Thanksgiving

Monday night was dramatic. I woke up around 1:30 to a strange sounding cough. I went in to Bridger's room to feed him and could tell that he had become very congested. Within a minute it registered how bad it was; his breathing was extremely labored and his cough, though bad, was very weak because he wasn't able to take in enough air to put any real force behind it. With every breath he was gulping air and making a horrible sound in his throat known as stridor. Yup -- the croup had hit. I remembered a nurse warning me when Brooke had croup that if a baby develops that stridor sound it needs to be taken to the ER right away, so off we all went to the closest hospital.

After breathing treatments of two medications, his airways cleared enough for him to doze off. Our dear friend Leslie came to get Brooke from the ER at 3:00. Bridger was transferred in an ambulance to the children's hospital while I drove behind. He was monitored there until 7:00 this morning when we were released.
He's been much better since we came home and we had a great night last night. I have him set up in the corner of our room by our bed, next to a humidifier and a Vicks vapor nightlight. Sleeping in his carseat keeps him upright and helps his congestion. Note the pink sleep sack leftover from Brooke's baby days. Of course there wasn't time to change him into something more manly, so everyone thought he was a girl last night. Maybe Santa can find him a blue one.... :)

It's a strange experience driving behind an ambulance in the middle of the night, knowing your baby is in there. It was dark and they had the lights on, so I was watching what was happening inside. Fortunately, they were all calm and I knew that everything was going okay. As I drove, I was praying for him. A few thoughts occured to me then and have been striking me since this all began. This has helped me appreciate how many blessings we have. I'd like to share a few.

I thank God for:
* His sovereignty in all things
* healthy children
* living in the age of modern medicine and a country with advanced technology
* living so close to a hospital and a specialty children's hospital
* grandparents who regularly keep Brooke so that she is not phased by spending nights away from home
* a reliable vehicle, clear roads and a full tank of gas
* competent doctors, nurses and EMTs
* medicine that worked
* insurance and money to pay the copays and premiums
* family willing to come in the middle of the night and take off from work if needed
* friends nearby who heard the phone ringing downstairs and came to get Brooke and watch her -- and even considered it an honor to be called
* being tracked down and reached at the hospital when Steve returned my call
* a babysitter who could watch Brooke at Leslie's house yesterday morning while I tried to rest
* the exact amount of money in my pocket to pay the babysitter
* Bridger's milk in the fridge, ready to go
* good naps yesterday afternoon and an invitation back over to Leslie's house for dinner
* Brooke's extreme love of "Baby Grace" and her family
* a great night's sleep last night
* Brooke's preschool this morning
* that I don't have work and can focus on taking care of our kids
* the reminder that God's word promises me that I will not be tempted beyond what I can bear, so whatever comes my way, God will give me the grace and strength to endure.


Crazy as it seems, this experience has been a wonderful blessing because it has reminded me of God's faithfulness and provision. While I don't thank God that my baby is sick, I do thank Him that He is our good father who cares for and provides for all of our needs, no matter what happens.

Praying for Jacobsen

We are praying for our baby cousin, Jacobsen, and ask that you please join with us. Jacobsen has just been diagnosed with a neuro-muscular disease, possibly spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a degenerative genetic condition that is life threatening. He was hospitalized Monday night and has undergone tests and monitoring. We are waiting for more information from DNA testing, which will take 7-10 days.

Personally, this rips my heart out. Jacobsen was born one day before Bridger. I know so well how much love I have for our seven-week old baby boy. The compassion that I feel for Jacobsen, his parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and all of the lives whom he has already touched takes me to the Lord on their behalf. As emotional and awful as this is, I know that God has a plan, and that even though this is part of it, it is still a good plan. We only have a small piece of the big picture. Even with that knowledge, though, a tremendous amount of pain and grief accompanies such news.

Please join us in praying:
For God to be glorified in every aspect of this situation.
For Jacobsen's healing.
For an accurate diagnosis and perfect plans of action and care.
That God's Holy Spirit will comfort and bring peace and understanding to all involved, and show us how to bless, encourage, and love one another.


