Quick Pic

Just a quick pic...

How can you not love such a face?

Motherhood

I don't have to be "the perfect mom." 

And for that, I am very thankful.

Moments

Motherhood thus far has had some incredible moments - first laying eyes on our sweet baby girl, looking into her big blue eyes while we held her late at night, seeing her look up and smile at us for the first time, hearing her adorable baby laugh... the list goes on and one.  But my favorite mama moments have always been rocking my baby girl to sleep.  It doesn't start out quite so peaceful.  Evie is screaming, scratching at the rocking chair, pushing on my chest.  Then, I start to softly sing to her, gently patting her back. Her crying stops, and her beautiful eyes gaze up at nothing over my shoulder as she listens to my voice.  Before long, her eyelids close, and she has her arms draped across my chest.  It's as if she has melted right into me.  

In those moments, I am all she wants. And as a mama, that's an amazing feeling.

Because one day soon, I may not be enough for her.  We'll walk her into her kindergarten class, and she'll leave us to explore and learn and make new friends.  And then she'll become a teenager - perhaps rebellious at times - and I will not be all she wants.  She'll (eventually) start dating and dreaming of her Prince Charming.  She'll graduate high school and move on into adulthood.  One day, we may even give her away to a man who loves her dearly.  He will steal her heart, and we will be left reminiscing of  our little girl.  Perhaps she'll have her own daughter some day who will overwhelm her heart with a love beyond words. 

Some day.  But not today.  Today, all she wants is me.  To be held and loved and cuddled and sung to. To lay on my shoulder in the dark quiet of her bedroom.  To have just one more moment in my arms before I lay her down to sleep.  

So I take advantage of today.  I close my eyes and listen to her soft breathing in my ear.  I drink in her sweet baby scent.  I gently kiss her soft cheeks.  Because today will soon be gone. Every moment is fleeting.  So instead of hurting for the moments past, I enjoy the present moments with everything in me.

Evie's Dedication Letter

Evie's Dedication - July 29, 2012

Our Sweet Evie,

We have dreamed of this day for so long.  From the time we were married, we have prayed fervently that God would one day bless us with children.  Now, we share in the words of Hannah from the Old Testament - “For this child I prayed, and the Lord granted me what I asked of Him.” And what a precious gift you are! You have taught us what it means to be a family.  Our hearts are overwhelmed with love for you.  We are truly blessed.

You have also taught us more about God’s unconditional love for His children.  Even when we fail Him, He passionately loves us as His own.  We promise to do our best to demonstrate this kind of love to you.  We commit to forgiving you when you make mistakes.  We will also strive to be parents of humility who aren’t afraid to say, “I’m sorry.” 

Everlyn, it is our hope that you will one day claim Christ as your own Savior and that you will enter into a personal relationship with Him.  As your parents, we will model what it means to be Christ-followers in our marriage, our family, and our home.  We pray that you will look past our failures and see God’s love in us.  He already has a special purpose for your life.  May you seek out that purpose as you grow into the person He has called you to be.  

We love you more than words could ever express.  It is truly a privilege to be your parents.

Love,

    Mom & Dad

Ephesians 3:17-19

“Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

These are a Few of my Favorite (Baby) Things

One of the most exciting yet most stressful parts of being pregnant was deciding what baby products to register for.  I spent hours reading customer reviews, safety reports, and browsing products online.  Now that we have been in the thick of parenting for a little over 3 months, I thought I'd share some of our feedback so far.  These are just a few of our favorite baby things.  (The hubs had some input in this too, so it's coming from both of us.)

1. Dr. Bronner's Baby Liquid Castile Soap

Why We Love It: 

I chose this soap after doing some research in finding the mildest, most natural baby soaps available (without spending too much moolah.) I was very pleased with the "1" rating given by the Skin Deep Cosmetic Database.  (A lower rating means that they deem it as more natural or having fewer harsh ingredients.)  I also liked that it was certified fair trade and made with organic oils.  The hubs was a little taken back by the price at first (around $15 for a big bottle), BUT we have used it for 3 months and still have soap above the label in the bottle.  It's going to last a LONG time! Now, the hubs is completely on board.  So far, we have nothing negative to say about this product.  

