Pics of Mattie and us!

What Daddy?!? I didn't do it...I promise!

Here's a few pictures of her first day!

So I’m sitting here in the hospital and non emotional Brian is getting a little emotional but it’s not just because it’s baby day. Today, one of my greatest wishes came true, Mattie Paige Smeltzer was born at 2:08 (8lbs 1oz and 20.5in long). I have the pure joy of naming her after my good friend Matthew Hallman. I have been waiting for about 5 years to have a child that I could pass the name onto because of what an amazing man of God he was. When Matt was killed in by a drunk driver, I was shocked and beside myself for about a week. What I always new but saw reinforced at his funeral was that Matt was the same person with every group of people he knew, whether it was his family, hometown friends, theatre friends, camp friends or even random people, everyone had the same stories and descriptions of him. He had figured out in his short time here how to be the same Matt to everyone. Every group of students I have worked with has heard about him and his story. In fact, I tagged as many of my friends who I could remember knowing him to attest to who he was. Just yesterday I was talking with his brother Tim about why it was so important to me and I still get excited thinking about being able to introduce my child in honor of one of my dearest friends and the man who has continually impacted the lives of hundreds of students through how he lived.
Because of this, I wanted more than anything to be able to pass his name on to one of my children and be able to tell them why they have their name and why it is so important to me. Mattie, I want you to know that I want you to find your authentic self and live it to your full potential, like my dear friend Matt Hallman. Know that there will be challenges and struggles along the way but in the end, people will know the real you and be blessed by you for life. Welcome to our world, Mattie Paige.

Baby's room. Almost done.

Glad Makenna's in a big girl bed... we get to reuse her bedding. :) The circles above the bed are part of an unfinished caterpillar. We are waiting to finish until we know the name! We'll post another one when its done so you can get the full effect.

The countdown

Unless I'm feeling really motivated in the next 3 days to post pictures of myself or Makenna... you'll have to wait a while for a post with pictures. Because...
BABY #2 gets evicted on Tuesday (unless it arrives on its own before that. which of course, would be fine.) Yea! The countdown has begun, and now that the guest bedroom's bed has been reclaimed for its original purpose instead of holding a bunch of junk we moved out of what is now the baby's room, I'm ready to get this show on the road. My husband, on the other hand, is a bit more nervous. The reality of being a dad of 2 kids instead of just one is starting to sink in. I'm not thinking about that part yet. One step at a time, and step 1 is the exit plan. :)

Could be an exciting weekend... check back often. (Or at least on Tuesday.)

Oh, and one more thing. Here are 2 sites you MUST visit while I'm away.
http://warmington-family.blogspot.com/ My friend Abby's site. We were college friends & roomies, and we just visited them the other day. She'll have pictures up of our visit. She's faster than me! :) That, and she's not having a baby in 3 days.
The other site is Abby's too, but it's her craft site. She recently started a business with her craftiness, and it so addicting for me to see what she's doing next. Abby made all of makenna's "pretties" (yes, the flower ones too!), her 2 "Makenna" bibs, and will eventually make baby blocks for the baby's room (no rush. i just gave her the paint chips to match it from on thursday!) So enjoy her site, and visit often when you need a baby gift (she does other stuff too, i'm just in baby mode.)
http://www.holycraft.blogspot.com/

Ok, that's all for now.
Court

36 weeks

here are some pics for you. sorry about the quality. i just needed some place with a mirror.


here i am in my green bathroom/laundry room. this is where i get ready everyday because the green puts me in a good mood. usually. unfortunately, even the green bathroom doesn't help a pregnant woman cheer up in the final weeks. for more on this story, read the post below.

Captain Cranky Pants

Usually I save that lovely term for my spunky little redheaded daughter when she's in a bad mood, but today I have to use it on myself. I had my 36 week appointment today. A month ago I had asked about a plan to induce me so this baby didn't end up being as large (and damaging) as Makenna was, and she said we start talking about that at 36 weeks. So I went to my appointment today hoping to actually discuss such details. I was wrong. Not only did I wait an hour before she came in the room, but she made no promises of eviction dates at ALL. She just said I was measuring small, and most people aren't as damaged after their 2nd, and that it's "just a little longer." And to top it off, she'll be gone next week, so I see a NP, and I'm pretty sure she can't promise me anything either. Grrr. I should be glad I'm measuring small. I just want the baby out of my belly as soon as possible.
To make it better, husband and I are going on a date tonight, while Kenna is with Grandma & Grandpa. We're going out to dinner to Flat Top (someplace we can't go with Kenna) and out to a movie (I don't care what it is, it's just nice to go see one in the theater!) And if I'm lucky perhaps a little trip to Cold Stone at the end of the night. :)
Oh, and no more ultrasounds unless something goes wrong, so we won't know the gender until it arrives. I'm OK with that part now. It's a little exciting to have a surprise in store. And no, we don't have names picked out. That will be a surprise too... because we don't have a list made. Oh well. "it's just a little longer," right?


