Thanksgiving 2010

We went to visit my parents in New Braunfels, Texas for Thanksgiving last year. It was a total blast! I was worried about how Penny would do on the plane and she was a total trooper. My parents spoiled us rotten as usual and we got to do some really fun things. Here are some of my favorite pictures from our trip.

This is my dad holding little Penny while she slept.

She woke up looking at him like "who the heck are you?"

My parents bought Penny a play center and she loved it! She just looked up at all the lights and toys and she was really entertained. This turned out to be a real life saver for me in the months that followed.

My parents bought a little swing and Penny enjoyed it.

This is Penny giving us a big smile in the swing.

My mom with Penny.

Penny chillin' out on the floor.


We went to the River Walk in San Antonio. We ate and walked around and it was a beautiful night.
My mom with Penny.

Penny trying to drink the bottle by herself.

Penny sucked her thumb for the first time while we were there and luckily Chris caught it on camera.

My dad cuddling with Penny.

This was before church on Sunday. Three generations of beauties! :)

Penny's Ear Piercing

So my mom came back to visit in late October, early November. She mentioned that Penny's ears weren't pierced yet and that she wouldn't leave California until Penny' s ears were pierced. I wanted them done so badly but was still scared that she might get an infection or something. I finally agreed that I really wanted them done so we went to the mall the day before my mom went home, November 05, 2010.
My baby was so good. She cried for about 5 seconds and I shoved a bottle in her mouth. That was the last time she cried about her ears. She never pulled on them, tugged them, or fussed. They didn't get red or infected. Even now, she doesn't play with them. I think she just thinks they are a part of her.
Happy mommy feeding Penny after the piercing! I love her pierced ears and wouldn't go back and do it any other way!

Halloween 2010

I completely didn't plan for Halloween for Penny. By the time we started talking about costumes for her, everything was sold out in the stores and it was too late to make something. In a pinch, we decided to dress her up like a mummy. I got some gauze and we wrapped her up in that. This is Chris holding her at the church Trunk-or-Treat party. I can't believe she was ever this small!
This is her sleeping like a little angel. What a cute little hat!
Look at those beautiful blue eyes!
This is a full shot of her with the gauze. By the way, she is sleeping on an amazing blanket that my mom made. It is beautiful and super warm. It was so great to use this winter. Thanks mom! We had fun at the ward party even though Penny had no clue as to what was going on!

The dress!

These are the booties that Penelope wore for the blessing. I wore them at my baby blessing. My mom's grandmother made these so they have been in the family for a very long time!
My mom made this beautiful dress and it is incredible! After the blessing (when Penny returned to a normal skin color) I wanted to take a few more pictures to show off the amazing dress!
The strings on the front were so cute. Penny couldn't stop playing with them!
The fabric wouldn't wrinkle if you rolled it into a ball and left it for a week.
She is giving me a look that says "Ok mom, I'm done with this photo shoot"!

Baby Blessing Party!

After the blessing, we had a dinner at Kim and Linda's house. It was great! Here are some pictures of the family. This is Chris and his three brothers, Chandler, Mack, and Cameron. We were so happy they all made it out to be at the blessing. What a handsome bunch!
This is us with Chris' dad Kim and his wife Linda. They were so great to let us have the blessing dinner at their house! Thanks guys.
This is my family, the Estes'. My Aunt Laura and Grandma drove from Utah to be at the blessing. It was so nice to have them there. Of course my parents, Rich and Celeste were there. Ariel and Francini live in Lancaster, CA now so they were there as well.
This is a picture of all the men that were in the circle. Ariel is missing from this picture as well as our Bishop, but they were in the circle as well. Chris' step-family was part of the fun. Linda's son-in-law Josh and her dad Bill came. My dad, Chris' dad, Chris, Cameron, Ariel, Bill, Josh, and our Bishop were all the men in the circle.
This is a picture of the whole family. We had such a great time! Thanks to everyone who brought food and contributed to this special event!

Penny's Baby Blessing 09/05/2010

Ok, so I have been a TOTAL slacker with the blog. Life with a baby is pretty busy! These are some pics from Penny's baby blessing. It was on September 05, 2010. My mom made the beautiful dress for my sweet daughter. It is gorgeous! This is a picture of Penny in the Relief Society room getting ready for Sacrament meeting.
Here I am with the baby. She was still so very yellow at that time.
Here is Nana with her favorite grandchild (Penny is her only grandchild for now)!

The dress is too gorgeous! Thanks so much mom! Well, the blessing was amazing. Chris is such a great father. We had people who love and support us come out for the blessing. It was such a spiritual moment for our family. I am so grateful for the priesthood and the blessings it brings into our lives.

My Poor Jaundiced Baby!

Jaundice is officially my sworn enemy! Penny has struggled with Jaundice for almost the first two months of her life. This is her in the hospital on the 10th. She was only a day old and had to be under the lights and on top of a lighted blanket. She was miserable the whole night and my mom stayed up with her so that I could sleep. It was very sweet! She cried pretty much all night. The next day, they did a Bilirubin level check and she was cleared to go home! YEAH....or so we thought...

We went home from the hospital on Wednesday, August 11th. We were so happy to go home with our bundle of joy. Well, we had a follow up with the Doctor on base on Friday. Her levels had gone way up. We got sent back to the hospital that night. We could not simply be admitted to the hospital either...we had to go to the ER. So, my baby that was not even a week old had to be exposed to who knows how many diseases in the filthy, grimy, disgusting ER. We were very unhappy and of course I was crying like crazy! We were admitted to Pediatrics and stayed until Sunday morning (August 15th). Her levels had gone down and we had begun supplementing her feeding with formula to help get rid of the excess Bilirubin in her system. All was going great! Or so we thought...
This picture is in the ER. Yup, we were sent back to the ER on Tuesday, August 17, after her levels were still shown to be going up. Luckily, by the time we went to the ER, her levels had fallen from earlier that day. Penny was given an IV to make sure she was hydrated. She didn't even cry when they put it in. We were able to go back home that night! Luckily, we have not had to go back to the ER again. Her levels stayed at relatively high levels but never rose again. She stayed looking very yellow for a long time. She is just now looking pink and her eyes are white again! We are thankful this mess is over!