Eight Weeks loving Johanna

Hanna is growing and her first weeks are going by. There have been a ton of events in her short life so far and we are blessed to have her to share them with us. Hanna was very peaceful amidst the noise and activity of Great Uncle Henry and Donna's wedding on 12/1. Jim brought her out on the dance floor at the reception for her first dance and then Uncle Will, Emma, and Rachael each took her out for a dance. Grandma Kate came in that day and joined us for the week before Hanna's baptism.

Johanna's Baptism was beautiful. We have always done a private baptism so that my Dad can be the celebrant. I love that our family is so comfortable in the Church and without much notice can jump in to serve. Mary led the liturgical music and sang the "Litany of Saints" adding all of the family names. I was standing at the baptismal font at the time and was blessed to see the delighted faces of each of the kids as their saint's name was sung. We asked Rachael to proclaim the 1st reading and she spoke with strength and clarity. Aunt Magaly read the responses and did a beautiful job. My Dad gave a wonderful homily about welcoming Johanna to the dance of the Christian church. Emma and Will stood up for Johanna as her Godparents and I know will pray for her and support her in faith. PawPaw took lots of picture to commemorate the day.The family then came back to our house that was the cleanest it has been in years thanks to Grandma Kate and we were blessed that everyone brought food to ease our load. Johanna was sealed for Christ and is so lucky to have the support and prayers of so many.

Johanna has been smiling all along, but at 5 weeks she smiled directly in response to Jim. She then did it for me and Emma and now smiles regularly when we talk to her. Hanna holds her head up and looks around. She pushes up off our chests and makes great faces with her expressive eyebrows.We are all enjoying her even if we may be losing our hearing in the process. Hanna's sensitivity to dairy and reflux cause her to cry regularly and with the intensity of pain. It can be hard to comfort her sometimes but with so many willing people to hold and love her, she calms down and frequently falls asleep on someones' chest. I love to watch her when she is peacefully sleeping with her mouth slightly open and her arms relaxed and hanging down at her side.

When Johanna was 6 weeks old I had to return to work. The days leading up to my return were hard. I was emotional at the thought of leaving her and anxious that she would be fussy. Monday morning after I fed her before heading out, Hanna gave me a huge smile. It made me laugh with joy and she laughed back, soft and sweet. It was a huge dose of grace right when I needed it. My work day was made easy by Jim, who brought Johanna to visit for lunchtime. I was happy to hear she took a bottle without too much trouble. I have eased back into work and have been glad for all of the paid holidays so I could be at home.

That week I brought Hanna to the pediatrician for a rash. She has had the rash since 2 weeks. We had conversed electronically and changed the soaps and lotions we use but still her skin reacted in red spots. Dr Z. told use to use hydrocortisone regularly and that it might take a few months for her system to tolerate things better. Johanna got her shots and stats while we were there. At 7 weeks she weighed 11lbs. 11 ounces. She is growing beautifully.




 Christmas with a baby is a sublime experience. Remembering Christ being sent to us as a defenseless infant, like my Johanna, brings to mind our humble God and His love for us. Johanna was peaceful as we celebrated Christmas Eve lunch and later Mass. Hanna is a gift to us.

Rachael turns 12

What a happy day! Our lovely little Rachael has turned 12. We started the day by bringing her breakfast in bed. It was cute to see Bridget bring in the tray for her and attempt to hold it up to the loft bed for Rachael as we all sang. Rachael enjoyed her apple danish, bacon and waffles with us in the dining room and then we let Rae open her presents. Jim wrapped them and to build the suspense he triple wrapped the small box that held Rachael's new Swiss Army pocket knife. Rachael had the same idea of drawing out the unwrapping and meticulously pulled off each piece of tape on all 3 layers. It was a very long process but we all enjoyed sharing the moments with her.

Rae was thrilled to go through the pocket knife and investigate each of the tools. It's a big knife and I think it has 20 or so things on it, some of which we couldn't even figure out what they were for. It was a lazy morning but then after lunch we all headed to Ellicott City to check out the toy store or geek store as the girls call it. It is full of used Legos and other old school toys. Rachael asked to go to the antiques stores and then we had dinner. We came home and enjoyed ice cream sundaes and then we all watched Harry Potter 2- the Chamber of Secrets. Rachael smiled throughout the day.

Happy Birthday Rachael Grace!

Christmas 2012

It is a joyous Christmas. We are blessed to be surrounded by our girls and to have a family that fills our house in celebration. We trimmed down our preparations this year because we are in the middle of a building project and because 7 week olds are more important than decorations. 

Our big girls had a blast working together to decorate a gingerbread house and we all got in on the fun of decorating our tree. This year Emma put the lights on the tree and discovered first hand the frustration of burnt out lights. She did an excellent job and I am hoping she will take this job over for years to come. We did our annual cookie baking but focused on more batches of easier recipes. 

I had been hoping to get our Christmas cards and Johanna's birth announcements out before Christmas but a few nights before Christmas I had to let it go. They would get out when we could do it. I hope everyone understands.

