It's official!

She's smiling! And I was so excited that I didn't properly frame the shot! Look at that dimple!



Here she is with her great grandpa Joe and her great uncle Joey.



Getting a bath in mamaw and papaw's sink.

This chick knows how to ride...

We are over in Illinois visiting my parents. Lily's great aunt, two great uncles, and great grandpa also came down from Wisconsin. Everyone was so excited to meet Lily, but she's taking it all in stride, sleeping most of the time. She's been super tired the last few days, she must be using up all of her energy with growing. In the last few days we've noticed her growing much stronger. Her grip is really good and her head control is much better. Her grandpa claimed she smiled at him, but the rest of us are still skeptical.

Good for a laugh

A friend pointed me to awkwardfamilyphotos.com I checked it out in the middle of the night while feeding Lily and I couldn't stop looking and laughing, long after she was done eating. They seem to get better and better. Make sure to click on "Older Entries" at the bottom to see more. Enjoy!

Better?

I just realized that my pictures have been appearing kind of washed out when viewed on certain browsers. Hopefully I've fixed the problem by changing the way I've been saving them. Let me know if you think these look more saturated.

To KS who left a comment asking about adoptive breastfeeding: In short, my nurse practitioner prescribes medication to induce lactation. I do not produce enough yet to breastfeed exclusively, but I use an SNS to supplement with formula. I know that any amount of breastmilk I can provide is beneficial and breastfeeding also is a wonderful way to facilitate bonding between mother and child. I would be happy to tell you more about it. Feel free to email me at brookcorey@gmail.com .

Mmmmm

Corey and I LOVE bubble tea. We have now perfected the art of making them at home. You can't get better than this! A homemade peach fresh fruit bubble tea. I must say, it was the best bubble tea I've ever had! Here is the recipe in case you have to try it for yourself. The tapioca pearls can be found at Asian grocery stores.

On to the all important Lily pics of the day...

Daddy and the girl

Tickly toes

After a big meal

Dear Lily,

It is hard for your daddy and I to believe, but you are 4 weeks old today. You've been with us for a month, yet we can hardly remember what life was like before you. We were talking this morning about how you couldn't be more perfect and how lucky we are to be your mommy and daddy. It was like before you came to us, our lives were black and white, and now everything is in beautiful color. It is hard to explain. We dreamed of you for such a very long time and it was a really sad time for us, waiting for you. Now that you are here, we appreciate you SO much in ways we don't think we could have, if we hadn't been through the painful times we endured. We always want you to know how loved and wanted you are. Your family and friends love you so very much. They were spilling over with happiness for mommy, daddy and you. Your birth mommy and Grandma C love you very much, too. That is why they made the hard decision to give you a very special life with us.

There are so many things that we want to remember about your first month of life. Here are just a few:
Your fuzzy mop of blonde hair.
Your little belly button that hung on longer than most.
Your cute little grunts and sighs when you eat.
What a good nurser you are (I am adoptive breastfeeding).
Your adorable 5 minute stretching session each morning.
How well you can lift your head.
How you wake us up by cooing and grunting rather than crying (which mommy and daddy really appreciate).
Your spontaneous smiles in your sleep.
How you love to be held and fall asleep on daddy's chest.
How wonderful your daddy is, how he wants to hold you every second and doesn't even complain about diapers.
Your first hike, which happened to be at the new wooded property we were in the process of buying when we got you (aka Lily's Woods).
Your second hike, to check the bluebird boxes at the park.
How everywhere we go, people comment on how beautiful you are.

Here are some photos of you on your favorite blanket, the fuzzy one your birth grandma gave you.






And just for fun, here is daddy's stand at the farmer's market. Shortly after this, mommy made better signs with pictures of tomatoes.

Almost forgot!

I almost forgot the photo of one of the coolest baby items we have!! It is the totally rockin' macrame cradle my mom made. It is the very same cradle I snoozed in 30 years ago. Isn't it just awesome!! It hangs right by our bed and if she gets a little fussy, I just give it a little push and it rocks her back into sleepyland. She loves it.



