We were so blessed to have quite a few family members come out to welcome Elijah to our little family! Our first visitor was Mom Taylor, who graciously agreed to come out when I was 39 weeks (in case I went into labor early - let's all give a collective HA-HA-HA-HA-HA to the woman who gave birth at 41+6). It was still nice having her there during that earlier time period as she was a great companion to talk with during the day, a new playmate and babysitter for Uriah, and someone who could help with whatever household things she could! We were so grateful to have her there to stay in our home with Uriah. Uriah is pretty shy about new people (since it's just me and him at home all day), so with me and Rob being out of the equation at the hospital, it was reassuring to know he'd be with a familiar face in his familiar surroundings. We actually ended up staying longer in the hospital as Elijah had jaundice, and the hospital wanted us to bring his levels down before releasing us home. The day before we got home, Mom Taylor went on a cooking spree and made for us a loaf of fresh bread, two pans of her delicious homemade cinnamon rolls, a big pot of chili and a pot roast. Not only were they so delicious, but there was enough food to feed us for our first four days! (My Relief Society at church also provided 2 meals, which took us through our first week of being home from the hospital) We were so happy that we were able to share this special time with Mom Taylor! She was the first of our outside family to welcome Elijah :)
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| Mom and her famous cinnamon rolls |
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| Uriah taking Grandma for a spin |
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| We love this photo for obvious reasons |
The next of our visitors was Mom Kimokeo. She was able to come up and be with us for 10 days (there was only a few days difference from when Mom Taylor was here and when Mom Kimokeo came up!) Since I had a c-section, it was so helpful having two sets of hands to help with Uriah as well as the household items I was limited from doing. She did the cooking and cleaning for us while she was here, as well as relieved us from having to wake up with Uriah in the mornings. She also would take the baby so we could nap, which we definitely appreciated! We were even able to sneak not ONE, but TWO date nights! (One was sushi for our belated anniversary celebration, the other was Happy Hour at Ruth's Chris!) It was nice to be roused out of our zombie states and get dressed and go somewhere for a little freedom and reminder of our other roles (husband and wife vs just Mom and Dad)!
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One of my favorite pics of Mom -
her laughing :) |
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Grandma took Uriah to the pool a few times!
He loves the pool, and it was a perfect way to
beat the summer heat! |
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| Anniversary Dinner and Zombie Supression Celebration! |
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Look at this PRO - one in stroller,
the other being worn, all with a SMILE! |
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The face when you realize the snacks
being fed to the toddler were in turn being fed
to the car seat |
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We got out of the house to enjoy the Dutch/Amish market. As expected, Mom loved it,
and said we need to take Dad the next time they come up for a visit! (GLADLY -
especially if it involves getting that ice cream again!!) |
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| <3 |
Beth was our next visitor! We were so lucky she was on sabbatical from work (she's working on getting her Masters), which allowed her to fly up during a time she'd normally be teaching. She was also so helpful with cleaning, bathing/watching the kids, playing with Uriah, and also keeping me company! We were also able to get away for another date night sans spawn. Hooray! It was so nice to have my sister there with me, and this time, when we weren't violently sick. (Last time Beth came she brought the plague with her and we basically all took turns dancing with death and the toilet while she was here)
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| One of the first photo captured smiles! |
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| Comfy cozy |
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| Uriah loved spending time with Aunty Beth |
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| Uncle Davis made a cameo appearance for a day! |
The last of our visitors thus far was our niece, Destiny! We loved having her because she is fun, sweet, easy-going, and was also such a great help to us during this time! She helped with household things of cooking, cleaning, bathing, diapering, and playing with the kids, and also granted us time to run away to a movie (Rob and I saw the new adaptation of IT)
We love and and all family that comes for a visit! We wish everyone lived closer (or maybe that WE lived closer), but for the time being, will take all that we can get.
