First Smiles and Life...

Oh, the first smiles of a newborn. After five weeks of not much feedback besides crying, we were able to see Frances' first signs of happiness. She is also cooing, one of my favorite sounds - I forgot how much fun all these "firsts" are. It has made me realize that soon she will be walking and talking just like Charles. It has made me excited to think of a little girl, not just a baby - ballet, tea parties, our sweet girl time. She has grown so much over the past few weeks. At her three week checkup which was almost a month ago, she was 10 pounds and the 95th percentile! Needless to say, she is a healthy chubby little baby. She is still quite the sleeper. Staying awake an hour at a time to feed and look around and then snoozing the rest of the time with a mix of crying and smiling in between. She seems to take notice of her big brother - hard not to when he is always in her face kissing and talking about the "baby." She had her pediatric cardiologist appointment to check on her PAC's/PVC's last week. After an EKG, echo, and having to wear a monitor for 24 hours, it appears they have self-corrected.

Days for me are good. Learning how to juggle two - we have gone to the aquarium just the three of us, I was quite proud of myself. I started a mother's bible study at our church - I'm really excited to be studying Ruth and Esther this year and to make new friends. Our little family went to the beach this past weekend. A tad bit more involved with two, but Charles had a great time dancing on the sand, and Frances took in all the new sights and sounds.

Charles is talking more and more each day - everything from "goose" to "Go Dawgs!" He started a MDO program one day a week yesterday - I'll post pictures soon. They said he was an angel, which always makes a mom feel good. He favorites are still reading and playing outside. He and Jacob have this special bond which has really come out since Frances has been born. He is definitely becoming more independent. He has to do everything on his own including feeding himself and climbing in the car seat.

Jacob's job is great. Call is about every week or so, and he is still in the echo lab. He is really enjoying his coworkers/fellows and learning a ton. He keeps talking about wanting to buy a boat - we'll see how that works out! He was even able to go to the UGA game last weekend to see them beat the Gamecocks and spend time with his brother.

Well, that is our life in a nutshell...