Brothers

Some of the faces Grayson makes while he's holding Carter are priceless... he goes from looking serious... to happy... to confident... to irritated that we keep taking pictures.Carter is peering out of one eye...
Snuggling brothers

All cozy in the bouncy seatHe's one week old today! =)

First few days at home...

We arrived home from the hospital on Sunday around lunchtime, much to the dismay of the hospital staff. It was like they wanted us to stay... looking at me like I was crazy to want to be in my own house, with my own bed. =) Ha! It is great to be home. Here is Carter all snuggled in his first ride in his carseat... HOME!Grayson has been a great big brother... asking frequently if he can hold Carter. He loves to help in any way that he can, although he's already informed me that he's "not changing ANY of Carter's stinky diapers."
Checking him out...

Carter has found his thumb! I am glad about that... his own self-soother! It definitely has helped us at night. He is still so uncoordinated, though, and sometimes his whole fist ends up in his mouth. Carter is sporting one of his KU outfits in honor of the awesome KU victory over OU last night, and his darling socks are from Aunt Kristen and Uncle Dave. He has a pair in every color!

Our sweet boy -- we're so glad you're here!!

Welcome to the world, Carter!!

We arrived this morning at the hospital at 5:30am to begin the process to welcome sweet Carter into the world. He was born at 7:58am, weighing 8 lbs, 2 oz, and is 20" long. He does not have much hair, but the hair that's there is blonde. He has big blue eyes, just like his Dad. This was his first picture after being born via C-section.Here's his official weight!

Once we were in the recovery room, Carter received a bath, and then just sacked out on the warming table. He looked so comfy...
We loved having big brother Grayson come to visit with Nana and Gramps! He had a lot of fun holding Carter, showing us some of his "big brother" goodies, and just hanging out. He later told Nana that he "loved baby Carter." Awwww. =)
What a day full of celebration and answered prayers. Praise the Lord for this sweet new life!

T-5 days... and counting

Well, I've never been a big "belly-shot" picture person, but I do regret not having a picture of how big my belly had gotten right before Grayson was born. So, here it is. It looks like a basketball, and kinda feels like one, too. Today, I am officially 39 weeks, and my C-section is scheduled for this Friday (39 weeks, 5 days). If he doesn't make an appearance before...I feel lots of mixed emotions now... ready to not be pregnant any longer, ready for my real clothes, and most importantly, ready to sleep on my stomach again!! But, I have enjoyed being pregnant, and since this is probably the last time, I know I'll miss feeling the baby move and kick inside me. That is by far, one of the coolest things I've ever experienced. Truly a miracle!

I'm definitely nervous about how Grayson will handle not being an only child any longer, and how I'll do dividing my time between the two of them. I'm so excited to see what this little miracle baby looks like... it's so amazing what an answer to prayer his little life has already been. Hard to believe that just last August we were wondering if he was going to stay put until February... and he has. Praise the Lord!

We will try our best to post some pictures after his arrival. I'm going to try to take my computer to the hospital, as I figure I'll have more time to do a blog post there than when we arrive home! Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers!

Windy in Wichita

Every Monday morning Grayson and I head out to Super Wal-Mart to pick up our groceries for the week. I try to avoid that place like the plague at all other costs, except for early Monday mornings. It's not crowded, and pretty clean. So, we're walking out of the store, and all of a sudden we are hit by a MASSIVE gust of wind. I'm guessing 35-40 mph winds...

I'm holding on to the cart really tightly, my hair is blowing everywhere, the groceries appear like they might scatter, and Grayson looks like he could blow away if I tied a balloon to his wrist. I commented, "Oh my goodness!! It's sooooo windy out here!"

And, looking straight up at the clouds, Grayson shouts, "We've had enough wind today, God. You can stop it now!"

I just had to smile. =)

25 Random Things...

This has been circulating on Facebook as well as in the blogging world, so here it goes:

1. I don't go anywhere in the morning until after I've showered.
2. I love all books by Karen Kingsbury, and I think I own them all, too!
3. I hate ketchup, mayonnaise, and relish.
4. I love bargains -- one of my favorite stores is TJ Maxx.
5. I'm looking forward to my little boys wearing matching clothes. (I'm already stocking up... don't tell Jerry!)
6. I have lived in Kansas all of my life.
7. I have a birthmark on my leg that has 135 freckles on it... some of my middle school girlfriends counted the freckles one day at recess.
8. I knew that I wanted to be an OT when I was in high school.
9. I have worked at the same hospital since I graduated from OT school... it's been 7 years now!
10. I love Clorox wipes!
11. Cruises are, by far, one of my favorite ways to vacation. In fact, I'm a platinum member of Royal Caribbean since we've cruised so much. =)
12. If I wasn't an OT or stay-at-home mom, I would love to be a realtor or travel agent.
13. I can't believe that I am 30 and still get zits.
14. I love purses... more than shoes or clothes. Definitely purses.
15. I am 5'1" and one of my brothers is 6'5". How did that happen?
16. I've always wanted long, skinny legs.
17. I straighten my hair every morning.
18. I am married to my best friend.
19. I have implemented the "take your shoes off while you're inside" rule at our house and I wish I'd done it sooner!
20. I would be pregnant for an additional 3 months if I'd get a 12 week old baby instead of a newborn at birth.
21. I'm very thankful for our church.
22. I could eat Lemonheads or Laffy Taffy every day and not get sick of them.
23. I feel blessed to have been mentored by two wonderful women at two different times in my life.
24. I have had major gum surgery twice.
25. I originally thought Facebook was a waste of time, but I must say that I've enjoyed it since I joined!

Tag to anyone who has not done this list yet... I feel like I'm one of the last...

Nursery pics

As promised in an earlier post, here are pictures of Carter's room! My friend, Sarah, painted this darling canvas that we hung above the crib. The bumper is a chocolate brown "minky-dot" fabric, the sheets are white/apple green polka dots, and the crib skirt is a navy/white gingham.Here is the quilt -- also in an apple green/white striped pattern. The quilt, sheets, and crib skirt were all on clearance at Pottery Barn Kids. Yea!!
Standing in the doorway -- all of the furniture (crib, dresser, changing table, and glider rocker) was in Grayson's room when he was a baby. I had the rocker's cushions re-covered with the chocolate brown minky-dot fabric to match.
The changing table -- more of the brown!! I got a little creative with a hot glue gun and some sale ribbon from Hobby Lobby to dress up the baskets.

The 3 themed colors: navy, brown, and green

Quick baby product question: Have any of you nursing moms out there ever used the LilyPadz nursing pads? Supposedly they help you to not leak at all... I have a friend who absolutely loves them, but I would like any input that you might have. They're $30 and I haven't purchased them yet... Sorry if that's TMI for you male readers. =)