More Pictures

Our friend, and long time sitter, Nicole with Ellie & Amelia

Sleeping... which she's been very good at.

Grandma Barb came for a visit on Sunday.

Proud Dad

The Little Sister

Ellie & Jack have both now met their little sister. Ellie came home on Thursday afternoon for a bit and immediately asked to hold Amelia. She held her much longer than I thought she would, and asked when she would wake up. Ellie still thinks that this little sister is going to start running around and playing Barbie's with her. She'll soon find out that Amelia isn't that much fun yet. She was very excited to get to see her and barely wanted to leave my side to go play with Lilah. I'm sure she'll be glued to me next week when she returns and wanting to be very helpful!

Jack, on the other hand, had a different reaction. We met Dennis & Jane in Boone for dinner, so we were at a restaurant when Jack saw her first. Amelia was asleep, and Jack just smiled at her and said, "Baby Sister." He stared at her for quite a bit, and then took his finger and poked her hand. When she stirred, he was quite amazed. I think he thought she was just a doll, since she wasn't moving. After dinner, again, he stared at her for a bit, and then poked her hand to make her move. It was hilarious! He just kept making sure she was alive and that she moved.

Since being home today, he hasn't really had much interest in her. He and Billy got up before us and they played quite a bit before we girls got out of bed. But he's just been busy all day playing and being his normal self.

I'm anxious (& a bit nervous) how next week will go when we jump back into our "normal" schedule. And starting in June we start a summer schedule with no school/daycare at all. Should be a busy summer!

Amelia Marie Faubus

Prayers were answered, and Miss Amelia Marie Faubus was born early Tuesday morning, May 22 at 1:23am. She weighed in at 7 lbs, 13 oz, and is 20.5 inches long. She has a bit of fuzzy blonde hair and a little round face.

I started having contractions after lunch on Monday. Even though we were very anxious, it was nice to have a day home to get some projects done and prepare for her. I cleaned the house, did the laundry, caught up in my office, hung some pictures on the wall, etc...maybe that's what put me into labor?!

Billy was excited to be able to start...and finish...a project in the backyard. I peeked outside periodically to tell him the progress, and then went back in the house. I think staying busy helped keep his mind off the coming attraction. And now the new grill "patio" is ready to be used.

We ate some dinner, knowing that it could be awhile before I was able to eat again, and after careful consideration as to where to watch the season finale of Heroes, we headed up to the hospital in Ames at about 7:00pm.

I used hypnobirthing again (did it with Jack) and it went well. I spent 95% of the labor listening to calming music in self-hypnosis. I think Billy felt a bit useless, but he did as I asked and just hung out waiting for the real action. I had a pretty intense contraction at 1:18 and it broke my water, the doctor came in and set up the bed, I pushed 2 times, and out she came at 1:23! So I can't complain of 5 minutes of uncomfort.

She has been a very good baby so far. Nursing is going well, minus the fact that sometimes she wants to sleep thru feedings. I'm sure that won't be the case in a few days. She doesn't fuss or cry much, and seems to enjoy just hanging out. Hopefully that continues when her brother and sister return and start taking up some of my time and attention.

Speaking of those two, they have been in Gowrie with Grandpa & Grandma Shepherd. Ellie will get to meet her sister tomorrow (Thursday) but Jack won't until probably Saturday. And Ellie will be off right away again with my sister to go camping for the weekend. We are blessed to have lots of family close to help out.

Keep the blog on your speed dial, as I'll try to post new pictures and any new adventures. New babies change so fast, and I'll want to keep it all documented! God has blessed me with another healthy child, and Billy the awesome experience of being a father. We are so thankful and honored to be given the privilege.

Still Waiting....

Well, it's May 21st...one day before the "official" due date, and no baby yet. Ellie & Jack are pretty much gone for the next week (setting up camp with Tony & other family members) and Billy is on vacation all week. So we are definitely feeling the need to have this baby.

Billy has started working on a project in the backyard to pass the time, and I going to tackle the painting of our bathroom. You can only walk so much! We are very anxious and each evening before going to bed wonder if this will be the night we get woke up to go up to the hospital. Be praying that it's soon... otherwise Billy will be back to work, and the kids will be back home... and our "downtime" will be done before she arrives instead of after! :)

Video

I've heard that most people were not able to upload the video. So I deleted the first link, and let's try another! Try to load above, but if it doesn't work, try going directly to youtube.com by clicking the linked title above, "Video." Sorry, I was trying to eliminate the extra step for you!

Planting Green Beans

This is my first attempt and putting a video on the blog! If it doesn't work, than here are a few stills that I captured too. I'm sure this will just make my dad's day (who is a proud gardener) ... my kids planting our first row of green beans in the garden.

For those of you unfamiliar with my childhood, green beans were always my nemesis in the summer. I didn't like the hot weather, the bending over, the bugs and other scary things in the garden, or anything that had to do with gardening those darn green beans. So slyly, I convinced everyone else in my family that I was incapable of picking them, and instead sat inside and waited for them to bring me a 5-gallon bucket full to break while in the air-conditioning watching tv. It was still awful, but not helping was not an option.

Now, here I am passing the curse along to my children. Luckily, it's only 1 row of beans (not 5-8) and I think we'll all be able to handle the work. Will canning beans be in my future when we get a bigger garden?? If so, again, I'll be passing the buck to Billy & my kids for the outdoorsy stuff. I'll be inside...where there aren't risk of daddy-long-legs.

Bed Head

Jack recently got his hair cut again. I took both of the kids up to the Salon Professional Academy in Ames (hair school) where Gretchen, our long time sitter, is going to school. She did a great job...even amongst wiggly heads! Jack's hair is very cute... combed. But for some reason, sleeping is not a good thing for it. He wakes up in the morning and at naps with quite the bed head. Yesterday, I think because he had some sunscreen residue in it, it was worth the price of admission to see it. I'll let you sneak a peek for free here on the blog!

The Countdown is on...

Publish
Well, just a few days left of the pregnancy! I'm "officially" due sometime between May 18 and the 22nd. But really, anytime could be baby time. We are all getting very anxious around here...including mama...who is getting pretty uncomfortable. I have my last PChef show on Saturday, and we have plans on Sunday for Mother's Day with family. But starting Monday the 14th, I'll be ready to go. Billy's birthday is on the 19th, and he's hoping he'll share a birthday with his first born. My sister's birthday is on the 20th. Plus numerous other close family and friends have birthdays between the 17th and 22nd. So I think we might be able to make someone happy!

Ellie is old enough to understand that a new sister is coming...and is very excited! Although, I think she thinks she'll be able to play Barbies and babies with this little one right away. That might be a big disappointment, when instead she'll be spending the summer fetching diapers and corralling her little brother for me. Here is a picture of Ellie hugging my belly... if that wasn't obvious.

I'm hoping the hospital has wireless Internet, because I'm taking my computer and planning to email/blog the new baby pics. We are excited to see what this Faubus baby is going to look like!