It's a...

BOY! We are so delighted with the news and the good report. They did find something in this ultrasound that they found with Joseph, but we are not too worried about it. With Joseph it was gone by the second ultrasound, and this baby had a good report for the kidney's. Thanks for all your prayers.

Face

Profile

Side shot

Go for launch

Just wanted to let everyone know that the UT medical center called to CONFIRM!! my appointment on Friday. I thought they might cancel because of all the cancelled appointments due to Hurricane Ike. My ultrasound is at 9:30 and I will post everything asap.

Our Story...

Well, it has been a while since Hurricane Ike hit Houston, but I thought I would just post our experience, or should I say, Jeff's experience with the hurricane. Jeff made it through safe and sound. I fortunately had picked last week to go to Dallas to visit my family and all heck broke lose. That's why everyone needs me here...I keep things together. ;-) Every night before Wednesday we talked and not much came up about the hurricane. In Jeff's and my mind, we thought it was going to go east. Then Wednesday night, things started to change a little. Jeff had told me that he bought boards to board up the windows and that's when I started to get a little concerned. He asked me if I wanted him to come up Thursday, but I said no because I didn't want him to have to fight all the traffic.
He stayed put and everything turned out okay. We just lost some fence and that was about it. The thing I was most worried about was him losing power and Pearland being so flooded that he couldn't come to Dallas to pick us up. He did lose power for 24 hours, but we were so fortunate to not have any flooding. So on my way home from church on Sunday, he calls and says he is already in Dallas...I was ecstatic!!
We continued to watch the news Sunday evening and he made the decision that we should return back to Houston Monday morning. I gave him a, "are you crazy?" look, because all the reports were saying to not come back, no gas, power outages, etc, etc. So, Monday morning rolls around and we make some phone calls to see what people were in need of and made our way to the Rockwall Walmart and Home Depot. The whole time I was just thinking, "I want to help everyone, but what about this and that." I wasn't 100% sold on the idea of going back. I told Jeff, "Lets just use the money we are about to spend on all this food and do stuff here in Dallas, where we have food, water, electricity and gas." He repeatedly kept saying, "People need help." I hesitantly agreed but still wasn't sure about his decision. It is amazing how selfish you can be when you are pregnant and have a baby. I kept thinking we were going to get all this food and not have power when we got back. Get stranded on the interstate because of no gas. I am a very much a worst case scenario kind of girl.
To make things less assuring, IN ROCKWALL, we were exiting to go to the Walmart and there was a huge electronic sign that said, "DO NOT GO TO HOUSTON OR BEAUMONT." I just turned to Jeff and shook my head. I have told people that I felt like Jim Carrey in Bruce Almighty, when he is driving around and has the prayer beads in his hand asking God to give him a sign and out pulls this truck with a thousand warning signs. This was, I think, our sign, but we just ignored it.
Finally, we arrive back to Pearland after having to go through Waco and College Station. This was a very good move by Jeff because I don't think we could have gotten gas anywhere on 45. We stopped in Waco to get gas and it was a good thing, because once we got to College Station, there was no more all the way to Houston. *Side note* when we stopped to get gas in Waco, I was feeling really bummed and was just hoping we could make it back okay. Jeff handed Joe over to me and it was like Joe could sense I was down, so he just looked at me straight in the face, said, "Hi" and gave me a huge hug. I felt so good after that.
Once we got home, Jeff got to work and started helping wherever needed. When we made it over to the property, I was so impressed with the joyful spirits of everyone. Everyone still had smiles and were all glad to see our little family. For those of you who don't know my in-laws, they are just the most amazing family and honestly find good in the bad. They are the kind of family that will notice the flowers on the table rather than the dust. I didn't hear one member complain...they just talked about all the fun they had visiting, playing, and surviving a hurricane. I was honestly impressed and was just so glad that Jeff had decided to come back.
And in the end, I believe God blessed Jeff...he had an entire week off and someone had paid him for some work he did at their house. I was happy for him because I felt that he truly deserved it for being the sweetheart that he is.
We are finally getting back into the swing of things and into our usual routine. I appreciate the entire Kirklin family for just being the wonderful people that you are.

