Baby Benjamin Has Arrived!

Alright, so Mr. Benjamin is over two weeks old, but I'm feeling very protective of his early pictures in the hospital so this is the earliest you will see of him. He is just the cutest little bundle and we are so very in love with this little guy. 

His birth went very well and active labor was a little less than 5 hours. I had him naturally with no pain medicine and I am very thankful I had Dustin's help along with a couple of awesome midwives and nurses to get me through!

Benjamin Graham weighed in at 8 lbs. 1 oz. and was 19 1/5 inches long. 

He is my biggest baby!

Here are a couple of photos from the first week at home...

Oliver and his little bro

A very excited pair snuggling Baby B

Happy October!

Well, well, look what finally rolled around.....October! With one week left until the baby is due we thought we'd try to capture a few shots after church today before my giant belly turns to mush. Haha. Seriously, my belly is like a huge egg. I just can't believe how big it can get. My bet is, that this baby will be around 8 pounds when he's born and we are SO excited to finally meet this little guy! 

39 weeks!

Tickle time!

My Little Workers

Well, things have been BUSY around here. Oliver started preschool. He loves it. Myla and I have been sick with colds. We are feeling better. Dustin tore out the carpet and refinished the wood floor in the tiny third bedroom. We set it up as the baby's room. And the baby is due in five weeks! 

We are loving the cooler weather and here are my little helpers loading up their belts with Daddy's tools to go and "work" on the playset. Which means I had to confiscate some seriously sharp screwdrivers, wrenches, and a huge hammer in the process.

Sweet boy

Cute munchkins (notice Myla's belt is the dog's collar)

Big belly

It's a Healthy Baby...

BOY!

And we couldn't be more thrilled to meet this little guy! We are feeling very blessed indeed. 

Dustin and the kids are super excited and I am ecstatic that I won't be pregnant in 19 1/2 weeks!!! I LOVE the baby part, not so much the pregnancy part. ;)

Day Trip

We headed out to Clinton Lake on Sunday for a little day trip. We had a picnic planned and some fishing and were possibly going to scope out a spot to camp for a few weeks from now. The kids were totally up for it and we did have a nice relaxing time. It was so calming and peaceful to listen to the water lap the shore. I wish I were looking at the ocean, but I'll take what I can get.

Spending this time with my family was sweet and it made me think back on when I was little and all the camping and fishing we did as a family. This pregnancy really has made me nostalgic and miss the simple times of childhood a little bit. I love all the traditions and outings we did as a family and I'm really happy that my parents carved out all that special time. I think it is so easy to get caught up in the business of life and constantly be on the go, but I prefer to do things more simply. 

Kiddos throwing sand into the lake

Me enjoying the peaceful sound of the water.

Little man fishing solo

Pretty lady (oh Oliver...)

Dustin thought my hat resting on the tippy top of my head was funny.

Cute boy

Oliver's First Soccer Game

Oliver started Soccer this spring through our local YMCA. The Sporting Tykes has been a lot of fun for him and also for us as a family. We love going to his practices and his games, when they are not postponed due to cold weather and rain that is. It has been a wet and chilly April! 

This has been his first experience with soccer and it is awesome to watch his confidence build and his skills improve. He loves going and we are trilled we signed him up! 

Here are a few photos from his first game, and it was cold out there! 

Oliver and Myla practicing before the big game

He shoots, he scores!

Once the real game began, he wasn't too sure he wanted to play at first...

but he quickly got into the action!

Waiting to kick the ball in

Ode To Pregnancy

With it being National Poetry Month (courtesy my local library) I thought it fitting to write a little ditty down about my life the last few months. For old times sake, what I really should do is give my sister Becky the assignment, have her write an awesome poem and pass it off as my own brilliance. My sophomore advanced English teacher never saw it coming. A+, thank you very much. To Becky that is. Haha.

Here goes...


thrilled
worried
secret
valentine sharing
big smiles
love
kisses and hugs

shoe dropping
couch sitting
energy evading
nausea coming and going, and coming again

teeth brushing
gagging
cheese and cracker eating
chicken ramen noodle slurping;
way too much sodium but too sick to care

too many snowstorms
lots of bundling
toes freezing
sunshine and warmth needing

decision regretting?
close to meltdown
crying
praying, wishing, hoping
would do almost anything to feel better

glimpse of sunlight
tease of warmer weather
park going, snack bringing
kid's laughter

heartbeat
kids telling
emotions mixed
laughter

family seeing
glimmer of hope
better feeling
phone calls
news sharing
excitement and love

energy returning
God thanking
happiness
warmish air
SUN

kids belly checking
silly naming
smiles
fruit eating

old photo scrolling
love
excitement
contentment