5 days to Christmas

Emily and I already got our Christmas present this year, but somebody else is about to discover some magic.

Lucikly, she's been pretty good this year.

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Fall Fun!

Fall Beauties

As much as everyone loves seeing all the colors of Fall, imagine seeing it happen for the first time.

In Search of The Great Pumpkin

Libby's been doing a lot of new things lately (crawling, eating real people food, hearing the word "No", etc...), so we added one more to the list and all went to our 1st Pumpkin Patch in Bonner Springs on Saturday. I think Lib may have had a good time, but you can look at the gallery below and judge for yourself!

1st Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

http://picasaweb.google.com/jerryamorris/1stTripToThePumpkinPatch?authkey=Gv1sRgCKu0sZ_e86r1GQ&feat=directlink

On the Move

On the Move! from Ja Mo on Vimeo.

Hey, World. She's coming for ya.....

Sunday Morning with Dad

Emily's away during the day this weekend teaching a yoga seminar, so it's just Lib and I on our own. So while Dad watches soccer and Meet The Press, Libby's working on her standing and Spanish skills. Not a bad Sunday.

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The Last Pre-Mobile Moments

Libby's been working real hard on finally crawling. Her Mom and Dad are realizing they aren't quite ready for what comes next.

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Ah, indian summer...

Libby's finally big enough to fit in the tree swing, and the heat finally broke enough to make it fun.

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Daddy's little copilot.

Don't worry, it's parked.

The Omnivore Emerges

Libby reached another milestone today when she tried rice cereal for the first time.  She did a great job (as long as the measures is "How much cereal can I wear on my face and bib).  One more step towards eating steaks with Dad!

Libby's 1st Fourth

Okay, I know it's delayed, but summer has its own pace:

Libby's 1st 4th

Lib enjoying her mobile, airconditioned playpen

Lib and I had a few hours to kill in Columbia after hotel checkout while Emily finished her yoga training.  After exhausting our cool options,  and with temps climbing into the Very humid 90's, we decided to fall back on the benefits of the new CRV we got last weekend.  Libby didn't seem to mind. 

Why Summer Is Awesome, Reason 172

Having time to go visit Libby and her mom at lunch.

Happy Father's Day - Boulder, 2010

Yeah, it's been too long. But when you're a globe trotting (okay, Midwest trotting) young lady like our Libby, there just isn't always time to stop and discuss.

Suffice it to say, she made her Dad have the best Father's Day he's ever had. (okay, her mom helped quite a bit too).

Lib's first Trip

Here we go on our first plane adventure! Wish us luck.

Libby's New Trick

Libby's New Trick from Ja Mo on Vimeo.

Libby's New Trick

Summertime!

Emily R. Morris, RYT
http://bffyoga.blogspot.com

Sent from my BlackBerry

First Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day 2010

It's Been Three Months...

Sorry that there haven't been many updates of late, but as you can guess we've been busy. Libby's started school (nursery school, but still school), Mom's gone back to work, I finished my Graduate degree and certification requirements. Just a lot happening.

People kept telling me that "everything will change", and although I believed them, I didn't really understand what they meant.

No more leisurely nights at home with no plans and nothing to worry about. No more nights of uninterrupted sleep. No more easy weekend getaways or nights out on the town, or deciding at the last minute to catch a movie or go out for a meal. No more worrying about just myself.

Now I come home just wanting to hold someone on my lap until she sleeps. Now I'm disappointed when she goes to bed early and I don't get to hang out with her. Now I get excited to change diapers and read books with cardboard pages and fuzzy animals on them.

Now I get to look at this face every day...

"Three Months"

I'd say it's been a pretty awesome trade.

Final Stretch

Maternity leave with Libby is rapidly nearing its end. Part shocked
but also sorta relieved with a sense of success! But mostly, down
about it. Me, the workaholic, learned to be a stay- at -home mom. I
never thought it possible!

