Happy Halloween Y'all!

I YAM WHAT I YAM....

 

POPEYE THE SAILOR MAN says Happy Halloween!

Mom and I got to work (mostly MOM!!) and created Austin's costume.  Mom actually made the entire outfit...impressive, I know!

Tonight we are headed to the Fall Festival at church, maybe an apprearance at Running Club/Malt Shop fundraiser at Fat Mama's and onto our friends neighborhood for trick-or-treating!  I will have to try and distract Austin and take a few pics of him with his hat on and his can of spinach (aka a sippy cup with a spinach exterior). Should be a fun night!  Can't wait to see his reaction to the other kids!



The Jex Crew +Popeye and a Fairy

Grammy, Papa and Popeye

Longwood decorated for Halloween- pure awesomeness!

Hope everyone has a safe and spooky Halloween!  I can't wait to see what yummy treats Austin gets!!!

"Sweetpea" Updates

I feel really bad that it has taken me over a week to post this update on Sweetpea (aka baby 2.0). I feel like I had blogged by the time I got home from the appointment the first time around but that is because these days I am time-poor with a toddler running around. But I promised myself not to make excuses and make sure I do everything for Sweatpea (or close to) that I did for Austin.

So let's rewind and here is the update from the 9 week appointment and the 13 week appointment. The comments in RED are the notes from the corresponding weeks from when I was pregnant with Austin for the sake of comparing. In my mind Austin's pregnancy was a breeze compared to this one but I am sure I just conveniently forgot all the bad stuff.

9wk Side View "Hi Mom"

9wk Front View of the Gummy Bear "Hi Dad"

9wk Heartbeat (most beautiful sound ever) 164bpm

September 17, 2012: 9 Week Appointment
Expected Due Date: April 22, 2013
Next Dr. Appointment: October 15...second sonogram!

Size of baby: Sweatpea is the size of a prune...1.5"

Doc Says: Heartbeat is 164 BPM (great) and body is measuring 9 weeks. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: No weight loss/gain.
With Austin: Lost 1.5lbs but don't you worry I have been eating like a 300lb truck driver. My theory is this lil baby must be a Jex Boy and requires A LOT of nourishment just like his daddy.

Maternity Clothes: Not yet.
With Austin: Not needed yet

Gender: ??
Sickness: Not much, some stomach aches at night.
With Austin: I don't always feel so fabulous right before I go to bed but wake up feeling normal.

Workout: Maybe get in one workout a week, I have been working way too much and got super lazy. 

With Austin: Working out 3-4 times a week. Still doing Turbo Kick but at a much lower intensity than I used to. Would love to still be running but it is way too cold outside!

Movement: Not yet

With Austin: Won't have any for a while...Sweet Pea is too small.

Sleep: Too much, I am falling asleep everywhere.
With Austin: Like a log as always.

Pregnancy Highlights: Not too many symptoms, didn’t think it was real until the appointment.

With Austin:  It's been great so far, if all of my pregnancies are like this I might have 10 kids.

What I miss: Never really started drinking caffeine again after Austin so I don’t miss it.
With Austin: Clear skin. Sometimes I miss Dr. Pepper and Sweet Tea, I gave up caffeine altogether.

Cravings/Aversions: Baked Potatoes and Cheetos!

I crave Baked Potatoes- I literally could have them for every meal. Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches are always yummy in fact I have one every night as my second dinner. I cannot stand the sight of grilled chicken or fish.

Symptoms: Light headed, tired, Broken out skin (that was the first indication I was preggo)

With Austin: Hunger, Bust has grown a size-boooo! Sleepiness- not during the day but around 9pm I feel like I have been drugged...I was a night owl, not anymore.

Best Moment this week: Going to the doctor and seeing the baby and finally being able to confirm we have another miracle on the way!  This baby was such a surprise that for the last 5 weeks since the positive test at the doctor’s office I have been so nervous/hopeful/skeptical.

13wk Side View- Precious Profile

13 wk Front View- "Hi Big Brother"

 

13wk Heartbeat- 146bpm

Waving Hi!

 

October 15, 2012: 13 Week Appointment (2^nd Trimester!!)
Expected Due Date: April 22, 2013
Next Dr. Appointment: November 12

Size of baby: Sweetpea is the size of a peach!
Doc Says: Heartbeat is 146 BPM (great) and the baby is measuring right on time. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 3 lbs (not sure if I should attribute that to lack of exercise and poor eating or is it legitimately the baby??)
With Austin: Gained 1/2lb!!!!!I have worked hard for that ½ lb too.

Maternity Clothes: Pants are really snug so I wear dresses all the time, can’t wear button up shorts anymore.  So I guess the answer is yes.

With Austin: Not yet

Gender: ??  (First I wanted another boy so we could have a Zach/Kellen repeat, now I am not sure I ever want to be pregnant again so I want a girl to complete the ratio.)

Sickness: 1^st Tri was AWFUL, never actually got sick but felt nauseated all day every day.  Bad headaches, really tired and sick to my stomach after meals.  Starting to feel more human lately.
With Austin: As of NYE I have been feeling great!

Workout: Rare if any.  We go to running club once a week but I don’t do the full run. I am starting to consider chasing Austin my workout.  I know that is pitiful but I have felt terrible. Hope to get active soon!  I don’t feel like myself.

With Austin: Working out 3 times a week…can’t wait for spring to be here so I can get out and run/walk again!

