Max joined us on 12/30/08 at 6:18pm! He is 6 lbs 11 oz and 19.5 inches long. Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Friday, December 26, 2008
Nursery Pics
Ok, so everyone has asked for nursery pics. I know this will be a long post but I decided to wait until the nursery was complete to post pics. We just finished the last decoration in the nursery the other day so here it is - Baby Stowers nursery complete!!! Just waiting on our little Mountaineer to fill it.
Here is a pic of all of my Snoopy memorabilla over the years. The top left pic is a stamp collection of Snoopy that my Mom had professionally framed for me as a suprise. To the right of it is a clock with Baxter and Daisy's picture in it the his parents gave us a few years back as a present. The bottom left has a green picture that Chris made for me of Snoopy. The bottom right is a Snoopy and Woodstock picture that my girlfriend Kristina sent me awhile back for the nursery. The shelf my Dad made for my room when I was little and I just placed some Peanuts collectibles on it. The bunnies hanging from the shelf have hung in many, many houses over the years. My Dad first made them for my Grandma Mills and I have had them in every house / apartment I've lived in since. I can't tell you how many times he has painted them for me.
Here is a coat / clothing rack my Dad made for the baby. I cannot change the glare coming off the top of the rack because he put a lot of glitter and clear coat on it. One side has daytime Snoopy and one side has nighttime Snoopy. All of the Peanuts characters are running around the post. I took two shots, the first one is the nighttime one (above), the one below is daytime though I doubt you can see the difference with the glare. I have shelves in the background to put stuff on, just haven't decided what yet.
Here is a pic of the inside of the crib, sheets washed and ready and waiting on baby.
Here is a pic of the front of the crib. Paul and Kathy bought the crib and the mattress for us.
This is what pretty much started the decorations for the room. I always thought I would have my Mom turn this blanket into a wall hanging. It has all of my favorite colors on it, green, blue and yellow. I just always thought it would be a perfect centerpiece to a nursery.
Here is our WVU mobile, curtosey of our friends the Hattens in WV. I love the WVU bears hanging over the crib. To the left you can see our fish aquarium for the little one, from Roberta, one of the people Chris works with. It plays music and makes "ocean" sounds, very soothing!!! Almost puts me to sleep, it's remote controlled too so we don't even have to wake the baby to turn it on.
Here is a blanket my Mom made for the baby. She suprised us and gave this to us early on. It's dated July 2002. Chris and I were just married when she did this. She said she picked neutral colors and something she thought we would like - the puppy. We hadn't really talked kids yet and again, just got married. Didn't even have Baxter at this point. Mom said she just wanted to make a baby blanket just in case!
Here are two paintings of Baxter and Daisy that my Dad did. We hung them over the crib so it looks like they are watching over the baby. I think that they are going to love having a little one to play with and love.
This is the shelf on the other side of the nursery. I put all of the baby's books here.
There is another pic of the curtains my Mom made.
Here is an upclose shot of the curtains. You can barely see it, but on the yellow gingham border, she suprised me and embroided the initials MS - since either way (Max or Morgan) that will be the baby's initials. It is so subtle and looks really good. I fell in love with this material when I found it, again - all my favorite colors and just perfectly neutral.
Here is a pic of the glider my Mom and Dad bought for us. It is soooo comfortable and I love it because it's leatherette so I can just wipe it off. That is so key for me with my allergies, the pups and the baby. Just in the right corner you can see the dog's bed I left in there for them. There is a nightstand to the left with a cute lamp my parents got us of Snoopy and Charlie Brown. You can also see the shelves hanging up that my Dad made me when I was little. I think it's neat that those exact shelves used to hang in my room with my quilts and dolls on them. We hung one on each side of the window.
There are the name signs for the baby's door. Once we know which it is, my Dad will hang their name on the room.
I had to take a pic of this: Chris's family back in WV, his grandmother and two of his aunts sent an entire package of all WVU baby gifts. We loved this window cling but instead of putting it on the window where we wouldn't see it much, we put it above the light switch. It looks great there and you see it every time you are in the room.
You can't tell what this is but I took a picture of it anyway. My Mom and Dad worked hard on this as a suprise for my shower. They called Chris' family and got their info and they put together a 5 generation family tree. It's got everyone's name and who they married to lead to our baby. It's so amazing to see just how we got to this point. Chris and I bought the sign below it that says "All because two people fell in love". We thought it was just perfect to hang below the family tree because that's true - we got to this point because of 5 generations of people falling in love. Wow!
