Heart beat...

It was exactly one year ago today that I first heard Lily's heart beat.

I still remember the day so vividly--I was nervous with anticipation. I didn't "feel" pregnant at that point although several tests had confirmed I was. I tried to imagine our baby growing inside of me.

And suddenly, there it was--This soft, but rapid, beating. So gentle and so strong at the same time. My mom and I began to cry. It was such a beautiful sound. The only sweeter sound is Lily's voice!

Lily's baby

"Don't even think about messing with my gloworm!"

Parker gave Lily this gloworm for Christmas and she absolutely loves it!

Below is a picture of her with it during our trip to Washington. Lily wanted to keep it close to her and she fell asleep cuddling it. Of course, Grandma Christy and I thought it was the cutest thing ever!!

Daddy's girl

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It is so sweet to see Lily and Eric interact with each other.

Eric's current favorite thing about Lily is the excitment she shows when she sees him.

She is such a happy baby and anyone who has seen it will agree--her smile is contagious!

*For the record, her hiccups are back. They returned the 23rd, disappeared for the 24th, and reappeared on the 25th. I guess she didn't grow out of them after all.*

Queen for a day

Thank you to all my family and friends for the calls, emails, texts, cards, and gifts for my birthday! Your thoughts and prayers were the icing on my cake! I am especially humbled by all your kind words and well wishes!

I was pleasantly surprised on Friday to learn that Eric had arranged a one hour massage, manicure, pedicure, and make-up application for my birthday gift! I've wanted a "make-over" for a while now, but never got around to making it happen. It means so much that Eric would coordinate the whole day for me. He even watched Lily while I was away!

On my way to the salon I felt a little emotional. I was so touched by Eric's thoughtfulness, I actually felt guilty for leaving him and Lily just so I could be pampered...but after the manicure, I was ready to be spoiled!

The afternoon turned out to be such a treat--every minute was bliss! I was so relaxed after the massage (and so confident in Eric's babysitting ability) that I even lingered in the boutique to pick a few gifts out for myself!

When I returned home, Eric had flowers and champagne waiting for me. We got ready and headed to the Power & Light district for dinner at Bristol. The meal was delicious, the service was excellent, and our time together was fantastic! After coffee and dessert we watched the snow fall and headed home to pick up our princess.

There is so much I want to say about the day and all the love I received from family and friends, but I can't seem to find the right words. Please know that this birthday was the greatest and just what I needed to help me face this new year feeling my very best!

Hugs and Kisses!

Birthday

As you all know, 25 turned out to be the best year of my life! God revealed more of His plan for me--and it is so good! He gave me the knowledge I was seeking about who I am and what my purpose is.

Today I am 26. I don't know if this year could ever top last year, but I know that I am maturing and living a blessed life! Every good and perfect gift truly is from above! With excitement, I look forward to discovering what this new year holds for me, all the memories we will make, adventures we will take, the new people I will meet, and the many ways I will grow.

Each morning I get to wake up to this little sleeping beauty. I watch her stir and stretch as she prepares to welcome a brand new day. Eric, Lily, my family, my friends...my life is so rich! I could not ask for greater gifts!

No hiccups today!

Today was the first day, since Lily was born, that she has not had the hiccups! I have come to expect them now and was wondering all day when they would come...but they never did! I was told she would eventually grow out of it, I guess it just took five months!

Here is a video of her with hiccups last month.

Today

It is so hard to believe that tomorrow my baby will be five months old! She will be older, smarter, more capable, and a little bit more of the woman she is destined to become...all such good things. And in this celebration of her talents and increasing strengths, a part of me is sad because I know it also means she needs me a little less than she did before. I remind myself that fortunately, I have been home to enjoy every little thing she does. My job has never been to keep her small, it has always been to help her grow. So today, like everyday, I make the decision to treasure who she is in this moment because she will never be the same again.

Movie time

Here is Lily on New Years Day enjoying a piece of Celery. I think she likes the cool temperature and firm texture on her gums.




This is a video of her in the jumparoo she got for Christmas from grammy. She used to just hop from one foot to the other but recently started jumping straight up and down. She really enjoys the freedom she has to move and definitely keeps us laughing as she learns new tricks!

Party Girl

Tonight we attended the birthday party of our friends Jessica and Kai. Not one to miss out on the fun, Lily spent time visiting with people and dancing to the music. She especially loves to spend time with Jessica's parents because they treat her like a little princess, it must remind her of being in Washington where she is always the center of attention!

More pictures of Miss Grant!

I wanted to share a few more pictures of our niece Halle, borrowed from her mama's website (please visit the Grant Family link for more information and pictures) and she's so precious. She looks just like a little Smith!

Welcome Miss Halle Rose Grant!

