At the Zoo

Snow Day

On March 1st, Isaiah experienced his first snow.

(I haven't added pictures to my computer in too long.)

Where we've been

Things are a bit crazy this week at our house. D. is gone on a Spring Break trip to Eastern Kentucky, and my mom, brother and niece are here to hang out while he is gone, so the craziness that is a two-year-old and a 7-week-old has been multiplied. But we also have more helpers.

So far, we are cooking many fun things that D. doesn't like. Tonight we had Greek Salad, Tampa-style. So yummy.

We went to story time at Square Books, Jr. and to two parks today.

Anna and Isaiah took a bath together, which involved a lot of splashing and fun.

Pictures will come later.

the big announcement

Things that are gross...

This is a cartoon mouse. His name is Jerry. He is cute. D. has told me to imagine Jerry when I think of the real, live mice that are coming into our kitchen. They are not cute. They are nothing like Jerry. 

Yes, it is true. We are having a mouse problem. Over the last two weeks, we have killed five (5) mice, all in our kitchen. Last Friday, I called the exterminator. Last night, we killed two more mice. I don't think the exterminator did his job very well. 

What is it that really freaks you out? For D. (and for my brother) it is snakes. For some people, it is spiders, roaches, or other creepy crawlies. For me, it is mice. I hate them so much. I just think of them scurrying around in the night and I get all creeped out. Ewww... 

Hopefully, our mouse problem will go away soon. All I need is one more thing to worry about. 

Feeling Better

We just wanted you all to know that Ezra seems to be feeling much better over these past two days. He had been having trouble keeping his milk down, but he has been nursing more often this weekend and he's been spitting up less often. The breathing treatments seem to really help with his congestion as well. 

Thanks for praying for us! 

We have so much to share with you... pictures of Isaiah playing in the snow, photos of our trip to the Zoo, and some funny quotes... but we are behind on our blogging for obvious reasons. Expect more soon! 

Quote of the Day

Me: "Isaiah, are you eating dirt?" 

Isaiah: "YEAH I'm eating dirt!" 

Pray for us

Please keep us in your prayers these days. 

Ezra has been congested for a while, and on Monday night he was coughing so hard we thought he was having some trouble breathing. We took him to the Emergency Room. Thankfully, he tested negative for RSV, which is a cold-like virus that is very dangerous for infants, but they still wanted to keep him and observe him for 24 hours. We returned home from the hospital yesterday morning. He is still very congested, and still vomiting several times a day. We are continuing the breathing treatments they were giving him at the hospital here at home. 

He is strong, and we all think he's going to be fine, but please pray for his congestion to go away and for him to heal. 

We are exhausted, especially me, so please pray for me to be able to catch up on rest and that I won't worry too much. 

Thanks, friends. 

Mardi Gras

We decided to participate in a Louisiana/Mississippi tradition this year. We made a King Cake for Mardi Gras, which is the Tuesday before the beginning of Lent. I found a recipe online for making the dough in my bread machine, which made it really easy. The tradition is to make this round yeast roll and decorate it in the Mardi Gras colors, which are green, purple, and yellow. You're supposed to put a little baby Jesus doll somewhere in the cake, but we didn't have one, so we didn't do that this year. As you can see, it was a lot of fun! 

Sweet Boy

Quotes of the Day (already)

It is 7:30 am, and we already have several notable quotations from Isaiah today: 

1) Me: "Do you know what today is? It's Valentine's Day!" 

Isaiah: "Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you..." (sung, of course) 

2) Isaiah: "I wanna cuddle" (My favorite) 

3) D.: "Isaiah, no jumping on the bed!" 

Isaiah: "I wanna hold you." 

That boy can be tricky. 

Happy DTR Anniversary

Our wedding day--July 24, 2004

8 years ago today D. Merricks and I had what all good Asbury College students know (or knew) as the DTR. Maybe they don't call it that any more. 

Our first wedding anniversary--July 24, 2005

DTR stands for "Define the Relationship." D. and I took the time to discuss the status of our relationship on February 13, 2001. On that day we went from the ambiguous friends who hang out ALL the time to boyfriend and girlfriend, and we have been falling in love more and more every day since then. 

