10 Little Fingers, 10 Little Toes

We would like to introduce the newest member of our family:

Ryder Brooks Walpole
August 19, 2011

8 pounds : 10 ounces

20 inches

We have been so blessed with this sweet little baby boy! We are so thankful to finally be able to hold him in our arms. My friend Amy Hough was able to make it to the hospital in time to capture some of the sweetest moments as we met our sweet baby! I'm so thankful to have these images that will help me relive such a crazy whirlwind of a day. Thanks for all of your prayers and support as we start this new adventure.

Keep posted to see his newborn pictures by Amy soon!

That feeling right before vacation....

So, even though I won't be at work for a couple months once Ryder arrives, it won't really be considered a 'vacation'....I do know and understand this. But, right now, at this very moment, I have that similar mixture of anxiety and excitement going on...the feeling that you get right before you leave to go on vacation.

I'm pretty sure that I have everything ready, and I keep telling myself that I know what to expect, but I really don't. It's kinda like on Big Brother, 'Expect the Unexpected', right? I really don't know what to expect and there is still a slight 'fear of the unknown.' Did you have that feeling before you had your first child? What are some other experiences when you felt that same way?

I've had a little time today to get some things done, run some errands, ate lunch with my hubby at Log Cabin (which I had been craving some BBQ Dip and Chips and Salsa...thought maybe the jalapenos and salsa might put some fire under Ryder too!), went by The Children's Shoppe, and made it back home just in time for the HAIL STORM....really?!? It's 104 degrees outside, and ice the size of gumballs starts falling from the sky!

After the hailstorm, it was time for me to get ready for sweet Ayla Williams' 10th birthday party! Ayla is the daughter of some of our closest friends, Kate and Casey Williams. She was adopted from Ukraine a little less than one year ago. I have completely fallen for her....she is so precious and I am so proud of how far she has come since her arrival to the States.

Happy 10th Birthday, Ayla! Love you and I can't wait to watch, as you grow into the young lady that God has created you to be!

Ryder's Got Mail!

Ryder got a package in the mail today....addressed just to him! I went ahead and opened it for him....I hope he won't get mad! If he loves getting mail and packages as much as his mom does, he might! So, the package was from his friend Parker Alan Jennings (and his parents, Jeff and Kristy). These are some of our dear friends that live in South Carolina. They used to live down the street from us, and now they live very far away! We miss them dearly, but get to visit with them every now and then when they come to Louisiana to visit family. We are hoping to take a family trip up to South Carolina sometime to go see them.

So, here is what was in Ryder's package:

That's all for tonight....after a late night last night, I'm calling it an early night. I will say, however, it was really nice to work only half a day today. I was able to sleep in a little bit, go for a walk, and spend some time preparing for baby Ryder. I will say that we're one step closer, one day closer to meeting our sweet little baby! I can't wait!!!

The Big Reveal

You've been waiting patiently, and I've been withholding.

Finally, I will let you see the nursery.

But, not before you see the reason why I am so late getting this post up.

We just returned home from the 3oth celebration of 'The Happening'. It's kinda like the 'State of the Union' address, except more like the 'State of the

University' address for Louisiana Tech University, my alma mater. J. and I were excited to be able to be in attendance! Here are just a couple of images from tonights event. We had a great time and always love attending events, and supporting 'our school'. Tonight's guest speaker was Kix Brooks. What a fun surprise! Kix is a proud Louisiana Tech alumni and supports the University. He gave the audience a little mini concert to close out his time on stage. He sang "Red Dirt Road" and "Only in America". It was really great to hear him speak, along with Coach Sonny Dykes, our head football coach, and Louisiana Tech President Dan Reneau giving updates on the university and athletics.

So....here are the long-awaited images of the nursery. Just to tell you a little bit about the nursery, I picked a color scheme, and my mom and her sister, Pati, helped me find fabrics. Mom (with Pati's assistance) made all of the bedding and curtains. Mom and I made the bulletin board in Ryder's closet. The green pieces were furniture that was in my college room that J. and I painted a while back to match my college bedding....in the back of my mind, I always knew I would want to incorporate them into a nursery. The painted canvas above his bed is by my friend Rachel McGehee of Peek-a-Bootique. And the cross canvas is by my good friend Kristy Lonsberry! I'm still waiting on the dresser that has been on backorder from PotteryBarn Kids for over 3 months!!! So, there are still a couple of loose ends, and the items on the shelf are not definite, but I knew that all of you wanted to see pics....and I've only given a sneak peek via Instagram....so, here it is!

Picture Perfect

So, todays blog post is a montage of Maternity pictures! I've been super busy today with work, and then once J. got home, he was ready for supper (which I didn't have prepared...that's another story for another day), then we ate dinner, headed to Louisiana Tech football practice (yes, 9 months pregnant....I'm devoted!). We got home, fixed a little bit of Tech Dairy yogurt (R.I.P. Tech Dairy), J. hung a shelf in Ryders room while I caught up on Big Brother, then I folded a load of laundry (trying to stay ahead before Ryder's arrival), and NOW, I'm FINALLY getting around to trying to meet my daily blog deadline.....I hope you enjoy!

