Island Babies

* I got a half hour overlap with both girls asleep. Hallelujah. Grace napping these days is a rarity, so I'll take what I can get! With that said, my blog catch-up on the girl's lives continues...

Take. Me (us). Back. Thank you Tom and Jodi for treating us to the best Christmas gift / New Years vacation we could've asked for! We rang in 2014 on the beaches of the Cayman Islands with the entire Ullrich family and had the absolute time of our lives. If anyone ever tells you not to travel with a newborn, tell them they're crazy! Of course it all depends on the babe, but Emma was a travel buddy sent from Heaven. And truly Grace did wonderfully given our many weather delays and odd plane issues in her toddler state. I'll let the photos speak for themselves the best I can..

Grace's face here makes me so happy. Nothing like a sister.

Family photo shoot. 

Our big baby girl.

Just beautiful. Girls with Nana and Opa!

Siblings. Such an awesome shot!

Our bathing beauty at two months old.

Soon-to-be "Aunt" Cici enjoying the sunshine!

So happy to be on the beach! Wooh!

Daddy and his girls.

Love you two! Thank you, thank you, thank you again for an amazing vacay! So thankful.

Hubs and I.

Happy couple :)

Another happy, soon-to-be-married, couple! xo

Happy New Years from this over-tired monkey!

Ahhhh technology...

Loving the NYE apparel at our restaurant..

Bride-to-be!

Grace hangin' with the boys.

Bock and Cici.

Sand time with Nana!

Stud.

Dinner with our munchkin.

Aaron's Birthday dinner night! Happy 30th!

Love you two!

The "outlaws" :) 

Birthday boy!

Moments before we learned that JT would NOT actually be at the bar.
Brock and Aaron, I'm still pissed. Haha. Well played, well played.

Looking for shells with Dad.

Mama and her girls.

My heart.

Nothing better.

So beautiful! Miss this sunset so much.

Sister sister.

Beautiful. My tired girl.

Best brothers.

We need sunshine in our life again, stat.

Mini Zach and mini Britt.

My favorite photo of the trip.

Love you baby girl.

Welcome to the Church Emma baby!

*Yes, this happened in December. Forgive me while the next few posts backtrack our latest and largest happenings! Playing catch-up while the girls nap TOGETHER for the first time in months. It's a miracle. I'm actually scared to move or breathe wrong right now. We'll see how far they allow me to get into my beloved blogging... 

We welcomed Emma into the Church on Saturday December 7, 2013! It was an especially meaningful day for us given our ability to have her baptized at St. Micheal's in Wheaton - the church where I went through RCIA, we were wed, and where Grace was also baptized. Thank you to all our family for being there for us, and of course for Emma! We are so blessed to have such a loving, supportive family. Special thanks to Jess and Aaron for accepting the role as Emma's godparents - she is one lucky lady.

Thank you as well to my Mom and Dad for hosting the delicious, and super nice, after-party! You made a home-under-construction into the warmest, most inviting place on earth :) Super appreciated, and absolutely perfect. 

Happy 3 Months (and 4 days) Emma!

We have a roller at three months folks. A roller! And nearly a sitter too. Emma is one strong cookie. After our torticollis experience with Grace, hitting these early milestones is new territory to us. In addition to her strength, this babe is all smiles (nearly) all the time. And of course the kiddo that makes her smile most is her silly big sister. The two of them together is (usually) a dream come true for me. Grace has continued to impress us with her unconditional love and pride in her baby sis, taking every opportunity to introduce everyone we come in contact with to Emma. A typical conversation with a random stranger follows as below:

Grace: "Hi what's your name?"

Stranger: "Well hi there, I'm ____."

Grace. "Nice to meet you, I'm Grace. And this is Mommy. And this is Daddy. And this is my baby sister Emma!"

Stranger: Attempts to respond..

Grace: "Hi what's your name?"

This sequence continues on and on until someone finally changes the subject. When Grace isn't delusional from our lack of naps these days, she is a total sweetheart to baby girl. It makes me beyond happy that we were able to give Grace the gift of a sister, and best friend for life. Even if she does pass her up in weight and height within the next few months... :) Anxiously anticipating Emma's four month doctor appointment for stats! She's tipping 15 lbs. on our scale when being held, so the crazy growing hasn't let up. Looking forward to the next three months unfolding with our sweet girls!

