Simon Peter

Introducing Simon Peter! We call him Peter. What a blessing from the Lord he is. He is perfect. Wonderfully made, and a bringer of great joy. Megan has been amazed by how accurate the saying "bundle of joy" is. Me too. Here are some photos from our first few days with our son (I will narrate a bit because the stories are great):

Photo 1: Megan laboring. The baby's heart rate was seeming a bit irregular, so the doctors were a bit nervous. The praise is that Peter was totally healthy and Megan had a great labor and was able to do it all without medicine. She was incredible. I was honored to get to be her coach and see what determination she is capable of.

Photo 2: It's a boy! Our first child is born. I remember the moment of seeing he was a boy. Super cool. Cutting the cord, him being placed on Megan's chest for the first time. He was crying; he was breathing; he was our son. What a neat moment. Wow. Here is the first photo ever of Simon Peter.

Photo 3: He did not like being measured, etc. Even while being measured, I loved looking in his eyes for the first time. Very cool to meet eye to eye with my son.

Photo 4: Megan holding her son. I am starting to understand why mothers have such a connection with their children.

Photo 5: Our young family about 20 minutes after delivery.

Photo 6: Mama and little Peter.

Photo 7: The grandparents! So sweet having them all there. Here they are waiting for Peter to get his first bath.

Photo 8: Peter did not enjoy his first bath. My dad is commenting on his good set of lungs in the background!

Photo 9: Grandpa Balog holds Peter for the first time. He lacks no excitement for grandchildren. I love it.

Photo 10: Grandma and Grandpa Balog loving on that little guy! They came down at just the right time - the night Megan went into labor. It was so nice to spend some time with them that night before going into the hospital.

Photo 11: He loves being held by grandma.

Photo 12: Peter Sr. holding his first grandchild. In his words, "he's perfect."

Photo 13: This one's just cute.

Photo 14: When we found out we were pregnant last fall, we figured my sister Annie had been praying for that to happen! When we asked her, she smiled and said "yep, a little" :) Well, I'm glad she had. And here she gets to be an Aunt Annie for the first time. She smiled so big; it was great to see.

Photo 15: I gather that some people maybe don't like having to stay in the hospital for a couple of days after the birth. Megan and I loved it, however. It kind of felt like a honeymoon for having a baby. People came and visited. We ate slept, and got used to taking care of the little dude.

Photo 16: I love seeing this connection between Mom and son. She is a great mother. I know her. She will be firm and require truth and uprightness from him, and she will support and encourage him. Megan is steady, she is loving, and she is strong. She is going to be a great Mom.

Photo 17: On our second afternoon, my mom came to help us get some sleep. She brought lunch and held our little sweetheart while we each took a nap. Before I dozed, I saw this scene that I had to capture. My mom is like mother hen with kids - a natural gatherer and teacher. Really fun to watch. Here she is in her element.

Photo 18: My parents custom ordered a rocking chair for us to hold the baby in. It is made of cherry - all time favorite domestic wood for me and my dad. Here's Peter with my parents in our lovely apartment's family room.

Photo 19: Peter sleeping in the beautiful crib Megan's parents ordered for us.

Photo 20: My favorite thing is to hold him on my chest. I am told it creates good bonding, but I just know that I love doing it. I am trying to set up our computer so I can hold him like this and watch a few innings of a MLB game.

Photo 21-23: He has some alert time most nights around 10 or 11pm. A few nights ago we took some photos. I love these. The middle one is him flexing. He is tall, barrel chested, and strong. I'm digging it. We love this little guy.

Thanks for looking. There will of course be more to come! Praise the Lord for little Peter and the miracle and joy of life.