Emme Claire is one week old today!

I had to go to a check up appointment with my OB today. Brian went to work this morning and then came home at noon to drive us to Monroe. I'm not supposed to drive for two weeks and I wouldn't want to either. I'm not feeling that great right now, very sore and tired. So when we left the house Emme was awake and content but after being in the car for maybe 5 or 10 minutes she fell fast asleep and that little turkey did not wake up again until after we got back home about 3 and 1/2 hours later! If we would have been at home I would have woken her to feed her because she is supposed to be nursing every 2 to 3 hours right now. She is very good at sleeping during the day but not so good at sleeping during the night. She is getting a little better each day though. I'm hopeful that in a month or two things will be a little easier.
I realized today that I really don't like taking her anywhere in the car. I'm so nervous that some idiot is going to hit us and that she will get hurt. I just want to keep her safe in my home. And I'm also nervous about her getting sick. This Swine Flu thing is all over the news and it has me a nervous wreck. So not only do I want to keep her at home I also want to keep her away from people. I guess I'm just an over protective new mom. I just don't want anything to happen to her. She is so tiny and fragile that it worries me. I guess I better get used to being worried about her. :)

Emme Claire is 7 days old in these pictures taken April 30th 2009.

She loves putting her hands up at her face. She did that a lot in her ultrasound pictures.




Bella is infatuated with Emme Claire. She just stares at her while wagging her tail. It is so funny, Bella will lay so that she is facing where ever the baby is, she wants to keep watch over her. The boys sniffed her and looked at her a little bit but they aren't as interested in her as Bella is.


I love when she yawns real big. It's so cute. But then everything she does is cute to me!



Mommy and Emme Claire!



These two pictures were taken April 29th 2009.
Emme Claire is wearing a cute onesie that was part of a gift from my friend Amy Caskey. It is newborn size and is almost the only thing we have that actually fits her right now. All the other newborn stuff is huge on her except for some infant t-shirts.

Tuesday, April 28th 2009

We had to take Emme Claire to have lab work done this morning and then we took her to the pediatrician to find out how her jaundice was doing. Poor baby had to get stuck with a needle yet again to have blood drawn and mommy couldn't watch. Luckily daddy was there to hold her hand and then I held her after it was over. She got a great report from the doctor. She said that Emme was doing fine and that she was pleased with the results. We were so relieved to know that she wouldn't have to go under a light for the jaundice. So today was our first time to have an outing with a baby. We had to pack her diaper bag and try to figure out how and when I was going to feed her while we were in town. It was interesting to say the least. I'm sure it will get easier as time goes by. We got to use her stroller for the first time today. She looks so little in her infant carrier/carseat. And I though the carrier/carseat looked little before she got here but it is huge looking now. We have to take Emme Claire back to the doctor May 7th for her two week wellness check up. Oh and she was born weighing 6lbs 6oz and had lost down to somewhere around 5lbs 15oz while in the hospital but today she weighed 6lbs 3oz, so I was glad to find out she had gained back a little weight. She loves to eat!

She looks like a child's baby doll in her carrier.




For now she is sleeping beside the bed in a travel sized pack n play that has a bassinet on top. We have the same pack n play in a larger size for the living room but decided to get the little one because it fits good by the bed. We also got this little sleep positioner (the white wedge thing that you see on either side of her) and she loves sleeping in it. It must feel like someone is holding her or something.


Mommy's little darling!




Emme was given some newborn size bloomers as part of a gift from Brian's cousins Daryl and Misty. I took the bloomers and had her name monogrammed on them. Even though they are newborn size they still swallow her up. She looked so cute in them! :)


Wearing her infant bracelet that my friend Lesle gave her. It is so sweet, it has Emme engraved on it. When I first opened the gift it was so hard to believe it would ever fit on my baby's wrist but it does and it looks so cute on her.

Monday, April 27th 2009

Emme Claire had a great first full day at home. She ate a lot, slept a lot and made lots of dirty diapers. She did just what she was supposed to do. She doesn't cry much, mostly just when she gets her diaper changed and not always then. She is such a sweet baby. I just want to eat her up! I can't stop loving on her. :)

A few pictures from our first full day at home with my little sweet pea.

So cute in her flower headband. She is gonna be a girly girl!






Trying out her Sweetpeace Swing. It is for infants and look how tiny she is in it. All her baby gear swallows her up. She is so tiny. I love looking at her little nose, fingers, lips, etc. It is so amazing how perfect she is.

Emme Claire's last day in the hospital

We were so glad to be taking our baby girl home from the hospital. Ready to get home and get settled into our new life with her.

