Michael and Jennifer Yoder

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T22:14:00.050-06:00

The Christmas Season is always a busy time! Norah celebrated to the fullest at each Christmas function we attended.

Norah relaxing in her favorite Christmas shirt.

Santa sent Norah an Elf on the Shelf. His name is Elvis the Elf.

He flies back to the North Pole every night to tell Santa if Norah has been a good girl. Then when he comes back to our house, he lands in a new place.

To keep Norah's head nice and warm she's been sporting this candy cane striped stocking hat.

Aunt Sister made Norah a stocking!

Aunt Sister makes everyone in our family a stocking on their first Christmas in the family.

Norah made Christmas cookies for Santa.

The Smith family invited us over on Christmas Eve to decorate cookies for Santa. We gladly accepted because we love spending time with the Smith family. We exchanged gifts and decorated cookies.

Norah got Megan and Macie a gift card to McDonald's.

Norah posing with the Smith girls.

Then the girls helped Norah open her present from them.

Norah got Megan and Macie's favorite Dr. Seuss book, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. As you can tell, Norah is ready to read it.

Macie decorating her cookie for Santa.

Megan decorating her cookie for Santa.

Megan's final product.

Michael wanted to create one for Santa too.

Norah supervised while Daddy worked.

Macie's final product.

Grandmother had a Christmas gathering at her house. Norah was not the best participant! She was in the process of cutting teeth, so she was very whiny. Luckily I was able to snap a few pictures when she wasn't crying.

Norah and her Great Grandmother (my Dad's mom)

Norah and Aunt Amy

All the kids opening presents.

MawMaw got Norah a cute little Christmas dress.

Abbie and Norah

We had our annual Christmas Ornament exchange at Carla and Chuck's house. Norah was not in a good mood. She was very tired and cranky, so she slept through most of Christmas at Carla's.

Taylor and Bethany playing around.

Taylor was the Cowboy, and Bethany was the horse.

Jamie & Aunt Midge

Bethany and Taylor

Aunt Bob, Aunt Sister, Aunt Sandy, and Carla chit chatting after supper.

Aunt Bob and Kaylee

Kaylee and Jason

Ashton riding on Bethany's back while she and Taylor played on the iPhone.

Ashton was enjoying every suck he could get on his paci before Santa took it back to the North Pole with him in exchange for a new bike and scooter.

Gelena & Jamie

Norah woke up in a much better mood. She and Chuckie Poo played around.

Norah and Elaine

They are exactly one month apart.

Norah loved sucking and chewing on Frosty's nose.

Jamie had Christmas at her house for Daddie's side of the family. The weather wasn't too cold outside, so all of the kids were able to walk to the park down the street and play before eating and opening gifts.

Norah, Dylan, & Hunter

Passing out the goodies!

Waiting for their turn to open presents.

The big kids had to wait a long time.

Miley went first since Norah was snoozing.

Judy got a new puppy.

Dennis and Michael's mom, Deb, joined us at Jamie's.

Megan went second.

Matt was sneaking a peek of his gift.

Hunter opening his gifts.

Kailey went after Hunter.

Amy posing with her kids' gifts.

Sabrina opening pajamas.

Austin was excited to get some Axe body products.

Norah and Mamie

Norah snuck a Candy Cane off of the Christmas tree while no one was looking. She was trying her best to get the paper off before she got caught.

Madison

Abbie

Courtney

Norah loved chewing on her new teether.

Matthew's turn

Finally it was Dylan's turn.

Norah went last since she was sleeping during her turn.

She loved ripping the paper.

She didn't want to let the paper go.

Hunter relaxing

Kailey chilling

Megan looking cute

Megan posing with her Jen-Jen

Madison and Chrissy

Nanny opening gifts

Kailey and Jen-Jen

Norah reading her new book.

Michael and the twins

Courtney and Michael

Courtney loved holding Norah

Madison and Jamie

We celebrated Christmas at our house on Christmas Day. Michael's mom and step Dad, Dennis, were here to help us celebrate the holiday. Jamie, Carlos, Aunt Midge, and Aunt Dale came to our house to eat lunch and opening gifts.

Norah posing in her dress that Grammy bought her.

Norah chewed on every toy and outfit to see if she liked it.

Michael working on lunch.

Norah and Carlos swapped stories.

Michael's feast

prime rib

green bean caserole, deviled eggs, garlic mashed potatoes, spinach artichoke dip

...and the rolls

Everyone enjoyed it!

Norah really had the hang of opening presents by Christmas Day.

She loved to rip the paper!

Aunt Midge opening presents

Aunt Dale opening presents.

Mamie, Carlos, and Norah

Changes in the past 2 weeks

2011-12-25T22:14:00.042-06:00

Norah has really developed over the Christmas break. She's very aware of her surroundings and the people around her, grabs for specific toys, loves to eat her toes, chew on her paci, and splash around in the bathtub.

Norah loves snacking on her toes.

Bath time is tons of fun. Norah loves to splash around. She doesn't like to lay down in her bathing net, but she hasn't quite mastered sitting on her own.