Just thought you'd all like the update!

long awaited belly pic

34 weeks. and yes, this is me taking a very awkward picture of myself. this is why it is the first one of this pregnancy. i've always hated being alone in a picture, but it seems more awkward when the point is to show how large your belly has become. perhaps i'll get one of my face next time. :) until then, this should satisfy all of you who have been hounding me for a picture.

Planting flowers with Daddy

Makenna's new favorite activity is being outside. In fact, she has a meltdown every time we go back inside. Here are a few pics of her gardening time with Daddy the other day. Oh, and while I had a beautifully coordinated new "pretty" for her hair (crafted by my friend Abby)... she really wanted this yellow one. Doesn't she know I hate yellow? Silly Girl.

(I realize this one is far away, but she was posing for the camera.) :)

If this were in motion, you would see that she is walking very carefully along the bricks. I like to think she is practicing her balance for her future as a gymnast!

These two are my favorites. No one can make her laugh like Daddy can!

Fun times at Chick-fil-a

This really isn't anything special... just a little girl having fun!

99%

Well, according to the 45 minute ultrasound I had today, the verdict is 99% girl. However, Baby Smeltzer #2 is still not giving us a full view of it's gender identifying parts. While the scan today gives me more of an idea than the last time... it's the 1% that scares me! Either way it clearly shares the stubborn traits of it's older sister... Makenna just isn't that modest! ;)

Since she couldn't give me a guarantee, I'm supposed to check again at my next appointment, which has been scheduled for April 18th. This pleases me because the big resale in town is on the 19th, so if it IS a boy, I can hit up that sale and save some cash! Woo Hoo!

--Court

18 months

It has been too long.

Ok, so I don't know the gender of the baby, yet. It was hiding it's parts during the Ultrasound. But I'm still going to find out before it makes its debut. No really. I am. I'm determined.

As for Makenna...
My crazy story for the week - Makenna went poopie in the potty 4 times in the last 2 days. Which was all the poopies for those days, except her usual overnight one.
We weren't practicing or anything. But Thursday morning she put cereal in her hair so I gave her a bath, and when she was in the bath she said "pootie" (sometimes it sounds like "pookie") which is how she says poopie, and I was afraid she's poop in the tub, so I quick picked her up and sat her on the potty, and she pooped! I thought for sure it would be a one time thing, but since then, she's told me everytime she's about to poop, so we run to the toilet, and she poopies in the potty! We now have a little training seat and special flushable wipes (with doggies on them, so she thinks they're great) and while I'm not convinced this is the official beginning of potty training, you'd better believe that I LOVE not changing poopie diapers! ;)

We'll get pics up soon - I promise! We've just had lots of computer problems since Christmas!

Christmas pictures...

...might actually end up being New Year's Pictures. We really are trying to get a family photo this year, since last year I didn't get around to doing Christmas Cards. However, Makenna has decided she no longer wants to sit still for a photo. I'll keep trying!!

Pumpkin Hunting

Surprise!

Holiday Open House!

Long awaited birthday pics

watching and waiting

picking with that little pointer finger





mmmm, i think i like strawberry frosting.

yep. it's true. i love cake!

Makenna's 1 year pics

Makenna turns 1! (well, technically she turns 1 tomorrow, but we got pictures taken today.)

There are more, but here's a few!

New Adventure

Courtney is now an Pampered Chef Consultant! So let us know if you'd like to host a party, have a catalog show, place an order, or if you want more information on how to make some extra money while having fun!

And here we thought Brian was going to be the Chef of the family... :)

courtney.pamperedchef@gmail.com

just one of my favorites!

Trip to Akron

Ahhh. Old friends. This is Mindy, Court's friend. Mindy, Chris & Lilly live in PA so we met in Akron for a short reunion (and to meet each other's babies!). It was too short, like always, but refreshing for the soul. Anyway, we went to the Akron Zoo, among other things and took pics by the waterfall. Mindy is a shutterbug so she has more pictures on her blog. http://marosfamily.blogspot.com/

Lilly, Mindy, Court & Makenna

Smeltzer family photo



And yes, this is Brian pretending to be a penguin.

1st Swim

It was GREAT! There was water, there was wind, there were friends - everyone was happy!

1st Haircut

Did I mention she had a haircut? Here is my proof.


And yes, she loved it.

A visit from Uncle Joel... and other pics

Discovering Pop Cans

all this and she's never even had pop.

9 months and counting...