Dear Santa...

We finally made it to the mall to introduce Luke to Santa. We were definately more excited about it than Luke was, but he did great and we got a good picture. No crying or anything. We saw a lot of older kids crying, so it's probably still in our future, but the first meeting went well.


We also decorated our Christmas tree last weekend, so here are a few pictures of that as well. My sisters husband just came home from Iraq for the holidays, so it was a special day for everyone.




I'm really behind on Christmas shopping, but it will get done eventually so I am trying not to stress about it. Still need to get Christmas cards out, but it will get done...
Hope everyone's holidays are going well!
Love and miss you all!

Happy Belated Thanksgiving!

Ok - I'm only a week behind! I hope everyone had a fantastic day and got plenty of good food. We spent Thanksgiving day at Ralph and Elsie's house with Dan's family. Here's our first family Thanksgiving picture.

My parents stopped by in the morning and gave Luke a pilgrim hat. Here's a picture - too cute! Then they went to lunch with my sister who had to work on Thanksgiving. We all got together on Saturday to celebrate a late Turkey day (although we didn't have Turkey...)


A little too big!


We also had Luke's 4 month well child visit this week. He is almost 14 pounds now and 25 inches - I actually thought he weighed more. He's right in the 50th percentile for both height and weight still. He got another 3 vaccinations which is not fun at all. Poor guy just slept and ate for the last two days. Today he seems to be back to his old self - smiling at me when I get him up this morning and playing hard again. We got a jumparoo last week and it is a BIG hit in our house. He doesn't stay in for very long, but loves bouncing and playing with the toys.




We are getting very excited for Luke's first Christmas and I will be taking some Holiday pics soon.

Take care!

3 month pictures

Here are some of the 3 month birthday pictures I took on 10/28. It's hard to believe that it has been 3 months since he joined us! He's becoming quite a ham - smiling a lot and starting to laugh. If I can figure it out I will try to post a video of him laughing. He is also getting really good at grabbing and holding onto things.





We also took him to a studio for three month pictures. They turned out really cute!
here are 2 of them and I have a third I need to get scanned and I will post soon.




Better run! hope you are all doing well.

Late Halloween/Day of the Dead Pics

Here is a few pics of Luke in his Elvis costume. It turned out so cute and everyone had a great time at our little Halloween get together.


This is a picture of Luke and his cousins - RJ, Jonathon and Michael, and his Aunt Brenda hiding behind Luke. It took us awhile to get this picture - as you can see some weren't very happy about it!


The Sunday after Halloween was the Día de los Muertos(Day of the Dead) parade in the south valley and Dave marched in it and got dressed up. It was really fun and next year we may all do it!

Happy Halloween

Here's the Halloween card I sent out today. We are getting ready for our little get together tonight so I don't have a lot of time to write, but I will update next week with pictures of babycakes as Elvis.
Have a safe Holiday!

Pumpkin time!

Since it actually feels like fall here (compared to Phoenix!) I am very into Halloween and the Fall season this year. I was on a crazy mission to go to a pumpkin patch, not really to buy a pumpkin (although we did that too,) but to take pictures with Luke and some pumpkins. Here's my favorite one. Look at those roly poly arms!

He's not too happy because he was happily snoozing in the car seat right before this. Crazy paparazzi mom has to take a million pictures...

My mom is making his costume for Halloween. Luke is going to be Elvis and I am so excited. We are not going trick or treating, but will be having people over for a little get together. I'm also really excited to hand out candy to trick or treaters as we have haven't done that in years. Our house in Phoenix never got any. So it should be a good time.

We also introduced Luke to Mollie's babies, Nolyn and Lydon last week. They are the sweetest things and seem so tiny. We put the all down for the picture below and Luke immediately grabbed Nolyn's hand. His first girlfriend! Then they all started crying together...


I guess that's it for now. Hope you are all well!
Talk to you soon.

Back to work!

Hi All,
Above is Luke's 2 month picture. I can't believe it - it is going by so quickly!

We have had a very busy September. Sarah and Justin from Phoenix came into town and we went to the Bernalillo wine festival. Since I'm allergic to wine and my tolerance is that of a 10 year old these days, i was the designated driver. Luke had a great time chillin in the stroller. Here's a pic of us!


Our 2nd anniversary was 9/9 and we went out just the two of us for the first time since Luke was born. My parents watched Luke and we went to dinner (real Sushi!!!) and a concert (Counting Crows and Maroon 5.) It was a great time although I was pretty wiped out by 10 and I missed Luke's little face. We were home by 11:30 - life sure has changed!

Dan's parents 50th anniversary was on 9/13 and we threw a brunch which turned out fantastic. That same week was Elsie's 70th birthday so we celebrated that as well.

The next weekend we took our first road trip to Denver for our friend Kyle's wedding. We were a little nervous, but it all turned out great (other than a speeding ticket) and we learned a lot about traveling with a baby. Here's Luke ready to go to Denver.