Now that Norah is teething, she loves to take her paci out and chew on the side. She has really good hand/mouth coordination :o)

Christmas Season

2011-12-12T15:16:00.006-06:00

It's Christmas time again! This time last year we had just found out that we were expecting a baby. This year we'll be able to really enjoy celebrating Christmas with our new family. Norah's a little too small to understand what Christmas means, but we're still celebrating to the fullest in our house. I think Santa is just going to bring Norah a few small things like books, formula, diapers, and clothes. She's definitely been a good girl for the past 4 months.

These 4 pictures are the pictures we took for our Christmas card. It was hard to pick my favorite, so I picked 3 out of the 4 for our card.

Every year someone in our family gets to take a turn putting the angel on top of the Christmas tree. This year it was Michael's turn. He showed Norah how to do it, so now she's prepared for her turn next year.

Norah loved laying and looking at the lights on the tree. We might have to leave the tree up all year just for Norah's entertainment.

Michael's mom and Dennis are planning to spend Christmas is Memphis. Michael wants to cook a "good" Christmas breakfast for my family and his. We can't wait to celebrate Norah's first Christmas with everyone.

Happy 4 Month Birthday, Norah

2011-12-02T14:05:00.006-06:00

Norah, at 4 months old you do the following:

give slobbery kisses to Mommy & Daddy
love to snuggle
"talk" back during a conversation
eat between 5-6 fl oz of formula every 4 hours
wear size 1-2 Pampers diapers
wear 3-6 clothes
sleep in the pack n play next to Mommy & Daddy's bed
slobber and chew on anything that gets close to your mouth
You love to lay on the floor and play with mobiles hanging above your head.

Always chewing on your hands or fingers

First visit with Santa

2011-11-16T11:35:00.004-06:00

I was very excited when I saw that Santa Claus would be at WalMart taking pictures with kids for $10! All I can say is that you get what you pay for. I was not pleased with Norah's pictures. WalMart was running behind on the appointments when we got there, so they tried to make up for it during Norah's session. The lady started just snapping pictures. Norah was just staring into space. I let them know that I was not happy with them rushing me, so they offered to retake Norah's pictures. The 2nd try turned out much better than the 1st pictures, but they still weren't as good as I had hoped for. I did buy the cd so that I could edit them to my likings.

The many faces of Norah

2011-11-16T09:51:00.010-06:00

While I was messing around with my camera this weekend, I caught Norah being silly. Who would have known that I would love that little toothless grin as much as I do?!

Norah's new best friend

2011-11-16T09:47:00.004-06:00

Mama Jane made Norah a paci holder to help keep her paci from falling out. Well Norah's piggy has become her best friend. Instead of using it as a paci holder, she pulls it next to her and hugs it. So now she has to have a regular paci and her piggy paci holder to hug. It's the most adorable thing that I've ever seen.

Happy 3 Month Birthday, Norah

2011-11-02T13:54:00.008-05:00

Norah, at 3 months old you do the following:

are a very happy baby
smile at everyone
you'll go see anyone, but you want to make sure Mommy & Daddy are close by so you keep an eye on us
eat between 5-6 fl oz of formula every 4 hours
wear size 1 diapers
wear 0-3 clothes
you usually go to sleep around 6:30 pm, get up at 10:30 pm for a bottle, and then sleep until 4 am when you want another bottle.
sleep in the pack n play next to Mommy & Daddy's bed
slobber and chew on anything that gets close to your mouth
You are very entertaining!
You rolled over on your 3 month birthday for the first time!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T22:25:00.016-05:00

I never knew how much fun Halloween could be until Norah came along and I could dress her up! Michael and I usually stay home and pass out candy, but this year we just had to go and show off our little cutie. Norah had two costumes, a butterfly and a cupcake. They were both super cute, so we had to wear both of them over the Halloween weekend. Michael had to work for most of our celebrating, but I took plenty of pictures for him.

Norah in her little pumpkin outfit.

I saw this picture on Pinterest, but Norah didn't like the idea very much.

She's thinking, 'Seriously Mom! Why am I sitting in a pumpkin?!?'

We started our Halloween celebration the Friday before Halloween. Michael's dad and I took Norah to an Arlington business' Trick or Treat celebration. She wore her butterfly costume.

We ran into Ms. Sandra and Mya.

Then we saw Ms. Melissa.

Norah was ready to get out of her costume.

I bought two cute little Halloween bibs for Norah since she's recently become the drool queen. She was very proud to show this one off.

On Sunday night, Norah and I went to the Shumaker's church for their trunk or treat. Norah dressed as the butterfly because it was so cold outside. Norah had a lot of fun right until the very end when she got ready for her bed.

I couldn't wait until I had a baby so that I could make treat bags to share with her little friends, so I was excited to get that opportunity this year. Norah and I made treat bags for all of the little kids at Mama Jane's.

My friend, Stefanie, posted these cute little tags on her blog. I was so excited that she shared them because they are adorable.

On Halloween night we went to my sister's house. She had dinner, prizes, and a hay ride for the kids. Norah also won the costume contest dressed as a cupcake. We took all of the kids around a big block. Norah stayed on the trailer and slept.

This is how Norah began Halloween night.

Ashton wanted his picture with Norah and me.

Then Kaylee wanted her picture with Norah and me.

I LOVE Kaylee's smile in this picture!

My little cupcake!

Time for trick or treating.

Ashton didn't want to wear his costume.