September, 2005--our first 5K together 

(yes, my race number was 666)

We like to celebrate February the 13th as our own special day instead of celebrating on Valentine's Day. You might think it's very romantic that we chose this day to begin our relationship. You might think that D. is a very romantic kind of guy. This is not the case. For our first Valentine's Day as a couple, he got me a bunch of bananas. No roses or chocolates. No poetry or love songs. You'll have to ask him to tell the story of why. He is learning to be more romantic as time passes. Maybe I'm weird, but I don't think there is anything more romantic than a man who almost always washes the dishes, who spends hours playing with our children, who holds my hand while I am in labor, and who makes me laugh every day. I don't need chocolates. (I do like flowers, though.) 

October, 2006--pregnant with Isaiah

The past 8 years have been such a blessing. I am grateful for D. and his love and friendship. He helps me grow, he encourages me, and I am so blessed to share my life with him.

I also have to add an extra thank you to John Morley for introducing us, to Gigi Bell, for helping me find out whether or not D. had a girlfriend, and to David Bush for telling D. that he better have a talk with me on that day 8 years ago.

2 weeks

We've been taking lots of very fun pictures of both boys... I promise! But the battery on our camera died yesterday, so I can't put them on the computer. You'll just have to wait. 

I wanted to update you on Ezra's 2-week checkup and Isaiah's 2-year checkup, which were on Monday. 

Ezra weighs 11 lbs, 6 oz. He is obviously getting plenty to eat! He is doing great and we are starting to figure out a little bit more of what his personality is like. So far, he seems to be more laid back than Isaiah was at his age. He mainly likes sleeping and eating. He lifts his head up a lot and is starting to make eye contact. I like that. 

Isaiah weighs 32 lbs and is 35 1/2 inches tall. He is in the 75th percentile for both height and weight. He continues to amaze us with his vocabulary, and he continues to adore his baby brother. He also has a few tantrums here and there, but we are working it out. He is learning about time-outs and how they work.  

I think Ezra kind of looks like I did as a newborn. Of course, I was also 10 1/2 lbs and had black hair that my mom says fell out. Here are a few pictures for you to compare until we get our new battery: 

My boys

Quote of the Day

"I love you baby brober." 

My Birth Story

Or the story of how I had a 10 lb, 7 oz baby with just 2 pushes...

(it's kind of long, but it has a good ending)

Over the weekend I had a few bouts of contractions, but they kept going away.  Sunday night / Monday morning, I woke up in the night and had contractions from 1:30 am to 2:30 am, but I fell asleep again... 

Monday morning we had a doctor's appointment at 9:30 am. We got out of the door early enough to drop off Isaiah at his babysitter's house and even to stop by Starbucks on the way. The doctor checked me and said I was a "loose" 4 cm and 70% effaced. I was excited that at least those weekend contractions had done a little bit of work. 

After our doctor's appointment, I suggested to D. that we go for a little walk. Since it's January, we went to the Tupelo mall. We talked for a while, walked a lot, and enjoyed each other's company, then we decided to go to lunch together. We went to

Olive Garden for soup, salad, and breadsticks, which I had been craving. 

While we were eating, I started to have a few contractions. They were consistent throughout lunch at about 7-10 minutes apart. I did not get too excited at this point because I'd been having contractions on and off for about a week. But since I was 70% and 4 cm, I didn't think we should drive back to Oxford either. 

As we walked, it became apparent that this might be the day. I knew for sure when I had a contraction that made me cry a little bit. D. called everyone on the list--his sister, our moms, and our families. We decided to go to The Orchard, a church in Tupelo where several of our friends work, so we could have a place to lay down and rest while we waited for the contractions to get stronger. 

We walked around the church some (it's huge) and we watched a few shows on the internet although I don't remember a lot of what happened. I do remember that it's not a good idea to watch 30 Rock while in labor because laughing and contractions don't go so well together. 

When the contractions started getting stronger, we left for the hospital. We could have stayed a lot longer and it would have been fine, but I was afraid it was going to go very quickly, so we went ahead. 

When we arrived at the hospital, I was 5-6 cm and 90% effaced. After the first exam, we went back to the labor and delivery room. Our friend and doula, Corinne, brought our bags over from Oxford, and our big exercise ball. At this point, the contractions were very manageable. 

I appreciated the hospital policies and the staff at the Tupleo hospital very much. They did not give me an IV at first, and they held the monitor up to get the baby's heart beat every 30 minutes. This made it possible for me to walk around the room as I needed to, and to go to the bathroom when I needed it. They were very cooperative and understanding of what I wanted for my labor. 

As the contractions became more intense, I really liked sitting on the ball. D. played some music on his iphone, and it helped to have something else to focus on. He helped me breathe and had me look into his eyes while Corinne massaged my back. D. kept reminding me to "be under it" which was very helpful. It helped me to let the pain wash over me and not try to fight it. Fighting it, which is my first instinct, just makes it worse. 

