Bob and Heather

Birthdays, Babies, and Easter

2009-06-01T07:57:00.001-07:00

As you can see, there has been lots of stuff happening the past couple of months with our family. First of all, Baby Micah is no longer the baby. Jacob Alexander Gomez (Aunt Heidi and Sam's baby) was born on March 30. Mommy got to go and spend time with Baby jake and Aunt Heidi for a few days after he was born, but cousins Hunter and Micah have yet to meet him in person. Although, they do get to see him on the web cam almost every week which is awesome. Jake is growing like a weed and we can not wait until the whole family can go and seem him again...or we can convince Aunt Heidi to bring him to MO to see us!!

Micah Chase is now 1 year old and is growing into quite the little opinionated toddler. He loves to eat, unlike his brother, and in this picture taken on his birthday, he swiped that cupcake right out of his brother's hand and stuffed it in his own mouth. The whole scenario was priceless and totally shows the difference between Hunter and Micah's eating mannerisms. Hunter nibbled around the outside of his cupcake while Micah stuffed his in by the fistful...too funny! Micah is now about 23 lbs and 32 inches tall. His weight has actually evened off a lot the last few months (which I can not imagine why since he eats constantly!). But, he is very energetic and loves to play, just like his big brother. Who, by the way, he thinks is next to God because he follows him around like a lost puppy.

Micah is not walking yet, much to Mommy's dismay. I think his little legs and knees are permanently bruised from crawling around outside all the time. He is very quick, though, which is probably why he has no desire to walk even though I think he could if he wanted. He will take a couple steps and then plop down and start crawling again. He says a few words like mama and dada, but usually not on cue....just whenever he wants something. We are trying to teach him sign language so we know when he wants more food or drink, etc. His big brother is helping out a lot with this. I think Hunter likes the sign language DVD just as much as Micah does!
Mommy also celebrated another birthday. As Hunter would say, I am three and Mommy is three-three! It is so cute. Mommy did not do anything too exciting for her birthday, just spent time with her boys. Her favorite gift was her new phone which she purchased with the money Papaw sent her...thanks Papaw!!

Micah also celebrated his first Easter this year. Easter was early last year and Mommy was still on bedrest waiting to Micah to arrive. The kids both had fun Easter morning opening their gifts from the Easter bunny. They both got coloring books and DVD's and a bunch of other stuff that is still taking up space in my living room over a month later! Both boys also enjoyed the Easter egg hunt at Daddy's cousins house. Hunter got lots of candy and McDonald's coupons....which he may love almost as much as Mommy! Hunter and Micah also both got Easter baskets from Grandma and Grandpa with summer toys and new pajamas. All in all, I think they made out pretty well!

Lastly, Micah finally got his first big boy haircut. Mommy and Daddy had whacked at it a few times, but Mommy finally decided to take him to the barber and have it cut professionally. He was too cute sitting up on that big chair with the little cape around him. He actually did a great job until the end when he got annoyed and was ready to be done. As you can see here, he looks so grown up now. I think I may have seen the last days of my boys being babies...

Look Who's 3!

2009-04-08T09:19:00.000-07:00

Well, since my big boy is now three years old (he will no longer let me call him my baby), I figured I better update the blog. I know, I know....it is a little late, but late is better than not at all. We had a big Imagination Movers party for Hunter's birthday this year. Our house was packed to the rim with kids, and friends and family. All his little friends from daycare came and we made guitars and colored. Mommy went all out with the arts and crafts, and if you know my Mommy, this was a very big deal! Hunter received amazing gifts and we send out many thank yous to all of you for making it such a success. Hunter even ate his cake this year ( I think this is a first!).

Hunter's big present from Mommy and Daddy was his very own camera. He had shown an interest in Mommy and Daddy's camera, much to Daddy's dismay, so we decided to get him one of his own before he ended up breaking the high dollar one!! Hunter loved his gift and had taken over 100 pictures before the end of the day. We do not know yet if any of the them will come out, but at least he is having fun with it.

We also had a party in Ohio with all Mommy's relatives. We went on a big trip for Aunt Heidi's baby shower and decided to have a party for Hunter as well. Mamaw, Papaw, Aunt Heidi, Aunt Andrea and many more relatives were able to celebrate with us this year. Thanks to everyone for the generous gifts! Even though we keep reminding Hunter that Micah's birthday is next, he still thinks he gets to have another party first (or "pirst" as Hunter would say)! Next year we may need to remind him that everyone usually only gets one party per year.

Micah Chase's 9 Month Update

2009-01-26T13:38:00.000-08:00

OK, how is it possible that my baby is already nine months old and Hunter is going to turn 3 next month??!! We went to the doctor for Micah's nine month well visit last week. He currently weighs almost 21 pounds and is 30 inches long. His weight has evened off a lot since the first few visits, presumably because he is now MOBILE!! Yes, crawling all over the place, getting into everything, picking all the dirt off the floor....he does it all. He now pulls himself up on the couch, coffee table, bed.....whatever is in his way. The doctor says he looks great. He is in about the 50th percentile in weight and still in the 90-95th percentile in height.

Micah has also already started drinking out of a cup! Yes, the same cup that his older brother wanted nothing to do with until we forced him around a year and a half. Micah picked it up the first time and drank like he had been doing it forever. Micah also loves to eat....everything! He pretty much likes all the baby foods we have tried (except maybe peas) and has started onto solid foods. He loves his snacks such as cheerios, gerber puffs, crackers, etc. and has even tried spaghetti! We are so relieved that this child is not as finicky as his big brother!

Micah has also started talking over the last couple of months. By talking, we mean babbling, but he obviously has a lot to say....we just do not always know exactly what that is. We can make out ba ba and da da and some loud grunting/screaming noises, especially when he is hungry. I have not heard ma ma yet, but hopefully if we keep practicing it will come out soon.

Christmas in Ohio 2008

2009-01-13T08:01:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned in my earlier post, we made the long journey to Ohio for the first time this year with two kids. The kids were both fabulous on both legs of the trip and got to see many relatives. We stayed and Papaw's house, which Hunter loved!! All the home he kept saying he wanted to go back to Papaw's house.

The first night in Ohio, we had our Christmas at Papaw's house. Aunt Heidi and Uncle Sam made it from New York and Aunt Andrea and Nicholas were already present when we arrived Friday afternoon. Hunter got lots of toys...a new building block set, a cash register and a pattern puzzle toy. Mommy also got some new sweaters and Daddy got a blue tooth headset. We were happy all around!

Saturday we went to Mamaw's house for more Christmas and presents. I must say that we (and by that I mean Hunter, Micah, and Mommy) have more clothes than any one household should own. Mamaw gave each of us a huge bag full of new clothes. Hunter was not that excited with the clothes, but looked at each piece to humor Mamaw and Mommy. Aunt Andrea and Nicholas got Hunter an electric guitar and this was by far Hunter's favorite new toy. It plays music and Hunter sang his very own song ("Guitar, tar, tar, guitar......repeat) over and over again while playing with his new toy. Everyone got quite a kick out of this and I think Uncle Sam has already committed to being Hunter's manager if he decides to form his own band in the future. Aunt Heidi and Uncle Sam got the boys a new red wagon which we have already enjoyed since coming home. Aunt Heidi got Nicholas a basketball hoop and ball which all of the boys enjoyed playing with while at Mamaw's house. After another long day we returned to Papaw's to sleep and get rested for the next day.

Sunday we all went to church. Both of my boys had to go to the nursery (of course!) because they do not know how to be quiet during church. After church, we headed to Grandma White's for some more Christmas festivities. Hunter and Micah received more gifts and Mommy got a Victoria Secret gift card from her Secret Santa (woooohoooo....her favorite!). Hunter, Micah, and Nicholas got matching camoflage overalls and pajamas....so cute!

The next day was Monday and time for us to return to Missouri. We were all a little sad, but ready to return home and enjoy our new gifts. Thanks to everyone who was more than generous this holiday season! We hope you all also enjoyed a great holiday with family and friends! For more pictures, click on the link below!

http://share.shutterfly.com/share/received/welcome.sfly?fid=cfef8135415962cc&sid=0BcNGLls0aMXMg

Christmas 2008

2008-12-31T07:16:00.001-08:00

As 2008 is drawing to a close and 2009 will soon be upon us, I decided I better make another post to the blog. We had a great holiday season with two boys this year. We actually got to be at home on Christmas morning this year and the kids got to open their presents from Santa. Hunter was very excited about the presents this year and the whole Santa thing, as was Mommy and Daddy.

We went to church Christmas Eve and, of course, the kids were terrible and would not sit still. Hunter kept crawling underneath the pew and banging the candles on the floor and Micah kept squirming and talking out at the most inopportune times. But, we went to the early service, so when we got home we convinced Hunter to go to bed early so that Santa could come and bring him presents. He left him cookies and chocolate milk and some goldfish (I do not know why, but this if what Hunter wanted them to have) for the reindeer. Mommy and Daddy still had quite a few presents to wrap, so this worked out well (especially for Daddy who ate all Santa's food) and we were still all in bed by about 10 PM.

Both of the kids must have been pretty excited about Santa coming, because they were both up by 6 AM Christmas morning. Hunter got the stockings down and was as excited about the play doh and markers in them as he was anything else! Next, we let them unwrap the presents. The first few were uninteresting as they were just new shoes and clothes. Micah really didn't care, as he was just as happy playing with the paper and boxes. We saved the big gifts for last.....Hunter got a guitar and Micah got the bounce and spin zebra. Hunter also got a new bike helmet and Micah got a few other toys too.

After we finished presents and had breakfast, we headed out the Grandma and Grandpa's farm to have Christmas with Daddy's family. The kids got more toys from Aunt Robyn and family, snow pants and boots from Grandma and Grandpa, and some other miscellaneous stuff. Of course, Hunter thought all the gifts were for him so we had a few wrestling matches between Hunter and Eli, but all in all it went pretty smoothly.

After lunch, we packed up the boys and headed back to Columbia to switch vehicles and drop off presents before we started on our big trip to Ohio. And yes, I did mean big trip! We attempted the 10 hour trip to Ohio for the first time with two boys! I never said we weren't crazy!

We left Columbia about 4 PM on Christmas Day and started out on our journey. Micah got hungry about an hour after we left and we had to stop for the first time. We just pulled over at a rest area and Mommy got in the back seat with the kids and fed Micah while Daddy continued to drive. The trip actually went very smoothly. We arrived in Indianapolis about 10:30 that night and got a hotel to spend the night. The kids had been asleep for a couple of hours by that time and thought it was day time since we were stopping. Both were ready to get out of the car and move around while Mommy and Daddy were just ready to go to bed. It was after midnight before Mommy finally got Micah to go back to sleep and Hunter in bed with her. The kids rested peacefully for about six hours before they were up and ready to go again! The hotel had free breakfast, so Mommy and Hunter had a waffle and Micah got his bottle before we hit the road again about 8 AM. This part of the trip actually went very well too, and we made it to see Mamaw at her work by about 11:30. Hunter was super excited to see her, as was Micah and Mommy. Mamaw got to take a quick break for lunch (they had ordered in pizza), so she took us to the breakroom and somehow got Hunter to eat a whole piece of pizza. As most of you probably know by now, Hunter does very little eating for Mommy!! After a short visit with Mamaw, we got back into the car and arrived at Papaw's house by a little after noon. I have to say, the trip went as well as anyone could have expected. The kids were both great and I must say, the DVD player is fabulous! Stay tuned for more details about our trip.....

Halloween and such

2008-11-19T08:59:00.001-08:00

We had another successful Halloween...this year with two kids. As you can see, they were both cute as can be!! Hunter insisted he wanted to be a zebra (who knows how he got this idea in his head), so Mommy searched and searched until she finally found one on the internet. I do not know why my child can not pick something we can go buy off the rack at Old Navy! Anyway, he helped me find the outfit on the "computer" and then was super excited when it came to him in the mail. Luckily, Micah does not have an opinion yet and just wore Hunter's tiger outfit from when he was a baby.

The first Halloween events were the weekend before Halloween. On Saturday, we went to the Mizzou Homecoming parade. We went downtown and parked at the church and watched the parade. Micah wore his tiger outfit (because the parade was for the Missouri Tigers, of course) and to help keep him warm. It was about 40 degrees that day, so we all got pretty cold after awhile ( or at least mommy did...it did not seem to bother the kids as much). Hunter was so excited about Truman, the bands and especially the candy. The child is very strange. For someone who does not like to eat the candy, it makes him very happy to get it. He would run out in the street and pick it up as the different people in the parade threw it at him. Of course, he wanted to open every piece as he received it! Then, he would try it and decide he didn't like it and want to go on to another piece. This lasted for about an hour and a half until it was time to go home.

On Sunday, our church had a big Halloween party for the kids. It was really cool because they had all kinds of games and activities set up inside the church. Hunter loved throwing the balls into the holes, miniature golfing and the maze the best. Of course, after each activity he got more candy. Hunter did not want to go home, but after awhile Micah got cranky (I think because he was hot inside all those clothes) and we had to leave.

Then, finally Friday came and the actual Halloween had arrived. The kids got to wear their custumes to daycare and Hunter was so excited to show his friends. He had been talking about his zebra for weeks by this time, and all the kids knew Hunter was going to be a zebra for Halloween. They got to play games and got more treats there too. Finally the evening came around, and we got to do the real trick or treating. We had been practicing for weeks and Hunter knew just what he was supposed to say. But, when the night was upon us, do you think he actually said "trick or treat"? Of course not!! He tried to act shy (and we all know he's not) and when he gets emabarrassed he says "blah" and talks like a baby. I was so embarrassed and thought people were going to think that there was something wrong with him. But, he still got a lot of candy and overall I think we had a good time. And, since Hunter does not like to actually eat the candy, Mommy and Daddy got to eat lots of candy...woohoo! I hope everyone had a fun Halloween!

Six Month Update

2008-10-21T07:31:00.000-07:00

Well, Micah Chase is already six months old and Hunter is 2 1/2. Do you know what life is like with a six month old and 2 year old?!! It is crazy....they are on the go constantly and I just try and keep up.

We took Micah to his six month well child check up last night. He continues to do great and he is such a happy boy. He weighs 19 lbs 4 oz and is 28 1/4 inches long. He has dropped to the 75 percentile in weight, but still in the 95th percentile in height. He had to get 6 shots and he was such a trooper.

I am sure he will only continue grow and put on weight now that he has started eating food. Yes, I said he is eating food! What a concept?! Hunter still does not like the whole eating process. Micah has been eating his rice cereal in the evenings for about a month now. He is doing great. He does not spit it out like Hunter did and really seems to like it, although it looks pretty gross to me. We started fruits and vegetables last week. We tried green beans one night and Hunter was more traumatized than Micah was. Hunter kept saying, "NO.....Baby Micah not like green!" over and over again. I am pretty sure Hunter is the one that does not like green stuff! We have only tried a few different things, since the doctor said that we should only start one thing at a time. She said if he is allergic to something then we would know what it was if we only start one new food at time. He seems to have like the squash, green beans, applesauce and pears we have tried so far, so I am thrilled!

Micah has also become mobile since my last post. He scoots and rolls all around the house. He has also actually started getting up and his knees to do the real crawl, but is better at going backward than forward. We had a scare last week, when he rolled off the bed. But, luckily, he was ok. I ran and picked him up in a panic and he just looked up at me and grinned. So ornery!

Micah has also gotten his first two teeth at about 4 1/2 months. I think he is going to get the two middle top ones soon too, because he is chewing on everything and drooling a lot again.

Well, I think that is about it for now. Micah has a lot more firsts coming up and I am sure the holidays will be fun for all of us!

Say Cheeseburgers!

2008-08-26T07:17:00.000-07:00

The new thing we do when we take photos is tell Hunter and Micah to say "Cheeseburgers"!! Hunter will say it really loud and Micah will just laugh like he is hilarious. So, I thought I would share some cute pictures of the week. Can you tell that they are related?!! Enjoy!

Micah has also started sitting in his new Bebepod chair this month. Unless you have seen one, it is hard to explain what it is.....so here is a picture of him in the chair. I can not believe how strong he is and how he can hold his head up at only four months. He will sit in that thing for a half an hour straight and play with the toys on the tray. We did not have one with Hunter, but the babysitter and some other friends at work had one and said how much they liked it. So, we asked for one for Micah and the people at work got it for him at the shower. Thanks Guys!!

Four Month Update

2008-08-22T12:10:00.001-07:00

Okay....so i am not quite as good at this as I was the first time around!! Micah Chase is already 4 months old. We went to the doctor earlier this week and he weighed 17 lbs 8 ozs! He is still in between the 90th and 95th percentile for babies his age. I can not believe how much bigger he is than Hunter was ( or is now for that matter!). His little fat rolls on his legs and arms are just so cute! Hunter better not pick on him because Micah will be able to beat up on Hunter in a year or so! Micah is so strong and active for being only 4 months old. He is already rolling over both ways and scooting like he is going to take off crawling any day.

He can also hold his head up really well and happens to like tummy time, which Hunter hated. He is such a happy baby. He will just lay on his belly and talk and laugh when we talk to him. Over the last two months, Micah got baptized, spent a lot of time with the grandparents, and made a trip to Ohio. I think he is going to be very good and experienced little traveler like his big brother. However, unlike Hunter, Micah has lost almost all his hair in the past two months, much to Mommy's dismay. The whole back and sides of his head are now without hair. Hunter had already had a couple of haircuts by the time he was 4 months old because he had so much hair!

Micah also started daycare at the beginning of August. The babysitter even says he is a very good baby and hardly ever fusses. I think Big Brother Hunter also likes having him at daycare so he can help take care of Baby Micah! We tell Hunter that he makes Baby Micah happy and Hunter is so proud of himself.

Upcoming milestones to watch for:

teething (they are coming soon!)

eating (cereal and then food)

moving (crawling any day now!)

Two month update

2008-06-13T12:16:00.001-07:00

We went to the doctor on Wednesday and Micah Chase weighs 13 lbs and 8 ozs and is 25 inches long. He is huge! The doctor said he is in the 90th percentile in weight and the 95th percentile in height......maybe Mommy will get the football player she always dreamed of! I think Bob is already convinced that Hunter is going to play baseball, be a left handed pitcher, and make it to the majors so we can all retire early! Micah is much bigger than Hunter ever was and likes to eat more too! The doctor also said he was healthy and everything looked good. He had to get his first round of immunizations....they were not fun, but at least they are over with until the next visit. I think that is it for now, but I will post more pictures soon!

Baby Micah is 2 Months Old!

2008-06-09T13:42:00.000-07:00

I woke up about 6:15 this morning and got ready for work. I was thinking that I must have been sleeping really hard last night because I did not even hear Micah wake up in the night or Bob get up and feed him. Of course I was in a hurry to get ready for work (as usual), so I kind of forgot about it once I started doing my hair and make-up. I gave Bob a kiss good-bye, like every morning since he is off on paternity leave, and asked how Micah did last night and how long he had slept. He said he is still sleeping (it was almost 7 AM)! He had been sleeping since 11 PM....it was a monumental day on his 2 month birthday.

I actually called Bob this morning after I had been at work for a little while to see how the kids did this morning and he said he actually had to wake Micah up at 8 AM so he could feed him before he took Hunter to day care. I just knew Micah was going to start sleeping as soon as Bob got to stay home with him when I had to do the first 6 weeks in which he hardly slept at all!

Baby Micah is getting so big and doing new stuff everyday now. We go to the doctor on Wednesday, so I will update with his current height and weight then. He is definitely an eater because he pretty much eats 5-6 ounces in every bottle throughout the day. Hopefully, we will not have trouble getting him to eat like we did, and still do, with Hunter. He is also starting to make noises like he is talking and interacting with us. He also smiles all the time. Hunter just loves it when Micah talks and smiles and gets up in his face and makes noises back at him.....it is soooo cute!

Micah also likes laying on his belly and doing belly time. Hunter did not like this at all. Micah's head is getting so strong and he can pretty much hold it up on his own now. We have also started letting him sleep on his belly (I know, I know.....you are not supposed to do this), but I really think this is one of the reasons he is sleeping so much better. He did not like laying on his back or being swaddled like Hunter did when he was a baby. Micah likes to be free and does not like to cuddle very much.
Micah also like to sit in the bouncy chair that was Hunter's when he was a baby. Hunter also tries to sit in it when he gets a chance, even though he calls it Baby Micah's chair. It is weird that he wants to sit in it again even though he has not used it since he was less than a year old.

Well, that is about it for now. I will try and do some better updating and maybe even get Daddy to do it too since he is off work until after the first of July!

Micah Chase has arrived!

2008-06-04T12:12:00.000-07:00

I know, I know.......I am a little behind schedule with this post......well, maybe a lot behind schedule, but better late than never, right?! As most of you already know, Micah Chase was born on April 9, 2008 at 2:52 p.m. and weighed 8 lbs, 8 ozs and was 21 3/4 inches long. I went to my doctor's appointment in the morning and she had indicated that I would be induced on April 14 if the baby did not arrive before then. I had pretty much convinced myself that he was probably going to stay in there until that date. However, when the doctor tried to schedule the induction, the labor and delivery was booked for that Monday. She came back in the room with a funny look on her face...she said, "I have bad news....the L&D is full for Monday." Then, she waited a minute and said, "How would you like to have the baby today?!" Obviously, I was ecstatic because I had been on bedrest and was ready for my baby to join me at home. She sent me right down to check in to the hospital and get some blood work done and then they moved me into my room.

They started potosin at about 11:00 AM and I could not even feel any contractions for about the first hour. Well, then they came pretty strong and fast for about an hour before the people got there to give me my epidural. From about 1:00 to 2:30 PM I was feeling pretty good and then the doctor came in and checked me and said I was ready to push. I only pushed about 5 times and Micah was here! Needless to say, my labor was much easier this time around compared to when I had Hunter. My total labor and delivery time was only about 3 1/2 hours.