I will miss my leisurely mornings with Libster. We enjoy waking up
early, then she nods off for a good snooze and I get some work done
around the house. From there our day continues with walks around the
neighborhood, maybe an outing (I have loved seeing those that don't
work and experiencing their lifestyle). By the end of the day, we look
forward to Daddy coming home. Maybe I personal train someone, maybe I
take a yoga class.

Now, it's back to the grind. April 29th is my official start date
(who can believe she's almost 12 weeks old and weighing in at 12
pounds, 5 ounces!!). However, Libby's starting "school" Monday, the
26th. She will go for 3 hours and then a little longer Tuesday and
Wednesday before I hit her with an 8-hour day on Thursday. I hope
it's only hard on me and not on her.

Did I mention Libby will not take a bottle? So, I will go to work
early and nurse her beforehand. Then I drop by twice during the day
(every 3 hours) and one last feeding after work before we trek home.
That's the plan for now. I'm also sending her with a bottle every day
so maybe, maybe, they can get her to take it. Otherwise, we'll make
it.

So, for this week, I'm simply enjoying my time with Lib. We're gonna
do what we want, take our time, and enjoy being together. Well, she
doesn't understand her life is about to be turned upside down, but as
her mom, I'm gonna offer her a little extra snuggle time, mom time,
baby talk time... You name it!!!!

Elizabeth Anne Morris, I love you! XOXO

Libby's 1st trip to the zoo

Emily R. Morris, RYT
http://bffyoga.blogspot.com

Sent from my BlackBerry

Daddy's Home!

Not a bad way to be welcomed home...
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Libby's Opening Day

She's a little too small for The K quite yet, but Emily thought Libby should still get to be a part of a Kansas City tradition. So thanks to a gift from my colleague and friend, Steve Dodge, Libby got her own virtual Opening Day!
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What does Libby think of Spring?...

We couldn't agree more.

Libby's Baptism

Libby's Baptism from Ja Mo on Vimeo.

Elizabeth Anne Morris was baptized on Easter Sunday 2010 at Asbury United Methodist Church in Prairie Village, Kansas.

Libby's Baptism is Sunday!

Hi everyone, we just wanted to remind you that Libby's Baptism is this Sunday (Easter) and again let you know that any and all of you are welcome to come. I've put the details below.




Easter Service: 


Libby's Baptism will be a the Asbury United Methodist Church, in Prarie Village at the 11am service. The address is 5400 West 75th Street, Shawnee Mission, KS 66208-4798. The church is on the north east corner of the intersection of 75th street and Nall. 


That service is usually pretty packed on Easter, so you may want to plan to arrive 15-20 minutes early if you are going to attend. Emily, Libby, and I will probably not arrive until just before the service, and will most likely be sitting in the back (you know, just in case....)



Here is a map to the church if you need directions: 



View Larger Map


Reception: 


After the service, We'll be heading just down the road on 75th street to the Waldo Pizza Tap Room where we can all hang out and have the traditional Easter meal of Pizza and Beer. We've got the room reserved to ourselves, so it should be a nice time to catch up and hang out. If you can't make it to the service, please feel free to come by if you don't have other Easter plans. We'll stay until everyone's sick of it or (more probably) Libby decides she's had enough excitement for the day and is ready to go home. 


Here is a map to Waldo Pizza: 



View Larger Map


We hope to see some of you there! If you can't make it don't worry, I'm sure there will be PLENTY of pictures coming soon. Speaking of which, I thought I'd share a few from the past couple of weeks.....

Libby shaking hands with her Uncle Ryan.....

Libby and Dad in Libby's favorite chair....

Portrait of a well-fed baby as an 80's flashdancer.....

That's all for now. Have a great Easter weekend everyone.... 

All in the Colors!

Keeping up the tradition, Libby woke Dad up early for the Arsenal Match and demanded to be dressed in her uniform. Dad reluctantly agreed, and they both sat down to watch the Gunners, hoping for a dramatic win!

