Baptismal Heritage

Sixty plus years ago, Grandma Inez Bailey baptised her first son, David. She bought a gorgeous gown that was then used by each of her three sons and their children. Kate was a part of the proud third generation to use this precious gown at her baptism. We added our own touch by using the hand crocheted coat and bonnet to keep her warm. Thanks Kelley! The whole outfit was a real hit. And, we managed to make it through the event without anything horrible happening to the heirloom dress (like a blowout!).

We had a dress rehearsal the morning before church.

The happy family before church started. We asked Mike to record the baptism so that Kate can hear it one day.

Another cute sleeping picture. She mostly sleeps on her back. I occasionally put her on her belly, but she does NOT prefer it. This is mostly because she also likes to be swaddled when she's sleeping. And, swaddling and sleeping on the belly do NOT go hand in hand. How would you like to be in a straight jacket and then placed in that position? For that matter, who wants to be in a straight jacket, I guess.

Kate enjoys her swing quite a bit. The cute little stuffed animal is a wee little lamb puppet given to her by Nan.

Amazing Baby!

We just got back from our 1 mo. well checkup. Kate now weighs 7 pounds 13 ounces and is 20 1/2 inches long. For those who need to remember, that's up from 5 lb 14 oz, 18 1/2 in. She has really caught up! Her percentiles jumped from below 5% to 25% and 50%. I'm so proud of her!

My One Month Shopping Spree

To my fans
From Kate

Mom celebrated my one month birthday by buying the cutest clothes ever. She finally found a store that carries trendy clothes in my size. It's hard to find clothes for girls as petite as I am. I got a pair of jeans and some overalls. On Thursday, my whole family came over for dinner and it was so fun. It's great to hang out with Mima and Papa and Grandma and my Aunties & Uncles. My favorite person to be around is my cousin Lydia. She loves to look at me and give me loves and head rubs.

Enjoy some pictures of the last week or so. Mom and Dad sometimes go crazy with their digital camera. Sheesh! I know I'm cute, but COME ON!

These overalls are THE cutest!

Lydia loves to play with all of my toys. Grandma helped her make a huge necklace out of my linkadoo letters.

I know it's sorta blurry, but mom and dad finally caught one of my brief smiles, so here it is.

What can I say! I'm adorable!

Daddy's Little Girl

Hello everyone! I just wanted to give an update on the "Littlest One." The rollercoaster of mommyhood & babyhood have included some lows and highs, but the in between bits are evening out quite nicely. As a mom, I think I have enjoyed her more this week. When I get more sleep, I can enjoy the in between feeding times a bit more. It REALLY helps to have Josh at home at the weekends. It's nice to bond together as a family, and it's nice to have his help in the early morning and the late evening. He loves to hold Kate, and sometimes he puts in many hours letting her fall asleep and stay asleep in his arms in order to let me sleep (although not in his arms). As you all know, this little girl is going to be Daddy's own.

Yesterday we rediscovered the Boppy. You should see Josh using it! The cutest is the Littlest One taking a little nap in her Lazy Girl. I think it feels as though someone is holding her. :-) I love being able to have her close to me without having to tire out my arms.

Landmark: Today Kate and I had an outing by ourselves. We went to Babies R Us and Carters. I know that all of you professional mommies would laugh to see me trying to manuever the infant carrier on a shopping cart whilst worrying about the cart rolling away in the lot. I'm such novice!

Enjoy some more awake pics!

I'm a Star!!!

Almost 3 Weeks Old

This Sunday, Kate will be 3 weeks old, and that fact is WAY too hard to believe. I don't feel like I've been sleep deprived for almost 3 weeks. (NOT!) This portion of mothering has had its challenges for me. Knowing that I am the sole source of nutrition and sustenance for such a tiny human being has been a bit stressful for me at times. Both she and I are having to learn a lot about breastfeeding. We seemed to have conquered most of our challenges as I write. I'm sure that many of your prayers have been what has buttressed me during a few LOW middle of the night moments where nothing seemed to be going as it should and I was so sleepy I could have curled up on the carpeted floor of the nursery just to be in the prone position. The good signs are that she is growing (as well as churning out her share of dirty/wet diapers in this world!). As she crossed over her 2 week anniversary (her due date, incidentally), she seemed to wake up a bit more. As Jennifer remarked last week, "Kate is the sleepingest baby I've ever seen." Now, she has some more wakeful times where she looks around with her big, beautiful eyes and seems to be taking it all in. But, to chronicle her main activity for this week, you are graced with two sleeping pictures.

FACToids:
She eats for about an hour each time, and then "usually" waits for 3 hours. She seems to last a bit longer if she stays awake for awhile before taking her nap.
She still loves her infant carrier - we went shopping yesterday and she slept the entire time!
Her pants all fit her up to her armpits -- think Hammer Pants!
Her favorite place to nap is in someone's arms.