Uncle Melvin

Uncle Melvin was here to visit and got to hold Clara before he left earlier this week. We're so glad they got to know each other!

Grandma's Girl

Grandma made Clara a headband and right now it fits her like a glove! It's so cute. It goes perfectly with the onesies from Courtney Johnson. They fit like a glove, too! And her outfit goes with all the swaddle blankets from Joe and Jen. We use these blankets all day and all night! This little girl is very matchy matchy! We love purple. :) Purple purple purple. All day.

Funny Girl

Cute Moments

Clara getting calmed by a pacifier in between photos during her hospital photo shoot.
First time in her rocker.
This is how she fell asleep after a feeding. Awwwww. :)

Clara 4-18-11

Our little girl was born at 4:14am on April 18th. Contractions started at 11:59pm on the 17th and we left the house around 2am on the 18th. Normally it takes at least 45 minutes to get to the hospital. We made it in 30 minutes! James drove 90mph on the highways there and ran a few red lights to get us to the hospital safely. I was 5cm dilated when we arrived and quickly went to 10+1cm dilated. There was barely enough time for an epidural that really only took the edge off, but I was thankful that it allowed for a much calmer delivery. I was getting pretty loud during each contraction before the epidural. Anyway, Clara was born under a full moon and came out screaming. She looked like me right away! Here are some proud moments shortly after she came out.Clara and Grandma
Clara and Daddy
Clara and Mommy

Handmade for the baby

My mom and Courtney Johnson have knitted or crocheted for our baby and I just wanted to show them off. :) Left to right: a purple set made by Mom (hat, headband, and scarf), a Christmas hat made by Mom, a hat and matching booties made by Mom, and a blanket made by Courtney. I'm glad these ladies know how! It's hard to see some of the details of each piece in this picture...but I'm sure we'll see these items in future photos where the baby girl is actually wearing them! Crazy!

39 weeks and 4 days

I cannot believe I've carried this little girl this far! We sure thought she was coming weeks ago! The doctor thought so...Now the doctor reminds me at each appointment that I might have to be induced. Funny how our bodies work. In the last week, we've had a few false alarms, but the baby was just messing with us. Well here's my big belly at 39 weeks and 4 days. I had to upgrade the size of my stripes to accommodate the baby...I joke. :) Really, I don't think the tank top I've been wearing in each belly pic will cover my entire belly anymore.

Good Food

Since my mom and Gussie have been here, we sure have been enjoying good food! We always have fresh bread thanks to Mom. Gussie has treated us to a couple of her dinner specialties. And last night my mom prepared uuraq (fish soup), Eskimo salad, muktuk, herring eggs, and agutak. Mmmm. I couldn't help watching James with a smile while he ate Eskimo salad. He likes most everything except black meat (dried Bearded seal meat) and seal oil. More for us! :)Mom's fresh bread.
Gussie's hearty spaghetti.
The Eskimo feast.
Eskimo salad with muktuk, black meat, carrots, herring eggs, and dried fish.

The Crib!

James, Mom, and I put the crib together last week. I'm still waiting for the bedding I ordered! For now the crib is in our room.

Painting the New House

Mom and James worked very hard painting the new house! We have all the bedrooms painted, so what's left is the kitchen/den, living room, and dining area...and other bathroom. A lot left! We haven't gotten to these rooms yet, because we're still debating on a color.

37 weeks and 5 days

We've been so busy with the move into our new house! Finally, here's a belly pic. I feel pretty good other than having a huge belly that makes it hard to move around when I'm laying down or sitting. Thank goodness it's flip flop weather in Texas! My feet don't fit in most of my shoes and if I try to wear ones with buckles, I need help putting them on. I'm hoping the little girl comes this week sometime...I'll be 38 weeks on Tuesday!