Baby Boy Parrott

Taking a Nap in the Sun after Swimming - June 15th

2008-08-06T20:42:00.000-07:00

After swimming, we chilled on our blanket. Russ bundled Ian up in his towel. My men are so adorable!

Ian and Russ
Mommy and Ian taking a nap

Ian's Frogger Pool 8 month Birthday Celebration

2008-08-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

Russ bought Ian a Frogger Pool for his 8 month Birthday. We went out in the side yard and had an awesome time hanging out by the pool. Ian really liked it! He especially likes being completely naked! It's like a big bath...only better because he is outside...and he loves being tr. At first he just sat around, but then he started trying new things. Had a great time!

Mommy got in the pool with Ian to make sure that he didn't slip too much. Ian love it!
Ian swimming like a big boy!
Dad and Ian

Happy Father's Day - June 15th

2008-08-06T20:10:00.001-07:00

Ian and Russ had a great Father's day. They spent a lot of quality time together. It was also Ian's 8 month birthday! They had a great time! Ian is getting so big!

Ian Moving and Groovin in his Crib

2008-08-06T19:54:00.000-07:00

After turning 6 months, Ian started moving like crazy. We got a few pictures of him in his crib! He started rocking on all four a lot and started enjoying play time in his crib!

6 month pictures

2008-06-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

Ian was so cute for his 6 month pictures that Mom and Dad spent a ton of money. We just could not decide which pictures to buy!

Cookies & Bingo

2008-06-21T14:52:00.000-07:00

Daddy and Grandma babysat so Mommy could go to play Bingo with her girlfriends. Mom brought back some "on sale" cookies. They were super nummy and Ian wanted some too!

He's got good taste!

Ian and Russ bond overf the Bart's Boating Catalogue!

2008-06-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

Ian really liked the magazined. It tasted great!

Our little magazine eater!

Ian & Russ read together!

Play time!

2008-06-21T14:34:00.000-07:00

Ian sits up - 4/8/08

2008-06-21T14:28:00.000-07:00

My little nukie boy
Playing with the Octopus N&J got him.

Ian started tripoding on Mommy's B-day/Easter March 23rd.

Ian officially sat up by himself on 4/8/08!

A visit from RyKy

2008-06-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

We had a visit from RyKy and had tons of fun playing!

Ry and Ky having milk shakes!
All boys laying on the floor!
Ry and Nicole playing.
Ian in his jumper & C is for Crab hat!
Nicki and the boys

Feather Bowling over Easter

2008-06-21T14:07:00.000-07:00

JZ set up feather bowling over Easter. Grandma and Grandpa Parrott babysat so we could go out and hang with our college friends.

Wex, Ed, Russ, and Andy
AJ, Molly, Russ, and Jim
the feathre
The alley

Green Beer Day & Uncle Ryan's B-day! March 17th

2008-06-21T14:02:00.000-07:00

Dad and Ian celebrated Uncle Ryan's birthday with some green beer and cuddle time!

Ian may not be Irish, but we thought this onsie was awesome!

Ian and Zara - our little egg heads!

2008-06-21T13:57:00.001-07:00

Mom and Nicole tried really hard to hide behind the eggs.

Zara is one of Ian's many girlfriends at day care. She is a month younger than him!

Brunch with the Bunny - March 15th

2008-06-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I know we are way behind...but we do what we can. Ian and I met our friends Zara, Nicole, and Justin at Brunch with the Bunny. It was at the Center Lake Pavilion and we had breakfast and got pictures with the bunny. The bunny, we expected to be white and fluffy in a cute outfit, but he ended up being a brown, matted bunny! Oh well! Ian looks super cute in these pictures. I couldn't get him to smile very well until I tickled him and got in the picture.

A Shopping Day in Warsaw!

2008-06-09T19:23:00.000-07:00

We spent our Saturday shopping in Warsaw. We were looking for an Easter outfit for Ian, but we couldn't find anything. Dad got a little bit antsy in Elder Beer Fellar.

Ian Hold's His Own Bottle

2008-06-09T19:11:00.000-07:00

Daddy taught me how to hold my own bottle! I am such a big boy!

Our Little U of M Boy

2008-06-09T19:05:00.000-07:00

Uncle Ryan and Laura gave Ian this cute little Onsie. He looks great with a big M on his butt!

Unfortunately, it looks like Ian is not a U of M fan. We'll have to see how he does with his Michigan Tech outfit!

My future is so bright...I've got to wear shades

2008-06-09T19:03:00.000-07:00

Ian is too cool for school!

Chubber Bubbers in A Towel!

2008-06-09T18:58:00.000-07:00

Ian is the cutest baby boy! He is getting to be quiet the chunky monkey! We love our little butter ball!

Cutie in a Car Seat

2008-06-09T18:54:00.000-07:00

For Ian's Birthday, we got him the car chair play toy. His Froggie plays Polly Wolly Doodle Olly Day! He loves it. We can finally put him in the car chair now without crying! Yeah

Parrott Look-alike Meter

2008-06-04T21:43:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy - Celebrities - Collage - Morph

Grammie came to visit when Ian had RSV

2008-05-22T20:35:00.000-07:00

Ian got sick right before we were supposed to go down to Florida. We ended up staying home when we found out that he had RSV. Grammie ended up getting a cheap ticket so she could come up and visit us!

