The Hall ways

Corbin's first steps!

2011-07-05T21:07:00.000-07:00

I can't believe our little man is actually walking! Corbin took his first steps today and I'm so excited that both Brian and I were there to witness it. I was helping him walk down the hallway by holding his hands and Brian was laying on the floor in Corbin's bedroom. I let go of Corbin's hands when we got to the door and he took about three steps in to Brian then belly flopped right on top of him.

We were so excited, so of course we tried it again, but this time he just stood there and clapped. It won't be long before we are chasing this kid up and down and round and round!

(I will add a video, hopefully, as soon as I can get the time to upload them)

11 months old

2011-06-08T10:35:00.000-07:00

Age: 11 months

Weight: Approx. 23 1/2 pounds

Height: Approx. 29 1/2 inches

Not a whole lot new to report these days. Corbin is still thriving and growing bigger by the minute. He seems to be developing so fast, and I think he is getting a little frustrated because his body can't keep up with everything his mind wants to do. Sooner than later, though, he will be running around doing everything he wants to do. (Yikes! I don't know if I am ready for that!)

He is walking around everything and barely needs to hold on any more, but still isn't too sure about walking holding on to someone's hands. I think he likes the comfort and support of a stationary object.

He is impossible to photograph because he just doesn't want to sit still, so I have a feeling that the quality of our pictures in general are really going to suffer. I'm just hoping I can start to capture his charming personality in candid shots instead of the stationary photos I've been so used to taking.

He is really starting to be more open to different foods and can really handle almost any texture so we have been offering him all kinds of foods these days. I've enjoyed baking him all kinds of healthy, kid-friendly dishes and once I can convince him to take a bite, he usually realize that he likes them and will devour the whole plate.

I can't believe this is my last monthly post before he turns 1! Where has the year gone?

Our Chicago trip and Corbin's new best friend

2011-06-06T21:09:00.000-07:00

We took a much anticipated trip to Chicago to visit a couple of our best friends and their new little boy. I've mentioned them before, Dan and Alexis, and I will probably mention them many times in the future.
We had been wanting to visit them out in Chicago for a while now, and Alexis and I were finally able to convince our men that it was a MUST now that we both have sons. I mean, they needed to meet their future best friend and travel buddy since we are adament that we will always travel together.
It's a good thing that the trip went well and the boys seemed to get along great (as well as a 10 month old and 3 month old can). Dan and Alexis were great tour guides and showed us all around the city. The trip definitely wasn't long enough and we will hopefully be making it back out there again soon.
Here are a couple pictures from our trip. I wasn't a very good tourist and really didn't end up taking many pictures at all.

Corbin's first plane ride

2011-06-01T11:01:00.000-07:00

I just had to share a few pictures from Corbin's first plane ride. We took a long direct flight to Chicago to visit a few of our closest friends. We didn't buy Corbin his own seat, which made me a little more nervous than I already was, but all in all things went really well.
He was asleep before the plane even took off, and woke up an hour or so before we landed. It was a little tough keeping him occupied the last half hour or so, as he was getting a bit antsy and I think he was sick of being passed back and forth between me and Brian.
But he loved looking out the window and eating the breakfast cookies the airline provided. Anything that keeps the kid quiet and happy works for me on those long flights.

(please excuse the awful photo quality)

On to double digits!

2011-05-14T21:14:00.000-07:00

Age: 10 months old

Weight: 22 1/2 pounds

Height: approx. 29 inches

This kid won't stop growing! I swear he is getting taller by the day. His weight gain has almost completely stopped and he is just becoming more of a little boy every time I look at him.

He has gone from just standing, to walking around everything he can get his hands on. He has also gone from having only his two bottom teeth to six teeth! Two on the bottom and four on the top which all popped through within just a few days of eachother.

He is the funniest kid you will ever meet and is just full of personality. Other than that, things have been pretty standard around here. His language is developing rapidly and he is babbling a lot now. He loves to flirt with every woman we see and is going to be trouble when he gets older I can already see it.

Hasn't he been through enough?

2011-05-13T21:04:00.000-07:00

Poor Corbin has been run through the wringer the last couple weeks.

First it was the Febrile Seizure, which caused us to find out he had a double ear infection. Well two days later he broke out in a nasty rash and turns out he had Roseola.

The rash finally subsided and then a week later he came down with the stomach flu. Luckily that only lasted two days, but then he just wasn't himself so we took him to the doctor and he had yet another double ear infection. The day after that doctor's visit he came down with a cold bug.

The poor kid can't catch a break. I think with his lowered immune system, it just made him susceptible for everything he came within 10 feet of.

Hopefully with the onset of warmer weather, all of these bugs will go away and he can be his happy, healthy self again.

Scariest day of my life

2011-04-26T20:42:00.000-07:00

I experienced something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy on April 26th. I will start from the beginning ...

Corbin woke up not feeling so great, and had a slight fever so I gave him some tylenol to help with his discomfort. While his fever wasn't that high, he just wasn't himself so I figured it couldn't hurt. Our day continued and he was very clingy, but seemed to be feeling ok. His fever was gone when I checked his temperature at 2:30 p.m. so I decided not to give him another dose. Shortly there after, he was getting very tired, but wanted nothing to do with his crib, so I ended up holding him while he slept to help him get some sleep.

He woke up from his nap around 4:45 p.m., and like his mama, he takes a while to wake up, so we came out to the living room and sat in the front window while he woke up.

Shortly there after, I could tell something wasn't right with him. Then he started looking around like he couldn't see, but following the light and the sounds. I couldn't get him to make eye contact with me, which was my first moment of panic. I thought maybe he was just a little dazed and too hot, so we went outside for a second and this is when things really got bad.

He started to go limp, and was completely unresponsive. I rushed back in the house screaming his name and dialed 911. At this point he was practically lifeless and wasn't breathing. I thought he was dying in my arms, and saw flashes of my life without him ... I about collapsed, but knew I had to keep it together to help him. The dispatcher sent the ambulance and instructed me to do CPR. Corbin took a couple short breaths after that, was slowly moving his eyes back and forth, his heart racing and had a tight grip on my finger so I knew he was still with me.

The paramedics arrived just minutes later (it was now about 5 p.m.) and took over from there, asking what happened and assessing his situation. Corbin was coming back to consciousness at this point and they told me he was going to be okay.

I was so confused as to what had happened and why they were so calm. It turns out he was having a Febrile Seizure, which is common in children under the age of three. While his fever wasn't that high, certain situations can trigger one of these seizures.

After consulting Mary Bridge Children's Hospital, we were instructed to take him to his pediatrician to check all of his vitals.

We rushed him to doctor's office and it turns out he had a double ear infection, which was causing the fever, which caused the seizure. Since there was a clear reason for his fever, he didn't require any further evaluation and we are just supposed to treat him at the first sign of a fever from now on to avoid a repeat seizure, which he is now more likely to have.

Let's just say I am a paranoid mother now and will be taking his temperature religiously and over-evaluating every little cough and sniffle. But do you blame me? I'm just so relieved that he is going to be ok and there isn't a more serious cause of the seizure.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-26T20:31:00.000-07:00

The Easter Bunny must really like Corbin because he got some things he has been wanting for a while now. He finally got his own cups with straws, bath toys, a tooth brush, snacks and even a silly songs CD.

He wasn't quite sure about this basket full of goodies on the living room floor when he woke up, but once he realized it was all kinds of good stuff for him, he got very excited.

I think I took it too far ... Corbin was far from thrilled when I put him IN the basket.

The Fish Family Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-17T20:22:00.000-07:00

One of my best friend's family throws a giant Easter Egg Hunt and BBQ every year, and now that we have a little one, we get to take in the festivities! Corbin got all dressed up in his Easter best and we headed over to the Fish farm. The weather was pretty cooperative and all the kids seems to be having a great time. Corbin was able to crawl around and find a couple eggs of his own, before I tortured him with his first holiday photo shoot. He was happy as can be shaking the eggs he found, and I've found if I sit him on a blanket he stays put.

After the Easter egg hunt, we ate some great food at the potluck, and Ashley's grandpa knows how to cook hot dogs just the way I like them ... charred and crispy. So delicious that I ate two!

Now we're looking forward to next weekend to see what the Easter bunny brings for Corbin.

Let's go Mariners!

2011-04-12T20:12:00.000-07:00

It's finally Spring, which means the start of baseball season! We took Corbin to his first Mariner's game during opening weekend with my sister and her family. We all had a great time despite the rainy weather. It definitely wasn't a sold out crowd so we were able to sit pretty close in, but right on the walkway which made for easy access with all the kiddos.

Corbin enjoyed standing up on his chair watching everyone walk by, but actually sat down and watched the game for a minute or two. We're looking forward to taking him to more baseball games this summer, and have a feeling he will actually be playing baseball before we know it. (this kid can throw a ball like no other 9 month old can!)

9 months in, 9 months out!

2011-04-08T21:47:00.000-07:00

Age: 9 months

Weight: 22 pounds, 1 ounce (75th percentile)

Height: 29 1/2 inches (90th percentile)

Our chunky monkey isn't so chunky! Okay, well maybe he is still a little chunky, but now that he is on the move and totally unstoppable, his weight gain has really slowed down. You can really see it in his face too...I mean, he actually has a chin and a neck now!

Corbin is developing faster than I can keep up these days. He is now pulling himself up to standing, and wants to stand at everything. We went to a Mariner's game and he stood up facing backwards almost the whole time. I think we are still a ways away from him standing alone or actually walking, but it's fun to see his development and confidence grow every day.

He is really starting to babble and talk now, saying "mama" all the time. While they say he isn't meaning me/mom when he says it, sometimes I wonder otherwise. He is picking up other sounds too and is throwing some "papa"s and "baba"s into the mix. I have a feeling it's not going to be long before he starts making sense of all this language stuff.

I'm starting to give up on all of this pureed baby food and just work on feeding him small pieces of steamed veggies, fruits and meats. He seems to really enjoy eating when he can feed it to himself. While my kitchen gets destroyed with every feeding, as long as he is getting some in his mouth and the much needed nutrients, that's all that matters. The good thing is, the pediatrician isn't worried about him eating 3 full meals of solids (I mean ... look at the kid ... he obviously isn't starving!) so we are just going to keep working at it and letting him get the hang of feeding himself. He is learning to chew better with each feeding too, so that will help avoid choking and open the door to trying other foods and textures.

Other than that, we are full steam ahead in planning Corbin's first birthday party! We feel like if we get the plans underway now, and take it at a good pace, we will avoid the family catastrophe come the beginning of July when all the plans will be finalized. So keep July 9th clear on your calendar because this is going to be one party you don't want to miss!

(Can you tell these pictures are getting harder and harder each month? This kid won't sit still!)

Finally a sunny day ...

2011-04-08T10:20:00.000-07:00

We FINALLY had nice enough weather to get outside this week. I feel like we have been couped up inside since November. I've been looking forward to nicer weather so we can finally enjoy our yard and take more walks to the shops and parks down the road.

Corbin, on the other hand, wasn't so thrilled with this new "grass" stuff. He sat and picked the grass from his blanket, but as soon as I tried moving him onto the grass, he got pretty mad. He wouldn't put his feet down and when I tried to get him to crawl, he would lift his hand up super high before barely putting it down. It was a pretty funny sight, but I know he will learn to love it soon enough.

Holding his feet above the grass while he plays ...

Ok ... so this stuff isn't so bad ...

I quit my job!

2011-03-23T10:31:00.000-07:00

Holy cow I quit my job!

After much consideration, conversation and debating ... Brian and I finally decided that I could quit my job and stay home with Corbin. I had been working as a casting producer since we moved back to Washington and while hearing about other people's issues can been quite interesting, it had gotten to a point that just wasn't working for us anymore.

I was spending at least 2 hours a day commuting, and putting half of my monthly income into daycare so it's not like I'm giving up our life-savings.

