Sleeping soundly on dad....

This is DJ's favorite thing to come home to...

Addison's "Welcome to the Neighborhood" shower

Our wonderful neighbors Gwen and John, along with their 3 girls Abbey, Alice and Anna, threw Addison a "Welcome to the Neighborhood" baby shower at their home last night. They live right behind us and have a great patio to throw parties on. All the neighbors and their kids gathered to meet Addison and celebrate the addition to the block! We grilled, opened gifts and played a fun white elephant game - an adult AND a kid version. We're so lucky to have such great neighbors, not to mention a TON of babysitter options for Addison once she's a bit older. Of course, Addison slept through the whole shower, but everyone oohed and ahhed over her anyway. :)

My friend/co-worker Nicole came over this afternoon to say hello to Addison - too bad she was asleep! Nicole is due in 2 weeks with baby boy Kellan, so he and Addison will meet someday soon.

Addison meets the Bergstroms

Mark, Megan, Abbey and Brady came over last night, dinner in hand, to meet Addison. We haven't seen the Bergstroms (Mark and Megan are college friends of DJ's - they live about an hour away in Big Lake) in quite a while and Abbey and Brady are huge! Addison was VERY calm in Megan's arms - she must know an experienced mom when she meets one. Even Brady and Abbey did a great job with the baby.

This morning Callie helped Addison with her "tummy time." Tonight our neighbors Gwen and John are throwing a neighborhood shower for us, so check back in a few days for pictures of that. Something else to check in a few days is your mail - I sent out Addison's birth announcements today!

Addison goes to Gilly's cabin!

We made our annual visit to our friend Tim Gilson's cabin in Luck, Wisconsin this weekend although it was a much different experience than in years past! We went up only for the day on Saturday, but Addison got to meet much of the Minnesota crew. Holly and Mike had their 3 month old Jesse there and Mike and Mara had Eliana - it was a true milk fest! The day was gorgeous and perfect and we would have loved to spend a few nights as usual...but it was good to see everyone nonetheless. We got home, plopped Addison in the bath and she was out until 4am - a nice 6 hour stretch. On Sunday Addison got her picture taken by a local photographer who just happens to live exactly one block away from us. Erika (the photographer) got some great shots and we met a cool new neighbor! We'll definitely see her again.

July 24, 2008

All our visitors left today...it's kind of lonely now! It was great for Addison to meet more of her family, and especially nice to have the extra sets of arms around. We'll miss everyone and see all our California clan in September. We love you and can't wait!

Addison takes a full bath

Now that her umbilical scab has fallen out and her belly button has healed, Addison is free to take a full bath! We've found that she loves the water - relaxes completely and doesn't mind her head or face getting wet. Grant and Stacy are here visiting so it's been fun seeing them with her as well. Addison rests really comfortably in Grant's arms.....

Dancing with Dad

Another weekend is coming to an end. We can't believe how fast time is flying by. Beth came over yesterday to meet Addison before she jetted of the Austin for work. She claims she's not a natural, but she held the baby really well for a long time! You can tell when Addison is comfortable because she makes her funny sleeping noises. Today was a beautiful day weather-wise; not too hot or muggy, but the sun was shining brightly. We went to breakfast at YUM! this morning and hung out with Addison (as usual) all day. DJ spends a lot of time waltzing around the living room dancing with her - she seems to love the music, especially Stevie Wonder. Then he made her do the "Macarena"....poor Addison! :)

July 18, 2008

Addison was making her funny noises while she slept today so we had to capture it on video! She continues to sleep soundly, both day and night, waking up to eat and have brief hours of quiet alertness. We actually have to wake her up during the night (after 5 hours) to make her eat. One more weight check with the pediatrician next week and we can let her sleep at night to her heart's content. Can't wait! We ran a ton of errands today and even went out for dinner tonight - we timed it perfectly because she was an angel in her little carseat carrier the whole time. Aunt Kevin is in town from St. Louis, MO and plans to meet Addison this weekend. Also, Uncle Grant and Aunt Stacy are here from Santa Monica, CA for a wedding in Lutsen and will be with us on Monday through Thursday. We're so excited for more of the family to meet little A!

July 16, 2008

Addison is 2 weeks old today! We can't believe how much she has already changed. She went for her 2 week check up with the pediatrician yesterday and her umbilical cord fell out! Her belly button is super cute. Grandma Pam is here visiting from California and she has been a big help with the baby girl and Grandma Judith took some gorgeous pictures of Addison for her birth announcement. All 3 grandparents were over for dinner last night and Addison was the center of attention of course. She continues to be a really easy baby, sleeping a good 4 hours at a time at night, just waking up to eat before falling back asleep.

Visit with Grandma Helen

Yesterday Addison met Great Grandma Helen for the first time. We took a trip to the nursing home where Helen is staying and sat outside to chat - the weather was perfect! Helen loved Addison and held her for a long time. Addison also slept through the night last night! We're sure it was a fluke, but it was definitely nice. She's been really good for the past few nights, sleeping in 3-4 hour blocks and waking up for feedings. Can't ask for much more than that!