March 19 – March 25 ~ Smiling and Swinging

You started smiling more and more this week. Your grins turned into wide, open smiles. It was difficult to capture them in a picture though. You always seemed to give your biggest smiles on your changing table. You would stretch out your arms, smile, and even coo while I was changing your diaper. I can imagine why you were so happy, but I would have needed a third arm to get a picture. However, I did take a series of pictures after a diaper change, and oh my goodness you took away all doubt that you were the cutest baby in the world.

On Saturday you had more visitors. Great Grandpa Ed and Great Grandma Monique came to see you around lunch time. They are your Grandpa Chris’ dad and his wife. They were so happy to finally meet you. We ate the lunch they brought and then we sat and talked for awhile. You were a little fussy at the beginning of the visit, but after you had eaten you were ready to be passed around.

As we were getting ready for church on Sunday morning, your dad put you in your swing. We were only going to put you there for a moment. You normally didn’t like your swing for more than a minute or two. However, you fell asleep. Your dad and I couldn’t believe it. We were so happy that you were comfortable. You were still sleeping soundly after an hour; however, we had to wake you up so we could dress you for church. After church, you did fall asleep once more in your swing.

March 12 – March 18 ~ Great Grandpa Bob and Great Grandma Barbara

An amazing event happened on the 12th. It was thrilling. You sat in your bouncy chair for just about a half of an hour. Now you may not think that was all too exciting…but it made your dad and I quite happy. You see, you loved to be held at all times. Your dad and I loved holding and cuddling you, but sometimes we needed to be able to set you down for a moment or two. It was so much fun to see you sitting, reaching out, stretching, and enjoying yourself. You even gave us a few smiles!

This weekend you had more visitors…very special visitors. Gramma Kathy and Grampa Bob came down from Page, and with them were Grampa Bob’s parents, your Great Grandpa Bob and Great Grandma Barbara. They live in California. They were quite excited to finally meet you. You liked them very much. You let them hold and cuddle you. It was a lot of fun having the family around. The weekend visit was over too quickly.

You had another visitor this weekend: our close friend Kim. You should call her Aunt Kim. She lives on the outskirts of town…even farther than Aunt Abby. Kim came and had dinner with us on Saturday evening. After that, we spent time talking about our new favorite subject…you. You liked Kim very much and that made us all happy. She thought you were just the cutest baby ever…and of course your dad and I couldn’t agree more.

March 5 – March 11 ~ Catching up on Rest

After only 4 ½ weeks of life, you had met so many family members.

Let’s review: Grandma Ramona and Grandpa Chris, Gramma Kathy and Grampa Bob, Uncle Greg and Aunt Kelsey, Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jon, Grandpa Bernard and Grandma Lindsay, Great Nana and Great Popie, Grandpa Peter and Grandma Linda, Aunt Linda and Uncle Juan and Cousin Ramona, Aunt Aimee and Uncle Ben, Great Aunt Sue, Great Grandma Eleanor and Great Grandpa Floyd, and Great Aunt Sandy!

So many grandparents and there are still a few more, not to mention aunts and uncles too!

Needless to say, this week we did quite a bit of resting.

I must mention, you did notice yourself in the mirror for the very first time this week. We were visiting Grandma Ramona. We were just talking while she was putting on her make-up and as I was holding you in front of the mirror, I noticed you were focused intently on your reflection. I slowly turned you side to side and you held your gaze steadily. It was quite exciting.

This was also the first week that we took you to church. I thought I was going to spend the entire service in the cry room…but nope, you slept through the whole service! You looked so cute in your little pink dress.

February 27 – March 4 ~ Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, and your Cousin

This was a fun, but busy, week. Aunt Linda, Cousin Ramona, and Aunt Aimee drove out from California. They stayed at Grandma Ramona’s, but the main reason they came out was to see you. Shh, don’t tell Grandma Ramona…she might get jealous. I hadn’t seen my sisters in awhile and it was so much fun to see them. It is a loud, crazy circus when the three of us hang out with our mom.

You met your cousin Ramona. You didn’t seem to be interested in getting to know her…you seemed to only want to cry and be held. However, when we put you next to baby Ramona, you looked so small. She seemed to just stare at you…like she wanted to eat you. Don’t worry, I wouldn’t let her.

