The Parker Family: the new, improved, and expanded edition

Well, friends, we had newborn pics taken last week by the fabulous Katie Sullivan of Katie Lee Photography. Being the ever-multi-tasker that I am, we also threw in Laurel's 3 year old pics at the end;)

Here are a few of my favorite shots of the day. If you want to see every picture in all their glory, you can check out our SmugMug site.

God Heard...

Without further ado, here it is: our baby story.

As you may well know, Kevin and I did not find out if the little one taking up residence inside was a little man or another little princess. We also did this when we had Laurel. So, when Laurel was born, we were prepared with a little girl name and a little boy name. Since the boy name didn't get used, it got carried over to this time, and we found another girl name. But, you need to understand, that names are very important to us. Both Kevin and I feel very strongly about having a name with deep meaning. Laurel, meaning "a crown of honor and victory" was exactly what a wanted my daughter to exude. Samuel was the name Kevin had wanted for as long as I'd known him for a son...again with strong meaning: God Heard.

This brings us to the story of our second child. I went in for my check up and an ultrasound on Tuesday the 15th (my due date). The ultrasound showed over an 8 pound baby, and I was dilated to somewhere between a 3-4. My doctor decided it was time to get me in and prod this child to come out. We were instructed to come in to the hospital at 5 AM on Wednesday and get this party started.

Kevin's parents came in that night to take care of the princess and be there to meet the new little one. We got up dark and early and made it to the hospital. After starting some pytosin, my doctor came and broke the ole water, and the contractions started coming. I was told that the anesthesiologist was very busy that morning, so I needed to give ample warning of when I wanted the epidural. So about 9:30, I decided it was time. We go the epidural, and as my nurse said "he did you right." By that I mean, I could not feel the entire left side of my body from the waist down. Every time the nurse told me to change positions, I literally laughed at her because I could not, no matter how hard I tried, move my left leg. This temporary paralysis brought many laughs throughout the morning. I got to a 7 pretty quickly, and then it seemed as though little one was a bit "stuck". By this point, the nurse had started calling the baby a "him", because she said he was handling labor like a boy;). His heart rate started dropping with every contraction, so they started moving me into all kinds of crazy positions to make little one a bit "happier". My sweet doctor came in and figured out what was going on with him, tilted his head a little, put me into "runner's pose" on my side, and viola! 10 minutes later we had our little man. At 12:56 PM, we met Samuel Kenneth Parker for the first time in person. He was perfect. The first thing I remember the nurse saying though, was "Look at that...he's a little miracle". She then pointed out to us a tight little knot in his umbilical cord, which would hinder blood flow/nutrient exchange that needs to take place and explains the dramatic drops in his heart rate during labor. We have no way of knowing how long this knot had been there, but we are incredibly grateful for the wisdom of my doctor in going ahead and starting the process. Most of all, though, I'm grateful that even though we had no idea what was going on inside of me with our little one, that we do serve a God that knew and was very much in every moment. I was reminded this morning of Romans 8 where Paul talks about how the Spirit intercedes for us when we don't even know how or what to pray...and in that moment, God Heard.

Baby Update!!

Apparently, my children have inherited one of their mother's worst character flaws....perpetually late. No matter how hard I try, I always manage to be just a bit late. Laurel showed up 2 days after her "due date", and looks like the 2nd child will be following those same footsteps.

Today is the long awaited February 15...the DUE date. But, someone must be really busy gaining weight and being cozy inside because baby is nowhere to be seen. However, there is good news...we will be heading to the hospital dark and early in the morning to get things moving. There has been progress, which is good news, so hopefully it won't take much convincing to get little guy/girl to come and join us.

All that to say...there WILL be a baby tomorrow!! And, next time you hear from us, you'll get to find out if it's a BOY or a GIRL:)

Stay tuned!!

How do I love thee??? Let me count the ways....

