Quinn says...

"Here I am with my cousin Elijah!"

"...and with my cousin Reuben!"

"...and with my friend Maddie!"

"...and with my friend Sabina!"

Quinn says...

"Here I am with my Auntie Jill!"

"...and with my Uncle Jonathan!"

"...and with my Uncle Scott!"

Big Brother and Little Brother...

Each night while we were in Texas, we would hold the phone up to Quinn's ear and allow Soren to speak to his little brother.  On the first night after we left the hospital, Soren said, "Welcome to the world, little brother.  There's a lot of joy and happiness out here...I love you lots...I love you lots."  As the time passed, Soren told Quinn on Thursday, May 8th: "I sure am getting antsy to meet you!"  Finally...

 

...and Soren is an awesome big brother!

Home, Sweet, Home...Love, Sweet, Love...

Is this a proud big brother or what?  After a long, patient wait, Soren was finally able to meet his little brother on Thursday night...and what an awesome big brother he is!

And how about these proud grandpas!

 

...and his Nanny, too! (Grandma Smyth picture coming soon!)

  
  

Free at Last...

On Wednesday at around 4:30 (3:30 CST), we received the call from our social worker, Cherie, in Cincinnati, that we had been granted our ICPC (Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children) clearance from both Texas and Ohio (after some diligent work and advocacy/agitation on the part of Cherie, and our amazing legal assistant, Elizabeth).  Leaving Waco, we still had five hours of Texas between us an the Arkansas border. Never in my wildest dreams could I imagine how elated I would feel to spot the "Welcome to Arkansas" sign (Love ya, Texans!).  

Arriving in Little Rock at 10:00 pm (making good time, adrenaline-pumping, reveling in the freedom of the road), we fueled up the car at Citgo and our bodies at the Waffle House, feeling like we could easily pull-off another two hours, placing us in Memphis at midnight where we'd check-in and get a little sleep before Thursday's final push.  That's when our momentum was thwarted as we sat in traffic-no-man's land suspended above the Mississippi between Arkansas and Tennessee for two hours because of a pretty serious accident on the DeSoto bridge.  Quinn slept through the whole ordeal, and actually allowed us to get a little sleep before we got on the road the next day...Fear not--he wasn't stuck in his car seat during our two hours at a complete standstill, and fear not, he was secure in his seat well before the traffic was moving again.

The drive on Thursday was quite smooth until we ran into driving rain that lasted from about Mammoth Cave through a very sluggish Louisville rush hour and all the way home.  Never before have we been so overjoyed to pass through the "cut-in-the-hill" and to cross over the Ohio on the Brent Spence Bridge.  

We arrived home to a house that had been very thoroughly cleaned and prepared for our arrival by our families, with Quinn's room set up, our bedroom retrofitted for nights with a newborn.  We could not be more overwhelmed and grateful for all of the generosity, hospitality, kind words, grace, and understanding that have been rained on us over the last several weeks by so, so many of you...

Donna's Birthday

Yes, this is a strong little boy-o.  Yes, he has started to smile.  Yes, his little cooing sounds are just about the sweetest thing ever.

...and, yes, Quinn loves to snuggle with his Mama.

...and his Dada, too.

Though the judge in Ft. Bend County finalized our "managing conservatorship," we are patiently awaiting the green light from Texas and Ohio ICPC (Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children) granting us the right to leave Texas with Quinn. Until then, as the judge reminded us (smiling), we are "being held hostage by the state of Texas."  And so, today being Donna's birthday, we returned to the Wildflower area at Cameron Park here in Waco.  It was a cool and beautiful afternoon and the Texas wildflowers are at their peak.

Our friends recommended a Thai restaurant in downtown Waco that was outstanding.  And we are so ready to be back home.

Layover in Waco

Awaiting our Monday, May 12th court date in Ft. Bend County, we decided to trek up to Waco to visit our old friends, Barb and Phillip, and their two daughters.  We think our invitation to the soiree in Crawford last night got lost in the mail, but we were quite happy to while the hours in Waco with such good people.

Quinn's immediate friend, Clare, found herself proclaiming over and over (and over), "He is too cute!"

These two photos (above and below) were taken during Quinn's first official outing to the Wildflower section of Cameron Park in Waco.

And Hannah was happy to share in the Quinn-love, too...

a few of my favorite things...

a few of my favorite things...

a.k.a. "Sleepyhead"

Dream.

 Little One.

Dream.

Leaving the Hospital

At a little after 4:00 pm on Monday afternoon, Mom, Dad, and little Quinn left the hospital for Galveston (about 1 hour south of Houston)...

...where they would spend their first official night as a family together at the Harbor House.  

Our First Night Together

Here I am with Momma just a couple of minutes after I was born.

                                                                 

...and with Dad later that day!

Room 334 is the "Nesting" room the nurses provided us for some quality family time.

This is one of my favorite things to do.

Here I am with my Momma on our first night alone together (though still at the hospital).

And here's Daddy feeding me shortly before we left this hospital (another favorite thing to do).

The charge nurse from the nursery, named "Glo," (really Gregoria), made a room available last night for Quinn, Donna, and Jeff to sleep in together.  He spent his first night in the nursery after a tiring day of sleeping and entertaining visitors.  One of the three of us did some sleeping, and it was a night full of feeding, diaper changes, and what we're calling "squawking."  Precious time together, indeed.

May 3rd, 2008--Here I Am, World!

Quinn Colin Hutchinson was born at 2:19 pm on Saturday, May 3, 2008 at San Jacinto Methodist Hospital in Baytown, Texas.  A healthy cry was a comfort to all present.  Quinn was 20 inches long at birth, and he weighed 7 lbs. 8 oz.  More importantly, he is absolutely beautiful in every way, and he is loved beyond the capacity of words to describe.