Smith Family Updates

Miracle's Birthday

2012-02-07T07:59:00.001-06:00

So far this month has been very exciting. We celebrated Miracle's birthday Sunday by having a small gathering of family and friends at TRex Restaurant at The Legends. Miracle was so excited about it until we stepped into the door and he saw the big dinosaur. Things didn't go well for him after that. He wasn't super excited about being there around all the big moving dinosaurs and sounds. All of the other kids enjoyed it and Miracle really had fun when we let him dig in the sand for fossils after dinner.

Kristen was able to set up her requested rotating schedule so finally we might be able to have some consistency there. We have been able to plan several weeks in advance but every week her schedule is different. However, each week of the month going forward is different but each month will be the same as the next. So that's a bit better.

I have been getting mentally prepared for the house projects I will be doing this year. I still need to finish our master bathroom. I got the floor tiled but next I will redo the ceiling and paint the walls. I may or may not do something with the shower this year. Depends on how much time and money we have available. (ie. very unlikely). Hopefully I can finish the walls and ceiling faster than I finished the floor. I have also made a decision to get a few more golf games in this year and to take Chloe fishing this summer. With her being old enough now we can start doing a lot more of that kind of stuff.

January

2012-01-28T09:54:00.000-06:00

The new year has been awesome for our family.

Kristen has somewhat settled into her new position at Children's Mercy as a Nurse Practitioner. She is still orienting but enjoys what she is doing.

Chloe started preschool again and is learning so much. She very much enjoys going and is excited when she gets done. She is still doing soccer after preschool on Tuesdays and dance on Tuesday nights. It was parents night last week. Unfortunately Kristen had to work but I was able to be there with the two boys. Chloe does a great job! She stays very close to her teacher and watches everything she does so she can mimic and follow along.

Miracle is turning into a little man. He started potty training. We didn't push him too hard but he went a couple times at daycare and was interested and wanting to go. He has the occasional accident but mostly due to us not staying on top of it. He even went poop in the toilet the other morning!

Brady has 4 teeth now. He is still the happiest little baby. He has started, however, to throw tiny temper tantrums. It's really funny to see him do it. When we say 'no' or take something away he flops face first onto the carpet and hides his face in his arms and cries for 3 seconds. Then he is done.

I am doing great. Still working for Electrotank and enjoy what I am doing. I stopped being a group life leader at the church (for 8th graders) because I felt like I was trying to take on too much. I now feel like I'm finally getting settled in and at a good pace. Things are going very smoothly and it's such a relief!

What a break!

2011-12-24T08:51:00.001-06:00

It's been crazy this year. Here's a few pictures to look at for now. I hope to start doing more updates so you all have a better idea what goes on in our insane lives.

Brady Smiles

2011-06-02T12:21:00.000-05:00

Smiles!

2011-04-19T21:46:00.001-05:00

Brady hasn't smiled a lot for me so this really made my day. Thank you brady for finally smiling for your daddy.

Crib time

2011-04-08T19:32:00.001-05:00

Brady isn't sleeping in his crib yet but we put him in for a bit tonight. He wasnt super excited about it.

Brady Ryan

2011-03-25T15:51:00.000-05:00

We are so happy to have Brady Ryan Smith home with us. He is just over 2 weeks old and doing great. Here are some pictures to look at since I don't have a lot of time to write.

Baby 2.0

2011-03-08T11:54:00.000-06:00

We are at the hospital now waiting on baby 2.0 to bless us with its presence. We do not know the gender yet. We came to the hospital at 6am this morning and Kristen had been having contractions since midnight or so. She got her epidural and is slowly getting closer to being able to push. More updates will come later.

Proud Daddy

2010-11-06T20:46:00.000-05:00

It makes me a very proud papa when I hear my daughter in her room after putting her in bed praying to God. She was saying "God, thank you for this day" and then i heard her say "God, please bless this offering". So I am sure she picks some of that up from church. :)

She is very good about wanting to pray before we eat (not letting us eat until we do) and we always pray before bedtime. She is growing up so fast. We have so much to be thankful for and I am glad that we are teaching her early that what we have isn't from anything we do but we always need to thank God for it.

On another note she went into our guest bedroom (that she calls "Steven's Room" ) and was playing. She comes in to my room and said "Daddy, its Christmas!" She gets me into the room and tells me she turned the radio on and its Christmas! Sure enough. It was playing Christmas music after she turned the radio on and she was very excited to hear it.

Our daughter has been through a phase where she pushes our patience. But its times like this when its all worth it and the slate is wiped clean.

Baby Progress

2010-11-02T12:28:00.000-05:00

Kristen has been feeling the baby move a lot. Every time I put my hand on her belly to try and feel the baby I never do. I have only felt the movement a few times. Seems to be very stubborn already. Weeee!!

We purchased our new family vehicle yesterday. We went with the 2011 Toyota Sienna. It is a fantastic vehicle and we are so blessed to be able to get this van. Chloe loves it and (as sad as it is to admit) I love driving it. I am sure the novelty will wear off but for now I am so happy to have it.

A New Smith!

2010-10-27T08:31:00.002-05:00

It has been a long time since I have posted. Our lives are crazy but I figured it was time to announce to the people that still keep an eye on the blog that we are having another baby! We are due at the beginning of March 2011. Kristen asked me to post the video we got from our sonogram. We aren't finding out the gender until our bundle of joy shows us him/her self.

I hope to post more updates to keep everybody a bit more informed of the goings on in our lives. We are in the process of getting a minivan. We sold my car a couple months ago and have been looking around to find the right van. We were pretty determined the choice was between a Honda Odyssey and a Toyota Sienna since those were the two best rated vans. We decided on the 2011 Toyota Sienna SE. We both really like it a lot.

Till next time. Please comment or send IM if you have anything you would like to see for next time.

Time with Chloe

2009-07-23T09:12:00.001-05:00

Kristen has been sick this week. That means that Chloe and I have gotten to spend a lot of time together. This post is being written from my phone because she won't let me use the computer without wanting to type her own post.

I haven't gotten enough work in but it helps me realize how important time with Chloe really is. We have had a blast playing together. I just hope K gets to feeling better so I don't get too far behind at work.

On the Run

Chloe Updates

2009-03-04T18:34:00.002-06:00

Chloe wrote quite a few of her latest achievements on her blog but I thought I would reiterate in grown up talk.

Kristen and I have been very excited about her latest developments. Its very sad to see how fast she is growing but very exciting that she is learning so much.

In the last couple weeks she has started crawling efficiently. She's still a little shaky but if you look away too long she can scoot right along. She can now crawl over to her toys and pull herself up to a stand.

She is doing very good eating and her bath and bedtime are so smooth. She is doing better at her naps and has given us a consistent hour and sometimes more.

Chloe and Aero have been interacting more. Aero is so calm even when Chloe crawls to her and pulls her hair. I think she likes the attention.

Chloe has also started saying "Uh Oh" quite often. She just fell from standing up at her toy and rolls over. Next thing I hear is "Uh Oh". It is so cute!

She started making kissy noises the last few days too. We are trying to teach her to blow kisses but she will mimic me when i make kissy noises at her.

That's all I have time for tonight. You all need to get over to see her as you can because everything is changing so much!

She's mobile!

2009-02-25T17:55:00.001-06:00

So Chloe learned how to crawl last weekend. Here is a video of her attempting to move. She does get a little ways and then figures out it is pretty fun to play with Aero's

From Videos

Bath Time

2009-02-18T08:35:00.003-06:00

We broke out the camera again. We got some pretty good photos of Chloe during bath time. She is such a poser. She really likes her bath time. We try to make it a fun event for all. She is so excited to have teeth that she loves brushing her teeth. I think she gets that from her mom.

