One Month Plus

I can't believe Cecilia is already over a month old. We have finally settled into a routine and I have thoroughly enjoyed being home with her. I feel like she has grown so much, even though she is still itty-bitty and doesn't yet fit into most of her cute clothes. We figure she is about 7 1/2 lbs now, according to the bathroom scale subtraction method. She is getting more and more interactive. We've seen a few smiles, and she is starting to "talk" more. This video is from today.

We spent last weekend at Pops and Grandma's house. It was so relaxing and it was great to be up in the mountains again. We haven't been up there since the end of May, and it was nice to see that everything is still so green. My Dad has been working hard on the new Church. We also visited my Mom's new classroom at the school. It was a wonderful visit for all of us. I think that Pops and Grandma needed to see Cecilia because it was their first official weekend as "empty nesters".
Jon would like everyone to know that Cecilia had her first trip to The Home Depot on Sunday. By my observations, she wasn't that impressed, which is a good thing, because she didn't make a scene. Jon and I are starting the process to get new windows. The ones we have are the originals, so they are 53+ years old, and in the winter they insulate about as much as saran wrap. We are going to do it slowly, so that we can afford it. The goal is to try and get the gigantic front window and the two big windows in the kitchen done by the time it gets really cold. That alone should help tremendously with the heating bill.


Today I had to run a bunch of errands, and one of them was to the County Clerk and Recorder to get license plates for my new car. I was worried when I walked in and the number counter was on 5 and I pulled 29. Fortunately Cecilia slept the entire time in her car seat. It could have been a disaster. After sitting and watching the clerks for 40 minutes, I really think that the County should insist on a better dress code. The majority of the clerks (all women) were wearing sweats, or something from the early 90's. I don't know why I expected better from a professional government establishment. I guess that I feel like if I have to write you a check for over $300, you should look like you are professional enough to handle such funds.

In other news, I have been working on marketing Fries the Moment Design and getting my business off the ground. I attended an Album Show event a few weeks ago and I was invited to speak at a Mile High Photographers meeting in January on Wedding Album Pricing. I am so excited about this opportunity and I am already preparing my material. I've also met with Katie from Katie James Photography out of Nashville, TN, regarding album design. I've sent several letters and information to photographers in the Denver area about Fries the Moment Design. My fingers are crossed and I am trusting that everything will fall into place. I hope to launch a new blog later this week dedicated to Fries the Moment Design. I am still working out the details and the content.

Fan Club

Cecilia has been so blessed the past two weeks to have such a large fan club. She has had countless visitors, and has handled being passed from person to person very well. Cecilia would like all of her fans to know that she does not mean any offense if she doesn't remember you in the future, but promises to get to know you better as she gets older.

I have enjoyed being home with her, watching her sleep, giving her baths, feeding her, and just holding her. Sometimes it hits me that she is my daughter and I get overwhelmed with emotion. She is so expressive with her hands. They are always pretty and posed, usually near her face, or clasped together on her chest. So CUTE! I can't believe how much she has changed already.



In other news, we have zucchini! Our largest harvest is as big as our daughter. Now I have to figure out what to do with such food.


Also, have I mentioned how much Cecilia's Daddy loves her? This was the other night, when Jon couldn't wait to watch Star Wars with his girl.

Better Late than Never

I have one last funny pregnancy story that I wanted to get in writing before I forget it. One week before I went into labor, I accidentally locked myself out of my house before heading to work. Jon had already left, and I went into the backyard to get Stella a toy for the day, and as soon as the back door slammed behind me I realized that I had just missed my bus and I was now locked out of the house. I knew that there was a possibility of breaking in through the front window, but I didn't know how I was going to hoist my very pregnant self up and through the window. I was able to somewhat jimmy the screen out, but quickly realized that I needed help. I ran (read: waddled quickly) next door and interrupted my neighbors breakfast and asked him to help me. Randy, who is a man of very few words, but a nice guy, jumped up with out hesitation, and helped me finish breaking in, and then hoisted me through the narrow opening. Surprisingly, I actually fit through. I would have loved to have it on video because I am sure that it was hysterical watching a 9 month pregnant woman being lifted by this big man through the front of a house.

Lady Bug

I've been a little busy with Cecilia, sorry for any anxiety caused by no blog post.

She has totally stolen my heart, and her Daddy has already admitted that he is in big trouble. We can't get over how much we love her. She is almost a week new now. My labor was very long, 41 hours, and my body was fighting the contractions the entire time. After 34 hours, I was only dilated to a 5, and I was so exhausted that I was falling dead asleep between 1 minuet apart, very intense contractions. My midwife was great and very supportive of my determination to have a natural birth, but at this point she was encouraging me to consider an Epidural to allow my body to relax, and so that I could rest before pushing. I reluctantly gave in, knowing that even if I dilated to a 10 in the next hour, I didn't have the strength to push. By 10:49 PM it was time to push, and after only 20 minuets, Jon proudly announced "Its a Girl!"

We took Cecilia to her first doctors appointment yesterday. The diagnoses: She is perfect. She is nursing well, and will start to gain some weight back this week.

Here are a few photos, there are many photos on Picasa.

The Lady Bug Story
Through out my pregnancy I've said that if the baby was a girl, she would be my Lady Bug. We have also seen lady bugs in strange places: My mom found a herd of Lady Bugs at her house in the mountains not too long ago. We found a lady bug on the side of our car after taking the maternity pictures a few weeks ago, etc. When we got home from the hospital on Friday, Jon helped me out of the car in the back seat, and he said "BETH! LOOK!" I turned around and right on the seat where I was sitting next to Cecilia was a Lady Bug. Cecilia is definitely my Lady Bug. Do you see the Lady Bug on the seat?

Bath Time

Meeting Uncle Pat via Skype

Small Fry is a GIRL

Welcome to a very special addition of Blogging Beth brought to you by Blogging Jon; that’s right Jon is writing this entry! We are proud to introduce the world to our daughter Cecilia Kathryn Fries. She is a beautiful 20¼ inch, 6 lbs 13 oz baby girl, born at 11:09 pm on the 29th. Mom is doing great! She has worked so hard in laboring, and her daughter and husband are so proud of her! Dad (me, OMG it’s weird to think I can now celebrate Father's Day!!!!), is doing awesome, for now who needs sleep? I am running on adrenaline and the excitement of my little girl. Here are some quick pics of our new bundle of joy; rest assured there will be plenty more in the coming days!!

Ready

I'm finally feeling ready. The nursery is complete, aside from a few shelves that could be put up. The car seats have been checked by the hospital to make sure that they are installed correctly. My bag is mostly packed. I feel huge and very tired. Jon and I are both ready to meet this little one! Could be any day now...

Last weekend we spent the morning with my grandparents, Ma & Pa. They came up and went to church and breakfast with us, and then Ma took some fun maternity photos of Jon and I down at the park. I'm thrilled with how they turned out. Here are a few of my favorites.

Pics from the Shower

Here are some pictures from the Baby Shower/ BBQ this weekend. It was so much fun!

Aunt Jenny and I

Mary, Me, Mom.
Mary drove in from Iowa and surprised us.
It was great to see her.

One of the many babies that were torn behind every one's backs.
Cutting the delicious cake!

WOW! So many generous gifts.
These were my Dad's baby shoes! So cute!
Who says baby showers aren't for men??
Jon was so excited about all of the baby stuff.
A USMMA onesie from my brother Pat and his fiancee.
Grandma Katy made a beautiful quilted wall hanging for the nursery.
It is going to complete the room. It is absolutely beautiful!