Feeling Great!

I just wanted to let you all know that I am feeling MUCH better. Thank you for all your prayers. I had a fabulous first day with students today. I had no morning sickness. I didn't have to pee at inappropriate times. I didn't feel the urge to snack. I feel like I conquered a mountain. I even came home and cooked dinner (spaghetti out of a jar). Malachi, Kiev, David, and I also all went for a walk. I am feeling pretty good.

Please keep Malachi in your prayers, though. He is feeling ok. He went through a few days of feeling bad, but I could never put my finger on what was wrong. It seems that maybe Malachi and I were sharing a "cold/flu" and now have passed it on to Daniel. He seems to be feeling better, but his stools are still loose and frequent (Malachi, not Daniel). I hope that we are coming out of this soon. Thank you again for all your prayers. They truly are/were felt!

I survived...sort of

This week was my first week back to work. It was hard. I've had a "cold" off and on. I'm not sure what I have, if anything. Yesterday and Tuesday I ended up with a low grade fever and the aches. I thought maybe it was a little stress and just moving my student desks around. My throat has been hurting today. I just don't know what I have. I am hoping, though, that I will feel better on Monday (when students return). If I don't, I guess I'll be calling the doctor. The thing that bothers me about it, is that I just had the fever (and not on consecutive days). It made my head ache and gave me the chills a few times. My main concern was that it felt like the fever was in my spine and just continually ran up and down it, which could be contributing to my back pain. I'm trying not to complain, I'm just a little confused/concerned. I didn't have symptoms like this with Malachi. I was less sick but more tired while carrying him. Maybe this just means we're having a girl!!! Or maybe it just means that every pregnancy truly is different. Please pray that I can get over this so that my students and family get the best of me and not the worst.

Back to the Grind

Today was my first day back to work in over two months. It was kind of hard at first. I am not used to the mental stimulation yet, but it will all come back soon. I did well. I didn't have to take a nap, but I was definitely tired when I got home. Malachi was taking a long afternoon nap. He allowed me to sit and rest for a little while. Thanks Dad for taking me out to dinner, so I didn't have to cook my own dinner. Arby's was great!

Malachi did well, too. He stayed with his Uncle David while Daniel and I worked. He was definitely happy to see me when I got home, though! I literally had to chase him around the house. This is the first time I've ever really had to just follow him around and keep him from getting into every possible thing. He wanted to be held first, and then he almost ran. It amazes me to see how far he can go on his own now. He can walk from floor to carpet and back again. He can even turn corners. Wow! I was truly blessed to have spent all summer with him and his new developments. Thank you, Lord for this wonderful blessing!

12 Month Portraits

These were taken about a month ago by our SUPER photographer, Faith.

My little escape artist

Who says the "mush pot" is bad?

"Cheeseball"

I can stand. Oh, ya! (and crawl and walk)

Our Schedule

I thought that I would share our schedule before it all changes on Monday. Hopefully, we can pretty much stay on this schedule, if his caretakers ablige. I have mixed emotions about going back to work. Sometimes I am ready for the change. Other times I just want the freedom to hang out with my son whenever I want. I'm sure I'll probably feel the same way in a few weeks. We'll see.

8am - Wake up (Actually, Malachi is usually awake before 8, but I've tried to make it that I don't get him unitl 8. He's good at playing and talking in his crib until its time.)

8:15 - 5 oz. sippy cup of soy milk while I prepare his breakfast

8:30 - breakfast (wheat toast and homemade fruit baby food)

8:45 - play while Mom fixes and eats her breakfast

10:30 - read a book and sing a song in the rocking chair, and then down for a nap
***This is the time where I eat lunch, vaccuum, blog, clean, etc.

12:30-1pm - wake up from nap and have 5 oz. sippy cup

1pm - lunch (cheerios and 6 oz. jar of baby food)

1:30-3:30 - play, crawl, walk, and get into all the cabinets possible (this is main time that we get out and run our errands)

3:30-4:30 - nap (Mom usually naps, too)

4:30 - 5 oz. sippy cup

5:30 or 6pm-ish -sit down with Mom, Dad, Grammy, and Grandpa for dinner (cheerios and jar of baby food)

7:30pm - bath (usually every other night, depending on how dirty he got that day)

8pm - last 5 oz sippy cup

8:30pm - Bible story, prayers, and down for the night

AND HE STILL SLEEPS THROUGH THE NIGHT! PRAISE THE LORD!

