue eyes and look at me. Thank you Lord for our little Angel.

Libby's first bath (Part III)

Here is Part III of Libby's first bath. Scroll down for Parts I and II.

Libby's first bath (Part II)

Like I promised, here is Part II of Libby's first bath. Scroll down for Part I. Enjoy.

Libby's first bath (Part I)

Well, here it is! Here's Libby's first bath. Here is the first of several videos of the experience. Our camera doesn't have sound on it, so just imagine sounds in the background for now. She was a litttle cold, a little confused and a little scared, but she is squeaky clean now. We'll post follow up bath shots a little later.

Our Baby Girl

Is getting so big...so fast. Time is flying by for us, and she is changing right before our eyes.

We are holding on tight.

She is simply amazing.

Lying on Mom & Dad's bed SUCH a cuddlebug!
Resting in her bassinett

So sweet

Having her diaper changed Playing with Mommy

Thank you!

Amy and I wanted to thank everyone for their outpouring of support. The love and support that everyone has shown has blown us away. I am sure of one thing: Libby has more love, support and prayers than any baby ever has. While there are too many thanks to divy out over this blog we wanted to include a few pictures of our family and friends around this time. From each of our parents to our friends and the cath lab, we thank you for your love and support.

Ka-Zoom-tite!

I couldn't resist posting this little video up on the web. Here, she has a little back-to-back sneeze that I that was cute. Enjoy.

Lessons learned the hard way

Mathematics for new Dads:

One new Dad plus one new baby = Lessons learned the hard way.

Today's Video

Libby is so calm and mild mannered, she doesn't even mind having her mouth suctioned. In fact, I think that she likes it. We shot this video while I suctioned her mouth with the bulb suction. Her expression the whole time cracks me up.

The Nap

The Nap. A simple moment of peace and quiet to close your eyes. Sometimes they're on the couch. Sometimes in the bed under the covers, or even in the living room chair. Prior to last week, I would have never thought that naps occur from 2:15 AM to 3:30 AM; that's when you should just be asleep. I didn't realize that there are times in your life, when you don't go to bed, you only nap. It seems that we are in one of those periods. As of today, I don't think that Amy has slept more than three hours straight. Currently, she lives between naps. Nevertheless, Amy and I agree we wouldn't want it any other way. Libby is such a gift in our lives that it blows us away. Since much of our time is spent in naps or between naps, I wanted to include a few pictures that gave a nod to The Nap.

Happy Monday!

Well, its Monday and Libby, Amy and I are all alone. Amy's mom and sister left yesterday, which was a huge help to us while they were here. We couldn't have gotten through this week without Amy's mom passing on all the tips and tricks of caring for a newborn.

I think that Amy and I would both admit that parenting is much harder than we anticipated. Its not that its unmanageable, or not worth it --- quite the contrary, in fact. However, the around-the-clock feedings are wearing us out. Admittedly, Amy bears the brunt of these constant feedings, but she has done it with a smile practically tattooed on her face. The upshot to the nocturnal nature of little Libby is that she is the happiest during the midnight hours. Below is a snapshot of Libby lovin' the wee hours of the morning.

Waking up from a morning nap

I wanted to throw another video up on the web. We shot this one this morning, and I have to say that this fully represents her demeanor whenever she is awake. In this video, she is just waking up from a nap on her Mom's chest. Remarkably, Libby is so calm and peaceful right now that I have to say it really is amazing. I'm not sure where she got this trait, but we both love it.

Bed Time

Libby had a long day today, and she was just pooped out. She'll wake up tomorrow in her new Home.

Coming home

      Finally! Five days ago we gathered the family, packed our bags, and headed to the hospital to meet our newest addition to the family. After five of the most beautiful days, we're heading home to show Libby her new nursery. We showed her the nursery, her crib, and new her backyard. Although she slept through most of the tour, we know that she loved it.



     Now that we're home, this place feels entirely different. Its impossible to explain, but everything has taken on a new meaning. The old, beat-up couches are now the couches that Libby is going to crawl all over in 12 months. The hand-me-down oriental rug may be where Libby will run down on a distant Christmas morning. Sure, one day at a time, and we're counting our blessings that Libby has been healthy so far, but its hard not to envision Libby throughout this house. Here are some pictures of the homecoming.

Falling Asleep

Here's a quick movie for those you wanting a little more than still photographs. Here she is in the hospital, about to fall asleep. Oh, yeah, and she has the hiccups.

Three Days Old

Here we are on Day Three. Libby continues to grow more and more each day. We're still in the process of assigning her facial features to her parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents. It seems as though everyday we determine that her eyes come from a different family member. I think at this point, the only thing we can say is that every aspect of her is small part of all of our family members.

 

 

 

 

Two Tired New Parents

Two days.

Forty-eight hours.

The last two days have been simply amazing. Everything else in life really does pale in comparison. Little Libby has brought a new joy to our lives that has been life altering, but also a little tiring. We wanted to share a little moment of downtime during one of Libby's naps. Although life is a little draining now, its more fulfilling than it ever has been.

 

Good Mornin'

Libby woke up this morning in bright spirits. She has been doing great so far and continues to amaze us in every way. The bonding between Amy and the baby is beautiful to watch; Libby fully knows who her parents are at this point. Amy continues to feel great and we hope to head home soon.

 

See you in the morning

One last post for the night. Libby will see you in the morning.

 

Little Libby

Well, the updates continue to roll in. We have more pictures that we wanted to share with the rest of our friends and family. The pictures below were taken this afternoon during Libby's nap. Amy and the baby are doing great.