Grown-Ups only Birthday Dinner.

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What's new from Mom

Well, we're just a little over 1/2 way through my maternity leave and Libby is already changing a lot!

She has been successfully sleeping in her crib for over a week (yes, this sometimes means she and I are up every hour of the night, but I have gotten a few 3 hour stretches), she continues to grow (last I checked she was well over 9 pounds), she's discovered new sounds she can make, has learned to put her fist in her mouth (hasn't yet, though, figured out how to pop out that thumb!), and she smiles, which is sometimes all that Mom needs.

We're still working on several things, such as taking a bottle and not fighting sleep, but we've come a long way in just 6 weeks. I look forward to what the next 6 weeks may have in store for Team Morris!

Libby's baptism is going to be on Easter, April 4th. Feel free to join our church service at 11:00, Asbury United Methodist, followed by a reception at the Waldo Pizza Tap Room.

Also, Libby has a new friend!!! Ja's cousin, Tyson, and his wife Jen, had a baby boy! Jackson Wayne was born at 12:30 this morning. Congrats to the Markham and Webb family. We look forward to watching them grow together.

Thanks for your constant support! I better get back to my mom duties... :)
Emily R. Morris, RYT
http://bffyoga.blogspot.com

Sent from my BlackBerry

Last Day of Winter...

Libby and I decided to say good-bye to Winter by watching the sun come up together. It's been great having this week of Spring Break to spend with my girls.

Oh... And Grizzly.

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Happy St. Patty's Day!

For the record...

Libby just wanted everyone to know that she is Quite happy to sleep, despite the impression her father may have given.


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Beware the Ides.....

Well, Spring Break could not have come at a better time for Team Morris. We're entering six weeks since our newest member arrived, and we all are starting to evolve into our new roles. However, an unfair balance of the work had been carried on Emily's shoulders the past two weeks as she flew solo on Mom duty. It was a lot to ask of her, but she stepped up to the plate like a champion and made it through, knowing all hands would be on deck as soon as I got off for St. Pat's week. We decided that it would be a perfect time to try and transition baby Libby over to full-time crib sleeping.

We kept to the old ways on Friday night, just to make sure we all started off the break fresh, and it worked. Long hours of uninterrupted sleep for both Em and I. Only she was on the couch with Libby. Saturday we were refreshed and lounged around until Em personal trained in the morning, and Ja and Libby hung out with Uncle Jeff who was up from Pittsburg to visit. We were planning on going to the Brookside St. Pat's parade, but 42 degrees and drizzly did not sound like optimal conditions for a first Big Day Out for the family. Instead we went to visit Brad, Nikki, and Willa down the street for some awesome pork loin. I was in charge of the sides so everyone got stuck with Mac and Cheese and jalepeno poppers. Still, everyone had fun, and we came back to the house ready to begin our little adventure in crib training. (and The Arsenal even won, so Libby was Extra happy)

So, Saturday night we started the experiment, and by most measures it went well. Lib slept for a few hours while Mom dozed and Dad watched SNL and Poker After Dark (don't ask me why, I don't even like poker but i always end up watching it). A few rough patches throughout the night, but nothing that wasn't expected (although Emily really still ran the show through most of the early morning hours). We took a late start to the day and all felt so good about it that we went for a Sunday trip to Brookside. I strapped on the baby carrier and we all had a great afternoon going birthday shopping for Emily and enjoying a beautiful cold, overcast March day in Kansas City. We even picked up a copy of The Settlers of Catan with the hopes of spending a quiet evening at home playing a game instead of .

When we got home, Mamma and Pappa Ru came over, and Em and I even got to escape to the Salty Iguana for an hour to enjoy some chips and salsa. We came back, cooked dinner, and began to lay out the game. Libby had other plans, however. Every time we started to play, she let us know that she really didn't appreciate being abandoned to some strange crib. We'd calm her and start to play, then hear her protest. Feed her and start to play, then hear her saying "NO!" Change her and start to play, and then... well, you get the picture. This continued for the next 12 hours, long after we had given up on the game and all hope of sleep.

