Best Present Ever

Look what I got in my stocking!!!  :)

#Meagan

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is upon us!  We all got to sleep in this morning, which was lovely.  Asher is just so good to us.  After a nice pancakes and bacon breakfast, we embarked upon a day of doing, well, pretty much nothing.  Now thats what I call vacation!

Asher is pretty excited about the presents, and eagerly awaiting the arrival of Santa.

We got all ready for Christmas Eve service at church, and took the opportunity to take a few family pictures.

Asher was pretty excited about heading to Christmas Eve service.  He told me so himself in this little interview.

So I'll leave you now, and wish you a Merry Christmas from the Dobbs family.  Hope you dream of sugar drops and gum plums, that Santa leaves you the doohicky you wanted instead of coal, and that above all you remember the reason for the season:  Christ was born, and began a life that would ultimately end for the payment of our sins. 

Merry CHRISTmas to all, and to all a goodnight!!

#Eric

Elfing Awesome!

Well Christmas is already two days away and Grandma and Grandpa Dobbs arrived today to spend it with us. It was Grandpa's first time meeting Asher, and he is loving it of course.

Also, I went ahead and "Elfed" ourselves and made a fun little video.  Here's the link:
http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/B5Y5cOfvXJ8msisSoi4E
It's only good until the 15th of January, so act now or forever hold your, um, eyes?

So merry Christmas eve eve from the Dobbs household.  We'll update more as we enjoy our time together.

#Eric

4 weeks!

Well you might think that someone with a baby due at the end of November might have thought to christmas shop early this year, but no.  Eric and I made a Walmart run late last night, are crossing our fingers and hoping the last of our online purchases arrive in time, and for better or worse I'm planning on braving Des Moines for a few last minute things on Thursday... yes, three days before christmas.  Thankfully Asher blessed me today by taking a three hour nap, so I was able to get most of the gifts wrapped, but suffice it to say I don't have a lot of time to write much here today.  I will leave you with this:  Asher does not have socks on because he just finished peeing all over them, putting the number of times mom's been peed on during a diaper change into the double digits.  I've got to get this figured out!  :)  Enjoy the pics! 

  I caught a little smile!  And boy, are we ready for the baby acne to go away!

And I couldn't pass up these from earlier this week! :)
 

#Meagan

Smile

Well, as first time parents we're really on the lookout for Asher's milestones.  We've hit one, and here's the video to prove it!

Not sure whether they're self directed, if they're gas, or if he's just mimicking and excercising those particular muscles.  One thing I am sure about is that we love it!

#Eric

Three Weeks!

Before I get to my post, if you haven't seen the awesome video Eric put together yet, scroll down and check it out! It's worth the viewing. :)  

In other news, Asher is 3 weeks old today!  My little baby has grown out of most of his newborn size clothes and is fitting into his 0-3 month clothes now, which means he finally fits into the cute little pastel blue outfit we brought him home from the hospital in.   I put him in it this morning for his 3 week photo shoot, but since I'm still trying to use up the last few newborn size diapers, which are borderline too small, he promptly leaked poop out onto his little outfit and then spit up down the front all within a few minutes of having it on.  Sooo, I wisened up and put him in a size one diaper and changed him into another adorable outfit, but let me tell you, I'm not sure I'm ready to see him in such big person colors yet.  The pastels still make him look like my tiny little baby, even though he's growing like crazy.  Oh well, he's only three weeks -  he still qualifies as my newborn no matter what he's wearing. :)

#Meagan

Birth Story Video

Meagan already wrote a post about our birth story, but I've put together a video for it as well.  You'll get a bit of my side, plus it'll be a version for those who don't much care for reading :)  Worry  not, there isn't anything that will cause you to need to avert your eyes.  Enjoy!

