1st day of 2nd grade... for Mommy!

Today was a first for me... I began my final journey in obtaining my teaching degree -- Student teaching! I had a great day and think I'm going to really enjoy this group of kids.

I was a little scared when I first walked in Mrs. Allgood, the classroom teacher, told me to come into the hall. She went on to explain that this class was a little rowdy and that their first week of school was rough. She said that she'd sent home more parent notes last week than in her previous 10 years of teaching. She wanted me to be aware of what might happen. To say that I was double nervous was an understatement, but as the day began the kids were great. It ended up being a WONDERFUL day; personally I thought the kids behaved very well.

The 2nd grade teachers are still working out the details of daily life and how they will administer their material, but I enjoyed getting to assist some of the students with their work today. I can't wait to see what the next 16 weeks hold and how the kids will develop and grow.

I hope day 2 is as wonderful as today!

Several Firsts!

This has been a busy, exciting and exhausting week. We have several first this week!

#1 ~ Eli started school. He started attending Social Circle Christian School which is the school at our church. He looked so cute in his uniform, book bag, and carrying his lunchbox. His first day was Tuesday; I walked him in and got him settled and he didn’t even care that I left. He had a great day and earned smiley faces all 3 days. We are so proud of him and hope that he continues to enjoy each and every day.

#2 ~ On Wednesday Eli attended Cubbies for the first time. I taught Cubbies last year, but this was Eli’s first time. It went well for the most part. I did have to take him out once and “talk” about why he had to follow the rules. Overall, it was a great experience. He’s already learned his Bible verse for this week. Again, he’s made one happy Mommy & Daddy.

#3 ~ Today was my last day at Liberty for 16 weeks. I will begin my student teaching on Monday and can’t wait. I will be teaching in Social Circle in a 2^nd grade class. I’m excited and nervous all at the same time. I can’t wait to experience teaching students and being in a classroom all day.

I’m exhausted from the activities of the week. My body hasn’t adjusted to the getting up earlier and being active all day! Funny how our bodies forget over the summer. I’m sure that next week will be just as tiring, but it will be so fun.

Testing...

I want to get back into blogging and recording the events of our lives. We are about to begin some new adventures and I'd like to record them here...

January In Review

We've had a very unusual January. We had a wonderful Christmas break from school, I was supposed to go back to school on Tuesday, January 4th for a teacher's work day and the the students were coming back on Wednesday, 1/5. This week went off without a hitch. But then on Sunday, January 9th about 7:30 or 8:00 PM it began to snow. It was very steady and beautiful snow, but the beautiful snow didn't last long. By morning there was about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of snow and at least an inch of ice. Well, that meant no school for me and Eli and no work for Jay. Tuesday wasn't any better and finally Jay went back to work on Wednesday, Eli and I finally left home on Thursday afternoon. We had no school that entire week -- it was fun for a few days, but by Friday we were ready to be back into our routine. Well, Monday of the following week was MLK day, so no school. Finally, on Tuesday we all returned to our normal schedules. The following week on Monday Ms. Tammy and Mr. Allen needed the day off, so Eli and I stayed at home again. I'm hoping for a normal 5 day work week this week -- it's only Monday, so we'll see. This past weekend we went to visit Jay's parents and his brothers and their family. We celebrated baby Anaiah's 1st birthday -- what fun that was.

One very special event this month was that Jay and I re-joined my childhood church. God has taken us on a 2 1/2 year journey through 2 different churches. We've enjoyed the experience and prayed endlessly about what God wanted us to do and where he would have our family. He finally placed up back at FBC Social Circle and we're so excited to be there with "old" friends. We've both taken some time off from serving, but God has shown us that it's time to jump back in and get back in action. We are so excited to see what God has in store for our family.

Here's hoping that February 2011 is a little more normal than January!!

A new year: 2011

Friday, December 31, 2010

I don't usually make new year's resolutions, but for 2011 I want to get back to blogging. I want to write about all of the great things that are going on in our lives. Eli is growing up so fast, I'm getting closer to obtaining a new degree and our lives are moving in fast forward. I don't want to forget any of the wonderful things that are happening. If no one else reads my words that's ok, but maybe someday Eli will appreciate my antics.

Happy New Year Everyone may 2011 be the best year yet!!

