Family

It's something that I've always known, that deep-down I'm sure everyone knows, but I love those moments when I re-realize how important family really is.  Not only how important they are, but how much I love/enjoy being with them.  This past weekend we had a fun surprise when eric and sarah's baby came a few weeks early.  We happened to be at a birthday party for my grandpa at the time so it was pretty fun/funny to be giving them the play by play on what was happening and seeing all their excitement.  I mean, you can't help it-when you hear a baby is coming-the reaction is just sheer joy.  No matter how great or bad your own family was, you just can't help but feel that excitement and that sense of importance-a new life coming into the world!

Steve and I went to visit them in the hospital.  I love, love, love the awe factor that a newborn baby brings.  Was Jake EVER this small and helpless??  I went home and looked at a bunch of pics and videos from when we first brought him home.

Introducing: Olivia Reagan Richards at 7 lbs 12 oz and 19.5 inches long.

steve stood in the corner content to look at her-according to him she was too fragile.  Can't wait to see his transition to fatherhood :)

They come home from the hospital today.  As much as I love newborns etc-I do NOT envy the transition that lays ahead of them.  Going from 0-1 kid is the WORST (and not cause of the kid-it's just so dang scary/stressful/you don't know what you're doing etc.  I figure any transition is better after that first one :)

After we got back from the hospital yesterday, we played cribbage and two rounds of monopoly-two because I knocked steve out of the game after like 20 minutes with the light blues and then the second time I beat them again with the cliche broadway/park place-not something I go after but it was all that was left  and ironically, since the other two had so many monopolies they couldn't afford  to put hotels on them.  Sometimes it pays to go small :)  

It was just so fun hanging out/talking/laughing.  I love hanging out with my family.  Then we watched the rifftracks of house on haunted hill (it's an old classic on hulu-highly recommend it for this week).

Tonight we're having a get together with some friends so I can finally dress Jake up in his halloween costume :)