Hmmm.
So, I looked back through iphoto, knowing that I had taken a picture of that test, and whaduyaknow?
If only I would have waited 3 more days to take that test...it would've made for a real good story. Ah, well.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Ok...so what I meant was...
...June 10th AND June 7th. After I wrote that last post, I was thinking about how I remember finding out I was pregnant on a Sunday, but if June 10th was a Thursday this year, that means it would have been a Wednesday last year.
Hmmm.
So, I looked back through iphoto, knowing that I had taken a picture of that test, and whaduyaknow?
If only I would have waited 3 more days to take that test...it would've made for a real good story. Ah, well.
Hmmm.
So, I looked back through iphoto, knowing that I had taken a picture of that test, and whaduyaknow?
If only I would have waited 3 more days to take that test...it would've made for a real good story. Ah, well.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
June 10
June 10th has become a very good day for the Pearson family. Two big events have taken place on this day, the first being this was the day that Mark and I met.
Here's the story...
It was the summer after my sophomore year of college and I was home for the summer and singing in the choir at my home church. I had sworn off boys (which is typical for every girl at some point in their life) =) and was excited to be surrounded by all my old friends..."old" is being used as an adjective to describe their age, not relationship status...my church had a lot of old people. Just then, Mark and his dad walked in and sat down in the congregation...I immediately had a chat with the Lord. It went a little like this:
Me: "Lord, there is a really cute guy out there today...see him? Tall, dark, handsome? Ya, him. I'm just wondering if you'd like me to meet him? If so, I'll wait for you to create an opportunity...preferably right after the service."
God: "..."
Right after the service, Mark and his dad left...like, I've never seen two men walk so quickly out of a church service.
God has a sense of humor. Boy do I love that about Him. :)
I proceeded to tell just about anyone who would listen to me at church about the cute boy I saw that morning. So pretty much everyone knew that I was gaga over this guy.
That night, I was helping with a fundraiser dinner for a mission trip I was going on later that summer and guess who walked in...yup, Mark and his parents. Now, mind you, Mark swam competitively for the UW, so he had a body that could NOT be missed. I can say that because we're married now. Because of an afro that later on in the summer became a mullet (another story altogether), he also had hair that set him apart from the crowd. Picture this- right as he walked in, every eye, and I mean EVERY eye, was on me since I had told anyone and everyone about my crush and, like I said before, because of the majority of the congregation of my church, it was obvious THIS was the boy I had gushed about. Being the outgoing girl that I was (am?), I hid behind any large person I could find for a bit while gearing up to go talk to...gulp...him. When I finally did, he talked me up about how he wanted to become a professional windsurfer and a bunch of other stuff that I totally ate up. Later on, he showed up in my line to get spaghetti and I made a total fool of myself as I talked and didn't pay attention to how many scoops of spaghetti I gave him...needless to say, he was very full. As the evening was winding down, I was panicking trying to figure out how to get his number before he left, so I walked over to Mark and told him we had a great college-age bible study going on for the summer and that we should exchange numbers so I could let him know when it was happening. After I got his number, I walked over to my pastor and told him we needed to start a college-age bible study for the summer because I just told a really cute guy that we had one...hey, here we are about to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary, so I'd say I've made up for that little fib at this point.
Our courtship moved relatively quickly- after 3 weeks of hanging out, Mark told me he loved me- the first and only man to tell me so...we didn't kiss until we were together 6 months, most people in our lives thought that was weird, some thought it was cool. It was an amazing way to get to know someone and as a woman in this day in age, having a guy want to spend time with me and not go THERE is really rare, and so I cherished it, though it was difficult...remember...he was a swimmer. =) I'm so thankful for Mark- each day I love him more and we still have so much fun together, just today I almost fell over laughing during one of our conversations. He's still as handsome, charming, and thoughtful as he was while we were dating and I'm so excited to watch him treat Brynn with the same adoration he shows me every single day.
And now, the second reason June 10th is a good day: this girl.
Last year on June 10th, which was a Sunday I remember, I woke up, peed on a stick, went back to bed and waited for the longest 3 minutes of my life. I had taken many pregnancy tests before and so while I knew the drill, nothing could have prepared me for what I would feel as I realized that this time, there were TWO lines. I remember jumping back in bed with the stick to show Mark and we just sort of sat there in amazement...it's incredible and such a miracle that this little lady that has stolen our hearts began growing inside my womb only a year ago.
