Introducing: Joey Bug!

Joseph Wesley Reyes

Born on May 9, 2013 at 11:59PM 
~ 9lbs 1 oz ~  20inches. 

On May 9th, I woke up at 6am with my first ever "real" contraction. At the time, I didn't realize it. I thought it was a really bad cramp! Throughout the morning, I experienced a few more "cramps" and wondered if perhaps they were really something else.

Turns out they were. The contractions grew longer and more frequent. By the time Ric came home from work, we were talking about when to go to the hospital. We put Parker down for bed and then headed on over to Methodist Hospital. 

We were given a room and since I was dilated at 4cm, I was admitted. After getting checked, I was told that you weren't "engaged." So although you were in the head down position, your head hadn't fully dropped in the pelvis. There was a concern that this could be because you were too big to fit in my pelvic region. They did an ultrasound and guessed you were measuring close to nine pounds.  The doctor came in--Dr. Overton, who I'd never met before--and said she highly recommended the C-Section. So. That's what we ended up doing. 

I went into the O.R. and got prepped. Before I knew it, I was "ready" and they had Ric come into the room. Shortly after, we heard your first cries! 

The nurses cleaned you up... 

We love this Squishy Face!

Your first weigh-in:  our little nine pounder! 

After you were weighed and cleaned, you were bundled up and given to daddy.  

You spent time saying hello to Grandma, Grandpa, and Grammy while Mommy was taken to a different room. 

Then finally you were brought into the room and Mommy got to hold you and feed you. You are a great eater! :) You are also a great sleeper, and Mommy and Daddy even got some unexpected sleep! 

The next morning was very special because you got to meet your big Brother, Parker! 

He's almost two and he's going to be a great big brother! He'll teach you all kinds of things about letters, numbers, planets, and how to play outside. Although you're still too little to play with him now, we know that soon enough you two will be running around together! 

We spent the next three days in the hospital. We did have visitors, but for the most part, it was just you and Mommy and Daddy (and a handful of nurses  coming in and out to check on you). 

We had such a great three days getting to snuggle with you! You are such a sweet boy. You seem like a mellow little fellow who is content just being held. You like to eat and sleep and cuddle! You don't much care for your diaper being changed, though you do tolerate it for several minutes before crying. 

On Sunday, May 12th, we got to finally take you home--on Mother's Day! What a great gift for Mommy! :)

It's been so nice to have you home with us! You fit in perfectly with our family and we are so happy to be a family of four! 

We love you, little Joey Bug!!!!

Love, Mommy and Daddy

23 Months!

Parker Love!

23 months old? How can it be that you're one month away from your second birthday?!

Some stats: you've moved into size 6 diapers... kind of... we've found that if you go poo poo, they tend to leak (icky), so they're obviously a little big. However, size 5's are too small... so you're in some kind of in-between stage with diaper sizes. 

As for clothes, you are now in 24 months and 2T's. Some of the 2T's are still too big, but most of them fit you just fine. 

Well, you've been busy this month! The first big event was Easter, where you had your first Easter egg hunt with your cousins! You did very well and seemed to enjoy yourself. Also, you were super adorable in your little Easter tie. :)

 Go Parker, go! 

Could you BE any cuter? **heart melts**

I was happy to get a few nice shots with you in your Easter attire. 

Also this month... you got an early birthday present: a playground! 

We've been working on making the backyard more "Parker-friendly" and this was the biggest addition to our yard. You also have a new basketball hoop, but we didn't get any pictures of that yet... 

We're happy you like your playground!!

Mommy's next goals for the backyard: Sand table... restore your water table, and maybe a tricycle... 

You recently discovered an "Itsy Bitsy Spider" song on YouTube that makes you giggle! :)

Just some more April cuteness...

We  said goodbye to our red car this month. You ask about it from time to time. Now we have Grandma and Grandpa's "gray car" which is SOOO much better! 

You had your first taste of spaghetti this month. You weren't exactly a fan... but we are pretty sure you just didn't like the texture. You used to make this face with Mac n Cheese, but now you love Mac n Cheese! 

Hangin' in the park with Grammy and Papa!

Smiles!

Actually, you've pretty much transitioned out of your high chair this month. You would much rather sit in one of the "big boy" chairs at the dining table. 

You are suddenly a fan of wearing sunglasses! Such a cool guy! :)

Building towers is one of your favorite things this month. 

Also kind of new this month... you're enjoying playing with cars again. 

Overall, it's been a great month. You are still getting over being sick though. After several days of high fever, we took you into the ER (your first visit) where they determined you have some virus and/ or ear infection. They gave us antibiotics and since then you've been doing better. Still a mild fever, but with the antibiotics/ tylenol/motrin combo you've been back to your old self! 

We love you SO much little man. 

One month from now things will be so so different. Not only will you be TWO YEARS old, but you will also be a big brother! Mommy has an appointment on May 14th to meet baby Joey... although he might just come sooner, all on his own. :) We are very excited for you to be a big brother, though it will be a little sad to say goodbye to our family of three that we've grown so accustomed to. 

We are so thankful that God blessed us with you. You are so smart and fun, with such a kind and obedient heart. You bring so much joy to our lives and we just love you to pieces!! 

We love you, little Bubs! 

Love, Mommy & Daddy

21 Months Old!

Parker Love,

Happy 21 months! It seems unreal that you’re creeping so close to 24 months! 

You are such a boy now... no more baby. Here you are, big boy, matching with Daddy :)

You’ve been a busy boy this month! You are talking a LOT now. You’re able to put together sentences, even five or six words. Example : “Parker go to Mommy’s room?” or “Parker hold keys and get mail?” Any time you ask a question, you end it with this adorable little “mmmmm?” sound. It’s so super cute.

Probably the biggest event this month was you got your FIRST HAIRCUT! It was a much-needed event (see picture below)

You weren't exactly a fan of the whole haircut thing.

You didn't like being strapped to the "chair"

You didn't like the sucker

You especially didn't like the clippers!

But you survived! :) 

Some other things you've been up to this month...

You've really enjoyed playing with Mommy's car keys. You would happily do this for half an hour, if Mommy let you! 

You and your friend Lillian have had some fun times together at church :)

You love hanging out with Andrew. Here you are watching the Superbowl together :)

You love your snuggly --"sug-o-lee"-- as much as ever :)

This is what you call "One Face!" 

One of Mommy and Daddy's new favorite things to watch is your "juggling." You watched Daddy juggle and then wanted to try it yourself. Cuteness! :)

Another new thing is you now sing the ABC's. You used to just say the words, but you've just started singing the tune. You've done this for a few other songs as well. 

Your favorite toy in our room is the number blocks. You like stacking them into a tower. 

You've moved on from Infant Tylenol to Children's Tylenol, which might seem like a small thing... but Children's Tylenol bumps you in the age 2-11 category which makes you seem like such a big boy!

You enjoy reading books by yourself. Actually, you're doing a lot more by yourself... a lot of times when you're playing with toys, you'd rather do things yourself than ask for help. 

You know all the names of the planets and in the right order (wow!). This is one of your new favorite books.

This past week, you've started a new trick... you like to climb into the chairs at the dining table. Though it makes Mommy a little nervous seeing you climb up that big chair, it makes you feel very proud of yourself, which is pretty cute :)

Little Bubby, we love you so so much. We are amazed by you every day--how fast you are growing and learning new things. You are so smart and you learn new things each and every day. Though you have your "serious" moments, you are also such a happy little guy with plenty of silliness. We are so grateful to God for all the joy you bring to our lives.

We love you Parker! 

Love, Mommy and Daddy