We also introduced you to your Great Grandma Mary. She was excited to see us…as well as the rest of the family. I must tell you, she was quite concerned that you slept through the visit. Next time, you should try to be more awake.


On Saturday we took family pictures. Uncle Juan and Uncle Ben came for the pictures as well. The whole family was together. It was such a cold, windy day. Who knew that Arizona could be so chilly! We had a good time at the park where we were getting our picture taken. You were being so good.

After our pictures were finished, we went back to Grandma Ramona’s to have dinner. Great Aunt Sue and your Great Grandma and Grandpa Williams came. You were in such a good mood. You sat with Great Grandma Eleanor for a long time. She had been counting the minutes from the moment you were born until she was able to hold you.

We had breakfast with Great Aunt Sue and Great Grandma and Grandpa the next morning. Gramma Kathy and Grampa Bob were also there. We had a wonderful time. I must say, this was the visit in which your Great Grandma Eleanor presented you with your gorgeous dedication gown.

Later that afternoon you met Great Aunt Sandy. She was happy to meet you at last.

February 22 – February 26 ~ Even More Visitors

Our very close friends, Jason and Danielle, drove from Page to see you. We don’t see them very often, but always have a good time when we do. As always, you were the center of attention. We took a lot of pictures! They thought you were such a sweet baby.


Up until this week you have mostly met family from Curtis’ side. Your Grandpa and Grandma Williams came to meet you. We had a good time. They brought dinner to our home. They spent the evening getting acquainted with you. We also looked at pictures of you and watched the video we had taken so far. Grandpa got a little teary-eyed. I think he likes you a lot.

February 15 – February 21 ~ Great Nana and Popie

You met some very special people this week: Nana and Popie. Nana and Popie are Gramma’s parents, your dad’s grandparents, and your great grandparents. They are very special and a lot of fun to be around.

Gramma Kathy and Grampa Bob drove from Page this weekend. They picked Nana and Popie up from the airport and brought them to our house. Greg and Kelsey also came over for dinner.

Nana and Popie were very happy to finally meet you. You were quite excited…so excited that you couldn’t stay awake. That isn’t entirely true. During the first part of the visit you were sound asleep. We passed you around the family members and you stayed in your peaceful slumber. You eventually woke up and let out a cry or two. Overall, you were on your best behavior.

Reality set in on Monday morning. After two and a half weeks off, Curtis had to return to work. It was the first time that I was going to be alone with you. I was a little nervous. I didn’t like being alone, so Grandpa Chris came to visit for a little while on Tuesday afternoon.

February 8 – February 14 ~ Family, Friends, and More

You had a very exciting weekend because you met Grandpa Bernard and Grandma Lindsay. They traveled all the way from Mancos, Colorado to see you. They were so excited to meet you. Most of the visit was spent holding you, looking at you, and talking to you. Even while you were napping, we couldn’t resist taking a peek or two. Sadly though, the weekend came to an end all too quickly.

On Monday the 12th, you had another pediatrician appointment. I had been afraid you were not eating enough, so I was relieved to find out you were a healthy eater. You now weighed 7lb 8oz. You gained 7 ounces in one week! Again, the doctor said you looked happy and healthy. Your next appointment would not be until you were two months old.

The next day, the 13th, you had your first real bath. You didn’t seem to care for it any better than the first few. However, I didn’t give up hope of you learning to like the water.

This week you also celebrated your first Valentine’s Day. I must apologize because we didn’t make a big to do about it…and it wasn’t romantic either. However, you did meet Abby. She is a very close friend, so you should call her Aunt Abby. She drove from the other side of town to meet you. You liked her quite a bit. Her husband, Andy, couldn’t make it that day, but I know you will like him too.

First Week

We spent two nights at the hospital. The staff was wonderful. I will say though, I was ready to wear my own clothes and sleep in my own bed. I could hardly wait to take you home and show you where you would be living. After the paperwork was filled out we were given the green light to go home. At around lunchtime on February 2^nd, we were home.

Gramma Kathy and Grampa Bob stayed at our home. They helped with the household chores as well as meals. This let Curtis and me spend time getting to know you and catching up on rest when we could. It was nice to have all of the help. It was also nice for Gramma and Grampa to get to know you.