***I promise that I will post pictures no later than Sunday.***

Dear Malachi,

This morning you truly made my heart glad. You decided to be more independent. I hope that this is a phase that will stick. Since your Counsins Callie and Avery came to visit, you have been much more clingy, longing for someone to play with you. I love to watch you interact with your cousins and others, but it sometimes leaves you wanting a playmate. I understand and try to be there for you, but you have made it more difficult to get things done while you are awake.

After feeding you breakfast, I still had to make and eat mine. To my surprise, you wandered around the kitchen on your own, talking to your reflection in the dishwasher and kissing it. Then, you crawled into the family room to play with your many toys that are set up in there. I was able to finish cooking my sausage and biscuits. Then, I sat at the table, out of your view. I was able to eat almost my whole breakfast in peace while you played with your toys on your own. You finally joined me at that table and wanted to take part in my final two bites. I didn't mind, though. I finished my biscuit and shared my OJ. You couldn't have been happier. You love to drink whatever your Daddy and I are drinking. I quickly cleaned up and walked with you back over to the toys for a few more minutes of play.

You were also surprisingly independent yesterday at church. You played by yourself with almost every single toy in the room (which made it fun for me to clean up), while I held a friend of yours who is coming up on being 6 months old. I thought you might be jealous, but you were happy to crawl and walk around the room pulling all the toys off the shelf and playing with each one for no more than a minute. I just hope that these are signs of what is to come---a more independent, self-assured little boy who will adjust pretty easily to a little baby taking over Mommy's attention. Way to go my boy! You are growing up in front of our eyes.

Also, congrats on making an easy transition from bottle to sippy cup (Nuby's are great)!

Coming Soon

So, I had my second visit to the doctor and my first ultrasound on Friday. It went really well. I am going to try to scan one of the ultrasound pictures soon, but I don't know how well that will go. The computer has really been acting up lately. Daniel went with me. He, of course, had a better angle of the ultrasound. He got a little choked up getting to see our new little bundle. I took as much joy in the moment as I could. It is a little more difficult to see from my angle and to have to deal with the distractions of an internal camera instead of an external. We got 4 really great pictures. The baby measured in at 5.71cm. For those of you who don't know metric, like me, that is a little over 2 1/4 in. long. This is a little ahead of schedule. The doctors are keeping my due date at Feb. 25th (even though they quoted the 24th before). The length of the baby was estimating my due date as the 21st. It's only a few days off, so they are not changing it.

This makes me very happy. I just don't want to have to go through the days in the hospital before the baby is born. I don't want to be induced, either. I want to rest at home as long as I can, and then go into the hospital. So, anywho, we are very excited, and my belly is beginning to pooch more. I can still fit in my jeans and a pair of shorts. Most of my dress pants still fit as long as I don't do the top button. I have like zero shirts to wear right now, so I have to come up with something soon since I have to look professional when the students return in 2 weeks (that's right I have one week left until going back to work)!

Well, in about 6 weeks we will have the second ultrasound to do the organ checks and to find out the gender of our baby. Until then, we have affectionately named the baby, "Junior the 2nd" or "The Deuce."

Update

I just wanted to give you a quick update on the baby. Right now my due date is Feb. 24th. That may change a little come Friday. I am going for an ultrasound and appointment. At the ultrasound, they will try to more "accurately" determine the due date of the baby. I did have my first appointment last week, but I just peed in a cup, and they took my blood. Nothing exciting there. We will be going for a second ultrasound in about 6 weeks to then determine the gender of the baby. That will help me to know whether I can lovingly look at pink clothes or get all of Malachi's clothes out of storage. No surprises here. If the baby is a girl, she will still be Abigail. If the baby is a boy, we will keep the name a secret until his birth. Ok, so we do have to have a few surprises.

I am feeling fine---a little nauseated during the day but nothing major. I eat about every two hours to try to ward that off, and I have to pee a lot. No movement felt or anything else yet. I am excited that I am getting close to the second trimester where I will not be as tired. I can make it some days without even thinking about a nap. Other days it becomes a necessity.

Welcome Home Bubba!

Josh, welcome home! I know that your family is excited to have you back. We are thrilled to know that you are back with them where you belong. We love you very much and look forward to seeing you soon. -Morgan, Daniel & Malachi

An Amazing Kid

I know that everyone thinks that their kid is the greatest. I don't deny those feelings, but I have been truly amazed at how quickly Malachi has changed. Just this summer he has learned to crawl, learned to walk, learned to understand more complex commands, and so much more.

