Play Toys

This weekend, daddy and Grace discovered new toys. Jonas re-discovered or shall we re-fueled his love for boats. We took Grace to a boat show in Long Beach yesterday. Jonas was like a kid in a candy store with his eyes glazed over at the sight of all those boats. He loves sail boats, but he has a growing appreciation for motor boats... Especially this boat...yacht was amazing! I'm not much for boats, but I can definitely see myself cruising the open seas in this boat! It had three levels with a jacuzzi on the top level. For now, window shopping is all we can do!
We put Grace in her play mat for the first time today. I wasn't sure if she was ready for it, but she loved it.
All the colors and toys captured her attention. It was cute to watch her gaze go from toy to toy. A couple of times she reached out with her hands as if trying to reach them. It was cute to watch her explore the play mat.
It's amazing to see her growing developmentally. She is developing more head control and has strong hand grips.
Blessings!
Beth

6 weeks!

Grace is six weeks old! Time is going by too fast! We visited Grace's pediatrian today. Grace is growing! She's 11 pounds 8 ounces (87th percentile) and 24 inches (100th percentile!)...the Doctor said it looks like Grace will be tall. Neither Jonas nor I are very tall...she must get the tall genes from Jonas' maternal side of the family.

Here is Grace at the Doctor's office waiting to get her first round of vaccinations. She was so good during the entire appointment...smiling and cooing at the doctor and the nurses. Then the vaccinations happened! It was very traumatic for me...I cried when she started crying. She was so good though...as soon as they were done, I breastfed her. She cried while eating, but quickly calmed down and after a while, she fell asleep. We will have more vaccinations when she is four months old. Such an awful experience, but I know those vaccinations are good for her. As a mother, I just experienced how much I don't want her to feel pain or go through hardships. All I can do is pray for her and prepare her for life...life is messy!
I took this picture of Grace last night. She looked so cute in her strawberry themed outfit. She is still wearing 0-3 months clothes, but is starting to fit into 3 months outfits. This particular outfit is 3 months. The pants are still long, but the onesie fits perfectly.


Here's a short video of our little cutie...she talks to us a lot right after we change her diaper. I think she likes lying down on her changing pad. The nurse commented today that she will probably be a talker! Just like her daddy!!!

My heart is so full of love! I am so blessed and thankful for this sweet baby girl that the Lord has blessed us with.
Blessings,
Beth

Our Little Cutie

Here's a little video we took of Grace. She learned a couple of weeks ago how to stick out her tongue and now she is doing it frequently. It's pretty cute. Enjoy.

Blessings,
Beth

Happy 1 Month Birthday!

Grace is one month old today! It's hard to believe that it is already one month since we welcomed her into the world! She has been growing like crazy! She no longer fits into her newborn clothes and we are finishing up the last of her newborn diapers before we transition her to the next size up! It's fun to watch her grow, but sad too. She's still small, but not as small as when we first brought her home. Her legs seem so long to me. I wonder if she'll grow up to be tall. She's has what seems like long fingers too. She's such a beauty to Jonas and I.

Grace is such a great baby! She slept 5 hours last night before she stirred to be fed and have her diaper changed...then went back to sleep for another four hours. Mommy and daddy are getting a lot of rest at nights. Thank God!! Yesterday, she lifted her head during tummy time and she has been smiling at us for over a week now. She's such a joy! We feel very blessed by the Lord with Grace and how it easy it has been to be her parents. I pray that it will always be easy to be her parents.

I have been doing well. I love being home with Grace and I'm not that excited about going back to work in October. I wondered if being home would drive me crazy, but quite the opposite. I find there is a lot to do, errands to run, and feeding Grace takes up a lot of time too. I love breastfeeding her...it's such a bonding experience. I am surprised by how I feel toward being at home with her.

