Houston, we have a...

Thumb sucker!!!!

Lincoln has recently REALLY discovered his hands and more specifically his thumb!! You can hear him across the room sucking on and smacking on his thumb. I caught him in action this afternoon! I'm not sure how I feel about this new discovery. I am wondering if it's a phase or here to stay!

We are still alive and kicking over here but this time of the year is just pure craziness in my line of work. Craziness I tell you! Throw that in the mix with being a rookie mom of a 3.5 month old and its just simply chaos. Overall, I have enjoyed being back at work. By Wednesday afternoon I am wishing I could be back at home with Lincoln but Thursday and Friday go quickly and soon I am back at home with him. He has adjusted well to life with the babysitter. He has pretty much stuck to his routine and is sleeping about 11 hours a night with 9 of those being consecutive hours of sleep. I did take him to the doctor today due to him being a baby geyser with his spit up. He has always spit up but it has peaked in the last 2 weeks or so and he seems upset by it. So, after talking to the nurse I decided to take him in to see if he had acid reflux. Dr. A said she thinks he is a borderline/mild case but she feels medicine would help him. So, we started the meds tonight and we will see where that takes us. We are hoping for no more days of outfit changes for Lincoln AND the babysitter. Bless her heart and his.

Today is a big day for us! Our wonderful nephew, Carter, turns 4 years old AND our new little niece Lucy Mae Calhoun will be born! This weekend we will back in the car for a road trip to south Arkansas to meet this new precious baby! This will be our 5th niece all of which are two years and younger!! How fun is that? I can't wait to write more about both of these topics later today! Lincoln will once again by the BIG cousin!

One proud big cousin.

This past weekend we packed our bags and headed to St. Louis for my cousin's high school graduation. My cousin, Jordan, has been like a little sister to me the last (almost) 18 years. I remember when my aunt was pregnant with her and we sat around the kitchen table looking through name books. Jordan was the first baby that I fed a bottle to and rocked to sleep. I'll never forget that experience. She was a junior bridesmaid in my wedding and the one I told I was pregnant to before me parents! I could not be any prouder of the awesome gal she has become. Cory and Lincoln had some boy time at the hotel while I attended the graduation ceremony on Saturday morning. Jordan attends a high school outside St. Louis with approximately 450 in her class of 2010. She was #2 in her class ranking! Isn't that incredible? She is a stellar soccer player as well and plans play soccer in college! I am not sure I can say enough good things about my sweet cousin. This was also her firs time to meet Lincoln which is a fun memory as well.

Here are a few pictures of us through the years as well as some pictures from the weekend.

Congrats Jordan!! I could not be any prouder of you. You have an incredible work ethic on the field and in the classroom. Your laid back spirit will serve you well as you progress through the stresses of "growing up." You have always been so near and dear to my heart and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for you in the coming years. I love you.

She has done it again!

My amazingly talented and beautiful friend at Lindsey Faith Photography took some awesome shots of Lincoln for his three month birthday!

Here is a sneak peak:

Head on over to this post to see the rest of the a-mazing pictures!

Three Months Old.

These month-by-month posts are coming WAY to quickly! Lincoln turned the big three months today. About a week ago, I put him in the swing for a nap as a newborn-looking baby and after he woke up and I got him out he looked like a "big" baby and not the tiny newborn anymore. It was so crazy. I didn't say anything to Cory about it but that evening when he got home and he was holding him he said "Wow, buddy you have grown since I saw you at lunch!" Crazy.

Three Month Stats:

• He weighs 13 pounds, 3 ounces and I'm estimating he is about 24 inches long now.
• He is still eating about 4.5 ounces every three hours during the day.
• He is maintaining a pretty consistent 9 hours of consecutive sleep at nights. We put him to bed about 7:30 and wake him back up around 9:30 for his last bottle and he sleeps till about 6:30 a.m.
• His hair is starting to look really WHITE to me. I think he has no hope of being a brunette and being a blonde is definitely in his future! Or at least I hope!
• He is wearing size two diapers and 50% 0-3 month clothing and 50% 3-6 month clothing.
• He now loves his bouncy seat the best!
• He started laughing around 2.5 months. He laughs the most when you run your mouth starting around his leg up his stomach and end at his mouth. He just giggles.
• He is still being swaddled to sleep but I think he is transitioning out of wanting to be swaddled soon. Not sure yet.
• He loves being outside, having books read to him with a very animated voice and when people talk to him.
• His naps have improved greatly over the last week or two -- taking about three solid hour to two hour naps each day.
• He pretty much stays awake from 3:30 p.m. till he goes to bed at 7:30; dropping his evening nap.
• He rolled over at 9 weeks for the first time and started rolling over more around 11 weeks, but doesn't do it every time we put him on his tummy. He is picky about when he wants to roll over. I did catch in on video about a week ago and hope to upload and post soon.
  

Lincoln, this month you giggled for the first time and I have never heard a sweeter sound. I pray you always find joy in the things of life you pursue. That you always find a way to smile at each day you face. That you go out of your way to smile at the older lady in line at walmart to make her day. And that you always smile at your mom and dad!

We love you, M and D.

Our own Story.

Today, our niece Story Leigh O'Dell arrived weighing in at 7 lb, 12 oz with a length of 19 3/4 inches. She is beautiful and I can hardly wait to meet her in person. Unfortunately that won't be for another 9 weeks or so! I'll be DYING by then to hold her. With Story's birth, Lincoln is officially the "big cousin." And Lincoln now has five cousins with his sixth cousin due in just a month! Too fun. Here is a picture of her from today.