The hay ride kids.

Norah snuggled with McKenzie while I took Ashton from door to door.

This is how Norah ended Halloween night. She was one sleepy little girl!

tutu fun

2011-10-26T09:24:00.007-05:00

During our fall break we enjoyed spending some time with our friends Julie and Piper. Piper was born the week before Norah. They were suppose to be about a month apart. But Piper came late, and Norah made her appearance earlier than expected. Julie and I taught at Arlington together. It's been great having baby girls so close in age because we discuss the changes that our babies are going through together. Julie brought over two tutus on our most recent visit, so we dressed the girls up and took pictures.

"Mommy, do I really have to take more pictures?"

"Seriously?!?"

"Hey wait....if Mommy is holding my hands, who is behind the camera?"

"I wonder if Miss Beth is ready for me to start dancing for her?"

Love that little tongue

Piper was all smiles during her photo session!

Norah looks bald next to Piper's full head of hair!

I have a feeling these two girls might get into some trouble together in the future.

Here is a good view of Piper's hair :o)

Fun and Games with Daddy

2011-10-13T11:53:00.003-05:00

Now that Michael and I are both back at work, we only have a few hours to spend with Norah in the afternoon before bath and bed time. Most of the fun comes from us making Norah do something cute and silly. We "talk" with her. We "sing" with her. We "play" hand clapping games with her. She usually just stares at us just like in the picture below.

Michael loves to play like Norah can talk!

He hides behind Norah and talks for her. Doesn't Norah look like she's having fun?! Michael usually makes her say something like, "Hey Mom, come change my diaper." or "Mommy, I'm hungry. Please fix me a bottle." or "Mom, you're the best bath giver. Please give me my bath tonight." As you can tell, "Norah's" statements usually require me to do something for her so her Daddy can sit and relax in his recliner.

Fun pictures of Norah at 2 months

2011-10-13T11:42:00.007-05:00

I wanted to document how cute Norah is at 2 months. She recently started laughing and smiling all the time. It's very hard to catch her doing it because she gets distracted by the camera. She's usually super smiley in the morning.

Smiling at her Daddy

Sweet Baby

Sticking her tongue out

fake smiling already

silly girl

blowing spit bubbles

getting tired

cereal

2011-10-06T21:19:00.002-05:00

Norah has been a hungry little girl lately. She has been eating almost 6 fl oz of formula at every feeding for the past week. A few people have mentioned that I need to fed her a little cereal at night to help hold her over for a few hours. I researched it and found mixed reviews. Some people said it helped their baby sleep. Some people said it made their baby fat. Some people said don't do it until she's 6 months old. Some people said they couldn't tell a difference. Well we tried it. I mixed one tablespoon of rice cereal with 5 tablespoons of formula and fed it to her. I really thought that she might be a very messy eater, but as you can tell from her pictures, she was a very neat eater. She seemed to be a natural at eating out of a spoon too. She's slept between 6-8 hours every night this week. However, now she's not such a neat eater. She knows what's coming so she tries to slurp the spoon, and it gets cereal all over her face.

Happy 2 month Birthday, Norah

2011-10-02T22:15:00.009-05:00

Norah is 2 months old!

Norah, at 2 months old you do the following:

smile often
eat between 4-6 fl oz of formula every 4 hours
wear size 1 diapers
wear some newborn clothes and some 0-3 clothes
love bath time
at night you sleep for 4 hours, eat, then sleep for 4 more hours
sleep in the pack n play next to Mommy & Daddy's bed
slobber and chew on anything that gets close to your mouth
suck on your knuckle
You are a true joy to be around!

Norah's First Runny Nose

2011-10-02T22:15:00.005-05:00

This is pretty gross, but I want to document all of the important milestones in Norah's life. At the end of last week Norah's nose started getting stuffy. It was the first time we had to use the nasal aspirator since the day she was born. I don't think she was sick because she wasn't fussy at all. Instead I think she was experiencing the joys of allergy season. Hopefully this will be our last runny nose for a long time!

First Week at Mama Jane's

2011-10-02T22:14:00.002-05:00

All good things must come to an end, and last week my maternity leave officially ended. It was very bitter sweet! I was ready to get back on a schedule, but I knew I would miss hanging out with Norah all day. I was also nervous about starting back to my new job. A lot of things have changed in the past 8 weeks at work, and I've missed a lot of training for those changes. However, my new team mates took great care of me.

One thing that I was not nervous about at all was leaving Norah with Mama Jane. Norah's baby sitter is one of my friend's mom. I met her years ago and knew instantly that I wanted her to keep my babies. This was before I had even met Michael, ha! Every time one of my close friends got pregnant, I would give them Mama Jane's number. So now Norah gets to see our friends everyday, and I get to visit with my friends' kids almost everyday too!

Mama Jane is AMAZING! When I dropped Norah off on Monday I didn't cry. I wasn't even anxious or worried about leaving her because I knew Mama Jane would love on her all day. It was also comforting to receive text updates and pictures all day from Mama Jane. Michael couldn't go with us because he had to be at the airport early in the morning, but we were both there to pick her up.

Norah was excited to get some Mama Jane love.

We both drove to Mama Jane's to pick Norah up.

I love my little baby!

We love bath time!

