Vera's Baptism

This morning was a monumental day in Vera's young life, her baptism. Matthew and I actually let her go out in public for her big day. We headed to church, despite the snow on the ground, and arrived before even the pastors got there.
Once she was fed and calmed down, we changed her into baptism gown. I have been thinking about this special day since Vera arrived and was fighting back tears as the service began. We chose a special song to sing called "Hallelujah What a Savior" because I listened to it in the car when I was driving to and from the NICU. It has two lines that hit home for me. Line 1: "hallelujah what a Savior, I owe everything to Him". One word on this...Vera. Enough said. Line 2: "Through the trials he will carry me" He got Vera and I home safely, and continues to bless our little family of three daily. Vera let out a few cries during the service, just to let people know she was there and in control, but all and all she was super good and even seemed to listen to Pastor Kevin. When he walked her up and down the main isle to show her off, I swear I saw a smile.

This was Vera's gown, and what a gown it was. My friend Zena made it out of love and my wedding dress. It had beautiful lace, ribbons, and sweet pink fabric. Vera looked so precious in it, and it gave my wedding dress a new purpose. I love that the dress I started my life with Matthew in started Vera in her new life. It flowed almost to the ground and made the congregation ohh and ahh. Someday, I hope that our future grand kids will be baptized in it as well.




Here Vera and Matthew are waiting for church to start. She hangs on every word out of Matthew's mouth; she loves her daddy bunches. Watching the two of them together just makes my heart happy.




Here we are with Aunt Heidi in front of the baptismal fountain. Heidi and Dan are Vera's Godparents and will help teach her about Jesus as she grows.







Guga and Vera. Please note the length of the dress here.

Vera with her sponsors.

After a wonderful service, we headed over to the house for cake and lunch. Our church always makes a baptism banner, and here we are with Vera's. It will hang in her room as a reminder of who she belongs to and the grace that was given to her today.

We attempted to take a family photo, and six shots later this was the best we could do. Norm even wondered into the frame.

Snuggling with our little angel.

Here is her cake. Matthew kept it simple and just put her baptism Bible verse on it. Matthew and I picked John 15:5..."I am the Vine, you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit. For apart from Me, you can do nothing". This was my confirmation verse and the verse that we started our married life out with, and now we will start Vera's life with it as well.

Once again... the sponsors

Vera also received sweet little reminders of today from our friends and family. This cross jewelry box was given to us by our friends Tom and Stephanie, and will serve as a sweet reminder of the work that was begun in her today. I thank God for Vera and the miracle of baptism and grace. What an amazing day.

Christmas Day!

Santa Clause definitely came to our house this year! Vera and I slept in a bit, mostly as a present to daddy. Then we headed down stairs in our Christmas jammies; mine were sock monkey and Vera's had snowmen and reindeer. We then dived into the presents; we all must have been very good this year because they just kept coming. A few highlights: Matthew gave me a ring with all three of our birthstones on it. Vera's was in the middle, and Matthew and mine were on the outside. I love it! and every time I look at it I am reminded of how lucky we are to have her here. Vera got her bouncy seat, Matthew got much needed shoes...and the list goes on!



Our stockings were hung by the chimney with care. Even Norm got a few presents this year because he has been so sweet and tolerant of the baby.






Here is Vera in her special Christmas outfit. Naturally, she is taking a nap on Matthew's chest; her favorite place to be. I have to admit, I love dressing her up in tutus!





Our first family Christmas photo.









Later in the day, Heidi and Dan, the boys, and Guga came over for a visit. With three kids under four, this was the best we could do. Please look at how excited Jackson was to be torn away from his Spiderman toy. The boys were on their best behavior and can come over to Aunt Holly's anytime!



Mom and I with Vera. Three generations in one photo.









Reece opening his toy guitar. I think it is bigger then he is.







