3 Weeks

Lilah's third week of life has come and gone. Time is going so quickly yet slowly at the same time, if that makes any sense. It feels slow because we can't keep the active pace lifestyle we typically lead, but three weeks have passed so quickly all the same.

Lilah continues to be an easy baby as far as babies go. She is up two to three times a night, but she is usually not up long (as short as 10 minutes, sometimes more like 30 minutes), so I'm able to head back to bed pretty quickly. During the day she does a lot of eating and sleeping. She has two or three alert times during the day as well - usually spread out morning, afternoon, and evening.

I've had the girls a couple of days now on my own. I'm finding that having loose plans for the day is a good approach. I like having a few things that we are going to accomplish - even if it is just laundry or going to the park - but anything too structured or time specific would be stressful at this point. Some of Lilah's first outings have included: Target (all too many times!), Career Development Center fall party, and our weekly play group.

Elise continues to do better and better. She's been a much better listener and more smiley this week. She has replaced her grumpiness with popping out of bed at night and nap time. This, of course, is incredibly frustrating, so tips for overcoming this behavior are welcome.

Elise and I headed out this morning for some much needed one-on-one time. Our outing included getting her Build-a-Bear puppy repaired, playing with the dogs at the pet store, getting some craft supplies to make a wind chime, and sharing an Auntie Anne's pretzel. Our goal for the fall is to get Elise pedaling her trike on her own. She's getting close, but doesn't quite have it. She looks pretty cool, though, right?!

Grumpy Girl

Elise has been a bit grumpy these days - her way of dealing with our big transition. It has been hard to get a smile out of her, especially for pictures.

We're counting on this phase passing quickly!

Growing like a weed

Lilah is two weeks old today - it feels like we've always had her. Even though life with Lilah has been an adjustment, she fits right into our family. She is such a sweet little baby. Elise just adores her sister. We headed to the pediatrician this morning for Lilah's two week check up. She is a healthy girl and is growing like a weed. She's already put on a pound and a half! Hard to believe. I thought Elise had gained a lot by her two week check up - she put on 13 ounces.

Elise started back at school on Wednesday - she'll go Monday and Wednesdays. She was excited to go, and didn't shed a tear when Wes dropped her off. She got a great report when I picked her up - even was told she was a good listener for the day (that is quite a feat for our little busy body).

Wes heads back to work on Monday, so Tuesday will be my first day alone with both girls. I'm a little nervous, especially trying to occupy Elise while I'm nursing Lilah (she can be a lengthly nurser at times), but I'm sure we'll manage that adjustment as well.

For Elise and Wes' last daddy-daughter day, they headed to the zoo with Papa T, Uncle Jon, and cousin Katherine.

Our new life

The Erwin family is alive and well - I'd say we're even doing better than just surviving the first week as a family of four. Lilah is quite a little sweetie! I get nervous to say it aloud each time, but she has been an easy little girl so far. I never thought of Elise as a hard baby, but she was pretty needy - liked a lot of attention (this has stayed consistent as she develops into a little person). Lilah is a bit more laid back - she doesn't mind being put down, which is a huge blessing and answer to prayer!

Elise seems to do a little better each day. It has been an adjustment for her and has acted up a bit, but she loves her sister. She likes to help with diapers, and she wants to make sure that if she takes a nap, Lilah is also taking a nap. (Since Lilah sleeps a lot, that hasn't been a problem.)

Lilah had her first check up yesterday. She has already put on 6 ounces! She looks so small now, but I'm sure she'll have little rolls before too long!


Yes, Lilah is flipping off the camera in this one, but her eyes are open, so I wanted to include it. She slept in three hour blocks last night, and then had a nice wakeful time this morning.
Elise with her newborn Cabbage Patch doll from our friends Mike and Amanda - we appreciate the overwhelming generosity of all our friends and family.
Elise doing ballet (choosing out a princess outfit for her buddies' Rebekah and Deacon's prince/princess themed party) and blowing out the candles on Lilah's birthday cake. Elise actually came up with the idea of a cake on her own... I think she is just savvy at finding ways to get cake :).

