A Happy Mother's Day

Thank you to my friends and family for making today a wonderful Mother's Day.  I also wanted to send extra Mother's Day love to my mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, and grandmothers-in-law.  I truly appreciate each one of you in your own special way!

Today I celebrated my 3rd year or being a mother, and I'm wishing my mother a happy 30th year of being my mother!

2011

2010

 2009

What's In A Name?

Dexter Aaron Kannel

Dexter:

Meaning - Dexterous

Perfect for the son of an architect who loves to draw, paint, design and write.

Perfect for the son of a mother who loves to sew and craft.

Aaron:

Meaning: Mountain of Strength

The brother of Moses - Moses' spokesman

Scripture Reference - Exodus 15:2

"The Lord is my strength and my song;

he has become my salvation.

He is my God and I will praise him,

my father's God, and I will exalt him."

(Moses and the Israelites singing to the Lord)

Welcome to the World!!!

We are happy to announce the safe and blessed arrival of our new little son, Dexter Aaron Kannel. He was born on Friday, March 25, 2011 at 10:08am. He weighed 8lbs exactly and was 19.25" long. He looked pretty chunky at first, but after many dirty diapers, lost over 1/2 lb before leaving the hospital. He is now skinny and bony, much like his older sister was at birth.

Olivia is doing well with the addition to the household. She likes to 'pet' his head, show him her toys, and pat his belly when he cries. Chris has been amazing since we've been home. He plays with Olivia when I am busy or sleeping, he helps care for Dexter in the night, he helped my mom do the dishes and put away groceries....he is a great husband and father. I am truly blessed to have him in my life.

Dexter is a little ball of cuteness! Of course, as his mother, I'm completely biased...but I at least wanted to throw my opinion out there! Below are some pictures for you: some from the hospital and some from home. For more pictures, check out my Picasa website. Enjoy!

Staying Busy...

I've been trying to stay busy to keep my mind off of the fact that I have no idea when this baby will arrive! I've been spending time outside with Olivia if the weather is permitting. Last week, we picked up sticks in Grandma and Grandpa's yard and then we went to Great Granny's yard to pick up sticks there too. Olivia likes the task and I didn't mind the exercise. Bending over became tougher after a while though! After we picked up sticks at both of those houses, we moved out to Great Grandma and Grandpa Kannel's house. Chris' Dad said sticks needed picked up in their yard too.....but they weren't really 'sticks.' :) When I started to pull the first one through the yard, Olivia said, "Mommy, that's a whole tree!" And she was absolutely right! We've seen trees smaller than that 'stick.' But, we took our time and got the job done. I didn't feel overworked, it was nice to get outside, and I thought the exercise might help bring Baby Kannel along. Guess not! It was still a lot of fun.

Here are some pics from the past few days:

40 weeks in and getting loved on by my toddler

Studies Show....

Studies show that babies in the womb can hear noises and distinguish different voices before they are ever born. I'm not writing an essay about this, so I don't have any quotes or sources. Just a personal experience....

Today my father-in-law was at our house helping us install the door and door frame into the laundry room (pictures to come later). I was sitting near them watching while they were doing the work. Chris used the nail gun, which has a pretty high powered sound if you aren't prepared for the noise that it will make. Well, he shot the gun and it startled me! I wasn't expecting it to make me react that way because I was watching him, I knew what he was going to do, and I knew the sound the gun would make. I was baffled about how much the sound made me jump and pondering why I reacted that way when he shot the gun three more times. It was only then that I realized it wasn't me reacting - it was the baby in my belly! Each time he shot it, the baby kicked and jumped as if he were startled. I then understood why it felt like I jumped the first time...because my insides literally leaped. While it wasn't me reacting, it was still something within my body. It was definitely weird not have my emotions (calm and knowing) match my body gestures (jumpy). But, it was very cool to know that this little guy has the ability to hear and react. Hopefully I'll meet him soon!

What's in a Name?

*You look miserable!
*You look great!
*I bet you're ready!
*You're carrying so high.
*You've dropped.
*Any day now?
*Two weeks left, right?

These comments have all come to me within the past 3 days. Granted, I'm 39 weeks 3 days pregnant - but why does everyone have to judge how I feel based upon how they think I look instead of asking me how I feel? I'm not offended by any of these comments - but rather baffled about some of the things people openly say!

I truly appreciate the people who have asked how I feel or asked how I feel I am carrying this baby before passing judgement - that shows me they care about me instead of making sure their opinion is heard. For now, I'll keep taking comments with a grain of salt!

When will I get to meet this little guy? Only God knows for sure - but I at least know the answer is SOON!

A Kannel Family Weekend

A few pictures from our weekend:

Walking to the covered bridge at the fairgrounds

The main man in her life

Her favorite pancake ever...see the fish on it? It was totally a coincidence, but Olivia was convinced that it was Nemo!