Dexter's First Christmas

Dexter's first Christmas was a success! It was a busy 4 days, but worth the chaos.  We left Dallas on 23rd and headed towards my parents house in Bixby, OK.  The drive itself was normal.  Dex slept the whole way so it was pleasant.  However, we stopped at Hideaway Pizza on the way in to pick up dinner to take to my parents house.  Stopping the car woke him up and he realized he hadn't eaten in 4 hours.  So naturally he screamed the 10mins back to my parents house.

The next morning we slept in and then my friends Miranda and Lauren came over to meet our little guy.  It was a quick 45mins, but I'm glad they got to meet him.

 

We then went over to my sisters house to spend the afternoon with the cousins.  They just adore him and I adore them for that. 

 

It was then time to go to the Christmas Eve service at my parents church.  We went to the kid friendly service this year as we weren't sure how Dexter would fair.  He did pretty well! The music with the drums and such woke him up, but he didn't make any noise.  Just was looking around a lot.  He did enjoy the hymns though!

Here it is!!! Merry Christmas!  It was Christmas morning and we all wanted to stare at the little guy in his "My first Christmas" onesie.  He received his wooden shoe which I was really excited about.  Our family has Dutch background so we all have a wooden shoe to put out on Christmas Eve for Santa's reindeer.  We fill it with carrots and then Santa, in turn, fills it will oranges and apples for you the next morning.  

It was then back over to my sister's for the remainder of Christmas!  Dex go so many amazing gifts.  We know when he is older he will love them all.  Here are just a few of his goodies.

Havi the Hedgehog! We will make sure this is his favorite stuff animal.  It was given to him by his cousin's and is a Scentsy animal.

Loooooooove this picture frame of his name and such.  So perfect!

This. Book. Wow.  So it's customized to his name and is absolutely adorable.  We CAN'T wait to read it to him.

The front page of the book above.

Another AMAZING book.  This one will be such a keepsake.  My parents, Granny & Gramps, gave this to Dexter.  What makes this one special? It's recorded with their voices!! So they are reading the story to him. 



My mother-in-law gave me this necklace and it's exactly what I wanted!  Couldn't be happier.  I mentioned to Preston that I wanted this and he passed on the message.  Incase it's hard to read, it's Dexter's name engraved on the gold bar.

 



These are just a few of the things he got.  There was so much more! Toys, ornaments, everything a 5 week old boy could desire.  We drove back to Texas on Christmas day and then celebrated Christmas with Preston's family on the 26th.  I forgot to bring my camera to that celebration. Boo.  It was great to see everyone over the course of 4 days.  I'm really looking forward to next year!

I've Tried So Many Times

I can't even count how many times started to write a blog entry and something happen that I need to stop.  Even as I type this I am keeping my eye on my little guy.  With every move he makes I pause.  Is he awake? Should I turn the vibrate off on his bassinet?  And then there are the other thoughts.  I should be making myself breakfast.  Did I fold the laundry last night? I should start another load.  What happen to his My First Christmas shirt? I need to pack that. 

Those are all the things that happen every time I try to post a entry.  But I'm bound and determined to post this morning.  Mainly because I want to make sure I have these pictures for the printed copy of this blog once it's time. 

Dexter is now a month old! Wow that really did go by quickly.  A month is a month, but prior to having a child you have nothing to gauge time with.  It's funny to me how as a child myself everything was measured in school and holidays.  My mental year was broken up into segments that I can still visually see in my head.  It's way to hard to explain in words.  I would have to draw a picture.  My point is that I all of a sudden feel that my life is back to that segments.  My life is measured in Dexter's milestones and I love that feeling. 

It's really hard to take care of a baby. 

Isn't that a loaded sentence!  How many of you laughed at that?!  I can't imagine doing this alone or having multiples.  I would be lying if I said I haven't lost it a couple of times late at night when Dexter just wants to hang out and stare at the fan.  Or the 2 times that he screamed for hours because it was cool.  Loved those nights.  Preston has been so awesome in helping with everything.  I'm hesitate to type that sentence using the words "helping".  Is it really "helping" when it's your own child?  I don't think so.  But it's difficult when I'm the only person that can provide him food.  It creates a weird dynamic.  We have had a couple of conversations about the roles of a Mother and a Father since having Dex.  It doesn't matter who you are, those positions are naturally placed for you and you must communicate together to get them working peacefully.  I can see how I could feel alone and I can see how a father can feel isolated.  I have gotten off subject here in "deep thoughts" of my personal feelings.  However, my point is that I owe so much to everything Preston has done this past month.  I don't think I will ever be able to really explain that feeling or the look he gives me when taking Dexter out of my arms and telling me to go lay down.  That he will walk around with him at 3am.  All of this is topped off with him having to go to woke the next morning and me not.    

I have taken so many pictures.  I have had to clean up my phone twice now.  I need to work on not taking a picture of EVERYTHING he does.  But he is so cute sleeping, breathing, looking, just living.  Cuteness.

