Fun with Yarn pictures

Family Vacation!

Eliana looks so big and old in this picture!

Already a Boilermaker

All dressed up and ready to go out without Baby Girl

Sunday through Tuesday David, Eliana, and I took our first little family vacation.  David had an interview at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.  Since my sister and brother live up that way, Eliana and I decided to tag along.  The car ride put her to sleep, so really it was a pretty easy trip.  We stopped several times along the way to change her and let her eat (plus a stop in West Lafayette to let Mom and Dad eat...).  We met up with my friends Shane, Liz, and Mike for lunch in ol' Purdue land.  And then many hours later we had made it to Madison!  We stayed with my sister Abby's boyfriend Mike who lives in Madison.  He was so nice to house us for two nights.  Mike even made us a changing table out of what looked like a tool chest.  The big adventure of our trip, at least for me, was going out to dinner Sunday night.  David and I went to his night-before-the-interview dinner.  Just the two of us - no Eliana.  She got to stay with Aunt Abby, Mike, and Uncle Michael.  Apparently she was a hungry girl.  While we were gone, she ate almost 9 oz of breastmilk in less than 3 hours!  Dinner was really nice especially since we hadn't been out since Eliana was born.  I even had a drink with dinner for the first time in 9 months!  You don't realize what a treat it is to go out until you have a baby in the house.  So a big thank you to Abby, Mike, and Michael for babysitting!  (I wish I had remembered to take a picture of all of them with Eliana. oh well)

David seemed to think the interview went pretty well and was impressed by the program.  So will we end up in Madison in a few months?  I guess we will just wait and see!

The Many Faces of Eliana

She's a very expressive girl!

David flew out to Omaha, Nebraska yesterday for a residency interview.  He was supposed to come home tonight but because of weather in Chicago, his flight got cancelled.  That means Baby Girl and I have the apartment to ourselves for another night.  David is almost done with all his interviews.  He just has two left:  University of Wisconsin in Madison on Monday and Loyola on Thursday.  Match Day is March 16, so in less than two months we find out where we will be living for the next 3 years!  In other family news, I saw a urologist on Tuesday.  He said the kidney stone was likely related to changes in my body from pregnancy.  That's good to hear because that means I am lower risk for developing them again.  And I would really prefer not to go through that again ...  I did pass the stone this week so luckily no further intervention is needed. 

Wednesday evening David and I attended a Baptism Preparation class for Eliana.  What a huge responsibility parenthood is!  We learned the role of the Domestic Church (the family) in bringing up our daughter in the faith.  God sure puts a lot of trust in us to take care of his special gift.  Our faith should be so much a part of our household that Eliana breathes it in and out every minute of every day.  I feel very unprepared for this vastly important role.  However, that is why God gives us grace.  At Baptism, God will pour his grace on Eliana and she will forever be bound to him as his special daughter.  No matter where she goes in life, God will always be there calling her closer to him.  Isn't that a beautiful thing?  I'm so excited about her receiving this sacrament!

Love this

Top Ten Reasons I'm Glad I'm No Longer Pregnant
1.  I can see my feet again.
2.  I can wear my own clothes again.
3.  No more nausea!  (except kidney stone related nausea...)
4.  My bed is so much more comfortable.
5.  I can eat my eggs runny!
6.  Glass of wine with dinner.
7.  I can share baby carrying responsibilities with David.
8.  People no longer say to me: "Wow, look how big you are!"
9.  I don't have to pee all the time.
10.  I get to see, play with, and love on this beautiful, wonderful baby girl!

This morning, Eliana shot poop 4 ft out, not kidding!  How is that even possible?  That's some powerful gas you have there Eliana.

In other news...
My friends Kim and Emma came to Fountain Square for lunch today so they got to meet baby girl.  Eliana and I made our first trip out without David.  I carried her in the Moby Wrap under a coat to the restaurant!  I think she liked it.  It was great getting out and seeing some friends.  Starting to feel like my old self again.  Motherhood is such a strange thing.  It completely occupies your life, but at the same time, it does not completely define who you are.  I really admire women who are stay at home moms, but I just don't think I could do that all the time.  I love Eliana so much and love spending all this time with her, but I still feel like for at least a few minutes, I need to be Rachel... not just "Eliana's mom."  Is it too soon to feel this way?  I am so blessed to have her in my life.  I'm just praying for God to help me figure out this new role in my life. 

Pretty in Pink!  (although it looks like Eliana isn't too happy about it)

Today is David's mom Gloria's birthday.  The three of us went over to her house to celebrate.  Big trip!  She got to see her aunt and uncles, plus meet Mindy, who is Roy and Gloria's doberman puppy.  I can't believe how big that dog has gotten.  I think she might be growing even faster than Eliana.
Eliana was such a good girl.  She slept pretty much the entire time and didn't fuss at all.  I hope she still sleeps tonight!
Happy Birthday Grandmama!

