Dear Evelyn,
You are taking a little evening nap right now....you are so perfectly beautiful...it amazes both mommy and daddy. We love you so much. Now wake up so we can PLAY!!!!
love,
Mommy and Daddy

4 months!!!

Wow, I cannot believe it has been 4 months since our little pumpkin came into our lives. It was about this time last year ( a little earlier…Sept 13th to be exact) that we found out we are going to have a little bundle of joy! As we are getting into the fall months and cooler weather, little Miss Evelyn is not a fan of ‘bundling up’ She has now found her feet so socks don’t last longer than 5 minutes. She will ‘deal with’ sweaters as long as she can suck on them…or anything else for that matter! Anything that gets in this little girl’s hands goes directly into her mouth! Which, by the way, has turned into a faucet! Drool, drool, drool…..everywhere…all day…all night! It’s ok though b/c we know this is the beginning of another milestone in pumpkin’s life – teeth!! Nothing is breaking through the gums yet, but we are definitely there….she sucks on her bottom lip…puts everything in her mouth, has rosy red cheeks and becomes quite the little fuss muss at times and thank goodness for Baby Orajel!! She may not like the taste but you can tell she is quite fascinated by the effects!
She is now rolling over from back to front and has even learned how move her chubby little arm out of the way….and that’s where the fun stops. She is Ok on her tummy for a few minutes…but then the whines and cries start. We are gong to be spending a lot more time on our tummy though so she can learn how to push up and flip back over…because Evelyn likes to do her little roll over trick about 1 a.m. and then Mommy and Daddy have to get up to roll her back over…LOL J
We are so excited for Halloween! The pumpkin already has her costume…and NO she is not going to be pumpkin…instead she is going to be a little black kitty cat! She looks so cute in her costume! I cannot wait to take her around and she her off J
Next up for Evelyn….learning to read…. I know you are probably like what?...learn to read? She is only 4 months?! Well, Mommy and Daddy are either going to be heroes or suckers as we have invested in the Your Baby Can Read Program….a series of videos and flashcards that are supposed to help infants and toddlers learn to read! Anything we can do to invest in her education, no matter how early, seems worth it to me….so I’ll keep you posted on her progress!

Best Beach Baby EVER!

