ruby kay visits the farmers market

family of three!

this past saturday we braved the farmers market with some good friends of ours. my recovery from my c-section has gone really well, and have been ready to show ruby kay our favorite things to do in fayetteville. the weather here has been really hot lately, so we attempted to go early in the morning to avoid the heat. our kind friends greeted us with breakfast from ricks (my favorite!). we enjoyed an easy going morning at the farmers market just walking around and catching up with our friends.

each day gets better with our sweet ruby kay. she is such an easy baby, and we just love her. i already feel sentimental about her growing up, and find myself just staring at her and all of her expressions. i get so excited for her to get bigger and more interactive with us, but then i don't ever want her to grow up and want her to stay teeny tiny forever (she is still in newborn clothes, and her 0-3 month onesies are so baggy on her)! we have so much to look forward to- but also so much to enjoy now!

life with ruby kay

ruby kay is now ten days old. i can hardly believe that we have been parents for ten days! we have enjoyed life with our little one so much. it was so great to have our families here for her birth, and for a few days after. both of our mom's were so giving and servant-hearted. it was so nice to come home and have everything in our house taken care of- all i had to worry about was sweet RK. the past two days i have been on my own with her, and enjoying settling into "normal" life. 

ruby kay is such a sweet baby. she has been sleeping so well (typically only one night feeding), and each day its gets easier being a mama. she loves her pacifier, and nurses well (and often!). she rarely cries and only gets fussy ever so often. even in these short ten days, we already feel like she is changing so much! if you haven't noticed, ruby kay has captured our hearts.

our little GIRL is here!

on july 9th, benjamin and i welcomed a beautiful girl into our family, and named her Ruby Kay. our little one's name was chosen after ben's great grandmother ruby, and both of our moms: judy kay and susan kay. she arrived via emergency c-section, and weighed 8 lbs and 2 ounces and was 20 inches long. 

we are head over heals for our ruby kay, and have spent the past 4 days cuddling and getting to know our sweet girl. both sets of grandparents have been here to visit too, and we have been blown away by the support and encouragement of our friends and family.

rodeo of the ozarks

my dad arrived this past saturday, and we decided to welcome him to arkansas with a trip to the rodeo! ben and i went last year with friends, so it was fun to see it all again. saturday was the final night of the rodeo, so we were able to see the best of the best. 

 the boys tried a fried snickers, which looked awful- but tasted not too bad.

my feet got so swollen (and dirty), and have been swollen ever since! im ready for this baby just to be able to have my feet back!

our emcee really hammed up the american pride since it was the day after the fourth. they played the Superbowl commercial "god made a farmer" and then brought out these cute kids and eventually this soldier. i may be hormonal, but will admit i shed a few tears. he said that this is what america is- kids who are our future and soldiers who defend our country.

it has been so fun to add my dad to the mix. he gets along so well with ben, and their interests are pretty identical. it's so great to never have to worry about ben getting along well with my family- sometimes i wonder if he likes them more than i do- just kidding!

if you haven't ever been to the rodeo, you are missing out. good, wholesome fun can't be beat. hope to see you next year, rodeo of the ozarks!

our local art museum

ben and i finally went to our local art museum- "crystal bridges" and took my mom! after living in northwest arksansas for the past two years, it was really pitiful that we hadn't been before so we were happy to right the wrong. crystal bridges is a local art museum sponsored by the walton family and walmart. the admission is free, and turned out to be a great outing. 

here are a few pictures of my favorite pieces of art!

this man was really creepy until we realized that he wasn't real!

ben with dolly, by andy warhol.

ben's favorite

we are still awaiting the birth of our little one and just completed day #3 of being overdue. this adventure of being "patient" has really been teaching me a lot about my need for control in life. i want so badly to begin this new phase of life, but the Lord's plan is for me to wait. everything is completely ready for this baby, but he/she seems to need to bake for a bit longer.

my dad arrives today, and we are thrilled for the addition of his company. originally, we had thought that this visit would be to meet our baby- but now he will hopefully be able to experience the birth of our little one. our fingers are crossed! :)

happy 4th!

the fourth came before our baby, so we decided to still celebrate america's birthday! it also just happens to be ben's favorite holiday, ever. ben, my mom, and i packed up and headed to west fork, ar to enjoy the sun, creek, and good ol' arkansas.

 

after the creek, we came home and recharged for a bit before heading to a friends house to grill out. i made a blackberry-blueberry pie, which felt all-american.

the boys played catch while the burgers were on the grill

 and lastly, here is a clip from my instagram of me jumping on the trampoline trying to get this baby out!

mt. sequoyah

since my mom arrived this past thursday, we have been walking non-stop lately. since we are overdue, our doctor recommended walking- since it supposedly rocks the baby down into position. well, we have taken the doctors advice!

our latest walk was around mount sequoyah, which overlooks fayetteville. we walked all over the methodist conference grounds, and took in some pretty views! here are a few pictures we took while we "power walked".

hello 40 week baby bump! 

fayetteville farmers market

since my mom arrived, we have been on a strict schedule- enjoy time together, and prepare for baby seiler's big arrival! on saturday we took my mom to our local farmers market to get a good walk in and to enjoy our fun town. 

here are a few pictures from our morning together. the fun thing about my mom is that she too has a blog, and did a very similar post here: http://mikeandjudy.blogspot.com/2013/07/farmers-market.html

an almost 40 week baby bump!

my sweet mom purchased a bouquet of summer flowers in celebration of my last day of work. they are beautiful!

arkansas strawberry lemonade from arsagas

blackberries for a 4th of July pie! 

overall, we had a great time at the farmers market, and hope to bring our sweet baby back once life settles down!