More pictures of Little Miss Sunshine

This is Little Ricky, Soleil's future husband!! She plays hard to get by refusing to make eye contact and he often pulls her hair to let her know he is still there!
Papa and Soleil love each other dearly and can't wait to see each other soon.
Auntie Krissy, Uncle Dan and Auntie Shana are some of Soleil's favorite people.

Soleil at two months old!

It has been a really long time since I posted and a lot has taken place in the last 6 weeks. Life is constantly changing.....I keep telling Soleil that there is a new sheriff in town, meaning her. She doesn't seem to appreciate the humor in it!
Soleil will be 8 weeks old this week!! Hard to believe it already. She is my most precious ray of sunshine, and I thank God for her every day.
She is focusing now and has smiled twice at Granny and Aunt Hazel. I find myself doing ridiculous things to elicit a smile, to no avail. I am getting her passport this week so that she can go to The Bahamas next month. She is looking forward to spending time with Gramps, Nana and Papa. And meeting her Uncle Jon, who says all babies look like aliens. Should be an interesting match!!
More than anything else, Soleil is so lucky to have so many people love her. Her Auntie Kristina has been to visit her twice in the last couple of weeks. She is a lucky girl!!

More pictures of Soleil

Today Soleil is 6 days old! How time flies! She is very alert and very awake...especially at night. She loves to eat (no relation to her mother at all) and can be rowdy at times (she has lived up to the name).
We are both completely overjoyed by her presence and spend hours just studying her. She is our miracle.
Grandma has been helping us A LOT with every day tasks and we couldn't have done it without her.
Grandpa and Uncle Andy have left, but we look forward to Grandma and Grandpa's (from Abaco) visit next week.
See you soon! love, Soleil

Introducing Soleil Eve Gates

On Thursday, March 29th our dreams came true. We welcomed our little sunshine, Soleil Eve Gates, into the world. Soleil is pronounced So-lay and is French for sunshine. She is absolutely perfect in every way! She weighed 8lbs, 12oz and measured 21 inches long. She has lots of hair,beautiful blue eyes, piano player fingers and her Dad's feet (finger toes).
We have felt such an outpouring of love and support for her from tons of family and friends both here and abroad. Her Grandpa came to visit from Abaco and her Uncle Andy drove over to see her. She is the luckiest baby on earth!! Who knew that such love could exist?

39 weeks and counting...

Watch out, world! Here comes a big one!

We are officially having a LARGE baby next week. The sonogram today showed that she weighs a whopping 9lbs, 13oz at this point. Due to her size, I will be having a C section next Thursday afternoon. The sonographer was able to point out her fat already (a gray shaded area) and we do know that she has lots of hair (think toupee). That's what the heartburn is all about!!

Mum and I have been walking every day in an attempt to make her arrive...to no avail. She is apparently content to be squashed in there, and is participating in a "who can stay in the womb the longest" competition. The picture of Mum and I is taken in her room....Mum made the curtains for her and we love them. We have also done some major spring cleaning around here.

Darrin is quite nervous and has been pacing up and down lately. He has already installed the car seat, with ease. Sleep is scarce around here for me and I have been trying to prepare Darrin by waking him up throughout the night. He is so appreciative! It is amazing for us to imagine she will be here in less than a week!
Both sets of grandparents should be visiting within the next 3 weeks...we are so lucky! We look forward to lots of spoiling, for her and us (like Abaco bread and crawfish)! So, the next time we update this blog, we will have a little sunshine to share with you. YAY!!

Introducing, Manatee Feet!! Apparently a map is needed to tell where the calf begins and the toe ends.
I officially finished work last week (one week early) due to high blood pressure and swelling. You don't say! I have been at home, eating and sleeping for nearly a week. So many shows, so little time.
Went to the dr last week and again today, and apparently I am already a fantastic parent because she is NOT going anywhere anytime soon. I am not even beginning to prepare for labor and I am measuring some weeks ahead. At least two of the drs believe she will be close to 9 lbs and are scheduling me for a sonogram. I will know by next week Friday whether or not I am having a C-section due to her size. God does have a sense of humor, doesn't he?
I'll update the blog as soon as I know some more. In the meantime, I pray for all the little babies that are on their way in the not too distant future. May their mothers have the wisdom to eat less and pop out a normal sized baby as opposed to a sumo wrestler. Oh, and I pray that she is NOT on Bahamian time!!!!!

Can I move yet???
Rub the Buddha Belly
I am good!
So this is what it's like to be pregnant...

So today we tried out our artistic talent and decided to do a belly casting. Darrin did all of the hard work while I sat there, trying to stay still for 20 minutes. The baby was not as cooperative as I ...she was busting a move the whole time. It was a great experience, but I have to say that the finished product does not do much for the self esteem. There was a definite horrified look on my face when I saw it the first time!! EEK!

No names yet!!!!....We want it to be unique and amazing. My mom has taken to calling her "Rowdy" since she says that is all her mother (me) has done while she has been pregnant. I can vouch for that.

So we are a little less than 5 weeks away. We are attending our natural childbirth classes weekly and optimistic that we will have a great labor and delivery. I am officially as big as a house and have gained 35lbs. My feet are crying out for mercy daily. Darrin and I practiced parenthood by babysitting Little Ricky (11 weeks) a week ago. Oh, there were so many hysterical moments. Perhaps most shocking is that a newborn can fart like a 65 year old man AND can throw up on you that often in one night. Oh, and it did take both of us to put him in his nightclothes. Darrin passed the diaper changing test with flying colors.

Most of all, we thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers. We are so grateful, and thrive on the positive energy!!