Yee Haw, Cowboy

I don't know if you celebrated Go Texas! Day yesterday but Maggie did at her school. Rory was not about to let Maggie wear her cowgirl boots without him wearing his cowboy boots too. They both got all dressed-up in their hats, boots and bandannas. Rory started out wearing pants, by the way, but got up from his nap and immediately put his boots back on. Who says that cowboys and Spiderman can't fight the bad guys together?

They even decided to get Sullivan in on the ho-down and propped Rory's hat on him while he was sleeping. That kid is learning early how to sleep through (literally) ANYTHING!

Can't help it...

This is the only thing that anyone can do when they hold sweet Sully. He gets kissed all day everyday. He sleeps a lot still so he is very cuddly and kissable.

My mom is staying with us this week and I couldn't love having her here more! She is being such a big help with the kids and the housework that I'm not supposed to be doing. It's hard to "take it easy" when you feel like there's so much to be done. Both she and Casey are making me sit and rest a lot, though.

More Pictures

It's taken me a while to get all of the pictures taken at Sully's birth all compiled onto my computer and hopefully you're not sick of seeing pictures yet. These are my favorites from the hospital.

We are so in love with little Sully and although we are still adjusting to being sleep deprived, we are enjoying every minute of having a new baby in our house!

Goodbye, Aunt Robin

My sister left today. I was so sad to see her go. She has been such a huge emotional and physical support for me this week. She is the perfect person to make me laugh when I'm down, to tell me I'm being too much of a perfectionist and need to relax, take care and love on my kids just the way I would, and made for a fantastic support system when my delivery didn't turn out the way I was expecting it to. She cleaned, cooked, babysat, held my hand, made a photo album for Maggie to take to school to show off her new brother, filled my prescriptions... just about anything and everything that needed to be done!

I love you, Robin and miss you already. Thank you for being Mom #2 to my kids this week and for being by my side to help me welcome Sully into our family.

Our First Family Outting

Visitors

Loving Sully

We love this little man so much already! We're still in the hospital. I've got until tomorrow to recover from my C-section and take advantage of the 24 hour nursery service.

Here are some pictures of my family who can't stop lovin' him either...

Sullivan Stone O'Quinn

Welcome Baby O!

Sullivan Stone O'Quinn

arrived via c-section at 8:36pm, February 19th

6 pounds 10 ounces

Update #9 - It's a......

BOY!!!!

He is finally here! We don't have an official name yet, Carly is still in the OR, Casey is in the nursery with the baby. I got to talk to the proud big sister and Aunt Robin, everyone is thrilled. He is the littlest O'Quinn, weighing in at 6 pounds 10 ounces (Maggie and Rory were both 8'3). I'll let you know when I hear his name and hopefully I'll have pictures tomorrow to post!

Carly - you are a Rock Star Super Mom...Good job and praise the LORD for this sweet little boy and his safe arrival!

Update #8

8:15pm The Baby's heart rate just dropped again, so they are prepping her for a c-section. Baby should be here with in the hour, depending on how quickly they get her into the OR...

Lindsay

Update #7

7:15pm We've got some action! The pitocin is kicking in and both Carly and baby are doing great on it. Carly is now a 6-7, so that's great news. Now that things are moving, I won't update again until I get the call that this baby is here...hopefully it won't be too long now! Yay!

Lindsay

Update #6

6:11pm You guys sick of me yet? :) Just heard from Robin...Carly is still at a 4, she and the baby are tolerating a light dose of Pitocin, but it's just not enough to get her dialating more. They are going to try and increase the dosage again, but if the baby has one more "cardiac episode", it sounds like they will take her in for a c-section. She is hanging in there and of course, wants to do what is best for the baby. Robin and her mom are still up there with her and will be until the baby is born. Continue to pray for them and sweet Baby O, who is sure keeping us guessing!

Lindsay

Update #5

5:30pm I don't have much of an update right now. I talked to our friend Amy, who is up at the hospital, about 30 minutes ago. She said that Carly is back on the pitocin and the baby is doing good, but Carly's heart rate was dropping some. When we talked, they had her sitting up, she was doing well and the contractions were coming closer together, so they were hopeful that she was progressing. That's all I know right now...more when I hear something else...

Lindsay

Baby Update #4

2:40pm Still no baby. Everytime they turn the pitocin on, the baby's heart rate drops. She is not contracting without the pitocin, so she has not progressed any. She is actually at a 4, not a 5 as I said in the other updates. They are letting her rest for 45 minutes, then will try the pitocin again. If that doesn't work, they will discuss alternate methods for getting this baby out.

