Meet Baby Grace

Meet Grace Marilyn Farmer. Our dear little daughter.

We welcomed Grace into the world just over a month ago on October 19,2011 at 1:28am.

Let me tell you how it happened.

Our due date was October 15, 2011 and we thought for sure that I would go into labor that weekend. However we of course went over the due date like most do with their first baby.

I started having light contractions on Monday October 17, 2011 around noon but things didn’t really progress till many hours later.

3:00am Monday October 18, 2011

We arrived at the hospital after my contracts were a consistent mins apart lasting about a min each for one hour. However after getting there we were sent home after only dilated to 3 cm. I was shocked and knew that it was likely that I would not be sleeping until our little one arrived.

We returned home and I continued to labor while Will got a couple hours of sleep. As the hours came and went Will kept putting on my favorite movies to keep me distracted during it all as I moved from different laboring positions. I tried many times to sleep but the contractions were too strong for me to stay comfortable. Things became much more active around 11 am the following morning.

Will’s mom was on here way now and we planned to stay at the apartment unless things progressed a great deal more before she could get to us from northern California.

2:00pm Tuesday October 18, 2011

Will’s mother arrived and could tell it was time we again made our way to the hospital. We arrived and they determined that I was dilated to a 4 which meant that this time we could stay. The thought of leaving again was not at all what I wanted to hear at that point. Once we were settled in we began to wallk the halls together and did so off and on till about 8pm when the contracts were stronger and I had dilated much more. I lost all sense of time as I went from contraction to contraction. My focus throughout was our daughter’s arrival. Little did I know how long I was going to wait to meet her. Will loved me and coached me through each step of the way. He knew the process and where I was at through out. . After taking Bradley Method classes together and due to how my labor progressed I was able to have Grace with no interventions. There are moments such as when one of the doctors came in and asked if I needed anything and I remember teling her as Will was slow dancing with me to help me labor that I only needed my husband. Will with the help of mother Marilyn were my rock through out what ended up being about twelve hours from the time we checked in until we heard the sweet cry of our dear little Grace. I can’t believed how long I went without sleep but hearing Grace cry for the first time and holding her in my arms made any struggles in the process worth it. I adore her and have tried to live up each moment we are blessed to share together as a family.

Bradley Baby Classes!

We are 41 days from the due date. Within those 41 days we are making our move back to Los Angeles and hope to be settled somewhat into our new apartment before little Grace arrives.
We will just have to wait to see when she is ready to arrive.
Since we have been in Livermore we have taken the Bradley method birthing classes. Attached are the photos of our the three couples in the class and Will and I with our instructor Susan. We learned so much and are so looking forward to putting our knowledge to use.

Breakfast Yummyness!

Will and I woke at 5 am today and neither one of us could go back to bed. Will had the idea of making breakfast together and let me tell you it was one yummy meal. I made Apple Cinnamon muffins and Will made his first poached eggs with hollandaise sauce. Sadly there was no ham or english muffin to complete an eggs benadict. We shall have to do this again.
We have had a great morning! Today sure looks to be a good one. And Will has tomorrow off for the holiday! Life is good.

Baby Photos

It has been some time since my last post. My thoughts have gone mostly to this little baby growing inside of me. It is still hard for me to believe she will be in about seven weeks. I have prayed, dreamed and wanted this child for so long that I can't wait to see her little face. I am so blessed that I get to be her mommy. I look at these photos of Will and I as babies and wonder just what she will look like. The three of us are going to have so much fun.

Photo Challenge - Day 5 - Breakfast

I am starting to get back into posting the photo challenge I said I would do last month.
For today the post is Breakfast. This is my favorite breakfast as of late. Boiled eggs with a sliced tomato and lots of salt and pepper. It might be a bit weird to some but I love it. Speaking of food... What is with me waking up last night at 2:30am so hunger that I had to go and eat two cheese sticks to help me get back to sleep. This must be part of the third trimester of pregnancy because this has happened to me twice in the past week. WATCH OUT FOR THIS HUNGRY PREGNANT LADY!!!!

After Dinner Stroll

Tonight I went for a walk all by myself with my camera and as always it is fun to see the world through a camera lens. I love the photo of my shadow where you can sort of see the baby bump.

Being a kid!

