maurice david is here!

maurice david baloche arrived early Wednesday morning at 5:14 am, weighing 8 lbs. 13 oz. and he was 20 1/4 inches long.  here's the quick break down...

1:15 am - woke up contracting; went downstairs to watch TV thinking they would taper off like the night before

2:45 am - texted justin from downstairs that he should come down; contractions had been 5 min. apart for last hour and half

3:10 am -  decided to start the phone calls to have his parents and sister come down because contractions were now 3 min. apart at times...this wasn't stopping!

4:20 am - we are loading kids and dog up to leave with oma and papa; vanessa arrives and her kids are loaded to go with oma and papa too; my contractions take a dramatic turn and start to increase in intensity and are now 3 min apart consistently...maybe even less

4:45 am - leave for the hospital now contracting A LOT

(imagine us flying down 295, then onto 73...and all three of us wondering if this baby was going to have to be delivered in the car as i'm starting to yell, "i have to push!")

5:10 am - pull up at the ER; water breaks; justin is flying down the hall pushing elevator buttons, vanessa is running behind him pushing me in the wheelchair

5:12 am - arrive in labor and delivery

5:13 am - continue pushing (not start...we've already been doing this!)

5:14 am - maurice is born!

whew!  just writing it is amazing...i can't stop reliving this in my mind...

 we are now a family of five!

and while we were making our mad rush to the hospital, 8 of the grandkids (and our dog) were hanging out with oma and papa (thank you both so much!!)...and here's what isaac was getting into (yes, that's powdered sugar)...he was evidently quite proud of himself

 we came home from the hospital on thursday, but oma and papa gave us one night just the three of us.  so the kids returned yesterday.  here's proud big sister calming her new little brother down by holding him and singing to him...

thank you to all who prayed and have played a role in helping us prepare for this new little guy.  we are so blessed to have him in our family and things are transitioning well thus far.  big question is...

who do you think he looks like???

little man 2

isaac has been my little man...but soon we will meet little man 2.  oh, contractions...they are such tricky things...as i sit here, i'm having them off and on...and i have the desire to post just in case this is the last time i get to do so before this little bundle makes his grand entrance.  the night before elise was born, i was awakened and couldn't sleep and blogged as well.  it was funny to look back and see the timing of it all.  anyway...this little guy has already been very different than his siblings.  for one thing, i think he's going to be bigger than either of them were! (and that's saying a lot!)  his time in the womb was marked by lots of ultrasounds and extra watching that the other two did not have.  he's evidently "overly active"...which just makes me laugh.  but even as far as his entrance...he's taking his time.  he seems laid back, if i can even dare to say that already.  contractions will come...then they go away.  pressure increases...then it disappears.  it's like..."hey mom, i can't wait to meet you guys..."... "oh, but it's really nice in here too..."  Lord, give me patience.  he will come when You have deemed it time.  these are random ramblings from a mama one week out from her due date with her third...anticipating great changes...trying not to get too excited but lay low until labor is totally evident...and seeking to trust the Lord with it all.  this little guy could have gotten hand, foot, and mouth and died months ago...but God protected him.  God, You have a plan for him.  i will rest in that tonight.

our two

while waiting for little brother to make his arrival, we're still busy getting in the christmas spirit.  the kids have been to the mall twice in the last two days (one time with each of us) to pick out gifts for jay and me.  seeing all the lights and decorations, while hearing bing sing in the background...nothing like it.  

isaac, we have discovered, loves wearing hats (as you can see).  he gets more compliments on this hat... and the best part is that i got it at the free table at Homeschooler's Day Out (Thank you to whoever put it out there!)  

then today, while isaac was napping, elise got to make her gingerbread house.  we got this kit at Trader Joe's and it's adorable!  everything was pre made (free of artificial everythings) and all we had to do was mix the icing.  a great first gingerbread house!   

i'm trying hard to enjoy this time with our two kiddos, before they become our three kiddos :) 

it's the most wonderful time of the year

christmas decorations are up!  all we need is the tree...and as long as baby boy doesn't come before tomorrow afternoon, we'll have our tree!  but in the meantime, here are some shots from around our house. i just love christmas.  and thank you mom for your help in learning to make bows!  martha stewart, i am not...but after watching a you tube video at least six times, i can now boast that i can make my own bows!  it's a worthy accomplishment.

my crazy preggo mind

this pregnancy has been odd lately...and for lack of any other appropriate response, i just have to laugh!  i've been slurring my words, emails and fb messages to the point where i feel like an awkward teenager.  the other day at the doctor's office, while giving a urine sample (i really dislike doing those this late in the pregnancy)...i dropped (yes, dropped) the entire cup into the toilet!  come on, kegels, come through for me so i can attempt another cup!!  and then today, while getting my primping-pre-labor pedicure and waxing, i almost cried as she ripped the hairs off my upper lip...you know...where the tears are there and she's asking me if i'm ok...and i'm trying to blow it off saying, "oh yeah, my eyes are just watering..."  ridiculous!!!  but like i said, i have to simply laugh.  and hopefully in sharing this to the blogger world i'm not crossing the too much information line, but simply giving you all something to laugh about too.  we'll see you soon, little man!!  10 days and counting...until then though...g'night!

thanksgivings

care group thanksgiving

pie night pics

 cousins all watching charlie brown thanksgiving

 thanksgiving day at mimi & grampy's

he makes a nice pilgrim lady doesn't he?

 there's nothing like mama's cooking!

thoughts running through my mind...

our little boy is due in just 15 days...that is simply amazing and mind boggling to me.  i put that countdown up over 150 days ago.  i'm hoping he comes early but was reminded yesterday not to set myself up.  i think i may try acupuncture.  we'll see.  if he's as big as they tell me he is...well...we'll just wait and see.

justin has been sick since yesterday.  it's just no fun watching your strong husband go down for the count.  i pray it's short lived (and that the rest of us don't get it).

it's officially ok to be in the christmas spirit (though i have been since halloween).  i've had the music playing, decorations going up, and christmas shopping nearly finished.  i LOVE christmas.  can't say it enough.  and this year we get to celebrate with another baby!  another "baby's first christmas" everything...love that stuff!

and lastly in my brain this morning...we had a great time last night with the baloches.  since justin was sick, the kids and i went solo.  it was a great way to give justin some quiet rest time while also allowing the kids awesome time to run and play with their cousins and family members we haven't seen in a while!  elise can now play "angry birds" on the ipod, thanks to aunt rita.  that was so sweet watching them sit and play that.  isaac got to run around with his same age second cousin, clayton.  david read the girl cousins books, cherie was caught red handed wearing a princess crown and cooking in the kitchen with elise...and uncle paul got engaged in more than one lengthy conversation with our little girl.  everyone was asking when little boy was due and seemed surprised it was "so soon already!"  i'm so glad we have these opportunities to all get together.  thanks oma and papa for hosting :)