Christmas Part I

The Christmas season is upon us. We finally got our tree up and decorated about a week ago. Somehow it's been a little more difficult to get it all done this year. Hmm...I wonder why. We spent Saturday and Sunday in Cleveland with my parents and brother to do our Christmas since Gabe, Elliott, and I will be traveling to Knoxville for Christmas. Elliott enjoyed his time in Cleveland. He liked opening presents (well, mostly looking at the picture of Santa on his gift bag). In the near future he is really going to enjoy his bath seat that Melly and Pops got him.

I can't believe that next week my baby boy will be 4 months old. He is just a busy baby and is exploring the world constantly. After many years of studying child development and working with children, it is so cool to see how he is developing. I love to go and pick him up out of bed in the morning and see him smile, so happy to see me. The flip side of this is that now he cries when it's time to go to bed. I'm thinking this is because he doesn't want to be alone without mom and dad. Another perk of his age is that toys are finally fun! Up until about 2 weeks ago he would kind of look at toys but they didn't hold his interest for more than say 3 seconds. He definitely has his favorite toys--a Leap Frog cube that plays music and a purple hippo rattle. I swear that I can hear the little Leap Frog songs in my head when I sleep!

In the mean time, we are fighting cold #2 of the season. Elliott started the sniffling and coughing over the weekend. He has been sleeping like crazy during the day and I'm hoping he will beat this thing before we hit the highway for Christmas. My whole upper body is covered in some sort of bodily baby fluid--mucus, spit up, and/or drool. Yes, I know motherhood is a glamourous job. Somehow it is different when it is your own child but nonetheless I'm praying for relief from this thing soon!

Thanksgiving Fun

More than one week after all the Thanksgiving festivities, I am getting around to blogging about it. We left last Wednesday for our first road trip with baby in tow. It took two days of planning and packing to get us out the door Wednesday morning. Our car was completely slam full. I'm talking nothing else was going in there. We barely had room for the baby! Elliott did fine on the car ride even though he's not much for his car seats and definitely does not love long car rides. The main problem with the car rides is that unlike every other baby in the world he does not necessarily fall asleep in the car. On each way of our trip he had one good nap, so that means lots of time mommy had to entertain. Luckily we had a variety of toys and he especially enjoyed the soft blocks that make the crinkly sound.

Elliott thoroughly enjoyed Thanksgiving (in fact he fell asleep during dinner) and I was pleasantly surprised at how well he did despite being away from home. Unfortunately, Thanksgiving night he developed his first cold and woke up all stuffy in the middle of the night. He was pretty miserable most of the day Friday and definitely not himself. I feared the worst for our trip home on Saturday but he actually did well.

It was great to be back in Blowing Rock, NC again and the weather was surprisingly mild for that area. I loved introducing Elliott to all of the Magees. Thanksgiving has been probably my favorite time of year for most of my life. Though I love Gabe's family dearly, somehow it just doesn't seem like Thanksgiving without gathering with the Magees. It's so interesting now that all the cousins are grown and many have little ones of their own. We had a great time and look forward to more Magee Thanksgivings in the future.

In other Elliott news to report: he had his first laugh last Saturday. It is the sweetest thing I have ever heard! He always giggles a little when we're getting him ready for bed and he's laying on his changing table. It still just makes my night when I hear him. So sweet!

We survived!

So, week 1 of Operation Mommy Back to Work was successful. Elliott had a great time with Ms. Jen, his sitter, and I managed not to cry myself through the work week. Going back to work was in some ways easier than I had expected and in some ways more difficult. Knowing that Elliott was well taken care of and spending pretty much one-on-one time with an incredibly experienced mom (to 5 girls nonetheless) was definitely comforting. I could text or call anytime to check on him and I even got the cutest picture emailed to me at work on Thursday. The little stinker ate like a truck driver all week and took some crazy long naps (which I swear he'll never do for me) at Ms. Jen's house.