Ian, Dad, and Grammie scope Grandma Parrott

Our little baseball player

2008-05-22T20:32:00.000-07:00

Ian looks cuter than ever in his baseball outfit!

Ian and Dad at the Computer

2008-05-22T20:28:00.000-07:00

Ian and Dad hung out at the computer a lot!

Baby Pattern Balding

2008-05-22T20:25:00.000-07:00

Our munkin is cuter than ever! He had some major baby pattern baldness from sleeping on his back. He is the cutest friar tuck we've ever seen!

Ian's Day Care - Wee Care

2008-05-22T20:14:00.000-07:00

Cars lined up at the door
Checking Ian in at the computer
You need the code number in order to enter the baby areaA view of Ian's room from the door. He has his own cubby where we put his diaper bag.
Each Kid has their own crib.

Ian in his crib!

New Years Eve at Kim and Doogies!

2008-05-22T18:31:00.000-07:00

We all went to Kim and Ryan's for the New Year's Eve party. Ian was a hit. We hung with our friends and got our butts kicked by a 4 year old in WII bowling!
Kim, Becca, and Kristin - Deephers Unite!

Ian with his beads right before midnight!
Ian making some noise for New Years! (okay so he was asleep and we posed him)

Ian and Kristin Day

Ian had a really hot date for New Years Eve!

Ian's first Christmas!

2008-03-10T18:51:00.000-07:00

We went to a little Methodist church in Belaire for Christmas for the candle light service. They had a live nativity scene outside with real sheep! It was really cool. Ian slept through the whole service. At the end of the service, they gave us sugar cookies! Mom Parrott went with us too! Ian looked super cute in the outfit that the Werhly's (the owners of the Ruff Inn) gave him.

Hanging out at the Condo!

2008-03-10T18:47:00.000-07:00

Ian Hamming it up in his bouncer!

2008-03-10T18:46:00.000-07:00

Ian started getting really smiley around Christmas. He just loves his bouncer.

Taking a Bath in the Sink of the Condo

2008-03-10T18:42:00.000-07:00

For some reason everyone loves a picture of a naked baby! Here is Ian in his sink bath!

Ian's first swim!

2008-03-04T19:17:00.000-08:00

Ian had his first swim at the Shuss Mountain pool. We got him some Little Swimmers and Daddy and Mommy took turns swimming with him. He was okay for a while, but then he got a little cold. We believe that he will be an awesome swimmer someday!

Ian and his presents from Santa!

2008-03-04T19:15:00.000-08:00

Ian had a ton of presents! What a little cutie!

Ian taking a break after his photo shoot!

2008-03-04T19:11:00.000-08:00

We took family pictures during the Enz Family Christmas. Ian was great! He sat through a ton of pictures. He started getting crabby during the 3 boys pictures, so we only got one of those. He took a milk break after a hard day's work!

3 boys in car seats ready for family pictures

2008-03-04T19:06:00.000-08:00

3 boys in car seats!

Ian
Ian Kyle
Ryan

3 little boys in Santa stripes!

2008-03-04T19:03:00.000-08:00

Kyle teaches Ian about Tummy Time!

2008-03-04T18:20:00.000-08:00

Nicole's new keyboard

2008-03-04T18:16:00.000-08:00

Ryan and I spent some special time learning to play the piano together. He is a natural! The family's little Mozart!

Billy the Bass makes an appearance!

2008-02-24T17:33:00.000-08:00

Billy the Bass has long been a tradition in our family. We constantly re-gift it for birthdays and for Christmas. The twins really love Billy!

Ian Just Being Cute

2008-02-24T17:28:00.000-08:00

PRESENT TIME!

2008-02-24T17:19:00.000-08:00

The twins liked opening presents a lot. Ian was a little too young...but he got a lot of cool stuff!

Grandparents and the boys!

2008-02-24T16:23:00.000-08:00

We got a lot of good pictures with the grandparents.

Grandpa and Ryan
Grandma and the twins!

Grandma and Ryan
Grandpa and Ian
Grandma and Ian
Grandpa and Ian

Christmas with the Enz Family - The Biggest Snowman Ever!

2008-02-24T16:04:00.000-08:00

Daddy and Uncle Jason went outside to play in the snow and build the Biggest Snowman Ever. For some reason, nobody decided to take a picture of the actual snowman...Bummer

Ian Smiling

2007-12-20T17:12:00.000-08:00

Ian is doing a lot of smiling and cooing lately. He is getting cuter everyday!

A weekend with the Muellers - December 1st

2007-12-04T17:18:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

We had an awesome Saturday! The Muellers drove up to spend the day with us. Those boys are getting so big. Ian was elated to finally meet Jason. He also got to spend some quality time with his Aunt. Mommy really had fun playing with the twins!

Russ and Jason chill out.

The boys are really moving now!

Kyle is intrigued by the doggies.

Ryan chews on the nukie!

Ian's Naked Baby in a Bath Photos!

