*New Arrival & Turning 1*

We can finally announce the arrival of our little girl! Raylee Jo Nielsen was born on August 18, 2011 at 5:08 p.m., weighing in at 6 lbs 5 oz and 19.5 inches long. Labor and Delivery went very smooth and quick. We checked in at 12:30 p.m. so we only had to wait for a little over 4 1/2 hours.

A lot of our family members were able to come up and see her. We are so thankful for all the support and love that they have shown to us. We have had a lot of help from both sides of the family. My little sister Natalie was able to come up here and help me for 6 weeks this summer before Raylee was born. And both my mom and Brock's mom have stayed with us to help out.

Here is Daddy and Raylee when she was two days old. A really nice nurse found the litte hat and put it on her.

Here is Daddy, Mommy, and Raylee after her first bath.

Here are Grandpa Greg and Grandma Kari with Brandt and Raylee.

Here are Grandpa and Grandma Nielsen with Brandt and Raylee.

Finally here is our little family the day we came home from the hospital. Brandt has been so good with her and has been so sweet to give her kisses on her head and he now knows how to say sister.

This was her take home outfit. I loved it when I saw it so I had to make sure it's what we brought her home in.

*Brandt's 1st birthday*

Brandt turned 1 on the 22nd. So yes, my kids are 361 days apart! Almost made it to a year but not quite. We kept it really small this year because I wasn't sure when Raylee was coming so I didn't plan anything huge. My mom and I made him a cake that he could dig into and he did a great job of that! Brock decorated the #1 and put the Boston Red Sox baseball cap on the bear and my mom and I decorate the bear.

Here he is chowing down on the leg he ripped off. He was loving it! It was so fun to watch him. My mom has had this cake mold since I was little. It has been tradition to let all the kids tear into this cake on their 1st birthday. And so far, Brandt has been the only one to actually grab a piece and start eating it.

This one has to be my favorite pic of him! He has grown so fast! He can now say a few words which include...

*Mama

*Dada

*Papa

*Sister

*Bath

*Dog

*and he can tell you what a cow says.

This last year has flown by and I'm sure it's not going to slow down any time soon with the addition of another one. I feel so blessed to have the wonderful family that I do and to have so many people around us that love and support us. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped us out and who has been there for us whenever we may have needed it.