We're home!

Well there is so much news really, and very little time to write! The real big news is that we moved into our house yesterday; 53 packages were unloaded into our house following a 10 month journey from New Zealand (via Bridgwater, Somerset). Having not had any of our possessions for almost a year, it was wonderful to finally unpack, and for the first time be 'home' since May 10th 2008. Photos and video to follow in the usual style!

Phoebe is doing incredibly still! She is taking more and more feeds from the bottle, and is also starting to breast feed. She took an entire feed from Laura this afternoon which was incredible. They are now increasing the number of feeds that she takes from the bottle as she is gaining strength and the stamina to be able to cope with it. So she's now weighing 2309g (5lbs 1oz) which is awesome; We're blown away by the progress she has made - she feels (and looks) so much like a real baby now. She had her second eye test yesterday and we are awaiting the results from that, so we'll let you know how she goes; They are wanting to see her again in a week, but that is all we know.

Gracie is on wonderful form; She is loving being in her own house and has played so beautifully the last 2 days - I think she is so happy to have all her toys back with her after such a long absence! It's so great to see her really thrive. Tomorrow Laura will walk to church for the first time (as we're now 5 minutes away) and I will lead worship at the 10:45 congregation for the first time - it's going to be a great day. As ever, here are some photos.

Gracie watching some TV while waiting for the furniture to arrive!

We're moving in!

Today Paul went into Vancouver to clear our shipping through customs...it went through without a hitch and our stuff is getting delivered on Friday afternoon! We are feeling very excited that we will finally be in our own home (although living with John and Allyson since we've arrived here has been amazing). It's been almost a year since we have lived in our own home as a family and we feel ready to do so again! Thank you everyone for your prayers.

Both of our gorgeous girls are doing well. Gracie is just adorable at the moment and makes us laugh so much. She has recently started roll-playing with her toys and it is hysterical to listen in to see how she views the world; my favorite is when one of her animals falls on the floor and she says 'oh sweetheart' and gives them a big hug!

Gracie and I went into the hospital this morning and Gracie got to cuddle Phoebe for the first time which was lovely-it lasted for about 45 seconds-but it was still very sweet! The hospital have a free babysitting service for siblings of children in hospital, this is run by volunteers each weekday morning which we have been using. This has been amazing as one of my biggest problems is finding time to see Phoebe but not wanting to be away from Gracie for a long time, I can now go into see Phoebe and take Gracie with me which makes life a little bit easier!

Phoebe is still growing! She now weighs 4lb 10oz. Her weight gain has been so good that the dietitian came to see her and they have cut back on the HMF additive they give tiny babies...this is good news as it just brings us a small step closer to bringer her home! Her second eye exam is going to happen in the next few days. Phoebe will go on a little day trip back to Vancouver by ambulance for this as they don't have all the equipment at Abbortsord hospital.

We'll keep you posted with the results of the eye test in the next couple of days, and we'll get some photos of the new house once we've unpacked over the weekend. God is so faithful to us!

Gracie and I having a picnic at the hospital

Gracie has her first cuddle with Phoebe

Jetboating

Another Queenstown must is Jetboating; We couldn't both go on a trip because of Gracie, so Laura went out on the Jetboat and had a whale of a time! They went up the lake at 80kmph before heading up the Shotover river - lots of fun indeed! Annoyingly the camera was having some issues, so I wasn't really able to get any good photos of her in the boat. Here is the boat arriving back at the end of the trip though!

Our Holiday in Oz!

Two weeks ago we went on holiday to Australia with our friend Alana for her birthday which was so much fun. We spent the week in Caloundra on the Sunshine coast soaking up the sun and playing in water. The weather was just beautiful and we all enjoyed a bit of sun and relaxation. Gracie had her first real experience of sand and sea-she wasn't overly keen on the sand but jumping in the waves was a big hit!

We also visited Australia zoo which was amazing. We were able to walk, sit and stroke kangaroos, stroke koala's as well as seeing loads of other animals. The highlight of the holiday was going to underwater world and watching the seal show. Although the actual place wasn't amazing the show was such good fun that we went back for the second showing later that day. Here are some photos for you to enjoy!

Gracie thinks her outfit is hysterical!

Jumping in the waves

Hanging out by the surf club (for all you Home and Away fans!)

Cooling down in the very cold water!

Hanging out on the beach at Maroochydore

Laura and Gracie by the beach

Gracie meets a Kangaroo

We meet a kangaroo too!

Shots of the beach at Caloundra

Paul & Gracie at their favourite Juice Bar

Paul doing the BBQ!

Gracie loving her spoon!

Tired at the end of a busy week!

Laura's birthday bike...

With her birthday money, Laura bought herself a new bike. We've bought both her and Gracie a helmet, and a baby seat to attach to the back. Laura just couldn't wait to try it out and has made several trips up and down the drive with Gracie in the basket!!!

A Busy Week!