2007-12-04T17:11:00.001-08:00

Of course we had to put some naked photos of Ian taking a bath on the blog! Isn't he just the cutest! For some reason he has a big buddah belly and then he has a tiny hip area...this makes diapering tough!
Ian is a little modest and is covering up his privates with his foot!

Thanksgiving!

2007-12-04T16:25:00.000-08:00

Ian had a great 1st Thanksgiving. We traveled to Clarkston, MI to spend Thanksgiving with the Parrott Family. We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with Mom and Dad Parrott.

That night we also went to the Clark's. We got to meet up with Roger and Rose and all of family! I forgot to bring my camera, but boy was it a show! Cory & Tom's 3 boys and Melissa & Jason's 4 girls were very entertaining. Ian got to meet his 3rd cousin Hadley who is one day younger than him.

Ian was thrilled to get to spend some quality time with his Godfather Ryan. They even shared a bottle! Hanging out with Ryan!

Daddy feeding Ian a bottle in the living room.

Ian was truly excited to meet the lovely Laura. He got to spend some time with her and realized that she could make him feel better. She literally stopped him from crying just by hanging out

Ryan and Laura

Let the record be set...Uncle Greg was the first person who came over for Thanksgiving. Friday the Parrott family came over and for a while, we thought Uncle Greg was going to be the only one to show. He gave Ian lots of kisses or cheekies.

Uncle Greg Chilling out!

Sara and Chris also came over for a visit!

Chris & Sara

Later in the night, Mike, Kathy, Rachel and Abigail came over. Abigail also brought her friend Madison. Rachel performed her dance to Mambo #5. Rachel also held Ian.

Rachel & Ian

Thanksgiving was an awesome time. Mommy was really excited to get a little break. Daddy even got to go out for a night on the town with his friends. The only bummer was that Daddy woke up super early in order to stand in line at Circuit City to find out that no flat screen TVs were left.

Mommy & Ian relaxing!

Ian's Favorite Place!

2007-12-04T16:13:00.000-08:00

Ian's favorite place to sleep is his sling. If he is crabby and we don't know what to do (other than feeding him), we put him in his sling. You just need to carry him around for a little while and then you can sit down or do what you like. This is the best $1.00 that my mom ever spent at a garage sale.

Once he's asleep, you don't even need to carry him around anymore.

Ian all bundled up!

What he looks like from the outside.

Ian hanging with his friends - Nov 21st

2007-12-03T13:56:00.000-08:00

I thought I would take some pictures of Ian with his stuffed animals in his crib! Don't worry, he doesn't actually sleep next to all of the animals, I position him differently, I just thought it would be a cute pictures!

Hand Prints - Nov 21st

2007-12-03T13:45:00.000-08:00

When the people from work threw me a shower, I got the coolest kit for Ian's hand print and foot print. It comes with ink and the pictures frames. For quite some time now we've been meaning to get his prints, but we keep pushing it off. Seeing as he is over 1 month old, I thought I should get the prints before he gets to old. I tried to get the prints by myself, but that was nearly impossible. He didn't want to cooperate and he got ink all over himself and me! Here are a few pictures from my attempts!

Ian and Mommy's fingers!

Ian's face post op... notice I waited until he was sleeping to take a picture.

Stitch Removal & Pictures! - November 20th

2007-11-21T10:30:00.000-08:00

Tuesday was exhausting. Monday night was a tough one and I woke up with a headache above my left eye...a.k.a. my sleep headache. Ian had is appointment with Dr. Smith (the surgeon who cut his pylorus and sewed it up) at 11:15 a.m. We got there with plenty of time and waited around. The appointment took all of 2 minutes. He simply took the steris strips off and cut the stitch.

After that, we went to Glenbrook Mall for Ian's pictures. He had a 1:10 pm. sitting, but mommy did not have time to eat before that, so we ran to the food court. After that, we went to get the pictures taken. It was in a corner of JC Penny's that did not seem to have any air flow. It was stifling hot and there were kids running around everywhere, so I was nervous that Ian would catch something. Nonetheless, we finally got our turn. He was being a little angel and she took one picture and of course he started to cry. We tried a few different poses to see if that was the reason for crying, but that didn't help. We got out the nuk, and that didn't help. So, I decided to change him which sent him into a raging cry and he started breaking out (he gets splotchy every time he cries). We decided to let another group go ahead of us and we took a break for "lunch" even though he had just finished eating at the Dr's office. Anyway, we finally got back to our seating because the people we let go in front of us had a few outfit changes and the mom was complaining the whole time that there weren't Christmas backgrounds for infants (hello! Your baby can't hold up it's head, what kind of poses do you think she can do?). He ended up being a good boy and it didn't take long to get a few shots. After your sitting, it takes 20+ minutes before you can view your photos, so Ian and I looked around JC Penny's a bit. Then, we finally viewed the photos. He had a few good ones, so we ordered a bunch. We got a 10 X 13 in B&W which was more expensive and a matted frame to go with it (at 40% off). I haven't told Russ how much the total cost was, but hopefully he will understand!

