Articles by James

Nolan was invited to his first and most likely only tea party today to celebrate the 4th birthday of his friend Bella. I was personally thrilled because as a mother of two boys, this will most likely be my one and only children’s tea party. I knew without a doubt it would be fabulous and very "Martha Stewart" knowing Bella’s Mommy.  The party did not disappoint.

Upon entering "Alice and Wonderland" we were greeted by the King and Queen of Hearts (Bella’s parents) and Alice (Bella dressed in a full costume of course) herself and escorted to the hat making area. Nolan perused through an assortment of "accessories" and then each was carefully glued onto his hat. Once the 10 girls and 2 boys had completed their task, a group picture was taken.

The group was then escorted to tea and to their designated spot at the dining room. The table was completely decorated with china, silverware, red roses, candelabras, and other little adorable details. Each child had a personalized place mat (Cap’n Nolan) and a hand-painted cup and saucer with their name. (Bella’s mom said she used espresso cups and saucers. Perfect for little fingers. How clever.) All of the tea pots even had little personalized tags that said "Drink Me."  Like I said, every little detail was covered!

The children dined on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the shape of flowers, grapes, chocolate covered strawberries, sugar cookies and "tea" of course (that just happened to taste like apple juice).  Unlike the rest of the group who leisurely ate their refreshments and sipped their tea, Nolan raced through his and was ready to go play (with Bella’s doll house I might add). Nolan became slightly grumpy when he was "forced" to sit at the table and wait for the other ladies and gentleman to finish. Much to Nolan’s dismay, then cake was served. He was really DONE at this point, but thankfully my looks and "threats" kept him in line.

FINALLY, Nolan was "allowed" to play while Bella opened her presents.   This was probably Nolan’s favorite part…free play.  During this time I was able to visit with the mom of the only other boy who had the honored of being invited. Ironically she is a mother to two boys too! She was so cute. She said she was going to dress casual, but then decided she was going to make the most of this tea party and get all dressed up herself. I said I understood and would have too if I was not sooo pregnant! Needless to say we "bonded."   

As soon as we got to the car Nolan said he wanted his clothes and shoes OFF.  I compromised with his shoes and socks only. All the way home he played with his feet and picked at the assortment of bruises, bug bites, and scabs on his body.  And with that, the "window" of doing something "girlie" with my boy was closed.

Here are a few pictures of the "event." 

Well after I posted saying I did not feel comfortable writing about Griffin on Nolan’s site, I have to post my excitement that in a few hours I will be 36 weeks pregnant. I cannot say how many times I have said "If I could just make it to 36 weeks….!"  Well now I am praying for 37 weeks which is considered "full term." 

I had a sonogram today and in the words of the sonographer, Griffin is "husky."  Is this an insult? Hmmm. He is in the 82 percentile and is weighing in at 7 lb. 3 ounces.  If it is true that babies gain approximately half a pound a week…..well you do the math. No WONDER my back feels like it is on fire!   He is in the breech position and his head, both feet and arms are all under my right rib cage.  That is one limber little man. Once again, no WONDER I am feeling so much "activity" in that one spot.  I was able to see hair sticking straight up and very chubby cheeks!  Too cute I must say!

James gave me my EIGHTEENTH (and final) progesterone shots tonight! WOO HOO! It was such a huge relief on both of us to be done. This is something that never got easier for either one of us. We are proud we were able to do this on our own. My doctor feels very confident these shots were a huge reason I am still pregnant!

I am showing no signs of "impending labor."  Of course this can always change, but my doctor said today "I think you might just make it to the end."  We will see! I have to admit (and James would most certainly agree), I would really like 2 1/2 more weeks of sleep!

Ever since we found out we were pregnant, changes have been occurring in the Prescott household. Changes that include re-doing Nolan’s room, preparing the nursery, "preparing" Nolan, and most definitely, James and I "preparing" ourselves for life with two boys.  One of the less noticeable changes that also should be mentioned is Nolan’s blog. Since before Griffin was even a reality, James and I had bought the domain name, www.prescottplace.net in preparation for the day when we would be writing about more than one child. Literally the day we decided on the name Griffin, James also bought www.griffinprescott.com. Probably something that does not cross the minds of many parents, but when your daddy is James, having your own web address is important! 

