Making A House A Home

We are hardly ever here on Saturdays, and by “here” I mean both Newnan and our actual house.  Now that we have Thomas, we are trying to learn to have more hobbies and activities around home that we enjoy, instead of always running the roads like we did when we were single. It just changes things when you have a baby. It settles you down in a distinctive way that becomes very familiar and comfortable to you as a family. A lot of it is very natural. Since Thomas has become a part of our family, or should I say made us feel like a real family, we actually enjoy being around home more. For the first time, our house feels more like a home.  We are learning to take Saturdays as an opportunity to work around the house together doing various things such as work in the garden. We are learning to go for walks together with Thomas in the Spring evenings. We are learning to slow down and appreciate some quiet quality time together, just the three of us.

 

Speaking of slowing down, last Sunday Thomas and Daniel passed out in the recliner, and you can click  here to read about that!  In that post, I stated that there were “no pictures” to go with it, but of course, as soon as the “I don’t want to forget any of  these precious  moments” thought went through my head, and I quickly jumped up and began flashing pictures of my two snuggly lovies.  

And do you  think I stopped there? Do you think I was above taking a video of them, where I preceded to whisper Daniel’s name until he woke up…you know, just for fun….I couldn’t resist!

This Saturday, Daniel and I started working in our garden! Yes! We are attempting a garden. And I say “attempting” because sometimes I start something and then lose interest in it very quickly. But hopefully, this won’t be one of those things because it is something fun that me and D could enjoy doing together. And I really like the idea of  knowing exactly where my food is coming from and what chemicals have or have not been put on it! Both Daniel’s parents and his grandparents have gardens, and they are pro’s at growing good vegetables because they have been doing it for so long. Daniel’s Granddad has planted as many as 2,000 tomato plants in years before, but we’re not sure how many he is up to this year. Daniel says he knows for sure that he planted 400 the other day. Want some home grown maders?!?  Cute fact about my hubby: when he was 14, he spent all summer selling tomatoes from their garden at the tomato stand…is that adorable or what? I hope Thomas works the tomato stand one Summer!!  His Granddaddy also grows watermelons…and I think we are going to attempt some of our own! I’m not sure what all Daniel’s Daddy is growing in his garden this year except for some wonderful green beans! We ate more than our fair share of those last year! So, today Daniel and I picked out the perfect spot for our garden, plowed it, put out lime and fertilizer, and tilled it all in! Now, all we have to do is figure out exactly what we want to plant…any suggestions?!? We’re thinking maybe a few tomato plants, some watermelons, cantaloupe, and maybe some zipper peas?? And as you can imagine, I had the camera out the entire time to capture our progress.

I also snapped some pictures of all the pretty things blooming around us. This is the first time that I have ever really appreciate all the beauty  that Spring brings. Here are a few shots of what’s going on in our yard:

 

It’s Spring, and it’s beautiful outside.

 

 

 

 

Maybe we’ll have some grapes this year….maybe!

 

 

 

Or maybe our little peach buds will grow into a big, plump, juicy peach!

And I can promise you that I’ll be picking blueberries off this blueberry bush this Summer and making many blueberry cobbles with them.

Preparing the garden: Step 1: Making sure Thomas is settled-check! We moved his swing to the front porch when we thought we were going to put the garden in the front yard…

Preparing the garden: Step 2: D looking for the right spot for the garden

Still looking….

Preparing the garden: Step 3: Arguing with Amanda about why the garden can’t be right in front of the porch steps….

 

Preparing the garden: Step 4: Getting mad at Amanda for taking pictures instead of deciding where to put the garden….

 

Preparing the garden: Step 5: Finding the perfect spot, plowing it up, and then putting out the lime and fertilizer

Preparing the garden: Step 6: Tilling it all under

 

Preparing the garden: Step 7: Admiring your work

Preparing the garden: Step 8: Work on your farmer’s tan

Preparing the garden: Step 9: Stop and admire your baby’s cute toes!

 

“Oh, SNAP!” says Thomas.

 

 

     

 

Check out who is getting their hair back on the top of their head! Go, T, Go!!

  

Annnnnnnd he’s out! He slept most of the afternoon in his stroller while we worked in the garden.