As the contractions got stronger, Corinne did the work of helping me be in good labor positions while D. continued to help me focus on relaxing through the pain. After I had been sitting through a few contractions, Corinne would ask me to stand through a few. I am so glad she was there, because it gave D. the freedom to simply be there for me. The contractions became much stronger and closer together when I stood, so I wasn't always happy with her for asking me to stand. D. was always on her side, too! She also made sure I went to the bathroom once every hour, and that I was drinking enough water. 

I think it was between 7 and 7:30 pm when the contractions became so strong that I began to ask myself why I was into this natural childbirth thing. :) It's easy to forget how painful labor is. But I knew that by this time there was no turning back. I was really too far along for an epidural to do any good. This was not a time when I could verbalize any of my thoughts, of course. D. was such a help to me, especially during this time. I could not have done it without him. 

After about an hour of very intense contractions, Corinne told me that I should go to the bathroom. I told her that this was not an option since walking made them even stronger than just standing. Finally, I did it. As soon as I sat on the toilet, I felt my water break. Immediately, I felt very strong pressure and the urge to push. I knew that the baby's head was crowning, so I tried to get to the bed as fast as I could. I was screaming, "I have to push! I have to push!" trying to make it clear to D. and Corinne that the baby was crowning. Those were the only words I could find to let them know what was going on. 

When I finally made it to the bed, Corinne and the nurse were telling me not to push yet. I could not help myself. With one little push, D. shouted out "he's here!" and I knew the head was out. I remember giving one more push a few seconds later, and then the rest of him was out. In a few more seconds, I was holding a big, beautiful, screaming baby in my arms. I tried to nurse him, and he latched on immediately. I thought he was over 10 pounds just from looking at him, but it was about an hour before the official statistics confirmed my suspicion. 

I had to have a few stitches and it took me a long time to stop shaking, but I was so relieved when it was all over and I could hold my beautiful baby again. We didn't have time to talk about a name at first because so many nurses and doctors were coming in and out of the room. 

I am so grateful for my labor experience from start to finish. It was very painful, and very intense, but I think it is so amazing to learn what my body can do. The freedom to stand and walk around made a huge difference, and I think it's part of the reason I could have a 10 pound, 7 ounce baby with 2 pushes.

We are so blessed!  

I am so grateful.

A rose by any other name...

It is 2 a.m. and I am blogging. I bet you can guess why. 

So I was thinking that you might like to know why and how we chose the name Ezra Miles for our beautiful boy. 

I'll start with the middle name. We like family names, and we love the idea of honoring someone who is important to us by naming our children after them. Miles is my brother, and he is the best big brother anyone could ask for. We are only 20 months apart in age, and we have always been very close. He is also a great brother-in-law to D. They are both ministers, computer geeks, coffee addicts, and just generally get along very well. 

Miles means "merciful, generous." It was number 189 on the popularity chart in 2007, and according to nameberry, "Jazz great Miles Davis applied a permanent veneer of cool to this confident and polished name; it has been appreciated in particular by celebrity babynamers." I mean, if celebrities like it, we must have good taste. 

As far as first names go, we like Bible names, especially for boys. I don't really know why. We had a long list to start with, and I originally wanted to add Ezra to the list. D. liked it... and it just stuck. We like the sound of it; the vowel sounds are strong, and the letter "z" adds some punch. So we read a little about the story of Ezra. He was a priest who led his people out of captivity from Babylon to Jerusalem. It's a powerful story, and it's very important in the history of the Old Testament. Ezra means "help," and it is #342 on the popularity chart. 

We had three names at the end, and D. was the one to make the final choice. We had to see our baby and get to know him a little before choosing a name, but this one just seems right. So there you go! 

Meet Ezra

Ezra Miles was born last night at about 8:25 pm. See D.'s blog for photos. 

Did you order your T-shirt yet?

Click on the t-shirt to the right to do so. 

Remember: half of the proceeds go towards our little nephew's adoption. We need you! 

Also, Isaiah can say "Ethiopia" now. Okay, so he says "Opia" but we think he's pretty smart and gifted. We have a world map in his room and we pray for his new cousin every night. He says "The World," "Mississippi," and "Opia." This is all because his dad, my husband, is awesome and worked hard to teach him these things. 

Quote of the Day

"I want more salad!" 

I love it when he says that. Even if I have to remind him to say please. 

Quote of the Day

"Traaactor..... Where ARE you???" 

