Lots To Share

I have a lot to share in this post. Hence the title. It is always so busy around the holidays, but this year has been the busiest so far! We are so thankful to have had Jesstine this Christmas and we had a lot of fun as you can tell from the barrage of pictures! She was such a good sport even amidst the chaos that was our weekend following Christmas. As you may have guessed, the actual Christmas morning of opening presents was not really all that exciting to her yet! She basically played in her kick-n-play (kicky play as Stephen calls it) as usual! We also started feeding her rice cereal last week. That is always fun! At first she didn't care for it, but she got the hang of it and quickly graduated to 3 Tbsp. for her morning feeding! Sometimes at night she eats two, but the last few nights she has been pretty cranky and finicky. So, with out further adieu, her are the pictures! I have a really cute video clip to show you too when Seth or Jenni is able to get around to sending that to me! One of the pictures shows a little of what you will see. It is still best to have the sound with it to get the full effect.

I have to tell you this picture is slightly staged. She really had a cleaner mouth than this, but I figured to really show the full experience, her mouth needed to be messy! I really have never seen such a clean eater (for a first time solid food eater that is). Of course I give her mouth several swipes with the spoon. I am sure that helps.

This goes to show how much she really DOES like Elmo! Aunt Jenni and family picked this chair out for her and she loves it! It giggles and wiggles which makes her smile so big! She also sits in it nicely considering it is for an 18+ month old! Thank you Aunt Jenni, Uncle Seth, Noah and Ian for her new chair!

This is Christmas morning and her beside her presents from Santa *wink, wink*. You can see how thrilled she is! You can't really tell but her hat says "Baby's first Christmas on it." She got an incrediblock and some more peek-a-blocks to go with it! She also got a set of small maracas (chikitas) in her stocking. Those turned out to be her favorite!

This is just a still shot of the funniest part of our holiday! Ian and Noah (Jesstine's cousins) got Jesstine to laugh hysterically this weekend! It was so funny! Ian is Jesstine's new buddy. From the start he was fascinated by her. He brought her a stuffed giraffe while she played in her seat. He sat and watched her as she excitedly played. It was so neat to see them connecting even at Jesstine's young age. I keep seeing little glimpses of Noah when I look at Jesstine. She certainly has a lot of Hutchins in her! Hopefully there will be a video clip soon to show you how hysterical this actually was! Until then, here is the picture!

Last but not least. We have yet to get around to getting professional photos taken for her 4-month picture. We spent A LOT on her two-month ones because of where they were taken. It has been hard for us to get up the courage to seek out another photography place. I was told I need to go to Sears or Penny's and join their club to get her pictures done each month. I am thinking about every other month right now. ANYWAY, my family was also in town for the weekend. For those of you who don't know, we have had three babies added to our family in the span of 4 months! We tried to get a picture of all of Mom's grandkids for her as a Christmas gift. My brother-in-law, Ryan, does a great job of getting studio quality shots. So, we called him in to do the work! Jesstine was great to work with and the others were just a little difficult. We were unable to get a good picture of all of them. We managed to get the three youngest. Plus, Ryan took some of Jesstine alone because she was doing so well! Here is what we have decided to print for her studio quality 4-month picture. She is getting SOOOO much better at holding her neck up too. (Jenni, out of about 15 pictures, this was the closest thing to a smile!)

Well, we hope you all enjoyed your holiday season. We wish you all the best in this new year! We feel that God has certainly blessed us with a beautiful, smart, loving child! We are so happy to be able to share her sweet smiles with you!

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

P.S. For those of you who save the pictures off of this site, you may want to ask me for bigger ones. There were so many this time, I chose to make them small. The last one was a gigantic file too. Let me know if you want them!

Gonna Get Dressed, Gonna See Santa

This is what I have sang (or should it be sung????) to Jesstine on three different occasions! Today we FINALLY were able to see Santa, only to get a mediocre picture. She was very good. Not at all fussy like many other kids we saw there. She just can't seem to look anywhere but to her left! It is uncanny! I noted that in a caption for a picture in the last post! Stephen's maternal grandfather was always photographed looking in a different direction than the camera. Perhaps that is where she gets it! I did take a photo of her at home in case the Santa visit never happened. Next year I will be in search of a great Santa who is not a mall Santa. 1.) You never know what kind of Santa you are going to get. (This one kind of smelled of smoke and another that we attempted to see was out sick)! 2.) You never know if the mall Santa will be there or not (see last comment)! I would LOVE to find an authentic Santa. Maybe we will have to travel to Aunt Jenni and Uncle Seth's house next year to visit THEIR Santa! Anyhow, without further ado....here she is! Oh, I threw in a picture of her in the Bumbo seat to show you how much progress she is making on her neck strength. Our therapist continues to be amazed. She really is doing great! Before, I would sit her in the Bumbo and she would automatically slump to one side or let her head fall against the back. Now she even plays with toys in it!

