Pure Joy

Headed Home--Finally

After a week of living in the hospital, we were so relieved to take Anika home. Here are some pictures from the hospital.

This is Alicia and I at the Mid-town Global Market; we found out that it was a skyway's walk away in the middle of our week at the hospital. We never ate at the hospital cafeteria again. (Doesn't she look amazing for having given birth only days ago!?)

We also discovered a tunnel that lead from our hospital to Children's Hospital, where James and Melissa were with Evangeline. Alicia liked the wheelchair rides.

This was the common room outside of the Special Care Nursery, where we spent a lot of time between feedings.

This was our room for most of the week--pretty dingy.

Finally going home at long last. Cute hat courtesy of Amy Lee Harrington!

Man does Anika look tiny! Alicia sat in the backseat needless to say.

Anika's First Week

Because Anika was four weeks early, we spent her first week at the hospital--in the Special Care Nursery. It was a long week, but we had awesome nurses, lots of visitors, and a ton of support.

Meeting Grandpa and Grandma Freeman

Anika with Auntie Amy Lee, who was a wealth of support during our first week.

Anika and Aunt Lynn

Meeting Grandpa and Grandma Kim

Because we had so much downtime in the hospital, I spent a lot of time taking photos. And it's hard not to--she's quite the subject.

Anika loves to stick out her tongue.

She love sleeping too.

BIG belly.

BIG yawn.

Every time we fed Anika, we had to take her temperature, to make sure she was proficient at regulating her body temperature.

Getting ready for bath number one.

You'd think she was at the spa--she loved it and hardly made a squeak.

Beautiful Anika Joy

Welcome. Instead of using Facebook, Alicia and I have decided to start a blog to post pictures and updates on our darling Anika Joy and our new family of three.

On January 9, 2012 at 7:21 in the morning, Alicia and I welcomed Anika Joy into the world. She weighed 6 pounds and 3 ounces and was almost 4 weeks early--pretty big for a preemie! (Given her trajectory, Mom is secretly grateful that she came early.)

January 9th is a great day. You'll be interested to know that January 9th is also the day of the first hot-air balloon flight (1793), the first women's golf tournament (1811), and the day the Twins agreed on a $500,000 payment to the American Association for the Minnesota / St Paul territory--the agreement that paved the way for the start of Twins baseball in Minnesota. It's also the day in 1979 that the Vikings lost to the Oakland Raiders in Superbowl XI, but I still think Anika is destined for greatness.

Enough words; the pictures tell it all. Meet our new baby girl.