2. Sakura Bloom Ring Sling

Why We Love It:

Okay, that's a lie.  I love this product.  It is amazing - 100%. However, Chris just can't seem to get comfortable wearing it.  He's only tried a couple of times, but he just can't get the hang of it.  Perhaps some dads would be okay, but he's not one of them.  However, I use this baby all the time! It's comfortable for mama and baby.  I used it when Evie was only a few days old - she loved being snug as a bug right up against me, and I loved being able to have my hands free to do other things.  It's convenient when we go somewhere that's not particularly stroller-friendly.  It's also great for little babies because it keeps other people at a distance - no one will touch your baby.  The instruction booklet is very helpful in adjusting and getting comfortable with the sling.  It took me a couple tries the first time, but Evie was snuggled up in a matter of minutes.  You can also use it in other positions when baby is older, but we have yet to try those.  The major con of this product is price.  I think ours was around $160 - yikes! But since many of our other major purchases were taken care of at our showers, we decided to splurge on this.  It's been well worth it, in my opinion.  It can be bought at Sakura Bloom.

3. Prefold Cloth Diapers

Why We Love Them:

I knew I wanted to try cloth diapering, but Chris was a little more hesitant.  He was all for saving money, but the thought of putting a poopy diaper in the laundry didn't exactly appeal to him.  After getting recommendations from a few experienced mamas, I decided to order prefolds and covers for Evie's first few months.  This was suggested because I would be breastfeeding.  Breastfed babies poop a LOT, and their poop is water soluble, so it's okay to put right in the wash without dunking.  We ordered an infant package from Nell's Natural Baby.  We got 30 prefolds, 4 Thirsties covers, 4 snappi clips, and a roll of flushable liners for $118.  (They were on sale - I think they're $125 now.)  These diapers claim to be good for 3 months, but we are still using them.  When she grows out of them (or is weaned), we will use BumGenius diapers.  We LOVE these prefolds - even Chris is a believer! He hates putting her in disposables now.  With 30 diapers, we do a load of laundry every other day.  The covers only have to be changed if they get soiled on.  We tend to use the same cover for an entire day.  These diapers are basically just as convenient as disposables.  They are cheaper in the long run, more environmentally friendly, and lack the chemicals that can be found in disposable diapers.  After this experience, we plan on using them for all of our children, which stretches their value even further!

4. Fisher Price "Whale of a Tub"

Why We Love It:

First of all, look how cute that thing is! That's what got me initially, but I also read tons of happy mama reviews on this bathtub.  It's super easy to put together.  Also, it has a convenient removable little seat for tiny babies so that they can sit upright in the tub.  It also has a small drain and plug.  Evie loves this thing! Best of all, we have had no problems with mold in it thus far.  Our major complaint? The size.  Our house has very limited storage, so this big guy usually ends up propped up in our shower when we're not using it.  It also takes up more space than we'd like when we travel.  Overall though, we love it.  Evie has a ball when she takes a bath!

**EDIT: Chris asked me to add this next one...
5. Skip Hop Owl Activity Mat

 Can't you tell she loves it? :) 

Why We Love It:
Quite simply, we love this because Evie loves it.  She plays on it every single day.  Each of the dangling toys is different, and many of them make noise.  They can all be removed and attached to other things, like a car seat or stroller.  This also allows us to interchange them with other dangly toys that she has.  The mat itself is soft, colorful, and includes a few other sensory items like a mirror, squeaky flower, and crinkly leaves.  It's also very easy to put together or take apart for storing or traveling.  

Well, that takes care of a few of our favorites so far.  I'll add more as we discover other products that we love.  I also may do a separate post on the specifics of cloth diapering.  Like I said, we love it!

Little Cries

Now that Evie is three months old, I find myself reminiscing about her short, sweet life on this earth so far.  I also think of how our lives have changed.  We are a family.  As I was looking through some old photos from the hospital when Evie was born, I came across this video of us getting ready to take her home.  In the video, I'm ever so carefully dressing her in pajamas.  She is screaming.  But her cries - they are so sweet and tiny and heartbreaking! Nothing like the loud, yelling type cries she has now.  (Hey, her lungs are working really well.) It makes me tear up thinking how quickly time is passing.  I suppose I should get used to it - it doesn't seem like it's going to slow down.