Roll Tide!!

Since the Tide is back in the running for their 15th National Championship, we would just like to give a Roll Tide to everyone from the Wallaces!

Two Months Old

 

 

I know this is two weeks late, but at two months old, James is such a joy!  He is such a happy baby and loves to smile and coo at Mommy and Daddy. 

 

At his two month doctor's appointment, he weighed in at 11 pounds 14 ounces and 24.5 inches long!  He is still in the 50th percentile for weight and 90th for height.

 

Every morning I look forward to having a special time with James as he smiles and coos as if it's been a long time since he has seen me. He is really getting attached to Mommy and I am getting so attached to him!

 

James also likes playing on his activity mat and gym.  He works so hard to hit the animals hanging from the gym.  He can play for several minutes at a time now.

 

He is still trying to hold up his head on his own.  He can hold it up for a very short period of time but it is just so big and heavy! 

 

Every day there is a new development with James.  He is changing and growing so fast.  He is our pride and joy and we can't imaging life without him!

 

 

 

 



Road Trip and a Baby Shower!

A couple of weeks ago, we made our first family road trip to Daphne to visit Nanny and Grandpa.  Mommy was quite nervous about how Baby James would act on the almost 4 hour drive.  To our surprise, he did very well if you take away the breakdown James had about 30 mintues before our final destination.  But who could blame him?  I act the same way when I'm hungry!

That Friday night, we went to visit James' great-grandparents and his namesake.  I believe they were in love at first sight!

 

The next day, we helped host a baby shower for my sister in-law and James' soon to be cousin, Thomas!  James "pretended" to be asleep through most of the shower.  Too many women sitting around talking! 

 

 

But when he was awake, he was a hit!

 

The theme of the baby shower for Amy and Thomas was "She's About to POP!".  So, we had many things to go along with that theme...

 

POPcorn

Fruit with POPpyseed dressing

Cake POPs

Here a pic of me and the next mommy-to-be!  I can't wait to meet Thomas!  I'm looking forward to many family outings with Thomas and James.  I have a feeling they are going to be getting into a lot of trouble together...

 

On Sunday, we went to visit James' great-aunt and another great grandfather.  But first, we had a photo session with Daddy...

 

James with Grandpa Vernon and Aunt Wendy

 

Or first trip out of Birmingham was almost flawless!  James (and Mommy and Daddy) was exhausted from all the family time and snuggles frome everyone.  The first night we were at my parents' house, James slept for 6 1/2 hours straight!  That was nice but unfortunately has not happened since.

 

Here is what we learned from the trip:

 

1.  Four hours is 30 minutes too long without a pit stop.  All hell will break loose after 3 1/2 hours.

 

2.  Be prepared with at least four diapers for the first diaper change once out of the car and to our destination.  There will be a MASSIVES blowout!

 

3.  Take your parents' offer to watch the baby while you meet friends for drinks.  It is totally worth getting out and socializing with adults!

 

4.  Sonic is our new favorite restaurant.  You can easily stop there on a road trip to feed yourselves and the baby.  Also easy to change the baby in the car while your spouse is eating in the car.  Unfortunately, we did not figure this out until the ride home.  So, the Sonic on Exit 130 in Greenville will be seeing  us again.

 

 

One Month Later...

The last time I posted on this blog was one month and two days ago.  Wow, so much has happened in the last month that I don't even know where to begin.  I'll start with the bad...

 

On the day James turned four weeks old, I was admitted into the hospital with a breast abscess that turned out to be MRSA staph infection in my left breast.  Needless to say, this was the lowest point so far of motherhood.  It was a nasty sight to see and I will spare the dirty details.  I am still on the recovery road but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  I just pray everyday that the abscess and infection will not return and I will continue to get well.

 

Now for the good...

 

James will be 8 weeks old on Wednesday!!  Time has flown!!  Since the breast infection, I have been taking in every moment with James.  I lost some precious time with him so I am making up for it.  He now smiles and coos at his Mommy and Daddy.  He tries so hard to hold his head up on his own I think he will be doing it in no time!

 

Here is his 1 month photo that we took 3 weeks ago...

 

At his 1 month doctor's appointment, he weighed 9 pounds 6 ounces.  He measured at 23 inches.  He was in the 50th percentile for his weight and 90th for his height!  He is long and lean!  I don't know where he gets that from...  Certainly not his Daddy :)

 

He now fits into 3 month clothing and sometimes even the 3-6 month clothing!  He is just so long that newborn clothing just doesn't fit any more!

 

He still hates bath time.  And so does Mommy because I can't stand to hear him cry so much.  Here's a picture we took of him before his fussiness began during bath time one night...

 





Here are some more precious photos we took of James about a week ago.  These are some of my favorites...

 

 

 



This weekend we are headed to my parent's house for a weekend away and to help host a baby shower for my sister in-law.   I'm a little nervous about a 4 hour drive with an 8 week old.  Any advice from mommies out there would be greatly appreciated!!

The Sweetest Thing We've Ever Seen

On August 29, 2012, God gave us the greatest blessing we could ever be blessed with.  James Bedsole Wallace was born at 5:24 p.m. weighing 8 pounds 2 oz and measuring 20.5 inches long.  We were instantly in love with him and his cute little chubby cheeks. 

 

Labor went pretty well with only a few minor blood pressure issues.  Also, after about an hour of pushing, I may or may not have told the nurses off.  Starting about ten minutes into it, they were telling me "he's almost here, only a few more pushes!"  Well, an hour later I yelled "You said that an hour and 20 pushes ago!".  Ooops...

