Ainsley's Firsts

Just as the East Coast (and really the rest of the country) was attacked by a heat wave, Ainsley and family took off to North Carolina (in the mountains) for a week of firsts. The weather was beautiful and the trip was full of lots of R and R. We brought everything of Ainsley's, even the bouncy ball that has magical powers that calm her no matter what!


Ainsley's FIRST vacation

Ainsley's FIRST plane ride - she did just great


Ainsley meeting her Great Grandma for the FIRST time (her FIRST great grandchild)

Ainsley's FIRST "gathering" on a porch (all 4 generations!)

Ainsley's FIRST time sitting on the porch with a beautiful fire

Ainsley's FIRST ice cream social (and taste of ice cream :-)

First trip to Blowing Rock, NC

... more pictures from her first vacation that aren't necessarily firsts...

RRRRR - I've got your finger - RRRRRRRR

LOVE that medicine...

Hope you enjoy...more to come.

2 months, 61 days, 1,462 hours, 87,840 minutes, 5,270,400 seconds

Ainsley is two months old today! Mom and dad can't believe it. She has grown so much, both physically and developmentally...

*Ainsley was born at 8lbs 5oz and is now 10lbs 13oz (50% percentile)

*Ainsley was 20 1/2 inches long and is now 23 1/2 inches long (90% percentile... we are not sure where she gets her length/height)

*Ainsley's head was 12 1/2 inches and is now 15 1/2 (still smaller than cousin Faelyn :-)

*Ainsley devloped tears in the first month and is now facinated with her spit by constantly blowing bubbles or choking on it (mom and dad don't like the choking)

*Ainsley would only fit into new born clothes and has now out grown them and is wearing size 0 - 3 months

*Ainsley loves to smile, especially at her dad. Actually she has some of the most amazing facial expressions and is able to snear when she is anoyed and has even raised one eyebrow. Her most common facial expression is furrowing her brow just like mom

*Ainsley now recognizes toys and has even began to grab at them. She now loves her hippo and play mat and can stare at the toys or mirror for quite a while

*Ainsley has great head mobility and is able to lift her head while on her tummy and even push herself up on her arms

*Ainsley has moved from sleeping in her car seat to her co sleeper with the boppy pillow wrapped tightly around her

Hope you enjoy the pictures :-)!!!


Ainsley takes the bottle!


Ainsley and Dad catch up on the news!



The key to some nights of sleep


Hey There!


Is that a pout?


Who's got the Hippo?


Ainsley posing for the camera already. There is a baby picture of mom in the same dress with the same blanket!


Someone is hungry!


Snoopy bandaids she got after her shots... mom called dad and made him listen to her crying when she got them!


Ainsley and mom snuggle :-).

O Say Can You See... Ainsley :-)

Ok, the 4th of July came and went with fire works on the television. Here are more pictures of Ainsley and company from the 4th of July weekend. Hope you enjoy...



Bright eyed for the camera!



She loves to lean her head way back...



Is that gas???




All quiet for Aunt Stacey and Uncle Chris.




She loves it on the bouncey ball... Thanks Mike!!!




Quite the family portrait...

SHE'S ONE MONTH!!!

Over the last month Ainsley has had a lot of visitors to welcome her into the world. It's wonderful to know that she is surrounded by so much love.

AINSLEY LEE AND FRIENDS...

Rachel holds Ainsley when she is 5 days old!

Friends Sara and Travis relish that new baby smell as they welcome Ainsley to the world when she is 2 days old.

Chiqui shows off her first grandbaby Ainsley at almost 1 week!

Popeye rocks Ainsley at almost 3 weeks old.


Kaneia and Ainsley do lunch at almost 3 weeks old.


Grandpa Joe and Grandma Norma make the long drive down the NJ coast to meet Ainsley when she is just 5 days old.


Jordi is already making an impact on Ainsley at 1 week!


Friends Shole, Tim and Chloe also visited us, however, we never seemed to have access to a camera. As soon as we get a picture we will post it here!!!

HAPPY DADDY DAY!!!

On June 18th Karl celebrated his 1st Fathers Day with Ainsley... pictures are below

BUT FIRST - EXCITING NEWS!!!

We want to send out a congratulations to Aunt Sara and Uncle Erik who just welcomed Faelyn Erin into this world on June 26th. 9 pounds, 4 ounces and 22 inches - bigger than Ainsley is at this very moment. Kudos!

So congratulations to the two of them on their beautiful daughter.

Father's Day was great - it was a beautiful Sunday afternoon - perfect for Karl to disregard his homework and Red Robin burgers - Below are pictures of from Karl's very first Father's Day!!