Here is the changing table. It's actually a hutch from Chris' childhood furniture but Paul (Chris' Dad) and I worked hard on making it become a changing table. We searched online for a long time to find a changing pad small enough to fit on there. It works great and we didn't have to buy one and it's really neat using Chris' childhood furniture. The only thing in the nursery we haven't hung yet are the WVU banners - for now I like seeing them on the table until we decide on the perfect place.
Here is the stork sign that my Mom said was her inspiration for my blue / pink baby shower. The green balloon says "A bundle of joy". But as soon as we know what the baby is, there is another balloon you hand over it that says either "It's a boy" or "It's a girl". Also the cloud right below it has a cloud that you attach with the baby's name, birthdate, weight, etc. The space right below the stork is where my Dad will hang the Max / Morgan nameplate you saw in the earlier pics. I think all kids should have their name on their door.
One final look at the nursery. Hope you all enjoyed getting to see it. I know that it's a lot of pics, but most of you will never be in Florida to see it firsthand so I wanted you to be able to be apart of it from far away.
Here is a pic of all of my Snoopy memorabilla over the years. The top left pic is a stamp collection of Snoopy that my Mom had professionally framed for me as a suprise. To the right of it is a clock with Baxter and Daisy's picture in it the his parents gave us a few years back as a present. The bottom left has a green picture that Chris made for me of Snoopy. The bottom right is a Snoopy and Woodstock picture that my girlfriend Kristina sent me awhile back for the nursery. The shelf my Dad made for my room when I was little and I just placed some Peanuts collectibles on it. The bunnies hanging from the shelf have hung in many, many houses over the years. My Dad first made them for my Grandma Mills and I have had them in every house / apartment I've lived in since. I can't tell you how many times he has painted them for me.
Here is a coat / clothing rack my Dad made for the baby. I cannot change the glare coming off the top of the rack because he put a lot of glitter and clear coat on it. One side has daytime Snoopy and one side has nighttime Snoopy. All of the Peanuts characters are running around the post. I took two shots, the first one is the nighttime one (above), the one below is daytime though I doubt you can see the difference with the glare. I have shelves in the background to put stuff on, just haven't decided what yet.
Here is a pic of the inside of the crib, sheets washed and ready and waiting on baby.
Here is a pic of the front of the crib. Paul and Kathy bought the crib and the mattress for us.
This is what pretty much started the decorations for the room. I always thought I would have my Mom turn this blanket into a wall hanging. It has all of my favorite colors on it, green, blue and yellow. I just always thought it would be a perfect centerpiece to a nursery.
Here is our WVU mobile, curtosey of our friends the Hattens in WV. I love the WVU bears hanging over the crib. To the left you can see our fish aquarium for the little one, from Roberta, one of the people Chris works with. It plays music and makes "ocean" sounds, very soothing!!! Almost puts me to sleep, it's remote controlled too so we don't even have to wake the baby to turn it on.
Here is a blanket my Mom made for the baby. She suprised us and gave this to us early on. It's dated July 2002. Chris and I were just married when she did this. She said she picked neutral colors and something she thought we would like - the puppy. We hadn't really talked kids yet and again, just got married. Didn't even have Baxter at this point. Mom said she just wanted to make a baby blanket just in case!
Here are two paintings of Baxter and Daisy that my Dad did. We hung them over the crib so it looks like they are watching over the baby. I think that they are going to love having a little one to play with and love.
This is the shelf on the other side of the nursery. I put all of the baby's books here.
There is another pic of the curtains my Mom made.
Here is an upclose shot of the curtains. You can barely see it, but on the yellow gingham border, she suprised me and embroided the initials MS - since either way (Max or Morgan) that will be the baby's initials. It is so subtle and looks really good. I fell in love with this material when I found it, again - all my favorite colors and just perfectly neutral.
Here is a pic of the glider my Mom and Dad bought for us. It is soooo comfortable and I love it because it's leatherette so I can just wipe it off. That is so key for me with my allergies, the pups and the baby. Just in the right corner you can see the dog's bed I left in there for them. There is a nightstand to the left with a cute lamp my parents got us of Snoopy and Charlie Brown. You can also see the shelves hanging up that my Dad made me when I was little. I think it's neat that those exact shelves used to hang in my room with my quilts and dolls on them. We hung one on each side of the window.