Christmas is in 2 days!  It will be a busy and quick one seeing family, but exciting for everyone.  I know I shouldn't look to the future, but I'm really excited about next year when he is older for the holidays. 

 

This will probably be the last entry of 2014.  Thank you to everyone that has stopped by and looked into my life.  2014 has been a wonderful year and I'm looking forward to 2015!

 

Merry Christmas! 

I'm Someone's Mom!

It happened! Mister Dexter Owen joined our family on November 20th, 2014 at 10:21am.  He was 7lbs 11.8oz and 20.5inches long.  Pure Perfection.

 

 

Everyone's story is different, and my story is that it was so much fun and a great adventure.  There was no complications and Dexter arrived really quickly so I wasn't uncomfortable very long.  We stayed at the hospital 3 days before going home.  Our favorite nurse was our night nursery nurse who would make sure we woke up to feed Dexter.  Her name was Natalie and the 2nd night we discovered that she was also a Red Raider so of course Dex wanted to have a picture taken with her for his baby book.  This is screen shot from Preston's phone so the black bars are showing still.  Need to get him to send me the original. 

 

On our last night, we got have a Celebration Dinner. Their menu had some amazing choices! We both went with the cesear salad, filet mignon, lobster tail, mashed potatoes, broccoli, and then for dessert we got cheesecake and chocolate cake.

 

If we ever have another kid, we will be using this hospital again.  It didn't feel like a hospital at all! My parents came into town so they were there to meet their 4th grandchild! They look so happy in this picture, I love it!! 

 

Sunday my sister and the cousins drove into town for a quick visit.  Driving back on Monday.  It was so great to have them here even if it was just for 24 hours.  The excitement of the kids faces when they came into the apartment was worth it! They were so happy to meet little Dex and hold him. 

 

The rest of the week has been very busy figuring out how to juggle everything.  We are getting it down, but it still has its moments of "whoa...what do we do now?"  It has taken me 4 days to finish this blog, so who knows when I will write next.  Here is a selfie with Dexter!

 



 

One Last Time

This is probably our last weekend as a family of 2.  I would be surprised if I make it to next weekend, especially after our doctors appointment on Friday.  So we have being making the most of this weekend. 

Friday turned out to be awesome for many reasons.  I didn't work and it was wonderful.  My left foot didn't swell up to my Barbie shoe foot and I felt great by 5pm that night.  I got some stuff done around the house and wasn't exhausted.  Although I was bored and quickly realized that working gives me a feeling of accomplishment each day.  I know that once our baby is here I will be busy with him, but there is something about engaging in society that helps me feel like I'm pulling my weight in the world.  I don't know any different yet so that is currently my feelings on not working. 

Preston came home from work on Friday and had a beautiful arrangement of flowers for me!  I wish I would have taken a picture now. They are red, yellow, and orange roses with fall leaves mixed in.  They are still blooming and I will take a picture, just don't want to get up, take the picture then upload to my computer at this moment, etc.  #lazyproblems  He also wrote me a 2 page letter that brought tears to my eyes. Awww, it will go in the safe along with other mementos of our lives we keep safe.  (birth certificates, savings bonds, wedding stuff, etc)

Oh' I almost forgot!  We got the cutest backpack for our son from our friends in California.  It is a perfect gift as when they had their first son in 2007 I got them a backpack.  They still have it and their now youngest daughter still uses it.  We got the backpack and Ashe was very interested in it so we slipped it on him.  He didn't struggle or anything and then sat there as we took a picture.  It was actually hard to get it off as he won't raise his arms! 

Ashe in general has been so helpful and pleasant lately.  Its like he knows that things are about to change.  He even sat and helped me get Garth Brooks tickets on Friday.  We saw Garth in Vegas so we feel like we have gotten our dose, but to see him in Tulsa would just be cool.  I finally had to call Ticketmaster as I couldn't get anything online.  I was able to get tickets, but only 2 vs the 4 which is what we were aiming for so we could go with friends.  It's in January so we are hoping to make it a weekend with Granny and Gramps!

 

We also have gone by the house one more time as I'm not sure when we will get by there again in the next couple of weeks.  They are now saying January for a close date which makes us sad.  We really wanted to get this wrapped up in 2014.  They have poured our driveway, painted the trim and installed the granite/tiles.

 

This sink was a back and forth thing. Double or single...or double.  We went with a big single and I'm pleased.

Our backsplash.  We got to design the tile behind the stovetop.  We didn't like any of their staple options.  The vent hood will go in the space above and of course the hole below is the stove top.

Stone around the fire place.

We forgot we picked out slate for the master bathroom so this was a surprise and a laugh.  Luckily we like it!

The floor is covered in paper, but it's the same slate as the shower tile.

As if we don't have enough kitchen pictures. 



