A Few Firsts...

We wanted to record some of Addi's firsts on the blog. I'm sure she'll have many many more "firsts" but here are just a few that she's experienced in her short little life so far...

We've been giving Addison sponge baths since she's been home, but now that her umbilical cord has fallen off, we gave her a real bath and she LOVED it! Although her face in the picture looks like she's not real thrilled with us for taking yet ANOTHER photo of her, she was so content with the warm water and let us wash her hair and everything. Thank goodness, because her parents love the water...one day soon we'll be swimming in the pool, fishing, playing at the beach and going out on the boat.

Addi rode in her swing for the first time this past week. I'm not quite sure she's a fan just yet, but she did eventually fall asleep after listening to Oh Susanna about twenty times :)

We also ventured out of the house for the first time this past weekend...to Ponderville (Jilly and Pop's property here in Jacksonville). I'm not sure who was more excited about this trip...Jilly and Pop's or David. David has big plans for a tree fort (or in Mommy's terms, a playhouse), exploring, and rides on a tire swing. 

We are SO looking forward to many more firsts with you, Baby Girl.

Changing...

SO many people told me not to go overboard with newborn size clothes for Addison. Well, being the hard-headed person that I am, I didn't listen :(

So now I am changing her like CRAZY to make sure that she gets at least one wear for each of her outfits before we take them to a resale shop or give them away.

Here are just a few of the outfit changes we've made THIS WEEK...

Jilly bought this gown for her when I was only just a few months pregnant. It came with the hat below, but it's a little big. So I just put her in the hat and took a picture to share :)

Her great grandparents sent her this outfit below...

Love the flare of the pants and sleeves...so retro!

This next outfit is a little too big (and also came from Jilly and Pops)...

I can probably get another month out of this outfit...isn't it adorable?

This next picture is my NEW favorite...

Doesn't she look like she's flirting with the camera??? Love that little smirk :)

This is probably my favorite picture of Addison so far. Look how blue her eyes are when wearing this dress. And those lips??? Perfect for kisses from Mommy and Daddy.

So, I think it's safe to say that all the advice I was given to pass on the newborn clothes was good advice. But I have to admit, I'm enjoying every second of dressing her up! 

Wee Trade...

I found this adorable resale shop called Wee Trade. They open once in the Spring and once in the Fall and offer some of the cutest clothes...and even BETTER prices. They had their Spring sale yesterday and because I am a first time mom with a baby under 1 year of age, I was able to shop the pre-sale. 

Mom and I had a great time and scored some FABULOUS clothes (not that Addi needs any more clothes) and most of them were never worn and still had the original tags. The first thing that we tried to look for were the smocked dresses and bubbles and we were able to find four items that Miss Addi Kate had to add to her wardrobe...

The blue smocked dress has a little bonnet that goes with it and it is OH SO CUTE!

These two bubbles will be perfect for Easter time. Aren't they just sweet? 

Mom and I also found these two summer outfits that were just precious...

Love the sunflower on this one...I can just imagine Addison wearing this with a sweet little yellow hairbow :)

And this MudPie outfit still had the tags on it...I can't WAIT until it warms up around here so she can wear this one! Isn't it fun?

We also found the most precious company that sells unique hairbows and clips. Mom and I were going ga-ga over all the creative ribbon clips that they created. Here are just a few that we came home with...

The little pink crab in the center picture is just too cute for words! Each of them has a little alligator clip that you can attach to a headband...which is perfect for Addi. 

So I would say that our Wee Trade experience was a success! AND we didn't spend a lot of money, which is a huge success for Daddy :)

Nicknames...

When we chose Addison's name, I immediately fell in love with the thought of calling her Addi Kate. And now that she is here, I think I've called her everything BUT Addi Kate. I take that back...I do call her Addi Kate, but I also call her Addison, and Addi too. But David and I have created nickname after nickname for our little girl. Here are just a few of the nicknames that we've come up with so far...

Snuggle Buggle

Fussy Mussy

Little Angel

Punkin'

Sweetheart

Pretty Girl

Momma's Girl

Daddy's Girl

Sunshine

She'll always be our little Addi Kate, but we're enjoying calling her all these nicknames too  :)

Smiling Addi...

Addi Kate woke up this morning and was a happy little baby. I think she is getting to where she can really see us and respond to us talking to her. Here is a little video of our sweet little girl smiling and laughing at me...

Melt my heart!!!

Our Family of Three...

Addison's first Valentine's Day was oh so special. Holidays definitely take on a whole new meaning when a baby is involved. 

Addison and I created TWO craft project together and I think they turned out pretty cute. We made this valentine for Daddy...

And we created this to save in her baby book...

LOVE those little footprints :)

And she was showered with little valentines all day long...from Mommy and Daddy, D-ma, and Jilly and Pops. 

We put Addi in her final Valentine's Day outfit for a little photo shoot...

Those lips just KILL me! So sweet and plump :)

That evening, when Daddy got home from work, we took some family photos...

And we grilled steaks and sat as a family at our dinner table. 

We had the BEST Valentine's Day and I'm so in love with my family of three!

Addison's First Valentine's Day...

We have been having SO much fun dressing Addison up in all her Valentine's Day attire... after all, it is her very first holiday :)

We might be a little partial, but we think she's the cutest little valentine ever!

Happy 1st Valentine's Day to our little sweetheart, Addison Kate.

Welcome Home...

Tuesday was a HUGE day for our family...Addison was released to go home and we would soon officially start our family of three. She was diagnosed as having jaundice, so we spent an extra day in the hospital under the bili lights. I honestly think this was harder on David and I than Addison,  because we were not allowed to keep her in our room and  were only able to hold her during feeding times...TORTURE!!!!  But we made it through those days and were thrilled to finally be able to go home.

Here is our little Snuggle Bug in her carseat waiting on Daddy to pick us up...

Here we are being wheeled down to meet Daddy...

In the car, all buckled in...

Yes, those are tears in my eyes...I was overwhelmed with emotions during this process just thinking about all the times I had dreamed and waited for this moment. It's hard to describe, but this moment was even BETTER than I had ever imagined it would be.

Addison's Welcome Home sign...

Daddy  bringing Addison in to meet Big Brother Kodi and to see her nursery...

Kodi was curious to see the surprise we brought home and loved her immediately...

Doesn't he look like a proud Big Brother?

He stayed close by the entire afternoon and ran into the room every time he heard Addison make a noise...

We introduced Addison to her nursery and couldn't resist taking a few photos of her in her going home gown...

Then we changed into a soft gown and had some Daddy and Me Time...

We couldn't be happier and look forward to all the new experiences and joy this little angel will bring into our lives...

Miss Popularity...

We are going to change Addison's name to Little Miss Popularity!!! She had quite a few visitors at the hospital to help us welcome her into this world. Here are just a few of the pictures that we took during our stay at the hospital...

Big Cousin Mikey and Aunt Sue...

Uncle Mike...

AunTee...

Cousin Litsa...

Mary Katherine...

Pops...

Uncle Brian...

We didn't get pictures of Little Miss Popularity with D-ma, Jilly, Aunt Kim and Uncle Tom, Uncle Timmy, Miss Melanie, Uncle Randy and Mrs. Lisa, Aunt Bubbles and Cousin Eleni, or Johnny and Tanya. But we enjoyed showing off our little bundle of joy with everyone.

We still can't get over the cuteness of our little girl, especially her little chubby cheeks!!

We are still in awe at this gift and have loved getting to know Little Miss Popularity.

February 2, 2013...

I have no idea how David and I slept the night before Addison was born. We were both a bundle of nerves and filled with a variety of emotions...we were excited, anxious, nervous, thankful, blessed...and I could go on and on. But we woke up bright and early on Friday morning and got dressed for the biggest day of our lives.

I took one last belly bump picture before we left our home as a family of two and took the trip to the hospital...

We delivered at Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville...

We didn't know this when we took the picture, but the window to our room was the second floor window above the the doors in this next picture...

Here I am checking in to the hospital...

And here are a few pictures of the labor and delivery room, as well as a few pics of all the family that stayed with us throughout the day...

This is where Miss Addison Kate would be cleaned up, weighed, and bathed after delivery...

Our room was VERY nice and large and we were able to have all our family with us during this exciting time in our lives.

The doctor broke my water first thing that morning and the contractions started to pick up.

AunTee and I waiting for my epidural...

Post epidural :)

Jilly, Pops, David and I...

Uncle Tim and I...

Uncle Brian, Uncle Mike, Aunt Sue, David and I...

D-ma, David and I...

And Big Cousin Mikey...

We had always wanted Addi Kate to be born on February 2nd...that day is my parents' anniversary and this year they would be celebrating 40 years of marriage. The doctors on the other hand did not want to deliver on a Saturday, so we settled for February 1. But, God had other plans...

My body was so slow to dilate and it literally took me the ENTIRE day to finally reach 10 centimeters and to start the pushing phase.  David created the perfect playlist for the delivery and as we started this next phase in meeting our baby girl, it was the perfect environment...our doctor, our fabulous nurse, David and I and all of our favorite songs. 

As I started pushing, Addi turned face up and was having a difficult time making her way through the birth canal. She was never in distress, but was unable to make her way passed my pubic bone. After three hours of pushing, our doctor recommended we have a C section and David and I agreed. We were ready to meet our little angel.

Daddy put on his scrubs and then the nurses took me to get prepared for Addison's arrival...

At 3:07 a.m. Addison Kate Knight was born...

She weighed 8 pounds 1 ounce and was 20 inches long.

Daddy cutting her umbilical cord...

And then he proudly took her to meet the rest of our family.

Here I am holding our sweet miracle baby for the first time...although I was very drowsy from all the medication, it was THE day I had dreamed and prayed about for years.

D-ma loving on her new granddaughter...

Jilly and Pops admiring their first grand baby...

Our family of three...

February 2, 2013...the day our greatest gift from God was born.

We love you Addison Kate...more than the world!