I am SO excited to be able to see Corbin every day and help teach him all kinds of new things. Not to mention be there when he starts doing all of these firsts from now on. I'm hoping this new switch will allow us to work on him accepting solid foods more frequently as well.

I'm still going to be able to bring in a little money though, since I've decided to nanny a couple kids a few days a week.

I'm even more excited that this switch comes right as the weather starts taking a turn for the better so we can spend the Spring and Summer days at the park, or the zoo, or wherever else we want!

Bath time!

2011-03-15T10:15:00.000-07:00

Corbin has become obsessed with bath time. And I must say ... it's a savior at the end of the day when he starts to get a little fussy. I can pop him in his rubber ducky tub and he will just splash and play for an hour.

He has figured out how to fill and dump his toy, and if he slashes really hard, it makes bubbles. By the end of his bath, I usually look like I've taken a bath too he gets me so soaked with splashes.

But nothing beats that smile and a happy, clean baby!

8 months and counting ...

2011-03-08T19:48:00.000-08:00

Age: 8 months

Weight: Approx. 22 pounds

Height: Approx. 30 inches

He just keeps growing and growing! I swear every morning when Corbin wakes up, he has gained a pound and grown an inch! I feel like he is so much more of a little boy now than a baby. While I love watching him grow and develop, I get a little sad that these months are just flying by.

Corbin started crawling this month and now he doesn't want to do anything else. He is such a fast little bugger and is already looking so much skinnier. His new favorite thing to do is crawl over to the back sliding glass door and look out at the dogs. We are working on him understand what he is allowed to play with and what he isn't since it's impossible to keep everything out of his reach.

I keep working on introducing more solid foods, but this kid just isn't having it. While he obviously isn't starving from a diet of just breastmilk, I know he could use the additional nutrients he can get from food. I'm lucky if I can get him to let me feed him 3 meals a week, let alone a day! We are working at it and trying to figure out what the best approach is, but I will definitely be talking with the pediatrician about this at his 9 month check-up.

His sleep is ... well ... the same as usual. We go through good spurts and bad. Between his teething and having a cold off and on, you never know if he is going to sleep all night or be up every hour. And now that he can crawl and sit up, he wakes up and pops right up into a sitting position and just yells. Usually he will just lay back down on his own, but sometime we have to go in and remind him that it's still time to sleep and lay him back down.

Other than all of that, he just continues to be one happy little guy and amazing me every day with the new things he can do.

(these pictures are getting harder and harder to take now that he can move on his own!)

(And here is that pouty face he give me when I won't let him crawl away)

I.NEED.SLEEP.

2011-03-05T19:41:00.000-08:00

Our little man has decided to take a couple steps backwards and is waking up three or four times a night ... every night. This has been going on for almost two weeks now, which means I've hit a new point of tired.

The problem is ... I don't know what to do to fix the problem. I'm not willing to try the whole "cry it out" method, because to me that just seems wrong. But that leaves me with a big problem ... what to do?

Happy 7 months, little man!

2011-02-08T20:58:00.000-08:00

Age: 7 months

Weight: approx. 22 pounds

Height: approx. 29 inches

So much has happened in a matter of one short month. Corbin went from just being able to roll over from his back to his belly, to eating solid foods, sitting up unassisted, rolling over from his belly to his back, and getting his first two teeth. I can tell that crawling is in his very near future too.

As for other accomplishments, I'm happy to say his sleeping habits are much better now. He is taking a good long nap in the mornings (usually around 2 hours long) and an hour nap in the afternoon. He sometimes takes a short nap in the evening too depending on how the day goes. This is such a nice change from his earlier naps of 30 minutes flat every hour or two. While he is still waking up a time or two at night, I know this will get better over time as well.

Corbin has also been eating solids regularly, but I feel like I'm a little slow at introducing new foods. He isn't too crazy about this whole eating thing ... either that or he is a picky eater already. He's tried sweet potatoes, peas, avocado, carrots (which he LOVES), broccoli, apples, pears (which he HATES), banana and peaches. I have so many tasty recipes I want him to try, and hopefully love, so I should probably pick up the pace at introducing new foods so we can move on to a more exciting menu.

Corbin has become such a goof ball lately too. He laughs all the time, and has also figured out how to growl and squeal. It's so fun to play with him when he gets going. He literally will be rolling on the floor laughing.

The months are flying by way too fast and I have a feeling I will have a mobile little kid very soon and be wondering where my little peanut of a baby went.

Our big boy can sit alone!

2011-01-21T20:43:00.000-08:00

After many topples and wobbles, something finally clicked and Corbin can now sit up without any help. Not only can he sit up alone, he went from not sitting at all to sitting for more than 15 minutes the first time. He is so happy now that he can sit up and play with all his toys ... but the funniest sight is when he starts to get tired of sitting, but can't figure out how to lay down. He starts swaying from side to side until he just topples over.

Look at those teeth!

2011-01-17T20:48:00.000-08:00

We've been watching these little tooth buds make their move and one finally broke through, quickly followed by the second. Corbin got his first two teeth and boy does he already know how to use them! This boy likes to chomp on everything and I think he is enjoying the new ability to actually tear into stuff.

Are you ready for some football?!?!

2011-01-16T20:32:00.000-08:00

As you know, we are pretty big sports fans. We definitely have our favorite football teams, but any reason to get together and watch a game is a good reason for us. We got together with my sister and her family for a couple of NFL playoff games to root on the Seahawks and the Jets. Our best case scenario was that they would end up playing each other in the Super Bowl, but our worst case scenario is what ended up happening. Oh well! It was still fun and gave Candice and I a good reason to test out some fun appetizer and brunch recipes we have been eyeing.

I smell like maple syrup!

2011-01-14T21:43:00.001-08:00

Ever since Corbin got sick, and then I got sick, I have noticed a major decrease in my milk production. This in turn is making for one unsatisfied camper when he finishes eating. After doing some research and taking the advice of some very knowing mothers, I decided to take some alternative measure to get these ladies flowing. So the new items in my daily diet are: Brewer's yeast, Flax Seed Meal, Oatmeal, Gatorade and Fenugreek pills.

Have you ever even heard of half of those things?

Turns out, they are all (minus the gatorade, which just aides in hydration) natural products or herbs that just help kick start your body. Not to mention packed full of omega-3s, fiber and all other good things for me. The best thing is, there are recipes out there ... like lactation-boosting cookies, that help me get these ingredients into my daily diet, and they actually taste pretty darn good. (Ask Brian!)

The one side effect, I smell like maple syrup! That is the result of the Fenugreek pills, but I'm not complaining because it is all definitely working!

I am not anywhere near ready to stop breastfeeding Corbin yet, and hate the idea of formula, so I figure this was worth a shot. Hopefully things get back to normal and I can slowly phase out these pills and other ingredients and trust that my body will just keep up the good work, but in the mean time, its a good thing I like the smell of syrup!

Half way to 1!

2011-01-10T19:10:00.000-08:00

Age: 6 months

Weight: 21 pounds

Height: 28 1/4 inches

Holy moly Corbin is 6 months old! And he is the happiest 6 month old I have ever seen! This kid is always laughing and smiling these days. It's hard to have a bad day when he gives you that big gummy smile of his.

He is working really hard to figure out this whole crawling thing. He can get the arms up, and the knees under, but not both at the same time. We have a feeling he will put the two together any day now and then there will be no stopping him.

He has recently begun rolling over in his crib, and while I have a feeling this is going to be helpful for him to get more comfortable and sleep longer at night, right now it's frustrating for him because he either gets himself smooshed against one side (thank goodness for breathable bumpers) or he gets to his belly and then can't roll back to his back when he wants.

Speaking of sleep ... he has decided that come midnight, he only wants to sleep in one hour spurts and has been waking up ALL.NIGHT.LONG. While its definitely a step in the wrong direction, I am assuming its only temporary. Everyone has their reasoning as to why he might be doing this: developmental spurt, hunger, loneliness since he doesn't see me as much during the day. Whatever the reasoning might be, I'm hoping he starts sleeping longer at night for all of our sake!

Corbin also got to taste his first tastes of something other than milk. We tried out some rice cereal and sweet potatoes. I think he is still trying to decide what he thinks about these new flavors. We are in no hurry to get him eating more solids, but it's been fun introducing these to him as once he is on the move he is definitely going to need these extra nutrients to fill his belly.

AND...he has FINALLY mastered the bottle! Thank goodness for the patience of my best friend Ashley. She and her sister have been working with Corbin at daycare and now he takes a bottle like he has been doing it all of his life. Now maybe Brian and I can go on a date or something. Gasp!

Are his rolls getting smaller?!?! (and yes his legs are really that long ... I didn't stretch the picture)

Do you think he's saying "Mom...quit puting me in these onesies that are 3 sizes too small!"?

Here's his new favorite smile, with his bottom lip sucked in.

Now I'm off to start planning his first birthday party! and no I'm not kidding! Mark your calendars for July 9!

Corbin's first bites!

2011-01-04T20:28:00.000-08:00

Getting ready for his first bites of food!

Gimme that spoon ...

... See...I can feed myself mom! ...

... Yuck! That's not ice cream! ...

... Dad, are you gonna save me? I'm not too sure about this! ...

... okay, I guess I will give it another try.

Now that Corbin is 6 months old, we have gotten to start the journey of feeding him solids. Well...these foods are far from solids and much more like a liquidy, mushy mess. His first taste of anything other than milk was rice cereal, just to get him used to the idea of eating from a spoon and new tastes. The pictures tell it all ... he was less than thrilled at the idea. But after a little practice, and convincing, he has come around to the idea.
I've decided that I'm going to make all of Corbin's food (have you seen how long the store bought baby foods sit on the shelves?!?!) and have started with Sweet Potatoes and Peas. I've been told that it's best to start with simple veggies, as to not get him loving the sweet taste of fruits before learning to like the flavors of veggies. But since he is my son, I know he will prefer sweets to veggies no matter when I introduce them.
Right now these "meals" are to just help get his digestive system used to other foods and get him used to eating a variety of foods. He will still get the majority of his nurishment from breast milk until he is a year old.
I look forward to introducing him to all of these new flavors and hope to start shaping him into a healthy eater from the start ... then maybe he can teach his father and me a thing or two!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T20:28:00.000-08:00

2011 is bound to be the best year yet!

While 2010 brought us the greatest gift yet with the birth of our son, it also brought us a few set backs, challenges and the unfortunate passing of a few family members. I think we delt with our fair share of issues last year, which only means one thing ... nothing but positive things in store this year!

And it doesn't hurt that the number 11 is a favorite number with many people in our family, as well as the birth date or anniversary of seven of us! That's grounds for a pretty awesome year, right?

I don't think I will be making an "official" New Year's resolution this year, but am just resolving to be "healthier" in all aspects of life.

Happy New Year to you and yours! Here's wishing you nothing but happiness this year and all the years to come!

Bad things really do come in 3s

2010-12-28T20:19:00.000-08:00

So as if Brian having back surgery one week, and Corbin getting a cold the next, I came down with a nasty 24-hour flu bug the following. Thankfully it didn't come on until after Corbin was in bed for the night and I was feeling lightyears better by morning.

It sounds like it's going around though because within two days, Brian, his mom and sister, as well as my sister and niece all came down with the same bug. Thankfully Corbin didn't get it, but who knows ... he could have been feeling the effects of it along with his cold last week since not everyone has gotten physically sick.

2010 is really going out with a bang. 2011 better be much nicer to us ... I think we have paid our dues to hold us over for a while!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T20:27:00.000-08:00

We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! I know we sure did!

After not making it home from Texas last year for the holidays, you have no idea how excited I was to be able to spend Christmas with my family this year. Corbin was spoiled rotten as expected, and Brian and I were spoiled as well! Santa and "Nanta Clause" must have thought we were very good this year!

