First visitors

Merrick had his first visitors today. Above, Great Aunt Pat got to meet her grand nephew.

Later, the Ding family came over. From left, Maven, Sedona and Austin posed with sleeping Merrick. The kids all went swimming while they were here.

 

Merrick was oddly alert when Maggie held him.

Coming home

Big brother Austin welcomed Merrick when he came home from the hospital today.

What a snoozer. Merrick stayed asleep in the car seat when he came home.

Welcome home, Merrick!

Born this way

Welcome, Merrick Tully Lev!

Merrick was born Thursday, July 21, 2011, at 12:45 p.m.. He weighed a robust 9 pounds, 10 ounces, to the amazement of Sarah's doctor (and all of us, frankly).

About the name:

First of all, Merrick is a real name. It's a Welsh name meaning "Moor."

But we chose the name as an ode to the baby's great-grandparents.

We wanted a name that combines the initials of his great-grandparents, or as many as practical.

His great-grandparents are:
Richard and Cleo Dawn Tully (Sarah's paternal grandparents.)
Mary and Robert Richardson (Sarah's maternal grandparents.)
Max and Hannah Teichman (Michael's maternal grandparents.)

We thought of squeezing in a silent "H" for Hannah, but we decided against an odd spelling, figuring this was close enough.

Merrick was especially appealing because the name includes "ric."

It's a way to honor Sarah's paternal grandfather, Richard Tully, because the baby's due date was on his 90th birthday, July 17. Yes, he's still living. The whole family had a big birthday bash for "Tata" in Tucson over the weekend.

Also, Richardson is the last name of Sarah's maternal grandparents and maiden name of her dear Aunt Adabelle, who passed away last fall. We found out that we were pregnant shortly after Adabelle's funeral, so we feel that her spirit is very much with this baby. Adabelle was like a third grandmother. It doesn't hurt that Adabelle was an ob/gyn nurse for many years.

Sarah's maternal grandfather's birthday was July 24. The late Robert Richardson would have turned 92 this year.

So, the baby's birthday ended up falling right between the two great-grandfathers' birthdays.

We'll post more about baby Merrick soon.

When will baby come?

Baby No. 2 was due yesterday, July 17.
But he's still not here.
So, I'm going to be induced Wednesday night, if he doesn't come before.
We'll keep you posted!

Nesting

We were in full nesting mode last week. Even Austin helped build the bassinet -- with no shirt and a toy tool belt on.

'Sexy' conversation

Here's a conversation I had with Austin one morning while we were still in pajamas.

Scene: Watching and dancing to Lady Gaga concert on TV.

Lady Gaga says to audience: "Do you think I'm sexy? I think you're sexy."

Austin to me: "What's sexy?"

Me: Pause. "Good question. It means pretty. What's pretty?"

Austin: "Dresses. What else?"

Me: "Princesses. Do you think Mommy is pretty?"

Austin: "Not in those pajamas."

Austin at swim lessons

Here's a picture of Austin at swim lessons at Hart Park in Orange. He learned how to monkey crawl, float, blow bubbles and kick.