 

Some more yard photos:

This is the dog you should “beware of”…..aren’t you scared??

 

Thomas taking a break from gardening and playing on his activity mat….

We tried the Bumbo again….and he actually liked it for a total of 30 seconds this time, which is a lot longer than he liked it last time!

 

As always, starts in laughter, ends in tears….

   

 

One final thought from this relaxing Saturday….are these not the most adorable rolls you have ever seen….love them and love him!!!!!       

 

Truth Be Told….

Are you an expecting First-Time-Mother-To-Be and wondering, “WHAT THE HECK DO I REGISTER FOR??” Or maybe, “How am I supposed to know what I will need for my baby when I’ve never had a baby before??”…I understand. I thought those same exact thoughts, too.  Or maybe you’re wondering what to get that expecting Mother-To-Be? It’s so hard to know what baby products to get these days because  there are so many out there. You will buy and be given some things that you can hardly even use. They sound good in theory, but in reality, you will probably never use them. Or then there are those products that don’t work as well (or at all) as they promise (Peepee Teepee for the Sprinkling Weewee…I’ll explain that story later!) But on the bright side, you will buy or be given some things you will think You can’t live without. THANK YOU to the makers of these products!!!! Seriously, you have made my life as a first-time-mom and mother-to-a-infant so much easier!

 

Here are a few shout outs to those who deserve them:

 

My newest favorite find: the In-Step Swivel Safari Jogging Stroller!

Oh. My. Goodness. Thomas loves it!!!! He is actually asleep in it right now as I am typing this. Yes, my son is sleeping in his stroller, which is parked in the kitchen, when he could be sleeping all cozy in his nice bed…but hey, he fell asleep in it outside while we were working in the garden so why move him and risk waking the Stinker up!:) Ever since the weather warmed up enough for us to be outside, we have been taking full advantage of it with our new stroller! We LOVE to walk around the farm in it and down to Daniel’s parents house. It puts Thomas right to sleep most of the time! It can be adjusted to where he sits up and can see what all is going on or to where he is reclined back (more comfortable for sleeping). We put him in it and parked it under the carport cover where Daniel parks his truck while we worked in the garden today, and he was perfectly content the whole time! I did have to buy the Kiddopotamus Shade Protector that attaches to the visor that’s already on the stroller so the sun  would stay completely off of his face. You know how we red heads burn:) It also comes with an attachment that you can snap your infant car seat into until the baby is big enough to sit in it like a big boy. I just put Thomas in it without his infant car seat this week (he is 9 weeks old).  All that to say, I think this was a great purchase! We have really loved ours!!  We got ours off of Amazon, but I am pretty sure you can find them at Target and Babies-R-Us, too. Side note: from all the reviews I have read and from other people’s advice, having the front wheel be a swivel wheel is a big plus! I’m not sure exactly why, but I know a lot of people complained in their reviews about other jogging strollers I was looking at that didn’t have a swivel wheel.

 

LOVE this stuff! Boudreaux’s Butt Paste! It works so well!  Every time that Thomas’s hinney has started to get red or irritated, we just start using a little bit of this stuff, and it goes away within a day or so!  I know I have seen this at Wal-Mart and Babies-R-Us.

 

Next is the Boppy! It is a WONDERFUL pillow to use as support under your arms when you are nursing or just holding the baby. We always get ours out whenever guest come over to hold Thomas because we know their arms get tired! I also use it every single time I nurse.

 

Sassy Disposable Diaper Sacks is another item that I absolutely love. I actually keep them in my diaper bags at all times. Mine come in little packs of 50 so they are packaged much smaller and are easier to tote around. They are scented little baggies that I throw Thomas’s dirty diapers in when we are at someone else’s home before I put it in their trash can. You know, just a nice gesture so they don’t have a stinky poopie diaper sitting in their kitchen trash:)

 

Medela Steam Bags are another must-have for me! I use them to sanitize my pump parts, bottles, and Thomas’s pacies!  Each bag can be used twenty times. All you do is add a little water and stick it in the microwave for a minute and a half! Then you have sanitized pacies and bottles without having to boil water. They’re great!

