Around Here...

Scenes from this fall...

I'm still here.  Still happy and full (of turkey and baby).  Still excited to meet this little one but so very much enjoying these last few days of being pregnant.  

And happy, happy, happy, happy, happy.

Sugar and Spice

Today, Jon and I had another amazing opportunity to get a sneak peak at our next baby.

It's a girl!!!

She is delicate and tiny and beautiful.

We didn't get too many photos BUT we did get a video...what a treat to be able to watch her kick and stretch again and again.

I have to admit - the idea of raising a little girl used to scared me.  But I am 100%, totally, completely confident that SHE was planned to join this little family since before time began.  And that is thrilling to me.

I'm glad we have these next few months to settle in, she and I.  Months of morse code taps and rolls.  Months to dream and pray and invest in her future and into her sweet, gentle spirit.

So excited...again.

This has really been an amazing couple months.  Every time I turn around there is something else to be thankful for, something else plainly displaying God's absolute faithfulness.  It is, without a doubt, the start of a completely new season and I am so grateful.  

Adding to my already overflowing joy, we found out back in the beginning of April that our family will be enlarging by one...a new baby will be here in December.  

Jon and I are THRILLED and almost too excited to wait.  (But we will.)

We already have a sense of this one's spirit - and trust me, having joined me in the final push of my masters program, busy work meetings, and another pending move, I'm confident that this one will be able to find peace in the center of a hurricane.

I can't wait for Owen to have a friend, a sibling, to grow with and I'm so looking forward to experiencing the incredible joy of parenthood with another precious little one.

No worries if you can't figure our first picture of 2.O out...but trust me.  There's a baby waving at you.  And a tiny little foot sticking up. 

Four Happy Months

Monday marked four months of Owen.  

Four months ago I had absolutely no concept in my mind of what life would be like today.  I couldn't even start to picture it.  I had no reason to because life was so full and happy where it was, in that moment.  

Happily, I'm still living in the moment and life is still full and happy.  How could it not be when you have a little smooshy face like that to love on!

So here's to the quarter-year-old boy...

• Whose smile is the biggest open mouth he can manage.  
  
• Who is still trying on laughs for size - before he picks the one that fits best.  
  
• Whose angry squeal only makes me laugh, which makes him squeal louder (o vicious cycle!). 
  
• Who is fascinated by his kicking and picking up ability - especially with the red block.
  
• Whose hand, or pacifier, or bib, or shirt, or...ohmygoshpeople just put something in my mouth NOW! (we're drowning in drool...need some?)
  
• Who thinks that other baby in the mirror is so dang funny.
  
• Who makes me think that nothing is better than watching those sleepy eyes look up at me until they slowly close for the night.
  

Happy Owen.  

PS:  All Mac owners know about Command-Shift-4 to capture a select screen shot...right?  Seriously...know it, use it, love it.

PPS:  Is it just me or is Owen's favorite blanket growing with him?

Three Happy Months!

Owen is three months old today - one quarter of a year.  He's my happy, smiling, giggling boy and every day with him is a charm.  He still loves his walks, being outside, the birds above his crib, daddy's funny faces and voices, eating and bright colors.  

Three months with you has flown by Owen - we love you!

Just as it's too bad that babies don't come with instruction manuals it's also a shame that they can't talk.  Just think, you could spend those long hours at night chatting and getting to know one another (So, do you prefer the Mozart or Bach tune playing from your mobile?  Well mother, I find I'm more of a Bach man.) 

Then again, that might ruin the fun of finding out who this tiny person is little by little.  Some people say they figured out certain characteristics of their child before they were born.  My friend Erin's daughter was a wild child in the womb, flipping and flapping and whirling about in her watery home.  On dry land she's the same way - performing in one long, constant dance.  

