Videos!

We bought a Sony flip camera around the time Everett was born and I am still getting adjusted to it....So forgive me for the poor video quality. I have learned that I should talk less and keep the camera very still! I make myself sick watching the long ones :)



Everett is about 2 months old in this video. He coo's throughout the night, all night long...It is the sweetest sound I have ever heard :) Listen closely








He is so sweet in the mornings. In this video he is also about 2 months old and all he wants to do is cuddle for a little bit before his next nap :) How could I resist?!?

Everett is almost 3 months here....He LOVES playing with his daddy :)

Enjoy Everyone!!!

Merry Christmas :)

Christmas time!

Well I finally figured out how to put pictures on here! I know its super easy, but I just figured it out. So get excited!!!

Its finally Christmas time! This is my favorite time of year. I love the lights, the cold, the chili, the trees. Everything!! One of the best things about this Christmas is our little monster. He is getting so active and responsive. He has finally found his little feet and he loves to hold onto them as long as possible. He is also rolling over now. He can go from front to back and back to front whenever he pleases. At night he sometimes rolls to his tummy and he gets really angry. I have to keep him strapped into everything now! I can't just put him in his bouncy seat while I shower, or his nap nanny while I make a bottle. I can't believe how much he has grown! Since I just learned how to put pictures up, here are some starting at day 1!!

Here is the day we meet our little boy

And some pictures from his first month with us!
And 1 Month old!





And 2 Months Old:

And 3 Months Old!

Ill post some more recent ones soon. And probably some cute videos too! Enjoy!!

The best job a girl could ask for!

Its official! I am staying at home with my baby boy! I am so excited about this. Of course operating on one income will be interesting, but we have done it before and plenty of other people do it with less. I had planned on returning to work Monday, but we had some issues in the childcare department. Les and I had a provider lined up in March. She was an in-home facility and she had never had any complaints or violations. She came recommended from a friend and I really liked her. I was taking Everett a week early so I could ease into being away from him all day long. When I arrived the first day she informed me that there had been a death in her home the previous week. Nothing that was within her control (SIDS) but she was devastated. She was no longer taking infants. I got home and held my little one and cried. I couldn't imagine losing him.

After it sunk in I realized that I stated work the next week and I had no childcare. I looked everywhere. I contacted or visited 17 different places!! All but three had waiting lists or just didn't take brand new babies. I called DHS and the three that had openings had some pretty serious violations and complaints so they were not options. Les and I decided that it was best for our family if I stay at home with him for a little while. At least until he is older. I put our name on three different waiting lists so we will have a choice when that time comes.

Keep us in your prayers, and pray for little Jackson and his family. I couldn't imagine the pain of losing a child. Cherish your children, they are so precious.

6 Weeks Old :)

Everett,

Tomorrow you will be 6 weeks old. I have mixed emotions about this milestone.

I am happy because you are so interactive and so much fun. You love to sit and stare at me and make faces. You smile when I smile at you, and when I tickle you, and when Fergie licks your little feet. You want to sit up so badly! You have amazing head control and your legs are very strong for a baby your age. (That's what Dr Harvey told me today) You have been gaining weight like crazy since we started supplementing, and you are finally back on track with your birth weight. You weigh 9lbs 8ozs!!

I am also sad about how quickly you are growing. I know that it won't be like this for long and I am cherishing every moment of your dependency on me. I teared up today when one of your newborn outfits was too snug. It fit you perfectly your first couple weeks. I'm not gonna lie, you are a lot of work. You keep me on my toes and you aren't even mobile yet! But I love every minute of it. I couldn't think of anything I would rather do than spend my days with you.