Already, he or she is being a little stinker!

Lindsay

Baby Update #3

1:00pm Carly is hanging in there. The baby does not seem to like the Pitocin, his or her heart rate keeps dropping, so they have it turned off for now. She is still a 5. They are going to let her go on her own for a little bit and see what the next couple of hours bring. Carly is resting right now. Pray for them, for Baby O to come on out safe, sound and soon, for peace and rest for Carly and Casey.

Lindsay

Baby Update #2

11:00am I just got a call from Robin. Carly is at a 3 and 90% effaced. Her water has been broken, she's getting Pitocin and is happy on her epidural. They are letting her rest for an hour and then will check in on her again.

Any last minute predictions? Will the nursery stay blue or will someone be frantically painting it pink before Carly and baby arrive home?

Lindsay

Baby Update #1

7:30am Carly is on her way to the hospital! She called this morning at 5:30and they told her no beds yet, so she went back to bed and got a little sleep. She woke up to a phone call from the charge nurse telling her to come on in! Baby O'Quinn will be here some time today! I'll update when I hear something new.

Lindsay

Maybe Baby?

If you don't know me...I'm a planner.

This induction thing actually works well for me because I can make arrangements and not have to have the sporadic dash to the hospital. For this delivery, though, I fall somewhere in the middle. I'm on a "Stand-by List" for a bed tomorrow morning. That means that I have to wake up and start calling to see if a bed is available at 5:30 am. Potentially, I can go right in and have no problems getting this baby ball rolling. Or it could be later in the afternoon. Or it could be Wednesday before they can get me in.

This doesn't work well for me!!!

On top of the not knowing when...I've gone 9 months not knowing WHO? "It...the Baby...he/she". I'm ready to meet this mystery bundle, give it a name and let the snuggling begin.

I know that God has Casey and I and this baby in the palm of His hands and knows exactly how this should play out so I'm praying mostly for the peace and patience to deal with whatever the outcome may be tomorrow.

I will have a substitute blogger filling-in while I'm in the hospital to give you all the play-by-play of what's going on. Check back often and make my dear, sweet friend, Lindsay feel welcome over here :o) and hopefully the next post you read will have something to do with the arrival of a new, precious O'Quinn.

The Cavalry Has Arrived!

I am thrilled to say that in anticipation for my induction next week, my sister has flown in to help with preparations/labor cheer section/post-baby care for me and my family. I love her so much and am thrilled to have her here. Her kids spent part of last week sick so they got nixed from her trip which made me sad for my kids not to have playmates but at the same time, grateful to have her full and undivided attention. It is quite strange to be having a baby without her since both our previous children have arrived within 2 months of each other.

I love her dearly and have already put her to work helping me make Big Brother/Sister shirts for the kids! She has truly come to my rescue. She has fully stepped in to tie the kids shoes, lift and buckle them into the car and entertain them in general. It's so nice to have a back-up mom here to do the things that I'm no longer physically capable of!

Thank you for coming to be by my side, Robbs! I love you.

Be My Baby

I've been singing that 60's song...you know the one from Dirty Dancing..."be my, be my baby, be my little baby..."

well, I can't stop singing it to Rory because the reality that he is only going to be the baby for 5 more days has really set-in. He's always been my little cuddle bug, my tight squeeze around the neck, says "I love you, Mommy" without me saying it first little baby boy.

I remember when he was born and Maggie climbed into the hospital bed next to me thinking how in an instant...she'd grown-up. Her hands looked big, her legs felt thick and her face seemed to possess a wisdom that it hadn't the day before. Something about seeing how far she'd come since she was a baby compared to her new little brother made me so sad and I know that I will feel the same way about Rory next week.

I love you, my baby! Don't grow-up too fast.

My Valentine

Remember when Valentine's Day was all about the perfect present, the perfect date, the perfect restaurant and the perfect outfit to show your sweetheart how much you loved them? I remember Casey and I's first Valentine's Day like it was yesterday.

It was February 14, 1997 and we had been dating about 2 weeks. I was so smitten with this new boy in my life and wanted to get him the perfect thing to say, "I know we're not that serious yet, but I sure do like you".