After that, we headed home. My headache had returned in full force, so I stopped at BK to see if food would help my headache (my headaches are usually caused by hunger or sleep deprivation). That didn't work, so I had to take a nap half way home! Whew! What a day.

Russ was a sweetheart and let me take a nap when I got home. He even cooked dinner. I am so lucky to have an awesome husband!

Going Out in Fort Wayne - Saturday Nov 17th

2007-11-21T09:50:00.000-08:00

Saturday was a big day for us all!

I woke up super early to drive to town and get my hair cut at 8:15 a.m. I had almost completely forgotten about my promise! Eric and his family were too nice to call and bother me about getting my hair cut. I wanted to go to Expressions Salon because they are the best in town...I don't know if anyone remembers my last "really short" hair cut that essentially gave me a mullet. Anyway, I went to Kerri, who comes well recommended. I called the salon on Thursday and they told me I could come Saturday or in a month +. Well, I a month+ was not going to work because Jillian goes into bad Chemo at the beginning of December. I had a whole 2 days to pick out a hairstyle. I went with a bob like Victoria Beckham. It ended up okay. It looks pretty cool from the back, but for some reason my cowlick makes it funny on the left side. I don't love it, but my hair is decent and it doesn't take that long to style. The good thing is that hopefully Jillian will have her wig in time.

Anyway, then I drove back to Claypool and Adam and Kris picked us up. We went to get our Neon that was in the shop and then hit BW3 for the U of M game. Despite their loss, we had a great time! Ian thought it was okay, but he didn't like being changed in the bathroom. I brought a bunch of bottles (I thought ahead and pumped the night before), so Ian was content. We had a great time! It is so nice that Fort Wayne has a no smoking rule. We can take Ian out to eat anywhere and not have to worry about second hand smoke.

Sorry that we don't have pictures of the game...we didn't bring our camera. Russ took a picture with his cell phone so maybe he will post that later.

Coming Home

2007-11-19T11:31:00.000-08:00

Our trip home was eventful. A few miles out of Fort Wayne, our check engine light went on...so we promptly turned around and headed for the closest dealership. Our neon's catalytic converter went bad, along with a few other minor things.

The girls were really excited to come home...although they really enjoyed the kennel. Apparently, Dora is enamored by a certain boy dog.

The girls were excited to be home.

Ian's Emergency Surgery

2007-11-18T17:43:00.000-08:00

So I came home to a husband and a puking baby. Apparently, while mommy was out, daddy was having a tough day. Ian did not hold down anything. He was projectile vomiting. My mom had called me on the way home from Chicago and told me about Pyloric Stenosis, so I was really worried the whole drive home.

The Pylorus is the muscle between the stomach and the intestines. It is a radial muscle like the sphincter. In some children around 3+ weeks old the muscle gets too large and does not let anything pass from the stomach to the intestine. This is diagnosed by an ultrasound and fixed by a simple surgery. Essentially, the Dr. cuts the pylorus to weaken the muscle so that it will let the food through.

Russ called the Dr. and she told us to go to the ER. It was such a long day! We went to the ER at about midnight and they did the preliminary tests and he checked out just fine...his electrolytes were okay and his skin was the appropriate color. Then, they did the ultra sound. The results came back positive for pyloric stenosis, so I had to pump so they could do another ultra sound while he was drinking. That also turned out positive. The whole thing took forever. It seemed like we were waiting for everything.

Next, they sent us to Lutheran hospital in Fort Wayne for his surgery. It was about 6:00 a.m. and Russ had to drive through the pouring rain to Fort Wayne. It seemed like the longest drive ever. We were both exhausted and I was trying to stay awake with Ian to make sure he didn't choke on his spit-up.

Once we got to Lutheran (around 7:00 a.m.), it seemed to take forever. The pediatric surgeon who saw Ian was Dr. Smith. Unfortunately, he didn't see Ian until after church. The worst part was that Ian had to empty his stomach, so we could not feed him all day. Luckily, the IV helped keep his hunger down. The nice thing about the hospital was that Russ and I took turns napping. Russ ran home (1 hour) to take the dogs to the kennel. When he was on the road, they came in and told me that Ian was going into surgery...now. We had expected to speak to the Dr. first, but the OR opened up, so we were trying to get in. I got to speak to the Dr. and the anesthetist and he went to surgery. A 1/2 hour later, the surgery was done. We ended up staying until Monday.

Ian's incision

Mommy's Day Out - November 10th

2007-11-18T17:23:00.000-08:00

I pumped all week so that dad had enough milk to take Ian all day on Saturday. I left our house at 5:15 a.m. to drive to Bridget's house. I drove through the fog, so I was late...and incredibly scared for my life! Once at Bridget's we piled into Kim's vehicle and she drove us to South Bend airport. After that, we boarded the train for the 3rd Annual Chicago Christmas Tree Lighting and Window Viewing.

Once there, we stopped at Starbucks (this is a tradition) and looked at the Macy's windows. This year, the window had a nutcracker theme.

