Thomhouser

Growing up

2011-09-19T11:04:00.009-05:00

Gabe has recently passed two MAJOR milestones this past month. The first and most exciting, (for me anyway) is potty training. Gabe is now officially potty trained! It is still weird to me to talk about the bathroom habits of a two year old but I am just so gosh damn proud of him I am going to. He hasn't had an accident in, well I can't remember the last one. Really there have only been a handful of them since we started. Now he is an independent potty goer. It's so exciting to see him hop up from the sofa, or stop playing trains, just to walk into the bathroom and "use it" without any mention from Chris or I. Nothing says, "I'm a big kid now" like being able to handle your own crap. Ha! Being back to only one kid in diapers is pretty nice.

Enough potty talk, on to milestone number two! We have a preschooler here folks! And he loves it. And I mean LOVES IT! Almost every morning when I walk into Gabe's room the first thing he asks me is, "school today mommy?". (With the exception of this morning when he asked for ice cream which is another story. ) Gabe is going to school two days a week and is very upset in the afternoons when I pick him up. He loves to talk about his new "friends" and his favorite teachers Mrs Betty and Mrs Tonya. I just wish I could understand all the names he keeps saying. Some days I think he is saying things like Keven and Kaylee then the next it sounds like Kara and Presby. I think I'm pretty sure Kara = Sara Paige and Presby = Presley. Needless to say, he is having a ball.

In preparation for preschool I took on the challenge of making Gabe's nap mat. It turned out pretty good I think and he really likes it. He has even taken a few naps at home in it.

While I'm on the topic of projects I have to make a quick mention of the glider my mom helped me refinish. And by help I mean she did most of the work. Ha! But it turned out great!
It went from this-

To this-

And finally I can't have a blog post without my sweet Will. He is growing fast and even working on some teeth. I sure do love my little chunky monkey!

Four months

2011-08-25T11:49:00.004-05:00

A lot has happened in the past few months. William is growing fast and is now weened and taking a bottle. We go in for his four month well visit tomorrow so we can see just how big he is. I wouldn't be surprised if he is over 16 pounds already. He also has a new favorite, his little stuffed giraffe, yet to be named.

He is also talking up a storm. His little personality is starting to shine through. He is going to be such a charmer.

Gabe is quite the big brother. He is really taking to his new roll and is very protective of Will and also very proud to show him off where ever we go.

The biggest news however is that Gabe is potty trained! We are so proud of him. We still have a few accidents every now and again but they are rare, he is only two you know. But he is in his new big boy pants all the time except while sleeping.
Gabe is also quite the swimmer. He has been taking lessons and can now swim, float, swim. This summer has been so exciting!
Here is a link to a video of his swimming.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisandbecca/6005439973/

Finally, here are photos of the boys at the same age. Gabe is the top photo, Will the bottom. Gabe seems to be a bit more cheeky but still so similar. My two cuties.

Can you tell who is who?

2011-06-09T14:26:00.002-05:00

Gabe is the top photo, Will the bottom.
I still cant get over how much they look alike, I expected them to look a little alike, but exactly the same? Its like they are identical twins two and a half years apart.
As soon as I can catch a picture of Will smiling I will compare again.

William Reese

2011-06-09T14:05:00.002-05:00

William Reese has arrived!
Well, about 6 weeks ago. Needless to say, we've been busy. He was born on April, 23rd at 8:55am. 7 pounds 3 ounces and 20 inches. He is wonderful, a little more high maintenance than Gabe was as a baby but just as adorable and cuddly.

I woke up that Saturday morning (the 23rd) at 5:30 am with my first contraction. I had been getting Braxton hicks contractions for weeks so I didn't know if this was the real thing or not because my water hadn't broken. After about 4 more contractions about 3 minuets apart, I woke up Chris and got Gabe ready to go and we were off to the hospital. We were quite nervous about making it to the hospital in time for an epidural because Gabe came so quickly (about 5.5 hours from water break to birth).
We arrived at Plano Presby at about 6:30 am and checked in. My sister arrived about 10 min later prepared to be our photographer for the big event. Then Chris's parents arrived and took Gabe to play while his little brother was preparing to arrive. I got my epidural pretty quickly this time, thankfully!
My doctor came in and broke my water at 8:30 and William arrived 25 minuets later after 1 push. Straight out, no head first then second push for shoulders. Just "pop!" baby! Easypeasy. Just under 3.5 hours of labor. I guess I'm pretty lucky, quick uncomplicated birth. We are very blessed.

So much to do, so little time

2011-03-27T22:46:00.002-05:00

So much has happened, and is happening, since my last post. Where do I begin?

No more apartment!
We have moved into our fabulous new house here in McKinney. We love it and Gabe loves it. We still have a lot to do but everything is coming along nicely. If you haven't been invited over yet, please don't take it personally, we've just been swamped. Call me and come over for a visit!

Gabe turned 2 in December
He is growing like a weed and is learning so much so fast. He has turned into quite the little trickster. He loves all things trains and cars. He still calls anything with wheels a choo choo and no matter how many times I try to correct him that it is a truck or tractor, he simply looks at me like I'm crazy and says "no mommy, it's a choo choo". We'll get there.

Pregnancy
This pregnancy has turned out to be a bit of a roller coaster ride for us. First of all, moving from a house to a very small apartment then moving again into a new house, all in a matter of four and a half months, while pregnant, is insane. I don't recommend it to anyone! Talk about stress at a time that is already stressful.

We had three unfortunate trips to the doctor for emergency sonograms due to bleeding. Fortunately everything has been fine and all I needed to do was rest a little more. Which really meant no more lifting, including lifting Gabe. But, other than those three incidents, things have been pretty normal. Normal body aches, mood swings and hormones. Hopefully they haven't been too bad for my two guys at home. Lately I have just been tired all the time. Oh, the joys of the last few weeks of pregnancy.

Most exciting
In my last post we had just found out that our new little peanut is a boy. Since then we have given him a name: William Reese Thompson. We can't wait to meet him. Well, we can wait two and a half more weeks, but not much longer! Gabe was born at 37 weeks and came spontaneously so we, and my doctor, are expecting an early arrival from Will as well. With that in mind, I will have bags packed for myself and Gabe by the end of this week. Just to be prepared.

