Special Delivery...

On August 31st at 1:00 p.m. at Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital, Kaitlyn Joy Cunningham joined our family, nine days earlier than expected. She was 8 lbs 5.75 oz and 20 in. Due to much bruising, she became jaundiced during the second day, causing her hosptial stay to be extended an additional 5 days. Although Mommy was discharged after the second night, the hospital allowed her to remain in the room for free until Kaitlyn was released. On Labor Day, Kaitlyn was finally discharged, and we were finally all home. To see pictures taken by the hospital photographer, click here:

http://www.our365.com/NewbornPortraits/BabyDetail.aspx?birthid=71652cf2-00e9-4440-952c-a1693e1428d9&babyid=79d2558e-cdf2-4354-90e8-8365afc581a2

We have discovered that Kaitlyn has Mommy's dimples too! Since being home, we have been trying to catch up on sleep and find a rhythm that works for our lives. So far, all that seems to be happening is eating and sleeping for both Mommy and Kaitlyn, but life will eventually return to normal.

The family paparazzi was present the day Kaitlyn was born and those pictures are posted on Facebook, both Mommy and Daddy were tagged in many of them so if you're friends with us then you can see those pics. As for us, we've taken a few and here's some of those...

A few hours old...

One day old...

Ten Days Old...

Fifteen Days Old...

Hannah loves being a big sister and is always willing to lend a helping hand. She's not shown any signs of jealousy and rather is very proud to to have Kaitlyn in the family. She loves showing off her little sister. We weren't sure if she really understand that we were going to e having a baby, but we were proven wrong. She enjoys giving Kaitlyn hugs and kisses, and is eagerly awaiting the day when Kaitlyn will really be able to play with her.

Daddy is readily adjusting to life with three dimpled girls, and enjoys spending free time with them. He greatly helps Mommy out by taking care of Hannah if she wakes during the night. He loves cuddling with Kaitlyn and Hannah whenever the opportunity affords itself.

Mommy is doing great now that Kaitlyn is here. She had been in poor health this summer due to having breathing (due to asthma) and blood pressure troubles, plus catching Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease which turned into sinus and ear infections. The last week before Kaitlyn was born, she had headaches in addition to the blood pressure fluctuations, which led to the doctors deciding to induce. Since the delivery, the headaches have gone away and the blood pressure fluctuations have ceased. She's lost a total of 30 pounds since the start of the pregnancy; during the first half of the pregnancy, she lost 18, then regained 15 by the end, and since delivery has lost 27 more.

For those who are interested in the details of the labor and delivery: So the morning of the 31st, she was admitted to the hospital and given a low dose of pitocin (starts contractions). We discovered that contractions were already happening before being given the pitocin but they just weren't noticeable. The normal dosage of pitocin is about 30 units, the most they used was 8 as her natural pitocin kicked in, by the time of delivery they were only giving 4 units. So after about three and a half hours of noticeable contractions, including less than a half-hour of pushing, Kaitlyn was here. No pain meds during the labor and delivery, and only a few doses of ibuprofin since.

Just for comparison purposes, here's a picture of Mommy when she was a newborn:

News and pictures from the rest of the summer will be coming soon!

Pictures and More...

So since the last post, we finished moving then Hannah and I spent three weeks in Colorado Springs, and we're still playing catchup. Meanwhile, Josh started his new temp position, which is going well, but we're still on the look-out for something permanent.

Hannah and I had a great time in Colorado Springs although our time felt far too short. We tried to get together with as many people as possible, but with the time difference, working full-time, and my being pregnant, we didn't get to see everyone.

We did go to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo one weekday morning, that was the extent of our site-seeing. I figured Hannah wouldn't be interested in Garden of the Gods or other such places. For Hannah's first zoo trip, it was great. She even fed the giraffes. By the way here's a money-saving tip I found out from J.C. Nordyke, if you go to Safeway you can buy Ry Krisp plain crackers (see pic), take them with you, and they will let you feed them to the giraffes. Otherwise you can buy crackers at the zoo for 3 crackers for $1.

So most of the pictures from Colorado Springs were taken at the zoo. My camera is built into my phone but I kept forgetting to take pictures, sorry!

"Cheese!"Feeding the baby giraffe..."Oh! Yay!" When the giraffe ate the cracker."Hi" to the mommy gorilla... She loved the apes and monkeys...

Petting the tortoise...

Watching the orangutan...

So happy about watching the orangutans....

Talking with the lioness...

Sharing her "old" friend with the lioness, who appears to have wanted to cuddle...

At the Dallas Fort-Worth airport waiting for our flight...

