I'll post these all here when we get the final copies from Elements Photography, but for now click and enjoy!
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Friday, April 27, 2007
Friday, April 20, 2007
One Week of Life!
Life at one week. Can you imagine it? Faith and I have spent the days simply trying to figure out what Ava wants and when she wants it. There have been lots of moments spent reading books that all seem to make perfect sense now. Of course, by all accounts, Ava is a good little girl. She doesn't cry all that much and she seems content much of the time (of course, don't let her get too hungry or else you will hear what it is to really cry!).
Nights haven't been as bad as we were told, although we are as exhausted as we could possibly be. Ava went to the pediatrician yesterday and weighed in at 9 lbs. 4 oz. The doctor said she was healthy and our next appointment is for shots in a little over a week. They said to be prepared for that appointment!
Here are some pictures of little Ava that have been taken since we have been home. Enjoy!
This is Faith's best friend Debbi.
Dustin's little sister
Dustin's dad.
We knew this was going to end badly for the dog. She didn't know quite how to react to a new baby so now she is staying at Grandma's house for a while.
One of the first dirty diapers!
This is Faith's mom after a night of helping with Ava.
This is Dustin's mom.
The first night blues.
Ava's cute little bassinet.
We saw that you liked this from previous pictures and had to have it!
Lots of cards and Ava's special name letters.
The little rose for the other love of my life. Notice the bib that says "Little Ballerina." We couldn't find one that said exactly "little dancer" but I'm sure she'll get the point.
Nights haven't been as bad as we were told, although we are as exhausted as we could possibly be. Ava went to the pediatrician yesterday and weighed in at 9 lbs. 4 oz. The doctor said she was healthy and our next appointment is for shots in a little over a week. They said to be prepared for that appointment!
Here are some pictures of little Ava that have been taken since we have been home. Enjoy!
This is Faith's best friend Debbi.
Dustin's little sister
Dustin's dad.
We knew this was going to end badly for the dog. She didn't know quite how to react to a new baby so now she is staying at Grandma's house for a while.
One of the first dirty diapers!
This is Faith's mom after a night of helping with Ava.
This is Dustin's mom.
The first night blues.Ava's cute little bassinet.
We saw that you liked this from previous pictures and had to have it!
Lots of cards and Ava's special name letters.
The little rose for the other love of my life. Notice the bib that says "Little Ballerina." We couldn't find one that said exactly "little dancer" but I'm sure she'll get the point.
Monday, April 16, 2007
She is Our Little Girl!
Between 3 and 4 P.M. yesterday afternoon, baby Ava officially became Ava Grace Chapman! The paperwork was all signed and she is now our little girl! Of course, the process did not come with out it's potential problems (as always).
They gave us the forms to sign at around 2 and we sat in the waiting room at the hospital looking it over while Jeff (Randee's caseworker) went upstairs to go over everything with Randee. As I looked over the contract we were about to sign I realized that there were a few inconsistencies in what was in there. Working in the industry in which I do, I was a bit nervous about signing something that was not totally correct. After speaking with our attorney (okay, it's actually Faith's sister who is "our attorney" it just sounds cool to say that) and working out some details, we signed the paperwork.
We went upstairs to the NICU unit where Randee, her mom, and her younger sister were sitting with Ava and we all had a good chat for about a half hour. Faith gave Randee the "hope" necklace that she had bought when we lost our little girl. She explained how incredibly important and special that necklace had been to her and that she had not taken it of for 14 months. She went on say that she hoped that the necklace became as important for Randee as it was for Faith and that it somehow helped her get through the tough times that were ahead for her.
After that everybody left with tears flowing and Faith and I were left with our adorable little girl who was now ours! Randee seemed surprisingly content with the decision. Her final thought was that she was going to leave and let us be parents finally. It was a very, very special day for us.
Here are some more pictures:
The proud new daddy!
Dustin's sister Ricki ventured up to the hospital later that night to visit the first grandchild in the family that isn't hers.
Of course, everybody says it, but in my opinion she is the world's cutest baby!
They gave us the forms to sign at around 2 and we sat in the waiting room at the hospital looking it over while Jeff (Randee's caseworker) went upstairs to go over everything with Randee. As I looked over the contract we were about to sign I realized that there were a few inconsistencies in what was in there. Working in the industry in which I do, I was a bit nervous about signing something that was not totally correct. After speaking with our attorney (okay, it's actually Faith's sister who is "our attorney" it just sounds cool to say that) and working out some details, we signed the paperwork.
We went upstairs to the NICU unit where Randee, her mom, and her younger sister were sitting with Ava and we all had a good chat for about a half hour. Faith gave Randee the "hope" necklace that she had bought when we lost our little girl. She explained how incredibly important and special that necklace had been to her and that she had not taken it of for 14 months. She went on say that she hoped that the necklace became as important for Randee as it was for Faith and that it somehow helped her get through the tough times that were ahead for her.
After that everybody left with tears flowing and Faith and I were left with our adorable little girl who was now ours! Randee seemed surprisingly content with the decision. Her final thought was that she was going to leave and let us be parents finally. It was a very, very special day for us.
Here are some more pictures:
The proud new mommy!
The proud new daddy!
Dustin's sister Ricki ventured up to the hospital later that night to visit the first grandchild in the family that isn't hers.
Of course, everybody says it, but in my opinion she is the world's cutest baby!
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Day Two of Life
That's kind of a wierd title for a post, I think. I went on a hike to the Red Cliffs area neer Leeds yesterday morning and as I sat perched on the top of a red cliff (hence the name, I suppose) I thought about how the baby was officially one day old at that time. Then the thought occurred to me, "That was only one day ago!?! That seems like it was an eternity ago!"
Around 1:30 P.M. yesterday afternoon (Saturday April, 14) we got to see and hold little Ava once again. Randee is doing well and seems happy and content with the whole situation. Her family also seems to be in the same state of mind. Ava was fed for the first time yesterday, and from what we understand from the nurses she is basically eating like a horse. One nurse told us that was a good measuring stick on how healthy she was. Things like that are always good to hear.
Ava wouldn't stir much as we held her. She opened her eyes for a few fleeting seconds yawned quite a bit. She was even more beautiful, however. Her lips, especially, had gained more red to them. She is battling an infection though. We were informed yesterday that our stay in St. George will be a bit longer than we had thought. They would like to keep her in the NICU for a few more days to make sure the anti-biotic does its thing and also to allow for time to get a culture sample back to figure out exactly what it is that she has. We are told all of this is precautionary in that she is healthy. They just want to know what it was that she had and want to make sure it goes away before they let her go.
Enjoy some more pictures- we will keep posting daily to let everybody know how things are going.
Again, be sure to leave some commentary and let us know you have been here.
Around 1:30 P.M. yesterday afternoon (Saturday April, 14) we got to see and hold little Ava once again. Randee is doing well and seems happy and content with the whole situation. Her family also seems to be in the same state of mind. Ava was fed for the first time yesterday, and from what we understand from the nurses she is basically eating like a horse. One nurse told us that was a good measuring stick on how healthy she was. Things like that are always good to hear.
Ava wouldn't stir much as we held her. She opened her eyes for a few fleeting seconds yawned quite a bit. She was even more beautiful, however. Her lips, especially, had gained more red to them. She is battling an infection though. We were informed yesterday that our stay in St. George will be a bit longer than we had thought. They would like to keep her in the NICU for a few more days to make sure the anti-biotic does its thing and also to allow for time to get a culture sample back to figure out exactly what it is that she has. We are told all of this is precautionary in that she is healthy. They just want to know what it was that she had and want to make sure it goes away before they let her go.
Enjoy some more pictures- we will keep posting daily to let everybody know how things are going.
Again, be sure to leave some commentary and let us know you have been here.
This is Ava's first bottle. As you can see, she downed most of it.
A very special group of women.
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