Happy Birthday, Story! We can hardly wait to meet you and give you lots of love! Lincoln wants to play with you and show you all his cool toys when you visit in July! He already noticed that your lovie and his lovie are just alike -- except yours has pink polka dots and his has blue. He says you have good taste! You are joining a very fun family with a great big brother and adorable sisters. We know you have many fun days in store for you.
Love -- Uncle Cory, Juie and Big Cousin Lincoln.

-----------------------------------------------------

My return to work today went well. I was greeted with this on the wall behind my desk.

Talk about making a girl feel good about herself! This sign accompanied several warm greetings and hugs. And this was all from only one of the three schools that I serve! I didn't make it to the other two today. I definitely felt loved. When I dropped Lincoln off this morning, I felt some anxiety rising but I just kept praying to overcome it. It was raining so that made it even more difficult to get him in the house. It was quite comical. No tears were shed the entire day. (Go me!) By about 1:30 or 2:00 in the afternoon I started missing him a lot and I was itching for the day to be over so I could go pick him up. He got a glowing report and did great today! I think he enjoys the other 2 babies that are there. She said he just stares at them.

Once I picked him up, we headed to the eye doctor. Yes, the eye doctor AGAIN. Two weeks ago I thought I had pink eye and went to the eye doc. Come to find out I had a piece of metal in my eye! I know, crazy! Not sure where that came from! Well, this morning I woke up with the same feeling but with a lesser intensity. So back to the eye doctor I went. And come to find out another piece "surfaced" from where the first piece was removed. He thinks that it was the other part of it and was embedded below and took the last two weeks to come to the surface. So he removed that part and assured me that he feels he got it all. I hope so! That has been a very painful experience. So, for those of you who thought of me and prayed for me -- thank you! They were felt and appreciated.

And in 4 weeks, or 20 work days, I'll be back off to enjoy the summer months with the little man that I love so much.

Happy Monday!!

My heart is full.

My first Mother's Day is coming to a close and my heart is so full. I remember this time last year I was not pregnant yet and it was a tough day for me. Coming off the miscarriage a couple of months before and having a brief taste of motherhood left me wanting a baby more than ever. Little did I know that God had great plans in store for me.

It was May 30, 2009 that I found out I was pregnant with Lincoln. Although I was elated that day, I had no clue how much joy motherhood would truly bring me 9 months later. Although I was pregnant for nine months and felt his kicks often, I never throughout the whole process was able to truly wrap my brain around the fact that I had a baby in my stomach. Although I was in shock the night my water broke walking back to my bedroom from the kitchen eating a piece of cheese, I wasn't able to wrap my brain around the fact that soon I would hold a baby in my arms instead of my womb. Even as I pushed for 2 hours on February 11, 2010, I wasn't able to truly understand the miracle that was about to take place before my very eyes. But at 3:52 p.m. I got it. I understood.

O how I felt a huge feeling of relieve. He was here safe and sound. And at that moment, I laid my head back on the table and rested. But that rest only lasted for a moment. For soon after that brief pause and moment of peace in my heart, where I felt like my world stopped -- my new life began. Since that moment, I have not stopped caring for him, holding him, loving him, rocking to him, bathing him and kissing him. What a sweet moment of peace and relieve God laid on my heart before my world turned upside down. I'll never forget that moment. It was as if God said "Rest child in this moment because until this child leaves your home in 18 years, you will not rest, you will be his caretaker" And I raised my head off the bed and I've never looked back.

Today, we dedicated Lincoln at church. We pledged to bring up Lincoln in the love and admonition of the Lord. What a challenge! About 40 plus babies were dedicated at our church. Isn't that awesome? It was a wonderful experience. Our church runs like a well-oiled machine and the childcare staff and program is amazing. And Lincoln looked like a stud, of course, for the big event.

It was a wonderful day spent with our beautiful son and my servant-hearted and loving husband. He never ceases to amaze me. His unconditional love for me overwhelms me. He has not wavered throughout the whole process of becoming a dad. He is always serving us and working hard to help our home run smoothly. You can find him changing a diaper, washing a bottle, laying on the floor playing with Lincoln or running to the store for baby supplies without even a hint of a complaint. He works hard outside the home and inside the home. What a blessing he has been to me.

I am grateful for an amazing first Mother's Day. I look forward to many more Mother's Day with these two boys.

And this is why today, my heart is full.

Trial Run.

Today we had a trial run with Lincoln's childcare. I did not want the first time I dropped him off to be my first day back to work. Instead, we made it today while I ran errands, got a pedicure (orange, of course) and got a haircut. Surprisingly, I feel like I did a good job! I was anxious as I drove away but soon decided to make it a positive day and had happy thoughts. I thought of him tons while I was gone but knew he was having a great time! I have a great feeling about the lady keeping him and know she is doing a great job. She gave Lincoln a glowing report and is excited about keeping him over the next four weeks.

I know you were all dying to see my orange toes and here they are! They look stark orange in this picture but I promise they are a fun and pretty spring orange! So cute. There is a place in town that does an AWESOME pedicure. I would say $35 for an hour and 20 minute pedicure is totally worth it. Last time I went there was February 1st and I was very large and in charge ready to have Lincoln. The lady kept asking me where my baby was. Too funny.

And here I am with my little man sportin' my new hairdo!

Lincoln and I plan to live it up for my last week of maternity leave. As much as you can live it up with an almost 3 month old. Then back to the grind for four weeks and two days --but who is counting? O, me! Not only will I be back to work a week from today but also my new niece, Story Leigh, will be born! It will be a fun distraction to keep my thoughts off being back at work!