At This Time Last Year...

Right around 4:00 in the afternoon I was going for my very first ride in an ambulance. After two weekends of bedrest in the hospital in town, a splitting migrane pushed me into a new category of concern for the doctors and I was taken to Women's Hospital in Vancouver. It was interesting to ride in an ambulance, even though the major pain kept it from being TOO interesting. Brad sat at my head and held on to my head & neck - which really helped.

As soon as I got to Women's the first thing they did was give me pain killers for the head ache. Kinda made me wish they'd thought of that at the first hospital at 10 in the morning...but whatever.

Brad didn't even have time to pack a bag for himself (or grab a camera) because neither of us understood exactly how long of a process "inducing" was (from Sunday to Tuesday) - SO he could have taken a bit more time. Instead he rushed to the hospital straight from church right when I called (neither of us...like I said). Which is why the first pictures of Aria are from three days after she was born.

We kept hearing that the baby was doing VERY well, that it was a healthy and happy baby...but MY blood pressure & everything else was doing worse & worse. I'm glad it's over and it's amazing to think that this little girl who can now climb couches was once inside of me and my body wanted her OUT - 6 weeks early.

one more thing I learned during the whole hospital / ambulance thing is that if you read the sides of ambulances, they have different names for different things - Aria & I were transported (my trip, and hers 1 1/2 weeks later) by a paediatric ambulance - only for babies & pregnant women. How about that, eh?? They've got special stuff that's baby & kid sized... cool.

My Husband is AMAZING...

I need to do at least one of these posts a year. Ladies, this will make you drool. I was cranky this morning - I was woken up three or four times during the night, and desperately wanted just to sleep, and then during the night I heard Brad make a comment about how at least I got to sleep in this morning because he had to get up to go to work. I said that alarm clocks and babies BOTH wake you up just as thoroughly (NOTE: In conversation afterwards, Brad told me he DIDN'T say that - it was just what I heard late at night). Just to prove my point Aria was up at 6:30 this morning (she generally wakes up 7:30 or 8) so I tried for a good 45 mins to an hour to get her back to sleep, but she would have none of it. I was in tears, and told Brad he was NOT allowed to say that I get to sleep in until the day Aria doesn't need to be fed by me AND the day she sleeps through the night.

Brad could see that I was having a TOUGH morning (duh) and so he did the most amazing thing. He called in to work and told them he'd be late because he had to take care of Aria. He then fed her and took care of her until she fell back asleep around 8:45 or so. She slept until 10:00, which means I GOT TO SLEEP IN UNTIL 10!! That's DOUBLE DIGITS people! It's been a LONG time since I've gotten to do that!

And THAT is why my husband is absolutely amazing.

On a side note: Aria and our couches have a new relationship as of Wednesday. OH BOY!

(she's also getting her 5th tooth)

Aria's Birthday: The Movie

First - you sing...



Then you try the cake...



Then you add a beard...



And you're done!! (see previous post for pictures of the finished product)

Holidays

One last big holiday before I went back to work. Brad's mom's family gets together for March Break at Myrtle Beach - on the east coast of the US. So we enjoyed a wonderful week with the fam. Shopping, walking on the beach, and just loving being with people who love us so much. Some highlights - watching Aria with her aunties, uncles & grandparents - finding underthings that fit that weren't $100+ - walking on the beach and collecting shells - Aria having her first beach experience - Aria celebrating her first First birthday party.

I've got pictures of SOME of those events...sorry - none of the underthings...

Here's Aria enjoying the sand - she loved playing in it, loved running her fingers in it and walking on it.

The water was cold, but Aria didn't seem to care - she loved the waves coming towards her, loved the sand going through her toes, and was totally content to sit and let the waves hit her. She kept trying to walk further and further into the water!!

Aria with Auntie Beth (and wearing her birthday gift)

Aria with Grandma

Aria's first party for her birthday - Grandma made brownies with a marshmellow topping followed by chocolate icing. It took Aria a bit to get into it, but eventually she got the idea.




On the way home we spent a day in Seattle - rather than doing all our travelling in one day, we stayed over night and spent the next day swimming in the hotel pool, visiting Experience Music Project ...(Aria loved the colours, and the grate underneath the metal building)...



and spending over an hour in line waiting for the border...

It was good to spend a bit of time together with just the three of us.

Check out those curls!!

Her Timing is Her Own

It figures that after spending a week with our extended family out in Myrtle Beach, the DAY we're back in Langley Aria decides to take her first steps. She's got quite the sense of timing!!

They Grow Up So Fast...

She's driving already!! I was sitting behind her, and was just hoping that I got the video on her. She'll be just like this some day - rocking out to the music, laughing and having fun, and driving a car, but not yet! For now I'm just enjoying her enjoying life.
I know it's been a while since you've all heard from me (Deb). It's been a hard month or so (February - blah) and I've been mentally having to prepare for going to work after March Break and Aria and I have both been sick. I'll write more about me later - here's Aria!!