Photo Op

In July, Jeff and I came up for a photo shoot for my mom's work. She is a supervisor nurse for post partum at Baylor Medical Center of Dallas. The particular floor she works on is being remodeled and they wanted to take pictures of all the nurses and doctors families to be hung up in the new unit. I tried posting all the pictures, but they were super small and you couldn't see them very well. FYI, Stacey and Josh were out of town the weekend we had these done, so they were unable to be in the pictures with us. Also, all the pictures that will be hung up will be in black and white... I saw those and they were awesome! So, if you have the time, click on this web site and when asked to enter a code, type in (baylor-5-ellis)
http://www.edlozanophotography.com/proofs/
The three finalist from our group were: the one with Joe between Jeff's legs (can't see Jeff), Joe with the sailor hat and trying to take it off, and the one of him on my back and actually staying.
I am told the one that is going to go up is the one of me and him.

New Do

Okay, I went for it.......




I took Joseph in today to get a haircut and had her buzz it. I was really curious to see what he would look like, but had no idea he would look so different. This particular picture looks like a mug shot. The scrape is pre-Dallas and we have no idea how it happened. I think the buzz looks cute on him and man, it makes him look so much older, but I think I like his hair a little longer.

I didn't post this picture because I thought everyone missed me and has forgotten what I look like, but thought it was a better picture of Joseph and the new haircut.

Ultrasound

I just wanted to let everyone know that we have scheduled my ultrasound for Friday, September 26 at 9:30. We are very excited to find out and to start on his or her room. Please pray for this ultrasound and that we get a great report.

Movie Night and PTC

Every Thursday night we are blessed by Juanita and Andrew. They make us dinner, I bring dessert and when we are all finished, the guys go play music and the girls scrapbook. It is always a great time, and to make the night even better, we are also joined by the Harrell's and Selby's. Last night we went over to the Thomas' to have dinner, but when I was done scrapbooking I made my way over to Marnie's to give Joseph a bath. She is usually not home on Thursday nights, but she was last night because she is watching Mark and June while Kyle and C are on vacation. When Joseph and I arrived, we found Mark, Jack (who was going to spend the night as well) and June on Marnie's bed watching Tom and Jerry and eating popcorn. Joseph got super excited and wanted on the bed right away. I love watching him with all the cousins...he is finally able to really play and run around with them. Mark and Jack can make him laugh and he just loves on June and Tilly. I gave him a bath and he wanted out real quick because he knew he was missing something. I got him dressed, plopped him down on the bed and away he went on the popcorn. Marnie also surprised them with Halloween Jell-o molds which all the kids went crazy for.

Joseph blocking June's view. Sorry Junie.

Today Jeff had off, so went to half price books to sell some of our books and hopefully get some money. After that, we made our way to Pearland Town Center to go to the Barnes and Noble to look at children's books. I had also been craving a Starbucks drink, so we were able to kill two birds with one stone. FYI, about 3 years ago, Courtney took me to a Barnes and Noble is Pasadena (I believe this is where we went) and introduced me to a Sundried Tomato Pretzel filled with cheese. It was absolutely scrumptious. Today at Starbucks I noticed they had pretzels and about freaked. Unfortunately, they didn't have the sundried tomato one, but I did score pretty good with an Asiago Pretzel. They had a jalapeno one that looked awesome, but she said it was spicy and I had Joseph who I knew would want to share. After all this delight, we made our way to the water/spray area. We thought we would let Joe run through and maybe get sprayed a little,but he went right by all the random shots of water and ended up here:

