One Month Old

Who remembers life before children? We sure don't, but we wouldn't trade it for anything. India has made us realize we will never need an alarm clock again and no sound in the house will go unheard. She was able to spend time with Grandad Washington this weekend. During their first minutes of alone time she officially welcomed him to Colorado....who knew that boys aren't the only ones you have to watch out for:) He recovered quickly and sighed in relief of Mom and Dad's return.
We are now out of Newborn diapers and a few outfits had to be retired. Her favorite activities are playing with Daddy, which includes being rolled across the bed, hanging upside down by her feet, and going for walks.
We Love You,
Linwood, Sara, and India

2-3 weeks old

India is 3 weeks old today and she is growing like crazy (at least it seems like it to us). She has started to adapt a schedule that includes dancing and calisthetics with Daddy from 8-11 PM so that she sleeps at night. Who would've guessed but infants fight sleep just like every other kid. During this time she sees just how loud she can scream and kick and push up with her arms. She is rolling from her back to her side and is practicing tummy time on a daily basis. She now coos and makes sounds that resemble giggles. We are loving being parents!

God Bless You,

Linwood and Sara

There's also a picture here of Linwood's new hair do.

India's First Week

We have been home from the hospital since Saturday and are adjusting well to life as new parents. Everyday is more and more fun and we learn more about our daughter. Some of the things we have learned......

1. Music calms the savage beast and the most beautiful babies. We found out that India loves music. Not only does she love music, she loves to dance - just like her Daddy. They are having themselves a ball! Linwood says that he hopes that he feels like dancing at 3:00 in the morning because that's when she'll need it the most. He has yet to try out this theory.

Her eyes have changed from blue to brown and she opens them often.

She has the most beautiful smile on earth. She's a little camera shy...it's been difficult to catch her on film doing her cute things.

When she wakes up she stretches her arms above her head and kicks her feet. Of course that is if she doesn't wake up screaming:)

Taking care of a baby is truly a round the clock, full time job. We are enjoying every minute of it!

Here are some new pictures of our beloved.

We love you all,

Linwood, Sara, and India

India Washington

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!

7pds, 8oz, 20 in long, wonderful, strong, healthy and beautiful. India Bianca arrived Thursday March 29 at 3:19 pm mtn time. Her and mom are doing fine.

Birth is a marvalous experience and simply a miracle from God. I thank him daily for the two magnificent females he has blessed me with.

Here are some pictures of India during her first two days of life.

Also they took pics at the hospital and you can visit her web nursery at www.growingfamily.com. Click on web nursery and enter India's information. There are two albums India Washington and Baby Girl Washington they are both her.

The password is Washington.

We will keep you posted.

Peace Love and God Bless You

Linwood, Sara and India Bianca

Pregnancy Photos

Linwood and I had some pregnancy pics taken last week. If you're interested in viewing them go to www.thesmilestation.com. Our Customer Name is: Sara Washington and our Access Code is : LTTT0853104425TAR.

I have been trying to convince India that the first day of Spring is a wonderful day to have a birthday. We'll see if she listens. I got to start my maternity leave early as my school caught on fire Saturday night and school is closed all week:) Hope it's not too sick to be happy about that:)

Love you,
Sara

The end is near...

Hello All,
Well, it's less than 10 days before our baby's expected arrival date. I have never been more nervous and excited in all my days. Sara says she feels different, as if her body is preparing for labor.

The entire pregnancy has been a wonderful experience. The doctor showed me how to feel exactly where India's body parts are. Also, in a quiet room I can put my ear to Sara's belly and hear India's heartbeat. Her belly has begun to drop in preparation for labor. She says the baby is coming in the next few days, however, I think and hope India will arrive around the end of March.

From the rear you would never know that my beautiful wife is having a baby. But when she turns around it looks like she swallowed an oversized basketball. I'm looking forward to sharing my first March Madness with our new baby. I'm sure she wouldn't want to miss the games.

At our last doctor's visit they informed us that Sara had dilated 4 cm. That makes it better for us when active labor actually begins. It's obvious we're getting close. Sara stated on Saturday 03-10-07 that she wants the baby out of her today. Another sign is that she loses things much too often (guess who gets the blame). She wants to change the baby's middle name. Lastly, her favorite meal has been fishsticks for the past few weeks. This works out well for me since I lost a bet and have to cook dinner all this week.

However and whenever India arrives I think we are prepared and we will keep you posted. Continue to pray for the 3 of us.

We love you and God bless you,
Linwood

Any day now

We are anxiously awaiting "India's" arrival! At our doctor's appointment yesterday the doctor said that she could come any day now. Of course he also said that she could come in a few weeks, but I prefer the any day prediction. I am 4 cm dialated and 60% effaced. We are very excited and hope to have pictures and news of her coming soon.
Love you,
Linwood and Sara

4 more weeks...

We are finally in the last month of pregnancy! I am officially counting down until the "big day." Physically I am ready for the baby any day now, but of course it would be most "convenient" if she waits until spring break...March 23 or later. One of her body parts (I think it's a knee) has made its home under my right ribcage. Her movements are very strong and look kind of creepy from the outside.
We went to the doctor's yesterday and she said that everything looks good. India's heartrate was about 138 bpm and her head is definatley down. Of course I want to know all kinds of information that she can't tell us... when will she come, what does she look like, etc. I guess we'll find out soon enough. We go back to the doctor's in 2 weeks and then every week after that.

