Laundry Day and Pack 'n Play(??)

Laundry News
This weekend, we got around to doing Noah's laundry. Of course, all of these baby clothes, linens, booties, hats, etc...have to be washed in the fragrance/dye free detergent. It's nice to have all of his things put away in his drawers now. We even have his bed semi-made. For the past week or so, we've had his clothes, etc...separeated into whites/colors piles on his bedroom floor. Gabi especially enjoyed rummaging through them and smelling the outfits. We hung his letters ("NOAH") above the changing table and hope to start putting more things on the walls soon.

Pack 'N Play??
Many of Noah's play toys have been very easy to assemble. We had no problems putting together his crib, swing, or stroller. So the pack 'n play would be a cinch right?? After about 45 minutes of finagling and several moments of anger in which I (Eric) was ready to beat the whole pack n' play to a pulp, we finally got it assembled. Once we got it all together we thought, "OK, that wasn't all that bad," even though there's no way one person could quickly "pack" or "unpack" the thing and have it set-up for their child to "play" in it.
Which begs the question...how much playing can a child actually do in this thing? It's about 3feet x 2feet of plasticy feeling fabric surrounded by prison-like mesh walls. The only thing resembling fun is the (non-moving) mobile which features 3 small teddy bears that hang there with funny looking grins on their faces. Sounds fun to me! It's also too big (I guess they're all the same size) to move it from room to room because it won't fit through the door frame. But I digress...!
After we got it all set-up, we had the pleasure of taking it apart (very easy) and cramming it back in the storage bag (not so easy!). After much pushing and pulling and cramming and bending, we finally got it stuffed back in the bag, which now sits in Noah's closet looking like it's got 52 squirrels trying to poke their way out of the sides.
I'm sure we'll use it a lot downstairs for Noah's naps during the day and taking it to Grandma's and on trips, but this thing seems way too hard to pack and/or play with any regularity.

Noah's 30 Week Ultrasound Video

This is the edited 3 1/2 minute version for your viewing pleasure.

3D/4D Ultrasound Pictures

Yesterday we went in for a 3D/4D ultrasound, and it was incredible. We could see Noah so clearly and even see much of the detail in his face, his expressions, and even what he looks like. Most of the pictures look almost identical to my (Eric's) baby pictures (spitting image!!), while some look like Tyra and even Alyssa (Tyra's sister). He's so cute and it's unbelievable to think that we'll be holding OUR SON in just 10 weeks! Getting to see him in such detail makes us even more excited about his arrival. Enjoy the pictures! I'm hoping to get the 10 minute ultrasound video loaded on here soon.

Side view...looks just like Eric's baby pictures

Compare:


These look more like Tyra I think:


Big yawn:

His cranky face:


Little feet:

Waving bye-bye:

Fall in Knoxville...Does It Get Any Better?

Well, all of this season's home football games have concluded, which means our weekly bed and breakfast closes down for another year. It's been a fun season, and with a win this Saturday in Lexington against the Wildcats, we'll be off to Atlanta next weekend to play LSU in the SEC Championship Game! Well, now that I've turned the blog into the "sports page," I'll go ahead and post some pictures from this season and our family and friends who were able to spend some time on Rocky Top...the best place on earth!

Birthing Class Highlights and Other Tidbits

Our first birthing class last week was fun filled. A few highlights:

1. The free snacks...not only were there a lot of them, but it was good stuff! Animal crackers, honey roasted peanuts, fruit snacks, and cookies. Needless to say, the husbands were on them like white on rice.

2. The 1980s "March of Dimes" video, which included a lady stating (and I'm not joking) that "she just hopes her baby's not retarded!" after she'd been having pregnancy pains. Could it be anymore politically in-correct!!??

3. The coupons to Chick-Fil-A for free food! Need I say more?

4. Practicing the breathing/relaxation exercises to be used to distract from labor pains. Saying this was histarical is a huge understatement. We were crying we were laughing so hard at the class doing the "Ha-HEE, Ha-HEE, Ha-HEE" breathing and one husband had to get up and leave he was cracking up so hard. I told Tyra it was the equivalent of someone farting in church during a prayer and only you and your friends heard it...then trying to remain quiet for the remainder of the prayer. Pure torture!