Wildlife Bayou

Today Marnie took all 5 grandbabies and Lindsay and I to the Wildlife Bayou in Dickinson. It was a blast. Being Captain Obvious here, it was a very warm day, but once you got in the shade and the Jeep got to moving it was very tolerable. The kids did great. No one complained of the heat and no tears of fear when the animals approached. We had one mishap with non other than my baby and my not so smart mother's intuition. I didn't move Joe when an Ostrich got just a little too close and I can only assume that Joseph moved his had towards the Ostrich's direction and 'Chomp.' Finger food! A little bit of a melt down, but was soon distracted by the Zebras. It was great day with all the kids and I really recommend this place for your kids. It would be a great fall activity and really recommend taking another adult because you can't really feed and hold your baby at the same time.
Thanks Marnie for a great day!

Another animal with very sharp horns!

I realized after taking this picture that maybe I shouldn't be flashing a camera in a wild animals eyes...might lead to an animal charging us. On a side note, this is a buffalo.

Everyone checking out a mama deer and her baby.

Bevo
I wasn't too big on the idea of the big animals with horns getting near the kiddos. I moved when this guy poked his head into our trailer.
Joseph checking out the Ostrich. I thought they were all pretty mild mannered animals and would only grab for food, but the very next Ostrich we saw up close like this bit Joseph.
Checking out the petting zoo.

Mark not too fond of the Ostrich that just approached our Jeep.Joseph looking at the ducks walking beside us.

Joseph feeding some of the animals.

Grinds my gears

I have never really wanted to use this blog as a place to vent or give my opinions about one thing or another. My intention is to post things happening in my families life. But, last night at the park, I was very flustered about some things. I have told Jeff, that I need to have a segment either on blogger or facebook, called, "What Grinds my Gears!" Jeff said to make it really good, I need to video tape myself and post it. I got the idea of this segment from a quality show called 'Family Guy' and Peter Griffin on an episode is a reporter for a news channel with this segment.
In no way am I the perfect mom and I miss things, I really do, but sometimes I see mom's just not even trying to do their job and you or your spouse end up having to be the police officer at the park or play area.
As a mom, some things that grind my gears:
-Last week, Joseph and I went to Chick fil a to have a nice lunch and play in the play area since it was all indoors. We make our way to the play area and there are two mom's who I can only describe as 'Yellers!!' I mean seriously, this play area is very small and echos significantly, so is it necessary?!?!? For about the first 15 minutes Joseph wouldn't leave my side to go play because he was so distracted by their tone...Jeff and I aren't yellers, so when he sees people like this, he is very concerned. When these mom's were giving directions to their kids they were yelling, yelling 'don't hit her or....' I mean, come on, just go up to your child and quietly give them directions. It was a little annoying and both Joe and I were relieved when they left.
-Last night Jeff and I loaded the whole family in the truck and our bikes and went to a local park. We rode around for a while and then took Joseph to the park to play. As soon as Joseph gets to the rocks, he did what any 1 year old does, grabs a hand full and chunks them. We immediately correct him (quietly) and tell him he can hold them and drop, but no throwing. So our play continues and about 15 minutes later, there were two boys, probably ages 3 and 9, and rocks are flying. There is a lady on the bench right behind me, who I can confidently assume is the mom, not putting a stop to it. I don't say anything, and eventually Joe gets hammered by a ton of rocks. Yes, I was a little annoyed, so I went over to Joe and used it as a teaching tool. See, that is why we don't throw rocks...it hurts and of course wiped his tears and gave kisses. As the night continued they kept throwing rocks and Jeff had to keep asking them to stop. Our night continues and this little girl, about 2, walks up to Joe and what I thought was to be trying to love on him turned into UFC. She started pulling his collar and grabbing him around the neck trying to take him down. Jeff was there and just kindly pulled her off and patted her and said, "Be gentle," and then the little girl smacked Joe....that wasn't much fun for him. We look around for the mom, who was no where close and not paying the least bit attention to her kids. So annoying! We tried to get Joe to play on the equipment and go down the slides, but the little girl kept coming back for more and he wasn't wanting anymore of that, so our night was pretty much cut short. Thanks chicka! When we left the area, Jeff leaned over, "Where are the parents?" That's my point. I'm not or don't consider or encourage for that matter, to be a helicopter parent, but please be near your child or attentive so when they are having a war of rock throwing or trying to compete in the UFC, you can kindly put a stop to it.
Oh, the same little girl who was picking on Joe, put a bunch of rocks in her mouth and started choking and another dad caught her and intervened. I wanted to tell the mom, 'your welcome!!'
-And one more thing, but not the last, that Grinds my gears, is when parents bring their kids to the park, plop down on the bench, and chat away on their cells. Now, I have taken a call before at the park, but honestly, use this time to interact with your child, geesh. Now, this isn't for the mom's of older one's because I know they can handle themselves, but I have seen mom's with little one's do this....the little one's who are throwing the rocks and tackling other babies. Come on now! Get with it.
And those are some things that Grind my Gears. What grinds yours?

