2 Months!

Ripley is now 2 months old....and I'm happy to report that she has become much more manageable, yay for us! And she loves to smile, which is so rewarding. Today she had her 2 month doctor appt. which included 4 shots, OUCH! My poor little baby. She was good though, didn't cry for too long. She is now 11 pounds, 9 ounces and 23 inches long. Definitely growing! Here are a few new pics of her. Enjoy!

Little Evan

Evan is 5 months old now. He has gotten so big! I only got the chance to see him once when he was just 2 weeks old, but at the end of June he's taking his first big trip to Florida to visit Aunt Kat and his future wife, Ripley....YAY!

LOST

For all you Lost fans out there...tonight is the season finale! Unfortunately, I can't discuss the show with Matt anymore, since after season 2 he quit the show. I understood his frustration, since I too felt the show started to take a turn for the worse, but I just couldn't quit cold turkey. I stuck with it and now I'm glad I did. It definitely has gotten better.

When we first started to watch the show, it was from the DVD collection, since we got into it late. So once we started to watch the shows on TV it pretty much sucked with all the commercials. Can you believe how many commercials that show runs? And of course right after something big happens. It's frustrating (another reason Matt quit the show). Thankfully we have DV-R (like Tivo thru our cable company), so I never watch the show "live" and always watch it taped and then I'm able to fast fwd all the commercials. What a great invention, I tell ya!

So tonight is the big night. I'm so glad they ran that re-cap episode, because there was sooo much I forgot about. It seems like they are definitely not going to get off the island, otherwise the show would be over, but I am sure there will be a lot of twists & turns. And hopefully it will not disappoint. I would love to re-hash the show and give you my thoughts on what will happen, but there is no time for that since Ripley will be waking up any minute. Enjoy!

Ripley Loves Daddy...

She also loves this vibrating rocker/chair...

Ripley & Red

Ripley has a new friend. Her name is "Red" from the HBO series "Fraggle Rock" which aired in the mid to late 80's. Anyone watch that show?? Uncle Ryan bought her this doll. These pictures crack me up.

Notes from the Underbelly

Does anyone watch this show? I know Lauren does and possibly Michelle?? It might not appeal to all audiences, since the show is about couples in their 30's having kids, but if that grabs your attention at all, I highly suggest checking out the show. Funny stuff. It's on Wednesday nights on ABC. Check it out, if you can.

Our Big Trip Out

We've hit a milestone....Ripley and I ventured out yesterday, just the 2 of us! We went to the grocery store & blockbuster (they're right next to eachother). It was crazy, I felt like I was walking around with a time bomb that could go off at any minute. Thankfully, my list was short and we made it in & out without any explosion. She slept the entire time. I was a nervous wreck, SIGH.

It felt sooo good to be able to get out of the house with her, but at the same time scary too. I mean, what if she cried? Would we be shunned out of Publix (our grocery store)? A place that I have grown to know & love where the checkout people know me by name. We did run into a couple who wanted to look at the "new baby", but thankfully they did not touch her, otherwise it could have gotten ugly.

Stay tuned for our next adventure out, who knows, we may take a risk and go further than 5 minutes away from home. Just maybe.

One Month...

Ripley is one month old today. Wow, how the time has passed! Such a blur. Matt goes back to work tomorrow, which means I'll be flying solo during the day with Ripley. A scary thought! So I thought I would put a little list together below.

Things we've learned about taking care of a newborn in the past month:

1) Don't wake a sleeping baby. Even if she looks so tiny & cute laying there in her bassinet that you become over-whelmed with love and just have to hold her at that very moment. I'm telling you now, resist the urge. If she wanted to be held, she would have let you known.

2) When changing her diaper, have a diaper underneath at all times, because often she likes to pee and most of the time this happens on the new clean diaper you just put underneath her bum (or worse, all over her onsie). Ripley loves to do this to Mommy. How come she can't she do this to the dirty diaper?

3) Yellow mustard seedy poop is a good thing.