9 months...

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Wow, it's been a while since I posted here, but thought some of you might still check in and like to know what's up this the Hendersons.

I took Eli to his 9 month check up today and he got a great report. Dr. Doud said he is a very healthy boy. He weighted in at 24.7 pounds (92 percentile) and is 29.6 inches tall (83 percentile)!! That makes him in the 95 percentile overall. Dr. Doud said that he is maintaining his weight and percentages. And that he's not fat, just solid!! We didn't get any shots today -- thank goodness!

Eli is getting so big and doing so many new things. He is crawling everywhere and really fast. He is pulling up on anything (even if it's not safe) and he's very brave and lets go sometimes to see if he can stand or walk. And I must say that he's gotten pretty graceful with his falls -- is that a good thing?!?! He'll eat anything that you put in his mouth. And loves to have a bite of anything Mommy or Daddy is eating. He has started to talk; he can say mama, dada, popa, bye bye and is trying hard to say dog. I just can't believe how big he's getting. And I love that he is excited to see me at the end of the day when I come to pick him up -- that's the highlight of my days!!

Well, here are a few pictures of the little rascal...

A picture of us during Eli's parent/child dedication at church on Mother's Day!

Playing in the 'fridge. He's has chocolate pudding...

2010...

Monday, February 15, 2010

Eli is getting so big and doing so many new things. I can't believe how he is growing. Here are a few pictures:

This isn't going to be good soon. He can only scoot backwards for now, but soon he'll figure out crawling and poor Sassy doesn't stand a chance.

Little Devil?!?!

Sunday afternoon nap...

February 12th snow storm. He didn't really know what was going on.

Sooooo cute. Notice the bib -- it says it all!!

Growing so fast...

Friday, January 8, 2010

I can't believe that Eli is 5 1/2 months old. He is getting so big and doing so many new things. He weighs between 20 and 21 pounds and is about 27 inches long. He is sitting up like a big boy -- he is still a little unsteady, but does very well balancing himself. He is reaching for the toy(s) that he wants to play with and he can transfer them from one hand to another. He is eating baby food twice a day and we've cut back on the number of bottles that he gets. He slept through the night 4 nights this week. Wow, I can't believe it. I bought a convertible car seat last week because he is almost too long for his infant seat. He will hold his arms to up or out when he wants to be held/picked up. He loves Sassy (our dog), he thinks she is SOOOO funny. He LOVES my Mom and Dad and just lights up when they come over. He just realized that if he whines or cries we will react and either talk to him or pick him up!



Here are a few pictures of him:

This picture doesn't even begin to show how cute he was in this plaid shirt and blue jean overalls.

This was his first attempt at baby food... Not too bad. He loved it -- it was Sweet Potatoes

This was taken on Christmas Eve!! He was so good that day and had such a great time opening presents!!

Jay's sister, April, took this picture on Saturday 12/26 and our family Christmas gathering. He was also, very good that day too.

April took this one too. Aren't they sweet?!?!?!?!



This is our big boy sitting on the couch by himself...

Christmas Boy!

Christmas Pictures

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

We have Eli's Christmas picutes taken on the Monday before Thanksgiving and they turned out GREAT!! He did so good this time. Here are a few from the collection!

YAY! It's my first Christmas!

I'm the BEST present EVER!!!

Just the cutest boy ever!!!!

Where did the time go???

Sunday, November 15, 2009

I can hardly believe that it's been forever since I took the time to write about my little angel. He is 3 1/2 months old now and continues to amaze me each and every day. He is sitting up with assistance, he loves to be in his "johnny jumper" or either his exersaucer. He loves to be held up like he's standing and it's all we can do to get him to lay down long enough to strap him into his car seat. He weighs about 17 pounds and is wearing 3-6 month clothes. He's had one round of shots and we have round 2 in about 3 weeks.

Here are a few pictures of him over the last several weeks/months:

This one was taken on 9/7 -- a little over a month old!

9/23 -- first time sitting in my bumbo chair

10/10 -- first day in "johnny jumper"

OK, there are so many more that I could share,but my computer time is up. Someone is ready for a bath and his rice cereal bottle.

I promise to share more later...

