Sitting on Shoulders is the Best

Sitting on Shoulders is the Best, originally uploaded by patrickhunton.

It doesn't get a whole lot better than this....

Birthday Story

Two and a half years ago, I posted Adler's birthday story. So, it's only appropriate to share Eli's as well:

I had convinced myself that I was going to give birth to Eli at 38 weeks, which was Super Bowl Sunday, February 1st. I had Adler at 38 weeks, which also happened to be a Sunday, and the same doctor who delivered Adler was on call on that Feb 1st. It just made sense that he would arrive on that day. I had prepared everything around that day, but as it grew closer, I started to wonder if he would actually decide to show - and realized I was going to be disappointed if I woke up on Monday morning with no baby!

So, Sunday, Feb 1st arrived....we went to church, no baby. We came home and made lunch...no baby. The Super Bowl started...no baby. But, I did have an upset stomach the entire day. I hadn't eaten much because nothing sounded good. I called my friend Bonnie to see where they were that night - I told her I wasn't feeling well, but figured it was just an upset stomach. Bonnie was my "on stand-by friend" for help with Adler. Bonnie was convinced I was in labor, but I didn't think so. But, come to think of it, I was having contractions. Bonnie said I should time them...geez..now there's an idea. I started writing them down and realized they were about 5 minutes apart. That's when they tell you to call your doctor, but I decided to clock them for an hour. So, I did that for about an hour while putting Adler to bed, telling Stephen he needed to stop watching the game and start acting like something was going to happen, packing a bag...this seemed like the real deal. Finally convinced these contractions were getting worse and not going away, I called my doctor. So, at about 9:30pm my doctor told me I needed to come to the hospital! Yikes! Maybe this was for real! It just so happened that my sister, Rylie, was in town, so she and her boyfriend came to the house to keep Adler for us.

On the way to the hospital, Stephen said he felt like he should be driving 80/ running red lights/ getting pulled over/ yelling "she's in labor!"/ getting the police escort/etc. I remember feeling each bump in the road...if this wasn't labor, I wasn't sure what was! Stephen did get his "moment' when he pulled up to the Emergency entrance and yelled to the security "She's in labor!"...who then insisted I sit in a wheel chair while the security guy wheeled me to labor/delivery and Stephen parked the car. I thought it was a little over the top, but it did add to the excitement.

So, here's where things slowed down....I got hooked up to machines, an IV, checked out by my nurse, who was great...all to find out that I indeed was having contractions, but it was either early labor OR I was just dehydrated from a day of not eating well. It was about 11:30ish and they decided to watch me until 2am and see what happened. I was determined that I was going to have this baby, so that's when I started making laps around the hospital...having to stop and breath through each contraction...seriously! If this wasn't labor, what the heck was? So at 2am, I had dilated a bit more, but it was certainly going to be a long night of no sleep. So, after more laps around the hospital, watching Family Matters, Prince of Bellaire, Full House (probably one of the first episodes, when uncle Jesse moves in) - good old Nick at Night...chewing ice, downing water, apple juice and cranberry juice....6am finally arrived and contractions were super intense. I still hadn't had any drugs and I was like the woman in labor you see in the movies. I had it in my head I was going to just see how I could do without drugs, but at this point of no sleep, no food...I caved to the epidural at about 8am.

From there it was smooth sailing! I didn't even realize how much pain I was actually in until after the epidural kicked in. I finally felt like I could relax and it even felt like I could rest after a night of no sleep. Pushing time came at about 10am, it only took a few, and he was here! There is nothing like this moment in your life. It's hard to describe....you're excited, scared, anxious, yet never more in love with your spouse, most aware of the presence of Christ, overwhelming feeling you are on holy ground and you know your life is changed forever. Sweet Eli was just screaming his little lungs out-it was like hearing angels sing! I got to hold him right away and they kept him there with me for what seemed like a really long time. I loved that moment with him, but a part of me was thinking - don't you all want to check him out and make sure everything is working properly? I guess they weren't too concerned! We were shocked by how much dark hair he had, recognized Stephen's hands and feet right away, and decided he looked like a good mix of Adler and Stephen. He's perfect!

Now, at this point, Stephen and I STILL were not certain about his name. We had a name we had been calling him, then over the course of the past couple months, our hearts changed about the name. We thought maybe God was calling us in a different direction. We had concluded to keep praying and trusted that we would know the right decision when we met our baby boy. Our minds had been made up after reading Probers 22:1 which says: A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold. And when Stephen looked at our sweet baby, we both looked at each other and agreed he looked like an Eljah which means "The Lord is my God".

So that's how sweet Eli joined our family at 10:22am, February 2, 2009. He weighed 7lbs 13oz and was 20.5 inches long.

He is such a sweet baby, nursing has been a breeze, and for the most part, he seems to go with the flow. He does hate his car seat, but is happy when we start moving. So far, having a new born has been pretty easy. We're not sure if that is because of different baby personalities or experienced parents, but that's fine with us!