4) When taking your babies' temp in the bum, always remember this procedure may induce her to poop all over you, so again have a diaper underneath ready to catch her little gift to you.

5) Rethink taking your baby for her first walk in the stroller on a sunny day. She will not like this one bit and will force you to turn around and go back inside just after leaving the driveway. Better luck in the evening!

6) Music is key. Play it often. I recommend the following: Norah Jones, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Dave Matthews & some classical tunes.

7) Coffee is your best friend.

8) White noise also helps. The hair dryer can be a lifesavor. Or get yourself a sound machine, it's more convenient, portable & you don't have to hold it at 3 in the morning while sweating.

9) A smile in the first weeks usually means poop or gas, but it still melts your heart.

10 ) Taking care of a newborn is one of the hardest things I've done and at the same time, one of the best things. Ripley is perfect. We are truly blessed.

So much love for the Slow Cooker...

Matt & I got a slow cooker as a gift for our wedding, I believe I registered for it, but up until about a week ago, we never used it. I kept saying we should start using it and wanted to get a cookbook for it, but just never did until last week when Matt's Mom was here. During her stay, the 3 of us went thru the book and picked out 2 recipes to make while she was here. Both turned out amazing! Matt suggested we throw out our stove.

It's so easy, which is key now that little Ripley is here. I know many of you are probably already aware of the power of the crockpot, I realize I'm a little late on this, but maybe you're in need for some new recipes. If so, the book is by Sandra Lee and called Semi-homemade Slow Cooker Recipes. So far our favorite recipe has been the Cranberry BBQ Pulled Pork (page 55), good stuff!

Happy Mother's Day!

Wow, today is my first Mother's Day. It feels so surreal. I'm a Mom and celebrating Mother's day, crazy stuff! This weekend Ryan came to visit and last night Matt took me out to dinner for Mother's Day while Ryan took care of Ripley. It was great for the 2 of us to be able to get out like that, since we haven't had a chance to do so since Ripley was born. Thanks Ryan!

Hope all the Mom's have a wonderful day today!

We loved our hospital choice...

A little late on this post, but I didn't want to leave it out...our experience at Winter Park Memorial Hospital was wonderful. Matt & I were so happy with our choice to give birth there. Every nurse we had was great, a huge help, never in a rush and so happy to help. Carla was our labor & delivery nurse, who we loved! We felt so lucky to have such great care. The outdated atmoshphere wasn't even a factor, which we suspected. And...we lucked out and got a bigger recovery room, a suite, even. Still not huge, but definitely bigger than the standard "sardine" type rooms, so that was nice. Matt's fold out bed/chair he slept on was probably the only downfall of our experience there, definitely not very comfortable, but thankfully it was for only 2 nights. He survived : )

2 Weeks

Well, we have managed to survive 2 weeks of newborn madness! People aren't joking when they tell you it's not easy. Thankfully, breastfeeding is going a lot better, so that's a big help. All the technical aspects are working, but I still have to deal with the constant demand of it all. She eats every 2-3 hours, so Mom isn't getting too much done around the house these days! Thankfully Matt has been home with me, I don't know what I would do without him! He's been a lifesavor. He has 2 more weeks off from work, so hopefully I'll have a good handle on things by the time he goes back to work and I'm flying solo with Ripley.

Left - in her new boppy lounger her Aunt Michelle got her. She loves this!

Right - chilling out in her swing. She loves the tropical, Jamaican type music it plays. It makes Mommy want a margarita though!

Thank You

Having a baby, means you get spoiled. Family & friends really show their love for you at a time like this. We feel so blessed. Some of our friends have brought over food this week, which has been such a huge help! Us not having to cook when we're occupied with Ripley and functioning on little sleep is a great relief. Especially since the food was soooo good! Kate & Chris brought over lasagna, soup & cornbread and our friend Leah brought over a massive chicken pot pie and sugar cookies. What a better way to refuel than some home cooking? Thank you!!

