Some of my favorite recent photos

Daddy, Lo, & Leela taking a Sunday snooze

I love naked baby time!

Well, hey there cutie pie!!

Me & my lovebug!

Audrey thinks Lo's paci is delicious!

What a yummy pillow! yummmmm

Gigi and Logan on one of his naked baby days.

Not enough hours in the day...

I told Norm last night that I don't feel there are enough hours in the day anymore, I followed that up with a question about "whether time will ever slow back down". His answer was a simple "No".

However, I do see hope on the horizon - we're going on our annual Myrtle Beach trip with my parents next week - hurrah! There, I plan to do nothing but spend lazy days playing and napping with Lo, swimming, shopping with Gigi (she is an EXPERT outlet shopper, I'm pretty good myself), and warm evenings eating delicious meals and sipping yummy drinks with my husband and parents. Ahhh...

Perhaps this is why I am so exhausted this week! There's a lot to pack to take a 3 mos. old baby boy to the beach. Gigi and I have already spent several hours it feels like discussing what we need to take with us to keep him comfortable and happy. Yesterday I made a mad dash to the mall during my lunch break to hunt for UV swim suits to protect the little man's fragile skin. There was great success found at baby Gap (on sale too!) - I got him some adorable body suits and a rash guard with a hood and a shark fin on top, and some cute trunks. You will just have to wait for beach pictures to see how cute he will look. Tomorrow's lunch break will be spent hunting down super sensitive high protection sunscreen and swimmy diapers.

Adding to this exhaustion is recovery from last weekend - special shout out to the beautiful, newly married couple - Samantha & TJ Dooley. We enjoyed a lovely rehearsal dinner at the Homeplace on Friday evening, and a lovely wedding at the Kyle House in Fincastle on Saturday, this was followed by a trip downtown - and I mean a TRIP downtown when I fell and busted my face and knee in front of a crowd of people at 202 market. yikes. So.. between boozing and bruising, Sunday was a day of recovery (Thank you Lo for spending the majority of the day napping in bed with Mommy and Daddy, it was lovely). Not much cleaning, packing, or general life maintenance was accomplished this weekend.

In other news --- LO IS 3 MONTHS OLD TODAY!! Goodness, where has the time gone?? Every day I become more amazed by my little guy, he is such a miracle and a wonder. Can't wait for him to experience all the sights and sounds of the beach!

The Face of Innocence and Morning Marathons

Baxter. He looks so sweet and innocent. He also looks like he's enjoying himself quite immensely, hm? This is the same look he had on his face yesterday morning after he darted out the door at Gigi's house as we were all leaving for our respective locations. Me to work. Mom and Lo to VBS. Baxter to .... who knows. He saw an opportunity for a morning jaunt, and he took it. He ran around on his little adventure for 20 minutes, completely ignoring all calls and whistles for him to come home, and then just as suddenly as he disappeared, he showed up - with a look identical to this picture - joyful and very pleased with himself! And since he *ahem* "came back on his own", I couldn't even yell at him like I wanted.

This type of event is an example of why I feel like I have run a marathon by the time I get to work. I'm not going to detail a typical morning at the Pullen household (all of you working mothers already feel my pain), but I can tell you that I am incredibly jealous of those of you who have childcare in your homes while you are at work. (I'm looking at you Ashley & Joanna!). It's just that it is such a task of getting Logan ready in the morning, loading up all his gear for the day, my gear for work (bottles, pumps, lunch, change of clothes for both of us, etc), oh, and did I mention I take the dogs to Gigi's house too? It means taking several trips to the car before Lo is even in his car seat and we head out the door. It also means that I have become that stereotypical mom arriving at work with a large purse and loaded down bags of who knows what. Exhausting. It's no wonder I need that extra large cup of coffee before I can even look at email. Work seems like a break after that marathon!

Not that I am complaining - right now I feel like I have the best childcare in the whole world for Lo. He stays with his Gigi most days, and on special days like today, he is spending time with his Aunt Ashley and cousin Audrey. A big thank you to these special ladies that are taking such good care of my little man - I know that he is getting all types of love and hugs and kisses.

So, those are my thoughts about mornings (and free-spirited dogs named Baxter). How is your morning going?

Some pictures to tide you over..

Granted, some of these are a little old... Enjoy!

Our much anticipated return

Hello Blog!

Please forgive me for my neglect, and for being a bad, lazy blogger. However, I do have an excuse. You see, I had a baby on March 29. That's right. A BABY. A bouncing baby boy who was 8.5 lbs, 19.5 inches, and was named Logan Henry Pullen. Since then, life has become a whirlwind of cuddles, diapers, nursing, cooing, and some crying. Did I mention the diapers?