Back to the title of this post...

There is so much to do before William's arrival. Don't be surprised if the next post is all about his birth. Based on my recent dedication to posting (or lack thereof) , it might include his one month photos as well. Ha!

Say a prayer (or cross your fingers) that things go smoothly for us. We will be happy to see you all, so call us up to come meet our new little guy and see Gabe become a great big brother in just a few short weeks!

Oh Boy!

2010-11-19T15:21:00.003-06:00

We had our 16 week sonogram today and got confirmation that it is a boy! Gabe is really excited to have a brother. At least he says so now. I'm not sure he even knows what it means. Every time I tell him that there is a baby in mommy's tummy he looks at me like I am crazy, then around the room and says "where's the baby?" I think two boys is going to be a handful but the fun they will bring will be totally worth it. I can't wait to meet the little guy. I wonder if he will look just like Gabe, only time will tell. Now we just need to find the right name...

Gabe has a secret...

2010-09-14T22:04:00.001-05:00

Late April 2011!

Family Reunion 2010

2010-08-05T21:22:00.003-05:00

For eight years now my mom's side of the family has had a huge family reunion every other year. I have been lucky enough to attend them all and this latest one was completely awesome. We spent an entire week on the beach in Lincoln City, OR. The weather was awesome, it didn't ever get above 75 degrees.

Gabe had the time of his life. Between all the attention, all the kids to play with and all the outside time, he played hard and slept hard. He even fell asleep twice while eating lunch. Yes, I made sure to take the left over food out of his mouth before putting him down for his nap.

This year the reunion included an abundance of activities including, but not limited to:

a relay race
a kickball game
a scavenger hunt (amazing race style complete with the traveling gnome)
a sandcastle building contest
Bingo
Bunco
Phase 10
Tee shirt stenciling
Tutu making
Wake boarding
Water skiing
Deep sea fishing
and lots more...

Not to mention the nights full of card games and the pool table and pinball machine in the rental house. There was so much to do and we were having so much fun I wish we could have stayed another week. It makes me sad that my family is so spread out and we only get to see everyone every other year.

We ended up with over 600 photos and have posted them all on our Flickr site (see link to the right). Here are a few of my favorites.

Gabe and Stella enjoying the sand

Seth's Sand Turtle

My mom and my uncle Dan, #2 and #14 of 14

Judy and Fletcher trying to save their sandcastle

Gabe too tired to finish lunch

Gabe walking on the beach with my parents

The view from our house

Gabe completely amazed by the ocean

Just look at his face and tell me this isn't one happy kid

I can't wait for the 2012 reunion!

Summer fun.

2010-07-09T22:18:00.002-05:00

Long time no post?

2010-05-26T13:33:00.003-05:00

Yes, it has been a bit too long. I am going to try to make a better effort at getting some more posts up, even if it is just some photos.

Gabe and I took a last minuet trip to SLC, UT for mothers day. It was the first time in 8 years since I had been able to spend mothers day with my mom. We had a great time.

Gabe is learning so much so fast. Just today I asked him, just in passing while I was crawling on the floor, if he knew where Rylee had left her bottle. He said "yeah" and ran and got it from the next room and then gave it to her. I just couldn't believe it! I knew he was understanding more and more but I had no idea he could do that yet. He is always full of surprises.

Gabe has recently been really fond of wearing shoes and slippers. He will bring them to me to put on, even if they don't match. Here he is the other day playing, notice the one slipper. This is a normal sight here in the house lately, no pants and one or both slippers or shoes.

He's been working on getting his diaper off now, so we'll see what fun that will be.

He also loves to play XBOX with daddy on Saturday mornings while mommy sleeps in.

Just another day at the park

2010-03-29T07:51:00.003-05:00

We found a great little park near our home this weekend and Gabe was on cloud nine. It was pretty terrific and even has a spray ground as soon as the weather gets warmer. We can't wait to spend some more play time enjoying this little gem. I see many picnics in our future.

Gabe's first birthday

2009-12-06T23:52:00.003-06:00

Gabe is a year old. I can't believe it! It really is amazing how he can go from a newborn to running around the house all in one year. Even though I love to see everything he is learning and all the new things he does, it makes me sad to think how fast it really goes.

Happy birthday Gabe. Mommy and Daddy love you!

Monkey boy

2009-10-24T15:30:00.003-05:00

Gabe is ready for his first Halloween. Grandma Sugar found the cutest costume so we just had to get some pictures. We also had Stella join us for the occasion as a cute little witch. The only thing missing was Kaia as a sweet little flower. I hope that over the Thanksgiving holiday we can get some photos of all the little cousins together.

We also had some 10 month photos taken. Gabe is getting so big. He looks so much like a little boy now and is walking all over the place. It all happened so fast, I don't know where my baby went.

He walks

2009-10-16T21:50:00.002-05:00

Gabe's been cruising for weeks now but hadn't taken the leap to walking on his own. Till now...

Cruising at 9 months walking at 10. It all happens way to fast.

Sneaky Sneaky

2009-09-01T16:37:00.005-05:00

Gabe is becoming quite the clever little guy. Now that he is crawling and cruising, I have blocked off the way out of the living room so I don't have to chase him around the whole house. I left for 30 seconds at the most and when I came back I couldn't find him anywhere. Then I heard a scuffle and he and a basket full of blankets fell out from under our end table. Yep, he went through the end table and over the basket of blankets in order to get out of the living room. He's sneaky that one.

The breakout

Caught

He sure does keep me on my toes.

8 months and growing!

2009-08-10T09:39:00.006-05:00

Gabe just keeps getting bigger and bigger. He's now exploring the house on his own which has made me see things in a very different way. I think he must find every spec of dirt or wall socket we have. I even found him trying to eat a potato bug! Ewwww. Thankfully I got it before it hit the tongue.

He now says "ma ma ma ma ma ma" all the time. Hopefully he'll start saying "da da" as well. He loves reading books and getting into daddy's Xbox360 games. In the morning when he wakes up he doesn't cry anymore, I just hear some babbling coming from his room. He's becoming quite the morning person just like his father. We did have to lower his mattress a little because he can now pull himself up, and with a little effort he would have tumbled right out of his crib.