#Eric

The Christmas Tree and Asher's two week photos

Well it took about a week and a lot of help, but I think we finally just about finished decorating the house for Christmas.  Eric and I both grew up with real trees and tons of fond memories of actually hunting for and cutting them down, but for the first time ever, because of Asher's arrival over Thanksgiving, we considered just putting up Eric's little artificial tree this year.   However, this is also the very first time we are hosting a family Christmas at our house (Eric's parents are coming here so we don't have to make the 10 hour drive to Rapid City with a one month old) and well, I just couldn't do the fake tree.   So... after feeding Asher, my mom was kind enough to babysit for an hour, while Eric and I trekked down to Menards and bought a real tree.  We stood in the parking lot laughing at ourselves (I was quite tickled) and praying we wouldn't see anyone we knew, as in good comedy movie fashion, we hoisted our 7 foot tree up on top of our Honda civic and repeatedly threw a ball of twine at each other over and through the car.  To my surprise, it made it home without shifting an inch... guess I should have had more faith in my husband, the engineer. 

We strung the lights and hung the ornaments (Asher already has three of his own!), and it turned out pretty well, I think!  Asher really enjoys looking at the lights and Eric and I are enjoying celebrating our first Christmas season with him!  Here are a few pics of decorating the tree and Asher's two week old picture from today.  I'm stealing an idea from a friend of mine, and we'll do our best to post a weekly picture of him!  (Thanks, Bethany and her awesome blog at http://www.sawdustandembryos.com/!)  Anyway, enjoy your own preparations for the Christmas season in both your home and your heart!  

And here's a couple selections from Asher's Two Week Photo Shoot...

One Week!

Well what a whirlwind of week it's been, emotionally and physically!   Lots of tears, lots of joy, lots of blessings! 


The Birth Story  (a.k.a my life over the last week)

So Monday afternoon I went in for a "post due" appointment, had my ultrasound, did my non-stress test, and was told each step of the way that baby was super healthy, in great condition, and that I looked great!  THEN (after Eric left, no less) the doctor came in and hit me with a brick wall - baby was measuring 10 lbs 15 oz (plus or minus one pound) AND he was recommeding I have a c-section the next morning.  The doctor was super concerned about shoulder dystocia, among other things related to the birth size. 

What a flood of emotions!  Eric and I had spent the last nine months reading everything we could about natural childbirth, natural pain management, how to deal with unexpected complications naturally, and we were (and still are) very informed. I was so confident I could deal with anything! We'd spent weeks gathering the support materials: packing lotion for massages, making playlists on the ipod, buying snacks for Eric, practing lamaze, attending birth classes, watching documentaries, etc, etc. etc.

So as you can imagine, I spent most of the afternoon in tears dealing with disappointment that I wouldn't get to labor in the way I'd wanted to,  fear that if I didn't follow doctor's directions, baby might not make it through labor, and doubt - what if the measurements were wrong and he's only 8 lbs and I have a c-section  for nothing!   We came home, called the family, prayed, researched, met with the doctor a second time, and in the end decided that whatever my hopes had been for labor, they weren't worth the possible risks to baby's health. And now that our 10 lb. Asher is here, we haven't looked back and regretted it one bit - well, most of the time - but that's to be expected, I think.  

Tuesday morning, we headed to the hospital at 7:00 a.m. for our pre-operation prep for our scheduled surgery at 9:00.  Everything went super smoothly, except they had to give me two spinal shots because the first one didn't go high enough.  Consequently, it took me a good 4-5 hours after the operation before I could feel my legs again, but who can complain when you labor pain free.  Eric got to watch Asher being taken from the uterus, which I wish I could have seen, but hospital policy, no pics until the baby is out. Oh well.

We spent three days in the hospital, including Thanksgiving Day, but we had a LOT to be thankful for!  Recovery went as well as could be expected, and we were well fed by two different Thanksgiving meals that friends and family brought in for us. The nurses were super helpful, respectful of our wishes, and we had an all around great experience at the Marshalltown hospital!   