We did some more bath-time hairdos too. There were quite a few neat ones. Not enough space here to post them all. You can see them in the web albums here.

Chloe found out that the baby in the mirror will kiss back when she kisses it. She spent a bit of time playing with that other baby.

Big Break

2009-02-17T20:49:00.002-06:00

I understand there was a very large break in the posts here. Things have been CRAZY!

Lots of new progressions. Chloe has started waving! She can almost crawl forward. She can scoot backwards across the room. She is also very hard to keep ahold of when she decides she wants something close to within her reach.

Here are some pictures from January

Family Christmas

2008-12-26T21:34:00.000-06:00

Hi all! I just wanted to put up some pictures that we took today. This is the first time we have gotten together with both babies. We are spending the Christmas weekend in Texas and had a couple days together with all of Kristen's family. Enjoy the pictures and check picasa web albums for more pictures.

Quick Picture

2008-11-26T10:01:00.000-06:00

I haven't updated in a while so I wanted to just post a picture and let you all know I am still here. Enjoy!

So Cool

2008-11-06T20:47:00.002-06:00

I love being a dad. Chloe and I were talking and playing some tonight and I put her down in her 'exersaucer' to let her play and wear down for our story and bedtime. I have been watching her figure out how to use the toys and buttons. She stares at something and then accidentally hits a button. It makes noise. The next minute or so is calculated and she really tries to figure out how to do it. She has bumped one button and stops and stares at the lights while it plays music.

The other cool thing I notice is that she has figured out what the pacifier is. I hooked it to a tether attached to her shirt. She has reached for it and grabbed the pacifier and almost figured out how to get it into her mouth. Before I had it tethered to her shirt she wouldn't stop chewing on her hand.

I love seeing her grow and learn. She is learning so fast and as much as it makes me sad it makes me very proud to be her father.

Sleeping Arrangements

2008-11-06T14:12:00.002-06:00

So we are working on new sleeping arrangements this week. Chloe has moved into her own room. Tuesday was the first night for this move. It worked out ok. We had a rough night leading up to bedtime though. Chloe cried quite a bit but she wasn't in a good mood most of the day so I think that was the cause. I got her to sleep around 11:00 or 11:30 and she slept in her own room the rest of the night. Kristen got home and could turn lights on and shower without worrying about waking her up. It was so nice to not have to tip-toe around.

Last night she did good too. We had a better evening. We had our bath, story and bottle and fell asleep about 10pm. I held her and rocked her for about 20 minutes to try to break a pattern I have been seeing. She had been falling asleep and waking up consistently 20 - 30 minutes later, eating another ounce or so of milk and falling asleep again for the rest of the night. Holding her got her past that so maybe that is what we are going to try again tonight.

Its a big step for us as a family so I thought I would share with you all. As much as it makes me happy that she is in her own room/crib it makes me sad that she is big enough to be moved away. What's next, college?

Philadelphia

2008-11-03T14:48:00.001-06:00

Chloe got really excited and was laughing with Grandma. I got a quick video and wanted to get that posted for you all to see. I will try and get more info and pictures from our trip up soon.

Pictures

2008-10-13T12:21:00.000-05:00

Long pause

2008-10-03T09:23:00.000-05:00

It has been a while since I posted last. Kristen went back to work and I have Chloe at night. Last week was fine but this week I think she has been testing me. We have had an interesting week. With work and school and Chloe there isn't much time left for updating the blog. Hopefully things will slow down so I can take a few minutes during the day to keep you all updated.

This picture was take a few days ago. Isnt she cute!?!

Pictures

2008-09-08T09:15:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to post some pictures that I we took over the last few weeks.

More Chloe!

2008-08-27T18:10:00.000-05:00

Chloe has been changing so much lately. It is very easy to get her to smile and laugh now. I love making her laugh. It makes my heart happy.

Kristen took a picture of her in her crib again. She is getting so much bigger. The first time we did that she was just a tiny little thing. Now she looks somewhat normal in the crib. However, Kristen decided it would be fun to put her in the laundry basket. She said that she didn't have an extra hand to get the laundry and Chloe upstairs. I think she just wanted to take pictures. I would have!

We hung up Chloe's bouncy chair. She doesn't quite know what to think yet. We don't want her in it too much because we don't want her head to flop around...but she is doing great holding it up. Probably 90% of the time she holds it still. The only time she wobbles is when she is tired.

She is starting to push up and support her own weight with her feet too. She likes to stand up and dance. (I say dance because she isn't strong enough to stay steady yet).

Chloe is also blowing bubbles all the time now! It's getting hard to keep her outfits drool-free.

That's about it for now. Sorry about not having a lot of posts lately. I wish I could do more. With school and work it seems like I barely have any time to see my girls.

Good Weekend

2008-08-18T08:12:00.000-05:00

Kristen and I had a good weekend with Chloe. Friday night we had a date for Kristen's birthday. Her friend watched Chloe for us. That night I took Chloe and let Kristen sleep. I fed Chloe using stored bottles. We ended up sleeping on the couch. I held her and rocked her until 11:30. I laid her down and she woek up by 11:45. I rocked her and read to her again and she fell asleep. I laid her down at 12:30 and she was up again by 1. So I fed her at the second time about 1:30. She finally fell asleep (we were on the couch downstairs at this time). I got some more olympic watching in and chloe slept well. In fact, she slept from 1:30 to 7 or so. Kristen slept great!

Then Saturday night Chloe fell asleep before midnight again and slept all night! Not sure what time she woke up in the morning but it was late enough that Kristen was VERY happy. Again last night she slept most of the night. Is this a pattern? Can we please have this continue!?!

Saturday we had pictures taken at Portrait Innovations. That is where the picture came from. It was a pretty good wait but we were ready to get out of there. We got a lot of stuff done at the house this weekend too. Yard mowed, trees trimmed, (some) wood chopped, flower beds weeded (a little). Sunday we got the child safety door-knob covers on, safety latches on the chemical cabinets, vacuumed, laundry and a lot more cleaning. Whew, long weekend!

Daddy's Little Girl

2008-08-15T08:47:00.001-05:00

Kristen put my favorite outfit on Chloe yesterday. :) It is very cute! "I'll always be daddy's little girl" I love that. Plus it is really cute with the flowers and matching pants.

We went to Michael's to get another basket for the changing table shelves. I couldn't resist. I was holding the baby, Kristen gave me the basket, Baby fits in basket...no brainer. It makes me wonder if we ever need swings and bumbo's and cribs and bassinets. Can't we just use baskets (and dresser drawers)? She doesn't look real happy though, does she? I will probably have to get some more 'baby in basket' pictures. When I get them, you will see them. Keep watching!

Baby Boxer

2008-08-14T13:49:00.001-05:00

I think we are raising a little boxer. Hook, Hook, Jab!

Just Pictures

2008-08-10T08:26:00.000-05:00

Baby is Fun!

2008-08-08T10:10:00.001-05:00

Wichita Trip

2008-08-05T16:38:00.001-05:00

Kristen, Chloe and I took a trip to Wichita this last weekend to visit our relatives and friends. We were able to introduce Grandpa, Grandma and Aunt Cathi to our new daughter.

Grandpa barely gave up Chloe long enough to snap some pictures of her with Grandma and Cathi. He was so happy to see her and hold her.

Grandpa just got out of the hospital this last week and moved to a rehabilitation center and we saw him there. Grandma is staying with him. Saturday Kristen and I joined them for Bingo. It was a fun and exciting time. The old people were yelling at each other! The girl calling out the numbers was calling them so fast I could barely keep up. I felt bad for the elders.

Gotta get back to work. Just thought I would give a quick update.

