Lily

Our little daughter is growing. She now fits very well in her car seat and swing and clothes that just last week seemed to big are now snug. She follows Nichole and I very intently when we leave her field of vision and many times this week she has smiled. We are both trying to figure out what makes her smile on cue, but haven't quite figured it out yet. Here are some pics from the last week.

Oooh, look at my little dimple.

Aaah, sound asleep.

This is not okay.

Mommy almost caught a smile.

Friday fun links

If you haven't made the step to high speed internet, here is a great new option.

Google TiSP

I know some of you out there love Youtube, but wish you could download videos or share them with friends. Here is your answer:

youtubex

Want to get your daily world news and have fun at the same time.

Newsbreaker

Lily Update

Lily is now six weeks old. She has had a lot of fun with Nana visiting. We went to Seattle on Monday and saw the water and Auntie Leah and Uncle Ben's apartment. We also went to Olive Garden to celebrate my birthday a little early and Lily cried through the whole meal. :-( On the happy side, Lily has really started following Nichole and I with her eyes when we enter her field of vision. We are eagerly awaiting her first smile.

5 Weeks Old

Lily is now five weeks old. She went to the doctor yesterday and checked out fine. She gained over a pound in the past week. Nana also came to visit this week and has enjoyed her time with her first grandchild. We are having fun seeing Lily change and grow and are excited for when she starts interacting with us more. We love her a lot.

A story, Friday Fun links and a dancing Spidey

I forgot to include this story in my last post, but I want to share it with you. If you have children, you know that the first months are tired times. On Monday morning I took my truck in for some work. When I got home Nichole was still sleeping. I went in, kissed her on the lips and she then proceeded to ask me these questions.
"Is Lily okay?"
"Is John back?"
She then realized what she said and exclaimed, "Whoa, I must be tired." It is interesting to see I have now been relegated to second place on the importantometer and there must be other people in the world that kiss her on the lips.

Friday fun links

Free Picture Finder

Everybody Panic

Car Parking Game

In honor of Spiderman 3 coming out in a few weeks, I found this funny animation of Spiderman doing his best impersonation of Napoleon Dynamite.

Easter and the many faces of Lily Ann Gruber

We celebrated Easter on Sunday and took some pictures with our daughter. Lily is now four weeks old. She wasn't gaining weight so we went to the doctor a couple times and from Friday to Monday she gained 14 ounces. Oink, oink! The rest of the pictures are the many faces of our daughter from the last week.

Three Weeks

Yesterday Lily turned three weeks old. During this past week she went to her first prayer meeting, her first church service and her first party. She is eating a lot and is fussy from time to time. She doesn't like it when she gets the hiccups, but when she does it is cute because she sounds like a little frog. She also does not like getting her diaper or clothes changed. She likes riding in the car and sleeping on daddy's chest.
The following pictures are of her during her first bath and with Grandpa and Grandma Oren who are here visiting for a couple of weeks. Nichole is continuing to adjust having someone almost totally dependent on her, so if she hasn't answered your emails, she apologizes. Yesterday Nichole and I went to the mall without Lily. It was our first time together without her. We only called twice and I think did alright leaving her. Enjoy the pics.

Two Weeks Old

Yesterday Lily turned two weeks old. It has been another week of not too much sleep, but lots of time enjoying our new baby. Nichole is slowing recovering and adjusting to what it means to have someone always needing her on a regular basis.

Here she is after this morning's feeding with a smile on her face.

This is how she likes to sleep. Since this picture, her umbilical cord has come off.

Lily, mom and dad and their first walk.

One Week Old

Today Lily had her one week birthday. A package arrived in the mail for her from her Tante Inge and Uncle Roy. I went to work for the first time today and missed her a lot. We have enjoyed having our daughter at home and have been adjusting to life as new parents. Lily eats "breakfast" at about 5 am and after that her and I sleep together in the La-z-boy or on the couch while Sportscenter plays in the background. Mommy is continuing to heal and adjust to night time feedings.
Yesterday she had her first doctor's appointment and Dr. Grubb said everything looked normal and she is very healthy. Here are some pics from her first week of life.