Asher @ 1 week

I realize it may just be a phase and that it could change, but thus far, Asher has been an incredibly easy baby.  I'm praising God for his blessings, because it sure has helped make my recovery that much easier.  Asher really only cries when we're changing his diaper.  He wakes to eat about every 3 1/2 hours, which I've been told is really good.  He's already staying awake for at least 20 minutes, and up to an hour, after eating during the day and then naps a good hour or two, most of the time.  At night he eats faster, stays awake shorter amounts of time, and sleeps a better chunk of the time between feedings - we're really not feeling sleep deprived yet (partially thanks to having the grandmas here)!  He's super strong and can already lift his head by himself for a little while.  I'm telling you - easy baby!  Don't worry, though, I'm counting my blessings while they last, knowing this may only be temporary!  God is good, regardless of what the future holds!

Anyway, here's a few more pics of our sweet baby.  One week old today!

  #Meagan

Awake, and grandmas!

Thought we'd upload a couple of videos of Asher in some of his awake time, which seems to be pretty good these days.  When he's awake (which tends to be 45 minutes to an hour after he feeds), if he isn't hungry, dirty, or tired, he is super content.  He just looks around, at us, at whatever.  He's pretty much an awesome baby is what I'm trying to say.

Grumpy?  Or is that just what your face is doing right now?

Also, he's a pretty strong baby, and can lift his head pretty darn well.

Grandma Dobbs has been here the last couple days, getting to meet Asher and being a big help to us.  Thanks Mom!

Now we get to have the help and company of Meagan's mom Pam, who is staying with us for a while and also being a big help.

Thank God for grandmas!

#Eric

Asher Joseph Dobbs - a pictoral introduction

Asher Joseph Dobbs came into the world on November 22, 2011 at 9:09 am.  He weighed in at a whopping 10 lb even, and measured 21" long.  Here are some pictures from our crazy first couple of days with him.  Thanks to everyone for all your prayers during the c-section and beyond, and for all your well wishes.  We're so blessed and we're loving our time with him so much! 

So what do you think?  Does he look like his ultrasound?  Who do you see in his face? :)

#Eric

Nine Month Ultrasound!

Well, I'm not due until tomorrow, so I'm not technically overdue at all yet, but the doctor wanted to make sure everything was okay before going into the weekend and got me started on the post due routine checks.  Long story short, I got to "see" my baby yesterday!  Never thought I'd get to see the baby inside this far along!  Crazy how clear these ultrasounds are!  Anyway, here's a decent pic of his/her face.  The arms are over the mouth and umbilical cord is partially over the eye, but doesn't it have the cutest little chubby cheeks?  I can't stop staring at the pics we got and I really can't wait to see him/her in person!  Just in case you were curious the tests all came back great... baby's is SUPER condition and seems to be healthy as can be!  Praise God!  We love our little baby so much already! :)     

#Meagan

Almost there!

Just wanted to post a pic of me at nine months.  Well almost!   I'm due Saturday.  I'm ready for baby to be here for many reasons.  Firstly and most importantly, because I want to meet our baby, see what he/she looks like, and hold and snuggle with him/her.  Secondly, because I'm feeling more uncomfortable every day.  I've been having pretty consistant contractions for the last month.  I've had about two or three an hour during the days and then they're often between 4-15 minutes apart for several hours in the evenings... and then they just stop.  I also had to get out of bed 6 times last night to go to the bathroom - usually it's 2-3 times.  (I do realize that I'll be up that much at night with baby too, but at least baby will be here! :)   The contractions are stronger every day, but thankfully they seem to be doing something!   At my appointment last week I was 1 cm dilated and 25% effaced.  They said that was really good for a first time mom.  My next appointment is tomorrow morning, so I'm praying that even more progress has been made, and that all this discomfort helps make labor that much faster whenever it does actually start for real.  Thirdly, this may be selfish and superficial sounding, but I'm starting to feel heavier than just pregnant.  I'm not tired of the belly, but I am tired of the extra weight elsewhere, especially in my face, and I'm anxious to start working on getting back to my pre-prenancy size and the ability to wear my pre-pregnancy clothes.  I'm down to about 4, maybe 5, shirts that still cover my belly and I'm kind of getting tired of wearing the same things over and over again.  :)   All in all, I'm ready to have baby!   Can't wait to introduce our little one to everyone.  It's good to know that labor is inevitable sometime in the next 2-3 weeks, and it's comforting knowing that includes even if baby is way overdue!   5 days and counting!
 