Born: Janurary 12, 2009 at 7:40 PM (PST)
Weighs: 7 Pounds 9 Ounces
Length: 20 inches

Carli and Landen were planning a natural and peaceful home delivery for Miss Grant--an intimate family affair welcoming her into the world...And that's exactly what they got: Carli's labor progressed so quickly that Landen delivered Halle by himself, before the midwife even arrived! Meanwhile, Caleb slept soundly, unaware of the pain, excitement, and hard work taking place in other parts of the house.

When Carli called, although admittedly in shock, she sounded calm, rested, and at the same time, elated! It was so neat to hear about the dramatic delivery, but have Carli sound completely "put together". She wasn't drowsy from a long night, she wasn't absentminded from pain medication. She sounded...absolutely beautiful!

Hungry?

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Apparently she really wanted a chip!

Parker and Lily sitting in a tree...

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Here are a few pictures from Parker and Lily's home photo shoot. Parker is the son of our friends Jon and Tara--the boy I used to babysit. He's just a doll and SO sweet with Lily!

Snow Joke!

About the cancelled Pasco flight, as mentioned in Our Trip Home - Part 2...

This makes every goodbye bittersweet. So, when our flight from Pasco to Seattle was cancelled due to snow, I wasn't too disappointed.

Unfortunately, Eric had to get back to work on the 3rd and we were told if we didn't make our flight from Seattle to Kansas City on the 2nd, it would cost $600 to reschedule! Eric promptly handled the situation and made the necessary arrangements to get us home, and sadly, we left Kennewick on the 2nd after all. Mom drove us to Yakima, where we were scheduled to leave for Seattle around 2 PM. This would leave us just a small window of time to make our connection in Seattle (to Denver), allowing us to make the flight to Kansas City and spend that night in the comfort of our own home. However, when we arrived to the tiny Yakima airport, we were told that flight to Seattle was delayed an hour, thus sealing our fate to miss the last flight of the day from Seattle to Denver.

So we said a prayer and tried to keep a positive attitude. Lots of other people were praying for us too! By the time we finally did land in Seattle, we were told we could get on standby for a 6 AM flight to Denver the next morning, but after that there was no guarantee that we could get to KC. It was disappointing to think that there was still a chance we would have to pay for tickets from Denver to Kansas City (which would still be around $600, because the airlines wanted to charge a $150 re-booking fee for each ticket, plus we would owe a balance on the rate difference--at that point it would have been cheaper to just rebook completely new tickets!). On a postitive note, we got to enjoy a bonus evening with Landen, Carli, and Caleb--Thank you Grant family for being such welcoming hosts on short notice!

That next morning, we left for the airport while it was still dark. The drive through Seattle was so beautiful. There weren't many cars on the road and the city lights were still on. I haven't ever seen Seattle in such a peaceful state--it was the perfect way to start what seemed would be a very stressful day. We got to the airport and were sitting in the boarding area in a matter of minutes. Except for the sniffles Lily and I shared, it was all fun in an odd way. God had given us peace about the situation and we knew He would get us home.

In Denver, the plane to Kansas City was delayed and by divine intervention, we were able to secure seats after all. It was such a great moment to finally know that home was only a few hours away! With all this drama, we were confident nothing else could go wrong.

But like all new parents, we were in for a real treat! Ten minutes into our flight to Kansas City, I could feel that Lily was a little gassy in my lap, but I was so congested I couldn't smell anything weird. She didn't act fussy and we all fell asleep for a nap. Twenty minutes later, I got up to use the lavatory. As I reached down to unfasten my seat belt, before handing her over to Eric, I could feel something wet. Lily had a dirty diaper and it had somehow, squished out the sides, all over me! No poo was actually visible on Lily from the outside of her clothes and I am still curious how it got everywhere...but it did. My seat belt buckle was such a mess, even the straps were covered. My right leg was bright yellow. And Lily just let out the sweetest giggle!

Suspecting this day would eventually come, I had sanitary wipes, napkins, disposable washcloths, and her necessary toiletries in her diaper bag. What I didn't have was a change of clothes for her (I'd like to mention that this is the only time I haven't had extra clothes for her, making this situation even more hilarious)! I took her to the lavatory and gave her a quick bath, while she stood over the sink. Eric showed up and surprised me with clean (but mismatched) clothes of Lily's he had packed in his carry-on, to save room in our checked suitcase.

Even with all the romantic/sweet/happy moments we've had together, this truly is the greatest "Knight in Shining Armor" moment Eric has ever had, in my eyes! I was feeling hopeless in the bathroom imagining all the strange looks we would get as we carried her off the plane in only a diaper and blankets...When suddenly, unannounced, Eric burst in and SAVES THE DAY!!