Gabe is teaching me new things every day. I am so lucky to be able to be here through it all.

A wedding, wine and another wedding

2009-07-02T21:23:00.004-05:00

Chris, Gabe and I just finished a fun-filled, two week trip to California and Utah. First we headed to SLC, Utah for a little family time then it was off to San Fransisco for the wedding of my cousin, Brian. Let me tell you, he and his new wife Allison know how to throw a party! Their wedding was beautiful and their reception was awesome! It was held at a beautiful country club in the middle of wine country. We had so much fun dancing and the dinner was delicious! My niece Stella stole the show with her dancing. People lined up to get their turn with the littlest dancer.

Next it was off to Sonoma where we stayed in an adorable house on the Russian River and spent a couple of days tasting wine. This was the first family vacation we have had with my parents, brother and sister and their spouses. We bought entirely too much wine but we had a great time. Gabe was great during the trip even though he spent a good deal of it in his car seat or stroller. He is such a trooper. I hope Chris and I can make it out there once a year.

After all the the wine drinking we headed back to SLC for my friend, Nicole's wedding. They pulled out all the stops and threw an awesome party. It was also great to see a few old high school friends. It's always nice to catch up and see how everyone is doing. I need to do a better job of keeping in touch. Thank goodness for Facebook!

It was a great vacation and I can't wait until Gabe is old enough to enjoy all the fun. Every time I leave SLC it gets a little harder knowing that Gabe won't be able to see everyone up there very often. But I know the times he will be there will be filled with lots of fun and love.

6 Month Photos

2009-06-07T18:32:00.006-05:00

We had Gabe's 6 month photos taken today. We've included one below but you can find all of them on our Flickr site. He did so well! They even asked us if they could use Gabe as a model. Sometime soon you just might see Gabe up on the walls at Picture People, or in their email adds. He's such a cutie!

Gabe is 6 months old

2009-06-06T23:50:00.004-05:00

Gabe is getting bigger and bigger every day. He is doing all sorts of new things and I find myself cheering him on just waiting for him to reach his next milestone and also hoping he'll stay this small forever. Every time he smiles and laughs my heart just melts.

We haven't had his 6 month pictures done yet, so below is a video of his first time swimming. He's a natural and loves it!

A whole new world

2009-05-07T13:16:00.003-05:00

Gabe is now 5 months old and is doing all sorts of new things. Gone are the days when I could put him in one spot and expect him to stay there. His hands are always in his mouth unless they are playing with his new favorite toys, his feet. Below are two videos of him that I took today. Playing in his jungle gym and rolling over and laughing. It's amazing how much he learns and changes everyday. I'm so glad I am home to experience it all with him.

Gabe Rolling Over

Gabe Lauging, doesn't get any better than this.

Gabe is 4 months old

2009-04-12T08:16:00.004-05:00

Gabe turned 4 months old on the 6th and we had some photos taken of him yesterday. When you compare them to those taken at 1 month, it's just amazing how much he's grown.

Gabe at 4 months

Gabe at 1 month

That's the same monkey with him in both photos. Gabe has just about doubled in size. We can't believe it!

You gotta do what you gotta do.

2009-03-25T09:25:00.004-05:00

Before you have a baby you try to make as many plans as you can without really knowing how your life is going to change. Thankfully, Chris and I made a lot of great decisions and have had a lot of help from family and friends which has made the last few months with Gabe the best in our lives. However, two of our best laid plans haven't worked out quite the way we thought they would. It's not a bad thing, it's just a change in expectations.

First was the decision to breastfeed Gabe. There's no arguing with everything you read or hear about feeding your baby: the absolute best is breast milk. With that in mind, we did everything we could to make it work for us. So, why the change in expectation? Well, we were a little too successful with the breastfeeding. So much so in fact that not only will Gabe not take a bottle of breast milk, he won't even take a pacifier. This leaves me feeding him from the breast only and without a break for more than about two hours at a time. As you might imagine, that makes it a little difficult to go out to dinner and a movie which was virtually a weekly ritual in this household. It also brings us to our second change in plans.

Prior to Gabe's birth, I was planning on returning to work part time. Now, however, it's not really practical for me to do so until next year(ish). We intend to reassess the situation when Gabe is 1 and eating solid food. This wasn't an easy decision to make. Yes, being home with Gabe is wonderful but deciding to stay home for at least a year was a hard decision for me. Work would have been a good outlet and a break from being home. Also, I had some fantastic, loyal customers who I can't help but feel I'm letting down (if you are reading this please feel free to contact me and we can work out some hair care at home if you don't mind Gabe coming along for the ride. becca.j.thompson@gmail.com). I just thank God that Chris and I are able to make things work without the contribution of my income.

Being home with Gabe this year is going to be the most difficult but also the most rewarding job I will ever have. I'm looking forward to it, I just wish he wouldn't grow up so fast!

Having said all that, are there any moms out there who want to set up some play dates?

Day at the Dallas Arboretum

2009-03-11T17:17:00.004-05:00

We spent Sunday afternoon at the Dallas Arboretum with Jessica, Stephen and Stella. It was a beautiful day out and we had a great time. It gave us a great opportunity for a picnic so we took it! Here are some pictures of our day.

Gabe got hot so he spent the second half of the day in his birthday suit.

Taking a lunch break.

Hanging out with Daddy

The Stella monster coming to get Gabe.

Gabe and Stella having fun together.

We look forward to many Arboretum excursions in the future.

Stubborn but still cute

2009-03-01T12:47:00.002-06:00

Gabe is now officially a boob only kid. He stopped taking a bottle a few weeks ago which hasn't really been fun for me. We have tried everything possible, different bottles, different nipples, cold milk, warm milk, fast flow, slow flow...uggg nothing. The boy just loves his mommy. I can't blame him, but come on little dude: can't you give me a break just once in a while? We have even, dare I say it, starved him. But he held out for a record breaking 12 hours before I finally gave in and fed him, without the bottle. So now I think I have been broken, I might just have to face the fact that for the foreseeable future I will never be apart from my cute little man. We're connected at the hip, or boob, whatever.

On to a more positive note...
Gabe got to meet his adorable new best friend, Sara Paige. Gabe likes younger women. :-) This is where it is nice to have a boy. Brad and Jenny are in for some trouble with their two gorgeous little girls.

A travelin' man

2009-02-15T13:21:00.003-06:00

Gabe is now a world traveler...well sort of. We recently took our first trip to SLC to visit my family. He did wonderfully on the plane. In fact he pretty much slept the whole time and only cried when we were getting off the plane because he was hungry. But, on the way home he didn't cry once. He's such a sweet little guy.
I had lots of fun and relaxation while we were there and Gabe got lots of cuddles and Grandma Sugar time. He got to meet his Aunts Judy and Amanda, Uncle Paul and cousin Kaia. I can't wait for him to see them again in June.

Gabe also got to see snow and I got to see him play in the snow. I'm not sure he liked it much. :-)

He got to meet his Great Grandma H.

He played with all the fun toys that his cousin Kaia shared with him.

And almost had his first beer...

It was a great trip. Next time Daddy gets to come too. Can't wait!

2 Years

2009-01-31T13:18:00.005-06:00

This coming Tuesday, February 3rd, is mine and Chris' second anniversary. It seems like we have been married much longer than than that and I have loved every day of it. Chris is not only an amazing husband but also my best friend and soul mate. So in honor of our anniversary I am going to dedicate this post to him and all the things I love about him. Here are just a few;
- He is an awesome father, provider and caregiver
- He is very caring and giving to the people he loves
- He's cleaver, witty and often amusing
- He's smart
- His mind has an endless capacity for useless information. (If you have a random or odd question, he probably has an answer)
- He kicks ass at karaoke and Rock Band
- He is handsome
- He is loyal and honest
- If you start a line from any movie, he can finish it.
- He is the best person I know and makes me deliriously happy

Six Weeks and Smiling

2008-12-24T14:24:00.007-06:00

Gabe is now 6 weeks old. I can't believe that he has been here for 6 weeks. Oh, how time flies when you aren't getting any sleep.

In other news, Gabe had his first real smile today. I wish it had been just because he was happy to see me, but nope, he thinks toys that make funny sounds are more amusing. Hopefully soon he'll think Chris and I are worthy of smiles too. :-)

It's been a while since I've had a few moments to post so we've missed all sorts of fun stuff.

We somehow finished all our Christmas shopping in time to enjoy the holiday, but if you took a closer look at all the gifts we purchased this year you can see an interesting development. All gifts purchased pre-Gabe were selected after due consideration. All gifts purchased post-Gabe were last-minute gift cards. I figured that since we were caught a little off guard by his early arrival, the people left on our Christmas list could do the shopping (with gift cards in hand) so Gabe and I didn't have to trudge through busy malls and holiday traffic for too long. Everyone enjoys picking out their own gifts right? Unfortunately, the gifts for my Brother Paul and his wife Amanda are still sitting on our buffet. Oops! We'll get it to you guys soon.

We hope you all had a great Christmas! Gabe sure did!

New years was a pretty mild one this year. We had pizza with our good friends Brad and Jenny and their daughter Kate. She came fully prepared to rock out in her pajamas. Oh, how I wish it was still acceptable to show up at a party in my pajamas.

Gabe had his first professional pictures taken to celebrate turning one month old. He wasn't too thrilled at first and we had to leave and reschedule for later so he could eat and be in a better mood. We got a few really cute shots. I may be biased but he's pretty much the cutest baby I've ever seen. :-)

The past few weeks have been pretty uneventful here at the Thomhouser household but some of our friends have had exciting news. Our friends Emily and Mike welcomed their new little girl, Mickaela, into the world on January 15th. She is just as precious as can be. A good friend from work, Becky, just found out she is expecting a girl and Andrea (also from work) is expecting her son Logan any day now. Brad and Jenny are still waiting as well. I'm predicting their little one will come this week! We'll see how well my psychic powers work. :-) Needless to say, it is baby season and I can't wait to meet all the new little ones. Gabe is pretty excited as well. Six weeks old and he's already surounded by girls. I knew he would be a heart breaker.

Finally, the one question I have been asked a million times now is, "Are you going back to work?" The answer to that is yes. Probably not until March, and then it will only be part-time starting with weekends and possibly moving up to taking a few weekday evenings. That's the plan for now, anyway. I may want to work more or start earlier. Only time will tell. Until then I am just enjoying my time with Gabe and hoping he will let me sleep a little bit more some time soon.

First week as a family of three

2008-12-15T12:04:00.005-06:00

This last week has been absolutely wonderful. Other than a lack of sleep and a little Jaundice, Chris and I couldn't have dreamed of a better experience of bringing Gabe into this world and then bringing him home.

My water broke at 3:15 am Saturday morning and contractions started about 10 min later. Right from the start they were about 2 to 4 min apart, which scared me just a little and put us in a hurry to get to the hospital. We arrived at the hospital at 4:45 and they took us right in to the delivery suite. Might I just add that the delivery suites at Plano Presbyterian Hospital are very nice and very large. Right away they started checking me for dilation and started my IV as they sent Chris down to the ER to officially check me in. Upon arrival to the hospital my contractions were starting to come on very strong and were pretty consistent at 2 min apart, I was also dilated to 4cm. By 7:30 I had gone through the necessary 1 and a half bags of saline in order to get my epidural, and by 7:45 I was finally feeling good again.

After about 45 min my epidural had slowed down my contractions a little and the doc decided to give me a little pitocin to keep my contractions on track. After 7 min of pitocin I was 10 cm and ready to push. Pushing while the bottom half of your body is numb is a strange experience. You don't quite know if you are pushing hard enough or even in the right place. But, apparently, I was doing it right as I only pushed for about 22 min before Gabe made his appearance.

