Some pictures from the past few months...
Some fun at the park
Love this face
Laurel loved the sand
Shadow fun
Our beautiful flower
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Happy Birthday Grandma Moy
My grandma turned 90 this week. I have been thinking all week of all the wonderful memories I have with my grandma. And along with that, today I am processing how many changes she has seen. Technology is so amazing... Tomorrow I hope to Skype with Grandma, which is awesome in and of itself, but for her this way of communicating is something she read about back in the day as science fiction.
Grandma, I love you dearly and hope and pray that the Lord gives me as many years with my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren as He has given you! Your life truly is worth celebrating! You are an amazing woman with an amazing heart! I love that you are a hugger, and that you showed me how to be a hugger too!
Wish we could be there to celebrate with the rest of the family. Love you Grandma Moy!
I remember always taking note of a picture Grandma had up in her house. It was a picture of my mom, Colli, Grandma and Great Grandma, whom I never met... I remember hoping to have a picture like that with my first born as well. I know I have already posted this picture but here it is again because it is so special to me.
Grandma, I love you dearly and hope and pray that the Lord gives me as many years with my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren as He has given you! Your life truly is worth celebrating! You are an amazing woman with an amazing heart! I love that you are a hugger, and that you showed me how to be a hugger too!
Wish we could be there to celebrate with the rest of the family. Love you Grandma Moy!
I remember always taking note of a picture Grandma had up in her house. It was a picture of my mom, Colli, Grandma and Great Grandma, whom I never met... I remember hoping to have a picture like that with my first born as well. I know I have already posted this picture but here it is again because it is so special to me.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Washburn Family Vacation
Can't believe another month has past. Time is just flying by this summer. Soon students will be returning and our lives will be picking up speed even more. Laurel is growing and changing like crazy. Just today I set her in an activity center for the first time and she is already a pro. She has been giggling and talking our ears off. Yes I suppose she gets that honestly from both sides. If I remember correctly, almost all of my elementary school report cards were good except for the extra hand written part that said "talks to much during class." Oh well:) Laurel rolled over for the first time while we were on vacation... see video below. She has also been very interested in chewing on our plates at dinner time.
Brad and i have been busy with weddings and making plans for the upcoming school year. We have been enjoying watching the Olympics in the evenings. It's a good thing they only happen every four years! So amazing to see what the trained human body can do!
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| Just before leaving for vacation, Laurel was watching me in the kitchen from this prime location |
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| Laurel's first hike |
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| She didn't see much while we were hiking:) |
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| Nap time on Grandpa Don... Arms up as always |
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| Fun in the sun with Uncle Justin |
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| Aunt Corri getting some time with little miss before we headed for home |
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| Aunt Colli bought Laurel her own life vest. She loved the pontoon ride | . |
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| Gram and Gramps came out for a visit at the beginning of July. |
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| 3 months! |
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| Love her Monster Pants |
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| Laurel in her cowgirl outfit from Grandpa Don |
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| Daddy wanted to see the world from Laurel's perspective:) |
Thursday, July 5, 2012
PICTURES
We apologize that it has been so long since we last
posted. We can come up with a lot
of excuses for the delay…
Travel: Laurel
has become quite the traveler because we have been here, there and everywhere
in the last couple of months. We
have been to my parents house so Laurel could meet some of her family,
including Great Grandma Merchant, to Brad’s parents’ lake cottage on Oliver
Lake, to McCormick’s Creek in Spencer IN for the campus ministers retreat, to
Sioux Falls SD for Travis and Jenna’s wedding, and to Eddyville, KY for the
Washburn family vacation.
Technology:
Brad’s computer is totally loaded so we could not upload any more
pictures.
Laurel: she is
so much fun that it is hard to do anything else but play with herJ
Laurel will be 3 months old next Friday! Everyone always says time flies once
you have kids and it is the truth!