This was a special week because we did so many things for the very first time…

You had your first bath…well, sponge bath. You weren’t so happy about getting wet and in particular your hair. I just hoped you would learn to like the water. It would be a sad thing if you never wanted to get wet...no pool parties, no diving in the river, no snorkeling…

You watched your very first football game…it was the super bowl. It was a shame that our team wasn’t playing… (Oh, you don’t know it quite yet, but you are a Broncos fan. Don’t listen to your other family members…they don’t know what they are talking about. Just remember, the Broncos are the only team you will ever want to cheer for.) We didn’t really care for either of the teams playing, so we just watched the game for the commercials. However, you did practice cheering for touchdowns.

You went to your first pediatrician appointment. You were back up to your birth weight and Dr. Gentile said you looked very healthy.

On Tuesday the 6^th, we said bye to Gramma and Grampa. They went back home to Page.

There ended your first week.

Elizabeth's Birth Story

I thought that your baby journal couldn’t start anywhere else than the day you were born. This is your birth story.

The day you were born, January 31, 2007, started like any other. I woke up at 3:33 (that time will forever be set in my memory) in the morning needing to use the restroom…or so I thought. It turns out that my water had just broken. At first I thought that I no longer had control over my bladder, so I went back to bed but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was something more. However, since it wasn’t too much fluid, I wouldn’t let myself believe it was my water breaking. I tossed and turned for awhile and then woke Curtis up. I told him that I thought that maybe my water had broken but that I wasn’t convinced and now that I had let him know, I was going to go back to bed. He asked me a few questions but I told him it was probably nothing and the best thing to do would be to go back to sleep. Then I felt it…it was distinctive and I couldn’t mistake it…a contraction. Curtis told me that I needed to go to the hospital because the doctor said that is what we needed to do if my water broke. After much persuasion, I agreed to go, but not until I had showered, fixed my hair, and had breakfast.

We arrived at the hospital at 7:15. The nurses asked me to change into a hospital gown and in the process of doing so I gushed all over the bathroom floor...so embarrassing. There was now no questioning that my water had broken. While we were waiting to be moved to our room, Curtis called the soon to be grandmothers to let them know that the baby was coming sometime during the day. After a few minutes Dr. Kells came in and told me that because my water had broken we were on a little bit of a timeline to have the baby born. The timeline, he explained, was to try to avoid infection. After that, we were taken to the room where I was going to have the baby!

For the rest of the morning Curtis and I walked around the hallways to try and speed up my labor. My mom and Cathy came in to check on us around lunch time. They brought Curtis lunch from Rubio’s. I wasn’t in the mood for anything to eat. At 3:30pm I still hadn’t progressed far enough along for my midwife to feel comfortable for me to continue on my own. So I was given Pitocin. It was not my favorite time of the day. For some reason my body didn't react well to it and I couldn't tell when I was or was not having a contraction....it just felt like one 10 minute long peaked contraction. Curtis was trying to make me as comfortable…but nothing seemed to work. The discomfort was almost unbearable. My nurse encouraged me to change positions and I immediately felt relief…well sort of. At least I could now rest between contractions.

At about 4:30 I was ready…I just felt the need to push. After about one hour of pushing you were born. You were no longer Shaboomba but Elizabeth Ann Havran. You were born at 5:48pm and were 7lb .5oz, 20 1/4 inches long. The nurses said they were going to put either 7lb 0oz or 7lb 1oz. I voted for the extra ounce and so that is why it was recorded as 7lb 1 oz.

Later that night you were visited by many family members who had been waiting for you to arrive. First to see you was Grandma Ramona, Grandpa Chris, and Cathy. A few hours later we introduced you to Gramma Kathy, Grampa Bob, Uncle Greg, Aunt Kelsey, Aunt Sarah, and Uncle Jon. So many people! I would tell you more about their visits, but I was rather tired by that time. However, I can say that everyone was very excited to meet you.

After the visitors had left, Curtis and I just looked at you in amazement. The day seemed almost unreal. After the many months of planning and anticipation, you were finally here. We felt blessed beyond words.