Shower and Baptism

2008-07-27T17:20:00.001-05:00

We had a busy weekend! Saturday Kristen and Michelle traveled to Topeka for a baby shower that my family hosted for her. I guess it was more of a Toddler shower. The clothes and toys were geared more towards slightly older kids. This was because already have so much for a baby but hardly anything for her when she gets older! It was wonderful seeing all the pictures from the party.

I went and met two of my brothers at my dad's farm. Dad has been very busy traveling to Wichita since my Grandpa's health hasn't been so good. My brother David has been taking care of the farm as often as he can. Keeping the grass mowed and make sure everything is where it is supposed to be. It's quite a job. James and I met him out there and got away from shower territory for a while. Then we went and ate with some of James' (and mine) friends in Overbrook. It was a good day. Dad met us back at the house when Kristen and I both got home. He stayed with us Saturday night.

Sunday was the baptism! Oh what an event this was! We got out of the house a little late and when we got to the church a friend had called and said "Are you sure your baptism is at 10:45? You are on the bulletin and it looks like you are supposed to be here at 5 tonight. And there is another family and baby already here." So I got really flustered and tried to figure out what was going on. Did I make a mistake and invite 50 people to the wrong time? I was sure I got an email telling me 10:45. Regardless of that it was clear that we were on the schedule for 5pm. So I talked to some very helpful ladies who went and talked to the staff doing the baptisms. Jeff Clinger was scheduled to do our baptism at 5 and was at the church in the morning. He agreed to go ahead and do our baptism immediately following the other family's baptism. I was so relieved and thankful that the church was willing to work around this. And thankful to the Meek family for not getting upset that they had to share their occasion. It took me a while to calm down after that. I was so scared that all my family was there and wouldn't get to see the baptism. It was my fault for not calling to confirm the time with the church staff.

After the baptism we had people over for sandwiches and visit at our house. It got so busy! I loved seeing everybody here. There were so many people but it was a blast. After I was able to settle down some it got better. People started eating and I calmed down.

Thank you to everybody that came to the baptism and everybody that came over. It was a wonderful day.

Jennifer Collins Charity Walk

2008-07-26T08:27:00.001-05:00

I haven't posted much lately. I switched jobs and we did just have a baby! School has been an interesting twist too. However, that isn't an excuse!

We went to Jennifer Collin's fund raising auction and walk yesterday. Kristen's mom came with us. It was a pretty good turnout! Today, Kristen, Michelle and Chloe are going to Topeka for another baby shower (actually a toddler shower) and I am meeting my brothers out at my dad's farm to do some cleanup and hang out.

I gotta run. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Laundry

2008-07-14T11:24:00.003-05:00

I knew that I would be doing more laundry once Chloe arrived. However, I never expected I would be doing this much! It turns out that my daughter likes to pee once we get the diaper off and get her cleaned up. Just about the time I reach for a new diaper here comes the flood. By no means am I upset about this. It is really cute and I know it will eventually stop. (Please let it eventually stop!). I just have to be prepared for it. We have moved the changing padS off of the end of the bed and on to the dresser. We have everything within reach (including extra onesies and extra changing pads). This has helped a lot. (on a side note: I flinch every time she sneezes while I change her because of an 'accident' after a bath one time)

So we have changing pads and onesies to wash (a lot). Plus washing the onesies she just wears all day. Then we get to wash the cloth diapers/burp rags we use. We have our clothes that we get to wash because of normal use plus Chloe accidents too.

This morning I got to wash our sheets because Chloe spit up. A LOT. Kristen was mad at me because I guess I bounced her around too much while changing her and her onesie in the feeding break. So I got to change the sheets and wash them.

Oh well! Every day is a new adventure. I still love being a daddy!

Don't Grow Up!

2008-07-12T11:15:00.004-05:00

So, I have been sitting here at my computer for a couple hours now with Chloe on my chest...just sleeping away. I haven't really been doing anything important ( I could be studying or working but instead was just watching Numb3rs and not wanting to wake up C!)

It makes me sad to think that she will soon be growing up and won't be able to lay down and fall asleep on my chest like this. I know that it is part of life and there will be good things then. I am jumping the gun a bit. I just love my little girl and don't want her to change! :(

However, I can't wait for her to be walking so we can play soccer and go fishing and do all the fun stuff that we can do together!

I really wish you all could see her now though. She had her arms up under her head like I do when I sleep. Now she is holding on to my necklace. :)

More mushy stuff to come. Trust me.

Chloe is amazing

2008-07-08T13:24:00.002-05:00

It is so amazing to watch Chloe figure out how all her muscles work. I can sit and watch her for hours. She makes the cutest faces and stretches and just is always moving and figuring things out. She has already perfected the move where she wiggles her arms out of the swaddle. It doesn't take her long either!

I knew that being a dad would be pretty cool. But I had no idea that I could feel this way. It is so much fun to watch her and play with her and even just hold her while she sleep (which she does a lot of!)

Baby is Great

2008-07-02T07:02:00.005-05:00

Chloe had her first doctor's appointment yesterday. They said she is doing fantastic. She is sleeping for 3 to 4 hour stretches at night. She has already gained weight back to her birth weight (plus 3 extra ounces). They said they want that by two weeks and she did it in one! That's my girl!

They checked her color and bones and all that and said she is fine. We are going back in 3 weeks for the 1 month checkup. I will be sure to post again after that one. Hopefully I won't wait that long to post again but who knows!

Things are really good around the house too. Other than me being tired and bit grumpy everything is fine. I have been busting my ass trying to keep things clean and picked up so Kristen doesn't feel like she has to. She will do all of the housework and take care of the baby if I would let her. So I make sure to have laundry going and vacuum often. Counters somewhat clean and attempt to keep the bedroom and living room picked up. Kristen's mom has been wonderful about helping out with that stuff and cooking for us. Her dad has been good about getting groceries and holding Chloe so Kristen can nap and get homework done.

The doctor said that Chloe is still in her calm stage and that starting next week she will be more fussy. Hopefully she won't be too bad. I am back working and Kristen's parents are leaving for Texas. So Kristen will be taking care of Chloe all by herself. Hopefully she will settle down and get rest now while her parents are here.

We took Chloe to get pictures taken Monday. She did so good! We had to drive to Independence but she was perfect in the car. Then when we got there she was calm and quiet and took great pictures. I wasn't too bad myself either. ;) Other than my daughter peeing on me a little it went great. :) Even that was pretty funny though. When they get the pictures posted I will publish a link here so all my "faithful blog followers" will be able to view them. (pending Kristen's approval).

Baby Picture Comparison

2008-06-28T08:45:00.001-05:00

I thought it would be cool to check out and see who Chloe looked like more. I found baby pictures of Kristen and I and put them side by side using photoshop. Definitely looks more like Kristen. She has her nose and her eyes. Her mouth, cheeks and fingers too! I think she got my hair though.

What do you think?

Fake Baby / Real Baby

2008-06-28T08:17:00.001-05:00

A while back I posted and entry that showed some pictures of the crib and swing. I got told that I shouldn't make it look like we already had our baby! ;) So I wanted to post this picture of the two side by side. Pretty close huh? It is pretty neat to see them so close to each other.

So special!

2008-06-25T15:03:00.001-05:00

We are sitting at the hospital now. Kristen's parents and my mom is here with us. We are resting and sitting around. So many tests have been done on the baby today. Our nurse has come in and took her temperature and heartrate a few times. Our pediatrician came in this morning and did a once over. We will go into the office for another visit in a week.

Then the picture lady came and we had Chloe changed into her cute outfit. Then we spent some time taking pictures. You can see them on the hospital website when we get discharged. There are some really cute pictures!

The hearing test lady came in and we had her hearing tested. She passed! One ear took a little longer than the other but the lady said that might just be because there is still fluid in there.

