A few new pics to share...

I have some new pictures to share from this past weekend... we spent more time outside... Cade LOVES being outside! Some pics from our outside fun...






I took this picture of Cade on Friday morning... I just love it! He's so cute!!!


We had this picture made for Cade & Brady's Nana, for her birthday! It turned out so good, I was so proud of the boys for being so cooperative!

Summertime Fun...

Cade LOVES to be outside! As long as the sun is not in his eyes, he is a happy baby! But isn't it true that all little boys love it outside? I am already looking forward to next summer, when he'll be big enough to play outside! I tell him all of the things we'll do... ride his tricycle, play ball, play in the kiddie pool, blow bubbles... it will be such a blast!

But until then, we are just enjoying relaxing out in the warm summer air.

This IS Cade...

I wanted to share these 2 pics that I took this past weekend... I absolutely LOVE them! They capture Cade's personality to a T... a little monkey... full of wonder... ADORABLE!

My Latest Paint Shop "Creation"...

I've decided that it's pretty much impossible to get a good shot of two infants... I've been trying to get the "perfect" shot of Cade & Brady since they've been in this world & just can't get it. One is crying, one is looking the other direction, they're looking opposite directions, a face is blurry... it's just a lost cause at this point. So, I decided to just make my own photo... I love Paint Shop Pro!


The pic I used...




And the pic I made...




I love it!

Little Chap...

My sweet cousin Laura, who I have just recently "discovered", sent me this poem. She said that her mother had it in her bible since her baby boy (Laura's brother) was born... 59 years. She thought it would be nice for me to have... so I've put it in Cade's baby book.

The Little Chap Who Follows Me

A careful man I ought to be;
A little fellow follows me;
I do not dare to go astray
For fear he'll go the self-same way.

I must not madly step aside,
Where pleasure's paths are smooth and wide,
And join in wine's red reverlry~
A little fellow follows me.

I cannot once escape his eyes;
Whatever he sees me do he tries~
Like me, he says, he's going to be;
The little chap who follows me.

He thinks that I am good and fine,
Believes in every word of mine;
The base in me he must not see,
The little chap who follows me.

I must remember as I go,
through summer's sun and winter's snow,
I'm building for the years to be,
A little fellow follows me.

Cousins...

Yummy...

Cade had his first veggie today! SQUASH! He was so funny, scrunching his nose up, shivering at the taste of something new... but after a few bites, he was swallowing it down and smiling big!

Of course, I took some pics to commemorate this occasion... a milestone to remember!

daddy's day...

My New Addiction...

Digital Scrapbooking... I'm really starting to become addicted to this! It allows me to be a little creative with those TONS of pictures that I take of my little man...

My Monday Thoughts...

I am amazed at the songs and stories and nursery rhythms that I have forgotten! I have been entertaining my 3 month old by singing & telling stories, only to realize that I can't remember certain verses and can't remember how the stories end. How sad is it that I can't remember the details of "The 3 Little Pigs"?!?! I will have to refresh my memory... I am looking up stories and lyrics to songs online. I can not look like a fool in front of my infant son!

It stormed again today... just enough to knock our electricity off for about an hour. Of course, the baby was napping and I could have been getting so much work done! So instead, I put some laundry away. At least it wasn't a wasted hour.

Posting a few pics from this weekend that I took of Cade. He was so patient with his momma during this "photo shoot"... poor guy will hate me for this someday!

For my husband... Happy Father's Day

In My Son's Eyes
~martina mcbride

In my son's eyes, I am a hero.
I am strong and wise, And I know no fear.
But the truth is plain to see: He was sent to rescue me,
I see who I want to be, in my son's eyes.

In my son's eyes, everyone is equal,
Darkness turns to light, And the world is at peace.
This miracle God gave to me,
Gives me strength when I am weak.
I find reason to believe, in my son's eyes.

