Es una nina!

At least, that's what the silly balloon said that Kevan got my parents to announce that WE ARE HAVING A GIRL!! Hooray!

I had an ultrasound last week, and everything looks perfect. My sister got to go with me, since Kevan has just started his new job and couldn't go. It was so cool to have her there! She had never seen an ultrasound before, and I act like I've never seen an ultrasound before, and we both just loved seeing that little one wave and kick her little feet at us. It was awesome. The baby is just 16 weeks in utero an already looks like a perfect little person. God's handiwork is amazing!

I have to admit, I was a little surprised over the girl news. I couldn't even tell you why, except that I guess I just pictured in my mind having 2 boys (although I didn't realize how much I had pictured that - I thought I was totally prepared for a girl!). It took a bit for the news to feel "real" and now I can't stop thinking pink!! How fun to have one of each! I can't wait for her to get here!! Although Kevan has been pretty vocal about the baby being a boy, he sure switched gears quickly! Not for one second has he shown surprise over the news of a little girl - just total excitement (and a little fear - he knows how strong that cuteness factor can be!). We went back to the restaurant where I told him I was pregnant to celebrate the news of a healthy little girl. What a great day!

Ok, kinda funny. Just realized I'm wearing the same shirt here that I wore to Ezekiel's ultrasound. You know you're having your babies close when you wear the same shirt to their ultrasounds!

Sharing the news with Grandma and Papa

One happy daddy!

Babyhood

The last few months have proven that I face the same challenge that probably every mom since the beginning of time has struggled with: The balance between getting things done and loving on my baby. I am constantly torn between just wanting to play with Ezekiel and needing (?) to take care of other responsibilities. I know the reality is I can't play with him all day, because stuff does need to get done, but I also know he won't be a baby forever. And I don't want to miss it doing laundry and checking e-mail and putting in my hours for work. I have discovered, though, that some of this stuff (like laundry and dishes) we can do together. (Well, sort of. He plays happily at my feet while I fold and wash and talk to him and try to keep him from eating the dish soap.)

Tonight, as I laid him down to sleep, I held him just a bit longer enjoying the sweetness of our quiet time together. He was completely relaxed in my arms, head against my shoulder, one arm draped around my neck. I could smell his Johnson & Johnson curls and feel his eye lashes brush against my lips. And I wondered "How many more years will he let me do this? Or months? How much longer will I be able to hold him without protests and wiggles?" I don't know, but these are the moments I want to remember. This is the stuff I want his babyhood made up of. I kiss his cheek a thousand times and wonder if he knows, behind those closed eyes, how tremendously loved he is.

Curls

Ezekiel is cracking us up with his random curly hair. I just had to take some pictures of it for those of you who haven't seen him in a while (Kris, did it look like this at your wedding?). It is so funny to me that his hair is getting curlier, since Kevan and I both have straight hair. But it's so cute, who really cares where it comes from? Nana (Kevan's mom) has made us promise not to cut it until she sees him again (less than 2 weeks!).

5 down, lots more to go...

Kevan and I celebrated our fifth anniversary on the 22nd - and left Ezekiel with Aunt Beckah while we headed to the beach for the weekend. It was an awesome time, and good to be together for a couple days without a baby. Thank you, Rebekah, for giving us that gift! I did not worry about Ezekiel one bit while he was in your care.

Dinner Friday night at our favorite little Italian place in Brea

Saturday night at 21 Oceanfront in Newport. YUMMY food and amazing service. We were spoiled!

Who knew we had the secret talent for kite flying? I'm telling you, we looked like professionals out there.

Standing!

Ezekiel has figured out how to pull himself up - and he won't stay down! I went to get him up from his nap the other day, and this is how I found him. Standing tall and so proud of himself. What a funny thing to see your baby transistion to the next stage - and how suddenly he becomes less of a baby.

All that standing wore him out! Kevan went to tuck Ezekiel into bed one night, and I found both of them sacked out on our bed sound asleep. So sweet.

Happy Father's Day!

A tribute to Ezekiel's dad:

I don't know who is more blessed - Ezekiel for having such a great dad, or me for having such a wonderful husband. What I have learned, though, is that the two things really go hand in hand. A really good dad sure makes for an awesome husband. Kevan is not just Ezekiel's daddy, but he is my partner in parenting and consistently shows me that we are in this together. One of the things that Kevan is best at is being a part of the day-to-day activities that make up Ezekiel's life. He takes every opportunity to feed him, rock him, play with him (boy, do they play!), talk to him about "man" stuff, and help him fall asleep... he even changes diapers without being asked! From the beginning, Kevan has been an active participant in this parenting adventure and it has blessed me more than he knows. I told him this morning "I knew you would be a good dad, but I don't think I ever imagined this." So, here's to my amazing husband, and Ezekiel's wonderful daddy!


