Welcome to the world Isabelle Jean

Hello everyone!

Sorry it has taken so long to get back to posting on here.  Eric and I have been busy adjusting to life with our little bundle of joy that finally arrived at 1:13 pm on April 11, 2012.

Isabelle Jean was 8 lbs 10 oz and 21 inches long at birth - a beautiful and healthy little girl.  Her birth came after 30 hours of labor starting from the beginning of the induction process at 7 am on April 10th.  The delivery was a little rough on mommy and mommy is still in recovery mode.

 Our first family photo, just minutes after Isabelle was born.

 Our little bundle of joy

Isabelle, all set to come home from the hospital on Friday, April 13th

Due Date - Came and Went

Here we are at 40 weeks

Baby Girl apparently wants to make a fashionably late entrance into the world, as she is now three days overdue and I'm still not in labor.  She also missed her opportunity to share her birthday with her paternal grandmother, Carla, whose birthday was Baby Girl's official due date - March 31st.

If anyone has any suggestions on how to encourage our little one to get a move on, please let us know :) 

Family Photo

Here is a "family photo" @ 38 weeks and 2 days along.

The Nursery

Eric and I put the finishing touches on the decorations in the nursery last weekend and this weekend we were able to pick up my glider and so all is ready for baby girl in her room :)

Our Little Pumpkin Has Grown

Left: This picture was taken back in October when I made the pumpkin shirt to wear for Halloween, when I was only 18 weeks along. 
Right: Here I am in the same shirt at 37 weeks along, to give you an idea of how much Our Little Pumpkin has grown in the past 19 weeks :)

Showered With Love

Hello everyone!  We are only three weeks out from the due date and I just had my fourth and final baby shower this past week.  I thought I would give you some highlights from the showers!  What a great time it has been seeing so many ladies, both family and friends, to give me encouragement and advice as I enter into motherhood.

Shower #1: Wisconsin Baby Shower

Baby girl's maternal grandmother and great-grandmother hosted a shower at the end of January.  Weather was great for traveling so we had a good turnout.  It was a day filled with stories, laughter, sharing of maternal wisdom, and great food!  And, of course, lots of presents for our baby girl.

Shower #2: CHRP Shower in Valparaiso

The ladies from Church, whom I became friends with while on retreat two years ago and then served with last year in throwing the retreat, held a baby shower for me.  It was a wonderful time to catch up with these women and to know how much support I have here, if I need any advice or help with our little one.

Shower #3: Michigan Baby Shower

Eric's family held a shower at their home and although there was some snowy weather, we had a good turnout.  It was a great chance to see some of the family and friends on his side that I had not seen since my bridal shower.  We returned from that shower with lots of gadgets for baby girl which Eric got right to work on putting together. :)

Shower #4: Work Shower

This past Thursday my co-workers at work threw me a little shower.  A great way to celebrate the reason I will be gone for so long and to get some encouragement and advice from the ladies at work. :)

Baby's First Wedding

At 31 weeks, Eric and I attended a wedding for a friend of mine from college.  Rachel and I were in Bible study together.  I was not sure how much dancing I would feel like doing but it seems the baby belly did not limit me from a good evening, except that I ran out of steam around 10:15 pm and we decided to head back to my friend's house where were were staying.

Here is a family picture with the baby bump at 31 weeks :)

Here I am with the beautiful bride, Rachel, and another friend from college Bible study, Gina.  It was so great to see both of them and catch up!