Chris was great through the whole thing. He held my hand through the contractons and my neck and leg through the pushing. He even cut Gabe's cord and not once did he panic or turn green at the site of all the blood. Also, because Gabe decided to come so early in the morning and on the one weekend where my sister Jessica (who was going to be our photographer for the big day) was out of town, he did a great job taking pictures of the big event in addition to his other duties. Within about 30 min of Gabe's birth we had ordered and eaten breakfast and then moved to our room on the maternity floor where we would be for the next two days. Gabe got to stay with us the whole time, except for the few times we sent him down to the nersury for some check-ups, his circumcision and yes a few hours of sleep after some long nights.

We have been home now since Monday afternoon and have had a lot of help from family and friends. All of the food has been great and has certainly made life easier and let Chris and I get to know our little guy and adjust to life as a family. We are now partaking in a new journey this week as Chris goes back to work. I get to be with Gabe and figure out how we will spend the days without daddy's help while Chris gets to find out how work is going to go now that our nights are frequently filled with dirty diapers and feedings. Thank goodness that my mom is here to help for the next few weeks as Gabe, daddy and I adjust to our new schedules.

Gabe has really been a great baby. He only cries when he's hungry or dirty. And really, if you listen to his cues he sometimes doesn't even get to the crying part, it's more like a small complaint. He seems to be pretty consistent during the night as well: he eats around 12:30 and then again at 4:30. Which so far works out for me as I can sleep in a little, but we may have to try and adjust this schedule as Chris needs to be up at 5:45am for work. We'll be working on that change in the next few nights. Hopefully Gabe understands. :-)

Our next adventure will be finishing up our Christmas shopping. We planned on finishing it before Gabe got here but he decided to surprise us with an early entrance. We'll keep you posted on how our first outting goes. Until then, here's a photo of his first bath...which he thoroughly enjoyed.

Our Little Glow Worm

2008-12-10T20:27:00.003-06:00

After our first day in the hospital Gabe started to get a little jaundice so our pediatrician wanted us to come in and see him today just to make sure everything was going well. So we had our first trip out since coming home. I can now see why anyone with a child can run late for anything. It seems that no matter how early you start getting ready there is always something else you need to make sure to bring or another diaper to change. With Gabe it was a last minute feeding. So with a hungry baby we headed out to the doctor's office. Thankfully, we were able to start and finish his lunch there at the appointment.

While we were there, poor little Gabe had to get his heal stuck for a blood draw not once or twice but three times! It hurt my heart to hear his little cry. Anyway, the whole reason for the visit was to check on his jaundice. Unfortunately his levels had gone up and the doctor wants to see us again on Friday. In the meantime, Gabe will have to undergo photo-therapy. They delivered the gadget to us today. We are to only take him out for feeding and diaper changes. Basically we have to wrap this long flat light around his body and then wrap him in a blanket. It makes a lovely blue glow when you turn out the lights. So far he doesn't seem to mind it very much but I think it's going to be a long couple of nights for his mommy.

He's here!

2008-12-06T10:10:00.004-06:00

That didn't take long at all. Becca gave birth to our first child, Gabriel Shane, at 9:03am. He's 6lb 9oz and 20.2 inches long. Mom and baby are doing well. Here are a few photos. Click any of them to visit our Flickr site for more.

We'll post additional information and photos once we've recovered for a while.

The time has come

2008-12-06T08:16:00.002-06:00

Here's a quick update: the baby is on its way.

Becca's water broke at around 3:15 am and we got to the hospital about an hour later. Everything seems to be going well and the doctor thinks we'll have the baby before lunch.

More details to follow as events unfold. We'll include any PG rated photos.

37 Weeks: Full Term

2008-12-02T17:17:00.006-06:00

We made it! Our little guy is now considered fully baked.

At our sonogram today we discovered that he didn't gain any weight this last week. Unfortunately that's not good news. In the last weeks he should be gaining at least 1/2 pound per week. According to their measurements, he measured 1 oz smaller than last week and that makes the doc think we might have to keep a closer eye on him. So, if he hasn't gained enough weight by next Tuesday we might be having a baby next Wednesday. We'll keep our fingers crossed that he beefs up a little. We'll also keep you all informed but for now we will keep him in there for at least another week. Good thing my last day at work is Saturday! Other than the weight issue everything else looks good. Fluid levels are good, placenta and umbilical cord are in the right places, our little guy's heart rate is awesome and he isn't in any stress as far as we can tell. Also, he had hiccups last night for the first time. That was an experience. Kind of felt like a slow heart beat near my belly button...weird. :-)

We also got to see his little face - more or less. He looked really squished in there so we couldn't really get a good picture. I'll get them scanned and posted soon. In the meantime my bag is packed and we are pretty close to being ready, as ready as you can be, for our little guy to arrive. It's all getting so close we might have to plan a date night this weekend because I have a feeling it might be a while before we get the opportunity again.

Do we want to take some bets on weight, time, hair color and so forth? The doc did say he has some hair. We just don't know how much: peach fuzz, 'fro or somewhere in between. It's all so exciting.

If, for some reason, we don't get to post again before he gets here we will be at Plano Presbyterian. We will also post pictures as soon as we can on our Flickr site. My sister Jessica has been kind enough to offer to join us and take pictures of the big event so be sure to check back next week. :-) Till then...

Almost there: week 36

2008-11-26T17:55:00.006-06:00

Just a few more weeks left and then our world is going to change. I have come to the realization lately that somehow, someway, this baby has to come out. How scary is that! Yes, I know, I've always known that labor or a cesarean has been in the works but until it's staring you in the face you don't really think about it. And believe me, I've been thinking about it a lot! All I can do to keep my wits is realize that millions of women have had babies and have chosen to do it again, so it can't be that bad...can it? (Please, keep your horror stories to yourself, I don't think I can stand to hear them until after the baby gets here)

According to the sonogram yesterday, our little man is weighing in at 6 lb 6 oz. He will be considered full term as of next Wednesday, December 3rd. After that he can pretty much come at any time and we would be happy. More than likely, if my blood pressure and swelling stay in control we will be inducing sometime during the third week of December. We haven't set a date yet but if we do I will be sure to let you all know. The rest of the doctor's appointment went pretty well. He took some blood to test how my liver and kidneys are functioning and they are doing great. I'm still only dealing with the swelling. Basically what it comes down to is, other than being at work, I am pretty much on bed rest. He wants me home and off my feet. Right now I am just focused on having a great Thanksgiving and looking forward to playing a little Rock Band 2 before my last weekend of work. Happy Turkey Day!