So...there it is...June 10th. I'm so thankful for this day- with each of these special events, my little family has been created.
Here's the story...
It was the summer after my sophomore year of college and I was home for the summer and singing in the choir at my home church. I had sworn off boys (which is typical for every girl at some point in their life) =) and was excited to be surrounded by all my old friends..."old" is being used as an adjective to describe their age, not relationship status...my church had a lot of old people. Just then, Mark and his dad walked in and sat down in the congregation...I immediately had a chat with the Lord. It went a little like this:
Me: "Lord, there is a really cute guy out there today...see him? Tall, dark, handsome? Ya, him. I'm just wondering if you'd like me to meet him? If so, I'll wait for you to create an opportunity...preferably right after the service."
God: "..."
Right after the service, Mark and his dad left...like, I've never seen two men walk so quickly out of a church service.
God has a sense of humor. Boy do I love that about Him. :)
I proceeded to tell just about anyone who would listen to me at church about the cute boy I saw that morning. So pretty much everyone knew that I was gaga over this guy.
That night, I was helping with a fundraiser dinner for a mission trip I was going on later that summer and guess who walked in...yup, Mark and his parents. Now, mind you, Mark swam competitively for the UW, so he had a body that could NOT be missed. I can say that because we're married now. Because of an afro that later on in the summer became a mullet (another story altogether), he also had hair that set him apart from the crowd. Picture this- right as he walked in, every eye, and I mean EVERY eye, was on me since I had told anyone and everyone about my crush and, like I said before, because of the majority of the congregation of my church, it was obvious THIS was the boy I had gushed about. Being the outgoing girl that I was (am?), I hid behind any large person I could find for a bit while gearing up to go talk to...gulp...him. When I finally did, he talked me up about how he wanted to become a professional windsurfer and a bunch of other stuff that I totally ate up. Later on, he showed up in my line to get spaghetti and I made a total fool of myself as I talked and didn't pay attention to how many scoops of spaghetti I gave him...needless to say, he was very full. As the evening was winding down, I was panicking trying to figure out how to get his number before he left, so I walked over to Mark and told him we had a great college-age bible study going on for the summer and that we should exchange numbers so I could let him know when it was happening. After I got his number, I walked over to my pastor and told him we needed to start a college-age bible study for the summer because I just told a really cute guy that we had one...hey, here we are about to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary, so I'd say I've made up for that little fib at this point.
Our courtship moved relatively quickly- after 3 weeks of hanging out, Mark told me he loved me- the first and only man to tell me so...we didn't kiss until we were together 6 months, most people in our lives thought that was weird, some thought it was cool. It was an amazing way to get to know someone and as a woman in this day in age, having a guy want to spend time with me and not go THERE is really rare, and so I cherished it, though it was difficult...remember...he was a swimmer. =) I'm so thankful for Mark- each day I love him more and we still have so much fun together, just today I almost fell over laughing during one of our conversations. He's still as handsome, charming, and thoughtful as he was while we were dating and I'm so excited to watch him treat Brynn with the same adoration he shows me every single day.
And now, the second reason June 10th is a good day: this girl.
Last year on June 10th, which was a Sunday I remember, I woke up, peed on a stick, went back to bed and waited for the longest 3 minutes of my life. I had taken many pregnancy tests before and so while I knew the drill, nothing could have prepared me for what I would feel as I realized that this time, there were TWO lines. I remember jumping back in bed with the stick to show Mark and we just sort of sat there in amazement...it's incredible and such a miracle that this little lady that has stolen our hearts began growing inside my womb only a year ago.
So...there it is...June 10th. I'm so thankful for this day- with each of these special events, my little family has been created.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
3 months
Brynn is SUCH a cute baby! I'm biased, of course. She turned 3 months yesterday and I still can't believe she's OUR baby. It's difficult to capture her smiling on camera lately because she seems mesmerized by the camera lens and just stares at it when it's pointed at her. So, although the pictures don't show it, she smiles constantly and my favorite thing is going in to get her after she's been sleeping and being greeted by a big, gummy grin and a little coo. She rolls, has great head control, is tolerating longer sessions of "tummy time" and is pretty content when she's awake. People told me the fussiness would mostly disappear after 6-8 weeks and it really has, which is so nice. It's easier to take her out and not worry about her having a meltdown. I think it's partly because she can see better and farther now, so she can observe and enjoy what's going on around her. She started laughing about a week ago and we have a video of it from this past weekend when she had her first real fit of laughter...THE CUTEST THING EVER! It's amazing how a baby's laugh just melts your heart and makes you want to laugh, too. She sucks on her hands constantly and has found her thumb, too. I sucked my thumb until the 5th grade (don't be a hater) and although it's super cute to watch her suck on hers, I don't want her to have bucked teeth and 4 1/2 years of braces like I did! We'll see. I'm thinking about making the transition from swaddle to sleep sack so she can soothe herself in the night with her fingers and also so it's easier for other people to put her down, since the swaddling is a bit complicated to get right. I'm nervous about it because Brynn always startles herself with her arms, so I'm not sure how long it will take her to get used to not being swaddled...tips and advice are welcome!
