Moments from our first two weeks

Here are some moments and milestones from our first two weeks with Evelyn:

Our first real bath...

The water was warm but Evey didn't like getting out into the cold air!


Some hang time with dad...

Baby Pictures

My mom dug out some of my baby pictures to compare with Evelyn. Here is one with my Aunt Nancy. Evelyn obviously looks like her daddy but I think there is some resemblence to me as well. I think in the mouth...

Interesting...

When Evey was born we were all expecting her to have brown eyes (since we don't think Andy has any recessive blue eye gene in his family!) So because she came out with grey eyes, with a hint of blue, I decided to do some research. Here's what I found on BabyCenter.com...

Question: Will my baby's eyes stay this color?

Answer: Maybe, maybe not. Babies of African and Asian descent are usually born with brown eyes that stay brown. Caucasian babies are often born with steel gray or dark blue eyes; they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time they're 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes actually have more pigment than grey or blue eyes, even if they appear lighter in color.)

Happy Mother's Day!

Well, after our last blog, our lives changed forever...our little Evey came!


After we ventured out for Thai food on Saturday night, my contractions got to be about 7 minutes apart and 30-40 seconds long. We left the restaurant at around 9pm so we could go home and get some rest (contractions are tiring!). As I was getting into bed another contraction came on. I looked at the clock, 10:37. At that moment, my water broke! I was so shocked. After scrambling around the house to get cleaned up and get everything together, we finally made it to the hospital by 11:30. At that point I was only 3 centimeters dilated, but the contractions were coming SO fast. Even the nurses and doctor were surprised at how quickly I was progressing. After only 3 hours of "real" labor I began pushing. Finally, at around 3:30 am on Mother's day, Evelyn was born! 7 pounds 3 ounces and 19.5 inches long


So, now we'd like to introduce you to our precious gift...

Getting close?

With only 9 days left until my due date, we are finally seeing some action. Actually when I went to my doctor's office yesterday I was expecting another week of no progress. So when she told me two to three centimeters I was shocked! And it's only moved forward from there. This morning I woke up at about 7am with some cramping. Then the contractions started...and they've been coming all day long at about 10 minutes apart. We're going out to dinner (Thai food) for a friend's birthday so we'll see if some spicy food speeds things up:)

37 1/2 weeks...

Updates...

So, the last couple of posts I've had just about enough time and energy to upload some pics. Now I'll try to fill in some details.

On April 14th my mom and aunt threw me the most beautiful shower ever:) Thank you to them and to everyone who came and blessed us. So many generous friends and family! And thank you to my awesome cousins Alicia and Julia who spent most of their spring breaks working to help put it all together.

After our busy but fun week up in San Jose, we got right back to work down here. And not just our day jobs. I think the schedule right now is our training ground for when Evey comes. Both of us having been working hard during the day and then coming home to work hard at night trying to get everything ready. Finally this week, after we had put together Evey's stroller, we have started to feel a little bit prepared. Even though a lot is still to be done, I feel a little more settled.

Also last week we had another Dr. appointment. Right now I'm about 36.5 weeks. Dr. Agnelli said that starting next week I will start having weekly appointments...It's getting close! We can't wait to meet little Evey, get to know her, and introduce her to everyone :)

36 Weeks

Baby Shower in San Jose

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to everyone! Andy and I are up in San Jose visiting my family for the week. It's the perfect time as both of us have Spring Break:) We're looking forward to relaxing, hanging out, and spending the week catching up on sleep.

I hope that God is blessing you and teaching you as much as He is us right now!

Week 33...getting closer!

So this is what I look like with only about 7 weeks left to go. The last profile picture we posted was four weeks ago! We had some great ones from week 31 but they accidentally got deleted before we saved them to our computer.

