Family Fun

Zack, Bella, my dad, my grandmother & my grandpa.

This weekend has been a lot of fun and BUSY! My grandpa turned 76 today and the family threw him a party. He's a really sweet and gentle person. The whole family (minus 5 grandkids) was all together for the first time in a REALLY long time. It was great to see everyone--there sure are alot of us.

On a side note, please pray for my grandpa. He was just diagnosed with congestive heart failure. He also will have surgery on an artery on Dec. 30th, we are not sure how he will do. It was so good to have family around him.

Bella is the newest addition to the great-grandkids!

We also went to the Vintage Township Winter Wonderland. It was fun to just be silly & in the Christmas spirit. Bella got to see Santa again & we got to watch little dancers & drink hot chocolate.

This is typical Zack :).

Chandler & I being little elves.

A little elf family.

Bella & Santa. She spit up on him right after this picture was taken. Santa was a good sport!

O Christmas Tree!

The Christmas tree is up! I feel like it's officially Christmas time. :) To keep us in the Christmas spirit, Zack dressed Bella in her reindeer jammies. I just had to post a picture b/c she looked so cute.

Merry Christmas!

Growing!

It's been a fun few days! Sierra Bella continues to grow so quickly and it's so fun to watch her. She's sleeping through the night (usually 8-9 hours), eating more, and just loves to smile! I love it!

This past weekend we were invited by friends to go to the Cactus Theater for the Christmas show. It really got me in the Christmas spirit. TODAY we are getting the tree up. I'm usually not this far behind, but this year everything has kind of come faster than usual! I was telling a friend that it seems like having a new baby puts you in a fog and I feel like I am just now coming out of it. So, we are going easy this year--no Christmas cards, no outdoor lights, nothing major. Just a tree and a few decorations. That's about all I can handle and keep my sanity! :)

This is just an example of how quick she's growing...it seems like overnight she was able to sit up in her bumbo chair!

Santa Visit & Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was so much fun. My sister and brother in law were back in town and it was so nice. We basically just visited with family and ate quite a bit. Sierra Bella also had her first visit with Santa! She slept through it but we had fun with it. :) She's growing...10 pounds and counting! It's been a fun few weeks, just ready for Christmas!

Sarah, Hudson, Vanessa, Bella, & Aunt Emerald

2 Month Stats

Today Bella is 2 months old! She's growing fast, though she still looks so tiny to me. We went to the doctor for her checkup and shots yesterday--it was more rough on mom than on Bella. She did great, such a tough little girl. She is 23.5 inches long and 9 pounds 2 ounces. I laughed because she is in the 90th percentile for her height and 25th for her weight. LONG AND SKINNY!! She definitely didn't get that from me! Anyway, we are very much looking forward to the holiday, mainly because Vanessa and Chandler are coming home. We are so excited to see them both!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Pictures!

Well, my mom (you have to know and love her for her pushiness!) insisted we have pictures made of Bella with her favorite photographer. So, we did. I have to admit they are adorable! So many to choose from and I don't know which ones to pick. Here are a few of our favorites--out of almost 160! Thanks mom! :)

Halloween and Other fun stuff!

Well, it's time for more pictures! Even though Sierra Bella is way too little to know what's going one, we still dressed her up and took her out for Halloween. She was a little bunny! My aunt bought her the costume and it fit perfectly. She was too adorable. We went to the trunk or treat at my mom's old office (Keller Williams) and to the Underwood Center to take in some culture (Dia De Los Muertos). It was a full night.

Our little sleeping bunny

Hudson was a bunny too!

I just love this picture...lil chap!

Our little baby is growing so quickly. She's still so small, but I can't believe we are at 6 weeks. She is such a good baby and just too much fun. I start back to work this week, which I have very mixed feelings about. I can't imagine leaving Bella for more than three or four hours at a time. BUT, I need to be social. Work has always given me challenges that I need mentally, so I hope it will be a good thing. We'll see...

One Month!!!

This week has been quick! Bella is officially one month old! She weighs 7 1/2 pounds...I'm so relieved! We are still working on getting her to eat and it's stressing mom out! Hopefully we will figure it out soon.


Daddy's little advertisement. :) Our friend Shawn's business makes Zack's Rockhard Formulations clothing, so Bella got her own little outfit, she looked so cute!

Zack has decided to take up kayaking. He's been taking classes at Tech and went on his first trip this past weekend. He had fun...now he's hoping I join him! We'll see about that...

Just moving along...

Our Little Angel!

The last few days have really gone by fast. Bella (she's been routinely called Sierra Bella and Bella) is just almost a month old! 4 weeks goes by quickly when you are home with a new baby. I've been fortunate enough to have almost 6 weeks off of paid leave, so I am trying to enjoy being home with her. I have to say though, being at my house all day is not the best thing. I'm not really a home body so the days when we don't get out have been rough.

Bella is FINALLY gaining weight. A couple of weeks ago we learned she was still loosing. Of course, being a new mom, I was very upset and cried most of the day (and of course, it was my birthday). Not a good day! Anyway, things are going better and she's eating a lot more.

I was doing well until this weekend when I started to feel sick. Saturday my throat was a little sore. Bella didn't sleep well that night, so Sunday was horrible. I slept Sunday afternoon then this week got even more sick. I am hoping I start feeling well soon...I don't like being sick!

Anyway, that's about all in the Barnard household.

One Week Down!

