One-handed days

I'm typing this post one-handed. I've done most things with one hand today. Today I've been reminded of the countless tales my parents have told about my persnickety sleep habits as a child. My Dad loves to tell about rocking me to sleep, carrying me up the stairs as he tries to miss the creaky spots, and finally reaching my bedroom door. But then my eyes would pop open, my arms would fly out, and I would start crying. According to him, this was repeated several times each night.

Today I kind of know how he felt. Miss Evelyn has fought sleep today more than usual. Just as I get her to sleep and set her down, she pops those pretty blue eyes open. As a result, she's been in my arms most of the day. Even holding her, she will doze off only to wake up if I make any slight move that resembles setting her down.

But you know what? I don't mind. I'm figuring out how to manage. I figured out how to do laundry with one hand, go to the bathroom with one hand, and eat my lunch with one hand. I even wrote a blog post with one hand.

6 Weeks

 

Wednesday marked 6 weeks with our sweet Evelyn. She's getting so big and growing too fast! We're loving the changes she's making each day, the smiles, learning to "talk", and getting more into a routine.




I am starting to loosely see a little bit of a routine to our day. Evelyn isn't a big sleeper during the day. She prefers to take little 30 minute cat naps and generally one longer nap in the afternoon/early evening. She does pretty well at night. She's usually asleep around 10:30-11 and sleeps until around 3. Then she's up for an hour or two and goes back to sleep until 7.



We're very much nursing on demand, which is completely fine by me. She sometimes goes 30 minutes between feedings, sometimes three hours. Generally, I can count on about 2 hours. As you can tell by her pictures, she's a big eater! :)

Evelyn loves going on our morning walks with Sarah and Harlow. She is usually asleep by the end of our street and sleeps the whole time. She also likes being in the Moby wrap as I do household tasks or do the grocery shopping. She will stay awake and look around for a while, but then usually falls asleep. She  likes sitting in her bouncer (that doesn't bounce because I keep forgetting to put batteries in it), on the play mat, or in her rock in play for about 10 minutes at a time. The girl gets bored easily and likes a lot of variety. I'm afraid she might have her Daddy's ADD tendencies.



Some of her favorite things to do (besides eating) are bath time, laying on her changing table, looking at the ceiling fan, being outside, and being swaddled. She also loves being sung to. I seriously need to learn the words to more hymns. I currently sing "How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds," "Child of Grace," and "Just the Same Today" about 20 times a day. They're the only hymns I know all the words to. It's funny because in church I can sing most hymns without looking at the words. But when I try to sing them by myself, my mind goes completely blank.

Evelyn HATES tummy time! She also doesn't care for getting dressed after her bath. 

I'm feeling really good and pretty much back to normal. I'm  back to walking 3.5-4 miles most days and will soon be adding some more exercises to do at home to tone up and drop the baby weight. I'm usually wiped out by about 8:00 each night. We've gotten in the habit of getting ready for bed early and spending most of the evening in bed watching TV and snuggling. I love it!

 

Mother's Day

Yay! I figured out how to create a page using the My Memories Suite software I won in Kerry's giveaway back in March.

On another note, I had a wonderful first Mother's Day. Chris and Evelyn bought me a necklace with our three birthstones on it, a jewelry box, and sweet cards. We had a wonderful day at church followed by an afternoon/evening of spending time in bed cuddling and watching TV. I can't wait for many, many more Mother's Days.

One Month

 One month stats:

Weight: 10 lbs 1/2 oz, 73%

Length: 21 1/4 inches, 50%

Head: 14 inches, 20%

My Sweet Evelyn,

It's hard to believe you are one month old already! Even though some days seemed they would never end, this month has flown by. It has been a wonderfully blessed month. You are a precious gift and we treasure every moment with you.

From the moment I first laid eyes on you and held you in my arms, I was madly in love. My love for you grows more and more each day. I'm sure you get tired of hearing me tell you "Mama loves you," a thousand times a day and kissing your little cheeks. It's hard to resist.