5. The 18 lb. pregancy vest and shirt for all the husbands to take turns wearing. Luckily, I'd had practice at this at our couples baby shower earlier this month, so I was a pro. This suit however, unlike the one at the shower, was equipped with fake boobs, which proved to get in my way during the notetaking portion of the class.

6. Oh, yeah, and we also learned some good baby-related things too.

Tonight is class #2, so I'm sure there's more fun in store. In other news:

Noah has been kicking, squirming, and wiggling around like CRAZY these past few weeks and lately you can easily see Tyra's belly moving around a lot. It's amazing! His favorite active times are about 6am, 7pm, and right before bedtime. He's getting bigger and stronger each week, and it's hard to fathom how much he (and Tyra's belly) have grown in such a short time. Next Monday, we're going to get a 3D/4D ultrasound, which will let us see some very detailed pictures of Noah. We can't wait. Hopefully we'll be able to post a video or some pictures next week.

Everyone can take the new poll on the right side of the blog to predict when Noah will be born. Tyra and I predict Feb. 1, which is his actual due date. Although, only 7% of babies are born on their due date.

We're looking forward to a lot of family members coming to Knoxville for the last home football game of the season against Vandy this weekend. Should be a fun time! Then, we're hosting about 13 family members next week for Thanksgiving, so it will be a fun, but busy, next week or so.

Say a prayer that Tyra will get to feeling better soon, as she's been fighting a cold the past few days.

Going to School

Tonight is our first of 4 birthing classes at Baptist West. I have no idea what to expect, but it should be pretty fun. All I know is Tyra said we're supposed to bring pillows and wear comfy pants. I'm thinking about "borrowing" some of Tyra's comfy maternity pants for the night. I mean, seriously, why haven't men caught on to how comfy these things are!? In all seriousness, I've only tried them on once...I swear! Or was it twice?
Special thanks to Jesse and Kelley (and Kelley's Mom, Donna)for hosting a GREAT baby shower for us last Sunday. We had a great time and I especially enjoyed wearing a mu-mu, 15 lb. pregant belly backpack, and tasting the gourment baby food while blindfolded! There's nothing like topping off shower finger-foods with baby green beans, creamed corn, and my personal favorite, beef and gravy! Delicious!

Sad News

Brittany and David's baby boy, Robert Forrest Spence, passed away last night (Nov. 4). Thank you all for the many prayers you've sent up for Forrest during these past 55 days since he was born. He fought through many tough health battles in his short life, but we can rejoice that he is singing God's praises in heaven now and his suffering is over forever. PLEASE continue to pray for Brittany and David!! Forrest touched so many people's lives so much, even though we never got to meet him...and his short life glorified God to the fullest!

For more updates, please visit the Caring bridge website:

Here is the message that Brittany and David posted late last night:

It is with a heavy heart that we write to say that Robert Forrest Spence stepped out of this life and into the next just before 10 pm this evening. He was at peace and felt no pain. In spite of the hardship, it has been a tremendous blessing to have been entrusted with him for the past 55 days. Thank you to all who have loved us and continue to do so. We find real encouragement and comfort in knowing that even though he could not even speak or muster a cry, he was able to shout into the lives of so many people and bring so much glory to his eternal father. If you shed a tear this evening, shed a tear for those who do not know a God that can bring such love, comfort, and peace into a situation that would otherwise have very little. And please continue to pray for Brittany and I as we cope with the loss of our first child.

We will update the site when further arrangements are made.

Much Love,
David and Brittany

Noah's Room

Noah's room is coming together. As you can tell, the closet is quickly filling up, and it has been so much fun to start getting all of the necessities we'll be needing. The third trimester starts tomorrow (10/26), and he will be here before we know it. Here are a few quick pictures. We haven't hung anything on the walls yet and the big bear balloon over the crib is temporary (it's from the Hendersonville baby shower). Enjoy...