2011-09-26T12:31:00.002-05:00

Norah really loves bath time! We've learned that letting Norah sit in water helps calm her down if she's upset. She takes a bath every night right before her last bottle.

Norah's first Michigan Visit

2011-09-26T12:11:00.014-05:00

Norah and I made a surprise trip to Michigan to visit Michael's family before I went back to work. It was a very quick trip, but I think everyone enjoyed getting to meet Norah.

Uncle Bud & Norah

Bud loves babies

Grandma Lutz & Norah

Grandpa Yoder & Norah

She felt so comfortable that she feel asleep.

Cousins: Austin & Dakota

Michael's dad & Norah

Pops & Cathie with Norah

Cathie & Norah

Kim & Norah

Cousins: Kaity & Alli

Alli & Norah

Aunt Ness with Norah

Uncle Nate & Norah

Norah was so tired, but she stayed up late to visit with Aunt Tracy.

Kaity & Alli spent the night with us at Grammy's house. They enjoyed holding Norah.

Brenda & Norah

The Gans' Family with Norah

Grammy with her Grandkids

A bunch of cousins

Pops, Kaity & Norah

Grandpa Dennis feeding Norah

Norah telling Grammy a story.

Harry Michael

2011-09-26T12:07:00.005-05:00

While Michael was on leave with Norah and me, he let his hair grow out. I only made him shave once for pictures. His beard was extremely red!

After I cut his hair, before he shaved his beard.

making neat designs in his beard.

Norah didn't recognize her Daddy with a clean face.

But she did recognize his kisses and his voice.

Now that's my cute, clean cut husband!

Dumas 2011

2011-09-26T10:59:00.032-05:00

Every year my family gets together in Dumas, Mississippi to enjoy each other's company and ride 4 wheelers. The weekend is packed with family, food, and fun.

On our first night Michael made BBQ to go along with all the other "fixins."

Demi & Amy

Taylor & Stacey

Stephanie, Carlos, & Jamie

We ran out of tables, so Seth & Braden ate on the Gator.

After dinner we went out for a night ride. It was extremely dusty but fun!

Norah was asleep when we got back. Her first Dumas trip wore her out!

On Sunday morning we have a big breakfast shindig. This year was a little different because it started raining overnight, so we couldn't eat outside like normal.

Taylor had been playing in the rain.

We moved our breakfast party to the front porch.

Norah had her breakfast too!

After breakfast, we all went out riding. Since it was raining the dust was not a problem. It was cold and wet, but we had the time of our life! We all dressed in ponchos or garbage bags. They really didn't protect us from getting wet.

Taylor couldn't decide if he wanted to ride in the rain.

Michael was like a little kid in the mud!

Happy 1 Month Birthday, Norah!

2011-09-02T11:23:00.006-05:00

Norah is 1 month old!

Norah, at one month you do the following:

eat 4 fl. oz. (some breast milk and mostly formula)
wear newborn diapers
wear newborn clothes
love sucking on your paci (soothie) or your fingers
sleep for 4 hours at night, eat, and then sleep for another 4 hours
hold your head up and look around
love laying in your Mommy & Daddy's arms
sleep in the Pack N Play next to Mommy & Daddy's bed (but you tend to sneak into our bed before your last morning feeding :0)

Just for fun

2011-09-02T10:51:00.006-05:00

These are just some fun pictures of Norah.

Norah loves to sleep in her Boppy.

Daddy and Norah in bibs.

Michael told me that Norah's one bib was so big that it would fit an adult, and then he proved himself correct...ha.

Just chilling in Mommy & Daddy's bed.

pretty, pretty

Baby Norah

So little, but so cute!

Star of Mommy's Blog!

2011-09-02T10:39:00.003-05:00

Bath Time

2011-09-02T10:08:00.005-05:00

Norah was able to take a real bath after her umbilical cord fell off. I didn't know if she would like it, but it turned out that she loved it! She's still pretty small, so her head kept sliding from the holder. She just relaxed as I washed her little body. I hope that all of our future bath times are fun and enjoyable.

Gotta cover up the important parts.

She likes being nice and warm in her towel.

Still trying to find her thumb.

First Doctor's Visit

2011-09-02T09:55:00.004-05:00

Norah's first doctor's visit was on August 9th, exactly a week after she was born. When she was born, she weighed 6 lbs 1 oz. At her first check up she weighed 6 lbs 4 oz. She's in the 25th percentile for weight and the 50th percentile for height. She did have to get a shot! :o( She got her first round of Hepatitis B shots, but she handled it like a champ. She cried for about 5 seconds, and then she was back to happy baby Norah.

We love visitors!

2011-08-23T14:09:00.013-05:00

In an effort to document all of Norah's visitors, Michael and I have been running around snapping pictures of almost everyone that Norah comes in contact with for the first time. Here are some of our most recent visitors.

Norah went to visit Beth.

Beth held and fed her while Michael ran to the grocery store.

Norah and Aunt Sister

Chuck E. Poo and Norah

The Barbee Family came to visit.

Neighbor Mike

Steven

Grant getting used to holding a baby girl since he'll have one very soon!

Ainsley & Ali with Norah

Ainsley hugging Norah

Ty loves holding baby Norah.

MacKenzie & Norah

Baby Hattie came to visit her best friend.