It's amazing how easy it is to get lost staring into her eyes. She is so little and so precious. I will never get tired of looking at her and playing with her fingers and holding her tight.

Enjoy the pictures and we will make sure to get some more pictures posted as we get time.

We will be at the hospital today and tonight and plan on heading home around noon tomorrow. We are open to visitors so come by if you want to see Chloe!

Settling Down

2008-06-24T20:38:00.006-05:00

All the guests have left and Kristen is attempting a second feeding. Then I get to change my first diaper. Ever!

I have uploaded pictures to our picasa web album so you call can see them there. I will continue to add more to that album and post a few select pictures here.

http://picasaweb.google.com/sms1980/ChloeMadelyneSmith

First picture!

2008-06-24T19:32:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to send a quick first picture of our new baby! Please welcome Chloe Madelyne Smith.

Two thirty

2008-06-24T14:33:00.000-05:00

Kristen has slept or almost slept all day. She isn't feeling any pain from the contractions but says she can tell when she is having them.

The baby's heart rate drops during the contractions which is normal I guess. The doctor and nurse have some concern about the irregularity of it though. The doctor has come in a few times and she says we can proceed normally so far.

So much better

2008-06-24T09:34:00.000-05:00

Kristen's water broke on its own this morning. The contractions were hurting kristen and they were so often that we had the epidural put in. SO MUCH BETTER! Kristen actually smiled after it was over.

So now things have calmed down. The doctor and nurses have said the baby is being stubborn. They are watching the heartbeat and contractions closely.

Hospital Update

2008-06-24T07:33:00.003-05:00

It was an early morning today. Kristen didn't get very much sleep at all last night. The cervidil did a number on her. She was able to relax after she took some sleep medicine and some pain med.

A note about the nurses.

The night nurse we had was awesome.

She introduced herself and asked my name and was very cordial when she first arrived.
She knew what she was doing. She told us everything she was doing and was very happy to explain more when we (I) asked questions.
She was very attentive to Kristen all night.

The day nurse started off on rocky ground with Kristen. Mornings are not Kristen's favorite time to be awake but the nurse did two things that we didn't like. Kristen is a nurse and knows the procedure they should follow. Anyway, the nurse was better the last time she came in. Hopefully she will make an effort and will 'win over' Kristen again rather than be the thing we didn't like about the hospital.

More updates later

At the hospital

2008-06-23T21:40:00.002-05:00

We are at the hospital now. The picture is of the baby monitor. I will attempt to give regular updates. If I stop then either k is upset with me for spending so much time on my phone....OR.... The baby is coming.

At the hospital

2008-06-23T21:13:00.000-05:00

Nothing changed

2008-06-23T17:32:00.001-05:00

So far nothing with the plan has changed. I just wanted to throw this quick update since I didn't get to it earlier today.

24 Hours!

2008-06-23T08:16:00.003-05:00

In 24 hours (if she doesn't come sooner) we are going to be starting the medicine that will start the labor process!

We are getting nervous now!

I will be going to the hospital after my test tonight. Wish me luck and please keep us in your prayers throughout this week.

Twitter Status

2008-06-22T15:46:00.001-05:00

I am not sure what is going on with my twitter updates. But if you are interested you can find me on twitter here.

Thank you

2008-06-22T12:49:00.001-05:00

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that reads this blog. It took a bit for me to get started but the more I hear that people have been reading it the more fun I have posting. All of you have helped make this fun for me. If you want me to keep writing here with baby updates after she is born please let me know. The more interest I get will help me gauge how often I should post.

Also, thank you to everyone who asks about how things are going and want updates. It really means a lot to us. This whole experience has been awesome. Some of my family doesn't seem to care as much as you do and it really makes me appreciate the people that do even the simple things to show they care.

A big sappy post. I know. But for some reason I feel overwhelmed with love today.

No baby yet today. Kristen is resting up for her big day Tuesday!

No Baby!

2008-06-22T08:16:00.003-05:00

Just an update. There isn't a new baby just yet. Kristen and I are getting ready to go to church and then will try to relax today.

Tomorrow we are planning on going to the hospital in the evening and then start baby time on Tuesday!

Yeah. It's Really Happening

2008-06-18T16:04:00.001-05:00

So I was looking through the pictures the other day and saw this one. I couldn't pass up sharing with all of you. Today is our due date! And yeah, the baby is really coming. Really really coming. (just not today).

We had another doctor appointment yesterday and the doctor is fairly confident that we will need to go through the entire process of being induced. Including going in Monday night for Cervidil. This will soften up the cervix so the baby can come out when they induce on Tuesday morning.

I feel sorry for Kristen because she will have to spend the night in the hospital Monday and then they are going to wake her up very early (6 or so) on Tuesday to take out the Cervidil and then start Potossin around 7. That is very early for her since she usually doesn't even get to bed until 2 or so. I know she will do great but I feel bad for her. But the sooner the baby can come the more time I get to see her!

That's it for now. I am trying to study for an exam I have on Monday night and keep getting distracted by little things like this. :)

Next post will probably have REAL baby pictures in it!

Baby in 8 days!

2008-06-16T13:50:00.002-05:00

We had an baby doctor appointment this morning. Everything is looking great! Kristen isn't progressing enough for the doctor to think we are going to have a baby this week. We have scheduled an appointment for next Tuesday to be induced! How exciting is that!

We are going back this Friday for another appointment. We are going to have a sonogram and a bio-physical profile done for the baby. This should tell us about how big the baby is and what everything looks like in there. A bunch of doctor stuff.

I forget all of the details (maybe I can get Kristen to log in and fill this in) but we are going in Monday night (NEXT MONDAY!) so the doctor can do something to help soften up the uterus and get things progressing some. Then Tuesday morning we will begin the medicine that should start contractions. This is called Potossin I believe. Tuesday is going to be a long day but with any luck we will have a new addition to the family!

It would be very cool if Baby was born on the 24th (Tuesday). This would be the 3 year anniversary of the first time Kristen and I met in person. Our first date was at TGIFridays on June 24, 2005 with 6 other friends (3 each). Big date huh?

Anyway, I got to get back to work but just thought I would update those of you that keep an eye on this blog.

So Soon!

2008-06-16T07:47:00.000-05:00

Just 5 more days to go until our due date! Yesterday Kristen and I took Aero to the dog park. Wasn't really a park. Just an off-leash area. It really makes me sad that I have to take her up to a park to let her run and get excersize now. I threw the ball 5 or 6 times and she was exhausted. I really think she had fun though. She won't play with other dogs though. She thinks she is human I swear.

Kristen's belly is so cute! I am torn cause I don't want it to go away! I love having my baby in there all cozy and warm. I know it has to come out though so I can see her and love her more!

I am confident that Kristen is ready for the baby to come out. She thinks the baby has grown a lot this last week and hasn't been doing the twist as much as she used to.

We have a doctor appointment this morning. Hopefully I will be able to post another quick update after that.

Counting Down!

2008-06-10T08:56:00.002-05:00

It is just 11 days until our due date! I am pretty sure that our daughter won't be born on our due date though. We have talked to the Doctor and she said that we can induce on the following Monday or Tuesday if things have started moving along.

I found out last night that my first test for my class is June 23rd! I talked to my professor and he basically told me that my wife and baby is the first priority and that we can work around class and the test. At least there is good things about the Masters program over the undergrad! Smaller classes and most teachers are more interested in helping you learn.

The baby is growing quite a bit. I can tell because Kristen is acting like she is more uncomfortable. We are both a bit nervous that the big day is coming so quickly! Everything has gone so smoothly (for me especially!) so far that I worry that our luck will run out.