So....the beach was AWESOME to say the least. Evelyn could not have been a more perfect baby for our week up at the cottage in Long Beach. Joining us, were Ev’s Nana and Poppa, Aunt Jenn and Uncle Larry and a handful of other family friends who headed north of the border to enjoy some fun in the sun!
As the previous posts states, packing was no easy feat….we brought everything but the kitchen sink and it proved to be worth it b/c the little pumpkin was never in need of anything!
To protect our little babes from the harmful UV rays, Jay and I got the cutest little sun dome! It was her own personal cabana on the beach complete with her little vibrating bouncy seat and additional sun-blocking umbrella…only thing she needed was a rum runner and cabana boy….whoa...wait a minute there…that’s what Mommy needed…not my 3-month old pumpkin…she’s becoming a nun as far as her parents are concerned.
Each morning we woke up between 4 and 6 a.m. for our very tasty formula breakfast…while we were there for the week…the little pumpkin let us know it was time to up the feedings a notch so she moved up to 6 oz. per bottle during her little vacation (maybe she figured since everyone else seemed to be drinking in excess, she would too…lol). After breakfast we usually spent the next hour or so looking around…trying to remember where we were…focusing in on all the surrounding (this seemed to happen for Daddy every morning as well…LOL). As the morning hours passed on…Ev would get a sleepy again so it was usually time for the mid-morning nap around 10 or so....perfect timing for the rest of crowd to get their breakfast in!
After breakfast it was time to head down to the beach. Of course a lot more preparation goes into bringing a baby into an area filled with sand….much more then just throw your towel down and crack your beer! Before getting into her swimsuit Evelyn would have the much ‘enjoyed’ pleasure of getting lathered and greased up with Water Babies Sunscreen….a process which I have to say she wasn’t the biggest fan of…not b/c of the oiliness on her…but because Momma chose convenience over comfort and got the ‘scary’ aerosol spray kind….not a fan to say the least. By the end of the week, I was spraying it into my hands and then lathering her up! While Mommy and Evey were getting ready, usually Daddy would set up our spot out on the beach….starting the Cabana in the shade of a nearby tree….which we would move hourly with the sun! Then we would make sure Mommy had a towel for her and one for Ev…extra sunscreen for her and extra for Ev…a book for her and binkie for Ev…a hat to protect her little pumpkin head (Ev’s not mommy’s)…rattles and toys in case of emergency entertainment needs (Ev…not Mommy…maybe Daddy)
Now, it would only take maybe 30 minutes (if that) each day of fresh air that would knock the pumpkin out! It was both awesome and sad at the same time. Awesome b/c we got to enjoy the beach too and do ‘adult’ stuff…but sad b/c this was our time to hang with our pumpkin during the day when normally we’d be at work and her at daycare and she…not by choice, I’m sure…and we know…(whine, whine, whine)..slept pretty much the afternoons away!
After the first day I was convince there was no way she was going to sleep through the night after full day of ZZzzzzz’s, but sure enough…bedtime of 8-9 p.m. (we were on vaca...she got to stay up later sometimes!)…anyway, bedtime came and down she went without a whine or peep and back to dreamland it was! So precious and perfect…Daddy and I will have to remember this when your 16 and driving us nuts!
We hit a very important milestone in Evelyn’s life while we were on vacation too! She rolled over!!! Now, there’s a little discrepancy if she actually ‘rolled over’ because I was on the other side of the bed, and may have inadvertently helped her go from back to belly, but whatever…..as far as I’m concerned she did it! (twice too!!)
During the times that Evelyn was awake…she was an absolute joy. Smiling, laughing and discovering this whole new world around her! Everyone took turns making her laugh and giggle…although none as much as Poppa…we’ve decided she must be laughing AT him….LOL, just kidding Poppa!
The weather was picture perfect all week. We had a great time as a family! The vacation was made complete by a thunder and lightening storm our last night there...right on the water...lights flickering...loud thunderous boom's that shook the cottage slightly...Ev was so intrigued (not scared at all!) I let her stay up a little bit longer that night... well everyone else was, and probably because I knew my full nights and days with my baby were coming to an end….
Friday morning came and we packed up the car and headed back to the states (makes it sound like we’re coming from so far away). When we got home, Evelyn recognized her room as soon as we walked in…the colors, the ‘baby’ smells, the stickers of animals on the walls...and smiles and coo’s ensued…followed by (of course) a nap!
What a great vacation it was! Can’t wait for our next one…6 weeks from now...a "Staycation" at the casa with the pumpkin!!!
BEACH PICTURES COMING VERY SOON!!!

Diva Beach Baby

So...we are getting ready to spend a week up at Long Beach, Canada at Ev's Great Grandpa's Cottage. Heading up with the family and some friends! Little Miss Evelyn is such a diva, I swear!She insists on bringing every outfit she owns b/c she just HAS to have several wardrobe changes to ensure she is the center of 'ohhing' and 'awwing' all week!

It's so hard to pack for the little bebe!! We need onesies - both short and long sleeve, socks in case the feeties get cold, pants incase her tiny little legs get cold, jammies and of course her little bathing suit (Used to be her cousin Brianna's, which oddly enough I bought for Bri-Bri when she was just a little pumpkin herself). Then we need hats, sunscreen, a tent, her boppy, play mats, bouncers, bottles, formula, liners and of course she demanded that Mommy bring her laptop so we can watch the Golden Girls and Finding Nemo while we are there....I tell ya, I would put my foot down, but she's just too cute to say no too..... lol :) Besides I'd rather be over packed, then not have something she may need and/or want! And, let us not forget the approx 200 diapers that are comin with us....just in case!

Pics from the beach to come when we get back!! My baby is taking her first international trip!!