Kim & Norah

Kim and Matt brought us the most delicious breakfast!!

Matt & Norah

Aunt Kay & Norah

Grandmother & Norah

Josh Render and Norah

Mikelle & Norah

Poor Matt was stuck in Tampa due to Hurricane Irene.

Diana & Lee's little boy Lucas with Norah

Norah is two days older than baby Lucas.

I think he's telling Norah a secret :o)

assembly required

2011-08-22T23:16:00.003-05:00

Grandpa Dennis putting together Norah's bouncy seat.

Pictures of Norah

2011-08-14T12:17:00.012-05:00

I love this little girl!

Michael loves this yawning face!

We love Norah!

2011-08-10T21:58:00.007-05:00

These are just some random pictures of Norah from her 1st week of life.

Love the little head wrinkles!

She picked up on sucking very quickly once she figured out that her food was in that bottle.

She's not much of a burper.

First Family Photo

Sweet sleeping baby

She's so advanced that she's already holding her own bottle....ha.

Sleeping on Daddy's chest

Just being cute!

Giving a little smirk....almost a grin.

Hanging out with Daddy

Norah's first bath

2011-08-09T21:07:00.010-05:00

Norah can take a "bath" every 2-3 days. Saturday was her first "bath" at home. She can't be submerged in water until her umbilical cord falls off, so she just gets washed off with soap and water. She did a great job! She cried just a little bit when she got cold.

Daddy undressed her.

We started with no soap on her face and then worked our way down.

Starting to get cold.

This bath thing isn't so bad.

Isn't she adorable?!?!

Norah did not like it when her tummy got cold.

But then Daddy stepped in and warmed up her front while Mommy got the back.

Drying off

She enjoyed her bath so much, she didn't want to get dressed :o)

We love visitors!

2011-08-09T20:33:00.009-05:00

We love visitors! We have been very blessed to be able to share this special moment in our lives with our friends and family.

Gelena stopped by the hospital before we left.

Carla came to the house and cooked a delicious dinner for us!
It was SO good!!! 100 times better than hospital food.

Little Taylor liked baby Norah.

Norah and her Car-Car

Stacey & Norah

Great Aunt Bob & Norah

Michael's mom had to rush down from Michigan since Norah decided to come a little early.
Grammy & Norah

Grandpa Dennis

Allison brought Michael some Chess Squares

Aunt Amy & Norah

Aunt Donna & Norah

These are very special visitors! Tammy & Cameron were leaving the next morning to move to Washington D.C., and they took the time out of their busy schedule to come see baby Norah.

Our little sleeping pill

2011-08-09T20:22:00.009-05:00

Every time we hold Norah, we get so sleepy that it's hard to hold our heads up. We've started referring to Norah as our little sleeping pill because we can immediately fall asleep when she's in our arms. I'm sure that we get tired because we finally slow down while she's in our arms, and the exhaustion catches up to us.

Daddy & Norah napping

It just feels so natural to nap with her on my chest.

My loves!

Bringing Norah home

2011-08-08T21:47:00.007-05:00

We were able to bring Norah home on August 5th. We were more than excited to get home and start our lives as a family of 3.

Getting all dressed up preparing for the ride home.
We had one more bottle before we hit the road.

Michael put Norah in her car seat.

Norah was a little squirmy at first, but she liked it after she got buckled in and settled.

Norah got to ride in the wheel chair down to the car with me.

She just slept the entire time.

Michael loading Norah in the car.

Our new family of 3 heading home.

Enjoying our time with Baby Norah

2011-08-04T20:44:00.012-05:00

Being a parent is amazing! Norah is a wonderful baby. I'm sure she'll have fussy days in the future, but for now she's so calm and peaceful. She is very alert for a newborn. She'll just watch people as they walk by or hold her. She's a super sleeper if her tummy is full, and her tummy is often full now that she's master the art of sucking. Michael and I have been very mindful of not holding her too much, but it's so hard because she's so stinkin' cute and cuddly!

These are some pictures we took after her hospital photo shoot while she was undressed.
I just love Norah cuddles! She's already got me wrapped around her finger, and I'm pretty sure her daddy is too!

One of my favorite things to do is watch Michael be Norah's Daddy. He is amazing with her. He's never been around a newborn for an extended period of time, so I wasn't sure how he would handle her. He's a natural! Michael wants to be involved in everything Norah does. He even youtubed a video on how to swaddle because he didn't like the way his swaddles were loose. Now I think he swaddles Norah better than I do.

He's been an amazing husband too! He has taken to best care of me since the surgery. All I have to do is mention that I want something, and Michael does his best to get it for me. I know he's made countless trips to the ice machine so that I could have ice in my water. He gets up with me at every pumping time and sets up the machine for me. Then he takes the milk and feeds Norah. Since I've been producing so little, we've had to feed her like a little bird. We collect the milk in a syringe and then let her suck our finger while we slide the milk in the corner of her mouth.

I had to include the pictures below because Michael always jokes about wearing gloves to change poop diapers. We just knew that Norah had a blow out! Her body made noises like a grown man. I really thought it would be up her back and down her legs, so Michael got his gloves ready.....haha! But much to our surprise, there was nothing in her diaper! She just needed to let out a little gas.