And when he wraps his hand around my finger,
Oh, it puts a smile in my heart.
Everything becomes a little clearer.
I realize what life is all about.
It's hanging on when your heart has had enough;
It's giving more when you feel like giving up.
I've seen the light: it's in my son's eyes.

In my son's eyes, I can see the future.
A reflection of who I am, And what will be.
And though he'll grow and, some day, leave.
Maybe raise a family,
When I'm gone, I hope you'll see,
How happy he made me,
For I'll be there, in my son's eyes.

Baby Bites...

Cade is learning to use a spoon! We're starting him out slow, a little cereal every night... and when I say little, I mean little... as in a few bites. He usually isn't impressed... he'd rather have his bottle, and has even expressed this to me in a crying fit! Something I've learned... don't try to spoon feed a baby that doesn't know how to use a spoon -- if he's STARVING!

Not really getting the hang of it yet... he rolls it around in his mouth, and it usually ends up on his chin. I'm sure he will eventually figure it out.


He looks at me like I'm crazy...


Looks full to me!

3 Months...

Cade is 3 months old today! To celebrate, we had a photo-shoot in our living room. Cade wore his favorite teddy bear overalls... so cute.

He is really smiling BIG lately! His whole face lights up!


I love this look... this is how he looks at me when he's playing in his crib in the mornings... his face is so full of wonder & curiosity.


Three months have gone by so fast. It's amazing how much he has changed in such little time. He has gone from a tiny little handful to a chunky armful! I'm so happy at his progress so far.

• Coo'ing & "talking" all the time!
• Has giggled a few times... which always gives him the hiccups!
• Great head control... but not exactly perfect.
• Starting to find his hands... and his thumbs.
• Recognizes faces & voices.
• Starting to sleep through the night... for 6-7 hour stretches.

I'm also amazed at the schedule that he has literally put himself on! I have been following his lead, let him do his own thing, and he is now on a "kinda" schedule.

• Wakes at around 7:30 or 8:00 a.m.... and not always because he's hungry... I usually find him in the crib, wide awake, playing!
• Eats at 8:00 a.m.
• Naps from about 9:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.
• Eats and stays up to play awhile.
• Naps from about 2:30 until about 5:00 p.m.
• Eats and stays awake for awhile... it's during this time that we take a bath, play, and sometimes he will sneak in a cat-nap here or there.
• Eats some cereal & takes a bottle at around 9:00 or 10:00 p.m. and goes to bed for the night.
• Wakes up to eat anywhere between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.
• Goes back to bed until 7:30 or 8:00 a.m.

Cade's Birth...

On Friday, March 7th, I had a regular OB checkup. Doc decided to do an ultrasound to determine the position of the baby... it was then decided that I’d have to have a c-section. Cade was still breech, his head under my right rib cage and his butt to my cervix. The position and fact that he’d been in that position for practically the entire time (that we know of) led my doc to believe that there would be no turning - even with 4 weeks to go. So he told me to hold on, that his assistant would call the following week to schedule a c-section, and we’d shoot for a week before his due date.

I felt good about everything, even went through pre-admissions that day! Friday and Saturday, I was completely exhausted as usual, but we were snowed in, so I didn’t mind being lazy & doing nothing!

Sunday, I woke up and again, more snow!!! We decided to stay home from church and just relax – not sure we could have made it off the hill without a sled anyway! Later that afternoon, I sent Derek to the grocery store and I just kept feeling like I should be doing SOMETHING! So I finished a quilt that I’d been working on throughout my entire pregnancy and placed it on the diaper bag to eventually take with us to the hospital. I made a liner for my sister-in-law’s basket that contained her baby shower gift. I did about 5 loads of laundry, which usually takes me at least 2 days, if not 3. I made dinner and then I made a “cookie cake”. (my version of cookie bars… oatmeal/chocloate chip spread out in a pan) So much for a lazy Sunday!

When I talked to my mom that night (she’d just made it back to Louisville, for work), I told her all that I’d done and she kept saying, “Christa, you’re going into labor soon!” I kept brushing it off… sure I had stayed busy that day, but isn’t “nesting” all about scrubbing floors & washing windows?