Tuesday, this week, he started really being interested in walking. He tries to walk more often and gets much farther than he used to. Just yesterday he was able to walk about 8 feet on his own (and who knows how many steps it actually was). By the time I go back to work, he may be walking totally on his own for much longer distances. I'm really glad that he saved all these firsts for this summer. I have learned so much about him and feel truly priviledged to be a part of it. Thanks for being such a great kid, Malachi. I love you!

Keep up your love for reading as you get older. I love to watch you "read" your books at home.

Mommy's Little Helper

He's a little too small to help at the grocery store just yet, but he definitely loves pushing "Callie's" cart around. I guess if we got him a toy he could walk behind, it might be a little bit better, but he has so much already:) He's just in training for a few years when I'm really gonna need some help and sanity.

It's Coming...

Oh, no! It's coming! I have one day shy of three weeks before I have to return to work! Aaaaaaaggggghhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

Ok, so it's not that bad. I'm sort of looking forward to getting back to school and meeting my new group of students. I just wish I could teach part-time. Then, I would do what I love. I could teach and stay home more often with Malachi. I guess you can't have your cake and eat it, too, huh?

One Year Old Silliness

Malachi loves to clap his hands. All you have to say is "Yay!" and he'll start clapping. I always love to see the toothy grin that sweeps across his face each time.
I tried to get some pictures of his teeth, but he just wanted to play with Mommy's toy, i.e. the camera.

Why? Why? Why?

Why in the world does my son have the urge to pull every single book off the shelf, just to leave it laying there for me to pick up?
He's a child. Oh, yeah. I forgot...again.

Guess How Many Teeth?

That's right folks! Malachi now has 6 teeth. I hope that we are done teething for at least a few weeks. Anyways, he got all 4 teeth on top within a month. His bottom teeth were the first to emerge but are the slowest growers. He now has 2 on bottom and 4 on top! Congrats kid! I love you!

Also, Congrats to Avery on getting her first tooth at 5 and 1/2 months! That's shocking for me to hear!

Also, I would like to say welcome to the world Andrew! We are praying for you. You can also see the pictures and arrival information on Callie and Avery's blog.

How do you know when your baby has become a toddler?

• You count over 7 bruises on his two legs.
• You watch your son get two bruises on his head/face in two days (one being on the coffee table, one on the concrete around a pool).
• You can no longer cook or do anything else while he is awake without getting tugging and whining at your legs.

At first I thought that Malachi was pretty careful. He had very few bruises when he started crawling and toddling. The past week has changed my mind. He was doing his routine rounds around the coffee table and slipped. He fell hard and slammed his chin into the table. He still has a little bruise. He only cried for about 5 minutes, but it was hard to watch. The next day, we were at the YMCA getting ready to witness one of our members be baptized. Malachi was crawling around and somehow fell on his head. He had a nice concrete imprint and swollen bruise for a few days. Just this morning, I was showering, and Malachi was playing with his toys on the other side of the curtain. All of a sudden, I hear a "thud." He just fell backwards while sitting and playing with toys! He never does that! Go figure!

I don't know which one is harder: accidently bumping my son on items while holding him or watching him fall and get hurt, knowing that there was nothing I could do to protect him. I am realizing that I am no longer totally in control of my son's life. Scary! He is not totally dependent on Mommy anymore.

I Forgot...

how hard pregnancy is. I also know that the first trimester is the hardest. I am soooooooooooo tired. Some days are better than others, but it has been rough the past 2 weeks. Grammy has tried to be a help, but I've tried to do a lot on my own, knowing that not everyone has the luxury of a built-in grandmother. Daniel has been working over 50 hours for the past 2 weeks. When I need a break in the late afternoon there is usually no one to help. Grammy is usually trying to get dinner together or something. Malachi has decided that the past few days he will only take a nap for 20-30 minutes in his crib for his afternoon nap. He's still tired, but he won't sleep in his crib.

