4 Months

Weight: 16 lbs, 83%
Height: 25 inches, 72%
Head: 16 inches, 50%

Our sweet girl,

You're four months old now and just a bundle of joy. You instantly light up with a great big smile in the morning, which makes it pretty hard not to smile right back. Mornings are definitely your happiest time. We've started a little routine of changing your diaper first thing, then I put you in your crib for a little naked time and air out from the night. Oh my, does that make you happy! After you've had enough naked time, I put you in your bouncer in the kitchen with me while I make breakfast.

This month you've become much more interactive. You will laugh the sweetest little belly laughs that make this Mama's heart happy. You're starting to show more interest in your toys, mainly your dancing ant thing. Unfortunately, it suffered an untimely death last week, but we're working on getting a new one. I have to admit, I was a little sad when it stopped working, because it's the first toy you've shown an interest in.

Tummy time is easy breezy now. You don't need to use the Boppy at all and you just have a good ol' time. You're starting to pull your legs up under you and scoot just a little bit. You look so big holding your head up and looking around. When you're on your back, you've started pushing off with your feet and scooting around backwards. You can get off your blanket in no time. The days of just putting you down on the bed while I run to the bathroom are over! You are so close to rolling over too! You did roll from your stomach to your back one time. You can get on your side with one leg kicked over, but then fall back.  

 

 

We've started going to story time at the library once a week and you love it. We read books together at home all the time and you enjoy that, so adding the fun of other kids is just extra exciting. You like to watch the other kids playing and singing. I was surprised by how much you like the songs with the hand motions (Patty Cake, Twinkle Twinkle, ABC). I'm excited to make a little reader out of you!

Daddy and I have loved getting to hear your voice more. You have learned how to squeal, which is adorable. You jabber constantly and add a little squeal here and there. Sometimes when I have music on in the car, you will let out this long jabbering/moan sound like you're trying to sing along. At least that's what I make of it.

We took you to the beach for the first time this month. Honestly, it was not enjoyable. It was super hot, even though we had a nice tent. There were bugs flying around and biting me. You kept getting sand on your hands and rubbing it in your eyes. You wouldn't nurse because you were too hot. We only stayed about an hour and a half. We'll save the beach for when you're a little older and it's not the middle of the summer.

You experienced your first long church meeting weekend this month and did great! I have to admit, it was a lot of fun picking out all the dresses you would get to wear and dressing you up for 5 services. You did so well during each of the services and didn't seem too out of your routine. You are still a bit of a Mama's girl (but growing out of that more each day), so you didn't want too many people to hold you during the weekend.

You had your first long car trip this month. We took you back to Mississippi to see your Papaw and Great Grandma Kate and to meet Uncle Bryan, Aunt Jenn, and Cousin Everett who were visiting. I was nervous about how you would do in the car for that long. You did great on the way there. I sat with you in the back and played with your toys and read you books. You only cried for a few minutes each time you fought your nap, but then you slept great. The trip back home was a different story. I think you got a little too spoiled during the week in Mississippi. You were much fussier and spent a big chunk of the drive screaming. It was a little miserable at times.

 

You stopped taking your pacifier this month, which is completely fine with me. You never were very attached to it, just wanting it on occasion when you would be going to sleep. I would always have it with me anywhere we went and carry it around the house all day, just in case you NEEDED it. Thankfully, you decided you don't want it at all anymore and it's so liberating. One less thing to worry about when I'm packing the diaper bag.

You are such a sweet, happy, healthy baby girl. I love being able to stay home and spend every day with you. From the moment you wake me up with your big smile and we snuggle in bed to the bedtime nursing and snuggling, I try to just soak up the moments.You melt my heart with your smile. One of my very favorite things is to kiss you on your cheeks and mouth and just take in your sweet, milky, baby breath. Kissing you is something I do about a thousand times a day. My favorite is when you've fallen asleep and your lips are all poochy. So sweet!  In some ways, I'm sad that you're growing out of the newborn things and developing more. But I'm also excited for each new thing you learn.

One Year Later

A year ago today we found out that our little blessing was on the way. What a year it has been! Our sweet girl is a joy and blessing in our lives. I can't imagine life without her. Sometimes it's hard to remember when she wasn't with us.

July 24, 2012 - - 5 1/2 weeks pregnant

July 24, 2013 - - Evelyn Ravinell at 3 1/2 months

Memories

It's been 6 months since Chris' great grandmother, Grandma, passed away and nearly a year since she moved from our home to a nursing facility in Texas. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think of her. Just this morning I was baking cookies and put them in a container that was once hers. Our home is filled with her belongings. Her cookie jar, her sugar dish, the coffee cups she liked to use, her old sewing box. I enjoy seeing these items day to day and have those memories of her. While our time taking care of her was often difficult, I was blessed by her. I'm thankful to be able to remember the good times and the hard times have become distant memories.

