Merry Christmas!

Growing up I always loved to look at the Christmas cards that we got in the mail, you know, the ones with all the pictures on them that say "Merry Christmas from the _____". We never received a whole bunch, but the few that we did get were always fun to look at. I loved seeing how families had grown and expanded over the years to add children, dogs, cats, etc. Now, this was never a tradition that my family had, we didn't take the "holiday picture" to send out for all to see, and I always imagined that when I got older and started my own family I would definitely send out Christmas cards.

Well, that is easier said than done. The last two years that I have been married, I have thought about and planned out what the picture and card would look like, but just never got around to taking the picture and actually buying the cards. SO, now that Jacob is here and out little family has grown and changed so much in the last year, I am not going to put this to the side anymore! I have already decorated the mantle in the house (I kinda got bored this last weekend and had some new garland and things from my mom) and told John that as soon as we get Jacob's stocking (his mom and grandmother are making it for him!) we are taking the picture and I am ordering cards!! And he reluctantly said ok.

I just can't wait to look back on these one day and be able to watch as our family grows and changes!

So, now I have to decide where to get the cards from and what I want them to look like/say. Well, that's easy enough. I already have an account with Shutterfly.com and all my pictures are already loaded there, I am even getting almost all of my Christmas gifts from there this year (hint, hint to any family reading this)!! So, it's perfect! I went on there website and started looking around and found some great options. There's this one:


Which is beautiful and would frame the picture I have mocked up in my head perfectly, and I love that it says "Christmas" not "Holidays".

Or there's this one:


Which is a little more classic, but I don't know if I could talk John into getting it!!

Or this one:



Which I love because you can add more than one picture.

So many choices, I don't know what I'll end up with!

So, if you are looking from a Christmas card, or just for a gift for a family member (check out these calendars, these mugs, and these mouspads for a few great ideas) go to Shutterfly.com for some awesome ideas.

Also, if you are a blogger, go here to register to get 50 free Christmas cards by simply writing a blog post like this one!!

3 Months!!

Alot has been going on around here over the last month. I started back to work two nights a week at the beginning of October, it is going pretty well. John does great with Jacob, he gets to put him to bed and get up with him twice during the night, and I am usually home to get him up and feed him breakfast and watch him during the day. It has been an adjustment (with less sleep for both of us) but, I am so glad we were able to work it out and not have to take him to daycare (not that I have something against daycare, but it is SO expensive and with my schedule it isn't something that we need on a regular, weekly basis). Jacob has a few new tricks, he is practically holding his head up on his own, he loves to sit on your lap and watch tv or play with toys, he constantly has his hands in his mouth chewing/sucking on them, he is rolling over from his tummy to his back, he has started "playing" with toys (kinda batting at them to make a sound), he loves to smile/coo/laugh at you, and is becoming quite ticklish. He is so much fun and a joy to be around! We are starting to get into a schedule with the man, and he is doing great with it. He gets up around 7:30 and is on a 3 hour eating schedule with about an hour and a half naps (in his crib!!) in between, and then is in bed by 7:30 at night, getting up around 2 and 5 in the morning. Not too bad, it really helps having his nap times to get things done around the house, and running errands are a lot easier knowing when he will eat and sleep! We are looking forward to the next two months, with so much family coming into town and getting to meet the little guy for the first time!!

Sitting in his new Bumbo seat, playing with his toys (and Caly)!

Laying in bed with Daddy, watching tv

Sitting in the Bumbo seat, holding up his head so well!!

Caly can't stand it when John is holding Jacob, she has to be right there with them!

Playing on his new playmat

He loves to lay on his changing table and be tickled and "talk" to you! So cute!

Chewing on his hands, his new favorite pass-time

Laughing on his changing table

3 month picture with Mr. Bear (his face looks so much older to me!!)

2 Month Update

Well, it has officially been 2 months since our little man was born and he has changed so much! We can tell such a difference, even in the last 2 weeks or so. He is now smiling, laughing, and cooing at anyone and everyone that will glance his way. He loves to be held and cuddled, and I think his favorite thing is watching tv with daddy. He rolled over from his stomach to his back for the first time last Saturday, since then I have been trying to get a video of him in action, but he hasn't repeated the roll fully yet. He will get more than half way over, but can't quite seem to get that pesky leg to kick the rest of the way. He is eating like a champ! He goes 3 to 4 hours between feedings during the day, his last feed is about 8 or 9 and then he will sleep until about 2 or 3 (6 hours!) and then go right back down and sleep until 6 or 7 (4 or 5 hours!). This new night time schedule is definitly making for a happy mommy! We went to the doctor's for a check up yesterday and everything went great! He had to get 4 shots, but was a trooper through the whole thing. His official stats are: Height - 23 inches (52%) Weight - 11 lbs 8 oz (50%) Head Size - 15 3/4 inches (50%). Jacob is such a joy and we are enjoying every minute (even if it is going by too fast!), we can't wait to see what new surprizes he has for us down the road!

Getting so big in his bouncer!

Watching College Gameday

Holding up his head like such a big boy!