I was not prepared for all of the hard work once I returned home from my 7-3 gig-- bottles to be washed, clothes to be washed, lunches to be packed, and clothes to be laid out. It takes Gabe and I both in full speed to get me and Elliott out the door by 6:20 to head to the sitter's house in the morning. The snooze button is definitely a thing of the past and I believe that prep the night before is what it's all about.

Work itself was fine, although most of the week I felt like I was in some sort of fog. I have a lot of new kids and I never even saw most of my kids before I left on leave in August. It's almost as if I haven't worked since May. Crazy! So to all of my coworkers out there, I can only say one thing--bear with me.

So, since I worked so hard last week, I've been rewarded with the week of Thanksgiving off! One of the many perks of my job. We're headed to Blowing Rock, NC to be with my extended family. It will be another interesting week for Elliott--baby's first road trip. I hope his parents survive this one!

Our favorite baby things...

Elliott enjoying one of his favorite things--aquarium bathtub

As I am routinely making trips to baby stores (Babies R Us and now Buy Buy Baby), I am always amazed at the unbelievable amount of baby 'stuff' that's out there. Some of it is definitely needed and some of it, well, isn't. I had the help of some pro mommies when I registered but you still never really know what your baby will like or won't like. For example, I was told that the swing was a real life (and arm) saver for an infant who didn't want to be put down. However, Elliott is not a huge fan of the swing. He's much more interested in the mobile of rainforest animals that hang from the swing. We mostly use the swing as an infant seat. There are many other things that we've learned along the way get the Elliott stamp of approval. Here are a few of those things:

1.SwaddleMe wraps---or swaddling for dummies as I like to call it. E loves being swaddled for night time and nap time. Gabe is a much better swaddler (not sure if that's a real word) than me so these are much easier for me to use.

2. Fisher Price Birdies Soother--I've mentioned it before, I'll mention it again, E LOVES his birdies.

3. Fisher Price Rock N Play Sleeper--This is what E slept in for about 1 1/2 months because he was not a fan of laying flat. Now that he's in his crib I've used it to put him in when I need to get ready to go somewhere.

4. The Boppy--of course, everyone has a Boppy now a days. It's wonderful for feeding him and I miss it terribly when I'm out and about trying to feed him!

5. Infantino Square Activity Gym--E likes to lay under and play with the animals. I never knew how much activity gyms could cost. They are SO expensive. This one was much more reasonable and just as good I think.

6. Angelcare Baby Sound Monitor--I know that many people think this monitor is overkill, but I believe that it's why I had such an easy time with him going to sleep in his room. It senses his movement and sounds an alarm if no movement is detected in 15 seconds. Well worth the money and glad we got it.

7. Gerber Prefolded Cloth Diapers--we're not doing the cloth diaper thing, but Elliott spits up constantly so I definitely could not live without these burp cloths. Even though at times I use TWO of them to cover me up, he still manages to get me pretty messy!

8. Aden and Anais Muslin Swaddle Blankets--We use these at night when E is double swaddled. First we swaddle in these, then he slides in the SwaddleMe. Gabe does this every night and E always smiles big when he's wrapped up tight.

9. Snap N Go Stroller--borrowed this from my friend Morgin and it has been great. Easy for quick trips in and out of the store.

10. Moby Wrap-- I got this when E was about 5-6 weeks old. I wish I had gotten it sooner. I use it a lot when we're out shopping or taking a walk around the neighborhood. He usually falls asleep immediately. Last night he wouldn't go to sleep, so I strapped him in and vacuumed the living room. He was out!

11. Fisher Price Aquarium Bathtub--E loves to play and splash in his bathtub. He does not love getting out of the tub. We're working on that.

I'm interested to know what other people view as the essentials for a new baby. We're constantly finding new things that Elliott is into or new things that save his parents sanity!

Turtles, cribs, birds, and cars

It has been a full week in the Hamby household. We spent Halloween evening at our house handing out candy. Elliott dressed up as a turtle. The mommy confession is that his costume was actually made for a dog--hopefully he won't be scarred for life. I must say it was pretty darn cute although my son wasn't too big of a fan.

