Welcome to the World

Sorry for the delay - things have been quite emotional and busy as I am sure you can imagine!

Harper Olivia Brown joined us on March 14th (her due date) at 5:09pm. She weighed 7lbs and 12oz. She is 20.5 inches long.

Mom, Baby & Dad are all doing well and are head over heels in love. It was a moment beyond words.

Here is a Cell Photo Camera Sneak Peak...

Pushing...

She is 10cm and beginning to push! Keep all in your prayers!

Almost There...

She is 9cm now. Blood pressure drops quickly with position changes, but otherwise is doing really well, just tired. She is progressing fast. We are waiting on Harper to drop a little still but Sarah is sitting up in the bed now to help with that.

Ahhh...that feels better =)

Epidural in place after very intense and very close contractions.... Sarah is doing much better.

(this is Emilee guest blogging)....

Harper is on the way!!!!

We are at the hospital and in active labor. The water broke this morning at home. contractions are now 2-3 minutes apart.

Updates to come....

Maternity pictures

She did it again!! I'm sure everyone has had the pleasure of seeing Emilee's work before considering I recruit her to do everything. This time she worked her magic through our Maternity pictures. I was probably the worst "subject" she's had yet. At 37 weeks pregnant, swollen ankles, and a lack of sleep, she still managed to make me feel beautiful. These pictures mean so much to us now, and will continue to for as long as I can imagine. I can't wait to show Harper how beautiful she was even before she was born. These are just the first ones she has sent me. I will post more once she sends them to me. Some of them still need to be touched up, but I was so excited about them I couldn't wait.










Thanks again Emilee. I can't wait to see the rest.

My husband

I know Valentine's Day is over, but I just wanted to take a moment to brag on my wonderful husband. I can't begin to tell you how proud I am of him. He excels at everything he does; I know fatherhood won't be any different. He is a realtor during one of the worst housing markets we've seen. Adam would never let this hold him back. He was the top sales agent for his division last month, and has actually sold over his quota multiple times in the past year. He keeps this attitude whether at work or at home. He has set a personal goal for himself and now gets up every morning BEFORE work to go to the gym. He is eating better and skipping a lot of those snacks that used to find their way into his daily routine. I can't even get myself to walk around the block in the middle of the day. Adam is loved and respected by everyone who meets him. I became one of these lucky people on February 12th 2005. I am so honored today, to be his wife.

We both could not be more excited about being parents. I'm sure we will be exhausted for a while and probably down right scared at times. It will be testing in many ways for both of us. I couldn't imagine entering this point in my life with anyone else. I feel very confident being with someone who doesn't know how to fail. No matter what we go through, I know everything will work out just fine. It makes me so proud to see how excited he is to be a dad. He has been a part of absolutely everything involving my pregnancy and all the preparations for her arrival. I was admittedly a little nervous for his reaction when we found out we were having a girl. This feeling didn't last long. Adam puts all my fears to and end every time he talks about Harper, his love of the nursery, and all the excitement he has to finally hold his little girl. I am filled with emotions about meeting Harper and welcoming her into our family, but all those emotions are amplified thinking about how close this will bring us as a family.

I love you sweetie.

Baby shower

We had our co-ed baby party this weekend. It was amazing!!! Of course we had an awesome crew working for us. Emilee, Lauren, Meredith, Beth, and Anne out did themselves. From the invitations to the decor everything was PERFECT. It means so much to Adam and myself to have the wonderful friends and family that we do. In the past couple years between our wedding and now the anticipation of our first child, we have been overwhelmed by the support and love of everyone.
The nursery made it's debut at the shower. It looked beautiful. I can't wait until our little bundle is sleeping soundly under her "crystal" chandelier. The only thing we have left to do is the drapery. I am going to do simple white panels with either pink or green ribbon down each side. I have 7 weeks to get them up. I want it to be perfect for her arrival.
Thank you again to all the girls for the blood, sweat, and tears. We could not have asked for a better party or group of friends.

Snow day!!!

We finally had a real snow in Raleigh. This is only about the 3rd time I've seen it snow more than a dusting since I moved down in 1995. Adam and I enjoyed spending the day together with a fire going in the fireplace almost the entire day. It brought back a little bit of home for me. I didn't even mind scraping the snow off my car the next day.
Above and beyond our enjoyment of the wintery weather, was Ella's. She had a blast playing in the white powder. I can't wait until Harper can have her first frolic in the snow.

Ella's new bed

So we decided that it was time for Ella to get a new bed. She is not a complainer by nature, but she was laying on the guilt pretty thick and we were able to read the signs. She is a growing girl and I don't think we could escape the fact much longer, that she was in need. It makes us so happy to see her so content. We love you sweet girl.