I try to recall some of my favorite moments with you, but it's difficult to narrow them down. There's not doubt seeing you for the first time is at the top of my list. I remember feeling so surprised that you didn't have a head full of dark hair. But your strawberry blonde hair is beautiful and now I can't imagine you any other way. You were so tiny when the doctor placed you on my chest! You definitely let us know you had a good set of lungs right away and you're still reminding us daily. If any of our neighbors didn't know we had a baby, they sure do know by now! Call me a mean Mama, but sometimes I like to just watch you cry. I like to watch your mouth get pouty and you make the funniest faces.

I love watching you sleep. Those peaceful moments when your body is so relaxed and an occasional smile comes across your face are precious. I could spend hours just watching you and feeling the calming rhythm of your breathing. That said, I am thankful you have seemed to turn a corner in your sleeping habits the past few days. Up until this point, you wouldn't sleep more than an hour unless I was holding you. I love holding you, but this Mama needs to get some things done. The past three days you have been taking naps and sleeping in your rock n play, which makes me happy! Last night you slept for 4 hours straight in your rock n play! You also have started liking to be swaddled, which has helped you sleep. I call you my Baby Burrito when you're swaddled up tight.

It took a really long time for your cord stump to fall off, but since it has you are loving your bath time. You just like to be naked in general. You are content and just kick around when we have your diaper off to change it. I think you would be happy as a lark if we never put clothes or a diaper on you. But that might be a little messy.

Your Daddy sure does love you too. Nothing makes me happier than for him to say, "Come to Daddy. I'll make it all better," when you're upset. I love hearing him sing to you when he's trying to calm you down. He loves to kiss you on your cheeks, even when you make funny faces at him.

Some of my favorite times with you are when you've just finished nursing. You're so relaxed and happy. I love kissing you right on your lips. If you've fallen asleep, I just hold you and look at you. If you're awake, I love to look into your denim blue eyes. There's something captivating about staring into your eyes and losing track of time. I'll take your hand and you grab onto my finger. If I put you up on my shoulder to burp you, you often nuzzle into my neck and fall asleep. I love feeling the warmth of your breath on my neck and taking in the sweet smell of your head.

You're a delight in our life. I'm excited to see what changes the next month brings. Until then, I want to soak up every moment of your little life and never let it go.

Mama loves you sweet girl!

Tuesday Talk

A few random thoughts on this lovely Tuesday...

I'm feeling rather productive so far this week. Yesterday I managed to do 4 loads of laundry (all folded and put away too!), run and unload the dishwasher, change the sheets on our bed, make supper, clean up the supper dishes, and work on catching up on my Bible reading. So far today I've made the bed, changed the sheets on the guest beds, washed 2 loads of laundry, sewed my homemade Moby wrap, and worked on catching up on Bible reading.

Trying out our homemade Moby wrap

Speaking of the Moby wrap...I had been nervous about sewing the knit material for the wrap, which is mainly why I didn't have it done yet. I bought the material months ago, but couldn't work up the nerve to attempt it. I put my big girl pants on today and got it done! You know what? It wasn't that hard! So far I like using the wrap and Evelyn fell asleep in it in about 3 minutes.

Our sweet Evelyn is growing like a weed! Her newborn clothes are starting to get too tight over her head. I tried a 0-3 month onesie this morning just to see how it fit and it actually fit pretty well! It's exciting to get to the new size and put all the new, cute clothes on her, but she's growing too fast!

Evelyn and Aunt Tasha

My sister and her boyfriend came for a visit last week. We really enjoyed having them and Evelyn loved snuggling with Aunt Tasha!

Evelyn's first trip to Disney

Tasha and Brad wanted to spend a day at Disney while they were here. We debated for days whether we should attempt to take Evelyn or if it was too much. She slept well the night before and was having a good morning, so we decided we would try it. I was prepared to call it quits and come home at any point.  One of the things I love about Disney is that they have these nice baby care centers at each park. It's an air conditioned building with a room for nursing, changing tables, bathrooms, a play room for older kids, and baby items to purchase. Evelyn and I spent a lot of time in there. We did ride one ride, walked around some, and ate good food (the most important thing), but I did spend a lot of time in those air conditioned baby centers! 5 nursing sessions, 10+ diaper changes, 2 changes of clothes, and one lost pacifier later, we survived our first trip to Disney! Evelyn did really well, but we were all worn out by the end of the day!