Up until this point, Elliott's beautiful crib has pretty much been vacant at night with Elliott sleeping in our room. Gabe and I decided that Halloween night we would try to put Elliott to sleep inhis crib and it was a success! He slept right through numerous door bell rings and "Trick or treats" downstairs and didn't even make a peep. That night he slept about 5 hours straight then was up and down. We were happy with the first attempt and since then he's slept through the night a couple of times in there!!

Another great discovery this week is, as we call it, "the birds". At the recommendation of my friend Morgin we got Elliott this Fisher Price soother that has little birdies on it. We found it at a consignment sale way before he was born--apparently it is no longer made. It plays music and projects a light show on the ceiling. Elliott LOVES it. Mostly he loves the light projection on the ceiling and the music is just a bonus. We use it at bedtime and one night he even fell asleep on his own watching the birds, therefore I deem it a miracle working toy!

Lastly, we got a new to us car this week. My little Mazda 3 was getting pretty cramped for baby and all of his necessary items. After researching we upgraded to a Mazda 5--definitely a mom car, but heck, I am a mom so I guess I can drive it proudly. The Mazda 5 is kind of like a mini van and kind of like a car. I LOVE the sliding doors and how easy it is to get Elliott in and out. I also love all the cargo space for the afforementioned baby items. It drives like a car and is wonderful!

The coming week will be bittersweet for me. It's my last week at home with Elliott before going back to work full-time. I'm looking forward to seeing my coworkers and my kids at school, but I know it's going to be hard to leave him. I'm going to try and savor each and every moment I have with him this week!

Top 5 things that change when you become a new mom

So when you join the club of motherhood, some things just seem to happen. You swear up and down that you'll never be "that mom" wearing that outfit or driving that car but somehow it's inevitable. The world looks different to you as a mom! These are just some of the things that I think most moms can identify with...

The top 5 things that change when you become a new mom:

1. You take a picture every time your little one breathes. Everything they do is the cutest thing ever! You think to yourself, "This is definitely the cutest baby ever born!" and you're probably right.

2. You begin to judge cars by their functionality and usefulness rather than the image they portray. That Jeep Wrangler with the soft top that seemed like so much fun now just seems dangerous and you now see why so many people opt for the mini van with the sliding door!

3. You consider it a very good day when she can take a shower AND dry your hair. Quite an accomplishment.

4. You and your husband have more conversations about baby poop (or lack thereof) than about the events going on in the world.

5. Your facebook status updates have more to do with how many hours your precious little one slept the night before or what adorable things little precious is doing.

In all seriousness, I'm loving being Elliott's mom and can't believe my time with him full-time at home is almost over!

Mommy's night out....kind of

In the last 2 months I've definitely learned that if you really need to get things done (ie: errands) it's much easier to do them solo. Elliott is not much for shopping unless he's sleeping in the Moby Wrap on my chest and that only lasts for so long. Yesterday I decided that when Gabe got home I was going to make a run to Target for some essentials and down time for myself. I fed Elliott at 6:40 and left the house by 7:15 with instructions to feed him once more before putting him down for the night. Elliott and I had a long talk about how he was going to be good for Daddy--no screaming and easily taking the bottle (these two have been issues in the past when I left). When I left, Gabe and Elliott were on the floor playing and Elliott was happily cooing and smiling.

In mid shopping trip I got a call from Gabe. Never a good sign. I could barely hear him for all the screaming in the background. From what I got, Elliott was hungry (and probably tired) and would not take the bottle. I proposed giving him a bath until I could get home. Baths ALWAYS calm him down. So, I hurried to get the necessities on my list. Of course there were 1200 people in line to checkout and only 3 lanes open.