Maybe some people don't like it when the city does construction work in their neighborhood... 

I love it. 

A smiling, waving man has been driving a front-loader like this one back and forth in front of our house for the last 30 minutes.

What awesome entertainment for a 2-year-old boy. 

By the way, I have no idea what they are doing. I think it's something about the sewer lines. 

Almost there...

We went to the doctor on Monday and everything is going just fine. I am already between 3 and 4 cm and so the day is coming soon. 

I cannot wait because my body is very VERY tired of being pregnant. I cannot sleep so well, and I am oddly shaped. Of course, I know that I will not be sleeping so well for a while, but I am ready to not be sleeping because there is a sweet baby who needs me. I am ready to look at that sweet baby and hold him and get to know him. 

So pray for us and please DO NOT call us and ask if I am in labor or if we have any news... I cannot take it. :) We promise we will let you know when the time is right. 

Quote of the Day

Today we had a break from many days of cold weather and staying inside the house. Hooray! 

Me: "We're going to the park!"

Isaiah: "And throw rocks in the water? They splash!" 

Me: "Yes, we're going to the park to throw rocks in the water." 

Isaiah: "It'll be fun?" 

I only wish I could share with you the intonation he used as he pronounced the last phrase. It was kind of like asking a question, kind of like making a statement, and it sounded a lot like something I might say. 

Now is the time to beware! Be careful what you say around this boy because he repeats everything he hears! 

Support Adoption

About 4.3 million orphans live in the country of Ethiopia. We are so excited to be welcoming one of these children into our family very soon. My brother and his wife are currently in the process of adopting from Ethiopia. We can't wait to meet our nephew! 

The cost of International Adoption can be high, so I would like to ask you to support my nephew's adoption by buying one of these t-shirts. Wearing the shirt can be an opportunity for you to share with others your heart for the world and for adoption, and it's cute too! 

Please go to this site and check it out.

Quote of the Day

Isaiah picks up D.'s keys and says 

"I wanna go to Wal-Mart." 

Full Term

 I asked D. to take a picture of my belly because I want to remember how big it was... 

and Isaiah wanted a picture of his belly too. 

Quote of the Day

"You're naked!" 

Isaiah said this to D. after walking into the bathroom following D.'s shower. 

Happy Birthday to Isaiah...

Isaiah turned 2 today. 

I can hardly believe how fast these 2 years have flown by. I am so grateful for the way Isaiah helps my perspective shift and for the things he teaches me. He is the greatest gift I could ever have received. 

Fun facts about our 2-year-old: 

*He enjoys singing Happy Birthday to himself. 

*He is passionate about tractors, big trucks, and farm animals. 

*He also has a tender side: he loves stuffed animals and babies. 

*He loves yogurt. A lot. 

*He asked to sit on the potty for the first time 2 weeks ago. (Rejoice! Even though he didn't actually DO anything on the potty.) 

*Every night when we pray together, he lists the people he's seen that day. Shelby is always listed, whether he's seen her or not.

*He likes to read about Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. 

*He likes alligators. 

*He is a born leader: "Do that, Daddy!" "C'mon Mama!" 

Isaiah, we are so grateful that God has given you to us. We are so glad you were born. 

Our boy is 2!

Here's a look at Isaiah's second year...

I Believe

I wanted to share with you something that got me thinking more about liturgy in the first place. 

One of our favorite singer/songwriters is Andrew Peterson. His songs are so insightful, so beautiful, and they connect with me on many levels. A few months ago, D. went to see AP in concert and picked up his newest CD to bring home to me. This CD is entitled "Resurrection Letters: Volume II." I love it. Oh, I love it so much. I have listened to it over and over during these last few months. I have also been listening to AP's Christmas album, "Behold the Lamb of God" a lot lately. 

My favorite song is the last one on the CD. It's called "The Good Confession (I Believe)." Go buy it on iTunes. Right now. 

It is a reflection on the artist's baptism, which took place when he was 9 years old. Part of his baptism liturgy was reciting the following phrase: "I believe he is the Christ, the Son of the living God." Since his dad was a pastor, he heard this phrase over and over again throughout his childhood.  The song is a reflection on the power of these words. Here is my favorite line: "I drank so deep from the shallow well only to thirst again... till I heard a song that took my hand and led me home. And I believe he is the Christ, Son of the Living God." The words that are important to our faith do something amazing in our hearts; they come to life and they change us. I love the image of a song that led him home. 