Week 34

2008-11-11T15:20:00.004-06:00

I had my doctor's appointment today and - so far - cutting my work hours has helped. We are going to give it another week and still keep an eye on my blood pressure. If everything stays on track the new goal will be to induce the third week in December. Meanwhile, I'll just keep things simple and stay off my feet as much as possible.

Our boy is doing great and starting to move around a lot! Sometimes I think he's swinging around on my ribs like a monkey. Which figures as his nursery has just a few monkeys hanging around as well. Yep, we have finally finished it. (Well almost, just a few more decorative touches to go.) It's painted, furnished and my mom made us some great crib dressings and curtains. We have a few more pictures on our flickr site so check them out!

Pregnancy Update

2008-11-05T11:00:00.005-06:00

I have now been to the doctor at least 12 times in the past 8 months or so and have gotten to know my Dr. pretty good. If you have heard me talk about him you would know that he is a very high energy kind of guy. He's fast, efficient and loves it when your baby's daddy comes along to the appointments. (I picture him and Chris having a beer right after our little one comes out!) Needless to say I never have to wait more than 10 min for my appointment and once we are in, he's there buzzing around the room with so much energy you get an instant high. So, with that little bit of background, imagine my surprise when after we talked for a few minuets he pulled up a chair and actually sat down! I knew I was in for some not so great news. And I was right. :-( He isn't so passive about my swelling as I have been. (See post below) Apparently what I thought was normal for being on your feet all day isn't normal at all, at least not at 33 weeks. So...he has put me on a 4-step plan until December. I now have to go in every week for blood pressure checks and to see if I need to move on to the next step of our plan - see below.

Cut my work hours in half
Stop working and bed rest at home
A week's worth of bed rest at the hospital
Induction (aka: get the baby out of there)

Even with all this planning, if at any time my blood pressure (which is great right now) decides to take a dive we will skip steps 1 and 2 and go straight to spending some time with the lovely people at Plano Presbyterian Hospital. Cross your fingers for me that this isn't necessary. As of right now, other than the swelling, I feel good. My goal is to make it to December and at least 37 weeks. On another note, our boy is still doing great. His weight is about a week and a half ahead of the average so if he has to be born early at least he'll be closer to fully-baked.

So now that I know I am going to have a little more time on my hands, off my feet, anyone have any ideas of what I can do? Know of any great books or shows that I should check out? I'd love the recommendations. :-)

On a happier note, some good friends of ours, Colin and Megan, had their twin boys yesterday, and my uncle Dan and aunt Brenda had their little guy last week. Both moms are doing great and all the boys are healthy and adorable! Congrats you guys!

Kankles!

2008-11-03T18:47:00.003-06:00

I am currently a few days shy of 33 weeks. I have now gotten used to the fact that by the end of the day my ankles completely disappear and my calves continue straight on to my feet. I was prepared for the fact that my belly would swell to an unnatural size, but my ankles? LOL The real kicker is that even after I take off my shoes...you can still see them imprinted. It's just beautiful!

(Please don't judge me on the small patches of polish left, I can no longer reach my feet to give myself a pedicure. )

Placenta on the rise

2008-10-21T16:27:00.005-05:00

Following our now bi-weekly doctor's appointment, we have some good news. My placenta has moved out of the way so now our boy can be born without a cesarean. Some other news is that our little guy isn't so little! Currently at 31 weeks he weighs 4lbs 4oz. If we go another 9 weeks, he will likely be 9-plus pounds! Can we say ouch! Maybe we should hope for about 7 more weeks and 7 to 8 pounds. But as long as he is healthy we won't have any complaints.

I have been given the go ahead to continue to work as long as my back pain and swelling don't get any worse. We will continue to monitor it every two weeks from now on.

Unfortunately we did not get any sono pics this time as he was facing my back and didn't want to turn around. But, in just a short time we will have more than enough pictures to go around. We can't wait! Should we start taking bets on who he is going to look like? My money is on Chris with maybe some red hair like I had.

Sugar, weight gain and braxton hicks

2008-09-30T22:08:00.003-05:00

Today I had my gestational diabetes test. For those of you who do not know what this entails, basically I have to drink 10 ounces of a glucose mixture and then get my blood checked after an hour. I should get a call tomorrow with the results. My glucose happened to be orange flavored and tasted a bit like Orange Crush with about 10 cups of sugar added. Now anyone that knows me knows that I can handle sweet: chocolate, cakes, candy...there haven't been many things that have been too much to handle. Let me tell you, I found out that after today I think I have had enough sugar for the rest of the week and I probably will not be able to drink orange flavored anything for a long time to come. Let's hope my results come back clean so I don't have to do it all over again!

I have also now gained a total of 14 pounds. That's right on track so far and I'm expected to gain probably another 8 to 10 before this whole thing is over. Since I gained 5 pounds this last month I have now passed up Chris in his sympathy weight gain. He has held at 10 pounds. Which brings me to the question: is this sympathy weight really attributed to this pregnancy or has his diet and activity level just adjusted as mine has? Are there any scientific studies that link it to hormones and is this pregnancy really wreaking havoc on my husbands body as well as my own? Hmmm...

Also worth mentioning are these weird contraction-like sensations I have been having. Apparently they are called braxton hicks contractions and are pretty much like labor contractions except so far they haven't been painful and don't affect the cervix. Just leaves me a little sore after a while. That, combined with my growing back aches, may unfortunatly leave me with the possibility of having to cut my working hours down yet again. Cross your fingers that I can stay on my feet for the next 10 to 12 weeks until this baby comes.

As for that nursery I keep mentioning, it is painted! But yet still not finished. Chris and I still have a chair rail to put up and then wait for our furniture to arrive. By next week we should have a picture. At least one of an empty room. There's no word (yet) of when our furniture should be here but hopefully in the next two to three weeks.

Stay tuned.