Micah was a big boy right from the start and getting bigger everyday! He has lots of dark hair, although not quite as crazy as Hunter's hair was when he was born. Hunter loves his little brother and likes to give him hugs and kisses all the time......he is just not quite as gentle as I would like him to be! However, Micah is learning to be tough right from the start! We love having the new addition and are settling in to having a family of four. Here are some pictures for now and I promise I will try to update soon with the happenings of the last two months since he was born.

Still waiting....

2008-04-05T12:46:00.000-07:00

Well, unfortunately there is still no baby. Mommy is still on bed rest and has been for the past week and a half. My doctor's appointment on Wednesday last week revealed that, although my blood pressure was still high, it has been pretty stable and now they will not induce until 39 weeks! I was so hoping that my baby would get to come out this week. They did an ultrasound and growth scan this week and the baby weighs approximately 7 pounds, 12 ounces. Mommy really hopes this baby will come soon because the thought of having a 10 pound baby is terrifying!!

Our family had a pretty rough week and thought the arrival of the new baby would lift everyone's spirits. My great-grandma passed away after a long, eventful life....she would have been 95 years old today! Although we will all miss her, we know she is in a better place. (Gram, if you are listening, could you help move this process along.....the baby really wants to come out now!) It was especially hard for me being on bed rest because I could not go to Ohio to spend time with the rest of the family and celebrate her wonderful life.

My next doctor's appointment is not until this Wednesday (4/9). If nothing has changed the induction date will be Monday, April 14......that is if the baby does not decide he wants to come out before then!

Bed Rest....

2008-03-31T09:37:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately, I have been put on bed rest for the remainder of my pregnancy. After my doctor's appointment last week, my blood pressure was still high and they decided it would be best for me to stay at home until I have the baby. I am over 37 weeks now, so I am just hoping the baby decides he wants to come out and see us soon. I really do not want to be stuck at home with no baby for another 2 weeks.

We had my baby sprinkle last weekend and have organized the baby's room awaiting his arrival. We now have plenty of diapers/wipes/formula, etc and are ready for him to bless us with his presence. Here is an updated picture of mommy and baby belly with three weeks to go (or maybe less!). Hopefully, mommy does not gain 20 pounds in the last two weeks because all she can do is sit here and eat!!

The time is drawing near!

2008-03-24T13:26:00.000-07:00

We had a rough week this past week. I went for my weekly appointment and ended up getting admitted to the hospital because my blood pressure was high and they could not get it to go down. They also thought I may be leaking fluids and that my kidneys may not be functioning fully. They ended up letting me go the next day after 24 hours of observation and a lot of tests. I missed my Hunter terribly, but Bob brought him up to the hospital for a few minutes the first night to see me before he had to go to bed. And, since he got to see me in the hospital, then maybe he will not be as shocked when I am in the hospital when the baby actually arrives.

They let me go back to work now, but if my blood pressure is still high this week then they will probably put me on bed rest for the duration of the pregnancy. The doctor still says the baby looks great and would do just fine if he was born now. She also says that if I continue to have problems with my blood pressure, then they will probably induce between 37 and 38 weeks (which means only one more week!). I much rather have time with my new baby than have to lie in bed wasting my leave before the baby gets here.

Six Weeks and Counting....

2008-03-05T07:17:00.000-08:00

I am visiting the doctor and having ultrasounds and non-stress tests done every week now, just like I did with Hunter. They are pretty cautious with me because of my bad kidneys. Last week, my blood pressure was a little high and I have started swelling so they are watching that pretty closely to make sure I do not get toxemia. Hopefully, that does not happen because they will have to put me on bed rest!

They are also doing the bio-physical profile (ultrasound) where they measure the baby and the fluids and make sure every thing is ok. The baby only scored 6 out of 8 possible points on the test this week because he did not breathe on his own. However, they said the breathing is only hit or miss at this stage because babies do not actually start breathing on their own until they are born. He did the practice breathing the first BPP so they said they would not be concerned unless he did not do it consistently on the next few tests.

Also, during the non-stress test they watch the babies heart rate and it has to increase at least 10 beats per minute above the baseline two times within 20 minutes. Well, our little boy did it four times with one being an extra long period of activity (the first NST he did it 7 times!). I definitely have very active babies! The baby now weighs over 5 lbs (appx. 5 lbs 3 oz according to the ultrasound measurements) and is measuring about a week to a week and a half ahead of schedule......I am counting down the days!

My Baby is 2 Years Old!

2008-02-22T11:13:00.000-08:00

I can not believe my baby boy is already two years old. The last two years have went by so fast. Hunter is learning so much lately. It seems like he is learning to do new things and to say new words almost everyday.

We had his birthday party last weekend. The theme was Mickey Mouse. Hunter is very into Mickey right now and will watch his Mickey DVD over and over and over again! Papaw also got him the Mickey Mouse clubhouse for Christmas, which he loves. He says all their names (Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Duck, etc.) and even makes me include Mickey in our prayers at night. We got him an ice cream cake with Mickey on it for his birthday. He really liked it until he touched it and got green icing all over his hands! Then, he kept saying "OOOOh" until I wiped it off....he is such a strange child when it comes to things like that. He does not like getting messy at all!

The biggest event of turning two for Hunter was the monumental move to the big boy bed. Papaw came last weekend and he and Daddy painted and put up a border in Hunter's new room. The room is blue with balls everywhere! We even let Hunter pick out the color....his favorite is blue! Papaw even got him cool sports ball bedding. Then, his new bed came and we moved him from the crib to the big boy bed. I was a little concerned because Hunter has always been such a great sleeper. I was afraid he might get out of the new bed and not go to sleep. We moved him a little earlier than I would have liked, but wanted to make sure he was fully transitioned before the new baby arrives. However, much to my relief, the transition has gone very smoothly. The only day this week he did not go to sleep in his bed was Sunday at nap time......and I think it might have had something to do with the upcoming party (we had his party Sunday afternoon). Every night for the last week we have put him in the new bed and he has gone right to sleep. We are so lucky and blessed!!

Things Hunter likes to do:

1. Play Ball!!! This is by far still Hunter's most favorite thing to do. He has so many balls it is ridiculous. He loves his basketball hoop and loves to "dunk" the ball (by "dunk" we mean shoot the ball in the hoop). He is even getting pretty good at it which is suprising to me, at least! Daddy has had to move the hoop up several times already since we got it. Mommy is also very glad that the hoop has now moved from the living room to Hunter's new big boy room.

Hunter also got a new blow-up baseball bat and ball and tee from Aunt Robyn and family for his birthday....thanks guys! Mommy made the mistake of letting him open this second at the party and he was no longer interested in anything else after that. He loves to throw and hit the ball. It is amazing to me how he knows how to throw like a pitcher....he even hikes his knee up, winds the arm and throws, bringing his arm all the way to the ground in front of him after releasing the ball. It is so cute!! He loves throwing the ball to Mommy and Daddy.....especially Daddy because he is much better at hitting it than Mommy! Daddy thinks he is going to retire someday because he is going to make Hunter into a major league pitcher.....and he happens to throw left handed which I guess is even better.

2. Color.....like I said above, his favorite color right now is blue, with green coming in a close second. He loves to draw and color with his coloring books and crayons. The bad part is that we have had a few incidents with coloring on the floor and walls! He got a new Seseme Street coloring book and crayons from Big Dave for his birthday.....thanks Dave! It has like 400 pages which I am hoping lasts longer than the last few we have bought. He knows all his colors now and actually finally said "yellow" for the first time yesterday. I think he has known for awhile what it is, but just could not figure out how to say it. Sometimes he would call it green, but then look at me until I said yellow for him. He now says blue, green, red, pink, black, white, yellow and purple. It was cute last night because we made such a big deal out of him saying yellow....we would ask him what color something yellow was and he would yell really loud "yellwoooo".

3. READ, READ, READ! He actually will allow us to really read books now without flipping through at super fast speed. He still likes for us to explain the pictures and and he will point and name different things on each of the pages. He got some new books for his birthday too which are Seseme Street and have balls on them (thanks Erin!). These along with the Seseme Street pack we got him for Christmas are among his favorites right now. He also still loves Mommy to read Good Night Moon before bedtime each night.

Baby Update:

We have still been pretty bad at updating the blog, but Mommy, Daddy and Hunter have only about 8 weeks to go until the new baby arrives. As most of you probably already know, we are having another boy. Mommy has only managed to gain about 8 lbs so far......like with Hunter, she has been pretty sick throughout the majority of the pregnancy. Also, chasing a wild 2 year old around 24/7 keeps one from gaining weight too! Besides the sickness, everything has been going as planned and the baby seems happy and healthy ( or so the dr. says!). We still do not have a name, but hopefully one will come to us soon!

Happy Halloween

2007-11-05T11:54:00.001-08:00

As you can see, our little Hunter was the cutest little kangaroo you have ever seen for Halloween this year (we are not biased or anything!). I think he understood the concept a little better this year....at least the eating part! His favorite part was when Big Dave gave him a zebra cake. This is his new favorite thing to eat ever since Daddy and Dave have been eating them at the tailgates this fall. He now goes to the pantry and wants me to pick him up and let him pick out what he wants to eat....and, of course, it is always the box of zebra cakes! Mommy is not all that pleased with Daddy for teaching our child to be a junk food junkie!

We also went to some other friends' houses for Hunter to trick or treat. Jen and Lucas had a whole little baggie of goodies made up for him and a cute little book. This was much more appealing to Mommy than the zebra cake! We also went to Brian's and saw several other little kids for Hunter to play with. He also took candy from their bowl and put it into his kangaroo pouch. He had taken the baby kangaroo out by this time and threw it in the car. I guess all the kids liked it at daycare, though, because the babysitter said they had fights over it because the other little girl wanted one too! We hope everyone else had a fun Halloween too!

Look Who's Going to be a Big Brother!

2007-10-21T14:27:00.000-07:00

Bob, Hunter and I have some exciting news for everybody....our little Hunter is going to be a big brother! We are pregnant and the new baby is due in April. The last couple months have been pretty rough on us. I have been really sick again, but Bob and Hunter have both been troopers. Hunter has become a lot of a Daddy's boy now. We decided to start up the blog again to keep everyone updated on the status of our household.

As you can see, our little Hunter is not so little anymore! He is getting so tall! He is still so skinny, though, and it is hard to find pants that do not fall down off his waist! He finally decided that he likes to eat, and we are so glad. He has a mouthful of teeth ( I think 16 in total)....pretty much all of them except the 2-year old mollars in the very back. He is still pretty picky (go figure...just like his mom!), but will eat multiple helpings of food at one sitting. It seems like he eats constantly the entire time we are home in the evenings. He is like a bottomless pit....I have no idea where it all goes!!

Hunter is starting to talk more and more. It was slow at first, but now it seems like he is learning new words every day. His favorite is still "ball". Everything that is round or circular or even resembles a ball in some way, is a ball to him. The grocery store is a sea of balls to him....all the fruits and vegetables that are round are all balls...and he will tell everyone who is around that they are balls! He is starting to learn animals (he can say duck, doggie, and cow) and likes to say "moo" when he sees a cow (especially at grandma and grandpa's farm!). He is starting to like to read books a lot. When I say "Read", I mean he points at the pictures and wants you to say what everything is on each page. He will say a few things if you ask him what something is, but mostly he just wants you to say it.

I do not know for sure how much Hunter weighs now because we have not been to the doctor in awhile, but I would guess around 24-25 lbs. We have an appointment next week, so we will let you know then. Halloween is also coming up soon, so we will take lots of pictures. Until then.....

Hunter's 1 YR Well Visit

2007-02-27T10:30:00.000-08:00

Hunter had his twelve month doctor's appointment last night. He was extremely crabby again and did not enjoy the visit at all. Maybe he could sense that something bad was going to happen before he even got the shots. Then, when he actually got the shots he screamed bloody murder and would not calm down until we left the doctor's office. He got four different shots this time....two in each leg.

Hunter weighed 21 lbs and was 31 1/2 inches long. He is only in the 25th percentile in weight and 95th percentile in height. I guess he is going to be tall and skinny! We are still a little concerned that he does not like to eat a wide variety of foods, but the doctor said that we should take him off the bottle and the formula and transition him to whole milk. Hopefully, he will continue to grow and get all the nutrients he needs. Besides the eating, he seems to be on track with his gross motor and physical skills development.

Well, after some long thought and consideration, we have decided to retire Hunter's blog (since he is a year old). We may still make some posts, if something monumental happens, but probably not any more often than once a month. We have been having trouble the last few months keeping up with it, so we have decided to let everyone know that we are going to set it aside for awhile. Hunter is just too busy now and it is hard keeping up with him, let alone anything else. I hope you all have enjoyed the blog and keeping up to date on Hunter's first year!

Hunter's 1st Birthday

2007-02-26T11:01:00.000-08:00

Well, a week has now past since Hunter's 1st Birthday party. The party did not go well, to say the least. Hunter woke up last Saturday night with a fever and would not leave Mommy's arms all Sunday morning. He had a cold and was getting another tooth and just did not feel well, in general. We finally had to call Grandma and Grandpa to come early and watch Hunter so Mommy and Daddy could get ready for the party. Hunter sat on Mommy's lap and did fairly well for the opening of the presents. He just was not his usual happy self. However, when we put him in the high chair to sing "Happy Birthday" he started to cry.....not just wimper or whine, but scream! I tried to calm him down and show him the cake, but he was having no part of it. We finally just had to take him out and take him to another room to calm down. Then, Mommy fed him his bottle and he fell asleep. By the time he woke up, the part was over! I will post a picture from the party, but Hunter was definitely not smiling, like usual.

Mommy also had a big let down before the party even started on Sunday. Aunt Heidi (and UNCLE SAM) and Mamaw were supposed to be coming in for the big party. However, Aunt Heidi's (and SAM's) flight was canceled out of New York due to the big snow last week. She (and HE) was flying Jet Blue and all the flights were backed up, so she (and HE) could not even get on another flight. She (and HE) was supposed to be flying to Ohio and then riding with Mamaw to Missouri but, needless to say, that did not happen. So, the part went on without them. Daddy had even been working on the basement so that the room would be finished before they got there! I guess not all is lost....at least the room is pretty much finished now and we will soon be able to move the computer out of little Hunter's room now that he is a year old!

We tried the cake thing again later in the week on Hunter's actual birthday, but he was still having no part of it. He was pretty much sick all last week and was not eating very well, in general. I think we traumatized him because now every time we put him in the high chair he starts to cry! Hopefully, by next year he will be over the fear and be ready to party!

One year milestones:
-Standing and cruising along furnitre and getting into everything!
-Takes 1-2 steps on his own
-Eats more baby food and starting to try solid foods like cheerios and crackers
-Says "mama", "dada", "baba" and other similar one syllable words
-Loves to clap and play games like "Patty cake"

We will post more after his doctor's appointment. We are going for his check-up and shots tonight!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow......

2007-01-25T07:36:00.000-08:00

Columbia had its third big snow storm of the winter last weekend and Hunter and I got to go out and play in it. There have been some winters when we have not had any snow storms and this year we have already experienced three and we still have two more months to go! We bundled Hunter all up in his snowsuit and sat him out on the deck in the pile of snow. At first, he did not quite know what to do. But, I think he could sense the excitement from Mommy and Daddy. The snow was really wet, so we made some big snow balls and gave them to Hunter to play with. We even layed Hunter down in the snow and made a baby snow angel. He did not appreciate this very much as he could not sit back up by himself in the abominable snowman suit. Here is a picture that we took that we thought we would share. I hope everyone is staying safe this winter!

Hunter's First New Year's

2007-01-17T09:00:00.000-08:00

For New Year's this year, Hunter and I went to Ohio to visit relatives. Hunter is definately a pro at the airport now. Since my family was not all home for Christmas, we had our Christmas celebrations during New Year's weekend. Hunter and I headed for the airport on Friday and spent most of the day there. Daddy wanted to watch the Mizzou bowl game that day and insisted on dropping us off early so that he could be back in time for kickoff. We arrived at the airport at 11:30 AM even though our flight was not until after 2 PM. We made it through check in and security rather painlessly and Hunter got to eat his bottle. Mommy was starving by this time and so we went to one of the restaurants to eat. Hunter was pretty good except that he kept throwing all of his toys on the ground for Mommy to pick up. After eating, we headed to our gate to wait for the flight. Mommy let little Hunter down on the ground (which probably was not too sanitary) to try and get rid of some excess energy before getting on the plane. Hunter entertained everyone in the area. He crawled all around the gate area....he would throw his little balls and then chase them, pick them up and throw them again. It was quite amusing. By boarding time, Mommy and Hunter were both exhausted. Once we got on the plane Hunter fell asleep and slept until the final descent into Columbus. I was so happy because the Mommy got to take a little nap too!

Papaw was at the airport waiting for us when we arrived. Once we got settled in the car (which was not an easy task with all of luggage and the carseat and stroller), we were headed to Mamaw's house. Little Hunter was getting a little anxious and was definately ready to be out of the carseat. We arrived at Mamaw's house with perfect timing as Aunt Heidi and Mamaw were just getting there too. Little Hunter got to eat and play with his cousin Nicholas. Then, Mamaw gave him a bath and it was time to head back over to Papaw's house to go to bed.

The next morning we had our Christmas at Papaw's house. Papaw was a little under the weather (we later found out he had mono!!!), but the whole family was there. Both of Mommy's sisters and their husbands were there along with cousin Nicholas and Mommy and Hunter. Our Daddy was the only one absent from the celebration. Little Hunter got some more toys to play with and make lots of noise! Mommy did not have much too open as Papaw got her plane ticket so she and Hunter could spend the holiday with them. Hunter seemed to enjoy this Christmas more than the one at home since he was feeling much better.

By about noon, we were all tired, so Mommy and Hunter headed back to Mamaw's house to nap where there wasn't as much commotion. However, Hunter did not want to sleep once I got him out of the carseat, so we ended up having only a short time to rest before Mamaw got home and the rest of the gang showed up. We then headed out to my grandma's for our big Christmas with the extended family. Hunter was the center of attention, as usual, as he crawled around and entertained all of the relatives. After a full evening of Christmas festivities, Mommy and hunter headed back to Mamaw's house to go to bed. Mommy was not feeling the best and was pretty worn down from all of the traveling.

The next morning (Sunday) Mommy and Hunter were going to go to church to meet Aunt Heidi, Papaw and the rest of the family. However, we got a call saying that Papaw was still not feeling well and that they were not going to church. Therefore, Mommy and Hunter decided to stay in too since Mommy was also still not feeling 100%. The rest of the gang arrived at Mamaw's house shortly before noon. Mamaw had prepared us a traditional Christmas feast with turkey, mashed potatoes and all the fixings. After lunch, we got to open our presents from Mamaw. Of course, little Hunter got more toys and Mommy and Hunter both got new clothes. The story of the day was about Mommy's new camel boots. We had went to the mall over Thanksgiving when we were in Ohio and Mommy had picked out these boots that were on sale for Mamaw to get her for Christmas. Well, somehow in the hustle and bustle of things they had gotten misplaced. We originally thought we set them down in the parking lot while trying to get little Hunter in the car and left them there. Anyway, the previous day Mommy and Aunt Heidi had went to the mall before heading out to Grandma's house. We saw the boots again and they were even cheaper than before so Mommy bought them for herself......now back to Sunday and Christmas at Mamaw's house. Mommy opened her presents and there were the camel boots! Mamaw had went back to the mall too and told the lady at the store about losing the boots. She remembered us because of our baby Santa (little Hunter had his Santa outfit on that day). We had actually left the boots in the store (not in the parking lot) and she had saved them for us! The day before Mamaw could not bring herself to tell Mommy she had already got the other pair back because she wanted it to be a surprise. Anyway, Mommy had to return the second pair of boots, but was very happy because she had received her boots that she had wanted for a long time.

That evening after making another trip back to the mall, we headed to my aunt's house for New Year's Eve. Hunter took a 3 hour nap from about 4-7 pm so he was ready to go. We let him take a late nap so that we could stay up a little later than normal. But, we did not know how late he would actually stay up!! The little guy made it all the way to midnight to welcome in his first New Year! Aunt Heidi tried to put him to bed at about 10 PM, but he was having no part of it. He wanted to stay up and socialize with the rest of us. He was not even cranky or anything. He was actually very good and entertained all of the relatives once again. Mommy was actually much more cranky that Hunter as it was way past her bedtime too!

The next day was the last day of our trip. Mamaw took Mommy and the Little Hunter back to the airport. Hunter was pretty good on the trip even though he did not want to take a nap on the plane this time. His schedule was obviously pretty messed up because he had stayed up so late the night before. Once we got back to St. Louis and little Hunter got to see his Daddy, he fell asleep in the car on the way home. Mommy and Daddy even stopped for dinner and he slept through the whole thing. He was very good until the last twenty minutes of the trip when we woke up and was mad because he wanted to get out of the carseat. We survivied another trip and made it back home safe and sound to start another new year. Happy New Year to you all!!

Hunter's First Christmas

2007-01-16T09:21:00.000-08:00

OK, I just had this post almost finished and the site experienced some sort of technical difficulties and I lost the whole thing! I will try this again. The last month has flown by once again and we have survived our first holiday season with little Hunter. He was actually sick for most of it, which is one of the reasons we have not made a post for so long. Hunter has been fighting a cold on and off for the past month. In addition, the Friday before Christmas, we had to take him to the doctor because he had a fever and found out he had an ear infection. So, we had to get antibiotics (which he hated) and try to get him to keep them down. We ended up mixing it with his formula because every time we tried to give it to him with the syringe we would throw it up along with anything that he had eaten up to that point. After the weekend at home, we thought he was getting better and survived daycare for the mere two days that he had to go that week. Mommy was off the day after Christmas too. Friday we were off and headed to Ohio for Christmas with my family. Hunter survived the trip and was very good the whole time we were there. We returned on New Year's Day and he headed back to daycare the next day. But, about halfway through the day, the babysitter called and said he had been crying on and off for most of the day, had a fever, and was not feeling well again. So, we had to take him to the doctor again the next day and found out he had a Rotavirus....which I had never heard of but is supposedly pretty common in kids. Hunter was throwing up again and had nasty (looking and smelling) diarrhea. Besides all of that, Hunter was cutting more teeth and his nose was running and he was not eating well anyway. Daddy ended up staying home with the little guy for the rest of the week and Hunter did not go back to daycare until the 9th of January.

