Genius!

Daddy: "Jack, what's the cow say?"

Jack: "Mmmmmmm!"

That's right Baby! He's brilliant!

Photo courtsey www.vet.ed.ac.uk

Jack this week...

So I haven't taken lots of pictures of Jack this week. Bad Mama, I know. It's all I can do to lay on the floor of the playroom and watch him run circles around me and occasionally run over to pull up my shirt and blow a raspberry on my tummy. I. just. don't. have. the. energy. to. lift. the. camera. WHEW!

Washcloths are super fun!

I hate the way my hair looks when I wake up! WAAA!
So thrilled to be helping Mama with the laundry...

Baby news...

I'm so excited to be expecting again. When we first found out we had another little one on the way Jason and I were engulfed in a whirlwind of emotion. We had not expected this and were a little afraid of just how things were going to play out come January. Well, after letting the baby news sink in we are just thrilled with the idea of a new little munchkin.

I absolutley loved being pregnant with Jack. I'm hoping to get over this morning (all day long) sickness very soon so I can jump into the part of pregnancy where I have tons of energy and feel the best I ever have.

Since I had such a textbook unmedicated delivery with Jack, Jason and I decided to move a touch more to the natural side of things. I've decided to use the services of a group of Certified Nurse Midwives in Fort Worth that deliver at Harris Downtown. I'm really looking forward to building a rapport with the midwives. It will sure be nice to explain to my practitioner that I'm not planning on any medication during my delivery and not getting the "we'll see" look like I did from my OB.

We had our first visit with the nurse this past Friday. I was excited to get on the scale and see that I'm actually 25 pounds lighter than I was when I got pregnant with Jack. Hopefully this pregnancy will be all the more easier without all that extra weight. Anyway, the nurse did the whole 100 questions bit, history, blood work, etc. She figured my due date to be January 3rd - although we're not so sure how accurate that is since this baby was such a surprise. We have our first visit with a midwife on June 22 (our 5th anniversary) and are excited to hear the little one's heartbeat then.

Thank you to everyone for your congratulations. We are so thrilled to have such wonderful friends and family to rely upon for love and support. I'll remember each and every one of you come March when Jason's in the thick of tax season and I need someone to come over and change dirty diapers! We are truly blessed beyond measure.

Surprise!

If you can't tell or haven't figured out what you're looking at... that IS a positive pregnancy test! Jack's going to be a big brother!!! Shocking! I know what you all are thinking... were they trying? Ummm... no. We were very much not trying. This was a huge, HUGE surprise to us. We are so excited and know that God has a plan for our family. He has blessed us beyond belief and gave me a wonderful early Mother's Day present.

Busy, busy - and 13 months old!

It's been so long since I've posted I don't even know where to begin...

Well, our little family survived our first tax season. We sure missed having Jason around and now that April 15 has come and gone we are sooooo happy to have our Daddy back! That's probably why I haven't been around to post much. We've been able to get in so much quality time together that I haven't even thought about posting to the blog. Bad Mama, I know.

Jack turned 13 months old yesterday. I'm not exactly sure when you stop counting months. Is it at a year, 2 years, when? I'm sure Jack wouldn't appreciate my calling him 162 months when he's 13 1/2 and in the 8th grade, but I digress...

This month has been our first full "toddler month". Jack is not just walking now but running everywhere! One of his favorite things to do is run around the house with anything in his hand - a dishtowel, a dryer sheet, a phone, a remote - and then for no reason whatsoever, he'll slam whatever he has to the floor. Not really a problem when we're dealing with a dishtowel or dryer sheet. A bit more concering when it's the phone or remote.

He babbles tons now and loves to say Dadadadada over and over. A great ego booster for Jason I'm sure since Daddy was a bit concerned that Jack kind of forgot who he was during the first quarter of this year. Jack also says Mama and we think he has his own version of no - nyeh, nyeh, nyeh while shaking his head. He generally does this after we've gotten onto him for throwing food or standing up in the bathtub or trying to play in the toilet.

We've been trying to get Little Man well for the past few weeks as well. Several weeks ago Jack had a runny nose which was most likely just allergies. Well, about a week after his nose stopped running he awoke in the middle of the night and screamed for an hour - no consoling this kid AT ALL. I took him to the doctor the next day and found out he had a double ear infection - ick. Things were looking up after 10 days of antibiotics and our recheck visit with Dr. Raine. That visit also happened to be Jack's 12 month check up and he had to get his shots. I had Jason go with me because frankly, I'm not strong enough to hold Little Man down anymore. After getting over the "shot yuckies" Jack was not sleeping again and his nose started running. Well, after a few days we decided he needed to go back to the doctor so we went to see Dr. Joki (the doc on call) this past Saturday. Indeed, the ear infection is back. Sooooo, now we're on a stronger antibiotic, eardrops for pain, and now Tylenol because Jack's had a fever for 2 days. Whew! Having a sick kid really stinks.