There are the name signs for the baby's door. Once we know which it is, my Dad will hang their name on the room.
I had to take a pic of this: Chris's family back in WV, his grandmother and two of his aunts sent an entire package of all WVU baby gifts. We loved this window cling but instead of putting it on the window where we wouldn't see it much, we put it above the light switch. It looks great there and you see it every time you are in the room.
You can't tell what this is but I took a picture of it anyway. My Mom and Dad worked hard on this as a suprise for my shower. They called Chris' family and got their info and they put together a 5 generation family tree. It's got everyone's name and who they married to lead to our baby. It's so amazing to see just how we got to this point. Chris and I bought the sign below it that says "All because two people fell in love". We thought it was just perfect to hang below the family tree because that's true - we got to this point because of 5 generations of people falling in love. Wow!
Here is the changing table. It's actually a hutch from Chris' childhood furniture but Paul (Chris' Dad) and I worked hard on making it become a changing table. We searched online for a long time to find a changing pad small enough to fit on there. It works great and we didn't have to buy one and it's really neat using Chris' childhood furniture. The only thing in the nursery we haven't hung yet are the WVU banners - for now I like seeing them on the table until we decide on the perfect place.
Here is the stork sign that my Mom said was her inspiration for my blue / pink baby shower. The green balloon says "A bundle of joy". But as soon as we know what the baby is, there is another balloon you hand over it that says either "It's a boy" or "It's a girl". Also the cloud right below it has a cloud that you attach with the baby's name, birthdate, weight, etc. The space right below the stork is where my Dad will hang the Max / Morgan nameplate you saw in the earlier pics. I think all kids should have their name on their door.
One final look at the nursery. Hope you all enjoyed getting to see it. I know that it's a lot of pics, but most of you will never be in Florida to see it firsthand so I wanted you to be able to be apart of it from far away.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Finally...9 Months & the Big Baby Name Reveal
Marianne came over on Saturday and took pictures for us - I am mid 36 weeks in the pictures which is the start of 9 months. Can't believe it's almost here. I am still due Jan 7, my birthday but we shall see. I think that Baby Stowers will make an earlier appearance, but I still can't tell the sex. I just keep waiting to see what it will be. Chris and I are very excited and anxious to meet our little one.
Here is a picture of my pregnant belly. I love how Marianne had us do this, making a heart and showing our wedding rings.
Here is a picture of the valance and roman shade in the nursery, handmade by my Mom. It's Snoopy - all green, yellow and blue. Beside me is a little clothing rack handmade and handpainted by my Dad. It has all the Peanuts characters running around the post with Snoopy on his dog house on top.
Here we are holding blocks with our choice for a baby girl's name. We decided on Morgan Taylor if the baby's a "she". Morgan after Morgantown, WV where Chris and I met, fell in love and married. We will always be Mountaineers and we thought it was a fitting name for a girl. Taylor came from months of baby letter scrabble. What we did was take my Mom's name (Laura Rose) and his Mom's name (Mary Kathyrn) and jumble up the letters to make her middle name. We decided on Taylor for several reasons - the letters came equally from my Mom's and his Mom's name and it's a great brand of guitars which we all know is one of Chris' loves.
Here's our choice for a baby boy's name: Max Stewart. We actually were watching a Simpson's episode (we LOVE the Simpsons) a while back and Homer had renamed himself Max Power. We kept saying that over and over because we thought it was sooo funny, then we realized Max Stowers was a great name for a boy. Very POWERFUL (haha) but it was the winner of all of our choices. Stewart obviously is my maiden name. It was important to us for Max to have this because I am an only child and we wanted him to still carry on my family name.
Here is Chris talking to the baby, which he does a lot. The baby usually kicks him in the cheek when he does this, it's our fun game. The baby likes when Chris plays guitar for it and when I play Beatles music. Also, I do play the baby the Mountaineer Music from THE PRIDE our marching band. It can't hurt right? This baby will be a Mountaineer tride and true. Lots of things in the nursery are WVU related: either from what we had/bought or lovely gifts from family and friends.
Happy family - waiting on Max or Morgan. Can't wait little baby - we're ready. Let's GO Mountaineer and get this show on the road.