4 weeks of cute-ness!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Wow, Eli was 4 weeks old yesterday. He is growing so fast and continues to amaze me each and every day. He is holding his head up for longer periods of time. He is sleeping longer at one time (some where between 3 and 4 hours) and he is eating great (4 ounces of formula at a time). He has discovered the lights and ceiling fans and loves to lay around and "talk" to the fan. But when he's ready to sleep he wants to be snuggled in a fuzzy blanket and rocked. He loves his Grandma and Papa and looks forward to their daily visits!! He still looks around to find me and Jay when he hears either of us talking. He is fast growing out of his newborn clothes. And has long been out of newborn diapers.

I have about a month before I have to go back to work and I'm trying to make the most of my time with him. I hold him as much as I can and I love to watch him sleep. We enjoy just hanging out and "talking".

Here are a few pictures from the past week:

Sleeping Boy

(he was sleeping on his Boppy pillow -- he has allergies just like Mommy and Daddy and he is all congested)

Big Boy -- Practicing holding up his head!!!

Just a little Daddy time!

2 Weeks Old

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

I can't believe that Eli is already 2 weeks old. Where did the time go? Here are a few photos of him over the last couple of weeks.

Here you will notice that I'm not only holding Eli, but Sassy too. Everyone was snuggled under Eli's fuzzy blanket... This is how I spend a majority of my time!!!

This is a picture of Eli in his Post Office outfit. My Mom works at the post office, so lots of life has to reflect that... One of our sweet post office friends gave Eli this outfit -- it says "Sent with Love". Too Cute!

OK, So Blogger's decided that I can't upload any more pictures of this precious boy... I'll try again later!

Wait no more...

Monday, August 3, 2009

Wow it's been a whirlwind week. This time last week Jay and I were counting down the hours until we had to report to the hospital to be induced and meet our little man. We were very nervous and unsure of what to expect.

As planned, we arrived at the hospital at 7:00pm. We were escorted to our labor and delivery room and the fun began -- hospital gown (rear end shining), about 45 minutes of answering questions and then all the monitors were placed on my big belly. About 8:30pm the first of the meds. were administered. I had to lay flat on my back for 2 hours after that -- I thought 10:30 would never arrive, but at last it was time that I could get up! Then the waiting began. We "turned in" about 12:30am and then we were all back up at 3:15 when my water broke (that wasn't in the overnight plan, but it worked out). :) My nurse called the doctor and she decided that we'd start poticin at 6:30am, so I should rest as much as possible until then. I was having some mild contractions, but nothing too painful. So we tried to rest -- not too easy with vitals being taken what seemed like every 5 minutes and regular check ups by the nursing staff.

Again as planned, at 6:30am the poticin was started in my IV along with some pain meds. At that point I was only 1cm dilated... it was going to be a long day. From this point forward until 4:15pm I can give an account of events, but no time markers -- yes, the meds. were that good. :)

The poticin was turned up every 15 or 30 minutes until it was on wide open (I don't know -- I just know it was bad). Of course, as the poticin went up so did the strength of contractions. Finally, sometime around lunch or so the contractions were steady and strong every 2 minutes. I was finally dilated to 3cm. My doctor doesn't ok an epidural until 4cm, but becuase I was in SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much pain and my contractions were steady and had been for about an hour she decided that I could have my epidural -- ahhhh, angels started to sing -- I promise!!! However, it took about 30 more minutes before the epidural gods got to my room. When the anastealogist and his team finally got to me I was dying -- I'm sure of it, I can remember the nurse asking me what my pain level was on a 1-10 scale, I told her "at least 15"... At some time about 2 or 2:30 I finally had my epidural and upon another "check" the nurse announced that I was at 8cm, what 8cm how did that happen?!?!?! However, because I'd "labored" thru all the horrible contraction from 3cm to 8cm in a matter of only a few hours I was too tired to push, so the doctor told the nurses to let me sleep/rest for a couple of hours and she'd be back to deliver the baby. I slept off and on for about 2 hours and around 4:00 Tiffany, the midwife, came in and I began to push about 4:15. I only pushed for about 45 minutes and Eli arrived at 4:59pm!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is me resting after the epidural!!!

And, here is it almost a week later and it's been GREAT!!! Eli is eating good, he's decided that he doesn't enjoy breastfeeding, but will take breast milk from a bottle. I've been pumping breast milk about every 2 to 3 hours and alternating it with formula. It's working for now. And that's all that matters.