For Vera, the day ended where it started, on daddy's lap. It was a fabulous Christmas with family, and was such a blessing to have Vera home, safe and healthy. Considering that she was only suppose to be two days old at this point, we just count our blessing that she is doing fabulous and is here. Matthew and her are my greatest gifts, and I thank God for them everyday. I do not deserve a family as awesome as them, and Christmas just reminds me of how truly blessed I really am. Merry Christmas all!

Ruthie's Christmas Visit

Ruthie came to visit us this past week and had a great time with Vera. She hadn't seen Vera since she left the NICU, and the change has been significant. Here she is snuggling Vera in one of her favorite blankets; she loved it when Ruthie held her tight.

After a good snuggle, Ruthie gave Vera a much needed bath. I must say she was far more efficient then Matthew and I are. Vera always loves her bath time, but she was extra happy when grandma Ruthie bathed her.

Ruthie also brought Vera a book about elephants, and this snugly toy to match it. We are still talking about names, but I personally like Edgar the Elephant the best.

Matthew, Ruthie, and Vera with her special sweater vest outfit in front of our house. It was a great visit and we hope that Ruthie comes back soon and often.

Aunt Debbie and Uncle Ron Outfits

I'm just relaxing in my new outfit from Aunt Debbie and Uncle Ron. They sent a box full of adorable things for Vera to wear. Here she is in her studded red pants...something mom wishes she could pull off.







And I'm done! Thank you for all the sweet outfits all the way from Indiana! I'll be sure to take pictures in all of them.

Just Another Saturday Afternoon

Parents I talked to before Vera arrived usually would mention that they can't remember what they use to do before they had kids. I must not be far enough along, because I still remember. However, this is better.

Christmas Photos

Even though she is very tiny, we dressed Vera up in her Christmas outfit and had some pictures taken. After all, she was only going to be four pounds for a little bit; she is currently weighing in a 6 lbs. 13 ounces. Here she is with her first hair bow.






Daddy is going to be in trouble when she grows up; she already has him wrapped around her finger!








Here she is with her preemie hat from that group "Partners for Preemies". They go around the NICU and help parents deal with the stress, and they give sweet little hats and blankets out. If I could knit, I would make hats for this group. I just want to keep taking pictures because I know she won't stay tiny forever. I cried today in the car at that country song "It Won't Be Like This for Long". She has already doubled her birth weight, and now I have visions of her in pigtails.

Guess How Much...

I love my Grandma Ruthie and Guga? This much! Can't wait till you two come and visit for Christmas! Only a few days to go!

Vera's Big Day of Firsts

Today we had to head to a lung specialist for Vera in an effort to get her some monthly shots. Turns out there is a really nasty cold virus out there that can be deadly to preemies; it's called RSV. While in the NICU Vera got a special shot which provided her with live antibodies to the virus; most vaccines give you a dead strand of the virus and then your body has to produce the antibodies. Because the shot has live antibodies and because babies are protected immediately it is super expensive and insurance companies do not like to give it out. Luck for us, Vera will receive two shots of this magic juice because of her size and future daycare situation. Here she is all bundled up in her bear suit to go to the doctor. It was too big on her, but it kept her nice and snugly on a cold car ride. She is such a trooper on all her doctor visits...never cries.






We also put Vera into her monkey bouncy seat for the first time today. I was worried about her being in it and being so tiny, but she did just fine for about ten minutes. She did not know what to make of the vibrations and hanging monkeys. We'll try it again tomorrow.








Vera has also graduated into newborn clothing! You can see by the expression on her face how excited she is. The sleeves still need to be rolled, and the legs are a tad to long, but the preemie sizes just aren't cutting it anymore. Soon she'll be as big as other babies her age. Grow Vera grow!




We also used "the bobby" to help Vera sit up this afternoon. She loved it so much that she wanted her sock monkey to join in on the fun. Mr. Giraffe was checking out all the action too. I can't believe that she is doing so well for a baby that is still not suppose to be here yet!

