Hi All!  It's been a long time and I share every excuse all new Moms have about why I haven't kept up with my blog, but I'm pretty sure I have a fairly forgiving set of friends and family.  Our little miss Maebry Olive will be ONE in a week and half.  While thinking back about how quickly the time has passed makes my heart hurt a little, but I'm so grateful for the chance to watch her grow every day.  Like most people, I can't believe how quickly the year has passed and in total awe of how much she has changed since we first met at 1:38 pm on February 6th, 2012.

Here she is just a few hours old and posing well for the camera!

 

Now, she is SO busy...even her pediatrician comments on how curious/busy she is. We have to put the camera on sport shoot, take about 200 pictures and hope that a few turn out well. It does give us the chance to take some pretty funny pictures though.

Our sweet-faced baby amazes us everyday!  She walks (with the assistance of her "scoot"), talks, only wants to feed herself (baby food was short lived in our house) and has amazing ingenuity.  She is definitely a "do-er".  When she runs into an obstacle she will proceed to spend her time trying to figure out how to get around it and wants no help from us.  She is amazing, beautiful, smart, loving, strong willed, funny, and more than we ever could have asked for.  She is truly the closest thing to perfection that we have ever had the chance to be a part of.  She is a miracle.  Her curiosity baffles me on a regular basis.  She spends her time studying our dogs ears, trying to figure out how move the kitchen table chairs out of her way, testing which pieces of furniture are optimal for helping her cruise around of living room, pulling everything out of my purse/toy box/laundry basket/cabinets (basically anything you can store stuff in), etc, etc!

For me, this has been a banner year.  It's amazing how much your body goes through in such a short period of time.  It has been a year of "firsts", for sure.  Thankfully, I have a an awesome husband (you're a ROCK STAR hunny!) a great job, a very empathetic employer, and an outstanding, loving support system.  I really couldn't ask for more...but I did!  I have the best baby ever too...that is being said without bias of course!

Later in life, she will hate when I tell these stories...Now, for a funny story about the little miss.  Maebs has a pooping routine.  It usually occurs after I've dressed her for school and while she's eating breakfast.  She will lean to one side in her high chair and with a very serious look on her face start to grunt.  This means business folks!  I think if she could pull a curtain around herself, she would.  So, the other morning she was doing her thing and I thought she was done, so I checked her diaper to make sure it wasn't a false alarm.  Well, it turns out she was not done yet and she proceeded to yell/make nonsensical sounds in protest, at me, because I had apparently interrupted her progress.  There was no crying...it was a clear protest of my interference.  If I had been able to get it on camera I would submit to America's Funniest Home videos.  I laughed at her for 10 min afterwards.  The lesson here, like most people she prefers privacy and to be left alone while dropping a deuce.  HA!  

Now for your viewing pleasure, here are a few pictures of her from this year.

 

For a period of time, Tyson really liked the "mohawk" look on her.  

   

Maebs birthday is next weekend, so hopefully I can get it together afterwards to blog again.  Until next time, I hope you enjoyed this one!

Maebs is 2 months Old!

Hey All! Maebry turned two months this past weekend. I honestly can't figure out where the time has gone, but she (just like everyone says) is growing incredibly fast! It was a big weekend of events. First she turned 2 months, then it was her first Easter, and my Mom's (G-Ma's) birthday. Her big weekend is turning into a big week too. I started back to work this week, so she had her first day of daycare today. She did marvelously. I on the other cried through the whole thing. The water works started before we even left the house, this morning, and continued all the way to work. It was awful, but I'm glad we are over that hump. I know the whole experience was worse for me than for her. The women at her daycare were so sweet to me and put up with me calling all day to check on her. It felt good knowing they were trying to hard to take care of me and I took it as a reflection of how they treat my sweet, face little girl. Leaving her was still one of the hardest things I've done though. I don't wish that feeling on anyone! Next up this week is her two month appointment and first round of immunizations. This time I think the tears will be flowing from both of us this time around.

Maebry has started to become really fun. She has discovered her tongue and likes to stick it out all the time, enjoys her play mat more and is willing to spend more time on it alone, she smiles in response to things rather than just because, and we've discovered that she is a morning person (a gift from her Dad...not her Mom).

On to the pictures...

This is the play mat she has really started to enjoy!

The good mood continues after her play time


Simply for the sake of it being such a sweet picture. She has been a huge fan of the full swaddle until recently. By the time the morning comes her arm(s) are usually sticking out in some form or fashion.


YEAH, I'M TWO MONTHS!!!


This was her wardrobe change so the pictures could continue. I think at this point, she was over the whole camera and picture thing....



Her Easter outfit from G-Ma



We had visitors on Easter Sunday. Grandpa Greg and Grammy came over to see her. She always has a good time with them!






By the end of the day she was pooped and Tyson took advantage of the moment. She, obviously, approved of the snuggle buddy.

I hope you guys enjoyed the pictures. I'll post the stats from her Doctor's appointment at the next post.

Maebry is Already Six Weeks Old...Yes, I am that behind!

Hi Everyone! I have no excuse, for not posting an update sooner, other than we've been busy. Our little Maebs will be six weeks old on Monday. I can't believe how quickly the time has passed and how much she has changed. I feel like she has grown so much, but she is still so tiny. It's strange to think how much Tyson and I have changed as well. We went from having non-kid friendly plans every weekend to making sure we plan naps and feedings before deciding what our weekend plans will be. Ha! How quickly things change! Truthfully, I can't imagine it any other way now. We are parents of a sweet faced, little girl and I wouldn't have it any other way. We are so in love and smitten by our little person! Well, on to the good stuff:

• Maebry now weighs 9.5 lbs and has the cutest chubby cheeks to prove it.
• She is sleeping 4-5 hr stretches between feedings at night...which I LOVE!!!!
  