I wanted to document our visitors from days 2 and 3 in the hospital. We know that we are very blessed to have such wonderful friends and family to take the time out of their schedules to come visit Norah.

Ashton & Norah

Ashton loves his "peanut"

Lisa is one of my new co-workers.
She just had twin boys 4 months ago.

Sarah & Norah

Carissa & Norah

Carissa brought us some delicious Gigi's cupcakes. Michael had never had Gigi's before.
Let's just say, I think he's addicted now.

Bethany, Linda & Norah

Can you tell that Megan was a little excited to hold Norah?
I love that big, natural smile!

Macie & Norah

Mya & Norah
Mya has been ready for Norah to get here since before Christmas! Mya's mom, Sandra, couldn't go in a store without buying something that, according to Mya, Norah just had to have.

Sandra & Norah

Kade, Mamie, & Norah

Laura & Norah
I taught Laura's son, Tanner, this past year. She works in the NICU at the hospital.

Natalie, Reid & Norah

Mama Jane & Norah
Mama Jane will be watching Norah while Michael and I work. I used to work with her daughter, Amanda, at Elmore Park, and I knew from the minute I met her that I wanted her to keep my babies. That was before I met Michael or had any plans to have a family. Now most of my friends use Mama Jane as their babysitter, so Norah will have friends all around her everyday.

Introducing Norah Jean Yoder

2011-08-02T23:10:00.023-05:00

Our precious Norah arrived today. We think she's absolutely wonderful!!

Norah Jean Yoder

8-2-11

6 lbs 1 oz

19.5 in

Norah's original due date was August 14, but the doctor had scheduled a c-section for August 9. We had a c-section because I tore my retina a few years back, and my eye doctor doesn't want me to do anything that causes a strain behind my eye like going into labor and pushing. Well Norah had another plan. I woke up with contractions 2 nights ago. They were strong but almost 20 minutes apart. I went to work Monday. The contractions got stronger, but still very spaced out. Michael asked me if he should come home, and I told him no. It was probably just false labor, and he was scheduled to be back in Memphis early the next morning. My contractions continued to be unpredictable all night, but they were increasing in strength. I monitored them while trying to get some sleep. Then at 2:59 AM the contractions went from being 12-15 minutes apart to being 4 minutes apart. I monitored them for an hour, and then I called Michael. I told him that I was going to call our friend, Shanna, who lives down the street to take me to the hospital just in case I really was in labor. Michael agreed. He knew that he'd be back in Memphis shortly, or so we thought.

Upon arriving to the hospital the contractions were so strong they were taking my breath away. I got checked in at the hospital. Michael called me in a bit of a panic. His flight had been delayed due to maintenance issues. We both knew that this might mean that he would miss Norah's birth!!! I tried to remain calm, but I needed Michael with me if I was in labor. But there was a possibility that I wasn't in true labor. No one had checked me, so I didn't know if I would be admitted to the hospital. Once I got into a room and the nurse checked me, I had only dialated 1cm. In my head that wasn't a big deal, and Michael had plenty of time to get home. The nurse checked me again about an hour later, and I had progressed from a 1 to a 3 in just under an hour. That meant that I was in active labor, and I would be admitted to the hospital to have Norah. In the meantime, Michael's plane was still not fixed. I told the doctors and nurses that I could not have Norah until Michael got there. They said they would do their best to hold off on the delivery, but they had to do what was best for the baby. (Michael and I wanted what was best for Norah too.)

At the next check about an hour later, I had gone from 3 to 6! Most first time moms don't dialate that quickly! Michael finally got some good news: his plane was fixed, and he could head back to Memphis. He wouldn't be back in Memphis until 9, so he called his friend Reid to pick him up at the airport. That way Michael wouldn't have to waste time riding the bus to go pick up his truck. While all of that was going on, my doctor called and scheduled the c-section for 11:30. The only problem was seeing if Norah was going to wait that long. My doctor did give me something to help slow the contractions down, which would hopefully slow my labor down.

It must have worked because Michael finally arrived to the hospital before I had Norah. Not long after Michael arrived, my doctor arrived also. We were quickly wheeled into the operating room. Within 10-15 minutes we had a baby girl! I'm so happy that Michael was able to be there with me when Norah was born.

We are very excited to begin this new chapter in our lives!!!

Me at 5:15 AM having VERY strong contractions.

Shanna and I holding down the fort until Michael could arrive.

Yeaaaa! Michael finally made it!

This is Michael right before we entered the OR.

He was very excited :o)

This is me right before they started the surgery.

The beginning of the surgery

There is baby Norah!!!

Proud Daddy & Baby

The Yoder's: Family of 3

In the nursery

I finally got to hold her after we got a room.

The Yoder Family

Michael giving Norah her first bottle

Norah and her Daddy

Norah at 0 days and 0 months old

Norah had a lot of visitors during her first few hours of life.

