Checking in

I see that I owe this blog an update since it has been quite a while, AGAIN, since I've posted.  The last post left off explaining how our family was expanding and edging toward a December 2012 debt-free goal date.  Well, I am pleased to say that our third daughter was born at home on September 6, 2012.  Goal #1 accomplished!  The second goal, reaching babystep 3, was postponed due to some health issues I experienced immediately postpartum, but I am happy with our progress nonetheless as we now owe less than $5,000 to Sallie Mae.
I think a follow-up post about my health will be coming shortly, but now I want to share a few photos of our beautiful daughter, Charlotte.


                                          Here she is just moments after birth:

                                          Her birthday bath:

                                          A few days old:

                                          Her first professional photo shoot at 10 days:

                                          She is thrilled to be a duckling on Halloween:

                                          Charlotte with her two big sisters at Christmas:

Sadly, because of my health concerns we have few pictures from this time, but at least I was able to get some, right?  Charlotte turned 8 months yesterday on May 6.  She started crawling a few weeks ago, and yesterday she pulled up on the couch for the first time.  When she crawls she puts one foot flat on the ground and drags her other leg behind, almost like a crabwalk.  She loves to babble, saying "Ba-ba-ba-ba!" I may have heard a "da-da" in there a time or two, so it shouldn't be long before she is intentionally saying dada!  She can clap her hands and make a sound like "yay!" also.  We can't believe how quickly this first year is going by, despite our family's challenges.  It will be sad to leave these baby years behind, but I know we have many years of wonderful memories ahead of us!

Bad at Blogging?

Yes, I really am. So we have some really big news that you may be able to guess due to the passage of time.
Our new baby girl has arrived!

Sophia Elizabeth Kener
born October 24, 2010 at 10:31 AM
6 lbs, 15 oz; 19 3/4" long

She is absolutely beautiful and we couldn't be more thrilled. Avery is just as excited to finally be a big sister. She is constantly asking to hold the baby and wants to help change her, bathe her etc. I couldn't ask for a better child!

The most special thing about the day Sophia was born was that it is our wedding anniversary. How crazy is that? We couldn't have planned it if we tried (ok, unless it was a C-section) but thankfully it wasn't. I was able to go completely natural and do a home birth, something I really wanted and am so happy I decided to go for it! So now we have a New Years Eve baby and an anniversary baby. So cool! We feel truly blessed with our two sweeties.

Avery, Sophia and I are hanging out home alone today for the first time, and so far so good. Our neighbors and families have been so helpful with food and household chores. Thank you to everyone who has helped this mama recover, we appreciate it more than you know and will return the favor when needed!

So here is a pic of our princess, better pictures are coming when I'm not working with a point and shoot :-)