Once I got Lily dressed and sanitized the lavatory, I had to scrub the stain off my jeans. Luckily the disposable washcloths are durable and I always carry around a Tide pen. Although the mess wasn't completely cleared up, it was a lot less noticeable than before. I headed to my seat to tackle the soiled seat belt and we laughed the rest of the way home!

Just waiting for bath time

Better than coffee and donuts!

At 5:30 this morning our security system issued an alert that there was a problem with our phone line. It doesn't sound like the intruder alarm, its just a few quiet beeps, but it managed to wake Lily. Normally, I would try to get her back to sleep, but she was so sweet and cuddly this morning, I didnt' want to miss out this special time with her. So we got up for breakfast and I decided to get in some reading time. For nearly two hours she laid in bed next to me while I read to her and talked to her. She watched me and reached her hand up to the book pages. She turned on her side and actually put her little hand on my cheek for a few minutes--it was such a peaceful, beautiful morning!

I wonder if all mothers share my experience of complete enchantment with their first baby? I just never imagined loving someone this way. I think its the closest to understanding God's unconditional love for us, that we can have.

Lily's 4 month check up

Well we visited the pediatrician today, we like to call him Doc Hollywood. As many of you know, Lily is a big girl and this visit confirmed that. She is 26 1/4 inches long and weighs 15 pounds 11 ounces. Those numbers put her in the 100 percentile for height and 90 percentile for weight.

Watching her grow and learn new things about the world everyday has been such a pleasure! I feel incredibly blessed for the opportunity to stay home and enjoy her!

Our Trip Home - Part 2

On the 28th we headed over the pass to Eastern Washington to spend time in Kennewick. Although I am 25, there is still something SO nice about being home and having mom there to take care of everything! Food tastes better, clean laundry smells nicer, the shower water feels hotter...its just good to be home!

After a great lunch, we said goodbye to Ed and Christy and started to settle in for another action packed week. There are always so many people to see, it can be a challenge, but we try our best. This trip we were able to spend more time just relaxing--playing games, watching movies, and truly enjoying the company. I love seeing Lily interact with everyone and once again, she was just wonderful! I guess she enjoys the attention...I wonder where she gets that from?!

On New Years Eve, we attended the Tri-City Americans hockey game and even got to witness a few fights on the ice. Everyone agreed that we really got our money's worth with all the second period action. When it was over we went back home for more games and lots of snacks. I'd like to give a special shout out to our favorite rocker chick BG for the stunning performance!

Our trip was originally scheduled to end on January 2nd. It had been a fabulous trip with lots of hugs & kisses, laughs, and gifts. Although the last time I was really living in the Tri-Cities for longer than breaks or vacation was 2000, it means so much that when we do go back there, we can just pick up where we left off. Everyone has changed since we last visited, but the love and closeness is still the same. This makes every goodbye bittersweet. So, when our flight from Pasco to Seattle was cancelled due to snow, I wasn't too disappointed (More to come on this dramatic situation--Snow joke!).

Thank you to both our families for such a fantastic visit! We loved seeing you all and only wish we could be part of your daily lives as well! We hope to be back to Washington again in the spring and we welcome any visitors who would like to come stay in Kansas City for a while! XOXO

2009

Happy New Years!

There is something about this event that is similar to birthdays for me, in that it reminds me life is too short to be static. My friend Jessica has this quote on her myspace page, "I am not the girl I was yesterday, therefore I will not be the same woman tomorrow." I know the same is true of myself. With each new day and experience I change a little bit more, hopefully for the better.

A few years ago, I would have classified myself as someone suffering from the Peter Pan syndrome--afraid of commitment, afraid of growing up, afraid of too many responsibilities or anything permanent. This last year Eric and I have both matured in unexpected ways and the truth is, its been so exciting and satisfying to grow up!

Like years past, although sometimes I fall short, my mission is to be a blessing to others; to be a better wife, daughter, sister, niece, cousin, daughter in law, friend, and now mother! I hope to keep maturing and learning, progressing toward that woman God has created me to be. To hold tightly to the friends, lessons, and knowledge that propels me, to let go of the people, places, and events that hinder me, and to truly be present "in the moment".

A new year is a new opportunity to succeed, overcome obstacles, and shine brighter. My personal goals for this year include becoming more organized, de-cluttering our home, preparing healthier meals for my family, using the word "like" less, and becoming more punctual. Feel free to hold me accountable--that's why I am sharing my goals with you! :)

May 2009 be your best year yet! May you accomplish more with what you have, achieve your personal and professional goals, and enjoy the peace and joy our savior provides! I have always believed life is like a Choose Your Own Adventure book--let us make the most of this year!