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Meet the Newlyweds

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Life doesn't get much better than this.

I just stopped in the hall at the sound of my husband's boots tapping the floor and the his voice in a near-whisper. He was in Lincoln's room, rocking him and reading a Dr. Suess book before naptime. I just stood at the door listening with a big smile on my face. He's a wonderful daddy.

Splish, Splash!

Lincoln loves bathtime. He wasn't too fond of it the first time, but after that he decided it wasn't so bad afterall. Now he never makes a sound when it's time to get in the tub. We are quickly running into a space issue though. He's getting too long for the sling in his infant tub!

Here are some pictures from his first bath.







And one from last week...

The Lip

A Sneak Peek - Lincoln's Birth Story in Pictures

When I first found out I was pregnant, one thing I knew I wanted was a photographer present at the birth. I didn't want to chance leaving the picture-taking up to a family member on such an important occasion. (My sister-in-law tried that with her first daughter and the memory card got erased before they even left the hospital. I could not have handled that.) Through Facebook I found Emily Cottingham. She was great! Here is a slideshow she put together of a few of the images.

We've been busy having fun!

That would be why I haven't been posting much lately. Our little guy is growing fast, and he keeps me rather busy.

After being home from the hospital a few days the visitors started pouring in!
Here are just a few of Lincoln's first visitors.








One of his proudest visitors - his great-grandpa!

Lincoln's Christmas List

I think this shirt says it all.



And Santa, please don't forget the hay and oats. :-)

I'd like to introduce you to our son

Meet Lincoln!

He arrived on Nov. 21, 2009 at 5:26 p.m., weighing in at 6 lbs. 13 oz, and measuring 20.5 inches.

39 Weeks

How far along? 39 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: I have no desire to know.

Maternity clothes? Yes

Stretch marks? ugh. Do we have to talk about that?

Sleep: It depends on the night.

Best moment this week: I did what is probably going to be my last photo session for a while with a sweet little girl named Becca.

Movement: Lots!

Food cravings: None this week.

Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: Just lots of random contractions.

Belly Button in or out? still in

What I miss: regular clothes

What I am looking forward to: Holding my baby boy!

Weekly Wisdom: I'm all out of wisdom this week. Sorry.

Baby's Development:


"Your baby's waiting to greet the world! He continues to build a layer of fat to help control his body temperature after birth, but it's likely he already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds, a mini watermelon. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of his skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath." -babycenter.com

Ice storm babies

Everyone joked and said there would be a baby boom.



Dear Peanut,

When all your friends have October birthdays, don't feel left out.
Your a lineman's ice storm baby.

Love,
Mommy

38 Weeks

Well, I'm still pregnant! We started the weekend with a doctor appointment Friday morning. My doctor was a bit surprised to see us! She said she figured our little one would have arrived already. No such luck. We're still waiting. After our appointment, we grabbed some lunch and headed to the Lil Bit'a Christmas Arts & Crafts show to do some walking and shopping. We ordered a Christmas gift for our Peanut! After that we pretty much just walked all weekend - Joe Mac Campbell Park (twice), Wal-Mart, and up and down our road.




How far along? 38 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: I have no desire to know.

Maternity clothes? Yes

Stretch marks? ugh. Do we have to talk about that?

Sleep: Pretty good.

Best moment this week: Putting up the Christmas tree!

Movement: Lots!

Food cravings: None this week.

Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: Another lovely round of 2+ hours of contractions that came to an abrupt halt. Good thing we aren't the type to rush off to the hospital at the first sign of a contraction because our kid apparently has a sense of humor. At our appointment last Friday, we also learned that I'm now dilated to 3 cm and he is "very, very low."

Belly Button in or out? still in

What I miss: regular clothes

What I am looking forward to: Holding my baby boy!

Weekly Wisdom: Walking miles and miles will cause a few contractions - and really sore legs.

Baby's Development:



"Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)" - babycenter.com

Another conversation from Mr. & Mrs.

*last night*

Mr: "Do you have your bags packed?"
Mrs: "Everything except the phone chargers and stuff I use everyday."
Mr: "What are you wearing to the hospital?"
Mrs: "Heels."
Mr: Pause. Giving me his exasperated/trying to deal with a 'redhead moment' look...
Mrs: "I might even dig out my pearls too..."
Mr: "Have you thought about anything other than shoes?"
Mrs: "Yeah. It just depends on what I have on at the moment and what shoes I feel like wearing."

37 Weeks - Full term!

How far along? 37 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: I have no desire to know.

Maternity clothes? Yes

Stretch marks? No new ones.

Sleep: Not so good the last couple of nights.

Best moment this week: Getting to stand with my best friend on her wedding day.

Movement: Lots!

Food cravings: This week it was grapes.

Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: At my 37 week appointment on Tuesday I was already dilated 2 1/2 cm. We also had one short round of false labor Saturday night. (No, we didn't go to the hospital!)

Belly Button in or out? still in

What I miss: regular clothes

What I am looking forward to: Holding my baby boy!

Weekly Wisdom: Do not go on a bumpy hay ride at nearly 38 weeks pregnant.

Baby's Development:




"At week 37, your pregnancy is considered full term, meaning baby is likely to thrive after birth. Baby spends these last weeks in preparation for the outside world… meaning careful refinement of the blink, suck, inhale and exhale. Meconium, which you’ll probably find in the first diaper, is accumulating in the intestines. If (okay, as) you worry about giving birth, consider what it’s like for the little one. During the journey out of your womb, baby will produce more stress hormones than any other time in life. " -thebump.com




"Congratulations — your baby is full term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away.

Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz." -babycenter.com

36 Weeks

How far along? 36 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: I have no idea.

Maternity clothes? Yes

Stretch marks? Well they aren't going away that's for sure.

Sleep: Decent.

Best moment this week: Getting to see our baby boy on the ultrasound again and finding out that he isn't breach anymore!

Movement: Lots

Food cravings: fruit

Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: Braxton hicks are occurring more and more

Belly Button in or out? still in

What I miss: nothing at the moment

What I am looking forward to: seeing my best friend this weekend


Baby's Development:



"Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly." - babycenter.com

Just a picture - from week 35

A few weeks ago my sweet husband took a few shots of my belly. This is one of my favorites.

What does a stay-at-home wife/mom get excited about?

Throughout the year I have kept a running list on my phone of things I'd like for Christmas. There is lots of good stuff on there. Purses? Nope. Funky nail polish? Nope. No, by "good stuff," I mean really cool things like a bread knife and a rolling pin, dishes, flatware, and a travel coffee mug (mine all leak). Yeah, I'm asking for good stuff this year.

Lately I've had several "conversations" on facebook that have made me question my own sanity. A few weeks ago, a friend's status lead to 12+ comments from myself and other ladies about the pro's and con's of hardwood, tile, and carpet. Today, a friend posted she'd gotten a new vacuum and loved it. I asked what kind it was. I've also shared and learned lots of stain-removing and cleaning tips through facebook conversations.

Last week I had lunch with a friend, and we spent at least 10 minutes discussing the cleaning of carpet and couches. Sunday I realized my husband had cleaned the ceiling fan in the living room. That was definitely a happy moment for me. And did I mention that I went to Target yesterday? For storage containers that were on sale?

a good place for a cowboy to bed down for the night

Last week we were able to pick up the last of Lincoln's bedding. Oh how in love with it we are! I can't thank Lori and Amy enough for the awesome work they do and the amazing talents they possess. We picked it up Saturday morning before my baby shower, and I could hardly wait to get it home and put in his crib. As soon as the gifts were unloaded from the car, the very excited daddy-to-be made a bee-line for the nursery, bedding in hand. As soon as it was finished we just stood there hugging each other and staring at it. (I might have even had a few tears in my eyes.) Then, of course, Daddy-to-Be insisted on taking some pictures.


This is the comforter.





And the full set...

Catching up - Pregnancy portraits

A few weeks ago Steven and I were able to meet up with fellow (and rather fabulous) photographer, Kendy for a fun pregnancy portrait session.

Here is some of her awesome work from that day.

35 Weeks

How far along? 35 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Not sure. I'll find out tomorrow morning and report back. :-)

Maternity clothes? Yes

Stretch marks? Not nearly as bad as they could be.

Sleep: Mostly good. Lots of crazy dreams though.

Best moment this week: Getting Lincoln's bedding and getting lots of hugs and kisses from my sweet nieces, Hanna & Kaeleigh while they were here visiting.

Movement: Lots

Food cravings: today it was apples

Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: Braxton hicks are occurring more and more

Belly Button in or out? still in

What I miss: nothing at the moment

What I am looking forward to: our next ultrasound on Friday

Weekly Wisdom: Do not tell a pregnant woman she "needs to" or "really should" get an epidural and then state that yours didn't work.

Baby's Development:



"Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight." -babycenter.com