I think my baby calming skills had atrophied over the past few weeks at work though. All the little tricks I had picked up in those first few weeks had dramatically lost their effectiveness. I even tried bouncing on the exercise ball with her but forgot that balance and sleep deprivation don't go well together. To make a long story short, no one slept much in the house, but we didn't give up on the crib. You have to take the little victories. 

Moral of the story?......

Beware the Ides of March.

(heh.. that's a long way to go for a cute baby picture, but I thought it was worth it!)

From everyone here at Team Morris, thanks for dropping by MoTeamGo, and we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible on Easter when little Lib get's baptized.

By Popular Request... More Libby Photos!

Okay, so I've heard all the griping, and you're right. The internet is severely lacking in photos of Elizabeth Anne! So here you go:

A Big Mess 'O Libby

Happy 1-month, kiddo!!

So, not to toot my own horn, but I do feel pretty good that Libby and I went for a 50 min. walk today and a month ago today they would not even allow me to walk (not that my legs would of allowed anyways!). So... Little Libby, we've come a long way!!

What comes to mind when I think about the last month: first off, complete and utter doubt, stress, disbelief, uncertainty, love, admiration, sleep deprivation, tears, tears and more tears, smiles, laughs, and joy! Welcome to parenthood, right?! I surprise myself by wanting to type this, but I actually wouldn't change a thing! When asked about our little girl, we say "Libby is spirited." To say the least! Thank you, first and foremost, to my fantastic and perhaps over-caring husband, for all the help he heavily offers and especially for taking off work those first weeks. And thank you to mom for helping me through the next ride (crying baby, anyone?!) and then to mom-in-law for coming up and helping me over the last hurdle (Libby's cute even when she cries!).

I'm coming around and slowly coming up for air. I've decided, as I fly solo, that I would rather swim than sink, so today we left the house (yes, Moms, it is unbelievable that I found my way downstairs!!!) and I even treated myself to Chick-fil-a at the time of her birth. She might be spirited but she's the best thing to come into our lives and I wouldn't have her any other way!

So, here's to you, daughter, and all your funny faces (even those frown lines), the sounds that you make, the way you squirm your body, and the way you feel next to mine. No body touches my heart quite like you little one. I look forward to all the months ahead.

Your humbled mother,

Emily

Learning to fly solo

Step 1: put fussy baby in bouncy. 2: give baby some gripe water. 3: move them to bathroom, heat vent and shower water create "white noise". 4: jump in shower! 5: peak out, baby is content, maybe happy. 6: even shave legs. 7: force myself to leave the peaceful shower. 7: baby is still happy so get dressed, put on make-up, even dry hair. 8: darn! Glitch to the plan! Baby managed to poop through diaper, onto clothes, and bouncy! Ah well! Still feel 2 ft taller... And clean :)

Emily R. Morris, RYT
http://bffyoga.blogspot.com

Sent from my BlackBerry

Another Update in Pictures

It's been a while since an update, so I thought I'd just share a few pictures that say it all......

Another new change...

It's been an amazing couple of weeks with our little girl home, and today brought another change: Dad went back to work. Luckily, Emily didn't have to fly solo quite yet. Her mom has graciously taken the week off work to help us bridge this transition. I have to admit, it was really hard leaving my girls at home this morning and dragging myself back in to work (although I did miss my kids and teammates at DTA). With Michelle's help, however, everyone made it through with flying colors. Emily was even able to nap a bit during the day and evening (after taking over all of the nighttime baby duties so I could get some rest for school. She's the best.)

So, with Libby's 2 week birthday coming up, I thought I'd share a big hodge-podge of pics from the last couple of weeks. I meant to put captions on them all, but you'll just have to make them up for yourself. I've got a beautiful little girl to go play with....