Baby Shower at UT

We had our very first baby shower yesterday at Eric's work. It was a lot of fun, and everyone was so nice and ready to meet Noah already. We opened some great gifts, a few highlights: baby stroller, baby monitors, cute outfits, diaper genie II, gift cards, Noah's ark night light, and a special card from Eric's co-worker Mike pleading for us to let Noah grow his hair out into a Baby Mullett! ha! I think we'll pass on that, but the picture example Mike provided in the card was worth a lot of laughs.



Tyra is going to a family baby shower in Hendersonville tomorrow (Saturday). It is so much fun having baby showers, and it's neat to start putting clothes, toys, and other goodies away in Noah's room. (Edit--I have added some pictures from the Hendersonville baby shower).

Big Win

Noah moved to 3-0 this season when "attending" Tennessee home games after last Saturday's big Tennessee victory over the Georgia Bulldogs! We'll be heading down to Tuscaloosa, AL in a few weeks for the Tennessee/Alabama game, so here's to hoping that Noah will turn around his 0-1 record for games on the road (...Cal 45, TN 31). He needs to learn now that losing is not acceptable under any circumstance....PERIOD!

ONLY JOKING!!

It's ok to lose...sometimes! :)

The picture above is from our breakfast tailgate before the game (17 weeks until due date...or as someone told us, "until Noah gets evicted from Tyra's belly!"). And Noah and I both send a big THANK YOU out to Tyra/Mommy for being an enthusiastic trooper and letting us still get to the games early this year!

Please say a prayer for Forrest Spence

Our friend Brittany (Miller) Spence and David Spence's son, Forrest was born on September 10 in Memphis. Both Tyra and I went to high school with Brittany and she was a sorority sister of Tyra's at UT. Forrest's story is below, and I hope all of you can take a few minutes to look at Forrest's "Caring Bridge" website (http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/forrestspence) and read his story, see his precious pictures, and read Brittany's journal entries.

Please pray BOLDLY for Brittany, David, and Forrest, along with his doctors, nurses and their entire family!

Here's a brief snippet of the story:
Robert Forrest Spence was born to Brittany and David at 5:06 PM, Monday September 10, 2007. He was 6 lbs 10 ozs and 20 1/2 inches. Because he was three weeks premature his lungs were not producing enough moisture for normal breathing. This is common in premature boys and was not cause for alarm. However, during the night it was discovered that Forrest had Strep B infection which is in fact very serious, particularly when coupled with the under developed lungs. He was transferred to Le Bonheur Childrens' hospital in Memphis and into the ICU early on Tuesday morning, September 11. He is currently going through a process called ECMO, which is where the blood is channeled through a machine for cleansing and increased oxygen. He is also being given large amounts of antibiotics to treat the infection. This process will take several weeks before we can claim success.

The situation was extremely critical early Tuesday morning. His "trends" were going down and upon arrival at Le Bonheur would not respond to the heart and lung machine. He was stabilized manually, and with stabilization, was able to be put on the ECMO. Currently his "trends" are going up and his vital signs improving. Britt had a strep test days before delivery which was negative, and it is unknown how he contracted the virus. Click here to see what ECMO does and why it is needed.

"Big Sister" instincts kicking in already

Tyra was about to leave for work this morning when she found Gabi napping in Noah's room by his bed like she was waiting for him to wake up and play. She's going to be so protective of her baby brother! :)

Wake Up Call

I (Eric) am well known as an early riser. Tyra...not so much. But we were both equally happy to be awake about 5:15 this morning! I was about to get up to go on my morning run, and could tell that Tyra was awake. She said that Noah was moving around, so I put my hand on her belly. I've been able to feel him moving around just 2-3 times so far, but Noah was putting on a show this morning.

He was the biggest wiggle worm!! For about 10 minutes, both Tyra and I were able to feel non-stop kicks, punches, wiggles, and twists. It was so exciting, and a GREAT way to start the day. It was so exciting for me to actually feel all of this so well, and Tyra and I would just look at each other and laugh every time he moved. Thank you God for such blessings!!

Now that we're 1/2 way through the pregnancy (it's flown by), and getting to feel and see him yesterday, it's amazing to think how close we are to having our son here with us. And, he's already practicing on waking us up early in the morning! ha!

Noah Allan Haag

After confirming in the 20 week ultrasound that it's still a boy, we are pleased to introduce you to NOAH ALLAN HAAG!