Speaking of Jack's 12 month checkup... Jack weighed in at 23 lbs, 8 oz and was 30 and 3/4 inches long! He's in the 60th percentile for weight and the 75th percentile for height. Our little boy sure is growing fast! What a blessing he is!

Playing with Gabby

Food is messy...... so we take a bath!

Mesmerizing!

So serious

Jack and I met some friends for a picnic at the park today. The weather was just beautiful and Jack had a great time playing on the playground (You wouldn't know it by the pictures though. He's got this same serious look in all of them.) It's the first time we've been since he's been walking and he just toddled all around that place. Now if I can just keep the big kids from shoving their toys in his face...

5, 6, 7, 8...

So, I know this has nothing to do with Jack but still...

After nearly 11 years, the '95-'96 Aledo Highsteppers (a good number of us anyway) reunited. We had such a ball catching up with each other and looking back at the fun we had in high school. Ahh the days when we'd come to school in leotards (not pretty) for morning practice, kick off demerits(ugh), and let Ms. Bevan make us up like we should be walking down Rosedale. Not to mention the black spandex one-piece with the white jazz belt (who's idea was that?) or the track suits that were so slick you'd slide right off your chair if you weren't careful. You gotta love the trips down to San Antonio for competition and all the ruckus we'd cause at every restaurant we'd frequent. Those were some good times... It's amazing to see how much life has changed for everyone and what everyone's doing now. Several of us are mommies and everyone that came that night seems to be doing great.

Girls I had so much fun! Let's not let so much time go by before we do it again!

New kicks!

Jack got some new shoes on Saturday and he's getting used to walking around in them. He does really well and we did some running (falling) and playing in the yard yesterday afternoon. His joy is absolutley infectious! This is what it's all about, folks.

And so it begins...

We've started a new tradition. With one little mark, we've made the doorway between the playroom and the kitchen very special. This is where Jack and our little-ones-to-come will be measuring up.

In his birthday suit!

Appropriate, since it was indeed, his birthday...

Oh what a difference...

... a year makes! Let's take a look back, shall we?

Jack's Birthstory - written the day we brought him home from the hospital - April 10, 2006

I went to the doctor on Friday and at 40 wks, 2 days I was dialated to 3 cm, 50% effaced and -2 station. The doctor stripped my membranes during the exam which wasn’t pleasant but not too painful either.

At about 9:45 that evening I began having contractions that were 20 minutes apart. I wasn’t too concerned because that had been happening to me all week. I’d have an episode of regular contractions for a few hours and then they’d taper off. Not thinking I was in labor, I went to bed and slept fitfully.

I couldn’t take being in bed any longer and got up about 3:45. My contractions picked up to 10 minutes apart. Jason was a bit skeptical when I told him I was in labor. We got up and did some last minute preparations for the hospital, packed the car, showered, etc. We called my mom and I continued to labor at home. Jason and I walked around the cul-de-sac and I did lots of swaying and “labor dancing” to alleviate my pain. By 5:00 my contractions were 5 minutes apart.

My mom arrived around 6 and we left for the hospital around 6:30. Let me say that the drive was torture! Having to sit still through the contractions was really difficult and made the pain much worse! When we arrived at the hospital my blood pressure was elevated (duh, I was in pain!) in triage so they had me lay down which was no fun either. When the nurse checked me at about 7:15 I was 4-5 cm, 90% effaced.

They got me settled into my labor and delivery room and I continued to labor, medication free. The rocking chair and warm compresses were my best friends! A little tip… if you’re planning natural child birth then STAY OUT OF BED! The pain was so much better when I was moving around.

The doctor (not mine as it was a Saturday and he wasn’t on call) came to check me at 9 and I was 5 cm. He wanted to break my bag of waters but I convinced him to wait another hour. He came in about 10:15 and I was now a 6, again wanted to break my water and I convinced him to wait one more hour to see how I progressed. Well, as I was moving back to the rocker from the bed after being checked, my water broke on its own! Yay! About 20 minutes later I began to feel lots of pressure and had the nurse check me. I was an 8! 20 minutes later, I was complete. That transition business is no joke. I went from 6 -10 in 40 minutes… fast and furious!

I pushed about 4 times and Jack came right out! Everything pretty much went according to my wishes and the whole experience couldn’t have been better. Jack was born a big 8 lbs, 14 oz, 19 ½ inches long.

I can't believe it's been a year already. We spent the morning at church and then came home and celebrated Easter and Jack's birthday with our family. Jack really had a great time digging into yet another birthday cake - chocolate this time - extra messy!

