We arrived back in Colorado last weekend. It was actually snowing with the sun out when we arrived. We have settled back in nicely and Abby is adjusting well. Classes start-up again for me on Monday, and I am pretty excited about that. This should be a good, but challenging semester. As you can see from the photo, Abby is growing up quickly. Soon we will be sending her off to college! We are going this afternoon to Springs (Colorado Springs as the non-locals know it) to pick up Agogo (Abby’s grandmother, Sarah’s Mom) at the airport after her long travels from South Africa. She is spending a month here with us. We are glad to have her come and help and visit her granddaughter. Lot’s going on around here!

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Hello from Albuquerque, New Mexico! We began our trip back to Colorado yesterday, and we will be arriving back in Colorado tomorrow. In an attempt to make the trip easier, Sarah and Abby flew to Albuquerque and I made the trip by car there. The drive from Tucson was extremely windy and dusty.  Apparently the Interstate between Lordsburg, NM and Las Cruces was closed because of dust-storms after I had come through. Last night we stayed with Sarah’s Aunt Ginny, Uncle John, and cousins Eileen, Heidi, and Lindi. Packing the car to get here was a real adventure. I should learn that it is unwise to trust U-Haul. I had made a reservation for U-Haul a month beforehand and on Monday I got a call informing me that there was not going to be a trailer available. . . so much for reservations. My dad and I started working on alternatives, and we settled on a roof-top carrier made by Thule. It is canvas and we were able to put in two big suitcases and some bags of clothes. This leaves room from Abby’s stuff! Tomorrow’s drive will be 5 1/2 hours.  Back to class on the first week of June with a new baby in tow!

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I am beginning to learn that sleep is really overrated . . . or at least that’s what my daughter would have us believe. It is amazing the amount of changes our lives have undergone in the past 2 weeks. We went from just the two of us to the three of us and our entire life now seems to revolve around the eating and sleeping schedule of Abigail (last night it seemed like every half hour). This is not news to “seasoned” parent, but this is expected from a brand new infant. Nevertheless, no matter how much I prepared myself for it, I was not prepared. I have to say that as much as I love to sleep at night, I love holding my daughter (Okay so I really like sleep)! It is amazing how much I am already starting to see her personality. Every day Abby seems to change just a little bit more. We were excited to find out yesterday that she is almost at 5lbs. Well, speaking of baby needs, I think it’s time for a diaper change Enjoy the video below!

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Today was Sarah’s first Mother’s Day! She is already an awesome mom.  We of course did not expect her to be celebrating (officially) Mother’s Day this year. . . but God’s in grace and provision, we have a healthy, beautiful little girl and Sarah is a brand new mom.  Today was a really pleasant day.  We had a number of family members over for dinner.  Many of them saw Abby for the first time today.  She is already living up to her name (brings joy)!  As far as Mom’s go, Abby is a very blessed little girl to have Sarah as her mom.  It is wonderful to see the connection that they already have for each other. I can’t wait until Father’s Day! Just one month! Happy Mother’s Day to all the mother’s out there! We are all grateful for all of you!

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Well, Abigail has been born for a week and on Monday she will have been home for a week. Below is a video of a bath we gave her. She seems to really enjoy the baths. She particularly enjoys getting her head brushed.  Right now life is pretty simple.  Sarah and I get up,  feed Abby,  change her diapers,  take a nap when she’s napping (she has us up at all hours of the night and  . . . that’s about it.  She is such a joy and a blessing to us.  We are actually glad that she was born here in Tucson (the plan was for her to be born when we were back in Colorado) because my parents have had a chance to spend time with her.  Well. . . it sounds like another diaper and feeding is calling. . . enjoy the short video. (By the way, there are some new photos in the gallery. . . check them out!)

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Great news! Abigail Sophia Mourreale was able to go home today. Sarah and I are very excited. Thank you all for your prayers and support. As you know, Abby coming this early was a surprise to us, but we thank God that she is health and strong.

[Show as slideshow]

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Abby is doing very well this morning. Her breathing is not labored anymore and she is eating and pooping well! Sarah and I are living here at the hospital (Sarah is being released today and I have been sleeping on a pullout couch–a big thank you goes out to my sister-in-law LiAnne for “calling in a favor” for us and getting us the biggest private room). Sarah has been attempting to breastfeed, and Abby has been latching on and getting small amounts of her milk. As a result, we have been getting up every 4 hours and going down to the NICU to feed Abby. The funny thing was that her schedule was 7, 11, and 3 (am and pm) and those times coordinated perfectly with the shift changes for the nurses, which meant that we were getting kicked out within 10 minutes every time we went down there. Needless to say, we decided to “change” the schedule and we went down this morning at 6 am. It is amazing to me how quickly I have fallen in love with this precious little girl, I think the fact that I am a father (and have to be responsible etc. etc.) will sink in more and more when we have her at home.

Some might be wondering how we came to pick Abigail Sophia for a name. Abigail is Hebrew and means “brings joy.” In the bible, Abigail was intelligent and beautiful in appearance (1 Samuel 25:3). Sophia is a Greek word that means “wisdom.” Our prayer for her is that there will never be a day that she does not understand the love of the Father and that she would, under our teaching, come to full knowledge of her Savior, Jesus Christ. Pray that Abigail will live up to her name.

That is all I have for now, we are hoping to find out later today when Abby will be able to come home with us.

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At 4:48 am in Tucson AZ, Sarah gave birth to Abigail Sophia Mourreale. Abby weighed 4 lbs 11oz. Sarah did amazing! Yesterday at 5:00 pm, Sarah’s water broke. (Yeah so that makes the entire labor less then 12 hours. . . not bad for a first time mommy!) Because she was 35 weeks along we were not expecting to have this baby for another month. Thanks be to God that Abigail is healthy and doing well. Because of her size and some breathing issues, Abby was sent to the NICU (Newborn Intensive Care Unit). Thankfully, she is breathing better and is expected to leave that unit in a day or two.

It is amazing to think that this little person is my child. This whole process has struck me with awe at God’s providence and sovereignty. We were “planning” to have Abby in Colorado in a month, but God obviously had other plans for us. Once Sarah’s waters broke there was not turning back, this baby was coming and there was nothing we could do about it! Being there with Sarah through the labor and delivery is the most amazing thing I have ever been a part of, and we are both amazed at how God was there in the middle of it all. One other neat thing is that Abby shares her birthday with Grandpa Stan. We are so happy that she is here with us, please continue to pray for her. Abigail Sophia Mourreale, a child of the King, child of the covenant.

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