The wreath my mom and I made for her hospital door. Well actually my mom put it together and I watched. At the top are some bloomers that I had monogrammed with EMC, they have pink ribbon and bows on them, so sweet! Going clockwise from there is a Boo Bunny that Nonna gave her for when she gets a Boo Boo. I found the girl frog blankie that has a dry erase board on it for writing baby's birth info on and then the heart can be removed so baby can use the blankie. Next is a little pink poodle rattle I found for Emme Claire. The pink and green bug rattle was part of a gift from Jennifer Kerry. The white croteched bunny finger puppet was a gift homemade by Lanie Savage. And the last thing is a pair of newborn booties.


Getting ready to go home for the first time. She is wearing a sweet gown and cap from her Nonna. Both pieces have tiny appliques on them of a stork carrying a baby girl in a blanket and tiny bows at the wrists and silk trim around the neck and wrists. I love this outfit! She looks so precious in it.

More Pictures of our Sweet Pea!

These pictures were all taken on Saturday the 25th.

I think she was trying to give us a little smile.


I think she is cute even when she is fussing but I'm a little partial to her. :)


Emme Claire with our wonderful OB Dr. Salas. She is so nice, I'm so glad we used her.


I could just stare at her sweet face all day long!


Big yawn! She yawns and sneezes a lot. It's so cute!


Look at those long legs!


Brian's parents came by the hospital Saturday afternoon to see Emme Claire.


My best friend Bridget came to see her Saturday evening. Emme Claire is going to love her Aunt Bridget!

Emme Claire is here!

Emme Claire made her debute Thursday, April 23rd, 2009 at 9:38 am. She weighed 6 lbs 6 oz and was 19 3/4" long. And she has lots of dark brown hair! Everything went fine and she is a healthy and happy girl! She loves to sleep and eat. She doesn't like to have her diaper changed. Those wipes just too cold. Poor thing. :) Good thing we have a wipe warmer at home for her.

Here are some pics of our little sweet pea!







She is my sleeping beauty!


Proud Nonna and Poppa (my parents).


Her hair is so silky and soft. I love to touch it.


She is thinking "Could you please stop taking my picture?" So cute!

Emme Claire's Nursery

Here are some pictures of Emme Claire's nursery. I think it turned out perfect! I love it! I ordered most everything from Ladies In Waiting in Shreveport (LIW). The furniture is made by Munire, it's the Park Avenue collection in cherry. The recliner also came from LIW, it is made by Best Chairs. The little wooden rocking chair came from LIW. The chandelier and table lamp and all the shades were also from LIW. The area rug is Pottery Barn Kids. The drapes and bedding are handmade using Amy Butler fabric. I think that covers everything. Some things not in the room that we got from LIW are the wooden highchair, Sweetpeace swing, Rittenhouse Pack N Play and the Orbit infant stroller and car seat system.


The 5 arm chandelier with green silk shades.


The green and pink swivel rocker recliner. I ordered fabric from the chair company and used the green on the window cornice and I will be making a throw pillow for the recliner with the pink fabric. Just haven't had time to make the pillow yet.


The little wooden rocking chair for her to use when she is bigger.


The pink and green chenille area rug. It is so light that I'm tempted to make everyone take their shoes off before walking on it.


We made these drapes (lots of ironing and sewing). My mom and Brian helped me make the cornice.





Nightstand and table lamp.


The monogrammed bow holder that I made.





The Emme painting that my mom got for the nursery.


Her crib converts into a toddler bed and a full size bed. You can see the custom made bedding using fabrics that I chose (made by Cloud Dust, you can find Stacy on Myspace, Facebook or on her blog at www.clouddust13.blogspot.com)


This picture shows the tu-tu bow holder that my mom got for Emme Claire and the new spot where the little rocking chair will live.


The armoire.


Inside her armoire.


The dresser and hutch, which is also used as the change table.


Inside the closet. We changed the closet up putting two rods and shelves in it instead of just one.


Here is some of the baby gear we have gotten and have built (luckily the Orbit stroller required no building! yay!). We still haven't built the Boppy bouncer and we haven't put the wooden high chair in the dining room yet. Maybe Brian can put the bouncer together tonight, it shouldn't take long. And she won't be needing the high chair for quite a while.

The big Pack N Play.


The Sweetpeace Swing. It is pretty cool. It does all sorts of stuff. You can even hook your iPod up to it.


The Orbit infant stroller (also came with car seat base). This is a really cool stroller, you can turn the seat/carrier around 360 degrees. I can't wait to use it in town.


Another view of stroller.