Hug O' War

I will not play at tug o' war.
I'd rather play at hug o' war.
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins.
-Shel Silverstein
I would ask Chris to read that poem to us almost every night when Parker was inside my belly. It's funny how just moments before sweet Parker arrived I closed my eyes and imagined Chris in Parker's room reading him the Hug O' War poem.

I'll get all choked up if I spend a lot of time writing about our birth experience. It was absolutely wonderful! Of course it was hard work too, but it was a magical experience! I say our because I truly believe Chris did just as much work as I did. He is a great daddy! It takes strong team work to make it through 18 hours of labor.

Parker is doing great. He already has a lot of my determination. Poor little guy wants his hands and his little head to be stronger than they are at this time. He is really doing great at breastfeeding!
Parker is also a night owl. He gets that from his daddy. Once the lights go off those eyes start to wander. Of course he has spent most of today sleeping...but he did have a few visitors this morning. I cannot believe that this perfect little person is part of me...he is by far the best thing that Chris and I have ever done.









Chris' mom and step dad are coming to see Parker this weekend and we are sure more friends and family will be by to meet our sweet baby. I'll have plenty more pictures to share soon so I apologize ahead of time if this soon becomes a picture/video blog.

Parker Bailey Sturgess

This is Chris pinch blogging for the new mommy. For those of you who haven't heard, yesterday at 1:09pm Amber gave birth to our first son. It was the most amazing experience of our lives. And I am proud to say that Amber did it without ANY pain medication. Based on everything we heard from the nurses, that is pretty rare these days. I am so proud of her.

Now to the fun stuff. Parker was 19.5 inches long and weighed in at 6 lbs 9 oz. Here are some pictures from his first two days.

Wedding Plans?

No Parker baby yet. I know he has dropped because I can breathe easier and I don't feel like I am carrying around as much weight. I have also experienced A LOT of discomfort, cramping, back pain, and restless nights this week so I am sure my body and Parker are gearing up for birth day.
Two of my friends have also had dreams that we had Parker this week. Chris and I are definitely ready!

If I am not in labor tomorrow or Saturday we have a pretty busy weekend planned. Last night my friend Melissa threw a curve ball at us.
She is getting married!
She is getting married this Saturday and she wants me to be her bridesmaid.

I never thought I would be a huge and pregnant bridesmaid, but I am also very excited for Missy; so of course I'll be there if I am not at the hospital. I'll also go with her tomorrow to find the perfect dress and the cutest tux for her sweet baby boy.

Saturday is also Melissa's son Cyra's first birthday. This time last year she was giving birth and I was at my sister's wedding.
Who knows what will happen this year...it could be one crazy weekend!

Safe Baby

I have been very impressed with all the wonderful resources offered for first time parents! Between the books, childbirth courses, and the pamphlets from our Pediatrician's office, I feel like Chris and I won't be completely clueless once Parker joins us. Of course I also know sometimes we will learn as we go.

Our Pediatrician gave us a packet of information about child safety seat checkups. Inside the packet I read about 95% of all car seats are not installed correctly. That statistic was not only terrifying, but it also left us wanting to make sure Parker's car seat was properly installed.

This morning I met with a lady from the Panhandle Safe Kids Coalition. Not only did she check our car seat, but she also offered some great tips for Parker's first car ride.
She recommended that we not use the cute cuddly pillows and seat belt covers if they didn't come with his car seat. She also showed me how to properly buckle Parker not only as an infant, but as a growing baby too.
I learned a lot this morning and I am glad this program is offered! We can rest easy at night knowing that our little guy will be safe and comfortable during his first ride home from the hospital.

Speaking of the hospital...packing our hospital bag is the only thing left on my to-do list. I plan on getting everything together and in our bag this afternoon. These last few weeks seem to be flying! We see Dr. May again tomorrow afternoon. Although I promise not to get discouraged or over anxious... we will find out if I am dilated or effaced. Regardless of what happens at our appointment I know in my heart Parker will join us very soon:)

Staying Home

This week after meeting with Dr. May, Chris and I decided that it would be best for Parker and my high blood pressure if I went ahead and took an early leave and rested for the next two weeks or so. My last day at the office was Wednesday and I have spent the past two days relaxing and daydreaming about my life as a mommy.

These past two months have been VERY stressful. I blame my high blood pressure on a lot of the stress that I've had at work. I found out the week of my birthday that our local MDA office would be closing due to poor management, an extremely high budget, and a bad economy. I would not have a job to return to after my maternity leave.

At first I was very worried about my future. How would I help to provide for our little family? As we all know life has a funny way of working out for the best. I am very blessed to have such a wonderful and understanding husband.
For the first time in my life I have no idea what I want to do next. All I know is that my #1 job from this day forward is to be Parker's mom.

I am looking forward to spending time with sweet Parker, and when the time is right I am looking forward to starting a new career.
I am thankful for all the wonderful families I've had the chance to meet and work with at MDA, and I will miss them a lot.

This Shower NEVER ends!

As promised here are a few more pictures from this past weekend.

Parker's Grandma and me.


Parker's Aunt Jamie, me, and my mom. We are still searching for her a grandparent name; any suggestions?


In my last post I didn't mention the talented friends and family we have. Check out the sporty diaper cake that my friends/hostess April and Melissa made for us. I am glad that all the diapers are size 1 because I don't want to take the cake apart yet.


I would also like to send a special thank you to Parker's Grandma. She worked very hard on his Pooh Bear quilt. We know that Parker will love it!

Baby Shower

Warning: The next few blogs may be a picture overload! Enter at your own risk.

We have wonderful friends and family! I am so thankful that a lot of them were able to attend my baby shower this past weekend. We are very fortunate because we got almost everything we registered for... and then some.
Don't believe me?




Parker's room was jammed packed with good stuff!

It was also good to see my girlfriends from college! I am the first one of my college friends to have a baby. I am certain that after they meet little Parker they will want one of their own.


After the shower everyone made their way out to my parents house for a cookout. Here are some more pictures from my shower and the cookout.







I have several other pictures from this weekend. They are on my mom and mother-in-law's cameras. I'll share those sometime this week. For now I am off to watch Chris put together more of Parker's toys. Our house has been invaded by Fisher Price and Graco!