Libby Roundup 2/16/10

Happy Valentine's Day from Team Morris!

Libby celebrated one full week of being home by dressing up for Valentine's Day (also by staying up all night "partying"), and then having dinner with Mama and Papa Ru. Maybe not the most exotic Valentine celebration, but we couldn't be happier with her as our gift.

Hope everyone else had a great day with the ones you love. 

Libby's First Video...

Libby's First Workout from Ja Mo on Vimeo.

Emily decided that a 6 day old should not be allowed to just lay around all day like a degenerate. The workouts begin....

First of Many...

Libby's one week birthday is right now. So to celebrate, we took her on her first trip to Target!

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Taa-Daa! It's Emily Writing

So, here I am, finally posting myself. Ja's been riding me about it, but you see, I've been busy (not that he hasn't been my rock, and rock star, working his tush off too). First off, I'd like to begin by pointing out to everyone that I am among those that won on the poll by voting for Feb. 3 (okay, so my odds were pretty good, but still...). If you ask me, that's a pretty awesome day for a birthday. 02/03/2010, count up, count down. Also time was 13:02 so same numbers (and yes, we celebrated with the grandparents her 1 day birthday right at 1:02 the next day!!). Since then, well life has spun outta control and I am missing 1:02. Between running to various doctor's appointments and pumping in the pain med's for me, it's gotten a little hairy. However, today was a good day. It's amazing what it's like to just chill with your daughter. She's asleep right now and has been for at least 3 hours.... do you think that means she will be up all night??? We'll see! To summarize how I have been feeling - well, I'm just an emotional worrier these days. Hormones have control of me and as a new mom, all my thoughts are on if she's okay. I'm trying to also take care myself, a must I know. Sometimes I forget I have just had major surgery!! But all I have to do is look at myself to remember that. I do not know my own body right now but know it will be back someday. Thank you to all of you for your interest and support. We could not of done this without your constant presence. I know I need to call many of you back and I will. Just let me get my grounding. With love, Emily

Book of Days (and Nights)

Night 1: "We don't know what we're Doing!"

Overwhelmed with joy and excitement at bringing their little girl home, Ja and Emily dress little Libby up for her first night's sleep. A full 4 minutes of sleeping ensues over the next 10 hours. Not for Libby, who is pretty good at getting her naps anytime she's being held by Mommy or Daddy, but for her obviously not-up-to-speed parents. Due to Libby's jaundice, Ja has been ordered to supplement her breast feedings with formula, administered via his finger and a tube. This leads him to believe that at any moment she will stop breathing because he has poured formula down her lungs. He determines to prevent this by listening to every breath she takes all evening. He develops an online spreadsheet to track feedings and diaper changes broken up into various subcategories. Mom and Dad are surprised by how little their little angel actually cries.

The next day is a haze of sleep deprivation and awe. In the evening, Team Morris is convinced to make an appearance at the Dawson Super Bowl party thrown by Emily's Uncle Jim. Ja dozes on the couch during the game with a beer in his hand while Emily and other moms coo and cuddle Elizabeth Anne. Life is good.


Night 2: "Shift Change"

Team Morris gets it's act together and comes up with a plan. Mom and Dad take turns changing, comforting and feeding little Libby while the other one naps. This leads to some entire Hours of mostly uninterrupted sleep. Team Morris is going through diapers like they're discount Russing iPhones. Mom and Dad wake up feeling like supermen.

Daytime. Doctors offices. Emily goes to a Breastfeeding support groups and walks out a full 2 feet taller. Baby Libby is loving her day out in the snow (what she can see of it from inside her fortified carseat). Life. Is. Good. Pediatrician tells Mom and Dad that they are doing a great job. Laughs at Dad's poopy diaper spreadsheet. Asks them to get another bloodtest to check jaundice levels. Mom and Dad drive to a different hospital for bloodtest thanks to Awesome American Healthcare Insurance System, takes a LONG time. Run out of diapers and have to use a gigantic one borrowed from a nurse. Life still good. That evening Mamma Ru comes over and fixes spagetti. Lab results come back and Libby's bilirubin score is higher. More jaundice. More tests to come. Life is marginally less good but still rediculously awesome.

Night 3: "Patterns Emerge"

Shift change is still in effect and working well. Baby Libby is sleeping for nearly 30 uniterrupted minutes at a time. Mom and Dad are becoming used to a lack of sleep and feel wide awake at a moment's notice to go to work. Libby's going through fewer diapers, but does manage to pee all the way through one and cover her bassinet sheet. Dad finds this hilarious, and is then ordered to take care of cleaning it up. Life, again, is Good.

 (okay folks, you're all up to date! Wish us luck at the doctors today as we go to get more blood tests. The hope is that this will be her last one, but if the scores go up, Libster may have to come home wearing a sort of Tron blanket. We'll just have to wait and see...)

Going Home!

We just got the Go sign from the doc's and are packing up to go! Looks like the fun part is just about to start.....

Libby's First Tanning Bed...

A quick update for all who were wondering:

We're still here in the hospital waiting for the all-clear to head home. Mom and baby are doing well. Yesterday we had a brief setback when they discovered Libby's billiruben scores were high, meaning she had a little too much jaundice going on. So she got to go off and spend the night in her first tanning bed! She looked like a movie star by the pool with her giant sunglasses on. (However, Mom and Dad took a little time to get used to the idea. It helped when our parents reminded us that we both had to do the same thing as infants)

Her numbers have improved overnight, and things are looking a lot better today. So now we're just waiting for the doctors to give us the go-ahead so we can bring our little angel home. We're excited to get her into her nursery, but also are anxious for her to be healthy and ready. We look forward to settling in for the first week and then, after Mom and Baby are feeling ready, showing her off to everyone who's interested in dropping by.

Thanks for all your great messages of congratulations and advice, and we'll keep you updated.

(Also, now that Libby's here, some of you who signed up for the Google Group may not want to keep receiving updates. If that's the case, you can just click on the "visit this group" link over to the right on the blog homepage. From there you should be able to unsubscribe. Otherwise just send me a message or leave one here in the comments, and I'll get you off the list. )

Hey World!

Mom and Baby are doing Great! Just wanted to share a few pictures from the morning with everyone. Looks like it'll still be a day or two in the hospital for Team Morris, but we're all well. (and Libby has passed every single test with Flying colors!) At the moment we're all just coming to terms with the fact that none of us have any idea what we're doing. Luckily we're all quick studies.

Pics of the big adventure

Libby's Big Day

The Quick Version...

 

(forgive me if this makes no sense. it's been a long day)

Em woke up at about 2 am this morning and we were pretty quickly able to tell that our little Libby was ready to make her debut. Luckily we had all the bags packed for a while and felt pretty prepared to go. So we were off to the hospital and admitted by 3 in the morning (although Em did get on to me for driving Well below the speed limit).

Things got moving pretty quickly after we hit the hospital, and Em moved through labor rapidly and without much trouble. By the time she had the epidural and the doctor proclaimed her ready to deliver, there was some mention of being done by 10 and able to have lunch with our little girl. That turned out to not be the case, however.

Emily was a champ during delivery, but after 3 hours of pushing and working really hard we all decided something different may have to happen. Libby was turned upside down, apparently, and despite everyone's best efforts, she was staying put! So Em had a C-Section, and neither of us will ever forget the sound of our little girl's first cry, nor the sight of her being held over the screen for us to see!

Mom and baby are now recuperating, but doing great! I'll post more pictures as time permits. The whole Morris Team wants to thank all of our family and friends for their positive support throughout this process, and look forward to you all meeting our newest member, Elizabeth Anne!