Happy (ridiculously belated) 2 months Emma baby!

So I'm a little late posting. Or a lot late posting. Either way the holidays are to blame! Emma turned two months nearly, well, a month ago :) Our not-so-little lady weighed in at 13 lbs. 6 oz. (97%) and was 24.5 inches long (96%). She's growing like an absolute tree. By her two month birthday Emma was smiling up a storm, coo-ing like crazy, had rolled a few times from her stomach to her back, began grabbing at dangling toys in her gym, was wearing 3-6 month clothes and easily filled out size two diapers. She's been an absolute joy to our hearts this holiday season. We love you sweet Emma!

Happy 1 Month (and 1 Day) Sweet Emma!

Our newborn baby girl doesn't feel so "newborn" these days! At Emma's one month doctor's appointment she weighed in at an impressive 11 LBS 6 OZ! Incredible, I know. Not only was she in the 97% for weight, she was also in the 94% for height at 22.75 in. I'm still in disbelief one day post appointment by her ability to grow! She's a strong little girl too. Since Grace was a tad behind in the physical department due to torticollis, we're obviously naive to what strong as a newborn actually means. With that said, her head control and feistiness when laying on the ground are pretty amazing from what we previously experienced. As of a week and a half ago Emma also gave us her first real smile. After a rough first month unsure whether our sweet girl might possibly have colic (simply to find out she just had a dairy and soy allergy - poor thing) this was the best gift I could've asked for. There are few things in life that beat seeing the  first glimpse of your baby's personality. 

On a side note - we're told most babies typically outgrow their allergies (fingers crossed!) Since adjusting my diet for nursing, feedings have improved tremendously and our little girl is finally happy when awake. If someone would've told me I'd have to give up cheese a month and a half ago nine months pregnant, I might have told them to drop dead. Haha. Fortunately it's not quite as hard as I would've imagined given the endless options available at Whole Foods. 

With that said, thank God for jar upon jar upon jar of peanut butter....

Welcome to the World Emmeline "Emma" Rose!

Our second little angel finally graced us with her presence four weeks ago Sunday! And yes, I'm just now writing her "entry into the world" post (more on that later). Emmeline "Emma" Rose  arrived fashionably late on Sunday October 20th (her Aunt Lauren's birthday - how awesome) at 1:41 am. Weighing 8 lbs. 13 oz and 21.5 in. long, she has easily surpassed the entire Livingston/ Noffsinger side in size! Our first immediate reaction was that she looked "just like Dad", although we're starting to see more of myself and Grace as the days pass us by. Here's a small glimpse into our short but sweet hospital stay at Beaumont Royal Oak...

Blessed.

Skin-to-skin with Dad minutes after birth.

Proud daddy.

Exhausted Mama, but obviously on cloud nine.

First family photo of four!

Today most certainly is the best day ever Gracie :)

I was so incredibly proud of Grace holding Emma for the first time. She was elated, and so sweet and gentle.
This video just melts my heart..

All of Zach's girls.

Gaga and her granddaughters.
On a side note, we wouldn't have survived without my Mom the week leading up to and after my delivery. She is the most selfless, giving woman in this entire world (no exaggeration). Thank you, thank you, thank you Mom again for everything. You are an angel and we are so grateful for you!  

Pretty sure we're approaching nap time here.. Or at least the time of day when a nap would normally take place.

Just perfect. 

So happy to finally be heading home!

All bundled and ready to see her house for the first time. 

For those of you that know us well, you remember that Zach and I struggled for some time trying to bring our second baby into this world. As the saying goes, all good things come to those who wait. We certainly waited a long time for you sweet girl, and we are so grateful you're finally here! We named Emmeline after my beautiful angel baby sister, Emily, who passed away at birth on September 25, 1987. Choosing this name was incredibly meaningful to me especially given our hardship in conceiving and the fact that Emily would have been the same age difference to me as Emma is to Grace. I know she's looking down from Heaven smiling at our newest bundle of joy, and of course our choice of name!

My family's angel baby - Emily Paige Livingston
September 25, 1987