I guess I can see the same continuity of character in Owen.  In the womb Owen (or Whn) was mellow.  He kindly let me sleep at night and his movements seemed more like exploration than exercise.  Now that he's here, unrestricted by all my other organs, he definitely moves around more.  When he's excited his arms and legs pump and kick like he's running a marathon.  But he is still quite the calm and laid back baby.  He loves to observe and early on he would silently stare at a particularly attractive toy for 20 or 30 minutes, happily sticking his tongue out as he is prone to do when in deep concentration. 

This past week Jon and I noticed that lately when we put on the carrier and go for a walk he cranes his neck to see past our chests, or throws his head back to watch the trees and sky.  So today I sat him face out.  He met with world with quiet, wide eyes - taking in everything in perfect stillness.  I managed to clip all of his fingernails (no small task - can I get a 'what-what!' from all the moms!) while he was distracted by nature.  

Ah babies - I'll never get over how wonderful they are - each one that I know is tiny gem slowly turning and exposing another facet to surprise you.  

Oh my heart is so full

Owen Henry Phillips

Came 

February 1st, 2009

at 10:23 pm

After a long, wonderful day.

I love, love, love, love, love him.

D-Day.

Today is the due date.   

It appears to be passing by without any significant changes (i.e. I'm not in labor yet) but it's been a great, productive morning anyway.  So great that I celebrated by making some beautiful (frozen) waffles with raspberries.  Look at the size of these suckers!

The baby has permission to take as long as he needs (within reason) so I'm focusing on staying busy and have been happily puttering around running errands and getting things ready.  Thanks to all my lovely friends who sent me emails saying they were thinking of me today!  :)

On unrelated news - I recently donated my wedding dress to a breast cancer research society.  It served me well and hopefully will make someone else happy too.  I found a couple of pictures that I took of it before I shipped it out.  Little details that made me happy.  

And speaking of happy news...Jon and I found some GREAT pediatricians yesterday evening.  We talked with them for almost an hour and loved their philosophy and general feel.  It is so nice to have that taken care of...hopefully we'll be seeing them again in short order!

The Mobile

I finished, mostly at least, the birds for over the baby's crib.  These are the ones that my wonderful friends helped me to make at my baby shower in early January.  I think they came out wonderfully.  Here are a few pictures.

It would probably look better with white walls - but the colors are much more vivid in person.

This is the view the baby will have.

A close-up of the craftsmanship!  (I have great friends!)

I even hung a few over the changing table so he'll have something to look at during diaper changes.  

I'm not sure how I feel about the ribbon hangers yet - I might switch to clear fishing line...but I want to give it a few days to see.  

Does he know?

Over the past week or so, our cat - Cassanova - has been spending a lot of time in our apartment. This is unusual because he normally spends his days and evenings with our landlady upstairs. While we've been happy to share him, his sudden clinginess and need for attention has me wondering... does he know that the baby is about to be born?


To give you a little background, my little buddy Cass predates even Emily in my life. He is the little orphan kitty that chewed through my screen door ages ago to claim me as his owner. This guy is famous for warming even the most ardently anti-cat people... fully affectionate and easy going... he is perhaps the perfect cat. And I'm not just saying that because he's mine... this statement has been made by numerous friends and neighbors.

So I've been wondering if his sudden re-emergence on my lap has something to do with a sense that our son will be arriving soon. Perhaps he's staking his claim to pre-eminence as being 'first', or maybe it's something else.


Either way, he'll always be 'first-cat'... there is no doubt about that.

What we did on New Years

We had some great fun on New Years.  After piling all our gifts in the crib for weeks, we spent our chilly New Years (the one without heat cuz the power was out) unpacking our crib.  As you can see, we put up a 'cat tent' to prevent our furry friends from getting too close.  It's been successful so far.  

But before we did, we went out baby seat shopping and picked up this sweet seat...

So we're almost all set for him to come... just need to get a last few things together.

Look out for more soon... we're off blogging hiatus and getting excited for the birth of our son!

- JP

 

Week 29... and growing...

We are at the end of week 29 and now in the home stretch... just 10 weeks to go!  Let's see how he's doing...

Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

Well, that's the truth.  Even I'm feeling him on a daily basis now as he kicks and moves around... especially in the morning.  He doesn't appear to have much patience when it comes to getting fed.  

