October 29, 2004

I woke up at about 1:00 a.m. and thought my water had broken. After calling the doctor, I decided to try to go back to sleep. I tried for about 2 hours, and decided I needed to go to the hospital. Before we left, David realized he needed to make copies for that day's classes (it was a Friday) so we both went to school at 4:00 a.m. and made copies (CRAZY). We then went to the hospital where they confirmed that my water had broken. After a full day of labor, an almost too late epidural, and a lot of pain, William David Givens, Jr. came into this world around 10:00 p.m. We did not know if he was a boy or girl, and just had a feeling he was a girl, so we were pleasantly surprised to find out we were wrong :-). There were many faces there to greet him. The Smarts, the Heins, the Waters, Blake Harrison, Daniel, Jason, Mimi and Papa, Grammy and Pop, Mawmaw and Pawpaw, Gran and Grandaddy all stayed around for almost 21 hours to meet William. Several others came to visit in the following days-Uncle Dave, Aunt Emily, Emery Claire, Faith and Jennifer Hand, and many more! William got to watch his first Auburn game at 2 days old-Auburn vs. Ole Miss, with Auburn winning.

Yesterday William turned 5 years old. We are so happy to be known as Mommy and Daddy to such a sweet and caring little son, brother, and everything else William is. He loves trains, dinosaurs, tractors (anything that moves, really), Auburn, Golf, animals, monster trucks, and more! He loves to play with Lily. If she has to stop playing to take a nap, he complains. He loves to talk to "Jo-Jo" and make him laugh. He loves to spend time with family and friends. He loves school and can't wait to go to Daddy's school next year. He loves to read, especially with Dad at night. He loves to watch movies, documentaries (on ancient Rome, animals, and food), and is beginning to sing ( he has always been shy about this before). He loves to be active and play outside and he loves visiting the zoo!

Joseph

I can't help it-he's so cute!

Let the Birthday Fun Begin!

Let the birthday fun begin!

Today was William's birthday party at school. He got to share cupcakes with his class-hot pink for the girls and orange for the boys. They had little sugar footballs on top that the kids gobbled up! At William's school, the birthday kid gets to wear a hat and gets a balloon at the end of the day. We are going to Dreamfield Farms tomorrow on his actual birthday, but had fun celebrating at school today.

Joseph is 12 Weeks Old

Joseph is 12 weeks or 3 months old today! So here is a little bit about how he is growing:

He loves to talk to his toy bird. He loves his big brother and sister. He loves going to church. He loves laughing at his Daddy. He is sleeping through the night and is about to start sleeping in his baby bed, instead of his pack-and-play. His eyes squint when he smiles. He loves to take naps in his swing and carseat. He talks to people (coohs, of course). He does not like to get his fingernails clipped. He loves to go strolling. He likes the zoo and the train there. He eats a lot! He loves his passy. He also loves his bath!

Swing Set

Last night we took William, Lily, and Joseph out to get an early birthday surprise (for William and Lily). They did not know what we were getting or from where, so when we pulled up to Toys R Us William was super excited. After walking through all the cool dinosaurs, cars, and everything else Toys R Us has, William was a little let down that we were just there to look at a picture of a swing set. We assured him that it would be fun to put together and play on and then made our way home.
This morning Papa Bill, Uncle Jason, and Sarah all came over to help put it together. As you can see, it was a lot of fun. Lily's favorite was the slide until she saw the double -seated swing put together and she had to try it out. William likes the "boat-swing," which is just his name for the double-seated swing. William and Lily also really liked playing in the packing box with Sarah. They made the top and bottom into two boats and used the metal parts of the set as oars. Joseph slept through the whole thing, but I'm sure he will love it too one day!

A Glimpse

Here are a few random pictures.
Lily trying to go to sleep with all her "friends."
William and Dad reading their current literary selection-The Hobbit.
All three kids ready for church-William is much taller than Lily-he is squatting.
William and Lily playing in an old box-one of their favotite games.

Joseph asleep in the swing.

ZOO FUN

The last few weeks we have definitely gotten our money's worth in our Zoo Pass. We buy one every year and typically end up mainly using it during the Fall, since the weather is so nice. These are a few pics from our last few trips. We went a couple of times on our own and once with a group from church for Zoo Day.
Most of these pictures were taken on the train-notice Lily's favorite "train pose." It is very similar to her "afraid pose"-hands over the mouth and serious eyes. You can also notice William and his snake purchase-made with his own money-he is so proud! And finally, Joseph is shown enjoying his train ride, while eyeing his new best friend-the bird.

Joseph Henry Givens at 9 Weeks

Joseph had his 8 week check-up today (he is actually 9 weeks old). He got his first shots and handled them pretty well. He is 13 lbs. 12 oz. and is 24" long. He is in the 90th and 85th percentile for weight and height. As most of you know, William is a really big kid and always has been. Our suspicions were confirmed today that Joseph is well on his way to being BIGGER than William!
Now to tell you a little bit about Joseph:
He is funny. He loves his big sister and brother. He loves his brown blanket. He loves his dangly bird toy. He loves to coo at you while you talk. He eats really well. He sleeps "through the night" most of the time. He loves to hold his head back and look at the ceiling. He loves to rock with Mommy and play with Daddy.

Sunday Morning Fun

Last Sunday was "Taylor-gating" at our church. This is a day we wear our colors to church and we all get together and tailgate in the evening. These pictures show you what our children wore that morning. William, of course, wore his Auburn gear, but Lily wore a circus elephant dress, saving her Hillsdale gear for that night. David immediately informed me of how much her dress looked like an Alabama dress. Oh well, she did look like an Alabama fan, but she was awefully cute!