She is changing and growing so fast! Last week while we were on vacation in KY she started to
grab at toys, smile and babble a ton and she rolled over for the first time
(tummy to back)! This week she is working on her sitting skills, and she found
her toes. We also realized that
she wants to soak in the world around her while she is awake and she loves
being able to watch me work in the kitchen. Yesterday I tied her on so that she could help me make
muffins and she loved it! I am a
big believer in baby wearing! Brad
and I have found that Attachment Parenting really is what works best for our
family. We all sleep well, which
we have come to believe is the number one asked question to new parents, and we
have a very happy, healthy baby!
Here are some pictures from the last couple of months. I promise we will try and do a better
job at posting!
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| This is the sweet little papoose Grandma Judy made |
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| Nap time |
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| Mommy practicing with the camera during another nap |
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| One month |
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| Two months |
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| First trip to the farm. Loving Grandma Judy |
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| And Grandpa Don |
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| Four generations! |
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| In the Bassinet Great Aunt Tan had, and she is laying on my favorite baby blanket that was always at Grandma Merchants |
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| Swinging with Gram at the lake |
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| Tummy time on Daddy's knees |
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| Nappin on Uncle Andrew |
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| Looking cute in her swimsuit from Aunt Corri |
I did a photo shoot of Laurel for Brad for a Father's Day gift here are a few of our favorites:
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Laurel's Birth Story...
Thursday, April 12th, 2012 - 5:11pm:
Cailyn had her first contraction...Brad was at the office. At a little after 6, Cailyn texted Brad to let him know that she had been having contractions for the last hour. Brad came home a little after 7.
Since the contractions were not yet very frequent or intense, we decided to eat a small dinner and then head to the community center to do a bit of walking. Cailyn walked and labored until about 8:45 and we arrived back home around 9pm. We changed and began to settle in for a night of laboring through contractions together.
The contractions remained fairly manageable until a little after 10pm. At which point, they seemed to get more intense and were much more frequent. By 11:30pm, contractions had come consistently at less than 5 minute intervals for over an hour, which meant it was time to head to the hospital.
Brad ran back and forth between Cailyn (in the upstairs bathroom) and the car to get bags loaded, while still helping Cailyn through contractions. Then it was time to help Cailyn downstairs. Another contraction. Then to the door and shoes on. Another contraction. Then outside to the car. Another contraction. Then it was off to the hospital...fortunately, it was only a few minute drive, and so the car ride only included one contraction. Then unloading the car. Another contraction. Then walking into the hospital. Another contraction. Then standing at the OB desk to check in. Another contraction. The observation of that contraction was enough for our midwife to decide it was going to be straight to a delivery room for us.
(We later learned, that we were one of four couples to check-in for delivery within a 20 minute window. Needless to say, the early morning hours in the OB were awfully eventful.)
As we got "settled" into our delivery room and continued to labor through contractions, the midwife came in and checked Cailyn. The midwife determined that Cailyn was 4cm dilated and was grossly ruptured (which meant her water was broken...and as it turns out, we are fairly certain her water broke at about 11am).
We continued to labor, largely just the two of us in the room (we assume partially because the nurses seemed to have confidence in our ability to labor together, and partially because of everything else going on) until about 6am. At that point, the nurse again checked Cailyn's dilation, and much to our disappointment, she was only 6cm dilated. Looking back on it, this was the key moment in the delivery remaining natural. Both of us questioned whether it was going to be "doable". Cailyn had endured much pain and on top of that, both of us were approaching 24 hours without sleep. However, after some tears and a brief discussion, which culminated in Cailyn being able to think clearly enough to know that if she took medication it would slow down the process, we decided to labor on as is.
At a little after 7, we decided that Cailyn would again get into the jacuzzi tub to labor (this was her 3rd stint in the tub...and the nurses were awesome about it, because there was a problem with the hot water and each time she wanted to get in the tub they had to bring water in trash cans from a utility closet down the hall). Much of the reason we decided to have her get into the tub again was because it was the laboring method that allowed both of us get the most rest (Cailyn would sit up during a contraction and then lean back in the tub and fall asleep...meanwhile, Brad would put his head on the sink and sleep).
