2 Js and 2 As.. Yes, we are THAT family

Aidan is here!



Aidan Thomas Kelly was born November 24 at 8:58 p.m. He was 8lbs 4oz. Yes, big,



with a head full of beautiful auburn hair. (He gets it from his Grandma.)



A few days before he was born we had a "scare." My contractions started coming 5 minutes apart, so Jeff and I headed to the hospital in the middle of the night. Thank God Bee was there to stay with Annie! She'd come in to town in hopes of being here when he was born, but the little bugga was stubborn, and we missed it by a day. Annie was very happy to have her Aunt Bee here, and enjoyed some reading time.




It was a false alarm, but we went in for a check-up on Monday anyway. After having a "she's gone past 40-weeks" sonogram (they wanted to be sure he was comfortable enough to stay in a little longer), and getting the news that if I waited I may have a 10 pound baby if he waited much longer, we decided to go in on Tuesday to get the process rolling. I was already a few centimeters dilated, so I wasn't too concerned with the idea.

We went in early that next morning, and Jeff and I spent a peaceful day hanging out, playing Skip-Bo and such. At about 8:00 p.m. I was dilated to 5 cm and feeling good.



Then came 8:30. Nurse checked me and I was a "6." But immediately after she left the room I was in pain. Not "breathe and you'll be fine" pain, but "OMG OMG OMG" pain. Up to this point it was all good, breathing through contractions, not paining even with the Pitocin. But When that 8:30 contraction hit, there was NO WAY, I thought, that I could labor 4 more centimeters without an epidural. My thoughts were that if it hurt that bad at 6, I would die before I got to 10.

Decided I wanted an epidural. No way I'd go 2 more hours without one. Jeff knew that I really didn't want to go the epidural route again, so he talked me down to getting some pain killer through my IV. I agreed, and they had some pain meds hooked up by about 8:35. The nurse came in, hooked on the bag, and left the room. Immediatly after her exit, I was in full-on labor.

I yelled at Jeff to get the nurse, but he didn't even have to leave the room. She heard me. I think the whole floor probably heard me. Seconds later my doctor and the nurses were in the room, and Aidan was gearing up to meet us.

He was born at 8:58 p.m.



And it was love at first sight.





We spent almost every moment together those two days in the hospital, a stark difference from my previous two deliveries. Annie was entirely enthralled with her baby brother when she came to meet him the next day.



She doesn't really like to leave his side.



We brought him home on Thanksgiving day (what a way to celebrate, eh?!). And, in true Kelly Family fashion, our car broke down on the way home from the hospital. Fortunately it waited until we'd exited Division to Slaton, and some friends happened to be driving by at the exact moment we stalled. Thanks to Michael for helping Jeff push us into the United parking lot, and to MomnDad for picking us - and all the hospital flowers and gifts and such - up. :)

We battled a nasty bout of Jaundice for a few weeks, but fortunatley we have a big picture window where Aidan did lots of sunbathing.



The weather was even nice enough for a few days that we got to spend some time outside.



Aidan is an amazing baby. He laughs and smiles every day (since he was about 3 or 4 weeks old). He coos, and imitates my sounds and mouth shapes. Yes, he is very advanced for his age ;). He doesn't really cry much, and he makes some hilarious grunt and chortle sounds.



I'm head over heels for this little guy. Thank God for our precious little Aidan, Annie's "Bean."

Ooh, baby BABY! Ooh baby BABY!

The baby keeps a'growing,
and Momma keeps a'knowing,
that no matter where we're going,
it's the best we've ever seen!

I'm 35 weeks and 2 days today! I wish I'd have been blogging this whole time, but no internet + crazy job + busy bee = big lapse! Since the last time we spoke:

Jeffica and Annie moved to Slaton,
Jessica graduated,
We found out we were pregnant,
and Annie started kindergarten!

It's been a very busy few months!

At any rate, life is good, God is good, and family is good.

And this BELLY keeps growing and growing and growing!

Aidan Thomas Kelly is due November 21, but I'm not sure he'll wait until then. He's big, and a MAJOR mover! He's up to about 5 pounds, and, if he gains a pound a week, like "they" say he probably will, that will make him a 10-pounder. We're just praying that that doesn't happen. :)

There is prety much no way Annie could be more excited. She can't wait to meet her baby brother, keeps asking to sleep in his crib, and uses all his blankets to cover up at night. She also already knows how to spell his name, and has added him to her family drawings (she's a little artist).

Jeff and I can't wait to meet him, either. Sonograms show that he has Jeff's big nose and my big cheeks. He's going to be a pretty cute little kiddo. :)

P.S. The picture = I don't look very happy, but I am. But that was this morning after a VERY busy weekend! Annie is also caught off guard. :)
In the background you'll notice the bright pink and turquoise bedding. Jeff and I revamped her bedding because little brother got a new bed and bedding, so it was only appropriate that big sister got Big Sister bedding, too! :)

Confession of an Internet Thief

Is it really stealing when all you're doing is catching the internet waves that are floating through YOUR air? I mean, is it MY fault that my computer started picking up some random wireless internet?

