Presenting... Graham Edward Reece!!!

So I don't know if you've heard, but all this anticipation and hard work led up to something pretty cool- a baby! I knew this day was coming (and Jen knew all the more), and now it's here.


Graham Edward Reece was born at 8:01 PM on Tuesday, October 26th (One day ahead of schedule. He gets that from Mommy). He weighed in at 5 lbs. 13oz., and was 19.1 inches long. He has lots of blond hair (for now- we'll have to wait and see), and long guitar-playing fingers.

Mom did a great job through two days of laboring at home, countless laps around the neighborhood, and a couple of trips to the hospital only to be sent home. Needless to say, Graham is already in charge of things around here.

We are so amazed at this little person for whom we have been preparing. While we've been reading up on "what to expect," reorganizing our home (and our lives- ask the cats), I don't think either of us could have prepared for the way our hearts have been blown open wide for this little man. We are forever changed for the better because of him, and he's only been here a little over a day. Not a bad start.

Still Waiting….Not so patiently!

Well, we are now officially 6 days from Baby’s due date, 10 days from the end of October, and 12 days until my November 2nd birthday. Okay Baby Reece, any time now!

In some ways, the past few weeks have flown by. Chris and I have had lots of fun enjoying a baby shower with friends, football games all weekend long, and lots of walking and talking while it is still just the two of us. We have been shopping and although we are sure that we will never truly be “ready” for Baby, we are confident we have most things in place for Baby’s arrival. The cats have particularly enjoyed our recent shopping trips! I have been amazed that to this point, they have stayed out of the crib, off the changing table, and out of the car seat and stroller. However, we brought the bouncer home and it has instantly become the most popular seat in the house if you have four legs and fur! I think they are just helping to keep the seat warm for Baby! It has been fun to spend our last few weeks as twosome (or foursome depending on who you ask) together, and Chris and I have reconnected in lots of different ways while enjoying our precious time together.



Rescue's seat?!



No Frankie's turn!

In other ways, however, the past few weeks have seemed to crawl by. We are both getting extremely antsy and are anxious and excited to finally meet Baby Reece (and of course learn the most well-kept secret of our lives…are you a boy or girl?), and the waiting is getting harder and harder the longer we go. I have finally reached that “so uncomfortable I am convinced I will be pregnant forever” phase, and Chris has gotten to deal with my hormonal breakdowns which are occurring much more frequently than I ever thought possible. This morning, despite sleeping better than I probably have in at least 2 weeks, Chris looked at me and said, “You have a funny look on your face”. I could only reply, “That could be because my back hurts, I can’t roll over anymore, and oh yeah, I woke up still pregnant!” Fortunately, we can both still laugh at this point (even if it is through some tears) and know that the end of the road, though possibly still 2 weeks away (I hope not!), is in sight!

Perhaps the best news for everyone involved is that we have narrowed baby names down to two each for a boy or girl, although we are not sharing until Baby actually arrives! So for now, stay tuned…I am sure Baby will decide to make its grand entrance one of these days!



37 Weeks




And look whose diploma finally arrived! Hooray!



38 Weeks



39 Weeks (Baby, a 40 week picture really isn't necessary at this point!)

Hello October!!!

Wow! I can’t believe October is finally here (and from the temperatures last week, fall may have decided to make its grand entrance in Tallahassee as well)! Hooray for all the changes that are coming SOON!

Chris and I are SO, SO, SO excited to meet Baby Reece! I can look back now and say that, for the most part, I have really enjoyed being pregnant. It hasn’t been all that uncomfortable or off-putting an experience (aside from the record heat and humidity this summer)! However, as the hormones and number of tissues I have been through recently indicate, I have reached that stage with 3 ½ weeks to go wherein I can’t wait to meet this little person and reclaim my body!

We had a baby shower at Hartsfield this week, and I had numerous teachers tell me that they couldn’t believe that I was a month away from Baby’s arrival. They all said that I am still so little, which is great. However, I think what some people don’t realize is that I was little to start with, and I am still working with very limited space. Baby is still very wiggly and squirmy with not a lot of room to move in, hence the uncomfortable part. Chris keeps saying, “Baby, be nice to your Mommy.” To which I reply, “Daddy, I am being as nice as I can, there’s just no more room in here!”