I guess if we just keep praying and letting God handle this like he has handled everything else then there is absolutely no reason to worry, huh?

That's all for now. Just wanted to give a quick update to those who check this occasionally.

Baby Hiccups

2008-05-30T09:38:00.002-05:00

Baby Smith has gotten hiccups a lot lately. Last night I put the remote on Kristen's belly and the baby had the hiccups (I think) and was kicking it. She almost kicked it completely off the belly! It was really cool to see the remote bounce around and move so much. I think Baby is going to be a soccer player!

3 Weeks!

2008-05-28T18:51:00.003-05:00

So we have just over 3 weeks to go! Kristen and I are both very excited and a little nervous. I am sure she is more nervous than I am about the labor and delivery but I am way way way (3 ways!) more nervous about how to take care of her when she comes home. I am so glad that Kristen has some time off to show me how to do things.

We just got our swing and highchair. The whole house is starting to look like a baby lives here rather than just the one room. The swing is in the living room and we put the highchair by our kitchen table.

We have a stroller and Kristen has a jogging stroller (you notice I didn't mention that the jogging stroller was in any way mine?)

We got a nicer swing than we probably should have. We were after a cheaper one but our coupon was in-store purchases only and it wasn't there! So we decided to go ahead and get this one. We figured that it will get enough use to justify it. But all the kids will get to use the same one! Hope we don't have two little ones at the same time!

I got the carseat base put into the Corolla last week. I had Kristen take it to her friend who has gotten trained and can certify that they are in correct. She said it was done well. So, after me busting up my knees and pulling and tugging, it is in good. I don't know if it will come out now.

I put the highchair together the other day too. I know she won't need it for a while but I was anxious to get it together.

So we are now pretty much just playing a waiting game. Kristen and I are going to another appointment on Friday. Kristen is hoping to find out how big the baby is and if we are still on schedule.

That's all for now.

Update: The baby in the swing is not real! :) We put the baby in there to make sure that Aero (my dog) is used to seeing a baby and is around the swing so if she does do something it isn't a real baby in there. :)

Baby Shower

2008-05-20T09:04:00.002-05:00

Kristen had her first baby shower last weekend. Her mom had planned a lot for it. They spent the whole week prior getting things ready. Her cousin had come in the day before and baked a ladybug cake and they all had more desserts and things.

I decided to skip out and stay away from the house. David brought the girls up and we went to Chuck E Cheese. Dad came and helped us corral the girls. They had a great time. John hid out in the basement and Christopher went somewhere else. I guess Ken and the boys were part of the shower as well. Not sure if they stayed in the basement playing PS3 the whole time or not.

Kristen got a lot of stuff! Actually, the baby got a lot. Kristen got some. The first picture is a diaper cake that Michelle made. The bottom part is cloth diapers and the top part is disposable. Then it is wrapped with ribbon and toys are tied to it. It was a really cute idea.

The second picture is just one of Kristen opening one of her presents. There were about 20 people that showed up I guess. Some of Kristen's family from Wichita came and my mom, step-mom, sister and sister-in-laws were able to make it. Cayce wasn't able to come from Tennessee for it. That's ok because we get to see them in July when they come back for the baptism and the other baby shower.

I am getting excited for the baby to come. I know that there is still a lot of things that we need. Kristen has two more baby showers next weekend. I think one is a joint shower and the other is from her work. I get to go golfing. :)

We have a lot more clothes than I think the baby will be able to wear when she is little. There will be a lot of outfit changes! That is for sure. We got lots of blankets too!

That is really about it. Kristen's parents are flying out today and will come back in a few weeks when it gets closer to time to have the baby. I am going to try and get Kristen to rest as much as possible and save her energy.

Another Sonogram!

2008-05-12T20:01:00.001-05:00

Kristen and I went to our baby appointment today. Kristen's parents were in town and joined us for the appointment. We weren't supposed to have any more sonograms done unless there was an issue but when the doctor saw them she had the sonographer get us in. I am so glad she did!

There are a few more pictures that I have but wanted to put up these two. The others are mostly of her face too. Once to make sure she is still a girl. (She has a cute little butt!)

The top picture is looking down at her face. You can see her chubby cheek, nose mouth and the left side of her face is darkened out.

The bottom picture is a profile of her face. Her lips look big and pouty. Her hand are laying on her chest if you can make those out too.

The pregnancy is progressing very well. The baby was kicking the sonographer as she was taking pictures. We even saw her stick out her tongue at us!

Last long car ride?

2008-05-12T08:09:00.003-05:00

Hopefully Kristen has taken her last long car ride and we are going to be around Kansas City until after the baby is born. We just got back from St. Louis where we went to a wedding. Kristen didn't seem to do bad at all but I am sure she was uncomfortable and the more pregnant she gets the more uncomfortable it is going to have to be. I was impressed with Kristen. She didn't have to stop for the bathroom any more than I did! In fact, it was probably me that was stopping first!

So our baby weighs about as much as "your average cantaloupe" according to her fruit and vegetable ridden comparisons.

She is rolling and moving so much now! I can feel Kristen's belly and tell where she is at almost every time now. Occasionally i think i startle the baby and she moves suddenly, which she then kicks Kristen in her rib or kidney or something and Kristen jumps then I feel bad. But I have to admit, when she doesn't hurt Kristen it is fun to play! She will move and push and play. I am so excited to have her out so I can hold her.

2008-05-05T12:16:00.002-05:00

Here's the latest on our baby. This was from the weekly email that Kristen gets.

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

We have less than 7 weeks left! That is until our due date. Hopefully we won't go too much past that. There hasn't really been a lot changed since the last post. The baby is playing a lot more. I can talk to her and push and she will push back. She moves all the time it seems like. That can't be too comfortable for Kristen. I like it though!

I am so excited for the baby I am sure you all are getting tired of hearing that. I am so amazed at the whole process and the thought that I am going to be a father in a couple months! It is a crazy thought but I am so thrilled it is happening.

Childbirth Class

2008-04-28T08:51:00.002-05:00

Kristen and I had our childbirth preparation class last Saturday. It was interesting. It wasn't as long of a day as I thought it would be. We got there and the first hour crept by but then everyone loosened up a little and had more fun. We were in class from 9 to about 3 or 3:30. It was supposed to go a bit longer but I think the last 30 minutes or so of the scheduled time was for a hospital tour. Kristen and I are going to do our tour and pre-registration in a week or two.

We learned a lot about what to expect during labor and delivery. Mostly that it isn't going to be any fun for either one of us. :)

The videos were fairly short and weren't all that bad. They looked like they could probably be updated though. The tapes looked like they were from the 80's.

Other than that class we haven't had a lot going on in relation to the baby. One of Kristen's friends is letting us use their jogging stroller. Scratch that. One of Kristen's friends is letting KRISTEN use their jogging stroller. It will be a walking stroller for me. :) It is really nice. It was very nice of them.

Kristen's baby showers are coming up soon. I can't wait to see all the fun things that people want to get for our little baby.

I have so much fun playing with my little girl. I can sit forever and play games with her. I am sure Kristen is getting tired of me poking her belly. (No, not hard. Just enough to get baby to kick back). She rolls and pushes and I am pretty sure I can even hear her giggle. Probably not but I can't wait till she does! Maybe that is me giggling. I feel like such a little kid when I am playing with her and she isn't even born yet!

We just passed the 32 week mark. We only have 8 more to go!

Baby Fight!

2008-04-13T07:38:00.002-05:00

The baby and I had our first fight the other night. No! Not really! Kristen got home from work and baby likes to wake up and go nuts about the time Kristen is laying down to go to sleep. I put my hand on her belly and baby would kick my hand. So I pushed in another spot and she pushed back. I felt her little behind or knee. It is such an amazing feeling!