Movement: I have felt strong flutters.
With Austin: Not yet.

 Sleep: I think I am narcoleptic. It’s pitiful.

With Austin: Sleeping well!

Pregnancy Highlights: None yet, this one is a doozy. My teenager skin cleared up, I guess you could call that a win.
With Austin: Being able to eat more than normal and actually wanting to gain weight!

What I miss: Having the energy/drive to workout, feeling normal.

With Austin: Still miss that clear skin...but it is getting better.

Cravings/Aversions: Nothing stands out at this point.

With Austin: Bagels, Baked Potatoes, Fruit, Sushi (only the cooked rolls I know!) and Hummus w/ Pita Bread (yeah I know it’s crazy)

Symptoms: Big ole’ boobs, stomach is expanding faster, tired, light headed

With Austin: I feel pretty normal at the moment (Thank God!)

Best Moment this week: Seeing Austin interact with his cousin Julia Claire and other kids and thinking how much he is going to love having a sibling.  He loves kids and plays so well with others.  He is gentle and shares.

So proud of our little boy

The last week I have been blown away on a daily basis by things Austin is doing or saying.  I guess as parents we are always talking to him and explaining the world and when they start picking up on things you said it just takes you a minute to realize what just happened.

I wish I had a reality show following this kid to get it all on video. Sorry for lack of pictures but here are some fun things going on in the world of Austin:

• Sunday morning I was in the kitchen cooking breakfast for everyone and I had Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on in the den so Austin could have something to watch while drinking his milk, although Austin has absolutely no interest in that or any other cartoon.  He was playing in the kitchen and I said "why don't you go watch MMC and drink your milk" and he looked at me and walked out of the room.  A minute later he returns to the kitchen wearing his giant Mickey Mouse hands.  I fell out laughing that he made that connection since he only had those gloves for a day.
• The ladies in his daycare class told me today he is adjusting great to the big boy class. He loves to play with the other kids and is an excellent napper.  They said even if he isn't sleepy the whole time he lays on his mat quietly the entire 2 hours until nap time is over.  What a big boy!
• When i put pancakes on his highchair he hovers his hand over them first to make sure they aren't hot.  Smart boy!
• Every night when I say time for bed, he drops what he is doing walks towards the staircase and signs "brush teeth"
• He can now open and close the front door.  He knows it takes a lot of leverage so he puts one hand on the lever and one hand on the door pull and pushes the door open. Then he scoots over to let me come through and shuts the door behind us.
• He can identify all his common body parts- ears, eyes, nose, head, belly, feet, hands.  I love when we say "blink your eyes" and he squints really hard like he's starring at the sun.  
• If he sees a brush or comb he pics it up and brushes his hair.
• Saying WOW and BOOM at the fireworks and the hot air balloons.
• Picks up a book or paper and starts jabbering non stop like he's reading it.

This is such a fun age and he is such a happy little guy.  I don't think I heard him cry one time the entire weekend with all the company in town.  He is full of so much life and laughter!

I couldn't ask for more as a mother.  I feel so blessed!

le bebe #2

As most of you know, we are expecting our 2nd child!  We had been keeping the secret for almost 2 months so it feels really good to finally be able to tell everyone our good news. 

I have been keeping a private journal/blog since the day we found out and I might post those later.  I try to keep all the details recorded so I can look back and remember the small things, okay who am I fooling, I need help remembering the big things these days!  I love looking back on my journaling from Austin's pregnancy and comparing the two....night and day!   Many have told me that's a sure sign of a girl but as one of my straight-shooting medical friends told me, "it means nothing". So we are excited to find out what we are having this time around since I have felt so different than I did the first time.  I find it entertaining that before we knew we were pregnant I swore I didn't want to know the gender of baby #2 but within minutes of finding out we were expecting I knew we had to find out!  So I think we will be finding out the week of Thanksgiving.

One Talented Family

I was going through pictures on my computer the other day and realized that most of my favorite pictures over the past 15 months came from 3 talented women that all have one thing in common....they are a Tillman.  I would like to think Austin is just "that cute" but in all reality these girls can do things behind the lens that is nothing short of magic.  They each photographed him at different ages yet captured his personality.  That might not mean much to you if you aren't around him often but it's amazing when you see a picture of your child and immediately think, "that's Austin to a T".

 

I have to admit that over 95% of the pictures I have taken of this little love bug have been on my iPhone, yeah I know slap my wrist!  Katie told me she was taking an online class to become more skilled and it kindled a little fire within me.  I set a goal to get out the Canon Rebel, dust it off and learn how to really use the darn thing by the time Baby 2 arrives.  Thanks Katie for inspiring me!

 

Let me make one thing clear, don't expect Tillman quality the day I deliver, or even 6 years later for that matter.  Just be patient as it will be a work in progress and expect many imperfect yet sweet pictures.  I just want to be able to get the basic skills down now that there are about to be 2 tiny Jexes in this world.

 

 

So on to the good stuff:  Here are my favs!!

 

 

Courtesy of Katie G. Tillman

www.katietillmanphotography.com

 

Austin @ 14 1/2 months

 

 

 

 

 

Courtesy of Becky T. Jex

http://rebeccajex.blogspot.com

 

Austin @ 12 months

Austin @ 9 months

Courtesy of Amanda T. Shea

http://amandasheaphotography.com/

 

Austin @ 3 months

 



 

 

 

Go ahead, say it........these ladies are good!!!