Walker Jackson Pope

April 20, 2016

11:55 AM

7lbs 10 oz

 

Being an aunt is pretty much one of the coolest things around! I love my Wyatt, and now I love my Walker Jackson too!!

The date had been set for weeks, so we knew when to expect our newest bundle of love. Much anticipation led to this wonderful day. What would he look like? Would he look like Wyatt? How big would he be? Would this birth experience be easier for Emily? What would his name be???? Yes- I'll admit that that last question was my number one concern! (well- ok- my concern for Emily was number ONE- but running a close second was his name!!) Many suggestions had gone around. Emily had a list she liked- and Joey had a list he liked. But those two lists didn't cross....at all. Becky and I even spent one entire evening on our phones giving suggestions....which still didn't get us a name to call him before he was born. His Mama and Daddy were perfectly content with naming him after he was born. His OCD Aunt?? Not so much. But alas......I wasn't the one having the baby. (and all the people said AMEN to that!!) SO I had to sit back and work on that thing called patience. I've heard about it before,  but have never been too good at it.
The C Section was scheduled to start at about 9 on the morning of the 20th. So we all got up and tried to get there early enough to hug Emily before she went in for surgery. Even Uncle Josh was able to take a couple hours off at the last minute to be there!! But despite our getting there early....the doctor was running late from his first surgery....and we ended up waiting 3 hours!!!
Wyatt and I passed the time by taking selfies....

One last selfie before this dude becomes a BIG BROTHER!!!!

We even sent Emily and Joey a picture of their cheering section..

 

We passed the time by guessing what "baby no name"s weight would be. $1 per person to enter..

Papa- 7.9

Nana- 7.14 (she won with Wyatt on the SAME guess)

Jana- 8.3

Josh- 7.12

Becky Pope- 8.5

Emily- 8.1

Joey- 8.2

Memaw- 8.7

Jennifer- 8.8

Alan Pope- 8.4

Pops- 7.15

Wyatt- 80

Guy Tyra- 8.0

And yes, you read that correctly.... Wyatt guessed 80 pounds! LOL!

 

And before we knew it...this picture hit the grandma's phones!

 

Our newest sweet boy was here!!!! And everyone was quick to comment on how much he looks like his big brother!

We also got this picture..

Which brought us all to tears! The caboose to the Pool train...our sweet no name! (Noooooooo......not knowing his name didn't drive me bonkers at all...............)

Big Brother was a LITTLE excited to get to go back and meet his brother first!

As soon as his Daddy came out to get him, he RAN up to him and threw his arms and legs around him. It was one of the sweetest moments I've ever seen.

Aunt Jen was getting a little anxious to lay her eyes on my newest nephew. It was approaching 1:00, and I had to be at work at 1:15!! Not cutting it close at all......

But we all got to finally go back and see him, and we were all instantly in love! Papa prayed over this new life that God had blessed us all with, and we all shed a few tears. I MAY have asked as soon as I got back there what his name was......but he still didn't have one. It seemed that my sense of urgency to know WHO this precious little love was, was not is parent's sense of urgency. :) My lesson in patience was extended even more when I had to do one of the hardest things...... walk out of that recovery room without getting my hands on my nephew. SO HARD. I cried all the way to my car. But I reassured myself that he was now ours and my time to be his aunt was only beginning.

I made it through the day by getting pictures like this..

No worries- Big Brother on duty!

 

After school, I picked the girls up and we went out to eat and then up to the hospital to get our hands on their newest cousin. (who still had no name...... nope didn't bother his aunt AT ALL.......)

Brenna was first up..

 

Then Macie Claire...

 

Such proud big cousins!!

And FINALLY.... his not so patient Aunt Jen got her hands on him!!

It's hard to see in this picture...but he is looking up at me.... OH MELT MY HEART!! It's as if he was thinking "Aunt Jen! Where have you been all my life??"















Macie got to practice her cigar holding skills...

Pops gave her lessons on how to hold it... Thanks Pops. (insert sarcastic tone)

Not to worry- It was only bubble gum. And gross bubble gum at that.
Eventually we had to head home. The girls were none too happy when I told them they wouldn't get to see baby no name (Did I mention I really needed him to have a name??) again until Sunday. But I kept it under wraps that I was coming back as soon as I could on Thursday morning!! (Some things are better left unsaid to 9 and 5 year olds)
Uncle Josh beat me to the hospital on Thursday. He still hadn't seen him since he had to leave for work before he was born due to the doctor running behind. I wish I had pictures of their first meeting.... because I know it was a sweet moment. Uncle Josh loves him some babies!
But the biggest news since his birth arrived to me via text from Uncle Josh.... HE HAD A NAME!!!!!!
Please let me introduce you to Walker Jackson Pope!

