We made it to one month!

Elsie is one month old! She has changed so much already in just four short weeks. Here is a cute picture of her on her one month birthday. You can thank her Grandmother Rushing for the cute dress and her "Auntie M" for the pretty blanket. She is smiling little smiles for us in the morning and when she is full or making a present in her diaper. She is sleeping anywhere from 5 to 8 hours at night which is wonderful. Mom went to her one month checkup and got the all clear from the Dr. to drive and to go back to the gym. But most exciting is that mom is only three pounds away from her pre-Elsie weight! Things are starting to get easier - but Elsie is always changing the rules. Merry Christmas!

Elsie at home

Well, Elsie is now just over two weeks old and she is doing great. She has regained and surpassed her birth weight - she is now at 7 lbs 11 ounces! Who knew we would be so proud of our little girl for gaining weight. She has been sleeping for about four to six hours at a time at night and has finally got the hang of breastfeeding (or maybe that is her mom has finally got the hang of breasfeeding). Many thanks to everyone who has called, visited, sent emails and cards to wish us well. We are tired but VERY HAPPY parents.

Elsie at the hospital

Elsie spent two days in the hospital and then decided to leave all of her adoring nurses for more private quarters at mom and dad's house. Here she is all dressed and ready to leave the hospital. Mom and Dad were excited to be going home and nervous to take care of this little bundle of joy on their own. Here we go!

Lady In(-patiently) Waiting

Well, here we are at 9 1/2 months! We are waiting for little Elsie to make her big debut. The Dr. says we are dilated to 3cm and that she is ready to go. The list of to-do's is complete and there is nothing left for us to do but wait. The pediatrician is picked out, the daycare is reserved and we even had the car seat checked (there is a picture of me with the inspector) to make sure it was installed properly. Mommy is working from home and Daddy is off for the week (those firefighter schedules!). The calls are coming in regularly to see if there is any news, but we have nothing to report so far. We will keep everyone posted. In the meantime, pray for a healthy baby girl and a quick labor and delivery for mommy!

THE Shower

Family and friends (lots of Girl Scout folks) came together for a great party on October 7th to celebrate Elsie's coming birthday with a shower that was out of sight! Grandma Wire even came down from Virginia for the affair. Elsie was showered with gifts ranging from handmade outfits to a baby moses basket - all lovingly picked out for her. Laughter and joy filled the house as the guest gathered to wish the mom-to-be and her little budle of joy-to-be well on the upcoming arrival. Special thank yous to the organizers Chris, Claudia, Heidi, Marianita, and Sarah (all pictured) for the amazing event and all of the planning. It was truely a perfect event. Additional thanks to all of the attendees who showered the Iska and Elsie with gifts and love.

Baby Shower at Work

Elsie had a great time at the baby shower at the University of Houston Libraries Elizabeth D. Rockwell Pavilion. She loved the Butterfly cake (chosen by Carolyn for the soon-to-be "social butterfly"). Her mommy was very excited by the new stroller and all of the wonderful gifts from library and University Advancement co-workers. What a great party!

Check Out Elsis's new Digs!

Here is our little one's newly decorated room. Her Aunt Heidi came over to help mommy put the room together, hang pictures and such. The stitching was lovingly done by Elsie's Grandmother Rushing when she did her own nursery. There are numbers, letters and a prayer. We can hardly wait to bring her home to her new space, since she is rapidly outgrowing her current casa. Mommy when for a Dr.'s visit today and Dr. Le said that Elsie is still head down and that she has dropped a little bit since the last appointment. Only six weeks left!

Elsie's Room - Before

The preparations have begun to make Elsie's newly remodeled space into a happy baby's room. Dad has ripped out carpet, painted the ceiling and the walls, installed a new hardwood floor complete with new baseboards and shoe molding, a new ceiling fan, and new blinds. Here is her room before the major decorating. "Aunt" Heidi is coming Saturday with the crib! She will also help hang pictures and give the room her loving touch. Soon, the room will be ready to receive our little bundle of joy. Don't you just love the soothing green walls?

Pool Party

The Wire's hosted a pool party for some friends from Sunday School. Thought you might enjoy a picture from the party, plus who would want to miss these hot pregnant mamas? This is Iska (due 11/13) and her friend Angelia (due 9/27).
It was a hot day, but the refreshing pool was worth it. Both babies went for a swim. I am sure this is not the last time they will be in the pool together.

Almost Eight Months

Here are Iska and Elsie at almost eight months! Can you beleive that belly? And just think, it is only going to get bigger from here. Well, mommy is tired - especially after the Girl Scout campout this weekend - complete with a flat tire and rain. Elsie is squirming and kicking which is really fun during meetings. Mommy has gained 20 pounds - right on track according to the Dr. Dr. Le is getting a visit from mommy and baby every two weeks now to check on their progress. Iska went for a blood test and a gestational diabeties test and all is well. Just nine weeks to go until little Elsie makes her appearance. There are two showers planned - one in September and one in October. Now on to getting that room ready.

Six Months

Believe it or not, Iska has been pregnant for half a year! Little Elsie is kicking up a storm or maybe she is just practicing for a kick boxing competition. Her dad is hard at work on her room - painting and putting in new wood floors. Iska and Jarad had fun going to Babies R Us to register and even though it took several trips, they are finally finished picking out all of Elsie's necessities. A shower has been planned for October, so it seems that everything is falling into place. Now we just need the star of the show. Hopefully, she won't come early like her daddy. Thanks to everyone for their love and support over the last six months. It has certainly been an adventure.

It's a . . . GIRL!!!!