Okay, so the first batch of them were taken by my fabulous cousin, Alyce Blackstone. She is a mom of 3 and enjoys doing photography on the side. I was so grateful when she offered to take our pictures. And, it worked out great when we were in Baton Rouge one weekend!

This next series is from one of my really good friends, Amy Hough. Amy and I met at Louisiana Tech, and became very good friends when we were on Orientation staff together. She is a very talented photographer, and has started her business, which she does in addition to her 'day job' as a jeweler in Little Rock, Arkansas. Something that I am so very excited about is that she is trying to make it to Ruston in time to capture Ryder's arrival in the delivery room. She will also be taking Ryder's newborn pictures as well!

I hope you enjoyed the images!

Again, thanks to my 2 wonderful photographers!!!!

All My Bags Are Packed.....

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go.....

I've got all of my bags gathered in the living room, J. won't let me put them in the car just yet!

But, nevertheless, we are ready! Here are the things that I have gathered to throw in the car when we are ready:

1. Ryder's bag. This precious bag is one of 2 diaper bags that my fabulous Aunt Pati Ivey made for me! She is so incredibly talented...it even has a matching changing pad to accompany it! Okay, I think I've got everything that I need in it. I packed 3 outfits (hats and socks included), 3 blankets (one is handmade by J.'s grandmother), pacifiers and paci-clip, a few newborn diapers, wipes, baby lotion, a burp cloth, my birth plan, and my ItzBeen!

2. Ryder's 'Coming Home Outfit'. It's pressed and ready to go! This was the outfit that J. wore when he came home from the hospital!

3. My Kelly Moore Bag. It's packed with my camera, lenses, charger and memory card!

4. My bag. I've got some reading materials (including notes from our hospital childbirth class, a breastfeeding book that my friend Tori gave me, and my Pregnancy Journal), pajamas, nursing bras, pads, and cream, toiletries, a couple of loose-fitting outfits, mints, lip balm, headband, slippers, my Aloe socks, and a robe!

5. Ryder's Baby Book from Ruby Love Designs. I love this book.....it's perfect for him. I made sure to order the extra page for his hand/feet prints at birth! I've just got to remember to have it out when they do his prints....I've put J. in charge of that, but he thinks that he will be the one in trauma, not me!

6. Wreaths. Two very special people in my life (both that work at hospitals) gave me wreaths for our room at the hospital. My cousin, Alissa, gave me a precious wreath made of diapers that has some goodies for Ryder on it. My friend, Audrey, had a grapevine wreath made for him that is super-cute! Both will have a home in our hospital room and will be great additions to spruce up the room!

7. Gifts. I know, I know. I went a little overboard, but I couldn't help it. Just a small token of appreciation for hospital staff, visitors and friends. Think of it kinda like cigars, but I wanted to do something different.

8. Oh, and the Car Seat. That's kinda important. I hear they won't let you leave the hospital without it. So, J. has already installed it in the car, and it is ready to go....ready to carry our sweet little boy home.

What am I missing? What were some of your favorite things that you had at the hospital with you? Any ideas? I am completely open to suggestions......

Bright as a Full Moon

So, I'm curious. Myth or Fact? Does anyone believe the statement regarding Full Moons inducing labor? I've been curious, you know why? Well, I'm 39 weeks pregnant and tonight there is a FULL MOON. Well, technically according the the almanac, the Full Moon phase begins:

Saturday, August 13, 2011 at 1:58 PM

So, there you have it. What do you think? Do you think I'll be heading to Northern Louisiana Medical Center in 3 hours? We'll see.....I'll keep you posted.

What other things besides a full moon have you heard are labor inducers? Which do you trust? I am definitely open to suggestions. I have been waiting to meet this baby for a long time....not just 9 months.

The 3 Pregnanteers

So, if I would've told you last October that these 3 girls in the picture below would all have a baby boys come this October, would you believe me?

Probably not! But, it is true, so very true!

So, I told you that 2 of my co-workers, 2 of my very good friends found out that they were pregnant right before I found out. Well, this is us! Here we are!

5 weeks....that's all....just 5 weeks between our due dates and come to find out, we are all 3 having BOYS!

It has been a fun 9 months as we have been able to share the joys and pain of pregnancy. The 3 of us, it just seemed like a dream....we kept pinching ourselves, trying to figure out how all 3 of us ended up pregnant at the same time.

Here are a couple of pics throughout our 9 month journey together:

Our 'Triple Baby Shower' that was hosted by our work family!

The 3 of us during our 'Triple Maternity Shoot'!

We love our BOYS and we love our BULLDOGS!