And as if on cue, Brynn is waking up from her nap, so I'll leave you with some of our latest photos!
And as if on cue, Brynn is waking up from her nap, so I'll leave you with some of our latest photos!
Friday, May 7, 2010
The magic of being a mama
My friend Kristen, a beautiful woman and mother who also has a gift for expressing her thoughts in writing, has spent the last week or so sharing on her blog some reflections about motherhood, in honor of Mothers Day...I've passed my computer many times in the last few days trying to decide how I can encapsulate my own musings on motherhood in this little space. It's difficult to describe how I'm feeling this year, my first year celebrating the joy of being a mom myself, as well as honoring my own mother.
Brynn will be 12 weeks old in a few days. When I allow myself to daydream, the memories of my pregnancy and her delivery are fresh. I remember hearing, before I had Brynn, that as soon as the baby pops out, you'll want 12 more. Well, for me, even though I was in complete awe of Brynn the moment I saw her, the memory of the pain it took to welcome her into this world was so real and raw and recent that I thought to myself, "Let's just start with ONE baby at a time, 10 years apart". =) Of course, as the weeks have passed, I am ready to do this all over again a million times if it means having another gift like Brynn.
A friend recently said to me "Robin, I've never heard you complain about anything with Brynn. It's so refreshing". I've wanted to be a mom for so long and had always hoped it would be part of God's plan for my life, that I can't imagine complaining. Now, I know I have many years of child-rearing ahead of me and there will be plenty of opportunities for griping, but I really don't want complaining to be a part of my character as a wife and mother.
I've just recently started reflecting on what a gift it is to be able to nurse my baby. I cherish this time with Brynn so much, the way she snuggles up to me, makes little noises, grasps on to me with her tiny hands, closes her eyes...it's such a precious time and I sometimes have to remind myself to not watch tv or use the laptop during this time, but instead spend time looking at her, praying for her, and just being with her. I know this season of mothering is short and I want to be able to look back and remember every detail of my dates with her at 2am.
Although I can spend a lot of time talking about how wonderful my new role as a mother is, it wouldn't mean nearly as much to me if Mark weren't here to walk along with me. He and I were sitting on the couch the other night looking at a photo of Brynn on the wall and he said "that's our daughter...we're a family now". Crazy. Since we were married almost 7 years before Brynn came along, I already felt like we were a family, but having her here gives so much more depth to our relationship and love for each other. It's been so magical for me to watch my husband become a father.
These last 12 weeks have been the most challenging and rewarding weeks of my life, full of so much "newness". As I hear Brynn rustling awake from her nap, I'm reminded that "me" time is often cut short, but I wouldn't trade all the alone time in the world for even just one moment with my baby girl.
Happy Mothers Day to all the amazing moms in my life. You have encouraged me up to this point and continue to do so daily in our conversations and experiences together. I'm inspired and amazed by all of you- there is definitely an instant camaraderie with other moms the moment you become one yourself, and I'm grateful for the new bond I have with the women in my life.
Brynn will be 12 weeks old in a few days. When I allow myself to daydream, the memories of my pregnancy and her delivery are fresh. I remember hearing, before I had Brynn, that as soon as the baby pops out, you'll want 12 more. Well, for me, even though I was in complete awe of Brynn the moment I saw her, the memory of the pain it took to welcome her into this world was so real and raw and recent that I thought to myself, "Let's just start with ONE baby at a time, 10 years apart". =) Of course, as the weeks have passed, I am ready to do this all over again a million times if it means having another gift like Brynn.