Having said all that, I will get back to the original point of my post....Hunter's First Christmas. Christmas Eve (which was Sunday), we got up and went to church as usual (and because Jesus is the whole reason for Christmas in the first place!). Although Daddy did not think so, Mommy insisted that we also had to go to church again that night for Christmas Eve service which was separate from the normal Sunday morning church service. And, Mommy was pretty excited about it because there have been very few years we have been in town to go to our own church on Christmas. After church (the morning one), we headed out to the farm to have Christmas at Bob's parents house. I will let Bob update this portion of the post at a later date.

Christmas Day we spent at home with just our little family. This was a nice change from the usual hustle and bustle of the holidays. We got up and opened presents which Hunter had been trying to get under the tree for weeks. But, this day he was not really interested. He did not even want to tear up the paper like he usually does. When Mommy and Daddy were opening their presents, he crawled into the kitchen and ignored us. He still was not feeling the best and kept climbing up into our laps to lay down. Mommy was going to make cinnamon rolls since it was a tradition in her family growing up. She thought that she had got all of the ingredients, but found out Daddy ate the last egg for breakfast the day before. Mommy was a little distraught about this for awhile until Daddy promised to go to the store the next day, so she could still make them before she went back to work. Daddy also made us Christmas dinner. Although a little untraditional (we had chicken and pasta), it was still very good. After dinner, we ended up going to bed pretty early since Daddy had to go back to work the next day and Mommy and Hunter were a little under the weather. Although not the best of circumstances for the holidays, we have lived to see another year...Praise the Lord!

Here comes Santa Claus....

2006-12-15T16:55:00.000-08:00

We took little Hunter to see Santa Claus for the first time last weekend. We were kind of concerned that he would be scared or would cry because several of our friends indicated that their kids were scared of Santa when they were his age. But, never fear, our little socialite is always ready to see and talk to new people. I really think that we bore him sometimes because he likes to get out of the house and go see new things. Anyway, we took him to the mall and he got to sit on Santa's lap. As you can see in the picture, he talked to him and laughed just like his usual joyous self. He likes to touch faces and he reached up and touched Santa's face and beard and Santa just laughed at him, which of course made Hunter laugh too. We are getting excited for Hunter's First Christmas and hope you are too!

Hunter's 1st Blizzard

2006-12-15T13:01:00.000-08:00

Hunter experienced his first taste of wintertime last week. It was cold (really cold....it was -4 degrees one morning) and we had lots and lots of snow! We had about a foot of snow at our house. I think this is even the most snow that we have had out here in Missouri since I have lived here! The news said it was the biggest snow in the last decade, so that would be about right (I can hardly believe I am old enough to have been here more than a decade!). The snow wasn't so bad, but the freezing rain and ice that came before it made getting around pretty treacherous. Bob spent a couple hours just shoveling the snow out of our driveway. I do not think that the City even came to blade our road until the afternoon of the second day. Both interstates were shut down and most area businesses were closed. Therefore, Mommy and Daddy did not even have to go to work....it was just like we were kids again (woohoo for snow days!). I do not think we would have been able to get out even if we wanted to. The roads were still pretty bad a couple days later on Monday when we all had to go back to work. Anyway, it was too cold to stay outside for any length of time, but we did take our little Hunter out and sat him in the snow to see what he would do. So, here are some pictures we thought we would share. He did not seem to mind it and took off crawling just like normal. However, Mommy did not think that this was so funny when she picked him up to take him back in the house and got snow all over her and the floor!

Hunter is 9 Months Old

2006-12-06T11:20:00.000-08:00

I can hardly believe our baby is already 9 months old. It has went by so fast. Here are some of the things he has been doing.

CRAWLING
Hunter has been doing the army crawl for quite some time now. We actually thought that he was never really going to crawl up on all fours. He was really pretty fast at it too! However, right before we went on vacation, he started getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth. But, he would go back to the soldier crawl if he wanted to go anywhere. Sure enough, though, when Mommy and Daddy got back from the cruise the baby was no longer doing his army crawl. It was so sad. Mommy and Daddy had missed the transition to the real crawling. Now he is even faster than ever and goes from room to room in the house freely! Of course, we had to get a gate for the top of the stairs awhile back so that he would not fall down the stairs.

EATING
Mommy and Daddy were actually starting to get worried that our baby was never going to eat food. The one thing he would get from his mother was her finicky eating habits! He did not want anything to do with the baby cereal and gagged every time we tried to feed it to him. Mamaw did not believe us when we told her that he really gagged and pinched his mouth shut like he was grown. But, she got the chance to experience this in person when she tried to feed him cereal over Thanksgiving. Basically, over the past month, we finally got him to start eating more. He now usually eats a whole jar of fruit (applesauce and pears are his favorite!) and maybe a half of jar of vegetables (if we are lucky!) during a day. He really does not like the vegetables, but Daddy says we have to keep trying to make him eat them. Mommy has decided that this will be Daddy's responsibility because the whole process stresses the Mommy out! Hunter will shake his head and swing he arms around and get food everywhere if he does not want to eat. We usually have to take the child straight to the bath tub once he is done because food is from one end of him to the other. He has had food in his hair, ears, hands and even his eyelashes.....not to mention all over Mommy's kitchen table and floor! Anyway, we are glad that he starting to eat and hopefully, will grow up to be big and strong.

CLIMBING
Hunter can now pull himself up in his bed and on Mommy's furniture...especially the coffee table. It was a very sad day last weekend when Mommy had to put all her breakable candles and other decorations away. Our house is definately very "lived in" now and has Hunter accessories all over the place. Hunter also pulls himself up in the bath tub which makes Mommy very nervous. He loves his bath and swims around and plays with the toys like a little fish (except when you have to wash his hair!). In addition, Hunter pulls himself up onto the side of his crib and talks to us when he wakes up. This also makes it much more difficult to put the child to sleep because he will sit up in the crib and play if he does not think that he is tired. We also had to lower the mattress in the crib so that he would not fall out of it.

TALKING
Hunter knows how to say some words now and talks....constantly. It is too bad that we do not understand most of what he says because he obviously has a lot to tell us. His favorite things are still "ba ba" and "da da". He says da da da da all day long sometimes. I guess he really loves his Daddy. He has teased me with "ma ma" a couple times, but still will not say it regularly. I swear the other day he turned around at us when we told him "no" and said "no no" like he was taunting us. I am sure you do not believe us, but we even have witnesses. We were at our friend Dave's house and Hunter was trying to crawl behind the TV and when we told him "no" he looked at us and said "no no". We all laughed hysterically although this probably will not be funny has he continues to get older and knows more of what we are telling him!

TEETH
Hunter has been getting more teeth like crazy over the past few weeks. He has had the two bottom ones since last summer, but never got anymore. Well, finally the top ones started coming through. He now has the top two middle teeth and the next two on each side are starting to break the surface. At one point, we were scared that he would have a mouth full of teeth and still not want to eat!

STAY TUNED FOR MORE UPDATES AS HUNTER IS LEARNING NEW THINGS QUICKLY THESE DAYS!

Mommy and Daddy's Anniversary

2006-12-05T11:37:00.000-08:00

Mommy and Daddy celebrated there second anniversary on November 13. Mommy and Daddy planned a big trip as there anniversary gift to each other this year. Mommy and Daddy had planned a trip to Fort Lauderdale, FL and then a cruise to the Bahams. It was actually originally planned for last year, but was canceled due to the hurricanes. As noted in an earlier post, Little Hunter went to stay with Mamaw and Papaw in Ohio which was an adventure within itself. We set out driving to Ohio Friday afternoon November 17. Hunter was actually quite good on the drive. We had to stop a few times, but made it in about 9 1/2 hours which is normal. After about 9 pm, Hunter slept the rest of the way. Daddy drove most of the way, but got tired once he got to Ohio at about midnight. Mommy drove the final two hours and we made it to Papaw's house at about two in the morning. Mommy and Daddy were exhausted but I guess Little Hunter was well rested and ready to play (see earlier post). We were scared that he would not like being leftm, but it ended up being much more traumatizing for Mommy and Daddy than it was for Hunter.

On Saturday, we headed to the airport and said goodbye to our baby for a few days. We flew out of Columbus, but we had a pretty long layover in Charlotte, NC. This worked out well for Mommy as she got to watch the Ohio State v. Michigan football game at the airport. We actually got to see the whole first half of the game before we had to catch our next flight to FLA. Luckily, OSU won the game so the trip did not start off on a bad note!

We made it to FLA about 8 PM and back to our hotel by about 9 (after a minor rental car ordeal!). The hotel was really nice and we found out later that the Minnesota Vikings football team had been staying there that same night as they were playing the Miami Dolphins the next day! Mommy and Daddy were so exhausted from the trip and the night before, that they pretty much crashed once they made it to the hotel.

The next day was really the only full day we would spend in FLA. We actually slept in since this was probably the only time we had ever done this since Hunter has been born. We had to go listen to a timeshare deal that morning and then headed off to the beach. There was only one problem.....it was cold! I guess I use the term cold in relative terms, but it definately was not beach weather. I tried to lay out, but ended up covering up with blankets because I was freezing. We did get to put our toes in the water while we were walking down the beach, but that was about it. When we left the beach, we stopped at one of the little shops and bought me a coat! Since all I had packed was summer dresses, my attire was really not conducive to the weather. Apparently, this was the first cold front all year! After eating at one of the beachfront restaurants and driving downtown on the strip, we headed back to out hotel for the night. We watched a little bit of football and then went to bed as we had to be at the cruise for check-in at 6 AM the next morning.

The next morning we headed off to Port Everglades to get on our ship. The ship was not one of the biggest ones, but still was pretty extravagant. Once we got checked-in and through customs, we boarded the ship and was served breakfast in the dining room. After breakfast, I was ready for hours of laying by the pool and getting a tan.....but, it was still cold and it felt even colder since it was pretty breezy on top the boat. We were both still tired and ended up renting a room and sleeping for a couple hours until it was time to eat lunch. Shortly after lunch, we arrived in Freeport, Grand Bahama.

Once we de-boarded the ship, we had to catch a taxi (or so they called it) back to the resort. It was really more like a twenty year old van that they piled as many people as possible in and headed toward the hotels. Our resort was very nice and had all kinds of ammenities. There were multiple pools, restaurants, and a spa all on site. There was also lots of little shops across the street that we could go to. There was even a trampoline on the ocean that i wanted to jump on sooooo bad....there was only one problem.....it was cold! It was so upsetting. We could not even swim in the Bahamas because it was cold there too!! I had to wear sweatshirts and sweatpants the entire trip! He tried to tough it out most of the time, but we even had to buy a sweatshirt for Bob. We also got some gifts for little Hunter and some other relatives while we were there.

The first night, we tried to go to sit in the hot tub since it was obviously too cold to swim....and it was cold! Unbelievable! Bob thought maybe that the hot tubs in the Bahamas had cold water because it was supposed to be hot there. However, we later found out that the elements in the whirlpool were broken and had to be replaced. Bob felt sorry for me and bought me a massage at the spa....at least the hot tub was actually hot in the locker room and I got to relax after my massage for a little while and pretend that I was outside in the sun!

The next day we headed back to FLA. Daddy got up early and took some pictures of the sunrise. We checked out of the hotel in the morning and hung out at the pool covered in blankets until it was time to set sail back for the US. The hot tub was finally hot by the last day and I got to sit in it....although it was pretty cold when I got out! We caught a "taxi" back to the port and made it thought customs and back on the boat. Well, this time it was even colder and it was nighttime. We ate dinner and both thought we were going to be sick. The wind was blowing so hard it was rocking the ship back and forth like crazy. After both taking dramamine, we finally broke down and rented a room again so that we could sleep. After first debating whether to throw myself overboard to the sharks, we decided that this would be a better option. We made it back to the inland safely about 10 PM that night.

The next day we woke up and headed back to the airport to fly back to Ohio and our baby.

Lessons learned:

-You can never rely on the weather...even in the Bahamas!
-You should always pack a coat....even if you are headed south for the winter!
-Hot tubs are not always hot!
-Prepaid calling cards from the Bahamas are not really prepaid!

All joking aside, we did get to relax and spend some time alone and recoup for a few days before heading back to the "Wild Tiger". Bon Voayage!

Happy Thanksgiving

2006-12-05T11:18:00.000-08:00

Even though it has been almost two weeks since the Thanksgiving Holiday, I thought I would share some of our adventures. Hunter is growing like a weed and into EVERYTHING!! He crawls all over the place now and finds anything and everything that he is or is not supposed to have! He has now earned the nickname "Wild Tiger" from Mommy and Daddy and some of our other relatives. We spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Ohio with my mom and dad...or at least Hunter did. Mommy and Daddy actually spent most of Thanksgiving in the airport. We got to get away as a belated anniversary trip for a few days...stay tuned for more details regarding our trip.

Anyway, during this time, Hunter spent time with Papaw Paul and Bonnie and Mamaw Michelle. They all said that he was very good, but I am pretty sure they all got their share of wrestling the "Wild Tiger"! We thought that he may be scared with us leaving him with relative strangers, as he really does no know my relatives in Ohio very well since he has only seen them a few times. However, everyone said that he was very good. He wasn't scared of anyone...not even on Thanksgiving when there was a whole house full of people. They said that he is exactly the way he looks in the pictures....happy and smiling all the time.

They actually said that he slept and ate good too, which is suprising to me since when we got back his schedule was totally off. Mamaw would not put the Hunter in the bed awake and would just rock him until he fell asleep. We have put him in bed awake ever since he was two months old and he has slept through the night since then too. Well, Mamaw and Papaw thought they would just let little Hunter wake up in the middle of the night and get up and play!! Mommy and Daddy were not pleased about this as it took a week for us to get him back to normal. On the first night we arrived in Ohio, Hunter was alseep in his carseat and we were going to take him in to Papaw's house and put him in the bed. Well, Papaw got the child out of the carseat and then he was wide-awake and started clapping his hands and smiling. I guess he was pretty excited to see his Papaw. Anyway, then the child would not go back to sleep for two hours and by then it was like four in the morning! Mommy and Daddy headed off for their vacation the next day (see next post) and were ready for some rest and relaxation.

Mommy and Daddy made in home on the evening of Thanksgiving. Mamaw thought that Little Hunter would sleep on the way to the airport to pick us up since he had a full day of entertaining the relatives, but this was not the case. I think that he stressed his Mamaw out a little bit on the drive. He obviously did not want to be in the car and whined all the way to the airport (an hour and a half drive!). Every time that he cried Mamaw would pull over the car and get out and tell him it would be ok. We had to inform her that you just have to let him cry and eventually he will go to sleep. But, Mamaw thought that this was cruel and unusual punishment and instead would stop and take him out of the seat! By the time that they made it to the airport, Mommy and Daddy had been waiting for over a half an hour and Mamaw was a basket case. But, Little Hunter was very happy to see his Mommy and Daddy. The daddy sat in the back with Hunter on the way back home, so he was happy as a lark (as long as we kept the interior light in the car on for him to see!).

We made it back to Papaw's house by about 9 pm and figured that little Hunter would be ready for bed....but again, this was not the case. He was so excited he thought it was necessary to stay up until after 10 PM (his usual bed time is between 7:30 and 8 PM). Mommy and Daddy got to eat a late Thanksgiving dinner and headed to bed after a long day of travel.

Daddy (and Hunter too) got up early the next morning and Daddy headed back to Missouri. He wanted to go to the Missouri football game the next day, so Mommy and Hunter were staying in Ohio a few extra days to visit family. Daddy took Mommy and Hunter to Mamaw's so that we could hit the after Thanksgiving sales at the Mall.Here is another picture of Little Hunter after Mamaw dressed him up in his Santa outfit to go to the mall. The mall was filled with all the crazy after Thanksgiving Day shoppers. Mommy and little Hunter did not last very long....the long lines and people were out of control. We could not even get into some of the stores with the stroller because they were so packed full of people. After about an hour, we headed back to Mamaw's house for our Thanksgiving lunch. Even though it was not actually Thanksgiving anymore, Mamaw cooked us turkey with all the fixings and it was delicious as usual. After another full day of shopping and visiting relatives, Mommy and Hunter headed back to Papaw's for the night. Papaw got Mommy pizza from the local pizza place which Mommy loves! By the time Hunter finally decided he wanted to go to bed, it was after 10 PM again!

The next couple of days went by pretty uneventful, except that Papaw got sick and we had to stay at Mamaw's house Saturday night. Hunter did not have a bed there and Mommy was a little concerned that the child would not stay put to sleep. After rocking him to sleep, he did stay there from about 10 PM until about 4 AM. Then, he thought it was necessary to get up and play. Mamaw thought that was ok and let him get up. We tried to give him a bottle so that he would go back to sleep, but then he threw it up all over everything. We had to strip the baby and the bed and throw everything into the washing machine. Hunter finally went back to sleep by about 6 AM, but by then Mommy only had a couple hours to sleep before we had to get up and get ready for church.

We headed to church after stopping at Papaw's to get some clean church clothes to wear. Hunter is very social, but for some reason is scared to death of the nursery at church. Even at our church here, he cries every time we take him there. Well, of course Mamaw thought that it would be cruel to make the baby stay in the nursery and that he should stay in church with us. The only problem is that the baby does not like to be quiet. He likes to talk out and disturb all the people sitting around us.....not to mention the fact that he does not like to sit still. Mommy made a deal with Mamaw that if the child was to stay in church, she was responsible for wrestling the "Wild Tiger". We survived church with only a few embarassing moments and spent the rest of the day visiting more relatives.

After a full weekend in Ohio, Mommy and Hunter headed back to Missouri on Monday. Papaw took us to the airport and we were finally headed back home. Hunter was relatively good on the flight, although he still did not want to sleep as Mommy would have liked for him to do! Daddy picked us up from the airport, and we made it back home a little after 7 PM that night and attempted to prepare ourselves to get back on schedule. Hunter must have been exhausted as he slept through the night, luckily, as Mommy and Daddy had to go back to work the next day. Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving!

Trick or Treat!

2006-11-01T16:01:00.000-08:00

We survived Hunter's first Halloween. Hunter was Tigger the Tiger which fit in well with the whole Tiger theme out in these parts. He actually did not even seem to mind wearing the outfit all day. Even though he did not know what was going on, he was very excited. The kids at daycare must have rubbed off on him. We took him to some of our friends' houses last night. He may just have been excited to get out of the house. Sometimes we think that Little Hunter thinks that we are boring. He likes getting out and seeing people and doing different stuff. Even though he could not enjoy the candy in the literal sense, he did have fun playing with it as most of the wrappers made some sort of noise.....and Mommy and Daddy enjoyed eating the candy! Happy Halloween!

Texas!

2006-10-22T17:44:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Mommy and Daddy went on their first trip without little Hunter since he has been born. It was a little traumatizing for the Mommy, but we did have a good time. Mommy was out of town for work in Arkansas for three days and then came home for one night only to leave for our trip to Texas the next morning. Little Hunter went to stay with Grandma and Grandpa McArthur at the farm. I am sure that the trip was much more upsetting for Mommy and Daddy than it was for Hunter. Grandma and Grandpa spoiled him rotten and let him pretty much do whatever he felt like doing. We have spent all week trying to get his schedule back to normal. Anyway, here are some pictures of our trip for now.

The drive to Texas was really long...if I had to do it over again I would definately fly. Daddy insists that Mommy made it much longer than normal because she kept having to stop and go to the bathroom. However, it was the Daddy that took a long time every time we stopped. Then, we got stuck in rush hour traffic in Dallas. Once we finally got through that and were almost to Austin (where we were staying)there was another traffic jam. We were only 15 miles away from our hotel and we sat still on the interstate for almost an hour! Needless to say, by the time we got there Mommy was very tired, hungry and grouchy. It was way past her bedtime and nothing but fast food was open to eat.

The next day went much better. We all got up early and headed to the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library in Austin. It had a lot of cool stuff including the limo the president actually rode in, a replica of the oval office just the way it was when he was president, and a lifelike statue of the president on his farm which told jokes like was actually talking to you. This is a picture of the statue. It was very lifelike and kind of freaky!

Next, we headed to the Capitol building in Austin. It seemed much larger than the one in Missouri! It was cool because half of it was built underground. They were running out of room, so they built an extension of the building underground. As you were walking up the the front walk, there is a place where you can see the diffent levels underground and those levels have underground balconies where they can walk out and see up to the top. Here is a picture of Mommy standing outside the Capitol.

Next, we drove down to San Antonio for the rest of the day and went sightseeing. Here is Mommy and Daddy at the Alamo. It was not what I expected it to be. It was very small inside. Also, it looks very odd because it is a fort right in the middle of downtown San Antonio.

They had a monument with the names of all the people that died at the Alamo. In this picture you can see Davey Crockett's name right above our heads. It was pretty cool to read about what they actually went through. There were all kinds of historical things inside the fort.

Also, while in San Antonio, we to the Riverwalk Mall. It was pretty impressive (even though Daddy would not let Mommy shop...she would find out why later!). The San Antonio River ran right through the middle of the mall. We took a tour on a boat down the river and the guide told us about all of the history of the buildings along the river. It was pretty cool and our tour guide was really funny.