Wes has been such a good daddy (always is, but especially this week). He's had the job of taking care of Elise, which can be quite exhausting. I'm so thankful for him! Here he and Elise are at the Wonderlab.

Lilah June Erwin

Lilah June joined us on Friday, August 6, at 8:52 p.m. True to my family legacy, the final leg of the journey was quite brief. We checked into the hospital at 8:44 p.m.! Three pushes later, we had our daughter. Now don't let that fool you - it was a REALLY TOUGH eight minutes! But then she was with us. Lilah is 20 inches long and weighs 6 lbs 14 oz.

Here are a few of Lilah's first pictures. Elise was so excited to meet her sister and did terrific with her. She just kept saying, "I love you, Lilah." When Lilah cried, she said, "Its okay, Lilah." Very sweet.

We're going to head home this afternoon. My parents will keep Elise one more night (THANK YOU!). Night two is typically the hardest, so say a prayer for us!

Waiting for Lilah June

I was just looking back at some posts from when Elise was born, and I realized a few things. One, I was much more reflective pre-child. Two, I haven't posted much about what it has been like to anticipate Lilah. And three, what I'm feeling now, waiting on Lilah, is very similar to what I was feeling when I was waiting on Elise.

So, I thought I'd take a minute and dedicate a post just to Lilah. Wes and I are very excited to meet her. From her ultrasound at 20 weeks, we had a feeling she might have some of her mommy's qualities in her. Whether she is very similar to her sister or totally different, we know she'll be the perfect fit in our family. And, as far as we're concerned, our family will be complete. Because we can't see her or hold her in our arms yet, it is hard to imagine what it will be like to love her as dearly as we love Elise, and yet we know we will love her totally and completely. (Of course, we already do love her, but its a bit abstract at this point!)

Lilah is taking her time, choosing her grand entrance into the world. With her due date on July 30, I have to say the weekend was hard. I was so disappointed when she didn't come. But, today was a new day. I realized that she will come and I have to be okay with not knowing exactly when. I trust that pregnancy and labor are natural processes, and I just have to find some patience to wait until the right moment. From what I understand, it isn't exactly clear what starts labor, but I trust God/my body/my baby to know when the time is right.

Lilah will move into Elise's old room. Since we're having another girl, we didn't change too much in the room - I'm far too practical to redecorate. But, Lilah does get her own artwork - these adorable giraffe, lamb and duck photos above the crib. And, I actually got some baskets for the changing table - I don't know how I managed without before. Everything was just in stacks and piles.

And the final picture has been my project for the last few months of pregnancy. I've always been pretty practical with money, but I've gotten even more thrifty since becoming a mom. So, I've been scouting the best deals on diapers and stockpiling. Quite a collection so far! As I unloaded all these diapers from Lilah's closet, a couple thoughts crossed my mind. First, I really must be bored to unload all these diapers to take a picture and then put them back. Second, I really should cloth diaper. I hate thinking of all the waste I'm causing. However, I'm going to selfishly stuff that conviction down deep and not acknowledge it.

If you think of it, say a prayer for our family as we wait - that we'll be patient, and that when Lilah does come, it'll be a safe, healthy, and joyful delivery.

Killing Time

Well, due date came and went, and we have no baby to show for it. We managed to keep pretty busy through the weekend. We got to see friends from our 'newlyweds' small group who have moved away and got to go out with friends after church, including a good friend who recently moved to Florida. I even ran errands with Wes, which is very unlike me, but I just couldn't stand the idea of being at home with nothing to do. If I stay at home too long, I just think about when I'm going to go into labor. In addition to seeing friends and running errands, we took advantage of one of Bloomington's latest fun things for kids - a public (free!) splash pad. It has a really nice playground attached as well. Elise didn't warm up to the splash pad until right when we were leaving, but she had fun on the playground. Here are a few pix! I also posted a video from Wes' birthday before this post, so be sure to check that out as well :).

Wes' Birthday