Category Archives: My Family

Showering The Baby

Posted in My Family, Outings, Pregnancy 2017 by

As I mentioned in Week 18 of my pregnancy, we decided not to have a baby shower before Sam was born.  But we did have a celebration last weekend for his arrival.  To see it all put together was very overwhelming to me. I didn’t know if I would actually get to this point, but here we are.

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One thing I know for absolute certain is that Sam is loved.  And there were so many who have been waiting in anticipation to celebrate this arrival.  He was held and cooed at and loved on the entire time.  In fact, one little girl, the daughter of one of my friends, followed him around as he was passed from one loving set of arms to another, just fascinatingly smitten.

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Another special part of the shower were the people there.  Especially these four girls.  I hosted some of their showers when their boys were born, and now they were here to celebrate my son.

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I have an amazing community.  I am so grateful for the people who have celebrated this little boy’s arrival both near and far.  We have been just incredibly touched by those who have sent cards or other items, encouraging notes, and sweet messages.  Thank you for loving our little family and for providing such an amazing welcome for our son.

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How Are The Dogs Doing?

Posted in Dogs by

It’s the number one question I get.  So, I thought I would answer that question.

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For our rat terrier, the boy is nothing special.  She hasn’t shown much interest in him, only a few sniffs here and there.  The one time she does notice his presence is when our lap is full.  It’s a new experience for her, being that she has been in our family for over 10 years.  She’s not used to sharing, but if we give her a bit of attention at some point during the day (and keep her food coming), she is adjusting well.

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For our blue heeler, it has been a little different.  Teddy is a newer addition, himself.  So, he was a lot more curious.  Whenever he can get the chance, he loves to kiss the boy’s feet, and sometimes even noses his head.  And Teddy is so gentle in general, so I’m not worried.  In fact, I am looking forward to the two of them becoming best buds (and getting into all sorts of trouble, I’m sure).

I feel like we lucked out in the canine department.  I’m so glad the transition is going so well.  Of course, we are always vigilant and never leave them in the room together unsupervised.  As gentle as my dogs are, I’m not going to assume they know all baby etiquette right away.

We did bring home the blanket from the hospital so they could smell him before seeing him.  That is the most recommended way to introduce a new baby to your fur babies.  But I think it’s also in knowing the temperament of your dogs and being vigilant during their interactions.

Have you ever had to make these kinds of introductions?  How did they go?

DFS: The Arrival

Posted in Blog, Pregnancy 2017 by

Michael and I are pleased to announce that our son, Sam, arrived this week.

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She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the Lord for him.” (1 Samuel 1:20)

We are over the moon excited and completely exhausted. In anticipation of this event, I filmed a video early that ties up the Dear Future Self/Pregnancy Update videos.

Basically, I’m going to go on a hiatus from social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc) and from blogging for the rest of this month. The plan is to come back the first full week of June, unless it’s still a little too crazy and in that case, I will still probably let you guys know what’s going on with a short post that first week of June. And coming back may only be a post a week for a while, building back up to a regular schedule as I gradually get into the swing of things. No worries, I’m giving myself a lot of grace and space for this process.

I hope you all have a wonderful month of May. Due to the hiatus, I may not be able to respond right away to comments, but just know that I’m so grateful for all of you. Now I need to go snuggle a baby. Talk to you in June!

DFS: Week 35 and Some Anxiety Rears Its Ugly Head

Posted in Pregnancy 2017 by

I know that I’ve been anxious through most of this pregnancy, but this week just seemed to hit a peak.  The place I struggle with it the most, which I mention a little bit in my video is putting this nursery together.  There are so many memories I have of working on registries and the nursery in my other pregnancies, and I think that kind of tipped the scale this week.  I can literally walk into the nursery, look at everything in there, and experience a complete creativity block having no idea what I want it to look like.  I know it will come together eventually, so I’m just taking it one step at a time.