Here is a picture of my pregnant belly. I love how Marianne had us do this, making a heart and showing our wedding rings. 
Here is a picture of the valance and roman shade in the nursery, handmade by my Mom. It's Snoopy - all green, yellow and blue. Beside me is a little clothing rack handmade and handpainted by my Dad. It has all the Peanuts characters running around the post with Snoopy on his dog house on top.
Here we are holding blocks with our choice for a baby girl's name. We decided on Morgan Taylor if the baby's a "she". Morgan after Morgantown, WV where Chris and I met, fell in love and married. We will always be Mountaineers and we thought it was a fitting name for a girl. Taylor came from months of baby letter scrabble. What we did was take my Mom's name (Laura Rose) and his Mom's name (Mary Kathyrn) and jumble up the letters to make her middle name. We decided on Taylor for several reasons - the letters came equally from my Mom's and his Mom's name and it's a great brand of guitars which we all know is one of Chris' loves.
Here's our choice for a baby boy's name: Max Stewart. We actually were watching a Simpson's episode (we LOVE the Simpsons) a while back and Homer had renamed himself Max Power. We kept saying that over and over because we thought it was sooo funny, then we realized Max Stowers was a great name for a boy. Very POWERFUL (haha) but it was the winner of all of our choices. Stewart obviously is my maiden name. It was important to us for Max to have this because I am an only child and we wanted him to still carry on my family name.
Here is Chris talking to the baby, which he does a lot. The baby usually kicks him in the cheek when he does this, it's our fun game. The baby likes when Chris plays guitar for it and when I play Beatles music. Also, I do play the baby the Mountaineer Music from THE PRIDE our marching band. It can't hurt right? This baby will be a Mountaineer tride and true. Lots of things in the nursery are WVU related: either from what we had/bought or lovely gifts from family and friends.
Happy family - waiting on Max or Morgan. Can't wait little baby - we're ready. Let's GO Mountaineer and get this show on the road.
Baby Shower
Here is a picture of some of the decorations at the shower. My Mom hosted my shower - complete suprise to my on the colors, theme, etc. She had a stork wall hanging she had sewn up and you attach either a blue or pink balloon to it. She said that lead her in the decision to do a pink and blue shower. There were pink and blue balloons with the baby's name hanging from there, M&Ms, "It's a boy" and "It's a girl" Hershey's kisses, etc. Everything looked beautiful and it was all quite a suprise. The baby received lots of wonderful gifts which helped us complete our nursery. 
Mom and Me
Here is the head table with Mom, me, Kathy (Chris' Mom) and Lori (Chris' sister). We all had a great time. Lori and Marianne helped my Mom out A LOT with the shower.
Here is the beautiful cake Lori MADE for me. The bottom layer was white cake with starfruit filling and white buttercream frosting. The top layer was for me - made with Splenda and all chocolate!! It was soooo good. I think the baby carriage is too cute.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
More Puppy Fun
Here is Daisy snuggling on their bed I put in the nursery. I wanted Baxter & Daisy to still have a special place that they could call their own. It seems to be working, for the most part. They realize that their bed is ok to be in but not in the baby's things. We shall see how long this lasts.
Here I am around 33-34 weeks which is mid 8 months. Baxter wants very little to do with my belly, he doesn't like being kicked. He is such a paranoid dog anyway, he doesn't like leaning up on it because something kicks him and he can tell it's not me. Daisy on the other hand would lay down anywhere. She will huff and puff when the baby moves because it's moving her, but she won't dare give up her spot. So, now you all have a pic of my pregnant belly.
Here is Baxter on a pile of the baby's receiving blankets. I was sorting laundry to wash all of the baby's things and found him asleep amongst the mound. The seem to be getting used to all of the new things coming into our house and all the commotion in / around the nursery. We'll just have to wait and see how the take to the baby.
On another note, I promise to get shower pics posted soon. I just don't have them ready yet, but when they are - up they will go.
Update on my health / Baby Stowers status: I am currently in my 36th week (start of 9 month). I know I got a few weeks behind on the blog posts. Anyway, I am now on mandatory bed rest. I tried to keep working but ended up back in the OB ER again with another round of preterm contractions. They gave me meds again to stop them but left me with no choice this time - BED REST! So, since Wed of this week I have been at home going stir crazy. Baby looks great they say and it's ok for me to deliver at any point now.
More to come :)
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