Stella's Blessng Day

Stella's blessing day was just perfect. Since she was still so little we decided to bless her at home with our family instead of doing it at church. Dustin did a great job with the blessing and had us all in tears.

We were going to bless Stella at 10am, and at 9:30am there was a knock at my door. I ran downstairs to open it, thinking it was Dustin's family who were staying at a hotel nearby.

I open the door and to my surprise my father was standing in the doorway! I had no idea he was coming. He took a red eye flight out of Seattle with a super long layover to Cleveland and then drove from Cleveland to Erie just in the nick of time to be here for the blessing. I was shocked and burst into tears. It was so great to now have both grandpas in the blessing circle.

Grandpa Rockwood helping Stella get all dressed in her white

My sister Stephanie and her daughter Lucy flew in the night before for Stella's special day.

We were so blessed and grateful to have many family members visit us. Thank you all for coming!

One bonus to having the blessing at home was that we were able to skype my mom in from Seattle so she was able to hear and see everything. I love technology.

My sister made Stella's headband. I thought it turned out so cute.

Giving Thanks

This is the third year we have been able to host Thanksgiving with the Sherwoods and it is always such a good time. Dustin's parents came up from Missouri as well as Dustin's brother Josh, his wife Amanda and their two cute kids from New Jersey.

We sure have so much to be thankful for this year. We are so grateful for a roof over our head, food on the table, Dustin's job, family, good health and of course our happy healthy little girl.

Stella snuggled up on Aunt Amanda Zach wanted to see uncle Dusty's truck, in exchange for a photo opt!

Our first Thanksgiving as a little family of three.

The eating begins

Such a good cousin

Finishing the night off with Amanda's yummy pies

The rest of the time was spent eating lunch outside in the unusually warm weather...

more snuggling...

taking some pictures with the talented Mr. Josh

doing crafts...

and laughing at our cute kids. Binky buddies! Emma was born this summer. It will be great having our baby girls so close in age.

Cousin love.

As always Sherwoods, thanks for coming to see us and meet Stella. She loved being held and loved on by all of you!

We also had Stella's blessing over the weekend as well some visits from my family. More on that to come.

One Month

We made to one month. And what a month it has been! Stella had her Doctors appointment today and is now 9lbs 3oz. She is getting so big! Although she still only fits in her newborn clothes for the most part. Here are a few pics from the last few days at her one month mark.

life at home

Stella with grandma before she headed home

In her belated Halloween outfit

Taking a nap on mom

Smiles

Posing for her little photo shoot

Swaddled on dad

Stella is just over two weeks old now. She has gained 10 ounces since her last doctor appointment and is now 7lbs11oz

She loves being swaddled

She hates getting her diaper changed, getting dressed and undressed and screams like crazy when we do either

She is a great eater and we are still working on the great sleeper part

She will give us few hour stretches of sleep at night here and there

She loves to pee when I change her diaper soaking everything around her

She smiles and makes funny faces

And we still really can't figure out who she looks like

We love her to pieces

She's Here!

Well, we have had our little girl in our lives for about a week now and we couldn't be happier!

Stella Grace Sherwood

7lbs 1oz 20 1/2 inches

Born 11-1-11 at 3:58 pm

Proud Daddy. First family photo. Ya, I look rough. Labor was a lot harder and painful then I had anticipated. Of coarse I knew it wasn't going to be a walk in the park, but it sure does give you so much more appreciation for all the moms in the world! But luckily I had Dustin through it all. I COULD NOT have done it without him. He kept me somewhat sane through the whole process and helped me so much. He was my rock! My baby girl It was so wonderful to have my mom here in Erie to be apart of this great experience. She was so helpful! She made us wonderful home cooked meals and freezer meals to last for a good while. She cleaned, did laundry, rubbed my feet during labor, and held and loved on Stella. And since child birth is no new thing to her with six kids of her own, she was there to answer all of my birth and mom questions. It was hard to say goodbye when she left!

Leaving the hospital.

I loved the hospital were we delivered. It is brand new, clean, the nurses are great, and we felt very well taken care of.

On our way home!

This has really been the most amazing experience of our lives. Stella truly is a blessing. We love her more than we ever thought we could.