First Noel

Our tree

This was a Christmas of firsts. It was our first Christmas away from our families, our first Christmas celebrated in our house, and of course, Margot's first Christmas! While we missed all the excitement and tradition that we usually have when we're with our families, our day was relaxing and peaceful. Considering our new normal includes regular sleep deprivation, this Christmas was just our speed:)

We opened gifts, and even Margot had some fun things to open. thanks to her Aunties Sarah, Katrina, Great Aunts Nancy and Anita, Granny (my mom Mary-Leslie), the Sawyers, the Ratliffe's, and our sweet neighbors. Thanks everyone!

Margot in one of her first pink outfits. This is where it all begins:)

Our stockings: Tucker's was filled with pistachios...you'll have to ask him about that one:)

Daddy and Margot

Tennessee on his perch

Margot's mid-day snooze

Beaujolais Nouveau - it's been a long time coming!

Rosebud

Our girl came into the world on Friday evening at 5:47pm, weighing 7lbs, 4 Oz and 19 inches long. Considering how many people guessed we were having a boy, (based on the way I was carrying), we were surprised to see our baby was a girl. We both looked at each other, smiled, laughed, and I said "it's Margot!" This little rosebud really is our dream come true.

First moments with Margot

Some first pics...

During the second night in the hospital, I heard Tucker promise Margot a car on her 16th birthday if she stopped crying. She's got someone wrappped around her finger!

Margot and Auntie Sarah during her first afternoon home.

Car trip to the pediatrian.

Tucker doing his best to calm his baby girl.

Happy, sleepy, and full.

We'll post more as we get to know our little rosebud. Welcome to the world Margot Leslie!

The Talk

So, we decided it was time to sit down with Tennessee and have "the talk". With so many changes ahead, we thought it would be best to prepare him.

The issues of being a big brother, and how, in fact, this baby is not a cat were the hardest for him to deal with. We feel pretty confident that over time, he'll be able to share the spot light with this little person. I'm pretty sure he appreciated our honesty:)

The Waiting Game

Here we are: 4 days away from our due date. We spent the weekend seeing friends and going to some wonderful parties. Helen and Steve had an open house on Saturday night in Bethesda, Jenn and Will had a great brunch (and cornhole game in their backyard!) in Alexandria, and Ty and Liz had a sweet 1st birthday party for Emma on the Hill! We are so blessed to have such great friends...especially since all these friends give/have given us such invaluable parenting advice!

Now we wait, and hope that baby McD arrives close to his/her due date. I've walked and walked and walked and walked and thrown in a little spicey food here and there to get things going. The Braxton Hicks have gotten stronger and more frequent, but that's about it!

I wish I had taken more pics since there was so much worth remembering this weekend. I did manage to snag a great pick of Tucker with Ella, our friend Dan and Julie's oldest girl while we were at Jenn and Will's. And here I am, *hopefully* striking my last pose with my belly in front of the fire place!

Nesting?

Baking this baby takes a lot of patience. Today, I decided to do some baking where a little less patience is required:)

One of my favorite things to do is bake in my kitchen with music playing in the background. I could do this for hours. Knowing that these kinds of afternoons are numbered, (at least for a while), I went all out today. By about 4:00pm, I'd made peanut butter blossoms (I remember our neighbor making these when I was little), magic bars (a recipe that my Grandmother Mary loved), molasses chews (reminds me of the farm stand near my house growing up), and chocolate chip meringue cookies, (a variation from Rosie's Cookbook, a favorite of my mom's).

Here are the results! Could all this nesting be a sign that baby McD is on the way? Fingers crossed.

Baby McDonald

We are eager to meet this little person who has gotten the nickname of Wigglefritz from his/her Sassy, (aka Tucker's mom Judy,) because of all the kicking and jabbing that's been going on since about 20 weeks.

We got a sneak peak of the little one around 24 weeks...

Evolution Of The BELLY

Here we are, just about 39 weeks along! I can't believe it. It feels like a lifetime since the morning we found out we were expecting back in April. We've seen seasons come and go, jobs change, celebrated many new beginnings and endings, and our house has transformed to make room for this new little person who we cannot wait to meet!

Looking at these pictures really puts into perspective how much this baby, (and my belly!), have grown.

20 weeks

24 weeks

25 weeks

26 weeks

28 weeks

30 weeks

36 weeks

38 weeks