Cloth Diapers

Yesterday Eliana's umbilical cord fell off so we started cloth diapering today.  They are pretty bulky on her because we are using One Size diapers (they are adjustable so the diapers are supposed to last from birth to potty training).  So far so good!  We have had one leak but I think that was related to user error.  Hopefully as we get smarter, we'll have no more leaks.  On another note, between her growing and the bulky diapers, Eliana has outgrown almost all of her newborn clothes.  My big girl is already in 0-3mon clothes!  I can't believe how much older she looks already. 

Daddy's Princess

David left on Thursday for his residency interview in Cincinnati.  Eliana was missing him and their special daughter daddy tummy time!

First night out - Trip to the ER

David and I got our first night out alone.  Unfortunately, it was a trip to the ER.  After dinner I started having severe pain to my right lower back.  When I started throwing up and couldn't breastfeed Eliana, David said it was time to call my mom to watch our daughter so he could take me to the ER.  I was so nervous for our little girl because at 10 days old she had never taken a bottle before and this was sink or swim time.  If she couldn't take a bottle, I wouldn't be there to breastfeed.  I should have know our little eater wouldn't have a problem.  She ate from the bottle like a champ, and when we ran out of breastmilk, she didn't bat an eye at formula.  She says, "I don't care how the food comes or what it tastes like, just as long as you feed me!"

Turns out I have a kidney stone.  What a time to get a kidney stone!  I was put on pain medicine, anti-nausea medicine, and Flomax, which is a med to make it easier to pee.  Flomax is most often given to elderly men with enlarged prostates.  When I checked with my OB to see if I could breastfeed while on this medication, they said no research had been done on breastfeeding on Flomax.  Really?  Elderly men with enlarged prostates aren't usually concerned about breastfeeding while taking Flomax??  Hmmm.... Luckily the urologist said I could stop taking it so I could continue to breastfeed Eliana.  I'm feeling much better now; the pain is under control.  Hopefully we won't be making any more trips to the ER any time soon!

Breastfeeding Support Group

Today we went to a breastfeeding support group at Community Hospital North.  To tell how much babies eat when breastfeeding, they are weighed before and after they eat to see the difference.  When I weighed Eliana, she was 9lb 1oz!  Nine days old and she already weighs more than 9 pounds!  What a big girl!  Not going to fit in her newborn clothes for long.  She's an efficient eater too.  She ate for 7 mins and had taken in 3 ounces!  That's incredible!  I'd like to repeat, she's the perfect baby.  :)

Check out those eyelashes!  And I swear they are getting even longer!

Second trip out - going to church for the first time.

Today we went to St. John's for church for the first time.  Lots of friends got to meet Eliana.  She was so good - slept pretty much the entire time.  Lots of prayers of thanksgiving for a healthy, beautiful baby girl.

First Bath

Beautiful Sleeping Baby

Bath time with Aunt Becca and Aunt Abby helping

She's not so sure about this...

Now she really doesn't like it

"Don't waste time kissing me mom, just get this stupid bath over with!"

Looks like she survived.

All clean and happy!

First trip out!

This is why I love this man: David is so cute and so in love with his daughter.  She is doing tummy time while he reads a fairy tale to her from his Kindle.

Eliana with her Great-Grandfather

Grandma reading a story to Eliana during tummy time.

"I love my aunties!"

Now that we have been home for a day, it is time for our first trip out -- to the pediatrician!  We saw Dr. Rachel Greenfield today, who is a great ped.  We definitely have an eater on our hands - Eliana was 8lb 14oz when she was born, 8lb 4oz when she left the hospital.  Today she weighed 8lb 8oz!  She's already gaining weight!  Pretty good for day 5 of life.  After the pediatrician, we went to visit David's grandfather, Eliana's great-grandfather.  Grandfather got a little nervous when David brought Eliana close, but just because he didn't want to hold her and risk dropping her.  Once she was in her car seat though, he thought she was alright.
My mom and sisters came to visit in the evening.  When Grandma tried to do some tummy time with Eliana, she kept turning her head away.  Grandma would read to her on one side, Eliana would look away, Grandma would move to the other side, and Eliana would turn her head again.  Wonder what that means??

First Day Home

Skin to skin time with daddy.

Tummy time!

Grandpa Flanigan comes for a visit

Wearing my bear hat!

Footprints for her baby book.

How did I get to be so blessed?  Eliana seems like the perfect baby.  She only cries when she is hungry or we are changing her diaper.  She is the most beautiful baby I've ever seen (check out that hair! and have you seen her eyelashes?!).  She makes the funniest faces.  She sleeps for 3-5hrs at a time at night.  What else could I ask for?  I have been loving this time we have been spending together as a family.  Nothing can make you cherish your husband more than seeing him delighting in your child and showering her with love.  Plus the way he cares for me after delivering that child.  David is a wonderful man, husband, and father.

The outpouring of love and support from our friends and family has overwhelmed me.  Thank you all so much for being there for us and sharing in our delight.

God is truly amazing and has given us a very precious gift!