Finally! I Got It!

Or should I say, "We got it!" Teamwork is key. It took some time, but we finally got a good picture of Caleb smiling. Ryan's singing to Caleb so he's not distracted by the funny looking, big, black thing in front of me. So here's a "Merry Christmas!" wish from the Bishop family.

Marshman Photo Shoots - 2008 and 2009

We have been blessed by the talents of some sweet friends of ours two years in a row now! Jeff and Rachel Marshman are both such gifted photographers--what a unique thing in a marriage!

Jeff did a photo shoot for us (and Wally) last fall, as well as for many other couples in our Sunday school class. This fall, Rachel did a photo shoot for us (and Caleb). What a sweet couple they are! They both made everything lots of fun, and we were so excited about how the pictures turned out! For more information on the Marshmans' gifts, visit their website at Magnolia Road Photography.

It's really fun to see how much our lives have changed in the last year! I mean this time last year, we were still just praying for the child we longed to have but now we're having photo shoots with him! Praise the Lord for his kindness to us!

Fall 2008 by Jeff Marshman

Fall 2009 by Rachel Marshman

Thank you so much, Marshmans, for blessing us in this way!

3 Months!

This is a couple days late, but happy 3 month birthday, sweet Caleb! Time with you keeps flying by, and this month was a fun one. You are smiling so much now. Unless you're tired, all it takes is us smiling at you and you smile right back. We discovered this month how much you love it when we sing silly, made-up songs to you. You can be crying, but when we (especially your daddy) start singing, you'll often start smiling instead. Sadly, I have yet to get a good picture of you smiling. I've gotten a few little grins, but not the big, heart warming smiles you usually give. Hopefully we'll have a picture of one for next month.

You are happiest right after (or while) you eat, especially before and after your diaper change. Your daddy sometimes comments on how long it takes me when I go in to change your diaper, but it's because we spend so much time talking and smiling to one another.

You typically eat five times a day (around 3.5 hours apart), and you've been consistently going around 10 hours between your feedings at night. I think maybe you've been going through a growth spurt the last few days, though, partly because you've been waking up after about 8 hours. I went to put a newborn sleeper on you recently--one you wear fairly regularly, however, when I started to put it on, I realized it was a few inches too short! You started wearing your first 3 month old clothes a couple weeks ago, but it looks like your legs are going to be too long for those pretty soon.

Though we haven't gotten a smile out of you during bath time yet, you're relaxed and seem to enjoy it. After your bath on your 3 month birthday, your daddy was rubbing on your back while I was holding you, and you let out your first giggles. You kept doing it, but when we finally got the video camera out and recording, you wouldn't do it anymore. We hope to hear more and more giggles from you, little one.

You still love your Bumbo seat and have even fallen asleep in it a couple of times. When we put you in your bouncer, you'll often immediately start smiling at the animals moving around on it.

You're getting stronger and stronger. People often comment on how good your head control is, as well as how alert you are. You seem to enjoy standing up on us, as we hold you for balance. Your arms are always going, and you often touch your head or suck on your fingers while playing around.

You are also really good at following us with your eyes as we walk around the room.

Dr. Posnansky recommended you start taking vitamins when we went in for your 2 month checkup. I imagine your vitamins taste as bad as it smells and looks because you hate it! It's usually a 2 person job. I hold you, and your daddy uses the dropper to put it into your mouth. Within the last week or so, you've learned how to spit most of it back out after we give it to you. It's going to take some creativity to figure out how to get that stuff in you, but here you are with your first "vitamin mustache".

Caleb, you are such a joy! It's so much fun getting to see more and more of your personality. You are a happy baby, and we're so very thankful that you're ours.

Click here for more 3 month pictures.

The Topper for Our Christmas Tree

As I put a crown of thorns at the top of our Christmas tree this year, I was struck once again by what Jesus did for me. Knowing a crown of thorns similar to this one sat on his head, likely digging into his skin, breaks my heart. These thorns are so big, so long and so very sharp. Thank you, Lord, for the punishment you endured in my place!