I love that face! Love it! So cute...and she's got daddy's cheeks. I can't wait to see the person she will become.
I finally attempted to scrapbook...I almost finished a double layout for my pregnancy scrapbook...it's been lying on my desk for the last four days waiting to be finished. I usually hate leaving layouts undone, but it's been hard to get back into my scrapbooking room to finish! I'll share once they are completed.
Blessings,
Beth

Parenthood

Life has been crazy and incredible these past three weeks. My days have been engulfed by taking care of Grace...I am so enjoying being her mother. She is such a joy to both Jonas and I. She's a great little baby. Last night she slept 5 hours straight...which made me very happy. I have learned not to wake a sleeping baby! At first, I'd wake her during the night to feed her because I was trying to stick to the every 2 1/2 to 3 hour feeding schedule. Not anymore, I figure she'll wake up when she's hungry. Right?

Grace at 3 weeks old.

We took Grace to her three week follow up Dr. appointment this past week and she is now at 8lb 90z! That's over a pound in growth since she was born. And she is now at 21.6 inches...also over an inch in growth! She's growing! It makes us realize that we need to enjoy every moment with her because she is changing right before our eyes!
Grace is every bit her daddy's girl! Jonas loves her and has such a special way with her. And she seems very alert to his voice, face, and presence. It is so neat to see them interact with each other. She has started to smile at him when he coos at her.


It's really amazing just how much we love Grace. It's a love that I have never felt before for anyone...a mother's love. It makes me understand just a bit more of how much God loves us in so many ways. Love is an amazing thing and has so many facets. God made us in his image and fashioned us perfectly in the womb according to his perfect plan. Grace is exactly as God planned her to be and we get the awesome privilege of being her parents. Amazing!
Blessings,
Beth

Welcome Baby Grace!

Gosh, it's been a long time since I've posted! It's been crazy! Well, our sweet baby Grace finally made her debut. She was born Friday, July 23rd at 9:33am. Weighing in at 7 pounds, 6 ounces and 20.5 inches.
She is so precious and just like that our lives have been forever changed by this amazing little girl.
My O.B. decided to induce me Thursday, July 22nd because I was already overdue and my amniotic fluid was dangerously low. We left the doctor's office, went home, took the dogs to get boarded, loaded up our hospital bags, and headed to the hospital. The O.B. was going to do a procedure on me with a foley bulb, which is like a balloon to help me dilate. I was still only 1 centimeter dilated at the time. We arrived at the hospital at around 2pm and at 4pm they started the procedure. I was warned that if it was successful, it could talke up to 72 hours to get me dilated to 5 centimeters! By 10pm that night, I was at 5 centimeters! They took the bulb out and gave me an epidural. No way was I going to proceed without one! Hats off to all you ladies out there who give birth without one! Thanks to the epidural, I was able to sleep through most of the night. By 8am Friday morning, I was at 10 centimeters and ready to push. I pushed for an hour and a half. Grace was born at 9:33am. We instantly fell in love with her the minute we laid eyes on her. So precious! What an experience!

Since then, we have been enjoying Grace. She is so sweet and such a great baby. She sleeps, eats, poops, and pees. The normal stuff. She is starting to have more awake/alert time. It's so much fun bonding with her. I'm doing well. Tired, but with such a feeling of elation. Thankfully, the last three nights, she has slept through the night. I've had to wake her to feed her.
Daddy is smitten! He said he was so overwhelmed with emotion the moment he laid eyes on her. He has such a way with Grace and she recognizes her daddy's voice. It's sweet to see her stare at him when he talks to her or she hears his voice. She is such a joy!
Praying you have a blessed week!
Beth

The Waiting Game

Sorry for my absence...I haven't had much to report or to share. It's now five days after baby's due date and no baby. She is already on L.A. time and will be here fashionably late! This is all a test of my patience, which I already have little of. I'm trying to rest, keep busy, but it's hard not to think about it. I am so longing to meet our baby that with each passing day, it makes it hard to wait. I have my OB appointment tomorrow. Hopefully, there will be some good news. As much as I didn't want to be induced, at this point, I would welcome it.
Not much on the papercrafting front. I've been working on two Yo Gabba Gabba chipboard albums. I'll post them on my Etsy store as soon as I'm done with them. I also went on a scrapbooking shopping spree yesterday. I bought this really cute set of Halloween paper...I'll be working on Halloween chipboard albums as well. I made a few last year and they came out really cute. This paper is a lot cuter than what I used last year.
Hoping you are having a great week.
Blessings,
Beth