On the way back from San Antonio, Mommy would finally find out about her surprise. There was a huge outlet mall right along the highway!! Since we had been doing a lot of stuff that Daddy wanted to do, he decided to let Mommy go shop so we would have something to take home to our little Hunter. And, of course, Mommy went crazy at the mall. We did not even make it to half of it because Mommy spent too much money at the first stores. However, we got a lot of new winter clothes for Hunter and some stuff to put back for Christmas. After the shopping, Mommy was pretty tired so we all went back to the hotel and crashed.

The next day we headed over to College Station for the football game. We found out that the George Bush Presidential Libary was actually on the campus of Texas A&M and only a few blocks from the stadium. Therefore, we decided to head up early to check it out. Here is another picture of Mommy and Daddy outside the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station. For those of you who did not know, we went to Texas to watch the Missouri and Texas A&M game. After the tour of the libary, we headed over to the stadium. We just hung out there until time for the game. The stadium was huge compared to Missouri's stadium. It was a triple decker and appeared as if it was almost straight up in the air. Texas A&M has a lot of traditions before the game. We saw the marching of the corp of cadets and the band. The band playing at halftime ended up being the highlight of the day for me...there band was very good. Missouri ended up playing terrible and, of course, they lost the game!

Even though the Tigers lost, the trip was still a success. The next day we got up early and headed back to Missouri. The trip, again, was pretty miserable. It rained almost the entire trip back so it was pretty slow going. It made it back to pick Hunter up a little before eight that night. Mommy and Daddy were very happy to see their baby. I think it will be awhile before we decide to leave him again!

What has Hunter been up to lately?

2006-10-09T14:34:00.000-07:00

FOOTBALL
Hunter did get to go to his first football game. However, he didn’t see much of the action because he slept thru most of the first half. When he woke up he wasn’t very interested. He had already had a long day, partying at two tailgates. So Daddy walked him and Mommy back to our tailgate spot so they could head home. We took him to the next game as well, but had even worse results. Hunter was awake for the action, but didn't care for it too much and didn't even make it through the end of the first quarter. That will probably be the last game he gets to go to for a few years. He'll just have to hang out with the guys at the tailgate until game time and then head home for his nap.

This weekend Mommy, Daddy and Big Dave are headed to College Station for Mizzou's game against Texas A&M. We try to go to one away game each year (not including bowl games). A&M should be a great place for a college football game. However, Mommy and Daddy won't be taking Hunter with them. This will be the first time both Mommy and Daddy have to leave Hunter, but he'll be in good hands at Grandma and Grandpa's.

PARENT'S AS TEACHERS
About three weeks ago Hunter had his Parent's As Teacher's screening (the picture is of Hunter and cousin's Jackson and Eli). He got his vision & hearing tested and was evaluated in the areas of communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving, and personal social. Hunter did great!!! He only received two "watch for & work on" marks. One of these marks was in the area of speaking, saying things like "da", "ga", "ka", and "ba". These are supposed to be the easiest for him to learn at first. Mommy & Daddy have been working on this with little Hunter, but right now he has more important things on his mind (see below). The second area was reaching out to touch himself in a mirror. I don't think we have to worry about this one anymore. One of his favorite play toys is Mommy's little mirror she used to use to put on her makeup.

NEW TRICKS
So what new tricks has Hunter learned (here is another picture of Hunter and Eli). Lets see, the most exciting was when he started crawling the day after the visit from the Parent’s As Teachers lady about three weeks ago. She must have inspired him, because Daddy and Hunter were hanging out, playing in the living room the next day and he got this half inspired/half obsessed look on his face and headed straight for the remote control laying on the floor. As soon as Mommy got home that night Daddy asked Hunter if he wanted to show Mommy his new trick. She had no idea what to expect, but Daddy put a toy in front of Hunter just a little bit out of his reach and almost right on cue he crawled over to get it. Mommy was so proud of little Hunter! Daddy told Mommy the first thing he crawled after was the remote control and she said little Hunter was a “typically guy”. Now it’s three weeks later and Hunter is a little mad man. He only does a military crawl, but he is all over the place getting into anything and everything (mostly stuff he’s not supposed to). He has so many bumps and bruises we have lost count. It’s kind of like a Simpsons episode where Homer does something over and over again, forgetting that it hurt the last time.

Hunter is also getting better at sitting up and has learned to patty cake when we sing him the song. Daddy tried to teach him to cluck, but he decided he wanted to smacking his lips instead. He also has started sticking out his tongue and spitting (it's cute until Daddy gets formula in his eye). Before we know it he'll be walking. Daddy already installed a gate above the stairs the other day. We have to keep a closer eye on him now, but its been exciting seeing him learn new things.

Hunter's First Tailgate

2006-09-23T04:59:00.000-07:00

Well, football season is here and that means we'll be spending several of our upcoming Saturday's at MIZZOU games. Hunter got to attend his first tailgate two Saturday's ago on the eve of MIZZOU'S win over Mississippi. He got to meet all of the crew and roll around in the grass for a while. If the weather holds out today he'll get to go to his first game as MIZZOU plays OHIO. Hunter says go MIZZOU (while he's wearing his Ohio State outfit, go figure)!!!

Heidi and Sam's reception #1-Ohio

2006-09-20T17:40:00.000-07:00

Heidi and Sam had their first wedding reception in Ohio. As noted in the previous post, Heidi and Sam got married in Hilton Head, SC. However, since it was a very small, intimate, destination wedding only immediately family and a couple close friends were invited. There were 20 of us in total. Well, now that the wedding is over, Heidi and Sam have set out on what they refer to as "the wedding tour". They did not expect everybody to travel across the country for the wedding, so they indicated that they will be bringing the wedding to them. Since most of our side of the family is from Ohio, that was the first stop on the trip. So, after getting back from Hilton Head less than a week earlier, little Hunter and I set out for Ohio.

Heidi and Sam had an outdoor reception at my dad's house. The weather did not cooperate, but for the most part, everything turned out very nice. There was around 100 people that came to the party. Hunter was still getting over being sick so we were in and out of the house most of the evening, but he still got to meet a lot of friends and relatives for the first time. It was kind of cold and rainy outside, but luckily Mamaw got Hunter a new outfit to keep him warm....and our Aunt Heidi still looked very beautiful in her dress.

It was another whirlwind weekend for us, but all in all, I would say it was a success. Here are some pictures for now, but stay tuned for more details about the rest of the trip.

Daddy's Picture of the Month #2

2006-09-17T19:06:00.000-07:00

Here is a very cute picture of Mommy and little Hunter in Hilton Head for Aunt Heidi's wedding. Hunter had a great time seeing all the family and entertained everyone as usual. Mommy had a great time also. She got to play dressup and see her Blugie get married. In this picture Mommy's wearing her dress Daddy got her for their Hawaiian honeymoon, finishing a very close 2nd to her Blugie as the most beautiful person on Dafuskie Island that day.

Hunter is 6 months old

2006-08-30T08:17:00.000-07:00

Well the last few weeks have been kind of crazy, but Hunter has survived his first 6 months of life. I do not think that we have been home one weekend in the last month. Little Hunter is now a certified world traveler. In his short life he has been to Chicago, Detroit, New York, Minneapolis, Atlanta, Savannah, Hilton Head, Ohio and of course Missouri (even if some of them were only in the airport, that is a lot of places for a little baby!).

We went to his six month check-up on Monday, August 28. He weighed 16 lbs, 5 ounces and was 27 inches long. He was now only about the 40th percentile in weight, but the 60th in height. However, the doctor told us not to be too concerned at this point since he had been in the hospital only a week prior to this. The doctor again said that he looked great and was very "inquisitive". He liked to play with her stethoscope and name badge. He also peed on the nurse when she was weighing him! Mommy and Daddy did not think that this was very funny. The doctor said that he progresing on schedule and the we should be very proud of his development. He was just starting to try and sit up, but we are not sure how he can even balance with his little butt and legs. He definately did not get Mommy's genes in this area!! The doctor even told us we could start feeding him food. Stay tuned for more fun details....

Aunt Heidi's Wedding

2006-08-30T08:10:00.000-07:00

On at about 2:00 AM on Saturday August 26, 2006, Mommy, Daddy and Hunter hopped into the car and headed to the airport. This was going to be a big day. It was the day of Aunt Heidi and Uncle Sam's wedding. Our flight left SL at 6:00 AM, so with all the new travel rules we wanted to be there early. We made it there a little before 4 AM and Hunter thought that is was his cue to wake up for the day. Mommy and Daddy were pretty tired and did not think that this was very funny. We got there so early that we could not even check in yet. The check-in counter opened a little after 4:00 in the morning. We got checked in and went to go through security. We even had to wait to get through security because it did not open that early either. Anyway, we decided to feed Hunter in the meantime since he obviously was not going back to sleep. Hunter was a little annoyed because there was no hot water in the bathroom. He likes his bottle warm as is a little contrary if it is not the right temperature. He would only eat a couple ounces, so it was not looking like it was going to be a good day since our child was not eating or sleeping and we had not even left yet!!

Our first flight was to Atlanta where we had a short layover and then from Atlanta to Savannah. Hunter would not really go back to sleep except for about 20 minutes on the first flight. Then, he woke up and was not happy. However, we were almost there so we figured we would just wait until we got on the ground to feed him. Well, hunter was not at all pleased about this. He started to cry and would not stop. At one point Daddy asked how far it was from Atlanta to Savannah because he was considering renting a car and driving so as not to be embarassed by our child again on the second flight. It was really only about 10-20 minutes, but when your child is screaming it feels like an eternity.

We finally got into the airport, fed the baby, and headed onto the next plane to Savannah. Hunter was much better on this flight as he slept for the vast majority of it. However, this flight was only about 45-50 minutes from take-off to landing. Once we got to Savannah, we had to pick up our rental car, drive to Hilton Head and then catch the ferry to Dafuskie Island. The only way to get to the island is via boat because cars are not allowed on the island. Well, we made it there about 1 PM which was almost 12 hours after we had left our house that morning.

By the time that we got there, everyone else was already there and they were hustling and bustling around making preparations for the wedding. There were only 20 people there in total as only immediate family and a couple close friends were invited. We were staying in these big, beautiful beach houses. Heidi and Sam had rented three of them for everyone to stay in. Heidi and Sam were staying in an actual working lighthouse which had been made into a little cottage.

The women (and babies) spent time with Aunt Heidi before the wedding helping her get ready. Mommy got to fix her hair and help her with her make-up. The guys just hung out for the afternoon doing "guys stuff". Hunter actually took a little nap, so we were very happy and hoped he would not act out in the middle of the wedding ceremony.

The wedding was beautiful and so was Heidi. It was a great day. Daufuskie Island was a great place to have the wedding also. It's very quiet and secluded. I thought Sam could better describe how the wedding went so I copied his comments from his blog (www.greeneggsandsam.com) and inserted below:

So in Sam's words:

"The wedding was fantastic! I spent most of the day entertaining my mom, Heidi's grandmother and Heidi's aunt. We drove around Daufuskie Island on our golf cart. (Cars are not allowed on most parts of the island.)

The weather cleared up nicely so we were able to have the ceremony in front of the lighthouse and overlooking the beach, as planned. It was sunny and warm, with just enough shade from the palm trees and a light breeze to keep everyone cool.

Heidi looked amazing in her dress. I also looked quite dapper with my linen shirt and flip-flops.

Cliff Notes of Ceremony:
- Prelude: Jack played a few tunes on the tenor sax.
- Danny pulled out the the aisle runner, got pissed off, ripped the runner and about put a hole in his foot.
.- Heidi sprinted down the aisle like Jackie Joyner-Kersee with Pops in tow
- Welcome: Officiant/Wedding Planner "...special event in which Sam and Heidi declare before you that they choose one another...."
- Presentation of Bride: Pops
- Wedding Message: Easy to say "I love you." Learn to say "Thank you," "I'm sorry," and "Forgive me." While love is our natural state of being, these other qualities are not as easy to come by. They are not a destination but a journey...."
- Scripture Reading: Lil Sis
- Exchange of Vows: "Best friend for life." "... to honor, encourage, and support you through our walk together."
- Scripture Reading: Twin Sis
- Ring Ceremony: "Circle." "Precious metal - like love, should increase in value."
- Special Music: Jack and I performed a tear-jerking version of "Can't Help Falling in Love." (And right beforehand I stole an early kiss. Score!)
- Benediction: "Lords Prayer" sang by Pops.
- Presentation of Couple: "Sam and Heidi"
- Then we got all kissyface.

We took about 600 pictures. The photographer was very accommodating. My family tried to be funny by bringing props. I probably would have thought the props were funnier if they'd been ready and we weren't paying the photographer by the hour. We'll see how those pictures turn out before I make my final decision.

Dinner was great. Jaesan made a toast. Twin Sis made a toast. Aunt Jackie made a toast. There was plenty of food. We previewed the slideshow. Everyone loved the ice cream wedding cake - Jack especially."

As Sam noted above, the wedding was beautiful and Heidi and Sam bothe looked amazing. Of course, Mommy cried when Sam sang to Aunt Heidi. The dinner and reception were also very nice. It was held at a mansion on the island which is rented out for such occasions. Hunter was suprisingly good and only got a little crabby by the end of the night when it was time for bed.

The next day we had to get up, get ready, and head back to the airport for another fun day of traveling....

Daddy's Pictures of the Month

2006-08-16T15:51:00.000-07:00

I had to rename my post. I'm getting as bad as Sam (for those of you that forgot Sam, he's Heidi's fiance). This is a cute picture of Hunter hugging his new bear he got from Linda and Theo.

Not much has been going on recently. Last weekend Mommy and Daddy went to the dog track in Kanas City (Mommy and Daddy won enough to pay for our trip) and Hunter got to spend the Day with Grandma and Grandpa. Hunter has been sick this week but he's feeling much better today. I didn't want to take him back to the babysitter until I was sure all his symptoms were gone. No need to get the other kids sick. So he'll be going back to the sitter's tomorrow and Daddy can go back to work.

Here is a picture of Hunter asking warden Mommy to release him from his cell. Daddy just fed him and thought he wanted to take a nap, but apparently not. Mommy saw his hair sticking up over the bed so we had to take a picture.

Poker, Beer, and Some Basketball

2006-08-11T11:55:00.000-07:00

Doesn't really sound like an appropriate title for little Hunter's blog, but you'll see. . . .

POKER
Last Friday night we had a friendly poker game at our friends Mike and Deb. We've been playing poker for several years. We get together for poker as often as possible with all our busy schedules, probably 3-4 times a year. There are 5 couples, although Heather usually doesn't play, and big Dave. It just a friendly game of quarter, dime, nickel with dealer's choice. I'm not even sure who won the money that night, it may have just moved around the table, but as far as I can recall (and Daddy's memory isn't that great), we did have a first. Above is a picture of one of Deb's winning hands. Notice that this is not just a royal flush, which is one of only a very few times Daddy has even ever seen this hand in a poker game, but on top of that it is a 6 card royal flush and also a 7 card flush!!! Did Deb deal herself this hand . . . I don't remember? And of course it was Daddy's luck that he was betting against Deb when she had this particular hand.

That night Mommy and Daddy were able to take Hunter along also, which was good since Mike had never met him and Debbie hadn't seen him since he was a little baby. Mike and Deb are proud grandparents just like Hunter's grandparents. They have two girls and three beautiful grandkids. Here are a couple pictures of their grandkids.The first picture is of Brenden and Tony and the later is of Hailey. It's hard to believe that they are all so big already, but cousin Jackson is headed to kindergarten and Hunter will turn 6 months in a little over a week.

Poker night was fun as always. Daddy only lost two bucks, probably on Deb's royal flush hand. Now we can look forward to Mike's retirement party the end of October (and a wedding also I believe). Mike's retirement party should be a blast and we have a special gift for him, but you'll have to stay tuned because it's a secret.

Hunter is waking up from his nap so I'll have to post about the beer and basketball later, but here are some pictures to peek your interest . . . .

BEER
Last Saturday Hunter also got to help Daddy, Dave and Mike make beer for the first time. This has been a hobby of ours for several years now, though it had been a while since we actually made a batch. We have 5 or 6 good recipes.

From left, Mike, Hunter, Dave and Daddy are standing in front of the "unit". We upgraded to the "unit" after a few years of making beer in a 6 gallon enamel canning pot (you know, the big blue pots). Now we can make 10 gallon batches and make them much more consistently and efficiently. The "unit" does a lot of the work, recirculating the beer and keeping it at the right temperature throughout the process. After so long it was pretty impressive we only had one accident, we had a boil over when we were cooking the beer. We made a batch of IPA (India Pale Ale) and hit our targets, so there is no reason to this batch shouldn't turn out pretty good like previous efforts. Place your orders now!!!

BASKETBALL
Last weekend Hunter also got to meet some more of Mommy and Daddy's friends; Jon, Kimberly, Ethan and Zackary. Jon is one of Daddy's old college roommates. This is a picture of Jon and Kimberly's two boys playing with Hunter (they're 6 and 3 years of age).

Jon was in town for the annual Missouri Show-Me Games. Jon and some of his friends come to town every year to play in the 30 and over basketball tournament. Hunter had fund watching the the basketball games. For Jon's sake we won't say how his team did, but it's not about winning, it's just for fun. There is always next year.

It was also Jon and Kimberly's anniversary as well. I can't believe it has been eleven years. Kimberly joked that that's how they spend their anniversary every year, at the Show-Me Games and a trip to Shakespeares for dinner (the local college pizza place). HAPPY ANNIVERSARY again!!!

It was great to see them, we look forward to it every year. Hopefully we'll get to see them again in Columbia in January for the gymnastics competition (Kimberly was a gymnast at the University of Illinois) and Mommy, Daddy and Hunter will be headed their way next March. See you guys soon.

Linda and Theo meet Little Hunter

2006-08-11T11:31:00.000-07:00

Last week Hunter's Aunt Linda and Uncle Theo (on Heather's side of the family) made the long trek down to Missouri from Minnesota to meet Little Hunter. They didn't just drive 18 hours to meet Hunter, but is was very nice of them to stop by on their way through to Ohio. Unfortunately, we only got to spend one evening together, but we had a great time. We went out to dinner and visited the entire evening. Linda and Theo also both got some Hunter time before he had to go to sleep (this picture doesn't do Theo justice, he had a big smile in the other picture but Hunter wasn't cooperating).

The next morning they were off to Ohio to meet Hunter's little cousin Nicky and then to New Jersey for a family vacation with Linda's brother and sisters. Hopefully they had a great trip, a great time and didn't lose all their money at the casinos. We'll have to visit them in Minnesota sometime soon. Linda can teach Hunter to play the piano and Theo can take him ice fishing at their lake cabin.

Hunter's 3rd Parent's As Teacher's Visit

2006-08-02T20:09:00.000-07:00

Just the other day the nice Parent's As Teacher's lady came by to see Hunter again. She talked with the Mommy and Daddy about what new things he was doing, like rolling over (which he did do finally before she left), and what we should expect next. Several of the things she mentioned we have already actually seen him start doing, like watching us eat. The other night at the wedding rehearsal dinner he followed Daddy's spoon from the ice cream bowl to Daddy's mouth several times, but the Daddy hogged it all and the little Hunter didn't get a single bite.

She also always gives us good tips and money saving ideas. She talked about slowly transitioning from formula only, to formula and baby food. She told us we could start giving him a little water in a cup without a lid so he learns to drink. She showed us how to make a cheap scrunchy toy with a potato chip bag, a water toy with a ziploc bag, and how to make homemade baby food with bananas or sweet potatoes.

All-in-all she is very pleased with Hunter's progress and is amazed how happy he appears to be. She said the Mommy and Daddy should be very proud of the job we have done so far. We'll see her again in about a month. We look forward to each meeting as the Mommy and Daddy learn new things each time. Hunter also likes the meetings, he is quite the little flirt.

Jackson's B-Day Party

2006-08-02T19:03:00.000-07:00

Hunter's cousin Jackson turned the big 5 last weekend. To celebrate we all gathered out at Grandma and Grandpa's for a barbeque, cake and presents. Jackson turned into Jack Sparrow to open his presents. In this picture it looks like he is telling his uncle Bob, "your going to walk the plank if you don't stop taking pictures of me".

As usual, Jackson made a killing with his presents. Heather, Hunter and I got him roller blades, with the appropriate safety gear of course. We were a little afraid Aunt Robyn would be mad and return the favor in a few years, but she said it was okay because Jackson actually was hoping for something dangerous (roller blades, skate board, etc.). He seemed most excited about the Gorilla Attack race track and Pirates of the Caribbean smoking cannon he got. He also got the Pirates of the Caribbean movie, a Batman costume, a backpack, some cool books, lots of clothes, etc. I can't even remember everything.

Here is a picture of him in his new Batman costume (cousin's Lydia and Mabel, in the glasses, are in the background). This Halloween he can either be Jack Sparrow or Batman (I'd vote for Batman, he has a better chance of getting the girl).

After present we had cake. They were decorated with dinosaurs and toy soldiers I believe, a mighty fine combination. There was chocolate and yellow cake to choose from with a little ice cream on the side. Aunt Robyn makes a mean cake. Daddy tried to give Hunter some cake, but the Mommy said absolutely not.

After cake it was time to go outside. It was pretty hot, so it was a good thing there were plenty of water activities. The kids had the baby pool, the pool with the slide, or the slip-n-slide to choose from. Hunter stuck to the baby pool (see previous post), but as you can see Jackson tried out the slip-n-slide as well.

At the end of the day none of the kids were injured, or adults for that matter, and everyone had a great time. That may be the last time we have Jackson's birthday party at the farm though. Next year we'll probably be someplace like Chucky Cheese.

Happy Birthday again Jackson!!!

Love you,
Uncle Bob, Aunt Heather, and Cousin Hunter

Hunter's First Tooth

2006-07-31T15:34:00.000-07:00

Our little Hunter had another first last week. He was a little crabby early in the week, which is very unusual for him. He is normally a pretty happy little guy. So, we thought he might be getting some teeth because the doctor had mentioned at the last visit that they were right under the gums. Sure enough, he has one little tooth in the middle on the bottom right hand side. He does not let us see it very often, but we can sure feel it! The one on the left side is not going to be too far behind, because we can already feel it right under the surface. Now he is going to be all ready to eat real food!

Hunter swimming

2006-07-31T15:26:00.000-07:00

I tried to send these to everyone, but for some reason our email was not working properly. Little Hunter is definately Mommy's little fish. He loves the water. He is so relaxed. The only part he does not like is the sun in his eyes. As long as Mommy is blocking the sun he is perfectly happy. He will stay in the pool for over a half an hour at a time. I thought everyone might like to see these pictures of him swimming. Enjoy!

Hunter's First Wedding

2006-07-30T08:24:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of Hunter's first wedding. This is a picture of the beautiful bride to be, Jen, and Daddy and Hunter's gorgeous Mommy who was in the bridal party. Daddy and Hunter actually didn't get to see much of the ceremony, but we heard it from the entryway of the church. Anyway, I tried to describe each picture, but I'll let Mommy make the post, enjoy the pictures for now . . .

Mommy did not hear a peep out of our little Hunter during the wedding, but Daddy insisted he was squirming and was afraid that he would cry out at any time. (CORRECTION - Daddy isn't afraid to let Hunter express himself. Don't let the Mommy fool anyone, if Hunter had acted out the Mommy would have passed out right there in the bridal party. The reason she didn't hear him was becasue we were not in the church during the ceremony.) Hunter was such a trooper all day long. It was about 100 degrees that day and Hunter was sweating when we got him out of his carseat. He even got to wear shorts, which Daddy did not have the liberty of wearing. The wedding was very beautiful and went off as scheduled without any problems.

This is a picture of the happy couple Jen and her new husband Lucas, in a candid moment before the ceremonial eating of the cake. The cake was really good as well as the rest of the meal. They had BBQ including pork and roast beef, potatoes, corn, salad and all kinds of other stuff. Hunter, of course, did not get to eat all of this, but did get to eat before Daddy.

In this picture you can see Hunter participating in his first "Dollar" dance. He gave Jen a little spending money for her and Lucas's honeymoon in Cancun. The reception was a lot of fun and Hunter even got to dance with Mommy and Daddy.

Here is a picture of our friend Julie with Jen and Mommy just before we left the party. Julie flew all the way in from Los Angelos where she works for the IRS. Little Hunter was so good for Mommy and Daddy and everyone kept telling us what a good baby we have. We are so greatful and blessed!

Hunter's 2nd Haircut

2006-07-30T07:54:00.000-07:00

Well, as you can see Hunter's hair was getting a little crazy again. So Mommy broke Daddy down and talked him into getting out the clippers. Mommy wanted it to be longer than it was last time. But don't tell Mommy, Daddy cut it about the same length as last time (it's 100 degrees, it's to hot to have hippy hair).

To put it mildly, Hunter was not happy with his 2nd haircut. All you need to know is "bloody murder" best descibes how he felt during the process. If he's not having nightmares about the trimmer I would be suprised. His hair is still a little uneven, but Daddy didn't want to torture him anymore than necessary. We may have to try something different for his 3rd haircut, which probably won't be too far away as fast as that crazy hair grows.

Aunt Heidi's Bridal Shower

2006-07-30T05:49:00.000-07:00

Against almost everyone's recommendation, including Daddy's, Mommy packed up little Hunter and headed to New York for Aunt Heidi's bridal shower last weekend. Daddy thought mommy might have a nervous breakdown on the trip by herself if Hunter decided to act out on the plane. Everyone thought it would be a big undertaking for Mommy to venture out with Hunter on this big trip on her own. But, we did it and little Hunter experienced many more "firsts" during the trip.

Mommy and Daddy woke up at 3:30 in the morning on Saturday to head to the airport. Our flight was at 7:00 am, so we had to leave our house at 4:00 am to make it to SL by 6:00 am. Daddy agreed to take Mommy and Hunter to the airport to get them off on their trip. We made it to the airport on time, but there were huge lines to check in and to get through security. I guess there are a lot of other crazy people that get the early morning flights too! We said good bye to Daddy, went through security, and raced back to the gate just in time to walk straight onto the plane. Mommy checked the carseat and stroller at the gate, so she just had to carry little Hunter onto the plane.

There were to legs to our flight. First, we went from SL to Detroit and then from Detroit to LaGuardia in NY. Hunter was actually very good on the trip. There was a little tiny baby that was six weeks old that sat beside us on the first flight. The little baby also had a big brother that was about three who played with our little Hunter. Hunter entertained everyone around us on the plane with his talking and big smiles. The second flight went well too. He was stinky so I had to change his diaper, then I fed him and he went to sleep. He slept most of the second flight to NY, so he was awake and pretty happy to greet everyone when we got off the plane.

When we got off the plane, Aunt Heidi, Aunt Andrea, and Papaw were there to greet us. We went down to the baggage claim, but we encountered a minor problem. Hunter's carseat and stroller were not there! Well, we had the guy go check at the gate since that was where we had originally checked it....but no stroller or carseat could be found! This was obviously a problem because we could not get into the car without a carseat. We went into the luggage office and talked to the lady there. We found out that our stuff had been left in Detroit! Mommy was supposed to pick it up there when she got off the plane for the layover, but did not know she was supposed to do this. The lady was very nice and even gave us another carseat to use. She said that our stuff would be there on the next flight and they could bring it to us out at Aunt Heidi's house.

After that ordeal, we headed out to Long Island where Aunt Heidi lives. We had a big day with lots of people to meet. We first went to Aunt Heidi's house where Mamaw, Aunt Rhonda, Aunt Beth Ann, Great Grandma White, and Great-Great Grandma Mitchell were staying. It was the first time for the grandmas to see our little Hunter. Needless to say, they were very excited, especially since they did not know that Mommy was going to bring him with her! Hunter got passed around to all the people and big smiles were given to all. Everyone just gushed about how cute and happy our little guy was....because that is what grandmas are supposed to do, of course!

We then headed over to Aunt Jackie's (this is Papaw's sister) house for the shower. There were many more people over here waiting to see little Hunter. Mommy's cousins Lori and Bryan and all of their kids were there to see us. This is one of the reasons Mommy decided to take Hunter because we do not get to see our cousins very often and this was an opportunity for them to meet Hunter. Everyone got to hold Hunter and spend time with him during the party.

Aunt Heidi's shower was a big success. There were almost 30 people there and good food and fun was had by all. Heidi got lots of presents even though she does not have any place to put them in her little apartment. Aunt Heidi and Sam still have not agreed on a place to live after they get married next month!

Cousin Bryan drives a limo on the weekends, so we got to try it out before we left. He had a job that night so he brought the limo over to the house. His son Andrew was going with him on this particular occasion to help him out since the girls were all participating in the bridal stuff. Even little Hunter got to climb inside and check it out. He was pretty impressed with the lights and all the stuff to play with in there.

After the party, Mommy, Aunt Andrea, Aunt Heidi and some of her friends got to go out on the town in New York City. Of course, Hunter had to stay home during this outting. He was exhausted by this time anyway because of the big day. Mommy was pretty tired too since she had been awake since 3:30 am that morning. We went into the city to a dance club. It had an 80's theme and Aunt Heidi love 80's music. By the time we got home that night (or morning), it was after 4:00 am. Mommy had been up for over 24 hourse straight at this point and was pretty much delirious.

Mommy got to sleep for a couple of hours until Hunter woke up at 6:00 am. Everyone else left pretty early Sunday morning since they had to drive back to Ohio. We just relaxed for most of the day until it was time to head back to the airport. Aunt Heidi took Mommy and Hunter back to the airport. Our carseat and stroller had finally come that morning from the airport....just in time to go back! It was a good thing because the airport was pretty big. Also, on the way back our layover was in Minneapolis and the gate we flew out of was pretty far away from the gate on which we came in. It was on a totally different concourse, so it is a good thing that Mommy remembered to pick up the stroller this time! Little Hunter flirted with the girls behind us on the first flight, batting his long eyelashes and giving big smiles. He then slept most of the time on the second flight back to SL. Daddy was there to pick us up and then we headed back home. By the time we got back home, it was about 1:00 am. Mommy and Hunter were pretty exhausted from the whirlwind weekend and went straight to bed.

Hunter's New Toy

2006-07-26T17:08:00.000-07:00

Hunter has been learning all kinds of new stuff the past couple of weeks. The babysitter mentioned that she had an exersaucer and that Hunter really liked to sit in it and watch the kids. Mommy and Daddy had actually been looking at these for awhile now, but had always managed to talk themselves out of the actual purchase. But, Mommy finally had a breakdown and did not want the baby to have all the fun toys at the babysitter's house and not want to come home. So after work last week, Mommy, Daddy and Hunter jumped in the car and headed to Toys R Us. Like all decisions in our household this was not an easy one. I think we spent an hour in the store trying to decide between three exersaucers. They all have so many activities and it is so hard trying to weigh all the options to decide which one is the best deal. We finally decided on the Sesame Street one. It is pretty extravagant for a baby toy, but has lots of stuff for Hunter to look at and play with. Once we got home, Daddy was a trooper and put the thing together all by himself (which was a task just in itself, I might say!). By the time it was time to try out the new toy Hunter was getting pretty tired and annoyed, but still seemed to like. He already had mastered one activity on the first night and I am sure there will be many more in the upcoming weeks.

Hunter has also learned another new trick. He finally learned how to roll over on his own. He has really never liked the belly time from the beginning and Hunter finally rolled over the first time from his belly to his back. I think the doctor said that most babies roll from their backs to their bellies first, but not Hunter. He did not want to have any part of the tummy time. Now he is getting better at it everyday. He is holding his head up really well and rolls back and forth both ways. I am sure it will not be long until he takes off and crawls!

Cardinals Game

2006-07-26T17:05:00.000-07:00

As noted in earlier posts, Mommy got Daddy tickets to go see a St. Louis Cardinals game for Father's Day. Well, we finally made it to the big day. This was Daddy's first trip to the new stadium. It was pretty impressive.

The stadium is entirely red brick and black cast iron. A very cool look compared to the old concrete stadium. The new stadium is also no longer completely enclosed. Here is a picture of the landing between center and left field. They had activities for the kids in this area before the game. This section would also make for a good standing room only area or a place to catch a long homerun (it would have to be a pretty good shot to get it to the landing).

The game was in the afternoon and it was about 93 degrees. Mommy did a good job picking out the seats, because we were in one of the few shaded sections of the stadium. Here is a view of the field from out seats. We were joined by 44,739 other cardinals fans, most of whom sat in the heat for 2 hours and 49 minutes.

The game was against the LA Dodgers. The Cards had already beaten them the first three games. We were a little worried though, Brad Penny was pitching for the Dodgers. At that time he had 10 wins and only 2 losses. He had also just started for the National League in the All-Star game, stiking out the first 4 batters on nothing but fastballs. The cardinals had a rookie pitching and had given Scott Rolen the day off. But Anthony Reyes had been pitching decent, just couldn't get any run support in his previous outings. However, the Cards didn't disappoint. Reyes only gave up 2 runs in 5 innings and the bullpen did the rest. They won by a final of 11-3. Yadier Molina and Chris Duncan had good hitting games as the both went 3 for 4. The cardinals only home run came from John Rodriguez in the bottom of the eighth.

Albert Pujols, Mr. MVP, didn't disappoint either. Here is a picture of him standing with the third base coach after one of his 4 hits. On the day he went 4 for 5, with 3 RBIs. If he is not the MVP then they shouldn't even bother giving out the award. Without him the Cards would be no better than average.

It was a great day to watch some baseball, with one of the best teams and some of the best fans in sports. Mommy also makes it much more enjoyable because she likes sports and knows most of the Cardinals players (she was actually upset when we found out Rolen wasn't playing). I'm sure before we know it we'll be taking little Hunter, our MVP, to see Mr. MVP and the rest of the Cards. Go Cardinals!!!

Hunter meets cousin Nicky!

2006-07-25T17:52:00.000-07:00

I know, I know...we have definately been slacking again. Things have just been so crazy around here this summer. Hunter has been doing all kinds new stuff, but in essence of order I will go back a couple weeks and start at the beginning. Hunter's had a lot of visitors the past few weeks. Papaw, Aunt Heidi, Aunt Andrea and Cousin Nichloas came to visit from Ohio and New York. Hunter's babysitter was on vacation the week of July 4th so Papaw Paul had volunteered to come and watch Hunter for the week. As it turned out, Aunt Heidi was out of school for the summer and Aunt Andrea was on vacation from work so the whole gang hopped in the car and made the trip to Missouri to see out little Hunter. Nicholas was pretty good during most of the trip from Ohio, until the last half and hour when Aunt Heidi decided she needed to stop and get Dairy Queen which woke Nicholas up from his nap. We still do not know why she thought that this was a good idea at that point in the trip!! Anyway, by that time Nicholas was tired of being in the car seat and was ready for the trip to end.

Everyone made it safe and sound and little Hunter got to meet his cousin for the first time. They quickly became friends and hugs and kisses were given all around. Nicholas got to play with Hunter's toys and stretch his legs out after the long trip. For the most part, the week was a success and little Hunter got to spend some time with some more of his relatives.

Aunt Heidi and Aunt Andrea took Hunter and Nicholas for many walks and trips to the pool. However, it seemed like the kids never really got on the same schedule, so most of the time it was with one baby or the other. I am not really sure how my Mom and Dad did it with twins...it must have been pretty overwhelming at times. Hunter and Nicholas both seemed to like the water and the pool. We do not have any pictures to post, though, because Daddy would not let Mommy take the good camera to the pool (which is probably a good thing!). We did have a disposable camera and hopefully we will be able to scan a picture after we get them developed.

Hunter and Nicholas even got to go to Outback and eat...since this is Mommy and her sisters' favorite restaurant. Hunter taught Nicholas how to flirt with the waitresses....they were the center of attention as they batted their eyelashes and gave big smiles.

Everyone stayed through Hunter's baptism the following Sunday, and then made the long trip back to Ohio. All in all, it was a rewarding trip for everyone, but Mommy and Daddy did enjoy the peace and quiet for a little bit after having a house full of people for a week!

Daddy's Picture of the Week No. 2

2006-07-14T15:05:00.000-07:00

So, it has really been two weeks. Whatever! Daddy picked this picture because of Hunter's smile. I have heard from more than one person that he looks so much like the Daddy in this picture that it's scary. Big Dave said he almost fell out of his chair laughing when he got this one in his e-mail.

Hunter's Big Surprise!

2006-07-11T19:01:00.000-07:00

Hunter was a little disappointed leading up to the big baptism because one family member was going to be noticably absent from the service. Mamaw Michelle had to work on Saturday because her boss was on vacation and insisted she would not be able to come. We made it to church and checked in at the office to discuss the upcoming baptism with the minister before we went into the sanctuary. We were pretty early so there were very few people in the church. We had drove separately from everyone else to ensure that we made it there on time since we had to sit in the front (mommmy still has nightmares about walking into church late as a child and having to walk all the way to the front where everyone could see you!). We were there for only a few minutes when a familiar voice was heard coming from behind us. It was our Mamaw!!!! Little Hunter (and Mommy too) was so excited, and a little confused. Mommy cried she was so happy to see her and Hunter had his usual big smiles! Aunt Rhonda and Aunt Beth Ann had picked up Mamaw after work on Saturday and drove all night from Ohio to be there to see Hunter. We were very thankful that they were there and it will definately be a milestone that we will never forget!

Hunter's Baptism

2006-07-11T18:13:00.000-07:00

Bob and I got Hunter baptized in church on Sunday. My whole family was here. All Hunter's fans took up the first three pews in the church. Papaw, Aunt Heidi, Aunt Andrea and cousin Nicholas had been here visiting all week from Ohio. Grandma and Grandpa McArthur, Aunt Robyn, and cousins Jackson and Eli also came up for the big event. Hunter was good all through church except when he was up in front of everyone! We took his binky out his mouth so he would not fall asleep and then he got mad. We stood up in front of the church and he let out a yelp....we were so embarrased so we had to stick the binky back in his mouth. Hunter calmed down while the minister said the prayer and prepared the water, so he decided to baptize the other little girl first. Then, it was Hunter's turn. He was fine until the minister put that water on his head then he got mad again....right in the microphone! The minister carried him out into the aisle of the church as we sang and you could hear him crying into the microphone the whole time. Finally, it was over and time to sit back down. As soon as we sat down, we gave him is binky and put him back in his chair and he was asleep before we were finished with the next song. He was sawing logs for the rest of the service....especially through the sermon. We had a lot of people come up and congratulate us after the service and compliment us on our cute baby...even though they did not get to see his big smiles. Eveyone was especially in love with his crazy hair!

After church, we had all of our family come back to our house for a BBQ. It was pretty crazy in our house with all those people. Hunter did not take his normal nap because there was so much comotion. By the end of the day, we were all exhausted...mommy and daddy included. Hunter fell asleep at 8 pm without eating. We finally had to wake him up about 9:30 pm so that he could eat before he went to bed for the night. When we put him in the bed, he was asleep before we even finished the bedtime prayer. It was a big day for our little Hunter!

Hunter's New Trick

2006-07-05T17:34:00.000-07:00

Just in the last week or two Hunter found his feet. Now he is obsessed with them. He tries to stick them in his mouth every chance he gets. And Mommy encourages him with her "toes to the nose" comments. I wish I was half that flexible. Here is a cute picture. It's a little more difficult when he is sitting on the couch. His belly seems to get in the way.

Here is another picture a couple days later. He finally got the toes actually in his mouth. It cracks us up everytime he does it, so we thought we would share another picture. Enjoy!

Daddy's Picture of the Week

2006-06-28T18:29:00.000-07:00

Daddy was checking out the website and noticed that sometimes he forgets to post pictures of the Little Hunter (a small oversight). Daddy gets caught up in keeping a journal of Hunter's activities for him to read someday and forgets everyone else out there that checks out the site probably just wants to see pictures of the Little Hunter. So here goes. We'll try to post a picture of the week from both Mommy and Daddy. This recent picture is one of Daddy's all time favorites. Enjoy.

Hunter's 2nd Parent's as Teachers Visit

2006-06-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

Hunter just had another visit from the Parents as Teachers lady the other night. We were a little worried that Hunter wasn't rolling over yet, but she said scooting around on the floor and raising his chest are good signs it will probably happen soon enough.

Overall she was very happy with his progress. Things she pointed out were that he grabbed toys she put in front of him like he is supposed to start doing at this age. Usually, they go diretly into his mouth, but she said that was normal because that's where most of his senses are right now. He is also talking up a storm which she said was good for developing his language skills in the future. He also tracks us across the room, which means his eyesight is getting better. She said he should be able to see much clearer now and from farther away. She tested his hearing by talking to him when he was turned the other way to see if he would look at her. She said his hearing is changing as well, as he can now hear different pitches better. Things she said we should expect to see soon are the rolling over, grabbing things he wants and getting mad when you take away the things he likes. In the 5th month she said that babies' brain development increases dramatically.

We asked her about getting an exersaucer, but she said to make sure we didn't use it for more than 15 minutes at a time. She said babies need to see their feet when they are learning how to walk. Using the exersaucer too much would make him unbalanced and possibly slow down the process of learning to walk.

At the end of our session she said he appears to be a very happy baby and that Mommy and Daddy were doing a good job. However, for homework she told us to make sure we give him at least 5 minutes of belly time each day.

We have been doing better recently but this is something we still need to work on. Just last night Mommy tried something new which seemed to work good. She put Hunter on her belly and talked to him. He raised his head up for about 20 seconds straight and then off and on for about 2 minutes! So we'll probably be doing this more often(Daddy tried this also, but it appears Mommy's belly works better than Daddy's, for some unknown reason). Hunter also likes to sit up now like a big boy. He either sits up on our stomach or Daddy puts him in the middle of the love seat and sits next to him on the floor so he can see what's going on. He seems to like being eye to eye or looking down on Mommy and Daddy. I wonder what he is thinking at that point ("King of the Hill", or "Top of the World Mom").

So our 2nd Parents as Teachers meeting went very well. Hunter is a flirt, so he likes the nice lady that comes by to visit. We'll see her again in about 5 weeks. We'll probably have learned a few new tricks by then, so stay tuned.

Hunter's 4 Month Visit

2006-06-12T18:22:00.001-07:00

Monday Hunter had his four month doctor's visit. Of course after we got there the first thing Mommy and Daddy had to do was get the baby naked and cleanup his stinky butt. But, Mommy and Daddy were very excited to learn how much Hunter had grown since the last visit and not so excited about the shots he was going to get. The babysitter had him drugged up though, so we were hoping he would be a trooper.

Hunter weighed 14 lbs and was 25 1/2 inches long. The doctor said he was still right about 50-55 percentile in both height and weight. She also said that he looked good and was progressing well. Mommy and Daddy asked if he could start eating cereal. However, the doctor said that he really did not need to start yet since he is growing well and already sleeping through the night. She said that if he was not growing like he should be or not sleeping very well, then she would recommend starting cereal. But, normally she recommends waiting until six months to start food so he doesn't develop any allergies. The doctor also told us that Hunter may be getting teeth soon. She said the teeth were not breaking through the gums yet, but they were right beneath the gums. Finally, came the time to get the shots. Hunter had to get four shots again, two in each leg. This was probably more traumatizing for Mommy and the nice nurse lady than it was for Hunter. He cried for a second, but was happy and smiling again as soon as the nurse left the room.

The next day at the sitters was apparently pretty eventful. She said Hunter didn't take his morning or afternoon naps as usual. She gave him some more of the good stuff and he wasn't fussy, but must have been pretty wound up and out of sorts from the shots the day before. He's not shown any more side effects since then and is back to his normal self. No more of those terrible shots for another 2 months.

