Aubrey Lynn

Yesterday was a big day in my life. If you've ever been born, you know what I'm talking about. My mom and dad came to the hospital before 4 a.m. because something had happened that made my room in mom's belly a lot more crowded. It also caused a lot of my nice warm, comfy swimming pool to start draining.

It was okay though. Everybody was in a good mood. My grandma and my great grandma came too and they seemed almost as excited as Mom and Dad!

Look how cute my mom and dad are.

And my mom was a good sport about posing for the pictures where she'd hold up her fingers to show how big my doorway to the outside world was getting.

Anyway she seemed to be having fun until we got to about 5 cm. Then she got out of the mood to play.

In fact, she even told my grandma and my great grandma to quit looking at her. Of course they thought this was hilarious and remarkable because they recognized the signs that told of my very imminent arrival.

I'm not exactly sure what it means, but I heard my great grandma say that mom went from 4 cm to delivery in 31 minutes. Wow! What an exciting time that was for everybody! And it resulted in something very startling. At 7:44 p.m., I popped out of my very cozy room into a great big room and the first thing I got to see was my mom's face. That was awesome! But, it's hard to figure out those tears because I heard it was one of the happiest moments of her life.

Then she held me close and that was exactly where I wanted to be.

I only got to stay a couple of minutes though before someone whisked me away and a whole bunch of things started happening. Right away they put something in my eyes and started measuring, foot printing, and weighing me.

You can see that I weighed 6 lbs 13 oz but I should also tell you that I was 19 1/2 inches tall!

Then I got my first diaper.

And my first hat. I think it looks good on me, don't you?

Someone held me up for some quick pictures.

Then wrapped me up tight in my first blanket.

Finally I got to go back to Mom where I really checked her out.

And then I got a chance to look Dad over too.

I even got to inspect my grandma.

Then it was back to my mom's waiting arms and some conversation with both Mom and Dad.

Then they took another picture - this one with a prom queen in it. She's on the right and would you believe she's the one that caught me when I came into the world? My mom thinks she's the best doctor EVER!

Just about the time I was starting to figure things out and feel pretty comfortable in my new digs, they put me in a bed with wheels and I went motoring down the hall to another room for something called a bath.

My dad and my great grandma had to stay outside the door to watch me but they spent the time trying to get good pictures through the wire-meshed windows. Actually I think they did a pretty good job.

But it was hard to believe they could be so complacent while this woman I didn't know started man-handling me!

I tried to be calm about it until she started running my head under water! What the heck!

Afterwards, I tried to chill out.

But I guess I did too good of a job chillin' because then I had to go under the warmer. It was a little disturbing but I have to admit it felt pretty good.

Man, feeling all warm and clean sure can make a girl drowsy. I could hardly muster the energy to take a peek at who was snapping all the pictures.

It was okay though because I was just minutes from getting back to my mom and dad.
Here I am all packed up and ready to head for room 312 and my first night as part of a family that would shape my future and love me forever..

By the way, don't you love my name. It fits so well because my grandma's name is Amy Lynn, my mom is Amber Lynn, and I'm Aubrey Lynn.

You Capture - Cute

Beth's You Capture subject this week is Cute and that took me in one direction - to Beth's house because her kids are SO cute!

Starting with tiny baby Clara.

And then bigger baby, Eli. I asked for his paci and look how cute he was about handing it over.

And then see how cute he is afterwards.

And what could possibly be cuter than him and Beth interacting.

And finally there's just Eli being Eli. I'm telling you. This kid is CUTE!

That's it. These pictures aren't technically the greatest but to me...they're the cutest!

For more interpretations of cute and probably technically great Cute pics, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry.

Lori

One week ago I did a post called Brothers and Sisters and it was all about that sibling bond that starts early and never stops. Now I feel compelled to write about family again and the importance of siblings and even about that sibling bond. But it doesn't stop there. Now I'm going to go into what a blessing that bond is and how extraordinary the relationship is when you have siblings like Lori.

I went on and on about my skin cancer journey and that I had surgery on October 14th. That surgery meant no bending, stooping, or lifting for 5 to 10 days. That wouldn't be significant except it coincided with Beth's no lifting restrictions that began when she delivered Clara by Caesarean Section on October 1st. That wouldn't be that significant either because Brian had paternity leave from work. Unfortunately though he didn't have paternity leave from his very important and expensive MBA classes in Chicago that take up two late afternoons and evenings every week. That's where I'd come in and help out - except all of a sudden I couldn't.

Lori and Teresa visited from Nebraska and Colorado respectively (and together) a week after Clara was born. At that time Lori and Beth worked out a plan. Beth would buy the ticket and Lori would get on a train and be Beth's nanny/buddy/helper for a week.

Who does that? Who leaves their family and all their responsibilities not to mention their new blog that's just getting rolling to help out somebody who needs them. Only a sister.

While she was here, she did it all including checking out her oldest niece's baby bump.

And checking out and holding her youngest niece (and the reason for the visit).

But she didn't stop there.

She cooked and cleaned.

And sewed some patches.

And took a lot of pictures for me.

Because that's who she is. She's the one that picks up my camera constantly and catches the shots that I might have missed. And she's the one who takes the pictures but isn't in a lot of them.

She's more than that too. She's the loving big sister of all her siblings. She's innovative and wise and loving and oh so much fun!

We went to the casino one night - Mr. Right, Lori, Amy (her counterpart), and me and, I have to say it's been a long time since I've laughed so hard. Lori has a sense of humor that just won't quit. She's one of the wittiest people I've ever known.

Monday I volunteered to drive her to Union Station in Chicago so she could catch her train. I didn't want to see her leave but I wanted a little bit more time with her and it was wonderful.

But all too soon she was picking up her bags and walking away. I missed her right away and although we texted during her 10 hour trip home, it wasn't the same.

I just hope she realizes how much we appreciate what a giving, loving, wonderful person she is.

And I hope she comes back soon.

She may be the oldest but she's one of 0ur babies and we love her so much and we're incredibly proud of her!

You Capture - Family and a Little Bit of Fall

This week's You Capture had a variety of subjects. I chose two of them to feature with a heavy emphasis on family. After all, what's more 'family' that a brand new member and what could possibly take precedence over her.

She was born October 1st.

And we photographed all the newborn processes.

After she was home, we watched and photographed some of those amazing mother/baby moments.

And of course sibling/baby moments.

Last night I visited after having been away for a few days. Clara is growing up already.

She almost smiled here.

Anna and Noah are back to their fun-loving selves.

And adorable Eli was involved in an intense game of Wii. I wonder what he'd think if he knew his controller didn't work.

Before I headed to Beth's I opened my back door to gale force winds, set up my tripod and photographed our koi pond.

Obviously it was pouring but you can still see the colors and images of some of the koi. You can also see some of the colors and images of all the leaves that are blowing into the koi pond. I sure hope we have a good weekend ahead because the pond will need a major clean-up.

And I sure hope Beth gives us another shot at 'Fall' because the weather the last few days has been horrendous.

For more You Capture and fewer excuses, visit Beth's I Should Be Folding Laundry.