Next we went to FAO Schwartz in Macy's when I heard an announcement for Martha Stewart's Christmas Crafts (or something like that). We went to the event center to check it out. We got a bag with a Martha Stewart ornament, chocolates, Martha Stewart Living, and a mesh Macy's shopping bag. We went straight to the refreshments and grabbed a bottled water for the road. Karen and I went to the Christmas Sugar Cookie decorating workshop and the rest of the girls learned how to trim a tree. Half way through, Martha came to visit. It was fun seeing a star, but we weren't too impressed. Kim even said "HI" to her, but we were told that it was a short obligatory hi. She got a nod back.

After that we went to eat at Heaven on Seven. I pumped in the bathroom...it was pretty awkward, but you've gotta do what you've gotta do. I also had a Margarita! That was awesome.

It was a fun day, but it was tiring carrying my breast pump the whole time.

I got home at around 12:00.

Kris and Adam come over for dinner!

2007-11-18T17:14:00.000-08:00

We had our first official visitors at the Dam Cabin. Kris Burdine and Adam Finley came over for dinner on November 9th. We had a great time! Russ did a great job preparing dinner. We ate steak, salad, mashed potatoes, and Kris brought carrot cake. It was so nice for mommy to have "social time." Adam is natural with babies. I am pleased to announce that Ian was the first baby that Kris has ever held!

Out and About in Fort Wayne - Nov 7th

2007-11-18T17:07:00.001-08:00

We left for Fort Wayne at the crack of dawn in order to get to Russ's 7:30 a.m. Dermatology appointment. That went well!

After that, we went to the Brick House for breakfast and went to Granite Ridge Builders to look at our home prints. We checked over all of the change notices and signed our final documents. That means that our home should be finished April 7th - 5 months after signing!

Ian started spitting up excessively Tuesday night and spit up all over mommy on the couch.

Ian and Dad hang out on the Red Couch at Granite Ridge Builders.

Russ the Lumberjack!

2007-11-18T16:29:00.000-08:00

After church we went to the lot and Ian and I got to watch Dad be a lumberjack. He loaded up the truck with wood for Grandpie Enz.

There were so many trees that we ended up hiring some people to chip all of the branches. It was well worth it. It would have taken Russ weeks to do.

Just a note: Don't ever pay a tree service guy a deposit. We ended up getting scammed by the guy that was supposedly doing work down the street. Apparently, the guy does tree service work, but has also been known to scam a ton of people. He brought his kid along to the scam for sympathy. Oh well, at least it was a small scam and we have learned our lesson.

Ian's first day at Church! November 4th

2007-11-18T16:23:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not, we actually got ready in time to go to 10:30 church! Ian had a great time at his first WCC church service. We went in the quite room so that it wouldn't be so loud on his ears. We were the only people in there, so Ian even got to eat at church (eating is currently his favorite thing to do, so I used my privacy cape and he had a great time!) It was nice to go to church again. We didn't stick around too long after the service because we didn't want him to be exposed to all of the germs.

Alissa and Arlene Visit - Nov 2 & 3

2007-11-18T16:11:00.000-08:00

Alissa and Arlene came for a visit on the weekend of the Nov 2 & 3. Alissa had an interview at St Francis University in Fort Wayne on Saturday, so they drove down on Friday and stayed at our house. It was great to see them! Arlene and I hung out on Saturday while Alissa went to her interview.

Alissa got in, of course, but she is waiting to see if she will get into Iowa, La Cross, or Madison before she accepts. It would be super cool for Alissa to be so close, but then she would have to be away from her soon to be husband Seth.

On a happy note, we finally found Godparents for Fila and Dora. As you can see by the picture below, Auntie Arlene was a major hit with the dogs (especially Dora). Arlene has agreed to be Dora's Godmother and Alissa has agreed to be Fila's Godmother. Now I know I can die and everything will be as it should be. That way, the girls will still get to see each other every now and again...they truly are a pair and it would be a shame to split them up.

Group photo...Dora sneaks a kiss on Arlene.Alissa and Ian

Arlene and Ian

Ian in Swing

2007-11-12T16:28:00.000-08:00

Ian and Mom Napping

2007-11-12T16:22:00.000-08:00

Ian Goes Home

2007-11-12T16:15:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the World, Ian... not graphic video

2007-11-12T16:02:00.000-08:00

Video of lan Being Weighed

2007-11-12T15:35:00.000-08:00

Ian's First Bottle - Sunday

2007-11-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

My "Medela Pump in Style Advanced - the Metro Bag" came in the mail on Saturday, so Ian had his first official bottle on Sunday November 4th! He took it like a champ! No problem!

Tree Time!

2007-11-09T14:17:00.000-08:00

Superior Tree Service came over and cut down the trees on our lot. It was amazing to look at our lot after the trees were down. You could barely see the grass because trees were everywhere! They came the day before we closed, so Russ took a 1/2 day and went to cut and clear the trees that were in the Purdy's yard.

View from the park
Side view of the house to give you perspective of how many trees there were!

Closing on the 1st of Nov

2007-11-09T13:58:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,
We officially closed on our house on November 1st. 1505 Park Avenue officially belongs to the Purdy's from Ft Wayne. We are pretty excited because we think they will be great neighbors. They bought the house as a summer home and will hanging out with their family on the weekends. Paula even brought Ian a Birthday gift during the closing!
~Homeless Becca & Russ

Ian & Fila

2007-11-09T13:43:00.000-08:00

Fila is perplexed by the baby. She loves to sniff at all the new baby stuff. If she had her way, she would taste him...she tries to get a lick in here and there, but so far, mom has been able to protect Ian.