There's something adorable about a baby with a pacifier

Evelyn wore this dress to church on Sunday. She also wore it her first Sunday to church at 5 days old. It's amazing how much she's grown in just a few weeks!

Kinley was so excited to hold "Baby Ed-a-lyn" at church on Sunday

Nursery

I'm excited to share pictures of Evelyn's nursery (even though most of you have seen them on Facebook already). I absolutely loved working on putting the nursery together and was not the least bit sad to see my craft room dismantled. We were able to move my sewing and crafting things to one of the guest rooms and it's working out really well.

Before: Set up as my craft room

Looking into the nursery

Crib and alphabet wall

Close up of crib bedding

Close up of alphabet wall

Glider, dresser, and changing table cross from crib

The alphabet wall was my inspiration for the nursery. I had seen different ideas floating around on Pinterest and thought it was right up my alley. I enjoyed collecting the letters and decorating them. I think Chris got a little annoyed with me always needing to look at every home decor/craft store we went into. I decorated the letters with paint, yarn, fabric, felt, rhinestones, glitter, vinyl, feathers, buttons, scrapbook paper, and a few other crafty supplies. It was a labor of love, but I loved it!

Nursery Details:

Wall color: Urban Sunrise by Valspar

Crib and dresser: Dakota by Suite Bebe (Baby Depot at Burlington)

Glider: Savvy (Buy Buy Baby)

Crib skirt and curtain material: Premier Prints from Fabric.com

Sheet: Pottery Barn

2 Weeks

Our sweet Evelyn is 2 weeks old today. She's growing too fast!! It's hard to believe that it's only been (and already been) two weeks since we first laid eyes on her.

I've learned a lot in the past two weeks. I've learned that there are a lot of things I can do with only one hand. I've learned that I can actually function pretty well with a few hours of sleep most nights. I've learned that eating a meal in one attempt is now a luxury. I've learned that I completely underestimated the number of diapers a baby can go through in a day.

More importantly, I've learned that it is impossible to know the love you have for your child until you experience it. I've learned a love that is unlike any I've ever experienced before. My heart melts when my sweet girl grabs my finger and holds on while she nurses. My heart feels like it's being ripped out when she's screaming and I don't know what's wrong with her. My heart rejoices when she finally lets out a Daddy-sized burp and instantly stops screaming.

I've learned a love for my husband deeper than the love I've had for him before. There's something about seeing your best friend and companion look at his daughter for the first time with the most endearing look on his face. I've learned there are no words to express how I feel when he's up with me in the middle of the night to offer encouragement and get me whatever I need. I've learned that I have the best husband in the world and there's no arguing about it.

3 days old

5 days old on her quilt from Great Great Grandma Kate

6 days old

13 days old

Wesley checking her out

5 days old - Evelyn and Daddy before church

First day of church - 5 days old

Evelyn Ravinell

Introducing our daughter,
Evelyn Ravinell

April 3, 2013

1:16 AM

7 lbs 14oz

20 1/2 inches

The Lord blessed us with a wonderful birth. After going 10 days past our due date and being dilated 4+ cm for several weeks, I was admitted Tuesday evening to start a very low dose of pitocin. I had an appointment earlier that day and discussed the plan with my doctor. We agreed that we would start the pitocin with hopes that my body would respond well and we could eventually turn it off or break my water so I could continue with my plans for a natural birth. My doctor did warn us that it could take 5-6 hours for my contractions to start getting into a regular pattern before all that could happen. I was hopeful and prayerful that wouldn't be the case. 

We picked up my dad at the airport, grabbed supper at McDonalds and arrived at the hospital at 7:30 pm Tuesday. After all the paperwork was complete, the pitocin drip was started around 9:00 pm. Several of our church family gathered in the hospital waiting room to share the special time with us. The ladies took turns coming back to my room to visit and keep me distracted. My nurse came in about every 20 minutes to check if my contractions were getting stronger. I could feel them getting stronger, but I wasn't feeling any pain with them. Each time she came in she would increase the pitocin just a little bit. Around 11:00 I started getting panicked because I wasn't feeling any pain with the contractions. I knew that my contractions had to pick up quite a bit in order for the doctor to make the decision to break my water or turn off the pitocin. Finally around 11:45, I had a contraction that was a little more painful. They were coming on quicker and a little stronger. More than pain, I just felt very uncomfortable from the pressure. Around 12:10, the pressure was incredibly uncomfortable and I started to feel an urge to push. I thought it was ridiculous, because I knew there was no way I was anywhere close to being ready to push. My water broke on its own around 12:30 am. The nurse checked me and I was at 9 cm. From there, everything was such a whirlwind. She was on the phone with my doctor, more nurses were coming in, and equipment was being put out. At some point my doctor came in, checked me, and told the nurse she needed to gown up in a hurry. Next thing I know she is telling me I can push with the next contraction. From what Chris tells me, I pushed for about 20 minutes. It sure felt like a lot longer than that and at one point I said, "I'm done with this!" Our beautiful Evelyn was born at 1:16 am. 