First shots :(

This morning was very difficult for both Ev and I...it was her big 2 month check-up (little late..she actually 3 months now..) Happy to report she is a healthy 11lbs. 11 oz. and 24" long...she is the 75th percentile for her length and the 50th percentile for her weight! The doctor said she is right on schedule! Evelyn was all smiles and coo's while Dr. Amy bent her every which way till Tuesday....and then it was the time...Dr. Amy left (weird how they don't want to be the ones to inflict the pain) and the nurse came in with a tray full of (according to my mommy eyes) needles the size of turkey basters!! Of course, I had to hold Evelyn's tiny hands...she was getting fussy b/c it was time to eat so I had to physically hold her down...she got one shot in her right leg and two in left and oh boy....she was not a fan. The first stick brought on the most heartbreaking face...followed by absolute screams of pain...her face turned so red it looked purple!! Of course, I broke down in tears....the whole thing was over in less then a minute but it felt like 2 freakin' years to get it all done with. Afterwards, we cried together for a minute and when we both calmed down she had her bottle and by the time I had her back in her car seat to leave the doctor's office she was the smiley pumpkin again. We will see how she is for the rest of tonight and the next few days.......Daddy and I will be giving her some extra cuddles and kisses tonight for sure though :)

Tummy Time!!

We did it! We finally had a successful, enjoyable and 95% tear free tummy-time experience. The trick was to prop her up on her boppy pillow! She was a little whiny throughout, but she was looking all over the place while holding her head high (and letting out little whines here and there...lol)

After about 2 minutes, the pumpkin had enough and the bottom lip came out, the eyes started to squint and she let mommy know she had enough!!

But now we do our boppy tummy time each night, and each night she gets a little better and indulges her mommy and daddy - who of course, have their own chins planted to the rug making funny faces and noises at her!.

'i swimmin'

Little Evelyn had her first dip in the pool last week!! My sister, brother-in-law, their babies (Brianna, 2, and AJ 4 weeks)mom, and Ev and I all ventured to the wading at Kohler Pool. Ev wasn't the biggest fan to say the least....if you can tell by the terror/cry face she's got going on in her picture! Perhaps this was because she was half asleep when i decided to dip her into the icy waters of the baby pool.....who knows...lol. She calmed down after a minute and was fixated on watching the other swimmers and staring off into the world. She's so content just watching things...it's amazing...I only can imagine what she was thinking..(probably, Mom get me the h*ll out of this cold water!)

Mommy and Baby Yoga

So yesterday, the pumpkin and I did our first session (in home) of Mommy and Baby Yoga. OMG....it kicked our butts! So much so that Evelyn fell asleep half way through and I'm super sore today! But, we are going to keep at it until we can both make it through the entire 50 minutes without wanting a nap!!!
It's a beautiful day out today and I'm looking forward to taking Ev on a walk this evening...maybe stopping by my sisters so Ev can see her cousins (Brianna, 2 and AJ 3.5 weeks)
Pics coming soon from the XMas in July party!!

Months 1 & 2...and Xmas in July

So....we've been parents now for 10 weeks and what a crazy ride its been. Of course there has been sleep lost, frantic calls to the grandparents for help and indescribable feelings of 'ohhhs' and 'awwws.'

We're guessing Evelyn weighs about 10lbs. now....she was 8lbs. 8oz. at her 1 month checkup and she's filling out nicely!

I returned to work after the 4th of July and the pumpkin (what we call her) was off to daycare (in-home, not a center). She is a hit..the other kids (there are about 10 of them) love to make silly faces at her all day and the enjoy and taking turns being 'the helper' when it comes to to changing/feeding her...they bring the wipes out or bring the burp cloth out...it's great..she's already making friends (break my heart I tell you!)

She's working on rolling over..she can make it on to her side and back but that's about it. She is not, i repeat NOT a fan of tummy time! She just cannot figure out what she's supposed to do and usually ends laying there with her face planted into her mat yelling out for help! She can pick her head up for a few seconds and turn it to one side...working now on getting her to turn it the other way but that's usually when the face plant and tears start!

This past week, I've been putting her down to bed...she's all snuggly in a blaket and in her sleep positioner only to find her in the morning out of her blanket, out of her sleep poistioner and at the other end of the bed! When is she doing all this moving?!?!

We love it when she smiles...which is often!!! And she recently 'found her thumb' as you can tell from the photo above! Although most of the time she ends up sucking on her whole hand!! too precious!