The week has gone by so fast. I am still in shock that Sierra Bella is here! It still hasn't quite hit me yet. She is so much fun and I love just watching her. She is doing fantastic, growing just like she should be. I love being her mom more than I thought possible. I am completely overwhelmed with this little miracle...Zack and I are truly blessed.

I, on the other hand, seem to spend most of my time on pain killers b/c of the c-section. :) I also find myself apologizing a lot for being so out of it. So, if you run into me or stop by, please don't be offended if I kind of stare off into space...haha...hopefully the pain will start to subside soon and I can get away with something a little less strong.

Here are more pictures of our little princess. It's amazing how much more I use my camera these days!


Sierra was jaundice, so she was in her little light bed for a few days. :( She looked like a little glow worm!


My little sister got to come in for a couple of days. It was so nice to have her here.

Sierra loves this position, we've found her like this a few times.

Our New Arrival!

Meet Sierra Isabella Barnard!

Our precious little miracle came Sept. 30 at 12:37 p.m. She weighed 7 pounds and was 20 inches long.

Thank you so much for praying for us. We are all doing great. I'll post more later!

Thank you to Jenn Nieland for taking these pics this afternoon and reminding me to update the blog!!

Life's Little Frustrations

1. Work: I love the fact that my last day at work was yesterday and I get the "oh, I need this done ASAP...don't worry you can work on it while you are out." Seriously?!?!

2. Family: I am so frustrated with those who believe they know what is best for me. I know most people mean well, but I am increasingly irritated with those who make decisions for me leaving me with a situation that is less than desirable!!

3. Doctors: I can't get a straight answer yet on going off medication. It's stressing me out!

Don't you ever just get to the point where you are just tired of dealing with little things? Well, I'm there. It's probably the hormones and just the overall not feeling that great. Besides these little things, I'm so excited...just a few more days.

Fast & Furious Few Weeks!

Time sure is flying by! We have a few weeks to go until our little Sierra Bella makes her first appearance and I am FINALLY trying to get her room together. It took me awhile to get going on it, but it is coming together nicely.

Last week we took maternity photos. They came out very good, but I should've done them sooner, before I just felt hot and large the whole time. Jenn Nieland did them and she did a great job!

I've done a little more than I should have lately. But that's me I guess, I always take on a little too much. :) A couple of weekends ago we went to the Ortegon Family Reunion. The Ortegon's are my great grandmothers family. We all met up in Uvalde, TX. I honestly wasn't too excited about going because of the 7 hour drive. But it ended up being so much fun. Even Zack had a good time. I don't have many pictures, but there were about 150 relatives around.

After the reunion, Zack and I thought it would be real fun to go float the river with our bulldog, Max. We were wrong. First, being so far along and on an inner tube floating down the river isn't really all that great. Plus we had a bulldog that doesn't know how to swim and didn't like being in a tube! So everytime he jumped out he sank to the bottom of the river and Zack had to rescue him. We don't have pictures of this either, although after we were done, it was pretty funny thinking of Max jumping out of that tube and freaking out.

The worst part of the last few weeks was that my little sister moved back to NYC. She got another internship (paid at least) with a magazine company. She wants to work in an area in which these internships are super important. So, it was best for her career to move back and work at this magazine until January. She really didn't want to go b/c it means she won't be here when Sierra is born. She has been so upset and so I have I. We cried for a good two hours before she left. It was horrible. She is doing exactly what she wants and I could not be more proud, but I never thought I would have my baby without her with me. It's been a rough few weeks thinking about that!

Anyway, that's about all going on in our world lately.

7 Years

This past weekend we celebrated seven years of being married!! Our anniversary was on August 4th and Zack surprised me with a weekend trip to Acapulco. It was incredibly sweet and thoughtful, especially because it was our last trip as a couple without children!

I can't believe it has been seven years. It's gone by so fast! I must say I am more in love with my husband now than I was seven years ago--crazy how that can be true! We've been through a lot together and we are a stronger better couple for it. There are a ton of things I could say about him, but simply put he's my best friend and biggest supporter.

Acapulco was really a great way to celebrate. We didn't do much but sit around, look at the ocean and eat. Zack planned the whole trip and he did a remarkable job. We flew out of Dallas on Friday morning. First, we stayed with our friends Brim and Illene in Dallas and went to a Rangers game. Zack bought almost every pink Rangers outfit available, so Sierra is set for baseball season next year! In Acapulco, we stayed at Las Brisas, which is one of the best hotels in Acapulco. The rooms are private "casitas" with their own pools. We went into the city for a couple of hours and watched the famous cliff divers and had lunch. We experienced a Mexican Walmart for the first time. It was fun and interesting b/c they have more than just Walmart, they have a ton of vendors inside. It was crazy! Other than that, the same merchandise. :) We also rented a jet ski and rode around the bay. God is amazing, you can't help but realize that looking at the ocean, green landscape, and wildlife. We ate at an Italian restaurant called Becco. It was so modern and beautiful. All in all, so much fun and so relaxing. Here are some pictures...

This is our "casita" and our private pool...I want one now :).

Zack and I at Becco.

Me outside of Becco...yes I am large!!

Our friends, Brim & Illene at the Rangers game...they are so fun!

Everywhere we go, Zack looks at their gym. Mexico is no different and we found one! It was very old...he loved it.

The Walmart...

The view of Acapulco from our "casita."

At the game...Zack dressed me in head to toe Rangers gear.