Hmmm, I wonder where he gets that from.

Sorry, no familiar weight equivalent for you guys today... it's either cuz I'm lazing or can't find anything - I can't tell.

have a great weekend!  - JP

Week 28... and growing...

Our little guy is growing more and more.  You can see from Em's pictures that she's begun showing much more over the past few weeks.  

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 blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world. (pregnancy.com)

Again, not so sure what a Chinese cabbage is, or how it is significantly different from any other cabbage.  But let's try to view this in 'man' terms...

At 2 1/4 lbs, he weighs about as much as a baseball bat...

Pretty surprising to me too, and pretty cool. - JP

Enjoy the moment

Sometimes you need to take time out to feel the baby stttrrettcching.

How often do you get to do that, huh?

Weekend Update

This weekend Jon and I visited the PA side of the family and got hit with a double whammy of parties. On Sunday my mom, sister, and sister-in-law took me to Cafe Chocolate in Lititz. We had taken Trish there for her baby shower last year. It's awesome.

All four of us got the house salad (with oranges, artichoke hearts, and walnuts with a dark chocolate raspberry viniagrette) so that we'd have room for this...

Yeah...that's only a dark chocolate fondu. See how the white bowl of chocolate seems to glow with all the chocolatey goodness?

Trish and I shared a pot of organic chocolate-mint tea. It was nice and minty with a hint of chocolate smell - really nice.

Afterwards we went back to my sister's house where the guys were supposed to be babysitting. It was a surprise baby shower!!!!!!!!

What do you get when you add.....

With this....

And this... (notice the hockey player...baby's first collectable Flyers figure)

One wonderful, overwhemling family baby shower. It was quite a day.

Bye Bye Belly Button

You are slowly disappearing, everyday you get a little shallower. But you know what?

I'm not sad about losing you. Because I get a baby in return.

(Plus...I know you'll be back. And then I will have two belly buttons for the price of one. )

Not a bad deal.

... and growing... week 27

This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with his legs extended. He's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and perhaps even sucking his fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if he were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother him, so just relax and enjoy the tickle. (pregnancy.com)

Since this is already a week late... I'm not going to give you 'guys' a sports analogy for a head of cauliflower. You'll just have to be imaginative.

All I will say is... 3rd trimester, here we come!!!! 

Brain Waves

I took a short rest yesterday and now I'm missing a little piece of my brain.

I'm assuming it dropped out of my ear so I just wanted to stick it back in.  Maybe with a little tissue as a plug so it wouldn't fall out again.

I looked everywhere around the couch but couldn't find it anywhere.

My only other thought is that the baby took the opportunity to sneak up there and steal a chunk for himself.

If he comes out with an excellent memory I'll know where mine went.

The Crib Arrival

Next in our TMI baby series... if you are not a grandmother, nana, or aunt that cares, feel free to skip this post - remember people (a.k.a. Gbenga), this is how we update far flung family.

Some generous neighbors gave us this crib. 

It was broken down, but after a good washing Jon and I figured out to put it together.  Pretty handy people, right?

 

The crib has a little sticker that identifies it as being made by Thomas Edison's woodworking company.  I'm guessing it was made in the 30's or 40's - don't worry - I've already looked up places to get the paint tested for lead and will make sure it complies with regulations. 

Yay for vintage!  Thanks Fosters!

...and growing...

Our little guy keeps growing and kicking.  Here's a summarization of where he's at for Week 24...

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long, he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon. (pregnancy.com)

Some of my male friends have found it difficult to image the child based upon the vegetable references.  So here's another example to help you out.  This week he's about the length of a football.  

He's obviously not as round as one but hopefully this will help you guys out. 

I've been busy with classes this semester and the winter hockey season is about to start (that's my league, not the NHL).  Work has been incredibly busy and productive lately as well.  I say all this as an excuse for my laxness in posting.  Though Emily has been carrying the torch admirably.  

She's an amazing lady.  Wonderful!

- JP