I made him a gift basket called "A Gift for the Senses" and put five items in it that I thought he'd enjoy:
Something to Smell- a candle of the Gap perfume, Heaven, I wore that he always said he liked
Something to Taste- a bunch of his favorite gum (Winterfresh) that I always debated with him wasn't as good as my favorite, Ice Breakers
Something to See- After 2 weeks of dating, he said he wanted a picture of me so I got him a little one in a frame
Something to Touch- a cheesy V-Day teddy bear
Something to Hear- The classic 90's dating gift...a mix tape of "how I feel" songs. I remember Jewel's You Were Meant For Me and a Gin Blossom's song that he really liked but other than that, I can't remember what the tape consisted of.

I have been asked to refrain from divulging what he got for me even though I thought it was sweet and thoughtful at the time and got a good laugh about it tonight.

We ate at a little restaurant called Clementine's and I thought the whole evening was so romantic.

We've been discussing how we want to celebrate this Valentine's Day. We've come up with the perfect date...
The perfect place- our house
The perfect restaurant- Chili's to go
The perfect outfit- pjs
The perfect present- a new little baby in 5 more days

To my perfect Valentine,
I love the being even more than the falling!

The Green Machine

Grandpa got a new toy for the grandkids to play with. We've already nicknamed it "The Green Machine". It's a cute little ATV for the kids to take out on adventures on the land behind my parent's house.

Maggie was cautious and a little intimidated at first but took right to driving it herself. Rory is not big enough to go out by himself, of course, but had so much fun going out with his Daddy and splashing through the mud. I think that Daddy had a good time too!

Valentine's Day

Click here to see how Casey and I plan to celebrate Valentine's Day together...
Enjoy!

Getting Cosy

My in-laws went on a cruise this past week and we kept their little poodle, Cosette (a.k.a. Cosy). I was actually looking forward to having a "new" toy for Rory and Maggie to play with for the week and a playmate for our dog, Penny as well.

Maggie had seen some cartoon about the responsibilities that go along with a pet and kept reciting to me how up to the challenge she was (oblivious that we already have a dog that she is NOT responsible for...oh well).

She fed Cosy, took her for walks, read her stories. Cosy picked Maggie up from school, went to the park with us and snuggled in Maggie's bed all week. We even gave her a bath and put bows in her hair and painted her little doggy toe nails!!! This is not a new thing for Cosy but Maggie had a ball getting to primp her.

I had know idea that the thought of having to give her back to Pop & Hunny was going to be so terribly traumatic but it was! She bawled all morning knowing that they were on their way to get her. "She's just so special!" she kept whimpering to me.

No poodles on the horizon for us but it was so precious to get to see her take such good care of something and then so sad to have to tell her that Cosy just couldn't live with us. Maybe a new baby in the house to stay will help fill the void.

Poor Penny...what is she chopped lamb & liver?

Just Be.

I have noticed lately that I have a really hard time being still and quiet. It's ironic because those are the two traits that I'm constantly trying to encourage my children to have. Stillness. Quiet.

So why is it that when I have even the briefest of moments where I don't have to be doing something...I feel the need to jump on the phone or the computer? I even wish that I was a reader sometimes because at least it would allow my brain to be somewhere else other than existing in the on-going to-do list in my head. I've noticed just how bad I've gotten at it lately. When I wake up, I flip on the tv to "check the weather". But then it stays on for the Today Show. When my kids get up, they want to watch cartoons and have breakfast. Everyone is running around trying to get themselves together for the day. Casey goes off to work and I start in on my dishes, laundry, etc. By the time I find a stopping point...it's lunchtime, naptime, dinnertime, bedtime. For me (these days especially) my bedtime is about 30 minutes behind my kids'. Just long enough to take out my contacts, wash my face and prepare the 6 pillows that it takes for me to get comfortable! When I decide to spend the day running errands, I've typically spent the hour prior telling the kids to stop dilly-dallying and do what I asked.

Maggie has thrown out the occasional, "Are we in a hurry?" Unfortunately most of the time we are because what I know should only take 5 minutes takes my family 20. But for those times when we aren't in a hurry, I still want them to put their shoes on when I ask not after Sleeping Beauty and Jasmine take a ride in their Corvette! Rory is the worst because he dawdles with a little smile on his face like he hasn't a care in the world, and let's face it...he doesn't! Except for his nagging mommy telling him to get a move on.

We finally get to the car and this is when they want to exhibit complete and total independence. Getting into their car seats by themselves, buckling themselves in...all at a snails pace.

Patience, Lord. I need patience.

