Judah's birth in pictures

we got so many pictures from Judah's birthday. i'm so thankful. and Katie took some amazing pictures of our family meeting Judah for the first time. but that will have to be a separate post b/c there are so many pictures!

i love getting to look at these and remember that sweet day!

Judah Haddon was born at 4:50 pm. 

7 lbs 5 oz

20 3/4 inches long

head full of dark hair!!

39 weeks 3 days. headed to the hospital!

in triage waiting to meet Judah

he's here!!!

        

getting cleaned up

getting weighed

exercising his lungs!

the nurses kept calling him "the skinny baby"

Ben's first time to hold Judah

my wonderful doctor,  Dr Williams. so glad she was able to deliver Judah

     

in the PICU. my first time to hold Judah

finally in our recovery room, waiting to see family

         

he had his eyes open a lot that day

sweet little face

       

headed home from the hospital on Friday afternoon

so excited to go home!

    

first car ride

Jack's first time to hold Judah

Jovie's first time to hold Judah

             

first nap at home

i'm just so thankful to have these memories!!!

Judah's Birthday!

today our sweet baby boy, Judah Haddon, was born. (obviously, i didn't blog on his actual bday, i'm back blogging!)

what a wonderful, answer to prayer our Judah has been. his pregnancy and birth are by far the best and most normal experience i have had. i was able to walk right into the hospital and have him. NO bed rest, NO BP issues, NO Pre-Eclampsia, NO hospital stays before the baby was born, NO student doing my spinal, NO magnesium and no other issues. 

PRAISE THE LORD!! i can not tell you how much i prayed and prayed for his birth. i prayed for SO many different details and aspects to be different this time around. and the Lord was so gracious and kind to hear my prayers and bless me with a normal birth. He has been all in the details. and i am forever grateful. Ben and I enjoyed this day so very much. we were blown away that we were getting a normal experience. what a mighty God we serve. 

anywho. Judah's birth story. 

my c-section was scheduled for 4pm. which i actually loved b/c it gave us time to enjoy the morning and get a few things done. i woke up that morning around 6:30. i drove to Chick-Fil-A to  get us all some breakfast. i had to eat early b/c of the surgery. after breakfast we all showered, bathed and got ready for the day. i had all the bags and diaper bags packed for the weekend. 

we ended up taking Jovie to see Dr Bubba at the last minute b/c she had been sick for about 3 or 4 days before and i thought she had a sinus infection. sure enough, she did. we got a prescription filled, picked up some lunch for the kids and headed to my in-laws to drop them off. 

we arrived at the hospital at 2 pm. we did some paperwork and got into triage. i got hooked up to my IV (ouch!), got my blood drawn, BP checked, monitored for contractions (which i was having every 5 minutes) and waited for the Dr to come in the room. at 4:10 Dr Williams popped in, went over a few things with us and then i was headed back to the OR. 

my spinal went wonderfully this time. it hurt but it was not nearly as painful as it was with Jovie. i went numb quickly and got hooked up to oxygen b/c i was a nervous wreck and had a hard time breathing normally. Ben was allowed back in the room. 

at 4:50 pm, i heard Judah's first cries as he entered the world. my goodness. i was a blubbering mess. never has there been a sweeter sound than that of your child being born. i could cry just thinking about it!

Judah was cleaned up, weighed and wrapped in a blanket. Ben was able to hold him the rest of the surgery. sweet baby boy cried the whole time. so funny. Ben finally settled him down and i was able to get a good look at him. i cried the whole surgery. mostly nerves, but also thankful to the Lord for how he had blessed me with answered prayers and a healthy baby. such an overwhelming experience. 

after surgery we spent 2 hours in the PICU. required for me to regain the feeling in my legs, and allow my body to recover from surgery. i'm so thankful for that time b/c i could just rest and enjoy Judah. i was able to hold him once i could sit up and he even nursed for the first time. finally, around 8pm we were taken up to the 4th floor to our regular room.

our family came back in the room around 8:20pm and met Judah. Katie was able to take some amazing pictures and Jack and Jovie were so excited to finally meet their baby brother. what a wonderful, special and sweet day we had. i will never forget the little details and the sweet moments the Lord blessed us with on that day. Judah Haddon is such a joy and a completely beautiful baby!

we are in love!

2011 in Pictures

i've been doing this for the past couple of years and i love it. its so fun to look back over the months and remember how the Lord has blessed us with so much. 2011 was SUCH a sweet year for our family. so much happened. it was full of new experience and exciting news. and i can honestly say i learned more in 2011 than any year of my life. the Lord taught me so much about ministry, loving people, loving his work and changing my heart attitude about things. i am so thankful.

Jack and Jovie were such a blessing this year. they have grown to be so close and have so much fun together. i am so thankful that they are so close in age. it has been way more of a blessing than a hardship. the Lord always knows best.

excited to see how the Lord will move in 2012. excited to bring another sweet little boy into our family. we are so blessed.

2011:

January:

we had a big snow at the apartment

sweet Jovie Claire turned 1!!!

sweet playmates

February

we had a fun Valentine's Day and went out to eat as a family

we had some unusually warm weather so we played outside

Jack got the Woody doll from Toy Story. and so began his obsession.

March

i gave Jovie her first hair cut.

we did a lot of swinging at the park

we went to Grace Playce for the first time. we love getting to each week.

April

we tried out the new park at Shelby Farms

the Lord blessed us with a new car for Ben. thanks to some sweet friends who gave us a great deal and a little money in savings, we were able to pay cash. no monthly payments. that is a huge answer to prayer.

we had a fun Easter with all of our family

Jack and Jovie had their first Egg Hunt

and we took LOTS of walks at Shelby Farms

May

Jovie mastered the art of feeding herself

i had a sweet Mother's Day

we watched movies in bed

we gave lots of hugs

June

Katie took some AMAZING pictures of Jack and Jovie

we did lots of swimming at Mamie & Deda's house

Revision Church had its first baptism service

Ben had a fun Father's Day

July

we flew to Florida for a 2 week vacation. the first week it was just the 4 of us and the second week, Ben's whole family came down to join us.

Jack hurt his eye and had to get 3 stitches. poor baby.

Jack shared meals with friends

and Jovie wore pigtails for the first time

August

we stayed with Jenna while Mamie and Deda were gone on a cruise

we did some furniture shopping because we put a contract on our house in late July and closed on it in late August.

**we found out on August 22 that we were expecting baby #3. i'll have to upload the picture i have later.

September

we moved into our first home

my dad & I redid my kitchen cabinets. i LOVE the way they turned out

we told our family friends that baby #3 was on the way!

October

Jovie got even cuter

Jack turned 3!!!

we dressed up as a Bumble Bee and Woody for Halloween

November

we took a few walks at Olive Branch park

we went to Chris and Courtney's rehearsal dinner; we traveled to Jackson, TN so that Ben could officiate his cousin's wedding

we had a few family dates just going to dinner. and we had a wonderful Thanskgiving with our families. somehow, i have no pictures from that day. Boo.

December

we found out that baby #3 is a BOY!!! we have named him Judah Haddon. and we can not wait to meet our sweet Jude!

Jack fell in love with with Lolli's snow globe

we went to the Memphis game

Jovie got to wear her sweet smocked Christmas dress

we baked tons of goodies

we spent Christmas Eve at Mamie and Deda's house

we enjoyed Christmas morning at home

and we had fun opening gifts at Lolli and Poppa's house on Christmas night

** and Ben and I celebrated 5 years of marriage on December 30.

it has truly been an amazing 2011 for us. we praise the Lord for his many blessings. and we pray that we honor him in 2012.