Precious moments...

I am amazed how precious it has been to be home with Parker!
Some days are more tiring but so worth it!

I have convinced myself of the following:

• I am grateful if I can get 3 loads of laundry done and unload the dishwasher (don't worry if I didn't succeed)
  
• I have given up on trying to keep the houses spic & span (to my perfection!)
  
• I praise God for a loving husband who is not expecting a meal the moment he walks in the door and all my "chores" done! I know he cares that I am attending to Parker and doing my best to keep things up when possible!
• Staying home is worth the sacrifice to hold Parker in my arms and see the daily changes.
  

I was overcome with hormones and wondered what my life will be like as a stay at home mom! Then I was reminded to get involved in the community with MOPS and even a Le lache group! I am going to my first MOPS meeting on Tuesday (10/02)! I got a phone call from the director at the church! She welcomed me with open arms and told me of another new mom, that I might be able to connect with! I am a social bug (as you all know) and it will be so uplifting for me to get involved and enjoy my time "not working" with Parker in this way! Although, this new job is far above all others! It is the best, and yet most demanding! I am hopefully going to get plugged in to a Bible study come January. I missed the ones that started up this fall, so I will continue my own study for now! It is a true joy to be home and be mom to Parker. There are no words to explain how much love and joy I have (and Mike too) for him! We feel so blessed beyond measure! He was sweet today sleeping in his swing. I grieved for him, because he is fighting really bad diaper rash! I guess I was not keeping his butt moistened enough with the special cream from his Dr. It made me feel like a failure, but I reminded myself that I am not! Each day is a learning experience! He is happy as long as we stay on top of the diapers, and not let the dirty ones be on to long! I visited my friend Tiffany's blog and she posted a poem ( for her now 2 year old daughter.) This explains the joy and amazement of how fast the time really goes by being home with your precious baby:

Lord, help me remember, when I feel It's a chore,
the time will come when I'll hold him no more
asleep on my chest (the crib refused, the blanket, the pacifier, gone unused).
What better place is there to lay his head
than against my heart, my arms his bed?
For infants grow up and leave us behind
with only memories left to remind
us of midnight walking and pre-dawn rocking,
of soft, helpless babies unable to sleep.
So, Lord, make me patient and keep me awake
while I cradle Parker, and don't let me take
for granted the moments I spend in the night
with this baby boy--Your gift, my joy, my delight!

Poem by Jan Dunlap

Blessings to you all!
Proud mom to Parker- Jenn :)

GO ORANGE!

Mike is very proud of his Alma Matter~ (Syracuse University) won their football game yesterday against Louisville! Syracuse Football team is not a team to be proud of,since they are not ranked! However, Louisville is ranked 18 and that was an upset and something for him to smile about! The final score was 38 to 35!Way to go 'Cuse!So the proud dad dressed his son this morning for church while I got ready! Here is what Parker wore to church today! (Photo of Mike and Parker sleeping from today, below!) (Outfit is compliments of the proud Uncle Phil (and "Aunt Miracle!) I actually let him wear it vs. the cute "church outfits" that I have for him



Parker is 5 weeks old tomorrow and starting to be much more alert! He is now only up 1 time a night to eat and that is usually at 4 AM. He tends to crash around 7 PM and I get so much done from 7-10 pm. I wake him up when I go to bed and then around the 4 AM. I will be so excited when he does sleep through the whole night!The days go by faster then I expected as a new "stay at home mom!" Here is Parker posing for mommy at 4 weeks!





Mike leaves this Thursday for the big company Softball tournament. I will keep you posted on how they do! I think the guys have high hopes to win. They have been practicing for a few months and they did come in 6th last year out of 35 teams! So I hope to bring you good news next week!
Blessings to you all,
Jenn, Mike & Parker

1 month old!

Our little Tax deduction is 1 month old!

The tree that Grandma Clark made in the nursery!













It is amazing how fast time really does go by! We can not believe that Parker is already 1 month old! Today marks 4 weeks for him and he is 9 pounds!!! He is growing like crazy! Here are some photos of our time with Grandma & Grandpa Clark! We took Parker to the GA aquarium and he was awake for part of it. He loved looking up at the lights above us!
The time was special with my parents and we got so much done around the house. Grandma Clark took some special time and made a tree on Parker's wall to add some more character to the Mural!If you look closely you can see a ladder with his name on steps, hanging from the tree!
The cross-stitch on the wall was made special by Grandma Riese! It is nice to finally have the nursery all put together! Not alot of time any more to work on it! Parker keeps me busy!
The time was special and I am so glad that we got to see my parents for the week and a half that they were here!
Blessings to you all! Jenn, Mike and Parker Riese :)

I am 3 weeks old!