We have an annual meeting this weekend. It was during this meeting last year that Chris and I strongly felt our time taking care of her was coming to an end. Her dementia had gotten to the point where she lived most of her days as a child waiting to go to school or waiting for her Daddy to come home. When she couldn't go to school or couldn't get up to go find her Daddy, she got very agitated and hard to control. She couldn't walk well and she wasn't sleeping well. During this meeting last year, she went 36 hours without sleeping, which only made her dementia and agitation worse. I was trying to keep a houseful of company, prepare food for church, enjoy the meeting, and take care of her. It was exhausting and extremely trying. (I was also pregnant, which we didn't know at the time, but certainly added to the exhaustion.) I spent most of the weekend in tears. Tears of frustration that she couldn't understand that she wasn't going to school, tears of anger at the disease of dementia, tears of selfishness that I couldn't enjoy the blessing of a church meeting, and tears of defeat in admitting that I could no longer care for Grandma. I'm not one to give up easily and I didn't want to throw in the towel just because I thought it was getting too difficult. Thankfully, the Lord's plans are far above ours and He blessed us with the perfect answer just a week later when we found out we were expecting.

I try to tell Evelyn about her great great grandmother and I look forward to many more years of being able to share stories with her. What I would give for just one picture of Evelyn and Grandma together. My hope is that Evelyn would grow up to know Grandma through our stories and she can feel as if she knew her in this world.

5 Years Later

Wedding Day: July 5, 2008

Five years later - wonderfully blessed

3 Months

 

Weight: 14 lbs, 10 1/2 oz
Height: 24 1/4 inches

 

 

Evelyn,

You are three months old today and even more precious than you were a month ago. I love watching you grow and become more aware of your surroundings every day. You are a curious little thing and I have no doubt you are soaking up everything around you.

This has been a big month for you with lots of "firsts." You took your first airplane ride this month and loved it. I was so proud of how well you did during the flight. We took the plane ride to Mississippi so you could meet your Great Grandpa Lester (Papaw) and Great Grandma Kate. They loved you and spoiled you while we were visiting. Papaw especially loved to hold you and play with you first thing in the morning. He would spend an hour or so every morning with you. You gave him big smiles and talked to him. Papaw just loved that.

While we were in Mississippi, you also got to meet your Uncle Isaac, Aunt Heather, and Cousin Lily for the first time. You enjoyed watching your big cousin, Lily, run around and play. You also met your Great Aunt Daphnea, Great Aunt Kimberly, and Mama's cousins. You spent the week getting kissed on and held by everyone. You did so well with it all and only complained a few times.

This month was one for meeting family! You also got to meet your Grandi and cousin Katelynn. They were so in love with you and couldn't get enough of your smiles. You really took to Katelynn and loved to watch her and smile at her. We took Grandi and Katelynn to Disney World. You were like an old pro since this was your third visit.

You also went swimming for the first time this month. Bath time is still one of your very favorite activities, so I wondered how you would do in the pool. You looked super adorable in your pink bathing suit. The water was quite a bit cooler than your bath water and it took your breath away at first. You didn't really kick and splash like I expected you too, but you didn't fuss either.

Tummy time has gotten a lot better this month! Since we found out that you have torticollis last month and have been doing daily stretches for your neck, you are able to tolerate tummy time a lot better. You start out on the floor and do about 5 minutes before you start fussing. Then I put the boppy under you and you are fairly content for another 10-15 minutes. We do this at least twice a day. You like it most if me or Daddy lay on the floor with you and talk to you. You also love your Dancing Ant toy Aunt Heather bought you.

You have started showing more interest in books this month. We tried out your Bumbo seat for the first time and you enjoyed that. I read you several books while you were sitting in it and you stayed interested through about 3 books. I enjoy reading to you and look forward to spending many more hours teaching you to love reading.

In the past week, you have just started becoming interested in your feet more. You love to grab onto your toes and hold your foot in the air. You have also been chewing on your hands and slobbering a ton, so I expect to see teeth popping up in the next month.

My darling daughter, you are very much a joy and blessing to us. I will never get tired of seeing your big gummy smiles first thing in the morning or when your Daddy gets home. Oh do you love your Daddy! The two of you have such a sweet relationship and I can't wait to see it grow.

I love you and can't wait to see what the next month brings!

 

 

 

 

 

Trip to Mississippi

Last week we were able to travel to Mississippi for Evelyn to meet her great grandparents. My brother, sister in law, niece, and Mom were also able to travel down for a visit at the same time. We enjoyed a week of family and Evelyn got even more spoiled than she already was, which I didn't think was possible.