 

The SwaddleMe Infant Wraps have been another life saver! They are SO EASY to use! When we tried to swaddle him using regular blankets, it seemed like the blankets were never quite long enough, or they were too thick and we couldn’t get them to stay tucked in. We swaddle Thomas every night and for most of his naps now, too! Loveee this item!!!

 

We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this next product: The Homedics Sound Spa Lullaby…..Oh! My! Goodness!! It has different noises (ocean, rain, heartbeat, etc.) you can listen to, and we fall asleep and listen to rain all night, every night! It not only helps Thomas fall asleep, but stay asleep too. AND it helps him put himself back to sleep if he wakes up. It also projects little characters (stars, moon, sheep) onto the ceiling above Thomas’s pack-n-play, and he absolutely loves staring at it! He just grins and grins and grins when he sees his little “friends” on the ceiling! On a side note, the hair dryer also works great as a baby soother! It always stops Thomas’s crying and calms him down.

 

The “What To Expect The First Year” book has been so handy to have around!! It tells you month by month what you can expect from your ever-changing baby, including milestones they should/could be making developmentally. It also has the most common Q&A’s that parents ask about what is going on during each particular stage with the baby. I have really enjoyed reading it!

 

Infant Tylenol Drops and Baby Saline were our best friends a couple of weeks ago when Thomas had a little cold!  These are the only medicines that the doctors recommended using when he was sick because they really do not like prescribing antibiotics to babies that young. These are DEFINITELY things I would recommend every mother having on hand! 

 

And I can not even begin to tell you how many hours I have spent in this thing!

I love my glider! Especially at 3:00a.m:) It was worth each and every penny!!

 

We love using this Johnson and Johnson Bedtime Lotion because it smells soooooooooo good! Seriously!! You will want to snuggle your baby all night long. There is nothing sweeter than a baby who’s just had his bath and smells so baby-like:)

 

On the flip side, this is one product that I was very disappointed in. The Peepee Teepee for the Sprinkling Weewee covers. I’ll let you guess what they’re for. They were a total flop. They didn’t work. At least for us they didn’t.  Cute idea, but not practical.  Now, we just throw a wet wipe over that weewee during diaper changes.

 

 

So, there ya have it!  Those are a few of my favorite things these days! Please kindly remember that these are just the products that work well for me and Thomas!  You may completely disagree and find some of them useless!  I just thought I’d pass along the items that I thought worth sharing. Let me know if you have any “must haves!” that you think Thomas and I would enjoy using!

Sunday Snuggling

No pictures today. No long post. No boring thoughts from Amanda. Just an observation that makes my heart love parenthood even more on this Sunday afternoon.

Thomas loves to sleep on our chests. He lives to snuggle up in a warm little ball with his head resting on our chests and his legs all curled up and tucked underneath him. And as if that isn’t sweet enough, he will wiggle and squirm around until he gets his head right where he wants it. He has a perfect little spot that he looks for and chooses time and time again….right on top of our hearts. Thomas loves to fall asleep with his ear directly on top of our hearts where he can hear our heart beating…..and really, is there anything more innocent and precious in this world than that? No, not to me and Daniel.

Burnin’ Rubber

There is so much going on around us right now that I hardly have time to unpack my bags from one trip before I am packing them again for the next adventure! Everything is so fun and so exciting that we don’t want to miss out on a single minute of it. However, traveling every weekend has put my weekdays being spent playing catch up! And playing catch up keeps me pretty busy because a certain little red headed boy demands a lot of my attention during the day:)

 

I have so many pictures that I want to share. Life is so fun with Thomas, and I can’t even begin to describe the unconditional love we for this child.  I truly believe that Daniel and I understand a different side of God now that we have a son of our own. Our desire for Thomas to grow, mature, be disciplined and self-disciplined,  have compassion, experience joy, and endlessly love another soul one day runs deep. It effects our every thought about him, and hopefully, our parenting will reflect it. We want more than anything for our parenting and our relationship with Thomas to guide him and equip him with the tools he will need to walk humbly with our God and to love others freely and passionately.