When I got home I could hear the wails and was feeling like a horrible mom. As the rest of the story unfolded, I couldn't help but laugh. After I had talked to Gabe he put Elliott in the tub. Elliott immediately relaxed. He relaxed so much that he pooped all over the tub after about 5 minutes in. The funny thing is, he has never done that before. So, my precious husband had to take him out and the screaming commenced again. When I got home, Elliott was in his diaper and still not very happy. Gabe says to me, "I don't know how you do this all by yourself every day!"

So, Mom's night out was kind of thwarted by a baby with definite tastes about his milk and how he gets it. Gabe says that in the future maybe mom's night out could wait until the last feeding of the evening!

And we have a smiler...

As we approach the 8 week mark of our time with Elliott, I can't believe all the ways that he's changing. The most exciting development--social smiling. He's been doing this a couple of weeks now and it is by far the cutest thing I've ever seen. Sure, Elliott's been smiling since he was in hospital but it was probably could have been attributed to gas. Now, it's for sure that he's smiling in response to something you've done or something he likes.

I remember our friend Todd telling Gabe and me that when your baby starts smiling you will go to any length of goofiness to get him to smile again. I now understand this and definitely have done quite a few goofy things to get a smile. Elliott enjoys the goofiness and especially likes it when you play with his feet or touch his nose or make crazy sounds (not too loud). Gabe always gets a smile when he swaddles Elliott up for bed at night. Regardless of how you get it, the much coveted toothless grin is so precious!

Top 5 things I've learned about parenting

When I was pregnant I heard all sorts of advice and information about babies and parenting. Most of it I took with a grain of salt because I know that everyone has their own opinion and experience on what parenting is. Here is my top 5 list of what I've learned over the last 5 weeks:

1. Sleep is of utmost importance. This was the one thing that people kept telling us before Elliott arrived. "You'd better get your sleep now, while you can because you won't when he gets here." I'd heard it a million times and though to myself, "It can't be that bad. I know what to expect and I can handle it". Even though you think you're prepared for the lack of sleep, I don't think you can completely fathom how tired you will be in the first couple weeks. Things do get better and as our friend Katelyn wrote in a card, "Sleep will come". I was encouraged by that! Today actually sleep is a great subject with me because Elliott blessed us with 6 hours of sleep--in a row--last night!!

2. Getting out of the house takes much planning and drive to do. Once again, people told me this before, but I thought "how hard can it be??". I was wrong!! To get to church on Sunday at 11 a.m. it took 2 adults several hours of planning and scheduling. Our planning conversations went something like this: "Okay, you go shower while I feed him then we'll trade off. He'll need to eat again right before we leave. You get the diaper bag ready and I'll get the bottle ready. I'll pick out his outfit while you change his diaper." Going anywhere is a production but it's getting easier.

3. Breastfeeding is hard! Elliott literally came out ready to eat so in my mind I thought, oh this is going to be a piece of cake. Not so! We've struggled a lot in the last 5 weeks, mostly with my supply being somewhat low and Elliott being upset that the food was not making it in quicker. Elliott wasn't gaining weight for a little while but now is back on track--he weighs over 9.5 pounds! I still don't know how long I'll be able to breastfeed him. My supply is kind of up and down, but I guess some breastmilk is better than none. I think the thing that surprised me most about my difficult feeding him was how emotional it all made me. I felt to blame when he wasn't gaining weight and almost guilty when I had to give him formula. At the end of the day, he's growing and healthy and that's all I want. Whatever happens, happens.

4. The bathroom exhaust fan is your friend. We have been learning new things about Elliott daily but last week I stumbled onto an amazing discovery. When Elliott is tired and won't go to sleep, I go in the bathroom, turn off the lights and turn on the exhaust fan. He routinely and soundly falls fast asleep. It works every time and I am so thankful for this discovery when nothing else works.