• She has started to smile more and is more aware/active now. She even makes little noises just because now.
• We have ventured out to the Denver Nature & Science Museum, the Denver Zoo, to our favorite restaurant (Vine Street), and we run errands together now. For a while, she was quarantined to our house, but we are now free to take her out and about.
• She thoroughly enjoys out daily walk. She prefers to ride in style via her stroller and car seat, but sometimes we use the Moby.
  

Now for some pictures. I've been trying to take pictures of her as often as I can remember, so I can document how fast she is growing, so enjoy!

Right after she was born

Get Ready...Being released from the hospital! She was so tiny she didn't fit the "going home" outfit I packed for her.



The first week at home



Almost Two Weeks





Five Weeks Old and Enjoying the Nice Weather!







Almost Six Weeks and Obviously Enjoying our Zoo Outing

Things We've Learned:

• Sleep is more valuable than gold! I never thought I would covet 8 straight hours of sleep as much as I do now.
• Laundry has become a pass time...instead of a "I guess I'll do laundry today". It never ends. As soon as I think the laundry is done a new pile sprouts up immediately. It's astonishing how much laundry such a little body creates.
• A child can make your day fly by. It's amazing how quickly taking care of your child can fill your day.
• You must always wait for the poopy diaper. If we don't have patience for the poopy diaper we end up burning through multiple diapers before Maebry is done with her business.
• Rushing and doing things last minute is no longer worth it! A child forces you to exercise more patience.
  
• One should always carry at least one change of clothes for the baby and a keep a spare shirt in the car for Mommy. Spit up and explosive diapers can be very unfortunate if you aren't prepared.
• You don't need near as much stuff to raise a baby as your Baby Shower Registry convinces you of.

I could preach on and on about the lessons I've learned, so far, only to know that everyday will be accompanied with new lessons for me to learn.

Today we took Maebry to the Denver Zoo. While she slept through a majority of the outing it was fun to get out as a family.

Getting Ready to go to the Zoo

Peek a Boo

At the Zoo

Back Home and Settling in the for the Evening...I love her face in this picture!

And down for the Count...

I hope everyone enjoys the post and pictures. I will try to be more diligent about posting updates in the future!

The time has finally come...40 plus weeks!

The big day has finally arrived. I'm being induced tonight! We will be heading to hospital around 10:00pm, tonight, to start the induction process. That's right, folks we will be meeting our little boy or girl sometime in the next 36 hours...hopefully sooner rather than later! I've spent the past week watching the time fly by in eager anticipation and nervous excitement. I feel like I've done everything to get ready, but there seems like there is so much more. Ha! Ready or not...here the baby comes. I will do my best to keep everyone posted, but know this is the last post and picture of me with a baby bump. Next time you check in, you'll have a baby to see!

Look forward to the next post!

Baby Watch 2012...I'll be 39 weeks on Friday

We are officially in baby watch mode! I had some false labor last week and when I go on walks, I can walk myself into contractions. So far the contractions aren't sticking around, but they are definitely there. My bag is packed, the baby swing and bassinet are in place, and the car seat waiting for us to bring the baby home in it. We are ready!!!!! Now, the baby just has to be here so we can realize how unprepared we are. Ha! At this point, I'm not going to lie and say that I feel good...I'm tired, my back hurts, and I sleep for about two hours at a time. Other than that, we're good.

The baby weighs about 7 lbs and is about 20 in long. It moves around a lot and it's engaged for delivery. Needless to say, it's fully developed and ready to make it's entrance! Honestly, I don't think the baby is going to come this week though. I think it will be next week...hopefully after my birthday.

This weeks it's about the size of a mini watermelon

I had my 38 week appointment today and things are good. My blood pressure is great, the babies heartbeat is strong, and it continues to grow. We toured the hospital where I'm going to deliver, last week, and preregistered so all we have to do is show up. I was pretty impressed with the delivery rooms and the different services they offer.

I hope you everyone has a wonderful week and I'll be sure to keep everyone posted!

Working on 37 Weeks!

Well, folks we are getting really close!! I had my 36 week appointment on Monday and my doctor is pretty pleased with my progress. I had my Group Strep B test and she checked whether I've dilated any. So far, I'm dilated to 1 cm, the babies head is still down, and I'm a little effaced!! I go back this coming Tuesday because I've started my weekly appointments. So, we are officially on the "sit and wait" schedule. The good news is that we're only going to have to wait till February 10th. This past Friday, the baby weighed about 6 lbs., is about 19.5 in. long and it's body is ready to role for delivery. My body is starting to feel really ready too! I feel better than I thought I would, but some days can be rough. I can definitely see why pregnant women are characterized as irritable...backaches, fatigue, and lack of being able to find comfortable positions create the perfect storm for an attitude.

This week the baby is the about the length of a leek

I finally finished putting together the babies room a couple weeks ago. Everything is unpacked, sorted, and assembled. I didn't hang any pictures and haven't bought any decorations for the nursery yet since we don't know the gender yet.

Here are my attempts at taking my own belly picture

Well, I will be sure to keep everyone up to date on any progress. I hope everyone has a great week!