Back in KY...

Our little poser... Any time she thinks you're about to take a picture, she poses. No idea where she got that from, but here she is in her pink Sunday dress

Walking with Gramps (Josh's dad)...

Taking a break from driving to take a picture of herself on her phone (it's an old but real phone that's not in service): Wearing Mommy's glasses.... Sorry it's on the dark side, we were in my parents' basement...

Posing again while waiting on the doctor to come talk to mommy and daddy about the ultrasound (those pictures are further below)....

May 5th - 4-D Ultrasound to determine gender and overall size. Baby #2 is a girl and is on target for growth for my due date:

May 19th - Another ultrasound to try and check anatomy, like the heart and kidneys. Baby girl was laying length-wise across my belly with her spine up, so they didn't get to see everything. Heartbeat was 153 bpm, weight approximately 1 lb 6 oz. Size of all anatomy that could be seen is on target for due date. Here's a 3-D pic of her feet and a 3-D/4-D pic of her opening and shutting her hand (we surmised she was waving). When we told Hannah the baby was waving and to wave back, we were expecting her to wave at the screen showing the ultrasound, but she turned to my belly and waved, too cute!

As for me, the second pregnancy is going pretty well. I'm much rounder this time than last. I pulled up pics from last time and I'm currently the size I was at 35ish weeks and I'm only 24 weeks. They started me on bp meds before going to Colorado as a precaution, my bp was borderline at 130/80 averages at the doctor's office. But since I had post-partum preeclampsia, they were afraid I'd end up with preeclampsia, so they put me on the lowest dose and I haven't needed any higher of a dose. They've also been monitoring my thyroid levels and made some adjustments there. I have lost 18 pounds, not intentionally of course, but I think it was all water being retained in my face, arms, and legs. At the next visit, I'll have the standard blood work and glucose tolerance test, so if anything else comes up I'll let you know.

As for Daddy, last week he turned in grades for the two classes he taught this spring, and I don't think he'll be teaching again until the fall. He too has now felt the baby move, and is excited about having another little girl running around some day. He recently got a PS3 (PlayStation 3) and has been enjoying spending some of his free time playing games and watching BluRay movies.

So please let us know how you are doing! Until the next time...

News, News, and More News

We're moving! Due to a couple of reasons, this move came somewhat unexpectantly and definitely fast. This past Saturday, March 13, we moved the bulk of our belongings and furniture into Josh's parents' house in Somerset, KY.

This past week, Josh learned of an open temporary, full-time position on staff at Somerset Community College, applied as an internal candidate (since he's already part-time faculty), interviewed by phone and then in person, and has already done some training. As soon as the official sign-off takes place, he'll start working full-time.

This past week, I learned that FOF needs me on-site the first two full weeks of April, so Colorado here I come! I fly out Easter Sunday, and fly back the morning of April 19th. I'll be working part-time on-site Monday afternoons and Tuesday through Thursday mornings. So if you're friends who live in Colorado and would like to see Hannah and I, please let me know! Josh may come out the weekend of the 10th-11th, but it will depend on work.

Baby #2 is doing great. So far no complications, although the doctor did put me on blood pressure medicine as he was concerned by my readings. Below is the video I took on my cell phone this Thursday when Hannah and I got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. I hope you can view it!

Hannah's vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds. She's been a parrot in recent weeks, repeating words I had no idea that she could say. She's still on the small size in stature and weight at 23 pounds, so I'm still able to pick her up, for now but before the pregnancy's over I may not be allowed to. Since the last post, Hannah turned 2, well unofficially since she's a leap day baby and did't really have a birthday. To celebrate, we drove up to Cincinnatti (just over an hour) to the aquarium. Family and good friends joined our celebration, and it was a nice day. I haven't taken very many pics of Hannah recently, so I'll work on that and upload some pics sooner than later.

First Picture...

Thursday was Baby #2's first ultrasound. The baby was about 1/2 inch in length with a heart rate of 168 bpm. According to the tech, the baby's gestational age is 5 weeks 4 days. We were excited to see the first picture, although it was very fuzzy, but we were able to see the heart beating. We were disappointed though as the tech didn't let us hear the baby's heartbeat. Here's the ultrasound picture, the baby is in the oval. So tiny!

Chicken, Prayer, & WiWi

First, before I tell you tales of Hannah, I need to let you know that my dear, sweet husband officially has completed his Master's degree. Woohoo! He is currently teaching two "Intro to World Religions" courses as an adjunct falculty for Somerset community college's extended campuses. He is in the process of searching for a full-time position and figuring out the details of his future doctoral program.