Chris was sick the Friday and Saturday before we were supposed to leave and wasn't feeling great on Sunday, but felt well enough to make the trip. We had planned to leave after church and make the 8-10 hour drive (it was 8 hours when we made it pre-baby, so I was estimating it would take 10). Since Chris was feeling rather lousy, I knew I would have to do most of the driving. Thankfully, at the last minute, we were blessed to be able to fly to Mississippi. It was such a relief and a HUGE blessing! Evelyn did great on the flight. I nursed her during take off and landing, she slept and just played in my lap during the 3 hour flight. It was my first experience in a small plane (6 seater), but it wasn't much different from a commercial flight.

I was a little nervous about how Evelyn would do while at my grandparents'. She is definitely a Mama's girl and doesn't care for many other people to hold her. Thankfully, she did really well and didn't cry too much. She did have a few meltdowns that could only be soothed by Mama, but that's to be expected at 2 1/2 months.

We spent the week mostly staying around my grandparents' house and visiting. My niece, Lily, turned one the week before, so we celebrated her birthday. It was fun to have the cousins together for the first time. Evelyn didn't pay much attention to Lily, but Lily was curious about Evelyn. Of course, my grandparents were so in love with Evelyn. Evelyn especially liked sitting with her Papaw in the mornings and swinging outside with Great Grandma Kate. Thankfully, Chris started feeling better mid-week. My SIL is a doctor and she is pretty certain he had West Nile Virus. While it was icky and miserable for him, we were thankful it wasn't anything contagious and that it wasn't Evelyn who had it. We are going to be even more cautious with her outside now!

Our most important cargo is ready for her first plane ride.

Papaw snatched Evelyn right away

 

Evelyn with Great Grandma Kate

Great Aunt Daphnea getting Evelyn to sleep on the porch swing

 

 

 

Evelyn was awake for more of the flight home and loved looking out the plane window.

We're back home and getting back into the swing of our daily routine and getting ready for company this weekend!

2 Months

 

Weight: 12 lbs 14 oz,84%

Height: 23 inches, 76%

Head: 14 inches, 23%

Baby Evelyn,

You're two months old now and I'm frantically looking for the "pause" button.  I have loved watching you grow and change this past month, but you can stop for a while! You are such a happy baby and a joy to be around.

In this past month you have become more adjusted to the world and are a far more content baby. Mama and Daddy are learning you a little better and our days are going smoother. You have gotten into a fairly consistent routine of eat, play, sleep. I'm noticing that you are eating and sleeping around the same times each day. You are still a little unpredictable as to how often you want to eat, but I don't mind going with the flow.

You have become so much more interactive this past month. I love the time after you eat when you are the happiest. We often lay you on the bed and you will "talk" and smile at us. I also have enjoyed being able to put you in your bouncer in the kitchen with me while I'm working. You will sit there and just watch me do my work as you kick and "talk." I'm usually singing or talking to you as I work and will occasionally stop to make your music play on the bouncer. I love it when you will give me a big smile in those moments.

Bath time continues to be a favorite activity for you. When I first put you in the tub, you make a surprised face and almost look like you're going to cry. But I splash a little water on you and you start smiling and kicking around. You love to wiggle around, kick, and talk to me. I sing and will talk to you about all kinds of stuff. After about 15-20 minutes, I get tired of sitting on the floor and your water gets cold. You let me know that you are not happy about getting out. I let you lay on the changing table and air dry a while before I get you dressed, which makes you happy.

You love your Daddy! You have started being more content and happy when he holds you instead of always crying for me. He plays a little game with you where he kisses you and says "oh boy" and you love it! You give him a big smile and will usually talk to him. I love seeing the two of you together and how much he loves you. He comes right over to talk to you and kiss you when he comes home from work. You turn your head and look for him as soon as you hear his voice.

You have developed great sleeping habits this month. You typically sleep on our walk in the morning for about 45 minutes, then take a longer nap (1-2 hours) around 11, and couple more 30 minute naps in the afternoon/evening. You are usually asleep for the night around 10 or 11 and sleep until 3. After nursing and playing a while, you are back to sleep until 6:30. A few nights this past week you have slept 6-7 hour stretches at night, which is great! I do enjoy our middle of the night feeding. You are usually very smiley and happy, but then get very snuggly when you are ready to go back to sleep.

You have been quite a Mama's girl this past month, but you're starting to let your Daddy hold you a little more. I don't mind that you want me all the time. In fact, just today we were out running errands and you were in your car seat for several hours. When we got home, you were ready to nurse. As I nursed you and held you for a while, I realized that I had missed having you in my arms while we were out and about. Granted, it does get a little difficult to get things done when you want to be held, but we're working through it. I love our special times together when you're nursing or I'm rocking you to sleep. I love when you're happy and playing, but I sure do love your snuggles!

I love you, sweet girl, and I love being your Mama. I'm excited to see how you grow and develop in the next month.

 

 

 

 

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!