You have so many little quirks that I am so afraid I will forget about as you grow out of them. You are starting to love your Baby Einstein DVDs. You only last about 15 minutes, but you love those 15 minutes. You get the hiccups all the time and they make you so angry sometimes, but sometimes they make you laugh. You have the biggest most beautiful smile I have ever seen. Most of the time you are awake I am trying to get you to smile. You wrap your little fingers around my necklace while you nurse and you scratch my side with the other hand. Your hands are your favorite toy. You always have them by your face. I have to keep your nails very short because you scratch your face like crazy. It took you 5 weeks to successfully suck your thumb. You have a love/hate relationship with your binky. Sometimes you will wedge your hand behind it and fling it across the room. You talk all the time. You even coo while you sleep. Every night I read your Bible to you and you love to stare at me while I read. Sometimes it looks like you are mimicking my mouth movements. You have started pooping on a very strict schedule. Every other day, between 10am and 2pm. But they are the biggest poos in the world. They usually come out all sides of the diaper and get all over you and me...or the car seat. When you first wake up, you stretch for about 5 solid minutes. You get angry if I wake you up. You also get very angry when we take your bottle away to burp you. There are a million more, but I am already crying just thinking about the fact that someday you will not be doing any of these sweet little things anymore.

Your daddy and I love you to pieces. I thank God every day for such a wonderful blessing. I still can't believe how lucky I am.

Love,
Mommy

Dr Visits

Everett was 8lbs 3ozs and 20 inches when he was born. At his first Drs visit he weighed 7lbs 8ozs, normal weight loss for the first few days of life. His reflexes were great and the Dr was very happy with him. He was eating every 3 hours and sleeping between, and was alert and active for about an hour each day.

We had some trouble with our 2 week check up. Everett only weighed 7lbs 10ozs. He gained just 2ozs in 2 weeks. Bad news. He should have been back to his birth weight by then. The doctor gave me one week to get his weight up or he will make us start using formula. Nothing wrong with formula, I just want to breastfeed him! I have been making sure to feed him every two hours. It is tough, but worth it for my little monster. We go back Friday (tomorrow) for a weight check. Keep us in your prayers!

I can't believe I haven't updated this since our little baby boy joined us! These past few weeks have flown by.

My labor and delivery went better than I could have ever expected. Sunday night, Les and I were having dinner then going to see a movie. Around 6:00 pm I started noticing some minor contractions. They weren't that painful but they were enough to notice. By midnight they were 5 minutes apart and very consistent so we went to the hospital. I was only dilated to 3 cm so they sent me home. The contractions continued until Tuesday when I felt like they were much stronger, so we went back to the hospital and I was only dilated to 4 cm!! Back home we went! At our weekly appointment, Wednesday morning, I was still at a 4. My Dr was planning to wait until the 9th to induce me but I couldn't take it anymore. The contractions were not terribly painful, but after three days of them I was exhausted. We scheduled to induce Thursday morning! We checked in to the hospital Thursday at 6:30 am. I was dilated 5 cm and 70% effaced. They got me hooked up and started the pitocin at 7:00. After only two hours the nurse came in and asked if I was ready for the epidural...I was expecting much much more pain first!! But after that I didn't feel a thing. I was fully dilated by 1:00 pm and I started pushing shortly after that. I only pushed through four contractions (10 minutes) then Everett arrived. I know, I am very lucky it was so short, but I pushed so hard I thought my head was going to pop off. The final push took everything I had in me. I don't think I could have pushed again. And Les was so amazing, he was so encouraging and I know I couldn't have done it without him. He even took a peek when Everett was crowning and didn't pass out!!

Our little boy is perfect! The nurse gave him a 9 on his 1 minute APGAR score, and a 10 on his 5 minute score. My happy healthy little boy was finally here! That really was the most amazing moment of my life. I still can't believe Les and I made him!!!

One Month Left!!

Four more weeks left... Thank goodness!!

Last week little Everett made it very clear that he wants out. On Monday we had to make a trip to the hospital because I was having contractions. About 3-4 an hour. But thankfully, I was not dilated at all and after an hour or so at the hospital they sent me home. We were only 35 weeks along at that point and that's a little too early! He needs to stay in there until at least 37 weeks. Once he is considered full term I will feel so much better. I can tell he is getting uncomfortable because he is moving around so much. Sometimes it hurts me!! He is a very strong little boy... Looking at the positive side of things, the bags are packed and the car seat is in! We are as ready as we will ever be for our little monster to be here. We start our weekly Dr appointments tomorrow and they will start checking to see if I am dilated yet. I just can't believe that we are so close.

