sara without an h

i found love.

as you all know, today is valentine's day.  i've seen a lot of talk around the blogosphere to the tune of this is just a stupid greeting card holiday blahblah enjoy your russell stover's.  my 15-year-old self would laugh her mohawked head off at what i'm about to say, but i refuse to be cynical about love.  i do agree that our culture probably places too much weight on cards, chocolates, roses, diamonds and dinner reservations.  however, i disagree with those who do not celebrate love today.  and everyday, for that matter.  what is so bad about a day devoted to sharing your love with others.  you don't have to have a significant other.  tell your mother, your cousin, your friends that you love them.  there is nothing wrong with a special day devoted to that.

travis and i did not exchange cards.  i haven't had any chocolate today.  i haven't stuck my face into a $9.99 bouquet of long stemmed roses.  we ate dinner at home.  we carved out a small part of our busy day to spend together.  i snuggled my daughter just a little bit longer before putting her down for her nap.  as i write this, travis is rocking our daughter to sleep.  we will toast each other with a small cocktail, watch some netflix, and fall asleep together.  i can't think of anything better than this.

 

 

valentines.

these two are my valentines.  she is my joy and he is my rock.  i could not be more in love.

daddy magic.

travis is quitting his second job. he will be home 5 evenings a week now, instead of just 1 or 2. i know one little girl who will be very happy to have more daddy time. travis has what i like to refer to as "daddy magic". sometimes sylvie sees him and immediately calms down. well, little girl, there's a lot more daddy magic coming your way!

the park and tummy time.

today we went on our first real family outing to the park. by real outing i mean that i had to change and breast-feed her in public for the first time. we had a great time lounging under the trees, reading aloud to each other, and just being there together. sylvie slept most of the time: look at those lips! after she woke up we got her changed. she peed all over herself. being the novice parent that i am, i forgot to pack a change of clothes. no matter. with her belly full, we laid her in the sun to dry out. our first public feeding: tummy time/tush drying time: shortly after tummy time it started to get a little warm for her. we packed everything up and headed home. she is still napping in her car seat. we started doing tummy time just a few days ago. this is a video of her first time. she picked up her head and turned it over no less than 3 times her very first go at it! it may be silly to get so excited about such a small thing, but i think it's pretty impressive. i can't believe that her original due date is still 6 days away. she's grown so much already. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyuhY6cZ0zk] the song in the video is "tick eats the olives" by devendra banhart.

so much love.

i apologize for my lack of posting over the past week. however, in my defense i have the cutest reason ever to be preoccupied. we finally got some clothes that fit her today. she's so tiny that my mom had to venture into the preemie section. the newborn items we have are HUGE on her. can someone please explain to me where the clothing items for 5-7 pound babies are hiding? the preemie items are just slightly short on her, but they fit her better than anything else. oh well. i'm sure she'll fit into her newborn stuff by her actual due date on the 31st. there are many unexpected side effects of having a baby that no one ever tells you about. the one that has hit me is the overwhelming love i have for my husband. it's an entirely new kind of affection now that we're nurturing this life together. i'm more in love with him now than i ever thought possible. he just blows me away. he went from changing his first ever diaper to being super dad over the course of a day. you always hear about the mother's instincts and intuition. i think it's about time we give it up for the dads. his instincts are spot on. i'm continually impressed with how well he has adjusted. there is so much love in our little family.

my last day.

i walked in to the store for my last day of work and was greeted with a surprise baby shower in the break room. i told you the people i worked with are great! i didn't have my camera on me so these pictures are courtesy of my iphone and my favorite photo app, hipstamatic. the cake was absolutely delicious and we received some beautiful gifts. i feel truly honored to have worked with all of these people. i got so many hugs, tummy pats, and well wishes tonight. my hormones got the best of me, and i ended up getting teary once or twice. i will really miss seeing these people everyday, but i am unbelievably excited to have this time to prepare for sylvie's arrival. travis and i are going to call it an early night. we have our one-day hospital childbirth class tomorrow from 9AM-6PM. yikes! i'm exhausted just thinking about it. goodnight and happy friday!

we ' re finished!

after a smooth start and a rough middle, the crib is finished! and the proud papa, who only teared up a little, standing by his handiwork: things are really coming together. it's a amazing how a simple thing can make me feel so much more prepared to welcome this new life.
p.s. aren't all of her little animal friends adorable? obviously, they are in the crib only for picture purposes. we will move them to a safer place once she arrives!

another first.

today is travis' first father's day! i got him a few small gifts (a nice wine journal and a funny book) and took him out to dinner. i really don't know what i would do without him. he has spent the entirety of this pregnancy anticipating and fulfilling my every need, want, and craving. he truly is the most patient and caring man i know. our little girl has no idea how lucky she is to have him for her father. i know he will be completely devoted to her and our little family. happy first father's day to my favorite, my one and only, my man. i love you more than i know how to express. thank you for everything you do for us.
p.s. if you like what you see here, please click the above banner to vote for us. top baby blogs reset all of its blogs to zero today. i would love to get back on the first page, but i need your help for that! all you have to do is click the banner and then click "click here to vote" on the brown page that opens. that's it! many of the blogs in my blogroll are listed, too! check them out and throw a vote their way if you like. we're all in this together! i began blogging as a way to find a community while pregnant and separated from the majority of my support system. through top baby blogs i have met so many other wonderful mommy and preggo bloggers. a lot of people have found me through them, as well. getting onto the first page greatly increases my traffic, which helps me meet new people! thank you so much and have a happy father's day!

eastbound.

i leave for my hometown bright and early tomorrow morning! i can't even begin to tell everyone how excited i am. we have so much fun stuff planned including my parents' 40th anniversary party, our baby shower, my sister's birthday, lounging by the pool, and trivia night at my favorite bar (i'll have the root beer, thanks). my posts will probably be short and infrequent over the next week. i apologize in advance for this, but life is for living. and i have a lot of living to fit into the next seven days. i'm all done with my packing and ready for bed. it was a LOOOOONG day today! auggie had to go to the vet and he did his best to make the experience as unpleasant as possible. he's pooped. I'm pooped, and i have my alarm set for 6:45am, so i'm going to call it an early night! goodnight and a pleasant tomorrow!

slackers.

we didn't get done anything else on our list for tonight.  instead we got our butts out of the apartment and went to a cook-out at our friend's house.  it was worth it.  i'll make up for it tomorrow and saturday.  it's been a long day and i'm exhausted.  here are some random bump pictures for your viewing pleasure. from my point of view: the last one is a bit cheesy, but we hardly have any pictures of the two of us! BEDTIME.  goodnight!