A Good Morning Message

Here’s a look at how our days start at the Hawley house.  After a good night’s sleep we’re all smiles!

 

One Month

Dear Baby Catherine,

One month ago, you entered our world.  We’d eagerly anticipated your arrival for more than 9 months.  Those last 42 hours were some of the most exciting and nerve-wracking of the whole wait, but they were so worth it.  What a joy to finally see your face and hold you in our arms!

We spent those first few days in the hospital introducing you to family and friends and loving on you.  How great it was to spend all that time together.  I loved every moment of it, but I think I loved the overnight hours the best.  At those times, it was just you and me.  We spent hours, when we should have been sleeping, just staring at each other and wondering what our lives would be like now that we’d finally met each other.

We brought you home on a chilly Saturday afternoon.  Grandma Colby was there and took lots of pictures and made a yummy dinner for us.  She stayed with us for the first week that you were home to help us adjust to our new routines.  She always offered to get up in the middle of the night to help take care of you, but I always let her sleep—that was our time to eat, talk, and be together, just Mommy and Baby.

Catherine, you eat so well.  You also eat so often!  Every time I feed you, I tell you how happy I am that we can spend that time together, just the two of us.  You hold on to one of my fingers as you watch me and I rub your feet and your back and continue telling you stories.  Tonight Grandma Hawley weighed you for us and you are up to 8 pounds, 7 ounces.  That was with your clothes and diaper on, so we have to say you weigh a bit less, but you are growing!  Your aunts say you are starting to fill out, especially in your cheeks.  We all can see how you are changing each day.

You also sleep very well.  It is very difficult to get you to sleep in your bassinette or the swing or your chair, but when you are in our arms or on our chest or stomach if we are lying down, you can sleep for hours.  I like this time, and I know Daddy does too. 

You are anxious to hold your head up and be a part of everything that’s happening around you.  From the first time I held you, you’ve done your best to hold your head up on your own.  One day soon, you’ll have it!  You are also so alert.  When you are awake, you want to see everything that is going on around you.  You track our movements if we go slow enough and you can sit for hours and take in the sights.  You especially love looking at lights or out the window.  Tonight, you enjoyed time in front of a Christmas tree.  I could see you thinking, “Look at all those lights!” as you sat in front of it.

I am so thankful that I’ve been able to spend every day with you.  I know sometimes Daddy will come home and wonder what I’ve been up to all day.  Some days I can only say that I spent the day staring at you.  You are so beautiful and you are growing so much.  I don’t want to miss a moment. 

I can hardly believe you’ve been here for a month already.  It seems like just yesterday that we brought you home, and it also seems that you’ve been here forever.  You fit into our lives so perfectly.

At one month, you:

* love to be held as much as possible
* sleep about 4 hours at a time and only wake up once during the night
* like to be swaddled in your ‘monkey suit’ when you sleep
* are very alert and love to watch movement
* can hold your head up a little longer each day
* like to hang your head back whenever you can
* have the hiccups multiple times every day
* enjoy classical music, especially in the car
* love to be jiggled by your Daddy
* can smile!

 

 

 

 

 

What would we do without you?  Happy one-month day, Baby.

Thanksgiving

Our first holiday with Catherine was Thanksgiving.  We are so thankful to have her with us.  We are also thankful that Grandma Colby has been able to be here for 3 weeks and that the rest of the Colby family was able to come here to celebrate the holiday this year.  We can’t forget to mention Grandma Hawley, who was our midwife and spent almost all of those 42 long hours with us, and the Hawley sisters (and Bec) who were here for support—what a great cheering crowd during some tough hours.

We spent Thursday in Louisville with the Eckels/Neumann and Colby families and part of Friday in Salem with the Hawley family.  How great that everyone was able to be together (we missed Mary and Nate, though, who both had to work on Friday).   

We didn’t take any photos in Salem because I forgot my camera.  Here are a few shots of our time in Louisville.

  One of Catherine’s favorite activities is being jiggled by her daddy.  This is very calming for her.  Some people say it is because I was so active while I was pregnant—she likes the continuous motion.

 

 

 

 

 

We had a photo shoot in hopes of getting some great pictures for a few Christmas presents.  It turns out that Catherine hates getting her picture taken.  The pacifier helped her calm down, but did not help the photo cuteness any.

We also wanted a family photo in front of our house.  I think it will be a yearly activity.  Notice the pumpkins on the step—a daddy, a mommy, and a baby-sized one, along with two mini pumpkins—Casey and Joey!

PS – This post is back-dated because although I wrote it in November, I forgot to publish it.  In and effort to keep updates chronological, I am setting the post date to November 28.

Coming Home

 

We brought Catherine home today!

First, we both had to get cleared for discharge.   I was cleared early and then we waited for Catherine’s doctor to come.  She had all good things to say about Catherine, and again mentioned how alert she is.  We’ll be visiting her in the office next week for Catherine’s first check-up.  While we waited, we dressed her in her going-home outfit.  This is the same outfit I wore on my trip home from the hospital 32 years ago. 

 

 

  Josh is swinging Catherine while we wait for the doctors.  She loves to move!

 

 

 

 

 

Getting buckled in to go home.  Look how tiny she is!

 

 

Home at last!

 

PS – This post is back-dated because although I wrote it in November, I forgot to publish it.  In and effort to keep updates chronological, I am setting the post date to November 19.

One Day

Catherine is one day old and has already had numerous visitors.  Here are photos of the Grandmas meeting her yesterday.

Other photos from yesterday and today:

 

  Here are Catherine’s first photos as she goes from the operating room to the nursery to be checked out and have her lungs cleared again. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Josh keeps a close eye on Catherine in the nursery as she is weighed and checked out.  She weighs 7 pounds, 8 ounces and is 21 inches long.  In the OR she scored 8-9 on the first APGAR test—everything looks great!

 

  Hanging out with Mom.  Catherine is already showing how similar we are—she does not like to have her feet covered up.  Each time we wrapped her, she would kick her feet free.

 

 

 

 

 

 

She also takes after Josh – both are great nappers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PS – This post is back-dated because although I wrote it on November 17, I forgot to publish it.  In and effort to keep updates chronological, I am setting the post date to November 17.

Welcome Catherine!

Dear Baby Catherine,

What a joy it is to be able to say that.  I have tears in my eyes as I write this and think about the moment I first saw you.  I have waited for you my whole life, even though I didn’t always know I was waiting.  It already seems as though you’ve been a part of us forever and I can’t imagine life without you.  In the days to come I will write much more about my thoughts and feelings and the experience of your birth, but for now I just want to tell you how happy we are that you are finally here.

Welcome to the family baby, we love you so much!

Waiting

 

Can you tell we are excited about the arrival of our little one?

We’ve gone from this on June 13 (19 weeks)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To this on October 23 (38 weeks)
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and this on October 30 (39 weeks).

Grandma and Grandpa Colby are making their way down here tomorrow to be around for the big day.  We are all still wondering when it will happen.

November 3 ~ When will you come?

 

November 3 is our original due date.  Because Baby measured small at our last ultrasound (4 months ago), there is a possibility that the date should really be around November 9.  I’m hoping for sooner rather than later, but I also know that Baby will come when he or she is ready. 

People at school eagerly look to my door each morning to see if I am there.  Today they all got excited when no one was in my classroom even when the first bell rang.  Unfortunately for all of their nerves, I was upstairs in a meeting and hadn’t had time to drop my things off and turn on the lights before the meeting started.

Happy baby-waiting!