Water boys

Jasper playing in the sink:




and Gideon playing in the sink:

Hospital and Home

Here's a few more shots of Gideon's arrival into the world:


Proud mom and dad


Proud big brother Jasper

We had a bit of a late Christmas and opened up our presents this morning and last night. Here's Jasper with his new pj's on:



And a few more of our sweet little Gideon:

Enter Gideon

Hello all - as Sara gets some extremely well-deserved rest, I'll take the podium to announce the arrival of

Gideon Edmond Egbert. 

Born 10:27pm at 21 inches and 7 pounds 15.7 ounces. Words cannot express how proud and in awe I am of seeing Sara labor for this child. All went smoothly and we should be able to return home for Christmas. Not that we'll have so much interest in the presents anymore. Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas Eve to all our friends and family!

We are having a beautiful, white Christmas here in Seattle. Later this afternoon we will go to an open house at our friends the Watson's house, come home for a quite Christmas Eve at home with Jasper, read the Christmas story from the Bible, and open up one present each (Rampton tradition).

Tomorrow we plan to do a family Christmas morning of opening gifts and then heading over to the Durhams for a Christmas brunch.

Today is my due date. No baby yet. We had an appointment with our midwife this morning. I am dilated to a 3 and the baby is at 0 station. My body has been doing a lot of work the past couple weeks with the braxton hicks contractions I feel all night and day. With Jasper, I labored all night and when I arrived at the hospital I was only dilated to a 3, so I can see that this labor will be different already. Helen, the midwife we saw today (one of our favorites- she shares a garden plot at the same community garden as us and she's a real positive, earthy woman) said she suspects the baby will come in the next few days. I am feeling ready, mentally and physically. I've had a shift in my attitude the past few weeks and I don't feel as scared and fearful as I did. I feel more open to the unexpected and not having control over this labor and I feel like I just need to let it happen as it happens. I so excited to meet this little baby! Rob and I love to lie in bed and talk about what he's going to be like. We feel so blessed that our family is growing. Jasper has brought us so much joy. We can't imagine life without him and now we get to bring another child into our home.

Hope everyone is happy and having a wonderful Christmas Eve!

Sledding!!

Tons of snow in Seattle!! Rob stayed home and played with us in the morning. We went sledding to our neighborhood Woodland Park with friends Sarah and Max. Here are some photos from our adventure:

Working boys

Rob loves to tinker with things. He's an engineer. He likes to take things apart and put them back together, make things work that are broken. This has resulted in a little son who loves tools and doing whatever dad is doing. So because they like to do this...







we decided to get Jasper this for Christmas...



and I got ambitious and decided to make Jasper a tool apron to wear his tools while he works with his dad...



This was a super easy sewing project and only took me about two hours total. I'll post instructions tomorrow, I think.

Seattle downtown Christmas

Last night be went downtown to see the lights, carousel, gingerbread houses, and Macey store train display with some friends. We did this last year too and had a really good time. I love downtown Seattle at this time of year. I told Rob that I wished it was Christmas all year round, but he reminded me that it then would not feel special, which is true, but I still wish it. Jasper especially loved the train display. There are about 6 different trains going around, gondolas, airplanes flying, Santa and his reindeer and the abominable snowman all in the display.

Here are some pictures:




This is funny- here's a picture of Jasper and I doing the exact same thing a year ago and I'm wearing the same outfit:




Gingerbreadhouses!!




You can make this train stop and go by putting your hands on the mittens

Horsey, horsey

Jasper LOVES playing "horsey, horsey" with daddy. Rob lies on his back, puts his feet in the air, and Jasper sits on his feet and bounces up and down as Rob sings:

horsey, horsey all the way,
we've been together for a many of day,
so let your tail go swish,
your wheels go round,
giddy-up, we're homeward bound

gonna take a horse and buggy,
gonna ride in through the town,
gonna take a horse and buggy,
gonna ride it all around- oh...

repeat first stanza

Growing up, this was one of MY favorite things to do with my dad (in addition to airplane and blanket monster). Dads are so great. They are so much fun. I, for obvious reasons, can't play horsey horsey and airplane with Jasper. I don't really feel like chasing him around our apartment for 45 minutes each evening, but Rob revels in it. He and Jasper have such a cute daddy/son relationship and I'm so thankful for it.

Anyway, Jasper has been playing "horsey, horsey" on anything that he can lately. I have to say, it's a little embarrassing to have your son riding an electrical pole on busy Fremont Avenue...




(he makes these really cute neighing noises as he's doing this)

Preggers

Two and a half weeks to go (until my due date, that is)!!! I know I've said this already but this pregnancy has flown by soooo fast. Some of you asked for a belly shot, so Rob has been following me around with the camera today. Here's a shot from us playing at the park this afternoon:



and



I am trying to come to grips with some issues of fear I have from Jasper's birth. I've been really emotional lately whenever I think about my previous labor and how this one is going to go. For a long time I felt sad because things hadn't gone as I had "planned". This sounds crazy but I felt like I had failed myself and Jasper in some way. It took me a few months but I came to the realization that it didn't really matter. It really doesn't. Jasper is alive and healthy. I am alive and healthy. We are happy. God loves me and is happy with me as a mother. I am blessed that I even had/have the opportunity to bring a baby into the world. Giving birth is amazing. I know these things deep in my heart but when I think about how incredibly long and painful the labor experience was for me, I feel sick and scared and fearful. Everyone keeps telling me this time with be better and I am praying everyday that this will be the case but the one thing I have learned more than anything is that there are no absolutes when it comes to labor. You prepare yourself to the best of your ability and the rest is out of your control. You have to let go of what you want and what you think should happen and turn yourself over to the whole experience. This is the most primal experience that humans endure and it is in labor that a women's deepest, most physical instincts take over. I did all that I could do when I labored with Jasper. My phsical body had absolutely nothing left, at one point. I felt like I was walking through the valley of death and I felt as though I was on the edge of walking through the veil that leads to the other side. This is what I am scared of. I have fear that this labor will be as difficult and I afraid that I won't be able to do it. My body is seasoned, though, and experience makes one stronger and wise. So wish me luck and say a prayer for me in the next few weeks!