Jamie AKA Mamie

Aunt Dale AKA Gan-Gan

Aunt Midge AKA Grandma Mid

Aunt Pouchie

Aunt Sandy

Mallory & Kaylee

Bethany

Gelena

Yolanda

LaShona, Jason, & Chase

Natalie

Reid

Melissa

Kevin

McKenzie

Shanna

Gwen & Samantha

Braden

Stephanie & Seth

Chris

Carlos

Friends' Candyland Shower

2011-07-18T17:42:00.018-05:00

My very creative friends threw me a Candyland themed shower. Just the sweet smell from the room could put you into a diabetic coma.....and I loved it! It was fun to visit with everyone and play fun games. Norah got a bunch of awesome gifts. All I can say is that this girl shouldn't need anything for her first year of life. Our friends and family have made sure she will be well supplied with everything she could possibly need.

The object of the game was to get as many candy

necklaces around the candy bottles as possible.

Robin

Jamie won! She got two!

Gelena

Sara got one!

Erica

Teresa

This was the goal of the game.

Yolanda

Erin

LaQueta

Gift table

Cake table

Robin & Me

Yolanda and me

me & Aunt Midge

Aunt Midge and her girls

Gelena and me

Erin & me

Miranda & me

It's done!!!!

2011-07-18T17:32:00.005-05:00

Our upstairs bonus room is finally done! Now we're ready to start moving things upstairs. We'll use this room as our guest bedroom and office. Our old office will become the baby's room. Things are slowly falling into place for Norah's arrival. I think that Michael and his helpers (Pops and Reid) did a great job.

Couple's Shower

2011-07-14T20:23:00.013-05:00

This past weekend we had a shower thrown by some of our closest friends. It was so much fun to sit around and visit, just like in the old days. And the food was delicious! We are very thankful for the amazing friends that God has placed in our lives.

Michael and me with the cake

Even though Carissa couldn't be at the shower, she sent a beautiful cake!

We had tons of delicious food!

The beautiful hostesses.

Sarah, Holley, me, LaShona, Shanna, & Gina

Regan & Natalie

Gina & Melissa cutting the cake

Jessica and Grant

(They're having a baby girl too!)

Chris & Michael

Kim & Matt

The boys talking boy talk

Gina made all of the men empty their pockets into Norah's piggy bank.

We have amazing friends!

We were feeling the love at the shower.

School Friends' Shower

2011-07-14T19:41:00.011-05:00

When we first found out that we were pregnant Melissa and her mom offered to throw us a shower. I thought that this would be a perfect shower to invite my teaching buddies that I don't get to see very often since Melissa worked with those same people too at Elmore Park. It was good to see and visit my old friends and some of my new ones from Arlington. The shower was wonderful! It was great to visit and chit chat with everyone that could come.

These cupcakes were beautiful!

Melissa made all of my favorite foods! :o)

We played a game that limited your mobility as you changed a diaper with your partner.

Kizzy & Diana

Ruthie and Laura

(I think these were the only EPMS people that played.

I guess my AES friends are more adventurous with diaper changing....ha.)

Andy & Laurin

(Laurin found out the day before that she was having a baby girl too!)

Melissa and Gwen

Sandra & Laurie

Megan was my partner, and we rocked the game!

We didn't win....

...but we had an excellent time!

I think I've found two future babysitters.

Megan & Macie did surprisingly well at changing the baby's diaper with one hand!

Our wonderful friends spoiled us again!

I feel very loved, and I can't wait for my friends to meet Baby Norah.

Family Baby Shower

2011-07-14T05:59:00.024-05:00

Carla was sweet enough to open her house for my family to throw us a shower. As always, Carla did a great job making Michael and I feel special. Carla and I have a very special bond. She begged my mom to have a baby, and for her high school graduation gift, my mom told Carla she was pregnant with me. I got to be Carla and Chuck's baby before they had babies of their own. If Norah loves her Car-Car half as much as I do, then Carla will be one super loved person!

We had an awesome shower to say the least. My family and family friends definitely made us feel super special. Norah got tons of gifts. I think she has enough outfits to wear something different everyday for the first 6 months of her life! :o)

Aunt Midge, Madison, Judy, & LaDonna

Aunt Charlotte and Aunt Midge

Candy and Aunt Kay

Marcia, Grandmother, Mary Scott, Gelena, Bethany, Mallory (and Elaine is in her tummy.)

JoBeth, Aunt Dale, Marcia, and Grandmother

Julia, Karen, the twins, and Linda

Aunt Sister, Kaylee, Donna, Nanny, and Megan

Michael was taking it all in.

This bikini shirt was priceless!

Aunt Midge wanted Norah to have this horse!

The horse eats and responds to noises, just like a real horse.

Here is a look at all of the goods!

You can't have a shower in Crockett County

without getting some John Deere goodies for Norah :o)

And of course no shower would be complete without munchies! We had delicious snacks to munch on during the shower.

I LOVE fruit! I could have eaten this entire tray!

These two trays of chocolate mints were precious!

Hattie Grace

2011-06-23T20:22:00.010-05:00

On June 12th our friends, Chris and Shanna, welcomed Hattie Grace to their family. I've already started calling her Norah's best friend since they'll only be 8 weeks apart. Michael and I are so happy for the new family of 5. MacKenzie and Davis are already well adjusted to having a new baby in the house. They are so sweet and gentle with her.

Sweet Baby!

She was wide awake.

MacKenzie and Hattie

Davis and Hattie

Big Sister and Big Brother's hands

Precious!

You've got to love little baby feet!

We've got paint on the walls....