This past weekend we went to my parents Christmas in July party, where Evelyn along with her newest cousin AJ made their debuts to the family. Of course they were a hit and were passed around so everyone 'got their turn!' We had her outside most of the day and I have found that the fresh air tends to knock her out to say the least! She is still sleeping quite a bit, but we get in at least an hour of awake/play time after a feeding..although can't jostle her around too much b/c she tends to spit up.....often...and always when there is no burp cloth insight!!

In a few weeks, she'll be making her first trip to the beach when we go with the family up to Long Beach for a week of fun in the sun! (she'll be slathered in water babies..i don't care if she only be 4 months...no sunburn on my pumpkin!)

Welcome!

Welcome to the Everything Evelyn Blog!! I'm new to this 'bloggin' business, but I wanted to do this not only for my family, but also for my daughter, who someday can read this and get an insight into what her life was like and how she came to be the person she will become (does that sound weird or what!!)
And since, my parents put me through college for writing...I might as well use it, right??
So..where do we begin??
Well, let's start with August 2008.....Jay and I took a little trip to Las Vegas for his birthday and let's just say that everythign that happens in Vegas doesn't always stay there (we argue over if this is when Ev really came about or if it was a few days before..but i like my version better...)
So anyway...a month later..Sept. 13th to be exact....the night of our friend's Rob/Amy's stag/stagetter parties to be exact I was feeling a little 'off.' I knew someting was up and decided, why not...let's give a preg. test a try...not thinking at all that my entire life would change with one trip to the bathroom. (quick sidenote..Jay and I were not planning on doing the 'kid thing.'...so you can imagine the 'extra shock' that accompanied this news.....)
Anways, so I went to my bff's house, Kerry, where we poured Powerade down my throat trying to rouse up some urge to go 'pee-pee.' Well, after one failed attempt...missed the stick...we successfully were able to get the right amount of saturation on that thing and within seconds....one line..then two lines....
quick kerry..what does two lines mean??
two lines??
yes...two lines????
ummm...
HOLY SH*T........
From there things were a blur....I remember crying...then deciding how am I going to tell jay...how am I going to tell anyone? We have a stag/stagette tonight..people will wonder why I'm not drinking...even sick I would man-up and manage to get a few down..but clearly this was not a case of 'oh, I'm sick!"
So, I gave Kerry a hug and said I'm off to tell the father.....
Well, hubby jay had been throwing a few back with his dad all afternoon so let's just say he was a little tipsy when I walked up and pulled 'the stick' out of my purse....never seen somene get sober so fast
'What is that???'
'I'm pregnant...'
Before I could really get a reaction out of my husband..my father-in-law (who oringally thought I was holding a marker) gave me the biggest hug...then I noticed the tears in my husband's eyes...and out walks the mother-in-law...who by this scene must have thought someone died...well she almost did when i dropped the 'i'm pregnant' bomb on her....from there it was a phone-fest...
I wish I could have told my parents to their faces, but I was just so overcome with all these emotions.... I did it over the phone. My Dad thought my sister was pregnant (remember, we didn't want kids and we didn't hide that fact from our families...so it was a 'shock' to EVERYONE to hear that I was the one with child)...my Grandma (who was in the backseat of my parents van at the time...they were taking her out for her bday dinner), well, she was convinced she knew all along I was pregnant...ok..grams..if you say so..LOL..
Needless to say there was a stream of excitiment running through our families and our friends...Jay even made me go out and buy more tests just to be sure.

Now I wont' go into the 9 months it took to bake my little pumpkin...but I will say it sure wasn't easy...going from a do-whatever-I-want-party lifestyle to 'i have to pee again,' 'are you going to finish that' and/or 'you're going out..again?!?' was not easy.....by any means...
But on Wednesday, May 20, 2009 at 3:46 p.m. it all became very much worth it....
Evelyn Rose came into this world at 6lbs., 13 oz and was 20.5 inches long...
We didn't find out the sex and we were pretty sure it was going to be a boy...so no one was more suprised then us when a sweet little girl was 'plopped' on my chest to (finally!) say hi to her mommy and daddy....
And thus began this journey we are now on....a whirlwind change that has turned our lives upside down, backwards and sideways...but all for the better. For two people who didn't want to do the 'kid' thing...we cannot thank God or whoever is up there enough for blessing us with such an amazing opporutnity.....
next blog...month's 1 & 2.....