Baptism

What a beautiful day for a baptism!  We are truly blessed to have such a wonderful church family.  It is amazing to see God's love for us each and every day when we look at our baby girl.

With the baptism approaching, I spent some time reflecting on the meaning.  It is so awe-inspiring that God loves us like He does.  Only now, that I know the amount of love that I feel for my child, can I imagine the amount of love our father feels for us. 

It is so amazing that my baby girl has now been baptized and will be raised in God's love.

Chatter

Kaitlyn has begun to chatter!!!  There is nothing greater (in my world anyway) then getting to sit down and just talk to her, see her smile and hear her reply. I love to sit and listen to her discover new sounds that she can make.

Yesterday, hubby and I got to wake up to her happily squealing!  When I went into her room to get her, she was just kicking and moving all over and having a ball.  Nothing better than a happy baby in the mornings!

I'm so excited to continue to see her grow and change.  We are truly loved to have been blessed with such a wonderful little girl.  God is good!!

Sick little girl

No one warned me of the many heart-breaking moments of being a mommy.  I didn't realize that it would hurt me so much when my little girl was hurting.

Kaitlyn hasn't been feeling well and we ended up going to the pediatrician on Wednesday. She was running a fever, coughing, stuffed up, and had diarrhea. I was worried that she would have RSV. Thank goodness she doesn't!!!!  The doctor says she's just suffering from a cold.

It just breaks my heart to see her hurting and in pain.  She's so tired, but wakes herself up by coughing.  Needless to say, we've gotten a lot of snuggle time in the past few days and will probably get quite a bit more as she gets back to feeling well.

Going to work with an infant....

I work as an administrative assistant at our church.  I absolutely LOVE my job.  The people are wonderful, the work is fulfilling, and my schedule is super flexible!  It's a perfect fit for me, especially now that we have Kaitlyn!

I'm very blessed because the SPRC committee is allowing me to bring Kaitlyn with me to work for the first few months.  I really wanted to take 3 months off for maternity leave, but since I'm the only employee it just wasn't going to work.  Being able to bring Kaitlyn with me is much better than having to put her in daycare at such a young age.

That being said......I miss being productive!  It is so hard to concentrate and get something done!  My office isn't super busy and I don't need a lot of uninterrupted time to do what I need to get done.  But sometimes, I really need to!  Thank goodness Mitch is willing to hang out with her for a few hours while I run to the church to get a few things done! :)

As she grows, I'm reminded that I need to relish in these moments and enjoy every second....even if it means getting nothing done!

One Month

It's hard to believe that Kaitlyn has been here for a month already!

At one month, Kaitlyn:

• Eats every 2-3 hours during the day. 
• Goes to bed at 8pm and wakes between 3am and 6am to nurse.  (That's right, she sleeps for a good 7 hours!) After eating, she goes back to sleep for a few hours, usually until 8am!
• Loves to hear our voices!  She can be screaming her head off but as soon as one of us starts talking to her, we have her undivided attention. 
• Also loves our mouths!  She stares at our mouths moving. Apparently we're pretty interesting!
• Is starting to notice things going on around her.  She'll catch someone (Mitch, Buster, Ace or I) walking by and turn her head to see us. 
• Is becoming interested in her hands.  She sees that she has hands and loves to stare at them. 
• Isn't a fan of tummy time.  She pushes herself onto her side using her legs.
• Loves walks in the stroller. She falls asleep in no time! (okay, maybe her parents love it more than she does.) 
• Is learning to like the swing and bouncer.  She is getting more tolerant of seats instead of Mom or Dad. 
• Has completely captured our hearts!

Update

Wow, where has time gone!  It's been forever since I posted.....maybe because it's been a big adjustment!  Nothing could have prepared me for life with a newborn! It's amazing that someone can take over your life so completely.

Since Kaitlyn's arrival I've learned:

• That the amount of love you can feel for one person is amazing!  I love my husband, but I've never felt such a deep, unconditional love like this before. 
• Sleep is over-rated! I got a total of 7 hours of sleep in the 3 days we were in the hospital......I was to excited about our little girl! I've adjusted to lots less sleep, and haven't had too many sleep-deprived breakdowns!
• Not all newborns wake up every 2 hours.....Along with the last point, we've been blessed with a good sleeper!  Not having to get up every 2-3 hours at night is wonderful! I expected to have to. 
• Breastfeeding is hard and classes can't prepare you for what to expect!  Kaitlyn was tongue-tied so even with a perfect latch and doing everything right, things still weren't working. Thank goodness for pediatric dentists!

In the past month, our lives have changed drastically!  I can't imagine life without our precious little girl. Before, all I could think about was Taylor and how we were missing something.  The realization of having Kaitlyn in our lives hit me the other day.....She wouldn't be here if we hadn't lost Taylor. It was a hard pill to swallow when it hit me, but I've finally been able to see that God did have a plan for us, and Kaitlyn was it. 

Welcome Kaitlyn Grace!!!

Kaitlyn Grace

Born at 3:14pm on February 27th

9 lbs 9.4 oz       20 inches

It's hard to believe that God has blessed us with such an amazing miracle!