Cailyn labored for about an hour in the tub, and then a little after 8am things changed. Her contractions got noticeably more difficult, with Brad having to remind her to breathe at the height of them. She had four or five contractions like that, and then at about 8:15, after finishing a contraction, she calmly looked at Brad and said, "She's coming." Brad didn't know if this was just wishful thinking or the words of a woman in transition. Cailyn assured him that he should go and get the midwife (we hadn't had a nurse or a midwife check on us in probably an hour), and so he did. Connie (the midwife) attempted to check Cailyn while she was in the tub (which was a rather humorous process), she thought maybe she was fully dilated but needed her out of the tub to verify. Cailyn had one more contraction with Connie standing over her and then Brad and Connie helped her out of the tub. Brad worked to dry Cailyn off, while Connie made another check on the dilation. Sure enough, she was fully dilated and ready to push. Connie suggested that Cailyn move towards the bed to get ready to deliver, to which Cailyn informed her that another contraction was beginning and she was not going to be able to move. So, standing in the bathroom, Cailyn pushed through one contraction. At that point, Connie realized that things were going to happen right there. Connie asked the nurse for a second glove (she only had one on her right hand) and instructed Brad to sit on the stool behind Cailyn and support her from the hips. And so, with everyone in position (at least as much as they could be), Cailyn pushed twice more and out came Laurel into Connie's hands. She immediately handed Laurel up to Cailyn and Cailyn, in the midst of a bloody mess, waddled over to the bed...holding our baby girl...umbilical cord still attached.
And so, some 15 hours later, at 8:22am, weighing 7lbs. 1oz. and measuring 20 inches long, Laurel Joyann had arrived. All that remained was a bit of cleanup. While that went on, the three of us simply bonded and enjoyed one another for over an hour. It was a tough process, but one we will never, ever forget.
Cailyn had her first contraction...Brad was at the office. At a little after 6, Cailyn texted Brad to let him know that she had been having contractions for the last hour. Brad came home a little after 7.
Since the contractions were not yet very frequent or intense, we decided to eat a small dinner and then head to the community center to do a bit of walking. Cailyn walked and labored until about 8:45 and we arrived back home around 9pm. We changed and began to settle in for a night of laboring through contractions together.
The contractions remained fairly manageable until a little after 10pm. At which point, they seemed to get more intense and were much more frequent. By 11:30pm, contractions had come consistently at less than 5 minute intervals for over an hour, which meant it was time to head to the hospital.
Brad ran back and forth between Cailyn (in the upstairs bathroom) and the car to get bags loaded, while still helping Cailyn through contractions. Then it was time to help Cailyn downstairs. Another contraction. Then to the door and shoes on. Another contraction. Then outside to the car. Another contraction. Then it was off to the hospital...fortunately, it was only a few minute drive, and so the car ride only included one contraction. Then unloading the car. Another contraction. Then walking into the hospital. Another contraction. Then standing at the OB desk to check in. Another contraction. The observation of that contraction was enough for our midwife to decide it was going to be straight to a delivery room for us.
(We later learned, that we were one of four couples to check-in for delivery within a 20 minute window. Needless to say, the early morning hours in the OB were awfully eventful.)
As we got "settled" into our delivery room and continued to labor through contractions, the midwife came in and checked Cailyn. The midwife determined that Cailyn was 4cm dilated and was grossly ruptured (which meant her water was broken...and as it turns out, we are fairly certain her water broke at about 11am).
We continued to labor, largely just the two of us in the room (we assume partially because the nurses seemed to have confidence in our ability to labor together, and partially because of everything else going on) until about 6am. At that point, the nurse again checked Cailyn's dilation, and much to our disappointment, she was only 6cm dilated. Looking back on it, this was the key moment in the delivery remaining natural. Both of us questioned whether it was going to be "doable". Cailyn had endured much pain and on top of that, both of us were approaching 24 hours without sleep. However, after some tears and a brief discussion, which culminated in Cailyn being able to think clearly enough to know that if she took medication it would slow down the process, we decided to labor on as is.
