Waiting and Planning

Only 10 weeks to go! The time is going so fast, and yet so slow in some ways. I can't wait to see him and hold him, and yet, are we ready? We followed family tradition, and got the crib and dresser/changing table for Cooper, like my mom did for me, so that is ready. Megan and Kelly and I are busy planning a shower for Oct 6, but there is still lots to do for that. We suddenly realized that the time is creeping up on us and we need to get the invitations out!
We will also get to attend the shower that Teri is having. I just love baby showers, and it will be especially exciting when it is for MY grandson!
And in the midst of all the fun baby planning, now we are also wedding planning! Megan and Ryan will be married on May 31st in Tri Cities, so my life is filled with all kinds of fun events to come! I am so blessed!
Shauna is looking so cute and round. I can't wait for Carla to get maternity shots of her. Megan is coming home this weekend and I am anxious for her to see Shauna. Shauna has grown a bit since Megs last saw her! Yeah, quite a bit! Our baby Cooper is getting big, and no longer our "little bean". Gotta get lots of pics of the girls. Good thing I got a new digital camera! And I may have even figured out how to use it! Spent some time last night reading the directions so I could take engagement pictures tomorrow with Ryan's parents. I better get scrapping, I am way behind!

The time is getting closer!

...and the excitement keeps growing! As does Shauna's belly! This is such a fun and magical time. Imagining what Cooper will look like, the fun we will have with him. We went to NW Trek yesterday for Grandpa Al's birthday celebration and it was such a perfect day. The weather was great, we saw lots of animals on the tram, had a nice lunch in the sun and talked about bringing Cooper next year. It will be so much fun to show him all the animals and see the excitement on his little face! We will have to get a membership to Trek and Pt. Defiance Zoo so we can go whenever we want. I loved all those times with my own kids and can't wait to get to do it again with my grandchildren. What a blessing!

IT'S A BOY!!!!

Grandpa was right! It's a boy, or as the sign I bought said "It A Boy", lol. Sign was made in China. I was going to return it, but now it is a new family joke, so think I will keep it.
We waited so anxiously for Shauna's phone call, and when the phone rang I was SO excited! I asked if the baby cooperated and Shauna said, "yes, Cooper was very cooperative!" And I yelled, "It's a Boy" for Kirk, Grandma and Grandpa and Dustin to hear. I asked if they were sure, and Shauna said "oh, yeah!" So we quickly decorated with our silly sign and blue crepe paper, and they brought up a video and still pictures. We had to wait for Matt and Kelly to arrive to see the video. It was so great to see his moving little body, his heartbeat and count his ten tiny toes. It seems so much more real now! I really feel like a grandma and I can't wait to hold him! This is SO fun!!!

Pink or blue????

Tomorrow is the BIG day, if Baby cooperates! Woohoo! We can't wait! It is so amazing to be able to have a window into the secret life of the baby in the womb. Wow.

All of the women in the family are thinking pink, and I would love to be able to buy her those cute pink outfits and have tea parties and teach her to scrapbook, but I would also love a little boy just like Matthew was. He was the sweetest little boy, and the easiest of my babies. He loved to play store and read the (Richard) Scary books with Huckle and Lowly Worm. And he was such a good big brother when Megan came along. He was just as cute as a little girl, with his blonde curls and blue eyes, and he was cuddly and lovable.

And Dustin was such a doll, too, with his huge blue eyes, his endless curiosity, and his affectionate hugs that could melt my heart.

So I will be thrilled with pink or blue, I just can't lose! I am so blessed and will love and adore either one, and if it is a boy, the added bonus will be that Grandpa can teach him to fish! I might even like fishing if I get to do it with a grandson! And I can teach a boy to scrapbook too. He can scrap photos of his fish!!!

I have got my toad house all set up, and even have a toad residing there already. Won't a granchild love that? Grandpa still wants a pond with fish, but Grandma is too much of a worrier for that. I've got rain gear so we can go out to the garden and water the pumpkins we will grow. We are pondering buying a trailer so we can take grandkids camping in style. And I am constantly dreaming of trips to Disney with grandkids, and photos with Mickey and the princesses. Girl or boy, we are gonna have so much fun!!!! Thank you God for this wonderful blessing!

