Happy Birthday Landen

We arrived at the hospital this morning at 5, ready for them to just start the c-section and take Landen out. Instead, we got to prep and wait around until 8:02 a.m. when Landen Reese Kelly was officially delivered! He came out looking great, with an awesome set of lungs to boot. The official stats are: 8 lbs 8oz and he was 20 3/4" long. He looks incredibly small to me, but when I see the 4 lbs baby in the nursery, he's a giant! Sandra and he are doing very well, and Emerson and Braeden are so excited to finally see and hold him. We thought people might want to see some pictures. I'll post some videos of him on youtube in a while, but the site won't load right now. Enjoy!

One week away!

We're one week away today from having our newest member of our family arrive. Wahoo! Landen Reese is scheduled to be born Friday, February 20th at roughly 7 a.m. (we have to be at the hospital at 5 a.m. ugh!).

I'm in my living room right now listening to Jon snore and the kids are still quiet in their rooms and I'm realizing I have only 7 days left until this peace in my morning will be gone for a while. I am rejoicing having my new little one here. I know that he will change our lives, all four of us, in such a wonderful, unknowing way, but at the same time I'm grieving a little of the time when there was just four of us. Emerson is old enough, I think, to remember this time before Landen, but Braeden probably won't. And I'm hoping that the following week will be a sweet one with my family preparing together for our baby. I ask for your prayers that my already born babies will know and understand how much I love them and how they fit in to loving and caring for their new sibling.

It's ridiculous, but every once in a while, I think that there is no way that I have enough love in my heart for all of them. I love Emerson and Braeden so much that how can I possibly give more, however, I had these exact same feelings when Braeden was growing in my belly and obviously my love for him was instant and big and continues to grow every single day, so I know that this thought is silly. I worry, too, about them thinking the same thought as I am. I'm about to invest a lot of time nursing and diapering and caring for this new little one. I'm praying that God will show me the best way to include them in caring for him and showing them how important and loved they are still and how baby Landen needs his big brother and sister as much as he needs Mommy and Daddy.

So, I ask for your prayers this week as we look toward and get ready for Landen's big arrival. And I ask personally for prayers for safety and ease of getting through the surgery as, like last time, my anxiousness grows the closer we get to the big day (I absolutely HATE the thought of them giving me an injection in my spine. That is SO scary to me).

I'm so very excited to share our new baby with you all! Be assured that many pictures will be posted for you who are not near. And thank you, thank you for your love and encouragement and prayers! We are a very, very blessed family!

The results are in...

Discussions have been had, the polls have been tallied, and the final decision has been made (see Jon's blog for the polling outcome)! We ended up going against the majority for the spelling of the first name and went for second place for his middle name. So... the verdict is....

Landen Reese!!

The more I looked at Landen, the more I liked the "en" ending. And Jon surprised me with Reese. I suggested it several weeks ago and he nixed it, but when discussing it recently, Jon brought it up again and today, when making the final decision, I was leaning toward Daniel and Jon suggested Reese again! I've liked it from the beginning, so Reese it is. And I love that Braeden and Landen are spelled similarly.

Thanks to you who gave input and are excited to share our new baby boy with you! Only 2 weeks and 3 days to go! :)