Noah
Origin: Hebrew
Meaning: Rest, Peace, Comfort

Allan
Origin: Celtic
Meaning: Handsome, Cheerful, Noble
(Allan was Eric's dad's name)

The ultrasound yesterday was amazing!! This video is a 10 minute portion of the ultrasound. At about the 1:15 mark you can hear the heartbeat, and later on you can see 3D images and even see him moving his mouth and tounge. He had the hiccups too!He's 10 inches long, weighs 3/4 of a pound, and he was so fun to watch! Tyra and Noah (I'll have to finally get used to typing and saying his name to everyone!) are both doing great, and February 1 is still the due date.

We've had this name picked out for quite some time, and have been 100% sure on it for weeks, but we wanted to confirm that he was a boy before telling everyone!

Noah can't wait to meet you all. He'll gladly accept being spoiled by everyone! :)

Baby's First Game

Well, it wasn't a victory, but we had a fun time in California nonetheless. We're certainly glad to be back in Tennessee though. We had fun in the city, in Napa, and Berkeley. We also loved driving in our rental car (Mustang convertible) from San Francisco to Napa.
Our little son is certainly starting to make himself at home, as he's been wiggling around a lot lately. Soon, the light "taps" Tyra feels will be full fledged kicks!

Trip to San Francisco

We're still in California, but wanted to share a brief video of our trip down the famous Lombard Street ("The Crookedest Street in the World"). Pretty fun to drive!

Baby Furniture and other tidbits

Like we said in the last blog post, our baby furniture arrived much earlier than we expected. We were hoping to get a lot done before fall arrived, and having the furniture in place is a pleasant surprise. We love the crib, chest, and dresser, which we ordered from Crib ‘N Carriage in Knoxville. We have most of the window treatments ready to put up, but some are on back order from Pottery Barn Kids until late September, which is no big deal. We're excited to begin to decorate the room.
Here are a few pictures of the furniture in the room:



Tyra is almost 17 weeks along now, and it's hard to believe that we're almost 1/2 way there! Tyra's belly is getting bigger each day and I love feeling her belly! We went to the doctor for her appointment last week. We thought we'd be getting another ultrasound, but we were told since we got one at 12 weeks, we'd have to wait until the 20 week appointment in mid-September. We were disappointed, but we did get to listen to the heartbeat for a little while. The 20-week appointment will be fun, and they'll spend a long time doing the ultrasound, so we'll get a good look at our baby boy. We're pretty much 100% decided on a name, but want to wait to announce it to anyone until we get another confirmation that Baby Boy Haag is indeed Baby "BOY" Haag!

One week from tomorrow, we leave for our big vacation to San Francisco!! We're very excited to get to see the sites of the city on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, then head to tour Napa Valley on Friday before heading to Berkeley, CA (which is just about 15 min. from San Fran) to watch the Big Orange take on CAL in the football season opener. I've never been to California before, so I'm excited. We're hoping for a fun trip, nice (COOL) weather, safe travels, and a BIG WIN for the VOLS!
Our baby will be well-traveled in the womb...as we've ventured to Seabrook Island, SC; Charleston, SC; New Orleans, LA; Orlando, FL; Greensboro, NC; and now San Francisco, CA in the 17 weeks since he made his debut in Tyra's belly!

Fun Week

It's been a fun and eventful week. Last Thursday-Saturday, Tyra and I visited Orlando for a conference she attended for work. It was nice to get to see her Mom while we were there. Then, this week, our friends had their baby girl, Addison Margaret! She's so cute, and we got to see and hold her in the hospital the day she was born.

Also, our baby furniture arrived much sooner than we expected! We orderd it from Crib 'N Carriage, a great baby store in Knoxville. Our crib was supposed to come in mid-August, and the other pieces, they said, wouldn't arrive until sometime in October. So, although it was unexpected, we're glad to have all of the baby furniture in the room and set-up! I (Eric) styed up until after midnight last night putting the crib together, but it was fun to do. We'll post some pictures of the room on here soon.