Loving on our newborn son


Showing off his little guy at an ECCU picnic


Snuggle time


Ezekiel already looks up to his daddy so much


Kevan is excited that he gets to feed Ezekiel more now that he is using a bottle!


Teaching Ezekiel how to change a tire!

To my own dad: You have set the stage for what it means to be a godly and loving father. We could not ask for a better example of fathering in our family!

And, to the other great dads in my life, my 3 brothers: Who knew you guys could be so darn loving? You are all such wonderful dads and I am so proud of you!

Wonderful all over again

So perfect, so wonderful - how could we not want more?

Kevan and I are thrilled to share that we are expecting another little miracle in December. I am so totally content with our son and the family God has already given us, yet elated that He would grant us the gift of life once again. So, here we go again... and I can hardly wait!

In case you're wondering, here is how Kevan and I both responded when we learned I was pregnant:

Me (In my head): YAY! YAY!.....I think. Oh, wait. I hope Kevan is as happy. Of course he'll be happy. Why wouldn't he be happy! YAY! Am I crazy??!

Kevan (Not so quietly, in the middle of a restaurant, right after I broke the news): YESSSS!!! (hands in the air) That is AWESOME!!! What are we going to name him? Ezekiel, you're going to have a brother! Another little boy!! YESS!!!

Me: (In my head) Well, I guess he's happy! (Out loud): Um, honey, you know it could be a girl, right?!

Kevan (barely listening and still doing the dance of joy in his seat): Yeah, I don't think so. Yesss!!!

Happy and Healthy

Hey, you drink from a bottle, too!


Ezekiel loves being outside. A kid after my own heart. Last Friday we went to a birhday party for his little friend at church and they had this dolphin swing in the yard. My son sat in that thing for over an hour smiling and swinging away. This week, we got to go to the little petting zoo at the Orange County fair grounds and see all these adorable little animals. Everything is cuter as a baby, you know. Even goats are cute when they are just wee little things!

In other news, Ezekiel had his 9-month check-up today. At our doctor's office, they have 2 doors to enter. One says "sick" and one says "well." So far we have only had to go in the "sick" door once and, it turns out, mama was being overly cautious and we may as well have used the "well" door! Every time we walk through that "well" door I have this overwhelming gratitude for my son's health. I know that is not every parent's experience, and I do not take it for granted. Ezekiel is growing stronger every day and doing everything a 9-month-old little boy should do (even his unconventional crawl is considered normal!). He is almost 21 lbs and gaining weight just as he should. Thank you, Lord, for keeping us healthy!

Summer Fun

Well, almost summer. Yesterday sure felt like summer! After getting some work done in the morning, we headed down to the beach for a day of fun with Heidi and Kate. Kate got a new red wagon and the babies LOVED riding and playing in it. What a hit! They played in the sand, kicked their feet in the water, and looked at all the cool sandcastles - and it was a perfect day. It's so fun to watch Ezekiel play now. He is so purposeful about the toys he picks out and he finds all different ways to entertain himself. It's fun to take him to the beach now and know that I'm not the only one really enjoying it! He really loves being outside and playing somewhere new.

Sweet dreams, little one

The past couple of weeks have brought new sleep challenges for our little man. He's been pretty good about just falling asleep when he is tired, but that is certainly changing as he realizes how much fun he has when he's awake! At first it was just trouble at naptimes, and then recently it became a not-so-fun experience at bedtime too. Since becoming a mom, I firmly believe that good sleep is a huge factor in the "happy baby" equation. So, I busted out every book I've read on sleep training and talked to several professional mothers for a refresher on how to handle the "I'm not tired (but I really am)" baby. Our conclusion: A wonderful combination of what so many experts shared with us - and it seems to be working! I won't bore you with all the details, but we are working hard to establish a predictable nap and bedtime routine, which includes lots of cuddle time and a quiet atmosphere as we prepare him for bed. Now, instead of crying and desperately trying to escape from his prison (I mean, crib) when we lay him down, he will usually just fall asleep or lay in there talking for a while before drifting off. Sometimes he'll even whine a little, but I'll take that over crying any day. Added bonus: I am really enjoying the calm and peaceful time we are spending together as we prepare him for bed. It really makes for a much better evening all around. Here's to hoping this keeps up!


