More of our baby dude

Doesn't he look so sweet?Exactly 3 months old in this one!
Check out the shirt...."Daddy's Little Tough Guy"
Playing with Mickey.....Olivia brought him from Disney
I call this one 'fat head'. This hat is sized for a 3 month old baby, and it clearly doesn't even come close to fitting his head!
Hello again! Oden is now 3 months old. I swear he is getting bigger by the day! Only a little while longer and he will be sitting by himself, amoung other things. I can't wait for those days. I also can't wait for the day that he sleeps through the night! I'm dying over here!! I don't have anything else to say....hopefully I can go take a nap :)

Easter weekend

We had a great Easter weekend! Jess, Oden, and I had two days off together and it was wonderful! Saturday we went to Grammy Mary and Grandpa Scott's house. It was very exciting to introduce Oden to more family. We were also able to meet sweetest baby Chaela!! It was so funny to compare their sizes. Oden is much bigger compared to Chaela, who is about 2 months older than him. She is a little doll, and she was so happy the whole day! Oden was the opposite, grumpy all day! It was still so nice to see everyone. Then Sunday, we went to see all of Oden's other grandparents. It was a very full day, to say the least. We were glad that he snapped out of his bad mood by then. He was smiling and being the little sweetheart most of us know and love. I suppose everybody is allowed a bad day every once and a while. For everyone we were able to visit with, it was great to see you all and we hope to do it again soon! For everyone we missed, you were in our hearts and there in spirit! Enjoy the pictures! Oden's first Easter t-shirt
He was fighting with this duck at the table with Uncle Alex. It was adorable!
I love this picture!!
Chaela and Oden.....can you see the difference?!
Me and my favorite baby dude <3>

Report from the doctor

Oden had a doctors appointment this past Friday. He is doing great! He weighs a little over 12lbs., and is 24 inches long! The doctor said that he is in the 75 percentile for height, and 50 percentile for weight. He also has a pretty big head! He gets that from the Furr side of the family, we have extraordinarily large domes. She checked his little body and said we must be doing something right because he looks great. The little blister inside of his mouth is normal. It's probably from sucking back those bottles that are making him plump. She picked him up for a brief moment and cuddled him, which resulted in hives on the side of his head! Jess thinks the hives were from the paper on the bed, but I think they came from her sweater! They were gone quickly there after so no need to worry. Then came the worst part, his first set of shots. Prior to the event, I didn't think I'd be able to stomach seeing Oden in pain. I had asked Jess to let me step out of the room if I needed to. When the time came, I couldn't do anything except be right by his side. Jess and I were on each side of him, comforting him the best we knew how. He did OK for the first one, but he knew what the second and third were bringing....PAIN! He really wailed for them. I couldn't wait to scoop him up off the table when it was all done. He did alright for the remainder of the morning and early afternoon, he slept for most of it. Then I had to drop him off at Grandpa Tom and Grandma Dee Dee's house so I could work. They reported that he was a little crabby throughout the day. I felt so sad for little Oden. I just made sure to cuddle him more than normal (if that's possible) when we got home, and into the next day. By Saturday, he was still a little moody here are there, but he got through it. Overall, it wasn't the most pleasant experience of my life but I know that it had to be done. I'm glad that it's over for now, and we know what to expect for next time. His next appointment is in 2 months.

Oden's video debut

After several failed attempts, I finally got a video to load! It's not super exciting, I just wanted everyone to see him moving around and smiling :) Sorry that I sound ridiculous in the background. I hope that everyone's baby talk is as funny as mine.

Hope you like it!

Baby sweetness

Jess took this picture, it's my new favorite!This outfit looks so cute on himMore tummy time pictures.....they're everyones favorite!

Oden had his 10 week birthday yesterday. It's hard to believe how old he is. He is getting so big and smart. We have started to put him in the crib at night. He sleeps pretty good for about 5 hours, then he's up. When he gets up he will not go back in the crib, I think he doesn't deep sleep after that. So he comes into our bed and in my arms. I am still waiting for the night that he sleeps longer then 5 hours. That will be a great day. I've heard between 3 and 6 months they start sleeping longer. So hopefully soon!!! Other then that, we are getting very excited for his first Easter! We already bought him a cute bunny and I'm ordering him a Bumbo on-line tonight. Two words for you.......spoiled rotten. He's so sweet though, how could he not melt your heart?

