Day 19...

This morning...

Hanging out, watching The Wiggles and waiting on breakfast.

This afternoon...

Visiting with Aunt Ashley and Cousin Austin.

This evening...

Look who came to visit! Our niece, Madison. :)

Day 18...

We're having a great weekend so far! This afternoon, we went to a 50th Anniversary party for Grandpa Johnny's parents. We were able to visit with lots of family members, eat yummy food, and take a look back over their 50 years of marriage! It's such a beautiful thing! :) Before getting ready for the big celebration, Gracie and Daddy were playing a little game of "peek-a-boo"!

Where's Gracie!?!

There she is!!! :)

Day 17...

We didn't do much of anything today, except wait for Daddy to get home this afternoon. We did, however, check in on Aunt Ashley and found out that her first night home with Baby Austin went pretty well! It sounds like both Mommy and Daddy were able to get some rest last night, and little man is as sweet as can be! :) And here is my sweet little Grace, just being a silly girl.

I love watching her walk away! :)

Day 16...

As you can imagine, being a part of Austin's birth really threw me back to May 27, 2008...I love thinking back on that day. It was, after all, the best day of my life! I thought I would take the opportunity to go back 14 months, to the day my Grace was born! Here is Grace Ashlyn only minutes after birth...

Here is little Miss Grace today! She's getting to be such a big girl...This morning, she and I were "chatting" about Baby Austin, and when I mentioned him, she started rocking her arms back and forth as if she were rocking a baby! It was the sweetest thing, and the first time she's ever done that! It amazes me how much these little people really do understand, even before they can communicate their understanding.

Loving on Baby Chick...

Day 15...

When Gracie met Austin...

Sean and I took Gracie to the hospital this evening to meet Baby Austin. Her first reaction was to "request" him, in the same way that she asks for an exciting looking toy at the store. I don't think she realized he was a "real" baby and seemed slightly miffed that so much attention was going his way. She did seem interested, but we didn't let her get close enough to find out what would come of it. :) She looks like such a big girl compared to her tiny cousin!

And here is the little man this evening, looking peaceful, and in my opinion, a lot like his mommy when she was a baby!

I found this picture of Ashley and I, so I had to add it! She was maybe a few days older than Austin in this picture. :)

Day 14...

Welcome to the World

Austin Lytle Levan!!!

Let's just (briefly) start from the beginning...

For those who didn't know, my sister, Ashley, was due to give birth to her baby boy on August 12th. We've been anxiously awaiting this little guy's arrival and have been thrilled as she's made progress over the past few days.

Last night, between 11:00pm-12:00am, Ashley and I spent time sending text messages back and forth about the various "changes" that were taking place with her pregnancy, leading us both to believe labor would soon follow. Around 2:00am I received the call that confirmed it all! Her water broke! Ashley, Landon, and I headed to the hospital around 3:00am, she was admitted, and the fun began! :)

Ashley was amazing and endured 7 hours of tough labor before reluctantly agreeing to get an epidural. Baby Austin was born at 3:11 this afternoon! He weighs 6 pounds, 12 ounces and is 19 inches long. He is absolutely precious, of course.

Today, I watched my baby sister give birth to her baby boy, and the moment...well, there are no words. All I can really come up with is: Beautiful. Perfect. Miracle. It has been a day that will be held close to my heart for the rest of my life. I watched this tiny, helpless baby take his first breath, utter his first cry, lock eyes with his mommy and daddy for the first time...I don't even know what to say, I am overjoyed and thankful, and cannot wait to see my little nephew tomorrow!!! We'll be taking Gracie to meet her cousin tomorrow, so I plan to have some cute pictures to share. :)

Day 13...

In the Mood for Hugs...

Little Miss Gracie has just not been feeling great the past few days. She has more teeth coming in, and the whole process usually hits her pretty hard. This morning, however, she was in the sweetest mood. She was hugging Mommy, Daddy, and any stuffed animal she could find! This just made my day...

If you look closely, you can see that little bitty tooth that is causing my little bitty Gracie so much trouble!