Bad Blogger

Hi friends and family! Well, I have decided to cease writing our family blog for a while. I have not been good about keeping it updated and I doubt many still look at it (if anyone). I stay so busy with Emily, searching for a job, keeping chores done, etc. that I don't have the time right now to devote to it. Most of you are on Facebook and keep up with us that way. Those of you that don't, I will make an effort to email you updates. God bless, Erin

Adrian's first Father's Day

This past Sunday we celebrated Adrian's first Father's Day. We went over to Jimmy's house and enjoyed smoked brisket and ribs. Jimmy and Susan stayed up all night and smoked the meat for 12 hours. It was delicious. We also had mom's famous potato salad, corn on the cob, Ceasar salad, and topped it off with my Death by Chocolate. Emily gave Adrian some cool signs to hang in his "man cave" (in the garage) which he LOVED. It was nice to spend the day with the family and Emily rather enjoyed herself. But she was beat, and ended the day taking on nap on Grandaddy's tummy.

Emily's 4 month check up

We went yesterday for Emily's 4 month check up. She was 4 months old June 16th! She had to get her shots, which is always equally painful for Mommy. But she did just fine and so far hasn't had any fever or bad after effects. She now weighs a whopping 13 pounds, 3 ounces (50th percentile) and is 25 inches "tall" (75th percentile). She has grown 6 inches since she was born! I can't believe it! I am also very proud to report that most nights, she goes to bed between 8 and 9pm and doesn't wake up until 5 or 6am! We love having a baby that sleeps through the night and know we are very lucky! We will start her on cereal in about 2 weeks. The pediatrician thinks she is almost ready... but right now her tongue thrust is still very strong and he said I would just have a huge mess on my hands. So we will wait a little bit longer. I am sure that will make for some lovely pictures! Well, that's all for now!

It's been a while!

It has been quite a while since I last blogged... where do I begin? Emily had her baby dedication on May 17th. My Grandma came in from Florida and so did Adrian's sister and daughters (from Baton Rouge). Emily was the fifth generation in my family to be a part of Memorial Drive Christian Church. So that was special for us all. Here is a link to the pictures from the event (they are on Shutterfly): share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AatmrFq4cs2L0g

Other old, but big news - I was laid off one week after I returned from maternity leave (on May 15th). Business had been slow and I wasn't surprised, but had hoped it wouldn't happen. I think it was a blessing in disguise from God because I've decided to change careers and become a teacher. After much prayer and thought, I think it is the best thing for our family. I am enrolled in the Texas Alternative Teacher program and after passing the state test at the end of June and taking some classroom management classes, I will be almost there! I hope to teach high school English in the fall - if all goes accordingly.

Emily continues to grow like a little weed. I swear she grows inches over night. She laughs and smiles, coos and hollers, holds her head up and sits up assisted. Lots of times she slides to the side, so we have to put a pillow next to her. Two more weeks and she will start cereal! Adrian and I took her to the pool for the first time today. She had a blast, just kicking her legs like crazy! I think she will be an Olympic swimmer! Here are some pics. Hope everyone is having a great summer!

My first Mother's Day

Hey friends and family! I know I have been slacking with the blogging. But I have had a terrible cold for about 2 weeks, then Emily got it, now my parents have it... we just keep passing it around. But I wanted to update our blog, so here goes!!! Yesterday I celebrated my first Mother's Day. I have so much to be thankful for, but mainly my little beauty. Nothing makes me feel better than when she looks into my eyes and smiles! We had our families over for lunch after church. We had a tex mex lunch (my favorite)!!! Everyone chipped in - Heidi and my mom made chicken enchiladas, Adrian's mom brought chips, guacamole and salsa, my mom made a tres leches cake, I made a salad and rice... mmmm, it was all so good. We had a wonderful time spending time with our families and Emily got tons of grandparent time in! My wonderful husband got me a brand new robe, it is so soft, it feels like silk! The one I had dated back to my college years! Also he got me the Counting Crows "Best of" CD (they are one of my most favorite bands). And for the tear-jerker gift - my mom gave me one of my Grammie's rings. I used to sit in church and play with her beautiful rings, I was always in awe of her jewelry. And now, I get to wear the very ring that I adored and played with as a child... tears... :)

My Grandma Van Bergen arrives in Houston tomorrow afternoon. Emily and my dad are picking her up from the airport. It will be the first time she gets to meet her first great grandbaby! She is staying for the week - Emily's baby dedication is at our church this coming Sunday. We are so happy that Great Grandma will be here for the special event.

And lastly, I hate to end on a sour note, but I am getting laid off from work on Friday. Today was my first day back after maternity leave and it will be my last week. I have very mixed emotions about it all. I am scared, sad, upset, and worried. But I have prayed a lot about it. And I truly feel that this is an opportunity to move out of the advertising field. I am excited to say I have decided to get my teacher certification and hope to teach high school English and/or Journalism soon. This is all very exciting and makes me nervous at the same time. But it is time for a change, I have a baby and a mortgage, and I need a stable job. This will be the 2nd time in 6 or 7 years that I have been laid off. I am sad to leave the profession, as I enjoyed my work and my clients. But I am also excited about this new chapter I am about to open and a new journey that I am about to embark on. Please keep us in your prayers as our new, uncertain future unfolds!

Our weekend get-a-way

This past weekend Adrian and I left Emily with my parents to stay the weekend in Kemah. Adrian was a groomsman in our friends' wedding (Ed & Kelly). So we had to be there Friday night for the rehearsal and Saturday for the wedding. We decided to just stay for the weekend. I was sad Friday night and missed Emily like crazy. I was really glad that we had decided to leave her in Houston because Friday night we got stuck in the middle of a flash flood! It was crazy! It poured for hours and the streets flooded in minutes! At one point we were 0.3 miles from our hotel and stuck in a CVS parking lot. Cars were stalled everywhere and the water was so high it came in the door of my SUV! But we survived and so did the car. We had a great time with our friends and the wedding was wonderful. They chartered a yacht and had the ceremony and reception on the water. It was so cool. Emily did great with my parents and I know they were sad when we came to get her, but probably got to catch up on some sleep!

On a separate note, Emily went Monday for her 2 month check up and got her first round of shots. She is now 10 lbs 11 oz (50% percentile) and 23.25 inches (75% percentile). The peditirician said she has hit all her milestones and is incredibly strong for her age! That's our girl!! I was so stressed for weeks about getting her shots, I thought it would be so heartbreaking. And I was afraid she'd get sick. But it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. She cried when she got the 3 shots (ouch!) but after I picked her up she was better. And aside from a little bit of fussing that night, she was perfect!

McNemar Family Easter

I hope everyone had a fabulous Easter this past Sunday! It was so fun to celebrate Emily's first Easter with our families. We went to church with my parents and Adrian's parents. Emily did great and slept until the last 5 minutes, she was hungry and needed a bottle - Grammie Mathews to the rescue! After church we had a wonderful lunch at my Aunt's house and watched Jacob and Landon hunt for Easter eggs. We got some great Easter pictures of the cousins and the "little cousins" that I can't wait to share! Emily enjoyed a full day of lots of family with tons of cuddles and kisses. Jacob and Landon did great with her. Most of the time they were too busy playing to worry about her, but they did settle down for a second for us to get a picture of the three of them together. Later in the day Emily was a little fussy and Landon heard her crying. From another room Landon yelled "Don't worry Emily, I'm coming!" SO CUTE! We had a lot of fun! Enjoy the pictures! Here is a link with all of them: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AatmrFq4cs2Ly4

Such a big girl!!!

I am such a proud momma! I couldn't wait to tell everyone that today Emily rolled over from her tummy to her back for the first time! I am so proud! Today she is 6 weeks and 4 days old. We were at my Mom's house when it happened and my mom got to witness it as well. She has been smiling socially for about a week, but only for my mom and once for Adrian. But yesterday I got my first HUGE smile. She is hitting milestones and it is so much fun!!!! We have her Easter dress all picked out and she went to see the Easter bunny last Friday. And my mom bought her the CUTEST Easter basket. We aren't sleeping more than 4 hours at a time, but I hear sleeping through the night will come soon (knock on wood). The pictures in her overalls is from today.

What's been going on!

Hey family and friends! I have a few moments and wanted to give you all a quick update and post a few pictures. Monday Emily will be 5 weeks old! She is growing like crazy! She is so long (tall) that she is in 3 month clothes, although she is too thin for them. We can't put her in footed PJs anymore because she can't stretch her legs out in the ones that fit her.

Last Tuesday was Emily's first night away from home! She had a slumber party with my parents and everyone did great! Adrian and I enjoyed dinner out, a St. Patty's day drink, and then a whole 10 hours of sleep. It was a dream come true! We were very thankful for our alone time and that Emily and the grandparents all survived. I missed her like crazy and fought every urge to call every hour. It was weird for us when we got home and didn't hear the hum of the monitor or Emily "talking" in her sleep. We all did well and had a good time.

My best friend Melody came to Houston Friday morning to spend the weekend. Emily enjoyed meeting her Aunt Mel! My mom watched her Friday night so Adrian, Mel and I could enjoy some fine Thai cuisine. I loved having another mom here and was thankful again for the extra hands and help. Unfortunately, Melody's husband (Aaron) had an emergency visit to the ER about midnight on Sunday and she had to leave to drive back to Dallas at midnight. I am happy to report he is fine after battling a kidney stone.

We have scheduled Emily's dedication at our church for May 17th - it is the Sunday after Mother's Day. My grandma will be flying in from Florida for the event and to meet her first great grandbaby for the first time!

Well I must go, before the she wakes. Hope this finds you all healthy and happy!

Almost 4 weeks old!

Well I can't believe it - on Monday Emily will be 4 weeks old! All three of us are doing great, getting to know each other and loving every minute of it. My parents have been such a huge help to us. Sometimes Emily and I go over to visit and I sneak in a nap, one night they kept her so Adrian and I could go to dinner. A few nights ago we went for dinner at their house and ended up spending the night after a huge rain storm blew threw. Adrian has had a cold, and I felt like I was getting it. So Emily and I spent the night at my parent's house. They got an overnight reminder lesson on how it is to have a newborn!!! But did great and it was so nice to have them to help while Adrian rested at home and I got a long stretch of sleep. Here are some recent pictures of Emily, taken yesterday. She smiles in her sleep (no, it isn't gas) and has laughed out loud a few times. She was really happy last night and we were trying to get pictures of her smiling. We came close... She is growing like a little weed and it way too long for newborn clothes! I need to get a tape measure out and see how big she is! Next weekend my best friend Melody comes in from Dallas, we are looking forward to seeing her and Emily is dying to meet her! Love to you all!

Emily update!!!

Well it is hard to believe that Emily has been here for 2 weeks and 2 days! She is (of course) the light of our lives. I apologize for not blogging sooner. But as I am sure you all can imagine... our days and nights blend together. We have great nights and fussy nights that turn into morning way too soon. As I type, she is resting in her swing, cooing. She can't decide if she is going to take a nap or not, but she is content, so I took this moment to hop on the computer and post some pictures. She has started smiling (mostly in her sleep) and Monday morning I saw her laugh out loud. It melts my heart. She is gaining weight, I can tell in my sore arms. And yesterday and today she has had a voracious appetite. All good signs that she is thriving. Hopefully she will decide to take a long nap so I can get back to work on the growing pile of thank you notes that I need to write. The gifts and cards keep coming in and we can't thank you all enough for your generosity and well wishes. Hope this note finds you all well and happy! Keep in touch!

One week and a day old!

Today Emily went for her 8 day check up at the Pediatrician's office. I am happy to say she is great health and gaining weight. When we left the hospital she was down to 5 lbs and 14 oz. Today she is back up to 6 lbs 3 oz. She is nursing well and sometimes is so hungry that she needs a little top off from a bottle. But for the most part, the breast feeding is going great. I am healing well and each day I feel a little better. Adrian and I are just loving being parents. Here are a few more pics we wanted to share. Thank you all for your calls, visits, and emails. We appreciate it and know that Emily is very, very loved!

Emily Lynn has arrived!!

Okay, well it is now February 18 of '09 and the McNemar family has had a new addition for about 2 days. Emily Lynn was born 4:47 pm the night of the 16th. She weighed in at a whole 6 pounds and 7 ounces, and was 18.25 inches long. Erin is doing fine after her C-section, but is still in some pain. She has some pretty gnarly staples in her abdomen, which are to be removed sometime tommorrow. At the moment Mommy is feeding Emily, so Daddy is blogging in her stead. Both of us are tired and can't wait to get home to our other child...that'd be Beau the dog! That was my blogging, now I'm just going to dictate for Erin.

It all started at four o'clock Monday morning with my water breaking (more like a trickle). After I roused the sleepy daddy, we headed to the hospital and got checked in. I was disappointed to hear that we were only one and a half cm. dialated, so they started a pitocin drip. After six hours on pitocin and an epidural we were still only one and a half cm. dialated. Five hours after that (about 4 pm) we had still made no progress and and were still only one and a half cm. dialated. At that point my doctor told us that it wasn't going to happen and we needed to have a c-section. 47 minutes later, Emily was born. Emily and I are working diligently to get this breastfeeding thing down, and I think we make a good team. I hope to go home tommorrow (Thursday). We will post an updated blog in a few days. Thank you all for all of your well wishes.

The end is near!