Since that time, we've had a baby shower, painted the baby's room (thanks mom, aunt nancy, julia, and alicia!), and set up the crib and dresser. I also had another doctor's appointment. I gained two pounds in two weeks, since the previous appointment, which is much better than the pound that I had lost the month before. My doctor still wants me to put on a little more weight. So in order to be a star patient, I indulged myself and bought a tub of chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream!

They say after about week 32 the baby is supposed to not move as much due to lack of space. But little Evey is moving more than ever, it's just more uncomfortable. But it is fun seeing her turn my belly into weird, alien-looking shapes:)

So that's the status. More updates to come...

Baby Shower pics

30 weeks...

Here's Evey's stats for 30 weeks:

"Your baby's a bit more than 15 1/2 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and fills out your uterus. Your baby is now able to distinguish between light and dark, and she can even follow a light source back and forth. Once she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light, but she won't be able to see anything that's more than a few inches from her face. Since you'll want to hold her close as much as possible, you'll be in the perfect spot for her to get a good look at you."

Week 29

Hiccups...

Today was the first time that I felt Evey have hiccups! Andy and I were out running errands and as I sat in the car I felt them. So funny!

That's it. Just wanted to share the new little development :)

Week 27

Well, we've reached the 27 week point and I just realized that we have less than 100 days left! Actually, in a few days we'll be exactly 3 months away from our due date:) And that means third trimester!

Over the last two weeks we've noticed a lot of changes. The pictures don't really show it but Evey has grown a lot. And she's kicking up a storm! Especially when I start eating, she gets really excited:) Her movement is really fun because I notice her presence all throughout the day. And it's fun sitting and watching her make my belly move.

But as she's been getting bigger, I have started getting more pregnancy "symptoms" that aren't so pleasant. For instance the excruciating foot cramps that caused me to have to sit on my butt and scoot across the house while holding my foot in order to get to my bedroom! I'm sure it was a pretty funny site:)

Here is the biweekly side view...

Happy Valentines Day

For the third year in a row we celebrated Valentines Day with our friends, Justin and Liz, and Ryan and Jen. It's starting to become quite a tradition. This year we went to the Greek restaurant, Papadakis, in San Pedro.

Week 25

5 months down, 4 to go!

On Sunday we reached another milestone...exactly 4 months away from our due date. Over the last week we've noticed significant changes in the belly. Here is a picture...

Little Evelyn's Korean name...

We are currently in the process of choosing a Korean name for little Evey that we will use as her legal middle name. As I was doing some research I found some information that may be interesting to our friends and family that aren't familiar with Korean culture...

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A Korean Baby Name

Customs in Korea vary considerably from the Western culture when naming a baby. A Korean name is only ever repeated by complete accident. The majority of given Korean name's are unique. Chinese-based name's became the norm among upper and middle classes in Korea during the Go-Ryu dynasty.

Korean Names - their order

The order of Korean name's is presented in the reverse to the Western format. A Korean name would therefore be transcribed in the following order: surname, given name. There are often errors in transcriptions when the characters of the given name are written separately. Some Korean-Americans have adopted a Western name however they use their Korean one as a middle name.

Given Names

There are thousands of Korean characters and the given name usually consists of two syllables taken from any of the thousands of these characters. The range of name's is therefore almost limitless. Naming traditions in Korea can include and represent all forms of nature and the environment or characteristics or even have mystical meanings. Many will reflect a specific period in history. The Western custom of naming a baby after another close member of the family would be unheard of as a custom or tradition in the Korean culture.

The Usage

The given name in Korea is rarely used within the close-knit family circle. In Western culture children rarely address their parents by their given name - they are referred to as " Mom" or "Dad". This custom is also adhered to in Korea but the custom extends to the whole family. In a family of three brothers their siblings would use the address of 'second brother' for instance. In turn the parents of Korean children often give then a unique nickname within the family. Outside the family circle the nickname would not be normally used.

Surnames

Korean surnames are family surnames. They are passed down from one generation to the next. Korean surnames convey the family's history and the deeds of their ancestors.