Oh NoJo!

Noella let us all have a great family day today. If many of you have not heard from me in a while, there's a good reason: Noella. Or shall I say Pheeny. I have decided that Pheeny is her alter ego name, kind of like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I fear we may have a wee little colicky one on our hands. We are able to calm her cries for the most part, but the trouble is..... I don't get to do anything all day. It's a great day if I get a shower and maybe lunch. I guess I do get to go on a daily walk with her, as she really loves her carrier. Which is why Adam and I got to get out for a while today.

We all went on a lovely hike on the Washington side of the river. The Syncline Trail gives great views and on a beautiful day, those views make up for all the crying and fussing in the world. We got to hike for two hours and then we even got to go out for pizza afterwards. Oh, Noella you spoiled us today!

Parenting has turned out to be a lot harder than I thought. It really gives me a lot of respect for our parents and parents everywhere. I tip my hat to all of you who have raised children; especially any that were particularly demanding of your attention!

This is what Noella thinks of that:

Another high note is she is starting to sleep better at night. This is a good thing, as she really doesn't like to sleep much during the day (despite her two hour snooze on the hike today). Sleep deprivation does take its toll. For example, at about 3am during one of the feeding/changing sessions last night, Adam asked me whether or not we should put on a cloth diaper or an "instant" diaper. I don't know why this was so hilarious. I guess word finding abilities are somewhat lacking at that point during the night. She also had gotten milk in her hair last night and had a "There's Something About Mary" hair-gel moment. We had to giggle pretty hard about that. If you don't know the movie part, I won't take the time to explain. But trust me, it was pretty funny!

Here is a shot from our hike today. Happy weekend to all!

Our Itsy-Bitsy, Teeny-Weeny Darling Little Ella-Pheeny

You can imagine all the songs that we sing to her with her dozens of nicknames that have already surfaced. The title is one of them of course.

So by now you all (or most of you at least) have heard the long exciting story about the week up until Noella's birth. The car trouble, the unfortunate theft, the subsequent visit to the hospital due to me going into semi-labor b/c of the hysterics that ensued once I figured out the thieves took our hospital bags, camera and baby stuff..... Oh, and the drive back home in the snow storm. The continued snow fall the two days after we got back home, and of course just making it to the hospital just in the nick of time to welcome our baby girl into the world. But, I won't retell the story or anything :)

After some unexpected events due to Noella's aspirating of fluid on her way out, she had to stay in the NICU for 48 hours to be kept under observation and to get her breathing on track. Since sunday, we've been home and everything is great. She's feeding like a superstar, sleeping like a newborn and only cries when she's hungry or when daddy has to change her little tiny diaper.

I can't even express how happy the three of us are. Just when I'm so exhausted, have finally gotten her down to sleep and can sit for a moment, I immediately miss her and must go look at her again. We're slowly getting adjusted and trying to figure out a schedule, but are loving every minute of this tiny, precious daughter of ours.

Little girls like Noella are only born once in a blue moon. :)

Noella Josephine Holt

Born: 12/31/09

Weight: 6 # 15 oz.

Length: 20 and 1/8 in.

Cuteness Factor: Off the charts!