2011-06-23T20:07:00.003-05:00

Our upstairs is now painted! Michael will be putting up the trim this weekend. I'm hoping that we get carpet next week, and then we'll be ready to move stuff up stairs.

New Job

2011-06-17T22:31:00.004-05:00

I got news this week that I got a new job with Shelby County Schools. I'll be a member of the Performance Improvement Team. I'll go around the county and work with new teachers helping to support them and offer professional advice when needed. I'll also work with the administrators to complete evaluations on teachers using the new Tennessee evaluation model.

I'm having mixed emotions about starting a new job. I'm super excited because this is my dream job, and I really do think I'll be great at it. I love helping people! I'm sad to leave my friends at Arlington! I have developed many close relationships with the people at AES, and it's going to be difficult not to see them everyday. However, I could possibly be assigned Arlington as one of my schools, so I could still see them frequently. But now we have a reason to go out more often outside of the school setting! :o) I'm anxious because it is a new position, so I don't know exactly what to expect. But I'm excited to take on a new challenge. I'm ready for a change! I've been wanting a job where I could practice using my administrator's license. I think this job will give me a systemic view of our school system. I'll be able to see what works and what doesn't work, and this will be very valuable information for my future career goals. I'm nervous because I want to do the best job possible. I'm a people pleaser, and I like to make people happy with the quality of my work. I'll begin this job towards the end of July, and just a few short weeks later baby Norah is scheduled to arrive. I'm already wondering if I'll get behind in my new job. One of the supervisors that I'll be working with assured me that everything will be fine, and she told me to enjoy my time at home with the baby before I come back. That made me smile and breathe a little easier. At the end of the day, I'm super excited and honored that I was given this opportunity! :o)

31 weeks

2011-06-17T22:20:00.003-05:00

I went to the doctor this week for a check up, and everything looks great. We're right on track. I finally gained weight!!! I never thought I would be this excited to gain 3 1/2 pounds, but it makes me feel like I'm doing what I need to do for the baby. And I want her to be healthy! I've been having back spasms for the past week or so. I wasn't worried about them, but I did want to mention them to the dr. just in case they get worse in the future. She said it was probably from sitting the wrong way for too long (like our 10 hour drive to and from Michigan) and carrying extra weight in the front that I'm not used to. The baby's heartbeat is getting louder when we listen to it. It makes me excited because I know she's getting stronger and stronger. I go back in two weeks for another check up.

Bonus Room

2011-06-17T18:36:00.010-05:00

In preparation for Norah's arrival, we are finishing our bonus room and moving the office and guest bedroom upstairs. This is a project we've talked about for years, but we didn't have a reason to finish it. When we first moved in Reeves Williams, the builder, was going to charge us $6,000 to finish the upstairs. We were determined that we could do it much cheaper than that, and we have spent about half of that. BUT with a lot more headaches....ha! I think we would let the builder do it if we could go back and do it over.

It's been a long process because we've both had to work, and we've just done a little at a time. The first step was to clean out the room. We had been using bonus room as our attic. Michael's friend, Reid, came over and helped him move all of the heavy stuff. We then had to apply for a permit. I must admit that I'm a dummy when it comes to this stuff. If it were up to me, I would have just started building without a permit. Who knew you needed a permit to add a room to your house?! After we got the permit Michael and I began the framing process. I love to give credit where credit is due, and Michael has really worked his butt off on this project. I've assisted here and there, but with this big belly, I'm pretty much out of commission. It was also hard to meet up with the electrician because of Michael's unpredictable schedule and me working everyday. Finally the stars aligned and we were able to have the electricity run, but we needed an electrical inspection before we could go any further.

After our baby shower in Michigan, Michael's dad came back to Memphis with us to help us finish this project. They have seriously worked from sun up to sun day everyday on the bonus room. During this time Michael was on call, and he had to go to work several times during the week. He felt bad leaving his dad here working on the room alone, but he really didn't have any other option. Michael's dad pulled most of the weight this week, and we really appreciate it!

We're finally to the end point! We only have four easy things left to do.....get the final inspection on the room, paint, put up the trim, and install the mini-split air conditioner. The end is in sight!!!

Michael's framing job.

More framing

Michael's framing job.

Pops (Michael's Dad) putting in the insulation.

Michael cutting strips of insulation.

Installing the insulation.

Dry wall

Who's that sexy man?!?!

Putting up the dry wall.

Mudding the walls.

This took about 3 coats.

Stamping the ceiling. They were creating a texture on the ceiling.

Electricity is working now.

The ceiling is textured.

Now we're ready to paint.

Michigan Shower

2011-06-17T18:14:00.010-05:00

Last week we traveled to Michigan for a baby shower. Michael's sisters, Tracy and Vanessa, hosted the shower for us. It was a very nice shower. We received several needed items. With every shower, I feel more prepared for Norah's arrival.

Aren't the cookies adorable?

Getting ready to open presents.

Alli showed off each gift we received.

Bending down like this is getting harder and harder :o)

I love this little hat that Rose crocheted.

These were Michael's stuffed animals when he was little. His Grandma Yoder made the Carebear on the left.

Michael's childhood friend, Kim.

The Zaborski girls minus Tonya.

Tonya was out of town celebrating her 1 year anniversary!!! :o)

We missed you, Tonya!

Michael's nieces playing around.