Callie is absolutely perfect and meeting my sister and brother-in-law’s daughter filled my heart right up. Callie is a bundle of love with constantly-kicking feet and a full head of soft dark hair. She has perfectly wrinkly newborn skin, pouty pink lips and beautiful eyes that somehow simultaneously seem brown and blue. And there’s no denying that so far she seems to be the spitting image of her father.
As you may be able to tell from the photos we have of Callie this weekend, she is currently receiving some extra care in the NICU. She’s a strong little girl with the most loving parents and we know she’s in the very best hands with a wonderful team of nurses and doctors watching over her.
We spent as much time as possible in the NICU with Callie this weekend and timed a lot of our visits with her feeds so we could see her when she was awake. There’s something about the way Callie looks at you that makes you feel like she’s really trying to soak in her surroundings and she seems like the most observant little girl.
During one visit, I said something to one of the NICU nurses about Callie being a sweet but feisty little girl and she replied, “Oh yes, she’s got some feistyness in her, which is what we like to see in here!” I absolutely cannot wait to watch Callie grow and see her personality come out more and more!
My parents were so wonderfully helpful with Ryder and Chase this weekend which allowed us the opportunity to spend as much time as possible at the hospital. I also took full advantage of any moment I had to sit with Leslie in the NICU whenever she wanted company (there is a two-person limit at Callie’s bedside) and while I was not permitted to hold Callie yet (the hospital’s policy limits this to parents and grandparents to limit germs around the babies), seeing her in my sister’s arms was almost more special to me because I saw Leslie step perfectly into her new role as Callie’s mother. There is no denying the fact that Callie already knows her mother and responds to her mama’s soothing voice and nurturing touch.
Over the course of the weekend, Ryan said that spending time in a hospital is like some weird time warp where you lose all track of time and Leslie and I completely agreed. Our time in Florida passed by in a bit of a blur and I’m already dying for another visit! I’m so glad we were able to make the trip to Jacksonville and spend time with the newest addition to our family. We love you so much, Callie!
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During our time in Florida, we also managed to celebrate Ryan’s birthday! My mom and Chase made a Funfetti cake for Ryan when we were at the hospital and surprised him with a mini birthday party after dinner on Friday night.
Chase mentioned the dinosaur socks he picked out for Dad no less than three times before Ryan opened his present from Chase but he was somehow still miraculously surprised with his gift from his T-Rex-loving son.
The 6+ hour drive to and from Jacksonville went surprisingly well both ways. During the trip down to Florida, Chase slept for all of 15 minutes (we left at 6 p.m. and didn’t arrive until nearly 1 a.m.) but somehow he was in the best mood the whole time. Ryan joked and said of course Chase was in a great mood — he had 5+hours of undivided Mom attention after I crawled into the backseat and hung out between Chase and Ryder.
The ride home was a little more restful for both boys. Ryder slept (off and on) for the majority of the drive and Chase kicked off our trip home with a 90-minute nap. Once Chase was awake, we spent a large portion of the drive back to Charlotte playing with a new sticker activity book (he’s obsessed with the animal ones from National Geographic) and watched a few “Top 10” videos on YouTube about sharks and dinosaurs.
From the front seat, Ryan asked us to turn up the volume on the videos because the facts were oddly interesting! Did you know that one of the top 10 largest dinosaurs (the Paralititan) was discovered in 2001!? That’s like yesterday! (Okay, maybe not yesterday, but I refuse to believe Y2K was almost 20 years ago.) I don’t know about you, but I thought all of the dinosaurs were discovered much longer ago than 2001.
And now that I’ve given you a little nugget of dinosaur knowledge that you definitely didn’t need to know, I’m off to tackle this Monday! I have a deadline for an upcoming campaign to work on and need to play catch up a bit since I neglected almost all work over the weekend.
I hope you guys have a great week! Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today!
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Callie is adorable! And I love her name! I’m so sorry that your sister has to be a NICU mom. It’s heartbreaking as you know. But it looks like Callie is strong, and hopefully she’ll be home very soon!
Thank you so much for your sweet words, Susan. It’s definitely hard to see her in the NICU but we have complete faith she will be home with Leslie and Ross soon. She’s the sweetest little girl!
Your post was perfect. Callie is such a beautiful little girl and we are all captivated by her. Thank you for making the trip! Love you.
Thanks Mama!! Love you, too!! <3
She is beautiful, hope she is home soon but until then sounds like she has the best care and the love and prayers of her mom and dad and extended family. Callie sure does look like her dad! Hope Leslie is holding up ok during this tough time as I’m sure she is recovering physically and emotionally and baby being in NICU is tough even if a blessing. Sending love and prayers.
Congratulations on your newest family member! She is precious! I can only imagine what it’s like welcoming a little baby into a family. I’m sure it’s a wonderful feeling! Also… I’m right there with you on dinosaurs. They’re so interesting! In college, I actually took a class called Dinosaurs and my professor used to go on exhibitions all of the time to find new bones! Crazy stuff. – Kaitlyn | IG: @kaitlynmcquin
As a NICU mama myself, this brings back the memories. We spent 21 days there and it was a hard time but three years later we have a healthy and happy boy! Xoxo to your sister and brother in law! I know what they are going thru! She’s just adorable looking!
Callie is beautiful! Congratulations! Sending so much love and many prayers! I hope you have a great week, Julie! Xoxo
She’s absolutely beautiful! I hope she gets to go home soon!
She is so precious!! Sending positive vibes and prayers to your sister and family!
Having a baby in the NICU is the hardest thing. I hope she is able to come home soon. Your family is in my thoughts and prayers.
Thank you, Jenn! We appreciate the prayers very much. <3
Shout out to Chase! 2/2 on boy/girl predictions now, right?
She is amazing! Congrats Leslie & family!
Yes!! He’s our little psychic!
Oh man, tough year for your family with two NICU babies back to back 🙁 I hope Callie is on a quick road to recovery and will be able to go home with Leslie and Ross soon! I’m glad you were still able to meet her and will be keeping her and her parents in my prayers!
Thank you, Bethany <3 She's such an amazing little girl!
She is so cute! What bad luck having two babies in a row having to be in the NICU in your family. Is there any guess on how long she’ll have to stay?
We aren’t sure right now (so much can vary day-to-day) but from what we’re learning she will likely be in the NICU for another two weeks… but again it’s hard to know for sure. We are hoping she will be able to come home soon! <3
Aw, what a sweetie!
Congratulations to your sister and her family. Callie is beautiful. Praying that she is home soon and that your sister and BIL can feel strong and on the same team in this challenge. Lots of love from a stranger <3
Thank you, Sarah! Your comment about Leslie and Ross being on the same team was spot on — they have truly been incredible partners as new parents already. <3
Adorable…. and the look on Ross & Leslie’s faces …..
Leslie & Ross look blissful! Little miss is so cute. Sorry to read above she’ll be in NICU for two weeks – omg!
She’s so beautiful! So many best wishes going their way to get to take Baby Callie home soon! ❤
How precious! Look at the hair too. I hope she is doing better!! Your sister looks AMAZING!
Also, is your family ok with the Hurricane in Florida?