So, Bryce Rylan Busby and John Mark Jeffords have already made their entrance into the world, we are just waiting on the arrival of Ryder Brooks Walpole. We can't wait for play dates and birthday parties! So thankful to share this journey with 2 great girls!!!!

A Baby Story

Day 1 of making up for lost time:

So, I don't think I've ever shared our story....that is, our Baby Story.

Disclaimer: This is a little personal....

When we got married June of 2006, we had decided that we were going to wait 3 years before we starting trying to have kids. Two years in, we couldn't stand it. Both of us adore children and we knew that were were ready to begin the journey to parenthood. Lo and behold, God had other plans. It's odd how sometimes how something you want so badly can be something that you have absolutely no control of it. Things can be so far out of our hands, but held so closely to our hearts.

So, the journey continued...

First, I wanted to make sure that I found the right doctor. An OB/GYN is not really the type of doctor you want to keep 'testing' out to find the right one. But, it did take a while for me to find one that I was truly comfortable with and was confident was working with me/us through our fertility journey. I absolutely love my doctor and his staff. They have been so supportive throughout this trying time in our lives.

We went through some testing, did 3 rounds of aggressive fertility treatments, and finally after 2 years of 'trying', we decided to pursue a diagnostic laparoscopy. If you don't know, this is a surgical procedure to evaluate and determine if there was anything going on in the abdomen/pelvis that would prevent pregnancy to occur. During this outpatient surgery, Dr. Smith found 2 cysts, one on each of my ovaries along with twisted Fallopian tubes. Well, folks....I think we found a problem. Post-operation, Dr. Smith encouraged us to give it couple of months to see if we were able to get pregnant; if not, we would add the fertility treatments back in.

Well, the surgery was on November 30th. Since the surgery, I was doing fine, just praying that we were able to fix the problem. My desire to have children deepened more and more each day as the void continued. It was very, very bittersweet to watch some of my very close friends experience the joy of pregnancy and childbirth. I kept thinking 'My day will come!'.

Days went by, and I hadn't received a visit from my anticipated 'monthly visitor'. I inquired to my doctors office, and they said that the surgery can throw off my cycle and to just give it time for my body to adjust from the surgery. My body needed time, and so I gave it time. How much time is too much time, you ask? I gave it about 3 weeks. During which 2 of my closest friends/co-workers both informed me that they were expecting (that is a whole 'nother story for another day). My friendly Nurse Practitioner friend grabbed a pregnancy test and laid it on my desk....encouraging me to take it. Now, remember, I've been trying for 2 years; pregnancy tests are NOT my friend. So, I avoided it........I'd think about it after lunch.

After sitting through our weekly family lunch at Dowling's, not uttering a 'peep' about why I don't have an appetite or why my teeth are chattering, I returned to my desk and looked under the paper where I hid the test.....it was just staring at me. I bit the bullet.

Snuck away to the restroom, and before I could walk back into my office door, TWO little pink lines appeared! Now, remember, I know how these things work.....they take FOREVER to develop just one little pink line, much less TWO!!! Needless to say, I couldn't contain my excitement.....much less believe my eyes!

You're thinking, I bet you can't wait to tell J.! I couldn't, but I think my utter amazement caused the order of telling people to get mixed up just a little bit. I was literally BURSTING at the seams!!!! Sarah, one of my expectant co-workers, was talking to a client.....and I rudely (not on purpose, of course) interrupted and practically forced her to come into our office at that very instance. I couldn't help it.....I opened the palms of my hands to reveal the most amazing miracle! She was ecstatic....we were like kids in a candy shop, jumping up and down, screaming (as loudly as you can when you work in a spa), and we shared tears of joy!

Only God knows the specifics of this magical journey, but I know that His hand was instrumental in helping create the miracle that I will be meeting in the next few days. I cannot express enough how blessed I feel to be loved and protected by a faithful God.

You know, my life has always proved to follow the motto: "Third time's a Charm!". And, here, I will agree....3 years later, after months of anticipation, my little one, our little miracle will be joining our family.

i am blessed.

I'm so behind.....

I'm pretty embarrassed that I am so behind on my blog posting. Things have been pretty intense preparing for baby Ryder's arrival. And now, we are down to 10 days (or less) before he makes his grand entrance, and you haven't even seen the nursery. You haven't seen the stroller, pictures from my showers, or maternity images that have been taken. And I know this, because, you, my readers have reminded me over and over again!

I am making a vow to blog for the next 10 days to catch you up on all of the fun things that have been going on over the past few months. Disclaimer: If Ryder arrives before then, I am excused for a little bit, but will catch back up within the first week or so after his arrival.

Please accept my apology, and yes, I am setting a reminder on my calendar as I type to blog everyday for the next 10 days.

Thanks for your support and prayers as J. and I enter this new phase of our lives. We are so excited about a new adventure.