 

Our little ball of squishy, soft, kissable goodness!! The wait was worth it- he now had the perfect name! It wasn't one that had been discussed much. (it was suggested the night that his Memaw and I sat and made a list of names.... but we didn't think it would get chosen). No one had had a chance to chime in on whether they liked it or not, so it was brand new to most people.... and it was perfect! Just like him!! Good job Mom and Dad!

I was so glad that one of us got to use Jackson. It had been mine and Josh's pick for a boy. His name would have been Jackson Glen Pool. But alas.... boys were not in the cards for us. God picked us to be the parents of the two most beautiful and precious little girls we have ever seen, and we are BLESSED!!!!

Wyatt was all too eager to take some more selfies with his Aunt Jen. (We had a little TOO much fun in the waiting room the day before.... we are now selfie buddies!)

Go figure....silly selfies are his favorite!

I even got a selfie with my favorite nephews!!

 

And Wyatt proclaimed me as his favorite! Yep- that's right! The title of favorite and bestest Aunt has been taken! Why am I his favorite?? Don't worry- it had nothing to do with my downright awesomeness as an individual. It was because I bought him a Dr. Pepper at 10AM the day before while we were sitting in the waiting room! Hey- I'm not proud.....whatever it takes! Being an aunt is pretty much the coolest job. I gave him that caffeine and then left him with his Memaw to deal with the rest of the day!! (she'd have done the same thing to me- so it's all good)

I could just eat this up!!!

 

It's a good thing that I have a good head on my shoulders and knowledge that they don't stay this sweet and tiny forever.... or we would have a dozen of them!! But visions of 3 year olds keep me grounded.. no. thank. you. I'll just love on and spoil this one and send him back home for his parents to raise!! WIN-WIN!

If this sweetness doesn't just melt your heart... there is something wrong!

Brotherly love!





It just blows me away how much Walker and Wyatt look alike!!

Their Daddy can't deny either one of them!

It's probably because neither of mine look even a little bit alike. (nor do they act alike!) Let's just hope that Walker likes to cuddle and kiss more than his big brother does!! ha!!
Our family is complete. 2 girls, 2 boys. I don't think we could be any more balanced if we tried! I can't wait to watch all four of these miracles grow up together and make memories! I hope that when they are adults who enjoy hanging out together that they are constantly saying "remember when we would ______ at Pops and Memaw's house?? Wasn't that the most fun?!?!" Family. Fun. Love. Memories. That's what it is all about!

Rangers + Rileys

My favorite place and my favorite people. Doesn't get much better than that!!
We always enjoy any time we get to spend with the Riley's, and Friday night was no exception.

We stayed at the hotel down the street from the stadium, and decided we were too lazy to walk a mile and a half, so we took a pedicab! Best $20 ever!!

Reunited- and it feels SO good!!

She's the Pop to my Tart!

The game was going great- until the 6th inning. The Rangers were up 5-1, and the Orioles scored 9 runs. Yes- I said NINE. So we took that opportunity to take a walk to the Pro Shop for a new tshirt!

I don't always take selfies, but when I do, it's because I spent way too much money on a new Ranger's jersey!

And Sarah and I indulged in the best food on this planet...

Because....GARLIC FRIES!!

Since the game was not going well for us, we had way too much time to indulge in social media silliness...

#brotherhusbands

And even though it was ugly all the way to the end- we still had a blast with this peeps!!

