Bath time!!

Mommy recorded some of bath time today with Elijah.

"You're gonna do what?!? Bath time?!? ummmm . . . I don't know about that."

"I'm not so sure about this bath thing"

"Yea, I'm pretty sure I don't like bath time"

(OK, so this picture is from earlier,

but mommy was a little busy with a crying baby to take pictures of him)

"I guess that wasn't too bad. This robe is warm and fuzzy . . . zzzzzz"

"Do I smell clean, mommy?"

Clean baby, clean diaper, back to his nap. That's my boy. :)

Celebrating Mother's Day

I think Elijah is going to be a great son.

Reason #1: He came in time for Mommy to celebrate her very first Mother's Day!

We were so excited to celebrate Mother's Day that Daddy forgot to take any pictures until the evening. But here are two of the pictures from the evening celebration with the Hadley Family.

Here she is. The prettiest mommy ever (according to her boys). Can you tell that she is happy to be a mom?

Here she is with both of her boys. Our little family. What a blessing from God.

I am so blessed to be married to such an amazing woman of God. She continually amazes me with her energy (even when she's exhausted), her compassion, and her ability to keep her husband from embarrassing himself too often. I believe that it is one of the greatest joys that I will have in my life to watch my wife become a mother and give so much of herself to our son. She is truly an awesome woman.

Visiting the Farm

Last Wednesday, the last day before Dad went back to work, we visited the Hadley farm for the first time. It was a beautiful Nebraska spring day, and we had a wonderful time hanging out with the family. Played a little baseball and helped the guys out in the shop.

Little cousin Aldyn showcasing her grandparents' beautiful lawn.

Carter and Uncle Scott playing a little baseball.

Uncle Mike and Elijah checking out the shop at the farm.

A little guy time in the shop with dad.

He's a good little stretcher . . .

Relaxing at Grandma's house.

We sure have a lot of fun visiting the farm. One of many visits to come for Elijah as I'm sure that pretty soon he will think the farm is much better than being at his boring home with mom and dad. :) It was great to take some time off of work and be with Mommy and Eli for a few days. Even though I'm back at work now, we still get to have family time every night. It's amazing how much both Stacy and I crave that time to just hold the little guy and thank God for His little miracle.

Hanging out at home

A little slow on posting to the blog . . .

Here's Elijah's first ride in his "designer" car seat on the way home from the hospital.

He's sleeping, but this was actually right after we got home. We put him in the crib for about 30 seconds and took about 30 pictures. It was great. I think the only way we're going to survive this parenting thing is to make fun of ourselves . . . constantly :)

Saying goodbye to the Birney Grandparents (They haven't picked names for themselves yet). It was great having them here. Even though we didn't interact much because we were so tired and busy with Eli.

Grandpa holding him one more time before driving back to Lubbock.

It has been so amazing to have our families around (especially in the first week). We are so blessed to have such loving parents and siblings. It definitely makes being parents for the first time much less overwhelming. And of course we are still amazed at how cute our little guy is. We definitely feel like the goofy parents who coo over every little noise and move.

Welcome home, Elijah. We love you.

More of the little guy

We are safely home now and getting accustomed to life as the three of us. Elijah is doing well. Growing and learning just like he should be. Here are a few more pics from the hospital and a special treat at the end.

The Birney Grandparents

The proud grandmothers with the little man of the hour.

His eyes are open! It doesn't happen much in the first few days.

One more with his eyes open. Looking pretty tired though.

A few more pics

Here are a few more pics of Eli in the hospital.

This is his coming home outfit. (Notice the proficiency with the pacifier. Eli was sucking his thumb in the womb and had no problem figuring out the pacifier right away)

Grandpa Birney gets to hold Eli in the sun for a little bit. He's only slightly excited.

A quick little rest in Mommy's arms. He already knows the best places to be warm and safe!

A few more pics of the little guy. His first 24 hours are under his belt successfully. He had a nice quiet day after a certain biblical procedure this morning that shall remain unnamed. Just a lot of quality time with mommy and daddy in the hospital.

He also got to meet his Birney grandparents tonight as well as his uncles (Craig and Mike), aunts (Deb and Wendi), and cousins (Skylar, Carter, Gunnar, and Aldyn). And the Hadley grandparents stopped by again to say hi. So he's well on his way to learning what it means to be a part of our family. Lots of laughter, love, and discussion about what's on the menu for the next meal.

Hopefully more pics and maybe even a video or two will come as soon as daddy gets some rest and can figure out all this uploading video stuff.

Elijah Khalil Birney

Elijah Khalil Birney

Born: April 30th, 2009 7:21 pm

Kearney, Nebraska

Good Samaritan Hospital

8 lbs 0 ounces and 20 1/4" long

Elijah decided that he didn't want to wait any longer to see the world. After just over 14 1/2 hours of labor (from the first contraction to his birth), Elijah was born with no issues or complications. A wonderfully healthy little baby boy. Blessed to join two larger families, the Hadleys and the Birneys, he will grow up knowing that he is dearly loved by his grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Now six hours after he was born, mom and baby are doing well. He's been fed twice already and had two and a fraction diaper changes. Now we're all going to try and get some rest so he can meet the Birney set of grandparents tomorrow!!

Here are some pics for everyone who can't be here: