We are growing!

I wonder how many hours a day I have stared at this beautiful child! I marvel at his perfection daily and don't miss any chances to snuggle or kiss little EJ!

We visited our pediatrician, Dr. Worsley, yesterday for our first check up. He said that EJ looked great and was putting on good weight. He is now 7 lb 1 oz and is 19 3/4" long. He is in the 48% for length and 30% for weight. He is long and lean and we're guessing he get's that from his Daddy!

We have encountered many firsts these past few weeks and our precious moments are endless! We seem to have an active baby who enjoys exploring how his body moves! He has found his thumb to suck and has endured his first thunderstorm with extreme bravery!

We are also so very grateful for the outpouring of support we have received! Both near and far, friends and family have given us amazing encouragement and love--THANK YOU!! We are very blessed to have the Kieschnick clan closeby and were blessed by a visit from the Augers last week!! Everyone's a little smitten by EJ!

Thank you for continuing to visit our blog and allowing us to brag on our beautiful son!

-Joanna

"How did EJ get his name?"

In short, the name belonged to his paternal great, great grandfather. My Dad has done some research and he traced the lineage back to Edmund G., who came to the U.S. from Canada in the late 1800's. He had a son named Edmund James, who lived in Keene, New Hampshire, and played minor league baseball for the White Sox in the 1910's. He had a son, Edmund David, who was an avid outdoorsman and WWII veteran. My Dad is Edmund David Jr., and I'm E.D. III.

Besides honoring the tradition on my side of the family, the middle name means alot to us because Joanna's uncle and godfather is named James.

When we were considering the name we noticed another interesting connection- when Joey and I first met in '98 we were on a mission trip to the Guatemalan towns of "Santiago Zamora" and "Santiago de los Caballeros." Santiago is Spanish for James. I don't think its a stretch to say that's more than a coincidence...

So our little guy has alot of significance behind his name, which is what we wanted. I'm sure he'll be glad we didn't go with the "let's pull a name out of a hat" idea. :)

-Edmund

Pics from EJ's first week at home

Human Burrito...

Is it time to eat yet?

Sleepytime...

Sunbathing with Mom...

Sweet Dreams...

EJ's room

Super nice 1500 dollar crib... bought on ebay for 100 bucks. Ebay rocks...

Home is where you hang yer hat...

We are thankful to Grandma K. for buying the curtain material and Janice for making the curtains, seat cushion and crib bumper... amazing artistry... and to John for fixing the antique toy chest... and to Grandpa and Grandma A. for the rocker and dresser set....

It's still a work in progress, but slowly coming together...

-Edmund

Edmund James arrives

At 4:29 pm on Saturday, March 14th, our boy EJ was born... At birth he weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces and measured 19 1/2 inches. His due date was this Friday (March 2oth), but he just couldn't wait to get here... Here's how it happened...

Joey started feeling labor pains at 11:30 pm on Friday night and by 2:00 am they were 4-5 minutes apart. Joey knew this was the real deal so we got our things together arrived at the hospital about 4 am. The labor seemed to be progressing normally at first. However, by around 12 noon the medical staff had become concerned that EJ's heartrate was dipping very low at times or that it stayed low for too long. Around 4 in the afternoon they decided to perform a Ceaserean section and shortly after he was born. Joey was amazingly strong through the whole process. We are very grateful for excellent medical staff who made sure Joey and EJ came through safely.

We all came home from the hospital yesterday night. Joey is recuperating and is feeling better each day. EJ is eating and sleeping pretty well and he seems to be settling in well to his new surroundings. We are ecstatic that our little cowboy finally rode into town and are looking forward to the days and years ahead with our little buckaroo.

-Edmund