This week has been pretty busy. On Wednesday it was my birthday so Paul took the day off and we met friends for coffee in the morning followed by an amazing chocolate cake in the afternoon made by Paul.

On Thursday Gracie had a photo shoot! We were stopped in the mall a week or so ago by a photographer called Rachael Hale and asked if she could meet up with me about using Gracie as a model. She came by on Monday and it turns out she's published a book already and is well known in New Zealand and her work is sold around the world. In the past she's worked with animals but is now picturing babies. So anyway, we went to her studio on Thursday and she took the most gorgeous photo's of Gracie-i can't wait to get the copies!

Yesterday Paul went away for the weekend with church so i spent the afternoon with Rosie (his sister) and we took the kids swimming. It was Gracie's first time in a pool and she loved it. I then stayed over at their house which was lots of fun and we watched Will Smith's newish movie, In pursuit of happiness. It was a great film-a real eye opener-I recomend it.

Ok. so thats my busy week! I'm now looking forwards to some of the girls coming over tonight-should be lots of fun!

Gracie looking adorable!

Here is a couple of photos hot of the press. She is wearing a gorgeous hat that Laura's mum made for up - it looks great on her. Thanks Powell Management!

What have we been up to this week?

Well this week has been another busy week. I (Paul) have been working pretty hard this week - there is plenty on at the moment to keep me busy - tonight is SOAK at church, so I'll be heading back there pretty soon to practice with the band, and get a few things set up.

Gracie has been doing really well - in the last week she has mastered sitting up, rolling over from her tummy, and has started having solid foods. She is so much fun, and we're loving every minute of her. Here are a couple of pics of her this week.

Yesterday we went to our good friends Dizz & James for Dizz's 30th - they prepared an INCREDIBLE mi winter christmas, including tree, carols, mulled wine, a huge christmas dinner, and a visit from Father Christmas - as you can see, Matilda cashed in!

Sitting Up

This last week has been a week of firsts for Gracie. Paul spent alot of time with her over the weekend which she loved and has learnt how to sit! At first it was for just a minute but she can now sit for quite a while unaided. I've also been encouraging her to roll which has been successful twice but she hasn't done it since - I blame the huge cloth nappies as she was in disposables when she rolled!
Gracie has also become a lot more interested in books in the past few days. I went out for coffee this morning and she sat in her pushchair looking at a book for ages-it was bliss as I sat there with earache relaxing in the chair.

Coffee Group

I love being a mother because I spend a lot of my mornings going to various coffee groups! Its such a great place to be with other mums where we can take and share advice as wells as talk about our babies nonstop!

Since moving to New Zealand I have found it hard to make friends outside of the church because I had nowhere to meet them. Apart from a couple of nanny friends i've made over the past 2 years my friendships consist of only church people-don't get me wrong, i really, really love my friends-yet i find it suffocating and boring to only be around those who think in simular ways to me.

Thats why i love my coffee groups- its somewhere where i can be challenged, engaged with the 'real' world and make a difference. I don't suggest i have the answers and others don't, its just that i hope the way i live and love, will challenge my friends in a simular way they challenge me.

Gracie is below with her friends from our anti-natal group.

Photos of Gracie's room...

A perfect Saturday...

Laura is feeling a bit better today, so this morning we headed out to our friends Dizz & James in Oratia - they have a fantastic house on a huge section in the middle of the bush; it really is perfect. At this point I should mention James' new shed - he built it himself from scratch over the christmas break, and I can honestly say it the best shed I've ever seen!!! Photo's to prove it! (from Dizz's blog)

We had a sensational brunch with them before piling into their newly aquired 17 year old minibus type people mover thing. We loaded a couple of longboards, and headed off to Piha, which is a very rugged west coach beach, made famouse for having 'The Piano' filmed on it.



The weather was absolutely perfect and there was some great surf, so James & I went out into the waves for some fun. Surprisingly, I found out that I can actually surf, and caught a few nice wives and rode a couple into the shore.


After the beach, we headed back to theirs for a beautiful roast lamb on their deck. This evening we've got our good friends Greg & Yona and Aaron coming for a BBQ. Clearly Gracie will be too tired to make it!!!

What's Up?

Hi guys, sorry it's been a little while since we've posted anything of any great substance. The last week, Laura has been pretty ill which has been a lot of hard work or us. She is on antibiotics, so should get better soon - it's made for quite an unsettled week though.

Gracie is utterly gorgeous - she is growing heaps and is becoming more and more responsive to us. We're now getting loads of smiles and some baby talk... very cute. Here is a little video of us yesterday having some baby chatter on the sofa.

And a cute photo of her sleeping in her cot yesterday.

My 2 beautiful girls...

A Tour of the house...

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Introducing Gracie May Kingsley-Smith

Gracie was born at 9:48 on the 10th December (her due date). She was 7lbs 10oz and is absolutely gorgeous. Both Gracie and Laura are doing really well.

Here are a few photos, ranging from 5 minutes after the birth, to 3 hours after.