Welcome Ashton Lee Halpin!

After 9 weeks of bed rest, five "false alarm" trips to the hospital and a lot of worry we finally welcomed our second little angel into this world. Ashton Lee Halpin made his grand appearance on February 20 at 1:59 PM. 4 weeks early he was a peanut weighing 5# 10 oz and was 18 1/2" long. I had a pretty easy delivery- only laboring for 2 hours. In fact, the nurse told me if we hadn't have come in when we did I might have had the baby at home! It is amazing to be a mommy again and when we met Ashton for the first time it was instant love all over again. Such a sweet little thing! I always wondered if there was enough love to go around but now that he is here I realize that you can love all of your children equally and they each bring their own unique joy into your life!

Watching Parker meet his little brother was a memory I will cherish forever- he was so sweet and when he ran into the room he melted my heart. He looked so grown up as he jumped up into bed with me and kissed Ashton's little hands and feet. He was so proud and kept saying "Hi sweet baby" and "he's so tiny!" We can't wait to see the two boys grown up together and create many beautiful memories!

Ice chips are the best- Where's my epidural?

What a miracle he is!

5#, 10 oz and sweet as can be!

In love with this sweet face already!

Our new addition!

Snuggles!

Proud Daddy!

Meeting Uncle Drew

Nana & Uncle Drew

"Auntie" Ali

Meeting Big Brother

I will cherish this memory forever!

So precious to see them together!

Proud Big Brother

After first bath- all clean but not very happy!

Dr. Hood was a GREAT coach- we were in the best of hands the whole way through!

Family Photos

One thing I really wanted to get done this time around was a maternity photo shoot so I could capture some touching shots of Parker and Patrick with my blooming belly! With everything that has been going with my pregnancy and bed rest I wasn't holding out much hope that we would get these shots...however, "Dozer" was able to hang on long enough so we could capture my pregnancy at 35 weeks. I am so happy about the way these shots turned out!

Grandpa, Grandma & Fozzy Bear visit from CA!

Last week we had a visit from Grandpa & Grandma Fosdick and their doggy, Fozzy Bear. G&G live in San Diego and decided to travel East to Florida for a Chevy convention. They drove their beautiful, mint condition 56 Chevy cross-country and stopped along the way to spend a week spoiling all of us. Parker loved all of the extra attention and play time thanks to Grandma. Him and Fozzy Bear also became fast friends- they are just the perfect size for each other.

I love all of these fun, candid shots Grandma got during their stay. Parker is growing up so quickly and we know he will make the best big brother when Ashton gets here!

Saying goodbye....don't go!

Nap time fun

Sporting his new potty watch

He always has a drink in his hand- starting young :)

Grandpa Bud, Grandma Barb & Fozzy Bear

Such a big boy- where has the time gone?!

Our child is ALL BOY

So grown up- wants to do everything himself/his way

He was very attached to G&G's cooler- he took it everywhere with him, despite the fact that it was so heavy he could barely carry it. He had it filled with all kinds of treasures

Being silly

Monkey Man- loves his bananas

Walking Fozzy Bear

Our Couples "Sprinkle"

As I often blog, we have the greatest group of friends!!! Since this was our second baby BOY I really didn't except a shower this time around. There really isn't a whole lot of gear or clothing we need...but Ali, Marybeth and Jenni decided differently and hosted Patrick and I a "Sprinkle."

I have to share the wording from our invite because it was just so cute: Wipes, diapers, bottles galore, Angela and Patrick are having one more! Big brother Parker has plenty to share, This is just a " sprinkle" to show them we care. Please join us to celebrate their little cutie, And bring him some diapers to cover his booty!

Our special evening was held at one of our favorite restaurants, Stella's Southern Bistro. We were surrounded by many of our closest friends who gathered to celebrate baby Ashton. A HUGE thank you to everyone for such a memorable evening.

The hostesses- Ali, Marybeth & Jenni. They didn't leave out one detail

Our first night "out" in 8 weeks- notice the HUGE smiles!

My true life-saver, Ali. She's "On Call" whenever Ashton decides to make his big debut!

The men- I think they managed to enjoy themselves and even into the spirit playing the Baby Name game!


The hot ladies- I feel so loved!!!

I LOVE this cake...so me!



John was hilarious...he gave a cute little speech. First, he mentioned to our guests that since there was a question regarding Parker's paternity (since he looks nothing like Patrick), that they decided that they would conduct a paternity test for Ashton right then and there. He told everyone that they were currently collecting samples from their used glassware and that the results would be in by the end of the evening. Too funny! Lots of laughs were shared by all. Thank you Mr. Nagle for being the highlight of the night!

Bed Rest Fun!

Well...I've made it. 8 weeks and counting since I was put on bed rest and we're happy to report that Ashton has decided to stay in long enough to grow and get healthy. Now that we are just days away from 36 weeks, the doctors are thrilled we've made it this far. Every day from here is just icing on the cake.

I've gotten a lot of questions from people asking me how in the world I have laid in bed for 8 weeks. Although not easy I have managed to stay busy, accomplishing a lot of things that have been on my "To-do List" for quite a while and I also found varying my activities each day helped pass the hours. I'll admit, I did do A LOT of online shopping but in addition, here is a "short list" of what I did to keep myself busy:

- Read a total of 7 books
- Knitted 4 scarves
- Completed our Cancun shutterfuly book (from our April trip), started two other books and finally got our blog completely updated including pictures from 6 months ago
- Pinned 358 ideas on pinterest...of which at least 300 probably will never come to fruition
- Ate 4 boxes of milk Duds and an uncountable amount of hot tamales...my only real pregnancy craving

But seriously...I owe my "survival" to my wonderful husband, great friends and many visits from my mom and a week visit with Grandpa and Grandma Fosdick. Patrick has selflessly taken on the role of Daddy, Mommy, maid, chef, dog walker and much more. We are so lucky he has taken such good care of us all. Thank you! I NEVER would have made it this far without your support, constant care and your catering to my every whim and need.


Lunch in bed with my little man- when I look at him I realize this is all worth it!

Playing Elmo...he's mastered the computer and iPad