In the face of news like this, there are so many questions. There are so many needs and hurts and desires. It seems there is so much to pray for.

Here is a verse God is putting on my heart:

"...the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:26-28

We'll keep you posted. Thanks for your prayers and support.

The Builders

Happy Halloween from the Builders!
Brooke loves the TV show "Bob the Builder" so much that the whole family dressed up as the two main characters, Bob and Wendy. Big Bob (Brad), Mommy Wendy (me), Little Wendy (Brooke) and Baby Bobby (Bridger) had a great time last night camping out in the front yard around a campfire, drinking apple cider, playing with friends and handing out candy. Brooke LOVES Halloween now and had the job of giving candy to the trick or treaters. Brad also took her to a few houses, where she very quickly caught on. She'd ring the doorbell, say "trick or treat" and "thank you" and even tried to rush into several houses! This girl was not bashful!

Here are a few pics from the evening. Don't miss Bobby's toolbelt and the earrings on the Wendies!
Little Wendy

Baby Bobby

Big Bob and Bobby

Brooke and her loot

Our Bob-o-lantern

No worries, man!

While working on the Miata together, Brad taught Brooke a new phrase: "No worries, man!" This is what they say whenever there's a problem (like Brad's new amplifier not fitting under the seat as he had planned for eight weeks!). Brooke is his grease monkey buddy and has spent hours out there working with him this week.

On Monday she saw a firetruck at preschool and today she went to the pumpkin patch with her class -- very exciting! So much fun, in fact, that she burst into tears when she saw me arrive to pick her up! She cries almost every day when we drive away from school. I can't even tell her the night before school that she'll go the next day because she'll have a meltdown -- because she wants to go "right now"!!! Here's a picture of her ready for school today, wearing her pumpkin outfit that Grandmother gave her. She even keeps the hat on!


Fortunately, when she was so distraught that I had come to take her away from school, I was able to tell her that we were going to the park for a picnic with her friends, Grace and Garrett Russell (and their respective baby siblings, Daniel and Harper). They had a great time playing. Of course, all three toddlers had trouble focusing on eating and then had simultaneous meltdowns when it was time to leave.

Look at how long her hair is! (To answer the three most asked questions about her hair, no, it's never been cut, yes, those curls are completely natural and yes, I'm afraid that I might cut the curls off since they're all on the ends!)


Bridger didn't seem to mind, though. :) No worries, man!

Visiting grandparents

We've enjoyed visits with Gran and Granddad lately! Mom was a huge blessing and was able to come stay with us for Bridger's first week at home. She cooked, cleaned, made play dough, went shopping for us, drove Brooke to preschool, gave baths, read stories, organized two and a half years of Brooke's clothes and our baby things and was a first class baby and toddler entertainer! (All that while recovering from gall bladder surgery!) What a Godsend!!!




Granddad came this weekend and stayed for a couple of nights. We enjoyed a relaxing visit playing with Brooke's dollhouse, watching football, walking to the antique fair in downtown Crabapple, gleaning insight on our Founding Fathers (thanks to Dad's current literary interest) and getting our facts straight on Daniel Boone folklore.

Unfortunately, Brooke's been under the weather with a bad cough, a fever, new molars coming in and growing pains in her legs. Poor girl!!! I'll probably take her to the doctor tomorrow. She's in remarkably good spirits, though, and had great fun playing piano with Granddad, showing him her sandbox, pretending to take a nap with him and covering him with her blankets. Bridger enjoyed napping with Granddad (no pretending there!), his first trip to a restaurant (Chinese) and his second visit to Bruster's ice cream shop. He slept through the outings, but I'm sure he enjoyed the food once it got to him!



Brooke has also had a great time staying with Grandmother and Granddaddy (Nancy and Scott) lately. They watched her the weekend Bridger was born and also last weekend. Here's a picture of Brooke on her tricycle at their house. (I'm really glad she can ride down there, because the hill on our driveway is completely unsuitable for riding toys.) She frequently spends weekends with them; Brooke absolutely loves staying there. I'm so glad that she'll grow up with those memories. It's great that she's so comfortable in her home away from home. I can tell that they really have a special bond. Thanks again, Scott and Nancy!