Logan is generally the Happiest Baby on the block (thanks Dr. Karp!). He is now 13 weeks old and is really a cheerful little guy, he loves to smile and babble to us. I'm not sure what he's trying to say, but I generally think it is along the lines of "Mommy, I LOVE YOU". He's just starting to pay attention to toys - but only certain ones, like the rabbit w/ a mirror and the mouse with beads that hang above his changing table or the vibrating and singing sun that he plays with at Gigi's house.

He also LOVES his floor gym at Gigi''s house. It has a big mirror and lots of toys that hang above him and when he waves his arms and kicks (which he does ALL the time - he is constantly moving, just like in the womb) he can activate the lights and sounds on the mat.

I am back to work, and missing my baby boy! However, it helps to know that he is super happy and loved with his Gigi (my mom - Grandma Glo) while I'm here. Plus, it is nice to be back to the adult world, and I work with some pretty wonderful people. However, there's always the thought that NO ONE can love and take care of your child like YOU can. Logan is adjusting very well though and has gotten into a nice little schedule. He's also sleeping very well at night. (Thank you Lo!). He goes down about 8:30, after a fun bath and some nursing, he sleeps till about 3:30, nurses again, and then gets up at about 6:30. He's so wonderful!

Norm is loving life as a Daddy, although it has taken some adjustment to a crying baby that can sometimes only be soothed by Mommy. Also, he has started a new position as the Operations Manager for Virginia Varsity Transfer - if you're planning a move, give him a call!!

Ok, that's enough for now. I will try to be better.

We have an eviction notice...

Hello everyone!

Well, life has been crazy busy at the Pullen household! It seems that spring has finally sprung - it has come in like a polar bear, but hopefully will go out like a lamb, just in time for us to bring home our cute spring chicken. (yea, that was cheesy).

I have been taking some wonderful pictures with my new camera, however, the uploaded images on our my home computer and I will have to upload them later.

If I wait 'till after FRIDAY I can include some of our *hopefully* finished kitchen. Norm has been working extremely hard the past 2 weekends to tear everything out, paint the walls, fix the trim, and lay a new ceramic tile floor :) This morning they delivered our new cabinets, and they are coming back the next two days to install them! Yay! Hopefully, Friday evening I can get everything put away (and out of my dining room). This weekend we need to paint the dining room (the current sea foam green doesn't match the "sunkissed" orange of the kitchen) and install our car seat, oh, and start cleaning/scrubbing every other inch of my house because...

BABY LOGAN WILL BE HERE IN 19 DAYS!!

We met with Dr. Keeley for a 36ish week sonogram yesterday and found out that: a) Logan is adorable b) he's healthy and in the right position for delivery, and c) he's already 8.7 lbs!! and his head circumference was 9.6 inches!! He's gonna be a BIG boy, all chubby and adorable.. apparently he's pretty long too!

So, I'm sure you're all asking.. HOW are we going to get him out? Remember that he's supposed to be gaining .5lbs a week for the NEXT 4 WEEKS. That would put him at 10.7 lbs for delivery!

After talking with Dr. Keeley we have decided to set an eviction date of March 29 (which will be 39 weeks). Hopefully Logan will decide on his own to come a little earlier... but if not, we are going in for an ultrasound on Friday, March 26th and we're gonna check his size and development and come that following Monday (3/29), we will either induce labor or schedule a c-section.

It's kinda disappointing to hear that we may have to induce or have the cesarean, since we were really hoping to try for a natural birth. However, we trust Dr. Keeley and we want to do what is best and healthiest for Logan and myself.

My personal plan is to get all my "must-do before Baby arrives" items done this weekend, and then next week move on to my natural induction techniques - spicy food, house-scrubbing, and lots of walking. Any more ideas? :)

I waddle these days...

So.. I haven't posted in awhile. And I don't really feel like doing so now, so this will be short.

I had a Dr. appointment on Tuesday and was told that everything looks great! He said we can expect to see Logan in 3 - 6 weeks! wowsa!

In other news:
- We bought a new camera! yay! It should be here next week and I can update you all on the beautiful nursery we have created (and on my very large belly).
- This weekend is the start of our kitchen remodeling. Norm is doing the demolition Friday night, we're laying the groundwork for the new floor over the weekend, the electrician is coming Monday, then we just need to paint before the cabinets come in a week. Yes, I will be without a functioning kitchen for more than a week. Yes, I am slightly stressed about that. However, as I have told Norman, Logan, and the Dr. - this baby is NOT coming out until my kitchen is done. Get on it boys.
- I'm very excited bc I recently purchased some of my favorite childhood books for Logan - The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Goodnight Moon, Pat the Puppy (ok, I liked Pat the bunny - but we actually have puppies, so this is more relevant), The Brown Bear, Polar Bear, and Panda Bear books, and a starter collection of Dr. Seuss. I can't wait to start reading to my lil guy!
- We only have one more Labor and Delivery Class until we are graduates, then it's on to real-world experience.. as in Labor and Delivery :)

That is all. Thank you to everyone who does a much better job than me with updating their blogs :)