Living: Baby Madelyn

Wow! Almost two weeks have gone by since Miss Madelyn Elise was born. All of the feeding, burping, changing, rocking, and oohing and aahing have kept us busy. Throw in a day my hubby spent in the ER with kidney stones and a baby girl who often thinks she needs to eat every hour and I’ve been hard pressed even to find time to snap pictures. Here are a few of the favorites I have captured:

One last picture of my guy, me and the baby bump. We took this as we were dropping him off at a friend’s house so baby girl could be born.

In hindsight, we probably should have moved a little quicker to get to the hospital. I’d heard stories about there not being time for the epidural to work, but I didn’t think it would happen to me. Luckily, it takes less than five seconds to forget how much work labor is.




My little guy couldn’t wait to meet his sister. Next up, he wants to carry her. By himself. Like a grown up. This is one of many things that is keeping me up at night.  


 

For now we’re able to keep him happy with just holding her. 


 

 

And entertaining her. 

All in all, things are going well here–even if a bit hectic. I have so many thank you cards to write, e-mails to send and phone calls to return! Thank you to everyone for all your nice wishes. I love hearing from you and I will be in touch soon, I promise! Now, I think Madelyn wants to eat again. 

Living: MS Bike Ride

Each year my hubby takes part in the Bike MS: Beyond the Beltway bike ride. This year, there is a good change (fingers crossed) that we will have a newborn by the time the ride arrives, so Bryan may not actually ride. However, he still has fundraising responsibilities. I checked in on his progress today and realized he has yet to secure any funds. So, I thought I’d help him spread the word. It is such a great cause! If you’d like to donate, you can make a contribution online here.  

Living: So Much To Do, So Little Time

Whew! This weekend went by in the blink of an eye. Somehow I’m still recovering from it. I have so many things I want to talk about! Finding the time to get it all out of my head and onto the screen is my problem. Here are some quick updates:

Family: 

We took my little guy to the Baltimore Aquarium on Saturday. He commandeered the camera, leaving us with great shots like these: 

My baby bump:


 

Our lower legs:


My hubby’s wedding ring: 


 
The lower halves of people we don’t know: 

True gems, I tell ya. We finally had to put the camera away and didn’t get it out to capture any images of us as a family. Don’t worry, though, the memories will live on in my head. 

Baby Girl Long is still staying put and hasn’t shown much interest in joining us. If she was awake to hear the tone of my voice when putting my little guy in a time out yesterday, she just might stay put for a few more weeks. Since my guy came early, I’ve been ready for weeks now, but I’m trying to remain patient. I keep reminding myself that she’ll come when she is ready. 

Freelancing: 

I’m using these last few days/weeks/hopefully not a whole month to get a jump start on a couple of projects I have in the works. It is nice not to have a crunch right now and working ahead feels great. I have about 15 freelancing blog posts floating around in my head and even made a list so I don’t forget them. I hope to get them written up this week. 

Reading: 

I’ve been using every spare minute to squeeze in as much reading as I can. I know I won’t have much time for novels after Baby Girl arrives, so I want to pack it in now. I’ve finished some great books over the past few weeks and can’t wait to tell you about them. The problem is, the books are keeping me away from the computer! It is quite the Catch 22. But, I do plan to share the details on my latest favorites soon! 

Thanks for catching up with us! I hope you all had a great Memorial Day. 

Living: Just Another Day at the Office



My little guy and I got to visit his daddy at work yesterday. The trip was made complete with a Happy Meal and an ice cream. My guy also enjoyed entertaining his daddy’s coworkers for a bit. After an adventure like that, he is going to think being a CPA is the best job in the world! 

Living: A Favorite Quote

"Pursuing what you want to do and achieving your goal is not like finding the burning bush or discovering a gold mine. There are usually no epiphanies, no sudden reversals of fortune. Fulfillment comes in fits and starts… Fulfillment comes in many guises, and it can come into our lives at any time… But only we can make sure it will be fulfilled. If we feel empty, no amount of water can fill our well. It has to come from within, from the underground springs and streams." — Mary Morris

Living: A Favorite Quote

"Pursuing what you want to do and achieving your goal is not like finding the burning bush or discovering a gold mine. There are usually no epiphanies, no sudden reversals of fortune. Fulfillment comes in fits and starts… Fulfillment comes in many guises, and it can come into our lives at any time… But only we can make sure it will be fulfilled. If we feel empty, no amount of water can fill our well. It has to come from within, from the underground springs and streams." — Mary Morris