Time Flies

It's amazing, but here we are just a few days past Paige's three month mark. There have been many firsts in that time - her first Halloween, first Thanksgiving, first snowfall, meeting family for the first time, first illness, first smile, first giggle. Now we are preparing for Paige's first Christmas! Where has the time gone??

I am beginning to feel like a broken record nowadays whenever I utter that rhetorical query, and I know that I will be asking the same question for many years to come. While that is a sad thought, it is also a glad one for I have adored every up and down so far of the amazing ride that is parenthood - and I know there are many many more ups and downs to come. Best of all, I am not alone on this ride. It's kind of crazy to think of how much my and Katie's lives (probably more so Katie's - yeah, definitely more so hers...) have changed in three short months. And in that short time we have gone through a lot together. But it is clear to see, whenever we are able to take the time to breathe and look back, that our life before Paige entered it will always be a distant memory that we will never fully recall, but more importantly that our life since Paige entered it has been and will hopefully continue to be imperfect perfection, if that makes any sense.

Ok. So enough of the warm and fuzzies. I know it has been a long while since I've posted anything here. And I'm sure most everyone who knew about this blog has probably forgotten it by now or gave up on it ever being updated again. Sorry about that. I really hadn't counted on the scarcity of time to do things like put thought to word and update this thing. Anyhow, to make up for the lost time, I will defer to the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words...and so here are several thousand words for you. These encompass the past few months. Enjoy. And Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!

Andrew

Welcome Home

The Rollauer Family finally arrived home yesterday. What a beautiful day it was. Paige got the grand tour of her home from her parents and was so pleased and comfortable with her surroundings, that she fell right asleep. Paige arrived home in an outfit that was lovingly provided by her grandmother to wear for the special occasion - the same outfit her mother wore home for the first time some 30 odd years ago. And she looked great in it.





Katie felt great being back on her home turf. I felt great having the whole family together, safe and sound under our own roof for the very first time. After getting settled in and figuring out the best arrangements of furniture and accessories for Paige and her mommy, we just hung out for the rest of the day, getting a sense of what our near future would be like (read: lots of dirty diapers, seemingly endless feeding times, and searching for those small windows of time to nap and shower). Thankfully Katie had the foresight and the willingness to prepare a bunch of tasty meals in the weeks leading up to Paige's arrival. Now all we have to do is take one out of the freezer as meal time approaches, give it some time in the oven, and voila, a wonderful meal is waiting for us. So nice. Some of our friends have already provided an assist in the food department as well, which is so generous and really a treat for us. We've also been receiving many cards, flowers, and gifts, all of which we are extremely grateful for. We are lucky to have such incredible family and friends.


Below are a few of the pictures we have taken in the past couple of days. I hope to have more posts in the coming days. Until then, all the best from the Rollauers.

Paige Madeline Rollauer

Katie and I are more than proud to welcome Paige Madeline to our family. Beautiful Paige was born Tuesday evening, September 15, 2009, at 8:39pm. She weighed in at 7lbs. 6oz. She is exactly 20 inches long. And she is amazing! Wrapped around her little finger is one adoring father.

I am in awe and proud not only of my precious daughter, but also of my incredible wife. Talk about inspiring grace and determination! I still can't get over what she went through to bring Paige into our lives and how well she handled it all. And on top of all she went through, she has been the model of motherhood from the first moment, despite the exhaustion and pain I know she is dealing with. Paige and I are truly blessed to have such a woman in our lives! I am writing this post as I sit across from my two lovely ladies - Paige contentedly asleep on her mother's chest. Words cannot describe the beauty.

Pictures do help, however.



We thank everyone for their congratulations, thoughts, and prayers. They mean a lot to us. We are excited for everyone to eventually meet Paige. Until then, she says hello with a squeak and blink of her deep blue eyes.

All the best,

Andrew

Still waiting...

Baby Rollauer has decided to wait a bit longer to join the party, apparently. The due date has come and gone and there has been no real change yet - nothing to indicate baby is immediately on his or her way. This is definitely a child of mine - he or she does things on their own time...when they're ready. That's not such a bad thing - seems to have worked ok for me so far.

Katie just got back from a long walk with two of our neighbors. I'm about to make some French Toast (maybe with some cayenne secretly in the mix to help speed things along? - no, that wouldn't go so well with the nutmeg and cinnamon). Then we will wait some more. At least it's not raining today and there should be some good football and tennis on the TV to help bide the time.

Updates when there are any...

Katie at 40 weeks - Baby: time to introduce yourself!

Anticipation...

...builds and builds. Katie and I are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first child. We've created this blog in an attempt to provide updates on our growing family and to give a glimpse into our lives for those family and friends who we wish could be closer. It might take a while for the posts to appear on a regular basis, but we will do our best to make this a reliable source for pictures, videos, thoughts, stories, milestones, and other assorted items that will hopefully make the distance feel that much smaller.

In the meantime, Katie still feels and looks great. The sun is shinning. The baby's future home has been prepared and is ready to receive the bundle of goodness.

The due date approaches...

Updates to follow (hopefully soon!).