Vera's First Pair of Pants

Up until today, we have been dressing Vera in outfits that do not require us to fight her kicking legs, mostly sleepers with easy zippers and buttons. However, my friend Zena came over today to pick up my wedding dress, she is cutting it to make the baptism gown, and I decided a special outfit was needed to show her off. To the left you will see her sleeping, getting ready for her first pair of big kid pants.










Here she is resting with her daddy. Sometimes this is the only spot that will make her settle down. She did have socks on, but God only knows where she kicked those off. Do not be fooled by the horizontal stripes...they add at least two pounds in the picture.





Just another day playing with daddy in my big kid pants.

Vera Gets Some Cheeks

Since Vera came home she has been steadily gaining weight, please see chubby cheeks to the left. It amazes me how big 5 lbs. 10 ounces feels after holding her at 3 lbs. I just snapped this while she slept sideways in her bassinet. She turned herself completely around to avoid having her hands under the blanket. For some reason, she hates having her hands covered with anything. I tried telling her she would be warmer, but to no avail. Looks like she may have gotten mom's stubbornness, look out dad!

The iphone

When all else fails and the baby won't go to sleep...put the iphone in the crib with her! I awoke this morning to the sounds of rain and a softly playing flute coming out of Vera's crib. Matthew used his phone to download the music and then quiet our squirming baby. Isn't technology wonderful?

Our Crafty Friends

Matthew and I have very talented friends, and we have been blessed that they shared their talents with us and baby Vera. My friends Zena and her daughter made all of the bedding, window treatments, and anything else you can imagine for the nursery. Here is the quilt that Vera gets snuggled in every night. The picture doesn't really do it justice. It just makes her nursery feel like a designer, rich people one. If you ever need a quilt made, they are the ones to go to.





Just the other day we received an amazing Christmas ornament in the mail from Leslie Potter. She hand stitched a sock monkey for Vera's first ornament! However, it is entirely too cute to only be seen for one month, so it is hanging on her door and greets everyone when they walk into the nursery. Thank you for thinking of Vera. Now if only I can get crafty like these two...

The Star of the Show was a Donkey

This afternoon I was able to slip away from the house and watch my oldest nephew participate in our church Christmas pageant. Being a member of the littlest age group to participate, he was assigned the part of "donkey". It was hysterical. Here we are after the show, donkey hat and all. Please note that some small child was made to be the Christmas star, see picture to the right. I hope he gets assigned that part next year because it made me laugh out loud during the service. Anywho, he did a great job singing his songs about Jesus; I think he sang loud enough for Guga to hear all the way back in Indiana. Honestly, I teared up watching him walk out there; he does not seem old enough to be doing this.



Here we are taking a silly shot; I just did what he did. Great job Jackson!

So Small

Yesterday my girlfriends came over and brought me dinner, while Matthew and the boys went out to eat. It was so nice to hang out with some adults who can talk back to you. Here is a picture of Mr. Jason with Vera. He could be one of the best baby handlers I've ever seen; all children love him. Amanda's mom took the time to make Vera a special baby bracelet too; it was totally pink free and I LOVE it! It has Swarovski crystals which I think count as her first "bling bling". Sadly, she will have to grow into it a bit. Thanks for a great evening all!

Aunt Heidi Comes to Visit, Sleeping In, and a New Pink Outfit

The doctor informed Matthew and I that we should not have guests over to the house until Vera is bigger; it appears that visitors often comes with colds and will pass that on to the baby. Aunt Heidi was an exception to this rule. Here she is giving Vera her 3 o'clock bottle. It was a great visit.


This morning I realized that Vera was her father's daughter. I just missed it, but they were sleeping in the exact same pose. Maybe this means she'll start sleeping through the night at an early age and love sleep as much as her daddy. Cross your fingers.




Matthew and I decided to try our hand and photography this
afternoon, to the left is the result. We'll keep trying for that perfect picture.

I just love this picture because it shows Vera's big blue eyes.