The following week Luke had his 2 month doctor appointment (time flies!) and his first round of shots. He did really good with the shots, just a little crying and was more fussy than usual the rest of the day. I think it was harder on me than it was on him... I'm assured by friends with older kids that this only gets worse!

I started back to work last week and it has been bittersweet. I miss spending all my time on little Luke, but it is also nice to have more adult interaction and a scheduled day. Luckily we are keeping Luke mostly at home with us with the help of our parents, so if I need a cute fix I can go into the next room and see him.

Here's my favorite picture from September.

Hope you are all doing well!
Love,
Marta

Love this idea

One Month Old!!!

Nursery is finished!

Nursery is finished finally. Here are some pics!

Scrapbook pages

Just trying these out while Luke is napping. Let my know what you think!

New Pictures - 3 weeks old

Hi all,
Well, my original due date was Monday - how crazy that it was Luke's 3 week birthday instead! Seems much longer than 3 weeks that he's been with us.

We are doing pretty good. Luke is growing very quickly; it seems too fast to me. He's starting to really get a belly and rolls on his arms and thighs - so stinking cute! He is also starting to make some new noises (other than crying) and sticking out his tongue. We are still trying to figure everything out, but we are starting to get into a routine. Still working on the nursery, but should have that done by next week - I'll post pictures when it is done.

Here's some new pictures of Luke!
Hope you are doing well - thanks for checking in with us.
Love,
Marta, Dan and Luke

Baby Pool Winner!

And the winner is.....

Great Aunt Brenda! Her guess of 3:10 pm on 8/10/08, a boy, 20 inches and 9 lbs, 1 oz was the closest to Luke's actual stats. Although I'm really glad he wasn't over 9 lbs!

Next was my guess and then Mollie's. Below are the full results - the lower the score the better the guess. Notice Aunt Brenda has the best and the worst guess.

Thanks for playing and hope you all had a good time!

1 Brenda - - 1668.00 King City CA Great-auntie of Baby Conway
2 Marta - - 1759.50 Albuquerque NM Mom to be
3 Mollie - - 1792.17 Albuquerque NM College Buddy
4 Jessica S. - - 2157.58 Albuquerque NM friend
5 Dan - - 2275.25 Albuquerque NM Daddy to be
6 Grandpa C - - 2317.17 Albuquerque NM
7 Grandma T - - 2438.42 NM
8 Grandma C - - 2447.17
9 Erin F. - - 2759.67 Albuquerque NM Sister
10 Grandma T - - 2823.42 NM
11 Jessica - - 2992.17 Albuquerque NM Friend
12 EmmaLee - - 3043.83 San Antonio TX
13 Virginia - - 3082.58 San Antonio TX Friend
14 Molly J - - 3108.83 Trappe PA I've known Dan & Marta since High School
15 Marta - - 3117.17 Mom
16 Mollie - - 3195.58 The "Q&quo NM
17 Meredith K - - 3247.50 Indianapolis IN Best Friend!
18 Jessica V - - 3257.17 Phoenix AZ
19 Melissa B - - 3430.92 Phoenix AZ
20 Marla - - 3442.58 San Diego CA I known the parents since college and was in their wedding
21 EmmaLee - - 3522.17 San Antonio TX Cousin
22 Aunt Brenda - - 3814.83 King CA Great-auntie of Baby Conway

10 days old

Luke is only 10 days old today and in some ways I can't remember our life without him. He is sleeping about 3 to 4 hours at a time through the night. We are getting into a routine, but I've been told not to get too used to it as it will change as soon as we get comfortable... We are really lucky, as Luke is such a good baby and really only cries when he is hungry or wet. Keeping my fingers crossed that it stays that way!

We had a growth ultrasound the week before Luke was born and they did a 3D picture of his face. It is crazy how accurate it was!



Well I better run - It's time for another feeding. I'll update soon!

Luke is here!

Most of you have already heard - Luke Payton Conway joined our family on Monday July 28th at 8:34 pm. He was 3 weeks early and weighed 7lbs and 6 oz. Thank goodness he was early or he would have been humongous!

My water broke at about 4:30 on Sunday afternoon after Dan and I had just finished a giant to do list of things to get done before Baby C joined us. I was in denial for about an hour until the doctor called back and confirmed that yes it sounded like my water broke. Since I wasn't having regular contractions, she said we could stay at home for a couple hours. This gave us a chance to call my mom to come help, and get work stuff taken care of (a little at least,) and pack for the hospital. Yes, I know - I should have already been packed, but it was on the to-do list...

We headed to the hospital about 9:30 and checked in at triage. They had me walk for two hours before they would admit me and that definitely got the contractions going. At about 1am they finally admitted me and moved us to Labor and Delivery. I eventually got an epidural and got a little sleep.