Sitting up in Bumbo!

In case we didn't get to see Santa!

Great-Granddad pose....with Santa!

(Stephen calls him the emaciated/hippie Santa!)

Merry Christmas!

Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine Hutchins

4 Months!

Well, time is going fast. I was told that would happen. I just never really knew what people meant until now! Our little princess is now 4 months old! She is growing so fast! She is out of all of her 0-3 months clothes. She is well into her 3-6 months and will outgrow those as well. She is such a girly girl already. People have told me that girls talk way more than boys. I don't have a boy to really compare her to, but she has something to say quite often! Also, she is getting to where she is doing this almost shy thing when she smiles. She will smile and bring her hands up to her face, covering her mouth. It is so cute and reminds me of a giggly girl! Today is officially her 4-month birthday. Because it was a Sunday, she just happened to be dressed up. I have to brag about this dress. Okay, I know it looks more like an Easter dress and was probably meant for Easter (being that I bought it right after Easter). It was a steal though! It has four pieces to it (hat, coat, dress, and bloomers) and was originally $40! I picked it up for $10! You can't beat that (unless it was free), right? Anyhow, since she was dressed up and we had some shopping still left to do, we were going to take her to see Santa. Little did I know, Stephen did not like the idea. His reasoning is because she is too little to remember.....yada, yada, yada. Ultimately he left the decision up to me. By the time she would have seen Santa, she was cranky, tired, and hungry. I decided I would make a great effort to get her there sometime this week. I hope to post that picture soon! Until then, here are her 4-month pictures! Enjoy!

Giggly Girly Girl Picture

Happy and looking away from the camera like her Great-Granddad used to do!

Official 4-month picture

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

P.S. Does this hat remind anyone else of the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man (Ghostbusters)?

Three T's and a big E: Thanksgiving, Tummytime, The Boys and Elmo

First of all, happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there keeping up with our little blog. We are very thankful this year for many reasons. Ultimately of course for the sacrifice that Christ made so that we could appreciate everything that we have and reach heaven someday as well. This year, we are extra thankful that God gave us our little turkey. She was such a good girl today and she didn't even know that today was any different than any other day. Here are a few pictures of HER Thanksgiving feast!

Nothing like breast milk and formula for a Thanksgiving feast! Mmm-Mmm good!

We have never been real fans of the "First Thanksgiving/Christmas" outfits for the simple reason that you spend $10+ on an outfit that your child will only wear once! So, Jesstine got a simple bib which she promptly spit her dinner on! Oh well! That's what they are for right?!

Okay, so for those of you who don't know, Jesstine has something called Torticallis (SP???). It is a muscle tightness in her neck causing her to slump to one side. She is also way behind as far as neck control is concerned. She is supposed to be pushing herself up off of the ground during tummy time at least a little. Also she doesn't hold her head up at all when she is lying flat and you pull her up by the arms. So, we started some physical therapy this week. We have already seen some progress! This is a picture of some of the therapy we have been working on. She is actually lifting her head on her own! Granted, she is not on a flat surface, but we are getting somewhere at least!

Since Jesstine is now in 3-6 month clothing, she is big enough to show her true team spirit! What a better day than Thanksgiving when the Cowboys play each year! Here she is all decked out in her Cowboys attire. Notice the thrilled look on her face. That is simply because it was BEFORE we actually watched the game. (She did watch a little of it. She sat happily on Daddy's lap).

And last but certainly not least, here is where Elmo comes in. You know, everyone's favorite three year-old?! (I saw that in a book somewhere and thought it was a cute way to look at Elmo. I never knew he was three!) This is NOT a picture of Jesstine watching the game. This is my proof that Jesstine LOVES Elmo! Just before this picture, Mr. Noodle's brother, Mr. Noodle came on and she cracked a smile and laughed. I often wonder what is going on in that head, but it always seems to be the same when Elmo comes on. She laughs and smiles like she knows what is going on! It is so cute! Oh and this is the episode where they made fun of High School Musical by doing a segment of "Preschool Musical" on the Dizzy channel! It was absolutely hilarious! Notice the gut already forming (not on the one with the glasses either)!

Until next time, find something to be thankful for this holiday. Even if it is just the simple things like tummy time, the Cowboys win or Elmo! We are thankful each day for our little miracle! And she is so darn cute!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

First Overnighter and Other Cute Jesstine Moments

So, we went on our first overnight trip with Jesstine this weekend. We went up to Warrensburg, MO to see my sister and support her at her baby shower. Usually 3 month-old babies sleep pretty well in the car. Well, Jesstine only had about a 10 min. nap in the car! By the time we reached our destination (after at least one stop), she was so tired she slept for nearly three hours at Aunt Ola's! She was such a trooper. Especially considering I think she is trying to cut teeth. I know it sounds crazy ( the cutting teeth not the traveling with a three month-old). My mom was with us and noticed the classic signs as well. She has been trying to bite everything. I mean actually biting it! She won't suck on a pacifier, but she has been chewing on them lately. She chews on her burp cloths. She is fussing at the bottle too. We arrived home around 5:00 today. She was a little tired. The trip back was easier on her. She had a 1 hour nap and a 30 min. one which helped. She did get tired a lot quicker when we arrived home. About three hours later this is how she looked:

Pictured with her is her beloved pet seahorse, Seamoore. Yes I know that is not a typical spelling for the name, but it was made up. Sea because he is a seahorse and Moore was my maiden name. He sleeps next to her each night and her hand is always touching him. He sings her to sleep. He is the only toy that she has really taken to on a regular basis.

Last Sunday, I dressed her in a fall outfit. I thought she looked so cute, I had to take a picture. (You are probably saying, "Yeah, when does that NOT happen????) I also have been taking pictures of her in outfits that she is quickly outgrowing. Luckily she has the shirt in a bigger size!

Now this is the picture that needs an explanation. I put her on one of her two play mats to play. I sat on the couch to fold some laundry and heard her make a noise. I looked up and this was all I saw! It kind of reminds me of the scene in the Wizard of Oz where the house lands on the Wicked Witch and all you see is the feet. It sure does look funny!

So this is the random picture taking of the Jesstine's parents. I think my sis-in-law calls my bro-in-law the paparazzi. I am told that the next childs pictures will be half as many in number, if not less. We will have to see that when we get there. Until then, we are going to continue to take these professional quality photos of the most interesting moments of Jesstine's life! They will be great to show any potential boyfriends so they are scared off! Hehe!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

Three Months Old!

Well, she is three months old now! As you can tell from her pictures, it is getting harder and harder to get this wiggle worm to sit still for pictures! She is getting so big. Even before hitting the three month mark, most of her three month clothing was too small. I know it varies from clothing brand to clothing brand, but even some that are the same brand will fit her and others are too small! I guess we know she is eating well.

Lately we have been working on sleep. I know it sounds silly. Jenny and Seth were kind enough to purchase a sleep book for us that has been really helpful. We have already been able to get her to sleep through the night for the most part. Now we are working on naps. It has proven to be a bit harder. Some days she will take three naps. Others she will take 5 short naps. We have also found ourselves in the habit of watching Sesame Street each day. Johnna and Kara have witnessed the power of Elmo on our little one! She LOVES Elmo! She will laugh and smile when he talks or comes on! Even tonight when she was tired and fussy. Elmo came on and she turned her head and smiled. She was mesmerized! Anyhow, here are a few pictures of the now three month-old Jesstine! The last is just one more of her in her Meowlloween costume. We took her to a hockey game and she was the best dressed one there! We got oo's and ah's as Stephen walked around with her. We stuck the bow on her ear so that they would know she was a girl.

Official three month picture.

Right after bath time. Daddy does bath time and sings silly songs that make it so much fun!

Happy Meowlloween!

Baby Gridley

It is with great sadness that I report yet another little baby who has passed on.

Not too long ago, my sister, Grace, called me and said that she had run into a childhood friend of hers while eating lunch in a small town Pizza Hut. This young man is a person she played with as a baby, dated for a few months in high school and went to college with. In their conversation, she discovered that he lives a few houses away from me. Not only that, his wife is a teacher in the same district in which I teach. They were also expecting a child and I had just had Jesstine or was about to very soon.

Grace called tonight to tell me that her friend had recently discovered some complications with their pregnancy. They had to deliver early (33 or so weeks) due to low amniotic fluid. I got a call not long after that. It was Grace saying that Baby Gridley was born and did not survive.

My heart is breaking. Not too long ago, I was in this same situation. I want to reach out to this family so badly because I feel like I know what will help them through the long process ahead of them. Yet, all I can do now is sit and pray. I can also ask all of my blog friends to please join me in praying for this family. The dad's name is Lanny and mom's name is Jenny. That is really all I feel comfortable sharing here. Please join me in prayer for this young family that was hit with one of the worst tragedies imaginable!

Dear Lord,
Please be with this young family as they come to terms with the loss of one so young and dear to them. Please help them to find strength in you and your never ending promises. Help them to find comfort in their family, church family and friends. Help us to be vessels to help them in anyway possible. You know my heart breaks more than words can describe anytime I hear of the loss such as this. Please just let them feel your presence and hold their hand through this trying time. We know that your love transcends death. It is because of this promise that we can continue in life despite such tragedies. We look toward your never ending promise of Eternal Life as our hope.

In Jesus name. Amen.

In Him,
Lacie Hutchins

Happy All Hallow's Eve!

Stephen here again. If Jesstine doesn't appear to have the right holiday attitude, she comes by it honestly. I, for one, have never cared much for Halloween. Sure, the candy is great (or at least was back in the day when I went looking for it), but it's such a bother with all the costumes and such. You can ask my mom. Even when I was Jesstine's age (OK, maybe I was a little older than that), I HATED being in makeup or costume. Anything with a mask was just no good. Of course, there was also that incident where I took a pair of scissors to a tiny piece of my inflatable costume top, just as an experiment in air pressure. Dad didn't care for my scientific methods. Worst of all was the yearly "parade" through school. To me, it was nothing but a parade of freakish ugliness, and I was forced to take part. Even with no costume, guess who had to walk along the halls and pretend to be having a good time? And please, don't ask me why I'm not wearing a costume. You don't really want to know.


But enough of that. Popeye here... whoops I mean the cute little cat on the right deserves better than me whining. So in the spirit of the season, let me tell you a story of the best Halloween ever. Don't worry, I'm not wasting your time. It has something to do with Jesstine, honest!


A few years ago, I was asked to go help out at a Halloween party being hosted by one of the families at church for the teen group. Halloween party?!? Me??? Anathema! But because the lady organizing it was so nice (and her daughter very attractive) I agreed to go. I didn't have to put on any costume (I was strict on that point). Instead, I would wear dark sweats and hide behind the house with a walkie-talkie and provide the voice of the welcoming scarecrow who could mysteriously converse with the kids (the other end of the walkie-talkie was hidden in the scarecrow). It was a similar setup to what I'd done during the second-best Halloween ever, helping out the soccer team at "Haunted Island" at Watson Park (there's just some kind of visceral thrill associated with spraying folks with a jet of water from a hidden Jason Voorhees statue).


Anyway, after all the kids had gone in, I picked up my gear and went inside for some goodies. Although the organizer's daughter was a no-show, just after stepping into the living room, I happened upon a blond girl wearing what appeared to be a yeti costume. She looked familiar, and I remembered meeting her once before at church. Although more hirsute than normal, there was something about her that just seemed.... right. I thought she was the sister of Ola, one of the teens at church. I decided that I was at a Halloween party, where I normally would not be found, so why not do something else I wouldn't normally do? I went up to her, brushed my hand lightly over her spiky hair, and said (with debonair charm), "Hi. You're Ola's sister, aren't you?"

There's a lot more to the story, including a gentle rebuff ("You'll have to ask my mother"), a fish fry, and a walk-off at the old Members Only warehouse("It's a walk-off....it's a walk-off"). But this is already running long, and the other party to the story probably wishes her input to be heard. To sum it up, a few years later I have this (among other things) to show for that Halloween party encounter:

So happy Halloween to everyone! You never know when it might turn into something great!

SAH

Two months old

Stephen here. Our little girl is two months old! She's starting to laugh and smile a lot more often, as you can see in these pictures. Speaking of pictures, this morning we went to a fancy picture place to have pictures taken for the obstetrician's clinic. They like to hang pictures of their newborns on the wall for a month or two at a time. Therefore, they setup sittings at this place across town. They make nice prints on plastic board, and give a free 8x10 to the clinic who subsequently passes it on to the family. It's a good deal for the photoshop too, as parents inevitably order a couple of extra prints for themselves. Knowing this going in..... we folded like a pup tent in a hurricane and blew a bunch of money on prints. Jesstine is too cute for our own good.

So the official two-month picture is on the left. She's not smiling, but trust me, she usually does. Actually, we're actively raising an attention-deficit child. She LOVES her kick and play with the flashing lights and the music. She's probably going to grow up into a disco fiend. She's only truly happy when the bouncy seat is going full blast. I have nightmares about her sitting down in church or school for 30 seconds and screaming, "BORING! YOU'RE BORING ME!, I'm BORED!!"

I really don't want to buy one of those portable DVD players for the car just so she can watch Sleeping Beauty while we drive across town. I mean, I know I sound like an old curmudgeon saying this, but "in my day, we didn't have no fancy spancy DEE VEE DEE players in the car! We sat there bored, or picked a fight with our sibling until Dad got so upset he threatened to stop the car and then our lives (in that order), and we LIKED it! Yeah! We LOVED it!" So why does Jesstine need a DVD player in the car?

Well, Jesstine needs to go get her shots, so I'd better wrap this up. I'll leave you with a picture of Jesstine doing what she enjoys most (besides pooping, which also always brings a grin).

God bless!

SAH

P.S. Check the comments for the latest on her 2 month appointment.

BIG Girl!

Well, I wasn't joking in the last post when I said that she is growing! The outfit she wore to her tea party was SO big on her when she wore it that day. Now, she is almost too long for it! The pants were so big on her (it was quite cute!). Now they fit perfectly. I am praying that she will still fit in it for our pictures on Thursday. We have a Madonna setting. No not as in the singer! As in a mother and child picture. There is no sitting fee and we get a free 8x10 with no obligation. It is a gift from my OB. If you can't tell, I am looking forward to it. Here is a picture of Jesstine in her new shoes and her tea party outfit. Also I am including a couple of pictures of her showing her support for some of our favorite teams. Is this a conflict of interest do you think?

Oh yeah, and she smiles very well on camera!

Dallas Cowboys or ........

Wichita State? Conflict of interest?

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

I've Reached A Decision

Okay, so in my last post I went into further detail some of my frustrations with breast feeding. After working for a whole day with Jesstine on nursing alone some things came to light. I stopped and thought and here is what I came up with. I have decided to see how long I can solely pump and feed her pumped milk and formula from now on. The reason why is because I feel like I can be a better mother this way. I found myself resenting her. I didn't WANT her to hurt and cry. But I found myself saying, "It serves you right." I came to this decision after I had struggled all day with her. I went to put her on the changing part of her pack and play. I accidentally caught her foot between my stomach and the edge of the changing place. She started to cry. I found myself saying "What is wrong with you now?" instead of feeling sympathetic and comforting her. I quickly realized this and picked her up to sooth her. By this time she had stopped crying already. I felt awful though. I don't think this is a post-partum (SP?!) thing. It very well could be but I strongly suspect that it is just my frustration. One reason is because I noticed it very quickly. I feel better when I feed her a bottle and I know she is fine with it. There are times that I find she still wants to comfort nurse. I am okay with that. If anything, that could help stimulate my breasts to produce for her. Another, it gives her and me the bonding part that breast feeding is supposed to provide without the frustration that seems to come for both of us. So, I feel confident that this will be fine. I know it is MY decision. I know breast milk is the best, but for many reasons it isn't the best for everyone. I feel that this way I can still provide her with the best as well as providing the best for both of us with less frustration and stress. I have found that just after one day, I have had a better attitude toward meeting her needs.

Despite all of this frustration and such, we are SURE Jesstine is growing; and FAST! Stephen has said he is not ready to let Jesstine move to her crib and her own bed. He says that he would like to wait until she is two months old. I agreed. Tonight he came in after putting her in her cradle in our room. He said, "I don't think we have much of a choice about putting her in her crib in a week or so! She is outgrowing her bassinet! So, regardless of which way I feed her, it is obvious that she is growing. I am at peace with my decision. I finally realized that I have to do what is best for the both of us and this is the way to go!

Thanks for the encouragement. I really do appreciate it! I don't want you to think that I don't take your comments seriously. I just was at a breaking point and saw that I was taking things out on the most innocent person in this situation. I know that isn't right, so I made a decision and so far it is what is best for us both!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

Lots of Firsts

Well, this week has been full of firsts. Sunday, Jesstine was just not herself. She was pulling on her ears a lot. She was not nursing well (okay, that is not unusual, but I thought we had gotten pretty good at it). She seemed like she had a stuffy nose. Sunday night, she had a fever of 100 so I called the doctor's office. I was told by the on call doc, who knows me and my story well, and she recommended that we take her in. Well, since the doctor's office was closed, that meant the "big house." We went to the ER and by the time she was seen the fever had subsided and she seemed in good spirits. They wanted a chest x-ray to be sure they weren't missing anything. (Stephen went with her for that thank goodness, or I wouldn't have been able to handle it! It was the scariest thing for her and him!) They found some congestion and said that she probably has a virus, but there isn't anything we can do for her. We will be waiting a little to see if her temp. goes down before we make that trip again!

Today was my first day back to work since Jesstine got here. I called twice to check on her. She was fine both times! If she can only manage to stay away from the curious Anakin she will do great! Thank goodness Grandmom has a spray bottle instead of a light saber! She has had to use it a few times for sure!

Those of you with tips on nursing, feel free to call me! I am still really struggling. After reading a few things, I wonder if my supply is just not what she needs it to be. I have tried everything that I heard of to do to help us. She likes to dawdle and I am not patient. My sisters and my mom have said that by this point their babies were all going 15 mins. on one side! It takes her at LEAST 20 mins. Last week, I thought we had it down to 15 mins. on each side, but something changed and now she wants to nurse FOREVER! Even 20 mins. didn't satisfy her. The only thing that I can think of is that I don't have enough so she keeps sucking until she is satisfied which is never so she just stays on. I have never been able to have her just pull off when she is finished. I have always had to take her off myself. That usually results in her still wanting more or wanting back on in 15 mins. or so. Any tips would be useful! I am trying to pump mostly and see if that works. Most of the time I can't pump enough to give her a full bottle. I always end up having to top it the rest of the way off with formula. Even then, I am trying to save some up each day so she has my milk to eat at Grandmom's house each week. I am game for any help you can give me! The lady at the BF clinic acted like I should just let her suck all day long! I can't do that! I have to eat, sleep, go to the bathroom, and work! I don't want to be tied down to my house all of the time. Is that wrong? Comments are greatly appreciated on this topic!

Until next time, I pray that all of you are doing well. I will soon post pictures of her again! We will be getting professional pictures done at two months. We got a free 8 x 10 and no sitting fee at a really expensive place on the east side of town as a gift from my OB. We will be booking that soon!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

Trial Run

Okay, so I only have a week and a half before I go back to work. I know that I only work 2 times a week and each time is just for 4 hours, but Jesstine is still SO young! I am not looking forward to it just yet. I am, but I am not. I am excited that I will actually be teaching music this year. I am not excited to leave my daughter for that long. I know she will be in good hands though. Grandmom will be taking care of her for the most part. Sometimes Stephen will work from home on Wednesday mornings to help take care of her. That is the plan anyhow! I know that things can quickly change. SO, because I am going back to work shortly, we decided that we all needed a trial run. It has also been a while since Stephen and I have had a baby free date night and one that didn't consist of staying home and watching what was on the DVR or a movie between Jesstine feedings! We decided that yesterday would be the most convenient time for such a thing. We chose to do it around the same time that I would be leaving her when I went to work. Okay, so we didn't manage to get out until 2:30 and I will need to leave my house at Noon when I work! But, we did leave her for a little over four hours. It could be a good thing or a bad thing that it just so happened that this was a day of growing for Jesstine. Those of you with children know that a growth spurt at this age means a lot of eating and sleeping with very little playing. She was VERY sleepy yesterday. When she ate, she got down to business and ate fast. Then she would almost always go back to sleep. Needless to say, until we were on our way home, she was mostly asleep and did a great job. When she did wake up she even gave Grandmom some great smiles and happiness. She ate her bottle very fast and she didn't cry until right before I got there to pick her up. Then she ate for about 15 mins. and was asleep as we made our way home. Needless to say, I believe it was worse on me than on her! She did great and there are no signs that she missed us at all. Thanks so much Grandmom for a wonderful afternoon (for Jesstine and us)!

As always, we hope that you all are doing well! Thank you again for stopping by to see Jesstine growing in pictures and in words! Until next time....

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

One Month!

Well, we have made it through the first month! Wow time flies!!! Stephen goes back to work tomorrow. For those of you who don't already know, his company awards its employees who have worked for ten years with a sabbatical. It is essentially an extra 4 weeks of paid vacation that must be taken at one time. We chose to use it for him to stay home some extra time with me and the baby. I am going to miss him not only as I usually do, but because he has been SUCH a help around her. I think it may be worse on him though because he has to be away from Jesstine during the day!

Well, Jesstine has been doing GREAT! Breastfeeding is still a challenge and we do a lot of bottles here and there. We are still working on not falling asleep (sometimes both of us, but mostly her) during our feedings. She is gaining weight and is up to 7 lbs. 10 oz. as of this past Wednesday. She has had a stretch of nights where she has slept anywhere from 5-7 hours. As you can see by the time on this post, that was NOT the case tonight.



So, I leave you with her one month picture, plus a picture that has been very popular with my family members. I think that I caught her smiling on camera. She has been smiling a lot more lately and I have even caught a couple of moments where she is attempting to laugh. Right now it is just a squeak, but it is music to my ears.



In Him,

Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

Jesstine Jonelle, 1 month!

Bald IS beautiful!

The first smile that has been captured on camera

FINALLY!

Okay, you would think I would have gained a little more in the patience department after having to wait for two years to have a healthy baby! Well, we have been waiting anxiously for Jesstine's cord stump to fall off! We got up yesterday morning to feed and change her, and it was gone! Literally, we could not find it! We had to undress her in order to locate the stubborn piece of dead tissue! The reason why I write that as if I am frustrated is because we all three were frustrated with the stinking thing! Yes, it really did start to stink! The doctor even cultured it because it was so smelly, we were all worried it had an infection of some kind! Needless to say diaper changes and bath time has been a whole lot easier lately!

So, Jesstine was four weeks-old yesterday. The reason I failed to post an update with picture is because I am waiting for Sunday when she is exactly one month old. My sis-in-law took a picture of her boys each month in the same chair. I think that is a wonderful idea because it shows how they are growing each month. So, you will have to wait at least a day. I can't guarantee that it will be there ON Sunday because I have been terribly busy with her. Let's just say she hit a growth spurt and wants to eat about every hour to hour and a half it seems! I will tell you that she is already up to 7 lbs. 10 oz. We are happy for that! She has finally passed her birth weight. That accounts for the increase in appetite lately I am sure!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

Three Weeks-Old!

Well, we have made it to the third week. She is growing very well! We are still struggling with the breastfeeding. That is mostly due to the fact that she takes SO long! Also we both have a case of thrush! It came to a head last night and she moaned in her sleep all night long. Poor girl! We went to the doctor today and she is up to 7 lbs. 1 oz. That is only a couple of oz. away from her birth weight. I also was given some medication to help boost my milk supply to hopefully motivate her to eat more quickly! Here are a couple of pictures that we took in the last few days! She is SO cute!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen, and Jesstine

A special blanket given to us by Miss Lynessa, a friend from a prayer group.

A special shirt Gandmom bought a long time ago. Sometimes it is VERY true!

2 weeks old and sleeping only during the day!

Photo Album

Okay, so I now have an online photo album. Don't worry, I will still post a few of my favorites on the blog. I just thought it would be easier for everyone to see Jesstine in all of the great pictures if I were to have a link to one location. Everything is set up in "sets." Each one has a description that tells you what is in it. Some have a lot of pictures and others have just a few. It may change some through out the next few weeks as I get more familiar with the sight (which was free by the way because I have a yahoo email address!).

Enjoy!
Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

2 Week-old!

Well, Jesstine is a two week-old now! And boy has it been a two weeks! She had a couple of nights where she slept 5-6 hours straight, but that was after she stayed up until 1 AM! She is such a beautiful baby! We had our first case of mistaken identity this week. We were out shopping and the girl at the checkout called Jesstine a he despite the fact that she was wearing a purple onesie and had a bow in the head support in her carrier. Oh well! I am sure it happens to everyone at some point!

We have some great pictures of our little one. There are too many to share on the blog, so I am working on getting an online photo album to share them. Between diaper changes and feedings of course! I will hopefully be posting a link on the blog soon. That seems like the easiest way of doing things! Until then, I leave you with a few pictures here. The first is of her all dressed up for her tea party that we had in her honor on the 23rd. She was such a trooper, but there were a lot of people and it was very hot! After being passed around to quite a few people, she quickly got overstimulated. Daddy came to the rescue after being called in by Grandmom (thank you Grandmom!) and she seemed to do okay afterwards. It was hard for her to fall asleep though. By the time 1 AM rolled around, she was finally able to drift off for a while! The other two are of her in her new swing and play mat. We are getting good at tummy time. Daddy works with her and she tends to stay down longer than she does with Mommy!

