Christmas 2012

We had a wonderful Christmas as a family of four!  A few highlights:

• Fiona's joy:  This is the first year that Fi really seemed into Santa Claus and all of the excitement of counting down to Christmas.  She woke every morning in December ready to see what came next on our advent calendar.  She also wrote her first letter to Santa and was very clear and consistent about what she wanted most: a rolling backpack and Abby Cadabby slippers.  Santa was a good a listener and Fiona was very happy on Christmas morning. 
• Breakfast with Santa:  For the 3rd year in a row, we enjoyed Breakfast with Santa at the Carolina Inn.  This year, all four grandparents and Aunt Holly joined in the fun.  Fi was a big scared to talk to the big guy, but did enjoy the ballon animals, face painting, and (especially) the roaming magician. 
• Cookies:  We decorated sugar cookies, made our traditional spritz cookies, and tried a new, delicious recipe - Espresso Crinkles, so yummy: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/espresso-crinkles-10000001860058/
• Our Tree:  With all of our Christmas decorations in storage, we bought a few simple things and made construction paper ornaments and a star tree topper.  Fiona LOVED the new glitter pens I bought for this fun activity.  As per usual, we named our tree after celebrity baby from the past year.  This year, Reese Witherspoon's Tennessee won out. 
• Italian Feast: Christmas Eve afternoon we were treated to an Italian Feast - including homemade ravioli and delicious grilled salmon - courtesy of Aunt Pat and Uncle John (my brother-in-law's parents).  
• Family: We were grateful to have our family come to us this year - especially the newest member of our clan, my niece Nina Rose, born on December 21!

Tiny Santa

Baking in our jammies - the best!

Espresso crinkle cookies - so gooey & delicious

Homemade tree topper

Eating our baked treats is the best part

Christmas Preschool field trip: Santa was ok, but the carousel rocked

Someone got a big girl Dora backpack

Sugar cookies

Fi's first letter to Santa. She dictated it to Daddy, but signed her own name!

Traditional spritz cookies

Just after Santa stopped by

Miles helped cook too

Miles Emerson

On Friday, December 7 at 4:01 am, we became a family of four.  Miles Emerson weighed 7 pounds, 11.5 ounces and measured 20 inches long (nearly identical stats to his big sis!).

Early labor started Wednesday afternoon, my first official day of maternity leave, while I was at the movies alone watching Lincoln.  After a false alarm visit to the hospital late Wednesday night, Ryan and I spent Thursday timing contractions, walking and walking, going out to lunch (Note: Tricky to look normal in a restaurant when contractions are getting stronger and stronger), and just generally trying to pass the time.  By 7:30 pm on Thursday evening,  we headed back to the hospital and settled in for the real thing.  

In thinking about Miles' birth, I'm grateful for many things:

• A wonderfully supportive husband
• Parents and siblings who live near by and were able to take care of Fiona on a moment's notice
• My mom: doula and personal nurse extraordinaire
• The fact that I'd done this once before and knew what to expect; this time around was less scary and I felt much more in control.
• Science, the invention of the epidural, and a speedy anesthesiologist.  
• A calm OB/GYN who moved quickly when it became evident that the cord was wrapped around Miles' neck 
• The power of my body: I pushed Miles out in less than 15 minutes and about 5 pushes

After a quick 36 hour stay in the hospital, we returned home and started this next exciting, chaotic, joyful, sleep-deprived, loving phase of our lives!  

A few phone pictures (out of order because Blogger is photo challenged and I have approximately 15 minutes before Miles will need to eat again!) are below.

First evening at home (in the rental house we're staying in while we build our new home). I was struck by this warm, sweet scene: Fiona playing, Miles sleeping, our Christmas tree in the background, Christmas music playing. 

Ready to head home in his sweet monster onesie and hat

Tiny feet

Sweet monkey at 1 week old

First family photo at the hospital

Hi, I'm Miles

Big sister

Just after Miles' birth.  Because he came out so quickly, Miles had a lot of bruising on his face that quickly disappeared.

Daddy holding Miles for the first time

Excited grandparents

I have TWO babies!

Hello? Hello?

Hello!

YES - We're still here!

Have I really not posted at all since Labor Day Weekend?

Seems so.

Well, it's been a bit chaotic around the Fehrman front - loving & happy & fun - but a bit chaotic nonetheless.

Here's what we've been up to (sans photos because, let's face it, if I have to upload photos I won't do this post for another two months!):

• We took a fall family VACATION to the NC mountains and enjoyed a week of hiking, exploring, pumpkin carving, game playing, movie watching, and resting. One special moment was taking Fiona to Station Cove Falls, the place where we got engaged.  As we prepare for baby boy Fehrman's arrival, we're also trying to savor our last moments as  threesome. 
• We both spent several weekdays / weekends SOLO-PARENTING for work and family reasons.  Fun to have special time with Fiona, but also exhausting.  If you've called or emailed or texted and we haven't been back in touch, it's because we literally haven't had the energy. 
• We started BUILDING A NEW HOUSE!  After a year of housing drama, we'll be in a brand new house come Spring 2013.  The framing is nearly complete and we've begun the exciting process of picking out everything from paint colors to door knobs.  
• We MOVED out of our tiny, temporary apartment into a much larger rental house.  It's completely furnished, includes a bevy of toddler toys, has a great backyard, is in our old neighborhood, sits right around the corner from the house we're building, and has room for our new family addition. In short, it's pretty perfect and it feels so good to be "settled" - at least for the next 5-6 months.
• We've been PREPARING FOR BABY#2's arrival!  I'm 37 weeks pregnant, officially full-term, and due on December 4.  At the end of October, we celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary with a wonderful BABYMOON weekend to the Isle of Palms outside of Charleston, SC.  We ate amazing seafood, splurged for a prenatal massage, took a brewery tour, and basically enjoyed doing whatever we wanted whenever we wanted while my parents graciously hosted Fiona.  We simultaneously can't wait to meet our son and can't quite figure out how all of this will work with two kids! I'll be taking 12 weeks off for maternity leave and am so looking forward to the change of pace. 

Labor Day Weekend

After an incredibly busy couple of weeks, we planned to keep the long Labor Day weekend relaxing & unstructured.  Turns out, we did quite a lot -- and all of it FUN!

Saturday afternoon:  Ryan & Fiona joined Father / Son duo Will & Hayes for tailgating and fun at the UNC v. Elon football game while I spent the afternoon with mom & sister doing baby prep.  Apparently Fi set a record for gametime snacks and bathroom visits -- but she did make it through a whole 1.5 quarters before crashing and needing to come home!

Saturday morning: Swim lessons at the YMCA.  Turns out the 4th week was the charm.  Although she LOVES being in the water with us, Fiona HATED her big girl swim lessons for the first three weeks, screaming incessantly and clinging to us with the toddler death grip.   This week, she walked right up and jumped into her teacher's arms.  Good lesson in persistence for Fi and her parents.

 Sunday Morning:  We went on a family hike at Eno River State Park.  Fiona was an excellent nagivator.

Monday: Family fun field trip to the NC Zoo with Mougie & Grandpa.  Note:  Do not attempt to get 7-month pregnant self into - and most importantly out of - giant ostrich egg.  Not pretty.

Daddy and Fiona riding the zoo's endangered animals carousel....and roaring like lions.

Mommy and Fiona feeding the giraffes - a zoo highlight!!  If you go, this is a MUST DO.

Before

For nearly the last year we've been trying to find a new home that is large enough for our growing family, still walkable to Downtown Durham, assigned to a great elementary school, and within our price range - definitely a tall order!

Since selling our beloved 1929 bungalow in May, we've been living in a temporary apartment while the search has continued. We've had many frustrating ups & downs along the way. I'm now happy to report that we're under contract to BUILD a brand new home in our wonderful, old neighborhood! There are still many details to be sorted out, but with any luck - fingers crossed! - we'll be breaking ground on the lot pictured below within the next month and moving into our new home next Spring! Here's to great AFTER picture in the months ahead.

New Farm

My parents recently uprooted their entire lives to move closer to us. I could not be more grateful for all that has gone into selling their house, finding new jobs, moving, buying a new farm, and making plans to build a new house - shoo!

Hopefully scenes like this (from our afternoon on the property this past weekend) make it all worth it. Fiona loved helping with horse chores, petting babies & mamas, and "clearing brush" with Mougie.

First Fish

Ryan & Fiona enjoyed a very special daddy-daughter date this afternoon: their first fishing trip together.

Fiona got her own fishing rod for her recent birthday and put it to good use at the Occoneechee State Park pond, catching two blue gills!

Both daddy and Fiona were thrilled!

I like this, Daddy!

First Fish!

And a 2nd one!

Goodbye Bobby

...and now that she's officially a big girl, Fiona recently said goodbye to a longtime favorite: her bobby - otherwise known as a pacifier.

For a long time now, she'd only been using it at night, but when she crossed the 3-year old threshold, Ryan & I finally decided that enough was enough.

In lieu of bobby, though, Fiona got a new friend: Bobby Bear! We made a special trip to Build-a-Bear where Fi got to pick out any bear & outfit she wanted. She gave her bobby one last kiss, put it inside Bobby Bear, and that was it!

The first night without bobby was definitely sad, but every night since then has gotten better - and Bobby Bear is getting lots of love.

Our Girl is 3!

We happily celebrated Fiona's 3rd birthday a few weeks ago with a breakfast play date party at The Fun Zone in downtown Durham. A gaggle of 2,3,&4 year olds, bouncy house, bunny, dress-up clothes and toys galore - what could be better?!

Prior to her official party, we continued a tradition of a special before-school breakfast on her actual birthday.

And after the big day, the party continued with a weekend spent playing with Nana, Grandpa F, Mougie & Grandpa S.