Baxter pix

18Nov09

Dru got out his fayncy camera and lens and got some pics of Baxter. Other than that Gran and Grandad have been taking most of the pictures, and I’m negotiating for the rights to download from Grandad’s online MobileMe Gallery, so I don’t have a ton of candid shots. But these turned out great, I think. Yes, Baxter is a tad yellow (jaundiced), but it’s totally normal, don’t worry.

We’re doing well. Nola has acted out a few times, needing extra mama time and affection, but her two year-old jealousy hasn’t gotten too bad (yet). Bax is a nursing machine. He was above his birth weight five days after birth, and is putting on the ounces daily since he’s nursing just about every hour. I wish I could siphon off some of his nursing to moms who have trouble nursing. I haven’t written the birth story to post yet, but I can just tell you that although I thought this birth would be fast (as most second labors are), it wasn’t. Active labor was 8 hours (as opposed to 6-ish with Nola), and there was a lot more pushing and major work that went into getting him out. He was posterior (face up) and his head was at an angle, which made for a LOT of  back pain. I had to push way before I was ready in order to get him around my pelvic bone. I wondered halfway through if I could do it, but I did, thanks to Dru and my fabulous midwives. He was born in the water…thanks also to that birth tub, which really helped my comfort level. Anyway, I’ll post that birth story for those of you who want to know more.

I’m getting used to the idea that we not only have two kids, but we have a boy! Boys pee on you when you change their diaper, by the way. I don’t know if you knew that. I knew it in theory, but when it actually happens it’s quite a shock. I’ll adjust.

Thanks for all the kind words; I hope to keep up with this blog more than I did during pregnancy; I may need some nagging, so don’t be shy!


Well, he finally made his arrival, as you no doubt already know. Baxter Primeaux Dunnaway was born on Tuesday, Nov. 10th at 7:50 p.m. He weighed in at 9 lb., 1 oz. and is 22 1/4 inches long. Big boy! He was born at home and Nola was here to help. She was the perfect midwives assistant, offering me water and holding my hand through contractions. She’s a darling big sister, holding Baxter and kissing him. My mom JUST made it in time for the birth; she got here and 15 minutes later Baxter was born! It was pretty crazy. I’m feeling good, napping and letting people do things for me. Dru’s mom was here helping me clean today and my mom has been cooking. Dru’s been amazing, helping with Nola, cleaning up, and doing laundry. I’m so thankful for a great support system.

In typical fashion, I haven’t been on the computer much in the last few days, but if there’s still anyone looking at this blog, I figure you want some pics. I think that some have been posted on facebook, and there’ve definitely been some kicked around on e-mail, but right now this is all I have. I’ll give you some more soon.

 


Just pictures

30Sep09

Since I’m clearly not good at updating blogs nowadays, I’ll just upload a few pictures for you. My Aunt Michelle called this the “analog pregnancy” since I’ve been inconsistent about e-mail, blogging, and generally everything having to do with the computer!


Oops, I got behind again. Sorry. Summer weather FINALLY arrived in New England around the first of August, and we had two wonderful trips to Maine to ring in the season. The first was to Camden to see our friends Travis, Diana, and Matilda. Travis and Diana were lucky enough to be able to teach at the Maine Media Workshops, and they were there for a month. I uploaded these pics to flickr.

DSC03828

The second trip was to see our friends Todd and Sharon, who have a house in Otisfield, Maine, which is pretty much in the middle of nowhere. We had fun swimming in the pond, eating good food and making multiple trips to Reny’s, Maine’s favorite department store. I haven’t uploaded Linda’s pictures from the second trip, but will do so ASAP. I promise.


summer outings

15Jul09

DSC03746

Summer has (sort of) arrived FINALLY. I know that Mississippi has been sweltering, but I swear, I think we saw the sun twice in June, so just understand that we were itching to get out of the house. A few weeks ago we went to the zoo, which was fun. There are two zoos in the Boston area, Jackson Park Zoo and Stone Zoo. We went to Stone Zoo, which is smaller and closer. It was the perfect amount for a two year old. Ask her and she will tell you about seeing a yak, an owl, a monkey, and a giraffe. The funny thing is that Stone Zoo doesn’t have a giraffe. Go figure.

No, this isn't a real wolf. The real one is on the other side of that glass.

No, this isn't a real wolf. The real one is on the other side of that glass.

