Almost Easter!

Eva's first Easter is so much fun. Grandma Maggie bought her a beautiful new outfit to wear to Easter visiting, which is a huge help to us since we would not have been able to afford that this year. We've already gone visiting at Grandma Babbs' and Grandpa Webers' house, but she still has to wait to find out what the bunny left her at Grandma and Grandpa Niewolny's.
I had her first professional pictures taken at Sears and I think they turned out sooo good. I wished I could have gotten every pose they did, but I did get a few which I've posted above. Eva will be 5 months old in just a few days...how the time is flying. A good friend of ours just had a baby boy yesterday and we got to see him today.....was Eva ever that small?!?!? I guess she was, but it doesn't seem like it!!
Enjoy the pics and have a happy Easter!

Almost 4 Months

I can't believe that Eva's almost 17 weeks old. I remember at 20 weeks of my pregnancy we found out she was a girl. That seems like so early in my pregnancy but she was technically older than than she is now! Crazy.
She's doing so well. She is getting much better at holding her head up and being on her tummy. She still can't completely support herself with her arms, but I'm sure that's coming. She's had a few nights now where she has gone down for her long sleep without the hour or so or crying. I really hope that it's a sign she might be growing out of that. It's not a big deal, but it would be nice to put her down with out it. She still wakes up most nights once, but usually just to eat and then goes back down. We tried cereal twice, but I don't think she was ready for it. I might try again in a week or so. She loves her Johnny Jump Up. It hangs from a door frame and supports her weight while she bounces on her feet (thanks boucha Niewolny for the awesome find!) She can grasp and bring toys to her mouth now and she ALWAYS has her hands in her mouth. She is a drool queen. Not sure if it's the beginning of teething or if she's just a drooly girl. She's rolling side to side, but not over yet.
Despite the awful economic times and financial hardships, I am so blessed to be able to spend more time at home with her, blessed just to have her and with her the sence of peace and fullfillment she brings me.

Baptism

Eva was baptized February 15, 2009 at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Milwaukee. She wore a dress that was made from my grandmas, her great grandmas, wedding dress. My dad, my sisters and me and my sisters children have all wore the dress to be baptized.
We decided to do an immersion baptism so she was dunked into the water with no clothes on, but got to put on her dress right after. She was a very good girl! The water in the font was heated so I think that helped. I was so nervous she was going to have an accident without her diaper on, but we got lucky!
There were a number of odd coincidences we found about later. I had been church shopping since we moved to Greenfield but hadn't found a church I felt was really 'me' until my sister Kari suggested I try St. John the Evangelist. Something about it right away let me know this was the one so we joined there. After my aunt heard about the baptism and where it took place she told us that St. John the Evangelist was the church my grandma Himmelspach attended as a young woman before she was married. So Eva was baptized in her Great Grandma Niewolny's wedding gown at her Great Grandma Himmelspachs church! AND the little girl she was baptized along side was named Lucille, which was her great great grandmas name! Weird or what?!

2 Months Old

Eva just turned two months old!
She's doing great and getting big. She's 11 lbs and growing out of her newborn clothes. She has more emotions now and is starting to coo and smile more. Not sleeping through the night yet, but that will come. Her eyes are still blue, but they are going to change for sure. Probably to her moms brown eyes. But her hair is much lighter than mine and so reddish! Crazy!
She had to have her first shots and that was traumatic for both of us. At least we don't have to face that again for a few months. Next month is her baptism!

Happy New Year!

Goodbye 2008!
I think the only wonderful thing I'll take from this year is Evalyn. Other than that I'm happy to close the door to this year. I am so hopeful that there are good things to come in 09!
Eva's doing so good! She is smiling more and she also HATES going to sleep now. She just wails before the falls asleep. I think she is starting to realize that she'll miss things when she's sleeping. She's eating much better now that we have her back on the soy formula. I think we'll have to stick with that one for a while until her stomach is less sensitive. Hopefully we can go on the cheaper stuff when she's older.
She is just a joy!

First Christmas

Eva's first Christmas was wonderful!
We spent xmas eve night at Jeremy's mom's. We had a great time and even had a visit from Santa (Jeremy's brother Abrahm). As you can see from the picture though, Eva was a little scared of Santa. We also had another surprise guest...a four week old piglet! Jeremy's mom had picked it up to bring to a neighbor who raises pigs when they drove up north to jeremy's grandma and grandpas the next day. This pig was still so small its being bottle fed, so we had a classic photo op for me to feed Eva while Abrahms girlfriend Tracy fed the pig. Classic!!!
On xmas day we went to my parents to celebrate with them and my sisters and their children. We had a lot of fun there and it was neat to see all the kids having a blast. I'm going to love to watch Eva grow and get excited about her presents each year too. She is starting to enjoy some toys like the play gym she is on in the pics. I can't believe she'll be toddeling around next xmas!!! There are 5 grandkids now at family gatherings and we learned that my sister Kari and her husband Jeremy will be adding to that number!! They have started the adoption process for their second child which they should be able to go and bring home from Ethiopia in 2010. Soo excited!

Santa Claus

" Santa, I want a new pacifier and another bottle and a new diaper
cause I peed a little when I first saw you...."