Dora is not as interested in Ian as Fila is, but she has recently shown some interest. I think Dora misses the attention the most.

Fila being good.

Fila trying to get a taste of the baby.

Our Little "Punkin"

2007-11-09T12:57:00.001-08:00

Hi all,
Here is our little punkin! Russ started to crave our pumpkin and thought it would be fun to see how Ian looked in it! Believe it or not, Ian didn't really mind. We never did finish carving the pumpkin, but this was by far the cutest pumpkin we have ever made.
~Becca

Ian Bouncing Away

2007-11-05T06:59:00.000-08:00

Here are some cute pictures of Ian relaxing in his bouncer.

Our First Day Out and About - Sunday October 28th

2007-11-05T06:39:00.000-08:00

Sunday was our first day out! We didn't take Ian to church because there would be too many germs, but we did have to run a few errands and we took Ian with us.

First we went to Lowes and Walmart (Ian and I stayed in the car) because we had to buy out door lights. During the big wind storm, th screen door of the old house blew open and smashed one of the outdoor lights.

We went to the house to pick up a few things and Russ fixed the light while I fed Ian.

We ate at the Kelany's Sweet Shop and Ian did pretty well. There was only one other family in there and they thought he was cute so they didn't mind his sporadic cries.

Next we went to Granite Ridge Model Home to meet John Sommers in order to sign off on our new house prints.

Russ and Ian dressed up for the occasion, but mommy still can't fit into her jeans, so I dressed in my normal comfy pants.

Here are some pictures of my men dressed up for the occasion.

Ian's Photo Shoot

2007-11-05T06:23:00.000-08:00

On Sunday morning, we did a little photo shoot at home and found out that Ian is very photogenic!

Look at how strong his neck is...

Beaver Dam Lake Gargoyle

2007-11-05T06:19:00.000-08:00

Russ snapped this picture of Dora trying to be a gargoyle. She must be getting hints from the Hunchback of Notre Dame.

The Family

2007-11-05T06:12:00.001-08:00

I thought this was a fun family picture! Right before I took the picture, both girls were in front of the couch. Oh well, I should have know it was too good to be true. One pup at a time will have to do.

Dora hanging out with Dad and Ian.
Fila hanging out with Dad and Ian.

Chilling Out on Saturday

2007-11-04T16:18:00.000-08:00

We chilled out on Saturday. Russ went biking with friends in the morning and then we lounged around during the day. Russ is trying to pick up the guitar again!

Our First Family Walk at 9139 South Don Way

2007-11-04T16:09:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

We went for our first family walk on Saturday. Russ took the 2 crazy dogs and I had Ian in the Snugli. The roads around here are stone, so it is hard to use the stroller and we had to improvise. We had a fun time (except that Russ had to carry the girls poo)!

Russ, Dora, Fila, and a bag of poo!

Ian in his Snugli with the hat that I knifty knitted for him!

Ian loves his car seat

2007-11-04T14:21:00.000-08:00

We found out that Ian absolutely loves his car seat. After the trauma of being buckled up, Ian falls right asleep. We think this is because he loves to be bundled up. Russ often bundles him up in a fleece blanket when he is cranky and he will settle down and fall asleep.

Ian's first non-scheduled visit to the Dr. October 25th

2007-11-04T14:03:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

We went to the Dr. on Thursday the 25th because Ian had a diaper rash, a goopy eye, and a bad looking umbilical cord hernia that seemed to get worse when he cried.

Dr. Kishan said everything was okay. She originally suggested that we don't use any chemicals or lotions on Ian's body so his body can produce it's own oils. (I agree with this theory because I saw this happen first hand with my lips after constantly using chapstick. Now I can't go a winter without using it or my lips practically fall off.) She suggested using butt paste and that pretty much cleared it up. We used a wet wash cloth for a while during diaper changes, but now we are using Pampers Sensitive Wipes. We tried Huggies Sensitive Wipes, but they still seemed to irritate his skin.

Ian's Goopy Booger Eye (left eye)

His goopy eye is a blocked tear duct. We have to massage his tear duct every time we feed...that has pretty much cleared it up, but we have to keep massaging his eye or it comes back. We were really lucky, because we were afraid he was allergic to the dogs.

His umbilical cord is herniated, but it should be okay. When he cries, it protrudes out and it looks painful. His cord finally fell off this past week (Nov) so it looks better now.

Hanging out with Dad at the Dam Cabin

2007-11-03T19:33:00.000-07:00

Ian and Daddy are best buddies. Ian likes to spend his alert and awake time with Daddy when he gets home from work. He especially likes to be held veritcally for some reason. Ian gives his stamp of approval on the little cabin on Beaver Dam Lake here in Claypool.

Swinging!

2007-11-03T18:05:00.000-07:00

We found that Ian really likes to swing. That makes 2 things he likes...eating and swinging. Other than that, our sweet pea does a lot of sleeping and pooping.