Today we went for our 37 week check up. We are officially “at term”. Doctors consider babies at term after 37 weeks. I am 80% effaced and only ½ centimeter dilated. The doctor has scheduled to induce me February 23rd. That is assuming she doesn’t come on her own in the meantime. But the doctor doesn’t think that is likely to happen. So it looks like we’ll be having a birthday on February 23rd or 24th. Only 2 weeks away! We can’t wait!

Patience is a virtue!

This past Monday we hit the 9 month mark! We are officially in the home stretch at 36 weeks! I feel bigger than ever and grow more and more uncomfortable and tired each day. Getting a good night’s sleep has been impossible the last couple of weeks. I guess my body is getting me ready for when Emily is here. This week I am praying for patience and a positive attitude. Because as the time grows near, I am more and more excited and impatient about Emily being here. And as she gets bigger and bigger, it is harder to get comfortable and maintain everyday activities and a normal energy level. But above all, I am happy that she is almost here. Adrian and I talk about what she might look like, how she might act, whose demeanor she might take on… We can’t wait to meet this little girl that we love so much already.

Last Saturday we had our second baby shower, hosted by the ladies of our church family. We got so many cute outfits, blankets, shoes, socks, wall décor... I can’t even begin to list it all. This little baby is going to be the best dressed girl in Texas! Her dresser is packed to the gills and her closet is almost full! We still have one more baby shower (hosted by my office) on Feb 13th. I have asked them to please just bring diapers or gifts cards!

We went to the doctor on Monday too, but I don’t have anything to report because the doctor didn’t do an exam. We go each Monday morning now, so maybe next Monday I will have a progress report to post.

35 weeks and counting...

Today we went to the doctor for an ultrasound to estimate Emily’s weight and have our 35-week check up. I also asked the ultrasound tech to please double check the sex of he baby, just to be sure. She confirmed that it is indeed, a girl! Her estimated weight as of today is 5 lbs, 11 oz. We are making progress towards delivery (thank goodness): my cervix is thinned out, her head has dropped, although I am not dilating yet. My blood pressure is a little high, so she is watching that. The doctor said that if she doesn’t come on her own before February 23rd we will induce. WHOO HOO!!! We start going to the doctor every week now, so I’ll keep everyone updated.

Our first baby shower

I had my first baby shower last Saturday, graciously hosted by my sweet Aunt Melinda and Vicki, Martha and Casey (cute picture below).



It was so perfect: complete with purple decorations and cup cakes (to match the nursery) to baby shower bingo and a game guessing whose baby picture belonged to who. I had such a wonderful time and got so many cute things. Melody (in gray vest) drove in from Dallas to celebrate the occasion with me and was a lifesaver! She packed all the gifts up and unloaded them and got me and the nursery organized. It was quite overwhelming to have so many things and I needed a seasoned Mommy to help me get everything set up. Having so many baby items and the nursery almost done makes it seem that much realer and closer!



Bonnie (Adrian’s sister) also drove in for the occasion (from Baton Rouge). She brought us her crib and changing table, which was much appreciated. So the nursery is almost complete. We still have a few things to hang on the walls, and then we’ll be done! I’ll post picture when we are through!

We have another baby shower next Saturday, hosted by our church. And then my office is holding one for us on February 13th. I think we will be well prepared between all 3!

Emily Lynn update

Today I am 33 weeks pregnant... about 83% done! I had a check up today with the doctor and everything is going well. My belly/uterus is measuring at about 35 or 36 weeks, so in 2 more weeks we are having an ultrasound done to get an estimated weight. Although I am showing no signs of getting ready to deliver, my doctor is predicting she will be here at around 38 weeks (somewhere around the third week in February). Emily arriving a few weeks early would suit us just fine. We are very anxious to meet her and I am starting to get uncomfortable and having a little trouble sleeping. I know it will get worse from here on out, so I am trying to keep a positive attitude.

We are almost done with the nursery. After a botched attempt to use a stick on wall border, we enlisted the help of Amy (one of my mom's coworkers) and her husband to install chair railing. It looks great. And they had it up, caulked and painted in less than 2 hours! Adrian's sister is bringing us her crib and changing table all the way from Baton Rouge. So once that is set up, we'll be done (and I will post pictures). I have been washing baby clothes that friends and family have sent our way. My mom actually has quite a few items that were mine and even a few sweaters that were hers! I even bought a few PJ sets, diapers and wipes, just in case. So at least if she comes early, she has something to sleep in and clean diapers!

My loving Aunt Melinda is throwing us a baby shower January 24th! We can't wait to see all the tiny little clothes and necessities that our friends and family will shower Emily with. There are also rumblings that my office is trying to pull one together as well.

We hope you are all happy and healthy. Drop us a line anytime!