Salt Lake Shower Yields Gifts, Cornhole and Good Hygiene

2008-09-15T23:35:00.009-05:00

Chris and I attended our first baby shower. Yep, now everything is starting to seem more and more real. We are really having a baby and now our house is starting to show it. For my birthday back in August Chris bought us tickets to SLC to visit my family before we hit the no travel zone (aka the third trimester). While we were there my mom and sister-in-law, Amanda, threw us a baby shower. It was a lot of fun. Because we wanted to see as many people as possible while we were there the baby shower was co-ed (much to the "delight" of Chris).

We played two different shower games. The first was for all the men who attended (all 8 of them). They had to drink beer from a sippy cup and the first to finish was the winner. Needless to say it was fun to watch. Take a look for yourself, below. My mom's friend and co-worker Karl won with my uncle Dan coming in a close second.

After the beer drinking, the second and final game was for couples. We all had to dance with our significant other, with an egg held between our foreheads. The last couple left dancing without dropping their egg wins. Chris and I made it to the final two before we dropped our egg. Oh, so close!

However, our spirits weren't dampened by the loss. Rather, we felt blessed when we opened lots of loot in the form of great new clothes for our little guy and a few gift cards as well. Chris' mom even made the trip and got us our car seat. She's doing her part to make sure her grandchild will travel safely, and in style! It was really fun to have her there.

Before we left, my mom and I made a couple of trips to some fabric stores and picked out a few things. She is going to make the bedding and curtains for the new nursey. I will be sure to post pictures as soon as we see the finished product. I'm sure they will be wonderful. She did such a great job helping my neice Stella out with her room I'm sure our little man will love his just as much!

All in all, it was a great trip. Hopefully we won't have to stay away too long after the little man is here. A ski trip would be very nice this season and we hope to fit it in.

One other thing to mention is our newfound fondness for a game to which my brother Paul and his wife Amanda introduced us: Cornhole. We've posted some pitures of us all playing on our Flickr site (see below for an example). I would like to mention that Paul and I won 5 of the 7 games we played as a team. We rule! Needless to say, Chris is planning to build the appropriate fixtures so we can play here in Dallas as well. If you live in the area, don't be suprised if you're invited over for a game or two in the near future.

Next up? Painting the nursery. I will have pictures soon. We plan to have it done by the end of the month if not sooner. We have furniture arriving in October. Wow, this pregnancy is flying by!

Long time, no post

2008-08-19T12:40:00.007-05:00

It's been a while since our last post and a lot has happened in that time. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your perspective), we've broken the updates into sections for easier consumption.

Home Improvement
First, what's the reason for the long delayed posting? Our new office...well, office/guest bedroom. In order to make room and prepare for our little man we have disassembled the office (as we once knew it) to combine it and our guest room. First we painted the room. Then we assembled some new office furniture (by we I mean Chris). Finally, we moved the guest bed from the old guest room to the new combo room. Next on our agenda is to paint the now empty remaining room - the nursery - and acquire furniture. We'll post about our progress in the nursery as soon as we've actually made some. In the meantime, here's a photo of the new office/guest bedroom.

Family Reunion
Before all of this (way back in July) we went to Lake Tahoe for my family reunion. It was lots of fun and we got to see many members of my extended family that we hadn't seen in a long time. We also got to use our new camera and took a ton of photos (see below for one example). Among the fun activities at this year's reunion were karaoke, kickball, rafting, wake boarding and even a photo scavenger hunt. On top of all that, each night had it's own fun from card games to a Trivial Pursuit smack down. All in all it was a great trip!

Our Baby Boy (In Progress)
Two weeks ago we had our 20 week sonogram and got to see (almost) irrefutable evidence that our little guy is indeed a guy.

There are even more pictures of our baby on our Flickr site and while he seems to look a bit more like a little alien than a baby, he's OUR little alien. :-) During that same appointment, we received news that I have what is called a low lying placenta. That condition may or may not correct itself in the next few months. If not, it looks like we will have a planned c-section. That's not something to worry about at this point so we are focusing on getting everything ready for the big day.

Meanwhile, my little hitchhiker has been kicking up a storm. We're hoping that in the next week or so Chris will be able to feel some kicks as well. It all seems to be going so fast. Next thing you know it will be December and we'll have a whole new reason for delayed posting.

My Birthday
For my birthday, Chris gave me a round trip ticket to SLC so I can visit my family in September. I'm going to let him tag along. While we are there my mom is throwing a baby shower. Yay, gifts!

Last, But Not Least
For our last bit of news, we just found out that there's a bun in a different oven. Chris's middle brother, Michael, and his girlfriend Melissa are expecting a little one of their own. We are very excited that our little man will now have three cousins close to his age (two in the Dallas area). Our family keeps growing and growing. We wish Michael and Melissa the best of luck.

Bart, Bert...Bort?

2008-07-01T18:12:00.004-05:00

Until you are faced with it, you never think about how hard it is to name your child. I mean, I always thought I had names picked out since I was young, but now those names seem immature and silly. Do you name your child after a family member or someone who has influenced you or do you just pick a name that sounds good out of a book? Can you really know for sure if the name you pick is going to influence how people see them or treat them? You have to think about unfortunate nicknames they might get saddled with. Even their initials can prove problematic. Other kids can be so cruel sometimes.

I guess it all comes down to picking a name that you like. One that you can stand hearing for a long time and hope that your child can as well. Any advice from other parents out there? How did you choose your child's name?

Becca's new ride

2008-06-20T09:58:00.003-05:00

We'd been thinking about a new car for a while now. With a baby on the way, we wanted something a little bigger and a little safer than the Civic but with comparable fuel efficiency. It was a close race between the 2008 Honda CRV and the 2008 Nissan Rogue. In the end, the Rogue edged out the CRV and we couldn't be happier with our decision. We'll absorb a manageable increase in our monthly car payments but our insurance premium actually dropped by about $14 per month. Anyway, here's a photo of Becca's new ride. Click it for a larger version.

It's a boy!