Career Day

Last week was Career Day at the girls' school. I knew Macie had to dress up, so we had been discussing her costume. She really didn't have an idea. She mentioned teacher- but after my mild heart attack, she changed her mind. Eventually she told me she wanted to be a Mommy when she grew up. Well- duh! So I knew we could pull that off.
But the night before- Brenna came home telling me she had to dress up too. Oh goody. So I asked what she wanted to be, really hoping for something simple. I knew better. She proudly proclaimed "I want to work for NASA when I grow up!" Yes- I knew this fact. But I was really hoping that we could come up with a career that was MUCH easier to throw together! Nope. Nothing else was acceptable to her other than a scientist at NASA. SOOOOO- I started doing some thinking on how I was gonna pull this off. Then I remembered the astronaut shirt that Taron bought for her when we were shopping over spring break! Perfect! I printed a NASA scientist name tag to go with it (so that hopefully people would be able to tell what she wanted to be), and she dug out her scientist experiment glasses, and VOILA- we had ourselves a NASA employee!!
Macie picked out matching dresses for herself and her baby, and then came out of her room that morning and said "I don't want to be a Mommy- I want to be a babysitter! I'm Mrs. Nikki and this is baby Emma!"
So there ya have it folks! My NASA scientist and my babysitter! (At least one of my children will be able to support me in my old age. I guess the other one can babysit me.....)

The "Get Along" shirt

The day after Easter was a rough one for 2 certain little girls. My anxiety was high and patience low due to the state of our house after the "Indoor Flood of 2016". But even without that...the girls were in rare form. Constant fighting and at each other's throats non stop. It had been going on for a while, but had only escalated. One picks, and the other tattles. Then someone cries. And the scenario plays out over and over and over. Their roles in the situation change from time to time. But it goes on until one parent or the other reaches a breaking point. And mine was reached. They came in whining and tattling... and I lost it. I told them to go upstairs and play TOGETHER until further notice. And I didn't want to hear a word from them. I am pretty sure if I had been a cartoon, there would have been smoke coming from my nose and ears.
Josh came in, asked what was going on, and I very calmly (or not- whatever) told him the events that had been transpiring. And then it happened......
He called them downstairs, where I felt certain that they were about to get a good ole fashioned butt whopping. But he had a much better plan. And the "Get Along Shirt" was invented.
I stepped around the corner to see this...

You can't see it, but there was LOTS of crying going on. Macie was laughing at first. But she quickly realized that it wasn't as funny as she thought.
It was at this point that I realized that the Get Along shirt was not ONLY for punishment for the kids. It was stress relief for their Mama as well! It was one of those magical parenting moments where you have to walk away because you are laughing SO HARD that you have tears and can barely breath....at your children's expense. Parenting at it's finest people.
They were then sent up stairs to play. At one point I heard Macie giggle again (probably in an attempt to aggravate her sister since that is her main purpose in life most days), and Brenna decided to come down stairs. But when you are wearing the Get Along shirt, much like the three legged race, you must tell your partner every step you plan to take in order to avoid dragging a limp body along behind you. Well- Brenna didn't do that, and Macie was victim to the stairs. The good news is that she was attached to Brenna, so she didn't go too far and was able to recover.
After Josh and I finished laughing, he called them to the stairs to take a picture. Don't be fooled- what appears to be a smile on Brenna's face was actually tears and PLEADING for her father to not take their picture! But since we are already up for Parents of the Year, the following pictures did happen, and were possibly even posted on Facebook. Because when you are killing it in the parenting experience- you must share your success.

Yep- this is real life. It isn't always pretty. It's sometimes beyond stressful. But it's a life I wouldn't change for anything! And there is ALWAYS something to smile about.

Because He Lives, I Can Face Tomorrow

Unfortunately Josh had to work Easter Sunday...AGAIN. That seems to be the norm. Not sure why it seems like he works most Easters, but it does. Maybe it's because it was Easter 6 years ago when he broke his arm at work.... I'm not sure. But that is what I think of every time he works on Easter.
So us girls got up early and checked out what the Easter Bunny brought.

This year they got new sandals (much wanted "jandals" for Brenna), American Girl outfits, bubbles, a skirt, a pen, Little Debby cakes, M&Ms, and Pirates Booty!

 The Easter Bunny even left them a note reminding them of the real reason we celebrate Easter. Brenna was a little insulted that he thought they needed to be REMINDED of that. She assumed everyone knew..... Sweet girl.

After we got dressed, we attempted some pictures in our Easter Best..... Easier said than done. Mama is a little OCD when it comes to getting the PERFECT Easter Sunday picture. Because- ya know... that's what's really important on Easter...... getting the perfect picture!

"Macie- cross your legs like Brenna."
M-"I don't want to."
Me- UGHHHHH!

"Macie, cross your feet like Brenna is doing."
Macie-"I don't want to."
Me- UGHHHHHHHHH

This one turned out pretty decent. Other than Brenna can't take a picture without cocking her head to the side!