2 days is all it takes!

2007-11-03T17:32:00.000-07:00

Ian's last nap in 1505 Park Avenue.

Mom and I spent Monday and Wednesday cleaning out the house. It took longer than we thought. We only expected it to take 1 day, but at the end of Monday, we were still not done.

Ian was a great little boy and took naps so mommy could clean.

The Celebration Dance!

It was such a relief to have our house finally cleaned out.

Moving out!

2007-11-03T16:46:00.000-07:00

The Parrotts came down on Saturday the 20th. Ryan and Dad Parrott helped move the rest of the furniture into the garage a.k.a our storage unit. We spent the rest of the weekend packing things up and were mostly out of the house by Sunday. It was really nice to have all of the help, but I have to admit that it was a really stressful time.

Sunday was our first night at 9139 South Don Way. We moved into my parent's cabin with them (they left for Florida /college the following Saturday) until our house is done (we haven't even started yet).

Sunset view from the Dam Cabin!

Friday's visit from Mary, Peter, Nicole, & the Twins

2007-10-25T14:06:00.001-07:00

We got home from the hospital on Wednesday the 17th. Ian and I spent Thursday morning by ourself at home and Grammie Enz came to visit in the afternoon. On Friday, Mary, Peter, Nicole, and the Twins came for a visit. We had a great time!

Peter and Ian.

Mary, Kyle, Mommy, and Ian...a note to everyone, you still look pregnant for a few weeks after you give birth...I had a hard time putting this "double chin" photo on this site.

The twins...Kyle (blue) and Ryan (green).

Grammie and her boys... Kyle, Ryan, and Ian.

Hospital Photo Shoot!

2007-10-25T13:48:00.000-07:00

Ian would make a great "Mummy" for Halloween.

Close up of Ian sleeping.

All wrapped up!

Pictures with Doggie.

Close up.

Ian just looking cool in his jungle outfit!

Ian and Doggie Dog!

Hanging out with Daddy

2007-10-25T13:20:00.000-07:00

My Big Daddy and My Little Man.

My men have the same hair line...

so we gave Ian a new do that matches his Dad's do. Just hanging out.

My men taking a nap together in the hospital.

Russ taking care of our baby.

Pictures with Grandpa Parrott

2007-10-25T13:16:00.000-07:00

More Ian Pictures - On his Birthday!

2007-10-23T15:03:00.000-07:00

Not a happy camper...

Sleeping all sprawled out.

Sleeping in Grandma's arms.

Close up.

Another close up.

Ian's First Bath

2007-10-23T14:49:00.000-07:00

Russ did an awesome job giving Ian his first bath! Check out these cute photos! Ian holding Daddy's finger before the bath. Proud Daddy and his clean son.

Grandpa Parrott visits on Tuesday

2007-10-23T14:29:00.000-07:00

Grandpa Parrott got back from his work/golf trip of Tuesday and drove straight down to see his Grandson. He and Grandma stayed until Wednesday. I can't find any pictures on my computer, but I'm sure there are some on our camera...when we find the camera. I'll update as soon as I find pictures.

Lots of visitors...

2007-10-23T13:01:00.000-07:00

Ian was lucky to have lots of family visitors in his first day of life.

Daddy was the first to change Ian's Black Tar Diaper. He was so brave!

At about 5:00 a.m. before his birth, Grandma Parrott decided she could no longer sleep.

The next thing you know, we also find out that Grammie Coleen was in the waiting room at 5:30 a.m.

After a breakfast of strawberry waffles, Nicole and Grampie Steve were not far behind.

Proud grandparents!

Welcome to the World Ian Maurice - October 15th 5:56 a.m.

2007-10-23T12:28:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the World Ian Maurice Parrott!

We were blessed to have our baby enter the world at 5:56 a.m. on Monday the 15th of October. We were absolutely overjoyed that he finally came to be with us! Ian was 7 lbs 5 oz and 19.5 inches long.

This family photo shows just how tired we all were...especially me after 58 hours of labor.

It all started at about 8:00 p.m. on Friday night. We were eating at the Cerulean (a really nice restaurant in Winona Lake) with Stephanie our Co-op and Edi our co-worker from Switzerland. I took a gamble and decided that if our baby didn't come yet, we could at least go for a nice dinner on Zimmer. Half way through, I noticed that the contractions I was having actually hurt and I was having a hard time breathing through them. Friday night was okay. I had to get up and walk with each contraction...but luckily they were about 30+ minutes apart.

Saturday started out fine, but then the contractions started getting closer and closer (5 minutes apart). We were packing our house up and trying to get work done, but we finally went to the hospital at about 3:00 p.m. to find that I was only 1 cm dialted. I was sent home and told to come back when my contractions hurt more and were 3-4 minutes apart. When we were in the hospital, Russ called Mom Parrott and she and Ryan hopped in the car to start driving down.

Saturday night was horrible! I had really painful contractions 10 minutes apart all night long. I got absolutely no sleep. UGH!

