A Blog of Firsts

I know that Mary Elizabeth has only been with us for one month, but it feels like she's been here a lot longer. I also know that I'm turning into a cheesy mom with photographing just about everything she does, but I wanted to show a few of her "firsts" with you all.

In one month, here are some of the firsts that we have experienced:
~She's already attended her first Razorback watching party. You can tell by everyone looking at her that she never actually watched the game (she takes after me...I like the social aspect of football better).
~She celebrated New Year's by sleeping in with her daddy.
~Drew gave her the first bottle. I know that isn't a big deal to most, but it was for me and Drew since I'm nursing. We didn't know about the different bottle sizes and we pretty much drowned her with the first bottle. So it was quite an experience!
~She helped her Uncle Brant and Aunt Kari move into their new house. She loved painting!
~We finally got to bathe her! Again, not that uncommon, but it took forever for her umbilical cord to fall off, so we got to try this Friday night.
~Oh, and she's going to get her dose of boys since all of our friends either have boys, or are about to have boys. She's already held hands and received her first kiss on the lips from Will. Drew's still getting over this. :)

The things we do for our children

First, I have to say thanks a million to my parents for all of the things they did for me growing up. I now have come to appreciate the phrase "The things we do for our children" as I did something last night that I never dreamt that I would have done in my lifetime. I camped out for a daycare spot. Yes, you did read correctly..I said daycare, not a concert ticket.

My church has a great daycare and registration for the fall was held this morning for church members. I have heard that people camp out for this, but I thought it was a rumor--I stand corrected. There were only 2 spots available for Mary Elizabeth's age group, so it was suggested that I camp out for it. Drew and I scoped out the daycare area after church yesterday and saw an unofficial sign up sheet to show that people were already in line (really sitting in their cars) since 10:30 Sunday morning. Luckily, I was the only one at that time that was trying to register for Mary Elizabeth's class. After fretting all day about what to do and complaining about this crazy process, I'm thankful that I did it. I went back to the church last night at 7 to claim my "bed" in the youth worship center, then at about 7:30, several others showed up. Luckily, only 1 other girl was there for the other spot in Mary Elizabeth's class. But about 1 hour later, another couple showed up for the same class. When they realized that the 2 of us were already there for the last 2 spots, they left. So I guess it was worth camping out for daycare.

I can't believe she's already 1 month old and I've already learned what that phrase truly means. And I'm sure that this is just the beginning of many other "things" I'll do for her. :)

On another note, I've mentioned that Mary Elizabeth is stubborn just like her daddy, and does things on her own time. But I'm excited to say that her umbilical cord FINALLY fell off, so I guess we're going to attempt a real bath tonight. I'm excited!!!

Has a month really gone by?!?!?!

I can't believe that Mary Elizabeth is already 1 month old!!! It seems like just yesterday I was panicking before checking into the hospital because I was nervous and excited all at the same time. Now I know that there was no need to fret. Honestly, after she came out, I said that I was ready to do it again. But I have come to my senses and realize that I need to take in all of my time with Mary Elizabeth first and catch up with my sleep.
Anyway, we have had so much fun together and I feel so lucky to have such a wonderful baby. Although we're still trying to get a sleep schedule worked out, everything else seems to really be going great. She's finally starting to stay awake longer during the day, so I get more playtime with her. She's nursing great, she is starting to really focus intently on things (i.e. her mobile and Dixie), and Drew seems to be getting more comfortable with her. By the way, Dixie is a great big sis! She was a little tired just like us the 1st week, but now she has to be wherever me and Mary Elizabeth are at all times.

As much as I'm loving this sweet, cuddly stage, I can't wait to see what kind of lady she turns into and what the next months entail. Happy 1-month Birthday, Mary Elizabeth!

Christmas at VeVe's

On Christmas Eve, we headed over to Drew's mom's house for Christmas. This was our very 1st outing. Since it was only a day after we got out of the hospital, it was a little hard to get there on time. We only showed up 1 hour later, thanks to my mom helping us out get ready. Even though we were late, we still had a great time.

Mary Elizabeth's 1st Christmas

As soon as we got home from the hospital, we were out the door the next day to celebrate Christmas. I know that Mary Elizabeth had a great time!

1 week checkup

We went to our 1st doctor's appointment on Dec. 28. Besides Christmas time, this was her first outting and she did great!

Mary Elizabeth has already passed her birth weight! Her doctor, thankfully, told me that I could actually skip some of her feedings (she was eating every hour at night). Drew and I misunderstood the nurses at the hospital. We thought I was supposed to feed her every time she was hungry for the whole 1st week, but her Dr. told us that I should have stopped that by about day 4. So now I am actually getting to sleep! So are Dixie and Drew!

I know that this is so mommish, but I took pix of her 1st visit. Drew's going to have to get used to that. Yes, she is getting her "dome" measured to show to all of Drew's friends that it isn't too big. :)

Tempus fugit

As Drew has always said, "Tempus Fugit" ("Time flies when you're having fun"). It's hard to believe that Mary Elizabeth is already 3 weeks old! These past 22 days have flown by. So with that said, I apologize for not being more up-to-date with posting pictures of our sweet angel. I really don't know where my time has gone each day, but I do know that my life has totally changed and I've enjoyed just about every second of it.

A lot of my friends have asked me how delivery went and I found out that there was misunderstanding of how I delivered, so I'm going to quickly tell you about our hospital visit.

Just before we headed to the hospital.

We checked into the hospital Wed., Dec. 19 at 9 pm. I got my 1st dose of Cytatec (sp?) at 10 pm to help me start to dilate. Then I got another dose at 4 am on Dec. 20th, hoping to break my water at 10:30 am. However, when Dr. Simmons checked on me, I still hadn't dilated (this is what I mean when I say that Mary Elizabeth is stubborn like her daddy -- she wants to do things on her own terms). So I got another dose of Cytatec and finally things started to progress a little. He finally broke my water around 6 pm on Dec. 20 then told us it was going to be a long night. Which it was! Not just for me, who was sitting in that uncomfortable bed and hadn't eaten since Wed. night at 7 pm, but also for Drew and our parents. Finally, Fri. morning at 3 am, Dr. Simmons checked on me and said that I would be ready to push in about 1 hour. And I did just that and out came Mary Elizabeth at 5:12 am. So we did get to avoid the c-section, thankfully!


I feel very fortunate to have had such a great delivery, even though the process prior to that was long. And I feel very fortunate to have such a great baby! God truly is a miracle worker!!!


Here are some more pictures of her. I hope that you enjoy them.