Les is so cute with him, he will sit and talk to my belly at night and try to get him to move. Everett responds to Lester's voice so quickly, its amazing. Everett will start dancing around in there and Les gets so excited. It makes me so happy! I know he will be such a good daddy and I am thrilled to see them together. I can't believe how lucky I am to have such a caring husband. God really did pair me up with my perfect match.

Another very special day is getting lost in all of the excitment of our little boy. Les and I get to celebrate our ONE YEAR anniversary on August 8th! Our due date falls on our anniversary and we are a little more focused on the baby than the celebration. We will most likely be postponing the anniversary festivities for a few weeks so we can work on getting adjusted to our new arrival.

I really am the luckiest girl in the world. I can't wait to see what Everett has in store for Lester and I. We love him so much already :)

Thanks for reading!!

Its been WAY too long!

Sorry its been so long, but we have had trouble with our Internet! We went about a month without it. That was very tough for me. Cox Cable is awesome :)

We have been very busy here at the Acker house. We are trying to get ready for little Everett and it seems to be coming SO FAST! The room is painted and the furniture is here....With one problem. I guess I got a little excited and over estimated the size of the nursery. Something is going to have to go! The only thing that I am willing to get rid of is the dresser. Obviously, the crib is a must and the changing table is needed. That leaves the huge comfy chair or the dresser....And the dresser is getting the boot. I like the chair too much. Sometime this week I have to clean out the closet (its FULL of junk) and get ready for the baby shower!! I am SO PUMPED.....My dear friends, the Smiths, are throwing me a baby shower and poor Leigh Ann is organizing the whole entire thing! I am so thankful for them and for how much they have done for me since I was little. I am so blessed to have life long friends that love me so much :) She ordered a strawberry filled cake from Johnnies last week and ever since she told me that I have been craving it like crazy! I still need to make a trip to Target to finish up my registry and I should probably double check the Babies R Us one just to make sure its all correct :) I was so excited about the little one I started registering the day I found out he was a boy!

I can't even explain how excited we are for him to be here...I am 28 weeks today (Hello 3rd Trimester!) and that means I have 12 left before I hit the 40 week mark. He can come at 37 weeks and still be considered full term and healthy, but I want him to come whenever he is done in there. Of course I selfishly hope he is ready at 37 weeks..... A couple weeks ago at my check up, my blood pressure was a little high...170/80. My doctor didn't think it was anything to be very worried about, but she wants me to check it weekly myself and call if it goes up. I have been checking it and the top number has been staying between 120 and 130. So that is good news. I cut out all my salt and stopped drinking my one cup of caffeine every day. I still have a little bit here and there but I am keeping it very low. I think that has helped a lot! I had some minor ankle swelling the week before the check up but since I have changed my diet that has disappeared! The only other pregnancy symptoms that I have experienced are pimples and hip pain. I made it to 25 years old without having skin issues and ever since the second trimester I have had a horrible time with it! I never really learned how to take care of acne because I never had an issue! Now to be fair, its not that bad, just lots of little bumps and a few pimples here and there. The hip pain is normal, they are just spreading to get ready for his grand entrance. I am very thankful that my pregnancy has gone so smoothly. I have heard horror stories from other mothers and I really have nothing to complain about. I have felt great 99% of the time and I have such a supportative husband. I am a very lucky mommy. Thank goodness....Its all going so fast! I have another check up next week and after that I start going EVERY OTHER WEEK! Oh my gosh! That means its getting so so so close!

I have to admit I am a little scared for the actual delivery... I want Everett to be here more than anything in the whole wide world, but I just want to wake up and have him in my arms! I have scared the crap out of myself by watching all these videos of births and c-sections and everything that could possibly go wrong. I am trying to be prepared, but I am also trying to remind myself that God will not give me something I cannot handle. It may be painful or uncomfortable or just plain scary, but in the end I will have a little bundle of joy that Les and I get to take home and cuddle with.