Another thanks goes out to all of our family & friends who have visited and brought over or mailed us gifts for Ripley. We have gotten so many girly outfits, I'm in Heaven! Now she just has to grow a bit so she can fit into them : ) We have also received books for her, which is great, since we don't have many and we're all about reading to her at an early age. So fun!

Thanks again, we love you guys!

Ripley is 1 Week Old Today

This past week has been a blurr. I can't believe Ripley is already a week old! We came home from the hospital on Tuesday. My Dad & JoAnne stayed with us for the week and just left today. They were a huge help! Cooking, cleaning, mowing our lawn, helping with Ripley, it was great! I can already tell she is going to be one spoiled little girl!

As for Matt & I, all I can say is - Sleep Deprivation! The nights are the hardest, waking up every 3 hours to feed Ripley. Which means we're getting about 2 hours (sometimes less) of straight sleep at once. And yet somehow we still manage to function throughout the day, a little scary! But of course, definitely worth it. I'm told it will get easier and more rewarding too, since right now we're really the only ones giving, giving, giving. Thankfully she is a cutie that melts our hearts, even at 3am when she's screaming for food : )

Left - Ripley & Aunt Kate

Right: Ripley & Grandma J

Left: Matt calls this one the "motorcycle.

Right: One of my faves

Baby Demaray Has Arrived!!!

It's a GIRL!!!!!!!

Ripley Judith Demaray was born on Sunday, April 15 at 5:03 p.m. She weighed 6 pounds, 9 ounces and was just over 18 inches long. All of us are home and doing well.

Below are a few pictures so you can see how precious our little Angel is.

She can't wait to meet all of you!

Lots of love,
Kathleen, Matt & Ripley

(Left) Ripley's first picture, right after birth.
(Right) Ripley all swaddled up.

(Left) Ripley with Daddy.
(Right) Her first car ride - coming home!

The Nursery

Here are some pictures of the nursery. It's not completely finished just yet, we still need to add some art & pictures to the walls and drapes to the window, but for the most part, it's ready for baby! Matt stained the dresser and changer himself, they turned out better than we ever expected. Both pieces go really well with the crib.

Last Supper

With Baby Demaray arriving in the next 2 weeks, I decided it was a must to get my girlfriends together for one last night out before baby, diapers, breastfeeding & exhaustion takes over. Don't get me wrong, I look forward to our world being turned upside down with the new love in our life, but at the same time, I'm hoping to squeeze all of the "me" time out before that day comes. So last night a group of the girls went out to dinner for some girl bonding, great food & what else? Gossip! Matt also took advantage and got a group of his guy friends together for some good Irish food, beer & darts. And after dinner, the Ladies decided to crash their party. It has been sooo long since I have been in a bar, it was kinda strange with my belly being as big as it is now, but still fun. I hung out out sipping on my non-alcoholic beer, belly and all.

2 weeks left!

Today marks 2 weeks away from the baby's due date. The clock is ticking! The baby is now considered full-term and really could come at anytime, but I'm hoping nothing happens for at least a week. Yesterday was my last day at work, so I'm looking forward to some time off at home before Mommyhood is in full force! We're getting really excited. Stay tuned....

Baby #1

I recently realized how I have no pictures of Amingo, our baby of the moment. As most of you know, Matt's had him since he was a pup and he is now about 14 years old. When I first got introduced to him, he wanted nothing to do with me. It took about 3 months for me to "break" him and after that, it was over - I was Momma! He is the best dog anyone could ever have. Yes, he loves to bark at strangers and can definitely be annoying when guests are over, but hey, people are annoying too! :) We love him!

We finally made a decision....

After much discussion and feedback, we decided to deliver Baby Demaray at Winter Park FL Hospital. It was a close one folks! We were all set on delivering at Winnie, the new hospital with all the fancy extras, until I heard yet another story about a woman being in labor and being stuck in the triage area, waiting for a room to open up. I met her at a restaurant just 2 days before I had to give my doctor my decision. She had her baby 8 wks ago and said if I had a choice, to go with Winter Park, then she went on to tell me how unhappy she was with Winnie.

So it's decided, Winter Park it is!!