Childhood Dreams

As I sit here on the brink of my 30th birthday with Alfred at work staring at my sleeping son I wonder what his dreams will be. What he will do to acheive those?
I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't want to be an attorney. I was never the little girl that wanted to be the mother at Kindergarten play time I wanted to be the Principal because he was the most powerful person I knew. In high school my aspirations were to be a lawyer and then work my way into Politics because that is where I thought the difference took place. Once I was in college I was going to use my Speech and Debate career to get into Law School and then become a Political Speech Writer so I could make a difference. Sometime between taking the LSAT and filling out the paper work I lost my drive. I was tired of going to school and wanted to make some money before I went back to get my Law degree. Well that was 6 years ago and I'm still talking about when I go back to school. The thing is even though I'm 30 I still see myself as that naive 19 year old that thought I could change the world with one speech, one election, one dream. When people ask me what I do I tell them but I always say "But that's for now, I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up". My question is when do I grow up? If it isn't graduation, my first job, my first house,having a child, turning 30...then when is it. When is it time to realize that I will probably never be an attorney, I will most likely never be on the cover of people and I will not write a speech that high school kids will have to memorize. Because even as I type this I can't use the word never because I still think in the back of my mind that when I grow up I will be an attorney and I will change the world and everyone will know me.
For now I'm satisfied helping my son write his future and changing the lives of those I love for the better everyday. I will continue to have the dreams of my youth while striving to move forward as an adult and I think that even though the 5 year old me never saw myself where I am now she would be proud of the person I have grown up to be and she would even play the mom sometimes and enjoy it more than she ever thought she could! Happy 30th birthday to me! It's better then I could have ever dreamed!

Motherhood and such!

Well this is my first Mother's Day and what a wonderful day it's been. I didn't expect or need anything because the pure joy of being Kignston's mother has been gift enough. He is an absolutely amazing child and watching him grow everyday is such a treat. I can't believe I have the joy of being his mother. In the 7 weeks that he's been here I've gotten to know so much about him and I've fallen in love with things I have forgotten about. Long walks in the park, sitting in the sun reading a book, roller skating, laughing for no reason, the true gift of family. He has made me slow down, be a kid again see things thru a new pair of eyes. At times it has been tough but even the tough times are pure joy. It's made me love my parents even more than I did which I didn't think was possible. It's made me strive to be a better friend. It's made me fall in love with Alfred the father as well as the man. And speaking of Alfred even though I didn't need a present for Mother's Day I awoke to a wonderful gift that brought tears to my eyes.

My friend Sarah took these and many more wonderful pictures a few weeks ago and Alfred took those and made me this beautiful collage. I am so blessed.

Now on to a pretty big week, not only is Kingston turning 7 weeks but I'm turning 30 this week and we are taking Kingston on his first road trip, to see Alfred's parents in Macon, GA. It should be a very eventful week so I should have plenty to blog about. Until next time Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers!

Playing Catch up!

This post will be all about playing catch up and I promise to get better at posting and by better I mean at least once a week!! So let's start with the basics, Kingston is 5 weeks old and weighed 8lbs. 12 oz. on Monday. Our big milestone for this week is that he moved up to the big boy bottle. He is now consistently eating 4 oz. so we have him trying for 5. With the increase in food has came a slight increase in sleep which probably would be better if he didn't have a cold which makes him cough. Apparently he has his mom's allergies.

Kingston is starting to really interact with us a lot more. We go to the park or walk in our neighborhood almost every evening and he loves to be in his carrier so that he can look up at us and see what were doing.

This also adds a little extra weight which will help mommy get back in shape!

and...

Kingston still really loves sleeping with his daddy on the couch!

