a sweet big sister....and our first outing

Stella has really been great since meeting Smith a little over a week ago. She is very protective when guests come in the door and also a little jealous when everyone is giving all their attention to Smith. She knows not to get TOO close, but each day she gets a little more comfortable around him. Smith seems to really like his big sister, too!

Smith is really staying awake a lot more and is very alert. He is already changing and growing every day!

I have had a little bit of cabin fever since spending 4 nights in the hospital and sitting here in the house ever since we got home. It is great having visitors and I really enjoy the time that Reed and I have alone with Smith, but I was really ready to get out of the house.

We had dinner tonight at Coach Croom's house and they were very kind to invite Smith, too. I had made plans for our friend Laura to babysit, but I wasn't sure I was ready to leave him alone yet... I think Laura was pretty sad, but I decided that Smith could join us for our first family outing! We didn't get to stay very long, but it was great to see everyone. Plus, it made me feel good to wear something besides pajamas for the first time in over a week! Smith was very good and slept most of the time. All the coaches are betting whether Smith will be an O-lineman because of his size or a receiver because of his long fingers!

home sweet.....hospital???

Hey everyone...Sorry I haven't posted any more since we have been home. We were not here for long. Smith had jaundice and started getting really bad on Saturday. They readmitted us to the hospital on Saturday and we just got home this morning. (Monday) It has been a really long week and I am so happy to be home with my sweet, white boy! I didn't really how yellow he was until now. He looks like a totally different person! Anyway, I am going to get some more pics uploaded and hopefully will have a chance to post again soon!

Meet Smith!

It's been a long and exciting day. Smith is healthy and strong and no longer needs oxygen, Emily is doing great, and Reed is one proud daddy!

Reed announcing that Smith had arrived.
Smith in the nursery

Reed taking a quick nap on a bench in the nursery viewing room.
Smith was born at 1:16, and at 5:00, Emily finally got a chance to really look at him.


The question of the day has been "red or brown hair?" Well, it's actually sort of strawberry blonde.

He's Here!

Stephen Smith Stringer arrived today at 1:16pm. He weighs 8lbs and is 21 inches long. He's healthy and strong but needed some oxygen for a few hours. He's just being brought into the room for the first time. I'll post pics once Emily has a chance to get a good look at him.

Clock-watching

Sister Laura here: Emily checked in to the hospital at 5:00 this morning and is doing great. We all arrived around 8. Emily's gotten her epidural, and the doc thinks that Smith should arrive around lunchtime!

This tiny little diaper and hat are ready and waiting for Smith's arrival. We can't wait!

I'm going to be a mommy....TOMORROW!

I went to the doctor on Thursday and my blood pressure was really high. We went back today and my doctor was still a little worried about it. He sent us over to Labor and Delivery at the hospital so they could monitor my BP for a while and do some blood tests. The blood tests look good, but I have developed High Blood Pressure during Pregnancy. They sent us home to get things together and we will be induced TOMORROW at 5 am! We are so excited to meet Smith, but I am also a little anxious. Please keep me, Reed and sweet little Smith in your prayers as we induce labor in the morning and wait for his arrival!

a little of this....a little of that

I have never been a fan of things that "match." My motto for shopping for my house is "If I LOVE it...I BUY it." It doesn't matter if I have somewhere to put it or if it goes with anything I have. If I LOVE it...I will find a place for it. When you shop like this, your house is truly YOURS and reflects your personality and that is very important to me. I am also a firm believer in the phrase, "One man's trash is another man's treasure." It is amazing what you can find at an antique shop, consignment store and even in your own attic. Sometimes all something needs is a little paint or just a bottle of Clorox wipes! I really wanted Smith's nursery to flow with the rest of my house which is very eclectic. I was a little worried at first about having so much random stuff in there, but it turned out just like I had imagined. It's a little mix of vintage and retro with lots of color and a few personal touches. My sister came today and brought Smith the cutest thing for his room. She is so creative and loves to sew. She made this adorable elephant and it is so cute in the nursery. All of that being said...Here is a tour of Smith's room. I still have a few things to do.... (like curtains and a rug to add.) The room didn't have much wall space so I took the closet doors off and made a little nook for the changing table and some shelves. This made the room look so much bigger and still left some room for storage.

The changing table was an old chest that I found at an antique mall in Ridgeland. It was brown and ugly and they said it had been there forever. They thought they were going to have to pay someone to haul it off and I paid a whopping $45 for it! A little sandpaper and some white paint was all it needed! The bookcase below was also brown before its new coat of paint. I couldn't believe I found these two pieces. They didn't come together but I think they are a perfect fit.

Note: Look how cute that little elephant is! I just LOVE it!

The picture above the bed is probably my favorite thing in the room. It is a copy of an original picture I have of my great-grandfather, Smith Hughes before a football game in 1924. (Smith is in the middle with the football.)

Another favorite is this adorable picture of Reed when he was a little boy. He is wearing a football helmet...backwards. And boy does he look proud!

The stacking toy and the bobble apple where mine and Laura's when we were little and I am so glad to have them for Smith's room.

The lantern is vintage and I found it at a consignment store for $30!

When I was in Columbia visiting my friend, Emily, I found this awesome painting that I was dying to have. It was all the letters of the alphabet with different animals in vibrant colors for each letter. It was kind of expensive and I wasn't sure if I really wanted to pay that much for it. Laura and I have a phrase that we use WAY too much... "I could make that." Every time I see something that I like...I start brainstorming on how I could make my own version. (I am such a bargain shopper!) I told Emily that I loved the painting but I wanted to look around at some other stores first to see what else I found. We went into Anthropolgie and I found these animal flashcards for $14.95! Perfect! Who needs an expensive piece of art when you have a box of flashcards and some sticky tack? They added a lot of color to the room AND were a lot less expensive that the painting I had my eye on!

Now all that is missing is sweet Smith. We can't wait for him to get here!

the countdown begins

Only 5 more weeks and I just keep getting BIGGER and HOTTER! We are checking things off our list and getting ready for Smith to get here. My sister is coming tomorrow to help me finish getting his nursery organized. I will post pictures of the nursery as soon as I get things cleaned up!!! I can't believe it has gone by so fast and he will be here really soon!

a weekend of WORK and fire WORKS....

We had a wonderful time this past weekend with my family. We spent the weekend at our camphouse in Renfro. The boys played in a Golf Tourney on Friday and came in FIRST place! Way to go guys!!! Mama, Laura and I set up for our big garage sale we had on Saturday. I LOVE garage sales...having them, going to them....I love it all! We had the sale in Carthage and sold a lot of stuff. We actually had more fun playing "SWAP SHOP." Laura would pull something out of her bag and I would say, "Oooo Oooo...I want that!"...Then mama would look in my box and say,"Don't sell THAAAT. I will take it!" I know we look like major rednecks, but we had a lot of fun! After a LONG day at the garage sale, Anne Parks and I took a little nap at the camp house!

On Friday night, we drove over to Philadelphia to eat at the casino and watch the fireworks! It's only about 20 minutes from our camp house and it was a perfect night! The weather was great and fireworks show was very exciting!

Reed and I were proud to sport our RED, WHITE and BLUE to celebrate!

Me with Mama and Daddy at the casino.

So after the fireworks, I went and sat down on a bench. I guess Reed and Andrew were laughing at me behind my back about the way that I was "perched" on this bench. They both walk up and sit like "Big Mama" on the bench. They thought they were really funny!

What a great weekend. Golf, garage sales, board games, fishing, fireworks, and good food. It was great to celebrate our GREAT country with my GREAT family!