Hopefully, everything will go smoothly for the next couple months and I will try to update this more often! Thanks for reading :)

Two ultrasounds!!!!

We get to see Everett again Tuesday...I wanted to explain why.

No concerns or anything, it was our choice. We had the 2nd semester ultrasound scheduled for Monday (March 8th) 6 weeks in advance. Less than five days before the ultrasound they called to tell us they had to change our appointment because of maintenance on the machine. My dad had moved all his patients to a different day so he could be there on Monday. He also had surgery all day Tuesday so he couldn't have came to the rescheduled one. I really wanted the grandparents to be there to see the little one, and Friday was the only option open for him on such short notice. We have planned on having a 4D ultrasound from a place here in Moore called A Glimpse Before and After and I called just to ask what our options were. They had an appointment time on Friday and the additional charge was very small since we were having our 4D there as well! All-in-all it worked out better for us! We found out the sex a few days early and we get to see him again!

At least I didn't wait a month to post a new blog!!!!

Dear Baby Boy,

I am so excited that we finally know what you are! And we have a name for you that we love! Everett. James Everett Acker. James Acker like your daddy, and his daddy, and his grandpa and so on... We just like Everett because it is not that common of a name. And it sounds a little country :) I can't even explain how excited we are for you to arrive! Your daddy has not stopped smiling since we heard that you were a boy. Thank you for cooperating and letting us see your "parts." But like a lot of little boys you were a little TOO excited to let us know what you are. Right when she put the ultrasound transducer on my belly she could tell! You had your legs spread wide and there was no mistaking what was there. I appreciate it this time, but in the future I will have to teach you to a little bit about modesty.

You looked so cramped in there! That probably explains why you have been kicking me so much! I felt you for the first time in Church last week...at 17 weeks exactly...I knew it was you, but your daddy thought I was just a little gassy. (I might have to remind myself about modesty after your born, but until then this is a "tell-all" blog) You felt like little bubbles at first. Kind of like there were butterflies in my belly! But after a couple days you started really moving around! Sometimes on the side of my belly button, but usually a little below it. You like to move a lot at night, when I lay down to go to sleep...This makes it very hard to sleep because your daddy and I both want to feel you! At the ultrasound we also noticed how big your hands and feet are! And your legs are super long!! I think you will be very tall. You are so cute already, you kept opening and closing your mouth like you wanted to suck your thumb. We can't wait to have you in our arms and be able to cuddle and love on you! But take your time, you have some more "cooking" to do (thats what daddy calls it!)

Also, Thank you for growing so much these past couple weeks...I actually look like a preggo now! Im so excited. You just popped out so much in only a couple days. Your daddy and I got me some maternity clothes today and now I have some things to wear at work. Dont worry, we will look very cute! I also bought a cute little picture frame for your ultrasound picture that I am going to put on my desk so I can think about you allllll day long! And I bought a scrapbook for all your cute little pictures when you arrive. I won't let myself buy you anything yet because we are having a shower for you in June...Mommy cant wait!!!

We love you so much already, Keep growing big and strong. But not too big, you don't want to hurt mommy on your way into this world.

Love,
Your mommy and daddy :)

Lesters Surgery

One more thing for tonight...

Les had surgery today on his sinus cavities. Somehow, over the past year, his sinus cavities have closed up and could not drain. We noticed something was wrong when he was sick for almost 3 months straight! He has had multiple sinus infections before and they usually clear up after a week or two. I finally got him to go to the doctor and he said that the infection couldn't drain so it just stayed up there. SICKY!! They broke his nose and fixed his sinus cavities and after he gets the packing out he should be much much better! The nurse said that when he came out of the surgery he freaked out and tried to pull out his packing. They tried to hold his arms down which made it way worse! He is really claustrophobic and he had no idea where he was when he first came off the anesthetic. They finally calmed him down and were able to get him in the recovery room....The nurse came out and told me that he was a fighter. I think she expected me to be surprised but I could have guessed! But were happy that he is home safe and sound :)

Thats all for tonight! Il be back soon....I promise!

Valentines Day

I forgot to mention our wonderful Valentines Day!

My hubby brought me a beautiful flower arrangement and some balloons which were so cute...And a promise to take me maternity clothes shopping and buy me a bunch of clothes. He wanted to get me a gift card, but he had NO IDEA where to go so I got a sweet card with his signed promise. I haven't started looking at anything yet so Im not even sure. I know there are a lot of places, but I don't want to spend a lot of money on clothing that I won't be wearing long. But I want to be cute! Luckily, I don't have a desperate need yet, so we can wait a little bit...Some jeans are getting a little tight but I have one pair that sits pretty low so I think Ill be able to wear them for a while. I got Les some decorations for his office that he is building in the garage. He got a really cute sign that says "If at first you don't succeed, try doing it the way your wife told you" hehe! I liked that one more than he did! But I also framed a big picture of his hog that he just killed a couple weekends ago and I blew up a picture of him tube fishing when he was younger...He was so excited about that picture. I love making him happy!! We want to have the office done before March 8th (The day we find out what were having!) so we can have the nursery cleaned out and painted. I have already picked out color swatches for both a boy and a girl! Its probably going to be baby blue either way, but no worries, if its a little girl she will have PLENTY of pink...The bedding is pink and white with a little bit of blue. So sorry! I get really side tracked with baby talk :)

Les and I spent our Valentines day at the PBR. We went last year and we couldn't resist going again!! Its now our tradition! We had sooo much fun. We both get really into it and starting guessing who will win. The bull or the cowboy! It gets a little crazy!!

Oh goodness! Its been sooo long :)

WOW! I knew I wouldn't be great about updating this, but I didn't know I would be THIS bad! Sorry about that...

For a quick update on the past month.... We drove all the way down to San Antonio to pick up a new puppy for the back yard (She is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier named Dixie) and we stopped at the zoo to spend the day! It was an amazing zoo. I was a little dissappointed because the butterfly exhibit was closed, but we will just have to make another trip!

I was planning on returning to school, but OU "misplaced" my admission paperwork and I did not get officially admitted until 4:30PM on the last day to enroll. The enrollment website closed at 5! I was rushing to get my classes selected and then I realized that someone else at OU with the last name Hughes had the same last 4 numbers of their student ID!! How crazy is that! To enroll you have to use your last name and the last 4 numbers of your student ID and mine was the same as someone elses....Needless to say, by the time it was all figured out, it was too late :( But I take that as a sign from God that I don't need to be in school right now. I think I'm going to go back to work and do my school on the side.

On January 25th, we got to see our little one!! He/She was on his head kicking his little legs like crazy! It was amazing :) He is not even born yet and he was already being naughty. He was in horrible position for the nuchal tranlucency measurement and I had to get up and go the bathroom to see if that would help...It did not, so I had to get up and jump around! The ultrasound girl actually made me jump up and down and wait 15 minutes...We finally got a good view and it measured great! 1.4 mm... We also did 1st sememter testing and the results were awesome! We have a 1/8,000 something chance for down syndrome and a 1/10,000 something chance for Trisomy 18. So that is amazing. We are so happy that those results were good. We go back on March 8th for the BIG one...We get to find out the sex of our new little one!!! I had a dream that it was a little girl, so that might be the case! We can't wait to see :)

My symptoms are still very minimal (Thank you little one!) I have food cravings that are sometimes strong. In the first trimester I wanted citrus...Lemons, Oranges, Grapefruits! So far in the 2nd trimester I have been craving fried food and what I call "kid" food, string cheese, ramen noodles, poptarts, jello, etc... My face is breaking out more than it EVER has! I usually dont have pimples, but this little one has caused some problem areas on my forehead. Ive also had some headaches. I get migraines on occasion, but my migraine medicine is not baby approved so I have to suffer through them. Tylenol is okay to take but I am trying to stay away from meds if possible. My sleeping patterns are another small issue...I can't sleep at night, but could sleep ALL DAY if I wanted to! And I sleep better on the couch then in bed! I think that is so crazy....but compared to what some others have gone through, I am NOT complaining!!

