January 2012

 

Happy New Year!  This month will be a hard one to beat, as we have already received a year’s worth of blessings.  It’s hard not to skip ahead to Jan. 24th, but I’ll try!

The beginning of the month started with my baby shower (thrown by my mom and a friend from church).  It was so fun to have friends from GAC, Vandy, and church all in my house at once.  Not to mention lots of family!  Needless to say, Grant is now, and will be for a while, the best-dressed kid in America!

Jackson is now nearing the end of his first basketball season.  Enduring a 4-5 year old basketball game is not for the faint of heart.  The game is stopped incessantly if:   a player steals the ball, to get the defense set up, if a player is shooting on the wrong goal, and a host of other reasons.  As one who follows the rules obsessively, Jackson has had a frustrating season.  He visibly experiences great angst as he watches kids run up the court holding onto the ball (without dribbling), and also when he has to fend off his own teammates when trying to score a basket.  However, his aggravation evaporates the moment he scores, and he does his famous fist pump (developed and perfected during soccer season) while saying “Whoo!” and “Yeah!" all the way down the court.

On MLK day Jackson also participated in a chess tournament.  He went 2-2-1 (1 being a stalemate).  He was very happy with his stalemate saying “That huge guy was KILLING me!”  His school team has Regionals this Saturday, so we asked him if he wanted to take a bye the first (of 5) matches so that he could play in his basketball game.  After a brief deliberation he said, “This decision is SO hard, BOTH teams really NEED me.”  Oh the delusional confidence of youth :).

And little Tay continues to be hell on wheels :).  Despite being quite particular and demanding at home, we continue to get these glowing reports from her teacher.  “She is such a good listener, she always helps clean up, and she is quick to share.”  What?!?  Quite the contrast from the reports we got at the beginning of the year.  The funniest thing she is doing right now, is every night she will get out of her bed, walk over to her monitor, pick it up with both hands, put it to her mouth, and scream “MOM, CAN YOU HEAR ME???”  Yes, yes I can…

Finally!  My due date was Fri Jan. 27, but on Tues Jan. 24 we headed in early for a scheduled induction. 

I have to admit, scheduling an induction takes some of the “Oh my gosh I’m in labor, this is it!” fun out of it.  But getting a good night sleep, being able to shower/get dressed/put on makeup, and have childcare arranged, makes up for it.

So around 6am with my parents covering the house, we headed to Northside.

 

I was anxious about delivering this time because of the gestational diabetes.  The doctors said “he will be at least 8.5 pounds.”  This is a large number to someone who has never delivered a baby over the 7lb mark.  However, nothing ever flusters Scott, so between that and having a funny family friend as our anesthesiologist (Mark Hamilton), I was laughing all the way up until delivery.  When Dr. Bills said it was time to push, out came Grant David Douglas on the first push!  He was screaming, pink, and had a head full of jet black Douglas hair.  Scott got to cut the cord (a first for him), and I was allowed to hold him before his bath (a first for me).  And as you can see, fortunately Grant wasn’t quite as large as promised.

 

 

So as you can see, the pictures of Scott with our children look like he simply kept the same baby, changed shirts and walked onto a different set for the three different pictures.  The man does not age!

Within hours the gang descended.  Everyone was anxious to meet Grant!  I wish I would have prepared Jackson a little more:  the baby will be crying, he will not look clean at first, he will have to get a Vitamin K shot, they will put gel in his eyes.  It all was a little overwhelming for the Jackman and he started yelling “Get me out of here, lets get out of here!!!”  Alas, Scott ended up taking Jack and Tay to the McDonalds in the hospital for ice-cream.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next day…

My poor parents got put through the ringer at home with the kids.  Both kids got pink eye, Jackson screamed out all through the night with constipation pains, and both kids had a cough. 

 

                                             Therefore, we (or I really) quickly became the most annoying patient at Northside, constantly inquiring about:  when will the circumcision get done, when will the pediatrician be here, when will the OB discharge me, WHEN CAN I GO HOME??”  I felt like I needed to get home to be with the kids.

Yes, I know, I still look 6 months pregnant.  In fact, the first thing Jackson said to me when I walked through the door was “Why is your stomach still so big.”  Let’s see how your stomach looks right after delivering your 3rd child :).

The kids have adjusted well.  Taylor is the most interested in baby brother, always wanting to feed, burp, and “snuggle Baby Grant.”  Of course Scott is still on paternity leave, so reality hasn’t hit yet.  Talk to me on Monday, and it might be a different story.

The birth of this little guy was every bit as miraculous and enchanting as the first.  We sing ‘songs of joy and praise’ to our King, grateful to have stewardship over one of His special sons.  I know he was meant for our family.  He is a sweetheart, and already has us wrapped around his finger!

With so much love,

Scott, Caroline, Jackson, Taylor, and Baby Grant