And speaking of sleep. Kingston has yet to sleep anywhere other than in bed with us. We have a snuggle nest which is a thing that allows a baby to sleep in there own little bed that is in bed between the 2 of you and since we have a King size bed we thought this would be a wonderful idea for the first few weeks the only problem is that we've all gotten so used to it I don't know how we are going to break the habit, but for now it's working for everyone but I see a change happening as soon as he cuts out one of his nightly feedings! But I'm sure when that happens he will spend an entire night perfecting a skill he's already great at.... pouting and crying!!

As for Alfred and I, we are having a blast being parents. I was at my friend Natalina's baby shower the other day and I realized something while I was sitting there. The person I was last year could have never imagined the person I've become. I was talking baby items and tips with my friend Sarah who is also a new mother, I was talking labor with a few ladies who are due to have babies in the next few months. I never imagined myself as that person but now that I am I can't imagine that I was ever meant to be anything else but Kingston's mom but the balance between the person I was and the person I am has been a hard one to figure out. I still want to go out with friends, work, be independent but at the same time I'm a mom. It's been hard for me not to feel guilty at times for either choosing to leave Kingston at home and go out or say no to my friends and stay with him. But overall I've been managing a pretty good balance and I have to attribute a lot of that balance to Alfred for letting me still be me sometimes while he keeps the baby. And at the end of the day we are more in love then we've ever been and I can't imagine taking this journey with anyone else by my side!! My family rocks!!

Changes

Well little Kingston is 2 weeks and 1 day old and is weighing in at 6lbs. 8oz. according to our doctors visit yesterday. Everything was sailing along rather smoothly in parent world until Sunday night. Kingston who has been on a remarkable schedule decided to get off that schedule. He woke up screaming every hour and demanded food. Being the novice mother that I am I put a bottle in his mouth to keep him quiet so that Alfred and I could get some sleep. Poor Alfred had to drag himself out of bed at 4:30AM to get ready for his first day back at work since Kingston's arrival. So with daddy off to work it was mommy's first day home alone. About 7:30 AM Kingston started making a strange sound and then projectile vomited all over our bed, my hair, his own hair. Turns out babies will overeat if you let them.

Needless to say we spent the better part of yesterday evening trying to distract Kingston from eating so we could get him back on schedule and so far it seems to have worked and we have our Good Baby back!

We had a very fun weekend and finally got to enjoy nice weather with no rain. On Friday my friend Brandy stopped by, we work together so we caught up on work talk and friend stuff and just had a really good time visiting! She also thinks Kingston is just the cutest, and I totally agree!

On Saturday I went and had my hair cut shorter since being pregnant had taken it's toll and I want to start growing out the layers so it will be longer with shorter layers for the wedding.

After that Alfred and I decided to go on a date to Casa Fiesta this Mexican Restaurant that Brandy introduced us to that has the best margarita's in town. Since I've been pregnant the last 9 months I've spent a lot of time watching everyone drink these wondrous drinks and haven't been able to partake but on Saturday I had my first glorius sip and it was everything I thought it would be and more! Even Kingston enjoyed the atmosphere and took some time to nap!

On Sunday we took our first of many trips to the zoo. We went with our friends Phil and Elizabeth who have 6 month old Riley. We had a blast and look forward to using our family passes to walk around the zoo a lot this summer!

And yes I know I have a pudge but I've started walking to get rid of that!!

We got through week 2 pretty much unscathed and although Kingston and I miss Alfred very much it's been nice to get back into some sort of routine that doesn't revolve around baby!

Kingston's 1st Week!

Well it's been a little longer then I would have liked since I've updated but what can I say we are new parents getting adjusted! Let me first catch you up on Kingston's health. As many of you know he had to go to the pediatrician because of his jaundice, which was a crazy experience in itself. We went to the office of the pediatrician that was on call at the hospital but the reception staff was so rude we left in the middle and made an appointment with Harpeth Pediatrics in Cool Springs and it was amazing! Kingston is finally over his jaundice but has dropped to 6 lbs. which isn't much of a problem but we have to go back on Monday to have him weighed again and see that he gets back up to his birth weight!!

