Life in Photos

my beautiful tiny girl at seven weeks

oaxacaborn - baby girl Aveline Alenka - 7 weeks old

this is my tiny girl at seven weeks old, hanging out with her daddy. isn’t she gorgeous? i’m madly in love with her.

i love staying at home with her. we’re falling into quite a regular little routine here, and it’s been wonderful. with all the changes to our lives within the first few weeks of her life, routine has been a long time coming. but now our lives are swaying in a gentle rhythm, a gentle groove, and i’m savoring every single moment. every thing she does captivates me. i can’t stop praising God for our Aveline, our little wished-for child.

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Life in Photos, Poetry & Words

my new florida views – palm trees and a smiling baby

my gorgeous view this morning–er, afternoon. east coast time, you are still confusing me! little miss aveline just loves her sheepskin rug from IKEA. (the RENS is shown; it’s fabulous quality for just under $25.)

The many faces of baby Aveline - on an IKEA RENS sheepskin rug

and speaking of views, how amazing is this ridge of palm trees?! we can see it from the master bedroom as well as through the windows on one side of the great room. the palm trees are transformed into stunning silhouettes each evening, as the sun sets directly behind them.

ridge of palm trees in Orlando

i’d share some photos of the apartment’s interior, but stacks of boxes still abound at every turn. but may i just pause to mention that i now have a dishwasher? and indoor laundry?

i’m way too excited about these appliances luxuries.

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Travel/Moving

hello, florida! tips on traveling with an infant / flying with a baby

well, here we are in orlando, florida. we made it! we made it to the land of frizzy hair and soggy air.

many of you know how nervous i was to fly with a wee one, but it turned out soooo much better than i imagined. (except, we were selected for one of those fabulous TSA patdowns. it was definitely awkward. aveline even got a patdown. i mean seriously?!) but after that ordeal was over, the rest of the trip was fabulous. she was such a perfect baby on the flights (thank you, Lord!) and slept most of the time. the baby bjorn was our best friend for those long walks from one gate to the next. really, the only tough moment was her screaming fit as we were boarding in houston — but it was a short-lived outburst. i am so thankful she didn’t have any problems with the takeoff or landing! she actually snoozed her way through both landings. it was a great experience, and i am so grateful to my jetsetting mama friends who shared the following tips with me:

Tips on Traveling with an Infant

  • nurse the baby during the take off and landing, even if it’s not “time” — this helps the baby handle the change in air pressure
  • use a carrier or sling — it makes walking so much easier, and it keeps strangers’ from touching baby’s face
  • allow plenty of time to get from one gate to another if you’re changing flights
  • pack more diapers and baby outfits than you think you’ll need
  • pack a change of clothes for yourself
  • don’t bring a travel-size package of wipes, pack a full package! ;-)
  • stay calm even if your baby is screaming — getting frazzled yourself only makes it that much worse
  • have baby’s birth certificate with you, as some airlines require this documentation

so yes, florida. i am so happy to be back with my amazing husband. i missed him so much. i missed us all being together. i missed my own bed. and as you can see from this photo, little aveline missed her bed, too. doesn’t she look adorable? co-sleeping is the best! i love it.

baby blog - oaxacaborn - Aveline Alenka at six weeks old - cosleeping on a Summer Infant contoured changing table cushion with a Summer Infant organic cotton cover

Shown:

Have any other tips for traveling with an infant? Share them in the comments!

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Life in Photos

some moments feel like this

some moments feel like this:

but i am deliriously happy. unbelievably happy. sleepless nights, shirts covered in spit up, eating meals slowly with one hand while balancing baby in the other…

i love our miraculous baby. she is an answer to so many prayers. she is, as her name means, our longed-for child.

and when her little tiny fingers grab on to my shirt, and i bend down and kiss her head and breathe in that sweet aroma, i am pretty sure nothing on earth could be closer to heaven.

Poetry & Words

stacks of boxes, a new iPod, and trust

it’s late. i’m too fatigued to have many thoughts. my fingers tap softly across the screen of this brand new iPod. my eyes, tired and scratchy, narrow to read these words. i sit on the black leather couch, surrounded by towering stacks of brown boxes. each is taped and labeled, and each holds a little piece of the personality that made these four walls our own.

i sigh.

aveline lays across my lap, peaceful and trusting, calm in the face of looming change. she is not fretting about where she will live next or how she will manage the next few weeks. she does not wonder if my arms will hold her up. she just IS.

and you know? i want to trust like that.

pure, peaceful, natural trust.

Poetry & Words

we’re moving again

the whole United States, it seems, is being swallowed up by ever-falling snow. but here in my favourite comfortable corner of the world–NorCal–it’s warm, sunny, and bright. i could stay here forever, you know. i love it here. the high skies, the dry air, the perfectly majestic california live oaks, the way the sunsets dance purple and yellow, casting long shadows across the white Sierra Nevada peaks…

i could stay here forever.

but i can’t.

you know that pillar of fire? it’s moving now, and we have to follow. it’s been parked here for almost a year and a half (a veritable record, as far as the last 11 years of my life are concerned), but now it’s time to move on.

as hard as this is, i am at peace about it.

Josiah and i have been praying–for the past year and a half–for full-time work. hundreds of resumes later, it was starting to feel like a drought. there was still daily bread and there were still new mercies, but there were no open doors.

and then suddenly, this.

not even two weeks after Aveline was born, Josiah received a job offer from a company he used to work for. it was sudden job offer, with an even more sudden start date.

Aveline Alenka - 2 weeks old - handmade crochet hat - cotton gauze baby swaddling cloth by Living Textiles

and that, my friends, is how this grand adventure called 2011 begins. we’re packing up the house now…wrapping up the insane amount of loose ends…trying to get sleep in between stacking boxes and waking up in the middle of the night with our tiny little daughter.

and in less than two weeks, we’ll be on the road to Orlando with a wee baby and a dog in tow.

as with countless other life events, i’m once again singing along with rich mullins. his music is the soundtrack to my soul. “sometimes i think of Abraham, and how one star he saw was lit for me. he was a stranger in this land, and i am that no less than he.” -rich mullins

so call us crazy. sojourners. gypsies. we wouldn’t have it any other way.

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Life in Photos

welcome baby aveline alenka!

AVELINE (IRISH: ăv-ä-lēn) WISHED FOR CHILD; ALENKA (SLOVENE:  ä-lĕn-kä) LIGHT, RADIANCE

Oaxacaborn welcomes Aveline Alenka

if we’re not connected on facebook or twitter, then you may have missed the big news. baby munsey is finally here! aveline alenka made her debut on wednesday, january 19th at 2:13am, weighing 6 pounds, 12 ounces, and measuring 20 inches long. i can’t stop thinking about what one of the nurses said when she looked down at aveline —

well, hello, little one! and what have you come to teach us?

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