The song ends this way: "So when my body's weak and the day is long, when I feel my faith is all but gone, I'll remember when I sing this song that I believe." 

I wrote a few days ago about the ways we want to include more liturgy in the life of our family, but I also want to include more in my personal time with Jesus. Something I'm practicing is reciting this simple phrase throughout the day. It helps that it's part of a song that I love. 

A few days ago, I was singing to myself while making lunch for Isaiah. As I began to sing, "I believe," he finished the phrase with "he is the Christ." When I said "son of the," he finished the second phrase: "living God." I cried a little bit. Sure, maybe he doesn't understand the gravity of what he said, but that's kind of the point of liturgy, right? Hopefully he'll understand its importance later. By the way, we've added this phrase to our bedtime prayers. 

I believe he is the Christ, the son of the living God. 

Quote of the Day

Picture this: 

Isaiah is making D. follow him around the room and do things like hop and jump. As D. stands on a pillow and then jumps off, Isaiah says 

"Atta boy!" 

A New Year

 I'm all about the New Year's Resolutions. I like to stop and reflect at the end of each year and think about how I've changed and grown. I also like to be intentional about the upcoming year. A mentor of mine in college (my beloved RD, Koby) always talked to us about being intentional as we ministered to the women of Glide-Crawford. Being intentional is a life lesson that has stayed with me all these years since college. I think it's important to think about who I want to be and to take steps to get there. I don't want to turn around one day and wonder how I've become someone I never thought I'd be. 

Here is what I am not good at: giving stuff up. I have failed during many lents at the sacrifices I've told myself I would make. D. decided he would give up soft drinks for 2008, and he actually did it. I think he had a soft drink twice. Once, he had the stomach virus and he drank some Sprite. Once, he got a root beer float at Sonic without thinking. He is very disciplined. I am not so disciplined. 

So this year, I've decided that instead of giving something up, I want to add something to my life. I want to add more liturgy. That might sound a little strange, but it's something I've been thinking about for a while.  One of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen, wrote these words: "It is not easy for us to truly believe... but every little gesture of trust will bring us closer to [the] truth" (Bread for the Journey). I think practicing liturgy is a way for us to make little gestures of trust. Sometimes the truths of scripture are hard for us to believe. We live in a world that sends us so many messages about who we are and about who God is that we are inundated from all sides. But when we speak the words of scripture or recite prayers that other believers have recited for hundred of years before us, we're making little steps toward allowing the truth to sink down deep into our hearts. 

So here are the practices we're going to engage in as a family: 

*Each day at breakfast and dinner, we are going to recite a scripture together. Something simple enough that Isaiah can remember it. We want to find a scripture that fits in with the part of the story the church is celebrating at this time. Right now, our scripture is "For unto us a child is born." Isaiah's got it. (Well, he says "a child is born.")

*I am making a book for Isaiah that talks about his belovedness in Christ. I am using the words to The Litany of the Person, which I will list below. I want Isaiah to know that he is deeply loved so very much. And the truth is, that when D. and I read this book to him, we can be reminded of our own belovedness as well. 

*Finally, and this was D.'s idea, we are choosing to sing a special song or hymn to Isaiah each night that fits in with the season of the church year. We sang "Silent Night" during advent, and now that we are celebrating Christmastide, we sing "Go Tell it on the Mountain." 

You get the idea. These steps are simple. They will take about 1 minute of my time each day, but the impact can be huge. 

A LITANY of the PERSON 

image of God

born of God's breath

vessel of divine Love

after his likeness

dwelling of God

capacity for the infinite

eternally known

chosen of God

home of Infinite Majesty

abiding in the Son

called from eternity

life in the Lord

temple of the Holy Spirit

branch of Christ

receptacle of the Most High

wellspring of Living Water

heir of the kingdom

the glory of God

abode of the trinity. 

God sings this litany 

eternally in His word. 

This is who you are. 

Quote of the Day

Me: "Isaiah, what do you want for your birthday?"

Isaiah: "I want cake!"

This will now be an occasional feature on our blog, and yes, he really said this with no prompting.

He is almost 2...

One of our gifts to ourselves and our families was to get professional portraits taken of Isaiah. We had to keep the pictures a secret, so this is their debut on our blog. They were taken at the beginning of November. 

Can you believe how handsome he looks? 

Can you believe how old he looks? 

34 Week Update

Yesterday we went to the doctor. All three of us went because we were scheduled to have an ultrasound. Isaiah wore his "big brother" t-shirt in the photo below. 