And since I simply can't post without a Lily picture, here it is:

Reunited (and it feels so gooooood)

My computer is back. Our separation was a painful one, involving a trip to the Mac store for logic board replacement. Now I can finally upload some Lily photos from the last few days. She continues to surprise us by growing and changing daily. She can now lift her head really well, her little neck muscles are so strong! She is focusing on us a lot more and she absolutely loves to be cuddled. This is not a problem since we pretty much love every second of it. On to the photos...

Mom working on Lil's pond mural


Laid back Lily


Daddy's nose is quite tasty


Getting Lily ready for her big photo shoot

Seriously

How can you not kiss those cheeks? I mean seriously?

Uploaded from my phone.

Sorry, no pretty pictures

Unfortunately, my computer crashed a few days ago, so I have have not been able to post much. This is actually being typed into my phone at 3:42 am after feeding Lil.

We had a very nice welcoming party for Lily here yesterday, hosted by my amazing mother. She did a greatjob with the food and everything and the weather cooperated nicely! It was great getting to introduce Lily to many of our nearest and dearest. Lil slept much of the time, but I know she could feel the love. Hard to believe she is actually 3 weeks old as of yesterday! People who've seen her more than once keep saying how much she's grown and changed, just in the past week.

The other neat thing that happened this weekend is my mom started painting a beautiful mural on Lily's nursery wall. It is a cross- section of a pond, complete with Lily pads (for Lily's pad!). It is amazing already but next she is going to paint frogs and fish in the pond I can't wait! Mom hides her artistic tallents most of the time, so it is a special treat to have some of it right here on Lil's wall. I'll post pictures as soon as my computer is back up and running.

Okay, back to bed for me now. Night all!

-B

Catching up

I have been spending so much time marveling at Lily's cuteness, I have been neglecting my camera. I am going to try and make a concerted effort to remember to take more photos each day.

Cuddling on daddy's favorite Bengals blanket.


Daddy and his little tree frog.


Family photos

Buds

Lily met her friend and adoption buddy Henry (Hank) for the first time today. Like Henry's mom says, with names like Lil and Hank, these two would have made a great old time wild west duo!

Showing off her dimple to try and catch Henry's eye...


The little buds holding hands.


So, it is two babies down for our group of adoption friends, 4 babies to go. Please keep these waiting families in your thoughts. Check out Henry's mom's blog here and the sweet posts she wrote about Lily can be found here and here.

More friend encounters

Lil has had a very busy few days! She has met lots of family and friends who had eagerly awaited her arrival.

Double trouble


Who needs a Boppy when you have a Stinky?


Cousin Lexi doing a little happy dance for Lily


Lil spending some quality time with our good friend Doug


Friend, Annie, checking Lily out for the first time

Honey, we're home!

We made it home late last night. Lily was a real trooper, without so much as a peep on either flight! We were so proud of her.



The best part was making it to the gate at the Indy airport at 11:30 pm where Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Zack were eagerly waiting to meet Lily.



Today, Lil had a chance to get acquainted with the animals a little before the big event of the day - meeting Mamaw, Papaw, Uncle Nathan, Aunty Tamara and her cousins!







After everyone left, Lil had a nice long nap on Grandpa.





Stinky is beginning to like this whole baby thing...

Homeward Bound

We received fantastic news today. The paperwork between Indiana and California went through super quick and we have been cleared to leave the state! Woohoo!!! Lil's first plane ride will be tomorrow at 2 pm!

Yesterday we took a little trip around San Francisco. We weren't able to venture out much, but we did eat out at a nice restaurant and visit Fisherman's Wharf.

Tonight we are having dinner with Lily's birth grandmother and meeting some more of Lil's extended family :) Can 't wait!

On to the latest pictures,







Lily's first camo outfit.


Lil with "The Rock" (Alcatraz) in the background.