Now to the things that make me laugh, and hopefully you too. So the other day, I asked Hannah to go put something in her kitchen, she then looked at me and signed "chicken"! Hahaha! So we've had fun trying to explain the difference between kitchen and chicken to our 22 month old, but the use of signs has greatly helped. Hannah loves to pray. We're not sure she understands the purpose of prayer, but we're still happy that she enjoys the times. So I was offering Hannah foods for her supper, and asked her if she wanted a pear, and she immediately signed to pray. Hahaha! I love her sweet heart. She is learning so many signs that sometimes we have to think hard about what she's trying to tell us! She's also expanding her vocabulary, and her favorite words are "momma", "dada", "mimi", and "pawpaw". One of her new words is "WiWi", wasn't sure how to spell it because it's not what you're thinking. "WiWi" is her version of movie. So if you're at our house and you hear "WiWi", she is not wanting a trip to the bathroom but rather a trip to the TV.

Some of you have asked how Hannah is reacting to the news about baby #2. Well, we're not sure she quite gets it. I read that for kids her age, they probably won't get it until the baby comes home from the hospital. Regardless, we've explained that Mommy has a baby in her belly. When we ask Hannah where Mommy's baby is, she first points to Mommy's belly, then she points to Daddy's and hers. Needless to say, we're still working with her on understanding. Maybe she'll understand better when we hear the baby's heartbeat tomorrow, or maybe when the baby starts kicking and moving. We shall see.

We successfully de-plugged Hannah after the holidays. The plug is our term for a pacifier. I figured we should just call it what it is rather than a binkie or pacie or what not. I thought there'd be more of a struggle, even though we limited her plug to naptimes and bedtimes. Basically, she went cold-turkey and did great. She didn't even as for it! Next on our list of to-do's is potty-training. We think she may be ready, she's at least interested and can follow directions so since we're not going anywhere this weekend, we'll be potty-training. The adventure begins!

Oh and one last note. We, at least Hannah and I, are coming to Colorado, really. This is the same six-week trip we thought would happen early last year. There's not a firm date yet, but the estimate is mid-March. Once the estimate has been firmed up, we'll let you know. The six-week trip is basically phase three of a project, and we're in phase one, so I'm more confident this time that we'll actually be coming this year. Hahaha! Now for pictures...

"What?!?!" - It's a game we play. We say "What?!?!" for no reason but to make ourselves giddy.

"Hi!"

My chipmunk: She has a grape tucked in each cheek...

Not sure what she was thinking here, but if it were me, I'd be thinking "Whatch' you talkin' about Willis?"

Pray!!!! I know it might be considered sacrilegious but she's so cute when she prays!

Too cool! She's had a feddish about hats lately. This one is courtesy of Aunt Kristi. She also likes putting them on backwards, see the second picture for the front of this hat.

The picture says it all...

Merry Christmas from the Cunningham Clan!

To those to whom we couldn't mail a letter... (If you'd like a mailed letter, let us know!)

Well, here we are again, nearing the Christmas season, our second with our baby girl (who incidentally is no longer a baby). The excitement as the season changes from warm, to cool, to cold is almost overwhelming.

This year we have decided to put up our Christmas decorations a full month early, allowing opportunity for Hannah to get used to and for us to explain them to her. Hopefully, doing so will help bring us deeper into the Holiday spirit and will become infectious with those around us.

This Christmas spirit is an amazing thing. The secular world around us looks to tradition, shopping, and memories to sustain and encourage their Christmas spirit, however, for those of us who understand the significance of the true “gift” of Christmas, our Holiday cheer bubbles up from the inside. Not only do we look forward to spending time with family, watching fun Christmas movies (You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch!!!), and even opening presents Christmas morning with those we love, but we are blessed with a gift from the Originator of gifts. Our joy comes from a spiritual, not emotional experience, as we revel in the celebration of birthdays. We easily make the connection between Christmas and Jesus’ birth, but we want to challenge you this year to take that one step further and celebrate your new birth as well. Christmas is significant not only because God provided hope, but because we’ve found that hope and live expectantly in that hope for the return and eternal reconnection with Christ. We would encourage you this year to celebrate not only Christ’s birth, but the opportunity He’s given you to have your own new birth!