I can't wait until the time comes where I get to look her in the eye and tell her that I am her daddy.

So Excited!

2008-04-10T10:11:00.002-05:00

Kristen is an amazing pregnant lady! I know, kind of a weird statement.

We just got back from a trip to Houston and San Antonio. I realized today that I don't remember her complaining about the baby or being pregnant the whole trip. In fact, the only things I ever remember her saying are that the baby hurts when she kicks Kristen in one spot on her stomach. It seems to be the baby's favorite spot.

We had lots of take-offs and landings since we flew and spent time in the airport. I was getting tired of it and I know she must have been uncomfortable but I didn't hear her complain once. She is amazing. Hopefully these last 10 weeks will go smoothly.

10 weeks left on Saturday!

We have the baptism scheduled for July 27th. Kristen has two dresses in the closet for the baby. She is trying to decide which one she wants to return. To me, they both look the same (except for the price tag). However, she is working on deciding.

We are going to try and move the office to the basement this weekend. That will allow us to put another bedroom upstairs. I know Kristen has been getting antsy to do that. It will be quite a bit of work since the bedroom downstairs that we are going to use for the office is JAM PACKED with stuff. I can open the door and that is about it. I have to crawl over stuff to get anywhere in the room. The stuff has been in there for 5 months. Hopefully we can just get rid of most of it or use it in the bedroom upstairs.

Other than those few things I am trying to get the grass to grow in the back yard. I have planted seed and did all the prep work. It has been kind of cold but rainy for the last two weeks. I hope that the grass will start to sprout and get full soon. It rained enough today to see that I only missed one or two spots when I brought in the dirt. And both of those spots are small. I can bring in a bag or two of dirt to fill those in.

I need to get pictures up soon. I will try to get a picture of Kristen this weekend and post it.

Seriously?

2008-03-30T07:52:00.002-05:00

I saw our new baby update email. Now our baby is "like a Chinese cabbage". Really? I am not really understanding what the obsession is with comparing kids to obscure vegetables. Oh well, apparently our baby is so cute you could just eat her up.

Kristen and I are doing great. This pregnancy thing is wearing on me. My back hurts, I get leg cramps and just blow up at the smallest thing. :) Just kidding. Kristen is doing amazing. She is getting to the point where her back is starting to hurt but I don't hear her complain at all. I did yard work friday and my back hurts. You better believe she is hearing me whine. A lot! She even helped me do some of the yard work and I know her back has to be hurting. She's a trooper.

Her belly is absolutely adorable. We had her work recognition ceremony/dinner last night and she got to dress up. She was so cute!

I better go. Just woke up early before Sunday school and need to go get ready. Keep watching for more updates as the big day gets closer. We are going to Houston and San Antonio next weekend to visit Kristen's friend and family. Then back home to relax until a wedding in May.

More Stuff!

2008-03-18T20:12:00.004-05:00

We got more stuff for the baby this last weekend! Kristen's parents were in town and her and her mom went shopping. John and Michelle bought us a new stroller and car seat! We had it picked out on the registry. There are only a few big things that we really need and this was one. Its nice to have this out of the way.
Some other things that she bought include clothes and a stuffed animal. A purple hippo. Its really cute too. Kristen bought a baptism gown too! She had a hard time finding one that will fit our daughter since we are doing it early and that wasn't outrageously expensive. It is very cute.

That's about it for now.

Baby Room

2008-03-11T17:23:00.001-05:00

It was requested that I post some more pictures of the baby room. Here they are! I hope you enjoy.

Here you can see the new butterflies hanging from the ceiling and the flowers painted on the wall. Don't pay any attention to the crooked hanging there. I will get that fixed soon. :)

Another butterfly and the finished family frame. If you look real close you can still see the picture of steven in his cheerleading costume.

The wonderfully comfortable rocking chair that Kristen did a great job of picking out.

And finally the dragonflies that Kristen painted. They turned out very well (even though they kind of look like bumblebees in this picture).

I hope you have enjoyed the tour. Please exit to your left.

Appointment

2008-03-10T20:18:00.002-05:00

Our appointment today went very quickly. We got in quickly and everything was good with the baby that we could tell. Kristen got her blood drawn for the orange slice test and we were on our way.

We will find out the results of the tests sometime this week I think. Now we get to wait another month until we make another visit.

Belly Picture!

2008-03-10T08:52:00.002-05:00

I wanted to make sure to get a picture of Kristen and I out here so those of you who can't come visit us can see the progression of the cutest belly on the planet. And Kristen's too.

I hope to get some more pictures and keep them up here. I know that there are a few of you that probably won't get to see us until after the baby is born. Hopefully those of you that can come see us will.

I think Kristen and I are going to try and make a trip to Wichita the weekend after next. We want to see Grandma and Grandpa (we haven't seen them since late last year). We haven't seen her family since then either. Its been a crazy year so far. We are planning to go down Friday and Saturday and coming back in time to make it to the 5pm (contemporary) service on Sunday. It will probably be one of the busiest services but with the trip we have no other options unless we want to watch the live internet broadcast that morning. That goes into a whole other post. How sweet is it that our church is doing a live internet broadcast!

Rutabaga

2008-03-10T08:22:00.005-05:00

According to our latest info email from babycenter, the weight of our child "isn't much more than an average rutabaga." That's comforting to know that a little rutabaga is what is kicking me from Kristen's belly! :) I am not even sure what a rutabaga is actually. Couldn't they have used a coconut or cucumber or something that maybe I would have an idea what it is! How do they expect us dads to figure this stuff out when they use cryptic vegetables to compare our child to (it is a vegetable right?)

Anyway, to a more serious topic. Kristen and I have our next appointment today. We were hoping to have it when Kristen's parents were in town so they could join us but the doctor is going to be out of town the rest of the week and we had to move the originally scheduled appointment to today. That's kind of a bummer. I will try to get an update later today on how the appointment went. Kristen has to drink a bottle of orange slice (or that's what it looks like anyway) and they will do some tests on her later. I try to keep up with the names of these tests but can't do a real good job.

The baby seems to like church. That's where I first felt her kick and then yesterday she was playing. I felt her kick and pushed back (no, not too hard) and she would kick again about an inch away. That went on for a few kicks. I think I wore her out. She was kicking hard too. Kristen says she is going to be a soccer player. I am thinking more like a kick-boxer.

Lady Bugs!

2008-03-08T08:37:00.000-06:00

There are definitely enough lady bugs for our daughter. Kristen just got done doing some painting. Below is a picture of some of her artwork. She had friends help her start them but did a lot of work herself to finish them up. I think they turned out very well. They definitely aren't going to be fun to paint over when that time comes but there is no use worrying about that now!

Other than the painting in the baby room there hasn't been too much going on. I will take a picture of Kristen in one of her cute shirts so you can see her growing belly. I love it! I think she might be getting tired of me talking to the baby. I do it a lot.

We are headed to Topeka this morning to have lunch with Chris and Chris and Dave and the girls. Christine called last night and told me that Dave had the girls while Sara was working and invited us to lunch with them. So we are going there this morning and then heading back here to help Kristen's friend work on her house.

More Baby Room Stuff

2008-03-03T20:21:00.002-06:00

Kristen and some friends worked on the baby room some more last night. They painted on the walls. There are some lady bugs and butterflies. There are also some flowers above the crib now. I will get some pictures up when they are finished painting. I think Kristen is left to complete them now. Everything is about half done. I guess I can help her too.
Other than that there hasn't been much baby stuff going on. Kristen's belly is growing still. I have been feeling the baby move a lot more. It amazes me every time I feel my baby girl push on my hands. I can't wait until I can hold her in my arms!