 

Recently, Thomas has developed this habit of only wanting to nap during the day if he is being held! It is awful and awfully sweet all at the same time! He will be dead asleep in my arms and the minute I lay him down, POP!! His eyes are open! But if I continue to hold him after he’s fallen asleep, then he will sleep for several hours. These days I feel like I have conquered the world if my teeth are brushed by the time Daniel comes home for lunch.  I think he appreciates my morning breath being gone when he kisses me good-bye after lunch too:)  I really can not complain though. Thomas is a WONDERFUL sleeper at night. He has been this way from the beginning, too! At a week old, Thomas was already sleeping 4-5 hours at a time at night. Now, he goes to sleep anywhere from about 8:00-10:00p.m. and wakes up again around 3:00-4:00a.m. for another nursing. Then, he goes back to sleep until anywhere from 6:30-8:30a.m. We have been so blessed to have such a sound sleeper!  For many examples on Thomas’s snuggling techniques, please see the following album:

 

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Here are a few random snapshots from the past few weeks: (don’t forget that you can see all the pics by clicking “view full album”)

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I really enjoy photographing Thomas. Most of the time he just stares in the opposite direction despite all my best efforts to capture his precious face at the right angle, resulting in many, many horribly awkward photos. But every once in a while, I can catch a great shot of that innocent little face that melts my heart right into a puddle.

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We were in Valdosta this past weekend for Summer’s baby shower. And by “we”, I am talking about: Me, Daniel, Thomas, Katie, Andrew, Mary Frances, Jenna, Ryan, Summer, Scott, and Momma and Daddy. And “we” all stayed at Summer and Scott’s house. Daniel and I slept on a blow up mattress, and it truly was a lot of fun. I love when we all pile into a house like that together. It reminds me of my childhood. I shared a room with Jenna and Summer and Katie shared a room together.

 

Summer’s shower was a lot of fun, and she of course got a lot of great stuff for Kennedy (whom we can’t wait to meet!).  There was great food, good friends, and adorable babies. Nearly everyone at the shower either had a baby or was expecting! Seriously, I think Jenna and Ryan were the only ones who didn’t fall into one of those two categories! In between dinner and opening gifts, the boys snuck off and shot skeet. Conveniently, the shower was at a plantation:) Imagine that!  Thomas cried during the blessing and later refused to take his bottle from Papa Tom and his Daddy. Unexpectedly, he took the bottle from me! We are still trying to get him established on bottles of expressed milk so that Mommy and Daddy can leave Thomas with a babysitter for a short while and go out on some dates.;)

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Francie turned twenty-one last week, and  we celebrated her birthday Saturday night at Scott and Summer’s when we were all together. Since it was her big 2-1 birthday, all the sisters went in together and got her a date night with Ryan on the Savannah River Boat Dinner Cruise. Momma and Daddy pitched in and gave her money to go shopping with for a special outfit for that night. They also gave her the ring that my Daddy gave my Momma when they were dating.

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Thomas and Mary Frances got to meet for the first time this past weekend. Due to all of the flu viruses going around this winter, Mary Frances was not allowed on the maternity floor at the hospital when Thomas was born. Even though they are only about twelve weeks apart, there is a really big difference them! Those twelve weeks mean a lot developmentally for a baby. Mary Frances seems so much bigger than Thomas, even though he is a chunky monkey! He is about seven and half weeks old today, and he weighs 12lbs. 5oz.!  We enjoyed watching them stare at each other. I can’t wait to see them grow up playing together!

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We spent Easter on the road back home. Thomas slept the whole way home!  We pull over once to wake him and nurse him if we are on a long road trip, but other than that, he is o-u-t!  I think the hum of his Daddy’s diesel engine keeps him asleep:) We pulled into Aunt Cindy’s for a quick surprise visit, since no one was expecting us. All of Daniel’s family was together doing an Easter egg hunt. Thomas had just missed the hunt, but of course, he didn’t miss  out on a single minute of getting loads of kisses and attention from his Smith Grandparents and family. It was a beautiful day at Aunt Cindy’s lodge, and I absolutely love taking pictures outside with all of the natural sunlight. Thomas’s grandparents and great-grandparents were there, and I am so thankful that I got some pictures of all of them with Thomas.  We finally got the picture we had been waiting for: the four generations of Smith men! And the scary thing is, they all live within one square mile of each other!:)  And I love it! And I know you are not supposed to start a sentence with the word “and”, but sometimes it just sounds right. And really, are you judging my grammar right now!? Seriously? Enjoy the pictures!