Bridger's Official Photo

Here's a good picture of my little man, compliments of Northside Hospital.

If you'd like to buy a copy of this picture on a mug or button or something similar click here and use the code "101-B5155" in the "Guest View" box. However, the page doesn't seem to be working at the moment. Perhaps it will be fixed soon. Otherwise, just enjoy this copy of it.

Here are a few more to enjoy:

Bridger Pictures from the Hospital!

Here are some pics from the hospital!

3 minutes old: Another tall skinny Hobbs!

I know it's fuzzy, but you can see his weight on the scale.

Happy Mommy!

("I'm so glad to not be pregnant anymore!")

That's my boy!

Happy (and surprised!) family

Welcome to the World, Bridger Scott Hobbs!!!

In case you haven't heard, we have a new baby boy!



Bridger Scott Hobbs was born on Saturday afternoon (Sept 15) at 1:01pm. Mom and baby are doing fantastic, and are really making it look easy! So far we have been blessed with good naps, good feedings and few problems. It has been an absolute joy these last couple of days, which is a relief as on Friday things looked much more difficult. More on that story later...

Vitals
Weight: 7lbs 15ozs
Length: 21 inches
Gestation: 36 weeks, 2 days! (Yes, he showed up almost 4 weeks early!)
APGAR: 9 & 9!

I'm off to the hospital again to prepare to bring home Mom & Baby Bridger. Brooke will return home from her Grandparents' house this afternoon as well. Luckily Gran is here to help out. Keep us in your prayers this afternoon and tonight as we transistion to home.

Oh, and don't let me forget to tell you the story about everyone trying to get to the hospital. And the one about Brooke visiting the baby! And her armband! And the birth itself (Erin should have been a sprinter on the track team!) And my cousin who had her baby the previous day! And "Brooke's baby out!" Wow - so much to tell! And more pictures too! Check back late tonight for an update - I'll do my best.

The House that Brooke Built

Thanks to Brad's inspiration from his new tool chest box, Brooke has a new house! It has been quite a family project and has provided lots of fun play lately. Daddy provided the vision and materials, Mommy was the architect (placing doors, windows and the roofline) and then Daddy jumped in again as our General Contractor and Interior Designer. He cut the windows and doors and taped the roof up. Of course, Brooke was the ever-ready Assistant, holding tape, pulling out cardboard shapes and banging on it with her toy hammer! She does a good job keeping it maintained, too, because she still works on it with her hammer and duct tape.

I came home the next day to find that Brad and Brooke had equipped it drawings of a kitchen (sink, fridge, microwave, counters -- the works), a bookshelf complete with all of Brooke's favorite titles, a bed (with a cat lying on it), doorknobs, a welcome mat and a street sign! At Brooke's prompting, I added pictures and labels of our Rocky, Bagheera, and Romeo, Brooke's stuffed dog "Cookie" (a birthday present from Aunt Amy), flowers, our names, pictures of the new baby, and... tape. Yes, she wanted me to draw a picture of tape! (What house is complete without tape?)



And, everyone knows that any house of ours will require lots and lots of paint! Brooke has spent many blissful painting sessions decked out in a smock with her paintbrush and palette in hand. She really likes it when I tie a bandanna around her head to keep the paint out of her hair. We have wonderful painting sessions in the kitchen and then fun baths afterwards. She has painted this house all over! She used up all of her paints and we had to go buy three big new bottles. All of the drawings were painted first, so they're hard to see. And yes, she had aptly illustrated that kids' paints mixed together make lots of dark purple! (The trick is to give only two colors at a time and have multiple layers if you want to see other colors!)




She takes after us: a natural DIY-er, ever-evolving results!

(Unpleasant) Milestone

A few minutes ago I took something away from Brooke, and for the first time she ran crying to her room and shut the door! I suspect that this won't be the last time that happens. It's not a "happy" event, but I really enjoy seeing her growing up and learning new things. She is spending more time playing in her room lately, and is really starting to "own" it. She is in a dramatic intellectual growth period now. Her vocabulary and comprehension is just skyrocketing. It's not an exaggeration to say that she is picking up 5-10 words a day, which is keeping Erin and I on our toes.