DSC03743

Nola and a cougar

Nola and a cougar

snake

snake

DSC03772

Last weekend the tall ships came to Boston and Mark, Linda, Nola and I decided to go check them out. It was hot and crowded, but a really nice day and fun to get into Boston.

Uncle Mark and Nola by the tall ships

Uncle Mark and Nola by the tall ships

DSC03781

Gran doing her duty

Gran doing her duty

Then, we walked to the Rose Kennedy Greenway in search of a fountain for Nola to get her feet wet, and a restaurant for hot, pregnant mama to sit down in. We found a fountain, but Nola was way more interested in the carousel that was set up nearby. She loved it!

carousel

Later, after we ate dinner at a really nice restaurant (it was the only one we could find without a wait), we headed home way past her bedtime. She was so tired and started crying in the car. Poor baby. While she was crying she kept saying things like, “I ride the green horsey!” and “Mama has a baby in her belly!” all while wailing. It was pretty cute. She was still crying when we got home and she climbed into her brand new big girl bed. You can see here how proud she is on days when she’s not having a crying fit:

Nola's big girl bed


I’m a nut

25Jun09

Nola has been practicing for the preschool graduation day they are having at school tomorrow. She doesn’t normally go to school on Fridays, but I might take her just so she can perform this song that her class has been practicing together for so long. I don’t know the song, but can get the gist of it from her remarkably advanced musical skills. If you want to know the words though, I found the lyrics on a Kid Songs blog.

At the end she says, “I wanna see,” which is the main reason I don’t take a ton of pictures anymore. Whenever I get out the camera she just wants to look at the screen and see pictures of herself.


Farmer Nola

02Jun09

Well, we had a very busy month of May. Uncle Mark graduated, which brought Papa and Mama Lisa (now known as Sisa or Mama Sisa). Although my dad had to head back to his judging duties, my mom stayed for a little over three weeks, and we had a great visit. Uncle Paul came for a long weekend and was here for Nola’s 2nd birthday, which was a crazy but fun party. Unfortunately, I kept leaving my camera at home, or forgot to charge its batteries. But, my mom took tons of pictures. I’m not holding my breath, but maybe I’ll get a photo CD in the mail soon.

In the meantime, we’ve been enjoying spring and looking forward to Linda’s visit (she gets in town today. Allelujah!). We took a trip out to Chip-In Farm in Bedford, MA, which is a small farm with a general store. They are known for their eggs, but they have some amazing strawberries right now, and we made a special trip yesterday just to get some more. They have a couple of cows, some calves, goats, sheep, rabbits, hens, a rooster, and a big pig. The first time we went Nola was scared; especially by the goats. This time there were some kids who were feeding the animals green beans and they offered some to Nola. It helped her to see the big kids feeling comfortable, and by the end she was wanting to feed all the animals, even the pig. I had to tear her away! Matilda was with us (you can see her in the pictures), and she was totally fine with it all because she’d been around animals at her grandparent’s farm in Colombia. Here are a few pics from our outing:

Feeding a goat

Feeding a goat

IMG_0216

Matilda checks out the chicks while Nola steals the rabbit's food

Future farmer?

Future farmer?

We gotta get one of these tractors...

We gotta get one of these tractors...


So sorry to those of you with Nola withdrawals. Most of you know, but I’m pregnant again and have just started feeling better in the last couple of weeks. Whew! That was a rough 6 or so weeks. I just didn’t have the gumption to do anything, much less spend extra time in front of the computer.

Last week Nola had her first school picture day. We have to place orders by Wednesday, and will definitely order some to send family and friends, but if you have special requests let me know! Didn’t they come out good? I forgot it was picture day, hence the t-shirt. I kinda like it though.

nola proofs053


My parents started the Ole Miss propaganda early. Ole Miss 101 was one of the first books they gave her. There’s no narrative; it’s just pages of things that relate to Ole Miss, including Rowan Oak, Ventress Hall, the Lyceum, and Col. Rebel.

Sorry it’s so dark; I wish I knew how to lighten up the image, but I just don’t.


For those of you far away from us, I apologize for not updating the blog in a while! Dru and Nola both had bad colds, and honestly, I’ve had a difficult time regaining my footing from our Mexico trip. Unplugging for ten days proved to be much more appealing than I thought! Now, sifting through over 1,000 Mexico images just seems daunting, and I know you aren’t coming to this blog to see pictures of Dru and I. So, here are some pictures of our trip to the playground last week. I’ve also posted the whole set on flickr (there are many more over there, I only posted my favorites here).

dsc_0136