Then they both start chiming in about watching a movie (which, let's face it, keeps them quiet and entertained for the duration of the car ride) and I typically use this time to talk on my phone and catch up with those people who I think about often but never get to just sit and talk with.

Last night, Rory came into my room 2 hours after Casey had put him to bed and I was all settled in ready to try and fall asleep myself. Nothing was wrong, he just couldn't sleep and instead of my usual, "Buddy, you have to go and get back in your bed" course of action, it hit me that he was only going to be my baby for 11 more days. He climbed in and we just snuggled for about 45 minutes.

I so want my children to know that they are absolutely the MOST important things in my life and I know that by constantly telling them to "hold on" or "in just a minute" or "after I do X" is not sending them that message. And for myself not to feel restless in silence and unnerved by just sitting and being still...

I want to just. be.

With Casey, with my kids. Just be.

So today, I asked Maggie what SHE wanted to spend the day doing. It's all a part of my "Countdown to baby, make my two oldest feel loved" campaign. She said that she wanted to pack a lunch and go to the park. What a perfect idea! What a beautiful day it was. And when the kids were playing on the slide and I typically would have sat on a bench and hopped on my cell...I didn't. I just watched and waved and cheered. I know that I have such a small window of opportunity to let my kids know how much I love them and I am working at being a better and more attentive mom. It's hard. But I'm determined (with God's help, of course) to do it!

37 Weeks

I had my final ultrasound today at my 37 week appointment. Here is our little mystery baby all squished up tight! The ultrasonographer was very cautious about using pronouns and steered clear of the baby's goods so as not to divulge any unwanted info.

There was a time where I would have loved to sneak a peek, but I've made it this far...it would be horrible to find out now. Like discovering your Christmas present on Christmas Eve.

My doctor has been monitoring the baby's weight and said that she would like to induce me one week early to avoid a possible C-section. My pelvis size/baby size ratio is delicate and she would rather avoid the possibility if we can. I was induced with Maggie and Rory so it's business as usual as far as I'm concerned and the idea of shaving a week off of what is getting to be a very uncomfortable pregnancy sounds fantastic to me.

The baby already weighs 6 pounds and 15 ounces (with 3 weeks to go)! She will also allow me to pick the birthday. I've decided on February 19th to coordinate with Maggie's (Dec 19th) and Rory's (April 29th) birthdays. All 9's makes things easier to remember.

Rory came with us to the ultrasound and after an intense fascination with the goop and wand rubbing all over my belly, he looked at the tv screen and said,

"Oh...there's our baby! It looks like a horsey."

Great. I'm having a horse-baby. :o) What do you think?

Mommy's having a baby...

Maggie got all dressed-up this morning in her Doctor's lab coat and came into my bathroom while I was getting ready with her "prescription " clip board and her pencil.

"I'm here to check your baby, ma'am." she proclaimed.

"Oh...okay."

"Let me check things out."

After a brief examination, she said that she was going to write me a "subscription" for some medicine. This is what I received...

She went on to explain that this is a picture of (from L to R):
The medicine that I am to take tonight before bed,
Casey, who "will be cutting the cord",
Me, with "fancy eyelashes",
Maggie,
Rory,
the Baby (below),
and Aunt Robin (above) "who will be there when the baby comes and is wearing a heart necklace"

She definitely has things in her head how she wants them! If you hear that I've gone into labor tomorrow, you'll know it's because of my prescription from Dr. Maggie.

Bullfrogs and Butterflies

Did anyone else grow up on these albums? I used to love to sit by our record player (yes, you heard me correctly) and listen to Bullfrogs & Butterflies and Music Machine and sing at the top of my lungs.

I'm so thankful for these albums. They really have stuck with me all of these years and at weird times I will recall their fundamental messages and simple tunes. I was even inclined to look them up online to order them for my kids.

One of my favorite songs is a song called "Have Patience". It goes:

Have Patience
Have Patience
Don’t be in such a hurry.

When you get
Impatient
you only start to worry.

Remember
Remember
that God is patient, too,
and think of all the times when others have to wait on you.

We've been singing this a lot to our kids lately. Maggie sings it to Rory when he starts to whine about stuff. Simple reminders that stick with them are so invaluable!!!

...but I can't find it on any of the B&B albums so now I'm wondering where I learned it. Anyone have any idea how I could get a copy of this song?

Thanks, Teri for finding it on the Music Machine Vol 1 album for me.

What is your favorite song?

Three Weeks to go

February is finally here!

Photo inspiration: Suzanne