We go back to get another ultrasound next week, so we can't wait to see how much our baby boy has grown. Tyra has been feeling his little flutters for the past few weeks, and it's so exciting to know that in just a short time, those flutters will be kicks, jabs, and karate chops in the womb!

B....O....Y....!!!!!!!!

We went in for the 2nd ultrasound this morning. Although Tyra is 12 weeks, 3 days along, and they typically can't determine gender until 16-20 weeks, they were able to say with about 99.9% certainty that Baby Haag is a BOY!!!! We were so excited!!

The images on the ultrasound screen and the pictures they printed out were amazing! He was moving all aorund and even wiggled back and forth a few times. In one picture, he was turned completely toward the camera (as if he was posing) and you can see his nose, head, and belly! I told Tyra he looks cute and chubby already! :)

He was definitely not shy or modest about showing us his "man-hood" and it was clear on pictures and ultrasound screen that Baby Haag is a boy! It looks like we're going to have a "camera-ham" on our hands. The nurse told us that we better rest up, because he was being so active! Today has been a lot of fun, and we can start envisioning him in more detail now. Of course, the "NAME" bonanza now begins, but luckily Tyra and I have the same top 2 or 3 right now. No telling how many times (or even if) it will change between now and February 1.

We feel so blessed to get this news and to have a healthy little Baby Boy on the way!

Thump, thump, thump...

Tyra went for her "Mommy" doctor visit on Monday. It was basically a check-up visit for her and no ultrasound was planned. The doctor did let her listen to the baby's heartbeat and Tyra said it was "awesome!" 160 beats per minute! Everything checked out great, and we're both very excited about next Monday when we get the next ultrasound. Tyra will be more than 12 weeks along by then, so we can't wait to see the ultrasound pictures!

We're also awaiting the arrival of our good friends' little girl...due any day now! It's been a HUGE blessing to see them go through their pregnancy, and Tyra and I have both learned a lot through their pregnancy stories and advice. We're having a baby shower for them at our house on Saturday, that should be a lot of fun!

Mr. Sandman...Bring Me A Dream....

(Posted by Tyra)

So I don't know exactly why, but my recent pregnancy dreams have involved celebrities.

Celebrity Dream #1: It all started when Mandy Moore and I went to a play together. At intermission the director came up to me and said I've got to fill in for one of his actors. Since Mandy and I were BFF's (best friends) in the dream, she of course encouraged me to do so.

Celebrity Dream #2: If only the following had been true...I flew on a luxury jet to France to have dinner with the one and only Julie Andrews. She wasn't dressed in normal clothes, but rather a royal ensemble like the one she wore for her character in the "Princess Diaries" -- white dress, red sash and of course a beautiful crown. The table we dined at was a long rectangular one and there were butlers to serve our meal.

Celebrity Dream #3: Peyton Manning, his wife Ashley, Eric and me were all crusing the "strip" in Knoxville trying to find a place to get our party on.
Although Peyton's wife was 6 weeks preggo and I was 10, the boys wanted to find a place to celebrate what they'd done to their wives. It was not the strip as we know it today, but rather a cleaner-looking futuristic strip with neon lights. The only weird part of the dream was that Peyton and I were holding hands, but Ashley and Eric didn't seem to mind one bit.

Celebrity Dream #4: This one has been the most difficult to recall for some reason, but Jessica Simpson, Eric and me were in a skybox somewhere waiting for her to perform on stage. She didn't look like the normal blonde bombshell all men seem to salivate over. She had put on weight, dyed her hair black and didn't take the time to blow it dry, so it was a complete mess of frizzy hair (much like what mine looks like when I fail to do the
same!) She wasn't wearing much makeup and kept going to buffet of food to get snacks.

(Not So) Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Here are some pictures of the rearranging we've been doing. I (Eric) painted the baby room this week. Since I repainted it the same color, it was light work. However, I did make it semi-fun by decking out in my "painters uniform" of ROOKIE DAD hat and t-shirt (compliments of Adam & Elizabeth)and knee high orange and white tube socks. The guest bedroom is now in the old office, and we actually like it better that way! Tomorrow we're hoping to go browse through Crib 'N Carriage, a Knoxville baby store that specializes in nice baby furniture. After last weekend's two hour romp through Babies "R" Us, I'm geared up!

