Three Week HolliB pictures

These are a few of my favorite shots from HolliB's newborn session with Tucker. (www.hollibphotography.com) She's so good! When your best friends are immensely talented you gotta play to their strengths. He's so big now and already looks totally different but, enjoy my sweet baby anyway!

Heart Storage

I've always heard how Mary treasured the things surrounding Jesus' birth and infancy in her heart and until Tucker I couldn't truly appreciate what that meant. So to make sure I remember the little things that I love most I'm going to make a list. Here are just some of my favorites...
How Tucker holds my finger when I'm feeding him his bottle.
The way only I can soothe him sometimes. He's already a bit of a Momma's boy and I LOVE it! Maybe a little too much.
How his butt fits into one hand.
The feeling of his angel soft hair.
Any noise he ever makes. Cooing, grunting or sometimes even his cries are cute.
His weight against my chest. It is the most soothing feeling to feel us breath together.
How I feel to see others love my baby. Especially my grandparents and parents. It's crazy how a baby can melt hearts and conquer life long prejudices in just a few seconds.
His studious expressions as he investigates new people, places and situations. (Which seems like almost every time he wakes up. Poor guy always in a new place)
His soft cheek against mine.
His response to my voice when others are holding him.
How he loves me to sing him to sleep. He already calms down when we sing songs.
How tight he grips my finger. That was the first way I got to touch him as the nurse cleaned him off in the delivery room so I think that will always be a special feeling to me.
When he's hungry or just wants his paci, how he'll suck on my shoulder or neck until I can get what he wants in his mouth.
When I know/think he's hungry my test is to kiss close to his mouth and if he is hungry he will turn his head and try to suck on my lips. Precious kisses!

And my sweet boy is waking so that's all for now. I'm sure this will be a running list.

Two in one day!

I know I just posted but my baby is sleeping good this evening so...

I came across this on another blog and thought I'd humor myself for a few minutes. Go ahead and try it yourself...it will either make you say, "wow I've done a lot of things in my life!" OR "wow - I really need to get out more." In my case...it was the latter. Go through and highlight the ones that apply to you!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band...sang with one but I don't think it counts
4. Visited Hawaii...HONEYMOON
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disney
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped or cliff jumped ...ah Vic Falls. One of my fondest memories.
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a thunder and lightning storm
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child...Biggest blessing of my life. Seriously.
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables...I sometimes think I would like that but...
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked... I don't know if being picked up and riding with a scary man to a gas station counts but it happened in college
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill...oh the days of dating my husband. I was NOT a good employee.
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon...don't understand the motivation to do something so crazy!
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run...yeah right do you know me?
32. Been on a cruise...great college memories! And we're going again in August with the fam.
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied...livin' on love baby!
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing...thank you Steven Charles
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David in person
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa...One of those experiences that literally made me who I am.
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling...another illegal activity supervised, no initiated by my mother.
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater...one of our favorite Chickasha activities
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies...oh thin mints sound sooo delicious!
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason...that's the only time I get them. The hubs doesn't like to be predicatble
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Been sky diving...on the bucket list. I wanted to do it before motherhood, guess that didn't work out.
66. Visited a Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book...do the ones you make online count? I've done that.
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car...we just got a new to us car that we LOVE. Hooray for the Volvo!
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Gotten a tattoo
94. Had a baby...kinda. That's an upcoming post. All about my un-pregnancy.
95. Seen the Alamo in person...Senior Trip 2001
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Well that was fun for me if no one else. Hope you enjoyed it!

A New Summer

This summer feels different. It is going to be different, at least for me. Summer for the Gordon's usually means camps, kids, trips, no sleep and something going all the time and for one of us it still will be. But for Momma G all of that has changed. It was inevitable and I knew it was coming. However, that knowledge hasn't lessened the blow.
As soon as we found out Tucker was coming I backed out of all of my summer commitments without hesitation. Summer is now here and Super Summer is next weekend and I'm not going. for real. I guess I just feel left out in some ways. In youth ministry summer is our busy season. It's the time where relationships flourish and memories are made. I don't know what that looks like with an infant. Tucker has changed everything about our life and we love it, this piece of the puzzle is just harder somehow.
From Chris's perspective - he is bummed because he will be apart from us so much of the time and I won't be by his side for every event. He isn't as excited as usual because he still HAS to do all that we usually do together. When you spend the majority of your time working together it's hard when half of the team is missing.
Usually by this point in the year I have been at the church at least three days a week for several weeks. I have to do lists in order. People lined up to help. Copies of forms color coded. Office and medical boxes ready for trips. But not this year. I haven't even figured out how to shower everyday little alone how to accomplish life as it used to be. I'm not complaining. I LOVE getting to be a Momma and I wouldn't trade it. All of this is just part of the transition process and I don't know that having nine months instead of three weeks to get ready would've made any difference for this leg of the journey.