Lucy - Week 2

"Hmmm...what should I do today?"












Our family











Do you think she's going to be spoiled?










So sleepy, she can't even keep her eyes open for tummy time












More visitors :)














Her favorite sleeping position

















Quack, quack!











Posing for the camera












Becoming more and more alert











Experiencing the swing for the first time (and we ALL like it - it puts her right to sleep!)











Such little feet
















So peaceful














Waving "hi"
















Two weeks old - my, how the time has flown!

Lucy's First Week

Once home, Mommy and Daddy cherished every moment with Lucy...

It's a girl!

Clearly not a fan of her first bath!

Daddy tries to console her

Spending time in the sun to try to lower her bilirubin level

Much happier following her second bath

Enjoying some quality time with Daddy

Helping Mimi celebrate her birthday

Who can resist this face?!

One week old and already getting bigger!

Daddy's favorite outfit

Homeward Bound

The two days in the hospital flew by and before we knew it, we were getting ready to take Lucy home with us, where there would no longer be a nurse just a call button away. Needless to say, we were a bit nervous!

When we put her in her car seat, we could not get past how little she looked:

Eric somehow looks as rested and chipper as usual, while we can't say the same for Stacy!

Daddy took the back roads home and has never before adhered to the rules of the road as well as he did that afternoon! Lucy slept through the whole ride.

When we walked into the house, it was abundantly clear that we were on our own.

After ... Birth

It was a bit surreal when the nurses left the room and we were alone with our new baby girl. Fortunately, she was as tired as we were!

We took advantage of the next couple days in the hospital to get to know Lucy a little bit and, of course, to take some family photos. Does she look like a Daddy's girl...

Since we had Lucy at the beginning of Memorial Day Weekend, family and friends were able to visit us in the hospital, including Uncle Brian and Aunt Melissa!

The two days in the hospital went by awfully fast and, before we knew it, we were loading her in the car to take home ...

Ready or Not ... Here Comes Lucy!

We were as prepared as we could be when Stacy's water broke at 12:10am on Friday, May 27th - 8 days before her due date. After laboring at home for 2 hours, we put our bags in the car and headed to the hospital, but not before taking one last picture:


At the hospital, Stacy labored for about 5 hours sans pain medication. We walked around the delivery floor and utilized the rocking chair and birthing ball to help make it through each contraction...

...but it was the counter-pressure that Eric applied with each back contraction that helped the most.

When we found out that all of that laboring had resulted in no change in dilation, Stacy opted for an epidural and was quite glad that she did!

Finally, at 7:56pm - after 2 hr 40 min of pushing - Lucy Eliza Russell was born! NICU was called to the room because there was meconium present at birth. After a quick minute on Stacy's chest, Lucy was ushered to the corner so they could suction out her airway.

Lucy waved "hi" to Mom and Dad:

She weighed in at 6lbs 14oz and measured 21 inches long.

In an instant, our lives were forever changed!

Nesting 2.0

We received some gifts for the nursery in the mail, and this weekend, finally found time to decorate a little bit.

We got these cute valances:

Dust ruffle and crib sheet:

But best of all, this super-sweet tree decal:

The room is starting to feel much cozier! We like to walk by it just to peek in. Only 8 or so more weeks until there's a little one to peek in on!

No Foolin'

Mother Nature played the best April Fool's Day joke this year, only it wasn't a joke. After a week with temps reaching 50 degrees, we had a cruel reminder of how long winter can last in Maine. While Stacy enjoyed the day off, Eric had to come home to an unplowed driveway. (Maybe firing our plow guy in March wasn't such a good idea!) Because the bank was so high at the end of the driveway, Eric got stuck. The Red Sox were on (opening day!) and we had no where to go, so he left it there for the night. The next morning we woke up to this:

Fortunately, we have a kind, albeit bizarre, neighbor, and when he saw Eric shoveling out, he drove right over on his tractor with snowblower attachment and took care of it for us. Let's hope this was the last major storm of the season!