3 Weeks Old

  Week #3 and still doing great! Scarlet got a pretty good case of baby acne this week, so we weren't looking our best, but it didn't seem to phase her. And that's why they invented photo editing, right? :) She is sleeping great, and she only has a few hours of fussiness in the evenings.

 This week, Scarlet discovered the joy of stretching. :) She still likes to curl up in a little ball too.

 Hell froze over. Mom showered, got dressed in real clothes, and used a blowdryer.

I sometimes have lots of company while rocking Scarlet to sleep. This particular time I had both Lauren & Evan, their babies, and the dog. Lauren & Evan were rocking their babies to sleep too. I may have even heard a few verses of whispered "You are My Sunshine" from their lips. Those babies get such great care.

But, before you worry about Evan tooooo much, note that this is how he carried his baby around the house. Over the back and upside down.

 Lauren and Big Baby, whom she's had and loved since her first birthday.

Go State!

 Go State!

Big 12 Tournament Champs!

And then making the Sweet 16!

 With a new baby in the house, we've been staying home a lot. March Madness has provided some good entertainment.

 We've been wearing our Cyclone gear religiously. Even Scarlet has some cardinal and gold!

 Our attempt at a Family of Five photo with the camera on a timer. Not too bad.

And since Chad & I lived vicariously through my parents during the Big 12 tourney, I will include a few pics of their weekend in KC. My parents and many other Julius family members traveled to KC to watch the Cyclones play. Scarlet was only 2 weeks old, so we had to pass this year :) and hopefully next year will be just as good!

Looks like a fun group to me!

It was sad to see the season end, but it sure was a fun ride!

Loving our Baby Sister

 One thing is for sure. 

Scarlet is loved.

She is loved by many people, but especially by her two siblings.

 Evan is still really affectionate with Scarlet. One of Evan's best qualities has always been his loving nature. He loves to hold her...for about 20 seconds....and then he is ready to hurl her off his lap. :) Mostly, though, he is very gentle and careful with her. 

And Lauren is loving her baby sister too! She took a little longer to warm up but I think most of her hesitation revolved around the whole hospital thing and seeing Mom not in her best form. :) 

 I hope you two will be best friends.

 I love everything about this photo.

And this one.

A lazy morning in our jammies....wait, no, lazy is not the right word. Nothing about our days right now are lazy. Wonderful? Yes. Precious? Yes. Lazy? No. :)

Balance

 So far, our transition to having 3 kids has been fairly seemless. We've had a lot of help though, and it's still early, so we will see if I am still saying that same thing in a month or two. :)

However, I can already tell that the biggest thing will be trying to find a good balance. Balancing spending time with Lauren & Evan and cherishing these early days with Scarlet. 

Last week, Lauren got the stomach flu (again). Ugh. I felt like it was some sort of mean parenting hazing challenge or something. Give us a newborn and a vomiting 5 year old and see if we survive. So, my attention was focused mostly on Lauren & Scarlet for the weekend, and Evan watched a lot of Disney Junior. By the time Sunday afternoon rolled around, I was missing my little buddy and ready to get away from the yuck.

So, Evan & I went to the park. Best decision of the day.

It's amazing what I learned about him just spending 30 minutes alone with him. He told me about things he learned at school, his new friend at school, and told me all about how careful you have to be around Scarlet's soft little head. (I didn't think he was even listening to my lecture about being careful around her, but I guess he bought in :))

Lauren recovered quickly, so I need to schedule some one-on-one time with her now!

Two Weeks Old

 At 2 weeks old, Scarlet is doing great! 

She weighed 7 lbs 15 oz at her 2 week check-up today (up from 7 lb 7 oz at birth and 7 lbs 0 oz at hospital discharge), and her doctor has no concerns! Her height was up 3/4 inch as well, which explains why her newborn sleepers are too short.

 So precious...

She loves to cuddle and be held. (Who wouldn't?) Her absolute favorite activity right now is to lay her head on your shoulder or chest and will literally sleep there for hours. It seems like she sleeps ALL. THE. TIME. Although with each passing day, she is more alert and awake for longer periods of time. I just love the sleepy newborn stage, so I'm hoping she doesn't pass out of this stage too quickly!