Now on to fun Kingston news! We've been rather lucky so far, Kingston is a wonderful baby! He sleeps between 3 and 4 hours at a time at night and only stays awake long enough for you to feed and change him. But during the day he loves to play! Some of his favorite things are tummy time,

his swing,

and by far his favorite thing is sleeping with mommy and daddy on the couch!



Kingston also had his first sponge bath this week and he had mixed feelings about it! At first he hated it, and then he thought it might not be so bad!

It's also been a week for some visitors. Our friends Rob and Natalina who are expecting Baby JoJo in June brought by some BBQ and some baby gifts! It gave us an opportunity to catch up and have adult conversation other than just Alfred and I!

And Jennifer and Ava came by and brought pot pie and Ava who is getting Baby Brother Maddox in June got to practice what she learned in her Big Sister Class and hold Kingston!

So for a one week old Kingston has a pretty full life!! OK technically I'm a little late on the blog so at this current moment he's technically 10 days old but at least I caught you up before his 2 week birthday!

As for mommy and daddy! We've had some things happening this week ourselves. My swelling has finally went down so after 4.5 months I finally don't have Fred Flintstone feet!! Yippee!! Other than that I've just been adjusting to being a mommy! It all happened so quick!! I really should have been studying the whole 9 months but I thought I could cram in the last month but Kingston decided I didn't get that last month after all! So I've been relying a lot on my sister, Elizabeth and Jennifer for there baby knowledge!

Daddy bought a lawn mower, weed eater, bush trimmer, ladder and some other various lawn stuff so when it hasn't been raining he's been working very hard in the yard!! And it looks rather great I must say! We are no longer those neighbors!

Well Jennifer's pot pie is almost finished and I need to watch Survivor so until next time...

Happy Birthday Kingston! Welcome to the World!

Easter was such a great day for Alfred and I! We had no idea what it had in store when we woke up that morning but we couldn't have ask for anything better! We got up early and started boiling eggs so that we could color eggs with Kingston's name on them.

And so that daddy could put together the last of the baby stuff that we had bought the night before. The most important thing being the car seat that we thought we could wait to get. I spent the day cleaning and then we headed over to Phil and Elizabeth's to eat Easter dinner with there family and enjoy a visit from the Eater Bunny!
We had a great time and got home around 9:00PM! I was feeling pretty miserable and my feet were swollen more than they had been! Elizabeth gave me Epsom salt and suggested I soak my feet to take out some of the soreness and maybe even bring the swelling down! So I sat around for about 30 minutes with me feet in a bucket and my hands in a plate of food!
I finally crawled into bed at about 10:30PM and woke up about 11:45PM convinced I had peed on myself! I woke Alfred up to tell him and said I felt kind of weird. He said he thought maybe I had fallen asleep with ice in my mouth since my due date wasn't for another 4 weeks! I felt no pain so we got on line and googled water breaking (yes it is the .com era). It gave a few suggestions on how to know and I called my sister, mother of 3, to ask for advice. She said it sounded like my water had broken and that sometimes contractions didn't come on for awhile. So we decided we had better throw a couple of bags together for me, him and the baby and head off to the hospital. Not before I got one last preggo picture just in case!

We finally arrived at the hospital at 2:00AM and I still hadn't felt a contraction so they did a few tests discovered that in deed my water had broken but we were in for a long night and day because I was barely dilated! We got a room, waited until the next morning and called our parents, friends and work and let them know Kingston would be arriving a little early! I felt my first contraction at about 4:30AM and my doctor came in and started potosen about 7:30AM and I got an epidural at about 8:30AM so I felt very few labor pains. To pass the time we slept, watched TV, laughed hysterically at each other and read magazines!

And yes I'm sending this pic into Glamour for their where has your Glamour been section!

Finally about 2:00PM I started feeling pressure and it was time for baby Kingston to arrive but he was turned awkward so they put me on my side and we waited. At 2:20 all was good to go, my doctor was on the way, Kingston was on his way, I was ready for this to be over and daddy was so excited he couldn't hardly stand himself!

After several pushes and much encouragement from Alfred and Dr. Thomas we had our little boy!! Daddy cut the cord and they handed him to me!!

I had been worried because he was early but he cried out with the best lungs you've ever heard and let everyone know we had nothing to worry about!! He was born 3:04PM weighing 6lbs. 12oz and 18 1/4 inches long. He was perfect!!

I was released from the hospital on Wednesday and Kingston had to stay until Thursday because he was preemie and had jaundice and they wanted to keep an eye on him!!

Everyone already loves him so much!! Mommy and daddy couldn't be happier!! MeeMee and Pawpaw and Mama Deb left today and Aunt Amanda and cousin Corey had to leave before he was out of the hospital but not without tears and a set date to come see him again!! I have many family pics with everyone to post so stay tuned!! Baby Kingston is here and our lives are forever better!

The waiting game!

We've begun the waiting game. We have 5 weeks until our bundle of joy should arrive so the count down has arrived! Everything in mind is thought of as dates before and after the baby should be here. I feel like I spend all day doing some crazy math equation. Luckily this week was Laney's 3rd birthday so I had that to keep me busy!

Alfred stopped on the way home and got her a birthday cookie and a birthday cake. She was quite the Posh Dog that day. I still couldn't stop wondering how different her life would be this time next year when she had a little guy to follow everywhere! How different all of our lives would be. I know he is going to fit right in like he is already part of the family but it's hard to actually see him here in our lives. I feel like he's lived in me for 8.5 months but I still can't believe I'm going to be his mommy!! It's amazing and scary all at the same time. Alfred is so good taking care of Laney and I that I know he will be an amazing father and I hope I can teach Kingston the wonderful virtues my parents have instilled in me and that my sister has passed on to my nephews!! But I guess we have 5 weeks until we really get to find out!!

I'll leave you with a picture of Laney and her amazing birthday treat from her amazing daddy!

As the countdown continues!

Fat Feet in Little Shoes!!

I am now 5 and a half weeks from being a mommy and one of the many changes I've endured has been the swelling of my feet and legs! I looked down today and noticed that my fat feet were coming out of my little shoes!! So now not only have I endured the big belly, sleepless nights, runny nose, extreme heartburn and hard to find wardrobe I now have to deal with shoes that fit in the morning but don't fit by the time I go to sleep. I came to a breaking point the other day and had had enough. I was over all this. I was ready to throw in the towel and say I'm done with this. My feet were killing me, I felt like I was going to throw up and I had tried on my 4th outfit of the night. I sat on the bed and almost burst into tears but at that moment my son rolled from one side to the other and kicked me as if to say "I know this is rough mom but I'm here for you and it will all be over soon." Granted I still felt terrible but I was once again reminded that it's all worth it. Kingston will be here before I know it and all this will be thoughts of the past.

On a lighter note, we had a baby shower in his honor this weekend. My friends are once again so awesome. My friend Rosanna worked her butt off and made everything perfect! Her and Elizabeth got together and came up with the perfect cake and Elizabeth being the wonderful decorator that she is made it look perfect.
Our parents and our friends bought us wonderful gifts. Both inspirational and useful. We have had such a blast getting ready to be parents and most of that has been because of our wonderful friends who have been there to help us prepare for his arrival so here we are eight and a half months into our wonderful journey and we can't wait to meet Baby Kingston!

Daylight Savings Time

Daylight Savings Time has always been an event I hated! I hate to get up one hour early and be sleepy all day and I always hated that the bars closed one hour early on Saturday night when the clock jumped forward. There has just never been any good come of it. Until this year. I got home from work and Alfred was geared up and ready to take Laney to the park by our house and she knew she was going because he had her backpack of goodies all put together. I walked in and they ask if I wanted to go enjoy the extra hour of sunlight. And although I was a little sceptical because my feet hurt and I thought it was a bit cold I decided I didn't want to waste this one free hour they seemed so happy about. So I changed into my khakis and sweater with a hood and headed out with them. I have to admit it was really nice to unwind with sunshine and my family outside after a day at work. It's something we hadn't gotten to do since moving in the house.