It's a girl

Hello everyone! As most of you should know the big day did arrive, which is why there hasn't been an update on this blog for a little while.

On Monday, May 29th early in the morning (12:37am) Ainsley Lee Meck was born. If you have specific questions about the actual birth, coping with labor or Karl's unsuccessful attempts to get an epidural, let either of us know and we can tell you on an individual basis (Melissa's epidural was put in at 8 centimeters and worked great!).

Before we dive right into the pictures of our beautiful daughter I wanted to announce the winner of the pool. As I said before the date of birth was May 29th and the official weight was 8 pounds and 5 ounces. Melissa is still in a state of shock - she could have sworn she wasn't going to deliver an 8-pound baby. Even at this early age Ainsley is already not listening to her parents. Given the facts: The winner of the pool is Margaret so congratulations to everyone who participated.

The first two weeks with Ainsley have been great, mom and dad are amazed at how awesome it is to be parents. Ainsely has been on a few walks around home and loves to go with mom to get her Starbucks fix. Ainsley even accompanied mom and dad to the 8th grade graduation at moms school. Ainsley will not sleep in her co sleeper (fyi - a co sleeper is like a bassinet or a small crib that goes next to the bed....), she will only sleep in somebody's arms or her carrier (luckily we found something that works!!!). Mom is getting a little more relaxed and only checks her periodically to make sure she is still breathing :-).

Okay so now the pictures....I've only included a few of the many and as soon as Karl figures out how to post video we'll let you know.

All safe and secure for a day out

Ainsley and mom prepare for a day out

Dad and daughter hanging out

Melissa and Ainsley decked out in lavender

Don't I look cute in pink :-)!

Why can't she do this at night???

T-minus 30 days

Hey everyone out there.

It's May. The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming and judging by the way Melissa's stomach is contorting the baby is just aching to get out and see the world. Before we get into baby stuff though it is important to note that on May 14th Melissa will be graduating from American University with her Masters in Education. She also received 'Distinction' on her final qualification test. That means she is really smart. GO MELISSA! YOU ROCK!

Also - a congratulations goes out to Melissa's brother Steve and sister-in-law Joanna who are now the proud parents of a beautiful baby girl Samantha Rose. Congrats!!!

Over the last month people from all over the globe, from as far away as Rock Springs, WY, have been submitting their baby birth date and birth weight. The results are in for all of you that are interested. A note for all of you that guessed 8lbs and over. Apparently Melissa just will NOT deliver a baby that big so you guys all are out of luck.....See below. (if I've missed your guess please let me know and I'll update)

Next on the list is the results of the name poll. Many people submitted but we can only use one name. As you recall there were three names (and only three...Kurt) and they were Dagny, Ainsley and Zoe.

As you can see there was overwhelming support for Zoe but a word of caution for all you Zoe lovers out there. Before you open that champagne let me draw your attention to the chart below which illustrates where the naming of the baby decision making actually comes from...

Thanks to everyone who sent us notes and well wishes, name input, date and weight guesses. Good luck to everyone. We are now at t-minus 30 days, Melissa and the baby are doing great and the scary thing is that the next posting you see here will have baby pictures as well. I know I can't wait.

The best to all of you. Melissa & Karl

Baby Shower and Other Things

So, the time is almost upon us for a baby so there are some important things to discuss. When is this baby coming out and how much is she going to weigh? Also, what the heck are we going to name this baby? That's where you come in.

The official date of delivery is forecasted to be May 30th. Please leave a comment, or send an e-mail directly to one of us, with your guess of date and weight. The winner(s) will get a prize to be determined by us at a later date.

Karl's guess: May 20th, 6lbs, 7.5 ounces
Melissa's guess: June 2nd, 7lbs, 2 ounces

Also, you, yes YOU, get to help us pick the name. That's not actually true, but I want you all to feel a part of things so play along. We'll post the results in a few weeks. Please no additions to the list......I'm not naming my daughter Larri, Larina or Mitchy so don't even think about it Larry.

The top 3 are...

• Dagny
• Ainsley
• Zoe

Choose carefully.

Below are some photos from the baby shower we had on April 9th. Also, there are some shots of Melissa and I taken by the wonderful person, Sara, who organized the shower. Enjoy! Please leave a comment - we enjoy reading them.

YUM!

Some Guests

"This is my belly"

Cute Outfit

Melissa touching my bump....hilarious

Melissa getting help from our friends daughter Chloe

Our friend Travis and his son Ori

More Gifts!

Fun With String

"I'm so sorry I Did This To You..."