Love the snow, hate the drive!

So... Now that Gavin is here and we have moved into our house and everything is just now finally starting to calm down, life is good.  Lainie and I are able to stay at home and take care of out new son, and just enjoy being with one another.  A friend of mine asked me if there were any surprises that instantly came from being a father, my reply was 2.  First, (not so much a surprise) was that Lainie is just naturally an amazing mother!  I knew she would be, but I honestly had no idea just how incredible she really is.  She takes care of the hard stuff with Gavin, I just do my best to do what I'm asked.  Number 2, was the instant amount of love that I had for the little guy.  I knew and already loved him while he was in the womb, but now that he is here i had no idea just how much love i had.  He was recently circumcised, and when I heard him scream during the procedure, i nearly fainted.  It hurt me so deeply to see and hear him in so much pain, that I had to sit down. For you fathers to be, be prepared for a new feeling, one that is overwhelming, the feeling of wanting to protect your baby at any cost.

recently we have had a bunch of visitors up to help us out, Jess flew in from NY, but the storm was so bad that she wasn't going to be able to make it up. I finally decided that she had come too far to not see Gavin, so I made the drive down to SLC to pick her up, (Jake my best friend ever braved the snow and brought her halfway) We made it through Sardine Canyon just in time and she and my nephew Little J Homer spent the weekend with us. It was a blast!!! I drove them back to SLC the next day.  Steve, Mel, and Kaitlyn came up just yesterday. Steve made crock pot lasagna and it was sooooo good!  It was so good to see them and catch up on everything.  

So I guess what I'm trying to say is that Life has just improved incredibly for us and we are so happy!  

7.12lbs 19.5 inches long

This is our new baby boy Gavin Jacob Harris!  He was born December 9th at 5:00 am, after about 14 hours of labor.  I never knew it was instantly possible to love someone so incredibly much just after the first glance at him.  Lainie was incredible, she never tired nor gave up, even though eventually Gavin wouldn't move any further. She was actually delivering for about 3 hours.  I also had know idea (okay some idea) of just what amazing woman I married. She is incredible with this little guy, feeding, changing, and taking care his every need! All that on top of taking care of a newborn is pretty impressive! ;0) There was just one complication during the birth, Gavin's umbilical cord had a pretty significant knot, and our Doctor who is also a Bishop said that he was amazed at the blessings and power of prayer that must have gone into our son.  We were very lucky. 

Happy to say Gavin is very healthy, just a little jaundis (spelling) and seems to be quite content with his new parents.  He was very alert when he came out, but since has been quite the sleeper, even allowing Lainie and I to get a whole 4 hours of sleep his first night home. He rarely cries and when he is awake, is constantly studying his surroundings.  Last night he woke up in my arms and just looked into my eyes for about 15-20 minutes.  I couldn't look away and was brought to tears with emotion. Today he was circumsized and dad didn't do to well.  We were watching and as soon as I heard that cry of pain from him, i nearly passed out.  I got a sudden hot flash and my stomach dropped to the floor, it was hard to see him in so much pain, and not be able to do anything about it.  Allie (our dog) is very good with him, she knows that he is delicate and generally stays just close enough to know where he is, she becomes very concerned when he begins to cry and won't relax until he stops.  We are a very Happy and extremely blessed little family. We will be in town (salt lake) on Sunday the 21st for little Kaitlyn's blessing, and a family Christmas party, so if you would like to meet the little guy let us know.  (As long as you are not or have not been sick)  Our Pediatrician says that RSV is going around this time of year so it is better to keep him as safe as possible.  We love you all, and thank you for your support!!!

Merry Christmas,

Cody, Lainie, Gavin, and Allie

Finally here... long awaited...

Photos of our home!  (what were you thinking of something else?) Sorry it took so long to put these up, but our lives as a student, manager, 9 month pregnant woman, and delinquent couselor have just gotten crazy, especially during the holidays!  This is the front, the living room, the backyard, and of course Gavin's room.  I spent about 2 days on Gavin's room painting and putting up the bead board.  Lainie of course did all of the decorations (she is obsessed with decorations)  This doesn't show the basement, kitchen or Master bedroom, if you want to see those, you'll have to make the trip to see us. We look forward to seeing a lot of you after little Gavin decides to join us.  Well that is about it for now.

Merry Christmas!!!!

Cody and Lainie