2008-06-16T16:22:00.003-05:00

Well they are 95% sure it's a boy anyway. They have to keep the 5% probability for themselves just in case they are wrong. We had our first trimester screening today which helps identify if our baby may have down syndrome, trisomy 18 or trisomy 13. Everything looks good so far, we'll get the results in about a week. After they took some measurements of our baby's neck and a small blood test, they took an early look and determined it's not an it any more, it's a he. :-)

We got to see him moving around and he even waved for us so we could see all his tiny little fingers. Heartbeat is still going strong at just over 160. This was the first time Chris got to see him moving, we are so excited. Below is one of the sono shots from today.

Baby Thomhouser's Progress

2008-06-04T11:09:00.004-05:00

I saw a nifty little gadget on another friend's blog (they're also expecting) and decided to use the same gadget on ours. Now, we can all see how many days or weeks are remaining or elapsed in the pregnancy as well as a 3D rendering of what our baby might look like.

Overall, Becca and our baby seem to be doing well. We have our next doctor's appointment on Monday (next week is the 12-week mark) and hope that Becca's morning (read: all-day) sickness will soon subside.

Say cheese!

2008-06-03T11:22:00.002-05:00

Becca and I have been considering the purchase of a new camera for some time now. Even more so with a baby on the way. Luckily, we found a convenient excuse to bite the bullet in the form of my impending 30th birthday (16 days and counting).

Best Buy sent me an offer for my birthday: 12% off any purchase if I use my Best Buy card. They also had a nice package deal for a Nikon D80 camera, an additional telephoto lens and a camera bag. Combine all of that with 18 months of 0% interest on the purchase and we couldn't resist.

In short, we're now the proud owners of a brand-spankin' new DSLR camera (see below for a picture of it). Let the high resolution, photo-taking madness begin.

Weekend in Napa/San Francisco/Sanoma Valley

2008-05-21T22:00:00.004-05:00

Last Thursday evening Chris and I joined our friends Brad, Jenny, Justin and Michelle for a trip to sunny California. We spent Friday touring wineries in Napa. We spent Saturday in San Francisco doing a little sight seeing and shopping...and a fair amount of eating as well. Then we spent Sunday touring wineries in Sonoma. To make a long story short, Chris did the wine tasting for both of us and we brought home a case of various wines which we'll enjoy after the baby is born. We took a slew of photos and they're all up on our Flickr album.

Just wanted to say to Steve and Natalie; wish you were there.
Also a big shot out to Emily for the great restaurant recommendation, The Stinking Rose was awesome. Even though we all smelt like garlic for the rest of the weekend we loved it. :-) Thanks.

Becca is pregnant

2008-05-12T20:16:00.007-05:00

Yes, you read that headline correctly. Becca is pregnant!

We've been pretty sure for a little while now but Becca just had her first sonogram today and it's officially confirmed. The doc tells us that we're looking at a late December birth. Jeez, think of the presents that child will get if he/she (it?) is a Christmas baby and gets to double-up.

Becca and I are both so excited as are our parents. This will be the 3rd grandchild for Becca's parents but the very first for mine.

I'm bummed that I was stuck here in India for the first sonogram but Jessica was kind enough to go with Becca and "hold her hand." She's been through all of this VERY recently so we're happy to have such a seasoned coach at our side.

More updates to follow but for now, here's a photo of our baby from its first sonogram. Well, they tell us that's our baby. It looks like a Lima bean to me. :-)

2 down 8 more to go

2008-05-05T23:06:00.003-05:00

Well, Chris has been in India for two days now. So far I owe everything to a nice little program called Skype. If it weren't for Skype we would not be able to talk the whole time he is gone. (At least not unless we want to spend a ton of dough.) Anyway, if you're not familiar with Skype, you can talk via the web for free instead of by phone. And,if you have a camera for your computers, you can talk with video, totally awesome!

Anyway, he got there safe after a horrible 16 hour flight, and is now spending his second day at the India office. So far so good. He's only seen one monkey though, kind of disappointing, and it stole his beer at that!

Miss you Chris. XOXOXOX

We have a brand new niece!

2008-04-16T19:03:00.003-05:00

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, Jessica asked me to attend the birth of her first child. Well, I'm happy to announce that as of 12:53pm (CDT), Jessica and Stephen are the proud parents of a healthy baby girl. They haven't chosen a name yet but it's the cutest little thing at 8 lbs 4 oz and 20 inches long. More info to follow but check out all the photos on our Flickr site. Here's a few photos if you're too lazy to click through...

Birthday

2008-04-15T13:37:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I got to go with my sister Jessica to her last sonogram appointment. It was amazing, we actually got to see the baby sucking her thumb. How cute is that! It is still kind of weird to me to think that there is a whole new person inside there.
Tomorrow I get to be in the operating room with Jessica and Stephen for the c-section and I am so excited to be included in my new nieces birth. I can't wait to be one of the first people to meet her. I'll fill you all in on the excitement soon. Until then, happy birthday baby.

Thomhouser: The True Story

2008-04-11T19:13:00.006-05:00

If you find yourself wondering, just what is this "Thomhouser" thing anyway, let me enlighten you. A few years ago when Becca and I attended her family reunion, Jessica (her eldest sister) thought it would be really funny to come up with a hybrid of our respective last names. Why? That's anyone's guess. But, the sad fact remains that not only did she devise the single worst combination of Thompson + Holtshouser (Thomhouser: got it?), she puffy-painted it on hats for us to wear. That's right, matching Mr. and Mrs. Thomhouser hats. Gag!

Naturally, we (mostly I) tried our best to live this down and put it behind us. "Ha ha. Good one Jess. Now, never mention it again!" Unfortunately, it lived on and reared its ugly head at our wedding reception. Jessica decided that it would be funny if our DJ introduced me and Becca as Mr. and Mrs. Thomhouser and went so far as to attempt a bribe. While our DJ was tactful enough to not take the bait, the damage was already done. When we entered the reception - greeted by applause and camera flashes - our DJ almost lost his paycheck. "I now present Mr. and Mrs. (painful pause, clearly befuddled: was it Thompson, Thomhouser?) ...Thomas (swing and a miss)...er...Thompson." Close enough, I suppose.

Admittedly, this was pretty damn funny but annoying at the same time; and yet somehow endearing. So, when inspired to create a blog for me and Becca to keep you all informed of our combined goings-on, I could think of no better name.

Welcome to Thomhouser. Visit often.