Shopping and Doctor Visit

On Friday, Shauna and I went with Julie to her favorite baby consignment store. She has been telling me for months how great this store is, and I was, indeed, impressed, and we Will be going back. We also had some good Mexican food for lunch and stopped at a garage sale, barely missing a nice Exersaucer, but a woman got it before we did.
Noah had to work long hours today, and couldn't get off for the doctor appt., so I got to go! Luckily I had my camera, so I will be able to scrapbook this event! Maybe that will make up for forgetting photos on Mother's Day. Shauna is now 14 weeks along, second trimester! We heard the heartbeat again (still exciting for me!) and Dr. Casidy says all is well. Thank you Lord. Shauna made an appt for her ultrasound June 29, so that will be a very exciting day for them! And we will get to know the sex of the baby before the big summer sales start after July 4th. Shauna, Kelly, Megan, Jenna, Grandma De De, and I are all secretly (well not really secretly) hoping for a girl, while all the boys are rooting for a boy. But we will all be happy with this baby, no matter what. Grandma De De and I remember how sweet and adorable Matthew was, so we will be thrilled with a boy. Julie insists it will be a boy since her grandbaby is a boy, and we live parallel lives. She said at lunch that with Dylan, Decklin and Dustin we may get very confused, as if we aren't already! This grandma business is SO fun!

Mother's Day 2007

I cannot believe that I did not take any pictures of this momentous day! We got to meet Megan's new boyfriend Ryan, who we liked very much. And Shauna had her first Mother's Day as a mommy-to-be. We got some cute new yellow items for baby that had her oohing and aahhing. This was my first Mother's Day as a grandma-to-be! And I got to hear my precious little grandbaby's heartbeat! How exciting! Why was I not taking pictures of this wonderful day? I have no idea! Does becoming a grandma mean you are more forgetful? Must be! Oh well, I will give up a few brain cells to be a grandma!
On May 2nd, Dylan arrived, so Julie is an official grandma now! I got to go over and hold her little bundle of love last week, and he is a doll! I forgot how sweet and tiny those little feet are. I can't wait to hold our own little one and see those sweet feet. I will not forget the pictures! I have already told Carla I will be hiring her for maternity and newborn photos. They only happen once in a lifetime and I will not miss them!
The best part of Mother's Day, the most priceless part, was getting to spend time with all my children together. What a blessing they all are!

Dylan is on his way!

Baby Dylan (Julie's grandson) is on his way! She called me at 7:30 this morning to say Harold was on his way back home from work and they were headed to the hospital, where Katie is already laboring in a jacuzzi (they didn't have that at Good Sam when I delivered my girls there!). I am so excited for Julie! By tonight (we hope!) she will be a grandma and have held the little guy in her arms! And Harold will be a grandpa! They will both be wonderful grandparents. The first part of their Journey will be completed today. But it is only the beginning of many years of love and joy to come.
I have been praying all morning for a quick and safe delivery for Katie and Dylan. May God bless the entire family as they welcome their little miracle!

Shopping again!

Who knew this could be SO fun! Shauna, Kelly, Jenna and I went to the North Bend Mall on Sunday. Carter's is my new favorite place! They had such great clearance sales, we couldn't resist. Since we don't know the baby's sex, we bought pink AND blue! We also went to Motherhood Maternity, where we had Shauna try on clothes with the padded belly on. I wish I would have had my camera!
When I was pregnant with Matthew, my mom took me to Frederick and Nelson's and bought me several outfits, so now it was my turn to carry on the tradition. That would make a good scrapbook page. The new thing now is the bellyband. We got one of those in white. I wish they would have had those when I was pregnant. She also found two pairs of pants for her new job, a cute pair of capris for summer and one top. It's a start.
Kelly had fun buying cute little pink outfits for her niece Emma, who will be one in June. And Jenna enjoyed getting new clothes for summer. It was a great girls day out!