Eli is perfect and Jay and I are enjoying every single minute of him. Ok ok, enough of the story and how perfect he is... Here are the pictures!

Tuesday, July 28, 2009 @ 4:59pm

Elijah James Henderson -- 8 pounds / 12 ounces / 20 inches long

Proud, but tired Daddy

Sweet Boy -- sleeping at home on Friday (we came home on Thursday about noon!!)

Still Waiting...

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Yesterday marked the 37 week point! Only 3 weeks left -- wow, can't believe it. I visited the doctor yesterday and they listened to Eli's heartbeat which was great about 165 beats per minute. He is still head down and ready! I had to have some blood work drawn because my feet, legs and hands are swelling very badly. Hopefully, I'll hear from that blood work either today or tomorrow -- no news is good news though. I'm still feeling pretty good with the exception of the pain from the swelling in my hands and feet. I have another appointment scheduled for next Friday, July 24th, lets see if we make it!

Hope everyone is having a great week! I'll try to post more pictures of Eli's room soon!

As requested...

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

I know most of you never thought I'd post pictures of Eli's room, but here they are.

These are the letters that will hang above his bed (yes, they are on the dining room table now...)

This is the bassinet that Misty let us borrow. Thanks a million!!!

Here are a couple of his bed.

And yes, I realize that the fish mobile doesn't really match the primary colors in that super cute quilt, but I thought it was cute and it has a remote -- who can turn down a remote!

Car Seat and Stroller...

This is the wall where the chest of drawers will reside. It likes one more coat of stain before it's ready to put in the room and be filled with all the cute clothes that Eil has...

(The bassinet is just hanging out here until Eli comes homes and then we'll move it into our room.)

This little nook will house the changing table/dresser. It too still needs a coat of stain before it's ready. I'm not sure yet what will go on this wall above the dresser.

This is a super cute rug that I found and it matches the room perfectly. This is one of Sassy's most favorite places to lay.

Hope you enjoy. I'll try my best to remember to ask Jay to take a picture of me. I always forget when I'm dressed up to ask him to take photos. I typically remember when I have on something that probably wasn't meant to be stretched over a pregnant body...

Big Boy!

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

I had 2 doctor's appointments on Friday and they confirmed that Eli is still growing and that he is healthy. He is estimated to weigh 6 pounds 3 ounces as of Friday. He is in the 71 percentile for size... He is head down and very low. So, we are just playing the waiting game to see when he'll arrive. Tomorrow starts week number 35!!! I can't believe that I only have 5 weeks left.

I finally got all of the random stuff out of Eli's room and it is slowly beginning to look like a nursery. I'll share some pictures later. I've started to wash all the clothes, bibs, blankets, etc. that are rolling in. Our family and friends have really been great and we have tons of nice things to bring Eli home to -- I'll take pictures of his closet too...

Please pray that Eli will stay put for a couple more weeks to make sure he is fully developed and "done". As much as my feet and hands hurt and as big as my belly is I want to make sure he is as healthy as possible.

I'll ask Jay to take pictures of me this week and you can see just how big my belly is...

STAY TUNED!

Little Whopper

We got another great report this week! The doctor is estimating that Eli weights somewhere around 4.5 pounds already, but they don't seem too concerned. Doc says everything is growing in proportion and that he will be a big healthy boy -- what more can we ask for?

Is anyone else noticing that the little ticker thing at the top says I only have 61 days left???? That scares me -- just in case you were wondering. I'm not ready, well I'm ready to hold Eli, but my house isn't ready, his room isn't ready and we haven't even tried to install the car seat in either car... Yeah, I hear all of you -- you are saying that if I could stay off facebook and blogging that I could get something done, thank for the news flash! :)~

I'm going, right now to do laundry, thankyouverymuch!!

Much Needed Update...

Saturday, May 2, 2009

It's been 6 weeks since I last posted... Is there anyone still checking in?

Here's what you've missed over that time frame. NOT MUCH. It's been work, work, work, school and only a little bit of baby stuff.

I just finished my last paper for this semester! So, no more college until September. What a load off. This has been a very long 8 week quarter. There never seemed to be enough time to get the research done and write the papers. Oh well, it's behind me know!!!