Blog 2

Hello everyone! This is my second entry to our wonderful blog we've created for our little fella. I can't believe he is nine weeks old. It seems like only yesterday that we were trekking our way through the clustered maze of cars on our rush to the hospital. And it's now only a meer memory, Tiff and her tum, feeling for kicks, or eating till we had to loosen our belts. He's here now, Oden's home. Maybe its me, but I already miss those times of "newborn-babyism." He's so big, so strong, and so smart. It baffles my mind how advanced a baby becomes in nine short weeks. He blossomed from a quiet, fragile, still baby boy into a loud, energetic, smart little boy. I can remember how intriguing I found it when he was able to smile somewhat on cue. Now I am able to get him to smile at any time with a couple of his favorite phrases. He can hold his head up by himself. He's rolled over twice and he's eating small amounts of solid food! Nine weeks! The time seems almost like an illusion when you look at it from the stand point of his development. It's as if it doesn't exist, nine weeks feels like nine minutes. I just know I'm gonna be one of those disheveled parents when it comes time to take him to school the first time, or when I see him off to prom, when I move him into his dorm room. I never want these times to end, I know they must, I just find it amazing how blank his canvas is. Everyday seeing something new or partaking in an event that he has never done or bore witness to. His brand new eyes are viewing everything for the very first time. It makes me think of my childhood and how wonderful it must have been. The gentleness and fragility of new sights, sounds, smells, and touches that every new day brings. Everything he comes in contact with makes him light up with wonder and excitement. That's amazing. At this stage in his life everything is special and new, that must be an incredible feeling to have everyday. I too am getting excited at each new step he advances through. Soon he will be walking and talking, and I can't wait. All in all I have to say that he is the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me, and I think Tiff would echo those setiments as well. We love him so much and our so proud that we were able to create something so precious and wonderful.

Things are going great on the homefront as well. We're both busy at work, which makes us busy at home, but were both adjusting well. The only thing we find tough is our work schedules; Tiff works days and I work nights. We'll just say we welcome our weekends with open arms. The family's good, work is good, and the house is good. Really not much more you can ask for. Thanks again to all of you who have and will continue to give all of thier love and support. It makes us strong. Well, until next time, today was great but tomorrow will be even better!

cute pictures

Hopefully this will be good luck for next Bear's season.

Playing with mom on my tummy :)
Hanging out with my pal Sabrina in my cute robot onesie
Hammin' it up for dad
My buddy Rylan, do you like our matching outfits?

FOR MARY BUSH

This blog is especially for our cousin Mary Bush. She got this outfit for Oden by herself. It was really special to us so we wanted to share it with everyone. It fits him perfectly right now so we are trying to let him wear it as much as possible before he grows out of it. This is the first collared shirt he's ever worn! So cute! THANK YOU MARY! We heart you!

OUR CUTIE PIE, 7 weeks old :)

Here's some more pictures for all of you Oden addicts. Hopefully this will satisfy your fix. j/k He's 7 weeks old today!!! The picture on top shows him in the Pumas that Kevin bought for him. They fit him perfectly right now so we're trying to let him wear them as much as possible. He is growing out of everything so fast. The second and third pics are of him and the onesie that Heather made. In case you can't see, the front reads "Hello my name is Oden Joseph" and on the back there's caution tape across the butt. It's so cute! Can you see him lifting his head too? He's getting so strong. The last pic is of my favorite onesie so far, STUD MUFFIN! I think I added about 100 pictures to my library this past week. He has become so photogenic.

Other then pictures, there is not much to share. He did have 2 diaper messes this past week. You know, the ones that get all over you and his clothes! Those were fun! I think we were using cheap diapers (Pampers). We switched to Huggies and they seem to fit his bottom better. I added prune baby food to a couple of his bottles this week because he was having trouble pooping. It definately helps and he loves it! He tends to get mad at me if I pull those bottles away to burp him.