Another book down

Both of us read this book in less than 2 hours! It's hilarious to say the least, and its short, 2-3 page chapters were right up my ally! Thanks to Jesse and Kelley for letting us borrow it!

Lunchmaking Loonies

As I went to the kitchen pantry to reach for some peanut butter for a before-bed snack, I thought to myself, "I should make Eric's lunch for tomorrow." Since I've been hitting the sack around 9 p.m., my evening lunchmaking routine has been a bit interrupted. Making lunch for my husband everyday is a little June Cleaver, but it's the least I can do since I don't believe in ironing (or for that matter, feeling responsible for 100% of household chores.)

I looked in the fridge and thought, turkey or bologna? I went with bologna.
So I also grabbed a slice of cheese and the upside down squeezable mayo.
For those of you who don't know, I can't stand mayonnaise. I liked it when I was a little girl and would make cheese and mayo sandwiches at my grandmother's house all the time, but something turned my "mayo" switch off as a teenager and now I can't stand it....or so I thought.

I unwrapped the cheese, put the bologna on top, grabbed a slice of bread and squeezed the mayo out. Even though the squeezable bottle had a nice slit perfect for sandwich making, it wasn't enough to satisfy my Type A personality, so I had to grab a knife to spread the mayo perfectly on what was sure to be the best bologna and cheese sandwich my husband had ever had.

But then, something strange happened. As I was spreading the mayo, I started to long for the taste of it. I thought, this is crazy...you hate mayo. I topped off the sandwich with the newly mayonnaised piece of bread and just stared at the glorious sandwhich I'd just made. Then, it dawned on me--why not take a bite of this magnificent creation? I mean, I'd just spent the time making it and I knew Eric wouldn't mind one bite missing of his sandwich anyway. So, I did. And it was amazing. And then, I took another. Pretty soon, I found myself wanting to finish off the entire thing.

Then I realized, that if I ate the precious bologna, cheese and mayo sandwich, I'd have to make another one, something that would delay my date with my pillow. I also remembered why I went to the pantry in the first place--to eat a tablespoon of peanut butter to hopefully relieve my 4 am wake up calls feeling starved to death. I also remembered reading an important little tidbit about cold cuts carrying a nasty little thing called listeria and how dangerous it can be for pregnant women to consume. I sadly put the two-bite missing, listeria-laden sandwich in a ziplock bag. I put Eric's lunch in the fridge and looked unhappily at the peanut butter I was about to consume. It was no substitute for a bologna, cheese and mayo sandwich though.

It's Official...

After the past few weeks of expanding my knowledge on all things related to pregnancy and birth......Women are far superior to men when it comes to pain tolerance and overall macho-ness! And I am a wimp! That is all!

Sincerely,
Eric (co-signed by all fathers and expectant fathers)

First Ultrasound

We went for the first ultrasound yesterday. What an exciting moment to see and hear our little baby's heartbeat for the very first time!! It became more "real." In the picture, the baby is the little white speck inside the black area. Tyra is exactly 7 weeks along, and the due date is still February 1, 2008.

Think we're anal?

Since it's summer, and all of our TV shows have gone into hibernation, we've got plenty of time on our hands after work. So, leave it to us to get into "re-arranging furniture" mode for the baby. The baby's room (formerly the guest bedroom) is now empty, the guest bedroom is now all set-up in the former office, and the office has shifted downstairs to the living room (which surprisingly, doesn't look half-bad). Tyra did a great job of coaching me on where to move the furniture, while I made sure to work up a sweat right before bedtime.

Even Tyra commented that she was "surprised we were so ahead of schedule."

I just figured it was better to get it done now than wait until football season, when the weekends are, shall we say, a wee bit pre-occupied!

Nevertheless, we may have taken our anal, organized behavior to another extreme.

Pregnancy Increases Book Reading by 1,000%

I had never read an entire book in 4 days...until I found out we were having a baby! Who knew that birthing facts, details of morning sickness, and hormal changes could be so interesting!?

So far, here are the books we've started and/or finished:

1. What to Expect When You're Expecting
2. The Expectant Father
3. The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy