Our Little Couch Potato

1st Birthday Party!!

Saturday, August 20th, we celebrated Eli's 1st birthday with most of the Barnett and Rhodes relatives that live close by. The party ended up being so nice! We rented a gazebo and everyone pitched in with setting up. I had put Auntie Amy in charge and she got everything rolling on the decor. Grandma Marty and Grandpa Bob helped out with the food. Everyone else just lended a hand where needed and everything went so well.

All in all, we had about 20 people there. We started out with cupcakes for the grownups and whipped cream and peaches for Eli. He was so cute. It took quite some time for him to dig in but as the pictures can attest, he did.

Then we had snack and visiting time. Once Eli was done making his mess, we moved on to opening presents. Boy, Eli sure got some fun ones! A couch, a bouncy puppy, a farm, an airplane, a piggy bank, a bouncy bike thing, clothes, books, a truck, the works!

After that, Eli and Cousin Logan played in the splash park. Logan wasn't too keen on getting wet from the fountains, but Eli had a blast! We'll definitely need to take him back before the cold weather hits.

Here are a lot of pictures! And these are just a fraction of what we took. I think there were around 200. Yay, digital cameras! Anyway, these will give you a taste of our party. :)

He Ain't Zero No More!

Our little Mr. Cute Stuff turned one today! We had a low key celebration with just the three of us. It was a special time!


Here's Eli checkin' out his early morning birthday present.

Yay, bouncy and squishy balls!

Water fun in the afternoon with Mommy.

My very own Doggie?!

Not quite sure what to do with this one, Dad.


We are so proud of our son. Such joy he has brought to this household. What fun is in store!

No Words Needed

Relative Introductions

We finally ventured over to Canby, Oregon this last weekend to visit with my grandparents and introduce Eli to them. We set out Saturday morning, spent the night, and came back Sunday afternoon. Eli did amazingly well on the trip! We were so proud of him! He wore himself out and slept like a rock at their house. Now to figure out how to get him to do that here. ;)

While we were there, my aunt Elaine and cousin Drew stopped in to see us, too. They also had not met Eli. We all went out to eat at Panda Express which was a little bit of a stretch for my grandparents who have decided over their 90ish years of life what kinds of foods they like and what kinds they don't. But they did alright and we bought a watermelon afterward to eat back at their home. So that made Grandpa happy.

Grandpa and Grandma couldn't get enough of Eli. I haven't seen Grandpa that happy and silly in years. What fun!


Eli being his usual goofball self shortly before we took off from home on Saturday.

Cousin Drew with Eli.

Eli and Grandpa played many duets throughout the visit.

Special Grandma and Great Grandson moment!

Two of my favorite people!

Bipedding, Here We Come!

Even though Eli has been taking a few steps here and there the last 3 or 4 weeks, yesterday he took off for good! It must be so satisfying to start walking.



Today some steps; tomorrow a marathon, baby!

It's a Boy!

Howdy!

I know you have all been anxiously awaiting this announcement. My 15-week-old son is a boy! :D Yessirree!

I figured it's time I started blogging again. I don't have much to say today since Eli should be up soon....yup, there he is!

Hello, goodbye~

What's New

Well, here we are on the 17th. It's a wonderful day since it's my mom's birthday! We got to celebrate a few days back. It was great to spend time with my whole family.

I woke up feeling a little worried this morning. Sometime in the night, the baby shifted to my right side. I think the head is still down. But, if I remember correctly, if the baby starts out on the right side during labor, it tends to make its way clockwise all the way around. This leads to back labor which I hear is very intense.

I am waiting to hear from my midwife to get her take on it. I'm trying not to stress. I think I just feel stressed mostly due to lack of adequate sleep.

I had some contractions last night. But they stopped after an hour or so. I went out in the recliner. I'm wondering if that's what caused to baby to shift.

Well, I'll know more as soon as I get to talk with Shannon.

3 Days To Go

Well, folks. It's August 15th. That sounds like a nice birthday to me. I'm sure you all are getting just as tired of my countdown as I am! One thing is for sure though. This baby will come. That's inevitable. Hooray!

I'm back to feeling rather queasy today. Probably a good sign! I haven't had very many Braxton Hicks contractions in the last few days, which is rather odd. But I know it's just a matter of time.

Let's see--what else? Oh, I had cowboy dreams all night! We've been watching Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and Tex Ritter shows off and on in the last couple of weeks. I don't remember my dreams, but as I tossed and turned throughout the night, I know cowboys were occupying my mind a lot. Weird.

My nesting instincts have come and gone. Been there, done that. I may have to force myself to clean the bathrooms here, though. Thankfully, I've been able to keep the rest of the house looking decent even though I've been tired.

Rob's out on another jaunt with Phoenix. That keeps them both feeling good. I can't believe Rob can go out in the heat of the day like this over and over. Yuck, it's in the high 90s, I believe.

Well, there are a few random facts for the day. I'm simply trying to stay sane. Yup, I guess I'll go back to reading.

Prayers for a Child

I was reading my Bible tonight/this morning (it's 3:38 am). I started reading some verses that fit exactly my thoughts for this child that will soon be born to us. Here they are:

"For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 1:9-14

I will pray this over our child. It is similar to the prayers I have already prayed. How wonder to find it tucked away in Colossians just waiting to be discovered for this child. I love you, Lord.

Newest Baby Update

We saw Shannon last night. So here's the latest:

1. I'm 2.5 cm dilated

2. The baby is at 0 station (meaning he/she moved down another centimeter and I don't think can move down any farther without me being in labor)

3. I'm 75% effaced or thinned out (not sure how to explain this one!)

So, I guess that all means that things are just moving along! No dramatic changes but all good ones.

I dreamed my water broke last night! That was kind of funny. We were trying to get a hold of Shannon and only would get her voice mail. It asked if I wanted to page her, but I didn't know what that meant. (I had to ask Rob this morning!) Anyway, there was more to the dream but I don't want to gross you out. :) I imagine the real thing won't be quite as hectic.

Shannon said the baby has a big bottom, which typically indicates a girl. I've noticed how wide that bum seems to be, too. Lol, so we shall see!

Oh Where Oh Where is the Baby?

Week 38 + 1 day. That's where I stand baby-wise. In the last few weeks, the closer my due date comes, the less I feel like the baby is EVER going to come! :D But I am thankful that some of the intensity of discomfort and pain I was having has backed off.

Usually now, a couple times a day I'll have something happen that will make me think, "Now, is this the real thing?" But, nope. Not yet. So, I continue to wait with attempted patience.

We shall see Shannon this evening. It will be good to get a report on where things stand. I know no matter what, this baby has to come out sometime. And I suppose I still have 2-ish weeks until my due date.

So, I'll continue to clean house. I don't think there is much left to do now that I've washed all the doors and spot cleaned all the walls in the house. :)

37 week checkup

We went to Shannon's for our 37 week checkup last night. Good news! Things are starting to move along.

I'm 2 cm dilated and 50% effaced. The baby's head is at -1 station, which means very low. Shannon was able to easily touch the baby's head!

All of this just means that the process is starting. No one knows how long it will be before labor actually starts.

I've been cleaning house today and having a lot more Braxton Hicks contractions than normal. Some of the herbal medicine that I started taking on Wednesday might be causing the extra contractions. So, we'll see if that leads to anything.

Oh, Shannon also is guessing that the baby is between 7.5 and 8 lbs. now. I'm constantly feeling the little bottom sticking up right over my belly button and the feet jabbing into my ribs on the right. :)

A Week of Landmarks

This week happens to contain a few milestones:

1. Yesterday, I turned 22! I felt it would be much more dignified to be 22 when my first child was born. So, I sneaked a birthday in! And I must say that it was a wonderful one! On Sunday, Rob and I went down to my parents' house and celebrated with my whole family. It was a lovely, relaxing afternoon. Then last night, we got together with Rob's mom and sister. Two really nice birthday parties in a row!

2. Tomorrow marks 37 weeks! The baby should be fully developed and may choose any day now to debut. Which brings us to...

3. Baby B made it to the birthing pool deadline! I just know this Little One wouldn't want to miss out on that adventure. Way to go, Baby!

4. My "little" brother, Joseph, turns 17 on Sunday! Wowie Zowie! Make way for a new man on the block!

I love a week of celebrations! I am so thankful for family, friends, and the generations to come!

Got Uncles?

There once were three brothers. These boys were kind enough to allow a sister to dwell among them. Yep, that's the type of boys they were.

Now these three brothers were leading very special lives, each unique but all intertwined. Yet, what they didn't know was that their lives were missing a key element. Unclehood.

Before they could realize the holes in their souls, their sister up and got married and decided to have a child. She didn't want to see her brothers continuing to partake of such shallow living.

Now each of these uncles will have his own signature way with the child. Each is gifted in different uncle departments.

The Eldest Uncle (EU) has a soft way about him. He's equipped perfectly for snuggling and book reading and lots of laughing. His words of wisdom shall uplift this child and be a testimony of our God's glory.

The Middle Uncle (MU) will provide all sorts of romping sessions. Explorations, piggyback rides, and bug collections are in store when hanging with MU. He will balance the activity with his insight into the tenderness of God.

The Youngest Uncle (YU) will be the entertainer. His stories, expressions, and ideas will awe and bring joy. YU will introduce the child to the wonder of God's mind in the world of science.

This child will not only bring out these gifts in the Uncles, but make many more appear that are yet to be unearthed. How blessed this Little One shall be.

Week 36

My baby, my husband, my body, and I have made it through 36 weeks of pregnancy! :D That's reason enough to have a good day! Which I fully intend to have a great one.

We are down to the last few details that need to be worked out before the home birth. We have this cool birthing pool that we need to prep this weekend. Hey, not every baby can claim he entered the world in a pool! Sounds like a nice little claim to fame.

Rob did some grocery shopping for me last night. Bless him! So, we are stocked up on food for a while. It's just a little of this and that left.

So, Baby, you can come any time starting next week! Yep, those are the rules. You come any earlier, you miss out on the birthing pool claim to fame. And I don't think you want that.

35 week report

Ahoj! I'm back from the blogger grave! I never intented to be absent so long. Can I use the busy excuse?

There are too many months to catch up on so I'm just going to jump in the middle of my life. Boy, what timing. We are just about to have this baby! You know, the one that I was only a few months along with the last time I wrote? Yeah, that one!

We went in for our midwife appointment last night. From now on we will be going once a week. This one went well, as always. There has been a definite change in how my body is functioning. This baby seems anxious to meet us!

Our midwife, Shannon, gently poked and prodded the baby a bit to feel how big he/she is. Her guestimate was 7 to 7 1/2 lbs. already! Most of the information I've looked at recently says the theoretical baby is probably 5 1/2 lbs. or so at this point. So, I was shocked by that news! But Shannon said her guess would be that the baby will be 8 to 8 1/2 lbs. when born. So that doesn't sound abnormal or anything.

Appointment

We have our next appointment with Shannon today. It will be so amazing to know how everything is going. So much has changed in the last 5 weeks since we had our last checkup. I've definitely got a baby bump that even Seth will ackowledge now! ;) And the baby is kicking around the clock most days.
My big question is: Could there possibly be twins in there? A couple times, I have felt movement in two places at once. I looked up online if this was a sign of twins, but most people thought it was just some kickboxing action. I don't know though... I've also gained weight on the very high end of 'normal' and have yet to figure out where it all went! Most everyone still seems to think I look pretty little for how far along I am.
Well, now we can start counting down! We've reached 21 weeks, meaning only 19ish to go. That means Rob's going to be a daddy before we know it! He's going to be an amazing one! Most nights I tell the baby "Good Night" and then Rob does, too.

The Baby's Kicking!

I went to sleeping smiling and woke up almost giggling! A most wonderful sensation is causing all the happiness--the baby is kicking me! It started Sunday night. I felt some movement in my tummy. I kind of dismissed it because I didn't want to get excited if it wasn't the real thing. But then it repeated itself last night and this morning. Everyone keeps telling me that the baby's movements will feel like a little flutter. Not so with this one! God must have taught the baby a few karate moves! Pow! Pow! That's why I've been laughing. This little one is really active and quite strong! It is such an amazing feeling. The Lord is so good to me. Thank you, Jesus!

Baby Blanket!

I finished my first little sewing project for the baby! I picked out this CUTE fleece pattern and handstitched around the edges! I'm so pleased with how it turned out!