I can’t believe it has already been three weeks since Harper was born. What a whirlwind. It’s been fun and exhausting being home with my two girls. For the past three weeks Harper has been eating every two hours, which means that at night we are waking up every couple of hours. The girl has quite the appetite. I can’t wait until Harper moves to eating every three or four hours. Someday Harper will sleep through the night like her sister, but until then I’ll anxiously await three or four consecutive hours of sleep.

During the day I have started getting everyone in a routine, which I think helps keep the day from getting chaotic. Marielle joins Harper and I for breakfast at 7:30. We play blocks, read books, work on puzzles, feed Harper, and then feed Marielle lunch. Sometimes in the morning Marielle gets to watch Mickey Mouse Club House, usually at a time when I can get a little house work done. After lunch Marielle goes down for her nap and Harper and I spend a little time just the two of us. Harper spends most of the time sleeping and eating and a few minutes playing on the floor. Before we know it Marielle is up from her nap and we read and play until Daddy gets home.

I have to say that Marielle has adapted wonderfully to Harper being home. Every morning she comes downstairs and greets her sister by saying, “That is my baby sister, she’s so cute.” She also likes to say, “Harper is lucky.” If you ask her why, she’ll tell you, “Harper is lucky that I am her big sister.” Marc and I read that you should tell the older sibling that the younger sibling is lucky to have them. That way they feel like they are the special one instead of the baby being the special one. So we told Marielle that Harper was lucky to have her as a big sister. Marielle gives Harper lots of love throughout the day, lots of little hugs, pats, and kisses.

I have to say that watching the two girls is exhausting (note the bags under my eyes) and completely rewarding. It’s twice as much fun to watch the two and there is twice as much to do. It’s great to be able to spend so much time with my little ladies. To be able to watch them grow and change is so fun. Anyway, I digress, this blog is long enough.

Harper Meets the Family

We've gotten a lot of requests for more photos, so here they are. We didn't want to overdo our gushing over our second daughter, so we've disguised said gushing with pictures of our family . . . holding our daughter.

Harper's Hiding Out from the Papparazzi

We've been working on some new posts, but the little one has not been cooperative ;)

Meet Your New Sister

When Marielle came to visit us at the hospital in the afternoon after Harper was born, she came into the room, pointed at Mom and Harper, and said, "that's my little sister!"

So far, she seems fairly impressed with this little baby who's way cooler than any of her dolls. She's showered her with lots of hugs and kisses, but, at the same time, doesn't seem to totally know what to do with her.

The Follow Up

So it took me all day to realize that the hospital has free wi-fi access, which is awesome. So here are the details.

First off, little Harper has been doing great. She's been resting a lot, has managed to figure out eating a few times, and has pooped more times than I'd like (Viv's still not allowed out of bed, so the changing has been all me). Most of you have the stats, but for those who haven't heard, Harper weighed in at 7lbs. 7oz. and is a bit over 19" long. This makes my Mom the winner in the pool. Overall, the birth went very smoothly. I managed to snap quite a few photos without getting in the way and I'm thrilled about it. I even looked at the surgery in progress without passing out (Viv's Dad will be proud). Outside of Viv having some nausea this afternoon, both Mom and baby are doing well. Tell us what you think of our newest addition.

BTW, Marielle seems pretty impressed with her new little sister. When she visited this afternoon, she came in the room and said, "that's my little sister!" She has given Harper several very gentle hugs and kisses (I'll have to get those photos from my Dad) and is very entertained by Harper's burbling.

Harper Faith Barrios

There will be more to come soon!

Visitors from Afar

This past weekend we had a too short visit from the Drew family who came all the way from Okinawa. We had a lot of fun hanging out with Nathan, and, of course, Lisa and PC. I've got to get this post in because 1) Lisa and PC, jet-lagged as they are, have already managed to post a blurb about coming out here, and 2) I think that a certain someone will be taking center stage on the Barrios Blog shortly.

I'm going to follow Lisa's lead and mainly throw up some photos.

To hit on a few of the highlights: we ate, played, laughed, and even all fell asleep watching TV. Eating was certainly a treat. Not that we don't eat, but Viv and I commented to each other that we've been spoiled by getting to go out to eat so many times over the past few days. We tried hard to get the Drews some eats at all of their favorite restaurants that they never get to frequent, as well as some new ones (mmmmmmm, Snooze). We joked that it must seem like we don't ever cook, while PC said he was worried that we'd think they always went out. In the end, we all agreed it was the circumstances. The kiddos definitely had a good time together. It was fun watching our kids interact since they are finally getting to that point in which they want to interact. A lot of time was spent sharing because there weren't enough tractors and Tomica cars to go around. Marielle was all about the cars, and thank you to Nathan for sharing them with us. I was in awe of the cars' detail (look out Matchbox). On Friday, Geoff, Colette and Alex came over to celebrate Nathan's birthday with us. The three kids spent the latter portion of the evening racing back and forth from the Kitchen to our living room. This is something Marielle and Alex often do, and Nathan was quick to get in on the action.

It was great getting to see Lisa, PC, and Nathan again, and I liked that the whole weekend felt as if we all had never skipped a beat. It was a lot like when we got out to see Colette, Geoff, and Alex in Maine. You're just always comfortable when you are among good friends. We miss you guys a lot, we are certainly proud of the path you are currently on, and we know that that path will always keep you close in some way, shape, or form.