Hunter's First Fathers Day

2006-06-12T18:22:00.000-07:00

Daddy had his first father's day this weekend. Mommy and Hunter were very excited about this....probably more so than daddy. Mommy was very proud of herself because she thought that she had picked out the perfect gift. She had Daddy sneaking around for weeks trying to figure out what it was. But, Mommy would not tell and Hunter didn't either! Well, Sunday morning finally came and Hunter and Mommy woke Daddy up at about 8 am after we let him sleep in a little bit. Daddy first opened up his cards from both Mommy and Hunter. Then, Daddy opened up his new pair of sandals...he was not really excited about this, but it was something that he needed. After Mommy let him sweat for a few minutes thinking this was his only gift, Mommy told him to look a little deeper into the bag. At the bottom of the bag was an envelope. Daddy opened it up and found tickets to a St. Louis Cardinals game inside. He was very happy. Daddy had been wanting to go all season to see the new stadium, but had not gotten around to going yet, mainly because a lot of the games were sold out and the others were pretty expensive. Daddy was a little upset that Mommy spent over the budget for the gift, but was more happy and excited that we were going to get to spend a weekend in St. Louis and go to a game. The game is not until the middle of July because Mommy wanted to make sure that Albert Pujols was back from the injured reserve before our game. You will have to stay tuned for more details about the game at a later date.

After Daddy opened his wonderful gifts, him and Mommy and Little Hunter decided to go shopping. We had been wanting to get Hunter some more toys to play with for a while because we don't want him to get bored doing the same old things everyday. But we hadn't broke down and done it yet until Aunt Karen from Minnesota sent Hunter a nice birthday present. So we went to Toys R Us first, but it wasn't open yet. Then we went to Target to pick up a few things and looked at the exersaucers, as well as the high chairs. But, being the indecisive bunch that Mommy and Daddy are we couldn't pull the trigger on either of those items. After we left we planned to go back to Toy R Us since it was now open, but Daddy had a little accident in the parking lot. He was trying to pass Mommy's soda back to her in the back seat and spilled it all over himself (it was acually kind of cold). Anyway, we didn't make it to any other stores. We went home to change and cleanup Mommy's car and get ready to head out to see Grandma and Grandpa.

Grandpa got a new gas grill from Grandma for Father's Day so he barbequed hamburger, hot dogs, and a few steaks for us in the afternoon. I think he was pretty excited about his gift as well. Daddy and Grandma kept it a secret for about three weeks. It's pretty fancy with a side burner and rotisserie.

After lunch Mommy and Hunter were pretty tired so they took a long nap while Daddy played with Jackson and Jake. We played wiffle ball for a long time, then Daddy bowled Jackson on the slip-in-slide a few times, and then finished with a little frisbee. Daddy needs to get in better shape before Ely and Hunter grow up, cause three little boys running around may be more than he can handle.

Daddy finally had to go in and wake Mommy and Hunter up from their nap and rush off from the farm (I think Grandma and Grandpa were a little disappointed) because Mommy had to be back in Columbia for her office's softball game. Mommy would have had to play had she actually dressed for the occassion, but she forgot her shoes. After the game we just chilled for the rest of the day. All in all, it was a great first Father's Day for Mommy, Daddy, and little Hunter.

Hope everyone had a HAPPY FATTHER'S DAY as well.

Papaw and Grammy Bonnie's Visit from Ohio

2006-06-12T18:20:00.000-07:00

Our Papaw and Bonnie came to see us last weekend from Ohio. They just decided to drive out for the weekend since they had not seen Hunter in awhile. Since Papaw is out of school for the summer, I guess they decided that they did not have anything better to do. But, we were very happy to see them. Papaw and Bonnie could not believe how big little Hunter was getting. He was talking and moving and doing so much more than the last time they were here. They also insisted that we count our blessings because Hunter is one of the best babies they have ever been around. Grammy Bonnie kept saying that he was just such a pleasant baby and so happy all the time. We are very blessed and very proud of our little love.

On Friday, Daddy had off work so Daddy and Papaw did some work in the basement while Bonnie hung out with Hunter. They laid the tile in the bathroom in the basement. Mommy also managed to get off a little early so that she could spend a little extra time with Papaw and Bonnie. Friday night we even got to go and meet Grandma and Grandpa McArthur for dinner. Hunter was very good through the whole dinner and car ride even though he could not get out of the seat. He just kept talking up a storm and entertaining everyone around us.

On Saturday, Mommy got to go and spend some alone time at the pool. However, it was pretty cloudy and eventually started to rain....Mommy was not at all happy about this! When she got home, she found Papaw and Daddy in the basement covered with drywall mud. It was quite the sight to see!! Daddy had purchased a new texture machine to spray texture on the ceiling. But, when you spray up a lot of the extra stuff comes back down on your head...needless to say Daddy and Papaw had this stuff all over them. Bonnie could here Mommy laughing all the way upstairs when she saw them.

Sunday Papaw insisted on getting up early to head home....he was afraid that there would be traffic and it would be a long trip. But, Hunter and Mommy still had time to give him his Father's day gift. We got him a new picture album to put all of the pictures of Hunter in and a picture cutter to cut the pictures he prints off the computer. Papaw liked this gift very much. We can not wait until the next visit, even though I think Hunter got a little spoiled from having them around and being the center of attention all weekend!

Jackson's T-Ball Game

2006-06-12T18:18:00.000-07:00

Cousin Jackson has started playing t-ball this year and Hunter, Mommy, and Daddy went to see his game the other night. We got to sit there with Cousin Eli and watched his big brother hit the ball, run the bases, and catch the ball in the field.

The rules of the game are pretty simple. They play three innings. Everyone gets to bat, with the last batter getting to run all four bases. Here is one of Jackson's hits. Some of the kids are better at running the bases than others and some are just plain cute. There is usually a lot going on as each base has a coach that is screaming at the kid to run to the next base or run to their base. It may take a while but they usually make it to home plate. In the field everyone wants to be the pitcher, cause that is where most of the hit balls end up. All the kids usually swarm the ball when it's hit, like someone just yelled fumble, and then try to throw it to first base. This is pretty funny as well, but the kids are trying their hardest and having lots of fun and that's all that really matters.

Jackson gets all decked out like a real baseball player. He has the cleats and batters glove just like Albert Pujols. He is also wearing the hat we got for him in Hilton Head last summer. This is a picture of him crossing home plate. He's pretty excited, throwing his hands up in the air. We're not sure what the final score was, probably 30 - 30. But it's not about that, it's about the kids having a good time and Cousin Jackson definitely gets his moneys worth.

Kesten's Birthday Party

2006-06-12T18:14:00.000-07:00

I know, I know.....it has been forever since we have made a post again. We are just so busy and the hours we are home with Hunter in the evenings are very precious. We have been doing a lot of stuff the last couple of weeks.

First, Hunter and Mommy went to Kesten's (Mommy's friend Christy's oldest son)5th birthday party. I can not believe that little boy is already five years old. Mommy can remember when he was born and now he is going to go to kindergarten this fall with little Cousin Jackson. I am sure that is what we will be saying that about little Hunter in a few years too.

Well, Kesten had a very cool birthday party with a dinosaur theme. Christy got all kinds of matching plates, cups, hats, silverware and other party favors off the internet. He also had a very cool dinosaur cake that Christy tried to feed to our little Hunter before Mommy caught her. He even had a dinosaur pinata that the kids got to bust open with Kesten's new baseball bat (Hunter was a little to small to participate in this activity, but maybe next year). The kids like to play with Hunter, though, and Kaeden, Kesten's little brother who is 1 1/2 years old, is fascinated by the little baby. I am sure they will have a lot of time to play together the next few years as they continue to grow.

Hunter's First Day at Daycare

2006-06-02T17:16:00.000-07:00

Well, we all survived our first week at the babysitter (mommy included). Daddy went back to work on Tuesday of this week, which meant that our Little Hunter finally had to go to daycare. Mommy and Daddy both enjoyed their time at home with Hunter, but we new the day was inevitable when we were both going to have to go back to work. We are very lucky that we got to spend the amount of time we did at home with him.

Anyway, Tuesday was the big day. Mommy was a little anxious, probably more so than Hunter, about taking her little baby to the babysitter for the first time. Even though Mommy had met the lady a couple times and she was very nice, she still had reservations (mostly because she thought that her little baby would forget who mommy was!). Mommy and Daddy were also a little nervous about the fact that Hunter had been getting extremely attached to Mommy and Daddy and cried around loud noises (he would not even let grandma feed him last week at the farm). They, mommy especially, were afraid he was going to go to the babysitter and cry all day, not eat properly, and they would get a call and have to go pick him up.

Tuesday morning Mommy and Hunter ventured out on their new morning routine. Hunter was welcomed with open arms into his new daytime environment. Even though Mommy had tears in her eyes as she was leaving, Hunter did not make a peep. Mommy even made it through the whole day without a call to come get the child. Daddy picked Hunter up and the babysitter said he fit in very well. She said he only cried a couple of times when the kids got loud when he was trying to eat. Mommy and Daddy were not surprised by this at all because he gets distracted very easily when he is trying to eat. However, Mommy did forget one big thing in her rush to leave the babysitter that morning....to pay her! The babysitter finally had to ask Daddy that evening if he was going to pay her and, of course, he responded "Didn't my wife pay you?". Daddy had even been prepared by putting the money in Mommy's purse Monday night and she still managed to forget.

Well, it is now Friday and we made it through an entire week at the babysitter's house. She seems to love our little Hunter and today she said he was an angel. He did not even cry after the first day. I guess it took Hunter much less time to adapt to his new routine than it did for Mommy!

Wiffle Ball Recap

2006-05-28T22:31:00.000-07:00

Daddy hit a dinger in the first inning of game one and was up 6-2-1-0-0 going into the final inning but blew the save giving up 10 runs to lose 11-6-3-1-0 to Luke, Jackson's Uncle. However, in the second game Daddy and Mike (Olivia and Logan's Daddy) beat Unlce Zack and Luke 11-8. Luke blew the save in this game giving up 7 runs in the bottom of the 8th. Only two long balls were hit all day (about 80 feet). Daddy in the first game and Uncle Zack in the second game.

Daddy and his friends have a lot of fun. This brings back a lot of memories from Daddy's childhood (wiffle ball is how he taught himself how to switch hit). Although I think those games were a little more serious and sometimes bloody. We ran the bases back then and you had to drill the base runner with the wiffle ball to record an out.

This was the second annual wiffle ball game. I think Uncle Zack won last year. Luke gets to claim the individual and Daddy and Mike the team titles until next year. Our annual wiffle ball game is getting better each year. Next year we'll tweak the rules again and maybe come up with some sort of trophy.

See you next year.

FYI - Adults should not play wiffle ball with anything other than the official wiffle ball. Make sure they are the real deal cause we destroyed everyone of the fake balls we had last year. This year we used the official ball and didn't have any problems.

Memorial Day

2006-05-28T19:19:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa McArthur had their annual Memorial Day gathering on Saturday. I was a little concerned that Hunter would not be happy about getting back into the car to go out to the farm, since we did not get back from Chicago until midnight the night before. But, he was a trooper and we made the trip to the farm with no drama. Mommy sat in the back seat with Hunter to try and keep him entertained, but he still fell asleep about half way there.

Once we got there, though, it was all down hill. Hunter was just not happy. I am pretty sure a big reason he was so cranky was because of the heat. It was about 95 degrees here yesterday. Little cousin Eli was a little out of sorts too. Hunter would not eat for Grandma when we got there, and I think it hurt her feelings. Mommy had to take him inside into the air conditioning so that he would relax and not be distracted from all the other people. He ate a little better, but still did not eat the usual six ounces.

Even thought Hunter and Eli did not like the hot, sunny weather, the big kids seemed to enjoy it. Aunt Robyn had set up the pool and slip and slide for them to play. Cousin Jackson and his friends played in the water for most of the day. Here is a picture of Olivia huging Jackson's cousing Lydia, with Jackson in the pool eating a chocolate chip cookie. I am sure they all slept pretty good last night. Jackson has more energy than anyone I know. I am sure that little Hunter will be like that one day too.

Daddy and his friends also had a fun day. They played wiffle ball for hours. Mommy was afraid Daddy would not be able to get out of bed this morning (and she was right). She warned him, though, that we were going to church so he better not complain. Those big boys are worse than the kids. They just do not know when to stop, and Daddy is not in the greatest of shape these days!

Well, we made it through the day and about 8 pm last night got back into the car for the drive home. Hunter slept all the way home. When we got here, he got to take a bath and soak in the big tub with Daddy. They both needed to soak their aching muscles! We definately all had another long day and settled in for a good nights' sleep.

Chicago!

2006-05-28T13:53:00.000-07:00

Daddy, after much persuasion and many more big Mommy tears, decided to pack up little Hunter and make the big trip to Chicago to see Mommy while she was in training. The trip actually went fairly well and Daddy and Hunter made it to Chicago about 8 pm on Tuesday night. Hunter slept for the first four hours until Daddy decided to stop at a rest stop to feed him. Hunter is getting a little contrary about the eating and wants his bottle a certain temperature or he will not eat properly. Well, the rest stop did not have hot water. Hunter did not eat very well and then cried when he had to get back into the car seat. Daddy said he cried for about 45 minutes until he cried himself back to sleep. He then slept for the remaining 1 1/2 until they arrived in the big city.

Mommy and Daddy played with Hunter and let him stretch out his arms and legs until it was time to go to bed. Suprisingly, Hunter slept really well for having been sleeping in the car for most of the day. He went to bed about 10 pm and slept until about 6:30 in the morning.

Wednesday was the first full day for the whole family in Chicago. Daddy and Hunter did not do too much during the day while Mommy was in training. They just hung out at the hotel and and walked around the hotel a little bit to check things out. Mommy came back during the lunch break so that she could eat with Daddy and little Hunter.

Wednesday night we ventured out on the big town. We walked down Michigan Avenue and did a little bit of shopping (Mommy did most of the shopping before Daddy came, but had to return a pair of pants that she had got for Hunter because they were too small) on our way down to the John Hancock building. It is not the tallest building in Chicago, but Papaw Paul had told us that it is more easily accessible than the Sears tower and would not have to stand in line as long. We actually walked right in to the building when we got there. We had a 2 for 1 coupon so it was actually pretty cheap too. Mommy, Daddy and little Hunter took the elevator ride up 94 stories to the observation deck. It was very cool because you could see the whole city from up there. Daddy took some pictures of Soldier Field and Wrigley Stadium and it looked like we were really close and they were actually all the way across town. On a clear day, you are supposed to be able to see like four different states (IL, IN, WI, MI). Little Hunter got bored after a little while and fell alseep. He did not even wake up to pop his ears on the way down in the elevator. The, Mommy and Daddy got to eat at the Cheesecake Factory which was in the basement of the Hancock building. After our first big outting, we all went back to the hotel and had a good nights rest in preparation for our next big day.

On Thursday, Mommy got out of training a little early for our next outting. First, Mommy and Daddy went and ate dinner at Harry Carey's which is named after the famous sportcaster for the Chicago Cubs. There was all kinds of cool sports memorabilia and stuff on the walls of the restaurant. Then, we decided to go down to the pier. We took the free trolley which picked people up only a couple blocks away from the hotel. When we walked to the end of the pier we could see the city in the background. In addition, there was a neat lighthouse out on the lake that we got a picture of. There was also a park with a ferris wheel and other rides, but Hunter was still too little to enjoy them. We also went to the Children's Museum which was on the pier and saw all kinds of cool stuff in there too. By that time, it was getting late and it was almost time for little Hunter to eat, so we decided to catch the trolley and head back to the hotel. After we got back to the hotel, Hunter go to eat and then we went down to the pool. Hunter got to go swimming in the big pool for the first time. I think he liked it, for the most part. It was a little cold at first, because his eyes got really big. But after he got used to it, we all had fun. Mommy even got to sit in the hot tub for a little bit a relax while Daddy played in the pool with the baby. Needless to say, after that we were all beat and ready for bed when we got back up to our room.

Stay tuned for details about the rest of our trip.....

On Friday Hunter and Daddy had to get motivated early. We had to be out of our room by at least 12:00 p.m. We had already packed up most everything the night before but still had some final cleanup. We checked out of the hotel about 10:30 a.m. After calling the valet to get our car out of the garage we also had to call the bellboy to carry all our bags downstairs. Because we had to checkout in the morning and Mommy was in training until the afternoon Hunter and I decided to venture out in the big city by ourselves one last time. We had several options within about a 3/4 mile stretch of downtown. All next to each other were the Shedd Aquarium, the Field Museum, the Planatarium, and Soliers Field.

Hunter didn't have much input so Daddy chose the aquarium. As you can see the acquarium had a Komodo Dragon exhibit. This was cool cause it's not something you hardly ever get to see in person. Unfortunately, we had to turn the flash off the camera when taking pictures, so I'll just have to descibe him to you. He was about 7 feet long (like the alligator we saw in Hilton Head), head the size of a watermelon, and belly bigger than Daddy's. Pretty impressive for an lizard. Here is a cool picture of his relative, the blue lizard (not really sure about the relative part, but their both lizards, and it was a cool picture).

We also got to see several Beluga whales, dolphins, penguins, lizards, and tons of different fish and coral from all over the world. But Daddy's favorite animal in the whole place was the giant crab from Japan. Again, we don't have a good picture of him, but he was the size of a basketball with legs that were probably 3 feet long. Talk about all you can eat crab.

Overall Daddy wasn't really impressed (if not for the Komodo Dragon it would have been a bust). If he had to do it over again we probably would have went to see King Tut and Sue (the largest T-Rex ever found) at the Field Museum.

FYI - It costs $15 dollars to park (about a mile from the aquarium) and $23 to get in the door. The best deal by far is the all day/all access pass which gets you into the aquarium, several museums, and planatarium for around $49. We just didn't have time. Also, I never really paid much attention to the handicap accessibility of buildings until Hunter and his stroller came along. I would give them a C+. The elevators were hard to find and seemed like miles from the exhibits. Also, we never did find any ramp to the dolphin pool to watch their show from above the water. Finally, I don't know if any day is a good day, but apparently Friday is student day or something. Hunter and I had to fight our way through about 5 billion 4th graders [should have feed a few of them to that Komodo Dragon, just kidding :)].

After spending several hours at the aquarium, Daddy and Hunter got a call from Mommy to come pick her up. So we headed back to the parking garage; however, there was a problem. After Daddy completely unpacked the trunk to get the stroller out of the car, loaded Hunter up, and then repacked the truck, Daddy forgot to check which level of the parking garage we parked in and when we got in the elevator someone else was in control, so Daddy paid no attention. Therefore, when we got back to the parking garage Daddy didn't have any idea where the car was. So after about 45 minutes walking around the first floor, which Hunter amazingly was awake for, Daddy found some employees to find out which levels cars were being parked on. Daddy had already checked out levels 2 and 3, and they didn't have any cars, so Daddy assumed there surely couldn't be any cars on level 4 either. Why would they start parking cars on level 1 and then go to level 4. Sounds pretty stupid right. Wrong! So after walking around level 1 (and 2 and 3) for 45 minutes the garage employees told us to checkout level 4. Sure enough, Daddy parked the car on level 4.

Finally, an hour after Mommy called Hunter and Daddy arrived to pick her up. So we were off, back to Missouri, but Chicago didn't want us to go (at least not very fast). Getting to the interstate wasn't very hard and getting from I-94 to I-55 wasn't bad either, but then we hit the traffic. Best we can remember we went about 10, 20 miles tops, in two hours. After Chicago let us out the rest of the trip wasn't too bad. Hunter was much better on the way home cause he had either Mommy or Daddy in the back seat to keep him entertained. 8 1/2 hours later we were home (sweet home).

Conclusion - The trip to Chicago was pretty nice. Daddy had never seen any of the great lakes (the Windy City actually has a beach on Lake Michigan). We also got to see several cool sights and eat some good food. However, the Daddy doesn't recommend trips of more than 3 hours (the span of feeding times) with just one parent (I think Hunter also agrees). Daddy also doesn't really recommend trips to the aquarium with just one parent either. Having Mommy along would probably have been much less stressful. Mommy thanked Daddy several times for bringing little Hunter to see her in Chicago. But she did admit that it was a lot to ask and told Daddy, "I won't ever make my babies do anything this crazy again". So lets all just remember that when the Mommy gets sent out of town next time and is crying all those great big Mommy tears.

Mommy is in Chicago

2006-05-22T09:51:00.000-07:00

Mommy left Sunday afternoon for Chicago. Her work sent her for a week of training on auditing and reporting stuff. When Hunter and Daddy left for Dusty's party shortly before Mommy there were lots of Mommy tears and she gave herself a belly ache. This will be her first time away from Little Hunter for more than one night.

Mommy had to fly out of St. Louis that evening and arrived in Chicago a few hours later. She is staying at a nice hotel in downtown overlooking the Chicago River, just a hop-skip-and-jump from Lake Michigan. Mommy almost got abducted last night, because she thought is was a good idea to walk alone to the local McDonalds. Sometimes Daddy wonders what Mommy is thinking.

Last night Mommy got to talk to Hunter on the phone, tell him goodnight, and then cried more Mommy tears. Before we left on Sunday Daddy made the mistake of saying he would think about coming up to Chicago later this week. When Hunter and Daddy got home Mommy had somehow found the time to lay out several outfits for Hunter if we make the trip.

Daddy doesn't want to go to Chicago. It's a 6 hour drive, probably 7 with feedings and diaper changes. Hunter also has to go to the babysitter next week. Daddy wanted to get Hunter's morning schedule worked out this week, cause your guaranteed Mommy isn't getting up at 5:00 a.m. Daddy also has to go back to work next week after being off 5 weeks. So we'll just have to see how he feels tomorrow evening. If we make the trip we'll add a post and some pictures when we get back. . . . .

Dusty's Graduation Party

2006-05-22T09:46:00.000-07:00

Cousin Dusty graduated from High School on Saturday and had a graduation party on Sunday. So after Hunter and Daddy said goodbye to Mommy Sunday morning (see subsequent post), we headed to St. James for Dusty's party.

There was a good turnout. They bargequed hamburgers and hotdogs and had lots of other good food to eat. Little Hunter got to see several relatives again and meet Uncle Bud and Aunt Lucy. Everyone loved Hunter's new haircut and mentioned again that he looked a lot like his Daddy.
Everyone wanted to hold him and talk to him so Daddy had some free time to hang out with cousin Jackson. We walked down to the lake and skipped a few rocks with Aunt Robyn and Uncle Zach. When we got back Little Hunter and Grandpa were watching a washers game.

Dusty had a good graduation party. He is headed to the local community college for two years and then can transfer to the University of Misouri-Rolla to finish his degree. He's not sure what he wants to study, but who really is at that age. He has the first two years at ECC to figure that out. Congratulations and good luck to Dusty.

Love,
Bob, Heather and Hunter

Parent's As Teachers

2006-05-19T06:51:00.000-07:00

Mommy, Daddy, and Little Hunter had their first Parent's As Teachers meeting Saturday morning. For those of you not in Missouri, Parents As Teachers is offered through the local school district and is available for all kids in the state. You just have to initiate the contact with the school. Everyone has their own personal representative who is a certified teacher that comes to the house and teaches you things that you can do with your child. They also teach you benchmarks or milestones that your child should be doing at certain ages. You can meet with your representative once a month and call them anytime if you have questions or concerns.

Our lady came to our house for the first time today. She talked to us and watched Little Hunter. Hunter was very excited about it. He talked to her and laughed a lot. I guess we need to get some more toys because he really liked the new ones that she brought. Maybe he is bored with the ones he sees everyday! The teacher indicated that he was very alert and looked good for his age. We are so proud!

Hunter's First Haircut

2006-05-19T06:25:00.000-07:00

Mommy finally talked Daddy into giving Hunter (AKA "CrazyHead") his first haircut. It was pretty long, but he's a baby, it was cute. Anyway, Daddy got out the razor this morning and cut it about 1/2" long. Here is the before picture, very cute.

Daddy couldn't resist playing around a little bit, so he gave little Hunter a mohawk just to see what he looked like. Don't worry, Daddy wouldn't do anything to little Hunter that he hasn't done to himself. Just wish I had the picture of myself with a mohawk for comparison purposes.

Look at all the hair Daddy cut off. WOW!!! Not sure if Mommy is going to be happy about this or not. Mommy wanted Daddy to use the 3/4" attachment, Daddy wanted to use the 1/8" attachment, so Daddy compromised with the 1/2". Oh well, it'll grow back.

Here is the after picture. Still very cute. More practical also and it will be much cooler in this summer's heat.

P.S. Not sure Mommy will be pleased about the buger hanging out of Little Hunter's nose, but she can update the post tonight when she gets home.

Cousin Jackson's Graduation

2006-05-17T16:21:00.000-07:00

Cousin Jackson recently had a milestone. He graduated from pre-school and is headed to kindergarten this summer. He got to wear a cap for the ceremony and recited a poem he memorized. He also had to tell everyone what he wanted to be when he grew up. Apparently this week he wants to be a race car driver. Congratulations Jackson!!!

Love,
Bob, Heather, and Hunter

Hunter is 12 Weeks Old

2006-05-17T06:58:00.001-07:00

So what have Hunter and Daddy been upto the last 3 1/2 weeks. We've been doing a lot of talking recently. Our favorite word is "whooooooooooo". We have also learned to laugh cause Daddy is a pretty funny guy. Hunter's big belly laughs make Mommy and Daddy crack up. We have made trips to Wal-Mart, Lowes, the grocery store, and the mall.

We have been reading Dr. Seuss books. Daddy tries to read One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish as fast as he can without getting tongue tied. Mommy thinks Daddy is crazy, but Hunter thinks Daddy is funny. We usually get through about 1 1/2 books before we get bored and have to move to the next activity.

We listen to our Wee Sing Nursery Rhymes and Lullabies CD. Some of our favorites are Jack & Jill, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and Little Pig Went to Market. Even though Daddy cannot sing very good Hunter grins and bears it, singing along. We usually make it through 2/3 of the CD before Hunter is bored again.

We play in our little gym. This is where Hunter gets his 30 minute workout a day. He kicks his legs and thrashes his arms to BINGO, Old McDonald's Farm, and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Daddy is his instructor, using motivational phrases like "feel the burn". Hunter is learning to reach for things in the gym. He can touch the ball on the side that spins with black and white colors and can occassionally grab the animals above his head. However, after about an hour it's on to the next activity.

Hunter also has several cool mobiles that he likes to watch. We also like to play in the Bouncy Chair and get our butt massaged occassionally, but recently is has been just putting us to sleep. But that's okay cause we need our sleep to grow up big and strong. If Mommy and Daddy want to put Little Hunter to sleep all they have to do is put him in the swing for about 30 seconds and he's snoring before it even gets up to full speed.

We tried to do belly time but we don't like it that much. We just lay there talking to the floor, not moving our head, until we finally get mad. We also spit up occassionally, so Aunt Robyn taught us how to play "Big Boy" like Eli. Here is a cute picture of Hunter getting to know his cousin Ely. To play "Big Boy" Mommy and Daddy take Hunter by the arms and lift him up to a sitting position so he can learn to raise and hold his head up, strengthing his neck muscles. This seems to be working much better.

Hunter also got a visit from Olivia and Logan and their Daddy. Logan just turned 2 years old. Olivia and Logan help babysit cousin Eli (they attend the same babysitter). They came to visit Hunter to return a blanket and give him his gift basket for attending Logan's birthday party. Hunter got some crayons, coloring paper, candy, and sunglasses. Daddy ended up eating all the candy, though. Hunter was glad Olivia and Logan came to see him (and Mike also).

Happy Mother's Day

2006-05-17T06:58:00.000-07:00

For Mommy's first Mother's Day we let her sleep in a little and then Hunter and I woke her up so she could open her cards and gifts. Daddy also made Mommy a special breakfast in bed the day before of bacon and waffles, which is Mommy's favorite.

Hunter and Daddy made a trip to the mall a few days earlier to get Mother's Day cards. This was more complicated than Daddy thought as he realized he needed several cards. But Hunter gave his approval after Daddy finally found the perfect cards.

Mommy got two really cute cards saying how much Hunter and Daddy loved her. There were hugs and kisses all around. Then Mommy opened her gifts. She got a pink best Mommy picture frame she can take to work and a gift certificate to the spa so she can get a massage and pedicure. She probably needs to work out those kinks again after having to go back to work. She also got a gag gift from Daddy. He finally bought her a frame for her CPA license to hang in her office at work. Again, there were hugs and kisses all around and maybe a tear or two.

After church we went out to Grandma and Grandpa's for a nice lunch. Hunter and Daddy had cards for Grandma. Hunter's said Grandchild is another word for "cutest little boy in the world". We also got Grandma and Grandpa a couple Crape Myrtles like we saw in Hilton Head last summer. One pink and one red. Mommy was pretty jealous, so Daddy has a feeling that he'll be buying some for Mommy in the near future too.

Grandma also had a gift for Hunter. She got Hunter and Eli bouncy chairs they can use when they're at her house. He liked his new bouncy chair as he sat in it and watched the big screen TV.

After leaving Grandma and Grandpa's we came home and had a relaxing Mother's Day evening. Mommy also got Happy Mother's Day wishes from Papaw, Mamaw, and other family and friends. It was a very nice 1st Mother's Day all around. We hope everyone had as good a Mother's Day as we did.

Love,
Mommy, Daddy, and Little Hunter

Back to Work

2006-05-17T06:50:00.000-07:00

Sorry we haven't posted for a while. Mommy had to go back to work and Daddy and Little Hunter have been working on Mommy's "honey-do-list".

Mommy has been back to work for 3 1/2 weeks. Fortunately, she was in the office the first week and got to come home and eat lunch and spend some time with Little Hunter. This made the transition a little easier I think. However, she still misses Hunter a lot during the day.

Next week Mommy's work is sending her to Chicago for training for the week. This is going to be tramatic for all of us. Mommy has tried to talk Daddy into going with her, but he doesn't think this is a good idea. Daddy sympathizes with Mommy, but doesn't think it's practical. We'll just have to have nightly phone conversations so Hunter and Mommy can catch-up and so Mommy can sign her lullabies and say her nightly prayers with Little Hunter before bedtime.

Daddy has to go back to work in 1 1/2 weeks. Then we have to send Little Hunter off to the baby sitter. Mommy is going to drop Hunter off in the morning and Daddy will pick him up in the evening. Daddy foresees this as traumatic also. He's not sure it's a good idea for Mommy to be the one dropping Hunter off in the morning. He's picturing Mommy's big raccoon eyes and expecting to get a daily morning phone call from Mommy after she drops off Hunter. Daddy told Mommy to have Hunter use the "tuck and roll" method.

Hunter is Two Months Old

2006-04-19T08:47:00.000-07:00

I can not believe my little Hunter is going to be two months old this week. We went for his two month shots on Monday. It was a little traumatizing, at least for Mommy. He got four shots, two in each leg. We had to hold him down while the nurse administered the shots....Bob held his legs and I had to hold his arms. It was so sad seeing his little face turn red and his eyes well up with tears. He actually handled it pretty well, though. He only cried for a few minutes and then he was done. He has been pretty tired the last couple of days, but other than that he has not had any reactions from the shots. We gave him Tylenol the first day for the pain, but he seems to be back to normal today...thank God! Mommy did not like seeing her little baby in pain one bit.

The doctor said that Hunter was growing and progressing on schedule. He was 10 lbs 14 oz and 23.5 inches long. I think he would have been even bigger than that, but he had not been eating very well the few days before because of the heat. However, the doctor said he was right at the 50-55th percentile for infants his age. She also said he was very responsive for his age and that was a sign that we had been working with him at home. She said average babies do not smile and respond to sound and light until about 4 months, and Hunter already did all those things. We are so proud of our little baby.

Oh, by the way, Mommy went for her 6 week check-up a couple weeks ago and they said she was fine and cleared to resume all normal activities too.

Hunter's First Easter

2006-04-18T09:14:00.000-07:00

Sunday was our little Hunter's first Easter. Mommy and Daddy did not even have to get him anything because Mamaw Michelle sent him so much stuff in the mail. He got a cute little Easter outfit and lots of other clothes. We got up early and went to the early service at church since we were going out of town. Bob's family always goes to St. James, MO where his relatives live for Easter. Our schedule was all off because we were not used to going to the early service. We were running a little behind schedule and there were barely any seats left in the church when we got there. We had to squeeze in between some people and I was afraid little Hunter would act up and we would have to climb over a bunch of people to get out. However, we made it through the church service with no outbursts. Hunter was actually awake for most of the service. He was very good and liked to look at all of the lights and listen to the music.

After church we headed to Bob's cousins house in St. James which is about an hour and 45 minutes away from Columbia. This was the first time most of Bob's relatives got to see Hunter. Of course, everyone wanted to hold him and play with him. Hunter was very good and was awake the whole time we were there. He was even awake for most of the ride down in the car. We had our Easter dinner and Daddy tried to feed Hunter mashed potatoes before Mommy caught him and scolded him for trying such nonsense! All of the cousins had an Easter egg hunt and we played outside for most of the day on the trampoline and four wheelers. Maybe next year little Hunter will be old enough to participate in the easter egg hunt. Mommy even showed off some of her moves on the trampoline...even though she is 30 now she could still do flips and jump up and touch her toes. Afer a long day, we headed back to Columbia and Hunter slept for most of the trip home, so it was another successful trip for the McArthur family.

Hunter's First Football Game

2006-04-18T06:54:00.000-07:00

Well, like it or not, Hunter attended his first Mizzou football game last Saturday. I even had to break down and buy him a Mizzou outfit to wear. The university held their annual spring scrimmage known as the Black and Gold game. Mommy had to take Papaw back to the airport, so Daddy volunteered to take Little Hunter to the pre-game festivities. We all know he did not do this out of the goodness of his heart....he really just wanted to use our child as a pawn to hit on the golden girls! They were having pre-game photo opportunities with Truman the Tiger and the Cheerleaders and golden girls.

Hunter's schedule was a little off that day because he was up to late the night before for Mommy's b-day party. There were too many people around and he was afraid he was going to miss something!

Anyway, Daddy did not get to the game as early as he would have liked because of the baby's feeding schedule, but Hunter did get his picture taken with Truman and four cheerleaders. He was not really amused with the whole game thing. He slept through almost the whole thing. He woke up during the second half and I fed him, but then he went right back to sleep. He must have still been worn out from the night before! Knowing Mommy and Daddy, I am sure one day he will find football much more interesting!

Papaw's Visit from Ohio

2006-04-17T18:33:00.000-07:00

Papaw came to visit little Hunter from Ohio again this week. It was his spring break at school and he came to spend the week with us. Mommy and Hunter went all the way to St. Louis and back to pick up Papaw from the airport. This was Hunter's longest trip yet. He was actually very good. He slept most of the way up and back in the car. However, Hunter was not really very entusiastic about the rest of the visit, though. For some reason, he was a little crabby this week. I think it was because of the heat. Little Hunter did not like being hot...and neither did mommy for that matter! Our air conditioner in our house still does not work because of the damage from the storm. Daddy has called the air conditioning people a couple times, but obviously they still have not come to fix it. I am sure that a million other people are calling now too since it is so hot outside. The contractor actually did come and fix the roof and siding on the house this past week. I do not know if I mentioned this before or not, but the total damage on our house from the storm was over $14,000! Thank goodness we have insurance...too bad this would not happen in about 10 years when our roof is ready to be replaced. Papaw also helped Daddy work on the basement while he was here. He did all of the plumbing in the bathroom. Therefore, the basement is progressing slowly but surely! Hopefully, the computer will be out of Hunter's room by the time he graduates from high school!

Mommy turned the Big 3-0!

2006-04-17T10:02:00.000-07:00

I know, I know....it has been forever since I have updated the site. It has been crazy around here. First of all, I turned 30 last week....it is so depressing! I think I am still in denial because I do not really feel like I am 30. My mom still says she is 29 so maybe I can just stay 29 forever too!

I actually had a great b-day, though. Hunter went to stay with his grandma and grandpa at the farm for the day so Mommy and Daddy could spend some time together. Bob got me a massage for my b-day so I got to go to the spa and relax. It was so awesome! The lady said I had knots all in my neck and upper back.....and I had not even been to work in 6 weeks! We also went to the winery in Rocheport. It was a really nice day so we got to sit outside and enjoy the weather. They were also having a free wine tasting and art show, so we acted like we were really cultured and walked around looking at the artwork and drinking wine! By about six that evening, though, I was ready to go get my baby and go to bed!

We also had a party this weekend at our house. My dad had come to see us from Ohio and we had friends over for a BBQ. I did not think very many people would get to come since it was Easter weekend, but we ended up having over 20 people at our house. We had a good time, even with all of the little kids running around!

Busy Week

2006-03-29T09:07:00.000-08:00

Mommy and Hunter have had a busy week. We have been doing a lot more the last week. Hunter is making so much progress lately. It seems like he is doing something new every day. He is usually wide awake for most of the day because he thinks he is going to miss something. He has been talking and smiling a lot lately. He has been sleeping a little more and even slept for 5 1/2 hours for Daddy last weekend (of course, he never does this for mommy!). We have been trying to transition him into his big bed this week too. Mommy has putting him down for his afternoon nap in his crib. He seems to like it, but is starting to fight sleep....sometimes mommy has to go in and replace his pacifier or cover him up as he moves around so much everything gets out of place.

We also made our first trip to Daddy's office this past week. Mommy took the baby in to show him off to all of Daddy's co-workers. Daddy also seemed to be very proud of little Hunter. He took him out of his carseat when we got there and carried him all around the office showing him to people. We also visited several other people that day. We went to Aunt Robyn's house to visit and eat. Hunter had a little accident as he peed all over himself and his little cousin Elijah who was laying beside him when Mommy was changing his diaper. Then, as soon as we were done with the diaper, Mommy fed him and he threw up all over himself and Mommy. It is a good thing we were at Aunt Robyn's house and she had some extra clothes for us to wear. Little Hunter has never gone through three outfits in one day before and he managed to do it on our big day out in about a half an hour!

We also made our first trip to Grandma and Grandpa's farm this past weekend. Little Hunter got to visit his cousins again and of course, Grandma and Grandpa. Little Hunter got to meet the dog, Jake, and see all of the cows. Grandpa has even picked out one of the new baby cows for Little Hunter to have for his very own. Daddy also got to go fishing with Grandpa, Uncle Zack, and cousin Jackson.

Hunter is One Month Old

2006-03-22T09:36:00.000-08:00

I can not believe our little Hunter is already one month old. The past few weeks have gone by so fast. Hunter is growing like a weed and changing and getting bigger every day. He is still a little piggy and eats four or more ounces almost every feeding. He is also getting more opinionated as he does not like us to take his bottle away to burp and lets us know about it!!

Mommy has started trying to get Hunter on a schedule this week so that he sleeps better at night. It seems to be working pretty good, so far. Hunter is usually awake for most of the mornings, so Mommy and Hunter have our play time during that time. We have been playing with all of Hunter's new toys like the bouncy chair, swing, and play gym. He really seems to like the music. We have also been reading books and listening to the baby einstein cds. He is getting more alert and responsive every day. He smiles a lot and likes Mommy to hold him.

We have our second play time in the afternoon/early evening when daddy gets home from work. Daddy makes him do his belly time to strengthen his neck and back, but Hunter does not like this at all. He seems to be very strong, though, and lifts his head and gets his little legs moving like he is going to take off and crawl.

We also give Hunter his bath in the evening before he goes to bed. His belly button finally fell off last week, so he can have a real bath. He seems to like this much better than the sponge bath. He likes the warm water and kicks and splashes the water. The only part he does not like is when we have to get him out of the water and into the cold to get him dressed. The bath seems to relax him, or at least wear him out, because he sleeps better at night after his bath. We feed him after his bath and has been going right to bed. The last few nights he has actually been sleeping 3-4 hours at a time before he gets up to eat again. This is great as Mommy only has to get up once during the night rather than 2 or 3 times!

Mommy's New Cedar Closet

2006-03-20T18:05:00.000-08:00

Yes, Mommy's new cedar closet is finally done. It's 12' x 4' and lined with cedar flakeboard. It looks very nice and smells even better. This means that little Hunter will now have his very own closet and not have to share one with Mommy (who am I kidding, little Hunter didn't even get to share before). The picture is already outdated though, cause Mommy moved all of her extra clothes down to the basement last night. Now she just needs to move about half her 100+ pairs of shoes down there also.

Next up is finishing the computer room and then Hunter will have his very own bedroom filled with all his stuff. Hopefully we'll have more basement updates to come soon.

Mommy's New 'Do

2006-03-16T16:38:00.000-08:00

Well, if you know anything about my family at all, you know we all have had long hair for most of our lives.....of course, my sisters both have long hair, but even my mom and my aunts had hair down to their waistes well into their thirties. I have been talking about it for a long time, but today I finally bit the bullet and did it....I cut off my long hair....12 inches to be exact! I decided it was time to go for less california girl and more soccer mom (or as my husband would say, less #1 single and more hot momma!). It is definately different and will take a little bit of time to get used to it, but I think my stylist did a great job. I think Hunter was a little confused when he woke up from his nap (luckily, he slept through the whole appointment and did not make a scene in the salon!). He looked at me a little weird when I was changing his diaper. Hopefully, he will get used to it too and realize it is still his mommy, just with no more hair! (If you double click on the picture, it will be englarged and you will be able to see it closer up.)

Mommy and Hunter's First Check-Up

2006-03-13T10:34:00.000-08:00

Little Hunter had his first doctor's visit this morning with the primary doctor. She checked him out to make sure everything was okay. He was very good for Mommy and Daddy during the whole visit. He did not even cry when he had to get naked in order to get weighed. Hunter now weighs 9 lbs. and is 22 inches long! He is growing like a weed. His head circumference is 36 1/2 inches. The doctor said his length is in the 90 percentile for infants of his age and his weight is in the 55 percentile. She also said he seems to be very active and responsive which is good. We do not have to go back to the doctor now until he is two months old. We are very thankful that we have such a happy and healthy little boy!

Just under baseball size hail!!!

2006-03-13T09:48:00.000-08:00

Correction, some of the hail was just under the size of a baseball. But the wind made it even worse. It was hitting so hard that mud and water was flying up about 3 feet from the ground. I also just noticed that it left 3 inch divits in the mulch around the shrubs in the front yard. But everyone is okay, that's the most important thing. Other areas of Missouri had it much worse than we did.

We Survived the Storm....Barely!

2006-03-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

Mommy, Daddy, and Hunter had quite a scare yesterday. A big storm went through Missouri and we definately felt the wrath of it here. We did not actually get the tornado, but we had golf ball size hail and very high winds. I have never seen hail like this in my life. Yes, that is hail you see on the ground in the picture...not snow. There was a pile almost a foot high in front of our porch. The tornado sirens started going off during Hunter's feeding at about 4:30 in the afternoon. Daddy barely had time to finish feeding the baby before we had to head to the basement. He was actually in the middle of changing his diaper when the hail started to hit and Mommy grabbed the half-naked baby and the rest of his clothes and made a mad dash for the basement. We sat down there in my half finished closet and waited for the storm to pass.

The storm did not last very long since it was moving pretty fast. However, it did quite a bit of damage while it was here. Our new house is pretty beat up. We had a piece of hail come through our front window into the baby's room....thank goodness the baby was not in there at the time! In addition, the siding on the north side of the house has all kinds of holes in it and the vents in the roof are totally smashed. We do not know yet if the roof itself has any damage because Mommy did not want Daddy climbing up on thr roof to look. The contractor is supposed to come to the house today to give us an estimate on the cost of the damage, but I am sure that it is going to be a pretty penny. I guess that is why we have insurance. We are very thankful that Mommy, Daddy and Hunter are safe and sound!

