he's here...

henry joseph falgout
born 1:15pm
20 3/4 in long, 7 lbs 13 oz

more pics to come...

DPP 2014 / 12.25.14 / christmas morning toys

it's here and couldn't have been more magical.  such a special morning sharing it with our son who is 2.5 years old.  this year he gets it more than before and was excited to come out and find all the pressies.  it was joyful and special.  super heroes, rocket ships, music instruments, pajamas, candies, tools, etc.  he's been playing with all his treasures this morning.  batman, robin and ironman are some of the hits.  as well as the firetruck, ambulance and fire chief car.

DPP 2014 / 12.24.14 / mama and james selfie

today we got out for some lunch at a new to us japanese place called Ninki.  then afterwards we got some last minute supplies at the Publix grocery store.  last stop was Starbucks -- mama and daddy = coffee, james = cookie.  :)  he's a huge cookie fan.  he requested that i sit in the backseat with him which has been nice.  here's our selfie:

DPP 2014 / 12.23.14 / take out for dinner

today was paul's last day at the office until after the holidays and paternity leave.  he goes back on the 12th of january.  james and i had a long day at home hanging out and resting.  well, i rested while james was on strike from napping.  :)  for dinner paul decided to bring home dinner via the local taco take out.  yum!  james ended up taking a short, much needed nap at 5:30p for about an hour.  his crankiness was just too much for him and us.

DPP 2014 / 12.22.14 / friends and gifts

we have some thoughtful friends with just as kind kiddos.  we had our last prenatal appt and it fell right in the middle of the nap time window so james went to spend the afternoon with our friends who have two girls that are 3 and almost 1.5.  the girls gave james a christmas pressie that we opened just before leaving their house.  dinosaurs!  he was thrilled.  we got home and he proceeded to line them all up and sort them as he tends to do with his toys at times.  he was so happy.

DPP 2014 / 12.21.14 / the axis church

it was the last sunday of advent today.  we had a great day.  the gathering was good and the message even better.  cling to His promises has been what's spoken to me the last few weeks.  He came to earth as a baby so i could live and have my heart changed.  it's an amazing story.  we love our church so much.  afterwards the service i took a pic of the candles to remind myself that His promises are what we cling to.

DPP 2014 / 12.20.14 / meal time toys

when we leave the house we are certain that we will have to fill a "backpack" with toys to go which means the bag i made for him or the TMNT lunch box.  he always grabs some of his cars, buzz, or anything else that's important at the moment.  it's so cute and helpful to get us out the door.  once we get where we are going he takes out his treasures to set up his play area.  i love him something fierce.

DPP 2014 / 12.19.14 / ice cream

one of my seasonal indulgences this year....so good.  too bad we cannot find another 1/2 gallon of it anywhere.

DPP 2014 / 12.18.14 / the hobbit movie

my husband and i love to go to the movies.  that's the one thing since having kids that's tricky to make happen without some orchestration before hand.  paul loves the hobbit and lord of the rings.  he's shared that love with me and i have fallen in love as well, although super resistant at first.  :)  we watched the second hobbit film a few months ago in preparation for the last one that was opening this month.  we had to watch over a few nights after james went to bed, but we managed it.  it was about a month ago that i knew i needed to make a plan.  i contacted some kid sitting contacts and secured some friends from our church to hang out with james.  all this without paul having the slightest clue.  so yesterday finally arrived.  our friends got to our house and off i went to surprise paul at work.  i was beside myself excited and could barely stand it.  he was worried when i got to the office as he thought something was wrong.  i then informed him we were going out and that we are off to have some dinner and see the hobbit which opened in theaters on wednesday.  he was so thrilled and surprised like a little boy in a toy shop.  :)  i did it!  i managed to keep the secret and execute the plan without his knowing.  yeah!

we had thai and japanese for dinner and then off to the theater we went.  snacks, drinks and up front seats.....all paul's favorites!  the movie was great and we enjoyed our time out.  so thankful for friends who help us do the things we love even though we have james.

DPP 2014 / 12.17.14 / baby boy laundry

we are getting ready for baby brother's arrival and one thing that includes is washing all the clothes, blankets, sheets, etc.  there's only a few things left on the to do list before he makes his appearance including installing the infant car seat, getting a ring sling made, and putting the wheel base for the infant carrier in the car.  i am feeling really good about my care and his planned arrival.  so all in all, things are going well.

DPP 2014 / 12.16.14 / Opry Land Hotel

today james and i met up with some of our babywearing mamas and their littles for a playdate/walk around the Opry Land Hotel.  it's all decked out for the holidays and there's a million twinkle lights.  i wanted to hang out and get out of the house, but also knew that i needed to listen to my body and not push myself too far.  carrying a 30 pound toddler on my back at 37 wks preggers is hard work.  we lasted a bit over an hour and saw the sights.  i felt good about our accomplishment.  we then met daddy for lunch before coming home to hang out and nap.  here's our selfie from today.  sorry it's a bit blurry.

DPP 2014 / 12.15.14 / baby bum 37+1 weeks

anxiously awaiting the arrival of our second little boy.  i am 37 weeks and have two more weeks to wait for him to get a bit bigger and developed.  we are having a family centered c section on Dec 29th.  i am feeling good albeit tired, sore and moving slower than usual.  he's moving a lot and doing well.  i have drs appts each week now and love the care i am getting.  a lot to look forward to over the next few weeks---celebrating Christmas with the birth of Jesus with just the three of us and then the birth of our baby boy.  i am an thankful and blessed.

DPP 2014 / 12.14.14 / bubble bath boy

we don't have bath everyday, but we do oblige upon requests.  tonight he wanted "bubbles".  we have "pirate ship" bubbles (read: jake and the neverland pirates) and he loves them.  he knows where they are and patiently wait on daddy to pour them in.  he gets so excited and will play happily.  if it's a special night hubby will even get in the tub with him which makes my mama heart melt.  i love watching them play, talk and share the moments.  tonight was just a james night, but he was thrilled just the same.  love his smile.  cannot believe that in just a few weeks he will be a big brother and no longer our only child.

DPP 2014 / 12.13.14 / Christmas story book

we've been collecting toddler friendly Christmas books to add to our collection that we select from near bedtime for this time of year.  :)  it's been so fun to learn and read together.  my MIL sent us this one and it's great.  super simple story about why we celebrate at this time of year -- the birth of Jesus.  it's his birthday!  i suggest this book to anyone who is looking for a book that's simple and yet right on for the story of Jesus' birth.

DPP 2014 / 12.12.14 / belly shelf & hot cocoa

tonight we were at a party to celebrate good friends that are leaving nashville for their next adventure.  i am still in denial that they are leaving us here, but i know their adventure will be exciting and good for them.  they have the potential to live overseas and as you all know we fully support that.  at the party there was yummy, thick hot cocoa.  potentially some of the best i've had.  i enjoyed my cup and also that i could set it close by on my belly shelf.  cannot believe that i am almost 37 weeks and we will meet our baby boy in just a few busy weeks.

DPP 2014 / 12.11.14 / hibachi dinner

today is paul's birthday and he chose to try a new place for dinner, tokyo hibachi.  it was exciting and hoped that james would like it as much as we thought it might.  he did.  his favorite part was when the chef made a huge flame of fire.  he even did it again at the end just to make james happy.  so much fun!

DPP 2014 / 12/10/14 / the stockings were hung...

when paul and i started dating i realized the next christmas that stockings were a big deal in his family.  after we were married i decided to make our own stockings as a surprise for our first christmas.  it was quite an ordeal at first b/c i had never crocheted anything other than scarves, pot holders or other flat rectangular items.  thankfully my good friend in korea had more experience and was able to hold my hand and teach me through the process.  we spent our first holiday in melbourne, australia doing a house swap.  as i had to work on them during the flight i shared them with paul early.  he was thrilled.  one each of them i have a felt tag where we list where we spent christmas each year.  another korea friend shared that idea with me and i loved it.  so our tags so far list--melbourne '07, hoi an '08, houston '09, phnom penh/laos '10, houston '11/'12/'13, and nashville '14.  james's first christmas i worked on his and made it striped red and green since mine is green and paul's is red.  hard to match the yarn since the initial yarn was bought in seoul and his yarn was bought here locally.  his tag just has houston '12/'13 and nashville '14.  obviously next year i will be making another stocking for baby brother.  so exciting to have this fun family tradition to carry on.  

