She has hair :)

Big Brother, Sean

I think Sean has worn this shirt at least 3 times since Addison was born - when you ask him what it says - he puffs out his chest and says "big brother!"

The newest addition to Sean's room -
Needless to say - he is VERY excited about his train table

Sean "holding" Addison

A proud big brother

On his way to Gram & Papa's for a few days

His super cool backpack :)

The Hospital Family Photo

What's in a name?

A few people have asked us if there is a story behind Addison's name. Short answer - we just like the name - both Addison and Addie. We've always thought Joy would make a great middle name - and the name became even more appropriate because it was also the middle name of our close friend, Heather, who we lost to cancer last year. Sean means "God's gracious gift" - so now we have a little grace and joy in our home - and we praise God for these wonderful gifts.

My Labor Story

Having your first child come 2 weeks early definitely puts a different spin on when you think you are "due" with your second child. I've been somewhat 'ready' to have Addison since the end of September, not knowing if going early was my style. Most everyone else thought the same thing too, which together made me seem overdue long before I even got to my due date.

So I decided on Friday night that it would be a good idea to go to Dinonites with Stan and Sean and walk around the zoo for 2 hours - more walking than I've really done since the baby dropped around Labor Day. Well that must have done the trick! I came home from the zoo with a burst of energy to pick up my house, clean up dinner dishes, sweep, put Sean's toys away, etc. - and went to bed around 11pm. And this is how the next few hours went -

2:00 am - Water broke
2:10 am - Called Doctor and Stan's parents to come watch Sean
2:15 am - Contractions begin - starting around 2-3 minutes apart...
2:20 am - We decide to call our friend, Kim, to come over realizing that we can't wait for Stan's parents to arrive
2:45 am - After a quick shower and packing up the rest of the bag, we head out the door
2:50 am - Sit at freight train for 15 minutes - have 3-4 contractions -- no fun.
3:15 am - Arrive at hospital ER, wait to be taken up to triage
4:11 am - Addison was born - pretty much everything at the hospital was a blur, at one point I was nervous the baby was going to come as they transitioned me from triage to my labor & delivery room... My doctor arrived in time to catch the baby :)

It was a little different than my first labor! If we decide to have another baby, we are either moving north of train tracks - or checking into the hospital at 8 months! In hindsight, the fast labor was really nice - but in the midst of it, quite stressful and scary. So glad I wasn't the second mother that week in Chicago to have my baby on the Eisenhower.

So now both of our children were born on the 17th, on Saturdays - and albeit a stretch - they were both born on holidays - St. Patricks Day & Sweetest Day. Stan and I have never observed Sweetest Day up to this point (or really even know what it is exactly) but I figure we may have to start...

We had a wonderful first day in the hospital with visits from our parents, big brother Sean and Stan's sister, Beth. Then we came home Sunday afternoon - and our friends brought over a wonderful dinner. We feel very loved and taken care of during this big transition - thank you to everyone for your calls and emails - we feel quite blessed to share our joy with you - our Addison Joy.

Announcing Addison Joy Hendricks!

Addison Joy Hendricks
Born Saturday, October 17, 2009
4:11am
8 pounds 1 ounce, 20" long

More details and photos to come!

My Little Pumpkin

I keep telling Sean he is my pumpkin.
He says - "no, pumpkin's orange"
Maybe I'll have to show him this picture at 7 months old...

It's Fall!

Today we took a fun (and a little cold) trip to the Morton Arboretum. The trees are starting to change colors and everything out there is gorgeous and decked out for Fall - from the taffy apple bar to the kettle corn stand - to the pumpkin painting area. Here are a few snapshots of our day.

As you can tell - still no baby - I guess going 2 weeks early with Sean didn't mean I'd go 2 weeks early this time... I'm starting to get a little anxious to meet her and be done with pregnancy, but it was fun to savor this day with my boys.

"This way" "No, I think we should go this way!"

"Ok, let's go both ways!"

My pumpkin

"My mommy"

"How about this one?"

Pumpkin painting... this got a little messy - for everyone...
But we brought home a (mostly dry) masterpiece!

Sean playing in one of the treehouses crossing the bridges

Evolution of Sean's Big Boy Room

Sean's Room - Before (taken during our inspection) - notice the beautiful pink shades and radiator!



Sean's Big Boy Room version 1!


Sean's Big Boy Room - version #2 - We decided to move his bed so he wasn't in the direct line of the bathroom light and next to the radiator. We also moved the rocking chair back into the nursery. The next version of Sean's room will include a train table by the window and hopefully a rug someday - but I think that will be the end of our decorating and redecorating!