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Video Post-Thomas’s First Weeks and Mimi Saying Good Bye to Thomas

Meet Our Little Red Bird….

Thomas Lanier Smith

Born on February 12, 2010 at 1:56p.m. at Tanner Hospital in Carrollton. He was a whopping 8lbs and 21 inches….and I can declare 8lbs “whopping” because I was the one who birthed him and trust me, 8lbs can be whopping! I was in labor for twelve hours and only pushed for one, although it felt like eternity. Mine and Daniel’s family was outside the door waiting anxiously to hear the first sign of a new life…the beautiful cry of a newborn baby. From what I’ve been told, they were all in tears (literally) from listening to me in the labor room screaming at top of my lungs because my epidural had worn off by time it was time for me to push! But that’s a story for another day and another post. The good news is that Thomas is here and healthy! Here is Aunt Katie with her ear to the door to the labor room listening to all the commotion and keeping everyone in the waiting room updated on the progress:

I have been wanting to keep up with my blog now more than ever, but our new little baby keeps us busy! During the first month of Thomas’s life we were very busy with learning how to care for our new love, nursing, taking quick “cat naps” whenever possible so that we didn’t lose our minds because of sleep deprivation, and entertaining our many visitors! Just to name a few of Thomas’s first visitors: Mimi (Joan!), Papa Tom (Tommy!), Uncle Scott, Aunt Summer, Aunt Francie, Uncle Andrew, Aunt Katie, Mama T, Papa Joe, Aunt Heather, “Uncle Bubba” (Kelby!), Granny (Jewel!), Grandmama (Evelyn!), Pops (Carl!), Aunt Cindy, Uncle Greg, Cousin Russell, Aunt Toots (Cassie), Aunt Donna, Uncle Don, Cousin Kate, Cousin Will, Jen and Alex Minnicks, James and Leigh Cunningham, Audrey Myrick and Ben Floyd, Karen Parker, Keith McMichael, Christina Wilson, Cousin Clay Caldwell, Justin Cunningham, Tim and Martha Henderson, Kirbey and Andy Broome, Brittney Jiles, Charles Tenney, Red (Darrell Owens), Serjio, Neal and Angie Spradlin and their girls, and Kevin Rainwater. I hope Thomas knows how loved he is!!

Our pediatrician recommend that we keep Thomas in the house for the first four weeks of his life because of all of the flu stuff going around, so we appreciated the meals and smiles that our many visitors brought us.

I have a million stories to share and get down in writing so that I don’t ever forget them, but for today, a photo album will take the place of any writing because I have a hungry boy who is ready to nurse (imagine that!). Thomas weighed 7lbs. 12oz. when we left the hospital that Sunday, and our little chunky monkey weighed in at 11lbs. 5oz. at his four week check up!

I asked Daniel to burp Thomas and when I came back in the room five minutes later this is what I found….they were both o-u-t!

Waiting to see if I was “officially” in labor or not! Hoping so much that they weren’t going to send us home!

First moments with Thomas….

My new little family

Seeing Thomas for the first time

Daniel and Mama T

View from our window on Thomas’s birth day

Post-labor….and the picture shows it!

Papa Tom meeting Thomas

Our first morning with Thomas

Thomas and Daddy watching t.v.

Mimi and Thomas snuggling in his first weeks

Here an album of the first month of Thomas’s life: (click “view full album” to see all of the pictures)

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I will be back soon with more pictures and hopefully some time to actually write about the past six weeks with our new love!

Thomas's Due Date...No Signs Of Thomas...