I have to eat something like every 3 hours (except at night, of course). I am moodier. I get upset (usually frustrated) and its hard to calm down. I haven't really had the crying episodes yet, which has been nice, but I know that those will come soon enough. 8-10 hours of sleep at night is just not enough to get me through. I'm trying not to take naps, but I have given in a few times. I just want an hour or two to spend in the bed or resting each day. Is that too much to ask??? I know it is, and it will only get worse whenever we have child #3. Many, I repeat, many years down the road (like at least 4). I am just praying that the second trimester arrives soon. Then, I will feel better. I am starting back to work at the beginning of my second trimester, too. I hope things will go smoothly there. Sorry, I just had to vent. Thanks for listening and, I know, many of you are reminiscing and sympathizing.

Malachi Has Something to Share...

"I am going to be a big brother!"

I discovered through taking a test at home that I "passed." I am about 8 weeks pregnant. My due date is around February 24th. I haven't been to the doctor yet. I have about 4 weeks until I need to get all the stuff done. I was looking for a midwife group, but the only one in Concord is not taking new patients. Now I have to find an OB/Gyn in Concord or look for a midwife group in Charlotte that's not too far away.

Malachi "told" all the family by wearing this shirt. He enjoyed the attention that it got him. Even though he had no clue, he was excited to see all the excitement.

My brother told me that he didn't know that we were ready to have another child. (Snicker, snicker) We weren't ready to have another child, but God has blessed us. I was in utter shock for a few days and almost in denial. Now I am excited! Malachi will be about 20 months and be a little more self-sufficient (snicker, snicker). I don't know how it will all happen, but it will be just fine. God doesn't give us more than we can handle. I just know that the next time I get in the process of complete weaning, I need to be more careful by taking a pill or other measures.

We are surprised but extremely happy. I look forward to meeting this little girl or boy and finding out in about 12 weeks whether we are having a girl or a boy. Until then, we will have to see. I hope you all will start praying for us now. We can use it. We have to find a place to move to in about 7 months and get a lot of things ready. All while I am working on my second year of teaching! Who's idea was this again?!? Oh, yeah. I forgot.

Happy Birthday Aunt Tabby!

Tabitha,

Thanks for opening your presents with Malachi. It made his day. Happy belated birthday!

Dear Malachi,

You, sir, have grown by leaps and bounds in the past month. About 3 weeks ago, you mastered crawling. A week and a half ago, you took your first steps at your birthday party for all the family to see. You understand so much more information than you used to. I know that you understand what "no" means. You also understand different phrases like "all done," "good job," and "no mas," just to name a few. You are able to get just about anywhere you want in a blink of an eye, which is sometimes not a good thing with your Mommy having to pee a lot. You love to play with your Daddy most of all. You love it too when you see your Grammy and Grandpa for the first time each day. You have started playing games with all of us. You will hold out your hands and lean to a different person every 15 seconds or, while playing on the floor, will decide its time to "run" away from the person trying to pick you up or hug you. You even figured out how to climb up steps about 2 weeks ago. Thankfully, you are not too interested in doing this action a lot.

I just can't imagine a day without seeing your smiling face with 4 big teeth staring at me and two more little ones coming in. You bit your family a couple of times, but you haven't bit anyone in over a week. I am praying that that was a quick phase. I feel sad to know that when I go back to work in August that you will not be with me all the time. You will spend a couple of days with Daddy and a couple with your great-grandma. I'm OK with that. This summer has been so much fun! I finally figured out your schedule (and so did you). You take your two naps in your crib as well as sleeping between 11-12 hours in your crib. Just this morning, you woke up and decided to be quiet and let Mommy sleep late. Thank you. I needed that.

You are the joy and light of my life (besides Jesus and your father, of course). Each day is a new adventure. You crawl around in dog fur, break out in little pink bumbs, and never complain. You take the most fabulous pictures and make our photographer's job so incredibly easy (especially since she's 7 months pregnant). Your naps have made my summer so much more enjoyable. I get to eat lunch in peace. I get to have over 2 hours all to myself each day. I usually clean and eat, but I look forward to feeding you when you wake up.

Malachi, I am so thankful that you are a cuddler, too! Just this morning, you gave me a big ole hug and the biggest smile a momma could ask for. Don't ever get too old to hug and love on your parents. We love and cherish that time too much!

I love you Malachi James! I look forward to so many more days with you. I'm glad your temper tantrums have seem to have subsided, and you are back to your happy, smiley self. I wouldn't trade you in or give you away for anything else in the world. You are my son, Malachi, and I will love you forever! I thank God everyday for blessing us with you.Love,
Mommy