We mixed things up a little this year and went to my sister's house for Christmas Eve. Brian's family, my family, and the entire Powers family were there. It was great to celebrate the holiday with such a large group for a change.

Christmas morning was spent opening presents at our house with Brian's family and then we headed to my mom's house for the day to open more gifts and eat lots of tasty food (my mom's signature meal on Christmas is Prime Rib ... need I say more?)

I feel so blessed to have such a loving family and didn't need anything more than just their company for the holidays.

Corbin's first cold

2010-12-23T20:01:00.000-08:00

Our poor little man came down with his first cold this week. He has been battling a fever of 102 and completely congested. I feel so bad for him. He can barely breathe and when I try to use the aspirator on his nose, it only makes him cry which just causes more congestion.

He just seems so miserable.

We took him to the doctor to make sure it was just a cold and that he didn't have the flu or an ear infection as well. Turns out it's just one nasty cold bug.

I have been living with him in my arms for the past 72 hours because he can't breathe when laying down and I think he just wants to be snuggled. While I am more than willing to hold him and comfort him, I'm not getting much sleep myself so it makes for very tough days.

The worst part about it is this is only the first of many colds and illnesses to come. Thankfully he is feeling better and should be back to his happy-go-lucky self in no time.

Brian's going under the knife ...

2010-12-08T20:09:00.000-08:00

Brian FINALLY got the results from his "back injury analysis" we'll call it ... and it looks like he will be having back surgery. Turns out that his disc is almost completely herniated and the nerve is herniating as well. The surgery is pretty non-invasive and he will be able to walk out of the hospital after the surgery, but it's still really nerve wracking for me.

I will never forget how much pain he was in when the injury originally happened and they have said there is a possibility of that pain returning. That scares me.

Recovery should be fairly quick, but he won't be able to lift anything for 3 weeks, and nothing over 20 pounds for 3 months (that includes our 20 pound baby!)

He is very excited to finally get this taken care of once and for all and get back to his active, painfree lifestyle he is used to living.

If you have a spare second to send a thought or prayer for a perfect surgery and speedy recovery, it would be more than appreciated!

Corbin is 5 months old

2010-12-04T18:44:00.000-08:00

Age: 5 months

Weight: approx. 20 pounds

Length: approx. 28 inches

Our baby is getting so big! And while he is growing up ... and actually starting to thin out ... he is still Mr. Serious when the camera comes out.

While we don't have a well-baby check up with the pediatrician this month, I can definitely promise you that Corbin is growing big and strong. But even more than that, his cognitive development is at full speed. He is discovering new things and developing in new ways every day.

He is rolling over constantly now from his back to his belly, but is getting frustrated because he can't quite figure out how to get back to his back. He is also talking up a storm and can recognize his own name and will look at you if you call him. His most recent discovery, though, are his feet. He is constantly grabbing at them and trying to pull them into his mouth.

He does this the most during diaper changes and bath time. Its pretty funny to see his little face as his concentrates so hard on these tasks. He is also playing with his toys and loves to discover new things that I put around him. He is so intrigued by everything right now.

It is so fun to watch him grow and develop, but its going way too quickly. I can only imagine how much he is going to change in the next few months. It seems like he is doing something new every day.

He is still napping and sleeping very well, but our biggest battle these days is trying to get him to accept a bottle. He knows what he likes and what he is used to and isn't too fond of our attempt for him to get his food from somewhere other than me. We are working with him every day at this and hopefully he catches on soon. If not, I guess in a few weeks its time we start introducing baby food so he might just skip the bottle all together.

Who me?

2010-12-02T20:38:00.000-08:00

"Oh hi Roxy! Come a little closer ...

... Your hair looks like it would be fun to pull ...

... who me? I didn't do anything!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-12-02T20:21:00.000-08:00

Over the river and through the woods ... to my momma's house we went, for Thanksgiving. No, seriously ... she lives over the river and through the woods. We braved the snowy roads which weren't nearly as bad as we thought and spent the holiday out at my mom's house with her boyfriend, my sister and her kiddos.

We had all planned on starting a new tradition and doing the Turkey Trot 5K that morning, but everything was still snow covered and frozen (too cold for the babies at least) so we decided to skip it this year ... well all of us except my sister's hubby Joe ... who has promised to not let any of us live it down that he is the family Turkey Trot 2010 champion, even though no one else participated!

This allowed us to start dinner early and have a more relaxing day. We had quite the feast of traditional and non traditional fare. Mom made a fantastic turkey and my sister fixed up this great corn bread stuffing recipe from The Pioneer Woman, filled with pork, apples, mushrooms and who knows what else, but it was quite tasty. I'm just glad that one of my two dishes turned out. The jalapeno popper dip was delish, while my apple cranberry soup ... I mean pie ... could use some help. (I realize now that the oven at our new house doesn't cook nearly as hot as it says it is so it was just totally undercooked.) Lesson learned for next year, but at least the soupy pie still tasted good, just a little embarrassing! Although the cranberry whipped cream was fantastic.

Mom and Candice slaving away in the kitchen

Baby's first Thanksgiving

All the grandkids ... Kendall, 3; Brock, 2 months; Corbin, 4 1/2 months; Paige, 19 months

My boys!

Oh Christmas tree ...

2010-12-02T18:51:00.000-08:00

The weekend after Thanksgiving we met up with my sister and her family to seek out our perfect Christmas trees. We went to The Red Barn Tree Farm in Orting, and I have no clue how we ever picked a tree there were so many. The Powers and Hall clans decided to divide and attempt to conquer the tree farm.

Brian and I had a very specific size tree we needed. Since our new house doesn't provide ample free space, we were in search of a skinnier, yet still fairly tall tree. After wandering through the farm for a while, we finally found the most perfect tree ... and the fact that we were able to actually find the one we liked again after looking a little longer was a sure sign that we had to get it.

Of course it was the most expensive type of tree but it was so worth it because every time I see it, I wish it was a fake tree so we could put it up year after year its that perfect.

The Powers eventually found their tree too and after our manly men chopped them down and hauled them to the cars, we all loaded up on the train and took a trip around the tree farm. While it was a little muddy and a little cold, it was a great day and another tradition I hope we continue for many years to come.

Corbin's first snow!

2010-11-23T20:00:00.000-08:00

It snowed!!! We got a much welcome (in my opinion) early snow this year. It started snowing on November 21 and it just kept coming down for a couple days. We got a couple inches here at our house and I had to take Corbin out to see what he thought about it.

I was so excited to find out that he loved it! He kept looking up and it would hit him in the face but he didn't seem to mind. He sat and stared at the snow for a while and kept wanting to look out the window all day.

Looks like we are getting more snow this week so we are starting off with a snowy Thanksgiving. Now keep your fingers crossed that we get a white Christmas too!

Corbin turns 4 months!

2010-11-16T13:52:00.000-08:00

Age: 4 months
Weight: 19 pounds
Height: 27 inches long

Where have the days gone? Corbin is well on his way to many new milestones. He is still sleeping like a champ at night, is moments away from rolling over consistently from his back to stomach (he has done it a few times both ways, but hasn't mastered it just yet), and is starting to show the signs of his two bottom teeth making their move to the surface. He is SO close to sitting up on his own too.
He is completely off the charts in both weight and height now, which makes him perfectly proportionate, and just one big baby. It's funny because Brian and I think he has thinned out so much lately and people laugh because he is still quite the chunky monkey.
I think he is going to be such a happier baby once he can move around a bit on his own. He is always wanting to get to his toys or change positions and gets frustrated when he can't do it on his own. And he HATES laying flat on his back for more than a few minutes. This kid wants to move, and I have a feeling once he can, he won't stop. We can already tell we have quite the dare devil on our hands and foresee many bumps and bruises in his future.
He is still only napping for 30 minutes at a time, usually 3 or 4 times a day. And with him getting into the whole "4 month wakeful" phase, he is fighting me tooth and nail when it comes to napping on his own. He just wants to stay up and play, but when he gets overly tired, he is no fun to play with so I eventually have to win the battle and get him to sleep.

And this post wouldn't be complete without sharing these pictures. I don't think any explanation is needed.

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-16T11:08:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, I am not the biggest fan of Halloween. But once you have kids the holiday becomes so much more fun! Although Halloween was also moving day for us, I couldn't miss the opportunity to take Corbin trick-or-treating with his cousins.

And they had quite the cute costumes. Kendall was Tinkerbell, Paige was a Bumble Bee, Brock was a football (LOVE it!) and Corbin was our little Kangaroo.

While the boys can't tell us what they were thinking ... I'm pretty sure they were thinking ...

Corbin: "We're in this together buddy! Our moms are crazy!"

Brock: "Seriously! And why am I drowning in this giant football?!"

The perfect holiday photo of the Powers family! So festive!

Corbin was much more content laying low in his stroller, even though he had a giant Kangaroo tail to sit on.

I can't wait for next year when he can actually enjoy the night of ghosts, goblins and candy.

Doing the "mom chop"

2010-11-16T10:59:00.000-08:00

BEFORE:

AFTER:

(Please excuse the awkward faces)

It was time to take some drastic (okay not so drastic) measures and chop off some of this hair. It has lived in a bun for 3 1/2 months so why not just get rid of it in hopes that I might actually take some time to style it once in a while. Not only that, but now that Corbin can reach out and grab/pull things, my hair was becoming his favorite target.

So since I have chopped it, I might not spend more time styling it, but it definitely takes me less time to dry it and it can just go a little curly, add a headband and I look like I actually tried to do something with myself for a change.

A day at the pumpkin patch

2010-11-16T10:47:00.000-08:00

One of the great things about living back up in Washington is getting to do the little things, like going to the pumpkin patch, with my sister and her kids. We packed up the four kiddos and headed down to Spooner Farms in Orting. While the little boys couldn't really enjoy the activities, the girls had a great time. They got to see a bunch of animals, do some activities, and the best part ... help pick out the perfect pumpkins.
I think these two in this picture are by far the most perfect pumpkins!

And of course I had to make Corbin take his first of many pumpkin patch pictures. He wasn't too thrilled at the idea but I think he is getting used to humoring me and my picture addiction. He will thank me when he is older I'm sure.

It was a perfect Fall day with great weather and fun times. I'm so excited for many more outings through the holidays with the Powers clan!

Boo!

2010-10-27T15:26:00.000-07:00

Corbin is getting into the Halloween spirit and has added "boo" to his repertoire of sounds today. He's had the vowels down, and utters a "goo" here and there, but it's either he is taking after me and loves the holidays, or our frequent game of peek-a-boo is teaching him another consonant.

Oh the little things that excite me these days.

Let the nursery planning begin!

2010-10-24T17:15:00.000-07:00

I am obsessed with shopping around online for the cutest things for Corbin's room, and now that he has a room all to himself, I'm becoming quite the addict. And of course when I look at a web page of, say, cribs ... without looking at prices I will naturally LOVE the most expensive ones. Go figure. This is my current obsession that Corbin's room needs.

It is the Babyletto Mercer 3-in-1 convertible crib. I love the masculine look of it and love that it grows with him as it turns into a toddler bed. Plus, it has a drawer under the crib and storage space is limited in our new place so thats an added bonus! I need to figure out how to convince Brian we need this one over the one we originally looked at. With the 20% off coupon Babies R Us offers, it's not THAT much of a price difference.

And my little cuddly boy needs me to have a great chair like this one to rock him in.

Wouldn't these look great together in his room?

Now if I could just narrow down the colors I want for his room I might pick some bedding. Hopefully we make some decisions soon because moving day is 7 days away. Otherwise Corbin might be sleeping on the floor.

We're moving ... again!

2010-10-22T22:52:00.000-07:00

As most of you might remember, when Brian and I moved back up to Washington, we set up shop at my mom's house while we figured out our plans and *hopefully* sold our house in Texas. Well, our house never sold, but we did recently lease it out so the mortgage payment is off our hands ... thank goodness!