I hope that everyone had a Happy Valentine's Day. :)

From the weekend

Busy, busy, and busy! That's the best way to describe our schedule lately. It's crazy, but in a good way most of the time. We were able to fit in lots of family visits this weekend. The top picture is from bathtime. As you can tell the #1 diapers are still a bit large on him. We had to go up a size because the newborn diapers were getting snug. Friday night I worked in the morning so I had the night off. My mom and brothers came over for a visit. Marshall ended up spending the night and he had lots of fun posing and playing with Oden. He even fed him a whole bottle by himself! This was a first! It was very cute (that's the last picture). Then Saturday was busy. We took our first shopping trip as a family. We went to Kohl's to exchange a couple of outfits for bigger sizes. It was very stressful! He satrted fussing the minute we got in the baby section. Needless to say it was a very short trip. From there were went to Grandpa Joe and Grandma Lauras house. Jess and I took some great pictures of the family with Oden. The 3rd and 4th pictures are the best ones we have of Olivia and Alex to date. We took a lot more, but I can only post so many on the blogspot :) It was nice visiting and dinner was delicious. Then we went to Grandma Kitty and Grandpa Mike's house. It was card night. My family gets together ocassionally to play 31. This time we played another game called "LRC" I think that's what it's called. Anyways, that was a lot of fun. The picture of Heather and Oden (#2) is another one of my favorites. We also took lots of pictures that night. It was a fun day overall. We got home kind of late, but it was worth it. Sunday we kind of layed low. I worked all night so we didn't do much then either. Jess and Oden got some quality daddy/son time though! He's starting to fuss so for now...BYE!

New pictures

Howdy Everybody! I don't have much new news for you. He has been VERY crabby these last two days and we're not sure why. Mommy is the only one who can make him feel better. Today I had to come home from work early because Jess said he cried for 3 hours straight. Other then that, he is growing so much! He is so long and his little cheeks are getting chubby! His next doctor appointment is early March so I can't wait to see exactly how much he's grown. Grandma Dee Dee and Nicole came over to babysit this weekend. I love the picture above of Nicole and Oden. Aren't they so sweet? Enjoy the pics!

Just want to say I love our parents!!

Hello everybody! I just wanted to take a few minutes to show my appreciation to all of Oden's grandparents. Without whom, Jess and I would not have ever gotten to this point in our lives. Thank you all for being there for us. Through thick and thin you have stood by us, together and individually. From changing our diapers, to dealing with our teenage years, and our 'rocky' stages, we weren't always the easiest to deal with. Yet through it all you were able to raise two people who feel confident enough to raise a little person of their own. I know that based on our experiences watching all of you, we will do a great job. In addition to the fact that he has great role models. He will look up to you one day and admire all of you like I do. Thank you so much for everything you've done and everything you continue to do. Your love and support means the world!

My First Blog

Hey everyone! This is my first blog to the web page (Finally!), Tiff will be so proud of me. I just want to take a little bit of space to thank everyone for their help the last 10 or so months. Its been a crazy year but crazy in a good way. I would like to start by extending our deepest gratitude's to both of our families for all the amazing contributions each and everyone made getting the house ready for our new arrival. With out the help of people like Tom, Tiff's dad, who was the first one there with crowbar in hand ready and willing to help me rip out that stubborn tile and his generous know-how with our bathroom endeavors. Also Joe, my dad, with his anything you need attitude, who spent many hours tackling blinds, towel bars, toilet seats, you name it. Tiff's sisters Heather, with her Van Gough like work painting Oden's bedroom, Nicole, Stephanie, and Sara for their strong arms and healthy legs getting us moved in. My Step mom Laura for her organizational skills and her great taste. Tiff's Step mom deb for her special attention cleaning our many messes. My brother Alex for taking time to come home from Western for a weekend to get down with a paintbrush. Tiff's Stepfather Mike, for the handy work on the doorknobs, doors, and over-the-range. My mom, for dealing with her "OCD-like" son while he and his lovely lady moved into their house. Tiff's mom for her open-mindedness with the whole situation and her help with the move. My Step dad Scott, for his help getting the laundry room floor in before the washer and dryer came and his carpenter skills with the quarter round. Tiff's brothers Michael and Marshall for their tetris like skills packing and unpacking the vehicles during move in day. My sisters Maggie and Olivia for organizing and opening things up in Oden's room. To my Uncle Dave and his tireless efforts and countless hours he spent putting our beautiful laminate floor in. And to my buddy Jake for spending a whole Saturday busting his tail to help me paint. And to everyone else that I may have forgotten your support and love is so wonderful. Okay, whew! I would also like to give everyone who was with us for the birth of our amazing son Oden Joseph a big high five and a pound it. All the visitors we had in the hospital and our house the following weeks really shows that we are cared for and loved. Thank you to everyone that was there for us in this amazing last year.