Linwood is sure that the baby is coming soon as I am getting increasingly tired and irritable...especially around bedtime. I tell him that one day we will look back on this time and laugh and have fond memories:) Really, life is wonderful. It has actually been warm in CO this week and most of the snow has melted. Hopefully spring is on the way.

We love you!
Linwood and Sara

India's nursery

Here are some pictures of how the nursery is set up now (I hear we pregnant women change our minds frequently). We decided on Winnie the Pooh because of the neutral colors....Linwood is still hoping for that boy:) Also, theres a picture of my belly now at 8 months (33 weeks).
We love you!

our new house

Here are some pictures of our new house and of the construction of India's nursery:) There's plenty of room for visitors!

finally blizzard pics

So sorry about the extended time without posting. Here are those pictures of the blizzard we had before Christmas and my belly then .... at 6 months.

Blizzard December 2006

We are safe and sound in Colorado's blizzard. There is about 30 inches of snow outside and it is truly a winter wonderland. We have been confined to our new townhouse for the past 2 days but that's okay because there's plenty of room for us, India, and anyone else who wants to come visit:) God has truly blessed us!
The Denver airport is closed through tomorrow afternoon so keep us in your prayers that we'll be able to make it home on Saturday.
Here are some pictures of our new place and the surrounding area covered in snow. There is also one of my belly at 26 weeks.
We Love You,
Linwood and Sara

More baby pics

They wouldn't let us post them all at once, so here are the rest. Love you!

It's a Girl!

It's been almost a week since we found out that we are going to be blessed with a baby girl. After staring intently at the ultrasound picture and announcing that we weren't going to buy any dresses and anything pink, the baby's daddy is finally starting to come around. (Thank you to those of you who prayed:)) This weekend we decided that her name is India Bianca and we did add some dresses and pink things to our baby registry at Babys R Us. Linwood is still counting on that 1% chance that the doctor's are wrong. Thank God for 3 1/2 months to adjust.

The doctors say that India and her mom couldn't be healthier and that everything looks great. She is about 11 in. long and 1 1/2 pounds. We've included the last ultrasound pictures for everyone to see. They are all labeled except the one that shows we have a little girl.

We love you all and are so excited to see everyone at Christmas!
Proud parents to be,
Linwood and Sara

New Found Bliss

I have to say that the second trimester of pregnancy is wonderful! There is no more nausea. The sight, smell, and thought of food no longer send me running to the closest bathroom. Thankfully I now officially look like I am "with child" and not spending my evenings with a carton of ice cream and a pan of brownies. I now fit into maternity clothes so saftety pins and rubberbands are no longer part of my daily wardrobe. Most importantly those "psycho" moments have gotten fewer and further between. Linwood is not currently in danger of losing life or limb -- and I have to admit that although he frequently provoked me, it was seldom his fault.

Don't get me wrong there are still a few quirks -- heart burn, indigestion, the sometimes endless flow of tears that come out of nowhere. One kick in the stomach and I am again happy, smiling, and in pregnant lady bliss. So, all quirks aside...life is good right now:)

Love you,
Sara

Baby at 18 weeks

These are the ultrasound pictures from our last doctor's appointment on October 16, 2006. The top picture is of the baby's face, he or she is looking at us. On the middle picture he or she is sticking up his or her thumb and pinkie in the shaka sign:) The bottom picture is of him or her giving us the thumb's up and you can see his or her feet to the right.
We love you,
Linwood and Sara

More Belly Pics

We had our first snow in Denver last week! Of course we took advantage of the opportunity to go play. Above are also more recent pics of my growing belly. We are now 18 1/2 weeks. We had a doctor's appointment last week and we are all happy and healthy. The doctor gave us ultrasound pictures but I forgot to bring them to scan them in...they will be coming soon. He said we had a healthy, active baby. He was unable to tell if it was a boy or a girl. We go back for the big, detailed ultrasound the last week in November. Linwood is mentally preparing himself for the possibility that it might be a girl:)
We love you all!

Baby Daddies of The World

To all the dad's and dad's to be it is a wonderful experience to have a child growing with much excitement of a little life to come. It's wonderful simply because your mate bakes lots of home made desserts like cookies, cakes, brownies and of course cheesecakes all from scratch This is the most wonderful experience ever. We both are gaining weight and both are at a good cause.
Just in case your mate isn't baking you home made goodies you might need to join this baby dad's group.
Does your mate laugh and cry in the same sixty seconds? Do you get the blame for everything that goes wrong? Do you get hugs and dirty looks in the same five minutes? If any of these fit you please reply to help a baby's dad dot com.
Life is great!!!
God Bless You

Baby Dad and Great Mate

Growing Belly

Hello Everyone! My belly is growing slowly. Here are some pictures of the "progress." The black shirt is 10 weeks and the pajama picture is 14 weeks.
We Love You,
Linwood and Sara

Welcome

Hello friends and family!
We created a blog so that everyone could stay up to date on what's happening with our baby. (Thank you for the idea Dawn) We are now 13 weeks pregnant. At our Dr. Appt. on Tuesday we heard the baby's heart beat (160 beats per minute). I gained 4 lbs. and everything seems to be going well.

Here is our first ultrasound when the baby was 8 weeks old.

We Love you and will post again soon.

Linwood and Sara