A friend recently said to me "Robin, I've never heard you complain about anything with Brynn. It's so refreshing". I've wanted to be a mom for so long and had always hoped it would be part of God's plan for my life, that I can't imagine complaining. Now, I know I have many years of child-rearing ahead of me and there will be plenty of opportunities for griping, but I really don't want complaining to be a part of my character as a wife and mother.
I've just recently started reflecting on what a gift it is to be able to nurse my baby. I cherish this time with Brynn so much, the way she snuggles up to me, makes little noises, grasps on to me with her tiny hands, closes her eyes...it's such a precious time and I sometimes have to remind myself to not watch tv or use the laptop during this time, but instead spend time looking at her, praying for her, and just being with her. I know this season of mothering is short and I want to be able to look back and remember every detail of my dates with her at 2am.
Although I can spend a lot of time talking about how wonderful my new role as a mother is, it wouldn't mean nearly as much to me if Mark weren't here to walk along with me. He and I were sitting on the couch the other night looking at a photo of Brynn on the wall and he said "that's our daughter...we're a family now". Crazy. Since we were married almost 7 years before Brynn came along, I already felt like we were a family, but having her here gives so much more depth to our relationship and love for each other. It's been so magical for me to watch my husband become a father.
These last 12 weeks have been the most challenging and rewarding weeks of my life, full of so much "newness". As I hear Brynn rustling awake from her nap, I'm reminded that "me" time is often cut short, but I wouldn't trade all the alone time in the world for even just one moment with my baby girl.
Happy Mothers Day to all the amazing moms in my life. You have encouraged me up to this point and continue to do so daily in our conversations and experiences together. I'm inspired and amazed by all of you- there is definitely an instant camaraderie with other moms the moment you become one yourself, and I'm grateful for the new bond I have with the women in my life.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Loving Friday
This week I've been really tired. Brynn has been awesome, but I've been staying up too late and forgetting about the fact that I have a baby that will wake me in the middle of the night. =) Oops. For some reason, I'm super excited that today is Friday. I just returned home from walking with a dear friend and Brynn is down for a nap. I'm looking forward to using this time to clean my house and bake a dessert for a family event tomorrow while sipping on a cup of decaf on this chilly afternoon.
I had to say goodbye to my beloved bible study group this week. I love love LOVE these women, but at this point in Brynn's life, she needs me home in the evenings- our days go better this way. I'm going to miss seeing my friends but will be thinking about them every other Tuesday and praying for them- the Lord is doing amazing things in all our lives.
Brynn has always been a great sleeper and my routine with her has been to rock or bounce her until she gets drowsy (about 5 minutes or so) and then lay her down to let her finish dozing off by herself. The last few days, though, I've been watching for her tired cues and then laying her down when she's fully awake to see if she can put herself to sleep. This is something I really want her to be able to do on her own and though it's easy to rock her fully to sleep because she's just so darn cute, I know it will really help things in the future if she can fall asleep on her own. So far she's doing great- is it crazy to say that I'm so proud of her for this?! =)
I'm joining a mom's club on the Eastside that has activities every day of the week for kids- although I do get together with many of my friends who are home with their kids, not many of them live in my community, so I'm excited to meet moms here where we live. Next week I'm going to take Brynn to her first Gymboree class with the group- I'm sure she'll get a lot out of it. =)
We have a full Saturday of fun family activities and I'm really looking forward to Sunday- church and then our tradition of going out for donuts and coffee afterward! I love weekends!
I had to say goodbye to my beloved bible study group this week. I love love LOVE these women, but at this point in Brynn's life, she needs me home in the evenings- our days go better this way. I'm going to miss seeing my friends but will be thinking about them every other Tuesday and praying for them- the Lord is doing amazing things in all our lives.
Brynn has always been a great sleeper and my routine with her has been to rock or bounce her until she gets drowsy (about 5 minutes or so) and then lay her down to let her finish dozing off by herself. The last few days, though, I've been watching for her tired cues and then laying her down when she's fully awake to see if she can put herself to sleep. This is something I really want her to be able to do on her own and though it's easy to rock her fully to sleep because she's just so darn cute, I know it will really help things in the future if she can fall asleep on her own. So far she's doing great- is it crazy to say that I'm so proud of her for this?! =)
I'm joining a mom's club on the Eastside that has activities every day of the week for kids- although I do get together with many of my friends who are home with their kids, not many of them live in my community, so I'm excited to meet moms here where we live. Next week I'm going to take Brynn to her first Gymboree class with the group- I'm sure she'll get a lot out of it. =)
We have a full Saturday of fun family activities and I'm really looking forward to Sunday- church and then our tradition of going out for donuts and coffee afterward! I love weekends!