Our original plan was to find our own place come October, and sure enough, we found a place that we love enough to move into! Its the cutest little craftsman home in downtown Puyallup, which makes it super convenient for Brian to get to work and very accesible to Seattle if I end up going back to work too.

The owners are very cool and flexible which is a big plus. Not to mention the carpets are brand new, which is so important since Corbin is going to be crawling all over the place in no time. And I will finally get to decorate Corbin's nursery! (It's like having a baby all over again, since I get to pick out his crib and bedding and room decorations, which I didn't do originally ... more to come on my nursery wish list soon!)

We are super excited, although part of me will really miss living at my mama's house. We are so grateful for her opening her house up to not just Brian and me, but Corbin and our two rowdy dogs as well. I'm sure she never thought she would send me off to college years ago and I would move back in with the whole family in tow!

But ... if anyone is around the last weekend of October and wants to help us move ... we promise lots of food and good beer! And if you look at the pictures below, you will definitely want to join us for a nice cold one on our awesome back patio! I see many great gatherings in our future ... now if we could only get our friends to drive down from Seattle more often!

My most favorite time of the year ...

2010-10-22T21:39:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited now that Fall is here! I love everything about the season ... especially in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Corbin and I have been embracing the great fall days and going for lots of walks down on the river walk in Orting. I have also been taking advantage of the flavors of the season and baking all things pumpkin and drinking my fair share of Pumpkin Spice Lattes.

I've decided to make a new pumpkin recipe every week until Thanksgiving. So far we have enjoyed Pumpkin Scones, Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies and Pumpkin Spice Pancakes. I'm still deciding what my next recipes will be so if anyone has any suggestions send them my way. I might have to remake a few recipes from last year to see if I can do them better this time around ... especially the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins.

(If you want to try out some of these recipes, you should visit annies-eats.com. It's my go-to place for the best recipes.)

I'm looking forward to Corbin experiencing all of the upcoming holidays and celebrating them with our families ... which we haven't been able to do for a few years now.

Lesson learned

2010-10-14T20:06:00.000-07:00

When your baby wakes during the night after sleeping for 6 hours, DO NOT try to change his diaper before feeding him. He will yell at the top of his lungs until you put food in his starving belly. Lesson learned!

Why didn't you warn me?

2010-10-13T21:42:00.000-07:00

While I was pregnant, I had this idea of how life was going to be once Corbin was born. He was going to sleep through the night from the beginning and take long naps during the day ... I was going to shower, shave and apply make-up on a regular basis, always looking my best ... We were going to go for walks, or the mall, or restaurants while he smiled or slept the whole time.

Okay so I might be exaggerating a little, but to some extent, I thought things would be a little easier. Now after 3 months, I can look back and say things were not as easy as I had imagined. There were times when I was lucky to shower once in a 7 day span, when he would only sleep for 30 minutes the whole day and wake up 6 times a night, when any time we left the house it was guaranteed that he would cry 90 percent of the time.

I know he wasn't your typical baby and was a little fussier than most, but I realize now why no one filled me in on how tough things could be. I realize it because while those times were mere weeks ago for me and I thought we would never survive it, they have already become blurry. The days of crying have been replaced with smiles and "baby talk", the sleepless nights have been replaced with a baby in his crib, asleep by 8 p.m. every night, and outings that used to scare me, now excite me that I can show Corbin the world ... narrating our adventures the whole way.

I write this post now because I realize that life changes by the day when you have a baby and you have to roll with it. I know there are still tough times ahead, but we survived the first 3 months when there were times I didn't think I could survive another 3 seconds. And I write it to let those of you who have yet to enjoy the adventure of parenting that when you are up in the middle of the night crying more than your little one because you are exhausted and neither of you have slept in 24 hours, you are not alone and it will get better!

And if you don't believe me you need to go pick up the book "The Second Nine Months". It's a great memoir about a first time mom who has quite the tough time adjusting to parenthood.

Happy 3 months Corbin!

2010-10-08T21:12:00.000-07:00

Age: 3 months

Weight: Approx. 18 pounds

Height: Approx. 25 1/2 inches

The months are just starting to fly by! Corbin is 3 months now and with the holidays approaching, I have a feeling I will blink and it will be time to start planning his first birthday. He is really growing up so fast and is developing quite the personality. It's so nice to now feel like he understands me and will laugh and "talk" with me. He even sings along with me in the car. He is smiling all the time and is just the happiest little thing that I can't get enough of! And he is starting to take a liking to toys that he can hold on to and shake to make noise.

Corbin is able to hold his head up steady when being held, but is still a little wobbly when he is sitting in his Bumbo seat, which he has just started doing. He is starting the initial movements of figuring out how to roll himself over. And if you prop him up on pillows, like he is in his picture, he always flexes his little ab muscles and flings himself forward, trying to sit up on his own.

Also, as of his 3 month birthday, we are putting him down in his crib in his nursery to sleep at night. (this is HUGE considering he wouldn't sleep without being held for the longest time and has always slept in our room at night.) He has yet to sleep through the night, but I am not expecting him to just yet and am grateful that he is only up 2 or 3 times at night (over a 11 hour span) to eat and then falls right back to sleep.

We are such proud parents and it's hard to picture life without him now. I have a feeling the fun is only beginning with him too, and look forward to all his big milestones that are to come!

(When I take his month pictures, I probably end up with about two dozen, just trying to get the perfect shot. During the process I tend to capture some of the many faces of Corbin. I've decided these "blooper" shots need to make the post as well so I will be including a few of my favorites from now on.)

Hamming it up for the camera ...

And this is a face I see all too often ... I think he's saying "Enough with the pictures already!"

Bad mommy blogger!

2010-10-06T15:06:00.000-07:00

So I have really dropped the ball on this blogging thing lately. But now that life is getting into a loose routine and Corbin is enjoying the world a little more, I will have more time to update you on our life. Not to mention, now that Corbin is growing up and developing quite the personality, there is a lot more to talk about. So check back soon for more updates and pictures. I might even attempt a video if I get super ambitious!

2 months old!

2010-09-08T14:58:00.000-07:00

Age: 2 months

Weight: 16 1/2 pounds (off the charts)

Height: 24 1/2 inches (95th percentile)

Corbin has been growing so fast! It's hard to think that just a couple months ago he was a mere 8 pounds. He is developing into such a little man and is getting to be a happier baby by the day. We don't have any type of schedule right now, but I see him starting to work in that direction. The one thing I can't quite figure out though, why he will only nap for 30 minutes at a time. Seriously ... it will be 30 minutes on the dot, whether he is in his crib, the car or his swing. I can usually get him to sleep longer in my arms, but then I can't get anything done. Especially now that I am working part-time from home, I need to be as productive as possible! He is sleeping much longer most nights, but we are still getting up a few times to feed ... but I'm not complaining!

Corbin is starting to be able to hold his head up really well, both while being held and while on his tummy. I have a feeling we are going to see lots of development from this little man very soon.

Corbin is 1 month old!

2010-08-12T15:59:00.000-07:00

Where did the days go? I feel like our little man is growing up so fast and it's only been a month. While he might not be growing up fast, he is definitely growing fast. We had his one month check up and he is in the 95th percentile for height and OFF.THE.CHARTS for weight! We have a tank in the making! He weighed in at 13 1/2 pounds ... which means he is gaining more than a pound a week. While I would much rather him be a chunkster than not gaining enough, this kid eats more often than I ever expected.

Everything else looked great at his appointment. I talked with the pediatrician about his fussiness (okay, total purple-faced screaming) again to make sure he looked him over real good to rule out anything else. He says everything looks good and that its either a reflux thing or just a high maintenance baby. I'm also working on cuting out dairy to see if that helps at all ... but its SO hard to do.

I have faith that things will just keep getting better as we have good days more and more often. And I'm finally starting to understand his cues better so that helps.

So we have one month in the record books. It feels like just yesterday we were checking into the hospital, anticipating his arrival. We couldn't love him more and look forward to all the things he has in store for the future.

And here is one more picture of our chunkster ... he is the silliest little man.

Week 3 ... not so easy

2010-07-30T10:17:00.000-07:00

I have to say that things got a little more difficult this week. My sleeping, pooping, eating baby went and added a new skill to the list ... screaming. And let me tell you, when this boy screams he means it. I know babies cry, but this seems to be more than just your average baby cry. The over-googler that I am has looked up everything possible online and have about a dozen diagnoses for his screaming. I did take him to the doctor just to make sure it wasn't anything serious, and while the doctor didn't see anything of concern, he did give me a perscription for some reflux medicine to see if that will help him.

We are all thinking its just reflux or gas or a combination of the two, but it has made for my sweet little boy to avoid sleeping at all costs and scream uncontrollably for what feels like hours (but is probably only minutes at a time.)

Other than that, he is doing great and growing so fast. We have just been trying to get into a routine and looking forward to the day we have one!

2 weeks down ...

2010-07-23T18:46:00.001-07:00

How have 2 weeks passed already? I feel like it was just yesterday that I was in the hospital meeting my son for the first time. He is changing by the day and growing like a weed.

Not much new to report from the second week, though. We are working on getting Corbin comfortable with sleeping in his bassinet or crib, rather than in our arms. It's been a tough battle so far, but we are just working on daytime naps for now and will work our way up to night time sleeping ... because lets be honest, I am just happy to have him sleep wherever he will at night so that I can get some sleep too.

This week we managed to go to the grocery store and even took a little family outing around town last weekend.

We are looking forward to many more adventures and watching our son grow every day. Now that things are settling down, I feel like I am more comfortable with getting out of the house more often so we might actually go visit some friends one of these days.

Week 1 in the books

2010-07-16T12:25:00.000-07:00

Well we survived the first week as parents. I have to say, Corbin is a pretty amazing baby. As expected, we spend our days eating, sleeping, pooping and peeing ... which I must say he does all of those very well. And I am happy to report that he sleeps pretty well at night. He will wake up to feed after about 3 hours of sleep and then goes back down for another 3 hours or so. Some nights are definitely better than others but I will take whatever sleep I can get.

We had his first doctor's appointment on July 14 and he had already gained 7 ounces since we left the hospital! (he lost 3 ounces after birth, which puts him at 8 lbs. 7 oz. at 6 days old.) He did great and the doctor said he is thriving and perfectly healthy. He even said there was no need to come back in a week since he is already proving to be doing so well so we won't go back for a month!

July 15 was my least favorite day so far, as Corbin had his circumcision done. It was so tough to see our little guy go through that, but Brian and I stayed in the room for support. We figured if he had to go through it, the least we could do is be there for him (although Brian sat with his back turned and distracted himself with his phone, only looking up on occasion). The good thing is, after it was all over he was back to his happy self, but definitely took a much deserved nap the second we left the office.

All in all things are going great. We are loving being parents and everything that comes along with it ... now if I could just get Brian to change a diaper!

Corbin's birth story

2010-07-13T12:25:00.000-07:00

I will preface the story by saying that my plan for labor was to take things as natural as possible, but you definitely learn that sometimes you can't plan everything.

So lets just jump right into it...

At my 38 week appointment on Thursday, July 1, my doctor, Brian and I all noticed that my belly seemed to have doubled in size over the past week. After Dr. Song took my measurements and checked me for dilation and effacement, it turned out that I was about 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced. Great news that things were moving in the right direction. But she had some reservations about me waiting for labor to start on it's own if I wanted the chance at a vaginal delivery (she was estimating Corbin to be nearing 9 pounds at this point). So in order to try and get things going, she stripped my membranes and scheduled an induction for the following Thursday, July 8.

As you can imagine, I wasn't too thrilled about the idea of being induced. Brian and I went back and forth on if it was the right decision. On one hand, I definitely wanted to be able to have a vaginal delivery, and on the other, who was to say if we waited for labor to start on it's own that it wouldn't be possible? But we scheduled the induction anyways and figured my doctor knew best.

So the week went on and I was doing a bunch of "natural labor inducing techniques" trying to get things going on there own. Nothing seemed to be working and I was getting a little discouraged. On Wednesday, July 7, my sister and her girls came over to play in mom's giant inflatable pool and slide since it was a perfect summer day. We grilled hot dogs and hung out in the sun ... both of us baring our pregnant bellies in our bikinis (It's a good thing mom doesn't have neighbors!). The day was going great and I was enjoying my last day of pregnancy, knowing induction was the next morning.

Everyone was going down the 8-foot slide, except me, until my mom and sister convinced me that it was a good idea. Let's just say we would have won America's Funniest Home Videos if it had been taped. But either way, if that slide didn't induce labor, I don't know what would ... because about 2 hours later I started having contractions.

I didn't tell anyone about the contractions for a couple hours because they were still pretty far apart and not painful. I didn't want to jinx myself and could hardly believe that I was actually going into labor on my own! I think Corbin is just a procrastinator like his mom!

So finally Brian got home from work and I told him he should probably put his handy phone application to use that times contractions. We timed contractions for about an hour and a half, them being about 45 seconds long and about 4 to 5 minutes apart ... exactly what the doctor said they should be before we called the hospital. I called in to labor and delivery and they said to keep timing them and drink lots of water. If they get stronger, then to call back in an hour. And stronger they got so we called in and were headed to the hospital around 10 p.m.

Once we got there and got all checked in, we called to let our families know that I was there for the real thing. My family headed to the hospital and Brian's family started the drive from Walla Walla. My mom and sister showed up about an hour later and it was great to have them around to take my mind off the contractions and have their support.

At this point I was 5 c.m. and 100% effaced, with contractions getting stronger by the minute. I was hooked up to the monitors to check on my and baby's heart rates. Everything looked good with me, but Corbin's heart rate was a little lower than they were comfortable with. So they kept me on the monitors for a while and then I was allowed to get up and move around for about 30 minutes before they wanted to monitor him again. Well everything changed when they hooked me up to the monitors the second time. Corbin's heart rate was even lower so they got me into a position that kept it the highest, put me on oxygen and informed me that I would need permanent monitoring to keep an eye on him. At this point, the most important thing to me was that he was okay so I didn't mind. But as contractions got stronger, I was having a really hard time managing them being stuck in one position in the bed. Brian was such a great help rubbing my back, holding my hand and just giving me the support I needed to get through each contraction.

With my natural plans, I figured I would take to the jetted tub, birthing ball and whatever else helped me battle the contractions, but those options weren't options anymore.

I was having a really tough time keeping still and fighting through the contractions and kept going back and forth about getting an epidural to help with the pain since I couldn't move to fight it myself. I cried because of the pain and cried at the thought of giving in to an epidural. But the pain was getting to be more than I could bear. The nurse checked me again and I was about 8 c.m. so it was kind of my last chance for the epidural if I wanted one, so I said yes (which I think gave Brian more relief than me, as he was having a really hard time watching me be in such pain.)

I got the epidural at about 3 a.m. and was definitely more comfortable. The doctor came in and broke my water around 4 a.m. since things were moving along and it hadn't broken on it's own yet. Things continued to progress from this point, and I was fully dilated and didn't know it for probably an hour or so. I felt "pressure" but didn't know if it was the pressure I should be feeling. So when the nurse checked me again at 4:30 a.m., she said I was 10 c.m. and ready to push. This kind of scared me as I didn't feel like I was ready but knew it was time.

So right about 5 a.m. we started pushing....and pushing...and pushing. I pushed in all kinds of positions for 2 1/2 hours. I am so glad I had Brian by my side as I hit a point where I really thought he was never coming out and that things were going to end in a c-section. But just when I thought I couldn't do it any longer, out came the most adorable baby boy.

Corbin was born at 7:20 a.m. on Thursday July 8 and was 8 pounds 3 ounces and 20.5 inches long.

The doctor informed me that the reason it was so hard for me to get him out was that he was face up so I had to deliver the largest circumference of his head, rather than the smallest like most deliveries. In hindsight, I am so glad I got the epidural as I know I would have never been able to push for that long and deliver him all while battling the pains...and believe me, even with the epidural, things were still very painful.

And all that really matters is we have a happy and healthy baby boy!

Introducing Corbin Wesley!

2010-07-12T12:24:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of our little man to hold you over. My best friend Ashley is going to take some newborn photos for us soon and really show off our adorable child.

Lots to come ...

2010-07-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

I have A LOT of updating to do on this darn blog. I should be able to find some time soon, but for those of you who don't know, our son Corbin made his arrival on July 8. I will have pictures, my birth story and many more details to come in the very near future so bear with me while I get my days in order.

But right now, I am going to go snuggle with my most adorable son.

Inching toward the final days of pregnancy ...

2010-07-02T12:34:00.000-07:00

How far along? 38 weeks

Maternity clothes? Yes please.
Stretch marks? Nope! wooo!
Sleep: Really good lately so I have no complaints there.
Best moment this week: Nothing in particular, just enjoying these last couple weeks.
Movement: He is going to be a strong boy, that's all I can say.
Food cravings: Nothing in particular, but I have been loving this giant apple pie my mom bought, with vanilla ice cream.
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: The pregnant lady waddle and a really sore tail bone.

Labor Signs: Been having some different contractions so hopefully it's a sign of progress.

Belly Button in or out? Growing further and further outward every day...and looks like a starfish!

What I miss: Sitting comfortably anywhere besides on an exercise ball.
What I am looking forward to: Seeing the look on Brian's face when he meets his son for the first time.

Weekly Wisdom: Patience is a virtue!

Milestones: We've hit the final week of pregnancy. How do I know? Well...the doctor is concerned about the size of my belly and wants to induce me on Thursday (July 8) if the little man doesn't make his appearance on his own before then. So I am off to try every natural inducing method out there, because I DO NOT want to get Pitocin, but understand that sometimes these things are necessary for a healthy delivery. So send all your thoughts and prayers to my belly that you can spare. Hopefully our little guy gets the hint and makes his debut very soon.

38 weeks ...

2010-07-01T07:50:00.000-07:00

The last bits of vernix caseosa (the white goo keeping baby's skin moist) and lanugo (downy hair) are slowly shedding into your amniotic fluid. Baby's head is about the same circumference as his abdomen, and his head could be covered in an inch or so of hair.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? If he's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If he's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time he's 9 months old.

A great weekend with great friends

2010-06-28T13:18:00.000-07:00

Brian and I got to spend a weekend with our favorite Boston/Dallas/Chicago-ians when they made their first trip to the Seattle area. We met Dan and Alexis shortly after we all moved to Dallas, them from Boston, us from Seattle. They were in the same boat as us ... moving to a new city for a job and taking on a new adventure far away from home. Dan's company did work with Brian's company and after meeting, Brian invited them to meet us for dinner.

Well that dinner turned into many more dinners and dates ... until just a couple months after them moving to the area, Dan's job moved them to Chicago. But our friendship didn't end there ... Alexis and I have become "internet buddies" and have spent countless hour chatting while at work (shhh...don't tell our bosses!). It didn't help that we got engaged 3 days apart and married 3 months apart so we had more than enough in common to talk about ... now if we can just get them on the baby train I see many great family vacations in our future!

After more than two years of our web relationship, we finally got to spend time together like real friends do ... in person!

During their visit, we went to dinner on the pier at The Crab Pot and had Sunday brunch at the top of the Space Needle. They also got to spend time shopping and hanging out at Pike's Place Market. I was very excited when they said how much they loved the city ... now only if we could figure out a way to convince them to move here.

The boys with their mallets getting ready for their "Seafeast" dinner

Taking in the view from the observation deck at the Space Needle.

Thanks so much, Dan and Alexis, for visiting us! We had such a great time. Now here's hoping we don't have to go another two years before we get together again!

That little seed has grown into a watermelon!

2010-06-23T10:13:00.001-07:00

This week brings two beautiful words: full-term. Now, whenever baby's born, he's likely to thrive. Also thriving? Your nesting instincts, which are behind those sudden urges to bake, clean, or embroider a onesie.

At week 37, your pregnancy is considered full term, meaning baby is likely to thrive after birth. Baby spends these last weeks in preparation for the outside world… meaning careful refinement of the blink, suck, inhale and exhale. Meconium, which you’ll probably find in the first diaper, is accumulating in the intestines. If (okay, as) you worry about giving birth, consider what it’s like for the little one. During the journey out of your womb, baby will produce more stress hormones than any other time in life.

The CUTEST baby shower ever!

2010-06-22T12:46:00.000-07:00

I am so lucky to have such an amazing sister, best friend and mom who threw me the most adorable baby shower I have ever seen. The baby shower was at Ashley's house and we couldn't have asked for better weather. I absolutely loved the western/backyard BBQ theme, which totally worked with my one and only request for the shower ... my mom's spicy BBQ beans. I can safely say that I got a whole heck of a lot more than just beans!

It was great to spend the afternoon with my family and friends who showered me with way too many gifts. Our little guy is so spoiled already ... now it's just awaiting his arrival so we can put all of these great items to use!

Aren't these the cutest onesies you have ever seen? Ashley made them and they go from one month to a year old. I can't wait to take our little man's monthly pictures in these!

A couple of pregnant girls! My sister and I are due 12 weeks apart ... both having boys!

Me and my mom!

My best friend and owner of the fantastic home they hosted my shower at.

Our little man will definitely be rocking these denim diapers when he is big enough. I loved this diaper cake so much, I didn't want to take it apart.

One of my other best friends, Alexis, who flew in from Chicago just for the shower!

Thank you to everyone who showed up for such a memorable afternoon. I am so very lucky to be surrounded by so many great people.

We made it full term! 37 weeks and counting ...

2010-06-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

How far along? 37 weeks

Maternity clothes? Very neccessary!
Stretch marks? Nope and I think I'm in the clear of getting any! (:::knock on wood:::)
Sleep: Not going so well these days. My hips get so sore if I stay in one position for too long.
Best moment this week: Hitting the "full term" mark. Definitely.
Movement: He's trying real hard to make more space in there, and sometimes I think he might bust out the side.
Food cravings: Nothing in particular.
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: Um...being fat. Does that count?

Labor Signs: Definitely feeling more contractions and pressure in my hips. Don't know if it means anything.

Belly Button in or out? It has become the outie of all outie belly buttons!

What I miss: Being comfortable doing anything! Even walking is getting hard to do.
What I am looking forward to: Getting the labor show on the road! I'm just ready for it to start so I know the end is in sight!

Milestones: Reaching 37 weeks. Now the waiting game begins!

My own private "tour" of Labor and Delivery

2010-06-17T12:39:00.001-07:00

As you all know, things have been going very well for me throughout this pregnancy. No major complaints by any means, and we are definitely getting ready to finally meet this little man. My doctor has been impressed my my steady weight gain and strong heartbeat from the babe all along.

I went in for my weekly visit last week, was happy to see I hadn't gained any weight since the last appointment and my blood pressure was a whopping 90/60. Then we get to checking out the baby ... belly growth is right on track but his heart rate was a little low. He has been a predictable one, holding stead at 130 bpm all along, but this time, he was registering right around 118. I guess anything below 120 is a reason to take a closer look, so my doctor decided to hook me up to the fetal monitor for about 15 minutes see if anything looked strange.

I am happy to report that his heart beat must have just been in a low part because it was up and strong, varying between 120 and 150 (which I guess the constant fluctuation is a good sign of a healthy and happy baby). But while I was hooked up to the machine, which also monitors uterine contractions, my doctor noticed I was contracting about every 2-3 minutes.

This caused a little concern for her since I was only 35 weeks, so she sent me across the street to Labor and Delivery for further monitoring and a possible shot of Terbutaline to stop the contractions. Being the independent person that I am, I didn't want anyone coming to sit with me at the hospital, but I did call and let them know what was going on. Of course my sister shows up 15 minutes later with her nurse-knowledge flowing, checking my charts and chatting with my nurse to get all the details.