Random addition: Ezekiel enjoying his broccoli at dinner tonight

Mother's Day Reality

"When I hold him exhausted from the day's work and the disturbed nights, there is a deep relief and pleasure at finding myself able to give - again and again - what's needed: bottles, changes, attention. I've at last found the good mother within me, the ability to put someone else's needs before my own, and he's so beautiful it feels like a privilege." - Jean Radford, Balancing Acts

I guess you could say my first Mother's Day was not all I had imagined. The unraveling of expectations began on Friday night when Kevan came home from work having trouble breathing. His cold had worsened over the last couple of days, and we headed off to urgent care to figure out what was going on. A few hours and 2 antibiotics later, we knew he was battling pneumonia. Saturday morning started at 5 a.m. when my son decided he was done sleeping (what happened to 7 or 8?!). The problem was, I had just started sleeping, since poor Kevan was up coughing all night. By 10 a.m. I knew for sure that our weekend plans to go to Santa Barbara and stay at a bed and breakfast were long gone. Fighting off dissapointment, I called the B&B to cancel only to be reminded that our room was non refundable. Awesome. (Let me tell you, I was determined to get my money's worth anyway, so I day dreamed about that trip all day- right down to the scrumptious breakfast we were supposed to have this morning!). The rest of the day was spent trying to get our son to nap, worrying that he was getting sick too, and disinfecting everything I could get my hands on.

So... today was not all that much different. Although Ezekiel slept much better (yay!) and was happy all day (a great gift to mama), there were still sheets and towels to wash, toys to clean, and plenty to do to help Kevan. When my husband woke up this morning, still feeling half dead, he gave me the biggest hug he could muster and said "Happy Mother's Day. I'm so sorry I couldn't do anything big." I told him the first thing that came to my mind "I've already recieved the greatest gift - our beautiful son." And that is when I realized that this was the best Mother's Day ever. It is the first time I've celebrated the day as a MOTHER. It is not about the cards (though they are wonderful), or the acknowlegement (boy, is it nice to hear), or even the sentimental gifts. It is about recognizing the gift that was given to me on August 23, and how every day I am privileged to rise above myself and take care of him - when it's easy and when it's really not so fun at all. It's about seeing who I really am when I look at him, and striving to better myself so that I can be the kind of mother I want to be. Even though we couldn't even go to church, I had a wonderful time of devotion this morning reading Titus 2 and was reminded of qualities I want to exemplify as a mom. (Did you know self-control is mentioned 4 times in that chapter?)

By 2 o'clock today, I was pretty sure I am coming down with whatever Kevan is fighting and neither one of us had much energy to take care of our baby. We managed to tag team and keep him happy and playing, and I just kept looking at him thinking about how amazing he is. Big ol' eyes, little curls sticking out like wings from his sweaty head, and his spontaneous giggling fits - how could I love anything more? We ended the day watching the video of when our son was born, and I relished in hearing his first cry one more time. That is when motherhood began for me, and today was just one more day I was blessed to be Ezekiel's mama.

A day in the life...

A smattering of fun pictures from the past couple of weeks:


Looking like such a big (sleepy!) boy flying home from WA (no, he didn't sit there when we were in the air!)


Looking cool with Papa at Isaac's baseball game


Elway and Ezekiel hanging out together


"Look what Seth let me borrow!"


It's COOL to match with dad!




Working on my crawl and...


Practicing my push ups!


Now you can see my TWO teeth!




"Oh, mom, you are so funny!"

Traveling Man

We have been so busy the past few weeks! After Doheny, Ezekiel and I went to Arizona for 3 days to represent our family at Kevan's cousin's wedding (daddy had to work). We had a great time, and Ezekiel loved every minute of all the hugs, kisses, attention and little presents. We are so blessed to have such a wonderful family who loves him so much. The wedding was BEAUTIFUL and Ezekiel slept happily in his Grandma Anna's arms for most of the reception. He got his second wind later on, though, and even danced with mama for a while! Congratulations Jessica and Blaine! What a perfect day - and the best is yet to come!

We got home from Arizona just in time to repack and head to WA for my dear friend Kristen's wedding. We spent 5 days helping Kris with last minute details and laughing it up with the other bridesmaids. 6 girls, 2 babies, and one 2 bedroom apartment. What a crazy, wonderful, and memorable time we had! It was such a joy to share those final "single" days with Kris and to get to know her other friends even better. And the wedding day.... ahhhh.... it was amazing. Everything I had ever pictured for Kris. Truly like a dream come true. I enjoyed every minute of watching my sweet friend beam from head to toe and relish in the beauty of her wedding day.

So, here are some pictures from our trip to AZ, with more from WA coming soon!


Ezekiel with his 2nd cousin Russell - think they're related?








Hanging out in the "Bronco" room at Uncle Gary's!