We did give baby Henderson a name since the last time I posted. His name will be Elijah James Henderson and we've decided we'll call him Eli.

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and all is well. Eli is weighing in at 2.5 pounds -- which is a larger than "normal" but the doc didn't seem too concerned. Doc said we'd watch his weight and that he might come a little bit early. We'll see!

Of course, Eli is making his presence known, he is moving all the time and loves to eat. He is the happiest when I'm nice and full (and miserable). :)~

Jay and I are planning to move our office out this week and begin to move Eli's things into his room. I'm very excited about that. I can't wait until his room looks like a nursery rather than a home office. I'll be sure to take pictures so that you can see the transformation.

Mom and I went several weeks ago to register for all the cool baby stuff that one could need. Wow, talk about overwhelmed. Who know a baby needed so much. I have my first baby shower next Saturday and can't wait. I'm excited to see what all little Eli accumulates there. He is so spoiled and he isn't even here yet. I can only imagine...

This gets you up to date on the Hendersons. I promise to post more now that I'm done with school. I'll post belly shots one day soon -- It's getting out there!

Hope all of you are doing well.

And the Baby is... Part 2

Saturday, March 21, 2009

IT'S A BOY!!!

To say that Jay is over joyed is an understatement. He is grinning from ear to ear. The baby put on quite a show for Daddy yesterday -- thanks to Mommy and her indulgence in a little Mountain Dew at lunch. :)

Here is a picture of the proof...

For those of you who can't identify his manhood the 2 arrows are pointing to it. And yes, he is pretty much mooning us in this picture...

And several of you have asked to see my growing belly. Below is a picture of me yesterday too.

This is not the most flattering picture, but it was 10:30 last night. I'll try to remember to have Jay take pictures each Wednesday as the next week of pregnancy starts.

I hope each of you has a wonderful weekend!!!

And the baby is...

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

...very uncooperative. Because of several follies this week we didn't find out the gender of little Henderson. Jay had planned to take of a half day on Monday to attend this doctor's visit with me. This would have been the first ultrasound that he'd actually seen, but it didn't would out this way at all. It all started on Thursday of last week when Jay's work crew was asked (please read elected/made/not given a choice in the matter) to drive to Charlotte, West Virginia to help finish up some of the storm damage from several weeks ago. Well, keep in mind they left on Thursday with NO return date/time in mind. This was truly a day by day affair. This didn't set well with me and all my pregnant hormones. The weekend was very long and full of crying spells that couldn't be controlled (did I mention that Jay was working 16 hour days and wasn't very friendly by the time he did get back to the motel and could talk to me? -- I'm just sayin') So, they finally told them on Monday morning that they could drive home, keep in mind this was about a 10 hour drive, there was NO way he would make it home for our 3:30 appointment. So, my mom went with me and I decided not to find out the baby's gender. Great!

So, my 3:30 appointment arrives and at 4:00ish I'm called back to have my ultrasound. Yay, everybody is happy. Grandma is getting to see the baby for the first time, I'm excited to see how much he/she has grown, yada, yada, yada. We get to the exam room and the sweet lady begins my ultrasound. The little turkey that I'm growing inside me decides that he/she is not up for a photo shoot. Every time the lady would get the view/shot that she needed for measuring the baby would very politely scoot away... (yeah, really cute) this went on for a good 15 minutes. We now know from this weeks ultrasound that the baby has a big head (it is measuring a week larger than I'm actually pregnant) and long legs (thanks to Grandma). So, there was never any chance in finding out "who" this little person is anyway. Life goes on, right?!?!

We do have another "big" comprehensive ultrasound on 3/20 -- please please pray that little Henderson will cooperate and give us a peek at who he/she is. We are really anxious now to start planning and preparing the room and I don't want everything to be green and yellow. :)

I'll keep you posted. Thanks to so many of you who have emailed and asked about the appointment. Your encouragement is great!

Updated: If you're wondering Jay did make it home at about 11pm on Monday night. He was very sick, but went to work on Tuesday and thanks to the much needed rain they were called off today. He went to the doctor this morning to get a shot for what we thougth was a sinus infection, but as it turned out he has the flu. Please pray that I don't get the flu. I did take a flu shot so I'm hoping that will save me.