One of the Coolest Experiences of My Life

Ryan and I have a tradition of buying a Christmas ornament to remind of us of events throughout the year. For example, when we go on vacation, we try and buy an ornament that is specific to the place we visited or of an event we did there. As I was putting up our Christmas tree the other day, I was reminded of our vacation to the Big Island (Hawaii) and Kauai this past summer. While on the Big Island, we did a night time snorkel tour that allowed us to swim with Manta Rays. I had no idea what to expect, but this experience was absolutely amazing!

Manta rays are up to 16ft long and 20 ft wide, and they weigh up to 3000lbs! I mean, these things are ENORMOUS! They feed mainly on plankton and small fish, and when feeding, they swim in a vertical loop. I was so excited (and a little scared) when they started swimming right in front of us. We weren't allowed to touch them, and I'm not kidding when I say I had to suck my pregnant belly in so they didn't brush up against me. We're talking just inches in front of our faces! Anyway, we didn't have an underwater camera or video camera, so I found this video online that gives you an idea of what we experienced. Absolutely breathtaking! Praise God for His creativity in forming these beautiful creatures!

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The Sosebees Visit!

Our dear friends, Eric and Jessica, drove up from Texas with Jessica's sister, Stancy, last month. We were so thankful to get to spend some time with them and are really glad they got to meet Caleb.

They were here during Halloween, so this is Caleb in his cub costume at a restaurant that night. Unfortunately these are the only two pictures I took that weekend.











Though our time with them was so brief, it was such a blessing to see them again. Sosebees, we miss y'all so much! Thanks for coming to see us!

Caleb's New Friend

We have been so blessed by the Giddens family over the last couple of years. We're really thankful for their friendship and for their service to us, especially since Caleb was born.

At this point in time, we are able to coordinate our work and Ryan's school schedules so that one of us is able to be home with Caleb. However, there have been two occasions in which we weren't able to do that. Thankfully, Kedra helped us out tremendously by watching Caleb both times. They have three BEAUTIFUL children, and the youngest, Luke, is just a few months older than Caleb. I'm excited for the day when the boys can actually play together, but for now, they were content just hanging out. Isn't Luke adorable!?



Thank you again, Giddens family!

The Blisses Visit!

A few weeks ago, my grandparents, dad and stepmom all came to visit from Colorado. It was sweet watching Caleb meet more grandparents and even his great grandparents. Thank y'all for coming to see us!

Caleb, the Bear Cub

One of my favorite looks for Caleb recently has been in his bear cub costume that my dad and Janet gave us. It's fitting because we now have Wally, whom we sometimes call "Bear", and Caleb, whom we sometimes (even prior to this costume) call "Cub". Anyway, I know there are a lot of pictures here, but it was hard to just pick a few. Here's more of our little Cub:

2 Months!

This is almost a week late, but here's a recap of our little boy's first 2 months.

Sweet Caleb! I can't believe you're already 2 months old. I just can't get over how quickly our time with you has flown by. I didn't write much on your 1 month recap, so we'll start from the beginning.

My pregnancy with you was an easy one. The time went by remarkably fast, and before we knew it, you were ready to come out. After 39 weeks 3 days, 15 hours 45 minutes of labor and an hour of pushing, you came into this world. We were a little worried that everything would go ok with the delivery since you were turned face up until the very last minute. There had also been evidence of meconium when they broke my water, so there was some concern that it could have entered your lungs while you were still in the womb. At 3:13pm we were able to meet you, Caleb Ryan Bishop. What a joy you were from the start! There were absolutely no complications with delivery, and you took your first breath on your own without any problems. Both of your APGAR scores were a 9. When they set you on the scale, we were all a little surprised to see that you weighed 8lb 10 oz and were 21" long. (Dr. Johnson predicted that morning by feeling my stomach that you would weigh maybe 7.5lbs.)

You were so precious, conehead and all. When they placed you in my arms, it was the most remarkable feeling. I was finally able to see and hold you! I loved seeing you in your daddy's arms too.

From day 1, you did a great job eating and sleeping. On the night before we left the hospital, though, you were diagnosed with jaundice. We were able to leave the hospital on time but were sent home with a "light box" to help treat you. It was so difficult leaving you in that light box. You hated it and hated not being swaddled and held. Those first few days at home were tough as we went from the light box to the light blanket to both and back to the light blanket. We went daily to get your blood drawn for 3 days. Finally, we were given the ok to discontinue all phototherapy treatment because you were in the clear.

We also had your tongue clipped when you were just 5 days old. I'm thankful we did it for many reasons, but one reason became evident when you discovered your tongue a few weeks ago. You play with it quite a bit, which has been fun to watch.

You were back up to your birth weight after only 1 week and have grown steadily ever since. At your 1 month checkup (which was actually done at 5 weeks), you were 11lb 22.5" long, and at your 2 month checkup, you were 12lb 6oz and 24" long. You have stayed in the 75th percentile for height and are now in the 50-75th percentile for weight--Dr. Posnansky likes to say that you're very well proportioned.

You were holding your head up on your own by 2 weeks. We had seen many of your "sleep smiles", but I first saw an "awake smile" on October 10. Boy how that toothless grin warms my heart--especially in those early morning hours! You've been consistently going 6 hours between your feedings at night since you were 5 weeks, and now are going 6-8 hours every night.

You LOVE your bouncer (thanks, Sosebees!), and for the most part enjoy tummy time. You tried your Bumbo seat for the first time right before you turned 8 weeks, and you look like such a little man when you sit in it! (By the way, Caleb is wearing a diaper in this picture, even though you can't see it. :) )

You are smiling and talking more and more. Sometimes it seems that you'll mimic the sounds we make to you. I love when we can go back and forth with you making noises.

You've even started to enjoy your baths more--at least you're not crying through them any more.

You're starting to grown out of your newborn clothes, which is both exciting and a little sad. We love you in this stage--so sweet, cuddly and small. We hear each stage gets better and better, though.

Click here to see more pictures from Caleb's first 2 months.

A Sweet Sight

Recent CRB

Brandon, Jill and the Kids Visit!

We were so thankful to have Brandon, Jill, Joshua, Aby and Isabel come to meet Caleb a couple weeks ago. It was a very short visit but a lot of fun, nonetheless. The kids were so sweet to their new nephew. While they were here, we went to Waterfront Park, which is a park along the Ohio River that has a huge playground for the kids. There is also a large hill that Brandon and Joshua decided to roll down. It was such a fun and beautiful day.

Thanks for coming to visit, y'all. We miss you!

Lightroom2

For my birthday earlier this year, Ryan got me Lightroom 2, which is a photo-editing software program. I'm still in the very early stages of figuring it out, but I'm excited about what I've learned so far. Check out the before and after pictures below.

BEFORE












AFTER

Huber Farm 2009

Last week, Ryan, Caleb and I headed out to Huber Farm in Indiana. It's a farm that allows you to pick your own fruits and vegetables. They also have a restaurant, where we ate lunch, and a petting zoo and play area for the kids. Since Caleb is a little young for that, we walked around the pumpkin patch instead. Praise the Lord for beautiful fall weather and colorful leaves!

Praise the LORD!!

I was tremendously blessed with an extremely easy pregnancy--no nausea or morning sickness. We have now been tremendously blessed with an easy baby boy, who is a great eater and sleeper. On Friday, our pediatrician gave us the ok to let Caleb go 6 hours (he had been going 5 hours) between his late night and middle of the night feeding. I am happy to report that Caleb has slept like a champ and has gone 6 hours between feedings for the last 3 nights! Never would I have guessed that we would have a 5 week old sleeping that long. Our son is spoiling us rotten!!

One Month!

I can't believe our little boy is already a month old! Well, he's actually 5 weeks now. It's crazy to me that it's been that long since he was born, but at the same time it's getting harder to remember life without him.

Caleb had his one month check-up today and is doing great. He is now 22.5" and 11 lbs. This puts him in the 75th percentile for both height and weight, which is where he was at birth too.

Caleb started cooing and making fun little sounds about a week ago, which has been really fun. He's been holding his head up on his own for a few weeks now and seems to be getting stronger by the day.

Praise the Lord for the last 5 weeks! They've been some of the best of our lives!

Photo Shoot

I have been trying to learn how to use our new camera but haven't gotten very far in the process. Caleb was lucky enough to get to be my guinea pig for some of it recently. These pictures were taken with our older camera.

The pictures below were taken with our new camera. I have no idea what the majority of the settings mean, so there was way too much light in most of the pictures. However, I thought some of them turned out pretty cool, even though it was an accident. I managed to get a pretty good picture of one of Caleb's "sleep smiles." Too cute!