Our newest little one

Truett Wayne Mershawn

May 4, 2012

4:16 pm

8 lbs 13 oz, 22 1/4 in

He's awesome.

 I was induced that Friday morning.

6 hours later, we met our 3rd baby, our 2nd son.

It was a pretty amazing feeling.

 Everyone who came in our room before he was born got a little more excited when they heard we didn't know if our little one was a boy or girl.

I had done my best to work this baby out of me for about 2 weeks, & still was only a 2 on the big day.

But, pitocin is a quick working drug.

A little after 4 pm, it was time to meet our baby.

 At 4:16 our baby entered the world & to our joy was another sweet boy.

He had what our doctor called a tight cord, which I later found out meant nothing about the cord itself, but that it was tight around his neck.

Glad it was later before I figured that one out...

He was quiet & blue for a few minutes, making his daddy pace a little.

Then came that cry.

And all was well.

He was so much bigger than expected, but I had a hunch.

The kids feet had been planted in my ribs for about 2 months.

I should've known.

Our kids were so happy to meet this new guy.

Parker couldn't wait to hold him.

Tucker enjoyed pointing out all his facial features.

I worked between encouraging the sweet love & protecting my newest baby.

Truett is precious & wonderful & so, so sweet.

Truett, you were such a sweet surprise to your family.

We had no idea if you were a boy or a girl before you were born.

Your mama was so sick when I was first pregnant with you.

But that wasn't any different from your sister or brother.

I grew fast with you once I started feeling better...17 weeks later.

Once I reached the end of my pregnancy with you, I had slowed down & looked just like I always look when I'm pregnant.

People called you my little basketball & laughed at the way your brother sat on top of you, comfortably riding along in my belly.

 The day you came into the world was planned.

I wanted so badly to go into labor, but as we know, our God has better ideas than we do.

You were born on a Friday afternoon.

You were so long.

We named you after your Papa.

Your family was there to welcome you.

They were all surprised when you came.

We had a good time choosing sides while we waited for you.

Your dad & I, stayed neutral;).

 You were my easiest & quickest baby in delivery.

Everyone said that's because you were our 3rd.

3rd babies were just easy.

I like that. So far, you fit that for sure!

Since having you home, you've slept, eaten so well, offered a few almost smiles, made your brother laugh so hard when you sneeze, made your sister feel special when you look at her & snuggled & cuddled with dad & I.

Just like Parker & Tucker, our love for you is easy & so big.

You make my heart swell each time you look at me with your sweet, trusting eyes.

And I remember the joy it is to get to know the newest.

We love you little Truett baby...you are just what we needed in our family & we are so grateful to call you ours.

"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. 

Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!

Your workmanship is marvelous- how well I know it." Psalm 139: 13-14

changes...

It's been too long.

Sorry about that.

There's a lot going on in my mind these days.

We've had a lot of changes going on lately.

Friends moving away, baby preparations (which includes gaining weight & measuring BIG), more friends leaving...yuck.

Mitchel is the new youth pastor at our church.

Which is pretty crazy.

It's been good, great, amazing, scary, overwhelming, a lot to take in...

After 8 years in the children's department at Lakeshore, it's strange to feel new again.

And a little incapable.

And a little nervous.

With all that change, I feel like my mind is in a whirlwind.

Or a tornado. Or a vacuum.

all.the.time.

Anyway. It's time to share something here.

And, I know posts are no fun unless they are really about my kids.

So, thanks to my recent instagram obsession, here's a glimpse into our lives over the last month...

My babies on a Sunday morning...

oh, I love them.

My silly boy snuggling on the...

coffee table.

We love Chick Fil A.

Period.

That same silly boy...

he makes us laugh everyday.

Our cowboy.

Those holsters come complete with guns, sound effects, & awesome facial expressions.

Spending time with a best friend at a sweet cousin's birthday party.

Brushing giant teeth...

Wearing Valentine boots (thanks to a certain Grammy) & sneaking a game on his mama's phone.

Sweet morning moments.

In cuddly jammies.

2nd meal of cereal in one day.

Sigh.

One day he will not be picky.

Instead, he will eat us out of house & home.

Right?

