Precious Sleepy Pictures

Who doesn't love looking at little babies sleeping?

This happened first, then "someone" got jealous that Ellie was asleep on Mommy's lap...so he curled up on Daddy's lap and struck a pose! See below. :)

Yup...even a smile on Symba's face!

A normal sleeping position for our silly, lil' one! :)

It started out on Mommy's lap (CLEARLY had just eaten and is cashed out from her big meal!)...

...And "someone" got jealous again and had to make his move. :) Poor child.

Elliana at a Week...or So

A little fun in Ellie's 1st week being home!

In Grandma Cerven's arms...with a cake topper we saved from a family shower to celebrate her arrival...nope, she didn't even get to eat any herself!

On our way to Ellie's first doctor's appointment...she wasn't too happy about it in this picture, but was an absolute angel the whole time we were there. Not one fuss from her, she was alert and happy and didn't mind the doctor poking and checking everything.

Ellie's first bath...but not really. Still had her umbilical cord there, so just a little washing...after the 3rd and most devastating diaper "explosion" of the day! I finally gave up on the wipes and had to wash her little body down.

We had just gotten back from David's studio, taking a quick family pic with the Cervens. Ellie was still in one of her Christmas outfits, so we snagged a pic of the 3 of us.

Elliana Jane is Born!!!

(*Added 2 more pictures that I missed before*)

Our precious daughter has arrived! Elliana "Ellie" Jane Cerven was born at 2:42am on Dec. 16th, weighing in at 8 lbs., 15 oz. and measuring 21 1/2 inches long. I ended up being induced since we missed our due date...so, the Pitocin was a little rough for me. Labor was totally surreal, though...I'm sure all you moms out there can understand how inexplicable the whole thing is: the good, the bad, and the ugly parts! :) Little Ellie is healthy, content, and loves to sleep. She's already smiling and squirming out of her swaddled blankets.

Anyway, I'm sure more to come when we can! It's practically all I can do to finally get a few pics up and think beyond "feed, burp, change diaper, sleep...repeat." :)

Last picture of my tummy as we head to the hospital!!


Last picture as "just us" - off to get our daughter!!


Just minutes after Ellie was born!! Content already... :)


A close up of a precious little face!


Her "leaving-the-hospital" outfit...check out the feet! :)

Our new family leaving the hospital!

A precious little smile already!!

39 Weeks and Counting...

39 weeks and a few days...people have been telling me that I'm "all baby" (which I'm glad to hear!), and by the looks of this picture, she sure is just stickin' right out there! SOO funny to me to see a profile picture of myself, when I spend most of my days looking down...and then of course, just seeing the top of my belly! This child has been known to push pretty hard outwards - I don't know if that's common or not for other women, but there are times that you can feel how hard certain parts of my tummy are as if she was pushing her feet on my spine and her back out towards my stomach. Totally different sensation than the kick to the lungs or the stomach.

If we make it until my appointment on Wed., I am VERY curious what the next steps are. My due date is this Sat., and my doctor seems willing to help speed things along with the lovely skin rash/irritation that I've acquired now, BUT he won't be in town from Thurs-Sun! If I could guarantee one specific doctors that I like of the 3 remaining in the practice, I'd be all for getting this moving along...otherwise, I'd much rather have my doctor. Hmmm...we'll just see. At this point, if she'd rather come NOW (before Thurs), the highway is now open (making our trip much easier!),she could have the same bday as my brother, and my doctor would be in town...would be the SIMPLE way to go, but then again, let's think back about most of this pregnancy. :)

36 Weeks & Counting!

Here are pics from today...at 36 1/2 weeks, but guess what? We had a GOOD report at the doc's this Friday! Baby has dropped, she is definitely "head down" and in position, and I am dilated 2 cm! Other great and encouraging news to share: doc believes baby will be small (maybe even under 7 lbs!!), and believes that 38 weeks may be a reality for going into labor! Yea!!! That would be right around Thanksgiving! And, we know - no "holding our breath" on that projection - but the thought of delivering early, possibly having a small baby, and maybe avoiding a December birthday are all exciting things to hear! So, we'll just continue to wait and see!!

Also today, our church had a lovely shower for us - some really sweet women gathered to pray for us, for the baby, and to bless us with gifts. It was really precious and I felt truly showered (and encouraged!) by a wonderful group of women so close to us here in Maplewood. Don't have any pictures from tonight...and I still need to get pictures up from Heidi's shower!

Stay tuned for more exciting updates...another doc appt in the middle of this week!

Maternity Pictures

This is SLIGHTLY out of order from the next post, but I still wanted to get these up for viewing purposes. Below is a sample of pictures we took at David's studio on Thurs, Oct 29th - our 34 week mark!! Nothing has been "Photoshopped," so my tummy is seriously this size. :) We also wanted to take one last round of pics before I chopped all my hair off - 2 days later. So the blog entry to follow shows my shorter hair. I will miss SOME parts of having long hair, but I am enjoying NO hair on the back of my neck or getting caught under all the tons of pillows (these days) while I sleep!

Kelly's Visit!

Kelly came to town from Thurs-Sun to visit, see my tummy, watch me waddle :], attend a shower for us, and help me with things around here. It was great to have her here and catch up before life changes even more!


P.S. I CUT MY HAIR!!! About 12 inches off!! Yea!