15 Weeks and 20 Months

This week I turned 15 weeks. To everyone and myself, this pregnancy is flying by. Since I have whipped through the first trimester, I feel awesome. I have energy and can eat just about anything (during the first trimester, certain foods made me queasy). I really think I am having a boy because I feel exactly how I did when I was pregnant with Joseph. I don't have any weird cravings with this one either. However, one thing I always did crave with Joseph, as well as this baby, is fries. I am still going to the gym 2-4 times a week depending on our schedules. This is helping me not put on the lbs so fast and I think it will help with the back pain towards the end. I have felt the baby move a couple of times, so that has been fun. I want to say I felt this one about 2 weeks earlier than what I did with Joseph. My next appointment is September 4th and I will be 17 1/2 weeks, so I should get the thumbs up to call and schedule an ultrasound. WWOOOHHOO! I am really looking forward to that appointment. I know my doctor likes us to make the ultrasound for 18-20 weeks, so hopefully I will get in pretty fast.
This week Joseph turns 20 months....4 months away from 2!!!! I can't believe how fast everything has gone. He is really turning into a little boy....getting rougher and tougher. His vocabulary since 18 months has increased so much. He says about 2-3 new words a day. Today, he said Ernie, bar and I noticed he is trying to say things like basketball, instead of just ball. Usually will end up saying ballball or bubus for school bus. And for all you Aggie fans, I have gotten him to 'hiissss' when he sees or hears me say the color orange. I am also trying to get him to put his hands together and do the correct motion, but it ends in a wave and he smiles when he hisssses. Almost there. I really don't want to influence him in one direction or another, but we have some TU family members, so I am doing this to mess with them.
That is about all I have on our home front. Stay tuned for more updates.

Finally, a blog

This probably annoys people, I don't blog for a while, then when I do, I post like 10 pictures. Sorry. But here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks. We finally took a picture of the fab 5 in their July 4th shirts. I posted last years July 4th picture because I thought it was cute to see how much the little ones have changed in a year. The next one, there will be 2 new babies!!
Below that are some pictures of the cousins at the finale at VBS. I think Joseph rode the hay ride like 7 times. Even though he isn't beaming with excitement in the picture, he really did enjoy the ride.
Since Joseph is about to be a big brother, I thought we should try some big boy stuff, starting with letting him feed himself. He really enjoys it and is getting pretty good at it. (Although, the pictures may say otherwise).

July 4, 2007

2008
Just getting them to all look in the same direction is a successful portrait session. Two picutres that show how it can be.

Joseph holding a cookie, but I don't think he wants it.

Tilly and her adorable strawberry painting.

I know babies looking really messy from eating grosses some people out, so for these pictures, I apologize. It seems like we have come full circle with the messiness of eating. This is how messy he was we he first started eating baby food, now it is from feeding himself.

'Forget the spoon, this is easier!'