We're now embarking on the toddler years. Woah. I'm sure the next year will be full of discovery. Jack loves to walk around the house and just marvel at what he's doing. He really entertains himself with his new perspective on things. I love to just watch him explore and squeal with delight at new things he notices. He loves to study his world. I may not hear him for a couple of minutes and discover him looking out the back door, quite intently, at a bird or a squirrel. We can't wait to see what the future brings.

Jack, we thank God for you each and every day. You are such an amazing blessing in our lives and we can't imagine what we'd do without you. You are so funny and bright. Your hugs make early mornings extra sweet. Your giggles bring joy and energy to our home. What a gift you are. We love you to the absolute width and depth and breadth of the universe... and we'll never stop.

We love you Munchkin - Mama and Daddy

What the???

Snow? Really? It's the day before Easter, ya know? This is nuts.

Jack and Gabby checking out the snow. That'd be me in the reflection... freezing my tail off.

When did it happen?

When did my little baby become my little boy?! As I was watching Jack play this morning the realization that he'll technically be a "toddler" tomorrow hit me. Crazy.

Go Rangers!

Happy Home Opener! Stay warm Aunt Jenny!

In the park...

What happens when you have a couple of babies who are overdue for their afternoon naps and dress them up in their Easter clothes, take them to the park, and expect them to pose for some pictures? You get some pretty interesting pictures. I think I took nearly 130 pictures that afternoon and didn't get a smile out of Jack or Selah. Oh well; kids will do what they want I suppose.

Happy (early) Birthday Jack!

Although Jack's birthday isn't til next Sunday, we celebrated Jack's 1st birthday party yesterday evening. We had a wonderful turnout and had a great time with our friends and family. Jack was walking all over the place and had such a fun time playing with his cousins. Jack had a great time digging into his cake and getting messy - although it did take him some time to warm up to the idea. Thanks to everyone for coming out and celebrating an amazing 1st year with us!

The cakes - Thanks Meagan!

Jack and Pappaw

Jack playing with the Amico cousinsJack and Honey

"Happy Birthday to Youuuuuuu!"Pre-cake...... the first bite......have some Mama!waitin' on some water

Jack's showin' off for his company!

One small step...

Jack took his first steps on Friday evening while playing with Daddy. This opens up a whole new world for us. He's too cute toddling around. He'll take about 5 or so steps and then plop down, only to get right back up again. He's so proud of himself and gets so excited when he realizes he's walking. WALKING! Wow.

We did get some video of it but I haven't had a chance to upload it to post.

Welcome Matthew Hunter!

Yes... another one!
Congratulations to my college roomie Heather and her husband Josh. Heather gave birth to a precious baby boy, Matthew Hunter Clark, on Thursday night. Matthew weighed in at a healthy 7 lbs, 11 oz and is too cute... even if he does look like his daddy. Way to go you guys. I think you should hang on to this one.

The Clarks... a brand new family!

The Girls - Auntie Jenny's missing
Me... just doing what I do best!Mama and Jack at the hospital

Michelle's big boy Brody. I think he's realizing he's not the youngest anymore!

Several photos courtsey of Michelle - Thanks!

No pictures...

I just wanted to post some exciting news... no, we're not expecting. However, I did buy some size 8 pants yesterday. SIZE 8! May not be exciting for you but it certainly is for me. As of Tuesday I've lost 24.4 lbs on Weight Watchers. That's more than Jack weighs if that helps you to put things into perspective. I can't believe I was lugging all that extra weight around - I must've been exhausted. Ok, that's all. I'll try to control my giddyness!

Now I've seen it all...

Let me preface this by saying that I have no problem with tattoos. Folks that have them are probably a little braver than me (maybe, I did have a natural childbirth). Tats are for adults; grown people who can make sound decisions - even if that decision is made after a night of raucous partying.

Tattoos are not for children. Except if you are acclaimed body artist Jesse Stone - I only know he's acclaimed because his website said he was. He started a company called Tattoo Your Toddler - http://www.tattooyourtoddler.com/. Ok, so the tattoo is not technically "permanent" but it does last 10 years - 10 YEARS! That's pretty darn near permanent from a kid's perspective! I can see Jack deciding in a couple of years that he wants a Thomas the Tank Engine tattoo. I highly doubt that he'll appreciate that same picture of Thomas on his bicep when he's 13. This makes no sense to me. What was wrong with the temporary tattoos you got out of the vending machine at the grocery store? You know, the ones that were supposed to be laced with some type of hallucinogenic drug. Definitely a better choice. Hmmm... maybe, just maybe, we could try to let kids remain unblemished til they're at least 18 and can make this decision on their own - or at least with a little help from their college buddies.

Photo courtsey of www.jockconference.com