5. There is nothing like seeing your child accomplish a task. I know you're thinking, "what task can a 5 week old accomplish?". He works hard to roll from his stomach to his back. A couple of weeks ago, I laid him on his stomach and watched him start to move his arms and legs to try and figure out how to move himself. He grunted and squirmed on the floor with such determination and I was cheering him on. Finally, after about 5 minutes he did it! I was so proud of him and how he stuck with it. I know that as he gets older there will only be more for me to cheer about. I can't wait to see how he grows but I'm really enjoying who he is today.

Out and about with the baby boy...

Elliott trying to stay warm on a cold Fall morning!

It's been an exciting week with the Hambys. Elliott and I have gotten out and about much more and I'm feeling more confident in taking him out. Elliott went to church for the first time on Sunday. We were so happy to be back at Stonecreek after 6 weeks of missing church. Elliott enjoyed himself in the nursery and was well taken care of. Mommy was only a little anxious during the service. This was the first time we'd left him with a non-family member. I know that he was in great hands! When I went to pick him up, there was a little handout in the diaper bag from the nursery. I thought it was really meaningful and wanted to share a little of what it said:

"Have you ever thought about the fact that God chose you to be the parent of your child? He knew exactly what your child needed in a parent, and He chose you. He knows your strengths, weaknesses, and your amazing capacity to love. And, He gave you this baby. But, He didn't give you this baby and walk away. He is there--every minute of every day--guiding you through this parenting journey. He has a story of love and redemption to tell your child through you. He wants your precious baby to know that their Heavenly Father is there to help them, just like He's there to help you--every step of the way."


The pictures below are from Sunday

Elliott was a little unsure about the whole going to church thing, but he came around!

The times they are a changing...

So, we've almost completed the first month of our journey as parents. Our lives have changed so much in last month. I barely feel like the same person! I think the whole world knows now that Elliott James was born on August 29 at 1:50 p.m. after a fairly short induced labor. Our labor and delivery experience was wonderful and I was able to fulfill my desire to have a natural childbirth. We had a fabulous lady named Renee who was our doula and helped me get through some pretty intense contractions. I'm sure I'll write more about the whole birth experience later.

Elliott is a neat little guy. Sometimes being his mom feels very surreal, as if I am looking in on someone else's life. Sometimes I forget that he's actually mine. He's changing everyday and everyday I am figuring out something new about him. We are settling into the routine and he is sleeping better at night. A couple of nights ago I got 3 1/2 hours of uninterrupted sleep. It was bliss! Our pediatrician thinks that he is going to be a redhead. He's looking more and more that way everyday. Elliott definitely has his father's blue eyes and complexion (or should we say vampire tan). I should probably go ahead and stock up on baby SPF 100 for next summer!

Gabe and I have been overwhelmed by the level of support that our family, friends, and coworkers have shown us over the last month. Gabe had a surprise shower at work when he returned after Elliott's birth. He came back from lunch and his cubicle was full of diapers! My friend and coworker Shannon came and took beautiful pictures of Elliott last week and all of the meals, calls, and moral support have meant so much to us. Having those supports in place has kept us a little bit more sane during the last four weeks. Thanks so much to everyone.

Know that there will be many, many adorable pictures of E coming and funny stories about Gabe and I bumbling our way through parenthood!

Two weeks and counting...

So, we're 38 weeks as of today and it is pretty crazy to think that at any moment I could go into labor. Everyone keeps asking if I'm ready. Well, yes and no. I would love at least another week or so to get my "stuff" in order but also would love to meet him whenever it's time (whether that be tomorrow or in two weeks.

I've been to work for the last two weeks which hasn't been too bad. I kind of figured at this point I would be miserable but it hasn't been that way at all. I'm hoping that all the walking and sitting on the floor talking to kids will pay off and help start labor when he's good and ready. My coworker Laura laughed at me yesterday as I was sitting on the cold hallway floor talking with some first graders. Several teachers kept peeking their heads out and asking me if I needed chair. The truth was, it felt pretty good sitting on the cold, tiled floor. The other part of the truth was that it wasn't such a pretty sight when I had to get up off the cold, tiled floor.

