The Night Watches

Hard to believe a week ago we were at the hospital having this little baby! Goad has been so kind to us this week, as we have begun to make the adjustment from one child to two. I have been snapping away, trying to capture sweet moments.... a friend of mine said to me, "New life is so amazing isn't it?" I couldn't agree more! Special visit from Hemi and Siena ! Lots of time spent in mommy and daddy's arms... I love this stage when they are just a big ball of baby! First bath at home. He didn't like it too much, until I washed his hair! Daddy reading to his two boys... Notice Tyler's concerned look... he still doesn't know what to make of Jack's little cry. Shaggy, pre -hair cut!!! I didn't realize how long it had gotten until I saw this picture! Pre - cry face... Sweet little angle baby... My parents came for a visit... Tyler seems so massive to me now. Every time I change his diaper, I think, man... he is too big to be wearing diapers!!! Wha...

Wow, so where to begin.... so this is our son Jackson Chase... isn't he cute? So, we took a lot of photos of the day/weekend... Here is the day in a nutshell.. with photos to capture what it was all like! We called the hospital at 8 am to make sure they had a room for me, and were given the green light to come! Tyler was already at my parents house- we left him there the night before. We realized we needed to drop off a movie at Blockbuster, and grab something to eat, so by the time we got to the hospital, it was 9:30... ooopps ! We got the last room open too! We got checked in, waited in the waiting room for a little, and finally got taken to our room, by the best nurse Karen. Room #3! So they hooked me up to the heartbeat monitor, and contraction monitor. Our room seemed to be missing a lot of supplies, so getting everything in place took a while. We also had a broken contraction monitor, so after 45 minutes of them recording nothing, we got one that worked! At this point ...

We are home!!! What a weekend it has been. God was so faithful to us during the delivery of our boy and in the days following at the hospital. I have TONS of great photos to post, but seeng as we just got home, and are pretty tired, so I am stealing one from Brit's blog that she took the night he was born to appease the many requests! Hopefully, tomorrow I will post a little more detailed version of the details of his birthday and a whole bunch of pictures! Thank you for your prayers and love. We are so blessed!

So Tali was ready to push for 40 minutes before the doctor arrived. Once he got there, she only had to push for 25 minutes before Jack was born at 6:29 PM. He weighed 8 pounds and 2 ounces. Both Jack and Tali are doing well. He had his first bath and his first shots. They should both be coming home from the hospital on Sunday.

Well, Tali went from 4 cm to 10 cm in 1 hour! Unbelievable! She has starting pushing and baby Jack should be here within the hour. Stay tuned...

Hello everyone! I just wanted to update everyone on Tali's progress. She went to the hospital at 9am this morning and was induced at noon. They broke her water at about 2pm and she has been progressing slowly but surely. I will post later with an update.

It is a strange feeling, knowing that today is the day my son will be born. Yet it is not altogether unlike the birth of Tyler, in that I was able to get ready and calmly gather all the things we needed before any pain began. This morning, as I was having a quiet time, I was reminded of something I had read some time ago in Beside Still Waters. "This how to deal with God. Praise Him before you are delivered. Praise Him for what is coming. Adore Him for what He is going to do. I do not think there is a sweeter song in God's ear than the song of one who blesses Him for grace that has not yet been tasted, who blessed Him for answers that have not been received. The Praise for past gratitude is sweet, but even sweeter is the praise of full confidence that all will be well. Therefore, take down your harps from the willows an sing a song of Zion ( Ps . 137:2,4) "Though the fig tree many not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive fail, and the fiel...

This morning, my love and I were reflecting on the past year, and how much we have to be grateful for. It truly has been a blessed year, full of God's mercy and kindness to us. We cannot believe that in 24 hours, we will be at the hospital getting ready to welcome Jack! So much has happened in this past year. It has been a full rich year. It is hard to believe that last year, Tyler wasn't even walking at the annual Turkey Day Football Game. It was a cold, wet, and gray day! So glad today is nicer! We are heading to the game this morning and then to my folks house to celebrate the day with my family. Here is a shot from a year ago!!! So today, we are so grateful for so many things: our Salvation, our sons, our family, our health, our home, our richly blessed lives, our friends {the private rooms at Shady Grove :) }.... I could go on and on.... God has just been lavishly good to us, and we did not want to miss the opportunity to give Him glory and honor for all the many gifts w...