Big Baby

2008-02-26T10:15:00.002-06:00

So I guess the baby is more than 11 inches long! That means that it can reach from one end of Momma's belly to the other when she stretches. That amazes me.

I have had the thrill of feeling her move more often now. Kristen even said she can see her move. That is crazy stuff. I am thoroughly enjoying this whole pregnancy thing. :) In different ways than Kristen though.

I keep saying that we have the baby room almost done but I don't think that will ever happen. There will always be little things that keep changing. That is ok. Kristen really enjoys getting it ready.

Not much else is really going on with the baby. Kristen bought her a little swimsuit that hopefully she will be able to use late this fall. Its a K-State suit! And quite adorable in my opinion.

I guess that is it for now. Check back soon for more updates.

She Moves! (Part 2)

2008-02-18T17:57:00.002-06:00

It didn't take long for me to be able to feel the baby move! Kristen and I were in Church and she felt the baby move so she let me feel. It is such an amazing feeling! I am amazed at the whole process.

I wish I could write more but I am doing this instead of studying for my test and now I have to leave to go take it. Wish me luck!

Our Appointment

2008-02-18T07:44:00.003-06:00

We went in last Friday for our latest appointment. We had another sonogram as you can see by the picture. It is harder to tell what's what I think. But in the picture her head is to the right and you can see one eye and her nose and mouth. Her hand is up on top of her chest.

The sonogram lady said everything looks great. We could see the heart beating and her chest was moving up and down like she was practicing breathing. I could even see her mouth open and close a little. She's already adorable!

We then went and the doctor said everything looks great too. We got a packet from the hospital so now we can preregister for the birth now at the hospital. That got me thinking about all the things that have to be ready for the big day. I think I may be more nervous about this than I was about the wedding! If things go wrong at the wedding then it (probably) doesn't mean health problems. I am going to rely on friends and family to make sure that I don't lose my mind!

Kristen is still getting little things for the baby. We are now getting more clothes and she got a really cute picture frame and a photo album yesterday. You will just have to come see it! We are always up for having visitors.

She moves!

2008-02-15T13:13:00.004-06:00

Kristen has felt the baby move a lot lately. She even feels her with her hand. I haven't had the chance to feel her myself yet. That makes me sad but I know that I will get my chance soon. She isn't getting any smaller or less active. That's for sure.

The books I read and the peopl I have talked to have said they see the baby moving and pushing out. It sounds really weird and may freak me out the first time I see it. I know it will be magical and I will love my baby girl even more, although u am not real sure if that is possible. ;)

Domain Name

2008-02-04T15:34:00.000-06:00

I have routed my new domain name to the blog for now. I was planning on using my free time to create a website but keep forgetting I have no free time.

You can get to the blog either way.

http://www.scottandkristenplusone.com

Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters

2008-02-01T17:15:00.001-06:00

I have been reading the book called Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters and it is scaring the crap out of me! I understand that it isn't easy to raise girls. I know that there are issues that she will have to deal with that I never had to deal with simply because I was a guy and others because they weren't big issues when I was growing up (at least not to me).

I just finished the chapter about sex and how the best way to approach the subject. The author says the father is the most important influence in their daughters life and that what I say will change her behavior, even if I don't believe it at the time. Of course I am an influence. I see that. But there are so many things to do right. I know I am making more of a deal out of this than necessary but it just is overwhelming. I guess I don't like to think that far ahead. I will enjoy my time with my little girl. This book explains that I need to set ground rules and expectations so they will be followed when she grows up.

I understand that everybody has different opinions. I admit that I am fairly influential. These are subject matter experts and I listen to what they say. I just feel a heavy burden on my shoulders now after reading the first half of the book. I am hoping that it will get more inspirational and uplifting by the end. I have read other 'how to be a good daddy' books and plan on reading more so my judgment won't be too influenced by one book. This is just the first one that got into specifics about raising a girl.

Baby Room

2008-02-01T17:03:00.000-06:00

I spent some today working on the baby room. It is almost done! Kristen and I cleaned up some more. I hung her photo frame that holds somewhere around 25 pictures. They currently just have pictures of her and her friends but I think she is going to spend time switching out those pictures for family pictures. We hung that behind the door because all of the other wall filled up very quickly. I hung the white shelf (after putting another quick coat of paint on it last night). Kristen moved the night stand to the other side of the glider and put the tv in the closet.

I also patched some nail holes in the wall and put up new nails for the soft wall hangings you see in the picture below. The white shelf was originally over the crib but I didn't feel safe leaving it there so I moved it to the other wall. I hung up the baby's calendar and we cleaned out the last bit of stuff. Just a few more things we need and it will be done! I am happy to have this done early. It will definitely help with finances (and stress) later when the baby is almost here.

As far as I can tell we are just about done. I think Kristen may want to get a rug for the floor and we will of course get more books for the book shelf. Speaking of books, Kristen found a couple really cute books for the baby. Two of them are picture bibles. They are nicely illustrated bible stories. One is for a younger child and one is for when she gets slightly older. The other book she picked up is the baby's first scrapbook. Its really cute. It has places to fill in for the family tree and pictures and birth weight, time, etc. It is really cute and will be something we can put away after she is a year old and give to her when she starts thinking about dating.

New Glider!

2008-01-31T09:02:00.000-06:00

Our new glider came in yesterday! We sat in a few gliders and chairs before we came across this one at BabyLand. I wrote down the name and did research online to see if we can find it any cheaper. The manufacturer is Best Chairs and it is the Storytime series. It has a nice tall back and long glide.

I got it from the store and got it put together yesterday. Then spent a few minutes sitting in it to make sure it was still good. :) It is very comfortable. I know that after the baby comes Kristen and I will be thankful that we got it.

Oh, and it matches the crib sheets!

The elusive changing pad

2008-01-31T08:52:00.000-06:00

After hours and hours of searching we finally have a changing pad that will fit! The crib we purchased and set up came with a very thin changing pad. It was one of the complaints (really the only complaint) that I could find on the reviews before we bought the crib. However, there were also reviews that said the Comfort Fit Contour pad would fit. It didn't.

So after a quick measure we quickly determined that we are going to have a tough time finding a short pad. The measurements were 16"x28". Most changing pads are at least 30" long. Because the changing table has rails all the way around I figured 30" is too long. Kristen and I both spent hours searching. I called one place that sells them (Sealy I believe) and they gave me the contact information for the crib maker. Then after calling them I realized that they don't sell thicker pads and don't know or have recommendations on who might. Argh!

So I got a call yesterday from USA Baby saying that our glider has come in (watch for that in another post). So while I was on the phone I asked if they had any short changing pads. The smalles they had was 16.5"x29". As you can see in the picture this fit perfectly! I was very relieved to have found one. I was quickly running out of options and didn't want to use the pad that came with the crib. So, now once we get a cover on it we will be done with that little adventure.

Other than this complication everything has been very smooth. We are getting the room set up. We had taken almost all of the non-baby stuff out. I am a big proponent of letting the room be just for the baby. There was a lot of stuff that we had to move! It's almost there though!

Clothes

2008-01-26T15:57:00.000-06:00

Kristen decided that she needs to go shopping for more comfortable clothes finally. She was holding off and waiting to admit that she needed to. We went to the mall today and when I saw her in the maternity clothes I was in awe. She was so cute!

I know that there are a thousand thoughts going through her head but the simple fact is that she is beautiful. I absolutely love the way she looks every day as the baby is growing. It is very hard to understand and realize what is going on inside of her stomach but every day I see her I get more and more excited to meet the little one.

It probably won't be long before I need to go shopping too. I have been doing my fair share of gaining during this time too. I don't mind it all that much but it is something that I have to get used to. It hasn't really sunk in that I was going to gain weight too. Everybody told me that I would but its hard to believe when I haven't gained hardly any weight in 5 years.