At a little after 7, we decided that Cailyn would again get into the jacuzzi tub to labor (this was her 3rd stint in the tub...and the nurses were awesome about it, because there was a problem with the hot water and each time she wanted to get in the tub they had to bring water in trash cans from a utility closet down the hall). Much of the reason we decided to have her get into the tub again was because it was the laboring method that allowed both of us get the most rest (Cailyn would sit up during a contraction and then lean back in the tub and fall asleep...meanwhile, Brad would put his head on the sink and sleep).
Cailyn labored for about an hour in the tub, and then a little after 8am things changed. Her contractions got noticeably more difficult, with Brad having to remind her to breathe at the height of them. She had four or five contractions like that, and then at about 8:15, after finishing a contraction, she calmly looked at Brad and said, "She's coming." Brad didn't know if this was just wishful thinking or the words of a woman in transition. Cailyn assured him that he should go and get the midwife (we hadn't had a nurse or a midwife check on us in probably an hour), and so he did. Connie (the midwife) attempted to check Cailyn while she was in the tub (which was a rather humorous process), she thought maybe she was fully dilated but needed her out of the tub to verify. Cailyn had one more contraction with Connie standing over her and then Brad and Connie helped her out of the tub. Brad worked to dry Cailyn off, while Connie made another check on the dilation. Sure enough, she was fully dilated and ready to push. Connie suggested that Cailyn move towards the bed to get ready to deliver, to which Cailyn informed her that another contraction was beginning and she was not going to be able to move. So, standing in the bathroom, Cailyn pushed through one contraction. At that point, Connie realized that things were going to happen right there. Connie asked the nurse for a second glove (she only had one on her right hand) and instructed Brad to sit on the stool behind Cailyn and support her from the hips. And so, with everyone in position (at least as much as they could be), Cailyn pushed twice more and out came Laurel into Connie's hands. She immediately handed Laurel up to Cailyn and Cailyn, in the midst of a bloody mess, waddled over to the bed...holding our baby girl...umbilical cord still attached.
And so, some 15 hours later, at 8:22am, weighing 7lbs. 1oz. and measuring 20 inches long, Laurel Joyann had arrived. All that remained was a bit of cleanup. While that went on, the three of us simply bonded and enjoyed one another for over an hour. It was a tough process, but one we will never, ever forget.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
A Sneak Peak of the Early Photo Shoots...
Since arriving home from the hospital, we have continued to snap pictures of our beautiful bundle of joy.
This afternoon, we even worked to hold our first "official" photo shoot...of what i am sure will be many, now that daddy has a new camera AND something extra special to take pictures of. I do have to say, it was a challenging shoot, between a constantly changing light source and a constantly moving baby. But there were a few pictures that were pretty decent. I will work to get a few more of them up soon, along with some pretty good ones we have shot around the house over the last few days.
But here is easily the best picture from the shoot! This one will probably show up again some places!
This afternoon, we even worked to hold our first "official" photo shoot...of what i am sure will be many, now that daddy has a new camera AND something extra special to take pictures of. I do have to say, it was a challenging shoot, between a constantly changing light source and a constantly moving baby. But there were a few pictures that were pretty decent. I will work to get a few more of them up soon, along with some pretty good ones we have shot around the house over the last few days.
But here is easily the best picture from the shoot! This one will probably show up again some places!
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
A Few Firsts...
Grandma Judy requested that the picture of Laurel, ready to leave the hospital, be posted...so that got me thinking that we actually had a few pictures of some of her firsts. Here are a couple...
Laurel, dressed in a "real" outfit for the first time and ready for her first car ride...home from the hospital.
Laurel's first ride in what i like to call her spaceship (her nifty swing).
Laurel's first experience in the "Moby" wrap that our friend Melissa made us.
Laurel, dressed in a "real" outfit for the first time and ready for her first car ride...home from the hospital.
Laurel's first ride in what i like to call her spaceship (her nifty swing).
Laurel's first experience in the "Moby" wrap that our friend Melissa made us.
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