12 Days Old

In Search of the Lily-Files

Well, we woke up and went in search of the elusive birth certificate. We acquired the missing signature and approached the collossul structure that is Registro Civil ... but alas, we were sent away for the second time ... the irony of the situation was that the lady at the counter kept telling us that we need copies of our documents while sitting two feet from a copy machine. She told us we could have to leave, find a copy center, make the copies and return ... so we followed the first step and then just got McDonalds and came home ... we figured getting a signature from the doctor was good progress for the day ... tomorrow is another day and another attempt at Ecuadorian bureaucracy!

After our excursion, we were all exhausted ...

... upon waking, Lily thought she had forgotten something ... "What was it ... I can't ... quite ..."

"... we forgot to make the copies!"

Nooooooo!

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

"That's it! Let's do this! To war we ride!"

"Shoot, someone's looking ..."

"Hide!"

10-11 Days Old

Visitors Galore

We have been so busy these last two days. As teachers pass through Quito during their summer ramblings and administration is finally released for summer, we have had quite the flow of visitors. This is great, because Lily loves the company and she doesn't mind the gifts either ... and Lauren and I definitely didn't mind the delicious chocolate chip cookies today ...

The other reason we missed a day there, was that Lily had her first fussy night ... She is usually pretty easy, but wasn't having a great night last night ... we think we found the reason when Lauren went to hand her to me this morning ... we got a, let's say, fun noise every time we moved her ... haha, oh the poor girl with her first upset tummy ... but she was great today, even with all the guests!

Then in the evening, while the ladies slaved away making dinner (freaking delicious mashed potatoes and meat loaf cupcakes ... or at least meat loaf made in a cup cake tin) ... well anyways, while they were working away ... dad played Lily her first Irish music ... and she loved it ...

... and here I am whisper-singing along with an irish classic (seven drunken nights) ... and Lily is listening intently

Then we all had dinner and one of us went into a nice food coma ...

Only later to wake up ... with those darling little eyes ... 

... just asking for a cuddle partner to have and to hold ...

9 Days Old

Lily Becomes a Swinger

We awoke at the break of dawn to legalize Lily. We headed to the Registro Civil for to acquire documents for Lily ... only to get there and realize we were missing a key signature ... alas, Lily is still an illegal immigrant ...  

This is Natali, the daughter of our empliada (maid). She loves babies and has tons of dolls, so Alexandra (our maid) brought her to our house. She loved meeting Lily and followed her around for hours in the morning while we got ready.

Three generations of females out for a walk together ... with some nice hot chocolate to start the day

... and her is when Lily first becomes a swinger

Awwww ... mother and daughter can do anything with a little help from their friends ...

... and when we got back, Lily had her second bath ... looking oh so blond and cute!

... followed with some one-on-one cuddle time

... and a nice nap after ... who doesn't wish that this was their day? A walk in the sun (where you are carried around the whole time), a warm bath, some skin-to-skin cuddle action, and a nice nap

Lily starts to wake up ...

... and then look at those eyes!

 ... and then we had some family hangout time ... She is starting to be awake more often during the day and listening very intently to us talking ... She stares right in the general direction and focuses ... she stops fussing and just listens to the sound of our voices, our tones, our whispers ... I wonder what she's thinking ...

8 Days Old

Baby's Second Outing

8 days after Lily was born and the family is out and about ... 

... with Lauren and Lily both looking amazing!!

We headed to the botanical gardens with our little girl

Who are we kidding ... our little girl?

... more like daddy's little girl!

... but mom can check on her every now and then ...

... but we all know dad is king of the hill!

With sexy momma looking up at us and laughing ...

... she seems to laugh at me a lot when I talk ... weird right?

... and baby got her first sunscreening today ...

... oh the smell of the beach, and junior life guards!!

... I still have a junior life guard shirt in my closet right now that smells like banana boat sunscreen ...

... that smell just makes me happy ... and now that we are importing banana boat sunscreen to Ecuador ... our baby will have that same smell to remind her of going outside on sunny summer days ...

Lauren got her first big walk since surgery ... and did great ...

Doesn't she look tiny already?!

(... it's been just 8 days since she had a baby in there!)

... and just to leave you with ... one shot of Lauren looking amazingly healthy and gorgeous!

... and one shot of Lily looking cute as heck!

Flashback

Flashback Through the Eyes of a Mother-in-Law

Lily's Birthday (July 11th)

Yes, that's Lily hiding in Lauren's tummy ...

Lauren just found out that she was having a baby this evening

... Lily was kicking around and in all accounts being a nuisance...

... but Lauren calmly Skyped the family and told them the good news ...

(I was running around the house frantically)

... Lauren still looked gorgeous and kept on a smile ...

Awwwwwwww

... but Daddy's mind was heavy with deep musings ...

:: boy or girl? :: ..... :: BOY ... or ... GIRL ::

The view from our room ... I think it's Cotapaxi

Daddy's second time holding his little girl

This is when being a father really sunk in ... I don't know if you can tell, but I was whispering sweet nothings in my daughters ear ... telling her how much I love her and how I wonder what she'll be like in a week, a month, a year, a lifetime ... and letting her know I'll be there for her ... and so on =) ... but these things are secret you see, between a father and daughter ...

Lily is One Day Old

The adorable little girl melts our hearts ...

A closeup of the gorgeous girl who is about 12 hours old

... and daddy found a new hobby (addiction)

Awwwwww

Dad can't put her down ...

... and if you look closely, you can see the complete lack of sleep 

(although I slept a significant amount more than either Lauren or Leslie)

Mother and Daughter ... 

(singing) Reunited and it feels so good!!!

Our second family photo

(the first one not in scrubs)

She is so cute ... and the baby is alright too ;)

Four Days Old and Gaining Weight

She is so damn cute. I just can't stop. Those eyes are just mesmerizing. I stare into them for hours whispering sweet thoughts and questions ... 

... so of course we have been showing her off all over the world through Skype

... and when the camera turns off, the baby sumo wrestler comes out!

... but under no circumstances can you photograph her privates ... she covers those right up!

... a very modest girl!

 ... and as soon as I make a single mistake, she slaps her forehead and rolls her eyes ... "oh dad!"

6 Days old and Learning to Smile

Then we told the baby her first joke ... and boy did she crack a smile ...

... even gave a goofy chuckle ... haha

7 Days Old and Still Laughing

I'm pretty sure that Lily was still laughing at the joke from yesterday ...

Haha, what a goofy face