My body hadn't started dilating or anything yet, so she wasn't too worried about me going into labor but better safe than sorry. While in L&D, I was contracting frequently, so they gave me a shot and lots of water, which slowed them to every 4-7 minutes. So they shot me up again (can I tell you how painful these shots are? guess I should just embrace it and get ready for pain much worse.). This finally stopped the contractions and I was sent home a couple hours later.

I'm glad that they were able to stop them, and completely blame the early contractions on stress. The little visit there made me realize it could happen any day and that we really need to prepare ourselves for this life-altering event thats about to happen. I'm just glad he has stayed put for another week and if any contractions start now ... there's no turning back as my doctor will let nature take its course!

35 weeks down 35(ish) days to go!

2010-06-07T09:32:00.000-07:00

How far along? 35 weeks

Maternity clothes? Of course ... and finally starting my post-pregnancy wardrobe of nursing tanks and bras.
Stretch marks? Still none!
Sleep: Just in the last week I have begun to have to use the bathroom throughout the night so sleep is a little interrupted. Other than that, I could sure use more!
Best moment this week: Spending the weekend with 20 girls at Suncadia. It was a great final getaway and as little sleep as I got, it was a refreshing, stress-relieving couple of days.
Movement: Plenty of movement, just more jabs and wiggling than major kicks. And he gets the hiccups ALL the time!
Food cravings: Just food in general.
Gender: Boy

Labor Signs: I've been having regular BH contractions, and my hips are starting to feel cramped so I'm thinking he is making his move downward.

Belly Button in or out? Very out

What I miss: Sleeping through the night.
What I am looking forward to: My baby shower and our great friends Dan and Alexis coming into town! We haven't seen them in years. It's going to be a great weekend!

Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy every day, and don't let other's get you down.

Milestones: Finally feeling like we are "ready" for our little guy to make his arrival. I think Brian and I are settling in the groove of our life up here and can't wait to meet and love on our baby.

34 weeks and growing

2010-06-03T10:05:00.000-07:00

Your baby is the size of a honeydew! He can recognize and react to simple songs ... time to start practicing your lullabies! In fact, he will recognize frequently sung tunes after birth and probably find them soothing. Less cute news: He now urinates about one pint per day. Get the diapers ready!

His fat layers — which he'll need to regulate his body temperature once he's born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. His central nervous system is maturing and his lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

It's all getting too real ...

2010-06-03T09:38:00.000-07:00

So yesterday, Brian and my good friends Nate and Brenna Carlile's baby boy was born. This makes everything feel oh-so-real because Brenna's due date was two days before me! She delivered early, and from the sounds of it the little man is doing great.

But still ... that gave me one of those "holy crap I'm having a baby" moments. I mean ... I know I'm pregnant and going to have an "outside" baby one of these days, but her and I had gone through all the same things at the same time, so now that their boy is here I feel like I should get prepared because it's not out of the question for me to go into labor at any time.

I have prepared a birth plan (if nothing else but to help me grasp what type of experience I hope to have during labor and Brian to understand as well) and I really need to pack my hospital bag. Now I just need our little guy to stay put ... at least through the weekend since I will be at a cabin 2 hours from home with 20 crazy girls at a bachelorette party. The good thing is, two of them are nurses and one actually works in labor and delivery, so if something crazy does happen I will have a couple qualified helpers.

Here's hoping little man Hall stays comfy in my belly for a couple weeks longer ... even though he is TOTALLY running out of room.

33 weeks down ... only a few more to go!

2010-05-24T09:58:00.000-07:00

How far along? 33 weeks

Maternity clothes? They are definitely needed, but I can still find pieces of regular clothes, especially dresses, that still fit. Brian bought me the cutest and comfy outfit from Victorias Secret so that adds to my collection
Stretch marks? Nope
Sleep: I think I have the position down, as I have been sleeping much better lately...extra pillow under my head and one under my belly.
Best moment this week: Probably feeling him hiccup a lot. I'm taking it as a sign that his lungs are developing well and he is becoming more of a "real" baby!
Movement: This little guy is definitely getting stronger, but more cramped in there. It's fun to try to determine which body part he is jabbing me with throughout the day.
Food cravings: Trying to keep my food choices more healthy, but with the abundance of Krispy Kreme donuts around lately, it's hard to not eat one (or the whole dozen).
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: Same 'ol same.

Labor Signs: Our little man is head-down and ready to go, so now it's just letting him get bigger and stronger before he makes his appearance.

Belly Button in or out? Ugh...out!

What I miss: Just the usual ... nothing new.
What I am looking forward to: Getting the nursery finished!

Weekly Wisdom: Don't let the fear of the unknown overwhelm you!

Milestones: Besides our little man getting into position, it's just so great to know that even if I went into labor any time soon, there is a 95% chance he would be just fine! Oh...and how can I forget...our biggest milestone this past week is Brian and I successfully putting together our changing table/dresser without strangling eachother!

8 months down ...

2010-05-24T09:40:00.000-07:00

You are now 33 weeks and into your 8th month. Your baby is the size of a melon!

Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month.

Things are heating up inside as well: Baby may grow up to a full inch this week alone, and his brain is developing like crazy. Pretty soon, he'll be able to coordinate breathing with sucking and swallowing. Also, his bones are hardening, and he's started to keep his eyes open when he's awake.

Walla Walla Weekend

2010-05-22T10:31:00.000-07:00

Brian and I headed over to Walla Walla for a little weekend trip recently. We wanted to take a trip over before the baby was born and his mom decided to throw us a little welcome home party/baby shower as well.

The weather was fantastic so we headed out on a drive through the wineries and stopped at one of our favorites for a little wine tasting (well minus me...I had a nice tastey cup of water). Brian even signed us up for the wine club so we have some delicious bottles just waiting for me after this little guy is born.

We spent some time with our good friends Gwen and Steve as well. We finally got to see their new house ... which is ADORABLE ... and we went to the dirt track to cheer Steve on while he raced BMX bikes. It was great to spend some time with them again, since we hadn't really seen them since the wedding.

On Saturday evening, everyone came over for the party and we had a great time catching up with old friends and I finally got to meet some people who are close with the Halls that I had yet to meet. We got some wonderful gifts as well, which is more than appreciated and definitely got us started on stocking up the nursery!

(If I get some pictures from Jan --- hint, hint --- I will post them here later)

On our drive back, we took the round-about way over White Pass and took in the scenery. We passed a few waterfalls and lakes and scouted out a couple campgrounds that I'm thinking we will have to go back and visit in the future.

All in all, it was a great weekend with the in-laws. Who knows when we will be able to make it back over next.

A weekend away...

2010-05-12T21:06:00.001-07:00

Brian and I planned a weekend away to Ocean Shores to celebrate our anniversary. (well...Brian planned on surprising me with the trip, but we all know he gets too excited and can't keep secrets so I was included in the planning a few weeks ago.) We figured it would be a great trip, just the two of us, to celebrate a year of wedded bliss and the last getaway before our little man makes his grand debut!
We stayed at a friend's beach house that was right on the canal, which was a nice relaxing change from staying in a hotel.

Brian had never been to Ocean Shores before so we spent most of our time touring around town. We visited the local shops, took a few walks along the beach and just enjoyed the perfect weather. We even took the paddle boat out on the canal (but don't tell my mom!) and gambled away a few dollars at the local casino.

If you were to ask Brian what his favorite part was, I bet he would say driving on the beach. Every time we would drive somewhere, he would drive down to the beach and along the shore until we got to a point where we needed to turn then he would head back out to the main roads.

And of course we did our fair share of eating. We found this fantastic bed and breakfast where we had our "official" anniversary dinner, and it couldn't have been more delicious. Who wouldn't love a four-course meal with homemade clam chowder, steak and lobster overlooking the ocean? Brian did manage to keep one surprise and brought us cupcakes from Indulge for our anniversary cake ... and planned them to replicate the colors and flavors of our actual wedding cake.

All in all, we had a fantastic weekend. It was hard heading back to town, knowing we had to go back to work the next day. Soon enough we will be taking our little bundle of love on ocean trips as a family ... but it was great to have one last trip without worrying about nap times and poopy diapers.

Oh ... and can I tell you how many deer we saw just hanging around the town? I would say we counted at least 20 just wander through the neighborhoods and beaches.

Pregnancy updates ...

2010-05-11T17:52:00.000-07:00

(Can you tell I am getting lazy with the pictures these days?)

How far along? 31 weeks

Maternity clothes? Most definitely.
Stretch marks? Although I had a minor panic attack last week when I looked back at my belly photos, thinking I saw stretchies on the under side of my belly, but hadn't noticed because I haven't seen that part of my body in weeks, I'm safe to say still no stretch marks.
Sleep: Getting worse.
Best moment this week: Getting the most fantastic anniversary present from Brian.
Movement: A whole lot!
Food cravings: I've been craving my mom's spicy bbq beans for some reason.
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: As I type I am feeling the beginning pains of what I believe are my hips widening.

Labor Signs: Nothing new.

Belly Button in or out? Surprisingly, it hasn't popped out much more.

What I miss: Being able to easily get in and out of a bathroom stall.
What I am looking forward to: Brian finally getting to meet our new doctor. And our welcome home/baby shower party in Walla Walla this weekend ... well and seeing the Hall family of course!

Weekly Wisdom: Always make a list when going to the grocery store ... if your cravings don't get you more than you need, your forgetful mind will have you leaving without the things you came for.

Milestones: Today is our first anniversary! We celebrated and headed to the ocean this past weekend, just the two (well two and a half) of us. More to come from that trip soon.

31 weeks and he's now a BIG squash!

2010-05-10T15:08:00.000-07:00

Baby's going through major brain and nerve development these days. His irises now react to light, and all five senses are in working order. (He won't pick up anything from his nose until after birth, though -- smell is transferred through air, not amniotic fluid.)

This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up.

Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

Time to start pumping some iron!

2010-05-06T14:54:00.000-07:00

... and I don't mean lifting weights.

Last week I had my glucose tolerance test and they also test you for anemia. The good news is my blood sugar was normal so no Gestational Diabetes for me. The bad news is that I am slightly anemic. I wasn't exactly sure what the effects of anemia were on a pregnancy and fetus so I did some googling ... let's just say it's not fantastic, but not the worst thing that could happen either. I will definitely be doing all that I can to get my iron levels up in hopes to avoid any of the possibilities becoming reality.

Following doctor's orders, I am now on a daily iron supplement and am working on upping my dietary intake of iron as well. It's a good thing I love red meat, spinach, beans and seafood! If you have any great suggestions that include iron-rich ingredients ... send them my way!

30 weeks down ...

2010-05-06T07:10:00.001-07:00

How far along? 30 weeks!

Maternity clothes? Nothing new this week.
Stretch marks? Nada ... knock on wood.
Sleep: It's so-so these nights. I can feel the weight in my belly pulling when I lay on my side.
Best moment this week: Getting the results from my glucose tolerance test ... and finding out my blood sugar levels are normal!
Movement: This boy is a mover! Its so fun, yet somewhat painful and distracting while I am working/driving/sleeping.
Food cravings: Salad. Is that weird?
Gender: A little man
Pregnancy symptoms: I've started to get some lower back pain as my belly gets bigger ... and I have been told I'm starting to waddle.

Labor Signs: BH contractions, so nothing new.

Belly Button in or out? Definitely popping out.

What I miss: Being able to fit into the majority of my wardrobe.
What I am looking forward to: Our anniversary weekend alone at a beach house in Ocean Shores this weekend. It's going to be a great time.

Milestones: We have hit the 30 week mark which makes it feel like our little guy will be here really soon.

Why hello, hormones.

2010-05-05T15:28:00.000-07:00

I have been pretty happy-go-lucky for the most part throughout this pregnancy, but I now know that those hormones have just been hanging out in there waiting to explode. Which they did a couple nights ago. I mean, I have had one little breakdown a couple months ago, but this one had me sobbing like a baby.