Monday Morning

It is Monday morning and last night was a fairly good one, I think. Being only my second night at home as a dad, I don't have much to compare it to. She slept, ate and pooped, which is what I think she will be doing for the next little while. Nichole slept the most since we went to the hospital. She is up, active and just walked into the room eating a brownie, so things are starting to return back to normal. Here is a link to the photos that the hospital took. Please enter this password when the new page loads.

Lily Ann

The password is: C9D6M1K5Q2

Scary Day, Happy Day

The first few days of Lily's little life have been quite an adventure. For the first 24 hours or so Nichole was very tired and still on pain medication. I helped out a lot and was very tired. About 8 Thursday morning I fell into a dead sleep with Lily on my chest (She likes to sleep that way the best). I was quickly awakened as I felt her rolling out of my arms, onto the couch and then onto the floor. I quickly scooped her up and headed to find a nurse to see if any damage head been done. The nurse checked her over, and then her doctor came and said nothing seemed to be wrong, but she would have an xray done just in case. I was beside myself at this point and could hardly believe how much I loved something I had only known for 24 hours. Tears well up just recounting this story. The xray machine came to our room and she had some xrays taken of her little head. We waited for patiently for the results and were quite dismayed when it was discovered that she had a small fracture on the side of her skull.
The next hour and a half was quite a roller coaster. A CT scan was ordered and we waited patiently for the nurse to come and get our precious baby. We cried and prayed and cried and prayed. After all she had been through how could something like this happen.
The nurse that came to get her was a blessing. We walked through the hospital and the nurse just went right around all the people waiting for their scans and said to the head doctor, "this one's next." Lily didn't have to be sedated, as she was fast asleep and sat patiently during all the testing. The nurse then said to the doctor, "if this was your child, how long would you want to wait for the result?" Less then twenty minutes later our doctor called with the result. Everything was perfectly normal. Praise the Lord. I paid extra close attention to her the rest of the day and she acted normal the whole time. Our doctor said her head will heal and there should not be any permanent damage.
Last night, our great friend Kimberly stayed with Nichole and I went to the Dickau's with my sister for a great night of sleep. This morning we came back and found there was a long night of little sleep but today went much better. The lactation consultant came and encouraged Nichole with some great feeding tips and the baby fed for almost 45 minutes. Lily also had her hearing test and passed in record time. We had a great day as a family and also had some visitors. The sun was shining and our little baby continued to eat, go potty and bring us great joy. This afternoon she even got a little hot and we played in just a t-shirt and diaper together. The doctor's check this morning showed she is very healthy with no signs of jaundice, a strong heart beat and good temperature. Nichole is also doing well. She walked around, visited with friends, ate well and once again was her spunky self.
Just two full days and such a wide range of emotions and events. Thanks all for your prayers, cards, gifts and phone calls. Lily can't wait to meet all of you.

So happy together
Uncle Ben reading Lily a story.

Welcome to the world Lily Ann

Last night at 1:47 am., our new baby girl Lily Ann was born. She weighed 7lbs. 5oz. and was 19.5 in. long. It was a very long day. Nichole was in intense labor for about three hours last night and at about 1:00 am the doctors figured Lily wasn't lined up properly to come out. Leah and I got in some sweet scrubs and made our way over to the OR to see my child being born. If you want gory details, let me know because I watched. Nichole and I are pretty tired, but exhilarated to be new parents. I will try and get a better picture of Lily once she wakes up, because now her head is more normal. An yes Grandpa and Opa, she has more hair than you do.

Guesses

If you want to be a cool internet nerd take this quiz.