I was worn out from my day of "nesting" so I did end up going to bed a little early that night, about 10:00 p.m., but laid and re-read the end of “Girlfriend’s Guide to Pregnancy”… wanted to have all the details fresh in my head, of the birthing process & c-sections. I turned the light off at 11:00 and slept until Derek came to bed, at around midnight. I kept feeling like I “should” get up, but I didn’t want to. Finally I talked myself into going to the bathroom... which I figured would be my first of MANY trips to the bathroom that night.

On the way to the bathroom, I felt like I was peeing on myself (not out of the relm of possibilities at that point!) And sure enough, my water had broke. At least I thought it had… wasn’t 100 percent certain since it wasn’t a gush, like you read about or see on TV. I called L&D (Labor & Delivery) and they said they’d feel better to check and make sure it wasn’t my water, but it sounded like it was.

So I called mom back, put her on “stand-by”… (which she didn’t stand by at all… she left Louisville immediately and I’m glad she did!) We decided if this was indeed the beginning of labor, we would need to feed the cats, pack a bag for Derek (yes, mine was packed & ready), let the car warm up for a few minutes… oh yeah, and he had to take a shower :) Yeah, we probably should have rushed to the hospital, but I wasn’t feeling any contractions, no pain, so I was in no hurry.

Finally got to the hospital and it took us 20 minutes just to find L&D! We’d never been up to that floor and the hospital is so confusing, especially that late, we were all over the place before someone finally led us to the doors. So I stood there, wet, but feeling just fine, still no contractions, nothing. They weighed me, sent me into a room and had me put on a lovely hospital gown. They did a test to make sure it was my water and sure enough, it was. Since Cade was breech, they needed to get him out asap – I just never imagined he’d be born within 2 hours of me arriving at the hospital!

My doctor came into the room and assured me that everything would be fine, Cade would be fine, and it would all be over soon. The nurses kept telling me not to worry if they had to rush him to NICU, but how could I NOT worry? He was coming 4 weeks early! So many things were going through my mind, all I could do was pray that my little man was developed enough to make a healthy entrance into the world.

Into surgery I go (after being poked & prodded & stuck with needles & IVs)… Derek couldn’t be in the operating room until I was ready for surgery so I had to get the spinal block without him… I was SCARED TO DEATH!!! It was a huge, cold, sterile room, people standing around watching as I crawl over onto the surgical board from my bed (not an easy task when you’re the size of a cow!) and then they did the spinal block. All of the doctors and surgical team were awesome… One of the surgical staff helped hold me down, as they did the block and he walked me through everything. I finally get laid back, started going numb, and they let Derek come in. I was scared to death but felt so much better seeing him there… even if he did look as scared as I felt!

The surgery began. It seemed like forever but Doc had him out within 5 minutes. Derek stood up and watched as they pulled him out.

He cried immediately and I balled! I knew he'd be okay when I heard that sound. I have never heard a more beautiful sound! I cry just thinking about it! He was born at 3:42 a.m. on March 10th. Weighed 6 pounds 4 ounces and was 17.5 inches long.

Derek went with Cade to get cleaned up – I just got to see him for a second. By the time Doc had finished closing me up, I was shaking to death – thankfully just a side effect from the spinal block meds, which eventually wore off. They wheeled me into recovery and I almost immediately got to see my baby boy. In walks Derek and the nurse with Cade. All wrapped up, swollen, beautiful!

It was amazing and such a surreal moment! He was so tiny and helpless, but I could feel so much love for him already! It was so funny to see him still looking "breech"... his little legs were so used to that position, it was difficult to straighten him out. His little feet up by his head... everyone knew he was a breech baby the second they saw him!

Within no time, all of our family arrived… I’m still not sure how fast mom drove, to make it from Louisville to Ashland within 3 hours! Everyone was so happy to see him, healthy and strong. He is such a little blessing!