Here's a happier picture of my buddy and me at the zoo in June...

Brooke's Office

Here's a mini-post:

Just this morning Brooke set up a corner in my office for her to "work". She was playing with her toy laptop (and dancing to the music), but now she is reading her Bible! Life is really tough! :)

The Sourwood Inn

A few weeks ago Erin and I snuck away for a final getaway before Erin's doctor could impose a "no-travel" policy on us. Following a recommendation from our good friend Anne Marie we went to the Sourwood Inn in Asheville, NC. It was fantastic!


Situated just off the Blue Ridge Parkway on top of a mountain ridge, the views were spectacular and the natural mountain air-conditioning was a relief from Hotlanta.



No TVs, no internet, barely had cell-phone reception - ahhhhhhhhhh...



A big back porch was the typical evening gathering spot. Ideal for family get-togethers! (hint hint)



Beautiful dining room. We never used it, choosing instead...



...the outdoor patio. We ate all our meals here and it was wonderful!



Only 15 mins from downtown Asheville, the drive is spectacular! I would love to have a house here someday.

D-day

We have some likely days for delivery! If I seem ready to go into labor, Dr. Garcia will induce on Friday, September 21st. If I look like I can hold out for a while longer, the backup induction date is Tuesday, October 2 (yes, Uncle Dave's birthday!). Of course, I could also go on my own sometime in between. As my original due date was October 9, hopefully we're still in the range of being able to control things in time for me to have an epidural this time around. (If not, I know to head south at the first signs of labor!)

Dr. Garcia seems optimistic that, given my history, she may be able to just have me prepped, break my water, and that the baby will come without much more prompting.

Of course, there's lots of room for the baby and my body to act otherwise, but that's the plan for now! Right now, the next big date on the calendar is September 19: the day I go in to see if I'm ready to be induced. That will determine what happens next.

I love my new OB and am so glad that I switched! I have been so thoroughly impressed with Dr. Garcia. She's a young, very peppy Indian lady with two kids of her own who has practiced obstetrics for 10 years. She seems incredibly competent and is so encouraging and approachable. She came very highly recommended and I'm looking forward to the possibility that she'll deliver our baby. She works in a rather large practice, so if it weren't for Brooke's fast labor (which is prompting the induction) I would be at the mercy of whoever happened to be on call when this baby decides to come (of course, that still may happen if he comes between Sept. 21 and Oct. 2). Hopefully, though, he'll cooperate with the doctor's schedule.

On a funny note, Dr. Garcia says she gets lots of hispanic women who request her because of her last name... and who then are very disappointed to learn she doesn't speak any Spanish!

Brooke Becomes a Do-It-Yourselfer

We've had a few home improvement projects lately (to say the least). I'll post the results of some of those later. Brooke has picked up on this as well, and when she sees my camo work shorts (and usually an old orange work shirt from Home Depot) she points and says "Daddy work!"

And then one day she added "Brooke work!" and "Brooke help!" - very enthusiastically! And if we said "no" she would cry just as enthusiastically. She really wanted to help me work! She has turned into my little assistant, and challenges me to find ways for her to help.

So, if I'm going to have an assistant then she has to have skills! One night we had a little training session. I really needed these 4 scrap pieces of wood connected into a rough square, and it was Brooke's job to do it!

I believe that the heavy-duty Dewalt worksite radio behind us is playing "The Man on the Flying Trapeze!" Everyone (including Brooke) knows you have to have something to listen to while you work!

She learned how to hammer (mine was a little heavy so she used hers. Hint: predrill the nail hole!)

She learned how to drill holes and drive screws, using both with a screwdriver and a screwgun.

Then she had to sand it smooth...

And give it a coat of paint (water-based paint minus the paint!)

She was very pleased with her work!

She did a great job and was really into it. Not once did I have to drag her back to finish or keep her attention. I love my little helper! Do you think she is ready for a Miata engine-swap? :)