Babymoon

First of all you might be thinking - what is a babymoon? The term comes from the phrase honeymoon. A babymoon is the vacation a couple takes before they have a baby. Yes, it is a little corny but I think it is cute. I was planning on posting this before the baby came, but I didn't have a chance to do it since Ethan came early! We took our babymoon towards the latter half of this past September. I was 35 weeks pregnant and we wanted to stay close to the house. It was a no brainer where we would take our vacation - our home away from home - Sarasota/Lido Key! We absolutely love it there. From the white sandy beaches to St. Armands Circle to the great service at the Ritz Carlton. This hotel and location is special to us because many of the special occasions in Todd and I's life has been spent there so we have a lot of memories. The other thing that makes it so great is that it is only 1 hour 45 minutes from Orlando. I love the west coast of Florida so much better than the east coast. Shhh.....don't tell all the tourists that flock to the east coast! We don't want them spoiling our west coast.

The best part of the trip was not what we did, but the fact that we did nothing! haha. Now that I know the sleep deprivation that having an infant brings, I can look back at this vacation and remember the glorious sleep that was accomplished. :) Todd and I thought it was funny that we met a couple and their 2 kids while lounging at the club and they were from Lake Mary. Anyway, after talking for a bit, we find out his job is an OB and they were in room 801. Todd and I had a good laugh because we said that we felt safe with him there. haha. Pretty much every day we went to the beach club and spent our days there.  We also enjoyed watching the beautiful sunsets and seeing the dolphins play.  Another thing that we noticed is that we enjoyed taking a vacation in September rather than March. (March is our anniversay month) The hotel and beach club were less crowded and no reservations needed in St. Armands Circle.
Overall, it was just a relaxing and wonderful trip that I am so glad we took before the little peanut arrived.



                                                           View from our room

 

 

                                          Customer service is so good...love the welcome back dessert!

 

 

Todd makes a good photographer. See below with sunscreen on bump.  :)

                                                                      


                                                                             Dolphins!

One Month Old

Dear Ethan,

Hi there buddy! You are now 1 month old.  Mommy and Daddy cannot believe one month has passed already and our whole world has changed for the better since you have been in it. We just adore you and we just know your future will be very bright. Some of your favorite things to do right now are stretching, (you stretch every time we pick you up. We think it is because you were so tight on space in mommy's womb), sitting in your newborn lounger next to us and playing with your bear that Nannie gave you.  You also enjoy being swaddled but only if it is the miracle blanket swaddle. If it is any other time of swaddle, you will squirm your way out of it. You enjoy your play yard, but when we flip you over for tummy time, you don't like mommy and daddy very much. However, you should see how your head moves back and forth! Just the other day you moved your head from left to right four times. You really enjoy your walks every day with Aunt Kim and your buddy Kayla. You sleep through them but mommy knows you love the fresh air. You are not sure what to think of your doggie sister Marianne. You know some furry thing is around you, but you are not quite sure what it is yet.  You really enjoyed your first bath and mommy thinks it is because she took baths every day that she was pregnant. Your umbilical cord never fell off so the doctor had to remove it. I like to think it is because you wanted to stay connected to mommy. :)  You also have a very sensitive stomach because you have had some reflux issues and have to sleep on an incline. You are only giving mommy about 3 hours of night time sleep at any given time. You also love to be on mommy's chest but mommy is making sure you don't get too used to it because she wants you to learn to fall asleep in other ways. However, mommy just loves that smell of your baby head. I know that smell won't last forever and we are all just enjoying you so much.  You have smiled at us already and it just melts my heart. At your one month appointment you weighed 8 lbs 5 oz. We are very proud of how well you are developing since you were born 26 days early at 5 lbs 12 oz. You are now 20.5 inches long compared to 18.5 inches at birth.  You still have a head full of dark brown hair and your eyes are blue at the moment. Your daddy has been very helpful to mommy when caring for you. When daddy gets home from work he gives mommy a much needed rest and she really appreciates it. You seem to really enjoy your time with daddy. He is a very hands on daddy - he will help change your diaper and get up with you in the middle of the night on the weekends. You guys also watched your first Jags football game together but you only stayed awake for 15 minutes of it. :) Mommy is really enjoying being a stay at home mom and she loves reading to you every day.  Some of your social events have been when we celebrated your 1 week old birthday and grandma, aunt caren, and great nannie came over and we had a cookie cake for you. Then, when you were 3 weeks old, nannie came down from Jacksonville to visit with you. Grandpa has also came over to see you a few times as well as cousin Jamie. We are slowly starting to introduce you to all of mommy and daddy's friends. We don't want to overdue it since you haven't gotten your shots yet. We are just treasuring every moment with you and we still think you are the most precious thing on earth.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy