Off to Church!

This is the 2nd time Jack has been to church. I'm eager to get him into the nursery so Josh and I can get back into the swing of things! I had to get a picture of his cute little outfit for this morning. The Lechlers let us borrow the A&M onesie and we wanted to be sure Jack got a chance to wear it before he outgrew it. I don't know that he would be able to get into after this week! Thanks Lechlers!

Maggie's New Little Brother

I think Maggie is eager for Jack to grow up so she can play with him. For now, she just wants to kiss him and love on him. In this picture, you can tell she's bored with playing tummy time with Jack. She's thinking, "I'm on my tummy most of the day! Can we play something else?"

Jack's Friend Bella

Last weekend, we went to visit Jack's friend Bella. Bella is 9 days younger than Jack. Funny thing is Jack was born on Bella's parents' wedding anniversary, and Bella was born on our wedding anniversary!! Here are pictures of me and Megan with the kiddos, and Luke and Josh with the kiddos.. Luke was Josh's college roommate - Megan will vouch for me that our husbands are no good together. They are lucky they have loving wives that will tolerate them and their sense of humor!!

Poor Jack

This is what happens when I leave Josh alone to watch Jack for JUST a second while I get dinner together... poor kid.

Bath Time

Jack's umbilical cord finally fell off this past Monday, so we gave him his first "real" bath. We've been giving him sponge baths, but didn't get any pictures of that. He actually did better with the tub bath than he did with the sponge bath! Enjoy the photos of our little guy and his shark towel. Don't worry - I've only posted tasteful photos.

Heads Up!

Jack is getting strong. He's always had strong legs - I knew from all the kicking he did inside of me. He's started to "crawl" up our chest when we've got him over our shoulder. What's more amazing is that he's already starting to hold his head up. I pulled out his play mat last weekend and captured this photo of him. I've also posted another funny face to share with you... :)

An Eventful Week

We had quite the eventful week last week. As most of you know, we had some CRAZY storms last Wednesday and Thursday! Our Bur Oak would've been in the neighbor's pool if we didn't have it tied down. In addition, we've got another fence post to repair - we still haven't repaired the post from the last storm! Good thing we had the post tied down, too. Otherwise, we'd be sharing a backyard with our back neighbors once again! (Yes, that's right - it wouldn't be the first time.) To add to the chaos, we lost power at our house. After about an hour of darkness, we decided the house was getting too warm for us to stay there with Jack. If it were just me and Josh, we would've toughed it out. Besides, who wants to change a diaper in the dark? We called up our friends Ron and Kim from church and asked if we could stay with them that evening. They graciously allowed us to camp out at their place that night. It was Jack's first overnight trip away from home. You know I was a nervous wreck. I'm still conscious about irritating others with the sound of a crying baby, and wasn't sure how Jack would respond to being in a new place. He did well, though! Josh and I woke up around 5am on Thursday and called the house. The answering machine didn't pick up so we knew the power was still out. Ron ended up driving Josh home so he could check on Maggie Moo (our sweet little dog) and get his truck for work. We planned on going home together, but Josh didn't want me and Jack to be without power all day. Of course, our power was on when Ron and Josh arrived to the house, which meant I'd be forced to drive home with Jack on my own.

It was still pouring when I left, but I made it home safely and Jack did VERY well in the car - despite the loud rain! I was so proud of myself!! After that trip, I felt so empowered and was ready to make my first shopping trip with Jack. When the storms were gone, I got the diaper bag ready, fed Jack, changed him, and got him in the car seat to go to Target. I had to capture a photo of his first trip...
He did so well at Target, we ended up going grocery shopping at Wal-Mart, and I rewarded myself with a Sonic drink since it was still happy hour! I was so proud of him... and me!

Josh and I had been debating all weekend whether or not we should attempt making it to church on Sunday and decided we would make it a last minute decision. Jack seemed a little fussy Sunday morning, but calmed down some after we gave him a bath. We decided we were going to do it! We got him dressed in his plaid overalls (I hate that I didn't get a photo!), and were off to church! We were running a little late, but we made it! It was so good to fellowship with our friends - Josh and I felt like we'd be gone for months even though it had only been a couple of weeks. After church, we went to Cotton Patch for lunch with the Franklins. Surprisingly, Jack slept through Sunday School AND lunch. It was great to be out of the house! We'll see how this week goes!!

Funny Faces

Sometimes my little man makes the funniest expressions. Here's a couple of them that my friend Kristyn captured on Sunday... he's funny!

Jack's 2 Week Checkup

Today was Jack's 2 week check up with the pediatrician. Nothing too exciting at this appointment. He's growing and healthy. I'm sure most of you are wondering how much he's grown in 13 days. If you remember, his birth weight was 7 lb 15 oz, and he was 20" long. Today he weighed in a 8 lb 15 oz, and 21" long. He is a little chunk!! Most of it is in his cheeks and his belly. Not sure how much they're supposed to gain after two weeks, but that seems like a lot! I guess to his defense, he got weighed with a wet diaper on.

After the appointment, we headed to the hospital to do Jack's 2nd newborn screening. My poor child had to get pricked in the foot again. He was a tough little guy, though. I think he's going to grow up tougher than his momma... and I think I'm pretty tough (except when it comes to needles). Here's a picture of his wounded little foot. Isn't it sad?!

Our 5 Year Anniversary

Today is our 5 year wedding anniversary. Crazy that we've been married that long - before I know it, we'll be celebrating 10 years!! Well, since we were expecting Jack to come around this time, which he did, Josh surprised me with a early anniversary trip back in March. I was about 30 weeks pregnant. If you plan on taking a trip while pregnant, I would suggest taking it BEFORE you're 30 weeks along. Your experience might be different from mine, but I got winded more easily and we didn't get to do much. It was kind of nice just to relax a bit, but I'm still learning how to do that on vacations. When I go on vacation, I like to do things and see things, so this trip was a different one for me. Josh planned everything, so I had no idea where we were going and what we were going to do.

Our first destination was Saledo, Texas. We shopped around and ate at the Stagecoach Inn, which apparently is the Saledo thing to do. There were so many cute little shops! My favorite was the awesome Bed and Breakfast he booked for us that night. Here are some photos:

On our way down to our 2nd destination, Josh took me to San Marcos for a long afternoon of shopping. I've never been before so I was ecstatic! Downside? 30 weeks pregnant, and a lot of walking in the heat! I think I would've enjoyed it more if I was able to shop for myself. Instead, we found a lot of things for Jack, which was good, too.

Josh booked us a few nights at the Hill Country Hyatt in San Antonio. It was so nice! We played golf, explored the town, got a couples' massage, and RELAXED. We found out that the resort is a nice place for families with kids, too. They had a lot of kids activities planned around the clock at the resort - everything from rock climbing, to floating the lazy river, to smores at the firepit, and late night movies on the lawn. If you're looking for a vacation spot for the family, this would be the place to go! And it's real close to Sea World.

The trip ended up being a nice "break" from life. I'm glad we took a trip before Jack came. Who knows when we'll be able to do something like this again!!

Annoying Pregnancy Comments

Today's posting is dedicated to those who are expecting a child in the near future. Below were the annoying comments I got from friends/family/loved ones/strangers while I was pregnant. Some of them may not seem to bug you, but they sure did start to bother me after hearing them several times. Now that I've been on this side of the fence, I'm sure going to be more cautious of what I say to expecting moms!!
(P.S. If you are reading this and said one of the following to me, please don't be offended - I'm not directing this posting at you - trust me, I've heard these comments from SEVERAL people!!)

1. "You must be having a boy/girl. You're carrying high/low."
2. "I KNOW you're having a boy/girl - I'm never wrong."
3. "Boy, you are getting HUGE!"
4. "Are you sure you're not having twins? I didn't get that big when I was pregnant!" (This came from a stranger - who was not "petite" - just about asked her what she was having.)
5. "You're due date is when?! I would've guessed sooner."
6. "You've got cankles!" (Don't they think I already know this?)
7. "Are you going to make it?"
8. "When I was pregnant. . ." (then you hear the same story over and over and over and over....)
9. "Is your Doctor okay with how much weight you've gained?" (sorry Donna - this definitely made it on the list!!)
10. "Are you vaccinating your baby?" (I actually got a book from someone on this topic!)

I'll add more as I think of them...

Jack's Here!!

Wow. Labor was completely different than I had imagined it. I'm not going to go into detail, but if you're interested, I'd be more than happy to tell you all about my experience. I will share a few things though:

• When it was time for me to go to the hospital, all my anxiety about labor had subsided. Josh and I prayed that morning, and I think the Lord gave me a peace about the whole thing. I knew that it had to happen - whether it was going to be that Wednesday or the next, Jack was coming out of me and He was in control. I knew Josh was going to be by my side the whole time. It also helped that he put together some songs for us to listen to and bible verses to encourage me while I was in labor.
• I'm a pretty modest person, but for this occasion, I had to learn to get over it. Everyone and their mom (not literally) gets to see you down there. Your doctor isn't the only one that "checks" you down there. The nurses do, too. And for me, there were multiple nurses. Then, a lactation nurse came in to watch me feed my baby, then adjusted me without even asking. I think they just assume if you are breast-feeding, they can do that.
• When Jack finally made his debut, I just had the hardest time comprehending how that little life was in me for 9 months - and how he fit - and how he was able to get out!! It's unreal how God planned it all for us. In His perfect timing, He blessed us with a child we prayed for diligently. Our Almighty Creator formed Jack's heart in me, and we got to see it at our first sonogram. God chose US to be Jack's parents. How blessed are we to be part of His plan!

Here are a few photos of our little guy. He weighed in at 7lbs 15 oz, and is 20 inches long. I think he's a spitting image of Josh. HA! Just kidding. I think the only thing Jack takes after Josh is his feet. I'm sure there will be more pictures to follow!!