....YET!! But the day isn't over yet. I'm still holding out a little bitty bit of hope on getting to hold my precious newborn today. And because of that, this will not be a long post. Just a few brief updates of the last week or so, you know, for memory's sake:) As I was putting clothes in the dryer a few minutes ago, I thought to myself, "I bet I will want to look back on this day and remember what all was going through my mind..." soooo naturally, I decided to blog:) And now, I feel another nap coming on, so I must start and finish this...which will lead into my first observation:

~I have been EXTREMELY tired for two days in a row now. A different kind of tired than the kind of tired I have felt all throughout this pregnancy. For example, in the beginning and middle of my pregnancy, I was exhausted and had no energy. Standing took too much energy. I can remember always leaning against a wall or on a counter if I had to be standing. I wanted to sit, all the time! I was not so much sleepy, as I was just lazy feeling and had zero energy. But today and yesterday, I am SLEEPY. If I sit still for more than like 20 minutes, I fall asleep. Maybe my body senses what is coming and is trying to prepare me...?? Let's hope so:)

~Daniel and I went to my weekly check-up yesterday with hopes of the doctor telling us that I had made a lot of progress and little Thomas would arrive within the day. No such luck. I hadn't changed a bit since my last week's appointment. Still 80% effaced and 1 cm dilated. So, she stripped my membranes, which is basically just a procedure that sometimes helps labor start on its own. So far, no labor though. Although I did start having some contractions yesterday. They started out about 15 mins apart and then increased to about 30 mins apart, which means they were going the wrong way! In order for them to be "real" contractions, or in other words for them to be doing you any good as far as putting you closer to meeting your little one face-to-face, they are supposed to get closer together! So, false alarm.

~Due to the fact that I am now 40 full weeks pregnant and have started dilating and being effaced for over a week now, my doctor does not want to let me go past 41 weeks. Therefore, we have an appointment Sunday (Valentine's Day!) at 4:30p.m. to start inducing labor if Thomas hasn't come by then! From what I understand, they start the meds Sunday night, and I (hopefully) would have him on Monday. Daniel and I do not like the risks that come with inducing a labor, so we are praying that little Thomas comes before then!

~My hips have been really achy when I try to sleep at night. I go from laying on one side to the other, with no relief. Sleeping on my belly is no longer an option, and sleeping on your back is not recommend. Even if it was, it is not an option for me. I can not breath if I lay down flat on my back. So, last night I told D that I was just going to sleep in the recliner because I now dread getting into bed and starting the long, sleepless night. He decided to sleep on the couch in the den with me so he could be near me. We both got kind of excited about it, and D walked around the house chanting "Camp out in the den! Camp out in the den! This is going to be fun!" You see, when you've been couped up all winter long because of the cold and never-ending-rain, it doesn't take much to excite you. Yes, we clearly live on the edge in this household.

~So, that about sums up the past week or so. Not much going on here at all except waiting on
Baby Thomas. The car seat is installed in my car and has been inspected by the fire department for safety. His pack-n-play is set up next to my side of the bed so I can keep my over-protective-eye on him all night long. All of his clothes are washed and hung up in his closet, separated by sizes so we don't overlook an outfit, of course! His hospital bags are packed and have been for several weeks now. I have doubled my taco soup and chili (chili pictured below) recipes and they are in individual meal containers in our deep freezer, so we will have some good meals ready for when Thomas is here and there's no time for cooking. Now all we are lacking is our little boy!!!



Well, I am going catch a little bit of shut-eye while I can! Summer and Cassie are coming to town tonight. Cassie is just coming for the night. Summer is coming until the arrival of Thomas. I'm not sure whether she is:
1. Concerned that I am sooo bored sitting around waiting on Thomas that I may literally lose my mind...
2. Concerned that I am "in denial" as she says and may be ignoring some early signs of labor...
3. Or if she just has A.T.M.S. (Afraid To Miss Something!!) and just doesn't want to miss a second of Thomas being born:)

I will leave you will a few pictures of our growth over the past few weeks....Thomas has really changed! I can tell that he has grown to full term because he doesn't really have anymore room in my belly to roll around like he used to! His movement have become much more subtle and less jerky. He has just outgrown his little home, and it is time for him to come out!:)


36 Weeks Pregnant:





38 Weeks Pregnant: (I can see a big difference between 36 and 38 weeks)

40 Weeks Pregnant

And PRAISE THE LORD, there will be no "41 Weeks Pregnant" picture!