Evelyn is a name I have always loved and Chris grew to love. Ravinell was Chris' great-grandmother's name. She was such an influential person in Chris' life growing up and in mine for the past 5 years. While there were often struggles, taking care of her in our home was such a blessing. When we found out we were expecting, we both had hopes that she would be able to meet her great great grandchild.  Her passing in January was bittersweet for so many reasons, one being that she would never get to meet the one who would carry her name. She was a wonderful servant of God and we hope that Evelyn will live to match her character. We will certainly share our many treasured memories of Grandma with Evelyn. 

We are so madly in love and just soaking up each moment. Chris was wonderful during the delivery and has been such an amazing support. He is a great Daddy and Evelyn sure does love him! 

41 Weeks

Well, we're in April and still waiting on Little Miss. There is no way anyone can prepare you for the mental exhaustion that comes along with going past your due date. Dealing with questions, comments, and people constantly wanting to know if the baby is here yet does a number on your patience. Not to mention trying to watch for any consistency or frequency to contractions. I've had several episodes of strong contractions 6-7 minutes apart that ended after a couple of hours. You get all excited and think that it's finally time, only to be let down. Then there's the packing and unpacking of the hospital bags. I've become quite an expert in that department. We have one bag that stays in the car for our long term stay, but then we have our bags of things that we're still using day to day. We take those silly things anytime we're going to be very far from the house, in hopes that something might happen.

All complaining aside, I'm thankful to still be healthy and that Little Miss is still healthy. There is a light at the end of the tunnel in knowing that we will have a baby this week! Let's all pray that it's closer to the beginning of the week and that she will decide to come on her own!

40 weeks...still waiting *edited with picture*

Well, we hit the 40 week mark on Saturday. I don't have a 40 week picture. I'll probably regret it, but it wasn't at the top of my priority list this weekend. Perhaps if I actually get dressed in decent clothes tomorrow I will take one. *Edited with picture*

• I'm working on getting over a sinus infection. Let me tell you, having a sinus infection at 40+ weeks pregnant is for the birds! Thankfully, I'm finally beginning to feel like I'm among the living again. 
• Amazingly, I still don't have any stretchmarks. I'm not all that concerned about it, but it's still surprising to me. 
• My favorite comments at this point are: "Have you had that baby yet?" "Still no baby?" "You're supposed to be having a baby right now!"
• I'm beginning to wonder if we might have an April baby?!?! I'm over trying to guess and predict at this point. We'll just be thankful when she decides to get here. Preferably, I would like to avoid April 1. 
• I'm thankful for my mom and husband who have taken great care of me the past few days! 

39 Weeks

It's crazy to think that we're so close to having our little girl! I love looking the app on my phone and seeing single days on the countdown. Of course, we could be here another 2 weeks waiting on her. Thankfully, I'm feeling great still and just trying to enjoy these last few days!

My Memories Suite Giveaway

My friend, Kerry, over at His Mercy Endureth Forever is hosting an awesome giveaway. Hop on over to her blog and check out the post about the neat digital scrapbooking kit. I've always admired people who use these programs, but it's always been intimidating to me. Check it out and enter the giveaway!

Beach Day

My brother, sister-in-law, and niece are visiting this week and we spent Wednesday at the beach. It was a bit chilly and windy, but still ended up being a nice day. We all came home with a little pink tinge to our skin.

Sunshine Skyway Bridge...I much prefer looking at it from the beach than being on it!

Just in case you were wondering...

Lily's first visit to the beach

All that playing wore her out!