Couldn't live without.

Okay, so if we lived in a cave way back when I'm sure we could have made due without the following things, but we don't live in a cave. In fact, we really like modern conveniences. Therefore, these are the things that have made the first few months of life with our little man easier, lovelier, and more functional...

Monitor --Angelcare
We had some complications with our monitor but eventually we realized the false alarms were due to our own operator errors. I now realize, looking back, how silly it was that I lost sleep over false alarms and middle-of-the night research sessions spent wondering if Sanders had sleep apnea. All the while the problem was that I had the monitor too close to the crib. (It requires a specific distance in order to work correctly.) As it turns out, sleep is far more beautiful a thing than perfectly centered monitor placement. ;P
Diapers --Pampers Swaddlers They're the best.
Nursing Bra --Basics by Bravado These babies are handy.
Nursing Pads --Lansinoh These are life savers, especially for over-producing "mama cows" such as myself.
Nursing Cream --Lansinoh Lanolin I keep a tube on my nightstand, a tube in the diaper bag, and tube in my pump bag, and I use them all. I use it every day and it keeps me going.
Breast Pump --Medela Due to breastfeeding complications there was a month (or more) where Sanders continued getting my "liquid gold" :) thanks to this pump. I continue to use it to stockpile for the future and to have on hand for times when breastfeeding is inconvenient. I'm so thankful for my pump!
Nursing Pillow --My Brest Friend Sanders loves this pillow. We use it for every feeding. I love the back support and the fact that he's ultra comfortable so he eats really well. 
Bottles --Dr. Browns 
Swaddles --SwaddleMe, Aden & Anais We found SwaddleMe's really convenient when Sanders was brand new. He quickly outgrew the ones we had and before we bought the next size we noticed him starting to sooth himself with his hands and fingers, which is why we switched to putting him in sleepers and wrapping him more loosely in Aden and Anais swaddles. (Now, at 3+ months he wears sleep sacks to bed.)
Pacifier --Sanders' chosen plug was made by Born Free.
Bouncer Seat & Infant-to-Toddler Rocker --Fisher Price Sanders refused at first to sleep on a flat surface so he spent his nights (and naps) in his bouncer. He quickly weighed it down though, which is when we discovered his cousin Millie's rocker. (Like the bouncer, it vibrates too!) Thanks [sis-in-law]Amy for letting us borrow Mill's rocker. We love it and use it every day.
Take Along Swing --Fisher Price Two swings were donated to our adoption sale last year. At the time we were planning on two babies, so I kept both swings. I tried on and off to use the full sized swing but it always seemed too upright for Sanders. One day I had an itch to get outside and do the first yard work of the year. I remembered the other little swing which we had folded up and tucked away in the garage. It's tiny, collapsible, comfortable for Sanders, and it has a handle, so it's capable of going everywhere I go, even outside. It's my new favorite "tool." I no longer see why big swings are necessary when you could have this tiny, super functional, convenient swing. It costs less and it literally takes up about 1/5th the amount of room as the other swing. 
Burp Cloths
Freezer Meals :)

Sanders meets his G&G. 2 1/2-3 1/2 weeks old.

Brian's parents arrived from CA to meet Sanders when he was 2 1/2 weeks old.

 As part of our  Christmas celebration, Brian and I took his parents to Snowflake Lane in downtown Bellevue.

 It was madness! 

The snow swirled upon us from above. It was fake, but it still seemed enchanted. :)

Following the parade, we hit up The Cheesecake Factory for dessert. 

We realized that Sanders and his Gram matched!

 Goodbye snuggles are sad. :(

Family. 9 days old.

On Sanders 9th day, family gathered at my mom's house for dinner. For some it was their first time meeting Sanders, for others it was an chance to see him again.

 Uncle Dale

Aunt Janet

 Sydni and Nana

 Sydni

Gpa Lawrence

Gpa Lawrence and Gma B.

