Introducing...

Mary Elizabeth Parks

 Now that we got the introductions out of the way, let's start at the beginning!

This is JP's "I woke up at 3 am to get here by 5 am to sit and wait" face:

 And this is my "I hate getting my picture taken/Let's get this show on the road" face:

 This delivery was night & day from Ellen's.  This time around we had a scheduled c-section so no surprises there.  We arrived at the hospital bright and early, hung around in a room by ourselves for awhile and then finally got an IV, epidural, etc. and headed back for the c-section.  While Ellen's emergency c-section was unexpected, hectic & overwhelming, all I could worry about at that point was making sure she arrived safe and sound.  I didn't really have the time to think about what was going on around me and the drugs had me pretty out of it as well.  This time around things were slow, calm & very clinical, which is to be expected, I guess, since it is surgery.  While I wouldn't want the emergency experience again, I wasn't a huge fan of being aware of all the little things going on in the operating room.  Not my cup of tea--guess that's why I decided on teaching rather than medicine!  But I was thankful for the calmess of the delivery and the opportunity to be aware of what was going on as our sweet baby came into this world!

 

So...at 7:25am, baby girl Parks came into the world at 7 lbs. 13 oz. & 20 inches.

 We actually got to take photos this time around!

 Meeting Mama for the first time in person

 Not so sure about this world...

  First family photo

 After surgery, we went to recovery for awhile until I could feel my legs again, which gave us just enough time to pick out a name for this sweet angel.  We had tossed a couple of ideas around but none had really stuck.  After a little more consideration, we decided on Mary Elizabeth.  We weren't 100% sure at this point if we were going to call her "Mary" or "Mary Elizabeth."  Turns out Mary Elizabeth would stick!

 First bath in the hospital

 Watching Ellen meeting her new baby sister for the first time was beyond adorable--she couldn't have been more excited!

Grandma Nancy picked her up from school and brought her to the hospital.  Although she was never super interested in the baby while she was still in my belly, she couldn't wait to meet her in real life!

 She seemed to take the news that her name was not Hashbrown well (side note--Hashbrown is what she told her teacher she wanted to name the baby)

Holding Mary Elizabeth for the first time

 Snuggling with Daddy and Mary Elizabeth

 After a couple of days relaxing at the "Hotel" Baptist, it was time to head home.

 First ride in the car

And, last but not least, Mary Elizabeth passed the Guinness test. 

I guess we'll keep her!!!

Nesting

Once April arrived, it hit me that we were going to have a new baby in this house in less than a month.  And, let me tell you--we were not prepared!  I don't have any photos, but the new nursery was still full of home improvement stuff since it had been used as the project room since we moved in--sawhorses, paint cans, etc.  So finally a few weeks before she was to arrive, we finally buckled down, picked a paint color, cleared out the room and got to work.  While I got my pregnant-self busy with the painting, JP continued working on the floors downstairs while Ellen managed the project.

 (Notice the newly clean-shaven Daddy so he doesn't scare the new baby :)

Oh, and there was a little time left for some dress up fun before the big day!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter Everyone!!!

Mommy's favorite :)

After checking out our goodies, we headed out to church & then to the cul-de-sac Egg Hunt.  Someone's ready to find some eggs!

 Some of the cul-de-sac kids...

 Going through the loot and making trades

Fun times in the new neighborhood!

Oh, Guinness...

Well, as we all know, Guinness has had a fatty tumor in her belly for awhile now that has been growing.  We had surgery scheduled at one point but had to cancel it because of some of her thyroid levels.  After that we were ready to reschedule and then we ended up putting the house on the market & moving in with JP's mom, so all Guinness-related activity went on hold for awhile.  In anticipation of the new baby coming, I finally got her surgery rescheduled for my spring break so I could be home with her during recovery and we could get this all out of the way before we had a newborn to take care of too!  But, as usual, Guinness had other plans...

Ellen & I came home from dinner one evening and saw a puddle of blood in the foyer.  There were drips down the hallway and when we found Guinness, I quickly saw that there was a big chunk missing from her growth.  Yuck!  We're still not sure exactly what happened, but it either burst or she licked it raw until it opened.  Either way, here I was with 8 months pregnant with a toddler running around in a house full of blood and a dog with a large chunk missing from her belly.  We rushed her to the emergency vet since it was after hours.  JP met us there and she ended up having emergency surgery ($$$$$).  When we got home after leaving her at the vet, we quickly realized that while there was a bunch of blood downstairs, the "incident" must have started upstairs because there was blood everywhere--our bedroom, Ellen's bedroom, the hallway...

 These pictures do not do it justice--it totally looked like a crime scene--complete with blood and pieces of fatty tumor everywhere.  What a nightmare!

 After surgery, Guinness needed lots of extra care.  She wasn't supposed to move for awhile.   She had a drain in, lots of stitches and had to wear the cone.

Although she was not a big fan of the crate she was supposed to stay in, someone else was!

  I can assure you no children were harmed in the taking of these photos!

Oh, and the drama did not end there--We had to watch her 24/7 because even in the cone and in the crate, she could still manage to get to her stitches.  I ended up spending quite a few nights, super fat & pregnant sleeping on the downstairs floor with her.  Even after that, Guinness managed to get out of her crate one day and tear out her stitches which sent her back to the emergency vet for a second surgery (of course she only likes to do these things after hours requiring emergency care which equals extra $$$).  So after much stress, frustration, money and TLC, Guinness was finally on the mend with no more "fat belly."  Let's hope it stays this way!

March Madness

Here's a little recap of our March 2012...

First, a little trip to Lascassas to Uncle Harry & Aunt Linda's awesome house for Colin's birthday party...

 Playing with Julie

 Hanging out with Parker and blowing bubbles

 Here's one of our G!

 Rocking the HJ uniform for the first time (I had to sneak her into school one day while ALC had an in-service day)

Playing ball off our deck

We celebrated Daddy's birthday in March and finished the month up with a visit to TPAC to see Mary Poppins.

 The show was a big hit!

Oh, and as you can tell from the photo, there is not much time until our newest little one arrives!  (By the way--it's a girl!  I don't think I posted that news :)