Parker is 3 weeks old and on a growth spurt!

He is sleeping sometimes as long as 4-5 hours and he had 1 night where he ate every 2 hours!

• The first photo is of him sleeping on Sunday while were eating brunch!
  
• (Picture 2) My dad is feeding Parker a bottle (to give mommy a break, so I did not have to go off and feed him)
  
• (Picture 3) The bradford Pear tree being cut down by my dad and Mike! They are discussing how the last part of it will fall!
  

We have LOVED having Grandma and Grandpa Clark here!

My dad has gone to work and put new tile flooring in our master bath and the big event, was cutting down the 14 year old Bradford Pear tree! It was sad to see it go, but my dad saved us almost $300.00 to get it down. The trees have about a 14 year life expectancy, and we did not want to risk it snapping any time soon (like our neighbors did recently!)
We have had fun with Parker and gone out quite a bit! Tomorrow it looks like we will be going to the GA. Aquarium!
Mike is back to work and anxiously awaiting his annual PWC softball tournament! It is the 28-30th of this month and he will be going to Tuscan,AZ!
We can not believe how fast the time has gone already!
It is a joy to share these moments with you all!
Blessings,
Mike, Jenn & Parker

2 weeks old and growing strong!

Parker is 2 weeks old and doing great!

(Daddy was watching Parker on Tuesday night...so mommy could go play Bunko!)

(Photo of his first bath with Grandma Riese!)

Parker is now 8lbs and 10 oz!
His Pediatrician was thrilled with his weight gain and I am glad to know that he is doing so well with the breastfeeding. He latched right on and it has been so great for me too! I only have 7 more pounds to go and all my pregnancy weight will be off! ( It is the toning of the body and getting it back in shape that is interesting.) It is true that the "baby fat" all goes to other places! I am thrilled to have Parker and he was worth it all!
We are still doing well with the nights. He does almost 4 hours stretches and is very content.
Grandma Riese made him fall in love with the bath! (The photo of his first bath does not show this to be true!)...He was not sure what to think!...He doesn't cry anymore!!! He gets one every other day! I would give him one every day, but his Dr. said every other day for now!
Today is a big day for Parker...he will get to meet Grandma and Grandpa Clark! My parents are flying in tonight and staying for 10 days! We are looking forward to the visit! I know we will do some fun projects (hopefully new tile floor in the masterbath installed by Grandpa Clark) and get in some trips to special places and maybe a little shopping too!
I still do not miss teaching...Parker is keeping me busy!!! I miss my co-workers but they have been great about staying in touch and visiting! In the meantime I stay busy getting stuff done when he is sleeping!
More photos to come once Grandma and Grandpa Clark arrive!
Jenn

Parker is 1 week old!

We have had a wonderful first week with Parker!
We are crossing our fingers and praying that the 6-7 hours of sleep will stay a while! He only gets up 2 times a night to eat! We have a very happy boy and he only cries to get his diaper changed or eat! We feel very blessed!
I keep telling Grandma and Grandpa Riese that he is just putting on a show until they leave! But I have been told that this is probably how he really will be! We are more and more in love with Baby Parker each day and Big Poppy and Daddy love to discuss that he is "just a little guy!"
Tomorrow Grandma and Grandpa Riese leave! We have been so spoiled and I can just say it was a real blessing having them here the whole 2 weeks! I have gotten rest and by day 4 we were out and about with Parker!
He made it to his daddy's softball game last night! His first softball game to attend....(and he slept the whole time!)
He is happy and so easy going...it has made the shopping adventures fun and enjoyable for mommy and Grandma Riese!
It is still so surreal to us and hard to believe that a week and 1/2 ago he was still in my womb! But it is so precious to finally have him here and in our arms!
We will post more soon and hope you enjoy watching him grow as much as we do!
Blessings to all,
Jenn, Mike and Parker :)

Photos from the Birth of Parker!

It's a boy!

We are parents to a healthy baby boy!!

Parker Wilson Clark Riese
August 20, 2007
6:55pm
8lbs, 20 inches

Mom and baby are doing well.
Dad's in awe, Parker is happy and content.
And, Mom is thrilled to have no more heartburn!



Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers the last 9 months.

More photos will be posted shortly.

Delivery Day!

We are at Kennestone Hospital and Jenn is in Labor! The Petocin has started and sometime today Baby Riese will arrive. We look forward to sharing the news soon with you all!
Keep Jenn in your prayers for a safe and healthy delivery...(so far all was great last night with the monitors and she got a good 5 hours of sleep!)
Happy Monday to all of you!
Mike, Jenn and very soon Baby Riese

The latest news and preparations for Baby Riese's arrival!

Just got back from my OB! (Today was my last OB visit before Baby Riese's arrival!)
I am 1 cm diallated and 85% effaced. Baby Riese may come yet this week! I have started having some small contractions (and the braxton hicks have been going on for a few weeks!) If baby does not come by Sunday 8/19, then we go to the hospital on Sunday night at 7:30 for a scheduled induction! (We are currently #2 of 4 scheduled inductions!) So hopefully there will be a room available. A lot could happen in the next 4 days...and everyone still has their guess on the day Baby Riese will arrive. Grandma and Grandpa Riese arrive on Saturday afternoon, so baby Riese may be waiting for their arrival!
In the meantime, we have gotten a lot done! We cleaned the carpets last weekend (can you tell I am "nesting") got the nursery all done...(I will post photos once baby is here!) and ordered the changing table! (It has been on back order!) Mike got the swing and Pack & Play set up downstairs. Now the latest preparation for Baby Riese's arrival...we made a purchase at Costco for a Leather Recliner! Mike said it would be the perfect "downstairs" rocker! It goes really well with our furniture and we were pleased with the deal! (Not to mention, it is a gift for Mike! I convinced him to use a little portion of his upcoming bonus on it! He deserves it for the hard work he did this past year!)

So we sound like we are ready...but are any first time "parents" really ready? I can only imagine the adventure that is just around the corner! I am very thankful for the help that Mom & Dad Riese will give us and my parents the beginning of September!
We will keep you posted.

Next Monday, we will have photos for sure of Baby Riese!
So nice to see the end is near!
Blessings,
Jenn (Mike ) and Baby Riese

Baby Riese could be here any day!

I had my 37 week checkup yesterday!
I got surprising news: I am already 80% effaced!(Only 20% to go!) Meaning the dialation is just around the corner. Baby Riese is not going to wait around for the end of Aug. to arrive.
My OB predicts "1 week" or so! She told me to pack my bags! (I haven't!) So it is on my agenda today! The process of labor is something totally out of our control and she said..."alot can happen in 1 day!" Ok, so she convinced me that Baby Riese is coming soon!!!
Mike is being very alert to my text messages and phone calls! He had a very BUSY week last week and worked a good 100 hours! He has that behind him and now he is back to a 9-6 schedule! AMEN! I am very thankful that his company is giving him 3 weeks off with pay for "maternity leave!"
Mom and Dad Riese arrive next Saturday (Aug.18th) we will see what the status of Baby Riese is! Baby R may want to greet them at the house instead of the hospital!
We will keep you all posted.
In the meantime...the GA heat is nasty and I am staying indoors or visiting big department stores that are nice and cold! I have 1 thing scheduled each day to do, so I don't go crazy!!!
Anxiously awaiting Baby Riese,
Jenn & Mike

The latest on Baby Riese

Here is Baby Riese at 36 weeks...a nice close up! (This is a 4-D image,that we got as a free compliment of my OB office!)
The good news is that I do not have to have a scheduled c-section. Baby Riese has slowed down on the growth spurt. (Most likely will still be good size at birth!)
As of right now Baby Riese is 6 lbs and 7 oz! If no baby by Aug. 20th, then I will induced to hopefully have no bigger then a 9 lb baby! In the meantime we are enjoying the last 3 weeks together.
We will keep you posted as we await the arrival of our little bundle of joy!
Jenn,Mike and Baby Riese

The countdown to Baby Riese's arrival begins...

August 20th (my tentative due-date) is just around the corner and we are making progress for the baby! I am officially 36 weeks pregnant and scary to say...but Baby Riese could be here in 2 weeks or so!
We just got the glider for the nursery! It came on Friday! Mike put it together in 20 minutes. It was one of the faster items to assemble and that was encouraging. I love the glider and so glad that we got a great deal on it. Not to mention all the gift-cards from friends & family for Babies-R-Us, really helped. We paid less then $20.00 for it, because of all the gift cards! We are very appreciative for them all!
Now for the changing table...once we have it the nursery will be basically done! (Of course there are many other things I will eventually want to add... toy box and book shelf!