Baby Gruber Survey

Home Stretch

We are in the home stretch. Nichole is dilated to a nine and the contractions are pretty close together. Please pray for a healthy mommy and baby. Thanks for all the wonderful comments. My next post I will hopefully be a dad. Yay!

Epidural Ecstasy update with picture

About an hour Nichole finally got her epidural. She is resting quietly in the bed as she awaits her afternoon snack of Jello. She is now at a 5.5 and the baby is making its way into the world. Please pray as the epidural had to be stuck twice and the first time error may result in some headaches. Thank you for all your prayer and fun comments. I hope our daughter looks nothing like her grandfathers and has more hair then they do when she is born.

We're having a baby!!

This morning Nichole's water broke at 4:30 am. We made our way to the hospital and shortly after my sister Leah joined us. Nichole is having consistent contractions and the sun is coming up over the horizon. I am going to be a dad. Woohoo!

36 weeks, 3 days

Well, this is where I am at. Just 3 1/2 weeks to go until my due date. I am doing well.
My doctors appointment was a bit of a let down this week. I was told I am Group Strep B positive... which is a pregnancy complication. What does it mean? I have to get to the hospital right away if my water breaks at home. I have to be on antibiotics through my labor. And, baby and I have to stay in the hospital a minimum of 48 hours so baby can be monitored. More than likely, she will be fine and not get GSB, but there is still a chance she could get it which is a bit scary. It is the very thing that almost took my niece's life, which is why I am worried. So, please pray for this and pray for our baby girl. I thank God for tests that can help doctors take care of issues such as these, but at the same time, I am a worrier so it is hard for me.
I am up every two hours or so and have been moving to the recliner around 3 am most mornings. John is at Winter Camp up in the mountains this weekend - so I am staying with some friends just in case. I miss him and look forward to seeing him tomorrow... I always hate these times when we are separated. :-) He called me this afternoon and said he is looking forward to next year when our little girl will be with us at camp. How fun!
Aunt Leah came on Friday to spend the night with me - we had fun together. She took some pregnancy pic's of me in my 9th month... these will not be posted. :-) Thanks auntie Leah!!
My parents are making their way out here soon - but are stuck in Ohio right now. Hope they make it! I am still convinced I will go early... wishful thinking.
The nursery is set to go pretty much - we'll post some pic's of it soon. Oh, and I need to post some pic's of my baby shower. It was so much fun! We got lots of girly clothes and beautiful blankets. Clothing wise, we are set through 6 months for sure. We also got a baby bathtub, pack-n-play and swing. Yeah! We are still working on getting our car seat/stroller... probably going to get that this week. I'll post some fun baby stuff pic's when John gets home and shows me how. :-) Bye for now!

My funny husband

Nichole: John, please take this container of fudge away from me before I eat it all! (Note: I don't even like fudge usually)
John: Okay (moves the fudge to the other side of the counter... then, pauses... smiles... takes the fudge and puts it on the floor!)
Nichole: very funny!! (cuz I can't bend over very well so he thought the safest place to put the silly fudge was on our kitchen floor!!!)
What a silly husband!

The Come Back

You thought they were gone for good, but now they are back. This week I am starting small but here is a link to a fun time-wasting website. Enjoy!

Hoover Fusion Frenzy

Date Night

Thanks to the youth staff, John and I had a fun date night this weekend. The youth staff (volunteers who work with us in youth ministry at church) bought us a pre-baby date and a post-baby date. For the pre-baby date, we went out to dinner at Mama Stortini's which is a yummy Italian restaurant in downtown Puyallup. Following dinner, we went to the movie, "The Pursuit of Happyness" For the post-baby date, we have lots of popcorn, cool popcorn containers and a gift certificate for movies to bring home. Check out the new floor and get more info. about it in the previous post.

John and I ready to go out on the town!

Look at my crazy belly - it just keeps growing!!