We hosted our whole family for Christmas Eve lunch again. Things got started earlier this year so we could take the annual cousin picture before the extended family arrived. The picture went smoothly and turned out great with plenty of time to spare. My Aunts and Uncles arrived and the buffet was opened. After everyone enjoyed lunch the cousins all gather for the gift exchange. Every year our girls love picking a name and shopping for a gift for a cousin. Excitement filled our living room as they opened gifts in turn. The excitement picked back up when huge snow flakes began to fall. With presents in hand the youngest generation went to play and the adults filled the living room seats. The Yankee gift exchange was a huge hit. Emma participated this year and was lucky to receive a beardo and DADD shirt, Dads Against Daughters Dating. Jim put together the best theme gift of ninja cookie cutters, gingerbread mix, teenage mutant ninja turtle t-shirt and figurine.  My Aunt Liz brought a set out liquor glasses that belonged to my grandparents to the exchange and it was stolen multiple times. My Uncle Henry was the final keeper of the glasses but then shared one of the set with each of the families who had lost it during the exchange. There was lots of laughter and fun. As the party wound down the trees and grass were coated in a layer of thick wet snow. It was going to be a surprise White Christmas. Relatives headed out into the snow to Christmas Eve Mass. Because of the early party start we were able to attend 4:00 Mass and Will and Heather's family were able to join us. It was packed but we got great seats in the choir section.

After Mass we went back home for a relaxed night of leftover food, visiting with Will and Heather, and then opening of Christmas Ornaments. It was a laid back evening that we ended with prayers and Christmas carols before putting the girls to bed. Jim and I then got to the wrapping of presents we hadn't had time for yet.

Christmas morning I woke up at 6:00 to the sound of hungry Johanna making grunty noises in the bassinet. I feed her and snuggled with her watching the Christmas tree and looking forward to the happiness of the morning to come. Rachael had set her alarm for 7:00 so the middle girls all climbed into our bed within minutes, we woke Emma up and all sang "Away in a Manger" in our bedroom before heading to the living room.

We had a fun time opening and sharing presents together. Some expected and some surprises. Emma finally got a Nerf Gun (the last of the sisters) and was thrilled with it's 40 disc capacity. Rachael loved her Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, but stayed distant from her new adventure camera. She wasn't ready to accept what might be the replacment of her "Frist Camera". Jim explained this was a rugged camera she could take with her when she adventures and someday her first camera could be fixed. She warmed up to it then. Megan was overjoyed to receive what she had waited months for, a vintage manual typewriter. The typewritier was a hit with all of the girls as they tried it out and typed messages, Hogwarts letters, Hunger Games quotes, and love notes. Megan has since been typing school worksheets. If only we had memio paper. Bridget received Merida's bow and suction cup arrows and after practicing technique was able to shoot them onto the mirror in her room. She stood 2 feet from the mirror so her success rate was very high. the girls also exchange a gift with one sister and this year Emma drew Rachael's name. She created a Skelegro potion bottle, inspiried by the Harry Potter series, complete with rib cage wrapped around a vintage bottle and topped with a skull stopper.

Jim and I enjoyed watching the girls enjoy each other and the gifts. Johanna slept through most of the fun but when she was awake she was given the gift of her families love and attention. We shared a wonderful breakfast and played all day. Christmas evening we went to my parents house for a wonderful turkey and ham dinner. It was a relaxed and joyous day.

Merry Christmas and may the joy of Christ's coming support you through 2013!

Bridget turns Six

Our funny little girl has gone from the baby of the family to a kindergartener and a big sister in the last few months and now she has turned Six. Being born right before Christmas means that the days leading up to your birthday are busy and not really about you, but there is no forgetting our Bridgie Rose. Bridget loves her birthday and counts down to it each year. Her birthday fell on a weekend this year so we discussed when she would want to celebrate it at school. We picked Thursday so she wouldn't have to share it with the "winter holiday" celebration. She asked to bring in munchkins to share and she was really excited to be the class leader for the day and bring home the paper birthday crown.  Gifts from Colorado arrived a few days ahead of time and with our wrapped gifts the pile was very tempting. She tried negotiating to open them early but Saturday arrived soon enough.

That morning she climbed into bed with me, as Papa and her sisters got breakfast and cards ready. We snuggled until everyone came into the bedroom for breakfast in bed and birthday wishes. Bridget loved the handmade cards. After breakfast we decided to let Bridget open her presents. She was not disappointed. There had been a small bakery set that works with her Calico Critters and she had asked for it months ago. She was thrilled to get it. It was full of tiny baked goods and display stands and all of the girls helped her set it up and they all played together with it. Bridget was busy for hours enjoying her toys. The sisters got her a nerf gun all her own so she practiced shooting. She read her new recorded book from Grandma Kate and PawPaw and then she opened her Early reader set of Hello Kitty books. Bridget was excited to work on learning more words and have something that she would soon be able to read on her own. She is growing so fast and really is getting to be a big girl.

I love my Bridget Rose. Happy 6th Birthday!