 #Meagan

Furniture migration

Well we've now pretty much got everything in order for the moment at which our little bundle of joy decides it's his/her time to make an entrance (or, should I say exit).  The nursery is ready, we've got a bag packed with the essentials, and I even put the carseat base in the car.  Now with the official due date a week and a half away, what do we choose to do?  Why get the carpets cleaned, of course!  It was something we had wanted to do prior to the baby coming along, cause the day will be coming soon when the little tyke will be burying his/her face into the carpet, and I'd just rather have it be clean.  To save a buck, we moved all the furniture ourselves (well, myself.  And I got a bit of help from our friend Benjamin on a couple things).  So this is now what our living room looks like.

And this, of course, is what our dining room looks like.

So, the carpet is now drying, and I plan to move the furniture back tomorrow.  We also had them do the stairs, upstairs hallway, and the baby's room.  Alas, the nursery no longer looks like Meagan's previously posted pictures, but it will again soon.  Now the big hope is that the baby doesn't come tonight or tomorrow.  Are we crazy?  Probably.  What do you think?

#Eric

The Nursery

So I'm pretty proud of my work in the nursery... so I thought I'd share some of the pics. :)  I wish I had some before and after pictures, but unfortunately, I don't.  So I'll do my best to describe what we did.  

Since we don't know the gender, Eric painted the walls a nice pastel green and then I decided to decorate with one of my Mother Goose books, because I absolutley ADORE the illustrations in it.  I bought a second copy of the book and sliced out all the pages, but boy was it hard to narrow them down to a few favorites!   I bought the rack at Hobby Lobby and painted it white, and then bought some cheap frames at Target... and Voila, my mother goose masterpiece.   

This was one of my favorites in the book (of Humpty Dumpty), so I paid for it to be framed professionally at Hobby Lobby.   Isn't it adorable? :)

Here's our crib from Target.  Eric's mom made us a dust ruffle and bought us some cute wall clings.  My mom got us a musical mobile that matches the colors in the room perfectly.  Above the bed is the nursery rhyme of the Man in the Moon, as well as Eric's technological addition of a video baby monitor. :)
  

I attempted to make this piece of furniture by myself one afternoon with some wood in our garage after watching a string of  HGTV shows on Hulu and being thoroughly inspired to create something.  BUT after realizing my complete lack of knowledge on how to use a drill, and spending an afternoon on and off the phone with Eric in tears of frustration (and pregnancy emotions), I gave up on it being a surprise and let Eric do the drilling for me when he got home.  Granted if I'd let him do it all by himself, as an engineer, I'm sure it would have been more structurally sound, but he was being kind and helped me do what I had been trying to do on my own.   It'll work for now. :)  

This was one of my more sucessful projects, and the one I most wish I had a before picture of.  Eric's parents gave us an old dresser that wasn't wanted anymore.  It was covered in a glossy light wooden laminate of sorts.  I sanded it down, primed and painted it, bought some new hardware, and a few days later, had an adorable dresser/changing table that matches the rest of the furniture in the nursery! 

And we've been going backwards this whole blog, because this was the very first project I did when I found out I was pregnant.  Some sort of mothering instinct kicked in and I wanted to do something for baby... we hadn't told anyone we were pregnant yet, so it helped quell my urges to tell everyone we were expecting.  I dug up a bunch of fabric scraps from my craft room, and just started cutting without a pattern and ended up with this fun, brightly colored quilt.  I've never made a quilt of any kind before, so while it's not perfect, I'm pretty proud of it.  I have to admit though that I have watched my grandma make quilts a hundred times before, so I at least had some ideas of where to start!  :)   Being the newly pregnant mommy that I was, I added the heart on the back so baby would always know I'd made it just for them! :)  

So  here's a quick overview of the room...

We're still waiting for our ordered glider (white wood with yellow cushions) for the empty corner by the book shelf, but other than that, I think we're ready for baby any day he or she would like to join us!  The due date is a mere two weeks away, and I can hardly wait! 

#Meagan