The Nursery (Finally)!

I will be the first to admit that one huge disadvantage of waiting for the boy/girl surprise is in the area of preparedness. When I really think about it, I can't believe I waited because I am such a planner and I like to be on top of things. One obvious area that was not ready for Clara was the nursery. In all honesty I was prepared for a boy so I had "boyish/neutral" bedding all set up. It was a gift/hand-me-down from a friend and I figured I might as well set it up. I told myself it was neutral enough for a girl too (ha!). Well - when Miss Clara showed up I looked at it again and decided it really wasn't neutral and I wanted something way more girly. My friend gave me the bumper/quilt and my amazing mom whipped up a matching crib skirt and curtains.

After many weeks the nursery is finally done. It has been mostly done for a while, but I just finished my last two homemade projects, so I am calling it done. Here are some pictures of Clara's abode.

You can't really tell, but the pictures on the wall are ones Jonathan took of Australian animals. We've got the koala, kangaroo, wombat, kookaburra, and cockatoo.

I just counted Clara's books (for fun while I was breastfeeding:)). She has 152! Many of them were inherited from my classroom, though. Don't worry, I didn't go purchase that many already.

My two homemade projects. Very much less-than-perfect, but they were made with lots of love. Now I'm just not sure what to do because my bow holder is already full:). That and I don't have any creative place to put headbands. Any ideas?

Smiling Lady

I know I just posted yesterday, but I will set a new record and post back-to-back. I just had to add a few new pictures from the last week.

Clara has definitely been testing out her smile. Of course she has smiled from the beginning (but only as a result of gas being passed or a bowl movement:)). Now she is truly smiling and it is so much fun to watch her become more responsive and alert.

Father's Day

We celebrated Jonathan's first father's day this morning as a family of three. Per daddy's request we went on a long family hike. We stopped for coffee and breakfast at the Rocket before heading out to Liberty Lake. It was a pretty cool morning which was nice since the hike was mostly uphill. Now that Clara has entered the hiking scene, I have inherited the job of backpack carrier (our pack seems to be heavier these days now that we're carrying burp clothes, diapers, wipes, and nursing covers among other things like cameras and water bottles). It was quite the six mile trek and definitely a workout! Clara was a trooper and slept for most of it as she snuggled up with dad.

Since it was a pretty long journey, we definitely had to fit Clara's feeding in during the hike. I found a nice little log and it wasn't too bad at all (slightly better than the bathroom stall I nursed in on Friday night).

We followed a stream most of the way and ended up at a nice little waterfall. It was a lovely outing and a great way to celebrate our new daddy!

We also celebrated our dads this weekend with an outing to a country ranch/bbq on Friday night and a bbq meal this afternoon. We are so thankful for our fathers. They are both such amazing dads and we are so incredibly blessed to have them in our lives. What a gift that they are close and will get to be a part of Clara's life as well!

One more picture - as I sit here writing this blog, I am listening to Jonathan read his new book he received for father's day to Clara. I don't think she's too interested in the book quite yet, but she is most certainly interested in the one reading it!

Mother's Intuition?

In junior high and high school I played volleyball against Gretchen Hertz and she became a great friend of mine this fall when we coached volleyball together at LC. Both of us found out we were pregnant during volleyball season and had a fun time going through our pregnancies together as first time moms. Her due date was June 15. Gretchen & her husband, Evan, decided not to find out the sex of their baby until the delivery room, like us. Here we are together as pregnant ladies this winter...

About three weeks before Clara was born, I had coffee with Gretchen. We talked about how we were both pretty much certain we were having boys. I'll admit I was pretty much sure I was carrying a little XY combo. Gretchen was just as certain (maybe more so).

Of course you know that I have no intuition because my little bundle of joy turned out to be a little girl! When Gretchen came to visit she said that I'd made her second guess her instincts. Still, though, she thought she had a little boy cooking in her oven.

That is why I thought it was so great when she had a GIRL on Tuesday! Little Louisa Kay Linda Miller entered the world and shocked her as well. Ha! Secretly I was just glad that someone else was lacking in the mother's intuition:). Here we are with the little girls that we thought were boys!

First Trip to Priest Lake

I know I've probably mentioned about 5,000 times that my favorite place in the world is Priest Lake. It is my favorite place for so many reasons. It's incredibly beautiful. It's peaceful and quiet. All of the pressures and stresses of life seem so far away while you're there. There are endless opportunities for adventure. You can spend the entire day on the beach reading a good book and feel no guilt about it.

I've been going to Priest since I was about five and a few years ago my parents bought a place up there. It holds many special moments. It was the place where Jonathan & my "defining" moment happened (when he left for Central and we talked about our long-distance dating future). It holds about a million family memories. It was the place where Jonathan popped the question. It's where my sister, Leah, got married to Travis (pictured below). It is likely the place where Clara came into existence. Ha! Okay, it's special for many reasons:).

We were so excited to get up to Priest for the first time since Clara's birth on Wednesday night this past week. We're trying to make the most of Jonathan's Thursdays off each week. Thanks to our abnormally warm June days, we were even able to spend lots of time down on the beach in the sunshine! We enjoyed a nice hike and lots of reading/nap time. We're hoping that Clara loves the lake as much as we do. I guess she really doesn't have a choice:)! Sadly, we didn't capture of a picture of her on the beach for the first time. Here are a few of our time there, nonetheless..

Blessed

These past few weeks have been so wild - the craziest days of my life by far. I've definitely experienced some of the most exciting, exhausting, emotional moments of my 26 years...and I've only been a mom for a month! Wow. There is so much more in store, I know.

Lately I have had this overwhelming feeling of blessedness (is that a word?). I am just reminded time and again that I have SO MUCH to be thankful for. Just three things I feel so blessed by...

*I have an amazing husband. It is so much fun watching him be a daddy.

*Family and friends are unbelievable. Love. Meals. Gifts. Encouragement. Watching Clara while I sleep. What would I do without you? Thank you!

*Friends that are moms are a gift from God. I really don't know where I'd be right now without the encouragement and advice from those who've walked this path before.

Just few pictures from the last week or so...

Dressed up for a shower (matching - cheesy, I know!)

Falling asleep with Daddy, an almost daily occurrence

At the Krochet Kids Banquet - she slept like a champ!

Look at her chubby cheeks! She's changing so fast!