Another funny thing at work has been the comments from the students. About a million little girls have asked me "Are you having a baby??" and one of my students asked me "What is that baby doing in there?". I'm not sure if she meant how did it get in there or what activity is it doing in there. I've often wondered the latter question myself as it feels like he's playing a nice game of ping pong or boxing with his invisible twin. Soon enough I will be able to comment on exactly what my baby is doing and will probably do so often in this blog. We can't wait to meet him and see what he's going to be like.

We are officially old...

So, in addition to the fact that we are married, homeowners, and soon-to-be parents, we are now the proud owners of a lovely GE chest freezer which resides in our garage. I think this is just another milestone to mark that we are officially old. We are not officially old because we have a freezer, we are officially old because we are so excited about this freezer.

After much debate, we decided to make our purchase. The radiant white freezer was delivered by two quite helpful Home Depot employees on Friday morning and by Saturday morning Gabe and his dad had it installed and ready for action. I'm sure everyone is going to want to know what the first items were to go in the freezer (being sure it was those lovingly created freezer meals I made back in July). No, it wasn't the freezer meals. It was Gabe's "Hungry Man" frozen dinners that he picked out for his lunch. The TV dinners were closely followed by my freezer meals and some salsa my mom and I made a couple of weeks ago. If time and Elliott permits, I'm going to make a couple more things to add to my freezer stash later in the week. Freezer meals and a freezer to go along with them are probably more evidence of my voracious nesting. It seems like we've been constantly busy readying the house for a tiny invader...when he decides to invade there will be plenty of frozen goodness for him!

one year ago...

July 13 we celebrated one year in our house. A lot can change in a year and I never expected that we would be about to have a baby one year later. One year later, Gabe has shifted careers for the better. One year later, we have met many great new friends through a great small group at church. I'm sure there's much more that's changed in the last year but those are the ones that come to mind.

As far as our house--almost everything has changed from before we moved in. With the help of super interior designer and best friend Morgin, the house is looking amazing and so much more inviting if I do say so myself. Eat your heart out HGTV! Do you think finishing all these house projects counts as nesting? I'd say yes. Gabe is hoping it ends soon and "honey-do" list gets back to a manageable level.

The dining room before:


And after...



The living room before:
And after...


The kitchen before:
And after:

The master bedroom before:



And after...

The loft/landing area before:

And after...

The guest bathroom before:


And after...

Let the blogging begin...

So, after much thought, discussion and wonder, I finally decided to start a blog. In the past I've thought maybe I don't have too much to discuss in a blog, but now that we have a little one on the way, my life is about to get much more exciting (not that it hasn't been already). This blog will be about the things I love--family, faith, cooking, creating, and living life

Speaking of the babe, we are down to four weeks and counting before he is scheduled to make his arrival. August 27 is the due date and I am planning on working as close to that date as I can bear. The most common question these days (and throughout the pregnancy) is "How are you feeling?". I think I'm feeling pretty good considering I'm 8 months pregnant and it's been in the 90's outside for the last week! No, but in all seriousness, I am definitely getting somewhat uncomfortable but I guess that means things are progressing and I'm getting closer. I have trouble getting up from the couch or bed and Tums has become my best friend and constant companion. All in all, I can't complain, it has been a wonderful pregnancy. We are both getting more and more excited by the day to meet our Elliott. Although I feel my excitement level increase, I still don't think it has hit me that there will be a baby in our home soon.

In my final week at home, I've enjoyed relaxing and checking a few more things off of the "before baby" list. I think we have everything that a baby would need and a few things that his parents just thought would be fun. I made cute iron on decals on Photoshop Elements (PSE) and put them on some onesies for E. I also made stickers to document his progression each month. I've been a PSE addict this summer. Using PSE I finished out 2009 photo book, made a baby memory book, made a photo book for my friend Morgin's little girl, and designed E's birth announcement. Maybe something about being maternal brings out your creative side. Who knows! I figure I need to get all of this done now while I have time!