Friday, April 23, 2010
We're on a roll!
Ugh. Blogger is doing this weird thing where it won't let me see my pictures while I write my post, instead it's showing me jumbled-up text, so my nicely planned narrative isn't going to work this time since I can't write below the pictures. Oh well.
Brynn is now 9 weeks old and we can hardly believe how fast the days go and how much she is changing each week. It's really incredible. The title of this post is appropriate because she rolled from her tummy to her back twice today for the first time! The picture below of her on the play mat is the spot where she did it. I tried to get her to do it for the camera, but alas, as many mamas know, that doesn't always work.
She is talking a lot more and it's just the most precious thing. We make noises back to her and that usually encourages her to talk even more. It's so fun to hear her little voice- it sounds like a little munchkin. =) I almost cry thinking about the fact that her little voice will soon be saying "mama" and "dada" and of course, "MOTHER! All the other girls get to hang out at the mall all day,why can't I ?!" and "I promise I'll do my homework and chores AFTER I watch 90210." ...ok, so maybe that one is a bit outdated, but you get the point.
Brynn is very active and we frequently find her in many different positions as she sleeps- just this morning, I looked into her bassinet and she had scooched herself all the way down to the bottom corner and had an imprint of the bassinet on her forehead from being squished against it. Silly girl.
I'm definitely in a time of transition as a new mom- I've realized lately that even though it's been 9 weeks since I had a baby, that doesn't mean that life can go back to normal in terms of me doing all the things I did before I had her- commitments and such. That has been a hard realization because it means there are things I need to give up for now that I enjoy, but I'm also reminded that this season in life is short and before we know it, we'll have a whole other kind of transition to deal with in Brynn not needing us as much anymore, or at least not in the way she needs us now. So, with that in mind, I'm choosing to cherish my new reality as a mother and embrace the sacrifices that come along with it.
Brynn is napping now and I have exactly an hour and a half to shower, tidy up, and bake some cookies for company before we have to get to an appointment- Mark is coming home early today- hooray for that! I'm thinking our evening will consist of pizza, wine, and watching old seasons of The Office on Netflix- oh yea, and I'm sure our little bug will occupy what's left of the night. =)
So grateful for this time in life- it's even more fabulous than I imagined!
Brynn is now 9 weeks old and we can hardly believe how fast the days go and how much she is changing each week. It's really incredible. The title of this post is appropriate because she rolled from her tummy to her back twice today for the first time! The picture below of her on the play mat is the spot where she did it. I tried to get her to do it for the camera, but alas, as many mamas know, that doesn't always work.
She is talking a lot more and it's just the most precious thing. We make noises back to her and that usually encourages her to talk even more. It's so fun to hear her little voice- it sounds like a little munchkin. =) I almost cry thinking about the fact that her little voice will soon be saying "mama" and "dada" and of course, "MOTHER! All the other girls get to hang out at the mall all day,why can't I ?!" and "I promise I'll do my homework and chores AFTER I watch 90210." ...ok, so maybe that one is a bit outdated, but you get the point.
Brynn is very active and we frequently find her in many different positions as she sleeps- just this morning, I looked into her bassinet and she had scooched herself all the way down to the bottom corner and had an imprint of the bassinet on her forehead from being squished against it. Silly girl.
I'm definitely in a time of transition as a new mom- I've realized lately that even though it's been 9 weeks since I had a baby, that doesn't mean that life can go back to normal in terms of me doing all the things I did before I had her- commitments and such. That has been a hard realization because it means there are things I need to give up for now that I enjoy, but I'm also reminded that this season in life is short and before we know it, we'll have a whole other kind of transition to deal with in Brynn not needing us as much anymore, or at least not in the way she needs us now. So, with that in mind, I'm choosing to cherish my new reality as a mother and embrace the sacrifices that come along with it.
Brynn is napping now and I have exactly an hour and a half to shower, tidy up, and bake some cookies for company before we have to get to an appointment- Mark is coming home early today- hooray for that! I'm thinking our evening will consist of pizza, wine, and watching old seasons of The Office on Netflix- oh yea, and I'm sure our little bug will occupy what's left of the night. =)
So grateful for this time in life- it's even more fabulous than I imagined!
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