So, I've been, ah, mooching internet from my housal air waves for a little while. (The first step is admittance, right?)

If you're wondering why I've been neglecting my blog (I KNOOOW all my "followers" are DEVASTATED that they've been out of my life loop for almost a month or so)...
it is because I got home one evening to Jeff sitting on the couch....

"We don't have any internet."
"What? There must be a mistake. You're lying. I can't live without internet. Nooooo!" says I. (dramatized)

Sure enough, all wireless internets are now set to "Security Enabled Network."

And to add insult to injury, the once "Unsecured networks" were freshly labeled:

"OMG HaCkeRS on StERoIDZ" and "getyourowninternet"

Hhaahahaha. I couldn't help but laugh through my anger. :)
But seriously, how DARE they take away my freedom to capture THEIR paid-for internet waves as they float through MY home? Whatever. We're moving (blog to follow soon), and I suppose we WILL "getourowninternet."

I <3 Savers

Savers is fun. I mean, what could be better than digging through other peoples' trash and finding personal treasures? For, like, three dollars at that? (Actually, because Savers is the "department store" of thrifts, it's actually a little pricy, but still WAY cheaper than the new stuff... and it's recycling, so hey)

Jeff found a really nice pair of jeans that we call "a tribute to auntie bee." Annie really enjoyed them, too, as you can tell by her awed gaze.


I then found a pair of hot crinkly red pants (and these things made some NOISE!), and a matador-esque sequin jacket. I thought it looked quite nice. They even still had their tags, which was a SUR-PRISE to me.

(The hat is Jeff's)

But I think the pinnacle of the shopping experience was this hot one-piece sequin short-set. I don't know what it was about it. It had a certain, oh, jene se quoi....


Unfortunately, we didn't purchase any of these items. We did get a couple really great things, including this Texas Tech cheerleading suit for Annie (a whopping $5, about $45 less than they're sold for in stores)

(Those are my shoes. I've never worn them, because they hurt, but she loves them. They were actually a Goodwill find, brand new)

All in all, it was a fabulous way to spend our Saturday morning, and get Jeff a couple pair of work jeans while we were at it. :)
Love!

In the interest of "just because"

Fun thing to do, via That cat by the bar (my sister's blog...)

Directions to create your own album cover:

1. Go to http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/ and the 3rd picture on the screen is your album cover art.

2. Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page and click "Random Article" from the links on the left side. The article that comes up is the name of your band.

(My 1st result was Vallejo, an Austin band. I didn't think that would be appropriate for the name of my band because, well, they're already a band. I used the next one. :) )

3. Go to http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3 and the last 4 to 5 words of the last quote on the page is your album title.Use photoshop or something similar to create your album cover. (I used picasa because it is free and has a text editing tool.) Here's mine:

Lent - n - things

Woke up early on Thursday and cooked breakfast (for myself, it turned out. Jeff and Annie preferred cereal and frozen mini-pancakes), transferred the clothes from the washer to the dryer, showered... it was the perfect start to my Lenten "sacrifice." I'm lazy. Okay, not necessarily lazy, but I do like my sleep. A lot. And that is to stop. Starting this Lent. (I mean, not the sleeping part, but the going to bed late and sleeping late thing.)

Went to the gym last night. Ran on the eliptical for 30 minutes (Jeff came too, and he set the time length. He's a trooper, and he helps keep me going), and cycled for about 10. Lenten promise #2 started nicely.

I'm doing okay. I'm still not eating like I will be, but okay thus far. Yay for Lent! Yay for prayerfully checking myself befo' wrecking myself!

And on a sort-of self-indulgent note:

I've got a heel spur (flip-flop disease, according to internet doctors). Possibly. It hurts to walk in the morning and at night. Bad. I limp, and I feel ridiculous... like I'm 90 or something. Ouch! I bought Icy Hot to put on it, then I stunk all day.

We miss those cousins (and their parents) like CRAZY! Can't wait to see them again!

I need an art release. I feel like painting EVERYTHING. Maybe I'll add that to my Lenten list... Paint. Make time to paint. I'm going to paint something and post it by, um, Tuesday. Yes, Tuesday. Hold me to it. :)

Annie Annie Bo Bannie

Annie is hilarious.
She's growing in to this hilarious little person, who dances like a goofball when a good beat comes on, and who makes jokes and acts funny just to make us laugh.



It is, well, weird watching her grow from a kiddo into a buddy. Sure, she has her little kid moments, but now, more often than not, she's just this little person who is really, really fun for hanging out and laughs.



On another note, a few days ago we were driving to Savers and Annie said
"Mom, I need to start working on my letters."

"Okay, sure Annie, we can do that."

"I need to start learning to spell words."

I was so proud of my smart little munchkin. At Savers we picked up a $3.99 half marker board/ half chalkboard, and we started working on her letters.



Since then, she's spelled several words with a little help (I tell her the letter or sound it out and she writes it), but there are a couple she can do completely on her own. I'm so proud. :)



"Annie, how do you spell STOP?"

S.
T.
O.
P.



With a big, fat, T. :)
(And that stuff below it is Scribble Crabble, FYI)