Speaking of celebrating babies, by the time Christmas comes, Hannah will be 22 months old. She’s at a glorious stage between the “everything is new” stage and the “I want to do it myself” stage. We are excited to allow her freedom to do her own thing, but also find ourselves a bundle of nerves anytime she wants to try something dangerous (going up or down stairs by herself, etc…) This year we’ve seen her transition from the scooter, who never crawled, to the walker, who nearly runs. It seems that at the one year mark, she began rapidly developing her language, both speech and sign, and motor skills. We’ve seen her go from sound effects, to indiscernible babbling, to actual words, even if mispronounced. We reveled in her grasping of sign language with her first word, “all done,” and she now has a vocabulary of 30+ words. Her vocal vocabulary is a bit smaller, but she does speak more than she signs. She’s transitioned from using a bottle to eating cheerios and now to drinking out of an open cup, without assistance. All in all, she’s become a very big girl.

Over the course of the last 12 months, our family has been primarily immersed in the raising of our wonderful child, but other experiences have cropped up as well. Josh spent quite a bit of time this summer with his family in Somerset, KY, working for his father, spending time with his brother, and seeking out jobs that could transition towards a career. By the time Christmas comes around, he should have his MA degree completed and will be anxiously preparing to teach his first “comparative religion” class at Somerset Community College. This adjunct position will provide the experience needed to begin applying for teaching fellowships elsewhere.

By Christmas time, Jacqui will have been with Focus on the Family (in one capacity or another) for almost 7½ years. Due to her expertise and work ethic, they are planning to continue the relationship for another year, allowing her to continue to work from home at her convenience. She enjoys the work, and hopes that her health will improve allowing more opportunities to play with the rest of the family.

This has been a good year. The next is terrifying to me, Josh, because I will finally be at a stage where I can put my education to work, and find out if I’m qualified to do what I feel called to do. I will begin to immerse myself into my career, and will probably struggle to find a balance between my work, family, and self. Also, I am seeking a full-time position which would provide us with health insurance; a need should God see to grace us with a sibling for Hannah.

As we conclude this letter, we want to take a moment to say, “Thank You”. We have family and friends who have contributed in significant emotional, financial, and time-based ways for which we can never fully show our appreciation. We love each and every one of you and hope that your Christmas and New Year will reaffirm your relationships, not only with family and friends, but with our Maker.

With all of His love,

Josh, Jacqui, and Hannah

Catching Up...

So it's official.... Today, I'm unashamedly 31. Yippee!

Last night, I finally figured out how to get pictures off my phone. This took some doing as I can't just use a USB connection. So I decided that today would be the day I would finally send an update. Haven't gotten the pictures off Daddy's phone as he's not here, so those will come later. Most of the pictures captured over the last few months have been by family, as our digital camera loses power after a few shots, so if you want to see more you'll have to ask them!

So, to summarize the last two months, here's a picture that describes quite a few of those hours...

As you can see, we spent many hours in the car travelling between family here in KY, in Ohio, and in Alabama. Hannah was a trooper and was mostly good tempered about being in her seat, as you can see.

On our trip down to Alabama for Thanksgiving, we stopped at Daddy's favorite hamburger place: Whataburger. Here's Hannah reaction, be a bit blurry, you still get the point....

Many hours were also spent enjoying one of Hannah's favorite past-times: playing with bubbles...

Usually, Hannah is really good about not stuffing her mouth. But apparently the corn I bought in Alabama was sooo good she had to stuff overflowing handfuls into her mouth:

Her first visit was Santa was actually a very good one, we just didn't catch her smiling. Santa's on a diet because he found out he's a diabetic, so we didn't offer him any cookies.

One of the most magical moments we had was when we went to the Kentucky Horse Park, just north of town, to see their Christmas lights display called "Southern Lights". Hannah excitedly pointed to the various characters we saw along the way, like bears, dolls, balls, horses (of course!), people, and more! Afterwards, we went through their mini fair, and she was very excited to go to the petting zoo and see, but not pet, the llamas, long-haired cows, kangaroos, goats, camels, and more! After the petting zoo, we went to see a model train exhibit, then to a dollhouse exhibit. The trains really captured her imagination. Before leaving Mommy insisting on eating a funnel cake, which she had not had the opportunity to enjoy for years -- it was very yummy, so yummy Hannah only got a bite and Daddy didn't get any! Here's our little elf at the fair...

Hannah is a real character. She cracks us up with all her expressions, and I've been trying to capture them but she changes faces so quickly! Here's her saying boo!

Finally, about the cats. Buddy is recovering quite nicely from his brush with death. His surgery scars are covered nicely with a thick coat of hair which has almost completely grown in. Angel keeps a villigant watch on him, while he keeps a watch on the house. When we discovered Angel in a peculiar place, it made us laugh, so we took a photo:

Slow-cooked kitty anyone?