The past few weeks sure have been fun having Will's sister and her two kids here.
They both are quite cute and all kid. The older one Malcolm keeps asking about his cousin baby Grace along with a million other questions and Aubrey the little one loves being tossed in the air and has the most adorable giggle. We are looking forward to seeing them again later this year for Christmas. How fun it is to be a kid!

Our little Grace!

We have about three months till out little Grace arrives. I am so looking forward to seeing her face for the first time. My little bump is starting to not be so little anymore. These are some of the photos we took two Sunday's ago to document week 26.

Photo Challenge - Day 4 - Clouds

I love this photo because it makes me think of how curious we all are of each other. Plus the clouds are nice. The sky has been so clear for the past couple of days that looking for clouds has been a hard photo to take.

Photo Challenge - Day 3 - Hands

I have had the chance to cook some this week because we have began rotating who cooks here at the Farmer's. This is picture of my Father-in law cutting a yummy beef wellington for dinner a few nights ago. Cooking something yummy is for sure an art in and of its self.

Temple

We just got back from the Oakland Temple and it was such an amazing trip.
I did the part of the work for 18 of my dear Will's family. How wonderful it was to be there with Will and his parents. I left feeling again the strength of my testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel and my love for this great work. We all have so much we can give to our family members who have past on. I want our little girl to know as much as we can share so she know some about these family members stories. Because we all have stories.

Photo Challenge - Day 2 - Favorite Shoes

I went hiking this morning with my mother in-law and was able to pull out my hiking shoes for the first time in a while.

They are my favorite in many ways because they remind me of the beautiful creations that our Heavenly has given us as I walk in them. God has given us truly some many beauties that we have to go and find. That goes for more then just hiking.

Photo Challenge - Day 1 - Self Portrait

This is me! Which is who I want to be!

Photo Challenge !!!!!!

I decided to follow my good friend Cori's lead and do the same photo challenge she has been posting on her blog. I just got a new camera and am learning how to use it and this will be perfect for me.

San Fransisco Musuem of Modern Art

I had the best adventure last Friday when I went to San Fransisco to the Gertrude Stein Collection exhibition at SFMOMA (No photos aloud). However I did capture some other interesting pieces of art work. Yes, I think I am one fine piece of art work. It never fails that every time I go to something I reminded of just why Art is so amazing!

Thursday Night Farmer's Market

(I do not know either of these children) We went to the farmers market tonight to get tomatoes and I couldn't help but fall in love with the picture I took of the little girl stuffing her face with a stawberry. There is nothing quite like the image of children eating fruit and getting it everywhere. I also love all the textures and smells at the market. There is just something about the wooden boxes filled with fruits or vegetables that makes you feel good.

Cherry Picking

Summer is not summer with out the amazing fruits that we get to eat this time of year. Will helped his dad pick more cherries last night and let me tell you they are sure yummy. I had to take some pictures of course. Cherries must be enjoyed by our little one because it seems this bump has sure gotten a lot more bumpier in the last few days.

What makes a home?

The past two weeks, I have pondered the question of what really is a home? My life has been filled with packing and moving, and it has been an all-consuming process that has prompted much soul-searching. After living in my first apartment for not quite six years, I finally moved. As I walked through the barren apartment one last time, I experienced a bittersweet mixture of emotions. My dear Mister, present through the whole ordeal, spoke of the great memories we had created in our little home, and spoke of the new memories we would be able to create in our future homes. It is so exciting to think that our little daughter will be here in four months. We are looking forward to the many memories we will be able to make with her wherever we live.

We are currently living in Livermore, California. Will started an internship at a local research lab, and he is looking forward to developing further in his career. I am so proud of how hard he works and the passion he has for Physics. When I reflect about my life, I know that my home is where ever my dear Will is. Life is so much better having him there to laugh at all the many silly happenings that occur everyday.

Summer Move

It has been the busiest 18 months of my life. I will be finished with School in May. Graduation from College has been a dream that I have wanted for so long. My dear Will has been such a support to me and I love having a best friend like him on this journey.

We will be moving for the summer for three months to Livermore, California for an internship that Will has accepted. We are looking forward to our new summer adventure up in Northern California. Will starts June 13, 2011 which means we have much do before then. How exciting!