Hunter's First Outting

2006-03-12T11:28:00.000-08:00

Mommy and Daddy took Hunter out for the first time today. We went to church for the first time since the baby has been here. We were a little concerned with the timing because church does not get over until noon or a little after which is Hunter's eating time. We were just praying that he did not get fussy before it was over....we definately do not want everyone to look at us like we have the bad kid that we can not control during church!

Anyway, everything went very smoothly. We managed to get Mommy, Daddy and Hunter bathed and ready to go.....and we were even 10 minutes early!! Then, we got there and Little Hunter slept through the whole thing. Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come! He did not even move when the pipe organ played. I think he really likes music because he will lay in his bed and look at his mobile and listen to the music. He also got to meet Rev. Jim who talked about loving our neighbor as ourself. We actually read the "Canticle of Love" as the responsive reading which we all read at our wedding. When we got home, it was time to eat, but after that we read to Little Hunter from the children's bible that we got for him. We read passages from John which was the source of the scripture in church. I am just hoping that every week goes this well!

Sleep...what's that?!!

2006-03-10T10:54:00.000-08:00

Well, it is Friday and Mommy and Hunter have survived our first week at home by ourselves. Mommy is pretty tired, since little Hunter still only sleeps about 2-2 1/2 hours at a time. He did sleep four hours one night this week, but then last night he was up from 12:30 to 1:30 am, 3:00 to 3:30 am, and again from 5:00 to 5:30 am. It is a good thing Daddy is only working half a day today so Mommy can take a nap this afternoon! Mommy has only gotten to take a nap one day this week because Hunter only sleeps sporadically during the day and usually for not more than an hour at a time. He must take after his Daddy because Mommy can definately take naps any time!! Hopefully, Daddy will find it in the goodness of his heart to get up with the baby at least one night this weekend so Mommy can get a full night's sleep to prepare for next week!

Grandma and Grandpa's Visit from Ohio

2006-03-05T14:54:00.000-08:00

Papaw Paul and Bonnie came to visit little Hunter from Ohio this weekend. He is already getting very spoiled. However, they were a great help to Mommy when Hunter did not want to sleep at night. We each took shifts so Mommy only had to get up once during the night instead of three times!! He is still only sleeping about 2 hours at a time, at the most. We all enjoyed their visit very much.

Mommy gets to be with Hunter all by herself starting tomorrow. Daddy has already gone back to work and their will be no more visitors for awhile now. Hopefully, we will be able to get Hunter to sleep a little bit longer at night or Mommy will be taking a lot of naps during the day with the baby!

Baby of the Week

2006-02-28T12:11:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that Hunter was chosen as "Baby of the Week" by the Columbia Missourian newspaper. He was chosen from all the babies born in Columbia last week. He is going to be in the paper next Sunday. I guess our little baby is already a super star. We are very proud!! Here is the picture we sent in for them to publish in the paper. If anyone gets the paper, let us know.

Here is a copy of the newspaper article from the paper. I do not know how well you will be able to read it, but we tried to scan it in as best we could. If you click on the actual picture of the article, it will enlarge it so you may be able to see the actual words better. Enjoy!!

Hunter's First Bath

2006-02-28T10:19:00.000-08:00

The whole idea of the first bath was a little disconcerting to say the least. Mommy was a little freaked out about hurting the baby, especially with the belly button and circumcision still being new. In addition, Hunter really does not like to have his clothes off and pants changed ( I think he gets cold like Mom!). Anyway, Mommy and Daddy decided to take on the big event after only being home a day.

After taking his clothes off, we took him to lay in his bath tub (no water, of course, since he can only get a sponge bath for now). Then, he went to the bathroom all over the place....pee was running all the way down the mirror in the bathroom!! He really did not like the washing, which probably upset Mommy more than it upset him. He cried pretty much the whole time until we wrapped him up in his towel at the end.

The second bath went much better. We turned on the shower and steamed up the bathroom so that it was warmer in there. I think this made Hunter much happier. He barely cried at all, except when we washed his hair. Hopefully, things will only get better with time and more practice!!

Little Hunter Cole is here!!!

2006-02-23T20:01:00.000-08:00

Here are the pictures everyone has been waiting for . . . . Hunter Cole with Mommy shortly after he was born. He arrived on February 21, 2006 at 5:06 p.m. He weighs 7 lbs., 15 oz. and is 20 3/4 inches long.
Well, the last few days have been eventful to say the least. We did not actually go into the hospital on Saturday. After calling and talking to a nurse, we decided to hold off. The contractions were not really consistent and went away when Mommy laid down to relax. However, neither of us got much sleep that night. Daddy got a little, but not much, before Mommy got mad and came in and woke him up (she couldn't sleep and he was just snoring away without a care in the world, as she would tell it).

But after walking around Lowe's 2 or 3 times and Wal-Mart once on Sunday, Mommy was in enough pain to make the trip. However, she was only 1 centimeter dialated and did not have any contractions once we got there so they sent us back home (similar to when you take you car in to get it worked on and the repairman cannot find anything wrong). Mommy was a little dissapointed to say the least. But she felt a litte better after eating Red Lobster and getting her eyebrows plucked at the mall (at this point I was willing to do whatever made her happy).

On Monday, after another sleepless night, Mommy tried to take a shower to relax. This appeared to work as she got to slept for a few hours. After she woke up we went to cracker barrel for lunch. This seemed to give the contractions another jump start as they started coming again every 7-8 minutes. We then went to Gerbes to stock up on some groceries so Mamaw Michelle and Aunt Heidi would have something to eat when the arrived. After the shopping experience, Mommy was in quite a bit of pain again and we all headed back to the house. Mommy tried to rest and relax for a little bit, but the baby really was not having it this time. Michelle and Heidi got to the house a little after 6 p.m. The car was packed with several gifts that we unloaded and then opened. After showing Michele and Heidi all the baby's stuff, things started to really happen. Mommy was pretty excited and was having regular and more painful contractions and this time they didn't go away when she tried to lay down to relax. We decided to get up and go to Wal-Mart again so that we could walk. This finally got the contractions under 5 minutes and we went back to the house, picked up the bags and headed to the hospital. By this time it was about 11 p.m. on Monday night.

When we got there, the doctor checked Mommy again and she was still only about 1 cm dilated. We were all very disappointed and thought we would be sent home once again. However, the doctor came back after an hour and said she had already changed to 2-3 cm dilated. Since Mommy was in so much pain and the doctors could see things progressing, they decided to let us stay. Shortly after that, the doctor said Mommy could get her epidural and she should not have any more pain....but this was not the case. The anethesiologist came, administered the epdidural and everything seemed to be going fine....except the pain was not going away. The nurse tried to put in the catheter and Mommy could feel the whole thing. By this time it was the middle of the night (between 2 and 3 in the morning) and everyone was very tired and beginning to get grouchy. Therefore, the doctor decided to give Mommy some demorral in her IV to try and get rid of some of the paid so that she could sleep.

This worked for a little while, but only seemed to cause additional problems. Mommy got to rest for an hour or two, but when she woke up, the baby did not seem to be tolerating the contractions very well. The doctors were monitoring her and the baby pretty closely at this time. The doctors decided they wanted to give her potossin to speed up the contractions, but she was in so much pain, they did not know if this would be a good idea. They even started discussing the idea of a C-section. At about 6 am, the baby was in distress and his heart rate dropped. All the doctor's rushed in and gave Mommy a shot to stop the contractions completely. Everyone was very upset at this point and very scared.

After two more hours of little progress, the doctor's decided to try and reinsert the epidural....since it obviously was not working. Once the second epidural was administered, the difference was like night and day. Mommy finally got to relax and the doctor's were able to give her the potossin to increase the contractions again. At this time, it was about 11 am and the doctor's indicated she was still only about 6 cm dilated and (-3) station. Mommy finally fell asleep and slept for almost 3 hours.

When the doctor's checked her again at about 2 pm, we were finally making progress. Mommy was now dilated to 8 cm and the baby was between +1/2 station (which means he had moved down into the pelvis). Things moved pretty quickly from here on out. By 4 pm, Mommy had dilated to 10 cm and was getting ready to push. The pushing ended up being the easiest part of the whole labor. The nurse indicated it may still be a couple hours so she did not seem like we needed to be in to big of a hurry. But, Mommy started pushing at 4:30 and the big arrival was at 5:06 p.m. Needless to say, the doctor's were rushing in soon after the pushing started. They were all there and ready for the arrival of the baby. Once Hunter had arrived, the doctor's had to take him out and check him to make sure everything was okay from the stress of the labor. Daddy got to go and get him shortly afterwards and bring him back in for Mommy to see for the first time. As you can see from the picture above, little Hunter was very alert and ready to take on the world from the first time we saw him.

Little Hunter had lots of visitors the first night he was born. Not only did Mamaw Michelle and Aunt Heidi come all the way from Ohio and NY to see him, Grandma and Grandpa McArthur and Aunt Robyn and cousins Jackson and Eli came to see him to too.

After all the excitement of Hunter's first day of life, he went to the nursery to get a good night's rest ( and so Mommy and Daddy could get a good night's rest too!). Mommy and Daddy actually got to sleep, except for every time Mommy had to go to the bathroom she had to wake Daddy up to help her get up out of bed. The next day Hunter got to come back in with Mommy and Daddy. He pretty much just slept after a tiring first day. Mommy was starting to feel better and could actually get up out of bed by herself. Hunter definately was not deprived of attention, as Mamaw and Heidi fought over who got to hold him all day!!

After another good nights rest we had to wait till about 10 a.m. Thursday morning to see little Hunter again because he had to get circumcized. The nurses said he handled this very well. But Daddy decided to not participate in this process as it gave him chills just thinking about it.

After the circumcision, Hunter had to get his first pictures taken for the hospital website. This did not go all that well, as he had just got back from being circumcized and it was time to eat. We did not want to feed him until after the pictures because we did not want him to go to sleep, but then he would not open his eyes anyway. If you want to see the pictures, the website is www.growingfamily.com. You can search by our name and state or by the hospital name (Columbia Regional). The password is just our last name.

Finally, after Mommy and Daddy got instructions on how to take care of Mommy and Little Hunter, we were able to come home about 3 p.m. As you can see Hunter was all dressed and ready to see the outside world for the first time in his snow suit.

The baby is coming???

2006-02-18T13:58:00.000-08:00

Have Mommy's prayers been answered? She says the baby is ready to come out. I don't know if that's wishful thinking or not, but the contractions are supposedely getting worse (10 minutes apart). So she says we're going to go to the hospital in a few hours (whether I like it or not). I'm ready, got the bags packed and camera charged.

She is currently running around doing a bunch of cleaning for some reason (and talking to a million people on the phone). I guess that's the burst of energy you get in pre-labor. I've been mudding and taping the basement all day, so I just need a nap (and a shower).

Anyway, wish us luck!!! The next time you hear from us we might have a little bouncing baby boy (or not so little). Or we might just be right here, back at home, thinking wishfully again.

Childbrith Education

2006-02-12T16:56:00.000-08:00

We had our last childbirth class this week. The classes really were pretty informative and I think we learned a lot of useful information. This week we talked about childcare after birth. Bob got to practice changing a diaper since he has never done it before!! I am sure in a couple of weeks he will be an old pro at it. We also learned about bathing the baby, taking care of his belly button, caring for his circumcision and all kinds of other useful tips. Did you know that all babies are capable of sleeping through the night at two months old? The instructor indicated that if you get your child on a schedule from the start, he will be able to sleep through the night by the time you have to go back to work. I thought that was interesting to know, especially since I will have to go back to work. If any new parents are considering not attending classes before the birth of their first child, I really recommend that they reconsider. I had heard that some of the classes were a waste of time, but our instructor was great and we really learned a lot.

We also have a nursing student who attended our classes who is following us around until the birth of the baby. She wants to be a labor and delivery nurse after she graduates. She is attending all of our doctor's appointments with us and will also be there for the delivery of the baby. She is very nice and eager to learn.

Bob set our pack n' play today and moved it into our bedroom. It is all ready for the arrival of the baby. It is a pretty cool thing to have. I think I have finally decided that it will probably be easier to have him in the bedroom with us at night, at least for a little while after he is born. It sets up like a bassanet for when the baby is little and then converts into more like play pen for later. It also has a changing table and mobile attached and side pockets for storage. I still want him to sleep in his crib eventually, though, so maybe I will let him nap in it during the day. Our instructor from our class said that babies do not like change, so I do not want him to get used to sleeping in our bedroom and then never want to go back to his crib in his own room.

Two More Weeks!

2006-02-10T18:00:00.000-08:00

I know, I know....I have been terrible at posting lately. I am sure all of you are wondering if the baby has arrived yet. But, unfortunately, the answer is "no". Mommy has been very tired lately and has been growing increasingly more uncomfortable by the day. I gained 1 more lbs this week for a total of 15 lbs. Everybody always says that I do not look like I am ready to give birth in a couple weeks, but I definately feel like it. I may not look big, but I feel plenty big enough. I am sure that the baby is feeling pretty cramped in there too. They still say he is happy and healthy, though, and will come out when he is ready (which in my mind, the sooner the better....like tomorrow!!). It is just so hard to get comfortable any more and good sleep is harder and harder to get at night.

Mommy and Daddy have both been working a lot lately. Bob has been pretty diligent lately, spending most of his weekends and free time working in the basement. I can definately tell they are making progress, it is just a slow process. Maybe if we are lucky, the computer room will be done by the time the baby gets here. I have pretty much come to terms with the idea that the computer will probably still be in the baby's room, at least for a little while, after he is born. They are supposed to start putting up the sheet rock this weekend, which does not really sound like a fun time. Since Bob still works for the state, he has long weekends this weekend and next, and promises to make a great deal of progress during that time. Therefore, he wants the baby to stay inside of me for as long as possible, and I am definately ready for him to be out!! Well, mommy is hungry AGAIN, so I will go for now. I promise I will try and post again soon!!

New Addition to the Family

2006-02-01T19:41:00.000-08:00

We recently had an addition to the McArthur/Lamb family. Jackson has a little brother. Elijah Slater was born to Zack and Robyn on January 30, 2006 at 12:43p.m. He was 9 lbs. and 21 inches long, very happy and healthy.

Robyn is doing great also and should get to go home Thursday. Jackson was very excited about his new little brother and even got to hold him. But we don't have that picture yet, so Aunt Heather will have to do. :)

Update

2006-01-22T16:25:00.000-08:00

We went to our first apppointment for the non-stress test (NST) and BPP (biophysical profile) this week. The NST consisted of them attaching two monitors around my waste-one to monitor the baby's heartrate and movement and the other to monitor any contractions. The baby's heartrate was normal at about 120-130 bpm during the 20 minute period (110 to 150 is normal) and he was very active which is what they like to see. The nurse said he appears to be very happy in there (not sure how she knows that, but I guess that is good!. The ultrasound was also very positive. He is much bigger since the ultrasound we had done at 20 weeks! They measured all has limbs and around his waist and head and looked at all of his internal organs. The ultrasound technician also said he appeared to be a very pretty and healthy baby. He is on his way to being the linebacker we all dream of-6 lbs already with 4 weeks left to go (she said he could weigh 9 lbs if he goes full term)!! Anyway, all is good with mommy and baby which is what we wanted to hear.

We also got to take the tour of the new family birth center during our class this week. I must say everything is very high-tech now. The rooms are very nice and it appears that they try to accomodate you in every way possible. Every room is single and has its own couch, glider, tv with vcr and dvd player and pretty much anything else you could want. We also got to see the nursery which had 12 babies there that night. They said that they are on their way to a record month for births during January with already 96 babies being born since New Year's. We actually got to see them do a full review of a baby that had just been born less than an hour before we were there. We are learning more and more every day, which is good since we have less than 1 month to go!!

Baby Shower

2006-01-15T16:25:00.000-08:00

Saturday we had my first baby shower. Robyn (Bob's sister) and Linda (Bob's mom) had it for me here at my house. We had a pretty good turn out, even though we will probably have to have another sometime after the baby is born for all my relatives since they all live out of state. Regardless, I am feeling much better about the arrival of the baby now that we at least have some diapers and bottles.

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A lot of my friends and co-workers made it for the shower. We played and games and of course, ate lots of food. Everyone seemed to be concerned that I did not look 8 months pregant (not that you could tell by the pictures-Bob assured me it is because the camera adds ten lbs!!), but I definately ate enough for two yesterday. Here is a picture of the cake that we had at the shower.

My friends from work got the baby the Eddie Bauer Deluxe Musical playyard. It is quite the contraption. I am sure it is because they want the baby to be quite comfortable at the babysitter's house so I can come back to work!! Regardless, it was a very generous gift and I am sure the baby will love it!!

We also got lots of other gifts for the baby including clothes, a bouncer, a developmental gym, and lots of other smaller items that the baby will definately need. I thoroughly enjoyed the shower and am so glad everyone got to come. We are very grateful for all the gifts we received and I am sure the baby will benefit from each and everyone one of them. Bob, baby, and I are eternally grateful to all of you!

Christmas Dinner at Grandma & Grandpa's

2006-01-15T15:56:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Grandma & Grandpa McArthur had their annual Christams dinner with all the fixins. We always spend Thanksgiving at Aunt Mae's with her family and then all of Grandma's brothers and sisters and their families celebrate Christmas with us. Unfortunately, it's pretty much the only time of the year we get to see Uncle Raymond and Aunt Shirley and Uncle Bud and Aunt Lucy. The baby enjoyed the food and company and seemed pretty excited to meet all his new relatives next Christmas.

Mom and Dad aren't the only one's expecting soon. Aunt Robyn is expecting also. She is scheduled to have a caesarian on January 30. This will be her and her husband Zack's second little boy (they don't have a name picked out yet either). Here is a picture of Aunt Robyn and Cousin Jackson watching a movie. One of the few times Jackson was still all day.

Long Day

2006-01-14T16:42:00.000-08:00

Well, its been a long week here in the McArthur household, especially Thursday. I went in to work early since we had a doctor's appointment scheduled that day. I have been pretty busy since the start of the new year, and I have not actually went out on an audit yet. I start fieldwork on my first audit of the year next week. I have been planning for my upcoming audits the last couple of weeks because after this week, I am pretty much out of the office until delivery day. January through April is busy season for us, like most accountants! I have to start working on Saturdays, at least for part of the day, starting next week until the baby gets here. Basically, our Saturdays are to meet with out audit team and partner and to wrap up loose ends from the previous week. Anyway, Thursday I was trying to get organized before I had to leave for my appointment, but there just never seemed to be a good time to stop. I did not even have time for lunch, which Bob (and probably the baby too)was not very please with. Regardless, I rushed out of the office about 3:45 to be at my appointment by 4:00 pm.

Dr. Smith was back this week and we got in to see her fairly quickly. I gained another 1.2 lbs for a total of about 12 lbs. They took my blood pressure and measured my belly, like usual. Luckily, my blood pressure is still good (120/78) and my uterus is about 31 cm, which is pretty normal. However, the doctor said she wants me to start coming every week now. I am supposed to start having a NST (non-stress test) and a BPP (biophysical profile-ultrasound)done each visit. Because of some abnormal test results that I had at the beginning of my pregnancy, the doctor just wants to be extra precautious, even though she does not think anything is wrong with the baby. Therefore, we scheduled our appointments for the next 5 weeks (which was an ordeal in itself because each appointment is supposed to take 1 1/2 to 2 hours!).

After we left the doctor's office, we rushed home, changed out clothes, got something to eat and headed back to the hospital for our second childbirth class. This week we talked about the final two stages of labor-pushing and delivery and delivery of the placenta. We also got to watch videos of 3 different births. I would like to say, although it may have been benficial in the long run, I really do not care to ever see the actual child being born. I know some people are really into such things, but that is definately not me. They said you could have a mirror brought in so that you can actually watch your own child being born. Personally, I think I will have enough on my mind without actually watching the birth. One thing I did learn from the videos is that the child does not look all nice and pretty when it is born....it is kind of gross and looks a little blue. I am glad I know that ahead of time, so I do not freak out when the baby actually gets here and looks all discolored. The instructor said that some baby's hands and feet actually look purple for several days after being born.

We also started learning breathing techniques at the end of our class, which was good after a long and stressful day. We started practicing the breathing and she showed us some massage techniques to use during labor. I think Bob is actually going to be very good in the supportive role and is getting a lot out of the classes. Next week we get to take a tour of the facilities, including the new birthing unit at the hospital and the nursery. We will definately keep you updated. After the end of our long day, we made it home a little after 9 PM and both fell into bed, exhausted.

Childbirth 101

2006-01-08T16:43:00.000-08:00

Well, we had our first Childbirth Education class Thursday of this week. It was the first of a six week class. As arrival day draws closer, my anxiety level about the whole labor thing increases immensely. Did everybody know that the average labor for a first time mom is 14 hours?!! The instructor told us that you should really stay at home for as long as possible once labor begins because if you go to the hospital it is going to seem like forever and they will probably end up sending you back home. It is really important to wait until your contractions are regular and more intense before you jump the gun and head to the hospital. I really do not handle pain all that well, and I am growing more and more concerned about it. Bob does not think I am going to be very good at it either. But, I guess with God's help we will make it through just like the millions of other parents in the history of the world.

We did not actually start the lamaze stuff at the first class. We basically just sat there and listened to the nurse talk. She discussed the different stages of labor and what we could look forward to. She was really nice and is a labor and delivery nurse at the hospital. She said we could ask for her when it is time to deliver and she would be our nurse, if she is there. Bob scared me and told me on the way that we would probably be the oldest people there!! I told him that I did not think that would be the case, but then could only name a couple examples of friends and family that were our age that did not already have kids. But, when we got there, most of the other couples appeared to be around our age and are in the same boat we are, so then I did not feel so stupid.

Next week we get to look forward to watching the fun childbirth videos. I am sure you can not wait to hear about them!! Stay tuned.....