Worry

As soon as I became a mom, I learned the meaning of worry. And you never stop worrying about your children, no matter how old they get. Now there is the little bean to worry about too. He or she had its first trip to the ER last night. I am sure it won't be the last one.
But I know that God is always in control and I can turn the worries over to Him. It is not easy, but I keep on working at it, and I am getting better. I know God is holding that tiny babe in the palm of His hand, and He always will. Jesus said, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" (Mtt 6:27) and "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Mtt 6:34)
It's that "what if" thinking that gets me in trouble. As soon as I hear that phrase in my head, I just have to remind myself to stop. God can handle it. Let go and Let God. I'm learning.....slowly, but still making progress.

Easter Blessings

It is Easter Morning and there is so much to celebrate! I feel SO blessed. First, I am filled with gratitude to my Father in Heaven for the greatest gift of love that the world has ever known. Hallelujah, He is Risen today! Can't get that song out of my head, but that's okay cause I love it.
It would take me all day to list my blessings, but one of the greatest is having my husband love the Lord and celebrate today with me. And we also get to celebrate our grandchild! I made an Easter basket for our little bean, the first of many, I am sure.
And almost all my kids are coming for brunch (we will miss you Meggie Moo!) Our family is healthy for the mostpart and happy, so I feel that I couldn't ask for more. My heart is overflowing with love and joy. Thank you Lord!
And tonight we will attend the worship service at church with so many wonderful people that God has placed in our lives. I hope that our song and praise will bless God's heart. Blessed be the name of the Lord!

Sharing the Journey

Sharing in this journey to being a grandma is my best friend Julie. Her son and daughter-in-law, Dave and Katie, are expecting their first baby and her first grandchild in about 5 weeks. Julie and I have been friends for 20 years. We met when our sons were in cub scouts together and we lived in the same neighborhood. We have been through a lot together, good and bad. Our lives have been on parallel paths. Our sons graduated the same year and we planned grad parties, then they both got engaged and we planned weddings together. We hoped and dreamed we would get to be grandmas together. She has been on Cloud 9 since she got the news about Dave and Katie's baby and was almost as excited to hear about Shauna and Noah's baby. We are having so much fun planning Grandmahood. Playdates are a must. Sharing this happy journey with your best friend makes it even more special!

Today was Katie's baby shower. What fun! I think Julie was as excited as the parents-to-be! It was so fun to see all those little blue outfits, soft blankets, cute teddy bears, and more. Katie is expecting a boy, so we figure Shauna will have one too, since our lives seem to be almost identical.

Yesterday, as we were preparing for the shower, I was looking through my baby scrapbooking supplies. I found a card from our dear friend Debbie, who died in 1999. She was #3 of our Three Country Friends business and we just loved her. Her battle with cancer was one of the bad things Julie and I went through together. But here was this card Debbie sent me many years ago with baby stickers in it. I had completely forgotten about it, but there it was, in her beautiful handwriting. I showed it to Julie and we both got teary-eyed and knew she was there with us in spirit. She would have loved to have been there.... and how we would have loved to share this with her. The Lord gives and takes away.

Babies R Us

Wow is all I can say. That place is amazing and overwhelming, all at the same time. Megan and Shauna and I went shopping and drooling there today. This was a scouting mission to study what is available. And there is ALOT. I can't wait until we know if the baby is a boy or a girl so we can actually start buying. We are going to do some serious damage to the bank account! But it is going to be SO fun! Being a grandma is going to be expensive. I love it already!

Techno Grandma

I have been dragged, kicking and screaming, into the computer age. If I want to post a comment on Shauna and Noah's Pregnancy Journal, I have to have an account. I didn't know that led to setting up my own blogspot! So here I am. This is kind of like scrapbooking, so it may be fun and addictive too.
I can hardly believe that I am really going to be a grandma! What a wonderful blessing! I find myself giving constant prayers of thanksgiving to God, alternating with prayers asking for Him to be watching over and taking good care of that little being growing within my own baby. Amazing how you can fall in love with someone the size of a dime!
And so the journey begins. And I plan to bask in every joyous moment of it!