I decided to change the name and look of this blog for a couple of reasons...
1. Change is good, and this season is about to change for this family.
2. It's been so long since I've blogged, did anyone REALLY remember the name of it???
3. Let's be honest, most of the blogging done around here is about our little princess. So, in honor of this change this post is made in honor of our little princess, her highness Laurel.

Laurel turned 3 last Sunday. I'm not quite sure that has really sunk into my brain yet. She consistently amazes me with the things that come out of her mouth and the things she does. Many of you know her as just a "pretty face", though, so I thought I'd take some time to broaden your appreciation of the one, the only, Laurel Ray Parker with some of my own personal favorite things about her.

• 5 minutes in to her life on earth, our little turkey managed to rip the hospital bracelet off of her arm AND pee on the nurse. That should have been our first indication that we were, indeed, not dealing with the average, mild-mannered child. And, although there have been many LOUD and DRAMATIC words spoken from her, I would want her no other way.
  
• Her daddy and I tried our best to keep her from loving "princesses". We avoided it at all costs, in fact. However, I have learned that you can keep the princesses away from your daughter, but you can't take the princess out. And, there is something magnificent about a little girl knowing that she is indeed a princess, and must carry herself as such. This might be a good time to mention, however, that there is a stark distinction between "princess" and "DIVA"...and we will have NONE of the latter.
• From the time I entered the hospital in February of 2008 to meet Laurel in person, we have played music in her room while she's slept. I'm fairly certain that this is why she thinks her life is a musical. She sings and dances on command with whomever or whatever is near, be it a doll, a stuffed animal, or a person. And, correct words are not necessary. Hence, the new version of the old favorite..."Tinkerbell, Tinkerbell, Tinker all the way...oh what fun...la, la, la, la....HEY!" (sung to the tune of Jingle Bells).
• Any time Laurel puts on a dress or a skirt, her first action is to make sure it "spins" appropriately. After all, one cannot have on any type of "princess attire" that does not handle the twirling of a princess.
• Many mornings after Laurel gets dressed for school, I tell her to "go show Daddy how pretty you look". Her face lights up like the tree in Rockefeller Center as she runs into the other room to spin and show Kevin... "Look, Daddy, how pretty I am". Sweet, sweet, Laurel....may no one ever take that away from you.
• To say that Laurel is analytical might possibly be the understatement of the century. My daughter never "tried" to crawl. She watched crawlers for months, studying their every move. I honestly thought she'd never do it. Until, one day, at 10 months old, she decided it was time to show us what she had been studying all these months, and she took off crawling. Not once did she lose her balance or fall. She wanted to figure it out and do it right, or not do it at all, thank you very much. Four months later, she did the exact same thing with walking. One day, she just "let go" of the table she was holding on to and never looked back. Books, movies, anything you put in front of her...she has got to figure it out completely or she wants nothing to do with it.
• Speaking of books and movies...this child gets into a story. To this day, no matter how many times we have seen "The Little Mermaid", Laurel gets VERY upset with "the princess' daddy" because he "is not being very nice". And, don't even think about bringing it up later, because you will hear all about it all over again. Every time Prince Eric and Ariel float away in their princess ship, Laurel waves her best wave back saying "bye Princess" until the screen goes dark.
  
• Do NOT try to tell my daughter that she anything but "Laurel Parker". Any other adjective that you tell her will result in the very direct response..."I'm not ________, I'm LAUREL PARKER". Yes, yes, my child...you are.
  
• Perhaps this statement is a bit biased, but my daughter has the greatest laugh. It's not just a girly giggle. Oh no...this laugh comes from her very core and is possibly one of the most contagious sounds ever.
  
• When Laurel gets in trouble, she is ready to tell anyone who will listen all about it. She will give you the play-by-play of what SHE did, what YOU said, what SHE said back, and what her consequences were. At least we know she's paying attention...
• As stubborn, independent and hard-headed as she can be, she is also one of the best snuggle bunnies anyone could ever ask for.
• So, my dear Laurel, as you are now 3, know that you are dearly loved and cherished, and Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you. We wouldn't change a dang thing about you, even if we could. We love you, turkey.