Why, you might ask? I wish I knew. All I do know is one minute I was fine, the next I was storming off to the bedroom to lay in bed and cry for an hour.

Luckily, Brian being the supportive husband that he is ... and although he had no clue why I was crying and probably was thinking he married a crazy lady ... was able to calm me down (but he was smart enough to give me about 45 minutes of alone time to get the worst of it out).

I do know that I have been keeping things to myself as to not burden those around me with crazy pregnancy complaints every day, and that might be part of the problem. I have such great friends and family who are willing to listen, why not take advantage of it? If I had to pinpoint the source of my meltdown, I would say it was part fear/nerves of what is about to change in the next couple months, and part feeling like a fat moose every day. I wake up every morning and still feel like I have the body I had a year ago, and then I try to sit up and realize I have no abs, but a beach ball stuck on my belly, and it's only going to get worse before it gets better.

And the idea of having an "outside baby" is so exciting but so nervewracking at the same time. Not to mention the process I have to go through to get there.

I think I was able to vent it all out to Brian that night and am feeling a lot better, but it's scary knowing that I will probably have another freak-out or two before our little man makes his grand arrival.

29 weeks and a fat face to prove it!

2010-04-27T21:08:00.000-07:00

(I didn't take an "official" bump photo this week so I hope this will do.)

How far along? 29 weeks

Maternity clothes? Anything long, stretchy and cotton is my friend these days.
Stretch marks? Nope, but I am developing that belly "seam" they call the Linea Nigra.
Sleep: So-so. I'm just always so afraid I am putting too much weight on my belly since it seems to prop me up while I sleep on my side.
Best moment this week: Sleeping in this weekend and spending time with mom!
Movement: Never ending! It's so funny to watch him move around. He has been all about hanging out just under my ribs these days which makes sitting very uncomfortable.
Food cravings: Cinnamon rolls and donuts!
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: Nothing new ... besides my face rounding out to match the squash picture in the previous post!

Labor Signs: Nada

Belly Button in or out? in between?

What I miss: Drinking caffeine without a feeling of guilt. I will get half-decaf when I get a latte, and my doc said its okay, but I can't help but wonder if the little man can feel it.
What I am looking forward to: A few weekend trips we have coming up and my appointment on Friday to get to talk with my doctor more (and take the dreaded glucose tolerance test).

Weekly Wisdom: Don't sweat the small stuff.

7 months and he's a Squash!

2010-04-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

You are seven months pregnant and your baby is now the size of a Squash.

Baby’s energy is surging, thanks to the formation of white fat deposits beneath the skin. (Have those kicks and jabs to the ribs tipped you off yet?) Baby is also settling into sleep and waking cycles, though -- as you’ve also probably noticed -- they don’t necessarily coincide with your own. Also this month, all five senses are finally functional, and the brain and nervous system are going through major developments.

His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is getting bigger to accommodate his growing brain — which is busy developing billions of neurons. Every day, about 200 milligrams of calcium is deposited in your baby's skeleton, which is now hardening. With this rapid growth, it's no surprise that your baby's nutritional needs reach their peak during this trimester.

Another drool-inducing item

2010-04-22T13:48:00.000-07:00

How adorable is this diaper bag? It looks like a fantastic purse with all the great amenities of a diaper bag ... not to mention it matches the stroller we registered for!

Why does Gap have to carry such great maternity clothes and accessories?

28 weeks and into the final trimester

2010-04-20T13:23:00.000-07:00

How far along? 28 weeks

Maternity clothes? I can still wear a lot of my non-maternity clothes, but am definitely feeling the need to purchase more maternity clothes as everything beginning to ride up over the belly.
Stretch marks? Nope
Sleep: Could be better. The discomfort is setting in and I get uncomfortable more quickly.
Best moment this week: My mom's reaction when the little man kicked her hand on my belly. Too funny!
Movement: So much! I can't believe how much he moves around now, and all day long! And he is getting so strong, its beginning to hurt when he digs his little knees and elbows into my belly.
Food cravings: Everything, especially sweets ... but could use a good Thai dinner.
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: I think the exhaustion is beginning to set in again. I get so tired after doing anything and it's making it hard to stay motivated at work during the day.

Labor Signs: Besides the occassional BH contraction, nothing.

Belly Button in or out? I think my belly button is growing a belly of its own!

What I miss: Being able to be comfortable in one position for more than five minutes. I feel like I am always shifting and moving to get comfortable.
What I am looking forward to: Snuggling up with this little man!

Weekly Wisdom: Make time for a nap on the weekends. They are even more refreshing than a whole night's sleep.

Milestones: We are officially in the third and final trimester! Only 12 weeks, give or take, to go! (holy crap!)

This is getting to be one big eggplant!

2010-04-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

You are 28 weeks and your baby is the size of an eggplant.

Baby's lungs are mature enough that, if born right now, he has a pretty good chance of surviving (with help from medical technology). His skin is still pretty wrinkly (one byproduct of living in amniotic fluid) but will smoothen as fat continues to deposit.

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can open and close his eyes, which now sport lashes. This movement is more of a reflexive blink than a deliberate opening and closing.

How cool is this?

2010-04-17T09:20:00.000-07:00

I just drooled over this stroller! Isn't this the coolest stroller you have ever seen? I want it, but um ... for the price ... I don't think I would be able to convince Brian we need it before our child is a teenager. I did enter the giveaway to maybe win one, I think that's the only shot I've got!

It's the Teutonia T-links infant stroller and car seat, and it even converts into a toddler stroller. There is even the cool little bassinet attachment too! I mean, the Uppa and Bugaboo strollers are pretty awesome, but I think this one takes the cake! And you can even design your own!

And is it weird that I spent an hour on their Web site, http://www.teutoniausa.com/?

You know you're back in the Pacific Northwest when ...

2010-04-15T09:41:00.000-07:00

A bald eagle flies right in front of your car when you are sitting in the middle of the city. It was a pretty cool way to be welcomed back on my first day at the new job.

27 weeks and growing by the day!

2010-04-14T19:09:00.000-07:00

How far along? 27 weeks

Maternity clothes? Yes, please! I haven't bought a ton of maternity clothes, but have been finding great items that fit over this ever-growing belly.
Stretch marks? Keeping my fingers crossed that I avoid these all together.
Sleep: Sucks! I toss and turn all night, can't sleep on my back AT ALL, and when I try to sleep on my side I feel like I get front-heavy and put too much weight on my belly. I am trying out a body pillow but I toss and turn so much, it might get annoying.

Best moment this week: Meeting our new doctor and loving her! Knowing everything is falling in place for this little guy's arrival.

Movement: This boy is a dancer! He is always moving around in there.
Food cravings: FOOD! Doesn't matter what it is. I am always hungry.

Gender: Boy
Labor Signs: I might be feeling some Braxton Hicks contractions, but nothing of any concern.
Belly Button in or out? This is growing by the day too.

What I miss: After our long move and packing/unpacking, I would have given anything for a nice glass of wine or an ice cold beer.

What I am looking forward to: Starting my 2-week appointments and getting so close to meeting this guy!

Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy every day.

Milestones: We made it back to Washington, got set up with our new doctor and new insurance, and got confirmation that our baby is growing great with a strong heartbeat. (and even though it might look like it, I haven't gained a TON of weight)

Road Trip, Day 5

2010-04-13T20:53:00.000-07:00

Start: Walla Walla, WA

End: Graham, WA

Distance: 293 miles

Drive time: 5 hours, 3 minutes

With such a short, leisure drive, we decided to stay with Brian's parents for a while and have Easter breakfast before we hit the road. After spending a little more time with Rick and Jan, we packed up the dogs one last time and headed on our final drive.

As we headed out of town, we passed our favorite winery, L'Ecole No 41. My mouth just waters at the thought of their wines, and I can't wait to take a trip back to that winery and drink my fair share. The winery is in the old school house and the bar top in the tasting room is made of chalkboards so you can rate all the wines as you drink them.

There isn't a whole lot else to say about this drive. We have made this drive so many times, that it's hard to even say much about it. We only hit one hiccup, when a tree decided to fall across the freeway we were on and made for quite the lengthy back-up. Luckily it was cleared after about 30 minutes and we were on the move again.

Once we got home, we didn't even think of unpacking. The couch was calling our names so we just ate, relaxed and fell asleep very early.

The next day, I was finally able to see the "fantastic" packing job that Brian and Rick did. Luckily, I haven't noticed anything to be broken, and only a few scratches on some of the furniture.

We had that truck unloaded and returned to the rental store by noon. Do you think we were beyond ready to be done with the move?

Home, sweet home!

Road Trip, Day 4

2010-04-13T20:16:00.000-07:00

Start: Twin Falls, ID

End: Walla Walla, WA

Distance: 379 miles

Drive time: 6 hours, 36 minutes

Ahhh ... the joy of a drive less than 10 hours long! And the easiest part of it all. This day flew by as we cruised along through Idaho, Oregon and into our final state, Washington! The weather was perfect, the scenery was beautiful and it was a great welcoming back home.

The day started a little rough, when the roads were a little frozen and so was our windshield wiper fluid. We had to stop and clean the windows and refill on fluid before we could get on the road. After that, though, we cruised along.

Brian got a little nostalgic as we entered his old stomping grounds, sharing stories from his past. It was pretty cute, I must say.
What was even better, was we made it into Walla Walla by noon! We were able to shower, change and actually do something besides sit all day.
Since Brian hadn't been back home since Christmas of 2006, there was quite a lot that had changed about the town so we cruised around and took in the new sights and even did a little shopping downtown, with Rick and Jan leading the tour. We also stopped to visit a friend of Brian's, Marshall, in the rehabilitation center recovering from a terrible work accident in December.
Jan had invited a few family friends over for dinner and we were finally able to eat a home cooked meal and relax in the comfort of a home.
Oh, and I don't even have to say it, but the dogs were estatic to be out of the car and running free in the Hall's yard.

Road Trip, Day 3

2010-04-11T21:30:00.000-07:00

Start: Fort Collins, CO

End: Twin Falls, ID

Distance: 635 miles

Drive time: 11 hours, 30 minutes

Oh how quickly things can change. We knew driving into Fort Collins the night before that there were some weather issues in Wyoming, but figured they would clear by morning. Just to be safe, we got an extra couple hours of sleep so we could start our drive after sunrise. We ate some breakfast, checked the weather report (the roads were looking a little crummy so the boys contemplated changing our route and heading north to Montana, but we stayed with our plan and figured we would see how the roads were) and hit the road.

Let's just say there is a reason there aren't many pictures from this part of the drive. I was too nervous to pick up the camera. There were snow drifts, white-outs and black ice. But we drove on, slowly, but still making progress ... until Laramie, Wyoming. Why did our progress stop there? Well because the road that we were taking over the Rockies was closed, had been for two days. The town was FULL of semi trucks waiting for the pass to open, and one even told us it would be another two days before they opened it. We were about to turn around and brave the roads back to Fort Collins when, just our luck, the pass opened!!! And even luckier, the roads over the pass were better than the ones we had already driven leading up to the pass.
It was smooth sailing from there with a quick stop in Rawlins, Wyoming and then again in Ogden, Utah.

I decided to speed ahead of the guys to get to Ogden early and check out this dog park I found online the day before. I figured these dogs of mine could use to run free for a little while and pick up their spirits a little. It was right off the freeway, so I called and got directions from my sister and found it easily. The bad part is that the park was closed! (But don't tell Brian because he gave me a hard time for wanting to stop so I told him and Rick that the dogs had a great time running free at the park. shhh!) We ran around in the nearby fields instead, but it just wasn't the same ... my poor dogs.