Here's a few more shots of us crazies at the park:

O Christmas Tree

We got our Christmas tree today! We had such a good time. It was Rob's (and Jasper's) first time ever cutting down a Christmas tree, so it was quite a momentous occasion for the entire Egbert clan. This morning was beautiful. As we drove out to Carnation Tree Farm, we had some breathtaking views of Mount Rainier and the Cascades. The air was crisp and clear and we arrived early. We scouted amongst the Fraser and Korean Fir before realizing they were a bit out of our price range. The Douglas Fir were the cheapest option but neither Rob or I were really taken by them. We then found the Grand Fir section. They were a perfect match with our pocket book and our taste. Picking out a tree is so fun. You have to take into account every side and angle of the tree. Sometimes a tree looks perfect straight on but the other side reveals a gaping hole in the foliage. Height is another issue. We were nervous about picking out a tree that was too tall for our ceiling but I think we did a pretty good job eye balling it. Jasper LOVED the dirt and the tractors and the saw and Rob cutting down the tree and stomping around in puddles and watching the ducks. He did NOT like seeing Santa (they had a Santa Clause that you could get your picture taken with). He wouldn't even look at him. He turned into this completely different child, burying his head in my chest and clinging to me with a death grip. Anyway, here are our photos:

Jasper update

Jasper's friend Max has been sick this week. Jasper misses him. Everytime we drive or walk past Max's street, Jasper yells out "Ma-!!" (that's how he says Max). He put two words together for the first time yesterday- Ma- sick. Get better soon, Max!

Jasper's personality has been developing so much lately. He is a really, really friendly person. Today, we took the bus down to Ballard. He waved and said hi to everyone we passed. As we left he bus, he waved bye and then signed "thank you" to the driver. He is also very compasionate. I got a cut on my finger last week and everyime he sees it, he gets a very concerned look on his face and says "owie". He is concerned when he sees other kids cry and lately he's been saying "sorry" alot. He's just a really kind hearted little boy. I sure love him.

This summer I cut Jasper's hair really, really short a couple of times (pretty much just shaved it off). Well, his hair grew back in super curly! It's so weird because it wasn't really curly before.



Just for my own record I want to write all the words that Jasper is saying right now. Here is goes:
wawa (water)
more
dog
about 20 different animal noises
daddy
mama
milk
snack
Jesus
school
bus
car
truck
choo choo
play
go go go!!
bike
draw
sorry
owie
uh oh
share
no
yes
one two three
banana
toast
pasta
bubbles
tool
shovel
cereal
silky
nap
hot
ice
crow
duck
eye
nose
ear
teeth
knee
mouth
chin
sick
cough

Thanksgiving 2008

We just said goodbye to our Thanksgiving visitors - Rob's sisters Kim and Ally, and Ally's husband Vince. It was so great of them to travel all the way to Seattle. What a fun time we had. Ally and Vince arrived on Tuesday from Salt Lake. We walked down to Fremont, checked out Dusty Strings and a couple of other fabulous stores, ordered Sushi from Musashi's, played Boggle, and enjoyed some Jasper entertainment. On Wednesday morning, we took a little walk around the neighborhood then headed down to the Aquarium. The Seattle Aquarium is great. Jasper loves all the fish and birds and wildlife. Afterward, we had to eat at the the Egbert's nostalgic Steamers joint. We spent the evening walking around Ballard and stopped into Cupcake Royal and a few other shops. Kim flew in that evening from Chicago so we all stayed up rather late talking and catching up. We started our Thanksgiving festivities with the 1st Annual Tour de Turkey (a bike ride around Seattle our friend George Durham spearheaded). It was seriously the best way to start off Thanksgiving. I always feel sick and yucky after an entire day spent in the kitchen cooking and then followed by all the eating. It was great to get some fresh air and work up an appetite for the feast. (Editorial note: many passers-by as well as their fellow riders were awestruck by the 7- and 8-month pregnant women (Kathleen and Sara) pedaling along on the 8+ mile bike ride). After our bike ride, we all dove into our individual cooking assignments. We didn't eat until 7:30 pm!! All the food turned out perfect! Really, every dish was delish. The only thing was the pumpkin pie and custard that we made from scratch and they ended up being just a bit stringy- better luck next year. Here is the run down of what our menu consisted of and who did what:
Turkey- Rob and Kim
Gravy- Kim
Homemade rolls- Sara (Aunt Jean's recipe)
Cornbread and wild rice Stuffing- Vince
Cranberry Sauce- Kim
Mashed Potatoes- Ally
Roasted Thyme Sweet potatoes- Sara
Cranberry Jello- Rob and Kim (Egbert's special recipe)
Hot citrus punch- Kim
Pumpkin Pie- Sara and Vince
Custard- Kim
Sour Cherry Pie- Kim

Here are photos of the food prep:


Our crowded, small kitchen


The turkey


Pumpkins


Our elegant table


The turkey masters




Yum, yum. What a great meal. What wonderful guests.I want them to come live with us or at least near us. Yesterday, we went to the zoo in the morning and Pikes Market in the evening.

Here are the photos from the week:


The zoo


Pike Place market




The gingerbread displays


Jasper pushing Kim in the stroller

Tour de Turkey: