Good 'Ole Rocky Top!!!

Since it is now 3pm and I just barely managed to brush my teeth, I'm sure you'll all forgive me if this post of the past 2 weeks is just a list. (Blogger is not cooperating for the Image Upload so here are links to the latest albums.) http://picasaweb.google.com/sarah.palmer.morris/TennesseeGame
http://picasaweb.google.com/sarah.palmer.morris/EvaSBlessingWeekend

1. Trip to Knoxville to see Tennessee play Florida with friends Whitney and Steve. The boys paid homage to one of the great football venues of America while the girls shopped at baby boutiques and found the greatest lemon cookies in the world. (Thanks to my chocolate fast, I've been forced to expand my dessert horizons to include citrus treats.)

2. While in Knoxville we hung out by the river and witnessed the famous "Vol Navy" (at least Devin swears to me that it is famous) where people park their boats on the river near the stadium to avoid street traffic.

3. The beginning of blowouts. Eva began her baby blowouts be pooping twice on Devin in one day. Since then we have discovered that diapers don't stand a chance against these bad boys.

4. Eva's first Sunday at church. I dressed the little thing up in the most frilly dress I could find. She looked like a giant ball of lace. Before we had even left the parking lot on our way to church, you guessed it, blow out. But she was so happy. She slept for the entire 3 hour block.

5. Grandma and Grandpa Palmer come to town for Eva's baby blessing. After spending and incredible weekend with the babe, they have decided that she does indeed rule the roost.

6. Daytrip to Dillard, NC in the Blue Ridge Mountains with a stop at White Water Falls.

7. Eva starts to smile... we think. (She also begins batting the rattles on her bouncy chair- very exciting to new parents.)

8. Baby Eva Marie was blessed on Sunday by her daddy. It was a beautiful blessing with sweet promises for her life ahead. Her dress was made by Grandma P. from a shawl that came from my wedding dress.

Goodbye, Chocolate. It was fun while it lasted.

I've been trying to get a good 3 week old picture of Eva and this is all I can get lately. The poor little thing has had such an upset tummy for the past couple days. In reviewing my diet I realized that I ate about 80 brownies... not good for the breast milk I suppose. So I'm saying farewell to a dear, dear friend- Chocolate. It has always been there to cheer me up and give me a boost. But the results of the milk-sans-chocolate experiment are conclusive. Today we had our happy baby back. And here is the most delicious brownie recipe I've ever come across. As a fair warning, don't even try it unless you have the ability to ingest massive quantities of brownies.

3 sticks butter (melted)3 c. sugar3 tsp. vanilla6 eggs1 1/2 c. flour1 c. cocoa1 tsp. baking powder1/4 tsp salt1/2 c. chocolate chips. Preheat oven to 350Cream butter, sugar and vanilla together. Add the remaining ingredients, blending well after each addition. Pour batter into 9x13 in pan and bake for 40-45 min. or pour into jelly roll pan and bake for 25 min.Middle should be slightly moist and gooey.

Little tid bits about Eva: She has this funny thing about feeling skin on skin. She sleeps really well on the leather couch because she thinks it feels like skin. (Who knows what she's really thinking but that's our best guess.) When I hold her upright on my chest, she'll worm her way up using her little legs until she has her face buried in my neck and her chest resting on the exposed skin of my neckline. It's so funny. Her neck is very strong, she's been able to hold her head up and move it from side to side since birth. Tonight when I was holding her upright against me, she pulled her head up about a centimeter from my face with her mouth shaped in a tiny little "O" like she was waiting for a kiss or something. So I gave her little kisses and she kind of bobbed her head in and out like she was trying to kiss me. Little babies are so sweet! I just love this little thing. I wish you could all come out an hold her.

Just for fun, here are baby pics from Devin's mom. Can you see the Eva in the pictures?

And last but not least, Products I heart this week: Swaddle me Wrap, Moby Wrap, Mam Pacifiers, Medela PumpInStyle, homemade ring sling.

Thank you, Grandmas!

Eva is 2 weeks and 2 days old now. We can hardly believe how much our lives have changed in the past 2 weeks and at the same time, we can hardly remember what life was like before this little baby came into our family. We have been so lucky to have our moms here to help. My mom was here for the birth and for the first week. Devin's mom came in the next day and stayed until yesterday. They were so helpful and I seriously don't know what I would have done without them. Eva loves her grandmas so much. She was always so calm and happy in their arms. Thank you, Grandmas! Eva misses you so much!

Eva was able to meet her first Auntie on Sunday. My sister Julie had a 9 hour layover in Atlanta so she rented a car and drove the 2 hours up to Clemson to meet her little niece. Eva was very happy and alert while she was here and we are so happy Auntie Julie was able to come.

Eva is getting so big and chubby! I can't believe how much she has changed in 2 weeks. She is so strong and active. She can hold her head up and likes to move around using her little frog legs. She loves to be held and to sleep on our chests. She is the sweetest little thing! So we are completely spoiling this little girl. One of these days we'll have to start putting her down instead of just holding her all the time! If you have any experience with the Babywise method will you let me know? Do you really just let them cry themselves to sleep at every nap? I just don't see how it works but please let me know so I can talk to you about it. Here's a few pics from the past couple days.

Welcome to the world, Baby Eva!

She's waking, she's waking... back to sleep... I think... I have this little thing wrapped on my chest, sleeping away. I finally have a few minutes to write. She is the sweetest little baby. We just love her so much. I could sit here an look at her all day. Eva sleeps quite a bit, except at night. She loves to be cuddled and close to people. She is pretty happy while she is awake except when it comes to eating. We call her little piglet because she snorts and wiggles and grunts and flails her arms around when she's trying to eat. Patience is not her strong point. It is amazing though how much of her personality we can already see.



Her birth was an incredible experience. Ok, it was totally crazy in my mind. But what first birth isn't? The day after my due date I was getting anxious so I got a massage from a friend. She worked all the pressure points that you are supposed to avoid during pregnancy. Walking out of her office I had 2 big contractions and then it was every 5 minutes from then on. Around 11pm we decided to go to the hospital to get checked out. I was sure I wasn't ready b/c I didn't think the contractions were hard enough yet. But I was 5 cm by that point and the nurses were sure she'd be there by morning. We had planned on a natural delivery as far as I wanted to handle it and the contractions were definitely bearable up to that point. My friend Kristin arrived a bit later and helped coach me through the contractions. As they got stronger, I also needed Devin's help. Then as they got even stronger, my mom also joined in. By the end all three had found their respective duties and we were all in the groove. I know it sounds crazy but with the three of them it was very bearable. There was only one time when I thought, "why am I doing this?" and by that point I knew I was so close to the end and that I could get through it. Anyway, the labor hadn't progressed much by about 4 am so they started the Pitocin. Finally at 8am we were ready to push and she was born at 8:50. That was the most exciting hour of my life. Everyone in the room was cheering and coaching me through it. Devin, Kristin and my mom had been so involved in the labor all night that I think it was just as much of a high for them as it was for me when she finally came out. The whole experience was truly amazing and I feel like superwoman. It was incredible to experience the birth process firsthand and learn how much the human body is capable of. Will I have a natural birth again? Ask me in a couple years...