Once we got back on the road, Brian and Rick were way ahead of me so I didn't catch up to them again until at the hotel in Twin Falls. One thing I learned is how comforting it is just seeing that big yellow moving truck either ahead or behind me. It got a little lonely out there on the open road, just me and the dogs.

Our hotel that night wasn't as nice as the last, even the dogs didn't want to stay. But at that point, it didn't matter because we were exhausted.

Road Trip, Day 2

2010-04-11T18:41:00.000-07:00

Start: Mustang, OK
End: Fort Collins, CO
Distance: 749 miles
Drive time: 12 hours, 7 minutes

Our first real day of the trip. Going into the drive we knew we weren't in for anything too exciting scenery-wise ... our drive was taking us through Northwestern Oklahoma and all the way across Kansas. Let me tell you, I would be okay with not visiting Kansas again. Not only is it probably the world's flattest area, but it smells ... bad.

We made it out on the road at about 6:30 a.m. (after Brian and Rick attempted to fit even more stuff in our already full moving truck, with only a partial success ... don't get me started). After a quick stop at Braums for some breakfast and coffee, we were on the open road. We were making great time, and then the wind hit.

We were getting pushed around the road like a tumbleweed by the 50 mile per hour side-winds, which made the truck's power max out at about 45 mph. We were sure it was going to set us way back on our progress, and Brian about had a fit battling the gale force winds, but before we knew it the winds subsided and we were making our way into Colorado. The view definitely improved with the sunset over the Rockies, even though it began to rain and then sleet as we made it to our final spot for the night.

Oh, and can I say how strange it is to start the day with the temperature right about 80 degrees at 6 a.m. and watch it fall all the way to 30 degrees by 6 p.m.? We definitely weren't dressed (nor did we pack) for winter weather. I guess we forgot not everywhere in the country has Texas weather.

And as for the dogs ... the drive started with smiles and wagging tails, but about half-way through the day they started to get a little annoyed with the confinement and I was definitely getting some unhappy looks. They sure were happy when we checked into the hotel and they claimed their bed.

Road Trip, Day 1

2010-04-08T21:12:00.000-07:00

Start: Carrollton, TX

End: Mustang, OK

Distance: 202 miles

Drive time: 3 hours, 15 minutes

The day we had been waiting for was finally here ... moving day! I had to head to work for a few hours to finish up some last things, and Brian had to give his final resignation to work so things were already starting a little later than we planned. After a little miscommunication at the moving truck office, Brian and Rick drove away with a 26-foot truck, as apposed to the 22-foot we had ordered. I guess this worked out in our favor since we ended up filling it to the edge, and even had to leave a few things behind. (I won't say its because we have a lot of stuff ... because honestly we don't ... but I won't blame it on those who packed the truck either. We all have our own opinions on this one.)

We said goodbye to our first home together (but not before taking the first of many photos from our trip) and hit the road ... Brian and Rick in the moving truck, and me and the dogs in the Yukon ... and headed North toward Oklahoma City. The drive went smoothly, the dogs were excited to be going somewhere, and we were all wide-eyed and bushy tailed to be beginning our trip.

After a quick stop in Gainsville, some major leg cramps for Rick and a short walk for the dogs. we arrived in Mustang at about 9:45 p.m. We were staying at Brian's grandpa's old house and had a few things we needed to attempt to add to the moving truck. Since the house was empty and without power, we all slept on the floor in the living room, knowing we would be up before sunrise to get an early start on the first long day of the trip.

All in all, the trip was going smoothly. Let's hope this trend continued ...

First day of Spring in Texas

2010-03-30T12:13:00.001-07:00

Yup ... we finished of a crazy, snowy winter with a blizzard and about 2 inches of snow on the first day of Spring. Is it weird to say I'm excited to get back to Washington where the weather is a little more predictable?

These veggie are getting big!

2010-03-29T08:13:00.000-07:00

You are 25 weeks and your baby is the size of an Eggplant!

Let your spouse put an ear to your belly -- he might be able to pick up baby's heartbeat (no stethoscope required). Inside the womb, the formation of tiny capillaries is giving baby a healthy pink glow. Baby's also soaking up your antibodies, getting the immune system ready for life outside the womb. Eyes are forming, and baby will soon perfect the blink -- perfect for batting those freshly grown lashes.

24 weeks!

2010-03-25T07:11:00.000-07:00

How far along? 24 weeks
Maternity clothes? Yes, please! I have the best mom who bought me the cutest pair of maternity jeans and a dress.
Stretch marks? No thank you.
Sleep: Great lately! Now that I have gotten rid of this head cold, I am sleeping like a baby.
Best moment this week: Playing games with this wild baby in my belly. He kicks, I poke at him, he kicks back. It's so fun to interact.
Movement: TONS!
Food cravings: Just food in general. I could eat all day long if you let me.
Gender: A little man
Pregnancy Symptoms: The one thing I have been noticing lately is my ankles are getting wabbly. I think I need to put my heels away for a while.
Labor Signs: Nada
Belly Button in or out? It's growing, that's all I can say.
What I miss: Honestly? Nothing lately. I am really enjoying this experience and feel great!
What I am looking forward to: Meeting our new doctor in Washington and getting to see our little man on the ultrasound again.
Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy every day! Life is too short and full of changes to take anything for granted.

This scares me

2010-03-17T11:05:00.001-07:00

What scares me so much about this is that as my belly gets bigger, and summer nears, I will be afraid to sport a 2-piece swim suit, or any tight shirt for that matter, because I have a feeling my belly button is going in the direction of looking like this ...

Someone, please say something to me if I suddenly lose all sense of self-awareness and start to resemble Michael Kors.

23 weeks

2010-03-16T15:19:00.000-07:00

We are still a papaya this week, but here's a fun little fact:

Baby's little face is fully formed...minus the baby fat, of course. The next task at hand for baby: sprouting two teeny-tiny nipples!

And I will be taking a pass this week on my bump photos. I know I know, you are probably so disappointed. I am fighting a head cold and just can't get myself to take the pictures. I promise to be back in full force next week.

It's official!

2010-03-08T16:23:00.000-08:00

Our house is on the market and we are moving back to Washington!
To finally answer the questions about all of Brian's "business" trips to Washington and my lack of details in certain departments ... Brian has gotten a job in Washington and will begin working in mid April. What will he be doing? He is making a MAJOR career change and will be working the streets ... as a police officer! We both think that this is going to be a great change for him, not to mention our future.
We are looking forward to living closer to all of our family and friends, although, our time in Texas has been a great experience. There will definitely be days when I will miss the 70 degree weather in December.
As for me, I am hoping to find a job in the Tacoma area before we move, otherwise I might be hanging out in Texas for a couple extra weeks to make a little extra money during the transition process. Or ... better yet ... if we could just find someone who wants to buy our house, that will relieve a lot of pressure. (any interested buyers out there?)
But I am so excited to finally be able to share this great news with everyone. 2010 is going to be quite the year of change, with the move and the baby. Let's just hope everything goes smoothly and we can settle into our new life in Washington in no time.

22 week check-in

2010-03-08T16:10:00.000-08:00

How far along? 22 weeks
Maternity clothes? Bought a new big girl bra and a few new shirts, but nothing specifically maternity. I love that current styles are long shirts and loose blouses. I could use some more jeans and pants though.
Stretch marks? Nope
Sleep: Once I fall asleep, I have been sleeping great, but this little guy likes to play the drums on my inside as soon as I settle into bed.
Best moment this week: As weird as it might sound, catching people looking at my belly and then smiling at me. It just reminds me how lucky I am to get to experience this.
Movement: A whole lot of movin' and shakin' going on.
Food cravings: Ice cream cones and milkshakes.
Gender: Boy
Labor Signs: No thanks!
Belly Button in or out? Oye...let's not talk about it.

What I miss: Laying on my stomach. I have caught myself going to lay down on my stomach and get halfway there before I remember.
What I am looking forward to: My 4 week appointment this week. I love hearing that little heartbeat and getting more details from the doctor on how my progression is going. It will also be interesting to see how much weight I have gained since my belly has tripled in size.
Weekly Wisdom: Just smile...life is good.
Milestones: Lots of movement, lots of growth and lots of things going on in other aspects of life. (more to come on this soon)

No more weekly fruit?

2010-03-08T15:04:00.000-08:00

22 weeks and we are on to only once a month fruit updates!

You are 5 months and your baby is now the size of a Papaya!
Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop.

Because they are so cute...

2010-03-03T08:34:00.000-08:00

That's all.

21 week check-in

2010-03-02T16:00:00.000-08:00

How far along? 21 weeks
Maternity clothes? Officially sporting a hot pair of Habitual maternity jeans, and looking forward to adding more cute clothes soon.
Stretch marks? Lathering on the Palmer's stretch mark cream daily
Sleep: It's beginning to get more difficult to get comfortable. I might need a belly support soon.
Best moment this week: (see next entry)
Movement: This boy can kick! I have been getting some great movement these days and love that Brian can feel them too.
Food cravings: Everything! My appetite is back in full force.
Gender: Boy
Pregnancy symptoms: I can feel some major stretching going on inside as my belly grows by the day.
Labor Signs: Nope
Belly Button in or out? Um...I'm afraid to report that it's beginning to pop.
What I miss: This week I have been missing sushi. I would love a big plate of the Las Vegas rolls from Ra right about now.
What I am looking forward to: Picking out all of our little man's nursery stuff and other goodies!
Weekly Wisdom: Be proud, not offended, when you catch people staring at your belly. (It has started happening quite frequently)
Milestones: Feeling a lot of movement and passing the halfway point with no troubles. Here's to another smooth trimester.

A banana?!?!

2010-03-01T10:03:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure I believe these anymore...how do you go from a canteloupe to a banana? nonetheless...

This week your baby is the size of a banana.
Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for hydration and nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies are most interested in tastes they've already experienced through amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you want your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch.

Our little man is movin' and shakin'

2010-02-25T10:36:00.000-08:00

We officially felt our first real movement from our little guy the other night. I was lounging on the couch after a busy day and eating dinner, looking at baby stuff online. I felt something a little strange in my belly, and definitely different than anything before.
A few weeks ago I was concentrating so hard on trying to feel movement, but realized when he is ready in there, he will let me know and give me a little kick.
Well, sure enough, I look down and see a little thump from the insides. I couldn't believe it. But what makes it even better is Brian was sitting right next to me and put his hand on my belly and as soon as he did that, our little guy kicked three times. I think he's a daddy's boy already.
I can't wait for more movin' and shakin' in there!

We're halfway there!

2010-02-23T15:39:00.000-08:00

How far along? 20 weeks

Maternity clothes? Woo! After being defeated by ebay many times, I finally won a pair of maternity jeans! I got them for quite the deal so I might have to try for another pair.
Stretch marks? My skin is definitely stretching, but no stretch marks.
Sleep: Getting plenty, but could sleep all day.
Best moment this week: Hitting the halfway point and feeling great.
Movement: Still waiting for that definite feeling, but he's definitely moving in there.

Food cravings: Thai food! I would give anything for some extra spicy red curry right about now.

Gender: Boy! but still a nameless one.
Pregnancy symptoms: definite acne, and those pesky headaches returned for a couple days.

Labor Signs: no thanks!
Belly Button in or out? the center of the cinnamon roll is rising...and I'm not too excited about it.
What I miss: Fitting into all my old clothes.

What I am looking forward to: Feeling that first real kick/punch.

Weekly Wisdom:
Milestones:

20 weeks

2010-02-23T15:27:00.000-08:00

20 weeks and our baby is the size of a Cantaloupe.

Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, speaking of the diaper situation... baby's genitals are now fully formed!

19 weeks and we've gone tropical!

2010-02-23T15:24:00.000-08:00

19 weeks and baby Hall is a Mango!

Vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil and dead skin cells (yum) now coats baby's skin, shielding it from the amniotic fluid. (Picture yourself after a nine-month bath, and the need for protection makes sense.) You might actually get to see the vernix at birth, especially if baby is premature.