And as you can see Laney had a blast chasing her ball! Which I highly recommend one of those chuck it toys. Where the ball is on the stick and you don't have to bend as much. This is a pregnant girls best friend. Although I was only able to last outside for about 20 minutes before the cold got to me I enjoyed my extra hour of daylight and when we got home I put our song on, For the Rest of My Life by Peter Moon and we danced as (I cried because of these dang hormones again), and had the start to a wonderful evening. Now it's time to go have some dinner settle in and get ready to go to bed I mean even if it was a great time I will still feel that loss of an hour tomorrow!

Lazy Day Off

This was supposed to be a HUGE weekend for us! We were going to Lexington to get our maternity pictures taken and then to Louisville for a fun Baby Shower and bowling with my friends. But instead snow covered the KY interstates and we got an unexpected day home together with nothing planned. We spent most of the morning napping and finally got enough energy to take Laney outside to play in the snow.


And yes I made her wear a coat but she didn't mind I promise....OK maybe she minded a little but it didn't stop her and Alfred from enjoying our snow covered back yard.

On Friday my work threw me a baby shower and I have to say they are the most awesome group of people to work with . They bought us our crib, mattress, baby monitors and several other small but very useful items. It was amazing! Alfred thought this unexpected day off would be a wonderful time to put the crib together. I was a little sceptical at first because I've heard crib horror stories. But I guess since he's had so much practice with the baby swing, play pin, highchair and stroller before this he was a pro and was able to put the crib together in about an hour and a half with no help from me!It's finally feeling real that we are bringing a baby home! I mean we've known about him for so long and we've been preparing but now that he actually has a room full of baby stuff from people who are going to love him I find myself being pulled into that room. I like to just sit in there and look at all of his little things and try to imagine that in about 6 weeks we will be bringing home a little guy who will change our lives forever. I wonder what his personality will be. Will he cry a lot? Will he be laid back and carefree like me or more of a planner like Alfred? What will his role be on this Earth? The possibilities are endless and I feel like I already know so much about him but I can't wait to see him and see the world thru his eyes. It will be amazing!

And away we go...

I thought I would finally jump into this blogging stuff! My friend Sarah has been blogging for sometime now and viewing her new updates is something I look forward to so I decided since both Alfred's and my families live so far away this would be a great way to keep everyone in the loop especially when Kingston gets here. For those of you who don't know us very well I'll give you the update. I am originally from Huntington WV and Alfred is originally from Macon GA we met in Nashville TN at a bar of all places. And I use the term bar loosely as it was more a hole in the wall. I showed up there to cap off the night with my friend after being out downtown and Alfred was there after work celebrating a friends birthday. I made fun of the fact that he was dressed up like a banker at midnight and we all started talking. I went to the bathroom and he told our friends that I was the kind of girl he had been looking for. Well I hadn't been looking for anyone but we exchanged numbers and I basically ignored him for days and then one day I was bored so I ask him out for a beer and we ended up spending 6 hours talking and drinking and playing naughty search and find at the bar. It was a blast and I knew this could be something special so I let him take me out again and again and again. I guess this is where they say the rest is history but for us I like to say the rest is just our beginning. Alfred and I were always meant to be family we just had to meet each other to realize what we both wanted out of life was nothing we ever expected. We are both turning 30 this year and neither of us ever wanted kids or to be married. But now that Kingston is on the way and we are planning an October wedding we both realize this is what we've always wanted we just hadn't found the right person. So yes it's been a busy year. We bought a house, got pregnant, decided to to get married and I have to say so far it's been the best year of our lives and we can't wait to see where our beginning takes us from here.