You may have noticed I really have not blogged much about this pregnancy. Not because I have not wanted to share our journey, but because I feel that Nolan’s site is not the place. Not "fair" to him.  James and I have been VERY sensitive and extremely emotional as we think about our family of three becoming a family of four. The main reason being how it will effect Nolan.  Now everyone we know that has experienced this assures us that Nolan will transition "just fine."  We really do believe this, but it still seems hard on us to think about sharing our time, energy, and love with another child. James and I have literally spent hours talking about how to make this as easy on Nolan as possible. Time will tell if we will be able to live up to our ideal plans.      

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At the suggestion of a friend who just brought home Baby #2, Nolan, my mom, and I headed to the "Build a Bear Workshop" at the mall so that Nolan could build a bear for his soon to be born brother, Griffin.  The creation of the bear begins as soon as you walk into the store. Nolan was first instructed to choose among the wide selection of bear (and other animal) "skins."  Nolan perused the selection and decided upon a black bear that, truth be known, my mom and I were excited about because it would match Griffin’s room perfectly.  After selecting the black bear we roamed the store for a bit. Nolan eventually made his way back to the "Bear Selection Area" and changed his mind to a white and baby blue bear.  My mom and I were a little disappointed and "encouraged" Nolan to make SURE this is the one he wanted.  He was certain and, in the spirit of this being Nolan’s gift to Griffin, we respected his decision. It is a very sweet bear that really looks like it is for a baby. 

The next stop is the area in which you can choose a sound that is placed inside the bear. There is a wide selection of sounds from a heartbeat, to music, to simply phrases that are said. We chose to create our own message. We went to the back of the store to record Nolan’s message….simple, but perfect, "I love you Griffin." 

Nolan was next instructed to choose a heart to place inside the bear. He was then to kiss the heart, jump up and down a few times to make the heart start "beating" and then place the heart inside the bear. He than pushed the foot pedal that began the stuffing process. The bear was then sewn closed. Nolan was then led to the "shampoo and fluffing area" where his bear was "cleaned" to perfection. I think this was his favorite part! While the primping was going on, I held up the bear and pushed the palm of the bear’s hand so that my mom could hear Nolan’s recording. Even though I had heard it just a few minutes ago, somehow it sounded different in the bear. I instantly teared up. It was one of the sweetest things I think I have ever heard

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Thirty-four weeks.  In a few short hours I will be thirty-four weeks pregnant. This is very significant as Nolan was born during my thirty-fourth week of pregnancy.  It may have been almost three and a half years ago, but I remember my thirty-fourth week of pregnancy as if it was yesterday…down to very tiny details.  I have held my breath through most of this pregnancy as I have prayed and prayed to surpass this week. I am very thankful that I have made it to thirty-four weeks as I certainly could have delivered sweet Griffin (this is Baby Prescott #2′s name in case if you have not heard), but I certainly do not think it has not been without many precautions being made (some more painful to endure than others), but it will all be worth it IF we can make it just a few more short, but long seeming, weeks.

The day my water broke with Nolan I admit it had been a busy day for me. I presented at two major conferences during the day. One was in the morning and one was late in the afternoon in completely different parts of Dallas. I had a large break in between the two presentations so I bought my mom’s birthday present and before heading home for a few hours, I had stopped at sandwich shop in Allen to pick up lunch. As I waited for my lunch, I sat watching a mother with her toddler son waiting for theirs too to take to a park for a picnic. I remember thinking that would be me in a few years.  After I presented at my second conference I called James to let him know I was on my way home and we talked about where we would go to dinner that night. After hanging up with him, I continued my drive home listening to the radio and battling 5:00 Dallas traffic.  Right before my exit off the highway, my water broke. I knew instantly what had happened. I immediately started crying and reached for my phone to call James.

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