I also was called for jury duty. Which was awful. I had to sit in the court room for two whole days and I even got in trouble twice! I got up to go to the bathroom and when I came back in the judge told me that I had to ask to go before I just left. Then I tried to stand up (four hours sitting on a wooden bench is NOT okay for pregnant women) and I got in trouble again. The judge said "Do you need something?" when I stood against the wall and I said "Yes, Im pregnant and I can't sit still for this long" They should excuse pregnant women from jury duty...Its just not right! I didn't even get picked. It took 2 days for the lawyers to choose the jury. And the public defender was NOT the brightest lawyer in the state...A girl mentioned that her twin brother was a cop and the lawyer asked if they were identical twins! Really?

Thats about all thats happened the past month. We are pretty uneventful around here...Just waiting on our little one!

I promise I will try to do better on the updates!!

Sleepy Sleepy

This little baby is making me TIRED! I am so sleepy and I have been sleeping about 10 hours each night!! I am up and down all night long, so its not a consistant 10 hours. I have been drinking warm milk EVERY NIGHT to help me fall asleep. I didn't believe my momma at first, but its true! It really does work! I am almost into my 2nd Trimester so hopefully the sleepliness will ease up soon.

Les and I are so amazed with all the changes my body is going through. I eat more than Les does! And my belly is starting to take a round shape, not just the little pooch below the belly button. It is also starting to get kind of hard! Ive started using belly bands so I have not had to buy any new clothes yet. Im sure that will come soon enough! My doctor said that I will show quickly because I was so tiny to start with. I hope I can get back to that size after my little angel arrives!

We have started looking at baby things, but is hard without knowing the sex. I cant wait to find out so I can start picking out stuff! I am only 11 weeks so we have another month and a half until we get to see. We have an idea of the bedding and some things that we want for either sex, but Im sure we will change our minds over the coming months.

We can't wait for you little one!! We love you so so much already!!

Lets see how this goes....

Now that Lester and I are having a baby; I thought it would be nice to document the pregnancy and to allow friends and family a way to keep up with everything that is happening! I promise to TRY to update this as often as possible, but no guarantees!!

On December 3rd, I was getting ready to substitute and I realized that my "monthly gift" was about a week late. I decided to take a pregnancy test at 6:30 in the morning and when I saw the (THIRD) "plus" sign I ran into the bedroom and woke up Les to share the news. I barely gave him a chance to wake up!! After school I realized that I had a million phone calls and messages and even though I was less than 5 weeks preggo, it was already time to spread the news! My parents were in Las Vegas and they did not answer the phone for two whole days! I was going crazy not being able to talk to my Momma. Finally, everyone was informed and it started to sink in!

First things first!
My sister warned me about stretch marks seconds after I told her I was pregnant, so I bought belly cream and a couple books... The books are not as exciting as all the websites, but they are nice to have around.

I am now just shy of 11 weeks and I feel very fortunate. I have barely felt pregnant! No sickness and no hard core cravings. My sense of smell is very strong, my skin is very dry and I'm tired a lot. If I could sleep 15 hours every day I would be thrilled!! We have our first ultrasound in 10 days and we get to see our little one! We can't wait!

We don't have names picked out yet, but we have a few in mind that we are considering. I hope to go to the hospital with a couple names for each sex....One part of me wants to see my baby before I officially name him or her. The "Planner Part" in me is really freaked out by that other part. But we have a while to decide. Thank goodness.

Thanks for reading! Ill try to keep up with this on a pretty regular basis. Once I learn how to post pictures, Ill put some belly pictures up. I am starting to show a little bit!!!

Ashley Acker