Sleeping on Daddy

Holding up his head again

(sorry it's a little blurry)

2 month picture with Mr. Bear

1 Month Old!!

Sorry it took me so long to post again. Needless to say, we have been a little busy around here lately! I can't believe Jacob is already 1 month old! I know everyone tells you it goes by fast, and now I know what they mean!! He already seems so much older to me, in his level of alertness and his looks. His face especially has filled out and he is already wearing size 3 month clothes! What a chunk! He is starting to sleep better, the last 2 nights he ate at 10, slept 4 hours and ate at 2, then slept another 4 hours getting up at 6, I never thought I would be so happy to get up at 2 in the morning (and only at 2 in the morning)!! During the day he eats every 3 hours, staying awake for about 45 minutes at a time and then taking a nap. He doesn't "play" with much yet, but loves looking at your face and being talked to, he also likes to look at his play mat and his jingling lion toy! At his last doctor's appointment on August 27 (at 2 weeks 4 days) he weighed 7 pounds 15 ounces (25-50 percentile), was 21 1/2 inches long (75-90 percentile), and his head was 19 1/4 inches (25-50 percentile). His next appointment will be October 13 for his 2 month check and shots :(. I will try to be better about posting pictures and letting you know how we are doing!

Laying with Daddy!


Tummy Time with Caly

Trying to hold my head up!

Loving my Paci!

Sleeping in my Bouncer

Playing on my Playmat!

1 month picture with Mr. Bear

Introducing Jacob Wilhelm Merkl

Jacob Wilhelm Merkl

Well, as most of you know, Jacob made his debut almost 2 weeks ago on August 9, 2010 (I know, 8/9/10, we are so good at planning easy dates to remember!! For those of you who don't know, we were married on 6/7/08...haha) at 9:19 pm weighing in at 7.0 lbs and 20 inches long. He was definitely a stubborn child, as he has been throughout the entire pregnancy! I said the whole time that he was going to be as stubborn and hard headed as his daddy, and he definitely is living up to it! Throughout my pregnancy, he would flip flop all around in my belly and as soon as John (or anyone for that matter) walked into the room to put a hand on my belly and feel the acrobatics going on, he would immediately stop. So, as with his personality, he refused to come the "normal" way, we all just assumed he was so comfy in there and just didn't want to budge. We had originally gone in Sunday night (August 8) to begin the induction process in the hopes of breaking my water Monday (August 9) morning and starting pitocin (the medicine that starts contractions) to get him here quickly. However, after about 14 hours of labor (starting at 7 am Monday morning until 9 pm Monday night) I had only dilated to about 2 cm and we all decided that our efforts were not effective and that the best option would be a c-section since my body and Jacob were just not cooperating. So, while it was a disappointing end to a very long day (and night before), everyone came out healthy and looking great! We were in the hospital until Thursday (August 12) morning, making it home about noon on Thursday. John went back to work last Monday, so it has just been me and the little man most of the week. He is doing great, eating about every 3 hours and we are all adjusting well to the new sleep schedule. I let John sleep all night since there isn't much he can do to help feed anyway, and he has to get up and go to work all day, but he lets me go to bed early (about 8 most nights last week) and let me sleep in this morning. Jacob and I both have doctor's appointments this week, so I will post again next weekend and let you know how we are doing! I will post a few pictures for you to look at, hope you enjoy! (Also, if you look to the right side, I posted a picture right after he was born and a 1 week picture with Mr. Bear, I am hoping to add to this every month with a new picture, so you can keep updated with how he is growing!)

Last "belly shot" Monday morning


First picture with Daddy!

First family picture!

Roll Tide! He's all ready for football season!

Home from the hospital

Meeting his big sister

Chillin in the bouncer

1 Week old with Mr. Bear

4D Ultrasound Videos

As some of you may know, John and I went for a 4D ultrasound last Wednesday and it was amazing! We got a few good face shots and some great short video clips!! Sorry it took so long to post them, but we have had a pretty busy weekend. Here are some of the videos and I will make a separate post with some of the pictures below. Enjoy!!

Yawn:



Eating Hands:



Sucking Hands:



I have taken some updated pictures of the nursery and some belly pictures of me at 32 weeks. I will post those later this week when I can get them downloaded on the computer.

4D Ultrasound Pictures

Here are some of the best pictures, if you want to see all the pictures go here and you can see an album where I posted them all.

6 Months

We have been started spending some time working on the nursery. We had all the boxes of furniture and got all the other rooms in the house moved around (we had to move the office downstairs and the guestroom into the old office) to empty out the room we were planning to use for the nursery. We also have a rocking chair that is going to go on the other side of the window that we haven't had a chance to put together yet. My mom and dad (Gail and Jerry) bought us the bedding so we can go ahead and start picking out colors for other things (like paint, lamps, etc.). I put in some pictures of the beginning stages of the nursery. I will take more as we get more furniture/decorations together. We are starting to get really excited now that we can see the room coming together and are starting to get some clothes and blankets for him. I can't help but walk into the room everyday and imagine what it will be like in 4 months to have him with us and sleeping in his crib.

Dresser

Changing Table

Crib (with Caly posing in her soon to be new favorite room I'm sure)

And here are a few pictures of what I am looking like at 6 Months. Enjoy!!