 She is spoiling me with her sleeping habits, giving me 3-4 hours of uninterrupted sleep at night. I'm not counting on that lasting much longer - it's too good to be true. :) Now that she is back up to birth weight, no more setting my alarm in the middle of the night.

 

 "Enough pictures already, Mom."

 She falls asleep in the most adorable positions. She loves to have her hands up by her face, and I often find her with her hands together saying her prayers.

 Scarlet's first non-sleeper outfit was a cute auntie onesie borrowed from cousin Carly. To complete the outfit was her first pair of jeggings and her first hair bow. :)

She is changing every day. She looked a lot like Lauren the first week or two, and still does, although I see some Evan in her too. 

I hope these next few weeks go slowly!

Scarlet's Birth Day

The story of Scarlet's arrival....

...but first a picture of the princess herself!

Sunday, March 2, 2014

At 39 weeks and 3 days pregnant, I was starting to think she'd never come. My Dr had told me several weeks before that baby was coming very soon. With another snowstorm and frigid temperatures in the forecast, my parents came to town for the weekend "just in case." Turns out, they were right! Sunday morning, my water broke. We took a few last minute pregnancy pictures. 

 My Mom & I

 I had packed a bag for the baby a few weeks prior. Will it be blue or pink?

 Our last Family of Four Picture

 This was my longest labor to date, but I was fairly comfortable most of the time, so I won't complain.
We got there around 11AM, and she was born at 11:36 PM.

 Lauren & Evan were so excited to wear their new Big Sister/Big Brother t-shirts so since my labor was taking so long, my parents brought them to visit us before bedtime. When we left for the hospital, Lauren was in tears, so I was relieved to see her excitement.

A few hours later....

 Scarlet Ann Raymer was born! 

She had a ferocious cry, and near perfect stats. Apgars of 8 and 9. She weighed 7 lbs 7 oz and was 20 3/4 inches long. 

A few hours later, we made it to our post-partum room, took a few more pics, and went to bed. It had been a really long day, so Chad fell asleep instantly. I stayed awake most of the night, holding this beautiful baby girl, in total disbelief that she was ours. :) She was really alert, and looked back at me with those big blue eyes, and how was I supposed to sleep? :)

Monday, March 3rd 

Look at those long fingers!

She also has really big feet. Her footprints didn't fit on the standard sized paper they use at the hospital. :)

Trying to decide who she looks like! At first I thought she had her own look, but the older she gets, the more she looks like her big sister. :)

 Daddy & Daughter

Meeting Lauren & Evan for the first time. This picture says it all. Lauren taking refuge in Chad's lap, Evan shoving a stuffed animal in Scarlet's face, and me, my Dad and the rest of the fam looking on to see the kids' reaction. 

Evan walked in, so proud and so excited to meet his little sister. His first comment was, "Aww, she's so cute." He was very excited to give her her first stuffed animal. Lauren, however, was much more timid. She hated us being in the hospital, but she warmed up pretty quickly. Definitely opposite from what I was expecting.

 

 

 First Family of Five Photo

 Proud Grandparents! Not only did they spoil little Scarlet while they were in town, they single-handedly assumed pretty much all cares for Lauren & Evan all week. Swimming lessons included. This is no small feat, and Chad & I were so appreciative.

 Scarlet has no idea how lucky she is to have these 2 aunties! Erin drove all the way from Minneapolis for just a few quick hours of snuggles before she had to go back, and Laurie has taken countless trips to the hospital and our house to see her new niece and help me out.

 Monday was a really fun day. I had forgotten how special those first few days are. We have really enjoyed getting to know this new little girl!

 Tuesday, March 4th

Going home day!!

Since Scarlet was born at 11:36 pm, it counted as one of our nights in the hospital. So, we got kicked out on Tuesday. But we were very ready to go home, so we were happy about that.

 Looking so tiny in her carseat. 

Noteworthy fact: Scarlet was born on the coldest day ever recorded in the month of March in Nebraska. The wind chill was 20-30 below zero. Thankfully, it was a balmy 20 degrees above zero the day we brought you home! :)

 Welcome to our family Scarlet Ann!

It's a GIRL!

Scarlet Ann Raymer

March 2, 2014

11:36 PM

7 lb 7 oz 

20 3/4 inches

...and so perfect...

I have too many pictures to sort through right now, but I had to include one of her very first hair bow. :) 

More details and pictures to come!