Thanksgiving

So this year for Thanksgiving we went to Grand Rapids, MI to visit my Grandpa aka Papa. We went out to eat at a restaurant and had a pretty good time. This is the 2nd time Evie has meet her Great Grandpa. He is 90 years old and still going strong. His mom lived till she was 98 and his Grandma till she was 97. (Don't quote me on the exact years, but approximately). Who knew that drinking, smoking, and no exercise is key to living long, proven by Papa. I'm pretty sure his mom and grandma didn't live that lifestyle. I wonder if those genes of steel will carry down to me.
I was excited for Evie to spend time with Papa. Papa is he opposite of emotional, or showing any emotion. He doesn't fit into the sweet old man category where you would climb up on his knee. I was actually kind of scared of him when I was young... and older. These are the words I typically heard Papa say, "Come here, Sit (pointing to the chair), read". And then maybe I would get an occasional chuckle or smile at the end if I commented correctly on what I was reading.

The only time you would know he is enjoying something is if he smiles. Which rarely happens. I first realized this when Mema, my Grandpa, pointed this out while buying a leaf blower machine. " Papa is one happy man, that's the biggest grin I've seen all week." And he was.

Although, if you asked specific questions he would definitely talk about them. Even though he never showed much expression I know he loved me growing up. He always made us something out of wood from his workshop. He spent time with us. And occasionally I get a smile.

I'm glad Evie got one.

5 Months Old

Evie has been growing so fast we can hardly keep up. She is a bright, funny, happy little girl who likes going for walks in the cool Michigan air and loves her Jackie licking her toes.

We went for a little photo shoot around Cranbrook this fall. As usual the leaves were amazing.

Those big eyes are definitely from her Mama. But the blue...probably from Gammy Prince!

My favorite picture of Evie.

We can't wait to see what she will be doing next! Hopefully we will post before the next 5 months!

One Month!!!

It's hard to believe that one month has gone by. Since all I have done is feed, change, walk, kiss, and put Evie to sleep. Or at least my 3 weeks of helpers did while I caught up on sleep. It's crazy how much she has already changed. She is sooo cute! We love her. Instead of doing a bunch of posts we are just going to do her one month post. So get ready to look at a lot of pictures.

Dad caught her by surprise!

And now we are both trying to run away!!

A typical pose you can find Evie in after eating. She loves having her hands up by her face.

We were really lucky to have Ben's mom Julie come out for a whole week. I love this picture of them. It was so great to spend time with Julie and to have her help out with Evie. Thanks Julie! We miss having you here.

Evie spending quality time with Gammy.

Evie is not quite sure about her friend.

The day after Gammy Julie left we put Evie on her stomach to see what she would do. She didn't like it very much and before I knew what was going on she was rolling over!!!! I started snapping pictures like crazy. I think it was a fluke because she hasn't done it since.

Sad face.

A little smirk.

Who me?


SO CUTE!!!

Getting ready for bath time. She loves staring at her puppy Jackie who insists on helping with every bath.



So glad that daddy is home from school.

A typical scene of night time diaper changing. She is pretty zonked out.

Good night!

Little Miss Prince

Little Miss Prince has finally arrived!! After taking 5 days and having a mini melt down (me not Ben) we settled on a name:

Evelyn "Evie" Thiele Prince
8 pounds 18.5 inches
Born: June 10th, 2011
10:31am

Evie came right on time via C-section. She was pretty stubborn and would not flip. They tried pulling her out head first, but she wouldn't budge so out butt first she came. The C-section was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. Although the recovery is definitely taking a while. Because of all the pressure I ended up throwing up for the next 4 minutes after she came out. I thought maybe I would cry, or be emotional...throwing up was nothing I had thought of.

Mom and Evelyn in the hospital room. We stayed a total of 4 days.

Her first sponge bath in the hospital. She did not like it at all.

Feeling much better. She is so cute!


Evie lost some weight in the hospital, but after a strict 2 hour feeding schedule she gained it all back and then some by day 5. She is so little, but at the same time I can't believe she was in me just a week ago.

We had lots of visitors in the hospital. Ben's dad had a meeting for work in Minnesota and was able to take the 1 hour flight over to Michigan. He got to see Evie just hours after she was born and was able to stay for 3 days. We were so happy he was able to make it!

Grandpa Prince

Grandma Skidmore

Uncle Jordan

Grandpa Skidmore

Uncle Jonny

And Reba! My best friend from high school got back just in time, after spending a year in Vietnam teaching. I was so glad she was able to come see me and the baby!

Finally home. Reality hit when I put Evie in her going home outfit. Which is when I had my breakdown. No more nurses, no more room service, no more help at the push of a button.
But after being home for a day it was so much better.


Our first diaper explosion. Ben was changing Evie's diaper when all the sudden I heard him yell. I came in the nursery and saw 2 darts of poo explode onto the wall. It was so funny, but also extremely painful because of my scar.


First bath time. I can only pick up things that weigh as much as Evie, and I can't bend over/ sit/stand very well. Ben has been AMAZING with helping. He is an awesome dad. Below is Evie's first bath at home.

We call her Eve when she is naked. Modest Evie.

Jackie has to be at Ben's side helping.


We finally went for a walk 8 days after surgery. What usually takes me 10 minutes took us 40 minutes. It was so nice to get outside, even though it was warm and Evelyn loved the stroller.


CUTEST BABY EVER!!!


She has the biggest eyes and was already lifting her head on day one.


Evelyn has been wonderful. We are so blessed to have such a beautiful baby. Ben and I decided that we make pretty good babies.