One Month Young

I'll be posting a monthly photo for the first year. Here are a few snaps from her One Month photo shoot:

Memorial Day

On Memorial Day, Eloise got to meet Uncle Anders.  We were happy to have Rees, KayLynn, Phil and Anders over for the celebration.  

Here are a few snapshots from the day:

Uncle Anders

She's lucky to have such great uncles!

Red, White and Blue: She wanted to be holiday appropriate.  

The Girls

The Brothers Smith

Memorial Day Nap

The Getty Center

I'm not yet caught up with all that has happened these past couple of months, but today I thought I'd do a present-day post.  Eloise and I just got back from a day at The Getty Center.  Okay, you might be thinking that Eloise is a little too young to appreciate the beautiful art and architecture The Getty has to offer, but early exposure can't hurt, right?  We spent a fair amount of time just relaxing and enjoying the ambience.  She was a bit noisy for the quiet of the exhibit areas, but during her sleepy time I was able to catch the Old Testament in Medieval Manuscript Exhibit and The Rembrandt and His Circle rooms.  Gotta love the Dutch!  I forgot a real camera, so all of these photos are taken with my iphone.  Not too shabby for a phone camera!

 Getting off the Tram

The Getty!

Eloise's favorite part of the day was staring at her polka dot blanket while Mommy ate a delicious lunch at the cafe.  

She was mesmerized.

Nap time at The Getty.

This picture is in honor of Hansen who was somewhere distant in this picture, downtown LA, slaving away for our livelihood.  I've definitely got the better end of this deal.  

  

Home again, home again, jiggity jig.  

My First Mother's Day

Mother's Day this year was only 2 weeks after Eloise's birth.  What a sweet, early gift she was!  I LOVE being a Mom.  Although a HUGE change to my former life, I have enjoyed stepping into this role in every way.  I will always remember that sacred, sweet moment of change that happened inside of me when she entered my life.  I realized very quickly I would never be the same again.  I'm happy to always be her Mom.

We were able to have a little photo shoot outside our home before our guests arrived:

We had Rees, KayLynn, and Leslie over for dinner.  I should clarify: THEY brought the feast.  It was so nice to relax and enjoy the day! 

I think the best part of the day, though, was the quiet of the evening after the party was over.  We were all tired but still basking in the sweetness of the day and all it celebrates.  

First Outing!

Hansen was able to spend that first week at home with us.  It was such an incredible time!  It was just the three of us, getting to know each other.  We lived in a bubble of happy baby bliss.  After (almost) two weeks of being inside I was ready to burst the bubble.  On Saturday, May 8th, we took our first outing and it felt so good to get out of the house.  The outing was short, but sweet.  We went to Aaron's Brothers to buy frames for our Mother's Day gifts.

We decided to commemorate the event by taking a ridiculous amount of photos.  But she looked so cute...

I LOVE the Baby Bjorn.  Thanks Swedes!

Clearly I hadn't seen the light of day in a very long time.  I would usually be embarrassed to post such a picture, but this one was just too funny to pass up.  I was honestly having trouble adjusting to the sunlight after a long hibernation.  

The First Visitors

A few days after bringing Eloise home from the hospital, we had many important visitors.  The Grandparents Smith were the first to come.  This is what the visit looked like most of the time:

I'm sure I won't be exaggerating to say they probably have enough Flip video footage on this Little One to make a feature-length film.  I'm so grateful they live close by!  They are such loving and supportive people.  When I married Hansen, I felt an immediate, warm acceptance into their family.  I knew they would be fantastic grandparents, but they have truly exceeded my expectations in every way.  They love her so much and I can see that they will always play a key role in her life.  I also need to mention they kept us fed for those first weeks home-- I'll be ever grateful for the extra help while I was recovering!

Next came Uncle Phil.  Now, Phil had been pretty hopeful throughout my pregnancy that I would have a monkey rather than a baby.  He came bearing gifts: 

Though she lacks a prehensile tail, I don't think he is too disappointed with our little primate.  

Leslie is a dear friend of mine who has been an incredible support to our little family.  She threw an amazing baby party for us a couple weeks before Eloise was born and even waited late in the hospital waiting room to make sure she arrived safely. We're honored to have "Aunt" Leslie as a member of our family.  This is her first visit: 

Going Home

I was so excited to be released from the hospital.  We were all really grateful that there were no complications for either Mom or Baby that would have required a longer stay.  I was anxious to get her to our comfortable home.  Oh, and by the way, I've since re-thought horizontal stripes for an outfit 2 days after giving birth.  One at that stage really doesn't need extra help looking wider. 

Our first family portrait, with the stunning backdrop of the hospital room privacy curtain.  

Awwww!!!  The happiest family!

3 Generations

My Mom spent a generous amount of time with me before Eloise was born.  She helped me get the nursery ready, pick out Eloise's layette, and gave me tons of good advice.  Most importantly, however, she distracted me during the painful waiting period.  The anxiety of waiting for her entrance would have pushed me over the edge had I been alone.  Thanks for making the wait bearable, Mom (and really fun)!

Ready to go!

Home at last!  

This is her first nap at home.  Cozy in her cradle that Hansen restored (a family heirloom--I'll definitely post a blurb about that later) and the quilt that I made for her.

One Day Old

Hansen and I couldn't stop talking about how gorgeous she was! I'm sure all new parents have similar conversations. We were gushing with pride over this sweet, perfect little being. We couldn't believe WE had a hand in creating her. Isn't the whole process (especially the end result) absolutely miraculous?

Sweet Angel Baby

Her first few hours...

Okay, I promise this blog won't be an hour by hour description of this little girl's life (although I know a few unmentioned Grandparents who would probably love that). But, her FIRST hours of life might be worthy of such attention. I had to stay in the recovery room while Hansen followed Eloise to the nursery. I HATED being separated from her. At one point, when I thought it was taking too long, I called my nurse in to see if she was okay. When the nurse couldn't come right away I was sure that something awful had happened. I sat in my room, with tears streaming down my face. I felt lonely, worried and helpless. Of course, all was well and I was just overreacting and over-emotional. I feel silly about it now. Hansen documented our traumatic (ha ha) time apart quite well.

Warming up.  She was having a hard time maintaining her body temp at first. 

Cute feet.

Here's a shot of her first bath.  She didn't like it so much.  

She settled down pretty quickly under the warmth of the heat lamp.  

She also didn't like the first shampoo.  I tried to tell her she'll LOVE that when she gets older. 

First Pacifier

Back in the room, after all the torture, safe by Mom.