So, until the next post (and online photo album link) is up, here are some pictures of our little princess!

God Bless,
Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

P.S. There was a request for me to post the picture of the proud Daddy on the blog too, so here it is as well!

Daddy's Girl already!

I am ready for my tea party!

My new swing sure is soothing!

I think I can reach that toy over there!

Daddy's update

Well, it has been far too long without me getting an opportunity to update this blog. So I'm taking advantage of Mommy's fatigue to get in my own 2 cents.

Jesstine is simply the cutest baby I have ever seen. You can say that I'm biased, and you would be speaking truly. However, being biased doesn't mean I'm wrong. Just look at her! I'm sure you agree.

On the left here you can view Jesstine as she contemplates how to solve the world's problems. She was anxious to start in on Darfur, Tibet, and Islamic terrorism, but we convinced her to start with learning how to poop and pee without crying. Those are going to be essential skills no matter what line of work she ends up in.

Speaking of, we're confident that little Jesstine is going to knock 'em dead at our old alma mater. When the dean heard about her birth, he donated this little outfit along with a letter of admission (and full scholarship, of course). It's also possible that the lack of sleep we've experienced has deluded my thinking to the point that I just imagined all that, but then I've still got the picture, and where else could that outfit have come from?

Finally, I want to leave you with some pictures of my girls. There has been a lot of debate concerning just who Jesstine most closely resembles. I honestly do not know how this "controversy" started. Jesstine is a slam-dunk genetic replica of her Mommy. There is no debate. I don't even need to provide an argument other than these pictures. One is of Jesstine. Another is of Lacie when she was just two weeks old. The final picture shows just how far the apple has fallen from the tree (if at all!). I leave the decision to you, the jury. The prosecution rests.

SAH

It's A Girl!

Well, she is here! For those of you who have not heard, we have a baby girl! Jesstine Jonelle Hutchins was born on August 14, 2008, at 3:27 pm. She weighed in at 7 lbs. 3 oz. and was 19 inches long. She is so small! She is quite petite like me! My mom can't get over how much she looks like me! There are things that I recognize that look like Stephen as well though. I think the nose is his! It curls under when she eats! It is quite cute!

We have been home for a couple of days now. Her looks change each day. We are tired, but things have gone quite well so far. We even made a trip to the baby store so that I could get some supplies to assist Jesstine and I in the breast feeding department! To my joy, my milk came in tonight. I won't tell the details of how I discovered it, but it was a very interesting way! I didn't feel the usual symptoms! If you are interested, ask! It was actually quite comical.

Here are some of the pictures that we took today. One of the outfits that I have been really wanting to put Jesstine in is a fish outfit that says "Mommy and Me." It is blue and kind of boyish, so I put a white bow on her head! This is how cute she was! She really likes napping on Daddy's chest! We are really enjoying her and are very excited to share her with you! Right now, I plan to go to bed!

Thank you so much for all of your prayers and encouragement! We have her here. Now the journey is just beginning!

In Him,
Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine

D-Day!

We had our follow-up appointment today with the doctor. He seemed very glad that we had made it to week 38. He also went over the test results from last Friday and what they meant. He feels confident that Jesstine will be ready this week. He has decided to induce on August 14! That will be Thursday. It is also the day before my birthday. It gives me a goal! I feel like this pregnancy has been full of goals. I am so full of many different emotions right now! I really am excited about having Jesstine! It seems like it is finally going to happen! I am so excited to share my life with this little person who is some of me and some of my wonderful husband! I am excited to dress her in pretty dresses and show her the world! Yet, I also know that it is still a couple of days away and I am so anxious that something is going to go wrong. All I have is a bad experience with pregnancy and birth! I haven't had the joy! I want it so bad! I for some reason just can't let myself go and trust that it is going to happen. After Friday, I knew that God wanted me to trust Him and I haven't been. I want to. I am still working on that!

In any case, here is the picture that I promised in the last blog! This is of Noah, my wonderful, smart, amazing nephew! He came all the way to Wichita this weekend to see baby Jesstine. Unfortunately, he didn't get to see anything but my big belly! Oh, and here is his equally wonderful brother Ian. He still is confused about where exactly Baby Jesstine is. We have video of him lifting my shirt to see her! CUTE!

Oh, and here is the last time you will see me pregnant for a while! Hopefully I will lose all 30 lbs. I have put on in the last 9 months! Enjoy it while it lasts! The next picture will be of a beautiful baby!

In Him,

Lacie, Stephen and Jesstine