 Gpa Al

 Aunt Barb

Gpa Al and Gma Jane

 My dad, Tess, and Gpa Lawrence with their little namesake. :)

Brian and I loved the name Sanders upon finding it in Grandpa Lawrence's family tree. Using it was our way of naming our little guy after Grandpa Lawrence. In addition, after having traveled this pregnancy journey so closely with my sister, it was important to me that Sanders be named after her. Sanders' middle name, Liam, was our way of honoring my sister, Tessa Leigh, as well as my dad, Jeffery Lee (from whom Tess gets her middle name.) 

Lessons in Labor.

* "False labor" can be painful, really painful, despite what they say.

* Everyone's assurance that I would just know when my contractions were real...they didn't really work out. I spent 5 nights thinking, "This is horrible. These are absolutely real. We need to leave for the hospital NOW!" Yet night after night, I was left increasingly sore and tired and with a baby still in my belly instead of my arms.

* Epidurals are truly a girl's best, best friend.

* Contrary to how fearful I was of a super drugged birth, I learned that Pitocin isn't always the enemy. In fact, a body can actually require it in order to progress beyond what was for us, a 4 centimeter road block.

* No matter how hard you try, you cannot look your best when your baby arrives. And although it's a nice idea, especially for the photo enthusiast such as myself, it is totally not the point. I wanted everything photographed. Well, everything but what was going on 'downstairs,' of course... :S I was determined to look beautiful in hospital photos. For about a week leading up to our due date I not only washed my hair daily, but styled it a couple of times per day. I was even caught in the middle of the night curling my hair between contractions. Several days into being a mama I found time to transfer all of our hospital photos from camera to computer. I was anxious to scroll through them and see what Brian had captured. My immediate response was disappointment when I saw that despite my dedication to a "photograph-able" appearance, I looked pret-ty bad by the time we entered the delivery room and documentation of the event I had so anticipated began. Then however, I looked past my hair and lack of make-up and I saw our faces as we met our baby for the first time. I was reminded of Sanders' bright, brand new eyes as he took in his world and learned the face of the mama whom he had only been able to hear for months. Each snapshot brought me back to the moment and suddenly my life's lens slid into focus. It was a new focus, a better focus, and I realized that my unkempt hair and 'naked' face suddenly seemed just right. I was a mama. My Mr. was a daddy. Together we had received everything for which we had hoped and prayed. Our gift had arrived. He was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen, and everything else was but wrapping paper, lying by, no longer the focus. 
In some ways my world is so much bigger now because there's so much beyond myself. In reality though, it's so small. 

My world is a 10 pound little someone named Sanders.

Visitors!

Friend Kaitlin.

[8 days old]

Kaitlin spent a portion of her visit on the floor next to the Christmas tree so that Sanders could gaze at the lights and ornaments. :)

Friend Jude and her baby, Adriana.

[8 days old]

Pastor Luke, his wife, Karen, and their daughter, Harper.
(Andy Baby Girl due in February!)

[2 weeks old] 

Friends Ben and Becca, and their daughter, Autumn. 
(And baby Wesley due in January!)
[3.5 weeks old]

Cousins Stephen and Marie.

[3.5 weeks old]

Sanders, you are loved.

Cousins on a Couch.

Sanders met his local cousins when he was 9 days old.

Sydni and Kolt.

Millie.

 Moses.

"Brother" Bonding.

This was the first time Finn really seemed to accept Sanders. It was with great reluctance and I think it only happened because Finn realized after 8 days that Sanders was a new, permanent fixture in his life...

It doesn't look like much, but the very fact that Finn had come out from under our bed was a big deal. :)

Sam Meets Sanders.

Soul Friend Sam came from Portland to see us and meet Sanders!

We put up Christmas lights! Well, Brian did, but we supervised. 

(He needed us more than he realized. :)

The camera flash produced some pretty great Sanders scowls.

It also highlighted some odd, long hairs that have since been chopped. I'm happy to have documented them, but even happier to have my baby boy's "bangs" be a thing of the past. :)

Our peacock feather tree! Thanks, Sam, for helping me deck it out!

Cute lady. She might love peacock feathers even more than me. Might.