However, I am happy to report that there is significantly more room in the house that is cleared, decorated, and ready to accommodate Baby. We have most of the nursery done, minus a few things here and there, and we have made tremendous progress in the cleaning and purging of the rest of the house. There is still work to be done and some decisions to be made, most importantly, a name for Baby, but we are slowly crossing things off the To-Do lists that seemed so daunting in September, and although Chris recently commented that we will probably never truly “be ready” for Baby’s arrival, I think at this point all we are waiting on is Baby! So, here’s to hoping that we say “Hello Baby Reece!” before we say “Hello November!”



34 Weeks



35 Weeks



36 Weeks



Shower Fun!



Chris and Trey are REALLY excited about the Monkey Rug Pillow--Hopefully Baby will get a turn to use it too!



The Eric Carle Nursery has turned out to be AWESOME! We have the Brown Bear, Brown Bear Quilt on the Crib, The Very Lonely Firefly (in jar above the crib)...



The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Butterfly on the leaf valence...



The Very Grouchy Ladybug laundry in the corner...



And Eric Carle Number cards lining the wall above the changer! We are going to add Baby's name spelled with the Eric Carle Letter cards above the crib (as soon as we know what Baby's name will be)!







We just had to add an owl to watch over our little one!

One Down, Six to Go...

So, my life has become a series of countdowns. We are 6 ½ weeks to go until the due date, 6 weeks to go until the end of the first nine weeks at school, 3-4 weeks to go until baby showers, 1 week until the next dr. appointment, etc., etc., etc. I think the only things that are getting me through with some sense of balance at this point are my abilities to multi-task and make lists. Now, for those of you who really know me, you understand that this is nothing new. However, my compulsive list making skills have been raised to a whole new level at this point. Currently, I am not able to function daily without making a list, and while we are slowly crossing things off, I think we add more than we ever really eliminate!

A few of the lists I have made lists thus far

Things to Register for:

To be honest, I am still not entirely sure what goes on this list. I had a major breakdown in the aisles at Target this weekend as I realized I have no idea what I need and exactly what ½ the stuff they sell is really for. I survived though, and for those of you have been asking, we are officially registered at Target and Kid’s Pointe
(http://www.kidspointe.com/).

Things to do at work before Baby arrives:

Plan weekly sessions
Make long range plans for themes and ideas (for me or a sub)
Work on our new Community Arts Transition Class curriculum and plans
Make a grade sheet for special area classes
Finish the schedule for 2nd semester—which is crazy to think, since we just finalized the schedule for 1st semester a week ago!
Find someone from my department to fill in as dept. chair while I am gone (any takers?)

Things to finish at home before Baby arrives:
Clearing and cleaning around the house—why does this seem so never-ever-ending?
Staining the bookshelf
Painting the armoire
Practice with and install the car seats
Bring home small baby clothes from storage to wash and put away
Finishing decorating the nursery
Work around the house and yard—re-install window screens, clean off the porch
Pre-register at the hospital
Pack for the hospital (This involves a whole separate list!)
Find a pediatrician
I should put paint my toenails on this list, but I discovered this weekend that I can no longer see my feet, so I am now questioning the importance of this one!
Etc., etc., etc.


Obviously these are by no means exhaustive lists (although I am exhausted just thinking about them!) and there are many other responsibilities, meetings, tasks, and what not. Oh yeah, and I am growing a Baby. We have really made some progress in this area as of late, especially evident from the pictures below. But what about the title of this post? Have you figured it out yet? Let’s be honest, the thing we really need to worry about and concentrate on… FOOTBALL season. We survived the 1st Iowa Hawkeye game of the season, and there are 6 to go before the due date. Do you think Baby will get to see any of those?



30 Weeks



31 Weeks



32 Weeks



33 Weeks--We hit another growth spurt over Labor Day weekend-can you tell?

Baby's First Day of School

Well, we survived! Baby and I had our first day of school with all my cute and crazy kiddos today. I had one student who was extremely concerned about the change in my appearance and stopped the music therapy session to ask, "Miss Jen, why is your tummy so big?". Not wanting to stop and teach a sex-ed lesson, I just informed him that I had a baby in my stomach. He didn't quite get it, and I heard him talking to himself later saying something to the effect of "and then Miss Jen's stomach got fat!". It was pretty funny! You have to love kids and the crazy things they say!