Lots of play time at the park these days.

Sweet, big girl.

How did that happen so fast?

Dude. You're 2.

Quit climbing like your 4.

You're giving your mama gray hairs.

For real.

A sweet boy riding in a stroller so his mama can get some much needed "exercise."

He's a good buddy.

His reward for being such a good buddy to his mama.

Play time; which was spent entirely in this swing.

I could squish him. All the time.

My favorite.

Home on a Friday.

I love Fridays.

Never know what you might find while roaming the aisles at Target.

Including 2 really cute spidermen.

I've never felt safer while shopping.

Sweet sleepy heads, coming home on a Sunday afternoon.

***********

We are doing good.

It's always good when you are just trusting God.

We know that we are in the place He wants us & we're excited about getting to know & being a part of some really special peoples' lives.

This is a unique experience & one we feel very blessed to be walking through.

Now, if only the rest of our friends stay put!

Craft Hope Project 16

Craft Hope has their new project up.

I thought I'd post their link, since I have so many crafty friends.

The project is benefitting kids with cancer.

Hats & bags for kids whose lives are fought for everyday.

In a hospital.

With uncertainty placed on their all too young shoulders.

It's almost too much to take in, but they deserve some special love.

And our prayers.

Alright...go check it out (click on the button above, or on my sidebar)

& see if you're able to help!

Yay:)!

More Christmas...I know

it's the middle of January.

But, these photos need to be shared.

At least in my opinion:).

Ladies & gentlemen, I give you a dance recital & a Christmas program 4 year old style:

A sweet baby brother, supporting his big sis.

He's always up for fun...as long as he gets to watch veggie tales on the iphone.

Hmm.

And now, the talent of the evening:

Next up...a little Christmas story re-enactment:

There's that sweet boy again, ready to see that sister...

as Mary:

with a crooked hat.

Awesome.

Yes. She's as much fun as she looks.

Way to go P girl.

You made Christmas even more special this year.

In all your 4 year old ways...

Christmas 2011- our advent calendar

We've had an advent calendar in our home since before we had kids.

It was something we kind of liked the idea of, but never really knew exactly how we wanted to do it.

The first few years, we just had little ornaments inside each door, to surprise us grown ups each day:).

After Parker was 2, we started putting little m&m's in each door, for a fun surprise for her.

But, we wanted more.

This year, I found this.

Perfect for us. Perfect for our young family & totally doable.

I came up with my own list of what would work for our family, using some of her ideas along with it.

On December 2nd, we opened the door & had hot chocolate.

Oh my.

He's getting too big.

And he likes it.

Speaking of big...I love this picture of her.

Blowing in her cup.

She's sweet... & loves her sweets.

Oh, there's some baby hands.

And a little baby belly.

Does a heart good to see that...

Hot chocolate was a huge hit.

Later on the agenda...

gingerbread houses.

Or graham cracker houses. Whatever you prefer...

I LOVE making them.

Is that strange?

Of course, it may have something to do with all that candy.

It's so pretty...

I hot glued graham crackers, cheap & way easy.

And, had 2 WAY excited kids.

Tucker took it as his own personal sugar feast.

And proceeded to eat 200 pieces of candy.

Oh. And we had apple cider to make up for a day we missed in our calendar.

Sugared up & happy.

And...being the great mom I am, I took a picture of Mitchel's house.

And, apparently only his.

Bummer that I missed my little guys'...

Sugar cookies were in a door a few days before Christmas.

I stress over these every year, but end up having a lot of fun.

Of course, having a Mitchel helper makes everything way better.

He's so awesome.

Girlfriend continued the sugar high trend of the season...

and had tons of fun.

And, our boy.

Dug in the flour bag for about 20 minutes.

Which he thought was awesome.

Life's grand when you're 2...most of the time.

Reaping what she sowed:).

The mess gets cleaned up while they bake, then a whole new one comes out when we ice them.

But, that's okay.

It was worth every bit of that mess.

And, we ALL loved our little daily celebrations of Christmas this year.

Next year I have hopes of adding the traditional advent candle to our daily routine.

Hopes. And a start to a plan. Here's hoping...

But, this was great for us this year & really fun!