Meeting Sweet Pea

Nicole and I love nicknames for the kids -- Brayden has always been "Bee," Layna has always been "Buggie," and now we think Annemarie will be "Sweet Pea." She is so little compared to the chunks we're used to.

Last night, Brayden and Layna rushed through the recovery room door from school, thrilled to finally meet Annemarie! They were absolutely adorable, loving all over her. Seeing the three of them together was fantastic!

Brayden loves his new baby sister, but Layna LOVES her. She would not stop touching or kissing of loving her all night. One of the funniest moments came when the three of them were together in the rocking chair and Brayden and Layna were just chattering away, stream of consciousness. It's hilarious to see the difference between the two of them and how they consider her (typical little boy and little girl)!

Welcome Annemarie!!

She's here, she's here! Annemarie Catherine was born this morning at 9:53 AM. She was 6 lbs. 6 oz. and 18 3/4 inches long -- a petite little girl! Here are some of the highlights from the morning.

Nicole has been ready for this day! Here she is at 39 weeks.

Annemarie was born very quickly. In fact, when her heartbeat was difficult to find with the monitors, it took the nurse a minute to realize that she had dropped to low that she was about to fall right out! She yelled for the doctor and the extra techs and had Nicole hold on and not push. It only took about 45 seconds of pushing for her to come right out! Nicole and Annemarie are both doing just fine!

We love you sweet pea!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

From our family to yours -- Happy Thanksgiving!!

Getting Ready for Annemarie

Nicole is in her 39th week, so Annemarie will be arriving any day. Brayden and Layna have been preparing to welcome her by helping to put the nursery together and by taking a special siblings class at the hospital, Methodist Germantown. It was an excellent experience that included creating birthday cards for Annemarie, practicing diaper changing, gathering gifts for her, and taking a tour of the hospital -- so fun!

Annie!

One of the things Nicole wanted to do most this fall was to see Annie at Playhouse on the Square. This is the local professional theatre here in Memphis and it was excellent! We had fantastic seats and the kids were captivated for 2.5 hours straight. Layna's been singing It's a hard knock life for a week (she is sooo cute!).

Fall Fun

We've been pretty busy this fall -- there are so many things that I'll just have to pile them all together in one post.

One of the big highlights was joining the church on a parish retreat to Camp McDowell in north Alabama.

 
Brayden left a little "present" there -- his kite in a tree!

Getting ready for the big day...

And then came the BIG day -- Halloween! We had a blast with new friends in the local neighborhood of High Point Terrace.

The kids have been entertaining themselves at night, too. One of the most fun evenings included the creation of a couple one-man-bands.

Day-to-Day

The kids have been doing many fun things here, including activities at church and at school. Both of them are singing in the Calvary Children's Choir and doing a fantastic job!

 
Layna and Brayden with Noah and Jack

Layna had a great time participating in a Bike-a-Thon to benefit St. Jude's, headquartered here in Memphis.

Brayden's been making lots of friends, too, especially at school.

We also hit up a one of the free concerts in the park, held at the Levitt Shell. It featured the Memphis City Youth Orchestra and the kids loved it.

And of course we brought a little Alabama to Memphis!

Scouts!

The kids have been active in Memphis, especially Brayden -- he is now a Tiger Cub Scout! He joined Troop 241 and his den (the 6-year-old Tiger Scouts) is huge, numbering 24 members!

Salute!

He's already been on a bunch of trips around the city, including a fire station, a SWAT training facility, and a doughnut shop!

He also spent a weekend camping with me and the two of us went to a bi-annual event for thousands of scouts around this region called Scout Base. It's a massive undertaking and the kids had a blast! They worked on lots of skills, such as archery and rock climbing, learned how to care for the American flag, participated in team-building games, and just had a bunch of fun!