 

Here are some pictures from the best part of the day...

 

 

I wonder what he was thinking?



 

The beautiful view from our room the night James was born.

 

I couldn't hold James for about 3 hours after he was born due to his temperature being too low.  He was put under a warming lamp for a while.  Here is a pic from the first time I held him in my arms.

 



 

The proud Daddy

 

 

The first-time grandparents

 

And finally, the happy family of three!



 

 

The End is Near!!

Yesterday, when I began this post, I titled it "The Waiting Game."  I had no clue when James would be making his debut into this world and I was beginning to feel that I would be pregnant for the rest of my life.  Until today...

I had my 39 week appointment today and the doctor said that he would like to induce me THIS week!!!  I was thrilled when he said that.  I am ALL for a man with a plan!  He said that Wednesday works for him and I said, "Sign me up.  We are there!"  So, James will be arriving sometime on Wednesday.  I am checking in the hospital at 6:00 a.m. to begin the inducement!!

We are so excited and so anxious to meet our sweet son.  I'm also nervous and scared to death to begin the process of labor and becoming a mother.  Emotions are going to be a little crazy for me this week.

This will probably be my last post until after James arrives.  So, in the meantime, here are some pictures of the nursery...

 

James, we are so excited for your arrival!  We have been preparing for this day for a long time now.

We promise to love you unconditionally and support you in everything you do throughout your entire life.

We promise to teach you about God's Word and raise you to be like Him.  We hope that you always find courage and strength in His Word and take refuge in it.

Just know that Mommy and Daddy LOVE you very much and you have already made us the happiest people on earth.

We can't wait to meet you!!!



36 Weeks!!

Today, I am 36 weeks pregnant.  Only 4 more weeks to go!  I can't believe how fast it has gone by.  The first trimester seemed to creep by due to morning sickness and tax season.  Now, it seems like yesterday I was just at 20 weeks pregnant.

I had my 36 week doctor's appointment yesterday and had my last ultrasound.  It showed that James has dropped very low and is in position... head first.  They also gave an estimate of how much he weighs now. You won't believe it when I say it but they are estimating that he is weighing in at 6 pounds, 13 ounces!!!  I let out gasp and a "My Gosh!"  when they told us that.  That is already bigger than I was when I was born only 2 days early.  And we still have 4 weeks to go!!!  The doctor said that he is above average but not a "whopper".  Already, James is above average... obviously his father's child:)

How am I feeling?  Nervous. Anxious. Happy. Sad. Annoyed. Tired. and HOT!  I have every type of emotion going through me that you can think of.  I am getting pretty uncomfortable all the time these days.  My mornings are pretty good but I take a turn for worst bout 3:00 or 4:00 every afternoon.

On a different note, I would like to share some photos from my last two baby showers.  One was held at my cousin, Claire's, house.  It was a "nesting" theme with birds' nests.  Very cute idea!

This was hanging on the door when we arrived

Here are the hostesses (Claire and Delaney) with Sam Nolan

And the table setting

It was all so beautiful and the decorations were gorgeous!  Thanks Claire and Rebecca for working so hard to make it special for me!

The next shower was held by the sweet ladies of my work and held at Leigh Anna's house.  All the work ladies came as well as my mom and mother in-law.

Cindy made a diaper cake for me.  It was so cute!

Here are some more pictures from the shower

The day was perfect and so much fun!  I feel blessed to have such great women to work with every day! And not everyone can say that!

In the next four weeks (or fewer) we will be spending all of our time getting mentally ready for James to arrive.  The nursery is ready (pics coming soon), the bottles are sterilized, and the bags are packed (somewhat).  We plan to enjoy the last few weeks of a family of two before our world gets turned upside down...

Celebrating Sweet Baby James!

For those who do not know, we have finally come up with a name for our baby boy!  His name will be James Bedsole Wallace.  James comes from Erol's grandfather whom Erol is very close to.  Bedsole... well, that one is obvious.  It comes from my family name!

The past few weekends, we have really enjoyed celebrating Baby James with friends and family.  First, my sweet girlfriends in Birmingham threw me an awesome shower at our friends' Nick and Mindy's house.  Nick is a chef and did the cooking for it.  Everything was delicious!  Here are some pictures of the food, just to brag a little...

Mindy is a party planner so she did all the decorations.  They were so adorable!

This is me at 30 weeks...

I had friends come in to Birmingham from all over! 

Annie came to town all the way from Boston

Britney and Owen came down from Decatur

I had such a blast with all of my Birmingham friends.  It was so much fun and we got a lot of great stuff for Baby James!

This past weekend, I had another shower in Mobile (our hometown) that was hosted by my sister in-law and family friends.  It was held at my brother and sister in-law's new house and it was perfect!  Everyone worked so hard to make it special... and it truly was! There were alot of people there, including highschool friends, highschool teachers, and close family friends.  There were a few family members there as well!  The food was excellent and the party was fantastic!

Look at all these gifts!!

Cute cookies for everyone!

We got some really great stuff and some really cute clothes!

Grandpa (my dad) sent over a gift.  I know you can't read it but the hat says "Grandpa's #1 fishing buddy"!  So cute!

Here I am with the hostess with the mostess!  I am now at 32 weeks.  Terrible picture of me but a great one of Amy.

We feel so blessed to have so many people who care about our son before he even arrives!  We couldn't ask for better friends and family to share this special time with.  We are looking forward to more celebrations this weekend as we prepare for the arrival of Sweet Baby James!