We made it!!! The private rooms, or the "hotel rooms" as Dr. Tran called them today, are officially opened!!! I am so happy! I did a "we made it dance" this morning!!! The Lord is so kind. I really am just so grateful to God that we get to experience the new rooms. For any mom who has shared a room, or even heard about it, you know what a blessing it will be to have a private room and bathroom! So onto the exciting progress report! Well, all these uncomfortable contractions are doing something! I am 3 cm dilated and 70% effaced. Little boy has dropped a little more and is at -2 station. I gained a little more weight this time- so I am at the 22 lb mark. So happy about that. As Dr. Tran took a look at my massive tummy, she was "warning" me that she thinks he will be a big baby. Since he has already dropped and is not all scrunched up, the fact that I am as big as I am, to her, meant at least 8 lbs! I guess we will know that soon enough! She ...

So we are officially more pregnant than I have ever been, and that is not saying much! I am just over the 38 week marker, but a whopping 6 days more pregnant than I was with Tyler! I have hit the point in pregnancy, where I am ready to be done! I keep thinking... I am all done having a belly, I just want to have a baby!!! So the reason it is 6 days and counting, is that my Dr. has signed me up to be induced this Friday at 9 am if I have not had him before then! So there is an end in sight, and it is a week before I am due! When the whole idea of me getting induced came up, Jordan and I were just talking about the optimal day of the week for him to be born on- really what would be most convenient for us, and our families... not like we have a choice in the matter... or did we??? So we decided to give my Dr. a call and just see what he thought about that idea! To my great surprise, he agreed to do it! After an amusing conversation with Dr. A on the phone, I sat in shock that I might get ...

So I have changed the title of these updates from "Baby Update" to "Baby Watch." This is for two reasons.... The first, is that since Tyler was born 19 days early, my body may want to do something similar, and that means baby could come any time. The second reason, is that I "feel" ready to go.... but that is completely subjective! No real reasons other than those... and that I am now full term, so he can come now with little to no risks! So, at my Dr. appointment today, we found that I am still 2 cm, and 50% effaced. Even after our wonderful shopping weekend, no changes to report! With only 6 days to go until these rooms are open for patients.... Yeah, I think I want to wait..... Although I really do feel like I am "done being pregnant" and everyday, I feel like I am getting bigger and bigger and more uncomfortable... We will know the date God has chosen for us soon enough! It is a strange thing, knowing that you could have your baby any day, s...

One day until this baby is considered "full-term".... which brings me one day closer to my due date, one day closer to holding my new little son in my arms.... one day closer to not being pregnant anymore.... I keep wondering when he will come. Will he be super early like Tyler, or days late? Will we have another holiday baby or will I get to eat Thanksgiving dinner with family? The past few days, I "feel" like the baby has dropped... although my torso is so short, I don't imagine it looks like he is very much lower than before. I sure can breath easier these days, except when I have just carried Tyler up the stairs, and that leaves me panting for breath! I do feel like he has gotten lower... so watching me walking has become quite amusing to see. Unfortunately, I waddle... yep, I catch myself doing it all the time! It is amusing at times how even the simplest tasks become difficult during the last weeks of pregnancy... putting on shoes and socks, painting you...

We love fall, and have had a blast the past week enjoying some of the fun things it has to offer!...The Annual Harvest Party at CLC ... lots of baby showers... and lots and lots of leaves to play in... Our little race car driver.... The first thing he saw and wanted to play with were the balloons! Playing basketball with daddy.... The annual family picture! My friend D had a baby shower thrown for her this past Saturday! Although we a about a month apart... she has her babies super early, so we just might see each other in the hospital! No, that is NOT a basketball under my shirt.... After the shower, I came home to find this .... So I grabbed my camera and began taking as many photos as I could... so fun! Last year, Tyler didn't like being put into the pile of leaves. This year, he followed daddy right in! Our attempt at a family picture... It was hard catching this photo. I kept getting a hand or a shot full of leaves!!! I love this boy... He gives my belly kisses sometimes.... T...