Our new crib!

2008-01-22T14:06:00.000-06:00

Kristen and I received our crib in the mail the other day. What an exciting time! Kristen was extremely happy to finally have it. Below is a picture i took with my phone.

Christopher and I took a couple hours Friday evening and set it up. It went together fairly well. It is very solid. Kristen and I had went and gotten the crib set earlier that day since we found out we were having a girl last Monday. I will post another entry with more about that.

The crib is a convertible crib. The idea here is that as the baby gets old enough then we can take the front cell bars off and put up two smaller ones with a gap in the middle. This will allow her to craw into bed herself but will prevent her from rolling out while she is sleeping. Then we can take those off and it will become a day bed type of thing. Then eventually the changing table will come off completely and the 'jail bars' will become the footboard of a twin bed.

The side is a changing table and has drawers in the front and shelves behind it that you can't see from the picture. We both really like the crib and hope that our little girl will too.

Lady Bugs!

2008-01-22T14:04:00.001-06:00

Since we found out that we are having a girl Kristen bought a very cute crib set. It is a lady bug theme with some butterflies and dragonflies on it. I must admit that it is very cute. It is still taking me a bit to get used to the idea of having so much pink around. I know that it is necessary but it will just take some time. I am very excited!

A Girl!

2008-01-14T13:19:00.001-06:00

We had our third appointment today and our second sonogram. We found out that we are having a girl!

We are so excited. Now we can start narrowing down our names and Kristen and get the designs for the crib and room. Kristen has found designs she has adored for both a girl and a boy. Now she can go ahead and get the stuff for a girl!

The doctor said that everything looks great. The growth is right on schedule and the heart rate is strong. 146 bpm if I remember correctly. Kristen just hit the 17 week mark last Saturday. The time is flying by!

If you can't see or pick out what is in the picture I will explain a bit. She is on her back and her head is on the left. Her arms are down to her side. She is kind of sitting indian style too. Her legs are slightly curled up.

She was so active during the sonogram! She was moving all over the place. Her arms were moving around and up to her face and at one point she stretched out her legs just so we can see how tall she is.

I should start updating this more. Now that I am sending out the address you can use this to keep up with the latest information on the baby. More later...

Big News!

2008-01-01T13:16:00.000-06:00

We have told almost everybody now. Kristen still needs to tell work. Although a few people know, the majority do not.

We are going in a couple of weeks for another sonogram. That is supposed to be the appointment when we find out if we are having a boy or girl. If everything goes right that is. It will be 17 weeks not the normal 20 weeks. I am excited to see the baby again. I can't wait!

We started getting presents already for the baby. We got a Tabbie book and a couple outfits. We also got a pink doggie. I guess they thought we should have a girl. ;) It is very cute but I am not sure I want to let my little boy play with it too much. :) I am sure it won't matter too much when the time actually comes around though.

That's about it for now. Kristen has been feeling much better and is not as tired as she was last month. She is beautiful.

Bye for now

Heartbeat!

2007-12-17T20:55:00.000-06:00

I got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time today. The doctor just used a microphone and we got to hear the little thing beating away. It was at 164 bpm. This is still high but pretty close to the normal range. Everything else at our appointment today seemed to be normal. The visit was fairly quick once we got in. We get to go back in January and that is when we find out the sex of the baby! I hope. Kristen says that there is a possibility that we won't be able to. That maybe the legs will be crossed or something else will be obstructing the view.

I'm nervous! I really want to find out but I am nervous. Its another step to reality. After we find out the sex then we can start buying some real baby stuff. We can start thinking about painting the room and getting a crib and all that fun stuff!

There are still people that we need to tell too. I am waiting to tell some people until I can sit down with them and enjoy the conversation. I think it is fun to tell people and share the story. Kristen is still a little nervous about it but I am sure that will change soon.

Scott

Week 12

2007-12-06T22:52:00.000-06:00

Saturday is the 12 week mark. I have been reading everything I can to try and understand what is going on. I have 3 books now. One is called What to expect when your expecting and the other two are for expecting fathers. They talk more about what to expect the first year rather than what the pregnancy is all about. There is a lot to learn for me. I know it all can't come from books but it is nice to be a little knowledgeable. That way maybe Kristen and I can have better conversations about what is going on and I can maybe understand what she is going through so I can help her any way possible.

I believe she has been feeling better this week. There was one day that she worried me and she felt really bad. She has been taking her vitamins and I think she has been eating well. I went to the store today and got her a WHOLE bunch of snack foods that I think are somewhat healthy and good for her to eat. I also got some chicken that we can cook and would be healthy for her to eat.

I am getting more and more excited about the baby. There is so much that we need to take care of and plan for. Money is going to be an issue we have to deal with and we are going to need to convert one of the bedrooms into a baby room. Everybody that we have talked to about the baby is so excited for us. I assumed that some people would tell us that we are dumb for having one so early but I haven't heard that once. It was very fast and Kristen and I both know that. We are happy that people are so supportive.

I keep thinking about how fortunate I am to have all of the blessings that are in my life. I have a beautiful wife and a great family. I have a big house that has plenty of room for guests and Kristen's brother to have the basement. Kristen and I both have good jobs and we are doing very well. God has truly given us many blessings.

11 Weeks

2007-12-01T21:59:00.000-06:00

It is eleven weeks today! The baby is growing little finger and toe nails and it should be starting to look less like an alien. The ears are coming over to the side of his head and a neck should be forming. I can’t wait to see it again. I don’t think they are going to do a sonogram at the next appointment. I am not sure when they will do one again.

Kristen has appeared to feel better this week. She is still tired but hasn’t had a whole lot of extra time to sleep. She has been working her normal schedule or maybe even more. She had meetings and just finished her last class at school for this semester. Hopefully next week she will be able to get a bit more rest.

We came to Wichita this weekend to see our grandparents. I am so excited about the baby that I couldn’t keep it in. I tried to let Kristen tell her grandma and cousin but I ended up doing it anyway. Kristen let her mom know that she was allowed to tell people now. This makes it easier for us to break the news.

The Big News!

2007-11-25T10:40:00.000-06:00

It's official! Kristen and I are going to be parents! It was such a shock to us when we found out, but once that wore off I am so excited! There are so many emotions that are being thrown around that it is hard to explain them.

We had our first appointment last week. This was quite the experience for me. We waited and waited while the doctor went deliver two babies. Not just one baby, two! So the appointment took a nice long 4 hours. But I still got to see our baby for the first time! We had a sonogram that showed us the little peanut in there. The heart beat was up at 184 bpm and the whole thing was about 1 inch long. The lady told us that we were 9 weeks 2 days along that day. So right now we are 10 weeks and 1 day. We did the math and that would make this a honeymoon miracle. We were both amazed at how fast it was. Definitely unplanned.

It is amazing how quickly plans can change. We had a goal down to finish our Masters programs and then start a family. That would be about 4 years down the road. However, with this news that whole thing went up in smoke. But what a wonderful way to do it! I am so excited that I am going to have a little baby soon. This is so exciting!

First the emotion was amazement, then fear that we aren't ready. Now the amazement is still there but now I am excited. The fear still sits over on the edge of my mind but I know that the Lord gave us this blessing for a reason. The last year of our lives have been filled with so many blessings that I know that this is his plan. Not ours. I can always rely on that fact. There is someone that is watching over us and is giving us what we need as well as all the blessings that we truly don't deserve.

"Thank you Lord for the blessings you have given us. You are such an amazing God. We know we don't deserve your Love but you have forgiven us and blessed us anyway. Please protect us in this time of change and give us a healthy baby. "