Other than that, it was a rather uneventful day overall. I had to adjust the strap on my guitar to make room for Baby and had to sit at one point when Baby's head was right where I needed to place the guitar to stand and play. Other than that, Baby seemed to enjoy him/herself. It was very apparent that Baby's sense of hearing has improved and increased quite dramatically since the end of May. I have always hoped we are growing a music lover and if today was any indication, we are headed in the right direction. Baby danced most of the day...which I hope means we sleep better tonight!

The Summer Vacation that wasn’t

Well, here we sit on August 15th, the night before school starts yet again, and I am wondering what happened to our vacation. I am not trying to sound ungrateful, as I recognize that many of my friends and family don’t enjoy the “luxury” of 2 ½ months off, but if it is any consolation, we didn’t either this year. This year, I think we learned the true meaning of a working vacation. So, with what were we so busy?

Chris and I both taught in our Extended School Year (ESY) programs. We had lots of fun with our kiddos and enjoyed the shortened days and four-day work week! We also spent the summer as students. Chris took 2 classes towards his autism endorsement and I finished my last class for my masters. Yes, you read that correctly, I am now a master (minus the diploma currently, but that’s another story)! I spent 5 semesters with FSU’s distance learning program and now have my Masters of Science in Special Education Studies, with an emphasis in severe disabilities, including autism. It is such a relief to have that one finished before Baby arrives, and I think it will give me lots of different options for the future.

We did manage to sneak in our annual trip to Iowa, but other than that we spent the summer close to home. And thus the nesting began…

We painted and rearranged our living room (for those of you who remember the trippy Dr. Seuss inspired pastel on the wall, it is no more).
We painted the lime-ass room (which has now become our bedroom).
And, we painted the Baby's room and added furniture as well (The cats love it and think they have acquired a room all to themselves...they have no idea!). We have had a massive purge around the house. I am amazed at the amount of stuff two people can amass and despite making multiple trips, I am constantly finding things that can definitely go to Good Will with “the next load”. A huge thank you goes to my parents who were here for the better part of 2 weeks to help. I don’t know if they had any idea what they were signing up for, but we will be forever indebted to them for their help and support, both physically and emotionally. It was on their recommendation that we take a little break and introduce Baby to the beach!

And thus we come full circle because we spent the last two days of vacation in school, a childbirth education class to be specific. I am not quite sure that it makes us any more ready for Baby’s arrival (especially since we still don’t have names decided upon), but it was nice to get that one out of the way before school actually starts. So between teaching school, going to school, an Iowa visit, one trip to the beach, a childbirth class, nesting, painting, purging, AND enough heat and humidity to last a lifetime, I am exhausted and actually looking forward to going back to work, if for no other reason than to recoup!



28 weeks!



29 weeks--no wonder I was so tired between these two. Baby did a LOT of growing!

Confessions of a nesting dad-to-be, Part 2

Well, this whole thing is getting realer and realer. We got a call yesterday that the nursery furniture was in, and we kicked it into high gear. We got the nursery all cleared out and the floor thoroughly scrubbed. Today we went to pick up the furniture (between rain storms), and of course we couldn't get both boxes to fit in the car at the same time. So I left Jen to shop while I flew home to drop off the crib, and then I went back to pick her up (and the dresser, of course).

Once we got home (and dried off), the real fun began. The crib was not assembled, and the only advice the salesman at the store gave me was, "This will be great practice for Christmas!" Surprisingly, the crib went together smoothly. The instructions were in a language I knew, and all the parts were there. I had lots of help (the furry sort), and we managed to get the entire thing put together in about an hour.

It's crazy how a single piece of furniture can change your outlook. I must admit that I am a little jealous of all the times Jen gets to feel the baby move (well, not the kicks in the ribs when trying to sleep). That's not to say I haven't gotten to feel plenty of kicks, somersaults, and the like. But today, when I put the crib up against the wall in the nursery, it's like everything changed yet again. I was finally getting used to the idea that there is a PERSON in there, and now that person has a place to sleep (or not sleep). I'm sure that there will be many other changes in perspective on this journey, but today was a big one.

We have lots of projects we are still working on around the house, but it seems that having the nursery look more and more like a nursery has really recharged our batteries to keep working on the rest of this tired old nest we live in.

Naked Nursery!


Gender neutral yellow, anyone?


The great crib adventure begins (note the look of confidence!)



I couldn't figure out to do with this one fuzzy piece.

Sometimes you just have to get down and get after it!

Getting closer...

Success!

Rescue "supervised" us putting the knobs on the changer/dresser. That was the easy part!