Adler has been a great big brother. He loves to help, brings toys to Eli when he is crying and says, "Here, Eli!". I do have to keep my eye on him because he just doesn't know that Eli may not want to play with Thomas the Train quite yet. He loves to watch diaper changes and is happy to help mommy throw them away. He often comments, "Eli's cute!".

We've had a great time with our families who have all visited in the past couple weeks. It has been so nice to have them all here to meet Eli, entertain Adler, and help with stuff around the house. Thank you, all for coming!

We are looking forward to a visit from Katie and Deanna in a couple weeks! It will be so much fun! Ok, that's about all I have time for! Here are some pics from my phone while we were in the hospital.

....and I'm back....for a few secs

Whew! The last two weeks have been a whirlwind! I'll blog about the details later. Stephen has introduced you to Eli via pics. I want to tell you all about him, about his birthday and the last two weeks, but I'm watching the Bachelor, so I need to save those things for later . However, I do want to share the CD playlist I've made for the little guy. Each song was picked for a reason, a moment that captured my heart and made me think of Eli. I wrote the below list out to give to Eli one day, so excuse the wordiness. I debated whether not to post all the details, but I figured you were all friends and family. If you haven't heard any of these songs, check them out on iTunes!

Songs from the Heart: For Elijah Beckett on the Occasion of his Birth

Sparks by Coldplay- While shopping at my favorite Atlanta children’s store, Sprout, this song came on. It made me think about how wonderful it is going to be to get to look into your eyes and see sparks as I fall deeper in love with you! I was about 7 months pregnant and the reality of your arrival and the eagerness to meet you had begun to set in!

River of Love by George Strait- Well, I’m a bit biased since George is one of my favorite country artists. This is one of his newer songs that just came out. Your daddy and I took dance lessons while I was pregnant with you and we focused on country western dancing. This song made me think of you and look forward to dancing with you to this song in the living room.

You Are the Best Thing by Ray LaMontagne- The lyrics of this song really say it all. Eli, you are the best thing to happen to this family!

Won’t Stop by OneRepublic- Your daddy picked this song out. We know God created you especially for our family and we are so blessed to get to take care of you!

Cannons by Phil Wickham- The Sunday I went into labor, Buckhead Church had special guest, Phil Wickham, lead worship. I loved hearing his passionate voice and his music will always make me think of you since this was the day the Lord started to bring you into the world!

You Will Always Be by Kristian Stanfill- This beautiful song made me look forward to our special times in the nursery when I would get to rock you to sleep. I imagined what it would be like to hold you against my chest, listening to this song, praising God for you.

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing by Sufjan Stevens- I listened to a lot of Sufjan over Christmas (Songs for Christmas album). This is one of my favorite hymns and I love how simply he sings it. Jesus is the fount of the sweetest blessing of your birth. I hope to finally memorize this beautiful song so I can sing and pray this song over you!

Yellow by Coldplay- Sweet Eli, I pray you realize how much your Father in Heaven loves you. That he created this world for you to enjoy, these stars shine for you!

Lucky by Jason Mraz- Lucky or blessed, I am so thankful to be your mommy!

Come Home by OneRepublic- Your daddy also picked out this song. We are so excited to get to bring you to our home! Come home, Eli, we’ve been waiting for you!

Joy to the World by Sufjan Stevens- Back to the Sufjan Christmas, it was such a special season to be pregnant. I felt more connected to what it may have been like to have been Mary, Jesus’s mother. What Joy He brought that Christmas day, what joy you will bring us!

You’re Beautiful by Phil Wickham- Back to the Phil Wickham story, the lyrics of this song were amazing. I know I would look at you and see Jesus’s handiwork and see His face!

Welcome by Lori Chaffer- Your daddy and I listened to a lot of Waterdeep (her former band) in college. Lori and her husband wrote this fun song on the occasion of their son’s birth.

Forever and Ever, Amen by Randy Travis- An oldie, but a goodie. Eli, you are my little boy and your Mommy and Daddy look forward to loving you through each of life’s joys and challenges. We are always praying for you, sweet one!

Stephen is in charge of the posts/pics these days.....

See www.stevohunton.blogspot.com

At the hospital

We're currently at the hospital getting ready for the arrival of our second boy. Yesterday was a day of continued preparation for his arrival and Kristine just started feeling more and more crummy. The contractions started heating up around 8pm so we finally called the Dr and she told us we should come in. Rylie and Brian came over to watch Adler for us and we headed off to the hospital. We arrived at around 11pm and pulled an all nighter....now it's 9:25am and we're getting closer and closer to his arrival. I'm so excited to meet him! Kristine has done an amazing job. She's been so strong and I'm so proud of her. Luckily the hospital has wireless, so I'll be posting news throughout our stay! He'll probably be here in the next couple of hours so stay tuned!!!