I just got back Friday, from TN. I went to Knoxville,TN. to see my best friend Joy. She is 25 weeks pregnant and wanted to get registered. It was a nice 3 days together, and our last time before we are officially "Mom's"
Tuesday we are back to the OB for Ultra-sound #4 (to see how big baby has gotten) and then we will know a good idea as to when Baby Riese should tentatively be here! I am ready and my nights are not so peaceful anymore. Can't wait to finally have Baby here !(lol) Will my (our) nights every be peaceful sleeps again? Doesn't matter...it is all a "desired joy" that we are ready for!

(The photos are from my time with Joy and the glider in the nursery!)

Happy August (almost) to all!
Jenn, Mike & Baby Riese

The Nursery Mural is complete!

We live in one of the top 10 towns in the U.S!!

Did you know that Kennesaw,GA. made it as one of the best towns to live in that is "Family Friendly?!"


Just thought we'd share this exciting news!
We actually had no idea-until we saw the sign downtown about being one of the top 10. So Mike researched it and we were impressed!
Come join us anytime!
Blessings to you all,
Jenn, Mike and Baby Riese

36 weeks

Here is a photo of me at my neighborhood baby shower (and most recent)! The shower was put on by the ladies I play Bunko with! Once again, we were blessed with many more items for Baby Riese...including my swing!!
I am all baby (as you can see) and very ancy for Baby Riese to arrive. 4 Weeks today or less! We have another ultra-sound on July 31 to make a decision as to when Baby should come and how to have baby Riese arrive.
We will keep you posted!
Blessings to all,
Jenn, Mike and Baby Riese

Abbey's guest for the week...

We have a special guest for the week!
Meet Bailey...he is a 14 week old westie. His mom and Dad are on vacation and we are the sitters for the week! (He is keeping us busy,But we are having fun!)
Abbey likes to play and then there are times she just wants to lounge around and do her daily routine-and not be bothered by a puppy!
Bringing back memories of our first few months with Abbey!
Blessings,
Jenn,Mike and especially Abbey

Counting down!

Today is July 9th and a special "Happy Birthday to Nana Riese in NY!"
If we go by my NEW Due date (Aug. 20th)...we are down to 41 days!Amazing how fast time has really flown by!
We are TRYING to get ready for Baby Riese (as you can see!) The nursery is a storage room so far and we are waiting for part of the crib to arrive (that was broken)! Once it comes we will get rolling on the rest. About 90% of the baby items we have are because of the baby showers we have had for Baby Riese! Words can not express how grateful we have been for the gifts and blessings we are receiving!
I am at the phase where my stomach is getting bigger each week and I am not able to eat as much...I have to eat little bits now! Baby Riese is really growing and I am not really gaining much more weight. It is all going to "BIG" Baby Riese! (I think Baby Riese will be at or just above 9 lbs!) We might be doing a poll! (Mike was 10 lbs. 14 oz...so it will be interesting!)
Here are some of the interesting things I have discovered with this first pregnancy:
1.I am a chocoholic and Baby Riese is not (Chocolate has given me heartburn!)
2.Ladies have been great in public restrooms and always say "You go ahead!" I use to stick my stomach way out...and now I don't they just have pity on me and gladly let me have the next stall!
3. GA. heat does make a pregnant ladies ankles swell...if you are outside all day! (I have only had them swell 2 times!)
4. My blood pressure is better being pregnant?! Hmm! (106/68)
5. Never was a big Mexican food lover...but now I am.
6. Always hated OJ-and it has been a morning drink for the past 7 months.
7. All major department store bathrooms are in the children's section!
8. Sleeping was the best 2nd trimester (not so great anymore)!
9. Kicks in the womb are the most incredible feeling.
10. Coupons for baby are exciting to get in the mail.
So many more interesting things...these are just a few thought I have had the past few months. I will have another sonogram the last week of July to see how BIG baby Riese and gotten and we will make a decision then...when Baby Riese should arrive!
In the meantime I am enjoying these last few days and staying busy.
Blessings to you all,
Jenn, Mike & Baby Riese

Check out my Slide Show!

5 Years today!

Happy Anniversary, Mike!
I love you and I am so excited to be here today celebrating 5 years of marriage!
WOW! Brings back great memories of today!
Looking forward to many more memories with you!

XO