The next morning I was dilated to 6 and having regular contractions, so they thought I would have the baby soon. I kept progressing and was 10 cm dilated by 1 pm. At that point the contractions became pretty irregular. We tried pushing a little, but baby was being stubborn. At 5 we really started pushing seriously, but Luke was in a bad position and had to be turned a little. At 7 there was a shift change and my regular OB came on shift. She really got us going and Luke was finally born at 8:34pm. I had a little hemorrhaging from the long labor, and Luke had low blood sugar, but other than that everyone came out great.


It took another 4 hours for them to put us in a regular room, so at that point Dan and I were absolutely exhausted. Tuesday was mostly spent resting and getting to know our baby.
We had a few visitors and a few naps in between visitors and nurses and doctors poking and prodding Luke and I. Wednesday we were released and came home. It was great to finally be home with Luke.


Friday we went to our first pediatrician visit and it turned out Luke had jaundice. It was bad enough to send us back to the hospital. Luckily, once they got him under the lights his levels fell quickly and we were able to go home Saturday afternoon.
Since then we have been taking it easy, trying to catch up on some sleep and get into a routine.

Dan and I wanted to thank all of our friends and family for your support and generosity during this special time!
We love you all and hope you will get to meet Luke soon if you haven't already.

Baby Shower Pics

Long time since I wrote anything! Sorry for the delay, but July has been a crazy month. We went up to the Taos area for the Fourth of July for Dan's family reunion. It was absolutely beautiful and so relaxing. Also, very exciting to be able to light off fireworks after 8 years in Arizona!
The weekend before last was my baby shower thrown by my wonderful mom and my sister, Erin. We had such a good time and I really want to thank everyone who came. Below are some pictures of the party.
We go for another Ultrasound on Thursday to see how big the baby is. It will be fun to see Baby C one more time before he/she becomes an outside baby! I've been feeling pretty good, just getting worn out more quickly than usual. Everyone keeps asking me if I'm ready for baby to be born and in some ways I really am (can't wait to have my body back a little!) but in other ways I'm not ready at all. We are still finishing up the nursery and waiting for our furniture to come in. Once the baby's room is done I will fell a lot more ready for the arrival!

Hope all is well and I will try to write more often!


Me and Erin trying on baby clothes on the Belly!


Yummy Cake


All the Preggos at the Party


Mollie and I comparing bellies!


My Mom and I

Less than 50 Days

I just looked at my countdown and we now have 49 days until my estimated due date! It really is getting closer and closer. I am getting so excited to meet Baby C.

My mom and sister are coming over tomorrow to paint the nursery and I'm so excited to see it done. Of course our furniture hasn't come in yet, but at least it's something. Dan and Josh put up a ceiling fan in our bedroom last night (first chandelier down - only 1,000 more to go!) and I slept so good last night with the fan on. We are so lucky to have our fantastic friends and family to help us with this stuff as I am pretty useless lately.

Baby is getting bigger and bigger and is really active. Usually I wake up about 4 or 5 in the morning because Baby is kicking and moving so much. I guess I should get used to waking up early in the AM with the baby!

Guess that's it for now - we are going up north for the 4th, so if I don't get a chance to write again - Have a Happy and Safe Fourth of July!

Another Pregnant Friend! Babies all around...

Oh my goodness! I just found out that my BFF is pregnant again and due at the new year. She already has a 18 month little boy who is cute as a button! I'm so excited that our kids will be around the same age, even though we live far apart - they will have playmates when we visit each other and I can get all the good advice from her!
One of my other good friends (who does live nearby) is having boy-girl twins in October. I'm so excited and a little nervous for her. I know they will be great parents, but that will be quite a bit of adjustment!
Out of Dan's friends here in town, one couple has a 9 month old, another has a 2 year old and another has a 6 and a 4 year old. We also have a niece who has 3 boys 18 months to 4 years old. We will have a few ready made friends for Baby C! I guess we are just all at that age....

Two months left!

It feels like it has been a long time since I have written, but here's what has been going on this month.

Dan has been working hard on getting our pool up and running which I am extremely thankful for, as the AC in my car has been on the fritz. So every time I go out to run errands or for appointments, I come home and get it in the pool. It reduces my giant sausage fingers and toes right back to normal size in no time at all. It is going to be a lifesaver this summer!

Invites for my shower went out and the shower is in less than a month. My sister and my mom are working very hard to make sure everyone has a great time. I can't believe that it is coming up so soon, but I'm very excited to see everyone.

We went to our next to last birthing class last night and got the hospital tour. It was both exciting and scary - I guess it just made everything more real to us. I think both Dan and I realized how much we have to get done before Baby C gets here. So Dan is going to be working his butt off this weekend and I'm going to try to help where I can. Which isn't much these days - seems like I always have to take a nap...

Baby C is doing just great - moving and kicking all the time! We definitely have an active child in there. According to the doctor everything is tracking right where it is should be, so we will pray that it stays that way.

Hope you are all well!

Mother's Day Pictures

Here's the Mother's Day Pics I promised. I also have some from out Phoenix trip I will post as well.

Erin, Mom and Me




Erin, Curtis, Dan and Me


Dave in the Smoking Jacket