Sunday was really long. My contractions weren't getting any closer together than 5 minutes. In fact, every time I would nap or try to sleep, the contractions would slow down to 10 minutes. Anyway, I didn't want to go the hospital to get sent home. Mom and Mom finally convinced me to call the hospital at 5:00 p.m. I spoke to Dr. Howard and he told me to come at 8:00 p.m. He didn't want me to have another sleepless night...especially if I would have to have the baby the next day. That was a really long 3 hours. Nicole drove down in the afternoon, so when she got here, everyone went to dinner (we didn't go because I couldn't hold down any food anyway) while Russ and I stayed home.

We got to the hospital and found out I was 4 cm dialated! YEAH!!! I still can't believe that it took me 48 hours to dilate 4 cm. Oh well. I thought I was going to be real tough and have a natural birth without an epidural, but after 48 hours of exhaustion, I gladly took the epidural. Russ and I thought that we had requested the epidural, but I guess we did not offically request it, so 3 hours and 2 cm later, we finally got it!

IT WAS AWESOME! The pain went away and I got to go to sleep. Unfortunately, my contractions slowed down to 10 minutes apart because I was sleeping. At 3:00 or so, I was only 7 cm, so they gave me some petocin. At around 5:00, I was fully dialated, so the doctor came and we started pushing. It wasn't bad at all. The epidural took away a ton of the pain. Less than an hour later, our bundle of joy was finally delivered!

I hope you enjoyed the labor story!

~Becca

1 week overdue - Not so on the ball!

2007-10-23T12:14:00.000-07:00

Hi all,
I went to the doctor and apparently he couldn't "help me out." I was due on the 8th (Monday)and ended up working all week. Russ bought me an exercise ball to use at work to "open my pelvis" so the baby could come out. Mindy from work took this picture for laughs.
~Becca

Over Due

2007-10-10T20:10:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone,
No baby yet. I go to the doctor tomorrow morning. Last time the doctor told me he could "help me out" at my next appointment if the baby hasn't come yet. I originally thought that "help me out" meant that he would induce me, but apparently there are other ways. People keep telling me he will rupture my membranes...but for the last 2 weeks the doctors talked about rupturing my membranes, but I wasn't dialated enough. Oh well...we will keep you posted.
~Becca

I'm Still Here

2007-10-08T05:09:00.000-07:00

Hi all,
Today is my due date...and I'm still at work. I'm really ready for this baby to come. I even brought an exercise ball into work!

We had a pretty busy weekend and I was sure that I would go into labor, but luck wasn't with me.

Friday - We had a golf outing for work. I golfed a little, walked, and road on a bumpy golf cart. I thought for sure this would help.

Saturday - We did a 2+ mile walk for Arthritus and we packed and organized our house. I thought for sure the walk plus the stress of organizing with my mom would induce me!

Sunday - I had Sunday School - 8 hyper 1st grade boys...this was a sure thing! Then we came home to clean for 2 hours before the 4+ hour inspection. What a day!

I know God has a plan for all of this, but I was just hoping that the plan would be that I would have the baby last weekend.

We'll see what happens. I have an appointment on Thursday and the Dr. said he could help me a long a little after that!

I'll keep you posted!
~Becca ;-)

Cousin Play Time - Belly Shot

2007-10-05T16:35:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I just wanted to share this cute picture. We got to see the twins last weekend and playing on their cousin is their new favorite thing. Here is a picture of Ryan bouncing on Ian.

Later,

Becca

Moving....

2007-09-29T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to let everyone know that we got a second offer on our house. We finally put our nursery up and what do you know, we sold the house. Oh well, God has a plan, but we just can't figure out what it is. If all goes well with the inspection, we will be out of the house by November 15th at the latest. We will move into my parent's cabin. They will be sticking around for a few weeks after the baby is born. After that, they will move to their Florida home and we will stay in their cabin until our house is finished.
~Becca

The Safari Nursery

2007-09-29T10:16:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Sorry that it has been so long. We finally completed our Safari Nursery two weeks ago.

Mom Parrott refinished a dresser and hutch that Russ used when he was a child. The dresser turned out perfect! We put all of the sutffed animals on the hutch portion. There are even little animals on the drawer knobs. Mom Parrott also refinished a cute little night stand for us.

We put up our $29.50 crib (we think this was mismarked, but when they checked it, it said $29.50 even though it was $150.00 online).

My mom finished the quilt and it looks awesome! We put the full bed upstairs when we bought a queen bed for the guest room. This way, mommy can take a nap when baby does. My mom also made a safari pillows, a valence, and a lamp.

The nursery is now my favorite room in the whole house.

~Becca

Ryan and Kyle's Baptism

2007-09-02T09:39:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I just wanted to share pictures of the twin's baptism. We are so excited to be Ryan's Godparents. We love those boys so much. They both enjoy sitting on their cousin! It is amazing how handy the baby bump is when holding another baby.

~Becca

Russ is officially "THE GODFATHER"

More Cousin Pics

2007-09-02T09:31:00.003-07:00

Kyle and Ryan - Tummy Time

Hi all,

I found some more up-to-date pictures of the cousins that I thought everyone would enjoy!

Those twins are so cute!

~Becca

Ryan and Kyle Dressed as Twins!

The Twins with Great Grandma Carol