 

Finally we got in our canvas pictures that I ordered of our maternity pictures in this weekend.  They are 16x20.  Right now they are above our mantel in the apartment, but will go in the hallway or baby's room at the new house.  Another thing I was please with. 

 

 

 

Well....this might be it!  Next post might be of me showing a picture of our son and his long awaited name. 

Gooooooo Cowboys!

Growing up in Oklahoma, there wasn't a strong influence of NFL sports.  At least not in my family.  The focus was more on college football and basketball.  I knew about the NFL and would love to watch the Cowboys on Thanksgiving day while drifting in and out of a turkey induced coma.  All that being said, when I moved to Dallas it took me a long time to actually say I was a Dallas Cowboy fan or any NFL fan for that matter.  It was when Dez Bryant was picked up that I finally agreed to commit to the Cowboys.  Preston was so excited.  He came home one day and had a sporting goods bag on the sofa.  When I asked what it was he told me to open it up.  Sure enough, inside was my first ever NFL article of clothing.  A Dez Bryant jersey.  I loved it!! 

4 years later I'm going strong as a dedicated fan.  The Cowboy's haven't had the best track record the past couple of years, but I like to stick to a team regardless of their season.  They will come back around......eventually. 

Last spring we went to a charity event for my job and they had a silent auction.  One of the prizes was tickets to a Cowboy game with parking pass.  The schedule hadn't been announced yet so we didn't know which game.  We did know we were due in November so it was a risky bet.  Preston went for it and we won!  We found out in August we had tickets to the November 2nd game.  Whew...so close.  It was a noon game so we got there around 10'ish and tailgated with some friends who also had tickets, then headed inside.  On our way in, I asked a random person to take our picture in front of the stadium.  Thanks Person. See below:

Isn't is AWESOME how you can see the stadium in the background?  And Look how flattering I look in that picture.  I just love the added touch of their finger in the upper right hand corner too.  So happy we got that picture.

 

Our seats were in the 200 section so we just walked right in and down to our seats. Pretty easy to get to which was nice.  We both have been in the stadium numerous times for concerts and college games, but this was our first NFL game in "Jerry's World".  I was pleased to see the roof was open as the weather was wonderful!

I still can't believe how ridiculous the TV screen is in this place.  It's just....huge.  I sometimes find myself watching the screen instead of the event going on live right in front of me.  It wasn't long before it was game time!  The entrance for teams is one of my favorite parts of any game.  The music, the lights, cheering.  Really gets you pumped up!

The Cowboy's lost this particular game.  Bummer.  Romo didn't play due to a bad back so we were a little disappointed as we really wanted to see him play.  But that's ok, it is just a game.  We had a wonderful time and I was pretty comfortable at 37 weeks in a stadium chair.  I had planned on wearing my jeans, but last minute I switched to my yoga pants.  I was glad I did as I was comfortable the whole time regardless of my lack of fashion. 

I know I keep saying it, but I can't believe we will be a family of 3 in less than 2 weeks! I treated myself to one last pedicure.  Not last pedicure forever, but probably for 2014.  I just don't see how I will have time or the desire.  I may feel differently, I don't know! But that is not a chance I want to take so pedicure time it was.  They had a November special of Pumpkin Pie! Oooookay? 

It did smell good and I thought it was fun they put whipped cream on my legs like a pie. So silly. 



Trick or Cheesy!

Tonight I pulled out all the stops and made a gourmet meal. The best thing to make when you don't want to make any effort.

Kraft Macaroni & Cheese: Halloween Edition

 

I have to admit, lately I've been eating poorly.  This past weekend and week I have dabbled in pizza, mac-n-cheese, chips, and the ultimate sinning food....chicken fried steak.  October 26th was Texas Chicken Fried Steak day!  After looking around on Yelp and reading Observers reviews we landed on a well known establishment called Babe's.  We had both heard of the Babe's, but had yet to make a visit.  That is now over, we went to Babe's.

 

 



The mashed potatoes and corn were so amazing I could eat it as just my meal.  I can't wait to go back after we have the kid.  With my sudden change of eating habits, I'm pretty sure this shirt is true. (note I am holding an apple in my hand, so there is that)

 

Let me back up to before the great CFS adventure.  My friend Summer ran her first Half Marathon on Saturday and we went to go cheer her on.  I ran my first half 8 months ago and it wasn't an easy thing to do.  The training that goes into something like that takes a lot of your time.  We made some fun signs and hung out on the Katy Trail then joined up for Brunch.

 

I just love watching road races!



Finally, on Sunday we went by the house with Preston's parents.  There wasn't much change on the construction in general, but they did have our driveway/sidewalk blocked off for pouring.

 

That's all I've got for today.  3 weeks left until our little guy shows up!  Our apartment is getting more and more cramped.  I misplaced some gift cards and about chalked it up to gone before I finally remembered I put them in the pack-n-play.  Because that makes sense.  Strange actions I have these days!