Baby brother weighs between 6 and 6.5 lbs, measuring 2 weeks ahead of schedule. That means he'll probably be a big one, just like Isaiah. The pictures don't quite capture what we saw. We really got to see his face a few times, and he is quite handsome. Oh, and just in case you were feeling doubtful, he is definitely a boy! 

Going it alone

I am spoiled. I am married to the most wonderful man; he is an amazing father and husband. He is so involved with raising Isaiah, and there is no job that is too "womanly" for him. Okay, so he doesn't make the grocery list, but still. So what this means is that I often have someone to call upon when I need help with Isaiah. You know... when the 34-week pregnant woman can't get up off the floor... or she can't pick up her son and carry him around like she used to... she can ask her sweet husband to help. 

But what happens when her husband goes away for a few days? He was going to a conference that is appropriately titled "Refresh." It is a conference for United Methodist Campus Ministers. A lot of his good friends were going to be there. How could I complain? I was a little nervous, I must admit. Three days all by myself with our high-energy boy. 

I have to say that we have made it. We are going to pick D. up at the airport in the morning. I have had a wonderful time hanging out with Isaiah. We played, we baked blueberry muffins together, Ella and Addie came over to play, and Isaiah also happened to sleep until close to 8 every morning. Sometimes I worry so much about making it without D. that I wish for the time to fly by, but I am grateful for a few days for Isaiah and I to spend together. He is such a blessing. And when he wakes up at 5 am and says to me "I wanna hug," what else is a mom to do? I hugged him. He went back to sleep. And he slept until 8:10.

Now if we can only make it to the airport in the morning...

We are getting ready...

Sweet Smile

You might not be aware that I have been gifted with a little boy who has the sweetest smile. I would post a picture, but it is really impossible to capture on camera. This smile includes dimples, and two front teeth with a tiny gap in between. It is the most beautiful, and the most captivating thing I have ever experienced. It is especially captivating when accompanied by the phrase "hey mama." 

If you are lucky enough to receive one of these smiles, you might never be the same. It might be hard to make this guy go to bed, or to refrain from giving him a cookie. It might be harder for you than it is for me. 

So I am a little curious... what if baby brother has a smile that is just as sweet? What if it is even more captivating? (I am not sure that is possible.) I don't know what I'm going to do... 

An Advent Prayer

Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, 

send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. 

We who have so much to do seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day. 

We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. 

We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. 

We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. 

We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. 

To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!" 

--Henri Nouwen

"Baby Brober"

I need to update you on the life of baby brother. 

Isaiah often points to my belly and says "baby brober." We pray together for baby brother every night, and we talk about him a lot. We are getting very excited to meet him. 

I think you should know that this baby is getting BIG. He has not been the mover and shaker that Isaiah was when he was growing in my belly, but lately this boy has started to move. I feel like he must weigh 8 or 9 pounds already! It's not the same kind of crazy moving that Isaiah did... it's more like a lot of rolling. I like feeling him move a lot because it makes me excited to meet him. I can't wait to see what his personality is like and how it will be different from Isaiah's. 

We went to the doctor this week and everything is fine, and we will go again on December 18th. We are going to have our second ultrasound to measure the baby. Isaiah weighed 9 lbs, 8 oz, and the doctor is thinking this guy is going to be a big one too! 

As a side note, I washed and folded a lot of clothes this week. This baby does NOT need any more clothes. I can hardly fit them all in the dresser! We let a friend use Isaiah's clothes, and when they came back, I think there were some extras added in...

Vocab update

I have not updated you on Isaiah's ever expanding vocabulary lately... 

It is quite impressive. But really, do you know how much I talk? Do you know how much D. talks? Are you surprised that our child likes to talk too? 

Isaiah has been able to count to four for a while now... but today he counted to TEN! Okay, so he skips seven, but overall I think it's pretty impressive. 

A few weeks ago, Isaiah started saying his name. He says it like he's looking for himself when he's hiding... "i-AI-ah." It is quite possibly the cutest thing ever. 

We had such a wonderful time spending Thanksgiving with my family. They drove to meet us in Georgia, and we stayed at a cabin. Isaiah loves his cousin, who he calls "Naa-nah" (Anna) and he started saying "Ash-wey" (Ashley). He does not have Miles down, though. But of course, he says "Mema" and "Pop." 

Okay, I'll leave you with one last word: "ketchup." Yup. Loves it. I did tell him that cranberry sauce was ketchup over Thanksgiving, and he ate that right up too. I mean it's red and you dip in it, so it's close enough, right?