Our New Floor

Finally!! Pictures of our new floor. Sorry it has taken a while to get these on the blog. The first few were taken during the process and the last few captured the finished product. Thanks to friends who blessed us with their expertise, we were able to install it ourselves... with all of their help of course. Thanks to Uncle Joe, Jason, Ernie, Ben and Brian!! You guys rock!

Who is working here anyway?

It had been a very long day...

Beautiful!!

We love our new floor!

32 Weeks - Baby Classes begin!

So, last night started another fun adventure: Our first birthing class. We were so excited to go! We are taking a 6 week course at Good Samaritan, which is the hospital we will be delivering at. So, for the next 5 weeks, on Wednesday nights, we will be found learning all about having a baby. So, in we went with our 2 pillows and blanket. Last night we learned about the vocabulary that surrounds birthing - so very exciting. :-) Some of the words are a bit scary, and caused John and I to look at each other with expressions that may have read, "It that really going to happen to us?" or "Are you ready for that?" We then watched a birth... on video of course - oh boy!! is all I can say about that one. And we learned some good exercises for mommy to do starting in the 36th week. We actually practiced them in class. John could do them - Nichole could not. My question - If I can't do them now, how in the world will I be able to do them in a month? Hopefully these are not a requirement to get that little girl out into the world. Pelvic lifts, not for me! We have 6 other couples in our class - three of us are due on the 28th or 29th of March - the others are due in April. Only one couple in our class didn't know what they are having. We ended class with some relaxation on the floor with our mats, blankets and pillows. It was a fun night! Next week we get to take a tour of the birthing center. I am now 32 weeks - 8 weeks to go! According to me, I think I will be having her early - I know... all women say that at this stage.. but I just think perhaps it will happen to me. :-) Only God knows her birth date. We thank God for her daily and we can't even express how incredibly excited we are to bring her into this world!! With all my uncomfortableness right now, I have a hard time complaining because I am so thankful for the opportunity to be pregnant. It is not something I have taken for granted. Thank you Lord for this amazing blessing!

Friday Fun Links

Here is an art fun link for Friday.

Scroll down and look at some of the 3D illusion art, it is out of control.

Julian Beever Art

31 Weeks

Hello everyone! It has been a bit since we have updated this blog. It seems that since we have been back from South Dakota, we have been on the go! For those of you who know us well, you're probably thinking.. how is that any different than any other time. As much as we try to maintain a sane schedule, we often find ourselves too busy. These last few weeks we have been putting in new flooring in our house. I say "we" but it is more like John and his very nice, handy friends from church. So, today we spent the day cleaning and got to all but three rooms. It feels so nice and we absolutely love our new floor!! Next on the docket, our little girls room, guest bathroom and organizing the garage. Anybody else wait till they were just 9 weeks away from delivering a baby and decide that all this home stuff must be done or else? So, when we get a moment to take some pictures, we will, and then post them for you to see our new and improved floors. On the baby side of things, I am doing well. I am really wanting her to be here... just because I want to hold her!! I am getting bigger and my tummy is growing straight out in front of me. I love it and I wouldn't have it any other way - I love this amazing blessing and no matter how uncomfortable I feel, I can't complain.. this is what I wanted more than anything. :-) Keep us in your prayers - pray that this little girl growing inside stays healthy and strong until she is ready to meet the world! 63 days to go...

Friday Fun Links

Paper Toys
Fun, yet challenging toys completely made of paper.

Think Geek
Fun geek toy store

Ask a ninja
Funny ninja asking questions. Obvious takeoff from Strongbad on Homestarrunner, but still funny.

Sickies

Nichole and I are back in Puyallup. Last Thursday I got really sick with the flu for about 24 hours and then stood up in a wedding this past Saturday. On Sunday Nichole felt a cold coming on and has been quite congested and exhausted since we got home. Our good friends Lance, Katie, Lindsay and Leslie Bauslaugh stayed with us for the last couple of days. We will be posting some selected pictures from our Christmas vacation, so check back soon for those. Friday fun links will also be back on Friday, so get ready for that.