Let's try the selfie stick!!
(Macie is fake smiling in this one because she was DONE)
(for the record- I am fake smiling in this one because I was DONER than Macie)
((Doner is a word...right?))

One last attempt...AFTER CHURCH! And it worked!! Both cooperated! Both smiled normal smiles! Mama is now happy!

After church, we loaded up and headed to Aunt Kim's house for some more Easter fun!!! Nina made a traditional Easter lunch of Ham and Dumplings! What? That's not a traditional Easter dinner? Oh well! We had Ham at least!! And it was sooooo good! Dumplings, sliced tomatoes, and homemade fried potatoes. oh my!!

Say CHEESE!!!!

After lunch, the girls dyed 18 eggs that Nina got for them. They had a blast!! This was the first year they hadn't dyed eggs with their Daddy. It was kinda sad (for me- not sure anyone else cared). But we just didn't have time... Story of my life..

I do believe they had plenty of colors...

All they really needed was pink, purple, and turquoise. That's all they cared about...

And while they colored eggs....

I colored Aunt Kim's hair! I offered to use the extra egg dye....she didn't go for it. She's no fun.
And while the color was sitting on Aunt Kim's hair... the girls hunted eggs yet again!

After the egg hunt, I took Brenna and Nina to the movies while Aunt Kim kept Macie Claire. Brenna had been asking for 2 weeks to go see "Miracles From Heaven". I had kind of put it off because I didn't know if it was appropriate for her or not. But after talking to several other people who's children about the same age had seen it, I decided we would go for it. I did know that Macie would NOT sit through it, so we twisted Aunt Kim's arm and talked her into keeping M. (And if you know Aunt Kim- you know that arm twisting thing never really had to happen...)
The movie was really good. I cried from about 5 minutes in until it was over. Brenna watched the whole thing very intently. It was a good experience for her. She talked about it a lot after it was over, and it was a great conversation piece for days to come.
After we left the movies, we picked up Macie and dropped Nina off and headed home. I was BEYOND exhausted. The events of the weekend had worn me smooth out, as my Mama would say. So we went home to our LOUD house, and I tried to not let the noise bother me too much...(notice the words tried and too much). But we survived, and were all in bed early! I really needed another day to recover from the chaos  of the 3 day weekend... but alas- there is not another day off of school until summer. Jesus be with us....it's going to be a long haul till the end.

Easter Saturday-Jackson Style

We gathered with our Jackson side of the family the Saturday before Easter. I absolutely love a Jackson get together. There is never any stress or dread...just good ole family fun- with lots of laughter!!
Dad bought the girls a volleyball net, and we took it over to Pops and Memaw's and set it up for the evening. It was a hit!

Even Aunt Emily wasn't afraid to join in on the fun! Pregnant Jennifer would have been scared of tipping over!!

We enjoyed burgers and yummy chips and dips. And not too long after- the kiddos were begging to hunt eggs!! So we sent them inside while we head 12,376 Easter eggs. (or at least that's what it felt like!)
And nothing screams GREAT PARENTING quite like making them come outside and line up for a photo op before running after the eggs!

And soon they were OFF!

GO Macie and Wyatt!!



I dread the day when this angel is too old to hunt eggs. Luckily we aren't there yet!

This girl is serious about her egg huntin'! My favorite picture of the day!

Where's Wyatt??
When your Walmart bag Easter basket springs a leak..Mom and Dad jump into action to help whilst you continue to hunt!

She had an advantage over the others since she is taller than them!

And after all the eggs had been found.... or at least we think they had.... the kiddos gathered to check out their loot!

Gosh I love these two monsters!

Sometimes you need to check out each other's loot!

Soon after the egg hunting ended, we spotted the other set of kids- the big kids flying kites! Thanks Aunt Jana for getting kites for the little ones for Easter! It kept the big ones entertained for a long time!!

At this point- they had taken all of the kites and tied the string together to make one LOOOOOONG kite string that flew so high I'm sure NASA spotted it from space!!

Volleyball soon resumed until it was too dark to see..

And Memaw gave Brenna, Macie, and Wyatt their special Easter Egg prizes! Filled with MONEY!! Man- how come no one gives me Easter eggs full of money anymore??!!

We ended the evening with wine on the back porch while the guys enjoyed a cigar. It was a great night! Good times were had by all. And Josh and I were just thankful that we didn't have to sit in our NOISY house and listen to the fans blow.....