DPP 2014 / 12.9.14 / accomplishment

paul and i are spoiled when it comes to household chores.  after living in asia for 5.5 years and having house help we just got used to not doing them.  in our current house the chores even get more complicated b/c we don't have a dishwasher.  ugh.  that means all the dishes have to be washed by me and by hand.  i loathe the dishes now.  it's my least fav thing and i can name a long list of things i would rather do instead.  i typically let them pile up and it's becomes this huge pile that stares at me every time i enter the kitchen.  argh.  today though i made the goal to get them done.  i worked on them monday and today since i have to do them in groups.  toddler won't let me do them all at once and the baby boy won't either.  it's hard to stand there without my back starting to hurt anyhow so it works.  i also have to stop, dry and put them away in groups too as our kitchen is small.  it feels good to have them done except for the cups which i plan to finish up tomorrow.  here's to small accomplishments....

DPP 2014 / 12.8.14 / imagination

james has been really into rescue bots at the moment.  we watch them all the time.  yesterday i looked up to find him setting up this entire scene in front of the TV including animals, cars, and then cars that were standing up on their rear bumpers.  he was totally into whatever he was creating.  i love this stage and seeing his imagination at work.  each day there's something new that i am just taking by when he's playing/creating.

DPP 2014 / 12.7.14 / cookies

today i took a cookie decorating class at the skillery.  i just wanted to learn the basics and how to make cute cookies.  last year at my husband's family's christmas eve celebration i scored ninja bread cookie cutters.  super pumped, but have no idea how to do that well or even where to start.  then the class pops up on the skillery's email i get.  bingo!  so today i learned how to put royal icing in a pastry bag, add a tip, and pipe white lines on cookies.  i even learned how to "flood" cookies and add sprinkles and such.  it was fun and relaxing.  i was pretty happy with the outcome and look forward to trying again sooner than later.

DPP 2014 / 12.6.14 / a boy and his toys

we don't leave the house with some collection of toys.  james has a bag that i made him that he calls "backpack" and before we leave he loads it up with a collection of whatever is of interest at the moment.  first trucks, trains, tractors, lego pieces, horses, etc.  i am sure you can imagine.  he plays with them at our destination and is so happy.  i just love him and his passion.  3 weeks and he will be a big brother.  cannot believe it but i think he will be a great brother.

DPP 2014 / 12.5.14 / fresh hair cut

last night the guys got hair cuts.  i love when all little boys have fresh hair cuts.  i have always been the one to notice when my boy students got their hair cut when i was teaching.  i still do love it, but it also reminds me that my first born baby is growing up and becoming more of a little boy each day.  oh how the time flies!

DPP 2014 / 12.4.2014 / tire fix

errands today and one included getting the tire fixed at discount tire.  

DPP 2014 / 12.3.14 / anticipation

the advent season takes on new meaning this year for a few reasons....

one -- we have a toddler who is 2.5 years old and totally gets Christmas.  he got excited when we put up the tree and reading Christmas books.  such fun!  

two -- we also are awaiting the arrival of baby boy.  his arrival is after Christmas on the 29th, but it's fun to prepare in this time of anticipation.  

three -- we are apart of a church community finally and we love it.  the advent season gatherings each week are exciting and the music is exciting.  

james also loves his playmobil nativity i got him to play with during this advent season.  he's been talking about baby jesus and the angel.  so exciting to hear about the Christmas story from your child, at least the parts he plays with.  

DPP 2014 / 12.2.14 / sick kiddo

well kiddo is complaining about his ears hurting again.  we have had something for the last month.  first it was the crud (cough, congestion and lost voice), then double ear infections followed by a hives outbreak, and now he has a cough again.  yesterday he mentioned his ears but i didn't think about it.  today he was poking at them more and even started to upset saying, "hurt."  so tomorrow we will go back to the dr in hopes of getting some relief.  i have had a cough too and ready to be over it as well.  hoping she will make some suggestions so we can recover quickly.

DPP 2014 / 12.1.2014 / sleeping boy

so it's day one of the december photo project and i had lots of ideas going for the first pic of the event.  when i got out of bed this morning though i could not resist just using the peaceful, sleeping subject that is our first born.  he's such a gentle spirit and such a cuddler.  i love that.  we had a great night of rest which compared to the night before was much welcomed for this mama.  i cannot believe he will be 2.5 this week and then later this month baby brother will join our family.