Elsie Holloway Wire introduced herself to the world via ultrasound yesterday. She can hardly wait to meet everyone especially her mommy and daddy! It was the most amazing experience. Getting to see a little heart beating, two kidneys, wiggling arms and legs, and the sweetest baby face ever. Elsie looks like she has dancers legs and she is really starting to use them to let mommy know she is here. During the test, she patted her tummy, kicked her little legs around, did a flip and even performed a dainty yawn. The Dr. said that everything looked great from the fluid around her to all of her measurements. She weighs 12 oz. It is truly amazing that this little being is so perfectly formed and so very small. The news is traveling fast and everyone is excited. Hope you enjoy the pictures. One got a little crumpled when it was scanned, so it may be reposted after from touch up. Thanks again for all of the prayers and love!

Almost Five Months

Well, we visited the Dr. today for our five month check-up. Jarad was gone so Iska's mom went with her to the appt. Today we are 19 weeks and 4 days (translation - three days short of five months). The baby's heartbeat was in the high 140's and everything looked very good. Mommy has gained 10 pounds, which is right on track with where she should be. Only four days left till we see the baby up close and personal on the high-tech ultrasound at the hospital. The baby has been kicking and moving about, especially during meetings at work and just before bed. It is not quite hard enough for anyone else to feel, but hopefully soon.

Half Way There

Well, this week marks the halfway point in the pregnancy. In only 4 1/2 months, our little one will be here! Just for fun, here is a recent photo of mom and the baby to be (special thanks to Jill L. for the great dress and to Grandmother Rushing for the photography). Iska is feeling great and has been vomit-free for over two whole weeks - thank you Lord. The nesting instincts are kicking in - the dining room/Scout storage room is clean, the baby's room-to-be is fast becoming an empty room and the medicine cabinet and the cabinets in the den are spotless. Jarad begins work on "project baby room" when he returns from his CAP encampment. Only twelve days until the big ultrasound where we solve the gender question - but who's counting?

Boy or Girl?

To those of you keeping tabs on the boy or girl question - I am happy to let you know that our appointment at the hospital will be on June 28th at 1:00pm. During that visit, we venture to Memorial Hermann Southwest for the detailed ultrasound where they can check all of the baby's organs and finally tell us whether we should be looking for pink or blue. That is, if the baby decides to cooperate by being in the right position. The next appointment with the Dr. is the week before and that is just the five month check up - nothing earth shattering. One one more week, and we will be halfway!!! Thanks for everyone's comments so far. I am so glad people are reading this and staying in the loop.

What's in a Name?

After many hours or searching through the pedigree charts and family history, we are pleased to announce that we have two names ready to go for this baby, be it a boy or a girl. If it's a girl - Elsie Holloway Wire. Elsie for Iska's grandmother and Holloway a surname from Iska's side. And if it's a boy - Wyatte William (or Lonon, or Levi or Cordes) Wire. Wyatte is Iska's dad's middle name and William is from Jarad's lineage. As you can see we are still a little shaky on the middle name for the boy. You try saying Wyatte William Wire three times!

Heartbeat - What a Sweet Sound

Today was our third visit to Dr. Le. We heard the heartbeat for the first time today. What an awesome noise! The baby's heartbeat was 148 beats per minute, which for you nervous people out there (Oh, that's just me) normal range is 120 - 160. The mommy-to-be has gained a total of four pounds, with two of that being since the last appt. Dr. Le said the total weight gain at five months (only a month away) should be about ten pounds, so we have a ways to go!
Iska has finally stopped throwing up so much - what a relief! Maybe it has to do with her having the sweetest husband in the world. One day, after finishing two backyard projects, he made homemade enchiladas and Spanish rice and he wasn't even going to be home for dinner! If you see Jarad, make sure you tell him he is doing a great job. Well, that's all for now. We have another appt in four weeks with Dr. Le and the big news will come the following week when we get the mother of all ultrasounds at the hospital. During this visit they check all of the organs and we FINALLY get to know if this is a baby GIRL or boy! Can you tell which way mommy is leaning?

Second Visit to Dr. Le

We had our second visit with the Dr. on April 24th to make sure that everything was progressing according to the plan. We were very nervous and anxious to see the heartbeat again and to make sure that the baby was doing fine. Our visit was short, but very encouraging. When the unltrasound first started the baby practially did a toe touch. Then we could see little arms moving about and a little foot just kicking away. Boy have we got a fiesty one! We saw the heartbeat again and the baby measured up to be right on schedule. You can see the back side view in this photo. Now, we wait another month to see our little person again. Mommy been pretty sick, throwing up a lot, but that is just part of the process. Salads are now off limits as they do not stay down. Our next appointment is May 26.

Here is the Baby!!!

We have now had two Dr.'s appointments, but here is the first photo of Baby Wire. You can actually see little legs and hands. We saw the heartbeat and the new daddy gave both mommy and the ultrasound tech a high five when we finally saw that everything was just right about our little one. Jarad also did a little dance in the room, thank goodness no one else saw that. It was the best Dr.'s appointment I have ever had. We are so thankful that everything is going well. We will keep you posted.

We're Having a Baby!!!!

Jarad and I are excited to announce that we are having a baby! We are almost twelve weeks along and we have had two ultrasounds already. We are due on November 13th, just before Jarad's birthday. As many of your know, this is our second try and we are very thankful that things are going so well. I will get the ultrasounds scanned in soon so you can see our little one and I can tell you all about the visit and how things are going. Mom is pretty sick with not morning sickeness, but all day sickness. It is great! I hope this part will be over soon.