A Few of My Favorite Things

As Evie continues to grow up, she is starting to develop a little personality with her particular likes and dislikes. I don't think she remembers clothes, toys, or even people besides Brad or me yet, but there are things that she always smiles at and coos for. Some of her favorites include

A full bottle,

The stuffed musical butterfly with the light up cheeks and wings,

Walks in the stroller,

and the magical teal paci.

There aren't many things that Evie does not like, but one of them is loud barking from

The crazy Jackson.

Nobody's happy when his barking wakes Evie up from a nap. Nobody. She also hates sunshine in her eyes.

Evie doesn't really cry or fuss unless she is hungry or tired (much like me, actually), but there is one thing that Evie always loves, even if she's fussy. This miracle always gets a smile, a calm attitude, and a soothed baby:

A bath!

Evie loves a bath. From her very first days, she has always loved them.

She is always very interested in the good lookin' baby in the mirror. She 'laughs' at herself and delights in seeing Brad or me in the mirror. We could spend an hour a night in the bath. She loves them.

After her bath, Evie does 'Baby Spa' time complete with music, Aveeno lotion, baby hair brushing, books, prayers, and time with the special teal paci. She loves the evening routine.

In celebration, Evie thought she would share a musical number with you. Enjoy!

***

Evie's Musical Debut, Her 'Sound of Music' 

to be sung to "A Few of My Favorite Things"

Evenings with bath time and full yummy bottles, 

Splashing and laughing and playing in water. 

Plush butterflies with the lights in its wings... 

These are a few of my favorite things! 

Having my spa with Aveeno lotion, 

Walks in my stroller and soft rocking motion, 

Reading some books and the songs that we sing... 

These are a few of my favorite things!

When the dog barks,

When it's sunny,

When I'm fussy and mad, 

I simply remember my favorite things, and then I don't feel so bad!

Times, They Are a Changin

In the past few weeks, Evie has grown so much! She has definitely moved out of the 'newborn' phase and into the baby phase. Take a look:

Evie as newborn, 4 days old

compared to this:

Evie as a baby!, 7 weeks old

What a difference! She has started looking around all the time, making eye contact, smiling at people and sounds, and cooing. One of the first times she cooed, she was taken back by it. She shook her head in surprise and looked around for that strange creature that made the sound. I cooed back at her and she did it again, smiling at her most recent accomplishment.

Evie is also sleeping much better. Though she hasn't slept through the night yet, she is getting close. (Wahoo!) Several nights, she has slept from 9pm- 4am solid. The first time she did that, Brad and I assumed that the other had been up for a 1am meal, but we were delighted to find that the Baby Champ had indeed slept that long. Regardless, we were all surprised! 

I slept HOW long??

Last weekend, we went down to Columbus for a shower with Brad's family and Columbus friends. Peyton, Brad's sister, and our friends Jeannie and Ashley really know how to throw a party! It was a beautiful spread with a great mix of people and a gorgeous day. 

Yumyums made with love by Peyton and Jeannie

My dear friends Katherine and Christina were able to come (I hadn't seen them at the same time since our wedding 3 years ago!). Katherine made the trek from Boston and Christina came from outside Montgomery, a recent move for she and her husband from the SF Bay Area. The three of us, all from GA and AL, met while working in the Bay Area for California Theatre Center. (I famously renamed Christina 'Tumps' because she is from Wetumpka, AL.) They were excited to meet Evie, and we loved having time to spend together.

Tumps, Sally, and Katherine

It was a great day overall. Both of our families have been very supportive of our adoption of Evie, and friends and care deeply for her. And us. We are blessed to be loved by so many.

Katherine and Tumps with Evie

Finally, I had a special treat this weekend. My sweet friend Ashley decided to come to Athens this weekend to treat me to a UGA game! Ashley, a friend from high school and a college roommate, has been an incredible friend through my pregnancy, stroke, and recovery, and she was excited to come to Athens to root on the Dawgs! Evie celebrated by wearing a UGA dress, custom made by Suzy Revell, a high school friend's mom. We hope it's the first of many days Evie celebrates a win in Athens!

With Evie, 9/17

With Ashley at the game

(Oh! And I got my hair cut.)

Tomorrow starts a new week. According to my baby books, this week, Evie's stomach will be big enough to hold enough food to sleep through the night. We'll keep our drowsy fingers crossed. Until then, goodnight!

A Beautiful Distraction

Following Labor Day this week, I returned to work at Oconee County High School. It's a great school and I love my job, but it's been a tough week. Though I teach British Literature, 9th grade Literature and Composition, and Yearbook, all I could think about was this:

Wednesday at church, I lasted only about 10 minutes in the adult class before going to the nursery to retrieve Evie and hold her for the rest of class. I know hundreds-- thousands-- millions of women have returned to work post-baby, but the week was tougher than I thought it would be.
All I could think about was this:

In other news, Evie turned 6 WEEKS OLD this week! Friends and family often comment about how little she is, but we think she's just the opposite. Watching her grow and develop from a brand newborn to now is incredible. She follows people with her eyes, reacts to sounds, has a growing collection of facial expressions, and watches ceiling fans with fascination. Evie is also very strong. She lifts her head, kicks hard, can scoot a little on her tummy, and has rolled from her back to tummy at least twice. Really? Can little ones like Evie do that?

We like to think she is so smart/strong/advanced because she has been living in the Baker house. I'm sure her genes have a lot to do with it, too. We have known Lauren to be pretty smart/strong/advanced too. At least Evie's living up to her nature and nurture!

Also this week, our great friends at St. Mary's put together a celebration and shower for Evie. Therapists, nurses, nurse techs, and doctors who have known and worked with us for the last sixteen months came to meet Evie and share in the very happy end to a painful story. Who knew that two of Athens' most successful neurologists would spend their Thursday evening ooh-ing and ahh-ing over little Evie! I will include pictures soon.

This coming weekend, we wrap up our Shower Season with one last party given by Brad's sister Peyton and our great friends Jeannie and Ashley. Look for pictures and the play-by-play coming soon!

Until then, so that you won't be distracted from work, play, and life, here's a little something for you to think about as I have all week:

Happy weekend!

You Outta Be In Pictures!

For the last couple of days, we have been working on getting Evie on an established schedule. This has resulted in an unhappy Evie at times, so instead of posting unhappy Evie pictures, I thought I would share some different pictures.

One of our good friends, Melanie Jenkins, offered to take some pictures of the little one over the next several months. She gave us the photos this week, and here they are! 

Drum roll pleeeeeaaaaaassssseee.....

Isn't she beautiful? Striking? Absolutely stunning? We think so, too!