With that being said, I want to also take some time to thank my amazing mate Tiff for being the woman she is. A beautiful, supportive, loving, caring, amazing girl. A great mom to her son, who spends hours and hours just watching him and tending to his needs. While always remembering that I'm a big baby too and takes care of making me feel special. Your a great person Tiff and I am lucky to be with someone as brilliant as you. Thanks for being you.

In conclusion, for my first post, this was something I had been dying to do and could find no better forum than our public blog to display my gratefulness for every ones constant support of our new family. So thank you everyone for your time and generosity.

By the way-- I love being a father to our new boy. He's the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me. With the help of Tiffany I think he will have a wonderful, loving home to grow up in. I can't wait to teach him all the wonderful things of life (cough, cough, sports). Everyday gets better and better, so until next time, today was great but tomorrow will be even better!

A Quick Hello!

Hi! Just wanted to post a few nice, new pics before the weekend. The one on top is my new favorite! His eyes are so bright when they're open. The last pic is from the visit to Grammy's house on Sunday. A day filled with chili, football, and family. It doesn't get much better then that!

We had an exciting week!

We had quite an eventful week! Monday we had a doctor appointment. Oden is now 8 lbs and 21.5 inches long! He is growing so fast. The doctor said to keep doing what we're doing now because he looks perfect. Then, Tuesday morning his cord finally came off! Thank goodness! That took forever and it looked all dried up and yucky. Jess was at work when it happened so I put the cord in his drawer to surprise him when he got home. It was so funny! Wednesday Oden had his first babysitter. It was only for an hour or so. I ran to Target and Babies'r'us and my mom came over to watch him. It went good, he just slept the whole time. I don't remember what night it was but, Jess and I had our first glass of wine this week. That was nice to sit and relax with each other and our little one. I love family moments! Then today I gave him his first big boy bath in his tub! Up to this point I was just sponge bathing him. He seemed to like it, and it was a lot quicker for me! So overall, we had a pretty good week. He has his crabby moments and will get fussy with us but I think we're handling everything pretty well.

Time is really flying by! Oden will be 2 weeks old tomorrow! I can't believe how fast it's gone by already! He's doing so good. He is a sleepy little guy. He probably sleeps for about 19 hours a day, so we get to see his beautiful eyes sparingly. He is such a happy baby too. He is smiling all the time. Jess went back to work last week. It was tough, but we got through it. One day we'll win the lottery and never work again! Yeah right, maybe in my dream-land. I go back to work in 2 weeks. That is going to be a hard adjustment, but we'll deal with it when it comes. I hope your enjoying the pictures. I will be posting lots. I have about 300 pictures I could put on here. It's hard not to take pictures of him all the time.

We're home!!

I can't believe it's finally over! Over and beginning at the same time. The arrival of little Oden Joesph was amazing, and continues to be amazing everyday. Jess and I are both overwhelmed with a sense pure happiness. He arrived Sunday night at 11:37pm after about 8 total hours of labor. We arrived at Hinsdale Hospital around 6pm and I was 4 cm dialated, then we waited for my IV to hydrate me and I received my epidural around 8:30pm and I was 8 cm dialated at that point. After the epidural (which was as wonderful as everyone said) I started pushing around 11pm and he entered this world screaming only a short time later. We had a little scare with me after birth, but the doctors got everything figured out and I am fine. Jess is a very concerned father. He was so worried about me after delivery that I think he couldn't truly enjoy holding his son for the first time until he knew I was alright. The hospital stay was nice and comfortable. I don't know if that was due to the hospital staff or all of our families around loving us. Probably a little of both. Everyone was so excited to see him for the first time. We had lots of visitors and lots of love. The whole experience was amazing. The worst part was waiting to leave the hospital the last day, that and the car seat!! GRRR!! I hate car seats. The ride home was scary. The roads were bad from the snow and drifts. I was so worried that he was going to scream the whole ride home, but he slept peacefully like a little angel. The last few days have been crazy. The days are great. We have had lots of visitors, lots of smiles, and even more love. We are having a hard time adjusting to the sleepless nights. Right when you think you have a system or a handle on things, he changes it all. Not one night is the same, and it's a lot to handle when your already functioning with a limited amount of sleep. We'll figure it out. So far everything is going great. Jess is working on setting up the new computer, so I will post more pictures when I can load them from my camera. He is the cutest thing I have ever seen.