I Will Forever Be A Student of You...

Dear Hope, 

You are two months today!!

And the last two months have changed us forever.  You have brought a different level of happiness... levity... and joy into our house and it was just at the right time.  God really knew what He was doing.  To say you are adored by your Daddy would be an understatement.  And your brother, Brian, is smitten as well.  Me?  I don't even know that I can describe how I feel when I look at you.  When I hold you.  There's an unspoken bond between us that I hope will always be there... no matter where this life leads us.

You've really started to show your personality lately with big smiles (especially for your brother!) and angry cries (usually for me when I put you down!) and big opinions (you do NOT like to be swaddled anymore!).

P.S. - Hope is not sleeping in this crib yet.  Please don't write to me about the bumpers as they're just for show right now!  :-)

This morning was a little nutty.  Your last feeding was before the sun came up and we both fell asleep with you on my chest.  We were so cozy that I slept right through my alarm!!  I would have just thrown a baseball hat on and maybe even stayed in my pajamas to drop Brian off at school, but you had your two month well visit at the doctors.  So I hopped into the shower and raced through the morning... getting Brian dressed and fed and then you fed and changed and before I knew it - we were way behind.  Poor Brian got to school almost twenty minutes late.  But at least we would be on time for your doctor visit!!  We walked into the pediatrician's office five minutes early... only to find out I was 24 HOURS early.  Your appointment was scheduled for tomorrow.  

I see you find that funny?  Hummph.

 Lucky for us, Dr. Kienzle was there and was happy to see us...

...but Hope - do you know what this means??  I TOTALLY DIDN'T HAVE TO SHOWER!!  It's a good thing I didn't shave my legs - I would have been pissed.

Your visit went great!  You're now a whopping 9 pounds, 14 ounces - and 21 inches long.  You made it onto the chart, even!  You still have an umbilical hernia, but Dr. Kienzle said that it looked fine and would resolve itself without intervention at some point.  

It seems like time is flying by so fast, Hope.  

Some day you will understand the whirlwind of events that surrounded you as you made your way into our lives.  In less than one year your brother died... God surprised us with you... Brian, Daddy and I spent a summer grieving Gavin and growing and anticipating you... and you were born.  And now here we are.  A family of six who is physically a family of four.  I hope, as you grow and learn about your family, that you will see the beauty in our story.  I hope that you'll realize that there are more beautiful lessons to be learned from our journey than reasons to feel like a victim of the circumstances in our lives.

We can't wait to get to know you.  I can tell you have eyes that sparkle like Brian's... and a sweetness that reminds me of Gavin.  With each passing day, I feel like you reveal more and more of Hope.  

I will forever be a student of you.

Here are some more photos from your special day.  Happy Two Months, Hope!!

 You are now BIGGER than "Bella Bunny" - in more ways than one!

 Mommy will do anything for a shot.  No "assistant?"  No problem!  Ha!

 Brian jumped up and ran out of the room at one point when you started to fuss.  But he was back in no time with your doll.  Not just ANY doll - but THE doll that he picked out for you the day we told him he was going to have a sister.  He was sure that it would make you smile...

 ...and he was right!!